In her life, Twilight Sparkle had never seen anything like this strange land. In a few short hours, the mare had heard a dragon fly overhead, and been near a group of bandits as they were slaughtered. The day ended with the group making camp on the shore of Lake Ilinalta, and two of the mares were off bathing at the moment. The Element of Magic was currently occupying herself with her lists, checking off every plant, animal, and insect that she saw, all in the name of science. That didn't mean that Twilight hadn't taken the time to enjoy the sights and sounds of Nirn.

Reman's home was certainly beautiful, even with its strange moons. That was probably the toughest thing to get over, really, the two celestial bodies. Luna seemed to take some slight offense at the dual satellites, like they were stealing her thunder. The Princess was joking, using humor as a means to ease some of the group's collective nervousness. Actually, the peace of the day had done wonders to relax the other mares, well, after the near run-in with those brigands.

A scream and splash pierced the early night like a dagger. While one might confuse Fluttershy's outburst as the result of horseplay with Glade, her friends understood the fear in her shriek, and the six rushed to her aid. The Element of Kindness was standing on the shore, shaking in terror a what she had seen. The lycan that had escorted her, however, was nowhere to be found.

“Something pulled Glade under!” The shy pony was almost in shock, the attack had taken place in an instant. Pegasi aren't strong swimmers on the best of days, and the lycan had been snatched by surprise, if somepony didn't help, odds were that Glade might not survive. In this test, Twilight Sparkle jumped into action.

“Rarity, light up the water!” The alabaster unicorn obeyed, running on autopilot for the moment. With a flash, the dark waters were illuminated by the Element of Generosity's magic, revealing Glade and her attacker. Twilight didn't notice what it was, the mare was too focused on her duties. “Luna, grab Glade and pull her out!”

“Right.” The alicorn gripped the submerged and struggling pegasus, yanking her from the strange creature's grip. The lycan flew from the water with barely a ripple, the Princess' magic displacing the liquid without a sound. The lake monster launched itself after the mare, but was met with a dagger in its jaws. Reflex forced the foreign animal to bite down, the steel blade penetrated its skull and brain, death was instantaneous. Oddly enough, the weapon hadn't been thrown, it had merely fallen from its sheath.

“You can let me go, I'm fine.” Glade had a few bites, but she was still in working shape. “It just caught me by surprise, is all.” In truth, the mare had only been more afraid on two occasions, and both involved the Imperial the group was going to see. “Though, I suggest waiting until we get to Whiterun to try and bathe, other you're liable to be grabbed by... whatever that was.”

“I think it's a fish.” Pinkie was stating the obvious, but it may have been a shocking revelation to the bubbly party pony. Regardless of her current thoughts, Gummy was busying himself by nudging the floating corpse around the shallow he was presently wading through. Through the small alligator's efforts, the fish's body drifted towards the group of ponies, ready for its examination. “Those teeth are bigger than Reman's when he gets all scary and growly!”

“Why would a lake fish need teeth this large, or display that level of aggression?” Twilight wasn't about to go near the thing, even the scholarly mare had her limits, but her inhibitions didn't stop her from wondering. “Perhaps Glade is right, we should definitely avoid deep water.”

“Well, there go my plans for cleaning up.” Rarity was jesting, still slightly jarred from the earlier fiasco. The fashionable pony was slightly agitated by the delay, but she could live with it. “I'll wait until we arrive at Jarr-vasker to bathe.”

“Let's jus' get back t' camp 'fore somethin' worse than a fish comes after us.” Applejack was not about to risk the lives of her friends by talking, not while the air had bloodscent wafting through, and not while predators were roaming the woods. They needed to move, and now.

@#@#@#@#@#@#

This was easily the best part of being in the Companions, hands down, theses celebrations were worth every battle, every injury, every wound earned in combat. The mead hall shook with cheers and drunken song, though the every member of the Circle was sober as a bird. The roaring revelry was over some whelp's success on a job, while this wasn't cause for celebration in itself, the adverse conditions that presented themselves during the contract demonstrated the newcomer's skill. Some kid, about two or three years younger than Reman, had cleared out a bandit camp that had set up the day before, including the chief in steel plate. Even the Imperial had to admit, that was damn impressive.

“To Jared Thumb-crusher, a true Nord warrior!” Skjor lifted his mug and shouted across the room, encouraging the gathered fighters into an even louder frenzy. While the aged werewolf was trusted and admired in the Companions, Reman butted heads with the former Blade on a number of occasions, including the first time the Imperial set foot through the western doors. Nevertheless, Reman downed his mead with the others, not like he would let alcohol go to waste, that would just be rude of him.

“Reman God-slayer, gotta admit, it has a nice ring.” Farkas' voice was oddly loud over the roaring Companions, making the cheers seem like white noise. “Don't suppose you're gonna start going by that now, are you?”

“The Circle has been calling me that ever since I told you about my battle with Hircine.” Reman and the his fellow lycan made their out back, away from the shouting crowd. “Never understood why you five believed it when nobody else did.”

“Most folks don't have a connection to the Huntsman like we do.” The long-haired Nord shrugged, answering the Imperial's unspoken question. It never ceased to amaze Reman, but he found himself surprised every time Farkas managed to teach him something. The man may have been simple, but he wasn't stupid.“We all felt Hircine's pain when you did... something.”

“It take's a special warrior to defeat a Daedric Prince in combat.” Reman jumped slightly when Vilkas spoke from one of the benches under the mead hall's rear awning. “More than special, I suppose.”

“By the Nine, you came out of nowhere.” The Imperial chuckled slightly, only at his own jumpiness.

“Then you're going to flinch now, too?” Kodlak wasn't one to sneak about, but this matter was somewhat sensitive, and the Harbinger couldn't risk Skjor's or Aela's reactions. Reman remained still, unaffected by the man's voice. “I trust you know why we sent Farkas to collect you.”

“You've got a hunch that I haven't been totally honest with you, right?” This old song and dance, the Imperial had a passing familiarity with it. In truth, Reman hadn't lied in his description of his mission, he simply hadn't told the elder werewolf everything.

“Actually, this is in regards to the Silver Hand.” Kodlak quirked a brow at the young man's suggestion, but it didn't receive another thought. The old Nord actually had believed that Reman was withholding information, though he had no proof beyond what his gut said. “A lieutenant, of all things, came here.”

“Are they scouting for an attack?” The Imperial never liked planning large battles, they simply caused too much confusion amongst the combatants. Reman wasn't one to run from a fight, but Jorrvaskr was within the city walls, civilians might get in the way.

“Actually, she asked for you.” Vilkas sounded somewhere between explanatory and inquisitive. The warrior had no idea why some woman had asked for the Imperial, by name, no less. Some things just didn't make sense when Reman was involved. “Care to explain has she knew more about you than we did?”

“I have an idea, but I need her name before I can confirm my suspicions.” The lycan knew who it was, and his gut nearly froze at the thought.

“Just some Breton, brown hair, Cyrodiilic accent with some hints of a High Rock lilt.” Vilkas had taken the interrogation, if it could even be called that, by the reigns. Kodlak would take over if things got out of hand, but he allowed the younger lycan to handle this. “Sound familiar?”

“Yeah, I know her, old friend from home.” Half of the truth, but no lies. Reman was not comfortable with how things were going, not one bit. “But, you wouldn't be asking if something hadn't worried you.”

“She mentioned your family name.” The Imperial understood completely, his relatives weren't the best people to have linked to the Companions. “Do you have any idea how bad things could get for us? Especially if the Stormcloaks find out, because of your carelessness, all of Whiterun is in danger!”

“Vilkas, calm yourself.” Kodlak never liked being harsh, but the old Harbinger knew when one had to be forceful. “I'm certain Reman has a good reason for hiding his heritage.” The aged Nord looked to the Imperial, as though searching his heart for some answer. “But, that isn't the reason for this meeting.”

“With respect, I must ask the true purpose, then.” Reman was glad that the heat was off of him. For the moment, he was out of the frying pan.

“I had been under the impression of a lack of honesty on your end." Kodlak looked over the Imperial with a critical eye, attempting to discern the truth. "Now, what haven't you told me?"
@#@#@#@#@#@#

The next morning had been rather uncomfortable, for various reasons. Fluttershy had been woken up by every other noise, and Glade stayed too alert to sleep. Rarity had been difficult to wake, and Dash had a stiff back from the hard dirt, which was to be expected of a pegasus stuck on the ground. Pinkie had absolutely no problems, she was a morning mare, as things went. Applejack, accustomed to early rises, was slightly put off by sleeping in after sunrise. Twilight, having stayed awake to continue her notes, had baggy eye, but nothing else.

Things came to a head when Glade started to vomit her previous meal into the underbrush.