As the Deacon's thugs lashed her to the old tree, Tabri plead to her fellow refugees for clemency. "Please! This is all a terrible mistake! I'm not a witch!"

"Silence, foul conjurer," cried the Deacon, shoving a torch in her face. "One of the faithful witnessed you casting your sinful spells. Do not deny it!"

With the ropes tightening around her, Tabri scanned the assembled crowd for any friendly faces. Most regarded her with twisted contempt, a few averted their gaze, not wishing this fate on her but not willing to speak up for their own safety. This strange new land had infected them with its frightful atmosphere.

Dusk seemed perpetual here, and the thick forest endless. A far cry from the shining city they had come from.

The accused witch's eyes fell on Alinka, her old friend, among those who couldn't bear to watch.

"Alinka, please. Explain to them what I was doing. Please, save me!"

Her friend just turned away, crying. Tabri's heart sank as she did.

The Deacon addressed his flock."Brothers and sisters, the old gods and their sorcery destroyed our glorious home of Xur. We must turn away from it if we are to survive. Thus is the will of our new goddess, and by her will, I find Tabri guilty of witchery."

He tilted up her chin. The young maiden shot him the dirtiest glare she could muster.

"You are hereby banished. Never return amongst us."

She spit in his face. Wiping her malice away with a groan, he turned back to his followers. "Come. Let us leave this heretic to her fate."

Quickly, the children of Xur departed into the woods, still seeking a new home. The accused witch watched their torchlights dwindle in the distance. Little did she know another had been audience to the spectacle, observing from the canopy above.

With an audible sigh, Tabri struggled against her restraints. They held tight. The Deacon clearly meant not only to banish her, but to execute her for her crimes as well. Serving as a wild beast's breakfast would be a fitting punishment for a heretic spellcaster in his eyes. She had no intention of letting that happen. She would survive, if only to spite him.

Muttering a few words, a spell surged through her wrists and the ropes unraveled. Her magic may have freed her, but that left the young exile in no better condition. She was still lost in the foreign forest, a stranger in a land unvisited by humanity. And night would fall before she expected. Making matters worse, she was alone. On the long journey here, her people all worked together, divvying up tasks to ensure survival of the whole. But now banished, she suddenly realized how helpless she was.

Having no other avenues available, Tabri ventured deeper into the forest. Her unknown voyeur followed her.

An uneasy stillness hung over the scenery. No wind blew through the leaves and no birdsong echoed through the trees. The only sound to be heard was the faint crunch of dead foliage under her footfalls. To someone like herself, who'd lived most of their life in city bustle, the silence and isolation were eerie. That eeriness set Tabri's nerves on edge. To alleviate them, she spoke to herself.

"So this is to be our new home then? I can't say it would be my first choice. No sea, no buildings. Is all the world beyond Xur simply forest?"

Only the song of cicadas answered her.

Putting her fists on her hips, Tabri attempted to appear unperturbed and continued, "I suppose I should find shelter. I'll need some food and water too, and a fire. Where to start though?"

She turned to the best tool she had, her magic. Surmising there must be a creek or stream nearby, she had no difficulty enchanting a few twigs to make a divining rod. Soon, the banished spellcaster was hiking through the thicket on her way to fresh water.

But Tabri was a city dweller by nature. Her childhood in the grand metropolis of Xur left her unprepared for tromping in the shadowy forest. More than once she tripped on bulging roots, scratched herself on the sharp branches, and slipped on the smooth moss free rocks. The wet and muddy ground became treacherous beneath her boots.

Despite the silence, she was not as alone as she believed. The woods had eyes, aside from her observer, hidden from view. These eyes observed the accused witch on her trek. When she hit a bad patch of trail and slid down a hill on her rear, already cut and bruised, they made their move.

Tabri righted herself, rubbing her sore back, only to come face to face with a pack of gray wolves circling around her. The pack's leader stalked forward, staring at her with a hunter's intent and baring its teeth to give a low growl.

"Oh no."

To Tabri's credit, she didn't panic. Doing so would be useless. She just put up her arms, closed her eyes, and wished for her mother.

As the wolf tensed to pounce, something dropped from the canopy above their heads. Landing between the maiden and her attacker, it snarled at the beast. Tabri released a small gasp when she spied her rescuer between her fingers.

The creature was tiny, no larger than a child, but in the shape of a man. Its skin shimmered like volcanic glass or varnished black wood. Two wings, sharp as arrows, jutted from its back. Blue light spilled from its skull. Though outnumbered and outsized, Tabri's rescuer didn't back down. The pack barked and growled, and the odd beastie merely snapped back at them, embers flying from its mouth like spittle.

You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

This odd creature scuttled toward the wolves on all fours and the alpha demurred, sprinting away from the flame-spitting rival. Its pack followed. Now safe, Tabri said to her unlikely savior, "Thank you, I don't know what I would have done if you hadn't..."

Her gratitude snagged on her tongue as her rescuer turned to face her. And what a face it was. The creature's skull was open at the top and its head appeared hollow. Cerulean flame blazed within. Its eyes and mouth were empty cutouts, holes in a lantern, yet expressed themselves as well as any face. That face regarded Tabri with concern and curiosity as its owner extended one clawed finger toward her.

But as she reached out to meet it, the creature withdrew sharply and scurried back into the undergrowth. "Wait, come back!" She cried out as she watched its light zigzag away from her. "I just wanted to know what you are."

Her divining rod snapped in the fall. Tabri doubted her spell had been working well anyway. But finding fresh water wouldn't be a problem for long. A downpour began after her near brush with death.

As night fell, she took shelter in a shallow cave beneath an ancient, gnarled tree. A large leaf helped gather water, but cold and hunger still gnawed at her. Food she could deal with. The teenage spellcaster fashioned a few dolls out of twigs and leaves, tying them together with strips of her dress and breathing magical life into them. One by one, she sent her little mannequins out to forage. Warmth, however, was another matter.

Despite an abundance of kindling, Tabri couldn't get a fire started. She rubbed sticks vigorously and blew on every spark, but nothing would catch light. "Oh, if only I knew the spell," she cursed. Her magic had gotten her banished, and she hadn't even mastered enough of it to keep herself alive. Damn that Deacon and his zealotry, his new goddess. Her people practiced the arcane arts in Xur for a generation and now, in the wake of the city's fall, they forbade everything that made the city great. Leaving her smoldering pile, she retreated to the back of the cave, pulling her knees to her chest. Again, she missed her mother.

That was when some light poked in at the cave's mouth.

Peering up, Tabri brushed aside a lock of dark hair to see her rescuer from before. The small creature hesitated on the threshold, wide saucer eyes meeting the teenager's gaze.

She beckoned it in. "Come, please. I won't hurt you."

The beastie accepted her invitation, padding in on all fours. Her guest stopped at her failed fire pit. Rubbing some ash between its fingers, it said, "Do you need fire?"

"You can speak!"

Embarrassment crossed its face. "I'm often told not to. I'll be silent now."

"No, please," said Tabri, " I would welcome another voice. And some warmth as well."

Dipping its head, the creature scooped out some flame from its hollow skull. Tabri's kindling finally lit and a cozy heat filled the cave. She scooted closer, warming her hands, and her two-time savior regarded her inquisitively.

"Why did you run away from me before?" she asked.

"Your words," it said, "I've never heard "thank you" before. What does this phrase mean?"

"Never heard..." She found the notion absurd, but tried to illustrate the phrase's meaning. "'Thank you' is an expression of gratitude. I was grateful for your rescue."

"So it was not a threat?"

Tabri scoffed. "Of course not."

"Interesting."

"Do people not help each other when they're in need where you're from?"

"No, not if they gain nothing from doing so. Helping another in need is considered disturbed behavior." Its gaze lowered. "That's what they told me, that I was disturbed."

"It sounds awful."

"Perhaps that is why my superiors left me here. Because I kept helping people."

"You were banished for that?"

"Banished? Oh. Yes, I suppose I was."

Sadness filled the creature's face.

"Well, It's no sillier than the reason I was banished."

"You were banished as well?"

She nodded. "For this." Holding out her hand, Tabri produced a swirl of sparkles. They drifted into the fire, popping and cracking in the heat.

"I can cast spells. A little. I still don't know many. But even a little magic was too much for the Deacon."

Intrigued, the creature moved closer to the young spellcaster. It took her by the hand and dragged a sharp finger across her palm, not deep enough to draw blood.

"Curious. My people are born and bred from magic. Yet your people fear it?"

"Well, they have reason to. In our old home, the great city of Xur, our king, Xemu, became obsessed with the power the arcane arts granted him. He meant to overthrow the gods. When they learned of his hubris, they struck down King Xemu and our home.

"We've all fled since then, we survivors, crossing the sea to new lands. My people had to brave the harsh, high mountains to reach this place. But so few of them were spellcasters in Xur that only the destruction it brought remains in their minds. So magic frightens them, and the Deacon and his new goddess help keep them frightened."

"But you do not fear it?"

"No. My teachers told me of the wonders spellcraft could bring, if mastered. Sadly I had to flee before I learned much."

She brought forth another shower of sparks, one of the few things she could do well with her meager conjuring.

The creature examined her hands again. "Your spells are wonderful indeed."

"Really?" She blushed. "Thank you."

"Hmm. More gratitude."

Tabri found the expression her guest made difficult to read, despite its simple features. It appeared to be rolling a sensation around in its mouth, uncertain what to make of the taste.

"Oh! I never introduced myself. I'm Tabri. What is your name?"

Her new companion stared at her and said, "I... I don't have one. I never earned a name."

"Your people have to earn their names?"

It nodded shamefully.

"Well I think rescuing me from those wolves is more than enough to earn you one."

She looked the ashen gremlin over, trying to put words to its character.

"How do you feel about Damné?"

"Damné? Hmm... It is unlike the names my kind are usually given. But I am not like most of my kind." He bowed his head. "I accept this name."

"Wonderful!"

As the two spoke, Tabri's animated twig dolls returned, their weak wooden arms laden with berries and mushrooms. They presented their bounty to their mistress.

"Excellent work little ones," she told her enchanted servants and took a handful of their collection. Popping a berry into her mouth, its juice tart on her tongue, she realized hunger made her forget her manners.

She offered some to the devil and asked, "Would you like some?"

"No need," said Damné, "My kind do not feed the same way as you."

"Then what do you eat? I owe you that much at least."

"We feed on... fear." Guilt flashed on his face. "I must make a confession Tabri. When I saw those wolves surround you, I did not intend to rescue you. I meant to sate myself off your terror and misery. But my... disturbed nature led me to aid you instead."

"You must be starving!"

"That is the odd thing, I am not. Your feelings of gratitude nourished me far better than fear ever has. The flavor is strange to me, alien in fact, but delicious. May I have more?"

Tabri, who began the day exiled and lashed to a tree, only blushed. In this foreboding forest she had found a kindred soul, another banished for his queer behavior. She wouldn't be alone after all. How could she deny such a comrade's request?

"Take all you want Damné. I've more than enough."

The rain gave way to a brilliant moon that night, as the girl and the devil snuggled close around their fire.