‘How are you doing that?’ Felix asked Peri after stumbling for the umpteenth time.

  The illuminator barely provided enough light to keep them from falling as they tripped and stumbled their way through the woods. Of course, this was only a problem for mere mortals such as Vivian and Felix. Peri, on the other hand, almost seemed to glide through the woods, as if his feet weren’t bound to the ground like theirs. He didn’t so much as misstep even once.

  ‘Training,’ Peri replied shortly.

  ‘When?’ Vivian grabbed a hold of a low-lying branch to keep herself from falling. ‘You don’t leave the house unless threatened with bodily harm by Sith. And even then, I usually have to drag you out myself.’

  Peri simply shrugged. ‘Some mysteries are best kept a mystery.’ Peri peered ahead into the darkness. ‘How much further runt?’

  ‘I’m not a runt. I’m average height for my age,’ Vivian grumbled under her breath. She stopped for a moment to concentrate on the whisper of voices that were always in the back of her mind. ‘The druscans say it’s just up ahead. There’s a clearing up ahead with a cave in the cliffside. That’s where it’s hiding.’

  Together they made their way through the woods till they reached the clearing, Vivian being extra careful to duck down low beneath the overhanging branches so as to not accidently hit the cat sitting on her head. The cliffside loomed tall and daunting in front of them, an unforgiving wall of solid rock. Vivian gaze snapped to the small cave at the bottom of the wall; it’s opening almost completely hidden with hanging vines.

  ‘There,’ she pointed out. ’That’s where it is.’

  ‘Alright then.’ Peri folded his arms across his chest. ‘Let’s see what you’ve got.’

  ‘Vivian and Felix exchanged confused looks. Vivian pointed at herself. ’Me?’

  ‘Both of you.’ Peri leaned back against a boulder. ‘What’s your plan?’

  ‘You... aren’t going to help?’ Felix asked slowly. ‘I thought that’s why you came.’

  ‘Nah, I’m just here in case that Remnant shows up. The wolf is your problem.’ Peri raised an eyebrow in question. ‘I’m assuming that you have a plan.’

  Felix scoffed. ‘Of course we do. We’re not that stupid. Just wait here. We’ll be back with that wolf.’

  Felix marched off towards the cave with Vivian following close behind but stopped just outside of Peri’s hearing. He turned towards her. ‘So, what’s the plan?’

  ‘What?! You just said you had a plan!’

  ‘No, I said we. I just didn’t want to admit in front of Peri that I didn’t think of anything.’

  ‘Then you better think fast.’ Vivian yanked open her bag and pulled out the rope and the meat bits she had packed. ‘Because mine’s pretty simple really.’

  ‘Alright, alright.’ Felix ran a hand through his hair. ‘Let’s go over what we do know. We know that stygian wolves are creatures of the shadow element. Which means,’ He glanced up at the moonless sky and groaned. ‘Tonight is the perfect night for it to use its powers.’ His shoulders slumped. ‘We really need to start thinking things through. It’ll be even harder to spot now.’

  Vivian’s memory flashed back to the auction, to what Savant had said as he presented the wolf to the crowd. ‘I remember that his roar is silent but deadly. It caused a rampage back at the auction. Something about it drives the creatures nearby into a frenzy.’ Another memory clicked in her mind. She reached up and lifted Ebion off her head to hold him in her arms. ‘I also remember that it was deathly scared of Ebion.’

  ‘Now that could be useful.’ Felix reached out and scratched Ebion behind the ears. ‘We could send him in there to chase it out, and we can lay a trap for it out here.’

  ‘But how do we see it? Can’t trap it if we can’t see it.’

  ‘If there’s no moon, then we just have to make our own light.’ Felix glanced down at the illuminator in his hands. ‘But this won’t do. Us holding it will only allow the wolf to see us and placing it on the ground will only light up a small patch of area. Again, something it can easily avoid.’ Felix bit his lip in thought for a moment before his gaze snapped to Vivian. ‘Wait, you can do it! That thing you do. That could work!’

  ‘Yes, the thing. The thing I can do.’ Vivian rolled her eyes. ‘I understand everything.’

  ‘I meant those glowing threads that you pulled out of thin air. Remember, back at Madame Jeanne’s when we were going to throw fists at Kennith and Quinter. It’ll give us an evenly dispersed light for a larger area.’ Felix grinned in excitement. ‘If we could cover this clearing with that, it would give us enough space to spot the wolf when it comes out and capture it before it escapes into the woods.’

  Vivian thought it over for a moment before shrugging. ‘Sounds as a good a plan as any, I suppose. I don’t have any better ideas.’ She pulled the rope tight and quickly tied it into a noose that could be tightened by pulling at one end of the rope. ‘But first thing we need to do is close its maw. We cannot let it call other creatures for help.’ She inspected the knot to make sure it was tied correctly. ‘I can do that. I used to help my brothers hunt for rabbits using this. Though usually we just set the trap and waited.’

  ‘Excellent!’ Felix rubbed his hands together. ‘Looks like we have a plan.’

  ‘Don’t get so excited. Let’s see if it works first.’

  The meat that Vivian had brought to lure out the wolf was now used to bribe Ebion. The cat was very reluctant to leave his perch on her head, but with a few promises of bigger portions of meat in the future and a lot of coaxing they were able to get him down. He confidently swaggered towards the cave as if he owned the entire forest and was here to evict a tenant.

  ‘You know, sometimes it’s scary how well that cat understands humans,’ Felix commented as they moved to both sides of the cave mouth.

  ‘Well, at least you don’t have to live with him.’ Vivian flattened herself against the rock wall, the noose held dangling from her hand. ‘Imagine waking up to a face that questions your intelligence every morning.’

  ‘I think that’s all cats in general,’ Felix remarked.

  Vivian snorted then turned her attention to the clearing before her. She tried to remember how it felt when she last drew on her power, the feeling of heat coursing through her veins. She remembered how it felt to draw power into her from the world around her, only this time she tried to staunch the flow, reducing it down to a trickle. She opened her eyes to a forest that was no longer shrouded in darkness but instead covered in golden gossamer threads of light that were sluggishly moving towards her, chasing away the shadows of the night.

  Felix reached out to touch one of the threads, but his hand simply passed through it, causing it to dissipate. ‘I don’t think your magic likes me. It’s avoiding me like my cousin Jenny.’

  ‘Is there anyone in your family that doesn’t hate you?’

  ‘A conversation for another time.’ Felix turned his attention back to the cave. ‘Get ready.’

  A terrified yowl interrupted their whispered conversation. The stygian wolf had met Ebion. An understandable reaction. Vivian heard scuffling inside, followed by hurried paw steps towards the mouth of the cave. She gripped the rope tightly.

  A streak of pure black shot out of the cave, visible only due to the golden threads hanging in the air. It made a beeline for the shelter of the trees. Vivian shot out just as it passed her, tackling the wolf to the ground and fastening the noose around its maw in one movement. She pulled the rope tight, closing its mouth and keeping it from calling for help. The wolf squirmed and struggled under her, temporarily possessing the strength of a lion as it tried to wriggle its way out from under her. Felix jumped into the fray and quickly tied its legs together, careful not to pull the binds too tight. Once it was completely immobilised, the two of them stepped back to admire their handiwork.

  Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

  ‘We did it!’ Felix exclaimed. ‘And with no help from Peri over there. Take that!’

  ‘It looks very agitated,’ Vivian pointed out. ‘How are we going to take it back?’

  ‘Ah.’ Felix rubbed the back of his neck. ‘We should’ve brought a sack or something. Any ideas?’

  Vivian shrugged. ‘Maybe it’ll calm down in a while?’

  The stygian wolf suddenly seemed to struggle even more, as if determined to prove her wrong. Its gaze was fixed behind them though. Vivian turned around to see Ebion strutting out of the cave with his tail held high without so much as a single hair out of place. He approached the struggling wolf and climbed atop it, with one paw right on its cheek, causing it to go completely still. He let out a soft purr.

  ‘Is it just me or does your cat behave like a thug sometimes?’ Felix asked wryly.

  Vivian snorted again. ‘Sometimes?’ She turned back to the now subdued wolf. ‘Well, at least he got it to calm down.’

  The sound of soft footsteps on grass made them turn around to see Peri approaching them, his hands in his pockets, looking utterly relaxed in a way that just rubbed Vivian the wrong way.

  ‘I see you somehow managed to catch it.’ Peri stopped next to the tied-up wolf, looking down at the cat sitting on top of it. ‘Though it seems like Ebion here did most of the work.’

  ‘It worked, didn’t it?’ Felix said defensively. ‘And it was my plan to use the cat.’

  ‘Yes, a plan you just came up with just now.’ Peri knelt down and scratched the wolf behind the ears. It seemed to relax a bit, some of the tension in its body leaking away, as if it was starting to understand that they weren’t here to kill it. Felix made a sound of protest at the accusation. Peri simply looked up at him with a deadpan stare. ‘Thought I wouldn’t notice? You didn’t even plan on bringing Ebion along in the first place.’

  Felix huffed and crossed his arms. ‘Alright fine! It was a spur of the moment idea. But it still worked!’

  Peri got to his feet. ‘Spur of the moment ideas are for unpredictable situations or sudden developments in the middle of a crisis, not for scenarios that one is aware will happen in the future.’ He dusted off the grass stains on his knees. ‘In other words, think before you jump.’

  Vivian placed a hand on Felix’s shoulder when the latter opened his mouth to argue back. She shook her head and instead turned their attention back to the wolf.

  ‘Let’s untie it. Ebion will keep him under control. We should-’

  Peri suddenly tensed. He seemed to hold his breath for a moment, his eyes scanning their surroundings. Then without any warning he pulled out an iron dagger and sliced down at Vivian...

  ... just in time to cut through a lightning bolt headed straight for her, dispersing it before it could strike its target. It all happened in flash. Vivian barely had time to yelp before she was pushed behind Peri, his sword already drawn and the dagger gripped tightly in his off hand.

  ‘Stay behind me.’ His voice was low, controlled, his gaze fixed on a singular spot in between the trees. ‘Keep the light going.’

  Vivian had let go of her control on the threads of light once they had managed to tie up the wolf. She concentrated on them once again, causing the fading threads to blaze back into existence. The light spread through the edges of the treeline, falling on a pair of boots that took one step forward, and then another, and then another until its owner was standing inside the clearing. The threads illuminated a very familiar face, one that she had hoped she wouldn’t be seeing anytime soon.

  The Remnant had his sharp gaze locked on her, making him even more frightening than the last time they met, if that was even possible.

  ‘We meet again.’ Lightning crackled in his hands as he took a step sideways, like a vulture circling its prey. Peri adjusted his stance accordingly, also walking sideways in a tight circle, making sure to place himself between the Remnant and the children.

  ‘Yes, what a joyous occasion.’ Vivian’s mouth never really did cooperate with her when she was afraid. ‘How about we put down the weapons and magic and hug it out?’

  She was ignored. Instead, the Remnant gestured at the threads hanging in the air. ‘Is this your handiwork?’

  ‘We’re not answering that,’ Peri replied shortly. ‘Turn around and walk away. Now. This doesn’t have to get ugly.’

  The Remnant stopped pacing. ‘But that’s exactly why I came here.’ He grinned. ‘To make things ugly.’

  Peri’s dagger was moving before the man even finished talking, slicing through the air once more to cut through another lightning bolt. He leapt forward to close the distance between them, all the while making sure to block Vivian and Felix from the Remnant’s line of sight with his own body. The Remnant, on the other hand, switched tactics, aiming his lightning strikes at Peri’s feet, causing him to step back or sideways as his dagger wouldn’t be able to reach down to cut through them. The lightning blasted the ground, ripping through the earth and burning the grass. Tendrils of smoke rose up where the lightning struck the ground. It was a fire hazard just waiting to happen.

  ‘They’re going to set the whole forest on fire at this rate,’ Felix hissed.

  ‘Wouldn’t be the first time it was on fire,’ Vivian commented absentmindedly, her eyes fixed on Peri and the Remnant’s deadly dance. She had drawn her dagger, but she doubted she’d have a chance to use it. Something odd was scratching at the back of her mind. It took her a moment to put her finger on it. ‘Wait, how did he get here? Why didn’t the druscans stop him?’

  She didn’t wait for Felix’s answer. She rushed forward and placed her hand on the nearest druscan.

  Absolute silence.

  ‘I can’t hear them.’ She stepped to the side and placed her hand on the next one. ‘None of them. They’re all quiet.’

  Felix had joined her, moving backwards with his eyes fixed on the duelling duo. The Remnant had also drawn his sword now that Peri had managed to close the distance. Lightning crackled in his left hand, kept at bay by Peri’s dagger.

  Felix’s bow was in his hand with an arrow notched, ready to be shot. ‘Are they asleep?’ he asked, not even looking back at her.

  ‘I don’t think they do sleep.’ Vivian was leaning against a druscan, both hands splayed on its trunk. ‘But they aren’t dead, so maybe you’re right and they are asleep. There must be some way to get through to them.’

  Felix hissed as a lightning bolt came close to striking Peri, barely missing him by a couple of inches. Peri was forced to jump back to avoid it, and the Remnant took advantage of this to put some distance between them. ‘Well, we better figure it out. Peri looks like he could use some help.’

  ‘Wake up!’ Vivian kicked the nearest druscan. ‘Wake up! Wake up!’

  The commotion had temporarily drawn the attention of both Peri and the Remnant, their duel momentarily paused as their eyes flickered to the young girl kicking and yelling at a tree, and then back to each other.

  ‘I thought this the last time we met,’ the Remnant said. ‘But is that child suffering from a mental illness?’

  ‘We’re looking into it,’ Peri replied shortly, before leaping forward to try and close the distance between them once more. However, the Remnant matched his movements and moved backwards as well, and just like that they were back in their deadly dance.

  ‘Um, Vivian,’ Felix said hesitatingly. ‘Vivi, dear. How about we stop yelling at trees and do something to help instead?’

  Vivian finally turned away from the tree to refocus on the fight. ‘Like what?’

  Peri was struggling to get close enough to the mage to engage him direct combat. He dodged and side-stepped lightning bolts, the number and speed at which they came increasing by the minute. The Remnant didn’t even look fazed, shooting out lightning in waves, one after the other. The threads of light that hovered around him lit up the face under the hood, revealing a square jaw and a straight nose. His long black hair was tied in a ponytail, the ends floating as lightning course through his body. A maniacal grin stretched across his lips, turning a face that could’ve been considered handsome into something utterly terrifying. His brown eyes reflected the threads that hung around him, making him look even more eerie than he already was.

  Wait a minute! The threads!

  Vivian grabbed Felix’s arm. ‘If I can blind him, think you can shoot him?’

  Felix looked unconfident. ‘I can try.’

  ‘It doesn’t matter if you miss.’ Vivian pointed at Peri. ‘We just need to give him a chance to get in close, right?’

  Felix’s eyes widened in understanding. He nodded. ‘That could work.’ He notched his arrow again and planted one foot forward. ‘Alright, whenever you’re ready.’

  Vivian had to time this just right. Peri had to be far enough from the Remnant so that he wouldn’t end up getting completely blinded as well, but close enough to move in as soon as he was distracted. If she was being honest, she had no idea what would be the ideal distance for that, so she’d just have to trust her instincts on this one. Hopefully, she had some.

  The moment came.

  Peri had jumped back to avoid another lightning strike, putting a distance of about four paces between them. Four steps and Peri would be able to reach the mage. Vivian concentrated on the threads nearest to the Remnant, and imagined pushing the light of the other threads into those few.

  ‘PERI! CLOSE YOUR EYES!’ Vivian yelled, not even checking to see if he had done so.

  Energy gushed through the air as all the threads were pulled towards the Remnant, coagulating into a single, blinding mass right in front of his eyes, a tiny sun hanging in the air in front of him. The Remnant let out a yell as he covered his eyes in pain. As soon as his eyes closed, Vivian dissipated the light, allowing Peri to open his eyes.

  Felix didn’t miss a beat. He drew back his bow and let loose an arrow aimed straight at the man’s heart.

  They didn’t expect the arrow to hit… and they were right. Lightning jumped out from the man’s skin, seemingly acting on its own accord to protect its master. It met the arrow mid-air, disintegrating it into dust before it could even so much as scratch the mage. But it was enough. With the mage blinded and his lightning engaged by Felix's arrow, Peri was able to rush forward, covering those four paces in a flash. He moved behind the mage and slammed his dagger’s pommel right at the base of the mage’s spine. The mage collapsed on to his knees with a cry of pain and Peri’s sword found its place at his throat. His lightning immediately disappeared, leaving the air slightly charged and their hair standing on its ends.

  Vivian let out a breath she didn’t even realize she was holding. Next to her, Felix’s shoulders slumped in relief. They had won. Again.

  ‘Do you think this going to get to our heads?’ Vivian asked.

  ‘Well, if Peri and Sith are to be trusted, we are idiots,’ Felix replied. ‘So, most definitely.’

  Vivian shrugged. ‘Oh well. That’s a problem for the future. Now, let’s see what he has to say.’