Just as we set out it began to rain.

  “Scout ahead,” Nessy said to Alice. “You know the patht?”

  Alice bit her lip and nodded. She handed her bag to me with a soft smile and then ran. Her arms contorted and formed into wings and she leaped from the earth into the sky, a bat.

  We watched as she curved up and over, forming with the wind until she faded into the fog.

  “Yuck,” Brax groaned in disapproval.

  “I'm Charlie,” I said to Brax.

  The dwarf looked up with a squint. “How'd you get mixed up with these ones?”

  “It's maybe more that they got mixed up with me.”

  Brax grunted. Without braking stride, he fastened his axe to his back. His axe had dark blue-green wraps for a handle and a knob so pointy it could kill in its own right.

  Before long, we were back in the thick forest again. It was much easier to navigate in the day. We hit a fork and Nessy headed towards the sign that said “High Plains”.

  Brax grunted. “We sidetracked already?”

  “Quick detour,” said Nessy.

  It was about mid-day when we approached a lonely cabin in a grassy plains. The front door was open. Shattered glass.

  “That halfling’s home?” I whispered to Nessy.

  Nessy held up her finger to her lips and nodded silently. Beside me, Brax took out his axe. He was searching Nessy’s face and mine for clues on what we were up to.

  “What are you getting me into?” whispered Brax.

  Nessy glanced at Brax. “Wasn’t planned.”

  Brax sighed.

  We creeped towards the cabin from its rear. The house wasn’t well kept. Hardly any paint left on the outer walls. The roof looked about one or two scattered showers from collapse. There was a toppled over wheelbarrow and a sack of wheat in the yard. We quietly stepped up onto the porch. The wood was splintering and in some places were gnawed.

  Nessy approached the door and pushed it slightly more open with her foot. It was dark inside. No light or fire. Nessy walked in and Brax motioned for me to go in ahead of him. As I did, he turned to examine the treeline behind us.

  Inside was a mess. Looked ransacked or hastily abandoned. Nessy inspected the fireplace soot then snooped around in the kitchen. Brax checked the side rooms one by room.

  “Empty,” said Brax.

  “Fire just went out,” whispered Nessy.

  “Check for valuables,” Nessy said to Brax.

  “We’re thieves now?” Brax asked.

  “I didn’t say take them. I think this place was robbed.”

  Nessy and Brax continued snooping. I walked back out the back door to get some air.

  There was a rocking chair in the corner of the porch. It was painted blueish purple with deep scratches, like from a dog or wolf, all along the armrest on both sides. I took a seat in it. It was more comfortable than I expected. I knew it wasn’t the place for a nap. But I felt one coming.

  As I slipped in and out of sleep, a raven flew right up to the porch railing. He looked me dead in the eye. I sat up and he didn’t so much as flinch. If anything he leaned in. Stared right into my eye. Most unnerving thing. He cocked his head to the side then shifted left to right, left to right, like he was disappointed in me. Then he flew off.

  I stood up and walked out onto the grass and watched him soar into the clouds. Nearly tripped over something. It was a wooden stake in the ground.

  I kneeled down and examined it. Makeshift, chiseled stake with a sharp silver tip pointed up. The wood had chipped blueish purple paint, just like the chair I had been seating in. I stood up and examined the ground. There was another one just two feet away. Same thing. Then there was another one two feet or so next to that one.

  I walked the perimeter of the house and, sure enough, every two or so feet around the entire house were spikes.

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  “Hey!” Brax yelled from the porch.

  I startled and jogged over.

  “What you doing!” he said.

  Nessy walked briskly out of the house. “We’re leaving.”

  Brax eyed her as she walked past him. “What?”

  Nessy flew down the porch steps and walked across the grass back towards the path we came from.

  “Now!” she yelled at me.

  I followed after her. “What?” I called ahead.

  We made it back on the path. Brax and I followed Nessy back towards the crossroads. But just as soon as we started down the path, Nessy stopped midstep. I nearly ran right into her.

  “What now?” said Brax.

  “The halfling,” whispered Nessy. “Up ahead with others.”

  I squinted. Couldn’t see him. Too far.

  “Who?” Brax asked.

  “He has militia with him. Five.”

  “Maybe his sons?” I asked.

  “Probably,” said Nessy.

  “What do we do?” I asked.

  “Brax,” said Nessy. “Get ready to fight.”

  “We fightin’ halflings?” Brax chuckled. He already had his axe in his hands. “Okay.”

  “Maybe,” said Nessy.

  “What'd you see back there?” I asked.

  Nessy shook her head. “I'll do the talking.”

  Nessy resumed walking and we followed. After a while, I could see them up ahead. As we got closer, the halfling waved and shouted something. He was wearing a green hat.

  “You came back!” shouted the halfling. He looked pleasant enough. Had on a brown suit with red shirt and bow.

  The halfling’s sons looked less agreeable, but one made an attempt to smile. Each of his sons had a sheathed sword. Two had their hands on the hilt and were eyeing Brax.

  “Was checking on you,” said Nessy.

  “That’s very kind. Got my hat back.”

  “I see that,” said Nessy.

  “Mind lowering the axe?” said one of the halfling’s sons.

  “Yeah,” Brax grunted, but he didn’t budge. I suppose he meant he did mind.

  “Did you know your house was raided?” Nessy said, tilting her head slightly.

  “What?” the halfling tensed up.

  Three of his boys ran past us and down the road towards the cabin. The other two pulled out their swords and stood by their father. They were both glaring at Brax and his axe.

  “Wasn’t me,” grunted Brax.

  “Please excuse me,” said the halfling. He and the two sons walked past us towards the house, then began to run.

  We stood and watched them run into the distance.

  “That’s old man Gentry and his sons,” said Brax.

  “You know them?” Nessy asked.

  “Of them. Forest militia. Contract with the hamlet.”

  “Contract for what?”

  “Burlap brothers. And sprite population control.”

  I gave Brax a confused look. He noticed.

  “The Burlaps are just common thieves. Outlaws. Old Gentry and his boys keep ‘em in check. Eventually drove ‘em out. Beats me how. The Burlaps got ten times the men. Or had.”

  “That may explain what I saw,” said Nessy. “There’s a prison in their basement.”

  “A prison?” asked Brax.

  “Yeah and the door was busted open.”

  “Hm,” grunted Brax. “Probably made as a holding cell for the burlaps. Although. There hass been two kids missing this season. Never happened before. And that’s not a sprite problem.”

  “Think he took them?” I asked.

  “I don’t know,” said Brax.

  “I figure whatever he had imprisoned broke out,” said Nessy. “Would explain the mess.”

  “To Redrock then?” asked Brax.

  “How long has the crop problem been going on?” asked Nessy.

  Brax tisked, “There’s no crop problem. It’s a people problem.”

  “How so?” asked Nessy.

  “I’ve seen the yield. More than ever. They’re just selling it down river for a killing.”

  “Nessy,” I finally spoke up. “I want to go home.”

  “I know that.”

  “What are we doing?”

  “Not sure why we came over here in the first place,” said Brax.

  “We’re going,” said Nessy.

  We hadn’t made it ten minutes down the path when the raven from before flew right between Nessy and I from behind and landed right in front of us on the path.

  The raven cawed, snipping its beak at us. We all stopped walking.

  “Trespasser,” said the raven. The raven was looking right at me. “Thief,” it spoke to Nessy.

  I could scarcely breathe.

  The raven began to contort and shake. Suddenly its bones ripped out of its body with a spray of mist and blood. I heard chords of a hellish choir trill and saw black sparkles pop near the raven and fall into its bones. The bones hovered just slightly above the ground leaving ripples of vibration in the dirt. The bones began to darken and shift. I watched in horror as letters formed.

  Zalmora.

  The bones fell to the ground and the vibrations and trill faded.

  Brax’s face was white. He looked up at both of us. Then he shook his head.

  “It's a cheap trick, Brax,” said Nessy.

  I still couldn’t talk.

  “Let’s go,” said Nessy.

  We continued on. None of us felt like talking.

  The terrain got quite hilly. Once we reached the top of a particularly stout hill, we saw a regiment of troops headed our way on the path.

  “Local defense,” said Nessy. “I’ll talk.”

  There were about forty men. Mostly highmen it seemed. Some halflings, dwarves, and elves. No uniforms. A mix of what looked like warriors and archers. One of them yelled and they stopped marching. Then the same one shouted at us to halt and he came over.

  “What’s your business?” he asked. He was a high man. Looked like an archer.

  “Travel to the free city,” said Nessy.

  “Why?”

  “Cartography quest from Stone Keep.”

  “Which of you is the cartographer?”

  “He is,” Nessy punched me.

  “Hu-yes,” I said. I took off Alice’s backpack and showed him her paper and pencils.

  “Hired guard?” the archer asked Brax.

  “Aye,” Brax nodded.

  “And you?”

  “Diplomat.”

  “For a mapping mission?”

  “I’m dealing with you aren’t I.”

  He glared at her. “You see a halfling with five armed men?”

  “Only halflings with two arms back there,” said Nessy.

  The archer squinted and examined each of us. “Go,” he nodded his head to the side.

  We walked off the path to allow the troops by.

  “Stay away,” the archer called out to us. “Forest is closed.”

  We watched them leave then we continued walking on. After half an hour, we came upon another hamlet.

  “This is where they’re from,” said Brax. “That army.”

  I peered inside the town.

  “Dark soon,” Brax said. “I could use an ale.”

  Nessy frowned and took a slow, deep breath.

  “I was promised,” Brax added.

  “Where’s Alice?” Nessy murmured. She turned in circles looking into the sky. Then she turned back to Brax. “They have a good tavern?”

  Brax shrugged. “They have ale.”

  Nessy cracked her neck slowly, left and then right. “Fine.”

  “Alright, little man,” Brax said to me with a joyful chuckle, “time for drinks. Well, honeysnaps for you.”

  “Little man?” I said. “Brax, I’m taller than you.”

  “Okay,” he removed his arm. “Water then.”