Witch's Hut (Sedna)

Sedna slowly exhaled, Chips flapping down from her back once they were clear of the strange plants. The Archer-Lyall shook out her monochrome coat, her ibis ruffling his feathers to shake off some of the same tension she had felt. A creature collided with her back leg and she looked back, eyes narrowing in question. She’d never quite seen anything like it in her life, but it seemed harmless enough for now and intent on following them, so she shrugged and turned her attention forward again. No hawthorn or ginger, not even devil’s bite. She was beginning to think this whole journey was almost a lost cause, well, except maybe for the strangely spiced meat that still hung around her neck in the pilfered pouch. It still didn’t seem to be the best time to stop and examine it.

She was pulled from her frustrated musings by a deep bellied croak. Taking in the long claws of the beast, she regretted leaving her cougar skin armour at home. Surely they were nearly free of the swamplands now? Nearer to the end than the beginning for sure, and she wasn’t sure she wanted to face those strange plants again. She had seen how click frogs were with their tongue when hunting a bug and she didn’t feel much bigger than one staring this beast down, but the Archer-Lyall wasn’t about to back down now. Gritting her teeth, she sized her opponent up, Chips taking to the sky to give her a second perspective. They hadn’t had a chance to put their practice to the test yet, but she wasn’t going to back down. She would fight him if she had to.

"speech".