The days rolled by in a haze of travel and weariness for Luna and she knew her companions fared no better than she. Each of them were stained with mud and dust from the road and sleeping rough each night however after three days they had finally reached the port town. From overhead the gulls wailed and cawed at everything that moved and everything did indeed move, this town was a hive of constant action, it seemed to thrum with life, noise, motion and emotion spun around and around making the its inhabitants dance to its lively tune. 

They needed more supplies desperately and more than that they needed to rest and reorganise themselves. Luna was desperate to stop for another reason, not only was she sore and tired but her arm which had been cut was getting more painful each day, it will still red, hot and the cut was getting angrier looking by the day. This coupled with the fact that it was getting harder to hide these facts from her companions, Luna just needed some time away from them to try and fix it, and try would be the word. They approached the town from the outskirts and to their immense luck they came by an abandoned warehouse or barn, Luna wasn’t quite sure what its function had been previously as only three walls remained standing and most of the roof was bowed with age. It did seem that if a single breath of wind had swept past it would have collapsed but it was weatherworn and showed scars in proof that it was hardier than it seemed. 

The four trudged up to it and in the appointed order of Lot, Illyce and Luna they dismounted a tired Goya who whinnied gratefully at the removal of his burdens. Illyce motioned for them to stay back while she investigated inside the structure, testing its walls and beams with a light hand and finding the ground covered with rubble but also dry and coated with layer of dust that was evidence of nothing moving within. She called back to her companions and with Luna leading Goya they made their way inside. With robotic actions they each set about the tasks they had been making each time they made camp. Lot set out to find some wood for a fire, Illyce began to unsaddle Goya and attend to his needs and Luna began setting out their bedrolls and the cooking implements.

 It was about midmorning when they were each done and the camp was made and settled, they needed no fire yet as the day was still surprisingly warm, it was a day her father used to call a false summer which sometimes occurred in the autumn, fooling people into thinking winters cruel grasp was far afield rather than right around the corner. Luna sat on her bedroll trying desperately not to allow her face to show the discomfort she was in; her arm seemed to throb with every beat of her heart. However on the outside she looked just merely tired, with her knees up to her chin and her arms wrapped around them she watched Illyce and Lot talk in hushed voices. After a while Illyce walked over looking extremely worried but with determination.

“Luna, we have to go into the town to scout things out and see if we can trade some of what we have for what we need. I don’t want to but both I and Lot should go as we can get more done with two of us. Unless you are worried about being alone, I have scouted around and so has Lot and there are no other people for miles around, but I would stay if you needed me.” Luna smiled at Illyce as the woman before her fretted visibly. With her good arm, although she acted though it made no difference, Luna reached out and stroked a lock of flaming hair back from Illyce’s face.

“You needn’t worry Illy, I will be perfectly fine, and I have Goya to protect me.” Goya lifted his head at his name and nickered as if in agreement. Illyce smiled but it seemed for a moment that she would still insist on staying, then a hand appeared on her shoulder and they both looked up at Lot.

“You heard the princess. Come on while we still have light.” Lot stated and Illyce nodded in agreement, then together they both made their way towards the town on foot, Illyce glancing back at the last moment to look at Luna who again offered her the brightest of smiles. Once she was sure the two of them were well on their way Luna stopped her act and let out a faint groan. Raising her hand to her tunic Luna rolled back the fabric and undid the bandage that was still covering it. What she saw shocked her very core and she had to fight back the nauseous bile that rose in her throat. The skin was very tight and red still but now she noticed a faint smell of ... of rot she thought with abhorrence there was also two streaks of black beginning to run up her arm. It was worse than she though. Vaguely she wondered what had caused this, poison on the blade, dirt in the wound, she supposed at this stage it didn’t matter the cause only the cure was important.

Hoisting herself up from the ground was an effort and for a moment the world swam before her eyes. Biting her lip and gritting her resolve Luna made her way to the meadow in which their shelter stood. The meadow was starting to settle into its full autumn colours but with the heat a few noble flowers continued to bloom. It was amongst these that Luna spotted what she sought, she had some knowledge of herb law and in her studies she had learnt much of the flora and fauna. It was the medium bell shaped flowers in bright yellow that she plucked, cats claw, known for its ability to heal wounds gone bad. She was not sure if it could do much against her cut or if it was not poison in which case this would be of little help. 

Shrugging to herself Luna went back to the shelter and began a fire intending to make a tea from the flowers. She would have to be quick to make the tea and then hide all evidence. The last thing she wanted was for either of her companions to start worrying unnecessarily.