"Feel free to start eating, I'll be out in a minute,"

The most she could manage was a quick nod of her head as she quickly exited the room and moved over to the food, where she took a rather large swig of ale. Addie had taught her the differences between men and women and how it worked, but there was a difference in hearing about them, then actually seeing them. As she recalled the way his stomach flowed into his hips and then down into his legs… She took another swig of ale. She couldn't pinpoint just what she was feeling right now. She was impressed and attracted to his body, even with the amount of scarring he had endured already. And there was an odd, and completely out of character, idea to jump into the bath with him. One more swig of ale.

She looked at the mug and set it down again, shaking her head to try and clear it. No point in dwelling on it, if she could help it. After getting her breathing back under control, she sat down and started munching away at her own, much smaller, ration of food. She was just sitting her fork down to take a drink of water when Gawel entered the room, still bare chested, with his hair wet from washing. The smell of peppermint wafted over her as he sat down. Again, her mouth ran dry, and she tried not to chug her water.

"I know it's winter, but I'm not going to starve to death,"

As he laughed, it made her immediately more at ease. She loved that sound. She smiled in return and said, "That would be Jarek's doing, mostly. And he sent up a mug of ale for you too. He said he thought you would need it." She declined to fill him in on her stolen swigs.

She opened her mouth to ask him how his bath was, but shut it instead. It brought back up the image of him that was burned into the back of her eyes, and she hoped to the goddesses that he couldn't still see the scorch marks that must have permanently settled on her cheekbones.

((This is what happens when you leave me to post >.<))

Gawel rolled his eyes hearing that Jarek was the one behind the piles of food. "Sometimes I wonder if the man is my friend or my mother," he said, though he had to admit he was often just as bad; as children he had always stood up for the smaller boy whenever they got into fights, until the time Jarek had managed to toss Gawel on his arse for mothering him. But it wasn't as though Gawel hadn't been through tougher training sessions.

He took the mug, glanced at it, and rose an eyebrow in Sara's direction noticing that perhaps half of it was gone. He didn't say anything though, but took a swig himself before tucking into his food. He hadn't eaten much before his body took over, and his body was hungry! Maybe it was a good idea that Jarek organized extra for him as he easily polished off the rest of the food. As it was he didn't notice Sara opening her mouth to speak, only to close it once more. And it was only as he was reaching the end of the food that he started to slow down and actually pay attention to Sara once more.

"It won't be long till it's time to leave again," he said. He didn't know how that made him feel. Excited and nervous, yes, but sad as well. This old, run-down castle was his home and he would always be sad to leave it. And he would worry about Iwan, though less so now that he had not only come through his mutation, but also woken up at the other end of it, and was growing stronger with each passing moment. He would probably be back to his training again by the time it came for them to leave. Gawel would then just have to stay alive long enough to keep his promise to travel with the boy when he earned his medallion.

He was about to speak again, when there was a knock at the door. Gawel's eyebrows rose in surprise to Sara - he wasn't expecting anyone and he doubted she was either - but he stood to answer the door. It was Vesimir standing on the other side, freshly washed as well.

"I'm sorry to interrupt, may I come in?" he said.

What was Gawel to do, refuse? He stepped aside allowing the man in, who took a seat at their table with them. Gawel shut the door and returned to his seat. "What is it? Is it Iwan?" he thought, immediately fearing something may have gone wrong with the boy.

"Yes, and no," he replied. Seeing the worry cross Gawel's face, he continued, "Oh, not in the way you think, he's fine, I just checked on him myself. I'll get him up to start training tomorrow morning."

"So soon?"

"He's awake so he can train," was Vesimir's gruff reply. "It's his training I wanted to talk to you about. To both of you," he amended, including Sara. "After you've finished with the koschey, I want you to return here. That will have given me enough time to assess the boy's skills. Provided he passes my tests, I want you to take him with you when you leave again."

Gawel blinked. "You're graduating him so soon?" he eventually asked, stunned.

"Of course not, he's just a boy. Don't be a fool," Vesimir snapped. "No, it will likely be many more years before I am convinced of his training, and then more still before he is mature enough to wear a medallion. It's the effect that his mutation has had on him that concerns me. I am still not convinced that Iwan was supposed to live through that, but live he did, and it left him with some rather noticable changes. You've seen them too, I'm sure."

"His eyes and teeth," Gawel replied, nodding. Under the table, out of Vesimir's sight, he reached towards Sara and took her hand. He didn't like where this was going and wanted her support even though his eyes didn't leave Vesimir.

"Yes. More monster like than human. Every human is different and because of that, there is no exact science to the mutations. It is part of the reason so many fail. By luck or destiny, Iwan survived but I fear it may have moved him a little beyond what we normally consider an acceptable range of mutation. It might mean nothing, or it might mean everything." Vesimir paused, then sighed. "There's no easy way to say this. If he turns out to be dangerous, to be too much of a monster with his training while you are away, I will kill him."

Gawel paled at that and grit his teeth, but before he could really process it, Vesimir continued. "Now, I do not think this will be the case. The few tests I gave him since he woke, and the fact that he remembers who you are but not his own family situation bodes well for him. He also didn't show any sign of aggression towards myself or any other witchers, all of which are promising signs that his added mutations mean nothing. Should this be the case, it brings me to why I want you to take him with you. The training here is too isolating, and I fear that even should he be sound of mind, he will grow to hate humans."

"You think him travelling with us will improve that? We aren't exactly loved," Gawel said.

"I know that. But he's an observant boy. He will see that not all humans are bad. And you are good at putting people at ease and when you try you can fit in. Sara too. He will watch and see how to interact with humans, and he will see how humans interact with themselves. I am hoping it may temper him. I know that this is a risk, that it could swing badly either way. Which is why I would like for you to check back in here with me every month or so, at least at first."

Gawel was nodding slowly. If Iwan remembered anything of their conversation before his mutations he would be happy and, if what Vesimir said about never truly forgetting, then he would likely be somewhat happy regardless. But it seemed Vesimir wasn't done yet.

"I guess this means I won't get my holiday in the desert," Gawel said, pouting a little.

Vesimir cuffed Gawel up the back of the head in a not-so-light but affectionate way. "Don't be agreeable until I've finished," he said.

"There's more?" Gawel asked, almost dreading what else there could be.

"Yes, and this is the most important part. If you are away from Kaer Morhen, and Iwan becomes unruly, or unnecessarily cruel, bloodthirsty and violent, you must kill him. You must be the one to do so." He paused, then said. "It's your decision, both of you. This is not an order, merely a request. I'll leave you to talk it over," he said before taking his leave.

(Squee!)


Sara took Gawel's hand as he slid it towards her, whenever talk of Iwan arose, she could see Gawel got nervous. And the way Vesimir was talking wasn't helping much. She listened quietly, but as Vesimir continued on, her eyes slowly grew larger. Iwan was strong enough to begin training? But, he'd just woken up a few days ago… How could Iwan be ready, in any sense of the word, to leave Kaer Morhen with them after they dealt with the koschey?

"…I will kill him."

Sara clutched her other hand to Gawels, her mind reeling. She flashed a look over at him and saw how pale his face had become, and lined with barely restrained pain. As Vesimir continued on, she turned back to look at him. While she was sure that if, in the event that Iwan did become too unruly or, monstrous, Vesimir would take care of the problem. Even if that means killing the boy. Or, would he even be a boy by that point?

She forced her mind to focus on the remainder of what he had to say, trying her best not to interrupt. As Gawel pouted about his now lost vacation, she couldn't help a smile. At least he was accepting this news and not fuming over it. Yet. At the playful smack he received from Vesimir, her smile grew a bit bigger. Until his next words wiped it from her face, and replaced it with horror.

Before her mind was able to form a cohesive sentence to Vesimir, he had left the room. After a few silent blinks, she turned towards Gawel. "He can't really mean… Why do you…?" She let out a pent up breath in a gush. "I understand, but then, I don't."

Not knowing what else to say, Sara moved closer to Gawel so their sides were touching, and leaned her head on his shoulder by his neck. "What do you think Gawel?"

The joke about his desert holiday, while partially serious, had as much been to cover up and hide what he was feeling as anything. Another trick he had learned over the years to make it seem as though he had less emotions than he really had. He knew that Vesimir knew the truth, Sara might, but at the moment he just couldn't comprehend that Vesimir might deliberately kill someone who had lived through the mutations.

After Vesimir took his leave, Gawel was left staring rather blankly straight ahead. He barely heard anything that Sara said, but he felt her lean against him, her head on his shoulder. Wordlessly he reached out and drew her close so she was practically sitting in his lap, leaning against his chest. He needed to feel her next to him, feel the warmth of someone who wasn't created as a tool to kill or be killed.

"I don't know what to do," he admitted eventually, quietly. "Yes, I know not all humans are bad, nor are all elves and dwarves, but in the few years I've been away from Kaer Morhen? I've met with far more hatred than love. For me, we were taught that many people hate and fear us. We heard stories from the older witchers, some deliberate stories told to us all in warning and education, others from eavesdropping on conversations. But hearing about it and experiencing it for the first time were completely different. And I don't know what will happen to Iwan if he experiences that without the same amount of training behind him that we had. I'm not sure this is a good idea. And I don't know if I'll be able to be the one to kill him if it comes to that."

Sara snuggled closer as he spoke. She knew Iwan was probably the closest thing to his own child that Gawel would ever have, and to even think of the possibility that he may have to be the one to kill that child…

"Were there ever any places you went that were… better? Maybe if we introduced him through nicer towns and people, the bad ones wouldn't become the norm?" There really weren't a whole lot of options. It would really boil down to how Iwan took the actions of others. If he bottled it up and let it get under his skin, it would only be a matter of time until action had to be taken against him.

"Why is it necessary to kill him?" In Sara's mind, Iwan could never be anything other than the sweet little boy that she had met only a handful of times before his mutation. It didn't make sense to kill a little boy. Why not just send him off on isolated missions, or keep him at Kaer Morhen to teach younger students?

"Whole places?" he shook his head. "No. Cities perhaps, there are enough people there that some don't really care, though all are at least nervous of us. But I have never travelled too far from Kaer Morhen, no more than it would take a couple of months travel to get back. There might be places further away but with needing to come back every month or so I don't know. Unless..." he trailed off, thinking a little, before asking, "Are you able to create portals? Like your teacher can?"

He didn't like the idea of using magic and stepping through a magical portal into who knew what, but if they could use one then it could be that they could travel further from Kaer Morhen and simply use the portal to come back.

At Sara's question to ask why he may have to be killed, Gawel gave a dry laugh, one without humor. "Look at us," he said. "We are monsters created to kill monsters. People fear us and for good reason. Look at what we can do, our fighting abilities, our knowledge of potions and oils that can be crafted to such a level that it would kill the average person. We are trained to kill monsters and, sometimes, those monsters include humans. What do you suppose would happen should even one average-skilled witcher should decide that all people are monsters and it was his duty to wipe them all out. For a better world. The more mutated we are, often the higher skilled we are, which is good for Iwan, but it also breeds mental instability which carries the risk that anyone with that level of mutation could do just that. Killing him would be the kindest fate, far better than what any human would do if they got a hold of him, and far better than simply locking him up for however long he lives naturally. I know all the theory but... like experiencing the hatred for the first time, the real thing is completely different." It hurt just as much as that had, if not more. Vesimir had warned him not to get attached to the boy when he brought him to Kaer Morhen that first time. But he hadn't heeded him and now he was faced with this.

She only sighed at his reply. There was really no arguing that point. It would be a massacre, of both good, and not so good, people. She was just still fighting for any way other than forcing Gawel to be the one to dispatch Iwan.

Sara bit her lip at the question. "I can, but it's not just my ability. I have to know where we're going. We could otherwise get stuck in a wall or some other uncomfortable place." She tried to smile at that, but shuddered instead. She remembered horror stories that Addie had told her about wayward portals. "I could get us back here to Kaer Morhen from anywhere. Safely. But I'm afraid I haven't had the opportunity to go most places. A few of the bigger cities, yes, but that's about it."

Gawel grimaced at the thought of being stuck in a wall. Or rather he knew he wouldn't be stuck, he would be splattered inside the wall. It made him like the idea even less. But it would allow them to travel further than a couple of weeks out of Kaer Morhen. There was a city somewhat near the castle that was used to witchers since it was usually new witcher's first stop, wanting to explore a big city. But that could quite possibly be a little overwhelming at first, especially if Iwan was still getting used to the changes within his body; the heightened senses alone would be mind-blowing in such a busy place.

"Does it have to be a city or civilization of some kind?" he asked. "I was thinking that we could start travelling, avoiding most towns and cities at first, at least until I see how Iwan reacts to being outside of the castle grounds. And whenever we have to come back to Kaer Morhen you could create a portal for us. Iwan can go through his assessment, and after you've rested if you need to, we can return to where we left and continue on. Would that work, do you think?" he asked. If it would then he had, perhaps, found a way where it might be possible to gradually introduce Iwan to people rather than a rough, sink or swim approach. He thought that might be the best chance he has to turn out normal enough, well, as normal as witchers were.

"It can be anywhere I've been before. As long as I can picture where we want to land, we can go there. For example, I could take us back to my old cottage, where we first met and go from there."

Sara thought about it for a moment, then added, "You know, I don't know how much rest I will need afterwards. I haven't done portals in that long of range before. I'll have to ask Addie." She snuggled in closer to Gawel, moving her face closer into the crook of his shoulder with a contented sigh. She was quite happy to just be held.

Gawel nodded to that, understanding. It could be very useful, he eventually decided, even if he would rather just avoid the magic altogether. He had to trust Vesimir and trust that he knew what he was doing. The man had been wrong in the past, but it wasn't a very common thing and he certainly had more experience raising and training young witchers than Gawel had. He may not have ordered it, but Gawel had to believe he knew what he was doing. "You ask Addie, and I'll tell Vesimir that we'll do it, but we'll try to find some way to ease him into it." He smiled then. "It will be interesting teaching again," he added.

*

Two days later, Vesimir judged Gawel and Jarek to be as ready as they would ever be to face the koschey. Which wasn't necessarily ready enough, but it would only be experience that would lend them to get better, and, as Vesimir had already said, there was no better team than the two of them, and backed up with a sorceress, he hoped that would be enough.

Iwan had come to visit Gawel the morning they were due to leave. The changes that he had undergone were already making themselves obvious. He was quieter than he was before and he seemed to watch everything with an intensity that made him seem a lot older than his twelve years. He remembered Gawel, though he couldn't quite recall how he had known him, only that they were close and that Gawel was like a father or an older brother to him. He remembered Vesimir in much the same way. Sara and Jarek he was a little more vague on; he knew they were friends and that he had known them before, but little else.

"You're leaving earlier than you said," Iwan said by way of greeting. His face was still but there was a hint of sadness in his newly mismatched eyes.

"Yes," Gawel said. "I wasn't aware before that Sara could create portals and, frankly, I don't relish the idea of going through one. But if we can get in and stop whoever is attempting to create a koschey before they finish, then all the better. And I'll be coming back here afterwards." They had decided not to tell Iwan their plans to take him with them just yet. It would be better for him not to know until it was nearly time, and also, on a darker note, for him not to know only to be let down should they be killed.

Iwan was silent for a little while, then he reached into his shirt and pulled out the amber necklace that was there. "You gave me this?" he asked.

Gawel smiled a little sadly. "No," he said. Reaching forward he tucked it back inside the boy's shirt. "Keep it hidden. It's from your life before and even though Vesimir knows you have it, it's best that the others not find out. It was... is precious to you."

*

An hour later Gawel, Sara and Jarek went outside to meet with Vesimir and Addie. Gawel and Jarek wore both their swords on their back, and the leather armour that witchers favoured and while Gawel looked every part the witcher, Jarek had still managed to include the latest fashions and appeared somewhat foppish even with the swords and armour to counter it. The result was more like a noble lord playing at being a witcher, rather than the other way around, but Jarek liked it and Gawel had long since tired of arguing with him about practicality.

The day to leave had finally come. Not that Sara was really relishing the idea of leaving. It had been nice to just lounge about the castle with Jarek, and especially Gawel. Over the weeks they've been there, Sara had noticed Gawel opening up, to her in particular. Nothing very obvious, but just little things like holding her hand under the table while they ate, the soft kisses he would steal before bounding after Jarek for their training with Vesimir. She wasn't sure if those things would continue once they left, especially with Jarek in tow.

"Are you listening?" Addie asked, a furrow creasing her brow. "This is very important you know. Your lives and all?"

"Yes, I'm listening. Sorry." Sara replied, moving her mind away from Gawel.

"Now, I know you are capable of doing the portals, and it shouldn't take too much effort for you to prepare one. But while you were daydreaming, I was trying to explain the after effects."

Sara nodded, "Right, that the farther the distance, the more energy it will take and the longer I'll have to rest before any other spell casting."

"Correct. But that is just for transporting yourself. Believe it or not, having Gawel and Jarek go in as well will take more energy. Just because you are having to transport that much more matter and keep it open longer."

Once again, Sara nodded. It made sense, but it made her nervous to think about. Everyone knew the repercussions of over exerting your magical abilities. Plus the possible issues with portals… It was just better not to think about.

As Addie wrapped up their final review, both she and Sara made their way to where Vesimir waited, with Jarek and Gawel. Jarek was of course dressed in his favorite clothes, which made him look slightly less like a witcher, especially so if you were to take away the assorted swords, knives and other weapons that both he and Gawel wore. Sara's eye of course went towards Gawel, with a warm smile curling her lips. He was dressed in the way everyone assumes witchers do, and looked the part. Sara had decided it would be best to dress in the leggings and tunic she had worn before instead of the dress. Since they were planning on heading to the town where they made contact with the first koschey, she didn't want any repeats of that first night in the tavern. She withheld a shudder. She never wanted to see that look on a mans face again.

"Everyone ready then?" Addie asked, taking her spot near Vesimir, and turning her attention towards him, an example of what they all should do.

Gawel was looking decidedly nervous when he caught sight of Sara approaching with the realization that the time to step through this portal was approaching. He did manage to return the smile Sara gave him though; he certainly didn't want his nervousness to affect Sarah's ability to cast the portal, thinking of what could go wrong just made everything a whole lot worse. Jarek on the other hand was excited, looking forward to the challenge of tracking down and confronting the one behind making a koschey and at the chance to use magic that didn't involve freezing him solid.

Gawel gave a single silent nod to Addie's question. "As ready as they'll ever be I guess," Vesimir said. "Take care and remember your training. If anything changes and doesn't go according to plan get a message to me, understand?" Both witchers inclined their heads in acknowledgement. Vesimir turned to Sara. "Over to youmy dear," he said.

Once the portal was formed and they were given the go ahead that it was safe Jarek leapt through with a childish whoop leaving Vesimir to roll his eyes and shake his head. Gawel was significantly less enthused yet, like the well trained witcher he was he squared he shoulders and stepped through.

There was a moment of vertigo and the sensation of something pulling and tearing at him from all directions and then he was through, stumbling out onto freezing, soggy swampland. He felt his stomach roll and muttered, "I think I'm gonna be sick," before he stumbled to a knee and heaved up what he ate for breakfast. It felt as though he had been tossed and thrown around like a rag doll and now he was still he couldn't seem to keep up. And something else. He could gear screaming, but only in the back of his mind, like a memory or something. Gradually that faded and what he ward instead was Jark's laughter.

Growling, Gawel reached beside him, grabbed a fist sized rock and threw it with all his might at Jarek's head. Ever the nimble one, however, Jarek merely danced out of the way an laughed all the harder. Clearly all he felt was the usual stepping through a door sensation.

Once both Gawel and Jarek were through the portal, Sara followed after. As she came out, her mind whirled a bit, but she managed to stay on her feet and close it up neatly. Turning back to the witchers, she said, "Well, that certainly was interesting." Seeing how pale Gawel was, her brows knitted together. "Are you alright?"

As the acrid stench of bile wafted past her nose, she understood. He'd gotten vertigo. Best just not to dwell on that one. "Right. Well, let's be off then." They were just outside the town, far enough away so no random passerby would get the shock of a lifetime, but close enough so Gawel didn't have to endure too much pain from his leg.

As they walked, Sara really began feeling the effects of the portal. Addie sure wasn't kidding. Her stomach rolled and her head pounded, making it difficult to see. Still she pressed on with a witcher on either side of her, it wouldn't do to show just how much that first portal had taken out of her. Surely her ability, and tolerance, would grow the more she did it. She certainly didn't want to worry Gawel any more than what was already on his mind concerning the koschey.

Gawel grunted in response to Sara's question. He could feel... and there it was. The very last of his breakfast. Spitting out the foul taste in his mouth, he wiped an arm over his mouth and stood.

"That's no way to start an adventure!" Jarek declared, still grinning from ear to ear at Gawel's misfortune and clearly not feeling any ill effects himself. In the books Gawel had read it said that for most people it was as simple as walking through a door, a few sensitive people may feel a moment or two of vertigo, perhaps a little unease in the stomach, but no where had it said anything about throwing up, or that queer scream Gawel could have sworn he heard.

He forced it down and away though as they started off towards the town, he started to feel a little better. Jarek, a little way ahead of them, turned with a grin and started singing.

"Up from the bowels of hell he sailed
Wielding a tankard of freshley brewed ale
Slaying all those in his path
Those who might hinder his god-given task
To bring back beer to the lands of the free
This is his quest, his true destiny
Legends shall speak of his name
Hail the Huntmaster, with honour and fame!"

Gawel rolled his eyes at Jarek's choice of song, a sea shanty that was one of his favourites when he was in his cups, all about a sailor who had been brought back from the dead to fulfill the quest of bringing alcohol to the masses. Regardless, it served to take his mind off his stomach and lift his spirits a little, which was the point of the song. And more to the point it was a song that Jarek wasn't too bad at singing since, surprisingly enough he didn't have a particularly good singing voice but if it was within a certain range it was decent enough. Gawel, on the other hand, had a beautiful deep singing voice, but he was usually too shy to use it.

He glanced over to Sara to ask if she knew the song then noticed that she didn't look so well herself. She looked quite tired, he thought. He took her arm so that she would have a way to unobtrusively lean against him if need be. "Sara, are you alright? Do you need to rest?" Hearing the question, Jarek, who was a step or two ahead of them, looked back over his shoulder, both curious and concerned. He too understood that it was important for them both to know the limits of their sorceress, and to make sure she wasn't exhausted if it came to a fight sooner than expected.

Gratefully she leaned against him, her mind thinking through each step she took. Right foot, left foot, right foot… Addie had warned her what to expect, and this was no worse than what Addie had told her… but the knowledge that it could be worse didn't make her feel any better. She barely registered that Jarek was teasing Gawel in song, but she was aware of a strong sense of jealousy towards him at the moment. Completely unfazed by the walk through the portal.

Sara managed a weak smile and a nod at Gawel's question. "I'm fine, just a bit of vertigo. Let's hurry to the town and get some food." Aside from a blazing headache and being achy-tired, she felt fine. She could still feel a large amount of magic, and if need be, she felt that she would be able to tap into it, even as tired as she was. No use in getting Gawel and Jarek thinking that making one portal was all she could manage in a sitting.

Gawel shook his head when Sara said they should go to the town to get some food. "That's probably not a good idea. They will remember us," he said.

"I can always go, see if I can charm some information and bring some food back," Jarek offered.

Gawel nodded, agreeing. "We'll start looking around here, see what's around. We'll meet in three hours..." he looked around, hunting for a landmark, and choosing a place where a fallen tree had half broken off at an angle, creating an almost A shape. "There," he said.

"Sounds good," Jarek said before turning to Sara. "A kiss for luck?" But seeing the glare Gawel gave him, he quickly said, "Maybe later," before turning into the town.

"That mouth of his will get him into trouble. Again," Gawel said softly. It annoyed him, but he wasn't really surprised. "Let's see what we can find," he said before striking out through the swampland, hunting for any signs of something, anything out of the ordinary, though he wasn't sure exactly what yet.

Sara was thankful Jarek offered to head into town and grab them some food, and couldn't help a grin when a kiss for luck was requested, and even chuckled at the look Gawel then shot him. As odd as it was for her, it felt really nice to have that constant sense of being protected, if even from silly friends like Jarek.

At Gawel's suggestion, Sara nodded and headed off in a diagonal direction from Gawel, hoping to be able to find something recent. An idea crossed her mind as she was scanning the muddy ground. Why not try and feel for a koschey magic or energy? It was like trying to find anything else, she figured. Finding a neat, semi-level stump to sit on, she planted her feet firmly on the ground and closed her eyes, raising her arms parallel to the ground, with her elbows bent at a ninety-degree angle, palms facing down.

She then sent out a tendril of herself, much like what she did with Iwan, except this time in a full circle around her instead of a single direction. It looked like she was just sitting on the stump, but if one looked hard enough, the ground around her seemed to shift and distort, much like looking through waves of heat, in an ever broadening circle. It was slow going; her mind was aware of everything new the circle enveloped at once, instead of a single goal like with Iwan. She had to pick out each individual rock, leave, twig and bug, decide it's relevance, then move on.

Within a few minutes, her mind came to where Gawel was searching, her magic reaching just above his ankles. Knowing who it was immediately, she ignored the boots, although each time he took a step her mind zoomed to the new impression in the dirt, which gave her minds eye a work out, and intensified her headache.

Soon after that, her mind made it to the edge of the town, with no real luck. Knowing going into the town would be too much for her to handle, she stopped broadening that section of circle and started expanding the other ways. When she came to the forest she and Gawel had run into after that first encounter with the koschey, she began to feel a tingle at the edge of her sight. Like something was nagging her in the back of her mind, telling her she was close. Stopping all other parts of the now oddly shaped circle, she focused just at the forest edge, creeping in slowly. She had only gotten two or three feet in when she was struck with another force, her body physically flew several feet off of the stump, the breath knocked from her lungs. She reeled in her magic quickly as her eyes snapped open at the impact. After a scary moment of not being able to breathe, her lungs sucked in a large gasp of air, sending her into a fit of coughing as she tried to sit up in order to find Gawel and tell him what had happened.

Gawel's eyes swept left and right looking for any sign that may have been left by a new koschey. The one they had defeated he doubted he would find any lingering traces of to follow back. He hadn't been gone too long though before he felt the tingle of magic, and his medallion started vibrating. Gawel froze and slowly drew the silver sword from it's sheath, holding it two handed as he cast around, searching for the source of the magic.

Not seeing anything he started back towards Sara, walking more careful and quieter than he had before, on the look out for whatever creature could be causing his medallion to react. It was still daylight so it wouldn't be another koschey (thank goodness since Gawel wasn't confident he could take on one with little notice and Jarek was too far away to help) but he had to get back to Sara in case whatever it was is nearby.

She was just in his sight in time for him to see her get blown back by some invisible force at the same time as his medallion gave a particularly powerful tug. Wasting no time, Gawel hurried across the distance between them and stood over her while she struggled to breath, his sword held up and ready as he searched around for some kind of threat. "Sara, are you alright? What was it, where did it come from?" he asked. He couldn't see magic (unless it was conjured in a physical form like fire or something) but he knew most sorceresses could.

As she got her breath back, she struggled to sit up, a hand over her chest. "From the forest." She sat up a little more until she was upright and able to breathe easier. Feeling a tickle under her nose, she brushed it away, leaving a trail of blood across the back of her hand. "Oh."

"Gawel, listen. The sorcerer is close. I was scanning for magical traces of him or the koschey and he detected it, reversing the flow of energy, magnifying it. I thought I had closed myself off enough in time, but not enough I guess." She said this quickly, afraid that she would faint before being able to tell him anything at all. "Jarek better get back with that food soon…" She mumbled, trying to summon a chuckle. "Don't let me fall asleep. I need to rest, but not this soon." With that, she planted her forehead into her hands and closed her eyes.

"Not helpful," Gawel muttered when Sara said that whatever had attacked her came from the forest; they were surrounded by swampy forests. Hearing the 'oh' he glanced behind him to Sara and saw the blood nose she had. It worried her, but he turned back to searching out for any danger, not willing to let his guard down or lower his sword. He had to trust that Sara was able to look after herself.

He nodded when she described what happened; that would make sense since he could see no sign of anyone near by and while there were the shapes of drowners a little further off, they were certainly not capable of such an attack as was launched at Sara.

He looked over his shoulder at her again when she said not to let her sleep, and rose an eyebrow. "If you don't want to sleep don't rest your head," he said practically. "Do you think you'll be able to subtly follow the source of the magic? And not get attacked again?"

"I heard that." She said, raising her head from her hands. "You can lower your sword, I don't think anything else will happen. It was in that direction in the forest, about half a league from where I was sitting." She gestured in the opposite direction of the town, "And I doubt that their lair is that close to the forests edge, I didn't get very far into it."

Ah, you see, here's the catch. I need to rest in order to regain control. Because it was a magical attack, rather than a physical one, it's crippling me from using my magic. But if that attack gave me a concussion, which is a possibility since I wasn't able to completely protect myself, I shouldn't sleep. I may not wake up. Once I rest a bit, I can take us to the spot." With that, she ran her fingers through her hair and looked towards the town, hoping to catch sight of Jarek returning with food.

Gawel lowered his sword slowly, but he didn't sheath it or stop being alert. He didn't trust magic, especially after seeing it flatten Sara like that. He shook his head when she misunderstood him, and said, "I don't mean right now. Later. Tomorrow perhaps, or tonight. Jarek and I will need time to prepare a few potions first."

Not moving too far away, Gawel prowled the area, restless, but also looking for a drier area that was partially sheltered, finding one some distance away. "Come on," he said to Sara, not willing to leave her alone, at least for now, not willing to trust that another magical attack wouldn't come. He led the way to the drier area and set about making a small fire. The wood around was too wet for a spark to catch so he made a fireplace, put some wood in it, and moved his fingers, summoning the igni sign and holding it until the wood had dried out and caught on fire.

"How are you feeling?" he asked.

Perhaps an hour later, Jarek came out and, seeing the fire, headed towards it. "Change of plans?" he asked as he approached.

"Sara was attacked magically," Gawel explained.

Jarek frowned and sat at the fire with them, handing over the cloth bag of food he held. "You should eat something then," he said.

"Find anything?" Gawel asked.

Jarek shook his head. "Nothing useful. Seems you left quite the impression last time and even if I don't look as brutish as you do they still recognised me for what I am. Nearly refused to serve me, they did, till I was willing to pay twice what their food was worth and promised I would be leaving as soon as I had supplies. Cheapskates."

"How are you feeling?"

"Sick. Tired. Thank you for the fire." She replied, pressing the butts of her hands into her eyes, trying to relieve some of her headache.

She was grateful when Jarek showed up with food. She did her best not to tear into her portion like a starving animal, but that's certainly what she felt like doing. Until she was able to smell the food, she didn't realize just how hungry she was.

Jarek's answer didn't really surprise her, the townspeople were pretty upset by the time she and Gawel managed to kill the koschey. "Once I rest up a bit, we can head out."

"Where?" Jarek asked.

"Wherever this magical trail leads," Gawel said with a grimace. Knealing by the fire, he pulled a few ingrediants from the pouches they were stored in and began mixing them, making potions they would need. With a shrug, Jarek joined him as they stocked up on what they had. Most of what they had needed they already made before leaving, but some, especially delicate things like bombs, were best made not long before actually using them.

"We'll rest here until you're ready Sara," Gawel said. "And don't try to rush it just for us. We would both rather you be back to full strength before following the trail and confronting whatever it leads to rather than rushing on ahead." Jarek nodded in agreement.

((this rp is still open, it was just on a small hiatus when life got busy so can be moved back to the proper forum please))