Where Stars Go [ Eithne, Eragos, Sleeping Tiger, Nieve ...24 hour cap ]
Twilight was a peculiar time to be on the road. Diffused light softened the night's darkness into a sapphire blue but did not yet collect on the horizon. The moon was still preferred by the heavens and yet drooped, as if fatigued. Night was often cold in Agethlea, especially at the turn of the seasons, and a low lying fog settled in anticipation of the sun. As the White Riders made their way out of Agethlea, the fog spread into the trees surrounding the road. The heavy clouds clung to the bases of trees and occasionally reached up to tangle in branches and vines.
Conditions of the road made for a somber exit. For Vera, the last days in Agethlea had been full of funeral services and legal arrangements. Her time had been divided in militaristic fashion for events that were, at their core, meant to be soulful and attended with care. The people lost in Agethlea deserved more than a few hours of mourning. She longed to escort the burning pyre that housed the High Lord's remains down the Olne River, but instead had to watch it float without her. Her comrades deserved rips in her uniform and flowers placed on their resting places when the soil was still fresh over them. Yet Vera could not stay. All of that time, Vera's mind moved to what was next. Where did she have to stand? What did she have to prepare? Where was the communication from Simanel? What had been seen in Eistocene? How soon until they rode? It felt disrespectful and in the same breath, necessary.
Hummingbirds do not stop moving unless they are dead, the Captain once joked. It seemed less and less funny every time Vera thought on it.
Fog heralded rain in these areas. She did not need the rain. Still, Vera appreciated the weight of her brown Rider's cloak on her shoulders and the shadows of her hood. Vera rode at the front of the party because she was stubborn and because she had sharper eyes than anyone she knew. There was a little conversation that passed among the Riders with them. Their group had grown smaller since the White City. Elden had escorted Hasna back to Simanel, wanting to show Captain Agrippa what he had learned from the journal. Other Riders seemed surprised that he was still in possession of the book. Vera, after High Lord Arand's death, charged Elden with protecting the book instead of her.
"Why?" Elden asked. "Your priorities are a little skewed, Lady, considering the possibility of a trial."
Vera gently pressed bandages and salve into her pack. She did not look up at Elden.
"Because they will come after it when they know it still exists. And when they do come, I want them to have no chance."
Elden laughed and nervously scratched at his arm. "You want me to kill them?"
"They will make you. They will die before they fail," she said. There was no laughter, no smile. "And I will lose no sleep when they are gone."
Eithne, surprisingly, rode closer to the front than anyone else. Vera did not say anything to her, but that was only because she was scanning the trees and trying to see through the fog ahead. She looked at the younger Rider once and that was only to offer her a bar of dried fruit from her pack. The silence of the group was occasionally broken by Bahn humming. That was what he was doing right now. It was a repetitive tune that would have sounded better on an instrument.
Before they left Agethlea, Vera told them where their group was going. The eastern-most post for the Southern Army. Faxril's Army. They would be able to find word on Seca's whereabouts there. Wherever Seca went, there had to be Grey Riders in her wake. Perhaps Talon, himself. Vera then told them what they were doing. Going after the leader of the Grey Riders. She did not word it as crudely as Eragos had; murder was not something that was ingrained in any of them. Still, Nieve and Bahn insisted on joining. Eithne volunteering was instantaneous. Eragos might not have wanted any of them along initially...but that was too bad, wasn't it?
"What tavern song are you humming now?" Vera finally asked Bahn. She tried to keep her eyes on the road. Vera just needed to get him to talk instead. If he hummed the same three notes one more time, she might go crazy.