> you call I answer but idk if I trust anyone else to keep her contained tbqh 

"But - you could see him while he was invisible! Your power can counter his power!" 

"Kill one knight who not even trying kill us not what we want! Be safe and free what we want! Then we can talk to him! With the ring-ring! And figure out what other things we need! Now, we need run!"

Haley is too overwhelmed to come up with any alternative plan that she feels confident enough in to voice in the face of Iomedae's conviction. Sure. Yes. She'll run. 

Ludmila:

> Brother dearest, you literally are the cavalry... You have a horse... 

By the virtue of humility, Raoulin may become invisible. By the virtue of generosity, he can conjure food. And by the virtue of courtesy, he can summon horses.

(He's not certain what it is that makes the horses invisible whenever he's invisible. Maybe he summons remarkably humble horses.)

By the virtue of very very long practice, he can text and drive, though he wouldn't try it in a car. With the reins in his left hand, he texts with his right:

> I'm after them on a horse now, but I want to try someone who they haven't attacked with knives

> Isn't your squire literally knife proof and a diplomat... 

> We might want someone who doesn't have any artefacts that could be considered evil. Who has the nicest goodest magic? 

> Locally. I don't know. Maybe Lucy? 

Iomedae is annoyed with herself. She didn't communicate well enough with Haley what to expect and so they got into a fight that they should not have had at all and that could have easily gotten them both killed if Raoulin had in fact been evil, which she's pretty sure he isn't, because he didn't try to kill some people who were trying to kill him (and because he didn't look it earlier, and claimed it was a magic item?). Haley is struggling with what is probably her first life or death combat situation. Iomedae does not speak enough English to effectively communicate under time pressure. When she attacked Raoulin she was wrong to do so, doing so on the premise he'd attacked Haley when he hadn't, and Aroden doesn't seem to have renounced her for it but it seems like perhaps he ought to, if she's just recklessly attacking anyone who stands between her and freedom. She's pretty sure that's not justified, even though the slavery was illegitimate, and she should have carefully considered her escape plan beforehand when she was inclined against escape so she isn't improvising now. 

The most important thing is communication with Haley, though. "Don't want to kill people," she says as they jog. "It is good to can kill people if needed. But if we can, we catch a car, get far away, kill no one, that much better. They stronger. We need get stronger, get more friends, then fight."

Iomedae's light jogging speed is uncomfortably close to Haley's maximum running speed right now. She really thought they were done running for the day! For a little while she doesn't respond while she just focuses on putting her feet in front of her. 

Eventually, between breaths Haley pants back, "He... liar... I... couldn't... he almost... got me... wait... why not... my... car?" 

"Oh. You have a car, they no know where it is?"

Haley left her car at the end of one of the neat rows of parked cars at the edge of a field. There's probably cover from trees or sheds all the way from the edge of site to her car, and if they're fast she reckons she can start it up and drive off before anyone is after her. Much more importantly, she doesn't think she can do that much more running! 

"They know... but we can... sneak... the last... place... they'll look... and... won't... kill... in front... audience?" 

"You know more America, if you think it work we do that."

Haley stumbles to a surprised, grateful, delighted stop. Iomedae is letting her call this shot? They're going to get her car? They're going to get her car!

One she's recovered her breath - she is so excited to no longer be running - she nods and explains, "If we're on foot and they have cars we'll never outrun them. And it's literally the last place they'll look!" 

Iomedae is going to be very very nervous about this plan until they are a hundred miles away but that'll admittedly happen a lot faster with a car. "God willing," she says.

Haley decides not to think about the implications of Iomedae's God giving her magic powers that she just saw working before her own eyes. They're going to sneak back to site and get her car! And then there will be no more running! 

The event is only a day event. Court happens, and a few people are missing but otherwise it goes smoothly and nobody particularly notices anything is amiss - though the herald asks everyone to keep an eye out. After Court the event is packed up, the trailer is loaded, and the mundanes are kicked off site. 

There's still a few hours before it gets dark, at that point.

Once the mundane guests are gone, it's much easier for the magical SCAdians to gather and make a plan. 

"I just feel like it's my job," Queen Margaret says, wringing her hands. "I represent the kingdom."

"With respect, Your Majesty, she apparently very specifically thinks that you in particular are evil."

"Yes," the queen says, very miserably, because her subjects thinking that she is evil seems like exactly the sort of thing she's supposed to avoid. She swore an oath to her people. "But - you're certain you want to send a local? We have a lot more people here..."

"It's your decision, Majesty, I just think that she's more likely to respond well to someone she knows and doesn't think is threatening." 

Baroness Elynor sighs deeply. "Yeah unfortunately I do think it's just gonna fucking have to be... well, maybe it doesn't have to be Lucy. Does Cináed carry anything particularly evil?" 

"If he's willing to leave his sword at home, I think his banner could actually be remarkably helpful here." 

"What's wrong with his sword?"