The Bizarre Adventures of a Half-Elf

15. Lady Clara

**Combat scene in the middle of the chapter. 

Arguing roused Charlotte from her slumber. She sighed and gingerly sat up, wiping the remnants of sleep from her eyes. Thankfully there was no pain as she flexed and tested her limbs; the clerics had done their jobs well.

Her hair had been torn from its tie at some point, and the wheat-colored strands hung limply around her ears and face, matted together with sweat, dirt, and blood. Her bracers and greaves had been removed and laid neatly on a side table by her cot. They would need some repairs done, but at least the bandits hadn't taken them from her.

Her breath hitched slightly, and her hand moved to her clavicle. Fingers brushed bare skin. Her necklace was still missing.

She looked up. The strong rays of light that filtered in from the large windows high up on the walls would suggest that it was the afternoon of the next day, if she hadn't slept more than a day.

Charlotte pushed the curtain out of the way, revealing her companions split into two groups on opposite sides of the room. At the center of the conflict was Asmoth, bristling with impatience, and Elric, keeping a cool yet stern exterior. The latter had donned his armor, but both their swords remained sheathed.

"We have to go after them!" The Kuesik was saying. "She heard them say where they're going! We can take them by surprise!" He pointed back to where Lydia was standing behind him, hunching her shoulders and dipping her head down.

Elric sighed deeply, pausing as he struggled not to raise his voice. "We have already risked too much. Our numbers are wounded, and we have only barely recovered Lydia and Charlotte. If we fail again, the Black Skulls may succeed in taking someone."

Asmoth let out a groan of exasperation, and Lola spoke up from next to him. "Well, we're supposed to protect this town, right? How can we if we just let them get away?"

"Sometimes it is better to know when to play it safe," the Nephilim calmly responded.

Charlotte spoke up, "Aye, but not in this case."

Asmoth grinned. "See? She knows what she's talking about, and she's the one who got captured!"

"But Charlotte... Why?" Elric asked, a look of shock on his face. "Going after them for revenge would be pointless when you are still recovering." The celestial warrior was not upset, but concerned.

"They have something personal of mine. Something that I will not let them get away with. I'm going after them."

At that, Elric relented, bowing his head slightly. "Very well. We shall advance one last time."

Lydia cleared her throat. "Well, actually...  Charlotte and I heard them say that they were moving to a hidden location somewhere just outside of Aushire, but we don't know precisely where that is."

"We could just search the whole perimeter," Guillotine offered from beside the female Woad Elf.

But Red, who appeared sober today, shook his head. "No, that would take too long. They could be far out of reach by then."

Charlotte furrowed her eyebrows in thought, before her eyes widened as she remembered. "Lady Clara. She has information on them. If we can find her, maybe she knows where this other hidden camp is, too."

As soon as she spoke it, the mysterious woman herself walked to the center of the room as if she had been there the entire time. She looked around and gave the group a magnificent grin.

"Hello there," Clara greeted, her eyes gleaming in amusement by the stunned expressions they all wore. When no one seemed to know how to respond, she sighed and brought a hand up to examine her nails. "Well don't everybody rush to ask questions at once. The Black Skulls are moving location as we speak. I will take you to them, and if we hurry, we should be able to catch them."