Chapter 17 - Teachers

Perhaps the madman has, he thought to himself irritably. By the time they stopped for lunch, Alldeh had soiled himself. Though the priest had dealt with it without complaint, it had cost them more time before they were back on the road again. Ullden found himself wondering if the man wouldn't just learn to relieve himself properly if they just let him sit in it for a while. Then he chided himself, realizing that Alldeh might have already been doing just that before they'd stopped for lunch. The man's mind was obviously shattered. Ullden couldn't really see what help he was going to be to the group.

Even more frustrating was the realization that he was going to be playing "teacher" for the journey, to nearly all of the people traveling with him. While he suspected Niza could handle herself except for horsemanship, he knew her type. He had pegged her as a thief already, and made sure to secure his coins where she'd be less able to get to them. He'd seen her like before, she was always watching her surroundings, looking for opportunity. He suspected that when trouble arose she'd be the first in hiding. That, at least, would make her easier to manage. She wasn't going to get in the way when it came time to fight.

Jetha worried him. The girl had fled the first time they'd encountered trouble, which was a reasonable enough response, considering her background. She was spoiled, however, and required instruction for nearly everything. Ullden almost wished the priest had let the boy at the church come with them, if just to help set up Jetha's tent. The girl meant well, and seemed eager to learn how to do things herself, but he'd yet to figure out how to tell her that her constant questions kept him from hearing incoming trouble. While he didn't want to be rude to the girl, who so obviously wanted his approval, he didn't want to miss hearing horses or the wings of some other demon until it was on top of them.

The priest worried him more, however. Ullden had plenty of respect for the clergy, but Father Marus was wearing the garb of a warrior priest now when he obviously had never hurt anyone in his life. There was no way of judging how the man would react when danger set upon them, and there'd been nothing said about whether the priest knew any of the battle prayers that warrior priests used. Ullden decided he'd ask Marus when they next made camp. He needed to know if the man was good for anything other than healing and perhaps herding the others away from the danger. He couldn't rely on the man's sword unless Marus turned out to have a knack for it and learned quickly.

Then there was the issue of Marus' protective guard over Alldeh. If Alldeh proved to be a problem, Ullden still couldn't be sure that Marus would be willing to take measures to keep the rest of the group safe. Ullden couldn't be sure if Alldeh was also a possible danger to them. Jetha seemed nervous around him already. While the man seemed easy enough to put down without killing if he attacked someone, Jetha seemed to think the man had been a powerful wizard once. That made Ullden very nervous indeed. He would rather have had Marus keep the man under some herbal influence for as much time as possible.

The first day of travel, however, went without any real incident. They followed the roads as much as possible, to help speed the progress of the wagon. He pushed them forward well into the evening before Father Marus began to question if they should consider stopping for the night yet.

"For a few days we're going to need to cover as much ground as possible," Ullden explained as he kept them moving a while longer yet. "If all that smoke we saw back there was the Elar, then they're not very far away. They can move faster than us if they want to, and that wagon leaves wheel ruts they can follow easily."

"Our safest bet," he added, "is to gain what distance we can to keep ahead of them. We should be pausing to rest the horses more than resting ourselves. We can rest some in the saddle, but if we hurt the horses that'll slow us down a lot."

They covered another hour or so before it really was time to stop. He wanted to set up camp before it was very dark. While he would have preferred another three or more hours yet, and then only the most minimal of camp setups, that brought other risks he didn't share with the group.

He definitely mulled them over in his head, however. One risk was that a tracker would perceive them as fleeing, rather than in a hurry. They had to set up something of a camp to leave believable marks behind them. If their tracks made them out to be nothing significant, then he figured the Elar would have less reason to send a party after them.

The other risk he didn't mention was that of breaking a wheel on some bit of rock or log not seen in the dark. So they stopped and set up camp with a small fire.

Father Marus had never pitched a tent before, so they all worked together, with him providing the direction. There were three tents. He and Marus would be sharing one, the girls would share one, and there was another one for Alldeh.

Ullden was somewhat relieved to note that Marus slipped something into Alldeh's dinner to help the man sleep. He worried about putting the madman in a tent unattended, but Marus seemed certain it wouldn't be a problem. Ullden wondered if perhaps the priest had heard some of his concerns after all, and brought even more herbs with to keep Alldeh under control.

Shortly before they turned in for the night, Jetha took Ullden aside.

"Don't get me wrong," she began quietly, so the others couldn't hear, "I was going to ask her to share the tent with me, even if you hadn't suggested it first. And I don't want to seem uncharitable, but..." she trailed off, looking uncomfortable.

"What is it Jetha?" he asked.

"She doesn't have lice does she? I mean..." she paused, looking uncertain. Ullden found himself giving her a long, tired sigh.

"Just because the girl has been living on the city streets most of her life doesn't mean she can't keep herself clean, Jetha," he told the girl bluntly. "I highly doubt she's got lice, or the church would have noticed and done something about it. In fact, if it weren't for the fact that he's been in the care of the church, I'd be more worried about Alldeh having lice than Niza."

"I'm sorry," Jetha said, looking down at her shoes. "You're right. It was uncharitable of me to ask."

"I realize you and Niza come from different worlds, Jetha," he said with another sigh. "But you need to give her the benefit of the doubt."

"She doesn't like me already," Jetha said quietly. "I can tell."

"I'm sure she's as... hesitant of you as you are of her is all," he said, attempting to choose his words carefully. "Give her time. Try and talk to her. I'm sure she's got some pretty adventurous stories to share. And you probably have plenty of tales of pompous aristocrats and their overdressed wives. You're far more down-to-earth than most I saw at that Duke's party. Give her a chance to find that out."

"I'll try," she said with a smile. "I'd like us all to be friends."

He found himself chuckling a little as she headed back towards the girls' tent, wondering at her sudden idealistic shift in mood. He hoped the girl's youthful spirit wouldn't be lost in their journey.

He set the fire so that it would burn low but long, hoping it would at least continue to make some light throughout the night. What he really wished for were three or four more people, so that they could have people awake for watches during the night.

As it was, with just the five of them as they were, there really wasn't anyone useful to keep awake for a watch. Obviously he couldn't stay up all night. He thought for a while and decided that this first night would probably be the safest.

He decided he'd talk to the others in the morning. Later on they might need someone to watch and listen during the night. The thief might be able to do well enough at that. Jetha might have some kind of spell in one of the books her teacher had given her that might help guard over the campsite somehow. He didn't really see the priest being as useful in a watch capacity. He rather imagined the priest, thinking himself brave, checking into something himself, and just winding up in trouble.

He heard louder breathing, almost snoring, from the girls' tent. He supposed the little street thief was probably accustomed to sleeping in worse surroundings than a tent. Fortunately, Jetha had slept in tents before, so she hadn't complained.

He eventually crawled into the tent, the last of the group to do so. The priest was laying in his bedroll, still awake but not tossing and turning.

"Trouble sleeping?" Ullden asked, teasing gently.

"Just thinking, mainly," came the priest's reply. "I've asked the Gods to look after us while we sleep."

"I've been thinking about that as well," Ullden confessed. "I think we'll be safe for tonight. Tomorrow we'll decide what precautions we can take on other nights."

"I know you are concerned about Alldeh's impact on this journey," Marus said, almost as if thinking aloud. "I don't know how strong your faith in the Gods is, Ullden, but they would not have sent him with us if we were not capable of handling the situation. I am torn, myself, as it is. If I keep him drugged, he will have a more comfortable journey, but might not be able to give us the information we need to complete this quest. If I don't keep him drugged, he'll have more lucid moments that could give us information, but become more volatile in general. There isn't much middle ground to work with. Frequently, the times when it's most difficult to manage him come directly after his moments of clarity." Marus sighed heavily.

"While I truely believe he is not a danger to any of us, I can make no guarantees. He may well prove to be the biggest obstacle we face. I guess I just wanted you to know that I recognize that. I'm not blind, Ullden, just hopeful. And I don't want the poor man to become a matter of difficulty between us. I will do what I can to manage him. Hopefully it can be done without physically restraining him or keeping him constantly drugged. His body is weak enough as it is without putting further stress on it through such means. I'm concerned he may not even survive the journey just from the normal hardships of traveling."

"I live by my sword and my wits more than anything, Father," Ullden told him. "While I've been known to pray to Ogrun or the others when it suits me, I will admit I've never been one to spend a lot of time in churches. I honestly can't think of a good reason why the Gods would choose me for this other than availability. I've chosen to take on the task, however. I told Jetha's father I'd do everything I could to keep her safe. That seems to be my job here, so that promise applies to the rest of you as well. Even Alldeh. And despite Alldeh, if it should come to that. I'll give him the chance. You know far better than I how he reacts and what he might do. But I will restrain him if the need arises. And, if he attacks anyone in this group, I will take him down if I need to. But I promise you, Father, I will do what I can to keep him alive. It's clear that we need him. And, no, I don't like it. I like the enemy I face to be the only thing unpredictable on the quest. But this is already unlike any other quest I've been on. I'll adjust, Father Marus. You needn't worry about that."

As a rule, Ullden slept well, and when he woke up he reminded himself to be thankful for that. He pulled on what clothes he hadn't slept in and crawled out of the tent to start preparing breakfast.

He stood up outside the tent and stopped short in his tracks. Alldeh was up, sitting staring at the ashes of the fire, which had gone out.

"Dead," Alldeh said hoarsely without looking up. "They're all dead, you know."

"Who's all dead?" Ullden asked, moving closer.

Alldeh didn't answer. He just kept staring at the fire pit, occasionally blinking. Ullden went back in the tent and shook Father Marus, who woke with a start.

"Huh?..."

"Father, Alldeh's awake and sitting outside. He said something."

That appeared to get the priest's attention, and he sat upright hurriedly.

"What did he say?" the priest asked, rubbing at his eyes.

"Dead," Ullden said. "They're all dead."

Father Marus grabbed up his pants and squirmed into them quickly, leaving his sleeping shirt on and untucked under the pants. He followed Ullden outside.

Father Marus first went to the other tent, to check the girls, and Ullden cursed inwardly for not thinking of that himself. The priest came back a moment later, nodding and looking relieved.

"They're fine," he said quietly, squatting down next to Alldeh. "Alldeh? Who's dead?"

"They're all dead," Alldeh replied softly. Ullden found himself crouching down to be able to hear better. "The greatest wizards of my time. But we failed. They died for nothing."

"They burned alive, right?"

Ullden was startled to hear Jetha's voice, and looked up to see the girl standing in front of her tent, clutching a blanket over her sleeping gown. Niza was peering out of the tent from behind her. Alldeh turned towards her and slowly stood up. Father Marus stood up as well, hovering next to the man, watching.

"I saw it in my vision," she continued, taking a step forward despite the scared look on her face. "It was you that spoke. You said you'd bought time. All the others died in flames but you."

"You saw much," Alldeh replied, his voice taking on a strange calm that worried Ullden. "But not enough. You must see more."

Suddenly Alldeh lunged forward, speaking words Ullden couldn't understand. Jetha screamed as he grabbed hold of her, his hands glowing with a strange blue light. Father Marus tried to step between him, but somehow was pushed back several feet, where he landed in a heap on the ground. The blue glow moved from Alldeh's hands and surrounded Jetha, who struggled to get away. Ullden moved forward to try and knock Alldeh away from her when suddenly the man stepped back, the glow fading as he did.

"Now you are awake," Alldeh said in a voice strangely filled with strength and conviction. Alldeh turned his gaze onto Ullden then, and Ullden found himself stopping short, realizing that it was as if looking at a different man entirely. Alldeh merely nodded, as if seeing something in Ullden he approved of.

Then, just as suddenly as he had lunged at Jetha, Alldeh collapsed to the ground, unconscious.

"Jetha? Are you alright?" he asked, checking Alldeh for a pulse and moving on once he'd found one. The girl was shaking and tears were streaming down her cheeks. Father Marus came up next to her and started chanting softly about Kielle. He touched her arm and then shook his head.

"Physically, she's unharmed. I don't know what he did. Jetha, can you tell us anything more about what happened?"

"Something... b-b-broke," she said shakily. "I don't know how else to explain it." She put her hands to her head. "It hurt. It was like he broke something in m-my head." She sobbed, and Ullden found himself putting his arms around the girl to try and comfort her.

"Father Marus..." Ullden began, looking at the priest.

"I know," Marus nodded, raising a hand. "I'll restrain him for now, while I try to seek Theran's wisdom on why this happened. You heard what Alldeh said, Ullden. What if he's done something that she needs for this quest? We can't ignore that possibility."

He held on to Jetha protectively until she composed herself. Father Marus explained that in the past, Alldeh had always been worst just after a moment of clarity. He said he would restrain Alldeh in stages that could be undone as the day went on.

"Ullden? Jetha?" Niza said. "I seem to be the only one with nothing to do right now, but I can't cook breakfast. How about I sit with Jetha for a little bit so you can make breakfast? We should get moving as soon as we can, right?"

"Yes, I was going to suggest the same thing," Ullden lied. He didn't want to admit to getting as sidetracked as he had. The two girls sat nearby while he made a quick breakfast. He listened while he worked. Father Marus was gently working on restraining Alldeh.

"I don't think he meant to hurt you," Niza was telling Jetha. "I've seen some madmen who kinda forget that they're adults with adult strength. Usually they hurt people by accident. But I know how scary it can be, regardless."

"A few times I've been attacked in the street. It's scary every time, and most times I shook for a little while after. They say that's normal, you know."

Ullden smiled. The girls couldn't see his expression. She had been shaking after running from the demon. He knew all about shaking after a fight as the rush of excitement settles down. He wasn't prone to it himself, but he had seen it plenty. It was an interesting thing for the two girls to have in common. He finished breakfast and served it up, reminding them all that they would need to eat quickly and break camp.

Father Marus had brought some leather shackles that he put on Alldeh's wrists and ankles. They had a short length of chain between them that allowed some amount of movement, but would easily hinder any attempts for Alldeh to move quickly. They had small locks on them that all opened with one key that Marus attached to a cord and hung around his neck. Once Alldeh was restrained, Marus fed him breakfast and ate his own. The madman didn't even seem to notice the restraints except to sometimes give them a curious look when they hindered a movement. Although he did eat the spoonfuls of breakfast and bits of bread that were offered to him, he otherwise just sat, rocking back and forth and humming some some sort of tune. It sounded like a lullaby Ullden had heard once as a child.

Niza was especially helpful clearing out the camp. She showed Jetha how to wash up the dishes and then left her to finish while she helped Ullden break down the tents. Marus re-packed the wagon, settling Alldeh into it again, and saddled up the horses. Despite the inexperience the group had in traveling together, Ullden had to admit that they made pretty good time getting everything together and getting out onto the road again. He suspected they would have it down to a decent routine in no time, which helped raise his spirits a little. That it was another clear day, with only a few, light clouds beginning to form on the horizon, added to his hopefulness. It wasn't until he caught sight of something on the horizon behind them, as they crested the top of a hill and had a good vantage point, that his outlook dimmed again.

He stopped the group a moment while he squinted across the land to get a better look. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Marus pull a book out of his saddlebag and begin flipping through the pages. After a moment, the priest began chanting softly, reaching over and touching Ullden on the arm in the process. Suddenly, Ullden's depth of vision shifted and he could see farther with much more clarity. It took him a moment to get a handle on how it worked before he was able to narrow in on the group he'd been trying to see. He heard Marus re-cast the prayer on himself as well, and a moment after Ullden began counting the members of the Elar unit, he heard the priest whistle next to him.

"What is it? What do you see?" Jetha asked from behind them.

"Elar," Marus said grimly. "It's too soon though. Either they bypassed the church entirely or Bishop Doran was unable to even delay them as he had hoped to do for us."

"That's a scout unit, based on what I've heard of their military," Ullden said. "Just men, no summoner, which is a good thing for us. However, it's possible there's a larger unit behind them that did stop at the church. Hopefully your Bishop was able to deal with them. The Elar haven't been known yet to send a scouting party without some military force following about a day behind them." Ullden was suddenly glad he had listened in on a few conversations at the Duke's party. Otherwise he wouldn't know much about the Elar at all.

He looked again at the Elar. He counted an even ten on horseback. Outrunning them was out of the question.

"Here's the situation," he explained. "That group's on horseback, and with our wagon we'll never be able to outrun them. If we keep moving, they may lose interest and just double back to their main force."

"Or, we might be able to at least lure them far enough away that they won't be able to signal back. But there's ten of them, which is too many for just me. Jetha has a fire spell she was taught, but she's only actually cast it once--in practice--and has never hurt anyone before. She's no combat wizard."

"Father, that sword and armor doesn't just magically ready you to take on four or five soldiers. Niza, please don't take offense at this, but I doubt you've done more than the occasional tavern brawl."

"I usually avoid fights," she said sheepishly. "I do have a knife, but..."

"Nothing to be ashamed of, but no, against soldiers that knife won't help."

"For now we keep moving. We stay low and skirt around hills to stay out of sight."

"So," Father Marus said, "we can't outrun them, and they can easily follow the wagon tracks, yes?"

Ullden nodded, wondering what the priest was getting at. Father Marus climbed down off his horse. He held his hand up, gesturing Ullden to wait. Ullden held back his comment that they were supposed to be moving.

"Ardana," Father Marus prayed aloud, arms outstretched, "Often do we thank you for your blessings, and seldom do we ask for your aid, but hear the words of your people this day. We travel through your lands, not as the hunter with loved ones to feed, but as the hunted. Guide us to safety and conceal our tracks, as you might to protect your wild children from poachers."

The priest's hands began to glow, and that glow spread in a low arc that expanded, washing over them all. It lingered for a moment on him, the horses, and the wagon. The ruts behind the wagon lifted flat. Crushed blades of grass straightened themselves. Ullden watched as the restoration coursed along their path behind them, erasing any signs they had left behind them.

The glow faded. "Now let us move," Father Marus said, climbing back into his saddle.

"Not bad," Ullden nodded, seeing that they weren't leaving tracks as they moved either. "How long will that last?"

"Honestly, I have no idea," Marus admitted. "The duration of prayers is something we've never really completely understood. Some say it is proportional to the level of faith of the priest asking, or his ranking within the church. Others say it is purely based on the God or Goddess's whim." He chuckled briefly. "The Gods are hardly predictable. I can say, however, that the tracks behind us are gone for good. They won't just reappear when the prayer wears off. But we will begin making fresh ones at that point."

He patted the book, still in his hands. "Bishop Doran was a warrior priest himself once. That's where the armor, weapon, and this book all came from. I spent the better part of the night before we left trying to get an idea of what prayers this book contains so that I can try and reference them as we need them. I'm attempting to learn a few by heart each day, however, so that I will be better prepared."

"What kind of prayers are in there?" Ullden asked, curiously. "I've never traveled with a warrior priest, to be honest. Priests, yes, but never a warrior priest specifically. I know little about what powers the Gods will grant them."

"Mostly it's defensive in nature," Father Marus answered. "There are prayers to make one's armor more durable, for example. There are a few that will imbue powers upon one's weapon, but never attack an enemy directly. The closest I've seen to that is a prayer that will put a small group of people to sleep."

"Hmm," Ullden said, thinking on that.

"Keep in mind that the Gods can choose not to grant a request at any time, Ullden," Marus said sharply. "If you intend to just put some people to sleep so you can cut their throats, for example, they will see that and deny the prayer. The Gods would not support us in such an act. They stand for fair and just principles."

"I doubt the Elar will be so fair and just, Father," Ullden replied grimly. "Nonetheless, I understand your meaning."

"Good," Marus said, tucking the book safely back into the saddlebag. For a while, they rode in silence. Ullden kept checking behind them, to be sure that they still weren't leaving tracks. He turned their course periodically, attempting to give them as much cover from being spotted as possible, yet still using the road as often as they could. The wagon moved much faster on the packed dirt than it did through the grasses and fields.

Eventually they paused for a brief and late cold lunch. The sun was shining warmly, and they were still not leaving a trace of their passage. He had even watch a pile of horse droppings sink into the earth and vanish as if it were never there.

A little after lunch Niza brought her horse forward alongside Jetha and remarked again how odd it was to see their tracks just vanish as quickly as they were made. She explained she'd never seen magic before, and was curious about it.

"So," she said tentatively, "it was mentioned you had some kind of fire ball spell...how does it work?"

"There are a few aspects to it," Jetha said. "One doesn't just point and expect fire to consume an enemy. Nothing can be created from just nothing, but things can be changed from something to something else, if that makes any sense."

She reached into the bag slung across her body and pulled out a bundle about the size of a small apple or a large nut. She held it out for him to see. It looked like it had been wrapped in leaves--or maybe corn husks--of a dark brown color.

"And what is that?" Niza asked.

"Each spell requires a certain amount of advance preparation. This is everything I need for a ball of flame, already packaged together. With the right thought and energy it will ignite and launch itself towards a target."

"And how many of those do you have?"

"Six," Jetha said as if it was a large number. "Although I don't know how many I could do all in a row. Especially larger spells can be...draining."

"Oh. Have you used it a lot?"

"I've cast it once, in practice," Jetha explained. "But I know what to expect from it, more or less."

"More or less?" Niza repeated quizzically. "So, how far can it reach?"

"Well, it's propelled by my mind as much as anything, so about as far as I can see clearly, if needed. I think some of its energy weakens over distance, so it might not be as effective farther away." Jetha tucked the ball thing back in her bag.

"I see," Niza said, still looking curious. If there were other questions the girl had, she didn't ask them. Ullden had traveled with wizards on a few occasions in the past. Most of them had given fairly similar responses to those questions. He wondered if Jetha had mostly repeated the explanation she had been given by her teacher or not. If not, then he was mildly impressed with the girl.

As the day grew longer, the clouds on the horizon ahead of them seemed to be darkening and growing thicker. Ullden wondered if they would make it through the next day before the rain began. He worried that if it lasted any length of time it could make the road muddy and cause further problems with the wagon. He found himself quietly praying to Ardana, wondering if it would do any good. While he'd heard some powerful druids could convince the weather to shift, that didn't mean Ardana would necessarily intervene on their behalf. He thought about asking Marus if there was a prayer for that, but the priest was quietly trying to read from his book while he rode. Ullden decided it would be better to wait and ask when the storm drew nearer.

He pushed them fairly far into evening again before he stopped them to make camp. He chose a spot that shielded them from view with a copse of trees, and did not allow a fire, for fear the Elar scouts would see the smoke. Jetha seemed a bit skeptical about the meal of cold, smoked meat, bread, and cheese, but she said nothing. Ullden noticed that Marus didn't put anything into Alldeh's food or drink that evening, although with the man restrained as he was, Ullden doubted he could really get into much trouble. Niza sat with Alldeh and helped Marus feed him, something Alldeh didn't seem to mind at all or, perhaps, didn't really notice. It was hard to tell. The man had been mumbling strange things all day, most of which sounded like obscure versions of nursery rhymes.

After the meal, Ullden assigned Jetha to clean up the dishes, while he took Marus aside for his first sword lesson. He drew his own sword and instructed Marus to do the same while he showed him various ways to grip it in his hands and stances to stand ready in, trying to find the most comfortable positions for the priest and work from those first. After a while, he instructed Marus to take a few swings at him.

"Shouldn't I use a practice weapon of some kind?" Marus asked. "A stick, perhaps? To avoid injuries."

"No offense intended, Father, but it's unlikely you'd be able to hit me on your first lesson. Even if you did, we're both still in our armor. And I've sparred with others before, so I know how to keep from damaging you."

Father Marus seemed to pale a little under the moonlight, but readied his sword nonetheless.

"Go on then. Take a swing at me," Ullden encouraged.

Of course the first swing was clumsy and off balance. He parried it away and down, bringing his own sword back up in an arc that brought it around to the priest's neck. He stopped it with plenty of extra room, but it startled the priest rather effectively.

"Now, sparring tonight isn't the point," Ullden explained. "But I want you to understand what swordmanship is about. There are no techniques that will guarantee victory. There are some moves that will all but assure your own defeat."

He went on to explain what had been wrong about the swing, that he had let the weight of the sword carry him off balance and lost control of the blade. He showed Father Marus two basic swing moves and two basic parry moves. Then for about half an hour he had the priest practice them over and over.

He held his sword out as the target, placing the sword to direct which swing to use. He now and then swung it at the priest, slowly enough for the priest to be able to block it. He made only basic moves, so that the priest could learn why each parry was or was not effective.

He saw Niza watching, fascinated. On a sudden thought he starting moving in a circle around the father, forcing the priest to turn to follow. At least that way, he decided, the girl would get to watch from different angles.

He worked the priest until he could tell the man's arms were getting tired. Father Marus did not complain--did not say a thing, in fact. Ullden knew that at a certain point the muscles would be too tired for effective training, and he stopped somewhere before that point. The priest was determined, he admitted to himself.

"Each day I'll add some new elements in," Ullden explained. "Tomorrow we'll start incorporating that shield. But that's enough for today. Your strength will grow as we work, and we'll start being able to train longer."

"Thank you," Father Marus said, nodding. "This is certainly a lot different from my previous duties, at the church." He looked at the sword, shaking his head as if he couldn't believe he was holding it. Then he carefully slid the sword back into it's scabbard and followed Ullden back to sit by the others.

Ullden saw that Jetha had finished cleaning up the dishes and was quietly brushing out her hair, bits at a time. Niza sat next to Alldeh and had given him some scraps of cloth which the man seemed content to stack, fold, and tie into knots. Occasionally she would take one back and untie it again. Sometimes Alldeh would take a few pinches of dirt from the ground and sprinkle it into a bit of cloth before folding it up and setting it aside.

"What did you do at the church, Father?" Ullden asked, unbuckling his sword belt from his waist. "If you don't mind my asking."

"Not at all," Marus replied. "I was second to the Bishop, actually. He delegated certain duties to me to free up his time for the more important tasks. Mainly that seemed to mean I was his liason between the church and the local community leaders. If there was a problem, I would intervene and make the appropriate arrangements to assist them. To be honest, it was a lot of paperwork and dealings with local landowners and town mayors. Not very exciting, I'm afraid, but still, it was important work that needed to be done."

"Sounds like you were playing diplomat," Ullden noted aloud.

"You could say that," Marus nodded. "The Bishop seemed to think I was somewhat more patient than he tended to be. He had ruffled more than a few feathers when he first arrived as the new Bishop. He tended to be a bit more blunt than some could handle." he chuckled, as if recalling a fond memory. "None of us knew that he'd been a warrior priest prior to coming to us. It actually explains quite a bit." Marus had unbuckled his own sword belt while talking and looked at the scabbard a moment, almost reverently, before setting it down.

"Why didn't he tell anyone?" Niza asked.

"Among students of the faith, his name as a warrior priest was actually quite well-known," Marus answered. "But part of our way is to be humble. While a person's past actions can speak for their character, fame can alter the perception of those around you. They expect certain things of you and make assumptions based on what they have heard. The job of a Bishop is a very different one than that of a warrior priest. I believe Bishop Doran wished to earn respect through his actions at his current position, not just have people give it to him because of what he'd accomplished before."

Niza seemed to think on that for a while, nodding silently. After a few moments, Marus gently gathered up the pieces of cloth from Alldeh.

"I think I'd better get Alldeh settled in," he told the group. "Then, I believe you had expressed an interest in some sort of alarm if we are approached while sleeping?"

Ullden nodded at Marus, inwardly chiding himself for having momentarily forgotten about it.

"I think I've found a prayer that will help with that," the priest said, helping Alldeh into his tent. "Something from the prayers to Ogrun."

Once Alldeh was in his tent, and apparently settled, Father Marus excused himself and walked a very wide circle around the campsite. Ullden could hear him chanting something, but at that distance couldn't quite make out what was being said. After the full circle, the priest came back.

"There," he said. "Anything dangerous crossing that circle will wake me. I'll in turn wake you...to see what it is."

Ullden raised an eyebrow, wondering if it would really be that easy. But he trusted the priest. "That does sound more appealing than staying awake most of the night," he suggested.

After that Father Marus crawled into the tent. The night was starting to grow dark, especially with no fire. Stars were starting to appear in the darker patches of sky. Niza crawled into the girls' tent, and Jetha came to sit next to Ullden.

"I don't know what exactly Father Marus did," she said, "but he certainly did something. As he was walking I could see an energy coming off him. It...settled onto the grass... almost like the way a cloud of misted perfume slowly drifts down in the air."

"I know wizards can cast spells along those lines, wards and such to protect an area," Ullden suggested.

"Yes," she said, nodding. "They work better indoors, or on harder ground. They involve drawing symbols and a circle--a border, at any rate. Hard to draw a chalk line on grass. There are other ways to do it, but I suspect his will be more effective than what I might be able to do."

"Fair enough," he said. "Don't stay up," he warned her, "I plan to push for distance again tomorrow. I'll be turning in shortly."

"Don't worry," she said. I've been too tired not to sleep. "I just miss home. I think, if I weren't so tired, I wouldn't be able to sleep at all. Do you ever miss your home, Ullden?"

"It's been a long, long time since I called anywhere home, Jetha. I get restless if I stay in one place for more than a few months, myself." He left out the reason for it, though his mind flickered briefly back to the small town he had been born in. He'd only been gone a year, training to become part of the guard at a nearby keep, when the town had been raided and burned by brigands. He'd never found a place that had felt the same to him, in all his years of travel. He smiled and gave her arm a squeeze.

"It will get easier as time passes," he assured her. "Remember, this is an adventure we're on. I thought most young men and women yearned to go out on an adventure or two."

"I guess," she said. "It just doesn't seem like I ever imagined it."

He couldn't help but chuckle at that. "It rarely does, Jetha. But there will likely be moments that do from time to time." He stood up with a yawn. "Good night, Jetha."

"Good night, Ullden," she replied.

He went into the tent wondering when she would go to sleep, but it wasn't long after he had pulled the bedroll up around himself that he heard the rustle of tent flaps nearby, suggesting she had taken his advice. Father Marus was already asleep, his slow, rhythmic breathing one of the few noises Ullden could hear. It didn't take much time before Ullden fell into a simlar pattern himself, and he fell into sleep.