Roll for Performance

Empty. Rotten. Broken down. Dark.

That's the first impression K'aarin had of the new hamlet she stepped into. As she walked through the half-empty streets, the rotten smell of fish, meats and some kind of vegetables left in a pile in an alleyway invaded her nostrils, making her pinch her nose with her fingers.

It flipped her stomach inside out.

Not only that, but the villagers all looked dirty, as if they hadn't washed their body or clothes in a long time. Most of them wore ripped clothes or overworn, probably owned by another family member before them.

She'd never thought the first village she'd come across would be this devastated.

The cobblestone buildings were starting to mold and the wood was as rotten. It looked like it was abandoned until a few days ago, and she questioned how in the world it was still holding itself up.

The buildings all looked the same: one storey, mostly made of wood, and shut doors and windows, some of them even with wooden planks that nailed them shut.

K'aarin's tall figure stood out amongst the dwarves, halflings and humans she walked past, and her pearl white skintone caught more attention than anything else.

She pulled up the hood of her jacket, hiding the long, blue hair and elf ears that poked out of the top of her head. She decided to take off her tiara as well, the one that she always wore on top of her bangs, and stored it in her bag.

K'aarin feared it might get stolen.

The woman searched for a tavern to rest for the night. She's been traveling for a few days now, feeding off of berries, various fruits and the rations she packed before leaving her village.

She approached an open area and noticed a crowd of people surrounding something. In the middle of the circle, it sounded like someone was arguing, probably a fist fight.

She curiously approached, and noticed a small figure yelling at an ever smaller one.

"I know you did it! Give them back!" One of them yelled. It looked like a female; long, blonde locks that curled on her flat chest, and a squared dress. A brown belt was tied around the hips, and a few pouches and instruments were tied to it. Around her neck, she wore a necklace of flowers of different colors: yellow, orange, pink and purple.

"Dunno whit ya'r talkin about" The shorter one bit back. K'aarin immediately recognized his accent as dwarvish, and his short stature, except he was incredibly tiny for his assumed age, confirmed her deduction. He was the size of a toddler.

One of his hand reached behind his back, while the other clasped the dagger on his belt. He looked probably less than half the height of the female.

The bald, ginger-beareded male looked stubborn and his chubby stance stood strongly against the girl's.

"I'm not blind! You definitely stole my coins!" The woman refused to let go, stomping her foot to the ground with a "clack"!

K'aarin looked down at the unusual sound. That's not what boots sound like.

And that's because she wasn't wearing boots. She had no shoes at all.

Or feet.

She had hooves instead of human feet and light brown fur colored her lower body, with a few white circles on her thigh poked out of the slit on the side of her dress. Glancing back up to her, K'aarin also noticed the small horns poking out of her forehead. They were small, black horns that slightly curved towards the back of her head.

Just behind them, a pair of long, fur-covered brown ears poked out of her hair, standing straight up in an oval shape.

The argument continued for a few seconds, until a male stepped forwards. He held a long sword, almost as tall as him.

The second man looked like a warrior, standing much stronger than the other. His topless torso showed muscles and various scars, declaring the amounts of battles he fought and probably won.

As the sword raised, the blonde girl froze. Her eyes widened and she flinched backwards, almost touching the cobblestone of the fountain behind her. The man's eyes, the only part of his face that was visible under his horned helmet, glowed a bright red as his sword fell on the girl.

Without actually thinking, K'aarin immediately dashed forward, wrapping her arms around the petite woman.

A loud clang was heard throughout the small hamlet as the sword hit the cobblestone floor, leaving cracks and pebbles where once stood the young girl.

The tall female slid on the floor as the other laid on top of her, making sure she wouldn't get injured. K'aarin hit the near building wall with the back of her head and shoulders, and after the crash she felt the short girl tremble like a leaf between her arms.

K'aarin gently tapped her shoulder twice. "You're fine," she whispered, and the blonde's eyes shot open and she looked around in a panicked state. She glanced down at her savior and immediately jumped, standing up but falling back down on her butt due to her legs trembling in shock.

K'aarin stood as well, rubbing the back of her head. She looked forward at the armed man and noticed him approaching. With a quick step, she stood between the man and the girl. "There's no reason for murder," K'aarin spoke with a calm voice, and the man stared back at her.

As he got closer, she realized he was slightly taller than her, probably around 8'2.

She also noticed that the horn she couldn't see looked like it was snapped off with bare hands, as the cut was very harsh.

The male stood there, both hands still gripped on his weapon. His face showed no expression or intentions. The only thing visible about his face were his eyes. A deep, dark void that stared right back at her.

He could have been a monster if she didn't know better.

And she didn't.

In her eyes, he was a monster.

One much greater than the ones in the stories she was told.

K'aarin flinched backwards as his sword raised once again, but before it could snap her head in half, a voice spoke behind him.

"Alrite, stop now Jihdor" the male said, hitting hard twice the side of the tall man's, Jihdor, leg. The figure lowered his sword, and K'aarin let out a sigh of relief.

The male that appeared behind him was the same that fought with the girl, and he spoke before K'aarin could. "Wh't ya want?"

"Give back the coins."

"Ah didn't take no feckin coins! She's a liar ah tell ya!" He yelled, his index finger pointing to the girl still sitting on the floor. Now that she could see him from the front, she noticed that the male had a long, white scar that started from the tail of his left eyebrow down to his upper lip, close to his cupid bow.

When K'aarin glanced behind her, she noticed the girl flinch again, and she quickly stood back up, then hid behind K'aarin with a small yelp when she saw Jihdor close by.

The taller woman sighed, and waved her hands in the air, creating a small circle with her finger. When she was done, a bright, white light appeared under all 4 of them in a circle. The rays of light raised upwards like upside down dripping water.

Immediately, they all knew about the spell that was casted under their feet.

"Ya'r tryin ta do what?!" The short man yelled, and K'aarin clicked her tongue. The spell failed on him.

"You can lie all you want, but your friend can't." She pointed up at Jihdor, one of the two people that was, indeed, effected by the Zone of Truth, a spell where the truth and only the truth was spoken, but it had the chance of failing.

"An what?! He don't feckin talk!" He said, gesturing his hand towards his friend. "I saw you hiding the bag behind your back, under the belt," she quickly said.

The male scoffed and crossed his arms across his chest. "Relly? Now ya'r the liar!" He laughed loudly, his chest moving with his short body.

"Prove it if it's not true."

The man flinched and stopped laughing. "Now wa would ah do that?!" He started yelling again.

"So you did steal."

"Ah didn't!'

K'aarin just stared in silence.

He let out a loud grunt and reached behind his back, aggressively throwing a small bag towards the blonde girl.

"Alrite take it, whore! All this fur a bit of copper," His brows furrowed and he turned around to stomp away. "Whit a waste ay mah feckin time!" He kept shouting as he walked past the crowd, adding a few cuss words as Jihdor followed behind him, spreading the crowd to create a straight line.

The bright light on the ground immediaty disappeared and K'aarin turned around. The crowd quickly dispersed in disappointment as the fight they were hoping for never happened.

"Are you okay?" K'aarin asked to the petite girl as she stood up after picking the brown coins that fell from the bag. She slowly nodded and looked down, almost sad for a second, then she raised her head and she wore a smile brighter than the spell.

"Thank you, miss!" She said, and shoved the bag towards K'aarin's chest. She tilted her head in confusion and the girl kept talking. "A payment for helping me! And sorry, you got hurt because of me," She explained, scratching the side of her head, still smiling.

"There's no need," K'aarin said, her expression emotionless since the beginning of the encounter. "That human was about to kill a child, I couldn't let it happen." At the word "human", her eyes showed a hint of anger, then returned emotionless.

The girl smiled kindly once again and took back the bag, tying it around her leather belt.

At a closer glance, K'aarin noticed that the horns on the woman's head looked more like antlers, and they were still in the early stage of growing.

"Anyways, what's a elf doing here? There's not many in this village!" The girl asked, glancing at the elf ears poking out of K'aarin's hair.

That's when she noticed that her hood fell off, probably when she slid 5 feet across the street.

"I'm headed to Didsmont. I'm here just for the night," She said as she looked up at the sun that was close to setting, she assumed it was around 5, maybe 6pm. "And maybe a ride there," She added. On foot, it would take probably a ten-day to get there, whilst a horse would only take six days.

"There's not plenty of merchants that stop here due to the thieves, but you can ask the tavern keeper! She's very nice." She said with an honest smile.

"Mind showing me?"

The blonde shook her head quickly, her hair flowing in every direction, and she started walking past K'aarin. The latter shortly followed.

The female hopped towards the fountain, where she once stood, and picked up a small bag and swung it around her back.

"My name is Dynea, by the way! What's yours?" The girl asked and leaned forwards as she walked on the empty streets beside K'aarin to look up at her face, since her hood was raised once again.

"K'aarin."

"Doesn't sound elvish." She muttered with her finger on her cheek and stood with her back straight, deep in thought.

She leaned back forwards and looked up and down K'aarin. She didn't look like any other elf she'd ever seen before. Her skin is pale white, just like snow, and so are her eyes. She didn't look at them for long, but her ears are slightly longer than those of half elves.

Plus, she is wearing winter clothes in the fourth month, which looks weird next to Dynea's sleeveless dress. But the girl thought the dark blue long sleeves looked cute as they wrapped around the golden colored ring on her middle finger with a triangle shape.

Maybe she is a cold blooded creature, she assumed. She does look cold, Dynea thought as her eyes rested on the expressionless face that looked back at her.

When their eyes met, Dynea flinched back and looked forwards with an awkward chuckle.

"We're here!" She said loudly as they entered one of the dark alleyways. The tavern was only one storey and directly across there was what looked like an inn, judging by the wooden sign of a bed right on top of the door. The outside of the tavern looked exactly like any other building, except it was maybe more well kept. The sign read "The Striking Rest" in common.

As the sun started to set, the tavern started to fill.

The two women entered, and the door creaked loudly as it was pushed open. A few tables were populated by mostly dwarves, orcs and a few humans, and all of them had a tankard of liquid in hand.

They stepped forwards towards the barmaid, and Dynea jumped on the stool. "Hello Ris! How are you?" She smiled brightly, and the female dwarf smiled back. Dynea abandoned her bag at the foot of the stool, lifting the weight off her shoulders.

She wore a dirty apron and a her sleeves were rolled up the elbow. Her long, blonde hair were clipped back and a few white locks fell on her face that she constantly tucked back behind her ears.

"Love! How'rya doin?" Her grey eyes smiled warmly at the girl, and an immediate feeling of comfort warmed K'aarin as she sat down next to Dynea.

"I'm good! I brought you someone!" Dynea looked back up towards K'aarin as her feet swung back and forth. "K'aarin, this is Riswynn, she's very nice." Dynea leaned forwards on the counter and smiled warmly at the taller woman.

K'aarin simply nodded and the barmaid offered her hand for a handshake. When the elf reached her hand forwards, the woman gripped it firmly and shook it vigorously. She felt like the dwarf could crush a rabbit with her bare hands.

"Welcome welcome! Dynea's friends are mah friends too! Wh't can ah getcha?!"

"Just whatever food you serve is fine, and some water please."

The woman nodded and yelled something in Dwarvish towards the kitchen, which K'aarin only understood as "Mutton – Bread".

Dynea ordered some food as well, and her ears perked up when she heard a flute being played behind her.

The two women turned towards the player and a short human girl stood on the entertainer's square playing her flute in a corner of the room. "Jess is here!" Dynea yelled as she jumped down the chair and sprinted towards the human. As she did, a thump was heard on the floor and K'aarin noticed Dynea's bag was now fallen over, leaving some of the bagged items on the floor.

K'aarin picked them up and rested the bag on the counter, then looked back at the performer.

She looked around 11 in human years, maybe younger, and her dark brown locks fell on her face and ended around mid-neck. Her blue eyes sparkled when she saw Dynea rush towards her, but she didn't stop playing.

The blonde picked up a lute resting beside the wooden wall and started plucking the strings to the beat, and the tavern quickly filled with cheerful and fast music. A dim, green light flowed out of the lute, that any non-magic users would have missed for how small it was.

K'aarin's gaze fixed on something that wasn't there before: a purple, four-legged small creature rested on Dynea's right shoulder, croaking on beat.

It's face was round, and his throat inflated like a balloon, then it went back to normal.

Dynea danced around and her heels clacked on the floor almost in rhythm with her playing, using her full body to create music.

Some other young children jumped in too. A male, probably around 13, shook a small tambourine, dancing with Dynea. Another male, probably the oldest amongst the others, held a small lyre that he played next to Jess.

A few, bright lights started appearing across the performers and they shone in purple and red colors, dancing around them.

K'aarin noticed the customers smile and some of them even danced in front of the small group, and nobody seemed to mind the weirdly colored creature. Another small light caught the elf's eye, this time a faint yellow glimmer flew gently from the lyre.

A few minutes passed and the food arrived. When Dynea saw Riswynn return with two plates, she immediately put down her instrument and bowed slightly, to which she received applauses. She rushed towards the stool and jumped on it, sitting in front of her plate.

"Thank you!" She said, slightly out of breath.

"Her's a Steamed Mutton an Oat Bread for K'aarin, an Vegetable Stew for Dynea. Lovely performance!" She set down the plates, a warm smile on her lips. "Eleven coppers total," She added. Sliding two glasses of water.

When K'aarin reached in her bag to reach for her coins purse, Dynea set a hand on her's. Her skin was warm, almost hot at the touch, but it still gave off a kind feeling.

"It's okay, you saved me today. I owe you." She said, and slid a coin of silver and two coppers on the counter. Riswynn smiled at the tip and pocketed the coins in her apron, then slid to serve another patron.

"The song was nice," K'aarin said before starting to eat. The frog jumped off Dynea's shoulder and sat on the counter, then the girl took out a small bowl and filled it with her own stew.

The animal stuck out his blue tongue towards the bowl and started eating. K'aarin stared in disbelief. This was her first time seeing such a creature.

Dynea, with her mouth full of food, started speaking. "Thank you! I like making music whenever I can, and other people like it too!" She swung her feet cheerfully. "Plus, the people here are very nice! Especially them!" She said as she pointed towards the group of kids still swinging their bodies to the music they were creating.

"John is not very good, but his brother Kevinn is teaching him. He likes Jess so he's trying to impress her," She whispers the last part. K'aarin failed to understand which one was which, but chose not to question it.

"So? Why are you going to Didsmont?" The petite girl asked, almost finished with her portion. K'aarin took her eyes off the creature after staring for too long, then spoke. "There's an orc village nearby and I'm joining their war." She explained simply, to which Dynea tilted her head to the side. "War?"

"Didsmont is a city full of humans and only humans, and they refuse any other race to travel through there, even adventurers. The king plans on expanding and wiping out the village," She added, gripping her fork harder as the words left her mouth. "I can't let them just take whatever they want." K'aarin muttered. "And a friend asked me for a favor, so I can't ignore that."

"He sounds like a bad person." Dynea's ears fell towards the ground, then twitched back up when she heard someone sit besides her.

"Couldn't help but overhear," a male voice spoke, deep and raspy like one of a smoker. "Ya'r goin where?" He asked, adjusting himself on the stool.

When the women looked at him, they saw a male dwarf, peach — almost pale — skin tone, and shoulder length black hair. In his hand he held a tall tankard of alcohol. His face looked... almost desperate.

His body was covered in metal armor, including his head. His helmet covered his right eye and a big horn rose from the middle of the forehead. His left arm was covered of metal plates, the opposite of his right, and so were his short legs.

"South west, to Barad More." K'aarin replied. "Do you know it, mister?" Dynea asked, wiping her mouth with an handkerchief. The male shook his head. "But ye said it's the orcs? An war?" He questioned, his eyes fixed on K'aarin.

As he spoke, she noticed his lower canines slightly poking out of his lower lip. The elf nodded, and she noticed his grip tighten on the tankard, almost turning his knuckles white.

"Mind if ah come with?" He asked after a long pause. Dynea glanced up at K'aarin, then back at the male. "Now I want to go too!" She burst out, looking back at K'aarin.

The woman pondered for a second. As a sole cleric, she's not powerful enough to fight whatever she might encounter along the way, and from what she heard, the orcs need all the help they can get.

"Sure," she said simply. Dynea rose her hands up with a cheer, and her familiar made a high pitched croak in return. She then giggled and scratched his head with her index finger.

"Whas up with that?" The male dwarf asked, and Dynea's ears perked up. "Oh, he's my best friend! I found him when I was ten. His name is Froggory!" She said as she held him proudly in both her hands.

Now in clear sight, K'aarin noticed the animal's toes were a yellow color, and the spots on his back were blue, just like his tongue.

His green eyes stared straight into her white ones for a second, almost studying her. Then he tilted his head to the side.

K'aarin tilted her head back curiously.

"Long time no see!" A loud voice yelled from the entrance of the tavern preceded by a loud bang. The group immediately turned and a small figure walked inside the tavern, a very much taller one following short behind.

K'aarin sighed after recognizing the bald figure and turned back to her almost empty plate, munching on a piece of bread.

Dynea looked back and forth in a panicked state, then her eyes froze on the tall male. After recognizing the intimidating figure, she immediately grabbed her bag and shoved Froggory in there.

"Am talkin ta ya!" The voice yelled again, and K'aarin felt her stool shake. When she turned, she noticed the small man with his left foot half raised, about to kick the stool once again.

"Ya fucken whore" He muttered, fire in his eyes. He wanted payback.

K'aarin stood up from the stool, and crouched down to be on eye level. "Gnome." She taunted, and the man's eyebrows furrowed.

His fist immediately clenched, and swung right at her chest, knocking the air out of her for a second.

The woman flinched backwards, losing her balance and falling down, then looked at the male's face. She opened her palm and in it, a small shadow dagger appeared out of nowhere. It was completely black, with a few white and light gray dots scattered on the blade, like a starry night's sky.

K'aarin immediately lounged forwards, digging the dagger in the dwarf's left foreharm. There's no actual blade, no steel or any sort of material, but it still stung like a real one, and droplets of blood dripped from the male's arm.

He winced in pain and took a step back. "Playin dirty." He muttered, then reached towards his belt and unsheathed his dagger in his right hand. With a quick step, he aimed at the woman's leg, his blade immediately digging through the skin and creating a small pool of blood to the ground.

The woman let out a small yelp and flinched back. Rage immediately flowed through her veins, and the voice in her head demanded blood.

She shut her eyes and and unsuccessfully fought the voice she recognized very clearly.

It spoke it multiple languages at the same time, with multiple voices of difference ages and genders, but K'aarin recognized them as one.

When she opened her eyes, the black pupil turned white, and the dagger vanished from her hands, then clasped them together loudly, muttering something under her breath.

When she clapped them again, a faint, white light in the shape of an arrow flew from her hands towards the short male, and it hit him right in the stomach, knocking him a few feet backwards.

Her boots stomped on the wooden planks towards the downed dwarf, but a sword stopped her path. She looked up, and Jihdor stood before her. The male oozed pure rage and bloodlust, and his sword raised above his head, then came flying down with immense speed.

K'aarin immediately dashed backwards, but she was hit nonetheless in the same leg she'd been stabbed, falling on the ground. She let out a pained grunt and looked up at the man that just struck her, his sword raised once again.

"Stop it! Oy!" A loud, angry voice shouted from the bar. "No bloodshed in mah tavern! Get the feck out!" Riswynn yelled, and Jihdor slowly lowered his sword, then sheathed it on his back after staring down at K'aarin.

He held his gaze strong, as if he was about to stomp on her, then turned around.

Behind him, the male dwarf was standing back up, and he approached the woman on the floor. "Fucken whore," he muttered. "Should'a known ya'r one of those that don't play fair." He said, gripping his forearm to stop the bleeding.

"It's not over." He added as he turned towards the door, leaving the tavern.

K'aarin let out a sigh and looked down at her bloody leg. Her eyes slowly turned back normal, and a heavy feeling rested on her stomach.

One more swing and she would've been dead.

Behind her, she heard fast clangs stomp on the wooden floor boards, and when she looked over her shoulders, her face was met with a bunch of flowers.

Dynea launched herself and hugged K'aarin tightly. "By the Gods, I thought you were going to die! Why did you do that?!" She shouted, tightening her grip.

"I will if– you don't let go," K'aarin slapped lightly the young girl's back a few times, and she immediately let go. "Sorry! I– I couldn't move." Her ears dropped and her eyes looked down at the floor. "I had it under control," She reassured.

She didn't.

If Jihdor didn't intervene, she would have killed that dwarf.

K'aarin tried standing up with Dynea's help, and limped her way towards the counter. She sat on the stool and let out a hiss through her teeth.

When she sat down, she lightly raised her knee and placed both hands on her injured shin, and immediately started muttering in elvish. She knew the spell worked perfectly without praying, but it was an habit she refused to let go.

After a few seconds, a dim white light came out of her hands, and the cut on her leg immediately closed by itself. All it remained was a stain and a cut on her brown trousers.

"Are ye alrite mah dear?" Riswynn said, and K'aarin nodded. "I'm sorry about the commotion," she apologized, then slid 3 silver coins across the counter. The barmaid's eyes widened and she immediately raised her hands.

"Oh there's no need! Things like these happen all th' time!" She shook her head, but K'aarin refused to take the coins back.

"Ar' ya okay?" The dwarf still sitting besides Dynea spoke. K'aarin almost forgot he was there.

She nodded and the male took a sip of his drink. "Ya'r not bad," He said with a chuckle.

K'aarin looked at him without saying anything, then Dynea started talking about something with Riswynn.

"I don't think I got your name," she said towards the still unnamed dwarf. "Oh, pardon' me! Name's Grund'ir." His hand reached for a handshake, but Dynea was still in the middle, so it looked uncomfortable.

K'aarin decided to stand up from her chair, and shook the male's hand. "K'aarin."

She sat next to him, trying to investigate more about the stranger.

"What's your business in Barad More?" The elf asked, and Grund'ir took a big sip from his tankard. "Personal." He replied.

K'aarin looked at him for a second, then let out a soft hum. She noticed that from the left, the male's head was shaven just on that side, and the pearls on his long beard looked around medium-high quality, almost like a trader's.

"I think we should rest, K'aarin. The inn is right next to the tavern," Dynea spoke after her conversation ended, and stood up from her stool.

K'aarin looked towards one of the windows, and complete darkness was all she could see on the other side. She nodded and stood up as well.

"I wish you a good night, Grund'ir!" The girl added, waving her hand at the dwarf that kept them company for the night.

"We'll look for a carriage tomorrow, then depart around noon. The fountain. We leave if you're there or not." K'aarin informed, then left the tavern, hoping to not encounter the friendly duo outside.

Dynea followed behind with a quick step after saying goodbye to Riswynn, and they both entered the inn across the street.

The approached the person at the desk: a female halfling of mature age, with brown hair falling on her shoulders. "A room for two?" She asked with a smile. "Separate," K'aarin said before Dynea could say anything.

"That would be 3 silver each," she said as she turned around to grab two keys. Both the women slid the coins and took their keys. "Right up those stairs." The halfling said as she pointed towards her right.

"Thank you miss! Have a nice night!" Dynea took a light bow and rushed up the stairs to follow K'aarin, who already left.

The rooms were right next to each other, right in the middle of the corridor. "Well... I hope you have a good sleep and you feel better about your leg tomorrow." Dynea spoke with a bright smile, to which K'aarin simply nodded to.

The taller woman was the first to enter her room, and after shutting the door with a silent "Good night", Dynea's door shut as well.

K'aarin immediately threw off her coat towards the bed, and started to take off her armor as well. It was just leather, so it took no time at all. She thought about investing in better equipment.

Before heading to bed, the woman kneeled on the floor and grasped the bracelet she wore on her wrist.

Since it's handmade, it's not in the best condition, but it still served it's purpose.

The bracelet was entirely made of branches twisted and intertwined between themselves and tied up in place.

The branches were a mix of mistletoe and oak, and small acorn was neatly tied in the middle.

She closed her eyes, and spoke in elvish.

"My dearest God, I pray to you once again." She said faintly, her tone sweeter that it's been for everyone else.

"Today I've encountered an... interesting bunch of people," She paused for a second. "Please bless my incoming travel, and for everything to go smoothly."

She fell silent for a second, a knot forming on her throat.

After swallowing it down, her lips parted once more. "Please forgive me about my intentions, but I don't know how to stop it. It's far more powerful than I will ever be."

Her head fell to the ground as her eyes opened. "Help me, Diancencht," she pleaded with a soft whisper, and after a few minutes of silence, her shoulders slouched forwards.

"I bid you farewell, for now." She slowly ended her prayer, and stood up from the floor. Her figure approached the window, and the moon shone brightly in the middle of the sky.

K'aarin stared at the bright white moon, which looked smaller than what she was used to. A lonely feeling washed over her, as her gaze dropped to the empty, black streets.

The woman pulled herself away, and sat on the bed.

It was still too early to sleep, but, with nothing else to do, she decided on lying down on the bed for the time being.

Meanwhile, in the next room.

"Do you think she's going to be fine?" Dynea asked after the frog jumped from her shoulder. It croaked and tilted his head in response.

She sighed and cast a spell on herself, then sat on the bed. "I trust her though. I don't know why," she giggled to herself.

"Weird." A voice sounded from her left. It was throaty, raspy, and the tone shifted from higher to lower. The girl glanced down at her left and pet the frog lightly on his head.

"Yes I know, but she saved me," She said with a smile. "Happy?" Froggory asked, tilting his head into her hand.

"Happy."

A croak was heard, and the conversation ended. The female stood up and filled a small bowl she kept in her bag with water from her water skin and placed it next to the window.

The frog immediately jumped in the water, splashing the girl. She giggled and gently splashed him back. Dynea then changed and fell into a deep sleep once her head hit the pillow.

—

A faint scream made the female elf sit up straight, and she looked around the room.

Familiar handmade paintings and rusty furniture, wooden walls and a big bed with handmade blankets decorated the room.

K'aarin froze, and as the yelling got closer, she shook her head and stood from the bed. She rushed towards the window and opened it, and the cold suddenly hit her.

She shivered as the winter wind blew on her face, mostly from the sudden blast than the cold, making her messy hair fly across her face. The woman rushed to the door and down the corridor, then threw on a coat around the pale light blue night gown.

Once outside, she noticed blue and white skinned elves standing outside their doors, as a younger elf rushed towards the middle of the village.

The snowy paths connected all of the houses together and met in the middle in a bigger path, as the moon shone right on them.

As he ran, the ankle-high snow made him stumble and fall, but he quickly got himself up and kept running towards K'aarin.

The female started approaching him, her bare feet sinking into the snow. "What's wrong, Thamior? What happened?" She asked, seeing the panicked state of the elf. He trembled as he grabbed both of her forearms. His face dropped to the floor, and his shoulder lenght, braided dark hair fell on his face.

K'aarin slowly noticed the blood on the male's clothes, and his equipment was mostly missing.

"T-There was an attack–" He started, his voice trembling and shaken. He stuttered the words out, still shocked by the recent events.

"I– I couldn't do anything!" He said loudly as his face snapped up, tears forming on his eyes.

The male was one of the youngest rangers, he looked around 13 — 15 at most — in human years, and he never imagined he'd witness such a tragedy during his first ever scout.

"Calm down, you're safe," She reassured with a calm voice, putting a hand on his. The male swallowed hard and took a deep breath, a cloud quickly forming and disappearing.

"We were resting in the forest, a-and we were ambushed. There were maybe... 5 — no, 8 humans! I– They took everything!" He slowly panicked again as he spoke.

"Where is everyone else?" K'aarin asked as she glanced around, and the male's head fell once more.

"Dead."

Her heart stopped.

"Are– Are you sure?" She asked.

Thamior fell on the ground, his knees deep in the snow, then he nodded.

K'aarin brought a hand to her mouth, her eyes focused on the forest in front of her.

Then, a voice behind her caught her attention. "K'aarin? What's the commotion?" She immediately turned, and the old woman in front of her slowly walked towards the two.

The woman was tall, a pale blue skin color, and white hair was adorned in multiple braids, pearls and small flowers, and her wrinkly face wore a preoccupied look.

K'aarin immediately gained her posture and took a deep breath. "Priestess." She fell on one knee. "Our scavenge party was ambushed by humans. Thamior is the only survivor." She explained with a serious look. The woman's eyes widened, and she reached for K'aarin's shoulder, gesturing for her to stand up.

"The only survivor?" The woman questioned, and K'aarin nodded. "That's what he said," she gestured towards the male still on his knees, his eyes stuck on the snow.

"By the Gods..." The priestess muttered, and embraced the female, then quickly let go.

"Your father is the strongest warrior in the whole village, I'm sure he's survived." She put a hand on K'aarin's shoulder, and the male slowly stood up.

"I–" He spoke, then paused.

"I was able to retrieve this," Thamior said, his hand reaching behind his back. K'aarin immediately recognized it.

A translucent bow made with magic influenced ice, making it never melt or break. A few symbols were carved at the top, made by it's different owners.

She recognized a carving that looked like a wolf's eye, made by her great-grandfather, symbolizing his keen eyes. He never missed a shot.

Right under it, there was a wyrm shaped like the number five, meaning the birth of the village and it's former 5 rulers.

"He fought well..." He handed the bow to K'aarin, and her hand trembled as she reached for it.

When she touched it, it disappeared, along with the male in front of her and the woman by her side. Then, the whole village vanished.

She found herself in an empty void, and a voice yelled from her left ear. "Kill him!" It chanted, getting louder and louder.

"What good has he done anyways?!"

"Worthless beings deserve painful deaths!"

The woman shut her eyes, covering her ears with her hands as she curled up on the nonexistent floor.

Then, her eyes shot open and she found herself gasping for air, covered in a cold sweat.

She sat up and looked around the pitch black room. In front of her, a big wood closet and a plant on it's left. Beside it there was a wooden door and a bunch of equipment on the floor.

K'aarin recognized the inn's room and tried calming herself down. She glanced at her side and a jewel reflected the dim moonlight coming through the window.

She didn't remember taking it out of her bag.

The woman reached her hand over to the elven tiara on the bedside table, and looked at the dark blue sapphire in the middle.

It was simply made of silver, shaped into what resembled tree branches wrapping into each other. She slowly turned it around and put it on, right in front of her even bangs. As she stood from the bed, the moon was still shining brightly, slowly setting towards the forest.

She kneeled on the floor, praying to her deity. She told him about her dream, and once again asked for his blessings, then she stood to put her equipment back on. Once her hand reached for the short bow, she flinched and stopped.

Then, with a sorrowful expression, the tips of her fingers brushed along it.

With a deep breath, she put it on her back, and finally stepped outside the room.

—

A loud slam startled Grund'ir awake, and he drunkenly looked around. With his vision blurry, he only managed to make out a blob of a humanoid.

"Wake up ya sick fock!" The "blob of a humanoid" said loudly, his hand still slamming on the wooden table.

"A'ight a'ight, am up!" The man waved his hand in front of the humanoid as he rubbed his eyes with the other.

As he got used to the morning light, Grund'ir distinguished the figure in front of him as one of his kind: a male, shorter dwarf who instead of growing hair he could only grow beard hair. "What'ya want?" The half asleep dwarf asked. He recognized the man as the one who attacked K'aarin the day prior.

"Information" He said simply.

The male sighed. "Information's not cheap."

As the words left his mouth, the shorter dwarf snapped his fingers and a small bag fell on the table with a clang. When he glanced up from where the money came, he noticed the huge male behind the dwarf.

Grund'ir reached for the bag and peeked inside, counting a few copper coins with a glimmer of silver between them.

"Where'd yar elf friend go?" The short male asked.

He thought about it. Elf? Did he know an elf? He'd seen a handful in his village, but he wouldn't call them friends.

"Ta one ye were hangin' it wit' yesterday!"

"Oh! K'aarin?" He asked, remembering his discussion with the elf and the goat.

"If that's 'er name."

Slowly but surely, his sober state started crawling in, and his intuition was telling him to not give him too much information.

"Leavin' town," he said simply.

The dwarf cursed under his breath. "An where'd she go?"

"Why'd ye hate her anyways?" He said as he released the bag of money on the table, relaxing back on the chair.

"It has nothen' to do with ye! Just answer mah question!" The dwarf demanded, slamming his fist on the table.

"Calm down! I'll buy ye a beer, how about'at?" Grund'ir asked, and waved his hand towards Riswynn, who was cleaning a table a few feet away from them. "Can ah get two — three beers?" He yelled, and the woman perked up and nodded with a loud "Aye!", rushing towards the counter.

The shorter dwarf's eyes narrowed, then he sighed and sat down. The taller man sat as well, next to him.

"Ah don't need yer money," He pushed the bag towards the dwarf.

"Tell me, wha's yer names?"

"Dolgus. This is Jihdor," The shorter male introduced himself, then nodded his head to the side, towards the taller male.

"Yer a good fighter!" Grund'ir bent forwards, his arms on the table. Jihdor simply stared at him, without reacting at the unexpected compliment.

Dolgus chuckled loudly. "Th' best in the whole continent ah tell ye that!" He boasted, as if he was talking about himself.

Finally, the beers arrived and Grund'ir held his tankard towards the two men. Dolgus grabbed his own and lightly tapped his tankard with Grund'ir's.

They glanced towards Jihdor, as he stared blankly towards the window, distracted by something outside.

"He don't drink, leave him." Dolgus mumbled, then gulped down his beer.

After taking a swig, Grund'ir slammed his drink on the table. "Tha's good shit!" He yelled, followed by a laugh.

"Ah was thinking, right? Why don't ye come with us?" The brunette asked, and the other's brow raised. "Us? Where? An why?" He asked.

"Dynea, K'aarin and aye. We're gonna help th' orcs in tha war, south of here. Yer strong, right?"

"Of course ah am!" He said loudly.

"So help us! I got extra coin," He said as he slid a gold coin towards the table.

Dolgus's eyes glimmered as they laid on the gold piece, then he looked up at the man, then back down at the gold.

"An' how much extra?"

"Five gold."

Dolgus choked on the beer, and he slammed his fist on his chest a couple times. Once he regained his composure, the male cleared his troath. "Aight. But once th'a job is done, ah cannot tryst ah won't try ta get mah revenge." His voice was low and raspy, and his index and middle finger pressed on the gold coin, sliding it towards himself.

Grund'ir smiled, and he waved towards the woman again, ordering more drinks for the trio.

—

As the sun rose high in the middle of the sky, K'aarin stood with her arms crossed in the small hamlet's plaza, next to the fountain.

She's just now realized that the fountain is actually turned off, and mold started to form on the sides, along with a few weeds.

The first to approach her was Dynea, who happily skipped towards the wagon. It was lead by two brown horses, one with light brown hair and the other a deep black, both unkept and a bit on the skinny side. K'aarin currently held the reigns in her hands.

"Hello!" She greeted. "I knocked on your door this morning but you didn't reply. You weren't at the tavern either," She said. "I left early and I ate my rations before leaving." The elf replied.

"Hi there, are you going to be the ones escorting us?" Dynea asked to the horses, and the black haired one let out air from it's nose and stomped on the cobblestone. She giggle and raised her hand, gently petting it on the nose.

At the touch, it immediately relaxed and pressed on her hand. A small giggle left her lips. The frog on her shoulder croaked in jealousy.

"Ye didn't leave yet!" A low male voice spoke, and as K'aarin glanced towards it, she noticed a group of three people approaching.

The elf immediately stepped in front of Dynea and held a hand towards the group.

At the gesture, Jihdor reached behind his back and gripped his sword tightly without unsheathing it yet.

"Woah there!" Grund'ir stepped in the middle. "Calm down! The're fine, I told em to come with." He explained, and K'aarin's brows furrowed.

"Ye saw how good they fight," He added.

K'aarin kept holding her guard up, not wanting a repeat of last night.

"Ah paid them! It's fine."

A few seconds passed, then K'aarin put her hand down and relaxed her expression. "Fine," she said simply.

She recognized their skill and they could come in handy during the fight.

"We're all set then! Onwards!" Grund'ir yelled as he stomped towards the wagon. Dynea looked at K'aarin with a hint of fear in her eyes, and the latter gently brushed a hand on her shoulder, and faint glimmer of white light surrounded the girl.

She smiled kindly, then stepped inside the wagon from the back, sitting next to a couple of stacked closed wooden containers.

The next to step in was Grund'ir, then Dolgus with the help of Jihdor. Before getting inside, he glared at the woman who stood next to the horses. She sighed and, after everyone was on board, she raised herself up to the front.

She looked back at the group: Dynea sat next to a container and moved the one that was on top to her right, so she was covered on both sides by boxes. Luckily, the wagon was open so if anything actually happened, she could easily jump out.

Next to the box, Grund'ir already opened his flask and gulped down the alcohol in it.

And finally, Jihdor and Dolgus sat in front of Grund'ir, right in the middle.

K'aarin held the reigns in her hands and with a whip, they started moving southwest towards the Midnight Forest.

The elf turned her body sideways when they left the hamlet, and reached for her bag in the pile of other bags. Inside of it, she pulled out a worn out map with a few rips and stains across the border.

Right in the middle of the continent, on the west of the map, was the Midnight Forest. Right under it, almost surrounded by the forest, stood Barad More, close to the Mistfen River.

The river crossed the whole forest, cutting it in half horizontally, so they eventually had to cross it.

Glancing down from Barad More, stood Didsmont, also known as the City Under the Mountain, as it was wrapped in an embrace by the mountains from the west and south of the capital, and it was known for their incredible wizards and smiths.

It would be the perfect place, if it wasn't for their ruthless ruler.

With the clop of the horses on the dry grass and the small talk in the wagon, the evening came to a close and the group decided to rest for the night.

Everyone hopped off the wagon and they walked into the forest. K'aarin guided the horses as Dynea searched for a spot to stay.

The forest was known to be dark and a bit of a maze, and that showed when Dynea looked around in confusion, not really knowing if she's been there already or not.

Eventually, the party decided on a place close enough to the main path, but still not too in the open.

K'aarin tied the reigns of the horses tightly around a tree, making sure they wouldn't escape during the night.

As a few bedrolls laid on the grass, K'aarin started to pick up a few branches off the ground, and Grund'ir took out a glass bottle from his backpack. It contained a dark yellow colored liquid, and it let out a bit of foam as it was poured into a tankard.

Dynea crouched down next to a tree, and spoke in a soft voice. "Hello there, do you live here?"

"Yes! Live! Here! I live here! Yes!" The rabbit said quickly, her ears twitching around.

"Is it safe to live here?" She asked.

"Safe? Safe! No! Yes!" It spoke frantically, her eyes darting towards the deeper part of the forest. "Danger! People!"

And then, the rabbit darted in the opposite direction, before Dynea could do or say anything.

She slowly stood up and regrouped with the others.

Dolgus, whose name she now knew thanks to Grund'ir mentioning it, sat on a rock with a dagger and a piece of wood in his hands, and Jihdor stood behind him, standing motionless as a little hummingbird rested on his broken horn.

The small Satyr giggled at the sight, but then the male looked at her and she flinched and walked with her head down towards the wagon, where she set down her bag.

When K'aarin returned with the wood, the set it down in a pile, then reached for the tinderbox in her backpack to successfully light a fire.

"Ah propose a toast!" Grund'ir said as he raised the bottle he previously poured himself. Before anyone could refuse, he poured a glass for each member, and walked around the fire to hand them their own cup, except for Jihdor.

When he talked in front of Dynea, he paused, thought about it, shrugged and gave her the tankard anyways.

He then sat down where he once was, and raised his cup high. "To... this new party!" He said loudly, but nobody really matched his energy.

Dolgus raised his tankard with a bit of hesitation, Dynea just stared at the weird liquid and K'aarin decided to take a sniff before putting that anywhere near her mouth.

The strong smell immediately made her flinch backwards and squint her eyes. She looked around after a second, and Grund'ir was staring at her with a small smile. He nodded, and K'aarin sighed, raising her cup.

"There ye go!" He said, followed by a "Cheers!". The man immediately gulped his drink down, and Dolgus joined him.

K'aarin took a taste of the drink first, and it was pretty strong. It wasn't her first time drinking alcohol, but her village's alcohols were much finer than this.

She finally gulped some down, and it burned all the way down to her stomach, and she felt it set on her chest.

The woman winced and shook her head, and glanced around the fire.

Grund'ir was taking it down like it was pure water, used to his own alcohols.

Dolgus, on the other hand, coughed in pain as he felt fire form in his stomach.

K'aarin's eyes widened and she turned to Dynea, taking the cup away from her hands. "I don't think you should," She warned.

Dynea looked up at her, then back at Dolgus. "I wasn't going to anyways," she said with a muffled chuckle.

"Oy! Yar makin fun'ah me!" Dolgus yelled and unsheathed his dagger, pointing it at the girl.

She let out a yelp and hid behind her own ears, long enough to cover her eyes.

"Feckin kids," He mumbled as he took another swig of the drink, coughing up again.

After a bit of drinking and eating rations, came the time to finally go to sleep.

"Are we going to take turns?" Grund'ir asked, and Dynea spoke before anyone else could. "Actually, I was talking to a rabbit before, and she said there's... People in the forest." She explained, and Dolgus chuckled loudly.

"Ye think a puckle bandits ar' gonna scare me?!"

"We should still be careful," K'aarin stated, and Grund'ir nodded.

"We could tak' turns 2 at a time an' stay awake fur a couple hoors, so we can be ready fur whatever comes our way."

Dolgus grunted and sighed.

After a bit of discussing, the group came to a conclusion: K'aarin would stay awake for 4 hours, pairing with Jihdor for the first two hours and Dynea for the next two, then Grund'ir and Dolgus would stay up for two hours, leaving Grund'ir to stay up alone for the remaining two hours, since he slept until noon that day.

And so the night shifts started with K'aarin and Jihdor.

Everyone else slipped into their bedrolls and slowly drifted into sleep. The first two hours went on without anything happing, and K'aarin took that time to give a fast prayer to her deity. Afterwads, she slowly stirred Dynea awake. "Is it my turn?" She asked, still half asleep. The elf nodded and the girl sat up with a grunt.

When Dynea was finally up, Jihdor fell asleep as well, too big and tall to fit in his bedroll, so he used it as a blanket.

After half an hour, Dynea's ears perked up and she stood as still as a rock as her head turned towards what it sounded like a branch snapped.

K'aarin turned towards the sound as well, and grasped the bow she left leaning over her backpack.

They waited, but nothing really happened for a few minutes.

The elf let go of the bow, thinking it was probably a forest animal startled by the fire.

And they went back to relaxing and waiting for the time to pass.

After around an hour, a small flock of birds flew from a nearby tree, and K'aarin immediately grabbed her bow and shot an arrow towards the tree branches.

Upon impact, the two girls heard a grunt and a small hiss.

The elf immediately prepared another arrow.

"Show yourself." She commanded, and from the tree, a humanoid jumped down while holding his left forearm, where the arrow pierced him.

"State your purpose," She demanded, and from under the black hood, she noticed the creature smirk, and the woman heard a bunch of chuckles surrounding her.

"Guys! Wake up!" Dynea yelled, noticing the bandits surrounding the camp.

The girl counted 3 of them — 4 with the wounded bandit.

One of them stood out more than the others, standing a bit shorter than K'aarin, but still bulkier and more muscle defined.

A red bandana was wrapped on his head, and the blue sleeveless top revealed his scarred forearms.

Scimitar in hand, the man swung his weapon towards Dynea, but she quickly stepped backwards with a loud yelp.

The man swings a second time, this time hitting her as she was about to dodge again, hitting her right on her left shoulder, and as his blade turned a crimson red, he swung again, this time reaching only a bit of the fur on the woman's leg.

Seeing Dynea get hit and her blood paint the weapon, K'aarin's eyes turned white, as she summoned a ray of light, striking the bandit right on his chest.

The man grunted and his neck snapped towards her. The elf firmly held her ground, and her eyes turned to Dynea. The same, faint light surrounded the girl once more, and she felt safer immediately.

Upon hearing the commotion, the short dwarf stumbled awake, and when his eyes landed on the people surrounding him and the party, he jumped out of his bedroll and unsheathes his daggers, throwing one at the nearest bandit with a loud "Take that ye cunt!".

Upon impact, Dolgus noticed that the dagger hit his leather armor, but he did catch a glipse of pain in his expression.

Next to wake up was Jihdor after hearing Dolgus's voice. The man immediately stood up and unsheathed his sword. His eyes firing in rage as he dashed towards the bandit Dolgus just attacked, and as his sword raised high above his head, he slashed down the halfling who stood no chance against the half giant.

With a single strike, the bandit fell on the floor in a puddle of blood, as the poor man's arm detached from his body.

"Feck yeeeaaahh!!" Dolgus yelled with his fist raised.

Jihdor breathed heavily and he turned around towards the rest of the bandits.

Suddenly, Grund'ir was startled awake by the loud profanities being shouted and he looked around at his surroundings: A dead halfling in black robes and a missing arm laid a few feet away from him, Dynea was bleeding and a glowing, steroids filled man stood with his sword pointed at her.

He immediately stood with a mumbled "Oh shit!", as he dashed for his bag and grabbed his warhammer, then dashed again towards the tallest bandit, who also looked like the strongest.

Grund'ir took a strike, but unfortunately missed as the male took a step back. Their eyes locked and the bandit smirked.

Filled with anger as he felt himself be mocked, he took another strike, but the man blocked the attack with his own scimitar.

"Is that all you got?" The man laughed loudly, his voice as low and rumbly as an earthquake. "Don't make me laugh," he added.

Dynea, fearing the bandit's attack, lightly touched Grund'ir's shoulder, and he felt an overwhelming feeling fill his guts, as vitality grew in him.

"K'aarin, please! You got this!" She said towards the woman. She nodded, feeling the magic flow inside of her.

The bandit that was shot by K'aarin grabs the arrow and pulls it out of his forearm, blood dripping on the grass.

He chuckled to himself as he cocked out his own arrow and loaded his crossbow, taking a shot towards K'aarin.

As the arrow fired and hit, the elf felt the arrow pierce her stomach, and she coughed out blood as the bandit chuckled, then laughed loudly. "Die die die! Gold gold gold!" He chanted louder and louder. His voice was high pitched and his words came out of his mouth pretty fast.

The second bandit, still untouched by the party, joined the other with his chant as he fired his crossbow at his closest target: Dynea, but due to his loud chanting, she was able to avoid his shot with ease. The bandit, who appeared to be a goblin, now started to chant in an angrier tone.

"Calm down, my friends! They've got enough gold for all of us," The leader said with a smirk, and at the word "Gold", the bandits got louder than before.

The bandit clenched his scimitar and slashed his weapon at Grund'ir, hitting him on the forearm as well, and before he could react, the blade swung at his round hip, slashing through his chainmail and slightly reaching his skin.

As the blade made contact with his hip, he took a step back, managing to avoid his third slash. "Have you had your fun now?! Because I haven't!" The male said with a laugh.

K'aarin couldn't stand him any longer.

She cast the same spell again, and a ray of white bolts darted for the bandit, but he managed to dodge. "Not a second time, Elf."

The woman clicked her tongue and summoned her black blade, and as it flew at fast speed, it made contact with the man, dealing it's fair share of damage.

"How about that one, then?" She mocked, expressionless.

The male let out a throaty grunt in response.

As the fight kept unfolding, the two bandits, both goblins, kept yelling their chant and Dolgus let out a loud yell. "Ah can't feckin stand these guys!" He said as he threw his other dagger at the wounded bandit, but his hand slipped due to the loud yell they let out in return for his, so instead of hitting the goblin, the dagger got stuck into the tree trunk right next to it.

"Feckin dammit!" He yelled, and something hit his head. As he looked in that direction, he noticed a squirrel yelling something and throwing nuts at his head.

"Feck off! Stop tha'!" He yelled at the squirrel, who hit him right in the eye.

As the banter continued, Jihdor decided to dash forwards and swung his sword to the goblin who was making fun of Dolgus.

The creature, due to his small stature, dodged with ease and started mocking him as well.

His hand started shivering with pure anger.

The bandit then felt a shiver go down his spine as he actually looked up with his nose to the sky.

Then, Grund'ir decided to try again and swing his warhammer once more, this time hitting the bandit's foot, making him yell out in pain. "How 'bout that one?!"

On the other hand, Dynea, in a panicked state, faced the crackling fire and decided to cast magic on it, making it turn into a louder and faster crackling sounds, and a blinding light came out of the fire instead.

Everyone in the close proximity immediately closed their eyes or covered them with their hands, except for the bandit who was still in pain.

The injured bandit, face to face with a 8'2 half giant, took out his scimitar with a trembling hand and swung his sword around, missing completely. Jihdor stared down at him. The small creature chuckled awkwardly and started running the opposite way.

Jihdor, instead of letting him leave alive, decided to swing his sword vertically towards the goblin, but he was much faster and escaped his own death.

The second bandit, much braver than the other, took another shot towards the Satyr, hitting her right in the thigh.

Upon hit, the goblin laughs and spins around in a weird dance.

Dynea falls to the ground in pain as the second bolt hits a nerve and her legs smasms. She lets out a small cry as tears fall down her cheeks. Her companion, Froggory, who kept hidden inside her bag, immediately jumped out and croaked towards the girl.

Dynea noticed and turned towards the frog. "No, go back! It's dangerous," she said weakly, but the frog refused to leave her alone.

The leader, still blinded by the colorful lights, swings his sword around, trying to hit the target in front of him.

With quick steps, Grund'ir manages to dodge, but his heavy bootfall gave out his position, making the last strike slash him in the arm.

"Not so fast, little dwarf," The blinded man mocked, and Grund'ir clicked his tongue.

K'aarin, upon seeing blood drip down from Dynea's thigh, rushes over and with her left hand on the girl, she starts chanting her healing spell, "Please, oh Diancecht, lend me your powers and cure her wounds."

As the words left her mouth, the majority of the wounds slowly started to close, but the arrow on her thigh stayed still. "Thank you," She said faintly, her voice shivering in fear.

K'aarin's eyes looked past her, towards the goblin who had a finger inside his nostril.

With a movement of her hand, the floating black dagger darted towards the goblin, and the latter, upon seeing it, jumped to the left and dodged with a yell.

After running out of nuts, the squirrels decided to leave Dolgus alone for the time being.

The dwarf let out an exasperated sigh when he saw the fight happening a few feet away from him, so he unsheathed his shortsword and dashed towards the bandit leader. His blade made contact with the bare calves of the male, and he yelped out in pain as he was hit on the same leg twice in a span of a few minutes.

"Cunt!" He yelled as his blade pierced his skin and muscle with a bit of a struggle.

When the yell reached his ears, Jihdor immediately turned and ran towards the guy Dolgus was fighting against.

His longsword slashed throught the air, hitting the man's chest and making him fall backwards.

Jihdor stood on top of the bandit's body, and as he slowly regained his vision, the first thing he was able to see was a sword flying straight in his face.

He managed to dodge by moving his neck to the side, and the half giant's legs kept him trapped there.

Grund'ir looked down at the man, then up to Jihdor. He let out a deep breath and reached a hand to Jihdor, placing it on his back.

"He's almost dead, an' he canno' run away anyways," He said, hinting at the injured leg, but the male stood still with his sword still in his hands.

Everyone kept quiet for a second, then they heard the goblin giggle and a dart shoot from his crossbow.

The arrow hit Jihdor straight in his chest, and the man looked up to the bandit.

The short man stopped mid-giggle, Jihdor's aura making him shiver and gulp loudly.

Jihdor reached for the arrow, took it out of his chest and crumbled it with a single hand, making the wood pieces fall on the bandit's face.

The smaller bandit took a step back, then two, then he turned around and ran away.

"Well that was fun ainnit?" Dolgus clapped his hands together, as if dusting them off, then cleaned the bloodied blade on the leader's bandana.

"Kill me," the male said with a furrowed brow. Jihdor raised his sword and Dynea immediately looked the other way.

"Wait wait wait!" Dolgus said loudly, making Jihdor stop.

The dwarf immediately started searching in the bandit's pockets. "You couldn't have... done that after I was dead?" The man asked, a bloody cough leaving his lungs.

"Ah don't loot dead bodies. Tha's gross."

After troughly investigating the body, Dolgus slowly slips off the bandit's bandana, just because he "Took a liking to it", his golden earrings, and two leather pouches.

He then chuckled and wobbled away with a "Ye can kill 'em now!"

After those words, the sword fell with immense speed right in the middle of his throat.

Grund'ir let out a disgusted grunt and Dynea still had her head turned around.

K'aarin sighed, stood up and dragged the male's body away from the camp and into the forest with a bit of struggle.

"There was no need ta do that," Grund'ir said to Dolgus, but he simply shrugged. "He was gonnae die anyways."

"But we shouldn't kill folks."

"Yer goin ta feckin war! Watch'ye gonna do? Pick flowers?!" Dolgus yelled as he opened one of the leather pouches.

With a small gasp he whispered "Shiny" and investigated the small gemstones inside the pouch.

Grund'ir sighed and walked off, not extremely happy to let Dolgus keep all the loot, but he wouldn't win with only a traumatized child by his side.

As he approached said traumatized child, he noticed her talking to herself.

"But what should I have done?"

"I know, but I couldn't do anything!"

"Thank you, Froggory."

"Yes, of course."

She then giggled and Grund'ir got closer.

Her ears twitched and she turned towards the dwarf, and that's when he noticed that she was holding her frog on her hands.

"Who ye talkin' to?" He asked, sitting next to her.

"Oh, just Froggory." She smiled when she looked down at the purple animal. "An' how'dye do that?" He curiously asked.

"Magic!"

Grund'ir hummed, then asked again. "An' what did he say?"

"Oh, he was just telling me to be careful. He's a very nice mister," as she said so, her finger gently scratched the animal's head, and he croaked in response.

A few minutes passed, and Grund'ir stayed to talk with Dynea just to distract her for a little bit.

When K'aarin returned, she picked up the bandit's weapon and tossed it towards the bags they kept in a pile.

"Where'd ye go?" Grund'ir asked.

The woman silently sat down next to Grund'ir. "Even if he was a human and a murderer, he deserves to go into the afterlife," She explained, thinking the bandit probably had a family.

Grund'ir nodded. "Dolgus took everythin', by the way," He added, and K'aarin sighed.

That's when the short dwarf approached, and a small leather bag was tossed on the floor in front of them.

Then, he quietly wobbled away and slipped into his bedroll.

Grund'ir opened the bag and noticed a few coins glimmer through the opening. He turned the bag upside down and he counted 6 gold, 9 silver and 5 copper coins.

The dwarf let out a surprised chuckle. "Ah wouldn't have expected tha' from him".

He shared the money equally, since everyone did do their own part.

Dynea hesitantly took the coins, since she felt useless through the fight.

The only thing she did was a few pretty lights.

And so, with 2 gold, 3 silver and 2 copper each — except for Dynea, who only got one — added to their pouches, everyone decided to sleep the rest of the night, since they were all pretty banged up and tired from the fight.