Katrina let out a tense breath of relief, as the pain she had been suffering through for the last several days, abated. “Thank you~” She groaned, getting only a curt smile in return. The blonde human who was attending to her, was named Helen. She, like her brother, Henry, was a Dae-voh; and extremely talented when it came to healing. “You guys came just in the nick of time.”

  “The battle was hard to miss.” Henry shrugged, watching as Lauren lit balls of flame around the cave.

  After the battle, Katrina had mustered the last of her strength to create an underground opening again. After the battle, she was completely spent. Having been seriously wounded and on the verge of death just a day earlier, she was pretty impressed with what she was able to accomplish. Luckily, with four other Dae-voh humans around now, the underground cave was now a verifiable fortress. With rooms and even a functioning bathroom. Of her original party, which was around twenty, only twelve were left standing. Whereas the party of Visoth warriors was down to ten. Four of which were seriously wounded.

  “Alright, everyone!” a Dae she didn’t recognize shouted, stepping into the center of the now brightly lit room. He was one of the party that rescued them; and based on his stance and demeanor, was probably their leader. He was younger, had pearl white hair, pale blue skin, and striking silver eyes that glowed in the light of the lit balls of fire. “I know everyone is tired and battered, or worse after that battle. But time is of the essence, and we don’t have much to spare.” He turned toward Turak, then to Genmei who were on opposite sides of the large room. “If both of you are the leaders of your particular groups, please assemble any people of note to meet over here.” He gestured over to a circle of stone chairs that had been grown from the ground.

  Katrina sighed, groaning as her worn body creaked with the effort of standing up. “Oh God… is this what thirty looks like?”

  Helen chuckled from off to her side, “You don’t look thirty.”

  “I’m not.” Katrina grinned, “but today, I feel every bit of it.”

  She walked on sore legs all the way to where everyone was gathering, found a nice little chair, right next to Turak, and sat. Soon, the entire circle was filled, with the officers and leaders of their perspective parties. She was joined by Turak, Greyson, Ashley and Dorian. Beside Greyson, to his right, was the pink-eyed Dae who he seemed to be sweet on, and a grumpy-looking Visoth warrior beside her, who looked completely out of place. Lauren was there as well, but had opted to sit with her brother on the opposite side. Among them was Henry and his sister, Helen. The curly haired human, whose name was, Miguel. Also, Alex, a violet-skinned Dae who looked a bit like Hego Cato, and the silver eyed leader of their group.

  “I will begin by stating the obvious.” The silver-eyed Dae started. “I speak for all of us on this side here, when I say that it is good to finally see your faces.” He took a breath, then placed his hand over his heart. “I am Drayden, Zae Aldun of tribe Baea Ixus. Son of Dun Aldun Maleok, protector of the speaker of the Leviathan, and envoy of our people.”

  Drayden bowed, and Katrina blinked, looking at Turak who seemed to share her confusion. Regardless, he stood, mirroring Drayden’s gesture by placing his hand over his heart as well. “Well said… Zae Aldun… eh, Drayden. I know I speak for my own people as well when I say that your timely arrival, quite literally saved our lives. You have our thanks.”

  Drayden’s attention turned to Genmei, who seemed to hesitate, but stood anyway. “I am Lady Genmei of house Kamakura… and… I would be remised to say that I don’t appreciate your timely arrival. But… Myself and my warriors weren’t sent here to… parley with your group, exactly.” She took in a heavy breath, glancing down at the stern Dae next to her, and continued. “That being said, I myself, as well as my warriors didn’t understand the full breadth of the situation. I must be honest and tell you that I am at a loss as to how to proceed. We are at your mercy, of course, but… for what it’s worth, would like to extend our hand in truce, while we recover. If you will allow us.”

  Drayden stared at her for a time, his silver eyes gleaming with intelligence as he pondered her words. “You are saying that you are an enemy to us. I appreciate your honesty, Lady Genmei. This is something we already knew.” He turned to look at Alex, who gave him a stern nod. “But you have a choice.” He pointed back to the brown-haired man, before pressing on. “This is Alexander, the voice of the great spirit, Leviathan. He is a seer of sorts, being blessed with visions of potential futures. Though he lacks many details… and his ability to communicate with the Leviathan isn’t as reliable as I would wish it. This moment however, and your decision, was very clear. You have a choice, to join the cause of salvation for the Dae. Or, to be an agent of your own destruction. If you so choose, to join us now, you will be welcomed by my tribe. And thus, be given diplomatic immunity in all of our endeavors. Or we will send you away, back into the desert. And next we meet will be at the point of one another’s blades.”

  “I haven’t agreed to this.” Turak stated, crossing his arms. “She is an agent of Visoth, and was sent here to kill you and the humans you are traveling with. I myself, speak with the authority of our High King in Eleutheros. And quite frankly, believe they shouldn’t be here for this conversation either. As all of this is incredibly sensitive information.”

  “We aren’t at war with Visoth.” Katrina spoke for the first time, standing and cocking her head at Turak. “These people bled beside us in battle, Turak. Many of them gave their lives beside you. And there is still time to negotiate.” Katrina looked at Genmei, then strode over to her. “I said the same thing to this asshole.” She pressed her finger into Greyson’s chest plate. “After everything I’ve seen here in this world, nothing will surprise me. I know what we’re asking you is hard, and your loyalty to your emperor and to your entire family is at stake. But, the whole world is on the brink. It’s a huge sacrifice, girl. Trust me, I know. I had to make a similar one. You saw with your own eyes, the enemy we are all facing. Imagine a thousand times more than that. A million times more! Spewing from a portal in the middle of your empire, slaughtering everything in their path.”

  Katrina held her gaze, flaring her nostrils. “I’m not messing around, either. I saw how you fought in the battle. How you protected our warriors as though they were your own. So, I’m willing to give you the benefit of the doubt here. If you join us, you can return to Eleutheros with us, not as a prisoner.”

  “I am still in command, Kat.” Turak huffed, “Besides, Alektor would never allow it.”

  “Oh shush. He can’t turn me down, Turak. You know that. You’re the one on his shitlist right now anyway, not me.”

  “I…” Genmei sighed, looking down at the floor. “I will need some time to think on this.”

  “You shall have until the morning.” Drayden said, gesturing to Alex and the violet skinned Dae beside him. “That is about all the time we have to spare. We must make it to Eleutheros, as quickly as possible.”

  Alex stepped beside him, placing his hand on the violet-skinned Dae’s shoulder. “Hey everyone… Alex here. Eh, this is Pyxxis.”

  “I knew you looked familiar.” Katrina smiled, walking over to him, extending her hand in greeting. “I know your dad.”

  Pyxxis smiled awkwardly, before grasping it. “I’m sorry to hear that. He’s a bit much.”

  “He’s the one who basically put most of this expedition together.” Alex continued. “We owe him our lives. And because of that, we have the opportunity to undo some of the horrible things done to this world. It’ll mean a huge effort from every Dae, and all of us.” He pointed to Katrina, then to each of the other humans sitting around them. “I wish I could give you all the answers… but my visions are hazy at best. What I know for sure is that if we don’t fight back against the darkness, we will lose everything. And I mean everything… Of what the Leviathan shared with me, that much is for sure. Getting our asses to Eleutheros is the next step. And all of the humans play a big part.” He looked at Greyson, Ashley, and Dorian. “I know you guys are… uh not in the best position right now. With everything that happened. But, I want you three to know, it isn’t too late for you. There is still hope.”

  Ashley huffed, crossing her arms. “You weren’t there, dude. You don’t know the—”

  “Ashe!” Greyson growled, silencing her. “Just shut up and listen for once.”

  “I… do know, actually.” Alex shrugged awkwardly. “I’ve suffered here too, I think most of us have, in some way or another. But hope is there for us. Hope for a future… in this world, or back in our own.”

  “You’re sayin’ we can get back?” Ashley asked, leaning forward.

  “I don’t know for sure. Only that it’s a possibility. If we win. The demons had no intention of sending you back, just so you know. Hate to be the bearer of bad news, but you guys were manipulated, hard.” He looked toward Turak, his eyes turning sympathetic. “And no matter how much you want to hurt them for the part they played… you can’t. We need everyone here if we’re to have any hope.”

  “I don’t believe in the power of a seer.” Turak grunted, “but for the sake of my king, and how much faith he has in you humans, I will agree to leave them be. Though, I can’t be responsible for what Reku will do if he sees them.”

  Stolen story; please report.

  Alex lifted an eyebrow. “Who?”

  “Robert.” Katrina said, “He lost the mother of his kid in Vul De Rah, because of the portal ‘they’ opened.”

  “I… I see.” Alex scratched his head. “Well, we knew this was going to be challenging. We just have to do our best.”

  “So… what your saying is you can, what? see our future or something?” Ashley asked.

  Alex held his hands up defensively. “Hey, that’s not really how it works. I can’t control it very well, but some things are easier to see than others. Like people.” He gestured over at Henry. “Henry, and his group are pretty clear. That’s how we were able to find them. You guys,” he pointed to Ashley. “You’re kinda weird because of all the demonic influence. So, I’ve been pretty hit or miss.” Finally, he pointed at Katrina. “You and Robert are pretty tough to read… I don’t know why. And Daniel… is basically invisible to me.”

  “Yes, all of this is fascinating.” Drayden spoke up, giving Alex a knowing look. “And all of your questions will be answered, in due time. For now, we need to tend to our people, and keep our goals at the forefront of our minds.”

  “And all be on the same page!” Alex lifted his finger, “this only works if we work together.”

  “Yes, it is essential that we work with one another closely.” Drayden doubled down. “I will take some time to meet with you all individually before we start moving in the morning. If there is anything else?”

  “There is” Turak grunted, crossing his arms. “During our travels, it is essential that we establish a chain of command. As we are heading through Visoth, and into Eleutheros, I must insist that all final authority be given to me.”

  Drayden shared a quick glance with one of his warriors, who was not sitting among them, but standing just behind him, listening. She shook her head, and Katrina noticed she shared his silver eyes. Drayden sighed before looking back to Turak. “I accept your terms, as long as your orders do not interfere with the mission of my father, I will defer those decisions to you.”

  “Very well.” Turak bowed, “then our initial business is done here. I look forward to speaking with you alone, so we can go over the details.”

  With that, everyone stood and went back to their perspective sides of the dugout shelter. Before Katrina could leave the circle however, Henry approached, giving her a wave. “Katrina! Got a second?”

  “Hey, Henry.” She smiled, “of course I do. What’s up?”

  “Just wanted to go over a few things with you. We’ve heard a lot of rumors and such through Pyxxis, and his long distance ‘wind speaking’ or whatever the hell he calls it. I just wanted to make sure… we’re all on the same page here. So, I guess I’ll start with the obvious. Daniel is back in Eleutheros, right?”

  “He is.” She smiled. “He really~ wanted to come too. He was off fighting some unwinnable battle or something, you know how he is. We left just before he got back, so… yeah. Poor Alektor is dealing with that.” She winced, “I don’t envy him, Dan can be… yeesh! When he doesn’t get his way.”

  Henry laughed. “Yeah… he’s always been a hard ass. And… Angelo? We heard he made it to you guys too.”

  “He did.” Katrina nodded. “He showed up like out of nowhere, at Dan’s wedding of all places! It was crazy.”

  “Wait… his WHAT!?” Henry’s eyes bulged with surprise. “Dan is married!? To who!?”

  “Eh…” Katrina rolled her eyes, sighing a bit before she elaborated. “To a princess.”

  “A princess?” Henry nodded with approval. “Well good for him. I didn’t know he had it in him.”

  “Yeah, and I guess Angelo is dating a spirit or something…” She chuckled.

  Henry nodded, looking unsurprised. “That… actually makes a lot of sense. Ange was always into some weird shit.”

  There were several moments of awkward silence between them before Katrina pressed on with a different subject. “So, how did you guys survive? It couldn’t have been a walk in the park; I’d love to hear about it.”

  Henry shrugged, “where to begin? We’ve all been through so much. I woke up alone, in the care of some really great people. I had to find my sister, who thankfully wasn’t far… ended up doing a lot of fighting though, protecting our village against some spirit beasts. It’s a lot to be honest. We met up with these guys” He pointed to Alex and Drayden who were laughing at some unheard joke. “Like about a year ago, I think. They got me out of a pretty serious bind. Then, I heard what he said about Dan. And I knew I had to make the trip. We’ve been together ever since.”

  “I see.” Katrina pointed at the curly haired human, Miguel. “And what’s his story?”

  Henry followed her finger, then chuckled. “Eh… Miguel is really powerful. We found him in one of the fringe kingdoms, just East of Visoth. He’s… how do I put this? He’s a total horndog. The guy has seduced more Dae girls since I’ve met him then I can count. You have been warned.”

  “Noted.” Katrina shrugged. “Well, I’m gonna go. It was nice talking to you, and I’m looking forward to hearing more about your travels as we make our way back home.”

  Henry said a quick goodbye, and Katrina made her way back to the makeshift room where Turak was. As she entered, she saw he was in the middle of a conversation with Greyson, Genmei, and the grumpy looking Dae she didn’t know.

  “I understand.” Greyson hung his head, looking defeated.

  “What did I miss?” Katrina put her hands on her hips, looking intently at Turak. “What are you trying to pull?”

  Turak rolled his eyes. “I’ve explained to both of these… people, that our options are limited with what we are able to do with them.”

  Katrina looked at Genmei. “I know we said you had until tomorrow? But, we’ve got to get something from you… like right now. I don’t want my people, who are already tired and have itchy sword arms, to sleep with one eye open. It’s a big ask, but you should come with us.”

  “Her family is a really important house in Ne’arath.” Greyson added, “you’re asking her to give up everything here.”

  “No…” Genmei said, her voice soft and strained. “My family is already disgraced… Losing you, and everyone here. This… this failure has already ruined us. My father will be in chains before the end of the week. Once news of our disappearance reaches the emperor… it’s over.”

  “There’s got to be something we can do.” Greyson rubbed his chin. “Your father would be a huge ally for us.”

  Genmei snapped at him, her eyes flashing with anger. “This all could have been avoided, LORD LYTRO!” She said the name with pure malice. “If you had stayed far away from my family to begin with!”

  “Hey! your dad came to me, alright? What the hell was I supposed to do? Turn down a summons from one of the most powerful men in the city?”

  “Would you both, please… SHUT UP.” Turak rubbed his eyes. “You were deceived, Lady Genmei, get over it. You should be less angry with this human, than with your own emperor. Who kept the true nature of his alliance with these monsters hidden from all of you.”

  “He’s right.” Katrina added. “I watched as one of your nobles, transformed before my eyes into a demon. They’re hiding in plain sight, among you. Who knows who’ve they’ve possessed? Meanwhile, they’ve got you looking for ‘us’” She pointed at herself, then at Greyson. “Telling you that we’re the demons, and trying to kill you all. You should be kissing this guy’s feet for what he did for you. He got you out of there, and pulled the blindfold from your head. Yeah, it sucks, and you’re gonna need some time to adjust. But, after it’s all said and done, he did you a huge favor. Now, make up your damn mind. Are you with us, or against us?”

  Genmei looked at the ground, then balled her hands into fists. “I… I am with you.” She turned to the grumpy Dae who sat beside her. “Rictus… it’s for the best. We can’t deny what we’ve witnessed.”

  Rictus seemed dazed, only nodding slightly in acknowledgment of her words.

  “Very well.” Turak stood, dusting his hands off. “In the morning, I expect you all to join us to Eleutheros.”

  “I’m with you…” She continued, slowly looking up at Turak. “But I need to get my family out of Ne’arath… I won’t leave them to the mercy of demons.”

  Turak narrowed his eyes, then looked angrily at Katrina. “That won’t do.”

  “It’s the best you’re going to get out of me.” Genmei’s eyes glimmered as she pressed her point. “I will not let my family, or those who are just trying to do what they believe is right, die at the hands of those monsters. Or your people.”

  “You are not—” Turak began to reply, his voice seething with irritation, but Katrina cut in.

  “What do you suggest, Genmei? We’re going to need some details here. Maybe we can help you.”

  “I want to go back to Ne’arath.” She started, “I’ll take Greyson and his companions with me, and Rictus. We tell them what they want to hear. We killed demons. They will congratulate us and push us further. All the while, we do what we need to do within the empire.”

  “You think that you can manipulate enough people to make a difference?” Turak asked. “For all we know, Eleutheros and Visoth could be at war already.”

  “I will make a difference, Lord Turak. Please trust me. We just need a fighting chance… If the emperor is compromised like we all believe, then nothing will detour him from his goals. We might not be able to stop the war, but we can ensure the demons have a difficult time with whatever else they’re planning.”

  “Opening the final hellgate…” Greyson added. “All this is going to be for nothing if Dio’Mar catches wind of it. We haven’t seen her at all since we’ve been in Ne’arath… since the battle, actually… But that doesn’t mean she isn’t watching. How do you guys protect yourselves from her?”

  Katrina smiled. “There are ways to do it. Dan was the first to figure it out, actually. But you can’t just do it… eh, it’s hard to explain. There’s a little light… in your Dunim Dae Espea.”

  Greyson cocked his head. “Your what?”

  “Your spirit world.” Genmei said, shaking her head. “That’s what you call it.”

  “Gotcha.”

  “I don’t actually know how to find it.” Katrina shrugged, “I found mine with Daniel’s help, Rob found it with Avria’s. It’s there for sure… and once you find it, grab it. It does something to your power. Makes it more potent against the demons.”

  Greyson sighed. “I’ve spent… a lot of time in there. I’ve never seen what you’re describing.”

  Katrina rubbed her head, frustrated. “Ugh… this is a Dan question. Where is that handsome bastard when I need him?” She breathed, then steadied herself. “I’ll ask him when I see him. I promise we’ll figure that out with you. In the meantime, you need some protection.” She extended her hands, and placed it on both Genmei and Greyson’s cheeks. Closing her eyes, she imbued her power into them. Leaving what was essentially a rune of protection within their Dunim Dae Espae.

  Genmei’s eyes widened at the sudden surge, and she let out a heavy breath. “Wow…”

  “Whew! that’ll wake you up in the morning.” Katrina laughed, as she looked between the two. “That should do the trick. As long as you maintain that power within you, you should be hard to sense. Direct contact doesn’t hide you though, Dan can do it, not sure how though. I haven’t really been able to figure out how to replicate it with others.”

  “It feels… amazing.” Genmei blinked, looking at her hands. “I’ve never felt anything like this before. So, this is what you humans are capable of?”

  Rictus backed away when Katrina turned to him. “I’m alright. You don’t need to—”

  “Ohhh no.” Katrina grinned. “All of you need to get it. If Dio’Mar comes sniffing around, we need your minds unreadable.” She reached her hands out like claws, and gave him a playful “Rawr.”

  Rictus reeled, his eyes bulging in fear. “Very well, get it over with then!”

  Katrina laughed, slapping her leg. She turned to Turak, but the man was shaking his head in disappointment. “And you wonder why you don’t have a mate.”

  “Hey!” She growled, “I told you that in confidence!”