After finishing my conversation with Faraine, we headed downstairs, where I enjoyed a much needed meal. While we were eating, Faraine talked with Eidgar, his group, and Rhys’ family to discuss the details of her plan. Their discussion was extensive, carrying on for a couple of hours to finalize all of the details. In the meantime, I spent some time with Shelly, trying to utilize the ice axiom for the first time. To my dismay, I was unable to succeed using it before Faraine returned to my side to explain the plan to me.

The plan would start with Faraine heading to the northern part of Galegarde, near the mountains where we came from. Once there, she would fly over the area, releasing flames in multiple locations to start a massive wildfire.

From there, Eidgar and his group will help Rhys and his family gather any necessities for the journey. After half an hour had passed, Eidgar, Glendale, Vehra and Rhys would leave to assemble the townspeople to start quelling the fires and start evacuating. Meanwhile, Lloyd would head to the fairy hunters’ base, where he would try and get as many people to head out in search of Faraine. It was decided that someone from Rhys’ family would be too suspicious, so Lloyd, being the least recognizable amongst Eidgar’s group, would deliver the news.

Sana, Rydel, and Shelara would continue to pack up their home in preparation to leave. To my surprise, Rhys and his family have decided to flee to the Odelle Kingdom because they cannot tolerate how they, or the fairies, have been treated. Meanwhile, Kari and I would wait for Faraine’s return to the house.

With the majority of the townsfolk and fairy hunters distracted, Faraine and I would hide on Kari, who is disguised as a thief to prevent the hunters of the empire from relating her to a knight from Odelle. Kari will sneak us to the hunter’s base and, ideally, there will be no one left. In case there are, Kari will be our lookout, listening for any possible problems. Kari is also to act as our assistant, breaking into the building in case there are no open windows and helping with our escape. Additionally, Vehra will help with the evacuation while monitoring the base from outside in case we need assistance. Once a way inside has been secured, Faraine and I are to find Revus, get him and the other fairy out, and return to Kari’s location. After we have successfully escaped, we are to rendezvous with everyone back within the Valnian Wilds.

Meanwhile, during the commotion, Eidgar’s group and Rhys are to sneak off, meeting up with Sana and the elven kids at the rendezvous point in Valnia Woods. If everything goes as expected, we will all meet up in a few hours to begin our journey southeast, with the goal of fleeing to the Odelle Kingdom.

Several times during Faraine’s explanation, I tried to argue with her. However, she informed me that, after debating everything with the enōōfen, the plan was finalized and non-negotiable. Reluctantly, I conceded and, after listening to everything once more and asking my own questions, prepared myself for tonight.

---

My stomach churns with the butterflies of unease. Okay, we’re actually doing this. I exhale slowly, then look at the blue-haired fairy standing in front of me, “Please be careful.”

“I’ll be back shortly,” Faraine says, looking over her shoulder. She glances out the window briefly, conjures her wings, then faces Eidgar and flies upwards toward him.

I manifest my own wings and glance back at their glittering form. I focus on the single, cyan dot in the center, smile, then look forward and follow Faraine’s trail of dissipating, red glitter.

Hovering near Eidgar, she says something in Parazic. The blonde, human prince nods, and seemingly answers affirmatively. Faraine glances at me once more, smiles reassuringly, then flies out the window.

And she’s gone… “Good luck,” I murmur under my breath as I stare at the window.

With Faraine gone, Eidgar starts speaking loudly, directing his words to the other enōōfen. I gradually ascend toward the ceiling to get out of everyone’s way, watching them move throughout the house. They’re really packing up their things. I sigh. I guess I can’t blame them for wanting to leave, but… My gaze drifts to Sana. Rydel is helping her grab her things and load them into a bag. …It’s going to be difficult for her to travel. Especially if there’s no roads in the forest. I look over to Rhys and Shelly as they similarly determine what belongings to take, and what to leave. Part of me is glad they’re leaving though. I’d hate for the first elves I meet to get in trouble because of me.

I turn away from the enōōfen, rise through the air, and land atop the wooden beams resting near the ceiling. As I land I quickly sit down. I don’t have much time before we leave so… I hold my arms out in front of me, my palms diagonally-facing the wooden structure beneath. …I’d like to figure out how to summon my ice. Faraine said that I need to concentrate on releasing my spīīr and imagine what I want it to do. I gather my spīīr in my hands and feel a fluffy energy surrounding them, but nothing happens.

I continue practicing while the enōōfen shuffle about on the ground. Sooner than I would like, the shuffling dies as Eidgar starts speaking. I sigh, then crawl over to the ledge. Glancing down, the door is open and I see Eidgar’s group, along with Rhys, leaving. Kari stays behind and continues to help Sana, Rydel, and Shelly pack. Looks like we’ll be leaving soon too. My stomach twists restlessly. I lean back, sitting uncomfortably atop the wooden beam, and take a deep breath, rubbing my stomach. It’s okay. I exhale. We’re doing this to get Revus back.

“Evetta!” Shelly calls from below.

I glance toward the ledge. Why’s Shelly calling me? I look over the edge of the beam and see the three elves, and the cat-girl all looking in my direction. What’s going on? I summon my wings, rise into the air, and start to glide down toward everyone.

Once in front of Shelly, I stop, tilt my head, and say, “Shelly?”

She holds out a clenched hand, then opens it to reveal a pale-yellow piece of cloth. That’s a… dress... It has two flowy sleeves that cover the shoulders. A band wraps around the midsection that tightens the waist. It is fairly long, about knee-length for a fairy my size.

“Evetta,” Shelly says as she brings her hand up toward me. She reaches for the dress with her other hand, picks it up, and holds it in front of me.

I grab the dress from her and hold it out, staring at it for a bit. I look back to Shelly and ask, “Is this for me?”

She nods, smiling happily. Sana leans down and says something to the small elf girl, causing her to glance at her mother.

I start to analyze my gift. It looks a little big for me but… I chuckle. …that’s nothing new. You can tell it isn’t something made by Revus. It’s too… girly. But even so… I bring the dress to my chest, holding it tightly as I look up at Shelly and smile, “Thank you.”

“Evetta,” Shelly says as she points to the dress. I tilt my head as I watch her. She motions like she is changing clothes. Oh… I look down at the pale-yellow dress, its smooth material sliding in my hands. She wants me to put it on. I glance down at my current white dress and notice its cuts and frays. I guess changing clothes wouldn’t be a bad idea but… I sigh. …I wish it wasn’t a dress.

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I look up at Shelly, nod, and reply, “Okay.” I fly back up to the beam I was previously on and quickly change clothes.

I make my way back down and, as I am showcasing my new outfit, Faraine flies through the window. She approaches me and states, “You look cute in that.”

“Please don’t call me cute,” I rebuke, “It still feels weird being treated like a girl.”

Faraine smiles, “I imagine you’ll get used to it.” She looks over at the enōōfen, then back to me and asks, “Are you ready?”

“Yeah.”

“Good, then let’s go,” she directs as she flies over to Kari.

I follow behind her and, like with Rhys, we climb atop Kari’s head, hiding beneath her hooded cloak. Faraine says something into Kari’s ear. The cat-girl replies aloud as she turns for the door.

I look at Faraine and ask, “How’d things go with the-” Immediately upon Kari exiting the house, I feel a heavy shift in the atmosphere, unlike anything I have felt before. The surrounding area has a thick energy that feels like it is pulling at me. Following the sensation, I crawl forward so I can see beyond Kari’s hood. I look up over the flaming Valnian trees and see a mixture of a red-orange light and dark smoke filling the horizon. Is that where Faraine-

“Evetta?” Faraine calls.

“Huh? What?” I stammer as I turn to face her.

“Are you okay?” she asks, “You were zoning out.”

“Was I?” I furrow my brows.

“Yeah,” she replies as she crawls up next to me and looks in the direction of the towering smoke plumes, “Is the smell bothering you?”

“No,” I answer as I hold my hand out in front of me. I open and close it. Something feels… off. I turn my head slightly, look at Faraine, and ask, “Do you feel that?”

“Feel what?”

“That… I’m not sure how to describe it… heavy energy?”

Faraine glances around for a moment, looks back at me, and states, “I don’t feel anything.”

“Hmm…”

“Maybe you’re just nervous?” Faraine suggests, “Or perhaps you feel different because of the ice axiom?”

“Hmm…” I muse, “I don’t think so. This feels… different.”

“Well, I don’t feel anything,” Faraine notes, “So, let me know if you feel it shift in some way.”

“Okay,” I nod.

“What does it feel like right now?”

“It’s just this heavy feeling and I feel like I’m being pulled toward the smoke,” I explain.

“I’m not sure,” Faraine remarks, “but we’ll just have to keep it in mind. For now, let’s review while we have time.”

I gulp as I pull my eyes away from the sensation and focus on the blue-haired fairy. In the cover of darkness, Kari continues her stealthy advance, navigating her way through the city, avoiding people whenever possible. Meanwhile, Faraine and I discuss the details of our plan. We review what to do when we find Revus, what to do if we are found, what we should do in the worst case scenario, and what to do if we get separated.

We steal through the city quicker than I expected. Yelling and the sound of running fills the city as most people seem to be either evacuating the city, or heading toward the fire to try and put it out. During our covert operation, I witness dozens of children screaming and crying as they flee the town.

I clench my fists and bite my lower lip. This is… I look over at Faraine and ask, “Are they going to be okay?”

Faraine places her hand over mine, glances at me, and replies, “Let’s just focus on rescuing Revus for now.”

“Faraine, I…” my words stop as my throat feels heavy and I struggle to find the words to say.

“I know what you want to say but if we made a frontal attack, there’s a chance more of them would become casualties of the fighting,” she explains, her words filled with grief, “I know it’s not perfect.” She looks over at me as she tucks her long bangs behind her ears. Her red eyes glisten softly as she continues, “I’m sorry, I couldn’t come up with a better plan.”

“It’s…” I lower my head. “Thank you. You don’t need to be doing any of this,” I look up at her, “but you’re still helping me. So…” I smile widely, “Sleeps!”

A moment of silence follows as we look at each other. Suddenly, Kari speaks up, pulling Faraine’s attention from me. Faraine replies shortly after. I look out beyond the cloth covering our heads while they have their conversation but, as soon as I get comfortable, Faraine states, “We’re here.”

I glance at her as she crawls up next to me and continues, “Kari said the building in front of us is their base and…” Faraine points up at a window on the second floor, “Revus is up there.”

I stare at the reflective surface as a faint, red light bounces off it. This time, I’ll save you Revus. Quickly, we spin around as Kari faces the building that was behind us. She starts climbing a nearby fence, then makes her way onto the building’s roof. We spin back around and Kari speaks up again.

Faraine translates her words, “She said that she’s heard fairies talking from the room connected to that window.”

“So that means Revus is in there?” I inquire.

“Yes,” Faraine nods, “Also, Kari’s going to open it for us. She said she doesn’t hear anyone else inside but we should go in first to confirm that it’s clear.”

“Okay,” I comment.

Kari says one last thing that Faraine translates, “She said hold on.”

I give her a sideway glance, then look down. Hold on? To her hair? We both grip tightly onto her hair.

A moment later, Kari backs away from the edge of the rooftop, then sprints forward. She jumps from the roof and we soar through the air, heading directly toward the wall below the window. As the wall rapidly approaches, I close my eyes and turn away, bracing for impact.

Nothing. Huh? I open my eyes and see a wall in front of us. I turn to Faraine, but before I can inquire she speaks up.

“She’s caught the window sill and reduced the force of her collision using her legs.”

“I-is that so?” I murmur as Kari quietly pulls herself up. I stare at the ledge Kari is holding onto as we slowly pass it. She’s holding onto that tiny ledge? Faraine taps my arm. As I glance at her, she points forward. I see the interior of the room beyond the window. Darkness masks the space sealed by the glass.

Kari pulls herself up and rests on the window sill, trying to stay out of vision. After a brief moment, she reaches down and attempts to open the window.

“It’s open,” Faraine mutters, “Come on, we’re up.”

“Right,” I reply.

We both crawl forward and, as we escape the cover of the cloak, manifest our wings and rise into the air. Looking down, I see Kari holding the window open just enough for us to get in. She lifts it up a bit more, then places her canteen under the window to keep it open.

Kari whispers something to Faraine. Faraine nods and, as we fly inside, states, “Kari’s going to wait on the roof to stay out of sight for the moment.”

“What if we need help?” I quickly shoot back.

Faraine holds her arm out to stop me, and points up. I nod and follow behind her as we fly up. We land on a shelf and she whispers, “If we need help, I’ll call her. She said she can hear us in here. Now, keep a lookout for Revus, he should be somewhere in this room.”

I nod and walk over to the edge of the hanging shelf. A single door resides on the wall to our right. On both sides of the door are bookcases filled with books. Across the room, against the opposite wall, is a small nightstand, a simple dresser, and a bed big enough for a single person. Directly beneath us is a desk that sits in front of the window. Books and scattered papers decorate its surface. To my left is a fancy dresser and cabinet. The cabinet in particular catches my attention, as a glistening jar can be seen within its glass display.

I turn to Faraine and, as I direct her attention to the cabinet, she nods. “Stay close to the walls, we still need to be careful in case someone walks in.”

“Okay.”

We rise into the air once more, making our way through the still room. The flapping of our wings and the sounds of people running about outside shatter the dark silence. We reach the top of the cabinet and descend down the front of it. Inside its glass display is a black-tinted jar with two fairies held prisoner within.

One is a boy I have never seen before. He has short, wavy, brown hair and is wearing tattered clothes. He is sitting down next to a black-haired fairy that I do recognize. Revus… I smile, then tilt my head. He is sitting down, mediating. Figures… I sigh. He doesn’t even look worried.

Faraine flies down and grabs onto a handle of the glass doors. She pulls on it, but it does not give. I fly down beside her, grab onto it, and pull. After a brief struggle, the door gives way and opens slightly. Faraine pulls it open fully as I fly down to the jar.

I land on the wooden shelf next to the jar, walk up to it, and knock on its glass surface. As I tap on the glass, I feel the same draining effect from when I was previously trapped. It feels… I gulp. …stronger.

Revus does not seem to notice my tapping, but the other fairy sees me. Quickly, he shakes Revus and they both look at me. Revus runs up to the transparent wall and starts yelling.

I tilt my head and put my hand up to my ear. “I can’t hear you,” I say, “But it’s okay, we’re going to get you out of here.”

Revus covers his face with his hand and slowly slides it down. The other fairy says something, his face contorting into one of worry. Revus’ eyes go wide as he points at me. Me? I point at myself. He shakes his head and points over me.

“Evetta,” Faraine calls, “Looks like we’ve got some unexpected company.”

I gulp as I slowly turn around. There, hovering in front of Faraine, are four other fairies.