Faefalling (working title)

13- Daemon calls about the expiration date on my friends

Maybe this has gone over some of your heads, wonderful readers, but the grand majority of my time during these past few chapters has been spent walking, or in some cases running for dear life. Now, knowing how riveting that is to read, I'm pleased to declare that we'll be starting off with more of the same.

We walked. Agaveah up front, Lazuli and I trailing. Putting one foot in front of the other had become a mindless game. We did so in silence. The sprinkle turned to a drizzle; each step a slosh. By the look of the angry clouds overhead, it didn't plan on slowing anytime soon.

Fatigue soon gnawed at my bones, a feeling I'd grown accustomed to during the past days of cat and mouse. Agaveah on the other hand seemed right as rain. I supposed lassitude was a foreign concept when you slept in a tree for hundreds of years. Still, I wasn't about to be outdone by a nymph. I kept my mouth shut even as my legs grew evermore weary.

I felt it as we left Réimse Fola. A stifling presence lifted from my shoulders, one that'd been almost unnoticed even as it weighed me down. I took in a breath of unsullied air and straightened my slouch, finally free from the oppressive fog. The landscape opened around us. The prairie morphed into a gradual hill. As the remaining mist parted, I stared up in awe at the vast highlands ahead of us.

The moon rested between two snow-crested peaks. Shining, it illuminated the sparsely vegetated incline. The few shrubs that did grow were small and shrivelled, just barely hanging on to life. A cool breeze rumbled through my braids. It was refreshing. Could've been even more so if there weren't pebble-sized droplets crashing down on me as well.

Agaveah halted; Lazuli and I tottered to a stop behind her. Raising her head for the first time since our walk had begun, Lazuli marvelled at the landscape. The rise and fall of her chest seemed rapid, her face pale. My concern spiked.

"Nymph, any chance we could take a breather?" I asked.

She turned, eyeing me as if I was some enormous burden resting solely on her shoulders. She was about to shake her head when her gaze crossed Lazuli's. An understanding passed, and Agaveah nodded.

"You set up," she said before walking off into the gloom.

I grabbed Lazuli's wrist and rushed us under the nearest tree, ducking to get beneath the safety of its branches. Even then, the rain was only tampered, but it was better than nothing. Dripping, Lazuli dropped down, gripping my cloak as she shivered. I plopped next to her. Most conversations we'd ever held had been prompted by the human, and I found myself at a loss for what to say, or do, to ease her discomfort. I couldn't very well pull her closer after the day we'd had, the things we'd seen and done... could I? Agaveah spared me the chance to find out, unceremoniously dropping a stack of sticks and foliage at my feet.

"Make a fire. The human needs warmth." She turned her gaze to Lazuli. "As for you, rest. I'll see both of you in the morning." Her tone with Lazuli was compassionate. She seemed to be taking quite a liking to the beour.

The nymph waltzed over to the tree and, placing a hand on its trunk, vanished. Her body melted, dissipating into the plant. I sat motionless for a moment, eyes wide as I wondered if she'd reemerge. When the bark remained solid, I turned my attention to the kindling and gathered it into some semblance of an orderly pile.

Gods, I thought, I wonder how many trees I've touched have had nymphs in them... For some reason, the thought was quite uncomfortable. I shook my head.

Rummaging around, I found two stones and set to work. Under normal circumstances, it would've taken an instant to get the flames started. That night though, my hands moved clumsily, as if they weren't my own. I cursed and threw one of the rocks. It thudded onto the soft ground and rolled away. As I got up to fetch it with a sigh, Lazuli tapped my back. It was harder than it should've been to ignore the immediate instinct to lash out. She was holding out something small, a black rectangle of some sort.