There was absolutely no shelter. No place to hide. Their only course was to avoid the hunter’s path while going off of Soletus’s memory of the area. Not that Kiao doubted his memory, but pain compromised many wardens capacity to think. Or that’s how she felt. Though pain only slowed him down, not his ability to choose paths that would be easy for them to transverse or his alertness. In fact, he was very alert still. He probably didn’t want to stop, however, he would have to switch from safety in distance to safety with a place to tuck themselves. Though there was no outcrop of rocks or even a hallowed large tree. They found themselves in a wide clearing with the only shelter available was a tree cracked by the stomp. Given how jagged it looked, Kiao guessed the wind split it.

Soletus flopped down and breathing shallowly.

“I know it hurts, but you need to take deep breaths,” she told him.

He bobbed his head. “My side is aching something fierce now,” he said.

Kiao tugged at his shirt. “Take it off.”

She then got to see all the bruises his clothing hid. They ranged from pink to a deep red, and some were already purpling. It would look worse tomorrow. Kiao removed the moss he used in his wound.

“Thank Dias that knife went under skin and in a fleshy area with some padding.”

He chuckled. “You can’t say anything about my indulging in sweet buns now. See, it protects me.”

“It won’t burn less when I clean it. I have a little witch hazel and alcohol.”

When she said the latter, Soletus moaned. “Wonderful.”

“I’m sorry,” she apologized.

Soletus did his best not to squirm or yelp while she cleaned the wound. He just gritted his teeth, tensing up at her initial pour. Then relaxed in exhaustion. Once the wound was clean, she bandaged it instead of healing it. She would heal it when she was certain his body was healing the wound on its own with no sign of infection. It had rested too long being dirty. If she healed it right after he received it, she would have. By the time she finished, his skin went to a sickly white.

“This isn’t the ideal spot to rest. Clouds are coming in and it’s going to rain,” he said, closing his eyes.

“Good for the fact it’ll clean off the mud. Bad for the fact we’ll get cold. It’s been chilly these last few nights. But we need shelter to stay warm. I could scout for something,” she offered.

He became alert again. “I prefer if you didn’t,” he stated.

“But we can’t stay out here.”

That was true, they couldn’t. However, he still looked hesitant.

“Look, I’m not going very far. You see there. That looks like a glade, and there could be something there. I’m just going to go to there, okay,” she said.

Soletus nodded. And shut his eyes again, becoming still. The only thing that moved was his chest expanding and contracting. In a day, he could sleep off the injury, but he needed a safe place to do that. Kiao left her satchel with him and only took her staff to help her walk carefully down the path towards the hardwood forest barefoot. She had yet to slip her shoes back on. She rinsed them in the water, but that didn’t make them wearable.

The glade she was headed toward was shadowed with a shape of something. If the sun was out, whatever it would be more visible. At the moment, the sun was becoming more and more obsured with white clouds. The closer she got, the clearer it was a ruin. And not one that could hide them. There was nothing to it other than white stone and moss. Vines had engulfed three of the four pillars left standing. She didn’t know what the ruin was for. Whatever it was, had been torn down given the mound in the center she assumed was rubble. There was no indication of life. In fact, all around her was nothing. And an old hardwood forest as far as the eye could see.

She moved on and tried not to let her disappointment and discouragement get to her. They should have never stayed in that town as long as they did. That was her fault and now they had no way to get to Briar and the huntresses. There had to be another way to the hunter path or anywhere. She came back to Soletus and found him sleeping.

That was one of the many things she could never understand. His ability to just sleep where he was. She could tell it wasn’t restful. And she should have woken him, but let him rest. She placed her shoes on a rock and let them dry out before the sun was covered by the thickening clouds overhead. She watched them flow and collect together thickening all the while her guilt weighing on her.

There were a lot of things she could have done differently. She was so into her thoughts that she didn’t realize Soletus had woken and was watching her. He shifted, sitting straighter and his movements caught her attention. When looked in his direction. He was alert again, with his gaze resting on her. She couldn’t quite put it to words when Soletus gave eye contact with someone the way he did then. It was less about his gaze and more of just his entire facial expression. It was neither friendly nor unfriendly, but he was clearly scrutinizing her. Some may called it judging. He claimed he was just trying to figure out what to think.

“What,” she asked.

“I should be the one asking that. You’ve been glaring at the sky.”

“This is my fault,” she declared.

He searched her face. “What’s your fault?”

She gestured to him. “You’ve been stabbed and beaten because I couldn’t convince a town that I didn’t call down a whirlwind. I wasn’t taking it seriously enough and then you got hurt and now we’re lost.”

He gathered himself up to his feet. “This isn’t your fault, and we aren’t lost. The one thing I’ve learned is that you can’t control people. You can say the truth, show them the truth, and treat them with the utmost respect and care. But they still can make the choice to believe and receive you. And if reception is as bad as what we experienced, the best thing we can do is leave them alone.”

Kiao knew that was true. She experienced it before. However, she couldn’t help but feel she should have been priestess enough to handle it.

“And don’t take this the wrong way, Kiao. However, I think if you were an older male chanter, they might have been more willing to listen.”

“Ah yes, everything comes down to my sex,” she muttered.

“And I say that not because of the males there, but the mayor herself,” he clarified. “You threated her by marching into town and demanding and undermining her by not being a young empty-headed girl. You’re competent. A powerful presence and influence. She didn’t want that.”

“We came there to claim our chapel. I had no reason to undermine her and trick her town into converting. Which, I thought, they were a Fenndish town!”

“They are a Fenndish town for convenience. And, since they want a closed off existence from the order, well, they are going to get their wish,” said Soletus darkly. He held out his hand. Kiao stood up on her own.

“You’re injured,” she reminded him.

“Not terribly. That nap made me feel better,” he said.

It was then they heard shouting and brush being torn. Kiao looked back where they came through the trees. Six men on horses racing towards them. Kiao moved to flee and grabbed her friend’s arm. He stood there, only letting out an angry snort.

“Sol, this is no time to be stubborn.”

“This is no time to be running either,” he said, his voice dropping an octave.

Kiao readied her staff. She still had her single use of a shield. It would last long enough to maybe protect them if they fled. Standing there was only going to waste it. She tried her best not to be as terrified as the girl inside her was screaming for her friend to move. Yet he stood his ground.

The men on the horses stood in their way, none of them really all that armed. They had clubs and two had pitchforks. Two were old with silvering hair. Two were young, a little older the Kiao. The other two were good, strong men. They were the ones with the pitchforks.

“You aren’t going anywhere,” threatened one with the pitchfork and pointed at Soletus.

The young monk looked him dead in the eye, take is foot and drawing a line in the leaves and soil. He then spoke in a low voice that Kiao felt his voice in her chest and magic heart.

“This line isn’t to be crossed. The sister and I are going to leave. If anyone asks, you tell them I ordered you to return to town and care for your own,” he said.

She wasn’t sure what he was trying to do. It wasn’t what she could do if worse came to worst, but if she had to guess, he was trying to give them warning about how serious he was.

The riders all looked at each other. The one who threated him got off his horse, with his pitchfork in hand. “No, you’re coming with us. The mayor wants a trial for your priestess.”

The others got off their horsed with clubs in hand. Soletus stood tall and simple said, “No.”

The one who threatened them, rushed him. Kiao jump back from him to give him enough room to maneuver. The young monk grabbed thepitchfork by the handle, forced it down to the ground and, in the same motion, flipped the man on his back. Soletus forced the garden tool tines deep into the ground.

“I’m going to repeat myself. This line isn’t to be crossed. My sister and I are going to leave. If anyone asks, I ordered you to return to town and care for your own.”

One of the younger once advanced. “It’s like they say, the Brotherhood are pacifists. A bunch of cowards. He won’t kill us.”

“A coward?,” Soletus let out a humorless laugh. “I’m fairly certain only cowards would chase a priestess and her monk who have done nothing but help your town. Healed your injured, carried your dead no matter if they were whole or in pieces.”

They hesitated.

“Look, the mayor said, the elders said–”

Soletus looked over his shoulder. “Kiao call a whirlwind, strike them with lightning, sent a torrent down on them right now,” said Soletus.

All the men then looked up at the sky.

She gripped her staff. “Stop being ridiculous. I know you’re angry now, but taunting them isn’t helping.”

“I’m telling them how it is. I’m want them to listen to what they are doing. They chase a healer, who spent an entire evening exhausting herself to make sure not a single person in her care died. They chased my girls who never witnessed the destruction of a town like that, gladly search for the living and the dead. People mortally injured and dying in their arms. Holding cold babes that never had a chance. And yet they have the audacity to believe it was done purposely! ”

The men hung their heads down.

“Sol,” said Kiao touching his arm.

“No, they need to hear this,” he said sounding a lot like his father. “They need to know that our order will come down on them. My death guarantees that they’ll be wishing another whirlwind blew their town from the land.They will take back their land, burn it the town, march your families to the province border, and anyone found responsible for our deaths will be handed over to the Seat. There are two paths from there, a noose or the Pit.”

They gave each other hesitent glances as if they never heard what he was saying before.

“This province is a stewardship. The Dias Brotherhood are the custodians of this land. We can enforce our laws that are in accordance with the laws of the Seat. And I’m going to repeat myself one last time, with a little more detail. This line isn’t to be crossed. Sister Kiao and I, Second Warden Soletus’Sheldmartin, grandson of Solgard’Sheldmartin, Arch Monk of the Dias Brotherhood, are going to leave. If anyone asks you. Tell them what I told you and if they care for their own livelihoods and stop this nonsense!”

“Is that a threat,” demanded the man who Soletus tossed.

“That is a promise,” said Soletus firmly. “On my blood and honor, what I say will happen and the only way out of it is praying tp Dias for mercy. And if you think I’m afraid of ending you. I kill monsters. Monsters of men are no different to me.”

He ended that last part like a hammer.

Kiao squared her shoulder and stood beside him. “You need to listen to him. Our deaths will not go unpunished. So I ask of you, let us continue on our way. We mean no quarrel with you. All we want is to go to the next town and then go home.”

The men looked at each other. The one who rushed Soletus then spoke. “There is another group of men running after you. Elder Hawke, the Mayor’s father, is with them. We were told to bring you to him. He’s plans to burn you on the spot. He’s watching the main road. We are only checking the hunter’s path.”

“Where is it,” asked Soletus.

The main pointed in the direction they had come from. “You’ve been traveling parallel to it.’

“Thank you,” said Soletus.

He left the pitchfork there and didn’t wait for an apology or prompting and then continued going into the cover of the trees.

The sky became a blanket of gray all at once. There was no shelter to keep them out of the rain. Nothing to hide them. They did, however, get back to what Kiao assumed was the hunter’s path, and Soletus approached it with caution. He studied the ground stiffly looking at the mix of cart tracks and horse hooves.

“Briar’s been through here and no one else. They were telling the truth,” he said. He straightened up.

Kiao felt drizzle on the top of her hand.

“We need to take some sort of shelter now,” he said.

They continued on, slinking back into the woods and finding no suitable shelter that would keep them hidden or dry. The only thing that stayed the rain from them was the trees themselves. However, their clothing was getting soggy and the air getting chillier. Kiao didn’t know how long she could go on. A trained warden, she was not and couldn’t ignore his physical shivering state. Soletus was focused on their path ahead and trudged on. At that point, she was praying for anything that may keep them dry. She was willing to even stop inside of a bear's den with the bear inside. At least they would be dry and warm.

However, the trees couldn’t keep them safe from the downpour that hit them. It came all at once. Soon the wide trunks was obscured by large drops of rain. She doubted they were still being pursued. The wind picked up with distance rolls of thunder getting closer. The only good thing about the rain was that the mud was getting washed from them. It was then they walked towards what appeared to be on the other side of the hunter’s path was a flash of something. It looked like a fire, then the light vanished in the wind and rain.

“I think there’s something out there,” said Soletus, peering into the mist.

Kiao squinted. Indeed there was something out there. She couldn’t tell because the shape was hidden behind brush. “Is it a camp?”

“It is,” he said. Though he didn’t sound very excited about it. He motioned for her to walk closer. It was getting late in the afternoon and the evening coming early. So it was too gloomy for them to make it out until the wind blew again and she realized it was the edge of a tarp.

Soletus then let out the call of a screech owl. He did it three times and then someone answered back. She looked at his face and he scowled.

“What?”

“It’s Briar,” he growled.

Kiao was relieved they caught up, but Soletus was unhappy. On getting to the camp, they sat it. She saw they tried to keep it hidden as best as they could. The cart parked so that the back of it faced the hunter’s path. They used cut branches to shield the light from the fire. Briar greeted them and ushered them under the tarp.

“I told you to keep going until the night,” admonished Soletus.

Briar held her head high. “Well mighty warden, I decided to override you.”

Soletus sunk down, and his expression softened. “Thank you for not listening.”