Written September 1st, 2020 10:13 PM

After traveling together for a week, Ailith and Feyra had settled into an easy routine. Feyra hunted, Ailith foraged (or she tried to. Really Feyra did most of the work). They took turns keeping watch at night, although they hadn’t run into any problems so far, save the occasional raccoon who wondered into their camp. According to Feyra they were approaching a small town, Caltown, the perfect place to resupply and sleep in an actual bed.

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“What a shithole,” Ailith observed. There was no real town to speak of, just a central yard featuring a man pushing a wheelbarrow of chopped wood with a little girl sitting on top, a temple to what looked like the All-Mother, and an inn with a stable. So much for stocking up on fresh vegetables.

“Come on,” Feyra sighed. “Let’s go get a room at the very least.” Ailith followed Feyra’s lead, scanning the area out of habit. Her attention was drawn to the shadows by the stable, by a shape she couldn’t quite make out. Reaching out a hand to draw Feyra’s attention to it, her thoughts were interrupted by a piercing scream. Spinning on the spot, Ailith immediately dropped into a defensive stance, seeing Feyra nock an arrow out of the corner of her eye. The scream cut off abruptly, but the silence didn’t last long.

A horrendous cackling sound started up, filling the silence and moving steadily closer. Where Feyra stood and waited calmly, Ailith practically vibrated. Her eyes mapped out the area, snapping back and forth as she took in her surroundings. She watched the man and little girl stop their work and move closer to her and Feyra instead of taking cover. Ailith could only assume they were ready for a fight, although the little girl’s size made her nervous.

The man was huge, wearing a simple white shirt pushed up past his elbows and brown pants much like Ailith. His skin was pale, suggesting a life spent largely out of the sun, bald head showing the faintest hint of stubble. He wielded a large sword in both hands, the edge of a tattoo visible at his left elbow. The girl was barefoot, wearing a white dress stained brown with dirt at the hem. In fact, all of her was white – pale skin, paler even than the man she was with, and white tangled hair. Ailith didn’t have enough time to object to the girl’s age before a third figure sidled up to the group.

The new person was tall, wearing a ragged brown cloak and, inexplicably, an old beaked doctors mask. They certainly made quite the crew, but there was no time for introductions. The cackling grew louder as the source lumbered into view. It was unlike anything Ailith had seen before; the sound was coming from a group of three red and vaguely humanoid beings with spikes protruding from their bodies. They had two large horns growing out of their heads and the teeth inside their gaping maws were razor sharp, bared in a trio of sick grins as they advanced.

The creatures wasted no time in attacking them, jaws open wide. Ailith rushed in, targeting the soft underbelly of the one closest to her with her staff before delivering two swift punches in quick succession. An arrow lodged itself in the creature’s throat as a vial of liquid smashed into the open mouth of another one, smoking and hissing. The cackling had not ceased under the onslaught and it set Ailith’s teeth on edge. She saw the bald man hacking at the third creature with his great sword, blood and viscera flying. A pang of worry hit her when she remembered the girl but it evaporated when Ailith saw her shoot a ray of black energy at the creature the man was attacking.

The creatures didn’t stand a chance against the five of them. They all had their different strengths; the tall cloaked figure, small girl, and Feyra all stayed back and attacked at a distance while Ailith and the big man stayed up close, hacking and punching their way through the creatures. Still cackling, the last one finally fell sideways, twitching a couple times before falling still, tongue lolling. Breathing hard, Ailith turned to her allies, eyes peeled for any injuries. She was surprised to see that they were all going to walk away with minimal injuries, mostly superficial scrapes and bruises.

Sharing a look with Feyra, Ailith addressed the group in front of her. “I think we should talk. We were just headed to the inn if you want to join us.” Giving one of slain creatures one last kick for good measure, she led the way to the inn, sitting down at a secluded table.

They all sat awkwardly, alternating between staring at each other and avoiding eye contact. Rolling her eyes, Ailith spoke up. “Well, my name is Ailith. What can I call you?” When they still didn’t say anything, Ailith threw her hands in the air, looking to Feyra for help.

“I’m Feyra. We appreciate all your help out there.” Feyra leveled her gaze at the pale man.

“Oh, uh. Okay, well I’m Talus.” Talus spoke in a deep, slow voice. “This is-“

“I’m Aasimar! Talus rescued me from a cult and now we’re here!” The little girl cut in, high and fast.

“Whoa, whoa. Remember what we talked about?” Talus turned the little girl towards him, bending to eye level. “We don’t go around telling strangers all that stuff.”

The little girl pouted. “Okay.”

“We should come up with a new name for you too. Aasimar is too dangerous.” The stark difference between the man who had charged full tilt at the creatures outside and the one speaking softly to this little girl was giving Ailith whiplash.

The girl thought for a minute. “I like Ace. Can that be my name?”

“Of course! Ace is a great name!”

“Okay, then my name is Ace,” the girl said happily, turning back to the other three. “You can forget what I said about that other stuff.”

“Alright, now we’re getting somewhere. Hi, Ace. Talus. It’s a pleasure to meet you.” Ailith extended a hand, shaking each of theirs in turn. They all turned to the last figure, sitting still and silent beneath the mask.

“Oh. I guess we’re still doing this.” The voice that emerged was raspy and quiet. “You can call me Zeev.”

“Zeev?” Talus asked before Ailith got the chance.

“X-I-V. Like Draconic numerals,” Xiv clarified, waving their hand as if that was all the explanation the group needed. Definitely an odd one, but hey, who was Ailith to judge?

Ailith crossed her arms, nodding at the group before her. “Alright then! Now that that’s all settled, where are you guys headed?”