It had been a while since Edeline had felt this terrible, although it had been for very different reasons. Dealing with an attempted overthrow of her family, followed by a series of revelations that forced her to throw out everything she thought she knew about herself, had pushed her very close to her limits.

The current situation, assuming Nela was correct, was entirely due to whatever drug they had been given. It still left Edeline no less miserable, with her head thick and limbs heavy. Still, she was not about to let it stop her, given the danger they were in. Sooner or later, their escape would be discovered, and those men would be after them.

The pair had carefully circled the village, taking note of the people and buildings. There did not seem to be too many armed men, no more than two hex, and Edeline was certain they had over-counted. The real problem lay with the small size of Verdan, as any disturbance would bring all of those men running in a moment.

From what they had seen, Edeline suspected they had not been the first travelers to fall victim in this village. If those suspicions were accurate, then they were fortunate to have escaped. It also meant that finding where Hamond and Myron had been taken was the highest priority.

The most obvious candidate was this one house that stood out for being larger and better maintained than any others in Verdan. Nela had initially wanted to stay clear of it, and Edeline had to agree that the odds were that it was the self-proclaimed Lord Verdan's house. It would have guards nearby, without question. But having finished surveying the village, no other place stood out.

If they were not here, Edeline did not know where else to look.

The house had no back entrance, but approaching from the forest behind it was the safer option. Edeline held no doubt her brother would agree, were he here. Myron was the one with experience in battlefield tactics. Edeline's studies had been focused more on the details of running a noble household.

Not that it had stopped her from learning some swordfighting, and later thaumaturgy.

"What's that door?" Nela said, pointing.

Looking over, Edeline could see a building partially built into the ground itself, with a wooden door swung open. "A cellar, perhaps?" Even as she brought it up, Edeline realized that no normal cellar, be it used for storing food or drink, would be left open like that. Doing so was an invitation for wild animals to plunder it.

Unguarded...her suspicions raised, she moved to the door and peered in. While the difference in light made it difficult to see into the cellar, Edeline was certain that she was seeing bodies sprawled on the floor. Her breath caught in her throat, as the worst came to mind.

"What's down there?" Nela pushed past Edeline, then stopped. "Phosphaira," she said, and a little orb of light shot forward to illuminate the cellar.

Edeline let out a sigh of relief on seeing that none of the bodies were Myron or Hamond. Still, that there were dead people here was still quite worrying. Thinking back to those bandits that had accosted them when they first arrived, it was clear to her something was very wrong in this village.

Nela darted forward down the steps, taking them two at a time. Halting herself with a hop, Nela glanced over the three dead men. "Two things. First, this one is that alderman that told us where the tavern is."

Edeline paled. Was he killed because he had helped them? She pushed that thought aside. "And the second?"

"I think a spell killed them," Nela answered.

"Hamond?" Edeline asked, surprised. Hamond would not have slain anyone without very strong reasons.

"That, or we've got someone else with spells running around this village." Nela paused for a moment. "Not sure which would be worse."

Slowly making her way into the cellar, Edeline tried to think. If Hamond had done it, that meant that the thaumaturge...wait, no, that was wrong. She'd meant the alderman. Curse this headache, it was making it far too difficult to think matters through.

Trying to shake it off, Edeline walked over to the center of the room, only to step on something. She knelt down and lifted up a length of knotted rope, with the ends looking like they had been cut through. A look down confirmed there were more such ropes on the floor.

"They were holding someone here too," Edeline spoke, letting the rope fall back on the earthen floor.

"They did a shit job of it, from the looks of it." Nela's face was grim. "But if we stay in this cellar, they'll end up holding us here."

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Edeline did not even consider disagreeing. Following Nela back out, she stopped at the cellar's entrance, hearing the faint sound of men arguing coming from the direction of the house. Nela, having heard the same, was already creeping towards the back wall.

Copying Nela's example, Edeline moved carefully after her, pressing up again the house. Rounding the corner, the voices became more and more clearer as they approached.

"I'm telling you I'm not going in there! You saw what he did to Cenric!"

"The lord will have our heads if we don't!"

"And where is he? For all we know, he's already dead!"

It sounded to Edeline like they had their enemy cornered inside the house. She was confident it wasn't Myron or Hamond. They were too skilled and cunning to let themselves be put in that situation. Still, if it was another former captive, they could use the help.

Now she just needed to let Nela know this, somehow. She looked over, only to see that Nela was no longer beside her. Edeline blinked, then moved to peer around the next corner, having a feeling she knew what was about to happen.

Calmly and quietly, Nela was approaching the arguing pair. The two men were both heavily built, although one was more stout compared to the other's muscle. Both had swords on their belts, but neither showed any readiness to draw them. Of more importance, they were not paying any attention to the street, both facing the house's door.

"Where are those other men, anyway? They should have gotten word by now."

"Do I look like I'm their mother? I shouldn't have to keep track of their shit."

The true surprise was that no one else was nearby. Perhaps they had told everyone to stay clear. Regardless of the reason, it made Nela's task all too simple. Edeline just watched with some amusement as she stepped behind one of the men, then reached up and placed a hand on his neck.

"Doroneiroi."

The man sank to the ground, letting out a muffled grunt that faded into snoring. His partner stared, pale-faced, frozen in place. Nela, not hesitating, moved over and repeated the spell. Within a moment, he too was laying asleep on the ground.

Nela, as Edeline had come to learn, was really good at that.

Emerging out into the open, Edeline realized she had been more nervous about the situation than she'd thought. She was shaking slightly, feeling a little unsteady on her feet. You can do better than that, she told herself, taking a few deep breaths. Concentrate, focus, don't let it get to you.

"And now, let's see what's beyond the magic door," Nela remarked, moving over to the house's entrance. The door swung open before Nela could touch it. "I was joking!" Nela protested, as someone grabbed her and pulled her inside.

Alarmed, Edeline made a move for one of the sleeping guards, clumsily pulling one of their swords from its sheath. It was heavier than she was used to handling, but she couldn't afford to be choosy about arming herself. Looking back up into the doorway, she stopped, stunned.

Standing there, holding Nela in a tight embrace, was her brother Myron.

But she had thought...why wouldn't he be here? Edeline realized she'd somehow tricked herself into thinking it could not be him. Truthfully, Myron would put himself in that position, if he...if he had been looking for Nela and her.

"Wait...what happened to your tunic?" Myron asked, releasing his hold on Nela. Edeline herself had not looked too closely at it before, despite knowing Nela had torn it crawling under that door. Now that she did, she could see it had torn almost completely up the back. Only a thin strip of cloth just below Nela's shoulders held it on.

"I'd call it a casualty," Nela said, "Or would you rather we'd stayed locked up?"

"Of course not." Myron looked stricken by the notion. "Aether, I'm glad you got out alright, and...are you alright?"

"I'm fine," Edeline told him. She wasn't surprised it took him a moment to notice her. Myron had the unfortunate habit of randomly losing focus when Nela was nearby. She supposed it was charming and romantic in one sense, but it did not change that he had let their food burn unattended on the fire that one time. Then again, Edeline supposed she had a similar issue in regards to Hamond. Speaking of him...

"Where is Hamond?"

"Inside. You better come in too." Myron beckoned, moving aside.

Edeline was not about to object. It was quite hot outside today, so perhaps some time indoors would help her to feel better. She headed into the house behind Nela. Myron pulled the door closed behind them.

The house's decor was...something. Edeline was unsure how to describe it, only that it felt wrong, having gaudy decor in an otherwise plain building. She was not sure her father's house back in Hallowscroft was particularly extravagant, but in comparison, this was a pretense. A complete farce.

The pair of dead bodies did not exactly help matters either. Edeline guessed one of them was the man the two outside had mentioned, but the woman was another matter. Well, she would know the truth of what happened here soon enough. As dark as it sounded, the dead could afford to wait for them to see to the living.

Sitting in the adjacent room, on a cushioned chair, was Hamond, head bowed. Edeline approached, grateful to see he was alright. He didn't appear to notice she was there though. "Hamond?" she asked, slowly.

Hamond answered her with a snore.

"Be quiet," Myron said, walking up, "He's been suffering from whatever it was they drugged us with. Let him sleep."

Edeline just smiled. It was rather ridiculous for him to sleep at a time like this, but she supposed she could forgive him this once. Besides, it didn't really matter in the end, did it? They were all safe now.

The world turned sideways.

Edeline blinked, realized she was suddenly sitting in one of the chairs. Wait...what had happened?

"...saw she wasn't well at that point. But I didn't think we could stop moving, or we'd get caught," Nela was saying, "Besides, you know how she is."

"I know," Myron replied, letting out a sigh. "Just...I don't want her to push herself to the point of fainting again."

"I fainted?" Edeline was astonished at how weak she sounded.

"You just rest," Myron said, stepping into view.

"Agreed. We'll take it from here." Nela's voice was unusually soft and gentle. "You sleep if you need it."

Wanting to protest, Edeline tried to stand, but her legs would not support her, nor would her arms lift her up. They were right. She was more helpless than a small child, for the immediate future. Sleeping it off, like Hamond was doing, was the only option.

"Don't...don't do anything foolish," Edeline murmured, closing her eyes. Whatever response Nela or Myron offered, she did not hear.