Everything went according to Illnyea's plan until they actually arrived at the lightning tree and Illnyea explained to Holly that she should go back to her town while Illnyea went to deal with the cannibal.

Holly did not agree that she should go back to her home despite the path forward being clear, and so they were at an impasse.

A very loud impasse as Holly was crying, yelling, "I can't let you go fight The Starving One by yourself – you'll, you'll just die!"

"Holly," Illnyea tried to say soothingly even as her head pounded from the screams and she worried that the monsters surrounding them would be drawn in by Holly's voice, "I'll be–"

"You don't even have a sword," Holly said, her sharp words cutting through the air as she angrily wiped away her tears, "and you're injured! There's too many of them to fight!"

Illnyea wished she had a way to argue against those points but her brain was working slowly, so Illnyea's mouth opened and closed a few times without saying anything.

Holly stepped forward, glaring defiantly up at Illnyea, hands balled into fists.

"I won't run away and leave you to die," Holly said fiercely, though she had thankfully stopped yelling, "not when you saved me. I won't let you go alone."

Is this how Sulaiman felt when Illnyea told him she was going to learn to fight alongside him?

(you were even younger than her, Sulaiman would have pointed out, and you certainly didn't take no for an answer.)

Illnyea swallowed, her feelings and thoughts all muddled within her. She admired the girl's tenacity, but at the same time Illnyea couldn't just willingly bring a child into a dangerous situation.

"I don't think you could even help me," Illnyea said, grasping for a line of logic to convince the girl.

Holly's face twisted with anger, her lips quivering as she said, "I can help watch your back, or, or be a distraction while you sneak in."

"I don't want you getting hurt, Holly," Illnyea said, ignoring how willing the girl was to put herself in harm's way.

Holly laughed, the sound surprisingly bitter for someone so young.

"If I go home," Holly said, her blue eyes never leaving Illnyea's, "I'll just be beaten nearly to death by the mayor, and then thrown back into the fens anyway while he punishes my family. At least this way, if I die, I know that I did everything I could to save my little brother from sharing my fate."

It was a pragmatic approach to the girl's situation that was difficult to argue against.

Illnyea bit her lip and looked at the ground, taking a few seconds to think.

She couldn't force the girl to listen to her, and based on the way that Holly was acting, it was likely that the girl would just try to follow Illnyea even if she pretended to head back to the village. And if that happened, Holly might end up encountering a monster and dying in a place where no one would find her body for a very long time.

There was only one solution Illnyea's mind latched on, and it was one that would probably make Sulaiman give her his 'are-you-sure-you-have-a-brain?' look.

"Fine," Illnyea said, holding up a finger to stop Holly from brightening too much. "You are going to have nothing to do with the fighting part, not as a distraction or otherwise."

Holly scowled but Illnyea continued on.

"I will allow you to help me scope out the camp," Illnyea said firmly, "but once we engage, your mission is to stay unseen so I don't have to worry about your safety – if someone is coming for my blindspot, you can call out to me, but otherwise, you need to stay quiet. Do you understand, Holly?"

Holly looked sullen but took a deep breath and nodded.

"Then let's get going," Illnyea said, clapping her hands.

"We can follow the speckled stones," Holly said, pointing out said stones near them, lining the southward path. Illnyea eyed it warily.

"How about we walk parallel to the stones?" Illnyea suggested. "If the cannibals are still searching for you, then they might be keeping an eye on the path."

Holly hesitated before nodding, and they waded into the brush so that they could just barely spot the stones and resumed their journey.

Their luck didn't hold out.

After walking a good while (time was still not Illnyea's friend as the foggy haze surrounded them), they rounded a squat, thick tree and came face to face with several of those large toads who had spat corrosive spit at Illnyea. Two of the beasts seemed to be sleeping, but the third was awake and had just finished shifting towards the tree.

Illnyea and the toad took in each other's presence at the same time.

She stamped her foot onto the soft ground, demanding that it rise up into a wall. The corrosive spit hit the wall as Illnyea grabbed Holly's hand and sprinted away. Weeds threatened to trip Illnyea, but she powered through them, each step putting just enough magic into the ground to keep it stable. Angry croaks floated through the air behind them and something wet splashed onto the ground.

Illnyea didn't look back, keeping Holly's hand firmly in her grip.

They ran in the direction that Illnyea thought was south until Holly's wheezed, "I, I can't."

Briefly, they stopped to rest and catch their breath. Holly immediately sat on the ground, leaning back on her hands as she tipped her head back to gulp down air. Illnyea kept her gaze constantly moving, all too aware that there could be more monsters lurking in the fog, waiting for her to slip up, to fail before she even reached their target.

(stay focused, Sulaiman would have said, but let your instincts guide you – those haven't led you astray yet.)

They resumed their journey once Holly found some moss and confirmed they were still headed south. The path of speckled stones weren't in sight anymore, so they just began walking in a southward direction. Illnyea planned on climbing a tree if the fog around them turned dark, like the sun had fallen. She had wanted to get to the cannibals before dark because they'd probably be more on guard during the nighttime, but Illnyea would take what she could get.

It was silent as they walked, as Illnyea didn't have the mental energy to talk while keeping an eye on their surroundings and Holly seemed to be deep in thought as she led the way.

Illnyea wasn't sure how much time had passed when her stomach growled and the sound echoed loudly. Holly gave Illnyea a judgemental look that Illnyea resented. It's not like Illnyea had done it on purpose.

"You can't fight on an empty stomach," Holly said primly, her words sharp when Illnyea tried to move past and keep walking.

"Yeah, but we're out of food so I'm out of luck," Illnyea said. She paused when Holly grabbed Illnyea's good arm.

Holly had pursed her lips, glancing around. "Let me look around for some berries and mushrooms."

Illnyea's stomach unhelpfully agreed and she sighed.

"Alright, where are we looking first?" Illnyea asked, resigned to this slight detour. She didn't know how much more daylight they had left, but Holly was right – Illnyea would be stronger if her body had some sustenance, and the mad sprint earlier didn't help.

Holly didn't say anything, her expression growing pinched. She mumbled something Illnyea didn't catch.

"What?" Illnyea said.

Holly's cheeks flushed as she said, "I have to go to the bathroom first! I haven't said anything but I've had to pee for an hour."

The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.

Illnyea blinked, then said, "Alright, let me give you a rag. Don't go too far though – stay within shouting distance and let me know when you're done. I don't want us to be separated for long."

Holly nodded her head and took the rag Illnyea dug out of her beaten pack, but she began walking determinedly towards a cluster of trees on the edge of the fog as soon as it was in her hands.

Illnyea tapped her foot before deciding to relieve herself as well since she had the chance. It was awkward as always, but it was over quickly thankfully.

But with that over, Illnyea had nothing left to focus on except the upcoming battle.

With no sword and her shield being half-fused with her arm, Illnyea was going to have to rely on magic. The man who had attacked the caravan commanded powerful electricity but the dirt wall had been able to block it, so maybe she could try to just surround him with a dirt dome to neutralize him. If he broke through it, hopefully the earth would just suffocate him.

The Starving One was physically strong if she could toss men through statues and seemed to have a variety of magical powers based on what Holly told Illnyea, so she'd be difficult to deal with.

(everyone dies when stone goes through their brain, the part of her carved from broken glass offered.)

Illnyea considered that solution.

There was some merit, but it required several things for it to happen. Since the cannibal was apparently wicked fast, Illnyea would have to knock the ridiculously strong woman off her feet while simultaneously pumping enough mana into the earth so the spike formed quickly with a deadly edge. It was theoretically possible, but relied on circumstances going exactly the way Illnyea wanted them to instead of going sideways like this entire trip in the fens had been so far.

And speaking of using magic…

The strange yellow scar was still on the back of Illnyea's hand. It had grown since this morning, curling down around her wrist like a snake. Illnyea still didn't know why it appeared or why it was tied to her magic usage, but it bothered her. Something about it unsettled her, like when you spotted a single black stain in an otherwise spotless, white room. It was unnatural, out of place, and made Illnyea wish it would disappear.

Illnyea wanted to cross her arms as she thought but quickly aborted that motion when her hand came in contact with the shield, making her hiss from the pain.

"Stupid toad," Illnyea muttered, glaring out at the fog like the beast who had spat the purple gunk at her was right there.

She glanced towards where Holly was as the thoughts of monsters made Illnyea nervous once more. People deserved privacy during such moments, but Illnyea couldn't help but inch closer towards the trees just in case. She'd rather have to apologize than find Holly's corpse –

Holly's scream pierced through the air and Illnyea was off and running, vaulting over the brush in her haste.

It was stupid to let her go out of sight, Illnyea berated herself as she ran towards the sounds of Holly whimpering.

And then Illnyea came to an abrupt stop at what she found.

Holly had her arms pinned against her sides, a knife pressed against her throat. The girl was crying and breathing too fast as her captor pulled her closer.

Her captor was someone that Illnyea had thought was dead.

"Rudy?" Illnyea said disbelievingly.

He was dressed in the same clothes that Illnyea had last seen him in, but they were dirty and torn now, his fine suit looking like it'd be better used as a rag. Mud was caked into his hair, and Rudy had a long, nasty looking wound down the side of his face from the forehead to chin that looked inflamed, red lines of infection stretching across his cheek and forehead.

Rudy had a wild look in his eyes when he saw Illnyea and a manic grin stretched across his face. He started to laugh, his entire body shaking. The knife drew a thin line of blood against Holly's throat.

"Let her go, Rudy," Illnyea said, taking a step forward.

The laughter abruptly stopped as Rudy took a step backward, keeping Holly close.

"I'll do what I like," Rudy said. His voice was raspy, as if rarely used, and had a mean edge to it.

Illnyea clenched her teeth, not looking away from Holly, who was blinking rapidly as a rivulet of blood ran down her throat.

"I'm sorry," Holly mouthed and that just made Illnyea angry.

It wasn't Holly's fault that Rudy had somehow survived the attack and took her hostage for some Gods' forsaken reason. The man looked mad and ill-fed, so perhaps he was desperate and lashing out before he died.

But before Illnyea could figure out the best way to free Holly, Rudy bellowed, "Raven. Raven! Raven, I found something you might like!"

Raven?

Who was that?

Rudy's words echoed for a long moment and Illnyea decided he must have been bluffing. She took a step forward, intent on freeing Holly when –

Figures came out of the fog, darting forward quickly.

Illnyea's eyes widened as she took a step back, raising her fists in case they came at her. The first person who came out of the fog was one of the people who had attacked the caravan, an animal pelt draped over his shoulders and club in hand, but he was just the first of nearly a dozen similarly armed people, and several others came after twenty seconds, breathing heavily and dressed in similarly dirty clothes to Rudy. The ones in animal pelts set up in a circle around Holly, Rudy, and Illnyea, and the ones in dirty clothes lingered nearby, their gazes fixed on the ground as they huddled together.

The final person who exited from the fog was a tall woman with thick boots. She had a mask that looked like a bird's skull pulled low over her face and a long cloak made of what looked like feathers covered her shoulders and went all the way down to her thighs. It was difficult to see the woman's face, except for the icy green eyes that peered out from behind the mask. In her hands was a long, golden staff that looked like a shepherd's hook except that the end of the hook was wicked sharp.

The woman, who must be Raven, cocked her head as she took in the scene.

Illnyea's mind was racing for a way to get out of this situation. There were just a few more than last time, but last time Illnyea had a sword, and based on the way that everyone went still when this Raven woman entered the clearing, she probably was in the same weight class as the man with wolf pelt.

"Well, well," Raven said, stepping through the circle of warriors to look at Holly, "it seems Rudy found our missing sacrifice even if he failed to draw out our target."

The woman tilted her head towards Illnyea, the green eyes pinning her in place.

"And you found the little fox Wolf's been hunting," Raven said, her voice sounding oddly smug.

By process of elimination, Illnyea was the aforementioned fox and she did not appreciate that she was apparently being hunted. She shifted, preparing to draw on the little magic she had managed to recover since the toads.

But the Raven placed her palm upon Holly's head and the girl whimpered. There wasn't any force behind the gesture but Illnyea froze. At that range, Illnyea wouldn't be able to stop Raven if she cast magic upon Holly.

"That's right," Rudy growled, "stay back you–"

"Be quiet or you're crab food," Raven said without turning to look at the man, keeping her focus on Illnyea. "The only reason that you found them in the first place is because you disobeyed me and ran when I told you to march forward. Normally, I'd slit your throat where you stand" – Rudy blanched – "but I'll allow Her Glory to decide your punishment. She may be feeling merciful for finding a suitable replacement meal."

And based on the way Raven tilted her head, Illnyea had a bad, bad feeling that she was what's on the menu.

(kill her now, the broken glass urged, kill them all and run.)

But Illnyea couldn't run, not when Holly was captured.

Illnyea wouldn't run, not again.

"I hope you'll be cooperative, little fox," Raven continued in the same even tone, "as I'm sure you understand what happens if you don't."

Illnyea swallowed and nodded jerkily.

"Good," Raven said. She then turned towards Holly, grabbing the girl's chin and forcing her to look up. "What is the fox's name, sacrifice?"

Holly hiccuped as she said, "Il–Illnyea."

Raven patted Holly's cheek before straightening.

"Grab Illnyea," Raven ordered and an armed man and woman stepped forward.

For a moment, Illnyea dreamed of fighting back, but she shoved that impossible dream away, focusing on staying silent. But Illnyea couldn't help a hiss of pain as the man roughly grabbed her pack and dragged it off her shield arm. It throbbed in time with her heartbeat as the man pinned it behind her, making her fingertips tingle.

"You're injured?" Raven said, tilting her head as she stepped closer, only stopping when she was right in front of Illnyea.

Illnyea said nothing, just gritting her teeth and glaring. Neither said anything for a long moment, giving Illnyea the time to properly study her enemy's appearance.

Raven wore long dark sleeves and had black pants tucked into her pants, not showing an inch of skin. The shepherd's hook was the woman's only obvious weapon and Illnyea thought she saw a design carved into the metal. Illnyea had spent enough time with Marsha to recognize that it was probably an enhanced weapon, though it didn't look like any of the runes that Marsha had inscribed as thanks. Raven had a pair of black gloves that had silver stitching that circled around a gray gem. The gem faintly radiated magic, a power that called out to Illnyea's own reserves.

Raven's bone white mask had a swirling design framing Raven's green eyes as they narrowed.

The woman tsked.

"Blindfold her," Raven ordered, pulling out a long strip of black cloth. "I don't like that look in her eyes."

Instinctively, Illnyea struggled for a moment because it was one thing to be captured, it was another to be captured and blind, but her captors tightened their grip and Illnyea buckled from the pain.

The last thing Illnyea saw before the blindfold fell over her eyes had to be a hallucination because there was no way that those little legs had covered that much ground.

In the shadow of the tree across from them, there was the same strange little purple creature Illnyea had poured her heart out to this morning, its eyes locked onto what was happening in front of it. Illnyea swore she made eye contact with it, and the creature dipped its bill solemnly, which meant this was probably just her mind playing tricks on her after all.

But the sight of the creature was replaced with darkness as they tightened the cloth and Illnyea was dragged to her feet.

"I cannot wait to tell Wolf I succeeded where he failed," Raven said, her high-pitched voice dripping with satisfaction as a slender hand wrapped around Illnyea's right bicep. "You there – go give the good news to Her Glory so she can prepare appropriately."

Illnyea remained silent, her arm throbbing as she dutifully walked forward towards certain death.

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