As the sun begins his dance with the horizon, Eduly hastens to stride besides Shur, reaching for his friend heavy bundle, looking for a map in a side pocket. Keeping his pace and avoiding small obstacles in an unnerving way, as he barely takes his sight from the scribbled lines, he quickens again to reach Vez frontliner, trading a few words as to where the youngster should head if they were to reach a certain clearing at dusk. As they all had heightened hearing, no more indications were needed. Eduly remains distracted, focused on his calculations and plannings for the next and every step of their journey, considering every deviation from their expectations, possible positive and negative interactions along their way, focusing on the most unsavoury due to his precautionary personality, recollecting his knowledge of the villages on their path and their leaders, particular terrain, monsters and phenomenon known activity. He already delegated an assortment of responsibilities to his companions, very similarly as in previously journeys: Chamto kept the link with Khavru and the Flow, aware of any changes and ready to intercept a raging outbreak; Vez was to lead ahead and eliminate danger that may cross their path, making full use of his heightened senses and ludicrous amount of energy; Shur was their defence and walking camp, carrying most of the load, steadily connected to the Flow, their walking fort and reliable pessimist.
Shur retakes the map since he takes his loading responsibilities very proudly. He wasn’t as fast an agile as the others, but his compactness, sturdiness and endurance were pompously unmatched… as was his shortness that Vez surely hints as often as he can, begging for a few rocks to find their way into hidden pockets and nooks in his cloths, joining some others that Shur has already hidden there. Should Vez become to vexing, then Shur would gradually heighten the little pebbles weight, making full use of his ability, constraining the arrogant fool’s agility and slowly depleting him of his astonishing amount of energy. The kid showcases that same spirit now, jumping around there at the front, climbing trees up and down, reaching for the top of a hill nearby, racing a scared dear away instead of catching it for dinner… Shur sometimes feels that Vez came into his life as a punishment, for what he couldn’t fathom, as his life bared heavy suffering already, one that he hasn’t been able to outlive and made him understand and even empathise with Khavru, even envied him, as the older man had the ability to lose himself in his Flow and Shur could only connect with it without ever losing his reason. Vez crosses his sight again in another useless sideways run. An angry rumble almost makes his way into sound, but the heavy pressure behind him diminishes his irritation, keeps the hair in his nape lifted and the forest eerily quiet, as if he is prey about to be snatched. He keeps telling himself that Chamto has his back or, at least, will be the first target, giving him a little time to build up his defence, but as the shadows stretches, so does the ominous feeling he can’t shake.
On the other hand, Chamto is quite relaxed! Very aware of every minor change that may occur in the energy behind him, he has been enjoying the slight raise of Shur’s shoulders at Vez youthful shenanigans, at the barely contained vibrations of his angry growls, since the situation behind him has been unchanging. In a weird way, Shur was the one slowing down the party: his short legs limited his stride and in conjunction with his earthy weight and slower movements, all contributed to make him take almost double the time completing the journey than his companions; at the same time, he could go on in forced march for almost an entire moon cycle without rest, making him reach their destination much sooner than the others and very fidgety at forced resting camp. The pace was decided by Eduly and none complained, they knew the advantages of keeping the party together and they all needed to avoid exhaustion, as much as possible. Still, as The Old One baseline, Chamto would keep himself between Khavru and Shur, making sure there was not a clear line of sight, walking extra slanted paths, swerving around the scents of prey, all to keep his erratic friend distracted and, hopefully, tire him a little. They all felt the pure pressure of his rage in different measures, for some were more attuned to energy and the Flow, as was Chamto. He estimated they had maybe two more days before the rage took over the frail control his friend had regain upon their “visit” in preparation for this journey. If Shur was keeping his grumbling contained so that the vibrations were barely felt, Khavru freely and constantly growled deep in his chest over every rock in his path, every branch nearby, every insect that dare near him, destroying most of it in his trail. Understandably, he was diverting his attention away from his friends as much as he could, trying his best to recall his mates characteristics, personalities, shared moments, whatever that bonded them together, any element that allowed him to connect with them. However, his memory would turn into choking smoke whenever he focus on every frail glimpse, contributing to his feeling of helplessness and lack of control, rather than help ground him in himself. Another rock shatters at his foot. He senses the others slowing down, the intended destination reached, and the one who leads him takes him in a few large circles around the camp site, giving him the opportunity to adjust. He lets go of the invisible line they have been shared, loosening his stride into an easy run, leaving to make his own patrol until the camp settles and he feels he can get nearer without lashing out at the nearest fellow.
They were chomping on the dear that Vez finally caught at the Eduly’s fuming request when they sensed Khavru joining them at the edge of the clearing, untouched by the flames light. Chamto senses a stirring in the Flow’s energy, straightens, looks around, extends his awareness to their surroundings, focus on Khavru, but can find any reason for his discomfort. The party is looking at him expectantly, noticing his uneasiness. He shakes his head, confused. And then Vez smiles.
