Feyrith wasn't sure what to do other than awkwardly wait for Ralis and Enaryl to finish arguing. He wasn't even sure why Ralis leaving and Enaryl staying here was such a problem. It was the logical solution. Enaryl, being less powerful, could help Sunwood survive in their absence, while Ralis would help them survive in the jungle.
But he was going to stay out of this because it was none of his business. He'd learned not to involve himself in these things during his time among the humans, and he had to admit, while it felt a little strange still, it was rather freeing.
He just wished Ayd, Lanna, or Arbane would arrive already so it wasn't just him and the two elves. He pretended to busy himself checking his bag if he'd brought enough food with him as the two continued to argue. He was standing a bit away from them, but not enough to be able to ignore the conversation.
"Why did you think I would be okay with staying here while you risk your life in the jungle?" Enaryl asked, sounding more dismayed than irritated now. It was interesting how more and more both Ralis and Enaryl seemed less willing to hide their emotions. Feyrith was starting to think they hadn't been doing it as much as they should on Aendor, either.
"I didn't," Ralis replied, her voice low. For reasons unknown to him, Feyrith now felt even more awkward. He was starting to consider leaving and returning here at a later time when someone else was here as well.
"But it's the right thing to do," Ralis continued. "These humans need protection."
Enaryl sighed. Feyrith expected her to say something, but when nothing but silence followed, he looked at them, his eyes widening. The two elves were now...kissing. Feyrith ducked his gaze immediately, turning around to leave for a bit given how much like an intruder he felt, but before he could even take a single step, Ayd showed up from behind a nearby house, smiling when he saw Feyrith. And then his eyes settled on Ralis and Enaryl.
"Figures," Ayd said when he reached Feyrith, looking at the two female elves with what seemed to be amusement. "I was wondering why they came here so eagerly. I bet the Council doesn't like them having relations when they won't get new elves out of it."
None of what Ayd had just said made sense to Feyrith at all. Why would two elves have relations, as Ayd had put it, without the goal of reproducing? That was how humans did things, not elves. They were just fundamentally different when it came to that sort of thing. Arbane had told him about human relationships when Feyrith had asked him how they worked, and Feyrith had certainly never felt anything like what the man had described.
But he didn't want to ask. He couldn't help but worry that he would appear stupid and that Ayd might mock him for his confusion. Feyrith wasn't sure when he'd started to worry about what Ayd thought of him, but he certainly worried now.
Hearing Ralis say something quietly to Enaryl, Feyrith looked over his shoulder at them, only to see Ralis walking toward them and away from Enaryl.
"Good, the Cursed one is here." Her voice was very flat. She didn't sound annoyed exactly, but Feyrith could tell that she was. He turned around properly, sighing when he saw Ayd's scowl. Feyrith almost wished that of the two Enaryl was going with them. While he was sure she thought too many good things about elves like Ayd, at least she hadn't expressed those thoughts yet. But Ralis was more powerful, and they would need all the help they could get if they were to survive.
But thankfully before either Ralis or Ayd could say something to make the situation worse, Lanna and Arbane arrived. They had surprisingly small bags on their backs, but then Feyrith hadn't brought too much with him either. They did need food, but the more they had to carry, the slower they would be, which would make them more vulnerable, so it all made perfect sense.
Not to mention that they could eat one of the many beasts lurking in the jungle if they had to.
"Sorry we're late. Had to convince a bunch of people we are not suicidal or crazy," Lanna said, huffing. Her usually sunny disposition was clouded with annoyance.
"Hey, they're just worried," Arbane said, but his words sounded half-hearted. He didn't seem very happy either, not that Feyrith could blame either of them.
"You do not have to come with us," said Ralis, but Lanna immediately shook her head.
"Oh, we're going."
Ralis raised an eyebrow. "I simply fail to understand why you wish to risk your lives like this. You are only human, after all."
Lanna narrowed her eyes, likely about to start a fight, but Feyrith thankfully managed to speak before she could. "Humans are surprisingly competent at fighting the beasts. Lanna and Arbane have proven themselves time and time again."
"Very well," Ralis said almost immediately, apparently not interested in arguing with any of them. "Then we can depart." She turned back to Enaryl, who was now standing behind her, and kissed her forehead, brushing hair away from it, which once more made Feyrith look away. He just didn't feel like he should be staring at them during this. "I will return to you. I promise."
Enaryl sighed, but she said nothing. Which meant that it was time to go.
+++++++
Much to Feyrith's surprise, they brought their quasir along. He'd assumed that they would traverse the jungle on foot, but Ralis' plan was to ride alongside it until they felt another one of those earthquakes, which would help them pinpoint where exactly to go. Not to mention that it was possible to ride within the jungle, as well, even if it was more difficult, so bringing the quasir with them was in general a good idea, he supposed.
Still, having them with them might make it easier for the jungle beasts to find them, not to mention how disastrous it could be should any of the quasir get scared by something and panic. But those were all problems for a future time. First, they needed to find a good spot to enter the jungle, as close to the source of the earthquake he'd felt earlier as possible. They were only hoping that was where they needed to go, but what other choice did they have? They had no more clues to follow.
At least he wasn't nearly as nervous anymore, though. The farther they got from Sunwood, the more collected he felt, though he wasn't sure why. He didn't dare think about the reason, however, so he couldn't make himself anxious about it, and instead, he was simply glad for his relative peace of mind.
They'd been heading south for hours now, going around the jungle from the other side than during the not very successful stretch of journey to the mountain ruin Feyrith had made alone. Feyrith wasn't sure if there was a point to that or not, but he supposed it didn't matter. They would have to venture deep into the jungle, either way, the side they did it from made no difference as far as he could see.
Things were peaceful, but if anything, that just put him on edge. They'd not come across any beasts so far, which after the last time they'd been out here seemed suspicious. But no matter how deadly, these were still animals, and most of them did not form packs, so this was not some coordinated effort to get them to lose their guard.
Not much was said as they kept going, even as the sun rose high above them. Feyrith wondered if within the jungle, the sun would even be visible. He certainly hoped so, but he couldn't help but imagine the jungle's deep reaches as pitch black and terrifying. The gap in elven knowledge when it came to it was simply unnerving to him.
But his thoughts abruptly stopped there before he could make himself anxious by thinking more about them as his mount flinched. And he could feel it too. That distant earthquake he'd felt—he could feel it now once more. Except it was stronger, the rumbling louder. Which meant they must have been closer than before.
Everyone let out alarmed sounds as their quasir cawed and tensed up, calming down only once the tremor had passed. A few distant roars could be heard, but Feyrith couldn't see any beasts escaping the jungle this time, so hopefully, they were safe for the time being.
"Okay, I felt something that time," Arbane said, his eyes wide as he kept stroking the side of Aggra's neck. The quasir didn't seem upset anymore at all, though.
"This is what you experienced before?" Ralis asked, looking more intrigued than disturbed, even though Feyrith was certain she should be. Something was shaking the ground in a place where no natural earthquakes were supposed to happen. She frowned in thought as she peered into the jungle, which was stretching out on the hill on their right. "It came from the southwest."
"So," Lanna said, looking at all of them, "do we go in?"
The way she said those words was so casual that Feyrith almost laughed. But truly, he was grateful. He had no idea how she or Arbane could keep their cool in these situations, but he was immensely impressed by it. It never failed to make him calmer.
"If we wish to find the source of the noise, then entering the jungle would be the logical thing to do," Ralis said, though she didn't seem very fond of the idea, her eyebrows knitted together, her lips drawn down into a frown. "The jungle is so vast at this point that I doubt we can estimate with any accuracy where the best point of entry would be. But if you would like to keep heading south and wait for another one of these earthquakes, we can of course do that as well."
Feyrith said nothing, waiting for the others because he saw issues with both of their options and therefore wasn't sure himself what he'd choose on his own, but it very quickly became apparent that the others didn't seem to share that viewpoint.
"I say let's just go in," Ayd spoke up, looking at the jungle, determination in his eyes. "With the way things have been, we have about as big of a chance of being attacked out here as we do in there."
Ralis said nothing, looking at the two humans instead, but neither Lanna nor Arbane expressed their opinion through words, only shrugging and nodding, though despite that, they didn't seem unsure or afraid.
"Very well," Ralis said, turning her quasir so it was facing the jungle. "Onward."
Feyrith swallowed as he began to follow Ralis up the hill, his insides quivering as the shadows cast by the tall trees fell over them. Everything was still, aside from faint birdsong, but Feyrith doubted it was coming from the jungle. Birds seemed to avoid the place for the most part.
To his surprise, Ralis took barely a second to pause before nudging her quasir to walk between the trees, entering the jungle without a single word. Feyrith followed, looking back at Lanna, who was just behind him. She gave him a small but genuine smile, which he had to admit did help him relax, if only slightly.
The jungle was less intimidating during the day, he had to admit. Streaks of sunlight lit up spaces between the trees, their leaves green and vibrant, and he could see relatively far around them as well, the sun offering enough light to be able to do so. But Feyrith knew better than to let himself be comforted by that. The jungle's unnatural silence let him know that the place was dangerous, no matter how pleasant it may look, or how nice the somewhat cooler air felt compared to the world outside of the jungle.
Feyrith threw another glance over his shoulder, looking at Arbane and Ayd who were just behind Lanna. Arbane seemed a little unnerved, his eyes flicking from one tree to the next, but Ayd seemed especially nervous, even though it was almost as if he was disguising it with anger, his hands clenched around his quasir's reins, constantly looking around as if at any point they could be attacked. Despite what he'd said, it seemed he was not as unbothered by the idea of being in this place as he'd seemed just a moment ago.
Feyrith felt his heart clench with concern. Ayd must have never been in the jungle before. Or perhaps he had been and the experience had been terrible, much like Feyrith's. He truly wondered why he himself wasn't more scared of being here now that he didn't even have magic, but perhaps the fact that they were here in a group, and also that they had a powerful magic user with them helped somewhat.
No one dared speak as their quasir slowly but surely made their way deeper and deeper into the jungle. It was so silent that Feyrith was almost afraid of breathing freely, feeling like he might give away their position through it, even though fallen leaves and broken branches cracked and crinkled under the quasir's feet, producing much louder noise.
He had no idea how Ralis was managing to keep heading southwest in this maze of trees, bushes, ferns, and vines, or even if she was managing to do so, but he questioned nothing, just happy that he wasn't the one leading the group. The deeper they got, the darker the jungle became, and he knew it wasn't simply the sun setting because it couldn't yet be time for that. Sunset was hours away still, even though it was difficult to tell in here.
He flinched when he heard something snap behind him, everyone's heads immediately turning to see what it was, but as Feyrith peered into the shadows surrounding them, he couldn't see anything, and judging by no one saying anything, they couldn't find anything either.
The air seemed to grow hotter and thicker as they trudged on, thankfully still able to traverse the jungle without having to get off their mounts. He'd thought that at this point the jungle would have grown too thick to do this, but the quasir didn't seem to struggle much at all, and there was still plenty of space for them to move between the tall trees. In fact, Feyrith would likely have more trouble walking than being carried by his quasir.
It wasn't long before Feyrith heard another noise, this time a loud rustling coming from his left, but when he looked that way, once more there was nothing. He sighed and took a deep breath, trying to calm down his rapidly beating heart. There was no danger as far as he could tell, but he still could barely keep his hands from shaking. And looking at the others, he could tell they were on high alert too, even more so than before.
Catching a flash of something in the corner of his eye, Feyrith quickly turned his head the other way, but once again there was nothing there.
"I think we should go faster," Arbane whispered, but his voice was loud in the incredible stillness anyway. No one argued, Ralis nudging her quasir to increase its pace.
They would have to stop soon. Their quasir were tired after the long journey, especially given that they'd pushed them to go faster than they might normally go in an effort to cover as much ground in as little time as possible. Despite his own quasir's bulged-out eyes and tense body, Feyrith could tell it was exhausted by how low it was holding its head. But before they could stop, they would have to find a suitable place to set up their tent.
Just as he thought that and was about to try to find a spot, though, he heard Ayd let out a gasp.
"There!" the elf yelled, making everyone look at him. Seeing Ayd point at something, Feyrith immediately followed his finger, only for his blood to run cold. A large, winged beast was watching them from a tree, its yellow eyes glinting in the darkness and its claws gripping onto the tree trunk. But Feyrith wasn't given the chance to study it further as it hissed at them and disappeared behind the trees the next second.
"That was the same thing that destroyed my village," Ayd said, his voice strained, blindly reaching for his bow, not taking his eyes off the spot where the animal had been for even a second. "And it hunted in a pack."
Ayd didn't need to say more for everyone to get what he was trying to say. If these beasts hunted in packs, then there were more close by. Which meant they needed to get out of here.
Everyone pushed their quasir to go faster as they ventured ever deeper into the jungle, not paying much attention to where they were going aside from away. Feyrith continued to follow Ralis, trying not to get hit in the face by a vine or a branch as they zipped past one tree after another. But even as they ran, filling the space with noise, he could hear other, louder noises all around them. Snapping of branches too far behind them to have been made by any of them, the beating of wings, and growling.
Feeling his heart hammering against his ribcage, Feyrith risked a glance over his shoulder, only for his insides to twist in fear. There were four of the creatures chasing them, running and jumping, using their wings to leap over longer distances to catch up with them easier. To catch up with their prey.
By then the quasir had noticed as well, no doubt able to smell the beasts as well as hear them and it was taking all of Feyrith's strength just to keep his quasir going in a straight line. Thankfully, unlike last time, Feyrith wasn't in the jungle alone, and everyone else also had a quasir. Their mounts' instincts were telling them to stick together, which was likely the only thing keeping them in a group at the moment.
"They're gaining on us!" he heard Lanna yell, but he didn't turn his head to look. He had no idea how they were going to get away from these beasts if they could keep up with them easily, but he just focused on keeping his quasir moving, staring at Ralis' back and not looking anywhere else. At least not until he heard Lanna cry out. And then a crash followed.
Feyrith pulled at the reins hard, making his quasir stop in its tracks despite how scared it was and forcing it to turn around even as one of the beasts chasing them leaped over them, stopping Ralis as it cut off her path.
But Feyrith didn't pay attention to that one. No, all he could see was Lanna trying to pick herself off the ground where she was lying next to her injured quasir while one of the beasts inched closer and closer to her. Not hesitating for even a second, Feyrith jumped off his quasir and pulled his bow off his back, shooting an arrow before he could even give himself enough time to aim properly. But despite that, he still struck his target, hitting the beast in its neck.
The animal roared in pain, running off while Feyrith readied another arrow, already shooting at the other two. Arbane and Ayd were doing the same, while Ralis was fighting off the beast attacking her. Feyrith could hear her channeling magic and yelling spells, but he didn't look her way, too preoccupied trying to keep the beasts from killing anyone.
He shot arrow after arrow, doing his best to keep his quasir steady, but it quickly became apparent that more than four beasts were attacking them. For every one they managed to drive off, another took its place. Slowly but surely they were being pushed back, especially with Lanna barely able to fight. Feyrith couldn't take his eyes away from the beasts for long enough to guess where she was hurt, but he knew she must have been.
Ralis flung harsh wind and fire at the beasts, making them scatter, but only for a moment before they were advancing on them again, their snarls and screeches far too loud. They were surrounded now, likely the only reason no one's quasir had panicked and run off yet because there was nowhere to run.
Seeing one of the beasts about to try to take a bite out of Ayd, Feyrith pulled his bow back once more, but before he could shoot, golden light enveloped them as Ralis summoned a strong shield. The beasts shrunk away, but only for a moment before they started to claw at the shield, attempting to break through it.
Feyrith threw a look at Ralis. No matter how tightly she clutched her staff, no matter how much training she'd had summoning shields, it was only a matter of time before she became too exhausted to keep the shield up. They needed to think of something before then, but it was hard to think through his building panic at being surrounded, the beasts trying to bite at the shield, and his quasir, flinching under him at every growl.
"We need to get out of here!" Ayd yelled over the noise, clenching his fits around his quasir's reigns to keep it steady.
"We can't move! Lanna's hurt," Arbane snapped at him from where he was standing with Lanna, an arm around her shoulders to support her. With the way she was leaning on him, Lanna didn't seem to be able to stand on her own, much less walk. With the shield lighting everything up, it was very easy to see the red stain on her trousers, going from her knee down.
Feyrith looked around, trying to find the two humans' mounts, only to spot both Aggra and Stomper huddled close near a tree. Aggra was licking Stomper's feathers, but judging by how the poor beast was laying down, he was fairly certain one of its hind legs was hurt, likely broken, stretched out at an unnatural angle. There was no moving it unless Ralis healed it, and she would be able to heal neither Lanna nor the quasir unless she put the shield away. It simply required too much concentration.
They were stuck.
"Well, what the hell do we do, then?!" Ayd yelled, looking around frantically, his eyes blown wide with fear. Grabbing his quasir's reins tighter, Feyrith rushed to get to Ayd to calm him down somehow, even though he had no idea how to do that, but before he could reach him, the ground rumbled beneath their feet, and a chorus of ear-piercing, agonized shrieking followed.
Feyrith spun around, trying to understand what was happening, only to see a spike of rock shoot up from the ground, piercing one of the beasts' chests, making it fall to the ground, dead. More spikes shot up all around, making the animals bolt and run away, limping and shrieking as they went.
And then finally, there was silence, only broken by everyone's heavy breathing. It was still the same unnatural silence that seemed to fill the entire jungle, but right now Feyrith was glad for it. They were going to live for a while longer at least it seemed. But who had saved—
Feyrith's eyes grew wide when he saw the figure a little away from them, riding a quasir and panting. It was Enaryl.
The shield around them shimmered and disappeared, throwing them back into darkness, but even like this Feyrith could see Enaryl from where he was standing. He only then managed to get over his shock enough to move, and after Ralis passed him to go tend to Lanna and her mount, he walked up to Ayd who was still standing next to his quasir, tense.
"Are you all right?" Feyrith asked, not sure what else to say, but it seemed Ayd himself wasn't very interested in talking right now. He just gave a quick nod, his eyes still searching around for potential enemies in the shadows.
Feyrith wasn't given enough time to say anything else and likely make a fool of himself as Enaryl jumped off her mount and came to join them, still breathing hard. She looked exhausted, leaning on her mount as she went, but that was to be expected after controlling the earth like she had. Feyrith hadn't even known she could do that. Earth magic was very difficult, and he himself hadn't managed to do much aside from moving rocks. Shaping them was another matter entirely.
"You were supposed to stay in Sunwood," Ralis said curtly, not even looking at Enaryl as she healed Lanna's leg.
Enaryl just shook her head as she threw her staff over her shoulder. "You are welcome."
Finished with the healing, Ralis looked at Enaryl for a second but said nothing before moving on to Lanna's injured quasir. The poor beast flinched and whimpered when she touched its leg, but as soon Ralis cast a healing spell, Stomper cawed loudly and happily, jumping up and running over to Lanna, practically barreling into her. Aggra followed, squawking, and while the noise was loud enough to make Feyrith wince, it brought him relief to see the quasir be so enthusiastic.
"Thank you for saving us," Feyrith told Enaryl. Despite being worried about the humans in Sunwood now that they once more had no elves to help them, he felt incredibly grateful that Enaryl had decided to go after them. "How did you find us?"
"I saw you head southeast, so I followed the road," Enaryl explained, bowing her head quickly at Feyrith. "I caught up when you entered the jungle but got a little lost. It seems I was almost too late."
She turned to Ralis then, her eyes growing tired, but rather than physically drained now she seemed exhausted emotionally. "You need me here. You need my help. The humans can defend themselves for a while. If we can stop the beasts from attacking them so viciously and frequently, then we will save many more lives than if I stayed behind."
Ralis said nothing, only letting out a sigh. She seemed unhappy, but not angry, or disappointed in Enaryl, or anything similar. After a moment she finally spoke, her voice somewhat sad. "You did save us, Ena. You are correct, we do need you. Let's hope the Goddess helps us deal with the problem quickly, though, or we may return only to find ruins."
A somber silence filled theair for a moment before Ralis spoke again, making Feyrith once again realizehow quiet their surroundings were. "Now let us find a place to set up camp. Weall need rest after this."