Elora sat on the edge of a well-made bed on the second floor of the inn and watched Nyal pace the length of the room. She had chosen a room near the stairs so that if anything happened, they would be able to escape easier. The room had two beds, one for her and one for Nyal, who didn't look like he would be sleeping anytime soon.

He'd been doing in since they had separated from the rest, lost in thought and restless. Elora didn't know how to help and instead opted to just leave him be. She hadn't spoken much with the group after she'd been told about the army in Planina, listening to the others instead. They had separated into different rooms not long after, all of them tired from the long walks the day had brought. They all had a lot to think about.

"Nyal," she said. He barely spared her a glance and continued his pacing. "Nyal, what's going on?"

He barely spared her a glance. "They're all dead," he muttered back to her, running a hand through his hair.

"I know," she replied. "But there are others in Planina. We know they're alive."

"They have an army," Nyal said, finally stopping and looking at her. "There's no way they can win against the Zlohiel. I saw that dragon, there's no way they can beat that!"

"Then we have to go there," Elora replied, standing up and making her way over to him. "We can help them. Don't you want that?"

"Of course, I do!" Nyal exclaimed. "I just... What if we fail? What if the Zlohiel win?"

She resisted a shudder at his words. "I don't know," she replied. "I haven't thought about it. I don't want to."

"You should," he said and started pacing again. "We need to fix this. I'm just not sure if we can."

She pursed her lips at him. "We have to try," she told him. "It will be worse if we don't." She didn't want Nyal to lose hope. If he did, then what chance did she have? She couldn't do it on her own. She needed a Healer. She needed Nyal.

He sighed. "I know," he said. He stopped his pacing again, this time moving to sit next to Elora on the bed. "What about Ragen and Mikhail?"

"We'll tell them that we're going to Planina. they can come if they wish to," she answered.

"And if they don't want to?" Nyal asked, staring down at the floor.

She adjusted her position on the bed to face him. "Then we go our separate ways." It was as simple as that.

"I don't want to lose more people," Nyal said, sounding more resigned than angry about it.

Elora let out a huff. "We can't force them to come with us," she said. "It will be dangerous. It's their choice if they want to face that with us. Although, I have the feeling they'll come with us. We're safer in a group."

Nyal was silent at her answer, thinking it over. "And Elizabeth and her group?" he eventually said, looking up at her. He no longer seemed phased by her eyes like he used to. A good sign.

"They have their own mission. I'm sure we'll see them again at some point." She didn't quite believe her own words, knowing there was a high chance the trio would die trying to find other survivors, but she had to tell him something.

He didn't say anything back, moving from Elora's bed to her own. It seemed that despite getting his words and feelings out, Nyal was still restless. "Nyal," she called when he made it to his bed. "You should get some sleep. We have a long day ahead of us."

She heard him grunt in reply as she rolled over, pulling the thick blankets over her. She didn't realise just how much she had missed the luxury of a well-made bed until then. Letting out a contented sigh as she sank into the mattress. Sleep took hold of her quickly, pulling her into the darkness.

She awoke to the sun seeping into the room like slow-moving mist, casting shadows along the walls. Nyal was still sleeping in the other bed, the blankets pulled over his head. She could hear voices in another room, as quiet as whispers, but couldn't tell who they belonged to.

She groaned, rubbing at her eyes and sitting up. She hadn't had a full night's sleep since the Gate opened, and it was strange to feel well rested. She pushed the blankets away, standing from the bed and stretching her wings out wide. One of them had cramped up in her sleep from being twisted in an odd position. It was something she'd gotten used to quickly in her long life.

A knock sounded at the door and Elora made her way over, pulling open the door harshly. Elizabeth stood there, looking at her with tired eyes. "Good morning," she said with a smile. "Everyone is downstairs for breakfast. I was wondering if you two would like to join us?"

"Oh," Elora started, surprised at the normalcy of Elizabeth's words. "Nyal is still sleeping. I'll wake him and we'll join you soon."

Elizabeth only nodded, moving away and towards the stairs. They must have collected the rest of the food Nyal and Elora had left behind and cooked something up with it. She smiled at the thought of a full meal. All she had to do was wake Nyal and she could finally eat something substantial.

He grunted at her when she shook him, squinting at her with tired eyes. She repeated Elizabeth's words to him, and he quickly moved from the bed. It wasn't long before she found them standing at the bottom of the stairs, watching the group of survivors sitting at a table and eating. They were silent, gobbling up their food like their lives depended on it. And they did.

Holding back an amused smile, Elora made her way over to the table, earning a wave from a chirpy Mikhail. Ragen barely looked up from his food as she sat, only gave her a brief once over. A bowl of porridge was placed in front of her by Elizabeth, who gave her a toothy grin.

"So," Mikhail started, mouth filled with food. "What's the plan?"

"Nyal and I are heading to Planina," Elora began, only to be interrupted by Ragen, who finally looked up from his food.

"And what about us?" he scoffed.

"You know you're welcome to join us," she replied. "But only if you want to." They'd talked about leaving days beforehand, there was always a chance they still wished to. Even if there was nothing left.

"Where else is there to go?" Mikhail asked. "There's nothing left for us. Fiume's gone, no doubt about it. The only thing we can do is head to Planina and help out there."

"I guess it's settled then," Nyal said, taking a seat next to her. "We're going to Planina."

Elizabeth smiled across from them, her face lighting up at the words. "I'm so glad you've decided to go. We need more people there, and you four would be extremely helpful, especially you, Gate Keeper."

"It's what I was made to do," Elora answered, ignoring the guilt that gnawed at her stomach.

"Doesn't mean we can't be grateful for it," Elizabeth replied, the smile not dropping from her young face.

She let out a quiet huff. "Thank you," she said, returning the smile. The words didn't do much for her self-esteem, but they were nice, nonetheless.

Cutlery clattered against porridge-filled bowls. "I guess we'd better head off after we've finished eating," Mikhail suggested.

"That would be best," Nyal answered, pushing away his empty plate of food.

The other two members of Elizabeth's little group looked up then, having stayed silent for most of the morning, "Are you well prepared for the journey?" the man - Remi - asked, lifting a hand to gesture towards the storage room Elora had found the day before. "Did you take any food from the storage room?"

"We stocked up yesterday," Elora replied. "We should have enough to get us to Planina." Remi only nodded, head ducking back towards his food.

They ate quickly and without speaking, the only sound was the clashing of cutlery on plates. It wasn't the best thing she had eaten, but she couldn't complain, at least she was eating. She wanted to get moving as soon as possible.

Not long afterwards the seven of them found themselves standing outside the inn, bags filled to the brim with food. The wind was rough, blowing harshly at Elora's wings and hair and kicking up dust from the dirt road.

"It was good to meet you, Gate Keeper," Elizabeth was saying, yelling to be heard over the wind. "I hope I will run into you again in Planina."

"As do I," Elora replied politely, ignoring the voice in the back of her head that told her she probably wouldn't see the trio again. The number of threats that were out there, she was surprised they had made it as far as they had.

"We had best be off," Nyal said. "I'm sure your people are desperate for our help."

Remi nodded. "They are," he said. "So I hope you get there as quickly as you can."

They said goodbye then, wishing each other luck. Elora watched them walk into the distance, a frown on her face. Her father had started whispering in her head again, his voice sounding almost smug.

Look at them, thinking they'll survive long enough to see you again. You and I both know the truth. Doesn't it hurt, my daughter, to see them so optimistic, so ready for your help, when it was you that caused this in the first place?

She shook her head as if trying to empty it of his voice. She felt a hand wrap around her wrist and looked over her shoulder at Nyal, who gave her a sympathetic look. "Ignore him," he told her. He always seemed to know now, when Yararanje was talking to her. "Whatever he's saying, it's not-"

"It is true, and you know it," she interrupted, her voice calm despite the anger that had begun to boil within her. "I did this, and they will never know that. They wanted our help so badly but didn't even bother to think about why Veridun is the way it is now. They didn't question any of it. Why?"

"Does it matter?" Ragen replied. He moved to stand in front of her, arms crossed over his chest, "If anything, I'm grateful they didn't question anything, only the gods know how that would have turned out for us. It happened, and it was your fault, but now you're trying to fix it, so quit beating yourself up over it. You can tell your father that too."

Elora only huffed, turning and stalking away from him. They needed to be on their way, it would take some time to get to Planina by foot, especially moving through the mountains. They couldn't afford to waste any time on trivial matters.

"By the Gods, Elora," she heard Nyal whisper as he ran to catch up to her. Ragen sighed behind her but eventually, she heard two other sets of footsteps following them away from the little nameless town they were in.

Planina was a spread-out kingdom hidden in the mountain ranges to the west. Elora had estimated a week's travel to the first village in the mountains, but she wasn't completely sure. Any time she had travelled to the kingdom she had flown there because it was much easier than climbing up the steep and treacherous mountains. This time she would have to walk, there was no way she was leaving her companions behind.

She hadn't been there since the last time she had hidden the Gate there, many years ago. Even then, she hadn't been anywhere near civilisation. She had hidden the Gate inside a mountain far away from any of the towns, towards the border of Veridun and near the unknown lands beyond.

Only the Gods knew what it was like now, especially after the Gate had opened. Was the kingdom as destroyed as the rest of the Realm? Or was it safe? There was no way to tell, even with Elizabeth and her group telling them it was safe. Anything could happen in a week or so. Planina was so spread out, so buried among the rocks that it could be considered a safe place to be. But how secure would it be against the Zlohiel? Against Gaizma?

She was doubting every move they made, every place they visited. How was she meant to do anything if she kept questioning everything? She was so used to knowing what to do, where to go, that not knowing was starting to freak her out.

She did hope that there were plenty of survivors there. Nyal needed to see other people, and she could assume that Ragen and Mikhail did as well. Seeing Elizabeth and her group had been a refreshing change from the same four faces, but it would get to the point where they would be so sick of seeing one another.

Finding other survivors to work with would be a welcome change of pace, especially seeing as the Warlock Guild of Protection was still running in Planina. Nyal would be welcomed there. That was all she cared about. Nyal. Finding more people for him, making sure he was safe. Saving the realm so that he didn't have to fight to live again.