Their small camp was packed up before dawn, and they left the haven as soon as the daemons disappeared. No sign of MTs had been seen all night; they had not been pursued this far, and the supply base hadn't sent reinforcements for a search yet.
Just as it had been on the way to the haven, it took an entire day of hiking to rejoin their camp. With a victory behind them, everyone was more relaxed as they journeyed southwards. They kept the noise down and watched their surroundings carefully; if there had been any Imperials patrolling the jungle, they would not be pleased to encounter a group of armed insurgents. The Nifs didn't have a reason to search southwards, and so the group did not see any sign of the Empire.
Even though they were relaxed, it didn't make many of them more sociable with Andromeda. She stuck by Tshering for much of the hike, and sometimes spoke with Sonam. She didn't mind walking along with them and keeping quiet.
The sun was setting again as they walked passed the totems and entered the camp. It had hardly been unpacked; Sonam had explained that the camp was going to move even further south once they parted ways again the next day. This was just a rendezvous point for them.
Returning with the victorious band, Andromeda was exempt from helping prepare dinner, and additionally, did not have to wash the dishes afterwards. It was a pleasant surprise to return to.
She had come to expect Tshering to sit with her, but he did not. Instead, Hira took a seat across from her at the wobbly table. She still looked apprehensively at her, as well as at their surroundings. It kept other people away.
"So it's true after all," She acknowledged hesitantly. "You are a witch."
Andromeda frowned. "I'm not a witch."
They were both silent for a moment. She had to wonder if that was all Hira had wanted to say, and why she still continued to sit there. She wouldn't make eye contact with Andromeda. There seemed to be a lot on her mind.
"That fire was big news for a day. It was all over the city news. Every district heard about it," Hira finally said. "They had your school picture on the news. They said you and your aunt went missing. We weren't allowed to talk about it in school, but there was gossip. It was only on the news for one day. Whatever happened, I know it wasn't your fault. You weren't the type to set fires. I didn't know it was this whole thing."
"I didn't know anything about it then, either," Andromeda explained. Finally, Hira was ready to listen. "That was the first time it happened."
"How can you do it?" She asked. "Why do you have magic?"
Andromeda considered how to describe it. She shook her head. "I don't want to get too deep into it. Tenebrae has old gods, and not all of them are dead."
Hira mulled that over for a few seconds, understanding what Andromeda was implying. She looked down again. "I'm sorry for attacking you, and not believing you."
"I'm sorry for breaking your nose," Andromeda replied.
Hira shrugged at that; someone had been able to set it perfectly, so there hadn't been any harm done. The swelling on both of their faces had gone down days ago.
"There will be no more lies from here on out," Andromeda assured. She had never wanted to lie to Hira before. Now, there was no need to. Everything was out in the open.
The other woman narrowed her eyes. "I'll hold you to that."
It went quiet between them again. Andromeda was glad that they were talking again. Hira's staring and listening in to her conversations had been mildly irritating—and Hira had always been the impatient one. However they went on from this moment was up to Hira; Andromeda was content to let the past be the past. It wasn't easy for Hira to forgive others. She had so much invested in this rebellion. Andromeda had nearly destroyed it all. That fact clearly still troubled Hira.
"You always did say you were going to come back to Galahd after high school," Andromeda recalled fondly.
"I remember inviting you along with me," She nodded, though she did not sound happy about it. "When I first saw you here, I thought that was what brought you to the islands."
"Not exactly, but I don't regret coming. No matter how unwanted I am," Andromeda said. "I don't care if any of you like me. I'm here to make things right. Niflheim forced me to do all of those attacks before. They had captured me because of that power. Now, they are not behind me."
"But what if they are? What if you're just a spy?"
"Then you can be first in line to slit my throat," She replied. Several of them had wanted to do just that when she showed up last week. "Believe me, they knew which side I was really on. Spywork was never an option."
Hira didn't respond to that, but she had heard her. They went quiet again. So much had happened since they had last seen each other. The night of the apartment fire seemed like a lifetime ago for Andromeda. She had learned so much since then: about herself, her powers, and the world. She wasn't the same girl she had been in Insomnia. Hira was different now, too; she had never been one for so much quiet contemplation. They were both different now, and everything had changed. Nothing was what they expected it to be.
Finishing her dinner, Andromeda rose from her seat. "I'm going to bed."
Depositing the dirty plate with the unfortunate dish washer of the night, she walked through the camp to the familiar tent she and Hira shared. Once she was settled on her own cot, she heard the other woman shuffle in and lay on hers.
At dawn, Andromeda presumed to go on with her usual business at camp and helped prepare breakfast. When the dishes were done a couple of hours later, Sonam came looking for her. He led her to his command tent, placed at the northern edge of camp.
Once the door flap was shut, he turned to her with crossed arms. It was mostly empty as everything was still packed away.
"Well, what are your thoughts on our attack?" He asked.
Andromeda hadn't expected him to ever ask for her opinion. That wasn't what she was here for, and it had been made clear before that she was just to follow orders. No one really cared for her thoughts. She did have some, though.
"If we had stayed longer, we would have destroyed everything," She reported. "We should have changed focus to taking out more MTs and killing the mech pilots. MTs are easy for the Empire to replace, but not humans. It would have set them further behind on that construction site and in general."
Not to mention that one of the mech pilots could have very well been the presiding general over all of Galahd, Dalton. There hadn't been any way of knowing for certain if he was there, and if he had been, if he had realized Andromeda was there. Had they destroyed the mechs and killed the pilots, the Empire's hold over Galahd would have weakened considerably.
Sonam frowned with displeasure at her opinion. "Staying longer would have caused more damage at the site, but there was no end to those MTs. They kept coming out of nowhere, and your magic only made them stronger. I'm not willing to risk any lives like that when the Empire can recover their losses so quickly. As it stands, we must avoid murdering anyone. The Empire gets more aggressive when they lose a general to locals. We're not that strong enough to counter them. They'll attack towns and villages they think are sympathetic to the rebellion. It happened last time. If you wanted outright war, you should have gone to Insomnia."
"Niflheim has brought the war to Galahd. There's no getting rid of them without fighting back," Andromeda countered. "They don't care how many civilian casualties they cause."
"Killing is not allowed," Sonam asserted, ending the discussion. He quickly moved on. "Have you recovered your magic already?"
She nodded. "I just need rest after using it."
He relaxed a bit again, the argument over. "You've proven your worth to the others now. Tshering says you're an adequate healer. I think Klahan's pride was wounded worse than his chest by your help."
Andromeda recalled how Sonam had watched her take care of Klahan's chest; he was just as amused by it now as he was then. She was the last person Klahan wanted help from, but she had done what she could.
"His heart's in the right place, but his pride and bitterness can make him difficult to work with sometimes." Sonam shrugged. "You've already heard about the next attack on the supply base. It's probably already sent aid to the construction site, but it'll be a few days before the Empire sends more MTs to make up for the loss. So I am taking another group tomorrow to attack it while the defenses are lower. You will be in that group. Another rebel camp will be joining us at a rendezvous point. We'll need the extra numbers. Of course, you'll have to explain your power to them. They'll be just as surprised by it as this lot had been."
"It went better than I expected," Andromeda admitted. No one had questioned it too much with Sonam right there to support her claim.
He nodded in agreement. "This camp will continue south. They'll set up close to my home village. We'll take a break from attacking bases until the Empire settles down again. Part of our oath was that you are going to heal people. There's plenty of people in need of that here, and the Oracle will never visit our islands. After back-to-back attacks on Nif bases, word's going to get around about you. It'll be about that time that I'll take you before the Council of Elders."
She shifted her feet at his announcement. "Who are they?"
"They were the governing body of Galahd before the Nifs came. They're still allowed to gather, but it never amounts to anything. They're elected officials from every major town, each represents a Clan," Sonam explained. "They run every decision by an Imperial magistrate now. When the Lucians were in charge, they let the Elders govern freely. The Empire doesn't. The Council isn't allowed to support any rebellion, but they don't condemn it. Most of them are neutral about it, but I keep in contact with them. The Clans help out where they can. The Council is going to hear about you eventually, so we might as well get it out of the way. They'll determine whether you've earned a place here or not. If that's what you want."
Andromeda nodded. "It is."
There were few places she could go now. There were plenty of people she had left behind in Lucis. She wanted to see Sheila again, but had long since understood that that couldn't happen. She certainly liked the scenery of Galahd. It would be a good place to live, yet she assumed the Empire would figure out where she was eventually if the rebels kept up these attacks. Galahd was a small country.
"Good. It's going to take you awhile to fulfill the oath," Sonam said. "That's all I needed from you. Go help pack supplies in the medical tent. No doubt there will be more injuries after this attack."
Andromeda left at his order, having a lot to think about. She did not worry about their next assault on an Imperial base so much as she worried over being presented to a bunch of Clan heads to face their judgment.
By dawn the next day, the camp was broken down again and continued southwards. A small band split from the camp to go east. Klahan and the woman with a cracked rib were made to stay with the camp, although the former protested. Having the worst injuries from the last assault, it was likely those injuries would cause them to fumble and get even more hurt—or killed. There was no arguing against Sonam.
There were two new faces to their band, and their unfriendliness towards Andromeda was overruled by the acceptance of the senior members. The apprehensiveness was almost gone. She wasn't sure what had done it: that she had already partaken in her first attack, that she sat through a storytelling, or that Hira had finally listened to her. Whatever the reason, Andromeda did not hesitate to strike up a conversation about Galahdian words with Tshering—at least while Sonam allowed them to talk. Hira, who still lingered near her, spoke a little, but mostly just listened to them talk.
"You're persistent," Tshering teased Andromeda. "But I should probably tell you about when you can and can't speak Galahdian, before you get yourself in trouble."
"I thought disobeying Imperial mandates was part of the point of using your language," She frowned. They had done far worse than use words the Nifs found barbaric.
He shook his head. "I meant trouble with other Galahdians. You're a foreigner, so sometimes it's disrespectful for you to speak our language. Like when you go meet with Elders. Or if someone just tells you not to use it. There's a lot of people that don't like to hear foreigners speak our language."
"Some people at camp haven't liked it," Hira added quietly.
"Okay," Andromeda nodded, keeping these unspoken rules in mind. It seemed that there were many unspoken rules in Galahdian culture. She would rather learn as many as possible without making social blunders.
Sonam led the group southeast after a certain point. They came upon a haven. It wasn't even noon yet when they stepped upon it. He ordered them to drop their supplies, but not to unpack. They waited while he watched the jungle.
It wasn't long after that a scout appeared. She led another group towards the haven; judging by their steady gaze, they could all see it and its occupants. They were dressed similarly to Sonam's group—other rebels.
They joined Sonam's group on the haven. An older man with dark skin stepped forward and shook his hand. His hair was very short, shaved close to his skull; Andromeda had assumed that all rebel leaders had the braids like Sonam did.
He gestured for her to join their conversation. Everyone else waited some distance away, exchanging looks with the new group.
"This is Datu. He leads another camp," Sonam mentioned briefly to her.
"I heard you tore apart that construction site," The other leader addressed him. "A lot of MTs were shipped out there already, but all those vehicles are going to be harder to replace. It would have been more impressive if it had been an established base, though."
"I need your help for something like that. Niflheim shouldn't have managed to send additional troops yet to replenish the bases here," Sonam explained.
Datu looked Andromeda over as he spoke. It was clear from the confusion on his face that she did not belong.
"Where is Klahan? Isn't he your right hand?" He asked.
"He was injured during our last assault. I made him stay with the camp. It's better than explaining to his mother why he's dead," Sonam reasoned. "This is Andromeda. She's moreso my left hand. She's taken an oath with me."
Datu scowled. "You made an oath with a foreigner?"
"You'll see why soon enough."
He turned to the rebels milling about the haven. By now, the two groups had begun to mingle and exchange small talk. Some were distant relatives.
"Listen up," Sonam boomed, immediately getting everyone's attention. "The base is another two miles north of here. We'll be there in the next hour. We're going to fan out as we get closer. There's only one entrance into the compound—only one way for the Imperials to come out and face us. They're already short on forces, so we'll winnow the MTs out first, then go in. The objective is to destroy whatever is useful to the Imperials—construction will slow if they have to rebuild one of their supply bases. Andromeda is my heavy-hitter. She'll explain what you need to know about that."
As before, he turned the attention to her. She wished he would just do it; he had seen the chaos first hand twice now.
"When Sonam gives the signal, I'll summon chaos. The MTs will go feral. They'll attack harder, but they'll fall out of their fighting style, too. Just pay attention and watch your back." Andromeda said, keeping it short. The newer members looked at her skeptically—not just because she was a foreigner, but because they didn't think it possible that she had magic. Datu likewise raised his brows at Sonam as she spoke. His glowering kept them all from raising arguments.
"Let's move," Sonam ordered once she was finished. He and Datu took the lead off of the haven. Everyone pulled their masks up again. Both groups left their supplies behind in safety.
Andromeda stayed close to Sonam without having to be told to. As with the last assault, she was expected to stay by his side through this one. He would tell her when to summon chaos. Their strategy last time had worked exceptionally well; maybe they could repeat it.
The group moved quickly through the jungle in order to reach the base in the hour Sonam had predicted. The noon hour was approaching; they wanted to be done with this well before sunset, so they would have time to run to the safety of the haven.
When the military base came within sight, the group spread out, creating a long arch as they approached. Scouts ran ahead. As they neared the large gate, they threw devices at it. Sirens began wailing as they ran back to join the oncoming group. The bombs went off behind them, greatly damaging the gates. Somehow, they still remained in place.
"Now," Sonam said to Andromeda as snipers appeared on top of the wall above the gates and took aim.
She focused a little. The area darkened slightly as a strong gale picked up. The snipers fired a couple of rounds, which were easily dodged, before dropping their guns to the ground far below. They joined in the collection of tinny screeches that sounded behind the gates.
The gates were suddenly torn down, a horde of rabid MTs rushing out at the humans. Several of the rebels froze in place as the berserk automatons charged at them. Even Datu stopped, glancing up at the swaying trees and down at the MTs with fear.
Sonam remained unfazed by Andromeda's power, now proven to be real to everyone, and yelled an order she had yet to understand. Datu repeated it, and everyone else took up their charge again, their weapons in their hands. Andromeda was among them as the rebels clashed with the MTs. Their line closed in on either side of the gate to trap the soldiers—not that they would try to escape.
With several more people with along for this assault, Andromeda could disengage from the fighting to occasionally coax a shadow to knock MTs together, or against the concrete walls of the base. It didn't have nearly as strong of an effect as ripping their cores out. Slashing at them with a kukri did nothing more than push their claws away; their armor needed to be punctured.
Two rebels had picked up the fallen guns of the snipers and put them to use, riddling MTs with bullets. It took awhile before the barrage hindered them, and then someone had to give the final blow with a kukri. A couple were shot in the core, causing them to immediately explode. It knocked nearby MTs down, as well as some humans. It didn't take very long for the first wave to be destroyed.
"Get inside!" Sonam shouted. The gate had been left wide open and unattended. Through it, another wave of MTs could be seen charging towards them. The rebels rushed through it before the soldiers could attempt to use their own strategy against them.
They clashed immediately once everyone was inside. There was more for the chaos to destroy within the base than outside of it. The rebels' attack would have more of an impact now. Like in their previous assault, Sonam stayed close to Andromeda, ripping out cores of MTs and throwing them against heavy equipment and fuel tanks. Some of the others from their camp followed his example. Some of the resulting explosions were much more deafening. Fires quickly sprouted up all over the base.
It wasn't long after they entered the base that a mech joined the fight. No other appeared; with more numbers this time, one mech was easy enough for the rebels to deal with. Just as before, the mech was hindered by the feral MTs, which targeted the mech as much as they did the rebels.
Sonam and Andromeda avoided the mech, which was incredibly easy for how distracted the pilot was. Yet soon they realized that most of the base was already ablaze. Everyone else was now focused on eliminating the MTs and the mech. The amount of MTs had finally dwindled; with the exception of a handful left, the mech was the only big concern left before the base was completely destroyed.
"How are you holding up?" Sonam asked Andromeda as they paused to survey the damage.
Her well-being wasn't what he was concerned about. "It's going to be awhile before my power burns itself out. I can't shut it off."
"I have an idea," He nodded towards the mech.
She followed him as he approached it. He shouted an order to the other rebels, who all immediately fell back. The remaining MTs at first pursued them, then took notice of Andromeda and targeted her. It was actually convenient—she and Sonam ripped their cores out. She also coaxed one of the shadows from the chaos to throw them all against the charging mech. Whatever the shadow did not pick up, Sonam threw them himself.
The pilot did not register the fallen bodies as they collided with the mech. It was only five seconds later that the first one exploded, followed in suite by the rest of them. Sonam and Andromeda fled, glancing back to see the mech had fallen. They did not look long enough to see whether the pilot had survived or not.
With the mech defeated, Sonam and Datu urged everyone to retreat. A couple of straggling MTs chased after the humans, but in their victory, no one was bothered by them. As they ran into the jungle, the pursuing robots were quickly dealt with. They all continued to run south, to the safety of the haven.
The chaos lessened as they ran. It took much less time to reach the haven when they were all moving faster than a steady march. It was perhaps thirty minutes later that they reached the haven. Andromeda's power was completely spent.
Once on the haven, Sonam and Datu did a headcount, making sure that they had everyone. There were a few scratches and bruises. As tired as they were, Andromeda and Tshering grabbed the medicine bag and set to work. Only those that had been on the last assault were unbothered by her; the rebels from Datu's camp were skittish. She ignored their reactions, focusing on their injuries instead.
"Where is your camp?" Datu asked Sonam.
"They were moving roughly southwest of here. We're going to be near home for a few days."
The other leader frowned as he looked northwards. "Don't you think that's a little risky after the mess you've made? They know who you are. Soon they'll be coming to chop your braids off, if not your entire head."
Sonam gave a slight shrug. "I'm sorry I wasn't there to stop them from taking yours."
"I still have the beads. That's all that matters. Hair grows back." Datu waved it off. "My camp is east of here—why don't you come stay the night? That general is probably still alive, and the first thing he's going to do is come south looking for us. He'll stop when he reaches the first village and doesn't find any of us there. He won't suspect us of changing direction."
"Thank you." Sonam did not take long to consider the offer. "Our camp is a little too far to travel to with what daylight is left." He glanced at Andromeda nearby as she wrapped up a wound. "Well?"
"Just a few more minutes," She answered. There were a couple of more gashes to inspect, and then they had to pack up again.
Datu seemed to suddenly realize she was there. He looked slightly fearful. "Will that be a problem?"
"Not at all," Sonam assured. "She's an ally from Tenebrae. She's from their resistance."
"I thought they were all dead."
"Not dead, just broken."
As a guest of Datu's camp, Andromeda didn't have to do anything when they arrived. A couple of spare tents were set up to accommodate Sonam and his band. That was where they dropped their packs before mingling with the rest of the camp. They had returned victorious; judging by the excitement, it was a rare occurrence.
This camp was just as wary and skeptical of Andromeda as Sonam's camp was. It was made worse by the rumors Datu's men had brought back with them. Tshering, Dechen, and Hira were much more relaxed about it, so Andromeda stayed close to them. Thankfully, the apprehension was overpowered by the exhilaration of victory. Everyone was in the mood to celebrate.
Dechen and Tshering had extended family to catch up with in the camp, leaving Andromeda to presumably sit alone at dinner again. It was only a moment after she sat down that Hira appeared across the table from her, with her own plate of food and two bottles of beer. She handed one over to Andromeda.
"It's your victory, too," Hira mumbled awkwardly. "You should celebrate like everyone else. Galahdian celebrations usually involve a lot of alcohol."
Andromeda took the bottle from her. She understood that forgiveness did not come easy to Hira. "I don't remember that from Insomnia."
"You must not remember it all that well, then." She snorted.
It was a domestic brew. Andromeda only spared a glance at the label before opening the bottle. As awkward as Hira was at this, Andromeda was glad she had brought her a beer. She hadn't had alcohol in such a long time—the last time had been in Gralea. Beer was her preferred choice: during her summers in Duscae, she and the two boys she worked with would sometimes wander off in the afternoons to secretly drink beer. It was a reminder of simpler, happier days, and something to help Andromeda relax.
This Galahdian brew was much stronger than she remembered Lucian beer being. She struggled to keep a neutral expression as she quickly swallowed it down. She resisted a wince as it burned down her throat and in her stomach.
She suppressed a cough before speaking. "What happened to you and your family after I left the city?"
Hira thankfully hadn't noticed her struggle with the beer. She gave a shrug after a casual swig. "It's not nearly as interesting as your life has been. They were just as worried about you as I was, but we didn't have any way of finding out what happened to you. My parents kept hounding me to go to college, but I didn't apply to any. You were either dead or left the city, and I didn't see a point of staying in Insomnia if you were around to make it bearable.
"So I got a job instead. It didn't pay much—it took me three years to raise money and enough confidence to leave. I took the bus out of the city, and then took a ferry to get to the islands. I wandered from town to town until I made it to my grandmother's house. Then I heard that Sonam was starting a new rebellion. He was one of the leaders in the militia back in the day. He led the first rebellion against Niflheim, before it was crushed. He hasn't given up yet, after all these years. It's why I made it a point to join his camp."
Andromeda did find it interesting. Thankfully, it hadn't been as eventful as her own life. In a way, Hira was doing exactly what she always wanted to do: return to Galahd and avenge her brother. She was in the perfect position to do so, and under a well-seasoned leader as well. Andromeda had wondered what sort of history Sonam had. It made even more sense why he was leading the rebellion.
"Have you heard anything from your family since you left?" She asked curiously. They had looked after Andromeda while she was in Insomnia, when her own aunt and her boyfriend pushed her away. Sometimes, Andromeda had felt more a part of Hira's family than her own.
The other woman scowled and took a long drink from her bottle. It was already half gone. "I just left one night, after everyone else was asleep. I didn't leave a note or anything. They called my grandmother. She ratted me out as soon as I showed up. They don't approve of what I'm doing. I can't believe they would run away and hide in a foreign city after the Empire killed their own son."
She took another drink. Andromeda recalled the shrine she had seen in the living room of Hira's apartment. She had explained to Andromeda who it was for when she first visited. Hira's mother had been very attentive to it, making sure there was always incense burning and the entire thing was dustless.
"I try not to think about them too much," Hira admitted. "I don't keep contact with them. I can't speak with them anymore."
Andromeda had done the same thing with her aunt. Linda had put her on a bus leaving Insomnia after her first incident with her chaotic power. Having an aversion to anything supernatural, she panicked and pushed Andromeda far away, all the way to Duscae. Andromeda had been just as angry and hurt by it as Hira was with her own family. Andromeda had also chosen to cut contact with her family, although Linda had tried to reach out. After everything that happened in Niflheim, Andromeda was no longer angry with her. Still, she had no desire to have contact with her; it was for the best that they went their separate ways. It had certainly been too long to start talking now.
Hira's case was different, though. It wasn't right that she ran out on her family like that, when they hadn't pushed her away for who she was. They were worried; Hira could easily end up dead one day. Tshering had said there was no point in being angry at someone when they could be gone the next day. Andromeda wasn't brave enough to broach the subject further with Hira, though.
"Lal got accepted into the university before I left." Hira mentioned after emptying her bottle. She stood from the table. "I'm going to get another round. Then you are going to tell me all about your time in Lucis."
She went towards the open tent where food and drinks were being served. Andromeda had tentatively drained half of her bottle. After the first initial sip, the burning was beginning to lessen. It was still the strongest thing she had drank so far.
Although she hadn't cared whether Hira forgave her or not, she found that she was glad they were talking again. It seemed as though Hira was forgiving her after all, and maybe she had wanted that. Neither one of them were the same they had been in high school. Things were different now that they were both out of Insomnia. It was for the better; Andromeda could be completely honest now.
A blinding light woke Andromeda. She shied away from it, turning her face towards something warm and somewhat soft. The slight turn of her head caused her migraine to surge even more painfully. She had never had such a splitting headache before. Her mouth was so dry and tasted putrid.
The light could have been Etro, but it had never hurt Andromeda's head like this before. She hadn't seen the goddess since her escape from Niflheim. Andromeda didn't particularly want to talk to her at the moment.
"Get up."
That wasn't Etro's voice. It was a man's—a rather gruff and unhappy one at that.
The somewhat-soft and warm thing moved underneath Andromeda's head. She lifted her head up, carefully opening her eyes to the absurd brightness.
Her head had been resting on Hira's arm. Her own arm and leg were sprawled over the other woman's body. Hira used her other hand to cover her face from all of the light Sonam was letting into their tent. The two women were laying haphazardly on the dirt floor of the tent. Two sleeping mats were laid out, untouched.
"Drink too much last night?" Sonam asked a rhetorical question. "I want you both up and ready within the next five minutes, or I'm dragging you both out of here."
He disappeared through the tent flaps, his warning making Andromeda feel even worse. She pushed herself to sit up, then nearly fell over again as her headache was almost too much to bear. She shut her eyes as her surroundings spun, making her feel sick. Hira gave a whimper.
Andromeda tried to remember how they had ended up in their position, then realized that she couldn't remember anything about the night before at all. She could remember what Hira had told her about her family, and she had told her all about her time in Lucis over a second beer. It was too fuzzy after that. The rest of the night was a complete blank for her.
Not knowing only bothered her more. Andromeda had never drank so much before as to black out. She had always been moderate before; whenever she had gotten a little drunk as a teenager, she stopped and pretended to be sober. She had never gone so far as to not remember what happened. She couldn't remember what she had done, or how much she had drank. She could have done something really stupid and embarrassing.
Sonam was angry, which only further supported that Andromeda must have done something terribly wrong. It might have been something unforgivable; he might break his oath and cast her out. In one night, she could have ruined everything.
She looked down at Hira, who was still struggling to wake up and adjust to the light. Andromeda had been laying on top of her. If she hadn't felt so sick, her face would have been red. Had something happened between the two of them?
"C'mon. We have to get up," Andromeda coaxed Hira, whose only response was a groan. "Whatever happened, we're both in trouble, so we both have to face it."
Friends again or not, Andromeda wasn't going to face Sonam's wrath alone when she wasn't the only one who had made an ass of herself.
He wasn't waiting far from their tent when they emerged. The light was even more blinding and unbearable outside, but he was unbothered by it. Andromeda guessed it was midmorning from the brightness. She and Hira cringed as they made their way to him. No one else was around, seemingly working as far away as possible in order to avoid Sonam's towering temper.
"We're going to scout out a path. We're going to make sure there aren't any Imperials out there looking for us still," He explained, ignoring their suffering. "Let's go."
He led the way out of camp. The two women shuffled behind him. It was hardly likely that Sonam needed their help at all to scout out a trail. He could do that on his own. Andromeda loved hiking, but at the moment, she was not up for it. He knew that, forcing her and Hira along as punishment.
He kept a quick pace as he moved around the jungle, and urged the women to keep up. They were further pushed to keep pace with him. They occasionally stopped as one of them got violently sick in a bush. Sonam said nothing about it. He simply urged them onwards again once they were done.
Their hike seemed to go on forever. Andromeda had no idea where they were going. If there was anything to see, she and Hira were too sick to see it. If they were ambushed by Imperials, there would be nothing they could do against them.
Finally, Sonam came to a stop of his own. Hira leaned against a tree and flopped onto the ground. He was unbothered that she was resting. His attention was on Andromeda. She wondered if he planned to kill them off here and return to camp alone. She didn't mind the thought; it would end her suffering.
"You're not going to drink yourself to death while under my oath," Sonam told her firmly. "It'll have to wait until I release you. If you give in to drink, you're useless to everyone, and I don't take useless people."
"I'm sorry," Andromeda finally said. He did not plan on killing her just yet. "I never drank like that before. Did I do something wrong?"
"Not particularly. I just want to make myself clear before you think about grabbing another bottle again," He explained. "There's no Imperials out here. Our path should be safe. Let's go back."
They had to wait another minute or so as Hira went behind the tree to dry heave. Once she was done, Sonam marched them back to camp, not relenting now that his point had been made.
There was no rest to be had once they made it back to Datu's camp. While Sonam had taken Andromeda and Hira out to scout the trail, everyone else had prepared to leave. They were ready and waiting when the three returned, looking incredibly amused.
Andromeda and Hira were given packs to carry, then set out with their band after Sonam spoke with Datu. They would follow the trail again, reaching a haven by nightfall. They should reach their camp in the following day after that.
At least the two women were finally done heaving. As wretched as she felt, Andromeda could feel a little hungry, but she didn't dare try to eat anything while still so hungover. Their group was moving too quickly for her to sneak something out of their food supply anyway.
She sidled over to Tshering. "Did I do something wrong last night?"
He grinned, as if he had been waiting for that question. "No, not really."
"What happened?"
He was only more amused by her persistence. "Nothing out of the usual for a couple of wasted girls. Don't sweat it. You didn't do anything terribly wrong. I'm glad to see you and Hira are best friends again."
Andromeda did not feel any better. She only wondered all the more what had happened between her and Hira. If they had made out, they were the only two that didn't remember it. Andromeda was only more embarrassed.
She slunk back towards Hira's side. She seemed far less troubled by what had happened the night before, but she couldn't have remembered it any better than Andromeda could. She now understood why Sonam did not keep alcohol at his camp. She didn't plan to touch it ever again.