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“Let’s go,” he says, standing and revealing the outline of himself left behind by my blades.

ILETTHEGIRLSon watch know I’m going off scouting with Kearan, and then the two of us take off.

Perhaps it was a foolish thing to agree to. Nothing about Kearan is stealthy, but I’d disappoint Dimella if I tried going off on my own. I like having her good opinion. I want to maintain the mutual respect we have for each other. Besides, Kearan probably won’t be able to keep up, and I’ll lose him in the dark. He’ll have no choice but to return back to camp. Dimella can hardly be upset then.

It’s so very dark under the trees, but thin beams of moonlight break through the canopy, illuminating our way. The small scurrying of nightlife sounds around us. Some sort of nocturnal bird hoots in the evening air, and the leaves and needles rustle around us, despite the lack of breeze.

The needle-strewn floor masks any sound and prints we might leave on the ground. I dart from tree to tree, searching our surroundings carefully before moving on to the next stopping point. Small plants appear here and there, and I skirt them so as not to leave a trace.

Kearan makes barely a sound behind me.

In fact, I have to look over my shoulder more than once to ensure he’s keeping apace with me.

“You remember what I used to do for a living, right?” he asks. “Stealth was often required.”

Still, there’s so much of him. I don’t know how he manages it.

“You make a lot of assumptions about me based on my size,” he says. “I don’t like it.”

I halt in place and turn, staring at him.

“I’m a big man. Always have been. I have no problem with it. Do you?”

“Of course not.”

“Good.”

I turn back around, thoroughly puzzled by the exchange. I can’t tell if he wanted to know what I thought about his body shape or if he was concerned it might affect how I treat him or something else entirely.

I like his shape, not that I would ever tell him that. And I would assume anyone who isn’t me would make more noise than usual, but maybe I need to be more careful with my thoughts and words if they’re coming out wrong.

Talking has never been my strong suit.

Still, I say over my shoulder, “I’m sorry if I’ve offended.”

“If? You remember that you once pitched me off a ship and into the ocean, right?”

“I meant with my words.”

He seems thoroughly shocked for a full second. Then he mutters, “Apology accepted.”

“Good. Now, quiet; we’re getting close.”

It is a thing I sense, rather than see, that tells me we’re nearly there. I halt in place, and Kearan does the same two steps behind me. The moon hides behind cloud cover, obstructing my vision, but I am endlessly patient, waiting the fifteen minutes for it to return. My eyes take in the surrounding landscape, checking every tree and bush twice.

I spot the man up in the canopy to our right, even before he coughs loudly into the frigid air. The glint of a pistol in the moonlight appears near some shrubbery, and there’s a rustling not too far off to our left.

We skirt them all, moving slowly. Waiting, waiting, waiting. Crouching, springing forward. Crouching again. Soon, I can smell the smoke from the campfire, and my mouth waters at the scent of whatever they are roasting.

Kearan taps my back and points, having spotted yet another guard up in the trees. I nod, and we continue on, tracing a circle around the entire campsite, until I know the location of every person on watch, including the one who fell asleep leaning against another tree. He’s the one we tread past to get closer.

A large boulder rests just outside the firelight, and Kearan and I press our backs against it. I look around the side, peering through some bushes to take a look at what’s before us.

There are ten of them. Big, built men wrapped in furs and armed to the teeth. They carry spears and quivers of arrows. Bows resting beside where each of them sits. Swords at their waists. The hilts of knives peeking over their boots. A few sport pistols.

They don’t look different from us. Their skin and hair come in the same colors. Their facial features are arranged in the same shapes. They are human just like us.

Though their language is far different.