Why can nothing ever be simple? It seems that we have wandered into the middle of a territorial dispute. From what I can tell, this jungle is the territory of the Sun Dragons, however, the Blood Dragons have recently attempted to push the them out of the Jungle and claim it as their own.

  Nautaus and Beiroth are from the Sawtooth Clan. They were here on a trading mission when the whole thing kicked off. And since the two clans are allies, they stayed to help fend off the Blood Dragons. They got lucky with the recent rains, as the blood dragons are wary of advancing in the rain as their invisibility is rendered useless.

  Nautaus and Beiroth showed us to a safer location to make our camp and went to inform the Sun Dragons of our presence. We finished making camp, and as we sat to eat, Damecus was even more serious than normal.

  Kiyui: “Damecus, is everything alright?”

  Damecus took a deep breath.

  Damecus: “I am afraid that due to the allegiance between our clan and theirs, we are obligated to help.”

  Phoenix: “Define help.”

  Damecus: “There is a large group of Blood Dragons advancing from the east. They have been holding off their attack due to the rain. The rains have stopped, so they will likely attack soon. We must stay and help defend the home of our allies.”

  Fucking typical… now we are all probably going to die trying to defend the homes of a bunch of lizardmen that we have never even met before… perfect. Just when I thought we were actually making some good progress.

  Dwynfel: “So, how exactly are we going to do this?”

  Damecus gave me a cold glare.

  Damecus: “Not you. Just Nomius and I.”

  Kiyui: “What?”

  Damecus: “This is not your fight. We shall ensure you have enough supplies. You will keep heading west. This jungle is only two weeks travel from the port of the Uddin Empire. You simply cross the marshlands and head towards the botanical forest. The port is on the other side. The Marshlands hold many dangers, so remain vigilant. As for the forest… as long as you respect the forest you will pass through it with ease.”

  What the fuck does respect the forest mean? What if we get lost? What if we get attacked by something that we are unfamiliar with and don’t know how to fight it? This plan is even worse than staying to fight an army of invisible giants.

  Oh no… Kiyui looks sad… he’s got really fond of the setup we have going here.

  Tadwick: “No!”

  Damecus: “Excuse me?”

  Tadwick: “No!”

  Damecus: “Child, I heard you the first-time. Why are you saying no?”

  Tadwick: “I don’t wanna go!”

  Nomius: [Signing] “Go… home… good.”

  Tadwick pointed at Damecus.

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  Tadwick: “He said everyone at my home is dead! I’m not leaving anybody… I don’t want anybody to leave!”

  Tadwick started to cry. Not like the gentle whimpering from the Oasis… I mean full on snot and tears streaming down his face with loud wailing. He isn’t handling this very well, is he. I mean, I have to admit… even I don’t like the idea of them leaving. I have grown quite used to having them around… even Nomius and his creepy invisibility. Plus… well… we would have been killed a long time ago if we didn’t have them with us.

  Kiyui moved over to Tadwick and pulled him in close for a hug.

  Kiyui: “Nobody is leaving anybody, Tadpole. It’s alright… breathe… we aren’t going anywhere.”

  Damecus: “You must leave. This jungle is about to become a battleground. It is no place for a child.”

  Kiyui: “I’ll protect him; you do what you need to do.”

  Damecus: “I admire your determination, but you will not be able to protect him from an army of lizardmen. If the Blood Dragons win, then everybody here will be massacred.”

  I wouldn’t be so sure about that. Kiyui is more dangerous than he seems. Not that I can say that out loud.

  Dwynfel: “Listen, we can help you. They won’t be expecting somebody small like me. I can perch in the trees and pick them off with my bow. Then we can at least repay you for all the help that you’ve given us.”

  Damecus: “This is not your fight. I will not have you risk your lives in a war that is none of your concern.”

  Oh wow… Kiyui looks pissed now. Tadwick is still crying into his arms and Kiyui is just glaring at Damecus.

  Nomius: [Signing to Damecus] “You… anger… cat.”

  Damecus: “You should not be angry. This is best for all concerned.”

  Kiyui: “No it isn’t! And don’t go saying this isn’t our fight. It is as much our fight as it is yours. This isn’t your home. You are staying and fighting because it is the right thing to do. They are your allies and they need assistance. Well, you’re our friend. You saved us, looked after us when we could well have died. Do you seriously think we are just going to disappear and leave you to fight in some awful conflict without trying to assist in some way?”

  Phoenix: “Excuse me.”

  Damecus: “Calm down. You are emotional. I understand that. But you cannot let it get in the way of rational thought. This is the best option for the child.”

  Yeah… no… that didn’t help… he looks even more pissed than before.

  Kiyui: “No it isn’t! We stand a much better chance of surviving if we all stick together!”

  Phoenix: “Excuse me.”

  Damecus: “This isn’t just a few casual creatures, Kiyui. This is a squad of trained warriors. Most of which are twice your size.”

  Kiyui: “I don’t care! Stop treating us like weaklings. We can be useful! I won’t just leave you to die like this!”

  Damecus: “We are not going to die! It is just going to delay us somewhat.”

  Kiyui: “Well then, if it is just going to be a small delay, you won’t mind if we wait then!”

  Tears are streaming down Kiyui’s face now. He doesn’t normally get this emotional about things. He’s normally very calm. Is it because Tadwick is involved? Phoenix shot a fireball straight up through a gap in the trees. It reached the sky and promptly exploded, showering everybody with light.

  Dwynfel: “Fucking hell… what was that for?”

  Phoenix: “I have an idea, if anybody is interested.”