Chapter Nine
Cynn was not trained for long-distance, prolonged running. Devona must have known this, but that didn't stop her fearless leader from setting a pace that would have tested the stamina of the fittest athletes in all of Tyria.
"Okay… we have… to slow… down." Cynn panted between the protests of her lungs and legs.
Devona outright stopped, and whirled about accusingly as if the elementalist had just recommended mutiny. "We still have at least two days travel before we reach the Hylan Colony, and we have no reason to believe the Charr will wait even that long."
Aiden, while not nearly as winded as Cynn, had to agree with the blonde mage. "Devona, we have just passed the Wall. We won't do the colony any good if in our fatigue we are felled by Charr ourselves. I'd much rather we are at full strength before we press any further into completely un-patrolled territory."
Cynn griped further, "And if the situation is so dire, I still don't understand why we didn't gather reinforcements from Ascalon City."
Mhenlo was about to intercede to quell what he sensed was a coming conflict, but Devona had jumped in before Mhenlo could. "First, as you must already know, men cannot be spared manning the wall or repairing Ascalon. Second, bringing reinforcements would draw more attention than the four of us. Third, I didn't want to. Any more questions?"
"Yes. Why are you being such a secretive ?" The elementalist shouted back, "If you're going to drag me through Charr territory, I want to know why it's so damn personal for you!"
"I'm not dragging you anywhere!" Devona answered, uncharacteristically losing her cool. "If you're going to be a coward, why don't you just tuck your tail between your legs and run back home? I never asked you to come along anyway!"
"No, I did." Mhenlo finally interrupted, his voice so firm that it pervaded the argument despite its lack of volume. "Because I was worried about you exploring alone, a worry that I now know was validated. All three of us are here because through all that we have seen, we consider you our friend, no matter how we may act around you." Mhenlo gave Cynn a scathing glare at that before turning his attention back to the visibly flushed warrior. "Nonetheless, Cynn is right in this instance. Even your energy is not boundless, and I can't imagine getting into a shouting match will have rested you any. We have run hard with no pause save for sleep from the Southern Barrier Range to this point. May I also note that eating has not been on our itinerary either?"
Devona pursed her lips tightly, crossed her arms over her chest, and regarded Mhenlo darkly. She had to admit that she was hungry, and that her body likely didn't share the same sense of sacrifice as her mind. "Fine. We'll break to eat and rest our legs. No longer."
"Yes ma'am." Mhenlo answered with a smile, even as his heart started to slow with relief. Devona's natural tendency to keep to herself had clashed with Cynn's natural curiosity before, and the more secretive Devona became made Cynn all the more curious. Mhenlo hoped that once Prince Coran was located, the mystery would quickly dispel.
Perhaps he should tell Cynn the full story… maybe that would quash the clash of wills between the two ladies.
"Not a word." He heard Devona growl in his ear. The monk had been so lost in his thoughts that he never realized she had sat down next to him, and had begun almost violently chewing on the jerky in her belt pouch.
"Pardon?" Mhenlo said innocently.
"I know that look on your face. You were about to squeal to Cynn. I will not have it, else I will have your hide."
"If we find Coran, they are likely going to find out anyway, you know."
"When that happens, I'll deal with it then." Devona answered. "Not before."
"Very well. I just pray that this secret doesn't lead to any more spats."
Devona promised, "It won't… I'll kill her before then."
While Mhenlo was reasonably certain Devona wasn't actually going to kill Cynn for any reason, the warrior had adequately managed to kill the conversation. Once her strip of dried beef had disappeared entirely into her stomach, she stood, and tapped her foot impatiently as her comrades finished their own vittles.
"I'd like to actually move from this spot before having to make camp for the night." She said. "Lunch is finished. Get up and move."
Cynn glared bitterly, but said nothing, nearly violently tying up her belt pouches, and brushing ineffectually at her skirt. The two men knew better than to even be that bold, gathering their few loose belongings without so much as a word, jogging abruptly to catch up to their leader, who no longer showed any proclivity to wait.
"Grenth take it, wait for me!" Cynn exclaimed, dashing briefly to take up the rear.
The rest and meal had done the four well, as their pace was quickened even as they pressed as cautiously as safety could allow into Charr territory. Even Devona seemed pleased by their headway as the sun began to set and they began to set up camp.
Aidan had managed to scrounge together enough kindling and tinder to start a nice fire to stave off the night chill just as darkness set in completely, and the four began arrange the most comfortable places to set down while they negotiated the night watches.
But even before they could agree on the first watch, the telltale growl of approaching Charr ended all thoughts of a good night's sleep. Judging from the steadily growing din, somehow the four had drawn quite a bit of attention.
"Oh, relax…" Cynn chided as she noticed the uncertain faces of her friends. "Remember how easy we smacked around those Charr outside Tranquility Temple? How many more can there possibly be?"
At that point, she became aware of the tens of pairs of tiny red dots appearing on the edge of the campfire's illumination. Cynn personally stopped counting around thirty-three.
"Oh." The elementalist gulped. "That many."
She staggered back behind Devona, who charged to meet the first pair of canine-like beasts as they burst into the light, the warrior taking the first by surprise with her strength, knocking it completely over and cracking ribs as it toppled, the hammer not even stopped by its mass, arching through and connecting across the second Charr's elbow, causing the creature's hand to go numb and lose its grip on its axe. A second reversed swipe killed it, and the charge of the next three Charr trampled its fallen kinsman to death in their zeal to engage in battle themselves.
Cynn ignited a circle of fire to dissuade the rest of the clan of Charr from following all at once, and Aidan took the opportunity to barrage the now more clearly lit terrain with arrows, gaining the advantage of their adversaries momentarily being taken aback by Cynn's spell. But for every one that the adventurers felled, it seemed three more took their place.
Devona at the moment was holding her own, barely bothered by the steady stream of attacks, many of which slipped past her defenses, but she knew that eventually she, and her companions, would be overcome if by nothing other than sheer numbers. Devona cautiously fell back, ordering Aiden and Cynn to form a tight circle around Mhenlo, so that he could try and support their efforts as the Charr attack started to intensify.
An undetermined amount of time later, Cynn was coming to a conclusion. Perhaps it had merely been a trick of her eyes, but Cynn noticed that the Charr numbers were not as overwhelming as she had first assumed. Indeed, as she threw up a pair of fire walls to dissuade the enemy, she could tell that the seemingly dense ranks were in fact quite thin. There couldn't have been more than twenty more, warily turning about in confusion. Cynn then watched as there was a flash of metal, then one of them dropped like a stone, lifeless.
"Nice shot, Aiden!" Cynn shouted, impressed by what had must have been a very quick aim and fire from the ranger.
Aiden answered in confusion as he turned his head, "Whatever are you talking about?" Then he saw a very similar phenomenon repeated. With a warning tone, he said, "Devona… there's something else out there…"
"Thank you for the obvious, ranger." Devona testily snapped back. What in the name of Balthazar was going on out there? Another flash of steel, another dead Charr, but this time Devona was almost certain she saw a vague, slightly off-color outline of some sort of figure, but by the time she thought to examine more closely, it was gone, blending back in perfectly with the night on the edge of her vision.
"I'm not sure what is worse… fighting Charr we can see, or watching Charr die by something we can't." Mhenlo mused as two more of the steadily dwindling war clan fell. Finally, the last few that remained decided retreat was the better part of valor, but several squeals of surprise suggested that the unseen killers were not going to let retreat be an option.
One more, the surroundings grew silent, but it was a nervous silence as none of the four adventurers dared drop their guard… not they were terribly certain maintaining it would do much good.
Finally Mhenlo nearly screamed when he heard a scathing female voice whisper, "For the love of the Old Gods, put that damned fire out before you draw the attention of more of them."
For a long, pregnant moment, the three didn't comply, stunned by the seeming materialization of the figure that had appeared between them. It was a human female, clothed from toe to neck in an odd black fabric that once close to the fire seemed to shimmer something like silk, and what appeared to be a mask in her right hand made of the same material. She was quite petite; with a height shorter, and a build barely heavier, than Cynn's. The woman looked like she wouldn't even be able to deal significant harm to a farm animal, but the two triangular blades strapped to each of her wrists, dripping with Charr blood, indicated otherwise.
Further examination of their surroundings revealed that she was not alone either, as ten other figures of both genders and dressed in the same fashion formed a loose circle around the boundaries of the camp.
The woman's deep brown eyes narrowed into almond skin, and she said, "Am I going to have to do it myself?"
That stirred Devona and Aiden to action, the pair thoroughly stomping the small campfire to ashes. A dim, eerie, green glow soon replaced it; coming from a glowing cylindrical bauble on the back of the woman's left hand.
Her mask was now on her head, leaving nothing but those accusing eyes as she said, "While I am infinitely curious as to why humans are so far from the wall in the depth of night, now is neither the time nor the place. If you wish to live to see the morning, you will follow me without delay."