It was a simple matter really. Paradox had just been confused for another individual. That was all. She didn't steal any gems or stones from the surrounding mines. Everyone just thought she had and evidently didn't want to listen to her side of the story, which is why she was currently racing through the city to reach the outer walls. She didn't really have any desire to be fed to worms, regardless of their size. Once she reached the wall, she'd be home free.

Her heart pounded in her chest and her muscles ached, but she kept running. Her hooves occasionally shot up a spark from the rocky ground. She saw people standing by the buildings watch her go by, but they didn't actively try to stop her. She rounded a corner and saw a line of carts set up for the farmers market. She collected herself as she tried to leap over the first line of obstacles. She cut her jump low and her hind hooves got caught on the curtain that shielded the produce from the sun. She felt the fabric give and heard the wooden supports break as she landed back on the ground. 

She dipped far to the side to avoid ramming another cart head on, clipping her flank in the process. She struggled to get through the maze of carts and heard several people yell at her for ruining their merchandise. She didn't have time to apologize. Once she was out of the market, she could see the doors to the gate only a few blocks away. She hurried towards the opening and tore out of the city. Only once she was out of sight of the wall did she stop and slow down to catch her breath. 

She looked around and listened for the sound of anyone following her. It was quiet and peaceful. She didn't hear anyone in pursuit. She walked forward and stepped back onto the road. It was only a few moments later that she heard the snap of a string a short distance away. Suddenly she felt a sharp, burning pain in her haunch. She glanced at the arrow and caught the glimpse of several other archers down the road. She didn't wait for them to loose anymore arrows before galloping off. She could see several arrows fly past her on either side as she ran. 

Her leg burned and she could feel the warm blood dripping down and collect around her hoof. She heard the people behind her yell and scream, making her run harder, even though her leg begged her to stop. She saw men jump at her from the brush along the road and she gave a wild shriek. Her eyes widened and she lashed her forelegs out at them before going into a panic. She ran blindly, the adrenaline clouding her mind and hindering her thinking. She didn't even see the tripwire the tribesmen had set up for her before she tripped over it. 

Her cannons smacked into the rope and she felt herself roll forward, her hind legs flying over her forequarters. She rolled violently across the road and felt her side smack into a wooden fence that ran along the road. Stars flashed before her eyes as she felt herself start to fall down the steep incline on the other side of the barrier. She spun and kicked as she rolled down the sheer cliff. The rope twisted itself around her body and tangled in her legs. 

It felt like eternity by the time she had reached the bottom. She laid still for several moments, she tasted blood and dirt in her mouth and spit out several small stones that had ended up in her teeth. She felt the pain coming from various cuts and scrapes she had gotten from falling down the hillside. Her back leg felt like it was on fire and the rope was biting into her other limbs. She couldn't move her bound legs and barely had the strength to sit upright. She dropped a hand down to her side and pulled out her dagger. If the men wanted her that badly, she'd wouldn't go easily.

Coivaqile was traveling across the grassland for hours, occasionally seeing small rivers sparsely spreads across the area. She wasn't used to seeing so much grass at once, and she had expected for there to be more trees than the few there was. She liked seeing a different landscape than she was used to, but it wasn't her favorite. She still liked the mountains more. After a few hours of the same sore view, she started to get tired of looking at it. Coiv knew that she could've flown over it a lot quicker, but that defeated the purpose. 

She wanted to blend in with the people so that she could see what their life is like. It would defeat the purpose to be in her dragon form. It was true that it was easier for her to fight in her true form. But if it came to fighting, she was OK using a hard wooden stick she had crafted. If she was over matched at that, she figured that she would have to find a way to flee away enough to change back into a dragon and finish fighting.  All in all, Coiv wanted to try being a human for a bit.
It was a good thing she was in her human form too. Another traveler had crossed paths with her and they had spoken.  Coiv had found out that the language she naturally spoke was a language other creatures spoke. The traveler also had pointed her in the direction of a nearby town. She presumed that was the direction he was coming from. 

Finally, she was walking along a dirt road and could see what she thought was the town she was going to.
Suddenly, there was a commotion and some being was tangled up in rope, bleeding, and rolling head over heel down the side of the road. She jumped up holding a knife and turned to face the people chasing her. 
Unsure of what to do, Coiv held her stick in ready, debating who to help. She was leaning more towards helping the odd half human-half horse? creature simply because of her being outnumbered and bleeding.

Today had been a delightful day. The weather was lovely and temperate, and the view of the surrounding landscape was something her sister would have liked to have painted. Liselotte had began with a trip to the local market for reagents. She heard there were exotic goods here from the native animals you couldn't find at lower prices anywhere else. Her mineral powders were running low, and she wanted to try a few experiments with the horns of the antelopes. She had conducted prior testing using elk and deer antlers, and was curious to see if antelope horns yielded the same results. Browsing through the stalls she looked for souvenirs and trinkets her siblings would like on the side. The lady alchemist contemplated purchasing a few lynx skins to have them made into a stole for her mother. The jewelry here was exquisite, but a tad too expensive for a simple gift. She would save that for her parents' wedding anniversary. 

After buying a few smaller pieces unfit for carving and other crafts, she tucked the horn fragments away into an empty container from her alchemy kit. Humming to herself, she was satisfied with the deal she had gotten at the price of half the silver she would have spent for a horn in pristine condition. With this much, she could run at least five trials before needing to restock. That was one of the perks of being an alchemist. Unlike a sorcerer, the requirements for the quality of reagents had more leeway than what was needed for magic rituals. A good alchemist knew how to make the best of their materials to distill what was important, even from items of sub-par quality. Finished  with her shopping, it was time for her to move on to the next area. She wanted to pick up a few scales and clippings from various creatures, and the stables at Endapano were the perfect place for that.

On her way out of the market Liselotte heard a commotion. There were people shouting about theft, and it was apparently serious enough that they wanted to feed the accused to the worms. Ah yes, the great worms. Their enormous size and feeding habits made them a curiosity to naturalists, as they were only found to reach such lengths in this region. Although she would have loved to contemplate whether or not the locals here had domesticated them, she heard the pounding of hooves and what appeared to be a centaur making a mad dash out of the settlement. It almost looked like the centaur would make its escape when it lurched forward, and fell against the ground with a great thud. There was a large group of people waiting with weapons at the ready, with less than positive sentiment. Once the dust in the market settled down, she quickened her pace to run over towards the scene to see what was going on. 

The situation could not have looked worse. There was a female centaur on the ground, snared and badly wounded. The men closing in did not look happy in the slightest, which might have been related to the cries of theft she heard earlier. So this was who they believed to have stolen from the mines. Not to jump to any conclusions, she approached cautiously and called out to them. "Hello, sirs? May I ask what is going on here?" From the look of her wounds, Liselotte saw that the mare would not be able to run away, even if she was guilty of theft. But first they needed to confirm if the belief was grounded in truth or fiction.

Vinsue was walking into the city one she was heard a commotion. one like that was usually directed at herself. she wore her simple brown robe as she walked towards the noise. She was almost trampled by a running centaur and if that was not enough those pursuing her had bad aim and almost hit her. She rooted for the woman to get away but she was tripped and rolled down the hill. she was not the first to watch but she was quick to react.

she ran to the cliff edge and jumped. She slid down on her feet with perfect balance. It was a long slide down but she new most would not attempt it and hit the bottom in a run. The horse was badly wounded and quite ready for a fight. She quickly formed a electric wall to keep any arrows they fired from hitting them. she stood a good bit from the centaur.

"Its ok Im on your side if you'll let me help we need to cut the ropes first." she said slowly approaching she dropped her hood. "Im Vinsue Silvertail"  She knew she would likely be seen as a threat for she knew that in a chase the prey thinks all will hurt them yet she hoped she could help. 

Paradox struggled to make herself upright, her limbs tangled in the net, hindering her ability to move freely. She pinned her ears as she gripped her knife, ready to lay waste on the guards pursuing her. A flash of movement at the corner of her vision distracted her as she watched a young girl appear along the road near her and held out a large staff. She appeared confused looking between her and the guards, her brown hair flying back and forth with indecision. She wore plain clothes, the dust that had collected around her feet implied she was a traveler.

A voice called out a short distance away that made Paradox turn back to the guards. Another woman was approaching her, this one dressed much more lavishly than the last. She was tall and blond, with a relatively fancy dress and boots. It surprised her that the woman was willing to walk out on the dirty road to intervene with such nice attire. She had called to the guards and was asking them what was going on. She could hear them from where she was.  "She took gems from the mines!" "Jewel thief!" "She's to be fed to the worms for stealing from the mines!" 

She heard a commotion from above her and watched as another girl came to her aid. She jumped without hesitation down the cliff and slid down, coming to a stop near her. She raised her hand and a dull crackle seemed to surround her and formed an electrical wall around her of sorts. She struggled to rise, fearing that the force field was a net for her capture. She calmed slightly when the girl spoke about cutting her bonds to help free her. She shifted her position slightly so her bulk shielded the girl from the view of the guards. 

She let the girl approach her before turning her attention to the mass above them. The guards were still yelling at her and trying to get past the woman talking to them. "I don't have your gems." She yelled up to them. She struggled for a moment with her saddlebag, before grabbing it in her free hand. "Look for yourself. I have nothing that belongs to you. You have been lied to and tricked. I didn't take any of your jewels." With much effort, she tossed the bag up the hill. It landed near the blonde woman's feet and started to slide back down the edge.

A girl came walking from the city. She had golden blond hair and was nicely dressed, clothes not worn down like Coiv's for sure. The girl called to the men, "Hello sirs? May I ask what is going on here? Different voices angrily answered.
"She took gems from the mines!"
"Jewel thief!"
"She's going to be fed to the worms for stealing from the mines!"She's going to be fed to the worms for stealing from the mines!"

Coivaqile considered what they were accusing her of. Would the worms mean death? If they were going to 'feed' her, it sounded like death. That seemed awful steep of a punishment for a thief, especially considering they had no proof.
Then the scene seemed to attract another visiter; another girl came running up. She seemed to know immediately which side to back. She slid down the hill and impressively came off at a run. A disturbance in the air around her and the horse-human spoke of some sort of magical shield.

The supposed thief then answered the men's accusations.
"I don't have your gems. Look for yourself. I have nothing that belongs to you. You have been lied to and tricked. I didn't take your jewels." She tossed her bag up the hill, but it started sliding down again.
That decided if for Coiv, at least for now. If she was willing to let them search her, showing she had nothing to hide, she was probably innocent. Coiv would back her unless she found evidence that she did steal gems.
Coivaqile knew she probably couldn't slide down the side of the road like the other girl, so she marched along the top of the road and placed herself in-between the accused and the accusers.  She still had her staff in her hand incase of a fight. She decided to simply let them know of her decision. "I'll back her."

Liselotte saw another person come barging in at the centaur's defense, doing something that could easily set the angry men off. This wouldn't do. With that haphazard act of charity it would only backfire like a poorly sealed container of volatile chemicals. The sensible solution was to carefully bring the furious men to reason, while proving the mare's innocence. Yet another supporter in favor of the accused came, this one acting more prudently than the last. Turning to the men Liselotte gestured with her hand. "Well then, why don't you search her? No harm in confirming whether she has them or not. I'm sure you can ascertain the truth of this incident with greater clarity this way, and better yet–find the missing jewels." Giving the men time to let the idea sink in, she continued. "Now if you were to feed her to the worms and it so happens that she was not guilty, then your problem would remain unsolved and justice would not be served."

She already had a counterargument and plan should by chance the mare's bag contain said jewels. Until there was clear proof, anything was fair game and she had no issue in playing the devil's advocate. Standing to the side as to not impede the men's investigation, she watched all who were gathered here. Liselotte had chosen her words carefully, leaning on the accusers' outrage at being stolen from. If she was successful, she would direct that anger to the accused's benefit by drawing their focus away from lynching her towards finding the gems. The important point was to avoid provoking them. Once a person is provoked, they will not listen to reason and the battle will have been lost. Now all she had to do was wait. 

Vinsue approached the woman and started cutting the ropes with her dagger. once the ropes were off she put her dagger in her boots and whispered the words to the greater healing spell. As the Centaur threw her bag up the hill vinsue only shook her head. the men wanted blood innocent or not and if they thought she did it they would easily say she had eaten it or things similar. "You likely just lost whatever was in that bag."  

She listened as the two women at the top talked to the men. Jewel thief and being fed to the worms.. something was wrong hear the worst case for thievery was a loss of hand or imprisonment for a bit. death was one saved for worse crimes or that's what she had concluded over her life. She looked back at the bank and then at the centaur. "once i get to the top run to the west tell you find a cave i'll meet you there with your stuff." she said in a low voice. than started climbing back up the hill. 

once up top she walked to join the two women standing there. "She had no gems on her person." she than looked threw the bag. "and the bag has no gems either." she said. "So what proof do you have she stole your stuff." 

The blond haired girl tried reasoning with the men. Coiv hoped it worked. "Well then, why don't you search her? No harm in confirming whether she has them or not. I'm sure you can ascertain the truth of this incident with greater clarity this way, and better yet–find the missing jewels." She paused and then spoke again. "Now if you were to feed her to the worms and it so happens that she was not guilty, then your problem would remain unsolved and justice would not be served.".  

Coivaqile thought about how the girl was handling the problem. It was smart, persuading them with reason. She hoped one day she could learn to do that. She had never really dealt with a problem like this; why, she'd never dealt with other people before. She had no social skills. All she knew was how to choose her side and to fight for it.

Then the other girl, the nimble one, walked up and started talking to the guards while examining the bag.. "She had no gems on her person, and the bag has no gems either. So what proof do you have she stole your stuff?" Coiv realized that had been her thought earlier too. What evidence did they have? She could have been far away from the site of the crime for all they knew. Either she hadn't stolen the jewels, or they were withholding some information. She decided to wait on the guards to come to a decision.

Paradox laid where she was, even after the ropes were cut and she was freed. She would be killed if she ran and she doubted her leg would let her put much distance between her and the guards. They would catch her easily. She saw the girl above her walk down the road and stand between her and the guards, holding her staff at the ready. She was willing to back her up. She perked her ears forward as the blonde woman began to talk to the guards, she couldn't hear what was being said, but the guards paused in their searching to listen to the woman talk as well.

After the woman finished speaking, they continued digging through her bag, eventually flipping it upside down and scattering her few belongings across the ground. She watched them nudge some of her things around with the toes of their boots. She pinned her ears slightly at their disrespect and gave a quiet snort but didn't say a word. It wasn't her place as the accused of speaking up at the present. She laid still and watched them until they gave her bag a final kick and walked back to the walls without a word. They evidently didn't find any of the jewels she was accused of stealing and didn't have further interest in pursuing her. 

She listened to the young girl that had cut her ropes and cocked an ear in her direction as she tried working a spell. "It won't work," she said putting a hand up to stop her. "Centaurs aren't governed by the same spells as women and men. Thank you for trying." She put her dagger into the belt at her side and quickly threw off the remains of the ropes on her flanks. Gritting her teeth, she rose up to her feet and started to limp up the hill. She was still bleeding a little and the dried blood on her leg was starting to become stiff. She had a difficult time putting weight on her hindquarters, as the adrenaline had worn off from the immediate chase and she could now feel her pain in full.

She passed the two women as she went up to get her bag, saying a quick thank you to them before bending over and collecting her items. She flicked her tail and looked towards the gate to make sure the guards weren't returning. There was no longer any activity from the city, which made her feel better about her situation. They had no valid reason to continue looking for her as long as she didn't possess any gems. She stashed her belongings in her bag and slung it quickly over her shoulder. She turned and started walking away from the gated city, limping heavily.