Chapter 10

Everything was packed, our horses were ready (but bored looking, as always), all of our equipment was in top condition, and everyone was ready to go. There was just one last thing to do before we actually left the city.

"Ahem." Quiet as a whisper yet striking like a gale, Eina was there at the Southern gate of Orario, Loaner sitting in the crook of one arm, a clipboard in the other. Of course, I'd been expecting her, but her look was still daring me to leave without filling out the paperwork first.

So, I hopped down from the wagon's driver seat, applied the lever break to keep the horses from getting any ideas (they were professionals though, so it was unlikely), and walked over to her. "Eina. Loaner."

"Kodori." Eina greeted tersely, looking over our little group.

We'd 'rented' (it was sold to us, with a promise for the seller to buy it back when/if we brought it back) what amounted to a merchant's mobile home. About five metres long, it had enough space for six people to sleep in at once, and room for a reasonable amount of cargo. It was also solid wood, from roof to wheels, and properly treated to survive all kinds of weather. It was the same kind of thing we travelled to Rakia and back with.

Shinkage was riding Hagane, Maki was sitting on the back 'balcony' of the wagon car, Ryuu was riding 'shotgun', and Aisha was sitting on the roof lazily.

"I must remind you that we need reasonable relations with the Amazon nation." Eina said, offering me the clipboard, "If you choose to try and deal with..." She sighed, "If you want to try and talk them out of stealing the children under your care, please be nice about it?"

I was a little shocked Eina had simply... given up on sounding official for a moment. "I will do my best. Considering they are the founding of their own race... They are more than a little special." I nodded, "I also need Telskyura to continue trading with us, since they are basically the only source of rubber sap."

"And an importer of wood as well. While not as prominent as the western forests, their wood is still a significant part of Orario's supply." She said, returning to her professional speech.

I nodded, though I was thinking to myself about doing a little agriculture of my own while I was there... If we could get a rubber tree or two to survive an Orario winter, Demeter might be able to get a little farm going. "I will do my best." I said, "Now, let's see... Five people, returning as soon as we can, no outstanding debts, Hestia/Takemikazuchi/Astraea Familia, going to fix a possible world ending disaster again." It was simple questionnaire about our trip. The guild needed to keep track of any extended absences of 'prominent adventurers', and well, I was one of those.

So yeah, number of people, when you're going to be back, do you owe anyone anything, Familia, and reason for travel. I then signed it with my name and a little fox head for a signature, and traded the clipboard for Loaner.

"If it were anyone else, Kodori, I'd get you to rewrite this." Eina sighed, "But if it's you writing it..."

"Just give her a hug already and let's go!" Aisha called out from her perch.

"Natives are getting restless." I mumbled to Eina, before reaching out with one arm to give her that hug, "Thank you. One of us will contact you if there are any official matters."

She accepted my hug with a grudging professionalism, then replied with, "Please do. Safe travels Kodori."

"Thank you for your hard work, Eina."

I was just thinking we'd be the only ones going on this trip, but, as soon as we'd started to get out of sight of the city walls (not the tower, not by far...), when I felt like I was being watched. A half second later, Ryuu, Aisha, Maki and Shinkage (in that order) perked up and put hands to weapons.

Here's a little geography lesson. With Orario in the middle, you have Melen, the port to the ocean, south of the city. Not far either, a few kilometres. But, if you skirt the coast, still going south, you pass Melen, get a nice ocean view for a while, and are now on the way to Telskyura.

That said, we were still close enough to Melen that there weren't many places to hide. We'd redone the road here to the Rakia (Roman) style, and cleaned up the path, so there was only one place to really hide anywhere nearby, and that was in the nearby farmer's fields surrounding Melen.

"Unless you're resorting to banditry, you can stop hiding." Aisha called out from her perch, "Only asking once." I heard Maki, helpful soul she was, pass up a hunting spear to Aisha.

"Not bad." Brisid said, appearing not from the nearest field of wheat, but from under a sheet of cut grass by the roadside. "You might survive the trip after all."

From all around us, a dozen Amazon sort of materialized. A few had also hid under the grass, most appeared from inside the wheat field, and one stood up from under the one and only boulder on the roadside. If it wasn't for their bloodlust, and the faint scent of insect oil, I might have missed them all.

"Suppose you're escorting us there?" I asked.

"No." Brisid said plainly, "We're running ahead. You'll either make it there, or not, but escorting you is not part of our mission." She looked directly at Aisha, "Remember the way, sister?"

"Been a while, but yes." She replied shortly.

"Keep to the path when you eventually get there." Brisid said, turning her back to us and making a pair of simple hand gestures. And after a half second of shaking dirt off, she and the other Amazon were running at full sprint away from us. The only thing that proved they were even there at all was some overturned sheets of undercut grass and a couple of muddy footprints.

I caught Maki mumbling, "Snake? Snaaaake..." followed by the adjustment of her spellsword.

"That was impressive." I admitted, "I'll have to put out scouts..."

"Are we expecting more of them?" Ryuu asked, her sword now resting on her lap as I flicked the reins to get the horses moving again.

"Suppose not." I shrugged, "Really wish they'd just... get over it."

"They are too full of pride to just 'get over it'." Hagane rumbled, "Much like Vali."

"Hope I never have to fight him again." I nodded, "How long is this going to take again?" I called up to Aisha.

"At this pace, about two weeks." She replied, "I told you we could have run there, but noooo, wanted a nice place to sleep, and bring trade goods, and cling to your city loving ways."

"You heard Eina. I have to play nice. And that means I might need to negotiate for a dozen mothers and their children." I sighed.

"I could always just burn the jungle down until they agree." Shinkage offered. "I'm not an adventurer, and the Guild's laws don't apply as strongly to citizens."

"We'll make that plan F or something." I replied.

"FUBAR?" Maki chuckled.

"Foo...bar?" Ryuu asked.

Maki laughed, "Oh, it means Fu-"

The 'road' to Telskyura was... not really a road. More like a well worn footpath. Yes, there were caravans that went both ways, but they were rare, and any maintenance on the road usually happened when it was encountered, or bypassed. Thankfully, our first day was kind of boring. No more 'bandits', no monsters, a couple of small animals that volunteered themselves for dinner... and that was it.

Aside from a call home (and seeing nothing but smiles) it was uneventful, and I was hoping the rest of the trip would be this easy.

(Orario)

News spread through the city at almost light speed. With the Crystal Network, and the power of rumour, and maybe someone in the Guild who was being a little naughty, it was confirmed that the Demon Fox had left the city.

Of course, the reason for that was much less clear to 'the people'. The nature of rumour sometimes confused the facts. But those 'in the know' knew it had to do with the recent 'incident' in the Entertainment District, and the subsequent 'protest' outside the Manor.

To the surprise of the Guild, those same Amazon tried to go around Kodori's decree of Sanctuary for the Amazon mothers, and enforce Telskyura law on them. But, they were very politely told that it wasn't their business. The Mothers at the Manor were 'on hiatus' from the dungeon, the Alliance Core had filed all the paperwork properly, and it violated no Orario Laws. The Guild also reminded them that trespassing was highly discouraged, and the residents had every right to eject them from the property in what ever manner they saw fit. Oh, and to have a nice day.

The rest of the city however, had a very wide reaction to Kodori's absence. 'The people' were on the low end of the chart, simply wondering 'why', if anything at all. The 'Merchants' were hopeful, and started a small betting pool on what Kodori might bring back with her. The 'options' for that bet were divided between 'goods' and 'tools'.

The 'lesser' Familia, 'lesser' being the term most people (adventurers and 'the people' alike) used for Familia with less than five members who were all level one, were a little worried. Kodori, the Strongest in Orario, had been their Shield. With her around, helping the Guild enforce the laws they'd laid out, they felt safe. To be fair, ever since the Guild had properly reasserted itself as the 'ruler' of the city, the incidents of bullying the 'lesser' Familia were rather low. Freya being ousted from power had re-levelled the playing field, and they'd prospered much more than they would have had they been constantly looking over their shoulder. But with Kodori gone, well, old habits were hard to break, and the Lesser Familia became a little nervous to go out at night, or make solo dungeon trips.

The 'average' Familia, like Soma, who had five to twenty adventurers with at least one level two, seemed to take the news in stride. Under the new Balance in the city, they'd benefited the most. They'd grown, gotten more tools to help them in the dungeon, and with the new inventions and innovations that Kodori had inspired, the 'average' Familia had gained a lot of momentum. If anything, many of these Familia started to push themselves harder, seeing a chance to maybe start gaining real fame in the city.

High tier Familia, those Familia who weren't in the 'Top Familia' list, such as say, Apollo Familia, had basically no reaction to the news. They were at the point where only constant steady work would improve their standing, and getting here at all meant they were willing and able to do that work.

Speaking of the 'Top Familia'... They went into a bit of a panic. It wasn't that they were afraid of some new civil war happening, or a sudden disaster wrecking the place while the Demon Fox was unable to help... No, they were panicking because Kodori had left the city, and her children, to deal with something in Telskyura. Since she had slain the Monster Rex, Balor, Kodori had never spent more than a couple of days away from home. No long dungeon trips, no overnight stays out of the city. She was basically retired. But this business with the Telskyura Amazons wanting to take the Amazon Mothers and their children away had Kodori leaving the city. And if nothing went wrong, the trip would take at least four weeks. So yes, the top Familia were in a bit of a panic about Kodori finding something THAT important to deal with away from her children.

Of course, all of those Familia, from the 'lesser' to the 'top', were wondering what Freya Familia was going to do about Kodori's absence. Without her in the city, Ottar was once again the strongest. And while the Freya Familia was not as large or prominent as it had been, they were still one of the largest in the city.

But, to everyone's surprise, Freya Familia wasn't doing anything. Except shopping. Under heavy escort, Freya herself had been seen visiting random seeming shops the exact moment they opened, and leaving with a smile on her face and one of her escort carrying something new.

(Kodori)

We'd travelled nine days so far, and only now, around noon of the ninth day, were we seeing the jungles of the Amazon Nation. So far, we'd been following the coastline, mostly for the 'road' that had been worn into the ground, but also to make it easier to defend ourselves in case something got any ideas about attacking. I mean, unless it was a giant walking fish or something, we'd only need to worry about the rugged, semi-swampy land.

However, over the last day or so, we'd started to feel the changes in the air. The humidity had spiked, the insects were getting more bothersome, and the small animals we'd been adding to our meals were getting alarmingly more aggressive, and larger. Sure, they weren't difficult to deal with, considering that we were all level two or higher. But the horses were just horses, and the last thing we'd killed (and eaten) for last night's dinner could have taken the leg off one of them had we not spotted it. At least it was tasty.

"Urg... how can you wear that?" Maki asked me as I tugged the reins to stop the horses.

She was of course referring to my Fenrir Coat. No way was I going to wear the White Armour in a humid jungle. And dealing with what amounted to a vast land of untamed wilds that allowed Telskyura to have high class Adventurers meant that I wasn't going to wear 'nothing'.

"Norse enchantments still work here." I smiled, "And of course I'd use those for personal air conditioning."

Ryuu, who was also wearing bits of Fenrir hide said, "This is nothing compared to the lower floors."

"And this is why we dress the way we do." Aisha laughed, "If you think this is bad Maki, just wait until tomorrow." Her head appeared upside down in front of me, "Why'd we stop?"

"Wanted to scout ahead and take a moment to apply a little more oil." I couldn't resist attempting to poke Aisha's nose, but she just tried to bite my finger instead, "Shinkage? You okay?"

"I have heated, or chilled seats." Hagane answered, "I could make ice, if someone wanted to dare the swamp for a bucket of water or two."

"Aisha?" I asked.

"Eh, so long as you don't go swimming, or drink it without boiling it, the water is safe to handle." She replied.

While everyone dismounted the wagon to do a little 'self care', I took out a small telescope. With access to my own glass furnace and some experimentation, it was one of the things I'd made while 'inventing' my telescope. It wasn't so much that I 'invented' it, since people in the city did wear corrective glasses, but I did expand the use of glass lenses. Anyhow...

Looking through the spyglass, the range giving me a reasonable idea on the rest of the day's travelling conditions, I considered what to do about the upcoming jungle. It looked like it would be rough going, and the wagon would have trouble in a few spots for sure. The swamps near the side of the road were vast and ugly, but also dotted with small rocky hills. The jungle itself, if Aisha wasn't trying to pull a fast one on us, was going to be a mix of rocky terrain, old growth jungle, and deadly marshlands.

Then there was the other problem that came with being around a jungle, and it was approaching fast from over the ocean to our right.

"Hey guys!" I called out, "We have about a half hour before dark."

Everyone but Aisha looked back at me, or made some sort of questioning noise. Aisha herself spoke up, "Wimp, it's only a little rain. Actually a little surprised this is the first storm we're getting." She laughed, "Hope this thing is waterproof or it's going to be a miserable night."

While we got that last half hour on the road, Maki and Ryuu were getting out rain supplies ready. Simple stuff really, though it was 'old fashioned' since this world didn't (and if I had anything to say about it, would never) have plastics. Thin leather sheets that were treated with a special water repellent from Nazza's alchemy labs were used to cover the horses. It sounds silly, I mean, horses are 'wild' animals and should be used to this kind of thing, right?

Well, with the wind, rain, and sudden temperature drop, they might get sick. Sure, we'd packed some of the standard 'cure all' potions for that kind of thing, but those cost a lot more than waterproofed leather. It would also reduce the 'sting' of what Aisha promised to be a 'proper storm'.

When the storm did hit, it was a merciless, nearly sideways, hammering rain that felt like it was getting under your exposed skin. The overhang above the 'driver's seat was useless against it, but we needed someone to keep an eye out, and even Aisha had ducked inside to watch from the back 'door' of the long wagon.

Then I heard one of the horses make a concerned noise from the shelter of the wagon's swamp facing side.

"Trouble!" I called out, hopping off the the seat and nearly falling to my rear on the water slick mud/rock road. The horses had been basically silent the entire trip so far, only making 'light conversation' with whomever was feeding them or giving them a rub down before bedtime.

I think I heard someone jump out of the back of the wagon, but couldn't be sure over the heavy rain. What I did hear however was another horsey noise of distress, and I was almost too later to do anything about it.

With a head and body almost as larger around as my torso (bust included) was an absolutely titanic snake. Seeing no other option except lose our deposit on the horse, I jumped in the way of the snake's head as it darted forward, mouth open and fangs descending from its upper jaw. The horses, understandably, started to panic in earnest now, and I discovered two things about the local 'giant snakes' of this world.

First, they were stronger than I thought they'd be. Sure, I was level seven, but this thing hit me hard enough to rattle my teeth and make my shoulders hurt as I used both hands to keep its mouth from closing. I kept my feet though, which was good since I might have ended up destroying the wagon if I'd gotten thrown.

Second?

"You have venom?!" I shouted at it as its body caught up to the head, and started wrapping around me much faster than you might expect, "You aren't supposed to be a constrictor too!"

"Get the horses calmed down!" Aisha shouted as I was wrapped up, "Ryuu, I got this one!"

"Sensei! Hold it steady!" Maki shouted, "Almost..."

"Don't expose yourself!" Followed by a hiss that was one part snake, one part crushed glass, "There's two more!"

"Pack hunter too?!" It's jaw, like all snakes I could think of, was very stretchy, and my efforts to pull it apart were fruitless. This thing's mouth could open wider than my arm span!

There was a heavy metallic noise, likely Hagane dealing with one, and then the unmistakable sound of a killer icicle hitting something. "Back in the wagon!" Aisha shouted, "I got this one, Ryuu! That stick better be sharp!"

If my grip didn't make me immovable, this snake would have wrapped me up and rolled me off the road and into the swamp. As it was, I was basically out of options to do this without magic. At least, until I caught a green wisp out of the corner of my eye.

A moment later, I was holding a decapitated head while the rest of the snake's body uncoiled itself from me. This was followed by another hiss and the sound of parting scales, then a splash as something heavy landed in the water. "Damnit! That lump of metal better be able to swim!" Aisha shouted, a moment before another killer icicle hit something, then a FWOOSH as someone let out a blast of fire.

I got clear of coiled up snake corpse just in time to see Aisha hack off a second snake's head before it could charge the back of the wagon.

"What about Hagane?" I asked, looking over the side of the road and into the swamp.

"The bottom of the swamp is muddy, but hardly a danger." Shinkage replied from the back of the wagon, wiping her mouth with a towel, "I doubt anything made of flesh could crush his body."

Standing above her, Maki lowered her spellsword, "I never liked snakes, and I feel perfectly justified now. I hardly scratched it with the power in the batteries."

Aisha rounded on the two, looking like she might say something, but stopped and shook her head, "You know, I should be used to you two and Delly acting far more experienced than your level would suggest. Fox? You okay? It bite you?"

Aside from the rain rapidly washing snake blood and bile off my silver/grey coat, I hadn't been scratched at all. "I was just about to warm up the tails to claw it to bits, but Ryuu got it first."

Ryuu, standing by the now calm horses, looked our way with a modest thumbs up.

"And what was all that about venom and constrictors?" Aisha asked, joining me in watching the water where Hagane had fallen in.

"Where I'm from, there are only really two kinds of snakes. Venomous, and constrictors. That's not counting the hunters who never eat anything bigger than an insect or two, maybe small mice." I explained.

"Back away from the water." Shinkage said, prompting us to do so.

"And they're never pack hunters." I continued, "Since they eat things whole, not much for sharing."

"Oh, no worries about that." Aisha laughed, slapping my shoulder, "We're just a bunch of warm bodies in a cold rain. And those were just medium sized ones."

I watched as she pulled a dagger out, and started to skin one of them. If over ten metres long was 'medium' I was kind of wondering what 'extra large' might be. I was just pondering that, when behind me, the water started to froth and bubble.

A moment later, there was an electric crackle, then the snap of ice forming. Once the noise stopped, I went back to look and saw Hagane crawling upwards through an unseasonal miniature iceburg. Once he got his head and shoulders up above the 'water' level, I extended my arms and created a bunch of rope from my aura. Frozen inside the block of ice he'd made, were bits of giant snake, and stuck to his metal shell were bits of snake skin.

"Just to be sure, I don't rust, right?"

We entered the jungle just a little before nightfall. The storm was still ongoing, but it was less intense, and the clouds had started to let light through. In true adventurer fashion, we'd taken what we wanted from the snakes and done something useful with it.

For example, the entire top of our wagon now had snake skin on it. We couldn't dry it properly, but at least with this rain it was getting washed. We'd also managed to harvest a couple jars of venom, taken the hollow fangs from two of them, and made a meal of them. It was a bit tough, but the flavour wasn't bad.

We had to fend off another snake attack that night, but thanks to the road being the top of a rocky ledge, we didn't have any trouble with the wagon. The horses, while spooked a little by the whole ordeal, were all too happy to get back in the harness and under the driver's (me) careful watch. Oh, and eat snake meat. I suspected these horses were a lot smarter than people gave them credit for, since they seemed to understand 'revenge'.

Before lunchtime, the swamp along the road was starting to sprout thick rooted trees. An hour later, the swamp turned to marsh, then loamy jungle floor, and finally a dark soiled rocky old wood forest. This of course made the humidity spike even further, and the insects even worse, but, we were ready for it.

"Have I ever mentioned how much I enjoy having you around?" I asked Aisha, who had switched places with Ryuu.

"Once or twice. And you weren't even drunk." Aisha laughed, "What brought this on?"

In the little love triangle between Aisha, Haruhime and I, the topic of 'love' wasn't mentioned. I'd started to say it once, but then she kissed me until I'd forgotten what I was about to say. Since I'd never heard Haruhime say it either, I just took the hint and never mentioned it again. It was no secret of course, but it was one of those 'unspoken' things.

This however, didn't stop me from flattery, "Well, if I had asked the sisters what to expect, I'd have been told to jump off the tower. If I'd asked some other Amazon, who knows what they might have told me. But you?" I gave her an eyebrow waggle, "Very dependable. The insects are staying away, the road has been easy considering that swamp we just passed, and you even taught me how to cook snake."

"Well, Hime' would be upset with me if I didn't at least try and bring all of you back." She glanced at me, then made a meaningful motion with her chin, "Seems we've been discovered."

Ahead was a single Amazon. Like most, she was tall, tanned and wearing just enough to hide her most sensitive bits while showing off how much muscle she had. Of course, there were at least three more I could see, peeking out from around the trees or up in the lower branches. "Halt!" The obvious one ordered, planting the butt of her spear (bone tipped I noted) into the ground beside her.

So, not wanting to run her over, I gave the reins a little tug. "We should be expected!" Aisha called out, "Room leader Brisid ran ahead of us."

"See?" I mumbled, "Dependable." Aisha gave me a subtle kick in the shin to keep me quiet, but smiled.

"How many in your party? Bring them out now!" She replied.

"Six." Aisha called back, leaning back and looking into the wagon, "Out."

From inside, Shinkage sighed, but none the less I heard her and Maki get things ready and step out through the side door.

All standing/sitting on/beside the wagon, the Amazon frowned, "I see five."

"Try using the other hand." Hagane said, sitting at attention next to the driver's seat (thereby giving me a reason to pat his head).

Someone suppressed a giggle, but the lead Amazon didn't rise to the bait. "Fine. Keep to the path, and no fires."

Aisha seemed surprised by that, just as much as we were, "No fires? What's the problem?" she asked.

"Too many nightwings." She replied shortly, "Deal with cold meals until you get within sight of the walls, or not."

Aisha frowned, but nodded, "It's only a day and a bit. We can manage." Then a little louder, "We done?"

Apparently Aisha's tone was too harsh, because the Amazon in front of us lifted her spear and pointed it at her, "What's your name, sister?" 'Sister' being spoken like it tasted bad.

"Belka."

"Orphan and a failure then." The Amazon sneered.

Aisha said nothing, but stood up, hopped off the seat next to me, and took a few steps forward. "Care to repeat that, Welp?" Aisha rolled her shoulders a little, then gave her head a smooth left/right lean.

"I heard the stories. You left here, last of your Room, tail between your legs. And here you are, running escort duty to a bunch of soft city folk. No child, no male. Failure." She spit onto the road next to her.

"Shows what you know." Aisha cracked her knuckles, "Step aside, or step forward."

"HA! You've been living the soft life in Orario, and you think you can throw a challenge at me, AND my Room?"

Aside from the three I'd seen a moment ago, three more appeared on the path behind the leader. Much like Brisid and her team did, they had basically become one with the landscape. Aisha looked back at me, then the rest of us, shook her head, then took another step forward, "Step aside, or step forward."

Aisha held out her hand, and with a 'hup' Shinkage tossed her properly sized 'overpowered Loli' sized Padao at her. Without looking, Aisha caught it and waited.

"Circle!" The leader called out, "Going to try this alone? You know what will happen if you fall."

Aisha stepped forward again as the six other Amazon formed a semi-circle behind the leader, spears and bows ready. "You'll be a good meal, and the rest of you will be dessert."

I realized what she meant a moment before all seven of them attacked. This wasn't a duel, it was a trial! Aisha however did know, and didn't seem to mind. With only a half dozen steps between them, she took a half step to the side to put one of the archers on the other side of the leader, then ducked low with a sweep of her Padao to flick away the two arrows she couldn't take cover from.

Spear met blade, then three more spears tried to skewer Aisha. But with a heave, she twisted the leader's spear aside, and pushed her in the way of another spear, nearly getting her impaled by her friend.

For a frantic furious minute or so, Aisha fought a purely defensive fight. Ducking, twisting, weaving and doing her very best to keep the seven of them from shooting her from a half dozen paces, or stabbing her from arms reach.

Then she did something that I'd seen Ouka, and, Bikou, and even Cao Cao do. With a spin of her Padao, she tapped aside a pair of spears, but then brought the pommel of her weapon across the tip of the Leader's nose. There was hardly any force behind it, just enough to redirect the spears, but the contact was like a casual insult.

And distracting enough to give the Leader pause. "You DA-"

And give Aisha enough of an opening to finish her spin and finish a magnificent crescent heel kick, bringing the back of her foot down squarely onto the Leader's nose.

There was a reason I called Aisha 'Legs' on occasion. The follow through of her kick dragged the Amazon's head down, bounced it off the stone of the road, and quite clearly knocked her out. And while the kick had left her open to attack, she finished the move with a second spin and a half step backwards to lessen the force of the spear points she couldn't avoid.

There was a pause. No words, no motion, just heavy breathing and the slow dribble of blood from dozens of minor cuts on both sides.

Then Aisha gave the fallen Leader's spear a little flick with her foot, popping it into the air so she could catch it. "Get this welp off the road. I have my trophy."

A couple of them picked up the insensate Leader while Aisha walked back to the wagon. Wordlessly, she handed me the spear, Shinkage her weapon, and then hopped up to sit next to me again. A moment later, we were on our way.

"Want me to get that arrow out of your shoulder?" I asked, "Maybe tie a few bandages? Potion?"

"Give me a moment." She grunted, untying the bone spear head from its twisted wood shaft, then throwing the wood away. "There." She took the hide strap that had held the spear blade in place, and bit down on it, "Be gentle." She winked at me.

"That's not what you tell me when you're with us." I mumbled back, noting the angle of the arrow shaft and width of the wound. Armour piercing, 'bodkin' point I guessed.

She grunted as I pulled the arrow out, glad that I was right. This arrow was meant for maximum penetration, to get through armour or tough hide/scale/bone, and reach the organs. "Until you bite." She sighed, looking at the bone blade in her hands, "Must be giving these away with breakfast now, if she had one..."

Ryuu interrupted the little byplay, "Another custom? What would have happened if you had failed?"

"Yeah, that was... really unfair." Maki added, having returned to the wagon.

Shinkage, also in the wagon again, took her best guess, "You have no Room, so you fought alone?"

"Yeah." Aisha nodded, using the strap to wrap up the base of the former spear head into a wicked looking short sword/long dagger. "And if I'd lost, well, you'd have to get to the city yourselves, since I hardly think you'd submit to capture."

"It would save me from trying to be diplomatic I suppose." I sighed, "Wait..."

Aisha gave me a very clear 'shut up Fox' sideways glance. So I did, and practised my much improved skill of distracting people from the current subject. The Topic Change! "What's a nightwing?"

For a microsecond, Aisha looked thankful, then replied with an almost too happy sounding, "Giant grey butterfly, like the ones in the dungeon. Except instead of dust that makes you itchy, it paralyses you. Unless it's the blue ones, they can put you to sleep. Or the black ones, which can cause your skin to rot." She held up her new bone weapon, "And now, I've returned. Leader of a Room of one, but a Leader all the same."

"I'd rather poison moths than giant snakes." Maki said, "Now, as the supporter of this trip, I'm going to have to ask you get into the wagon so I can bandage you up."

"Make sure to use extra disinfectant." Ryuu said as she hopped up onto the wagon's roof again, "To remind her not to be so reckless."

Here's a bit of trivia. Or mental lint if you've never cared about fortification building or 'how it's made' for things like telephone poles.

The usual 'formula' for burying a wood utility pole is something like ten percent of the total length, plus about a half metre. This of course had other factors. What you were using it for, what you were burying it in, and how windy it was in that area. So, for example, a ten metre pole would have about one and a half metres buried underground.

Now, imagine looking at a wall made of those poles. A wall that was easily the height of Orario's wall, and at first look, half the length. It was hard to tell, since some of that wall went on past where I could see, and was formed into a jagged multi tiered cliff side. Some of the wood they used was actually still alive too, massive Great Redwood sized trunks, easily ten meters thick and eighty metres tall.

"You're spacing out Fox." Aisha said, "We'll be there tomorrow. Any darker and we risk the horses, again."

"Big sister can't really grow things without help. But she appreciates plants." Maki said in a stage whisper.

"Of the few things we agree on, the Elves share the talent for forestry." Ryuu said with a very quiet 'fu fu' at Maki.

"Yup." Aisha nodded, "To be fair, we were using what was already there, and dragging crap over to fill the space between."

"To do so without killing or eroding the roots of the living trees would have been no simple task." Shinkage said, "I've never seen something like this."

"How shall we keep watch?" Hagane rumbled, "I suggest two people at a time."

I put my spyglass away, feeling a little better about this trip, even if the main reason was something I didn't want to deal with. "I'll set up some eyes as well."

Aisha put a hand on my forearm, "Keep that weird thing you do as small as you can. There are all kinds of things in these jungles, and some of them eat magic just as easily as flesh." She gave her new 'sword' a pat, "Their blood is one of the ingredients to the ink that's used for the runic weapons we make here."

"Don't encourage her." Maki sighed, "No fire, no light, no shower, cold jerky for dinner... I almost regret coming along."

"You didn't have to." I said, "Considering how dangerous this is, no one would have blamed you."

"Ha. I'm here for the same reason she is." Maki motioned to Ryuu, "You're my sister."

After most of a night 'doing that weird thing I do', setting up a small field of my own mana and imposing some of my 'rules' on it, I went into the wagon as quietly as I could just as the jungle around us was making noises to announce the oncoming dawn.

Aside from a few snakes (small ones) a curious bird or two (that might have looked like parrots, but had anything not covered with feathers lined with spikes), it was a quiet watch. Hagane had parked himself in front of the horses, his unblinking eyes able to see in any environment.

Inside the wagon, I padded my way to Aisha's bunk and reached out for her shoulder. My hand got close enough to feel her body heat, and I saw her eyes open. Silently, she sat up, did a couple of lazy neck stretches, then stood up. She gave my shoulder a friendly squeeze, then tried to get past me.

But I stood still, put a hand on her cheek, much like I would Haruhime. But instead of say, leaning forward and giving her a hug, or using my other hand to look for something to amuse us both, I looked her right in the eyes.

Her reply was to lean forward and nip the side of one of my ears. "Talk about it later." She mumbled, the near silent words vibrating the skin of my ear so I could hear clearly, while the rest of the wagon crew remained sleeping. I took my hand from her cheek, and instead used to to brush over her hip as I moved aside for her.

Then she was gone, leaving me to use her bed for a couple of hours.

NOTES!

Action! Drama! Mofo Snakes in the Mofo jungle! Aisha asserting her dominance exactly how you'd expect!

See you in five days, because yes, I update even on Christmas.

Daeore on Ko-fi and Inkitt, yadda yadda Kodori art and book!