Hope ate her eggs and bread, silently watching a line of ants march past the now dead fire. They expertly avoided the ash, continuing on their path past her and beyond. It was a funny thing to see something so ordinary in such a strange place.
"I noticed you curiously eyeing my tent last night." Gale's abrupt voice caught her off guard, and she quickly glanced up with a slight frown.
"Was I?" She asked.
"Indeed…" Gale trailed off a moment, standing above her. In his hands, he held three heavy tomes. "I thought, perhaps, you might be interested in some of the books I keep. Aid a bit of the boredom."
Hope pursed her lips and nodded as she eyed the books he held. She couldn't deny that the sight of them did stir her curiosity. What would books from another world behold? Were they in a language she could read? She supposed there was a high possibility they would be, considering most of those she'd spoken to, she'd understood. Unless it was some trick of the mind, they shared the same language — oddly enough.
"Thank you." She took the stack from his outstretched hand and bit her lip, glancing up to see him watching her. "I'll return them as soon as I can."
"Take your time," Gale offered with a soft smile, "I do enjoy sharing my knowledge. Of the world. Magic. The Weave. It is my greatest known pleasure."
Nodding, she carefully tucked the items safely into her new satchel — which she'd found on the side of the road — and stood to her feet. "I imagine we'll be leaving soon?"
"Ah, yes," Gale nodded and glanced around at the others who were packing up. "It seems we are. Shall we, then?"
The sun beat down from above, and the only one who seemed more than happy to bask in it was Astarion. He walked along the well-beaten path with a spring in his step.
"So," Shadowheart said as they continued, "Does anyone have anyone waiting for them back home?"
"As in romance?" Astarion asked with a sly, wicked smirk. "Not in particular. Though my bed has many visitors. Do with that information what you will."
Hope rolled her eyes as Gale chuckled, "Hm, that's…complicated."
"It always is." Shadowheart supplied and glanced at Hope, who had wished the topic would veer elsewhere. "What about you, Hope? Anyone special awaiting your return?"
"No." She answered.
Smirking, Astarion moved to walk beside her, "Let me guess. Complicated?"
"You could say that…" Hope answered, then remained quiet.
"Well, you're being no fun. No juicy details to share?"
Hope glanced his way and met his red, keen eyes. "More interesting than yours? Definitely not."
"Probably true."
She rolled her eyes again and continued up ahead when she stopped, frozen in her tracks as a sound on the wind drifted through the wind. She gave a soft command, "Stop."
They did.
"Why?" Shadowheart looked around with an irritated glare and looked at Hope. "It was only a simple question, no need to be dramatic."
Hope cast a steely gaze on her, "I hear someone up ahead."
Now they all listened. Intently.
"I hear it too…" Astarion said with a frown. "Voices. Arguing."
Gale nodded and slowly withdrew his staff, which sparked with an electric energy. "Let us proceed. With caution."
Moving forward, with Gale taking the lead and Hope allowing herself to fall back in step with Astarion, she looked up, observing the rocky formations that surrounded them. It would make for a perfect scheme for any ambush, should such motivation exist toward them.
"They're a good distance away," Astarion said in a low voice beside her, "and you heard them?"
"You did too."
"Well, yes, but…"
Hope glanced at him and waited for him to continue. When he didn't, she asked, "But what?"
Chewing his lower lip, he shook his head and released an almost agitated sigh. "Oh, never mind. We're closing in now."
While suspicion gnawed at her belly, Hope had to ultimately put the sensation away as they neared the sound of the people. What would they be, friend or foe? Then, there they were. Two…people? With their red skin and the horns that sprouted from their heads, Hope couldn't say she'd ever met anyone who resembled them, just like she'd never met someone like Lae'zel.
Speak of the devil…
Above the two who argued in the open ravine, surrounded by rock walls on either side, was a cage. Suspended in mid-air, it housed a prisoner.
Lae'zel.
"Just do it already," one said to the other as they approached.
"We could just leave it up there. What harm would that do, really?"
Hope glanced up at Lae'zel, and they locked eyes. Instead, Lae'zel glared fixedly at Hope and her companions with crossed arms and a scowling sneer.
"Get me down from here!" She growled.
"Friend of yours?" Gale asked, pausing his steps as he glanced back at Hope, to whom Lae'zel's glare was pointed.
Only then did the two arguing turn to their group.
"What do you want?" The male asked, crossing his arms defensively. "It's not safe here."
Carefully, Hope approached and stepped around Gale to address them, while keeping a watchful eye on the cage above. "You're right, it isn't safe here. You should probably go. Let us handle it from here."
They exchanged a quick look and then glanced at the cage. "I don't know."
"You won't kill her. If you wanted to, you would have by now. You hesitate. Why bloody your hands when you can leave it to people who can?"
Hope didn't miss the roll of Lae'zel's eyes. She smirked.
"Well," the female rubbed the back of her neck, "I suppose we should head back to camp. She's right, you know. I'd rather not if I don't have to."
"A camp?" Hope asked with sudden interest. "What kind of camp?"
"A grove. Shared at present, but safe enough from the goblins that roam." She answered.
Hope didn't dare share a look with her companions as she asked, "I don't suppose they'd have a healer there?"
"Are you injured?"
"Stubbed my toe." Hope offered a sweet, lying smile as her eyes glittered with persuasion. A quick compulsion to get ahead. "Where is it?"
"Just along the road here, a couple of miles. Northwest. You'll find a healer there, named Nettie. She should be able to fix any ailment you have."
"Thank you."
As if falling out of a daze, she blinked and smiled. "Of course. We'll see you there soon, then."
As they retreated, Astarion neared her and chuckled under his breath. "Quite the smooth talker, I'm impressed."
"I can be charming when I want to be." Hope flashed a smirk at him before glancing up at Lae'zel, who continued to leer down at them.
"Are you finished or will you quit your babbling and get me down?"
"Why should we?" Shadowheart sneered in reply. "Githyanki. Can't trust the lot of them."
Hope sighed and looked at Shadowheart, "You heard them, yeah? Goblins all around. Our chances are better with numbers."
"I just hope you know what you're doing."
I sure don't, Hope thought to herself as she looked up and studied the cage that held Lae'zel prisoner. "Astarion, how good is your aim with that bow?"
"Impeccable, darling."
She almost smiled. Almost.
"There are some weak points in the bottom frame. It might all come undone without crashing to the ground. She'll be able to jump from the height, I imagine."
Hope could feel his searching eyes on her for a moment before she turned to meet his gaze and, without smiling, asked, "Please?"
He chuckled, deep in his throat, "At your request."
Turning her attention back to the cage, it took one loose arrow to send the bottom crashing to the ground, and Lae'zel pounced with lethal precision, just as expected, and leered at them.
"What they say is true, those…tieflings. Goblins roam the area, but that cannot stop us. If we are to be cleansed, we must continue forward, to my people. To a creche nearby."
Nodding slowly, Hope frowned, "Okay, I'll bite. What's a creche?"
"It is many things. A training ground, a nursery. It is our salvation."
"Didn't you hear them? There's a healer. We can go there, can't we?"
Lae'zel scoffed, "You can try, but it won't solve our affliction. The only way to save ourselves is to find a creche and be cleansed. It is our only chance."
"Like hell," Shadowheart grumbled, "We can't trust her."
Hope glanced over her shoulder, looked at Gale, who seemed equally concerned, and then said, "The best way to get rid of these things is to keep every door of possibility open. I'm not willing to gamble with only one way forward. Are you?"
She forcefully tore her glare away from Lae'zel, and it softened just slightly as she finally sighed, staring at Hope. "Fine."
It was as good as they'd get, she supposed. She turned to Lae'zel and nodded. "Come on then, we'll find your…creche, but we'll continue to lead the way we have, too."
While obviously annoyed, Lae'zel conceded with a curt nod, "Very well, but don't waste too much time. We don't know how long we have until this parasite takes us over. It could be a matter of days. Hours."
Nodding, Hope looked ahead to where the tiefling's had ventured toward. "Alright, to the grove, I suppose."