Aethera bit her lip and surveyed the scene underneath her. The height at which she was sitting intimidated her, but curiosity got the better of her and she couldn’t help but watch the hunters. Her throat tightened and her vision shook as she looked at the ground, but she swallowed her fear and set her jaw. She was determined to get over the phobia.

  The small group consisted of four men and two women. She had been watching them for a while now, trying to figure out their strategy. But, she was too high up to hear their hushed murmurs. Frustrated, Aethera huffed and averted her eyes from the ground as she felt a wave of nausea.

  She couldn’t help but pity the group. People joined the ranks to prove their loyalty to King Rae or because they had no other choice. There were quite a few that grew up in a poor village on the outskirts of an unknown town and concluded that the only way to a better life was to join the King’s forces. She knew a few of her brother’s former friends that had joined the hunters because of the heavy pay. Most Uniques had a bounty that differed depending on the crime. Aethera scoffed. Crime. Their only crime was the powers they were born with.

  But despite their reputation, not all of the hunters were bad. Aethera knew that her beliefs were not popular, but she knew how desperate people got. The system was unfair and their world was broken. Sometimes, there wasn’t a choice. People had no other option but to kill others to save themselves.

  She glanced at the boy sitting next to her and smiled. His eyes were closed and his head lolled forward as he mumbled something. It amused her that he was asleep in such a dangerous situation. He had protested when she had told him to rest, saying that it was unfair for her to take watch twice in a row. But, Aethera didn’t truly mind, so the boy had finally relented. He had passed out almost instantly.

  He was cute. His wild black hair was strewn all over the place and faint freckles sprinkled across the bridge of his nose stood out against the paleness of his fair-colored skin. His thin lips moved as he talked to someone in his dreams and his deep, emerald eyes fluttered.

  Aethera held her breath, hoping he would fall back asleep. She enjoyed the blissful silence. It gave her time to think. She had always liked being alone, though she supposed Hestian was good company. He was nice and had a decent personality. She still didn’t trust him completely, but he had risked his life for her. She hated it, but she would forever be in his debt. Despite herself, Aethera had to admit, she was slowly falling for him.

  Aethera sighed. She knew the danger and conflict that came with a relationship. It was the reason she felt an odd sort of relief when Adam died. She loathed herself for it, but she treasured the fact that the only person she had to take care of was herself. There wasn’t anyone that she had to be afraid of losing.

  That was why she would have to be more careful in keeping her distance from the boy. It wasn’t that she couldn’t love, it was that she was scared to love. Adam’s death was still fresh and she never wanted to go through something like that again. She was terrified to lose someone again.

  Aethera heard the shrill whistle of an arrow being released and she flinched, biting her lip nervously. The hunters had terrible aim, but Aethera was still worried that the man would get lucky and one of them would be shot.

  The silver head dug into the bark a few feet under her and she strained to grab it, tugging it out of the dense wood. Hestian had asked her to collect any arrows that were shot in her reach and had promised that he would teach her how to make a spear.

  She already had a couple in the folds of her apron and she examined the arrow’s wooden shaft and pretty fletching before stuffing it into the wide pocket. She would only ever be able to marvel at the grace and beauty of archery. Adam had found an old bow in the woods a few years ago, but no matter how many times he had tried to teach her, she had never been able to figure it out.

  She rubbed her eyes as a wide yawn split her features. She was a bit tired, but she didn’t feel comfortable with the notion of both of them being asleep. Even if Hestian woke up and offered to take watch, she didn’t like the idea of being vulnerable with such high stakes.

  She would be kept awake by the nightmares, anyway. She shuddered at the simple thought of the horrid dreams. They left her weak and shaking, her face wet with tears. The last one had been particularly bad - a recount of Adam’s death - and she wasn’t willing to revisit it. She would have to sleep soon, though. Her movements were sluggish with drowsiness and her head was beginning to ache.

  Aethera sighed and leaned back against the trunk of the tree. Her sore legs were twisted around the branch and she grimaced as she sat up straight again so she could move to a less awkward position.

  She couldn’t help but stare miserably at her ankle. The swollen flesh had doubled in size and had darkened to an ugly black and blue colour. It throbbed horribly whenever she put weight on it, leaving her incapacitated and vulnerable. Aethera was experienced in healing - she had taken care of countless injuries from her brother and the younger children that had lived in nearby dwellings - but she had no resources to take care of this.

  She was surprised that she had managed to climb the tree without passing out, though Hestian had played a large part in that. However, she wasn’t worried. The injury could have been a lot worse and she was grateful that the pain was at least bearable. It was her fault anyway; she should have been more careful, but her attention had been divided when the hunter had grabbed Hestian.

  Aethera glanced at the boy as he smacked his lips and shifted in his sleep. Her heart skipped a beat as he rolled over. Jerking forward, she grabbed his arm and yanked him closer to her. His eyes flew open at the rough jostling and he stared at her with widened eyes that still looked disoriented.

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  “Wha-what’s happening?”

  “You almost fell out of the tree.”

  He frowned. “Oh. Thank you for...saving me.”

  Aethera shrugged. “I wasn’t going to let you just fall.”

  Hestian snorted and his eyes fell on her hand, “You can let go. I’m not going anywhere.”

  Aethera let go instantly, and she blushed. She hadn’t realized that her hand was still wrapped tightly around his forearm.

  “Sorry.”

  “No worries.” He smiled, clearly amused, as she moved over so he could sit up.

  Hestian surveyed their surroundings for a moment before leaning forward to peer at the hunters. Aethera watched him, hoping that he would have an idea of what to do next. Sitting here without a plan was starting to drive her crazy.

  “They haven’t tried to climb the tree yet?”

  “No.”

  He frowned. “Has there been any action at all?”

  Aethera shook her head. “I tried to listen, but we’re too far up to hear their conversations. It doesn’t make any sense. What are they waiting for?”

  He hummed in agreement, “I don’t know. They could easily kill us if they wanted to.”

  Aethera bit her lip. “Maybe they have different orders.”

  “What other orders would they have? For decades, their only instructions were to hunt us down and kill us. Why change that now?

  Aethera shrugged. “Things are changing. People are starting to fight back.”

  He rubbed the back of his neck, clearly deep in thought. “You’re right about that. I saw it in Arcana. It wasn’t only me who tried to sabotage the supply trains, there were others who wanted to fight the government. But what does that have to do with anything? Why would-” he broke off as he realized, “They want information, don’t they? They’re hoping that we have details about the rebels?”

  She hesitated, “I-I honestly don’t know. It seems unlikely but-”

  “It all makes sense now,” Hestian exhaled sharply and shook his head. “When the hunters were chasing us, one of them grabbed me. He had a spear, but he didn’t hurt me. He could have killed me right then and there, but he didn’t. I thought that maybe he was just confused or was too much of a coward to spill blood, but maybe it was because he wanted to take me to the King unscathed.”

  “You stabbed him,” Aethera pointed out, “If you really felt like your life wasn’t in danger, then you wouldn’t have-”

  “If they want us alive, we’re in even more danger than if they wanted us dead,” Hestian muttered grimly. “I don’t even want to think about what they could do to us.”

  Aethera shuddered, wrapping her arms around herself. She hated how ignorant she was of her future. She could see that Hestian was frustrated too and his jaw clenched with anger as he stared at the hunters.

  “We have to get out of here,” he muttered. “The safe house is only a day’s trip away, we could make it.”

  Aethera shook her head. She was desperate, but not stupid. “No. They’re waiting for us to make the first move. If we climb down, it’s game over.”

  “We could fight,” Hestian suggested.

  “The only weapon we have is my dagger. We’ll be overpowered in seconds.”

  “We have our powers.”

  Aethera shook her head. “No. Absolutely not.”

  “Why?”

  “That isn’t an option. I’m not using my powers.”

  “But, why not?”

  Hestian turned to look at her. His forehead was furrowed in confusion and he looked slightly annoyed. Her heart pounded in her chest and a sharp ringing noise filled her ears as she forced herself to take deep breaths, on the verge of a panic attack.

  “Please,” Aethera swallowed as her voice cracked. “Can we please try to figure out something else?”

  He was quiet for a moment before nodding. “Okay, fine.”

  Aethera bent down, pretending to stretch. She wiped her eyes under the cover of her long hair and straightened back up once she was certain that there was no evidence of her misery.

  She knew that they might not have any other choice, but she had promised herself after Adam’s death that she wouldn’t use her powers. The stakes were too high and she might hurt Hestian if she lost control. There had to be another way.

  “What about a signal?”

  Hestian frowned, “What do you mean?”

  “Something that would draw attention,” Aethera explained, “Like a smoke signal. It probably isn’t the best idea, but-”

  He shook his head. “I think it's a brilliant idea.”

  She blushed, “Thank you, but I don’t know how we would build a big enough fire to get enough fumes.”

  Hestian was silent and his eyes glossed over as he pondered something.

  “I can do it,” he replied quietly.

  “What?”

  “I can burn the trees over there,” he gestured to the tall oaks a few dozen feet away from them. “That way we wouldn’t be in danger of getting burned ourselves.”

  “But I don’t understand. How would you…”

  Her eyes widened. “That’s your power? Fire?”

  Hestian smirked and nodded, “I’ll have to be careful and I’ll have to figure out a way to get close enough, but I think I’ll be able to do it. I hope I can.”

  Aethera hesitated. “Are you sure? If you make a mistake…”

  “I won’t make a mistake.”

  She held his gaze as they made eye contact. He seemed confident, but Aethera was still dubious. However, she couldn’t think of another way. Their time was running out.

  “Okay,” she relented. “Let’s do that then.”