Aedre felt the stick of sweat on her brow. It wasn’t simply because of the heat that she was perspiring, but the entire situation she had gotten herself into. She cursed herself for falling asleep before the group had, but it had not dawned on her they would think to wander out into the wilderness so late at night. The shaman was lucky that Bethen had been alone. It was much less daunting a task to speak, reason and if it came to it fight one person rather than a group. Especially one as formidable as theirs.
Though Aedre had grown accustomed to the hard life of Korcari, she did not know Bethen’s experience in battle and magic altogether. She had spent some time fighting in the past months, but her experience would not match somone from Kinloch Hold’s. And though she had never seen a Circle Mage before, she had heard stories of how the “civilized” world treated their gifted. Indeed, the woman looked quite well-off in her fancy robes, and quite well manicured for someone who had been trudging through the Wilds for the past few days. But the tales Aedre had heard were not kind ones of mages being taken care of and given the respect they deserved. Indeed, often they were treated as disposable, as pets and things to control lest they wish to be tracked down and killed. The other woman might have had all the comforts of a tower her entire life -- the constant supply of food and warmth and safety -- but Aedre could not help but ponder all the negatives. She quite preferred the way her gift had been kindled.
As Beth stopped on the threshold of the home Aedre had made for the night, her heart had stuttered in fear. But the fact that she had stopped and had not run was good news for the Chasind woman. While Aedre was not violent in nature, she was prepared to and quite capable of protecting herself against one other. A group would pose a challenge. If the other mage had decided running back for help was a good idea, Aedre would have had the difficult choice of fight or flight. It probably would have been flight.
If Aedre knew just how frightened Beth was, and vice versa, it would match the feeling that many have of spiders. They were at quite a standstill, watching each other, both quite terrified. It suddenly dawned on Aedre that she should cast some defensive spells. After all, she was sure that Bethen would do the same. With practiced ease, she felt the familiar squeeze and warmth of barriers drawing around her form. She felt quite a bit more confident after that boost to her light summer furs.
“I believe that it is you who has entered my home,” she began, meeting the other woman’s eyes. Meanwhile she felt her whole body shaking and there were butterflies in her stomach. She considered Beth’s words and immediately decided that it was not ideal to hand out her name or origins straight away. A sense of mystery was quite preferred. “We will be the ones giving orders and asking questions.” Implying friends and comrades was good. That way they could seem on similar levels, though they were not even close. But for the moment, she could imply and Beth could think that she was alone.
As she surveyed the other woman’s appearance, Aedre noted the striking similarities in the two of them. While the way this woman held herself, the way she dressed and how she probably kept a constant check on hygiene was completely different from Aedre, they were ultimately quite similar. Not only in appearance, but also in discipline, intelligence and the calm they felt with using magic. Though they had been raised in quite opposite ways, they would most likely conduct a very evenly matched duel if one were to ensue.
“Who are you, and why has your group come to the Wilds?” she asked, trying to lead the conversation her way. “Have you come to take advantage of our weakened state?” She paused to gauge the other woman’s reaction before continuing. “If so, you will not take another step.” She leveled the other woman with a challenging stare, the flame in her hand still lighting the scene.