The southern Vinean woods.

  Another campfire dimly lit the trees that night. Further south towards the Norren Mountain range sat two exhausted people.

  A disheveled woman with mocha skin, spiky black hair, and toned arms sat cross-legged in dark leather clothes.

  She sat on a log by the fire across from a dark elven man. He had medium black hair tied back, and light grey skin beneath fit black armor. He was holding his bruised face.

  "Sorry about your eye." The girl said apologetically.

  The man looked at her with a blank expression and replied calmly

  "Consider it mercy I did not stab you for it."

  She laughed half nervously, he only continued to glare at her.

  "Next time, look before you start swinging ok?" He implored.

  "I'm sorry, okay? You saw all the guards, I was in a hurry." She held her hands up as she replied irritably.

  "Yes I noticed, why were you running from them again?" He inquired. There was an awkward silence as he continued to stare at her, waiting for a response.

  After a few moments of her looking down she quietly admitted "I got in a fight.."

  Another brief silence and he replied " well, did they deserve it?"

  "Of course!" She blurted out "He kept talking shit, so I shut him up."

  "That's one way to do it I guess" he said nonchalantly, as he looked out into the woods around him.

  He could see the mountains a couple of hours walk to the south, the range continued northeast further than the eye could see. He looked out into the darkness, and then back to the fire. He squinted at the light.

  This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

  "Do we really need this? It will only bring attention to us." He asked.

  The girl was poking the fire with a stick as she replied dismissively, "No it won't, we’re fine way out here. We are hours away from any town, and at least a day from Varidia City."

  He looked at her skeptically, but before he could say anything his bruise began to sting some more, bringing his attention elsewhere. She gave him another apologetic look. They returned to tired silence beside the crackling fire.

  After a short time the second moon was in the middle of the sky, and the woman had leaned back and began to fall asleep when there was a sound in the trees.

  Both of them stood up swiftly, as she picked up a branch and tossed it in the direction of the sound yelling "I'm trying to get sleep dammit!"

  The branch landed in the bushes with a loud thud and some rustling of branches. The dark elven man stepped aside and began to hide in the shadows before a voice called out, bluntly.

  "OW." out of the bushes came a young man, he was human with short dark hair, wearing torn plain clothes. He was rubbing the top of his head and wincing. The thrown branch in his other hand. He held it up, looked at it inquisitively, then looked to the woman who threw it. Then his eye landed on the dark elf and widened.

  "You are dangerous." The elf stepped back into the light looking at the woman and the newcomer with a defensive glare.

  "Damn right, and you don't wanna fuck with us kid." She said angrily, and loudly.

  "Woah, woah, you're right. I don't. We saw your fire and wanted to join you. Trying to get away from Varidia." The new kid quickly stammered out, throwing his hands in the air, dropping the branch.

  "We?" The elf questioned, giving Angel a glare over his accurate prediction. To which she merely shrugged sheepishly.

  "Don't hit them too, please. Come on out."

  Then out from behind him came a tan elven woman, in brown and red leather, with medium brown hair tied back. Followed by a half grown bull.

  "What the hell?" The mocha woman blurted out loudly.

  Which caused the bull to stop and stare at her, cocking his head to the side with a gentle moo. Everyone stared at the bull in silence until the boy spoke up.

  "I'm Dante, good to meet you." He said as he promptly sat down and began warming his hands on the dimming fire.

  "Valerik." the dark elf said shortly, relaxing only a little, still anxiously glancing towards the giant bull.

  "Get warm kid, I'm Angel." The mocha woman introduced

  Herself in kind. "How 'bout you huh?" Angel asked, looking towards the new girl and her bull.

  "This is Xander." She said, waving her hands toward her bull, as he put his head in the air proudly before finding some grass to nibble on contently.

  They looked at her expectantly waiting for her to finish. Instead she sat next to Dante by the fire.

  "And…. You?" Angel inquired again.

  "Oh, I'm Kaiya."

  Angel nodded in acknowledgment while staring at Xander as the new trio came and sat down. The pair got a better look at them in the firelight.

  Dante, the young man, seemed to be almost twenty years old. His clothes looked like they were once well made, but had worn out quite a bit over time.They were simple pants and a longer shirt, both in darkish grey.

  He had short messy black hair, with pale skin and circles under his eyes, he seemed to not have had decent sleep in a long time. He was half out of it, and half looking everywhere at once as he sat there.

  Kaiya had tan skin, brown amber eyes of honey and wood. Her outfit was functional for traveling and hiding in the woods. Even the reds blended in instead of standing her out among the forest.

  It was a moment before Angel broke the silence again. "So.. what were you doing in Varidia?" Aiming towards Kaiya.

  "I was.. removing a pack of blighted wolves. I tracked them up here. " she replied quietly, half asleep already.

  "I see, how about you kid?" she asked, looking his way.

  Dante looked up sheepishly, "Running from the wolves.”

  Angel stifled a laugh before swallowing it, saying

  "Well, hopefully you took care of them at least."

  "All the ones I found." Kaiya replied. Then her pointed ears perked up, hearing something nearby.