Without looking back, Scarlet continued on her journey, leaving Silver behind as he tried to catch up. She didn't care that the map wasn't in her hands. It was a necessity to find her parents. But more important than that, she wanted her vision back. If walking thousands of miles was what it would take, her feet would gladly be sore in the process.

The sun was just starting to come up into the sky, blazing orange pouring through the wonderful blue. A grin appeared from ear-to-ear the minute she looked up, loving every moment that she could still see the beautiful sunrise. No matter how much she wanted to blame Silver for all the hours he made her stay back and get rest, all she could think about was whether or not she'd be able to see it rise tomorrow. They were closer, but not close enough. Most things around her were turning grey, but that was nothing different. Would her parents be at the volcano? She missed their smiling faces. If only she could tell them how much she loved them. The way her life turned at seventeen wasn't anywhere near what she expected, but there were so many things she could tell her parents and it might be too late now. But she'd push until she figured it out. Giving up wasn't an option.

Smoke danced through the air, the two of them coughing as they got closer to Pointed Peak. Her hands trembled while thinking of what might happen to achieve this clue. It was going to be all her because of the fire. There was no way Silver would get anywhere near a volcano.

"And this is why I can't stand this place." He coughed, covering his face with his hand. "How do you deal with it?"

"I ask myself the same question every time I see you jump in that water." She laughed. "I love fire. How can you not?"

He stared at her as if it was the dumbest question she had ever asked him. "Uh, cause it burns? You could literally blow my face off. All I can do is splash you." He paused, taking a deep breath. "Oh, and there's drowning. Guess we're equal."

"Exactly," she responded, smiling. From where they were standing, Scarlet saw lava at the very tip of the volcano. To her right, the red sign with 'Pointed Peak' in black letters told her that if they got any closer, she'd get to play with fire. She nudged Silver. "Come on! Let's go see if we can find the clue!"

Running past the sign, Scarlet stopped and watched as the smoke poured out bit by bit. She stared in awe at the tan volcano, part of her wondering what it would be like to get an even closer look at it. A step closer seemed like an eternity away from achieving what they needed to handle, but she wasn't that far from Pointed Peak.

"Woah." Silver pulled her arm back before she could get further. "Are you really just going to jump into this without having a plan?"

Scarlet sighed, shrugging. "What other choice do I have? My sight is disappearing and my parents are gone. This is all I have left. I have to do this."

"Your sight is fading? What do you mean? How come you didn't tell me?"

No matter how much she didn't want to explain it to Silver, she had to. Hopefully he wouldn't look at her differently if she never got her sight back. Being best friends all their life, she didn't think he would, but things could change even if she tried as hard as she could to stop it. A deep breath filled her lungs before it all spilled out in front of them. "The sunglasses that I'm wearing prevent me from seeing blobs. Color is leaving and turning to some form of grey that apparently only I can see. So many things are happening that I'm losing control of. I've tried telling you before but I was just too scared and I—"

"Scar, slow down. You have nothing to be afraid of. I'm here for you. Whatever you go through, we go through it together. All right?" He pulled her in for a hug, resting his head on her shoulder to calm her down. "We don't know what these clues lead to. Maybe you'll get your sight back after we've completed them, but trust me, you'll never lose me."

Opening her eyes after a couple tears slid down her face, Scarlet shook her head. He was right. After all, she could still see him and every piece of color from his head to his toes. She lost the ability to see some things, but not all. There was no way she'd lose everything.

"You're running out of time."

Scarlet's head jerked to the left, body trembling, when the sound ran through her bones like a chill from the wind. "What?" she asked, earning no response. "Silver, did you hear that?"

"Hear what?"

"It sounded like it came from the air. Are you sure you didn't hear anything?"

"I'm positive," he answered. "If I did, I would've told you. What did it sound like?"

Still shaking, Scarlet said, "I'm pretty sure it said we're losing time. But I don't know who said it."

"It's possible it could just be in your head. Not that you're going crazy or anything." He laughed. "But you do have a lot on your mind right now."

She laughed along with him, though it was more forced this time. All she wanted was for him to believe her, but she was struggling. Eventually she'd get him to realize what was really going on. Instead of mentioning anything, she responded, "You're right. I...Let's keep looking for the clue."

The bright white object stood out easier than Scarlet would've expected. As if whoever made these clues wanted it to be quick and painless. "Do you see it? It's right there." She pointed above her head toward the volcano.

"Yeah, I see it, Scar. Right on the very top of the volcano. What do you expect to do? Burn? Nope, no way am I helping you with that. Good luck figuring that one out."

Scarlet grinned. "I won't burn, you dummy. What do you think my fire element is for? You just gotta help me figure out how to get up there. I'll do the rest."

"Ha ha, you're too funny. Which is why we get along so well, but I'm not helping. Not this time."

"Aw come on." She frowned, making sure to give him the huge puppy dog eyes. "You'd risk your life to help me, wouldn't you? What if I was hurt?"

He tapped his pointer finger against his chin. "Well, when you put it that way....no."

She stared at him. Without Silver, she'd get nowhere. He had to help her. They were a team, weren't they?

Silver smiled, pushing her shoulder. "You didn't give me a chance to finish—"

"Yeah right."

"I'm serious! Of course I would save you if I needed to." He stood close, wrapping his arm around her. "Already did once, right? Let's figure out how we're going to get this clue."