Powder, Smoke and a touch of Magic

Chapter 1: Footsteps in the Dark

The Raven Brown-haired boy opened his eyes slowly still weary from the long trek the prior days before, as they headed north the group had begun to face the cold north American winter.

"Have you put on a pot of hot coffee yet Evelyn" Muttered Charles while standing over the small fire the group had built "I'm freezing"

Evelyn the only female in the group, beautiful middle aged red-haired Irish woman with a never-ending bank of practical knowledge with gave him an unimpressed look from the other side of the fire "Yes Charlie, ill bring it over now, we will need to buy or find some more soon though"

Charlie Mumbled to himself "you know I hate that name" he then looked behind him at the youngest member of their crew "Good Morning James, I hope the sleep was well"

The raven-haired boy arose from his crude tent and bedroll of animal skin and dried leather tucking his hidden revolver deeper in his clothes out of sight.

"Well thanks, is there much food left in the saddlebags" James Inquired

Two similar looking brothers, blond hair broad shoulders and killer smiles walked over to the main fire, one appeared to be in his early thirties, while the other appeared to be in his mid-twenties. The younger one Daniel "All the good stuff is gone but we still have stale bread" he then looks at James with a grin "your favorite"

James chuckled at the joke while the older sibling David seemed unimpressed "settle down danny" he looked between James and Danny now sitting next to each other around fire.

David then begun polishing his rifle and begun to speak to the entire group. "our traveller has gone to gather some local herbs from river nearby, as soon as he returns, we will look to continue our trek north to the Great Lakes and our chance at a new life. Based on my estimation Chicago should only be 14 days north from here."

The group continued to pack their belongings as their native comrade rejoined the group with his bow across his shoulder and hunting knife in his left hand, James shot him a grin as he entered noticing the freshly killed rabbit clutched in his hands.

The Indian had joined the group approximately a month ago, Charles had been sick coughing violently for multiple nights and weak from exhaustion. Four nights ago, when his condition had seemed to be worsening we had heard a whistle in wooded area approximately 30 meters to our west.

I had grabbed charles's saber while the brothers and pointed their rifles in the direction of the woods.

"Whose out there" David wearily spoke in the general direction the sound had come from.

A branch snapped approximately 25 meters to our west in the forest alerting us to the threat's location.

"STOP RIGHT THERE AND REVEAL YOURSELF" David had shouted with an unmatched authority

The figure stopped as we saw the faint outline of a man holding a small knife.

"walk out slowly and hold your hand above your head"

The figure slowly stepped into the fire-light and was revealed to be a brown skinned Indian with war-paints draped over his largely exposed body. A bow around a meter and a half was slung over his shoulder as was a leather satchel.

"I think I can help your friend; he wont last much longer otherwise in the cold weather"

David lowered his rifle to point at the floor in front of him "drop your knife and bow at your feet"

The Indian did as he was told as the group started to relax and he walked over to Charles,

Charles frantically looked around the group "Get this redskin away from me with his witchcraft, its unholy".

Evelyn walked over to Charles to get a better look at what was happening to him "calm down Charles, there's no need to retort at a man trying to help you" He glared at her as his resistance faded maybe due to the fever or just the fatigue of the long travels

The Indian removed a pouch and some leaves from his bag, the then scooped out a dark brown thick liquid that looked like a thick sap and after removing Charles shirt smeared it over his chest and neck.

The Indian Looked back at David and asked "do you have a pot and a water sack?" David then picked it up from near the fire and handed it to him "thanks" the Indian said and threw the leaves he had just collected with a smear of the honey-like substances with some water and put it on the coals to warm up taking a seat near the fire.

David and the other begun to put their weapons away and return to their seats around the fire "what is it you put on him".

"our tribe called it wildflower nectar, a mix of traditional honey and crushed up leave to develop a thick salve that treats wounds and cures many ailments alike. It was passed down through our tirbe for generations." The Indian then looks at the deer that group had just killed "can I have some of that ?"

"Take your pick" replies David as he pulls out a rock and begins to sharpen his knife to pass the time "what brings you to these parts ?"

The Indian stares deeply into the fire "I am simply a traveler looking for a new beginning, I have come from the plains in the north and am now in the forests where I have met you"

"aren't we all" replies David "so fellow traveler, do you have a name"

"Kai"

The Group continued to pack their belongings which only took about half an hour after Kai returned, the only had 4 horses which limited the speed they were able to travel.

As the Group finished their packing David mounted his horse and turned to face the group "we should reach the bank of the river in 2 days and will be able to follow it from there to the next major town, lets keep an eye out for any animals we may be able to hunt and skin, or supplies along the way so that we can buy some supplies when we get there"

The group nodded at him and begun to get on their horses. Danny and James shared a white young stallion while Evelyn shared a older chocolate stallion to make up the middle of the Group and held most of the supplies. At the back of the group, rode Charles on a tan stallion with a scar across is front left leg. Charles held his rifle at the ready almost expecting an attack at any moment, a harkon back from his war days fighting the English defending New Orleans.

James, looked around at the group that surrounded him, brushing his hair which was getting longer than usual from his tired and weary eyes,

The Group had many origins, A lost Indian, a colonist far from home, a retired army officer, miners and a teacher. They had all found a calling in a small job given to them by a frail old farmer, Deliver the item at all costs.

A/N: I am getting back into writing after a long while with a new idea inspired by many different books i hope you like it, please let me know your thoughts.