By the time Merse neared the location where she had spotted the fire, the hour was growing late, and the fire appeared to be burning low, which suited Merse just fine. In the low light, she spotted soldiers on sentry duty and settled into a nearby thicket to scout the area. As Dregsbale was the nearest town with a barracks, it was likely they were from there, as confirmed by the coat of arms on their armor. Naturally, Merse did not have any intention to have anything to do with anyone from Dregsbale - except Pia - and definitely not the soldiers. However, that did not mean she could not "borrow" some much needed supplies.
The sentries did not appear overly vigilant, letting the fire do the work of keeping beasts at bay. Furthermore, the occupied tents appeared to have protection wards on them, further lessening their duties. Merse spotted a few individuals on the far side of the fire, all of which seemed to be carrying out final preparations to bed down for the night. A covered wagon stood on the very edge of the camp, and all present appeared to make a concerted effort to avoid it, even the sentries. Merse noted one tent which lacked wards, probably that belonging to the sentries currently on duty, and when the sentries were far enough away, Merse snuck over to the back of the tent and ducked inside.
Not wanting to waste time, Merse grabbed a relatively full pack which sat on the ground next to a cot, as well as the bow and quiver of arrows leaning against the tent pole. Merse did not even bother to inspect the contents of the pack, but rather gathered her loot and quickly returned by the path she had entered before the sentries completed their round. She would have continued on her way with her goods, but as she was about to turn into the forest, she noticed something out of the corner of her eye. Across the fire, sitting on a log...a cloak with strange runes...an archmage!
Merse ducked down into the thicket, not even daring to breathe. It was obvious she had not been seen, as no alarm had been raised, but what was an archmage doing way out in the wilderness? Was she being tracked? Merse had nearly made up her mind to flee when something made her pause.
"...meet...wolfen...idea..." A few words came wafting on the breeze towards Merse, spoken by a man with large jowls and a relatively nice outfit, most likely some sort of merchant. He was conversing with the archmage, but Merse was too far to hear clearly. She leaned forward in concentration, and mentally felt Kayl's soul inch closer to her own. Noting that his actions did not seem belligerent, but rather were caused by an extreme interest in the conversation, Merse didn't bother keeping him at a distance. As Kayl's soul brushed up against her own, suddenly Merse found she could hear the dialogue with astounding clarity, although her ears were itching a bit.
"Are you sure they will be there?" The archmage queried sternly.
"Yah, them wolfen always have some watchers out by the trading post, when they see me they'll send word to the pack. Usually the Alpha and his group of toughs'll show, not like it gets 'em better prices," the merchant smirked with a grimy smile, which soon faded as he continued, nodding towards the covered wagon. "But I'm not used to bringing 'em that sort of goods. Hopefully they'll believe he kicked in Dregsbale and don't think we bled 'im."
"We are just returning the wolfen corpse to them out of respect," the archmage averred. "It's not like it has been desecrated; it will probably earn you some goodwill that you were willing to return their dead. I just need to find out from them what is so special about that particular wolfen."
"Mm-hmm," the merchant grunted doubtfully as he turned to return to his tent. The archmage followed suit, entering the larger tent obviously inhabited by mutliple mages. Soon, the only individuals left outside were two sentries and a single sleepy mage, more intent on not being caught slacking than on keeping watch.
See, that must be your body they're returning, Merse stated firmly to a silent Kayl, having put together two and two. There's no way for you to go back, they're going to know you're dead. Just as Merse was about to leave, Kayl finally spoke up.
The mating talisman! Kayl suddenly begged. Please, just return it to my body. Alra won't be able to move on without it. Please!
Merse reached up and clasped the mating necklace, somehow the only item which had survived her wild night of transformations, and still remained around her neck. Suddenly overwhelmed with memories of a loving, gentle, proud Alra, Merse found herself nearly losing herself in them. Kayl's past came pouring into her, and she couldn't help but feel his affection for Alra and be influenced by it. Merse shook her head to clear it.
Fine! she scowled. </i> Just stop whining! </i>
Merse dug into the pack and carefully pulled on a pair of pants, feeling rather vulnerable without any clothes. Rather than put on a loose shirt which could catch on branches, Merse tied a leather strap around her breasts for comfort, then circled around the camp. Caching the supplies she had stolen a little further away, she returned to take up a spot just behind the covered wagon, grateful for but not questioning her suddenly keen hearing. Waiting until she was sure the sentries were far away and the mage was nearly asleep, Merse climbed into the back of the wagon.
Sure enough, laid out on the floor of the wagon was Kayl's body. Despite the dim light, Merse could still make out the two deep gouges from the spider's fangs. After a moment's hesitation which she was not sure was entirely her own, Merse slipped off the mating talisman, then reached to place it over Kayl's head. That's cold! Merse hissed as her hands brushed against Kayl's fur. It was obvious that the archmage had cast a freezing spell to keep the body from decomposing during the trip. Finally finishing her task, Merse gave the body one final glance, then mentally looked to Kayl's soul for approval.
At Kayl's nod, Merse hopped out of the wagon, grabbed the pack, bow, and quiver, and headed into the forest without looking back.