On the edge of the Spine

[Kana Thorpe]

Kana sat astride the beautiful Palamino horse, her feet tapping against the gently rising and falling flanks.
The horse pawed the ground, uneasy in its surroundings.
She reached forward and rubbed its neck, reassuring it.
they would only be there the minimum amount of time, no longer than they had to.
the truth of the matter was, the Spine made her uneasy too, and she dared not venture more than a few paths into it.
Although she was easily able to defend herself, there was more lurking in the Spine than could be got rid of with a few well aimed arrows.
It was a time of deep darkness, and even former havens like Du Weldenvarden were dangerous now.
The self appointed Overlord of Alagaesia made life hard for everyohne, and there were more Dark creatures around than Kana cared to count. And even the word Dark needed a capital letter. It was darker than it used to be.
'Hurry, cousin' she muttered to herself.
The sooner Raisa was here to meet her, the sooner they could all leave, and that would be the better for them all.

[Raisa Greenleafe]

Raisa bowed her head, so to miss the low hanging branches in the depths of The Spine. A weak sunlight filtered through the the dense mass of trees, and the evening breeze wafted around her bare ankles, lifting a tress of her raven hair. It wasn't often that Raisa travelled at this time of the day; she usually preferred to stick to morning and mid-afternoon unless she was off on her travels, but this time she was here to meet someone.
The Spine had always been the place in Alagaesia to avoid. During the reign of Galbatorix, it was said that he had once lost an army of over 1000 men in the deep forest, and ever since it had been one of those places that everyone - men, elves, dwarves and urgals alike - steered well clear of.
Raisa's stallion, Folkvir, whinnied softly as the pair drew close to a small opening in the trees. Passing through into a small, dimly lit glade, Raisa smiled softly as she saw Kana waiting for her.
'Blothr blothr,' she murmered gently and her steed came to a halt next to her cousin, pawing the ground with its dark hooves.
Looking across, Raisa noticed the troubled look Kana's face seemed to have. The sooner they were out of this forest the better as far as she was concerned.
'Hey you,' she said, all the while leaning across to stroke Kana's beautiful Palamino horse.

[Kana Thorpe]

Kana smiled at her cousin, 'Was that directed at me or the horse?' she joked.
Lightening the mood was not something that was normally kana's domain, being pretty serious in disposition, but she felt it suited the moment.
'You got the letter then' Kana said, 'I was a little worried about sending it with that boy from the village, but it seems he was to be trusted after all'
She kicked her palamino into action, driving it slowly along the path and motioning Raisa to follow.
The horse was one of Raisa's trainees, one she had had to spend a lot of time on to tame. It suited Kana perfectly; wild and feisty.
'So, dearest, how to tackle the problem?' she asked, half talking to herself and half to Raisa.
'You know, I suppose, that Murtagh is rallying troupes for an assault on the city?'
She assumed Raisa would already know, and was hoping that she would be beginning to train the Riders for war.

[Raisa Greenleafe]

(( I'll modify when I know what the hell your horse is called and whether it's male or female. =) ))

Raisa let the palamino sniff her hand before stroking her. It had been a while since she had seen the creature and she hoped Loras would recognise its trainer, but with the amount of time it had taken to tame there was always a small doubt. Now however, Loras seemed to be fiercly loyal to Kana.
Leaning back up she smiled at her cousin.
'Oh, it was aimed at both really,' she laughed, all the while reajusting her quiver across her back.
Taking a brief look around her, Raisa gave Folkvir a slight nudge. Something seemed amiss, but she couldn't quite place her finger on what. Resting one hand on the silver dagger at her side, and the other loosely on her steed's back, Raisa followed Kana from the clearing. She rode bareback and barefoot as always, but had a pair of light shoes in her sachel for when they were needed.
'Yes I know what he's planning' she sighed. 'Oromis informed me; he thinks I should begin starting to train the newer riders to some degree of proficiency for the battle. After that however, I'm not sure on what we should do.'
Raisa steered her stallion through the deep undergrowth, deep in thought.

[Kana Thorpe]

((errrrrrrrrrrrrr female...named...errrrrrrr...Loras *nods*))

'Loras knows you' Kana smiled, noting the brief flick of the sleek tail and flick of Loras' ears.
The wind blew Kana's long blonde hair out behind her, and when the gust dropped, it settled on the hood if her mottled green cloak.
She noticed her cousin's hand slip onto the hilt of her dagger, and the muscles in her back tensed. If there was a threat...
She couldn't stand it if she had put them in danger just for the sake of a private conversation.
Her own dagger was hidden in the top of her kid boot, with the downturned top hiding the glint of the gemstone-inlaid handle. There would be no way she could get to it in time if she needed to.
'Will you tell your Lord Oromis that I will begin to rally the elves for battle' she said, 'Islanzadi has appointed me her commander for the duration'
Suddenly, Loras' head whipped around, and she snickered uneasily.
Kana looked in the direction that Loras had moved. not even her highly trained elven eyes could spot anything, but her ears picked up the crackle of a twig, broken underfoot.
She motioned with her eyes for Raisa to follow her. They were being followed.
She urged Loras forward, breaking into a canter, looking behind to check that Raisa was ok.
Dropping back, she pushed herself upright on her horse's back, no mean feat when she didn't ride with stirrups or saddle.
She let Loras take her to behind Raisa, where she made the switch onto Folkvir's back, allowing Loras to continue sans rider.
Pressing close into her cousin's back, she whispered in elvish into Raisa's ear; 'We're being followed. Don't look now, but there's a ledge to the left; I suggest we go there to shelter'
She whistled to Loras, calling her back.
Transferring back to her own horse, she spirred her into the little overhang that she had spotted.
Although she didn't want to mention it, she was sure that she had seen a Ra'Zac, circling high overhead in the distance. That meant that she and Raisa were more than being followed.
They were prey.

[Raisa Greenleafe]

Raisa's trail of thoughts was interrupted yet again as she heard a twig break underfoot. In front of her Loras snickered slightly, and Folkvir whinied softly in return, his head tossing restlessly. She chose not to answer Kana for the moment- the clearing now seemed way to open to answer any more direct questions, especially now that it seemed someone was on their trail.
In front of her Kana broke into a canter, but then slowed right down till she was behind Folkvir. Raisa, sensing what she was about to do, shifted herself forwards slightly and lay a soothing hand on her stallions neck, so he wouldn't bolt with the extra weight. Kana landed softly behind her and wrapped her arms around Raisa. Listening to the whispered Eleven words she tensed, moving only her eyes to the left to survey the shelter. Giving a small nod of her head to show she understood, Raisa followed as her cousin jumped swiftly back onto Loras and headed for the overhang.
If Kana was saying they were being followed, as well as herself, it pretty much concreted the fact. The senses of two elves combined could not be wrong. Sliding her dagger out of its sheath, Raisa glanced around. Something flew noiselessly above her, practically unnoticed by everything in the forest except herself, and Kana in front of her.
So, they were being followed on ground and in air then. Raisa has hoped that this would not happen. As far as she knew, no-one outside the rebellion knew that she was the leader of the Riders, but now she wasn't so sure. That said, however, even the fact that they were 2 elves was enough for Murtagh. He was desperate to get his hands on anything that was not under his control, and this included all manner of species.
Resting the dagger in the folds of her light cloak, Raisa spun her eyes from side to side. Both her sight and her hearing scanned the evening for anything unusual.

[Kana Thorpe]

Once safely under the crag, Kana moved into a ready stance, taking her bow from her back and notching an arrow. Her dagger was still in her boot, but in any case it would be useless against a Ra'Zac. If indeed that was what she had seen.
'Raisa,' she whispered, 'Could that be a dragon?'
It was a shot in the dark, but perhaps if the dragon was one belonging to one of Raisa's Riders, there might be another Rider in the area...it had been altogether to far away to see the true nature of the beast.
She tensed, did not fire. She could not risk firing if indeed it was one of Raisa's kin. She knew her aim was straight and true, and she would surely hit her target.
'Who else knows about you?' she asked, her words sounding harsher than she had intended, 'And if it comes to it, who else knows about me?'
It was only the elves in the highest positions who had been told about her Battle Commander position. It was strictly need to know.