Jet will never forget Clara’s betrayal, so the moment she caught wind she had fled north to seek a buyer in the wildlands, she was off in hot pursuit dragging behind her a very nervous if not terrified looking Holly.
Holly was always terrified of monster stories growing up so the prospect of venturing to where these stories came from shook her to the core. In truth she had every right to be scared of their destination, countless monsters, beasts and natural dangers have seen off almost everyone who dared to step foot in this God forsaken place. In fact only the most fearsome and skilled explorers could even reach the small settlements where the heroic pioneers of the time made their dwellings.
“Can’t we just wait till she comes back?” Holly trembled, her feet dragging across the mud as Jet pulled her along. “The artefact could be lost amongst merchants never to be seen again by the time she gets back. Plus I’ve told you a thousand times Holly, we’ll be fine! We just have to sneak through find the settlement, beat up that backstabber get the mirror back and then sneak home, simple!”
Holly was always bewildered by Jet’s unwavering optimism in fact it was one of the main reasons she became friends with her in the first place. “How can you say simple? We could be caught by all manner of monster before even seeing the settlement. There’s Trolls, Lamia’s, Dragons, Slimes….”
For the next forty five minutes Holly continued listing off the dangers as Jet continued to drag her along the unsteady ground.
“Ok I get it it’s a dangerous place but don’t forget you’re a top class mage and I am a master thief” Jet beamed. “Plus you can always go back if you’re that scared”
Holly swivelled in place to check the route home. The way was dark nobbled branches, poked into the barely noticeable path. The light from the midday sun was poking in just enough light to illuminate the shifting bushes that lay around her. Unfamiliar noises echoed around from seemingly all directions. Holly’s face grew paler with each passing second as she stared into that uneasy pathway. She swivels back to see Jet had strolled on ahead to scout out the land ahead. “What the hell! Wait for me, don’t leave me here” Holly cried, her steps ragged as she raced to catch up.
The intrepid duo continued pressing forward for another hour or so before their luck to a turn for the worse. With a couple gentle patters the heavens roared and a deluge of water fell from the sky.
A thoroughly soaked Holly seethed at her best friend as she fumbled about in her travellers pack for a map. “Please tell me we are close to shelter? I don’t want to be the first explorers here to be defeated by rain drops”
Using her cloak as a makeshift awning Jet unfurled the map. “Hmm let’s see, oh there is a cave about five minutes away over this ridge” Jet smiled pointing off into the distance. “That should keep us out of the rain for the night.”
“Does, this cave have a name?” Holly puzzled. “Probably, but I kind of spilt our rations over the map awhile back and some of the names are hard to make out” Jet then shot off her patented don’t hate for this smile and gave the smudge on the caves name a quick wipe with her finger before licking it off with a satisfied slurp.
“Well that’s just great so let’s head off to the mystery cave shall we? The cave of blood suckers I bet! Or maybe even the cave of cave ins. No no I bet it’s the cave of only stupid people enter here” Holly ranted stomping her feet like a tantruming toddler.
Jet put the map snuggly away into her sticky travellers pack and gave her friend the biggest hug of her life. “Look I know this isn’t ideal but don’t worry you and me have always managed to get out even the tightest of binds, so this cave isn’t going to be able to stop us.” Jet’s warm words and even warmer embrace thawed Holly’s tired and cold bones.
“Come on let’s go catch some sleep and we’ll continue the hunt for Clara in the morning first thing”
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