Daniel found everybody in the stables with their horses getting ready. Every member of the group wore a brown traveling cloak and Caspian and Dain had traded their training robes for hardier road clothes. Caspian had his rapier hanging from his hip while Dain, perhaps motivated by his recent sparring, had opted for a pair of metal fighting sticks that he wore on his back. Supplies had already been prepared and loaded into saddlebags. Daniel carried his bastard sword on his hip while holding a backpack and looking lost. Brant had given it to him with the punch training box inside and his own map sealed in a waterproof container. Daniel had also made a quick diversion to the Conrad library and retrieved his hidden phone and the demonic studies journal that he’d hidden there. He couldn’t risk leaving the phone behind to be discovered and if there really was a demon attacking people in Fordham, then the journal might have answers that could help. The library had also contained sketches of various towns an artist had been commissioned for. Daniel stole the sketch of Fordham’s town square, hoping it would help guide his World Walking ability and secured it with his map.

Caspian grinned as he saw him and brought over a brown horse.

“Daniel meet Nutmeg. Nutmeg meet Daniel,” he said.

The horse snorted, and it took everything Daniel had not to flinch. He didn’t feel he was so much terrified of horses as he was aware of what they were capable of. How easy it would be for one of them to kill a man with a single kick or leave them with severe brain damage. He’d also heard over the years numerous reports of people falling off of horses and becoming paralyzed or dead. While a magical healing bath might have made that less likely, no healer was travelling with them and his own essence abilities seemed to barely aid his natural healing ability. It left him feeling wary of horses.

Still, Daniel wasn’t backing down. Especially not in front of the others who’d noticed he’d arrived. He put out his hand and gently rubbed Nutmeg’s nose. The horse loudly exhaled and lowered her head further.

“That means she likes you,” said Caspian.

“What do I do now?”

Greta overheard his confusion and came to help. “Get on her and then hold the reins. We’ll get her to follow the other horses and try to teach you as we go,” she said.

Daniel put one foot in the stirrup and climbed into the saddle. He was worried that Nutmeg might move as soon as he did so, but instead, she merely waited.

“I picked a calm one for you,” Caspian assured him.

“Good to know,” said Daniel.

The others got on their horses and started to move. Greta took the lead, followed by Alanna, then it was Daniel and Caspian side by side with Abigail and Dain bringing up the rear. At first, the horse moved at a slow trot, which Daniel felt comfortable with. He asked Caspian about when they’d go faster which seemed to amuse him.

“Horses are mostly built for doing short sprints when going fast. We’d tire the animals out long before we made it to Fordham if we used them that way. We’ll probably stick to this pace for the entire journey.”

That suited Daniel just fine. The horse seemed to follow those in front automatically. All he had to do was remain seated and let the animal do the work.

“So, what did Brant want to talk to you about?” asked Caspian.

“It was just some training tips. He told you I might have to go into seclusion on the journey?”

Caspian nodded. “It makes sense. If you do get delayed, I’ll make sure to take Nutmeg with us.”

The horse glanced at him briefly at the mention of her name before returning to staring at the horse in front.

They traveled around Veden, sticking to the farm and side roads. Alanna and Greta were in a deep conversation that Daniel couldn’t make out and the same could be said for Abigail and Dain. Caspian, on the other hand wasn’t much of a conversation partner as he was complaining about the lack of notice he’d been given and wasn’t allowed to even pack his own things.

“I’m stuck wearing these hand me downs,” he said in disgust.

Daniel chose to focus on the positive. “Brant made it seem like a good thing. You’ve been taking the training more seriously and now they’re letting you out for an assignment.”

“A supervised one,” he murmured, gesturing at Sister Greta. “I’m sure she’ll be making detailed reports throughout the journey to give back to my father.”

I don’t know if you’re the one she’s most concerned with, Daniel thought.

“You ever seen a Corebeast before?” Daniel asked, switching topics.

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He nodded. “A handful of times during my travels. Never fought one myself. Just glimpsed them from afar. Each one is unique in appearance. I’m told no two are alike. Still, I’ve heard Corebeast hunters talk about the rush they feel when killing one. It’s probably similar to what the Corebeast itself felt when killing prey. There’s a euphoria that can be felt when its core bursts open and all that pure distilled essence comes flooding out. Brant wasn’t exaggerating when he said it would put us on the path to Iron. If you absorb essence from a fallen Corebeast, you will notice an improvement to your own core.”

“So why isn’t hunting them more common here?”

“Because there aren’t any around Veden. It’s a low-essence zone, which means there’s not enough to awaken the core of any animal. Once you get to the medium and high essence zones, hunting them becomes more common. They can grow so strong that sometimes one of the Barons is called in to kill it, if it proves too much for the local Lords.”

“So if one did slip into Fordham from a medium-zone, then it’s going to be tough for us then?”

Caspian nodded. “It might have an Iron core but as a group we stand a good chance. Corebeasts are mindless and fight on instinct. It won’t be like your encounters with essence users.”

That was good to know.

The group fell into a natural silence and Daniel thought about his World Walking ability. He’d returned to Alarstardes one day ago and the longest he’d gone without teleporting was a little over a week. To be safe, he decided that he would inform the group that he was leaving for seclusion training in six days. That way he could trigger the ability early rather than it suddenly activating at a random unfortunate time.

Meanwhile, Dain had a question that was bothering him about Abigail and so he finally asked it. “You seemed bothered by the idea of going on this trip, but the prospect of hunting a Corebeast would normally excite any essence user. Why is that?”

“I don’t know if I want to get into it right now,” she muttered, while staring straight ahead.

“We’re going to be spending a lot of time together. At least six weeks worth, even if the trip ends up being a waste of time.”

“You think it will be?”

Dain shrugged. “I’m not a Lirian native. I don’t know what these people from Fordham are like, but the more cut off from the rest of society people are, the more superstitious they tend to become. It wouldn’t surprise me if we get there only to find a more mundane cause.”

“You said you’re not from Liria. So where did you come from originally?”

“An island down south. Not as far south as Rhoshan, but still a more considerable journey that we’re undertaking now. Essence user trials were being held at the nearest port and Howell Conrad selected me to come with him and awaken my core.”

“And so you just left everything behind?”

“I send some money and letters back on a ship every few months or so. The island I came from was very poor and there was little in the way of opportunity there. Becoming an essence warrior is considered a great honor among my people.”

Abigail sighed. “I suppose in a way I’m honoring my family too by going on this trip. Though if father hadn’t forced me to, I’m not sure if I would have ever left Veden.”

Dain’s eyebrows rose. “And you, the daughter of a Lord would simply choose to remain at Bronze?”

She nodded. “I never saw the appeal of advancement. Sure, it makes me stronger and faster, but that’s it. I don’t care about fighting, which makes the whole thing feel rather pointless to me.”

“Surely there are other areas, though. Incredible things have been done with essence in the healing field or in engineering.”

“Yes, but none of it in Veden and likely never will be. That’s why I was so focused on the library. I figured that if I could improve the lives of the Stones living there, then Veden might find another way to flourish.”

“A noble goal,” Dain admitted. “But what will you do if you return home in six weeks to find that your father has finished your goal for you? Brant already said that he’d hired people. What will you do then?”

Abigail frowned. “Good question.”

They became quiet and lost in thoughts. Dain in the past, remembering his home and family while Abigail grappled with ideas for the future.

At the front of the group, Alanna could not stop talking about the people of Fordham. Sister Greta had asked one simple question out of politeness about her kin, but it seemed to launch an avalanche of words that appeared to be endless. Among the gossip and minutiae, the Sister tried to pick out the useful tidbits. It was difficult though. Alanna was the tavern keepers daughter. Well liked by all in Fordham, but not very politically minded. There was little she could say about the town's leadership other than that they were kind and smart.

The leadership could be broken down into three men. The head of the church there, Father Bertram, a Bronze user following the path of Odar. Next was Mayor Gerold, who wasn’t an essence user but was elected to office. By Alanna’s account, he was a competent bureaucrat who accepted the position because nobody else in town wanted the job. The final man was Torsten, the head of the cotton farmers league. His group represented all the farmers in the area and was responsible for most of their commerce. So she had government, the church, and business represented.

Each of them would no doubt want to be involved in her investigation, if only to try and gain credit for her eventual success. Scourge sightings and investigations weren’t exactly rare, just rarely fruitful. People were always jumping at shadows. The church would dispatch agents to investigate all of them but usually they were all ghost stories. Having so many bodies piled up in such a brutal fashion made this case different.

Sister Greta felt a thrill of excitement hum in her chest. She knew immediately that this would be no hoax and taking the fight directly to the Scourge had always been a lifelong dream of hers. It was why she’d chosen the path of Belthi. The warrior and the protector. The one who captures and binds evil.

But where there’s one source of evil, there is always another. From her earliest days, she was taught about the nefarious ways in which evil can spread. If the Scourge was there killing at night, then it was likely spreading its poison into unsuspecting townsfolks ears during the day. From her initial assessment, Alanna seemed pure of heart but she would have to keep her close to make sure.

After all, everyone knows that the Scourge has to be called to enter our world. So not only must she find and deal with the Scourge itself, but she will also have to quietly investigate to track down the one who called it. The church had given her full authority in this matter and whoever it was, they would find no mercy from her. Just a swift execution at the hand of her chains.