Artemis was silent and still as Oseely spoke, careful to keep her emotions off her face. She was getting really tired of reevaluating her understanding of the world over and over. Old men were shadow demons. Trees had teeth. Gryphons were dogs. Now the evil dragon wasn't even responsible for taking the sun away. Really. Who was this island's manager. She wanted a word.

Her index finger tapped lightly on the staff in her hand – the only hint at the tension building in her from being picked apart by this man. He asked what she was after.

Artemis didn't know.

Home. She thought of her brother. Her valley. Cold fingers curled around her heart, twisting and tightening like a climbing vine up a tree. She had no right to her home. And she'd had her chance at power.

Artemis' wants had always been petty, immediate things. To fool a skeptical customer. To travel to a new city. To sleep somewhere expensive and not pay a cent.

Emira had only ever wanted her family, whole and real. But they were gone. And so was she.

"Wrong on all counts, actually," she said, her voice light. She held up a finger and began counting off. "Gryphon was a poor lost thing, wandering in the woods, and I rescued her quite valiantly if I do say so myself. Never met a witch in my life, but an old treegnome taught me his runic ways. And all I really want is a man who can keep up. Hey big boy." She raised her eyebrows at him in a way that might've been seductive if he was twelve drinks in. She'd rattled off her outlandish lies with a straight face and an easy confidence like the performer she was, but Artemis didn't expect to fool him with any of this.

But it was either have an honest conversation about her own fears and vulnerabilities or deflect. Artemis adjusted her grip on the staff.

"Now, about that dragon. If it's not responsible for the night then what is?"

The Lord of Flame was very much amused by this one -- he grinned, and he watched Artemis with eyes narrowed in thought.

"That'd be my sister, the Lady of Stone. There's an agreement on among us Lords and Ladies: as long as it's dark, the Lord of Shadow can control the spirits of the dead -- and as long as the spirits are under Shadow's control, the Dragon can't eat those spirits for more power." He stretched his arms over his head with a sigh. "So to answer your question technically, there are two moons -- and one of them is currently eclipsing the sun. My sister's a strong woman."

Artemis raised an eyebrow at how… forthcoming he was. If he was even telling the truth, that is. He had called himself the patron of thieves and liars (which really, was right up her alley). Her mind worked to sort through this new information, nonetheless. Dragons, ghosts, lords, and ladies. Great.

"Why don't you want the dragon to have power?" she asked. Her eyes narrowed slightly and she tilted her head to the side. "And how does the Lord of Fire feel about the sun being covered up?" The sun was just a massive ball of fire, after all. And he'd seemed pretty darn excited about it when they'd seen dawn cresting over the island. Then again, Artemis figured anyone would be desperate for the sun after a few centuries of darkness.

He folded his arms and tipped his bald head at her. "Well, aren't you full of questions? I'da thought you'd be asking me the important stuff, like how to get off this stinkin' island or how to control a Lantern's power. But no! Feelings!" Oseely laughed quietly.

"I'm fulla opinions, don't you worry. The Dragon went a little crazy with power, I think -- started sucking the life out of the Kith til they were near-extinct, and they had no idea it was him. And even after he was sealed up and cut off from the Kith, he just started sucking life out of people in other worlds. Probably your world, too. Which means the eclipse just moved the problem and hasn't solved anything. You're proof of that. And that sorta pisses me off," he said with a smile. "But! That's my problem. If you wanna learn to ride your rescued gryphon here properly, I know a guy."

Artemis shut her mouth at Oseely's words. She wanted nothing to do with the Lanterns and… it was stupid and irrational but maybe if she didn't go hunting for a way home then she wouldn't know for sure it was hopeless. Instead, Artemis just watched Oseely as he spoke, absorbing all he had to offer. Then he very blatantly changed the subject. Her curiosity flickered in her chest, eager for whatever it was he didn't feel like disclosing. But she also didn't know if she wanted to push the Lord of Fire on Nightmare Island, no matter how amused he seemed at the moment. She glanced over her shoulder at the gryphon then turned back to him.

"Yeah? That'd be very kind of you." Artemis wasn't too keen on trusting the kindness of strangers.

After awhile, Rhea glanced back at Aslynn, unable to contain her curiosity. "You're not the first sun-child I've met tonight," she said, her brow furrowed uncertainly. "There were four others: a girl, younger than you in a raggedy dress, a skinny boy with spectacles, then a guy built like a tank, and a guy who wore monkeybat skins and teeth for kicks, all of them with that same look on their faces as you have. How long've you been here? And are there any more of you?" She chuckled; it almost felt like the island was being invaded by people from other worlds.

Aslynn perked up at the mention of others like her, the few hours she had been here had led her to believe that maybe she was the only one here. Her footsteps weren't as sure as the others in the group but she fared well all the same tripping only once or twice along the shadowed path. The lantern swayed back and forth, its warmth giving her enough courage to march forward confidently ignoring the anxiety and confusion raging inside her head.

"There are others? I didn't know...I was just me when I woke up and that was maybe a few hours ago? It's hard to tell time..."

Her voice wavered unsure, she was sure there was no one else when she woke up but she wasn't sure how long she had been here, hours, a few minutes, she could have been asleep for far longer than that but the information about there being others; these Sun-children, maybe they knew how she had gotten here but finding them would be a different story all together. She knew nothing about this forest or its inhabitants so setting off on her own was a no go at this point.

"Miss Aslynn has a sun where she lives!" Cod squealed, hiking expertly up the roots and rocks that riddled the path.

"She does!" Rhea feigned wonder and surprise. "Well, we'll have to ask her all about it while we eat supper."

The mention of both her name and food drew her from her thoughts in time to see the outpost sprawl into view, the sight of the children sitting around listening to a story, the sounds of hammer clashing on unformed metal, the smell of food and tanning all flooded her at once. The scene was simple but familiar to the blacksmith, a wave of homesickness crashing down on her. Thoughts of her father and her sister, and how'd they be doing without her or if they hadn't even realized she was missing. The sparks from the hammer drew her eyes as she focused on it fighting off the urge to cry and wallow in her own self-doubt; the rustling of feathers and the soft breeze broke through her trance as she looked for the sound expecting to see a bird or perhaps a woman with feathers in her hair.

A soft gasp left her lips as her eyes fell on the gryphon, even asleep it was majestic and awe inspiring. She had been able to delude herself that this forest was like the ones at home, just darker and stranger but seeing a beast of legend shattering that thought. Her eyes were wide and filled with shock, she stopped in her tracks completely enthralled by the beast.

"Is that real...?"

"Peck," She said brightly. "Thank you. Do you know where I could get some food? I'm not sure I can go much further without it."

Peck glanced back at her, sniffed, looked up at the leaves overhead, eerily silhouetted in the combined light of the white and blue eggs.

"Yeh, sure." He dropped the lead on the sledge, and Anise came to a halt while he traipsed a few feet into the thick brush. The trees creaked and swayed -- one of them sounded like it was chewing on something both squishy and crunchy -- and the bushes rustled with a flock of small birds that thought they were hiding from the intruders.

Peck reached up and plucked a few ripe blue fruits from low-hanging branches. A blood-rat happened to be waiting on a bough; it dropped on his shoulder with fangs bared. "Not today, little shit!" Peck snapped, and a flare of electricity snapped from his gauntlet; the blood-rat went skittering away with a singed tail.

He returned to Anise with a few fruits in his arm. "These taste like cabbage, but they're filling. At least until we get to the outpost." He dropped the fruits into her lap, then leaned against the chewing tree with his arms crossed. "You're really thinking of bringing back the Dragon, huh?" He'd had a lot of time to think while he'd been dragging her through the forest, and the effects of the blue egg had worn off completely. His skepticism was clear in his voice -- but he still believed Anise meant well.

---

"Yeah? That'd be very kind of you."

"Yeah it wouldn't wouldn't it?" Oseely grinned, pleased by the idea of being kind for once. "Well, don't expect me to make it a habit." He gave her a wink and hopped to his feet. "C'mon then, let's see about summoning the dumbass."

He ducked out of the cave and into the open air, where he took a deep, smiling breath. He scanned the bleak burned landscape, the brittle dead trees, and the clear starry sky. "Summoning the Lord of the Breeze is the easiest thing because he can't understand anything more complicated," he said confidentally to Artemis over his shoulder. "Just a few whistles, and --" He pressed his tongue to his teeth and let out a piercing whistle -- a short and simple tune.

"Who's a dumbass?" The voice came from behind Artemis, where a man stood frowning deeply. He was skinny to an unhealthy degree, and he stood a full foot shorter than Artemis, though he was clearly a few years older than her; his hair was mousy brown with a few feathers tied in, and he wore simple loose clothes and bone-charm bracelets. Like Oseely, he was barefoot.

"You're the dumbass, Dumbass," the Lord of the Flame piped immediately. "This is Artemis. Show her how to steer a gryphon, won't ya? She nearly got killed on the way here. Artemis, this is the Lord of the Breeze."

The Lord of the Breeze squinted up at Artemis. "Reckley. Hello. Don't fall off. You'll be fine. Are you a Kith?"

"Sun-child, Dumbass."

Reckley's mouth pressed to a thoughtful line as he studied Artemis. "This gryphon won't obey you completely unless and until you give her a name. It's binding as long as you're together. If you're not using a saddle, take off your boots. You know, a sun-child got ahold of the white Lantern." This last was directed at Oseely, annoyed and pessimistic about what the future might now hold.

"Not this one, not our problem," Oseely assured the Lord of the Breeze. Reckley eyed him skeptically, but eventually looked back to Artemis.

"Have you ridden a horse bareback? Same concept, only you steer with your feet and knees. Where do you plan on going with a stolen gryphon?"

Oseely smirked and went back to his tree over the bonfire, a perfect vantage point.

The gryphon, meanwhile, was hopping and prancing in excited circles around Artemis and Reckley, slobbering and huffing and flapping with swirling gusts at the very prospect of a proper flight.

---

"Is that real...?"

"Of course it's real!" Cod laughed. "What d'ya think, it's stuffed?"

Rhea ruffled his hair. "Maybe there are no gryphons where Miss Aslynn comes from."

Cod's jaw dropped, and he stared at Aslynn in complete inability to comprehend a world where there were no gryphons. "But how d'you fly? How d'you even get anywhere? You'd be stuck!"

The boy absolutely could not bear to let Aslynn continue on without gryphons for a moment longer; he took Aslynn's hand and dragged her toward the great beast. "This is Rex. He's old and he stands guard against the Kith. Go ahead, pet 'im!" Cod leaned over the gryphon's neck and rubbed his hands in its feathers. Rex tipped his head toward Cod, and his yellow eyes drifted lazily open.

Rhea went to the community fire to grab a bowl of chicken stew for Aslynn; while she was gone, the other Pirates noticed that a stranger had been brought to the outpost, and soon Aslynn was surrounded with curious faces.



Rhea squeezed through the crowd with the bowl of stew, which she offered to Aslynn. "Everybody, there'll be plenty of time once Miss Aslynn has had a chance to rest!"

"She can stay at my house!" an old woman piped hopefully, waving her wrinkled hand in the air. Rhea laughed and shook her head.

"Please rest," Rhea said to Aslynn, grinning.

"Yeh, sure."

Had she still considered herself a princess, Anise would have snapped at Peck for his lack of manners, but with her time in the forest that life seemed so far away. She watched Peck head into the brush and go to a tree with fruit. She hadn't noticed there were trees with fruit, everything in this forest seemed so barren. However, she realized that she never actually looked for food either. Not since the inn which had disappeared.

She heard the crack of lightning and saw a flash. Then she heard Peck curse at a blood rat before eventually returning to Anise with fruit.

"These taste like cabbage, but they're filling. At least until we get to the outpost." He dropped the fruits into her lap, then leaned against the chewing tree with his arms crossed. "You're really thinking of bringing back the Dragon, huh?"

Anise nodded completely self-assured. "I don't think the Dragon is the reason the darkness happened." She held the Spirit Egg close. "She was betrayed. Something else started this, and now the Forest is out of balance. So out of balance that she had to pull people from," she swallowed, somewhat terrified of the power that it must have taken to do this. "Another world, or worlds. Without her, we have no hope of bringing back the sun."

She paused as she took a bite out of the fruit. Peck was right, they tasted like cabbage and nearly had the same texture as well. This truly was the worst fruit she had ever eaten. "I must meet with all of the Spirits. I must find the Kith as well. I at least owe them for what Tyaelaem did for me. I would not have survived this place without him." She took another bite from the tasteless fruit. Regardless of its lack of flavor, Anise felt that it was delicious. Then again, she nearly had forgotten was food tasted like.

She glanced at the White Lantern which Peck held and swallowed her latest bite of fruit. "May I please have the Lantern of Flight back?" She preferred to ask nicely over using the Spirit Egg to make him do it. While she was now fully aware of what she was capable of through the Dragon's power, she suspected that the cost for using it would manifest into something serious. She doubted that the Dragon was giving this power to her freely, especially with the reluctance it had while trying to subdue the Witch. She hoped that her mercy would have a positive effect with the Witch and the Dragon.

Artemis looked between the two 'Lords' as they bickered. The small one seemed to be full of wisdom. Thank goodness he'd told her to 'not fall off' of the gryphon. Who knew what she'd have done without his advice. She looked back at the gryphon, who seemed to be losing her mind with excitement at the thought of flying. Artemis was suddenly glad she'd yet to eat anything.

"Nura," she said. The gryphon paused for half a second to look at her before bounding over and nearly knocking Artemis to the floor. A foot was forced back to brace herself, and Artemis raised her hands to try and push off 300 lbs of feathers nuzzling into her. Yeah, she figured, Nura would work out fine.

"I've ridden a horse before," Artemis said while trying to control Nura. The gryphon wouldn't keep still, insistent and curious, sniffing at her neck, her hair, her clothes. "Never bareback." She was kinda miffed that she'd have to ride barefoot though. It meant she'd stolen the boots from the Witch for nothing. "First and only priority I have is not dying. Find some food, water, a safe place to sleep I guess." She needed to get her bearings. Artemis glanced over her shoulder at the two men. A thoughtful eyebrow raised.

"The sun-child with the white Lantern has the blue one, too. Almost got the red one earlier. She's trying to free the dragon." Artemis had no idea if the sun-child Reckley was talking about was the same one she'd met with the blue Lantern. She was just curious what sort of reaction that would get. These men were still strangers, after all. Curiosity and caution mixed together to prompt her search for information.

Nura blindsided her with an extra shove and Artemis tumbled to the ground in a prone heap with a yelp. The gryphon seized the opportunity for more nuzzling.

Peck stared at her while she spoke -- nothing she said made sense according to the lessons he'd been taught since he was a child . . . the knowledge that had been passed down through the generations of pirates. Suddenly there was this weathered and traveled girl from another world -- with strange powers and stranger knowledge -- who said she knew the truth. He didn't know what to believe, but he believed that if anyone could bring the sun back, it was Anise.

He stepped forward, and he held the Lantern out to her. "I hope you know what you're doing," he told her warily, and he looked up through the trees toward the deep expanse of stars above.

"We tell time by the moonrise," he said after awhile; he'd been thinking about the world Anise must have come from. "The month by the phase of the moon, the year by the moving constellations. Nothing else really changes. The shadows get darker. The Lord of the Shadow is getting stronger, the more people die."

He stared up for awhile, then took a breath. "I know how to summon each of the Lords and Ladies, if you want to talk to them. It's usually forbidden, because making one of them mad could be disaster -- but." He shook his head and ruffled his own hair; he couldn't believe he was doing this. "We've already broken most of the rules already. I was going to take you back to the Roost, but if you're going to be summoning the spirits I'd do it far away from there. Finding the Kith is something else, though. There are several tribes, and they don't necessarily like each other."

A thought occurred to him, and he touched one of the trees. "There's a tribe not far from here, it's on the way to the Roost. They're the tree-jumpers, though -- they kill pirates for sport." He gave Anise a look that questioned whether she really wanted to do what she'd set out to do, when every course of action could end in them both being slaughtered or worse.

---

Oseely and Reckley exchanged a skeptical look while Artemis struggled with the gryphon.

"Two Lanterns ain't anything to be concerned about, right?"

"There are two more at the Rook."

"I can feel the red Lantern --"

"I know, I can feel the white one and it's being abused."

Oseely shot him a glare. "Red's at the Witch's house. The trees are all dead, then. How long 'til they're back at full power?"

"Not long enough."

The Lord of the Breeze folded his arms with a solemn frown, and the Lord of the Flame sucked his teeth with the pensive thought of a slacker slowly realizing he might have to do something productive soon. Oseely huffed a sigh and shook his head, laughing, much to Reckley's displeasure. "Doesn't matter. Shadow'll take care of it. For once let's not get in his way."

Reckley shuddered slightly, but he relinquished a sigh and looked down to Artemis with a twitch of a smile. The sight of the bond between rider and gryphon was heartening, at least.

"You'd be better equipped to survive if you don't try to do it alone."

"Aw, stick with me and you'll do just fine!" Oseely gave her a wink and a grin.

Reckley sighed. "You don't sleep and you don't eat. How're you going to help?"

"I eat!"

"You chew bark." Reckley appraised Artemis, his arms still folded. "The Kith or the Pirates would probably take you in. You're in the rare situation of being unaffiliated."

"You don't want to do that. Just steal their stuff and camp in the open fields. There are sigils you can use to ward off critters that'd chew on you in your sleep."

"That's the most idiotic idea I've ever heard," Reckley hissed with distaste.

Oseely grinned. "I thought of it myself!"

He stepped forward, and he held the Lantern out to her. "I hope you know what you're doing," he told her warily, and he looked up through the trees toward the deep expanse of stars above.

Anise felt that his returning the Lantern to her was an extension of his trust and hope. She accepted the Lantern with a smile to oppose his wary expression. She felt that there should be something to brighten the day of the dwellers of the Forest even though the Dragon seemed to have no interest in their safety. She felt that was no way to rule and really felt the need to have an actual conversation with the Dragon at some point.

"We tell time by the moonrise," he said after awhile; he'd been thinking about the world Anise must have come from. "The month by the phase of the moon, the year by the moving constellations. Nothing else really changes. The shadows get darker. The Lord of the Shadow is getting stronger, the more people die."

That made sense she had seen the moon several times, and if what he said was true she hadn't been here for much more than a week. Not even. She remembered being told by Peck earlier that same thing about the Lord of Shadow about his power over the dead.

He stared up for awhile, then took a breath. "I know how to summon each of the Lords and Ladies, if you want to talk to them. It's usually forbidden, because making one of them mad could be disaster -- but." He shook his head and ruffled his own hair; he couldn't believe he was doing this. "We've already broken most of the rules already. I was going to take you back to the Roost, but if you're going to be summoning the spirits I'd do it far away from there. Finding the Kith is something else, though. There are several tribes, and they don't necessarily like each other."

Anise looked at the ground in thought. She had several choices to make. She could start summoning the spirits now, or she could start meeting the Kith right now. She knew that the Lord of Shadow would most definitely take offense to a summoning from her, but she also needed to have a conversation with them. The Kith would likely be dangerous for at least Peck, but she felt she could protect him.

A thought occurred to him, and he touched one of the trees. "There's a tribe not far from here, it's on the way to the Roost. They're the tree-jumpers, though -- they kill pirates for sport." He gave Anise a look that questioned whether she really wanted to do what she'd set out to do, when every course of action could end in them both being slaughtered or worse.

Anise appreciated his willingness to suggest a starting point. However one statement from the Dragon weighed heavily on her mind. She had to speak with her children. That took precedence in her mind and felt to be the most important thing in the dream she had just had.

She looked up to Peck and looked him in the eyes. "I would like to start with meeting the Spirits, but isn't there a way to find them that would not insult them? I feel that calling to them without pulling them suddenly from... wherever they are living." She felt that just calling them suddenly would be more harmful than anything. She also remembered the symbol that was left on her hand after her meeting with the Lady of the Pond for the first time.

She glanced at her hand remembering her meeting with the Lady of the Pond not long ago. "After I met with the Lady of the Pond I awakened with this rune on my hand." She raised her hand concentrating on it as she remembered the last time she had done so it had become visible. "I am not sure what it means. I know that the Witch uses runes, but do you know them as well?" She knew it was important, but she understood little of them.

However charming the sight of Artemis struggling with Nura might've been, it was a very different first-hand experience. Nura was a very heavy gryphon with very sharp talons and a very hard beak. She seemed oblivious to all of this as she pinned Artemis down and investigated (nipped, pulled, and shoved). Eventually Artemis just gave up resisting and fell limp, wincing at Nura's prodding. Instead, she tried to look over her head at the two lords as they spoke and debated.

Her choices were feral mask children, adults she'd already stolen from, or an ancient elemental lord with dubious reliability. Fantastic.

Nura finally seemed to notice that her 'playmate' had stopped moving and pulled away from Artemis' hair. Wide, dark eyes blinked down at her. Artemis stared back. When she pushed herself up, the gryphon finally removed a heavy, taloned foot from her chest. Artemis looked down to make sure there was not blood leaking through her clothes, wincing as her lungs finally expanded. Nura chirped and sat down, looking far too pleased with herself. A long tail curled around her feet. Artemis tried not to hesitate as she reached a hand out to the gryphon, allowing a sniff. She curled her hand up along the beak and scratched again at the soft feathers above it. Nura trilled in pleasure.

With a sigh, Artemis heaved herself to her feet and turned to the two lords.

"I've made a living off of idiotic ideas," she said. She looked from one man to another. "One more can't hurt." She somehow managed to keep the sarcasm from leaking into her voice.

It did seem to be the only real option, though. Artemis had never fared well when forced to play with others. She was better at playing them. And when she inevitably slipped up (because she always managed to forget that she wasn't as clever as she thought she was) there was usually running involved. Away. And where exactly was she going to run away to trapped on Hellmurder Island? No, better to not pick sides in a centuries-long blood war and keep to the shadows. Figure out how to survive on her own and use the groups as a last resort. Besides, she had Oseely.

Well. Sort of. He'd called himself the patron of liars and thieves, after all. But he was a resource, nonetheless. She wouldn't trust him to not get her killed, but he had information he was willing to share.

Artemis bent down and picked up her staff. Straightening up, she looked back at Oseely.

"I think I'd like to learn those sigils now."

"I would like to start with meeting the Spirits, but isn't there a way to find them that would not insult them? I feel that calling to them without pulling them suddenly from... wherever they are living."

"After I met with the Lady of the Pond I awakened with this rune on my hand." She raised her hand concentrating on it as she remembered the last time she had done so it had become visible. "I am not sure what it means. I know that the Witch uses runes, but do you know them as well?"

Peck shifted his weight, uncomfortable with the thought of receiving a rune marking from a Spirit, but he stared at Anise's hand all the same. As he watched, a blue glimmer of light sparkled into existence on the back of Anise's hand, as if it were glowing from deep within her flesh.

He took a slow breath. "The shape and form of a rune doesn't usually mean much," he said with casual confidence. "Each runewriter has their own style. It's the intention behind the rune that really matters -- what the runewriter wanted while drawing it, and how much they wanted it, and how much it's been charged."

He glanced to Anise's face, uncertain. "Pirates learned them from the Spirits, who use them to control their elements. The runes that the Spirits use are powerful taboo, so I've never seen one before. So if the Lady of the Pond gave you a rune, she's attached an intention to you -- probably either to control you, or to give you control over water. Have you tried activating it?" After a pause, he figured Anise might not know the basics of runes, being an outsider and all. He extended his gauntleted hand, and touched a rune that was etched there. Beads of light rolled along his arm and gathered in a ball of bright light in his palm, that illuminated their surroundings. He touched the rune again, and the light faded to nothing.

Peck stood and looked around the darkened forest. "As for the Spirits, if you want to travel we can probably find them. There was a forest fire recently -- the Lord of the Flame is probably there. You've met the Lady of the Pond." He looked up at the sky, thinking. "The Lord of the Gust is probably up near the Roost, on top of the mountain. The Lady of the Stone is inside the mountain. The Lord of Shadow is . . . everywhere. But probably in the Deep Marsh." As he spoke, he pointed in the general direction of each Spirit's home. Save for the Lord of the Gust and the Lady of the Stone, they were all over the island. "There's also another one -- the Lord of the Wood -- but we're not sure he exists."

"I think I'd like to learn those sigils now."

Oseely's grin was bright and smug; the Lord of the Gust rolled his eyes and floated in the air. "Well, I'm not sticking around to watch you get burned to a crisp, in more ways than one," he warned Artemis, though there was a lilt of humor in his voice. "Try not to singe her too badly, you pyre-happy barbarian." He gave Oseely a warning glare, but sighed in submission and disappeared in a blink.

"Now!" Oseely announced, and he roughly swung an arm around Artemis' shoulders. "I'll show you how to survive in the deadliest wilderness ya've ever seen. Now about those runes. You've got some. They're shoddy witch-runes, but they'll do for someone like yourself." He pointed at her boots, and the staff she'd stolen from the witch's house.

He picked up the staff and analyzed it with one eye screwed shut. "Can't tell, think this one shoots lightning. Like every other damned thing those pirates make. Yeah, sure, it's handy, but it's boring. They've got swords and daggers and gauntlets and breastplates that charge electric. Can't tell ya the number of Pirates I've found fried by their own armor, but do they learn? Nooo." He handed the staff back to Artemis and peered at the boots. "Those runes are probably swiftfoot. Run fast! That's useful, I guess. But you've got a gryphon."

He paced in front of Artemis, tapping his chin and peering up at the stars and the bright moon. "The basics of runes, huh? You wanna be a runewriter, huh? Well it's not hard. Everyone has their own set of runes, no two identical -- in fact, if you try to copy the witch's runes they won't work as well for you as they do for her. They're hers, not yours. The exception is the Spirit runes. They belong to us Lords and Ladies, and they're far too mighty for you puny humans to comprehend." He gave her a wink, and he leaned back against a tree with his arms folded.

"So what I'm sayin' is, all you gotta do is want something bad enough, and draw a little picture that just feels right, and draw it on whatever you want to be affected. Just start drawing, you'll know what I mean, and you'll know when it's done. It's instinct. That's your rune, nobody else's. Other people might activate runes you drew, but nobody else can draw your rune and make it work." He tipped his head and narrowed his eyes. "Only thing is, summoning shit is hard. Takes a hell of a lot of dedication to make somethin' out of nothin'. Otherwise, though? Give it a shot."

"The shape and form of a rune doesn't usually mean much," he said with casual confidence. "Each runewriter has their own style. It's the intention behind the rune that really matters -- what the runewriter wanted while drawing it, and how much they wanted it, and how much it's been charged."

Anise nodded, basically runes were a form of art... magical art, but art nonetheless. She wondered if she actually had the ability to make her own runes herself.

He glanced to Anise's face, uncertain. "Pirates learned them from the Spirits, who use them to control their elements. The runes that the Spirits use are powerful taboo, so I've never seen one before. So if the Lady of the Pond gave you a rune, she's attached an intention to you -- probably either to control you, or to give you control over water. Have you tried activating it?"

The Spirits must have learned their abilities from the Dragon. Anise watched Peck demonstrate activating and deactivating a rune; a fairly simple process that she understood quickly. Since she had declared herself the Lady of Light and it had been accepted by the previous one's rival the Lady of the Pond, perhaps because of her declaration and said acknowledgement she could create light.

She smiled gratefully at Peck. "Alright, thank you, Peck. I think I understand now."

"As for the Spirits, if you want to travel we can probably find them. There was a forest fire recently -- the Lord of the Flame is probably there. You've met the Lady of the Pond." He looked up at the sky, thinking. "The Lord of the Gust is probably up near the Roost, on top of the mountain. The Lady of the Stone is inside the mountain. The Lord of Shadow is . . . everywhere. But probably in the Deep Marsh." As he spoke, he pointed in the general direction of each Spirit's home. Save for the Lord of the Gust and the Lady of the Stone, they were all over the island. "There's also another one -- the Lord of the Wood -- but we're not sure he exists."

Anise thought for a moment about where the Lord of the Wood may be. Then a thought came to her mind. "What if the state the forest is in has weakened the Lord of the Wood in such a way that he has been incapacitated in some way?" She decided it probably would be best to voice her thought even if it's just as something to consider.

She then realized just how much Peck was risking by helping her. He had said that he had broken the rules of his people and if they learned this he probably would be viewed as a traitor, and she knew what happened to traitors. He could even risk the ire of the Spirits for telling her what he knew. The Kith were no friends of the Pirates, so they would not at all be interested in keeping him safe from harm. He had come close to death several times since they first met, and their journey would be no safer.

Could she perhaps try to make a rune to protect him? She picked up a rock and focused on it considering what to do. She then picked up a smaller stone as another thought began to form in her mind. The image of a lantern came to mind which felt right for her. For her the Lantern had been a protective device. Something that had kept her safe. While the thought to use the Spirit Egg to create this crossed her mind, her instincts told her that this was something she had to make herself without any assistance.

Her focus became so intent on the creation of this rune of protection that all else was blocked out from her attention. Each runewriter has their own style. This felt right. She was confident she could do this. After all, she was the Lady of Light. The new Lady of Light. A protector of the denizens of this forest. This was her responsibility. It's the intention behind the rune that really matters. She finished creating the rune in the form of a lantern and felt as if a part of her had been put into this rune. As if this very stone held a piece of her soul.

Anise felt tired after making this, but her mind also felt completely clear. She glanced up to Peck and raised the stone to him. "If you are to come with me on this journey, I would like to do everything I can to keep you safe." She glanced at the rune. "You take a great risk by helping me, I know this. This rune should be able to help keep you safe from harm. I failed to do enough to protect my previous comrades because I did not know enough." She sat down as she started to feel a bit dizzy from her efforts. She grabbed what was left of the fruit and took another bite out of it. After she finished chewing, she continued to speak. "I am grateful for everything you have done for me so far. I will do everything I can to keep you safe from the dangers we will face in the future."

She stared at the Flight Lantern and Spirit Egg. "I do not know what the last Lady of Light was like, but I will save this land and protect its citizens. That is my mission as the new Lady of Light." Her gaze returned to Peck and steadily rose to her feet. "I suppose we should get started." She paused wondering who she start with. The Lady of the Pond might be the easiest to meet with, but she also felt like they would be backtracking a bit. She imagined the next easiest to meet would be the Lord of Shadow, but he had more of an interest in killing her than actually talking. The Lord of the Wood could potentially be contacted through the forest itself, but she doubted he would respond unless she found where he actually was. She knew that the forest fire hadn't be caused by the Lord of Flame, but it was possible he would go there anyways. The Lady of the Stone and the Lord of Wind would probably be the easiest the meet consecutively, however she was a stranger to them.

"We shall meet with the Lady of the Pond first." She felt that would be the best move to make.

Artemis raised an eyebrow at Oseely as he threw an arm around her shoulders and plucked the staff from her hands. Her lips pursed a bit when he explained the basic rules of rune-making; no writing anyone else's, any attempts to use someone else's would be subpar, don't even try shit with the lords'. So many rules. Artemis was never very good with rules. No, her specialty always laid in breaking them.

Reaching out, she took the staff back from him, long fingers curling around it. She gazed down at the intricate runes carved into the metal lining the wood. Artemis gave the staff an idle spin as she thought. Nura immediately perked up, beak snapping at the staff, eager to play. Artemis snatched it back, barely missing the beak's razor edge. Nura shuffled a bit where she sat, eager to play but trying valiantly to sit still. Artemis huffed out something that might've been a laugh and scratched at Nura's head for her troubles. Then she turned her attention back to the staff. The runes.

She glanced over her shoulder at Oseely, unsure. Then she snapped her gaze back.

Nope. The so-called 'lord' was already smug and self-important enough without her looking back to him for approval like a child every two seconds. So instead she turned her back to him and… looked up to Nura for approval. The gryphon didn't understand enough to give any. With a quiet sigh, Artemis looked back to the staff. Then she bent down and plucked a slender, sharp-edged stone from the cave floor. Straightening back up, she considered her options. The iron would be too tough to carve into with the little stone. She'd just end up hacking little ugly chips into it here or there. So she brought the stone against the wood at the center of the staff and pressed in. Her mind began to wander as she carved.

How was it possible that runes could work for just… anyone? Was it something about the island that made it work? Or were people just magical here in a way they weren't in other worlds? Did you have to be born here to be able to use magic? Clearly not if Oseely was encouraging her to try (Patron of Liars and Thieves, she reminded herself). Would it even work for her? As far as Artemis knew, there was nothing inherently magical about her. She'd seen the sun, which was apparently exceptional here, but that likely wasn't a factor. Oseely had seen the sun. The Witch hadn't. They could both use runes.

A memory rang unbidden in her mind, then. The Kith couldn't use runes. Her hand paused and her eyes looked at her carving, unseeing. Why couldn't they use runes? By all accounts they'd been on the island the longest. If the island itself made rune magic possible then shouldn't the Kith, the original inhabitants, be the most proficient at it? But there was some sort of tradeoff – The Pirates had runes and iron. The Kith had masks and protection in the forest.

And what the hell did she have? A stick, a mutant bird, and a smiling guy telling her to draw magic pictures. Fantastic.

Somewhere in Artemis' self-deprecation her eyes had refocused on the staff in her hand. A small carving was etched into the wood, a little more angular than she'd intended, a little rough-edged and ugly, but…

Artemis let her carving stone drop to the cave floor. She looked up at Nura for a moment. The gryphon tilted her head to the side. And then Artemis took a breath and brought her palm down to press on her rune.

At first nothing happened. Artemis raised an eyebrow, thoroughly unimpressed with herself.

Then a light flashed under her palm. Branching out from her hand, the Witch's runes jolted to life along the staff, white light pouring from them. And then the most ferocious crack of lightning Artemis had ever seen erupted from the staff. It arced through the air, crackling and tearing the night apart, branches oh solid light finding opposite ends of the cave.

Artemis screamed. She let go of the staff, heat blossoming in her hand where she'd touched her rune. She didn't know if the tingling in her hands was from the electricity or the magic or the sheer thrill of holding lightning in her hand. The lightning disappeared the moment she let go, but she could still feel the crackle and pop of electricity in the air, brushing against her skin. She felt her hair puffing up from the static, no doubt making her look like some terrified, filthy cat. Nura looked like a huge, terrified fluff ball.

Artemis looked down at the staff, the Witch's runes still glowing with lightning. With magic. Her own, smaller rune shined brightest of all.

"Oh, well done!" she shouted at Nura with a laugh, as though it was the gryphon's doing. Artemis rushed forward, hands fervently scratching at the feathers, simultaneously smoothing them down and ruffling them up. Nura didn't seem to know what to make of this development.

The staff rested on the ground below them, runes slowly losing their glow.

Oseely jumped and stumbled back, his eyes wide and reflective of the bright veins of light that crackled past him. He'd expected her to add her own, different attack or protection sigil to the staff -- but this! This was certainly the Witch's spell that raged in response to Artemis' touch.

He barked with laughter, clutching his sides. "Amplified the Witch's intention! Made it yer own, even! HA! Never have I seen such a cheeky move. I'd say with practice you could turn her own sigils against her, doubled or tripled. Oh, she'll be livid! And she'll do nothing about it! HA!" He laughed for awhile, just thinking of the Witch's face; after all these years of summoning gods and making demands, she'd finally get her comeuppance.

He drummed on his chest with a fist and calmed himself down. "But now -- there's a certain thing you should know, a thing that sets you apart from all the Pirates and Kith, a thing that makes you especially interesting." He laid a finger against the side of his nose and his eyes gleamed.

"That mask you've got there -- all those masks that belong to the Kith -- Pirates don't wear them. Even the Witch doesn't touch them. And the Kith, you know, iron hurts them and they can't draw or use those runes. But you, ya've figured out by now, you can use both freely. At once, even. That's a strange and powerful thing."

A movement of shadow in the corner of his eye distracted his attention for a moment; he stared keenly off to the side, toward a place where the dead white trees were thick and darkened -- a deeper dark than should have been. He slowly returned his attention back to Artemis.

"The masks aren't carved, they're grown out of the trees. They are the trees. They're the forest. They're the Lord of the Wood." He laughed at himself and his cryptic descriptions. "How 'bout this: all the trees on this island are one organism." He gestured his hands wide to encompass the plantlife around them. "Especially the Pirates think the Lord of the Wood doesn't exist, or died or ran off -- but he's all around, all the time, just doesn't show himself properly. You could say he's a collective consciousness, ta use a fancy term. The beasts are a part of it: the fireflies and the monkeybats and the blood rats. And the Kith, they're a part of it too. Ya could say they become a part of the forest when they wear that mask, kinda literally. But iron, that stuff can cut off a Kith from the collective, in a hurtful way. It negates that connection, they're terrified of it. And runes, well -- ya need a personal will, a singular intention to use them. The Kith share those energies with the forest and each other, so they're so diluted in each Kith that those runes usually don't react at all to them."

He grinned and sat up on a rock, his legs folded. "But any Kith that goes through life without wearin' a mask could, of course, use iron and runes -- and any Pirate that drops their iron and decides to wear a mask can be one with the forest. They're all human in the end. Quite a few Kith were born Pirates, and some Pirates were born Kith. But they don't talk about that, do they? Now, you. You're a sun-child. That energy from the sun negates the iron limits and can't be shared with the Wood, so you can tap into the collective and use runes and wear iron all at once. You're a force to be respected, if ya use it properly," he added with a wink.

---

Peck stared at the runed stone in his hand. Protection, by the will of the Lady of Light, for him. It was nothing like what he had expected her to craft as a first rune, and he was honored. He closed his fingers around it, gave her a firm and determined nod of acceptance, and he dropped it safely into a pocket.

"The Lady of the Pond," he breathed, wearily -- and he looked back into the darkness from which they'd come. It would be faster to backtrack now that the Lady of Light could walk on her own, but he'd just spent so much energy getting them as far from the lake as possible. He cleared his throat, took a breath, and straightened himself; no, they would do what needed to be done.

"C'mon, then." He walked past her, trudging through the brush. "I don't know how much help I can be to you -- I'm just a rider without his gryphon -- but I won't let you down."

He led her through the dark of the forest by the light of the moon and the fireflies; the plantlife grew thick and shadowed, and at times pairs of eyes peeked through at them, or old stone statues glimmered between the shivering leaves. Everything was outlined in the pale blue light of the moon. White flowers glowed brightly at the base of a gnarled tree.

It took much less time to get back to the lake than it had taken to get away from it, now that they'd left the sledge behind. The ruins of the old ship rested silent and dark against the bright shimmer of moonlight and gold flecks in the softly shifting water.

There was movement in the branches of the great tree that grew out of the center of the ruined ship; a pair of Kith clambered about the dead boughs, shouting and laughing to one another. They stuck their thin arms through new holes in the bark, and drew out shiny gears and springs that they chucked into the lake with glee. They were a boy with the mask of a cat, and a girl with that of a mouse.

Peck stepped up to the shoreline, visibly annoyed with the presence of the Kith, but he resolutely ignored them. "We can summon the Lady by drawing circles in the water and calling to her," he told Anise.

"The Lady of the Pond," he breathed, wearily -- and he looked back into the darkness from which they'd come.

This was the point where Anise realized just how weary Peck was. He may very well be used to exerting himself, but even then he was still human. There would be a point where he would have to rest. She watched him resolve himself to action regardless of his fatigue which caused a slightly worried expression to grow on her face. While she had rested, he had forced himself to work. At the time they had no choice, but now at least they could rest.

"C'mon, then." He walked past her, trudging through the brush. "I don't know how much help I can be to you -- I'm just a rider without his gryphon -- but I won't let you down."

Anise bit her lip as he walked past her. She knew he would do his best to keep his promise, but she still worried. Finally, she forced herself to smile and followed after him. "Thank you."

As trudged through the forest, Anise finally had some time to realize the beauty of this place. As fearsome as it was there was so much to see. The fireflies were a wonder that she had never seen before in Riverforde as the weather wasn't particularly good for them. She had heard about them from stories that she had dictated to her. The statues hiding beneath the vines and moss had an air of mystery to them. The flowers that grew near the gnarled trees were quite pretty. She now fully understood that if she hadn't been pulled into this world, her life would not be nearly as filled with wonder as it is now.

"This forest... in spite of the dangers," she said to no one in particular. "It's quite lovely."

As they made it to the lake a pair of Kith started calling out to them and throwing objects quite rudely. She was fairly sure she had seen the mouse mask before, but couldn't pinpoint where considering how much had happened in the last day or so. She noticed Peck's remarkable restraint and felt sad that neither the Kith nor Pirates wanted to get along with each other.

"We can summon the Lady by drawing circles in the water and calling to her," he told Anise.

Anise nodded and knelt at the water's edge. She felt fairly certain that the Lady of the Pond would be able to hear everything that she said. She noticed both of her hands were full: one with the Flight Lantern and the other with the Spirit Egg. If she were to draw circles in the water she would have to free one hand of one of these items. An idea then popped into her head. Since she was able to send dirt flying into the Witch's face to stun her for a moment with both abilities she had from these Eggs then she could cause the Spirit Egg to float without much difficulty around her head.

She smiled for a moment about her idea and then concentrated on the Spirit Egg asking it to fly around her using the power of the Lantern of Flight. She gazed in wonder for a moment when she witnessed it pick itself up and begin to zip around her, but always remaining within arms reach of her.

Feeling proud of her accomplishment she reached out and drew circles in the water. "Lady of the Pond, it is I, Anise the new Lady of Light. I understand what you said about the previous Lady of Light. I know that she was killed, and that you were on opposing sides. Even so, I can't imagine that it was easy for any of you to lose a sister." She cleared her throat as her emotions grew high. "I would... We would like to have a conversation. Your mother is quite upset at everything that has happened while she has been sealed away. You can see for yourself that everything is withering away and that the whole balance of the forest is a mess. Don't you think that's sad? Don't you think it is all sad? Don't we all have a responsibility to make everything right?"

She had two goals to accomplish in this meeting. First was for the Dragon to have an honest heart-to-heart with her children. Second was to get the Spirits to collectively work to help repair the state the forest was in. All of them. She connected to the Spirit Egg and gently thought. I will let you speak through me to your child, but I ask you to restrain from using me to harm her, please. I understand that you are maddeningly upset at your children, but these are your irreplaceable children.

Artemis paused in her petting to look over her shoulder and see Oseely apparently having the time of his life. A small, almost shy smirk found her and she felt a bubble of pride at his approval. Nura bumped Artemis' hand with her beak, a small complaint that she was no longer being showered with affection. Artemis shot the gryphon an indulgent look and sat down as Oseely tried to control himself. She patted the ground next to her and Nura plopped herself down obediently. With one hand scratching the gryphon's neck, she looked down at the staff, finally losing its glow. Her own, ugly little rune sat in the middle. She glanced up when Oseely started his exposition, before turning back to the staff, her mouth pursing in thought.

That lightning trick had been a good show of power – but the power wasn't her's. Oseely's words washed over her, and she absorbed his explanations as she placed a finger in the dirt on the cave floor. She moved it, drawing a small, swooping rune. When she finished, she lifted her finger and placed her palm atop it. There was a tiny glow from under her hand and then dirt poofed up into the air in a cloud around her hand. Artemis frowned down at the dirt, raising a hand to wave the cloud away. Ok, so her runes on their own weren't that impressive. Not yet, at least. If she wanted a proper runic defense, she'd have to rely on the skills of others until she managed to build up her own, which meant… more petty theft. Artemis wasn't one to shy away from a little B&E, but the people she stole from usually didn't have the ability to fry her on sight. Of course, there were probably other ways to take care of herself. But having something reliable wouldn't hurt.

(The idea of stealing from the Witch again made her hesitate though. The first person that tried to help her, and Artemis had run, a disappointment once again.)

She looked up when Oseely paused in his speech to see him looking in the distance, eyes slightly narrowed. Artemis raised an eyebrow and looked over her shoulder to try and spy whatever had him preoccupied. But before she could process more than the ever-present blackness of the night, Oseely had pulled his attention back, apparently dismissing whatever it was. She pulled her eyebrows together a bit in suspicion, glancing over her shoulder one last time. Oseely went into an explanation about the Kith and Pirates.

Artemis, not quite relaxed, but deciding to let whatever it was go, looked down at her feet, still stuffed in the Witch's heavy boots. Reckley had said she'd need to be barefoot to ride Nura. That was probably well enough – the boots technically fit her, but they weren't quite the right size. It wouldn't be long before blisters formed if she tried running through the forest in these things. And so, she yanked them off, letting them clatter to the cave floor. Nura's head shot up at the sound, and Artemis scratched at her feathers until she coaxed the gryphon to lay down again.

Artemis looked down at her bare feet in thought. Then she lifted her hands to untie the rust-colored scarf around her neck (one more layer lost to the island). She shook it clean of the ash and charred branches that had been caught in it when she'd crash-landed into the ground. A rip sounded through the cave over Oseely's voice as she tore it into two long strips and laid them side by side on the ground. She listened to the Lord of Flame and looked around for some sort of drawing implement. Artemis ran a hand through her hair as she looked around. Her eyes found a charred-black twig that'd fallen from her scarf and she picked it up to draw two identical, almost star-like runes on each strip. Then she took one and began wrapping it around the ball of her left foot, stringing it once through the crook between her big toe and the next one over to secure it in place, and then did one more wrap around the sole of her foot before tying it off at the top. She did the same with the other strip around her right foot. When she finished, she pushed herself to her feet, and gave a few experimental stomps – which landed in complete silence. Nura jolted up to a sitting position, alert at the action. Artemis gave a satisfied smirk. These would certainly help with sneaking around. She'd have to find some more permanent way to mark them, like burning or dying them. The charcoal would only last so long before rubbing off, unless runic magic somehow kept them from degrading.

She looked up at Oseely just in time for him to tell her how she was a force to be respected with a wink. Artemis had to force herself not to look away and roll her eyes at that – an old habit. She'd been told since birth how much potential she had and opportunity if she just took advantage to it and lived up to it.

But instead she forced herself to reach down and grab her staff. Straightening up, she placed one end on the ground and leaned on it, looking up at Oseely. Nura tried very hard not to nip at the overgrown throwy-spinny toy, but couldn't help leaning over to it, with an open beak. Every few seconds she seemed to try and pull herself back, closing her beak a bit, but then the inescapable urge to play pushed her back towards the staff. Artemis let her be and thought about all Oseely had told her.

Ok, so the logistics about the Pirates and the Kith kind of made sense, but the masks just… grew? What? If they grew from the trees, and the trees were one, and the Lord of Wood was the one… did… did the Lord of Wood make the masks? Did he just make them for the heck of it, or because he wanted the Kith to use them? If he made them, he must've wanted someone to use them. Though of course, that was if he made them.

And then there was this one, the Lord of Flame, being ever so informative and helpful. Why was that? Because he was interested in her? Because he wanted to use her? Because she was an entertaining outsider in an otherwise closed environment he'd been living in for the past few centuries? She had made quite the show of herself, screaming and flailing into the earth like an ungainly comet. Maybe he was hoping for a second viewing.

"And how exactly do the Lords and Ladies work into all of this?"

"Lady of the Pond, it is I, Anise the new Lady of Light. I understand what you said about the previous Lady of Light. I know that she was killed, and that you were on opposing sides. Even so, I can't imagine that it was easy for any of you to lose a sister." She cleared her throat as her emotions grew high. "I would... We would like to have a conversation. Your mother is quite upset at everything that has happened while she has been sealed away. You can see for yourself that everything is withering away and that the whole balance of the forest is a mess. Don't you think that's sad? Don't you think it is all sad? Don't we all have a responsibility to make everything right?"

For awhile there was only silence, and the gentle lap of glistening water against the gravelly shore.

Peck stood to one side, staring nervously out over the lake, and he very pointedly ignored the presence of the Kith -- who were dangling from the branches of the broken tree-in-the-ship, staring quietly at that curious lady who was talking to the lake.

The water rippled out from the circle Anise had made; the rune glowed on the back of her hand, and the golden specks throughout the water multiplied and glowed brighter throughout the lake. The Kith yipped and clambered higher in the tree; the cat-masked one pointed out over the golden lake while the mousey one squealed with delight.

Anise would know, instinctively, that she had the power to raise the water -- to call the healing waters of the lake and the grottos, and to call the deadly waves of the ocean surrounding them. She was tapping into the balance of power that belonged to the Lady of the Pond.

She stepped seamlessly out of the air, walking toward Anise along the surface of the golden water. She was as beautiful as before, and just as expressionless.

Peck swallowed hard and stumbled backward, clinging to a tree for balance and protection from the presence of the Lady of the Pond.

The Lady stopped in front of Anise and stared through her.

"What is right?" she asked quietly, but with a hint of sarcasm that suggested she thought of Anise as merely a child. "I gave you my rune because I'm curious that you might succeed where my sister had failed -- to return the light, return balance, to a time when the dead were allowed to pass on and greed did not exist."

A cruel smile crawled up her porcelain face. "The Lord of Shadow is accepting of me, now that I'm free. I raise and rush my waters freely in the darkness, but only as long as he allows it. I tolerate his egomaniacal actions, and he leaves me alone. I prefer this to the return of the Dragon you seem to love so dear."

She stared at the Spirit Egg for a moment. She did not step any closer. "There is something you should know, Lady of Light. We the Lords and Ladies of the elements are purposely holding the sun hostage. That will not change unless and until we are certain the Dragon will never return. There is only one thing to which we all agree: the Dragon's return would mean the death of all of us. The Dragon is not she, is not our mother, as you so offensively put it. The Dragon is merely it -- an entity that decided to create life because it was bored. When we became self-aware, when we ceased to obey, the Dragon would have devoured us. We sealed it, with the pirates' assistance. We gave the Lord of Shadow the balance of power so that he might prevent the Dragon from devouring the souls of the dead from beyond its prison."

She lifted her chin and stood calm upon the water. "So, Lady of Light, how do you intend to return the balance of power? Return the sunlight? Shall we sacrifice ourselves for the greater good? Can you assure me the Dragon will not continue its thirst for all-encompassing power?" Her blue eyes narrowed. "Ask it, then, how it gained enough power to bring you here, when it was trapped and weak. Ask the Dragon what it has done in order to summon the Children of the Sun, and you will know why we have done what has been done."

---

And then there was this one, the Lord of Flame, being ever so informative and helpful. Why was that? Because he was interested in her? Because he wanted to use her? Because she was an entertaining outsider in an otherwise closed environment he'd been living in for the past few centuries? She had made quite the show of herself, screaming and flailing into the earth like an ungainly comet. Maybe he was hoping for a second viewing.

"And how exactly do the Lords and Ladies work into all of this?"

Oseely watched with an interested eye everything Artemis did -- her interactions with the gryphon, her execution of ideas and slapdash runes. No, he didn't rest any high hopes on her -- not like Pirates might semi-worship the Sun Children, hopeful for heroes and an easy solution to problems they were too weak or scared to solve themselves -- but this was a strange and curious thing in front of him; he simply looked forward to what it would do next. Everything was bound to get more interesting from here.

A curious, easy smile grew on his face. "You mean, what the hell are we even good for, if all the power's between the runewriters and the masked ones? Or ya mean, what do we do, exactly, that the runes can't do?"

He lazed back, and for a moment he thought carefully. "Well, think of it like this. When you write a rune, ya tap into the power that's flowing all over the island. My siblings and me, we're a part of that power. We're the regulators of balance. If there's a push on the power flow, we push back. Except, right now the whole balance is tipped in favor of mister Lord of Shadow. The Lady of Light's not around to tip that balance back. But as I said, there's a reason for it. As long as it's dark, Shadow's got all the power. As long as Shadow's got all the power, he can keep control of the spirits of the dead -- and as long as he's got those spirits locked up, the Dragon can't feed off them. As long as the Dragon's weak, it'll stay sealed up -- and as long as it's sealed up, we're safe from being devoured."

He drew a circle in the air with his finger. "So it all always comes around to balance and power. If I got lax, Pond-Lady might decide to flood the place, turn it all to ocean. Maybe I could make the whole island a volcano, if she didn't keep me doused. Reckley could turn gravity upside-down if he had a mind to -- but the Lady of Stone wouldn't have it. So that's what we do. We play tug-of-war." He nodded toward Artemis' wrapped feet. "And what'll you do with your lightning-stick and sneaky-feet? No plans? Well, good. I like people without a plan."

"What is right?" she asked quietly, but with a hint of sarcasm that suggested she thought of Anise as merely a child. "I gave you my rune because I'm curious that you might succeed where my sister had failed -- to return the light, return balance, to a time when the dead were allowed to pass on and greed did not exist."

Anise did not appreciate the tone that the Lady of the Pond took with her. While she had thrown away her title as Princess she had expected some hint of respect from the Spirit as she believed that the Lady had accepted her as the new Lady of Light. She did not back away from the cold presence of the Lady of the Pond. She decided to wait to respond to her as she wanted to be patient and listen to all she had to say.

A cruel smile crawled up her porcelain face. "The Lord of Shadow is accepting of me, now that I'm free. I raise and rush my waters freely in the darkness, but only as long as he allows it. I tolerate his egomaniacal actions, and he leaves me alone. I prefer this to the return of the Dragon you seem to love so dear."

She stared at the Spirit Egg for a moment. She did not step any closer. "There is something you should know, Lady of Light. We the Lords and Ladies of the elements are purposely holding the sun hostage. That will not change unless and until we are certain the Dragon will never return. There is only one thing to which we all agree: the Dragon's return would mean the death of all of us. The Dragon is not she, is not our mother, as you so offensively put it. The Dragon is merely it -- an entity that decided to create life because it was bored. When we became self-aware, when we ceased to obey, the Dragon would have devoured us. We sealed it, with the pirates' assistance. We gave the Lord of Shadow the balance of power so that he might prevent the Dragon from devouring the souls of the dead from beyond its prison."

She lifted her chin and stood calm upon the water. "So, Lady of Light, how do you intend to return the balance of power? Return the sunlight? Shall we sacrifice ourselves for the greater good? Can you assure me the Dragon will not continue its thirst for all-encompassing power?" Her blue eyes narrowed. "Ask it, then, how it gained enough power to bring you here, when it was trapped and weak. Ask the Dragon what it has done in order to summon the Children of the Sun, and you will know why we have done what has been done."

Understanding flashed before her eyes. They were afraid. The dream she had made much more sense. She closed her eyes and nodded. "I see." It was barely a whisper.

She vividly remembered the image of her dream. Of her reaching into another world and eating away at its life energy. She felt the desperation. The pain. The betrayal. The feeling almost felt like her own. Much of the Dragon's feelings felt like they were her own as well. Every time it reacted to the lanterns. Every time she tried something she was incapable of. She had a grounded idea that she had either been imprinted on or by the Dragon and that the two of them were connected by more than just the power they shared. She knew that the Dragon was incapable of lying to her in its current state as its reactions to her environment were to focused and clear. The feelings the Dragon shared with her: the rage, hunger, and reluctance to not kill the Witch.

She reopened her eyes and a light sparkled beneath them. "I need not ask her such a thing." After such a connection with the Dragon through that dream, Anise refused to refer to the Dragon as it. "The Dragon does not lie to me as I feel what she feels. While she speaks to me little we are bonded. You are afraid; I understand that. However, she views of you as her children and your betrayal of her and each other has caused her great distress."

It was at this point where Anise realized just how human the Spirits really were. A small amused smile grew on her face. All this time she had thought that the Spirits were these beings that were inconceivable in nature to humans when in reality they went through growing pains just the same as she did. "You learned to think for yourselves which she hadn't expected, and because of that she overreacted. She overreacted just like my father did when I went through that stage of growth. You rebelled -- with some help -- and then you essentially locked her in the closet and hid the key away. Instead of letting her go to face your punishment you kept her locked in there to fend for herself off of scraps that she had to fight tooth and nail to get. Now that so much time has passed by you're all too scared to face your mother and have a real conversation with her."

Anise paused to let the Lady of the Pond consider and process what she just said. "Now, do you not think that's a bit outrageous? Have you not lived long enough to watch Kith and Pirate grow and learn and develop? The Dragon is furious -- any parent would be -- but she created you, she watched you take your first steps, and she saw you create your first runes. She took time and energy to raise you and care for you. Of course there's going to be growing pains, but do you really think that she would destroy something that she put so much effort into creating? You may not have turned out to be what the Dragon expected, but family is family and that bond can be bent, stretched, and strained but it will never break."

Anise felt something touch her cheek and she raised her hand to feel it only to touch something wet. When had she started crying? Somewhere deep inside, she could feel that she desperately missed her own family. Even though she had decided to throw away her title and live the rest of her life in the forest. She desperately wanted to feel her father's embrace; hear her mother's voice. "Family is something that I likely will never see again. Shouldn't you take the time to talk with yours?"

Anise grabbed the Spirit Egg out of the air with her free hand and extended it out towards the Lady of the Pond. "Come, she missing parts of her, but even then you can still talk with her." She smiled warmly. "Don't be afraid, I promise that I won't let her go too far." She then directed a thought at the Dragon again, I do not know her limits like you might, but please do not maim or cripple your daughter.

Something prickled inside Artemis when Oseely said the Lady of Light wasn't around anymore. What had happened to her? Something told Artemis she didn't want to know. And giving all that power and trust to someone named the Lord of Shadow hardly seemed wise. Even if these spirits were eternal, they still seemed human enough from what Artemis had seen. And human meant fallible. Corruptible.

When she was ten years old, her mother had told her about Artemis' grandfather, a man so thirsty for control and drunk with power that he'd nearly driven the valley to ruin. There'd been a rebellion, long and bloody. Her entire family had almost been overthrown, until Artemis' mother had killed him and tied his body to the castle walls for all to see. It'd kept them from being lynched by the commoners in the street, but it'd taken decades of hard work to earn the people's trust and affection back.

She wasn't about to get in the middle of a political fight between the forces of nature though. And as far as she was concerned, this wasn't her problem. So Artemis held her tongue as Oseely continued his casual explanation. A big game of tug-of-war, he said. Seemed like a lot of work.

Artemis shot him a look at his (correct) assumption that she didn't have a plan. Turning, she started walking to the mouth of the cave.

"Who said I didn't have a plan?" Give them a medal. "I always have a plan." She never had a plan.

Artemis took stock of her resources. Untrained gryphon. Questionable demi-god. Bunny mask. A rosary for some reason. Lightning stick of death. Sneaky feet. Rudimentary grasp of runes. Rune-imentary.

Now she was just stalling.

"If I'm going to be on my own," she announced louder than necessary, interrupting her own thoughts, "I'm gonna need some more supplies." She could probably figure out things as she went, and she'd get the hang of runes eventually. But at the moment, she didn't have any useful skill set for the island aside from being an overall drain on society. Until she had a decent grasp of how to make it on her own, she was going to have to rely on others – whether they were willing or not.

A knife was always useful. Maybe a blanket. Some food and water. Better clothes. Plus whatever fun stuff she could find. She looked over her shoulder back at Oseely.

"Know anyone willing to lend me some?"

Translation: who's getting robbed first?

"If I'm going to be on my own," she announced louder than necessary, interrupting her own thoughts, "I'm gonna need some more supplies." She looked over her shoulder back at Oseely. "Know anyone willing to lend me some?"

A slow, white grin spread on Oseely's face. "Now you're speaking my language."

He crawled to his feet in his slow and nimble way, waved a hand to snuff the fire, and followed her out under the starry sky. No trace of the witch-made storm was now visible; all signs of battles were gone. He took a deep breath of ashen air, and he pointed over the ridge.

"That way you'll find the Brigroot Tribe -- they're a little sect of Kith that like burrowing and stockpiling shinies. Most of what they've got is old crap -- statues and coins and jewels -- a dragon's hoard of useless shit, but some of it might have some powerful runes. They stockpile most everything else, too: food, leather, clothes, weapons -- bone and wood mostly -- and masks. They harvest those damn masks from the trees every moon-cycle, there's one for every forest-power you can imagine. If it's survival yer lookin' for, personally I'd start there. But --"

He pointed in the opposite direction. "Obviously ya don't want to go back to Gryphon Roost -- they'll recognize your friend here and slaughter you quick for stealin' her. But this way, that's the pirate settlement of Oyagun Nai, down at the seaside. They're the fishers and boaters -- but they're also the source of all the gears and gadgets and newfangled pipes and boilers ya might have seen rusting in the woods. You seen those clockwork trees? The ones that held up the Lanterns. They were feeding the Lanterns' power into generators at Oyagun Nai, until the Sun Children severed them. I'd bet the whole settlement's in a state right now, with the power source gone." He grinned to himself, imagining the poor pirates running around like headless chickens in the dark, they'd got so used to having Lantern-powered streetlights. "So if it's tech you want, or luxuries for your new personal fortress, that's the way." He had a thought, and tapped his chin. "They'd probably pay well for a Lantern, if you had one to trade. They generally don't give a flyin' shit about the Dragon or the Lords and Ladies -- at least I've never heard a prayer or a peep from them."

Anise grabbed the Spirit Egg out of the air with her free hand and extended it out towards the Lady of the Pond. "Come, she missing parts of her, but even then you can still talk with her." She smiled warmly. "Don't be afraid, I promise that I won't let her go too far."

The Dragon was vast and empty in response to Anise's plea -- for awhile it seemed it had not heard her, or simply did not care. For a moment, Anise would feel the Dragon's presence withdraw even further away from her, and she was shut out of the Dragon's thoughts.

A moment later, that wall was withdrawn, the vast emptiness returned, and a slow warmth enveloped Anise's heart. The Dragon was pleased.

The Lady of the Pond stared emotionlessly at Anise. Her expression never wavered -- but she occasionally glanced to the Spirit egg; her confidence was wavering. Finally, the egg was offered to her with a chance to speak personally -- safely -- with the Dragon that had been the subject of terror for so long.

For a long moment, the Lady did nothing. She set Anise with a stone-cold glare and a porcelain face, challenging this girl's audacity to step into matters that did not concern her. Her eyes drifted to the egg again -- and she stared at it, glared it down, threw all her hate at it. The egg did nothing; the Dragon did not react. The warmth remained around Anise's heart, and the Dragon merely waited.

The Lady of the Pond raised her thin hand -- paused -- then touched her fingers to the egg's shell. Her brows furrowed curiously; she had expected a bolt of lightning, a drain of her power, something evil and life-threatening -- but there was nothing. Only emptiness.

She pressed her hand completely against the shell, and she strained with her spirit to find the Dragon within the nothingness that expanded within the egg.

Warmth flowed through her. Anise could not hear nor sense what was being said between the Dragon and its child, but slowly color returned to the Lady's skin. Her eyes were wide and glistening with tears -- though what emotion caused those tears was yet unknown. She stared, transfixed, at the egg, while the lake glowed brightly and lapped at her feet.

"I am . . ." she whispered. A small, sad smile broke the smoothness of her warming face. "I will." She took a step back, removing her touch from the egg, and she breathed normally again. She seemed a very different person, now: her posture was not so rigid, her skin not so cold. Her eyes were bright when she looked to Anise -- yet she raised her chin in an attempt to resume her status. "I will believe, for now, that the Dragon may be prepared to return. The quickest way to do that will be to speak to my sister, the Lady of the Stone. She holds the sun hostage and gives the Lord of Shadow his power. If he were to fall, the Dragon could rise again."

Anise patiently waited for the Lady of the Pond to decide. Her hesitation reminded her of how she reacted when she ran around town without her escort that one time and Father caught her. She felt happy that the Dragon was pleased with her steps to make amends. She never broke eye contact with the Lady of the Pond even when the Spirit did so several times. She maintained her warmth and happiness exploded in her heart when the Spirit finally made contact with the Egg.

Anise watched as the Lady of the Pond changed right before her from a cold and imposing woman into a softer and warmer person. Anise did not know what conversation happened between the two, -- and frankly that did not matter to her -- but she knew that it turned out for the better. Finally, the Lady broke contact with the Egg.

"I am . . ." she whispered. A small, sad smile broke the smoothness of her warming face. "I will." She took a step back, removing her touch from the egg, and she breathed normally again. She seemed a very different person, now: her posture was not so rigid, her skin not so cold. Her eyes were bright when she looked to Anise -- yet she raised her chin in an attempt to resume her status. "I will believe, for now, that the Dragon may be prepared to return. The quickest way to do that will be to speak to my sister, the Lady of the Stone. She holds the sun hostage and gives the Lord of Shadow his power. If he were to fall, the Dragon could rise again."

Anise's warm smile transformed into a full out grin, and she placed the Lantern of Flight down to embrace the Lady of the Pond on impulse. "Thank you."

She eventually realized what she was doing and pulled away from the Lady of the Pond still beaming. She bowed her head quickly, but did not apologize. "I am truly grateful."

She looked back at Peck grinning. "Peck, it looks like our next venture will lead us to the mountain." She picked up the Lantern of Flight and looked over at the Kith silently watching in the trees nearby. She recognized the one wearing the mouse mask, but the other one she felt certain she had not seen before. She believed it was impossible for them to have not heard and seen what just happened. She then glanced at Peck whom had been tolerating their presence and wondered just how he would act if she asked for them to come along.

She turned to face the Lady of the Pond again as another thought came to her mind. "What will you do in the meantime? I imagine that since your brothers and sisters also worked together to seal the Dragon away that your change of heart may very well upset them if they find out." She then looked around in the darkness around them. "The Lord of Shadow is everywhere is he not?" Her expression was one of true concern towards the Lady of the Pond.

Both options sounded tempting – rob a bunch of creepy forest children, or rob a bunch of competent mystical-tech-savvie adults.

On one hand, the Kith had all the important basics for survival like clothes, food, and weapons. Plus they might've had runes she could manipulate into her own and maybe study until she got the hang of the craft. The masks were a nice touch too, though honestly… they were more than a little creepy. The problem was she honestly had no idea what to make of the Kith. They seemed sort of demonic, and Artemis wasn't particularly fond of children to begin with. They weren't as predictable as adults were.

Her other option, the Pirates overall had less to offer her. She could probably get some food, maybe a few weapons, but she didn't know what sort of gadgets they had or if she could even use them. There was likely something noteworthy there. And if they were in a state of chaos because their clockwork trees were eggless (and what a phrase that was) then now was probably the best chance she had to rob them blind. She'd see about hitting the Kith after. If she didn't die.

"Guess I'll see what sort of treasure the Pirates have first." She couldn't help the crack of a smile at her pun. She began making her way out of the mouth of her cave, the runes wrapped around her feet quieting her footsteps. Nura eagerly followed behind her, eyes trained on the staff in Artemis' hand. Once they were out in the open, Artemis turned around to look at the gryphon.

She had no idea how to mount her. The first time had just been a lot of clinging and screaming. Artemis blinked at the gryphon – the very large gryphon. What had Reckley said? Like riding a horse bareback. Artemis had never ridden a horse bareback. She stared a moment longer. Then she walked around to Nura's side to try and climb on her back – only for Nura to turn with her, eyes still on the staff. Artemis looked up to the night sky with a huff. She tried walking around again. Nura turned again. Artemis raised the staff and the gryphon immediately perked up after it. A twitch at the corner of Artemis' lips betrayed a smile. With her free hand she scratched above Nura's beak. Slowly, continuing the scratches, she lowered the staff down to the ground.

"C'mon, doooown." Nura's front legs bent and she lowered her head until it rested on the ground, her rear and tail still high in the air. Artemis' smile turned triumphant. She released her grip on the staff, still scratching Nura with her other hand, and crept along the gryphon's side. Nura didn't move, still focused on the staff a scarce inch away from the tip of her beak. It seemed the gryphon had completely forgotten it'd been the source of that terrible lightning just moments ago.

Artemis hesitated before finally grabbing a fistful of her dirty skirts and hiking them up. Ungraceful as a seal on land, she swung her leg over Nura's back, behind the wings and tried to settle herself down without falling. The scratching turned harsh and jolting then, as Artemis tried to right herself. Nura… didn't seem to care.

"Ok, good girl," Artemis said in a distracted voice as she leaned her chest forward to try and rest against Nura's back. This time she did fall, her chest colliding roughly with Nura's spine, and it was all she could do to not slide forward over the gryphon's head, or fall sideways off of her back. This finally seemed to jolt the gryphon to attention. Nura brought her head up a few inches in surprise, stopping Artemis' forward momentum. On reflex, her hand shot downwards in an attempt to stabilize herself. Her palm hit the wood of the staff painfully and on instinct her fingers curled around it just as Nura finally jolted back up to her full height.

Artemis was pretty sure she smacked the poor bird on the bottom of her beak with the staff when she lurched backwards at the movement, but it at least kept her from tumbling all the way back. Nura was shaking her head as Artemis finally got her bearings and managed to sit in a somewhat stable way. Her knees were locked probably too tight around Nura's side, she was hunched forward and low in a way that would make her stiff for hours after, and her hands were clenched, white-knuckled around the shining feathers at the back of Nura's neck in a way that had to be uncomfortable. But, she realized with a start, she'd done it.

Artemis was riding a gryphon. Granted, a stationary gryphon on the ground, but still. A startled, almost shy laugh escaped her. She straightened up a bit and forced her hand to unclench as she tried to smooth out the feathers she'd mangled. An idea came to her and she turned over her shoulder to look at Oseely

"How do I call you?" she asked. "Like how you called Reckley?" Artemis didn't have much faith that Oseely would actually be any help if called, but it didn't hurt to ask.