5. Gnawing

As the three left the city borders, Caoilainn stopped for a bit and said:
- "Richard, now please, close your eyes, I have a little surprise for you!" - he obeyed her. He trembled a bit and flinched feeling her finger poke at his nose. She quickly laughed, poked him again and then touched his glasses - "now, open your eyes again!"
- "Wow!" - Richard was seeing the world a bit darker, a bit clearer and the blue sky was slightly more colorful - "those are sunglasses!"
- "Yes, now take them off" - said Caoilainn. He took them off, and they were scarlet like his belt.
- "What did you do?"
- "Well" - she smiled and swayed in the sun - "I just enhanced your glasses with a tiny bit of magic. Now, you just need to touch them and picture how you like them. They will change according to your desires!"
- "Well, thank you, that is amazing!"
- "That's nothing, just a little thanks for the watch you gave me" - and she exhibited her wrist.

For the next minutes Caoilainn strolled cheerfully ahead of them as Richard kept changing his glasses, the colors, the shades and the format, until he settled with a more square format, scarlet color and a shade for the sun. He turned to Isabella and said:
- "Your friend is really amazing, I didn't know such a thing was even possible" - she answered:
- "Yes, Caoilainn, is not only crazy. She is also generous, lively and a fantastic alchemist, she specializes into the transmutation of matter according to her whims." - she smiled - "I do love her, she is my best friend." - Richard also smiled:
- "I will want to know all about alchemy" - Isabella laughed at where he put his focus:
- "Don't worry, you'll have time" - and the three continued walking.

After some minutes walking on the road, a man riding a donkey at full speed appeared before them. He suddenly stopped, looking desperate:

- "Lady Isabella" - he panted - "it's a god send I could find you, the rats" - he paused - "the rats showed up again! We are running for our lives, they are coming towards Morirom" - Isabella kept a serious and attentive expression throughout and said:
- "Are they on the road?"
- "Yes, my lady."
- "So, return to safety, to the town. We will deal with these monsters."
- "Thank you, lady Isabella" - he bowed and left galloping. She turned to Caoilainn:
- "Do you want to deal with them?" - Caoilainn smiled and said:
- "Of course!" - Richard asked:
- "What's that about?" - Isabella said:
- "Just some more monsters from another world. We have dealt with them before, don't worry. Just pay attention to the sounds" - the three continued in the same direction, now a little faster and listening carefully.

It was not long before they could hear high pitched sounds in the distance. When that happened, Isabella left the road with Richard and climbed a small mound, where they observed and waited. Caoilainn knelt with her right leg, set her staff on the ground and closed her eyes. Any who saw her stance would not believe her usual chaotic attitude.

As the sounds got louder, Isabella and Richard could see the rat horde coming from the hill. Each rat was the size of a dog, they were tailless, with black fur with yellow stripes in their rear. They sported huge fangs and blood red eyes. Their squeaks chilled the spine. Richard was particularly perplexed and said:
- "They are just like capybaras!" - Isabella said:
- "What?"
- "Capybaras are dog-sized rodents from my world" - he adjusted his glasses - "but they are widely known as the chillest animals from the kingdom..."
- "They don't seem like it."
- "They must come from a similar yet different world from mine" - the rats were getting close to Caoilainn - "shouldn't we do something!? She is in danger!"
- "Don't worry Richard, she knows her way." - and as Isabella finished, they could see Caoilainn whispering something and setting her staff in the ground again. At the same time, the road in front of her split in two and two holes started to spread around the rats, forming a ditch. Before they could notice what happened, they were stuck inside.

A few rats fell on the ditch, and when the rest noticed they were stuck, they panicked and started to gnaw at each other. As they painted themselves red, Caoilainn got up, pointed her staff in their direction and in a flash set them all on fire, putting them out of their misery. It was a stunning view.

Richard relaxed and sat down. After a brief moment, he stood up to and descended the mound. Then, he heard a high pitched squeak and jumped, behind him was one of the rats. As he shivered, in a split second, Isabella cut it down. With her serious attitude she just said:
- "If you really are to go on this adventure, learn your lesson. Stay on your toes all the time, or else." - they returned to the road and Caoilainn had already used her staff to close the ditch. She then spread her arms and asked:
- "Hey, Richard, what did you think of my performance?"
- "It was quite the show" - Caoilainn was on cloud nine and continued:
- "And my magic, did you enjoy it?"
- "Yes, the fire was strong and the ditch incredibly precise" - Isabella sighed and said:
- "Please keep the compliments short, Caoilainn is addicted to praise" - Caoilainn pouted and said:
- "Don't ruin this for me, Isa!"
- "You were great Caoi, now let's go on" - Isabella continued, appeasing her.
- "I love it when you call me Caoi!" - and the three kept walking, sometimes silent, sometimes with small talk.

After two hours, they had reached Steeleets.