The two drakes bore down on the remaining harpy warriors. One drake whipped its tail about furiously as it lunged forward, barreling forth with claws outstretched towards the closest man present. The harpy man leaped back from the strike, and another kicked a leg at the drake in a smooth movement. His talons connected, slashing through the beast’s scaly hide, but failed to leave a deep enough wound to impair it.

‘Do not die to these beasts, Aliana,’ spoke Moonlight’s whispering voice in the back of Aliana’s mind. She paid it no mind and sprinted forward. Her body felt light, and she moved with a grace granted by the sword. Neither of the drakes had noticed her yet, and she was close enough in a moment to swing her weapon. Gripping the hilt tightly in her hands, she swung the blade at the second of the drakes. The weapon cut through the hide and flesh of the creature’s leg, knocking it off balance as it recoiled and hissed in pain.

‘Press the advantage,’ Moonlight demanded. Aliana did just so, with no time to waste. She thrust the blade forward, and it hits its mark, sinking directly into the throat of the drake. Blood leaked out as the drake struggled with strangled noises, swiping at Aliana with a claw before it fell to the ground. Aliana had no difficulty drawing the sword back and sidestepping the claw, however. In that moment, a pair of the harpies descended on the drake to finish it off, their talons easily digging into the softer hide of its underside.

The first drake had pinned one of the harpies underneath itself. It had yet to sink its fangs into his neck before realizing a new threat had arrived. It redirected its attention then, leaving the man be and lunging now for Aliana. She realized what was happening just in time to react. She swung her sword to parry, managing to redirect the claws rather than be impaled, but the drake’s weight and momentum struck hard even with the aid of Moonlight’s power. Aliana was tossed back, suddenly finding herself slammed into the ground, her sword flying from her hand and clattering to the ground. The weight of the drake crushed down on her ribs, forcing the air from her lungs.

‘It will kill you, Aliana,’ Moonlight’s voice said, but Aliana barely noticed. She acknowledged only the beast on top of her, its fangs revealed. Everything seemed to move slower for that moment as she expected death to come.

But death did not. Instead, an animal tackled the drake, knocking it off of Aliana and onto the ground. She realized it was a grey wolf that had appeared, it and the drake rolling along the ground in a struggle. The two snarled and snapped at each other, the wolf trying to climb onto the drake’s back to avoid its claws.

Aliana quickly shifted her gaze to get a handle on the situation. She saw the other drake lay still on the ground now. Two of the harpies had begun to rush towards Aliana to provide their aid. Approaching from a hill in the distance, she spotted two figures hurrying to the scene.

Of the two new arrivals, one appeared to be a human man with red hair, the other at his side being a mousefolk who grabbed a bow from her back and aimed an arrow at the drake.

“Watch out!” the mousefolk called out. Aliana realized she was addressing the wolf, as it released the drake and moved out of the way just in time for the arrow to sink into the drake’s head.

Neither beast moved any further, though it took a moment for any of the harpies to relax their stances. One extended her hand to Aliana while others examined the dead drakes or approached the two newcomers. Aliana accepted the harpy’s hand and pulled herself up from the ground, grabbing the crystal-bladed sword that had fallen to the ground beside her. Several of the harpies tended to the woman who had been most grievously injured before Aliana’s arrival.

“Is anyone else hurt?” the voice was the mousefolk who looked around at each of the harpies that towered over her. The grey wolf walked behind her and took a seat in the grass.

One of the harpies who had escaped the encounter unharmed answered, “It seems the majority of us escaped with only minor injuries, thank you.”

It was then that Aliana spotted Swift descending towards the gathered group. She’d flown over the tents of the camp to arrive. Swift’s gaze quickly scanned the scene, her jaw firmly set in a severe expression Aliana had not seen from the woman before now. “Drakes…” Swift muttered, practically hissing the word to herself.

Two of the men were helping the wounded woman stand from the ground, guiding her back into the camp. Swift gave them a single acknowledging nod as they passed her, then turned her attention back to the rest of the group. After a deep breath that seemed to be to regain her composure, she offered her usual friendly smile to the pair of newcomers. “I hope your wolf friend is well-behaved.”

“He won’t hurt anyone, not to worry,” the mousefolk answered. Swift nodded and began making her rounds to each of the harpy warriors present.

Aliana placed her sword back in its sheath. Swift would likely be occupied with the aftermath of this battle, she figured, so she took the opportunity to approach the two newcomers. “You two have some good timing. Appreciate it,” she said with a friendly grin. She held out a hand to the human of the two, since he and Aliana were of similar height.

The man gave something of an acknowledging nod and said, “We heard the commotion from some distance,” but did not return the handshake, arms folded over his chest. His attention seemed to be elsewhere, staring out into the distance of the plains rather than returning any eye contact either.

“Ah, right.” Awkwardly, Aliana looked down at her own hand, then turned to the mousefolk, leaning down.

“We hurried over as quickly as we could,” the mousefolk said. She was more receptive to the handshake though it was no less awkward, as her tiny hand was only able to grip Aliana’s last few fingers.

By now, the harpies had departed back into the camp, some taking flight for further tents while others walked along the ground. They moved in a hurry, likely given new orders by Swift, though she lingered behind. She addressed the man and the mousefolk woman, saying, “It’s going to be dark soon. Are you two looking for shelter for the night?”

“Oh.” The mousefolk’s whiskers twitched. She looked at her human companion.

The man shrugged. “You needn’t mind us. We were passing through, you clearly have matters to attend to here.”

“Oh, nonsense,” Swift retorted. “We have to thank you somehow. If you don’t mind a bit of a wait, I’m sure we can make room for you to spend the evening.”

Aliana raised a hand to interject and offered, “I don’t mind if they share the tent with me.” She’d already been allowed to make room in a tent that had been meant for supply storage for the duration of her stay. She may as well try to make things easier on everyone by offering to share. “I’ll show them around.”

“Well,” Swift said, “you two heard the little lady. Make yourselves comfortable, there should be food ready soon as well.”

Walking back to the camp, the usual music had been replaced with a buzz of activity. A number of harpies had gathered by the camp’s bonfire to discuss the entire incident. Swift quickly separated from Aliana, but not before Aliana spotted her talking to the same pair of hunters from before, the ones that had been yelled at by the man called Hawk.

“Are they going to be alright?” the mousefolk asked. The wolf walked alongside her at a casual pace, and a few of the harpies eyed it warily. Few reacted beyond that, however. It was hardly anymore of a threat than a pair of drakes, Aliana supposed.

“I think Swift will be able to keep them calm. It’s probably not the first time they’ve had to worry about drakes out here,” Aliana answered. With the worst of the matter settled, however, she decided to try to lighten things up, adding with a more cheerful tone, “So! I’m Aliana, by the way. What about the two of you?”

“Oh, I’m Misha. And this is Veldin,” the mousefolk said, then gestured to the man who had been silent for most of the conversation, examining the surroundings more than engaging with the people around him.

“Well, it’s good to meet you both!” Aliana offered up a wide smile to Veldin, but he barely so much as glanced in her direction. Deciding that probably wasn’t going to get her anywhere, she switched topics. “Um… So, does this one have a name?” she asked, reaching out towards the wolf and patting it on the shoulder.

“He’s not a hunting hound,” Veldin said at last. “That’s a wild wolf.”

The wolf’s amber eyes turned to Aliana and she immediately retracted her hand, regretting her less-than-thoughtful decision. Misha, on the other hand, said, “Oh, he’s friendlier than you’d think, don’t worry.”

Aliana had half a mind to ask if Misha meant Veldin or the wolf with that comment, but she spotted the tent up ahead. “Here we are, then. Feel free to make yourselves comfortable.”

---

Aliana quickly found that Misha made for pleasant company. After showing these other travelers to the tent, she’d invited them to join the harpies’ bonfire for their evening meal. She was certain by now that none of the camp’s population would mind, of course. Misha had accepted, though Veldin had stated he was not hungry and opted to remain in the tent. Aliana wondered if the man was always this antisocial or if it was more because he looked like death warmed over, his complexion pale and dark rings formed under his eyes.

So, Aliana took a seat on the ground next to Misha, the both of them enjoying a wooden bowl of stew that had been made with tender wild game meat as its main ingredient. Another bowl had been left on the ground for the wolf to eat as well.

“So, where did you come from anyway?” Aliana asked.

“Veldin and I just came from the Orchard Forest,” Misha answered. She pointed with her wooden spoon to indicate the forest’s direction, not that said forest could be seen from anywhere near here. “We’re heading up north.”

“North, huh? To Indervel?”

“Past it, actually. But I think we’ll be stopping there on the way, since we’ll need supplies.”

“Aha…” Aliana grinned at that comment. Perhaps she wouldn’t need to travel alone after all. “Well then, tell you what! I can come along with you two… Uh, three,” she looked down at the wolf, whose muzzle was still shoved into the bowl of stew. “If you don’t mind, anyway. I have business there, and I know how to handle myself around these plains. What do you say to having a bit more muscle in your group?”

Misha looked up from her bowl of stew. “You’re interested? To be honest, with drakes flying around, I wouldn’t mind it. I don’t know these lands all that well, and I don’t think Veldin actually does, either. I’ll have to check with him, though, since he can be… Grouchy. But I’m sure I can convince him.”

Delightful social interaction secured. Or just about, anyway. “Great! What are you heading up there for, anyway? There’s not a whole lot to the north, especially once you get to the mountains.”

“It’s actually the mountains we’re going towards,” Misha explained. “Do you, um… Do you know about Opal, or about Dragon scales?”

Aliana paused with a spoonful of stew her mouth, eyes widening at that comment. “Mmf–“ She took a moment to actually chew her food first, then continued, “I know plenty when it comes to Opal, why are you asking?”

Misha’s ears perked up a bit at Aliana’s reaction, though she lowered her voice as she spoke. “I’m not sure how much I should say with so many people around, actually–I don’t want to cause any worries for anyone, but… Apparently, one of Opal’s scales was shattered and corrupted. So, we’re trying to… fix it, more or less.”

A scale of Opal’s. A scale had been shattered? Aliana was aware she was simply staring at Misha now, but she could hardly help it, no thoughts came to her mind at first to respond to that.

Moonlight apparently decided to help with that. ‘You once stated you were informed of such a thing, did you not, Aliana?’

“Not exact–“ Aliana began to respond aloud, stopping herself short when she realized what she was doing. Misha tilted her head and Aliana tried to cover up her mistake, “I mean, I’d… I’d like to talk about that more. How about back in the tent?”

“Yes, of course,” Misha nodded. “Veldin should be present anyway, I think.”

Aliana’s mind returned to the circumstances that had led her to come here in the first place. Could this be connected?

Before anything more could be said, Aliana once more spotted Swift. The chieftan stepped out of a tent some distance from the bonfire, speaking to another woman who accompanied her. The woman held a speckled egg in her feathered arms, one that was large enough that she needed both arms to carry it.

“What is that?” Misha wondered aloud, having followed Aliana’s gaze from the looks of things. Aliana recognized that sort of egg. And the fact that it was here meant nothing good. She stood and began walking towards the trio of harpies, and Misha glanced to the wolf. “Stay here, alright?”

Misha hurried her steps to keep up with Aliana’s pace. Both of them almost immediately that the wolf was following anyway.

“Swift?” Aliana asked, her eyes falling onto the egg as she approached. “That’s a drake egg, isn’t it?”

Swift turned to Aliana, then Misha. With a sigh, she nodded. “Yes… We found it hidden away in one of the tents.”

“A drake egg?” Misha stepped forward, staring up at the egg in the much taller harpy’s arms as if to get a better look at it. “That’s… That’s why they attacked?”

“No doubt. We were discussing how it came to be here,” Swift said. “No one would have been foolish enough to bring a drake egg here under normal circumstances, but… Well, we have some suspects.”

Suspects. The man called Hawk? The timing hardly seemed like a coincidence. Aliana recalled the third harpy she’d seen flying out of the camp. “Swift… Who is Hawk?”

Swift frowned, brow knitting together in obvious frustration. “Hawk… You heard that name?”

“Just before the drakes appeared, there were two people arguing with some of the hunters… And I think I saw a woman with white feathers flying out of the camp, too.”

“White feathers… Blond hair too, right?”

Aliana nodded.

Once more, Swift sighed, pinching the ridge of her nose between her thumb and forefinger. “That was Dove… And the hunters mentioned the other two you saw, Hawk and Mynah. A group of thieves, among other things, so we exiled them from the tribe a few months ago.”

“Then, you think Dove put the egg there?”

Swift nodded. “She must have, likely while the patrol on that side was distracted with Hawk and Mynah… Being perfectly honest, I never thought they’d be so dedicated to retaliating against us.”

‘Retaliating’ was a way to put it. That trio’s scheme could have easily killed any number of the tribe. Aliana found herself voicing her anger before she really thought it through. “I can teach them a lesson or two if I run into them out in the plains.”

‘I will help you to punish them,’ Moonlight said. Aliana immediately regretted her statement, not fond of how quickly Moonlight had responded to it. She tried not to let that show on her face, though.

Swift waved a hand dismissively as if brushing away the topic. “Don’t involve yourself in our justice, Aliana. It’s nothing for you all to worry about. If you do come upon them, just be warned that they’re willing to stoop to such ‘tricks.’ If we need to, we’ll handle them should we see them again.”

“What about the egg?” Misha asked.

“Well, given that the parents are dead…” Swift shrugged. “We may as well see if we can make a meal of it. But, you two have your own business to handle, don’t you? Go on, shoo.” She waved the pair and the wolf away, apparently done with this topic.

Aliana looked to Misha with a shrug of her own. “I guess we’re done with it, then. I think I’m ready to head back to the tent, anyway.”

---

The sky had grown dark by the time the women returned to the tent. A small stone bowl held kindling and a fire, acting as a sort of portable fire pit to provide light inside the tent. With the night’s excitement settled down, the distant sound of the tribe’s usual nightly cheer and music had returned, providing an ambient backing to the conversation in the tent.

Misha was the one to take up the job of providing Aliana with all the details up until then–the scale, the flower, the forest, and the trip to return to the woman called “Lady Elcevier.” Veldin had chimed in here and there, mostly when that latter subject came up, but he otherwise kept to himself.

Misha sat with her back rested against the wolf’s side. As she explained the details, Aliana had paid close attention to the whole thing. She waited for Misha to finish before saying anyway. A part of that was to be polite to her new acquaintance, but aside from that, Aliana needed the time to piece her thoughts together.

When she did speak, she decided to go straight to the point. “I’m looking for a sword that was made from one of Opal’s scales.”

That was the first time Veldin looked back at Aliana with anything that could possibly be interpreted as interest.

“There are… Swords made from Dragon scales?” Misha asked, head tilting at that fact.

“There are a number of items formed from Dragon scales,” Veldin elaborated. “The Dragons periodically lose scales for any number of reasons. Most commonly it’s due to conflicts between one another, though there have been few of those in recent decades. The scales ones that are located are often treated as divine relics, considering their origins and the powers they contain.”

“Seraphim is one,” Aliana said, her voice low and deadly serious now. “They’re a sword that was carved from one of Opal’s scales, and they’re powerful.”

“’They’?” Misha repeated.

“Seraphim is intelligent. They can talk to people.”

Misha looked at Veldin like she needed more elaboration on that from him.

“So, it’s true that the scales have intelligence of their own. I take it that sword you carry is Seraphim, then?”

“Oh…” Aliana’s hand shifted to the sword on her belt. “No, actually.”

‘Will you introduce me, Aliana?’ Moonlight interjected.

“It’s not.” Veldin’s eyes were fixed on the sword’s hilt.

Aliana shook her head. “This is Moonlight.”

When she chose not to say anymore, Moonlight spoke up again, ‘What do you think, Aliana? Does the clever human know what I am?’

Aliana chose to ignore the comment, and continued, “Right… I need Moonlight to help me get Seraphim back. They were stolen by… Something.”

Veldin followed up on that wording. “Something?”

“Well, um…” Aliana struggled for words, unsure how to describe what had happened. “It wasn’t… a person. It was some sort of monster.”

Misha and Veldin exchanged a glance but allowed Aliana to say more.

“I usually travel with Liessa–she’s the woman who trained me, and she’s… Normally the one who holds Seraphim. About a week ago, though, this… Thing appeared in the sky during the night. It attacked us. It hurt Liessa. And it took Seraphim, it flew away with them.”

Veldin narrowed his eyes as he listened to the details of the story. “And what sort of creature would this be, exactly?”

Aliana’s gaze had fallen down to the ground as she focused on little in particular, her attention far from here. If she’d had more words to describe that creature, she would gladly have used them. “I’m not… sure, exactly. I’d never seen anything like that, it was some sort of big black shadow.”

“A shadow?” Misha ran a hand over her whiskers, thinking. “I’ve never heard of a monster like that…”

“All I know is we saw it fly north. Liessa was hurt, so she’s resting at a village further south, but I… I needed to go find Seraphim. That’s why I’m going to Indervel. I need to find out if anyone there saw it, I need to track it down somehow.”

There was a moment of silence as the group contemplated those details. Aliana was not done, though. “There’s something else–about the scale you said was shattered. I think Seraphim knew about it.”

Veldin and Misha both looked at Aliana, Misha asking, “What do you mean?”

“A while ago, Seraphim said they sensed something was wrong. They said they felt another scale crying out. But whatever they felt faded too quickly for them to figure where it was…”

“Does that… mean the scales can tell where each other is?”

“I see…” Veldin muttered. “I hadn’t considered the possibility that they could communicate with one another. That changes things considerably, in that case.”

“It does?” Aliana asked.

“Naturally. Your previous lead was ‘north.’ You are not going to accomplish anything with so vague of a hint.”

Well, that was hardly helpful. “I know that, but what else do you expect me to–“

“However,” Veldin interrupted to add onto his previous statement, “if we can restore the shattered scale, then it may lead us to your Seraphim. No doubt their contact works both ways, after all.”

Aliana paused. Veldin had a point. This must have been why Misha kept the sullen fellow around. More importantly, this meant there was true hope to find Seraphim, and to do so soon. The moment that thought made itself known in Aliana’s mind, she said, “I’ll do it. I’ll help you fix the scale.”

“Well?” Misha said, looking expectantly at Veldin. “We’ll be happy to have her along then, won’t we?”

Veldin nodded. “We do need to move quickly, however. I do not intend to wait around for you should you cause us any delays, do you understand?”

“I don’t intend to,” Aliana answered. With this new information, she felt a relief that she hadn’t realized she had desperately needed. She would be able to find Seraphim. She let a smile cross her face. “Thank you for this. Thank you so much.”