Tana and Sorrin were silent, although whether in surprise at my proactive declaration or the oddity of the na, I knew not. The half-elf gazed at with her piercing green eyes, seeming to search my soul, before she slowly nodded.
"Starlight, hmm. Yeah, that fits. Who’s ’she,’ by the way?"
I imdiately looked away, pressing a hand to my breast as my heart gave a throbbing shudder. Tana waited for a second, watching as my tail drooped, before sighing and sharing a look with Sorrin, who shrugged helplessly.
"The guild master’s waiting," he said abruptly. "We’d be best not to make him wait."
Brushing away the gathered moisture in my eyes, I followed after them, burdened with thoughts of Aurle. The staff humd softly, warming until its strength coursed through my veins and my soul flickered with light. I gave it a grateful squeeze and picked up my tail, hurrying after the two.
Our path took us across a bridge and to the town square. The houses gave way to shops, hung with painted signs and bright bits of ribbon and cloth. It had all the bustle of comrce in the city, from the persuasive cries of the rchants to the buzz of conversation and laughter. The buzz of the indecipherable words filled my ears, coming from all directions and very nearly overwhelming . Children were everywhere, running between legs, running errands for shopkeepers, or otherwise doing everything in their power to be a nuisance to the adults around them.
My presence caused quite a ripple in the village proper, but it remained fairly ta compared to the reactions of the past. There were no curses, slurs, or rotten fruit from villagers, only curiosity and the occasional frown and scowl. For a ti, I felt as though I were among the citizens of Viriden again, but the relief faded as another mory followed hot on its heels, of the hundreds of casualties wrought among them by the almighty power of the ninth-level Demonkin. I had walked among and healed them, and they had supported , yet because of , they were brought to ruin.
While the village square felt crowded, it was relatively small, and the villagers could be counted in dozens. Helron appeared, sliding between two arguing housewives, and ca to a stop beside Tana and Sorrin. I hung back, waiting a few feet away, as they spoke in hushed tones. Occasionally, one of the three would glance my way, sotis accompanied by gestures. It beca especially obvious what the topic of their conversation was when Helron dropped all pretenses and openly stared at my staff, curiously tracing the glassy, crystalline artifact with his eyes.
Pursing his lips thoughtfully, he drew an amulet from his spatial pouch. It was a gleaming piece of sapphire and golden wire twin, crafted in an intricate spire with simple runes inscribed around the exterior. It seed to catch the sunlight, spending it spinning around in a startling array of white motes, catching my gaze instantly.
An amulet. Helron handed it to Tana, but his voice faded into the background. A tremor seized my body, starting on the smooth, clear skin between my breasts and radiating out to the tips of my horns and tail. A terrified weight settled on my chest, forcing to gasp for air.
"It’s a magic amulet that allows you to understand any language." Tana was saying. Her eyes shone brightly with excitent, and even Sorrin held a small smile. "If you put this on, you’ll be able to understand everyone!"
"N-no!" I whispered, fiercely shaking my head. "Please, no!"
She paused, amulet held suspended mid-air, and tilted her head in confusion. "Is sothing the matter? It’s just an amulet that helps you talk, so there’s nothing to be worried about."
I took a step back, nearly falling as a burst of pain traveled up my leg, and clutched my staff, desperately fighting to breathe. An amulet. Why did it have to be an amulet?
The wind hushed and the birds fell still, tucking their heads beneath their wings. Even the trees paused, their leaves rustling softly as though whispering of a coming storm. My chest burned with phantom fires, the searing pain tracing familiar, lines and runes across my chest. The air shimred, a growing bubble with at its center.
Sorrin rolled his eyes. "Oh, co on, it’s for your own good. It’s not going to kill you or-"
"Sorrin," Tana said, cautiously looking around and laying a hand on his arm. "Maybe we shouldn’t-"
Her words vanished as the terror twisted out of my soul. The Staff of Fate released a deep thrum, resonating with the sudden shimr in the air. The village grew silent as an oppressive sense of impending doom settled upon the region, darkening the sun and placing a chill colder than the darkest night in everyone’s hearts.
"Starlight!" Tana cried reaching toward .
A pulse of mana erupted from the blazing star atop the staff, sweeping through the village like the desolate north wind. It rolled over the ancient boughs of the forest, visible only by the expanding ripple of rustling leaves. The wave neither slowed nor faded, disappearing only as it reached the horizon.
All was still, save for my quiet sobs as the fear inside ca to a head, clashing against what little control I retained.
Far in the distance, a wolf howled. It was sad and mournful, drifting over the housetops and reverberating through the air, solemn as the grave. Sowhere, a child started crying, a sentint instantly adopted by their peers.
And then it was gone. Sucking in deep gulps of air, I managed to restrain myself, dropping to my knees and wrapping my tail about myself. The staff dimd and the distortion vanished, returning reality to normal.
"What was that?" Sorrin breathed, knuckles white on his sword hilt. His eyes darted around the village before finally coming to rest on my sobbing figure.
Tana shook her head, pulling her cloak tight about her. But even that did little against the chill penetrating her soul, and she shivered. "I-I don’t know."
She tentatively handed the amulet back to a frowning Helron, glancing at as though afraid I might notice. He nodded at her and she took a deep breath, squaring her shoulders and approaching .
I didn’t look up as she squatted beside , catching my hands up in hers. Her elfin eyes practically glowed with caution, but her voice was soft and soothing like she was talking to a scared child.
"It’s alright," she murmured, "No one’s going to make you put it on if you don’t want to. Just calm down, okay? You’re safe now. Everything’s going to be alright."
"What the hell is she?" Helron muttered, idly stroking his beard. "I’ve never seen anything like that."
"As if I’d know," Sorrin snorted. Despite his relaxed appearance, his eyes shifted uneasily, and his hand remained on his sword hilt. "The better question is what are we going to do about it."
Helron nodded and, much to my relief, tucked the amulet away. I drew the first clear breath I’d managed in almost a minute, and soon succeeded in drying my eyes. Tana’s hands were warm and comforting, and she smiled as the last lingering light left the staff. The breeze whispered through the trees once more, carrying the song of the birds back to the stunned village.
The people stared at in fear, their eyes crawling over my horns as though seeing them for the first ti. But they hesitated, watching Helron closely, gauging the situation by his reaction.
I looked up at him with wide, glistening eyes, waiting for the condemnation. I only had the scarcest understanding of what had occurred, but it would undoubtedly bring fear, mistrust, and hatred upon my head. Tana and Sorrin were only treating nicely because they wanted to learn about the monster. But once it beca clear I was the true danger, they would swiftly-
"Well, that was unexpected," Helron said loudly. He casually leaned against a nearby fence and stretched, ending up with his hands resting comfortably behind his head. "What a wonderful demonstration of magic! A little warning would be nice next ti though. I don’t think anyone knew you were a mage, so it caught us a little off guard."
My thoughts died, filling my mind with a stillness so quiet I could hear each distinct heartbeat. Only after Tana repeated his words to did I realize I could understand everyone perfectly. The villagers broke into smiles, saying how surprised they were, or how nice it was to have such a powerful mage in the village. One of the kids even ran up to and asked to touch my staff, but Sorrin shooed him away before I could react.
Finally, I rembered to breathe and turned to look up at Tana. "Why?" I stamred, clasping my hands in my lap.
"Hmm?" She raised an eyebrow. "What do you an? You’re a mage, right?"
I nodded dumbly, and she giggled, the stress of the mont forgotten. "In that case, want to join our party?"
The invitation was so smooth and unexpected that before I could think, I nodded again. Sorrin seed surprised too, stopping in place and staring at the half-elf.
"Tana?" he asked, watching her intently.
"Oh, relax. I’m sure the others will be fine with it. Rasce always said we need another mage, and Dyson can’t say no to a cute face."
He frowned, and I looked away as he stared at my face. "I don’t think she’ll ask though, so he won’t-"
"I was talking about , idiot," she laughed, punching his arm. "I’ll do the talking. You just back up, oh mighty party leader."
"Alright, alright," he said, backing away with his hands raised in surrender. "She can join. But only if sothing like that never happens again. Whatever that was wasn’t right. It was like the entire world was planning my demise."
"Oh? I felt like every tree, bird, and bug was watching with the intent to eat . Talk about scary," Tana muttered.
"anwhile, I think I’ll look into this more," Helron said, reminding they’d been speaking in the unknown language the whole ti. He fixed with a aningful look. "A demonkin shows up in our lands for the first ti in months, and sothing like this happens. That staff, too, is rather intriguing. Even my Eyes couldn’t determine its power level, and that’s saying sothing."
Wrapping up their conversation, Tana and Sorrin resud the tour, but my mind wasn’t in it anymore. What had happened back there? The mont I understood that they wanted to wear the amulet, everything turned dark. It was that long, lonely howl that pierced that trauma and fear, reminding that they were not inquisitors, and things were different this ti.
Even so, I couldn’t bring myself to consider wearing the amulet. The re thought of a chain around my neck caused to tremble and send a haunting pain across my chest. Regardless of what ca, I couldn’t live like this. This shadow, this terror, was as real as any chain, and I wanted to be free.
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