[color=ed145b][b]"Still half a day to go? Why is the crypt so far away from the town?"[/b][/color]
Alyon had picked up her bowl and cupped her hands around it before answering Fraya's query. [color=7ea7d8][b]"Sometimes grave sites are built on sacred ground where people believe the spirits will protect their bodies and souls; it could have been the resting place for a famous leader and built as a place of honour and respect; or occasionally when the local inhabitants move, let's say from the bottom of the gully up to Ravenwall, they keep using the same place of burial out of tradition and old habits."[/b][/color] She took a sip of her meal and felt the warm liquid flow down her throat into her belly, [color=7ea7d8][b]"Burial and death might be a bit different to us when we compare it to your kind. For us, death is completely permanent. No one has ever survived past the end of their life, or even reawaken centuries later."[/b][/color]

The two sat there for a moment watching the night life dance amongst the treetops. It was both peaceful and beautiful to watch with the subtle glow of the stars lighting up the sky. Fraya spoke of how beautiful the world was and Alyon completely understood where she was coming from, that was until she dropped that bombshell of a question.

Alyon began coughing and spluttering as she was halfway through a gulp and felt the liquid tickle her windpipe. Why do we hunt her kind? Was she referring to the Artifacts or something that happened long ago in the past? Did humans do something terrible and cause the extinction of her civilisation? [color=7ea7d8][b]"Why do *hack* we hunt your *cough* kind?"[/b][/color] She breathed in, gave a firm cough before attempting to answer the question with a better response. [color=7ea7d8][b]"I don't think anyone alive has even seen your kind before. I don't understand, how are we hunting you?"[/b][/color]

Alyon licked her lips for a moment, with a little confussion. The residue of her meal in her mouth had suddenly changed flavour as it became tarty and woody. She looked down at her bowl and began to see the colour darken to a deep green from the edge where her lips touched. Quickly, without warning, she reached over and grabbing Fraya's arm in order to pull her hand and bowl aside so that she could have a look at her meal. [color=7ea7d8][i]No colour change?[/i][/color] As she let go of her arm, Alyon reached down and scratched a slight itch that had formed on her lower leg, pricking her finger as she did so.

[color=7ea7d8][b]"Ow!"[/b][/color] she yelped, glancing down to see what had cause the pain. Her eyes opened in fear as she saw a vine carefully wrapping itself around her leg, using the thorns to pierce the skin and dull her sense of touch. [color=7ea7d8][b]"What the hell is this!"[/b][/color] she screamed as she attempted to stand not realising that by this point her leg was completely numb. Alyon fell, and rolled onto her back to see vines that held her leg captive extend out deep into the forest. [color=7ea7d8][i]My sword! Where's my sword?![/i][/color] She looked around frantically and saw it next to her pack where she left it as she was making dinner. Using as much strength as possible she pushed up with her hands and attempted to make a frog leap for her weapon, however upon hitting the ground she felt the vine tug against her body and suddenly retract back into the forest it came from.

[color=7ea7d8][b]"Fraaayaaa!!!"[/b][/color] she screamed as she saw the light of the camp fire rapidly diminish into the distant with the rush of dirt and leaf matter whipping past her faster than galloping horse at full speed.