I wanted so badly to just sit down somewhere and crack open one of the books in my bag, find someplace cozy to sit, and just read the day away, but I knew it would be best to at least wait until we were out of the forest. Not only was I wary of running into something dangerous, but a heavy blanket of grey had begun to cover the sky as we traveled through the trees, and Mauri and I could smell rain on the wind.

With that in mind, we opted to pick up the pace and I instead listened while Mauri explained a bit about the Djävagoan religion. While the two deities were effectively the same, their actual faith told a very different story. The faith in question had no actual name attached to it and their beliefs were more akin to a myth or folktale than actual holy scripture. Though they acknowledged that there were two Goddesses, they worshipped only one—the one they called the 'Night Mother'—as their tutelary deity.

The idea that there were two Goddesses who were sisters that ruled over night and day seemed to be the only connection shared between Celestianism and the Djävagoan faith. Celestianism posited that the two Goddesses had always ruled side by side, working in harmony to spread peace throughout the world. Unfortunately, Mauri didn't know much more about Celestianism other than what Qaedis had mentioned.

With that being the case, I was left wondering what fate had befallen the Goddesses and why they disappeared from the world according to Celestianism. The Djävagoan faith, however, put forth the idea that the Night Mother was betrayed by her sister who herself had become a corrupt deity they called the Fallen Sister. As the story goes, the sister who ruled over the Sun had become corrupt after venturing into Tartarus to slay a powerful demon. Instead of slaying the demon she herself became a demon and attempted to wrest control of both night and day.

As far as Mauri knew, both sisters fought for days before finally killing each other off. This wasn't before each of them made a vow upon their inevitable return. The Traitor vowed to claim what she felt was rightfully hers, and the Night Mother vowed to rise again to protect the world from her tyranny. I found it all fascinating, but listening to Mauri talk about her faith, I noticed that the Spellblades and those who used them had no presence whatsoever.

"Everything I know about Spellblades I learned from my father and later from others who live here in this land," Mauri replied when I asked about the discrepancy, "the idea of Knights chosen by the Goddesses was something Requis the Wise spoke of when he lived among us.

"While we respect the man for what he accomplished, we never took heed of his beliefs. I myself never actually believed Spellblade wielders to be real until I witnessed Hrist in battle with my own eyes."

"So the Djävagoan people don't put much stock in Spellblade wielders, but you seemed interested enough in my magic," I replied after some time. I paused again as another thought hit me, "...and while I'm on the subject of magic, I also remember you telling me that the longevity of your kind is due to your sacred commune with nature. Now you're saying it's due to the magic surrounding your home?"

"We consider od—magic as you call it—to be part of nature," Mauri replied with a slight shrug, "even if we cannot harness it directly, od still affects us and the world around us just as the rest of nature does. We respect that just as we respect all that nature has to offer, whether it be through prayer, offerings, or simple spiritual reflection."

"Huh... now that you mention it, I could see that," I replied, staring down at my own hands as I thought back to the world I came from, "yeah, that sounds... kind of nice actually."

I didn't really give it any thought until now, but the magic that I have now... it's the same as what I saw in my memories, right? Does that mean I brought it with me? If that's the case, do I even need the sword to cast magic?

"I suppose," Mauri replied with little enthusiasm, "but all the fancy mysticism does begin to wear a bit thin after two hundred years or s—wait."

I was stopped short and forced to lean back slightly as Mauri suddenly shot out an arm in front of me.

"What? What's—"

"Shh!" she hissed, raising a finger to her lips.

I snapped my mouth shut and watched with equal parts bewilderment and mounting nervousness as she slowly lowered her hand and brought it to rest on the hilt of her sword. She scanned the trees around us with that same methodical sort of slowness. I could see her softly pointed ears twitch at every little innocuous sound and her icy blue eyes seemed to pierce right through everything she surveyed.

I followed her example and took a look around myself, but I didn't see or hear anything in the forest save for the gentle rustle of trees in the wind and the slow, steady rumble of distant thunder. In fact, the forest had become eerily silent since the storm clouds started rolling in. I figured it might've been because there was a storm coming, but given Mauri's sudden reaction, I started to think maybe that wasn't entirely it.

My attention returned to Mauri as she took a few silent steps off the dirt path we'd been walking, her eyes locked on some far point in the distance beyond the nearby underbrush. I desperately wanted to know what she might've heard or saw, but I didn't dare make a single sound for fear of distracting her from sniffing out some unseen threat.

Then she stopped and my breath hitched.

In a single instant that felt far longer than it actually was, Mauri drew her sword and slashed across the air in front of her. I heard the snap of the arrow before I saw its split remains scatter off to either side of Mauri, but it took another second for my mind to catch up to what had just happened and what was about to happen next.

A second was all it took for our unseen attackers to press their assault and Mauri's warning about an ambush came just as something sharp and unexpected hit my right shoulder blade with enough force to pierce right through it. It was the one spot on my upper back that hadn't been covered by my sword, my rifle, or my bag, which probably meant that the archer knew what they were doing.

The pain itself wasn't immediate, but the fear was instant and made me cry out anyway as I stumbled forward. Mauri had gone past and was behind me before I'd even realized she had moved, urgently telling me something I couldn't fully comprehend in my panic. All I knew was that it was a question of some sort—something about my body. Something about healing or mending and... an apology?

I was about to turn and ask Mauri what she was talking about when I felt her grab and practically tear the arrow from my back. That was when the pain really kicked in and the intensity of it made me scream in agony. The pain was so crippling I nearly crumbled to my knees, but again Mauri was there pulling me up and pushing me forward.

"If what you told me of your body is true, then the pain should pass quickly," she said in a rushed and clipped tone. She moved in front of me and grabbed my arm, pulling me along as she ran ahead with a strength that was greatly at odds with her small stature, "we cannot remain idle while we know nothing of their numbers or position."

Rather than argue, I just gave a pained groan in response and tried as best I could to follow her lead. I could feel the back of my traveling tunic growing wet and sticky with my own blood but sure enough, the pain hadn't taken all that long to dull to a point where I could at least put up with it. Desperately trying not to give in to mindless panic, I kept my eyes trained on the smaller warrior's back as she led the way, using her as an anchor to quell at least some if not all of my fear.

Not wanting to drag her down, I pulled away from Mauri's grip and pushed on ahead with my own two legs. She gave me a brief glance over her shoulder and moved a bit faster once she realized I was good to run on my own. She was a lot faster than I thought she had any right to be given her size, and I honestly didn't think I would've been able to keep up had it not been for our mutual differences in height.

Even then, Mauri didn't make it easy.

There was a certain assuredness in her agile movements that made it clear to me that the woman knew her way around a forest. It was almost as though she were gliding through the trees, weaving in and out of the foliage around her with practiced ease. In stark contrast, I was doing everything in my power just to keep her in my sight, screaming and flinching as arrows continued to whiz past my face every so often.

Once or twice I heard voices somewhere behind me, incomprehensible shouting that was thankfully growing more and more distant as we ran. My sense of relief was short-lived as I ducked an overhead branch only to look back up and see that Mauri had completely vanished right along with the path forward. I was so focused on getting away that I hadn't even noticed we'd been running up a grassy incline until it was too late.

I saw the cliff ahead where the incline ended, but I was going far too fast to stop and my momentum carried me right over the edge. For a moment I thought this was it and I was ready to pray to those two Goddesses I kept hearing about to save me, but my prayers wound up being a bit premature. As I toppled head over heels past the edge, the actual drop ended up being far shorter than I expected.

It was only a couple dozen feet or so up from the ground and it wasn't even a straight drop down. Rather, the incline ended in a steep slope and I found myself taking a rough tumble to the bottom. I hit and snapped a few loose branches and bumped against some jutting rocks, but it wasn't enough of a fall to leave anything other than some superficial bruises that would probably be gone in a few minutes.

It was a good thing too because I'd hardly gotten any time to recover from my fall and the resulting disorientation before I was once again yanked to my feet and pulled forward by Mauri.

"This way," she whispered sharply, "if we head past this bend we should lose them."

I followed after her and together we made our way along the curving path at the bottom of the slope. Physically I was still fine, even with the fall, but the mental exhaustion was beginning to get to me. I wasn't sure if the adrenaline was starting to wear off or if I was just tired of running, but I was beginning to lag behind.

"W-Wait!" I panted, "I think... I think we might be okay now!"

Mauri faltered and turned to see that I was falling behind. Her expression very clearly showed that she was not of the same mind. The irritation and worry on her face made me wince and regret at my own words washed over me for a moment. She opened her mouth, no doubt to tell me to keep going, but we were both distracted by the sound of dirt and rocks being violently dislodged somewhere overhead.

As one we turned to look up at the slope in confusion and saw that someone had not only caught up to us, but had somehow gotten right on top of us. The pursuer had drawn their sword and was dashing down the slope at a rapid but controlled pace. I stood there frozen in equal parts shock and horror—not because they'd literally gotten the drop on us, but because I recognized the attacker in question.

Closing in with her shortsword at the ready and vengeance in her brilliant golden eyes was none other than Havik Kultaina, the only survivor of the horrible slaughter I committed with my own two hands.

My face went pale, my mind went blank, and all I could do was stand there staring back into the eyes of a woman who clearly wanted nothing more than to see me dead at her feet. Memories from that night came flooding back in vivid detail as she approached, bringing with them a chaotic whirlwind of emotions that locked me in place. Not even when Havik raised her sword and leapt from the slope to cut me down did I react.

As it turned out, I didn't have to, because Mauri reacted first.

"Chyet!" she spat, pulling her emerald tinted blade free of its sheath once more as she raced to shove me out of the way, "focus, Sparkle!"

I grunted in surprise and staggered backward a bit before falling over. The impact was enough to knock some sense back into me and I was able to refocus somewhat on the situation at hand. Scrambling clumsily back to my feet, I returned my attention to Mauri just in time to see her nimbly sidestep Havik's plunging attack from the slope. Havik had leaped from a fairly high point on the slope and hit the ground hard, but if it affected her she didn't show it.

She was already rolling out of the way of Mauri's counter by the time she landed and the smaller warrior's downward strike, fast as it was, was avoided without issue. The dodge roll succeeded in putting some distance between the two swordswomen and Havik was able to recover back into a proper fighting stance—the same one she'd taken when facing me. Unfazed, Mauri wasted no time in pressing her attack and it was with the next clash of blades that the battle began in earnest.

It was like a dance.

A deadly dance of slices, lunges, parries, and sidesteps set to the tune of clanging and scraping steel—a dance I couldn't tear my eyes away from for even a moment. Havik in particular was far more skilled than I initially gave her credit for. Gone was the fear and hesitation of before, leaving in their place a warrior that could easily meet and even match Mauri's grace and ferocity. Green as I was when it came to the ways of battle, even I could see that each and every movement had a purpose—every strike meant to be the last.

When I thought back to what I went through—what I'd done to those bandits—it felt like some kind of horrible nightmare, but this was different. This wasn't a one-sided slaughter but a true battle, a contest between two skilled combatants. From the outside looking in, it was fascinating—awe-inspiring even. For a brief moment, I found myself so enraptured by the spectacle that I very nearly forgot that we were on the run.

It also took me a moment to realize that Mauri and Havik weren't as evenly matched as I initially thought. As I watched, I started to realize that the latter was gradually being pushed back. She'd noticeably shifted from a strong offense to more defensive movements, evading and avoiding when she could and desperately throwing up her blade to guard when she couldn't.

Judging by the sheen of sweat covering her face and her strained expression it didn't seem like she'd last much longer. It was only a matter of time before she made a fatal mistake and I couldn't imagine Mauri missing that kind of opportunity, not with her own grim and focused expression. Havik was bound to leave herself open likely sooner rather than later, and once that happened...

Mauri will probably strike the killing blow.

The moment that realization hit me, I felt the weight of what I'd done press down on me. It hadn't been there when the fight started, but now that she was struggling—now that she was losing this literal battle of life and death—I could see it again clear as day. I could see in Havik's golden eyes that same fear I saw back then. All the awe and fascination I felt then was drained out of me in an instant, leaving only a sick sense of dread and guilt in their place.

I acted before I even knew what I was doing.

Both fighters cried out in surprise as they were suddenly and violently pulled away from each other against their will, their bodies enveloped entirely in a brilliant magenta light as they each slid across the ground. Once I thought they were far enough apart I used my magic to tear both their weapons from their grip. It took little effort, no doubt due to how caught off guard the two probably were by my intervention.

Even I was shocked by my own actions, but that didn't mean I was going to stop, not if it meant someone was going to be killed in front of me. Unlike that night at the bandit's camp, I was in control of myself, and unlike the night Jack died, I actually had the power and mind to do something before it was too late. The fact that Havik wanted to kill me didn't even cross my mind at that moment. All that mattered was that the fighting stopped before someone died.

Only once I'd moved both weapons over to where I was standing and safely out of reach of Havik and Mauri did I let the magic fade from my trembling hands. With that done I let out a shuddering breath and fell to my knees, all my emotional energy spent. For a time, all I could do was stare at the ground below me as I tried to get my rapidly beating heart under control.

The only sounds I could hear were the heavy panting of the two exhausted warriors nearby. I felt both pairs of eyes on me, but I was too mentally worn down to care at the moment. All I wanted was to rest for a minute, then I could find a way to work things out between all of us somehow. That was the plan, but the plan fell apart before it could even begin.

In my haste and panic, I'd completely forgotten that Havik kept a dagger in a leg holster on her thigh. I was quickly reminded of that fact when I looked up at the sound of Mauri's shouted warning and found the furious platinum blonde charging in my direction with said dagger poised and ready to strike. I let out a startled shriek and, almost out of reflex, threw out a hand.

It lit up with the now-familiar glow of telekinesis and Havik was forced into the air and back the way she came, dagger and all. She landed hard on her back with a grunt and didn't move for a moment as she tried and failed to suck air back into her lungs. Mauri for her part, didn't hesitate to capitalize on that chance and moved to snap up the dagger Havik dropped the moment she hit the ground.

"Wait!" I cried, "Mauri, stop! Don't kill her!"

Mauri, who'd grabbed the dagger and was mere seconds away from driving it into her opponent's neck, froze mid swing and whipped around to look at me as though I'd lost my mind.

Who knows? Maybe I have...

"This woman very nearly took your life once!" Mauri shouted back, "and you would allow her the chance to do so again?!"

"N-No! It's not like that! I... m-maybe she can help us!" I replied, trying to think on my feet, "she was the leader of that group of bandits, I think. Maybe... maybe she could show us where their hideout is?"

That, at the very least, gave Mauri some pause and her expression told me she was contemplating the idea. It was just as she was about to respond that Havik tried to pick herself up, evidently having finally recovered. She rose up enough to try and snatch her dagger back from Mauri, but rather than be caught off guard, Mauri was thankfully able to evade the attempt.

Still crouched in front of Havik, Mauri jerked the hand wielding the dagger out of Havik's reach then twisted back around, using her other hand to smash the heel of her palm into the other woman's nose with enough force to snap her head back. It all happened in one quick and fluid movement, and with another pained grunt, Havik was knocked back down to the ground and didn't move.

"Is she..." I began tentatively after a moment, "did you—"

Mauri let out a partially frustrated, partially resigned sigh as she got back to her feet and brushed herself off.

"There will be more than a little pain and soreness when she wakes, but she will live," she replied, making her way over to where I was. She stopped in front of me and held out a hand to pull me up, "in the meantime—and against my better judgment—I will go along with your plan for now, though I have my doubts things will go so smoothly with that one."

"Thank you," I breathed, taking her hand and rising to my feet.

"Do not be so quick to thank me, my little Amethyst," Mauri sniffed, "this is likely going to cause more trouble than we can afford to deal with on our own."

She moved past me to collect her sword from where I'd left it on the ground. She turned a thoughtful gaze towards Havik's shortsword as she sheath her own blade. She hesitated a moment, then picked that up as well, appraising the sword with growing interest. Finally having a moment to actually look at the thing, I could kind of see why.

There was nothing overtly ornate about the sword itself; the hilt as a whole formed a simple T shape. The round steel pommel, black leather grip, and flat steel crossguard were nothing of note in terms of design. What caught my attention, and probably Mauri's, was the actual blade. The blade was pure white and its sheen was so brilliant that it was almost unnatural. I couldn't really put it into words, but there was something... ethereal about it. Otherworldly even.

It's not quite the same feeling I get when I look at my own sword, but... I don't know. Whoever made it must be an amazing swordsmith...

"I do not believe this sword was forged through normal means," Mauri surmised with a pensive frown, "at the very least I do not recognize the metal used to make the blade."

With that conclusion made she returned to where Havik was sprawled unconscious on the ground and took a few moments to unstrap the scabbard on her belt. That done, she eyed the leg holster for the dagger and after a second's thought, she unbuckled the holster and took that too. She sheathed both the sword and dagger before walking back over to me with both the scabbard and holster in hand.

"I hope you have something to restrain her in that oversized bag of yours," Mauri said somewhat irritably, "if not, I am going back to my original plan and putting her out of our misery."

"Um... well..." I set my bag down, opened it up, and rummaged around for a few moments, "hmm... oh! As a matter of fact, I do!"

After a second I pulled out a few lengths of thick rope and silently thanked Rosalyn for putting it on my list of things to pick up. I wasn't really sure what she was expecting me to do with the rope, but I wasn't going to complain now. Judging by Mauri's raised eyebrow as I handed her the rope, she was probably thinking the same thing. She shook her head and put the holster and scabbard into my bag before taking the rope and a cotton cloth she found in the bag and trudging back over to Havik.

I watched Mauri gag Havik with the cloth before binding her arms and legs in silence, my thoughts turning to the ambush of earlier and my earlier worries creeping back into my mind. I looked upwards toward the slope and listened for anything that might give the impression that the other attackers were close, but I didn't hear or see anything from where we were.

"It doesn't seem like they followed us," I commented, my anxious gaze still glued to the top of the slope, "do you think they gave up?"

"I doubt it," Mauri replied distractedly, "they probably had men keeping watch, waiting for the moment we left to take us out and raid the mansion, the bastards," she grunted as she tied one final knot and stood up with a satisfied sigh, "...we should find a place to hide and wait out the search party while we still can."

"Good idea," I muttered, hefting my bag over one shoulder and wincing at the twinge of pain from my earlier arrow wound. The wound itself wasn't openly bleeding anymore and the pain had died down to only a dull throb, but I could still feel it if I moved my arm in a certain way, "so... am I going to be the one carrying her?"

Mauri turned to look me up and down before shaking her head and plucking Havik off the ground and slinging her over her shoulder like the unconscious woman was a sack of potatoes. I was a strange mix of relieved, astonished, and amused. I was relieved because I was already technically hefting two swords, my rifle, and everything else in my bag.

Though I was still mostly fine with the weight, it was all starting to get a bit heavier than I would've liked. The astonishment came from the realization that Mauri really was stronger than her size would've suggested. It didn't look like she was having trouble lifting someone who was almost twice her height, but at the same time, the sight of it was kind of ridiculous and made me smile despite everything.

"No... I think you are already carrying far too much as it is," Mauri replied, trying to adjust for Havik's weight, "I can handle at least this much, but if this one wakes up and starts flailing around, I might need a bit of help keeping her in line," she threw me a small smirk over her shoulder, "you can do that for me with that magic touch of yours, yes?"

"Uh... y-yeah, I guess," I replied reluctantly. I looked over to Havik and thought back to that night again—thought back to the fear and anger. I remembered the pain from when she'd stabbed me over and over again and shuddered as my mind settled on that memory. I looked back to Mauri with a lot more conviction then, "yeah, you don't need to worry about that. I'll... I'll do what I have to if it comes down to it."

"Good to hear," Mauri replied, turning back around and moving forward, "now come, the weather grows worse and we may have a long way to go yet."

As if to prove Mauri's point, another rumble of thunder resounded across the sky, the sound much closer than it had been earlier. There hadn't been any rain yet, but I was growing nervous all the same. I really didn't want to be caught out in a downpour in our current situation, and with that in mind, I hurried after Mauri.

Had the inspiration and motivation to write and finish this chapter so I struck while the iron was hot so to speak.