I was woken up when it was still dark outside. My mother had made me breakfast and packed everything I could need on the two-day journey to the next village. Most of the town was still asleep, although some came out to see me off. Their faces held traces of grief as they wished me good luck on my journey. Adalgis walked up to me with a letter.

"Give this to Mirabel please. She's the town leader. It's imperative that she gets it." I nodded and put the envelope in my bag, making sure it wouldn't get crumpled.

My mom led our horse Selsiry out to the edge of town, and the ever growing crowd gathered around me. I looked at them, their faces showing exhaustion and grief. Understandable for the situation, but as I looked at them, there was something else too. Hope. I couldn't place that. We had no hope of survival. I had no hope I'd find the group that was delayed. The thoughts of that circled in my head as I turned to take Selsiry's reigns.

"You ready for an adventure girl?" I asked her. She snorted in response and I mounted her. I turned around and with one last look at the town, with the now half finished wooden walls, I urged Selsiry for a fast pace.

The Sun peeked over the horizon, forcing me to squint my eyes. The darkness disappeared faster, and more eventless than I expected. There was eerie silence around me. The magic levels around me seemed normal, although my perception was warped once again, this time by a magical flower, and not my own stupidity. If that didn't sound like a fairytale, I don't know what did.

"Hey, let's keep moving," I told Selsiry, not sure if I tried to calm her, or myself.

Her hooves echoed in the quiet morning. The only other sound  been the wind rust lin the leaves that were falling. It started to feel too quiet as the Sun cleared the horizon and continued its way in the sky. I looked around uneasily as Selsiry stopped, wanting to leave the path. I looked around uneasily as I felt her tense and slow down.

"What is it, girl?" I asked. "What's wrong?" She let out a snort and backed up before I could feel it. Like a strong wind, magic poured in from the North. Somehow, both freezing and burning. It came and left, but I felt a weird afterburn, just like the coldest north winds. It made me want to get to safety. Selsiry kept backing up and trying to turn around. I understood why.

"I know, Girl, I know," I said, getting off. "I feel it too, but we have to keep going." I lead her forward. "It's just intimidation." As I kept going, my body was shaking like it had never before. Selsiry kept stopping as I tried to lead her forward, not wanting to go deeper into the thick fog of magic. I tried to figure out how it worked, but there was nothing in my knowledge that could have explained it. Magic was incapable of scaring off animals. Even if there was too much, they would slowly leave but never run from it. And it didn't create fogs like this.

The situation was so surreal. I was walking almost blind, only seeing a few meters ahead of me, and completely deaf. I couldn't tell if it was the lack of sound, or magic dulling my senses to any sound. My magical senses reached out to see if there was anyone around, but all I could feel was thick, burning drips of magic. Not strong enough to cause harm but uncomfortable enough to make my hair stand. I kept walking, hoping the path I was on was still the right one. And praying beyond prayer that this wasn't an ambush.

As suddenly as it came, it was gone. I couldn't tell how much time had passed, and the sudden lack of magic didn't help, as my whole body became chilled. I pulled my cloak a bit over my shoulders, although I knew very well this kind of cold couldn't be chased away by a warm blanket. Selsiry stopped trying to bolt back the way we came, in fact, she started moving faster in the direction we were going. I got on her back once more and let her go as fast as she wanted away from the magic fog.

When the Sun approached the mountains behind us, I took a deep breath and sighed. Though the fog had b,een gone for hours, ,the aftereffects stayed until that moment. I urged Selsiry to keep up her gallop, as we'd lost a significant amount of time because of the magic trap. I knew we'd have to stop very soon, if for nothing else to give Selsiry time to recover. Animals didn't take lightly going against their instincts; I knew that from experience.

As we passed the trees, I kept looking around to see if there were any animals around. The lack of them still made me uneasy. To my dismay, the answer was no. The air was still chilly and silent, although the magic slowly made its presence known around me as the ringing of my ears stopped and my vision fully cleared. Still, the silence wasn't a good sign. I kept Selsiry in her fastest run as we passed more trees. I wanted to make as much ground as I could before the darkness forced me to make camp. The sun was almost touching the pass, and I was positive there was still a significant stretch between me and the cabin built between the two towns specifically for travelers. But as we kept going, I finally heard the sound of a woodpecker.

With a sigh of relief, I slowed Selsiry to a trot and kept going as the world fell darker and darker. The moon was not visible that night, so my time navigation was off. Selsiry kept slowing down until, eventually, I had to dismount. I saw torches in the distance, so instead of stopping and making camp, I led her forward. Even if it was a little too late, we were going to make it to the cabin, and maybe find the group we were looking for there. A small hope, but in that moment, it was more than enough to keep me going.

As I approached the crossroads that lead to the cabin deeper in the trees, I saw someone standing with a torch and a sword drawn. I slowed my pace, unsure of how I'll prove my own siding. The flames danced on his wrinkled face which made it almost certain he was among the many running for refuge. His green eyes glinted with an unnatural light as the flames reflected in them, making him look more intimidating than he probably was.

"Who are you and what is your business on this road?" he held his sword higher with shaking hands as I stopped in front of him.

"I'm looking to escort the refugees to Mountain Village," I said holding up the letter from Adalgis as proof.

He took a long look at me, seemingly deep in thought before he exclaimed "You're the daughter of Raphaelle!"

"Yes. I am. I'm sorry, I don't believe we've met." I was unsure of how to reply

"Oh no, we haven't. I've met your mother when she was pregnant. She saved my wife. You look a lot like her"

"Yeah." I nodded. Many of the villagers have made the same observation as I was growing into adulthood.

"Where are my manners?" He seathed his sword and held out his hand "My name is Arne. You're welcome to stay in the cabin for the night if you wish.

"Thank you. Are you coming from Raven's Rest?"

"Some of us. Some from villages farther and some..." he trailed off. "Why don't you head on inside and eat something? The people there can catch you up on what has been happening."

I simply nodded and headed down the road, leaving Arne on the lookout. As I headed deeper into the darkness, I realized something was way off. I looked back toward the older man but he wasn't going to give me answers so I went on toward the dimly lit house. People were still clearly awake, and probably not expecting any company. I quickly led Selsiry into the pen that had already housed a couple of horses, and even more donkeys, before going up to the door and slowly opening it.

Inside I was met with several older people prepared to attack. They got ready but upon seeing it was only me relaxed slightly. Someone from the back recognized me as Elisaria, and that won everyone over into putting down their makeshift weapons of chairs and crudely carved spears.

"Come on in, sweetheart," the lady in the back came forward and held out a hand. I took it and was wisked into the kitchen where there was still some soup on the fire kept warm.

"What brings the daughter of Raphaelle all the way out here?" she asked as she gave me some soup.

"I was sent to look for the delayed refugee groups."

"Well, here we are. All twenty of us" the lady said, an expression of grief distorting her face.

"May I ask what happened?"

"The army was faster than we all anticipated. Some managed to escape but we all carry the scars to tell the tale"

That was about what I had expected from how all of them greeted me. We didn't seem to have much time and what little we did have was definitely not enough to protect my village. This wasn't right.

"If you're looking for more, there's one more group at Raven's rest but they are mostly injured to the point of inability to travel."

I slowly ate the soup as I talked with the group. They were mostly from villages closer to the border and so their news of the war were just as bleak as one would expect. Their number was cut significantly since they started. Raven’s Rest was the last safe village and most of them thought that would change soon.

The small army of our country was consistently pushed back, although they were holding out better than originally expected. That was about what my father had written, with a bit more detail. Some of the members have been rescued from capture before they went through Raven’s Rest.

By the time I finished the soup, and heard all the news there was to share, Arne came in. One of the younger women took his sword and left the cabin. Even though they were supposedly in safe territory, they seemed to think they could be attacked at any moment.

The rest of the group started getting ready to sleep. There were not nearly enough rooms and beds for everyone, and all the beds were already occupied by the few children in the group. Even though I had to sleep on the floor with blankets, the moment my body was under them, I drifted off into a dreamless sleep.

When I woke up, it wasn't quite Sunrise yet. I woke to the shuffling of the group getting ready to leave. I didn't feel particularly well-rested, but I was more rested than I had been the day before. I sat up, remembering my quest, and tried to shake off the need to go back to sleep. There was still a group at Raven’s Rest, and as much as I didn't want to go that close to the front lines, I did want to save the people stranded there.

"We've prepared some breakfast. It should help wake you up." I nodded and went to the kitchen.

They had some bread and meat on the table, along with a container of tea and some wooden cups. I was one of the last people to be there. I sat down and took a tentative sip of the tea. It was green tea, which was a good idea. I drank it while eating as fast as I dared. I wanted to move on by Sunrise, and I could tell the group had similar ambitions.

"Arne is taking care of the horses. Your mare will be ready by the time you finish." One of the younger women said as she packed away the leftovers.

"Thank you." I looked at the remains of my breakfast. "Is there any way I can pay you for the food?"

"There's no need. We're almost to Mountain Village and your arrival means its safe that way. That's more than enough payment for us."

"Thank you," I said and I stood up to wash my cup.

I went out to the stables after I made sure to clean what I ate from, where the group was gathering. Arne led Selsiry toward me, saddled and ready to take on the world. She seemed particularly well-rested, which was in contrast with how I was feeling, and how the rest of the humans looked.

Arne handed me the reins of my horse, and the whole group started walking. As we reached the main road, I thanked them one last time before mounting Selsiry and leaving in the pre-dawn light. They all went in the opposite direction, much slower than I could on my own. The sun was almost over the horizon, but I managed to leave before dawn. Because of that, I slowed Selsiry to a fast walk.

The world around us was bursting with life, although I had a feeling we may run into one of those magic barriers before Raven’s Rest. That didn't matter at the moment, as everything seemed to be full of energy, giving both me and Selsiry a little bit of extra. With those thoughts, the cabin, and the group slowly disappeared behind me, and I was once again on my way.