Azura and Elise found Elise's mother dangling from a rope in her room. From the smell, she'd been dead for a few days. They didn't speak much after that. Elise set the manse on fire, and the pair returned to the kin. They had succeeded in removing the city lord, but why did Azura feel like it was a defeat? She glanced at her sister and then understood. This wasn't about securing the city. It had been about family. Considering what happened, defeat was the proper context.

"Elise!" Gerald roared as he ran up to them, sweeping Elise into a hug. Azura patted Elise on the shoulder before leaving the pair. She pretended not to see the tears, although she could hear the sobbing as Elise unleashed on Gerald as she headed for the Council of Mothers. He would be her rock, while Azura took care of everything else.

"Azura! Are you okay?" Her mother shouted, dashing over. Azura was a mess. Blood stained her clothes, and she was covered in dust and small pieces of debris.

"I'm fine. It was rougher than I expected."

"What happened?" Fatania asked, joining them. Azura gave them a brief recount of the events while a flurry of activity surrounded them. New kin slaves were being shepherded to their locale as Hamal awakened their mana pools, freeing them.

"Soulburn…" Fatania mused. "Never heard of it. Not surprised that mages would have something like that. At least it sounds like it's rare and expensive. I'll put a few rats on it and see what other hidden tricks they might have."

"How are things here?" Azura asked.

"Mostly settled. Once the wards were powered off, everyone knew the last city Lord had fallen or surrendered. Now we are just gathering all the kin and supplies. It won't be…"

"News from Azura's Rest!" A rat-kin shouted as he ran toward them. The exhausted rat-kin gasped for air before speaking again. "There was an incident…"

***

Azura stood above the corpse of Gwen's mother as the others argued around her. She had a peaceful look on her face, one that she never had during those brief times Azura met her.

"What happened?" Azura asked quietly. The arguing stopped, and Fatania sighed.

"We don't know exactly, although it isn't hard to guess. Badger-kin tend to be violent. I'm guessing Gwen killed her mother by accident."

"Where is she?" Azura asked.

"We don't know," Fatania said. "From what the rat-kin have gathered, they heard a scream that sounded like Gwen before she ran away. She could be anywhere."

Poor, poor, broken Gwen. She was already unstable. What would this do to her? Azura thought as she covered the body with a blanket.

"We need to have liquid cultivators practice their control," Coralline said. "They are so much stronger than everyone else. An accident like this was inevitable."

"I'll work on designing some control exercises once we are on the road. A period of seclusion wouldn't be a bad idea after a breakthrough," Azura said. "We are rushing things and making mistakes."

You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

"We don't have a lot of choice," Fatania said. "I'll have a grave dug while we prepare to depart." Fatania left Azura and her mother alone as she went to organize the last of the kin in Azure's Rest.

"That could have been us," Azura said sadly. "If I had lost control…"

"You were always careful," her mother disagreed. She reached out, entwining her fingers with Azura's. "I'm proud of you. You've done so much for us. Let us handle some of the burden."

Azura wrapped her mother up in a hug.

"Thanks, Mom."

***

By the next morning, everything had been prepared. Azure's Rest was emptied and would soon to claimed by the mists. The city of Deepmere had been pillaged. They had lost everything, except their lives. Now that the mists were unimpeded, they wouldn't have that if they stayed.

The freed kin were given a choice. They could go wherever they wanted. The cultivators would get them enough supplies for a few weeks. A large group of kin, as well as some mages who were on good terms with them, banded together and would leave later today. Azura wished them well, although she wondered what life a group of refugees could make for themselves. She hoped they would find more kindness out in the world than they did here. The rest joined the cultivators as initiates. They wouldn't be taught how to cultivate for a few weeks until they were evaluated and took oaths of loyalty. They were learning, but would it be quick enough? Azura didn't want to think about how many more Gwen's or Nicola's there could be in the future.

A fleet of wagons was loaded with supplies that would last them for months, along with some gold so that they could purchase more during the journey. In total, nearly three thousand kin gathered under Azura's banner. As she looked out over the kin, she wondered how they could raise so many cultivators, an issue for another day.

She was just about to call out to depart when a group of mages hesitantly approached. Azura would have ignored them if Brianna hadn't been leading them. The mage looked terrible, but then again, so did all of them.

"You're just leaving?" Brianna demanded once they were in speaking distance.

"Yes. I free you from any further obligations to me. Your debt is clear," Azura said.

"FUCK THE DEBT! THE MISTS ARE ALMOST HERE. THERE IS NO ONE LEFT TO PROTECT US!"

"Then leave."

"Leave and go where?" Brianna hissed. "There are over ten thousand of us. No place will accept this many refugees. We'll be treated like, like…"

"Worthless nulls?" Azura asked. There was no pity in her voice. "Deal with it."

Brianna turned bright red in anger. Before she did anything stupid, she turned around and walked away without looking back.

"She could have been useful," Hamal said. Azura nearly jumped in surprise as she spun around.

"How long were you there?"

"Long enough. You okay leaving it like this?"

"She can't be trusted. They'll figure it out." Azura playfully punched the rat-kin shoulder. "Come on, we have a long journey ahead."

Together, the pair made their way to the gathered kin. Azura thought about making a speech. She thought to tell them that this wasn't the end, but a new beginning. How they are no longer the repressed, but creators of their own futures. A glance at the determined expressions of the kin told her none of that was necessary. Instead, she kept it simple.

"CULTIVATORS MOVE OUT!"

The group left the city of Deepmere. It was a place where most of them had lived their entire lives. It was once a home, then a prison. Now it was nothing more than a stepping stone on their path to the future.

***

Days later, a fog filled with eldritch energy crept into Deepmere. There was no resistance from the city. Twisted abominations wandered the streets seeking out any that might remain hidden. They found nothing. Not even a stale loaf of bread was left. Even the vermin of the city had fled for greener pastures. Everyone was gone… except for one. Forgotten in the elven district, abandoned by her people, an emaciated Ulvandia lay on a filth-covered mattress as the mist seeped inside her room. She resembled a skeleton with arms barely thicker than the bones housed within. Anyone who saw her would have assumed she was already dead. As the first bits of corruption entered her body a spark of life entered her eyes for the first time since the dreaded Magebane had crippled her. Ulvandia smiled as the changes began.

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