Ingrid grunted as she slumped down against the tree. Spending so long in the mountains doing nothing but walking was something she thought would get to her after a while, but it was surprisingly comfortable. The aches and bruises from the march couldn’t hold a candle to the serenity of the woods and rocks. Even in the few moments where she thought she needed a mental break, the mountains themselves seemed to respond by giving her gorgeous views of deep valleys and still mountain lakes, or the white noise of rustling branches and babbling streams. Even if those beautiful little bits of nature weren’t there to help ease her mind, she was still confident that she wouldn’t struggle. Mainly for one reason. A reason that plopped down next to her and wrapped an arm around her shoulder.

“Tired from the march?” Alice asked, a content smile on her face.

“A little bit. Today was a long one.”

“Fair enough. We’re gettin’ close to the two-week mark though. We should be outta the mountains pretty soon,” the dark elf explained. She scooted a little closer to Ingrid. “As much as I know that disappoints you.”

Ingrid smiled and rolled her eyes. “I do love the mountains, but it’s slow moving through them,” she couldn’t hide the fact that her demeanor faltered slightly. “My brother still needs us.”

Alice looked her over, concern apparent in her gaze. She pulled Ingrid’s head to rest on her shoulder. Ingrid smiled, closing her eyes and nestling her head into the crook of her lover’s neck.

“He’s gonna be okay,” Alice said softly, “Doesn’t matter how meek he is, he’s a stubborn little shit at times.”

Ingrid nodded. “I can’t help but worry though.”

“I know. It’d be more concerning if you weren’t worried if I’m bein’ honest,” she mused.

“We should be worried about what our next moves will be,” a commanding voice called out to them.

Ingrid opened her eyes as a gust of wind blew the hair out of her face. Folding away her enormous wings as she landed in the camp was Natalia. Ever since they broke her out of Berith’s camp, she had been looking significantly better. She no longer looked as malnourished or tired, and the pallor had gradually left her dark skin over the past several days. Tossing her golden hair over her shoulders, she walked towards the campfire.

“There’s a river up ahead that we’re going to need a way to cross. Am I going to be flying you all across one by one like the last one?” she grumbled.

“Oi, I only suggested that because you were the one that missed it when flying over,” Alice chuckled, “Seriously, how’d you miss something that big?”

Her wing twitched. “I already told you, it wasn’t that big, and it was surrounded by trees.”

“If you say so.”

“D-Didn’t Ingrid suggest getting the water to flow around us? That m-might be easier on Natalia,” a timid voice suggested.

Malori and Kallen re-entered the camp, the latter carrying a bundle of firewood. Despite all of Kallen’s clothes still being tattered, all of her wounds had been healed. Ingrid and Malori had tried their best to clean up the rags the woman wore, but there were still some now-black stains on her tunic and leggings where they hadn’t been able to wash out the blood.

The group’s little healer had come a surprisingly long way since the beginning of their journey. She still wasn’t the most physically fit, and it was hard to make out much at all of her physique from under the baggy robes she wore, but she no longer needed to be carried or take breaks as often. Ingrid couldn’t help but feel a little proud, but a part of her wished that the breaks didn’t need to happen to begin with. Every moment wasted was another moment of Mattias in the clutches of whoever Berith worked for.

One of the silver linings in their trek through the mountains was that, for whatever reason, there were no signs whatsoever of Berith or his troops following them. Even if they could remain hidden from sight, they couldn’t remain hidden from the plant life and animals that filled the wilderness. If they were anywhere close by, Ingrid would have been informed in one of her many check-ins with the world around her. If it was possible to get around that obstacle, it didn’t change the fact that they too were living things. If Ingrid spread her mind far enough, she would be able to sense them.

While the lack of their enemies’ presence should have been comforting, it did stoke Ingrid’s ever-present anxiety. The question of why they hadn’t followed the group lurked constantly in the back of her mind. Even Alice struggled to think of reasons why they hadn’t been chased down after being injured so grievously in the fight.

It was times like that where she found herself thankful for Kallen’s presence. The human wasn’t the brightest, but the levity she provided when Ingrid was overthinking things was more than appreciated.

“Hey Natalia, want me to do some more spearfishing when we get to that river?” Kallen offered cheerfully. She dropped the bundle of wood next to the illian, who already started to toss the logs into the flames. “I saw how much you scarfed it down last time. You really like fish that much?”

“...I enjoy it.”

Ingrid stifled a laugh as she saw a small blush appear on Natalia’s face before fading just as quickly. It was always slightly amusing to see the small cracks in Natalia’s shell, and Kallen had a strange knack for bringing them out.

“If you say so!” She grinned, plopping down in front of the fire.

“Let’s see, big ass wings, takes everyone’s food, loves fish, we sure she’s not just a really big seagull?” Alice joked.

“Oh? Am I supposed to take that from the walking chakram?”

Kallen looked around between the two. “I got hers, what does the chakram thing mean?”

“It means she’s all edge with no point,” Natalia stated bluntly, staring down at the fire as she prodded it.

Ingrid almost snorted at the jab that admittedly, she didn’t get either. Alice’s playfully offended look only worked to make it more amusing.

“I will have you know I always have a point!” she said in mock indignance.

“Mhm. You don’t just randomly choose hills to die on purely because arguing entertains you?”

“Aha! You’re still pissed that you couldn’t prove sedimentary rock is better than metamorphic!”

“It’s a product of those around it building it up over untold periods of time! You can see the layers of it as it grew into what it is today!”

“Sorry, can’t hear you over the sound of all the gorgeous gemstones that the best type of rock has to offer,” Alice shot back, waving a hand like a distressed maiden.

“A-Actually, most gemstones are either igneous rocks or found in a-alluvial gravels!” Malori chimed in excitedly, “Though both sedimentary and metamorphic rocks can contain gem materials.”

The group stared at her, bewildered. It never ceased to amaze Ingrid how much random knowledge Malori could spout out on a whim. Alice looked like she wanted to say something, but only huffed in annoyance and crossed her arms. Ingrid smiled and patted her on the arm.

“Sorry, Dear, I’m sure that rock knowledge that you’ve probably never used before was very important to be right on,” she teased.

Natalia cleared her throat, an irritated blush leaving her cheeks. “Regardless, we really should be thinking about what comes when we get to Amalthea. We’ve kicked that rock down the road long enou–”

“What kinda rock?”

“Alice I will kill you.”

“Um, what were you d-discussing in terms of next moves?” Malori asked quickly, likely trying to end an argument before it began as she knelt down next to Kallen. She was almost like a lost puppy, with her big eyes and the way she never seemed to leave Kallen’s side.

Ingrid clicked her tongue. The obvious part was getting to Amalthea. Things were no longer as straightforward when it came to finding Mattias, however. With recent developments, it was entirely possible that he wasn’t in Reach at all anymore. Without any knowledge on where Berith was moving next, or anyone connected to him, their leads had almost all but dried up.

“Well, I think I’ve been with you long enough to at least know that you aren’t spies or anything. Besides, you wouldn’t be moving toward Amalthea if you were,” Natalia grumbled, “I didn’t want to say this immediately, but I have reason to believe that Berith is cooperating with the Cordelian government.”

All eyes turned to Natalia. Ingrid was violently ripped out of her train of thought as a new one forced itself in place. One that she did not like in the slightest. She felt Alice put a hand on her wrist as she shot up.

“That’s absurd! Cordelia is a proud nation, even if some of its officials were corrupt, there is no way that King Chulainn would ever–”

“Chulainn is a hack and a piece of trash!” Natalia spat. She looked around at the group, then cleared her throat. “Apologies. For my outburst. I won’t apologize for a damn thing I say about that man.”

Ingrid was dumbfounded. Over the journey she had heard Natalia mention offhandedly that she was Cordelian. King Chulainn was well loved throughout the country, though. He was a hero who ended the Dark Fey War, and the strongest druid in the entire country. Labhras fought alongside him in the war, even in its final battle. What reason did she have to speak so poorly of him?

“Regardless, Berith has been operating in Cordelia for years. Both directly and indirectly,” She started, leaning against a tree, “He’s made several moves and acquisitions in multiple cities, namely Baile Stioballan. Not to mention raiding parties equipped with Twilight. I don’t need to explain what you already know, do I?”

She didn’t. If Berith was the supplier of Twilight, that meant those raiding parties worked under him. Lhanbryde was at least mostly his fault. “That doesn’t explain why you’d blame that on the King! He’s been nothing but a good man to our people, he saved us from the war! Our peace is thanks to him!”

“Eeehhh…”

Ingrid looked back to see Alice making a skeptical face. She felt her heart drop. There was no way Alice agreed with Natalia, right?

“Look, Princess. Maybe he did all that stuff, but he kinda just sits in the palace all day. The dude is secretive as can be, and doesn’t really do much.”

“Might I ask what peace you’re referring to?” Natalia asked, “The peace where a town close to the capital was burned down by raiders and you were nearly killed by some of the most brutal poison ever created? The peace where criminals operate humanoid trafficking rings in their largest cities? The peace where a man like Berith can operate freely without ever once worrying about the crown doing a damn thing about him? That peace?”

She didn’t know if Natalia realized it, but her voice started low, and slowly started to rise as she continued. With it, the apparent anger that plagued her voice. By the end, she was all but spitting venom. Ingrid gulped. Just when she thought things were going to get worse, she felt a small squeeze on her hand. She looked back again to see Alice with a concerned look.

“Hey, sit back down,” She said gently, “This is a lot. Take a breath. And Feathers? I get you’re passionate about this, but can you cool it a little? You’re the one who suggested figuring out what comes next. Let’s not turn this into a political debate alright?”

Ingrid looked at Natalia. The taller woman stared at Alice for a moment, then looked away. “Fine,” She grumbled, “But that doesn’t change the fact that it’s a possibility that needs to be considered.”

Breathing a large sigh of relief, Ingrid sat down next to Alice. She hadn’t even realized how heated she was getting so quickly. She thanked Nilin for Alice being there. Even if Natalia was leagues off the mark for the kind of person the king was, there was some truth to what she said. Berith had been operating in Cordelia, and while she wasn’t sure if he had actually been making direct moves in large cities like she claimed, there were no moves being made to stop him that she knew of. It was entirely possible that certain government officials were in league with him, hiding his presence and activities from the King. Natalia was right, that was far too big of a threat for her to ignore.

She took another deep breath and looked back at the illian, who had her eyes closed. “So what is it that you’re suggesting?”

There was an uncomfortable pause in the camp. Neither Kallen nor Malori dared to speak up, the latter glancing anxiously back and forth between Ingrid and Natalia. Kallen seemed to be struggling to follow the political talk, as Ingrid doubted she even had any knowledge of the King. The overall aggression from Natalia was met with the same neutrality as everything that wasn’t food.

Natalia lifted her head up, still not opening her eyes. “I’m suggesting we attempt to gain Amalthea’s help and declare war on Cordelia.”

If you come across this story on Amazon, it's taken without permission from the author. Report it.

The camp went dead silent once more.

All eyes were directly on Natalia. She didn’t flinch.

“Well you’re just dropping bomb after bomb aren’t you? Holy shit, Feathers,” Alice laughed. It wasn’t her playful laugh. This one was tinged with apprehension. “Look, I’m not the biggest fan of the government either, but it’s a pretty big leap to want to side with a neighboring country and start an all out war. Gonna be real, that’s fucked up.”

Again, Ingrid was grateful for Alice being there. She wouldn’t have even known where to begin to start with a statement like that.

“W-War solves nothing! Starting another so soon after the p-previous one, just how many people would d-die for this?” Malori interjected.

Natalia’s face didn’t change. “Everything worthwhile requires sacrifice. This is no different.”

“That’s easy to say when you aren’t the one sacrificing anything,” Ingrid said.

The illian glared at her. “It’s hard to give anything when I have nothing to offer. There’s only one thing I can give, and I would do so in a heartbeat.”

“Alright alright let’s take this down a notch, ‘kay?” Alice stood up and motioned to calm down. She wore a neutral expression that had a strange way of comforting Ingrid. “Natalia, trying to burn down Cordelia isn’t exactly our MO right now. The four of us? We’re looking for Ingrid’s little brother.”

“I’m aware. If you don’t wish to help me then I’d be happy to do this on my own. But I won’t let you stop me.”

Ingrid’s heart dropped. They couldn’t stop her. All she needed was a moment of pause and she could fly away, leaving them behind to march to Amalthea on foot.

“Fine, if you want to make the stupid decision, be my guest,” Alice snorted, “You already said that whatever bone you have to pick is with the people Berith works for. We all heard that they have Ingrid’s brother. You want to get back at them? Then it’s in your best interest to stick with us. I’m not a fan of Cordelia either, but starting a war isn’t just something you toss out like it’s a reasonable ask. So, can we get back on track and figure out what the hell we’re actually gonna do?”

Another silence pervaded the camp as Alice and Natalia stared each other down. Despite the intense radiance of her eyes, Alice didn’t flinch. After far too long to be comfortable, Natalia scoffed.

“Fine.”

Ingrid breathed a sigh of relief. All they had really succeeded in doing was kicking the bottle down the road, but it was the best she could ask for. Yet another point on the ever-growing list of things Alice did for her. Eyes turned her way as everyone was eager to talk about literally anything else.

“Well, our one lead isn’t dry, per se, but it’s not as good as it was originally,” she started, clearing her throat. “So we need to figure out what we can do to either verify it, or find a new lead. I’m trying to think of things that we could do, but I’m kind of coming up empty.”

Kallen held up a hand. “What about divination?”

Once more the camp went silent, but it was more out of confusion as everyone looked at the human.

“What? Malori mentioned it in that little magic explanation she gave. I told you I was paying attention.”

Alice and Ingrid exchanged a look. Kallen was right, something like divination was perfect for the situation. It wasn’t necessarily the most accurate method without an extremely skilled diviner, but something was better than nothing. Ingrid looked at Malori, who currently looked like she was on cloud nine. It was probably taking everything in her power not to blurt out random bits of knowledge about the ins and outs of divination magic.

“It’s not a bad idea,” Alice mused, “They do say that divination is a selfish magic at its base though. Unless you’re damn good at it, trying to search for people or things you aren’t personally familiar with is next to impossible. Princess is the only one who knows Mattias, and last I checked, druids can’t use divination.”

“Well yeah, but Malori said clerics could, right?” Kallen offered.

Malori froze as Kallen looked at her, the excitement quickly fleeing as anxiety became the dominant outward emotion.

“W-Well, yes, they can, but, um…” she trailed off, fiddling with her staff.

“You have shown how good you are at healing magic,” Ingrid said reassuringly, “If anyone can do this, it’s you, Malori.”

She wasn’t entirely sure if that was true, but the girl needed encouragement. If everyone decided to voice disbelief in her, there was no way anything would be accomplished.

Malori stared at the ground for a bit. It was hard to tell what was going on in her head, but as she continued to fiddle around with her sleeves and staff, it was clear that she was thinking about it. She had only ever used healing magic in the presence of the group, so it was hard to say if that kind of skill would carry over to the other aspects of divine magic. Ingrid did her best to remain hopeful. Finding a skilled enough diviner to look for Mattias would be almost as difficult as the magic itself in a foreign country. She mentally kicked herself for not trying this back in the capital, but if she had actually spoken to anyone about Mattias’s disappearance, there was no way she would have been able to leave the city.

“I-I can, um, try it, I suppose,” Malori said weakly. It was hard to hear her despite only being across the campfire.

“Alright, what do we need to do to help?” Kallen asked, “There’s probably some set up, right?”

“Well, f-first I need to figure out what exactly the spell is going to e-entail. The more specific the spell, the easier it is to g-get the desired results.”

“That makes sense. Ingrid, what should we be looking for?”

She thought about it for a moment. If she remembered correctly, the most basic form of divination for clerics was asking simple questions of their gods, or the angels that worked for them.

“What about asking Carys if she knows whether or not Mattias is still in Reach? That seems like a good start,” she suggested. She didn’t want to do anything too complicated for Malori.

The esper nodded, furrowing her brow. “Searching for someone you l-love so much… I’m sure Carys would be able to a-answer a question like that,” She said hopefully. “Um, would you mind helping me set up some incense and a m-mirror?”

“I got it, just tell me what I need to do!” Kallen said excitedly.

Ingrid found herself beginning to zone out as Kallen and Malori went to work setting up a small space for the spell. She desperately wanted this to work. Questions began running through her head of what they’d do if it didn’t. Even worse, if it did work, but the only answer they got was that Carys hadn’t a clue where he was. No god was omnipresent. There was always a chance that the answer wouldn’t be in their favor.

As more and more questions flooded her thoughts, she felt a gentle hand against hers that she had come to recognize during these bouts of apprehension. Focusing back in on reality rather than staring off into space, she saw Alice, knelt down next to her.

“Nervous?” she asked quietly.

Ingrid nodded.

“Yeah. That’s fair. The thing that sucks about deciding to cross a bridge when you get there is that sometimes you don’t remember the bridge until you’re ten paces across.”

Ingrid furrowed her brow. “What?”

“It’s a metaphor,” she said matter-of-factly. “We were always gonna have to deal with this. Hope I can at least make it a little less shitty. Besides, if Malori can’t do it–and if I’m bein’ honest I’ve got doubts–then there are other places we can look for this. I know my go-to solution of looking for criminals might be a little old, but if we’re trying to stay under the radar, only way we’re gonna find it is through some moderately illegal practices.”

“I know,” she murmured, leaning her head into Alice’s chest. She could hear her heartbeat. The rhythmic thumping did wonders to help ease her worries. “I guess it was nice having a little break from being worried though.”

Alice nodded, gently stroking Ingrid’s hair. “I get that. Kinda wish Mattias didn’t stick us in this situation to begin with, but I’m glad I can be here to help,” she leaned down and planted a soft kiss on the top of Ingrid’s head. “We’re gonna get through this, Princess. You’re gonna find him, and things are gonna go back to normal. I promise. Then, when we kick Berith’s ass, we can go home and you and I can have the best sex of our lives.”

Ingrid jolted forwards, her face going dark red as she looked at Alice’s shit eating grin. “A-Alice! Do you have to say something like that so… so brazenly?” she all but yelped.

“If it means I get this reaction? Absolutely,” she laughed.

“You little-!” Ingrid stopped herself, sighing. Thankfully, it didn’t look like anyone had heard. Malori and Kallen were both still setting up a small circle of incense while Natalia seemed extremely focused on grooming her wings and picking out bits of dirt or leaves. The spell circle was almost done, the duo putting the finishing touches on a log they were using to hold up the mirror.

“So, you ready?” Alice asked, likely noticing the progress as well.

“...Let me stop blushing first.”

“Would like to say, it’s not my fault you make it so easy.”

“...You’re incorrigible.”

“And you love me for it.”

It wasn’t a false statement. Ingrid loved her dearly. However she didn’t want to dignify that statement with a response. Nevertheless, she took Alice’s hand to help her up and walked over to the magic circle. Malori was examining every little bit of it, muttering unintelligible comments to herself as she looked over every tiny segment. Kallen seemed quite pleased with herself as she looked over it all, giving a thumbs up to Ingrid. It was hard not to smile at the strange charm the human had.

Once Malori seemed satisfied, she turned to Ingrid. “Um, I think everything is r-ready, would you like me to get s-started?”

“Yes. Remember Malori, you can do this,” she said, giving her a small pat on the head. It did manage to earn her a nervous smile and a nod.

Moving to the center of the circle, Malori knelt down, placing her staff across her lap. She steadied her breathing, her shoulders starting to gently rise and fall in rhythm. As the incense continued to burn, she held out her hands towards the mirror, like she was giving an offering.

“Oh r-reverent Goldenheart, I offer my most sincere prayers in your name,” she started, her voice wavering slightly.

“Is this part of it?” Kallen whispered to Ingrid.

“Yes, it’s customary to use prayer as the linguistic component to clerical magic. She’s calling Carys to answer her question,” she explained. Kallen nodded, then went back to watching the ritual.

“We seek answers that we c-cannot find ourselves, and for one who is loved dearly by his family; Mattias Alvar. Surely, his sister’s love for him would include him in your d-domain.”

As she continued, the smoke from the burning incense began to thicken. Rather than drifting upwards, the two burners on either side of the mirror began to shimmer, and the smoke shifted towards the mirror itself. It was like a sudden and gentle wind was drawing it in, where both of the tiny clouds met in the center.

“We wish to know if he remains in Reach, or if his t-travels have taken him elsewhere. Carys, we humbly ask you this question, and pray for your response!”

As the incantation was complete, the smoke began to swirl together, creating a small vortex in front of the mirror. Ingrid found herself lurching forward in anticipation. She didn’t even realize how dry her mouth had become, or that she had started tapping her foot. The smoke continued to swirl together until suddenly, it stopped. It faded into the wind. The burners no longer shimmered, and the two lines of smoke returned to drifting up as normal. Ingrid felt her heart sinking again as Malori looked frantically around.

“Malori, what’s wrong? What did she say?” she blurted out.

“I-I-I…” the girl began to say something, but the words withered and died. She gave Ingrid a desperate look. “She d-didn’t answer.”

The words hit Ingrid like a punch to the gut. She had tried to mentally prepare herself for this, but somehow it didn’t make her feel any better. Her hands started shaking ever so slightly. She held them to her chest, taking a deep breath to try and calm herself. Malori had never met Mattias, it shouldn’t have come as a surprise that she couldn’t find him. Alice put a hand on her shoulder.

“Hey, it’s alright. There was always the chance it didn’t work,” she said calmly. She looked over the group. “We’re all tired from walking today, let’s eat and then get some rest. Does that sound good? We can do some more thinking in the morning.”

No one said anything. Kallen gave an awkward thumbs up, and Malori responded with a small nod. Alice clapped her hands together.

“Alright wonderful. Kallen, Natalia, you two set up a fire and clean this up. Malori, help me set up some alarms around the camp. Ingrid, take a load off. I’ll come back to cook once I’m done,” she said.

“Um, w-why me?”

“Because I want someone other than me to know how to do this. Now come on,” Alice sighed, guiding Malori along to the edge of the camp.

Ingrid took another shaky breath and leaned her back against a tree, sliding down until she was sitting. She closed her eyes and tried to focus every sense she could on the nature around her, hoping it would force out the thought of having no idea what to do next.

“Um, w-wouldn’t it be better to teach Ingrid or N-Natalia something like this?” Malori asked nervously as Alice brought her away from camp.

“You aren’t gonna suggest Kallen?” she mused.

Malori stared at the ground. “You don’t l-like Kallen.”

“Fair.”

The two didn’t say anything else as the walk continued. Alice pulled out a small spool of white string and began looping it around the base of a tree trunk.

“Mind grabbing a few of the bone chimes from the bag?” she didn’t hear a response, but she did hear Malori begin sifting through the bag.

“A-Alice? What’s the actual reason you b-brought me out here?”

She stopped looping the string. Taking a deep breath, she stood up and walked over to Malori, who went stock still as they made eye contact. Alice playfully threw an arm around her shoulder. “Oh you know, just wanted to chat about a couple things. No big.”

“W-What things?” she stammered.

Alice smiled. “Malori, Shortie, what aren’t you telling us?”

The esper managed to go even more rigid. “I-I-I don’t know what you mean.”

“I know how clerical divination works. You ask your god for help, and they do. But there’s always some sort of answer,” she explained, “If they don’t know something, that’s what they tell you. They don’t just give no answer.”

Malori clutched her robes. Alice could feel her shaking ever so slightly. Maybe she was laying it on too thick? It didn’t really matter. This was about Ingrid and Mattias. It was hard to care what she did if it meant those two would be okay.

“I-I already told you, I don’t know what h-happened,” the esper pleaded, “I’ve never d-done divination magic before, just h-healing.”

Alice rolled her eyes. “You’re a bad liar, you know? You knew the whole setup and ritual. Even if you’ve never done it, you know how it works. So what’s the deal, Shortie. Why’d your god play hard to get?”

She clutched her robes tighter. “W-Why does your dagger have focus minerals in the hilt?”

Alice stopped short. She blinked, staring down at Malori. The esper’s eyes were wide with fear, like she regretted what she had just said. “What?”

“Th-the hilt of your dagger. It gave off a magical aura s-similar to most wands and staves,” she said quietly.

How the hell did she know that? That dagger had been custom made, and she’d gone to great lengths to mask the aura as much as she possibly could. Powerful mages couldn’t even sense it. Hell, Berith and Alviss didn’t sense it. Had Malori known the whole time and just kept quiet about it?”

“I-I don’t want to a-argue with you,” she pleaded, “I just don’t want to talk about this. There are secrets that you’re keeping from I-Ingrid too, right? Is th-this really any different?”

Alice couldn’t believe what she was hearing. She’d never heard Malori be any level of defiant before. She could keep pressing to figure out what the issue was, but then she ran the same risk that she’d almost panicked about when infiltrating Berith’s camp; Ingrid would find out that she was a mage. She couldn’t let that happen.

She scowled as she pulled her arm away from the smaller girl, going back to setting up the makeshift alarms. “Go back to the rest. Tell them I decided to do it myself,” she grumbled.

There was no response other than a fearful whimper as she heard Malori scamper off towards the campfire. Once she couldn’t hear her anymore, Alice drew her dagger, staring down at the hilt. The dull green glow began to pulse from the hilt as the selenite knew it was going to be used. Tapping two of her fingers to it, then to the tip of the blade, she ran the flat of the blade along the string. As she reached the end of where she had tied it off, it gave a small pulse of energy as the spell was set.

She grunted in annoyance as she stood up to go set more alarms. Malori knew much more than she let on, and the fact that Alice didn’t know what the esper was and wasn’t aware of made her uneasy. She was going to have to be a bit more careful as this continued.