Weaver's Curse

Indeara hadn’t expected to make such good time travelling with Sedine, Vassa and Pinky.

Sedine was a natural leader, and always seemed to know the best paths to take. On top of that she was an excellent forager and a decent hunter. Vassa never complained, even when Indeara saw her and Pinky preparing a salve to rub on the mess of blisters on the soles of her feet. And Pinky looked as if she was in her natural habitat trotting through the woods and rooting around for mushrooms to eat.

“I’ll build the fire, you rest for a bit.” Indeara ordered Vassa.

“Are you sure?” Vassa asked worriedly. “I don’t want to just leave all the work to you!”

“Don’t worry, I’ll manage.” Indeara promised.

Sedine had wandered off to hunt and gather before they stopped for the night, leaving them to build a cooking fire by the small stream they’d been walking along.

“Try soaking your feet.” Indeara suggested. “Uh... maybe upstream from where Pinky’s tearing the bank to pieces.”

“I can hear you.” Pinky said curtly, raising her muddy snout.

“I know.” Indeara said, piling up branches.

Not long after she got the fire going, Sedine returned, holding a dead rabbit. She set to work skinning and cleaning the carcass, tossing the bits that were inedible to humans over to Pinky. The sow gobbled them down, making disgusting slurping noises as she chewed on the rabbit’s organs.

The rabbit was soon propped up on a makeshift spit and roasting over the fire.

“Smells good.” Vassa said.

“Alright, I’ve got some important things to say, now that we’re almost at the Zircon border.” Sedine said, taking the rabbit down and divvying up the meat. “Indeara already knows a little.”

“So what’s the big secret?” Vassa asked.

“Firstly, my name isn’t Sedna. It’s Sedine Malachite.”

“That name sounds... vaguely familiar.” Vassa said.

“That’s because there used to be a missing poster with name and face on it in the Sleeping Sow.” Sedine said. “I tore it down.”

“Wait, missing?!” Vassa exclaimed.

“Yes.” Sedine said. “And it would not be good if I were officially found. So when we get to Zircon, I need you all to do me a favor and do not call me Sedine.”

So it’s not just that she has no interest in being found, it’s that she’s in danger if she is. But... why a missing poster and not a wanted poster?

“There are four main people looking for me.” Sedine said. “My cousins, Darren and Salazar Malachite, the second prince, Ryle Zircon, and a noble called Fayen Collis. If you so much as hear any of their names mentioned while we’re in Zircon, tell me immediately.”

Indeara nodded.

Vassa and Pinky quickly agreed as well.

“I have a plan that should take at least a few of them out of the kingdom.” Sedine said. “And after much thinking, I’ve decided not to don a male disguise. I haven’t practiced my ‘boy voice’ in a while, and I... might have compromised my male identity. Not entirely sure about then. Salazar definitely suspected.”

“Child, you’re babbling.” Pinky pointed out.

“Right. Sorry.” Sedine said. “There’s a possibility that they might be looking for a boy that roughly matches the description on the poster. So I’ll be keeping this identity, Sedna of Reganne. I’ll need to re-dye my hair and eyebrows before we enter Zircon, which I’ll do tonight.”

“Uh... can I ask why it’d be so bad if you were found?” Vassa asked.

“I’m on the run because those bastards tried to kill me.” Sedine said. “I suspect they’ll try again, if I’m found.”

“So.” Indeara said. “Why a missing poster, and not a wanted one?”

“A friend and I ensured that it would be difficult for them to fabricate a crime to put on one.” Sedine answered her. “At least not one many would believe. When I left, there were whisperings that they had already had me killed.”

“That bad, huh?” Indeara said.

“Yep.” Sedine said, face grim.

“Happens to the best of us.” Indeara assured her.

Ugh I think there’s a leaf in my hair, she thought, untying it and shaking it out.

“Um. Indeara?” Vassa said. “Did you know about those markings on your neck?”

“What markings?” Indeara asked.

“It’s three green dots.” Vassa said. “Arranged in a little triangle.”

Vassa scooted closer to get a better look. “And it looks like two of them are glowing really faintly.”

“That doesn’t sound like a normal birthmark,” Sedine commented, also getting loser. “Let me see. Yeah, that is definitely not a normal birthmark.”

“The first indicator would be that it was green,” Vassa snorted. “Not exactly a normal color for a mole to be.”

“Hey, no need to sass me.” Sedine said.

A cool finger poked at her neck, and she felt a jolt of electricity jolt through her.

“Can you feel that?” Sedine asked.

“Considering that she just jumped...” Pinky said.

“She might just be ticklish.” Sedine hushed the sow.

“Yeah. It felt like I got shocked.” Indeara reported.

“Interesting.” Sedine said. “I’m going to poke the other one.”

Indeara felt another poke, and then a fainter shock.

“What happened that time?” Vassa asked.

“Another shock, but not as strong.” Indeara said.

“I wonder what those are...” Sedine said. “Are you cursed?”

Cursed?

“Why didn’t I think of that!” Indeara cried, louder than she’d meant to.

“Think of what?” Vassa asked.

“That I could be cursed! See, not too long ago, I woke up in the middle of the wilderness in Reganne with no possessions, no memory of how I got there, and few other memories. And not once have I considered that it could have been a curse!”

“That is weird.” Pinky said. “Usually when I wake up somewhere strange it’s because that blasted tavern owner slipped something into my slop.”

“So how did you get put on the quest to find The Weaver?” Sedine asked.

“I found a piece of paper in my pocket with instructions to do so.” Indeara said, pulling the scrap out and handing it to her.

“Indeara? This barely makes sense.” Sedine said.

“What do you mean?” Indeara asked.

“That’s not an actual letter,” Sedine said, pointing at one of the letters. “And it repeats several time. Also, the spelling is weird.”

“But that is the letter Ko.” Indeara said, looking at Sedine in confusion. “And it is a very important letter.”

“Ko, you say?” Sedine said, studying the note with furrowed eyebrows.

“You speak as if you’ve never heard this letter?” Indeara said.

“I haven’t. It doesn’t exist in our alphabet.”

A strange alphabet they must have.

“I’m gonna go re-dye my hair.” Sedine said, sighing. “We’ll talk more later. Get some rest.”