be sure than risk a noise in the night air. Sound could travel for miles given the right conditions. And with the cool bite to the air, Ran had no doubt that any noise could compromise their element of surprise.
He turned back into the dense trees and saw Gunj squatting near one of the fires. The flames lit up his face and cast shadows into the deep crevices that pockmarked Gunj’s skin. The smaller man looked up as Ran approached.
“Yasseh tells me he had a talk with you.”
Ran sank to the ground and found a charred piece of wood that he plucked out of the fire. “We talked. I wanted to be sure he knew what he was getting himself into. This isn’t the sort of thing just anyone can attempt.”
“Indeed. But Yasseh has better claim to come along than others. They did murder his son, after all.”
Ran used his thumb and forefinger to pluck off burned bits from the end of the charred stick. He spat into his hand and rubbed the charred ash into the mixture before applying it around his face.
Gunj grinned. “The moon won’t be up for hours yet.”
Ran smirked. “I’m not as worried about the moonlight as I am other things. Plants and fires from a distance can reflect off of my skin. I’d rather daub it as much as possible than risk giving us away.”
“You’ve done this before?”
Ran shrugged as he applied more of the charcoal camouflage to his face. “I’ve been out in the night before, yes. No big deal.”
Gunj spat into his own hand and started rubbing char on his face as well. “The night is both a hider and revealer of people. It will be interesting to see how your plan works. If it actually does.”
“The only danger,” said Ran, “is if they have scouts out ahead of the main attacking force. They’ll be disciplined and quiet. Trained for exactly the type of thing that we’re going to be attempting. If we blunder into them and they raise the alarm, then our gambit is over before it gets a chance to begin.”
“I’m comfortable working at night,” said Gunj. “The dark hasn’t affected me in quite some time. Not since I was a child and my father made me spend a night out in the woods by myself.”
Ran smiled. They’d done much the same thing at the shadow warrior school back in Gakur. “How long did it take you to get comfortable?”
“You mean once I stopped screaming?” Gunj chuckled. “A few hours. But once I was able to see better, the shadows didn’t look so dangerous. And when I started exploring and seeing how much life there is in the night, I actually grew more and more curious about the nocturnal hours. So much so, I kept going out at night. My father realized his plan had somewhat not produced the results he was looking for. Or rather, it did, but then it went far beyond.”
“And here we are.”
“Indeed,” said Gunj. He stood and glanced around. The twilight was drawing down upon the encampment. “We should get ready to leave as soon as possible.”
Ran nodded. He made sure the other members of their small raiding force blacked out their faces. Yasseh saw what they were doing and immediately helped himself to some of the charcoal mixture, streaking his face with it. He turned to Ran.
“How does it look?”
“Fine,” said Ran. “You don’t have to make any sort of pattern, just be sure that the charcoal breaks up the lines of your face. The darker and less reflective your skin is, the better.”
Yasseh took another few minutes to go over his face once more before nodding to himself that all was well. Ran watched him jam a curved saber into his belt along with three smaller daggers, each complete with jeweled hilts.
“Wait.”
Yasseh turned. “Is there a problem?”
Ran pointed at the daggers. “Their handles. Those jewels will reflect any sort of light and twinkle as we make our approach. I’m sorry, but you can’t wear them.”
“These knives have been in my family for generations. Seven, in fact. They are as old as they are
He turned back into the dense trees and saw Gunj squatting near one of the fires. The flames lit up his face and cast shadows into the deep crevices that pockmarked Gunj’s skin. The smaller man looked up as Ran approached.
“Yasseh tells me he had a talk with you.”
Ran sank to the ground and found a charred piece of wood that he plucked out of the fire. “We talked. I wanted to be sure he knew what he was getting himself into. This isn’t the sort of thing just anyone can attempt.”
“Indeed. But Yasseh has better claim to come along than others. They did murder his son, after all.”
Ran used his thumb and forefinger to pluck off burned bits from the end of the charred stick. He spat into his hand and rubbed the charred ash into the mixture before applying it around his face.
Gunj grinned. “The moon won’t be up for hours yet.”
Ran smirked. “I’m not as worried about the moonlight as I am other things. Plants and fires from a distance can reflect off of my skin. I’d rather daub it as much as possible than risk giving us away.”
“You’ve done this before?”
Ran shrugged as he applied more of the charcoal camouflage to his face. “I’ve been out in the night before, yes. No big deal.”
Gunj spat into his own hand and started rubbing char on his face as well. “The night is both a hider and revealer of people. It will be interesting to see how your plan works. If it actually does.”
“The only danger,” said Ran, “is if they have scouts out ahead of the main attacking force. They’ll be disciplined and quiet. Trained for exactly the type of thing that we’re going to be attempting. If we blunder into them and they raise the alarm, then our gambit is over before it gets a chance to begin.”
“I’m comfortable working at night,” said Gunj. “The dark hasn’t affected me in quite some time. Not since I was a child and my father made me spend a night out in the woods by myself.”
Ran smiled. They’d done much the same thing at the shadow warrior school back in Gakur. “How long did it take you to get comfortable?”
“You mean once I stopped screaming?” Gunj chuckled. “A few hours. But once I was able to see better, the shadows didn’t look so dangerous. And when I started exploring and seeing how much life there is in the night, I actually grew more and more curious about the nocturnal hours. So much so, I kept going out at night. My father realized his plan had somewhat not produced the results he was looking for. Or rather, it did, but then it went far beyond.”
“And here we are.”
“Indeed,” said Gunj. He stood and glanced around. The twilight was drawing down upon the encampment. “We should get ready to leave as soon as possible.”
Ran nodded. He made sure the other members of their small raiding force blacked out their faces. Yasseh saw what they were doing and immediately helped himself to some of the charcoal mixture, streaking his face with it. He turned to Ran.
“How does it look?”
“Fine,” said Ran. “You don’t have to make any sort of pattern, just be sure that the charcoal breaks up the lines of your face. The darker and less reflective your skin is, the better.”
Yasseh took another few minutes to go over his face once more before nodding to himself that all was well. Ran watched him jam a curved saber into his belt along with three smaller daggers, each complete with jeweled hilts.
“Wait.”
Yasseh turned. “Is there a problem?”
Ran pointed at the daggers. “Their handles. Those jewels will reflect any sort of light and twinkle as we make our approach. I’m sorry, but you can’t wear them.”
“These knives have been in my family for generations. Seven, in fact. They are as old as they are
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