"Are we ready to set out?" I ask upon coming across the others at the gate.
"Well yeah, we were waiting on you," Vaan teases, nudging me with his elbow. I roll my eyes, though I can tell he's telling the truth. The rest of the group looks terribly impatient. "Ashe was thinking about leaving you behind. Too many sky pirates and all that."
"Not leaving her behind," Ashe corrects. "Merely getting a head start. We're in a bit of a rush."
"And to think I offered to guide you through the plains," I reply dramatically, shaking my head. "Nevermind; I'll keep quiet if you so wish."
"Some days I wonder if you're not a day older than Vaan," Basch mutters.
Huffing, I push past him and lead the way from the city path to the muddy grasslands of the Giza Plains. The marsh floor is soft, lined with sunbaked grasses and dried skeletons of trees. Rain falls steadily overhead, soaking into every inch of clothing and hair possible. There's an unfamiliar chill in the air as we continue our trudge through the rainy climate. I offer my insight as we cross narrow bridges and swifter waters. Once Penelo slips and falls face first into a shallow river; twice Basch has to dig his feet free from the mud; thrice I snap at Balthier for being nothing but insufferable.
The sun begins to sink after we fight off the fourth pack of wild dogs and the second woolly gator. Even Ashe looks exhausted, and rightly so. We've been on the move practically nonstop since we left to find Raithwall's relic. Fighting a haughty bastard and his father's empire really takes it out of you. But camping out in the marshes would get us no rest, and so I encourage them to keep moving until we pass the stormy plains. With tired groans, sidelong glances, and attempted jokes, they comply.
There's not a light to be seen anywhere when we cross from the Giza Plains to the Ozmone Plains. We stumble into the soft, dry grass and take a breath of air that isn't heavy with moisture. Basch is the first to search for shelter. Ashe holds the Dawn Shard up to the dim moonlight, thinking as she watches it glimmer.
I wander a bit away from the others in search of firewood. It's not hard to compile a good number of dried logs and set them up on a patch of dirt that Vaan points out. Wanting to be useful, Penelo creates a circle of stones around the logs. Finally, I use a weak fire spell to ignite the pile. A steady fire has grown by the time Basch returns.
"There are no resources nearby to create any sort of shelter," he announces, scanning our faces from across the hot, leaping flames.
"It's alright," Vaan yawns, clasping his fingers behind his head. "I'm too tired to care."
"Majesty?"
"This place is fine," Ashe replies, shaking her head. "I'll just…" She turns around hesitantly, searching for any sort of bed. I laugh, walking past easily and reaching up toward a branch of a towering tree that hangs over our small resting place.
"You'll have to get dirty eventually, Princess," I call over my shoulder, pulling myself up and reaching toward the next branch over. It's much wider, much sturdier. I sprawl out on the rough bark, legs dangling and arms cushioning my head. "Goodnight, you sorry lot."
"I like that idea," Vaan laughs, climbing to a branch over my head and leaning against the trunk with his ankles crossed. "Night!"
"Be careful, Vaan!" Penelo calls.
I grin, watching the princess sigh and curl up on the packed dirt next to the fire. Basch sits across the from her, cross-legged with his sword balanced across his knees. Fran and Balthier rest at the base of the tree, weapons just within their reach. Giving a contented sigh, I ignore the wood stabbing my ribcage and close my eyes, easily sucked into a deep sleep.
Dern grins at me, gripping my sides as I cling to his shoulders, trembling with relentless fear. The ground is a horrific distance away; I don't even remember how we got here, hanging off the edge of a precipice. At some point, the path crumbled and left us stranded on the most unstable of places. The wind smells like blood and something about the skin under my fingertips feels strangely cold, even under the hot Dalmascan sun.
"It's alright," Dern reassures me, giving a confident nod of his head. "It really is, Shae. We've just gotta get across the gap, see?"
"We can't," I reply sharply, my nails digging into the pale flesh beneath them. Pale… Since when is Dern pale? "We can't, Dern. Just go back."
"I can't," he shakes his head. "Hey, calm down. I've got you, yeah?"
"You can't help," I huff, my voice shaking just as much as my body, rattling with each pound of my heart. "You…" I choke on my own words, instinctively pulling him closer. "You can't do anything anymore." His face falls and he sighs, holding me tight.
"That's not entirely true…"
"It is." I swallow the lump in my throat and shake my head, feeling the relentless wind tug at my clothes, my hair, my resolve to hang on. "It's all because of Vayne, Dern. That's all it is."
"All Vayne?" I look up to see a mocking smile erupt across his lips. A dark, loud laughter bubbles up from his chest, full of spite. "All Vayne, is it?" His smile falls and he lowers his lips to my ear. "And what of your deeds, Shae? Do you not repent?"
"Dern," I plead, staring hard into his deep green eyes. "I did all that I ha—" He silences me with a firm shake of his head.
"It's about time to jump the gap now, hm?"
He tears himself from my grasp, throwing himself down into the endless pit below me. I scream his name, lurching forward to catch him. My efforts are in vain; he's disappeared for good this time. On all fours, I scrub the bitter tears off my cheeks, watching the last place I saw him.
The ground beneath my hands splinters underneath my weight, throwing me forward. Desperately, I try to cling to my perch, only to find myself tumbling down into the abyss, my screams silenced by the wind, my breath stolen by the fall, my heart sinking to my toes as I take the plunge.
The impact knocks the breath from my lungs. I lay on the ground wheezing, instinctively clutching my stomach. An involuntary tear traces down the side of my face, my face pinched in pain. Past the pounding in my ears, I hear speaking, laughter, muttering. A light pressure on my back. I gasp for air as the initial shock passes, dragging myself onto my knees. My vision clears; Penelo kneels before me, eyebrows pinched together.
"Shae? Are you alright?"
"I'm doing splendid, thank you," I force out, wincing at the pain. "What a way to wake up…"
I shake my head, turning to look at all the other pairs of eyes pointed in my direction. Ashe immediately turns away, striking up a conversation with Basch. Vaan grins, coming to sit beside me and his friend. The two sky pirates watch on as if we're their only source of entertainment out here.
"I was just about to get you up, too," Vaan says, plopping down beside me in the grass. I nod, absently looking up at the branch I fell from. Shuddering, I block out the images from my dreams and force myself to my feet, ignoring the pain rippling through my body.
"When are we setting out?" I ask, tugging on the end of my loosely braided hair. Ashe turns to face me, eyeing the bright blue skyline littered with wildlife and waves of brilliant green grass. A hare hops through the weeds and past our dead fire.
"As soon as possible," the princess replies, standing and tucking the Dawn Shard away. "If we're prepared, we can leave now."
"I don't see the point in sticking around," I shrug, stretching my left arm. The armor covering my skin clinks and grinds when I flex my fingers; all this fighting has dented the covering far more than I'd prefer. My stomach growls and Vaan laughs. "I'm a bit hungry," I admit sheepishly.
"Here." Penelo gets to her feet, stooping down beside Fran and returning with a glistening red apple. "It's what the rest of us had, anyway. You're lucky Fran made Balthier stop eating them." I shoot a look at the sky pirate as I take the apple, taking a big bite of the juicy fruit.
"I told you, I enjoy the pleasantry of good food."
"I guarantee you found these on the ground, infested with writhing worms," I fire back, raising an eyebrow. He allows a slight smile.
"One cannot be too picky out here."
"Let's not start the arguing just yet," Ashe says quickly, nodding toward the horizon. "The garif are in the south, yes? Lead the way then."
"Bossy already," I mutter, taking another bite of my apple and using the sun to gauge our location before continuing. "You know, I said I know the way through the marshes. This place is entirely new to me."
"You seem to be doing well enough."
"You're talking to the girl who just fell out of a tree," Vaan reminds the princess, giving me a lazy smile when I scowl at him.
"The girl who just fell out of a tree might just lead you to the pits of Hades if you're not careful."
"Ooo, scary."