Anarchy

A hand slammed on the table that Rikojuu sat at, a snarl rising from one of the voices in the back of the dark, humid room. Rikojuu had been sitting here for what seemed like an eternity attempting to convince the Guardians that Yuki would be able to help them, but instead received words of anger and distrust. "And what about our safety? We cannot have a Mil'janior, a child, running around, doing as she pleases and risking the village!" The hand retreated back, slipping into the shadows and Rikojuu leaned back, sighing.

“I understand this, but she needs discipline, and discipline does not come to those who are in a room, confined and locked in. Or am I wrong?” Rikojuu said cooly, sitting up and resting her chin on her hands as she looked into the darkness. “Someone needs to beat some sense into her, and sadly I’m busy with my shop, so I cannot take the responsibility. Let her onto one of the teams for a fortnight, at least.” The chair creaked and groaned as Rikojuu shifted, not taking her eyes off of the darkness in the room, her ears leaning forward to catch any sign of opposition.

After a long second, Rikojuu heard the sound of fabric shifting, and then one of the voices. “Fine. But for a fortnight only, and she will take the night shift. Tell her that once she is healed she can meet us at the Anil Mountains. Send a messenger pigeon beforehand. Dismissed.” Rikojuu got up, bowed slightly and walked out of the room, closing the door quietly behind her.

Rikojuu put a hand over her eyes as she stepped out of the room that dwelled deep within the cave, eventually hissing in frustration as the sun blinded her. It was around early afternoon, and Rikojuu studied the area around her: a quiet, desolate place surrounding a cave. She had traveled quite a few days to get to the God Caves, and had already started to worry about the girls back home. She gave a sigh, pacing and muttering to herself before walking back the way she came. Rikojuu personally didn’t mind walking through the Nyx and Rii’an territory, since she was on neutral status with them. Hell, she even had a few customers in their territories.

As she walked on, the scenery started to become greener and more forest-like, when tall trees that held berries that Rikojuu figured she might need later on began to appear. Taking a step back and rolling her shoulders, she ran and jumped, her hands holding onto a branch as she climbed to grab a berry from the tree. As Rikojuu inched and carefully made her way towards the prize, she noticed it had distinctive features of a Yuial. The berry was harmless, black and in an oval shape, large leaves covering it to keep the color from paling in the harsh sun. There was a thin layer of fuzz, and Rikojuu wiped it away, but kept looking for more. Yuials were uncommon, almost rare if she thought about it long enough, and were known to have healing powers equal to the gods.

Rikojuu rolled one in her hands, checking it for firmness before stowing it away in her bag that was slung across her shoulder, crossing over her animal hide vest, bouncing on her trousers as she jumped from tree to tree, scouring the branches for more before giving up. She gave a quick glance at the sky and saw that afternoon had begun to fade, and evening was starting to creep up on the land.

Well, she thought to herself. It’s getting late. I should probably hurry on home.

It was a while before she really climbed down; Rikojuu had found a multitude of other berries she needed for her shop and for the girls back home. It wasn't until long that a sharp cry of a Ryai, a type of bird native to Weis, snapped her back to reality, and she cursed at herself. "Damn. Took too long." Eventually, Rikojuu climbed back down, protecting her berries from any harm as she landed, taking off in a brisk pace as she stood up. Rikojuu looked at the sky again, frowning at the sight. The night here was brilliant, each and every star was illuminated in the deep, rich dark blue of the night sky. “A sight to behold, especially in the early months of the year.” Rikojuu muttered as she looked back at the path.

Her brisk pace was easy to keep as a constant as she traveled in the night, easily stepping over holes and logs as she had an absurd thought, muttering out loud again. "Did I leave the girls with enough of that drink?" Rikojuu gently pushed the thought to the side, playing with the tip of her dagger's hilt, which was strapped tightly to the side of her leg. She had brought it in case, and while she was familiar with a hunting knife, she hated to use a dagger. It was always too short of a weapon for her, but then again, she couldn't exactly drag around her scythe on a long trip.

Turning, Rikojuu gave one last look to the God Caves before shifting her attention to the area around it. The waves seemed to lightly touch the rocks, the sounds of water brushing against rocks one that provoked a calm feeling. Rikojuu listened to it for a while longer before turning, heading for her village as she moved between the trees. Though she was technically letting Umren run her shop, as the village herbalist and healer, she couldn't afford to be away for too long. Something could happen without her there, and result in a sticky situation; sometimes even death.

Rikojuu kept a brisk pace, sighing. She was already quite late back home... Well, better late than never.

-----

[Interlude]

“So, tell me. Exactly what kind of goddess are you, anyway?”

Jeremy and Ykina walked through the forest, not heading in any particular direction. If anyone were to see them, it would seem as if they were close friends on a gentle stroll, simply enjoying the scenery and each other’s company.

And that description couldn’t be any more wrong for Jeremy. He was still quite uncomfortable being ‘graced by her presence’ (which she had said at one point), and wanted to move as quickly as he possibly could in any direction as long as it was away from the goddess. It would have been pleasant if that direction would also lead him towards somewhere where he could be productive, but he didn’t like hoping for too much. And besides, running away was a difficult enough choice to make in the first place considering just what it was he was thinking about fleeing from. In the end, he left himself with no choice but to put up with her presence.

“Why, I art the goddess of longevity and wealth! Verily, during thy travels thou must hath heard of I?” Ykina, for some reason unknown to Jeremy, had changed to some form of archaic speech soon after they had begun to travel together, which only served to slightly annoy him, but he made no comment on it.

Who knows what goes on in the illogical mind of a goddess.

It was Ykina who insisted that they walk at this leisurely pace, much to Jeremy’s displeasure. It was a waste of time in his opinion, but it would probably be a bad idea to forcefully have things go your way when your opponent is a goddess. That would only waste even more of his time, making his journey even more difficult.

Jeremy sighed. “No, I haven’t heard of you before, Ykina. If I had, I should have recognized you by your name already. And considering it’s me of all people, shouldn’t it be more reasonable for someone like me not to know?”

Ykina paused, thinking about what she knew of Jeremy as she brought one finger up to her chin. “Verily, thou art correct. Yet this means thou art uneducated about us, the gods and goddesses, so I shall educate thee thusly.”

Jeremy made a face. “I do know quite a bit about deities, it’s just the deities of this land that I don’t know much about. And before that, is it really okay for you to be here associating yourself with me? I’m pretty sure the other gods won’t be very happy with you abandoning your duties. They would also probably also consider it degrading for you; choosing to stay here with me might even lower your status as a goddess. ”

A question not out of curiosity, but with the intent making Ykina go away. If Jeremy would not force her to leave him alone, then he would try to convince her.

“Why, art thou worried about us? Thou hast ever so many unnecessary worries! We care not for the thoughts of other gods, and my children do not need of my intervention.”

And it seems that Ykina completely missed the point. For someone who had displayed so much empathy just earlier, enough to prevent Jeremy from hiding anything and cause him to reveal far more about himself then he had liked, it was rather strange. Then again, perhaps she did know his intentions and chose to ignore them.

Or, she just happened to experience something similar before, and thus she just happened to know to some degree how he was feeling earlier.

Whatever the case was, Jeremy didn’t know.

“You know, you spoke of ‘your children’ a number of times already. Who are they, exactly? I have a hunch that you were referring to what the people of this land call ‘hybrids’, but I’m not entirely too sure.”

“Oh? Thou art partially correct. Verily, my children are of ‘hybrids’ as thou says, but all ‘hybrids’ I do not consider my own. “ Ykina replied a little cryptically. For Jeremy, though, it was enough to figure out the answer.

“Then, you mean, what was the name... those of the ‘Entra’ clan?” He heard the name come up a few times, and it was enough for him to guess the name of Yuki’s village. Considering their earlier conversations, logically that was the only answer possible to Jeremy.

Ykina paused for a moment at his declaration. “Verily, thou art correct. Although, I find ‘Entra’ a distasteful name for worshippers of I. Ykinanen or a name relating to I would be more suitable.”

Jeremy sighed, gently shaking his head at her choice of names. “Yeah, yeah, whatever. Then, you mostly assist the Entra and they are the only ones who worship you, is that it?”

“That was how it used to be; my children have only my favor, and naught more. Yet recently my children have grown arrogant in their ways; tis most unfortunate. My children no longer respect me as their goddess, relying on their own so-called ‘strengths.’ Especially that girl that travelled with thee; she hath been blessed with mighty powers, yet believes the world revolves around her. She claims to care about her friends, forcing them to rely on her, yet she doth not understand how to truly rely on others herself. It is here that I find thee different. Thee art nothing like her; whilst she believes the world revolves around her, thee cares naught for thyself but for the world. Verily, one like thee would be far more worthy of my favor.”

“What are you talking about, I’m here because I was even more selfish than her.” Jeremy replied with disdain for himself. No matter how much Ykina piled up the compliments, it didn’t change the fact that she was a goddess.

What she could be thinking or intending to do was not something humans should not be able to comprehend.

“Yet that was in thy past, no? Today thee cannot be considered to be as selfish.”

“No, I must disagree; I’m still quite selfish. I left Yuki and Adriyll behind without any regards for them, remember?”

“Because thee cares for this world. In thy own words: that those two must learneth to grow strong without thee. Because you art a contradiction, no? Yet, I believe that last particular statement to be incorrect.” Ykina declared.

“That only goes to show how little you know about me.” argued Jeremy.

“Yet—”

“Hold.” interrupted Jeremy quietly. “We have company. Probably not friendly.” Despite the statement, neither of them changed their posture, but both fell silent.

A full minute passes in complete silence as they both stand there quietly.

“Art thou sure? Naught a soul around, yet—”

And that was when a knife flew in, straight at Jeremy.

[Interlude out]

-----

Today is the day I stop wallowing in my self pity and be a better person! Yuki thought, grinning as she paced her room, giving herself a small fist pump as she continued her pacing. Yes, today is it! Yuki was still recovering; it had been about a week since the illness, but now she was beginning to feel better. The only hitch was that she had to be careful with her body, and especially watch what she ate. She gave a scoff, rolling her eyes. Careful? Psh. If only they could see what I’ve been through during the travels; careful is not a word in my dictionary. Yuki continued to pace in her comfortable pajamas, although she did have to change her pajama pants because she didn’t get up quick enough in the night.

As Yuki made her way out of her room, she was stopped by Umren, who was wearing a grin on her face. “What are you smiling about, Night?” Yuki asked, using the old name that their parents had used for Umren. Once she realized there wasn’t an answer forthcoming, Yuki placed her hands on her hips and sighed. “Night, seriously, what is it?”

“I want you to know that no matter what, I love you so much I cannot describe it to you.”

“Night! What did you do to the kitchen?!” Yuki said, pushing her gently out of the way as she walked downstairs. As soon as Yuki’s foot touched the first floor, she was hit with a terrible stench that only had her eyes rolling; smoke. Luckily, it didn’t smell or seem like the house was burning down, so it was safe to assume that the contents itself was on fire. With Styn standing at the entrance of the kitchen, Yuki only had to give a look before she scurried back into the kitchen, Styn’s fearful eyes connecting with Umren’s, who was trailing behind her. “Did you two try to make something for me, Rikojuu or anyone else, and then you two realized you were burning the said object?” Yuki said in a pseudo angry tone, quickly hiding her smile behind her hand. “Oi!” Yuki said as the two didn’t answer.

“Yes, and I’ll be better, I’ll try to make something and not burn it--” Styn immediately said, the words tumbling out of her mouth before she could stop them.

“Then stop burning it and douse it!” Yuki said, pointing to the burning piece of food. Both girls scurried to get the piece of food off and out of the kitchen without starting a wildfire, making occasional squeaks of fear and noises of terror as the piece came too close to a face, ear, tail or neck. Yuki’s smile eventually faded as Yuki muttered into her hand, “These two are idiots in the kitchen...”. Sighing, she shook her head before looking at the squeaking pair again. “Enough!” Yuki barked, causing Styn to almost drop the pan onto the ground, settling for returning it to its original place. Yuki swiftly took the pan and its contents, walked briskly outside and opened the door with a swift movement she stuffed it into the snow, turning on the two girls once the pan was in the snow.

“We didn’t mean to wake you up--”

“I was trying to make you feel better--”

“It was going to be a surprise--!”

“Enough!” Yuki was getting a headache, and it wasn’t helping that her illness had not completely faded before this eventful morning. “You two; you are not allowed in the kitchen unless you are accompanied with Rikojuu.”

“WE’RE SOWWEEEEEEEEEE!”

Sigh. And today was supposed to be a good day for Yuki, too.

-----

Kail'n sat at his office, tucked in the darkness of the room, his blinds shut and door closed. It was barely past the morning, the overcast light seeping in between the blinds and falling to the floor, a trail following them. Tapping the wooden desk with a set tempo in mind, he thought about the current events. From what Mesir had said, the man had left-- was his name Jeremy? He had a hard time pronouncing it-- and Yuki was left in ruin. Now was the time to move and knock her out; sighing and turning, he took a deep breath in. "Astrid!" Luckily, the Verlyl he had living with him knew not to keep him waiting, the door opening a minute or so later.

“Yes, Master?”

“Get me the jar that’s sitting in the back room. Put it in a chest or something; I want no one to see it.”

With a quiet, “Yes, Master.” Astrid slipped away, closing the door quietly behind him as he went to retrieve the jar. When Astrid had reached the back room, which looked like a closet more than a back room, he put the jar carefully in a box. Astrid studied the jar for a second, bringing it out to the light for a quick second before putting it back into the box and scurrying to Kail’n. “I have it, Master.” He said, opening the door and closing it swiftly as he moved forward.

Kail’n turned and took it out of the box before putting it onto the desk. “Go,” he said with a dismissive hand, “you’re dismissed.” The Verlyl gave a short bow before leaving, the door clicking shut behind him. Kail’n opened the blinds as much as he dared to; the jar was tinted a milky white from the contents. Inside the jar was a semi-transparent liquid, though it had a milky white color. Kail’n had labored over this for some time, making a few of the sentries that didn’t care much about the village to go and run errands for him, as well as pick a few herbs for him. The result was this; a poison that could make lose energy faster, lose some logical thinking and make them more aggressive.

Kail’n grinned as he put it away, heading outside to find a source of water, one where Yuki and the others would go to often. He ignored Astrid as he walked past, grabbing his cloak with a swift motion before opening the door. He walked past Yuki’s home, shooting it a dark look before completely turning away from it, continuing on his way.

This was going to be a good day for Kail’n.

-----

Once Yuki had finished cleaning the pan (the piece of food was stuck on the pan for a while before Yuki knocked it against a rock),Yuki had set off to Rikojuu's, pulling a face as she grabbed the empty medicine bottle off the counter. Pulling on her shoes and a cloak, since the temperature had dropped and headed out, her boots crunching from dry twigs and snow. The trek over to Rikojuu’s had left her shivering and half ready to retch once again, and Yuki knocked on her door weakly, groaning.

Rikojuu appeared a few seconds later, and by that time Yuki was on all fours, shivering. “You stupid girl...” Rikojuu muttered, pulling her in quickly into her house to begin treating her. She half dragged the girl to the counter, filing the medicine bottle up before giving her some of the left overs. "What did you do during your travels?" Rikojuu asked her, not expecting an answer.

“I’ll tell you later.” Yuki said, her voice low as she struggled to keep whatever she had this morning down. Yuki tapped the counter, taking deep breaths and drinking the medicine, not even bothering to pull a face as she drank it. Yuki sighed as she put the drink down, laying her head on the counter, despite Rikojuu's demands.

It wasn’t long before Yuki fell comfortably asleep where she lay, when another villager stumbled in. The villager’s skin was deathly pale, his eyes hollow and his veins a stark contrast to his paper thin skin. Rikojuu looked up in surprise, moving to his aid swiftly, supporting him as she immediately begun treatment. She would have asked a few questions about what had happened, but the villager was in no condition to talk.

A few minutes of investigation during her treatment, however, told Rikojuu just what had happened.

Poison.

How the villager had been poisoned, however, Rikojuu didn’t know. It may have been an accident, or it may have been deliberate. But as her doctor, it was her job to tend to the villagers first. Once he was settled in she could alert the elders.

It took the man a while to finally calm down, since he had begun to retch while Rikojuu was moving in her shop, scanning her herbs quickly and in an almost frantic manner for a cure. Yuki was still fast asleep, and Rikojuu didn’t move her or wake her up; the girl needed sleep, and she was in too much of a hurry to get the villager something to calm his stomach down. Rikojuu started to run possibilities of what could've happened, and what the effects could mean for him. “Here, drink this,” Rikojuu muttered as she lifted the man’s head and tipped it forward to help him drink.

He, of course, said nothing as she helped him drink. Her gentle hands had put his head back on the pillow, and by then, the man was out like a light, the poison seemingly out of his system. Rikojuu sighed, briskly walking to wake Yuki up, her expression softening as she slowed. Yuki’s face was peaceful for once, resting against the cool wood of her counter as she slept, her tail twitching occasionally. Rikojuu had to admit; she really did miss the girl... even if she did do stupid things at times.

And then yet another villager stumbled in, showing the same symtoms of the other villager earlier. Rikojuu frowned as she began treating this villager, when the third villager came in.

All right, something was clearly up now. This couldn’t be a coincidence, not anymore.

But she couldn’t alert the elders now, while she had villagers to treat. After a quick moment of hesitation, she decided. Rikojuu shook Yuki awake, her voice urgent. "Sleepy head, get up, and go get Mesir. Something is wrong." Even in her bleary state, having just awoken, Yuki was able to stumble out the door before sprinting to Mesir, her figure quickly disappearing from Rikojuu’s view.

It wasn’t long before Mesir came in, a slight frown on his face as he walked briskly, Yuki trailing after him. His eyes quickly scanned the room, and his ears perked up as his frown deepened. “What happened here?” Rikojuu quickly explained the recent events, making hand gestures as she talked. Mesir nodded as she talked, crossing his arms while he thought. “From what I heard, there are multiple ways that this could've been spread, but my guesses are through water and food.”

“That’s what I thought as well, but there are too many assumptions, and none of my patients are in any condition to talk.” Rikojuu began to pace, crossing her arms and making noises of frustration. Turning to Mesir, she opened her mouth before closing it, frustrated, waving it away with a dismissive hand. "I was going to say that someone inside the village is doing this, but who would? I know Kail'n has his qualms against the clan at times, but not to this extreme."

Yuki was still at the door, rubbing her stomach and frowning at the two. There were qualms, yes, but no one had a bigger grudge about losing to the other clans in a face off than Kail'n. Yuki remembered Rikojuu sending her a letter about it, and telling Yuki that maybe Kail'n wasn't right in the head. Yuki also had suspicions that the Verlyl who attacked her and gave her a bad reputation was sent on Kail'n’s orders. Still, she said nothing and walked back to her previous spot, resting her head on the cool wood.

“What say you, Yuki?” Rikojuu’s voice caught her attention, but Yuki made no effort to move herself.

It was a long second before she answered Rikojuu. “I will withhold my judgement until I can properly think.”

“Properly think? There are questions to be answered and you’re ---!” Rikojuu was stopped by Mesir raising his hand, giving a short growl before stepping back.

“She’s still sick, and needs to recover before thinking about the village.” Mesir said in a calm voice, his eyes closed. “Until then, we need to respect this decision.” Rikojuu sighed, but didn’t bring the subject up again. Mesir looked at the both of them, and clapped his hands together. “Now, if you’ll excuse me Rikojuu, I have to see Raqios to seek his counsel on this matter.”

Rikojuu watched Mesir leave before looking at Yuki with a serious gaze. With a sigh, Rikojuu shook her head slightly at Yuki. "I never understood you."

“You don’t have to.”

“Our people are being poisoned and you’re telling me that you don’t care?”

“Of course I care, but how am I supposed to answer you when I can’t think properly? Why don’t you go think about it yourself instead? All you’re doing right now is giving me a headache.” Yuki said curtly, giving the herbalist an irritated look. Rikojuu simply stared, surprise flickering on her face before hardening her expression. Yuki had enough strength gathered to push herself up, stumbling out of the room with an irritated look back at her. Rikojuu opened her mouth with a frown on her face, before Yuki snapped at Rikojuu. "Don't try to scold me."

“Then what do you want me to say?”

“Don’t say anything. Your verdict would be biased, anyways.” Yuki spat out, a dark, angry look passing her face. Yuki knew that at one point or another, they would disagree, but Yuki also knew that Rikojuu always opposed her.

“Oh, Yuki, why do you treat me like this? The moment you are back, you are so cold to me. Why are you this way?” Rikojuu reached towards Yuki, a look of hurt passing her face. “Don’t you see this is for your protection?”

Yuki shied away from her, her expression the same. “Maybe you should’ve been there to actually care for me! For my sisters! No, you were too busy and too unsatisfied with your own life to look out for three girls!”

“Just because I did that in the past doesn’t mean that I do it now!” Rikojuu shot back, growling. “I’ve been a better mother and caretaker than you ever will be!”

Silence fell over the two as Yuki stared at Rikojuu, who gave Yuki a look of disgust. Yuki hardened her expression as she turned away from Rikojuu. “Fine. Whatever. Do what you like.” She walked away, grabbing a stray branch from the ground, using it to help her walk back home. Yuki hadn’t realized it, but she had let her feet take over, only listening to the sound of her feet hitting the ground. She looked up, stretching her neck and found herself in a small clearing. Aah.. Well, I certainly walked a long way from home. Maybe I should go back... She thought to herself with a hand over her lips, thinking and scanning the area.

I did say that I’ll stop wallowing in self pity. Might as well go back and swallow my pride to apologize to Rikojuu. Yuki thought, turning around and walking back, occasionally stopping to rest. It took Yuki longer than she liked to get back home, but still trekked to Rikojuu’s home. She stopped before the door, her hand hovering inches from the wood, shaking slightly. As Yuki looked at the door, a feeling of dread and thoughts of rejection flooded her, her hand slowly dropping to her side. She won’t bother with accepting the apology... Yuki thought, but as her hand brushed the fabric of her trousers, she snapped back to reality. I might as well try. Better to say, ‘I tried’ then to have the reality of nothing ever happening because I was too scared to move!

It wasn’t a good natured knock, but it was loud enough for Yuki to hear shuffling inside the house in response.

A minute.

A minute and a half.

“Rikojuu.” Yuki called, knocking again. She pressed her ear against the door, before calling her again. “Ra’aoma.”

The door opened suddenly, causing Yuki to fall onto Rikojuu before standing up. “Ra’aoma.” Rikojuu said, her expression surprised. “When did you start addressing people so politely?”

“Well, that was quick,” Yuki muttered before looking at her with a confused expression, “Just now, why?”

Rikojuu said nothing before shaking her head, muttering a “Never mind.”. Rikojuu put her hands on her hips, staring at Yuki, returning to her old self. “Well? What did you come here for?”

Clearing her throat and clearing away any hint of fear, Yuki put her hands behind her back and ducked her head a bit, staring at the ground. “Ra’aoma, I’m sorry to have caused you any trouble today. I am under your care, and thus under your jurisdictions, and I know with the right herb, I can be ended as easily as I can be cured. You have cared for me, raised me and I respond in kind with anger. For all the trouble, I apologize, and I will be better about my attitude.”

“About time.” Rikojuu muttered under her breath, grinning when Yuki frowned. “Still, the apology is accepted. Yuki, you’ve matured a little since you left. You usually don’t swallow your pride this quickly, and usually you’ll throw in a few derogatory comments as well.”

“Of course I have. Travelling changes something in you, even the small bits that you’ve forgotten about.”

“She’d be proud.”

Yuki was silent for a moment before nodding. “Yeah, I’m sure she would be.”

-----

Adriyll woke up with a start, her throat closing as she shot up from the bed. She had been getting bad feelings since Jeremy had left that something terrible was going on, but she didn’t know what. Adriyll swung her legs over the bed and rested her head on her hands, her elbows digging into her legs. Adriyll got up quietly and peeked out the window, frowning when she was it was early morning, the sun’s rays barely touching the land.

Despite her need of sleep, this could not wait.

Pacing around the room and holding her hands behind her back, Adriyll gave a quiet hum as she thought of what to do. Yuki would not believe her until something happened; that may have been an assumption, but a realistic assumption nonetheless, and it was too early to go to Rikojuu’s house. Giving another look outside, she saw that there was a wolf (a patroller perhaps?) walking around, she decided to go outside.

Adriyll was outside in less time than she had ever accomplished when Yuki was around-- even on the boat, she was not as quick as today. After putting on her boots, she wrapped herself in the cloak Yuki left on the chair and left, her feet crunching the dew that had turned into snow.

Adriyll made a bee-line for Rikojuu’s home in the early morning chill, her face looking more and more determined as she got closer. “I think this is the way...” Muttering softly to herself, Adriyll pushed on, walking through bushes and past fallen logs covered with a light layer of snow. Unbeknownst to Adriyll, she had been crudely covering her tracks with the long cloak that she had wrapped around herself.

Voices attracted the young girl, and she moved to listen. Nestling herself in a comfortable place within the bushes, she listened, her dark green eyes melting in with the leaves.

“I told you that it would work!” Adriyll noticed the confident man who stood in the middle, grinning furiously with his arms crossed, his tail swaying as he paced. Adriyll saw that the man's eyes held a dangerous quality to them, and Adriyll felt a shiver of fear pass through her. She focused on the other man who stood next to him, his stature looking like he needed to prove something to the group that surrounded them.

“Of course, Master.” His voice was weaker than Adriyll imagined it would be, and the man shifted uncomfortably. His tail was wrapped around his leg, and when he shifted a bit Adriyll recognized him as the man she saw before; it was the same sad male hybrid she had seen the other day, the one she was supposed to have talked to Jeremy about but had forgotten!

Adriyll then took in the group surrounding the two, the mass of bodies covered in black with deadly weapons hanging off their hips and backs, all patiently waiting for an order. Adriyll listened, leaning forward to catch what the confident man was about to say. “As you all know, the plan is moving along smoothly, and now is the time for action! Rymothyia, our biggest threat, has been taken out.” A strange glint in his eyes appeared, and Adriyll scooted back a bit, but continued to watch.

“Raqios is still gone, and Mesir thinks that our plan is of an external source. Continue to confuse him and we’ll have this close enough to taste it...” The man’s voice faded as he walked away from where Adriyll hid. What did he mean by ‘plan’? A plan for a battle? A plan for a game? A cooking contest? They did mention something about taste. Adryill couldn’t be sure, but it seemed of no importance to her.

And so, she made her way back to where Umren and Styn were staying, humming happily. When she left, the girls did mention something about food. Adriyll glanced at the sky and pulled a face. It was so early! The girls wouldn't be up by now. Sleeping would be a good idea, and it wouldn't wake either Umren or Styn up. Slipping into their home, she took her wet boots and put the cloak down on the chair in her room. Adriyll crawled back into bed, passing out before her head even hit the pillow.