8 8

With the echo of the Rupture's presence still lingering in the air of the Wild lands heart, Lira climbed off Shari's back and headed over to retrieve her gloves.

By some miracle, both gloves were still intact, if a little singed by spirit energy. She finished pulling on her right glove as she crouched to pick up her second, where she hesitated, staring into the palm of her spirit hand.

"I'm not going crazy, right?" Lira murmured to Shari, keeping her voice low as her gaze flicked to the rest of the group. Arden was speaking with the spirit mages. The fighters were nowhere to be seen. "Did you feel it, right before the wolf vanished?"

Shari rumbled her agreement and lowered her head.

Lira did as asked and pressed her spirit-hand to Shari's forehead.

As always, her bond mate's presence was calming, crisp. There was a clarity, a carved out section from the endless ocean of spirit energy around it--almost like an island, safe from the waves around it and lush.

Something that wasn't quite a memory nor a vision but somewhere in between surfaced from the ocean and stepped onto the island.

Two wolves--one with dark, shaggy teal fur and teeth that could rip through spiritsteel, the other with long, silvery fur and a grace that rivaled starlight itself. Opposites, yet a pair, two beings whose presence fit together so perfectly that it was difficult to distinguish where one spirit ended and the others began. They stood side by side, stronger together than they ever could be apart.

Shari stepped away, pulling Lira back into her own body.

"That's what was missing," said Lira. "He has--"

"What's missing?" said Arden, striding over towards her with Arin on his head, tail covering one of Arden's eyes, and the spirit mages behind them.

"Nothing that you need to concern yourself about," said Lira, standing up and pulling on her glove, making sure it was right up over her elbow and her sleeve was stuffed down it, hiding any trace of its blue-ish glow. The second one on her right arm followed. "What do you want?"

"We need to find Edric and Ciroc," he said. Lira gave him a blank stare. "The two fighters. They went into the forest earlier but never came out, and Arin won't leave my head."

In response, Arin looked at Lira, squawked, then went back to turning his head a hundred and eighty degrees every few seconds to scan their surroundings.

"Like I said," continued Arden with a sigh. "I don't suppose you know where they went?"

Lira pointed into the forest, then went back to double checking she had all her weapons. She'd lost a mist arrow, still in the wolf's head before it vanished inside the Rupture--annoying, but it happened. "They're in there by about two hundred or so metres. You should ask them what they were doing before the spirit attacked them. And then find yourself new bodyguards who won't be the reason you get killed by a primal next time."

Arden groaned, then started walking into the forest.

Lira remained where she was for a few seconds, adjusting her glove until the spirit mages started to follow him. With their backs to her, she jerked her head at Shari and began walking in the other direction.

She wasn't five steps away when someone noticed.

"Aren't you coming with us?" asked Thea, planting the end of her staff against the ground and leaning on it.

"Wasn't planning on it," said Lira with a shrug. "I have things to do. You'll be able to get them out of the Wilds faster if I'm not there, anyway."

"How do you figure that?" asked Thea, tilting her head.

"Because if that idiot fighter threatens Shari one more time, he won't be able to walk for the next three months."

"Oh believe me, if he hurts Shari, I'll end him myself," said Thea. "I can--"

"Thea," said the older mage, scowling down at her.

"--definitely not use my spirit magic to maliciously harm another being," said Thea with a huff, leaning her staff out to the side as her eyes wandered off elsewhere, muttering, "...even if it technically is self defense."

Arden came back, trying to shove Arin's feathers out of his face and failing entirely. "Lira, you really should come back to the capital, at least for a few days. Make sure all your gear is in good shape, get an update on the situation and all that."

"My gear is fine, and you could update me right here but you're being deliberately vague," replied Lira. "It can't be that important."

"I can't talk about it in front of just anyone."

"Ah yes, out in the Wilds with no one but two spirit mages around," said Lira, sarcasm dripping from every word. "Everyone knows you can't trust spirit mages with news about spirit hunters. Bastards have been out to get us ever since I can remember."

Thea giggled. The older spirit mage shot her a look.

"The fighters could be nearby," countered Arden.

"One was unconscious when I left and the other one was struggling to stand up, so I doubt it."

Arden glanced back into the forest and ran a hand through his hair--much to Arin's annoyance. "Can you at least just help us get them to the town then?"

"And by me, you mean Shari."

"Well, yes, unless you're planning on hauling them through the Wilds yourself."

Lira glanced at Shari, who growled. "She won't carry them."

"I wouldn't expect her to," said Arden, pressing a hand to his forehead for a moment. He looked to Shari, which honestly, Lira wasn't sure why he hadn't just started with that to begin with. "If you're willing, Shari, we'll make you a makeshift sled to pull along behind. I'd appreciate it a lot, especially if it means we get out of the Wilds before dark."

Shari looked to Lira, who shrugged, and a moment later, Shari reluctantly began to walk into the forest.

"Guess you're lucky she's feeling generous," said Lira, following after her bond mate. "I'll come, if only to get my flask back and see if the stupid one drowned himself in the healing water or not, but I make no promises about helping you get them back to town."

They found the two fighters against the base of a large tree, one barely conscious and sucking in strained breaths while the other sat there, knife in hand, reacting to every little noise he heard.

Lira strode up to him, snatched her now-empty flask from him, and walked away to sit in a tree branch while the others constructed the makeshift sled.

As she watched Shari sit there, waiting as Thea fit the straps to pull the sled comfortably around her chest, Lira had the sneaking suspicion that Shari didn't actually care about the fighters or helping the group. Shari just wanted the chance to go back into town and see that dark haired serving girl a second time.

Thea finished the straps and gave Shari a scratch under the chin. Shari purred, nuzzling her head into Thea's hand, who responded by hugging Shari's head before she ran off to help someone else. Shari's tail, slightly fluffier than usual--almost like the wolf from earlier--swished from side to side along the ground.

Some twenty minutes later with the afternoon sun well underway, the group finally began moving, the two fighters dragged along on the sled by Shari after a variety of explicit threats from Lira about what would happen if they even looked at her bond mate.

To keep the peace, Arden had insisted that he carry the fighters weapons as long as they remained on the sled.

Lira walked well ahead of the group. Still close enough that she could get to Shari quickly if needed, but far enough away that she could avoid questions from anyone who wanted to get nosy. For whatever reason, Arin seemed to think it was his job to keep her company. The hawk spirit circled around her, swooping through the trees every few minutes before returning to perch on her waiting hand.

"Find anything this time?" she asked Arin the next time he returned. "I need more healing water after that fighter drank it all if you happen to find any."

Arin flapped his wings, his talons staying firmly on her finger as he indicated to the side with his head and a squawk.

"That way, eh?" said Lira, altering her direction. She stroked his head. "Is there anything those pretty eyes of yours don't see?"

Arin fluffed his feathers and snapped his beak back towards the rest of the group.

Lira laughed. "Yeah, I don't see anything worthwhile in them, either. I guess it's just not worth the paperwork if Arden shows up at the guild without them though, eh?"

She reached the small pool of healing water and dipped her flask in, watching the bubbles rise to the surface as it filled.

The flask wasn't exactly anything special, but it was the one thing she had from her life before Shari. It was a decent size, had small stars and a half-moon carved on the side, and was possibly enchanted to hold more than physically possible. Though it didn't look like it, it was spiritsteel, or at least had the same properties as it. She'd tested it with Shari enough times to know.

These days, it was her healing water supply. But early on, when both she and Shari were still young, it'd been a lifeline, able to hold enough water until they found the next supply.

The rope, sawing through her skin with every twist. The desperation, the panic as nightfall crept over her. The howls of the things she'd heard about in stories, growing braver, closer. The wretched hope that they hadn't left her, that they were coming back--

Arin squawked, pulling Lira out of the memory. Her flask was full, the bubbles long ago stopping. With a curse, Lira screwed the cap back on, shoved the flask back in her pack, and continued slashing her way through the more carnivorous plants the Wilds had to offer.

Her side mission for healing water cost Lira her self-imposed isolation from humans. Arden caught sight of her, waving an arm and running towards her after a quick word to the mages.

He fell into step beside her, though whether he was purposefully ignoring the fact that she was ignoring him or just painfully oblivious to the fact, Lira couldn't tell.

Arden cleared his throat. "So, I wanted to ask--"

Lira cut through a vine, flicking it back towards a tree where it attached itself to the trunk. "No."

Arden frowned. "You don't even know what I was going to ask."

"You're going to ask about my arm," Lira said bluntly. "And no. I'm not talking about it."

"How have I never seen it before today?" said Arden. She stayed silent. "Is it a new thing, at least? Did some spirit bite it off, or--"

Lira grit her teeth. "I lost it long before the guild found me. It wasn't a spirit that took it."

"Who did, then?"

"You know, it's strange," said Lira, pausing just long enough to give Arden hope before the sarcasm kicked in. "Usually when someone says no, it means they don't want to talk about it, yet here you are, redefining exactly what 'no' means.��

On her hand, Arin squawked.

"Look, I like you too, Arin," continued Lira. "I respect your opinion to bond with Arden, but it's not something that I'm personally capable of."

Arin flared his tail and ducked his head low, beak open.

"Oh, go complain to someone who cares," said Lira, flinging him off her hand.

Arin flapped into the air, gave her an indignant squawk, then landed on Arden's hand instead.

Arden ran a gentle finger over Arin's tail. "That was… a lot of words to get out of a few tweets."

"He's your spirit," muttered Lira. "Shouldn't you be the one getting essays out of a squawk?"

"I mean, I understand him, it's just usually not quite so specific."

"Might wanna work on that. Let me know how the couples counselling goes."

Arden bit down on his lip, eyes on the canopy as he drew in a deep breath. "Okay, well if you don't want to talk about that, can we talk about what happened at the Rupture with the wolf?"

"If you mean--"

"I mean," said Arden, pressing his palms together right in front of his face, fingertips touching his mouth. "Did you see the older blood seals on the crater around the Rupture?"

Lira paused, mulling over the conversation topic in her head for a moment. "I did. That combined with the trap we found has me worried."

"Any idea what the seals were intended to do?"

"They were way too burned out to tell," said Lira. "But they were complicated. There aren't many people who could come up with a seal like that on the spot, which either means they're experienced, or they did a lot of research."

"What about on the wolf's head, did that look like--"

"An attempt at a blood seal?" finished Lira. "Yes. It did."

"But blood magic doesn't work on spirits," said Arden, more of a statement than a question. "Though, what was that black mist you used on the wolf?"

"Blood seal on the arrow that affected the air, not the spirit."

"Can I see?"

"Sure, just hop back through the Rupture. I'm sure the wolf will be happy to pull it out of his head and let you have a look."

"I meant one of your other arrows, Lira. I'm assuming that wasn't your one and only arrow with a blood seal on it."

"Fine," said Lira, grabbing one of her more basic arrows and passing it to Arden. "I suppose you should at least have something to shoot if we get attacked, given your entire quiver is with the wolf in the spirit realm now."

"I had to do something after you left me alone with it."

"I was busy saving your fighters, which, by the way, you're welcome for."

"Thank you for being a decent human and not letting someone else suffocate to death when you had the means to save them," said Arden, rolling his eyes. "Truly a hero."

Lira smirked at him. "Don't worry. I only saved them so I can kill them myself later."

"There's a shocker," muttered Arden. "Can we go back to talking about the wolf?"

"What else is there to talk about?" said Lira. "It's gone. No more wolf. Good job us."

"Except that you looked more worried after it went back into the Rupture than when you were on its back," said Arden. "I'm wondering why, after the job is apparently done, you're acting like it just began."

Lira walked a little faster, stabbing a pouncing plant and ripping her knife through its stem before it got the chance. "No clue what you're talking about."

Arin's attention snapped to the sky, and a few seconds later, he took off from Arden's hand in a flurry of feathers.

"If there's something wrong, I can help," said Arden, eyes following Arin before going back to Lira. "We can all help. You just have to tell us what's going on."

"I asked you for help once, and you let me down," said Lira. "Forgive me if I'm not about to throw myself at you for assistance just yet."

"That was different," said Arden. "You were asking something I couldn't do, and you knew it."

"You could have," muttered Lira. "I would have, if you hadn't gone off and told the guild master."

"And look where that got you."

Lira walked faster, intent on putting some distance between them before Shari had to carry three people on the sled. Arden got in front of her, holding out his hands and blocking her way as she tried to sidestep past.

"What?" she said through gritted teeth.

"Aren't we all on the same team?" he said, exasperated. "Spirit hunters and all that? If something is targeting spirits, then we can--"

"No," said Lira. "Because the last thing I want to do is spend months finding that spirit, only to have you or some other idiot kill it before I've had the chance to--"

Behind them, Shari roared.

Sentence forgotten in her mouth, Lira turned and sprinted back towards her partner.

It wasn't a roar of pain or anger. It was almost desperate, a pleading cry to hurry.

Lira reached them. No one was hurt, the two fighters still sitting on the sled, perfectly behaved. Arin was perched on Shari's head, looking as alarmed as Lira had ever seen him.

She reached Shari's side and ran her hand along the spirit cat's shoulder. "What is it?"

Shari looked up. Lira followed her gaze, right through a gap in the canopy to see thick, grey smoke rising in the sky, right where the town should have been.

Lira looked back at Shari, at those icy blue eyes and the distress within them and knew exactly what was happening.

The inn--the girl.

"What's going on?" asked Thea. "Shari just started freaking out--"

Lira pulled out her hunting knife and sliced through the strap keeping the sled harnessed to Shari. Free of her burden, Shari paused long enough only for Lira to swing onto her back before she took off. Lira laid low, watching the Wilds blur by as her partner ran, little more than a streak of pale blue lightning beneath her.

Whatever had happened at the town, she could only hope that they weren't too late.

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