Dan’s attention was completely absorbed by his meeting with Irdes and the news about his brother. He barely registered the abandoned building he entered with Tagu and Merekis to wait until evening, when they couldn’t be spotted by Aressea’s crowds. He relived Irdes’s words in the deep darkness of the woods. He recalled his words when he’d talked about his parents, hoping to find a lie or omission.

He returned to reality when the light of the strays' campfire appeared in the distance. His parents were dead, Morìc was in danger, and he was about to be kicked out of the only group that could keep him safe and close to his brother at the same time.

Autur and Kaspuru jumped to their feet in hearing the little snaps and rustles of the vegetation as they advanced.

"I've found them," Merekis said. His grip tightened on Dan's shoulder.

Autur swore under her breath. Kaspuru let out a sigh and stepped forward.

"Where did you go? We thought you'd fallen into the river."

"We were just racing," Tagu explained, while trying to free herself from Merekis’s grip. “I wanted to get to the palace first.”

Dan extended a hand to stop her from saying more, but a tentacle slapped it away.

“I didn't know you had so many energies to run around," Autur grumbled, her small eyes following them as Merekis half-pushed and half-dragged them around the camp. “I’m not training you enough.”

Sibras was sitting on the other side of the fire. He was looking at Merekis, his expression unreadable.

"What happened?" he asked.

Tagu stopped thrashing, ears lowered.

"Mayvaru was kidnapped. We don't know where she is or in which conditions, only that the people who took her managed to defeat her in a fight."

Dan looked at Merekis in disbelief. His heart accelerated with a mix of fear and excitement. Freeing his brother didn't seem that impossible anymore.

Sibras stood. His eyes were wide, showing only a liquid black.

“Is she dead?”

Merekis lowered his head. Dan felt his hand slowly let go of his shoulder.

“I’ve talked to Beramas: the families decided to send him into the Golden Lands to investigate. He was very annoyed. I guess the Iraspes wouldn’t accept to send him away if they knew for sure that she’s dead.”

Sibras nodded once, or maybe dropped his head in defeat.

“Good. What about us? Did he give you a new mission?”

“No. He said to stay put and wait for further instructions.”

Sibras nodded again. He turned and started walking out of the light of the campfire, but didn’t go too far before stopping and sitting on a rock, his back to the rest of the camp.

“Leave me alone.”

Merekis turned and headed toward the other side of the fire. Dan stood where he was, glancing at Sibras, then at Tagu. She walked away too, so he thought it was safe for him to follow her.

“Dan.”

He stopped in his tracks and turned to face Sibras.

“Come here.”

A fresh wave of fear washed over him. He glanced at the woods all around them, but he’d seen the strays fight: if he ran, they’d have found him. He didn’t want them to think he was involved in Mayvaru’s disappearance. He didn’t want to have them as enemies, and not just because they were dangerous. So he walked on, hesitant step after hesitant step, until he was in front of Sibras.

“I’m disappointed,” he said.

Dan lowered his gaze. He hadn’t expected his words to hurt, but they did.

“I’m sorry. I just thought that Tagu…”

“Tagu is only eight. You should be the responsible one. Now we’re in a difficult situation and you’re a mouth to feed who can’t participate in missions. Are you going to be a problem?”

Dan managed to look up at him. He ached to explain why he had deceived them, but he wasn’t sure he’d have found sympathy. At least they didn’t seem to consider him an enemy either.

“No. I won’t do it anymore.”

“You’re forbidden to leave the camp by yourself. Your training will be redoubled, as well as your chores. You won’t talk to Tagu alone until you can prove you can be a good influence. Is that all clear?”

“Yes.”

“Then go. Leave me alone.”

Dan walked away with his head bowed. His fear slowly subsided, then spiked up again when he saw the faces of the others sitting on the treetrunks around the fire.

“Why did you do that?” Merekis asked. “You know secrecy is the only thing that keeps us alive.”

Another stab of guilt. Dan sat down on the ground, as far away from everyone else as possible.

“I’m sorry. I just wanted to see the palace.”

“We were worried sick,” Kaspuru said. “Tagu always tells us when she leaves and never stays away that long. I thought something happened to you.”

Dan closed his eyes.

“I’m sorry.”

“At my village, the one who enters the forest alone dies,” Autur said. “Except for the strongest warriors. I’ll do my best to turn you into one. I promise you won’t like it.”

And Dan didn’t. Fighting with Autur day after day after day covered his body in bruises, even if they were using wooden weapons or sparring with their bare hands. Since he didn’t really get off days, his muscles were constantly sore. He wasn’t sure it was healthy, but the training doubled as punishment, and he was just glad Sibras didn’t condemn him to something worse, or that he hadn’t pried deeper into his reasons for entering the palace in secret.

One morning, Autur disarmed him with her wooden staff, sending his fake sword flying across the sparring area. He sighed and jogged to get it back, but Autur barred his way by lashing out with the staff. He managed to avoid it by dropping down into a squat, the muscles of his legs protesting.

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“I just wanted to get my weapon,” he said.

Autur readied another blow, so he made a few steps backward.

“You’re an animal person, not a helpless human. If you don’t have weapons, use your body.”

She slashed the air with her staff before Dan could ask her how. He probed his teeth with the tip of his tongue, then retracted it before jumping to the side to avoid another blow. Autur was unrelenting in her attacks, and even if he knew she'd have softened them in case of impact, he avoided them as if they could kill him.

"Running away only works until there's someone behind you," Autur grunted.

Dan risked a glance behind him, fearing Kaspuru had also decided to train with them. That moment of distraction was enough for Autur to hit the back of his left hand. He retracted with a yelp, then realized it wasn’t hurting as much as he expected. He observed the scales covering his hand between knuckles and wrist. It had become a common view in the last few days, since his skin was always itching with every new one that emerged. He hadn’t realized they were that sturdy.

He stopped walking backward and waited for Autur's next strike. It was aimed at his flank, so he turned and held out his scaly forearms side by side. They were pushed apart from the impact, but they didn't hurt any more than if he had bumped them against a table. He jumped forward and tried to kick Autur's left leg from under her, but she moved it aside and made a swipe with her staff that made him lose balance. He fell down and rolled off as Autur had taught him. He expected her to get in an easy attack, but she just looked at him with her weapon against a shoulder.

"You're becoming good at dodging and defending yourself, but I've never seen you properly attack."

Dan stood and patted down the dust from his training trousers.

"I don't want to..." he started, but stopped in time.

Autur snorted.

"What? Hurt me?"

“Yes. I know I can't, but I still don't want to."

Autur stared at him for a long time. Her eyes were so small it was difficult to tell what she was thinking.

"You'll learn the basics because it could save your life. When your scales will have grown some more, we'll focus on a more defensive style."

"Like Tagu? She doesn't attack much."

“She does. She's great with ambushes, but can't withstand a long fight."

She lowered the staff until it touched the ground, then leaned on it with her forearm. Dan allowed himself to relax: it was the sign that the training session was over.

"Kasp used to fight with one sword," she continued, nodding toward her. She didn't notice, focused as she was on the pot full of soup. "She was good, but reckless. She took more risks than she could afford to. She always attacked first like an impatient calf.”

Kaspuru's fox ear twitched. She turned to look at them and made a face. The sight of a human tongue coming out of a narrow beak was unsettling.

"I trained her to fight with two weapons. Now she can be dangerous for our enemies too, not just herself."

"If you wanted me to give your portion to Tagu, you just had to say it," Kaspuru yelled.

Autur laughed in her own guttural way.

"Merekis isn't a fighter, just like you," she continued. "Mind you, he's still dangerous with a knife. But given his traits and attitude, he fights better by sneaking up to people."

"And Sibras?" Dan asked, lowering his voice to a whisper.

Sibras had barely moved in the past few days, always sitting in the general area of the campfire. He looked lost just like Morìc used to, at times.

“He relied too much on his claws and teeth. I had to teach him how to use weapons from the beginning, like I'm doing with you. But he had more talent."

Her voice wasn't low at all, but Sibras didn't give signs of having heard her.

"He needed an adaptable weapon, so Mayvaru gave us one from the city guards."

"So you trained everyone?"

"Yes."

Dan remembered her words, the evening he'd returned to the camp with Tagu and Merekis.

"So you're one of the people that can leave the village on their own?"

Autur snorted. Her mouth seemed to be bent in a smile, but it was such a rare sight Dan couldn’t be sure.

"I did leave on my own.”

"Lunch is ready," Kaspuru announced.

Merekis emerged from the trees as if from thin air. Even Sibras made the effort to take a bowl and scoot closer. Tagu hadn't returned yet, but then again, Tagu rarely ate with them.

Dan took his portion and sat on a trunk. There was plenty of free space next to him, but Merekis made a point of walking toward the next improvised bench. He had rejected every one of Dan’s attempts at talking to him after what had happened at Aressea. Dan felt once again the urge to walk up to him and explain himself, even if it was the most dangerous thing he could do. He held back for Morìc’s sake.

He opened the small pouch he'd brought from home: there was just one piece of dried meat inside. He dropped it into the steaming soup and started eating. Now that Mayvaru had disappeared, he’d lost any chance of easily obtaining more meat, so he needed to buy it himself. He hadn't seen sea snakes at the nearby markets, so his best bet was to return to Aressea. He glanced at Merekis and discarded the idea: even in the remote chance one of the adult strays accepted to accompany him, they'd still be too visible.

He liked the only remaining option even less, but it was the safest one: asking Ulres and his family. He'd still need to find someone willing to accompany him. Merekis and Sibras were out of discussion. Autur finished eating quickly and headed toward the woods to lie down in the shadow of the trees. That left Kaspuru.

He went to bathe in the shallower part of the river, where the water was clear enough he could see any approaching crocodile. They seemed to dislike animal people as prey. Or maybe Autur had scared them away enough times they had learned their lesson. When he returned, wearing a clean shirt and more elaborate trousers, he found Kaspuru sitting on one of the trunks alone. She was polishing one of her blades with a layer of a clear substance. He hesitated before approaching her, but she looked up with a hint of a smile at the corner of her eyes.

"What is it, hatchling? Are you planning some more mischief?"

"I need your help."

He explained the situation in a whisper, since Sibras was nearby and Merekis could be anywhere.

“Relax, you’re still one of us. There’s no need to be this secretive,” Kaspuru commented. “Boss, can we go?"

He nodded, even if it wasn't clear whether he had actually heard any part of the conversation. Kaspuru put on her swords and stood.

"You lead the way, hatchling. I want to see how well you can orient yourself in the woods."

Between moving the camp, wandering with Tagu and following Kaspuru at the various markets, he had learned how to move around without getting completely lost. He could even have a conversation while he walked.

"I'm sorry for making you worry,” he said.

“You already said that. As long as you don’t do it anymore, we’re even.”

She walked a few steps behind him, stopping when he did, slowing down with him. It was impossible to guess the right direction based on her behavior.

“What’s going to happen now?” he asked. “Sibras seems upset.”

“We don’t know yet. We’re still hoping for Mayvaru’s return, I guess. Our whole livelihood depends on her.”

Dan looked at her.

“Really? But you’re so strong. You would be able to survive on your own.”

“You’re still reasoning like a human, hatchling. We need very specific foods. Autur’s boar is rare outside of her forest. If Mayvaru doesn’t return and her stash depletes, she might be forced to go back.”

Dan couldn’t stand the sadness in her voice.

“You can hunt them yourself.”

“That’s what I told the others. If Mayvaru is gone, we should take her place until she’s back. But it’s too soon to talk about that. Sibras isn’t in condition to take such important decisions.”

“Take her place? What do you mean?”

“Find rare meat and redistribute it among the villages. We wouldn’t need to hide anymore. They wouldn’t look with suspicion at other people like us.” She chuckled. “Well, maybe that’s a bit too optimistic.”

They had reached the village. Despite being early afternoon, there was almost nobody around. The pit at the center looked like it hadn’t been used for a few days, with the dead cinders and the weeds pushed against the base of the tree trunks by the wind. The few people passing by took a look at them and disappeared into a side alley.

“I’ll wait here,” Kaspuru said, leaning against the round wall of a house. “Don’t take too long or I’m going to look for you.”

Dan walked around the village’s central square alone, keeping his eyes on one specific door. The deserted atmosphere of the village was affecting him. Something had happened, but he planned to take the meat and leave before finding out what it was.

He stopped in front of Ulres’s door. He only allowed himself an instant of hesitation before knocking. His anxiety diminished a bit when nobody answered, replaced by a mild irritation. He had to knock twice more, and the sound was so sudden in the silence of the village that the neighbor opened the window to look who it was.

Finally, the door moved. Not enough to open, but he recognized the eye that looked out. It seemed to recognize him as well.

“Cousin?” Ulres said, and the entrance opened wide, revealing his wife right behind him.

Dan was prepared to ask for what he needed and nothing else, maybe make them aware of how much he resented them for abandoning him with some offhand remark. He didn’t get the time.

“We’re terribly sorry we kicked you out,” Ulres said. “Come in. Is there anything we can do for you?”

“I need meat,” he managed to squeeze out before being dragged inside almost by force.