'Don't make a noise, and don't use your magic.'

Maren's whisper cut through the darkness and roused her from sleep. Elsa blinked as her eyes adjusted—the only sound: calm even breathing above her. Maren was crouched over her, tense, staring at something behind them with an intensity Elsa only saw in her eyes when she was hunting or tracking something. She couldn't see from the prone position on her back, so she tried to twist around to look at what Maren was staring at, but Maren's hand was holding her wrist down so she couldn't move. Elsa's thoughts started to race—what was behind them? An animal? Was it going to attack? She needed to flip over—just in case.

'Daisy no!' Maren hissed and Elsa jerked on instinct, trying again to see behind her. Maren still held her in place and made a clicking noise with her mouth—calling to Daisy.

'What is it?' Elsa hissed, desperate to understand what was happening.

'Draugr—I think.' Maren whispered back, never taking her eyes from the tree line behind them. 'Get up, slowly. We need to leave—and do not use your magic.' Maren's voice carried with it a gravity Elsa wasn't used to hearing. She understood the seriousness, and started to move as quickly as she was able, with Maren quietly, swiftly pulling her up into a sit. Immediately a headache surged into her temples, and she resisted the urge to grab her head as Maren hauled her to a stand.

Her arm braced firmly around Maren's shoulders for support, she turned to the tree line where Maren was still staring and saw, just barely, two greenish glowing eyes leering sinisterly in the darkened woods. A very rigid Daisy stood between them and the pair of eyes, her ears perked—the only movement came from her front hoof, which thumped the ground repeatedly in a territorial manner. She appeared as a ghostly specter, her white coat glowing radiantly even in the dark of the night. She stood out—too much—like a beacon, and Elsa did not like it. She felt exposed and had the sudden urge to get the three of them out of there.

Maren, ever ahead of her, made the clicking sound with her mouth again, calling Daisy as she ushered Elsa slowly, quietly to the chariot. Daisy did not listen, but started to bellow lowly—a menacing sound Elsa had never heard her make before. 'Daisy!' Maren hissed through gritted teeth when the clicking noises were ignored.

They made it to the chariot and Elsa grabbed the side of it for support, releasing Maren, who swiftly grabbed her staff and turned towards the draugr. Realizing what Maren was thinking Elsa snagged her by the arm. 'Don't.' She hissed. It came out more icy and authoritative than she meant, but she absolutely did not want Maren to confront that thing—not alone, anyway. Maren's eyes looked startled at the command, but quickly softened.

'I need to get her away from it. Stay here—and don't use your magic. Yelena said those things can shield against magic and I don't want to find out what that means with you as the test subject.' Maren's voice was equally commanding and Elsa couldn't think of a response, so she released her grip on Maren's arm. There was no time to argue, but if it came down to it—she would use her magic if necessary to protect Maren.

Another louder bellow from Daisy caused them both to snap around, just as the tall shadowy figure of the draugr came lurching out of the trees, its glowing eyes fixated not on Daisy, but on them. The throbbing headache suddenly shot through her skull and felt as though it might split her in two. She clutched her head on instinct, squeezing blindly to try and alleviate the pressure.

'Daisy no!' Maren yelled and Elsa looked up just in time to see Daisy charge at the thing, her head down, antlers bared as the draugr continued to jerk and lurch awkwardly in their direction.

Maren took off at a run towards them, her staff in hand and Elsa couldn't have stopped her even if she tried—the headache was making her dizzy and nauseated and it was all she could do to focus on what was happening and stand upright. The earth beneath her felt lopsided as though it were tilting back and forth—but what she was able to see, was Daisy's antlers connect with the wooden sinews of the draugr's middle and send it flying. It hit the ground with a thud and crackle—some part of its brittle wooden appendages snapping with the force. It stood up instantaneously, unnaturally quick, unhindered apparently by the hit—its beady eyes still focused intently on her, and started to lurch forward again.

Maren had reached Daisy and ran out in front of her brandishing her staff at the draugr. It made no motion to stop its forward motion, nor did it seem threatened by Maren in the slightest—and this sent a wave of panic into her chest.

'Maren stop!' She yelled, and the call of her voice caused the draugr to halt. It stopped dead in its tracks and pulled its gaze away from Maren to look at her again, its green eyes piercing into her even at this distance, those glowing eyes making her feel as though she might be sick. She slid to her knees clutching her temples but forced herself to look back at it. Maren's gaze followed the draugr's to Elsa briefly, then turned back immediately to face it.

No Maren.

She took a swing at the draugr's face and connected sharply with a yell. Elsa heard a crack and watched as her staff snapped cleanly in two, leaving her defenseless and exposed, within reach of the draugr. It took its advantage and swung a twisted, gnarled hand at her, which she attempted to dodge but was not quick enough—and it clipped her in the shoulder, sending her sprawling to the ground.

'Maren!' Elsa screamed and felt her magic intwine with anger and course through her, frost crackling in her palm ready to be released at her target. She could feel the draugr's attention shift to her again and away from Maren and she was glad for it. Leave her alone, come get me—I'm the one you want right? She was too far to aim properly though, and the ground still felt tilted at an awkward angle as her head pulsed—if she tried there was a good chance she would miss and hit Maren or Daisy. Let it come closer to her then.

Maren shot up from the ground as quickly as she had gone down, rolling up to a stand in a gracefully fluid arc. Just as Elsa was about to call out to it again, Daisy let out a primal bellow and charged. Again she connected and lifted the draugr clean off the ground, sending it flying into the darkness. This time, Maren did not wait for it to get up, but jumped on Daisy's back and took off towards her. Elsa clawed her way to a stand, using the chariot for leverage as Maren finally reached them.

'Are you alright?' Elsa asked, clutching the side of the chariot, begging the earth to stop tilting and trying to keep her voice steady.

'I'm fine, fine.' Maren confirmed and quickly hopped down from Daisy. She paused, concerned eyes lingered on her briefly but Elsa waved her off.

'I'm fine. Go, go.' Elsa managed and Maren, still looking entirely unconvinced, led Daisy around to the front of the chariot to start hooking her to it.

Now was not the time to hesitate.

Elsa turned her gaze back to the darkness where she suspected the draugr had landed, and expected to see it coming towards them again. She squinted her eyes, straining to see, but saw nothing—no movement, no glowing eyes, not even a sound. The eerie calm unnerved her. 'Where did it go?' She hissed under her breath, scanning the darkness again with strained eyes.

Maren joined her side. 'I don't know, but let's get out of here before it shows up again.' She grabbed Elsa's waist and guided her into the chariot. Elsa slid in with Maren right behind her, and Maren took them off immediately in the opposite direction from where they had seen the draugr disappear.

They made it the short way back to camp quickly, silently and without incident, constantly scanning their surroundings for the slightest sign of movement. Elsa was tense and hyper vigilant of the darkness around them, half expecting something to jump out at them at any moment. Maren, quieter that usual, matched her mood, her eyes scanning around them with a focused intensity.

Elsa was no longer dizzy, but the headache remained and a nagging feeling was growing inside of her—something was telling her that these particular headaches were somehow related to the draugrs. The last time she had had such an intense headache come on that immediately, had been the first time she'd seen one—the first time its beady eyes had looked into hers. Possibly, it was entirely unrelated, coincidental even—but something deep inside of her told her it was not.

'You have a headache again, don't you?' Maren stated worriedly, more so then asked. Elsa turned to look at her and nodded, not sure she wanted to accept or even acknowledge the theory that the headaches were related to the draugrs—or what that meant if it were true. Maren's eyes locked onto hers, seeming to read her very thoughts, but she let it go and said nothing.

'We need to figure out what is going on with all of this.' Maren stated, pulling Daisy to a stop in front of Yelena's lavvu. 'Stay here, I'm going to wake Yelena. We need to get a perimeter of scouts set up—just in case.' Maren hopped down from the chariot and ran inside Yelena's lavvu.

Elsa sighed and rested her head in her hand, squeezing her temples, willing the headache to vanish. Something wasn't right about all of this—the first draugr sighting, the giant squid attack and now this again. She had only lived in the forest for a few months, yet never had she seen or even heard any of these creatures mentioned up until recently—and now suddenly, not only were they cropping up frequently, but attacking?

Attacking her.

They weren't going after anyone else—just those that got in the way of her, or so happened to be near her. At least that's how it appeared. She was the common denominator in these three episodes, and she needed to figure out why. Two people she loved had been hurt because of this now, and if it was because these creatures were after her, she would to see to it that it did not happen again.

Maren finally came out of the lavvu, pulling her from her thoughts.

'She's going to get the scouts and warriors assembled.' Maren stated, extending her hand for Elsa to take. Elsa took it and got down, realizing on top of the headache, just how sore she still was. It was as if the excitement had blocked out the pain from the injuries, only to have it all come crashing back down on her now.

'Come on, you need to lie down.' Maren stated, wrapping her arm around Elsa and leading her the short distance to her own lavvu. 'You look really done for.' Elsa didn't protest.

Once inside, something skittered near her boot, then suddenly the fire pit burst into flames causing her to jerk at the abruptness of it. Bruni was there, looking pleased with himself—he then skittered quickly to Maren's bed pad and curled up, waiting.

Elsa turned to Maren. 'Take your tunic off.'

Maren raised an eyebrow. 'What?' A look of surprised amusement met Elsa's eyes.

'Take your shirt off, I want to look at your shoulder.' Elsa repeated, a smile curling over her own lips.

'Is this a ploy?' Maren asked playfully. 'Because I won't be taken advantage of so easily.'

Elsa rolled her eyes and smiled. 'Shirt. Off.'

Maren smirked. 'Bossy.' She mumbled as she slid the tunic over her head and tossed it to the side, leaving her in a sleeveless undershirt. Elsa allowed her eyes to roam freely, just for a moment, over Maren's muscular torso, until her eyes landed on the huge bruise that had bloomed over her left shoulder.

'Oh Maren…' Elsa frowned and shook her head as she ran her fingers lithely over the bruise, inspecting it. The area was red and inflamed, but her skin didn't seem to be torn. There was no blood.

'The cold feels nice.' Maren whispered. Elsa looked away from the bruise to find Maren's eyes closed, her lips pulled into a slight peaceful smile. She studied the look on Maren's face for a beat, still astounded that her touch could be so soothing, and a smile crept over her lips at this notion. She placed the entirety of her cold hand gently on the inflamed bruise, which caused a pleasant hum of relief to escape Maren's lips. Lips Elsa suddenly couldn't take her eyes off of—lips belonging to the person who had saved her life, protected her, and been nothing but wonderful and kind from the first moment they met.

Love was such a funny word, too small, too simple to contain the enormous, expansive feelings of admiration and gratitude she felt for the woman who stood before her. Rather than try to explain those unexplainable, complex feelings, Elsa leaned in and kissed her, softly, gently, thanking Maren for loving her—and wishing desperately she had use of her other arm so she could pull her closer. Maren as always, two steps ahead, grabbed hold of Elsa's hips and pulled her in. Elsa slid her hand from Maren's shoulder across her collarbone and slowly up her neck, holding her there gently as they kissed, feeling the soft warmth of Maren's neck beat into her palm.

Maren scooted her backwards towards the bed pad—she was so absorbed in the kiss that she barely registered Maren helping her sit down, then laying her down on the pad. They both winced in pain and then chuckled, breaking the kiss.

'What a pair we are.' Maren said and smiled at her.

'That we are.' Elsa whispered and pulled her back down for another kiss. Maren kissed her more deeply this time, and she allowed herself to run her fingers under Maren's shirt and up her smooth back, feeling the ripples of muscles and tracing her spine as she went. She ran them back down slowly, tentatively, then pulled away, breaking the kiss.

Maren looked at her with sad understanding eyes, but smiled softly. 'That felt nice.' She assured then brought the palm of Elsa's hand up to her lips and kissed it, her eyes closed. 'I need to go back out there—make sure everything is alright.' She released Elsa's hand.

Elsa quirked her brow. 'Ok, I'll go with you—'

'No, you absolutely will not.' Maren stated, cutting her off. 'You've got those dark circles under your eyes again, and it has me worried. You need to rest—I probably shouldn't even have taken you out tonight.'

'Maren, no. Tonight was wonderful. I loved it—I needed to get out. Really.'

A small smile crept up Maren's cheek. 'Just stay here—' She leaned down for another quick kiss. 'And I'll be back soon.' A warm hand ran down her arm, squeezing her hand before releasing it and reaching for her discarded tunic.

Elsa quirked her brow again in defiance, realizing she was probably fighting a losing battle. 'Elsa, I will go get Anna if I have to, to make sure you stay here.' Maren threatened lightly, reading the dissatisfied expression on her face. Elsa took a deep breath and rolled her eyes.

'Just be careful—and hurry back.' She conceded, not entirely confident her body would cooperate and get up again even if she willed it to.

Maren finished dressing, looped her knife to her belt, swung a sack of arrows over her shoulder and grabbed her bow that was leaning in the corner. 'Sleep.' She commanded with a raised eyebrow. Elsa nodded as Maren slipped out into the night. Bruni got up suddenly from beside her and skittered out of the hut after Maren—the fire in the pit dimmed to glowing coals.

'Watch out for her Bruni.' Elsa mumbled and tossed her arm over her eyes then sighed, realizing the irritating sling was still on her arm. She fidgeted with it, finally working it off over her head and discarded it to the side. She let her injured arm stretch out with a sigh of relief, then flexed it a few times and winced. Admittedly it did feel much better even though sore—Ryder's medicine must have sped up the healing some. She did quick mental math in her head—tomorrow was the day she was due to get the stitches out. Good. She hated having to be fussed over—staying in this hut like some kind of hapless invalid. The sooner the stitches were out, the sooner she could figure out her next move, but to decide that she needed more answers first. Answers about these creatures, their origins, what kind of magic they possessed exactly, why they were suddenly becoming aggressive and how to subdue them. Tomorrow, she would talk to Maren and Yelena and see what more they knew about any of it. If she needed more answers after that—well, then she would do what needed to be done to get those answers. No one else was going to get hurt because of this. But she wouldn't think about that just yet. Too many steps ahead—one step at a time.

Her head hurt.

She let out a breath and threw her good arm over her eyes again, putting pressure on her headache, and let sleep take her.