The gods are ughing at me. There is one in particur, though I dare not think his name, lest he come poking his nose where it does not belong. This was supposed to be a quick drop off and get out trip to the vilge and yet here I am with the lot of them traveling with us. Foolish of me to think anything can be simple.

  My life has not been simple since the day Megan ran into me.

  “You realize the eastern nds are overrun with beasts,” I say, crossing my arms. I lean back against the wall and stretch my legs out. As far as transportation goes, traveling inside of a home is different.

  Cramped as well.

  “This will not be a stroll through the capital. There will be other creatures, such as goblins, that will prey on us.”

  “It is too te to turn back now,” Bazur replies. “We have made our decision to follow you.” He smiles. “Besides, the vilge is gone. Wiped out from your fmes. What is there to return to?” He csps his hands together. “Even so, there is no reason to stay close to the capital. They would have come for us eventually once they learned we survived without their assistance.”

  I bite back a sigh and turn my head. It is true. There is nothing but ash remaining of the vilge by now. My fmes will not spread into the forest and will only burn until there is nothing left of the homes and buildings. Megan brushes her knee against mine. She holds the young ogre orphan, Yazir, in her arms.

  At this rate, it is only a matter of time before Megan asks if we can take Yazir in.

  “I am fine.”

  “Bet you didn’t think you’d be using your shadows to transport everyone.” She leans her head on my shoulder and rubs Yazir’s back. “How bad are these nds, really?”

  “Terrible,” I admit. “I would compare the danger to that of the dungeon, if not worse, because of the sheer numbers. Which is why I do not think anyone will look for us there. Not at first. But someone will come for her.” I lower my voice, not for the sake of the demons and the ogres, but to keep the saintess from hyperventiting. “That assassin is due back with the information.”

  “And if he doesn’t come back?”

  “He dies. Best case, we have more time to help you nurture your powers. Worse case, they use the saintess as a sacrifice.”

  “Roharu.”

  I quirk a brow. “If it came to it, I would sacrifice everyone in this room if it meant keeping you safe.” How many times must I say this?

  Katsuro coughs and points to himself.

  “Everyone,” I drawl. Apparently, I have not made myself clear.

  He flips me off and huffs. “Such a sweet talker,” he jokes. “We love you too.”

  Chloe’s brows bunch together while her nose wrinkles. “That’s going a bit too far. We like Roharu. We don’t love him. He’s tolerable. We love Megan. She’s the sweetheart.”

  “Isn’t that the same thing? They’re mates and all. You don’t get one without the other.”

  “No, it’s not the same. They are individuals.”

  I tune them out. Let them believe what they wish. I can handle Megan’s anger, but I cannot handle her death. The saintess stands and steps over the others. She heads towards us instead of remaining in her spot next to the fp. Apollo lifts his head and snorts. He shifts and lies his head on my p as though he is some kind of guard pet.

  “Everything good?” Megan asks.

  “.... I was just lonely over there. Thought I might fall out the door,” the saintess says. She fidgets with her hands, staring at Apollo before sitting next to Megan. “I guess this is no different from an airpne, in a sense.”

  “Might be faster,” Megan replies. “Will we reach it by the end of the night?”

  “Doubtful. Even with Zika’s speed, he is not that fast. At the very least, we will not need to hunt down lodging since we are all in this cramped house.” I run my tongue over the top of my fangs. Megan is not the only that needs to work on their stamina. I am not used to utilizing my shadows in this way nor for this long without rest. “I am curious if the pnts will sprout new harvests even after the fire, but not curious enough to check on it.”

  “If these nds are as awful as you say, then what hope do we have to survive?” the saintess asks. She leans forward. Any further and she will practically be in Megan’s p.

  “I know the nds.”

  “So, you will protect me?”

  I frown. “We will work together to keep everyone safe. That is a given.”

  “No, I’m asking if you will—”

  “Maybe you should get some more rest,” Megan interrupts. “It’ll make the time pass more quickly.” Her smile is tight.

  Ah. She does not care for the saintess. I wrap an arm around Megan and pull her closer.

  “That goes for you as well,” I murmur. “You should rest as much as you can. There are more mountains in the east.”

  “My calves have never looked better,” she jokes. “Why didn’t they send someone out to help with the beasts like they did in the capital? Assuming this isn’t a recent event.”

  “The number of saints born continues to dwindle,” Bazur speaks up. “The temple has become more conservative in how much they allow the saintess or saint to assist.” He looks at the saintess. “Or perhaps the power of the saintess has waned over the years and the temple did not want to arm the citizens.”

  “Ya saying the capital could be overrun then?” Katsuro stretches his legs out and yawns. “So, what if the saintess doesn’t have much magic? Don’t they know how to use their cws anymore? All those weapon shops and they can’t hit a damn tree.” He sticks his tongue out and pretends to gag.

  Megan shifts. “It could happen if they don’t notice in time. Should we ask that god?”

  “No.” I would rather pluck my eyeballs out than to ask that god for help. They do not do anything for free. Why would they? “I am sure many have pleaded with that god and the other gods for help, and it has gone unanswered. Better to worry about the things we can do with our own strength.”

  Megan does not look convinced, but she does not press the issue either. I suspect it is because we have an audience, and she does not want to further arm them. She brushes a hand over Yazir’s hair and then continues to rub her back. If anything were to happen to this child, Megan will be upset.

  Yet another person to keep track of. Perhaps she is waiting for me to broach the subject.

  “Will you not rest?”

  Megan shakes her head. “I can’t sleep right now. I’m bored, but not tired. Too bad we didn’t find any board games while we were there to pass the time or some cards. Though I guess we have it pretty easy. Zika is doing all the work, lugging us around.” She peers up at me. “Is the strain too much?”

  “I am fine.” For now. Keeping everyone afloat is taxing, but not impossible. “We will not purge to our deaths.”

  “And when you say we,” Katsuro drawls, “You mean everyone. Not just you and Megan?”

  I smile.

  ***

  It takes a week and a day of travel with only a break for rest for us to reach the outskirts of the eastern nds. I cross my arms and stare at the shadows. It has been some time since I have been here. Is the estate still standing or has it crumbled under the harness of time? From the forest, the smell of miasma is present. It lingers in the shadows, or perhaps it is the sheer amount of poison that causes the shadows to be thicker.

  A death sentence for this rge party I have gained. Something needs to be done about it before we can proceed any further.

  “Would you be able to pray away the miasma?”

  Megan nods her head. She is wearing a pair of overalls, as she called them, but they remind me of something a farmer would wear. “Seems simple—”

  “Of course!” the saintess decres. She pces a hand over her chest and smiles. Her attitude is as flimsy as a weed. “It can’t be that hard.” She strides forward.

  “If you go any further, it will kill you. Dispel it from here.”

  “Oh... right.” The saintess stops. “I can’t do it if everyone is looking at me.”

  Megan shifts Yazir to her right hip and bumps me with her shoulder. “Are you sure she can do it? It might be too much.”

  “Let her try.”

  We wait and wait, but the miasma remains, and the saintess looks far too pale. She clenches her fists. I can hear her heart pounding from here.

  “Stop.”

  “But!” She whirls. Her breaths are uneven. There is a light sheen of sweat on her forehead. The sun is hidden by the clouds, so it cannot be that the heat is too much for her. “I can do this! Everyone else has worked so hard and I’m the only one that can do this. If you could, then you wouldn’t have asked me.”

  “For fuck’s sake,” Chloe mutters. The disdain is patable.

  She is not a fan of the saintess either. How is it the saintess went from being loved to barely tolerated?

  “It would do no good for any of us to get hurt and you are pushing yourself to exhaustion. Besides, I was not asking you to handle this. You volunteered and did your best. Have pride in that.” I gnce at Megan. “We only need enough removed so we can walk through. You do not need to clear out the entire nd.”

  “Now that’s easier said than done.” Megan closes her eyes. Her brows pinch together in concentration. The darkness lightens little by little, revealing orange and blue leaves from the trees. The east is abundant with mountains and forests. I doubt there are any human settlements or vilges for that matter now.

  The weight of someone watching me pulls me from my musings.

  Zika. His eyes narrow. He is a smart dragon. I am sure he can put two and two together. While the saintess has some power, it is not enough. The temple either deemed she was a lost cause or they deliberately kept her unaware, so she would not be a threat.

  “Vixen, I told you not the entire nd.”

  Megan cracks a small smile. She leans against me. “Like I said, easier said than done. I’m fine. A little tired, but fine.”

  It cannot be helped.

  I take her into my arms and hold her tight. Yazir blinks up at me and wraps her arms around my neck. Megan winces while Yazir gets comfortable.

  “Do I need to get down?”

  “No. No. I’m fine,” Megan assures her. “You can stay right here.”

  “Fox,” Katsuro calls. “Ya want to burn the house before we go any further?”

  That would be the sensible thing to do, but my energy is at its limit from keeping everyone afloat for so long. I turn and look at the house. A regur fire will spread, and I cannot ask Megan to make it rain again. She does not know how to do anything in moderation.

  Zika opens his mouth and burns the house. Katsuro lets out a startled yelp and moves away from the fire.

  “Oi! Some warning would have been nice.”

  “The saying is true, cats do have nine lives,” Zika jokes. He cracks his neck. “So, Fox, where are we going?” He gestures to the forest. “The miasma is cleared and I’m sure the beasts will come investigating.”

  “Who is we?”

  “I’m hurt.” He sniffs, pretending to be upset. “After all, we’ve been through. You would just discard me after using me as nothing more than a means of transportation?” Zika walks over and throws an arm over the saintess. “Besides, it’ll be a shame if something happened after all the trouble you went through to rescue her.”

  “Are you threatening me?” the saintess questions.

  “Threat? I don’t make those,” Zika quips. “I simply act.”

  “Do as you please.”

  I wonder who sought Zika out for information, and why they care about the saintess. Or if Zika’s insistence can truly be chalked up to his fear of the unknown. He keeps an arm around the saintess and leads her into the forest. I stare at their backs, watching how they interact. How the saintess gives up on shoving his arm away and how Zika’s ughter booms.

  Looks like he is good for something other than transportation.

  AutumnBanks

  Thanks for reading! Sorry again for not updating st week. I was expecting for my dog (siberian husky) to have 3-4 puppies but she had 6. We lost two. The first one I think was way too big for her and then the st one I suspect it is because bor went on too long. Pretty soon my house is going to be very loud with all the huskies howling.