distant shore exerpt

Sunlight glistened on the gentle waves of the southern ocean, a golden light cascading over the surface. The sun was just starting to sink against the eastern mountains as the soldiers finished setting up a quick campsite for the night. The ocean’s sandy shore met with a grassy plain at the base of the mountains where Léon had gathered material for a fire.

	“Alright, we’re all set here. Might as well take some time to enjoy the ocean before we take off tomorrow.” The lion paused for a moment. “Not that you’ll really be missing it, but the water here is far nicer than Twilight Bay.”

	“Huh? What do you mean by that?” Fonzo inquired. He’d read about the bay, it connected the eastern edge of the D’Mos Kingdom to the western edge of Koam where the desert met the sea.

	“What I mean is that it’ll be a rough voyage once we get a boat at Port Dawn.” He stopped for a moment to sit on the edge of the cart and pull off his boots before continuing. “The ocean between there and Atleus is cold and dangerous, so enjoy the peace while you can, man.” The lion chucked his belongings into the back of their cart, keeping his shirt and braes on as he made his way toward the beach. “I don’t know if you’ve ever seen the ocean before, but this is the best time to get familiar.”

	Fonzo watched as the lion joined the foxes who had already stripped down and raced to the shore just as soon as the camp had been set. He laughed and watched as they immediately started splashing Léon who sat at the water’s edge.

	“Won’t you be joining them?”

	The cat jumped a bit, not noticing Kuro as they approached from behind. “Oh! Jeeze, you scared me.” He brushed his fur down and leaned against the cart where the canis was sitting. “I uh.. I’m not sure. I think they’re having enough fun without me.”

	The wolf stared at the cat then tilted their head. “But, this isn’t about them. You should do what you want to do. Besides..” Their words were drawn out as they stared out into the vast ocean, “They love you, Fonzo. You should be out there with them.”

	Fonzo froze up. “What do yo-”  He was cut off when he turned to discover that the wolf was nowhere near. After a brief glance around, he spotted them up along the shore watching the soldiers from a distance. Before he could think too hard about it, he heard someone calling out.

	“Heeeeey! Come on already!”

	The cat flicked up his ears as Mateo called for him. He looked up to see the fox waving him down. With another quick glance to the wolf sitting further out, he shook his head and began taking off his shirt before making his way down along the warm sand.