Sorry for the lame title, leave a better option in the comments please if you have one! Also... these next few chapters will be a bit of filler stuff, sorry about that. The climax is approaching though, I think only about 12 more chapters until the end of the book!

"That was the Touch?" Kiela asked, but Kym had already begun walking.

"Hurry up or the trail will vanish before we've gotten there." Kym said. Kiela barely heard her. Her mind was carried away by all the endless possibilities.

"Does the touch show you everything?" She asked. "Could I, maybe, could you show me what is happening at my home?" Kym turned to her and shook her head sympathetically.

"I can only see as far as the forest goes, and the image becomes more confused the farther I see. I'm really sorry though, you must be missing your home."

Kiela shook her head. She already regretting asking Kym. Sympathy was a foreign concept to her. "No, its alright." Kiela replied. "I was just curious, that's all."

Kym shrugged, and continued on. The blue glow emanating from the trees bathed the path and shed shadows across their faces. With the clear path they quickly came upon the deer. It had its head up and was snorting, gazing in confusion at the shining trees. Kiela gasped at its beauty. Silently, Kym nocked an arrow on her bow, and Kiela did the same. She struggled to copy Kym's movements as she drew back on the bow with practiced ease and sighted down the arrow's length. With a twang, the string snapped back and the arrow flew throughout he air, implanting itself in the deer's chest. Kym quickly dew and released twice more, the final arrow cutting off the deer's breath as it hit its windpipe. Kiela growled in frustration as she watched her arrow veer far right an d bury itself in the undergrowth. Kym gave her a stranger look as she stomped over to where sit had landed.

On silent feet Kym approached the animal, swiftly removing the arrows. The gleam of life was still in its eye as Kym layer a hand on its back.

"Thank you," she whispered. "For your noble gift."

Kiela returned to her. "How are we going to get this back?" She asked.

"I'll alert the others." Kym replied. "If they have caught nothing they will come to our aid. If they have, then we will have to make do ourselves. I am glad you are with me, Kiela." She said with a sidelong glance. "Doing this without a friend would be hard." She then walked over to a tall tree and began speaking. In a few moments, the topmost branches began to glow, and the leaves on the side showed an image of the two male hunters from earlier following a glowing path of leaves. "They are coming." Kym said.

"Is it really true?" Kiela asked hesitantly. "I mean, what you said a few days ago. About you not having any friends before."

"'The daughter of the chief can have no friends, only inferiors,' is what I was always told, and everyone around me seems to think that too." Kym looked at Kiela, seeming like a young child in need of consolation. "Until you came along. You didn't belong to this place, but came from far away where everything is different. So I thought that maybe you could be the friend that I was always looking for. I've seen all of the other children running about, playing, racing... This never happened with me. If I ever tried to play a game with the others they always let me win, because I was the chief's daughter. Because I am the chief's daughter."

Kiela thought back to every encounter that she had had with Kym, how she had resented her presence or taken her friendship for granted. "I'm sorry," she said, trying to convey everything that she felt into those few words. Kiela pulled Kym into a tight hug, and, after a brief hesitation Kym hugged her back.

"Well, isn't this a nice little scene," a voice said. Both girls pulled away from each other. The two boys fro relier stood in front of them. The one who had spoken to Kym before stood slightly behind the other with panic written all over his face. he shoved the other boy behind him before inclining his head and turning out his foot.

"I'm sorry for my friend's behaviour," he said in a high and panicky voice. "He was just frustrated that we didn't find anything. Please don't report us to Jarnvôsk!"

Kym smilled. "Oh don't worry about that." She said. "help me out here." The boy visibly sagged in relief before darting over and trying to lift up the body of the deer. He grunted under the strain. "You help him too," Kym said to the other.

"Who are they?" Kiela asked her.

"Their names are Lelagy and Tunun, but we call them Fip and Lee. Don't ask." She replied. "The first one who spoke is Lee, and the other is Fip."

"Hey! A little help?" Lee asked, and Kiela hurried over. She supported its mid section while the boys took the for and back legs. They made their way back to the village staggering under the weight of their catch.

Kiela tried to make small talk on the way back, and both although Lee seemed more reluctant they both answered.

"So," She said. "How old are you both?"

"I'm fourteen," Fip replied, "and Lee here is fifteen."

"I'm fourteen." Kiela replied.

The nature of their discussion turned towards the weather and other subjects. Eventually they reached the heart of Kithae and headed to the kitchens where they deposited the deer.

A woman with greying hair exited one of the tents. She surveyed the deer, walking around it and lifted it up to get a measure of its weight.

"How much do you want for it?" she asked. Kym stared her in the eye.

"Forty-nine siestrells, and not one less. We found it in the back woods and the journey here was taxing." Kiela frowned, having no idea what they were talking about.

"I don't have forty nine siestrells, and if I did the kitchen would skin me for giving you that exorbitant amount. Thirty and no higher." Kym shook her head.

"Forty five and that's it." The woman still looked displeased.

"Thirty five."

Kym looked at her, sizing her up. "Forty and that's my final offer."

The woman frowned. "That is a ridiculous amount!"

Kym shrugged and began walking away. "Take the deer!" She ordered Fip and Lee." Baffled, Kiela followed her.

"Why are we leaving?"

"Just wait," Kym replied. Sure enough, the woman came running back up to her.

"Fine, I give in," She panted. "Forty siestrells." She opened a lester loop on which polished round stones were strung. She undid the knot binding them, and transferred forty into Kym's waiting hands. Kym quickly put them onto her own loop and did up the knot. She also gave a few to Fip and Lee for their help. The remainder she split with Kiela.

"What is this?" Kiela asked.

"It's a siestrell," Kym replied, looking at her curiously. "You use it to buy things."

"Why not just share or trade?" Kiela asked."That's how we do it in my homeland.

"Your home seems a kinder place than ours." Kym replied.

***

The scent of the sea filled Kiela's nostrils as he headed down the beaten path to the coast. The rising sun's rosy glow illuminated the rocks and bathed them in shifting light. As soon as she cleared the trees, Kiela spotted Pather sitting on the rocks with his back to her. He stared over the open ocean, surveying the water. Kiela started towards him slowly, she didn't want to disturb him.

"You're going to have to work harder than that." Pather said, startling her. he turned around and for the first time since she had arrived Kiela noticed the row of gleaming weapons laid out on the rock. She ran her fingers over the gleaming flint. Entranced, she picked up a flint dagger and turned it, watching the light play over the stone. She set it down when she noticed Pather watching her. His expression was inscrutable.

"Choose one." He said. Kiela glanced over the array, shaped stone sitting on rounded stone. Her eyes drifted over a granite band. It was about a centimetre thick and large enough to encircle someone's wrist. Loops had been carved out of the stone on the interior, and a leather band had been run through them.

"What is this?" She asked, picking it up. Its weight surprised her.

Pather held out his hand, and she placed the band within it.

"This is a guard that is worn on the wrist. It is typically used with this blade." He picked up a flint dagger that was flared strangely at the tip before narrowing.

"The guard is worn on the wrist and is held in place by the leather. The dagger is longer than a typical one, which means that it must widen towards the tip to prevent it from shattering." Pather ran his finger over it, testing the sharpness. "This weapon is used in hand to hand combat, and when it is deflected off of another object it angles down to the wrist due to the flared tip. Sadly, this results in severed tendons and nasty things like that it the wielder is not competent." The look on Pather's face was not even close to showing remorse. He continued. "One of the great stoneworkers of the past ages developed this guard to prevent that from happening. The flint is still fragile, so even if it breaks you are still left with a weapon; the guard can be used to hit enemies."

"How do you use it?" Kiela asked.

"Give me your wrist," Pather said. He slipped the band over her fingers and tied the leather loop. She winced as it dug into her skin. The pressure turned the shed of her arm lighter. Pather noticed the pained loo in her eyes. "It must be tight." He said, "Or else it will slip and fail you in battle." He then handed her a dagger and showed her the proper grip before strapping on his own guard. Both of their flint blades were about a foot long, and Kiela found hers very unwieldily. Pather on the other hand demonstrated a few slashes on the air before lowing his blade.

"The basic attack is this..." He batted her blade aside and rested the tip of his on her chest.

"Try it on me," He instructed. Kiela stabbed at him, but he easily moved his blade out of the way and flicked the tip back up to her chest.

"Too slow, try again."

***

Kiela collapsed into her bed, utterly exhausted. Her entire body felt bruised and battered, and her limbs ached. Pather had tested her to the limits of her abilities. he had not softened his blows once, but had struck her with the flat of his blade to avoid damage. She had not managed to hit him once, and they had worked on each mvd until they were perfect. As she drifted off to sleep her mind kept dancing with images of weaponry and fighting forms that she was yet to learn.