Alastair wanders through the forest slowly, his footsteps heavy and resigned. The silence and pitch-darkness of the forest provides the swordsman the perfect, distraction-free environment to brood about what had just happened. There are no red eyes to guide him back this time, and hardly any recognizable features for him to follow from his mad sprint. Couple that with a million different ways that he could go missing without a trace, never to be seen again, and whatever part of his mind that isn’t replaying the day’s event is now thinking about what would happen if he was pounced on by a predator and killed, leaving Nora alone to fend for herself with a broken leg.

  “Wouldn’t be the first person you left alone when they needed you.”

  He lets out a sigh, knowing that he was just being self-deprecating, and that he needs to just get over the fact that he messed up, learn from it, rescue/find Emily, and never do it again.

  But in his heart, he can’t get rid of that sinking feeling of failure, of messing up in a way that can’t ever be fixed. Of having been a let down, both to his party, and to himself.

  He continues his lonely trudge back, hiding from the occasional rustle as he goes, not wanting to tempt fate now that his insta-kill mage and murder ostrich is gone. Eventually, he starts to recognize some small signs of passage and disturbances in the foliage that clearly marks the monkey’s passage, his many hours with Nora finally paying off just that little bit. He follows them until he sees the telltale glow of fire out in the distance, its warm, orange tint drawing him in like a moth.

  Turning towards the light, he makes his way over to it, his shoulders slumping as he lets go of the tension of walking through the forest, alone, at night.

  He reaches the fireplace and immediately spots the silhouette of Nora, sitting by the fire, her lithe form hunched over itself in a picture of vulnerability that Alastair had never seen in her before. Her shoulders are rounded and drawn in, her knees drawn up by her chin, and her brown eyes were gazing forlornly into the dancing flames, the flicker of them reflecting in her eyes and giving them a forlorn, wistful look.

  For a moment, Alastair feels a stirring deep within the pit of resignation that is his stomach, a yearning to sit next to her and wrap her in his arms until she feels okay again. He indulges in the feeling for a moment, as the fire crackles and Nora is lost in thought, unaware of his admirings.

  Then, he clears his throat, and gains a sliver of satisfaction from seeing the normally-sharp and infallible huntress flinch while squeaking in shock like a mouse.

  She lets out a breath, turning to glare at Alastair for a moment, before she glances to his left and right, searching for her missing compatriots and finding them still missing.

  “Any… Sign of them?” She asks, as visions of broken bodies flicker in her thoughts.

  Alastair walks the final few steps to the fire and sits down with a groan, his legs protesting after the mad sprint through the forest that he put them through. He stares into the fire for a moment, gathering his thoughts, then shakes his head.

  “No. Nothing. The monkeys just… Whisked them away. And they were carrying them so damn quickly.

  Nora feels a sinking feeling in her stomach, and fails to hide the worry in her voice.

  “Yeah, that’s what they do. They pick up predators and just… Smash them onto the ground.”

  Alastair’s shoulders tighten and his jaws clench, before he shakes his head and relaxes them again with effort.

  “I don’t think they did that. I heard this loud blast, and all of them just… Stopped moving. It was like they were in shock, or something. And I didn’t see a body.”

  Nora stares into his face with an intensity she normally saves for hunting. Or poker.

  “Did you search properly?”

  Alastair glares at her with an unimpressed cock of his eyebrow.

  “Yes. I searched everywhere. From here to this damn river. Nothing.”

  You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

  Nora searches his face for a moment, and detecting not a trace of hesitation or deceit, lets out a relieved sigh. A heavy shroud over her lifts for the first time since Emily and Blue ran away.

  “That means they’re still alive. Emily probably did some magic thing and escaped.” she says, as she smiles at Alastair, finding him back to staring forlornly into the fire. She places a comforting hand on his arm, and he turns to look at her, a sad look in his eyes.

  “It’s okay. We’ll find her.”

  “It was my job to protect her… Mom told me –”

  “Mom?” Nora asks, an amused smirk stretching on her face.

  “Mrs. Mender told me to look after her,” Alastair continues, just barely keeping the embarrassment from his face, hoping that the red glow of the fireplace can keep his blush hidden from the normally-astute huntress. “And I failed her.”

  Nora sighs forlornly. “We both failed her.”

  For a moment, the two stare into the fireplace, neither one knowing what to say to that. The air hangs heavy between them, before Alastair turns to look at Nora, a serious look on his face.

  “What do we do now?”

  “What do you mean, what do we do now?” Nora replies, as she turns to look at Alastair once again. “We try to get out of here. Contact the guild. Form a search party. Try to get back in here and rescue Emily.”

  “No, I mean, what do we do now? In the next few hours? For the next few days, while we wander around the forest, lost and missing our two heaviest hitters?”

  Alastair gives Nora a sad smile, one that tells her everything she needs to know about how he feels about their chances. “We don’t stand a chance without Emily or Blue, do we? They’ve been practically taking care of all of the big threats we’ve encountered so far by themselves.”

  Nora bites her lip, feeling the truth of his words but refusing to let them get to her. Hope is the first thing to die in situations like these, followed swiftly by motivation, and then the person themselves. She might not be the most positive person in the world, she normally left that up to the ever-cheerful Mage. But with Alastair blaming himself like this, and the situation being as dire as it is, she’ll have to pick up the mantle. Just this once.

  “Hey, we moved around differently through the forest while they were with us. Honestly? Having them around almost made things too easy.” She points a thumb towards herself, striking a cocksured pose. “Now? We follow my rules. No more slacking around. No more trudging through the forest like a rampaging bull. I’ll turn you into a hunter, and we’ll slink through this forest like we own it.”

  She bumps her shoulder against Alastair and leans it there, surprised by just how comforting the physical touch is and not wanting to break it off just yet. Alastair leans into her as well, and the two settle there for a moment, neither one wanting to ruin the moment.

  “I’ve been living in it my whole life. I might have never ventured this far in… But I know how to be cautious, and how to move stealthily. We’ll make it out of this. Together.”

  Alastair turns to look at her and smiles, their faces close and their eyes locking. For a moment, while she stares into his steely-blue eyes, Nora feels something stir within her stomach.

  She breaks off the contact, suddenly feeling self-conscious. “But we should probably get some sleep. Big day tomorrow, after all.”

  “Right, right.” Alastair replies, suddenly nervous himself. “So uh… I’ll take watch, and you rest up. You’ve gotta get lots of sleep to heal that leg of yours.”

  “Sure, yeah. That sounds good.” Nora replies, unable to disagree with him on account of, well, her leg being broken.

  Alastair helps to carry Nora to her tent, laying her down gently on the floor. As he turns to leave and start his watch, however, he feels a hand grab onto his forearm, halting him midstep.

  He turns to look at Nora, her face hidden in shadow. “Yeah? What is it?” He asks, confused.

  “Could you… Maybe, take watch from in here?” She asks him, her voice soft and unsure. “I don’t know if I could fall asleep by myself after all of that happened…”

  Alastair’s brain skips a beat, as he tries to make sense of the request. A moment later, the hamster in his head resumes its pace, his mind catching up to him.

  “S-sure. I can do that.” He replies lamely.

  “Thanks. Just… Just this once.” Nora says, embarrassed, as she lays down.

  “Goodnight, Alastair.” She says, as she settles in for the night.

  “Goodnight, Nora.” He replies, as he turns his back on her and sits down by the entrance of the tent, the flap kept open and his eyes scanning the foliage beyond.

  “And goodnight, Emily.” He whispers under his breath, a determination welling up in his chest. “Stay alive. We’ll find you.”

  “What’s that?”

  “N-Nothing… Just go to sleep.”

  “Alright…” Nora replies, unconvinced. “Night.”

  “Night.”