The monsters were grotesque, and unlike any species Meyra recognized. From numerous eyes to rotten teeth, they were drenched in blood from in-fighting. The creatures looked like conglomerations of other creatures, with unusual sets of limbs and other features. They stumbled over each other, looking at the group hungrily. 

Meyra remained seated, shaking too much to push herself up. Using one of the lines on her hands, she applied all the support magic she could think of. Ren pulled out their crossbow, loading it, and put their arrows on their side. They picked her up, placing Meyra onto their back.

Beside them, Kalin began to cast magic, glowing creeping up from his hands to his shoulders. Ayra began to remove her outer layers, showing the scales hidden underneath. She took off her gloves while lengthening her claws and tail. From her small bag she grabbed a vial and dripped poison all over the end of her tail. She grinned at the others before charging in. 

She ran through the monsters, slaughtering them left and right. Ayra reached for her daggers once she heard monsters screaming in the trees. Monster blood dripped from her claws as she gripped onto the handles, throwing the blades into the trees. The monsters began to fall like flies, the wounds pulsating and leaking a purple fluid. The daggers glowed red as they absorbed the blood, flying back into Ayra’s holsters.

Kalin was right behind her with a barrier surrounding him. He casted all sorts of magic, lighting the monsters on fire and sending weapons from the unknown. His staff’s globe was glowing white along with his hands. Monsters continued to fall from the trees and melted into the burning ground. 

Ren shot arrows towards the trees, killing the monsters upon contact as they trudged in. The monsters fell to the ground, trampled by the stampede. Meyra winced, her body jolting as they finished passing through the barrier. Her arms went limp as she slumped against Ren’s back. 

As they quickly depleted their arrow stash, Ren threw a bottle from their satchel bag into the onslaught of monsters. A large explosion ensued, throwing the monsters everywhere that were still in one piece. Having to switch to handheld weapons, Ren placed Meyra down against a tree. They propped her up, wiping away the sweat falling down her face. 

As the monsters began to be thinned, Kalin and Ayra ventured further in. Ren stayed close to Meyra, throwing potions or strapping them onto their arrows for larger explosions. She gripped onto the tree bark, clawing her way up until she was standing. Meyra remained on the ground recovering until she was able to fly up onto the first branch above the ground. She passed out, going Limon the large tree branch. 

“Wake up!” Ren screamed back at her, jolting her awake as she winced. 

Meyra felt warmth on her abdomen as she looked down. Blood had soaked through her clothes and something was stuck. She cried out when she pulled out the sharp object, healing herself. 

Ren was covered in blood, their clothes ripped to tatters. Their supply of bows was out and they were using their handheld weapons, all doused in poison. Meyra shakily pushed herself up against the tree, using it to keep herself upright. She focused all her energy on casting magic, quickly depleting an additional line. With the additional magic, Kalin was able to send Ren’s bows back to them. 

Meyra remained propped up against the tree, unable to move well, and low on magic. Her body was covered in sweat as she shivered. Using the little magic she had, Meyra cleaned her clothes, making her warm while the shaking slowed down. She looked down, only able to hear Kalin and Ayra in the distance. 

Unable to see them, she applied some additional defense magic around the two. She continued to re-apply the defense magic to the far two while supporting Ren. Meyra watched as the third line quickly depleted, leaving only her last resort. 

“Kalin, RUN!” Ayra screamed as she flew back into Meyra’s view. 

Ayra laid on the ground, her body doused in blood. The wounds appeared shallow, but the volume was causing her to bleed out. By now Meyra was able to move, so she quickly flew down from the tree. Ren and Kalin closed in on them, preventing the monsters from getting closer. 

“Stay awake!” Meyra exclaimed as she got down on her knees. 

Ayra’s lower face had a large chunk removed, the scales not covering there. She kept her face to the side, trying to prevent the blood from going down her throat. Ren threw a pain-reducing potion towards Meyra and she poured it over Ayra. 

“Heh, thanks,” Ayra wheezed out, closing her eyes. 

She relaxed, groaning when Meyra placed her hands against the wound. Meyra was able to heal faster through direct contact for severe wounds. She worked her way over the wounds, stopping the bleeding and internal damage. As she went to heal the external scarring, Meyra looked down to see the fourth line gone. 

“Are you okay now?” Ayra asked, looking at Meyra’s body trembling in worry. 

“Emotionally, no. Physically, also no.” Meyra laughed. 

Ayra grinned, able to get up and move. She offered her scarred hand, and Meyra tried to take it. With her magic entirely exhausted, she was paralyzed. Ayra pursed her lips, lifting up Meyra like she weighed nothing and carrying her to the barrier.

She gently tossed Meyra through, making Meyra wince in pain. Ayra winked at her and roared before charging back in. Meyra watched them from the other side of the barrier, unable to help further. The numbers had already dwindled to nearly nothing, so when Ayra went in full steam, they all disappeared in a flash. 

The three made their way through the barrier, careful not to step on Meyra. Ayra picked up Meyra, placing her onto her back. Everyone grumbled at the sun shining down on them as they moved towards the town. Ayra rolled her eyes when she saw the scouts sleeping in the outpost. The barrier closed behind them and she whistled, startling them awake. 

Ayra laughed at their startled expressions. They walked back to the house, Ayra laid Meyra down on the cushions. The three chowed down on their food at the table, leaving the chair closest to Meyra open so she could see. Everyone rested for a bit until Ren spoke. 

“We found out more about the samples I took,” Ren said in-between bites. 

The samples matched their previous hypotheses. It was likely that the famine was tailored to each individual area, with soil just outside Dovin and the forest having different concerns. All the infected areas would likely need different remedies as a result, significantly delaying a treatment if they found one. 

“I think this would need to be a continent-wide effort. There is no way to be discreet about this.” Ren sighed.

“Why can't we be discreet?” Ayra asked. 

“We don't have the manpower to distribute the solution, let alone get enough samples in the first place. We need to find people we can trust,” Ren grumbled. 

“Do you think Rendel can help?” Kali questioned. 

“I know you and Rendel are like family, but I'm worried that anyone could be involved.” Ren quickly glanced at Meyra before continuing to eat. 

“Well, how do we identify who we can trust?” Meyra chimed in before coughing. 

“I doubt it would be anyone from the forest, because this would've backfired on them tremendously,” Ren chuckled. 

“Why us?” Ayra mumbled. 

“I don't know if any of us know the answer to that.” Kalin shrugged. 

The group continued to talk, trying to think of people they could trust outside of Dovin. Eventually, after Meyra was able to stand up on her own, the group decided to head to Stasia’s tent. They waited a bit away from the tent, as she was talking to one of the other spiritualists. From there, Stasia smiled in their direction. 

“Thank you for earlier, I,” Ayra paused, her hands trembling, “really appreciate it.” Her face flushed as she kept her head low. 

“Thank you too!” Kalin grinned from behind Ayra, giving her a big hug as she hid her face in her hands. 

“You did a great job, you were a big help,” Ren said with a small smile from under their mask. 

“Well it sounds like we're doing well!” Stasia grinned as she walked up, immediately looking at Meyra’s hands. 

“You don't have to put your lives on the line for us! But thank you, we genuinely appreciate it. Come in, I'll make us some tea,” Stasia grumbled and walked ahead to the building. 

While she was serving tea, Stasia kept an eye on Ayra. Ayra kept her arms crossed, not looking at her. Meyra bit her lip, trying to hide a smile. Kalin snorted as he watched Ayra’s face redden once more. 

“It looked like the barrier was going to break,” Ayra huffed, looking away from the group. 

“This is not an overnight change, the guards have been watching. I'm glad to hear that you came back unscathed.” Stasia smiled at Ayra, and she stayed quiet. 

“Has anything been seen in the islands?” Stasia asked. 

“I was up there well before this, so I do not know,” Ayra said, while Meyra nodded her head. 

The islands float above Volvin, primarily over Okiron and Cynth. The draconic and angelic people live there. Their height above the mainland makes it so that only those groups can fly up unassisted. 

“We woke up to the spirits crying last night so we knew what happened. It is worrying, they haven't done that before with the barrier,” Stasia quieted towards the end and rested her head in her hand. 

She got up and walked out of the building without speaking. Stasia came back with two jars in her hands. She placed them down in front of Ren, explaining one was full of soil before the famine and one after. 

“The spirits warned us before this started, so we got a sample.” She smiled. 

Ren thanked her and scurried out of the building to observe the samples. Stasia sat back down with the three remaining. Ayra didn't look at her, looking down and fiddling with her fingers in the silence. Kalin yawned, looking around the building. 

“I believe it would be beneficial to see the Fae for your journey,” Stasia said. 

The Fae are known for their vast magic powers, but less publicly known for their ability to make potions and products like Ren. Stasia handed Kalin a clear jewel that sparkled like rainbows in the sunlight. The jewel was passed between the Fae and spiritualists for people being guided to either. 

“This will tell them that I sent you. I believe they will be able to help more than we can here. Thank you again.” Stasia smiled and the front door opened. 

The group left to pass the time until Ren was done with their research. Kalin and Ayra went off to spar with the spiritualists, pulling out their coin pouches from their bags. Meyra shook her head with a smile, heading back to the home they were given. She sat outside, looking towards the forest as she read her memories in her journal. 

The more time that passed, the more the memories felt like a story. They had already begun to feel foreign to Meyra, but this land was as well. Her home was not here, and even if she forgot it, she knew that this was no substitute. 

As she was reading, one of the spiritualists came and sat on the bench with her. They remained quiet, using the communal bench to look out into the forest. Meyra flipped through her journal, smiling as she read through her childhood memories. She went to touch her back scar after reading but hit her wing and felt no scar. 

“You're sighing quite loud there. You alright?” The person asked, and Meyra remained quiet. 

“Ah, sorry, I understand. There are times where even the most social of us may want to be alone.” They gave a toothy grin and continued to look out into the forest before eventually leaving. 

Meyra brushed the tears from her eyes as she looked at the creatures in the forest. They felt foreign, yet familiar, but looked nothing like she knew. She dozed off, feeling calm in the warmth of the sun. Someone touched her shoulder, shocking her awake. 

“Don't worry, I didn't look. We just saw you napping away while we were eating.” Kalin chuckled, referencing Meyra’s open journal in her lap. 

She got up with a heated face, locking it and shoving it in her bag. Meyra kept her head low as she walked into the house. Ayra and Ren were sitting at the table laughing over their meal. Kalin followed her shortly after. 

“We were thinking of heading back to update Rendel,” Ayra said while motioning to herself and Kalin.

“We can't wait to tell everyone about our findings! We're hoping to find others in Dovin that can help. He has connections all over town,” Kalin spoke while smiling. 

“Are you okay traveling with just me?” Meyra whispered to Ren who sat beside her, to which they nodded. 

The group said their goodbyes, Kalin tearing up as he ruffled Meyra’s hair. She grumbled with her arms crossed while Ayra was bent over in laughter. Ren had a smile on their face but turned away from the group and snickered. Meyra shoved Kalin off with a huff, whacking his back with her wing as she fixed her hair. 

“We’re off then!” Ayra exclaimed, giving a quick hug to the two before they left. 

By the time Ren and Meyra left the house, it was getting dark. They stood outside Stasia’s home, Ren sitting at the table and Meyra looking to the sky. Stasia yawned as she opened the door, sleepily looking at them before inviting the two in. A rough map was laid out on a center table. 

“Why are we being dropped off so far from the center of town?” Ren asked. 

“Protocols due to the increased monster sightings. I have to interfere with their barrier, the further the better,” Stasia said. 

Meyra looked at the point on the map. It was beyond the mats connecting the main island to the smaller ones. The main island was mountainous, with the town located centrally. Their drop off point was close to the exterior where few Fae lived. 

“Does this sound okay? You don't have to go.” Stasia smiled while she circled different locations on the map. 

“I need the paycheck, thank you,” Ren grumbled while tapping their finger against the table. 

Meyra nodded and watched Stasia finish the map. All their camping locations were marked with recommended hunting spots for their ease. It would take multiple days of walking to reach the town.

“Would you like to be flown there?” Meyra offered, worried Ren was annoyed by the long journey. 

“I have capable legs, no thanks,” Ren muttered before going outside. 

Meyra’s chest ached as her face flushed. Stasia chuckled, gently rubbing the top of her hand. She rolled up the map, placing it in a watertight container. 

“It's the thought that counts dear, I'm sure they understand.” Stasia got up and placed the map in Meyra’s bag.