Chapter 213: The Road Grows Short

Kat nudged Ann awake. Neither had to say anything to understand the nightmares were still plaguing the princess. They shared a sad smile. Neither of them was doing as well as they could be, but they were doing shittily together.

A quick kiss and some gentle cuddles later, the pair tossed on some clothes and left the tent. Bren and Lucia were just waking up as well, calling a friendly greeting as the camp came alive with the exception of Rosalyn, who’d grumbled about a few more minutes. After what she and Kat had put the Druid through last night, Ann couldn’t blame her.

Ann wandered off to find some firewood and returned to Bren and Lucia sitting next to each other while Kat tended the fire.

Sitting together and touching more than usual. Something had happened. Ann squinted at the pair, as her ears perked up to full attention. They weren’t talking. Damnit. Neither of them had a dopey smile or mussed hair that Ann attributed to a romp. If only she had Lucia’s nose, she could smell if anything was strange. Still, the casual posture with them sitting shoulder to shoulder, the way they were setting out breakfast in near-perfect coordination? All of it was setting off alarm bells that their relationship had progressed. She just had absolutely no proof! Zip! Zero! Nada! Goose eggs!

She had to bite back her frustration and walked into camp, giving Kat the sticks and other pieces of wood she’d found to bring the smouldering coals to life. Soon, a merry fire crackled, tea boiled, and food heated. Kat, as she always did, snuggled up to Ann for warmth in the chilly morning, and all present sat quietly.

“So, we’re almost there, yeah?” Ann asked.

“Should be near the destination Orenous indicated on the morrow, yes,” Bren nodded.

“Good time. Considering,” Lucia grunted.

“Aye. Detour through the Seed wasn’t what I’d expected. Still, came out wit’ more knowledge than when we went in. Next time Orenous shows ‘er tits, we’ve got somethin’ that’ll knock her ontae that sweet arse o’ hers.”

“A lost and forgotten Goddess. I still reel at the implications,” Bren mused, pouring tea for the rest and reserving a cup for Rosalyn. “One that the Gods have even lost. I am aware they are fallible, but forgetting one of their own? For Qu’Sella especially, that seems unlikely.”

“Hoping the journal gives me a little more next time. Skullo’s words were interesting, too. When I’m not thinking about the… the bandits, I’ve been running those over in my head. He was toning stuff down, for sure, and using different words to hide exactly who he worshipped, but there had to be something in there.”

“I have as well. The unfortunate thing is that his phrasing could apply to multiple Gods. Eas is firmly tied into some of his phrasing, but not entirely. Maybe they are a Goddess not commonly worshipped in this land before the Gods left this world?”

“Could be. Intyom is the nerdy God fer all ye inventors, right? Big o’er in Bortislav,” Kat suggested. “Gotta be somethin’ else out there.”

“Speaking of, actually,” Ann interjected. “One thing that’s been bugging me. We’ve got Gods for a lot of the human spectrum, land, and animals, but what about bigger concepts like time and space? I told you about some of the Greek gods that cover that realm.”

“They exist, but are more distant as far as the pantheon is considered,” Bren said, chewing on some dried meat. “Their concepts are so vast and unknowable that interacting with them is flirting with madness. Imagine consulting with the personification of all time, future and past. My mind would not be able to withstand it.”

“And space is literally infinite, so that’s even more eldritch. Yeah, get your point.”

“Eldritch?” Bren asked, his fingers twitching like they were holding a quill.

“Uncanny, strange, or unknowable. It’s a broad term. Used to be a whole genre of horror stories around the concept. I think the vastness of space getting put into a being would fit that pretty well,” Ann explained.

Rosalyn yawned loudly, shuffling from the tent. “Sorry. Really wore me out last night. Bren, could I? Mmm, yeah. Thanks!” The druid took her spot in Ann’s lap and enjoyed the warmth of the fire with the rest. “Oh, did I say, Xirali talked to me for the first time last night. Well, when I wasn’t in my soul, you know.”

“Really,” Kat blurted, sitting up and fixing the sheep with a stare. “Ye didn’t. She still bein’ friendly? I’ll kick ‘er arse if she’s not.”

“Oh, she’s perfectly friendly! Just wanted to let me know that she was strong enough to talk now. Had a little chitchat while I think it was Ann was in my butt, but nothing much. She wanted to give me privacy for that.”

“Considerate,” Lucia laughed. “Wonder if bird talk?”

“Knowing your luck, it will be the most talkative of all,” Bren smirked, elbowing her.

“Yours silent.”

“That would be vexing.”

“Still, wonder what issue represent? Waheela feral hunger, Dragon greed pride, Xirali strange, maybe curious? Bren stable person. Am… less, but not bad.”

“Seven deadly sins,” Ann scoffed. “Gluttony, Pride, Greed, Lust, Wrath, Envy, Sloth. I don’t really hold stock in that, though. They’re all extremes of what makes us people. Nah, jury’s still out on what Xirali’s doing. I still don’t trust her. Shit, I trust Waheela more than her at this point.”

The gesture is appreciated, but unnecessary.

Ah, take the compliment, you big softy.

I AM NOT SOFT!

Ann laughed as Waheela howled in her head.

“Katlyn, how are your scales progressing? I can see your eyes are surrounded, save for the scar tissue, and the patterns on the forehead are dashing, but what about elsewhere?”

“Me shoulders are itchin’ like mad, so’s me arms. Those’ll be a bitch tae shed. Mostly down me back now. Mid back ye said? No clue when it’s gonna stop. If it’s gonna stop.

“As long as they don’t cover your boobs, I’m happy,” Rosalyn said, sipping at her mug.

“Ye’d like the perfect li’l cutouts fer em,” Kat laughed. “At least I’ll be armoured without me gear. That’ll be feckin’ awesome. It’ll still bruise, but cuts’re gonna be way less o’ a problem.”

“Alright, talk while we pack. Tis time to move on,” Bren sighed, standing.

Everyone got to work, even Rosalyn, who was grumbly about not getting as much time to wake up. Tents fell, bags were packed, and armour donned.

Together, the group set out with the sun behind them and to their right. The further north they went, the lower the sun got, even at midday.

“Wish me damn scales would help with the cold,” Kat grumbled, pulling her coat tighter over her armour. “Stupidly jealous o’ ye two.”

Ann and Rosalyn were walking along with little more than their normal gear. Both had coats on, but it was more to protect them against the wind than any chill.

“Maybe you’ll be a fluffy dragon? Get the nice mane around your neck and lady bits? Could be a neat look,” Ann said, kicking a rock and watching it make a line in the snow. She had to be more careful doing so, since if she missed with her claws, her paw would get stubbed. Boots for paws were the obvious answer, but she liked having her claws out.

“If the bastard in me ‘ead is anythin’ tae go by, no I won’t.”

“How’s it looking in there, by the way? Still creepily emaciated?”

“Aye. Some o’ its colour is comin’ back, but it’s still skin an’ bones. Can see its skull under the scales. Like tae not think about that, thank ye. Lucia! Ye ever been this far north?”

“No.”

“Just no, or…” Kat lead.

“Have not. Some in tribe have. Bryltia called. Hunt big prey. Mountains danger. Big danger. Old danger.”

“Such as the dragon in Devdan’s tale?” Bren asked.

“Yes. Not just under. Over, too. Birds big as sky. Furred beasts size of hills.”

“Are they Warped?” Ann asked.

“Some. Some just there. Is mix. See more east. Untamed Wilds have many magic beasts. Is home. Is safe for beast. Well, mostly. Warped still there. Beasts take care of for most part.”

“Huh. A sphinx might actually exist, then! We knew dragons, so other things have to be here. I wonder if a unicorn is a thing?”

“By unicorn, you mean the horse with the singular horn in the middle of its head that is said to have magical powers and immortality? The one that is feared in the southern lands as an omen of ill luck and death due to their vicious nature, killing larger creatures and devouring them? If so, yeah, they exist,” Rosalyn said. “Nasty critters. I wouldn’t want to meet one of them. Well, ok, maybe I would if it’s already dead and I can pull it apart. That’d be interesting. Maybe when we’re all stronger, we can go hunt one for… uh… research purposes?”

Ann raised an eyebrow at Rosalyn, but gave her a smile. “Yeah. We can bag you a unicorn if you really want to. I still want to meet a dragon. Preferably not one of the insane ones.”

“Ye sure? I kinda wanna see what I can deal wit’,” Kat laughed.

“You would have all of your bones broken against a wall, Katlyn. I do not think I can bring you back from that.”

“Not yet.”

“… not yet.” Bren’s face grew serious at the thought. Ann knew he wanted to get better healing. Better to prepare himself for whatever they may run into, and better to help Kremdol. If the best healers were stymied, he would be better.

They walked for a few hours with light conversation. Ann was talking about how she remembered air conditioning working. Bren, of course, was peppering her with questions. Material components, the tolerances of the pieces. She tried her best, but a lot of it was her best guess. Copper, steel, and other metals; then it was just pumping heat from metal coils and pushing the cold air through vents. It wouldn’t really be useful in Korvas, since it was further north.

“Nonsense. The idea brings to mind several other applications of heat transference. Thermal applications would be lovely for a, say, steam engine, preventing overheating of the engine in addition to the stack. With that, my parents could engineer a non-enchanted way to disperse the heat, increasing safety, and then work from there to enchant it for further efficiency. They will love this.”

Ann opened her mouth to agree, but was cut off by a distant noise. Kat’s ears twitched alongside her as they both picked it up.

“What?” Lucia asked, noticing their hesitation.

“Noise. Something… angry? Not sure what. It’s a fight, though. Kat?”

“Two parties. Multiple people or creatures. Can’t get anythin’ else. Let’s go.”

Picking up the pace, they ran toward the noise of the fight. Scattered arctic trees provided some cover for them, but also obscured whatever they were running towards. The commotion came into auditory clarity. Multiple voices shouting between them as well as several other grunts and roars. The voices were peculiar to say the least, save two. They were all gruff or distorted somehow.

“Ye reckon’ they’re Warped?” Kat asked.

“Smart ones, if they can speak. Gods, that’ll be more dangerous.”

“Aye. Packs down ‘ere!” Kat ordered. “Let’s see what the feck we’re walkin’ intae.”

A minute more of running. The sounds were close. Shapes formed in the distance. Rosalyn was the first to see them. Six larger creatures and four smaller ones. The amount of movement and combat was kicking up a lot of snow, obscuring too much detail. One of the smaller forms was knocked out of the dust cloud, shook themself off, then ran back in.

“Alright, make contact, establish friends an’ foe. Hold back fer now. No sense in’ gettin’ outnumbered.”

Stopping near the edge of the cloud, they waited before a man came sailing out of the flying ice. He landed hard on the ground and bounced twice before coming to a stop. Groaning, he leaned on a massive spear and pulled himself up. As he saw them, he froze.

Ann understood why. This man was clearly Warped. Long fingers, far longer than a normal human’s, wrapped around the spear. The jaw he’d once had was an insectile mandible. His back was covered in the fur of a grizzly, and there was likely more under his clothing.

“Friend or foe,” he called. His voice was distorted as well, lacking his lower lip.

“Depends. Ye gonna kill us.”

“You gonna kill me?”

“Maybe.”

“Then back off, outsider,” the man growled and ran back into the fray.

“What the hell was that?” Rosalyn whispered. “He… that was definitely a Warped, but he didn’t look complete? What? I have so many questions.”

“Might ‘ave tae get ‘em post mortem,” Kat muttered, watching the blinding snow intensely.

“They are outnumbered. If the beasts are normal creatures, we could overwhelm the Warped,” Bren suggested.

“Numbers matter. Problem. Not sure if creatures friendly.”

“Good point, Lucia. Still…” Ann flinched as she heard a man cry out in pain. “I really don’t like hearing that.”

Kat stood there, weighing her options. One of the smaller creatures was knocked down by the larger. “Feck it. Figure out who we help once we’re in there.”

The princess led the way.

It was utter chaos once they were inside. Wind howled around them, a supernatural force kicking the snow and it into a frenzy. Ann’s ears flattened sympathetically under her helmet as they trudged forward. Two of the figures were moving away from the six larger, one dragging the other. Kat signalled them toward the main fight.

Breaking into the eye of the storm, so to speak, they got their first glimpse at what was happening. Six large Warped were attacking smaller humanoid ones.

The larger creatures were types of fur-covered wyverns. Large wings beat the area around them as tendrils of frozen fur flowed off the arms. Arrow-shaped heads writhed left and right, snapping at their prey with massive fangs. Two blasted the remaining pair of smaller Warped with ice and wind while the remaining four tried to get a hit in.

The smaller Warped weren’t letting them. The larger of the two wielded his spear with immense strength, keeping two of the monsters occupied by himself. Closer inspection revealed the man who’d been tossed out earlier. The other two focused on the woman beside him. She wielded a massive hammer, and her arms bulged far larger than her small frame should have supported. She looked only a couple of inches taller than Rosalyn, but was twirling the hammer taller than she was like a toy. Unfortunately, Ann couldn’t see more, since she was covered in a blast of wind. While they fought, the woman tossed the man a vial, who downed it, and kept on fighting.

With a sickening crunch, the man drove his spear up through the jaw of a wyvern who’d overextended trying to bite him.

“Ah, feck it. Kill the wyverns. We’ll figure out the rest after.”

The party ran into motion. Kat and Ann ran forward while Lucia and Rosalyn spread out to deal the most damage at range. Bren stayed as close to the centre as he could, maintaining coverage of everyone.

“Friendlies behind!” Ann called, running past the woman.

“Who?”

The woman didn’t get a chance to finish her sentence, distracted by another bite attempt. She knocked the head toward Ann with a crack of her hammer. It landed hard, the creature staggered, and Ann sank claws into the thing’s soft throat. Pulling, she tore through everything she could reach. Black blood sprayed everywhere before she finished things off with a Fistful of Love.

“Woah. Good hit! Two more incoming! Take the left?” the woman’s voice was clear and bright. The sound of someone very in control of her current circumstance.

“Yup! Yell if you need help!”

Ann got to work. After dealing with a Guardian and the group of bandits before, a straight up weird wyvern was a breath of fresh air. All it had was its elemental breath and natural weapons. She could dodge the bites and get under the thing, raking at tendons and joints as she went. Wild stomps of its clawed feet kept her moving, and by the time she was by the tail, blood had painted the snow black. It was a Warped, though, so things were healing. Ann was reserving her abilities mostly for the humanoids, should they be a problem. Jumping up, Ann grabbed the thing’s tail and mounted it. She was almost immediately thrown off as the Warped bucked under her. The only thing that kept her in place was her claws wedged between the creature’s scales. Slowly, she crawled up, and hacked at the creature’s wing joints. Once she got enough exposed, two smites went into each, cutting off the creature’s flight.

Grounded, the creature gave up trying to buck her off and rolled onto its back to squash the pest.

Ann detached and let it roll under her paws, coming up on its stomach. “Sorry, bad move,” Ann said, then sank her claws into its exposed neck. Two smites, and the wound was permanent. Blood poured from the thrashing body as Ann backed off. It might take some time to bleed out, and she was needed elsewhere.

Looking around, she realised that she wasn’t, actually. Kat was standing off to the side, still on guard, but the other wyverns were dead.

“Greetings, outsider,” the woman called. Her arms were far smaller than they had been a bit ago, and she was lifting the hammer with noticeable effort. Now that the wind was gone, Ann got her first look at the woman. She was definitely taller than Rosalyn, but shorter than Kat. Her clothes were simple, but surprisingly attractive. Black and white folds of cloth covered her body and legs in what looked close enough to robes, with a leather belt wrapped around her waist, showing off considerable hips, though there was little to no bust that Ann could see. She had a hood covering her hair with a white strip of cloth over her brow. Below this, a finely made cloth mask hid her eyes and draped just down to the centre of a Roman nose, but a white ruff peeked out around her neck that didn’t look like clothing. She extended a pale hand, white as snow, towards Ann.

“You may call me Alruna. My gratitude for intervening when you did.”