Doyle was the first to see the town. Flying overhead, the bird caught sight of huts and roofs nestled between trees and shrubs about two leagues away from Efa. He descended slowly to relay what he saw. 

Their company had been travelling for about two hours since morning come. Efa had gotten a good nights rest. Energized by the fact, she had broken camp at double speed and set off within thirty minutes of waking up. Mounted atop Raven, the girl and her horse were going at a steady canter, with Doyle flying up ahead. The sun was bright in the sky, it cast Efa's shadow on the grass below. Grass that was lush and healthy. All around life bloomed. occasional trees sprouted out of the ground, creating a hotspot for flowers of all kinds. Primroses dominated the scene as Raven's hooves crashed through a patch of them. 

The blowing breeze which seemed to be a common presence in the prairie they were racing through. Efa's short hair was swept to the back as the wind blew into her face and her cloak, which swirled around behind her. 

They had passed herds of deer and rabbits that had collected around a small den created by a large collapsed boulder. Some way from there they had seen a herd of wild horses at a watering hole. Two foals were playing together aside from the main herd. They had left all that behind and were nearing another treeline. Which, if Efa's cartography skills meant anything, should be the only thing separating her from the town. As she burst into the underbrush of the forest, Doyle articulated between a group of trees and flew low to Efa. 

"Two leagues more, Efa." The bird cawed and soared high above them and into the trees. 

"You hear that," Efa reassured, patting Raven on the neck, "A little bit more and you can have an apple.

Raven neighed in exasperation and increased her pace, leaping clean over a collapsed tree trunk and dodging between two trees. Efa was getting somewhat used to the rhythmic motion of a moving horse. She had never rode on a horse for longer than an hour. The saddle and riding pants made it more bearable, though her thighs and back were still throbbing to an extent. Longing patiently to dismount and lie down in a bed, Efa pushed on. 

Halfway through the forest, Efa finally found a path. It was at a junction in the forest and there was a sign stuck into the ground near a tree. The girl slowed Raven down to read the sign, extracting that the town was due north, down the path in front of them. some distance passed and the trees gradually faded away behind them revealing a small town in the distance.

The cabins and buildings were made of wood as too were the roofs. It was a small town, slightly smaller than Cayrnr but far more spacious. On horseback Efa could see that there were about four main roads and many byroads, snaking off God knows where. She slowed to a walk and guided Raven in through an arched entryway into the town.

There were people milling about outside certain establishments from the looks of it. She went on through the main road and ended up at the town square. 

At the center was a large vined tree of the kind Efa didn't know. It was by far taller than all the architecture of the town. Its branches reached across the entire square, casting shadows and dropping down more vines. Sunlight barely broke through the top layer of leaves. It had the added effect of being very calming and tranquil. More people milled around the square and as Efa came closer, she noticed a small wooden structure that was built flush with the tree on a circular platform of stone around the base of the tree.  

It appeared to be a shrine of some sort. Wooden poles acting as makeshift pillars and a roof, along with walls and even miniature steps. People had left flowers and other trinkets near the shrine. Efa was intrigued. She had seen shrines before, but this one didn't seem to be for any God. 

Before she could go any closer however, a sudden uproar was heard from around one of the other main streets. Kicking Raven's flank, Efa trotted forward and dismounted at a hitching post and instructed Raven to stay. Pulling on her hood as she jogged around a building, Efa saw a large crowd of people, jostling around outside what appeared to be a tavern that had vines growing out of it. She ran to the crowd and slowly melted in with the people, pushing aside a few to get to the front where she saw what was causing the commotion.

Two people were having a fight, though the opponents weren't exactly evenly matched. As she watched, a bulky man who seemed to be made of muscle, threw a right hook at a boy who was just that -a boy. the youngster miraculously dodged the punch and went in low for a sweep of the man's legs. A second before the boy could knock the man down, he was flung backwards by a kick to the face. The seemingly more experienced man had anticipated the boy's sweep and had shoved his entire foot into the boys exposed face with the force of a charging bull. 

The audience visibly gasped, as did Efa. It was surprising to her that anyone would use such force on a child. More surprising than that was the fact that the boy shot to his feet. Not a second too soon either as the man was about to bring his foot down onto the boy's face. Efa could barely keep up with the speed of the fight as the boy; without a second to waste, threw his entire body weight; which wasn't a lot, onto the man's suspended leg, bringing him to the ground. He quickly straddled the man and started bashing his nose in. His advantage was short-lived as the man simply threw the boy off of him and into the crowd. 

Scattering the crowd, the man walked towards the boy who was barely stumbling to his feet. He reached behind his back to unsheathe a dagger which Efa had just caught a glimpse of as she had entered the crowd. But his fingers couldn't find the hilt as he groped air. His head flicked back to see where his dagger had gone. It happened a second before Efa put it together. The audience's eyes bulged when they saw the shine of steel in the boy's hand as it arced upwards and flashed across the man's neck. It was a small nick that spewed blood. Efa saw the man's eyes widen and his hand reach up to grasp the gash in his neck. In the same movement. In the same second. The boy took two short steps forward and lodged the blade hilt-deep in the man's hip, just above the thigh. 

The boy didn't stop to see the aftermath of his sudden murder. He Dashed forward and to the right, into a path that ran parallel to the tavern. Efa also didn't wait to see the audience's reaction, pushing them aside quickly and running after the boy. The two of them had left the scene before the man's body hit the floor. The entire fight from the time Efa joined the audience had taken less than a minute. 

She dashed into the path and flicked her head in every which way, catching the last glimpse of the boy's torn, brown shoe lifting up and over the roof of the building adjacent. Efa sighed happily. Without a moments hesitation, the girl kicked off the adjacent building and onto the tavern, finding handholds in the vines and outer walls. She scaled the the top of the tavern within five heartbeats and jumped backwards onto the building where she had last seen the boy, clinging like a cat to the edge of it. In the distance she saw the boy again, leaping onto roofs. He had seen her. She smiled slightly to herself and set off in pursuit. Her legs which had sat numb and idle upon a horse now rocketed forward, clearing the small roofs in seconds. She was gaining. As she veered left in pursuit of the boy, the buildings disappeared to give way to a small clearing with a tree in it. 

To her astonishment, the boy without a moments hesitation, flung himself onto one of the thinner branches, balancing on it perfectly and strode forward with barely a change in speed. He passed the central trunk of the tree and launched himself into an open window of a two story house. One of the few that were made with bricks. Efa followed suit, landing on a thicker branch a little ways lower on the trunk than the boy had. She too kept her balance, honed over years of clambering over the buildings of Cayrnr. Striding forward and up, the girl leapt into the open window, making it through but just barely. 

She cut herself on some stray piece of wood as she rolled on instinct. The problem being that the room she found herself in; which seemed to be an store room of some sort, was small. So small in fact that she rolled into one of the walls. Straightening herself as fast as possible, she took to a run again, spying the window that was open in a room opposite that was connected by a door. Before she jumped out however, she caught sight of four small fingers gripping the outer edge of the window.

The little shit's waiting in ambush for me! she thought, grinning as she slowly walked over to the window, grabbing a random plank from a pile, broken off from a crate on the floor. She took position in the adjacent room which was a larger study and cast a whispered ennyn on the plank which set it ablaze, immediately flinging it out the window and running forward at the same time. As expected, Efa heard a shout then a scream as the fingers disappeared from the windows edge. Thankfully she had made it to the window in time and grabbed the boy's hand before he plummeted. Hands that were small. 

She hoisted him up with ease. He was certainly malnourished, even more so that Efa. As she pulled him up and over, she got a good look at his face. He seemed to be about eleven or twelve winters past, with dirty black hair that was unevenly cut. His face was tired and weathered, as if he hadn't slept in days. He was wearing a simple linen tunic and dirty brown pants, and his shoes were old and torn. How the boy had survived this long, Efa dreaded to think. 

As soon as his feet touched the floor of the room, he yanked his hand away from Efa and jumped back a bit, shooting panicked glances all around the room like a cornered beast. This is going to be tough thought Efa as she eyed the boy's demeanor.

"Hey... its alright now, I'm not going to hurt you. You can trust me." She took a few steps forward and around to the window, trying to close the distance between her and the boy and also block his closest escape route.

"That's what t-th-they all say..." he responded, his voice cracking as if he hadn't used it for a while. His eyes trying desperately to look through any ill-intentions the girl might have. He shook his head violently, "no no no no no, all those bad men... they-they say the s-same thing. I can't trust them, no no no, I-I-I-I c-c-can't trust them! I-I can't trust you!" He made a sudden dash for the other window, the one they had entered through. 

Efa saw the boy's intention as soon as his feet changed direction. She grabbed his hand before he could run away and pulled him into a hug. He fought back furiously but Efa didn't let go, she held him close. She could feel his heart beat and bones through his worryingly thin chest. His tiny body gradually stopped struggling, certain by then that the girl meant him no harm. His arms wrapped themselves around the girl and his faced pressed tightly against her chest. He melted into Efa as he slowly started shaking and tears streamed down his face, whimpering incomprehensibly. 

Efa held him until he had calmed down and stopped crying. 

"What's your name...?" Efa asked tentatively once they had broken apart. The boy walked into the store room, stood with his back to the wall and eyes looking pointedly at his feet.

"Ellian... Ellian Llewellyn."

"Ellian... that's a nice name." Efa went over to the same wall and stood next to him.

"Then what's your name?" he demanded, eyes still staring at his feet. 

"Efa Quickfoot."

"Quickfoot doesn't sound like a real name... are you lying?"

"Nope," Efa said with a laugh, "My parents left me when I was barely one winters old, so the man who... uh -raised me, gave me the name Quickfoot."

"Oh..."

Efa was thankful that he hadn't given sympathies or anything, her parents and their unknown fate had stopped being a concern to her some while back, but she did get quite annoyed when people said sorry for the fate of people she had barely known, let alone the person apologizing. It had pissed her off when she used to deliver letters and the people who answered the door kept questioning her about why such a young girl was out here delivering letters. When she mentioned the orphanage, they would get teary-eyed and start apologizing.

"Anyway, why did you get into that fight outside the tavern?" She glanced sideways and saw that his hands were clenched into fists.

"Are you gonna scold me for killing him?" he asked with a hint of a growl in his voice, "that's how I am, okay? I've been killing for years, It's got n -"

"Hey hey hey, it's fine. I understand. I've k-killed a man too," Efa reassured, her own mind screaming as the memory of pudgy melted flesh resurfaced, "I want to know is why he was fighting you. Besides, he was going to kill you, you just acted first."

Ellian gave a sad smile and said, "I knew that man. He used to do... uh -things t-to my ma... and I- uh... saw it. He knew who I was and spat on me... and I just snapped." There was no trace of emotion on the boy's face. He wore an expression of stone.

"And let me guess... this has happened a few times now?" Efa asked, looking at the boy.

He nodded. A quick jerk of the head. Efa put her arm around him and he complied, leaning into her. He hasn't had any positive human interaction in a long time. 

"Do you have any other kin? Siblings? friends?" she inquired.

"No. Just its just me and ma," he said, then added in almost a whisper, "not that she's long for this world either..."

Efa's eyes widened. But before she could react to the boys sudden statement, the door in the room opposite was thrust open with a noise. Someone had come up the stairs while they were talking. Someone big by the sound of it. His heavy footfalls were heard on the wooden floor. Efa and the Ellian shifted to the opposite wall of the store room, away from view of the door, crouching low. 

Efa held her breath, her hands were shaking, a bead of sweat rolled down the back of her neck. She quietly pulled on her hood which had come off during the chase. She wondered who it was. Glancing back at Ellian, she saw that he was trembling too. We-we could escape through the window in the store room she thought, her eyes flicking to the open window which was streaming light into the dark room. Then suddenly the man stopped walking around the study. A loud, hoarse voice boomed out, "show yourselves! whoever's here! else it'll be dire for you."

He knows we're here! Efa felt Ellian grasp her cloak and moved in closer to her. She had to do something or they'd both be caught... or worse. A reckless plan formed in her mind. She hoped it would work.

Splaying her fingers, Efa directed an incantationless casting of Gwlychu from her left hand towards the doorway of the store room, causing a silent puddle of water to appear. The man strode forward, unawares as his feet slipped in the puddle and he fell forward into the store room. 

Efa pulled out her knife and was about to hold the man at knifepoint when Ellian dashed out from behind Efa and picking up another random plank from the pile, brought it down full force on the man's face. The man gave a muffled scream as he was cut off halfway through by the weight of a solid plank of wood coming down upon his face. He stopped struggling. His fingers twitched. Ellian brought it down again. 

Efa watched in horror as Ellian brought it down again, and again, and again, until the man's face resembled a broken pane of glass. His teeth broken off and blood oozing out of various ruptures in his head. A deathly silence came upon the room. The murder was brutal, however, Efa did not lose her breakfast this time. 

Suddenly a voice shouted up from the floor below, "Hey! zyrtri, What's happening up there, I heard loud noises when I entered..."

Efa grabbed Ellian by the upper arm and dragged him towards the window in the study. He got the message and leapt out onto a roof opposite, followed closely behind by Efa. After some more rooftop running, The duo descended to the streets behind an establishment. In the backyard of some buildings Efa turned to Ellian and stared at him accusingly, she seemed to have figured something out.

"You recognized the man?"

Ellian nodded and started walking away from Efa. She grabbed his tunic and held him in place, causing him to struggle against her.

"Ellian, your not telling me the full story. Did he also do something to your ma...?"

"No."

"Then why'd you bash his face in like that!? I was going to hold him at knifepoint or knock him out!"

"He deserved to die..."

"Why. Tell me why and I'll let it go"

The boy looked defeated. He seemed to be struggling against his own conscience. Finally he turned and looked Efa in the eyes, "you sure I can trust you?"

"I have no ill intentions, I was just passing through the town when this sudden conundrum came upon me and id like to see to it that you don't suffer anymore. 

He turned his head again, probably to wipe away tears. "Why should I tell you? I can deal with my own problems," he said adamantly, crossing his arms with his back to Efa. 

"I'm not saying you cant, I'm merely telling you to let me know a piece of your story, i wont pry further than I should. I'll even leave you alone after."

The boy perked up at the last part but said nothing. A bird chirped somewhere in the vicinity, voices of people reached their ears faintly, a gentle breeze rippled through a clothesline hung from one building to another, shifting the clothes present on it.

"My ma is going to die very soon." He looked Efa full in the face and said it. "She has some illness. It has degraded her from the time I was born. I don't have a da. Ma said he died but... I'm not so sure. For two years now, she hasn't been able to leave the house. I went to see a healer about it, he said he knew about the illness and that there was no cure for it. He gave me something which I was to add to tea and give to ma... and it even worked for sometime, she was healthy and even p-played with me a little. But then those bastards showed up." Cringing, his face scrunched up as if in disgust at the mere thought of the people he had termed 'bastards.'

 "They started taking the thing the healer gave. They would t-t-torture me with magic to give it up. One of the people who held me as they -uh, did the thing, was the man I killed now, I've been wanting to get him dead and to wipe that smug grin off his face for a while now." The boy looked like he had run a marathon. beads of sweat dripped from his forehead. 

His voice grew weak as he said, "b-b-but I don't want to kill." A tear slid down his cheek. "I'm tired of it, I just want to live with ma, I miss when she was strong, I miss when she told me stories, I miss her, I don't want her to die..."

The boy was crying in earnest by now, hiccoughing between words, unable to go on. Efa stood before him awkwardly. She didn't think a hug would fix this. In fact she knew she couldn't fix it. In the back of her mind, she worried about the discovery of the dead body in the building, she worried about whether it could be traced back to Ellian. She worried about many things.

"Have you tried any magic on your ma? do you think it might work?"

He shook his head and said while whimpering, "at this point I'll take anything possible to try and fix ma."

"Then how about we go to your house and try the magicking?" Efa asked expectantly, trying to get the boy's mind off the killing and death.

He gradually stopped crying. His eyes were red from all the tears. He agreed to Efa's proposal to go to his house without much enthusiasm. He's given up hope hasn't he...

She hoped that she could help the poor boy out before she left the small... unnamed town

"Hey by the way," she asked as they took a byroad to Ellian's house, "what's the name of the town? I came here only today you know..."

"Mynwent..." he said with a quick glance back towards Efa, "or at least that's what it's called in the olde tongue. I think when translated to the common tongue, it means Cemetery..."