A sliver of moon bathed a distant tower in swathes of pale light. Smooth bricks made up the cylindrical structure, spiraling ten times as high as a Cat Tribe tent. Metal spikes crowned the top, man-made talons bending inward to grasp a polished, round stone as big as a person. A moonstone. It glowed a milky-white in its cradle, casting light back toward the sky.

Rectangular holes had been cut into the tower’s sides at regular intervals. Candles flickered in and out of sight within each as the tower’s occupants made their rounds.

The fire in Lilau’s core flared, and the night brightened in response as she looked up. The sky-river cut its course through the sky, but it was no longer whole. Four smaller branches split off. Three shot off into the distance, their destination unseen. The fourth flowed into the moonstone. Blinding light filtered down the tower’s length until it split once more at the tower’s base, shooting through the ground in separate waves of red, green, blue, and yellow.

Lilau’s eyes burned. She took a deep breath, urging the heat inside her into the chilly night. Her chest warmed immediately. After a few moons of practice, it had become easier and easier. She blew the hot air out, the essence in it causing the air to glitter. Her Spirit Sight dulled, and the glitter disappeared.

The fluttering in her chest did not.

Allak and Yann moved up beside her, the rider and Great Cat barely visible without her Spirit Sight. “Once the shield goes down, we have to hurry. Are you ready?”

His voice pitched low, quiet, and steady. If he was as nervous as she was, he didn’t show it.

“Yes. I’m ready.” Lilau swallowed hard as her voice quavered.

Allak raised an arm, then dropped it to his side. His robe caught the air and billowed out, reversing direction as the other four cats charged forward on silent paws, their riders tucked close to their backs. They surrounded the tower. Lilau couldn’t see what they were doing, but she knew. Zayla and Macien had drilled it into her well enough.

The air around the tower warped for a moment as the Spirit Stones the riders carried took effect, draining the essence from the shield as readily as her own necklace once had.

Yann and Makotae padded forward. Lilau tightened her grip on the weapon in one hand, her other seeking comfort in the feel of Makotae’s ruff. As readily as she hunted, as much as being around people made her skin crawl, the idea of attacking another person made her heart pound and palms sweat. It felt like a predator breathing down her neck, and she hated it.

Her fingers rubbed across her weapon’s grip as they grew close to the tower. A ‘Spirit Bow’, as Macien had called it. Simple, yet better than Radai’s suggestion of ‘Glow Shooter’. It was, at first glance, a short bow. On closer inspection, its oddities became clear. The arms were thin, springy metal, two sharp points at the ends serving as extra offense should an attacker close in. The dark leather grip had been soaked in deep blue dye, best for blending in with darkness, while tightly woven rope stretched between the arms. Small moonstones, their size dwarfed by the giant one atop the tower, were embedded right where she would nock an arrow. One at the center of the grip and the other on the center part of the string.

Lilau fed warmth into the little moonstones as the air around the tower shimmered, then went still. It was time. Makotae and Yann sped up, covering the last bit of distance in a moment.

An inner calm, a spark, and Lilau’s Spirit Sight leaped to the fore just in time to see an arc of red essence shoot toward the top at the tower. She focused on it, pulled it, wrenched it away from its track and back into the ground. The alarm it was meant to sound stayed silent. No help would come for those inside, and no warning would come to the other towers.

Lilau slipped from Makotae’s saddle and was through the rugs covering the small entryway within a breath, Allak on her heels. The inside of the tower mirrored the outside. Bare stone brick rose above their heads as a stone staircase spiraled up the outer ring of the tower, punctuated by sharp blots of light. Guards.

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Twelve guards walked in pairs across the stairs, their sight blocked by the occasional wooden platform which stretched across the tower’s center. One pair of guards traveled down from the lowest platform. Straight toward her and Allak. A quick relay through Makotae and Yann, and Allak knew, just in time for their first opponents to come into sight.

Lilau froze as ice dripped in her veins. The world slowed down. The guards’ eyes went wide, their hands flying toward the scabbards strapped to their waists. They were going to attack. She needed to counter, yet her body would not move.

Allak flew by, curved dagger in hand. Time sped up. The first guard fell as crimson blossomed across the front of his robes. The second guard pulled his saber free. Allak brought his dagger up to block. The screech of metal against metal rang out as clear as any alarm. Shouts echoed down from the higher levels. Boots scuffled rapidly against stone steps.

Another screech as Allak blocked again, but the guard was fast. He twisted, kicking Allak’s leg out from under him and leaving Allak open to a death blow.

Finally, Lilau’s body responded. Ice turned to fire as she raised the Spirit Bow, nocking an arrow she didn’t have. The tiny moonstones came to life at her touch. A shaft of pure light formed between the moonstones, growing in length as Lilau pulled the string back and let go.

The arrow shot through the air, lightning weaponized, burying itself deep into the second guard’s chest as his saber came down toward Allak’s neck. He stumbled. The arrow disappeared, but it had done its job. The saber clattered to the stone as the guard slumped, eyes going dark and chest going red.

Allak scrambled to his feet, shot her a look between gratefulness and irritation, then yelled.

The next moments blurred together. The rest of the riders rushed in to help as the guards pressed from above. Cries of pain and anger echoed from both sides as snarls from frustrated Great Beasts blocked by the too thin entryway filtered from outside the walls. Lilau’s hands worked almost of their own accord. The fire burned too brightly for the ice to take hold, yet did nothing to disperse the numbness spreading through her mind.

A round object the size of Lilau’s hand rattled down the steps, swirling designs across its surface glowing in oscillating rainbows. Lilau drained the essence from the bomb and channeled it into more arrows, which she embedded in the retreating guards. Allak and the others rushed to fill the void as the bomb went dull. They trusted her. A sliver of fear snaked through Lilau’s numbness.

Lilau, are you all right?

Makotae’s worries cut through her own. I… yes, she responded, more on reflex than truth.

Good. Finish up in there quickly and get back out here. I don’t like being stuck outside while you get attacked.

She had to agree with him. Yet she’d promised to help keep the hunters safe, and she intended to keep that promise. Lilau took a deep breath, gained a little feeling back in her limbs, then ran up the stairs after the hunters.

The guards were well-trained, yet unprepared for her. Every essence-powered weapon went dead at her command; the energy turned into arrows they hadn’t thought to protect against. She and the hunters reached the top of the tower with little more than a few shallow cuts.

A ring of metal encompassed most of the top floor. Metal support beams shot up, the large moonstone glittering in its metal cradle at their tips.

The hunters wasted no time.

Four of them, Allak included, pulled round objects from their belts—bombs not much different from the ones the guards cast at them. Instead of using a small amount of stored essence, these bombs absorbed the surrounding free essence in a technique lost to time.

Once the bombs were in place, a small tap on the top brought them to life. Lilau and the hunters fled. The tower rocked with the explosion. The sound of debris rained down from the upper floors as Lilau and the hunters scrambled into the still solid bottom floor.

Lilau closed her eyes as a flush of light raced down the center of the tower. It collided with the ground, splintering into a rainbow of colors which burned like stars in her Spirit Sight. The ground buzzed. It reverberated up her bones and settled in her head. She clamped her hands over her ears, a pointless motion, as someone called her name.

The buzz grew louder. It echoed in her head until she knew it would split. Then it vanished. Lilau’s breath came in quick gasps. At some point, she’d squatted and curled in on herself as the noise crashed over her. Now, in the silence, the sound of her own breathing and the weight of someone’s hand on her shoulder reigned. She shifted away from the hand and stood up.

Allak pulled his hand back, his eyes boring into her. “What happened? Is all well?”

Was all well? She wasn’t sure. The buzzing light had left a distinct pounding in her head. It made it all but impossible to think of what had happened. She opened her mouth, but words refused to come out. Finally, she shook her head.

Allak frowned. “Then let’s go. There’s no reason to stay here.”

Lilau didn’t have to think about that. She squeezed through the narrow door and into Makotae’s wet, rough tongue.

I thought you’d collapsed again. Are you hurt?

I don’t think so. I’d just really like to get back to the camp.

That I can do.