Cursed: Traitor's Trail

Chapter 13 part 2

Two days later, Aya could no longer deny something was going on, and she was left out of the game. The entire village behaved in an odd manner, which she attributed to the presence of a traitor. Such a thing would make any clan a nervous mess. But she didn't understand why many of the villagers seemed to be behaving especially strange toward her. She was new to the Magi, and she expected a small amount of suspicion based on that fact alone. But she began to suspect the Magi, or several of them anyway, had made up their minds she was the traitor. A ridiculous notion. She spent next to no time alone, even if she might use her powers to perform the feats, which, of course she couldn't. The Great God only knew what her powers did do. But in the last two days, she was not left alone long enough to even breathe. Which brought up the other strange thing. Since her forage into the grasses on the lizard trail, either Bane, or, of all people, Kierra stuck next to her like a bur on mouse-fur. Neither told her why, and she found the intrusion...uncomfortable. She attempted patience for the time being. Hoping that soon they would decide she posed no threat. But when she stepped from the healing tent into the pre-dawn light, Bane waited for her. Again.

She felt her tolerance straining. She wanted that traitor caught and what little freedom she possessed back. She would just have to attempt to investigate with Bane trailing along behind her.

“Ah, Bane, good morning,” Aya dropped the flap of the tent and strode forth. “Since it seems you are determined to spend time with me; I will need your tracking skills today.”

Bane's eyebrows flicked upward. She decided she might want to tone down the grumpiness in her voice. Apparently, lack of privacy made her snarly.

She skirted around him and headed for the mouse pit, the first place the traitor caused destruction. She sensed Bane following, though she could not hear him. When she neared the fenced end of the pit—a sort of ramp, not too steep, so the Magi could access their mounts—a figure rose from a slouched position against the twigs.

“Good shift?” Aya asked, peering at the fence and judging the space between it and the wasteland. It measured a fair distance; it would be difficult for the termites to go unnoticed.

The young man looked at her suspiciously, his bored and tired expression becoming alert. Granted, he probably wasn't used to anyone taking interest in his mundane duties. He seemed to battle internally before courtesy won out and he nodded warily, his eyes flicking to Bane who came to stand beside her. She considered it might be Bane's presence that got her an answer at all. She might need to apologize to him for her earlier huffiness.

“Do you have many shifts at the mouse enclosure?” Aya pressed on.

“I do several shifts a week, as is my duty,” the boy's answers were stiff and uncomfortable. Why? She didn't ask anything personal. Still, he shifted. She seemed to distress him somehow, but as long as he gave answers...

“Have you ever noticed, in your duties, small white ants about here? They are about the size of your palm, and would likely be hiding in the shade, or they might have only been around at night.”

“Little white ants?” He asked, his voice flat.