15th of Spring 513 AV
There was little noise as the day began other than the sounds of leather sliding over wool and metal grating on metal. The breathing of the knights was quiet, but in the early morning chill they left little clouds of condensation rising from their mouths with every exhale.
Aquila Brock strode among their number, her glorious form drawing stares, still, even after all this time. Her expression was haughty, as it usually was. Ehati didn't think twice about it as she tied her arm guard and then glove onto her right limb. Their company didn't wear metal armour on their arms, typically, to allow better stealth when drawing a bow. Leather did it for them. Ehati took it an extra step, though, and wore what archers in her hometown would usually wear. The differences between a sontav and a glove were always glaring, though, so she made do with an arm guard as well. Aquila didn't often comment anymore about it. The leather was stiff enough to protect her from arrows and the glove on her left hand fit underneath the leather vambrace they had her wear.
They were quiet, always had to be. Aquila insisted it would better them for when they had to get in and out of their armour in enemy territory. It made sense, in a way, and protests stopped soon after once people realised Aquila wouldn't be joking.
It was their second day on patrol in the Bronze Woods and tempers were still low. There was rain, although it was light, but complaints were still heard whenever somebody slipped in the mud and made a loud noise like a tree falling, as Aquila would remark.
The last of them finished up with their armour, a few clinking noises being the loudest sounds as a tabards were slid over chainmail and metal guardbraces glanced off the wound metal.
Packs were shouldered, and then the knights were off again on their patrol.
Time was crawling, for Ehati especially, but whenever she glanced upwards to see the position of the sun through the leaking clouds, she was disappointed to see the illusion of slowed time wasn't too far off from what was actually going on. The Woods were quiet, almost glaringly so, as though the animals had taken cover to avoid the rain. Every so often, she would hear something scurry away under bushes and up trees, but she didn't need to investigate to know they had startled some small animal out of its foraging.
They were marching in their patrol, circling along the edge of the Woods against the steep Mountains to the north. Not quite against the mountains, a break in the trees would show them the side of one reaching up into the endless sky gradually. To the south, the distant city of Syliras was a blur unseen through the tangle of gilded trees. To be honest, whenever Ehati was in the Bronze Woods on patrol, she never missed the comforts of Syliras. Cluttered streets choked by humans had nothing on game trails winding around trees. While not a hunter, Ehati could appreciate why hunters sought to isolate themselves so often in places like this. It was a sanctuary from the oppressive heat of civilisation that threatened to encroach upon such natural sanctuaries as the populations climbed.
"Halt." Aquila's clear voice rang through the silence as an arrow would pierce through mist, loud and clear. Ehati slowed to a stop, wary of jostling her strung bow if another knight were to run into her. The loaner may not have been hers as a personal possession, but she cared for it as much as she absolutely could nonetheless.
Aquila stood a few feet before the column of men and women in a loose formation more suited to scouting than marching. She was crouched on the ground, her glorious horns catching slanting rays of light that weren't actually there and glimmering with profound beauty that were, once again, distracting. Did she know her horns looked like the spun glass of Skyinarta's craftsmen? She probably did...
Ehati frowned and cast her thoughts in a different direction, leaning in with interest to see what it was that Aquila was investigating.
There was little noise as the day began other than the sounds of leather sliding over wool and metal grating on metal. The breathing of the knights was quiet, but in the early morning chill they left little clouds of condensation rising from their mouths with every exhale.
Aquila Brock strode among their number, her glorious form drawing stares, still, even after all this time. Her expression was haughty, as it usually was. Ehati didn't think twice about it as she tied her arm guard and then glove onto her right limb. Their company didn't wear metal armour on their arms, typically, to allow better stealth when drawing a bow. Leather did it for them. Ehati took it an extra step, though, and wore what archers in her hometown would usually wear. The differences between a sontav and a glove were always glaring, though, so she made do with an arm guard as well. Aquila didn't often comment anymore about it. The leather was stiff enough to protect her from arrows and the glove on her left hand fit underneath the leather vambrace they had her wear.
They were quiet, always had to be. Aquila insisted it would better them for when they had to get in and out of their armour in enemy territory. It made sense, in a way, and protests stopped soon after once people realised Aquila wouldn't be joking.
It was their second day on patrol in the Bronze Woods and tempers were still low. There was rain, although it was light, but complaints were still heard whenever somebody slipped in the mud and made a loud noise like a tree falling, as Aquila would remark.
The last of them finished up with their armour, a few clinking noises being the loudest sounds as a tabards were slid over chainmail and metal guardbraces glanced off the wound metal.
Packs were shouldered, and then the knights were off again on their patrol.
xxxxx
Time was crawling, for Ehati especially, but whenever she glanced upwards to see the position of the sun through the leaking clouds, she was disappointed to see the illusion of slowed time wasn't too far off from what was actually going on. The Woods were quiet, almost glaringly so, as though the animals had taken cover to avoid the rain. Every so often, she would hear something scurry away under bushes and up trees, but she didn't need to investigate to know they had startled some small animal out of its foraging.
They were marching in their patrol, circling along the edge of the Woods against the steep Mountains to the north. Not quite against the mountains, a break in the trees would show them the side of one reaching up into the endless sky gradually. To the south, the distant city of Syliras was a blur unseen through the tangle of gilded trees. To be honest, whenever Ehati was in the Bronze Woods on patrol, she never missed the comforts of Syliras. Cluttered streets choked by humans had nothing on game trails winding around trees. While not a hunter, Ehati could appreciate why hunters sought to isolate themselves so often in places like this. It was a sanctuary from the oppressive heat of civilisation that threatened to encroach upon such natural sanctuaries as the populations climbed.
"Halt." Aquila's clear voice rang through the silence as an arrow would pierce through mist, loud and clear. Ehati slowed to a stop, wary of jostling her strung bow if another knight were to run into her. The loaner may not have been hers as a personal possession, but she cared for it as much as she absolutely could nonetheless.
Aquila stood a few feet before the column of men and women in a loose formation more suited to scouting than marching. She was crouched on the ground, her glorious horns catching slanting rays of light that weren't actually there and glimmering with profound beauty that were, once again, distracting. Did she know her horns looked like the spun glass of Skyinarta's craftsmen? She probably did...
Ehati frowned and cast her thoughts in a different direction, leaning in with interest to see what it was that Aquila was investigating.
