“You’ve got everything?” Zac asked for the twelfth time as they finished packing for a picnic and a night in nature.

“Yes.” Mahon repeated again as he threw a semi-annoyed look at his friend. “We’ve more than enough food for three days and we leave for one and a half.”

“But what about the tent?”

“Everything is packed already, and if we need to, I can try to build an earth tent.”

“You can do that already?” Zac asked with a surprised tone.

“No.” Mahon answered with a smile, and his friend punched him on the shoulder.

“Shaddap then! Let’s move now. Ash is probably already waiting for us.”

“Yes, yes, I’m coming. We’ll need to move fast anyway, or we’ll not reach the spot before the night falls.”

“Right.” Zac answered as he put his bag on his back.

The two friends closed the door of their residence and quickly left the school towards Ash’s shop. The woman finished packing at the exact time they knocked on her door, and the couple followed Mahon out of the city.

“How far is it again?” Ash asked.

“We reached it in under an hour, but at scout’s speed. It’s probably just a three hours walk otherwise I’d guess.”

“Do we have enough time to settle before nightfall?” She asked again.

Zac passed an arm over her shoulder and squeezed her beside him in a protective gesture. “Yeah, don’t worry! We’ve at least five hours before the sun disappears!”

The woman pushed back Zac, but the man didn’t let her go that easily. Finally, they settled for just holding hands while walking beside a smiling Mahon.

“Finished bickering yet?”

Ash blushed for a second before changing the subject. “I brought a couple small mandolins so we could play tonight. You took your harmonica, Mahon?”

“Yes. Zac told me you’d brought some instruments as well.”

Ash exchanged a smile with Zac before the group fell into a comfortable silence. They passed the doors of the city without a problem, and Zac started back the discussion.

“So, where are you taking us, exactly?”

“Not sure what it is called, or even if it has a name. It’s near the mines.”

“The mines?” Zac asked with a dubious look at his friend.

“Yes, you know, the mines where the nobles collect metals for weapons and stuff. You told me about it.”

“Oh, yeah, these mines!” Zac answered with a sarcastic tone.

“There are others?”

“Of course! Plenty of mines everywhere around Ratho. Gemstones, numerous kinds of metal, and even weirder materials for potions and stuff. There are mines in every direction.”

“Hmm, well, it’s just the mines for basic metals for weapons in this direction, right?” Mahon pointed to the way ahead.

“Yeah, I think so. There is only one area for iron mines. But is it beautiful there?”

Mahon nodded. He had seen lots of pretty places when he had observed the surroundings with Caeda after they had climbed high enough. He wasn’t sure how to go there exactly, but he could roughly guess the way. He also planned to ask at the same mine Caeda had stopped when on their scouting trip.

“It is. I saw it from afar and near the mines there were lots of glades throughout the wood. From some of them, you could probably even see Ratho.”

“Really? Looks perfect!” Ash joined the conversation. “What did you guys take for dinner?”

They continued their little talks while walking leisurely on the road away from Ratho. The farther away they were from the city, the fewer people were on the road and soon the trio was strolling alone while laughing out loud.

They tried to play some music while walking, and while it was possible for Ash and Zac with their mandolins, it was incredibly harder for Mahon. He had to regulate his breath and was limited by his own walking pace. He didn’t manage to find a balance between the slight strain of the walk and the pace imposed by the song. His breath became erratic after just a few steps, and the occasional false note always made his friends burst out laughing.

After almost two hours of walking, they reached the heavily guarded mine which Mahon recognized. A patrol was already waiting for them, and Mahon realized they hadn’t even tried to be discreet with their loud laughter and music. The guards probably had heard them coming from far ahead.

It didn’t matter too much anyway, as he didn’t plan to attack anyone. Mahon recognized the guard’s captain from last time and he directly addressed him.

“Hello! Tanyth, right? I’m Mahon, a friend of Caeda. I saw you last week on our scouting trip.”

“Oh, right, I remember you, boy. What are you doing here throwing a tantrum?” The man laughed.

“We were playing music!” Ash retorted.

“Hahaha, sorry, sorry, young lady. I didn’t want to offend you.” Tanyth apologized with an amused smile.

The captain’s easy going attitude put the trio at ease, and Mahon finally explained their goal.

“We’re here for a picnic. Needed a tranquil night out of the city to celebrate my friend’s promotion to First Green.”

The captain whistled appreciatively. “First Green already? Not bad boy, not bad.” He said to Zac.

“With Caeda, we saw interesting glades in the forest, west of the mines. Is it possible to spend the night there?”

“You’ve good taste, boy! One of the most beautiful places near there, that’s for sure. As long as you don’t go near the mines or disturb the people working there, there is no problem.”

“Perfect.” Mahon answered. “And, hmm… Do you know the way to get there?”

“Hahaha, I see why you’d come here now. But aren’t you a scout?” He teased Mahon for a bit before giving him simple indications to reach the place.

The trio left a bit later after the captain insisted they played a couple of songs for his men in exchange for the information. The encounter with the kind captain and his soldiers made the three friends smile even wider, and they promised they would play again for them tomorrow when they came back to Ratho.

“Enjoy your night, kiddos! Don’t sleep too late!” Tanyth waved at them while laughing as they moved away from the mine.

“Such easy-going people.” Ash marveled as they started to climb a small hill. “If only all my customers were like that…”

“Yeah, the man is really nice. I guess it easily gets boring alone up there, so every company is welcomed.”

“Caeda said he is a doting father. I think he is just naturally open and caring. Not sure why they need so many soldiers to watch over an iron mine, though.” Mahon said.

He looked towards Zac, expecting an explanation, and the noble didn’t disappoint.

“That’s easy to answer. It’s not an iron mine.”

Mahon acquiesced, having guessed that far. “What is it then?”

“Haha, already forgetting my lessons?” Zac teased.

“I admit I don’t know either.” Ash interceded in Mahon’s favor, also curious about the explanation.

“The metal’s name is Magnesium, but the mine is often called the no-dream mine. It’s from there that they extract the main ingredient needed to concoct no-dream pills. That’s why it’s guarded. The mine belongs to Pasys’ family. Tiarsus family.” He added for Mahon. “That’s because of it that they secured their place within the biggest noble families. If another family manages to take it back, they’ll be down to nothing.”

“Now I wonder why there aren’t more soldiers.” Mahon joked.

“Because of the rules, my friend. The nobles’ rules.”

Mahon grunted in disappointment while Ash looked at them without understanding.

“What rules?”

“Ah, nothing that really makes sense.” Zac answered. “The noble families wage a war against each other, but they have to appear united to everyone else.”

“Everyone knows they are exchanging low blows every time they can.” Ash said with a frown.

Zac acquiesced. “Yeah, but there is a difference between a subtle, hidden, low blow and a direct attack on another family.”

“Subtle? Hidden? Everybody can guess where it comes from!” Ash interjected again.

“But it’s just a guess, and nobody can know for sure. Plotting to kill someone in the shadows is allowed. Killing him in plain sight is forbidden.”

“That doesn’t make any sense.” Ash shook her head.

“Yes.”

“Yeah.”

Mahon and Zac answered at the same time.

“Anyway, that’s the rules they play with. And to answer Mahon’s question, they don’t need more soldiers because they’ll never risk a frontal attack. They are just here to prevent the other noble families from grabbing the mine the easy way. Roughly speaking, having soldiers here moves the battle into politics. The soldiers aren’t really useful.”

“Nobles…” Mahon grumbled again while Zac laughed.

“Let’s forget about this.” Ash proposed. “We should be close now, right? Let’s try to find a nice place!”

The trio forgot about the subject the next second and started looking attentively at their surroundings for the sweetest spot. They spent almost an hour running around the forest until they agreed on the place they would settle in.

It was a nice little glade surrounded by small trees with a side opening up in Ratho’s direction. The sun gently warmed the ground even in the late hour, and they would be able to watch it go down behind Ratho. The city was far away, but they could still see some of the highest places and the lights coming on.

Mahon set up the two tents, one for himself and the other for Zac and Ash, while the couple installed a tablecloth on the ground and took out the drinks and food for the night.

“We’ll be really close together in the tent, Zac.” Mahon teased once he was done, joining his friend by the starting fire.

“Oh, didn’t I tell you? You’re sleeping in the other one.” Zac grinned.

Mahon chuckled as he sorted back the branches that made the fire so it would burn faster. “You mean Ash’s tent? It’s even smaller! No way, we can sleep at two in this one.”

“Oh stop it, guys.” Ash finally intervened. “Are you also playing by nobles’ rules, and no one can say I’m sleeping with Zac?”

Mahon and Zac looked back at Ash with big round eyes.

“What?” She asked.

“You’re sleeping with Zac?!”

“You’re sleeping with me?!”

The two friends said at the same time before laughing out loud at the desperate look of Ash.

“Go and pour me a beer instead of laughing like two idiots. The sun is almost down and my glass is still empty!”

Zac smiled before searching in his bag for the beers they had packed. The trio sat directly on the ground while drinking and discussing. They stopped for a moment as the sun disappeared behind the horizon and, at the light of their fire, they started again their chit chat, laugh and meal.

The starry sky was clear enough that the moon lit the surroundings with enough light that they almost didn’t need a fire to see. By the end of dinner, the three friends laid down on the ground, watching the stars and talking about anything that came to mind.

The hours seemed to pass in the blink of an eye, but they stayed there, staring at the beautiful sky. The conversation became erratic, with more blanks and less talk, everyone lost in their own thoughts.

A cute snoring noise interrupted their pondering, and Mahon turned to look at Zac. The noble chuckled in answer while pointing to a sleeping Ash. The woman had her head resting on Zac’s shoulder, and the noble didn’t dare to move, fearing to wake her up. The light was enough for Mahon to see the peaceful look on Ash’s face, her right arm hugging Zac.

He smiled back at his friend.

“Life’s good, right?” Zac asked, but it wasn’t really a question.

A comfortable silence settled in, and it was only a few minutes later that Mahon found the courage to answer.

“You know, I’m not sure I still want to end the war.”