Since the incident with the harpies, travel had been quiet. No longer did Misha find herself settling minor quarrels between Veldin and Aliana as they traveled through the winding paths that led through and around the rocky terrain. Communication between the two had fallen to a minimum, and what little words were said between them were tense. Aliana had kept a notable distance from Veldin this whole time, and Veldin made no attempts to approach her. Misha felt ashamed that even she could bring herself to say little.

It was their third day of travel since then when Veldin nearly collapsed once more. Misha saw him sway with unsteady footsteps before stumbling and falling. Grey, despite his prior apprehension, took a quick step forward in front of Veldin, catching the man on his back.

“Veldin!” Misha climbed up Grey’s side, concern overshadowing her own hesitation from these last few days. Aliana, conversely, watched with eyes wide and seemed reluctant to act or approach.

If nothing else Veldin appeared to have retained consciousness despite his fall this time, and now struggled to push himself up from Grey’s back. “I am… fine, Misha… I only lost my footing.”

Misha shook her head. Veldin’s improvements had not lasted long, clearly. Just as Zel had said. Misha expected the encounter with Hawk’s band had not helped. “Grey will take you the rest of the way. We’re almost there, aren’t we?”

Veldin stood, though most of his weight rested against Grey still, and he nodded. “We continue along this path. There will be a valley not far from here… Lady Elcevier’s home is there.”

“That’s good, then. Grey, will you help us just for a while longer?”

Beneath Misha’s feet, she could feel Grey’s back and shoulder muscles were tense. After a pause, he huffed and lowered his head to Veldin.

“Right then. Veldin, ride on Grey’s back, take this time to rest.”

Veldin made no eye contact with Misha, staring down at the ground instead. His exhaustion was readily apparent, but not completely in the same way as before. There was a new type of tiredness that had been with him since… what he had done that day. It was easy enough for Misha to make the connection that it still weighed on him. Perhaps that was why Veldin did not argue any further this time and only nodded in silence.

Once Veldin was settled onto Grey’s back, travel resumed. Though Veldin was trying to fight off his exhaustion, he eventually dozed off slumped over Grey’s shoulders in what Misha hoped counted more as sleep than unconsciousness. She gestured for Aliana to stay close to ensure Veldin would not fall off, given that Misha’s own strength and body weight would likely not accomplish much if needed.

Aliana responded with a wary expression, reluctantly shifting her position to walk alongside Grey.

After some time had passed, Aliana asked, “Um… Misha?” Her voice was lowered and cautious.

“Yes?”

“Maybe…” Aliana fell silent for several seconds. “Never mind.”

Misha looked at Aliana, head tilted. “Is something wrong?”

“No, it’s nothing, don’t worry about it.”

Clearly it was far from ‘nothing.’ But now was not the time to press that as, just then, the traveling group came around a bend in the path they were following. The rocky hills fell away up ahead, the land sloping downwards from here. The path followed, leading into just what Veldin had described previously. Between the mountains and hills, a huge valley sprawled out before Misha and her allies.

But the sight did not end at the valley itself. In the center stood a building that rivaled some of the taller ones Misha had seen in Indervel. By the windows, she counted three main stories, though three spires with windows rose up from various points of the tile roof and looked to hold their own rooms. A balcony jutted out from one side of the building, and the architecture of the whole structure was the most intricate Misha had seen in her travels. The building looked to be primarily built from dark mahogany wood or something similar, though Misha could see stone foundation as well.

The land surrounding the building–Misha would later come to learn the term ‘mansion’ suited it well–stood out from the surrounding land just as much. The valley was filled with luscious green grass and plentiful patches of colorful flowers. Closer to the mansion lay a fenced-off garden, and a flock of sheep occupied a part of the field while a grove of trees grew at the valley’s far end. Out in front of the mansion’s entrance, vibrant bushes bearing red roses had been trimmed neatly and lined the building’s exterior.

“It’s…” Aliana sounded as if she were struggling for words as she stared in awe. “Is this where Veldin lives?”

“Even with everything he said, I never thought someone would build something so large out here,” Misha said, struggling to count all of the windows. Grey seemed wholly unimpressed, meanwhile, and did not so much as break stride as he continued walking towards the building. Misha realized she should follow, soon finding herself approaching the building’s porch and ornate double doors.

With a tentative exchange of looks between Misha and Aliana, the taller of the two women grabbed the iron knocker on one of the doors and slammed it against the wood. The sound was louder than Misha had expected, though she reasoned it needed to be to be heard in such a large building.

After several seconds, the doors swung open on their own and both Misha and Aliana staggered back in surprise. Likely, of course, this was the use of magic.

The interior of the entrance was a large foyer with floors of polished white stone and walls made of a pale wood, giving the inside a lighter atmosphere than the more imposing exterior. A staircase across from the doors led upwards into the second floor, where an indoor balcony guarded by a railing surveyed the first floor. Doors and hallways dotted both floors.

From one of the halls appeared a woman who walked towards the top of the staircase. She was tall and slender with long, pale blond hair that fell around her shoulders and down her back in waves. Her skin was equally pale, and her flowing dress of white trailed behind her as she walked. But her height was easily her most distinctive feature. Even from this distance, Misha could tell this woman stood no less than a head higher than even the tallest of harpies, meaning she easily towered over either Aliana or Veldin. The woman wore a concerned expression as she descended the staircase with both speed and grace, and the doors swung shut now that all of Misha’s group had stepped inside.

Aliana seemed unsure how to proceed, so Misha addressed the woman. “Are… you Lady Elcevier?”

The woman’s piercing blue gaze, which had previously focused been focused on Veldin, now turned to Misha. “Yes, I am. You are friends of Veldin’s, I hope?”

Misha nodded. “Yes, we are… He’s ill, he said that you could help?“

In the time Misha had said those words, Lady Elcevier was knelt by Grey’s side. She brushed her fingers gently along the side of Veldin’s face, softly whispering, “Oh, dear Veldin, I am so sorry…”

“L… Lady Elce…” Veldin mumbled, barely able to open his eyes to respond.

“Rest now, please.” In a smooth motion, Lady Elcevier had lifted Veldin from Grey’s back and into her arms, his head rested against her shoulder. “I apologize, but I will need to ask you to wait here,” she said to her guests, and began walking quickly once more to the stairs as if the adult human in her arms weighed next to nothing. As she walked, Misha heard Lady Elcevier say a few words that sounded to be Feyish, and a door to the right opened.

“Did… Did Veldin say she was that strong?” Aliana asked once Lady Elcevier had vanished around a corner.

“Perhaps it is in her bloodline? If Veldin is fey-blooded, Lady Elcevier could be something of the sort as well,” Misha considered aloud. She then looked to the door that had opened. From where she stood, she could see the room looked well-lit with a round table accompanied by a few cushioned chairs and filled bookcases. “Shall we wait?”

Grey trotted towards the door as Aliana continued to watch the second floor. Misha entered the room, intending to see what manner of books were present. As soon as she stepped foot through the doorway, her attention was drawn instead to the window that faced the outside. Rather than a view to the grassy field outside the mansion, the windows looked out into water. It looked as if the building were submerged in a lake. Rays of sunlight streamed through the water from above and schools of colorful fish swam by the window.

Misha ran to the window, climbing up onto the windowsill and leaning against the glass to get a better look. “Aliana!” she called out. “You have to come see this!”

“What are you–“ Aliana stopped mid-stride after at last joining Misha and Grey in the room, then ran to the window as well. “What is this?!”

“This is incredible!” Misha watched a school of smaller fish scatter as a larger one swam by. “Is this a spell of some sort, do you think?”

Aliana did not take her eyes away from the window. “I’d imagine. I didn’t see a lake outside after all, did you?”

Misha thought about that. Naturally, she knew the answer, but… “Wait here.”

She hopped back down to the floor and hurriedly made her way back to the foyer where the entrance doors stood. As Grey had followed her closely, she climbed onto his back and reached for the door’s handle, the pair finally managing to pull one of the doors open with some effort.

“Thank you,” Misha said, climbing down again and running outside to locate the window to the small sitting room. Inside, she spotted Aliana, peering out the sitting room’s door back into the foyer as if waiting for Misha, but then returned to the window after a few seconds. She did not make any sign that she noticed Misha’s presence outside. Misha waved, but when that received no response, she tapped on the window.

Aliana jumped back in surprise at the sound, then looked around and tentatively called out, her voice muffled behind the glass, “Misha?”

Misha laughed and called back, “It’s me!” Her amusement at the enchanted window was cut short, however. She heard the sound of Grey growling from where he still stood by the building’s entry doors, his body blocking the opened door from closing. Misha followed his gaze. He was fixated on something up the path they’d come from, but whatever it was, it was either gone by the time Misha looked or it had simply been out of her view to begin with. She stepped away from the window, returning to Grey. “What is it?”

Grey’s fangs were revealed in a threatening display towards whatever it was that had set him off. Misha tried again to spy the thing that was upsetting her friend, but still, there was nothing. “Grey, let’s go back inside,” she said. If there were more bandits, it would be better not to wait here to be attacked.

Slipping back inside, Misha tapped on Grey’s side as a signal for him to let the doors shut. Though reluctant, he eventually stepped back into the foyer. Aliana had come out to join the pair, noting the commotion. “What’s going on with Grey?”

“I think he spotted something outside,” Misha elaborated. “I don’t see anything, though.”

“Hm…” Aliana pet Grey along his back. “What is it, boy? Something bad out there?”

Just then, the sound of light footsteps echoed in the halls of the mansion and Misha now saw Lady Elcevier at the top of the stairs again. “Oh–uh, hello, Lady Elcevier. Is Veldin alright?”

Lady Elcevier smiled as she reached the bottom few steps. “Yes, he will be fine. He needs to rest for now, but he will recover.” Her smile faded a bit as she looked at Grey. “Your companion saw something, you said?”

“Right,” Aliana answered. “We were, uh… Looking around. And Grey started growling at something outside.”

Lady Elcevier nodded. “There are dangerous creatures outside. Fey from the more verdant regions further in the mountains have become agitated as of late and begun to prowl these lands… Oh, but my apologies, you must be tired. You’ve brought Veldin all the way here and I haven’t even properly thanked you–are you hungry? I’ll have dinner prepared.”

Aliana’s eyes lit up, accompanying a wide grin. “That’d be great!” she announced. “Ah, uh, if you don’t mind, of course.” The idea of a warm meal in a place such as this would be delightful after the travel rations and fire-cooked meat of travel even to Misha. The elegant atmosphere of this place and even the grace with which Lady Elcevier carried herself, however, left both Misha and Aliana unsure of how they should be conducting themselves, but Lady Elcevier looked to be paying it little mind.

Lady Elcevier’s kind and gentle smile returned. “Here, join me in the dining hall, I will see what I can have prepared for you all. I take it your wolf friend prefers meat.”

Grey’s eyes were locked firmly on Lady Elcevier with little reaction, and so Misha answered, “I’m sure he would love that, thank you.”

Lady Elcevier led the group through one of the doors and down a hallway to a wide and expansive room. A long dining table of smooth and polished wood made up the room’s centerpiece, surrounded by elegant matching chairs. The windows here looked out into a different view than the aquatic one from the sitting room. Here they showed a field of flowers, but not the one outside. The landscape in the windows was idyllic and coated in lush green grass as far as the eye could see, and the flowers were all manner of beautiful varieties and colors that swayed in a gentle breeze.

Lady Elcevier waved a hand and spoke a few words of magic, “Les sir, non,” and some of the chairs pulled themselves out from under the table for Misha and Aliana.

“If I might ask…” Misha pulled herself up onto a chair and looked at the others, “Veldin said you live alone out here. Is that really true, even in this big a home?”

“Yes, that is correct. There has been no one else here for some time now…” Lady Elcevier paused as she walked by the table. Misha was only about head-high to the table while seated in these chairs. “And… most guests I have are not mousefolk, I apologize. Les sir, mis tren.”

Misha suddenly felt the chair move, and she realized it was growing taller until it was at a more comfortable height by the table.

Aliana leaned closer from her seat to take a look at the elevated chair. “You can do these things so easily… Do you have magic for everything?”

Lady Elcevier took a seat on the opposite side of the table. “Not everything, I’ve simply had much time to learn tricks of this sort while conducting my usual research.” Sounds of pots and pans moving about could be heard behind a door off to the side of the dining room, soon followed by the smell of aromatic herbs being cooked.

“But wait, if no one else is here…” Aliana suddenly shot up out of her chair, hands slapping the table’s surface with her surprise, “is your kitchen magic too?!”

Misha and Lady Elcevier were both startled with Aliana’s sudden outburst.

“S-sorry,” Aliana sat down sheepishly, but then gave a playful grin. “I spent so long practicing with a sword, I never realized I should have been studying magic this whole time.”

“I always thought you were more adjusted to magic than I am,” Misha said. “Your hair is colored with it, after all.”

“Well, sure, that’s one thing. But I never thought about having spells that can cook whole meals for me!”

Though Misha herself had more questions, she suddenly realized, “We… didn’t introduce ourselves, did we?”

“No, I do not believe so,” Lady Elcevier said, though her pleasant smile remained.

Aliana ran a hand over her face with that point made. “I completely forgot… I’m sorry, I just–I mean, I’m Aliana! Aliana Mercei. It’s nice to finally meet you.” She reached across the table and shook Lady Elcevier’s hand.

Misha intended to do the same, but realized there was no way she would reach, and settled only for a verbal introduction instead. “I’m Misha, and that’s Grey,” she gestured to the corner that Grey had curled up in. “We’re both from the Orchard Forest.”

“He has a cute name,” Lady Elcevier said. “What brings you all here, then? I am glad you were there to accompany Veldin, but I assume you must have had some reason to come all this way out here.”

Misha spoke up in answer to that, knowing how to explain that more than how to introduce herself to such an elegant and high-class woman. “My home was the site of one of the scale shards, which is how I met Veldin.”

Lady Elcevier nodded. “So, you are aware of that situation, then. He was able to retrieve the shard, I know that much.”

“Right. However… My home was corrupted by the shard. My people may need to relocate because of it and the forest is… It’s dying. But Veldin and I had hoped there’s a way to restore the land.”

For a moment, Lady Elcevier’s eyes widened at the mention of the corruption, but her expression quickly changed to one Misha recognized as sadness. “The Orchard Forest… There is so much life there that will be lost.” She sighed deeply and lowered her head over her clasped hands. “My intent is to retrieve the shards and study them, so that I can stop these things from happening.”

“Veldin mentioned that as well. We’d like to help.”

Lady Elcevier looked back up at Misha and Aliana. “You would?”

Misha nodded. “The Orchard Forest is home to so much life, you’re right. So, if we can find the scale shards and learn how to use their power without the corruption, maybe that can help. Or maybe we’ll find another answer while we’re searching for the shards, or… Well, I don’t know, but I need to do something either way. And…” She looked at Aliana.

“I, um…” Aliana looked down at the sword sheathed on her waist. “I’m looking for the sword Seraphim, the one made from Opal’s scale. It was stolen from its proper wielder by a monster, and I had hoped another one of Opal’s scales could find them.”

“A monster?” Lady Elcevier asked.

Aliana nodded. “That’s right. It was made of shadows… I don’t know how else to describe it.”

Lady Elcevier’s brow creased as she thought. “A relic weapon of the Dragons… I am afraid I know nothing about it. But I will be glad to have your help, and I will do everything in my power to aid you in turn. This is not something Veldin should do on his own, and I regret asking him to do so.”

Aliana shifted her attention to the table and her hands at the mention of Veldin’s named, and Misha asked, “About that, actually… Is Veldin… Does this happen often? Will he be able to continue searching for the shards?”

“I am afraid he does suffer from something of a chronic illness. He has been in such a state since I met him, and we are both unsure as to the cause of it. So long as he is here, he is fine. I grow herbs and plants here that can be made into medicine for this. But they regrettably do not grow in many other locations…”

“He…” Aliana started, speaking the words slowly as if searching for the right way to phrase her thought. “Has he ever… attacked someone before?”

“Attacked…” Lady Elcevier shook her head. “No, he would never harm someone without just cause.”

“He tried to rip out someone’s throat with his teeth.” Aliana’s words came out harsh, and she looked as if she’d surprised even herself as well as Misha and Lady Elcevier with that statement. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to say it that way…”

There was a pause, and Lady Elcevier looked bewildered at the statement. “Veldin has… Veldin has done something like that?”

“They had attacked us,” Misha explained. “And Veldin retaliated by, uh… Well, in that manner. Even he seemed unsure as to what had happened.”

Lady Elcevier listened, then stood from her seat. “I see… I apologize. This is the first I’ve heard of this behavior, but if that is the case, I should take more time to check in on him. Please, take this time to rest and enjoy yourselves for the evening.”

“Oh. Yes, of course.” Misha felt awful over causing more concern for Lady Elcevier, but knew it was best Aliana had brought it up.

With another spell from Lady Elcevier, the kitchen door opened. Several trays of freshly cooked food levitated from the room as if being carried by some invisible person and were placed on the table–an entire course of aromatic broiled steak with sides of grilled vegetables and mushrooms, including ingredients and dishes that Misha had never seen before. Aliana’s tension from the conversation faded a bit as she stared in awe at the food and said, “Thank you so much…”

Lady Elcevier smiled. “And I thank you for all that you’ve done thus far. If you do not mind, I would like to speak with you more in the morning about our plans going forward, and how we will address the next of the shards.”

“Of course,” Misha said. “We’ll be happy to.”

---

“I never want to leave!” Aliana announced. She’d returned from a warm bath and now wore a soft nightgown she’d been offered by Lady Elcevier. She dropped herself onto the large bed she would be sharing with Misha. Lady Elcevier had offered separate rooms for each, but Misha had felt odd about taking up an entire room so spacious and extravagant with just herself and Grey.

Misha had made herself comfortable on the other side of the bed watching this room’s window. This one showed a starry sky, but from a much closer view than what would be visible from outside. The stars were huge and so many brilliant colors could be seen in the sky.

“Veldin will be ready to leave once he’s feeling better,” Misha reminded. “It sounds like Lady Elcevier knows where another shard is.”

“Right…” Aliana’s tone fell a bit. She looked at Grey who was asleep on the floor. “I was thinking… Veldin can stay here, can’t he?”

“If Lady Elcevier can convince him for this next shard.”

“Well, I more meant… He could just stay here and let us handle everything.”

“… You mean to leave him out of this entirely?”

“I-I don’t… I just don’t know if he should be doing this. The two of us know what we’re doing. We have Grey’s help too, and… and Moonlight. Veldin is… Don’t you think we could do this much more easily without having to worry about him?”

Misha sighed. “That’s not a decision I’m going to make without him. Besides, it’s his magic that makes the shards safe to be handled in the first place. I don’t know how to do that.”

“Sure, but… But maybe Lady Elcevier knows how we could do it instead.”

“Are you worried about him or about what happened with the harpies?”

Aliana’s posture grew stiff once more. “Are you not?”

“I… don’t know. But there’s something wrong with him. I can’t just throw him aside for that after what he’s done for me. I need him, I need to save my forest.”

“What if he slows you down, Misha?” Aliana snapped, her voice raised suddenly. “What if… What if we can’t do this in time? Veldin’s only doing this because Elcevier asked him to, we’re the ones who need to do this, Misha!”

Misha shook her head, and opened her mouth to speak, but stopped herself. There was a growing desperation in Aliana’s voice that Misha had not expected. “Aliana… You’re not just talking about the forest, are you?”

Aliana froze. There were tears forming in her eyes that she struggled to hold back, and her hands trembled ever so slightly. Grey had lifted his head to stare at the two women now.

“M… Misha, I…” Aliana spoke, her voice wavering. “I need to find Seraphim before I die.”

---