A Tale of Traitors

Willow: Sunrise

     "Willow?"
I shot back into reality and came face to face with Bob.
"Hey, you alright? You're sweating a lot."
"Yeah. I'm fine."
"Are you feeling good enough to keep watch? I'm, like, super tired."
"Of course. Good night."
Bob didn't even respond as he headed blindly toward his makeshift bed and collapsed into a ball, snoring almost as soon as his head hit the backpack.
     I was shaking again. Realizing I hadn't had water in hours, I drank slowly from the canteen, pondering what I had just seen. I hated that I couldn't remember how greatly I cared about the people I had just seen. How could I have forgotten my own brother? My best friend? No wonder Adresin had looked so upset when I forgot him, too. Why was I only seeing old memories? I wanted to have control of them all, to see whatever I chose to see. Why were the memories separated by those smells and thoughts? How could all of those things have such significant meaning to me?
"How'd you like the Mind Seeker?" Adresin's voice scared me so bad I nearly pulled my sword out of the hilt.
"Oh, well, first of all, good evening." And that was what I chose to say. Why? I have no idea.
"Okay... Good evening. How'd you like the seeker?" He awkwardly started again.
"Uh, it's a lot to process at one time," I chuckled softly. "I can't believe I've forgotten everything and everyone."
"It's not your fault, though."
"I know, but I still feel bad." I hesitated before bringing it up. "I'm sorry I didn't recognize you when you tried to stop me from leaving. Thank you for coming all this way to help me."

Only stunned silence came from the figure I couldn't see. Bob's snoring was the equivalent of cricket noises.

"That's alright, of course I'd help." He finally answered.
     Hours crept slowly by, the blackness of the sky never changing and the silence of the prairie constantly disturbed by the moaning and pain of the professor a few feet away from me.
"Adresin, are you still awake?" I finally whispered, rubbing the exhaustion out of my eyes.
"Yeah." Came a quick response.
"Why aren't you sleeping?"
"I'm thinking." He didn't seem to want to talk more about it.
"So... you looked through my memories already, right?" I asked after a moment, trying not to focus on the professor's agony as he groaned in pain and rolled over.
"Yeah, I did. I didn't mean to snoop, just to locate you."
"Can you show me how you found them?"
"You mean the specific memories?"
"Yeah. The most recent ones, in particular."
"The Seeker shows you what you need to see when you need to see it. I couldn't sift through every memory of yours. Mainly the important ones that left an impact. The first time I tried, it took me straight to the last night it had memory of, right up to the moment you cut your hair."
"Did you see what was chasing me?" I asked, growing more and more uneasy as the conversation continued.
"What do you mean?"
"Something was chasing me through the woods. That's why I was running so fast."
"There was nothing in your memories. It looked like you almost had a panic attack in the woods, or maybe you did. Your anxiety was really high. Do you think you could have imagined it?"
"No. Well... maybe. It felt so real."
"I'm sorry I chose the most powerful spell I could think of." He laughed nervously. "I should have used a different spell."
"I think you did the right thing. I wouldn't be out here if you hadn't done it."
"You shouldn't be out here, though--"
"I'm right where I'm supposed to be. How can we kill the king if we sit in our realm doing what we've always been doing? There's a rebellion sprouting in Realm Five now. Word will get out that we just busted out of a highly secured jail. I think we've done well so far."
"About the jail," Adresin's voice grew even quieter. "Something's telling me we were allowed to escape. We shouldn't have been able to get out. It was too easy."
I remained silent... he wasn't wrong. He continued,
"I set up a small diversion. Not a great one, just the best I could do in the moment. The guards flocked to it like pigeons to bread crumbs. Those guards being highly trained experts, some of the king's most trusted men. They didn't follow the typical procedures for that type of situation. I didn't have to fight anyone, they sort of just left. We got in a fight with some jailers as we were leaving, but that was the worst of it. We shouldn't have been able to get out with the two wounded people. We would have had to leave them behind and fend for ourselves in a typical situation, in which I would be the only one guaranteed survival because of my father. Something's very off."
"But why would they let us go?" I crouched closer to him. "I don't see how that's helpful to them."
"They could be following us, even now," Adresin was barely speaking aloud. I couldn't see his eyes through the darkness, but I could sense the uneasiness in the air. "They don't have your knowledge. They might be tracking us to see what you're going to do next, and after you've acquired the chests they don't have, they'll attack."
"We searched our things for bugs, right?"
"Yeah. Of course. There are no trackers on any of us."
"I don't hear or see anything."
"None of us have. They're not following us in the way one might assume they are." He spoke slowly, as if he was nervous to anger me.
"You're still on about one of us being a traitor, huh," Queen's voice abruptly broke the tension as she headed towards us. "None of us would betray the other, New Comer."
"I think he's got a point, though, Queen." I interceded. "I'm not saying I think one of us is a traitor, but I see what he means. Something is wrong here."
"Mmk. We'll need to lay low for a while, find somewhere actually safe. Somewhere like Syrnafin's lair. We need a day or two to recuperate—can't travel with the professor and Adri so weak."
"Maybe we can find a way to open the chests. I tried, they're cursed."
"I can open them." Adresin responded.
"That would be really helpful." I could have sworn I saw him smile.
"When the professor wakes up, he can tell us where the best safe-house is closest to us." Queen ignored Adresin's offer; she had made it clear to me many times that she didn't like him.
"We don't have until he wakes up... I think we need to make the decision ourselves." I tried.
"We can't travel with him sleeping."
"We don't have a choice. We can't stay here." I glanced up at the sky, the earliest hatchings of sunlight twinkling on the horizon. "We should start packing. Scouts will see us more easily in the daylight—let's hope they didn't send some during the night to pick up our heat signals."
"I cast a spell on us all before we went to sleep," Queen smirked. "Even if there were scouts, they couldn't have seen us. Daylight will obviously change that."
"Great, thanks." I nodded appreciatively. "Let's pack up and let the others sleep a little longer. Adresin, could we use your griffin to carry the professor and Adri?"
"Certainly."
"What is his name?"
"Marcellus."
"That kind of sounds like 'merciless.'"
"That's... the idea..."
"The newbie should go with them since he can control the animal." Queen said.
"Queen, Bob, and I can travel by foot. Maybe we can combine our spells and cover our tracks. I could leave a false trail somewhere else too." I pulled some books out of my bag.
"How do you do that?" Queen raised an eyebrow.
"It'll come to me," I mumbled, moving on quickly. "Have you looked at the professor's map?"
"Can't read it, but, yeah." Queen shrugged. "Looks like if we head north we could camp in a swamp without being noticed, though it's not safe."
"How come?"
"Lots of crap happens in swamps. We don't know what to expect. Maybe we would, except I can't read the language."
"How long do you think we have until we need to move?"
"About an hour and a half." Queen raised her eyes to the clouds and admired the color seeping slowly into the sky. "I say we wake everyone up in an hour to be safe, leave just before scouts would be sent out."
"Yeah, I agree. I'll find food." I rose slowly, hoping not to wake the others.
Adresin rose but said nothing.
"Woah, woah, woah. Where do you think you're going?" Queen snapped. "With Willow?"
"Yep." He slung a cylindrical bag over his shoulder.
"Why?" Queen countered, stepping forward.
"It's dangerous." He stepped closer, and it became obvious that he stood at least a head taller than her.
"I don't like it." Queen crossed her arms, refusing to budge.
"He can stay here with Marcellus while you and I go hunting, Queen," I turned to leave. "I guess I shouldn't go alone."
"Bob," she hissed, stooping low and hurriedly shaking him. "BOB."
"Ohm—WHAT," he threw his arms over his eyes.
"Watch the newbie." She ordered. "We shouldn't be long."








        The Elvish forest was thick and silent, masking the mysterious beast that lay within it. They were alone paroling before sunrise, and he thought it would be a good idea to let her in on his secret. There was a good chance she would freak out, but he figured he shouldn't give her yet another reason not to trust him. He should show her before she found out another way.
"Please don't freak out," he said quietly as her enormous silver eyes landed on the beast. Her eyes got wider and wider until he thought they were going to burst, but he would not laugh at her. It was a bad time to laugh. 
"How--how did--how did you--" Willow started.
"Catch it?"
"Y--yeah?"
The griffin pounded forward and even Willow ducked behind a tree and got ready to turn, run, and take her chances.
"Down," Adresin commanded in the dark language of the beast. "Now."
The griffin shot him a sideways glance and huffed angrily.
"Be nice." He argued back.
HUFF.
"PLEASE."
Silence.
"What did you say to it?" She asked nervously, refusing to come forward.
"He won't bother you again. He just doesn't like new people."
"Why not?"
"Because I don't like new people." 
"How did you catch it?" She crept around the base of the tree and locked eyes with the griffin.
"I found him when he was small enough to fit in the palm of my hand. I was on patrol with Tormod through Realm 8."
"Tormod let you have pets?"
"Not exactly... I found a nest of griffin eggs. This one had fallen out and his egg was cracked," he gently stroked the griffin's head. "We didn't think he'd survive. I took the egg as a fossil. When he hatched, I hid him in the castle. He got too big and loud eventually, so I let Tormod 'discover' him hiding."
"Why would you do that?"
"I thought if Tormod found a creature that was my size, he might let me train it for combat missions. He did."
The griffin was purring now, a funny cat-like noise that came out of the eagle face. When Adresin thought about it, the creature was actually quite weird. 
Willow came out from behind the tree. "And you've just... kept him here... all this time."
"Well, no," Adresin smirked. "I left him behind because I knew he'd blow my cover. Do you remember that celebration after the battle at Dehroi's Bunker?"
"Yeah, you kind of ditched me, left in a hurry, and pretended you didn't hear me calling after you."
"I said I was sorry," he mumbled.
"What?"
"N-nothing. That was the night when this clumsy beast crossed the border and knocked into a few trees on his way down to the ground. He was looking for me, and I couldn't send him away again. He's been here about three weeks now."
"That makes a lot of sense." She had come face-to-face with the griffin.
"Do you... want to pet him?"
"Not particularly."
There was a moment of silence.
"Can I change my mind?" She asked slowly.
"Certainly." This is a bad time to laugh. Don't you laugh. He'd never seen her scared by an animal. She loved all kinds of really weird animals, and people, and barely flinched when blood splashed across her face... but this winged creature was making her nervous? "Lift your hand out slowly. Don't touch him. Just lift your hand straight into the air."
She did as she was told.
The beast opened its enormous beak and prepared to snap her hand off.
"HEY," Adresin yelled in the dark language, leaping up and grabbing its beak. "Look at me."
The beast snarled.
"Now."
Finally, the animal watched him with what seemed like sad eyes.
"I'm not replacing you. Just be nice."
A snake-like hiss burst from its mouth.
"If you're not nice, she can have you sent back home."
Now its eyes were definitely sad.
"I'm trying to keep you here. Be cooperative." Adresin pet the beast, who was now resting its head on his shoulder. "Okay," he said in Elvish, "he'll cooperate. You can pet him now."
Willow was not convinced.
"He doesn't want to go home. He's going to be nice."
"Okayyy," she laughed nervously, putting her hand in front of her and then pulling it back. Forward. Back. Forward. Back.
"You're making him nervous now," Adresin couldn't hold his own laughter back anymore. "Just go for it."
"Wow. I am petting a griffin." She sort of laughed and sort of pulled away. "Wow, it's a lot softer than I thought. Okay, his wings are really strong. Okay. Cool. Okay. Okay, he's friendly. You're right. You're right, he's nice. Wow. Okay." She smiled, satisfied that she'd conquered her fear.
"Do you... want to ride him?"
"Excuse me?"
"Do you want to fly?"
"...n..."
"Are you seriously scared?"
"No!" She laughed. Loudly. "No, I'm not scared of your griffin."
"Then why don't you want to fly?"
"I never said I don't want to."
"So you will?"
"O--kay. Yeah." All the color had drained from her face.
"If you don't want to--"
"I want to." She nodded.
"Okay," he climbed onto the griffin and pulled her up next.
"Wait," she said nervously. He could feel her arms shaking. 
"You really don't have to, I was just messing--"
"No, I'm fine. I want to. What... what is his name?"
"Marcellus."
"That kind of sounds like 'merciless.'"
"That's the idea."
She chuckled. "Okay, Marcellus, please don't kill me."








        The dewy grass left its marks on my clothes as I pushed through the green and lavender grass, Queen not far behind. It was eerily silent, and I was left with remnants of memories to dwell on. There were no birds chirping. No crickets. No sticks cracking under the weight of unseen animals. Nothing disturbed the grass except our light footsteps. There was no wind. It wasn't the good, peaceful quiet, but the deceiving, fleeting type that promised danger. Queen sensed it, and so did I. We didn't dare speak, but continued stepping in silence. I couldn't help feeling like a trespasser in this foreign world that, when boiled down, was not so different from my own. Sure, the creatures were different, and so were the people, and the trees and the colors of the sky and probably the food. But there were still creatures in the ground and the sky and the water. There were still colors, people, trees, and food. Staying in one place had never sounded right to me, from the time I was little and snuck into nearby villages. I dreamt of exploring everywhere. I wanted to see lands with multiple suns and moons. I wanted to see griffins and mermaids. I wanted to walk along peaceful trails surrounded by mountains, which we didn't have in our realm. I wanted to explore castles and see dragons and eat fruits I hadn't even heard of. So why did it feel so wrong to be here, living out my dream? I had seen multicolored skies, and even in my moment of pondering, three suns were rising above my head. I had finally climbed the mountain that I had spent a lifetime imagining and was hiking through it while I made that realization. I explored a fairy castle and killed a dragon. I watched the glowing fish crawling under the water, remembering when I was six and read a book about fishes, hoping that one day I would see the ones that were now so close I could touch them. I did touch them. They squished and bounced back like jelly under my fingers, turning from neon green to a glowing yellow. After all this, it still felt like we were far from the real truth, that I was still so far from my calling. All the while, it just felt like I was missing something so important, and my brilliant brain wouldn't let me remember what. It was on the tip of my tongue. It was so close it made my heart stop. It was so close it took my breath away, so close and so impossibly far out of my reach. Oof, I probably just need a good night's sleep.
        "Willow, look," Queen pointed up into the curly red trees above our heads, where black and white fruits swung above. "Think you can get up there?"
I nodded, reaching up for the closest branch. "Does it matter which ones I take?"
"No. Careful for the spikes." Queen launched into the tree next to me and shot up the trunk, disappearing into the branches. Of course I could get up the tree, but it wouldn't be fast. Every crack and movement brought more attention to our location than I wanted, and it made the awkward silence even more soul crushing than before. My black hair was tinged with blue, and it kept escaping from the tiny bun it had been in before. I got sap in my face from having to push the hair back behind my ear. Queen was having no problems, her beanie apparently never moving.
"Queen, my hair is a weird color."
"That means the spell's wearing off," she said matter-of-factly.
"What spell?"
"Keep your voice down," she hissed. "Before we crossed the border of Earth, I put charms on us to preserve our appearances as Averages."
"Why?"
"You ask an annoying amount of questions." She rolled her eyes.
"I'll keep asking until you tell me."
"Fine. Every realm has their own skin colors and sizes and hairstyles. It would be too much work to try and look like the people of the realms we enter, especially if we don't know where we are going next. You would be recognized right away. Most of us would. At least if we look like Averages, people will think we're some dumb humans that got lost in their world. It'll attract attention, but it'll be easier for us to avoid arrest. And death."
"That makes sense."
"No duh." She snorted, shooting forward to grasp another fruit.
I glanced down at my hands. My tan skin was changing color, splitting to reveal the silver underneath. My arms looked like chipped nail polish as I slowly changed into my normal self again. We'd have to redo the spell.
        The sky was still dark through the branches, the fruit sparkling under the light of dimming stars. I hung from one of the tallest branches by my legs, trying not to look down as I gathered the black and white orbs into a sack. She wasn't lying about the spikes. I winced as blood seeped through my fingers, a thorn wedged in my hand. I made the mistake of looking down at the blue ground dozens of feet below me and panicked, moving to sit on what felt like a very secure branch, my back against the thick trunk. Head spinning. Breath shallowing.
"No. No way." Queen's voice boomed frantically. "Willow—Willow, get over here! Willow, NOW!"