Don't Destroy the World

The plan, if it could even be called that, wasn't what Ember would've come up with. It entailed Ember and her mother hiding out in a building close by while Justine scouted the building to see if the girl was reachable. Ember would keep her map open and keep an eye out, then if things went wrong, her mother would get the guard. It was a simple and safe plan.

Ember hated it but she knew there was no point fighting it. It looked that despite Justine's free-spirited attitude she also wasn't too keen on letting Ember rush into danger. Ember tried not to grumble too much about it.

What she managed to get them to compromise on was scouting the area together. Honestly, Ember would've preferred to go alone but her mother wasn't hearing it. The three of them moved out together. Or at least that was the plan.

Justine looked at the darkening before turning to Ember. "Go ahead and drop that illusion you got on me. "

Ember looked at her in surprise. "What?"

"It'll interfere with my stealth," she said and then looked thoughtful. "You two go ahead. I'm going to go ahead."

"Is that safe?" her mother asked, looking around her as if she expected something to jump out from a corner.

"Don't worry. I'll be close by. Just shout if you need help."

Her mother started to say more but Ember cut in. "Go on. I'll drop the illusion once you're out of sight."

Justine grinned at Ember and then hurried away. When she was further down the street, she turned in between some buildings. Ember dropped the illusion before moving again.

Her mother stared at her but didn't say anything. They moved together, keeping to the road. Ember didn't dare duck into alley's like before. Sometimes she saw her mother's gaze dart side-to-side. People moved in the street. Most kept to themselves but sometimes rowdy men would pass by.

Some would stare at them but most ignored them. Unfortunately, it didn't stay like that. The closer they moved to their destination the more stares they got and this time they lingered. Her mother moved closer to her.

"We should turn back," she whispered.

"I think it's too late for that," Ember said as she watched as a group of five men move in their direction.

"Never seen you around here before," one man said. He was scrawny with short red hair that stuck up like the end of a broom. He had a lazy smile on his lips and an excitement in his eyes.

Immediately, most of the stragglers scurried away, making it clear just the type of man they encountered.

"We don't want trouble," her mother said loudly, looking frantically around.

The man frowned as he glanced around. "Expecting company?"

The man's hand snaked forward but before he could grab her mother, Ember's hand wrapped around his wrist, stopping him.

"Like he said," Ember said, meeting the man's eye. "We don't want trouble."

The man grinned. "That's too bad."

Then as if they were waiting for a signal they group rushed forward. Ember raised her hand and an arch of flames slashed out in front of the group. Since her flame was spread out it wasn't as strong as she would've liked but fire was still fire and then group jerked back.

"Run!" Ember shouted and grabbed her mother's wrist, pulling her along with her.

They ran down the street, Ember glancing around for a good chokehold. As long as she could get them coming at her 1-2 at a time, she could handle them. The area was a mixture of rundown houses, old warehouses, and a workshop. Ember's gaze moved to the open door of a worn house. She ran towards it.

She could hear the sound of the men after them but just as they reached the doorway there was a commotion. Ember pushed her mother through the door and then turned to look around but there was no rush of men behind them.

Ember frowned as she looked down the road. It had grown dark and it wasn't as easy to see anymore.

"Get away from the door," her mother said frantically.

"Wait," Ember said. "They're gone. Where..." She trailed off as she saw something dark on the ground.

Ember tried to make it out when she saw a figure walking towards them, but this person was alone. Ember stepped back into the room and glanced at her mother.

"There's someone coming."

Her mother grabbed her arm, pulling her further into the abandoned house, though a quick glance showed that it wasn't as abandoned as they thought. There were several people huddled on the ground. Some had slept through the commotion while several others were looking at them with fear and distrust.

The people were covered in worn clothes with holes or patches. A thin blanket was shared between a few people while others just curled in on themselves to keep warm. It looked like they had found a place where beggars and the very poor stayed for shelter.

The sound of steps had her turn her head back to the door. And the person she had seen stepped in. As soon as she saw them, the tension in Ember's shoulder faded away.

"You two certainly have a knack for getting into trouble," Justine said, shaking her head.

"The men-" her mother started.

"Taken care of," Justine said and then jerked her head to the side. "We need to go."

They nodded and then they were once again outside. Instead of heading back to the inn, they continue towards their destination but this time Justine stayed close and took the lead. Her steps were swift as she moved them through the area, avoiding people when she could until they finally reached the area they wanted.

At that point, Justine left them to search for a place for them to hide in. Justine found a shack for them to stay in though it was a little further away from the area Justine would be entering but at this point it was clear Justine could take care of herself.

Even so, Ember called up her map. The dot on the map was still in the same place but it seemed to move just a little before growing still.

Ember also called up Justine.

"Kind of creepy that you can watch me like that," Justine said, as she saw the dot that represented her.

"It's not like I can see more than a dot though," Ember said.

Justine grunted. "I'm going." Then she was out the door.

Ember watched the two dots. She noticed Justine stop and then she was moving in a loop. She was probably checking out the building. Ember frowned. She couldn't help but feel Finder would be more useful if she could identify people without their names. At least then she could find out whether there were other people inside.

As Ember considered the drawback of her Finder skill, she turned to check on her mother. She had grown quiet. She saw her mother standing against the wall, staring out the window.

"Mom, are you okay?" Ember asked, worried.

Her mother shook her head but didn't say anything.

Ember's brow furrowed but she turned back to the map, keeping an eye on the dots. She couldn't help worrying. Whoever had kidnapped the girl was either in the building or on their way back. If it was just an ordinary kidnapper then it was possible Justine would be able to take care of them without a problem.

But Ember didn't think it was that simple. Since Allyana was a noble, she was more than likely a Seedling and one with at least two or more abilities. That meant whoever kidnapped and murdered her in her past timeline was also likely a Seedling as well and managed to overwhelm her. Then again, she had no idea what sort of ability Allyana had. It was possible she didn't have one that was useful in defending herself.

"I should have told, Justine," Ember muttered to herself.

"Told her what?" her mother asked.

Ember looked at her mother. Her mother was looking at her but kept glancing nervously at the window as if she was afraid someone would appear and attack them. Ember gestured for her mother to come closer.

Her mother reluctantly left her spot from the window to stand near Ember.

Ember took her mother's hand. "I'm sorry, Mom."

Her mother looked startled and then seemed to relax just a little. "What are you saying sorry for?"

"There's a lot that I've kept secret from you. I did it to protect us but I should've trusted you. You're my mom."

Her mother smiled softly. "I am." Her mother let out a heavy sigh. "There's a lot we'll need to talk about later."

"I know."

Her mother nodded. "Let's get through this first." She glanced at the map. "She's closer."

Ember looked back at the map. The two dots were on top of each other now. This was the dangerous part. Ember focused fully on the map. Her mother moved away, probably returning to the window.

Ember watched as the two dots moved. Everything felt too easy. Where was the kidnapper. was he simply not there for the night. Perhaps he didn't check on his victim every night? It was strange. Was she missing something?

A sharp scream pierced the air.

Ember whirled around to see her mother backing away from the window. Ember called up a flame as she rushed forward only to see a man crouched on the ground, under the window sill, shivering.

"Don't hurt me. Please, I don't mean no harm."

Ember frowned. "What are you doing here?"

"I heard voices in my shack."

Ember exchanged looks with her mother. They were the intruders here. Still, she didn't let her guard down.

"Can you check the map?"

Her mother looked reluctant to leave Ember with the man but to her surprise she did. Maybe her mother was starting to realize that Ember was more capable than she thought. A few seconds later her mother was back at her side.

"They're moving in this direction." Her mother reached for the small sack tucked at her waist and fished out three copper flats. She handed the flats to the man. "We need to use your shack for an hour longer."

The man's eyes widened and he snatched the coin and scurried away. Ember frowned but tuned her attention back to the map. It looked like Justine was almost there. Ember waited anxiously but couldn't help glancing at the window from time-to-time but the man didn't return.

Then there was a clatter at the door as Justine entered the shack, carrying a girl across her shoulder. "Got it. You should've seen that place. It was like a secret torture dungeon. The stuff in there." She shook her head.

"Did you run into anyone?" Ember asked.

She shook her head. "But I wouldn't be surprised if the creep showed up. That set up...it looked like someone who enjoyed what they did."

"We should go," her mother said.

They were all in agreement on that.

"Should I add an illusion to you?" Ember asked.

Justine frowned but nodded. "I'll need to carry her and my stealth won't cover her so it's better if you add an illusion to her."

Ember understood. If she was adding an illusion to the girl Justine was carrying it would likely interfere with Justine's stealth so it was better they both had illusions. Placing an illusion on the pair and switching out her and her mother's illusion in case they ran into the group they encountered before, they all moved out.

Surprisingly, the girl didn't move or speak the entire time. "Is she unconscious?"

Justine nodded. "I would've thought she was dead if I didn't hear her groan every once in a while."

Ember wondered if she was drugged. They would need to move fast. Hopefully before she woke up and panicked.

Silently, they began making their way out of the area with Justine taking the lead and keeping them away from people. The streets had emptied out so there weren't many people to run into and most they encountered were minding their business.

They were out of the area and halfway to the temple when the girl woke up with a start. She immediately started struggling.

"No! Please no!"

"Calm down! You're safe," Justine said.

This seemed to only make the girl struggle even more.

Justine grasped the girl and pulled her down, holding her tight. "I said calm down."

"You're scaring her," Ember's mother said and hurried over to the girl, and gently took her hand. "Your name's Meri, isn't it? We saved you from that place. We're taking you back to the temple."

At mention of the temple the girl calmed a little though her gaze darted around her. "Is he here? He's here, I know it. He's going to hurt me. He'll tear me apart. Please, please help me."

Her mother hugged the girl and Justine back away, giving them space. Ember watched her mother hold and comfort the girl. She looked to be around 14 or 15. She never should've went through something like this.

As she waited for her mother to calm the girl down, Ember glanced around her. Something felt off. She couldn't explain it but it was like a scratching across her soul. She turned around, peering into the darkness.

"We should move," Ember said, unsettled. She felt a warning going off inside her but she couldn't place why.

Just as she was going to say more she saw three figures walking towards them. Ember's eyes widened.

"Priest Beslen," she said in surprise and besides him was Knight Vantosia and Garrick.