//------------------------------// // Restless Respite // Story: Paladin's Cross // by Sage Quill //------------------------------// "The World is a book, and those who do not travel read only a page." -Saint Augustine The canopy of the Bloodwood became less oppressive as Morenth and Twilight moved at a brisk pace through the forest, casting pools of light where the branches were thinnest. "Equestria?" Morenth repeated, cringing as the lavender mare gave him a hopeful look. "My apologies Twilight, I've never heard of it." Her features were crest fallen as she stared at the ground around her hooves, appearing lost in thought. Morenth felt he should speak his mind as he already had a good idea where Twilight's home was, or wasn't in this case. "Twilight," he began gently, more than a little apprehension apparent in his voice, "I don't think you're... from here." "You don't say," Twilight deadpanned, cocking an eyebrow sarcastically, "Did the horribly mutated zombies of a species I've never even heard of tip you off?" Morenth sighed, tempering his annoyance with discipline as he chose his next words carefully. "What I'm trying to say is that you're probably not even native to this world. No one has seen a unicorn for thousands of years," the paladin intoned thoughtfully, stopping a few moments later when he noticed Twilight was no longer beside him. She'd stopped in the tall grass of a clearing, her eyes moving in rapid motion as she absorbed the revelation. After several minutes the unicorn collected herself and looked to him once more, her expression holding an inquisitive air. "The only way you could draw this conclusion is if you know something you're not telling me," Twilight said, remarkably keeping any accusation out of her statement. He hadn't hidden the events in the catacomb prior to Twilight's arrival out of spite or secrecy. It was that the simple act of remembering the clash drew from him a deep seeded rage at the lich who had escaped, and at himself for having let it. There was no real reason not to tell her though, so he spent the time walking to recount the conflict and subsequent arrival of Twilight, detailing as much as possible about the latter subject. "If you don't mind my asking Twilight, how did you manage to enter the void between planes?" Morenth finished, finding it hard to believe such an occurrence was coincidental. "To my knowledge only highly accomplished sorcerers could manage such a feat and in a limited facet." "I-" Twilight faltered, hiding her reddening face as she turned her head away from him, "I overestimated myself. I didn't take the risks seriously enough, and I made the stupid mistake of thinking I understood enough of the mechanics of dark magic to experiment with it." The lavender unicorn was too busy venting about her error to notice Morenth's expression darken, continuing at an increasingly rapid pace as she poured out her thoughts. "I just don't know what went wrong! My calculations should have been perfect. Maybe there was a mistake in the matrix or the vessel was insufficient. Oh, if only I had my notes I cou-Morenth?" Twilight halted her rambling when she noticed the paladin's fists clenched at his side in barely contained ire. "Do you know what you've done!" Morenth stormed, his control snapping like a dry twig under boot. The paladins hand reached for the hilt of his sword as he turned on the mare who fell on her flank, stunned at his angry outburst. "I-uh?!" Twilight stammered in confusion at her new companions sudden aggression, seeming caught between explaining herself and fleeing. Morenth cleared his thoughts as he unsheathed the blade, intent on carrying out his duty. Even attempting the dark arts was an offense punishable by death. There were no exceptions. But she was a unicorn. A messenger of the Goddess, and the symbol of his faith. By what right could he judge her? Was she even what he thought she was? Or was she just a trick to sidetrack him from his original purpose? 'Twilight, why did you come back for me?' 'What? Why wouldn't I?' The paladin's sword stalled mid-draw as he fought an intense battle within himself, feeling unfamiliar emotions play across his face. Twilight recovered from her shock, looking to his face with concern in her eyes. Morenth was taken aback as he realized the feeling of blood trickling down his chin, suddenly aware he'd been biting the inside of his lip. "Morenth, are you ok? You're bleeding," Twilight asked, taking a cautious step toward him. Dawnbringer snapped back into its sheath as the paladin sighed heavily, forcing his anger into submission. "Yes... I'm fine. I'm sorry you had to see that." Morenth intoned softly, finally reigning in his emotions with a concerted effort. The unicorn nodded but didn't look away. "We should get that cleaned up first," she said, taking another step toward him. Twilight's horn lit up but he waved her away, wiping the blood from his face. "It's not your concern, I've had far worse than a bloody lip." Morenth declared, uncomfortable with accepting the help of one he had only moments before been steeling himself to execute. "Of course it's my concern!" Twilight shot back indignantly, "It's always my concern when my friends are hurt." Morenth stared at her with wide eyes as he processed what she had said. "How can you call me a friend?" he asked, her declaration bringing more unfamiliar emotions to the surface, "You've known me for less than a day." Twilight just offered him a smile that, while warm, unsettled him in a way he couldn't place. People rarely smiled at him, some bowed in respect, others avoided him, but all feared him in one way or another. All that changed was the way they expressed it. He didn't blame them. Paladins, while champions of the people, were heralds of disaster. Where they appeared so did the dark things they faced. Morenth decided to put his confused feelings away and focus on the task at hand. "We should keep our minds on putting more distance between us and the keep." The rest of the days walk went quietly with Twilight pondering the state of affairs she found herself in, and Morenth keeping his thoughts stubbornly on the path ahead instead of on the unicorn that trotted beside him. The sun was already over the horizon when Morenth brought a halt to their trek, asking Twilight to help him set camp for the night. She complied readily, removing branches from the trees with her telekinesis for the fire as her companion went to gather what food he could. Her task was a simple one and allowed her more time to think, an activity that held little reward lately. She didn't have enough information about the world she found herself in, and Morenth hadn't exactly been forthcoming on the subject, or any after the incident earlier that day. The last thing Twilight wanted was to agitate him more, but she needed to find out eventually, if for nothing else than to plan her next move. Twilight went about her work, gathering the branches from the lower sections of the trees and the smaller sticks that were tangled in the underbrush for kindling. When she returned to the camp site she found Morenth was still absent and began work on building their fire, arranging the branches in a meticulous pyramid fashion. The studious mare was delighted she'd read that book on camping 101, following the book's instructions to the letter. A small spark from Twilight's horn ignited the kindling and soon she was rewarded with a warm fire. She lay down next to the glowing pyre as her stomach grumbled, complaining at her lack of nourishment for the last day and a half. As if summoned by her hunger, Morenth emerged from the darkness of the woodline carrying a small burlap sack full of what she hoped was dinner. Twilight's companion sat down next to her, pulling the draw strings on the sack to reveal an assortment of strange berries. He set them on the ground next to her and moved over to the opposite side of the fire, finding a good leaning position against a tree. "What about you?" she asked hesitantly, eyeing Morenth with concern. "I have my own food, though I don't think you'd appreciate eating dried meat." her companion explained as he drew out another sack from his belt, placing it in the grass next to him. "So your species is carnivorous?" Twilight queried, attempting to lure the terse creature into light conversation. "I can eat most plants as well if that's what you're asking," Morenth deflected, taking a bite of the tough jerky. "Does your species have a name at least?" Twilight fished, causing him to sigh in exasperation as he took another bite. "Listen Twilight, we'll have plenty of time to discuss any questions you might have on the road to Hollodrum tomorrow. Just try and get some sleep tonight. It's only half a days walking from here, but there will be a lot of matters to attend to when we get there." It was Twilight's turn to sigh in exasperation, knowing Morenth wouldn't even be inclined to elaborate on what "Hollodrum" was. She assumed it was a town of some sort, but she had no idea what to expect. Despite her dampened mood she found the berries to her liking, bitter with a sweet aftertaste. Morenth sat comfortably, eating the last of his provisions while Twilight scarfed down what remained of her berries. The lavender unicorn gave a contented sigh when she finished, scooting closer to the warmth of the fire with a small yawn. "If you won't answer my questions until tomorrow then the sooner morning comes the better." Twilight grumbled softly, her agitation dulled by exhaustion. Morenth grunted in reply, folding his arms across his chest to keep the warmth in. "Goodnight Morenth," the lavender mare whispered as she closed her eyes. "Goodnight Twilight," the paladin replied quietly, settling himself in for the night. "Morenth?" Twilight asked sleepily. "Yes?" "Thank you." It was several moments before Morenth found his voice to respond. "I've done nothing to deserve your gratitude," he finally replied, but it fell on deaf ears as he heard the slow, rhythmic breathing of sleep. Morenth looked over to the sleeping mare, his face an unreadable mask as he fought back more confusing emotions from finding their way to the surface. Alone with his thoughts and unable to sleep, the paladin expanded his senses both mundane and magical to the surrounding woods, searching for any signs of pursuit from the ancient fortress. When he was satisfied that any undead that came looking for them would be detected long before they were he settled into a state of wakeful reverie as he watched the dancing flames of the fire die slowly. As the pyre became dimly glowing embers, Morenth turned his gaze once more to the small silhouette of Twilight's sleeping form. "This will be a long journey," the paladin intoned forebodingly into the darkness of the clear night sky.