AN: Thanks for the interest everyone! I'll reply to the reviews up here since half of them are guest ones ;)

Zomvee: Glad you like it!

EarlessSpark: Good to know I'm doing well with the characters :D

Cordelia Storyspinner: Yeah, the fact you can't get anything but a letter out of Rose when you choose Love annoys me too. As to the pairings, I've decided that they'll stick to family love here, nothing more. Most likely with that out of the way, there probably won't be any pairings, since the major relationship in this story is (and should be really) between Rose and Sparrow.

ConfinedLake91: Glad you like the story!

I should note this chapter is the longest of the ones I've written so far, just a heads up ;)

EDIT 5/21/14:As a reviewer pointed out, I managed to forget that you had to impress the Abbot before starting that quest. The quest to clear the bridge will be in Chapter 5 because of that.


On the road to Oakfield


Sparrow gave me back my journal, once we left the Guild. I can't believe I forgot about this, but I suppose I didn't want to think of places where Sparrow had been. Still don't really...probably because I still can't believe my sister is alive! It's still so hard to believe I have little Sparrow, not so little anymore, sleeping just a few feet away...I'm still not sure if I'm dreaming or not. Lord only knows I've been wishing to see Sparrow again for so many years. I never really expected those wishes to come true, especially not after what happened with that stupid music box. I almost had a heart attack when I saw her alive, that's for sure!

Then there's those powers of hers...Sparrow doesn't need a kit to light a fire, she can just look at wood and it will go up in flames. Okay, maybe that's exaggerating, but I would have never believed what she could do when we were kids. Griever is such a good fit for her that it isn't even funny. Then again, I can't really talk can I? While I'm not as good as Sparrow at this Will stuff, I can still shoot lightning out of my fingers. I would like to think I'm better with a sword though, but she's catching up to me quick if our spars are any indication. Who would have thought two little orphan girls would become the new Heroes?

I certainly couldn't believe it, but if Theresa is right about anything its our abilities. Derek was always saying I was one of the fastest learners he's ever seen. I just thought I was throwing everything into training after...that night. Turns out I've always had that potential and just didn't know it. Certainly explains how Sparrow was able to beat up bullies like Rex who were twice her size so easily. If what that woman has been telling Sparrow is true, about the Spire and what it could give Lucien, I think we should be happy we have these abilities. I know I am...I hate the idea of Sparrow fighting, probably my 'big sister instincts' again...she's perfectly capable of defending herself, and I know that...but I still hate the idea. I just want my little Sparrow to be able to live a normal life.

Bah, no use in worrying Rose. I've never been to Oakfield before, so that should be interesting at least!

Sighing slightly, Rose closed her book and lay down. The fire behind her crackled merrily, while the young woman looked up at the star-filled sky. This far outside Bowerstone, there were no obstructions blocking her view of the stars, and it was quite a different experience. Rose had never really payed much attention to the stars before, too much other things on her mind. Now though, she found it rather peaceful in a way. Just looking up as the stars twinkled in the sky, trying to pick out constellations.

A loud snore broke her thoughts, and brought a smile to Rose's face. Sparrow had always snored, so it was nice to see that some things stayed the same, no matter what else may have changed. And it was just as amusing, or maybe heartwarming, to see that dog (turns out Sparrow had named him Petal...she didn't need to guess why) curled up next to her sister protectively. Rose may have been unable to care for her little sister for so long, but Petal had stayed by her side that entire time, even when Theresa or the Gypsies hadn't. It was comforting, in a way, knowing that her sister had such a loyal companion...dog or not.

Still though...

"What are we doing?" Rose wondered aloud, as she continued to look up at the sky.

She may not have written these thoughts down, but most of Rose still thought of their task as the next best thing to impossible. Look at them...two newly minted Heroes, walking on a road that neither of them knew, to hopefully find another Hero, who had even less idea what they were than the sisters did. Still, if it were easy then anyone could stop Lucien. Like it or not, Rose understood that much.

"Don't know how Sparrow can be so carefree," the older sister muttered to herself as she turned over to stare at the fire.

Her snoring sister seemed immune to all the worries plaguing Rose. Sparrow, if anything, seemed eager to go exploring. Rose wondered if the enormity of their task had actually set in with her sister yet or not. Still, as she wrote down in the journal, worrying about it was pointless. It was far too late to turn back...Lucien had to be stopped, and they were the only ones who could do it. So Rose turned back over and went back to watching the area around the camp. Carefree or not, Sparrow had some tactical sense and wanted one of them awake at all times, to avoid ambushes.

Made a certain amount of sense with the amount of bandits roaming Albion at any given time. The remnants of Thag's gang in specific...they would love to catch the Hero who killed their leader napping. So thus Rose stayed awake, absently drawing in the soil while Sparrow snored in the background. She would be damned before she let anyone hurt her sister on her watch...


Morning


By the time both of the sisters had gotten a decent amount of sleep, the sun had already risen over the Rookridge portion of the Bower Road. Storm clouds had begun to float in from the west though, and it lead to a wet day. Between the mud and the rain, it wasn't a fun task to walk along this road towards Oakfield. Of course, having difficulty with rain and mud was one thing. Rather more problematic news came from Theresa, whom they had discovered had a liking for contacting them over the Guild Seal(s) at random times.

"Look out. There is a group of bandits ahead," the Seer's voice said, sending both women off the road in a hurry, "I would recommend ranged attacks."

After they were off the main road, Sparrow and Rose crept forward, moving from rock to rock, or tree to tree, in the aim of making themselves as invisible as possible. When the pair reached a curve in the road, they began to hear the sound of the bandits Theresa had warned them about. Well, that and Petal started growling, something he only tended to do when enemies were around. Looking up from their hiding spots on the road, both sisters saw a group of six or so bandits with rifles aimed down on the road...obviously hoping to ambush anyone stupid enough to not notice them.

"I thought you said someone was coming Jimmy!" one of the bandits shouted, seemingly caring little about security.

"I told you, I saw two women down there! Hot ones too!" 'Jimmy' shouted back.

Both Rose and Sparrow shuddered slightly at the sound of that voice, and the not so subtly-hidden intentions in it. Being the better shot of the two, Sparrow carefully stuck her head over her rock and placed her new flintlock rifle on top of it, looking down the rudimentary sights at 'Jimmy'. For her part, Rose focused her Will into a pair of lightning bolts, crackling in both hands. Looking over at her sister, Rose nodded once. Sparrow nodded back, and pulled the trigger on her rifle.

A bullet flew from the barrel, flying straight and true...and through 'Jimmy's' head. The bandit flew back, as Rose leaped up and flung her lightning at two of the other bandits while Sparrow reloaded her rifle and shot one of the other men. Within a matter of seconds, the two Heroes had taken down four bandits. That still left two alive though, as a bullet grazed Rose's arm.

"Rose!" Sparrow shouted, firing a fireball at one of the surviving bandits, who started screaming as he tried to put the fire out.

"I'm okay!" Rose shouted back, bringing her pistol up and shooting the last bandit who had rolled down the cliff-face and was trying to stab Sparrow in the back.

When the man's body hit the ground, it ended the first real fight for Rose, and the first time Sparrow had someone other than Petal to work with. The Hero found she liked having someone to work with...but that didn't stop her from running over to Rose, who was holding her arm and grimacing slightly. The bullet hadn't hit anything vital, but it was painful to be sure. Sparrow pulled her sister's hand off her arm, and winced at the bloody gash.

Rose quickly put her hand back on it, and smiled at her younger sister, "It's not that bad Sparrow. Just needs a potion and I'll be fine."

The younger sister looked distinctly unconvinced, but nodded and pulled out a low-strength health potion. While she was convinced Rose was just putting on the 'strong older sister' act again, that didn't mean she could afford to waste one of the few, and far more expensive, high-strength potions. A basic healing one should suffice. Handing the potion to her sister, Rose downed it in one gulp...grimacing slightly at the taste, as the gash in her arm stopped bleeding, leaving little more than a small scar to mark her ever getting hit.

Shaking her arm, and marveling as ever at the fact that there was no lingering pain, Rose smiled at Sparrow, "See, told you it was nothing. Let's keep going."

Sparrow nodded, and walked in the lead, keeping her rifle drawn. The two sisters walked up the path past the bandit corpses, only stopping long enough to get any money the thugs had on them. Pockets a little heavier, Rose and Sparrow continued down the path, trying to ignore the rain soaking them to the bone. Shaking her rain-soaked hair out of her eyes, Rose noticed something in the distance. She groaned, and started to run forward. Sparrow looked confused, until she noticed what her sister had seen.

Cursing slightly, the younger Hero followed her older counterpart...staring out at a ruined bridge. The Rookridge Bridge was split neatly in two, the center section either burned or collapsed into the river far below them. And it was the only bridge they could use too. Seemed like it wasn't a natural collapse either, if the three men on the other side were any indication. While the Rookridge Inn looked abandoned, there were three more bandits on the other side of the collapsed bridge, laughing and pointing at the sisters.

"Hah, look! Two travelers who can't travel!" one of the men shouted fairly drunkenly.

"Yeah, how're you going to cross the river now?!" another added, laughing all the while.

As the men laughed at them, Sparrow's finger twitched on her rifles trigger, as she was very tempted to shoot the men. Wouldn't do any good though, since it was three against two and there was no cover to use this time. So she settled for looking at Rose and asking an unspoken question. While neither sister was sure when it had happened, Rose was the leader in their little group. As such, she bit her lip and tried to think of a way through this mess. While it was possible there was another crossing somewhere along this river, it would be a long detour, something they didn't have time for.

If there was another crossing. Neither woman knew the area, so for all they knew there wasn't anything other than this ruined bridge. So Rose turned back to her sister, and shrugged.

Damn it...what now... Sparrow thought.

"Well little Sparrow, what now?" the elder sister asked.

"'Sparrow'? What sort of name is tha...OW!" one of the bandits shouted, only to start hopping around holding his leg after Sparrow shot it without even taking her eyes off her sister.

"Why'd you have to shoot Charlie?!" one of the other bandits shouted.

Electing to ignore the drunken idiots, the two sisters looked down. The river below them was deep, but it was still a very long jump. Long jump or not though, it was probably the only way to continue.

"You will have to jump. Do not worry, a Hero can survive the fall," Theresa chimed in.

Upon hearing that, Sparrow shrugged and gave Rose a thumbs up...before leaping off the ledge with little-to-no hesitation. Rose shook her head, and looked down again. Sparrow left a mighty splash when she hit the water, but came back up quickly enough, shaking her hair out of her face. Looking up, Sparrow pointed at a nearby beach, and started swimming in that direction. Rose sighed, and took a deep breath.

Come on Rose...you can do this!

With that thought in her head, the older Hero jumped down. Rose felt the wind rush past her face, as the bandits looked down, seemingly shocked the women actually jumped. Rose didn't notice that however, as she felt the harsh slap of the cold water hitting her face. Gasping slightly, Rose quickly pushed her way to the surface, spitting out the water that had gotten into her lungs. Coughing and wheezing, the older Hero sister swam over to where Sparrow was, shaking water out of her hair.

Climbing out of the water, Rose rubbed her arms to get feeling back in them after that reckless leap. Sparrow walked up to her sister and gave her a java, as a 'pepper up'. Rose nodded gratefully, and downed the potion. As the feeling of warmth spread through her body, the older Hero walked with her sister, to the entrance of a rather foreboding cave. Shivering slightly as she looked into it, Rose noticed her sister giving her an understanding look.

"Giving you a bad feeling innit?" the younger sister said, looking warily at the cave.

"That, my dear Sparrow, is an understatement," Rose said dryly, looking into the dark entrance.

Before either woman could contemplate entering the cave, Petal's barking drew their attention. A man was stumbling into sight from part of a ruined building next to the cave, looking harried and weak. The man walked up to the sisters, looking relieved to see other people. Though he still seemed to be very worried about something, if the furtive glances he was sending the cave were any indication.

"You two look strong...please help me find my son! Joey was taken in the cave and I can't go in there alone!" the man shouted, sounding on the verge of tears.

The Heroes shared a look, before Sparrow nodded at the man, "Don't worry, we'll help you find your son!"

And with that, the pair walked into the dark entrance of the cave...no idea what awaited them inside.


Ugh...this place stinks! Rose thought, holding her nose as the little group finally entered a larger room.

The area looked like an abandoned mine, with old wooden planks bracing the walls around the entrance. That didn't account for the smell though, as it didn't smell like old lamps or anything like that. If anything, the smell was coppery like...blood? Oh, now that bad feeling was getting even worse! Something was seriously wrong in this cave, even Petal was whimpering for Avo's sake!

"Rose," Sparrow said, as the man in between the heroes shook violently, "please tell me I'm not the only one with a bad feeling here?"

"You aren't," Rose replied, holding a bolt of lightning in her hand as impromptu lighting, "something is very wrong in this cave. Any ideas mister?"

The man flinched slightly, seeming surprised that he was addressed directly. Looking down on Rose (who was rather short really), the man sighed. He didn't seem happy to be answering the question oddly...like he knew something he hadn't told the Heroes before they came in here.

"I think the cave has a...Hobbe...problem," he finally answered, flinching again at the resultant glares.

"A Hobbe 'problem'?" Sparrow asked sarcastically, as she pulled Griever off her back.

"Please, that's why I need you to help me! My son is in here!"

Rose blew out a sigh, "We'll help, but you need to tell us these things okay?"

The man nodded weakly as the group started walking again. Rose and Sparrow both knew very well what Hobbes were. Neither had actually seen one of the little goblins before, but everyone in Albion knew the stories. There was a reason why mines were rare and far-between in the nation, and it was because Hobbes were viscous little buggers, and all too common in caves or other underground areas. At least it explained the smell of blood, more so than a bandit camp.

The smell got worse as the group moved further along through the cave, before they came to a large and well-lit room...covered in blood and bones. Rose gagged while Sparrow's hold on her new sword went white. Petal whimpered even more, while the father flat out vomited at the sight. Just thinking of how many people had to have died to leave that much blood and that many bones was horrifying. Sparrow recovered first, and grabbed her sister's hand, the two quickly moving past the room while the father recovered and hurried to catch up. The group moved out of the 'horror room' and into another small hallway. Petal barked and pointed his foot at a nearby treasure chest, that Rose opened up.

Despite the size of the chest, only two health potions were inside it, along with a bag with maybe a hundred gold pieces. Not much, but it was useful at any rate. Tossing the potions to Sparrow while adding the gold to her meager stocks, the two sisters continued along their path. Growling, not dog growling either, echoed from in front of them, leading to Rose drawing her own silver-augmented Lancer.

"Stay back," Sparrow told the father, as she crept forward with Griever's fire augment providing the equivalent of a long torch.

As the sisters reached the last turn, they saw an old wooden panel blocking on side of a large opening in the cave, while the other side was open. And through both, they could see a truly disgusting and horrifying sight. Four grey creatures, that had to be Hobbes, were gathered on top of what looked like old tracks for mining carts. The Hobbes were gathered in a circle, heads down and stubby arms tearing at something. Gagging once more, Rose moved towards the broken old wood.

Unfortunately for her, she stepped on an old bone on the way there. The resounding crack that echoed down the cave alerted the Hobbes, who jumped to their feet and turned to the sound. Rose was frozen in shock, as the Hobbes roared at her...looking fiercer than their size should indicate as their razor-sharp teeth flashed in the dim lighting. The creatures picked up clubs and started charging at the older Hero.

"Look out Rose!" Sparrow shouted, leaping forward, Griever flashing in the dim light.

Rose ducked on instinct, watching as a Hobbe leaped over her head...and was promptly impaled on Sparrow's sword. The disgusting creature let out a scream of pain as the fire-coated blade stabbed and burned its insides, before the younger Hero kicked it off and swung her blade to parry a blow from another Hobbe's club. The club bounced back, catching on fire and scaring the Hobbe holding it. The frightened creature, obviously not expecting its weapon to turn into a torch, dropped the flaming club and a follow up blow from Sparrow sent the creature flying into a wall.

For her part, Rose's silver-augmented blade didn't do anything so dramatic. As two of the Hobbes approached her, she flung the bolt of lighting that, by some miracle, hadn't left her hand. The bolt shocked one of the Hobbes, keeping it occupied with trying to control muscle spasms. The other Hobbe roared in anger, and tried to kneecap Rose with its club. The older Hero brought Lancer into a parrying position, catching the club. While Rose was not what anyone would call large or muscular, she was still larger than the Hobbe, and a longsword would beat a wooden club any day. Pushing forward, she knocked the Hobbe back and swung herself around.

The flourish did its job, as the Hobbe was unable to block Rose's return swing, that sent head and body flying in different directions. The last Hobbe, recovering from its...shocking...encounter with the Heroes, dropped its club and ran away screaming at the top of its child-like lungs. Rose's pistol put an end to that quickly enough.

"That...was terrifying," Rose said, once she had cleaned her blade off.

"You're telling me!" Sparrow replied, "I knew Hobbes were bad but...that was something else!"

Both sisters shuddered, before turning back to the man they had left behind. He was looking wide-eyed at the carnage, while Petal panted next to him, occasionally nudging the man with his nose. Seeing the Heroes looking at him seemed to shock the father out of his stupor, though the wide-eyed look never vanished. Quickly walking up to the pair, the man started thanking them profusely for agreeing to help his son, any doubts as to their abilities (which, honestly should have vanished the moment he saw them survive jumping off a bridge) had vanished after that little skirmish.

Nodding at the man, Sparrow took the lead again. Rose was the 'leader' but Sparrow was the better fighter, so it made more sense that she lead the group. In this case, they had to warily walk up old wooden walkways, that probably hadn't been properly maintained in years. And the creaking noises the wooden planks made was not helping matters either.

"Are you sure this is entirely...safe? I mean, these rickety wooden walkways?" the father asked, creeping along behind the Heroes.

"Probably not," Sparrow replied candidly.

The man gulped, and started to move quicker to get to stable ground. Thankfully the walkways held the weight of three humans and a dog, allowing them to reach the highest point in the mines yet. Another narrow hallway greeted the little group, who sighed at the sight. Sparrow held her sword in front of her, as she warily walked forward. Or at least tried to. For the moment the group walked into the next room, a child's voice echoed off the walls.

"That's Joey! I'm coming Joey!" the father shouted...before promptly shoving his way past the Heroes and running faster than they thought possible.

"At least he's a good father..." Sparrow said, shaking her head slightly.

Rose would have replied with a suitably witty comment...but a growling sound announced more Hobbes. A swarm of the disgusting little creatures charged from every direction, surrounding the Hero sisters. Sparrow and Rose stood back-to-back, sword in one hand and Will spell in the other. Petal circled around them, growling at the Hobbes. The creatures growled back, brandishing clubs and at least one old rifle at the little group. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, one of the Hobbes broke ranks, charging with a scream as it swung its club wildly.

Rose and Sparrow both hit it with their Will abilities. The Hobbe fell to the ground, smoking from both actual burns and electric burns. Unfortunately, the charge of the one Hobbe set the rest of the creatures off, as a screaming horde of them charged the sisters. Rose and Sparrow worked as a team, swinging and stabbing their augmented weapons, occasionally shooting off a bullet or Will spell.

"Duck!" Rose shouted, swinging Lancer over her sister's head as a Hobbe jumped off a ledge.

The creature went flying into a wall, a bloody gash cut through its torso. Petal jumped on it and finished the Hobbe off, while Sparrow returned the favor and shot a fireball at a Hobbe that tried to knock her sister in the back. The Hobbe fell to the ground, while another took its place. Griever and Lancer came together, silver flashing off fire as the Hero sisters spun off each other, Sparrow sending out a kick that sent a Hobbe flying over the rest of the swarm. For her part, Rose pulled out her pistol and shot another of the creatures through the skull.

Without even realizing it, that was the last of the Hobbes. Rose and Sparrow panted, looking around at the scene of devastation.

"Dear Avo..." Rose breathed.

"This is what we signed up for," Sparrow said in disbelief, before shaking her head, "should have expected something like this eh? Let's find that man before he gets himself killed."

Stepping over fallen Hobbes, the pair of Heroes rushed out of the room, trying to find the father before something happened to him. They found the man banging on a locked door, trying to open it.

"Joey is behind this door but I can't get it open! Maybe there's another way around?" the man said when he noticed the sisters.

Sharing a look, the sisters silently agreed on a plan. Sparrow set off to find a way around, while Rose stayed with the father to make sure something didn't happen to him. She hated sending her sister off alone, but if anything was true, it was Sparrow proving herself to be an excellent Hobbe slayer. Turning her attention back to the father, Rose heard him muttering soothing words through the door. It brought a sad smile to her face, as her memories of her own parents were vague at the best of times.

That smile vanished quickly however, when the door suddenly swung open...revealing a Hobbe in a child's clothing. The father flinched back, eyes going wide in fear and disbelief, as a red fireball came into view, sending the Hobbe-ified Joey into a wall. Falling to his knees, the man looked at his dead and disfigured son, tears falling to the ground.

"I always told him those stories were fake...that Hobbes weren't really kidnapped kids...but they were true! Dear Avo they were true!"

Before Rose could do more than reach out a comforting hand, the man fell to the ground. A knife clattered to the ground next to him...the father couldn't live with himself. Sucking in a shuddering breath, Rose didn't even say anything when a cursing Sparrow came into view, a gash on her head from a lucky Hobbe swing. Both sisters looked at each other, near-identical grimaces on their faces. All that, and they were still too late.

There was probably a lesson in there somewhere, that they couldn't save everyone...Hero or no Hero. But neither of them were really in the mood to think about that at the moment, as they moved the two bodies to lay next to each other. They couldn't carry either the father or Hobbe-Joey out of the cave, but at least they could do this much for them.

"Come on little Sparrow, let's get out of this place," Rose said, rubbing a bit of water on her sister's gash...a potion would leave her more light-headed than the wound itself...head-wounds were like that, since the elder sister had no idea if this was just a gash or something deeper.

Sparrow grimaced slightly in pain, but nodded, "Yeah, I never want to see this place again."

The two sisters (plus Petal) ran up the path, emerging into a large, open cavern...and just as quickly ducking back into the hall. The cavern was littered with Hobbes, even more than the last encounter with the creatures. Thankfully the Hobbes hadn't noticed either of the Heroes, though that didn't make the idea of fighting through that many of the things any easier. Regrouping, the Hero sisters tried to put together a workable plan.

In the end, they decided on doing the same thing they had done to the Bandits...with a small alteration. Rose had recognized some barrels next to the largest Hobbe groups. Gunpowder storage for the few rifles and blunderbusses the Hobbes had. Instead of shooting a Hobbe with her first shot, Sparrow would hit the largest collection of gunpowder barrels, while Rose used her lightning on any other ones in sight. Nodding at each other, the sisters took position.

"Fire in the hole!" Sparrow shouted, firing her rifle at the exact same time.

The shout served its purpose, sending the Hobbes into a flurry of movement...but distracting them from the bullet flying its way across the cavern. The small lead shell hit the gunpowder barrels, setting off a massive explosion that sent Hobbes flying in every direction. Rose's lightning-fueled detonations were no less impressive, the combination of the two clearing out all the Hobbes before they had any idea of what was happening. Walking through the burnt path, the sisters breathed sighs of relief at finally reaching the exit.


They had to blink away the sudden, if still watery, sunlight but it was with extreme relief that the new Heroes stepped out of their first major test. Even the rain couldn't put a damper on their suddenly soaring spirits.

"I never want to do that again," Rose began, "but..."

"It was awesome fighting with you sis," Sparrow finished, clapping her sister on the back, "a lot better than doing this alone!"

Rose smiled slightly, before proceeding to worry about the still bleeding gash on her sister's head. Sparrow tried to pass it off as nothing, much as Rose had done herself with the earlier bullet wound, but her sister would have none of that. As she gave her younger sister a potion, Rose could have sworn she heard her little Sparrow muttering something along the lines of 'yes mum' several times. That managed to bring a smile to her face. It was probably accurate too...lacking a parental figure, Rose was the closest thing that Sparrow had ever had to one.

Once the wound was mostly healed (there might be internal damage that neither sister would know what to do about), the pair set off back for Oakfield. Well, off in that direction minus a small detour to take care of the drunk bandits so that the bridge could, hopefully, be repaired. Not everyone was a Hero that could jump down a valley and fight through a cave full of Hobbes just to get to Oakfield after all.

Speaking of that town, the rest of the walk there was as uneventful as the way through the cave had been eventful. In other words, absolutely nothing of interest happened until the sisters actually reached the town. Oakfield was like a polar opposite to Rookridge, all sunlight and calm forests.

"It's beautiful," Rose breathed, looking out at the rolling fields and fertile ground.

"I love it!" Sparrow shouted, running forward gleefully, with Petal on her heels.

Rose grinned at her eager sister, following at a more sedate pace. Both sisters entered the town itself at roughly the same time, as Sparrow took several detours that slowed her down relative to Rose. The town was tiny compared to bustling Bowerstone, but that just added to the place's charm. It was relaxing in a way, to just have a few villagers wandering around giving kind greetings, instead of running into dozens of angry citizens just trying to get somewhere.

Everyone is so friendly here! Rose marveled, as someone complimented the sisters on their looks.

Thoroughly blushing Heroes walked into the nearest shop, to sell off some jewels that Petal had found on the way to the town. The money from that went into drastically increasing the potion stocks, now that both sisters knew that they would be getting into some harsh fights on this quest of theirs. The leftover money was spent on getting Rose an actual rifle to replace her pistol, so the two Heroes could fight better at a distance.

Pockets heavier with potions than gold, the two continued to explore the town. Oakfield was split into several sections. The main 'shopping district', little more than a few stalls and the blacksmith was at the center of the town. Further along towards the coast...and in view of the Tattered Spire...was the town's pub. Neither sister drank, so that was something they didn't really care for.

It was the structure on a hill on the other side of the town that really got their attention.

"That the Temple of Light?" Sparrow asked her sister.

"I think so," Rose replied carefully, "can't be sure though. You're forgetting you know more about Albion outside Bowerstone than I do Sparrow."

Sparrow scratched her head, "Right. Easy to forget that you aren't the all-knowing older sister anymore."

Rose simply punched her grinning sister's arm, leading to Sparrow laughing at her sister. Electing to ignore the continuing giggles, Rose lead the way up the hill. Even the hill the building was built on was beautiful, as the path took the sisters past a waterfall, the first either had ever seen outside of the occasional painting they had used for firewood during the bitter Bowerstone winters. The cold spray from the waterfall was far more refreshing than the Rookridge rain, as it splashed in their faces.

Continuing on up the hill, the Heroes saw the entrance to the Temple of Light. The small circular building stood out quite a bit thanks to its status as the only building on this hill, allowing the pair an easy way to talk to the Abbot like Theresa had told them to. Or, at least they would have if not for the fact the man seemed to be occupied talking to two of the monks. Sparrow was ready to barge right in, but Rose held out an arm and shook her head.

"Impressions little Sparrow," the elder Hero reminded her somewhat impulsive sister, "we don't want the Abbot thinking we're immature children."

The pout on Sparrows face wasn't helping matters either. Still though, she acknowledged the point and stayed outside the Temple until the Abbot actually waved the two Hero sisters into the building. Walking into the small Temple, the pair felt it had a comforting atmosphere with the blue torches giving it a somewhat unique lighting.

"Welcome to the Temple of Light," the Abbot began, "I'm afraid you have found us at an...unfortunate time. Today is the day where we plant a new Golden Oak."

"Is there anything we can do to help?" Sparrow asked.

"Actually...there is," the much older man replied with a small smile, "the tradition states that two of the Order's members go into the Sacred Cave to gather the water needed for the Golden Oak. However, none of our small group have been down there in decades. I was hoping that someone else would escort my daughter, our water-bearer, through the caves."

The two sisters conversed with each other, before Rose stepped forward, "We'll do it."

"I'm afraid only two are allowed in the cave. One of you shall have to remain here."

It didn't even take long to decide which sister would go into the Cave. Rose hated the idea of sitting around while her sister did the work, just like in the Hobbe Cave, but she was the better fighter. If something happened down there, it was better that Sparrow be with the Abbots daughter...presumably the nascent Hero of Strength. So it was with a worried frown on her face, that Rose watched her little sister walk down the hill towards the distant cave...


AN: And there we go. As you can tell, I'm currently updating weekly (on Tuesdays). In theory, that will be when I update every week. This story is that fun to write :D