“How’s the writing going?” Mesu asked through a smirk as Anna flipped through the pages.
“It’s fine.” Anna’s voice had a hint of annoyance that Mesu was becoming too familiar with. She figured Anna wasn’t happy with the progress.
Mesu continued to lay out her bedroll. Three days had passed since they set out. It was their second night in the wilderness, and Mesu missed a proper room. Their path through the plains led to some smaller mountains. Forn Ridge, as Mesu was told, blocked their path to the next town. Mesu had argued to ditch their wagon and horses to go through the mountain pass. Anna had won by stating that going around is safer, which would add a few more days to the journey.
They walked through the thick forest at the foot of Forn Ridge and reached the first incline to measure it up. As night fell, they found a cave that was chosen as their shelter. After the horses were tied up, they made a fire near the entrance as they prepared spots to rest.
“I still don’t feel comfortable being here. We should be more in the open.” Anna said. Mesu sighed at this protest. She wondered if her choices were a sign of hard-headedness on her part or a way to spite Anna and her concerns. Mesu felt it was a bit of both.
“Look, we’ll only be here a few hours. We already yelled inside to make sure nothing’s there. Everything will be alright. Just go to sleep.”
“I don’t know what I did to make you mad, but this attitude is not appreciated. You’re lucky I don’t turn around right now.” Anna slammed her book shut and shoved it in her pack.
“Go ahead. Remember, I didn’t ask for you to come with me. You were the one who thought it was a good idea. Go back to Ilene.” Mesu felt a little guilt as the words left her mouth. She hadn’t been that direct with Anna yet.
They both finished their bedding and started eating in silence. Mesu thought this felt more like a camping trip than traveling. There was no need to hunt, and they still had water and all their supplies. Mesu had wished that she and her brother had done something like this.
Thunder cracked in the distance. The rain clouds had finally caught up to them. Mesu looked up and was thankful for having the ceiling to keep them dry. She felt bad for the horses but knew there was more freedom out there. She took a bite of bread and washed it down with some water. Anna chewed on a piece of dried meat. Mesu looked at it with disgust, not wanting to try a part of an animal she had never seen before. She crinkled her nose, remembering how Anna called her taste bland.
A loud boom and a sudden downpour made them both jump. It echoed through the cave, making them cover their ears. They both let out a slight laugh as they looked at each other and continued with their own thoughts. Mesu paused as a rumble came from all around. It was very different from the thunder. She looked at Anna to see her take another bite. Mesu used two hands to tear a tiny piece off the hardened bread and placed it up to her lips. Another crack rang out close to where they were. Mesu hoped the horses weren’t scared and soaked from the rain.
The rumble from inside the cave came again. Mesu’s mind jumped to a panicked state. She ran through her head what she knew resided in caves, but all she imagined were big and scary things. She took a quick look outside to see that rain was now a steady downfall instead of the sheet of water that had first hit.
She noticed Anna was staring at her with a confused look on her face. “What are you…” Mesu dropped the bread and signaled Anna with a finger to her lips. The confusion deepened on Anna’s face as she continued to sit there. Mesu breathed in sharply and noted that she would need to get some proper nonverbal communication down with her travel partner. She pointed to the bags and mimed putting them on. A real threat had not presented itself, but she wasn’t going to wait around for it. Anna nodded and stood up.
A low whistle broke the silence. Mesu guessed that the target was across the fire from her, and she sprinted up. She dove on Anna as she felt something graze her left shoulder. Mesu let out a yell as the sting of the cut hit her. She rolled to her stomach and crawled with Anna towards the bags. The sound came again, and Mesu forced herself to look. Something whizzed by the fire, and she barely made out the shape. It looked like a knife with both edges sharpened. Another one followed and hit one of the bags in front of them, pinning it to the wall.
Mesu tugged at it but was unable to wedge it loose. Anna grabbed the other and scurried out of the cave in a half-crawl, half-sprint. Mesu followed as the sound grew closer again. They ducked behind a large tree and caught their breath. Drops of water fell on Mesu, and she looked up. It was still raining, but the leaves were blocking most of the drops. She turned her body and peeked from around the tree.
A large animal was silhouetted by the firelight. It walked on all fours. The rounded back had indents that appeared like large scales. Mesu found it hard at first to decipher which end was the head and tail. It looked like a walking hill against the fire, but its height was shorter than her.
“Mesu, don’t even think about it.”
“I’m not thinking about anything. I just want to see what it is.” Mesu said, annoyed.
“The shape of the body and those spikes it was shooting match a creature that people would talk about in the inn. I don’t remember if it was named.” Mesu had never heard of such a creature. It snorted and inspected the fire, then the bag that was left behind.
“Are we going to get that?” Mesu’s voice was unsure about what step to take next. She wondered if every adventurer experienced this feeling. The stories of Enya seemed to flow so well as if everything was planned out. She couldn’t recall one where her ancestor was cowering behind a tree.
“I think we have to cut our losses and move on. We don’t know if it’s alone, where its territory is. If we move south a little, we could probably be far enough away that it won’t bother us.” Mesu was impressed. She smiled and agreed to Anna’s plan. Maybe this won’t be so bad traveling with her, Mesu thought.
The creature stomped around the fire. Each kick of dirt put it out more and more until it was out. Mesu’s eyes adjusted to see the different levels of armor it had.
“Anna, was this something that Enya had ever faced?”
“No. Not from the stories I’ve heard. Other travelers have seen it, and it usually ends badly. After seeing it, I feel like all those stories of surviving that head-on were a lie. That thing is wicked. Are you okay?”
“Yeah, I’m good. My shoulder stings a little, but I was just grazed.” Mesu replied. She moved her arm a bit and winced in pain. She wondered if there was anything on the wagon that would help ease it.
“Thank you for saving me, Mesu. I froze up. I’ve never been that afraid.”
“You’re welcome. We still have a long way ahead of us.” Anna smiled, and Mesu smiled back. A low grunt and footsteps of the creature going back deeper into the cave interrupted their moment. They waited for a few minutes of silence before checking on their supplies. The rain turned into a light mist as they settled down in the back of the wagon.
Mesu lay down as Anna checked the bag and found her book, still dry. Anna retreated under some cloth with it. The last sound Mesu heard was Anna’s pen on the page.