Elaine trudged through Atral’s ruins, doing her best to keep her mind distracted as she crossed the dead time and time again. There were far too many for her heart to stand. Each one recalled the screams she wanted so desperately to stay buried.

  Already doubt nagged at her. The path was so simple before, but she could not violate what she knew was right. Stealing from the dead should not be the cost of survival. Even in death, a person deserved respect.

  Astor’s laws were simple. Treat the dead with the respect due to their station. Do not defile their remains in any way. Protect and preserve them until you could burn them in a cleansing fire. It was the right thing to do.

  She couldn’t raise a pyre on her own. There were just too many.

  She continued on, wandering aimlessly down the road, uncertain of what exactly she was looking for. She only breathed through her mouth. The smell was too strong for her to stand. She focused on the buildings as she walked.

  It wasn’t until a familiar spire caught her eye that hope rekindled in her heart. Made of stark white stone, it rose up high over the rooftops. It was a marker for one of the Order’s shrines. Elaine ran toward it.

  A sharp pain racked her side. Elaine slowed to a walk, touching at her side with her hand. Her wound still hurt. She frowned and closed her eyes, concentrating on the stinging pain. If she had her armor, it would have healed in just one day.

  If only she had her armor.

  “I shouldn’t miss what’s lost,” she told herself.

  She couldn’t stop the crooked smile that cracked her face. She still had some strength without her armor. Her muscles were the ones that hefted her armor and swung her sword. The unlimited vitality of Grace no longer fueled her body though.

  It was odd. It had been so long since her arms had felt hollow. She almost didn’t remember the burning in her legs from long walks. Even the sword Logan had given her felt so much heavier without the Grace flowing through her.

  She couldn’t let herself dwell on it. She refused to let herself pine for power she could no longer use. She started into a jog toward the spire, doing her best to ignore the pain with each footfall.

  It was a simple shrine, hardly remarkable from the surrounding buildings. It had no windows and only a single door. It was a conversion, a place that was once been a home had been remodeled for the Order’s use. The spire outside was the only real mark that it was there.

  No blood stained the wooden walls of the shrine, almost as if Astor’s protection had kept it safe from the attack. Elaine took in a deep breath when she reached the door. She prayed that this one place remained untouched.

  The door held strong when she tried to push it open. No matter how hard she pushed, it wouldn’t budge. She stepped back for a moment. She wasn’t sure how she could get in with the door barred.

  The thought occurred to her; she could just knock and ask. If there was anyone inside, they might open it for her. She stepped forward and knocked, hoping that anyone would hear.

  “I am Elaine, knight of the Order,” she said as she knocked. “If there is anyone alive, please open this door.”

  She heard nothing beyond the door. Her heart sank in her chest as moments dragged by. There might truly be no survivors in the entire town. Nowhere else would be safe if a shrine wasn’t.

  She couldn’t let it end this way. She started searching around. There had to be something she could use to get the door open. She finally found a fallen axe next to a guard’s body. She marched back to the door with it and began hacking through the wood.

  The wood gave way under the axe’s weight, cracking open to let light inside the shrine. In a few more swings, Elaine was cutting through the wooden bar that blocked the door. It fell to the ground inside in two pieces.

  The door crumbled, leaving her leaning against the axe as she caught her breath. The effort took much more from her than she expected. The pain in her side had increased to a bonfire, and each breath was shallower for it.

  Nothing would deter her. She let the axe fall to the ground, forgotten as she walked over the remains of the door. She would confirm with her own eyes that there was no one left inside.

  She could see no one inside the dark shrine, and her heart sagged. Only empty pews greeted her as she walked toward the back. There was a replica of the black stone in Nethas, roughly her height, placed to the side at the end.

  It couldn’t be true. Someone had to have barred the door. Elaine stepped up to the replica of Astor’s Word, her eyes searching it for some answer. No answer came forward. She turned and surveyed the room again, but saw nothing.

  “So, there was no hope at all,” Elaine said, doing her best to keep her voice steady.

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  The faint echo of her voice resounded through the room. She sat down in one of the pews, bowing her head and closing her eyes. She didn’t want to say a prayer this time. She didn’t see much of a point.

  A faint clicking, steadily growing louder caught her attention. Elaine stood and drew her sword, turning to face the door. A blur flashed outside. She barely got a glimpse of the human-like form.

  Elaine rushed to the door, stepping out with her sword at the ready. She searched her surroundings, but there was nothing. She couldn’t shake the feeling. Something had to have passed by.

  “Show yourself!” she yelled.

  The clicking was the only response.

  Elaine closed her eyes, focusing on the sound. It would do no good to panic. Panic was the first step to loss. She had to remain calm to find the source. She searched with her ears, and they led her up.

  When she opened her eyes, she found the source. Two sarpans clung to the roof of the shrine, their feral eyes glaring down at her. They weren’t wearing armor, but sarpans had little need for it. Each held a short sword in its hand.

  Elaine brought up her sword to face them. She couldn’t run, even if the battle wasn’t in her favor. These were the monsters responsible for the slaughter. They would pay dearly for their crimes.

  Both sarpans jumped down with ease, their bodies crouching as they landed. They didn’t charge at her immediately, but kept their distance. Rows of sharp teeth peeked out in a predatory smile.

  They were enjoying it.

  “Come on then,” Elaine said. “I’ll give you a fight.”

  The one to the right struck first, thrusting forward with its short sword at Elaine’s chest. Elaine shifted her footing, deflecting the sword with the flat of her blade. She nearly fell just from the force of the blow, but managed to keep her feet beneath her.

  Air brushed her face as she instinctively dodged the sarpan’s claws. She hadn’t even seen the attack. Her eyes couldn’t keep up with the speed. She retreated, pushing off from the sarpan’s blade and regaining her stance.

  Her side burned as she waited for the next attack.

  This time, both of them bounded forward, striking from both sides with their weapons. Elaine tensed, bringing her sword up to parry the right’s attack again. She couldn’t block both, but she might be able to sidestep the second strike.

  Her blade rang as she stopped the first strike. Already, she was shifting her feet, pushing down on the sarpan’s sword as she moved it to the right. The sarpan’s arm held strong and with one heave, it stopped her parry and forced her back left.

  Elaine stumbled to the side and tensed for the second attack. It never came. A shadow rose up behind the second sarpan. A leather glove grasped around its neck and plunged a knife into the sarpan’s jaw.

  Elaine didn’t question her fortune. She focused on the remaining sarpan. Her sword clashed with the sarpan’s own again and again. Each time she stepped forward and forced the sarpan back.

  She forced it back against a wall. There was nowhere for it to run. With a strong strike, she knocked the sword from its hand. She readied another to take off its head. Before she could swing, something grabbed her foot and sent her falling back to the ground.

  She had forgotten about its tail. Dirt fouled her mouth with a gasp. Before she could rise, it jumped up onto the rooftop. It let out one wailing screech before it ran off, jumping from building to building until it was out of sight.

  She rose up from the dirt, and hollow fire raced through her muscles. She had almost forgotten how tiring a short fight could be. She checked her bandages, making sure that they had not come loose during the fight.

  “I’m surprised that a coward would come to my aid,” she said after she was done, turning to face Logan.

  “That’s some gratitude you have,” Logan said as he wiped the blue blood from his knife. “I take it you’re still angry.”

  “About defiling these people?” Elaine raised her voice.

  “This is how you survive without walls to protect you.” Logan crossed his arms. “I don’t like it much, but this is the world.”

  “No.” Elaine shook her head, tightening her grip on her sword. “This is the world you chose. It will not be the one I choose.”

  “Don’t act like you can’t compromise,” Logan said. “You’ve killed one of your own. You aren’t perfect.”

  “No, I’m not,” Elaine said. “But there is a difference.”

  “Then why don’t you go back?” Logan asked. “Why don’t you just give up and leave the savod to men?”

  He regretted the words; she could see it in his eyes. It was too late. She rushed forward, leaving her sword to fall to the ground and balling her hands into fists. Her fist connected with his jaw in a solid crack.

  He stepped back, his hand coming up to his jaw. But, the battle still wore against her. She had to rest. Her hands fell to her sides as she caught her breath. Logan’s jaw swelled and reddened.

  “I am doing this to protect Nethas,” Elaine said. “I am doing this to save the Order. I will not go back, even if I must work with mages or mercenaries.”

  “Then you need armor, and we need supplies,” Logan said. “You don’t have to like it, but there are more than enough things in Nelim that will try to kill us before we reach the plains. If you want something to hit, you can hit me. But swallow your pride.”

  Elaine stopped, trying to control the anger that bubbled in her. He just couldn’t understand. He didn’t see just how wrong it was. Even if it meant that she would die, she couldn’t just steal.

  “How about this,” Logan said. “Let’s compromise.”

  “What can you offer then?” Elaine asked.

  “That depends on what you want.” Logan frowned. “But if you can’t agree on something, I will leave you behind. I can find the Crows in the north if I have to.”

  Elaine thought about it for a moment.

  “We must build a pyre before we leave,” Elaine said. “Personal items must be left with the people they belong to and burned with them, but anything unused is okay for you to take.”

  “How many people do you think are here? One hundred? Two hundred?” Logan asked. “Do you think we can make pyres for that many alone?”

  “It doesn’t need to be individual,” Elaine said. “So long as we say the prayers over them, then it will be fine.”

  Logan didn’t say anything; he just rubbed his chin. Elaine could almost see his thoughts in his eyes. She did her best to keep the confident stance. She wouldn’t back down, no matter the cost.

  “I’m sorry,” Logan said. “Unless we turn this entire town to ash, it would take days to gather them all together.”

  “A ceremonial pyre in the least then.” Elaine stomped her foot down. “We need to honor them.”

  “Okay,” Logan said. “We can at least do that for them.”

  Elaine only nodded. She found no joy in victory. In truth, she had lost something very important in it. She surveyed the bodies around her and tried to keep her heart from falling. It was bittersweet, but at least they would get their proper respect.

  “Now we need to go find Joshua.” Logan sighed. “If there are more sarpans here, he might not be able to hold his own.”

  Elaine followed after, keeping her hand on her sword’s hilt.