Archive of Our Own

“Woah! I’ve never seen someone fall through a roof before. Are you okay, Aleryn?”

“Ugh...Falling from high places isn’t part of standard Dominion training. I’ll be fine though.”

“Would it help if I became a seal?”

“...Yes, yes it would.”

Aleryn forced herself to sit up, ignoring the weak creaking of the table underneath her and the large amounts of straw and wood debris laying all around her. The moment she was in an upright position, she noticed that the little human girl she had just been speaking to was gone. In her place was a seal pup, roughly five feet long, with sleek gray fur and a white underbelly. The seal’s eyes seemed to shine an unnatural shade of blue, a stark contrast to the girl’s natural brown.

Aleryn forced herself to smile, despite the aching across her body that demanded her attention. She crawled off the table, shaking off the detritus that covered her as she said, “That’s very impressive, Lei. I believe I feel a little better now, thank you.”

Technically, that wasn’t a lie. While Lei becoming a seal didn’t actually make Aleryn’s body feel better, something about letting Lei think she was helping eased Aleryn’s mind. Plus, she had to admit that it was an adorable sight.

Lei barked happily, clapping her flippers together before pointing one at the roof, then at herself, and tilting her head quizzically. Aleryn knew immediately what she was asking without her having to say the words.

“I’m sorry, but you can’t help me,” Aleryn told her. She knelt down in front of Lei, so that the seal and her were on the same eye-level. “Building a roof is dangerous, especially for a child. If you fell from that height, your mother would never forgive me. Besides, this is also my test. It would be unfair if I had help.”

Lei narrowed her eyes. She pointed at Aleryn, and then used her flippers to mime Aleryn becoming small before gesturing to the house around them and mimicking the motion of hitting something with a hammer. Aleryn couldn’t speak seal, but interpreting motions like this was significantly easier than reading normal body language.

Aleryn frowned. “You’re talking about when I told you triton children learn all about building when we’re little, right?” Lei nodded. “So you’re saying I’m being hypocritical.” Lei hesitated, but nodded once more. Aleryn’s frown deepened. “Well, I suppose you’re not wrong, but that’s also different. We’re taught about building in an underwater environment, where we can swim away if something goes badly. You can’t do anything if you fall off a roof, like I just proved.”

Aleryn stood up and stretched. Her body still ached, but she would tough it out. She had gone through worse, after all. “Plus, technically speaking, architecture has been mostly phased out among Salathan schooling, so I actually don’t know much about how to build myself. It’s something of a controversial element of the…” She trailed off. She doubted Lei wanted to hear about Dominion politics, and she was getting way too comfortable with discussing her kingdom’s failings lately. “...Never mind. Point is, you should stay here, where it’s safe.”

Lei made an incredulous expression, then pointed to the hole in the roof.

“...Okay, maybe not here, but somewhere like here. Like your room.”

Lei shook her head, then hopped into a standing position. As she did so, her body began glowing softly, making it hard to make out her form. In but a moment, the seal was gone, and the human Lei was standing in its place, wearing a fur coat of the same pattern as her seal form.

Without hesitating, Lei started to pout. “But it’s boring in my room,” Lei complained. “It’ll be fun to watch you fix the roof!”

Aleryn raised an eyebrow. “You think it’s going to be fun?”

“More fun than waiting for you to be done!”

“Hm, point taken.”

Aleryn desperately wanted to say no and leave it at that. The last thing she needed was something to fall off the roof and hit Lei’s head, especially given the now-increased odds that said thing was going to be her. Still, seeing Lei look at her with those eyes melted her heart. The last thing she wanted to do was disappoint such a sweet child.

Aleryn sighed. “Do you promise you’ll be careful?”

“Mhm! It’ll be like when Mom casts one of her illusions! Except I’m not actually invisible. But it’ll be like I am invisible.” Lei winked, and Aleryn could’ve sworn, for a moment, that she was speaking to Ginger in disguise.

“Alright. Then we should hurry.” Aleryn walked out of the kitchen, heading towards the front door in the nearby living room. “My Bag of Holding is still on the roof, so I need to grab that before it ends up falling too.”

Lei nods. “My mom has a Bag of Holding. It’s pretty big on the inside. Did you know I can hold my breath for four minutes?”

“I really hope those two facts aren’t related,” Aleryn said as she pushed her way out the door. She was immediately struck by the bright light of day, blinding her vision before it quickly subsided, giving way to the familiar sight of Kai’s lawn.

Built on the edge of Nerisa’s island-wide jungle, Kai’s cabin was only a couple dozen feet away from where grass gave way to sand, the landscape morphing into a wide and beautiful beach. The waves rocked gently against the shore, bringing with them a wind that smelled of salt and maybe a little like blood, though why was a question Aleryn never learned the answer to.

Further out to sea, the water was dotted with large, jagged rocks that extended out of the water, enough that only a small boat could get through unharmed, and only if it was commanded by a very skilled sailor. These rocks eventually vanished into a large wall of mist that rose hundreds of feet in the air, blocking off the Infernal Isles from the outside world, effectively separating them from the rest of Terminus.

Even after her brief adventure in Toril, Aleryn still found herself in awe of the surface world. It was strange and confusing, definitely, but it held a little charm that she couldn’t quite deny. If it wasn’t for the severity of her mission, she might even enjoy exploring it someday. Assuming, of course, that the evil cultists and violent speciesism of Faerûn was an isolated problem.

Aleryn hurried off of Kai’s porch and made her way to a nearby ladder that she had set against the wall. “This cabin is very impressive, Lei,” Aleryn said as she walked. “Did your mother make this by herself?”

Lei nodded. “Mhm. She made it when I was born. She said she wanted to make sure I had a safe place to live, since the waters around here are too dangerous for a baby selkie.” She pointed down at the bottom of the cabin, where thick wooden and stone stilts held the entire structure several feet off the ground, leaving an empty space underneath, protected only by a reinforced net. “Mom says a lot of coastal towns make their houses like this. That way, if it floods, the house won’t get filled with water.”

“Smart move on her part,” Aleryn agreed. She recalled her earlier attempt to hunt for tools for repairing the roof and continued, “I noticed you turned that empty space into a storage area too. Was that her idea too?”

“Yep!” Lei beamed. “Mom and I worked together to weave that net, so if it does flood, the things we keep under the house won’t be washed away. It’s enchanted so the waves won’t snap it.”

“Interesting.” Aleryn reached the ladder, then glanced up at the thatched roof above. “This house is very practical. If you were a few years older, I would be happy to let you help me.” She placed a hand on the ladder. “If you want, you could keep an eye on my belongings while I work. As long as you don’t climb into my Bag of Holding.”

Lei was clearly not happy with being called too young to help, but she nodded. “Alright,” she agreed with a sigh. “I’ll just sit here and wait then.”

Aleryn chuckled. “Don’t worry. I’ll be done in no--”

Clatter clatter!

“...What?” Aleryn glanced at the roof. “Lei, did you hear that?” She glanced back at Lei, to find the girl was backing away slowly. “What’s wrong?”

Lei hesitated, looking to the roof, and then at the front door. She looked to be guessing if she could make it to the latter before the creature on the roof found her. “Um...Maybe we should wait for Mom. That sounded like a marrow monkey.”

Aleryn frowned. “What’s a marrow monkey?”

“They’re like normal monkeys,” Lei said. “But they’re just a skeleton, and they’re covered in some really gross stuff, like blood. They like getting into people’s stuff and playing pranks. When I was a baby, one of them stole me and tried hiding me in the jungle. It took Mom days to track me down.”

“Great.” Aleryn didn’t know what a monkey was, but she assumed it wasn’t something that would be easy to placate. “Are they a danger?”

“Kinda. Their pranks can be kinda mean, and sometimes people get hurt.” Lei bundled herself up in her seal coat, her eyes keeping to the roof now. “If they get mad, they might start attacking you for real, and they don’t really die either, so they keep coming back.”

Clatter clatter!

“And this one is standing above a hole in the roof,” Aleryn noted. “So it can get inside and cause all kinds of trouble.” She grimaced. “I’ll deal with this. Lei, run inside and hide in your room. I’ll keep it distracted.”

Lei nodded quickly. “O-Okay. Be careful, Aleryn.”

“I’ll be fine. Seekers are trained to deal with problems like these.” With that, Aleryn climbed the ladder and, ever so carefully so as not to disrupt the fragile balance of the thatched roof, began to stand on top of it. It was then that she was given her first glimpse of the creature known as a ‘marrow monkey’.

The marrow monkey was exactly as Lei had described it: a mass of perfectly preserved bones, held together by some sort of sickly red goop that may very well be dried blood, in the shape of a Torilian monkey. It had no eyeballs, instead its sockets were filled by a dark void that absorbed all light. Its tail twitched behind it, making quiet clattering sounds as the individual bones hit against each other. The only thing that Aleryn wasn’t expecting was the ever-familiar satchel that it had held tightly between its sticky red hands.

Of course it has my bag, Aleryn thought to herself. Because obviously this was too easy to deal with before. Aleryn balled up her fists and took a step forward just as the monkey started to peer down into the roof’s hole.

“That is enough,” Aleryn announced. The monkey made a chattering sound as its jaw pounded against the rest of its skull. It turned to look at Aleryn, its vacant eyes staring deep into her own. Good, I have its attention.

Aleryn held a calm, cold expression as she met the monkey’s eyes. “I will give you one warning. Give me back my bag and go back to wherever you came from, or I will be forced to get rid of you myself.”

The monkey made another sound of bone snapping against bone, then turned away from Aleryn and started scratching at the back of its neck with one hand. It kept its other hand firmly around her satchel. To Aleryn, the message was clear.

“Very well. I did not want to fight, but you’re forcing my hand here.” Aleryn raised her fists and narrowed her eyes. She took a deep breath, cleared her mind of all distractions, then dashed forward.

That was her first mistake.

The moment Aleryn set a foot down, she felt the roof shift underneath her. Immediately, her foot fell into one of the clumps of palm branches that made up the roof, her entire leg getting stuck inside. It was by luck alone that she didn’t fall through entirely and create another hole in the roof.

The monkey turned to Aleryn and made another clattering sound. By the way it threw its head back, she had to assume it was laughing at her. Yet so far, it made no moves to attack her.

Aleryn grunted and pulled herself out of the patch she fell into. She made a point of distributing her weight carefully, making sure not to put too much of her body in one place. She realized quickly that this would not be an easy fight. Every movement would have to be precise, or she would risk falling again.

“Nothing’s ever easy,” she muttered. She looked up at the monkey and said, “It’s not too late to surrender.”

The monkey only made another clattering sound, then shook its head.

“Fine.” She grimaced. “Don’t say I didn’t give you a fair chance.”

With that, Aleryn charged forward. She moved with wide, delicate steps, never placing her foot in one place for too long without balancing her weight on another. She made quick strides, as fast as possible, before reaching the monkey. Before it had time to react, she reached forward and wrapped her arms around it, under its own arms, and put all of her force into throwing it backwards, towards the edge of the roof.

The monkey rattled as it was tossed back, but it managed to hold its ground. It gripped the roof with its hands and feet, skidding to a stop as it ripped up thatch. It shrieked at Aleryn before charging at her, holding out a hand to grab her.

Aleryn wasn’t having it. When the monkey was close enough to touch her, she weaved around it, deftly dodging its movements before promptly kicking it in the back. It made a sound like a hundred knuckles rapping against each other, its body flailing widely even as it rolled along the roof, stopping just shy of the edge.

Aleryn held her fists up. “Maybe now’s the right time to mention I’ve always been good at wrestling. Had enough?”

The monkey only clattered its jaw. It pushed itself into a standing position before darting towards her once again. Aleryn wasted no time in moving; she dashed forward and ducked to the side before delivering a rapid series of punches to the monkey’s body, followed by a sudden push with all of her strength. The monkey cried out as it was tossed, rather unceremoniously, from the rooftop. It fell to the ground below with a soft thud!, chattering furiously.

Aleryn ran over to the side of the roof and jumped off, landing right in front of the monkey without looking any worse for wear. Spiritweaver training ensured that falling from heights wasn’t much of an issue, provided she didn’t land on anything painful. “You forced my hand. Now, give me back the bag or I’ll have to do more than throw you around.”

Aleryn reached for the bag, only for the monkey to recoil. It leapt to its feet and, before Aleryn could respond, opened its mouth. But a moment afterward, a strange red liquid gushed from its jaw and sprayed over Aleryn’s face, covering her completely.

Aleryn stumbled back--her first instinct was to cry out, but she restrained herself on the off chance this was blood it was firing at her. By the time she managed to open her eyes, she saw the monkey running off into the jungle, her bag still slung over its shoulder.

She was about to chase after it when she heard a familiar voice speaking up from the porch nearby. “I doubt you will be able to catch it now. It’s in its home element. I’m afraid that bag is lost to you for now.”

Aleryn’s eyebrows knit together as she turned, just in time to see Kai standing on the porch. “Kai? When did you get back?”

“Just now. I’m glad I arrived in time for the show.” The old wizard shook her head with a tut as she leaned against the railing. “I see that fixing the roof wasn’t as easy as you thought it would be.”

Aleryn sighed. “No, no it wasn’t.” She glanced back to where the monkey had run off to, feeling a quickly increasing anxiety building in her chest. “Kai, I have to get that satchel bag. It has everything I own--my tablet, my books, my rock; I can’t afford to lose it.”

Kai raised an eyebrow. “Your rock?”

Aleryn mentally chastised herself for mentioning the piece of shale. “It’s an important rock. But so is the bag itself; Hercan gifted it to me.”

“Yes, I imagine he would be quite upset if he learned it was stolen from you. Or maybe he wouldn’t be. He can be quite elusive, that one.” Kai twirled a finger and muttered an arcane word. Suddenly, the red liquid covering Aleryn disappeared, leaving her completely clean. “I suppose you plan to go looking for it?”

“I need to.” Aleryn frowned as she made her way over to the porch. “I’m very sorry, but I can’t finish the roof until I know that satchel is safe with me. I can’t let it disappear.”

“I can see why; it’s quite expensive. A pity if it were to be lost.” Aleryn couldn’t help but wonder if she was genuinely sympathetic or if she was just stringing her along. “Unfortunately for you, it will be quite difficult to find. That monkey knows this jungle far better than you, and it won’t be interested in being attacked again. You will need a plan if you’re to hunt it down.”

“I figured.” Aleryn paused, thinking for a moment. “Let’s see…If I can’t hunt it down, then I would need to lure it out.” Aleryn crossed her arms over her chest. “How do you bait an undead creature? Is there something it might want?”

“Alas, I’m not the person you should be asking. My specialty relates more to the sea.” Kai smiled ever so slightly. Much like Hercan, her way of smiling also made her look incredibly smug. It made Aleryn feel like she was being outmaneuvered on a social scale, like conversation was some sort of strategy game. “I do, however, know who might be able to help more.”

It was Aleryn’s turn to raise an eyebrow. “I thought we were the only ones on this island?”

“Oh, we are. But not in the collective archipelago.” Kai pointed a finger in the direction of one of the nearby islands. “That island is Pelacis. On it is a small village of people, known as the Cinderblood Tieflings. They have studied these jungles far more than I have, and I know at least one of their number is training as a zoologist. She’s the one you need.”

Aleryn resisted the urge to groan. Of course, now she had to talk to people. Finding a book would be easier, but now she was being forced to rely on her weakest skill: communicating like an actual living person. A part of her was hoping she could just stay in isolation for this whole trip, but it seemed that would be impossible.

Aleryn glanced in the direction of Pelacis, already picturing how this trip might go. She suspected the answer was not well. “I guess I don’t have a choice. Who am I looking for?”

“Her name is Nevani,” Kai explained. “She lives in a cabin near the beach, much like my own. You should be able to find her with relative ease. Her home is hard to miss.”

Aleryn made a face. The idea of searching Nerisa alone sounded less awkward, but far more difficult. “Alright, I suppose. How will I manage to get there exactly?”

“There is a ferry I’ve set up between our islands,” Kai explained. “If you follow this beach, you will find it. It’s magically propelled, so I wouldn’t worry much about controlling it. It’s made for ease of use for anybody who might need it. The village itself can be found much the same way--follow the waves until you find civilization.”

“Useful.” Aleryn bowed her head. “Thank you for the advice, Kai. I’ll set out immediately.”

“I’m happy to help.” Kai walked over to the front door and pulled it open. “I’ll tell Lei that you’re running an errand. I doubt you want her following you about the jungle.” With that, Kai walked into the cabin, leaving Aleryn to start her journey.

“I suppose there’s no putting it off.” Aleryn started in the direction of Pelacis, making mental notes of what Kai had told her. “I just hope these tieflings don’t prove too untrusting…”

So, Aleryn started her trek towards Pelacis. The journey was shorter than she expected; the ferry--a keelboat with magically-powered oars--was quite efficient at helping her cross the channel between islands in about an hour. After that, it was a thirty minute walk along the beach until Aleryn caught sight of something man-made: a series of buildings lying along the coast, most of which were built on the stable grass beyond the beach.

As Aleryn made her way towards the buildings, she managed to get a better view of what they were like. They were crafted much like Kai’s cabin: all on stilts that held them a number of feet above the ground, made of wood with palm branch-thatch roofs. Aleryn noted with some relief that the village seemed small--more of a hamlet than anything else. It couldn’t have held more than a hundred or so people.

Still, her uneasiness didn’t fade quite yet. She still had to introduce herself to these people and hope they wouldn’t attack her on sight. Technically speaking, the majority of surfacers she had extensive contact with--cultists--had tried killing her. She wasn’t eager to repeat the experience.

Eventually, as Aleryn entered the village, she finally got her first view of the villagers. She saw a figure standing just outside a house on the edge of town, hanging a shirt to dry on a clothesline. At first glance, Aleryn thought he looked normal. With scarlet red skin--a color quite common among triton--Aleryn didn’t think anything of this person’s appearance…That was, until she noticed a few more key details, such as bat wings, a pointed tail, and curled horns.

Seeing this, Aleryn was struck by a sense of recognition, but she wasn’t sure why. This man looked familiar, but it was hard to place where she knew these traits from. It took her a moment to remember that she had seen these features just a few days ago, sans the wings and tail. Vanifer, the former leader of the Eternal Flame cult, looked much like this person.

It occurred to Aleryn that she never thought to ask what a Cinderblood Tiefling was.

Before Aleryn could dwell more on these similarities, the man caught her eyes. He jumped backward, stumbling through the clothesline before peaking out from between the legs of a pair of pants. “Wha--Who are you?” He asked, sounding fearful. He held out a hand, which glowed with deep purple energy. Aleryn recognized the power as one she saw Novak and Ginger use.

Aleryn immediately held up her hands, making it clear they were empty. No need to start a fight, after all. “My name is…” She hesitated. She didn’t know these people--even if Kai didn’t seem worried about them, she was still uncertain about giving away her name to strangers. Time to test out a certain alias. “...Nyrela, the Songweaver of Red Larch.” Thank you, Ginger.

The man frowned. Now that Aleryn had the chance to study him, she noted that he had another big difference from Vanifer. He was covered in black tattoos in the form of Infernal words and runes. She recognized a few of them. ‘FIERNA’, ‘CORRUPT’, HELLFIRE’, and the like. They stood a stark contrast to how he was cowering.

“Alright, Nyrela,” he said in a careful voice. He managed to steel his tone, giving off a cold, hostile attitude. “How did you get here? Where did you come from?”

“I’m from Nerisa,” Aleryn explained. “I’m staying with Kai. She told me to come here for some help with a personal errand.”

The man’s brow furrowed. “Kai? Only person who lives with her is her kid.”

Aleryn kept an eye on the magic in the man’s hand. She decided that if she saw him so much as twitch, she’d make a run for him. “I just arrived yesterday. I’m going to be staying with her for some time. Do you mind putting the spell away?”

“That depends on you. How did you get to these isles exactly? Nobody should be able to find their way here on their own.” He narrowed his eyes, taking a few steps forward so he wasn’t hiding behind the clothesline. Aleryn didn’t like how bold he was getting--it gave her the feeling he was about to turn aggressive.

“I had help,” Aleryn admitted. “A powerful…” She decided not to say ‘history teacher’. She had the feeling that wouldn’t get the desired reaction. “...mage sent me. A friend of Kai’s, actually.” She glanced around, noting the lack of other people around here. She wondered what would be worse: if someone stumbled upon this scene, or if she was forced to deal with this herself.

“I promise you, I mean no harm,” Aleryn told him. “I’m only here to ask for help. I need to find a person who can help me track something I lost on Nerisa. I was told a person named Nevani could help me.” She forced herself to meet the man’s eyes. His, she noted, were pure black and without irises. “Even if I wanted to cause trouble, I don’t have any weapons and I’m by myself. You could easily stop me.”

Well, that was a bit of a stretch. Aleryn wasn’t exactly a tank, but she was capable of defending herself even without weapons. Still, no need to mention that bit.

The man visibly hesitated for a few moments before he sighed. “I guess you have a point there.” He glanced at his palm, where the lightning-like energy crackled between his fingers. He paused for a moment before nodding, closing his hand into a fist. The magic dissipated into the air in a puff of lavender smoke. “Sorry. We don’t normally get visitors. When we do, they tend to be trouble.”

“I understand.” Aleryn put her hands down, though she decided not to step any closer for now; she didn’t want to risk him bringing out his spells again. “Like I said, I’m only here to find Nevani. Do you know where she is?”

“Of course, you can’t miss it.” He pointed to a section of the beach where the sand gave away to grass, on a particularly small cliff (more of a rocky slope) overlooking the sea. A small lighthouse rose from there, with a cabin at the bottom of it. The lighthouse shimmered with multicolored light at the top, as if calling to anybody who might see it.

Aleryn narrowed her eyes. She supposed, in hindsight, that was probably what Kai meant. “Okay, I guess you can’t really miss it.” She shook her head, then looked back to the man. “Thank you for your help. I’m sorry to have startled you.”

The man nodded, still looking a little uncertain. “No problem, I, uh, I guess. Again, sorry for trying to shoot you. Didn’t mean anything by it. Um, tell Nevani I said hello.”

“Will do.” Aleryn turned on her heel and headed towards the lighthouse, giving the man a final appreciative nod before moving on. She decided to stray away from the town--no reason to get involved in another problem if she could help it--and instead focused on approaching Nevani’s cabin from the side.

It only took a few minutes for her to arrive there, thankfully without incident. As she did, however, she couldn’t help but notice the design of the lighthouse in question. She was no architectural genius, but she knew a thing or two, and one of those things was that this was as far from traditional tritonic building as you could get.

Tritonic designs were strict, symmetrical, and imposing. They reminded you of something grand and far more important than yourself, something that will outlast you and survive long after you’re gone. But this lighthouse gave off a pleasant, cozy feeling. Asymmetrical, with warm colors and carefully carved designs that were closer to art than anything else.

The Dominion training in Aleryn immediately disapproved of the whimsical structure. After all, it's hard to replicate and means more time and effort is taken from important work in order to construct this. But the scholar in her, the part that enjoyed learning, couldn't help but appreciate it.

Focus, Aleryn, she told herself. Remember the mission. Find Nevani, get her help, move on. We shouldn't be here longer than we have to be.

She stepped forward and approached the lighthouse's door. Inscribed on it was a mural of animals lining the edges, with a heart drawn in the center. A plaque in the heart read:

Nevani

Lighthouse Keeper, Veterinarian

No longer providing treatment for Ember-Fly bites. Not my problem anymore.

She seems interesting already, Aleryn thought. I'd be lying if I said this isn't setting my expectations. I hope she doesn't say the same about my problem.

She raised her hand and knocked at the door. When she did, she heard a loud snort! on the other side, followed by somebody yelling. "Shit!" She heard a voice inside say.

Aleryn winced. This was not off to a good start. "Um, Nevani? Kai sent me. Is there any way you could--" She was cut off by a sudden thud inside the house, followed by a series of Infernal cursing. “Erm, I was wondering--” Again, she was cut off. She could hear what sounded like hooves trampling across wood. She groaned and raised her voice. “I was hoping--!”

Crash! Her words were punctuated by more chaotic noises, usually the sounds of one thing slamming into another at high speed, followed by curse words that could make a sailor blush. Clearly I’m not getting anywhere this way, she thought. Time for another approach. Aleryn grabbed the door and pushed it open, strolling inside and bracing herself for whatever she was going to see.

What she saw was a single Cinderblood woman, with lavender skin and white Infernal tattoos across her body. Her horns swirled like those of a ram, and she dressed in a padded leather outfit that covered most of her body. Her face was covered by some sort of leather mask inscribed with a magical rune, leaving only her eyes exposed. In most situations, Aleryn would suspect she was readying herself to go on an adventure, or fight a monster, or whatever it is people do on this island.

Instead, she was chasing a large, lumbering beast--colored blue and brown, with a coiled tail and cloven hooves, this creature was practically ransacking the building, turning over tables and chairs and potted plants and anything else it saw, as it tried to desperately escape the Cinderblood’s clutches.

The Cinderblood’s eyes widened when she saw Aleryn, momentarily quitting her chase. “I’m a little busy right now!”

“I’m sorry, just--” Aleryn was interrupted by the creature running towards her. She immediately moved to the side, shutting the door behind her. The beast stopped just short of ramming its snout into the door. Aleryn chose this moment to carefully back away. “What is that?!”

“It’s a pig!” The woman eyed Aleryn’s fins and gills, looking more than a little frustrated. “What are you?”

“I’m a triton!” Aleryn watched as the pig eyed her. She felt like she was being sized up somehow. “Why is it so angry? Are pigs normally this angry?”

“This one is normally a sweetheart,” the woman said. She raised her hands, like she was about to start wrestling it. “But it’s medicine day and someone doesn’t want to take hers. Watch out.”

“Watch out for--?” Aleryn was cut off by the pig charging towards her again. Aleryn yelped and dived out of the way, only avoiding smacking into the woman by dancing around her; a feat of grace that Aleryn would appreciate in any other situation.

The woman chuckled. “Lottie here can be a bit stubborn sometimes. She doesn’t mean anything by it. Hey, since you barged in, mind helping me grab her? We just need her to stay still long enough to give her her medicine.”

Aleryn nodded. “If it will help.” She watched as the pig started pacing back and forth. She noted, with some worry, that a faint cerulean mist rose from its hooves wherever it stepped. She wasn’t sure if pigs could do that normally, but knowing Terminus it was probably some strange magic to torment its inhabitants.

“I have an idea,” Aleryn told the woman. “I can stun it for a few seconds. Do you mind if I jab it lightly? I promise not to hurt it.”

The woman shrugged. “At this point, I’ll try anything. Be my guest. Just be sure to hold your breath.”

“Of course.” Aleryn wasted no time in running for the pig. It didn’t seem surprised by this and immediately made a run for it. The creature was surprisingly fast, but Aleryn was faster. She leapt over and slid around fallen furniture, moving at her full, heedless speed.

The moment she was near the pig, she tackled it. She was careful not to do so in a way that might hurt it, but she had a feeling she wouldn’t need to--she was barely 150 pounds, and this pig was something around twice that. All she managed to do was get dragged along the ground as the pig rampaged about the room, angrily trying to buck her off. As it did, she caught a whiff of the scent protruding from it--a strangely sweet smell that brought with it a strange sense of numbness in her body. It was almost enough to make Aleryn let go, before she steeled her will and focused.

And here I thought animals loved me. Aleryn raised two fingers together and concentrated. If she paid close attention, she could almost sense it. The current of energies that flowed through herself, and nearby, the pig. She could sense the rhythm, the arching, the paths that life took and the ways it ran along the pig’s body.

This was hard for her. Most spiritweavers found tracing Positive Energy to be easy, but it was always difficult for her. It took years for her to master the use of this technique, let alone honing these powers enough for her elemental abilities. But after so long, it felt like second nature to her. A brief struggle, followed by a mild success, followed by a victory nap later so she would feel better from it.

…Gods, that’s sad.

Aleryn shook her head. Focus. She traced her fingers along the pig’s body, ignoring how it was trying to throw her into walls and shake her off. She managed to sense a build up of Positive Energy in the pig’s neck, right under its chin. If she was right, a sufficient amount of pressure there, mixed with her own abilities, should solve all her problems.

Aleryn jabbed at the spot. As she did, she used the fleeting moment to connect with the Energy coursing through the pig. She willed it to alter--not much, only to slow considerably. This Positive Energy was what allowed a being to exist. By subtly changing it, she controlled the pig’s very being. And so, she forced it to come to a grinding halt.

The pig was affected immediately. It fell down into a slump, letting out a weak oink like a groan as she collapsed, its breathing shallow. The sudden stop caused Aleryn to go flying, however; she was tossed forward, rolling along the ground before hitting her head against a wall.

“It…normally doesn’t end like that,” Aleryn sighed. “Medicine?”

The woman nodded. “Right.” She dashed forward and grabbed a vial from the table. She quickly opened the pig’s mouth and poured it inside, holding it carefully to make sure it swallowed. Once she was certain the pig had drank it all, she stood up. “See? That wasn’t so hard. How are you feeling, Lottie?”

Lottie made a snorting sound, then weakly stood up to its legs. It gave the woman a sniff, then made its way to a door on the side of the cabin.

“Looks like she’s doing fine,” the woman said. “Thanks for the help.” She walked over to the door and opened it, allowing Lottie to trot outside. Once the pig was gone, the woman walked over to Aleryn. “Need some help?”

“No.” Aleryn rubbed the back of her head as she pushed herself to her feet. “I mean, yes, but not with that. I actually came to find you. You’re Nevani, right?”

The woman took off her mask, revealing similar features to the man Aleryn saw before. White infernal tattoos and pure black eyes. She looked about Aleryn’s age, maybe a bit older. She flashed Aleryn a smile and said, “The one and only. So, what’s up? I usually don’t get visitors that aren’t from the isles.”

Aleryn raised an eyebrow. “How did you know I’m not from the isles?”

“We Cinderbloods know everyone in the isles,” Nevani told her. “Kinda our thing, being the only civilization around. Which means you came from somewhere else. Guessing by your whole fish deal that means you either swam here…or Kai sent you.”

“Because she’s a selkie,” Aleryn guessed. “And a powerful wizard. She would be the only person on the island capable of bringing me here in one piece, given the rocks off the coastline.”

“Glad we’re on the same page.” Nevani started picking up the furniture that had fallen in Lottie’s rampage. Feeling rude just standing there while someone else worked, Aleryn decided to join in. “So, Kai brought you here, huh?”

“Not quite, but you’re close. How I got here is something of a story, but Kai told me to come visit you.” Aleryn went around picking up chairs that had fallen from the table, setting them up in their proper positions. “She said you know a few things about marrow monkeys.”

“Ah, the monkeys played a prank on you, didn’t they?” Nevani grabbed a painting and placed it up atop the wall, taking a few moments to make sure it was angled right. “Let me guess: they stole something from you.”

Somebody likes guessing games. “Yes, actually. How did you know?”

“It’s kinda their thing. They love stealing from people, especially around this time of year.” Nevani picked up a pile of plates that had fallen--miraculously not smashed to bits--and set them on a nearby counter. “Another guess: you want me to take you to them.”

“I would appreciate that,” Aleryn told her. “I would go myself, but I don’t exactly know the island well. I need some kind of guide.”

“Well, my schedule’s open now that Lottie’s taken her medicine,” Nevani said. “Buuuuut, I don’t do things for free.”

Aleryn had a feeling it would come to this. “I completely understand. When we get my satchel bag, I would be glad to pay you.”

“Oh, I don’t mean with gold.” Nevani shook her head. “We sort of use that, but since we’re mostly closed off on the island, it’s only useful for trading on the mainland. Most of the time, we trade in favors. You’re going to be staying on the Isles for a while, right?”

“About a month.”

“Great, then we can work something out before then.” Nevani closed the distance between herself and Aleryn, then held out her hand. “So, we got a deal? I help you out, and maybe you can help me later?”

“I wouldn’t make you work for free.” Aleryn took Nevani’s hand and gave it a shake. “It’s a deal.”

“Awesome.” Nevani grinned. The way she smiled, so carefree with a hint of deviousness, reminded Aleryn of someone else she knew. “So, mind if I ask your name?”

“Oh, it’s…” On one hand, she didn’t want to lie to somebody that was helping her. On the other, she wasn’t keen on letting people know her true name. It made her uneasy. So, she decided to continue her little fib from earlier. “Nyrela. I’m Nyrela.”

“Alright, Nyrie it is.” Nevani headed over to the door, grabbing a bow-and-arrow set that was hanging nearby. “We should hurry. If we want to get your stuff back before the monkeys redistribute it, we need to get there quick.”

“Good point.” Aleryn followed after Nevani as the latter went outside. The two then made their way back to the ferry. It was a mostly quiet walk, interrupted with short bouts of dialogue here and there. It wasn’t until they were partly across the water that Nevani tried striking up a full-on conversation.

“You don’t talk much,” Nevani noted. She leaned against the ferry’s railing, watching the waves go by. Nearby, Aleryn was pacing about the deck, seemingly trying to avoid catching attention.

It clearly wasn’t working.

Aleryn paused, hesitating slightly before responding, “I’m sorry. I tend not to talk much. I hope it doesn’t bother you.” The words came out stilted, robotic, rehearsed, like she had said them a hundred times over. It wouldn’t be that far from the truth to say she had.

Nevani shrugged. “Nah, it’s fine. Just worried. You seem pretty stressed.”

Aleryn raised an eyebrow as she crossed from one end of the deck to the other. “And how do you figure that?”

“Most calm people don’t walk like they’re trying to run a groove into the ship.”

Now it was Aleryn’s turn to shrug. “I do this often. It’s not due to stress…usually. I’m simply…existing.”

“Alright, well you’re existing awfully tensely. Seriously, your entire body looks stiff. If I hit you the wrong way, you’d crack in half.”

Aleryn shook her head. “I don’t think that would happen.” Pause. “...You weren’t being literal, were you?”

“Not really, no.” Nevani smiled. It was calm, easygoing, like she didn’t have a care in the world. “Loosen up, Nyrie. We’re going on a little adventure. It should be fun.”

“‘Fun’ isn’t normally how I would describe having my stuff stolen.” Aleryn tried to ignore the sinking feeling in her chest. She recognized the patterns in this conversation. She knew how this would go, even this early in their relationship. The signs were there, the little hints at seeing the worst parts of Aleryn’s nature. It always started small, always simple, like…

“You always take everything so literally, it’s getting annoying.”

“Why are you always so high-strung? You’re overreacting.”

“What do you have to be stressed about? You have it easy. You’re just making things up for attention.”

The memories mixed together in Aleryn’s head, reminding her that this is how it always starts. Small things at first before building up to bigger ones. She learned a long time ago to catch these signs early, shut them down before they reached a breaking point.

Maybe it was time to do the same here.

Nevani tapped her fingers against the railing in a slightly rhythmic motion. “No, but it could lead to something interesting. Big jungle full of weird creatures, danger at every turn; what’s not to love?”

Aleryn hummed. “Do all zoologists crave violence?”

Nevani chuckled. “Aww, did Kai call me a zoologist? That’s sweet. Technically though, I don’t have a degree. I’m not even a licensed vet. Yolana just brings me textbooks and I try to read them the best I can. I’m a huge nerd who likes animals, so the job stuck.”

“Right.” Aleryn continued pacing around the ferry. She wanted to break the growing silence, say something that would stop what she saw coming. Technically it wasn’t bad yet, but it was going to be, she knew it. She couldn’t help but fixate on the roadmarks of this discussion, the ones she always saw before right when any attempts at socialization came crashing down.

If only she knew the right words, she could fix this before something went wrong. She was going to be working with this woman for some time, at least until the favor was repaid. She didn’t want it to be something she would dread.

But she didn’t know the right words. She was thinking that she may have to content herself with awkward silence, but apparently Nevani wasn’t one for staying quiet.

“So,” Nevani began, glancing back over to Aleryn, “What brings you here anyway? You never said.”

Aleryn frowned. “Yes I did. The marrow monkey stole my bag.”

“No, silly. I mean to the Isles. Unless you expect me to believe the monkey swam all the way from the mainland."

Aleryn shook her head. "No. My reason is far less simple." She glanced ahead, to the upcoming shore. They would reach Nerisa soon, with luck. She wished she could make the ferry go faster. "I'm here to train. I was told Kai was a powerful person, someone who could give me the help I need. I'm hoping to learn from her."

"Most people don't know about the isles, let alone are brave enough to head here," Nevani pointed out. "I mean, it's not exactly a vacation spot. So I'm gonna take a stab and say you're not here for a hobby. Are you the adventuring sort?"

"In a sense." Aleryn shook her wrist slightly, trying to relieve herself of the anxious energy running through her. It paired nicely with the pacing, but doing this in front of another person felt wrong, dangerous. She hoped Nevani wouldn't notice.

If she did, she didn't show it. Nevani was still looking out at the sea, Aleryn only showing herself to the edge of her vision. “Alright,” Nevani said. “Cool. Thanks for, uh, sharing, I guess.”

The rest of the ferry ride passed in awkward silence, neither of them really willing to break the quiet for fear of damaging the unspoken social code of when it’s appropriate to carry on a conversation that is clearly unwanted. In Aleryn’s mind, this was probably a mercy. She could tell that Nevani, while well-intentioned, probably wouldn’t want to talk to her much anyway. The more they spoke, the more they risked harming their newfound acquaintanceship.

Still, it made Aleryn feel a strange sadness nonetheless.

Eventually, the two of them reached the shore and started making their way back to Kai’s cabin, and from there into the jungle. Once they were properly on the path to getting her stuff back, Aleryn decided to ask a question.

“So, you said the marrow monkeys steal things a lot,” Aleryn began, “How exactly do we plan to get it back?”

“Well, it won’t be easy.” Nevani pulled her bow from its sheath, notching an arrow against the string as she eyed the trees around them. “You’ll probably have to fight them for it, unless you can somehow manage to convince them to give it back peacefully.”

“I’m guessing there’s not much of a chance of that, is there?”

“Not really, no. It’s possible, but not likely. Marrow monkeys aren’t really big on sharing.” Nevani eyed Aleryn, looking confused. “You know, it might have been a good idea to bring a weapon with you.”

“Huh? Oh, I’m fine. I’m trained in Aegrisian martial arts.” Aleryn held up a hand, clenching it into a fist. “If there’s a problem, I can deal with it fairly well. I can handle myself.”

“Like you handled yourself against Lottie,” Nevani recalled. “You did pretty good with her--I mean, except for the part where you were thrown into the wall. Other than that, though, you did great.”

Aleryn grimaced, her cheeks turning a faint purple. She was hoping Nevani hadn’t caught that part. “I’ll be fine,” she said curtly. “We should focus on tracking the monkeys.”

Nevani frowned, looking annoyed. “Alright, alright, don’t be so snippy. We’ll be there in just a--” Before she could finish, she was cut off by something moving under their feet. “Huh? Oh shit--”

Whip!

In mere moments, the entire world turned upside down--literally. With the crack of flying rope, Aleryn and Nevani soon found themselves in an uncomfortable position: hanging from the trees by a net that seconds ago had been hidden in the underbrush, now trapping them in place.

Aleryn groaned as she struggled to move her arms out from under her torso. “A rope trap? This is beyond cliche. Who set this up?”

“Probably the monkeys,” Nevani suggested. She had dropped her arrow in the fall, and was now trying to reach a new one. A difficult task, given the way her hands had been shoved in-between the holes of the net. “They’re intelligent, maybe even as intelligent as a person. This is one of the ways they catch their food.”

“Terminus enjoys its intelligent animals,” Aleryn noted dryly. “So, I don’t suppose you have a knife on you?”

“Even if I did, I couldn’t grab it. Kinda stuck here.” Nevani started wiggling in place; Aleryn got the feeling she was trying to free herself, but all it was really doing was making the net swing. “What about you? Anything sharp on you?”

“No. Unfortunately, my spear was in my satchel when it was stolen, and I gave away my only dagger.”

It was Nevani’s turn to groan. “Great. I guess we’re stuck here.”

“It seems so. What do we do now?”

There was a short pause. “Well, you could tell me what’s so important about this bag that we’re now hanging from a tree for it?”

Aleryn sighed. More conversation. Yipee. “It’s more than a normal bag. It’s a Bag of Holding, and it was made for me by my mentor. It has everything I brought into Terminus.”

“Oh. That sucks.”

“Yeah, yeah it does.” Aleryn tried to ignore the anxiety building up in her chest. She didn’t like being stuck like this; it reminded her far too much of the time she was tied up as a kid. If she wasn’t in front of a stranger, she would be outright panicking right now. But she had manners, so she refused to show that kind of weakness outwardly.

“So when exactly will the monkeys come for us?” Aleryn asked. “Will they be by soon, or are we supposed to be an evening meal?”

“Hard to say,” Nevani said. “It could be any moment now. They’re not the best at schedules. Could be tomorrow.”

“By then we’ll have lost full circulation in our bodies. We need a better plan. Do you have something sharp on you?”

Nevani thought for a moment. “My tongue, maybe. Would that work?”

“...Really?”

She chuckled. “No, not really. It’s a metaphor, or a simile, or whatever. You have trouble with those, huh?”

Aleryn wanted to answer, but she was having trouble. All she could think about was how tight this rope was, how hard it was becoming to breathe, how scared she was that she might be left to die with nobody knowing where she was or what happened to her. This had been done to her before, and she barely escaped then. How was she supposed to escape now? What was she supposed to do? How was--

Snap! The net jolted suddenly as it started to give way a little. Nevani and Aleryn swung in place for a second, and momentarily Aleryn’s fears were displaced. “Huh--? What happened?”

“O’m eeding da wope.”

“What?”

Aleryn could hear Nevani spit something out. “I said I’m eating the rope!”

“...I’m sorry, what?!”

“Well, I’m not really eating it, just chewing through it. We Cinderbloods have sharp teeth; if they’re all we’ve got, we might as well use them.”

“I…” In the mixture of fear, Aleryn could only isolate the feeling of confusion. “I…guess that might work. It’s better than nothing.”

“That’s the spirit! You’ve got some pretty sharp chompers too, why don’t you try it?”

By now, Aleryn was willing to try anything. She felt like she would explode if she couldn’t get free soon. So, she did as she was told and started biting the nearest piece of rope. It was gross; the texture of the rope against her teeth made her want to crawl into a hole and wither away, but it was this or stay stuck.

Eventually, she managed to gnaw at the rope enough to free her arm. “Yes! Alright, I can get us out, I just need to…” She made a motion with her fist and gave a sudden shout. It was immediately followed by an explosive ringing sound and the crack! of wood as the branch above them Shattered into pieces. Nevani and Aleryn fell to the ground, the net loose around their bodies.

“I can’t believe that worked,” Nevani said. She stood up, tossing the net aside before she notched an arrow on her bow. “Good work. What was that though? It was--Hey, are you alright?”

Aleryn had a hard time responding. Her head felt like it was ringing and her bones felt like they were made of jelly. She pushed herself to her feet, only to stumble over and fall to the ground once more.

Damn elemental powers, she thought to herself. She began the process of trying to stand up again, only to be interrupted by Nevani placing her hands over Aleryn’s.

“Let me help,” Nevani said. “You look like you had a lot taken out of you.”

Aleryn was sorely tempted to take her up on the offer, but before she could, she heard a little voice in her head, chastising her for considering it.

She’s going to think you’re weak, the voice--her voice--said. Just like everybody else. You need to show her you can stand on your own two feet. You need to show her that you’re strong.

Aleryn wanted to say no, that was stupid. But she couldn’t help but remember the conversation she had with the rest of her party back in Red Larch. About strength, and its importance, about how being weak made them look down on a person.

She didn’t want that to happen here.

Aleryn hesitated, but shook her head. “It’s fine, I--I can do it. I just need a second.” She ignored Nevani’s hand and pushed herself to her feet again, this time steadying herself against a nearby tree. Her legs shook, but after a few moments, she was able to keep her footing. “See? I’m alright.”

Nevani eyed Aleryn, like she was trying to puzzle something out. “There’s nothing wrong with accepting help, you know.”

“I didn’t need help,” Aleryn told her. “I just…Needed time. The power leaves me a little weak. It’s nothing I can’t handle.”

Despite her words, Aleryn felt a little bad about rebuking Nevani there. She was just trying to help, after all; but Aleryn didn’t want to show weakness. Nevani already thought she was weird, she knew that. There was no reason to make her think she was helpless too.

Nevani looked like she had trouble believing that, but she nodded. “Alright. Let’s just go, I guess. The troop should be this way.”

The two of them continued through the jungle for quite some time. Little of note happened; Nevani would point out prints in the dirt here or old carcasses there, but aside from that, there was little to speak of or about.

Of course, that had to change eventually.

“So," Nevani started, "You have cool explosion powers. Wanna talk about that?"

Why does she have to be so nice and talkative? Aleryn thought. Why can't she be brooding and quiet, so it's easier to stay silent.

"There's not much to talk about," Aleryn said. She tapped her fingers against her leg as she walked, enjoying the subtle movement as she continued. "I have power over the elements. Water, mostly. I use them in combat."

"But they tire you out," Nevani deduced. "That's why you looked so exhausted when you used that one." She looked over Aleryn with a keen, analytical eye. "That's why you came to Kai. You thought her sea witch magic might help you, right?"

Oh come on! Aleryn tried to maintain a stoic expression, lest she prove just how right Nevani was. "Something like that. I'm fighting a powerful villain--multiple villains, actually. I need everything I can get to beat them."

"Villains, huh?" Nevani smiled a little. "You know you talk sort of like you're from a novel. You read a lot?"

Aleryn grimaced. It wasn't the first time she had been told she spoke in a strange way. Even in the Dominion, where she spoke Aquan as a first language, she still heard comments about the way she talked.

"She can't say words right! Isn't she supposed to be older than me?"

"You talk like an automaton. Can't you use a little more feeling?"

"What's wrong with you? You're an adult--talk like one."

Feelings of frustration welled up in Aleryn's chest. Even now, so far from home, the same problems chased after her. It stung in a sense, being reminded that she was still messing up just by opening her mouth. She even managed to mess up something as simple as talking to people. It made her never want to open her mouth again.

“I talk how I talk,” Aleryn said curtly. “No more, no less.”

Nevani’s brow furrowed, looking confused. “Hey, I wasn’t trying to be rude or anything. I just thought--” Before she could finish, she froze in place. She held out a hand to stop Aleryn, then held up a finger to her mouth. “Wait,” she whispered.

Aleryn paused. Instinctively, she clutched her hands into fists and scanned the area. Unfortunately, the dense jungle showed no signs of threats she could make out. All she saw were trees, bushes, plants; the like. No sign of anything dangerous.

Which, unfortunately, meant that whatever was here was really dangerous. Because life’s funny like that.

“What is it?” Aleryn asked quietly. She backed up, raising her fists up defensively. “What’s going on?”

Nevani watched this with surprise, but only briefly. “There,” she breathed. She pointed to a tree directly ahead of them. It was tall, with thick vines wrapped around its base and leading upward to the canopy of leaves above. The vines--which were marked by strange red symbols--stretched over to other trees, creating a web of sorts between some of them.

“These vines are extremely sensitive to sound and motion,” Nevani explained. “If it realizes we’re here, it will attack us.” “But we need past it,” Aleryn pointed out. “Is there another way?”

“Maybe, it depends. The vines could stretch for miles for all we know. We need to take a detour.”

Aleryn nodded. “Right, I’ll just--” She paused. There was a rustling in a nearby bush, one just beyond the layers of vines. She glanced over just in time to see a familiar shape. A cluster of bones in the form of a monkey, climbing carefully through a tree.

“There’s one,” Aleryn hissed. “We’re close. We should hurry and find that detour.”

Nevani nodded, though her eyes were wide with terror. “We need to go. Now.”

“What? Why?”

“Because that monkey knows we’re here.”

“And?” “And it’s going to--” She was cut off by the monkey grabbing a rather large rock and tossing it towards them. Aleryn managed to dodge out of the way with ease, it wasn’t a difficult task at all, but a moment later she realized what it was trying to do when it hit the bark of a nearby tree with a crack!

Suddenly, the vines all around them tightened, forming a barrier around the trees. Vines on the ground and above them started waving back and forth as they started feeling around the area, looking for whatever seemed to make the sound.

“--Get us caught,” Nevani whispered. “Stay still, don’t be too loud. If it realizes we’re here, we’re dead.”

I’m really starting to hate this plane. Aleryn kept herself completely still, watching as the vines around her feet started to trail up her leg, wrapping around her ankle like they were trying to cocoon her. Above, a grassy tendril lowered to her face and started craning around her throat.

Aleryn’s whole body tensed up--even under benign circumstances, anybody touching her neck was an easy way to set Aleryn off. Now, she was having a difficult time ignoring the tension building up in her chest. She felt like she was going to explode if this kept going.

Time passed. Seconds turned to minutes, and the vines hadn’t let either of them go yet. They had fallen still, apparently content with weaving them into its little web. Above, the monkey seemed to have grown bored of watching them stand still. It grabbed more rocks and started chunking them at the pair, barely missing each until…

Aleryn watched as the monkey picked up a rather heavy-looking rock. It held it carefully in its hand, gauging its weight, before it turned to Nevani and reared back before throwing it as hard as possible. The stone soared through the air, making a direct route to Nevani. Aleryn could tell that at this rate it would hit her square in the face.

Aleryn sorely didn’t want to move, but she made a snap judgment in her mind. If the rock hit Nevani, it would surely give her a concussion. Even if it didn’t, the sudden movement would cause the vines to attack her. Aleryn wasn’t willing to risk that kind of thing.

So as soon as she saw the rock start flying, she moved. She leapt forward and caught the stone in her hand--a victory that lasted only a moment before she felt the vines tighten around her throat. The vines yanked her upward, threatening to hang her by its branches. She kicked and she fought, but the vines only pulled on her harder, like they were trying to rip her limb from limb.

“Nyrela!” Nevani cried out. Suddenly, the vines around her threw her as hard as possible into a nearby tree. There was a sickening crack as she hit its bark back-first. There was hardly a moment for her to bounce back onto the ground before the vines moved towards her again, looking for their prey.

So much for being silent. Looks like we’re doing this the hard way. Aleryn concentrated, focusing her energy into the tattoos across her skin. Dark light glowed from the moray eel that ran over her arms, inky black mist rising up from her fists.

Aleryn gripped the vines that were squeezing the oxygen from her throat, digging her fingers into them. The misty ink jabbed into the vines, piercing and cutting them apart as she ran her nails along them like little knives. A moment later, the vines snapped apart, dropping Aleryn into the ground below.

Aleryn fell to the ground with a level of grace one wouldn’t expect a seadweller to possess. She dropped to her knees for a moment, making sure to balance herself before she turned her eyes to the vines approaching Nevani. Alright, Aleryn, you got this. Time to be a hero.

“Leave her alone!” Aleryn punched the air several times in quick succession. Each time she did, inky black moray eels burst from her fists and flew through the air, hissing as they slammed into the encroaching vines, destroying them in one hit each.

Aleryn ran over to Nevani and pulled her to her feet. “Are you alright? I heard something break.”

Nevani winced as she stood back up. “Fuck…Yeah, that was my wing. I don’t think I’ll be flying any time soon.”

Aleryn grimaced. She noticed several more vines writhing on the ground, moving towards them like snakes. “My tattoo’s power won’t last long. We need to break through the barrier quick. Ready?”

“Not really.”

“Great, me neither.” Aleryn punched at the approaching vines, watching as they exploded into little pieces once her ink hit them. “Let’s go.”

Aleryn and Nevani charged onward. They wasted no time in attacking any vines they came across, hacking, slashing, and punching anything that got in their way. Grassy tendrils tried to slow them down, grabbing at their legs or arms or hair, but the two were too quick. Aleryn punched anything that got too close, while Nevani did an excellent job of using magic to blast whatever looked like it was going to try something. Meanwhile, in the trees above, the monkey chattered in a way that sounded suspiciously like laughter.

“I wish that thing would shut up,” Aleryn muttered. A vine wrapped around her hand, only to wither away when she clenched her fist around it, obliterating it with sheer force. “It’s only upsetting the foliage more.”

“I’d shoot it, but I’m a bit distracted,” Nevani told her. “Let’s just focus on getting through this. Speaking of…” She came to a stop at the barrier the two saw before. It was a web of vines, layered over each other to create a thick, difficult to parse wall between trees. It went on and on as far as they could see; even if it didn’t, they couldn’t try finding another way around with the jungle attacking them. A direct route was the only option.

“Cover me,” Aleryn said. “I’ll get through this.”

“Gotcha.” Nevani raised her hands, purple magic sparking between her fingers. “Try to hurry. I don’t think my magic will do much here.”

“Will do.” Aleryn reared her fist back and slammed it into the wall of vines. Immediately, her ink carved itself into the plants, tearing a hole through its first layer, revealing a second, and seemingly a third, layer beneath them.

Great. Nothing can be easy, can it? Aleryn delivered another pair of punches through the wall, but her work was immediately undone by more vines moving in to replace the old ones. She tried for another punch, only for one of the vines to try grabbing her fist and pulling it in. It threatened to swallow her arm whole had she not shaken it off.

And so the problem quickly revealed itself. Each time, Aleryn would try and punch through the wall. Each time, the wall would heal itself and try catching Aleryn. It became a back-and-forth that, at first, went nowhere. However, the wall was starting to adapt to Aleryn’s motions, and quickly began learning to catch her strikes in order to better capture her.

Meanwhile, Nevani was having a hard time keeping approaching vines at bay. While she managed at first, the attacks from below, above, and the sides eventually started to overwhelm the pair.

In mere moments, Aleryn and Nevani had their entire lower bodies entangled in grasping vines, while their arms and heads were snatched at by dozens more that threatened to take over. Soon, they appeared to be more plant than person.

“Now would be a great time for one of your elemental powers!” Nevani shouted. She struggled against the vines, which were doing their damndest to keep her hand held open so she couldn’t cast spells. “Do something!”

“Like what?!” Aleryn slammed her fists against vines attempting to grab her by the throat. “I can’t risk being tired out!”

“We can’t risk dying either!” Nevani shot her a glare. Something in her eyes seemed more dangerous than before. They glowed with an ominous power that Aleryn hadn’t seen before. “You have to have some kind of plan!”

“What about you? You live on these islands, don’t you have an idea?!”

“No!” Nevani’s voice cracked, suddenly dropping an octave or two. “I mean--No! I don’t have anything! So do something, quick! I don’t care if we explode, but if this isn’t fixed soon, something really bad is going to happen!”

What, worse than being torn apart by ravenous plants? Aleryn closed her eyes and tried to concentrate. She focused on the feelings of frustration and claustrophobia burning in her stomach. She tried to imagine those feelings bursting forth in a violent blast, leaving her body and into the air around her in the most dangerous fashion possible.

“You want an explosion?” Aleryn lowered her fists, closing her eyes. “Fine. You’ll have one.” She took a deep breath then, with all the power she could muster, channeled all of her anxieties and anger and fear into one vitriolic, uncontrollable scream.

“AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH.”

Unfortunately, it was not nearly as graceful as one might hope, and sounded more like a very angry woman was about to tear someone’s throat out with her bare hands.

But the effect was immediate. The scream carried with it a Shatter, centered on Aleryn herself. Her entire body shook as her scream reverberated through her body, into the vines around her, and through the wall. She watched as the fronds wrapped around her burst to pieces and fell to the ground all at once, torn to pieces by Aleryn’s shriek.

Aleryn fell to her knees. Her vision swam as her entire body trembled under the weight of her power. She felt like she had just swam a marathon over the course of hours, leaving her weak and sick. She allowed herself a moment to try and recover before she spoke up.

“We need to leave,” she said weakly. “Before the vines come back.” She glanced over at Nevani. “Come on, we need to…”

Her words fell away when she looked up, just in time to see that they were not alone. The two of them were surrounded by a group of marrow monkeys. Aleryn counted ten of them in total, all circling around the duo with makeshift weapons in their hands.

…Fuck. Aleryn tried pushing herself into a standing position, but all she did was fall over. Nearby, Nevani looked to be trying to fight back, only to be smacked hard with the blunt side of a salvaged sword.

“Leave her alone!” Aleryn tried to force herself to her feet, but her injured state made her too slow. She felt something heavy slam against the back of her head and she fell limp.

She must have passed out, because when she blinked a moment later, she was sprawled on the ground, her head pounding, in a completely different location.

Aleryn groaned as she sat up. “What…Where am I?” She glanced around, waiting for her darkvision to settle so she could get a better look. She seemed to be in some kind of pit dug into the earth. Steep dirt walls rose a good twenty or so feet above her, while a hole at the top allowed for some faint light to pour in above. All she could see was the foliage of the trees from here, but she could hear chattering, chittering, which she assumed came from the marrow monkeys.

“Damn it,” she muttered. She pushed herself into a standing position, doing her best to ignore the aching across her body. “What happened? How did I get here? Where’s Nevan--” Her words fell away when she noticed another figure in the pit with her. A familiar form of a lavender tiefling, laying crumpled on the ground nearby. Immediately upon seeing her, Aleryn’s heart filled with dread. “Oh no…”

Nevani wasn’t looking so hot. The Cinderblood looked like she had been in some kind of fight, and lost badly. She was covered in a mixture of blood and dirt, wearing a number of cuts and bruises and scrapes across her purple skin. The fact that she was laying face-down made it look like her corpse had just been dumped into the hole alongside Aleryn, left to rot.

“No. No, no, no, no…” Aleryn rushed over to Nevani’s side, kneeling before the girl. Anxiety picked up in her chest, catching at her heart. Regret and fear whirled through Aleryn’s head like a hurricane, mixing with feelings of anger towards herself.

Stupid. She had slipped up, and now someone else paid the price. Aleryn had gotten an innocent person killed, and for what? A bunch of trinkets in a magic bag? Nobody deserved to die for something like that, especially not when it was Aleryn’s fault they had been taken in the first place.

Aleryn felt tears well up in her eyes. Even if Nevani was a stranger, she felt horrified by what she had caused. She was glad, to some degree, that Nevani’s face was looking away from her; she didn’t want to have to look into the other woman’s cold, lifeless eyes.

“I’m sorry,” Aleryn told her. “This is--This is all my fault. I never should have dragged you into this. I…I should have done this by myself. Now you’re…” Her voice died away. She didn’t want to acknowledge the truth. She didn’t want to say it out loud. If she did, that only made it more real, as though she could make it as though it never happened by keeping her mouth shut.

Despite the horror she felt at what had happened, a small but loud part of Aleryn couldn’t help but take this as an opportunity to beat her down. Memories flooded her mind, that tiny voice reaching around her and pulling at her thoughts, trying to drown her in despair, saying:

“Do I really have to work with her? She can’t do anything right!”

“All she ever does is keep to herself. Nobody wants to work with her--and I can’t blame them.”

“She can’t even act like a real triton. She’s always acting weird, like she’s not actually one of us.”

Words assaulted Aleryn’s mind, driving at her brain at full-force. She clutched at her head, trying to stop the onslaught of insults and memories, but she couldn’t. All she could do was watch as they continued, unabated.

“Weak!”

“Helpless!”

“Cowardly!”

“Pathetic!”

“Useless!”

Aleryn shook her head, trying to dislodge the voices from her skull. “I shouldn’t have brushed you off. I never should have let my insecurities get in the way of trying to be nice. You spent your last day trying to help me and I’ve been nothing but ungrateful. I’m so sorry…”

“Apology accepted.”

Aleryn let out a rather unglamorous scream and jumped to her feet at the voice, quickly holding up her fists in a defensive stance. She watched as Nevani turned her face to the triton, sporting a rather annoying smirk. Her face didn’t look much better than her body, but the fact that she was alive melted Aleryn’s heart…which proceeded to freeze a little once she started talking.

“I didn’t know you cared so much, Nyrie,” Nevani said. Her body shook as she pushed herself to her feet. She stumbled, but managed to stabilize herself against the pit wall. “Here I thought you hated me.”

Aleryn laughed weakly--mostly in an attempt to cover up how close she was to sobbing. Something about this felt funny now. In the face of thinking Nevani had died, her fears and worries seemed small and stupid. “No, no I don’t hate you. I just…” She paused, trying to contain her voice better. “...I’m sorry. You must think I’m so dumb right now.”

“Hey, no big deal. It happens.” Nevani tried to brush dirt off herself, only to successfully smear bits of blood across her shirt. “Any idea how long I’ve been out?”

“No, I--I just woke up myself.” Aleryn tried to dry her eyes, at this point giving up any chance of hiding it. Nevani saw her on the verge of crying over a supposedly-dead body, there was no coming back from this. “What…What happened to you? Why do you look like that?”

“What, is it that bad?” Nevani chuckled, only to wince and place her hand over her stomach. “Fuck--Yeah, it’s that bad. It’s what I get for trying to take the monkeys on by myself though. Once they knocked you out, I tried taking a few on, but they overwhelmed me. Kinda a shit plan, right?”

“It was brave,” Aleryn reassured her. “You risked your life just coming here--trying to protect me is going above and beyond. You did the best you could given the circumstances.”

Nevani flashed Aleryn a smile. “You’re a lot nicer all of a sudden. Did that rock to the head change something?”

Aleryn sighed. Here we go. We’re stuck here, might as well make the most of it. “I’m sorry, Nevani,” she said. “For how I’ve been acting, I mean. You didn’t deserve me brushing you off like that earlier. I should have been more earnest with you instead of trying to avoid all contact like I was. I apologize.”

Nevani leaned against the wall, frowning. “Yeah, what was up with that? I mean, I get it if you want this to be strictly business or something, but you were acting like you wanted nothing to do with me. What’s up? I’m not that bad company, am I?”

“No, I--” Aleryn felt her whole body slump as she realized how embarrassing this would sound. “It’s nothing. Really, just…dumb stuff.”

“I’m not in any position to judge,” Nevani said. “You just saw me get my ass handed to me by a pig earlier. Far as I see it, we’re not going anywhere--so spill it.”

Aleryn groaned. “Fine. It’s just…” She crossed her arms over her chest, hugging herself and squeezing her upper arms tight. “I’ve had some bad experiences with people. Normally when I try to make friends, people freak out. They see rules that I don’t understand and boundaries that I can’t figure out; then when I mess up, everything falls apart.”

She leaned her head up, trying to distance herself from Nevani’s gaze. “It always happens the same way. Small things that go wrong every time that just build up into something big. The way I talk or the way I swim or the way I think. People just get tired of it eventually…and of me.”

She closed her eyes, trying her best to ignore Nevani’s presence. She hated this, hated being so vulnerable. But she knew there was no point lying…especially if they were in danger. Might as well wipe the slate clean, as it were.

“I thought if I pushed you away, I could avoid that whole thing. Never let myself get hurt by never getting my hopes up. It’s dumb and all it did was stress me out--and make you feel like you did something wrong. I’m sorry about that.”

Aleryn glanced over to Nevani and peeked an eye open. She expected the other woman to be angry over such trivial reasoning, or to laugh at her for being so ridiculous. Instead, Nevani looked interested, like Aleryn did whenever she was reading a fascinating book.

“So it’s the hedgehog’s dilemma,” Nevani said after a few moments. She sounded confident, like she was making perfect sense. Unfortunately, to Aleryn it just sounded like gibberish.

Aleryn wiped at the tears that had formed at her eyes. “What…What’s a hedgehog? What kind of dilemma could they have?”

“It’s a metaphor, actually,” Nevani explained. “Hedgehogs are these little animals with sharp spines along their backs. The hedgehog’s dilemma describes a situation where some hedgehogs want to huddle up to keep warm in the winter, but can’t because they may accidentally poke each other with their spines--they can’t get close without hurting each other.”

She pointed a finger at Aleryn. “What you’re describing is the same thing. You’re scared of getting close to people because you might get hurt by their spines, or they’ll be hurt by yours. You’re keeping yourself isolated out of fear. That’s no way to live.”

Aleryn tried to imagine this hedgehog--a creature that hurt anyone who came near it. Yeah, that sounded about right in her book. Though she imagined the hedgehog had a much better reason to be lonely than she did. She just was kinda bad at most things; the hedgehog wasn’t at fault for its problems.

“So, did this metaphorical hedgehog ever find a solution to this dilemma?” Aleryn asked. “Or does the thought experiment end on a depressing note?”

Nevani shrugged. “Depends on the theories. I’m not a philosopher, so I haven’t heard them all, but I’ve always imagined that the best solution for the hedgehog is to find a turtle.”

“A…turtle?”

“Right. The turtle has protection from the hedgehog’s spines ‘cause of its shell. It doesn’t mind being poked, and the two can get along just fine due to that. You just need to find your own turtle, you know? Someone who gets you.”

Someone who gets me. Aleryn’s thoughts turned to the only person she could really say understood her as a peer. The person she went on this whole journey for. The reason she was in this other plane, far and far away from home and everything she understood. Far from her. She wondered if she would still ‘get’ her if they finally met up again.

Aleryn let out a quiet sigh. “I’m not sure that’s an option for me. I’m not exactly normal, you know. Most people don’t even give me the chance to explain myself, let alone build a relationship with them.”

“So what? Fuck those guys. But don’t wallow in self-pity just ‘cause you met some assholes. If you can’t see the forest for the trees, you won’t get anywhere in life, you know?”

Aleryn made a face. “That’s a surfacer expression, I don’t get what it means.”

Nevani smiled, a light and playful expression. “It means you’re focusing on the wrong stuff. Like, I was willing to make friends, but you brushed me off. If you went about things differently, maybe we could’ve gotten along, you know?”

“I suppose you have a point.” Aleryn uncrossed her arms and started running one hand over the dirt slope. A thought occurred to her--one she would dare never speak in normal situations, but given how things were going, she was willing to give it a shot.

She looked stopped and glanced over to Nevani, her cheeks turning a faint purple color. “Well, since you said that, maybe there’s time to fix things. I know I haven’t done much to earn a second chance, but…Well, we’ll be spending a month in the same archipelago and everything, so maybe…” She clasped her hands together, holding them tight as if doing so would relieve the tension in her body. “We could start over? Try again without all the monkeys and danger and everything going wrong?”

Nevani tapped a finger against her chin, glancing upwards. “Well, you did save me from that rope trap, and then the vines back there…Tell you what, you find a way to get us out of this pit, and it’ll be a solid yes. ‘Cause if you don’t, we’re probably both dead anyway.”

Aleryn chuckled. “Fair enough. I suppose now that my conscience is clear, maybe we’ll have an easier time getting out of here.” She looked up, noting the continued noise coming from above. Whatever it was, it was coming from further away--they weren’t near the pit. “What do you think they’re doing right now?”

“Judging by the way they stole your stuff? The yearly troop leader ritual.” Nevani tapped her fingers against the pit wall, carefully checking its toughness. When her fingers didn’t seep into it, she tried pressing into it. “Every year, a marrow monkey troop chooses a new leader through a form of ritualized combat. The winner gets all the spoils the troop stole recently, in addition to being literally crowned their leader.”

“So we have until they stop fighting to get out of here,” Aleryn noted. She looked over the wall again. It wasn’t a pretty sight--it was too steep to walk up and there weren’t any obvious handholds. “Any ideas?”

“You’ve got me. Unless you can heal my wing, I’m stuck here.” Nevani frowned as the dirt easily gave way to her fingers, allowing her to poke two small holes into the wall, which quickly filled in again once she removed them. “Wall’s not stable enough to climb. We would need to focus our weight on something else. Any elemental powers you could use?”

Aleryn shook her head. “No water around here, and an explosion would just lead to a cave-in. That said…I might have an idea. Just bear with me a moment.”

Aleryn placed both of her hands on the wall and closed her eyes. Alright, spiritweaver training, don’t fail me now. She imagined the flow of Positive Energy in her body, channeling through her arms and into her digits. She imagined the energy trailing through her fingertips, through her feet, through her heart, all across her body.

Not many people are aware of this, but spiritweaver training is about more than manipulating the Positive Energy in the world around you. It’s about controlling the energy within yourself--mastering the power within your body and making it something more. Everybody has the potential to do incredible things--it’s just about unlocking that power. Anybody can do it, in the right circumstances. They just need a push.

Aleryn remembered stories that some of the greatest spiritweavers were capable of supernatural feats of physical prowess--swimming great distances in mere moments, connecting to the minds of others, overcoming death itself. She was far from that powerful, but perhaps there was something she could do, some obstacle she could overcome.

Her elemental powers were useless here--but maybe she could do something greater if she set her mind to it.

Aleryn focused on the power running through her body, the energy that followed the paths set along her form. She imagined that power coalescing into something more, channeling it into her limbs. She imagined that she could jump higher, run farther, reach higher. She drew on the energy all within her and willed it to extend her body’s natural abilities.

At first, nothing seemed to happen. She felt like perhaps this was just a foolish venture--maybe she should give up and try something else. Then she felt a hand on her shoulder.

“You can do this,” Nevani’s voice came through. “I mean, I don’t know what this is, but I’m sure you got it.“

The encouragement steeled Aleryn’s will. She was not going to mess up, she was not going to fail. She had a point to prove--not just to Nevani, but to herself. That she wouldn’t just mess everything up or be a burden to those around her. She needed to succeed, no matter what.

Eventually, as Aleryn concentrated on the flow of energy in her body, she noticed something…different from what she normally felt. The power within her, it felt unusual. More streamlined. It felt like a river full of trash was becoming unclogged, allowing the water to pass through it more easily. She felt different, more in-tune with herself, more powerful.

Stronger, one might say.

Aleryn could feel a slight hum throughout her body, like the energy was buzzing about her form. It felt strange--a little unnerving, but also enticing and comfortable, like she was more settled into her own skin. She opened her eyes, and somehow it felt like she had just done so for the first time in years.

“I have an idea,” she said. She stepped backwards, placing her back against the wall. She eyed the pit’s slope, taking a moment to examine it before continuing, “If this works, I’ll find a way to get you out.”

Nevani frowned. “That’s vague. What’s your idea exactly?”

“It would sound stupid if I tried explaining it,” Aleryn told her. “It’s better if I showed you.” Truth be told, it was hard for Aleryn to explain it herself. This was a trick she had never done before--she wasn’t even sure it would work. But she felt it, deep in her bones, that she could do this. It was like in unlocking this primal part of herself, some other part of herself immediately knew what to do.

Maybe it was her instincts. Maybe Surminare was imparting knowledge onto her. Hell, maybe she just read it somewhere in a book. All she knew was she was heading in the right direction. All she had to do was push ahead.

So she did.

Aleryn suddenly dashed forward, running across the small pit with wide, confident strides. In a moment or two, she would have hit the wall, but she was planning for that. She leapt upward and pressed her feet against the wall. They connected with the dirt, but didn’t fall. Rather, Aleryn kept moving, continuing to run vertically, up the wall, as if she was walking on normal ground.

Running up the wall felt weird. She could feel gravity pull on her, urging her down, trying to take her back to where she belonged, but she kept going. She moved swiftly, knowing that any lost momentum would bring her back down to earth. She tried to avoid thinking about what she was doing, knowing that if she thought about it for more than an instant, she would be distracted and fall over. Instead, she let her instincts take control and ran the length of the pit’s wall.

In a few agonizingly-long seconds, Aleryn had reached the top of the pit. The moment her foot touched the edge of the pit’s entrance, she leaped forward, upward and out of the pit, before landing on solid ground right next to it.

Aleryn panted heavily, her entire body abuzz not only with power, but with excitement. “I can’t believe that actually worked,” she muttered. She shook her head. Escape with Nevani now, pat yourself on the back later. She looked up to see what her new surroundings were like.

The pit was in the middle of a large clearing in the middle of the jungle, in what seemed to be some sort of ritual area. Stolen loot--ranging from handmade items that were clearly created by mortal hands to different types of food and precious items--could be found in various, carefully designed piles around what seemed to be roughly-made shrines. Aleryn had no idea what the shrines meant, but she also wasn’t too keen on finding out.

Throughout the area were dozens of marrow monkeys, strewn about the clearing. Some of the monkeys were hanging off to the side, content to sit and watch and cheer as ‘festivities’ went on. The rest were embroiled in what looked to be some sort of battle. Marrow monkey fought marrow monkey, attacking any who got near each other. The spectators were left alone, but any who were inside the clearing proper were attacked as if they were harsh enemies.

They’re still fighting over who gets to be leader, Aleryn thought with relief. If I’m careful, they might not notice me. She pulled her cloak--which thankfully didn’t get taken from her--around her body and willed it to change to the colors of the foliage and dirt, hoping it might help hide her. With that, she dropped to the ground and carefully crawled towards one of the shrines.

Eventually, she managed to make it to one of the shrines without being noticed. The shrine was some kind of sculpture made out of various pieces of stone stacked on top of each other, surrounded by what Aleryn assumed to be offerings--various stolen manmade goods, unlike the other shrines which held food or gems or the like. The goods were placed in a careful circle around the shrine, and Aleryn noticed the monkeys kept their fighting far from this area.

They’re more intelligent than I thought. Too bad they refuse to see reason. Aleryn eyed the combatants for a moment, making sure that they weren’t looking at her, before she started digging about the shrine offerings. She noted some interesting objects--an instrument or two, pieces of jewelry here or there, but she paid them little mind. They weren’t hers, and she had no interest risking getting caught for something that didn’t belong to her.

After a bit of searching, she eventually managed to find what she was looking for: a certain white-and-red satchel, its brim thankfully closed, hidden underneath some sort of blanket. She swiftly grabbed it and put it on, smiling eagerly as she felt its familiar weight across her shoulders.

Yes! Now I just need to get back to Nevani. Aleryn carefully turned around and started the task of crawling slowly back to the pit. By the time she got back, she was covered in copious amounts of dirt--but she was victorious!

“I got my bag back,” she said aloud once she got to the pit. “We should be good to go.”

“That’s awesome, Nyrie,” Nevani replied. “But uh, how am I supposed to get out of here?”

“I have some rope in here,” Aleryn explained. “Just give me a minute to find--”

Clatter, clatter.

Aleryn froze at the familiar sound of bones clacking. She turned slowly around just in time to see a marrow monkey staring at her, watching her with cold, lifeless eyes. It hadn’t made a move yet, but Aleryn took that to mean it was surprised by her escape. She guessed it would rally its friends to attack her if she didn’t act first.

So, she decided to make the first move. She spun on her heel and threw a punch, directly towards the monkey’s nose.

The response was exactly as she had planned. Her fist connected with the monkey’s face and sent it reeling backwards in a spiral of pain and confusion. It made a noise that Aleryn assumed was a confused shout, pointing at her. Soon, a number of nearby monkeys turned to her, clacking their jaws in anticipation as they started towards her.

Shit. Aleryn raised her fists as she looked around. Out of the dozens of monkeys in the clearing, only six had noticed her. Still, that was six too many. She held her ground, watching as they started to surround her and the pit, eyeing her hungrily. Several still seconds passed as the two sides gauged each other, before one of the monkeys charged forward towards Aleryn.

Aleryn deftly dodged out of the way and delivered a series of punches to the monkey as it passed by her. Unlike the fight with the first monkey she met, she decided to go all out here. She felt her fist slam against its bone thrice over before she kicked it aside, watching as it tumbled over into the dirt.

She turned to face the five other monkeys who had watched what had happened. She narrowed her eyes and held up her fists. “You get one chance to stand down,” she told them.

The monkeys responded by clattering their jaws and rushing towards her.

“Fine. Have it your way.” Aleryn weaved around the monkeys. The small creatures tried their best to attack her, assailing her with claw-like nails and sharpened teeth, but Aleryn was too fast for them. She dodged, she leapt, she twisted and turned. She moved with a finesse that the monkeys simply couldn’t match, and when they weren’t ready for it, she threw out kicks and punches that threatened to overwhelm them.

“Woo! Go Nyrie!” Shouted Nevani. “Kick their ass! You can do it!”

Aleryn couldn’t help but chuckle. “Thanks! They’re actually surprisingly manageable. I don’t get what all the fuss was abo--” She was cut off by a monkey throwing itself at her face, grabbing her hair and pulling as hard as it could in an attempt to rip her head off. “AGH! WRONG, WRONG, WRONG! I WAS SO WRONG!”

Aleryn stumbled around blindly, trying to pull the monkey off her head. She got nowhere, however. It wasn’t until she felt something slam against the monkey’s body, followed by its scream, before its grip loosened and she was able to throw it off. When she did, she saw purple energy cackling across its back, where a scorch mark was seared into the bone.

“Hell yeah!” Nevani shouted from the pit. From where she was standing, she would’ve easily had the right angle to help out somehow. Judging by the magical energy coiling around her fingers, she found just the way. “Eldritch Blast never fails!”

“I owe you one, Nevani!” Aleryn called out. She turned her back to the pit, training her eyes on the crowd of monkeys gathering before her as she raised her fists. “Alright. Let’s finish this!”

And so, an epic fight of fantastical proportions began. On one side were the monkeys; ever-present, their numbers growing larger as the battle wore on and others from nearby feuds came over to see what the commotion was about. The monkeys weren’t particularly dangerous, but they could take quite a few hits and in big numbers could overwhelm an opponent with ease.

On the other side was Aleryn and Nevani. Aleryn wasn’t capable of powerful attacks, but she could avoid danger with ease and she could throw out a number of strikes in mere moments, moving faster and more gracefully than the monkeys ever could, all while Nevani supported her from the pit, taking pot-shots from below with Eldritch Blast. Aleryn quickly learned to adjust her fighting style so that the monkeys would be forced to fight on the edge of the pit, causing them to endure constant hits from Nevani at all times.

The fight was exhausting, but progress was slowly made. The monkeys couldn’t be killed--if they could, Aleryn didn’t know how--but every time one was defeated, it slinked off to avoid the rest of the fighting, moving back to the crowd outside the ring. One-by-one, their numbers thinned, until eventually only one remained…

This monkey was no normal marrow monkey, however. This one was by far the bravest and strongest of their troop, a giant by their standards. When it straightened its back it stood as tall as Aleryn. Its bones were bulkier than the rest, giving it a tank-like physique. Its tail alone was thick enough to toss Aleryn to the ground with one mighty swing. On its head, it wore some kind of twisted crown, built from interlocking animal bones weaved together, stained with blood.

Aleryn had spent most of the battle carefully avoiding this hulking creature. She hoped it would tire itself out before she had to fight it, but it seemed her luck had to run out eventually.

Aleryn kept near the edge of the pit so that she was still in Nevani’s vision, bouncing on the tips of her feet as if she could spring into action at any moment. Being filled with nervous energy was a good thing sometimes, she felt; it made her ready to move at a moment’s notice.

“This one’s big,” Aleryn said to Nevani. She held up her fists, staring into the dark holes that made up the monkey’s eyes. “I’m not sure I can out-punch it. Got any tips?”

“Send ‘em down here!” Nevani yelled. Aleryn looked back to find the Cinderblood’s hands were held high, charged with dark purple energy that cackled between her fingertips. “I can handle this one.”

Aleryn snorted. “Not so sure that’s a great idea.”

“No, seriously; you can’t punch through that bone, but throw it down this pit with enough pressure, and you might be able to do some serious damage. Then I can blast it while it’s down. It’s the best solution.”

“I wouldn’t call putting that thing in front of you our ‘best solution’, but I don’t have a better plan.” Aleryn rummaged through her bag, quickly pulling out a one-foot-long bronze rod. She ran her thumb over a sliding switch on the rod’s side, carefully keeping track of just where it was headed. “Let’s hope this works. Expand!”

The Aquan word caused the rod to burst forth, growing into a six-foot metallic quarterstaff. Aleryn gripped it tight with both hands before dashing forward, raising it high to swat at her enemy. Before the attack could land, though, the monkey grabbed the staff mid-swing and swung it over its shoulder. This simple action sent Aleryn flying, over and behind the monkey before ragdolling her through the dirt.

Aleryn coughed, pushing herself to her knees. “Alright. Direct approach won’t work. Let’s try something else.” Aleryn made a sweeping motion with her free hand, then pushed it forward. Immediately, her innate tritonic abilities activated as a sudden strong wind blew past her, directly against the monkey. It raised its arm to block the air flow and tried stepping closer, but did so with slow, stumbling steps.

“Better,” Aleryn admitted. She stood up, holding the quarterstaff with both hands. “Let’s see you fight me and the wind.” She rushed forward and immediately delivered a series of attacks with the quarterstaff. Every one hit, battering the creature as she pushed it a step backwards with each blow.

“Hey ya doin’, Nyrie?” Nevani called out to her. “I can’t see. Are you winning?”

“I’m doing--” She ducked right as the monkey tried grabbing at her face, then slammed the quarterstaff against its head. “I’m doing fine! Can’t keep this wind up forever though. Might need a new plan of attack.”

“Any other elemental surprises?”

“Hard to say.” She hopped to the side, then gave the monkey a strong, firm kick backwards. It stumbled, back into the position Aleryn had first found it in. “I’m trying to avoid knocking myself out here.”

“This seems like a pretty big problem for you.”

“Only when I’m fighting for my life--which is far too often now that I think about it.” The monkey threw a barrage of punches at her as she spoke, but Aleryn dodged them with ease. She was quickly realizing that the monkeys had raw strength on their side, but it couldn’t replace dedicated training. For every time they missed an attack, they gave Aleryn an opening to strike back. She learned that for all their intelligence, they still fought in primal, instinctive ways that were easily countered with care and precision.

The only issue was how much of a beating this one could take. After so many strikes, Aleryn thought it would weaken. But it continued to tank blows as if it was nothing. All Aleryn could do was push it back ever so slightly, and hope to win a war of attrition.

Eventually, the wind died away, leaving the two on a far more even battlefield. The monkey took this opportunity immediately and charged at her, arms outstretched to grab her.

“Not going to happen.” Aleryn raised her arms skyward and drew on her ancestral connection to the sea, bonded to her very people. Suddenly, a thirty-foot-long Wall of Water emerged from the air itself, submerging both her and the monkey as it ran the length of the distance between and beyond them.

The monkey’s charge immediately slowed when the water appeared, and soon its attack gave way to confusion as it came to a stop, clearly trying to figure out where this all had come from. It chattered, glancing around in a bewildered, almost panicked way.

Aleryn quickly moved to capitalize on its confusion. She dropped the Wall of Water, it having served its purpose, and ran straight at the monkey before leaping into the air. She delivered a flying kick straight to its chest, pushing all of her weight into its torso at once before kicking off it.

The result was immediate. It stumbled backwards until it had reached the edge of the pit. It stared at the ground it had just lost before looking up at Aleryn. It tilted its head and roared at her, stepping forward so it was no longer on the edge, but no further. Instead, it eyed Aleryn patiently.

So close, she thought. I just need a way to push it a few feet…She watched the monkey carefully, noting its posture. It was standing in such a way that it was prepared to be attacked; a direct assault wouldn’t do much, she figured. So she needed a way to get it in the hole without attempting that.

That’s when the idea hit her. She couldn’t help but grimace at the thought. It wasn’t one she enjoyed, but it was her best option at the moment. All she needed to do was get behind the monkey and everything would fall into place.

Except, she noticed, that the monkey’s feet were positioned so that it was ready to run, either to give chase or to charge. If she tried running around the hole, it would just follow after her, and she needed to be directly behind it for this plan to work.

So she couldn’t go past and she couldn’t go around. That left only one direction.

Aleryn scowled. “I’m going to hate this.” She gripped the staff tightly. “Alright. Here goes nothing…” With that, she charged forward, raising the quarterstaff high. In her head, she counted. One…Two…Three…NOW!

“Expand!” She yelled in Aquan. The quarterstaff started to grow, but not before Aleryn--now only ten or so feet from the monkey--pushed the staff against the ground. She delicately balanced her weight on the staff as it grew, pushing her off the ground and into the air, vaulting directly over the monkey’s head.

One would think that Aleryn, taking to the skies in such a way, would handle the situation with grace.

“AHHHHH!”

She did not.

Moments later, Aleryn landed on the other side of the pit. Not on her feet, mind you--that would be too easy. Instead, she slammed into the ground on her side and rolled several feet through the dirt. She cried out as pain shot through her body, but she did her best to move past it. After all, she still had a job to do.

She looked over to the monkey. It stood across the pit, staring at her with an expression its bony face couldn’t properly express. Amazement? Surprise? Bewilderment? Aleryn wasn’t sure what it was, but it kept the creature still. Perfect for her plans.

She threw out her hand. At once, a strain of water from her waterskin burst forth and grabbed the monkey by the leg. With a heavy grunt, she yanked her hand back and watched as the water did likewise. The monkey struggled in vain as it was pulled towards Aleryn, into the hole and into its objective, its crown falling off its head and onto the ground near the pit’s side.

The monkey’s fall was not pretty. Its throat slammed against the edge of the pit with a painful sound, right before it fell five, ten, twenty feet below, crashing into the ground below, just barely missing Nevani.

The monkey made a low chattering noise as it tried to push itself to its feet. Key word: Tried. The moment it touched the ground, Nevani had already started her own attack, firing off wave after wave of Eldritch Blasts right into its face. Soon, it crumpled back to the ground, immobile, its body shuddering with purple energy.

“...Huh. I can’t believe that worked.” Aleryn pushed herself off the ground, only to collapse again a moment later. “Damn it…”

Nevani glanced at her, one hand still outstretched to zap the larger monkey if it stood up again. “You okay up there?”

“Fine, just--” Aleryn took a shaky breath. Her whole body was trembling. She felt like she had been running for days without rest. Her arms were the only thing keeping her even somewhat upright, and it felt like they were about to give out from under her.

I shouldn’t lie to her, Aleryn reminded herself. It sets a bad example going forward. We’re trying to get along, remember?

Aleryn shook her head. “No, no I’m not alright. I pushed myself too hard. I will be fine, given time to rest, I just--” She was cut off by the sound of something--many somethings--thumping against the dirt. She looked up, and felt her heart sink.

The monkeys that had previously sectioned themselves off outside the ‘arena’ were approaching her. Dozens of monkeys, more than she could possibly fight in her weakened state, were quickly abandoning the trees and bushes they were watching from and making their way towards Aleryn, their empty black eyes all trained on her.

“Oh no.” Aleryn grimaced. “We might have a problem. A lot of them, actually.”

“I don’t suppose you have a plan?”

“Fresh out of those at the moment. I can barely focus on what’s in front of me.” She closed her eyes, trying to concentrate as if sheer willpower could return strength to her body. “I’ll figure something out. I refuse to die on dry land.”

She looked up at the monkeys approaching her. They were starting to surround the pit now, circling around it from all sides. They walked slowly, calmly. Their stances didn’t seem aggressive to Aleryn, but she hardly considered herself an expert in surfacer zoology. For all she knew, they were preparing to attack her now.

She pushed herself to her feet. Miraculously, she didn’t fall. Instead, she remained upright yet unsteady, swaying from side-to-side. She raised her fists and snarled. “Don’t you dare take another step closer. I--I’m more than capable of defending myself.”

Surprisingly, the monkeys did as they were told. At her words, they stopped, standing at attention with the closest ones being about ten feet away. They stared at her, faces blank as they met Aleryn’s gaze. She held theirs with a fierce determination, refusing to let down her guard.

Across the pit, one of the monkeys grabbed the larger monkey’s crown and tossed it to one of its companions closer to Aleryn. It held the crown in an almost reverent way, like a priest would hold a holy symbol.

Then, with a wave of clatters, the monkeys began to kneel. One by one, as if practiced, they dropped to their knees, bowing their heads before Aleryn. The monkey holding the crown did likewise, but not before holding it out to Aleryn in offering. It remained in that position, as did they all, as Aleryn just stared at the sight before her.

“What’s going on?” Nevani asked. “What happened?”

“They’re kneeling,” Aleryn told her. She dropped her fists, her eyes roaming over the crowd of monkeys. They looked strangely serene like this, not at all like the troublemakers she knew them as. “I think…I think they’re kneeling before me. They’re offering me a crown. Does any of this make any sense to you?”

Nevani let out a gasp. “No way. You’re not serious, are you?”

“I’m not the best at making jokes. What’s going on?”

“You’re not going to believe this.” Nevani grinned, shaking her hands like a little cheer. “See, you fought in their ritual. You were the last person standing. And if you remember what I said, this whole fight was to see who would get crowned the new leader of the troop, which means…?”

Aleryn’s brow furrowed. “They’re…crowning me leader?”

“Yes! I’ve never heard of a person being named leader of a marrow monkey troop! This is awesome!” Nevani moved back against the far side of the pit, angling her head to get a better view of Aleryn. “Please tell me you’re going to accept it, this could mean so much for my research. Nobody’s had this opportunity before.”

Aleryn glanced at the crown, eyeing the bits of dried blood and old, cracked bones. “Do I have a choice in the matter?”

“I dunno! They might kill you if you don’t accept. But why wouldn’t you? This is so cool.”

Aleryn sighed. “We might have different definitions of ‘cool’, but…Alright. My life’s already strange; this can’t be much worse.” She stepped forward, watching the monkey in front of her carefully. “I hope this doesn’t come back to bite me…”

The monkey before her didn’t respond. It only stayed kneeling, silent, as it held up the crown. Aleryn watched for any sign of movement, any indication that this might have been some kind of trap, but saw nothing. Either due to her exhaustion or the monkey’s genuine nature, she didn’t see any kind of threat. It felt as if she was--for lack of a better term--safe.

She placed her hands on the crown, recoiling a little at its touch. It felt disgusting; long-dead bones bound together by dried blood, coated in a layer of dirt and muck, this was the last thing she wanted to put on her head. But if this was how she was going to get out of here, she decided it was a worthwhile sacrifice, and one she could scrub clean later.

She picked up the crown and, ever so carefully, placed it atop her head. The monkey she had taken it from looked up, then started chattering, pounding its tail against the dirt. The other monkeys mimicked the motion moments later, filling the clearing with the sound of bone smacking against bone. The monkeys raised their heads in unison and started clapping, a sound that was far less comforting when it lacked flesh behind it.

The ritual--Aleryn could only imagine that’s what it was, some kind of ceremonial rite--ended after a few moments, at which point the monkeys ran over to the piles of treasures. One by one, they grabbed armfuls of food, rocks, gemstones, and whatever else they could find before running over to Aleryn and holding them out to her. They dropped the tributes at her feet before moving aside for the next monkey to do the same.

Aleryn could only watch. Partly too exhausted to react properly and partly bewildered, she just watched as the monkeys made offerings to her, until eventually they stepped aside, forming a crowd once more as they stared at her, as if waiting for something.

Okay, maybe they’re expecting some sort of reaction, she guessed. I can try to talk? Maybe that will make them content.

Aleryn cleared her throat, then spoke up in a clear, formal voice. “Thank you all for this…” She looked over the items left at her feet. They ranged from mildly interesting rocks to semi-rotten fruit to what seemed to be pilfered man-made items like swords and jewelry. “...Erm, lovely tribute. It is clear that you all take this very seriously. I’m extremely grateful.”

Her eyes darted to the pit. Nevani gave her two thumbs up and a smile. Aleryn hoped she wasn’t just being nice because her life was on the line. “Keep going,” Nevani whispered. “You’re doing great!”

Aleryn nodded. She turned back to the crowd of monkeys and continued, “However, it would be wrong of me to accept all of this as my own. You’re the ones who worked so hard to, erm, acquire all of this! I can’t possibly keep it. So, I would like you all to divide it amongst yourselves in whatever way is most appropriate to you!”

She tried for a smile, hoping that the monkeys were actually capable of understanding her and that she wasn’t just speaking to the air. Judging by the blank expressions of their faces, she guessed they didn’t quite know what she was talking about.

“The tribute is yours,” Aleryn reiterated. She took a random item from the pile--a bronze necklace--and tossed it at one of the monkeys. The monkey in question grabbed it, holding it tight even as other monkeys reached for it. The first monkey smacked their hands away, holding the necklace tight.

“Hey, no fighting,” Aleryn ordered. At her words, each of the monkeys froze, then nodded their heads slowly. So they can understand me. That’s useful…I think. She used her foot to push the piles of tribute away from her, towards the crowd. “Take what you want, please. There’s no reason to argue with each other. Just leave something for everyone.”

She watched as a number of monkeys edged towards the pile, clearly trying to see if she was messing with them or not. One of them sniped a little silver ring, while two others tried grabbing several fruits and pulling them close. Aleryn nodded, gesturing for them that it was alright, even if she herself was confused as to how these creatures ate anything in the first place.

Quickly, the monkeys began to understand what they were being allowed. She stood back as they started going over the tribute pile, each one taking a small handful of loot before stepping aside for the others to come through. Aleryn wondered if they were so generous naturally, or if the threat of her retaliation was keeping them in check.

After a few minutes of watching, she clasped her hands together. “This was all a wonderfully enlightening experience,” Aleryn said, “But I need to go. I have a roof to fix, and…Yeah. I just need to retrieve my companion down there, so if you don’t mind…” She side-stepped over to the edge of the pit and looked down to Nevani. “Any idea how we’re going to get you out of here?”

Nevani shrugged. “Your guess is as good as mine. I was sorta hoping you could give me a lift with your weird wall-walking powers. Any chance of that?”

Aleryn shook her head. “Not in my current condition. I would probably fall over half-way and we would end up right back down there.” She paused, glancing at the monkeys surrounding the tribute piles. “Maybe we just need outside help.” She turned over to one of the monkeys, pointing one out at random. “You.”

The monkey pointed at itself, as if to say, Me?

“Yes, you. Come here. I need your help.” She pointed at Nevani. “See her? I need you to carefully get her out of the hole. Don’t hurt her. Understood?”

The monkey nodded. Without a moment’s hesitation, it leapt inside the pit, landing on top of the unconscious larger monkey within. It chattered for a few moments, sizing Nevani up briefly before grabbing hold of her and tossing the Cinderblood atop its shoulder. It then began the quick process of climbing back up the wall and, once it was out, dropped Nevani at Aleryn’s feet.

The monkey looked at Aleryn once it completed its task, as if awaiting further orders. Aleryn simply nodded. “Thank you. You may carry on.” The monkey clattered its teeth briefly and clapped its hands before running off, catching up with its fellows and leaving Aleryn and Nevani alone.

Well, as alone as they could be when surrounded by a small army of marrow monkeys, but whatever.

Nevani frowned as the monkey ran off, touching a finger to her damaged wing. “Eugh, I don’t think they heard the ‘carefully’ part of your command. That hurt.”

“I’ll ask Kai if she can heal you when we get back to the beach,” Aleryn promised. “It’s the least I can do for your help.” She held out her hand, offering a little smile.

Nevani matched the expression, taking Aleryn’s hand and using it to pull herself to her feet. “You better--this was a hell of an adventure you dragged me on, Nyrie. Are they all like this?”

“There are more monkeys than I’m used to,” Aleryn admitted, “But other than that, I suppose it’s not too different. More relaxed maybe.”

“If this is your idea of relaxing, then you definitely need a tropical vacation.” Nevani dusted herself off, then glanced around at the monkeys enjoying their various goods. “Think we might be able to sneak out of here while they’re busy?”

“If we hurry, they might not notice us. Let’s go.” Aleryn gestured for Nevani to follow, then made her way to the edge of the clearing. Nevani followed behind her, keeping an eye on the monkeys as if studying them. Aleryn wondered if she was taking mental notes for her work, or if she was just worried they may attack the escaping duo.

Soon, they found themselves in the jungle again, distanced from the monkeys by trees that blocked the two of them from the creatures’ line of sight. Once they were a decent distance away, Nevani took the lead, claiming that she knew how to get back to the beach from here. Seeing as Aleryn couldn’t tell this part of the jungle from any other, she chose to believe her.

As they walked, Aleryn found herself trailing behind Nevani. She didn’t stray too far, but she was far enough back that the Cinderblood wouldn’t be able to see her. She kept to herself for some time, deep in thought. It wasn’t for some time until she worked up the courage to speak up.

“Thank you,” she said. “For everything. I wouldn’t have been able to get my bag back if it wasn’t for you.”

“Glad I could help.” Nevani glanced back, flashing Aleryn a dazzling smile. “It was a little touch-and-go for a while there, but it was exciting. I like a little bit of danger every now and then. Makes you feel alive, don’t you think, Nyrie?”

Aleryn chuckled. “Fair enough. I suppose I understand what you mean.” She paused for a moment, hesitating. “Actually…Since we’re being honest with each other now, I should probably tell you. ‘Nyrela’ isn’t my real name. It’s a pseudonym that a companion of mine suggested for me. My real name is Aleryn Vadorath, Seeker of the Salathan Dominion.”

If Nevani was upset by this deception at all, she didn’t show it. She just continued walking forward, pushing aside vegetation that stood in her way. “Aleryn, huh? I guess that fits you a bit more. May still call you ‘Nyrie’ though if you don’t mind. I like the sound of it.”

“You’re not mad?”

“Why would I be mad? You came clean, and it’s not like it’s a big deal anyway. It’s just a name. Besides, it’s nice that you’re trying to show some trust and all that. Maybe this month won’t be so tough after all.”

Aleryn couldn’t help but smirk. “Well, now you’ve jinxed us. I’m sure next time we meet up, there will be a dragon attacking.”

Nevani waved her wave, shaking her head. "Don’t worry, your majesty; I’m sure with your personal army, we’ll be fine. What dragon can withstand a ton of monkeys stirring shit up?”

Aleryn snickered. “Don’t remind me. I really hope this queen thing doesn’t come to haunt me. I have enough trouble as it is without the monkeys making even more of it for me.”

Nevani shrugged. “Eh, what can you do? All I know is, whatever problems you’ll face, you won’t be alone. We’ll deal with it together.”

“Really?”

“Well, duh! You still owe me a favor, and I plan to cash it in.” Nevani grinned, a mischievous look in her eyes. “Besides, if today is any indication, things might be a bit more exciting with you around. I plan to take advantage of that.”

Aleryn shook her head, smiling a little. This girl felt so similar to a certain someone she knew. It was comforting, in its own way, to be in this dynamic again. It was something familiar, a role she could easily slip into. One that she knew as well as she knew herself, and missed dearly.

Maybe, she thought, This won’t turn out so bad after all. Maybe I have a chance to do something right for once.

Aleryn smiled. “We’ll see about that. I wouldn’t mind a little trouble--as long as I have some company.”

“That doesn’t sound like a bad idea,” Nevani said. “I even have a few ideas for how it’ll go down.”

“I don’t suppose you’ll tell me?”

“It’s a surprise, but don’t worry; you’ll love it.” Nevani turned around, and she beamed from ear-to-ear. “Just follow my lead, Nyrie, and nothing can stop us!”

Aleryn giggled. Yep, this was familiar, alright. And even if it made her feel a little guilty, she was fine with letting herself get caught up in the nostalgia. After all, what was the harm in having a little fun as she studied? Nobody ever saved the world without having a break or two.

So, Aleryn continued following Nevani through the jungle. As she did, she thought about this new acquaintanceship, and where it might lead. She hoped--No, she was determined to make this work.

All she needed was to meet her halfway.