The young woman's face was set with determination. "I can go on," she said.
She was going to slow us down further, which several people were already grumbling about.
"Good answer," Lysara approved. "But you'll walk up front with me where I can keep an eye on you." She turned to the rest of the group. "You will all take turns helping Yarinda. Is that clear?"
I nodded along with everyone else.
Yarinda was hurt, but that didn't mean that she would be a weak soldier or a liability in whatever unit she ended up serving. On the contrary, her grit and determination were admirable.
It seemed that I had been right in assuming that building cooperation and trust would be a big part of our training.
As Alar moved to walk beside me, I studied his face. "How are you feeling now? Is your stomach still revolting?"
He grimaced. "My stomach is fine, but I'm not sure I'll ever get the foul taste of that leaf out of my mouth."
"Don't chew any more of them," I said quietly. "Your stomach will eventually grow accustomed to them, but your body can't afford the dehydration given the water rationing."
He nodded. "Thank you for the advice."
"You're welcome."
"Mean bitch," Codric murmured under his breath. "She did that on purpose."
Turning to look at him, I put a finger on my lips. "Her intentions might have been good. Elucians don't need herbs to help them with the altitude, so she couldn't have a lot of experience with them."
He regarded me with a doubtful expression on his handsome face. "If you say so. But from now on, I will be watching her."
I couldn't blame him, especially since I'd entertained the same thoughts. It was unbefitting of an Elucian to use underhanded methods like that, but if Lysara's intentions had been nefarious, she had found a convenient loophole around the Precepts of Truth. The herb she had given Alar was helpful, and the side effects were tolerable under normal circumstances, so technically, she hadn't done him any harm.
Besides, I wasn't so naive as to believe that all Elucians adhered to the Precepts of Truth at all times. In fact, I was fairly certain that there were plenty of shenanigans going on, especially within our government.
Nepotism, for one, was rampant, and some areas of Elucia were getting better infrastructure than others because that's where the more influential council members were from. There was probably much more going on that I wasn't aware of, but I wasn't interested in politics and preferred to leave the headache to others. It wasn't easy to govern the stubborn and opinionated Elucians, so unless I was willing to do that, I had no right to criticize those who put themselves out there.
As the path continued to climb, switching back and forth across the mountainside, I kept my eyes firmly on the backpack of the person in front of me, trying not to look at the increasing drop to our right.
When a cool breeze swept down from above, carrying with it the sharp scent of snow, Shovia cursed softly. "Weather's changing," she muttered. "It's going to get interesting."
"Define interesting," Codric said, his breath coming harder now.
"Anything from a light dusting of snow to a full-blown blizzard." She grinned at his expression. "Welcome to Elucia, where the weather is predictably unpredictable."
I was about to respond when Alar suddenly stumbled. Instinctively, I caught his arm and steadied him.
"I'm okay," he said. "I just got dizzy for a moment. The air feels thin."
"You're just hungry." Codric clapped him on his back. "It's not that bad yet."
I shared a concerned look with Shovia. If Alar was already struggling, how would he manage when things got more difficult ahead?
He pulled another leaf from his pocket and examined it. "I know I shouldn't, but I'm so hungry that it's tempting."
"Don't," I warned.
"Isn't chewing on a leaf considered breaking the fast?" Codric asked.
"Medicine is excluded," Shovia said.
He turned to me, and the grin that spread over his face was all about mischief. "I'm sure you know many beneficial herbs and berries. If you just point us in their direction and explain what they do…"
