Most of the city's taverns were filled with people drinking, arguing and gambling their earnings away. The explosion of people coming to the city in the wake of the recruitment decree was certainly doing the local innkeepers no harm. At each tavern the friends received the same unwelcome answer; there were no rooms to spare.
   They kept walking, from one heaving inn to another, leading their horses behind them. The beasts did not seem to have suffered any hardship in their owners’ absence. It was almost dark, the star scattered sky above them was deep sea blue. A companionable silence fell over them, each with their own thoughts of what the coming days would hold. They had cleared the first hurdle, but they were facing unknown and difficult tests. Even if they could pass through them, no one knew what other challenges would follow.
'This is getting pointless.' They all jumped and then relaxed when they realised it was only Bethany. 'We won't find an inn with spare rooms here, at least, not cheap enough for our pockets.'
   Her friends agreed; they didn't have much gold.
'We should go back to the camp; we’re in the army after all. We have camping gear with us, I'm sure we can pitch our tents somewhere. It’s not like all the tents are in neat, ordered rows or anything.'
Agreeing with her logic, they headed back out of Grenit's winding stone streets. They set up their tents at the ragged outer edge of the army camp and, after a cold supper, as no one had the energy left after their strange day to cook anything, they settled down to sleep.

   Nearly an hour later there was a noise in the dark outside their tents. It sounded like a person sneaking about in the dark. Diana awoke with a start, her senses clamouring that something was wrong. Beside her, Katherine slept on. Quietly she slid out of her blanket roll and crawled over to the tent flap to her weapons. Carefully nocking an arrow she took a deep breath and plunged out into the darkness.
   A dark human shape was stood beside Aradia and Pelana's tent.
'Who is that?' she demanded, her voice sharp with fear. The shape started, surprised, and turned towards her. A woman's voice, thick with an unfamiliar accent and sounding strangely amused with the situation drifted back to her.
'A friend, tha may be sure. Can I come closer so tha can see me better?'
'Keep your hands visible and come forward slowly. No funny tricks.' Diana replied, edgily.
  She kept the arrow firmly aimed at the strange woman as she came closer. Soon they could see each other more clearly in the light of the torches and fires that still burned in the camp. The woman was short and stocky and Diana could see a small axe and a knife thrust through her wide belt. Her hands were empty. The stranger looked shrewdly back at the taller, slimmer figure before her. She now understood all she had heard from the recruitment tent the previous day. She had been passing when she heard raised voices. Curious, she had listened as the drama unfolded, leaving when the guards arrived at a run. Now, looking at Diana she understood the behaviour of the officers. This young one was definitely pretty; her black hair framed a strong, pale face that shone white and ghostly in the light of the waxing moon. She also noticed that Diana had only one arrow, the one aimed at her. Obviously she was confident enough that she wouldn’t miss to not have brought her quiver.
'What are you doing in our camp at this hour?' Diana asked.
'I saw tha arrive yesterday, saw the trouble you got into. Now I understand. I’m curious as to why twelve women such as thaselves be interested in joining this rabble.' the blonde-haired woman answered, gesturing with one hand at the motley assortment of tents around them. 'Tha leader has a nerve. I never thought she’d really strike the sergeant.'
'She isn't our leader-' Diana began, and then stopped as she thought about her friends. 'Well, I suppose she is really, we just don't think of it that way. But why are you here in the middle of the night?'
‘It’s not so late, I thought you might still be awake. Tha’ll find that this place never really sleeps. Tha’ll get used to keeping strange hours after a while. ’Sides, I like the night.’
   Diana looked closely at the stranger; she seemed unthreatening and friendly enough. Though, there was something strange about her speech. The woman tilted her head to one side, accepting Diana's scrutiny. The torchlight glanced off her face, illuminating a dark tattoo in the shape of a gliding mountain eagle. Diana realised with a shock where her acquaintance came from.
'You're a mountain woman!' she gasped. It was an ancient tradition among the mountain towns for all of the people to be marked with a tattoo that symbolised an aspect of their character. The tattoo was chosen and applied on the Year day of their coming of age. Now the difference in speech made much more sense. The woman grinned and stroked her cheek.
'Tha noticed my mark then. Why’s that so shocking to tha?'
'The mountain people almost never leave the peaks. You don’t involve yourselves in the business of the rest of Jarda. Why are you in the army?'
'This en't only the other people’s business though.' the woman responded. 'The summons went out to all the towns. Even though our towns en’t raided because we border Mirea, not Atta and Kebrion, it concerns us as well. Fighting the raiders will come to war eventually and war will affect us all.'
Diana struggled to accept that there would be mountain people fighting with them. The people of the Eastern peaks were considered to be alien, and not a little untrustworthy, despite the fact that they still owed allegiance to the same King. They lived high in the harsh eastern range, and had strange customs. In the western forest they were so rarely encountered as to be near legend, apart from a few visiting traders who told strange tales of their lofty homes. Belatedly she realised she had kept a nocked arrow centred on the other woman throughout the exchange; feeling suddenly foolish she lowered it hurriedly.
The woman smiled.
'Now I don't have any pointy things towards me we can get more proper acquainted.' The blonde's voice still had the amused tone to it, as though life was a huge joke but only she saw the humour in it. Diana was beginning to think it was just part of the way she always spoke. 'My name be Ellen, of the town of Endo. What may I call tha?'  
'Diana.' she replied absently, still thinking about the mountain people coming forward to help the rest of Jarda. She pulled herself together and gave Ellen a more polite reply. 'Diana, of Olat in the western forest. It's a pleasure to meet you, Ellen.' They bowed formally to each other and began talking again. Diana was wildly curious about her new acquaintance.
'What does your mark signify, if it’s not rude to ask?' she asked.
'The mountain eagle be impulsive, changing direction with no obvious cause. I have the same trait; I tend to act without thinking properly.  It be rare among the peak dwellers, most be very careful because if tha say the wrong thing tha don't live to regret it.'
'I've heard tales of people dying for obscure reasons in the east. Why?'
'We just be jumpier than others. Maybe it be caused by having lived off in the mountains for thousands of years. Live en’t easy, ‘specially in winter, and problems get bigger quicker when tha don’t see more than a few people all the time.'
They fell to discussing the differences between their own homes, talking quietly so as not to disturb those sleeping around them. Each of them quickly felt at ease with the other. In fact, Diana found Ellen such engaging company that she had almost forgotten that she had originally thought her a dangerous, suspicious intruder, looking to make trouble in their camp in the dark.
Diana even told Ellen of the unknown trials they were to face the following day. Ellen congratulated her, and wished them all luck in the tests.
‘There en’t been a unit such as that for many a year. Some of the old kings and queens named a few trusted troops as their personal Guard, to go out and perform special tasks, but it en’t been a common practice for a long time. I’d be glad to see such a rank go to friends such as thaselves.’  
Diana asked her what she knew of the Guards of old.
‘I en’t a scholar, tha friend Aradia likely knows more of this than I do. All I know is; the King’s Guard, or the Queen’s, whichever tha wish, used to be their most trusted personal agents. They rode out whenever needed, carrying secret messages, solving disputes, tracking down bandits, all the things what the monarch needed done. It’s a high honour, if tha can reach it.’
Diana suddenly gave a huge yawn. ‘Oh! My apologies, Ellen. I’m afraid I’ll have to go back to bed soon. It’s been a strange few days.’ Diana also knew she needed to get some sleep before facing the unknown challenges of the morning.
‘Of course. From the sounds of it, tha’ve got an important day ahead. Good night, Diana.’ The older woman said in farewell.
   Ellen walked slowly from her young friend's camp, intrigued by the chance that the friends had been given; thinking that she was fortunate indeed to have found someone who, like herself, was willing to talk for hours on end. Her own folk were too quiet for her liking.
   Diana yawned once again and, ducking back into her tent, collapsed back into her blankets. Her mind was buzzing with the fascinating new things she had learned of the mountain people, and with questions about what was to come. If Ellen was anyone to judge by, the people of the east were not so queer as she had believed. 'Who would have guessed,' she thought fuzzily, 'That different traditions could be so interesting?' she was asleep almost before she finished the thought.