In this dream I can feel a warmth bubbling inside me. Like a hot mug of tea cradled against a cold morning.

Or… not a cold morning. The darkness and chill is alive, and it's clawing at me. But I’m not afraid, warm hands wrap around mine and direct the warmth outward. The things flee.

I turn around, wanting to thank Yrelia. But it’s not her that peers down at me, only violet eyes that blaze and burn.

I try to ask Her things. Try to thank Her for changing me, about who She is and what I could possibly do to repay Her.

There is no reply, only the chill as darkness swarms at me again. She takes my hands in hers, and turns me back toward them. But the warmth sputters.

I don’t know how much of it I have left.

I awake to Tasii coming over to offer us water. I sputter and try to blubber out something coherent as I attempt to untangle myself from the mess of legs and arms and blanket. But Yrelia’s not the least bit embarrassed or self-conscious. She just pushes off our blanket, lets out a yawn and a big stretch that hides nothing of her naked body from anyone watching. Then she gives me a peck on the cheek and starts her morning.

They all know. I’m sure of it. Yrelia redressed in her clothes from last night at least. But... other than a few knowing smiles from Kque and Tasii over breakfast, no one seems bothered or even surprised by our sex last night. Even Jevita seems unconcerned as they talk of our travel plans. Apparently we expect to come to a town before noon, do some trading there, and spend the night in one of their taverns if fortune favors us.

Yrelia is glowing with mirth and bubbling joy, nearly bouncing in place. She runs a finger along my shoulder, saying that she’ll need something fancy to wear. Then she rises and heads over to search through the piles of saddlebags.

Tasii takes my… not being used to touches of affection, as confusion at Yrelia’s words.

“She handles most of our trading.” She explains. “All of us have connections, mothers or… past friends whose names can help or sway a deal. And knowledge on the value of the items. But she’s got the sweet lips and is best at whirling a tangled web of trades together that generally ends in our favor. That and her birth mother co-organizes a not-so-small chain of traders along the sea.”

She looks past me a smirk on her lips, to Yrelia’s enthusiastic search through the luggage and raises her voice. “And she seems… especially energized this morning.”

Yrelia turns, sticks out a taunting tongue in at Tasii, and continues her search.

Tasii’s smirk doesn’t falter, but when her eyes flit to me it becomes a bit more careful. Her voice lowers. “Are you… Is she… If you’d rather have some space I can talk to her.”

“Oh! No no no! It’s alright. She’s… she’s being very kind and…” I pause, trying to find the right words.

Last night was… amazing. The best sex I’ve ever had. I’m actually looking forward to sex now. To all the things and– The memory of the taste of her floods my mind and I’m surprised at how easily the warmth returns to my chest. I unconsciously find myself nibbling on my lower lip and touching my sternum.

That expression must answer her better than words. She nods, her smirk returning.

“What about this one?” Yrelia returns with a red dress in her arms.

“Trading, Yrelia.” Jevita chimes in, eyes glancing up over a book she’d pulled out from… somewhere. “After four or five hours of travel.”

Yrelia pouts for a moment, then sighs. “Shame. I’ll just have to get an amazing trade and free rooms so I can change into it.”

Tasii nods, “It’ll probably warm up soon, don’t want them turning up their noses at too much road smell. Maybe something like you gave Ina? Simple but comfy? To bring out your bright eyes and contagious smile more?”

They pass a few more suggestions around, Yrelia’s attitude unwavering as more and more ideas are discussed and discarded. Eventually they settle on a dress like the first I met her in, but blue with less feathers and pockets. She even finds me a new outfit amidst it all. Nothing as striking as hers, but a dark maroon dress and a fresh pair of tights with more nice designs hidden about.

After everyone is dressed we all work together to pack up the bags, then we’re back on the road.

It’s a perfect day. Warm with the sun shining down from the clear blue sky as a cool breeze blows through the trees into us.

Talks of little things come and go, and I’m content to listen. Not so many questions seem directed at me today. The trees continue to multiply, and eventually we’ve fully waded into a forest. My first forest. It would have been scary if I’d not been with them. When the wind blows hard enough the entire thing seems to sway and creak as one. All the different animal noises are nice though, and eventually I asked Yrelia what one was and there is a bit of a game started of it. We hear an odd sound and everyone would tease at trying to guess what type of animal it is. But that’s when we hear a sound we all recognise, and they all seem to stiffen.

This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

Voices. There are people just up around a turn in the path.

Jevita mumbles soft Arudian commands to Lule, quicker than I can catch, and he begins to floof his feathers and pitter patter his feet. Kque slows to stand on my other side while Tasii moves up beside Jevita. Yrelia slides her fingers in mine while Kque touches her hand to my elbow.

“We’ll let Tasii handle this, okay?” Yrelia murmurs to me quietly.

“Is um… Are we expecting trouble of some kind?” Thoughts of turning the corner into a group of searching duenna begin to curdle the warm calm that had been subtly replacing my anxiety.

“Hm? No.” She gives me a truly confident smile, “But if it is trouble we’d like to be ready for it.”

As we turn the corner we see three people paused on the road about fifty feet along in the dead center of the path. The first is wearing simple green traveling clothes with a multi-part backpack with all sorts of little pockets and even some cooking pots hanging off it. She’d have instantly calmed our group I expect, if not for the shortsword she openly carried in her left hand. The second woman is taller, wearing a dirtier long tan dress. A pole of thick dark wood, taller than she is, clutched in her right hand. Its top seems gnarled, like something was recently torn off the top. The third woman is being carried over the back of the second, her legs hanging over one shoulder while her arms dangle over the opposite. She is wrapped in blankets, and a tangled mess of dirty hair covers most of her face.

The two women snap to see us round the corner. The shorter one gives us a jerking motion, trying to hurry us to catch up while the taller turns back forward.

“More in hiding? Or up ahead?” Jevita mutters to Tasii.

I can’t see Tasii’s face, but from her posture I can tell she’s tense. “Maybe. Lule will be enough to keep them civil. The town ahead isn’t big, but they won’t put up with bandits this close for long.”

We don’t rush, despite the woman’s continued prompts and quiet yells that are lost to the wind.

When we’re within twenty or so feet, I notice that the woman with the sword is also wielding a black cooking pan in her other hand. She’s also pale, with deep bags under her eyes and a few fresh scars over her face. The tall woman glances back to us over her shoulder, her eyes looking at Lule with a mix of nervousness and… something else I can’t place. The third still does not move. She seems unconscious, but I catch a glimpse of a single eye. Half-lidded, weary beyond measure, and a little dead inside. I suppress a shudder.

Tasii raises a hand, both a greeting and a warning to keep distance. “Hi. Is something the matter?”

The short woman winces at her raised words, and replies with a hushed call, “Hurry up! It might still be about!”

“It?” Is all Tasii’s reply, content to let the woman explain.

“Yeah. Something attacked us.” She huffs, her expression flitting between anger and fear and a few others, “It hurt Allid.” She nods to the unconscious friend. “We’re trying to get to Deledita to get her help.”

Tasii seems to process that for a moment, then. “What did this? How badly is she hurt?”

“Bad.” She replies, sagging tiredly. “Healing waters helped, but… She’s not really all there right now. I think she’s still in shock.”

Tasii nods and seems to look pointedly at the sword.

The woman seems to just now notice the blade in her hand, and a look of relief and a little annoyance passes over her as she sags a bit. “Oh fuck. We look like a couple robbers on the road.”

Tasii tilts her head in acknowledgement, “A little bit”.

She sighs, gripping it tighter. Then the taller woman speaks up, voice tight with stress. “Any other day I’d apologize for it. But we need to move. And it’s better to travel as a group.”

Her eyes try to see everything as she glances about, only settling on Tasii and our group for a moment. “We were attacked last night, by some kind of… Well let’s just hope it doesn’t come back.”

She adjusts the pole in her hand, and it’s then I realize it was probably a spear. At least before something broke off its tip.

“We really need to keep moving.” She taps the shorter woman on the shoulder and begins to turn, “It might–”

She freezes in place. The shorter woman jerks at the sudden pause, weapons coming up.

A pause.

“Where is it!” The shorter woman hisses as she turns to look down the path.

“Where is what?” Tasii asks, a little annoyance in her voice.

“Listen.” The taller one moves to try and grip her pole with both hands. It’s awkward, but it’s clear she’s unwilling to lay down the third woman.

We all go quiet. No more animals or birds are making noises. The warmth that’s still inside me burns as a chill makes the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end.

The forest has gone more quiet than we have, except… I don’t know what to make of it. It’s getting closer, certainly. But it's a sort of… cluster of thumping noises.

“If you have any water from Lyttoral, get it.” The tall one snaps.

Then something stumbles onto the path about thirty feet past them. A memory flashes in my mind, of the time a few of my fellow beau got into a big fight. They rolled about, grunting and punching and even biting. This is quieter than that. No grunts, but I can sort of make out some arms flailing about. No clothes though… and no eyes… is that a tongue? As big as an arm?

The thing rights itself and goes very still, and we all get a great look at a nightmare.

It’s shaped as if a spider had… like… 10 arms, all double jointed, instead of legs. And instead of a body it has a central mass of tongues that seem to wrap around themselves. It also seems to be about as big as three or four large people.

... Extra large people.

I blink, and suddenly it’s moving. So fast none of us can react, it is already upon the three women in front of us.