“It seems as if they are genuinely after some of the monsters. Not to enslave, but to have them work for Yora. Inspired by ‘that hellhound that’s been running around Lyria’ apparently,” Alyssa said with a glance to Fela.

The hellhound looked up from her jerky for a moment, offering a shrug.

“Not sure that I believe that fully, but it is what the Yora intelligencer said.”

Rokien leaned forward, rubbing at the hairs on his bovine chin. Fezzik started to mirror his motions, stopping only once he realized that their poses were almost completely identical. Eventually, he leaned back and looked around the small tent.

Alyssa sat alongside Fela with Brakkt on her opposite side. The prince had not been too happy with their little stunt, but apparently being literally stolen from was acceptable grounds for throwing some weight around. They had deliberately not threatened them into leaving or otherwise interfered with their business in Illuna. Unless, of course, the intelligencer was required for whatever they were doing. But if that was the case, they shouldn’t have stolen from Irulon.

Irulon was back in her room, applying protections to everything. Or doing more research, if she had finished with that already. Kasita was with her, not just to keep an eye on Irulon, but… mostly to keep an eye on her. Alyssa didn’t think Irulon would do anything too drastic, and she seemed to have gotten her head squared on her shoulders a bit better than it had been at any other point recently—a bit of intimidation and throwing her weight around helped get her back to normal. Normalish, anyway.

So Alyssa had come down to the monster camp to keep them fully informed as to what was going on. “Just thought you should know that it doesn’t seem like they’re planning on murdering you all. Which is a sentence that is depressing in how I have to say it at all.”

“It’s unlike the Yora I know,” Brakkt said. “They’ve always prided themselves on keeping their lands clear of monsters. To invite them in now… I’m not sure what they’re planning, but I don’t buy that it is altruistic in nature.”

“Especially because they are still the most likely candidates for the people who were harassing and killing your people and driving you out of your home.”

“But there isn’t much we can do,” Fezzik said, deep voice rumbling in the tent. “If the human leader decides that we cannot stay, we will have to go. We could run again, but that would just expose us to more starvation and exhaustion.”

“And open us up to more attacks from them,” Rokien added. “I don’t have any proof—I haven’t seen or heard anything—but I am almost positive that our camp is being watched from afar. It’s just a feeling I’ve got. And those watchers are almost certainly our pursuers.”

Alyssa pressed her lips together. Without being able to see souls over long distances, she couldn’t back up his claim. Not without further investigation. “Think you could sniff out some humans?” Alyssa said, glancing toward Fela. The draken likely could as well.

They might have to do a quick investigation. If only to ensure that everyone at the camp stayed safe.

Fela seemed eager, if her enthusiastic nod was anything to go by.

“We’ll do a quick round then. Perhaps even now, if there isn’t anything else to talk about?”

Fezzik started to stand, but hesitated and simply chose to straighten his back. Even seated on an uncomfortably short stump, he was still a head taller than a standing Alyssa. “Thank you for doing all this for us,” he said. “We aren’t accustomed to humans treating us well, but you appear to be genuine in your dealings with us.”

“I… would say that it’s just human decency, but apparently not. Regardless of what others think, I think humans and monsters have a lot to gain by working together. On both sides. Ancient wars and lingering animosity from ancestors past shouldn’t get in the way of progress… Well, ancestors on the side of humans. I presume that some of the longer-lived monsters might actually have been around that long. But I also presume that they’re in a minority position relative to everyone else.”

“Probably a safe assumption,” Rokien said, bobbing his head in an affirmative nod. “Though I won’t agree that ancient wars are the only thing causing animosity. Look at what happened to us only a few weeks ago.”

Alyssa winced. “Yeah… That… isn’t a good thing. There’s a lot that still needs to change, clearly. It’s a work in progress and it won’t be instant. But the future will be a better place if everyone can just cut that out.”

“If only it were that easy.”

“Indeed,” Alyssa said with her lips pursed. “Which is why I’m glad you all are giving Illuna a chance.”

“A chance of desperation. It’s not like we had much choice. It is working out so far. As long as this Yora business doesn’t ruin it.”

“We’ll try to keep things from going awry on that front,” Brakkt said. “Though knowing that they actually want some of your people does complicate matters. We won’t be able to simply hand them something else in exchange for leaving you alone.”

“If they’re only looking for a few…” Fezzik said, trailing off as he glanced toward Rokien. The minotaur glanced back, offering a tiny nod in return.

Alyssa frowned, guessing at what small agreement just passed between them. “If you give a mouse a cookie,” she said slowly, “it’s going to want a glass of milk to go with it.”

“What?”

Everyone in the room was staring a her, leading to her simply sighing.

“It’s a phrase from my homeland. Means that giving someone like that what they are demanding will only lead to them asking for more. Or something like that. The actual story turns out a bit heartwarming in the end, but… I guess I’m getting distracted… The point is, don’t sacrifice yourselves unless you’re absolutely sure that it is the only way forward. And even then…”

Alyssa shook her head and focused on Fela. “Shall we go look around?”

“I’ll come with you,” Brakkt said, dusting his tunic off as he stood.

“Can you actually come with us? If these are Yora people, won’t that cause some kind of diplomatic incident?”

“Which is exactly why I should come. Try to not forget that you are essentially representing my family by association. And, of course, if these theoretical people spying on the monster camp are not equipped with any insignia or emblem of a house, and if they are armed to the teeth, I would be remiss in my duties to not handle what are likely brigands and highwaymen preying on travelers and merchants.”

“Ah. I think I understand…”

“Allow me a short time to get ready, meet me at the draken tent.”

“Sure thing,” Alyssa said, watching him head out.

Fela’s ears perked up as she eyed the tent flap. “Is he going to get in his armor?”

“Probably.”

“I like him in his armor.”

“Of course you do,” Alyssa said with a small smile as she turned to Fezzik and Rokien. “We’ll let you know what we find.”

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“Take care,” Fezzik said slowly. “We were being hunted for weeks and we never once saw our assailants. We knew they were out there, we could almost feel their gazes on us at all times. Then, without any sign or warning, someone would just… disappear. Sometimes we would find pieces of them. Sometimes someone would just disappear completely.”

“I have some experience dealing with stealthed or otherwise invisible foes…” Though last time she chased someone invisible around Lyria, she had been connected with Tenebrael’s power. She wasn’t sure that she had actually used Tenebrael’s power, but it might have played a part.

It had also drawn the Astral Authority.

Still, even without using her sense of souls, she had been able to detect that man even while Irulon and the Pharaoh had been having a hard time of it. So if these guys were using anything similar, she should probably still be able to see through it. And if they used a more regular invisibility spell—or were just that good at hiding from view—Fela and the Draken should be able to sniff them out.

Bidding Fezzik and Rokien a temporary farewell, Alyssa headed over to the draken tent. It was a bit of a shame that the stables had toppled over. They had been a bit more spacious than this tent. Then again, the draken didn’t really need a roof over their heads. Most of them were perfectly happy to sleep outside. Izsha especially. Staying inside for a few weeks straight, and unable to move at that, probably contributed to why Izsha could often be found lazing about in the sun outside the tent.

Musca was outside as well, but in contrast to the happily relaxed Izsha, the tiger-striped draken paced back and forth outside the tent. With its large body and long tail whipping back and forth each time it turned around, Alyssa was a little nervous about getting much closer.

“Something wrong?” Alyssa asked, already knowing that she wasn’t going to get a proper response. But it did make Musca stop pacing in order to properly offer a glare. “You all want to go on a little adventure?”

“Human hunting!” Fela said, tail wagging back and forth.

“I mean, yes, but maybe we shouldn’t phrase it like that,” Alyssa said with a glance around her. Being a city of tents, others were around. Both monsters and a pair of Illuna’s human guards. A few of whom were close enough to have heard and were now giving strange looks in her direction. “Or at least that loud,” Alyssa said in a much softer tone of voice as she smiled and waved at the few guards. Luckily, almost all of them knew her as one of the people who liaised with the monsters on the regular.

“Do you think Musca’s saddle will fit you?” Both the draken were on the smaller side, at least when compared to the likes of Ensou, but Musca was just a little wider than Izsha. So the saddle should fit, but it might wobble around and be just too loose to properly use.

Musca snapped at the air in Alyssa’s direction, just chomping aggressively on nothing.

“Woah, calm down there,” Alyssa said, raising her hands and taking a careful step backwards. “I’m sure you can go too. I just would rather… I mean, Izsha and I haven’t been able to go out together for a long time. You don’t actually want me riding you… do you?”

The draken snorted as it turned away. It didn’t stop walking, heading off away from the tent and further into the monster camp.

Alyssa could only shoot a look at Fela, raising her eyebrows.

“Don’t ask me. I don’t understand how scaly monsters think.”

“I wonder if she’s feeling lonely,” Alyssa said as Izsha got to its feet. “Irulon’s been holed up in her research since we got back from Owlcroft. Aside from at the ritual on Izsha, I’m not sure Irulon has even seen Musca. And I don’t think they interacted much at the time.”

But even with Musca acting out, Izsha looked quite happy to be getting some attention. With Musca gone, there was no point in not testing out the other saddle. Slipping into the tent, Alyssa found Dasca sprawled out, deep in sleep.

Fela crouched, coiled, and pounced right on its side. Dasca woke immediately and just about clamped its teeth around her head. But she was just a bit too quick, slipping out from between those sharp teeth as they skimmed her fur. As it tried to get up to its feet, she tackled it back down to the ground.

Ignoring their playful wrestling, Alyssa marched right past and hefted up the smallest saddle. Ensou’s saddle was missing, but so was Ensou. In the short time Brakkt had left Alyssa alone in the previous tent, he must have saddled up his draken and taken off.

He had a lot more experience saddling draken than Alyssa did. She thought she was fairly decent at it. Slinging the saddle over Izsha and hooking it around her belly was a practiced motion, but it still took a bit of doing. Were she to race Brakkt, he would be mounted before she managed to buckle one belt.

“This doesn’t look too bad,” Alyssa said after getting all the buckles done up. A few good tugs of the saddle showed that it was slightly looser than she would have liked, but not so much that she thought she would fall off even if Izsha had to sprint a bit. As long as they weren’t fleeing for their lives from the Astral Authority…

And I really shouldn’t jinx it…

Just as Alyssa finished up with the saddle, Brakkt pushed aside the large tent flap. Or rather, the Black Prince pushed aside the flap. He was fully equipped in his dark armor, helmet included. His glowing sword gleamed from its sheath at his hip. Fela and Dasca, still tussling with each other, stopped immediately as he took a few steps into the room. Fela’s pointed ears actually flattened against her head. Not completely, not like a scared cat, but enough that Alyssa noticed.

“Ready to go?”

“Musca?” he asked, looking around.

“Stormed off into the camp. Not sure why. I just asked if I could use its saddle with Izsha. Is Musca normally very possessive? Or perhaps just lonely?”

“Hard to say…” Brakkt said, eying Izsha and the saddle. His voice had a slight tinny echo to it thanks to his helmet. Once upon a time, Alyssa probably would have been pressing her ears flat against her head like Fela was, but now, she knew the man inside the helmet too well to be that scared of him. “I don’t think Musca has ever had something given to someone else like that.”

“So probably… Great. Now I feel bad.”

“It’s something Musca would have to deal with someday… probably. I suppose that day is just today,” he said with a slight shrug. Turning back to the flap, he shoved it aside to reveal Ensou standing just outside. “We’ll stay within eyesight of each other, but spread out enough to cover some ground. Fela, take care. If there are people out there and they are the same ones that have been after the monsters, they likely won’t hesitate to target a hellhound.”

“We’ll stay closer to you or Alyssa,” Fela said, rubbing her large paws all over Dasca’s head.

“Good. Keep a Message spell handy.”

Fela’s lips curled into a scowl. She didn’t say anything, but…

While Fela could use human magic much like how Kasita could, her lack of opposable thumbs really hindered her handling of spell cards. Her paws were quite dexterous for what they were, but flat pieces of paper just didn’t work well. Even as Alyssa slipped a Message card out of her deck and held it out, Fela glared. After a few moments, she clasped it between both of her hands, glaring all the while.

She really did not like using human magic.

“Maybe we can slip it into your belt. Then you just have to touch it to cast the spell.” When Alyssa had first met Fela, the hellhound had been in chains. After that, she often wore nothing but her own fur. It wasn’t until she started working for Lyria that she had taken to wearing a… uniform? Baggy pants and a loose-fitting tunic that she could easily get into and out from, but styled and colored to match the palace guards. Pulling the card out of her hands, Alyssa slid it between Fela’s waist and the belt.

Fela glared at it, but ended up sighing. “Can’t I just stick a little closer to one of you?”

“There’s a lot of ground out there to cover,” Brakkt said. “Especially when we’re going off something as nonspecific as a feeling that Rokien and Fezzik had.”

“Still, safety is paramount. And if someone touches a single hair on your head…” Alyssa ruffled the fur-like mane around Fela’s head as she trailed off. “I’ll stick relatively close to you.”

With Fela, Izsha, and Dasca in tow, Alyssa followed behind Brakkt and Ensou as they moved to the far edge of the camp. To start with, Alyssa pulled out her binoculars and scanned the horizon. It was still quite early in the afternoon. Plenty of time to run around and check everywhere that she could see… probably. They would basically run around aimlessly until Fela or one of the draken smelled a human where they weren’t supposed to be.

There was something odd though, something that Alyssa couldn’t quite put her finger on. She looked from one end of the grassy hills then toward the more swamp-like terrain toward the north. The city blocked off the really swampy area to the west and toward Owlcroft, but… Something looked off about the city as well.

“Do you notice anything strange?” she asked, handing the binoculars over to Brakkt.

“What am I looking for?”

“I don’t know. Just… something. You tell me.”

“Hm.” Taking the binoculars, he started looking around himself.

Alyssa waited, still staring and trying to figure out why the horizon just didn’t look like she expected it to. But…

Fela made a small noise, almost a cross between a purr and a growl. “The sky,” she said with her head craned straight back.

After staring at her looking up for a moment, Alyssa mimicked her and stared. Being still early in the afternoon, the sun was high in the sky. Just a few degrees over dead center. Being almost noon, it was much too bright for the moon to really be visible. If it was even overhead at the moment. For all Alyssa knew, it could have been on the opposite side of the planet. Everything looked normal.

“It’s normal,” Brakkt said at the exact moment that it hit Alyssa.

Normal. “The sky is normal.”

Tenebrael’s ensign was nowhere to be seen. The faint flames in the sky, the ones that had been burning so brightly at Owlcroft, were completely gone.

“When did that happen?” Alyssa asked without looking away.

“I’m… relatively certain that the sky was aflame this morning. Irulon might be able to tell for certain.”

“If she has even looked outside her window in the past five days…”

“What does it mean?”

Alyssa could only shake her head. “I don’t know.”