Welcome to Gaia! ::

As they traveled north, guided no longer by Emile (though he stayed with them) but rather by Halmir (who knew the land well, having traveled it long before his slaver-hunting days), the weather steadily grew warmer. For about two weeks there was little by way of trees, but one day they spotted trees in the distance.

"Just in time, too," Emile muttered, looking up at the sky to the west. "It looks like there might be some rain or something coming in the next few days ... trees would surely be a welcome shelter."

"Do you know what trees those are?" Halmir asked the man, arching one eyebrow.

Emile shrugged. "The swamp. What does it matter? Trees are trees, and the swamp isn't a bad one, especially if we stay at the edge of it."

Andarien didn't mind being stuck in the sling for hours on end, it meant that he could suck on his mother's promise necklace without her noticing (for a while at least). And it kept him quiet. He wasn't very fond of being held still.

"I usually try to go around them," Emile replied to Lin's question, "but as long as you're careful there's nothing wrong with going through them as well. Since you're heading to the Westland, though, there's no need to go through it, simply past it. Though I do recommend at least taking shelter within its borders for the coming storm."

"Sounds safe enough to me," Earendil commented. "I've heard about animals that live in the swamps, but they stay towards the middle, where there aren't people around to disturb them. They rarely leave the swamps themselves, so we should be safe from them, especially with the rain."

Alena was driving the wagon that Miyuki was riding in, and she smiled over her shoulder at the kitsune. "Do you see those trees up ahead?" she asked, pointing forward at the trees that were a little less then a day's journey away. "That's where we're going to stay for a short while, to hide from the storm that's coming, and perhaps take a bit of rest."

Andarien made a raspberry noise with his tongue to show his displeasure at having his toy taken away from him, and instead he started to suck on his fist to occupy himself.

Earendil chuckled at the boy, then followed Lin's gaze to see what she was trying to see.

"Wondering how far away it is?" he asked her with a gentle smile.

Alena smiled at Miyuki and shook her head. "I do not know," she admitted. "The land here is so different from Amon Darthir, I'm afraid I've forgotten how to read its weather."

Earendil chuckled. "It depends on the wind, really. Though for this one, I would say ..."

He looked to the west again, judging the distance of the clouds and the terrain, and the speed of the wind.

"Tomorrow morning," he guessed. "But that's just an estimate."

Alena laughed at Miyuki. "In this case, I would have to say the storm, since we are still nearly a day from the swamp," she giggled. "You have a very sensitive nose, Miyuki. Even I can't feel the humidity yet."

"We can pick up the pace and try to reach the trees a bit faster," Earendil suggested. "I agree, it would not be good to be caught in it."

He turned to Aric and Leilani, the most seasoned travelers of them all. "What would you say? Do you think it would be possible to reach the swamp by nightfall?"

The two exchanged a glance before Aric replied, "If we were to double up the horses for the wagons, we would have a chance."

"We have the harnesses for it," Daeron spoke up. "I say we do it. Just to be on the safe side."

"Perhaps you'll get used to it," Alena smiled. "If all else fails you could wear a scarf or something."

Earendil reined his horse in and motioned for Lin to stop as well. "We'll take a few minutes rest while we hook up our horses to the wagons, and to help us go a bit faster still, we'll get Kelirahc and Haldia to summon their spirits to take some of us."

He dismounted and called out the plan to the others, and within in minutes everything was ready. The spirits would stay with them, though, rather than going on ahead, as it was deemed safer by everyone that they stick together rather than separate.

From there it was only a matter of hours before they reached the edge of the swamp, before the sun had even begun to set. They entered the woods just a short distance and set up their camp, taking special precautions against the oncoming storm. The horses were tethered, the tents erected, the wagons place to protect them from the wind.

Then the only thing left to do was wait for night to fall.

"I'll take first watch," Daeron offered. It was more a precaution than anything, since they really didn't expect any sorts of attacks this far from the Southland, but it was one they would not go without.

Daeron smiled at Miyuki. "Don't you worry," he winked at her. "I'll sleep through the storm tomorrow and get plenty of rest. How does that sound?"

Earendil laughed. "Get going then, before someone sneaks up on us," he chided his brother. "Go on!"

Daeron laughed along and moved off into the trees.

Andarien giggled as Lin played with him, but suddenly a startled look crossed his infant face. He blinked, for a moment was still, and then giggled once more at Lin.