Varhi tilted the bowl of stew up to his lips, barely having used his spoon at all so far to gobble up the hearty meal which Nayleen had handed to him.
Food.
Real food.
And not just something like stale bread or salted meat jerky or dried nut rations.
Real. Food.
A proper, piping hot meal…
Just how long has it been since he had eaten one? He was insistent on Jimmy not giving him money or helping him; the man had already done so much and he wanted to take care of himself, which… had some moderate success, he supposed. Even when he was forced to stay for several days in Ceareste at Marid's tavern, he kept his diet cheap, only occasionally ordering a drink from the tavern itself to keep himself hydrated during the hotter days.
He missed being able to eat actual good cooked food for many, many months. This, combined with the fact he was currently starving to near death, made this bowl of stew he was currently slurping down with gusto the tastiest meal he ever remembered having. Though, perhaps that was not a hard bar to surpass when he couldn’t really remember the past ten or so years of his life until he had become cognizant for what he assumed could only be a second time.
“H-Hey, slow down.” He heard Sairek caution him. "You're going to choke if you..."
Varhi ignored him. The Prince probably got to eat stuff like this on a daily basis. There was no way some brat born into nobility could understand what he was experiencing right now. Varhi slurped and chewed on the bits of meat and vegetables as he went, basically draining the bowl of all of the contents in almost one entire go.
Finishing the meal in record time, he licked his lips and lowered the bowl down, swallowing the last of the contents in his mouth. His stomach which had been in dire straits within the last couple of days was quite pleased with this succulent treat, but also overwhelmed at suddenly getting such a filling meal in just a few minutes when he had gone for nearly a week with so very little.
A few seconds later, Varhi let out a hearty belch, covering his lips in one hand. The other three were just staring at him like he was some foreign animal, barely having touched their own food.
“B-Blimey, that’s good...” Varhi said, breaking the silence between them. Then he eyed the other three bowls, his eyes soon settling on Sairek’s. The Prince slowly moved his bowl in his hands away from Varhi, using his arms and body to hide it from his view in a protective gesture from the malnourished lad. Varhi sniffed in disappointment.
“Give it here.” Nayleen sighed with a grin, gesturing to Varhi’s empty bowl. The mercenary obediently passed it over and Nayleen reached a ladle into the pot to begin refilling it. The fire was still going, though lower this time so to not overcook the food but still keep it heated and hot. They did not really need heat anyway to keep themselves warm. It was another hot summer evening and while the light was low, it was still enough for them to see at least well enough in the clearing and surrounding trees for now. Nayleen refilled his bowl up and passed it back over to Varhi, which he accepted graciously.
“You’re the best.” Was his thankful comment right before he began to dig in for a second time, attacking the contents in his bowl with the same slurping strategy as before with equally as much passion as he did previously.
Nayleen smiled sweetly while Sairek rolled his eyes. The Prince moved to settle his bowl evenly on his lap again while he also reached with his left hand into a pocket of his pants and pulled out a flask of water, which he leaned over and set it on Varhi’s lap. The boy in his slurping of the stew gave him a thumbs up in acknowledgement and thanks, but never stopping his vigorous feasting.
When Varhi had finished his second helping, his stomach was protesting that it couldn’t hold much more. However, he still forced himself to drain the entire flask of water which Sairek had provided him. Fresh water was just as important to fill himself up with as good food, even if it wasn’t as tasty.
When he finished that as well, he let out a relieved sigh. “Thanks guys, I seriously feel a lot better already.”
“No prob—woah!” Nayleen let out when Varhi abruptly moved to stand up completely, stretching his body as if he had just woken up from a long nap.
“A-Are you sure you should be moving around like that? You could barely walk no more than a few hours ago…” Cyial stammered.
“The bruises hurt but they’re not crippling, except this particular one at my side…” Varhi commented, pointing at the first one he had gotten on his left side since he got here. “It’s probably that medicine you gave me, but once I get a good night’s sleep or two, I should be good. Well, good enough anyway.” He moved to kneel back down, then looked back towards Sairek who was eating his meal and was just finishing it up, now. “Prince, may I borrow you and your staff for a little bit?”
“Eh…?”
“You had said that you can make water, right?”
“Yes…?”
“How much water?”
“Uh… a lot? At least in short bursts.”
“It’s been nearly three weeks since I had a chance to clean myself and since then I’ve been pissed on by these things—literally... I've been rained on by the weather, caked in mud and practically stuck in my armor the entire time during all of that. I must smell awful to you guys right now.”
Sairek blinked and it took him a moment to register what he meant. “O-Oh. You want me to...” He paused, looking reluctant.
Varhi blinked at him, genuine confusion etched on his face. “What?”
“No, it’s nothing.” Sairek said, shaking his head. The Prince couldn’t wonder if Varhi was just that comfortable with himself or simply had no shame. He wasn't unsure anymore when the boy moved to unfasten the armor from his legs, then pull his leather pants down and everything else with it down.
Sairek nearly fell backwards as Nayleen burst out laughing and Cyial made a mock gesture to cover his eyes with a hand, though still peeking out through the cracks of his fingers. “W-What the–!?” Sairek let out. Though it was true, the boy did smell a bit foul, it had been a few days since he and the rest of his group had gotten a proper cleaning themselves, other than washing their faces and hands now and then. Still, this was... "You seriously meant right now?"
“I don’t see why not. We’re not going to be going anywhere tonight for sure.” Varhi blinked with a small tilt of his head. “Unless making water is too tiring for you?”
Sairek slowly rolled his eyes to his right side as he heard Nayleen cover her mouth, trying not to laugh at this even further. “Go on, go for it...!” She giggled, giving Sairek a small shove with her hand to his shoulder to get him going. Sairek inhaled and then exhaled deeply, setting his bowl aside, he moved to stand himself up. Varhi wandered a few feet away, positioning himself next to a large tree trunk as Sairek followed him. The Prince couldn’t help but stare a little to compare himself. Surprisingly, they looked actually quite a lot the same, at least when they were ‘normal’, anyway...
Sairek also saw that the bruises did not extend to just Varhi’s upper body, but down below as well, although much fewer in number, he still had a few bruises along his legs and a couple of small scratches on them too. Interestingly, each and every bruise was on the front of his body. “Wow, they really did take a piece out of you, didn’t they...?” He grumbled.
Varhi shrugged, non-chalant. “I did do more damage to them back when you think about it.”
Sairek moved to position his staff, trying to concentrate. “...For the record, abruptly stripping yourself right in front of anyone, but especially a girl, is really bad form...” He muttered under his breath, just loud enough for Varhi to hear. "Didn't Jimmy teach you more than how to fight?"
Varhi blinked, looked towards Nayleen who had a wide amused grin on her face while she watched from a distance, then looked back to Sairek. “Really? It doesn’t look like she seems to care. Looks like she's enjoying me if anything else," he replied, not caring to keep his voice down.
“Oh for the—” Sairek bit his bottom lip, dropping his staff down from his ‘aim’ when he heard Nayleen burst out laughing from behind him. “Will you just please turn around, at least?”
Varhi shrugged non-chalantly again. Sairek huffed, raising his staff again, his concentration was soon pierced yet again by Nayleen letting out a cutting whistle from behind him when Varhi’s rear came into view. “W-Will you cut that out!” Sairek yelled at her, spinning around to face her. Nayleen simply stuck her tongue out at him. He grumbled. "Seriously, I'm trying to concentrate here!"
When he spun back around, he half jumped, with Varhi having turned his front around to face him once more in all of his glory, one hand on a bare hip in impatience. “Does it usually take you this long to cast magic? At this rate one of those things might actually come and I'll be standing here—AHHBUBULBPFF–?!”
Sairek didn’t let him finish his sentence. A strong jet of water began blasting against Varhi’s face, forcing him to turn back around to avoid it and step right up against the tree . “WOW! Rude!” Varhi spat out a couple of times. “Geez… I think some of that got up my nose!”
“Deal with it.” Sairek huffed. He still heard Nayleen cackling behind him in the background. “Now if you don’t mind, turn around please.”
“Damn! You’re savage...!” Varhi whined, turning himself back around obediently.
“I may be 'green' as you said, but you have not seen anything from me yet.” Sairek confirmed.
"And threats? I'm starting to think I should have taken my chances with the stream instead!"
Sairek continued to spray Varhi down until the other boy seemed satisfied that most of the mud, dirt, sweat and whatever else that may have gotten stuck to him and his hair was off of him as best as could be when being sprayed down like this Now dripping wet and shivering a little, they both returned back towards the fire which Nayleen had once more stirred to full life again now that their meal was finished. Varhi sat closer to it, seated on the blanket the sleeping bag was on, allowing himself to dry up… with all of himself more or less in glory, though he kept his legs pulled tightly to himself.
“Besides the obvious bruises, you’re looking real nice.” Nayleen giggled at him in compliment.
“You’re enjoying this a little too much.” Sairek grumbled at her.
Nayleen shrugged. “Not like anything I’ve seen before. At least on other animals, anyway.“
“See? I told you she doesn’t mind.” Varhi said to Sairek, fingers roaming and combing through his wet hair, gingerly combing it back into place. His mouth opened in a big yawn which he talked through. "So if you don't mind, want me to put my legs back down?"
"No, we would not...!" Sairek cut in quickly, face flushed. "Put your damn pants back on already!"
“Come on, we may be dead within the next couple days, mm? I think we’re past caring about society’s norms. Let’s enjoy this little camping trip while it lasts, shall we? Besides, the clothes and armor could do with a proper cleaning too.”
“I’m out of here…” Sairek groaned, bringing his posture like Varhi’s, but burying his head into his arms to hide, which raised yet another laugh out of Nayleen to the point she was holding her sides.
* * *
Sairek sat up from his sleeping bag with a frustrated groan. He just couldn’t get to sleep. The sound of Nayleen gently snoring to his side and Varhi not making any noise, but being unresponsive aside from quiet breathing for the past couple of hours informed him that they were already gone for the night. Varhi had fallen asleep within minutes when they retired the evening, though he couldn’t blame him. The boy probably hadn’t had a proper sleep in a long time and now finally with relative peace with proper food and being relatively, his body had clearly wanted only one other thing: Rest.
Sairek looked to see Cyial still sitting at the fire, like he had said he would, with plans to keep it going the entire night to help ward off those creatures away, but listening to any movements otherwise. Sairek pulled himself out of the sleeping bag and moved to wander over, sitting right next to Cyial on his right side.
“You really need to get to sleep, you know.” Cyial warned him, using a long stick to poke at the flames while he tossed a couple of shorter ones in, then he set the stick down and moved to lean gently against Sairek, head resting on the Prince’s left shoulder.
“I know, but I just can’t seem to fall asleep. Not yet.” Sairek answered, his head turning to look at Varhi’s sleeping form, a subtle frown on his face, which Cyial picked up on.
“Don’t like him?” Cyial asked.
“No. He saved Nayleen and I when we were in trouble despite being in that condition. He didn’t have to when you think about it. I’m more worried he doesn’t like me.”
“He'll warm up to you. Just give him some time.” Cyial reassured him, his hand moving to rub Sairek's back slowly in that reassuring gesture he always did. “I think he’s just been scolding you because he does care. Someone who didn’t care wouldn’t do that. Try to look at it from his perspective; a lot more pressure did just get put on him now.” Cyial tried to explained, though frowned himself. "I think you had gotten the point already though and what he was saying did start scaring me..."
“Yeah…” Sairek sighed. “Deep down I knew how stupid doing this was, but the curiosity got the better of me.”
“Come on. I know it wasn't just curiosity. Nayleen knows, too. You wanted to help him.”
“That’s… not good enough.” Sairek said through gritted teeth. “Varhi is right. I didn’t think about the consequences if something happened to me or you guys... I only thought about the consequences of me not going.”
“Why did your father try to form that contract with you in the first place, Sairek?”
“It was very much unlike him, I admit…” Sairek mumbled in thought. “I just took the chance before he changed his mind, but if I were to take a guess, it was because he believed that I could never beat Samuel until by the time I was an adult and he didn't have faith in me."
"And you proved him wrong, didn't you?"
"I, I guess so."
"Did you expect to be able to defeat Samuel in the same night, Sairek?"
"No. That's why I tried to just run away anyway, even if doing so was mostly spontaneous and fueled by my emotions."
"You're stronger than you think, Sairek. Stronger than many other people think, too."
Sairek chuckled gently at Cyial's encouragements. "...Meeting you and Nayleen, it wasn’t something I regret doing at all, even with the couple bad experiences I’ve had, it’s been easily worth it. Ceareste is different though. Yeah, there’s a few monsters, but even most of them are something I should be able to handle alone, I’d think. People however are more dangerous, as I found out pretty quickly.” Sairek snorted, but frowned again. “This, though…? What have I done, Cyial...?”
Cyial shifted, moving to hold Sairek in a reassuring hug. “You've done nothing wrong at all. This time it will be our turn to keep you safe, alright?”
“This isn’t a competition…”
“It doesn’t need to be. And it's not like you won't be doing your best to help keep us safe, too.”
“Haah… Alright.” Sairek relented, moving his arms to hug Cyial back. They gave each other a tight reassuring squeeze before pulling away. “Thanks, Cyial...”
“Of course. Now are you going to go back to bed?” Cyial asked with a wry smile.
“Ugh, do I have to?”
“Well, I don’t mind talking if you still aren’t ready yet… We can talk about Varhi some more.”
“Eh? What else did you want to talk about him? Sairek blinked.
“Well… How does he look to you?” Cyial asked, the wry smile contorting into a smirk on his face. “Does he compare to you okay down there?”
“W-What–! Not this again…! Okay, I’m going!” Sairek raised his hands up in surrender, pushing himself up to his feet and dragged himself back to his sleeping bag. He heard Cyial let out a soft chuckling sound behind him, but still wishing him a good night regardless.
* * *
Cyial sighed, resting his head in a palm that was resting on one of his knees which sat cross-legged, watching Varhi gobble up his breakfast with little to no mannerisms or regard. “Here I thought he needed probably a week of bed rest, but no. Apparently he just needed Nayleen’s cooking.” He grumbled, but it was through a smile of mild amusement. He didn’t think watching someone stuff their face with gusto would be somewhat entertaining.
“Ish gewd…!” Came Varhi’s muffled reply.
“Stars and stones…” Cyial let out in yet another mirthful chuckle. At least the boy had put his boxers back on again and was loosely covered up in a blanket, which was currently draping over him from behind his back, though he supposed he couldn’t blame him too much. Wearing that much armor when they were more or less “safe” was pretty cumbersome and they had just woken up. Despite his condition clearly improving compared to last evening, it was clear the other boy still had plenty of discomfort from the pain. He hid it well, but Cyial could note the occasional winces when he tried to move too much too quickly.
Nayleen being the early bird as she usually was, fixed breakfast early and was nearly done by the time Varhi and Sairek were beginning to rouse. Sairek as usual being the very last one to get up, had managed to get to sleep in the end.
He was sure the smell of the food had awakened Varhi. Then again, not many could resist the smell of pancakes in the morning in the middle of the forest, even if they did lack the sweet syrup to coat them with. Varhi had easily been more than grateful to devour such a fluffy treat anyway, even if each one Nayleen made didn’t look as good as being made over the usual stove top, the taste was still the same in the end. Nayleen could fairly quickly make them and could make a lot of them too, which was beneficial because Varhi just kept eating them. It had been a great idea on her part. His stomach apparently had made a lot more room for food over night.
However, after eating several of the pancakes, any potential doubt that his stomach may have been bottomless was put at ease when the boy finally said that he could not eat any more once he was done finishing what he had in front of him, anyway. That thinned look he had gotten on his body from only yesterday was starting to disappear rather quickly and fill back up to a proper weight level.
Cyial couldn't help but be impressed with this young mercenary. This was an incredibly fast recovery. No ‘patient’ he had seen had been in such a condition that Varhi had been and made such a fantastic and speedy bounce back in such a short amount of time. The boy was quite literally in danger of losing his life only fourteen hours ago, yet with only a bottle of ethereal to give him a temporary energy boost, two hearty meals and a good night’s sleep, the boy was already rebounding back amazingly fast. Varhi's constitution was quite remarkable.
He realized that Jimmy had been right but had neglected the details of exactly what he meant. There was... something about Varhi that made him quite special and a prodigy indeed. This couldn’t be normal… could it? This level of recovery could rival that of even a troll. It was certainly faster than a normal human and even demons on their home turf, from what he understood of the Underworld denizens, at least.
“...Why’re you staring at me, like that?” Varhi asked Cyial abruptly.
Cyial blinked as he was snapped out of his thoughts. “I’m just thinking. Sorry.”
Varhi blinked back.
“I was thinking about how fast you are recovering.” Cyial clarified. "I apologize for staring."
“Oh.” Varhi let out. “Since you’re an incubus, I was just thinking you was—”
“No.” Cyial cut him off quickly before he could finish that statement.
Varhi tilted his head a little. “You feed on that stuff though, right? I don’t necessarily feel that way about you, but if it would increase our chances of getting out of here then I wouldn’t mind if—”
“No.” Cyial cut him off again with more emphasis and he frowned when he heard Nayleen laughing again. “E-Even if I did, it would leave you utterly exhausted again and might hurt your… ah, miraculous recovery.” He grumbled.
“Ah, I see. That’d be a shame.” Varhi said neutrally, resuming to chew and bite at the two pancakes he had left on his plate.
Cyial glanced at Sairek who was also looking at him. A faint smirk was on Sairek’s face. He realized he was blushing from Varhi’s ‘suggestion’.
Varhi was the last to finish his food, but only because he ate the same amount of pancakes as the rest of them did combined. Cyial was becoming a little worried about their stocks of food. He may require himself to neglect eating the human food for now. It’s not like he really needed to eat it anyway, at least not as much as he had been. It did still give him energy of course though and he had a feeling he’d be using a lot of that over the course of the next few days, so maybe it would be best if he kept eating…
“You’re staring at me, again.” Varhi said. "Are you sure you're not—"
“Don’t make me get Sairek to reheat those flasks again.” Cyial warned him.
“O-Oh. Uh, no thanks. I… I’ll be good.”
“Excellent.” Cyial replied in a pleased tone. He could hear Nayleen stifling more laughter. He didn’t know why she found Varhi's interactions with them so hilarious, but he was glad she was having a good time and was in high spirits. They’d need that going forward.
After Varhi finished eating, he moved and began to fit on his armor again. Nayleen moved to help him put it all back on. While she did, Cyial moved back to Sairek, watching from a short distance away, talking to him in hushed tones. “Nayleen really seems to like him, doesn’t she?”
“Well, they both have a similar sense of humor.” Sairek drawled. “...And he apparently absolutely loves her cooking even more than I do.” He looked away from them and turned to Cyial. “Maybe they’re more of a match, hmm?”
Cyial chuckled softly. “You’re probably right. Maybe opposites don’t attract so well after all. Did you consider her at some point, though?”
“W-What? No…! Not even before you and I… y’know. And certainly not after. She’s a good friend, but I never looked at her romantically like that Cyial... Come on, you know me better than this.”
“Sorry, I was just curious where you stand, is all.”
"Where... I stand?" Sairek asked for clarification.
"With girls in general."
“I… I haven’t even really thought about genders or… or people, like that…” Sairek mumbled. “I mean, I like looking at your body and… well, I don’t know. I haven’t even seen a naked girl yet so... I don't know how I would respond? It feels weird and rude to visualize Nayleen like that though, you know…? I don't even do it to you... well, unless the dreams—”
“I get it, relax.” Cyial smiled gently with a chuckle. “Just do whatever feels comfortable to you. You’re at the age where every boy and girl begins exploring their sexuality.”
“...So I’ve noticed...” Sairek mused, slightly embarrassed.
“So, what’s the story with the pot lid, anyway?” Nayleen asked Varhi, holding up the circular plate of cast iron in her hands. It was dented in several spots and the coating of paint on it which was black, had more or less been peeled off in several places by now, more than likely from many applications of use that go far beyond the culinary variety.
“I was doing a job with Jimmy when I was first becoming a mercenary. It wasn’t my first gig necessarily, but it was my first ‘big job’ and we were still in Kior at the time.
“One of the more political Wardens in the city was doing some smuggling and the both of us were sort of doing an undercover job looking into it.” Varhi explained, fastening his pants up his legs and securing them with his belt. “Lots of details go into how we ended up there, but the short of it is that the Warden knew we were undercover. The entire job ended up being a set up. We both got trapped and the bastard had us sent to jail on a bogus charge we obviously did not commit.”
“W-What?” Nayleen blinked. “Huh. That reminds me, I just got out of jail recently myself.”
“....? What was that for?”
Nayleen shrugged. “I punched a guy and broke his nose because he was an asshole and was insulting demons.” She answered, glancing towards Cyial who was in the middle with conversing with Sairek.
Varhi snorted in amusement. “I, uh... see. Well, this was a prison, not just some small little town jail. There’s lots of those in the city. It’s where most demons end up, after all.” Varhi explained, slipping and fastening his steel greaves for his feet and legs.
“Anyway, we were in there for a few days after having done nothing wrong. A few of the other people in there were also in there for something they didn’t do as well and some others for some legitimate crimes... err, point is; we were basically sent to the same prison block with some other people. Every morning we would be brought out of the cells and forced to do rounds of physical labour and menial tasks as part of our ‘punishment’ within the walls of the prison.
“One of those menial jobs included carrying boxes of “cargo”, which from what Jimmy and I sussed out, contained stuff the guy was smuggling now and then.
"One day we and our prison buddies devised a plan that I would be the one to sneak into one of the boxes since I was small and light enough to be carried off with the cargo. The inmates devised a distraction where poor Jimmy would get legitimately pummeled by one of the bigger guys who usually had a short temper to create a scene, so that multiple of the guards on watch would have to come to stop it and subdue him, and it had to look real so they wouldn't suspect the plot.
"So... While Jimmy selflessly got his nose caved in, that’s when the other guys quickly helped me into one of the boxes and carried me off into the caravan transporting the cargo while the guards were distracted. When the cargo was hauled off, it took me to the other side of the prison where the goods would be later transported elsewhere in the city.”
He glanced at Nayleen who was smiling. She was completely absorbing this story in. He reached for his leather shirt, pausing while he put it over his head, and then popped his head out through the neck opening, shaking his head a little to get his bangs of hair out of his eyes before he resumed.
“A lot of supplies apparently get shipped from there. They make plenty of prisoners do manual labor in producing things things like blankets for the beds, or food, using criminals or, "criminals" as a means for free labor; Sometimes in those cargos though, there would be the drugs the guy was smuggling, usually at the bottom of the boxes, under blankets or something else to cover it up pretty well. I checked the boxes while I was in the storage just to make sure.
“Anyway, security was pretty lax around the prison in general. They only really seemed to care about it around the inmates but they still didn’t keep a good track. I don’t think they noticed I went missing, or if they did they certainly did not cause much of a stir about it. I guess it was weird that I was in there in general. I was much too young to be in a prison like that and for the charge, it made no sense, so maybe they figured I got transferred, or me being there in the first place was a mistake or something, I don’t know.
“Either way, I waited all day until nightfall to sneak out of that storage area, just hiding in that box the entire time, counting seconds in my head for a few hours because there were no windows or anything in the room to keep track of time.” Varhi continued, then gestured down at his leather armor. “As you can see, most of this is pretty dark, other than the platemail, obviously. I was fortunate to not be wearing my set of chainmail instead. It would have been a lot more noisy and the darkness of my armor helped me under the more unlit areas inside the prison and they didn't strip me of it because of my age, there were no prison uniforms of my size at all, so they just let me keep it so I wouldn't be naked until they could get me a proper uniform for the prison. Not having a bright orange suit in the dark probably helped me.
“I basically snuck my way past most of the guards to make it back to the cells. Along the way, I made a stop to the prison's kitchen that was unoccupied and… grabbed that.” He said, pointing at the pot lid, which caused Nayleen to look down at it.
“So… this pot lid is something you stole from that prison?” She asked.
“Yup.” Varhi began fitting on his gauntlets as he continued with his story. “It wasn’t the guard’s faults. They were just doing their job and as ordered, so I wasn’t about to kill anyone, so a knife from the kitchen was out of the question and besides, they keep things like knives locked up because if a prisoner did escape, they could grab one and threaten the guards with one. But... nobody suspects something mundane like a pot lid, so I went and grabbed that instead and made my way to the cells and just… tossed it at the patrolling guy’s head when his back was turned. Bonked him hard from a distance and knocked him out cold.
"Of course, a pot lid hitting the concrete floor in the silence of a prison at night is pretty loud, so I had to be quick. I grabbed his keys, unlocked everyone, picked up the pot lid again and we started a prison break. I had to smack a few more guys with it when the alarm got raised when Jimmy and I moved to get our gear back from storage, but eventually we made it out with some of the other inmates joining us. I had to fight back a few guards but I made sure not to kill. They weren’t exactly trying to kill me either, just subdue us, but surprisingly, a helmet does not help stop a pot lid from causing problems if you smack them hard enough. It rang their heads pretty good, I reckon.” Varhi smirked. "If they didn't fall unconscious, they certainly got dazed."
“Wow. Isn’t releasing a bunch of random people like that dangerous though?” Nayleen asked.
Varhi slung his sheath and greatsword over his shoulder, then reached for his cape and slowly fitted it over and through his head to put it on. “Nah. It was a prison, but still just a small time prison. Technically Jimmy and I were awaiting transfer for execution and were only chosen that prison so the corrupt Warden could personally oversee us until the execution date. Besides us two, people who end up there are people who did petty pickpocket or shoplifting or stuff like that assuming they weren't framed in the first place. Half the time they did those crimes just so they could eat. Heck, some of them may have been safer in the prison. Not everybody wanted to leave. In the prison, even though the food you get fed is garbage, it is technically free and you get a place to stay. There’s a lot of homeless in the city. Half the time I think most of them get caught on purpose.”
Finally for the last touch, Varhi put his steel helmet visor on his head, completing his protective gear. “The justice system, especially in Kior is pretty corrupt as you can imagine. Jimmy and I were set up by a Warden, after all. Of course when we escaped, I kept the pot lid with me, but after the job it was pretty banged up, so I had some guy to kind of reinforce it and straighten it out a little bit again for the low, low price of one seru. The idea of reinforcing and repairing a pot lid amused him so he gave me a deal.
“Some of the inmates went with Jimmy and I to locate the guy’s office within the city itself after we escaped, no doubt for revenge and one of the more roguish guys volunteered to help us out as thanks for getting him out. He snuck into the building solo to dig up evidence that the guy was smuggling and that he had set us up. With that evidence being collected, Jimmy and I were officially in the clear after reporting it, showing the documents and me having collected the drug itself when I snuck into the cargo as proof helped absolve us of our ‘crimes’. The Warden went to his own prison in our stead, his position completely canned over it and that was a wrap. Job complete.” Varhi said. “That roguish guy was actually pretty cool and wholesome. I believe his name was Elwin or something like that. Even had a pet rat that he snuck into the prison with him. He used that rat to help him steal small things, mostly food but eventually got caught and sent into that prison a few times. If I’m lucky, maybe I’ll run into him again.”
“Man. Are all mercenary jobs like that?” Nayleen asked, handing Varhi back his pot lid.
“Ehhh, not all of them. Some are pretty dull. A couple of others have been pretty interesting, though. There was another time when I was sent on a job with a small group; not with Jimmy this time. My group was tasked with sneaking into a guy’s mansion to—”
“Varhi,” Sairek interjected from a short distance away.
“Ah right, sorry, I seemed to have gotten carried away. This isn’t the best time. I didn’t mean to make you guys wait for me.” Varhi apologized sincerely. He moved down to grab his sword. “Instead, I should be talking about what we’re going to be doing today, shouldn't I.”
“...Yeah, why are you getting geared up again?” Nayleen asked. “I thought you were just getting dressed so you weren’t in the buff anymore. Not that I mind, even if they apparently do.” She hooked a thumb towards Sairek and Cyial for emphasis. Sairek stuck his tongue out at her.
Varhi blinked owlishly at her comment. "I was planning that we move on ahead so we can see what we’re up against. I haven’t been up to the bridge in about a week now. I’m sure some more of those things have migrated in from the mountains, especially after they chased me.” He said, shifting his posture to turn around and face the rest of them.
“I hate to do this, really, but I think you guys need to see what we are up against first-hand. So I am going to do more of a... 'hands-on demonstration'. One where we for the most part will sit back and watch from a safe distance. Also, depending on how bad or clear it is, we can plan accordingly for tomorrow on how we will proceed on through. If it goes well, we can thin some of the horde today to make breaking through the mountains easier for tomorrow or the day after. Once we get through the mountain pass, Karvadean shouldn't be too much further. Then we can hopefully begin finally piecing together what the heck has been going on.”
“Are… you sure you’re up for this though?” Sairek cautioned him. “It hasn’t even been a full day since you were unable to even stand without help.”
“Bruises still hurt like a bitch, but I’m fine for now.” Varhi said. His eyes glared, but not necessarily because of what Sairek said. There was a particular glint of inner determination within his eyes. “Besides, I have some payback that needs delivering. I think I will be able to rest more easily once I get to… let myself go loose for a little bit if we get the opportunity to. Do you understand?”
“No, but I have a feeling I am about to find out soon, if not today, then tomorrow or the day after.” Sairek replied.
“I won't do anything that is unnecessary, but… oh! I'd almost forgotten.” Varhi paused and moved back towards his tent, rummaging through gear which he had left inside of it. “Can I borrow you and your staff for a moment? I need some water.” He said.
“Oh Lands, not again... Didn’t you just get dressed?” Sairek drawled, causing Nayleen to chortle out a laugh.
“Not for that.” Varhi rolled his eyes, though his back was to them. He pulled out two empty flasks and held them out. “I need these filled.”
Sairek blinked. “Drinking magic water doesn't work. It disappears after a while, making it dangerous to drink large quantities of it because it will just disappear from within you, causing a lot of problems to your body.”
“No, it's not for drinking.” Varhi shook his head, then blinked. “...Wait, you said it disappears...? How long does it last?”
Sairek shrugged. “Depends on how strong the spell is. I can do… a few hours. Three, maybe four? People better than me could probably manage over half a day.”
“Hmm… yeah, that should be good enough. After all, you proved last night that it's still fine for rinsing yourself off with it.” Varhi nodded. “Fill ‘em up, please.”
Sairek shrugged, holding out his staff, pressing it against the lip of the first flask and releasing a short couple bursts of water into them with a chant, and then soon doing the same with the other. Varhi looked at them both, swirling them around gently. “Good, these will do just fine.” He said, moving to pocket both on his left belt. “These are just a precaution. Clean water save me before. I would suggest each of you have at least one handy on you but preferably two in the case of a back up. Use this magic water as well if you have any empty flasks. Save your drinking water.”
“But what are they for?” Cyial stressed.
“So, these things can spray stuff on you. especially when you chop ‘em in two as they die. Spores explode everywhere and they can stick on you. It's extremely thick, like a sticky wet vapor that clings to you. Water washes it off.
"Do NOT breathe it in and don’t keep it on you for long, you'll start getting nausea really quick just from having it on your body. If you get any on you, hold your breath, retreat immediately, and rinse yourself off by dumping the water all over yourself. If you get it over your face, best to close your eyes too, so practice reaching for the flasks blindly while we march.” Varhi explained, patting one of the now-filled flasks. “It’s probably the spore stuff that killed the other guys that came here, and may be what drove the other guy who made it back to the city to go insane and also may have been what ultimately killed him. For all I know, it might be what caused the people in Karvadean to transform. Whatever the heck the spores do, the simple fact is that I rather not find out. It obviously does something bad if it can induce nausea within seconds of just being in contact with you.”
“Do… we have enough empty bottles for that?” Nayleen questioned, glancing at Sairek for an answer.
Sairek pinched his gem, half closing his eyes. “We’ve got… two, three, four... five. Five of them. I’ll go with just the one. I’m the one who can cast the spell to refill any flasks anyway if it came down to it or just spray myself down in an emergency.”
“Sounds good.” Varhi said. “You should be more in the back anyway, so you’ll be less at risk.”
Once Sairek filled each flask up, Nayleen and Cyial took two of them and pocketed them, the trio turned around to face Varhi again. “Well, that's done. Now what?” Nayleen asked.
“Our marching order will be myself in front, of course.” Varhi began, pointing to himself, then moving his fingers to point at each of them in turn. “Cyial, you will be close behind me, because of your senses you should be able to detect them easily in the front. I want a fifteen-to-twenty feet gap behind the both of us. After that will be Sairek and then Nayleen behind Cyial, keeping an eye on the back line so nothing sneaks up behind us. The Prince will be safer this way and if things go badly and something manages to still catch us unaware, he can support either front or behind or retreat in either direction.
"We will march single-file, but close enough to your partner that we're still in pairs.” Varhi instructed, bringing his hand back down to rest it against his hip and let out a sigh. “I don’t want any one of you to get hurt... or worse of course, but when it comes down to it... Sairek here is the most important out of all of us here. If something terrible happens to him, it’s going to quite literally change the world. If it comes down to deciding who needs help the most between anyone, he is the first priority. Does everybody understand?”
Sairek sighed, looking downcast, but he understood Varhi's point and didn't argue. “Yes, I understand…”
“I got it.” Cyial nodded.
“Understood, boss.” Nayleen agreed.
“Good," Varhi nodded. "Finally, I need to talk to you about the specific 'classes' these things are that I’ve seen so far. It would be better for us to actually name these things instead of just calling them ‘things’ or 'monsters'. It gets confusing and can make it hard to coordinate and communicate with each other, especially if there ends up being multiple ‘things’ at once, which there's a high chance there probably will be.”
“Well, we’ve only seen the one. What did you have in mind?” Cyial asked.
Varhi hummed in thought, crossing his arms over his torso. “Umm… uh...”
...It was clear he was at a loss. “...Well… um... They need something that sounds distinct enough… Err...”
“That thing last night was herding us along the path as we ran from it... and it has insane force with those vine whip things.” Nayleen commented.
Sairek replayed what she just said in his mind. “... Forcing us along... strong whip... How about we call it a ‘Herder’ then?” He suggested.
“Hmm, ‘Herder’, huh?” Varhi said out loud. “There’s another one of that type that’s kind of similar, but it’s more poisonous. Very much the same deal, but it has a red spotted cap instead of the usual brown one. A little less powerful in strength but just as large and still no pushover, those spores it releases are nasty.”
“Brown Herder and Red Herder, then?” Cyial asked. "I don't think any of us are colorblind and it immediately distincts the two."
“Sure. That’ll help keep it simple, especially if there’s any more variants with different colors of them around.” Varhi nodded. “Okay then, there’s the last one I’ve seen. It’s a lot smaller, about… this tall.” Varhi gestured, flattening his right hand in the air to be about level with his chest. “They look a lot like any bush mostly stripped of its leaves, which a lot of this forest has. So just look around you, but it has mushrooms growing on the side. It moves a lot faster than the others, spits even more potent toxic spores at you and can also run through the brush practically unhindered. It likes to camouflage itself, lying in wait. They’re the ones I’m really concerned about and what I want Cyial in the front to primarily look out for. They’re very springy in their steps and—”
“Spriggan.” Cyial said.
“What?”
“We’ll call them Spriggans.” Cyial repeated.
Varhi cocked his head to the side. “Don’t those like… already exist?”
“Yes... well, no. Not really. They’re a fairytale monster.” Cyial explained. "So they exist but only in fiction."
“Oh? Hm. I guess it sort of fits. I’ve got no other idea on what to call them. So, with the power invested in me, I now announce that 'Spriggans' are now real and are totally redefined as something else. Spriggan it is.” He said, clapping both of his hands together. “Brown Herder, Red Herder and Spriggan. Got that, guys?”
“Yes.” The trio chanted together in near unison.
“And you all remember the marching order?” Varhi asked.
“Yes!” The trio chanted together again, this time in more sync.
“Then away we go... And Cyial, if something does pop up to attack us all of a sudden, I want you to default to backing up to the other two behind us unless I specifically say otherwise, alright?” Varhi said. "Unless we're terribly out numbered, I can handle myself for a bit even as I currently am."
“O-Okay.”
Varhi began marching off and Cyial followed behind him whilst reaching for his tome in his robes and hugged it close to his chest. Nayleen brandished her bow and arrow out into both of her hands. They walked mostly in pairs, with Varhi and Cyial no more than five feet apart, then a twenty foot gap between them, and Nayleen and Sairek together in a similar fashion. Varhi did a quick glance back behind them to inspect if they were doing what he told them. Satisfied that they were, he turned his head back around looking forwards.
They walked mostly in silence for several minutes, the occasional crunch of a leaf or branch under one of their feet, but for the most part, the forest was eerily silent, save for the wind now and then which gusted through.
“So… uh…” Sairek started, keeping his voice hushed, “you and Varhi seem to get along really well, don’t you?”
“You don’t like him?” Nayleen asked him back in an equally hushed tone.
“D-Do I really come off like that…? Cyial asked me the same thing last night...” Sairek responded with a frown. “I think he’s alright. He’s… harsh to me, but I don’t think it’s misplaced. I think he has our best interest in mind and I feel he’s just being genuine about it.”
“I’m glad you’re thinking like that.”
“You felt the same way, didn’t you? But you still went with me.”
“Well, I guess, but not as strongly. We didn't know there were giant killer mushrooms here, but at the same time, I think you should still have the freedom to make your own decisions. Even if they can be a bit dumb at times. You went with me after all. It wouldn’t be fair to not afford you the same luxury.”
“Heh. Thanks...?” Sairek grinned. “So…?”
“So, what?”
“You didn’t answer my first question.”
“Oh.” She let out. Sairek glanced behind him to look at her and he swore he saw the faintest of blushes on her for the first time.
“C’mon, you tease me all the time. It wouldn’t be fair to not afford me the same luxury, remember?” He smirked.
“I would shove you right now if we weren’t trying to be discreet with this little talk.” She responded dryly. With a deep inhale and exhale, she took a few seconds to choose her words carefully. “I… I think I am totally crushing on him.” She said, but it was pretty quick. "There. I said it."
“Yes, you did. So, why are you?” Sairek asked in a ‘tell me more’ tone.
“I—I don’t know…!” She replied exasperated and a bit flustered. “He's uh, pretty cool. He’s kinda funny in his own way. He does what he wants, but in an… adventurous, free-spirit kind of way. He’s not a delinquent about it like how Balgira thought he was above everything and could treat Cyial however he wanted, you know? And I think he comes off as pretty genuine and down-to-earth.”
"And...?"
"...Okay, fine. And I find him cute. Really cute. He's young and cute, but still kind of good looking. You can tell he's going to be handsome in just a year or two."
“Haha, I can see all of those things, yeah.” Sairek agreed. “All of those things kind of remind me of you, too.”
“Oh really?” Nayleen asked, then blinked. “Wait, you think I’m cute?”
“Th-That’s not what I... I just meant—”
“...So you think I’m ugly, then.” Nayleen said in a tone that was clearly a threat, albeit a playful one.
Sairek wasn’t sure if he stumbled on a rock, or a root, or his legs just failed him for half a second. Either way, he stumbled. “N-No…! That didn't come out right...!” He shook his head and moved a little further away from her in his pace, looking back at her again. “I just meant… I just meant that I think you should go for it… if you feel that way. Maybe give it a little more time though, of course, see if he feels that way about you and get to know each other a bit better than just a day. But… otherwise, yeah. Go for it. Nothing else has stopped you from getting what you wanted yet so far, why stop there?”
Nayleen sighed, but smiled, moving closer and ruffling Sairek’s hair a little. “Thanks, Sai. I had forgotten my own advice to myself and you just gave it to me, even if it was probably by accident.” She said. “He’s still kind-hearted enough and even though I think he believes he’s better off alone because he doesn’t want to involve other people with what he does, I think he could really use a friend or three that’s not just Jimmy. It doesn't seem like he trusts people a lot.”
“I think you’re right about that.” Sairek agreed with a nod, glad that the tension on him was released.
Nayleen then leaned in a little to whisper closely to his ear. “By the way... I think you and Cyial are a good match, too~”
Sairek spluttered a soft choking sound. “W-We—”
“Oh come on...! I see how you look at him and I see how he looks at you. You two clearly have some chemistry going on and care for each other on a level deeper than just mere friendship like you and I. I don’t know what happened when I was locked up and it might be a bit weird for two boys, let alone a human and a demon, one who’s royalty and one who’s just a commoner to love each other... but meh. Do whatever your heart wants. That’s what I do after all. Who’s to tell you who or what you can’t love?”
“I... I know… but society would frown on it so much… if any of that was made public… well… I don’t know what would happen. It would start something for sure... something bad.” Sairek muttered. “I’m supposed to pick a girl, there’s supposed to be another heir after me… what happens if I just... refused to do any of that? Would anyone in my country understand, or would they all lose faith and riot?”
“Your relationship with him may not even last that long. You never know. If it does though, well, you two will face and deal with those challenges when you get to them, I’m sure of it. You never know, it might be the start of a whole different world view. Besides, Cyial was born on the Overworld, so it’s not that bad.”
“But it is that bad, Nayleen… People are going to assume a lot of things just from him being an Incubus alone regardless of what we would say or do...”
“You’ll just have to make sure to prove them wrong. Like I said, there will be lots of challenges, but I’m sure you two can do it.”
“Heh… thanks. Again.”
“Anyway… about Varhi…”
“Yes?”
“Um…”
“Come on, out with it. You know I won’t judge you, Nayleen.”
“He’s kind of cute when he’s not wearing any of that armor, isn’t he?” She grinned.
“What...!? Oh, Lands…” Sairek groaned. "Please tell me we are not having this conversation right now."
“What? He’s clearly got some muscle~” She teased, gently nudging Sairek with her elbow. “Maybe if you keep training with Fuyiki’s regime, you’ll get like that one day, hmm? I bet Cyial would like that~”
“P-Pass. I don’t care about getting that built. Just healthy where I don’t get tired quickly to where it impedes what I need to do is good enough for me. Besides, my staff isn’t nearly as heavy as that sword probably is. I don’t know how he can even swing something like that around...”
“Guess we’ll find out soon~”
"C-C'mon, we don't want to fight the monsters here, y'know..."
"I didn't even get to see him throw the pot lid last time...!"
"You're so irredeemable..."
While Sairek and Nayleen were discreetly talking amongst themselves, Varhi and Cyial had fallen into their own little private conversation shortly after the other two had begun talking. Cyial, with his better hearing than a human, had been listening in for the first part. Resisting a snort from Nayleen practically singing praises about Varhi, he moved slightly closer to the other boy. “Why do you do this?” He asked him in a near whisper.
“Do… what?” Varhi blinked, looking back at him, matching his tone.
“The whole… mercenary thing.” Cyial reiterated. “Jimmy never went into much detail, only dropped little tidbits on why.”
Varhi turned back to continue marching ahead of him, silent for a good moment.
“I don’t remember much about my past, even now. I can only just remember little scraps here and there. I know I had a mother, a father and I was an only child. I know we lived relatively fine—upper middle class, I think. Not rich, but well off and comfortable enough. They could afford to give me school, an education, and I think even fund some additional hobbies that I was interested in, but… that’s about all I remember. I don’t remember where I lived, or if I even lived in Kior. I just assume that must be where I lived, because that’s where Jimmy found me.” Cyial waited as he paused again. Varhi turned around to glance back behind him. “Do you remember being born? Your birth?”
Cyial frowned and shook his head.
“What is your oldest memory that you can recall with relative clarity, then?” Varhi asked.
Cyial’s frown deepened, this time in thought. “I… When… When Father Abbot brought me to the monastery in Lamen for the first time…” He spoke slowly, concentrating hard and then nodded in reassurance. “I remember holding his hand as he brought me to the front doors… I don’t really remember much before then. I was really young, maybe two or three... well, as best as he and I can guess anyway. Everything before that is pretty blank or fuzzy. I don’t remember my actual parents or any family at all.”
“But see, you recall that those moments before those ones exist and that they happened, but despite that, you can’t recall them specifically at all, right?” Varhi asked for clarification.
“Um, that’s right.” Cyial nodded.
“It’s exactly like that for me—except I can only remember just a little more than one year ago.” Varhi explained.
“But… that’s…” Cyial frowned.
“Weird, right?” Varhi smirjed slightly. Cyial nodded. Varhi then turned to look back ahead of him. “And very abnormal. I don’t know how it is with a demon like you, but for us humans at least, we’re usually not cognizant of our very existence at very early ages. Even at around the time of your first memory, do you recall being able to remember much before then, aside from general knowledge? Did you remember anything before arriving at the gates… or did it suddenly feel like you just… came to be?”
“...I'm not sure. Maybe a little bit of both?” Cyial answered. “Kind of like that sudden rush of consciousness when you wake up in bed from a dream. Or... even from a deep day dream, only to be startled away without the fear.”
“That’s what it was like for me about a year ago… but even then, I was still very much out of it.” Varhi explained. “In fact… I still sort of am. I am getting better but… I just felt... felt so empty inside, until only more recently when I became a mercenary. I don’t know why… I just… couldn’t feel or care about anything. I couldn’t get angry. I couldn’t get sad. I couldn’t get happy. I couldn’t care about anything.
“That was until one day Jimmy showed me the sight of a sunrise on the ocean. Something… sparked in me then. I felt something then. Or, at least I think I did. Whatever it was, it was faint, but I knew even back then that at that moment, I was feeling something, possibly even for the first time.
“I kind of became obsessed with seeing a sight like that again, trying to regain that—that emotion. It didn’t even take me two nights to wander off on my own to try and find another sunrise again. I think I waited hours on top of the highest hill I could find, just waiting for the sun to rise. Jimmy got pretty worried wondering where I had gone and upset when he finally found me.” Varhi chuckled. “I never did get to feel that emotion again like I had felt the first time, but I watched many other sunrises after that. I finally recognized after a while that the emotion I was seeking for was a... yearning.”
“...But, you don’t know what you are yearning for, do you?” Cyial asked.
“I do.”
“...You do? What is it then?”
“A purpose. There must be some reason that I exist. I… just don’t know what that is, yet.” Varhi chuckled. “Mercenary work is good for searching. I get to go a bunch of places all over the world, meet a bunch of different people... and besides, I’m pretty damn good at it despite being a kid, apparently.
“Ever since that sunrise and I started this work, my mental state has improved... but I haven't felt anything again yet. I still have this hole in me that I need to fill... but, I yearn to find out why that is.”
“That’s… admirable of you.” Cyial said with genuine sincerity. “I’m kind of envious in a way.” Varhi looked back at him with a puzzled look. “Ah no, sorry… I didn’t mean that I wish’d that…”
“Nah, it’s okay. I get it.” Varhi waved his hand dismissively and turned back around. “Why are you on a journey now, though?”
“I just want to be with Sairek. He’s…” Cyial began, pausing, trying to articulate his words properly. “I care a lot—” He paused again, frowning. What words could he use to describe it?
“He’s your world, yeah.” Varhi smiled. “Normally I hate royalty, but that’s because they all end up being corrupt, selfish bastards. He came to help me though, just because Jimmy asked him to. Well, with other reasons too, I guess, but regardless...”
“You were one of the first things on the forefront of his mind when he decided he wanted to go.” Cyial clarified. “I believe he said ‘If someone is in deep trouble and I have a chance, even if it’s slim to help them, then I have to try’... or something close like that.”
“Yeah, exactly. He makes mistakes obviously, but I can tell he’s got a heart of gold. He cares about people and not just those closest to him. He genuinely cares about people. If he keeps with that type of vindication, then he will be a beloved King.” Varhi said, then sighed. I got that impression from his father, though I'm sure you know better than me the things King Aayron does to try and keep his subjects live as peaceful and content as possible.
"For the most part," Cyial agreed. "No leader is without their own faults."
Varhi chortled at that. "Isn't that the truth... But now his son is my responsibility, so I better not screw this up.”
“Sairek's been worried that you hate him.” Cyial admitted.
“What–? No… I’m simply concerned. He has a heart of gold, but it clearly gets him into situations he has no right to be in.” Varhi explained calmly. “It’s just not something you can do without accepting the risks and the possible terrible outcomes. I’m quite flattered, believe me I am, but I’m not worth the risk of entering a dangerous place while tresspassing on Masirean soil...! Even I probably wouldn’t do something this insane.”
Cyial blinked. “Yes you would.”
Varhi rolled his eyes. “Okay, no sane person would, and neither would I still—unless the price was right.
Cyial chuckled. “Nayleen probably would, too. Actually, she already did I guess, for Sairek.”
“Oh brother. What happened?”
“She uh, ‘kidnapped’ Sairek out of the castle the first time, apparently. I still kind of don’t understand why. It was before they both met me, but that wasn’t too long after. A few days, I think.”
“Wait, so the Prince is an escapee?” Varhi blinked.
“Well, no. Sairek's father made a contract with him and apparently Sairek managed to complete the contract, on a technicality, ensuring he was allowed to leave... Or something to that effect from what I understand it. Neither of them have told me the complete specific details, but I never really asked either.”
“Huh. She may be a girl, but she has balls.” Varhi mused. Cyial’s face contorted into a slight puzzled expression at Varhi’s word of choice.
“Do you like her? You two seem to get along pretty well.” He asked him.
“...You lot are okay for now. I, uh… definitely like her though. She cooks well.”
Cyial cracked a grin. “That's the only reason?”
“She’s perceptive and seems to know what she’s doing better, no offense intended.” Cyial shook his head in dismissal at the comment. “And… well—wait...” He turned around to face Cyial, blinking several times. “...Is she interested in me..? Are you asking my opinion of her because she is interested in me?”
Cyial shrugged. Varhi was perceptive indeed, but he didn't want to let on too much. “Well I never asked her outright, but I think she may be. So I’m just asking you directly. She was eyeing you a lot when you were... uh... 'going for a shower', let's say.”
“Ohh, uuuhhhhh…” Varhi for once, lacked the air of confidence that had always been around him, even when he had been about to keel over when they first met him. even as he turned back around, marching and looking forward. “I don’t know. I’ve never really… thought or experienced anything like that before. At least from my short span of memory. I… don’t think anyone has even felt that way before about me. Huh. Awkward...” He soon shook his head briefly to clear it. “I don’t know. Would it even matter? It’s not like I stay in one place. Sorry, but even after we get out of this place, if we even can, I don’t exactly plan to stick around with you guys like you two have with the Prince. I’ve got places to be, places to go; you know how it is.”
“She’s not Cearestian like Sairek and I. She’s from Kior. I told you she trespassed, remember?” Cyial reminded him.
“Oh… I was planning to go there after this job was done. Well—after I got five-thousand seru, anyway...” Varhi muttered, rubbing the back of his head, before he bitterly added: "Doubt that's gonna happen now."
“Although, I guess she doesn’t live in the city.” Cyial rectified with a small frown. “She lives more close to the border with Ceareste. We were actually going to her house before we decided to stop and come here. Which means, yeah, we were going to Kior, too. Not the capital though, but her house is on the way, more or less.”
“Hmm… I feel like you are trying to persuade me into something here.” Varhi replied.
“Just telling you some facts.” Cyial said.
“You’re a coy one, aren’t you.” Varhi stated.
“Haah… I guess Nayleen did say I have changed recently. I guess she’s right. I was a lot more shut-in when I first met both of them, trying to hide my nature and everything.”
“Sairek caused that?”
“No, I think it was Nayleen... For Sairek and I both, actually.” Cyial laughed a little. “Sairek made me feel more at ease with what I am, but I think it was Nayleen that made me more confident. She’s like the sun. A lot of positive energy just comes out of her and if anyone did try to do anything or talk bad about Sairek or I, she wouldn’t be afraid to give them what for. She already has before.”
“She already told me about that.”
Cyial smiled. “See? There you go.”
Varhi was silent for a minute, thinking. “Well, one step at a time. We still need to get out of here, first, but uh…” He paused. “I’ll… think about it afterwards… I guess?”
Cyial cracked a smile in amusement. “Right...”
Varhi moved to look slightly to his left, spying the large oak tree he’s passed a few times now. He pointed at it and called out louder so Sairek and Nayleen at back could hear. “This means we’re getting pretty close. Prepare yourselves for anything.”
“Kay.” Nayleen called back.
Varhi led them forward for a couple minutes more, when Cyial suddenly grasped his right shoulder hard. “Stop.” He ordered, his voice tense.
Varhi raised his left hand up and held it back, palm up, signalling the two behind him to halt. “Where?” Varhi asked, voice calm.
Varhi watched as Cyial slowly scanned his eyes around in a general direction, northwest, he believed, so he turned to look there. “I feel it, there.” Cyial said, pointing a finger in front of Varhi, who followed the direction of it. “Spriggan…?”
Varhi narrowed his eyes slightly and took a single step closer. He hated these things. Even when it was being pointed out to him, he couldn’t notice right away, but the mushrooms were usually a dead giveaway if they weren't blocked by all the trees and brush.
“I see it—I think.” He muttered. It was standing still, unsurprisingly, keeping itself hidden. He motioned back behind him with his finger for the other two to approach without leaving his gaze, which they did.
“What is it?” Sairek asked.
“Over there, it’s a Spriggan. It’s hard as heck to see. Looks like a regular bush, but it has those small little orange mushrooms attached to it over there. See?” Varhi said, and squinted his eyes harder. “That might actually be the same bastard that attacked me earlier. It was hiding around this side of the forest a few days ago. Gave me a good sudden slap in the face. Didn’t know they existed until then. After slapping me, it tried spitting at me and then ran off and disappeared. I was too hurt and exhausted to give chase. Doubt I could have caught it even if I tried, too much brush.”
“Want me to shoot at it back?” Nayleen asked.
“I'm not sure it would care much for an arrow.” Varhi mused thoughtfully, reaching for his sword and slowly pulling it out—just in case.
“What about an arrow that’s on fire?” Nayleen asked.
“Wouldn’t that burn the whole forest down?” Varhi asked.
“Not with this spell. It’s fire, but it doesn’t work like that.” Sairek said. “I can stop it from putting everything else on fire if I need to. Kind of like electricity, I can just have it sort of ground out on everything else.”
“Well shit, go for it then. Would love to see it try to hide away when its ass is lit."
Nayleen readied the arrow still in her hand, notching it and pulling it back. Sairek lifted up a finger, a small glow of energy reaching out from his index finger and he touched the tip of the arrow and stepped back. Slowly, an orange glow moved, growing from the tip to covering the head of the arrow until glowing with visible, albeit faint amber light.
“Oooh, you want to use this one? You’re nasty. You know, I still love that this works.” Nayleen smirked.
“Works on a lot of things. Could even work with Varhi’s sword, probably.” Sairek answered. "Thank Fuyiki for teaching me this trick, by the way."
“I'll have to pass on that.” Varhi frowned. "I don't like magic being near me or my sword.
“Well, with this spell, it could have some consequences.” Sairek shrugged, "So I guess I can't blame you."
“Okay, here it goes.” Nayleen warned them, then released the arrow. She aimed just slightly left to the mushrooms, since it looked like the body of the Spriggan was just left of where they were attached. The arrow sailed past a few leaves and brushes, before sinking in at her target. Despite looking like she just shot a simple bush, it had flinched at the impact of the arrow.
Sairek lifted his index finger that he had used to infuse the arrow. “Vulkenhai.” He chanted in a tone that was a statement with purpose and moved his fingers to close in a clenched fist as he enacted his destructive will to obliterate.
Varhi blinked as there was a bright orange glow from where the arrow had landed and then a sudden small implosion of fire and force. There was a loud hissing screech that came from the Spriggan as it was abruptly bombed out of seemingly nowhere. When the light faded, Varhi watched as a good chunk of the Spriggan was missing, possibly burned to ash or had just exploded to pieces. The Spriggan was flailing through the brush, the rest of it currently on fire.
“Blimey!” Varhi blinked. “Oh shit, it’s coming this way, back up, you three.”
The trio quickly moved with haste on the path in the direction where they came, getting a good forty feet or so away. Varhi readied his sword while the Spriggan approached, tumbling and flailing thin limbs through the brushes as it squealed. However, it soon just collapsed before it actually reached Varhi, about twenty feet away.
Regardless, of it being seemingly dead, he still watched. After all, these things could abruptly stop moving mid-step to camouflage themselves—at least until it suddenly exploded in a plume of a yellow-green cloud above it, most likely spores, signalling that it was in fact, dead.
“Damn. It does that too when it dies, eh? That’s gonna cause problems in a couple of days. Going to spread the infection even more closer to the camp.” Varhi grumbled.
“...I guess I’m not getting that arrow back.” Nayleen stated dryly as the trio moved their way back towards Varhi.
“Hey Sairek, do you think you could spray that area with water?” Varhi asked.
“R-Right. Guess that’s worth a shot.” Sairek said, positioning and aiming his staff. “Waert.”
A steady plume of water released from Sairek’s staff and he moved it in such a way that he basically hosed the cloud of spores with his magic. It didn’t get rid of them fully, but it did dissipate some and washed whatever spores were coming back onto the ground away, making it hard for the spores to find purchase onto any of the nearby surface to grow and spread effectively... hopefully.
“Hmm. Not great. Guess that will just have to do, though.” Varhi frowned. “Come on, let’s keep going, and good work, guys. Maybe I won’t have to do most of the work after all. Would definitely make this a lot easier.”
They moved back into position, which then Sairek released a sigh, feeling a little more confident at their synergetic teamwork with each other.
“If we’re careful and take it slowly, maybe we can deal with this after all…” Sairek breathed, hopeful.
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