In the morning as we crept up to the pool's cave we found something Jina seemed to be half expecting. Near the entrance there were a few small huts, and a makeshift wall of thorns and wood. It stopped us for all of about a heartbeat. While she may not be Atal, our new companion was still very old, very powerful, and one hundred percent done with these people. The wall rotted in seconds, the few soldiers who strode out to meet us dying like dogs.

Those weren't the only ones in the camp though, there were others. Huddled in the houses, sometimes in makeshift cages or back rooms were women and children. The former seemed terrified, hiding and crying as we strode in, the latter held in their arms.

“Hey, it's okay, we're here to help,” I said to a few girls hiding in the first house we looked into, extending my hand.

“Please don't hurt me, please don't hurt me,” one of them mumbled, a few bruises obvious on her arms and legs.

As far as I knew few of the other victims of our war had been found, being killed or shipped back to the Wester homeland as slaves. This was, unfortunately expected, one of the realities of war in this world. Before I could do much to reassure the terrified girl though a hand landed on my shoulder.

“Justin, let Jina and I talk to them. You and Chien go and make sure there aren't any other warriors around will you?” Isha asked.

“Of course,” I agreed, realizing that I was probably not the best person for this job. “If you need us call.”

Chien and I did as she bade us, moving to the edge of things and keeping an eye out. It wasn't needed, as either word of the battle at Atal hadn't reached these men, or they think they needed to run for their lives. We'd caught them all early, having barely left their beds.

“They look bad,” I observed to my young assistant.

“I've seen worse,” he answered, shrugging when I raised an eyebrow at him. “I have. They'll live, or they won't, but there's not a lot you or I can do for them right now is there? All the villages around here are wrecked, and we're not supposed to go back to the city.”

“Fair point, don't even know what they'll want. Suppose we'll have to ask and...” a pair of screaming voices interrupted me and both of us took only a second to start running in their direction.

At one of the nicer huts in the little makeshift camp two women were being ripped out and set upon by the others. Jina and Isha stood to the side, looking displeased as a mob leapt upon them, scratching, pulling, punching. They didn't have weapons, but small hands tore at the two, dragging them about by hair or whatever limb could be reached.

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“Stop!” I said as I reached them, and was promptly ignored. “Jina!” I insisted to the woman in question, “Stop them.”

“They deserve what they're getting,” she said coldly.

“You need to stop this, even your grandfather would've given them a chance to make their case. You're staying, we're not, the precedent you set here and now won't go away.”

She frowned at me, but she still stepped forward. “Cease,” she commanded, and I felt the wave of power she put forward with it. “Bring them forwards.”

There was muttering and angry noises, but the former captives seemed to decide that they didn't want to fight old Jina. A few moments later the pair were brought forward, kneeling, missing clumps of hair and covered in small wounds.

“You can't be thinking of letting them live!” one of the women hissed. “She killed my brother when he refused their poison!” she pointed at one of the pair.

“We have one accusation,” Jina said, almost formally. “What others?”

Every one of the former captives had something to say, some of them quite a lot. These two they'd gone after were Fala and Ura, and each had a list of crimes a mile long. Both had been 'preferred' by the men who'd been holding them here, and rather than being mistreated like the others had instead helped the soldiers. They'd helped kill some of those who had disobeyed, they'd held down several of the girls while the soldiers did what soldiers were known to do, a betrayal few of these women were going to forgive.

“Do you have anything to say? Anything which might excuse your actions?” Jina asked, having slipped into the role of judge. Neither had spoken, nor been permitted to speak as the others made their cases.

Fala looked up at her. “You know what they'd have done if we didn't,” she said.

“Yes, but you would have lived. Instead you chose to harm others for comfort.” Jina had not an ounce of mercy in her voice.

“Please,” Ura begged. “I-I am with child.”

There was a long pause, silence taking the small section of forest for ponderous moments. Of all the things that she could have said, that might have been the only one that would spare her life. Our society loved children too much, even the child of a traitor would be often spared. A baby? No, harming such would be unthinkable.

“If you are lying you will suffer,” Jina warned her.

“I'm not,” she said with a quivering voice.

The Elder extended her hand and there was a soft glow between it and Ura's body, after which she sighed.

“Truth, and it survived the beating she received.” She looked to Fala. “Strangle that one, the other will live until her child is born, then shall share the same fate.” Jina produced a vine for them with a wave of her hand and left them to it.

“Watch,” the one who took up the cord told Ura, who was still being held.

They killed Fala slowly, holding her so she couldn't move as the vine was wrapped around her neck just tight enough so that she couldn't breathe. Several of the mob shooting malicious looks at the one being forced to observe. When it was finally done, the one who'd done the strangling came close.

“For when your turn comes,” she hissed as she tied the vine around Ura's throat. The prisoner being able to do little more than whimper in fear.

As they dispersed Chien leaned in. “Women are fucking scary sometimes,” he whispered.

“They can be very unforgiving,” I agreed. “And quite vindictive too sometimes, don't forget that. Can you really blame them though?”

“Fair point.”

The girls were still giving the two of us a rather wide berth. They might understand that we weren't there to hurt them, but pain took time to heal, some of it never going away completely. Jina did come to us after dealing with the prisoner and the corpse.

“Good call,” she said.

“Have the sky and ground switched places?” Chien asked in mock confusion, this world not yet having adages about pigs flying or hell freezing over. For his effort he got an unamused look through half-lidded eyes.

“We have other things to do though,” she said, pointing towards the cave.

“That we do.”