Calista tried to actively ignore the thoughts that were intruding to the forefront of her mind. She had remained in her bedroll acting as if she was still asleep until the four men had left the tent. Still embarrassed about the various thoughts and fantasies she had psychically experienced, she felt unready to face her companions for long periods of time. Wish had taken to sleeping with Calista as they were both women with small frames. Wish was up, wearing one of Calista’s tunics. She sat reading one of Aenaes’ books. Calista grabbed her red and gold mage robes from her bag. Her other attire had already been worn by either her or Wish recently or it smelled from being used for several days in a row. After she was dressed and in her armor she and Wish joined the four men around the campfire.

Calista sat eating the bowl of rice, potatoes and rabbit that one of the men had prepared for everybody. She stared downward at the crackling embers to avoid eye contact with her friends. Each thought she had picked up on was fixated on her appearance. To her surprise, the red mage attire she had left was apparently overly appealing to each of the four men. Tired of catching glimpses of thoughts here and there she looked around the campfire. Wish was blissfully unaware of everything and eating, but each of the men was terribly, ineptly trying to hide their embarrassment. Even though she wore a plate cuirass with the mage robes, hiding her curvy body and ample chest, she still stoked lust in her companions. She was flattered but embarrassed by this information.

After the awkwardly silent breakfast, with Calista now acutely aware of how to not actively channel her mindreading, they cleaned up the campsite and set off toward the nearest city.

***

Calista elected to sit with Vahlatok while he drove the horses onward. She left Wish, Rune, Glyph and Aenaes in the wagon. It felt far less awkward to only be around one of the men who was apparently smitten with her or lusting after her. Vahlatok’s thoughts were even frequently changing topic. He had concern for the horses and when to plan breaks so the beasts could eat and rest, he paid attention to the weather and the terrain they traveled. Part of his conscientiousness was being a druid, but a lot of it was also rooted in caring for his traveling companions. Calista smiled warmly when she heard the thoughts concerning her and their friends from the orc.

Vahlatok decided there was a long enough spell of inept silence between he and Calista. The only thing he could hear aside from his thoughts were the horse’s hooves on the dirt and gravel. “You’re really feeling better?” He gave her a sidelong glance.

Calista nodded. “Really, I am. And before you ask, yes, I’m still getting used to the ability Wish gave me. That’s why I was so tired. Too much energy being used on it.”

Vahlatok nodded. “And you’re learning…?”

“To control it better? I think so.” Calista shrugged. “Really, I feel less tired. I’m alright for now. If I get tired I’ll ask one of the others to let me sleep in the wagon.”

“Alright, good,” Vahlatok muttered. He returned his gaze to the horizon. “We were worried about you.”

“I know,” Calista said. She smiled. The warmth she could feel emanating from her friend’s words was comforting. Even with the mild inconveniences from her new ability she was beginning to enjoy everything else that came with it.

Everything fell silent, but comfortable. The sounds of the horses trotting became the only noise breaking the silence. The brisk morning turned to a bright afternoon while they drew closer to the nearby town. Calista felt comfortable with the mindreading ability now with her only occasionally overhearing random, fleeting thoughts. She became tense when she caught the thoughts of a nearby person. Calista pushed herself forward. Vahlatok turned his attention to her. “What are you doing? If you need me to stop you can ask,” the orc muttered.

“Good idea,” Calista said. “Stop.

“Alright,” Vahlatok nodded. He gently tugged on the reins to ease the horses into stopping.

“We have bandits to take out,” Calista said as she hopped from the slowing vehicle.

Vahlatok turned ashen. “We could have outrun them,” he mumbled. After the horses came to a halt the orc grabbed his staff then met the others as they poured out of the wagon.

“Why’d you stop?” Glyph asked.

“Cali requested it,” Vahlatok answered. He shrugged. “She wants to oust some bandits.”

“Couldn’t we outrun them?” Glyph asked.

“That’s what I thought,” Vahlatok replied.

Rune readied his sword then he ran toward Calista. “Outing bandits!” he chanted as he ran.

“Ousting. With an s.” Aenaes realized how far away Rune already was. The healer hung his head. “Never mind.”

“Shall we?” Vahlatok said before following Rune.

“If we don’t she may burn down the flora with magic,” Glyph said.

Aenaes looked at the fae. “What about you? Care to fight some bandits?” He folded his arms while he looked the fae up and down. “Assuming you can fight.”

“I can.” Wish shook her head. “But somebody has to stay here and keep them from running off with the wagon.”

“That is fair,” Aenaes conceded. The healer then followed the others.

Rune stared blankly ahead. He returned his sword to its sheath. “What happened?”

Calista stopped beside Rune. She doubled over, catching herself on her knees. Her breathing was ragged. “Took them out.” After a few moments she stood upright. “We can travel this way now. They took out the bridge we were going to cross, trapping us for an ambush.”

Glyph and Vahlatok stopped beside Rune. They stared at the large group of collapsed people. There was little bloodshed but the scent of burning hair and cloth permeated through the field. “You made fast work of them,” Glyph muttered.

“I did. Let’s get back to the wagon. After all of that, I need a nap.” Calista yawned, then shambled away.

“I knew she was a strong mage, but…” Vahlatok frowned, “this is something else.”

Glyph shrugged. “Regardless. We should get to the wagon. We may make it to the town by nightfall.”

When they returned to the wagon Glyph rode with Vahlatok so Calista could rest. They continued down the alternate path around the mountains, forgoing breaking. Calista rousted in the late afternoon. She yawned and stretched. She didn’t remember dreaming so nothing felt inept or strange. “Would having potions help?” she asked, her voice still heavy with exhaustion.

Wish smiled and nodded. “Yes and having food before you use a lot of magical energy like earlier today.”

Calista nodded. “Good. I’ll find a cookbook for simple eats tomorrow. Prep some of them in our bags like trail rations.”

“A smart approach,” Aenaes said. Still distrustful of the fae woman he continued to keep his attention keenly on her. He sighed quietly when the wagon came to a stop. “But we should think more about resting for the night.”

The group poured out of the wagon and into the local tavern while the sun set behind them. Glyph and Vahlatok took the horses to the stables, prepped them for the night then joined the others for a hot meal.