Waiting for the humans to return, Keshiema stood guard as Cresil rested. The sun hovered above the mountaintops, a bright reminder of Ipos's limited time. Her heart ached as she thought about their last interaction, his words echoing in her mind; "I’ll see you around ‘Little Sparrow,' probably sooner than you think.”

  'That had to be him saying he knew about Dásos. But why?' Her ears twitched as they picked up a sudden noise. In the distance, the heavy door to the caverns creaked open and slammed shut. With her thoughts interrupted, she watched the hillside for the siblings.

  As they approached the camp, she walked over to greet them. “Good morning, did you sleep well?”

  “Morning. Yeah we got a few hours in after the meeting.” Zack spoke for everyone, although Mia looked like she had been up all night.

  “What was that phrase you used when we were kids?” Tobias asked as he stretched his arms.

  She knew instantly what he was referring to. “Tsikara cawl?”

  Tobias hit himself on the forehead. “That’s it. But that means 'welcome back,' right?”

  “yeah. The dream realm and the waking one are thought to be two different worlds. The spirit journeys to the dream realm when asleep and returns to the physical world when the body awakens. So, when the spirit returns safely, we welcome it home,” she repeated the information exactly as it had been told to her over fifteen years ago. Another disjointed image of the same winged silhouette came to her. She tried to concentrate on it, but as she focused on one feature, she lost the rest.

  “So," Zack clapped his hands, bringing her back to reality. “Back to business talk.”

  “Did you make a decision?” Hope glimmered in her eyes.

  “Not exactly." Zack started loading his supplies back on his horse. “We need to talk it over with our villages. Obviously, we'll leave out major details like who you are, but we need to make sure our people are okay with this. When we've come to our decisions, we’ll each send you a messenger bird.”

  Tobias fidgeted with the buckles on his bag. One of his horses stomped her foot, picking up on his nervous demeanor. "Easy now, he told the horse. Or was he really talking to himself?

  “Thank you. I know I’m asking a lot." The siblings all let out a breath of relief. "Our races have fought for so long, but I hope to put an end to that. And I know after the king is gone, there will still be a lot of work to fix our problems. But I want you to know that I don’t think human lives are any less valuable than demons'.” Her hopeful eyes eased Zack's concern.

  “Then its settled. Expect to hear from us within two weeks.” As Zack fastened the last buckle, he gave his horse a comforting pat. “So where are you going next?”

  “I have another comrade to rescue.” As her hair and eyes turned black, Zack frowned. Seeing the look, she realized her emotions were showing. Taking a deep breath to center herself, she returned to her normal state.

  “What was that? You’re hair just turned black, and yesterday it got all fiery red when you were yelling at us.”

  “Come on,” Tobias said, setting his hand on Zack’s shoulder. “I’ll explain on our way out.” After waking Cresil, the group walked down the winding mountain road.

  The sun filtered through the oaks and pines, dappling the ground around shadows of leaves dancing in the morning breeze. The forest was alive, and Keshiema could listen to it's soft, sweet melodies for hours. Jays and morning doves lightened the air with their birdsong. The mockingbirds piped in occasionally, reminding everyone of their superior talents. Woodpeckers hammered away for their next meal.

  "I wouldn't have expected a demon horse to take so well to humans." Cresil remarked, giving Starlight a light pat. Keshiema smiled. Cresil rarely made an effort to supply cla conversation. He was no doubt offering an olive branch.

  "She found my settlement a few years ago." Zack smiled warmly at the mare. "She hated the others at first, but we got along immediately."

  "Seers tend to have that effect on demonic beasts." Even in polite conversation, everyone focused on their surroundings. Even in the wilderness, threats always loomed.

  A fox scurried across the path in front of them, holding a squirrel tightly in her jaws. From the cover of the trees, she looked back to confirm the group was not looking before scurrying towards her den. Small critters raced across the forest floor and up the trees, skittering about in search of food or shelter.

  And then, amongst the beautiful chorus of the woodland habitat, an odd roaring mixed with high-pitched chirps drifted to Keshiema's sensitive ears. The closer they came to the dry lake bed, the clearer the sounds became. “Tobias, what kind of beasts inhabit these lands?”

  “Well, there's your regular forest dwellers like birds, foxes, squirrels. The occasional mountain lion, wolf packs...” He sounded like he was going over a shopping list, like cougars and wolves were no bother at all.

  The sound drifted to her again. “Anything else?” she pressed, her voice quivering.

  Cresil took her arm, “What are you hearing?”

  “It’s like a shrill sort of roar. Then there are squeaks, almost like bats.”

  “Shit…” Tobias pulled back on his reins, stopping his horse. The twins followed suit. He gave Keshiema a long, serious look. “Are you sure?”

  “She has better hearing than any other demon I’ve ever known.” Cresil took to her defense. “If she says that's what she hears then you should believe her.”

  “It’s a sturgeon. Most likely it’s been separated from its pod.” Zack interjected, keeping a possibly volatile argument from starting.

  Tobias glared at his younger brother. “Let’s hope that’s the case. A single sturgeon is trouble enough.”

  “They won't leave the lakebed.” Mia patted her mare's neck as she spoke, calming the jittery horse, agitated from the negative tones. “So if we have to, we can take the back way, across the old fire service roads.”

  Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

  “That more than doubles the journey, but it is a much safer route.” Tobias looked at his cage. “But I’d have to ditch this.” He thought of the rations he could get from selling the silver.

  “I don’t have time to waste. If you feel more comfortable going around then do it. I'll take my chances with the beast. I’ve got my agility and Cresil can kill it with radiation.”

  “The things evolved from radiation-mutated fish, I’m pretty sure they’re immune to it.” Zack tried to reason with her.

  “Kesh, I can use knives if I have to, but it's up to you.” Cresil raised his brows and fidgeted with his daggers, which Tobias had reluctantly returned to him.

  “Can we get to the shore and decide what we're doing then?” Agitation gnawed at her. Although she knew they were just trying to keep each other safe, finding and saving Ipos was her top priority at the moment.

  “Fine, if its alone, we'll cross. If it attacks we’ll work together to fight it.” Zack clicked his tongue, commanding his horse to continue forward.

  "Save for the Impure, he should stay out of it." Tobias added, side-eyeing Cresil. A deep growl escaped Cresil, but he kept his words to himself.

  As they neared the lakebed, the others began to hear the odd noises too. “That’s a sturgeon, alright.” Mia's grip tightened on her reins. She chewed on her lip, uneasy with the thought of having to fight side by side with a demon.

  Turning the final corner, they found the creature near the opposite shoreline. “He's near the ramp, but we can go around him if we're quiet enough.” The group followed Zack's lead, carefully maintaining a steady pace to avoid spooking the sturgeon.

  As they neared the halfway point, the rhythm of the clicking abruptly changed. Turning around, Keshiema saw three sturgeon approaching from behind them. “There's more!” she urged the group forward.

  “Where’d the first one go?” Just as the words left Tobias' lips, Mia screamed. The sturgeon they had seen across the lake pulled her off her horse. As it dragged her away from the group, Keshiema ran after it. Drawing her sword, she cut at its arm. The creature let go of Mia to grasp its injured arm. It shrieked, revealing a large sucker-mouth full of sharp teeth.

  At the sound of the shriek, the other sturgeons sprinted towards them to protect their kin. Keshiema dragged the injured Mia back to the group. Drawing their guns, Tobias and Zack fired at the enraged beasts. The sturgeon kept coming, paying no mind to the bullets ripping through their bodies. One fell, just short of reaching them, as Tobias landed a shot through its small eye.

  The horses panicked as the three remaining sturgeons rushed them. One creature jumped up high, knocking Zack off his horse. Spooked by the attack, she galloped towards the shore.

  Starlight bucked at one as it tried to attack her from behind. The creature fell backward, shoving Cresil into the silver bars of Tobias's cage. He screamed, his skin sizzling where it contacted the silver. As the sturgeon stood up, Cresil pushed off the cage, gritting his teeth to keep himself from screaming again. Burns and blisters formed, striping his skin everywhere the silver had touched.

  Keshiema jumped up and sliced through the skull of the sturgeon she had injured. Zack fired a shot through the eye of one that was pinning him to the ground. The last one, fully recovered from getting hit by Starlight, faced off with Cresil. With a dagger drawn, Cresil waited for the beast to charge him. The sturgeon lunged forward. Thinking quickly, Cresil slid under it as it jumped, slicing the underside of its body. It cried as its guts poured out. Falling to the ground, it continued to wail and convulse as it died.

  “Hurry, more could be nearby.” Zack calmed Starlight down as Tobias helped Mia back onto her horse. “Are you able to walk, demon?” he noticed Cresil kneeling on the ground.

  “I’ll be fine.” Cresil stood, but as he took his first step, his knees buckled beneath him.

  “Keshiema, Tobias, help him onto Starlight. We need to get out of here before more of those things show up.”

  When the group made it to the shore, Keshiema asked them to stop. “We can’t let their wounds sit any longer. Mia's leg looks broken and Cresil is seriously hurt. If I heal them, we can move at a faster pace.”

  Carefully, Zack and Tobias helped Mia and Cresil off their horses. Starting with Cresil, Keshiema worked on his burned skin. The wounds healed byt left pale scars on the back of his neck and arms. Keshiema looked over the scars, uncertain what she did wrong.

  “It's alright, Kesh. That’s just what silver does to my kind.” He glared at Tobias, who had made a point to avoid looking at him since the fight. “Go help Mia.”

  “Tobias, you hold her steady. Zack, you set her leg. This is going to hurt.” Keshiema gave Mia a torn cloth to put in her mouth. “It’ll muffle any screams so we don’t garner any more attention.” Biting the rag, Mia prepared herself for the pain. Zack set the bone, and Tobias held Mia to his chest as she screamed. Wasting no time, Keshiema healed the break. Mia settled down once it fully healed and the pain finally stopped. With the wounded taken care of, Keshiema breathed easier.

  Looking at Cresil, her heart ached. Although she healed his wounds, he looked awful. Dark circles made his eyes appear sunken, and his skin was chalky and pale. She touched his forehead and frowned. She stood and helped Cresil to his feet. He stumbled forward, barely managing to stay upright. "Cress, you’re running a fever. Your body needs rest, we need to get you back."

  "If we go back, you know they won't let you leave again so easily." He reminded her.

  “Cresil can ride Starlight to the Academy and you can continue your search for your friend.” Zack looked to Cresil, who seemed upset by the suggestion. “You’re in no condition to fight. If you go out there, you’re likely to get Keshiema killed.”

  Inches from Zack's face, Cresil's eyes glowed with anger. “You don’t think I know that? I’ve been a warrior for thousands of years. I know when to bow out of a fight. That doesn’t mean I feel right about leaving Kesh alone to wander a city full of enemies.”

  "I'm not leaving you Cresil." She reassured him. She wanted to trust the siblings, but Tobias was keeping Cresil in a cage like a wild animal. And there was a definite personality conflict between Cresil and Zack.

  “So we aren’t going to look for Ipos?” Cresil’s voice came out raspy and dry.

  “Cress, I have to look for him. If Ayperos is right, Damien won't last much longer. Not to mention I need to get my memories back.” Her eyes and hair darkened to black as she struggled with the choice she needed to make ."That being said, I can't leave you alone in your condition.”

  "You can use Starlight to get back. even with both of you, she'll quicken your journey."

  "If we take the horse we'll have to stay on the main roads, that will take us through the City Center."

  "Keshiema," Mia spoke up, "What about one of the farming villages? They're demon-controlled, so he would be safe there. And they could send word to the Academy. They also tend to have a soft spot for Impures since they lessen the load on the Power Farms. I know a shortcut to one so you don't have to go as far out of your way. "

  "And you're sure I can trust them them to take care of him?"

  "Yes, they might be a bit standoffish towards you, but they'll treat him like royalty."

  Cresil was in no position to argue. He was relieved she chose not to run off and leave him there. Not that she would have abandoned him with someone who just a day ago had him locked in a cage.

  When Mia finished marking the map, the group set off. Keshiema walked next to cresil as he rode Starlight. She was afraid he would pass out, but did not wish to put too much strain on the horse too soon. Keshiema knew she could have made the two miles to the old interstate in less than ten minutes, accounting for the hilly terrain. So the 30-minute walk irritated her. It was another 25 miles to the village Mia marked, a thought that made her face hot and her feet itch to move faster.

  “Keshiema?” Tobias interrupted her spiraling thoughts. She turned to face him, a hint of annoyance showing in her eyes. “This Damien guy, he’s not the dark angel type, is he?” Worry painted his face.

  “How did you know?”

  “A few nights before you were taken to the Academy, you ran away. A demon brought you back a few hours before Chu and May…” The memory of the baseball bat gave him pause. "I knew who he was when I saw him, because you had told Mia and me about him a lot. He said he edited himself out of your memories, though. Claimed it was for your own good. I never got the chance to tell you.”

  “Kesh, when you get those memories back you need to sever your ties with Ipos.” Cresil took her hand, praying for her to listen. “He's too dangerous.”

  “Damien has made some poor choices, but we all have. I’ll decide what I want to do once I get my memories back.” She knew in her heart he could be a good person. She also knew trusting her heart could have deadly consequences.