Teleri stood in wait, concealed by the trees as the small fox bounded up the slope. She was loathe to admit her nervousness about this plan of entry working, especially as going through the front door was her suggestion, but if it worked, that was one of the tallest hurdles behind her and Friedrich.

  The Alaurian watched as he crept lowly towards one of the outbuildings, the purpose of which she still had not determined. It appeared to be a house of some kind, but for whom, it was hard to say. Was it furnished as a house? Had it been here for a century and remained untouched? She supposed it did not matter as long as it was not home to an unkillable god-like entity.

  Friedrich peered out from behind the building and saw two demons standing by the open doors. How reactionary were they? If he revealed himself from here, would they close the doors? Perhaps they would ignore him entirely, for he was just a fox and causing them no trouble.

  He snuck around to the back of the building and moved to the next one over. Out of curiosity, he pulled himself up and looked in the window. The inside was regally decorated as though meant for royalty or a dignitary. He presumed it must have been used for when important people visited the prisoners, for they would no doubt be less than comfortable sleeping inside where the demons kept watch. An idea struck him.

  He wandered out into the open and started sniffing the ground, pretending to follow a scent. He was in full view of the demons and they showed no reaction to him, remaining at their posts like obedient stone sentinels. He wandered around in circles a few times before approaching the door of the house. He started pawing at the base of the door and then sank his claws into the soil to dig a hole.

  Teleri watched him closely and worked out what he was up to. If it worked, this was her opportunity. She ran along the tree line and took note of the guards now focusing their eyes on the fox. She could hear Friedrich clawing and batting at the door as he pretended to want inside. Once she scanned the tower for any prying eyes, she darted for the wall and sought cover while Friedrich continued his ruse.

  “Bah’kiyak,” muttered one of the demons and the other let out a dry, wispy laugh.

  The demon then held up its hand and conjured a fireball that it hurled at Friedrich. He skittered away to avoid it and then returned to the door a moment later, eliciting a grumbling from the pair of guards.

  “Kel vashkuth.”

  “Gra’kia, morak.”

  The fireball-throwing demon grunted and then marched over to Friedrich, drawing his sword as he moved. Friedrich leapt up to the door handle and clung to it as the demon approached. He twisted and turned until it gave way, letting the door fall open. He scurried inside and the demon still standing watch barked an order at its pursuing companion, who replied nonchalantly as he followed Friedrich inside.

  Teleri did not expect Friedrich to actually go inside, but perhaps he had another plan. If the demon returned, it would see her standing there. Seconds later, there came a several thuds as something tumbled down a flight of wooden stairs. The other guard rushed over and Teleri seized her opportunity to sneak through the front doors.

  Friedrich sprinted from the house and yapped in mock-fear as the guard chased him. He darted back down the hill and into the trees, vanishing from sight. The guard he had knocked down the stairs rubbed its head as it left the house and returned to its post, but not before receiving a heavy shove from its irritated kinsman.

  With Teleri hopefully hiding safely inside, Friedrich turned back into a human and took a deep beath. He would wait for a few minutes until the guards were no longer so alert before sneaking right over their heads using his spider mask. He half-wished he had a way to steal Namavar’s moth transformation, but sadly, the spirit had seemingly died with him.

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  Friedrich followed Teleri’s path at the inner edge of the trees and took hold of the spider mask around his neck. Although he had gotten used to using this form with practice, he still found it more uncomfortable than the others owing to his additional limbs and eyes, but needs must. He placed it onto his face and changed forms. From now, he had five minutes to gain entry; this part should be straightforward.

  *

  “I feel useless,” said Marina while sitting on the deck of the Brass Stormer with her legs folded and her arms crossed over her chest. “If we had a normal boat, I could be out there helping them! That was always the plan.”

  “With a normal boat, we rely on wind or our ability to row,” said Pheston. “This ol’ gal can be powered by this young gal.” He pointed at her with a confident smile.

  “I know,” sighed Marina, “but I’ve been by Friedrich’s side for so long that it feels like I’m missing something important.”

  “You are playing the part that you need to play, little lassie. If he comes running onto that beach with his father beside him, we can outpace any pursuers with ease. You’ve had some time to rest and recover, haven’t you?”

  “I suppose so.”

  “Alright, I’m going to go and take a look around rather than listening to you whining, Marina. At least one of us should be doing something useful.”

  Pheston let out a loud laugh at his own joke and Marina whacked him across the back with the staff. “Be quiet! I don’t want everything Friedrich’s been working towards ruined because you don’t know when to take your humour down a notch.”

  “You’re right, you’re right,” said Pheston, rubbing his back. “You didn’t need to hit me.”

  “Sorry,” she said, but she wasn’t.

  The infiltration had been Friedrich’s goal from before he met her and she, both unknowingly and knowingly, had been helping him along the way. Looking back, she now realised that every time she had convinced him to overspend at the inn or to buy her something, those kupons had been gathered with the sole intent of enabling his rescue of his father and she had wasted them on nonsense. The pang of guilt hit her hard, even harder than the guilt she felt for sitting on the sidelines, no matter how much she was assured that her role as the pilot of the Brass Stormer was more essential than any role aside from his own.

  She watched as Pheston jumped from the deck and landed with a thud on the sand. The night was otherwise quiet and still save for the occasional chirp from an unknown and unseen bird and the foamy swoosh of the waves as they crept onto the shore and then ran away.

  Marina held out her palm and closed her eyes. A tiny flicker of lightning arced from her palm and danced to each of her fingers before landing back in her palm, upon which she clenched her fist tightly. Normally, she would do this when she was alone and nervous, making the lightning run laps around her hands, but tonight she was too fidgety to even calm herself that way.

  She knew that once Friedrich’s father had been rescued and they had all returned to the mainland that things were going to change. While Teleri did not like change, Marina tended to embrace it, especially with the addition of the Alaurian and later Pheston to her beloved Lightning Foxes adventuring group. Friedrich rescuing his father, however, that would mean retreating to somewhere to hide. Would the adventures that she had relished, but took for granted come to an end soon? She did not know and it filled her with great dread.

  The thought of her friends parting ways after coming to admire each of them was not something she wanted to think about, but she knew she had to brace herself for the worst. Pheston would return to Corobath and reunite with the rest of his family. Teleri would not want to part with Friedrich, but would no doubt return to demon-hunting if she must. As for her? She had nothing to go back to; nothing good, at least.

  Friedrich desired nothing more than to be reunited with his father, the only family he had left. Marina, however, desired nothing more than to see her father dead and buried for everything that he had done to her and her mother. She thought back to the night she had managed to escape. It was the same night she encountered Friedrich. He had been alone in the forest with Kitt’s mask, that he had found earlier in the day. She knew it was a fated meeting now, even if she could not fully rationalise her belief. The day she took her freedom was also the day that everything changed for Friedrich; the day he became a soul masker.

  “It will be alright,” she said to herself, trying to force herself to believe it.

  “What will be alright?” asked Pheston, climbing up the ladder and making her jump a mile. “An army of demons could have stormed the beach and you’d be oblivious, Marina.”

  “Everything will be alright,” she said with a cheerful smile. “Absolutely everything will be alright, Pheston. Trust me.”

  “What in the world are you talking about, girlie?” asked the smith with a befuddled stare.

  “Everything, Pheston. Everything.”