Ae woke abruptly, songbird chirps echoing down into the cave. The bright rays flooding the cavern with a tainted light. The skies were still smoggy from the fires. She looked to her side to find Nidian missing from his little notch between the rocks. She scrambled to her feet and grunted. How he managed to sneak out without her noticing was nothing short of surprising. She grabbed her blade and scaled the gravelly incline to the surface and gazed into the maze of trees, drawing a frown accompanied by an irritated grunt. She could have just moved on but that city kid was going to get eaten alive by the Daemorian wildlife. She knelt down and studied the earth, making out his foot prints in the soft soil. His lightweight form made it difficult but she managed to get a general direction.

  She quietly pushed through the brush and weaved between the thickening trees. Eyes on disrupted branches and torn leaves. Over the years she had gotten exceptionally skilled in tracking people down. Ae felt the rushing winds moments before their shadows cascaded across the forest floor. Two dragons flew overhead, sluggish and decelerating. Her eyes watched their broken shape through the canopy as they descended below. A distant thud confirmed their touch down.

  She sharply inhaled and dropped low to the ground, rolling behind a tree and reaching into her pocket. A small vial full of a dark brown paste. The cork was swiftly removed and her finger dipped into the ground up material. It was smeared under her arms and across her upper chest. With vigilance she peered from behind her wooden cover. She could hear the twigs snapping, trunks creaking as the behemoths pressed into the forest toward her. Why were they out in these parts?

  A twig snapped and her head swiveled almost as fast as her sword arm. Her blade was pointed right at Nidian who's face drained of color. He opened his mouth to say something but she beat him to it.

  "Keep your mouth shut." She silently commanded with exaggerated pronunciation. She began to sheathe her blade when the deafening crack of a felling tree drew their immediate attention. The two dragons were not further than fifty feet away.

  Ae lunged at Nidian, taking him to the ground. She held his head to the ground and laid half on top of him. Her hand covering his mouth before he could scream or protest. His eyes were wide as could be.

  "Ugh Madamar I'm telling you there's no way one made it this far away, I searched everywhere you asked me to."

  The dragoness on the left spoke in a feminine but gravely voice, she was a foot or two shorter than the other brute, lighter set, oil black scales and demonic red eyes. The most horrifying detail was a set of dried and etched human skulls decorating her slick burgundy mane.

  The deep brown scaled body of the male went rigid with irritation. "Well Illenith, maybe you shouldn't have eaten our lead mid-sentence." He hissed, staring her down.

  "Oh please, that babbling idiot was just spitting nonsense trying to buy time he didn't have." She refuted.

  The disgusted glare from Madamar gave her excuse a swift denial. The two looked around with their heads and silently came back to meet each others eyes. He shifted to face her head on, cutting her off as she attempted to walk away.

  "You're just as bad as Kaludir, which need I remind you is why we are all out searching for this flesh sack. We were tasked with capturing every last one of them. The incompetence of those humans Malazina seems to trust lost the most vital piece to this entire campaign. Without that map we're flying in circles."

  By the time he had finished his sentence Illenith had already gotten distracted with her grotesque ornaments, ensuring they were tightly held in place, she looked back over to see Madamar's eyes ablaze, darting back and forth between her eyes and the skulls with a boiling frustration.

  "This is exactly my point! Half of you slackers are treating this like some free time picking in a feeding ground. You're clumsy, piggish, and lacking in any form of effort. This is a crucial operation to recover what was lost centuries ago and reclaim the glory of the Demraxites once and for all. How many times will it take to get that through your head." He scolded, his tail snapping like a whip, forcing another tree to the ground.

  The dragoness pulled her head back with a twisted mug feeling the hot puffs of air from her comrades flared nostrils. "Hey I've completed every assignment you have shoved down my throat! I think I have earned the right to relax a little I am not piggish." Illenith hissed back as her bared teeth were shoved right in front of Madamar, whom only looked down with little reaction before flicking one of the used to be heads dangling from her mane.

  "Yeah sure, you make that real easy to believe when you flaunt the evidence. I don't know about you but I'm trying to prove I'm more than a soldier. I'm proving I'm capable of leading our forces one day, but with a wing mate like you Vadik won't ever so much as breathe my direction."

  Illenith pulled back again, retreating a step as Madamar nipped at her snout whilst finishing his sentence. Her ears flattened and she looked away.

  "You sure all this isn't some ego issue cause a female showed you up as a cadet and stole your dream of being Vadik's protegé?" She mumbled back.

  The brute rumbled deeply and narrowed his eyes before huffing deeply, "No, this is about proving my abilities. That I uphold the very symbol of power, honor, and swift justice to chaos that the Demraxites stand for. Those prissy Amethians won't even get a candle of respect held to them once we return with the heart. Provided you follow orders and stay out of trouble, we can do that." He finished before walking away.

  "Uh hello, where are you going? The oh so important straggler?" Illenith called out irritated with her bossy partner.

  Madamar stopped for a moment before looking over his shoulder as his gargantuan wings unfolded, cracking trees as they were forced open.

  "Forget him, we squandered enough time bickering that we're behind schedule on our recon and we're due back by sunset. The chances that one human has the map is slim to none. Though if you're really that needy for another snack feel free to keep looking, pig." He snorted before taking off, a single torrent of wind blowing some of the century old trees into fist sized chunks of kindling as the large trunks fractured under the immense pressure. Nidian and Ae both braced for the detritus sent hurdling at them. Both of them sustaining a few cuts and bruises and had to bite their tongues and avoid crying out in pain.

  Left behind grumbling to herself and picking the splinters from her mane before tugging at the skulls, one coming loose in her talons. She looked at the empty eye sockets and chuckled. The etching was too deep on part of the cheekbone and it broke off from the stress of getting knocked around. There was a snort of disappointment before her talons crushed the skull into dust with ease, flaking it around.

  "We'll see who's taking orders from who soon enough Madamar, That mumbling man gave me everything I needed before you showed up. Can't wait to see your jealous face when I bring that runaway in. Always about the deadlines with you."

  She slowly strutted off and the heavy thumping in the ground faded over a minute or so. Nidian was petrified, his lungs almost frozen solid with fear. What were they bickering about? The foreign tongue they used left him with only the ability to guess.

  "We nearly died! They were right there!" Nidian tried to exclaim, half muffled by her hand.

  Ae rolled herself off of him and intervened swiftly with a harsh whisper, "quiet down, and don't you dare start freaking out, they'll pick up on on your heartbeat in no time if you let that run rampant."

  Nidian choked back on his growing worry and took a deep breath, "How do you know that?" He raised a brow as his face corkscrewed.

  Ae stared flatly momentarily, "Long story. Why the hell did you run away this morning. Are you trying to get yourself killed?"

  Nidian slowly sat up and scooted away from Ae, sensing the frustration. "I- I can't go to a Maverick town with you, I have to reach a city."

  Ae had grown suspicious over the night, but this just confirmed he was hiding something. "Why, what's so important about reaching another city?"

  "That's none of your business. Look you may have saved my life, but I'm still not in a position to just give all my trust to the most wanted criminal on Daemora. So respectfully, give me my privacy."

  Nidian wanted to share it all, the longing for someone who could understand the weight on his shoulders was strong. But he knew nothing about this woman. Whether she would help, or take the journal from him. He hadn't so much as taken a peek at the contents yet. And now he wanted to even less. He couldn't risk losing it to some Maverick for all he knew might sell it off to the enemy.

  Ae grumbled and held a firm gaze, studying his eyes, his lips, the nervous fondling of his hands. His disposition toward her was valid. "Fine. But for the record I saved it twice."

  "What?"

  Ae stood up and dusted her metal leggings off. "Your scent trail is dead back by the cave. There's a reason you weren't caught earlier by those things." Ae pulled her shirt down just enough to show a coating of the root salve on her lower neck and shoulders. "Kardich root, we use it out in these parts to mask our scent from predators. Works on them too. I put it in your bandages when I patched you up. So yeah, I saved your life twice. Maybe you won't share now, but take my efforts into consideration. Unless you won't share because your oh so important matter is to give the Kordhan a lead on my whereabouts?" Her hip got thrown to one side and the look she gave burned.

  Nidian looked down at the linen wrapped neatly around his shin. His pant leg ripped off at the knee. "Listen you have my gratitude. You really do. And no it's not so I can turn you in. I just need to get there. I don't expect you to understand."

  Nidian stood to his feet and dusted himself off as best he could, Ae blocking his first steps. "I can handle myself from here out. Please, let me go my own way if you're on my side." He complained as he tried to side step, the woman copying his motions.

  Ae folded her arms, "Yeah you handled yourself real well just about becoming dragon food." She snidely remarked.

  Nidian stopped in his tracks, letting his head hang back. "Pleaase. Just let me go. I already thanked you. Now I need to get on my way. And unless you want to come with to the city that has hundreds of your wanted posters I guess I'm going alone."

  Ae tensed and tilted her chin upward, "Fine."

  Nidian slowly stepped around her, her gaze slowly following him. She sounded so bratty saying that. For being the most wanted woman on the continent she certainly could act childish.

  He only made it twenty steps away. "You're going the wrong way."

  Nidian grunted into his hands and looked back at her with a pout. He didn't want to admit it, but he needed her help. He had no idea where he was going. Her smug smile only insulted him. "Then which way is it?!" He snapped.

  Ae chuckled at he ground a moment, refusing to answer.

  Nidian looked at her with tears beginning to fall down his cheeks, his fists clenched, lips cinched at the corners. The clock was ticking and this woman was standing here teasing him. "Ae right? I know you probably don't give a damn about Hoharo but it is gone! I have nothing, my only family was killed right in front of me! I was covered in his freaking blood! You think a seventeen year old stable boy is going to just forget all that and walk into a town of savages to start a new life?! It could be MY fault this all happened for all I know. And I don't expect you to understand how. But I have to make it to Cebria. They have the means to defend the cities and I have to inform them! So I don't know why you're so insistent on stalling me but it isn't helping."

  Ae's snarky expression broke, mellowed out. Her brows knit at his cracking voice. She had to bite her tongue. It never really occurred to her he really wasn't even an adult. He was really just a kid, a kid who had his entire world ripped from him. She was forced to reflect on memories of her own life, secluded in the depths of her mind. She had to shake them away quickly.

  "Kid I'm not trying to stall you, I just don't want you getting yourself killed by running headfirst alone into the thickest neck of the forest."

  "Why does it matter to you?!" He lashed out, sobbed and stumbled. Finding a tree to support him, he pressed his head against the coarse bark. The sun was beginning to bleed over the horizon. He heaved as his gut wrenched from the existential dread and overpowering resentment of life. While this stranger had such a threatening history and blunt personality something shifted. He looked over into that violet gaze. The first genuine reveal of emotion briefly flickered in her eyes. "Cause I can't have the death of some hopeless teenager on my mind for the next month."

  Nidian inhaled deeply and locked away the rest of his tears, wiping his nose on his sleeve. "I don't have anything left lose. I either make it there or die trying. So please, just tell me which way to go."

  "You really aren't going to give up on this one are you?" Fine. I'll take you to Krygar. You can catch a ride there from a caravan I know to Cebria. But you stop being such a pain and start listening to what I say alright?" She sighed.

  Nidian forced a smile and nodded still sniffling, "Ok... Thank you, you don't know how much it means to me."

  Ae rolled her eyes, "Yeah I probably don't. Let's get moving, I don't want to have to spend a night in these parts."

  She began walking past him, the same way he had started.

  "I thought you said this is the wrong way?" He called out to her from behind as he started to catch up to her pace.

  "She shrugged, "I lied. Just wanted to prove you did't know where you were going."

  Nidian pressed his lips hard enough they turned white. She was an asshole. He didn't bother to comment and silently walked behind her. He looked at her armor, the obsidian black plates that were well kept. The fur top she wore made of some beast's pelt. The three belts she wore carrying various tools and materials. The ornate sword at her side. Her ears adorned with gorgeous purple and gold earrings. Despite being the jerk she was she didn't fit the description of a deranged killer cannibal. She dressed flashy like the nobles in the highest districts, and was equipped like some of the toughest bounty hunters out there. It had begged the question who she really was. If the accusations were true. Not like he could trust an answer from her. No criminal in their right mind would admit to a crime.

  "Did you do it? Did you murder that family? Eat their child's heart?" Nidian's voice staggered. He wanted to grab the words out of the air, realizing he had just vocalized them.

  Ae stopped abruptly and turned. A long pensive glare his way. Her teeth were pressed together, body stiff. After what seemed like hours she finally gave a curt response.

  "No."

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