They stepped onto land and pulled the ferry in more securely.

“So,” Kent said as they walked inland. “Demons still roam the land of my birth.”

“A rare few,” Irina told him. “Almost always in isolated areas like this one. But they are being whittled down.”

The man simply nodded without looking at her. Irina put it down to memories.

“Well, this was a new experience,” Elseth said and let out a weary breath.

“We do tend to collect those,” Jon said with some self-deprecation.

“Do you folks think it’s safe to light a fire?” she asked. “I am soaked.”

“We did drift a fair distance,” Jon said reluctantly. “But... I don’t know.”

“It should be fine down there,” Kent said, and as Elseth started a little light Irina saw he meant a depression in the landscape, largely surrounded by trees. “Help me gather dry wood.”

They did. Irina started tending to this very familiar task once again. She moved sluggishly from a combination of exertion and chill. And with danger passed for now her thoughts were turning chaotic again.

Bors and Ana would be looking for her. Her companions. Irina stopped with a bundle in her arms and leaned up against a tree. She closed her eyes.

It had only been earlier this night that the three of them had chatted and agreed to share drinks at the inn once the initial search was completed. She shook her head and joined the others in the depression.

It was a decent resting place. She’d certainly experienced rougher ones. Kent was already at work with his steel and flint, beating sparks into a little piece of linen. She felt like offering to help, but he clearly knew what he was doing and soon had a tiny flame in the linen. He then transferred it to the wood, and after some more displays of skill a nice warming fire started coming to life.

They gathered around it and Jon and Elseth opened their packs.

Irina touched the left side of her face again. It was reassuring that the bleeding had stopped, but just as her muscles were now punishing her for the earlier exertions the cuts were starting to hurt.

“How do I look?” she asked.

She knew perfectly well that it was petty, in light of everything else. But nature had been rather kind to her upon birth and shouldn’t a certain vanity be a natural result of that?

“Three cuts,” Kent said. “Doesn’t look so bad. I’ll handle it.”

He took a small clay jar out of his own pack and poured a little bit of water into the contents. He then walked over and cleaned the cuts with water before sticking a finger into the poultice and applying it. It had a familiar leafy smell and settled with a semi-pleasant tingle.

“Thank you.”

“May it do you well.”

“Do you have an appetite, Irina?” Jon asked.

“I do, yes,” she replied and was handed a piece of salted pork and a bit of hard bread, followed by a wineskin. It was a poor meal in a town, but they were out in the wild and hunger made a feast of anything.

Elseth sighed with satisfaction as she worked through her own meal. Aside from that they all ate in companionable silence.

“Kent,” Jon said once all were mostly finished. “The river. Do you think we can risk floating along it further?”

“Maybe a bit further,” the man said. “But it eventually cuts to the west and passes through Vyslak.”

“And we will want to stay away from population centres,” Jon said. “Until we get to the border. Irina, do you agree?”

She took a bite of the bread to buy herself some time as she chewed. Then she washed it down with a sip of wine.

“Mistress Lumiara will have me hunted relentlessly until I reach the border, yes.”

“You don’t think she’ll follow you across?” Elseth asked.

Irina shook her head.

“No. I would be very surprised if she broke the treaty.”

“You are talking about someone who made you a slave,” Jon pointed out. “Who controlled your mind.”

“It was more like guidance,” Irina said. “I had my thoughts, but they were funnelled down a...”

She shook her head again, and touched her bare throat.

“Look, what is going on? Why are you here? And... and that knife?”

Jon and Elseth shared a look.

“I wish I could say we came for you,” Jon said. “But Prince Walder hired us again. He wanted us to free a slave of the Bright Lords and sneak them across the border. We weren’t expecting to encounter you.”

“It was quite a shock,” Elseth said with an awkward smile.

Jon drew the knife.

“The prince gave us this for the task. All I know is that it’s old and has something to do with disrupting magic. The theory was that it could cut through one of those collars.”

“That was a big gamble,” Irina commented.

“Well, that’s what we do, isn’t it?”

Jon smiled.

“But what does the prince want with me?”

“He wants a witness to the Bright Lords. And who better than one of their closest agents? There is to be a secret meeting in Ynglas, that little village, between Prince Walder and an emissary from East-Melgen.”

“About a joint invasion?” Irina asked.

“Well... a king’s son doesn’t discuss such things with the likes of us,” Jon said. “But why else?”

Why else indeed?

West, Mid and East had been broken up generations ago and the landscape itself had kept things that way. Mid-Melgen consisted of a peninsula, with its neighbours on either side. With no fleets to speak of, none could invade another without also marching an army by the border of the third.

Irina turned to Kent.

“What about you? Were you hired at the same time?”

“Oh, no,” the man told her. “I was a forester for Lord Willem. Until the Bright Lords took over. They stripped him of his lands almost immediately. After that I wandered for a while.”

“You wandered for ten years?”

“Well, I stopped here and there for work, when there was work. Eventually I found myself in West-Melgen, and I met these two.”

He indicated Jon and Elseth.

“Fellow rootless drifters.”

“Hey now!” Elseth said with mock outrage. “We’re adventurers, my dear fellow!”

“You have to admit that the line between the two is quite blurry,” Kent said with a faint smile.

“So it’s just the three of you?” Irina asked. “Where is Derek?”

Their faces immediately answered the question.

“The life got him,” Jon said sombrely. “It gets everyone, in time.”

“Another one...” Irina said to herself. “What happened?”

“We were hired by a town merchant,” Elseth said. “A strange hound had been stalking him and his family, and he believed it was a sending from a farmer he’d quarrelled with. We went to the farm to talk to him. And... the merchant was right.”

“The hound leapt out at us before we knew it was there,” Jon said. “It got Derek by the throat.”

“May he find peace,” Irina said.

“May he find peace,” the others dutifully said in unison.

“This was shortly after I joined,” Kent then said. “I only knew the man briefly, but he made a good impression.”

He cleared his throat.

“But... what is this about the prince hiring you again? You two have never talked about the past much and that has always been fine with me, but now I’m caught up in it.”

Jon and Elseth looked at Irina and each other, clearly wondering who should tell the story.

“You were here when the Bright Lords took over?” Irina asked Kent.

“Yes. I even happened to be in the capital when it happened.”

Elseth’s eyes widened.

“We clearly need to talk more.”

Stolen story; please report.

“There was to be some big announcement,” Kent went on. “A lot of people gathered in front of the palace balcony before Lord Ilianach stepped out onto it.”

His eyes were lost in memories, staring back at one of history’s wild turns.

“It was all quite gripping,” Kent said. “Packs of demons still roamed, and there were areas people simply didn’t dare approach. But their momentum had been broken by saviours from beyond. And before our eyes one of them declared that the king and his nobles had failed. That their rule and their laws were concerned with their own enrichment. Ilianach said that his kind had been summoned to do good, and so they would.”

“What was it like?” Jon asked with genuine interest. “Witnessing that?”

Kent considered his reply.

“They say significance only becomes clear over time. If so, then this was the exception. The crowd was blown off its feet. Some cheered. Who had saved us, after all? Others were outraged. The Bright Lords were other, after all. Unnatural.”

“And what was your own reaction?” Jon asked.

“I suppose I was among those who couldn’t quite decide. Kings and lords are what they are; spoiled and arrogant. A rumour later circulated that the takeover had been triggered by the king attempting to purchase the loyalty of the Bright Lords, or trying to banish them somehow. But in the end reasons and feelings didn’t matter; what was left of the army was mostly on their side.”

He threw up his hands.

“And so goes the world. But I digress. We were talking about the prince and you three.”

“Us four,” Irina said. “Derek was still with us. But... well, I don’t know about the East but the Western nobility was quite worried about the Bright Lords. They’ve dismantled the old systems of power bit by bit and complete control only took them a few years. Many Mid noble families fled to the West and pressured their peers and relatives into doing something about their seized lands.”

She was lost in thought for a few breaths. What had been the name of that inn they’d been staying at when the call came?

“There was a rumour that those priests and mystics who contacted the Bright Lords did so with a modified summoning pole. And that it still stood in a guarded room in the royal palace, serving as their anchor. Prince Walder wanted us to destroy it. It was supposed to send them back where they’d come from.”

She looked over at Jon and Elseth, in silent sharing of memories.

“We made it to the capital without incident and there we subtly asked about and prepared for the job. The act itself required stealth and that was always one of my niches within this group. So I went alone. Meanwhile the others were to stand ready to escape in case something went wrong.”

She mentally retraced her steps through those hallways, past bored guards and closed bedroom doors.

“What did go wrong, Irina?” Elseth asked gently.

“Nothing,” she replied. “Until I reached the chamber itself. Getting there wasn’t easy, but I managed it. And that was when the... the air grabbed me. Somehow. That’s how I can best describe it. I saw no trap and no guard. It was some manifestation of the power of the Bright Lords. And I couldn’t break free.”

She hadn’t thought of the desperation of that realisation in three years. Now it was back with her.

“I couldn’t. And they came for me. I was taken before Lady Lumiara.”

It had been her first real close encounter with one of the Bright Lords and she had felt very unprepared for such an imposing presence.

“I was afraid,” she admitted. “You two know what I’ve done. What we’ve done. But helplessness tests one in a very different fashion. And it wasn’t about death or pain. I’ve risked both often enough. And they don’t do that anyway.”

She touched her bare throat again.

“Lady Lumiara smiled at me. It was beautiful. She whispered assurances. An attendant brought a collar. The lady put it around my throat. And then I was hers. Immediately and completely. I forgot all about fear. It was... such a relief.”

She closed her hands all the way around her neck, trying to make sense of that moment.

“What happened to you?” she asked, looking at nothing.

“They came for us,” Elseth said. “From two directions. We abandoned the original plan and fled into the wilderness. It was dumb luck that we got away, really. They knew exactly where we were.”

“I told them,” Irina admitted. “Well, I told Mistress Lumiara. She asked if I had accomplices and lying wasn’t difficult. It simply wasn’t an option. I hoped...”

She sighed, still holding her neck and rubbing it slightly.

“You hoped what?” Jon asked.

“I hoped they would catch you. So we could be together. You need to understand how complete the bond is. If I had spotted and recognised you in that village Ana, Bors and I would have taken you into custody. You would have been held in the village as we went on our hunt and then we probably would have walked you to the capital.”

She laughed weakly.

“And I would have been very happy to see you again and I would have told you as much.”

Elseth let out a long exhale, looking mildly stunned.

“Those collars scare me. I don’t want to be a slave. Not like that.”

“The word used is ‘chalu’,” Irina said. “The Bright Lords have outlawed normal slavery.”

“They can rename it all they like,” Jon said. “It is what it is.”

“We wanted to try to save you,” Elseth said, looking sad. “We wanted to try something. Derek screamed that we at least had to try. But in the end all we did was dodge patrols on our way north to the border.”

“You couldn’t have done anything,” Irina said. “I had already been collared.”

“We know that now,” Jon said. “And suspected it then. But just abandoning you still hurt.”

Irina could think of nothing immediate to say to that. It really would have hurt, and all she could do was give them sympathetic looks.

“What was it all like?” Kent asked softly. “People wonder. And they don’t trust they’ll get honest opinions from the slaves of the Bright Lords.”

“Easy,” Irina replied. “It was easy. No doubt. No anger at my fate. I never lacked for companionship. I always had my mistress’s touch over my spirit, and there were the others. Like Bors and Ana. I was never disciplined, because I never disobeyed. I just did as ordered, like all of us do.”

She shook her head.

“All of... them. Like all of them do. I patrolled. I hunted demons. I healed. I served as a messenger. I roamed between villages to serve as Mistress Lumiara’s eyes. I felt proud to have a hand in bringing about a better society.”

Jon hmm’d.

“There are all sorts of tools for controlling people,” he said. “Induced happiness has to be the most effective one. Unhappy people will inevitably try to rebel, after all.”

“Yes, I suppose they will,” Irina replied.

The three were silent for some time. She guessed they were trying to process what she had experienced.

“Was there really no part of you that resisted?” Jon then asked. “Was there never doubt?”

“Doubt?” Irina repeated, and wondered how to define the word. She gripped her brown ponytail and ran a hand along it. “I... there...”

A nasty realisation hit her with a start.

“My ribbon!”

She undid the ribbon that held her hair in place with a quick jerk and looked at it. It was a broad, beautiful length of red and gold, still in perfect condition after more than a year.

“My mistress gave it to me!” she said. “It never slips out of place and never gets dirty!”

“Wait, are you saying that has her power in it?!” Elseth asked.

“A little bit, I think!” Irina said. “I’m... I’m sorry! I forgot.”

“We have to keep moving,” Jon said firmly and sprang to his feet. “Now.”

“Do we risk the ferry again?” Elseth asked. “Or do we go inland? I...”

“No,” Irina said, and sprang out from the depression in the earth. “Help me with the ferry!”

“What?” Kent said.

“Help me!”

She ran back to the beached ferry and tied the ribbon around the handrail. Then she started pushing. The others caught on and together they moved the ferry out into the current. With no load at all the craft quickly sped out of sight.

“The fire,” Kent said. “We have to kill the fire.”

He hurried back and threw water on it, plunging the area back into darkness. Then he threw on some more, before covering the remains with a blanket in an effort to cover the smell.

“We can just hide here,” he said. “This is a good spot.”

So they did. All of them lay down flat and simply waited.

With the fire out the night’s chill found its way back through Irina’s damp clothes. And with nothing to do except wait in the dark her mind turned against her again. Amidst all her various conflicts she reflected on how much she’d loved that ribbon.

It seemed almost merciful when a faint light shone from up above the depression, bobbing very slightly in time with movement. It at least focused her thoughts on a single issue.

“Irina?” came the distant shout.

It was Bors. Friend. Companion. One who’d shared her exact situation. And how her hunter.

“Irina!” shouted Ana. They were both here. “Come back to us!”

She closed her eyes, feeling guilty for her silence.

“Irina!” Bors shouted again. He was closer now, as was the light. They were moving alongside the river.

Slowly, very slowly, Irina began to crawl.

“Stop,” Kent whispered.

She kept on going, moving soundlessly up the side of the depression.

“Irina,” Elseth hissed.

“Irina!” Ana shouted again.

She peeked up above the top. She was on the farthest edge of the light, and now peered from beneath pine branches. It seemed safe.

There they were; clad in their red tunics, casting light from their kayrosi. And of course around their necks were the crimson bands that linked them directly to Lady Lumiara. Ana, with her grandfather’s dark, eastern hair, whose richness she was so proud of, and her other grandfather’s tall northern body. Bors, with his thick shoulders and boyish face, every inch a Mid-Melgener.

Irina did her best to stamp the sight into her memory as the two of them stopped by the drag-marks the ferry had left in the sand. A brief, quiet conversation followed, after which they hurried onwards, still following the river.

Irina watched their lights and voices fade into the distance. Then they were gone.

She turned over to face the others.

“So, was that our third close call tonight?” Elseth sighed.

“Why didn’t you stay put, Irina?” Jon asked, sounding agitated.

She put a hand on her head. So much chaos. So much conflict.

“If we make it to the border... then I will never see them again,” she said and felt the full weight of that fact hit her. “They’re... my companions. Ana for three years and Bors for two.”

She let out a sad breath.

“I can’t bid them farewell. So... I just wanted to see them.”

“Oh... Irina,” Elseth said, but had nothing to follow it up with. None of them did. The situation was simply strange.

“I suppose it’s safe to stay the night here,” Kent said. “We need rest to traverse the wild and they’ve already passed by this place.”

“No fire, though,” Jon said.

“No. We’ll have to huddle together.”

“Well, that’s nothing new,” Elseth said. “Irina, are you sure that’s all of it? You’re not wearing magic socks or some such?”

“I’m quite sure. That was it. That was all of it.”

She heard the conflict in her own voice and so of course the others did as well. The atmosphere was somewhat awkward as they found a comfortable spot in the depression. Kent and Irina relieved themselves by a nearby bush as Elseth and Jon took travelling blankets out of the packs and laid them down as bedding. Everyone then lay down together and pulled two additional blankets over the group.

Irina was on one of the far ends, pressed up against Elseth.

Again.

This was all one big return to a previous life she’d essentially put out of her mind. Here she was doing the same old things once again, in mostly the same company. As she drifted off into sleep to the sound of slow breaths it felt like one life or the other had been a dream.

She felt Elseth’s gentle hand around her own.

“It makes sense that you would feel strange,” her old friend whispered in her ear. “You’ll feel better. We’ll make it to the border.”