Chapter 97:

The next four days passed without further incident, keeping as far away from the cities and villages as possible to keep potential incidents to a minimum. They passed small groups of Goblins and Ghlotsm, barely more than ten at a time and very haggard and thin, but they scurried away and hid the moment they were spotted. It was only thanks to Kal that they even knew they were there. When they stopped for the night Kal hunted small rabbits and foraged for edible plants and roots. It helped increase their food supplies, not that they were going to starve any time soon, and Kal appeared to enjoy it. Verona not so much with the blood from the slain animals. Cetina was a lot better too, she wasn’t falling off horses, but her hands occasionally reached for her hip and frowned when her fingers found no flask. When Anton caught her eye she looked away in shame but she was reaching for it less and less. Anton had no real idea what she was going through but using alcohol as a crutch was not a good idea.

“Do you think we can sell these?” Kal asked quietly.

She pulled her horse close to Anton and held up a rabbit skin, cleaned of flesh and fat. Anton held the fur, it was very soft and quite strong, warm in his fingers.

“I’ve kept the furs from each rabbit I killed.” Kal patted a pack by her legs. “I’m just thinking of things we could sell to make some money on the way. And if we can’t we can use it to make our sleeping gear softer. Especially for winter. What do you think?”

“Sure.” Anton handed the fur back. “Both sound like good ideas. Though I’ve got no idea what someone would be willing to pay for it. If we ever have to go somewhere cold we’ll want a whole bunch of those.” He tapped his armour. “I don’t like the chances of our armour against the snow. Except for yours, Verona.”

Verona laughed. “Mine’s quite cool actually. That enchanted fur works wonders against my skin. Surely you two could do something like that.”

“Something to try tonight.” Anton looked at Cetina. She still travelled at the rear but she looked a lot happier now. “Cetina? You’re a merchant. How much do you think this would sell for?”

Cetina whipped the reins and wedged her horses head between Anton and Kal. She reached forward and took the skin. “It’s pretty good. I don’t know a lot about selling furs but I’m sure you could get quite a few copper coins for each one. More if you sold them all at once.”

She handed it back to Kal. “But, why does it matter to you? You’ve got heaps of money. I mean, you gave me those gold coins, which I’ve still got, and then there’s this…”

Anton handed the skin back to Kal. “Because we’re going to need a lot more money than a few hundred gold coins. Besides, money makes everything easier.”

“But where did you get it all?”

“Would it surprise you if we said we found it in a mountain?” Verona shot her a smile.

Cetina pulled out a gold coin and brushed it clean. She frowned as she saw the star crown on the coin. “No. Not with you lot.”

“It might not be enough to buy a beast-kin slave but it’s a start,” Kal said. “I know I could just sell my arrows but I’m trying to think of other things my people could do.”

“I hate to say it but working in some new plantations, or in workshops, might be the easiest way for us to make money,” Anton said. Kal looked at him and tilted her head. “I mean, back when we get them home and not sent out to Graterious or something. We’ll sell the goods to Qaiviel or Graterious and use that money to buy more slaves.”

Kal nodded lightly. “Yeah. I’m still thinking of a way to let them know we aren’t like the Seocurians. They’ve been beaten and abused by humans every day of their lives. It took me a while to think that you could be good. If Tethra hadn’t told me what I would find there…”

“We’ll find a way.” Anton reached out and held her hand. “After all, you’re with us. Shouldn’t be too difficult.”

Kal nodded and looked forward as they reached the top of a gentle crest on the road. She squeezed his hand and pulled it closer to her body. Anton slowed his horse and so too did Verona and Cetina. Ahead lay a large river, easily thirty to forty meters wide. The water moved slowly but Anton could tell that it was deep. A stone bridge had been built over the river but trouble of a different kind lay before them. Hundreds of carts, bursting and overflowing with goods, waited impatiently in a line in front of the bridge. Almost a thousand people waited, all yelling and shouting, demanding to be let through. Something at the front was holding them up and pushing back the demanding hordes.

Anton spied a small hill to the side of the rear of the gathering convoy. “Let’s head over there. We’ll get a better view of what’s happening.”

They trotted up the hill and stopped.

“That’s going to be a problem,” Verona grumbled and shook her head.

The convoy was much larger than he first thought. And it appeared to contain more than just traders and merchants. Four very expensive looking carriages, with mighty steeds to pull them, were caught amongst the jam. Well-armed and nervous soldiers stood in tight circles with their backs to the carriages. Thankfully the traders and other travellers weren’t stupid enough to get too close.

Anton looked to the front of the jam to find fifty soldiers blocking the bridge. They wore Roman armour and formed a shield wall to stop anyone from getting through. A gap emerged in the shield wall and they let a caravan through, immediately closing tight as the people surged forward thinking it was open. None were struck down but the soldiers waved their swords and spears menacingly and the crowd backed off again. On the other side of the river, another line of soldiers stood still, though not to block anyone coming from the other side. These didn’t look like the standard Roman style soldiers. Rather they wore expensive looking leather armour and dark metal armoured plates, all designed for speed and stealth rather than outright strength. The soldiers on the far side sat idly about and watched the other soldiers struggling to hold back the tide of people.

“So…” Anton reached into his pack and produced Cassius’s map of Graterious. “If I’m right we’re at the border between Cassius’s and Lord Umbris territory.”

“But aren’t they supposed to be friends?” Verona asked.

“Allies, not friends. I think Cassius made that clear when he didn’t want Umbris to have the communication pens. But…He’s not holding them back. Although I get the feeling this has everything to do with us. Maybe.”

“Too fast for word about those Ghlotsm to spread,” Cetina said. When they glanced at her she shied away a little, her horse took a step back, but she held her face firm.

Anton agreed with her though. “True. Though, it’s more than long enough for dedicated word about something else to travel this far.”

All four went silent. Their horses snorted and idly stomped on the ground.

“Well, we aren’t going to figure it out from here.”

Anton looked along the river for another crossing. He saw nothing, perhaps something at the furthest limit of his vision towards the south. Perhaps a small mountain. The map held no answers or hints of another way to Rusaddir, though it did have a faint line where the river should be.

“To the back of the line then,” Anton said. “No one likes queue jumpers.”

Verona and Kal looked a little confused but they all travelled down the hill. The people waiting looked towards them but quickly ignored them when they realised they were just four people on horseback. They reached the rear of the convoy just before another large cart stopped behind them. The driver looked confused at Anton, who could only shrug. He huffed and turned to his companions to talk amongst themselves.

Anton dismounted and rubbed his legs. “I’m going to go for a walk and see what’s causing the holdup. I really want to stretch my legs as well.”

“Me too.” Verona quickly dismounted with a thud. “Do you want us to come with you?”

“I’ll be fine if you three just want to stretch your legs,” Anton replied. “I won’t be going far and I just want to find out what’s going on.”

“Okay.” Verona rubbed her legs.

“Just stay where we can see you,” Kal added.

Anton nodded and, after rubbing and shaking his legs to restore feeling, walked along the jam. Some looked at him strangely, like he was cutting the line, but Anton tried his best to look like the innocent tourist he was. Many people looked quite threatening but Anton ignored them. They guessed from the sheer cost of his armour that he was someone important, or at the very least wealthy, and tried to keep him at bay. About a quarter of the way down along the convoy he found a large caravan, an image of a blue diamond with a black cross lay on the canvas, which looked friendlier. The elderly man with the reins was nearly asleep and two young boys with him were more interested in flirting with the young women of another caravan.

“Excuse me,” Anton spoke loudly enough to wake the old man. “Do you have a moment?”

The old man grumbled as he pulled himself up. He frowned when he saw there had been virtually no movement.

“I suppose.” He spoke slowly and deliberately. “Not much else going on.”

“My friends and I have just arrived at this little incident. Do you know what’s happening?”

The old man shuffled in his wooden seat. “Lord Cassius’s is what’s happening.” He sniffed loudly. “Seems he’s got all bothered about Tullas Mad-Eye and his gang. Been sending orders all over the empire to hunt them down.”

He scoffed and shook his head. “Good bloody luck to him. They’ve been a constant problem since they crawled out of that rotten bog all those winters ago. About time they’re doing something about them.”

Cassius’s son, Crispus, was heading north to deal with a hideout of that gang when they stopped to help retake Fort Acidava. They must have gotten more locations then. Good. Don’t need bandits and the like making things worse when Demons might be pouring into this world. Still no news from my Gods about that…

The old man had been quiet while Anton thought. Thankfully the old man took Anton’s silence as deep contemplation rather than mentally wandering off.

Anton chuckled and smiled. “How long before you guys get through?”

“Don’t really know. A long time. Too long. They’re checking everyone for the mark of Tullas’s gang. On their wrist.” The old man showed his bare wrists. Anton remembered thieves that tried to rob the blacksmith in Porswea. They had tattoos on their wrists. “That’s why those nobles and other tofts are so nervous. No one is being spared.”

“Not even the nobles?” Anton felt increasingly nervous about Kal.

He shook his head. “Nope. From what I’ve heard Cassius will hang them if they do. And no one’s really happy about that.”

“Hmm.”

Anton stepped away from the jam and looked at the lines of soldiers. Now he was closer he could see a few soldiers with crossbows. To the side, near the edge of the water, stood a dozen lightly armoured horses grazing near the slow flowing river. Twelve lightly armoured men stood nearby and idly chatted, occasionally glancing towards the still convoy.

“Perhaps…Do you know a way around this? We don’t have time to wait.”

The old man frowned as his old eyes raked over his body. “Well, there is a small mountain range to the south. It straddles the river and there are ways across…So long as you don’t have a cart and you’re willing to brave the rocky hills. There’s a pass through there, but I don’t know if you can still cross it.”

“Thanks.” Anton smiled. “That sounds like a good bet. I hope that you get through soon.”

The old man huffed and leant back in his cart’s chair. The two younger men had completely ignored him and appeared somewhat successful in their attempts at courtship. As they took the woman by the hands Anton took his leave.

Kal and Verona were standing to the side and keeping an eye out for him. They visibly relaxed when he came back. Cetina remained close to the horses and eyed off anyone wanting to come close. One quick glare from her single eye, her hand resting on the pommel of her sword, was enough to send them scurrying away. Anton nodded for them to gather.

“How bad is it?” Kal asked.

Anton explained what he heard. Kal became increasingly distressed and she scratched at her wrists and looked at the bridge.

“Okay…” Verona sighed. “We aren’t getting through that way. Do you think we can actually cross those mountains?”

“I…” Anton shrugged. “I honestly don’t know. Maybe. It sounds like it can be crossed but it’s going to be more than a little treacherous. Though we don’t have much of a choice.”

Kal sighed and gently shook her head. “It’s so annoying…”

Verona smiled and held her shoulder. Kal sighed again and patted her hand.

Cetina turned to him. “If we go I think those riders might give chase. Obviously, they’d want to know why we left.” She looked to Kal. “Which would be bad.”

“Either way they would find out.” Anton looked at the bridge. “And if we got caught here we’d definitely have to fight our way out. That’s something we don’t want to do. So…The Mountains it is.”

They mounted their horses and peeled away from the convoy. Many people looked at them as they rode quickly away from the bridge. Anton looked back and saw a few of the riders mounting their horses. While they hadn’t done anything illegal they would at least want to know why they left.

They travelled a few minutes back along the road, passing several more trading carts and caravans laden with goods, before turning south. The terrain was open, with patches of forest and sparse shrubbery, and allowed them to travel rapidly. A few small houses, even a few small villages passed them by as they rode towards the mountain. They were poor, made with roughly cut wood, but they were hardy. The very few people they saw were tired, dirty and looked more than ready to fend them off. Hands travelled to weapons, mainly farming equipment when they saw them approach. When they passed by they returned to their work, though they kept an eye on them.

“Must be tough,” Anton said.

Verona turned towards him.

“I mean, we’ve always been travelling or staying in places that are…pretty safe. Considering everything we’ve seen.”

He looked to a small house in the distance, all alone in a small clearing, with only a small picket fence to keep our predators and their large animals in. Two men and three women worked crops to the rear of the house. When they saw them approach the men ushered the women out of sight.

Anton sighed. “I couldn’t imagine having to live like that. Always watching and waiting for something to attack and take your stuff. Having to hide your wife and daughters from prying and lustful eyes.”

“I’m sure you’d get used to it,” Kal said.

All three nodded and increased their speed.

---[]---

The old man had been right about the mountain to the south. It was nowhere near as large as Mount Aspire but it wasn’t a molehill either. A few of the peaks were tipped with snow but most was dark grey and barren stone. As they approached Anton saw a faint path emerge in the grass heading towards the mountain. Not enough for it to be a route for traders and caravans but more than enough for small peddlers and trappers going up into the mountain. Smugglers perhaps.

They followed the faint path up the mountain. The grass faded away and the path turned flat with small stones amongst the small boulders and large slate-like plates forming a slippery and unstable path. It quickly became too steep for the horses to traverse while they rode them.

When Anton’s feet made contact with the stones he felt one slip out from underneath him. He held tight on the reins to stop himself from falling down, much to the horse’s annoyance. The girls didn’t have any problems, they saw him and made careful decisions where they put their feet and led the horses up the mountain.

“Um…Anton?” Verona began. “I’ve just had a thought.”

“Yeah?”

“Well, if those guards were trying to stop those gang or bandits or whatever back at the bridge?”

“Yeah?”

“Why aren’t they here?” She looked back to the base of the mountain. “Both of them. I mean, isn’t this somewhere the bandits would cross? Shouldn’t everyone know about this place?”

“It’s what I would do,” Kal said, giving her horse a gentle tug to keep it moving over some unstable stones. “I’ve taken bandit and smuggler’s paths before. But, Verona’s right. If the soldiers are any good there should be someone to stop us. Or they should have tried to collapse the path…”

Anton looked at the large stones above them. The giant boulders and tough short trees nestled between them gave nothing away of what might be lurking just beyond their sight. But they were right. There should have been someone to stop them. Either the soldiers didn’t think this pathway was worth checking, doubtful with a man like Cassius in command and with the spectre of extreme punishment weighing over their heads, they were understaffed, again unlikely, or they thought no one would be stupid enough to try. That last thought did not still well with him. He kept his eyes focused as they quietly trudged up the mountain pass.

A large boulder lay in the middle of the pathway. Anton raised his hand for them to stop. Large patches of moss and dust had gathered around the base, it had not moved in some time but it was more than large enough to hide four or five people.

Kal handed her horses reins to Verona and took out her bow. “Do you think…” She whispered.

“Maybe. Can you tell if something’s there?”

Kal glanced at Cetina and raised her mask. With her nose exposed to the air, she took in a deep breath. She pulled some cloth away from an ear and listened carefully.

“Nothing. Doesn’t mean they aren’t hiding. The wind’s blowing from behind us so it’s hard to tell.”

Anton nodded and readied several lightning bombs. Kal kept her mask up as she took the reins back from Verona. Cetina looked utterly stunned at Kal’s face.

“I…I only saw a glance,” Cetina said quietly. “I…”

Kal smiled and readjusted her mask. “Come on.”

Cetina nodded and drew her sword. They slowly approached the boulder and Anton readied to release his magic. It appeared his concern was for nought, there was nothing waiting for them on the other side except for a small bush.

Verona grumbled but shrugged. “It’s good practice though.”

“I thought there could have been something.” Anton looked back down the mountain path as Kal and Cetina led the horses past the boulder. “Anyway, where are those riders? I’m sure they were following us.”

Verona looked back. “I…I think that’s them. I thought they would have caught up with us by now. We weren’t going that fast.”

“Move the horses behind the boulder,” Anton said. “Just in case they can see us. And try and keep them as quiet as possible. And no one speak either. I don’t want to be deafened.”

Verona and Kal nodded while Cetina looked on confused but appeared to agree. Kal had explained what prayer she said when she listened to Crispus’s and Ricimer’s conversation outside Fort Acidava. He spoke the prayer and the world crashed into his ears. Everything was almost silent. Through his periphery, he saw the riders appearing around the edge of a small forest. They stopped at the last small house before the mountain passage. Anton chanted an eye enhancement prayer and the world burst into clarity. Now he could see and hear the Graterious riders like they were right in front of him.

“Up the closed pass?” One of the soldiers asked. “You saw four riders go up that pass.”

The man, wearing rough peasant clothes, nodded furiously. “Yes, my lords. They rode past, a strange looking bunch, and went straight up the pass. They didn’t stop or say anything. I…I didn’t like the looks of that one with the mask.”

He shuffled forward and looked up the pass. They couldn’t see them hidden behind the rocks but Anton waved them back further, just in case. He couldn’t see or hear them but if he turned he would be vomiting everywhere.

“Do…Do you think that they’re part of the Mad Eye’s gang?” The farmer sounded terrified.

The soldier looked up the pass again. “Maybe. But they’ve gone up the Griffon Pass without any, what are they called? Ricora herbs. They’re on horses so they couldn’t have any with them. Darn things just start sneezing and shitting everywhere the moment they smell it. They’d…”

Oh dear.

“Yes my lord. I’m guessing they didn’t have any. And they didn’t ask about them either.”

The soldier frowned. “Sounds like that’s a common thing you have to deal with? People asking how to get over the Griffon Pass and around the roads? Buying some Ricora herbs? Letting them get past the patrols looking for bandits and smugglers? I bet you make a nice profit too…”

He looked to their house. “And it’s quite a nice house you’ve got out here. Same with a few of your fellow farmers. Good iron tools and wood, good clothes and your animals look very good and healthy. But there are other farmers we’ve come across that don’t look anywhere near as good. Almost like you’ve got another source of money…”

He drew his sword and the farmer shied away, raising his hands in submission. “No, my lords. I would never do something like that. We’re just simple farmers doing what we can to get by. Lord Cassius ordered all the Ricora herbs burned some time ago and they haven’t come back…We would never sell them to Tullas Mad Eye’s gang.”

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The rider whipped the reins and kicked the head of the farmer hard. He shouted and fell down, clutching his head. A woman, of roughly the same age, raced to his side.

“Damn peasants. Can’t trust them to do anything right. How do you know they weren’t? What, they were just some bandits or smugglers? So that’s fine then? Tullas works with nearly every form of lowlife in the empire. And you just admitted to helping them.” The rider nodded to his fellows. “String this lot up and hang a placard from their necks. Burn their house to the ground and set the animals loose. Let everyone know what they did. Cassius will not be pleased to hear this pass can still be used. We’ll have to station someone here…”

“Please!” The man begged as the soldiers advanced on him. “Not my wife and children. We aren’t the only ones-”

“I said string them up.” The rider shook his head and looked towards the Griffon Pass. “I’ll head to the base of the pass and wait while you lot finish. If they’re smart they’ll come back. Otherwise, they’ll be dead. And when we see them we’ll have a nice…chat.”

The soldiers grabbed the pair and dragged them, kicking and screaming, towards a large tree. They tried to attack the soldiers but they punched their faces into submission. A rider entered the house and emerged with a young boy and girl held firmly by their hair. Already they were throwing ropes over the lowest branch.

Anton deactivated his enhancements and turned away. He sighed and scratched the back of his head.

There's not a lot we can do for them. By the time we get down they'll be dead. And if we do interfere it'll really make Cassius think we're a part of Tullas's gang. And then everything turns to shit.

“How bad is it?” Verona asked.

“Nothing good,” Anton replied. “They aren’t coming up here, they don’t think it’s necessary since we’ve gone up something called the Griffon Pass. I presume there’s going to be Griffon’s flying about here.”

“What’s that?” Verona and Kal asked.

Anton didn’t know what a Griffon in this world was. If they were anything like the mythological beasts of Earth they were not to be trifled with.

“It’s a large hybrid creature. The head of an eagle, the body of a lion and wings with claws for its front feet.”

“Sounds dangerous,” Verona said. She looked to Kal.

“I’ve never seen one before but I’ve heard of them.” Kal looked at the sky. “From what I’ve heard they lived in the mountains of the Clans…I guess they could be elsewhere. Maybe they live this far into the Graterious Empire. I’ve never been this far.”

“They exist in Bebbezzar.” Cetina looked pained to say that name. “A few roamed near Thessos but I didn’t see them up close. But I was told they were fine so long as you didn’t get too close or if they’re hungry.” She frowned as she looked at the top of the mountain. “Or if you’re too close to their nest.”

“Let’s hope the pass is far enough away from their nesting ground.” Anton beckoned his horse forward. “This is going to sound sick…But if we are attacked you are more important than the horses.” The girls looked at him. “I can’t bring you back if you’re dead. Understood?”

They nodded and Verona reached for her small blade. When she had a vial’s worth of blood they crept forward. Anton kept his eyes upward for any sign of a giant creature swooping down to attack. He would barely have a second to act before he was dead. Lightning bombs and fireballs bubbled within him, ready to strike. Minutes passed and still, nothing came at them. Nothing moved in the rocks above, only a few small rats skittering through the sparse vegetation on the mountain.

Just as he was starting to relax Verona grabbed his arm. She nodded forward, a strange look on her face. “Blood. There’s blood ahead. Lots of it.”

The path ahead rose then fell. Anton raised his hand for them to stop again as he saw something in the small depression on the path. It wasn’t a gryphon. A deer lay motionless in the path. A deer six meters long. The thick light grey coat was stained with blood, the creature's guts had been torn apart with dozens of deep gouges running along its chest and belly. Blood pooled around the stones and had lost its sheen and darkened in colour. This was not a recent kill.

They looked for anything moving but saw nothing lurking amongst the rocks and shrubs

Anton looked at Cetina. “I’m taking this isn’t a Griffin.”

“No…I don’t know what this is.”

Anton approached knelt down to the creature. Its tongue hung loosely from its mouth, dried and stiff. The deer’s eyes were glazed over, shrivelled and stared endlessly at the beaming sun above. The wounds on its guts were deep and clearly the work of powerful and sharp claws. Strangely its rear legs were bird’s feet, four thick and strong talons forming the foot. The claws were covered in blood and small pieces of a brown hide, a colour that wasn’t present on the deer. Its tail was the tail of a bird. A very long tail at that. The feathers, tarnished by blood and excrement, started just above the hip and extended for another two meters. Two feathers along the middle of the tail were slightly longer than the rest and dark blue compared to the rest of the grey plumage.

“Is anyone seeing else seeing that?” Verona pointed to just above its shoulder.

What Anton once thought was a wound was actually the stump of a limb. He leant forward to get a better look while keeping an eye on the head just to make sure it was dead. The stump was the remains of a wing. A few small bloodstained feathers cradled the wound. On the other side of the body lay the complete wing, separated from the main body, almost as wide as the creature was long and made from long white and grey feathers. He looked around but couldn’t find any sign of the other wing. Whatever killed this deer was probably gnawing on it right now.

Kal passed her reins to Verona and pulled her mask to one side. She frowned and knelt down by the deer’s front hooves. She drew her knife and prodded at the hooves.

“There’s some fur stuck in here.” Kal pulled hard and removed only a tiny tuft from the hooves. “It hit whatever killed it with a lot of force.”

Anton looked at the muscles of the deer, the grey fur barely hid the taut muscles underneath. “If it hit something in the chest it’ll have caved it in.”

“It’s even cracked the hoof.” Kal prodded a bit more before standing up and looking up the mountain. “It fought here. Violently too.”

She pointed to some of the large rocks. They weren’t sitting flat and were up at odd angles, their colour lighter and covered in a light spattering of dust. The moss and algae had been disturbed and even a small shrub had been broken. There was no sign of the missing wing amongst the rocks.

“So…What do we do with it?” Cetina asked.

“Not much we can do,” Anton said. “The creatures need to eat as well.”

“I don’t think we should take the meat.” Verona frowned at the tail. “But…We might be able to sell the feathers for money.” She looked to Kal then to Anton. “It might go for a bit. And, as you said, every bit-”

A tiny squeak came from the beast. Kal drew her blade and darted in front of Anton, pushed him back as Verona summoned her blood shards. Anton looked at the head as the girls continued to push him back. It was clearly dead, but something made that noise. Kal refused to stop pushing until he was near the horses and Cetina’s drawn blade.

Verona held the blood shards over the body as she looked back. “So…What was that?”

Anton found his eyes drawn to the opened guts of the beast. Something moved near the hindquarters. Anton moved forward, Kal took her bow and knocked an arrow, and he pried the hind limb away with his foot. Where there should have been intestines, he had seen torn apart Goblins enough to know what they looked like, there was something else. A single large round organ, with several deep cuts into it.

Another squeak came from within, something faintly pressed against it from the inside.

“Is something eating it from the inside?” Verona asked.

Anton shook his head. “No. I…I think that’s its womb.”

He took Kal’s knife and knelt down. He removed his gloves and opened the deep gashes into the womb. Inside he saw baby deer’s. All still and dead, covered in deep cuts, killed by the strike that tore through her guts. But something had made that noise. He cut the wound open more and waved to Cetina. She looked a little disturbed as he motioned for her to pull the rear leg out of the way. With more access, he cut his way deeper. On the far side, he saw something moving, something alive. He reached in and pulled out a baby deer, barely larger than a human baby.

Anton stood up and held the baby up to the light and fresh air. The blood-stained baby was a near complete copy of its mother, its antlers were only stumps but it did have both wings, both small and diminutive. The rear tail feathers were much shorter and the two long blue feathers had not gown yet. Currently, they were just dark grey. It breathed very faintly, its eyes closed, as it desperately tried to crawl out of Anton’s arms, not that he was going to let it.

“Poor thing,” Anton said. The deer creature whimpered as he patted its sticky head.

“Its mother was killed before it was even born…” Verona sighed and withdrew her blood to her vials.

“We basically gave it a Caesarean.” Anton tried to remove some blood from its mouth. “I don’t think it’s a safe procedure in this world, without Tethra’s help at least. That’s how I came into the world.”

Anton frowned. He couldn’t remember why he knew that the further he went into his memory he found nothing but scratchy voids. He shook his head before the numbing sensation overwhelmed him. Verona and Kal looked worried at him, while Cetina stared at the creature in his arm.

“Now what?” Cetina asked. “Do we take or leave him?”

Anton raised the deer’s leg. “I think it’s a girl. But, we can’t just leave it here. Especially after saving it.”

“But what even is it?” Verona asked. “I mean, what does it eat?”

Anton opened its mouth. The deer resisted but it didn’t have the strength. “I’m guessing it eats grass. You see the teeth?” He lowered it so the girls could see better. “See how they’re all flat and wide. Like our back teeth?”

“Not like mine.” Kal quietly added.

“Right…Well, it means they eat stuff that needs to be chewed and ground up. Leaves, grasses and maybe even seeds.”

“That means I’m supposed to just eat meat?” Kal asked.

“I’m not sure. But I’ve seen you eat meat when you’re really hungry.” He smiled at Verona. “Almost as bad as her when she’s eating my food.”

Both chuckled but the deer whimpered again.

“But when they’re young they need milk.” Anton continued. “Just like we do. They need it to grow. And we don’t have any.”

Verona looked at her chest then to Kal’s and Cetina’s. “Well, we aren’t going to be much help.” Kal frowned while she and Cetina flushed lightly. “So either we leave it here and it gets eaten…”

“Or we take it but it starves to death.” Anton sighed and gently rubbed the creatures head. “I’m sure that we can buy some milk at the farms we pass, I know I saw a few goats back the way we came, but milk doesn’t last long. And I don’t know of a way to keep it fresh for the boat ride. She’ll die before we can reach Danafra.”

All went silent while they thought.

“It can’t eat cheese, can it?” Verona asked. “I know that’s made from milk but…”

Kal shook her head. “I don’t think so. It needs to be a liquid so it can drink it. I’ve never seen a baby eating something solid just after it’s born.”

“You know that from experience?”

Kal nodded. “Everyone was kept together so you saw it all the time.”

Anton didn’t want her to think on the slave pens any longer than necessary. “We should keep moving for now and think of a way to keep this little guy alive.”

“I like that we’ve decided to take her with us.” Verona smiled as she took her reins. “Don’t get me wrong, it’s what I want to do, it’s just that we didn’t need to say it.”

“Yeah.”

The deer creature started coughing. Anton saw its dry and parched tongue. “Cetina? Do you have some spare water?”

She nodded and returned with a small flask. Anton tried his best to pool the water in his hand and let it drink but it wasn’t interested. He opened its mouth and gently poured in a small morsel. The deer resisted for a moment before it drank up everything it was given.

“Well, at least it won’t die of thirst,” Cetina said.

“It won’t be long before it starts to get hungry. If she isn’t already.”

Kal came to his side with several large pieces of cloth. Some of it looked like the pieces they looted from the chest on their trip through the old Kar Kingdom. When she saw him looking oddly she shrugged.

“I didn’t have that much left over. Besides, I can get better stuff in the next city.”

“Thanks, Kal.” He kissed her forehead.

Verona led their three horses, until Kal took hers back, around the dead deer mother and along the path. Anton bundled the deer in the cloth and used a spare strip to wipe away the blood from its fur. It whimpered as he whipped it roughly. Some of the blood had dried and had turned sticky, it would need a good bath.

“So what are we going to call the little girl?” Verona asked, reaching over and tickling its head. It appeared to like that.

“I…don’t know. Kal? Cetina?”

Cetina shrugged. Kal went silent before looking up at the sky.

“How about Luna?” Kal smiled. “Sounds like a good name.”

Anton nodded and lightly bounced the creature in his arms. “Well Luna, welcome to our strange little adventure. Now…Now we just need to get you some milk.”

“But how is she going to drink it?” Verona asked. “If they’re meant to suckle on a nipple…”

“I think that I remember something about dipping a wrapped up section of cloth into milk and letting it suck on that. Not ideal but it’ll drink it at least…Maybe.”

“Now we just need to find some.”

Anton retook his reins from Verona and continued along the mountain path. While he saw no Griffons or more of the deer creatures he kept the lightning bombs bubbling away in the back of his mind. He didn’t need to use his hands to direct the strikes, they only helped with coordination and efficiency. If the worst came he would have to drop the baby deer creature to fight then heal it, if either of them survived.

When they reached the next crest Verona stopped them with a harsh whisper, ordering them to crouch low. Anton peered over and saw another dead body to the side of the path. This was the Griffon, a six-meter long amalgamation of a lion and eagle that matched his image of the creature of Earth. This one was dead. Its front claws were drenched in old blood, the same colour and viscosity as the deer, with large tufts of white fur sticking stuck in the claws. Its beak was broken, caved in on one side with a large hoof-shaped imprint near its head, and an eye hung loosely from its socket. The chest was equally deformed and had completely caved in.

“Well…At least she got the one that tried to kill her.” Verona quietly said.

“But what if this one’s pregnant as well?” Kal asked, raising a dark aqua brow.

Anton waved them forward and they slowly crept up on the Griffon. “It’s a boy. So we don’t have to worry about that. But it might have a mate and I don’t want to have to deal with a very angry woman that’s just lost her partner.”

“No, you don’t.” Verona smiled bitterly at the dead Griffon. “Say, Cetina, is any part of a Griffon valuable?”

Cetina shrugged. “The hide, maybe. But it’ll take a long time to skin it. And while we’re still on this mountain too. Maybe the feathers of the wings…but someone might ask where we got them from. If they care about the Gryphons it might cause trouble. Back in Thessos, we could only hunt a few every winter.”

“Again, I’m just thinking of ways we might be able to make a little money on the way.”

“Let’s keep going.” Anton pulled on his reins.

They stepped wide of the Griffon, keeping an eye on it just to make sure it was dead and continued on their journey.

---[]---

Anton breathed a sigh of relief when they reached the other side of the Griffon pass. Nothing had attacked them, he didn’t see anything other than the two bodies, and all were relieved to be safe on the other side. The scenery had completely changed. The open grass and scrublands had disappeared and the small and sparse forests had become far denser. It wasn’t as dense as the Accursed Forest or the forest from Soulthor to Porswea, but the heat from the sun’s rays were all but intercepted by the tall trees above them. The deer, nestled in his arms, appreciated it and pulled closer to him.

“Do we head back to the road now?” Cetina asked. “Or do we join it at the next city?”

“I think we should keep to the countryside for a bit longer,” Anton replied. “It’ll be really weird if we turn up at the other side of the bridge after all that effort. I’m sure they’ll stop us.”

“Especially with Luna in your arms.” Verona smiled.

“True. But she is starting to get really heavy. We’ll need something to put her in while we move. We can’t just carry her all the time.”

“But we need to get her some milk.” Kal leant over, her mask fixed to her face once again and hiding her beautiful face. “Something to eat. She doesn’t look that well.”

“I’ve chanted a healing prayer on her but she’s probably just hungry. I’m pretty sure that babies start sucking pretty much straight away. And she could have been there for almost a day, maybe even longer than that.”

“Can your powers fix that?” Verona asked.

“I…I think it might. Maybe. But it took a lot out of me to make a wooden spoon from a branch. I don’t know how much it would take to conjure up a sandwich.”

“What’s that?” Cetina asked. Verona and Kal nodded.

“Um, it’s two layers of bread with other food, like meat or vegetables, inside. I haven’t eaten one in a long time.” Verona and Cetina looked bemused while Kal tilted her head. “Anyway, after I’ve healed myself I still feel the same level of hunger as before. Though that could be because I asked it to heal me rather than fill my stomach.”

“Well, we still need to get it some milk that’ll last a long time.” Verona glanced at Cetina and sighed. “Do you know a way?”

“Refrigeration would be the easiest way that I know of.” Again the girls looked confused. “Another word for keeping something cold. Keeping food cold will slow it rotting and decaying. It’ll last a very long time. Hopefully long enough to reach Danafra and pick up some fresh milk. I’m sure they’ll have some there.”

“Do you mean something like ice?” Cetina asked. “That won’t last long in this weather.”

Kal scratched the chin of her mask. “Maybe…Maybe we’ve seen something that could do that. And I’m pretty sure that, after seeing my arrows work, you and I can make something.”

“This should be interesting.” Verona teased and began tickling Kal’s arm.

Kal swatted away her fingers and nodded forward. “There’s a rocky outcrop just ahead. I think I can hear water. We can stop there and take a break.”

The rocky outcrop was actually the source of a small stream, a spring. The water had carved a small pool below the source almost a meter wide and half deep. A few small fish swam in the gently rippling pool. They darted away the moment their shadows touched the water.

“Cetina?” Anton began. “I know this might be imposing but could you hold her for just a minute?”

Cetina nodded and gently took her from his hands. She smiled at the half sleeping deer and moved towards the large rocks to sit down.

“So what’s your idea?” Anton asked Kal.

Kal lifted her mask to one side, wiping away the thin layer of sweat that covered her skin. “Remember that bath we had in Porswea?”

“Yeah. I don’t think I’ll forget that in a while.”

Both flushed lightly as Verona approached with a cheesy smile on her face.

Verona played with the ring underneath her gloves. “Never going to forget that. Those nights…”

Kal coughed. “Well, that bath had warm water even though it had been there a while, and there wasn’t any water coming in. I was thinking of something like that. But instead of hot, it’ll be cold.”

“Sounds like you had a Heating Heart,” Cetina said. She shied away a little when everyone looked at her. “In Thessos, since we’re close to the mountains, it’s usually quite cold. And there isn’t enough forest, timber, to heat all the water that we need, so…”

A slight shiver overcame her body as she thought about her past, her right hand left the cradle it had formed around Luna and drifted to her hip. She shook her head and continued.

“My father bought a lot of Heating Hearts. It’s a small blue stone, about the size of a fist, which uses Earth Mana to make heat.”

“We didn’t see anything like that,” Verona replied. “And we did check everywhere in the bath…Though, there was a metal grate at the bottom. It was probably underneath that.”

“It wasn’t that hot though.”

Cetina smiled. “You couldn’t handle it if it was. And I don’t think people would like to have a bath in boiling water.”

“True.” Anton smiled as he turned to Kal. “That makes sense. You want to make the opposite of that?”

Kal nodded and smiled. “Yes. It’s the best idea I’ve got.”

“It’s a good idea.” Anton gently rubbed her head. He saw her wrapped tail want to wiggle free. “Any idea what we can use to make that work?”

“This, once again, is beyond me.” Verona sighed and pulled a pouting face. “I’m going to look sit with Cetina and see if we can give Luna a wash.”

Verona pulled Anton down for a quick kiss. He returned it, Kal looked very jealous, before Verona patted his cheek and sauntered over to Cetina. Cetina shuffled to the side as Verona sat and began to poke and play with Luna.

“You aren’t bringing Luna along as…practice, are you?” Kal asked, a faint smirk on her face.

“What?”

Kal glanced at Verona, who was thoroughly engrossed by Luna and held his hand. “One day we’re going to have your babies. Sooner rather than later, if what we’re doing is any indicator. I’ve been speaking with Verona about it and…we don’t really know what to expect.” Kal’s head bobbed around a little. “I mean, I know what’s going to happen to our bodies, some good and some not so good things, but not how to properly raise our children.”

“I didn’t take Luna because of that,” Anton replied. “It felt wrong to just leave her there. Back home, in my world, I remember that some people were thought to do that sort of thing with animals. But, here we have loads of people to help us. Besides, I know we’re all going to do great.”

Kal smiled. “I thought so. I just wanted to check.” She took a deep breath and lightly slapped her cheeks. Verona looked up but looked away when she saw it was fine. “Hopefully Verona’s won’t inherit her hunger.”

Anton chuckled. Again Verona looked up but said nothing. She and Cetina were speaking, he couldn’t hear over the light splashing sound of the spring water rushing over the rocks.

“So what’s your plan Kal?”

Kal scratched her cheek. “Right. Well, my plan really doesn’t go much further than asking Tethra to make something give off cold…or take in heat.”

“And use Earth Mana to run it, just like my Communication pens.”

Kal furiously nodded her head.

“That’s a good idea.” Anton bit his lower lip. “But what to use as a base…”

Kal’s eyes widened before she ran towards the rocky outcrop. As she searched through the small rocks a thought bubbled up in Anton’s mind. He, and Kal, were able to create magical devices and Shawn and Jocelyn were, at last contact, progressing very well towards infusing fire and lightning into weapons and armour, but how did normal people create magical devices? They were a little preoccupied in Porswea to ask but now there was someone with them that might know.

“Cetina?”

“Yes?” She looked up and smiled. “I’m not hurting her.”

“No, not that. I was wondering how things like a Heating Heart were made?” Cetina raised a brow. “Kal and I can just ask Tethra to make anything we need, within reason. But how does everyone else do it?”

“I’m not really sure,” Cetina replied. “But I know that there are cities where they make them. Thessos wasn’t one of them but I’m sure mage guilds make them. It makes them a lot of money. How they actually make them, I don’t know. I never thought to ask before.”

Kal returned to his side with a smooth stone that fit perfectly in her palm.

“Thanks, Cetina.” Anton nodded to her then looked at Kal. “Alright. I think you’re better at using the prayer power than I am.”

“But you have a lot more mana.” Kal retorted.

“Just kiss already,” Verona said loudly, a smirk on her face.

Kal closed her eyes and smiled faintly. “So, I’ll just do what you said you did for those Communication Pens. Tethra, Goddess of Prayer, make this stone generate coldness enough to freeze-”

“No.” Anton interrupted. Kal looked up while she held the stone tight. “Just above freezing.”

Kal nodded. “Make this stone’s temperature always be just above freezing. Make it so the stone uses Earth Mana to function.”

Kal’s eyes opened and widened in surprise. She passed the stone from one hand to another as she chuckled. “It’s really cold.” She laughed. “It worked.”

Anton held out his hand. Kal passed it over. His skin turned extremely cold the moment it touched his skin. There was no sign the stone was cold, other than an extremely faint amount of dew condensing on the surface. He brushed it away and felt the wetness on his fingers.

“Kal?”

“Yes?”

“If you could sell these you wouldn’t need to work again, beyond chanting a prayer each day.”

“How much do you think we could sell it for?”

Anton looked at Cetina. “I’m not really sure. A couple hundred silver at the very least. It sounds like it won’t ever run out or stop so it’ll be pretty valuable. I wasn’t ever involved with buying anything like that but I know it would be worth quite a bit. You could have a box of meat or vegetables and throw one in.”

“Everything wouldn’t have to be salted either.” Verona licked her lips. “Meat could be kept juicy and fresh. Freshly cooked and bursting with flavour…And you wouldn’t have to hunt every day either.”

“Exactly.” Anton handed the stone back to Kal. “Now we just need to find a farm where we can buy milk from.”

Anton looked around him. While the forest above had taken away the sting from the sun’s rays there was more than enough passing through to allow thick grass to grow. It was a darker shade than what it was on the other side of the river but still very lush and thick. There was a very good chance that there would be farms somewhere nearby. And where there were farms there would be animals.

“Is everyone rested and ready to go?”

“Just a moment.” Verona stood up and moved around the rocky outcrop to the pool. “Haven’t actually washed her yet. I don’t know how she’ll like it but she can’t have the blood stuck to her.”

Anton moved to Verona’s side and helped her clean Luna. She struggled for a moment as the cold water washed over her body but slowly calmed down when Verona gently stroked her head. The blood slowly washed away and her light grey lustre returned. Cetina and Kal gathered their horses and readied them to leave.

As Verona wrapped Luna back up in the cloth, drying her small head vigorously a frown formed on her face.

“I know that look,” Anton said.

“I…I was just thinking.”

“Yes?”

She lightly punched his arm. “No need to be rude. I was thinking about what you and Kal said. That you two can use your powers, the power of the Old Gods, like I do, to just make magical devices.”

“Yes.”

“Well, Nithroel is an Old God. And she’s not friendly to us, that much is clear.”

Anton had a suspicion where this was going. And it had to do with the small bundle in her arms.

“And her mark.” Verona held his hand. “Is a leaf surrounded by antlers. Kind of like her mother has.”

“I see.” Anton rested his hand on Luna’s head. She looked up at him, her doey eyes full of worry. “Tethra, Goddess of Prayer, break any link between Luna and Nithroel and ensure that nothing can remake the bond.”

A large amount of mana left him. Luna’s eyes shot open and she tried to escape Verona’s arms. The orange on her cheeks deepened to a dark red. When the colour had finished changing Luna stopped writhing and calmed down. She looked up and began to lick the underside of Anton’s hand. Anton scratched its head and Luna squeaked in happiness.

“I guess Nithroel did have a link.” Verona stood up and scratched Luna’s head. “But now you don’t have that nasty, big titted woman, that dresses like a whore whispering in your ear and reading your thoughts, do you?”

Luna sneezed and curled up in the bundle of cloth. When Anton returned to his horse Kal and Cetina were emptying a pack and transferring its contents to the others. They had changed the protection prayer on the pack so Cetina wasn’t affected.

Kal raised her mask. “It might not be the best but we can put her in the pack and wrap her in some soft cloth so she doesn’t bounce too much.”

“We just need to make sure she doesn’t jump out.”

“I don’t think she has the strength for that.” Anton put Luna in the pack, making sure her head was free and that her body wouldn’t be crushed. “We need to find some soon. Who’s got the map?”

“I do,” Kal answered. She rolled out the map. “So…we’re here. And if we still want to go to Rusaddir we need to get back to the road before this town here.”

Anton leant over and saw a small town in between a mountain range. On Cassius’s map, there were several small Griffons and dragon-like creatures flying around the mountains. The chances of getting through the mountains were probably nil, especially as the so-called Griffon pass wasn’t even drawn on the map. It was probably just a local name considering it appeared to be a smugglers pass.

“Yeah. We’ll get back onto the road at this city. It’s large enough that it’s actually named too.”

“What’s it called?” Verona asked as she mounted her horse.

“Sa’leem,” Kal replied. “It doesn’t say how big it is but it looks like about half the size of Porswea. Though I’m just guessing that.”

“Okay. Let’s go then.”

Anton mounted his horse and made sure everyone else was ready before they started to move. Luna sat in the pack next to his leg, her head resting on the edge, and looked slightly better. He hoped he would come across a small farm by dusk. But the name of the city lingered in the back of his mind, unable to dislodge itself no matter how hard he tried to shake away a niggling sense of anxiety and worry.