The fire's light shone like a beacon off to the side of the road, casting flickering shadows from the benefactors of its warmth. Selune's light illuminating all that is out in the open as the cold embrace of winter graced the land, with only the gentle stirring from one occupied bedroll disrupting the harmony of the sound of burning embers.
"You're awake," states the man sitting by the fire. The deep orange light revealing rough lines on his face as he turns his attention to the sound.
On the ground beside him lay a woman, blanketed for warmth and taking deep slow breaths. Finally opening her eyes, she squints around at the camp.
"I feel...dizzy," she claims while propping herself up to sit.
"Don't push yourself. You just came to." Lambe warns while eyeing the bandages on her.
All dried up. That's a good sign. He deduced. He thought her lucky at first to make it, but now he realizes her strength ran deeper.
Must be her lineage.. He concluded.
"What...happened?" she asks, voice rasping.
He offers her a canteen to which she drank from graciously, letting her empty it before responding to her question. "Shep picked up a scent that led us off the trail," the ranger explains as he reaches to stroke the dog's head. "It's good that he knew yours, Hara. We found you badly wounded and unconscious, surrounded by wyverns," he adds.
"That's...terrible," she exclaims. Her jaws clenching from the realization of what, or what may have, happened. "Thank you...for your help," she says as she looks at the man. The female hunter then goes to recount the circumstances that led her there. The job, preparation, and finally the encounter. "I owe you," she finishes, feeling around the bandages where her wounds were kept hidden. She needed not see how bad they were. She could feel it.
"If that's how you feel," Lambe nods in acceptance, "be careful next time."
"Yes, I will," the female hunter responds with resolve, "how should...I repay you?"
"However you want, I don't really have anything in mind," he claims. He turns his attention back to the fire, stoking it gently to keep it aflame.
She watches him for a moment as her eyes regained clarity. "Gold," she offers.
He continues to watch the flickering flames as a cool breeze sweeps through their camp.
She's not much different from my younger self, finding myself in this same situation. The ranger mused as memories came flooding back, to a time when he himself was left bloodied and bruised, only to be saved by his mentor.
Kolandir. He calls back to a name he will never forget. The name of the one who saved his life and who led him to this. There were many other situations throughout those early years when he'd have fallen short and would have had to pay for it, if not for those he owed a deep gratitude to.
Alexander, Tara, Nathaniel... He started recalling names as a voice pulled him back from his reverie. "Well?" the woman asked apprehensively, unaware of his musings.
"Save your gold," he finally answers, "just make sure you stay alive long enough, you hear?" Lambe watched her nod in silence. "When you are stronger, you'll know how to repay the debt," he adds as he looks up at the night sky.
Not to me...you will owe it to yourself. He concludes the only way he knows. Too well.
So as the night gets colder, so did the conversation as the fire was left to die on its own, the three of them resigning the night to look forward to daybreak. Lucky ones who get to see a new day.
