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THESDA CAME RUNNING AS NELA WAS BRUSHING HER HORSE. She had a look of worry on her face as her mentor turned around, excited for the journey ahead of her. Nela was finally going to get what she wanted, vengeance for her fallen. She was stupid to have ever doubted Anya.
"Nela?" she turned from her horse to her second, who's eyebrows were furrowed into a frown, her brown eyes refusing to meet Nela's.
"What is it, Thesda?" Nela asked, patting the horse behind her.
"I-" she paused before straightening up and making eye contact. "I want to go with you — and I know you're going to say I've only been your second for a couple of days and I have to earn it and that I haven't proved myself yet and I'm young and reckless and-"
"Relax, Thesda. You're more than welcome to come with us, I never said you couldn't." the taller girl smiled down at her second, almost wanting to shake her head at the girl. A second didn't have to ask to follow their mentor into battle, it was encouraged.
"Really?"
"You'd better get your things ready. We're riding out in three days." She watched as a smile appeared on Thesda's face. Her own smile grew wide as her second rushed away to get her armor on and her weapons.
Nela turned back to the white stallion in front of her, her hands brushing along his neck as she whispered a war prayer. Trigedasleng was her native tongue, and she rarely ever spoke English unless she had to.
"You're good with Thesda."
She was interrupted by Lincoln, who had approached her from the opposite side of her horse. Though her face remained emotionless, her eyes were giving him a cold glare. She swiped her tongue over her lower lip briefly and turned her attention back to her steed.
"Nela," Lincoln spoke again, a certain urgency in his voice.
Her grey eyes turned back to meet his. He was a traitor to his people, everyone knew and anyone with common sense would be able to see it. He knew too much about the sky people, he knew their leader and their story. He was defending them in front of the war council, almost demanding that they give them a chance.
"What do you want, Lincoln?" her voice was almost as cold as her eyes as she moved lightly to the front of her horse. She pulled an apple from a sack hanging on her belt and fed it to him. "Here to convince me that the sky people aren't my enemy again?"
"I need you to understand that they're not bad people." he pleaded with her, moving from his position to meet her. "I know that they harmed your people with the flares, but everything was an accident. They were thrown out by their parents, they're just trying to survive on the earth for the first time in their lives."
"They didn't just harm my people, Lincoln. They killed my people. Thirteen of them — how can you defend strangers over your own people?" A scoff left Nela's lips, her eyes moving from her horse to the man in front of her. He was taller than she was — a rarity in the community. She had to look up to meet Lincoln's gaze, which did nothing but make her even more annoyed at him than she already was. A thought crossed her mind as she studied his face. "How do you know so much about them, gona?" she questioned. "Why do you care so much for them?"
She studied him as he looked away from her, thinking of an answer to her question. Nela didn't think she would ever understand why Lincoln would be defending them. Nela waited patiently for an answer as her horse chewed noisily on the crunchy red fruit. When an answer didn't come, she gave him a disappointed look. "Think on it, Lincoln. Think about your own people before you go blindly defending skaikru," she shook her head at the other warrior. "I hope to see you with us on the bridge."
"Nela!"
The blonde's head swiveled towards the woods, recognizing Thesda's voice immediately. She could've sworn her second had headed to the village, not the woods.
"Nela, help!" Thesda's voice called again, desperate for help.
Nela looked at Lincoln. "Leave. I do not want to see you when I return." she told him before she took off running towards the woods.
She grabbed the spear she had strapped on her back as she ran into the thick foliage, desperate to find her second as the sun began to sink behind the horizon.
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why does thesda need help? why is she in the woods? who knows at this point cause i don't. i felt rly bad making her be mean to lincoln because lincoln like saved my life, watered my crops and cleared my skin so like what's going on @ nela? chill out.
