The companions were gone the next day, not able to afford more than one night at the inn, but camped near the river nonetheless. It would take time for Orme’s body to recover, and at least they wouldn’t starve. There were fish aplenty, and they could trade some for bread and other goods at the village. 

They stayed for 5 days, and Wren trained with Iyona. They still weren’t good, but they were finally learning a thing or two. Like how to hold a sword in order to not lose it in the first 3 seconds.

When the companions left, they made sure to erase all signs of their presence. One never knows.

They followed the river for a couple of days, then headed inland again. There were more ruins to explore. 

They walked too slowly for Orme’s taste, but he hadn’t fully recovered and Iyona wouldn’t let him walk any faster. She said he was an idiot and he’d overdone it with the goblins, and to never go this hard again. Orme couldn’t promise, but that made him smile. She was kind to him, in her own gruff way.

Instead of falling asleep on their own feet, Wren took the slow pace as a chance to progress on something else. They sketched the scenery as they walked. Orme never knew they would draw at all.

One night, Everyone were talking around the campfire when Orme suddenly remembered something. The red stone they’d taken from the goblins, in the ruins.  He patted all his pockets until he remembered Wren had taken it. He asked them to take it out to examine it, and they all huddled closer, leaving their conversation unended.

The ruby coloured stone reflected the flames in a hypnotizing way. Surely it was more than just a pretty gem.

Surely…

Orme tried to pass it on to Wren, but his hand failed me. The stone fell.

It cracked open.

And fire erupted.

A huge fire, like the ones Iyona lit in her hometown for the Midwinter festivities. A fire so bright and warm she had to cover her face.  A fire that burned her retinas and covered her vision even with her eyes closed.

Such a big fire came from such a small stone.

Eventually, Iyona thought to kick it, and the fire lessened to the size of a decent campfire. 

They all exchanged looks.

What in the five layers of Hell was that? It would make making camp at night way easier, and getting into dark ruins. Still, it was a little terrifying. But first, they had to find how to stop it, and if they could use it more than once.

Wren tried kicking it once more, but it only reduced the size of the fire again. Orme approached his hand, and found that the pieces of rock didn’t burn.

He gathered the pieces and reformed the rock, and the fire disappeared. He sighed.

Nobody spoke for a moment, then all three of them started at once. They laughed. What else could they do? They’d found a rock that produced fire. It was incredible and exhilarating.

“Does it work again?” Iyona asked. 

Orme dropped the rock again, and again the fire roared. “Seems like it,” he said, bringing the pieces back together. “We won’t struggle for campfires when it rains anymore. Or when the wind is strong.”

He stashed the rock in his shirt pocket, and they all continued their meal. It was a little piece of hope in a hopeless world.