Disclaimer: I don't own Protector of the Small Quartet

Kel gathered what little she had on her and left the Stone Mountain manner, knowing within her heart of hearts that she would never return there. Not ever again.

Beside her the dog Jump barked happily while the flock of sparrows that she called her friends fluttered about over her head. She was very aware of the boy behind her, Tobe, who she knew was giving her a reproachful look. Her shoulder was hurting and she knew he wanted her to take it easy. Lavina had taken the horses and freed the others. Thankfully Kel's own horses Peachblossom and Hoshi were not housed on the fief and so were not lost in the commotion.

"Stop looking at me like that," she lightly reproached the boy as they set out on foot. Tobe said nothing but glanced reluctantly back behind them at what she guessed was a dying pillar of smoke and what remained of the burned down manner of the Stone Mountain.

"It's not that, Lady. I just don't understand. We're going in the wrong direction. Wouldn't it be faster to take the Great North Eastern Road back to Fort Haven?" he asked. Kel fought the urge to grit her teeth in annoyance. Apparently someone had renamed the fort in her absence and changed it back to it's old title. Tobe had assured her however that people inside the fort were all still very much loyal to her and desperately missing her.

She knew she needed to go back.

Still, there was something else she needed to do first.

"We aren't going to Fort Haven, at least not yet," she told him. Behind her, she sensed Tobe stop in complete surprise but Kel could not afford the pause. They still had a long way to go.

"If we aren't going to Fort Haven first, then where are we going?" Tobe asked after finally catching up. Kel appreciated his graceful omission of the argument that her people needed them. She knew they needed her…

"We're going to Corus. We're going to stop Lavina and get my son back."

Joren was incredibly annoyed when Zahir decided to remain on the road and follow it to the North Watch Fortress, as opposed to cutting through the country to save time.

"Why? Are you so eager to see your wife's Mindelan family?" Zahir jibed quietly as the two stood far off and watched as Sir Paxton stood before the front of North Watch Fortress and called up to the guard informing of them of their identity.

Joren didn't know what robbed him wrong, the fact that Sir Paxton was broadcasting his name with such volume that everyone within the nearest twenty miles to hear would know that the disgraced night was at Scanran's doorstep; or the thought of him face his wife's family and having to look them in the eye and answer all their demands as to why he had kept their daughter and her child from them.

Once the gate rose, Paxton signaled for them to reveal themselves.

Without waiting for Joren's response, Zahir inserted his step in front of Joren and briskly walked out of the thick forest that had hidden them. Knowing there was no going back, Joren scratched at his head irritably and entered the fort. Knowing Sir Paxton would want to stay the night, the blonde fought back his initial resentment and desire to leave.

The River Fort Vassa was still a good week's away… unless of course he cut through Mindalen.

The first cabbage pelted Joren in the head before he could even enter the fortress.

A nasty storm had settled over Corus by the time Lavina had entered the city. There was nothing magical about the storm and only served to slow the sorceress down. The cold heavy pelts of rain made everything muddier and forced the blonde to use more magic than she would have prefered to keep the small bundled on her back asleep and protected and the exhausted horse she had rode one from collapsing.

Her master would be furious with her if after all their hard work the vessel became ill or worse, died.

"Out of my way," Lavina snapped at the palace guards that went to bar her way. The last time she had entered the Palace of Corus and the guards and refused her entry, she had been forced to take the secret passage on the far side of the wall. While the option was still available, she did not relish in the idea of lingering any longer in the rain than necessary.

Fortunately, her little session with King Jonathan seemed to have done some good. At the sound of her voice, the guards snapped to attention, saluted her and allowed her entrance.

Not a moment later, a stable boy came out to greet her.

"Welcome, lady. Please allow me to collect your horse," he bowed. He reached for the horses reins just as Lavina stepped down. However, the moment the physical contact broke, so did the magic and the exhausted horse immediately collapsed dead.

"Don't bother," she told the boy who startled at the sound and sight.

Her cruel smirk at the might and whim of her magic was cut short however when the baby bundled to her back began to cry at the commotion of it all. Keledry's spawn was loud and it annoyed the hell out of her.

"Inform the king of my arrival and have him ready a session for me. Immediately," she snapped and her eyes flared green.

"Enemy forces have been detected by land air and sea," a scout quietly informed a group of people gathered around the map.

"They're behind us now. We're completely cut off from Corus," Roul ground out and pounded his fist on the table, temporarily scattering the pieces indicating where the enemy soldiers had stationed themselves. Beside him, a page with red hair quickly righted the pieces.

On the other end of the long tavern table Numaire sat alone and surrounded by books as he poured over any and all information pertaining to the ancient talisman of Thanic legends.

Daine watched it all through the tavern's window.

Taking a deep breath, she continued to pet Cloud's nose softly. Beside her and sitting on a stack of crates, her dragon Kit slept on oblivious. The little dragon had done everything in it's power to reach contact with it's dragon kin in the other realm; and while Daine sensed that there was no magic blocking such communication as there was between the badgermole and her own parents, for whatever reason there had been no response to Kit's call as of yet. Either the dragons were slow in responding or they hadn't heard the call.

Kit was still rather small.

The poor thing had eventually given in to exhaustion and all but collapsed into her sleep.

The rain had begun shortly afterwards.

Lightning struck the sky and despite the tavern's small tarp that provided Daine, Kit and even Cloud some covereage, they all shivered.

"You know you'd be better off in the stable right now," the shapeshifter told her oldest friend wryly.

Cloud shifted restlessly but did not immediately reply.

"What's wrong?" Daine asked once she sensed her friend's unease.

"Something coming," Cloud told her in a hushed whisper. Daine immediately tensed and stretched out her senses.

"Is it enemy soldiers?" she asked in a forced calm voice. Cloud snorted.

"No."

Above them, quick rushes of wind sent the rain scuttling sideways and into the shelter.

"It's stormwings," Cloud answered. Sure enough a foul, wet stench immediately soaked its way into Daine's nose. Looking up, Daine frowned at the three harsh, birdlike features that hovered above her in the air, the flash of lightning behind them only served to illuminate their strange forms.

Before Daine could open her mouth and greet them, she was interrupted by Numaire as he came crashing out of the front of the tavern and barreling his way over to Daine. High up in his hand he held the scrap of paper with the symbol from Daine's dreams.

"Daine! I know whose talisman this is! I know who's behind the divine block!"

Releasing a surprised breath, Daine helped right her husband.

"You know whose blocking from Ma and Da?" she asked. Numaire nodded eagerly.

"Yes, the one who is blocking us from all the deities-"

"-It's Uusoae," one of the stormwings interrupted.

"The Queen of Chaos."