Silent Artemis

by Hokusai3211

12) Oaths and Debts

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The river of the third largest waterfall of Equestria wasn’t what one would think of as a land imbued with great conflicts and important resolutions. In fact being in the middle of a desolate and mostly unforgiving woodland known as the Everfree, completely inhospitable in almost every way save for the outermost ring, which was merely very dangerous meant it was hardly even visited, let alone the stage for drama.

It’s meagre few yards of flat land surrounding the expanse of water around the fall offered little more than a scenic view to most civilised ponies, who already had more than enough natural expanse of wilderness to stare at to last a life time.
In fact even to get there one had to cross near suicidal obstacles just to experience the trivial pleasures that the average Ponyville denizen could experience simply from looking out their back door.

But at that very moment by the waters edge, an important event was taking place as the sole owner and self proclaimed ruler of this tiny land, fought at that very moment a decisive battle against an invading foe.

The proud barrel chested, black eyed red breasted robin. Mother of an untold number of eggs, was fighting off the intruder with beak and claw. It’s newest and most hated adversary lay motionless as it pecked furiously at the creature's long five digits, which occasionally twitched in response.

The apex predator, (as it saw itself,) had not had what it would consider to be a good day for it’s kind. It’s hopes and aspirations of completing it’s nest and finding a mate before autumn had been well and truly dashed in the early hours of the morning, when a flying blue monstrosity with rainbow hair, had smashed through it’s home. Not even looking back to acknowledging it’s crime.

But, despite the devastating blow, things had picked up slightly, as later on it had managed to snatch a scattering danino fish from one of the river flows by the foot of the waterfall, hoping if not to procure a mate then perhaps lunch at least.

Flying back to a safer area to enjoy it’s lunch, disaster had sprung again, when a plummeting white and mud splattered mammoth of a beast had come out of nowhere, falling from the sky. Years of experience had saved it in the nick of time, from being dragged below the raging waters, but in the confusion it had lost the fish and more importantly it’s patience with these flying creatures.

That had been the proverbial straw that had broken the camel's back, or more accurately, pegasus that had broken the woven twig nest.

It had vowed it’s revenge then and there. Diving after the plummeting creature, it followed it down the torrent of river water for several miles. Until finally it had washed ashore sprawled against the murky banks unmoving sprawled on it’s back against the bank of the water. That was when the robin sprung it's deadly assault. Attacking the creature with no thought of mercy or pity as it pecked it’s revenge into the creature's finger, for what felt like hours.

With mixed results it had to be said.

But after a while, it had grown tired and bored, revenge after all was not something one could build with, like a solid twig. In fact it was starting to learn that revenge was only a tool by which things are only ever taken out of the world. It felt at that moment it had learned a valuable life lesson.

Then just as it perched itself atop the finger of the creature, vowing in it’s own way to live it’s life in peace and free from vengeance, the creatures had suddenly come back to life, and flung itself upwards, taking the robin with it and catapulting it at speed through the canopy.

It had just enough time to squawk in protest as if flew backwards towards its own doom in the forest.

Revenge, it had also learned, much to it’s chagrin, was a two sided blade.

Pruned and aching fingers sunk deep into the oil black muck of the waters edge as she sucked in greedily for breath.

Pain flashed through her like lightning in a storm cloud. She praised one eye open, a slit of sickening brightness burned her eye’s as the sun’s rays attacked the back of her brain, she grunted, stuttering out the only word she could find appropriate at that moment.

“Fu-fuck!”

It was mute and carried no sound as she felt her lips move. But still it felt better than saying nothing at all, as the pain in her head and body flared up all at once, convulsing her body to spasm and kick, like a hammer hitting every part of her body all at once.

Something lurched deep inside her stomach and she tried to turn over, but a heavy weight against her chest pinning her to her back and with little strength and not much time, she instead dropped her head onto it’s side and retched up water.

Eventually, her stomach settled back down, she blinked away tears as she waited for the world to come back to some sort of order, or at least stop blurring around her. Mercifully, her stomach gave one final lurch as she spat, and then settled down again.

At that moment her head and her body felt like that special colourful cracked glass she had once seen in the worshiping temple dedicated to the All Mother Velka. Shattered and always threatening to break apart at a moment's notice, held together by what looked like a mixture of magic and wishful thinking.

It was funny in a way, thinking back to that moment, that despite being shunned, looked down on and generally despised, she couldn’t help but admit, compared to this very moment. Life had been simpler, in those days.

She remembered the days when she and Tyche would do nothing except stare up at the clouds for what felt like hours, trying to work out their mysterious shapes. Often they came up with ridiculous monsters and their nefarious deeds, or heroes and their great adventures. Now she was doing it to try to focus her mind on anything else but the pain and nausea.

Although it had to be said, cloud watching got somewhat tedious after a certain age. Especially as everything in Tyches mind had funnelled down to looking like either an arrowhead or if Farfar was out of earshot a stallion coc-

“Ugh.”

She froze as she heard the unfamiliar groan around her chest. She blinked, head lulling against the ground, before a healthy concoction of curiosity and consternation drew it drunkenly back up to look at what was pinning her down.

On top of her, using her chest as an impromptu pillow was the mare who had both saved her life and nearly killed her. She lay strewn about, splayed with all four limbs wrapped around her torso, head pressed between her breast. Her fur damp and strung together in clumps all around her body. Her hair, usually wind swept and spiked, was plastered to her forehead, concealing one side of her face behind it’s tangled multi coloured stands.

She watched the mare for a moment, then managed to pull the back of her hand up and place it just by the mare's nostrils as she waited. Then by some miracle she felt the tickling sensation of hot air against her skin and pulled it back. Simultaneously she let go of her own breath that she didn’t even realise she was holding in.

Still alive, she thought idle, not sure if she was talking about the mare or herself.

She found herself surprised by how much she cared that the mare was unharmed. Not that she wanted to see the mare hurt at all. But it had been a long time since she had worried about anyone other than her own self preservation, the idea of caring about others was not a luxury the forest allowed.

She was happy to see her safe. But by Velka's beak, the mare was heavy.

Lazily she lifted a finger up to poke at the mare's cheek to wake up and with that didn’t work she pushed harder, despite the pain in her own arms. The mare's only response was to snuggle deeper into her chest.

Tyche always said I should lay with someone, I don’t think this was what she meant though. She thought sardonically, it’s flattering, but it’s getting hard to breathe.

As if reading her thoughts the mare groaned as she gave one last poke into the mare's chest, before finally muttering out a garbled, “Five more minutes.”

She looked down at the mare on top of her, and despite herself, despite the circumstances, despite pretty much everything in her life going up in flames, she began to laugh.

It came out indistinguishable from a choking sob at first without the noise, or maybe because there was no noise. Then slowly she heard that fluttering whistle she had begun to hate emerging from somewhere in her throat. That cawing squeaking sound like a baby bird demanding to be fed, that battered remnants of her laughter, the ugly cheeping in place of the one Tyche used to say sounded so pretty.

But even so she was unable to stop herself, despite how disgusted she was at the sound of it, until it was all she could hear, until her lungs almost burnt from the strain. She ground her eyelids together with her hand squeezing hard into them as she hot streaks of tears began to form from them.

Why she was crying she didn’t know. Happy because she was alive, sad because nothing in her life had changed or maybe she was crying because she felt like doing it, she had almost died after all, no one could blame her for that at least.

Slowly, however, she made herself calm down. Looking on the positive side, that was what she had sworn to do after all, that’s what Tyche would have done. Unfortunately that was in short supply. But at least the mare was providing some means of warmth to her shaking body, the water had been ice cold leaving her body numb and shaking, not surprising, considering it had most likely come from the melted glacial streams of the mountains around them.

But at that moment, it felt oddly tranquil, there in the sun by the mare, she seemed oddly peaceful in sleep, pretty almost in a way. Her usually hard face softened against her skin, her feminine side accentuated in sleep, her long lashes and soft curves against her jaw relaxed and supple. She hadn’t remembered when she had found anything pretty in that way, not since... well not for a long while anyway.

Ever so slowly she felt her own heavy lids drawing closed. Five minutes. she thought, parroting the mare, perhaps that wasn’t such a bad idea.

Arti...Where are you?

Her eyes shot open at the sound of invading thoughts, ignoring the burning rays of the sun. The idea of sleep well and truly banished from thought. She looked around her, eyes darting this way and that towards the shadows of the trees.

Damn it! She thought Should have known, it wouldn’t let me rest. But that still didn’t make moving any easier.

Have to keep moving. She told herself. No time to rest not now, not without protection.

With some effort she managed to push the mare off her, truth be told, she hadn’t been trying all that hard beforehand. But with the fear of Velka in her now, she found the strength to do it. The mare groaned as she slid onto the murky bank of the river like a dead fish, then out of nowhere the mare let out a yelp of pain.

“Gah!” she hissed, violet eyes opened in panic, locking eyes with her, confused, scared and hurt, before going hazy once more.

“What’s wrong?” She asked, waiting for the mare to respond, then almost slapped herself for the stupidity of it all. She frowned down at the mare, who it seems had passed out again from the shock. Grabbing her side she hoisted her up onto her other side and spotted the problem almost immediately.

The mare's wing was bent at the wrong angle, dangling by her side, limp and sagging.

She touched it as delicately as she could, feeling around at the base, the mare let out another cry, but didn’t wake this time. Slowly she felt around for her worst fears, then let out a silent sigh as she sagged backwards with relief.

Not broken. She thought as she kept a keen eye on the base, but not good. She bit her lip, wondering what best course of action to take, when the faintest sounds of scratching tickled the back of her mind. It was far fainter than they had been before, but of course that wasn’t going to last for long.

You can run Arti, but I’ll find you, I always find you. The voice sang.

She tried to push herself back up, her knees knocked together, and she had to hold onto a nearby branch just to stop herself falling backwards onto the water.

I’m Sorry. She thought as she stared back at the mare, She wasn’t leaving the mare, she was saving her, if she stayed, then it would have them both, she knew that for a fact, there was no way she was going to get back to where she needed to in time if she brought the mare with her.

She would be as good as dead.

Her, or you? She thought bitterly, but shook her head.

No, I have to do this alone, I can’t bring her with me. She had seen it too many times before, that stallion guard, still fresh in her mind, she was a danger to others, how many more times did she need reminding of that.

But the mare was as good as dead if she left her too.

A life saved is a life owed.

She ground her teeth, the words coming more like a slap to the face as they sprung in her mind. An old long forgotten oath she had taken and wished to forget.

Why was she thinking that of all things now?

Maybe because it was true, maybe because the mare had saved her, unwittingly or not, she had saved her from a grizzly death. What was worse? Her potentially dying to the thing that was following her, or knowing she would absolutely die to the elements, the forest, or the creatures that called the forest home.

A life saved.

It was hard to ignore that law of the hunter. She could recite the laws of the north verbatim, they were good words, simple, honest. Everything she loved in the world, it was more than just a saying. To be Loyal to something, it was all she ever wanted in life.

A life owed.

She looked down at the mare on the ground again, breathing slowly, shallowly, but more importantly still breathing.

She caught movement out of the corner of her eye, and nearly snapped her neck to glare at it in the distance. A bush rustled far away enough not to see, but close enough to worry her. She froze, stepped backwards and felt her foot nudge against the mare's chest, who groaned slightly but stayed blissfully asleep.

She crouched over, not at all ready to fight, quite the opposite in fact but looking like you where ready to take on the world was half the battle in the wild. She realised suddenly, crouched with one leg straddled over the mare then and there that she looked more like she was protecting her kin than herself. But it was too late to care what anyone thought at that moment.

Then suddenly a figure dashed out, hooves tapping against the ground and playfully jumping up and down, bounding around the scrub. It was a deer, a fawn, white as fallen snow and probably just born that week or near enough to it anyway.

She cocked her head in surprise then froze, breath catching in her throat as she watched another figure slowly traipsing out from the forest beside it. A stag, as tall as she was, proud and regal white with great ethereal antlers that shone an eerie blue, glowing incandescently.

If she hadn’t been scared and close to wetting herself, she would have remarked on how odd that was. But then again, ponies had all sorts of odd and silly creatures living in their lands, everyone up north knew that.

But there was nothing silly about those horns, not when each one of the tips looked about the size of her finger and could have spared her right though like a knife into butter.

She grimaced as she tried to right herself and clipped a toe against the rock, the pebble scattering with a splash into the water. She winced and looked up and noticed them all locking eyes with her.

She was not a true believer in fate, in fact she couldn’t remember the last time she had prayed, to The All Mother or anyone for that matter. Often she had only spoken the words of prayer to make Farfar happy, but even doubters raised in the midst of a fervent believer pick up a suspicion or two in their lifetime.

And this sign was about as clear as The All Mother Velka got.

It came down to two options really, wash her hands of it and walk away free, and actually maybe live out the night to come. Or take the mare, who looked like she might not live out the night herself and potentially get them both killed, just for some silly oath she had no reason to keep.

She watched and waited for the stag to rear its head, to come charging at her with those blue icy horns and run her through, but all it did was stare at her, like it was also waiting for her to make up her mind.

She could be useful? A voice told her and she was surprised for once to realise it was her own, an older voice that she had suppressed, the one that had kept her alive, the one that was perhaps just as ruthless as the dark one that invaded her thoughts. She stared down at the mare, she was fast, she was durable, she was smart… In her own way anyway.

She frowned as she considered it. Wondering now if leaving her stranded alone in the unforgiving woods was actually a more merciful thing to do after all.

Maybe we could use her? She considered it for a moment, but then another voice cut through it like a torrent of water.

Don’t try to hide, I can smell your fear. It roared, clearly getting frustrated.

She scrunched her eyes closed, unable to think of the right thing to do, but she had to make a choice then and there. Time to decide, now or never.

“A life saved is a life owed.” she muttered aloud as she wondered just exactly what Farfar would have done at that moment, But it wasn’t hard to work out, after all she had lived it a long time ago.

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North Vekra Forests, Griffonia, Twenty years ago

Yells, squawks and shouts could be heard somewhere in the distance as she ran through the night, not caring where she was going only that she was getting away from the noise as quickly as she could.

“Come back here, monkey, we just want a word with ya!” One of them yelled, not far behind.

“Aye, a word, creature, and maybe something else too.” another one half yelled half cackled, even closer than the last voice.

At one time, she had wished she could understand what it was they were saying. Those strange birds like chirps, growls and caws. Wished with all her might she could understand what it was these giant bird headed lions that skulked the lands were talking about.

But now, as she heard them calling out to her, aggressively yelling in detail what they would do if they found her, she really wished she could go back to her ignorance.

She clutched the heavy necklace around her chest, the gem bounced painfully against her collar bone, digging into her skin with it’s jagged embroidering. The periapt that she had carried around with her for the better part of however long it had been since she had first come into this horrid world, felt horribly heavy all of a sudden.

The moon hung low and ominous in the sky, giant white luminous rays of moonlight streaked across the forest floor, making the path around her lighter, but the shadows encroaching her all the blacker for it.

A branch clipped her forehead, cutting into skin and she raised a hand out too late to stop it. A feather, small and brown flew into her face and she blew it away, the last remnant of her plan gone horribly wrong.

Why had she thought stealing livestock was a good idea? She didn’t even know what to do with it if she had. She had no way of making a fire, no idea how to cook it, and she was pretty sure she would have had to eh… Make them not alive as well, something she was not sure she had the stomach to even do.

Stomach, even the idea of it made her weak to the knees, she had just been so hungry, she had been scavenging the land for how long now? She had no idea, it had been warm when she had been taken to this place with monsters and beasts straight out of her story book, now the leaves were turning brown and falling away, and she still had no idea where she even was.

She wanted to go home, she just wanted it to all go back to normal, back to how life had been before this whole nightmare. But she had no idea how to get out, just like she had no idea how she had come into it in the first place.

“Get back here you furless whoreson!” A voice squealed in the distance, reverberating off the trees. It was close, too close, had to run, had to keep going.

She looked back, unable to see over the tops of the ferns as she ran as fast as her little legs could take her, when suddenly she hit something hard, and yet oddly soft at the same time, like a pillow stuffed with wood.

She ricocheted back, lost her balance and was sent sprawling into the mud. Despite the blow, she recovered fast and looked up, eyes bulging in terror. It craned its head to the side, looking down at her with it’s leering predatory eye meeting her as he watched her unmoving.

She gasped, crawling away backwards in the mud and soil, “No!” she managed to gasp out, horrified by the sight of it. How had they managed to get in front of her? She was sure the voices were coming from behind her.

“I didn’t do anything!” she yelled, her already high pitched voice going up several octaves further, kicking away at it on the ground with childish petulance. Her fear turned into frustration and then anger as she managed to claw her way back up to standing. Baring her shoulders she tried to make herself look bigger, but even then she only barely came up to his chest in height.

The creature, griffons they seemed to call themselves, slowly frowned. Behind him a gentle fire had illuminated half of his face. One eyebrow lifted up slowly as he cocked his head puzzled, as he turned to fully look at her with both eyes. Only then could she see that one side was missing it’s feathers. Missing just about everything, only rough wrinkled skin, pinkish save for the eyebrowless black pupil in the middle, that seemed to gleam at her.

The sight would have horrified her, if the sight of one of her pursuers right in front of her didn’t scare her enough already.

It regarded her for a moment then looked up just in time to see the bushes rattling in the distance as his fellow kinsman closed the distance on their target. She looked around for any means of escape, but the voices were all around her now, she looked back baring her teeth at him, she wasn't going back without a fight.

“What are you looking at you big stupid bird!” She spat at him, hoping if nothing else to get him to do something stupid so she could escape, but he just stood there, unmoving save for the smallest traces of a smile on his beak.

“She’s over here!” One of them screamed, landing hard onto the ground behind her and she turned, seeing only a wall of grey downy feathers in front of her. She gasped, stepped back a couple of paces, but paused when she remembered the scarred one was right behind her.

This was it, she was trapped, stuck between the two of them, alone in the woods. At the mercy of these frightening creatures.

“You’re gonna get it this time you little sodding monster!” The large grey one growled, curling his beak into a twisted grin as two other similar coloured griffons emerged from the brush, chest heaving from the strain of the run, each eyeing her hungrily.

She looked left and right, trying to formulate some way of getting away from them, but there was nothing around her save for fern bushes and swaying bluebells. She looked down at her feet, lifting up a fallen branch but it was soggy, barely staying firm in her own hands.

She was well and truly screwed, she knew it, this time it was all over.

Then the brown scarred griffon behind her coughed, hacked loudly and spat into the fire, which sizzled up in it’s embers. She watched as the grey feather figure in front of her furrowed his brow, then seemed to notice the one scarred one behind her for the first time.

“Evening.” The scarred one said before the others could open their beaks. His voice was placid, as if seeing three of his kind chasing some creature through a darkened forest at who knew what hour of the night was just one of those things.

She risked glancing back, looking to see if he was behind her, ready to pounce and was more than a little surprised to see he had moved back to the fire. One claw stirring what looked like a pot of soup of some kind that boiled over the top of the flame.

Despite the danger she was in, her stomach growled irritably at the sight. The notion of any kind of hot food, regardless of what it was, left her mouth salivating even in the wake of the fear she felt.

“Bit late to be out chasing things around, ain’t it?” He said, tossing the spoon back into the pot, before finally glancing back, looking over her head at the three of his kind. She turned back, wondering why none of them had grabbed her yet, made good on the threat they had barked out at her for the better part of what feels like hours.

But the three other griffons just stood there, none of them moving an inch, like there was some unseen line between them and neither one of them was brave enough to cross it for fear of what might happen.

“Piss off outcast, we ain’t here for you, we’re here for this thing.” The skinny, sickly looking one said, with a sneer, pointing down at her.

The scarred one, glazed back at her looking her up and down, but not like a piece of meat, like the others had. No this was different, this look was more like he was looking at her the real her and perhaps even into her, like she was one of those story books spread wide open.

“It’s been stealing from our village.” The other one said, bigger than the rest by at least a head, it’s slow idiotic voice booming like the crackle of thunder.

“Stealing... that’s a serious crime.” the scarred one said thoughtfully, scratching at his beak with a claw, “what did it steal to have you chase it halfway through the woods at Velka knows what hour?”

“Chickens.” the big one answered laconically and without further explanation.

“Chickens?” the scarred one said, a hint of a chuckle escaping from his beak.

“I didn’t steal nothing!” she sputtered out, tired of being talked about like she wasn’t here. it was true, sort of. She had snuck onto the farm with every intention of stealing them, but she hadn’t been able to actually grab anything before she was spotting.

Naturally therefore, in her mind she hadn’t stolen anything.

“Aye, Did that thing just talk?” One of them, the smallest one said, eyes widening as he looked back at her like a dog had suddenly stood up and demanded equal rights.

“You heard us outcast, now get out of the way, if it talks, then it’s smart enough to know better,” the third one spoke, apparently the leader of the group. At least that's what it looked like to her, purely because he seemed to be the only one with some sort of cunning in his eyes.

Without warning he lunged forward and grabbing her by the arm, She tried to squirm out of his grasp, but his hold was strong, his rough claws wrapped easily around her little arms and dug in making her gasp from the pain, “We’re taking her back to the village, stealin’s a crime and crime means punishment.”

“Let go of me you, stupid ugly pigeon!” she yelled, thrashing vainly at him.

The scarred one snorted, now smirking openly, “not only can it talk, but it seems she can describe you well.”

“Screw this, let me at him Hendrick!” The skinny smaller one said, stepping forward but the leader halted him with his claw.

“Easy Hansell we only came for this one, he’s already serving his punishment,” Hendrick said, making a sign with one claw, the others did the same, “we ain’t going to do anything that the laws don’t tell us to do outcast, crime fits the punishment, she steals, she loses a talon, them’s the rules.”

She looked up at the grey griffon, eyes widening. She wasn’t exactly sure what he meant by that, but then she made the mistake of looking at the other younger one, who leered at her, lifting an open claw up and mimed a chopping motion down onto his littlest one.

She might have been young, but she wasn’t dumb and it didn’t take a great mind to understand what that motion meant.

Panicking she lunged out, driving her other fist upwards, but her first two hits did little more than bounce off the griffon's chest.

He leaned down, sneering at her as she squirmed, “Stop that fool, you’re only going to hurt yours- gah!” He let out a pained cry as she waited for the perfect moment then jumped up and drove her fist into his eye.

Hendrick squawked backwards, cursed then struck out, the back of it’s rough and scaly claw connecting with her cheek. She flew backwards lifting a hand up to her face, tears welled in her eyes. But she bit them down and instead spat on the ground by his claws.

“Stupid sodding whoreson!” he cursed, clutching his eye before taking a step forward. She scurried back both hands and feet, away from his razor sharp nails until her back, collided into another set of claws, this time the scarred one.

She looked back up at him, blue eyes meeting black ones and without thinking, she ran behind him, clutching his hind leg with her hands and peering over at the three of them.

He followed her trail with a bemused expression, before turning back towards the other who took another weary step closer.

“Seems this one has other ideas.” he said pointing claw, or talon as she had just learned like a thumb back at her.

“Get out of the way, or you’ll be coming with us too!” Hendric spat, all traces of his careful demeanour now gone, as his eyes lit up with the reflections of the fire in front of him.

She expected the griffon to move, leave her to the others and be on his way. But instead he stayed where he was, not moving and not looking like he was going to move for anyone.

“Listen fellas, I understand the laws well enough, Great Mother I do, but I think our bloods a little up at the moment, what with Velka at her peak.” He said lifting his head up to the moon, “so how about we simply forget about all this, no harm done is there, a blow for a blow. You certainly won’t do it again will you?”

“Sod that outcast, you gonna let this outcast and monkey make a fool of us?” the little one said, growling at the leader, but she could see that he wasn’t exactly racing to take up the fight.

The leader just looked back at them both, eye’s reflecting the fire, like dancing infernos as he growled back.

She flinched, but still the scarred one didn’t move, didn’t even flinch, in fact if anything his posture seemed to relax as he looked back at her and motioned with his eyes smiling that wry smile of his, "Well hen?" He said.

She growled back at the three of them, mirroring her own venomous tone growl, but after a moment, managed to spit out the words. “No.” only half laced with the hatred she felt.

“See,” he said looking back at them chuckling, “she gets it,” he paused then looked back at her, “you are a she right?”

“Not even, still crime!” the biggest one growled, stepping forwards, but again, with weary eyes the leader managed to pull him back, apparently knowing something about the griffon by her that she didn’t.

“Careful Ironhead, outcast remember.” he glared back at her then at the scarred one, seeming to relax ever so slightly, which only worried her more, because his eyes told a different story. “aye, a blow for a blow, but what about the chicken, debt still has to be paid.” he demanded.

The scarred one nodded. “Aye, it does.” he said, leaning backwards and for a second she thought he was leaning back for her. She drew backwards a step, but stopped when instead he fished out for something by his paws and flicked it at the larger one.

A small sack landed with a clinking sound against his talons and he looked up frowning. Until the smaller griffon picked it up and held it feeling the weight of it and his eyes widened.

“Was going to use that coin to get one of those new fangled flatbows, thought it might make hunting easier, all you have to do is point it and, “ he looked back at her, mimed something flying into his neck and sticking out his tongue with a smile. She didn't return it, mostly because she had no idea what he was even talking about.

He sighed. “But really I’m far too old for learning new tricks these days, you know what they say about old orthrus hounds, am I right hen?”

He leaned back to her with another smirk, but she only glared at him again. "Not much for wit aye hen?" he said, then shrugged, looking back at the three griffons. “Well, anyway, I think that’s more than enough for a chicken.”

“Three chickens.” the largest one said in a flat monotone voice, apparently his favourite or only expression, and she could see even the sacred ones eyes lit up with surprise.

“Three?” the scarred one said, looking back with genuine shock. “Just how hungry were you?”

She only shrugged in response.

The other smaller one smirked at the sack in his claws apparently placated by the idea of easy gold, at least that’s what she assumed it was, but his smirk died when he caught Hendricks expression, solemn and unmoving.

“What’s to stop us simply taking the gold and the creature?” Hendrick finally said with a growing smirk.

The scarred one considered this for a moment, scratching his beak, then finally shrugged himself. “Well, nothing really, save for it would be a right bastard thing to do. But then, that wouldn’t be justice would it? That to me would seem like you were out for something else all along, something more than just avenging some chickens.”

All of them at that moment looked at her, or more accurately looked down at her necklace. She caught their glares and clutched the heavy gem in her hand, moving further towards the scarred one’s back.

The leader nodded for a moment thoughtfully and seemed to be weighing his options. Then slowly with a serpentine smirk looked up at the largest griffon. “Iron head!”

“Aye?” The large griffon boomed.

“I've changed my mind, Beat this old fools head in, then grab that creature.” he said flippantly pointing towards her.

“Aye.” the lumbering one said with a nod. She gasped as she watched him taking a lumbering heavy step forward towards them. His body was a mass of muscle, barely held together with feathers and fur. All of them were taller than she was, even the smallest one, but this one towered over even them. His shadow eclipsing even the scarred griffon who wasn’t small by any means.

She gulped and began to walk back, but froze when she felt the scarred griffon's tail wrap around her ankle and for a moment she thought she caught him winking at her.

“Sure we can’t talk about this lads, lion to lion?” He said with an uneasy smile, looking up at the giant who slowly twisted his neck to the side making a long and loud sound of clicks and creaks that made her shiver to her spine. Then the other smaller seemed to gain his courage and walked up beside the hulking brute, sneering at them both.

“Sorry, I'm going to break you now.” The big one said with absolutely no emotion in his voice, as if this was just something he did along with breathing through his mouth and eating.

The scarred older griffon deflated for a moment, “Right then,” He sighed.

Then he lunged forward, moving impossibly fast, His tail went straight, pushing her away from him as the large one lifted both claws up over his head and brought them both down, hitting the ground they had both been occupying hard. The force of it scattering sod and chunks of earth in its wake. The scarred one lifted his wing up, reaching under it and drew something out of it.

She caught something small and wooden fall from the crook of his wing as he brought it to bare, it was the spoon from the pot she had sworn he had put back into the pot. Swinging upwards with dizzying speed, he brought it up and into the jaw of the smaller one. He let out a dull odd squeak, almost comical before he toppled backwards. The scared one didn’t wait, and in the same fluid motion brought it hard down on the hulking griffon's head as the big one tried to draw himself back up, all but cracking the thick wooden spoon with the force of the blow.

The first one might have gone down like a sack of grain. But the other large one only stumbled forward staging for a moment like it had been nothing more than a pillow, before he looked back up his deep frown somehow deepening.

“Huh, that normally works.” the scarred one said, pausing in disbelief as he stared at the spoon, crack in half in his talons. Then his eyes widened as the big one grunted, threw a punch with surprising speed ,considering his bulk and somehow managed to duck it. Just as the blow landed above his head, smashing into a tree, sending bark flying in all directions.

“Better watch yourself creature.” Another voice growled, and she turned to see the leader, Hendrick strolling forward, murderous intent on his eyes as he wet eyes gleamed in the light, reflecting the light of the gem he was fixated on.

“Stop moving, so I can crush your head.” the big one said, with the same emotion one used to swat a fly, staggering forward after him. He dodged again narrowly blocking a blow that was sure to take his head off his shoulders.

“Sorry, I know it ain’t the prettiest, but I sort of like my head.” He quipped back, gasping as he narrowly side stepped a blow that almost had the ground around them rumbling.

He brought what remained of the wooden stick down again, hitting the griffon square on the claw, a blow she knew would have broken anyone else bones, but it only seemed to make the large one angrier as he lunged in time to grab hold of the older scarred one's neck. Clutching it in his claw.

Her eye fixed back on the leader, who had drawn a blade from somewhere, it was rusted, chipped at the end and looked past its prime, much like it’s owner, but she knew it would still do the job if she let it.

Looking around, she spotted the fire, and with her eyes still fixed on the grey speckled griffon she managed to grab hold of a long stick burning in the pyre. It’s orange flames sending sparks of embers around her as she flung it towards the leader, who’s smirk only grew larger as he kept walking slowly towards her.

“Put that thing away monster, unless you want me to use it on you.” He said, licking the underside of his beak.

She edged back, sure that if she ran now, she would at least a chance of getting away in time in the chaos. But where to, even if she did, what was she going to do, she was still lost, hungry and alone.

She was sure that there were worse things in the forest than these creatures, she had seen a couple of them all too close. She looked around at her options then she noticed the fire, and despite herself she began to smirk.

The large griffon lifted the scarred one up against a tree trunk, as he scratched and kicked at the bigger griffon, but it was like punching rock. He ignored the blows and instead brought his claw up slowly, curling his talons into a first as he looked unblinking at the scarred griffon.

“Not personal.” He muttered.

“Hard not to take it personal,” the scarred one said, with a gasp.

“Might want to look at me girl, his end's coming, yours's is right here.” The leader said, now only an arms length from her, the length of the stick, small fading embers, the only thing between her and a bitter end. She licked her lips, looked at both the scarred one and the forest, looked at the dagger and the tails of the griffons.

Weighted her options then she did the only thing she could think to do, closed her eyes she felt for the stinging cut across her cheek that the griffons claw had given her and with some effort brought the sanguine liquid to the amulet.

Please. She asked. Then after a moment it started to glow, as darker red than the blood, if not darker.

Then a familiar voice answered.

Finally, I knew you’d come eventually.

Please help me, I’ll do it, I’ll pay what I owe and more, just please I don’t want anyone to die!

There was a long moment of silence in which she feared that the voice had shunned her then slowly it etched it’s way into her mind.

Is that a wish?

She froze, a cold sweat breaking out across her back as time around he seemed to stop, everything around her going in slow motion.

She knew the price of it, she knew what it offered. But at that moment, she didn’t seem to have much of a choice.

“Come girl, open your eyes, no fun if I can’t see the light go out.” He said with a bark of laughter, as the light seemed to finally extinguish on the stick. He lifted his claw ready to smash it out of her hands, when suddenly the flame exploded back into life.

He let out a gasp of his own for a moment then froze as she drew it back like a javelin then threw it. The stick skidded past his cheek, singeing the jutting unpreened feathers as it went.

Squinting he opened his eyes and looked down at himself, then began to laugh, “that the best you can do, you miserable littl-”

“Fire!” A loud booming voice called out behind him. He turned, they both did, looking at the behemoth of a griffon as it dropped the scarred one. She spotted the stick stuck into the ground around where the massive wall of muscle had been, or more importantly, where his tail had been.

“Fire” The big one shouted again, panicking this time as flames began to light up the end of his paint brush tail as he tried to swat it away. For once showing something of an emotion on his face, even if it was only fear. He tried to grab at his tail to put it out, but his great bulk worked against him, his arms too thick to reach anywhere further than his stomach. He spun around for a few seconds then turned and like an animal barrelled away as if trying to outrun the fire.

Right into his leader.

Hendrick gave a squawk of surprise and pain as the tidal wave of muscle collided into his chest, crumbling him near in half, and knocking him out cold. The big fool let out a panicked whooping sound, trying and failing to put out the burning of his paintbrush tail, as he stumbled and ran away out of view, leader still wrapped around his arm.

She caught movement out of the corner of her eye, the smaller one had recovered, he looked around, holding his beak in his claw as droplets of red dripped down around his talons. She readied herself to get another stick, but sensing the losing battle, he simply turned and ran in the same direction as the screaming brute.

She watched them go, a satisfied smirk on her face, then her knees gave out under her from the exhaustion or the pain as she clutched her face. Feeling the swelling already in her cheeks, she gingerly licked the inside of it with her tongue feeling a tooth wobble inside of the jaw worryingly.

“Don’t worry, you’re still not as ugly as I am, little hen.” She heard the scarred one say, gravely voice somehow thicker in no small thanks to the big ones claws around his throat. After a moment, he lifted himself up and brushed away the remnant of the tree bark from his downy feathers.

She stared at him for a moment not sure what to do, what to say, she could still run. She knew that, but she had seen him move now that he was free, she knew he could catch up to her in moments if he wanted to.

She eyed him weary as he got up and began to walk towards her, then past her towards the fire. She kept her eyes trained on him even when he let out a world weary sigh and sat back onto his plot, his joints clicking loudly as he did so.

He groaned, lifting a claw up to his back and messaged it with care, muttering something about his age, as he lifted the pot by the fire and tasted the brew with a claw.

She waited there for the longest time just watching him, then finally he turned and glanced at her. “Looks cold over there, fires warm, trust me.” He said, cracking into a lazy warm chuckle as he pushed his claws closer to the blaze, as if to emphasize the point.

But she didn’t move, instead she just watched him with envy. Cold air chose that moment to grip her, finding all the holes in her torn cloth and blowing against her bare skin. Her clothes, what was left of them were a wreck, dirtied and torn jeans, a t-shirt marked with the face of a smiling cat was torn away at the shoulder and dropping down around her chest.

With little else but desperation and the idea of standing there and freezing to death out of stubbornness, She walked carefully down to the fire, eyes on him all the while, then ever so carefully, she sat down on the other side of it and moved her hands close.

His head was facing the fire, stoking the flames softly with a stick. But all the while she could see him watching her from the condor of his eyes, then after a moment, his eyes widened and he lifted his head up and looked back.

She watched with a puzzled expression, one leg bent to run if she needed to. But he stopped her with a raised palm and a reassuring smile. Then head cocked to the side she watched as he lifted his claw up and began to move it, producing strange symbols with his talons, each in different ways until finally he stopped and turned back.

“Sorry forgot someone.” he said looking back at her, she blinked, eyes narrowing. He lifted his claw up once again to pacify her “hey, don’t worry, just had her hide until the trouble was over, she mostly harmless,” he chuckled, then his face got serious, “but just be careful, she apt to jump sometim-”

No sooner had the words left his mouth that a figure burst out of the shadows of the darkened trees around. She yelped, nearly jumping onto her feet as claws curled around her, wrapping around her chest tight, sharp nails like little needles gripping onto her mud streaked shirt as it held on.

“Got you!” a voice squeaked out, with an impossibly high pitched tone, like it was one away from something only dogs would hear. She reached up and tried to grab at the figure, but it flickered this way and that, flapping what felt like wings to keep her from regaining her balance. Then she felt it’s claws go under her necklace,

“Oh, pretty!”

“Let go of that!” she screamed, rage building in her as she bawled her hands into fists. But before she could do anything to the creature on her back she felt the weight of it lift from her shoulders.

“Tyche, what have I told you about sneaking up on others!” He scolded, frowning as he picked up her assailant in his claws, grabbing at the nape of her neck. She turned, teeth bared, ready to fight whatever had jumped her until she finally saw what had jumped her. But when she finally got a good look at it, all her anger seemed to dissertate as quickly as it had come to her.

In his claws dangling around the scruff of her neck was what could only be described as a ball of fluff with a beak on it. White as snow like a piece of cloud that had come to life. it dangled turning this way and that, downy fresh white feathers skewed and jutting out in all directions, like a porcupine made of marshmallow. It’s eyes beady black buttons with the smallest amount of white around the iris shone bright as it reflected the light of the fire back at her.

“That I should always come from behind and get them when they ain’t looking.” she said sagely, smiling at him manically, but the effect was lost as she had to turn herself back with an awkward flap of her tiny wings to face him.

So C-cute. She thought, her heart melting at the sight. Then she snorted, disgusted with herself for thinking that way. But it didn’t stop her from thinking it, in fact the more she looked, the more it reminded her of her favourite teddy bear she had left in her room back home. Only with a beak instead of a snout.

He blinked, “well, yes, but by Velka little hen, not when we have a guest, I taught you some manners.”

“That’s why I didn’t use my claws.” she said proudly and he rolled his eyes.

“Say your sorry.” he said flatly.

“But I’m not sorry, Farfar?” she said looking back with a puzzled expression.

He pinched the bridge of his beak. “All mother, why did you curse me so?” he looked up at the moon then dropped her onto the ground, she watched as the white ball of fluff righted itself, then looking back at him sourly, stuck out her long thin tongue, before quickly turned and walked towards her.

“Are you a magical monkey?” She said, leaning in until they were almost nose to nose.

She leaned backwards nose scrunched as the smell of freshly eaten fish wafted from it's mouth. She looked up at the scarred one and pointed, “what is this thing?”

He chuckled, “well if you ask me, I’d say she’s one of the all mothers hunting hounds, come to our world to punish me for all my black deeds.” he said sighing, as she looked back at the ball of fluff, who didn’t look much like a dog. More like a baby seal that someone stuck a beak on.

“But if you’re asking what she is,” he said sighing as he sat back down again scratching the side of his beak, ”she’s a chick, reckon no more than five, as far as I can tell and this rude little snowball can give you her name.” he said fixing her a frown.

“I’m Tyche,” she said without a second of delay, pushing up so that they were almost nose to beak, “and I’m five and three seasons old. My hatching day is next season, when the All Mother makes the leaves turn brown, then I’ll be zero and six!” She squawked proudly, ignoring Farfar and keeping her attention on her.

“Who’s this All Mother?” she said, backing away, she watched cautiously as the two of them looked at one another for a moment like she had asked what colour the sky was, it was Tyche who recovered first.

“How old are you?” Tyche asked, leaning in again as if the idea of personal space was a concept that happened to other people.

She frowned for a moment in thought, then slowly turned away and looked down at her hands, lifting each one up for a moment, two, three, four. “six.” she finally said, looking back.

“Huh we’re almost the same age!” she said giddy, “and you're bad with counting too!” She said again, like it was something to be celebrated.

“Am not!” she said back bitterly, she wasn’t bad at it, she was quite good, when the numbers didn’t get all jumbled up in her head.

“All right now, that’s enough, give the hen some space, she’s been through quite the ordeal.” The scarred one, Farfar as the chick had called him said, as he pulled the chick away from her, and with it the wafting stench of cooked fish.

“You were so cool.” Tyche said after squirming away from Farfar for the second time. For a moment she thought she was talking to Farfar until she realised that she was still looking at her.

“Me?” She said.

“Yeah, the way you set that big one’s tail on fire, it was so funny.” Tyche chirped happily, “How did you know it would work?”

She paused, she didn’t in fact, she had been aiming for his back, the tail had just gotten in the way, but she was feeling proud from the compliment and didn’t want to sour her feelings in front of this creature. “Just luck.”

Farfar watched her for a moment then looked down at the amulet by her neck. Instinctually she went to clutch it but paused when she heard him chuckling, “well good thing your luck paid off then.” and he paused as if trying not to say anything but unable to help himself.

“Hen, where did you get amulet fro-”

“-Does that mean we own her now Farfar?” Tyche said with an innocent smirk, staring back at the both of them as collectively they both lost control of their bottom jaws.

“What?” she said, getting back up onto her feet, glaring at Farfar, “I knew you wanted something, it told me nothing comes for free!”

Farfar cocked his head at her for a moment, perhaps wondering what she meant by It, then he sighed and pinched the bridge of his beak. “How many times do I have to tell you, it’s a life saved is a life owed, not owned.” he smiled apologetically, “sorry she’s just started taking her Oath lessons.”

She didn’t say anything, mostly because she didn’t know what he was even talking about, she had never heard of any oath, or Velka or much of anything that had come from their beaks. But not wanting to look like a fool she slowly nodded her head at that.

But one look from the old griffon had told her he already knew she had no idea, and instead he merely smiled and sat back on his hunches. “Not from around here are you?” he said knowingly and she bit her lip and looked down, holding onto the necklace with one hand, slowly she shook her head.

“No.” she said, her voice suddenly softing to a whisper, then she realised how low she had said it and piped up, “I’m from, somewhere else, far away I-”

“How did you get here little hen?” His voice was impossibly soft, despite the gravel in it, and it made her pause. The lie died in her throat as she looked up at his scarred but earnest eyes and then looked away.

“I-I made a wis-” she froze, the words trapping her tongue with the horror of the idea of saying those dreaded words. Afraid that even uttering the word would cause it to manifest again.

Slowly her tears began to come back, she wiped them away quickly. But still they came on and eventually she just let them fall. She was tired, scared, hungry and missing her family so much. But the saddest part of it all was, she couldn’t even remember their faces, or who they were or if she even had one.

Why had she wished for this, why had she thought this was what she had wanted, she only wanted to be away from all to forget all the pain and all the anger. But now she was in a whole new world of it. The pain and anger far worse and far greater than she could have thought possible.

But once a wish was answered, it could never be unanswered. That was what it had told her. That was what it had tried to warn her. But she had never been very good at listening.

She clutched at the jewel by her neck, half wanting to crush it with her fingers, half afraid of what it would do if she did, the metal points dug into her fingers but she was far too numb from the cold to care at this point.

Maybe if she just held it hard enough, it would take her back, wake her from this dream, this nightmare and she could just go back to when everything was normal again.

She flinched when she felt claws around her neck again, the hard and callus reminder that this was reality. She felt herself gasp when something nuzzled her neck soft in their intent at least. “Don’t cry, you can have some of my fish if you want?” Tyche said softly, like the idea of fish solved everything, perhaps to her it did.

“I’m not hungry.” she muttered with a hiccup, but her stomach betrayed her with a grumble, obviously disagreeing with that notion. “I need to leave.” She said, pretending to look around, as if some part of the darkness would give her an adequate excuse to flee.

The scarred griffon looked up from the bowl he was ladling soup into, “So soon?” he asked, a deep set frown on his beak. “At least stay and eat somethin,’ my honour,” he paused, “what’s left of it anyway, won’t allow me to let a guest past by hungry, my ancestors would haunt me all throughout my dreams.” he said and that easy smile was back, one that despite her best efforts and despite his horrifically burnt face, she was starting to warm to.

She looked down at the soup he was offering, tantalising chunks of vegetable and meat floated around a brownish creamy liquid. The sight of it made her weak at the knees from hunger. But life in these past few months had already taught her, nothing came for free.

Why would he want to help yo-

“After all, the little chicks right sometimes, a life saved in a life owed, but I reckon it’s me who owes you.”

She opened her mouth, closed it, then looked at the chick who was doing the exact same thing, wondering if the old griffon had gone senile in the time since sitting down.

“Me?” She said.

“Her?” Tyche parroted over her shoulder.

“Aye, suppose it’s only fair, you could have run away when that big basta-” he coughed, looking around at the two youngster, “-burrly fella had me pinned against the tree, but you stood your ground and helped me outta a tight spot, that’s a life saved enough in my book.”

“But if you hadn’t helped me, you wouldn’t have been almost killed?” She asked, and Tyche seemed to nod along with that agreement.

“Yeah, you saved her first, you’re the hero.” Tyche said, and she frowned back at her, over her shoulder, but could hardly argue the point.

Farfar sighed as he stroked his back. It seemed he did a lot of sighing as well, perhaps that was one of the few things about getting older, not that she could tell how old he was, all the griffons looked the same to her.

“Little one, what did I say about throwing that word around, all I did was what the oath bound me to do, what it’ll one day bound you to do. No lion ought to stand back while some little, eh?” he paused, looking at her as if the name of her kind would appear on her forehead, sadly it wasn't.

“Hen” he finally landed on, “was being harassed. I did my duty, but she had no reason to help. Could have fled if she wanted to, don’t reckon she has an oath binding her to what happened here. But I’m mighty grateful that you didn’t, so I figure that means I owe you. Life saved and all, even if all I can offer you right now is a bowl of soup and a safe place to rest your head.”

“But, but that’s not a hero, heroes beat the monsters.” Tyche said, brow furrowed in confusion.

“Hero’s act in the face of danger hen, sometime they fail, but a hero act’s when there ain’t no benefit to themselves doing so, and that’s what she did, now pipe down and let her answer, or they’ll be no supper for you.” he warned, then looking back at her.

She felt her cheeks reddened at the praise, she had never been praised much in the past, and like someone starving for food, after even a taste of it, she found herself already wanting more. But she didn’t want them to see that so she looked down at her feet, at the one sole remaining trainer on them, white before now black from mud and lord knew what else, the other naked, save for the frilly remains of a sock.

She wanted to trust them, she really did, she had wanted desperately to have something friendly to lean against, this world might have been imbued with all the magic and the fantastical that she had read in her stories she had heard growing up in her world. But not many of them had anything more than evil in them, and a mind only to do harm to her.

But these ones did seem genuine, and she hadn’t seen any of the other creatures even turn a kind eye to her, let alone offer to help her. She looked at the chick who was eyeing them both curiously, part excited energy in the way her tail swished back and forth and part worried about her easy to read face.

She gazed down at the bowl in the griffon's claws, salivating at the sight of the steam wisped off into spiral curves around the bowl. She clutched the back of her arm with another and bit her lip.

You wanted to be alone, that was your wish, do not forget that. It hissed in the back of her mind, We do not need their help.

She gulped, looked down and bit her lip again hard. Thinking things over, contemplating on the idea of being alone one more night, was she any safer that way, was she any better for it. She had told herself she couldn’t be hurt if she was, nothing could hurt her anymore if she stayed away from them.

They weren't real, this was all a dream all made up in her mind, if she didn’t pay them any attention, and she would wake up out of this dream turned nightmare.

But every day she woke up and nothing was different, she was still alone, hungry and scared. In a land of made up monsters.

Never go back, you’ll stay here forever, I can help you if you leave. It whispered to her, and somehow she knew it was right…

But she was so tired of being alone.

“Okay,” she said softly, clutching a lock of her ashen blonde hair and twirling it nervously. “That does sound...nice.”

You will regret thi-

“Yay!” the chick said, cheering right into her ear and drowning out the voice. She leaned up behind her again, like she had the first time only this time when her paw hit her back she heard clothes ripping them

“whoops, sorry.”

She pushed down her annoyance, and instead broke into an uneasy grin, “that’s okay, it was kind of ripping anyway.”

Even Farfar had an easier smile at that moment as he regarded what she was wearing. “Looks like we’ll need to get you something to keep warm, you’re a little.” and he paused thinking up the right words for it, “featherless. I suppose I can head to the clothmaker before we go searching for your kin.” He inclined his head towards the darkness and she followed it for a moment, gulped then looked back.

Can’t go back, Can’t go back, Can’t go back. It seemed to sing in her ear, like a song with no melody

“Well come sit then, before it gets cold, little, eh?” He paused unsure of what to call her, "you got a name?"

She thought for a long moment, pushing her tongue into her bottom lip, she had a name, of course she had a name, it was one of the few things left of her old life she did have. But if she was doing this her old life was over and with that her name was over too. Still all she could think about was her wish, that one wish she had had that had led her to this place and it all stemmed from one figure, that goddess in her stories who never showed fear or weakness.

The goddess of the hunt, the lone queen of the forest. The woman who knew no fear and was respected throughout the land. She had told herself she wanted to be a woman like that. And if she was going to live in this fantasy then...

“Artemis?” she said, almost like a question, then she nodded, “that’s my name’s, Artemis…” she paused when she realised she had said it with a harder inflection than she had wanted to “B-but my friends call me arti.” she said softly, because if anything she felt slightly embarrassed when she said it, feeling like in some ways she was making a fraud of herself.

Perhaps she was, it was a big name to live by.

But the griffon only nodded, “That's fine name I suppose, good as any.” he said and somehow she could see that he knew it was not hers. But then again, Farfar didn’t seem to be his name as far as she could tell, so perhaps they where both living who they wanted to be, rather than who they actually where.

“Right then, Artemis who's friend call you Arti, let's get you someplace safe.” He said with a smile, as Tyche climbed on her back once more and nuzzled her cheek and despite the trepidation in the pit of her chest, she smiled back, after all, that was all she had ever wished for.

---

“Stop it Tyche, that tickles.” Artemis said smiling despite the strain of it all. Looking back at the sleeping figure on her back, then she froze, stomach sinking in her like an anvil.

It wasn’t Tyche. It was the Rainbow mare, slumped against her back, where she had been for the better part of an hour, pressed against her as Artemis carried them through the woods, across marsh and through grasslands.

Oh right. Artemis thought, of course it wasn't them, it was just her, like it always seemed to be. Her and now the mare, but based on how she was feverishly shaking against her naked skin, it didn’t look like she would be very long for this world either.

Artemis blinked around at her surroundings, wondering just how long she had been occupying the state of joyful nostalgia without interruption. But such was the way of the forest. At one moment it could be her mortal enemy, throwing all it had at her, and then in the other so peaceful that she had hardly seen anything in hours.

Slowly Artemis scanned the sparse wilderness around her, until finally, her eyes locked on something and when she squinted to see though the rays of the sun and the foliage, she gasped when recognition flooded her memory of this place.

In the distance, against the treeline was a wall of rock, jagged and jutting out like a castle rampart. A side of a mountain or at least a massive hillside, she had never been quite sure what the difference was, but she knew without a shadow of a doubt it was what she was looking for.

Artemis raced towards it feeling new life breathed back into her bones as she all but raced towards them.

She sidled up to one of the trees, unhooked one of her hands from behind the mare and wiped away at the invasive moss grown on the bark. The runes she had carved around it were still there, dulled and weatherworn, but still as deep and clear as the day she had carved it.

She looked around her, suddenly spotting all the tell-tale signs of everything else she had come to recognise in her home, reclaimed somewhat in places as she noticed the arrow she had stuck into the ground now sporting a line of ants across it, but that hardly mattered now.

She walked across the wall of rock for a moment, trying to familiarise herself until she found what she was looking for. A craggy jagged fault in the massive slab of boulder. No less than a few claws in diameter stood in front of her, dark and to most wholly uninviting. She peered inside the expansive darkness, feeling the cool air tickling her skin as she stepped closer.

A scary thought to most to step inside of something like that, but to her, it was anything but. Because to her it was home, or at least as close as a nomad got.

She tried to slide inside of it without thinking and was rewarded with a bump to her head as something pushed her bodyweight forward. Artemis cursed, then looked back at what had obstructed her, only to once again remember what, or who she was carrying.

Oh right, of course you fool.

Artemis pressed her tongue into her lower lip as she tried to think of how she was going to get this done.

Perhaps if I….

She heard another rustling come from behind her and froze, then she heard the sound of wings beating against a tree and sighed. But that was enough, no time to be clever about this, she was going to just have to do what needed to be done. She had chosen this path after all, now she was going to have to live with the consequences, she had carried the mare so far on her back, how bad could the front be?

Artemis frowned back at the mare, Velka, why do you only punish good deeds?

---

Artemis almost fell into the fur at the sight of it, knees buckling under the weight of carrying the mare like a toddler through the cracks of the caves entrance, fresh cut's and burses already on her fingers. As gently as her worn out muscles could allow she placed the mare down onto the fur and hay that had been her bed and caught her breath.

She watched the sleeping mare, wrapped up like a chick just hatched and wanted nothing more than to join her on it. Wrapped around the fur cover without a care in the world. Velka if only she would like to just lay there beside her, she looked warm and inviting.

Her body hadn’t touched another in some time and now that it had. Even though it was roundabout at best, considering they woke up unconscious on top of one another. It seemed to crave nothing more than the feel of another living creature.

Artemis scrunched her tired eyes closed, Are we really going to do this?

But then she remembered the sounds of scratching in the back of her mind, those sounds where gone now, but thy would come back. She had work to do and not just that. She looked down at the mare, curled around the fur. "This is going to be unpleasant." she said softly, though she wasn't sure who she was really talking about, herself or the mare.

Sighing Artemis looked around the pitch black cavern. So much she needed to do and in such short time. She bit her lip and considered her options, really it was obvious though, the first thing on her list. She grabbed flint and a knife then felt her way towards the closest wall until it brushed against a thick stick with a rag on the end of it.

Fire my old friend, it's been too long she joked as she got to work.

She let her neck reach back and touch the wall of the cave. It was halfway done and that had been the easy part. She glanced around the cave, familiarising herself, after nearly a month away. She had wasted no time lighting the torches all around the cave, and already a small crackling fire was growing in the middle of her den. It was no bigger than her hand in size, small, but it didn't need to be, the cave she had picked kept the heat in and already with the canopy much of the heat was being kept inside.

Behind her, a wooden box sat open atop a pile of dirt, freshly dug up, sod and packed earth strewn about the cave floor. Her fingernails had taken the brunt of it as she dug out the dirt, why had she dug so deep. She scolded herself, but she knew why. She never left things half measure.

Nothing ever done well, was done half arsed. Farfar words in her mind, not exactly what the ponies called poetry, but there was wisdom in it.

Artemis clutched at the red gem encrusted amulet around her neck, it felt heavy, but also reassuring, like a favourite cloth or a reassuring arm of a loved one. Not that she had had much of either in her life.

Artemis shuddered when she felt something cold touching her thigh and looked down at the small dagger in her hand, realising that her fist was shaking against her leg, she was gripping it so tight she could see the white skin on her usually pinkish knuckle bones.

Then she closed her eyes, summoned up the courage she had and drew up the dagger.

Time to get to work. Artemis thought resolutely. But that didn’t make her legs move any faster.

“I'm Sorry for this.” Artemis muttered mutely, to herself or to the mare, she didn’t know, she supposed it didn’t really matter much. Wincing as she brought the blade down towards the sleeping mare.

A life saved was a life owed. She was a woman who lived by her oaths, but she already owed a great deal to a great many. What was one more debt to pay?

End of Part One