The forest held humidity within it's confinement. A day had come and gone as they followed the Tevinter party. Haiden and Sicilia had no difficulty remaining quiet and unseen. Markl, on the other hand, found himself straining to make his steps lighter, his breathing softer, and his posture less profound. It had been half a day since they had a visual of their enemies, but their path was obvious. They had made it completely into the forest by noon that day. As they began to see a light ahead, the three of them shrank into the shadows and behind the foliage.

"Markl, you stay here. Haiden and I need to take a closer look," her whisper was near non-existent. Markl nodded. "If anyone should come in this direction, just stay as still and quiet as you possibly can." She looked to Haiden. "You take the East side; I'll take the West. Try and get a count on how many there are, what they do, their routine, anything that could be of use. See where the tome is, too."

Haiden nodded and began his silent departure. Sicilia found her way around the West side of their camp, keeping in the shadows as she closed the gap between them. A set of trees surrounded by briar was a sure hiding spot. Her brown leather armor allowed for easy camouflage and she was able to see through the branches. She found a comfortable position and kept her eyes on the small clearing before her.

There were three tents set up around a small fire. She could see two men sitting near the fire, a shadow of another, and the shadow of another man cast onto the tent's thin cloth. Hopefully Haiden has a better view. Sicilia continued to watch the men joke around the fire and eating their bread and cheese. Noting the swords lying near them, she guessed they weren't mages, but warriors. She saw only two other men come into view from another tent. A few hours drifted by and when all had gone quiet, except for some snores, she found her way back to her companions.

Markl was easy enough to spot, for her. "You didn't have any trouble?"

"None. Did you?"

"No. It seems they aren't expecting anyone to attack them at all. I would've at least expected them to search the area every hour or so." She noticed Haiden slinking towards them.

"How many did you count?" he asked after he'd settled in beside her.

"I counted six that I could see. There were three near the fire, one in the tent nearest to me, and two others that came out later. You?"

"Add another four. That makes five warriors, five mages, I'm guessing. I only saw the warriors, though, so I'm guessing the mages make up the rest. The tome must've been inside one of the tents because I never saw it. I know that two people stayed in one tent the whole time; they never came out and no one else went in. That could be where it is."

"Possibly. The warriors could be easy to defeat, but there are a lot of mages and the Tevinters are not shy about summoning demons and using blood magic. We need to be careful of them." Sicilia glanced in the camp's direction. "We're far enough away to not be seen or heard easily. No one snores do they?" All of them shook their heads. "I suggest we find a good hiding place and rest for the night. I'll see you in the morning." Sicilia found a soft area in some dense weeds a few feet away from Markl that would serve her purpose well. She settled down and slowly fell into a light sleep.

The sound of birds fluttered into her mind, waking her gently. The morning light was just beginning. She gently got up and looked towards the camp. Guess they're not awake yet, she said noticing the lack of sound. Sicilia quietly woke Markl and Haiden made his way over to them. It wasn't long before they noticed some noise stirring. The party had begun to pack up their tents to continue their journey.

"We should plan our attack for tonight. We'll still have the forest to hide in. Let's just keep following them silently today and once it's late, we'll come up with a plan." Sicilia had some ideas, but needed to think on them for the day. Markl and Haiden agreed.

The day went on smoothly. None of them spoke a word, not risking the noise. Sicilia could feel the cool breeze again. The storm that had arrived the night they left town had only brought a light rain that was quickly dried. She only guessed that there was another coming shortly.

Her thoughts drifted to Gwen. She hadn't told her of their plan to leave and regretted not saying good-bye. I'll be back soon enough. Gwen would miss her for those few days, but she knew not to worry until it had been at least a week with no word. Sicilia had sometimes gone without word for a few days just to clear her head. It was normal. Gwen was her best friend, but even she needed a break.

It was the Arishok that held her mind mostly that day, other than the attack plans. Sicilia knew that he must be on edge about the relic being in the hands of enemies. He had said that he trusted her, but she knew that he would still want to come after it. She hoped that he would hold out the three days they had agreed to. It'll be nice once all this is done. I can't wait to lay on the beach and not worry about anything for once.

None of them had brought along a pack. Their weapons were necessary, a pack would've been noisy and noticeable. Sicilia relied on her herbal skills to find them food to keep them strong. Berries and nuts provided adequate nutrition and kept their stomachs quiet while chewing on elfroot kept them strong, alert, and healthy.

Once the sun grew dim, she had gathered a handful of nuts and they had just come upon a berry bush. Knowing their prey was a good way ahead of them, they cut loose a branch each and ate on the way. Sicilia drew some left over elfroot from her pocket and handed Markl and Haiden some before sticking a bit in her mouth. The texture wasn't the most pleasant; the woody and slightly slimy root wasn't something most people would bite down on. Most people had to have it broken down and diluted with water or solution before drinking it. There wasn't much of a taste, but the effects far outweighed the unpleasantness.

Much like the night before, they stopped when they could see the fire's light. "Ok, tell me if this sounds effective. I think Haiden and I should go around each side and keep an eye out for where the tome is. Once we meet up on the far side, I need Markl to draw everyone away. Once everyone goes for him, we'll get the tome. Haiden, you're the fastest so I think you should be the one to take it and run. Find a place to hide it; make sure no one will find it except you. I'll go and help Markl until you return."

"I can try to judge the time and when I think you're in place, I'll make some noise and draw out the guards. I imagine once everyone hears a fight going on, they'll all follow. Be quick, though; once the mages get there, I'm going to have problems taking them all on," Markl added.

"I don't feel comfortable leaving you two alone to fight them all yourselves," Haiden said, worried.

"It won't take you long to hide the book; I'll be fine until you get back, I promise. I'll be sure to take out the mages first," she said assuring him of her safety. He nodded. "I hate to bring it up, but I have to," she sighed. "If I die, one of you must survive and take the tome back to the Arishok as quickly as you can, understand? We're already going to be late as it is; there'll be no stopping on the way back." Markl and Haiden had grim expressions, but both understood. "Let's wait a little while for them to settle down before we make our move."

An hour passed. It's time. Sicilia headed one direction while Haiden went the other. Once she was close enough, she began scanning the area for the relic. She didn't see it outside, which meant that it must be in one of the tents. Four men were gathered around the fire talking and laughing; one man had a staff lying next to him. She saw Haiden crouching next to a tree and drew close. The men's laughter died down just before they darted their heads in Markl's direction. They were close enough to hear their conversation.

"What was that?"

"Sounds like an animal. We should go check it out to be safe."

They watched as the four men grabbed their weapons and headed towards their trap. Sicilia smiled when she heard a faint clashing of swords and the men cry out. Three others filed out of another tent and headed in the same direction. The last three men came out of the third tent. One of them obviously the leader judging by his robes, which were a deep purple. His staff was heavily decorated with gemstones and carvings.

"Stay here. Guard that thing with your life," he sneered before grabbing one of the men and running to join the others.

A dull roar of battle sounded in the distance. The only one left behind was a mage who was guarding the tent. Sicilia glanced at Haiden who moved forward quietly. When he was within range, an electrical bolt erupted from his staff directly into the young mage's neck. His body convulsed, hardly making a sound, before he crumpled to the ground.

Sweat was forming on her forehead. Haiden's hair flowed behind him as he ran ahead of her. Once they made it to the tent, Haiden darted inside while Sicilia drew her daggers, sending one slicing along the unconscious man's throat. She went inside to join her friend.

A book lay open on a bed roll. It's pages seemed old, they crackled with each turn. She scanned the text before her, knowing the language. In her mind, she knew this was what she had searched for. Closing the massive book, she ran her fingers across the cover and felt the worn leather beneath them. She picked up the book and handed it over to Haiden.

"We have to hurry." Sicilia started towards the battle.

"Be careful, Sicilia," Haiden called after her. They both ran in opposite directions.