A strong breeze whipped at Elora's hair, the smell of the earth permeating the air around her. They were still walking along the cliffs. Riba stood in a crumbling heap far behind them. If she listened hard enough, she could hear the crash of the waves against the rocky cliffs nearby.

Nyal walked next to her and stared out into the distance. Ragen and Mikhail were ahead of them, talking quietly to each other. It had been mostly quiet since they left Riba, the only sounds were the waves, footsteps in the grass and the occasional muttering from the pair in front of her.

Nyal hadn't spoken much since he found her in the courtyard in Riba after Gaizma had flown away. She didn't know why and didn't want to ask. She could only assume it had something to do with Riba. His home was gone, destroyed, and there was no one left but him. Elora kept an eye out for what could be people as they walked, but so far, she had seen nothing. It seemed that no one, Zlohiel or otherwise, wanted to be found in the south.

Nyal had rushed to heal her when he found her in the courtyard only the day before, despite there only being an ache in her chest. The water had soaked her clothes, but it didn't matter too much to her. There were more important things.

He told her that he had heard Gaizma roar. He'd been wandering the city trying to calm down and had rushed over when he heard it. He thought Elora had been killed. He'd looked so panicked, so terrified. Ragen and Mikhail had shown up not long after that, having heard the same thing.

Elora then explained who Gaizma was, why he was important, and of course why he hadn't killed her. Nyal's face had paled at the mention of war, and Ragen had grown angry. She couldn't blame either of them for their reactions, she wanted to do the same thing.

They had left Riba not long after that, not wanting to stay in one place when the Zlohiel, specifically Gaizma knew where they were. It was too dangerous for them, who knew when the dragon would come back. Who knew if he would change his mind and kill Elora before the war? She didn't want to wait and find out.

They didn't know where to go. The night before Mikhail had suggested returning to Dreeva, the centre capital of the realm, to see if there was anything there that could help them. Ragen wanted to go back to Fiume, one of the many kingdoms to the east, but all four of them knew that there wouldn't be anything left of it. Dreeva was an option. They would have the most luck of finding something there if it would be barely standing.

Their arguments had been shut down when Nyal asked if they could go to Voda, the other southern kingdom. He had wanted to see if there was any chance of anyone being still alive. He told them that he needed to know. They had agreed without a moment's thought. She wasn't sure if it was out of sympathy or pity.

Voda was only a day or two away from Riba, which made her doubt that anyone was still there. If the Zlohiel could take out Riba, there was no doubt they could destroy Voda as well. Still, she was going to allow Nyal to check it out. Even she was desperate to see someone that wasn't in their little group.

She hoped that once they passed by Voda that more shelter would be available. Despite the lack of attacks while they walked out in the open, she still felt like an obvious target in the wide green fields. Some trees would do them well, they would hide them from the Zlohiel better than anything on the cliff side ever could. All they had to do was find them.

She sighed, feeling exhaustion wash over her. It seemed that no matter how much rest she got, she was still tired. They would need to find shelter sometime in the next few hours, or else they would be sitting ducks in the dark. She knew there were farms and small villages in between Riba and Voda, all they had to do was find one that was still standing. Judging by the destruction at Riba, it would not be an easy task.

They had already passed by the remains of a barn earlier in the day. Charcoaled stumps of wood and the burnt and half-eaten carcasses of farm animals were the only evidence it had even existed in the first place. It had offered no shelter and the smell of the animals and the buzzing sound of flies told them it wouldn't offer any food either.

They were beginning to run low, and it was happening a lot quicker than any of them had expected. They had enough food for a few more days, but after that, they would begin to struggle. Elora had thought they would be able to last longer than that. All the more reason to find trees and shelter.

"Elora, Nyal," Mikhail called back to them, pulling Elora from her thoughts.

She frowned. "What is it?" she asked, glancing over at the ever silent Nyal.

"It looks like buildings," Mikhail replied, pointing down a hill to the left of them. It was almost as if her unspoken wish had been granted. Her gaze followed his arm until it reached a smattering of buildings along the horizon. "I can't tell if they've been hit or not."

"Neither can I," she muttered and let out an annoyed huff.

"We should check it out," Ragen suggested. "It's worth a shot. It's not like we've found anything else yet."

Without saying a word, Nyal stalked ahead, making his way down the steep hill. Wind tickling at her pale skin, Elora heaved a sigh and followed. Her boots thumped against the lush grass as she tried to keep her balance and catch up to Nyal, something she found herself doing more often now.

"Guess we're going down there," she heard Mikhail mutter behind her, closely followed by two sets of footsteps. More buildings revealed themselves as she made her way further down the steep hill, Nyal always two steps in front of her.

The ground flattened out beneath her feet and she could finally see that the majority of the buildings were still standing. She breathed out a sigh of relief at the sight. There would shelter for the night, just as she had wanted. If they were really lucky, there would be food.

Farm animals grazed in the fields near the small wooden buildings that formed the village, seemingly oblivious to the world around them. Elora was surprised that they hadn't been killed yet. If they could light a fire, some of them could potentially feed them.

It wasn't long before she found herself walking among the wooden shacks, looking around desperately for any sign of life. Nyal stalked ahead of her, calling out loudly. She could still hear Ragen and Mikhail walking quietly behind her.

The village was eerily quiet, despite the wind howling lowly as it blew between the buildings. Even the grazing animals were silent. Either the people living in the village were hiding from them, or they had left long ago. Elora felt immense relief at the lack of bodies lying around. If the Zlohiel had attacked this village, they were unable to kill anybody that they could see.

Frowning, Elora looked towards the door of what seemed to be an inn, reminding her of the one her and Nyal had stayed at in Fiume. She sighed wistfully, feeling that Fiume had been so long ago when it could only have been a few weeks at most. She no longer knew how much time had passed, only that the sun still rose and set.

Gesturing at Ragen and Mikhail behind her, she made her way towards the inn, making sure she stepped quietly so as to not alert anything that she was nearby. Elora winced a Ragen called to Nyal, making him turn sharply. Any stealth they may have had was gone.

With a sigh she pushed open the wooden door, hissing in a breath at the loud creak it let out. She stepped through the doorway, the thud of her boot echoing through the dim room. The sun shined in through the windows, illuminating the empty tables and chairs that filled the room. A bar stood at one end, where the innkeeper would usually be, instead it was deserted, like the rest of the village.

The four of them quickly made their way around the room, Ragen heading up the stairs in the corner to where the rooms would be, Mikhail searching around the seating area. Elora took Nyal around to the back of the bar, knowing there would be food around there somewhere.

"We could stay here for the night," she said. "It seems safe." Nyal only nodded in reply. Behind the dark wooden bar was a door, one that Elora hoped led to a kitchen of some kind. She let out a small relieved laugh when she pushed the door open. Shelves upon shelves lined the small room, each filled with different kinds of food. Some of it had already turned rotten, like the meat and vegetables, but there was some she could take.

She stuffed her bag with whatever she could find, calling in Nyal to do the same. This would last them for a long while, enough for them to get out of the open fields. She leaned back against the wall once her bag had been filled, smiling in relief. Even the smallest of things now brought her a little peace and the knowledge that Nyal and the others would be able to live longer.

"Elora!" she heard Mikhail call, voice panicked. Eyes wide, she pushed past Nyal, who had stopped what he was doing to stare out of the room. Mikhail stood in the middle of the room, staring out one of the large windows.

"What is it?" she asked as she made her way over to him.

"I heard voices," Mikail replied with a frown. "Outside."

"Zlohiel," she questioned.

"I'm not sure."

Elora hissed in a breath. "Get Ragen, I'm going out there," she ordered, looking back at the small storage room. "Nyal! Come with me."

She heard Nyal heavy footsteps follow her as she made her way back towards the inn's entrance. She glanced out the windows but couldn't see or hear anyone nearby. With a frown she pulled the door open, poking her head around the door frame. The street outside was just as empty as it had been when they arrived, the wind pushing and pulling at the dusty road.

"I don't see any-" she started, only to silence herself as the sound of footsteps reached her ears. From around the corner of a nearby house, a woman appeared, looking around herself warily and gesturing behind her. "They're not Zlohiel."

"Then let's go," Nyal urged, trying to push his way past Elora. She held out an arm, watching the woman walk around the corner, following quickly by another woman and a man. The first time she's seen someone other than their group, and it's three people. Three other people who have survived as long as they have.

"Come on," she whispered, stepping out the door slowly. Her footsteps were loud in the quiet street, loud enough to get the attention of the other group of people. All three of them whipped around, eyes locking onto Nyal and Elora. They gasped, pulling out their blades.

"Wait!" Nyal cried. "We're not going to hurt you! No need to be alarmed!" It was the most she had heard him say in a while.

"What is she?" the first woman Elora had seen yelled back, pointing her sword at Elora. "Is she one of them?"

"No!" Elora replied, taking a step towards them. "I'm trying to stop them!"

The three people looked at each other warily, the man speaking up. "What are you?"

She sighed in irritation. "I'm the Gate Keeper!" Elora called back, unsure if these people would even know who she was. She knew the royalty knew of her, but commoners, she didn't know anymore. Nyal had known of her, but he had been with the Warlock Guild of Protection, they were meant to know about her.

The second woman brought a hand over her mouth, drawing the attention of the other two. Nyal and Elora continued to make their way forward. Glancing behind her, Elora saw Ragen and Mikhail making their way out of the inn.

The group huddled together, speaking in hushed tones. Elora got close enough to notice the blonde streaks running through the first woman's brown hair, the stubble growing on the man's face, and the choppiness of the second woman's short inky black hair.

The black-haired woman stepped forward, barely three feet from Elora, "My name is Elizabeth," she said. "I work for the Planina branch of the Warlock Guild. This is Remi and Neve, soldiers from Planina. State your names." She gestured towards the men behind Elora.

"I'm Nyal Belthorne," Nyal said, voice loud and clear. "Former worker in the Dreevan Guild branch."

"Former?" Elizabeth questioned.

"I quit," was all Nyal said.

"I am Ragen, and this is Mikhail," the air mage called. "We're members of Queen Astor of Fiume's royal guard."

"What are you doing this far south?" the man - Remi - asked, giving the two easterners a sceptical look.

The two men shared a glance. "We're doing our duty to our queen," Mikhail replied as if it needed no other explanation. The man huffed, looking the four of them up and down, eyes focusing on Elora's black wings.

"Come," Elizabeth said. "We should go inside. We're too out in the open here." Elora couldn't agree more, spinning and marching back towards the inn. She smiled at the sound of the footsteps following her. She hadn't heard so many for a long time.

They set themselves up at one of the many tables in the inn, one group facing the other. "Why do your eyes glow?" Remi asked as he sat down, staring Elora in the face.

"I don't know, they just do," she replied, raising an eyebrow at him.

"That's not important right now, Remi," Elizabeth, who now seemed to be in charge of the three of them, scolded. "What's important is what they can do to help us."

"And what would that be?" Nyal asked.

Elizabeth raised her eyebrows at them. "We've been going around the south looking for survivors," she said. "We tell any that we find to go to Planina, it's still standing. They're building up an army to fight back against... Whatever is attacking us. They need anyone they can get. The Gate Keeper would be a very welcome addition."

"I'm assuming you would also have knowledge on what's going on?" the other woman, Neve, added.

"I do," Elora replied. "How many people have you found?"

"Not many," Elizabeth answered, "We were in Voda a couple of days ago, and there were only a few people left alive there. The city's been destroyed. We're on our way to Riba now."

"Don't bother," Ragen said. "We just came from there. No one's left."

"No one?"

"They're all dead," Nyal replied, looking down at the wooden table like it was the most interesting thing in the world.

Elizabeth cursed, curling her hands into fists. "There will still be others around. We'll keep looking," she sighed. "Thanks for telling us."

"Are you going to head to Planina?" Neve asked. "We really could use more people."

Gaizma's words rattled through Elora's head. A war was coming, and armies were already being prepared. The dragon was right. Gaizma would face her on the battlefield in the mountains. This would be her only chance to face him again.

"We'll sleep on it," Nyal answered, shocking Elora from her thoughts. She frowned at him, only getting an eyebrow raised in response. She looked past him at Ragen and Mikhail, both of whom had deep frowns on their faces. She hadn't even thought of them. Would they want to go? They would need to talk about it later.

"Alright," Elizabeth started. "But I do hope you will join us, the princess will be grateful for your help and your knowledge, Gate Keeper."

Elora only nodded, allowing the conversation to flow on without her. She stared at the wooden table, at the polish and the stains. She needed to be a part of this war. It was the only way she would be able to defeat Gaizma. She would go to Planina, and Nyal would go with her. She couldn't tell if the two Eastern men would join her, but it didn't matter. All she needed was Nyal.