<div class="floatright">(https://i.pinimg.com/originals/98/9b/80/989b802fc7d36ab6eb434cca729b5bd2.jpg)</div><br/>It had already been dark for two hours when one of the elves woke Ares. He grumbled like an old bear for being roused from his sleep, but got up either way, knowing that doing his duty was more important than a good night’s rest.<br/><br/>Ares looked up to the sky, watching the twinkling stars high above.<br/><br/><em>I wonder if Tempus is watching me right now. I must be brave and vigilant. Leofwine has some idea of the trouble we’re heading into, but the others—, no, they’re not really soldiers. They don’t know what it’s like to slay and take the life of a living being. Maybe it would be for the best if Leofwine and I take care of those scoundrels once we knocked them out cold and interrogated one of those bastards. I want to preserve my daughter’s innocence; she should have nothing to do with death and murder. Hell, Selise would probably claim that death is part of nature just as much as life is, but still, one shouldn’t think too lightly about killing. I still recall how I was shaking in my boots for days after I made my first kill. It was horrible.</em><br/><br/>The cleric cast Light on the edge of a tree branch, illuminating the area around the camp. He perked his ears, trying to pick up the sounds around them, listening if he could hear any sounds that were out of place and could reveal the presence of unwanted visitors, be it beast or man. He heard nothing of importance, however, and rested with his back against the tree, making sure that he had a clear line of sight on both the party as well as the road.<br/><br/>After the second Light spell disappeared, he knew that two hours had come and gone.<br/><br/>“Time to wake the others,” the cleric muttered.<br/><br/>Ares rose up from his seat and stretched his arms, shaking his muscles loose. He made a round and shook each of his companions awake, telling them with a quiet voice that it was time to leave.<br/><br/>“Alright all, we don’t need to waste more words on this than we have to,” Ares said, once everybody was up and about. “Prepare yourselves and then head for the woods. Leofwine, you’re with me.”<br/><br/>The cleric hooked the donkey up to the cart and made sure that the bags on the cart were filled with stones, just as they had discussed before. It appeared that somebody had taken the trouble to do so sometime during his rest. Ares cast Light on his shield and guided the donkey down the treacherous path where he was sure that danger awaited them. He had his rapier sheathed, however, using his free hand to guide the donkey while his shield arm illuminated the path ahead.<br/>