7.

><>2nd person POV<><

::: Previously: After some rest and preparations -- with a newly healed wound -- you set off to find the best way northwest. Your best option was to join a man named Andrew Marshall, on his quest to rescue a young king who had been stolen from his kingdom. There, you meet a young man named Carter, who is probably only sixteen or seventeen years old. You all set off over the hills; you, hoping the town you left behind doesn't really get attacked. :::

"So, all you have to do with the little nuggets is get a rope, tie their legs..." The lady in the group ever so delicately step-by-step tells you and the rest of the small group the best way to, execute, a chicken. Carter looks like he is holding in barf by the end, and you stare off into oblivion, letting Prince, your stallion, keep up with the others' horses. The only one who seems remotely interested by the lady's how-to lecture is a man you had shrugged off a while back; a slightly older man with a wild red beard and a pair of round glasses on his face. His plump figure makes you wonder if he really is capable of taking on such a hearty task.

"Psst, Cody!" Carter whispers loudly for your attention. You turn your head right to see him looking at you for answers to whatever question was in his head.

"Yeah?" You ask with little interest. After a full day of nothing but riding and listening to this lady's farming stories, you have become pretty tired.

"Um, why do you think our town will be attacked anyways?" Carter questions. You sigh, unable to stop thinking about it, but finally having to talk about it.

"Listen. I have learned from experience how some things do and don't work. Okay?" You start. "First off, I am not from that town, I just came by for a visit and to know exactly where I should go next and stuff like that.. On my way in, it was dark, and mobs started coming out."

"Um, yeah! They do that every night!" Carter looks like he was about to just laugh it off as you being stupid.

"-But that wasn't the thing that stood out to me. The mobs, they were good. REALLY GOOD." You say, catching Carter by surprise a little by your sudden wavering look. "..And that is what always happens before a raid. Skilled archers are sent in to scout the place out. Skilled enough to kill anyone who sees them or tries to stop them from returning the information they collected. Even I with my skill had trouble deflecting their fast arrows. After the scouts make it back to wherever they came from, the raid preparations begain.. Usually, it takes only a few days for a raid to be full-on." You inform solemnly.

"..Wow, how do you know all this?" Carter asks.

"Heh, you pay attention enough and you tend to learn a few things." You smile. He smiles weakly in return, probably having second thoughts of being so quick to throw away your idea.

"Hey, everyone." Andrew speaks up enough to catch all of your guys' attention. "I think we should stop pretty soon for the night. Let me know if you spot any caves-"

"-No, a cave would be the worst place to stay the night." You speak up, grabbing everyone's attention and disbelief. The stereotype goes that the muscle of the group is never the intellectual member as well; however, here you are claiming that the idea the very leader is suggesting is wrong. Andrew and the group stop and turn to you, mostly shocked because you hadn't talked the entire trip.

"Well, Cody, what is so bad about a cave?" Andrew asks. You suddenly feel awkward. You didn't know the simple rebuttal would escalate the way it has.

"Um," you think, "Caves are often the perfect places for mobs to ambush. In general, for anyone, caves are some of the best places to ambush. If anyone wanting to hurt us, and happens to know where we are going, then they might be smart enough to wait for us to fall asleep in a cave, don't you think?" You question. Everyone thinks for a moment.

"Where would be the best shelter to sleep in then?" Andrew asks. All eyes are on you again. You look around. Over the treetops, you spot what looks like a tall hill with a steep cliff on all sides but one, with a single tree on top.

"Right up there." You point up at the hill. Everyone looks in that direction. "It isn't raining or windy, so we don't have to worry about a shelter really. Location-wise it should be perfect because then we would only need one person to keep watch over the camp, since there is only one way anything could reach us." You explain. Andrew especially thinks about it.

"But what about the light from the fire? Won't that attract mobs to us?" Carter asks you. You smile slightly at his question. It makes sense, mostly.

"That could be a problem, but the thing is that the zombies can track us down no matter where the light is, so staying up high would at least keep us from being stuck with no way to escape." You answer. Carter just says 'oh,' and you let everyone think for a moment. The sun is already setting, so they better think quickly. Finally, Andrew looks up at the sky to check for any clouds.

"Alright. The sky is pretty clear. I guess the hill doesn't sound like a bad idea. Come on everyone." Andrew takes the lead towards the hill you pointed out, and everyone follows close behind. The horses are soon tied to the single tree at the top of the hill and everyone but you gather around the fire Andrew made to cook their dinner. You sit alone at the top of the hill, your feet dangling over the edge of the cliffy side, as you watch the moon rise over the trees and feel the warmth of the sun leave your back.

You sit there for a while as things calm down around you, quietly listening to the wind as it hums a gentle tune you catch as familiar.

"..Oh merry men are we,

as we glide through history..

without a doubt, we give a shout,

as we run to victory..

oh merry men, are we..." You sing softly along with the wind as it grazes past. Even though your voice is different from when you first learned the song, you carry it's words with the same compassion as before. You continue to hum the song, occasionally your mouth slipping out a few words at a time. The sound of grass rustling beside you causes you to stop, and you look to your right to see Carter sitting down beside you. He sits still for a moment, fiddling with his thumbs.

"Alright, what is it?" You ask with a smile, knowing he had a question to ask.

"Uh-um, well." Carter clears his throat. You look up at the stars and risen moon as you wait for him to speak. "..I was just kind of wondering why you seem so different.. -not trying to sound rude!" He swings himself to look at you with worry and obvious apology. You laugh a little.

"No, it's fine. I understand."

"Really?. Well, what made you, seem so, wise?" He asks. You look over at him again.

"What do you mean by wise?" You ask, a small smile at the corner of your mouth.

"Well, I don't really know. It just seemed like it when you were back there while deciding on a place to rest, and while talking with me about the possible invasion. I am just wondering how.. You don't really look that old, only about twenty, maybe." He says bashfully. You chuckle again, noticing simply asking must be a pretty bold step of his.

"Very wise of you to notice the wisdom of others, I'll give you that." You slap him on the back, not sure right after if that was still a custom young and old men alike did anymore. Carter smiles weakly though and doesn't seem alarmed by the friendly gesture. Afterward, he continues.

"So, what kind of survivalist guides did you read? How long did all your research take you?" Carter is cut off from his questions by you erupting into laughter. Carter looks almost hurt for a moment before you put a hand on his shoulder, still laughing, and explain.

"Oh, Carter. Carter, Carter, Carter.. You don't get wisdom from a book, silly! Books can help, yes. But experience and just getting out there is the real teacher!" You end only laughing softly. Carter thinks for a moment.

"Then, what on earth did you do to get to where you are now?! Again, you are only about twenty! What all have you done?" He asks. You stop to think of a correct answer.

Finally you answer, a bit braggy, but how else are you supposed to say it: "Heh, not even the longest book could hold all my adventures."

"Woah," Carter marvels, "and you remember all of them?!"

"Well, sadly, no. I don't." You look back up at the sky, Carter following your example, looking up as well. "To be honest, I really only remember the important adventures.. the ones that really taught me something I would carry on for the rest of my life." You sigh. The two of you look up at the sky as more stars appear and twinkle. It is the same sky as it has always been. Sure, it may have changed a little, but pretty much everything is the same. But still, the vastness of it all has never failed to encapsulate your desire for adventure. There is still so much more out there. You can feel it!

"Isn't the night sky pretty?" Carter asks you after a while of silence. You look back over your shoulder down at his blond head.

"Pretty?" You ask, tilting your head. Carter looks up at you as if thinking you are crazy.

"What?! You don't think the sky is pretty?! Everyone thinks it is!" He asks, not angry, just elevated volume.

"Then why'd you even ask me?" You ask him with are smirk. His stern curious look softens and he just looks curious.

"Well, if pretty isn't what you think of when you look up at the sky, full of stars, what do you see?" He asks. The question actually makes you think a moment. Sure it reminds you of adventure, but how? What about the starry sky makes you think of such a big, broad thing? What even makes the night sky so different from the more commonly seen deep blue one?

"...I think of promises..." You finally say, pretty sure you found the right word to use.

"Promises?"

"Yeah.. Just think about it. What else in the universe makes you think so much about hope, about dreams, about wishes?. All these things start with a promise of some kind.." You explain, not knowing you were going to sound philosophical until the words were being replayed in your head.

"..Wow. I never thought of it that way." Carter breathes, seeing what you see. The rest of the evening the two of you are silent, just looking up at the stars until your eyes get too tired to keep open. In order to keep yourself from falling off the cliff in your sleep, you get up and lay down closer to the center of the hill in your sleeping bag near the others. Carter stays up a little longer before doing the same, sliding into his own bag across the hill. Peacefully, you two fall asleep.