To say they would ride without rest was much easier said than done. Olivia tried, with much effort, to stay awake during the strenuous ride but her weakness forced her to remain in a lethargic state, with her head resting on Silas' chest, who was doing his best to keep control of the horse with only one hand holding the reins while his portly bear claws held Olivia's back, thus making sure the girl didn't collapse. She internally lamented that she had become an annoying burden to him but for the moment she couldn't fight her own body which was reluctant to cooperate. Every now and then she looked up and watched his golden eyes, dulled by a concern she could sense in the way his arms wrapped and tightened around her.

As the hours passed, Rovenna's horse also began to show signs of exhaustion until its canter was turning into a slow, staggering trot. Finally they had to accept that they could not go on like this. As much as they wanted to reach their destination as quickly as possible, forcing the horse to the limit would be a mistake that would cost them more time, and they found no better alternative than to stop at nightfall and take shelter under some bushes tall enough to hide under their branches.

“You sleep, I'll keep watch,” Silas said after helping her to dismount carefully and lay her down on the ground. He tied the horse to a branch and sat down next to her with his eyes attentively observing the surroundings.

“You need to rest too,” Olivia told him, her half-closed eyes barely able to support the weight of her own eyelids.

“You're the one who needs it the most. I'll make you pay, don't worry.

Olivia gave a tired smile. It was unusual for Silas to adopt a teasing tone.

However, she couldn't go to sleep without first discussing what they would do once they reached Stormbrace. While they were riding, Silas had told her everything that had happened after her body had been possessed by Spark: the betrayal of the actors, the burning of the Town Hall, their escape through the fields, the encounter with Eldrin and the no less surprising appearance of the Master Arcanist herself, Rovenna Astra, that led to the confrontation that had culminated in the death of her lifelong mentor.

She still couldn't believe that Eldrin had vanished from the face of the earth like that. Of course she believed what Silas told her but her own life had suddenly become so unreal, so unrecognizable. Once he finished with his narration, she remained silent for a moment waiting for the pain to be born within her chest but the memories of her former teacher, who had initiated her in magic and had offered her valuable advice, no longer inspired any kind of feeling and were overshadowed by his undeniable betrayal. All her life, she had thought Eldrin was the person who understood and listened to her the most, while all that time he had only been conniving with Daephennya and turning her against her own father, who, despite his suffocating overprotectiveness and desire to control everything, had only tried to keep her safe from learning the tragic truth of her origin.

But her father was also wrong because the secrets had not saved her. In fact, as she was discovering those little hidden pieces of her life, she felt as if something inside her was breaking apart to make way for an unknown force that threatened to swallow her whole.

“There's something I haven't told you yet,” said Silas, finally interrupting her thoughts. “Just before he died, Eldrin mentioned something about an elven seal, and out of nowhere a bunch of weird symbols came out of Rovenna's body and pierced his body.”

Olivia couldn't contain her amazement.

“I didn't know Rovenna Astra could handle elven seals!”

“It didn't seem like she was controlling them... rather they appeared without her doing anything.”

“But she was trained by Narthoss, the Lord of the Mirror Forest...”

Silas wrinkled his eyebrows.

“You mean... your uncle?”

“Ah, yes...” Olivia never had thought much of her two... well... uncles... who were nothing more than two strangers she had never met and who were also unaware of her existence. That must have been one of the reasons why her father had never wanted to take her on his travels, as he feared what the two elven lords might do if they found out about the existence of his half-human niece.

“Does that mean Narthoss is not on his sister's side?”

“Ever since the Great Forest split into three parts it was known that there was some hostility between the siblings, even that they conspired against each other, but there are no records of them attacking each other so openly.”

“Until now...”

Olivia nodded and Silas gave a mocking grimace before his gaze darkened.

“I never imagined coming out of the mountains would cause such a stir.”

Olivia rested a hand on his shoulder.

“It's not your fault. This was brewing long before you and I were born, while others looked the other way.”

He took a deep breath.

“As soon as the horse is rested, we should continue our journey as soon as possible. We don't know how much Rovenna will be able to delay the rest of the wizards.”

She cleared her throat.

“It's amazing that you trust her.”

He shrugged his shoulders.

“She saved us.”

“I say that because she's also a descendant of chimera hunters.”

Silas' chest heaved.

“Ah, but...” Olivia continued nervously. “The Astra no longer hunt chimeras. They were punished by the Council... actually, I think she's the only one of her family to become a wizard since the last war.”

He pondered before answering.

“Now I understand what she meant earlier... before you woke up.”

“What did she tell you?”

“That someday I would have to decide what to do with her... and something about making amends for her family's sins.”

Olivia held her breath.

“And now that you know?”

“I'm not sure...” he sighed. “I guess it'll be a long time before I see her again... but... for some reason... I don't feel angry with her... She even sounded ashamed... as if she felt obliged to take the blame.”

That was good, Olivia thought, as she let out the air that had stuck in her throat, both relieved and amazed at the change that had been wrought in Silas while she was unconscious. Not only did he seem more determined, but his rancor towards humans had waned. Perhaps it had to do with the bear paw that had not yet disappeared although she suspected there must be something else, something to do with his knot. Still, it was too early to ask him about that. She would wait until he felt ready to talk.

Relief, however, was overtaken by fear. So far their goal had been to reach Stormbrace but she wasn't sure how they would manage to set sail for the Isle of Demons. They had no contacts and no money, since at some point Olivia had lost her purse with the meager coins she had saved. She wasn't even sure how many ships would make it there. Very few humans were allowed on the island and all of them were wizards or important people. Some merchant ships were known to make it close to shore but their crews were forbidden to disembark, so they had to wait for representatives from the island to conduct business with the hybrids.

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But that didn't sound as difficult as getting Silas to go unnoticed once they reached the port, especially now that he had confessed to her that in a fit of rage he had destroyed the stone Dawn had created for him. Now with Olivia's body weakened it was unlikely that either of the witches would manifest. Spark had warned them that it would be lethal to her.

“Destroying the stone was stupid, I know,” Silas admitted when she brought the situation to his attention.

“And why did you do it?”

“I'm tired of hiding, even though I know that sounds...”

“I'm tired of hiding too... Let's hope that changes before too long,” Olivia brought her hands to the folds of her dress and tried to rip it.

Silas grabbed her by the wrist, which caused Olivia to startle as she felt a wave of heat caused by the brush of his fingers on her skin.

“What are you doing?” he asked.

“We have to hide your hand. Bandage it as if you had a wound.”

“It won't make any difference if we run into a wizard.”

“Then let's hope we don't run into one.”

Despite Silas' protests, Olivia managed to tear a long piece from the folds of her dress to cover the leg, trying not to squeeze it too tightly. With a lot of effort she managed to cover the whole thing but it was impossible to hide the difference in size between the two hands. If anyone asked, they would have to explain that it was a deformity. As for his golden eyes, there was nothing they could do, and she hoped that no one would relate it to the chimeras.

Once the task was finished, as soon as her back touched the grass, she succumbed to exhaustion and finally closed her eyes. Although they were on the run, she felt safe with Silas, so she fell into a deep sleep, free of any dreams or nightmares that might torment her.

When she awoke, the pale sky was beginning to tinge with golden hues from the first rays of sunlight peeking over the horizon. Silas was not at her side but when Olivia crawled out of the bush she saw that he was returning with the horse, which he had led to a small stream that ran nearby for water. He guided Olivia there to do the same before continuing on.

Both of their stomachs were growling with hunger but they had no time to forage for food. They would have to hold on for a while. As soon as Silas was sure that Olivia could stand on her own, they got on the horse and galloped on.

For the next few hours they barely spoke, both in fear of being pursued at any moment if they didn't hurry. It didn't take Olivia long to feel the fatigue of the journey and her legs gradually began to feel increasingly numb but she said nothing to him. She would just have to hold on a little longer.

However, around noon Silas did seem to notice, as her body was about to slip out of his arms, so he stopped the ride and even though Olivia was resisting he made her get off to rest for a while.

“The horse also needs rest. We can't keep up like this all day,” having said that he wandered off to inspect the surroundings and although he tried to find food he came back empty handed.

Suddenly, as Olivia studied the horizon, her heart stopped when she saw something moving in the distance. As she warned Silas, he helped her up to start running away but just before getting back on the horse Olivia stopped him.

“Wait!” she squinted her eyes to distinguish that dark shape that advanced from one end to the other following the horizon line. “It's a carriage... and it doesn't seem to be coming towards us.”

In silence they kept watching the carriage as it continued on its way until it disappeared. Not long after, they saw another similar shape pass by that made the same route as the previous one. Others appeared but this time in the opposite direction to the previous ones.

“There must be a road!” exclaimed Olivia.

“So what do we do?” Silas was suspicious. “It's not like we can go that way. Someone will see us, and even if they're not wizards, they'll start asking us questions.”

They decided to move on across the countryside but without getting too close for them to be seen. As the hours passed, they saw more carriages and wagons moving, also a group of horsemen of which they kept hidden fearing they were wizards or soldiers in pursuit.

Night fell again on their second day on the run since they had said farewell to Rovenna. Olivia felt herself fading, not only from sleep, but also from hunger. Silas helped her hide in some bushes and decided to go out and try to hunt something. Of course, they couldn't cook it, but she was willing to do anything at that point.

During his absence, the girl was unable to sleep a wink and every rustle or flutter of night birds made her startle. Silas finally appeared, almost scaring her to death as he stuffed a piece of semi-hard bread into her mouth.

“B-b-b-but... how?” she said trying to speak with her mouth full as she scarfed down the bread in a few seconds because she was so famished.

“I found a travelers' camp.”

“You're crazy!” Olivia scolded him, lowering her voice as if she feared someone might be nearby.

Silas appeared unconcerned.

“They didn't discover me, so they must not be wizards. I had to wait a bit until I could steal something without being seen.”

When Olivia was done with the bread, he held out a piece of cheese and then an apple. Meanwhile, he slowly ate another piece of bread, the last of it.

“Don't give me all the food! Don't be silly!”

Again, he ignored her.

“You need it more than I do. You've lost a lot of energy that you'll only regain by feeding yourself. I can hold out a little longer. Oh... and I have good news.”

“What is it?”

“While waiting for the travelers to go to sleep, I overheard their conversation. One of them mentioned that they were two days' journey from Stormbrace.”

Two days... that seemed like an eternity at the time.

Like the day before, they set out as soon as dawn broke, taking care not to get too close to the road. They had to stop from time to time, sometimes to rest, sometimes to hide from the travelers advancing along the road. At night neither of them was able to sleep. Olivia convinced Silas that he should not risk being seen again so close to their destination, and Silas agreed with her.

The next day, tired but seething with anxiety, they resumed their march, which continued at much the same pace. There wasn't an inch of Olivia's body that didn't ache but the hope that burned in her chest helped to ignore the pathetic state of her body.

As the sun set, a cold breeze picked up, carrying with it a thick, pungent aroma of salt, seaweed and fish.

The scent of the sea.

Keeping out of the way, Silas and Olivia moved forward without worrying that night was bearing down on them. Without even talking, they had both agreed to continue despite the darkness.

Suddenly, Silas screamed.

“A light!” he brought the horse to a sudden halt, and although Olivia could no longer see his face, she could hear the tone of triumph in his voice.

“It's the lighthouse!”, she exclaimed.

“What is that?”

“A light used by ships to guide them at night. We must follow it!”

They continued to move forward in the darkness until the glow grew stronger and stronger and the tip of the lighthouse began to peek out as they got closer. The wind was intensifying and crashing against their exhausted bodies. When Olivia heard the distant roar of the waves crashing against the rocks, she told Silas that it was best to continue on foot, as they could see the path was becoming increasingly uneven, full of small loose stones and wet grass.

Amazed, they watched as the glow of the full moon they had seen rising on that last part of the journey illuminated the ripples of an immense dark sea. The silvery reflection spread across the water like a veil caressing the surface. When they finally approached the edges of the cliff, the ends of which curved into a wide bay, they gasped at the sight that unfolded before them.

From the top, they observed the stone houses, many of which appeared to have been dug directly into the rock of the cliff, blending into the natural structure as if they had emerged from the rock itself. Others, on the contrary, seemed to defy gravity, on the edge of the cliff, with balconies hanging dangerously over the abyss. Like distant stars shone the twinkling lights coming from inside the houses, as well as the lanterns that illuminated the narrow bridges and walkways that connected the different levels of the port, zigzagging down the cliff wall, towards the heart of the bay, where amidst a dark tangle of docks and barges, one could guess the shadows of the ships, with their sails gathered and their skeletal masts, floating among the agitated waters.

At the southern end of the bay, opposite where they stood, loomed the imposing lighthouse, a stone tower spiraling upward, culminating in a reddish glow that cast itself over the waters, intermittently illuminating the waves crashing against the rocks.

Olivia's eyes flooded with tears. All her life she had heard and read about Stormbrace Port and it seemed so unreal to find herself there. Emotion led her to take Silas' hand without realizing it and he, perhaps equally overwhelmed, intertwined his fingers with hers until they were joined in a strong grip that did not end until sleep began to invade their bodies and they were forced to lie down on the grass to get some sleep before going down to the port, which they did as soon as the sun came up.

In the daytime, when they opened their eyes again, the view was no less impressive. As the first rays of dawn illuminated the dark blanket of the sea to a leaden gray and then a deep blue, the houses carved into the rock of the cliff were acquiring shades that mingled with various shades of red and green dotted among the rocks.

From the top they could also observe how the port was coming to life as its inhabitants began to wander through its narrow streets to carry out their first activities. Between the docks, the white furled sails were waiting ready to be unfurled, while the tiny silhouettes of some sailors were already walking on deck, getting ready to set sail.

Olivia was sure it would be one of them who would take them to their final destination.

Or, at least, she hoped...