Mira watched as the group of dwarves surrounded them. Their mouths all the same sharp yellow teeth with bits of flesh surrounding them. The men attacked swiftly, two going up to Memo, two toward Mira and Sanzier, and two more toward Uni and Jasper.

  Mira muttered arcane words and gestured toward the two dwarves closing in on Memo. The ground beneath their feet began to rot and gnarled vines began to sprout. She flared her magic once more toward large enemy approaching Memo. An ice shard flung forward hit the man and then exploding. The man smiled wickedly. Mira gulped as she turned her attention to her own attacker. She dodged out of the way just, missing one attack and heading straight into another. She gripped her side.

  "Mira! Get out of there!" Memo ordered.

  Mira did as she was told dodging yet another attack in the process. She moved the patch of corruption to encompass the attackers near Memo again. She let loose another ice shard. Then prepared to help Memo. She gathered her strength and let the vines sap the life from the men attacking Memo. The same energy that was used to sap their life force, renewed Memo ever so slightly. She felt the nausea rise as the spell finished. When she glanced up, the enemies were dead.

  "We should search the bodies," Uni stated, her eyes landed on Mira and concern washed over her face but she didn't say anything.

  "I can help," Mira stated.

  "Why don't you sit down and patch yourself up," Memo sighed. "We can take it from here."

  Mira sighed as she went and sat near the cart. She began bandaging her side as the rest of the group searched the bodies. It didn't take long for them to find something of interest. Uni waved her over.

  "Looks like a map," Sanzier stated as Mira stepped up to the group. "That location is not far from here. It used to be a shelter for those traveling through."

  Mira frowned, "Is it not still a shelter?"

  Sanzier shook her head, "There was a cave in after the earthquake about six months ago. Can't get in anymore."

  "We should probably go check in out," Uni stated. "Maybe they took the other caravans there?"

  "I guess it's possible," Sanzier nodded. "We shall wait for you. It will take us time to get that tree out of the path anyway."

  "Be on guard," Memo added as he and the small group began walking toward the cave.

  Once they were out of ear shot Uni glanced at the group, "Anyone else notice that not a single one of those guys had a bow on them?" Memo nodded. "That's odd right? Like someone should have had a bow for the arrow to hit their leader like that?"

  Memo nodded again, "Yes it is odd, Uni. I think it is possible there was one that got away."

  They walked in silence for about ten minutes before Jasper pointed out toward a small group of trees. "Is that one of the carts?" He asked. Mira and Uni took a few steps closer to the cart.

  Uni frowned, "It appears to be. Nothing's in it though."

  Mira turned, glancing around at their surrounding. She saw where the cave used to be, and then an overgrowth of vines off to the side of it. As she walked closer, the vines began to wither away revealing a large, splintering crack in the stone of to the side of the original cave entrance. She began to shimmy her way through the opening.

  "Hey!" Uni called. "Don't you dare go in there alone." Mira could feel Jasper behind her and she heard Memo and Uni as they tried to shimmy through the crack.

  The small space quickly opened into a carved tunnel. The ground below was muddy and soft. Mira tapped her staff on the ground twice and the glowing bulb at the top opened releasing a small swarm of fireflies. They flew around her, lighting up the space enough to see within 10 feet. Every so often she sent them out ahead to the edge of her vision and then brought them back.

  They walked for another ten minutes through this winding tunnel. Occasionally, a bat flew overhead. Mira saw the tunnel open into a large cavern. A new smell hit her. Something was burning in the cavern before them. Mira sent the fireflies on a winding path through the cavern. Near the center of the cavern were charred bodies.

  Mira sucked in a breath as she took a few hesitant steps toward the center. She poked the nearest body with her staff. It didn't budge. She knelt down and began to turn the corpse over. She gasped. The body before her had been mutilated. The skin and muscle removed from the chest to the hips on the front only, leaving the ribcage and organs exposed. She gagged as she began to examine the body for any clues as to why someone would do this.

  "What is that?" Memo asked with a grimace.

  Mira examined the corpse, her fireflies casting an eery light along the bodies, the bone and exposed organs still wet with blood. She grimaced as she examined the wound marks. They were precise and smooth, very few nicks. She frowned. The ground was still warm to the touch, but there were no signs of escape.

  She moved away from the bodies, walking along the wall. She ran her hand along the stone trying to see if there were any means of escape. She furrowed her brow as the stone quickly turned from jagged and sharp to smooth. When she glanced down at the dirt below her she saw another partial footprint going into the stone wall.

  "I think they went this way," she stated. "Whoever did that, I mean. There are no other ways of getting in and out of this cavern, other than the one we traveled through."

  "We should probably head back," Memo stated. "We have wasted too much time in this cave."

  "We at least found the other merchants from Carta," Jasper sighed. "We can let Sanzier know where they are so they can get a proper burial."

  "That there is a good idea, Jasper." Memo sighed. "Now lets get the hell out of here. Before whatever did this decides to come back...or trap us in here."

  Mira's widened and she made her way quickly toward the exit. "No thank you. Not getting stuck in here."

  "Right behind ya!" Uni exclaimed as she followed.

  ...

  Sanzier was helping the merchants load the last bit of supplies back into the cart when they got back. She smiled as they approached.

  If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

  "We got the tree moved just a minute ago," she sighed. "Looks like we are ready to go if you are. Did you find anything in the caves?"

  "We found the last cart from Carta," Memo stated. "The goods were not present, and there were no survivors."

  Sanzier's face fell, "Oh..." She took a deep breath. "At least we know where they are and can give their families peace." She turned back to the cart. "Time to head out. We have one more night before we make it to Purntel."

  ...

  "Remember, do not say anything as we approach the guards at the gate." Sanzier stated. "You all are with me, but the guards maintain their right to refuse entrance to anyone." She glanced at Mira and Uni. "You must be on your best behavior."

  Uni leaned over to Mira, "Why'd she only look at us?" She whispered.

  Mira shrugged, "I have no idea."

  As they approached the gate multiple guards stepped forward to block the path. "Do you have papers?"

  Sanzier nodded and pulled out her ledger, "My name Sanzier from the village of Carta. As you know the goods that I am bringing or of great importance to the city guard."

  The guard nodded slowly as he looked over the papers. "What about those four?" He eyed Jasper, Mira, Uni, and Memo. "They are not on your ledger."

  "Our last two shipments went missing on the road," Sanzier said. "We needed a guard to get us from Carta to Purntel. They were hired as a safety precaution."

  The guard nodded, "No funny business." He stated as he stepped aside allowing passage through the gate.

  "What does he mean by no funny business?" Uni questioned as they walked through the gate. "Does he mean no jokes? That might be hard."

  Mira rubbed her temples, "I think he means don't get into trouble."

  "Getting into trouble is not funny," Uni stated. "I don't think that is what he meant."

  ...

  Once they all made there way into the city the group quickly disbanded. Jasper was first to leave followed quickly by Uni and Memo. Mira found herself wandering through the city. She tried to stick to the grid-like system of roads so she wouldn't get lost. Eventually she found her way to an opulent building. She gazed up in awe at the golden structure. Above the door was the symbol of Aeleav, god of knowledge and oaths. She stepped into the temple and was immediately greeted by an acolyte.

  "Good afternoon, miss. How can I assist you?" She smiled warmly up at Mira.

  Mira glanced around, "Umm, I am not sure. I am looking for a library, that may have books on mysterious illness, or druidic magic?"

  The acolyte looked her over quickly, "Miss, if you are ill..."

  "I'm not sick," she stated. "I do not need a healer."

  The acolyte nodded quickly, "Follow me to the library, we have a large section on mysterious illnesses...not so much a section on druidic magic though. They tend to rely on word of mouth for their histories and such."

  She followed the acolyte through a winding maze of halls. As they walked through she swore they passed by Jasper in the forge. Mira found herself combing the selection of books for a few hours before she finally gave up. Of course the ailment she had would not be written in the library of Aeleav. She found her way back to the entrance of the temple. She thanked the acolytes and continued on toward the inn.

  Mira found her way back to the inn that they had left Sanzier at easily enough. She stepped inside to see Memo nursing his drink at the bar. Mira stepped up to the barkeep to request a room for herself and Uni, then she took a seat next to Memo. The man didn't even glance up.

  "The library had a whole lot of nothing..." Mira started. "Druids should do better about writing down their history and magics." Memo glanced at her quickly before returning to his drink.

  "Mister Memo!" Jasper exclaimed as he stepped into the inn. "Oh, hello Mira." Jasper smiled. "Mister Memo, I would like you to come with me. It would be most kind of you to join me."

  Memo sighed, "Where to Jasper?"

  "The temple of Aeleav," he stated. "There is someone there that would like to meet you."

  "Now why would anyone at the temple want to meet me, Jasper?" Memo asked.

  "You are a wealth of knowledge, Mister Memo." Jasper started. "Why would they not want to meet you?"

  Mira turned away from their conversation. She saw Uni stepping into the building with a few pieces of paper in hand. She waved Mira over, and they sat at a table near the door.

  "There are so many jobs here," Uni smiled. "Lots of gold to be made."

  Mira smiled, "Anything on there that looked interesting?"

  "Lost cart, fell into the river retreive goods for 5 gold piece per person!" Uni exclaimed. "That could be very promising."

  Mira squinted, "How many deaths have occurred in the attempted retrieval of this cart?"

  Uni pulled the paper away quickly, "Don't focus on that part...they were probably ill prepared."

  "Not that one Uni..." Mira smirked. "I don't want to die in this city. Just looking for a little gold to get us to our next stop."

  Uni glanced at her friend, "And what would that be? You haven't really shared why you left the grove in the first place. I thought you would stay there forever."

  Mira sighed, "Varen wanted me to go looking for the prophet."

  "What's a prophet?" Uni asked her brow furrowed.

  Mira glanced around the room quickly, "You know...a person that claims to have spoken to a god or goddess." Uni nodded in understanding. "Varen, Tidbit, and Drell think that this prophet may be able to give answers on why I am the way I am."

  "Did you know you have spikes growing out of your back now?" Uni asked. "They look dope as hell...but also a little creepy. And has Honey always been that mangy? I remember her being more cute and cuddly last time I saw you."

  "A lot has changed in the last few years..." Mira sighed. "My magic has always been odd. But after the earthquake things seemed to have changed rapidly."

  "Have you heard from Lathiss or Kestas?" Uni asked hopefully.

  Mira shook her head, "Have you?" Uni shook her head. "I hope we find them..."

  "I still don't understand why they left in the first place..." Uni stated. "The grove would have been an excellent place for them. Your mother was part of the grove before you all were born, wasn't she?"

  Mira nodded, "She left with my father when they were married." She sighed, "I think they settled in Hebley, at least that is where I was born. When father died we lived with our grandparents for a few months before Lathiss took us to the grove."

  "Then you met me and all was right in the world," Uni smirked as Mira chuckled. "Lets not dwell on your crappy childhood, k?"

  "Alright..." Mira sighed. "Sorry." Her eyes widened. "I never asked why you left the grove! What started your journey?"

  Uni smiled, "I'll tell you about it later. I think right now we should go find Jasper and Memo."

  "Are we sticking with them?" Mira asked. "They don't seem to like us very much..."

  Uni waved her hand, "Safety in numbers. And I am pretty sure I heard Jasper mention something about a prophet a few days ago with Sanzier." Mira's eyes widened. "Maybe they are looking for the same person?"

  Mira and Uni set off on the town. Mira kept them on the main streets as they searched for the other two. Finally, they caught sight of Memo and Jasper heading into a seedy part of town.

  "This is definitely not the temple," Mira chuckled. "Think we can..."

  "What the hell are you two doing following us?" Memo asked as he turned to face them.

  Uni sighed, "Just thought we would try our luck getting town gossip from a place other than that quiet inn."

  Memo glanced toward the stocky bouncer standing in front of the tavern door that read Salty Splatoon. "You two are a liability."

  "I can handle my liquor thank you very much," Uni stated. "Mira on the other hand..."

  Mira's jaw dropped, "I....will be fine."

  Uni leaned over and whispered to Mira, "Hae you ever even had alcohol?" Mira shook her head.

  "See," Memo exclaimed. "A liability. I can't be listening for gossip and also keeping an eye on our light weight friend."

  Uni huffed, "We do not need you to keep an eye on us."

  Memo glanced between the two of them and shook his head, "Just don't do anything stupid, ya hear?" They nodded. "Also, leave me alone. Let me do my thing, and I will let you do yours." They nodded again.

  The group filed into the bar. Mira blinked as the smoke burned her eyes. Memo sauntered off to a dice table, Jasper disappeared, and Uni was already at the bar. Mira glanced around the room trying to orient herself in the unfamiliar environment. There were a group of dwarven men in the back watching a cock fight, a few other men playing dice with Memo, and then an older dwarven man staring down each new comer with a line of shots behind him. She stepped closer to the bar and the man quickly took another shot as he eyed her down.

  Mira took a seat at the bar, "What would you like, darling?"

  "I'll have whatever he is having," Mira pointed toward the older man with the shots.

  The barkeep raised an eyebrow and passed over a filled shot glass. "Drink up lass."

  Mira downed the shot and coughed. There was an odd burning sensation down her throat and she suddenly felt a little woozy. She watched as the man took yet another shot. She nodded toward the barkeep and he slid her another glass.

  "Mira..." Uni's voice was distant. "Can you walk?" Her voice seemed to be fading. "No...Mira...not that way. Let's get you outside."

  ...