“Not that I don’t mind you being here, but why are you here, Tegan?” Kara asked.

“Ilys and I asked him to join us,” Dolion told her. “He knows some healing magic and is an alchemist. We might need him for that. And he’s pleasant company.”

Len laughed nervously as he adjusted his pack. “Dol flatters me, but I offered to join if my skills would be of use. Miss Glory said it’s fine and wants me to pick up some plants that grow in the area.” He also wanted to check out the border patrol in the city. Viridiasia wasn’t a huge city like Luxivita, but there were just as many guards stationed there because it was on the border of Foscentra and Briarwatch, the province to the southeast.

“I see…” Kara looked at her sister, who was paying her no mind. “Ilys…”

“Not now, Takara,” Ilys snapped.

“That’s not good,” Dolion mumbled.

Len looked up at him in concern. “What do you mean?”

“Ilys only calls Kara by her full name when she’s upset with her. She wasn’t too pleased about being hired for this job. Said she wanted to stay far away from the orb. She seems really shaken by whatever she saw,” Dolion replied. It wasn’t often that Ilys was scared, and that put him on edge. All he knew was that Ilys saw a vision of a small figure dancing in the middle of a burning town and dead bodies all around it. Besides that and getting knocked out, she didn’t say anything else. The vision clearly left her shaken, and that was enough for him.

The smaller man frowned and looked at them. Kara’s shoulders were low, and he could see the tension in Ilys’. He decided to change the topic. “So, how long will it take us to get Viridiasia?”

“About three days away,” Dolion answered. “So long as we don’t run into any issues, but bandit attacks have become more frequent. Ilys told me she and Kara ran into a few on their job. I doubt any will try to pick a fight with us unless they have a large group. I assume you can defend yourself?”

Len nodded. “I can. My weapons might not look like much, but they’re perfect for me.”

Dolion grinned at him. “Hopefully it doesn’t come to that, but good to know we won’t have to worry too much about you. We have to worry about Kara though. Her combat skills are lacking, and she’s not aggressive.” He looked around the area, seeing the leaves swaying in the gentle breeze. It wasn’t very cold, but enough that all of them needed to wear their cloaks. He looked at Ilys and noted her twitching fingers. She was layered up more than the rest of them because of the burn scars covering most of her body.

“Dolion,” Sal called out from behind them and nodded for his brother to walk beside him.

The Vulpkith smiled awkwardly at Len. “Sorry, gotta see what he wants.”

“I’ll be fine,” Len assured him. He saw Kara looking at her map and mumbling to herself about how long it would take to get to their destination. A part of him was still a little wary around her. He tried not to judge her for being heavily associated with Hammond and Cornelia, but it was tough not to. Especially since she didn't appear too happy he was joining them. He hurried over to Ilys and smiled nervously when she looked at him. “Is it okay if I walk beside you?”

She smiled back. “Of course. It’s about time Dol left your side. I take it Sal called for him?”

“How did you know?” Len asked with a laugh.

“He and Dol are joined at the hip sometimes,” Ilys quipped. “Sometimes I feel left out. Then again, the two of them are cousins. I suppose it’s natural they stick together the way they do.”

Len looked at her in surprise and looked at the two men. “They’re cousins?”

Ilys nodded. “Yes. When they came to Ebonwood, they told Hammy their parents left them on the side of the road and promised they would come back soon. That obviously didn’t happen. Both of them were crying. Dol even yelled that he hated all the Incarnates. Cursed every single one and was very specific about why he hated each of them. Didn’t make any sense, but he made it clear that he would never pray to any of them.”

Len’s heart broke at the image of a young Dol and Sal crying and wanting their parents. He could only imagine the pain they felt when they realized their parents weren’t coming for them. “That’s sad…”

“It is,” Ilys agreed. “Not the hating the Incarnates part, but the whole abandonment thing. I can only imagine what that must’ve felt like. I lost all my memories after the disaster at Everglow. And from what Hammy assumes, my parents died during that because no one said they were missing a child matching my description.”

“You only remember showing up at Ebonwood?” Len had only read about the disaster there. It happened a few days after he was born, according to his mother. She'd planned on visiting there, but his sickness had gotten worse that day. She ended up staying home to help Varrick care for him and avoided the tragedy. 

Ilys shrugged and adjusted her pack. “I don’t remember anything about living there. The first thing I remember is Corny slapping me in hopes I would snap out of my catatonic state.”

“She what!?” Len shouted in outrage.

The Earth Elf laughed and waved her hand. “It’s fine. I kicked her in the stomach and nearly scratched her eyes out. Pretty sure that’s why she hates me. When Dol and Sal came along, the three of us bonded pretty fast over our shared dislike for her.”

Len couldn’t help but laugh at that. “I can see why. And thank you for helping me yesterday. I don’t know what I would’ve done if you hadn't shown up.”

She ruffled his hair and grinned. “Not a problem. I enjoy making her mad. It’s one of my simple pleasures in life. Makes me smile even when I’m not enjoying this damn weather.” Her fingers twitched again, and it was taking everything in her not to scratch at herself. It didn’t help that it was a dark and cloudy day, which made the wind colder than usual. “Distract me. Tell me a little bit about yourself.”

He looked at her in surprise and nearly tripped. “W-Well, I-I-”

“I know you’re on the run from someone,” Ilys whispered to him. “I don’t have Sal and Dol’s ears and noses, but I could tell. You’re constantly looking over your shoulder when you’re out. You usually keep your answers short with little detail. And I couldn’t help but notice Tulip watching your back at all times when she's around.”

He laughed nervously as he fidgeted with the leather cuff on his wrist. “I tell her to relax, but she does what she wants to do. And I suppose I could tell you a little bit about myself. I’m twenty-one years old.”

“Well, that answers the question I’ve had in the back of my mind,” Ilys chuckled. “All of us were wondering how old you are. You look so young yet seem so mature. More mature than us, that's for sure. And we're older than you! Dolion seems to bring out the less mature version of you. ”

Len laughed as he wrapped his cloak tighter around himself when the wind blew. “I think he brings out that side in all of us, but he’s kept me entertained since I arrived.”

“Maybe you’ll make an honest man out of him. I think this is the most time he’s spent with someone,” Ilys stated. “I think he really likes you, Tegan.”

The younger man blushed at that and looked down. “I doubt that. He’s just a flirt. If I were to leave, he wouldn’t miss me for long.” The thought of Dolion finding someone else made his heart ache a little. Try as he might, he’d grown rather fond of him. Other men had flirted with him before, but almost all of them were more aggressive and pushy with their advances. Dolion flirted, but he’d been very considerate and respectful.

Ilys was about to say something, but stopped. She held her hand up to signal her siblings to stop walking. Everyone went quiet and stood still. Dolion and Sal slowly walked to Kara and stood by her sides. Len looked around nervously to see if there was something or someone. Nothing appeared out of the ordinary. The leaves were still swaying gently, and no wild animals were heard.

Len didn’t even see when it happened. One second, he stood next to Ilys, and the next, he was pushed far away from her. Just as he hit the ground, a small explosion hit where he’d been standing and sent her flying into a nearby tree.

“ILYS!!!” Kara screamed in horror. She tried to run to her, but Sal held her back.

“Don’t!” he ordered. His ears twitched when he heard footsteps all around them.

Len gasped when Dolion picked him up and quickly backed up to where Sal and Kara were. “What about Ilys?”

Dolion didn’t answer and growled when he saw bandits appearing from the forest. He did a quick head count and cursed. “We can’t fight,” he muttered to Sal. “There’s about eleven of them.”

Len looked over at Ilys and swallowed the bile threatening to rise when he saw a small puddle of blood under her head. “…Ilys isn’t moving.”

Kara let out a sob when she saw it. “No, she can’t be…” She didn’t want to believe her sister was dead. She couldn’t accept it. Not before they resolved all their issues. Not before telling Ilys how lonely she felt ever since she and their brothers left. There were still so many other things she wanted to tell her.

“Look what we have here, boys!” A Tigrikin man walked towards them. He was about as tall and muscular as Sal, with dirt streaks covering his light tan skin and light copper-colored hair. “Looks like we got some unfortunate travelers.” His dull amber eyes looked over at Ilys’ still body and laughed. “Very unfortunate.”

“What should we do with them, boss?” one of the bandits asked.

The man walked over to the group and looked at them for a few seconds before leering at Kara and Len. “Tie ‘em up and take them back to camp. They look like they got some valuables.”