Wara stormed into the forest with a single sentence on her mind.
"To unlock what has been locked will take more essence than a plant or a small animal's entire life force. We will need something bigger."
Something bigger
Wara knew exactly what it was that Zelda was hinting at. Ever since Zola had been taken from her which was not so long ago, Wara felt like her mind was snapping into pieces. A new her was coming out but one that was lost with absolutely nothing that she knew.
It did not take long before she found a young girl on the floor, her cloak torn to pieces and her dresses torn in absolutely no pattern.
Wara was about to be on her way when she noticed the girl was still breathing. Wara deduced the girl must have been attacked by a night creature.
She shrugged. What was one life sacrificed when it was close to being dead anyway? At least she would die with purpose.
Somewhere in her mind, where sanity still had a say, Wara was surprised at the thoughts she had. There were moments where, she had a little bit of clarity although those were getting rarer.
She bent to pick the body up when she finally noticed the weary wolf beside the girl.
It was still alive too so Wara had second thoughts about taking the girl. After all the wolf might have been the one which attacked the girl.
But then Zelda's words rang in her head. It would need more than an animal's entire life force.
Wara had no idea why she knew what a wolf was. She had never met one yet she knew.
She ignored it eventually and stood up with Pax's body when the wolf immediately stirred.
It growled weakly but its resolve was strong. It tried to lunge at Wara but a swift kick to the muzzle had it whining in pain.
Wara immediately turned and stared heading back the way she went. She did not miss the shadow that leaped through the trees and rushed ahead of them.
Wara stopped when she heard a twig snap. The wolf was following her.
She narrowed her eyes. It looked... Worried?
The wolf was worried for the woman in her arms?
She turned around again and ignored the wolf, treading quickly back to camp.
She did not miss the amused smile Zelda threw her way as she unceremoniously dropped the body on the ground. She immediately stepped away from it as Yhra rushed towards them and immediately but wordlessly took the girl into her tent.
The wolf immediately bolted after Yhra and entered the tent but unlike what Wara had assumed when it did not come back out, Yhra did not kill it.
Wara's thoughts suddenly alarmed her. A week ago, she would have severely lectured someone for having the thoughts of killing a living creature for no reason. She would have left the wolf if she had no reason to kill it, not even if she was hurt.
But now she had no remorse in wishing death upon it.
"Are you doubting your existence?" Zelda's voice came from behind her. "Wait until the girl awakens."
As quickly as she had approached Wara, Zelda had gone.
Immediately, she found Fjammi going into the tent with a waterskin and a few moments after, Yhra had left the tent.
The girl followed behind, her eyes observing everything. Then her gaze fell on Zelda. She seemed to recognise her and Wara noticed the girl was quite wary of her.
Then she stared at Wara and also recognised her. She looked Āsimati and her markings were extremely familiar. She looked exactly like Nak, the human tanned skin and melted in Nik'sati.
Wara then headed for Fjammi so she could collect the waterskin when the girl suddenly spoke to her. "Wara Tislijiet?"
Wara did not like this. She had had enough of people she had never met talking to her like they were acquaintances. And it did not help that this girl greeted her in Āsimati.
Switching to the tongue she had not spoken in a while, she hissed at the girl. "Who are you?"
She saw the girl's eyes widen as if she had made a huge mistake and possibly it might have been if Wara did not want answers.
A strange unbridled rage was currently storming in Wara. It had been there since her child was snatched from under her nose.
Slowly, it pushed her to release a threat that suddenly descended into an outburst.
"I did not bring you here out of the kindness of my heart so do not think that I will spare you if I do not like your answer. I have had enough of unknown people knowing who I am!"
Instead of the girl to reply her, she watched as her eyes drifted to ask Nak an unrelated question.
The rage in Wara finally snapped. She could not stand being ignored when she wanted answers.
Before she could stop herself, her hand wrapped around the girl's throat as if it was a reflex and she hissed out again through clenched teeth. "Who. Are. You?"
As she slowly grounded out those words, her grip on the girl's neck was slowly becoming extremely tight. For a moment, her rage overshadowed her curiousity and she visualised snapping the neck when the girl finally spoke.
"My name is Raye Pax. I watched over you with Frenvír for almost fifteen years. This is my true form. I will explain better if I am allowed to be more comfortable."
Another intense emotion hit Wara harshly and she began to suffocate with hatred.
Pax.
All thoughts of sparing her had flown out the window because it was this woman's fault that the King knew who her son was.
Her grip tightened. And then something began to speak to her.
"All the more reason for me to end you then" Wara whispered as the voice began to whisper to her convincingly.
"Kill her."
Reasons why she should have began to flow into her head.
"kill her."
She had sent the Ptica after her son.
"Kill her"
She was one of the reasons why Zola had been captured.
"KILL HER!"
She had wanted Zola dead .
"KILL HER!"
She knew where Wara came from.
Wara's grip immediately loosened. Then she noticed Zelda speaking to Nak.
"Now now Nak. I may not know what you had said with her but we need her. Alive."
She saw Nak click his teeth and storm into the forest. Since no one went after him, she did not bother with it. Instead, her eyes were trained on Pax.
She saw as she let out a sigh of relief and this irritated Wara.
"Now tell us. Why do you know me?" Zelda asked to which both Yhra and Sica's eyes widened.
Wara noticed Fjammi was nowhere to be found and since the boy had a child like appearance, she was slightly worried.
But she wanted to know why exactly Pax knew both Nak and Zelda.
Pax stared back at Zelda, as if searching for something. Wara noticed it at the same time Zelda did. Pax was slightly afraid of Zelda. But it was not the same kind of fear that Wara had recieved.
It was like she was staring at her elder. One she respected.
"Interesting." Zelda commented and then turned away as if she was no longer interested. But her strange eyes were still locked on Pax.
She noticed Pax still like she had made another grave mistake. And then the most horrifying laughter Wara had ever heard filled her ears.
It was Zelda. She threw her head back and laughed slowly with her eyes shut. It sounded like she was choking, coughing and cackling at the same time.
It was unnatural, even more unnatural than her existence in itself. Then it abruptly stopped as she opened her eyes and they were in the same place as before she had closed them. Directly focused on Pax.
She then took a step closer, her face devoid of any emotion as she slowly walked towards Pax.
This time, even Wara was confused by the next event that transpired.
Pax's expressions morphed into one of fear. True fear. She had shown fear before when Wara had strangled her but this, like she truly feared for her life yet Zelda had not done anything.
"You question him and ask him why he is here when I should be asking you the same question." Wara watched as Pax's eyes slowly began to glow but the glow pulsated like a heartbeat.
Instead of it to look terrifying, it looked like a helpless creature being cornered.
Zelda leaned down and whispered something to Pax which suddenly had her stilling and then her Nik'sati paling completely.
It looked like the opposite of when one was infected by the cursed magic. It was ashened of colors and looked like it was paling.
Wara had never seen this extreme display of fear before.
After that, Zelda had disappeared completely, reminding Wara of how Fjammi would pop up out of a wisp of smoke.
Pax completely avoided Wara and Wara, although she needed answers, decided to wait.
She instead went back into the tent to sleep. Not bothering to even ask anyone if there was anything she could do to help.
When it was finally dark, they began to smother the fire because they were to close to human lands and it was the last night of Dies Lucis. It was usually worse during the first and last nights.
When Wara woke up, it was dark all around but she noticed the person who sat beside her.
"You need her alive." Zelda said, the smile that usually donned her face, gone.
Wara stared at her, not concerned. Instead she said with strong emotions attached.
"I will kill her."
And it was a promise.