9th Summer 517
Samuel gave the command and his Tiaden leapt into a canter. The large man grinned, the stallion seemed to relish the chance to properly stretch his legs and ride fast. He knew that Dan would lose strength if he wasn't worked regularly, so he had made it a habit to exercise the stallion at least every other day. His warhorse could not hope to match one of the Drykas' Striders for speed in the Sea of Grass, but Samuel had no intention of letting Dan fall any further behind. So they had set out from the tent city and once they were far enough away, man and horse rode hard around the outskirts. They stayed close enough that they could reach the city quickly if danger did appear, but far enough out that they would not draw unnecessary attention to themselves. Samuel didn't want to highlight that he was an outsider any more than he already had.
After a few laps the Tiaden was breathing heavily and sweat drenched his flanks. Samuel, noticing his mount's exhaustion, drew the pair to a halt. He eased himself to the ground, rubbing Dan's neck and whispering quietly to him. Taking the reins, the swordsman gently led his mount over to a nearby bush. He slowed to a stop, then took his time examining the surroundings. The sun was beginning to set. He didn't want to spend any longer outside the city than he needed to but he was even less keen on being ambushed by one of the many dangers that lurked within the Sea of Grass. So he watched carefully for any movement. Once he was satisfied he was not in immediate danger, he knelt down and drew his knife.
The other reason he was outside of the city was his need for firewood. The bush he knelt by would give him enough firewood to cook his evening meal, so he set to work. The thin branches snapped off easily, but those that were thicker required Samuel to saw away with his knife to detach them from the bush. Every so often, he would once more scan his surroundings for any potential threats. A flash of movement caught his eye, so he slowly reached for his shortbow. An arrow was pulled from the quiver at his waist, and placed gently against the drawstring. Samuel crept forwards, focusing his attention on the area where he had spotted the movement.
Many thanks to Prophet for the box code.