Chapter 3 of Random Story

Cayle sat by the fire and watched the sun rise over the hills. He’d woken up an hour before dawn.
He didn’t sleep good, tossing and turning, and when he did sleep, nightmares showed their unwelcome faces.
He hated what he had become, what he had been forced into. He thought back to why he had resorted to this and sighed, depressed.
He heard a sound behind him and turned, seeing Cadman crawling out of his tent and stretching.
Cadman was a soldier who had been in a similar predicament as Cayle. They had decided to split the reward money.
“How long have you been up?” Cadman asked, seeing Cayle by the fire pit.
“A while,” Cayle answered.
“Couldn’t sleep, could you?” Cadman asked. Cayle shook his head, turning back to the cold fire pit.
There was a long silence.
“What’s for breakfast?” Cadman asked, making Cayle laugh.
“Are you ever not hungry?” He asked. Cadman thought for a moment.
“No, not really,” he said.
Cayle got up and started making breakfast.
                                                                              *
As they were eating, Finn also came out of his tent, smelling the food. He was a scrawny boy of about eighteen, with light brown hair that fell to his shoulders and covered most of his eyes, creating a veil.
"Can I have some?" He asked. Cayle handed him a plate in answer; Finn took, and, with a nod of thanks, started eating.
He had come with Cadman, as sort of an unofficial squire.
Cayle got up and walked over to the washing bucket and looked up at the sun, sitting above the hills now.
"We had better start moving," He said. Cadman also got to his feet and, after depositing his plate into the bucket, walked towards his tent to start packing it up. Cayle did the same, while Finn continued to eat.
After Cadman and Cayle had finished, they found that, while they had been working, Finn had washed the dishes, and was currently struggling with his tent.
The two men shared a glance, and then walked over to help him.
                                                                             *
Deanna finally came to a stop, nearly falling out of the saddle from exhaustion.
She had been riding all night, occasionally leading and checking his hoofs. She didn't stop to sleep, but ended up dozing in the saddle.
She dis-mounted and started to lead Krennan again, but she ended up stopping and leaning on him.
"OK, this isn't working," She said, she lead him into the trees, where, after a while, she came across a clearing.
"I just need a few hours sleep," She mumbled as she tied Krennan to a tree. She pulled a blanket from her pack and leaned against the tree. Krennan got down on his knees and neighed quietly.
Deanna opened one of her eyes and saw him watching her. she smiled and moved over and leaned against him instead.
"Thanks, boy," She whispered. A few seconds later, she was asleep.
                                                                              *
"Where should we start?" Cadman asked, looking up and down the road.
"She should be going to the sea, right?" Finn asked. "So wouldn't it make more sense to go up the road?"
"Yes, but we're not sure if she's going to the sea or not, she could double back, and she's searching for that Herndon, who may or may not exist," Cadman said. Cayle remained quiet, debating on a course.
"I think we should split up," He said finally.
"What?" Cadman asked. "That's insane; what if you find her? I won't be there to protect you."
"I can take care of myself," Cayle responded, a little indignantly. "It will give us a better shot, I can go up the road, while you go down, and then we can meet up in two hours; what could be easier?"
"Getting yourself killed for one thing," Cadman said, crossing his arms.
"Well, do we have a better plan?" Cayle asked. Cadman hesitated, and Cayle seized his advantage, seeing that Cadman was starting to budge.
"Come on, do you have a better plan?" He asked. Again Cadman hesitated.
There was silence, and then Cadman sagged slightly.
"Fine; just try not to get killed," He said, walking over to his horse. "Finn, climb into the wagon."
"See you in two hours, Cadman," Cayle called as he walked over to his own horse. "See you Finn,"
 He mounted and sat on his horse and watched as Cadman and Finn went down the road. He turned his horse and started up the road.
                                                                      *
After an hour, and not finding anything, he thought maybe it was time to turn back.
He started to turn his horse around, when it did something he didn't expect. It neighed, loudly.
"What's wrong?" He asked, surprised. This horse had never done that before.
It ignored him and tried to keep walking, but didn't get far.
"Come on, we have to get back, otherwise they'll think we got ourselves killed," He pleaded. Eventually, the horse gave in and allowed itself to be turned back the way they had come.
When he got back to the meeting point, Cadman and Finn were already there.
"Sorry, the horse started acting strange," Cayle explained as he dismounted. "Did you find anything?"
"Nope, not a thing," Cadman said.
"Maybe we should go out farther," Finn suggested.
"I agree," Cayle said. Cadman sighed.
"I see I'm outnumbered." He said. "I suppose you want to split up again,"
"It's our best shot at finding out which way she went," Cayle said.
"I guess you have a point," Cadman said. "Fine; let's meet up after three hours,"
"Alright, good luck." Cayle said, moving to re-mount.
"You too, and don't get killed, she's very dangerous," Cadman said, moving towards the wagon.
"I'm not an idiot, but I thank you for your concern." Cayle said.
He turned his horse to face up the road again, and let him walk. He heard the wagon also start moving.
                                                                      *
Krennan woke her up after what she guessed was two hours. She got to her feet and stretched; Krennan also stood.
"Thanks boy," She said, patting his neck. She dug around in her pack and found a treat and gave it to him. He ate it and wickered appreciatively when he had finished.
She untied Krennan's reins and led him out of the trees. She was about to step on the road, when she heard another horse. She stepped back into the shadows of the trees and waited until whoever it was passed. The rider got closer, and she looked up to see his face, and caught her breath: it was the singer.
She stayed perfectly still and waited for him to pass. He went a few more feet, and then stopped and dismounted. He bent to look at something on the ground, and then raised his head and looked around.
He stood and lead his horse into the trees.
Deanna quietly tied Krennan's reins to a nearby branch and followed him.
He followed a trail, his head down, until he came to the clearing where Deanna had just been. He walked over to a tree and tied his horses reins to one of the branches and walked around the clearing, looking at the ground.
Deanna hid in the trees, watching him. He crouched down near where she had briefly slept and studied the ground, his back to her.
She walked quietly from the trees and walked over, drawing one of her swords, she held it to his back. He stiffened.
"Don't move," She said.
"You're her aren't you?" He asked.
"Don't talk, either," She said. He stood and turned, the sword not wavering, and now pointed at his chest.