The next day Aldryn and Klyran could be spotted at the edge of the Silver City.
"I wish we could stay more" the priest said with honest regret in his eyes.
"You could always just come back again later on" Ildurin replied and waved his hand.
Klyran then looked behind them, to see the city again. He was in his new cloak and knew that it would be an item that he will deeply care for. Not because it was an obviously expensive gift, but because it was something that he received from his friends.
Friends, he thought and smiled. Those people were his friends, his, not forced to spend time with him. Those people were kind to him because they wished to. As he was thinking that, he looked at Ildurin who quickly noticed and looked back at him.
"Thank you for the gift", he said quietly, "I will take good care of it"
Those words made the King smile. The previous evening, when he came back from their trip around the town, one of the first things that the Ryan noticed was the cloak laid on his bed. He went to it and tried it on, then approached a mirror and admired the work. It fit him perfectly, which he expected, begin the gift from a King and made with his measurements. While looking at his new item, Klyran spotted Aldryn entering the room. The blonde approached him and touched the material, admiring the work. It was fully black, with thick wool sewn on the inside. Along the rims there were a few buckles that Klyran could use to make sure that he could stay covered even when it was windy. The sole decoration was the grey fur that sewn along the edges going all around from his feet to the hood. It also served as extra protection from the cold, as it covered the buckles and would make sure that the cold could not sweep in through them.
Klyran was brought back to the current conversation when Aldryn begun asking Ildurin about his plans.
"I will call the rangers from the North. See if those around here heard of anything and send a message to Midryl and ask him to hurry back. Then maybe head South myself."
Aldryn could only nod at those words. Before he turned to leave, Lunahera called for two servants who approached them with two horses. Their saddles had a bag on each side, filled to the brim with various types of items. Before Aldryn had the chance to say something, Ildurin quickly interjected and mentioned how he needed to send the horses to Morien to Midryl and his sister. So if the two of them could take the horses, they would do him a great favour.
"Diarum is near Morien, think of it as just going to pass the horses to them" the King explained and to that, the oracle had no argument.
With a sigh, he saddled one of the two horses and waited for his friend. Klyran has been around horses in the months that he spent in this world, but he never rode one. Understanding this, Flangir, who was standing near them, offered to help. With an embarrassed thank you, the two of them were off.
At first, the pace was slow, Aldryn giving his friend time to get used to be on the back of the horse. They were two magnificent creatures, the Ryan could not help but think. He petted the dark brown animal beneath him, feeling the warmth of its mane. Aldryn's own horse was of a dark grey colour. After an hour into their travel, the oracle made a gesture to his legs and Klyran looked at the motion the blonde did to command the horse to go faster.
The pace then increased, the horses gained speed and for a human, it would seem that the world around them was blurring. Yet when Klyran looked around, he saw everything clearly.
At first, the Ryan could not understand why Aldryn didn't travel more often on a horse. As the world sped around him, he could look around and notice details that would otherwise escape him. He enjoyed it greatly. It was only when night came and Klyran wished to continue on their journey, not requiring rest as often as humans, did he understood. The poor animals that carried the two of them all day were tired.
As the horses rested during the night, the two of them were sitting, looking into the darkness that surrounded the South. Klyran stretched his legs and laid down on the bare grass, using the hood from his new cloak to pillow his head and appreciating the softness of the wool that was sewn into the cloth from top to bottom.
In that instant, he realized that among all the excitement, he forgot to check his status. He quickly opened the window and was greatly pleased to see his Swordsman Level increase from 2 to 4. It was a big jump considering that it has only been two days. While his original aim was Level 5, it now seemed too low for him. With a satisfied nod and a promise to train every day, with a random branch if needed, Klyran closed the window and looked back at the sky.
Aldryn lit a fire and tied the two animals not far from their small camp. It was close enough for the warmth to reach the horses, yet far enough not to scare them. After that, the blonde sat down on the ground near his friend.
The two of them stood in silence for a while, both lost in their own thoughts. The Ryan was admiring the night sky, which was so similar to the eyes of his own kin. A wonder that he was not sure he could tire of. As some time passed, Klyran turned his head toward his friend and noticed him solemnly looking into the fire. Upon questioning what he was thinking about, Aldryn simply waved his hand and changed the topic. And so, the two of them spend the rest of the night talking about mundane things.
It was in such a fashion the two of them spend the following days and nights. At some point, they both begun to think how much shorter their journey would have been were they to travel by foot.
As days went by, Klyran learned to both love and hate their new way of travelling. Some days, he greatly enjoyed riding, being able to see the world around himself. He liked looking into the distance, seeing the small villages that they passed. The small animals that ran around the fields and hiding behind trees in the forests that they went through. Yet on some other days he would get frustrated. Whenever they had to stop for the night, for the animals to rest, knowing full well that were they to walk, they would have been more than capable of going further. He would frown thinking about the days that they lost travelling in such fashion.
But in all that free time that he now had, Klyran dutifully trained. He would remember everything that Ildurin taught him and repeat each movement over and over again. At some point, it even became natural. His muscles and body begun to know what he wished to do without his mind having to interferer. Muscle memory, Aldryn called it and Klyran did his best to improve it. His training also paid off. His skill quickly rose to Level 5. It made him wonder why the bandits that he saw usually had lower Level. But then, he would remember the long years that he wielded his blade and the low level that he himself had prior to proper training.
When they finally approached a more rocky ground, Aldryn gave the Ryan one of his easy smiles and pointed at a giant mountain chain that could be visible in the distance.
"Not much longer", he said and pulled the reign, steering the horse to follow a safe road.
As they came closer, Klyran could fully appreciate the beauty of the mountain. It stretched beyond what his eyes could see. While when he looked up, he could see how tall it was, reaching above clouds, making the Ryan itch to stretch his wings and fly to its top.
At the gates, two men sat, but quickly stood up upon seeing them. They wore attire that could not be found anywhere else in the South. The clothes fit their bodies, as if they were stuck to their skin. Boots that went up to their knees. One of them wore brown pants and long sleeve shirt. On top, a dark green waistcoat was tightly wrapped around his torso and dark brown braces tied to his arms. Klyran could also see what looked like a hood peeking out from the shirt. It was made to protect its wearer from the rain, but unlike the Ryan's own, it was not a coat. The other man, had similar clothes, only they were fully black. They both looked like warriors, their clothes made for swift combat, with bows and arrows visible on their backs, and sharp knives strapped to their hips.
As they approached the two men, Aldryn dismounted and handed the reins to one of them. Seeing this, Klyran followed the action and came to stand near the other human. He grew somewhat attached to the animal during the many long days they spend together. Therefore, he handled the reins with hesitation.
The two newcomers said nothing as they took the horses. They simply nodded their heads and turned around, gently pulling the animals after them. With one last look at their previous riders and a flick of their ears, as if saying goodbye, the horses followed the men.
"They are taking them to the forest of Morien", Aldryn said gently, "Trust me", he then looked at Klyran, "The caves are not a good place for the horses."
With a single nod, the Ryan turned back to look at the giant double doors that guarded the entrance to Diarum. He quickly understood what a cave was, and not only the word. As a being that could fly, Klyran did not feel very confident stepping into the tunnel. Only after Aldryn's urged him, did the raven-haired male stepped inside. But when the doors closed behind them, the Ryan suddenly felt trapped. A shiver travelled down his spine when he felt how cold it was underground. He gripped his cloak and pulled it tighter around himself.