Any interaction with the shadowy creature known as Pitch was a draining experience, but Len sensed something more off than usual with the thing tonight. It wasn’t afraid, she wasn’t certain it was even capable of such an emotion. It was, however… anxious? Any attempts to classify it's emotions always seemed to go awry for her, so she didn’t bother dwelling on it for long, she simply waited for it to make its move.

It didn’t take long. Less than a minute after her invitation, the world around her froze. It was always disconcerting to behold, but this time was especially odd since she was sitting in front of an open flame. A part of her wanted to reach out and touch the frozen flame, but from what little she understood of what was happening here, that’d probably be a bad idea. Instead, she just gazed coolly at the humanoid form aiming for where she imagined its eyes might be.

“You have been keeping me away,” it said matter-of-factly.

“I have,” she said, matching its tone.

“Why?”

“You’re an unsettling thing, mate. Hardly a time goes by that dealing with you isn’t a test of some sort and, frankly, I’ve got enough on my plate right now. If you want to be direct, I’m more than happy to chat with you, but I really need you to stop with the riddles and just say what you mean.”

“That is not my way and expecting me to change is a recipe for disappointment. If you insist on behaving petulantly, we could look into changing our arrangement.”

“No,” she sighed. “I need you, and you know it. Not sure exactly why you need me, but I’m beginning to suspect that it’s about more than just amusement. So tell me, Pitch, what do you want this time?”

“Simply to pass on a message. Your next trial is going to be tougher than what you’ve faced so far.”

“A trial, is it? Are you talking about this meeting I’m heading towards, or that Claymar guy? Could I get some specificity, maybe buy a vowel?”

“Do not be flippant with me, Namethief. I am offering you a warning, you had best heed it.”

“You’re offering me vague gibberish and pretending that it’s some grand revelation. I really can’t tell if you’re genuinely trying to help, or just fucking with me. You can’t expect me to take the threat of some new danger seriously, can you? Of course I’ve got challenges coming my way. Of course they’re tougher than what I’ve dealt with before. That’s just the way my life goes, isn’t it? Show up and beat the crap out of some trolls? Sorry, Len, all that buys you is a trip to a bigger tournament. Defeat undead minions under the command of some asshole who I annoyed by beating those trolls? Enjoy! You get to go live in the middle of nowhere with a bunch of Orcs who can’t stand you. Why on earth would I expect anything to be easy from here? It’s always one thing or another, just tell me what the fuck is going on or piss off.”

The figure regarded her for a moment. It didn’t seem particularly annoyed by her reaction, nor was it insulted. She doubted it was looking at her with newfound respect at her rejection of its premise. No, what it was doing now was trying to figure out what the best manipulation would be to get her to do what it wanted… without telling her what she wanted to know, of course.

“This land is about to be caught up in conflict,” the creature said, a bit too carefully for Len’s liking. “This will be an opportunity for you that you shouldn’t miss. You have a needle to thread, but if you manage it, you will reshape things here. Think carefully on what you might do with that power. Understand that any enemies you’ve made up to this point will pale in comparison to the ones you’ll be making once you step onto the next stage. You should understand that before going forward.”

“I mean, you’re not wrong, but what do you want me to do about it? I don’t exactly have a crack team at my disposal.”

“You could, if you so wished it.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“It doesn’t take nearly as much as you’d imagine to bend others to your will, to make them eager to serve, to die, all for you. You’ve already seen evidence of it.”

“Oh, sure, in war movies where every last moment is scripted. You really want me to believe that all I need to do is give these guys the right speech and suddenly they’ll be ready to remake this region all for my benefit?”

“You don’t understand. Maybe it’s too soon. We’ll talk on this again later.”

“Wonderful. Later. Well, thanks as always for creeping me the fuck out and giving me nothing to work with, mate.”

The fire resumed its crackling, and Moe glanced at her curiously. It always happened when Pitch used its little trick. All the world was frozen around her, but she could move normally. When time resumed, there was always that instant where she wasn’t in quite the same position she’d been at the start of the effect, and anyone who caught it would be confused before shrugging it off, unless they were clued into what was actually going on.

“And did your shadowy companion offer any new pearls of wisdom?” Moe asked.

“Nah, useless as always…” she paused. She was fairly certain she’d never actually described Pitch in any detail to anyone but Kila. She’d figured it would either freak them out or be seen as a sign of deteriorating mental health from someone thrust into power too soon. Yet he’d…

“What did you expect, boss? My job is to observe. I’d be piss-poor at it if I didn’t pick up on these things. Not much most of the time, just flickers of movement when I follow your gaze. Usually it’s nothing but every once in a while, I see it. Figured you’d tell me when the time was right, but it’s late and I’m bored, so I let my curiosity get the better of me. What’s going on?”

“Remember when that human tried to trick me into getting myself killed making a pact to gain power? Turns out the thing I made that pact with has taken a very active interest in my life. It’s helped out a few times, but only just enough to get us through. I don’t trust it but it hasn’t made any active moves to harm me or anyone I’m close to. It’s got a goal in mind with me but it’s sure taking its sweet ass time letting me know what that might be.”

“Hm. Well, you’re obviously already being careful, but I’ll remind you to watch yourself all the same. Anything that can do what it does is dangerous and shouldn’t be dealt with at all if possible.”

“Don’t think that’s an option, mate. You’ve seen what we’re up against. You know that it’s only gonna get rougher from here. I know you like the peaceful route, but the only way pacifism works is if it’s got a strength backing it up, otherwise you’re just prey for anyone who wants to abuse you.”

To Len’s surprise, Moe nodded.

“You’re right,” he said. “I don’t thank you often enough for providing that power. There was a time where I thought I could walk a path of total nonviolence, but life hasn’t offered me that. What it has offered me is someone worth following who doesn’t rush to war. You cannot understand how rare that is.”

As she often was, Len was struck by just how well-spoken Moe could be. It was a terrible, and definitely racist thought, but she did think it before crushing it down again. She’d never say it, and hated that she thought it, but decades of media that mostly portrayed goblins as gibbering half-sentients were difficult to overcome. Moe had seen a lot, and done much in that time, of course he’d have more to say than cackling and attacking. The fact that she needed to even think that pissed her off.

He saw something of the thought playing across her face, but mercifully let it slide. She just smiled back at him and clasped him on the shoulder.

“It’s all good, mate. You deserve a peaceful life. Wish I could give it to you, but I need everything I can get right now, and that includes you. Shouldn’t be an issue with these guys, though, right? Peaceful dudes exiled for pissing off the wrong clansman?”

“Probably. It’s also possible that they’re murderous thugs who had enough connections to avoid outright execution.”

“Ever the optimist, Moe. Let’s just go to bed.”

And so they did, gathering themselves up and climbing into their separate tents to endure the night in silence. Oddly, the thing that bugged Len the most as she started fading from consciousness was the lack of snoring. Keseryn’s chainsawing had a tendency to wake the dead, but now that there was nothing but peace and quiet to endure, Len found it almost unsettlingly quiet. Strange how quickly one can adapt to things.

* * * * *

They awoke to an ugly grey dawn. The sky was overcast with clouds that obscured the sky, though they didn’t look to be bearing any snow to make the day even worse. Len grumbled and made a small breakfast for the two of them while Moe set to work tearing down the tents. They ate quickly, doused the fire, and continued on their journey.

It took them more of the day than she’d have preferred to catch sight of the camp of humans. Four adults, two children, all occupied with tasks about the camp. An older woman was the least active of them, and seemed to be weaving some sort of fabric together. Len shrugged and moved to approach them.

“Did you want to try anything safer than marching up to them?” Moe asked, smirking a bit.

“Nah, no sense in risking it. Hang back a bit in case I need some backup, but I think I can handle a conversation.”

“You’re the boss,” Moe replied.

“Yup, that’s why I get to go do exciting things like walk up to a camp of strangers who may or may not try to kill me on sight. Why am I doing this again?”

“Because you were bored,” Moe said with a grin. “No backing out now.”

Groaning internally, Len hefted the bag of food and started the march towards the camp. She wasn’t making an effort to hide herself but started to feel uncomfortable as she got closer and closer without them noticing. She did her best to stomp louder and make some noise, and she was still almost on top of them by the time they realized she was approaching.

“Hold there, stranger!” yelled a middle-aged man with a hawk-like nose.

“Ho there,” she said cheerfully. “I mean no harm.”

“Why are you here?”

“Mostly to kill time,” she answered honestly. “I heard you guys were near us and I figured I’d swing by to see what you’re up to. Name’s Lenore Wraithwhisper, by the way.”

“Thalus,” the man replied stiffly. “We don’t want any trouble, dark elf.”

“Me either. How ‘bout food, you want some of that?”

That caught the attention of everyone in the camp.