Sleepless Night

As rough as Andra was, she was unquestionably an expert in survival and knowledge of the countryside. Although the areas immediately outside the capital, especially where we were settled, were much safer than most; the environment felt almost welcoming, with easy rolling hills and forests that weren’t too daunting. In spite of the teambuilding and survival practice being just a secondary objective for this venture, as well as an excuse to get close to my first target, I was learning a lot about the world I was now in, and I was hopeful that the party’s morale and trust would steadily increase as we spent time together.

Andra found an ideal camping spot for the first night, so I primarily focused on dividing labor, from assembling the tents to building the campfire. I also tried to be useful by gathering firewood, but the branches I triumphantly carried back to the campsite were slapped from my hands by a very annoyed hybrid girl before I could add them to the growing flames. Evidently there was a kind of branch in this world that one cannot burn, or else you’ll suffer and die, and I had brought an armload of the stuff with me. I tried not to be bothered by the continuing trend of things in this place that could cause suffering and dying.

“What are you doing?” Andra snapped at me as she threw the offending pieces of wood out of my reach. “I know you’ve got a lot to learn, but come on.”

After she’d calmed down a bit, she gave me a lengthy lecture about tree types and the deadly “firemoss,” as she called it. She made sure I got a good look at it so I wouldn’t be tempted to pick it up again, and then she pulled her arm back and tossed the offensive wood far out of sight, brushing her hands off with satisfaction. I was suitably chastened. Estelar chuckled quietly at the whole exchange, but Pira mostly ignored us, focusing instead on ensuring the tent was set up properly.

It wasn’t long before the sun had fallen below the treeline, so we settled in around the fire to make dinner. Estelar was roasting some sort of meat, and I noticed with familiar dismay that there were no spices or seasonings to be found. Still, hunger is a powerful motivator, and I was starving as the elf mage passed around plates of the predictably bland food. It would do.

“This is a good spot, Andra,” I said, gesturing at the campsite.

She preened a bit. “I know,” she said. “I told ya I’d pick a great one.” Then she paused and cast a glance at Estelar. After a moment’s hesitation, she spoke haltingly in his direction. “Thanks for cooking, it’s pretty good.” She lifted her plate slightly, but then she dropped her eyes and busied herself with eating.

At least she’s trying to be nice, I thought, appreciating the effort. Estelar seemed to understand, because he nodded and graciously accepted her thanks before turning to Pira.

“The tents seem quite comfortable,” he said. “I look forward to trying mine out.”

Pira beamed. “It’s better than just comfortable, it’s the best. I’ve improved on the initial design so much you’ll want to move in permanently!”

Andra muttered something under her breath, but no one but me seemed to notice. That, or they simply chose not to. It didn’t matter; everyone was getting along for now, and that was the most important thing.

I offered to gather and wash the plates when everyone had finished their food, and that gesture seemed to ingratiate me to the team even more. I knew I could handle something as simple as dishes, although Andra hovered and watched me as though she expected me to find a way to poison myself with the dishwater.

As the evening deepened and the party grew sleepy, I asked whether we would need to sleep in shifts. Pira shook her head.

“I’ve set up some devices around the perimeter,” she said. “Nothing will get past them.”

I nodded at her confidence, wondering a bit what these devices were. My concerns were mostly assuaged. Still, it was helpful that Andra had her heightened senses (and her natural deterrents), and that Estelar had erected some sort of magical repellent shield around the campsite. I couldn’t help but feel a spark of pride at the team I had built.

When the party finally decided to sleep, we retreated to our own spaces. I curled up on my cot under a furry blanket, surprised at how comfortable I was in this small but cozy tent. I felt a massive yawn building as I turned on my side and closed my eyes, willing myself to slumber.

That is, until I felt a pressure on my back. My eyes flew open, and I tried to jerk upward. My mouth formed a scream, but it was immediately stifled by another pressure across my lips. The pressure pushed into my mouth, poking at my gag reflex before retreating.

My eyes watered, and I coughed and gagged. It took a moment to process that the maid was sitting before me, stoic as ever.

“The hell?” I groaned, catching my breath. I kept my voice as low as I could.

She remained silent, unfazed by my reaction to her sudden and unwelcome appearance.

“Why’d you stick your hand down my throat?” I wanted to yell, but not wanting to wake my party, I settled for an angry stage whisper.

“You were likely to cause a commotion,” she said blankly. “I prevented it efficiently.”

I stared at her for a long moment, incredulous. Was she a psycho like the prince? It seemed likely.

“How’d you get into my tent without setting off any alarms or waking anyone?” I asked, still trying to regain my lost composure.

“I am simply following Prince Elias’s orders to the best of my ability.” It felt like she was almost looking through me. “You’ve read the letter. I presume you are ready.”

I looked at my hands and took a deep breath before giving a small nod, mostly to myself. I suddenly felt very cold. This was sooner than I had expected, but there was no point in delaying the inevitable. I raised my head to acknowledge her, but when I looked up, the maid had vanished as if she were never there. I instinctively knew that she expected me to follow, so I scrambled off my cot and gently pulled the tent flap aside.

As I emerged, I put on my boots but left my armor behind; I had a feeling the mass of shining metal was not fit for a stealth mission. Carefully making my way through the camp, I spied the maid standing at the far edge, unmoving. When I reached her, she barely gave a nod before turning to lead the way.

The unbroken silence of my companion caused my anxiety to build as we left the warmth and light of camp to venture into near total darkness. I focused on carefully following her exact footsteps, but after a few moments, I couldn’t help blurting out one of the many questions on my mind.

“Awfully fast to start killing, huh?” I asked.

“It is with meticulously determined purpose, I assure you.” The maid replied in the same flat tone as ever.

“And that purpose is?”

“The framing of my lord’s older sister.”

“His sister?” I started, nearly stumbling. The maid ignored my misstep as I caught myself and pressed on. “Is her proxy nearby? Won’t we be caught in the spotlight too?” I asked.

“Princess Izelle breeds cryphens.”

“She what??” I asked. “Why would someone do that?”

“Their wings produce the highest quality blue dye.” The maid gestured at her own dark blue dress for emphasis, not that it looked anything other than black in the darkness. Her expression didn’t change, but I got the sense that she had some pride in her appearance. Not that that was worth commenting on as I trundled along after her through the woods.

“Is that why we’re using the bug for this?” I asked. “So that people think it was an assassin sent by the princess to kill the third prince’s proxy?”

“Correct,” she nodded, her head barely turning in my direction.

“And it won’t raise eyebrows that the proxy wasn’t protected by the magic because…”

“The magic ensures that no one outside of other proxies can harm a proxy, but for the purposes of the story you’re setting up, no one is harming a proxy directly. The cryphen is doing the harming, or so it will appear.”