“Did you ever see Luka again?” Murat asked.  They had finished consuming the rabbit and all that remained were bones.

“No,” Ulanbek replied.  “There was no way to keep in contact.  We all had to focus on training for our roles.”

“That’s unfortunate.  It sounded like you were good friends.  How many years has it been since you last saw each other?”

“Um…I’m in my twenty-ninth year now, so…nine years?”

“Wow!  That long?  Yet you see his face on the Silver Sorcerer, so his friendship must have meant a lot to you.”

“I suppose…” Ulanbek looked at Murat.  “How old are you, if you don’t mind me asking?”

“Me?  I’m in my twenty-second year.  Why?”

“Ah…I assumed you were in your eighteenth or nineteenth year.”

“Huh?  Do I come across as that immature?”

Ulanbek chuckled.  “No, you just remind me of myself when I first left home.”

“Oh…but you were probably much braver then than I am now.”

“Why do you say that?”

”I’m a coward…and I’m weak…”

Ulanbek raised an eyebrow.  “You faced a Vargoranth soldier and knocked his dagger away.”

”Ah…but that wasn’t me.  The Silver Sorcerer was just using his magic to assist.”

”Again, you don’t give yourself enough credit,” the Silver Sorcerer remarked.

”Luka’s right,” Ulanbek said.  “I thought you did fine.”

”I’m not Luka,” the Silver Sorcerer said.

Ulanbek shrugged.  “You look so much like him, it’s hard to call you anything else.”

”Very well, call me whatever is easiest for you.  If we keep gaining more friends, I’ll have a whole repertoire of names.”

”Well,” Murat cut in.  “Even if I did knock the Vargoranth soldier’s dagger away, he still almost choked me.  He was only defeated because you shot him with an arrow.”

”That’s fine,” Ulanbek said.  “In my unit, we are all skilled fighters, but we still cover for each other.  None of us can do it alone.”

”True.  Where is your unit?”

“Probably perished, I’m afraid.  We were going through a mountain pass when the Vargoranth ambushed us with their fire arrows.  They were hiding in the bushes too.  I fought off as many of them as I could.  I need to look for survivors.”

”Oh, you’re leaving then?”

”Not right away.  It would be foolish to walk back into the hornet’s nest, especially without reinforcements.  We’re trained to prioritize our own survival first, and then regroup and strike back when we have safety in numbers.  If anyone else from my unit survived, they’re laying low in the forest.  Actually, we should not stay here too long.”  Ulanbek threw dirt over the fire to put it out.  “I’m worn out from all the fighting and need to find a safe place to recover.”

Murat turned to the Silver Sorcerer.  “Can we let him stay in the cave?”

”Fine with me,” the Silver Sorcerer replied.  He turned to Ulanbek.  “But if you put us in any danger, I’ll kick you out.”

Ulanbek’s eyes widened.  “Luka, I would never harm you…or this young one here.”

”I’m not that young!” Murat protested.

The Silver Sorcerer smirked.  “I suppose it’s a good thing I look so much like your dear friend.  It ensures your cooperation.”

***

Ulanbek caught more small animals on the way back to the cave.  He cut the meat into strips and smoked and dried them over a fire outside the cave’s mouth.  They had enough food to last for days.  Murat was impressed with Ulanbek’s survival skills and wished that he spent a little less time daydreaming in the past.  He collected more edible plants to contribute to the stockpile of victuals.

Ulanbek let his horse settle near the cave’s entrance.  He looked at dragon bones inside and let out an impressed whistle.  When he approached the large dragon heart, his eyes widened and he ran his fingers over the smooth surface.

”Don’t steal it,” the Silver Sorcerer admonished.

Ulanbek frowned.

”This is what you and the Vargoranth are fighting over, right?” Murat asked.

“Yes…” Ulanbek replied.  “I won’t take this from you though.  You are offering me shelter so I wouldn’t do anything to jeopardize that.”

“You humans are treacherous, so I wouldn’t put it past you to go back on your word,” the Silver Sorcerer remarked.

“Hey,” Murat said to the Silver Sorcerer.  “Don’t be so harsh.  I know you don’t like humans, but he saved my life.”

The Silver Sorcerer gave him the side eye.  “Very well.”

Ulanbek settled down next to a dragon rib bone and put his hand over it.  “This is incredible.  Wish I could have seen the dragons when they were around.”

“No you don’t,” the Silver Sorcerer said.  “You’d be running for your life.”

“But it was the humans who ended up defeating the dragons right?” Murat said.  “With the mages’ help, you said?”

“Mages?” Ulanbek asked.

“Yes, you missed out on all the fun,” the Silver Sorcerer smirked.  “No more dragons or mages for you to subdue.”

“Please, that’s enough,” Murat said.  “He got all this food for us-”

“Which I don’t need,” the Silver Sorcerer said.  “It’s mainly for you two.”

Murat sighed and turned to Ulanbek.  “Sorry, the Silver Sorcerer acts strange in general but he’s being particularly difficult today for some reason.  He says he’s been around for centuries and he has a deep distrust of humans.”

“Why are you following him then?” Ulanbek asked.

“He also saved my life.  He can be frustrating at times but occasionally he’ll surprise me with kindness.  I also can’t survive on my own so I’m just staying with him for safety.”

“I could just-”

“Hm?”

“Nothing.  I was going to say that I could offer you protection but I don’t want to make empty promises.  I still have a duty to serve my empire.”

“That’s fine.  We only just met this morning.  You’ve already been more than generous.”

“I try.  Although, I’m far from generous to those who attack me.  I show no mercy in that case.”

Murat moved backward.

“Sorry.  Didn’t mean to scare you.  But that is my role.  We are loyal to our king and serve our empire.”

Murat sat down with his back against an adjacent dragon rib bone.  “If you’re the enemy of my enemy, that makes us friends right?”  He laughed bitterly.  “I want to avenge my village, but I have no idea how.  I’d probably get killed the moment I encounter the Vargoranth again.  Then my entire tribe will be completely gone for good.  But even if I am still alive, my tribe is already gone for good.  My fiancée perished in the invasion.”  He turned to Ulanbek.  “You said you’re in your twenty-ninth year.  Are you already married?”

“No, the soldiers in our unit are not allowed to marry until our fourth decade.”

“What?!  But that’s such a long wait!  Some people are already grandparents by then!”

“Indeed.  It’s to make sure that we do not have any competing obligations that would affect our loyalty.”

“But what if you die before then?”

“Many do.”

Murat looked glum.  “Do you have anyone waiting for you back home?”

“No.  We had to cut all ties to our families and communities in order to join the Saradeyans.  Again, it was to ensure complete loyalty.”

“But that’s…so sad…”

“Perhaps.  I try not to think of it too much.”

“You don’t miss your family?”

Ulanbek was silent.

“I mean, assuming that you were on good terms with them?  You weren’t trying to escape a bad situation at home were you?”

“No, it wasn’t like that.  My family was good.  I just wanted more out of life.  If I stayed home, I would just be herding sheep for a lifetime.”

“Is that a bad thing?  That’s what people in my village did.  That and farming.  Our village didn’t have a lot of wealth, but we all looked out for each other.”

“No, there’s nothing wrong with herding sheep, and my community was also close-knit.  It’s just that…I wanted something different.”

“You cut off ties with your family and you can’t marry until you’re old.  What are the actual benefits to joining the Saradeyan army?”

“If we survive to our fortieth year, we are granted a plot of land to settle down in.  Then we can retire and start a family.”

“A plot of land?!  That’s all?  Weren’t you already living on land before you left home?”

“That land was owned by a distant lord.  We were allowed to live on it and raise our animals, but we’d have to pay tribute every year, mostly in meat or cheese since we didn’t really have money.  We lived off of whatever was leftover.  Sometimes it was hard to get through the winter.  The Saradeyans would come by and recruit young men into service, and that was considered another form of tribute.  It lessened the burden on our families to produce enough each year, and they were actually rewarded with more food and animals if we joined.”

“Huh…that’s different from us.  The mountain tribes have never lived under any outside rule and we stubbornly refused to.  That’s what got my village destroyed, unfortunately.”

“I’m sorry about that, even though that was the Vargoranth’s doing.”

“Anyway, you get this plot of land and…”

“The land will belong entirely to us.  It wouldn’t be under the rule of some other lord.  In fact, we would become the lords of our plot.”

“Is it a large plot?”

“That is what they promised.”

“But…who are you taking the land from?”

“Huh?”

“I don’t know how large your army is, but if each of you gets a plot of land, that would be a lot.  Is that why the Saradeyans and the Vargoranth are invading the highlands?  So they can take the land and give it to their own people as a reward?”

Ulanbek was taken aback.  “Y-you’re probably right.  I never thought about it that way.  I was just focused on the end goal.  I’m so sorry…”

Murat blinked away his nascent tears.  “It’s okay.  You saved my life and you’re giving us food, so I don’t think ill of you.  You’re probably just as much of a pawn as I am in this cruel game.”

***

After they had eaten some dried meat and plants and settled down for the night, Ulanbek lay on the stone floor lost in thought.  He looked over and saw Murat curled up in a large silvery blanket.

“Would you like one as well?” a voice behind him said.

Ulanbek jolted and turned.  “Oh, Luka, it’s just you.  What are you talking about?”

“Would you like a blanket?”

“Oh.  Sure, if you have one.”

The Silver Sorcerer held up his hands.  Glowing silver threads extruded from his fingers and began weaving themselves together.

“What are you doing?” Ulanbek asked.

“Making the blanket.”

“From scratch?”

“What does it look like?”

“If it’s going to take that much effort, then you don’t have to.”

“It’s no effort at all.  I have nothing better to do anyway.  I don’t need to eat or sleep.”

“Why are you being so generous now?  Earlier you were quite hostile, like you didn’t trust me at all.”

“I still don’t, but Murat thinks positively of you.”

“The real Luka wouldn’t talk to me the way you do.  It’s jarring hearing these words coming from that face.”

“Heh, maybe the real Luka is now a jaded, bitter man, crushed under the weight of labyrinthine bureaucracy.  The toll of time spares no one.”

“I hope not.  He was so full of enthusiasm and potential back then.”

“So you’re more interested in maintaining a happy memory than facing a possibly unpleasant reality?”

“No, I just-”

“You know, from the way you speak of him, I think you were more than just friends.”

Ulanbek’s face flushed.  Luckily it was so dark in the cave that it was not noticeable.

“Anyway, not to worry,” the Silver Sorcerer continued.  “You’ll get a nice warm blanket before the night is over.”

***

As Ulanbek watched the Silver Sorcerer weave the glowing threads, his eyes became heavy and he drifted off to sleep.  When he opened his eyes again, he saw himself in the small room that he stayed in for two years in Yizamir.  Luka was sitting on the mattress opposite of his.  A small candle flickered on the nightstand between their beds.

Is this a memory? he thought.  Please let it last as long as possible.

“This is the last night we’ll be roommates,” Luka said.  “Tomorrow I will go to the palace and you to the military training grounds.”

“Do you think we’ll ever meet up again?” Ulanbek asked.

“Not likely.  This arrangement was only supposed to be temporary.  We’ll go our separate ways and eventually forget each other.”

“But…I don’t want to forget…”

Luka smiled and walked over to Ulanbek.  He sat down on the mattress next to him.  “Neither do I.”

Ulanbek gazed into Luka’s hazel eyes.  His heart was beating fast and his hand brushed against Luka’s.  He leaned in until their faces were nearly touching.  Luka lifted his hand and caressed Ulanbek’s cheek.

“If you don’t want to forget,” Luka whispered, “then let’s create a memory that will last a lifetime.”  His lips brushed against Ulanbek’s.  

Ulanbek wrapped his arms around Luka and kissed him deeply.  After they pulled apart to catch their breaths, he leaned toward the nightstand and blew the candle out.