Arin dreamt of fire, trying to escape the endless flame. She was powerless in the wildfire, whatever she did only made it worse. The nightmare ended with her sobbing in the conflagration alone.

           Unfortunately, when Arin woke up she was alone. Alone in a small infirmary alone. The window was open, allowing the gentle rain to water the plants on the windowsill. A breeze blew into the room, rustling a few papers. From her angle, she could tell she was in the fort.

            “Okay, I’ll talk to her. Thank you again . . . for all of this.” The door opened, and Hawthorne entered the room. Arin sat up as he closed the door behind him, one of his clawed hands was behind his back. “Good afternoon. I hope I didn’t wake you.”

           Hawthorne wrapped his free arm around her back, pressing his beak against her greasy hair. She wanted to hug him, but casts restricted her.

            “We’re all okay, you’re getting better. You’ll be here for a few weeks but I’ll be here every second of it. Mila even arranged for some to visit you during your little vacation.”

            “L—like who?”

            “Coyasko, one of your training friends, and such. Scor is here too, remember? Once you can walk we will help you to the stable he is in.”

           She gasped, remembering that he was one of her rescuers. Her partner was here. To think that she was so close to losing him forever. Hawthorne noticed her bewilderment and smiled, taking a few steps back.

            “I know! Isn’t is exciting?!”

           Arin laughed, the gesture of happiness strained her throat. She moved in to rub it but a brace surrounded her neck. Hawthorne handed Arin a glass of icy water. As Arin began to imbibe the cold drink Hawthorne cleared his throat.

            “Over the past few days . . . while you’ve been asleep, the nurses made a gift for you. We all figured that you’ll experience trauma for a while and made you a toy to sleep with at night, to uh . . . give you company, I guess.”

           Arin set the drink aside, wondering what it could possibly be. Hawthorne revealed a plush dragon. It took her a few seconds to realize that it was her sun dragon form. She swallowed a gasp, it was magnificent. Everyone did this for her?

            “R—really?”

           Hawthorne handed it to her. Arin hugged it tightly to her chest, it was so soft. He chuckled at her grin. “I’m glad you like it. I’ll be sure to tell everyone when I see them.”

           A few questions began to stir in her mind now that she realized that she was asleep for so long. “Hawthorne, how long was I asleep for? What are my injuries? Why does my neck and back hurt so much?”

           He smiled running his talons through his feathers slightly overwhelmed. “You should lay back down as I explain the situation.” She lied back down, hugging the toy. He pulled the covers over her and her plush. “You have very bad burns. Your neck is swollen; however, the inflammation is calming down a bit. Your back and face suffered the most. You won’t form any scars but only if you rest for many weeks. The medicine we have is quick and gets the job done but only if you rest during the time it takes care of you. You’ve been in and out of it for a few days now.”

            “Will I be okay?”

            “Absolutely. With rest and medicine, it’ll be like you’ve never even been burned. I believe you won’t need any surgery. They will be applying medicine to your injuries frequently throughout the days.”

           There was a gentle knock on the door. Hawthorne stood, walked up to the door, and opened it for a doctor.

            “Can we talk for a moment?” the doctor asked. Hawthorne nodded, entering the hallway. The door released a soft click as it was pulled shut. While the two whispered outside, Arin examined the room she was in. There was the open window, allowing some loose rain droplets to blow inside. Near the window was a table with a piece of paper and red pin in the shape of an X resting on it.

            “Roger that. I’ll keep a very close eye on her and will come if she needs help.” The two entered the room again. “I’ll be back in a few hours, Hawthorne will keep you company while we work on other things.”

           The doctor closed the door behind him leaving the two alone. Hawthorne stood by the window, watching the rain fall. He held his talons behind him, tapping his foot against the ground. He sighed, sitting down, facing Arin.

            “What did the Others do to you? We need to know so we can prevent this from happening again.”

            “I was sick so I was asleep most of the time . . .” she released a coughing fit, “when it started to rain they took me to something-grace Hills.”

            Hawthorne stood, walking to her water glass and pitcher. “You poor child. You didn’t deserve such cruel treatment. How were you captured?”

            “They summoned this weird shadow beast . . . Loid, Scarlet, and myself tried to fight it but we were powerless. They tried to possess me—” Arin cut herself off. She could not mention the spirits’ alliance.

            “Tried to possess?” He handed her a fresh glass of water. “I know it is rude to ask but what are you hiding exactly? Ever since the kiddies visited you’ve been acting very odd, kind of timid to be precise.”

           Arin nodded as she finished her drink. Hawthorne accepted the glass from her as she lied down again. Would he tell Mila? “I—I can’t tell you.”

           He was silent for a moment, “okay,” he paused, “if it is about the spirits siding with the Crimsons I know.” He stood, walking to the window once more. Arin opened her mouth to speak but hesitated. “Oshwa is a Royal Soothsayer. He tends to keep up with the spirits and gossip with them.”

            “Royal Soothsayer?”

            “It’s an . . . Avillian title . . . I don’t think that you are ready to learn . . .” Arin tried to think of something wise to say as a counterargument. She remained silent, examining her new toy. Hawthorne moved to the table, picking up the pin. “Or perhaps you are ready.”

            “You don’t have to tell me.”

            “No . . . you need to learn about our world and its history. You are a Child of Destiny after all, destined to save our world.”

            “O—oh . . . um . . . okay. Think of it as telling me a story!”

           He smirked, “okay. Relax, I’m . . . going to tell you about my childhood.”

           Hawthorne took in a deep breath and began, “I . . . I am a fallen prince. I was the middle child of my siblings, so I would never become king. Regardless, I still lived a fantastic life. I would play with other human children, we would fly together and sleep at each other’s house, it was great. Then . . .  someone began to spread lies about my people, my family was losing authority over the Avillians. They began an uprising. They attacked the castle I lived in. Dragons, griffins, they attacked my kin . . .”

            “Hawthorne, you don’t have to tell me.”

            “I need to,” his voice trembled. “I must.” He cleared his throat. “While everyone was fighting, I snuck out, taking shelter in the sewers. There I found Oshwa. He was fifteen at the time but was already smart and cunning. He had a map, food, and the Sphere of Visions with him. He made a safe route to the Crimsons while I sat there useless.”

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           Hawthorne . . .

            “On our way to the Crimsons we were ambushed by Avillians. We were both powerless against them, but then . . . then the spirits interfered. After the Avillians fled, Oshwa was gifted a staff and I was given my sword,” he chuckled as a few tears began to roll down his beak, “I remember how they told me that I would grow into it. It was a struggle to carry it at first.”

           He wiped away his tears. Arin was speechless. “We made it to the Crimsons where they took us in. Oshwa was appointed as an official soothsayer and I joined the Seal, a ‘secret’ line of leadership. In a way, we did end up where we started. I am a high ranking general and Oshwa is a soothsayer. Life is so weird.” He tried to hold back his tears with false laughter.

            That’s terrible . . .

            “I can only assume that the rest of my kin are dead . . .” Hawthorne turned his attention to the storm outside. “You remember the darkness mentioned of the prophecy? Well, I like to believe that it isn’t just the Others you are destined to defeat.”

            “The prophecy did mention all of the growing darkness—”

            “You five must not only end this war but also restore peace in all kingdoms of Fynne. All darkness must be vanquished. I only hope that the prophecy will restore my home.”

            “I can’t even defeat a single shadow monster, let alone restore peace everywhere.”

            “You will grow just like me. We can save this world together. You can always trust me, okay?”

            “Okay . . .” Arin clutched her plush. “During the event day or whatever, a spirit named Orax told me how the spirits will side with us. He also temporarily gave me the ability to see spirits.”

            “I see,” he wiped his feathered arm across his beak, “let’s be thankful. We are at an advantage once more. I believe that you can find a way to destroy the darkness. Maybe not now, it will take some time. I will be by your side every step of the way.”

           Arin yawned nodding. “I’m glad you told me, Hawthorne. Thank you.”

           He nodded, “I should let you sleep. I’m sure someone will tend to you shortly.”

***

           A few days passed. Today someone was supposed to visit. No one let her know who, but she assumed it was Loid or Scarlet. Maybe both. Hopefully both.

           A doctor prepared a new bandage for Arin’s cheek. The two barely spoke during the bi-hourly check-up. Her injuries still existed, but by some miracle they were healing at an abnormal rate. Some assumed that her body was adapting to heat and tending to itself. Hawthorne suggested a blessing from the spirits.

           Arin grunted as the soft cloth was pressed against her raw cheek. The doctor muttered a quick apology as she finalized her procedure. Hawthorne watched carefully, smiling as Arin made eye contact.

           Someone knocked on the door, everyone turned to see who it is. Hawthorne chuckled, “looks like your visitor is here!”

           The door creaked open, Scarlet and a Crimson escort stood in the hallway. Arin straightened, smiling as much as her friend. Her eyes drifted to the scab on Scarlet’s jaw.

            “Can we—talk in private?”

            “Oh, sorry! C’mon all of you, we can finish this shortly.”

            “We’ll grab some supplies and finish up in a few minutes. Then, as scheduled, you get the entire afternoon together.”

            “Okay, thank you, sir!” Scarlet bowed her head as the room cleared out. Once they were sure of no interruptions, Scarlet came forward hugging Arin tightly. “I—I’m so sorry, Arin. This is my fault.”

            “Why the heck did you attack that—that thing? You almost got yourself killed!”

            “Well, I had to attack it when I had the chance . . .”

            “What if you died? Your family—”

            “I don’t have a family!” Scarlet snapped, cutting Arin off.

            Just like me . . . “I—I’m sorry, I didn’t know.”

           Scarlet stood pacing around the room. Arin watched her friend, pitying her. She must still remember them. Scarlet sat down, itching at her scab.

            “Scarlet, I’m sorry . . .”

            “It’s fine,” she paused, “if I tell you how my family died then will you tell me what happened ever since your adventure began? Crimsons know each other’s past. Crimsons don’t hide anything from each other.”

           “I guess but I don’t want you to talk about something you don’t want to talk about.”

            “I’ll be fine. I’m used to talking about it. Almost everyone knows about it.”

            “If you say so . . .”

           Scarlet cracked her knuckles before beginning. “I came from the province Fyto. I was about seven years old when this happened. I was outside playing by myself like always. At the time, I could not see the spirits yet so as you can imagine I was lonely. Well, while I was playing, Orax came to me and told me to follow him. Being the careless kid I was I obeyed. We walked for miles and miles and for some reason I continued to follow him. I guess I was just curious and awed by Orax . . . and maybe wanted a friend.

            “Then . . . there was an explosion back at home. I could see the smoke and hear it from where I was. It took me a long time but I made it back. Orax stayed by my side the whole time. When I got back . . . over half of the town was in flames. It was chaos. I was so scared, I ran away and hid in the fields. More and more spirits came to give me company. In the wild I realized that I was born to be able to see them and that this event allowed me to unlock that sight. . .”

            “Did anyone find you?”

           She nodded, showing no sign of any future crying, “Crimsons scouted the area and discovered my little hiding place. I admit that I was scared of them and bit someone, but you can’t blame me. They took me to a different Province where they nursed me and all other survivors. I tried to find my family but learned that they . . . perished in the attack.”

            “W—what caused it?”

            “No one knows. It’s been seven years and they still don’t know. We all believe that the Others caused it though. Since I was rescued I swore to avenge my family. I was forced to go to school with those in my new ‘home.’ In my free time, I began to teach myself how to fight. My teachers wanted to stop me but when they realized that they couldn’t a few began to privately teach me. Now I’m old enough to take the big courses here at the capital.”

            “Do you . . . miss your family?”

           Scarlet shrugged, “yeah, but I don’t worry anymore. You’re here, you can end the threat forever, and I’m hoping I can continue to be courageous and fight with you. I used to be scared, but now I’m slowly becoming brave.”

            “I think you can do it with everyone else, not just me. You’ll need a lot more training though.”

            “You do too, ya’ know. Heck, maybe even more than me!”

           They were both silent trying to think of something to say. “Well I guess it’s my turn to talk about how my adventure began. You see I was abandoned as a child and dropped off in this small orphanage in the country called America.” Scarlet nodded fascinated. “There I grew up, made a few friends, and such. Around four years ago I began to hear this voice begging for my help. I later learned that his name, or title, was the Green Phoenix.

            “I was finally adopted by a family named the Lightfoots . . .” Arin released a deep breath, “I’m going to skip over them and all of that. I ran away where I met Scolo and he . . .”

            “Scolo in the Reality Dimension? But why?”

            “I would assume for me. Anyways, during my encounter with him Otara saved me but then . . . yeah. I found a portal and came here. Gage found and brought me to you. The rest you know.”

            “I’m glad you made it here . . .”

           Arin smiled, turning her gaze to the window. “So . . . how is Loid? Is he in trouble?”

            “He’s fine. Both of us were spared any sort of punishment. Heck, everyone was overjoyed to see us safe and able to talk about this new threat. It’s sad he couldn’t come today, he is still grounded and all.”

            “I’m glad to hear it. Loid might have been sent home if he got in trouble again.”

            “Oh, that’s terrible! I can . . . see why though. We’ve been getting in quite terrible situations lately.”

            “I hate to see what you were up to before we met.”

            “Class only started a few months before you showed up. The Others also were in hiding for the most part. I guess they were more focused on you.”

           Arin shrugged, “I guess . . .”

           A doctor reentered the room, “sorry but we need to check on Arin again. We noticed some burns that need another examination. You can talk to each other again shortly.”

            “O—okay, I understand. See you in a few minutes, Arin.”

            “Yeah, see you . . .”

           Scarlet stood and left the room, closing the door behind her. The doctor took a seat next to her, examining Arin’s face. Something felt wrong, was her condition worse than she thought?