" what just happened?" I ask cautiously.
Aife turns to look at me, and her face looks like she's just eaten something that is equal parts sour and rotting.
" that soldier is expecting a child. Since his comrades addressed him by a male name as opposed to a female one, he most likely identifies as a man. That is all there is to say on the issue."
This doesn't make sense to me, but if I press the issue, then I might end up as a Mila-kebab, and I don't really want that to happen, so I won't press the issue of whatever ' identifies' means.
The woman with silvery hair mutters something that sounds like, ' Mila-kebab?"
My face turns bright red when I realize that I've been rambling again, but none of the people in the clearing comment on it.
Aife is obviously tired, and she looks much older than she actually is.
" those people are why I fight. I want a safe world for the future, somewhere where there is no fear of prosecution if you are part of a certain group.
Wouldn't that future be much more pleasant to live in than living in this current era? I don't want to fight, but I must fight for what I believe, and what I wish to achieve."
I gulp and sneak a glance over to Mara, who looks oddly thoughtful as she considers what Aife has said about why she fights against the Neromee.
Mara speaks up, her voice shaking slightly.
" my lady.. I hate to trouble your mind with more issues, but there are new creatures stirring in this forest. Things that aren't animals, aren't human... they don't even belong to the Other People. They are something new that I've never seen before, and I don't think that you've seen them either."
Aife snorts and tosses her head.
" I have seen the Vines young one. I nearly lost a leg last week, and it was only with Eir's medicine that I am able to walk at the present. The thorns are coated with a noxious venom that- if not treated, can result in inescapable madness.
The afflicted grow in number each day, and they differ in appearance from case to case. This makes it hard to gauge exactly how many have fallen, but our estimates so far are in the mid-hundreds."
We both gulp at the large estimate of how many have fallen to the vine's effects, and I reach up to scratch at the wounds on my neck, wondering if I'll fall victim to the poison anytime soon, or if I can be saved.
The woman who was holding the plants moves closer to me and extends what appears to be a cup full of murky, violet liquid that glimmers silver in the dawn light.
I back into Mara, not trusting the 'hospitality' of strangers who extend food or drink, even if their intentions appear to be benign.
The woman huffs and starts to sing softly, trying to lull me into a false sense of security so that she can drug me with whatever loathsome concoction she is holding within the cup. The woman's hands appear rough and worn, like old bedsheets, but her face is sharply angled.
She resembles Aife in many respects, and- now that I think about it, the woman with the silvery hair also resembles the other two.
The dogs in the group start bristling and snarling at a seemingly innocent stand of brush at the edge of the clearing, and the people in the group heft their weapons and shift into a stance better suited to fight out any potential intruders who might invade the clearing with the intent to cause harm to our little group.
My imagination starts to run wild with more than a few negative possibilities as to what the cause of the rustling might be.
It might be some sort of ravenous, slathering beast, with eyes that glow like candles, and fangs as thick as my arm, or it might be a long necked beasty with a horrendously long tongue to suck my heart out!
I cling to Mara's arm, momentarily forgetting that said arm has been injured- possibly multiple times- since yesterday, but I am reminded about that when she nearly pulls my arm off in an escape attempt.
Three girls stumble into the clearing a few moments later, and the difference between them is startling.
The tallest girl has curly, light brown hair that falls past her waist, and there's a blue band keeping it out of her face. Her dress is a light color, close to white, and there's no doubt that she has led a rather comfortable life. Her expression shows that she does not appreciate being dragged into the forest, or perhaps there is something different keeping her temper sour.
The second tallest girl has cropped, black hair, and skin of nearly the same midnight hue. She wears simplified armor, almost like the soldiers from earlier, but she carries no weapons. She looks like she is used to hardship... there's a long, white-ish scar running from her right brow to her lips, where it tapers off just below her jaw.
The smallest girl is obviously upset that she has been dragged along with her companions into the woods. She is a rather petite girl, no taller than Mara, and her black curls are swept into an elaborate style. Her face is surprisingly pale, round and plump-cheeked with large brown eyes.
Aife smiles bitterly, and nods in greeting to each of them.
" Leona. Wolfgunda. Asteropia. I see you managed to drag yourselves away from your ' duties' long enough to honor our agreement."
The middle girl stalks forward, her features set in an angry scowl, and she pulls my face up so that I'm forced to look her in the eye.
" Queen, this is no place for children." she scoffs.
Aife glares at her, obviously not pleased at the challenge.
" Leona, these girls have knowledge of the Vines. They have survived the forest of Chaos without help save for each other. That gives them at least some credit."
Leona scoffs and glares at us, but she doesn't challenge Aife any more.
The second woman, the tallest, uses the short one as a shelf for her arm, and scoffs.
" let's keep this short and sweet, because Benedicta can only imitate me for so long before mom finds out that I skedaddled."
Leona snorts and crosses her arms.
" same with me except, instead of a mother and siblings, I have a fight to the death to look forward to!"
The smallest girl wraps a strand of her hair around her finger and twirls it nervously before pulling a small screen from her bag, then activating it.
" my lady, I ran the tests you requested, as well as the simulations, and the results are not favorable in the least. Your troops could not breach the walls of the main city, unless you had someone on the inside to plant a seed of rebellion.
I did the calculations as well, and the ratio of free to enslaved is seven to one, which means that if you can get enough slaves to turn against their captors, then your revolution will have the numbers for a major takeover. But there's another problem in the form of training.
Even though there are enough people, the occupations that they hold would not have any help on the battlefield. Unless you can train many troops in a short matter of months, then your little game of soldiers won't take flight in the time frame you planned. Also, you will need a person to get your point to the masses. It would be preferable if that point was in terms that they could actually understand, rather than in complex words meant for higher understanding."
Leona steps forward, her lower lip trembling.
" I'll do it. I need to do it to spite the one who betrayed me."
Aife nods to acknowledge the statement, but she seems troubled.
" may the ancestors guide your path." she says gravely.
Leona nods before darting back into the underbrush. She is gone so quickly that I briefly wonder if I imagined her.
The shortest girl smiles bitterly her mouth stretching thin across her face.
" I need someone to help guide my efforts once I return to the town. Someone the soldiers won't recognize."
Everyone turns to look at Mara and I, as well as the silvery haired woman.
Mara groans, and runs one hand through her hair.
" why us?"
Aife smiles, and I'm reminded of the dog-like creatures that we  encountered earlier, the ones with the giant teeth and the unnatural aversion to sunlight.
" people of the Neromee are more likely to trust children than adults, why this is, I cannot say, but they will trust you three more than if I went in myself."
Gwynhoiarn nods in agreement before frowning.
" wait a minute.... three?"
Aife smiles at the girl.
" you will accompany the children into the town to make sure that they do not come to harm. If they do find themselves in any sort of trouble, be it by threats or actual violence, you WILL assist them with getting out of that situation."