“Right,” I nodded, uninterested in coy formalities. “What’s happened? What do you need?” The muted red of the blood against her beautiful blue overcoat was more unsettling in person than it had been through my Detection.
Her throat tightened as she swallowed hard, and her eyes flitted to Bella momentarily, where she found a reassuring nod. “I’ve been sending supply caravans east to the Mountain Gate to aid in the reconstruction efforts.” She paused for effect, but my mind was too singularly focused on what awaited us to register any guilt for the difficulties I had caused. “Things were running smoothly for the past week—until this morning. The caravan was ambushed on their way back to Mayaan, about ten miles east of here. Of my thirteen employees, only three survived.” Her eyes fell to the stains on her coat. “No, sorry. Two.”
“What ambushed your men, Elise?” I asked, though the answer already burned at the forefront of my mind.
“They said it was a group of...monstrous, spider-like creatures,” she murmured, closing her eyes against the thought.
The pit in my stomach split further apart as my blood ran cold. “A group of them?”
“Yes, at least five. Maybe more,” she answered solemnly.
Fuck. I swept a wave of mana around the surrounding forest and was relieved to find Lia in full battle gear, on pace to meet our carriage at her parents’ house with Marin close behind. “Okay,” I said, taking a deep breath. “Lia and I will handle it. You two should stay with Hana and Marin while we’re gone.” My brain ticked through a quick checklist of priorities as I spoke. “Do you know where Marten is today?”
“South, thank the Primes,” Elise answered. “He stopped by my office this morning, said he’d be back at dusk.”
“Good.” I unlatched the door behind me and leapt out of the carriage as it began to slow down. Lia sprinted out from the forest a moment later and appeared at my side alone, having pulled a few seconds ahead of Marin on their dash. “Another of Elise’s caravans was attacked,” I told her, speaking quickly in a low, even voice. “Only a dozen miles east of here. The survivors described our monster from the Midlands; apparently, there are at least five of them.”
A brief flash of fear tingled across the back of my neck from Lia’s aura, but it was quickly dismissed and replaced with resolve. “When are we leaving?”
“Now. We can’t let those things reach Mayaan,” I answered. “Elise and Bella are going to stay here with your mother while we go—”
“Where are we going?” Marin cut in, having finally reached our huddle.
“We aren’t going anywhere,” I said sternly. “You’re staying here while Lia and I go deal with this.”
“Wait, what? Why?” she asked, frowning. “I don’t even know what’s going on yet!”
“More of the monsters Lia and I fought showed up,” I said, tipping my head towards the carriage as Elise and Bella climbed out. “You’re going to stay here with them while Lia and I go hunt the monsters down.”
“No, I’m not!” she insisted, stomping her foot. “I’ve been training for over a month! You can’t just keep me here and—”
“This isn’t another training match, Marin!” I interrupted, my voice quickly approaching a shout. “You don’t get to fall down into the dirt and complain when one of those things beats you; you just die. You might be ready to deal with bandits and thugs, but you aren’t ready for this.”
She screwed up her face into a sneer as I accosted her. “How am I ever supposed to be ready if you never let me fight one, then? That doesn’t make any sense!”
“This isn’t a discussion, Marin.”
I turned to walk away and end the conversation, but Lia caught my arm. “I think she should come, Lux.”
My jaw nearly fell open as I turned back to her. “Why?”
“Well, she’s right; sort of right, anyways. If these...things are going to continue to be an issue, she’ll have to face them eventually. And if things keep getting worse, this might be the safest time to do it.” I could see the struggle plainly on Lia’s face as she spoke. “I’m not saying she should come and fight on the front lines with us, but she needs to see what we’re facing.”
“Oh, not you too!” Marin groaned. “I’m ready to fight! I have the gauntlets, and we’ve been—”
“MARIN!” I yelled, far too loudly; Marin physically recoiled from the shout, while Elise and Bella turned their heads in our direction and stared in interested silence. I put a hand to my head and rubbed my temples as my thoughts screamed at each other, attempting desperately to find the proper answer to my dilemma. “Listen. You can come with us, but you won’t be fighting. You’ll stay back at a safe distance and watch the battle. You’ll prioritize staying safe at all costs, you’ll only fight if your life is immediately threatened, and you’ll follow every order that either Lia or I give you. That, or you’ll stay here: your choice.”
After her previous outbursts, I was surprised to see her accept the information with relative calm. “I’ll come with you. I promise I won’t get in the way,” she answered.
The immediate reversal of her attitude puzzled me, but I quickly let the thought go and refocused on the task at hand. “Good. Let’s go.” I strode across the clearing to where Bella and Elise were waiting. “Thank you for coming to me with this, Elise. We’ll take care of it,” I said, motioning to Lia and Marin behind me. “Please wait here until we come back. I promise you’ll be safe.”
“I’m not worried about us,” she said, stepping forward to wrap me in her arms. “Primes watch over you,” she intoned. After a final squeeze, she moved on to my companions. “You too, Marly. And you, dear,” she said, giving each a
