The Mother of Monsters

Teyva and Azrael stepped out into the early morning sun. The light had just begun to peek out over the trees and cast itself against the side of buildings. The mixed smells of life out here in such an isolated settlement caught the pair off guard. Somewhere bread was being baked, spices were being used in some sort of stew, there was a scent of some kind of plant oil, and the odor of rural life blended with it all. There weren’t many people on this side of town, only a few passersby who stared and whispered as they walked. A few children stopped and stared open-mouthed at Teyva’s horns only to be shooed off by Elat.

“Word has gotten around that you are here,” Elat said, nodding toward the street. They fell into step behind him as he walked, adjusting the quiver on his shoulder. “It is a mixed reaction. Some are fascinated by you. Others are quite unsure what to make of you. Especially you, Teyva,” He said.

“Not surprised,” Teyva said, crossing her arms.

“Are you planning on heading south right away?” Elat asked.

“Not quite, I wanted to pick up a few things while we were here. Do you know where I can get a satchel?” Teyva asked.

He rubbed his chin thoughtfully; “Aren is our local leatherworker, he might be willing to trade for one of his creations, I’ll take you to him.”

“I have a question,” Azrael cut in, “Where do you get your grain from? I haven’t seen any cultivated land.”

Elat pointed westward, “On the far west side of the village we’ve cultivated some plots of rhime grain,” he said, “The plant grows tall and thick so it can feed a large population with a small area.”

“Isn’t that hard to grow?” Azrael pressed.

“It requires a certain type of soil, yes, but if you ingrain certain oils into sawdust and mix it into the soil it makes a close enough match,” Elat explained, “I’m sure it’s more complicated than that but that is how the farmers explained it to me.”

Azrael smiled at him, “I see, thank you Elat,” she said, putting on a thoughtful look. She turned to Teyva who was grinning at her and scowled.

The three of them fell into a comfortable silence after that, walking down the narrow street to the round-a-bout before stopping in front of a shop with a stuffed wolf sitting at attention out front. Teyva grimaced at the unpleasant-looking decoration as Elat knocked on the door.

Aren, despite his taste in decor, happened to be a pleasant enough person. He was a portly fellow with gray-green skin and a chipped right tusk. He had an almost drunken whimsy about him that amused Teyva and put off Azrael. When Teyva put forward her request he was quick to demand payment in exchange for his products. Teyva first offered him coin but he pointed out that in a settlement like this coin was the least of their worries, he needed materials. After some haggling, she managed to get what amounted to a simple over-the-shoulder messenger bag for the low price of three bundles of wolf skins.

Teyva didn’t immediately transfer her Mockeries into the bag once they left the leatherworker behind. She figured it was probably best not to have the little darlings crawling across her body in broad daylight. Instead, they made a few more stops along the way to the outer gates. There was a small general store where the owner, Karl, was more than willing to take a little coin in exchange for a tarp and some rope. Teyva wanted an actual tent in case they were going to be out longer than a single evening.

Their last stop was the simple home of Ola, one of the daughters of the Elder and sister to both Elat and Sari. The door slid open quietly to reveal the thin face of the widow. Like her sister, she had olive green skin. She looked haggard, her eyes sunken and red from tears. Her manner brightened almost immediately when she saw who had come to her door, a delighted smile coming across her face as she took in the two women. “You must be Teyva and Azrael, Sari had quite a bit to say about you.”

“Good things I hope?” Teyva asked, extending a hand to the woman.

Ola looked down at Teyva’s clawed hand and up at her then shook her head, she quickly moved in for a hug instead, pulling Teyva into an embrace. She tugged Azrael in as well, squeezing them both with surprising strength. “Thank you, for returning my husband to me. I have a piece of him to remember him by now.”

Teyva froze, but eventually returned the hug, patting the woman on the back. “You’re welcome.”

The woman broke the embrace after a few heartbeats and stepped back, “And you are welcome in my home any time. I know that some of the others have their reservations about you two, but you can count me as a friend.”

Teyva and Azrael looked at each other and smiled before bowing to the woman; “Thank you, Ola.”

“Thank you for bringing them by, brother,” Ola said to Elat who had been standing in an uncomfortable silence the entire time. He rubbed his arms and sighed, reaching out to pat his sister on the head. “Come see me for a meal soon, yes?”

“I will, I need to get these two to the gates, be well sister.”

“Be well, brother.”

The widow offered the two women an embrace before she sent them on their way. Azrael looked pensive as they walked towards the gates. Teyva knew what she was thinking. They had come across the ring by accident, it was not like they had gone out of their way to find it for Ola. The gratitude they’d received seemed a bit imbalanced. Still, it was nice to feel like she was doing a little good in this world she’d fallen into. Her life so far in this world had been death, danger, and running away. A small amount of brightness made the rest worth it.

When they made it to the gates, Hakal and Mors were waiting for them as well. Hakal grinned at the two of them boisterously while Mors remained stoically quiet. “Good luck to you both! I hope you return alive, yes? I want to hear all about what you find!” Hakal barked, slapping his gut and laughing. Mors gave his partner a long-suffering look before inclining his head in silence. Did that guy ever talk?

“Get the gates open,” Elat barked and the two hopped to work, pushing at the doors.

“This is it then,” Teyva said, "The old man not going to see us off?"

Elat grunted, shaking his head, "He is resting, he had a bit of a spill this morning. He should be well when you return.”

“You have a lot of faith in us strangers,” Azrael commented.

“I have good instincts,” Elat said, smiling at her. Azrael looked away and cleared her throat. He frowned in confusion and looked over at Teyva who just shrugged with a smug grin on her face. “Anyway, I wanted to give the two of you something to help you.”

He reached into one of the many pouches that lined the belt around his waist and plucked out two vials. He handed one to each of them. “Tinctures of Healing, Sari made them.”

Azrael stared at the blood-red fluid inside the vial in wonder; “Are you sure?”

Teyva, for her part, had seen plenty of potions of healing as a gamer but this was her first time encountering a real one. She examined the tiny vial, barely larger than her middle finger, and watched the red liquid flow easily across the glass.

“I’m sure, if it can do you some good and play a role in getting you through what is to come, then it is worth it,” Elat said, raising his fist to his chest. “I wish you both good fortune.”

Azrael cleared her throat and looked up at Elat, “Elat, when we return-”

Teyva broke from her wonder at the potion and reached to grab her friend by the arm, pulling her over and locking elbows. Azrael gave her a wild look, confusion, and irritation blossoming on her face. Teyva ignored it and smiled up at a very confused Elat. “Haha! Thank you, Elat! We better get going now, don’t want to lose light, right?” She asked, nodding to the gate that had been opened wide enough for them to pass. He blinked but eventually nodded, thanking them one last time before they departed. Teyva waved at Hakal as they went, the door eventually closing behind them.

Azrael tore her arm away from Tevya and scowled at her; “Why did you do that?”

Teyva held up her hands defensively; “Save that kind of talk for when you get back, okay? It’s bad luck.”

Azrael paused and sighed, “A superstition about parting words? Really?”

“I swear I wasn’t trying to mess with you this time, just trust me on this okay?” She really couldn’t think of a way to explain the long tradition of death flags to her friend. All she could do is hope that Azrael would forgive her. The Azar had clearly been working up the nerve to say something to the handsome orc ever since they’d left the house in the morning. She scratched the back of her head and gave Azrael an apologetic look.

Nephra, who had been winding his way under their feet since they left Ola's house, stepped forward and peered between the two women. He cleared his throat and the two looked at him; “Pardon, am I to understand Lady Azrael wishes to mate with the Orc known as Elat?”

If Azrael’s hair could stand on end, it would have, she grit her teeth and marched off towards the trees, heading due south. Nephral looked up at Teyva in confusion and Teyva just sighed. She patted him on the head and reassured him that everything would be fine.

Above them, atop the gate, Elat called down; “Is everything alright?”

Teyva barked out a laugh and looked up at him; “Everything’s fine! Just talking about how lucky you are!”

His bewildered look made her laugh even more and she waved at him, gesturing for Nephral to follow while she moved to catch up with Azrael. They found her leaning against a tree, her gray skin a bit darker on her face. This time Teyva said nothing to tease her; Nephral approached the Azar and folded his wings in, bowing his head towards her. She scowled at him but sighed, rubbing her arms and stepping away from the tree.

“You two ready?”

“Almost,” Teyva said, glancing over her shoulder. They were far enough away at this point. She opened up the satchel hanging from her shoulder and with a mental command urged her Mockeries into it. The creatures eagerly scuttled out from their hiding places on her person. Azrael made a face somewhere between horror and amusement as thirty glittering four-legged gold coins crawled across Teyva’s body and into the bag. There they settled into a shimmering pile. She tossed in a few ration bars for them to eat and closed it. She adjusted the strap and smiled in Azrael’s direction; “Okay, let’s do this.”

She opened her hand and the compass appeared, the wobbly needle spinning for a few moments before settling on a general direction. The two of them looked at it for a moment before looking up at each other.

“Best I think we’re going to get,” Teyva said.

“It’ll do.”

A quick flapping of wings punctuated the moment, Nephral landing on Teyva’s shoulder and wrapping his tail around her neck. He settled in and she stroked his head, eyeing the trees ahead of them. Azrael rested her hand on her weapon and the three of them set off towards the Aberrant Grove.