Marching into the camp she kept close to the Mysta. They approached several small tents where various similarly dressed men and women tended a fire. Each of them wore the same symbol of the Dominus that she wore. Like the Mysta each of them had fingernails elaborately painted in white and silver. It was dawning on her the significance of the nail polish she had ignored during the tutorial. They approached one of the men who was busy hunched over a bag, his face and eyes fully obscured. The Ohzj gestured to Maria and called out to him, “Oser, I have brought the Angelus.”
The man stood up straight and offered her a bow. The voice from within his face wrappings was deep and confident, “Acolyte Oser, revered one. I am honored to take part in an Angelus’ quest.”
Maria gave him a cursory glance and said, “Can you show me where they took your stone from?”
The Mysta offered a nod and led her through the camp. She could hear the rumbled disquiet amongst the soldiers she passed now. She even heard one of them spit and curse. They finally stopped before a small rock shrine that was hung with scrolls covered in arcane writing and wax seals. A plinth in the center sat empty.
She looked to the Mysa, Oser standing dutifully behind her and said, “How did they get past the whole ‘ward notifies the soldier of the watch’ thing?”
The Mysta shook her head and said, “We do not know Angelus. It is a mystery.”
She took a fortifying breath and wandered around the small shrine scanning for tracks. She finally picked out what appeared to be indentations of toes that might be Grath sized. She noted the direction of them and made her way across the camp, dodging past scowling soldiers until she reached the edge of the ice shelf. There she noted what might be claw marks in the edge of the shelf and looked toward the forest and then the horizon.
Maria nodded an affirmation as she stood and said, “How much daylight do we have?”
The Mysta said softly, “It is early morning yet, Angelus.”
She nodded and gestured at the acolyte, “We should go as soon as possible. I would really rather not have the soldiers in this camp decide their hate outweighs their faith and put a sword through me.”
“As you wish Angelus,” the acolyte turned to the Mysta and bowed reverently clutching his hexagonal steel symbol and finishing, “I will return victorious or I will not return at all. Dominus, have mercy on our quest.”
Mysta Lanterra bowed in return, “Have mercy, Lord.”
Maria gave another cursory glance around at the huddled and armored soldiers of the camp. For being in the presence of a summoned servant of their god they sure seemed sedate, and even suspicious. Her mother would have been pissing herself if she got visited by an angel. She did not think she could chalk up this much animosity to good old fashioned racism. She was starting to get a feeling this Dominus seemed to dispense with peace and everlasting life and ordered a double helping of fear.
She groaned and whispered under her breath, “And I work for him. Fuck!”
Oser spoke up from behind her, “What was that Angelus?”
She waved a dismissive hand over her shoulder and led the way down the slope. She unslung the bow from her back and scanned the sky. The two of them traveled in silence until they had left the open hillocks and started to descend into the treeline. She was relieved that her new body seemed fit enough to endure the long hike. She occasionally glanced back to assure that Oser was still with her. The acolyte seemed to struggle but did not complain.
She eased to a stop at the edge of the trees and raised a hand to stop the acolyte. Spotting movement on a branch she drew an arrow and leveled it. She let the arrow fly and there was an intense squawk as something winged was hit and tumbled from the branch. As she made her way to the bird she glanced back at Oser, “This is my first mission as an Angelus. I thought you should know.”
“I have faith in the Dominus’ choice to send you to us.”
She furrowed her brow at the strange looking bird as she hefted it on the arrow, “What kind of…?” The strange bird had black feathers, two large and two small wings, four pupiless black eyes, and large black claws. She hefted the kill and continued on, unwrapping her face as she said, “I noticed the soldiers didn’t seem to be happy to see me.”
Oser walked over and extended a hand, “I will carry the bird. I want to help where I can.”
He unwrapped his own face. Finally able to see him she was surprised to admit he was somewhat handsome with smooth angular features, bright green eyes, and a thin brown beard. As he put the bird onto his belt he said, “There is friction between the Hold of the Dominus and the new mystery cults in the homeland. When we arrived in Susaire everyone was an ardent servant of our lord. The hardships have caused blasphemy to worm its way into many hearts, many of them among the legionnaires. The Hold is technically the authority in the colonies but the legions grow more certain that we should all return to the empire. That drama has followed us here.”
Maria stood and continued onward speaking over her shoulder, “Why do they want to leave?”
“Heretics. On its face the claim that the Noctis are their reason for leaving. The blight is far more pervasive here in the Untamed Lands. The truth is that the cults that have dominated the Empire have infected their minds and are determined to undermine the Dominus at every turn,” the man rambled as they walked.
Maria let him continue as she scanned the area for signs of their quarry’s passage and continued on into the dark wood. As he was elaborating on dwindling supplies she cut him off and asked, “What are the Noctis?”
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He paused and studied her with wide eyes before offering an apologetic smile, “You did say you are newly Angelus.”
He took a deep breath and said, “The Noctis is a parasite, or that is the prevailing thought amongst both the Hold of the Dominus and the Colleges of Rythe. Testing has revealed that it is all the same entity. It is said that as long as there have been creatures that could think and reason the Noctis has seeped from the darkness beneath the surface.”
He continued in a scholarly monotone, “Noctis pods live underground and send out tendrils to the surface. They infect dead things and then attack and try to spread themselves by killing more living beings.”
The man’s voice dropped and he sounded pained as he said, “Quite a few villages and holds have been lost to Noctis infections. They are usually quite easy to identify. The infection does nothing to dispel the rot that a corpse suffers but,” a tension entered the man's voice as he finished his statement, “there are legends that say particularly powerful Noctis pods can snake their way into a body, infect it, kill the host, and continue to impersonate the dead host while they destroy the community after lying in wait for months or even years.”
Maria stopped in her tracks and gave him a concerned look, “There are a lot of these out here?”
Oser shrugged and continued on, “Certainly a fair number. They are rife in the Untamed Lands. Noctis are rarely allowed to flourish in the Empire. Teams of adventurers and soldiers often delve into the underworld to burn them out.”
She studied the surrounding forest and asked, “How do we kill them?”
Oser didn’t seem perturbed by the question and seemed eager to talk, “Fire kills them quickly, but otherwise the most efficient way to dispatch them is to cut off their limbs.”
She had brought a tinderbox and three torches from the offerings back at her summoning. Continuing on she quietly hoped that would be enough to keep them safe.
As they scaled a slope using trees as climbing tools she asked, “What is it that these cults believe that brings them into conflict with the Dominus?”
The man grunted, slipped and kept his grip on her hand to save himself before huffing out a reply, “In the last three decades the preposterous notion that the four goddesses who are bound by the Dominus have freed themselves has become rife. The heathens claim that he no longer has the power he once did and we should be asking forgiveness from those we once imprisoned.”
He swiped leaves and soil from his robe as he joined her and growled, “It is all blasphemy but we were obliged to grin and bear the foul suggestions while still within the Empire as the cults have gained considerable numbers since their inception.”
She gave him a brief concerned look but continued on. Not for the first time she wondered what she had gotten herself into or alternatively just how fucked up her nightmare was going to get before she woke up.
From time to time, as they walked through the woodland Oser rambled and spoke of the issues at the camp. She welcomed the occasional discussion as it provided much needed insight into the strange world she had been dropped into. From time to time she paused and silenced him to take shots at small animals or birds. They all looked similar but varied, similarities included four eyes and wings along with emaciated almost skeletal facial features. She only hoped they would be edible. Oser did not offer objections so she crossed her fingers and continued on.
From time to time she found tracks that, when compared to her own, told her that she was on the right track following the Grath. The map that the Mysta had shown her said there was a river just to the west that ran southwest from the mountains to the north. That had been her destination all day. Unless the Grath had some other way of crossing the river it would have been theirs as well.
The daylight started to wane and she immediately set about making a camp and asked Oser, “Could you dress these two kills?”
The acolyte assented and set upon the task. He seemed adept at it and she left him to it.
She was surprised how quickly she was able to hurry around the forest gathering kindling and branches fit for a quick lean-to. Yet another benefit of her smaller and more agile body. She even found herself snapping up branches and twigs with her tail. The first time she scared herself and let out a tiny yelp. She sneered at a concerned look from Oser and continued on her task.
This forest and the environment reminded her of the Pacific northwest and not having some cover from pop up storms would make for a miserable evening. It only took a half an hour to gather what was needed given the heavy tree cover. She fashioned a small ring of large stones and a lean-to that was capable of covering both herself, the acolyte, and the fire to be.
Night quickly fell around them, dispelled to some degree by the small stone ring and its crackling fire upon which the two beasts were sizzling and spitting grease into the flames.
Oser, his face cast in the orange glow of the fire, asked her, “Would it be too forward for me to ask about you?”
Maria had a mouth full of bird meat when he asked. She blinked and chewed slowly before saying, “I was a… I was human to start.”
Oser’s eyes narrowed and he turned his head, “You chose to take the form of a Wild Grath?”
She waved the drumstick at him and said, “I wasn’t exactly given an orientation to this place. The guide,” she spat the word, “was actually quite hostile.” She breathed out sharply and said, “The Wild Grath made the most sense with my personal skills.”
Oser chewed on some of the meat from the strange mammal and asked, “What are those skills?”
She scanned the trees around them and turned sharply at the sound of rumbling thunder in the distance. Moving to settle under the lean-to with her back pressed against the tree she said, “I was a,” she paused considering how to explain her life and then said, “ranger of the wild and sage of history.”
Oser brightened and blinked in surprise, “Really? I know that there have been learned Angelus in the past but I somewhat suspected the Dominus would send someone more bloodthirsty for such a simple task.”
She studied him for several long moments taking note of the ‘bloodthirsty’ moniker and continued without mentioning it, “I suppose some of us may surprise you. I don’t know how the Dominus makes their choices but mine was made for me. I was being treated for an injury and somehow ended up wrapped up in this.”
Oser nodded as if that information did not surprise him and beamed a smile at her, “I will say again that I have every faith you will fulfill the Dominus’ will.”
Maria kept her attention on the fire and let the conversation fall away there. She finished her meal and the two of them agreed to watches to keep an eye out for predators. With that Maria settled in to sleep first, huddled in the corner of the lean-to with her cloak as a blanket.
She started awake an indeterminate time later. The fire was low but still burning and sheets of rain fell just outside the cover of their shelter. She glanced around slowly and noted with shock that Oser was gone.
