Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

“Okay,” I say to myself as I finish laying out the last of the ingredients. “Okay. This is good. I’m prepared.” Despite my words, I don’t feel very prepared — my stomach is in knots and I’m pretty sure that if anything goes wrong I’m going to shit myself. My hands tremble as I lift the first ingredient, powdered newt’s tail, over the bubbling cauldron in front of me. The light from my candles dim dramatically as I let the powder slip through my fingertips and scatter into the boiling liquid, which immediately belches out a pale yellow cloud. I lean forward and inhale as much of the gas as I can, gagging at the smell of rotten eggs. Then, with a still-shaking hand, I lift the book of rituals and begin to read the text aloud. 

“From endless night to morning bright, bestow upon me a witch’s might,” I whisper. The potion is stirred clockwise four times, and then counterclockwise once before I grab another handful of powdered newt’s tail and toss it in. This time, the gas that’s expelled is a deep gray, and it lingers in the room, making the outlines of my few belongings hazy. The candles have yet to return to their normal level of brightness. 

I reach down for the second of seven ingredients and toss it in, watching as the liquid blooms into a milky white color. This time, instead of chanting anything, I close my eyes and try very hard to visualize why I needed these powers. Frustratingly, my mind stays blank, even as I try to picture my sixteen-year-old sister. It’s difficult to do considering I haven’t seen her in four years. Sadness freezes my chest, and I open my eyes so that I can sigh and press my hands against the warmed belly of my cauldron.

I need this ritual and these powers desperately. If I can’t prove to that adventuring party that I’m worth a damn then they’ll fire me, but I don’t have any desire to finish this ritual for my own sake. The book was very clear — you had to come to this ritual with determination and a strong purpose in mind, or the patron wouldn’t listen to your call. I have the purpose down pat; I just need the determination. I just… 

I grit my teeth. I wouldn’t even be considering this career path if it wasn’t for —  

I shake my head and refocus. Now’s not the time to think about how much I dread this next part of my life. I have to convince this patron to sponsor me. With a steadier hand than before, I reach down and pick up the third ingredient to toss into the cauldron, followed swiftly by the fourth. The liquid doesn’t change, but it does spew out another noxious yellow gas that I reluctantly lean into and inhale. “Ugh!” I choke out, leaning away and retching slightly. 

The candles in my room flicker. My head snaps up to look at them, and then I shoot an uneasy glance at the cauldron. If the ritual doesn’t work, then I’m screwed — I can’t prepare it again for a fortnight. I lay the open ritual book in my lap, clasp my hands under my chin, and close my eyes again. I can do this. 

An intense presence settles in my room. Behind my eyelids, I see the dim light grow even dimmer. With a deep breath, I root around blindly for the final three ingredients and toss them in, making sure to hold my entire face over the pot as the next cloud of gas billows up. I cough through this, then lean back and fumble for the small doll I made out of sticks. It presses its jagged ends into my palms as I squeeze it. 

“Oh patron,” I say, lifting the doll into the air as if I’m presenting it to the gods. Then I pause, trying to piece together the words I want to say next. “Look…I’m not good at this. I have no idea what I’m doing. But I’m trying to protect my sister. That’s got to be worth something, right?” I tilt my head back, keeping my eyes closed. “She can’t lose her schooling because I couldn’t provide for her. So…please.” I grip the doll tightly, shaking it slightly, before hovering it over what I think is the cauldron and dropping it. It settles into the liquid with a soft splash. 

For a few heart-stopping long seconds, nothing happens. I don’t move a muscle, even as sweat begins to drip down my forehead and streak over my cheeks. Then, the wind outside picks up in a roar, and all the dimly lit candles in my room extinguish as one. I leap to my feet, eyes open and heart pounding in my chest, but the dark room is empty and silent. Outside, the wind dies down and silence falls heavy around me. I appear to be alone, but am I really? There’s a presence here, something supernatural that I can’t put my finger on. I feel like I’m being politely considered. With a dry tongue, I wet my lips and drop my hands to my sides. 

“Hello?” I whisper. Nothing answers me, but after a few seconds I go on, “I can sense you. Please. Please help me.” 

Still nothing, and the presence I feel fades away. It is becoming increasingly obvious that the ritual failed. Frustrated, I drop back to my knees and reach for the glass of water next to me so that I can douse the fire under the cauldron, but at my touch the clear liquid turns a murky brown. I lift it to my nose to smell it, and then rip it away with a gag when the worst smell I’ve ever encountered fills my lungs. Startled, I drop the glass and it shatters at my feet. “Fuck!” The sticky liquid from the glass spills over my toes and I leap backwards to get out of danger. “What in the nine hells?” 

The water putrefied at my touch. That’s never happened before. I run a hand through my hair, and then grip and tug on the strands a little. What is happening? 

I clean up the glass, doing my best to avoid stepping on the shards. After the ground is glass-free, I open the window and start to air out the haze that still permeates my bedroom. Maybe I can start studying magic like a wizard? There might be a book or two of beginner magic in Vane’s library. Perhaps I can buy it off him and join the adventuring party that way. Just because plan A didn’t work doesn’t mean I’m out of options. I just have to be flexible. 

There’s a real sense of disappointment that radiates throughout my entire body as I lie in my tiny bed and stare at the ceiling. It’s not like this was my last hope, but it was the option I desperately wanted to succeed. Without this, I’ll have to try twice as hard to be useful in a fight, and I’ll be at a real disadvantage opposed to the rest of the party. They might choose to rescind my offer now, and if that happens I’m really screwed. If I can’t get Camille’s tuition covered…

This thought chases me into sleep. I wake with the dawn and begin my normal morning routine, sliding into my work clothes and popping a piece of bread onto a metal plate so it can bake. I reach down with my fire starter, but leap back and trip over my feet when the kindling sparks to life at my touch. I hit the ground hard and swear at the top of my lungs. 

Breathing heavy, I stare at the bouncing fire in front of me. I know for a fact that I did not trigger my starter to light the kindling. So what did? It couldn’t have possibly been me that did it, right? I don’t have any magic. My heart rate picks up as I consider both of the options. Option one: I accidentally triggered the starter and just didn’t realize it. Option two: I set a fire using my finger. Which seems more reasonable? I know the ritual didn’t work, so I must have just triggered the starter by accident and didn’t realize it. I am a little groggy this morning anyway, so it’s not beyond the realm of possibilities. 

It’s a weak excuse, but it’s the only one that makes sense, so I swallow back the feeling of discomfort and go on with my morning. Once the toast is finished, I swipe a spread of butter on it, jam it into my mouth, and grab my cloak. The door swings open and I go to step outside, but there’s a small reptilian creature on my doorstep. I blink down at it, then go to nudge it aside with my foot.

“Shoo, shoo,” I say, nudging it a little. It snorts, shakes its little head, and looks up at me. Impatient, I put a little more force into my shove. “C’mon, I don’t have time for this.”

“Oh, you’re going to be an interesting one,” it says in perfect common. I scream and kick it fully, tossing it about three feet away. “ Ow. Nice to meet you too.” 

I blink down at it again, mouth agape. It takes several seconds before I’m able to piece together words. “What…what in the hells is happening?” 

The little creature dusts itself off and rises to its feet. “You’re supposed to be my witch? You look pathetic.” 

I bristle, stung by its words. Then I soften as they begin to sink in. “What do you mean I’m “your witch”? I’m not a witch.” 

“Sure you are,” the little thing says with a snort. “You did the ritual, didn’t you?” 

My breath catches in my throat as hope blooms in my chest. “You mean it worked? I have magic now?” Suddenly, the water putrefying last night and the fire from this morning make much more sense. That wasn’t just random happenstance — that was me practicing magic without knowing it. I stare down at my hands, then at the little creature. “I’m sorry I kicked you. You frightened me.” 

“Whatever,” it says. “I’m a Compsognathus. I’m your new familiar.” It regards me with a look of disdain on its tiny reptilian face. “Not that I particularly want to be, but hey, duty calls.”

I shift my weight between one foot and the other, then glance up at the rising sun. If I don’t hurry, I’m going to be late opening Vane’s store, but I have about a thousand questions for this little creature. What did a familiar do? Does he have to follow me around everywhere? What kind of magic could I practice now, and how do I get better at it? 

I must stare at the little creature for too long because it sneers at me and says, “God, I didn’t realize you’d be stupid. I’ve been a witch’s familiar for a long time and you’ve got the dumbest reaction so far.” 

“Shut up!” I snap, patience thinning. “I didn’t even think the ritual worked. You’re a baby dragon that just showed up on my doorstep. I’m allowed to be a little shocked about this!” With a frustrated growl, I step over the Compsognathus and start my walk to Vane’s store. There are soft footsteps behind me as the dragon follows me. 

“Not a dragon,” it says. “Compsognathus. A dinosaur. You don’t pick up on things quickly, do you?” 

I grit my teeth and do not respond, deciding to give the little creature the cold shoulder. If it wanted to be a jerk, then I could be a jerk back. We walk in silence for a few minutes before it bounces up and stares at me with its unsettling black eyes. “So, what’s your name? I should know who you are if I’m going to grant you magic.”

“Theo,” I reply shortly, not looking down. Then I pause and frown. “What do you mean “grant me magic”? Don’t I have it innately now?” 

“Yes and no,” it says with a little shrug. “You practice magic without needing to study, but you don’t have any as long as I’m not around.” It gives me a very smug look. “That’s why you need me.” 

“Joy,” I mutter. “Look, Compy —” 

“Compy?” 

“Well, your name is a mouthful, and I’m not going to say it the whole time. So you’re Compy now. Congratulations.” 

It sighs. “I guess I’ve had worse nicknames. You’re not exactly the creative type, are you?” 

All this little shit has done since we met is insult me. I try not to let my growing rage overtake my tongue, and bite down on it to prevent me from being able to speak. We walk in blissful silence for most of the rest of the way to Vane’s shop, and Compy hops into the building behind me as I enter. Vane looks up from his place behind the counter and frowns at the both of us.

“Sweet merciful Iomedae, what have you gotten yourself into now, Theo?” He asks, setting down the quill he’d been using to write in a book on the counter. He circles around it to stop in front of me and peer down at Compy. “What is this little creature? Where did you procure a dragon?” 

“It’s not a dragon,” I say immediately. Vane’s frown deepens even more. 

“What is it, then?” 

“It’s a Comp —  Compsog — This is Compy. He’s my new pet.” 

“Pet?” 

“Well…” I sigh. “Do you remember that book of rituals I borrowed from you?” 

“Yes,” he replies. “And I want it back when you’re done.”

I realize then I’ve left the book at home and swear in my head. “Well, I am done with it, but I don’t have it on me. I’ll bring it back soon. Anyway, this little creature is my new familiar.” 

He brightens. “Ah, so it worked? You have magic now?” 

I look down at my hands and clench them. “I guess?”

“Well, either you do or you don’t, and if you have a familiar now, it’s probably a good bet that you do.” He pauses, and eyes me with a critical look. “I guess I’m gonna have to train a new apprentice potions master now that you’re going to be off being an adventurer.” 

I clench my teeth and try my best not to look pained. “That’s right. Theodora Bliss, off on an adventure with her…adventuring party.” My voice is the flattest it’s ever been by the end of my sentence. 

He chuckles, picking up on my sarcasm. “Well, it hasn’t happened yet. Let’s open the store. I’m sure your new friends will come by to pick you up eventually.” 

We go through the motions of opening the store, pulling the older potions made from the day before to the front of the shelves and restocking the few potion ingredients we keep on hand to sell. I move without thinking — I’ve been working under Vane for the last four years, so it’s not difficult to set the store up for the day anymore. Once everything is ready, I unlock the door and take my usual place behind the counter as Vane disappears into the back room to do more brewing. 

Compy circles around the counter and curls up at my feet, which means I have to step carefully so that I don’t end up stomping down on his tail. When he’s not speaking, I almost find him cute. Unfortunately, he breaks his silence by looking up at me and sneering. “I thought you were an adventurer.” 

I grit my teeth. “I just got hired by a party. We leave in a few days. Now leave me alone. I’m working.” 

“It just looks like you’re standing there.”

“Yes, that’s what work is. People will come in for potions throughout the day. You’re not very smart, are you?” I ask, mimicking his tone from earlier. Compy regards me expressionlessly, but settles into a cat-like crouch and lowers his head to snooze.

Chapter Text

The day passes uneventfully. I’m clearing out the expired potions from the day before with my back to the door when it chimes open. As I glance over my shoulder, I see a man I haven’t met before standing in the threshold. He smiles as our eyes meet, and after a beat, I return it. He steps inside. “Hi. I’m looking for Theodora Bliss. I was told I could find her here in the daytime.” 

I spread my hands. “That’d be me. You can call me Theo.” 

He steps forward and shakes my hand. “Pleasure to meet you. I’m Rehua.” His face settles into a more serious expression. “The rest of the party is back in the local tavern. You mentioned that you’d have magical abilities by now. Is that the case?” 

I nod. “Yes, the ritual was successful.” Gesturing below me, I continue, “My familiar is napping below, and I’m now a level one witch.” 

“Excellent. We’ll need your expertise in magic, since I’ll be primarily wild shaping during our travels.” He pauses and frowns a little. “I believe the others in our party are a monk, another druid, and a ranger of some kind, though I can’t recall exactly. You, me, and the other druid will all have an animal companion – in your case, a familiar – so we won’t exactly be traveling light.” 

I nod, but say nothing as it’s obvious Rehua is mostly talking to himself. I take the moment to size him up – he’s a man in his mid-thirties with a full, bushy beard that is meticulously trimmed and styled. His clothes are comfortable and practical, and don’t look like they’ve been stitched to hell and back. I glance down at my own outfit, with its many stitches and stains from working with potions for the last three years, and frown.  

“ – And we’ll need to be prepared to leave within the next two days. Can you be packed in time?” 

I snap back to the present and clear my throat, shifting my weight from foot to foot. “I can.” It’s not like I have a lot of stuff to pack. 

“Great!” Rehua beams, but I don’t return the smile. “Can you leave here and come meet the party?” 

Vane, the nosy bastard, takes this moment to pop his head out of the back room. He eyes Rehua for a moment before his attention turns to me. “If you’re done purging the expired potions, you can go ahead and leave for the day,” he says with a nod. I drop the bag of potions I’d been removing and nudge Compy with my foot a little, waking him. 

“Time to go,” I tell him. He gets to his feet and stretches, then follows me as I circle around the counter and follow Rehua out of the door. Outside, a large creature is waiting patiently. Rehua wanders over to him and reaches up to scratch its head. 

“This is Rongo,” he says, one hand resting on the top of the creature’s head. “He’s a dinosaur.”

I glance down at Compy. “Oh. We have something in common, then.” 

Rehua smiles at me. “I suppose we do.” 

We walk in amiable silence for most of the way, only breaking it when he opens the door to the tavern for me and ushers me in first. I step in and out of the way so Rehua can come through the doorway, and he brushes past me to join a table in the back filled with people. Well… people is a strong word. There is certainly a person sitting at the table – a younger man with a bow strapped to his back and a short sword clipped to his belt. He wears a furred hat in a style I don’t recognize, so I assume that he’s from outside Nirmathas. Or maybe he’s just from a different region. It’s not like I would know – I’ve never left this town. 

The other two individuals there are a…tree man…and a large cat that looks as if it is sucking all the light in the room towards it. The three of them look up as Rehua approaches the table. I hear him say, “Everyone, this is Theo.” He turns, then starts as he realizes I’m not behind him, and waves me over. “Hey, over here.”

I force myself to put one foot in front of the other until I’m level with Rehua. The three members of my new adventuring party regard me curiously as I take a deep breath and force a smile. “Hello.” 

Rehua claps me on the shoulder, jolting me. “Theo is our new witch. She’ll be focused on magic.”

“Another magic user,” the tree man muses in a deep voice. “That will make three.”

The strange cat tilts its head and I let out a gasp as a feminine voice echoes in my ear. “Witch magic is different from druid magic, isn’t it?” 

The tree man’s face is expressionless, but he inclines his head toward the cat, then turns to face me fully. “Welcome, Theo,” he says. “I am Karn. It is a pleasure to meet you.” 

The cat also dips her head in my direction, and her voice rings in my ears again, though the cat has no discernible mouth. “I’m Aelin.” 

“Nestor,” the man with the bow says, picking up his tankard to take a swig from it. He sets it back down on the table with a thump and the ale inside sloshes around the brim of the mug, but does not spill. 

Rehua sits in the remaining chair. I glance at the closest table and drag a chair over, awkwardly settling in between Karn and Nestor. “It’s nice to meet you,” I say quietly. 

Karn turns his attention to Rehua. “Shall we discuss our travel plans?”

He nods. “Yeah. I’ve mapped out the best route to get to Orlov, the town that the Pathfinder Society contracted us out to help. It’ll take the better part of three weeks to get there on foot.”

Three weeks of constant walking and sleeping in the wilderness sounds like my literal definition of hell. My nose wrinkles before I smooth a neutral expression over my face. Unfortunately, Rehua clocks my look and huffs a short laugh. “It’s only difficult the first week, I promise.” 

I doubt that, but say nothing. My hands twitch for a drink and I eye Nestor’s tankard with some interest, but my attention is caught when Rehua claps his hands and pulls out a map to spread across the table. No sooner than he does that, the door to the tavern bangs open and Aubrin, the local adventurer, enters. She scans the room once, her eyes squinting at me and her expression brightening. I swallow back the sinking feeling of dread as she slowly makes her way across the room to stand at my side and clap a hand on my shoulder. “Theo! It’s not often I see you with other people in here. It’s nice to see you with friends.” 

“Actually,” I say, leaning slightly away. “These are my new coworkers.” 

“Yes, I’d heard you’d taken a job as an adventurer!” she exclaims with a grin. “Following in the footsteps of your Ma, huh?” 

I feel my face settle into an icy glare, and stare at my hands in my lap to try to hide it. “Yes.” 

She pats my shoulder again. “So proud of you, kiddo. You’re going to have so much fun.” 

I sincerely doubt that, but I pull a smile onto my face and look up at her. “Thanks, Aubrin.” 

She nods at the rest of my party. “Make sure you take care of our Theo. She’s very precious to us.” 

Rehua huffs a laugh and nods at Aubrin. “Don’t worry. We’re a team and we look out for one another.” 

Aubrin opens her mouth, but whatever she’s about to say is cut off when the door to the tavern swings open as a bleeding man clutching an arrow sticking out of his chest tumbles through it and collapses to the floor. Two hobgoblins step over his body and leer at everyone, raising their bloodstained swords and shrieking loudly as they begin to rush in. Immediately, my party is on their feet and moving, leaving me sitting stunned in my chair. It’s only when an arrow from one of the hobgoblins whizzes past my ear that shocks me into moving too. I leap to my feet and duck down under the table. Another arrow thuds into the leg of the chair in front of me and I flinch badly, knocking my head against the table. 

Compy paws at my leg. “What are you doing? Get out there!” 

I whimper and draw my hands over my head protectively before I poke my head out from behind the chair. The rest of my party has rushed forward and is actively engaging the two hobgoblins. I look down at Compy. “I don’t know what to do!” 

“Use magic, you stupid girl!” he cries. 

There’s no time or point in arguing that I don’t know how to use magic. Swallowing, I lift a shaking hand and point at the hobgoblins. What if I could put them to sleep? A funny feeling bubbles up in my chest; kind of like how drinking something fizzy makes your mouth buzz. It rushes into my arm and down until it gathers at the tip of my finger. “Please go to sleep,” I whisper. The feeling fades from the point of my finger, and the two hobgoblins yawn before collapsing to the ground. There’s a brief moment of pause, then everyone in the bar swings their attention to me, still cowering under the table. I swallow thickly again and slowly make my way out from underneath it. 

Rehua nods at me from across the room. “Nice work. Nestor, can you take care of these two?” 

Nestor pulls out his sword, bends over, and cuts the throats of both hobgoblins. Black blood immediately begins to spray out all over the floor and both hobgoblins gasp and choke until they finally shudder one last time and fall still. 

I helped kill these two creatures. Bile rises in my throat and I list to the side to throw up. It stings all the way out and I gag, chest heaving. Someone’s hand pats my shoulder and Karn’s deep voice says, “It is never easy watching a kill for the first time.” 

“You get used to it,” Nestor calls over to us as he wipes the blood off his sword onto a rag attached to his belt. 

Somehow, I highly doubt I’ll get used to casual killing. I wipe at my mouth and pull myself upright, shrugging off Karn’s wooden hand. “Thanks,” I mutter, looking away. 

Rehua posts himself by the door and peeks out of the window. “Looks like a hobgoblin invasion,” he says calmly. 

“But hobgoblins haven’t come for Phaendar since I was a child,” I say, stepping forward. “They’ve been dormant for so long.”

“Well, your town is overrun with them right now,” he replies. He pulls out a staff and slaps it with one hand. It glows a bright yellow briefly before fading back to normal. “We need to flee, but we need supplies if we’re going to survive. Theo –” He turns to face me with a single eyebrow raised. “Does your potions shop have healing potions we can take?” 

I think back to the bag of expired potions sitting on the floor of the shop. They’re only expired by a day, which means that while they’re not at their most potent, they’re still usable. I nod and set my jaw. I’m going to have to go out there and do my best not to be killed. I don’t exactly trust my odds, but I fall in line with the rest of the party. Compy scampers after me. “You should cast Mage Armor ,” he says. “Keep you alive better.” 

“I don’t know how to do that,” I hiss. “I woke up with magic this morning .”

“Magic needs intention,” he snaps back. “Feel your intention. Cast the damn spell.” 

I draw back slightly, stung by his words again, but raise my hand and snap my fingers, surprising myself when my body lights up red for a moment before it wanes. “Oh!” 

Next to me, Karn chuckles. “Are you still getting used to your powers, Theo?” 

“You could say that,” I say. It’s really none of his business. 

We stealth out of the door and down the street to Vane’s store, seemingly avoiding any hobgoblins as the screams of terrified townspeople echo around us. I flinch every time one rings out, but keep my gaze focused on the ground. Once we’re near the shop, Rehua presses himself against the building and peers in through the window. “Damn, there’re two hobgoblins in there. Looks like they’re raiding the place.” 

“Maybe I can put them to sleep again?” I whisper. Rehua cocks his head to the side for a moment, obviously thinking, then nods and motions for me to take his place. I press my hand against the door and take a deep breath, hesitating. What if it doesn’t work? Will I be okay? 

Someone nudges my shoulder. I swear under my breath and inch the door open just wide enough to stick my hand through and point towards the hobgoblins’ backs. Another jet of magic shoots out from my finger and lands right between them. One hobgoblin drops to the ground, but the other just shakes his head and whirls around to lock eyes with me. I squeak and jerk backwards as he takes a step forward. “Okay, I got one of them!” 

Rehua shoulders the door open and he and Nestor cut the other down to size, tanking some nasty hits from the hobgoblin’s sword. I step inside gingerly once the noise has settled, and circle around the counter so that I can pick up the abandoned burlap bag and start shoving as many potions as I can get my hands on inside it. I don’t check to see what I’m grabbing, and I shatter at least one potion on the ground because my hands are shaking so badly. 

Vane, who I guess had been hiding in the back room, steps out from behind the curtain holding a metallic piece of machinery I’ve never seen. “Take me with you,” he begs, holding the thing up and shaking it slightly. “We can flee into the woods and blow the bridge up behind us.” 

“Is that a bomb?” Rehua asks. Vane nods, and offers it to him. Rehua takes it and stores it away in his satchel. “We should try our best to gather as many people as we can before we leave.” 

“Do you have an armory here?” Nestor asks me. I wrinkle my nose at him. 

“No? We’ve got a smithy, but they mostly sell goods.” 

“Dried goods? Food and potable water?” 

I nod, though I’m not entirely sure about the water. Rehua returns my nod and says, “Let’s go. Everyone keep an eye out for hobgoblins.” 

When we get to Kining’s Smithy, our bad luck rears its head again – there are more troops and a small earth elemental here. I duck around the corner of the building and poke my head out to try to put them to sleep, but no spark of magic answers my call when I lift my hand. Frowning, I shake my hand a little and try again to no avail. Compy snorts at my feet and sneers up at me. “You cast your spells today,” he says. “You’re out until you rest.” 

I snarl under my breath and drop my hand, ducking back around the corner. “What do you mean I’m out of spells?” 

“What, you think you get access to unlimited magic at level one? Gods, you’re dumb.” 

I resist the urge to kick him into the street, instead taking a deep breath and letting my head thud back against the wall of the smithy. Compy scratches at his eye with his little foot and continues, “You know, you’ve got an ability that’s not a spell. Try glaring at people.” 

The earth elemental rounds the corner and shrieks out an alarm when it spies us, drawing the attention of the two hobgoblins, who storm out of the store. I shrink back behind everyone and glance down at Compy. What did he mean, try glaring at someone? I glare all the time and nothing ever comes of it. Despite my trepidation, I lift my head and make eye contact with one of the hobgoblins, feeling my expression settle into a scowl as my eyes narrow. The unfamiliar feeling of magic buzzes around my eyes for a moment before the hobgoblin shudders and takes a step backwards. “Elf magic,” it hisses, drawing its sword and pointing it at me. “I’ll bring your head to Azaersi!” 

“Who?” I ask, ignoring the insult to my heritage. The hobgoblin does not answer me, instead flying forward to clash swords with Nestor. The other takes aim at Aelin, who rushes forward and trips it, causing it to crash to the ground so that she can stomp on its head. The earth elemental sinks into the ground and pops up beside me. It balls up a rocky fist and slams it into my side, instantly winding me, and I stagger backwards a step before looking up at my team with a panicked expression. I can’t take another hit, or I’ll have to be carried out of town. “Help!” 

Karn steps up in front of me, putting space between me and the elemental. He pauses a moment before pressing a wooden hand against its head and causing it to crack and fragment into a thousand tiny pieces. I breathe a heavy sigh of relief and glance up at him through my eyelashes. “Thank you.” 

There’s a deep gurgle behind me, and I turn to see the two hobgoblins dying on the ground, both of their throats slit from ear to ear. Nestor shakes the excess blood off his sword, then disappears inside the store with Rehua and Aelin hot on his tail. Karn brushes past me to join them, and, after a moment’s hesitation, I follow. Inside, a small crowd of maybe twenty people cower behind the counter, only rising from their hiding place to almost throw a bottle of something at us. Once they realize we’re not a threat, they file out from their place as Rehua explains our escape idea. 

When we return outside, the sun is setting over the horizon. If we don’t move, we’ll be stuck here. On a whim, I turn my attention to the center of town, frowning at the tall black tower that now takes up residence in the square. Where did that come from? I can barely see the temple behind it, though I can see fire flickering from it. The screaming has mostly stopped, though I can’t tell if that means people are dead or have fled into the woods. It’s impossible to stealth around with the group of twenty or so people that we’ve gathered, so we book it as fast as we can to the stone bridge leading into the Fangwood. As we run, Rehua digs out the bomb Vane gave us and tosses it at me. I fumble with it for a moment before my hands find purchase around the metal and I hold it close to my chest. 

“Set the bomb and ready it to blow after we clear the bridge,” he yells. My feathers ruffle somewhat from the order, but I nod in response and keep running despite the stitch in my side. We make it all the way to the bridge and halfway across before the ground shakes with the force of the roar that cuts through the air. I turn and spot the largest hobgoblin I’ve ever seen rushing towards us, nearly about to make the bridge. I shriek from my place near the middle, and my party turns back to face me. I clock the blood drain from Rehua’s face, and he lifts a hand to cast a spell I don’t recognize. It does slow the giant trooper down significantly, and he snarls at us as he hefts his large axe and roars again. 

My hands shake as I set the bomb down and fiddle with the knobs on it. I have no idea how to set it, and I desperately pray to anyone listening that I don’t blow myself up by accident. After a final twist, it begins to tick – slowly at first, then faster and faster. My eyes widen and I jump to my feet to sprint across the stone bridge and join my party just as the explosion goes off. The force of it causes me to trip and go sprawling. When the dust settles, the huge hobgoblin from before comes up to the edge of the bridge and screams in frustration, throwing his axe to the ground. A much smaller hobgoblin slowly walks up to stand next to him. She regards us neutrally before lifting a hand and waving the slowly growing army behind her forward. Two hobgoblins drag someone forward and toss him at her feet. I realize with a jolt that it’s Father Nolan, who must have been captured inside the temple before it was set ablaze. With one hand, the hobgoblin leader pulls a wicked looking knife from her belt, bends over, and carves so deeply into his neck that after a moment she stands with his head separated from his body. I roll onto my knees and vomit again. Someone’s hands tug impatiently at my clothes, and I allow them to pull me to my feet. 

It’s Rehua. With a frown, he shakes me a little. “Get it together. We need to run.” Then he turns and sprints into the forest, disappearing behind several trees. The townspeople we managed to save race after him, and after a beat, so do I. We run for about a mile, with the only thing keeping me moving is the adrenaline. It’s only when we slow to walking does the exhaustion catch up with me, and I have to fight to keep up with the rest of the group.

Chapter Text

We walk until the darkness is so deep that nobody without darkvision can see. Rehua brings up to a clearing and starts casting Web Shelter so that everyone has a hammock to sleep on. Then he waves the party over, and I tiredly fall in line. 

“We’ll need to set up a watch so we’re not ambushed,” he says quietly. “I don’t think these people should be considered. Who wants to take first watch?” 

“I’ll do it,” Nestor replies, patting the sword at his hip. 

“I will also keep watch,” Karn says. At his side, Aelin nods. 

I have no idea if I’m even helpful now that I’m out of spells. I look down at my hands when Rehua calls my name. “I can take a watch, but I can’t cast anything until I sleep,” I respond, avoiding his gaze. 

“That’s alright. We’ll give you the last watch so that you can rest first,” he says. I chance a glance up at him to see him nodding. “Why don’t you hit the sack now?” 

That sounds like the best idea I’ve ever heard. Exhausted, I drag my body over to the closest unclaimed hammock and collapse into it. Compy, with a small grunt, jumps up and settles onto my chest with a very cat-like movement. I close my eyes, shiver against the breeze that picks up, and slip slowly into sleep.

I wake hours later when Aelin headbutts me. Her black eyes glitter at me unpleasantly in the dim light. “It’s your turn,” she says in my head, causing me to wince. Will I ever get used to that sensation? Probably not. 

I get to my feet. Compy, who’d been snuggled into my side, rolls over and yawns. He clumsily gets to his feet and follows behind me as I walk over to an upturned stump and sit down on it. I don’t exactly know what I should be doing. Was I supposed to physically watch everyone else sleep as the sun rose? Uncomfortable, I shift in place and fold my hands in my lap to pick at my cuticles. 

Compy and I sit in silence for a while the surrounding forest slowly brightens. Eventually, he rises to his feet, stretches, and looks up at me. “Tough luck about your town, but I guess it’s a good thing you did the ritual last night, huh?” 

I scowl at him. “You’re my familiar. It’s your town too.” 

“Whatever,” he says, looking away. 

“Don’t whatever me,” I snap, suddenly irritated beyond belief. “What’s your problem?” 

He snorts. “My problem is that you’re pathetic. The worst excuse for a witch I’ve ever seen. You cowered in the corner while your party took care of the threats in town.” 

“Don’t call me pathetic!” I hiss, careful to keep my voice low so that I won’t wake everyone up. “I don’t know anything about being a fucking adventurer. Pardon me for being terrified in a situation that’s scary!” 

“So you have no survival skills either? Pathetic.” 

My vision goes red and I shake, lips pressed tightly together so I won’t start screaming. I can hardly believe my familiar is so rude to me. I suck in a deep breath through my teeth and close my eyes, willing the anger in my chest to dissipate. “My mother taught me plenty of survival skills,” I say lowly, leaning down to put my face in Compy’s. “Do not say that I don’t know what I’m doing in these woods. Which of the two of us grew up here?” 

He chooses to stay silent. Satisfaction cools the rest of my temper and I lean back to turn my gaze back to the dim forest around me. We sit in silence until the first of the townspeople we saved start to wake up and walk around. When the sun crests over the horizon and begins to pierce through the canopy above, I stand and walk to the middle of the camp, hesitating. What do I do now? The people around me look about as shell shocked as I feel – after all, we just lost our homes and livelihoods. There’s so few of us, and we have no food and water. 

Rehua wakes up and stretches from his hammock a few paces away. He catches sight of me and swings his legs over the side, getting stiffly to his feet and stretching with a groan. “No troubles with your watch?” he asks. 

I shake my head. “I guess not.” 

“Let’s gather everyone together,” he suggests, nudging Rongo awake with his foot. The dinosaur blinks sleepily up at him and yawns, revealing rows of sharp teeth. “We’ve got to figure out how we’re going to survive.” 

I follow him to the middle of the camp, where Karn and Aelin are already waiting. Nestor is still sitting in his hammock, clearly attempting to wake up. After a moment, he joins us, along with Aubrin. She chews on something as she approaches, then spits out whatever it is onto the ground. 

“We need food,” she announces. Rehua nods. 

“We’ll need to send scavenging parties out for food. Goodberries will only get us so far. Can you gather a group of maybe five people and go looking for food?” 

She nods. “Aye, I’ll take a group. What about defenses, or shelters? We can’t live in these hammocks forever.” 

“For the time being, they’ll have to do,” Rehua responds calmly. “We could have another group of people start building lean-to shelters out of wood and leaves, but ultimately, we need to be able to move at a moment’s notice.” 

As the discussion goes into more depth about the logistics of living in the woods, I let my mind drift to my sister. A sickly feeling spreads through my stomach – what if the monthly owl can’t find me? If I stop paying tuition, how long does Camille have until she’s kicked out of school? The familiar feeling of anger bubbles up, overtaking the fear. I joined this stupid adventuring party to make money, and now we’re trapped in the woods instead. Even if the owl can find me, how am I supposed to make payments for her tuition if we don’t earn any gold? 

I can’t even tell Camille about the invasion. I don’t want to worry her during her senior year. Fleetingly, I recall her last letter, now sitting in my abandoned house. I had a letter penned in response, but it’s sitting on my dining room table. I’ll have to write her another, but I doubt anyone grabbed paper and ink as we were fleeing the town. 

I press my hands to my eyes and resist a frustrated groan. This situation is impossible! What in the nine hells am I going to do?

“Theo?” 

I drop my hands and look up. Everyone is staring at me, though Aubrin has walked off and is gathering people into a group twenty feet away.

“Sorry,” I mutter, looking away. “Just thinking.” 

Rehua’s expression softens. “You just lost your home. It’s okay to be overwhelmed, but these people need us.” 

“I didn’t sign up to be a leader,” I snap, patience thinning. Nestor and Karn exchange glances, but Rehua nods once, seemingly unfazed. 

“Regardless, we are the most capable people in this group, and that means we need to guide them to safety,” he responds. “You’re a potions master. Can you brew while we’re out here?” 

I open my mouth to respond, but there’s a choking sound behind me. I glance behind me – Compy is gagging up something, his body swelling and deflating as a cauldron is spat out. I eye the cauldron warily, then turn back to Rehua. “…I’ll need ingredients,” I say reluctantly. 

“Do you have any healing abilities?” Karn asks, tilting his head towards me. I glance down at Compy. 

“Uh…I don’t know? Compy, can I heal?” 

“No,” he replies, rolling his eyes at me. “You think you’re a healing and caring person? That’s funny. I’m laughing.” 

I scowl, then turn my attention back to my team. “Apparently not.” 

Rehua, who’d been glancing back and forth between Compy and I, huffs a short laugh. “Does your familiar always talk to you like that?” 

My head snaps to him. “You can hear him?” 

“I cast Speak with Animals every morning,” he responds. “It’s how I communicate with Rongo. So, yeah, I can hear him.” He frowns down at Compy.

“He just showed up and started being bratty,” I say. “I got him literally yesterday morning.” 

“Yeah, and you punted me across the yard.” 

I whirl on Compy. “You scared the shit out of me! Excuse me for not knowing that I was even getting a familiar!” 

“Alright, alright,” Rehua says, clapping his hands. “Now’s not the time to argue. I’m not going to tell you what to do with your familiar, but try to keep it civil, please.” 

Fuming, I cross my arms and glare at the treeline to the side. There’s a brief pause, then Rehua sighs and turns to the rest of the party. “Let’s delegate tasks. Nestor, can you help the group that’s setting up the shelters? Karn, go with the party that’s foraging for food. Aelin –” He pauses, tilting his head in thought. “Do you want to stay on the lookout for threats?” At her nod, he continues, “Theo and I will go scavenging for potion ingredients. It’ll be good to have potions of Cure Light Wounds on hand in case things go south.” 

We break. Rehua and I make for the treeline, walking away from the camp towards the rising sun. We move in silence for a while, with only birdsong accompanying us. Compy and Rongo follow behind us, chittering in a language I don’t recognize. Every so often, Rehua chuckles at something they say. I’m almost curious enough to ask him what they’re talking about, but ultimately decide that I don’t want to know. A cold breeze picks up and I shiver, drawing my arms close to my chest. I hadn’t grabbed my cloak when I left for work yesterday, and now I don’t have anything besides my robes to protect me from the elements. 

Rehua shrugs out of his jacket and offers it to me. I hesitate – is it weakness if I accept? The urge to be warm again outweighs my sense of pride though, and I pull it over my robes. It hangs to my knees, restricting my walk somewhat. “Thanks,” I say, avoiding his gaze. 

“No problem.” He seems unfazed by the temperature, continuing to walk forward. We move through the trees until we stumble across a wooden hut nestled tightly between a smattering of pine trees. It’s barely noticeable, and I only clock it when the light refracts off a window, shining directly into my eyes. 

“Hey, there’s a house,” I say, pointing. Rehua slows to a stop and squints in the direction, whistling lowly when he spots it. 

“Abandoned?” he asks. I shrug. “Ah. Guess there’s only one way to find out.” He walks towards the hut, and after a moment’s hesitation, I follow him, lurking behind his shoulder as he knocks on the door. 

Several minutes pass before it opens, revealing an old, squat man in simple tan robes. He strokes a hand through his long gray beard and eyes us suspiciously. “Yes?” 

“Our town fell to hobgoblins –” Rehua begins. 

“What does that have to do with me?” the man interrupts. “Ain’t no hobgoblins here.” 

My blood boils. “We need help,” I snap. Rehua glances at me over his shoulder, then turns to face the man again. 

“We could use supplies,” he says. “Anything will help.” 

“In return for what? I’m not a charity.” 

I open my mouth to respond, but Rehua steps back and places a hand on my shoulder. “Theo is a potions master,” he replies. “She could assist with gathering ingredients.” 

The man stares at us as he strokes a hand through his beard again. “I’m getting too old for the nettles,” he finally says after a long moment of silence. “If you fill a burlap sack with nettles I’ll give you some supplies. Not much, but some.” 

Rehua sighs. “We’ll do it. Thank you.” 

The man grunts, then slams the door shut. I stare at Rehua. “Do I even get a choice in this, or am I just expected to go collect a bunch of stinging nettles myself?” 

He sighs again. “I know stinging nettles are a pain, but we desperately need supplies, Theo. It’s either this, or we struggle even harder than we are right now. You’ve got to get it through your head that you can’t go back to Phaendar.” 

“Are you going to help me?” I ask as the door opens. The man throws a sack at me, and I fumble with it before I’m able to tighten my grip. He eyes Rehua thoughtfully. 

“I’ll throw in some bedrolls if you chop some firewood for me,” he says. Rehua’s eyebrows shoot up briefly before his expression smooths into something neutral. 

“I’d be happy to help.” 

The man grunts again, points to the side of the hut where a bunch of wood is stacked, and then slams the door shut. I grind my teeth together, but turn on my heel and walk around behind the hut where bushes upon bushes of stinging nettles greet me. Their stinging is painful, but not unbearable as I reach out and collect the first of many. Around the corner, I hear the axe swing and break wood into pieces. 

Chapter Text

Rehua and I work in silence for a while. Sweat drips down my brow as I move, and eventually I shrug off the jacket Rehua loaned me to fold it up and set it on the ground. Thick strands of my hair fall out of the bun it’s kept in, and I end up having to impatiently brush it out of my face multiple times before I finally give in and yank it out. My hands move rhythmically as I twist my hair back and pin it in place on top of my head. 

Hours pass. I finish with the last of the nettles just as the sun begins to dip over the horizon. My hands and forearms are bright red and sore from the collecting, and, exhausted, I load the bag up on my hip and circle around to the front of the house, where Rehua is waiting with Rongo and Compy. He hisses as I come into view. “Yikes. Come here.” I stop a few paces from him, and he closes the distance to lay a hand on my arm. There’s a glow of white magic and a rush of power, and then the sores on my arms close up and vanish as if they’d never been there in the first place. The pain recedes altogether. 

“Thank you,” I say quietly. Then I shift the bag to my other hip so that I can bang on the door. “Hey! We’re done.” 

After a moment, it opens, revealing the old man again. He collects the bag of nettles from me, throwing a different bag at Rehua, who catches it easily. “Hmph. Here’s your stuff. Now leave me alone.” When he tries to shut the door, I slam a hand against the wood and shove it back open. “What now?” 

I wet my lips. “Do you have paper and ink?” 

He snorts. “I’m a wizard. Of course I do, stupid girl.” 

My vision bleeds red, but I take a deep breath to fight back the worst of my anger as I say through gritted teeth, “Can I please have some?” 

He eyes me suspiciously. “Why?” 

“It’s none of your business,” I snap. 

“Then you don’t need any.” He goes to shut the door again, and I stop it this time with a foot in the crack. Angered, he throws it back open and points a finger at me. “If you don’t go away, I will curse you to within an inch of your life.” 

“Give me the damn paper and ink and I’ll leave forever.” 

With a deep sigh, he reaches next to the door and throws a balled up scrap of parchment and an ink pen at me. “Fine. Go away forever.” The door bangs shut in front of me. 

I breathe a slow sigh of relief, and bend over to collect the fallen things. When I stand up and turn back to face Rehua, he’s got a very thoughtful look on his face. “Why do you need paper and ink?” he asks. 

“It’s none of your business either,” I say. His expression hardens. 

“If we’re going to be a team, we need to be able to trust one another,” he replies. “How do I know you’re not going to send a letter compromising everyone? The hobgoblins will likely be shooting down any kind of correspondence.” 

Is he really going to rag on me until I tell him? I grit my teeth again and bear them at him in the facsimile of a smile. “I need to write my sister.” There. That’s the most basic answer I can give. He doesn’t need to know more details than that. 

Rehua brightens. “Ah, I didn’t know you had a sister. Letting her know about Phaendar is a good idea. If she’s in the area, she could be in danger.” 

I step forward and clench my fists, leaving them shaking by my side. “She’s perfectly safe, thank you very much. I will not be telling her about the invasion.” Then I turn on my heel and start to walk back the way we came. Three sets of footsteps follow me, and Rehua jogs a little to catch up. 

“Why wouldn’t you tell her?” 

“What is this, twenty questions?” I snarl, coming to an abrupt stop and turning to face him. “You don’t know me. Why do you care?” 

“It’s called a conversation,” he says mildly. 

“Let’s get one thing straight,” I say, poking a finger into his chest. “This is a job. You are a coworker. I don’t have to get to know you. I don’t want to get to know you. I want to make money and hopefully not die doing this. Is that clear?” 

Rehua’s expression falls minutely, but he nods. “Alright. If you’re sure.”

“I’m positive,” I mutter, turning back to keep walking. We move silently as the twilight slowly dawns, painting the forest in deep greens and blues. Once we’re back at the camp, I see that some progress has been made – a good-sized shelter has been constructed, and about five people are huddled together underneath it. There’s also several dead squirrels that are being roasted over a small fire. My stomach rumbles and I realize with a jolt that I haven’t eaten anything in over a day. Fresh meat sounds delightful. 

I pull off Rehua’s jacket and offer it back to him, but he shakes his head. “I don’t get cold very easily and you look like you need it more than I do. Keep it for now.” 

I shrink back, a little stunned by his generosity. Guilt washes through me, but I nod and drop the bag of supplies next to the fire. Despite his surliness, the old wizard did put together a decent supply bag – there are several bedrolls, a small pouch filled with goodberries, a fire starter, a few jars of basic potion ingredients, and some poultices for healing. I set these aside, as they’re more delicate than the rest of the goods. 

As the camp settles in for the night, Rehua waves everyone over again. I fall in line between Aelin and Karn. The latter turns to me, and I resist a shudder as that expressionless face stares into my soul. “Were you successful in your gathering today, Theo?” he asks. 

I shrug. “We got some stuff from a nasty old man. Won’t last.” 

“Yes, surviving is a constant battle between yourself and the forces of nature,” he muses, turning his head away. I relax. 

Rehua opens his mouth to speak, but a sudden cry from Aubrin behind us startles the four of us. I turn to look – a man has stumbled out of the deepening darkness of the woods and is regarding our little camp curiously. I tense as Rehua pushes past us all to approach him, then follow behind the party as they join him. 

“You escaped the Ironfang Legion too?” The man asks once we’re all within earshot. I frown. What was the Ironfang Legion? 

“Phaendar was overrun by hobgoblins,” Rehua says. The man nods. 

“I know. I escaped from there. I’ve been wandering the woods all day looking for help.” 

Alarm bells begin to ring loudly in my head. I know every single person in Phaendar, and I’ve never seen this man before in my life. I shove past Rehua to stand in front, glaring at the man. “And who the fuck are you?” 

“Theo,” Rehua murmurs behind me. The man skitters back a step, looking slightly intimidated.

“My name is Edran,” he replies. “I escaped Phaendar last night when the Ironfang attacked.”

I fully turn around to make eye contact with Rehua. His grim expression confirms my suspicions – this man is lying through his teeth. Slowly, I take three steps away from Edran, turning to face him as I do. The rest of the party fans out around him in a semicircle. He looks at each of our faces, and his expression falls more with each dart of his eyes. He glances around our camp once, then turns on his heel and books it back into the darkness. 

“Hey!” I shout, taking a step forward. Rehua throws an arm out in front of me, whistles through his teeth, and points in the direction Edran took off in. From behind all of us, Rongo roars loudly and takes off after him. In the seconds I have to react, I look down at my hands and imagine them emitting light like a candle would. I snap my fingers, expecting my hands to light up, but am surprised instead when four lanterns pop into existence, bathing me in a warm glow. The rest of the party rushes forward toward the sound of Edran’s screams. 

Rongo has caught the man in a tight grapple, with his teeth clenched firmly around the man’s upper thigh. We skid to a stop in front of them, and Rehua squats down so that he can look at the man’s face properly. 

“So who are you really?” he asks. Edran spits in his face, and Rehua reels back to wipe it off. “Gross.” 

Edran laughs suddenly. “Wow, and here I thought you’d be a bunch of scared sitting ducks.” Then he whimpers as Rongo tightens his jaw. “Ouch. Don’t suppose you’d be willing to let me go?” 

“Are you a spy of some kind?” Nestor asks. He has drawn his bow and is holding an arrow taut. 

Edran cocks his head to the side. “Eh…I’m mostly in business for myself.” He attempts a shrug, but Rongo’s hold prevents him from moving much. Rehua kneels down and begins patting Edran down. He pulls out a small book and begins flipping through it before he pauses, and his eyes go wide. 

“You’re Molthuni?” he asks. Edran groans. 

“You got me. The Ironfang Legion sent me.” 

“So that’s who attacked the town,” I whisper to Karn, who nods in response. Nestor lowers his bow and looks to Rehua for direction. 

Rehua frowns. “If you’re Molthuni, we have to kill you.” 

“Wait! I’ll just leave the Fangwood. I don’t have to report back. They won’t send anyone after me.” 

“Do you think we’re stupid?” Aelin asks, her voice echoing in my head. I wince and press a hand to my temple. 

Edran pauses. “Kinda. I mean, again, I thought you’d be helpless.” 

“Unlucky for you, we’re a little more resistant than your average refugees.” Rehua sighs. “Make it quick, Nestor.” Nestor lowers his bow and pulls a knife out of his belt, stepping forward. 

“Wait!” I cry, mimicking him. “We don’t really have to kill him, do we? I mean…I hate Molthune as much as the next Nirmanthi, but killing him ?” 

Edran laughs, choking off into a wheeze as Rongo’s jaw tightens even more. “Oh, a bleeding heart! That’s helpful. Listen, doll, this is war. The Ironfang won’t hesitate to cut you down to size, so neither should you.” He inhales again, but Nestor darts forward and slashes across his neck. Edran chokes to death on his own blood, shaking the entire time until he falls still with one final shudder. I gag and turn my head away. 

When silence falls around us, I chance a glance back towards Rehua. He regards me with a very serious look. “He’s right about one thing – this is war. You have to harden your heart, Theo, or you’re going to get us all killed.” 

“Pardon me for having a fucking sense of camaraderie with my fellow man,” I snarl, clenching my fists and taking a single step forward. “Can’t say I support murdering someone for no good reason.” 

“He was a Molthuni spy,” Nestor says, disgust painting his tone. “He was going to rat us out to the hobgoblins at his first chance. Spies don’t deserve to live.” He wipes the blood off the knife onto his black pants and stores it away again, catching my gaze as he does so. “Rehua’s right. You’re going to get us killed if you don’t shape up.” 

“Fuck you,” I hiss, shaking. “I’m not getting anyone killed for giving a shit about someone getting murdered in front of me .” I turn on my heel and stalk back towards the glow of the fire, dragging the conjured lanterns with me. Nobody follows me. 

When I return to the fire, I dismiss the lanterns and sit down heavily next to Vane, who side-eyes me, pulls out a bottle, and hands it over. I uncork it and turn it upside down into my mouth, closing my eyes in relief as whiskey begins to pour down my throat. It’s been a few days since I was able to drink, and I don’t know when I’ll get the chance to do it again. Wiping my mouth, I set the bottle down and turn slightly to face Vane. “Where did you get whiskey?” 

He shrugs. “Nabbed it from the shop as we fled.” 

“You’ve definitely got your priorities in the right place,” I say with a small smile. I offer it back to him, but he shakes his head.

“Keep it. You look like you need it more than I do.” 

As my team reappears out of the dark, I glare at Nestor and pull from the bottle again. I don’t make a move to join them as they congregate around the other side of the fire, but I can overhear them as they begin to make small talk. I listen in as Nestor recounts how his last party was betrayed by someone in their group and how he was the only one to escape. Karn pipes in with his backstory of living in the Fangwood for the last century or so. Even Rehua talks briefly about where he’s from, and the war that’s taking place there which caused him to flee. It doesn’t seem like any of them are particularly bothered about the fact that we’re living exposed in the woods. 

Aelin lifts her head and makes eye contact with me across the flames. I nod neutrally at her in response, but flinch when her voice speaks directly into my mind. “What about you, Theo?” 

“I have no interest in sharing my life story,” I say. Beside me, Vane snorts. 

“What even is there to say? You lived in Phaendar your whole life with your mom and sister,” he interjects. I grind my teeth together and glare at him for a second before I turn my attention back to my interested party members. 

“Aubrin mentioned that you were following in the footsteps of your mother,” Rehua muses. “I’m guessing she’s an adventurer too?” 

I swallow back the lump in my throat. “She was.” 

They all fall silent. Vane bows his head slightly. I stare at the ground and will it to open up and swallow me whole. Despite four years, this wound is still fresh. Talking about it only rips it open more. 

After a long pause, Nestor clears his throat. “That sucks,” he says bluntly. I resist the urge to roll my eyes. 

“I’m sorry to hear it,” Rehua says. 

I look away, hoping that the firelight hides the burn of embarrassment on my cheeks. “Whatever.” Drinking from the whiskey Vane gifted me seems like the best way to swing the attention off me, so I lift the bottle and drain it in a few swallows. It burns pleasantly all the way down. 

“So you wished to follow in her footsteps, like Aubrin said?” Karn asks, raising his voice slightly to be heard over the fire. 

I sneer at him. “Absolutely not. I’m here to make money and that’s it. ” 

They all exchange glances with one another. “Well, there’s always the chance we’ll find something worth selling out here,” Rehua says with a little shrug. “But I think those chances are pretty slim.” 

“I don’t work for free,” I snap. “I have obligations that you don’t need to worry about.” 

“You mean Camille?” Vane pipes up. I turn in my seat and thrust the empty bottle into his chest. “Ow.” 

“Shut up,” I say, glaring at him.  

“Who’s Camille?” Karn asks at the same time. I glance at him, but his careful tone and expressionless face gives nothing away. 

“None of your concern,” I reply. “She’s not here.” Then I get up and say, “I’m going to bed. Wake me when it’s my turn to watch.” Leaves crunch underfoot as I make my way back to the hammock I slept in the night before. The world sways as I move, rocking back and forth unpleasantly. I sit down heavily in the hammock and press the palms of my hands into my eyes. What a mess. What an absolute fucking shit show. Every fiber of my being is screaming at me to run now while I still can. Maybe I can go back to that wizard and convince him to give me a scroll of Teleport . If I can, then I can get to Magnimar and find Camille. I could find a job somewhere in the city and just stay in debt to her academy. 

Compy wanders up out of the darkness and hops into the hammock with me, settling down by my side. “I see you’re making lots of friends.” 

“Piss off,” I snap. “I’m not in the mood to have you insult me.” I swing my legs over the side, lie down, and close my eyes. I doze off, barely awake, but am startled back to life when the familiar sounds of wolf cries begin to echo through the trees. They’re close – too close for comfort. I swing my legs over the side of the hammock and get to my feet. Across the way, I watch as the rest of my team gathers on the outskirts of camp. As I join, I have to shrink back in fear – seven large wolves are gathered in a semicircle around Rehua, who is growling and snapping at them in a language I don’t understand. The lead wolf, a gray beast with a nasty scar running down the side of its muzzle, appears to be the one doing the majority of the talking. I sidle up to Karn and stand on my toes to whisper in the general location of his ear. “What are they saying?” 

He turns to face me and says, “There are fae creatures in these woods. They appear to have been tormenting the local wildlife. The gray wolf is asking for our assistance eradicating the threat in exchange for our safety.” 

Rehua frowns at something the wolf says and chitters back with a snarl. Everything seems to have relaxed somewhat. The lead wolf dips its head once in our direction, turns, and starts to pad back into the trees. The rest of the wolves follow suit, disappearing into the darkness. Rehua straightens up and turns to face us. 

“We’ve got a job for tomorrow,” he says. “Everyone rest up. I’ll take first watch.” 

We sleep. I’m once again woken right before dawn by Aelin. Thankfully, my watch goes by without incident, despite the fact that I’m a little twitchier at every unknown sound. Rehua might have talked the wolves down last night, but that doesn’t mean they didn’t change their minds halfway through the night.

Chapter Text

We gather for a breakfast of goodberries, which, while magically getting rid of the steadily increasing gnawing in my stomach, does not feel very filling. I still feel empty after swallowing. I can tell by Nestor’s expression that he feels similarly; we share a look of dismay. After, Rehua bids us to gather a light travel pack, then leads us through the woods. I fall in step behind Karn and am silent most of the morning. Whenever my party tries to drag me into the conversation, I shake my head and offer as short of a response as I can. A minor part of me screams that I need to be nicer, but it’s overshadowed by the bad mood I’m still sporting from the night before. Every time I feel it cool, I remember Rehua and Nestor saying I’m going to get them killed and my temper flares up again. 

Eventually, we walk into a clearing where Rehua waves us to a stop. I rest my hand on my sickle and peer around. It looks normal…

Then two fae, tiny red capped fellows, pop into existence and blow raspberries in our direction. “Hey! No outsiders allowed. Get out of here!” 

Aelin sighs, causing me to wince again. “I hate the fae,” she says, stalking forward a few steps. 

Rehua whistles. From behind me, Rongo bounds forward and immediately drags one of the fae into a grapple. Aelin darts forward and swipes out with both paws, crushing the other’s head like a grape. My stomach rolls and I turn my head so that I don’t have to watch. Upon his partner’s death, the other fae immediately starts begging for mercy. 

Rehua walks up and squats down by the fae. “Why should we let you live?” he asks calmly. 

“I’ll give you something good!” the creature cries, wiggling furiously in Rongo’s hold. “Honest! There’s a house nearby we keep our good shit in! You can have it all!” 

“Which direction?”

Both of the fae’s arms are caught in the grapple, so he jerks his head toward the opposite side of the clearing. “Just right over there!” 

Rehua gets to his feet, calls a bird down, and sends it flying off in that direction. We hold for a moment until he cocks his head and nods. “He’s telling the truth. Rongo?” 

Rongo closes his teeth around the fae’s body. He dies with a gurgle that makes me feel sick again. I eye every member of my party. How are they all so used to the casual killing this job requires? 

Karn clocks my expression. “It does get easier to stomach,” he says, turning slightly toward me. I swallow back bile and nod in response. “Do not feel pity – fae creatures are incapable of mercy. They would have tried to kill us had we not attacked first.” 

I don’t have any experience with fae creatures, but I’m halfway sure Karn is also a fae creature of some kind, so he must be telling the truth. I relax somewhat, but don’t respond as we trek across the clearing and through the underbrush to reveal another small cabin nestled between a half-circle of trees. I move forward, but Nestor snags my sleeve and brings me to a stop. When I turn to look at him, his eyes are narrowed at the overgrown yard that surrounds the house. 

“Hang on a second,” he says, stalking forward with sure, deliberate steps. It only takes a moment before he stoops over and raises a bear trap that had been hidden by the wild grasses. Sunlight gleams off the sharpened teeth on the trap and my stomach swoops unsettlingly as I realize I nearly walked right into it. Nestor pokes a spot on the trap and it snaps shut with a loud crack. As he stows it away in his pack, he eyes the rest of the yard. “Might be more traps. Watch where you’re walking.” 

I take a timid step forward, holding my breath, but nothing closes around my ankle. Together, we move slowly but steadily forward, every so often stopping in place so that Nestor can disarm another bear trap. He stores each trap in his bag after disabling it. For a fleeting second, I think about calling out to him to ask why he’s keeping the traps, but ultimately decide I don’t care enough to find out. I give myself a little shrug, take another step forward, and immediately jump back when a bear trap nearly springs around my ankle. I crash to the ground and stare at the now-sprung trap, breathing heavily. A few feet away, Karn also has to jump out of the way when another trap closes its teeth. 

Nestor groans. “I said be careful. Now I can’t use those,” he complains, shifting his weight to one foot and placing a hand on his hip. I frown in his direction and push myself to my feet, and then swing around to grab Karn’s outstretched hand to pull him up too. There’s surprise in Karn’s voice when he thanks me. 

“Don’t mention it,” I mutter, looking away. 

Rongo and Rehua make it to the door, but pause a step or two away. “Is this trapped too?” he calls over his shoulder to Nestor, who carefully makes his way forward and presses a hand against the wood. 

“Yes,” he says, seconds before the door swings open and a javelin as thick as my upper arm shoots out. Nestor manages to dodge at just the last moment, and the javelin only impales his left arm instead of his chest. He crashes to the ground and lets out a slew of swears in common and elvish. 

From my position in the yard, I can see directly into the cabin, where a tall figure and a pair of gleaming eyes lurk in the shadows. Sensing weakness, a thin lynx springs out of the darkness and pounces on Nestor’s prone form, only to be ripped off and tossed against the wall by Rongo. Rehua kneels next to Nestor, rips the javelin out of his upper arm, and presses a hand to the wound. It glows bright white for a moment as the Cure Light Wounds spell works its magic. 

The other figure in the shadows lumbers out of the cabin into the sunlight and I recoil in shock as the sight of decaying flesh wrapped tightly around a thick frame appears. Bile rises in the back of my throat as strips of rotting flesh shake free with each step the person takes. I lift my hand and point it at the zombie, trying to put it to sleep, but the pulse of power I send out

doesn’t seem to affect it. It continues moving forward steadily until it reaches Rehua, at which point it pulls a rusted sword from its belt and swings down on him, missing him by inches. As the lynx rises to its feet, it snarls at Rongo, who roars back. 

Karn lifts his hand up and a sound like a whistle comes from his wooden mouth. Out of nowhere, a streak of black and white races by me and tackles the zombie, sending him stumbling back a few steps. As it slows, I’m able to make out that it’s a badger of some kind. The badger takes a few giant bites out of the decomposing flesh of the zombie before it drops to the ground and growls in the direction of it. Beside me, Karn makes a happy noise. “Well done, Big Boss!” he shouts. I swing a confused look between the two of them, but determine I can find out what’s happening after the threats are eliminated. 

Rehua whips out his staff, slaps it with his other hand, then slams it down heavily on the shoulder of the zombie, causing him to drop to his knees. Then he whips the staff around his head and smashes it against the side of the zombie’s. Its jaw dislocates from its face and goes flying into the tall grass, causing me to let out a short scream and scramble a few steps back as it lands close to me. 

Aelin rushes forward, stands on her back paws, and trips the zombie so that it goes crashing fully prone on the ground. Then she whirls in place and brings a paw down on its face, crushing its head. With one threat eliminated, Rehua turns to the lynx and says something in a language I don’t speak. The rest of us stand, tense, until the lynx relaxes. Rongo backs off enough so that it can dart away from the house and disappear into the underbrush of the surrounding forest. We stand for a few heartbeats longer, with the only sound being our heavy breathing. 

With a grunt, Nestor gets to his feet and stretches his arm. He groans. “Oh, that’s going to sting for a while. Thanks, Rehua.” 

Rehua nods. “If you need another casting, let me know.” 

I look down at my hands and clench them into fists. Could I learn anything that would be helpful to this party, or was I just going to stand in the back and cower the whole adventure? 

The badger Karn summoned wanders over to him and nuzzles his leg. Karn leans down and scratches its head. “This is Big Boss,” he says, looking at me. “She is my animal companion.” 

“Why didn’t you have her in Phaendar?” I ask before my brain can stop me. 

“She prefers the forest,” he replies simply. I shrug in his direction, then look down at the badger. Big Boss looks up, runs over to me, and butts her head against my leg until I reach down and pat her on the head. She makes a happy noise and looks up at me with big black eyes. My heart melts a little and I pat her head again with a small smile. “Nice to meet you too,” I say quietly. 

Rehua and Nestor disappear inside the cabin, then return with matching frowns. “Damn fae lied to us,” Nestor says, not bothering to hide the disgust in his voice. 

“Not entirely,” Rehua says calmly. “There were some things of interest inside. Namely, this –” He holds up a slim wand, then walks over and hands it to me. I inspect it, dragging my nails lightly over the wood. 

“What is it?” I ask. He shrugs. 

“I think it’s a wand of Cure Light Wounds ,” he replies. “Try waving it at Nestor.” 

I point it at Nestor, who grunts again and stands up a little straighter. “That did the trick. Thanks, Theo.”

“You’re welcome,” I say. Then I look back at Rehua. “I’m not a healer though. Are you sure I should hold onto this?” 

“We’ll have the ability to make them once we find the right supplies,” he responds, giving me an unreadable look. “And you not having access to healing magic is part of the reason I want you to hold onto this. Everyone who can use wands should have one of these on hand.” 

I glance at Aelin, who paws at the dead zombie on the ground. “Everyone gets one?” 

“Everyone who can use them,” he corrects. “So, you, me, and Karn. All the spellcasters.” 

“Wait, Nestor and Aelin can’t use these?” I ask, shrugging off my bag and tucking the wand inside it. 

Rehua shakes his head. “No, you have to have magical abilities to use a magical object. Same for scrolls, which you should be able to learn new spells from.” 

“How do you know all this?” I squint at him suspiciously, but it doesn’t appear to phase him. 

“Went to school,” he says simply. “You’re a different kind of caster than Karn and I. Ours is nature based, yours is knowledge based.” 

“So I can learn from scrolls?”

“So you can learn from scrolls,” he confirms. “Better to have you gain a permanent spell than use a one-time scroll.” He pauses, then says, “Did…your familiar really not teach you all this already?” 

“You can hear him talk. Do you really think he’s the teaching type?” I respond. 

Rehua snorts. “I suppose not. I’ll try to give you some tips where I can. But maybe you should try reconciling with him.” 

“Him first,” I say. Rehua just shakes his head and turns away. 

Karn and I wait outside while Rehua, Nestor, and Aelin rip everything valuable out of the cabin. Unfortunately, there’s no food that hasn’t molded over. After, we gather in a semicircle and start the trek back towards camp. We only walk for a few minutes before Rongo’s head snaps to the side and he starts to growl. Rehua motions us to stop, pulls out his staff, and holds it defensively, head cocked to the side as he listens. I strain my ears, but the only thing I can hear is the rustling of leaves from the gentle breeze – not even birdsong greets me. We duck into the underbrush and I hold my breath as a troop of five hobgoblins steps through the trees followed by a small caravan. Remembering Compy’s words from yesterday, I crouch even further into the ferns and glare at the retreating back of the closest hobgoblin, who stiffens and stops. His companions turn to look at him. 

“What is it?” I hear one of them ask. The hobgoblin I managed to weaken turns around and scans the forest, thankfully glazing over my hiding place. 

“Thought I felt…maybe I just imagined it.” 

“Felt what?” All of them and the caravan pull to a stop and the lead hobgoblin stalks towards us, peering suspiciously around our hiding place. 

“Elf magic,” the hobgoblin responds. “Thought I felt elf magic.” 

Why is it “elf magic” with these people? I’m not a full elf. I bite my tongue to keep myself from protesting, and the hobgoblin a few paces from me frowns into the deepening forest before turning around. 

“It’s an ambush,” he snarls. “Get your weapons.” 

“Now!” Rehua shouts. He, Rongo, Aelin, and Big Boss spring from their hiding places and tackle the hobgoblins. Without moving, I point a finger at the hobgoblin I glared at and he drops like a puppet cut from its strings. 

The hobgoblin next to him shrieks, “They can kill us without needing to touch us!” He turns, drops his sword, and sprints into the trees, only to be run down and swiftly eaten by Rongo. Nestor sinks two arrows into the eyes of the leader, and he drops as well. The remaining two hobgoblins put up a fight, but ultimately are cut down to size within seconds. Once the dust has settled, Nestor, Karn, and I all pop up from our hiding place, and I rub at my knees when they ache in protest. We gather around the one I left alive. 

“Are we going to kill this one too?” I ask with a grimace. 

“Yes, but not until we interrogate him,” Rehua replies. He flips the hobgoblin over, ties his hands behind his back, sits him upright, and then shakes him awake. 

The hobgoblin snorts awake and immediately begins struggling at his bonds, growling curses at us in goblin the entire time. It takes a moment before he sags and glares up at us instead, locking eyes with me. “I knew I felt elf magic,” he hisses. 

I frown and cross my arms. “Half-elf, actually.”

“You all look the same to me,” he mutters. My blood boils and I take a threatening step forward, but Rehua waves me down. 

“Who are you and what are you doing in these woods?” he asks calmly, one hand loosely holding his staff. The hobgoblin sneers at us and shakes his head. “Look, you can tell us what we want to know and we can make your death a quick one, or you can choose to draw it out. Your choice.” 

It’s not much of a choice and I want to argue in this hobgoblin’s favor. I open my mouth, but catch the look of pure hatred from the hobgoblin and decide not to speak up. He does want to kill me and everyone else after all. 

“Death before dishonor,” he hisses before attempting to spit up into Rehua’s face, who leans back to avoid it. 

Rehua sighs and shakes his head. “Fine. We’ll just raid your caravan for answers. Nestor, put this thing out of his misery.” 

I turn my head so I don’t have to watch Nestor cut his throat. When the death gurgles cease, I look back towards my team. Rehua is stroking his beard as he thoughtfully regards the corpse. “Hobgoblins are usually eager to sell out their companions. This Ironfang Legion must have them in a tight grip.” 

“I don’t see how we’re going to get any answers from anyone we capture,” Nestor pipes up. “We should adopt a ‘kill on sight’ strategy.” Rehua nods towards him once and shrugs a shoulder. 

“Quite possibly. Let’s see if we can find some information in the caravan.” He turns and begins to rip through the small caravan, tossing supplies into little piles as he does. Thankfully, we find a small bulk of food that should be able to last us at least a week or two – breads and cheeses and even some cured meats. Unfortunately, we also find a wanted poster: 

WANTED

Any survivors of the Phaendar invasion

 
Extra gold for the Druids, Witch, Ranger, and Monk leaders 

Nestor frowns down at the poster. “How could they know we’re in charge?” he asks. “It’s been two days since we fled.” 

“Maybe they’re scrying on us,” Aelin suggests. Rehua shakes his head. 

“No, they’d know exactly where we were if they scryed on us,” he responds. “Perhaps they captured prisoners in Phaendar that told them about us.” 

“Basically everyone found out I took this job within, like, twenty-four hours,” I say. “News travels fast in a small town. If they took prisoners, those people would probably rat us out immediately.” Not that it would have saved their lives. 

“Possibly,” Rehua muses. “I doubt we’ll find answers today. Let’s load up what we can carry and head back to base.” His expression grows even more serious. “And let’s talk about survival. We cannot live so exposed to the elements. It’s only a matter of time before the

hobgoblins stumble across our camp. It’s time to find a more permanent solution. Karn, you know these woods best. Is there a place of safety we can move everyone to?” 

Karn cocks his head. “I know of several caves that may fulfil this purpose. The most likely candidate is several days’ journey from our camp.”

“How many?” 

“Perhaps two?” 

Rehua nods. “Good. That might be further out than the hobgoblins have invaded. Let’s go back, then tomorrow we can start our trek to this cave you know of.” 

“What about all the people?” I ask. “They can’t come with us.” 

“You’re right,” he replies with a nod in my direction. “They can’t come until we confirm it’s safe.” 

“We could bring them along and leave them outside the cave until we confirm it’s clear,” Nestor suggests. Rehua looks as if he’s considering this plan, but ultimately shakes his head. 

“No, it’s best to leave them at our camp. These are mostly able-bodied people – they can stand watches.”

Chapter Text

We break after this and begin our trek back to camp, dragging supplies behind us as we go. Before we leave, Karn steps forward to speak softly to the mules pulling the caravan, detaches them from their harnesses, and shoos them into the forest. I pack my bag to the brim with food, then fall into line behind Rongo and Rehua. He turns and motions me forward, so I reluctantly take an extra step up to put myself between the two of them.

“How are you doing?” he asks. Confusion blooms in my chest and I wrinkle my nose at him.

“How am I doing,” I repeat flatly. He shifts his gaze behind me briefly before returning his attention to my face. 

“I know you said you’re not here to make friends with us,” he says. “But you’re a part of this team and I care about keeping us all safe. You’ve not been the most…friendly person.” His expression softens. “But you just lost your home, and we’re not exactly making money in the woods. This isn’t what you signed up for.” 

My temper flares a little at his words, but I take a deep breath and beat it back before responding, “I’m okay.” 

Someone behind me snorts, but when I turn to look, everyone is pointedly avoiding my gaze. Great. Good to know we can have a conversation without involving everyone. I close my eyes briefly to avoid rolling them, then look back at Rehua. “Fine. I’m fucking pissed. Nothing is going the way I planned, and I’m pissed about it.” My breathing starts to get heavy, and I bite my tongue to keep from shouting. 

From behind, Karn pipes up, “It is important to talk about your feelings rather than keeping them bottled up to rot inside you.” 

I can’t believe I got hired by Team Feelings. Unable to respond due to my tongue feeling three sizes bigger than normal, I shift the heavy weight of my pack from one shoulder to the other and stare down at my feet. Mom’s old boots stare back at me and do not offer any kind of comfort. An uneasy silence falls around us, only broken by Nestor’s sigh. “How come you don’t feel like sharing?” he asks. 

“Maybe because I just met all of you,” I snap. “Nobody shares their life stories to strangers.” 

“That’s just it,” Rehua says. “We’re not strangers. We’re a team. We need to be able to trust one another.”

“Yes, because the half-elf from a small town is inherently untrustworthy,” I sneer. 

“She is if she won’t talk about herself,” Rehua says firmly, crossing his arms and trailing to a stop. “Just tell us one thing about you. Anything.” 

“Will you drop it if I do?” 

“Yep,” Nestor says. I grit my teeth and close my eyes again, shaking in place. 

“Fine. I joined this team to make money to pay for my sister’s tuition. Is that enough information for you?” 

Aelin makes a noise of interest. “Where does your sister go to school at?” 

“Stone of the Seers,” I reply shortly. Rehua’s eyebrows shoot up. 

“That’s a very prestigious adventuring academy,” he says. “How long has she been attending?” 

“It’s a wizarding school,” I correct, shifting my weight from one foot to the other. It’s really none of their business to know about Camille, but if it gets them off my back about sharing, then I suppose I can offer some information. “She’s studying wizardry, and she’s a senior this year.” I pause, and then emotion bubbles up and over me because I blurt out, “But if I can’t make her payments, they’ll kick her out of school.” 

“How do the payments come?” Karn asks. 

“By owl. Once every three weeks or so. The last owl was a while ago. She writes me a letter to send with the invoice.” 

“Ah, so that’s why you needed paper and ink,” Rehua says, drawing confused looks from everyone else. He waves a hand at them. “She bullied the wizard yesterday into giving her ink and paper. I didn’t know why at the time.” 

“I didn’t bully anyone to do anything,” I snarl, hackles raised. I take a step forward and poke a finger in Rehua’s chest, who laughs. 

“You absolutely did. It was very funny watching you intimidate a man at least twice your height.” 

I splutter incoherently before taking a deep breath and smoothing back a lock of my hair that’s fallen loose of my bun. “That was not my intention,” I say as calmly as possible. “I just wanted the stuff.” Then I pause, and say, “Is that enough sharing?” 

“For now,” Rehua says with a nod. “Thank you for telling us.” 

“Didn’t exactly have a choice,” I mumble, turning away and continuing to walk in the direction of our camp. The team falls in step behind me, and we make it back to the camp without stumbling across any more threats. There’s no roasting animal around the fire to greet us, but spirits do rise dramatically as we unpack the food we captured. Rehua’s right – we can’t continue living exposed in the woods like this. Not only are we easy pickings for anything that stumbles across us, it’s also affecting everyone mentally too. Even I feel the strain from not being able to shower the last two days. We fall upon the rations and devour them rapidly. I have to admit that my mood does upturn once my belly is full. 

After eating, my team gathers around the fire and begins discussing their backgrounds some more. I sit with them to listen, but don’t offer any of my own anecdotes. They dragged enough out of me this afternoon. We sit until the night fully descends upon us, then Rehua divvies up the watch and sends us to bed. As I curl up in my hammock, Compy wanders over and jumps up on my chest so that he can settle down on top of me. Rehua’s words drift back to me and I swallow thickly as I regard Compy. He catches my stare and sneers at me.

“What?” 

I swallow again. “I’m sorry I kicked you when I first met you.” There. An apology. 

He snorts. “No you’re not.” 

“Yes I am!” I hiss, careful to keep my voice low. “I am. Sorry, I mean.” 

“Sure,” he says. “Whatever.” 

“Listen…” I try to piece together exactly what I want to say, but it still comes out feeling awkward as I say, “I don’t want to argue with you the entire time we’re together. I need to know what I can do in a fight and if you don’t enlighten me, then how am I supposed to be useful?” 

Compy shuffles a little on my chest, curling up like a cat and resting his head. “You’ve got an ability to make enemies weaker by glaring at them,” he says eventually, sounding like each word is being dragged out of him. “You can cast up to three spells a day right now. As you get stronger, you’ll get more abilities and spells. Satisfied?” 

“What kind of spells can I cast?” I ask, squinting at him as I try to memorize everything he just said. 

He closes his eyes and doesn’t answer. After a moment, I hear light snores come from him. I grit my teeth and stare up into the darkness of the canopy above me. Obviously, I’m not getting any more information out of him tonight. 

I don’t know how long I lie there in the darkness before I eventually fall asleep, but it feels like I’ve only been asleep for a few minutes when I’m woken by someone roughly shaking my shoulder. It’s a tired looking Rehua, with Rongo looming over his shoulder. “Your turn, Theo.” Despite how exhausted he looks, his quiet tone is cheerful. 

I swing my legs over the side of the hammock and nod at him. “I’ll take over. Thanks.” Then I pause, and, deciding that I really don’t have any kind of reputation to lose, ask, “What exactly do I need to do for a watch?”

“Just keep your eyes and ears open for anything suspicious,” Rehua responds. “Scream if you see or hear anything. And don’t fall asleep.” 

“Yeah,” I say, getting to my feet and taking a few steps away. “Thanks. I’ll do that.” I pace the entire length of the camp for my entire watch, which drags on for hours. It’s a long time before the sun rises and people begin to rouse for the day. I’m exhausted from moving constantly in an attempt to keep myself awake and alert, and Rehua looks confused when he finally gets up from his hammock. 

“You look dead on your feet,” he says bluntly, walking up to me once I finally sit by the fire Aubrin rebuilt. “Didn’t you wake Nestor after two hours?” 

I stare at him. “You mean I wasn’t last watch?” 

“No! You were second watch.” He pauses, then says, “Have you been up this entire time? All night?” 

“I didn’t know I was supposed to wake anyone else up,” I say. He groans and shakes his head, and I notice that he gives me a larger portion of food than normal when breakfast is distributed out. Instead of one Goodberry, I eat two, which leaves me so full that I feel a little queasy. After eating, he urges us to pack an overnight bag and then herds us around Karn once we’ve done so. 

Karn hums thoughtfully as he surveys us all, then makes another short whistling sound and brings down a bird from the canopy. He twitters at it for a moment before sending it soaring into the air. It disappears behind a tree, and Karn turns to face all of us. “I know the general area of where we need to go,” he says. “It is located southeast of here. However, I am unsure on the exact location, so I sent a scout ahead. It will find me once it has located the cave.” 

“How long do you expect it to take?” Rehua asks. Karn shrugs.

“Perhaps a day. It can fly faster than we can walk, after all.” 

“Alright,” Rehua says with a nod. “Let’s get moving.”