The crew continued to gallop through the abundant greenery on the fierce trail until they were sure they had successfully fled from their mysterious pursuers. By the time they had finally came to a halt, the now orange sun was setting beyond the horizon. The bright yellow blanket of light they were covered in was now a bright orange like the core of a mighty fire. The beautiful dark blue sky had transfigured into a soft pink.
"Let's set up camp, we'll continue riding tomorrow." Mr. Toruga sighed and dismounted his steed, and with a grunt, he began pulling gear from his horse's saddle.
The others did the same and began unloading. By the time their tents and campfire was set up, the sun had vanished and was replaced by the white of the moon. Everyone stared quietly into the fire quietly while the crickets chirped, and other animals of the night stirred. Gareth happily cooked a piece of meat on the fire, until it had morphed from a bright pink to a perfectly cooked brown. He licked his lips and took a bite with his sharp teeth.
"I swear you become more and more an animal every day." Riba chuckled.
"Oh really?" Gareth looked over, offended.
"That's not even the least of it. We've seen how you act." Korra added, not being able to resist smiling.
"Really?!" He barked, getting angrier.
"You're jumpier than a rabbit!" Riba snickered playfully and grinned at him.
"M-Mr. Toruga! They're making fun of me!" He whined, looking in Mr. Toruga's direction.
"I saw you scratch yourself like a dog once." He said blankly.
Silence.
Riba and Korra burst into laughter, shattering the silence like glass.
"Oh really? And what about you Riba?"
"Heheeheh! What about me?" Riba asked through roaring laughter.
"Have you ever seen yourself when you cry?"
"What's THAT supposed to mean?"
"You look like-"
"A RAISIN LEFT OUT IN THE SUN!!" Korra blurted and laughed as a torrent of joyful tears shot from her eyes.
"DAWW I WAS GONNA SAY THAT!" Gareth shouted but laughed with her.
"HEYYYY!!" Riba whined as Gareth had before, but also couldn't help but laugh with the others.
Mr. Toruga cracked a smile and sighed happily. He wanted them to keep their voices down unless they were being watched, but didn't want to spoil their fun. The truth was, it might've been the only fun they'd have before the mission started. They had eventually calmed down, and Gareth went back to eating. Riba was happy that Korra had finally restrained her ill - manner toward him, and was actually having a good time.
"Today wasn't much, tomorrow the real mission begins." Mr. Toruga reminded them.
Korra looked up, the idea of going after the bandits was still in her mind. She felt angry that Mr. Toruga was underestimating her capability.
"I still think we should have gone after them." She grumbled.
"Korra. You know why we cant - "
Then, she snapped.
"Why? Cause you think I'm not capable?"
"H-Hey...Korra, relax..." Gareth whimpered, starting to feel uneasy.
"You think I'm not strong enough to handle things?!"
"Korra - " Mr. Toruga intervened.
"If I can't prove that I'm better than HIM," She pointed directly at Riba, making him jolt in his seat, "THEN I'D RATHER QUIT THE WARRIOR ACADEMY!!"
She stomped to her feet and stormed off into the depths of her tent, leaving them in an uneasy silence. Gareth looked over and stared at Riba in confusion. Riba stared back in fear and shrugged. He looked to Mr. Toruga, who closed his eyes and sighed.
"I'll talk to her." He mumbled and got up, entering her tent.
Gareth yawned and stretched.
"Hey, let's get to bed." He said to Riba gently.
Riba nodded and went into his tent, and Gareth went into his.
~o~
The sun shone through above the trees the next morning. Mr. Toruga, Gareth and Korra sat at the morning fire, cooking their breakfast. Korra stared into the flames angrily. She was still upset about the previous night. She felt, jealousy. She hated it, feeling jealous of someone like him, but that was it. A loser like him somehow surpassed her, as if he was cheating. She hated him.. at least...
Riba yawned and sat upright, the sun shining through the walls of his tent had awakened him. He slipped on his gear and stepped out.
"Morning sleepy head." Gareth smiled and waved at him.
The breakfast on the fire had just finished, perfect timing. Riba yawned again and took a seat beside Gareth. Korra walked into her tent once she was finished eating, the opportunity to speak to Mr. Toruga clear as day.
"Well..?" He asked.
"She still hates you. It would appear that she has lost her self - confidence since the Warrior Tests."
"What? How come?"
"We should get going," came Korra's voice as she stepped out of the tent with her gear, "We still have traveling to do."
Riba tried to continue his conversation with Mr. Toruga, but he had already mounted his horse. Kara leaped onto Riba's shoulder and he mounted as well. Nothing strange was seen as the group trekked onward, the road sloping more and more. Eventually, they had reached a point in which the trail was too rough for the steeds to go any further.
"We must go the rest of the way ourselves. Leave the horses here." Mr. Toruga said as he dismounted.
~o~
"Are we there yeettttt...?" Gareth whined as he walked lazily.
"Soon. Keep walking." Mr. Toruga grunted, who seemed to be having no trouble.
After what felt like an eternity, they had reached the top of the large slope, giving them an extraordinary view of the scenery. The huge city of Mosu sat on the mountain range, and the shimmering water below glowed with the reflection of the behemoth above.
"There it is!" Riba cheered and pointed.
"Finally! I'm so excited!" Gareth laughed and gave Riba a fist bump.
"Calm yourselves. We still have to walk there." Mr. Toruga sighed.
The two groaned in annoyance. As they continued to walk, Riba suddenly heard a noise, like water splashing. He pivoted around but saw nothing but the lake they were walking beside, and a small puddle. He shrugged and pressed on. Kara suddenly hissed. Now, something was wrong. Riba pivoted quickly, but saw nothing. Turning back, there were two puddles on either side of Mr. Toruga.
"MR. TORUGA!!" He shouted.
"Wha-" He began to say, turning around in confusion.
The puddles rose from the ground and morphed into the shape of two men. Both wore spiked gauntlets, which were attached to spiked chains around their arms. They both swung, the gauntlets soaring toward Mr. Toruga and wrapping around him swiftly, cutting the air with sharp whooshing noises. He barely had time to react. The two men tugged on the chains...
...and Mr. Toruga was ripped apart.