The journey from the fairy domain had been calm. With a few small spells to cushion the larger jumps, they had made good time travelling down the foothills. Cody knew they were supposed to meet up with the Maddison fellow in the morning, but they had saved more than enough time to reach the gates of Bervolt as the last rays of sunlight died. The field of grass danced in the breeze, as fine as an angel's hair that tickled at Hord'anne's feet as the large purple beast carried Sariel and Cody on his shoulders like two chattering parrots.

Hord'anne looked up at the stars with a dry groan, barely soothed by the light fanning Cody was providing with his book. With summer's touch enveloping the region, the day had been blistering hot, and the heat still lingered on the wind. "We're almost there." Cody pointed at the built up town with a fortress of thick wooden walls around it. His lips curved into a sinister smile as he caught Sariel's glance. "Bervolt I believe it was. We'd best be ready for a little scuffle."

Sariel chuckled, almost losing her balance on Hord'anne's shoulder as she tried to lean back. "Mr. Maddison'll sure be happy to see me."

"Indeed." Cody closed his book, digging a serious glare into Sariel. "We need a plan of attack."

"Attack?"

He nodded. "The protagonist in the town is guaranteed to have plot armour." He motioned to the lush fields around him. "And given this friendly, open armed atmosphere, I'd say this is the first arc of their story. So we need to talk to your friend and choose. We either introduce ourselves and leave after beating the protagonist within a shred of their life, or try our very hardest to hack through their plot armour."

"We talking bout Mr. Maddison?" Sariel hummed in disapproval as Cody nodded, staring at the town with a surprising look of worry. "He doesn't take fighting well..."

"Is he a pacifist?"

"Do pacifists plunge swords into people's necks?"

Cody gulped, discretely stroking his neck. "Definitely not... he stabbed someone in the neck?"

Sariel nodded. "The undead did lurch at him first, so I suppose severin his spine from his head was justified as self defense."

"Ah, an undead." Cody grabbed a small slip of paper from his pocket, gently pinching its rough edges. "It's funny how easily something becomes dehumanized by death. Even the death of emotion makes monsters of us all. And nobody cares if a monster dies."

"I think Mr. Maddison will really like you Cody. You're smart, just like him," Sariel replied, his look of surprise drawing a warmth from her smile that wasn't there before.

He grimaced at the flutter he felt in his chest, quickly grabbing his tome and popping it open to read. "Do you have any weapons?"

Sariel tilted her head. "I'm a real mean tackler when it comes to bristlebacks."

"Knife!" Crow shrieked.

Sariel's eyes lit up at the familiar, and she removed the dagger from her bag to wave it at Cody. "You need some food?"

Cody looked up from his book, staring at the dagger Sariel was still waving in the air. "Excuse me?"

Sariel popped the dagger out of its sheath, allowing its polished surface to catch a stray sunbeam and shoot it straight into Cody's eye. "Whenever Mr. Maddison hands me one of these he's looking for food, so I just go and stab the closest thing."

He chuckled, dismissively shrugging off Sariel's tale as he pointed to the town. "Hord'anne is great at taking most of the physical hits, but sometimes one or two slip past the spells and smashing." He pointed at the glistening dagger. "That's for self defense."

"Oh wow! Sariel poked at the sharp side of the dagger, slowly sheathing it and unsheathing it to listen to the smooth scrape. "These villagers don't sound too friendly."

"They're townsfolk, townsfolk are never friendly to people like us. They can smell it." Cody marked the page he was on, latching his book to his belt and slipping off Hord'anne's shoulders. He eyed the wall they had approached, carefully watching for moving lights to show that there might be a patrol at the top. But all was quiet, no footsteps, nor lights; aside from the glow within the town itself. "There's no guards on the walls, we'll be able to catch them by surprise." He traced a glowing sigil in the air, gaining the faintest sheen all over his body for a split second before it faded.

"Why you just looked like a fresh fish there Cody!"

He paid her a small smile, pocketing the paper and rolling up his baggy sleeves. "It's a protective enchantment, are you putting one on?"

"Don't got any fancy things like that, but I'm real good at taking rocks." Sariel rolled up her tattered sleeves, following Cody over to the towering face of wood.

His fiery golden eyes gave the obstacle a final skim. No movement. "Alright Hord'anne, knock it down!"

Hord'anne grunted, beating the ground like an ape before throwing his arm back with a bellowing roar and slamming the sturdy wall of tree trunks. The beast's iron fist wasn't even able to put its tree smashing skills to the test, as a sizzling crack followed by a brilliant blue flash threw Hord'anne on his back to flail. Cody drew back in surprise, rushing over to his friend to soothe the whimpering oaf and inspect it's newly seared flesh, a ring of scorched black cracked open by a large bleeding slit across his knuckles.

"It's really not that bad..." Cody lied, rubbing Hord'anne's fat and pudgy nose with a soothing smile. "You'll heal up in no time."

Hord'anne groaned, awkwardly rolling onto his stomach to get back to his feet, a feat made excessively difficult while he sucked on the burn like a baby.

Cody gave him a final rub of comfort, leaving Sariel to the rest as she pulled off her bandana to wrap around the little scrape. There was a more pressing issue, and Cody was the only one to be surprised by it, which was odd, given Sariel's claims of being a warlock.

He attempted to brush his fingers against the wood, stopped by a thin film of reflective air that rippled like an oil spill as he stroked it. Easy to miss until you smacked it.

"The wall has a barrier," he sighed.

"Ah Cody, I think you slipped on yer words there. It's, the wall is a barrier," Sariel replied, all the while rubbing Hord'anne's hand like the demon was a injured toddler worthy of motherly pity.

"I know the wall is a barrier," Cody replied, poking at the enchantment to send a couple ripples through it. "But there's a protective enchantment."

"A protective enchantment?" Sariel squinted at the distorted light, moving towards it with an awestruck gasp. "That's a mighty fine polishing job they've done there."

Cody nodded, the enchantment had been perfectly polished. He didn't even sense it until Hord'anne gave it a merciless fistful of fury. "Do you know how to take them down?"

Sariel shook her head. "Looks stuck on there real good. Be a shame to take it off the lovely wood too, rotting as it is."

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"Damn. I don't either." He traced his gaze up the wall again, its shadow engulfing him like a hostile giant. "We need to find the source of it. This must be the hero's doing."

"Don't think the hero could do all that on their own," Sariel said, giving the massive structure a full inspection. "Gotta do it front and back, then a double coat. Triple if you want it real fine."

"You're right." He drew his palm across its rippling surface, mesmerized by the calming effect it had. "Such perfection... this is a starter area too." A fire of challenge grew in his eyes as he hardened his gentle stroke to a fist. "An old man perhaps? A guardian archetype, come to bring corny wisdom to our protagonist and guide him through his journey!" Cody turned to Hord'anne. "We must infiltrate this barrier!"

The next few minutes were a futile struggle.

Cody was the forefront of the assault, throwing out fireballs, each one bigger than the last until their impacts sounded like cracks of thunder. But still, the wall did not budge. Sariel had tried throwing a few rocks and sticks with ill effect. Crow had even tried soaring over the wall to fetch Maddison's attention, but was quick to come squawking back when the familiar hit an invisible force in the air.

After a dozen failed spells, Cody plopped into the grass, exhausted and frustrated as he hissed out a heavy sigh.

"Why I don't think this wall is budgeing a hair Cody." Sariel announced, poking the rippling surface of the forcefield that stilled to invisibility. Erasing the evidence of Cody's most recent barrage of fireballs.

"So it would seem." he huffed, checking his shoulders before pointing to the left. "We'll go through a main entrance. The doors might have guards, but the enchantment will be weaker there. You get what I'm saying?"

Sariel nodded, waving Hord'anne to take her side as the beast gently lifted her onto his shoulder. They followed Cody through the expanse of dancing grass, the warlock finally glancing over his shoulder at Sariel with a smile. "What kind of magic do you prefer?"

"Oh? What do I get to choose from?"

Cody chuckled, looking ahead with a sigh. "You're pretty sarcastic."

"Why I don't know what you mean by that, but lookin at yer smile it must be a good thing." Sariel said, quickly skimming through the selection of payback compliments Medila had taught her. "Thank you Cody, you're cute y'know?"

Cody coughed, quickly turning his attention straight ahead. He pinched his crystal pendant, playing Alina's words back in his head again and again. But try as he might, Alina's voice kept shifting from his memory, replaced with her voice. They were similar, or were they? Cody gave Sariel another glance. He hadn't dealt with many girls in his years, maybe they all sounded the same.

"And you're real strong Hord'anne." Sariel cooed.

Sariel's voice dragged Cody from his pondering as he watched her rub the demons thick mane of purple fur with a smile. Hord'anne was even flashing his crooked teeth like a giddy toddler at Sariel's compliment, and much needed massage, poking Sariel's head with a single finger and attempting to rub her back.

Cody smiled.

She was alright.

He flattened himself against the wall as they neared a thick trunk of wood acting as a corner, waving for Hord'anne to mime his actions. Upon stealing a quick glance at the guards he had to do a double take, staring at the severe lack of fortification as two guards lazily sat beside the large door.

He stopped Hord'anne, holding up a finger and slowly creeping out of sight. Cody casually strolled up to the two guards, putting on a friendly smile as they stared at him blankly. They hadn't immediately grabbed for their weapons, which was a hat toss whenever Cody tried talking to humans. "Afternoon."

A welcoming smile flashed across both of the guards' faces, unnaturally fast and overblown as the closest one to him chimed up, his voice an airy bounce of enthusiasm twisted with fear. "W-welcome adventurer!" The guard shot his attention to the ground, jumping with a shriek. "D-d-d-did you see that?!"

Cody looked at the ground in surprise, the empty grass and crushed cobble failing to conceal anything of note. "What?"

"Scuttlesnakes!" the other guard shrieked, hugging his spear in fear.

Cody stopped, looking between the two men with narrowed eyes. "So?"

The first guard looked at him, hands trembling as a bead of nervous sweat rolled off his nose. "You've gotta help us adventurer!"

"They're lizards..." Cody said flatly, folding his arms with a twisted frown. "I'm just looking to get through, could you open the door?"

"Are you insane?!" the other guard cried. "There could be Scuttlesnakes around! Or worse, Nuttles!"

Cody slowly raised his eyebrows, staring at the two frantic guards in growing disappointment. He didn't have time for this. He raised his hand and snapped his fingers.

The thundering footsteps drew closer, drawing the attention of the guards as they stared at Hord'anne without the fear Cody was expecting. The beast quickly closed in on the group, bending low to fix its piercing yellow eyes on the two guards, a low growl rumbling in his throat.

"W-welcome adventurer!"

Hord'anne grunted in confusion, looking at Cody as his smile fell, the guard's tone in the greeting was a perfect replicate to the greeting he'd received.

The guard jumped with a hauntingly similar screech, looking at the ground with the repetitive fear. "D-d-d-did you see that?!"

"Yes! Scuttlesnakes! We get it!" Cody burst. "Open the door if you want to keep screaming like that you bundle of pussyweed!"

The other guard hugged his spear in fear. "Scuttlesnakes!"

The first guard looked at Hord'anne with trembling hands, completely ignoring Cody's face that had flushed red with rage. "You've got to help us adventurer!"

"Open the damn door!" Cody barked, greeted by a heavy silence as the two guards stared at Hord'anne blankly.

Hord'anne grunted.

"Are you insane?!" the other guard cried. "There could be Scuttlesnakes around! Or worse, Nuttles!"

Hord'anne drew back in offense.

"Now that's not very nice." Sariel cut in, giving the two guards a disappointed frown. "Hord'anne here's a witty one, you got no right to call him crazy."

The first guard looked up at Sariel with hopeful eyes. "W-welcome adventurer!"

The two parties sat in silence for a couple seconds, the pressing scene interrupted as the first guard shrieked. "D-d-d-"

Hord'anne didn't let him finish his sentence, slapping the side of his head so he flew a couple meters and landed in the grass like a limp puppet. Hord'anne turned to the second guard, watching them draw their spear with a low growl.

"Listen, I'm not playing games. Open the door." Cody growled, completely ignored by the guard as they lurched forwards with the spear. Sariel jumped in front of Hord'anne to stop the attack, a swell of panic hitting Cody as the guard didn't falter for a second. In the blink of an eye he had a fireball charged in his palm and whipped it at the guard, the impact to their side throwing them against the wall. As the flames splashed against the barrier a blue spark crackled, throwing the guard in the opposite direction and somewhere off into the grass.

"Gosh, hope he's alright. Real bouncy that one." Sariel said, waving the stray smoke away with a grimace. "Smells like my village when me and Mr. Maddison visited it."

"Red magic is my specialty." Cody replied, giving the door a smirk as he went to push it. A faint ripple traveled from his fingertips, and it didn't budge. He frowned, backing up and throwing a fireball at the obstacle with the same results. With a sharp curse he looked around the setting for an anchor to the enchantment. Villages with protective barriers usually tied it to the guards with cheapy knickknacks, unless it was an inside job.

Cody froze, his gaze falling upon a small stack of papers nestled by the door. He grabbed one to skim. "Quest?" He looked around in confusion. "What in the gods is this?"

Hord'anne grunted, bending down to pretend he could read.

"I thought it was an enchantment too." Cody looked off into the grass, trudging off to where one of the guards had landed. He dropped the paper when he found the scorched one, kneeling beside the guard and hovering his hand over his smoldering form. He gradually traced up to the man's head, his attention falling upon a flicker of magic suspended in his mind, its power waning with his death. It was difficult to place its exact nature with the few fragments that were left, but there was a malicious ring to it. Like a hungry snake, or a spider that had wrapped its prey and was slowly draining it.

Sariel hummed in confusion at the grave expression Cody wore. He slowly rose to his feet, giving the corpse a bewildered look before noticing the frown Sariel wore.

"The barrier's still up."

"Say Cody..." Sariel said, her voice falling to a worried mutter. "I think you hit him too hard there..."

"He was about to drive a spear through you. I'd do it again, twice as hard." Cody retorted, feeling a twang of guilt with the way his words didn't pull the worry from Sariel's face. With the way Sariel had treated the fairies he didn't expect her to care much for humans, but she had made her reservations plain with her expression. There was little harm in respecting that boundary. "I'll try to knock the next one out."

Hord'anne grunted, moving to grab the corpse, but was quickly stopped by Cody.

"Something ate his mind. Don't touch these ones, I don't want you to catch anything." Cody ordered, gazing at the town with worry. "There's a powerful sorcerer in there, and they're not the heroic type."