“Hey. Narati. Can you hear me?”

Someone was calling him in the forest. He wondered who they were. The voice was neither a man nor a woman, but simply an amalgamation of both. They spoke intermittently, finishing each other, or sometimes talking together in harmonious resonance.

“How’s things? I have been asleep for a while, but I can sense your worry. You’re scared.”

The voice changed again, this time a set of two different people. Slowly but surely, he remembered that this had happened before, when he thought he died. Were they a guardian angel? A guardian wolf, perhaps?

“Whatever it is that worries you, I can assure you that you will find out about it soon enough,” said the harmonious, yet androgynous, voice. “I’m also interested to find out for myself. So, Narati. You might want to wake up before they changed their minds.”

Who? He wasn’t sure. The fact that he was aware of this but was unable to say anything to reply made him frustrated. Was the voice talking about the recent conversation with Hima, about who he was and whether he could ever find out about it? It could be it. He was having some…unexplained dreams lately. They were surreal, yet symbolic. It was a forest blanketed by mist. He couldn’t move, but all he could see was a light moving around in the forest.

“Go on, Narati,” said the voice. “Let’s get going, or you’ll be late.”

Almost immediately, the forest landscape disappeared, and the dream was over.

“Nara! Hey, sleepyhead, I’m not going to wait forever, you know! Get your ass down here!”

At least there’s a familiar voice, thought Narati. That also reminded him that he had clearly overslept. Cursing under his breath, he hastily put on his pants and vest, the only two clothes he had. He also threw them across his bedroom, giving his room a rather messy appearance, along with the dirty dishes he had no time to clean and the patches of dirt, sawdust, and other things he took into his room from his workshop. Then there were Mygalean cobwebs that he had no time (or rather, no interest) in cleaning.

One quick glance at his room was enough for the Fa’ar to realize that he was acting like a slob. He had not thought much about it since he was used to being dirty and he had no place he could call home until several months ago. He wondered what his friends thought of his apartment when they broke in.

Downstairs, Raine and Hima were waiting for Narati patiently, albeit at the tail end of their patience. They had been waiting for almost an hour. Raine wondered if his tardiness was due to his recent experience with the Mygaleans, which gave the Fa’ar a break. However, Hima gave a very good reason for his tardiness.

“If he didn’t spend his time working in his workshop, he wouldn’t be this late,” said Hima.

“No one’s complaining about it,” said Raine.

Hima silently made a gesture to cast a spell that immediately dampened the noise around them. Raine did not need her to explain to understand what she meant. All he could say was an acknowledging, “Oh.”

It did not take long for Narati to climb down the stairs carrying nothing but his clothes, a full satchel, and his trusty axe. Knowing the Fa’ar, Raine thought he would consider taking his other axe, the one currently sat on display in his workshop, broken and in need of repair after he used it beyond its capabilities, namely cutting open the throat of a scaleless dragon. So, he settled with a lighter axe, at least for now. Raine hoped it would be for a while. He was uncomfortable with the loud, grinding noise of his circular saw axe.

But at the moment, he was more concerned about what he carried in his satchel. It looked full of something dangerous enough to blow them into smithereens.

“Sorry!” said Narati. “Got overslept. But now that I’m here, let’s go before I start wasting more time.”

“Sure, but after you put your grenades away,” said Raine while crossing his arms.

“Why? You’ll never know what’s waiting for us.”

“Two things. One, this is Emerald Valley. Nothing is going to be worth blowing up for, and you’ll get into more trouble than it’s worth. Second, you know how to use an axe, I know how to use a sword, and Hima’s good with magic. Those grenades are overkill.”

Narati looked rather conflicted on removing his whole arsenal, but Raine had a point. At the very least, nothing’s going to be more dangerous than the dragon, not when there’s a good place for the beasts to hunt and were generally docile.

The ratfolk reluctantly took off his satchel and put it in his workshop, where N’Dari was already doing some blacksmithing. The Leonian was too busy to greet Narati, so he stowed away the grenades in a box, away from potential dangers that could blow it up, and settled on his axe and a satchel full of tools. He walked past the motorized axe on display, wondering if he would ever find a chance to repair it and use it again. Having something so loud being revved up could make for one efficient tactic that could end a fight before they could start it.

Stolen novel; please report.

Narati could only sigh. The days of persistent danger and hopelessness were all behind him. He was a free Fa’ar with a business. He was no one’s property. Now, he had his own journey of self-discovery, one that his tanem keb was kept in the dark. It was at Hima’s behest. She wouldn’t want her once lover (yet still a dear friend) to risk his life doing unnecessary things for the sake of a good friend.

Knowing Raine, that would be the case.

Once he joined with Raine and Hima, the three went to the eastern gate to find Kaz, already waiting for them. He spent his time waiting for Narati near the gates. Compared to Raine, he was far more patient. Rather, he was more preoccupied with what he wanted to do once he met Hima’s father. There must be a reason why he asked his daughter, a fellow kitsune, to rescue him as a sign of trust.

Yet, when Narati came to the gates, his attention turned to the Fa’ar. He could sense the darkness within the young ratfolk that was somehow familiar, yet at the same time, not. The reason why he met with Aranis was because of the elf’s request.

Two days ago, after returning from the successful mission in retrieving Narati, the elf let the kitsunes know of her concerns when she invited them into the nearby forest on the pretense of giving them a tour to their reservoir system. Once there, she immediately put the three into a dampening field so their conversation would be private while inviting them to sit on the wooden bench near the reservoir.

“I want both of you to swear what we talk about here into secrecy, at least until the time is right,” she said with a serious expression. “You two are the only ones who I can trust.”

“Us? You sure about that?” chippered Kaz. “Just so you know, we happened to be called tricksters in the past.”

“But old enough to not act hastily. Yes, I believe that Raine is far more trustworthy on the virtue of us being friends, but even he would not be able to help, even if he wants to.”

Hima immediately realized what Aranis was implying.

“You are talking about that young ratfolk, aren’t you?” she said. “Narati Vasra?”

“The kid with the darkness in him?” asked Kaz. “What do you think we are going to be able to help?”

“Both of you defeated the many-eyed monster that struck fear to everyone except you two. I must admit that I was incapacitated by terror unfolding in front of my eyes. The monster pulled up your deepest, darkest fears, even the ones that you have forgotten. This may sound unreasonable, but…I once had a nightmare about Fa’ars.”

“At least you’re not afraid to admit it,” said Kaz. “But why?”

“It is not what you think it is, Kazenami,” said Aranis. “It is not a repressed trauma. It is the manifestation of the stories my relatives used to tell me about the war. Evidently, I didn't live during that time, but they did, and they have a word or two about Fa’ars that worried me a long time ago, before I chose to let it go for the sake of following my heart.”

“What is it?”

Aranis paused, then said, “That Fa’ars were not as they are now. They gained the Dark Race moniker because they were once feared by everyone. Fa’ars were an engineered race bred for war, but along the way the Nuremnians, either out of desperation or out of a twisted desire to win at all costs, turned them into an Aether-wielding race, which would work well once they flooded the world with Aether. Their current appearance, resembling docile rats for the most part, was a result of reversing the curse back to the casters, essentially, most of Nuremnia. They were then reduced to what you know as Fa’ars, a handicapped race with no potential for magic.

“I would not be reminded of this nightmare if it was not for Narati’s encounter with a Fa’ar who managed to realize his true potential. Narati was the only one who managed to fight and defeat the Fa’ar with the help of Tulis and N’Dari, but based on what I heard from Tulis, she felt the full effect of the Aether exposure from said Fa’ar. She also noticed that Narati was not as affected. Rather, he was empowered by it.”

“Whoa, hold on, Aranis-san,” said Kaz. “Are you trying to tell us that Narati, or rather, all Fa’ars, might have a potential of becoming a dangerous threat?”

“Which is why I can only trust you two on this. As you may know, Fa’ars are not exactly likable. Tolerable, yes, but it is a long way before true acceptance. Why do you think Narati is the only Fa’ar in the town? Because he gained the sympathy of others, and because everyone who were here the first time could come to his aid. But as this town grows, more and more people will start doubting his presence, and we will soon be outvoted. So, what do you think they would do once they know that Narati has a potential to be a threat?”

“They will kick him out,” said Hima.

“Worse, the Fa’ars would be hunted down in a witch hunt they did not deserve. Elves are the most eager to exterminate them because they have a good reason to. No one wants to relive the nightmare they once experienced So, I need your help. If you can find a way to help Narati in some way, that would be appreciated. Your magic is of a different kind from ours. If Narati can be saved, then so will the rest of the Fa’ars out there. I would not want us to be confronted with the same nightmare my parents experienced.”

“Just one question, Aranis,” said Hima. “Don’t you think you’re exaggerating?”

“Perhaps. But I better err on caution and be wrong rather than be right and herald our doom. This world is injured, and it will take a strong, miraculous spell to fix it. Realistically, we may take more than just a thousand years to return our civilization to the way it was before the war. Or maybe we may not know. So, Himawari, Kazenami…please help him. Or if you cannot…please train him to be a reliable ally.”

That conversation gave Kaz and Hima a desire to know more about Narati and how a Fa’ar could gain the sympathy of many people, especially Aranis. Her story sounded convincing, but until they knew what she was talking about, all they could do was purify his soul without causing further harm.

And they better get to Cavilen for it, because what they could do would only kill him.

Once they were together, the four of them traveled to Cavilen, home to Raine and Hima, and one of the more peaceful kingdoms in the Emerald Valley.