Sare'en was incredibly nervous, but knew she had to speak up if she ever wanted to pay back her debt to her savior. Even if that meant she had to force herself to do so.

When the notice had gone out that the Dragon's Outpost was looking for more volunteers, she'd stood up with the rest, but she'd been overlooked in the first group due to her short stature and timid nature. So when the hunter chief's son had come back to escort the second group of volunteers, she'd made sure she was front and center. She was confident they'd need some arlack at the outpost, and while she'd never taken care of them without oversight, Lady Ta'miel had said she was just about ready to handle her own herd.

When Lon'thul had first asked Sare’en what skills she had to offer, she'd frozen up under his gaze. Everyone knew his father was the most terrifying male in the village, and while the son didn't seem as frightening, the scent of death seemed to linger around him, too. After all, he'd been part of the scouting group that had first made contact with the raider invasion.

One moment stretched into the next, and still, Sare'en couldn't bring herself to speak. When the hunter took a step closer, she was confident he was about to shout at her or belittle her the way most males did. When he brought his hand up, she flinched back, but instead of slapping her, he just rested a gentle hand on her shoulder. "Hey now, I don't bite, well, not pretty young females, anyway! So take a moment to catch your breath, and just tell me what you do."

Sare'en realized the hunter was trying to be comforting, but somehow that almost made things worse. Their close proximity, combined with the fact that she was now the center of everyone's attention, was almost too much, but she knew that saying nothing here and now might cost her the only chance to work with and pay back her hero. "Arlack!... I'm an arlack...herder…."

Lon'thul's grin grew even broader. "That's perfect! Jack's been making noise that we needed some arlack at the Outpost! Said I should see if I could track someone down to help him design and set up some stables and whatever else they might need. Think you're up to the job?"

Sare'en gritted her teeth, closed her hands firmly, and nodded emphatically. Lon'thul grinned. "Great! We'll be leaving early tomorrow, so get your things together and meet me outside the inn at sunrise. See ya then!"

With that, the hunter's attention was directed elsewhere, and he moved on to speak with more volunteers. Now that she was no longer the center of attention, Sare'en felt tension she hadn't even realized she'd been holding drain out of her shoulders. She wove her way through the crowd like she usually did, unseen and unnoticed. Lady Ta'miel had once joked that Sare'en had so little presence, it was almost like she didn't even exist.

Finally, she made her way back to the stables. Once inside, she was met by Lady Ta'miel. "So, did this time go any better than the last?"

The Lady was currently scratching an arlack behind the ear. As usual, she exuded a calming aura to everything around her. That's part of what made her so good with the animals. It also made it easy for Sare'en to speak with her. "Yeah, I got accepted! They were looking for someone to help them set up stables for arlack, and apparently, I've got the job!"

Lady Ta'miel smiled. "That's great! Although...to do the job properly, you will have to break through that shell and speak to others. Think you can handle that?"

Sare'en frowned and shrugged. "I'll have to. It's not like I could stay your apprentice forever...and this way, I get to pay back my debt!"

Lady Ta'miel's smile made Sare'en's heart leap as the older female spoke. "Well then, I think this will be a good thing for you! I am proud of you. Now go and pack your things. I'll have one of the males take over your duties. They'll have to learn to get along without you, anyway."

Sare'en squeaked in excitement and ran off to pack her bags.

-

The journey took the better part of the morning. Many of the craftsmen and women who weren't used to so much walking were exhausted by the journey's end. However, Sare'en's legs were weak for an entirely different reason. They were all about to be greeted by the Outpost leader and her infamous assistant.

Lady S'haar was physically shorter than the males in the group but somehow seemed to tower over everyone present. When she spoke, everyone listened. "Welcome to Dragon’s Outpost. If any of you didn't know, I am S'haar, and I'm in charge of this place. Depending on your specialties, you'll have various other masters you'll be reporting to, but I wanted to meet you first to lay down some ground rules."

As she spoke, Lady S'haar started pacing back and forth, looking for all the world like a caged beast searching for a way to break free of its pen. "First, while you are here, you are a guest of this Outpost, but so is everyone else. Regardless of your class or social position back in the village, you will treat everyone in this camp as your equal or better. If you can't accept that, you'll be housed away from the productive workers and sent back with the village's next shipment."

Lady S'haar stopped her pacing and swept her gaze over the group. It almost seemed like she was some great predator, examining the herd for weakness. Sare'en flinched back under the scrutiny, and Lady S'haar's odd assistant immediately turned and locked his gaze onto the herder. She'd caught a glimpse of him during his second visit to the village, and again when they'd shown up to rescue them from the freeze, but he looked different now. His face was severely damaged and partially hidden by an eyepatch and his cloak's cowl. When he'd walked up, he'd also used a cane to compensate for the noticeable limp he now had.

He continued watching Sare'en as Lady S'haar continued her speech. "Back that way, you'll see the dragon's cave. Do not go in there unless invited by Em'brel, Jack, or myself. If you do, the best fate you can hope for is to be sent back to the village with the next ore shipment. I'll leave other possible fates up to your imagination..."

Lady S'haar turned and indicated the odd male, who finally broke off his scrutiny to gaze at the rest of the group. "This is Jack. He has no official position at this camp, but if he has anything to say to you, all I can say is you'd be very wise to listen. If he addresses you, it will be through a translator, such as myself. However, he can understand all of you perfectly fine. And just to avoid any confusion, yes, he is that Jack. His stature may not impress you, but he has many odd and powerful magics with which he can protect himself and his friends. So do not test or challenge him. Even if there wasn't an entire camp of raiders whose fate should tell you why that would be a bad idea, I will take it as a personal attack and treat it as such."

Lady S'haar then turned her piercing gaze back to the group, as though daring anyone to challenge her here and now. "To avoid any rumors or misunderstandings, yes, we are bonded. No, neither of us are looking for any other partners. While we're on that subject, there is another young female you might have heard rumors about and may see around this camp. Her name is Em'brel, and you should think of her as my daughter for all intents and purposes. Once again, if anyone lays a hand on her in any way she does not welcome, I will take that as a personal attack and react accordingly."

Jack leaned over and said something quietly, to which S'haar nodded before continuing. "There are other rules around the camp, but they're mostly the same as back in the village. If you're not sure about anything, speak to the master of your discipline, they'll have any answers you seek. Speaking of, it's time to meet them. When I call your discipline, go meet with the master whose name I mention. Hunters and woodsmen, Lon'thul. Metalworkers and smelters, Tel'ron."

As she listed off professions and names, everyone split off to their new groups until Sare'en was alone and once again unnoticed. Unnoticed by everyone except for Jack, who turned and spoke with Lady S'haar once more.

The warrior woman started to respond, "Listen, I know you don't like the term magic, but it's far easier than explaining..." but she was cut off by Jack saying something else and pointing toward Sare'en.

Lady S'haar approached Sare'en with a slight frown. The girl found herself trembling under the scrutiny. Eventually, the older argu'n stopped short of Sare'en and gave her a brief once over. "Why didn't you go to one of the masters when I called your profession?"

Sare'en was unable to speak. She was already making a mess of things, and her mind became a blur of missed opportunities and things she could have done better in the short time she remained silent.

That was when Lady S'haar's consort spoke up again. Then he smiled at Sare'en. Something about his smile relaxed her. She could see the male had flat teeth, like an arlack. Then Lady S'haar took a deep breath and spoke again. "Sorry, let me rephrase that. You seem a bit lost. Is there something we overlooked?"

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Snapping her attention back to Lady S'haar, Sare'en brought her fist to her chest and bowed her head. "No...um...I'm sorry, what I mean to say...um..."

Sare'en took a deep breath and started over. "Lady S'haar, when the deep freeze struck, I was with the arlack and took the time to make sure they were all in their pens before going to the gathering spot. As a result, I was one of the last to arrive and was positioned on the room's outermost edge. I was near death when you came with food and fire. You saved my life! I vow to serve you for the rest of my life in payment of that debt!"

She was now staring intently at her feet, deeply embarrassed but proud that she'd been able to say her piece. A moment passed, and eventually, the male spoke up again. Lady S'haar also spoke, but her voice and mannerisms seemed to change as if she echoed the male beside her. "And what kind of service is it that you offer?"

Sare'en looked up, her gaze passing between the male and Lady S'haar for a moment before settling on the male, if only because she found his gaze less intimidating. "Ummm...I'm an arlack herder...um...Lord Jack? I'm here to help you get set up and ready for your own herd and to tend them once they've arrived."

The male laughed, and Lady S'haar began translating again. It was hard to know who to pay attention to, and Sare'en found her attention shifting back and forth between them as they spoke. "Jack is fine. I'm no Lord. At least not to my friends, anyway. Also, that's great news! We've wanted to get a herd for a while now, and your expertise will be invaluable. Come with us. We'll give you a brief tour and show you where we were thinking about setting up the pens."

It took the girl a moment to process what he'd said, especially the part about friends, then another moment to start following after the two. Despite the slower pace they'd set due to Jack's limp, she didn’t catch up as they were passing through the gate.

Looking up, the gate was much larger than it had seemed at a distance. It was probably about thirty feet tall, with guard towers standing closer to forty. Looking back after she passed through the gate, she noticed a raised walkway spanned the whole inside of the wall that allowed the guards to walk between the towers and still have total vision over the wall to the field beyond.

Looking down, she could see the pathways weren't made of packed dirt, as she's been expecting. Instead, they had long walkways filled with countless stones. Her talons couldn't find purchase as easily against the rocks, but she imagined they were well worth the inconvenience when it rained, so the walkways weren't just streams of mud to wade through.

Lady S'haar took over the tour, with Jack hobbling along, quietly talking to himself for some reason. "So, nearest the eastern gate, we have the main guardhouse and the hunters’ lodge. Positioned for quick, easy access to the wall or the wilds, accordingly."

She indicated some larger buildings further up the path they were on. "Up that way, you can see the woodworking and metalworking halls. Just past them are the workers’ billets. Eventually, we'd like to get more private housing set up for our more permanent residents, but after this winter's excitement, we focused on finishing the walls and just getting this place functioning first. So we'll take you back there and set up a room for you later. In the middle of the billets is the common well, designed by our own Em'brel."

There was that name again. There had been whispers around the village that the dragon's representative, Jack apparently, had taken a young female noble as his concubine. But if what Lady S'haar had said was true, she was more like a daughter to the pair than some kind of indentured servant. Sare'en was starting to wonder what this Em'brel was like.

She was so deep in thought that Sare'en almost missed the next part. "So the two most open areas we have available are near the northern and southern gates. Where do you think we should put the pens?"

Put on the spot, Sare'en started to freeze up again. "Ah, um, I'm not...I mean, I don't...That is to say, I need to know a bit more about the surrounding lands first...sorry..."

Lady S'haar's consort laughed and spoke up again, with Lady S'haar translating. This was something that would take some getting used to. "Why should you be sorry? That's what I would expect to hear from someone who took their job seriously. Come on, we'll head back to the billets. We'll get some food and have Em'brel meet us with some maps. That way, you can see what the surrounding landscape looks like."

Sare'en nodded emphatically. "Yes, that sounds good. But, um...just one question... What's a map?"

-

Sare'en was deciding if she should dig into the churlish flank she'd been served or wait for Lady S'haar to eat first when Em'brel walked into the room.

Unlike Sare'en, Em'brel drew the eyes of everyone in the room. She was quick to laugh and smile with everyone she passed by, and it was clear she was the darling of the Outpost. Sare'en suspected S'haar's warning earlier was probably unnecessary. If anyone was foolish enough to mess with the girl in any way, they'd likely face the wrath of the entire Outpost.

Sare'en also noticed that the hunter chief's son was a close second to S'haar in protectiveness. When he walked in, right behind Em'brel, he still had his easy going expression, but this time, his smile didn't quite reach all the way to his eyes like before. Instead, they had an odd edge as he quickly scanned the corners and shadows before relaxing and laughing at some bawdy joke someone else in the room shared with him.

Em'brel approached their table with some rolled-up animal skins and a smile. "I brought the maps, just like you asked! Sorry if I took a little too long. Angela was in the middle of an explanation about ethical philosophy and wanted to finish up her description of utilitarianism. I never thought there could be so many ways to look at right and wrong! It always seemed so simple before!"

Lady S'haar's consort laughed and said something else to the girl, though this time, Lady S'haar didn't bother to offer a translation.

Apparently, Em'brel understood him just fine, although she looked confused as she responded. "I don't think we've gotten to that one yet, but why is there a whole philosophy around what people can't do?"

Jack laughed harder than before and said something else, making Em'brel laugh this time. "Well, that's just a silly name for someone, philosopher or not."

The young lady turned to Sare'en and gave an awkward quasi-formal bow that was hindered by the rolls of animal skin she carried and smiled. "Oh, forgive my poor manners. I'm Em'brel! You must be Sare'en. Jack's already told me a lot about you."

This confused Sare'en. When had Jack had the time to say anything to anyone? They'd been together since she'd gotten here. Looking at the odd male, she noticed he was smiling again with those strange flat teeth. Perhaps he was a wizard, just like Lady S'haar had said. Still, he seemed friendly enough, and it was hard to be too afraid of a male who laughed when Lon'thul came and slapped him on the back while repeated the same joke the hunter had been told earlier. Lady S'haar looked on at the two with disapproval clear on her face, though Sare'en noticed her eyes seemed to smile, rather than reflect the frown on her lips this time.

For her part, Em'brel huffed and placed her rolls down, unfurling one in such a way that Jack was forced to quickly pick up his plate of food to keep it from being covered by the skin. While his expression was hard to read due to his deformities, Sare'en got the distinct impression he enjoyed causing a bit of trouble and the reactions that came with it.

Finally, looking down at the skin, Sare'en could see many odd shapes had been drawn on it. Em'brel began explaining. "So, here in the north and south are the best areas to put the pens. They have large open spaces, easy access to a gate, and we were planning on putting more wells in both places, anyway.What do you think?"

Sare'en had no idea what she was looking at. Her brow furrowed as she tried to understand how what Em'brel was saying had any connection to the drawing on the animal skin. She didn't want to say anything and disappoint these people, but she felt more hopelessly lost by the minute.

That was when Lady S'haar's consort —Jack, she reminded herself— spoke up again. Pretty soon, Em'brel was wide-eyed with surprise and embarrassment. "Oh, I'm sorry! You've never seen a map before, have you? At least not like this! Let me explain!"

Em'brel started pointing at the shapes as she spoke. "So, this is a scale representation of the camp. This is the east gate. Here is the guardhouse and hunter's lodge, and here..."

As the explanation went on, Sare'en finally grasped what she was saying. This was a drawing of the camp, as seen from above. Soon she could imagine she was looking down at the same paths she'd walked through not long ago. She started to get excited before realizing what was wrong and felt dismayed again. "Um...this is really neat, but what I really need is to know what the surrounding land looks like, sorry..."

Em'brel waved away her concern. "Not a problem, that's why I brought this one!"

The young female unraveled another skin over the top of the first. She'd been so excited to show off that both Jack and S'haar had to lift their drinks to save them from the unfurling skin. This one showed the camp again, but it was much smaller in this "map." It was surrounded by a whole new set of shapes, which Em'brel began explaining to the other girl excitedly.

-

Jack sat back, content to listen and watch as the two girls bonded. S'haar looked over at him, amused by his sly smile. Then, leaning over, she whispered to him. "How'd you know these two would get along so well? Aside from their age, they don't seem to have much in common."

Jack whispered back. "Well, I noticed Sare'en seemed a bit out of place among the other argu'n. I'm guessing she works with arlack because she's more comfortable with them than her own people. Honestly, if I'd been born an argu'n, I imagine I'd be similar to her in many ways. Since Em'brel is already used to and comfortable with my mannerisms, I figured they'd get along fine. Besides, she seems to be a big fan of yours. They've got at least that much in common."

S'haar watched as Em'brel shooed Lon'thul away after he accidentally startled Sare'en by loudly speaking up right behind her. "Alright, alright, you did good this time. Now, what say we take advantage of the house being empty at the moment and go enjoy some personal time, hmmm?"

Jack grinned and had a quick word with Lon'thul to let him know he'd have to escort Em'brel home once they'd wrapped up here. After that, the two of them escaped, intending to make the best use of the unexpected privacy they'd been given.