Don't Destroy the World

It wasn't until they camped for the night Ember spoke to Justine about their earlier conversation.

The pair had moved off the road and into the woods, managing to find a small clearing. They could have camped out on the dirt road. It was wide enough and many caravans did it instead of risking the woods and its beasts, but they both decided that doing so as two females alone would just bring unnecessary trouble.

Ember had built a small fire using her elemental powers to keep them warm. She made sure to keep it as small as possible. Besides that, they also had food. She had told Justine she had hid a cache of items in the woods for her escape and managed to get some privacy to retrieved a bag of food from Keeper. She wasn't sure if the woman bought her story but she didn't say anything more about it, especially since it meant they had food to last them until Hekral.

Ember had hoped to meet up with the delegation before they reached Hekral but they were over two days behind. She would have to make sure if it was even feasible. Since they were moving by wagon with so many people, the group would be slower so it was possible to catch up to them by horseback. The problem came in the fact there was one horse and two of them.

Since she had the body of a young child, doubling up on the horse should be fine but whether the horse could cover the distance needed with them both on his back was a different story. Ember frowned and then called up Finder.

The map unfurled in front of her.

"Finder," she said. "Find Matron Camila, mother of Ember and Rowan, wife of Zeris."

A red dot appeared on the map. It was much further down the road, but not as far as she expected. Maybe they had waited a day to look for her before continuing on. That meant she could probably catch up after all.

Behind her, Ember heard footsteps. "That's pretty damn useful."

Ember didn't turn around, her gaze was fixed on the red dot. The dot didn't move much so it probably meant the delegation had camped for the night.

"Can you use it to find game?"

Ember glanced at Justine. "I can." She looked back at the map and started to close it when Justine spoke again.

"What about monsters?"

Ember didn't answer. Instead, she closed the map. "Are you, an adult, planning to just blindly follow me, a child?"

"The way you say that sounds really bad."

Ember crossed her arms and stared at the woman.

"Fine, fine." She twisted her lips, looking pensive. "So...yes and no. I plan to stick around you for a little while and see what this new path might be. I wasn't doing much in Goros so I have some free time. Then if that doesn't pan out I'll head off and see if there is something else for me."

Ember considered her words. "How long are you planning to stick around?"

Justine shrugged. "Not sure. Probably a month or so."

Ember frowned. "You know I can just report you to the knights."

"Now why would you want to do that?" Justine said. "Especially since I can report you right back."

Ember narrowed her eyes. "Are you blackmailing me?"

"No," Justine said firmly. "You're the one bringing up reporting people to knights. I'm just showing that you're not the only one who can sing that song. Look, the Akashic Tree sent me your way for a reason. I don't think I'm the only one who can benefit from it."

"And how exactly can I benefit?"

Justine snorted. "Are you kidding me?" She walked over to a tree, pulled back her fist and then slammed it into the tree.

A burst of wood and splinters filled the air. Justine pulled her hand back, shaking it. "That's smarts. Remind me to wear gloves next time."

Ember looked at the hole in the tree that Justine left behind. Before returning her gaze to Justine. The woman was grinning widely.

"I'm strong as any Seedling with altered strength and on top of that I'm not tied down by a noble or follow the rules of the Order."

Ember's eyes glinted. "Are you saying you plan to work for me?"

Justine blinked and then shrugged. "Sure, well within reason. I don't suppose you have the money to hire me."

Ember shook her head. Despite the money she had, she already planned to use it to help set up her family and get started on her plan to secure a safe place for everyone.

"Hmm. Well, I make it a rule not to work for free, so how about we make an arrangement."

Ember looked at Justine suspiciously. "What type of arrangement?"

"It depends. That map of yours. Can it locate monsters?"

Ember hesitated and then nodded.

Justine grinned. "Damn! That's great. That means you can point me in the right direction and I can hunt down some of the more valuable monsters. I'll even do you a solid and give you twenty percent."

"Fifty percent," Ember shot bak.

"What? Are you planning to hunt with me then? Twenty percent and that's being generous."

"I could help you hunt. I'm not helpless. So that's me hunting with you plus providing my map skill. Honestly, I should be getting 60 percent if not more."

Justine rolled her eyes. "You think throw around a bit of fire will do anything. You're a kid and I'm not dragging you with me out there. Look, I'll bump it up to 25% since I am following you about, but that's it."

Ember narrowed her eyes. "Do you think I'm a fool? I can help you find mist ferrets and Shatterings. The sort of animals, monster hunters search years for. And depending on the location, I could probably hunt them myself."

Justine scoffed. "Knowing the location is separate from actually being able to catch them. Nor does it mean that there won't be other dangers in the vicinity. Still, I'll give you that they are hard to find so 30%."

Ember considered and then a new thought came to mind. "Make it 50 and not only will you get my map abilities for monster hunting but they'll be exclusive to you for a month."

Justin's eyes widened. "Damn it. Give me six months exclusive."

Ember grinned. "Deal."

Justine groaned. "Why do I feel like you just conned me?"

"It'll pass." She paused. "It's the least you could do for stalking me."

"Your words are harsh," Justine said before settling down for the night.

"It's the truth." Ember held back a yawn. "Do you mind if I take second watch?"

Justine blinked. "There's no need for that. Just sleep. I'll keep watch."

Ember frowned. "Then when will you sleep?"

"Daybreak. I don't need much sleep, just a few hours. Us Night Orcs prefer the night."

It would mean getting on the road later but they could probably make it up if they road hard. Ember stifled another yawn. She nodded.

"All right. Then wake me at daybreak."

She snuggled down on the ground with a blanket. She didn't feel as wary about Justine. It wasn't likely the woman would try to hurt her given her demeanor, especially now that Ember was offering her a service that only she could provide.

She could try kidnapping me.

Ember shooed that thought away. She knew she was being a bit paranoid. Up to this point, Justine had only helped her. For now, she could give her the benefit of the doubt. Still, she wondered why the Akashic Tree had given her that quest. She frowned. It really was strange. She didn't have a quest but her looping and curse might be tied to everything.

She hated the idea of being manipulated by some outside forces and it was clear that she was based on her encounter with Bird. But everything was so vague. Why after going through two loops was, she only now encountering Bird and quests.

She couldn't figure it out. She had theories but nothing substantial. She needed to find clues. The first way to do that was to visit Hekral and speak with someone from the Order there. There was also Patricia. Depending on what her Oracle ability does, she might be able to provide Ember with some clues.

Ember felt her eyes drift close. There were so many things she needed to do. Find a safe place and secure it from her family. She was still interested in building her own kingdom but exactly how was a different story. She would need to regain her powers and possibly switch out abilities. She needed to find a way to free her father and get rid of Lord Felis for go without getting her family killed in the process.

She sighed. Her thoughts swirled around her until she found herself thrown into a fitful sleep. Then she was once again in a moonlit valley with small blue lights dancing around her. The Akashic Tree stood proudly in front of her, its multitude of colored leaves dances in the wind.

"Why am I here again?" Ember wondered.

She took a cautious step towards the tree and as she did the tree began to rock and with it the entire land shook. Ember fell to the ground, unable to keep her balance. She looked around her as the ground cracked around her. She scrambled to her feet but as she did the shaking stopped.

Then a leaf feel, then another and another. She reached out to touch it. As soon as her finger touched the leaf it crumbled. Then more and more of the leaves around her crumbled. She looked around her with fear and it dawned on her. This was because of her. It was her fault.

She shook her head in denial but the feeling spread through her like an undeniable truth. She was causing this.

"Please! Stop!"

Ember's eyes snapped open. It was just a dream. Her mind began to clear only for her to suck in a breath. Something was on her arm. She stared. it took a moment for her to realize what she was looking at.

A butterfly the size of her fist was resting on her arm. Its wings were like stained glass and shone in the darkness. Ember wasn't sure whether to move or not. Then the butterfly flapped its wings and flew into the air. A trail of glowing dust flew through the air and as it did a calm washed over her.

Ember slowly sat up and as she did she saw that it wasn't the only Glass Butterfly. There were at least twenty of them of various colors flapping their stained-glass looking wings around them. It was a beautiful spectacle that eased away the traces of her nightmare. She glanced around and caught sight of Justine. The woman was looking at the butterflies with awe on her face.

Ember turned away and continued to watched the butterflies flutter around, spreading their calming dust. Sometimes, she forgot that beautiful things like this existed in this world. She had always been so lost in the blood and anger that she missed out on the beauty.

For the next hour, she and Justine simply sat and watched the glass butterflies dance until finally they flew back into the woods once more. Ember laid back down and this time when she drifted into sleep there were no nightmares.