“You can’t just invite strangers you met in the woods into the village!” Andrew hissed to Peter as the trio hiked down the mountain. The brothers were several yards ahead of Anna. The young dwarf wasn’t slow, but Andrew had dragged Peter ahead. “We don’t know anything about this girl. She could be a mage, for all we know.”

“I don’t see the problem if she’s just passing through,” Peter said.

“How do you know she’s just passing through?”

“Do you really think she wants something with the village?”

“No, but if she finds about you, maybe she will. We just don’t know anything.”

“What about me?” Peter asked. Andrew rolled his eyes. “Oh, that. Well we don’t know how common it is to—”

“How much farther down the mountain?” Anna asked.

“We should be there in a few minutes now,” Andrew said. He shot Peter a look to remind him they weren’t finished with the conversation. Then he turned to Anna. “So, um… how long have you been interested in wisps?”

“Interested? Forever, sort of. I read about them when I could, but it was just part of my general reading until recently. Before that, I’d never really interacted with them, and I only got close enough to feel their influence a few times. Usually by accident.”

“I’ve bumped into them some while hunting,” Andrew said. “I give them a wide berth when I can.”

“That’s definitely the right thing to do,” Anna said.

“I don’t know,” Peter said. “That was the first time I’d gotten close enough to feel their influence. It was weird, but it didn’t seem that bad.”

“You had something else in your head, and your only description is weird?” Anna said. “That’s a unique perspective.”

“It’s because he’s already crazy,” Andrew said.

“I’m sorry, but I haven’t been able to tell if you’re joking when you say that,” Anna said.

Andrew didn’t answer. Instead, he pointed through the trees, where tendrils of white smoke could be seen rising into the air. “Our village isn’t much farther.” Even as he spoke, the sounds of wood and metal working, of people calling to one another, and of children at play began to make their way to the travelers. The sound of an axe against a tree was the only warning they had of the woodsman on the path in the way in to town.

“That doesn’t look like you’re usually catch there, does she Andrew?” called the woodcutter.

“Found this dwarf girl with some wisps up the mountain,” Andrew replied. “Said she could use some help with directions.”

The woodcutters eyes went wide, and he whistled. “Well, isn’t that timing for you.”

“What do you mean, Jonas?”

“You don’t remember?” asked the wood cutter. Then he shook his head. “No, right. You weren’t in the tavern last night. We had a trader in yesterday, remember? Last night, he told a bunch of tall tales about wisps around the country. But if this las has seen them too…”

“What sort of stories?” Peter asked.

“Odd behavior and the like,” Jonas replied. “Not big on the details. You may catch the trader if you swing by Bart’s, though.”

“We’ll do that,” Andrew said. He waved and led the others into the village. “Did you know about that, Anna?” Andrew asked.

“No,” she said. Andrew looked back. The Dwarf girl was holding her hand up while she examined her nails. She caught him looking back at her, and turned away. “I heard rumors during my last trading journey, but I didn’t take them seriously. I’d forgotten about them until he mentioned it, actually. I was so wrapped up in this trip.”

“Studying wisps in Woadrok,” Andrew said. “Right.”

“What made you interested in wisps in the first place?” Peter asked.

Anna raised her hand to look at her hand again. “I’m trying to pay a friend back for helping me,” she said. “In order to do that, I need to know more about wisps.”

Andrew was still trying to think what she meant by that when a pair of voices shrieking “Andrew! Peter!” cut through his thoughts. He looked up just in time to see two girls as short as Anna dashing at the group. Peter stepped in front and caught the smaller of the pair, a little girl who wore her raven hair in twin tails. The elder ran right up to Andrew. Her hir was tied back as well, but only into one tail, and she was a few inches taller. “You’re back early!” she said.

“Did you catch anything?” the younger one asked.

“Just our new friend here,” Peter said.

“Wow! You’re hair is so pretty!” the little girl shoved herself off Peter and ran over to Anna, looking at her braid.

“Anna, these are our sisters, Maddie and Maggie,” Andrew said, gesturing respectively to the elder and younger girls. “Girls, this is Miss Anna, a Dwarven traveler.”

“It’s nice to meet you!” Maddie said holding her hand out to take Anna’s. Maggie seemed entranced by

“You as well,” Anna said.

The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

“Wait, you didn’t get anything?” Maggie demanded, spinning to face Andrew. “Why’d you come back so early, then?”

“Miss Anna needs some help on her journey. So we’re taking her to Bart’s for the evening.”

“But you didn’t bring anything back!” Maggie said.

“I was looking forward to venison,” Maddie added, folding her arms and closing her eyes as she spoke. She cracked them open, and started giggling with Peter.

“We’ll go out again tomorrow,” Andrew said. “But right now, we shouldn’t keep our guest waiting.”

“Don’t worry over me,” Anna said, smiling.

“We’ll come along with you,” Maggie said.

“Yeah!” Maddie agreed. “Then you can help us with our chores when we’re done, since you didn’t bring home any dinner.”

“Fine, but make sure you don’t annoy Master Bart,” Andrew said. The girls agreed, and joined the group as they made their way to the tavern in the center of town.

A bell tied to the door rang when they went inside. The only light in the main room came from outside the windows. It revealed a clean little establishment with a dozen or so square tables organized around the room with two chairs each. Some had been pushed together to form a larger table in the center of the room. There was also a long, high counter in the back, wrapping around the entrance to the kitchen, from which came the smell of slow roasting meat.

A young woman was crouched behind the counter, rummaging around in some drawers. She looked up at the sound of the bell. “Sorry boys,” the woman said. “Still too early for dinner.”

“We know,” Andrew said. “We were hoping to speak to your father. Is Bart in?”

“He’s at your Pa’s place, actually, ordering some rashers of smoked bacon.” The woman stood and caught site of Anna and the girls. “Oh, who’s this? A new friend of yours?”

“My name’s Anna. I’m a Dwarf.”

“Oh, dear. My apologies, Miss Anna. Hope I didn’t cause any offense.”

“None taken, Miss,” Anna said.

“The name’s Donna. What brings you all the way to the top of the Iron Valley?”

“The wisps,” Peter said.

Donna blinked at Peter. “I’m sorry. Wisps?”

Andrew glared at Peter, then explained, “Jonas told us about the traveler who was here last night with stories about the wisps behaving oddly. We wanted to ask your father about them, or if the traveler was still in the village.”

“Oh, him! We let the traveler stay in our spare room. I’m afraid he set out pretty early this morning, though.” Anna’s face fell, but Donna went on. “You know, I heard all his tales. If you’d like to hear them, I’m your gal.” She glanced at Anna. “Was that man a friend of yours?”

Anna shook her head. “No. But I’ve had my own interesting experience with wisps, and I’m currently trying to do research on them.”

“She’d gotten herself mixed up with a pair of angry wisps up the mountain this afternoon,” Peter added. “She almost touched one.”

Donna seemed impressed. “All by yourself. My, my, sounds like a tale.”

“It would be a big help for my journey if you could tell me what you remember,” Anna said. She looked around, as if just remembering the woman had been working and added. “Of course, I don’t mean to interrupt you or anything.”

Donna waved her hand. “Posh! Unlike these kiddos, I can work and talk at the same time.” Peter started laughing at that, and his sisters joined them. Andrew only rolled his eyes. Donna turned around and started diffing through the cupboards again. As she did, though, she started talking over her shoulder.

“Now, let’s see. Our guest told us that on his way into the valley, he was accosted by a man who’d been taken by the wisps. He had three, and they made him wander around the crossroads outside the pass. The poor man was babbling about the end of the world and wanting to go home, and so on. Completely unresponsive to anyone on the road.”

“Did they send a mage to help him?” Anna asked.

“Oh, yes,” Donna replied. “He asked Lord Ironwood to send one when he passed through Belmont. Of course, everyone was on edge about the whole thing because from the sounds of it, things like that have been happening all over the kingdom. Worst of all, it sounds like something similar has happened to Lord Ironhill’s nephew, Charles.”

“Something similar?” Andrew asked. “So he’s been taken?”

Donna shrugged as she pulled out some spoons, forks, knives, and other serving utensils and set it on the counter. As she continued, she examined each piece of cutlery before wiping off any water marks she found. “The traveler wasn’t quite certain about that. Charles managed to get five wisps hanging around him. But it seems more like they follow him around. That is, he was still following his ordinary duties, and he’d respond when people addressed him. Or failed to address him.”

“That doesn’t sound out of the ordinary,” Andrew said, frowning. “His behavior, I mean. Which, I suppose means its very out of the ordinary.”

“Almost,” Donna agreed. “The thing is, he’s gotten worse since the wisps started hanging around him. So his uncle kicked him out.”

“He can’t be happy about that,” Peter said.

“That he is not. But he went, and there’s been no news of him since.”

“Maybe he got himself eaten by one of the dragons?” Anna suggested. “If he succumbed to the wisps influence out on his own, he wouldn’t have been able to avoid them.”

“Oh, our dragons don’t eat people,” Peter said. “They’re much to reasonable for that.”

“I’ve heard of dragon attacks,” Anna said.

“None in the last ten years, though!” Maggie said, crossing her arms.

Anna paused. “Really? You’re sure?”

“Positive,” Peter said.

“Regarding the traveler, though,” Andrew cut in, “did he say anything else?”

Again, Donna shrugged. “Not much. At least, not on the wisps. He was all business before getting into his cups. He’s a carpenter, see, and, well, no one needs that kind of work right now. Specially not with Jonas’s boy taking up the craft.”

Andrew nodded. “Bad luck, I suppose.” He turned to Anna. “Do you have any more questions?”

Anna looked down, covering her mouth with a fist as she thought for a moment. “Did he mention other events around Grealand? With the Wisps, I mean.”

“He mentioned them, yes,” Donna said with a nod. “No details though.”

“Not even locations?”

Donna pursed her lips, looking up instead of at the spoon she was polishing. “Not specifically, I don’t think. He mentioned the Crimson Wood and the southern border, but in a sort of, ‘everywhere in between’ sort of way.”

“And beyond, if it’s happening here,” Peter said.

“How far away are those places?” Maggie asked.

“Very far,” Maddie answered.

Anna looked at the girls and smiled, though she felt like she was hanging over a pit. “The northern edge of the Crimson Wood is about two hundred miles south east of the Iron Valley.”

“So they are basically everywhere, then?” Maddie asked.

“From the sounds of it, missy,” Donna said. The young woman looked back at Anna. “Were you planning on moving on before this evening?”

“I hadn’t decided anything,” Anna said. “I’m still trying to get my bearings now that we’re off the mountain.”

“If it helps, the close mountains are north,” Peter offered. The girls laughed, and Anna’s face flushed.

“Thanks,” she hissed.

“Did I say something wrong?” Peter asked his brother. Andrew nodded.

Donna shook her head at the boys, then said, “Well, the reason I ask is I bet a lot of folks would be interested to hear your own story, Miss Anna. Something to corroborate our friend’s story… Well, if the wisps are going to be making nuisances of themselves, it’d be good for us all to be on the same page about it. I’m sure I could convince my Pa to let you stay here.”

“Well, I suppose it’s alright if it wouldn’t be too much trouble.”