The forest was quiet again. Too quiet. The only sounds were the crackle of the fire and the occasional sniffle from Arlo, who still couldn't stop replaying the moment.
"—And then," Arlo gasped between chuckles, "the ogre just—just collapsed! Right onto his knees like a giant toddler! 'I even... I even bathe in river sometimes. Why... why you call ugly?!'" He doubled over, clutching his stomach. "I can't—every time I think about it, I see him bawling with his tusks sticking out!"
"Childish," Tessa muttered, though the corners of her lips twitched. "Though I admit... it was effective."
Sari slumped on her log, arms crossed, glaring at the fire. "Glad my trauma is so entertaining for you."
Arlo wiped his eyes. "Trauma? You destroyed that ogre's will to live in, like, thirty seconds flat. If anything, I'm traumatized. Do you have any idea what it's like watching a monster cry harder than me during a tax audit?"
"Not my fault!" Sari snapped. "It's my skill, okay? I don't control how hard it hits!"
"Oh, so you're telling me," Arlo leaned forward, "your big, divine gift from Deos himself... is being the world's meanest heckler?"
Sari's face burned. "It's called Curse. It's not just heckling!"
"Curse? curses usually make people fall ill, or transformed into a frog or something. You on the other just started calling them names and shouting profanities", Arlo replied while trying to hold his laughter.
Tessa tilted her head, curious. "It did not sound like magic, at all. More like... playground bullying turned divine."
"Thank you," Arlo said, pointing at her like she'd just proven his case.
"Not thank you!" Sari snapped again. "Do you think it's easy? Everyone else gets cool skills—fireballs, sword mastery, miracle healing—and I get... emotional damage." She buried her face in her hands. "I didn't even want to use it on them. I was scared."
Her words hung in the air. The laughter faded. For a moment, even Arlo sobered up.
"...Wait," he said slowly. "You weren't mouthing off because you were confident. You were... panicking?"
Sari peeked at him through her fingers, cheeks red. "Obviously. Two ogres, three of us—what did you expect me to do, sit quietly and die?"
Tessa crossed her arms, studying her. "So your defense mechanism is... verbal annihilation."
Sari groaned. "It's all I've got! I don't swing swords, I don't throw spells, I don't heal wounds. I yell. Loudly. With a side of profanity."
Arlo rubbed his temples. "Great. Just great. I've got a bossy celebrity healer who faints at blood, and now a human megaphone whose only weapon is making people cry."
Tessa's smug smirk returned. "Don't be jealous. At least she's more effective than you."
"Excuse me?!" Arlo threw his hands up. "I flipped fate and destroyed a noble's estate! That's—okay, bad example."
"Very bad," Tessa said dryly.
Sari tilted her head, finally smirking. "Wait... you're her unpaid intern, right? So technically, you're below her in rank. Which makes you the weakest member of the weakest party I've ever seen."
Arlo froze. "I... regret not kicking you back in the bush you came from."
The three of them sat in silence again, the fire crackling between them.
Somewhere deep in the woods, an owl hooted.
Then Tessa's voice cut the quiet. "Sari, do you want to join us in our travels?"
Sari replied instantly, "Sure! as long as there's food, and it would be nice to have allies that could help me run from... Eh... Uhm... Yes I'll join you, but I might not be too useful, it was luck just now that I was able to make the Ogres go away.
"Still, whether intentional or not... you frightened monsters into retreat. That makes you useful." Tessa remarked.
Sari blinked at her. "...Wait. Did you just compliment me?"
"It was an observation," Tessa corrected.
"Sounded like a compliment."
"Don't push your luck."
Arlo groaned, flopping back onto his bedroll. "Great. One's a fraud miracle worker, one's a professional bully, and I'm the pack mule. We're doomed."
"Correction," Tessa said smugly. "You're doomed. I'll be fine."
Sari grinned. "Me too. Worst case, I'll just scurry and hide somewhere."
Arlo stared at her, dead serious. "...If that actually works, I quit life. How are we supposed to slay a dragon with this team? Talk it into therapy?"
Sari widened her eyes, "Dragon!? as in overgrown flying gecko that spits fire! Dragon?"
Tessa and Arlo locked eyes with Sari "Yes."
Sari's jaw dropped "WAIT!... I didn't know we are supposed to go and slay a Dragon! I want to retract my previous statement that I'll join your group!"
Tessa with a sweet saintly smile, "Too late now, you've already agreed, unless you want to stay here and get hunted by the debt collectors and those Ogres. Tee-hee."
Sari dumbfounded "Ugh..."
Arlo reaching his hand on to Sari's shoulder with a comforting and consoling look on his face, "Welcome to hell."
The fire popped, sparks spiraling up into the night sky. Tomorrow, the road to Dragon's Peak would continue. For now, they were just three very different disasters pretending to be a party.
And for better or worse, they'd have to make it work.