"She hasn't moved for five days, do you think she'll just die in her sleep?"
A shuffle of movement, then a sigh. "I don't know Ivy, I'm not even sure if she's in a coma."

"After that amount of venom, it wouldn't surprise me."

There was a pause. "Do you think Acacia would get rid of her if she doesn't wake up soon?"

Another shuffle of movement. "Mother is curious about the girl, but I don't know how long she can remain curious before her impatience makes a rash decision."

A cleared throat. "Let's hope Chase's efforts were worth it. It would be a shame to see the girl die after all this."

"Where is Chase anyway? I've barely seen him ever since he brought the uni here."
"He rushed in here to blame me for the state of the training room, but in the five seconds he was here, he didn't even acknowledge the girl." There was a hint of infliction in the voice.

A second sigh. "Strange. I know he's never interested in uni's but its odd he didn't even check up on her considering he put in so much effort to save her."

A creak in the floor. "You'll never know with Chase."
There was a pause, then—"Look, she moved."

More silence followed by a snort. "Guess she's alive after all."
"I'll get mother."

The silence was even more daunting than reality.

June kept her eyes closed, relishing in the darkness. She knew she needed to wake up, move, flex her aching joints, but exhaustion still wrapped around her. She didn't know where she was, what she was surrounded with, who was present, but she did know she didn't belong here.

She peeled her eyes open, blinking at the light that assaulted her pupils. She groaned in an unattractive manner, reaching for her sheets. Silk brushed her fingers, settling around her as light as a feather.

When her eyes had adjusted to the light, she felt her heart pound in her chest. She was centred on a gigantic, cream bed. Lace curtains hung with butterflies surrounded the corners of the bed, tracing dull rainbows around the room. A bear hide was positioned at her bed's feet, melting into the carpet. Great, arching glass windows were placed on each corner of the room, covered with lacy curtains that had been drawn. A fireplace beckoned from opposite the bedframe, however it was not flames blooming from the shadows, but a tree. Its truck carved into the place where the fire would well, trailing great tendrils up the centrepiece to spread onto the roof. Chandeliers lathered in gold hung from the ceiling, nearly overgrown from the trees vines.

"Pretty nice place for an outdated castle don't you think," a dry voice sounded from the left. June flinched, turning her neck sharply to identify the voice. She was rewarded with a sharp pain down her spine from the movement.

Gritting her teeth, her eyes fell on the ginger haired boy. He was sitting on a bench hovering below the window, looking out of place against the pale green pillows that surrounded him. He had replaced his black costume with normal, fitting clothes. Dark jeans paired with a thin sweater.

June couldn't help but stare. Her throat was parched and her stomach rolled from starvation. She wasn't even sure if she could speak without her voice cracking.

The boy, sensing her discomfort, nodded towards a silver tray on a side table next to June's bed. "Ivy made that for you. I suggest you eat it now before it goes cold."

June obeyed, not even bothering to ask who Ivy was. She tried her best not to tear into one of the sandwiches like a hawk would, although it took a lot of effort not to. After June had swallowed down several mouthfuls and a cup of tea, the boy spoke again.

"You may not remember me, but I was there when the demons attacked you."

June momentarily forgot her sandwich as reality clicked into place. She studied the boy, curious to see he was doing the same. She wondered if he saw her as a threat, or nothing but a girl who needed saving. Either way, she wasn't entirely sure what the boy wanted from her.

June cleared her throat. "I know. You were with that other boy. The one with the copper eyes."
"Chase," the boy answered. "My sister Ivy was there too, but you were probably too caught up in the demons attacking you to remember her."

June wasn't sure if he was joking, so she chose to fill the silence by biting into the last bits of her sandwich. "You're name is Lester," she said after some time.

He seemed to flinch away from the name, his pupils darkening. "I'm Lee to you."

June swallowed, dropping her gaze away from his to focus on the sheets. After more silence, she reverted her attention back to him. She was slightly uneasy when she found his piercing green eyes still remained on her.

"Am I in Hendra?" she asked, hoping her memory was right. She swore Chase had mentioned the name when they were arguing whether or not to leave her to die. June felt an irrational sense of anger despite herself. They were willing to let her die without so much as a second thought.

"Yes, The Aviary to be precise," Lee said. He gestured to the room, nodding towards the tree in the fireplace. "Ignore the inconvenient nature pieces in this place. You will get used to them."

As June stared at him, she saw a flash of colour under his jawline. Two single bars ran vertical next to each other, as small as a fly. She wondered what it meant. Chase had a single circle instead of the bars, just like her mother.

"Why am I here?" June asked, hoping the straightforward answer would be answered in the same tone. Lee didn't seem like someone to beat around the bush. None of them did really.

Lee blinked slowly, taking her in. "You should ask Chase that, not me. He was the one who went back for you."

June's eyes narrowed. "Why?"

Lee shrugged, the movement flowing through him effortlessly. "Your guess is as good as mine."

"So the girl lives," came a voice. June turned to face the doorway where the slender girl stood, her silvery hair falling in one braided trial. So this is Lee's sister. She could see the resemblance in the way they held themselves, chin up, shoulders curved, eyes slitted.

"Thank you for saving me," June turned to Lee. "Both of you."

Ivy snorted; a noise that sounded rather unladylike coming from her. "Don't thank us. We were going to leave you to die a pretty gruesome death."

June frowned, not quite sure how to address Ivy's truth.

Ivy regarded her brother, arching a dark brow. "Mother wants to see her."

Lee matched her expression. "So soon?"

Ivy shrugged. "I guess she wants to see if it's worth keeping her here."

June, as if not even in the room, cleared her throat. "Why does your mother want to speak with me?"

Ivy and Lee exchanged looks. Lee was the one who spoke. "She wants to know if you're one of us. If you are, further requirements are needed. If you aren't," he paused before continuing, "we will need to erase your memory. Your knowledge of us is too risky."

June stared, incredulous. "You're going to wipe my memory?"
Ivy shot her brother an annoyed look. "Why would you tell her that? It's easier for all of us if she is kept in the unknown."

Lee shrugged again, pulling his knees to his chest to wrap his arms around them in a careless manner. "It's better if she knows the truth."
"And what is the truth?" June spoke up, earning two lots of narrowed eyes to focus on her. She ignored them to flick between the siblings. "I know I'm nowhere near my home. I know those things that tried to kill me are some sort of hellish demon things and I know you lot think I'm part of your weird cult."

There was a moment of silence before both Lee and Ivy erupted into laughter. June felt her cheeks flush, feeling stupid as she watched them share looks of amusement.

Lee, regaining his composure, flashed June a weary smile. "We are not a cult my dear. But I'm sure Acacia will explain everything to you if need be."

June, still overwhelmed with embarrassment, fell back into silence.

Ivy glanced at her, clearly taking her in. With a quick look at her brother, she nodded towards June. "You better speak with Acacia. She's waiting for you in the library."

June felt her eyebrows furrow. "Am I supposed to know where that is?"

Ivy gave her a twisted smile. "You'll have to learn if you want to be one of us."
June was going to say, I don't want to be anything. I want to go home, but thought it would be too childish a statement in front of these strangers. She instead nodded and threw her sheets off her, only just noticing the white material that hung over her body.

"Where are my clothes?" she asked, alarm ringing off her voice.

"Incinerated. Demon essence destroys material like that," Ivy said in a tone that seemed like she was speaking to a child. June started to think she was one.

She instead shakily slid off her bed, slightly uncomfortable with the thin sheet that wrapped around her body almost like a toga. She knew if the sun shone in the right places, the entire gown would become see through.

As she unsteadily walked towards the door, June half expected Ivy and Lee to follow her. However, Ivy just stood to the side, tilting her lips in an almost grimace as June trailed past. June glanced behind her, feeling Lee's gaze burn a hole in her back before Ivy obnoxiously shut the glazed glass door behind June. Immediately, June was drowned with silence, although it didn't stop her from hearing Ivy's words through the door.

"Odd little thing isn't she?"

June swallowed, looking around. She was in a hallway it seemed, that flickered with shadows from flame light torches. Ivy clung to greyed bricks, dewy with moisture. She glanced down as her feet brushed red carpet. She wasn't sure what to think of the soft fabric. It seemed too feathery to be made from artificial materials. June felt herself frown. How was she supposed to find the library, let alone a single room in an entire castle?

Instead of pondering continuously, she advanced towards the left end of the hallway, staring at the paintings that hung along the narrow corridor. Portraits of kings, princes and queens stared back at her. She didn't recognise a single one.

Sometimes she would pass a shut door that looked exactly like hers, and often she caught herself wondering if she was walking in a circle. Soon, however, the torch lights competed with sunlight and the bricks walls fell away into wooden railings wrapped with vines. June found herself still walking along the carpeted hallway, however it was now working as a bridge between corridors. She paused, letting her eyes adjust to the sunlight that bled down from the roof. On the opposite end of the bridge was another corridor, most likely occupying chambers similar to Junes.

June narrowed her eyes and turned to place both her hands on the railings, shocked to find them immensely cool despite the warm environment.

Below her, metal clanged against metal. She realised, as she squinted to see the small ant like figures underneath the internal bridge she stood on, she must be several levels high. Shouts echoed from below, and the sound of objects tearing through paper rebounded throughout the castle. It took June a moment to realise the antlike figures were two men, both holding curved knives similar to Chase's in their hands. She stared, awestruck, as they seemed to dance around each other, occasionally taking a swipe before parrying back.

"I have to say, I am thoroughly surprised to see you alive little girl." June whirled, startled. Her eyes settled on the copper eyed boy who stood a few feet away, also leaning over the railing to inspect the men several metres below them.

June stared at him, it was all she seemed to be good at recently. The sunlight cast a single ray across his face, carving out the golden streaks in his hair. His lips were curved into a small smirk, although June noticed it didn't seem to reach his eyes.

His features could be defined as sharp. Pointed eyes, pointed gaze, pointed tongue. Sharp jawline, sharp cheek bones, sharp smile. He was as intimidating as a lion, but as carefree as a cat.

Feline, June concluded. He was feline.

"I have to thank you for that," June said, unsure of how to address the boy. From Lee's and Ivy's perceptions, Chase's manor seemed unpredictable.

Chase sniggered. "After walking five kilometres dragging your unconscious corpse, I did consider tossing you into a river."

June couldn't help the sharp response leave her lips. "Charming."

She saw Chase's eyebrow arch at her response. He didn't turn to her, in fact, he didn't even look at her. He made a small, laughing noise in the back of his throat but made no other comment. His attention still remained on the figures below.

After some time dwelling in silence, he pointed towards the man with silver hair. "He has poor form. His muscles are too stiff, too interjoined. If a Imparital demon lunged at him now, he wouldn't be able to move."

June watched the man he had indicated. She tried to see what Chase was talking about, but the man's movements seemed effortless to her.

"And he isn't holding his blade correct," Chase pointed to the black haired man. "If he fell with it clutched in his hand, his knuckles would break. He needs to bring his hands lower down the hilt and spread his fingers for extra support."
June felt a confused look fall across her face. "Why are you telling me this?"

It was only after her question when he finally turned to meet her eyes. Under the light, his gaze was as amber as molten golden. "Like it or not, your one of us now. You need to learn the basics." June felt her tongue stick to the roof of her mouth. The basics? If specific placement of the hand was basics, what was thought to be difficult?

"How do you know I'm one of you? I don't even know who you are."

Chase's smile widened. "All in good time little girl. Now, where were you running off to," his eyes trailed down to her gown. "Especially wearing that."

June refused to acknowledge the way her cheeks burnt. "My name is not little girl, its June," she said. "And I was told to go see Acacia."
"June?" he repeated, ignoring the rest of her answer. He pondered on the name. "Pretty name. It matches your eyes."

June wasn't sure how to respond, instead she just nodded. Chase tapped a single finger against his waist belt, the sound echoing around the walls. "Well June," he drawled. "I was just about to visit Acacia myself. You can tag along if you like, I would just prefer if you kept your distance. I'm not personally a huge fan of uni's myself. If I'm seen with one it kinda' makes me look bad you know." His lips tilted into a playful smile, and June hastily concluded he must be joking. Hopefully.

She didn't know what a uni was, but by the way he said it with such joking spite, she assumed it was an insult.

Chase moved away from the railing, steadily walking towards the opposite corridor June had just came from. "You're probably wondering what this place is. To unifolk, this place is nothing but broken crumbles of a building that had rotted away. But to us, this is The Aviary."

June followed after him, trying to keep up with his long legged stride. "Why is it called that?"

Chase paused, a spark igniting in his eye. "I mean it's pretty obvious isn't it," he chuckled. "Just look up."
She obeyed, craning her head to stare towards the light. June instantly choked on her breath.

Bridges, similar to the one they were standing on now, zigzagged across the castle, disappearing back into walls. Some crossed under others, some curved above, some led to nowhere. Higher and higher they crawled, tilting towards the roof.

June expected a typical castle roof, nothing but a mass of brick or concrete. But this one was see through, thin sheets of glass doming to create tiny individual rainbows against the bridges. Hanging from the glass were vines, curling at the ends as they trailed downwards to where Chase and June stood. Occasionally, a thin shadow would streak past the glass. June squinted, trying to follow another shadow as it fluttered across one of the higher bridges.

"Birds," Chase said. "They come and go but most of them live in narrow divots in the bricks."

June watched as a white dove flew past them, streaking under a bridge to disappear into a corridor. She couldn't help the smile touch her lips. It was beautiful. Odd, unique, probably unhygienic, but beautiful.

Chase nodded towards the rooftop. "The Aviary has forty-seven floors. Most of us only settle for the first twenty but the better rooms are higher up." June tried to remember how many staircases she had gone down to access this bridge, and could only pin point one. Chase, as if sensing her thoughts, laughed. "Don't worry, you're on the eighth floor with Lee, Ivy and I." His eyebrows furrowed. "I assume they've introduced themselves."

"Yes, in their own individual ways," June grimaced, remembering Lee's green eyes on hers when she had woken up.

Chase laughed. "You must be referring to Lee. He can be quite intimidating."

I could say the same about you, June thought. She decided against it. By the sounds of it, Chase would probably glow at the thought she thought he was vaguely erratic.

"Are you related to him?" she asked. June had already picked up on the fact Lee and Ivy shared Acacia as their mother.

At this, Chase laughed. "With Lester? No, far from it actually. I moved here a few years back."
June didn't press the topic. He didn't make mention of where his parents were, and she wasn't going to push it. "Are there other people like you?" she tried instead.

"Many. The Aviary is just a branch off other facilities that train Soulchasers," he grinned, "pun intended." Chase began to move forward again. "These quarters are the ones closest to Canada, but there are others worldwide. Soulchasers range from Australia to Austria."

June felt her lips thin. "Soulchasers? What does that even mean?"

Chase spared her a quick glance. "I won't be surprised if Acacia gives you a three hour pep talk regarding our history, but I'll narrow it down so your tiny brain can cope." June flashed him a warning glare which he ignored. "Soulchasers are one of the mythical protectors of beings. Wildblood runs in our veins and strengthens us, giving us qualities that everyday folk like the uni's don't have. Typically, parents name their children after natural elements, although that is only often seen with females. Several centuries ago, females were seen as the healers of men, drawing off natural elements like tree sap, nectar and soils to heal the wounded. Over time, they harnessed energy from flora, drawing strength from the Earth to rid of illness," Chase said. "It wasn't long before the Keepers – the original healers – realised the illness' targeting mankind were not from their Earth. There are several elements across many planets, Soulchasers are only familiar with natural sources, but others draw on more sinister things. Demons are one of those creatures that draw on dark energy, using it to reproduce, spread and obtain strength. The demons initially appeared as ghastly creatures. They didn't bother hiding their true physic. Stupidly that made them an easy target, so the Keepers soon erased them from Earth.

Over the centuries, all seemed well. The Keepers grew in population and knowledge, taming normal human illness in the ways they had been taught over the centuries. The demons, however, also enhanced their IQ levels and through dark energy; learnt how to extract the souls from their prey," said Chase. "They altered their appearance and changed their thoughts and values, until the Keepers could no longer distinguish between human's and demons, and thus an inhumane illness grew out of hand.

The demons began to overpopulate, forcing the Keepers to go into hiding. They could no longer tame the illness that spread around the world. They sought other methods to eradicate the demons. Harnessing ancestral power, they built soul rings." June saw a flash of light and glanced sidewards to see Chase play with an iridescent ring on the ring finger of his left hand. It seemed to shimmer, reflecting aurora beams. June noticed the single circle that was tattooed under Chase's jaw was imprinted onto the ring.

"The soul ring, with its properties, connects to the heart of its wearer. It identifies them as an individual that chases innocent souls out of demons, or releases trapped souls by slaughtering the hosts. The ring itself can perform many tasks that aid us in everyday missions, like visibility for example. At the time, the Keepers were each given a ring. They drew off the strength that was carved into the iron, using its properties to build blades that erased demon traces and cuffs that linked demon limbs. And soon, the Keepers were known as the Soulchasers. Although the populations of demons did decrease after the Soulchasers dealt with them, it soon grew obvious that the demons could adapt their appearance to support the souls they had stolen. Demons disguised as fellow Soulchasers, learning their location, strengths, weaknesses, powers. The Soulchasers were torn, no longer able to trust each other. Even wearing their soulrings, members could not accurately tell if their colleagues were snatched souls, or normal. A last resort was made, just as the human population became riddled with demons.

Marks.

The demons had overpowered. No Soulchaser on Earth had an entirely pure soul. Except one.

Markus Zacharia managed to go into hiding before any demons had snatched any part of his soul. He worked on the soul ring, guided by natural elements and Wildblood. After centuries of vigorous research, he found a way to decipher whether a fellow Soulchaser was disguised as a demon, or was entirely pure.

Mythically, when a Soulchaser is first granted their soulring at the age of sixteen, a single Mark will appear at the base of their throat. A knout represents a pure soul. A single bar, or tally as unifolk like to say, symbolises the Soulchaser has had one section of their soul snatched. If a Soulchaser reaches the fifth tally, they are sent into exile. Too much of their soul has been stolen by demons and a demon may choose to use the soul to disguise as a Soulchaser. It's too dangerous for the rest of us."

June felt the beginnings of a headache pound behind her eyes. It was a lot to take in, even if Chase had narrowed the basics down to the minimum. "What do you mean disguise? A demon can just steal my appearance? Like become my clone?"
Chase shook his head. "It's not that simple. Every time a demon feasts on you, it can take a part of your soul. The part it may take could be something as simple as your hair colour, or something as specific as the sound of your voice. If one demon snatches your smile for example, another can use it. All demons share the same blood; therefore, they share the same souls. If a demon steals enough of your soul, it can entirely transform into you. Same looks, sounds, appearance, physic. It can even mimic the same values, attributes, fears and goals you have. Everything that is you, a demon can take."

June swallowed, tearing her eyes away from Chase to stare at anything else but him. She wondered, as Chase led her through a corridor, how many people she knew had parts of their soul stolen. "I assume they only take human souls," June said after careful consideration.

"No," Chase answered, surprising June. "They can take any, but unifolk are the easiest to steal. You guys are pretty stupid."

June frowned. "Unifolk?" she echoed, once again choosing to ignore his snide comment.

Chase nodded. "It's what we call humans."

"Aren't you partially human though?"

At this, Chase glared at her, a look of pure fury passing across his face. His lips angled into a piercing frown. "We are not unifolk. We are born with Wildblood and grow into the bloodline we are given." He threw June another salty look. "Do not ever compare me to the uni's ever again, do you understand?"
June arched an eyebrow. "Didn't you say your soulring gives you Soulchaser abilities? If you took it off, wouldn't you just be like the rest of us?"

Chase's eyebrow arched. "Now that my dear friend, is one of the most insulting things anyone has ever said to me."

Chase sunk into silence, however June could see the way a muscle in his jaw jumped. She wondered if she had actually hurt his pride. "No," he finally answered shortly. "Even without our soulrings we can still wield weapons that only those with Wildblood can operate. We are gifted with The Sight and we can still kick demon's ass in battle."
June cocked her head. "The Sight?"

Chase sighed exaggeratively. "You don't stop asking questions do you?"
June snorted. "It's kind of hard not to when one minute I was in a hidden club and the next I was being dragged away by a tattooed stranger while dying of demon venom."

Chase considered this for a moment then nodded. "True." He stopped suddenly, pausing to gaze at a painting. June barely managed to stop herself from running into him. Instead of paying her any regard, he nodded towards the oil painting.

June turned her attention to it, narrowing her eyes in the darkness. A woman dressed in white rose from a tree split by what seemed like a lightning strike. Her hair carved an arch around her, as white as the thin sheet that wrapped around her slim body. The curve of her breast and thighs rested against the gown she wore, similar to the one June was dressed in now, except the woman's had designed splattered onto the hems, shining a dull sapphire. She couldn't decipher the meaning of the symbols, but she was sure Chase knew their properties.

She leaned forward, examining the woman's face. She was young, but her milky white eyes shone with wisdom. Lilies twisted in her hair, looking off white in comparison to the woman's pure snowy curls.

"She's beautiful," June couldn't help but admit. The woman had her arms risen to her side, palm up, to face the sun. Roses bloomed from her hands, the red petals a perfect juxtaposition to the colourless oil painting.

"The first Keeper," Chase said. "She discovered how to harness natural energy decades ago. Without her, the Soulchasers would never have been born."

June gazed at the woman, trying to picture her many years back. She could imagine the woman's hands curl against a rose, lifting the plant from the ground with a certain grace only she could claim.

June turned to face Chase, surprised to see he was watching her steadily. "What was her name?"
Chase stared at June for a little longer than necessary. The corner of his lips tilted into almost a grimace. "Her name was June," he said. "Juniper Winterburrow."