Hyght tightly pulled his hood over his head to protect his ears from the harsh, cold breeze that snaked through the trees of the Finnek Forest. The sun was setting and he was still too far from the campus to get there within reasonable time. Dusk was upon him and the feeling of microscopic ice needles began to coerce his skin to pebble with goose flesh. The biting cold of the oncoming night seemed to only increase the want Hyght felt for his warm, safe bed. "This is stupid!" He said with a vicious curse to himself. Why in the world had he decided to come out here? The hunter-in-training couldn't remember but he had apparently thought it wise to bring his shield and his sword, their familiar weight brought a small bit of relaxation to his raising worry.
The dying light of day gave way to the encroaching tendrils of night. Hyght blinked and found himself sitting at a camp fire, he was faced with a short, craggy faced man whom had grown a thick grey beard as he'd been away. The man eyed Hyght curiously.
"You alright, kid?" He asked, his rumbling basso of a voice carried and seemed to ease the tension Hyght had unknowingly held in his shoulders. Hyght stared at the man for a moment in confusion before he gingerly touched his head.
"Mason?" he asked questioningly. "What are you doing here?"
Mason cocked an eyebrow in response and looked down at the bowl of food in his hands. "I'm eating dinner." He said dryly. "As are you. You okay?" Mason eyed Hyght, a flicker of concern was present in his eyes. "You've hardly touched your food." His unique accent was almost impossible for Hyght to place but it made him sound far more pleasing than his face did. Hyght glanced down and took notice of the bowl of food in his lap for the first time, the utensil he was apparently eating it with was still in his hand. Unsure how to respond, Hyght sat staring at the food and tried to recall how he'd gotten there.
"Hyght, you've got to talk to me, son. You're starting to worry me." The craggy faced Mason said as he leaned forward from his camping stool.
Hyght glanced up a moment later. "I'm...fine. Just tired I guess." He said though Mason didn't seem to buy it whole sale. Mason gave him a look that Hyght had learned fairly quickly meant for him to spill the beans, a phrase that struck Hyght as odd. He was a cook and was taught that wasting food was impolite and, well, wasteful. The young baker shook his head and looked over to the man. "I can't remember how we got here. Or how long we've been here." He said, his words becoming faster as he spoke. "Or where we are. What we're eating. Where we're going. None of it." It was obvious to anyone that he was bothered by this and Mason nodded.
"After what you've been through, son, I'm not surprised." He said calmly and set his bowl on the ground buy his foot. Hyght leveled a confused look at the older man and waited for him to explain. Mason cleared his throat. "You got hit on the head pretty hard a few days ago, when we were going from the village of Hickory. You slipped on a nasty patch of earth and hit your head pretty hard. There wasn't a lot of blood but the blow could have had a delayed effect on your memory." Mason paused and shook his head twice. "Scared me for a minute too. You didn't move and your breathing was shallow. Thought I'd done lost you." Pain was in the eyes of the living crag of a man.
Hyght sat there and pondered the story Mason told him. Was it possible? Was he just experiencing a laps in memory? If so then why did his gut say otherwise? Mason was his friend, he knew that without a doubt, but if so then why couldn't he remember where they met? Why were his instincts screaming at him to not let this man out of his sight? Hyght stared at Mason for a long while, the digits of his hand rubbing the utensil unconsciously.
The dying light of day gave way to the encroaching tendrils of night. Hyght blinked and found himself sitting at a camp fire, he was faced with a short, craggy faced man whom had grown a thick grey beard as he'd been away. The man eyed Hyght curiously.
"You alright, kid?" He asked, his rumbling basso of a voice carried and seemed to ease the tension Hyght had unknowingly held in his shoulders. Hyght stared at the man for a moment in confusion before he gingerly touched his head.
"Mason?" he asked questioningly. "What are you doing here?"
Mason cocked an eyebrow in response and looked down at the bowl of food in his hands. "I'm eating dinner." He said dryly. "As are you. You okay?" Mason eyed Hyght, a flicker of concern was present in his eyes. "You've hardly touched your food." His unique accent was almost impossible for Hyght to place but it made him sound far more pleasing than his face did. Hyght glanced down and took notice of the bowl of food in his lap for the first time, the utensil he was apparently eating it with was still in his hand. Unsure how to respond, Hyght sat staring at the food and tried to recall how he'd gotten there.
"Hyght, you've got to talk to me, son. You're starting to worry me." The craggy faced Mason said as he leaned forward from his camping stool.
Hyght glanced up a moment later. "I'm...fine. Just tired I guess." He said though Mason didn't seem to buy it whole sale. Mason gave him a look that Hyght had learned fairly quickly meant for him to spill the beans, a phrase that struck Hyght as odd. He was a cook and was taught that wasting food was impolite and, well, wasteful. The young baker shook his head and looked over to the man. "I can't remember how we got here. Or how long we've been here." He said, his words becoming faster as he spoke. "Or where we are. What we're eating. Where we're going. None of it." It was obvious to anyone that he was bothered by this and Mason nodded.
"After what you've been through, son, I'm not surprised." He said calmly and set his bowl on the ground buy his foot. Hyght leveled a confused look at the older man and waited for him to explain. Mason cleared his throat. "You got hit on the head pretty hard a few days ago, when we were going from the village of Hickory. You slipped on a nasty patch of earth and hit your head pretty hard. There wasn't a lot of blood but the blow could have had a delayed effect on your memory." Mason paused and shook his head twice. "Scared me for a minute too. You didn't move and your breathing was shallow. Thought I'd done lost you." Pain was in the eyes of the living crag of a man.
Hyght sat there and pondered the story Mason told him. Was it possible? Was he just experiencing a laps in memory? If so then why did his gut say otherwise? Mason was his friend, he knew that without a doubt, but if so then why couldn't he remember where they met? Why were his instincts screaming at him to not let this man out of his sight? Hyght stared at Mason for a long while, the digits of his hand rubbing the utensil unconsciously.
Last edited by Hyght Briggs on Thu Mar 03, 2016 5:24 am; edited 2 times in total