Action on the Maracaibo Castle

As the first sun rose, I started back at Riverlight’s base.

We were halfway up the mountain that they called home, standing on a balcony carved into the stone.

Up here, we could see miles ahead through the sparse, stringy clouds. Fields stretched out toward the horizon, and the trail we arrived on looked smaller than my finger.

“What do you think?” Seth stepped out next to Aila and me.

“It’s beautiful!” Aila said.

I had to agree. The mountain air felt fresh, with the slightest hint of water barely noticeable. “I meant to ask, how do you guys get so much water here?”

“There’s an underground lake, and it's not just river water. Both the Lyontris and Sligh flow into it.”

“You’re saying you have crosswater?” Aila asked in awe. “All this time, there’s been a third source?”

“Correct, though it's rather deep underground. We didn’t realize it was crosswater either for a few years.”

“How? I heard crosswater is way more powerful than regular riverwater!”

“I don’t use river water for my abilities,” Seth said. “It’s all the same liquid to me.”

“I see,” his reveal had me mentally asking a million questions there was no way he would answer.

“Our spar yesterday, you passed,” Seth said out of the blue. “If there's one thing I’ve been able to learn after all these years, it's that the only way to truly see into someone's heart is in the heat of battle. It’s easy to lie out your ass while safe, not so in the heat of battle.”

“Thank you.” To be honest, the sting of hurting still hurt a bit, but the current me could handle that. “It was an honor to fight against someone like you.”

“I think that’s the first time someone’s thanked me for nearly breaking their skull,” he lightly chuckled. “I appreciate it. Most people here are too cowardly or weak to face me in a fight.”

“Sir,” before I could reply a man rushed from the base entrance. “Urgent news!”
“Ah, give me a second you two,” Seth said as he addressed the man.

Aila leaned closer to me as Seth walked with the man, resting her head on my shoulder. I could feel her soft ear, her slow breaths, and the comfortable warmth that radiated from her.

“This place is pretty close to my hometown,” Aila said after a few seconds of silence. “Been a while since I’ve been here.”

“I thought you said your hometown was in Gallai.”

“Sorry about that,” she fidgeted with the straps on her cloak. “I wasn’t sure if I could trust you yet. Citizens of Eastol aren’t able to serve in Gallai’s military.”

“Why head to Gallai?”

“It was closer,” Aila shrugged. “Well, that’s just one reason. I don’t remember it, but my parents took me to Cottol when I was young. They don’t like cat ears in the capital.”

“I’m sorry.” It was hollow, but I couldn’t think of anything else to say.

“Don’t be, I don’t remember it anyway,” Aila said, her ears twitching against my neck. “There’s not much there I care to look back on.”

I stayed quiet, letting Aila glance at the mountainous view. Responding wasn’t always the best move.

We stayed like this for what felt like an eternity, peacefully watching the clouds float by. Occasionally, a flock of colorful birds would pass by, some mountainous squirrel would climb past us, or a small wagon would pass on the miniature trail–not nearly close enough to see our balcony.

“Sorry about the delay,” Seth came a few minutes later. His clothes were drenched in sweat, and even though his breath had barely changed it was still clear the man had run here.

“No problem!” Aila quickly shot back to her feet. “Anything going on?”

“Lilly sent her final message. She found the king of Eastol, though…”

“Though?” I asked.

“Lilly’s been captured by Thien, and his message says he’ll only let her go if you two meet him.”

“We can leave now,” I said, instantly. I’d just gotten Lilly back; I wasn’t about to lose her yet again.

“Now?” Aila looked at me like I was crazy. “We barely escaped Thien last time! Seth! You’re strong, come with us!”

“No can do,” he sighed. “That was part of Thien’s terms, and while I’ve never been one to honor agreements with thugs like him, he has the power to make you pay for breaking them. It’s best for you two to go alone.”

“There has to be something!” Aila’s tail pointed up like an arrow as she spoke, a fire in her eyes. “Thien can't account for everything.”

“We got this,” I gently placed my hand on Aila’s shoulder. Truthfully, I was just as terrified, but the fear of potentially losing Lilly outweighed anything else Thien could throw at me. “I don’t see a way out of this.”

“There’s always a way out!” Aila sighed. “Always.”

“Not this time,” Seth said. “Thien’s deadline is a week from now, and Cottol’s a day’s walk from here. We can train you if you want.”

I glanced at Aila. Both of us were of the same mind. “Thank you, but I can’t sit here knowing Lilly’s suffering while I hide in safety. We’ll leave today.”

“I figured,” Seth said. “Just remember—no matter what, Riverlight’s your home, and everyone else’s who wishes to free themselves.”

“We’ll never forget.” I said, turning back toward the beautiful view. It’d be a good while before I’d be able to see this again.

We quickly gathered our things after that, though it’s not like we’d brought that much in the first place.

Seth met us once again at the back entrance, a small formation hidden in the mountain by some kind of magical illusion.

The warmth of the twin suns hit me as I glanced toward the brilliant blue sky. There was an unmistakable difference down here. Maybe it was seeing the clouds so high in the sky, or the softness of the crimson grass under my feet.

“Our spies will update us on your progress, good luck.” Seth said as we started our journey towards Cottol.

There was an odd peace as we walked away from Riverlight. These roads were practically abandoned, even compared to the less traveled roads on the Gallai side. Not a single carriage or group passed us.

Last time we faced Thien Lilly was on our side. Even with that we had barely gotten away. Now, with her out of the picture and no one coming to rescue us I couldn’t help the bit of fear that was gnawing away at my mind.

“Hey, Rin?” Aila broke the silence. “Can we stop somewhere? Just a small detour.”

“Where?”

“My hometown. It’s just a few hours away.”

“I thought…” I stopped myself. Lilly’s deadline was a week away; we could afford this. “Yeah sure, let's head off.”