What started a couple of years ago as a single entry for Robot Day 2022, which evolved into a month long personal challenge, and is now my own personal pet project, Dystopiatech has reached 50 pieces of Audio.

Dystopiatech is my own "universe" which is basically a bunch of in universe advertisements for a hyper-evil, yet hilariously incompetent corporation that operates it's own company town in the remains of a blasted out volcano.

Today I uploaded my 50th piece from that Universe

And if you want to check out the older stuff, you can check out the full playlist here:

Thank you Newgrounds for being a place where I can upload some of the silly thoughts that run through my head.

Hey everyone, I wrote and voiced a story for the upcoming VAC, but it ended up a little long and I decided to move forward with another concept. In the meantime, give it a listen and dive into the horror (a horror based on a real life white lie my mom told me!) that is.... The Crustman!

The Crustman (newgrounds.com)

Uploaded my 100th piece of (mainly) comedy audio today!

It's been a journey, but I've had fun contributing to the NG community.

I've mentioned on the forums before, but for anyone interested, all my bits are open for anyone to animate.

My entry for the current writers jam.

Word count given by Wordcounter.net : 3,141

Chose the theme of Glass:

Lighthouse on the Glass Sea

They say that you can always tell those who walk the path of magic by their eyes. As they delve deeper and deeper into the arcane arts, their eyes change. Come across any experienced wizard and you will see that their eyes are always deep-set, always with a strange sparkle, and always with unusual coloring. Most strikingly, their eyes always carry a look of deep sadness.

The Archmagus of the school was no exception; her eyes bore all the telltale signs of being imbued with the traits of those who studied magic. I always felt that the Archmagus had exceptionally sad eyes, but the look she gave me now with those sparkly seafoam green orbs was downright heartbreaking.

She stared at me in silence from across her massive desk, its expansive surface filled with an assortment of books, artifacts, and baubles. In fact, her entire office was a visual cacophony of all the unusual trappings one might acquire in a lifetime of studying magic. A finger bone here, a staff there - even the tapestries that lined the walls seemed to shift and change color.

I had never been in her office before, and the curious part of me wanted to closely examine every object and every nook and cranny. However, those sad eyes of hers seemed to spellbind me into uncomfortable silence.

I had no idea why I had been summoned here. The day had started usual enough with breakfast, followed by the standard morning classes. The only thing of note was later in the morning, while we tended to the school's herb garden, we did see a horseback courier gallop through the courtyard. However, a hurried courier in itself was not an unusual sight, given the importance of the magic school and those who dwelled within it.

It was while we were having lunch when a strange hush fell over the dining hall. The room darkened, and I found myself illuminated in a light green glow - the sign that I had been summoned to the Archmagus' office.

The dining hall erupted in chatter then. Rarely did anyone get summoned to the office unless they were in extreme trouble.

"It's time they got rid of you," I heard one student remark as I stood to leave.

"Doubt she'll be back," I heard one whisper to another. "Usually if they summon you, that's it."

I jumped back to reality when three sharp raps sounded on the office door. At that, the Archmagus finally broke eye contact with me and glanced towards the door.

"Come," she said in a soft, yet authoritative voice.

Daven, the boy who had remarked about it being time for the school to get rid of me, entered.

Daven never liked me and constantly mocked me for being a "book mage". I had always excelled at academics, but in pure magical talent, he had me beat and he liked to remind me of that fact. He gave me a look as he passed me by and placed a small device on the table. Daven turned to leave, but the Archmagus beckoned him to stay.

"Do you know what this is?" the Archmagus asked, motioning to the item.

My heart sank as I knew where this was going.

"It's the device that they bring to the villages to test for magical power," I said. "We all had to make the little needle jump before we were invited to the school."

The Archmagus gave a slight smile.

"Do you remember how you did?" she asked.

"Not well, Archmagus. I only got it to go to the first marker."

She held out her hand to the device. "Pick it up, please."

I picked it up and hesitated.

"Go ahead," she said.

I began to concentrate, remembering the instructions that we had been given when the school scouts came to my hometown. I felt the universal energy gathered by me flow into the device.

I closed my eyes and felt the device begin to warm. I did my best to push as much power as I could into it.

"Open your eyes and tell me what you see," the Archmagus said.

I forced my eyes open to stare at the instrument. The needle hovered over the first marker, just as it had two years ago.

"It's at the first marker," I said.

"Now give the device to your classmate here."

I turned and handed the device over.

The Archmagus nodded to Daven, who then performed the same procedure as I had just done.

I saw the needle jump up to the 5th marking.

"A typical result," the Archmagus said. "It's about what we would expect from a student who has been in the school for this long."

She looked to my classmate. "You may go," she said. "And do not speak a word about what you saw here."

"Yes, ma'am," Daven said. He shot me another dirty look and gave me a satisfied smile as he passed by.

The Archmagus leaned back and stared at me with those sad eyes again. "Absolutely no progress," the Archmagus said.

"If I let you continue here, you'd only get hurt when your class moves on to higher-level magics. I can't send you home either."

I kept silent and only nodded. The sinking feeling in my heart only intensified.

"Of course, we told you that when you first came here."

I nodded, remembering the lecture that they gave to the first years. I vividly recalled the Archmagus and the school staff on stage getting us to repeat the mantra "Once a mage, always a mage."

"What do you think we do with failed mages?"

I gulped. The words "failed mage" hit me like a barrel of bricks.

"I... I'm not sure, Archmagus..." I stuttered. I thought of the extensive graveyard on the school grounds. Would they...?

The Archmagus gave me a slight smile, seeming to read my thoughts. "Please, it's not as bad as you think. We have a place for you."

The Archmagus pulled a letter from a desk drawer and examined it for a moment. She also dropped three small glass marbles in front of me. They glowed with a faint green light.

"Do you know what these are?"

"Yes, Archmagus," I nodded. "Mage Spheres. If a mage needs to cast a spell that requires much energy, they can rely on the spheres to give them a boost."

"And why do we need to do that?"

"Some spells are just that powerful, way beyond a mage's natural ability."

The Archmagus nodded and turned her attention back to the letter. "And where do these spheres come from?"

I thought back to a first-year lecture. "The Glass Sea," I said. Aware of the name, but not quite understanding what that meant. I remembered something about the name being a misnomer.

"Good," the Archmagus said. "Good. You should do fine apprenticing under Magus Ladev. She has written and requested some help at her lighthouse."

"Apprenticing?"

"Yes, young one. We send... less promising students to apprentice on the Glass Sea to harvest the glass to be shaped into these spheres. The area is infused with magic, and after a few years of apprenticeship there, students tend to come back to the school with their raw magical abilities somewhat... boosted. We're not sure why. Magus Ladev is studying the effect, actually."

I relaxed a little. It was humiliating, but it looked like it wasn't the end of the line for me. The Archmagus gave me details about my destination and what Magus Ladev would expect from me, but for some reason, I couldn't quite relax as she looked at me with those sad, seafoam green eyes.

**

I could only describe Magus Ladev as "Bouncy". She was young for a Magus, maybe only a decade or so older than my own sixteen years. Her eyes hadn't even taken on the pallor of magic yet. They were brown, bright, and somehow full of a certain vigor that I never saw in the school administration.

She embraced me in an enthusiastic hug when I arrived on the stoop of her workshop at the base of a lighthouse on the edge of the Glass Sea. She hadn't been expecting an apprentice for some time, and had been quite pleased that the school had sent me along so soon after making the request.

"Oh my," she said as she showed me around the structure. "I thought I'd have to wait years... Most do... but here you are! How wonderful!"

As she bustled me around, showing me every nook and cranny of her very unorganized workshop, I stopped to look out a window on the vast expanse of blasted terrain that stretched out to the horizon.

"Has anyone explained yet?" The Magus asked when she saw me gazing out an extremely dusty window. "Why we call it a sea when there's no water? Why there's a lighthouse when there are no boats? Well... none floating anyways..."

I nodded, "The Archmagus told me that this area used to be a giant lake, before the lightning storms came and blasted the area with magic."

"Right, right! A lake so big that it needed its own lighthouses! Can you imagine! Bless the mages from back then! Before the storms, the magic was running out, weakening! Oh! Those poor people when the water went away! Many abandoned settlements around... but the lightning brought us back! The glass brought us forward!"

"I never heard that part before," I said.

Magus Ledev opened her mouth as if to say more, but stopped herself. A look of concern crossed her face. She measured her next words.

"Sorry, if you couldn't tell I ramble. Just part of an esoteric part of my research... rumors in old manuscripts... nothing more. You just need to help me around here. Gather the glass after a storm... help me turn it into spheres. It's not hard... even a child could do it."

She looked around the messy workshop. "And maybe help me keep the place tidy, yes? I know it must be disappointing to be sent here, but I promise after some time you'll be bursting with power."

She gave a little half-laugh at this. "Yes... bursting."

**

The next few months were uneventful. Magus Ledev would give me tasks for the day, which were mostly housework and organizing the workshop and living area. I would often complete my chores and then have hours of free time to explore the area and do as I pleased. I even had access to some of the Magus' books shelved in the common area. I pretty much had the run of the place except for the Magus' bedroom/study and the lighthouse itself.

I was told I was forbidden from the former out of sheer embarrassment over its "state," and from the latter for my own safety. Magus Ledev told me that the lighthouse tower was centuries old and in disrepair, with no upkeep done since the time before the lake had become the Glass Sea.

As for the Glass Sea itself, it was indeed a victim to frequent, almost regular storms. At least once a week, lightning and thunder would crash over the dry lakebed for hours, yet no rain would come. It was almost as if Mother Nature herself were angry at the area, as if the place were an abomination that somehow slighted nature. The morning following these storms, I would be directed to search the sand for places where lightning struck the earth and recover any glass found to be turned into mage spheres.

I thought the task would be easy, given the sheer amount of lightning striking the sandy surface, but I often wandered for hours and returned from these day-long expeditions empty-handed. It almost felt like busy work, something to keep me out of the way. After a few weeks, I felt the whole apprenticeship situation was starting to become bizarre.

As time continued, Magus Ledev became less cordial. Although still upbeat and friendly, I felt like the longer I spent with her, the more annoyed she became with my presence. One night, while trying to sleep, I overheard her muttering from her room. Curious, I silently crept next to the doorway and peered through the keyhole. As always, she kept the key latched on the other side so I couldn't see anything, but I could hear.

"When... when will it be my turn?" I heard her mumble. I wasn't sure if she was dreaming or talking to herself as she scribbled away at her notes. "She came so quickly too... I thought I would join them by now back at the school... to have the eyes of magic... I've checked the Lighthouse several times already and the reflector is set to change her, I just need her in the right place... In the right storm... I need the eyes of seafoam green. The magic is in the sand... it will change her... change her to glass."

Something tipped over in her chamber and she uttered a curse. "Oh no, no, no... the ink! My work."

As she shuffled around, I returned to my own sleeping area and gave thought to what I had just heard.

** 

A few weeks later, I was awakened by a loud thunderclap. I settled back, trying to get back to sleep, knowing that Magus Ledev would no doubt send me to scour the lakebed for glass the next morning.

Then, I felt someone shaking me. "Get up, young one! It's time! Yes, time to hunt for glass!"

I looked up at Ledev with bleary eyes. "Shouldn't I wait until the storm has passed?"

The Magus shook her head vigorously. "No, no, no! This time there will be glass for sure! I saw a huge bolt of lightning strike near the bluffs! If you go now, the magic will be fresh! So fresh!"

I pulled myself out of bed, knowing there was no point in arguing in my position as an apprentice. As I gathered my clothes, Ledev rushed around, collecting items and components... almost as if she was... packing?

"Remember, the bluffs. You need to be out by the bluffs! That's where the magic happens!"

I bundled myself up as best as I could and headed out into the cool night air. Slowly, I made my way down the hillside from the lighthouse towards the lakebed.

The lightning tonight was strange. As I approached the bluffs, I could see distant flashes in the sky. Usually, it would just be streaks of white light, but there was a color about the flashes: greens, blues, and pinks.

I cautiously approached the bluffs and then dodged behind a particularly tall rock and waited. Minutes passed as I listened to the thunder. Occasionally, a colorful flash of light would illuminate the sky.

Suddenly, a ray of piercing white light swept across the bluff—the lighthouse beam. It lit the area for a few brief seconds before sweeping away in a circular arc. After the light had passed, the areas it struck sparkled and snapped for a few moments.

It wasn't long before I heard footsteps approaching. As they drew closer, I could hear the voice of Magus Ledev calling.

"Young one? Are you all right, young one? I lost sight of you, so I decided to brave using the lighthouse to try and find you. Did you make it to the bluffs?"

I stayed quiet. I peeked out and saw that the Magus's movements were slow, deliberate, like she was following a set path.

"Young one? Have you been changed already? Are you ready to be my new eyes?"

She stopped just behind the rock I was hiding behind. I could hear her breathing, searching.

As the beacon from the lighthouse reflector hit Magus Ledev, her form instantly transfigured. The change happened so rapidly, there wasn't even time for a scream to escape her lips.

"This is what they were planning for me," I thought as I watched a new set of magical orbs fall to the sand where the Magus had once stood. They had planned to reduce me to something to be harvested, converted into a "useful" thing for those in charge. At some point, their view of me switched from being a potential mage... a person... to a set of magical glass eyes, the next stepping stone for Magus Ledev to move into the upper ranks of magic. The whole "gathering glass" thing and been mostly a ruse to get me here, to make me cooperative.

I had been lucky that everything worked out. Every chance I got, I snuck into Ledev's chambers to learn as much as I could about her plan to use the lighthouse and the storms to convert me into her new set of "Magical Eyes". The lighthouse reflector had been set to follow a very particular path along the bluffs, and I managed to change the angle of the reflector without her noticing. She had even taken the bait to follow me onto the lakebed, content in the knowledge that she would be safe if she followed her set path.

I thought about every instructor back at the school, every Mage and Magus. I thought about the extremely sad eyes of the Archmagus. This scenario had to have played out thousands of times. A weak student sent away to disappear. They would tell their little lies about being able to come back to the school—and they did come back, just not in the way they were told.

I crouched down and picked up the remains of Magus Ledev, looking into the "pupils". The colors shifted and swirled. Was she in there? Was her soul trapped? Is that why the "eyes" of elder Mages always looked so sad?

I knew I had some time to look over the Magus' notes, but I couldn't linger at the lighthouse forever. I'd find out the truth, and then I would have to move on. It probably wouldn't take too long for the school, and then the wider society of Mages, to figure out what happened here. Could I have been the first one to put together the puzzle? There had always been rumors of renegade mages, but they were few and far between.

I looked out over the blasted landscape of the former lake and wondered about the number of lighthouses dotted around its edge. How many "apprentices" were out there right now? Could I get to them? Warn them? Join forces with them?

A clap of thunder jolted me, and I decided to make my way back to the workshop. First thing was first—I had to give myself a fighting chance. I'd have to figure out how to replace my own eyes with the two orbs that I held in my hand.

And then, I'd shatter the system.

My game "The Distant Door" was made using Adventure Game Studio. They do a yearly awards show, and "The Distant Door" won a Maggie. What's a Maggie? Well they have the Monthly Adventure Game Studio (MAGS) competition where you are challenged to make a game in a month, and that's where The Distant Door was born. It won the competition in the month I submitted. The winner of every monthly contest is then put of for a MAGGIE during their award show, and "The Distant Door" won first place! Best MAGS game of the year!

The Distant Door (newgrounds.com)

I awoke to the sound of a knock at the carriage door.

Sleepily, I looked up just as my mother pulled the door open and peered inside.

"Honey, are you awake? Time for breakfast."

I sat up and rubbed my eyes, trying to shake off the cobwebs of sleep.

Yawning, I pulled myself out of the covers. I stepped to the carriage door and my mother helped me down the single step to the ground outside.

The camp looked different in the daylight. Already, horses were being hooked up to carriages and vardos. Tents were being dismantled and cooking fires were being put out.

"Sit," my mother said.

I sat on the carriage step and my mother handed me a wooden bowl of porridge and a hunk of bread. It was the first hot meal that I had since we left the castle, and despite being a little bland, it felt like just what my body needed at that point.

As I ate, Valk was leading Regal and Majesty to the carriage to be hooked up. When I saw the horses, I was once again reminded of Hortim, and how he had been so kind. I wondered what happened to him.

Valk seemed to move a little quicker than he did last night. A few of the bandages that he had been wearing the last time I saw him had been removed.

"No flies on these folk," Valk said as he started tethering the horses to the wagon. "Up just before dawn, and ready to hit the road."

"Merchants are like that," my mother said. "Time is money for us."

Valk looked a little embarrassed. "I keep forgetting your history milady."

My mother reached up and began massaging her left shoulder, "I wish my body remembered. I spent so many nights sleeping on the ground when I was younger. I've gotten soft."

Valk appeared like he was about to say something, and then stopped himself. He then looked to the other carriages and wagons. The guards that we had spotted the night before were now aligning themselves on either side of the assembling convoy.

"I'm certainly glad that we have some more protection, even if it is only for a little while."

"I'll take whatever help we can get at this point," my mother said.

I mopped up the last of the porridge with the little piece of bread I had left. "I'm finished," I said.

My mother took the bowl and addressed Valk. "I'd better return this. Can you watch Samantha for a second?"

Valk nodded. He finished adjusting the harnesses and came back to where I was sitting.

"I'll be right back," my mother told me. She then turned and started walking towards a group of women who were cleaning up one of the final campfires.

I remained seated on the step. Valk looked down at me.

"So..." he trailed off.

I didn't know if I should say anything. Valk was a constant figure around the castle, but I never really interacted with him before. Often, he would be seen close to my father when he was working. He would be absent during family outings, or if my father had made special time for me. Aside from a polite "Hello" when we passed in the castle halls, I'm not sure if he had spoken more than five words to me in my entire life.

Valk was a good head taller than my father. I wasn't sure how old he was, but grey was creeping into the hair around his temples and into his beard. From the little that I knew about him, I don't think that he had a family.

"Are you doing OK?" he finally asked.

I thought about his question for a few moments. It had been a scary couple of days, but it was an adventure. My mother was with me, so everything would be fine. It would get even better once my father arrived. So, there was only one answer that my four-year-old self could give.

"Yup."

"Good," he looked at a loss of what to say. "Good."

My mother returned shortly after. I don't think I've ever seen a man so relieved to return to tending horses before.

"We should join the convoy, they'll be heading out soon," Valk said lifting himself up the driver's perch in front of the carriage. "With your permission milady," he added.

"We'll switch up driving duties when the convoy makes their rest stops," my mother said. "For now, I'll be in the back with Samantha."

Valk nodded. My mother opened the door to the carriage.

"Whoops."

Valk looked back concerned. "Whoops?"

"I forgot about the bed I made for Samantha, give me a second."

My mother grabbed the blankets and returned them to the box and the rear of the cart. She plopped the pillows back on to the carriage benches.

"Alright, back aboard we go."

I entered the carriage and sat on the bench to the rear. My mother closed the door and sat across from me. She tapped the front wall to indicated to Valk that we were ready to go.

Just like that we were in motion again. We joined the convoy near the rear and waited for the straggling carriages to fall in behind us. A long horn blast sounded, indicating it was time for the convoy to roll out.

We snaked along the road at a snails pace. With all the goods that the merchants were carrying, it was slow going. The guards walking along side had no trouble keeping pace with the procession.

It was a pleasant day. I watched the clouds and the terrain roll by from the window. I spent some time looking at the book that I had taken with me, my mother helping me with some of the harder words.

After a few hours, we rolled to a stop. My mother opened the door and went to the front of the carriage to talk to Valk.

The horn sounded again. This time it was three short blasts. The guards started scrambling.

In the distance, I heard guttural hooping and hollering.

***

It took a moment for my brain to comprehend the two huge black wings that extended from the figure's torso.

"Welcome, welcome," the figure's wings curled to make a "come forward" motion. "Come inside, come inside. You are looking for goods yes? Raveen has many, many things to sell." A birdlike chirp sounded the end of each sentence.

I stood in amazement. I hard heard of the Harpies from my mother. Birdlike people who had giant wings for arms, a feathered tail, and sharp taloned feet. They lived in a land far beyond the furthest Giantkin borders and were very rarely seen outside their home.

I felt something nudge me from behind. Eplash was trying to duck through the human sized door to the store.

"Uhh, Samantha..." I heard behind me.

The wings continued to make their "come forward" motion, "Come on in, come on in. Much room for Raveen's customers. Come on in."

I took a step forward and to the left, allowing the Giantkin to crouch in through the door and stand up. Eplash's hair brushed against the ceiling.

"Ahh the Giantkin, the Giantkin!" the figure chirped. "My good friend, Raveen is happy to see you again!"

"Raveen," Eplash said. She removed a bag of coins from her furs and tossed it on the counter. "We need supplies."

"No game for Raveen this time? No game? No meat? Very strange. Very strange indeed."

Raveen balanced on one leg, and using the talons on her other, deftly untied the drawstring on the money pouch. She poured the contents on the counter, leaning in to look at the coins.

"Sprig!" she turned her head towards a curtain that was behind the counter. "Sprig! We have customers! We have customers!"

I was somewhat surprised to see a human boy who was around my age poke his head out from the curtain, "Yes Mum?"

"Mum?" I thought.

"Our Giantkin friend is back my son, she's back."

"Son?" I thought.

"Oh, Hello Eplash," the boy, who I presumed was Sprig came out from behind the curtain. "Same order as usual?"

Eplash shook her head, "No, I need enough for two this time. I also need some cooking supplies, a tent, and a bedroll. Oh, and a couple of backpacks."

The boy raised an eyebrow, "Two?"

Then he saw me, he reddened with embarrassment.

"Oh! Sorry, didn't see you there miss. Eplash usually comes to visit us by herself."

"It's alright," I said.

The boy turned and engaged in, what I would call a whistle conversation with his "Mum". Scattered chirps were thrown in here and there for good measure.

"Yes! Time for business, Time for business!" The harpy woman began to move around the shop and bring various items back to the counter.

"My mother isn't that confident with common speech," Sprig explained. "She knows enough for light conversation, but she likes to be filled in one each transaction in our native tongue."

"Also, it throws off a lot of her customers. My mother is actually quite a savvy businesswoman, but her speech patterns can be somewhat jarring to humans."

I looked to the harpy and then back to the boy. I was burning to know what was going on with the whole mother and son thing, but I felt it would be impolite to ask.

"Yes, I'm adopted." Sprig said, seemingly sensing my question.

Well, that answered ONE question, but I had about a half-dozen more.

Various items were now stacked on the counter. Raveen engaged in another chirping conversation with her son.

Sprig nodded and counted out a number of coins from the pile. "My mother says that this would be a fair price."

Eplash frowned. "I guess I will have to bring my next deer kill to somebody else."

More whistling, there were a couple of dirty looks from Raveen directed to Eplash. Sprig pushed some of the coins back into the pile. "How about this?"

"Excellent!" Eplash said. She started to fill one of the backpacks with some of the goods.

Sprig leaned in and whispered to me, "Eplash usually brings mom a deer every time she comes to town, mother was quite disappointed that she didn't come with one this time."

"My fault," I whispered back. "I'll make sure she brings a deer if I'm with her next time."

"Thank you, it may have not seemed like it, but that was seriously tense."

I gave a slight laugh and went to help Eplash pack the bags.

***

We left the shop and started heading down the road out of town.

"Last chance for the inn," Eplash said as we approached a three story building. I could hear laughter, and delicious smells coming from the inside.

I had though about Eplash running for hours just to keep the goblins away from our camp. No, I had to get tougher, and a few more days roughing it outside wouldn't kill me. Every day spent in town would be one less day that we had to gather the companions... and then..... and then what?

My mother had told me to find the companions, but what then? Were they supposed to help me escape the land? Were we to retry to retake the castle? I just hoped I would get some more answers when we found the remaining two.

I adjusted the backpack. It felt weird to have the weight on my back, I had been traveling light ever since we had left Elkshire.

Well, light except for that book. Was I still seriously hung up on that?

I said nothing as we passed the inn.

We crossed another bridge that marked our passage out of town. As we got further and further away, traffic got lighter, until once again we were the only two on the road.

Later that night, we pitched the tent. I frowned, Eplash was much too big for it, as well as she was much too big the bedroll. They were both purchased for me, and I had no way in paying her back.

As I fell asleep, I vowed one day to repay Eplash with double the kindness she had shown me.

Night had completely fallen by the time we arrived at the caravan.

We were greeted by a somewhat plump fellow dressed in upscale attire as we pulled into the camp. My mother and I sat on the front seat of the carriage, while Valk had opted to walk.

The man raised an eyebrow as we pulled in. "Quiet an impressive carriage you got there." Apparently the ornate nature of our vehicle caught his eye.

"Thank you." was all my mother said. If the man had wanted to wring some information out of her he did not succeed.

He looked my mother and I up and down with an appraising eye. He then turned to Valk, "You say you folks are researching business opportunities?"

"Yes," Valk said. "Timber interests."

Valk and my mother had gone over the story while we traveled towards the camp. Valk had told the merchants that we were from Aldergreen, a logging community to the south. We were traveling north to research opening up a new lumber camp in the north. My mother was "the money", while Valk was our bodyguard.

It really wasn't too far from the truth.

"Timber eh," the merchant seemed to think, once again looking at the carriage. "I'll have to look into that myself."

The man bowed and gestured to the open field. Wagons, horses, tents, and cooking fires lay scattered about in a rough ring. Men stood at evenly paced intervals, staring into the night. Guards.

"Just find yourself an open spot." The man grinned. He looked to Valk, motioning to his injuries. "Like I mentioned, if you want to get those looked at, there's a healer. Just find yourself the green tent."

"Thank you." Valk said.

My mother flicked the reins and Regal and Majesty clopped forward. We quickly found a spot nestled between two vardos.

Valk began to unhook the horses when my mother stopped him. "Go and get yourself looked at by the healer. The last thing we need is for you to get an infection. I can take care of this."

"Are you sure milady?"

My mother looked around. "We're surrounded by a ring of paid guards. We should be fine, for a little while at least."

"I will be back as soon as possible."

"Just make sure that they look at you... thoroughly." My mother said.

Valk nodded and started walking towards a green tent in the distance.

My mother helped me down from the front of the carriage. She then opened the door and indicated for me to step inside.

"I'm going to unhook the horses and get them tied up. Stay in here OK?"

"OK." I said.

She closed the door. The inside of the carriage was dark. I could hear my mother working to unhitch the animals. After a few moments, the carriage shook slightly as the two horses were decouple and lead away.

I sat down on one of the benches and hugged my knees. I closed my eyes.

The sounds of the camp echoed through the night. I could hear men laughing loudly, women talking, fires cracking, and children laughing.

Wait? Children laughing? There were other kids here?

Growing up in the castle had be nice, but it was a bit lonely. Aside from my parents and my tutors, I hadn't really had much interaction with other kids. My father did have a distance cousin visit last year. He and his wife had a child, but it was only an infant at the time. Not much fun for a three-year-old to interact with.

I got down from the bench and opened the door to the carriage. I peeked outside, attempting to determine where the sound of the laughing children was coming from.

"Samantha!"

My mother had returned. "I told you to stay put! What are you doing!?"

"I... I heard other kids." I said meekly.

In the firelight, I saw my mother's heart melt.

"Oh honey," she said as she bent down to eye level with me. "We've had a really long day, maybe you could meet them later OK?"

She ushered me back aboard the carriage and entered behind me.

"We've just met these people," my mother said in a voice close to a whisper. "They seem nice, but sometimes you need to take a little time just to be sure that they REALLY are nice. Do you understand?"

I thought about it. I knew that bad people like that man in the green robes existed. I had never really MET a bad person before though.

"I guess so."

"We may be travelling with them for a few days, so maybe you can play with the other kids when we make camp tomorrow night OK?"

"OK."

"Alright, let's get you ready for bed."

I started yawing at the word bed. Despite sitting for most of the day, I was extremely tired.

My mother went to the back of the carriage and retrieved some blankets that she spread out on the floor. She then took some of the pillows that lined the carriage benches and place those down as well.

"Now," she said holding up the edge of a blanket for me to crawl inside. "Get some sleep OK?"

"Where are you going to sleep?"

"I'll be right under the carriage." she said.

"Oh," I said.

My mother seemed to sense what I was going to ask next. "I'm too big to sleep in here!" she gave me a smile. "I'd be all scrunched up, like a ball!"

That made sense to me. There was only really enough room for me to stretch out on the floor. My mother would have been way too big.

"Ok." I said.

My mother opened the carriage door and stepped outside.

"Mommy?"

"Yes honey?"

"Will daddy be back with us soon?"

"I hope so honey."

My mother closed the door and I was once again enveloped in darkness. I felt the carriage shift and she sat on the step below the door.

Then there was something that I had never heard before in my life.

I heard my mother cry.

***

The sun had just peaked over the horizon when I awoke to the empty camp.

The small fire that we had built the previous night lay smoldering, little wisps of smoke rose into the air.

"Eplash?" I asked the empty space.

No response.

I pulled myself out of the lean-to and started looking around the camp, searching for signs of the missing Giantkin.

Her bow was gone, as well as her quiver. Did she go hunting? Why didn't she wake me?

A flock of birds suddenly burst forth from the bush. Eplash came into view, moving as fast as her long legs could carry her.

"Run!" The Giantkin shouted when she saw me.

That was all I needed to hear. I turned and began running, leaving whatever gear that I had stored in my lean-to behind.

I could hear crashing behind me, then whooping and hollering. High pitched and guttural, I had heard these shouts once before in my life. Goblins.

I heard something thunk into the ground behind me. Something whizzed by and landed to my right. A crude spear lay quivering, half sunk into the ground.

Suddenly Eplash was at my side. She spun and quick fired an arrow from her bow. A shocked yelp echoed from behind me.

Thunk. This time to my left. Another spear and another near miss.

More crashing and hollering. The goblins had reached the camp and were tearing it apart.

"Keep going!" Eplash shouted as she let loose another arrow. Another yelp sounded. This one was more distant.

We kept going, my lungs and my legs both started to burn from the effort.

Eplash kept pace with me, occasionally letting an arrow loose. I wanted to look behind, but I could hear my mother's voice, telling me to keep focused on the forest floor ahead.

"You trip, you die." I heard her voice echo.

Finally the hoops and hollers faded into the distance. Eventually, Eplash stopped and signaled for me to do the same.

"What...was...…that?" I asked. I bent over, holding my hands on my knees, trying to catch my breath.

"Goblins." Eplash said. "Many goblins."

"I...…know...that....." I continued trying to suck in air. "Why.....were....they.....chasing...you?"

The Giantkin scratched the back of her head, looking a little embarrassed.

"They stumbled across our tracks last night. My fault. I had never encountered goblins in the area before. I thought we had lost our pursuers so I made no effort to disguise our trail. I led them away as much as I could, but they are persistent."

I looked at the Giantkin, amazed. My breath was starting to return. "Wait, you were running all night?"

"Just one... maybe two hours. I circled back to the camp when I figured you had awakened. I knew that our gear would distract them enough for us to get away."

I stood with my mouth agape. Eplash had run for two hours just to give me some extra time to sleep! Then it hit me. The gear! I didn't have much save for a small bundle of clothes and some food. Eplash however, carried enough supplies to keep things comfortable on extended hunting trips.

"I'm sorry," I said. "You've lost everything because of me."

The large woman laughed. "Gear is gear. You can always get more. Besides, the bow is all I need."

We started walking. Eplash was once again in high caution mode, listening to the wind and taking us in this direction and that.

As we traveled, I thought about all that I had left behind in my life. We left our castle to Jall when I was four, we left Elkshire when the cultists had tracked us down, and now the very little that I had in way of possessions was left behind for goblins in the forest.

Eplash was right. Gear was gear. Things were things. It was the people that you left behind that you couldn't replace.

And then there was the book. The only vague memory I had of my father.

It was the book that I took with me when we fled the castle. It was the book that I had taken with me when we fled from Elkshire. And now that book was in the hands of the goblins.

I wanted to say something. Could I ask Eplash to turn around? Perhaps the goblins have left the camp by now and the book would be sitting there, tossed aside because it wasn't shiny.

No, I had to leave it behind. I was no child that broke down if a favorite toy or stuffed animal went missing. Besides, if I really wanted a copy, I was sure that I could probably find Volume 2 of a well known series.

"Something is bothering you." Eplash said, pulling me out of my trance.

"It's nothing," I said. "I left something at the camp, but it's not a big deal."

"Ahh," the big woman said.

We continued on, eventually making our way to a road again.

"This is the road to the town." Eplash said pointing in a direction where I could see chimney smoke slowly rising.

The town! I had forgotten about it, and about staying in a warm bed at an inn.

"It's OK," I said. "I don't need a night in town now."

"No," Eplash shook her head. "We need supplies now. We will have to go and restock."

I nodded and followed the Giantkin towards the town. As we drew closer, traffic on the road grew heavier. Men and women on horseback passed us, giving Eplash the once over.

We crossed a stone bridge and we were suddenly surrounded by people. Market stalls lined both sides of the street. Shoppers went to and fro, looking at the goods and haggling with the merchants.

"This way," Eplash thumbed. We continued on, stopping at a building that's shingle showed that it was a general goods store.

Eplash opened the door to the store, signaling me to go inside.

As my eyes adjusted to the dim light inside the building, I heard a raspy voice "Hello."

Inside the store was one of the most curious sights that I had ever seen.

Inside the carriage by myself was very lonely. I could hear my mother and Valk whisper to each other and we bumped along the dirt road. I pushed my ear to the wall of the carriage to see if I could hear what they were discussing.

"We can't afford another attack like that," my mother said.

"The boy must have been cursed some time ago," said Valk. "There was probably a magical trigger that would activate if he and the your daughter were left alone."

"Jall must have been planning his revenge for sometime. I should have put him down then and there when we discovered what he had been doing to the villagers."

"I still wonder about his escape. There had to have been someone on the inside that helped him. There was no way he could have gotten his hands on emberstone locked in the dungeon as he was."

"It's too late to think it about now."

"Will the nearby kingdoms stand for it? Will they just let a mad wizard take and corrupt the land?"

"As long as he doesn't move on them, they will probably won't do anything for now."

"Surely they will feel threatened by his power?"

"Which is what will keep them docile. No doubt word will spread quickly on how fast we were overthrown. No one wants willingly face an army of demons."

A moment of silence.

"What about this green robed person that my daughter saw?"

"No doubt an agent. For that matter, we haven't seen anyone one the roads since we started traveling."

"We're not on the main roads are we? We haven't even passed a village since leaving the castle."

"No, but we should have least have run into somebody. The wizard's corruption already must run deep."

The two fell into silence and I sat back down on the bench. Jall - there was that name again. When I had asked my mother about him earlier, all she told me was that he was a very bad person who had done some very bad things.

After some time, I began to hear scraping on the side of the carriage. Looking out one of the windows, all I could see was green. Trees leaned inward, their branches brushing along the outside of the cart.

"Blasted!" I heard Valk exclaim. "I just got wacked in the side of the face by a branch."

We journeyed onward, the scraping continued and occasionally I would hear a "TWACK" sound followed by another cuss from Valk. The light from the sky started to fade as evening drew in. Valk and my mother began to speak again, this time at a normal volume.

"Milady," Valk said. "It's been a long day. Why don't you go back with your daughter and get some rest?"

"You're still injured," my mother chastised Valk. "If anything you should get some rest."

"As much as I hate to admit it milady, we should all stop and rest. Including the horses"

"Do you think we're safe? After what happened at the bridge..."

"I can't guarantee anything. However, if the wizard was intent on following us, he would have sent along riders after securing the castle."

"What about the person my daughter spotted?"

"We've seen no sign of them either."

"We will have to do watches." my mother insisted.

"I'll start looking for a suitable spot to pull off."

We continued to roll along. I did my best to keep myself amused by pretending there was a little man running along side the window, jumping over any obstacles he encountered.

"Smoke - In the distance." My mother said.

The carriage rolled to a stop.

"I'll go ahead and see what it is," said Valk. The carriage shook as he got down from the front seat.

"Are you OK to do that?"

"It's just a minor wound, I'll live."

"If I'm not back within a half-hour, get off the road and hide."

His footsteps then, walking away doing the road.

I felt the carriage shake again as my mother got down. I heard her approach the door.

"Samantha honey. We're stopping for a bit. Did you want to stretch your legs?"

I opened the door and got out.

My mother looked very, very tired. Dark lines were under her eyes. Her normally tidy hair had several strands sticking out in several directions. Leaves stuck to parts of her travelling outfit. I had never seen her like this, normally she was best kept person that I knew.

The sun was very close to the horizon it would be dark soon.

My stomach grumbled.

"Did you want something to eat?" My mother asked.

"Yes please." I said.

She walked to the back of the carriage and fumbled about inside the luggage box. She pulled out two apples, brought them over, and handed me one. She took a bite out of the one she held and scanned around in both directions. I sat down on the carriage step below the door and bit into the juicy fruit.

She quickly finished her apple and paced around, continuously scanning the horizon. She pulled out some carrots for the horses and fed them. Afterwards, she began pacing again. Even to my four-year-old self, I could tell she was on edge.

Minutes passed. I finished my apple and watched the sun descend behind a far off hilltop.

"Come on.... Come on," I could hear my mother muttering to herself as she continued to look up the road in the direction that Valk had traveled in.

"Thank the ancients!" she exclaimed. I followed her gaze and saw Valk waving at us to move forward.

"Let's go honey," my mother said. She lifted me up to the front bench of the carriage and got behind the reins. We rolled forward, eventually reaching the Valk who stood waiting for us.

"It's a merchant caravan," Valk said once we go into earshot. "They're just skimming the border, making their way to the northlands. Said we could follow them if we wish."

I saw the nervous edge and tension melt away from my mother.

"Finally some good news."

****

My body felt heavier and heavier with every mile that we crossed.

It had been a over week since my mother and I left Elkshire under the cover of night. The only rest that I had since that time had be short, dreamless naps as we continued to push forward.

As Eplash had said, we began to take cover at night. One would sleep for a short while the other kept watch for our pursuers. Occasionally we would hear the dragon circling the area, on those nights, its nightmarish screeches keeping us both awake and alert.

We spent little time on the roads, rather Eplash would guide me through the forest primeval.

When time allowed, she would point out how to spot game trails, what plants could be used medicinally. How to construct lean-tos and smokeless fires were also included in the instruction.

After a particularly arduous day of travelling, we stopped to rest in a small glen. I sat down heavily on a fallen log. My head was pounding and my feet were aching. I was near my limit.

"We will go to a town tomorrow." Eplash said as she started to build a fire. "I believe we have lost our pursuers for now."

"What makes you say that?" I said.

"We haven't heard the dragon for two nights now."

"Are we even near a town?"

"I recognize this area. I cross through it every year when I come from the Giantkin lands.

There will be an inn there that you can stay at for a night. Get some sleep and recuperate."

"Me? What about you?"

"All the furniture there is.... human sized."

I tried to picture the giant woman attempting to sleep in a normal sized bed, legs sticking out several feet from the end. I giggled at the mental image.

"Ahh, I see."

"Besides, I live outside for most of the year. I will camp nearby. I'm used to it."

I couldn't help but feel that the Giantkin was somehow disappointed in my lack of endurance. Since we became traveling companions, she had told me several more stories about the adventures that she and my mother went on during their younger days. I had memories of my mother being a tough woman, but the way Eplash told it, both of them were superhuman. There had to be embellishment. Right?

"I'm sorry I'm not stronger," I said. "Like my mother was."

Eplash stood, towering over me and pointing at my head with a stick.

"You are strong here." She lightly tapped my temple. She then move the stick to my chest and gave it a light tap as well. "And here."

She then pointed the stick to my legs, "These can be trained. Those other two cannot."

As much as my body ached and cried for rest, I wearily helped Eplash set up the camp for the night. We constructed two lean-tos, a large one for her, and of course a much smaller one for myself. Eplash then said she was going hunting and disappeared into the forest for about an hour. She returned with about a half-dozen pheasants which she had strung from a stick... or in her case a small log.

Cleaning the birds and plucking their feathers took up more time, but it was a nice mindless distraction from the day's travel.

Eplash began to cook the birds and I stared into the fire. I began to look forward to tomorrow when I would get to sit down at the inn and be brought a nice hot meal that I would have no hand in butchering, defeathering, or deboning. Then, I would slip in to nice clean sheets and my body would get the rest it so desperately wanted. Perhaps I would even take a bath.

Save for the nighttime sounds of the forest, we ate in silence. We were beginning to settle in for the night when something occurred to me.

"You mentioned something about Beam and explosions?" I asked.

"What?"

"When we first met, I asked you about how we would find the other companions. You mentioned something about following the explosions to find Beam."

"Ahh.... yes we haven't talked much about the other two so far. I guess I should prepare you before we meet them."

Prepare me? What would I need to prepare for? Exactly what were my mother and father up to before I was born. It seems that they kept a lot from me.

"Beam is an.... engineer of sorts. He's one of the top dwarven explosive experts. Last I heard he was helping with a major emberstone mining operation. That was many years ago though, so he may have moved on by then."

"So we're going to be looking for somewhere where an explosives expert would be necessary?"

"Yes."

"OK, makes sense so far. And Vendrix is some sort of elven exile now? That means he was active royalty when you knew him."

"Yes."

Ahh Eplash, ever the conversationalist.

"Anything else I should know?"

"He and your mother were to be married."

"WHAT!?"

Eplash might as well told me that water ran uphill and goats were actually bloodsucking animals that flew. Whenever my mother had talked about my father, it was with great affection. I couldn't fathom her being with... no being ENGAGED to anyone else.

"It is a very long story and I do not tell it very well." Eplash said. "Vendrix was the one to call it off, much to the delight of your father."

I made a mental note to ask Vendrix more about this when we finally met him. I wondered what other earthshattering revelations the Giantkin was keeping from me.

"Well, I'm glad we got THAT piece of dragon's fire out of the way now rather than later."

"Yes, good talk." Eplash looked like the world had lifted off of her shoulders. "Now sleep."

"Wake me when it's my turn for watch."

"Yes."

I curled up and drifted off to dreams of warm meals and warm beds.

When I opened my eyes it was daylight. The Giantkin was nowhere to be found.

"Run!" the now distorted face of the groomsman yelled.

I turned and started pumping my legs as fast as I could. I began to run back towards where Valk and my mother had been talking.

The roar of the groomsman had drawn their attention. Both Valk and my mother started making a beeline towards me. Valk, with his longer legs, reached me first. He didn't stop, but rather blew right past me, sword drawn.

"Keep moving!" he shouted as he ran past.

Once my mother reached me, she scooped me up in a protective embrace and turned to run in the opposite direction.

From what I could see from my mother's shoulder, Valk had gotten to the carriage and was trying to beat back some sort of ferocious animal. Hortim the groomsman was nowhere to be seen.

My mother continued running. Suddenly, we were on the bridge and crossing the river. My mother stopped and put me down on the far side.

"Honey, you see that pile of boulders over there?" She asked.

A ways down the road, there was a cluster of massive stones that littered the field. I nodded, acknowledging that I saw them.

"Keep running until you reach them. Once you do, hide as best as you can."

"You're not coming?" I asked.

"I'll be along in a few minutes." My mother said as she removed her cloak and set it on stone of the bridge. "I have to go help out Mr. Valk. Stay hiding until we come and get you ok?"

"Yes Mommy."

My mother pulled a short sword from a scabbard that sat on her hip. I stood staring. I had never seen my mother hold a weapon before.

"Go!" my mother said. She started running back towards Valk and the carriage.

I turned, and ran as fast as I could towards the rocks.

***

The stones were the remnants of some sort of ancient construction.

Even as a young as I was, I could could tell that they had once been purposefully placed in a pattern. Specifically what that pattern was, what the purpose would be, evaded me completely.

I found a spot where a few of the stones had toppled onto each other, creating a small gap that I could squeeze into. I pulled myself inside and twisted myself about so I could see the road.

From this angle, I could only see a small section of road. I wasn't able to even see the bridge that I had left only a few minutes ago. I waited for what seemed like an eternity.

Finally, I heard the sound of hoofbeats approaching. It had to be the sound of my mother with the carriage coming to find me.

I was just about to pull myself out of the ruins to go and greet her, when something deep inside told me to wait.

A figure on horseback came into view. They had approached from the opposite direction of where the bridge was. Bright green robes decorated their body.

In their right hand they grasped a golden amulet that hung from their neck. Their left arm was outstretched in the in the air, the palm of the hand facing outward. The hand was slowly moved in this direction and that, like it was seeking something.

The figure then quickly turned, their palm facing exactly in the direction of where I was hiding.

The rider dismounted. Still holding the amulet, they began walking towards the ruin.

I did my best to slide backwards into the limited space that I was hiding in. I scrunched myself down, trying to remain unseen.

I could see the figure was a man. He stepped closer and closer to the ruins. Then he stopped.

He seemed confused. He attempted to step forward again, but he found himself sliding backwards. He held out his free hand as far as he could, but try as he might, he could not push it past a certain point. I heard him curse.

He suddenly looked startled. He turned and bolted back to his mount. He spun his horse around and galloped in the other direction.

Moments later, I heard the sound of more hoofbeats. This time it was coming from the direction of the bridge. I stayed in my hidey hole and waited.

I saw the familiar carriage roll into view. My mother was at the reins. Valk sat next to her, several dents in his armor, and a bloody bandage on his right arm.

"Samantha?" my mother called. She handed the reins to Valk and dismounted. She looked around the ruins, "Samantha? It's safe to come out honey."

I pulled myself out of my hiding spot and ran towards her.

"Mommy!"

My mother bent down and I ran into her arms. She embraced me and kissed me on the forehead. "You did what I told you! Good girl!"

"Milady," Valk said. He motioned to the roadway. "Tracks. Fresh ones."

My mother brushed back some of my hair. She looked me in the eyes. "Honey, did you see anything while you were hiding?"

"I saw a man in green robes." I said. "I think he was trying to find me, but I hid!" I don't know why, but I made no mention of the stranger's weird encounter at the edge of the ruins.

With the mention of the man, my mother went pale and gave a look to Valk. "Good job honey. Now we have to keep moving."

She opened the door to the carriage and I stepped aboard. I waited for her to join me.

"Valk got a little hurt, so I'm going to stay up front with him OK?"

I nodded.

"Mommy, where is Hortim?" I wondered what happened to the groomsman who had been so kind to me.

"Hortim is... gone honey."

With that she closed the door, and I was alone inside the carriage. With a sudden jerk that almost knocked me off my feet, we started moving.

I sat down on one of the benches. Aside from the sound of hooves plodding along the dirt road and the creaking of the carriage, it was dead silent. My mind switched from face of the kind man that held me up to pet the horses, to the horrible visage with black eyes and sharp teeth. These images would haunt me for years.

***

Following fresh horseshit inevitably lead us to the horse that made it.

More accurately, it led us to a pair of horses that had been tied off on the side of a trail. A Vardo, or wagon house, was parked nearby. From this distance, we could see number of people milling about a small fire. The smell of breakfast was heavy in the cool morning air.

The sun was just coming up over the horizon. One of the people near the fire saw us and waved us over.

As we approached, we could see that the group of travelers appeared to be a small family that consisted of a man, a woman, two young boys who looked to be about 4 and 5 respectively, and an elderly woman.

"You're tall," said the smaller of the boys looking up at Eplash as we drew near. He had to strain his neck to look up at her. Contented with stating his astute observation, the boy turn and ran over to his older brother who was inspecting an anthill.

The woman, whom we assumed to be the boy's mother stood and wiped her hands on an apron. She looked to Eplash, "Sorry, he's at that age where anything might come out of his mouth."

"It's alright," Eplash said. "I stand out."

"Where are you folks coming from?" the man asked as he poked at whatever meat he was frying over the fire.

I wasn't sure how to respond. I couldn't just tell them I was being pursued by cultists... oh and there was a dragon after me as well.

"Hunting," Eplash said motioning to the large bow that was strung over her back. "Showing my apprentice the ropes."

A lie with just enough of the truth thrown in. This wasn't Eplash's first time using subterfuge.

"We don't see many Giantkin over this way," the man observed. "The hunting bad back home?"

"I hunt the same prey all winter over the mountains. It is nice to change things up."

The man nodded, seeming to accept this. The roads could be dangerous, but they could also be very lonely. Talking to another traveler might be the only news that you got for days. Sometimes you had to size someone up a little before getting too friendly.

"We're just about to have breakfast," he said as he turned a few pieces of meat over in the pan. "You're welcome to join us if you wish."

My stomach growled. It had been quite a while since I had a proper meal.

I was about to speak up and accept the kind offer, but then realized that Eplash had appointed me the role of apprentice.

If I accepted the invitation before my "master', it might dispel the glamour that Eplash's lie had created.

"That would be nice," Eplash said. "We've been walking all night."

The man introduced himself as Garet. The woman was his wife Joyet, and his two sons were named Dewt and Ledt. The woman was his mother-in-law, Kamet.

The hard T's at the end of the names indicated that the family was probably from the northern regions.

"What brings you folk to the road?" I asked as I was handed a plate full of hot steaming food. Beans, sausage, eggs, and a biscuit. I was in heaven.

"I'm a tinker." Garet said. "During the spring and summer months we go from town to town and I repair pots, pans, and the like."

"See anything strange on the road lately?" Eplash asked. Both the plate and fork looked tiny in her large hands.

"We've heard some weird screeching for the last couple of nights," Joyet said. "Given the children some terrible nightmares."

"Dragon," The old woman interjected. "I've been telling ye it's been a dragon."

"Oh mother!" Joyet sighed. "Don't go putting things into the kid's imagination."

The kids, having wolfed down their breakfast at a frightful speed, were now off to the side chasing a frog. They weren't exactly in on the conversation.

"It's weird though. It doesn't stick around very long." Kamet continued. "Screeches and flaps around for a bit, then moves on. Not like any dragon I've ever heard."

"Dragon or not, I hope we're out of its territory soon. The horses have been super skittish since it showed up," Garet said as he dumped another scoop of beans into my plate.

I felt bad. The kids nightmares, the scared horses, it was all my fault. The dragon had started hunting me shortly after my mother and I had been driven out of our home following the assassination attempt in Elkshire. The cultists and the dragon had to be connected. One hunted me by day, and the other at night.

"Have you happened to run across an elf in your travels?" Eplash changed the conversation topic.

"An elf? No can't say that we have." Garet raised an eyebrown. "What would you two be doing looking for an elf?"

"Old friend," Eplash said.

Garet thought for a moment. "Come to think of it, last year while traveling near Boatswin, I remember the villagers talking about a hermit that lived some ways away from the settlement. There was rumor that he was some of exiled Elvish royal. Never gave it much thought myself, every town seems to have some sort of strange character like that."

I looked to Eplash, who nodded. "Thank you, that helps a great deal." She turned to me. "Time to go."

We gave back our empty plates and said our goodbyes to the travelers. Eplash offered some coin (the very same coin that she had liberated from the body of the cultist) in exchange for the hospitality. She was politely turned down.

"Just do a kindness to someone you meet on your travels, then ask them to do the same afterwards." Garet said. "Those of us that live on the road try to keep the good will flowing."

"A fine philosophy," Eplash said. Philosophy was not a word that I had ever expected to come out of the large woman's mouth.

**See previous post for story description**

My legs burned as I struggled to keep up with the Giantkin.

Despite striking such an imposing figure, the large woman seemed to glide through the woods with ease, slipping through bush, and barely disturbing the ground with deft feet.

Even if I wanted to make conversation, it took everything for me to keep pace. Eplash said little as we travelled. Occasionally, she would hold up a hand to stop, and then cock her head, listening to the sounds of the forest.

Sometimes we would continue, sometimes we would wait, and sometimes she would begin moving again, but in a completely a different direction.

After a few hours, we arrived at her camp.

"You live here?" I asked, looking around the small clearing. There wasn't much save for a lean-to, some bags, and a firepit.

"No," the large woman scoffed. "I hunt here."

I noticed she mostly spoke in clipped short sentences, as if she wasn't used to speaking to another living being. On occasion she would speak with more eloquence.

"It will not be safe here for long," Eplash continued. "We maybe have one day before they find this clearing. Those cultists don't appear to be skilled trackers, but there are many."

My stomach growled. I still hadn't eaten that day. I looked down to the rabbit carcass was dangling off my belt.

"We can rest a few hours here. Have a meal. Recover." Eplash said as she moved to the firepit.

"Is it wise to have a fire?" I raised an eyebrow. "Couldn't they track the light? The smoke?"

"Smokeless fire." Eplash said. "I assume if your mother sent you she told you of my skills in the woods."

"She didn't tell me much except to find you, Vendrix, and Beam."

The woman raised an eyebrow. "And where is your mother?"

"Gone..."

The word hung heavy in the air. Eplash went silent, poking at the now burning fire with a stick. "You still need to skin that rabbit."

I pulled out my knife and began the gruesome work. While I did so, Eplash went to a nearby stream and filled our water-skins. Once I was done, Eplash took the rabbit and hung it on a stick over the fire.

"How did you find me?" I asked as we waited for the rabbit to cook.

"Heard the dragon circling last night," Eplash said. "Knew something was up. The forest felt wrong. Didn't know it was you. Just knew I should go out and look."

After a while she inspected the rabbit. "It's done. Eat."

"Aren't you going to have some?"

She looked at me amused. She held out both of her hands in a "look at the size of me gesture."

"That would only be a snack to me," she said. With that she moved over to her lean-to and brought back a large ball of some sort of reddish blackish mixture.

"Pemmican," she said when I lifted my eyebrows questioningly. "Meat, berries, and fat. Mixed."

I guess I involuntarily made a face at that. The Giantkin gave a raucous laugh. "Soft."

I shrugged and began to slice off hunks of rabbit meat. After not eating for so long, even the gamey meat tasted like the most wonderful thing in the world. Eplash munched on her ball.

"Your mother was a great friend to Giantkin," Eplash said after we had finished our respective meals. "She and your grandfather were the first ones to come trade after the Emberstone war."

From what I knew, the Emberstone war was a bloody conflict between Giantkin and humanity that had lasted for generations. Both Giantkin and Humans claimed to be descendants of the Great Giants that had once walked the land before the modern races came into being. It was thought that the veins of rare Emberstone that ran through the mountainous divide that mostly separated the two races were in fact the petrified corpses of those Great Giants who once ruled the world as demigods.

Emberstone itself had magical properties and was highly sought after by both kingdoms. It was extremely rare to find a deposit, and both species knew that whoever had access to the biggest supply would win the war.

In the ultimate irony, the war ended when vast deposits were discovered in Hisus, several hundred miles away. With ample supply now available to both kingdoms, and the original belligerents of the war long dead, neither kingdom felt it necessary to continue the fighting. An uneasy peace went on for a few dozen more years, and finally the human lands began to reach out. Apparently my mother and my Grandfather were some of the first to cross the border in as part of a diplomatic trade mission.

"She told me some stories," I said. "But she never went into great detail."

"We were the same age," Eplash said. She laughed caught in the memory. "But compared to me, she was tiny, like a doll. I dragged her around everywhere."

She then looked at me and then trailed off. "I'm sorry, perhaps I will save happy stories for a happier time."

I gave a sad smile, "It's ok, please go on."

Eplash continued, telling how she and my mother became fast friends and would often go hunting in the deep woods surrounding the Giantkin capital. I got the feeling there were many more stories, but they were too personal and I would never get to hear them.

"Then I came to visit her home in the Timbershot Mountains." she concluded. "I fell in love with the land, the lakes and the forests here. I now come every spring to hunt, and return to my home in the winter."

"When was the last time you saw my mother?" I asked.

"You had just been born. We kept in touch after, and then I heard that the Kingdom fell. Then nothing until now."

She went silent again.

Moments later Eplash got up and walked over to where I was sitting. Two large hands clamped down on both my shoulders.

"I should have been there for your mother," she said. "But I am now here for you, and I will be here for as long as you need me."

I was then swept up in the biggest bearhug imaginable.

"I can't breath," I wheezed.

I was only half-joking.

***

I sat on the small step to the carriage while my mother stood someways away with Valk and the Groomsmen.

"I shouldn't have to answer such questions," she said in a harsh voice. "Not right now."

"I'm sorry milady. It's completely my fault, it will not happen again," Valk said. Both he and the groomsman had their heads down in supplication.

"It BETTER not."

My mother turned and walked back to where I was sitting.

"Did I do something wrong?" I asked.

"No honey, you only asked a question." she bent down and looked me in the eyes. "If you ever have a question, you should always ask OK?"

I nodded.

"Alright, let's get something to eat."

As promised, Valk had stopped the carriage near a bridge that crossed a small, slow flowing river. He was set up a blanket for us to sit on, while the groomsman watered and attended the the horses. Both were gave my mother a VERY wide berth.

We walked to the blanket and sat down. It was a fine early-summer's day. Birds chirped from a nearby copse of trees, and the only other noise was the sound of the river lazily bubbling by.

Valk approached with a sack and pulled forth some meat, cheese and bread which he lay on the blanket for us.

"Thank you," my mother said.

"We will eat with the carriage," Valk said.

My mother shook her head, "There's no need. We'll be on the road for a while, it's best that we get used to each other's company."

"Yes Ma'am." Valk said. He waved the groomsman over.

The fresh-faced boy meekly approached. He did his best to avoid eye contact with my mother. I didn't know how old he was, but he appeared to be much younger than both Valk and my mother. I still considered him a "grown-up" though.

We sat down and ate in silence. The food was a far cry from what we usually had in the castle. The bread was crusty and the cheese had a very sharp taste.

The meal finished, we got off the blanket and Valk began to shake off the errant crumbs. The groomsman returned to the carriage to get it ready for the journey onward.

"How much longer," my mother asked the Captain of the Guard.

"I can't say for sure ma'am. We've another 3 or 4 days to reach the edge of the Kingdom at least. Beyond that we will need to find a safe spot for you and your daughter."

"We have some distant family in Elkshire..." My mother began. She then looked to me. "Honey, go sit with the carriage and wait."

I nodded and walked towards the carriage, slowly kicking rocks as I went along. I was old enough to know that whatever my mother wished to talk about next, she didn't want me to hear it."

I sat down in the grass and watched the groomsman get things ready. After a short while he noticed that I was watching and gave me a friendly wave.

"Hello," he said.

"Hello," I said. I tried to think about what my father told me about meeting people. "What's your name?"

"Hortim," he gave me a big grin. "And you're Lady Samantha."

I nodded. I poked the ground, not knowing what else to say.

He looked at me thinking for a moment, "Did you want to pet the horses Lady Samantha?"

"OK!" I said jumping up.

I walked over to where he was standing. The two horses seemed like giants.

"I'm going to pick you up OK?" Hortim asked.

I nodded. He bent down and picked me up under the arms. "Now, be very gentile," he said holding me up close enough to brush the neck of the nearest horse with my hand.

"This is Regal," he said as I pat the soft fur. The horse looked over at me with giant brown eyes and large lovey lashes. "She's four year old."

"Like me!" I said.

"Yes, like you." He laughed. He then brought me over to the other horse. "And this is Majesty."

I reached out to pat Majesty, who whinnied and made a step back. "Majesty is a little shy," Hortim whispered. "But I have a solution for that. One moment."

He set me down and away from the horse. He went to a small bag that was hanging off one side of the carriage and took out a small carrot. He walked backed to where I was and placed the vegetable in my hand. Then picking me up, he said, "Let's try again. Keep holding the carrot out."

I did as he instructed. I saw Majesty's eyes go wide as we approached with the vegetable. Its lips curled forward, lighting touching the pointy end, before taking a small bite out of the carrot with its teeth.

"Now try," Hortim said.

Tentatively, I reached out with my free hand and brushed the wide cheek of the animal.

Regal whinnied.

"Oh, now Regal is getting jealous. We will have to get a carrot for her as well!" Hortim said.

I giggled.

We fed Majesty the rest of the carrot. Hortim then brought me over to the bag and withdrew another, which I then fed to Regal.

Hortim then set me down. "I have to finish getting the horses ready. But you can pet them again next time we stop OK?"

"OK!" I said.

I looked back to where my mother and Valk were still talking. My mother stood with her arms crossed, listening to Valk as he spoke.

I then looked back to Hortim. He stood with his back to me, facing the copse of trees, unmoving.

"Go back to your mother Lady Samantha," Hortim said.

"Why?" I asked.

I noticed that the birds had stopped chirping. Without moving his head, he reach down and drew a dagger from his belt. He slowly began to turn.

I gasped as I saw his face. He once friendly brown eyes were now solid black orbs. Something seemed to be writhing under his skin. He gritted his teeth, which now seemed pointy and elongated.

"Run!" he roared.

***

We set out at around sunset from Eplash's camp.

Now that I had found the Giantkin, I had wondered where to go next. My mother and I had been on the way to the Alphine Woods to find Eplash when the attack happened, so I knew where to look. All I knew about the other two companions were their names.

Vendrix, with its "-RIX" suffix meant that he was probably an elf, and one of the royal family at that.

A beam was a building material, and there was nobody but the dwarves, who were widely regarded as the best builders in the land, who would name their child something like that.

So one elf and one dwarf.... that narrowed it down to just several million people.

Eplash's help in this matter was... limited.

"So," I said as we were taking a short rest. "This Beam and Vendrix... do you know where they might be?"

"No," the big woman shook her head. "It's been many years since I've seen or talked to them. Vendrix will probably be easier to find."

"How so?"

"Last time I saw him, he was dead."

"What!"

"When someone is exiled from the Elven kingdoms," she explained. "They are considered to be dead. It's very rare to spot an elf outside their homeland, so he will stick out wherever he is."

"Exiled? What for?"

"You will have to ask him," Eplash shrugged. "He did not speak much about it."

"And what about Beam?" I questioned.

Eplash seemed to think for a moment. "We will just have to follow the explosions."

I was just about to ask the Giantkin what she meant by this when the deafening screech of "Saaaaaaasssaaaaaa" cried in the distance.

Eplash jumped to her feet. "This way! Run!"

Grabbing my things I sped off in the the direction that she pointed. The woods were dark, but I could see that Eplash had directed to me onto some sort of well worn, but narrow trail. I could hear her feet pounding the ground just behind me. Suddenly, I felt myself lifted into the air and thrown over a massive shoulder, carried like a lost little lamb on the back of a shepherd.

"This is faster." was all Eplash said when I tried to protest. Those protests were very weak - she was right after all. My running was nothing compared to her massive strides and overall athleticism.

"Saaaaassaaaaaa" the draconic voice echoed as it drew nearer. I could hear the *thump thump thump* of its wings now.

I could only watch the branches and the leaves fly by as Eplash bounded along the trail. I was glad that I hadn't eaten much in the last few hours, the experience did no favors to my stomach. The dragon began to circle overhead, seeking.

Suddenly we were on a downward slope, I could hear the sound of rushing water.

The next thing I knew, my view of the sky was blocked by the underside of a stone bridge. Eplash set me down and we did our best to keep away from the sides, a hard task given the amount of space that the Giantkin occupied.

"It is following you," Eplash frowned. "How long?"

"Four days," I said. Was that it? Was it just four days since my mother and I were first attacked by the cultists who had been hunting us for all those years?

"Saaaasssaaaaaa!" the dragon screeched. It was swooping along the area that we had just traversed. Its head swiveled back and forth.... hunting.

Eplash held a giant arm out and pushed me back against the arched wall of the structure. She huddled in herself, stepping back into the shadows that our cover provided. The beating of the wings came closer.

I heard the dragon swoop overhead.

Moments passed and we heard the *thump thump thump* fade into the distance.

I felt myself suddenly wanting oxygen. I hadn't take a breath in some time.

The pressure of the protective arm lessened. Eplash stepped away, she poked her head out of the shadows and looked into the sky.

"Gone," she said. "Strange."

I stepped beside her, my breathing slightly labored. How do you breath again? I felt like I had to take each breath manually.

"Why," I breathed. "Is it strange?"

"We are below dragons. They would never hunt a single person. Evil magic is at work. From now on, we will shelter at night."

I nodded.

We clambered up the side of the riverbank to the bridge, we had made it to a main road.

"Cultists.... dragons..." Elpash said. "Your mother didn't make it easy on me."

"I'm sorry."

"No, do not be sorry!" the big woman smiled. "I enjoy a challenge!"

I gave a slight laugh. It felt good. I felt a little bit of the tension that had built up over the past few days slip away.

"Good," Eplash said. "Laugh more. You're mother would want that."

I looked in the two directions that the road followed. "So, which way?"

Eplash hunched down and examined the road. She poked and prodded the ground for a few moments.

Standing up she pointed left.

"This way," she said and started walking. She cut her stride down for me to keep pace.

"I will have to show you bushcraft," Eplash said. "By the time your mother was your age, she could hunt with the best of the Giantkin."

"I would very much like that," I said.

"Good, we will start now. Do you know your constellations?"

"Yes," I said. "More or less."

"More or less?"

I pointed at a cluster of stars, "That's Ankor, the Titan. The star at the tip of his tail leads North." I said.

"Good," Eplash said. "What else?"

I pointed out the small handful of constellations that I knew. Eplash began to instruct me on the location of several more, and showed me ways to use them for navigation.

We continued walking into the night. Something occurred to me.

"Eplash," I said. "You poked the at road when you decided which direction we should take. Is there some sort of technique I should know?"

"Shit."

"What?"

"Horse shit. I looked for the freshest clump I could find. We are following horse shit."