As I shot upright it was one of the old trolls who stopped me with a hand on my chest. It was an old woman. A very old woman. In the dim light of the room she gave me the impression of weathered stone. She pushed me back down onto the stone slab surprisingly gentle, given her size. “Take. It. Slow.” The troll way of speaking still had my head spinning but ignoring that I actually felt a lot better. I was a bit stiff though. Maybe because I had been resting on a stone slab? I was no stranger to hard bedding or outright sleeping on the ground but cold hard rock was pushing it a little. I decided to take her advice anyway and lay back down. That didn't stop me from taking stock of my surroundings though. I turned my head left and right to look around and groaned. Even my neck was stiff.

Kaele who had kept to the background approached me now. Her familiar jumped from her arms onto that of the old troll woman from where it climbed onto her shoulder. The old shaman even scratched her under the chin with great care. Kaele in turn looked both troubled and relieved. I felt troubled as well, as I recalled one of the images I had seen in my fever dream. Had it really just been a dream? Or had it been a vision of sorts? Should I talk with her about it? I just didn't know. As she wrapped her arms around me all thoughts of that matter fled my mind though. Instead I just returned her embrace, gently patting her back. Not that I did mind the hug, but that was becoming an all too regular occurrence. At least she didn't cry this time. She just whispered into my ear. “I'm so glad you are awake again. You were out of it for the better part of two days, you know.”

Well, no wonder that I felt stiff. I let Kaele pull me up into a sitting position slowly. Other than the stiffness in my whole body I felt better. No more fever ravaging my body. No more pain. I looked up at the two trolls. “I can't thank you enough.” I paused briefly searching for words. “I probably owe you more than just my life.”

The old woman chuckled. It sounded like rocks grinding against each other. “You. Don't. Owe. Us.” She offered her hand to Kaele's cat, allowing it to jump back down. “You. Owe. The. Maidens.” She watched for a moment as Kaele's familiar clambered into my lap before continuing. “We. Just. Called. For. Their. Attention.”

The old man grumbled something that could be taken for agreement. “I. Get. You. Something. To. Eat.” He paused briefly and I took the chance to pet the purring feline in my lap. “You. Need. To. Regain. Your. Strength.” With those words he turned to disappear from the chamber we were in.

I kept petting the cat for a little while, finally letting my hand rest lightly on its side while it purred contently. At the same time I furrowed my brows. Something felt off. Try as I might I couldn't quite tell what though. Not until a noticeable shudder ran through the ground. We were underground, somewhere in the cliff side near the foundations of the bridge as far as I knew. This was more than a little troubling. What could shake these formidable foundations like that? I looked up at the old troll woman, with worry clearly visible on my face.

She nodded, probably guessing what was troubling me. “A. Raging. Storm.” She sounded weary. “The. Devourer's. Curse. On. You. Is. Broken. But. She. Seems. Not. Willing. To. Just. Give. Up.” She clapped her hands three times. “The. Cursed. One. is. Doing. Battle. With. Her. Sisters. And. The. World. Shakes. In. Its. Foundations.”

I could only nod, my thoughts drifting back to the very end of my dream vision. The old woman might just be right. No, what was I thinking. She knew better than me, how to interpret dreams, signs and portents. She had years, decades if not centuries of experience in these matters. She was most certainly right. My heart ached a little that I, insignificant as I felt, might have been the spark that ignited this titanic battle of divine powers so much greater than me. At the same time the last words of the Lover came to my mind again though. Live, love and fight, with all your heart and never give up. These words firmed my resolve once more.

“Kaele, would you help me up?” I urged my sister to help me back on my feet so I could regain my footing. After two days lying on a stone block I certainly would need all the exercise I could get before resuming my journey to the capital. That thought reminded me of other things I had to take care of. “What about the caravan?” And at long last I became aware of my state of undress. “And where are my things? My clothes? My gear?”

The cat mewled in protest and Kaele pushed me back down into a sitting position. “Take it slow. I took care of things while the curse took you out of commission.” She looked me straight in the eyes. “I sent Zul'gar ahead with the rest of the caravan. He knows what he is doing. He will manage. We will meet up again at Caer'zha just outside the capital. If he gets there ahead of us he will wait for us to catch up. If we get there first taking shortcuts we will wait for them instead.”

I smiled, breathed a sigh of relief and leaned forward a little, resting my head against her shoulder. She patted me on the back in return. “Thanks sis.” This really took a load off my shoulders. That left only one matter for me to address. “So, what about my clothes?”

“Ah, yes.” She pulled back again and I straightened out again. “We had to check the injury so we took everything off. And I took the chance to have everything cleaned. You were quite sweaty from your fever after all.”

The old shaman nodded at that. “The. Injury. Was. Not. The. Problem. It. Was. Healing. Just. Fine.” She paused briefly as the earth shook again under our feet. “It. Was. The. Curse. That. Was. Killing. You.”

Just then the old man returned with the food he had promised. He carried a big bowl with steaming meat and an equally large loaf of bread that still somehow looked small in his hands. My sister's familiar perked up as well at the smell and as the old man placed the bowl in my lap the feline gave me the most pitiful meow I had ever heard. The old man just laughed. A sound like water gurgling over rocks in a happy little creek. “Eat. Up. It. Should. be. Enough. For. The. Three. Of. You.”

“Thank you.” With these words I picked up a piece of juicy meat and started eating. Kaele bowed her head in thanks as well. While we were eating we took turns tearing off little junks of meat every once in a while to feed the cat as well until she was finally satisfied and curled up next to me.

The two trolls got themselves a serving, much larger than ours, as well. Thus we spent the next little while eating in silence. It was Kaele who finally broke this silence while tearing a piece of bread off the big loaf. “Oh, I almost forgot, our hosts had your new armor finished while you were fighting the curse! Its awesome!”

The old trolls nodded and the woman elaborated further. “Our. Crafters. Insisted. It. Is. Not. Every. Day. You. Get. A. Chance. Like. This. To. Work. With. The. Scales. Of. A. Wyvern.” A smile spread across her face. “Please. Wear. It. With. Pride. Let. Everyone. Know. That. You. Are. The. Bane. Of. The. Devourers. Foul. Creatures.”