Burchard found himself in the foggy white space. He waited, deciding if Eos was going to come to him, it would be better to stay in one place than to wander around and risk Ossa finding him. He wasn’t sure how much time passed, though it felt like hours. Then, Eos appeared in front of him, as though she’d been there all along. She sat down. Her eyes seemed to glow in the odd light of this place.
We are running out of time, she said, speaking into his mind.
Time for what? he replied. He’d almost spoken aloud before remembering that would be detrimental to both of them.
Things were set in motion when you found the druids at Leosor Hollows. If certain tasks don’t happen within the predetermined amount of time, then…She shuddered.
Then what? he prompted.
She shook her white head. I am not permitted to tell you directly. It is for you to discover.
If I fail at discovering the tasks? Worry coursed through him.
We don’t want to find out, Eos said, peering over her shoulder. Her eyes lingered on the mist behind her, then returned to his. I need to go. But…trust yourself. Trust your friends.
I only have one friend, Burchard said softly.
That is not true. You just have to look inside yourself, Eos said, then vanished.
Burchard woke with a start. His hand was clenching Fang’s fur tightly. He was surprised that the wolf hadn’t bitten him or moved in protest for how hard he was gripping her. She gave a low woof and licked his hand. He loosened his grip on her fur, allowing his fingers to just lie on her back instead.
“Eos said I have more than one friend. Who are my friends?” he asked. “Do you count as a friend?” Fang let out a high-pitched yip. “I’ll take that as a yes.” Fang licked his hand again. “That makes two, but she seemed to imply that I have many friends. Hopefully, she didn’t mean that us defeating Ossa is hinging on my ability to properly count my friends.”
Fang didn’t do anything to indicate she understood the question.
Burchard sighed and decided he should just get up and start his stretches. He threw the blankets back, covering Fang in the process. The wolf didn’t seem to mind, though, and snuggled into them. Burchard stood up, shivering as the cool air hit his bare chest. Once he was away from the top bunk and certain he wouldn’t hit his head, he bent over, touching his toes. He repeated it a few times, holding the position until he could really feel the pull on his muscles. He then worked his way through the other stretches for both his legs and arms.
His bed squeaked behind him. Burchard spun, fists raised, and saw Ruschmann sitting on the edge of the bed, eyeing Fang. The wolf’s mouth was open, teeth visible, almost as though she were smiling.
Burchard chuckled. “She likes you.”
Ruschmann wouldn’t take his eyes off the wolf. “If you say so. Did you see the pages last night?”
Burchard nodded, then proceeded to get dressed. “Did you want to go for a run with me before breakfast?”
“Not really. It’s cold,” Ruschmann replied from the bed.
Burchard clicked his tongue. “You’re being lazy.”
“It’s only one morning,” Ruschmann replied.
“One morning turns into two, and soon it’s a whole week,” Burchard chided, turning to face his friend as he tucked in his long-sleeve shirt.
“Fine. I will join you. But then we must eat before the pages steal all the food,” Ruschmann declared.
Burchard rolled his eyes. “I doubt they will steal everything. However, we will of course eat after the run. I just…I had a weird dream last night, and I think the run will help settle me before we do training, since it’ll be with the pages.”
“Will you tell me about the dream?” Ruschmann inquired.
Burchard sat down in the chair and tugged his boots on, then stood up, pulling on his coat. “Eos, the wolf goddess, was talking to me, saying she couldn’t tell me what I needed to know. I had to find it out myself. And…that we’re running out of time.”
“Very cryptic,” Ruschmann muttered, standing up, careful not to jostle Fang.
“That’s what I thought. But she would not elaborate,” Burchard said. He strapped his scabbard around his waist, then slid some soft gloves over his hands. “Let’s go.”
Fang jumped off the bed and brushed against Ruschmann. Her tail held high, she led the way to the door. Ruschmann opened it, and Fang shot outside.
Burchard grinned. “I guess she needed out.”
Fang rejoined them when they reached the gate. Once through the gate, the three of them increased their pace till they were running. Burchard wasn’t sure how to classify what Fang was doing. She would keep pace with them and then dart away and disappear into the trees before reappearing. He assumed she was just hunting and wasn’t being successful. Or was not putting in a strong enough effort to be successful. He was not too concerned with it though. If she was hungry, she would catch prey.
Ruschmann finally broke their silence. “Did Eos say something else? You seemed to be holding back earlier when you told me what she said.”
Burchard huffed, his breath visible before him in a wispy cloud. “She told me I need to trust my friends and that I have more than one friend.”
Ruschmann’s steps faltered and he fell back before speeding up and keeping pace again. “She’s right. You do have more than one friend.”
“Who else do you consider to be my friends?” Burchard replied testily.
“Captain Thomas, for one. Lady Gladys, Sir Peter.” Ruschmann paused, breathing heavily.
They were on their fifth lap of what was supposed to be short run. “I don’t consider Sir Peter a friend,” Burchard admitted.
Ruschmann stopped moving. Burchard kept going before he stopped and turned around, wondering where he’d gone. “How can you think Sir Peter isn’t your friend? He has defended you to the General several times. He has tried to ensure that we can stay together as much as possible.”
Burchard growled. “You think those things make him my friend? Isn’t that what normal knight masters do?”
“Have you seen Reggie’s knight master do any of those things?” Ruschmann demanded. Burchard kept quiet, knowing Ruschmann was probably right.
