Tranquility squeaked, her tirade breaking off abruptly, and froze up, sending a thrill of fear and excitement coursing through me, adrenaline making my heart rate skyrocket. I couldn’t see, but I’m fairly sure her eyes shot open in surprise. Inwardly, I cursed myself for being an impulsive fool, sure that I had just blown any chance I had with that sudden move. Oh well… there’s no going back now, I thought. So, I didn’t pull away.

Tranquility didn’t either, keeping her lips firmly pressed against mine. I’m not sure why she didn’t break the kiss off as soon as it again. A part of me liked to imagine it was because she felt the same way as me, but my more rational side knew it was probably due to shock. Still, it gave me more time to hold it, to truly push my message across.

I registered every sensation from that little moment, and I felt something instinctual start to stir inside of me, a small, pitiful fire of sorts, one that spread a pleasant, warm sensation throughout my body and urged me to go further, push more, take more from this moment. I resisted that urge, but it didn’t stop the satisfying warmth from permeating every inch of my body. I realized I didn’t want that to end, that I wanted to feel that for the rest of my life.

I’d kissed a few mares before, and once, a stallion, but I’d never felt this rush of pure euphoria before. It made me realize that, despite all that we’d gone through in the past few hours, despite the terrible things that Tranquility had told me, that kiss was right, and even if things didn’t work out afterward, I would have that comfort.

Unfortunately, all good things have to end, and that remained true for that moment. Eventually, I pulled away and opened my eyes, despite my heart screaming that I shouldn’t. Tranquility’s jaw went a little slack as soon as I did, her mouth forming a small, cute ‘o’ shape. A rosy blush had spread over most of her face, and her eyes had gone wide with confusion and shock. After a little bit of time, with the both of us sitting in silence and trepidation building inside of me, she closed her mouth and swallowed nervously. “Fall?” she whispered. “W-what was-”

In my second impulsive maneuver of the day, I lunged forward and wrapped my hooves around her, pressing my head into her chest. “Don’t,” I murmured. “Don’t ever say t-those things about yourself. Y-you’re amazing, and you mean so much more t-to me than you know…” Opting not to say anything more, I closed my eyes and waited for her response, nervousness building in me once more.

She didn’t respond for a while, and my agitation increased. I screwed it up! I thought frantically, feeling my heart rate increase even more.

Eventually, she let out a soft sigh. “How long?” she asked, her voice a soft murmur.

“What?” I asked.

“How long have you felt this way about me?” she clarified. “I-I want to know.”

I raised my head off of her chest and looked into her eyes. There was no hurt and no anger, just curiousity, confusion, and something else. “Um… ever since I found out you were a thestral,” I answered sheepishly. “You were in a bad spot that d-day, when I walked into your room while you were undisguised, but once I convinced you that I wasn’t going to stop being your friend and that there was nothing wrong with being a thestral, you became so much more animated, and you became so happy. Seeing that, when added on top of how nice, understanding, and helpful you were, made me realize something. You were beautiful to me, in mind, body, and spirit. I wanted to be with you as more than a friend. Those feelings never faded, strengthening, in fact… and here we are now.”

“You’re kidding me,” Tranquility whispered, shocked. “You’re saying that you’ve had a crush on me for over a decade?!”

“Yes?” I answered tentatively, a sheepish grin spreading over my face.

She let out an exasperated, amused sigh. “Paraituswa feirote, Fall,” she muttered softly. “Why didn’t you just ask me out?”

“I was afraid you’d say no,” I admitted softly.

“You-” she began, cutting herself off and taking a deep breath. “So what gave you the courage now?”

“I… don’t honestly know,” I answered, rubbing the back of my head with my hoof. “I think it’s because you were sending yourself down a horrible path, and I wanted to stop it and show you it wasn’t true, and I tried to do it in the most direct way possible.” I paused, looking into her eyes. “Did it work?”

A burst of hurt flashed into her eyes, and she sighed. “Yes and no,” she answered. “Alohaidurast…”

“I’ll help you fix that,” I said, remembering her explanation of the term. “I’ll help you with your memories, too. You don’t have to bear that burden alone. Together, we’ll get through this.”

“I… okay,” she answered softly, giving me a sad smile. I pulled her into another hug, and we stayed like that for a while, basking in the comfort of each other’s warmth.

Once again, trepidation began to cloud my mind, and I tucked my head underneath her chin. S-she didn’t say anything about getting into a relationship! I thought. I kissed her and told her that I liked her that way. She knows, so why didn’t she say anything? What if she doesn’t want to be with me? What if I-

“Fall?”

My train of thought was abruptly derailed by that statement. I slipped my head out from under hers and stared into her eyes. “Yeah?” I asked.

“You’re a terrible kisser,” she said, a wry smile playing at her lips.

Instantly, a blush of shame spread across my face, and I dropped my gaze to the floor, feeling hurt, guilt, and apologeticness well up in me at the same time. “O-oh,” I mumbled, feeling like I was about to cry. I bungled it… “I’m sorry… I-I guess I’ll-”

In the next instant, she shoved me backwards onto the floor, fell down onto my chest, and locked her lips with mine, closing her eyes and humming softly.

My eyes shot open in shock, and most of my conscious brain functions shut off in a glorious blaze of mental fireworks and confetti. The pleasant warmth that I’d felt earlier flared into a full-on bonfire, an elating burn blazing through my every nerve. I could barely comprehend that Tranquility, my long-time love interest, was actually kissing me. A burst of pure joy ran through me, and I closed my eyes, letting the bliss run through me.

After a few moments, I became aware of the small, subtle motions she was making with her lips and began to reciprocate them, eliciting a hum of approval. I lifted my hooves off the floor and wrapped them around her. I felt shivers run through her body, ones which I assumed to be shivers of excitement.

While this was going on, I felt something awaken, something brought to life by this clear return of my feelings. It seemed to take the shape of a mighty beast, unable to be controlled by any force known to pony. It roared in delight at our actions, rearing up onto its hind legs and clawing at the air. It wasn’t love, per say. It was more of a beginning, something that would mature and grow into love if given time to do so, getting stronger through tough experiences. It wouldn’t go down without a fight, and it would last as long as it could.

And I would nourish it to the best of my ability.

After a few more moments, Tranquility pulled away from me, a bright, beautiful smile adorning her face. Meanwhile, I had a big, dopey grin on my face, my head seemingly stuffed with clouds. “You just need some practice,” she whispered, gently nuzzling my cheek. “Practice that I’m so willing to be a part of.”

“Uh-huh,” I murmured dumbly, my grin spreading to be a little wider. My mind was still a bit fuzzy from the kiss, but I understood that statement quite clearly. Tranquility was saying yes to my unspoken request. She wanted to be with me… and just like that, I became the happiest stallion in the multiverse.

Tranquility let out a soft giggle, covering her mouth with her hoof. “You look surprisingly adorable with that blush on your face,” she commented, amused.

I was about to respond when my ears shattered.

“EEEEEEEEEEEE!”

The squeal started us, with Tranquility jumping off of me, flaring her wings out to the side and baring her teeth while I rolled over and onto my stomach, looking around frantically, any traces of fuzziness gone. I saw that Cam and Reed had returned, standing at the end of the corridor we were in. Reed was carrying Cam, a small smirk on his face. He flashed me a smug, congratulatory smile, as if to say good job, and I felt my cheeks heat up slightly.

Cam, on the other hoof, had tear tracks running down her face and had a slight tremble running through her paws, evidence that she’d been crying extensively, much like we had been, but those tears were nowhere to be seen, a massive smile having taken up residence on her face.

“And I thought that only thestral foals could make that noise,” Tranquility grumbled, folding her wings back to her sides. “Sweet Celestia, that was painful.”

“Did you guys actually do it?!” Cam gasped, scrambling down from Reed’s arms. “Are you two a thing now?!”

“Yes?” I answered tentatively, a nervous grin spreading over my face.

“YES!” she shrieked, jumping up into the air. “I’ve been waiting for so long! Did you two kiss? Please tell me you kissed!”

“We did,” Tranquility said, a small blush taking up residence on her cheeks. “Twice, actually.”

Cam let out a high pitched scream of joy. “THIS IS THE BEST POSSIBLE THING!” she yelled.

“If you say so,” I murmured, embarrassment rising up in me. Tranquility walked to my side and lay down, draping her wing over my side.

“Okay, calm down,” Reed said, stepping forward and scooping her up again. “I know this is exciting, but we’ve got bigger problems to worry about. We’re still stuck.”

Instantly, the smile on Cam’s face vanished. “Wow,” she mumbled. “Just kill all the fun, why don’t you.”

“Fun doesn’t matter right now,” Reed said sadly. “We need to figure out a way to get out of here and away from Has’rou.”

I nodded softly, a bit of frustration welling up in my gut. Despite the monumental event that had just occurred, we still had to worry about getting out of here with our sanity. It was a depressing reminder that we weren’t out of the woods just yet.

“Well, there’s the obvious solution.” Tranquility said softly, pressing against my side. “Warp out of this little pocket dimension and leave anything outside behind. It’d be the safest option-”

“Not a chance,” Cam interrupted. “I’m not leaving the box behind. It’s the only entrance to this area that I know of, and it carries too many memories to just ditch.”

“What’s your suggestion?” Reed asked softly. “Because if you don’t have a replacement plan, we may have to go with that one.”

Cam nodded softly, a grimace crossing her face. “I know… let me think for a moment.”

“Take all the time you need,” I said softly.

Reed set her down and walked over to us, leaving her to contemplate. He leaned on the shelves and smiled slightly. “So, who made the first move?” he whispered, sending more embarrassment running through me.

“Him,” Tranquility answered. “Came right out of the blue and kissed me, no warning at all.”

“Oh,” Reed said, rolling his eyes with a smile on his face. “One of those romances.”

“I actually rather liked it,” Tranquility said. “It was straight, to the point, and heartfelt. It also had the welcome side effect of distracting me completely, taking my mind off the horrible memories that the monster made me remember.”

“I’m not saying it’s a bad thing,” Reed quickly defended. “I’m saying that it’s a bit cliché. It sounds a bit like the beginning of a trashy romance novel, to be honest.”

“Look how much I care,” Tranquility deadpanned, a playful glint in her eyes.

Before Reed could answer, Cam let out a sharp gasp. “I’ve got it!” she yelled. “I’ll flash that creature! And there might be banging involved!” Before we could even react to that phrasing, several jars and a big bowl floated down from the shelves around us, with leaves, powders, and a few liquids floating towards her from other shelves throughout the area.

Reed facepalmed, a grimace spreading across his face. “Tell me that just sounded bad and she doesn’t mean what I just heard…” he mumbled.

“She doesn’t,” Tranquility said.

“Hopefully,” I mumbled.

“This is a terrible idea,” Cam mumbled, upending a jar of bluish-white powder into the bowl, sending a thrill of fear through me. “A flash-bang of this size… let’s say that if we aren’t inside the box when it goes off, we won’t be seeing or hearing anything for days.”

“Oh, thank the Void,” Reed said, sighing in relief. “Why a flash-bang?”

“Blind the eye and escape before the creature regains its senses,” Cam explained. “Basically, create a rift and shove the box through. It might not work. We don’t know anything about it, after all. But it’s worth a shot, right? And if it doesn’t work, at least it’ll piss that thing off.”

“Because we want to make the creature who’s out to keep us in a state of perpetual depression mad,” Tranquility snarked.

“Yeah, I do,” Cam said, upending a jar filled with orangish-pink liquid into the bowl. “I think it’d be funny to make it angry. Payback for what it did to you, y’know?”

“I don’t thi-” Tranquility began softly, raising a hoof in protest, before Cam cut her off.

“We’re doing it and that’s that,” she said, going back to mixing ingredients.

Tranquility froze, her mouth hanging open, before sighing and lowering her hoof. “I don’t understand why she has such selective hearing at times,” she muttered softly.

“Stress,” Reed suggested. “We’ve been through a lot in the past few hours. Perhaps she’s simply looking for an outlet.”

“I’d prefer it if that outlet wasn’t one that could possibly get us killed,” she groused, leaning against me. I nodded in agreement and nuzzled her.

For the next thirty minutes, the three of us watched Cam work. It was rather fascinating, actually, the way she methodically put together the flash-bang. She seemed to lose herself in her work, her posture straightening and the faint trembles left over from her meltdown vanishing. I recognized it as a method of coping, a way in which she could vent her emotions out of her mind. She was putting her heart into the project, and in the process, stabilizing her soul.

I could tell she was enjoying it, too. Even as she was mixing the ingredients together, an arguably tedious and mundane task, a small smile graced her face. I realized that a significant part of her passions lay with her experiments and concoctions, and I made a resolution to let her spend time on those things if we ever got out of this mess.

The process in which the bomb was created was interesting as well. Cam spent the first ten minutes or so mixing together the various substances she’d summoned. That part was rather uninteresting, but it quickly got better. After that, she lifted the liquid mixture into the air with her magic, morphing it into a rectangular shape. Her paws flashed brightly, and the outside of the liquid hardened into a solid shell. She then cracked it, letting the liquid inside spill back into the bowl she had used to combine the ingredients. The shell stayed in the air, though. She used her magic to grind up the solid mixture into a fine powder, which she sprinkled into the bowl. She then repeated the process for about fifteen minutes. Each time, the liquid became more and more chunky and solid.

Eventually, she used her magic to separate the liquid and the sizable amount of powder she had created. She formed the dust into a circular shape and levitated a small length of string towards it, sticking one end inside. After that, she levitated the liquid around the dust and hardened it into a shell, leaving some of the string poking out.

“Ta-da!” she cheered. “Finished!”

“Wow,” Reed said, walking over and gingerly plucking the sphere out of the air. “If this works, it’ll be amazing.”

“It will,” Cam said confidently. “I’ve got the formula for flash-bangs down.”

“Have you ever considered doing something in chemistry or alchemy?” Reed asked softly. “You seem to have a talent for it.”

“I’m too young to be thinking about that stuff,” she said dismissively. “I’m only seven… but that might be a good idea.”

“It might,” I acknowledged.

“But now’s not the time for discussions about my future,” she said, enthusiasm springing into her voice. “Now’s the time for chucking explosives at dangerous foes.”

“Of course,” Tranquility said, rolling her eyes and folding her ears back against her head.

“Is there a problem?” Cam asked.

“I’m just afraid,” she said softly. “What you’re about to do could provoke that creature to be even more hostile than it already is. I’ve been through what it does… and I don’t want it to happen again, much less to you.”

“Oh,” she said, her enthusiasm wilting somewhat.

“If I recall, I said something similar earlier,” Tranquility remarked.

“But I was in the zone then,” Cam protested. “I was focused on the task at hand, and you couldn’t really reach me.”

“It doesn’t matter now,” Reed said. “The question is whether or not we go through with the plan.”

“I still wanna do it,” Cam quickly said, prompting an exasperated sigh from Tranquility. “I just made the thing. Why let it go to waste? And isn’t it best to explore all options before going to a last resort?”

“But the last resort is the safest option,” Tranquility protested. “I don’t think you understand-”

“Where’s the fun in taking the safest route?” Cam asked softly, a playful smile spreading across her lips.

Shutting her eyes, Tranquility took a deep breath and let it out slowly, a grimace taking up residence on her face. “I suppose if you’re so fixated on doing this stupidity, I can’t stop you,” she whispered. “But don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

Reed stepped up next to her and placed a paw on her back. “How about I do it?” he suggested softly.

Instantly, the argument ground to a halt. Tranquility’s eyes shot open in shock, and mine widened slightly. He was suggesting putting his life on the line to follow through with Cam’s idea, while keeping her out of danger! It was a move that I would expect a parent to pull, but certainly not Reed.

“Why?” Tranquility asked.

“It keeps Cam out of harm’s way,” he said. “I’ve also got more fighting experience than her.” He leaned closer to us, his voice lowering to a whisper. “And it’ll help placate my soul.” Without any explanation for that remark, he stood upright and directed his gaze towards Cam. “Could I please have the explosive?”

“What?” she gasped. “But I-”

“Don’t want to end up in the same state that I was in,” Tranquility interrupted sternly. “Cam, you don’t understand exactly how bad that was. I know you think you know everything, but you only got a taste of what that thing can do. This is a time where you need to defer to what the adults think is best.”

Cam leveled a glare at her, which she returned with equal force. The two stared at each other in tense silence for a few seconds before Cam broke their eye contact. “Fine…” she muttered, dropping her gaze to the floor and levitating the bomb towards Reed.

“That’s all I asked for,” Tranquility said soothingly, extending a wing and sweeping her into a tight embrace. She didn’t respond, though, continuing to glare at the floor. Tranquility’s face morphed into one of concern.

I nuzzled her head, subtly planting a kiss on her cheek. “She’s just disappointed,” I whispered, a blush becoming visible on both of our faces. “You did the right thing.”

“I know,” she whispered back. “But I really don’t like seeing her like this, for some reason.”

Before I could respond, Reed sat down next to us. “How does this work?” he asked, holding the flash-bang out in front of him.

“Light the fuse,” Cam grumbled. “I’ve treated it with a spell that’ll make it burn with no visible flame. You’ll have five seconds to throw it before it explodes.”

“Thanks,” he said. “And how do I get out of here?”

She flashed out a paw, and a wooden archway appeared in the corridor. It had a swirling, borderline black void in its center. “Door’s right there,” she mumbled. “Walk out or toss it through, I don’t care.”

“Okay,” Reed said. “Thanks again… and I’m sorry that you can’t do this.” When she didn’t respond, he sighed and stood up. “Fall, Tranquility, I’d suggest getting away from the archway, just in case something goes wrong.”

“We will,” Tranquility said, wrapping a hoof around Cam and standing up. I climbed to my hooves as well, and we walked about twenty feet away from the portal. With every step I took, a sense of trepidation began to build in my heart. We had no idea if this would work, and it could very well get us killed, or worse, thrown into that catatonic, depressed state. So, when Reed stepped up the portal and sparked the fuse with his magic, a thrill of fear ran through me, and I pressed up against Tranquility.

Reed lobbed the flash-bang through the archway and immediately spun around, crouching down, closing his eyes, and covering his ears. I could almost hear a soft voice, seemingly saying One… Two… Three… When the count reached five, the archway flashed a brilliant, blinding white, and a muffled crack echoed through the dimension. I fancied I could feel the floor shift slightly as the force of the explosion washed over the box.

Cam let out a soft cheer as Reed straightened back up and poked his head through the archway. “It worked-” she crowed, but was cut short as Reed jerked back into view with a sharp gasp.

“By the Void!” he yelled, his jaw going slightly slack.

“What happened?!” Tranquility shouted, tensing up.

Reed opened his mouth as if he was going to respond, but words failed him. He stuttered for a few seconds before pointing at the archway shakily.

Curiosity got the better of me, and despite a startled protest from Tranquility, I sprinted towards the doorway. Before Reed could tell me not to, I shoved my head through, wanting to see what had shocked him so badly.

I saw pandemonium.

The creatures who were previously frozen were now scrambling around, shrieking, howling, screeching, and generally panicking as the massive eye tried to restore order, freezing them one by one. A group of Wolves were the recipients of this treatment at that moment, Wolves who I assumed to be the group of Warriors that Reed had told me about. They were trying to open a rift, but the monster wasn’t letting them, their frantic howls being silenced one by one as they were sent back into the state they had been in before. My mouth dropped open, the sheer chaos stunning me.

Strangely, the only creature who hadn’t moved an inch from where it stood before was the solitary Mage, Jasmine, who appeared to still be frozen.

Before I could register any more, I felt a strong yank on my tail, and I was pulled back inside the box, just in time to see Reed flash his arm through the portal and make a slashing motion. The walls, ceiling and floor of the room began shift and warp strangely, seemingly changing shape like something I would see in a funhouse mirror. A second later, a sharp, focused blow collided with the top of my head, causing me to yelp.

“Dae keihohro!” Tranquility screamed, sweeping me up in a tight embrace. “Don’t ever do something like that again!”

“No promises,” I muttered, rubbing my head and wincing.

“What happened?!” Cam yelled, scrambling up to us.

“Your flash-bang worked,” Reed said, sitting down heavily. “Not in the way you expected, though. I think the sudden sensory overload shocked the majority of those poor creatures out of their state, and the monster was so focused on re-freezing them that it couldn’t spare a thought towards us.”

“So we made it out?” she whispered, her eyes widening.

“Yes,” he said, making Cam let out a happy shriek. “I opened a rift and managed to push the box through. We did something no one else has ever done before: get out of Has’rou.”

“I knew it would work!” she shouted happily, a beaming grin on her face. “We kicked monster tushie!”

“Not really,” I muttered, but she didn’t hear me.

“Reed,” Tranquility said softly. “You said that the majority of the creatures woke up. Which ones didn’t?”

A shadow seemed to pass over his face, and he let out a sigh. “Just one,” he mumbled. “Jasmine.”

That dark, sad remark sorta killed the conversation.

After a few more seconds, the shifting in the walls and floor vanished. Reed silently stood up and poked his head through the archway. When he pulled it back through, he sighed in relief. “We made it,” he said. “We’re actually safe.” Without saying anything more, he stepped through the archway. Cam, Tranquility, and I followed a second after.

The first glimpse I got of this new dimension took my breath away. We appeared to be inside of something similar to the aurora borealis, with the entire landscape, including the air, being made of tiny, bright strands of light. When I stepped out of the box, the strands that seemed to make up the floor bent, but held my weight. A sense of wonder overtook me, and I sat down, taking in the beauty and surreal wonder of the world.

“Welcome to Quaa’st,” Reed said, smiling softly.

“It’s beautiful,” Tranquility whispered, sitting beside me.

“Yeah-” Cam began, but she was interrupted by something that sent a thrill of terrible, heart-wrenching terror through me.

A warping, twisting sound. The sound of a dimensional rift.

A black seam opened in the air behind Reed, but instead of seeing Ivy gracefully step out, a Mage dressed in a worn, black cloak tumbled out of it, collapsing into a heap on the ground. Cam scrambled in front of us, raising a shield, while Reed planted his feet in a defensive stance, but the Mage didn’t react. A few seconds later, he frowned, and his paw glowed softly. A barely visible aura swept over the Mage’s body, and a second later, his eyes widened in shock. “Oh my goodness!” he gasped. He lunged forward, falling onto his knees, and wrapped his arms around the Mage’s barrel, flipping her over.

I saw thick, matted tear streaks along the Mage’s face, and wide, tortured eyes. The bottom dropped out of my stomach, and Tranquility let out a soft gasp.

“It’s Jasmine!” Reed shouted, frantically looking back towards us. “Cam, get me some water, now!”

Cam shoved her paw inside her box instead of responding, withdrawing a ceramic jar and tossing it to him. His paw glowed once more, and he waved it over the pot. Immediately afterward, he popped off the top and upended it over Jasmine’s face, spilling the water all over her head.

Her body spasmed violently as she started to cough and splutter, flinging the water everywhere. I felt a few drops land on me, the wet patches chilling my skin through my fur. I felt Tranquility shiver next to me, and Cam let out a gasp. Reed, however, didn’t flinch, holding onto her body with worry in his eyes. After a few seconds, her coughing died down, and she let out a pained groan. “Ugh…” she grumbled softly, her voice hoarse. “That was really cold. Whoever did that s-sucks.”

“I may suck, but at least you’re out of that terrible state,” Reed responded, his voice a soft, soothing drawl.

Instantly, Jasmine’s eyes shot open, and she stared up into his eyes with a look of surprise. “Reed?” she whispered. “Is that you?” When he responded with a nod, she giggled. “You look older.”

“And I should,” he said. “It’s been six years since you went into that horrible place.”

“That long?” she gasped.

“Yeah,” Reed confirmed.

“Huh,” she mumbled, a perplexed look spreading over her face. “Didn’t f-feel like it.”

“How so?” he asked. “If you don’t mind answering.”

“It was like time simply stopped moving forward as soon as that abomination froze me up,” Jasmine mumbled, squeezing her eyes shut and shuddering. “It felt like the m-moment lasted forever… but at the same time, not even a second. An eternity crammed i-into nothing, if that makes sense at all. And during all of it, terrible m-memories and horrible emotions were running through my mind… When I was shocked out of that state, I remained frozen until I was sure that the eye wasn’t focused on me, found out where you had gone, and then I created a rift. It still managed to get me as I fell through, though...”

A sense of horror and shock spread over me. What we would have gone through became brutally apparent to me, along with exactly how narrowly we’d dodged that fate. I could tell Tranquility was being affected as well, and Cam’s face had turned a pale white.

This poor Mage had gone through it all for six years… and was still sane. She was strong, stronger than I could ever hope to be, and that made a strong feeling of respect and even awe grow in me.

“I’m so sorry,” Reed whispered. “At least that explains why you don’t look like you’ve aged a day.”

“It’s fine, and thanks,” Jasmine said, pulling herself up into a sitting position and leaning her back against his chest. “So, six years, huh? What’d I miss?”

“A bunch,” Reed said. “I’ll stick with the important stuff. Hawkeye resolved the feud between the cities of Nirvana and Haven, Jackson’s dead, Cypress got himself a girl, Jay’s started spending more time with Willow than Ivy and has started to reject his mother’s beliefs, we discovered another nonmatter dimension, Redwood is dead, and as a result, Ivy’s become even more of a power-hungry shrew than before, and Ash is still a dick. That’s basically the gist of it.”

“That good, huh?” she muttered softly.

“Yep,” he confirmed.

“Grand…” she mumbled darkly. “What about you? Did something happen in your life, or were you just boring?”

“I happened,” Cam interjected, walking over to them on all fours.

Jasmine jumped slightly and looked over to her. “Hi there,” she said soothingly. “What’s your name?”

“I’m Cam!” she said cheerily, hopping up into her lap.

She looked up at Reed. “Is she yours?” she asked. “Who’s the mother?”

A few seconds of silence passed, and Reed’s face burst into a scarlet-red blush. “What?!” he gasped. “No! No no no! I don’t have a new mate. That’s not what she meant!” Cam started laughing, and I had to stifle a chuckle.

“Really?” Jasmine asked. “What did she mean, then?”

“It’s a bit of a long story,” Reed said, his gaze falling to the floor. “And it’s one you won’t necessarily like.”

“Ka airote,” Tranquility muttered softly, her voice barely loud enough for me to hear.

Unfortunately, it was still too loud.

Jasmine’s head jerked towards us and zeroed in on Tranquility with startling accuracy. “Reed,” she whispered softly. “There’s two creatures there. They appear intelligent and they see us.”

“I know,” he said softly, wrapping his arms around her gently.

“Well, we have to do what’s necessary,” she sighed, a shadow of sadness flickering over her eyes. A spike of fear ran through my mind, and I shrank back from her. “I’ll get the one with the slitted eyes.” Tranquility’s eyes narrowed slightly at that remark.

“Actually…” Reed began softly. “I’d prefer it if we didn’t.”

“Has the law changed?” she asked softly, hope springing into her eyes.

Reed didn’t answer for a moment, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath. “No,” he whispered. “It hasn’t.”

“Well, that settles it,” Jasmine stated matter-of-factly. “We have to do this. Look, I understand that you don’t like it, and neither do I…” she shuddered softly. “I really, really don’t like it. But that’s how life is sometimes.”

“And sometimes, you have to break the rules,” Reed said. “Killing them isn’t right.”

“But the law says-” Jasmine started.

“Just because it’s law doesn’t mean it’s the right thing to do…” Cam mumbled softly, interrupting her. “I’d know that for sure.”

With each successive statement, Tranquility and I edged further and further away, fear pounding in our hearts. We didn’t want to make any sudden moves, but I still wanted to get as far away from her. The two of us were thinking the same thing: I don’t want to die, not after what just happened. We’d just escaped from Has’rou, something we thought was impossible, and we had started to deepen our relationship. We had a new start. We didn’t want that taken away.

Jasmine let her mouth hang open for a moment before closing it and swallowing nervously. “It doesn’t matter if it’s right or not,” she said softly, pain evident in her voice. I actually felt a stab of sympathy for her, even though she was fighting to kill us. “I know that it’s wrong. My time in that terrible place showed me that. Visions of all the innocent creatures I’d killed ran through my mind in there. It was part of why I was broken so easily. I’m not some heartless monster. I’d very much like to let those two live… but the fact of the matter is that the consequences will be very real if I spare them.”

“What consequences are there?” I asked softly, still moving away from her.

“If the Alpha deems it appropriate, he’ll take my life,” she answered sadly, causing me to gasp. “You’re asking me to choose between my future or yours.”

“There’s a third option,” Tranquility said. “Don’t go back. Stay with us.”

“And leave the Wolves without me?” she said bitterly. “I’ve been blessed to have this gift, the gift of magic. I’m going to use it to help the Wolves as much as I can. I’m sorry, but I have to do this. It pains me… your speech proves that you’re intelligent and aware. It’ll be like killing an equal.”

“It won’t be like that,” Reed growled. “It will be that. I’ve realized the error of my ways. You say you have as well, but you’re still going to kill them. If I have to, I’m going to protect them from you.”

Jasmine didn’t respond for some time, closing her eyes. “Do you really want to fight me?” she whispered softly.

“No,” he responded. “I don’t. But as you said yourself, sometimes we’ve got to do things we don’t want to do.”

“Six years can change a lot, can’t it,” she mumbled sadly.

“It can,” Reed affirmed.

“So be it,” she murmured. Placing her arms on Reed’s she started to strain against his embrace. “Let me go,” she whispered.

“No,” he said softly.

Jasmine’s eyes slid open, and I was overcome with a sensation of impending danger. Cam squeaked and jumped away from the two, scrambling over to us as fast as she could. Tranquility swept her close to her with a wing, and the three of us drew a little closer together.

“Reed,” Jasmine said softly, “you’re going to let me go. Now.”

Shutting his eyes, Reed began to grimace, beads of sweat appearing on his forehead. “Maybe we don’t need to do that right now, okay-”

He was interrupted by the sound of reality splitting.

A horrible, unearthly screech tore through the air, the sound making me scream. Reed and Jasmine sprung apart and planted their feet in identical defensive positions, both of them frantically looking around. I had just enough time to realize that neither of them caused it before another sound smashed into my eardrums.

A terrible, horrible, ripping sound washed through the light around us. Tranquility’s mouth fell open, and she pointed up at the sky. I looked up and gasped

A wave of horror ripped through me as I saw a massive reddish-orange seam split open in the sky above us.

Author's Note

Late chapter is late. I'm sorry about that. Life became hectic these past few weeks. It was just a rollercoaster of ups and downs... kinda like this story! But just like the last super late chapter... it's long. And boy, did it need to be.

A bunch went down. Fality is now official, they escaped from Has'rou, and a new doggo appeared. A lawful doggo. This is gonna be interesting.

And of course, something completely new appeared. Something scary. Something that you won't find out about until the next chapter! A maniacal laugh sounds. I'm evil and I love it.

Thestral Language Guide

Could you tell me how well I pulled this off, or just leave a comment in general? I love getting them, and I try to respond as quickly as possible.

As always, thanks for reading!

~Pyrepinna