Tobias held up the lantern while Zack unlocked the heavy metal door. Cool, humid air greeted them as Zack held the door open and gestured for the others to step inside. With everyone in, Zack shimmied to the front, letting the door slam shut behind them. Mia trailed behind the group, still refusing to trust the demons.

  As they shuffled through the darkness, Keshiema reached back and took Cresil's hand for comfort. In the back of her mind, she knew she had done something like that before, when she still thought she was human. She remembered a trembling fear as she walked through an unlit house, taking the hand of someone only a bit older than her. Pieces of a silhouette formed in mind: wings, horns, dark eyes. “You, okay?” Cresil whispered just loud enough for her sensitive ears to pick up.

  She gave his hand a light squeeze. "Mhm." The noise was hardly convincing.

  The path took them up narrow, steep, winding stairs. Bats clicked and chirped around them. One landed on Cresil's shoulder. "Latch dalyi kromin for hast lo soul." He whispered in Daemon. The small creature clicked twice and flew away.

  The stairs opened into a large cavern. The group sat in a circle around the dim lantern. Shadows danced along the cave formations as a draft came in from somewhere above. “So,” Zack looked around the group. “What is your proposal, Keshiema? I believe you mention sending Cresil as a peace treaty messenger before my brother so nicely took him prisoner.”

  “Yes, I seek an alliance with your forces. A prophecy has come to light that I will battle Adramelech. We have been under the king’s tyrannical rule for too long. It is still undetermined if I will defeat him but I believe my best chance at victory is to gain as many allies as I can.”

  “And who takes the throne when the king is defeated?” Zack repeated the question Tobias had asked several days ago.

  “Well, Prince Stolas is the heir, but I would like to move towards a council of advisors to the monarchy. This would be a council of humans, demons, and Hell-Children. It would not be immune to corruption but less likely to give way to another era of despair.”

  “and what if we don’t agree with the current bloodline? Adramelech has been a terrible king, who's to say his son will be any different.”

  “I believe Stolas has a good heart, but if he is a terrible ruler, then we will handle him as well. If I can defeat Adramelech, Stolas should not pose much of a threat. If all goes well, then I will have many powerful allies to back me up. I believe Prince Ipos will side with me as well as several of the Elders. There is also a demon everyone seems to fear. He has been helpful to me these past few weeks while I’ve been training under the Elders.”

  “if you speak of the tree thief, he’s not a demon.” Cresil barely mumbled the words.

  “If my siblings and I are guaranteed a spot on your council, I may consider your offer. But I must talk with them to be sure. We need to weigh out our risks before going into this. Adramelech has been terrible; the humans still living under his rule are treated as slaves. They live in squalor and have nothing. The curfews he set mean nothing to his armies. If a human is seen by one of his soldiers, then they're likely to be killed instantly – if they’re lucky.”

  “Is that any better than if a lone demon is found by one of your rebels?” Agitation marked Cresil's words.

  “what the hell do you mean by that?” Mia stood, ready to fight.

  “Ask Kesh, you'd be more likely to believe her.”

  The group looked at Keshiema curiously. “The day I left the orphanage, the Hunter and I were ambushed.” She pulled down the collar of her shirt, revealing a light scar on her shoulder. Mia and Tobias looked horrified, but Zack seemed unfazed. “He threw a dagger through my shoulder. He used me to keep the Hunter from killing him. He kept twisting my wounded arm, only letting go when I pretended to pass out.” Mia sat back down, looking uncomfortable in her own skin.

  Zack scoffed, insulted by her story. “a throwing dagger would have left a much worse scar than that. I’m calling your bluff.”

  “Zack,” to everyone’s surprise, Mia spoke up in a defensive tone. “She sustained major injuries at the orphanage, they never left a mark. She even kept us from scarring after injuries that should have killed us.”

  The group sat in silence, unsure of what to say next. “I think," Tobias finally said, "we all know there's evil on both sides. We've all known humans who’ve left nothing but destruction in their wake, such as Chu and May. I’m sure there are decent demons too. Although we didn’t stay at the orphanage long after you left, the new demon caretaker seemed kindhearted and showed every child nothing but love and patience.”

  Mia took Tobias's hand, seeking comfort from her older brother. “I barely remember her, but I did like Snow Lily.”

  Keshiema's head shot up instantly. A wide array of colors shifted through her hair, and her eyes sparkled to match. “You said Snow Lily? That was who your caretaker was?”

  “Yeah. Did you know her?” Tobias looked worried.

  “No, but,” the words felt as thick as sap, “she’s my mother.”

  “Huh, small world.” Zack realized he sounded calloused and quickly backtracked. “Sorry, Keshiema, I didn't mean,”

  “It’s okay. She gave me up to save my life. I’ve been told she's never stopped looking out for me though. By saving the orphanage she did the best thing she could have for me.”

  Keshiema stood up, and the rest followed suit. “I guess I should let you three have your meeting. Cresil and I will stay by the horses.” After shaking hands and saying goodnight, Keshiema and Cresil made their way out of the cavern.

  You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

  Once outside, with the heavy door shut behind them, Cresil took Keshiema’s hand, pulling her to a stop. “Kesh,” his voice came out thick. She wrapped her arms around him and patted his back comfortingly, staying quiet so he could speak if he wanted to. “Kesh, I’m supposed to be the one saving you. I’m sorry you had to rescue me. If I hadn’t been caught, you'd be safe at the Academy right now.”

  Stepping away from him, she tilted her head and raised a brow. “Do you really think that? I’m sure Nergal was behind all of the attempts on my life. If you hadn’t been caught who knows what he would have planned.” She started walking down the hill towards the horses. “Besides, I’m supposed to be some sort of savior, rescuing people is in the job description. So, there’s no need to apologize.” She waved her hand in dismissal of the whole thing. He hated showing vulnerability, and appreciated her not making a big deal about it. “So, who's taking first shift?”

  “I am, After the healing, I’ve got energy to spare. You on the other hand look exhausted.”

  “I won’t argue that.” Leaning her back against the old, crumbling building, she closed her eyes and drifted off.

  ***

  Birds chirped gleefully in the treetops as Keshiema laid out a blanket in the center of the clearing. The sound of the small creek babbling through the clearing’s edge comforted her. Carefully, she selected acorns from the giant oak tree. As she placed them into her basket, they transformed into perfectly ripe apples, cherries, and peaches. The towering oak tree looked down on her protectively as she set up her picnic.

  A large raven swooped down, landing next to the blanket. “Oh, hello there. I’ve only picked enough for my friend and me, but the trees are full.” The raven's feathers ruffled as he cawed at her. “Aw, well, I guess I can pick more.” She picked up a cherry and reached over the blanket to give it to the stately bird. The raven turned his head away, refusing the fruit. “Well, if you don’t want this, what do you want?” She ate the cherry the bird refused. “Your loss, I guess.” She smiled at the odd bird.

  He croaked, hopping over to her. Squatting in front of her, he ruffled his feathers again, making himself as big as he could. “I'm sorry, I just don’t speak raven. Or any bird for that matter.”

  Keshiema thought about the book Dásos had given her. I bet Ayperos is the raven. He seems the most likely one for that symbol. She giggled as she thought of a question for the bird. “You don’t know Ayperos, do you?”

  The bird instantly stood, opening up his wings and looking upward into the trees. “Don’t you look proud? I’ll take that as a yes.” The Raven lowered his wings and stared at her, cocking its head as if he were thinking. “That’s an odd expression.”

  Suddenly, he flew away, cawing loudly. “Alright? Goodbye.” Keshiema straightened the blanket the bird had rumpled up. Lying on the soft velvety grass of the clearing, she gazed at the blue sky and waited. The bright rays of the sun warmed her face nicely as she rested her eyes.

  A loud caw caught her attention. Sitting up, she found two ravens, identical in size. “Awe, you brought a friend with you. How nice.” The raven closer to her opened up his wings and cawed. “Look, I told you…” she trailed off as the raven behind him did the exact same thing. “Okay, you have my attention.”

  Both ravens walked in a circle around each other. After a full circle, they stopped and pecked the ground twice. Again, they opened their wings, this time flapping them, as if they were trying to take flight. They both turned and looked at her with the same cocked head expression.

  “Wow, you guys really know how to synchronize. You’re performances were… identical…” her eyes widened with realization. “Ayperos, is that you?” One of the birds flew away as a large plume of black aura surrounded the other. Keshiema stepped back, away from the thick cloud.

  Ayperos stepped towards her as the aura cleared away. “That was more difficult than I’d thought it'd be, we don’t have much time.”

  “Ayperos… you’re in my dream.” She felt exposed and slightly betrayed.

  “I know. Look, I wouldn’t have come to you if it weren’t dire. Phoradendron has barely started to regain his power since you blasted us with your aura. I only had enough energy to come here in my beast form. There isn’t enough time to explain everything. You’re going to wake soon.”

  “So then hurry up…” she tapped her foot impatiently.

  “Ipos has been captured. He is in a cell, probably one made of sunstones. The new moon already makes him weak, if he isn’t rescued soon he's going to perish. If he does, you’re memories go along with him. Uvall said if you don’t regain that which was stolen from you, you will have no chance of surviving the Awakening.”

  “so how do I find him?”

  “Uvall cannot pinpoint it. He says it’s near the castle and is heavily guarded. If you figure it out let Phoradendron know. He says he’s been able to hear you but he can’t talk to you.” Ayperos spoke rapidly as the world around them turned gray. “I have to go. You’re waking up.” Ayperos faded away as the clearing disappeared completely.

  ***

  “Wait!” Keshiema sat up, reaching out for Ayperos. At the sound of her distress, Cresil rushed to her side.

  “Keshiema, are you alright?” Moving her hair away from her face, he searched her eyes.

  “Ayperos visited me.” Cresil tensed up, knowing Ayperos' reputation. “He…” her pause worried him further.

  “Kesh…you…tell me what happened.” Cresil felt an overwhelming desire to kill the Dream Walker.

  “He told me that Damien has been taken prisoner.” With no reason to hide her emotions in front of Cresil, Keshiema let the tears fall.

  Cresil let himself breathe again. “Is that all?”

  “Uvall also confirmed that Damien erased my memories. If I can’t get them back before my awakening…I have no chance of surviving.”

  “So, Ayperos didn’t...” he paused, unsure how to word the question.

  Keshiema searched Cresil's eyes, trying to understand what he struggled to convey. The realization hit her full force. “he's an Incubus. You thought he might have…” feeling vulnerable, she wrapped her arms around herself.

  “Look, as far as I know, he's never… used force. But I know what kind of powers the moon gods have. I just don’t want to see you get hurt.”

  “Thank you for watching out for me, Cress. I’ll be okay, I need to find Damien before anything happens to him. It would be easier if I could talk with Dásos, but apparently I did something to sap his powers.”

  Cresil's heart clenched at the mention of Dásos. “Trusting a creature like him can be dangerous, Kesh. I know he makes a point not to lie, but that doesn’t mean his words won’t mislead you.”

  As she sat quietly for a moment, an urge to defend him built up. “He was the only reason I knew Nergal when I saw him.”

  “And what price did you pay for that power? Nothing from his kind comes for free. You either paid first or you’ll pay later.”

  “He made it clear there were no strings attached.” She realized a pattern in the way the demons referred to Dásos. The Elders called him a monster or a thing, and Cresil made it clear he was not a demon. The book the ghost gave her came to mind again. Knowing an explanation from the source would be more reliable, she tucked the thought away. “Look, none of this fighting is going to help me find Damien. You get some sleep. When the others return, I’ll wake you up.” She stood and walked away, not giving him a chance to argue.

  Knowing her level of stubbornness, he opted not to push things any further. Resting his head against the hard stone wall, sleep overcame him quickly.