The sun was cresting over the horizon and Dhule was already awake and outside, no one else that he was traveling with was up yet but was not able to rest after he woke up an hour ago. He checked Veyr out of the stable and waited with them outside the inn. “Well Veyr, I’m not sure if you had anything in mind but we’re going to be traveling with Yesugen and her family. They’re not here yet so if you wanna drag me off somewhere instead I can write a note for them and we can go that way but if my opinion matters in this situation I’d like to stay with them.”

  Veyr didn’t say anything, just stared at Dhule the same way they had since they met.

  “Good to know.” Dhule took another apple out of the new bag he bought earlier that morning. “Here, have some more breakfast, I think we have a long day ahead of us.” Dhule took a short pause, “And then a couple more after that.”

  Veyr took the apple into their mouth, clearly just happy to be getting more food.

  As Dhule settled back into the silence of the early morning he was immediately taken back out of it as the front door of the inn slammed open and Yesugen bolted out, almost hitting Veyr with the violence and force of the door opening. Yesugen forced herself to a screeching halt almost instantly upon exiting the building as she realized that Dhule was standing outside. “Oh good, you’re just right here.” Yesugen doubled over in exhaustion gasping between each word, “I was worried you had left us after you weren’t in your room and then I walked down to the common area assuming you would be eating breakfast but you weren’t there and then I asked Ms. Nipia said that you and Veyr checked out an hour or so ago.” She walked closer to Dhule resting most of her weight on Veyr’s back. “But now that I’ve stopped to think about it you wouldn’t do that would you? You wouldn’t just leave without telling us, right?”

  Dhule’s shocked expression from having the door slammed open gradually softened as Yesugen talked, “No, I’d make sure to tell you if I were to leave. Your entire family I suppose but especially you.”

  “That’s good, and thank you for the reaffirmation. Have you had breakfast yet? We have quite the journey ahead of us so this is your last chance to eat something homemade for probably about half a Dechit.”

  “I’ve had like, 2 apples, since I had to get some for Veyr anyways.”

  “Come on Dhule, you know that’s not enough, and the breakfast here is complimentary for guests. Come on, let's go get some food, you can even get a sandwich if you want.” Yesugen had recovered enough of her breath to move over and grab Dhule’s hand.

  “Yeah, oh wait, uh, I’m not a guest anymore I think, since I turned in my key and paid already.”

  “It’ll be fine Dhule you only checked out an hour ago and if she does refuse to give you food then I think I might be really really hungry, hungry enough for two meals even.”

  “Alright then, and uh maybe you’ll want a sandwich as one of your meals?”

  “Hmm, maybe but I’m thinking stew and a hearty porridge.”

  The two walked back into the inn, the woman behind the bar was nice enough to give Dhule a meal, he did choose to follow Yesugen’s recommendation and did get a stew.

  - ?? -

  “Alrighty then, everybody ready to go?” Yerentai asked.

  “I think so, but I’m not sure Dhule has everything.” Altani responded.

  “No, I have everything I bought and didn’t bring anything from before.” Dhule said back.

  “Well not everything.” Yerentai opened the back of the caravan to reveal a basic saddle and saddle bags.

  “I can’t accept another gift sir, I’m sorry but it wouldn’t feel right.”

  “Dhule this is so you can be better equipped for what’s coming up. You’re going to be riding Veyr for 4-5 days straight, if you do that saddleless you won’t be able to walk.”

  “And you’re definitely going to be keeping watch now.” Sagra butt in.

  “Yes, Sagra.” He turned back to Dhule, “You’ll have more responsibilities now that you’re part of our family. That does include keeping watch but also gathering firewood when it’s necessary, tending to the arbordvances, and setting up camp but we’ll help you if you need it.” Yerentai retook the conversation.

  “Yeah, no more freeloading anymore Dhule.” Yesugen exclaimed.

  “Yes, yes but we should start to move now.” Altani said, “The longer we stand around talking the less time we’ll have on the road today.” The family loaded into their wagon as Dhule put the saddle on Veyr and climbed on, it was much more comfortable than he expected for just a small cushion in between two thin pieces of leather.

  The sun continued to rise as the day continued, the road was wide and well traveled. Many other travelers passed by the caravan, some nodding in greeting, acknowledgement, and farewell, and some keeping their heads down for whatever reason. Dhule rode behind the wagon, Yesugen leaning outside slightly, staring at Dhule as he got comfortable with the saddle.

  Yesugen smiled, “See, much better with a saddle wouldn’t you say?”

  “Damn right it is!” Sagra yelled from inside the wagon.

  “I think your grandpa just said it.” Dhule jokingly responded after the interruption.

  “Maybe but I want to hear it in your words. Grandpa can be a bit crass sometimes.”

  “I suppose. Umm I don’t know, yeah, it’s more comfortable than it was without.”

  “That’s good.” Yesugen rested her chin in her hands and smiled, allowing her eyes to wander but keeping her attention primarily on Dhule. “Ooh, look over there!” She suddenly shot up and pointed eastward where a strange blob of ooze floated a few tens of feet above the ground. “Caelossans!” She exclaimed.

  “What?” Dhule asked.

  “They're monsters of sorts.” Yesugen answered, “It’s a lot of them which is odd but it’s probably just mating season.”

  “Oh, but what exactly are they?” Dhule asked again.

  “They kind of like jellyfish but much larger and kind of spectral-y.”

  “And very dangerous.” Altani cut in. “So don’t even think about going closer. Either of you.”

  “Yes Mom we won’t, Dhule’s the only one that could get over there anyway.” Yesugen responded back.

  “Are they aggressive?” Dhule asked again.

  “Not really, but if they’re hungry and even lightly tap you with their tentacles they’ll paralyze you, drag you into their bodies, and then suck you dry of all your life force.” Yesugen replied. “And they have an insatiable hunger.”

  “Oh, so not good?”

  “No, definitely not.” Altani cut back in, “That’s why you're not going over there.”

  “Yes ma’am.”

  The road ahead stretched on, winding through rolling hills and forests. Hours passed consisting of idle conversation about a variety of things and the clopping of hooves on dirt. Dhule found himself relaxing in the mundanity of the travel, while he had grown used to the saddle he could tell that Veyr had not. They would occasionally try to toss the extra weight off but only slightly, not enough to buck Dhule or give the impression that they were completely unhappy with it.

  As the sun lowered the family slowed down and found a small clearing in one of the small woodlands near the road. As Dhule was helping set up the campsite he noticed a new tent in the cart. “Was one of your tents too worn?” He asked into the void, not expecting any one member of the family to answer.

  Altani walked up behind him, “No Dhule that’s for you, you deserve to have a tent, you don’t have to be exposed to the elements all night.” She smiled softly.

  “Oh, thank you. I would have been fine, you didn’t have to do this, you don’t have to spend your money on me.”

  “You’re right Dhule, we don’t have to spend our money on you, but we also don’t have to let you travel with us. But we want you to travel with us and we want you to be comfortable, and that includes making sure you don’t get sore from riding too much and that you don’t get sick or hurt from sleeping out in the open.”

  “Oh, I hadn’t thought about it like that. I’m not sure I’ll be able to accept everything immediately but I’ll do my best to alleviate all of the extra effort it takes to accommodate me.”

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  “Well I’d say that you don’t have to do that, but I think we both know that you’re going to insist on it anyways. So instead I will just say thank you.”

  Fire crackled as the family settled down for the night, a pot hung over the fire holding some of the Grazelok Stew that was leftover from their trip to Carsioli. Altani sat next to Dhule, bowl of stew in hand for him. “You are doing well Dhule.”

  Dhule grabbed the bowl from Altani but looked confused, “What do you mean?”

  “You’ve adapted well to traveling so much.”

  “Thank you but, I’m not that good, I’ve just been following orders nothing more really.”

  “Maybe that is all you’re doing but you’re following them well and sometimes instructions need to be followed.”

  “Right, right. But I’m nowhere near as good as you or the rest of your family. That’s why I’m still only following instructions.”

  “No, you’re not as proficient as the rest of us but we’ve been doing it as long as any of us could remember. You can’t expect to do as well as us when you’ve only been doing it for a few days.”

  “I suppose so. But I’ll keep trying to get better, to help out more.”

  Altani smiled, “Thank you, now eat up before your food gets cold, someone might accuse you of wasting it.” She laughed as she stood up and walked back to the pot.

  Dhule let out a small chuckle, “Heh, yeah, wouldn’t want that.”

  The night air was cool and calm, Dhule took first watch, sitting with Veyr the ambient noises of everyone getting ready for bed was soothing for Dhule, Yesugen hummed as she prepared herself for sleep, Sagra snored as he fell asleep as soon as he laid down, Yerentai and Altani were getting Kara ready for bed. Dhule’s watch was peaceful, he was kept company by the ambient noises of the woodlands, the hoots of owls, the clopping of deer or other fauna wandering around the woods, the water running through a riverbed a bit away, and the rustling of the leaves in the wind. He stayed awake for the next approximately 4 hours before waking Yerentai to take over.

  - ?? -

  Dhule woke up to the sounds of camp being packed up. “Why didn’t you wake me up, I would have helped.” Dhule stuck his head out of his tent.

  “You had less to pack so we figured we’d give you some extra rest.” Yesugen said.

  “I would’ve been fine, it’s fine to wake me up.” Dhule argued.

  “Yes, I’m sure you would have, but would you be able to ride all day afterwards?” Sagra asked as he packed his tent.

  “I think so, I don't need that long to sleep. It would have been okay.” Dhule assured.

  “Boy you stayed up late last night, later than you should have, you didn’t need to keep watch for 4 hours, we only asked you for 2.” Sagra shot back.

  “I-I I wanted to make sure you and Yerentai got enough sleep, you’re the ones who know how to do this, I wanted to make sure you were rested well enough.” Dhule sank back into his tent as he made his point.

  “Yes, we know how to do this, which is why we asked you to watch less time than us.” Sagra had gotten slightly angrier and started to raise his voice, “And we would have been fine with the 3 hours of watch, we were both watching for 4 before you joined, the extra hour would have been more than enough for the two of us. For claiming that you’re just following orders, you sure didn’t do so last night.”

  “I di-I didn’t think about that. I thought you just… I don’t know what I thought.” Dhule looked down.

  “Sagra, it’s okay, I’ll talk with him?” Yerentai turned towards Dhule before squatting down in front of him. “It’s fine Dhule, he just wants you to do better, he’s harsh on you because he cares.”

  “Are you sure? The last time someone yelled at me I was kicked out of my house.”

  “Maybe but yelling isn’t always bad, that’s how I first told Altani I loved her after all, and I’d hardly call that bad.” Yerentai laughed and patted Dhule on the back.

  “I guess but I don’t like it, it brings up bad memories.”

  “Alright, I can tell him that but just so you know Sagra was the one who suggested you only take watch for 2 hours. But get changed, pack up, and be ready we’re leaving as soon as you’re done.”

  Dhule nodded as he went back into his tent to change into a new set of clothes and ready himself for the day.

  The morning mist was still on the ground when the caravan set off, the chill of the wind contrasting the warmth of the early morning sun, the clopping of hooves and the creaking of the wagon were rhythmic and soothing. The only thing keeping Dhule up was his conversation with Yesugen.

  “Has Veyr adapted to the saddle yet?” Yesugen once again leaned out the back of the wagon.

  “Huh?” Dhule responded.

  “They didn’t seem to be the most comfortable yesterday both on the road and during our rest. I assume it’s because of the saddle, nothing else has really changed in the past few days.”

  “Oh, uh, yeah, I think they’re doing better, they haven’t bucked me as much today so I assume they’re doing better.”

  “That’s good, we don’t want them to be too uncomfortable would we?”

  “Yeah, but I’m sure they’ll be okay, they’re strong.” Dhule pat and scratched Veyr’s neck.

  As the two’s conversation continued the caravan stopped suddenly. “Damn.” Yerentai said.

  Dhule walked up to the front of the wagon to see why they had stopped, “What’s going on?”

  “There’s Quarryurans up ahead.”

  “More monsters, Are they dangerous?” Dhule asked again.

  “Yeah, large crab-like creatures, they have claws large enough to crush the wagon and a shell harder than rock.” Yerentai looked into the distance. When Dhule turned to see what he was looking at he could immediately tell that there were monsters, large gashes in the environment and enormous boulders that looked almost too spherical, that was until one of them moved. “Extremely territorial too, and they can sense the vibrations in the earth so one step in the areas they dictate as theirs and we’re as good as dead.”

  “What are we going to do then?”

  “We’ll have to go around, as long as we stay away from the gashes in the ground we should be safe.” Yerentai whipped the reins, turning the arbordvances in a sharp left turn. “Could you stay up here Dhule I want to talk to you?”

  “Uh, y-yes.” Dhule moved to give the wagon a wide berth and then rode back up to the front. “What is it sir?”

  “Tell me Dhule, do you play any instruments?”

  “I know how to play the viola kinda, I’m not the best though. And I don’t have one with me so I can’t play if I wanted to.”

  “That’s good you already have some experience with bows. Do you want to learn another instrument?”

  “I’m not sure, a lot of instruments are different and I’m not great at the one I know.”

  “From what I can tell, from seeing them perform, the viola’s pretty similar to the rebec. I won’t pressure you into doing it if you don’t want to but I urge you to think about it, just as something to do.”

  “I can do that sir.”

  “Alright just talk to me during camp if you want to learn.” Yerentai’s eyes hadn’t looked at Dhule during their conversation but he could feel the warmth from him. There was a long pause of silence between the two where Dhule wasn’t sure if he should go back or not but as soon as he started to slow down Yerentai spoke up “How are you feeling, Dhule? You tired?”

  “Oh, uh, kinda the conversation has been keeping me awake. But were there no one to talk to, I might have dozed off.”

  “That’s good but not the best, we’ll pull over for a bit, you can get in the wagon and rest your eyes. I’ll have Yesugen ride Veyr so they stay with us but you should get some shuteye even if it’s just for a little bit.”

  “It’s okay sir, I’m fine besides if I rest too long then I won’t be able to sleep tonight and we’ll just have the same problem tomorrow.”

  “Maybe but if you’re only in there for an hour, hour-and-a-half, you’ll be a bit more rested and still tired enough to sleep tonight, so let’s stop here and get you in and Yesugen out.”

  The group stopped and Dhule slid off Veyr’s saddle and started to get into the wagon. “Alright Yesugen you want to ride?” Dhule asked as he climbed in.

  “Me and Veyr?” She gasped “All alone while you sleep? Are you sure you want that? They might decide they like me more than you.”

  “I don’t think so but if they do then you’ll have to be the one that rides them all day and gets sore from it and I’ll just have to sit in the wagon and be comfortable all day.”

  “Well I guess we wouldn’t want that. Don’t worry I’ll take care of them only enough to keep them healthy, not enough to get them too attached to me.” She smiled as she joked.

  “I’m sure you will, but I should get into the wagon before I fall asleep.”

  “And so we can leave.” Sagra exclaimed from inside.

  “And so we can leave.” Dhule reiterated. As Dhule finished getting into the wagon he sat down in an open seat and covered himself with his cloak before closing his eyes to rest.

  - ?? -

  A couple hours had passed by the time Dhule woke up, more than he expected to sleep. “Good afternoon Dhule, how was your nap?” Altani spoke up as she saw Dhule stirring awake. “Did you sleep well?”

  “As well as I could while traveling. But any rest is better than none.”

  “Very true. Would you like something to snack on? We have some dried fruits or meat if you want.”

  “I’m okay, I should get back onto Veyr, make sure Yesugen isn’t too uncomfortable.”

  “It's okay.” Yesugen said from outside, “Don't think my plan worked. Veyr likes me a lot now, maybe even more than you.” She exclaimed.

  Dhule pulled open the curtains in the back of the caravan, revealing the sun to the inside of the caravan since Dhule had entered. “Are you sure? You're the one who said you didn't have a connection to Veyr.”

  “Well that was before we spent hours together. Now we're the best of friends.” She boasted as Veyr looked slightly uncomfortable under her.

  “I don't give a damn if the thing hates her. As long as it lets her ride it we're not stopping.” Sagra said.

  “Yes sir.” Dhule got on his knees and leaned out to talk to Yesugen for the next couple hours.

  As the sun started to set the family found another clearing to set up camp in, set up had gotten easier, Dhule barely had to think about what he was doing as he did it. Dinner was simple again, just a stew with various meat and vegetables, after finishing dinner Dhule found himself walking towards Yerentai. “Hey Yerentai.”

  “Yeah, Dhule, what’s up?” Yerentai sat on a log carving a small piece of wood.

  “Do you think you could teach me that instrument you were talking about?”

  Yerentai looked up and smiled as he put down his wood block “Of course son, let me go grab mine and I’ll teach you the basics.” He then walked over to the wagon where he retrieved a wooden box, opening it to reveal a small, boat-shaped instrument with a slender neck and only 3 strings along with a musical bow. He handed the instrument over to Dhule, “Here you go, you hold it only slightly differently than how you would a viola, just down at your armpit instead of under your chin.” Dhule followed the instructions and pushed the base of the instrument into his armpit. “Good now, let’s just hit all the strings, just run the bow across same as you would a viola.” Dhule pulled the bow across the strings resulting in an ear curdling screech.

  “Gods Dhule I thought you said you knew how to play.” Yesugen jokingly called out from the other side of camp.

  “It’s been a while and I haven’t even heard of this instrument until earlier today.” Dhule yelled back.

  “It’s okay Dhule can’t expect you to be perfect right when you start.” Yerentai pat Dhule on the shoulder. The two’s practice continued until everybody went to sleep. Dhule once again had first watch, where not much happened, after the 2 hours of his watch he woke Yerentai to take his and promptly fell asleep.