Preparations 3

Gaelardrim finished digging another stake out of the ground.  Putting the tents up had been a lot of work, but taking them down was proving to be worse in some ways.  The canvas part came down easier, but the stakes driven into the ground to hold the frames and anchor the tents were a pain to get out.

Of course, not all of the tents were coming down immediately.  There were still the healers, the rangers protecting the healers, and a couple of supply groups left.  A lot of the new supplies being brought in were being taken to some of the empty tents.  It would be another day or two before they were gone.  It wouldn’t be until then that things would almost be normal.  There would still be some left behind for moving supplies through the portals, but they would most likely all fit at the inn.

Gaelardrim put the stake on the cart and moved on to dig up the next one.

***

Aranae Lightmist sat on one of the benches on the deck of the boat.  She gazed out over the passing waves glittering under the moonlit sky.  While a few people were above deck now, most were below, sleeping.  Aranae almost thought the tents on the island had been nicer.  The boats seemed even more cramped.  She found it easier to sleep during the day, and without the training exercises that they had on the island, she could.  It almost seemed quieter then than it did at night.  Some people snored too loudly, and the smell wasn’t all that great either.  Hopefully there would be a place to bathe once they landed and made camp.

She was glad the training on the island was over.  They had originally been undecided where to put her.  When they asked what skills she had, she plainly stated that she knew how to kick trolls in the face.  It wasn’t as easy as one might first assume.  She didn’t want to impale her feet on their tusks.  They had thought she was kidding, at first, but after seeing her in action at a training target, they seemed to realize she was telling the truth.  She wouldn’t miss being stared at everyday by curious onlookers.  In the end, they decided to place her with the scouts.  She had previous training with them before she had left for Pandaria, and it seemed a better fit for her than with any other group.

She jumped as she felt the weight of another person drop down on the bench.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you.”

Aranae turned and glared at the other elf, “And I’m supposed to take your word for it, Cadellus?  You’re probably disappointed that I didn’t jump higher.”

Cadellus smiled.  He had also trained in Pandaria, and was originally part of a scout group sent to learn the local customs and fighting techniques.  He had wound up at the Peak of Serenity, and started training as a monk.  Aranae met him there shortly after.  There weren’t many sin’dorei at the Peak, so she spoke to him and Toruviel, the strange elf who came to wash his clothes in the hot springs at the peak, fairly often.

“I couldn’t sleep.  I thought maybe getting some fresh air would help.”

“It would help if they put the people who snore too loud overboard.”

Cadellus smiled again, “I suppose that could be one solution, but we might need them when we get to Kalimdor.”

Aranae frowned, “I think it would help more if everyone was able to sleep before getting there.  How many more days do we need to be on this boat anyway?”

“I think they said tomorrow is when we’ll arrive.  We’ll be there soon.”

Aranae nodded silently, and looked back at the moonlit sea.  If Cadellus wanted to talk more, she could pretend to listen.