We landed atop a building high above the city streets, scanning the sprawling urban landscape below. For hours, we searched every street and alleyway, combing through downtown in the hopes of finding some trace of the missing child. But there was nothing. No signs of a struggle, no demon sightings—nothing even remotely suspicious.

  Frustration settled over us like a heavy weight as we regrouped on the rooftop, forming a small circle to discuss our next move. The night had stretched on, and exhaustion was beginning to creep in, but we couldn’t afford to stop now.

  Aya, having naturally taken charge in Jamie’s absence, stood at the center of our group. We waited for her to speak first.

  She let out a quiet breath before finally saying, “It’s getting late. We should stop the search for tonight.”

  “What?!” Becky immediately protested. “But we haven’t found them yet! If we stop now, we might never!”

  Amanda and I nodded in agreement.

  “She’s right,” I added. “When it comes to missing people, the longer they’re gone, the lower the chances of finding them. If we home now, that kid might be lost forever.”

  Aya crossed her arms, her brows furrowed in thought. I could tell she was weighing our words carefully. After a long pause, she finally spoke.

  “Do any of you need to be home by a certain time? It’s already really late.”

  She was asking, but I could hear the relief in her voice—she didn’t want to stop searching either.

  “My parents won’t mind,” I said.

  “Mine neither,” Amanda added, stroking the cat that had casually strolled out of my body and made its way over to her.

  “Same here,” Becky said.

  Aya nodded, a small smile tugging at her lips. “Alright. We’ll keep looking.”

  “Thanks for staying so late,” she added softly.

  “It’s no problem,” I told her, placing a reassuring hand on her shoulder. “We’re a team, right?”

  Aya’s cheeks flushed slightly, and she quickly turned her gaze away. “…Yeah.”

  “I think we should spread out this time to cover more ground,” Becky suggested. “We should also expand the search radius to include areas outside of downtown.”

  “That’s a good idea,” Aya agreed.

  “I think it’d be smart if we divide the city into sections—one person searches the upper part, another takes the middle, and someone stays downtown to sweep it again just in case. If anyone finds anything, just text the group chat, and we’ll all meet up.” Becky added.

  We all nodded in agreement.

  “But there are four of us and only three sections of the city,” I pointed out.

  “Well, you can’t sense energy, right, Brian?” Becky said matter-of-factly. “If you go alone, you won’t even be able to tell if there’s a demonic presence, so you’ll need to team up with one of us.”

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  I scratched the back of my head, feeling a bit embarrassed. “Heh…makes sense.”

  In the back of my mind, I could sense the cat’s amusement at my shortcomings.

  “But who’s gonna babysit him?” Aya teased, grinning.

  I shot her a glare, which only made her grin wider.

  “I was actually thinking of doing it,” Becky said. “I want to see him in action if we run into a fight.”

  “Alright, I guess I’ll comb the upper part of the city,” Aya said, stretching her arms.

  “I’ll take the middle,” Amanda added, gently setting the cat on the ground. It immediately hopped back inside of me.

  “Guess that means we’re searching downtown again,” I said, looking at Becky.

  “Yep,” she replied with a nod.

  “Meet back here in four hours,” Aya instructed.

  It was already midnight. This was going to be a long night—but we had no choice. We had to find that kid.

  We exchanged quick good lucks before heading off in different directions, disappearing into the city.

  Becky and I moved across the rooftops, scanning the streets below for any sign of the missing child. Hours had passed, and the constant exertion was beginning to take its toll. Channeling energy from my core to my legs to maintain my speed and height was exhausting. But I didn’t want to complain—not when we still hadn’t found anything.

  Cat, I called out mentally to the creature residing inside me as I leaped across another gap.

  A soft meow echoed in my mind.

  Give me back some of that energy you took from me. My energy, I requested.

  No response—only the faint sense of amusement from the cat.

  I sighed out loud. Please?

  There was a pause, and then suddenly, a surge of energy coursed through me. My reserves, which had been nearly depleted, were completely restored in an instant.

  Thanks. I’ll feed you when we get back home, I promised.

  The cat meowed in response, clearly satisfied with the deal.

  We continued searching, checking and rechecking every inch of downtown, but there was nothing—no clues, no signs, not even the faintest trace of a struggle. Frustration weighed heavy on me, but I pushed it down, keeping my focus on the task at hand.

  After scouring the streets again, we climbed onto a rooftop to get a better vantage point. Becky flopped onto her back, staring up at the night sky, her breathing heavy. I could tell she was exhausted.

  I sat down next to her and followed her gaze to the full moon above. It was nearly time to meet back with the others.

  “I… don’t think we’re gonna find her,” Becky admitted, her voice begrudging.

  I let her words settle before finally responding. “Me neither.”

  Silence stretched between us as we took in the quiet beauty of the moon. Somewhere out there, a child was scared and alone—taken from their mother by something unknown. Were they even still alive? We had no clue. And the mother… the woman who had begged us to find her baby… we had promised her we would. But now? That promise felt heavier than ever.

  The timer on Becky’s phone went off, breaking the silence. It was time to regroup.

  We made our way back to the meeting spot and sat, looking up at the sky. Since we were the closest, we arrived first. A few minutes later, Aya landed on the rooftop, her expression filled with frustration and disappointment.

  “Any luck?” Becky asked, though we already knew the answer. If she’d found anything, she would have texted the group chat.

  Aya shook her head, sighing as she sat down beside us. We didn’t say anything after that—just sat there, staring at the stars.

  Amanda arrived soon after, looking just as frustrated. She joined us in our quiet vigil, the four of us simply watching the sky. The one good thing to come from this night was the view of the moon, shining beautifully despite the failure we felt.

  Eventually, we agreed to call off the search. There was nothing more we could do that night.

  “We’ll meet at my place in the morning,” Aya said, her voice carrying a quiet determination.

  We nodded, then went our separate ways, the weight of the night settling on our shoulders