"If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head. If you talk to him in his own language, that goes to his heart." ~Nelson Mandela

    The only sound that met my ears was my breathing and heartbeat that started to wind down to a normal pace. The leaves played across the sky from my view and I could see every detail, and I knew that this was not how they were supposed to look. I couldn't recall of any other leaves but I knew to my core these were not the ones from where I was from. My breath steamed up into the air in small clouds and tendrils. The ground was warmer and only had a thin layer of ice underneath my body. My fingers moved across the worn pommel of the sword in a soothing motion as I waited. 

 I didn't know how long I waited but after while I wiggled my body slowly and silently from underneath the bush. I shivered as the wind played across my tanned flesh which was bared besides the breaches and bandages that needed changed. I rubbed my arm with my one hand quickly to try and bring warmth back to my body but it didn't work. I shook my head with frustration, picked up the sword and started jogging on the packed trail. 

 Once I started jogging my body started to warm up making my shivering go down. I carried the sword like it was poisoned, arm moved away from my side and held in a light grip. I curled my toe into the dirt making an imprint and hoped I would get some wrappings or something because I felt like my whole body was going to freeze over. My teeth chattered lightly and I almost didn't hear the sounds of fighting up ahead. I paused covering my mouth to muffle my chattering teeth and crept forward, my body was low to the ground and the sword stayed parallel to it.  I dropped closer to the ground as I came upon the fighting; it was a flat ear and the guy against wolves.

"Tenebrae." Darkness I said as the sun lowered her face from the world, her fingers of warmth retreating from my body, and leaving the stars and moon to take her place. The flat ear turned to look at me with a questioning look but in the end searched for something. I walked with him not wanting to be left behind and soon inferred that he was looking for a good camping area for the night. I tapped him lightly on his shoulder and pointed to a small area that was protected by trees on one side and the other side a large boulder. He clapped me on my back and walked forward with higher spirits. 

Once the fire was made, which was hard and required lots of bad sounding sounds from the flat ear, and meat slowly cooking I brushed my fingers over the worn cover of the book. The cover looked like it went through many life times, scruffs marking an edge or spine here and there, and the firelight glowed softly against it. I took a deep breath and flipped open to a random page and almost let out a cry when I saw familiar letters. I didn't want to read it yet so I continued flipping to see how many pages were filled when strange letters appeared on the page. 

One side of the page would have a familiar word and then across from it the strange letters. Beside the strange written letters was letters that made sounds. "Sky-rim." It came out disjointed and strange from my mouth and made me frown. I repeated it a few more times and then the flat ear said similar sounds. I frowned more and said it again slower to make it sound like what the flat ear said but my voice and accent made it thick and choppy. I sighed and set the book down, my fingers curling around the cover and spine, and wondered once again if that man knew me.