Lachsea, Ausicaa

Tightly, readily, Brenna embraced the blue-eyed witch's thin, frail form in her arms. Yet, even while her heart brimmed with joy at this long-awaited reunion, she couldn't help wrinkling her nose.

A sudden urge to retch crept up her throat. Sorcha didn't smell like Sorcha. The witch's familiar fragrance of blackwidow grass and corberry oil had been replaced by a sour, odiferous scent. It reminded Brenna of urine and sewage.

Brenna pulled away slightly to catch her breath. Crisp, fresh air filled her lungs. She immediately felt less nauseous. To her left, Miven and his men were gathered close by. To her right, Brenna spotted Squadron Leader Ariss inching his way towards her. He seemed on edge for some reason. Even Roshe was behaving like a rebellious mutt. The wolf hadn't stopped barking and snarling at Sorcha since the witch stepped out of her house.

Brenna glared menacingly at Roshe. "No more, you hear me? No more!"

Roshe whimpered in protest, but he obeyed his beloved mistress' request. Once the wolf's spirited outburst quieted down, Brenna hurried to introduce Squadron Leader Ariss to Sorcha.

She glanced over to her handsome squadron leader and beamed. "Behold, Sorcha! I have brought him to you at last. This is Squadron Leader Kazekiel Ariss. The son of Commander Admiral Ariss. The very one you sent me out to find!"

Sorcha's brow furrowed as though she didn't quite grasp the meaning behind Brenna's words. A hard look stiffened across her face as she studied the boy. An intense emotion appeared in her blue eyes.

To Brenna, the sentiment looked not unlike... hostility?

Then, in the blink of an eye, the shadow across Sorcha's wizened face flitted away, and Brenna wondered if she had imagined it altogether.

The witch's mouth strained into another smile. "Ah, yes. The Commander Admiral's son. Lovely."

"I am most pleased to meet your acquaintance, my lady," Squadron Leader Ariss murmured with a gentlemanly bow. "Miss Catannach speaks very highly of you."

Sorcha chuckled. "Does she, now?"

Squadron Leader Ariss nodded politely. "She does, indeed."

As Brenna watched the exchange between Sorcha and Squadron Leader Ariss, she tried not to dwell on the witch's demeanor. Granted, there was nothing particularly wrong with anything that Sorcha was doing or uttering, except that she wasn't behaving or talking much like herself?

Perhaps Sorcha was feeling a bit overwhelmed by all the strangers that had descended so unceremoniously upon her home?

Brenna decided to right this wrong at once. She gestured towards Miven and the rest of his men and proceeded to introduce them one by one: Miven Sol, Luze Tan, Yan Jun, Kin Bo, Rui Yuen, Nanzi Xiu, and Wen Way.

"Sorcha, these fine gentlemen are from the Royal Zan Guard. They were sent by my father. The Prince himself! Can you believe it? They have accompanied me and guarded me over the course of our journey here. I would not be alive if not for their protection."

Sorcha's gaze darted over to them. Miven and his men bowed graciously to her.

The witch remarked, "These guards of yours certainly look formidable enough. How very fortunate that you chanced upon them in your time of need, Brenna-girl."

Brenna mumbled in agreement, "I was very fortunate, indeed."

"Come, then," Sorcha announced brightly, "let me fix up a hearty stew for everyone! Any friend of Brenna is a friend of mine. You are all welcome to rest up, eat up, and stay as long as you like..."

Sorcha's generosity gave Brenna pause.

It didn't seem very Sorcha-like at all to invite a group of complete strangers into her home. Her enthusiasm unsettled Brenna.

Furthermore, Sorcha's lackluster reaction to Squadron Leader Ariss worried Brenna. The witch's prophecy had been etched into Brenna's heart like scripture.

There is a man named Ariss who may be able to help you ascend two thrones through only one war.

Had the witch forgotten about her own prophecy? How could Sorcha overlook the urgency of their mission?

Brenna also knew that Miven wished to depart for Zan as soon as possible. No, despite Sorcha's kindly invitation, they couldn't linger in Laschsea for long.

"Sorcha?"

"Yes, Brenna-girl?"

In troubled tones, Brenna inquired, "Have you been well in my absence?"

Sorcha tittered. "Why, I have never been better!"

Brenna grimaced. "I am glad to hear it, truly. Although, I must admit, I am slightly taken aback by—"

Sorcha didn't let Brenna finish her sentence.

Abruptly, she cooed, "My darling child, how you have grown in the time we have been apart!"

Sorcha's tones sounded warm and gentle, but there was something about the unnatural tightness in her mouth that made Brenna uncomfortable.

"Yes, I suppose I have grown. Much has changed in me since our last encounter, Sorcha," Brenna replied hesitantly, "it has been far too many moons since Roshe and I left Lachsea. I am happy to be home."

"I am happy you are home as well."

"I hope we will never have to part ways again."

Sorcha's blue gaze sharpened. "My dear child, I would like nothing more then for you and I to be bound together forever. Like sun and sky. Like sea and sand."

Brenna smiled. "I am deeply pleased to hear this, Sorcha, because it is, in fact, the very reason why all of us have come to see you today..."

Sorcha cocked her head to the side like a curious bird. "Oh?"

"You must know by now how much I value you and your wisdom. I would never act without your blessing. I came back to Lachsea to seek your council on a very important matter," confessed Brenna.

All eyes swerved to Brenna. A beat of thick, tense silence lingered in the air. She felt Squadron Leader Ariss and Miven's gazes locking onto her like guided missiles.

She cleared her throat. "I wish to travel far and away from Ausicaa and Levose. I wish to meet my father. What might your tea leaves say about my fate in Zan?"

Sorcha's blue eyes glittered like a serpent. "My sweet child, I have been waiting for you to ask me such a question. I would like nothing more than to see you seek your fortune in Zan. You are, after all, your father's daughter. A princess. A true contender for the Republic's throne."

Brenna gasped, "So, you are in favor of this wild plan?

Sorcha smirked. "I am, indeed. Tea leaves never lie."

From the corner of her eye, Brenna noticed that Miven seemed pleased with the witch's answer while Squadron Leader Ariss looked much less so. Brenna tried to calm her nerves. She had, after all, obtained Sorcha's blessing for their adventure abroad. Now, all she had to do was convince Sorcha to come along with them. Brenna planned to do this later in the evening when she could speak to Sorcha alone.

Moments later, the men began to set up camp around the frozen lake. As the sun dipped into darkness, Miven and Squadron Leader Ariss worked together to light up a large campfire, and Sorcha filled everyone's bellies with fermented fish and wild dynche herb stew. All ten of them huddled around for warmth and sustenance. Around this time, Roshe disappeared into the woods and returned with a prize of his own. He had caught himself a fluffy-tailed, long-eared rabbit for dinner.

With Roshe gnawing on rabbit flesh at her feet, Brenna sidled up beside the witch with her bowl of stew.

"Sorcha?"

"Yes, Brenna-girl?"

"I have been meaning to ask you..."

"Hmm?"

"I know you are deeply rooted to the Sinea Forest and the realm of Ausicaa, but..."

"Go on, girl."

Brenna blurted out anxiously, "I do not wish to travel to Zan without you at my side! Will you please come with me?"

Sorcha smiled warmly. "My darling child, I thought you would never ask!"

Brenna's face froze with shock. Then, her mouth parted with sheer delight. "That is wonderful news! Thank you, thank you, thank you!"

They hugged, they kissed, and Brenna ignored the awful stench that now clung to Sorcha like a second skin.

That night, Brenna fell into a restless slumber next to Sorcha. Against Squadron Leader Ariss and Miven's wishes, she opted to sleep with Roshe and the witch in the hillside house while the men camped outside. Brenna thought it would bring her comfort. She had been homesick for so long. She had missed Sorcha so much.

Instead, strange, foreboding dreams plagued her to no end.

☾

A voice called to her in a field of mist and shadow.

"Brenna-girl..."

Brenna tried to turn around, but she couldn't move her feet. "Who goes there?"

The voice whispered, "Do not believe all that you see..."

Brenna's heart began to flutter with fear. "What?"

"Demons in the guise of man. The near-dead brought back to almost-life. I am barely holding on. There is not much time before he consumes all of me..."

"I do not understand!"

"Beware, beware! They have the Key, Brenna-girl. They took it from me. The shadows from below have been unleashed in the realms above..."

☾

Brenna's eyes flung open. Her heart hammered away like a drum. Her skin was bathed in cold sweat.

Beside her, Sorcha slept and snored peacefully—still stinking of rotten flesh.