He saw Lucinda on the streets one day, laying on the ground eating an apple. She had bottles around her filled with different liquids.

“What are you selling?” Duane asked. He was younger at the time, had energy. Had some semblance of joy.

“Elixirs,” she said. She made all of these elixirs of different colors. They were chunky, hard to drink, and tasted horrible. Then again, they did the job.

“You’re talented,” Duane said, “do you need something to eat?” The child’s bones were sticking through her skin. Another day without food and she could have died. The child just nodded, and left the elixirs.

Duane had never seen one child eat so much in his life. She ate an entire loaf of bread, half a steak, and almost a full watermelon. The child had enough dirt on her to start a small farm. The only parts of her without dirt was drool tracks. As Duane was leaving town that day, the child followed him. She needed food. He needed her healing elixir. They’ve been inseparable ever sense.

The night was dangerous. Bandits usually raided travelers during the night. Night was also when the spirits came out, along with vulpes. The group had been walking for almost five hours, on a 20 hour journey.

“At the next clearing we should set up camp,” Aleah said.

“Agreed,” Duane replied coldly. Aleah was becoming wary of Duane. He was so kind to Rain, why was he so dry and heartless now? His face was pale and sickly. Eyes bulging from his head, and he looked as if he would fall at any minute. Rain didn’t look like that, and Aleah hoped she didn’t either.

Rain was standing behind Duane, making funny faces at Lucinda. She wasn’t laughing as hard as she used to, probably because Rain only had five faces.

“Clearing up here,” Rain said, “I’ll start unpacking.” He went over to the area, the dog running after him, taking Aleah’s bag on the way. When he reached the clearing, he took out a large tarp of leather, a small rope, and two blankets. The dog took the robe and ran, wanting to play. Rain didn’t have the energy to play with the dog however, so he took out a new rope. He set the tarp over the rope, which he tied between two trees. The rest of the group caught up with him halfway through him setting up.

“Lucinda and I will set up our hammocks over here then,” Duane said, putting Lucinda down. He took off the strap he had around his back, tying it to two trees. Lucinda tied hers while Duane was doing his. Lucinda and Duane gained this routine about two month through their travels. Rain and Aleah though didn’t have a routine, but instead would divide and conquer on jobs, getting everything done by the end of it.

“Lucinda, did you make anymore of that special elixir? I think I need it,” Duane said. Lucinda pulled out a small elixir, which seemed to slowly be changing color. Duane exhaled, held his nose, and drank it all; the life and energy came back into Duane’s eyes as he started a fire and started cooking.

Over closer to the tent, Aleah started talking to Rain. She was holding it back most of the trip, but decided to say it now, “I don’t trust those two.”

“Why’s that?” Rain asked.

“He seems bipolar or something. The entire walk he became more and more cold, and then we get here, he takes a drink, and is suddenly happy? Doesn’t that raise a red flag?”

“I guess so, but still, we’ll be getting paid a lot. Along with good food on the journey.”

“Then how does the child know how to make elixirs like that? She can’t be older than ten and has made elixirs even I can’t make. Hell mom couldn’t make elixirs like that!”

The worry in her voice started to scare Rain. She usually didn’t trust people simply because she didn’t want to talk to them, or interact with them. Here, however, it seemed as if she was actually scared of the pair. “When you were 12 you stood up to the knight in our town, and beat him in combat. You didn’t have supernatural powers, and neither does she. She’s just,” Rain had trouble looking for the correct word, “Talented.”

Aleah remembered that fight. He came riding into town, started asking for unreasonable taxes. She didn’t know why she stood up to him, probably because he added a “child tax” to him, even though he had given everything. She didn’t kill the man, only wounded him. No, she didn’t have powers, but then again she was 12, had an endless amount of swords and dummies to practice with and on, and had the time to do so. Lucinda didn’t have those luxuries, living on the street without any food.

“You don’t have to trust them if you want, but I’m going to,” Rain said as he walked over to Duane, who was busy making some mix of apples and pig meat.

The apples were cut up, along with the meat, and were being stirred in the boiling pot of water.

“You sure you don’t want to put a lid on that? The smell could attract Vulples,” Aleah called from the tent.

“I hired you for a reason correct?” Duane replied with the same sly voice he had earlier, “you see some just yell, they’ll run away.”