Even before they arrived at the stable, Quinn had decided on Elalah. If the horse was as interesting as his name, they would get along well. The two horses were Demacian Walkers, Lux explained on the walk to the stables, but the breed didn't matter to Quinn. She rarely rode horses, and when she did, she'd never had enough coin to be picky about the breed.

Once at the stable, a stable-hand quickly brought them to Elm and Elalah and then made himself scarce.

"What's with his name?" Quinn said, giving the horse a carrot as a peace offering.

"I don't know," Lux said. "Fiora would. Elalah graduated from her training program. Elm, Beau, and nearly every other horse in the military did, too."

That was the Laurent family's history, or something along those lines. Long ago, they had started as horse breeders and trainers, and had worked their way up to where they were now. It had only taken centuries of being loyal to the king.

Many other families, like the Crownguards, Buvelles, and the Vaynes, sucked up to the Lightshields as well. That was the essence of the noble families, and Quinn could only be glad she wasn't born into such shallow families.

Shortly after meeting the horses, she and Lux split up again for last minute preparations. A couple hours later, they regrouped at the city gates and left town.

Quinn's backpack was slightly heavier than usual, as a result of her employment with the Institute of War. Her essentials – a tinderbox, emergency rations, a couple Demacian coins, and a water bottle – were packed first, and then she let herself get creative.

Not travelling alone, she would need to be more conscious of her hygiene, so she packed a towel and bar of soap, knowing there wouldn't be any shortage of freezing cold rivers to throw herself in. A couple spare daggers also found their way into her bag, and attributed to most of the additional weight.

She also bought a mix of herbs and spices at the market. When she had been younger, fresh meat had tasted very plain to her, and sometimes downright disgusting, so she'd spent her extra income on seasoning to make it go down easier. She wasn't sure when, but at some point in her travels, she had stopped with the extra expense. Now, maybe it was reversing the progress she'd made, but she was already looking forward to dinner. Even the aroma at the market had woken a sense of nostalgia in her.

There were a couple more items packed in her bag that didn't qualify as essentials or luxury. The Nadir Coin fit snuggly into a side pocket, along with LeBlanc's drawing of Kaiser. The coin gave her mixed feelings, yet she couldn't bring herself to sell it. If she ever travelled to Shurima or Freljord, it would be useful to keep her body temperature in check, but otherwise it felt wrong to be carrying such a powerful item around. Maybe she would hide it somewhere on their way to Demacia.

In the same pocket was Akali's letter, which she needed to deliver to a man named Shadrick. She had spent five minutes repeating the name to herself so she wouldn't forget it, but ultimately knew she would, and that was when Valor would chime in, so she didn't worry too much on that front.

There were two roads between Demacia and Senta. The south road passed through many Demacian cities and villages, and thus was common for small time traders and merchants, but it was also the longer route. For this reason, people who wanted to travel quickly between the capital and Senta used the north road. It was half a day quicker, and better maintained.

The north road passed by the Howling Marsh – and the rock, Passenger's Fate, where Quinn had repelled an attack by the Unwilling Passengers – so there were regular patrols to keep the swamp creatures at bay.

The two roads were roughly equal in popularity, and had virtually no bandits, due to the heavy presence of merchants who took defense into their own hands. Quinn and Lux, however, weren't going to take either of the roads. The fastest way between two points was, of course, a straight line. With Elm and Elalah, they would cut through the thick forests of Demacia – a task not everyone could do – and make record time to the capital, where the king was awaiting them.

Though they didn't talk at all about the difficult path they were taking, Lux maintained a conversation for the entire day. She quickly latched onto the fact that 'yes' 'no' questions were most likely to get an answer, and sometimes she would answer on Quinn's behalf, if Quinn was too slow in responding.

It was weird, not traveling alone, but this oddity was cancelled out by the familiarity of the Demacian forests. A couple weeks ago, Quinn might have said Lux would be the worst travelling partner, but as it turned out, she didn't mind Lux's ramblings. It was entertaining, and bit by bit, she was learning about the Crownguard family, and life in the capital.

She also learned that Lux was a good whistler. Lux could imitate the birds of the forest, and they would follow overhead, dancing between the trees and conversing with her – Quinn had read a book about that once, where the birds had serenaded a beautiful princess – but all that had stopped when Valor took it as an opportunity for an easy midday snack.

Coincidentally, Lux could also imitate a Demacian eagle's cry. Her imitation, however, was terrible, if Valor was any indication. After the so-called 'incident', of which Lux refused to speak of in any other manner, she imitated the Demacian eagle much more often. Eventually, the two of them came to an understanding, and the whistling stopped altogether.

It was one of the few surprise luxuries of the forest. They were small, not even the size of a fingernail, but they didn't lack in taste, and they were all over. There was just enough strawberry to begin to appreciate the juicy sweetness, but never enough to be satisfied. With the last rays of sunshine, the two of them crawled around the forest floor, collecting and eating what they could find, with Elm and Elalah following in their wake, disinterested in the affairs of the bipeds.

Quinn thought back to the strawberries she'd bought for Tamago. They had been much larger, but also genetically modified by magic, and though she didn't eat any of them – Tamago would have been distraught – she was pretty sure the wild berries were much tastier.

After the sun had set, they realized how carried away they'd gotten, and they began collecting firewood in the dark. Valor later returned with a fox in his talons. He dropped it between them, a very blunt opinion on certain matters, if Quinn was willing to acknowledge how cunning he was. Though Lux seemed pleased, Quinn sent Valor off again. He could eat the raw, stringy fox meat, but Quinn wanted something more appropriate for human consumption.

The firewood assembled, Quinn began digging in her backpack for her tinderbox when she heard a loud whoosh. Turning around, she was staring at a large, crackling fire.

"See how useful I am?" Lux said, pointing an index finger upwards and blowing it like it was a smoking gun.

Without responding, Quinn closed her backpack and sat by the fire.

It was a harmless action, helpful, even, but it still made her uncomfortable. That could have just as easily been Quinn set on fire, or anyone Lux decided she didn't like. It was a reminder of the difference between them. The vastness that separated magic users from those without the ability, and the danger Lux posed, without even being conscious of it.

No – in this instance, maybe Lux was conscious of it. She sat next to Quinn, suddenly quiet. Normally, she'd have fished for compliments, or moved on to another topic, but even her body language was more subdued.

"Magic isn't bad," she said eventually.

A piece of firewood collapsed in half, sending a puff of smoke and embers their way. The embers glowed a bright orange in the forest's night before extinguishing, and an owl hooted in the distance. It was calming. It was familiar. Except for the person sitting beside her.

Quinn offered no response, and instead stared into the fire. Once it was burning, there was no telling its origin. The wood burned the same, the heat on her skin felt the same, and the smoke smelled the same – and it was no different from any fire Quinn had ever started. Only it had been effortless, and it had happened in a second. Fire magic wasn't even Lux's specialty – if it had been Annie, or Brand, the entire forest would have been engulfed in flames by now.

What was she so conflicted about?

Thankfully, Valor arrived to clear her thoughts away. He dropped a plump rabbit in front of her, and she began the messy task of skinning it.

"The tabloid's headline," Quinn said, turning the meat over the fire some minutes later. "Zaun to support Lissandra. Is it true?"

Lux hummed, watching the food cook. "Taric believes it, and he's been in close contact with the other nations."

"I don't get it. Do they just not care anymore?"

"I wouldn't say that. They must see some way to benefit from all of this. They aren't expansionist, like Noxus, but I know the Zaunite council would be happy if they were the only nation in the world. Maybe you could say they're afraid of everything and everyone, even if they would never admit it."

"Unless they plan on merging with Freljord, helping Lissandra shouldn't do them any good."

"No," Lux agreed. She hesitated, before turning away from the fire and looking out into the pitch blackness of the forest. "And don't be embarrassed by the paper... and – and what it wrote about you. Even if it were true, I don't think there's anything wrong with it."

"What?"

"Girls dating girls."

Quinn burnt her finger adjusting the meat, and bit back a swear. "Telling me not to feel embarrassed only makes it worse. I'd rather forget about it."

"There's nothing wrong with it," Lux said again, more determined. "I – um – I had a girlfriend, back in college. It was only for a few months – she dumped me, saying she couldn't date a prodigy."

Her burnt finger was forgotten, and instead her brain kept echoing Lux's words. Lux had dated a girl before, and that meant... what the hell did it mean? It meant Quinn was getting too far ahead of herself. The idea of she and Lux being a thing was ludicrous, even if her brain celebrated that there was even the slimmest chance of it. Valor would probably drop a fox carcass on her if he knew what she was thinking.

Quinn took a step away from the fire. The heat was too much for her and she was sweating. "I don't blame her," Quinn said, her thoughts elsewhere.

"Oh." Lux was obviously off put by the tactless response.

"You're special, and that makes you hard to be around."

"Oh."

No, that did not improve the situation. Think before you speak, Quinn decided. "I just mean, she probably felt overwhelmed being next to you. Some people aren't good at living in the shadows of others."

"I only stopped using a night-light last month."

"Wait, what? How is that relevant?"

"My light, to be precise. It started as practice, trying to keep my magic going all night, but eventually I grew too used to it, and couldn't sleep without it."

"Okay."

"And – and – I'm terrified of spiders, and failure, and disappointing others, and – and school was scary – and – and-"

"I get it," Quinn said. "Prodigy or not, you're still human."

But Quinn hadn't really understood it until she had said it aloud. Lux was human. Sure, she was born to the Crownguard family, who spent decades sucking up to the royal family, and sure, she was one of the greatest mages of Runeterra, but she was also human.

They were different, but the same. And as confusing as that was, it made Quinn look at her in a different light. It was a light Valor certainly wouldn't like, but it might not have been as stupid as she'd thought, just earlier that day.

Their dinner was eaten in relative silence, perhaps both of them lost in their own thoughts. Once Quinn was finished, she picked out a secure looking tree, climbed up to the best branch she could find, and secured her backpack against it to act as a pillow. She leaned over and looked down at Lux, who was still on the ground and who seemed completely uninterested in tree climbing.

"Are you sleeping down there?" Quinn said.

"Yeah."

"Are you sure? You might be eaten by a bear."

"Elm and Elalah will wake us if there's any trouble. I prefer the ground. As a kid, I fell off a tree when I was sleeping, and broke my arm. Since then, I've always preferred the ground."

"Not yet done sharing embarrassing facts about yourself?" Quinn said.

Lux laughed. "I could go on all night."

She could, but she wouldn't.

For a moment, Quinn resented Demacia, and the king, and his army which never even fought in wars. If it had just been the two of them and Valor, they could wander the forests and countrysides together, without worry. And they could talk all night, like they did after the Freljordian Banquet, and there would be no rush to be anywhere, or do anything-

"Goodnight," Lux said from somewhere down below.

"'Night."

Some time later that night, she woke up. Even without opening her eyes, she knew Valor was next to her.

"Is she asleep?"

Valor sidled along the branch closer to her, and she popped an eye open. He cawed quietly, and she sat up.

"Let's go for a walk?"

Dropping from the tree made an inevitable thud, but Lux was a sufficiently heavy sleeper, and she didn't even stir. And despite what Lux had claimed, tonight she was sleeping with her night-light on. It had an orangish hue to it and wasn't very bright, but Quinn could still make out her face, and her closed eyes.

At the base of the tree, she stood there a moment. It was warm enough that Lux didn't need a blanket, and she looked particularly exposed, lying on the forest floor.

Quinn left the campsite a short while later.

The partial moon didn't help her navigate, and she mostly did it by instinct and fumbling around. Following Valor, who was slowly weaving between trees, was like doing an obstacle course blindfolded.

"Irelia doesn't want to kill the Passengers," Quinn said, once they were a distance away from camp. "She wants to save them. That's not what I want – not really. It sounds dangerous, and it is dangerous. Even right here, right now. How can I know whether or not a portal is going to pop up in front of me?" She listened to the crunch of weeds and leaves underfoot for a minute. "I'd walk right into it."

Valor returned to her, landing on her head instead of her shoulder. His talons tried to find grip in her hair, and it wasn't comfortable, but she couldn't help but laugh.

"Thanks, Val," she finally managed.

Their walk continued, Valor guiding her with signals from his talons. Quinn estimated they were now circling the camp, at half a kilometer out. She also wondered if maybe Valor was jealous of her riding a horse, all day.

Valor cawed.

"If I find a way to remove the anchor? Some dimensional expert, in the capital? ... I know. Trying to be optimistic, here... Okay. It's not like Irelia's has any ideas, anyways. I've had another thought, too. What if the anchor can be used by more than the Passengers? What if someone like Taric or Kayle pops up – or even worse, a Voidborn. I really don't understand how any of it works."

Valor agreed with her, and a short while later, he brought up Du Couteau. For a bird who had expressed no interest in immortality for himself, he was very interested in Quinn's survival. Still, it was reassuring that Valor had some trust for Du Couteau.

"I agree," Quinn said. "I want to see where it leads. Where he leads us. This evening, for a second, I had thought that maybe it was fine to die. Eventually, somewhere down the line. But that's ridiculous... Yes, it was because of her... Valor," she shouted, shaking him free of her head. "Don't say that about her. They aren't even comparable. Besides, you were the one to get sucked in before me. Don't think I forgot about your little pendulum game with her during my introduction."

She certainly wouldn't forget it, nor would she forget the time loop she'd found herself in. That was still a mystery that hadn't even shown hints of starting to unravel. More and more, she began to suspect it had been her imagination. Some kind of byproduct of being saturated with the city's magic.

"We already decided she's pretty," Quinn went on. "Eye candy, that's all."

They continued circling the camp for awhile, though their discussion turned to the more mundane, as time went on. Eventually, Quinn turned inwards towards the camp.

"We need to prepare ourselves," she said. "I don't want to walk into the capital thinking we're in control when we're not."

Not that Quinn was afraid of the king's impending punishment. The military considered imprisonment a thing of the past, and only Noxians branded their deserters.

The worst she had to look forward to was getting assigned a shitty job or being demoted. Alternatively, they might forfeit her pay, which would be annoying, but she'd long been able to fend for herself. The forest had everything she needed. Still, something about the king's letter bothered her.

"I dreamt about you last night," Lux said.

Letting the words process, Quinn ducked a branch at the last second. Maybe Lux was talking to Elm, or even Elalah – but no, Lux was looking at her expectantly. Lux had been dreaming about her.

"Oh, did you?" Quinn said casually.

"Mm hmm."

"Are you going to tell me more?"

"Do you want to hear more?"

Two could play at that game, Quinn decided. "I don't know. I was listening to you all yesterday, I think I might be sick of it."

"That's impossible," Lux said, feigning dismay. "I dreamt we were going to Demacia, but we accidentally took a wrong turn and ended up in Noxus."

"That'd be quite a wrong turn."

"Time and space is always wonky in my dreams. But, anyways, we run into a baby Katarina and Cassiopeia – and it was really weird, because Cassiopeia was cute – she hadn't been cursed yet – and you were fawning all over them. I kept telling you to stop, because they were the enemy, but you wouldn't listen."

"In a situation like that, you have permission to hit me."

Lux laughed.

"So, what happened next?" Quinn said when she didn't continue.

"I'm not really sure, but next thing I know they've grown five years, and you're chasing them around a field, playing with them and they were laughing and I was all freaked out, and then I woke up. Are you good with children?"

"I wouldn't say so," Quinn said, though she remembered the children of Heiwa village had been quite entertained by her. But that was because of cultural differences.

Conversation slowed as they increased their pace, and by midday they were in the thickest part of the forest, travelling single file. They were making good time, mostly following animal trails, and a rare three hours of silence passed before Lux finally spoke.

"Hold up," she said, stopping Elm.

She pointed off into the vegetation, and Quinn brought Elalah around to see.

It was already almost completely covered, and she had to dismount and pull away some branches before it became completely visible. A pile of crushed and charred bones. It had been a large creature, perhaps a deer or moose, but the bones were too much of a mess to make an easy identification.

"Charred," Lux said, looking up at the sky. "Hot fire. Wyvern?"

Quinn looked up, too. Probably close to a week ago, a wyvern had flown through the area and dropped the remnants of its meal.

"I'm sorry, Lux," she said. "You'll need to keep going on your own."

"What? Wait – no – why – no! This is from a wyvern, isn't it? You aren't going to go chasing a wyvern on your own."

"Wasn't my plan," Quinn lied. "We're near a village. I want to detour and make sure they're okay. I'll see you in the capital, okay?"

"No. I'm coming with you."

"I don't think that's such a good idea," Quinn said, though she was happy to hear it.

"I'm not going to slow you down."

"I know that. It's just, there's no..." Quinn floundered for the right argument.

"No reason?" Lux said. "I hope you're joking. It is my sworn duty to protect all Demacians."

Quinn half heartedly argued the situation for another minute before acceding. Changing their heading slightly, they resumed their trek.

Another bonus to Lux coming along was that it was her turn to make dinner. That meant eating something killed by magic, but Quinn wouldn't complain since her sensitivity was still relatively low, having only left Senta two days ago.

Instead, she was curious to see how another ranger caught and prepared meat. Quinn was self taught in virtually every aspect of survival, and a chance to see another expert at work would be educational.

A couple hours later, Quinn hopped off her horse and knelt down on the forest floor.

"More signs?" Lux said.

"No. Something else." Quinn gingerly touched the plant's leaf. "Larkspur."

"I've heard of that," Lux said, pausing to frown. She hopped off Elm a moment later, to get a closer look. "It's on my no-no list."

"No-no list? What are you, ten?"

Lux blushed – maybe not realizing how silly it sounded aloud. "I'm not a herbalist – I don't go around memorizing everything, but I do have an idea of what to avoid."

"A no-no list. Then, do you have a yes-yes list?"

"Quit teasing me."

"A maybe-maybe list?"

"What good is a maybe-maybe list? Wait a second – larkspur." Lux's smile vanished. "I knew it sounded familiar. That's what Fiora's father used to poison his opponents."

Quinn eyed the plant. It looked, as most plants did, innocuous. Green wasn't often considered dangerous. "Really?"

"Paralysis – but in a small enough dose that it didn't look that way. Just enough to slow his enemy by a fraction of a second.

Quinn drew her dagger and cut the plant at its root. She pocketed the green for a second, before thinking better of it.

"What?" Lux said when Quinn offered the plant to her.

"Rub it on the back of your hand."

"No way," Lux laughed.

"I'm serious. I need to know if you're allergic to it."

"It won't kill me?"

"Consuming it might, but no. It'll itch, at worst. If I wanted to kill you – like you said the other night – I could do it in much better ways."

"Right," Lux muttered, rubbing the plant on the back of her hand. "Why do you want to know if I'm allergic to it?"

"I'm going to burn it, tonight. If there's a wyvern nearby, he'll come to the scent."

"Eh? Really?"

"So I've read. Never had a chance to test it, though."

Lux handed the plant back. "So you mean, it could really just kill us?"

"Sure," Quinn said, pocketing the plant and climbing back onto Elalah. "It could. But remember – I don't plan on dying any time soon, so I'm not going to take any risks."

That night, Quinn held off on burning the larkspur. They were close to the village, and she decided it would be a waste to burn it before knowing any details. If the villagers could help pinpoint the wyvern's location, then the larkspur would have a greater chance of luring it in.

Ahri was naked. Her large, round breasts were completely visible, and a single tail was wrapped around her waist, covering what it could. She winked at Quinn, and then turned away. Beside her stood Lux, in her beautiful black dress, grass still in her hair from the night they'd spent out in the field. Ahri stepped closer to Lux, and her nine tails stretched out, enveloping the girl and pulling her closer.

"Get away from me," Lux yelled, pushing the fox-girl away. "I have Quinn!"

"Do you?" Ahri chuckled, turning to Quinn once again. This time, her tails weren't so protective. Looking down, Quinn realized she, too, was naked. "Well, if you insist," Ahri said. "I wouldn't mind a three-way, but I would need to take twice as much from you. I'm sure you can handle it."

There were a few precarious seconds where Quinn debated rolling over and letting herself fall out of the tree. Such a shock was necessary, for her to forget what she had just dreamt.

Fortunately, she also realized that Lux was sleeping at the base of the tree, and Quinn felt no need to give her another rude awakening. Though it was Lux's fault. Quinn never dreamt – or, rather, never remembered her dreams – but now that Lux was always talking about dreams, she was conditioned to lump Lux and dreams together, and that had been the result.

Without eating breakfast, the two of them climbed onto their horses and left camp shortly after sunrise.

The first signs of civilization were ribbons tied to trees. The colours changed as they worked their way inwards, and it might have signified the tree's age, or specific distances or directions. It didn't really matter, though, because with a close eye, they were able to follow a faint path into the village.

Unlike farming villages farther north, these villages were much less disruptive to the environment. Buildings were clustered together in clearings, with winding paths between them. There were structures in the trees, too, but they were smaller, and most were derelict; nowadays, with mages integrated into the village guard, it was safe to live on the ground. The treehouses were used for hideouts for children, and storage of old junk.

Even as they entered the village, kids who should have been in class were watching them silently from above, thinking they were sneaky. Occasionally, Lux would make a scene of looking up at the treetops suspiciously, and all the kids would slink back into the shadows. They, however, forgot that their giggling could be heard.

The village had many similarities with Everridge, including the schoolhouse. It was almost identical in shape and size, and when they passed by the building, Quinn peaked into a window and was surprised to see even the inside was similar to what she could remember. The layout of the desks, the bookshelves at the outer walls, and the teacher's wide desk at the front.

"Quinn, what's wrong?"

White chrysanthemums in a pot on the teacher's desk. Very similar.

"Nothing," Quinn said. "The same architect that designed the school back in my village did this one, too."

"Oh, really? It looks the same?"

"Yeah. Identical. Let's keep moving."

They were attracting attention, and eventually a man approached them. After a quick exchange of words, he led them to the barracks to meet the chief. The barracks was surprisingly crowded, for being so small. Working their way to the back of the building, a familiar face accosted Quinn, and she froze.

It was a familiar face, but aged by nearly eight years. Her teacher, Miss Carrigan, smiled widely at her. It was like she was transported back eight years, and though Miss Carrigan had never been intimidating, Quinn felt overwhelmed. She couldn't even remember her teacher's first name – how was Quinn supposed to refer to her as?

"Quinn!" her teacher said, rushing forward and embracing her lightly, before setting her at arm's length and examining her.

"Um – Miss Carrigan-"

"Nadine, now, sweetie. I haven't been your teacher for eight years. Eight long years."

Quinn took a breath, reminding herself who she was, where she was, and what she was doing. It was all too weird. "I thought everyone had been evacuated to the capital."

"My husband has family here. Better than going to the capital, he said – and I quite agree. The bustle of big cities don't suit us folks. Katherine and Edmond are fine," she said, nodding sincerely. "I spoke with them before we parted ways. They and the rest of the evacuees were escorted to the capital. Still. Quinn, a dropout, a soldier, a hero. I would have never guessed – though maybe I should have, with how much you and Caleb played knights. Oh, Quinn, I'm so proud of you – even if you never visited your parents. It must have been hard, on your own."

It was weird to hear someone talk about her parents, who had become almost figments of her imagination. Now, she couldn't even remember her mother's face, but she knew her mother's anger was what made her leave in the first place.

She remembered her father even less. He had pitied her, thinking she was too young to understand what had happened. Quinn had left before that pity turned into anger. She was forever a reminder of their lost child, and such reminders weren't appreciated.

"What happened to Everridge?" Lux said when Quinn fumbled to answer.

"Guillotine – it was terrible." Nadine conspicuously ignored Lux, and chose to answer to Quinn. "Horrifying. Something like that shouldn't exist. The Shadow Isles shouldn't exist. I just wish a Shadow Isles creature attacked Senta, so they would retaliate and erase that island. That's what needs to be done. It needs to be erased. Now Quinn, what brings you to these parts of the forest? I can't imagine how busy you are. Still. You need to visit your poor mother. Especially now that you're a hero of that League of Lores place. Katherine is dying to talk to you. She's a crazy woman, that one. Once she puts her mind to something, you know your whole life is going to change."

It looked like Nadine could have continued talking for another ten minutes, but Quinn wanted to leave as soon as possible, and so she promised Nadine she would visit her mother, and then she quickly excused herself. Lux followed close behind, with a troubled expression on her face.

Finally, they managed to break through the crowd to the back of the room. There, a group of men were seated at a round table, in heated argument, and at least one thing became clear. The dirty looks they had been gathering since entering the barracks were aimed at Lux. The men at the table, so far from the capital's power, were happy to openly glare.

"I'd like to speak with the chief," Quinn said to the group of men around a round table.

"Tha's me," the largest man said, standing up and stepping forward. "Wha' can I do for yeh?"

"Have you been having trouble with wyverns, recently?" Quinn said. "I saw signs of at least one, south-east of here."

"Wyverns?" the man said, scratching his beard. "Can't say I have."

Quinn continued to pepper him with questions, but found out nothing useful. They apparently hadn't even had trouble from Shadow Isles monsters in the past decade. It was the safest village in Demacia, he claimed.

Quinn declined the chief's offer to stay the night, and she and Lux excused themselves as soon as they had the chance. They left the barracks, making a wide detour around Nadine.

Elm and Elalah were being tended to by a bunch of carrot-wielding, mischievous kids, who ran away screaming and laughing when Quinn and Lux returned. The horses were unfazed by all the attention. They were trained to be calm in the middle of a war, and in the face of monsters from the Shadow Isles, so a bunch of energetic kids bearing offerings of food were no problem.

But before Quinn could mount Elalah, Lux stopped her.

"That was a lie," she said. "He lied about not seeing the wyvern."

Quinn adjusted Elalah's saddle. "He has no reason to lie. The wyvern probably can't even see this place, from the sky."

"Just the way he talked – it was weird."

"Your presence probably made him uncomfortable."

"I'm not sure why he lied," Lux said, "but I'm going to find out. Wait here."