“Confront them how, huh?” Arix asked.

  “Talk to them. And ask why they did it,” Tarin answered.

  “They did it because the Nyctona did the same to them. What is there to ask?” Arix said.

  “Revenge is not wrong. We all seek revenge. But in the process, killing the innocent who has nothing to do with your revenge is wrong,” Tarin answered.

  “Say this to them. Not to me.”

  “I will. By killing each other, they will never end the cycle,” Tarin said.

  There was a long silence around them. Many crows had gathered and were picking at the bodies. The smell of blood filled the air.

  “We can at least try to talk to them. We can’t achieve anything by just sitting here,” Tarin broke the silence.

  After a while, Arix stood up.

  “Let’s go,” he said as he walked forward. The group followed him into the forest.

  “Does anyone know the path out of the forest?” Lyra asked, looking all around her.

  Meilie shook her head.

  “We have to find it,” Tarin said.

  “And fast. It’s getting dark,” Arix added.

  "Listen for any river. That is our way," Arix said.

  Soon the sun started setting. The foul smell of blood was behind them now. The howling of various creatures echoed around them, with crickets chirping in the dark.

  Snow began to fall in the forest, not like on Everfrost Mountain, but slowly all the same. Winter was here. Arix and the group took out their coats and wore them to protect themselves from the snow.

  The wind was blowing, and the forest was covered in fog. A wintry mist slowly spread through the forest, and it was getting hard to see.

  Arix could still see some crows in the air before the darkness completely swallowed them.

  “Maybe we should rest for the night?” Arix suggested.

  “No. This place doesn’t feel safe. We have to move through the night,” Tarin said, looking all around.

  The sounds of creatures were getting louder as the night deepened.

  "How are we going to find a river with all this noise?" Lyra pressed closer to Meilie. She was getting nervous from all the sounds.

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  "It's a river, Lyra. We would clearly hear it if it were close," Tarin said, turning to her.

  Arix slightly shook his head and moved forward.

  The forest paths were the same all around. They had been walking for a few hours but couldn’t find the way out.

  “The path is not ending,” Arix said, gasping for breath.

  They were tired, but still moved on. Arix had already seen many eyes on them from the forest. They were all around them. Many creatures were waiting for one wrong move so they could attack.

  “Don’t stop. Keep moving,” Tarin said with the greatsword in his hand.

  Lyra was walking in the middle, with Meilie to her left, also holding her staff.

  “I think we are close,” Tarin said, then stopped, because Arix in front of him had stopped too.

  Arix took out his sword and faced the darkness. Only when Tarin got a closer look did he see a few four-legged creatures standing in front of Arix.

  They had grey fur. Their eyes were glowing in the dark, and they were in a group of four.

  “What are they?” Lyra asked, getting closer to Arix with her needle.

  “Wolves,” Arix answered. "Bromgar mentioned that these forests have many wolves. I guess we found them."

  Arix was about to explain more, but one of the wolves howled into the sky, interrupting his speech.

  As soon as the other three wolves heard the howl, they ran toward the group, snarling and barking.

  Tarin raised his sword, and as soon as one of them got near him, he swung it with great force. The wolf fell to the ground with a sharp yelp.

  One attacked Arix. It jumped at him, opening its mouth to bite. Arix dodged the attack and kicked the wolf in its stomach, making it fly for a moment before crashing into a tree.

  Another wolf attacked Lyra, but before she could react, a gust of spinning wind came toward the wolf and slammed into it, sending it flying into yet another tree.

  Lyra looked behind at Meilie, who was pointing her staff at the wolf. “Did you make that tornado-like thing?” Lyra asked.

  Meilie nodded.

  “Wow, that was amazing.” Lyra forgot that she was afraid of the forest as her face lit up.

  There was only one wolf left in front of them. It was snarling at the group. Arix and Tarin stood before it with their weapons ready.

  The wolf kept snarling at them for a while before releasing a long, hollow howl and fleeing from the scene.

  Tarin and Arix relaxed their bodies and put their weapons away.

  They took a deep breath before moving forward.

  Not long after, they heard the river. Their expressions changed. Their faces finally lit up after a long night of tension and sorrow.

  They quickly went toward the sound and finally found the river. There was a bridge over it, the same one they had crossed before. They crossed it once again.

  “Do you know the way from here?” Arix asked.

  “Yes. Follow me,” Tarin said as he started leading the way.

  The group followed him.

  When the sun was about to rise again, the howling around them stopped. The birds started chirping in the air, and the golden rays fell on their skin as they found themselves out of the forest.

  There were mountains in front of them. Snow covered the ground where they were standing, gasping for breath.

  The snowfall stopped too, but the cold wind still blew.

  “I am tired. I want to sleep,” Lyra dragged her words.

  "We can't sleep just yet. First, we have to talk to Bromgar," Arix answered.

  “What if they don’t listen to us and say that they will keep killing each other?” Lyra asked.

  “Then we will fight. Killing the innocent is wrong, and they did wrong,” Arix said.

  “Fight who? All of them?” Lyra asked again.

  “Yes. All of them,” Arix said, looking ahead.