Jace would have been disgruntled if his heart had not been so heavy. Working with the other 4 living humans, they cleared the road of the corpses, the humans of course mostly spent their time looting corpses, while he mostly wondered why he was bothering to bury them when the other humans didn’t understand why he would waste so much effort over their bodies.

The kindred left right after Verna refused to leave his side. He was worried about that one. She might have been playing the role of the loyal slave but she seemed to only play it when she felt like it. Furthermore, she continued to look at the other humans as if they were filthy beasts destroying the scenery. Of course he felt a bit sympathetic with her point of view. The filth humans typically lived in could make you feel like you’d need a bath just looking at them.

He almost laughed when he asked her to help bury the bodies. The look on her face was priceless. Almost as if she wanted to say no, but since his order was reasonable for a slave she couldn’t decide how to turn the question around. For the first time she was shooting a very displeased look at him. The turnaround made him feel a little better, though it did nothing for the overbearing feeling of helplessness he had at burying people who, were companions at the least. Friends even in some ways.

When the bodies were buried (it went faster than he expected thanks in part to the magic from the wizard), they transferred goods between the different carriages, roped up the now riderless Harkan, and continued down the road.

Jace was doing his best to not think about the contest he won. That was a hell he’d never enter again if he couldn’t help it. That was a pain and terror he’d never face again. He vowed over and over again in his heart. He also noticed the look on the face of Sam whenever he caught her looking at him. The looks of longing and desire were gone, now the stars were in her eyes. He couldn’t understand why that look so unnerved him and made him feel so guilty.

A few hours later they reached their destination. Yet another shed on the edge of some field. He could see the farm in the distance. The crops here had a very unappetizing look to them. It looks like a type of meat, oozing with puss and blood, growing out of a purple stalk. The smell was strangely familiar. Staring at the grotesque plants he pondered for a moment then his face paled. Turning to Sam he asked a question he dreaded the answer to.

“Are those Curran fruit?”

She glanced at the field and nodded. “Yes, that looks like it. How did you know?”

“The smell.” His mouth twisted. Of course, that is just how this world of Althos works. He finds one thing good about it. Then the more he learned about it the more monstrous it gets. He was beginning to dread what type of meat he had been eating as well. And decided never to ask. He had a growing dread that it was the flesh of something that could talk.

He turned to the Kindred woman Verna. It was time to get rid of her. “Verna, Go home. This is an order. You can’t come where we’re going. No non-human can.”

The Kindred woman looked amused then spoke “You mean I can’t go to your academy in the middle of that lonely sea?” The other humans froze on hearing her words. “Of course I know about your accadamy. All the dragons and kindred do. You’ve done a good job hiding it from the Fairies and other ‘lesser’ races but remember, your former king was a dragon. Why wouldn’t we know? Besides. I haven’t been to a beach in ages. So you can’t send me back now, when I’m one teleport portal away from one.”

He shrugged his shoulders. His spirit and will to fight had been drained from him earlier. Right now he just was hoping this academy wasn’t some cave buried under the ground, and the bed critters weren’t too bad.

It took almost an hour moving all their goods into the circle. They really should have left something behind with the bodies. It was just too much for 5, no 6 people to carry. Of course the Kindred woman didn't carry anything either. Apparently she didn't want to catch the curse herself. Helping humans could be dangerous. Too much help or the wrong type of help and you'd be marked with that moon, loose the sun and your longevity, and be a slave in the eyes of the world. He found himself wondering if that would apply to him if he tried to lift the curse. Apparently bleeding and cutting himself for some slaves wasn't enough "help" to get him cursed. Perhaps he was fully immune from it. It was something to worry about.

They stepped into the blinding light of the opening portal. Before his eyes could clear from the bright light of the teleportation, his nose was assaulted by the clean smell of the sea.