Honor Bound

Chapter 5: Depart

Every time I'd been out of the Kingdom for the past few years, I'd been out with some dire goal. 'Hastily make my way to a nearby town' or 'escort a merchant vessel to a small village outside our borders'. Yet this time was different. For once I was able to take my time and observe my surroundings. I never saw nature as important or even interesting as I passed it. But this time, I had no timed objective I needed to complete. So I could observe the things around me. I will admit, it was nice.
It had only been a days travel south. Admittedly I had grown a bit fond of Sole's environment in that time. All this untamed wilderness just waiting for someone to explore it all. Osprey had been leading the way with Sparrow. While Reg and I were Lagging behind them. Reg had said more than once that returning would be fine by him, and all I had to do was say the word... but again, what else was there? I shook him off at least three or four times before he stopped harping on it. Resigned to the fact that I wanted to press on. But his persistence did scare me ever so slightly. He was far more sceptical, and loyal to Sole. It was I who was banished after all, not him.
As we traveled farther away from the Kingdom, the trails started to get darker and thick with foliage. It felt like something would attack us from behind every time we passed another tree. The lands just south of Sole were rocky and particularly hilly. Full of rough terrain, deep ravines, and creeks that seemed to never end. This in turn resulted in a slippery, steep landscape. Keeping the right balance between too high and too low for safe hiking became a priority.
On the third day of traveling, silence and small talk was finally snuffed out. Mostly thanks to Reg, for he started questioning Osprey."This place we're going to, it's past the Catalyst Valley right?"
"Yeah, at this pace we'll be there in about an hour. Why are you afraid the bandit tribes will strike you down when we set foot in there?" Osprey said in a scarily carefree tone.
    Reg and I exchanged looks of concern,"As a matter of fact, yes. I thought we'd be avoiding that place and especially them." I admitted.
    Osprey turned around,"Do we look like a war party to you? Chances are we won't even run into them, if we do we'll pass off as travelers or traders. They're honorable people ya know, not ones to attack at random."
    "I beg to differ, and if they figured out we were Sole, there could be trouble. We should go around the valley."I argued.
    "What's that supposed to mean?" He asked.
    "Well... we stay clear of them for a reason. When I lead the legion, they were hostile towards us-"
    "Because you were a war party. You were a threat. Chances are your Kingdom has done shady dealings to tick em' off too. They have reasoning, and are very wise people. So I'm keeping to the current route, and going around would take far too long. We don't have the food for it, fellas." Osprey said.
    I stared at him with a disappointed glare. Shady dealings, is one way to put it. The Catalyst valley has a vast array of minerals. Securing those minerals with that tribe guarding it at all times was unbelievably difficult. So yes, extraction was halted until further notice. The Techagolo called it a victory against our Kingdom's treachery, we called it an economic decision.
    "You came through the valley to get to Sole, how long did it take you?" I asked.
    "Two days, and we took shelter in a mined-out mineral cave at the bottom." Osprey explained in a cocky tone.
    "You're just lucky and that's that. I've been on their turf, and I've crossed that valley four times. I should be leading us across. You'll get us all killed!" I growled.
    "No, you went around the edges of the valley on horseback, we're on foot! It would take too long!" Osprey exclaimed.
    "Still better than dying, kid." Reg said, chiming in with a defeated tone.
    Osprey didn't respond. Instead, he walked onward as though we hadn't questioned him at all. Sparrow, who had been listening to us, was showing signs of concern as she slowly followed.
    "Sparrow... maybe she could convince Osprey to be a bit more mature" Reg suggested.
    I nodded,"Hey uh, Spar? Sparrow come here a second." I order as kindly as I could.
    Sparrow stopped in her tracks. She looked between Osprey and us before putting her hood up and waddling over,"Y-yeah?" She mumbled quietly.
    Reg scoffed,"Oh, she does talk, I thought she was mute or some-"
    "Reg", I hissed before making a motion for him to shut up,"Alright kid, I know what that valley is like. You must not have liked it right? Let me guess, wet, rocky, dirty, and scary right?" I asked, crouching down to her height.
    Sparrow hesitated, but nodded,"Umm... yeah."
    "Well listen kid, you're brother isn't one to listen if you haven't noticed. But maybe if you could convince him that the shortcut through the middle of the valley isn't worth it, he'll let us take another path. Would you do that for me?" I asked.
Sparrow hesitated again,"I... I dunno. I really trust Osprey..." She said with a shaky voice.
Before I could retort, she turned and ran towards Osprey who was still walking away from us towards the valley. I stood back up and growled.
Reg sighed and began to follow them,"I hope this work of yours is worth it, Alex."
I ran my hand through my hair and started walking,"Yeah... me too."