Isa peered around the rock she and Alice were behind and saw four tall creatures in battle with Mery and Gil. They had small bullet-shaped heads with feathery antennae, short, jointed arms that ended in claws, long sturdy legs, and almost transparent wings.

“You weren’t kidding about the bees,” Isa said. “Put them in black and yellow sweaters and they’d be nightmare wasps.”

“At least we can see them now,” Alice replied as she shot magic missiles at each of the four threeps.

“I have something like that now,” Isa mumbled. “If I can remember the words.” It wouldn’t do to get her notebook out right now, so Isa spoke the words of the fire bolt spell as she remembered them, hoping to get them right. A flame shot from her palm but fizzled just a few feet away. That can’t be the range. No one would use it if that’s the range. “Sword it is,” she said to Alice.

As Isa stood, she pulled the hilt of the sun blade from her belt and smiled as yellow light shimmered into existence. Four insect men had surrounded Mery and Gil, lashing at them with their long claws. From behind her she heard Mimay call out, “Bywick is with you! By the sickle, He is here!”

Mimay stood halfway between Alice and the front left tire of the raft, her sickle held high as she cast her blessing. Spears flew toward her but fell short, and she laughed as she joined Alice at the rock.

Isa entered the melee as one of the insects raked a claw along Gil’s back. Blood splattered the sand at their feet. Now that she was close, Isa realized that the creatures were humming as they fought. A deep thrum seemed to cover the area with no clear origin.

Mery dodged a swinging claw and rolled to Gil’s left. “Took off part of your right butt cheek, lad.” She grinned as she sliced the head off a spear. “Be sitting lopsided for a while.”

“Mery….” Isa swung at the nearest insect. “Has a sense of humor,” she said to Gil. She parried one of the creature’s claws. The sun blade felt light in her hands, and she’d barely noticed when she’d connected with the enemy’s arm. Was this something new for this level? Isa vowed to spend real time looking at her notebook once this fight was over.

A flaming sickle popped into existence and yanked one of the insects off its feet. As it fell, Gil plunged both of his blades into its midsection. The entire group – human and insect – paused as a shriek burst from the creature, dying prayers or perhaps a curse. In the silence that followed Isa heard Mimay whoop.

The insect men renewed their attack, and the humming sound rose to an industrial-level drone. Isa gripped her sword. The sound was disorienting. Claws, eyes, hands, they all seemed to swirl around Isa. As she jabbed her sword at a large insect eye, she realized that at such close quarters, in such a din as this, she might accidentally cut Mery or Gil. She tried to find Mery in the throng.

Throng? There should only be three insect men left standing so why did it seem like there were a dozen or more? From the corner of her eye, Isa saw purple darts zoom by. Alice’s magic missiles, and they hit four insect creatures that Isa swore hadn’t been there a minute ago.

With a move that would have made her old ballet teacher happy, Isa pivoted on one foot and felt her back brush against one of the creatures. Claws almost snagged her cloak as she rolled past. As she found her feet, Isa sliced her blade down on the creature she’d vaulted past, catching him under one wing. She felt her blade sink in, and the insect buckled to the ground.

A rattling like a gun sounded close to Isa’s ear. One of the insects was pointing toward the rock that sheltered Alice and Mimay. Two creatures broke from the group and leaped high into the air. It looked like they might land behind the rock and right on top of Alice.

“Alice!” Isa roared. “Incoming!”

Suddenly Alice was standing beside the rock and bolts of frosty air left her fingertips. But she was pointing straight ahead, not above, and the insects landed lightly behind her. Mimay’s flaming sickle swept one off its feet, but the other extended claws toward Alice.

Before Isa could move, Mery plucked a spear from the ground and hurled it at the creature. She yelled, “Behind you.”

Alice’s eyes went wide, and she dropped to the ground as the spear passed over her head and impaled the insect.

More spears landed around Isa, Mery, and Gil. Isa had been too busy watching Alice to think to dodge, and a black iron spear scraped down Isa’s side, burning fire as it tore clothing and skin. She looked down to see green mist rising from the wound. “What the—”

“Poison,” hissed Gil. “Try to fight—” He stumbled and fell to his knees.

The three remain threeps all chittered and turned toward Gil.

“Oh no. No, indeed.” Mery lunged forward with her sword and sliced a claw clean off. The injured insect turned toward Mery, as if to engage in combat. Instead of rocking back, Mery danced forward and struck its head off.

The two insects reared back, and in one motion they took to the sky, bounding at least thirty feet with the leap. In a blink, they were out of sight, leaving their wounded and fallen comrades behind.

Gil was on his hands and knees, retching. Mery put her sword away slowly. “You’re bleeding,” Isa told her. Mery looked down and saw where a threeps claw had sliced through her jacket, vest, and shirt to find skin. “My favorite shirt,” Mery muttered.

“Here, boy. You’re not dying. Not today.” Mimay had hiked up her skirt and jogged across the sands to kneel beside Gil. She laid one hand flat on her sickle and put the other to Gil’s forehead. Words of healing tumbled from the halfling’s mouth, and Gil pushed himself to his knees. In that stance he and Mimay were almost eye to eye.

“What was that, then?” Mimay asked. “If your father knew—”

“They would have taken Ladja, and then where would we be?”

“You can’t know that. It was a foolish risk. That was a 3rd class healing I did on you, boy.” She held up three fingers. “Not the strongest I’ve got but no minor thing either.”

“No wonder they attacked us,” said Mery. “They have nothing of their own.” She straightened up from checking one of the bodies. “Even their weapons are crappy.” She held out a handful of gold coins. “Ten gold. That’s all I could find. No potions, no gems, not even a belt or map or tin cup!”

Gil rubbed his face. “Let’s get that wheel afixed and be on the way.” He scanned the horizon. “Who’s to say they won’t come back.”