Chapter 12: We Can Be Friends

“Do you know where you’re going?”  Sam asked.

“Uh yea… I’m a Tzarian scout… so I would hope so.”  Liliana replied snarkily.  

“It just seems like we’ve been walking for days now.  I thought Tzaria was closer than this.”

“Hush, boy…. You said you’ve never been outside of Okyra anyway.  You have no sense of time and direction like I do.  I’ve been scouting since I was 8.  We start young where I’m from.”

“It doesn’t seem like you had much time for fun growing up then huh….”

“Fun?”

“Yea… like hanging out with friends.”

“We never had time for that growing up… we had to work… and hunt.  I never had time for friends.”

“Well we can friends if you want.”  Sam said.

“Who said I wanted that?”  Liliana hastily replied.  “I’m just helping you get to Tzaria, and to keep you alive in the process.  Seeing as how you must speak to the Grand Elder, that seems to be pretty important.”

“Thanks…. So tell me about yourself.”  Sam asked eagerly.

“What for?  I’m not in this for the long run here.  We’ve just got a couple more days before we get to Tzaria, and that’s it.”

“So you don’t want to keep talking to each other once this is all over.”

“I don’t know…. We have separate lives you know, it seems like you have big plans to accomplish.  I’m not getting involved anymore than I already have.”

“Fine… What is there to do in Tzaria.  When your people aren’t working, what is there to do.”

“Well… we have our training grounds where we practice sparring with our warriors.”

“So you like to fight?”

“I guess so… it’s just something I’ve been doing since I was young.  It was never something I loved, it was what my parents wanted you know.”

“I understand…”

“Do you… I really wanted to be a sculptor.”

“Then why don’t you…” Sam continued.  

“My father wanted me to start as a scout, then move on to becoming a warrior for the army.”

“From the looks of that sword on your back, it seems that you’re good at it.”

“Oh this thing…” Liliana unsheathed the sword from off her back.  

“It’s magnificent.  Look at the red trim on the handle and grip.  It matches your hair!”

“It’s just a traditional scout’s sword.  You should see the sword the soldiers get.  They’re massive.”

“Will you show me one, once we get there of course.”

“I guess I can….”  Liliana responded.  

“I’ve always wanted to learn how to use a sword.”

“Well, depending on how long you stay in Tzaria, I’ll teach you a few things.”

“Thanks, I’d appreciate that.  You know… I’ve heard horror stories about Tzarians, but you seem really nice.”

“Well you haven’t seen my clan yet.  I’m the nicest out of my family.”

“Still…. I can’t wait to meet them.  It’s always fun to meet new people.”

“You say that now….”