"We should move closer to Bursaaq soon," Halla said and frowned down at the map. "We've taken the smaller villages bordering to Paamut and Aatskina. They're completely cut off."

"Perfect," Dy muttered under her breath. "Do you think they will disband their groups in the capital if we take theirs?"

Halla bopped her head from side to side. "Honestly, no, I don't think so. I think they will fight until last man standing."

"Maybe they don't have to. What are the soldiers getting out of this? So far, they've been cold, starved and killed," I said from my seat by the table. Dy and Halla were both standing over the table, looking at the map.

"That's a good point," Dy said and glanced at Halla. "Might be an idea to broadcast this out to the people of Andaheim. It didn't take much for Skyen to surrender after all."

"Skyen were afraid of the Bursaaq troops. And with good reason, but loyalty bought with fear is cheap. That's why they've so easily surrendered. They didn't care about Bursaaq's cause. They only cared about not dying."

"Can't really fault them for that. They're the smallest nation, caught on an island. Without Andaheim they'd starve."

"Not to mention, they used to trade with Kabir as well. As soon as Kabir cut them off, they really didn't have much of a choice," I chimed in.

"Exactly," Dy said and sent me a smile.

"If we're going to Bursaaq instead of going south, we should go to the spirit world. I need to connect with the spirits again. To get answers."

Dy sighed a bit. "Well, you did connect with them outside of the spirit world as well. In Bursaaq. Whatever is blocking you further south, is obviously not blocking you further north."

I swallowed something. "That's true but... It's risky. What if I lose control? I could take out an entire village without meaning to."

"We don't want that," Halla said and looked from Dy to me. "How important is it even to find the block? If we take Andahavn it's all over anyways. And it's not like it'll be hard to do in a couple of months."

"It won't solve the spiritual issue. Andaheim is sick and it needs to be cured from whatever is blocking all the spiritual energy."

"I thought your priority was your brother?" Halla arched a brow at me.

"It's for Quinn too. You saw what he could do with the block. Imagine what he can do if we get rid of it."

"But again, that won't even be necessary if we take Andahavn before you find the block."

"No, but..." I bit down my lip. "He doesn't have a lot of time. Barr said, because he has broken through the block before, he needs full access to the spiritual energy. Or else he'll die. He has more time with Barr there with him, but it won't last forever. So, I don't even know if we have two months." I shrugged a little. "That is why I need to connect with my own spirit. Maybe she has answers. At least she might be able to get them, seeing as she's surrounded by other spirits and my ancestors. Someone has to know something."

"And what if they don't?" Halla sat down and folded her hands on the table.

"You can still go on ahead with the war. I just need to find this block, and for that to happen, I need to get to the temple in Bursaaq where I connected with the spirits the last time."

"And you can't connect with them here in this temple?"

I shrugged. "Again, I don't wanna take any risks. If I lose control, the whole city could get killed. Dy has seen how it looks and..."

"It's not pretty," Dy chimed in. "I'm with Al here. We'll go back to the temple on our own. Besides, it's not gonna be as hard as last time. We're in the middle of summer. Even Bursaaq doesn't have as much snow as it did back during winter."

"Alright. You'll both be missed though. You're a good moral booster for the troops."

"I know and I want to be there with them. But I have to find this block. For everyone's sake." I rose to my feet and looked down at the map. "Where's the temple?"

"Around here," Dy said and pointed to east Bursaaq. Almost straight north of Paasmut.

"Right. How about we go there, and then we'll meet up with you by the boarders between Aatskina and Paamut? And then we cross back into Bursaaq and take the villages there until we make it to Antraaq."

Halla nodded. "Sure, it sounds doable. But you two aren't going alone, and I hope you know that."

"Wait, why?" Dy asked and arched a brow.

"Because Alvina is one of our biggest pawns in this whole game. If we lose her, we might as well just roll over and do fuckall."

I grimaced a bit and started fiddling with a loose button on my shirt.

"We've built this whole battle around her. Not to mention, you made deals with Kabir, didn't you?"

I looked up from the button and nodded. "Yeah. I promised letting them look into our engineering around electricity."

"Exactly. If you die, then why would they help us? They could just get that from your brother and then help Bursaaq."

I nodded. "Yeah. Right, so we don't go alone. But we can't be too many. I don't want Bursaaq to know what we're doing."

Halla nodded. "Makes sense. I'll gather a team for you and then you can probably head out in a couple of days."

"So, you're going to Bursaaq?" Huck asked and took a sip of his coffee. "Again," he added after having loudly slurped down the brown liquid.

"Yeah. We gotta get to that temple. It's remote and Al can safely connect with the spirits there."

"Right, right." He nodded knowingly, as if he knew something we didn't. Or was waiting for us to say something.

"You're not coming with, Huck," Dy said.

Huck slammed the cup down on the table. "Yes, I am!"

"No, you're not. This is dangerous. It's not a field trip."

"If you think I'm just gonna sit here and do nothing while you two run off again, you've lost your mind."

Dy sighed deeply. "This might be the end-game, Huck. I don't want you near it."

"Funny thing is, you don't get to decide that, Dy."

I sat in the middle and tried to shrink down into my seat. I hated listening to people fight.

"There's Huldurfólk and dragons and gods know what else hiding up there. You're not coming with."

"And what if your cars break down? Who's going to fix them? What if Al's arm malfunctions? You never think things through, Dy! This isn't just about me and you. I can be helpful up there!"

"And you could get very hurt too!" she roared back, slamming her hands down on the table. "Don't you understand it's safer for you to stay here?"

"I'm not staying here like a frightened little child while literally everyone else is out doing something, you understand?!"

Baby chirped loudly, as if she was protesting alongside with Huck.

"What do you think?" Huck asked and they both looked at me.

"You both have good points," I muttered and just wanted to sink into the ground.

Dy rolled her eyes and leaned back in her seat. "It's not like anyone ever fucking listens to me, so do whatever you want, Huck."

"I need to go with you. I need to." He looked very determined and I got it. His boyfriend was in Andahavn with Quinn, his best friend was on her way on another mission and he couldn't do much but sit with his hands in his lap. It felt awful.

"I uh..." I said and both looked at me again. "I get why you're so protective, Dy. But on the other hand, we do actually need someone who can fix our cars if they break down. Not to mention, Huck has been on several missions already."

"I'm already looking after you, Al, I can't be looking after everyone," she spat back.

"Okay but up there you're not the strongest one," I said calmly.

She just snorted in response, folding her arms over her chest. I glanced at Huck and he smiled very innocently back at her which only made her roll her eyes.

"I don't get why you two are so eager to get back out there," she said then.

"Because we have to do something. We're not warriors and we both know that, but we have to do something. Everyone else are doing something and not doing anything is horrific. Imagine if you couldn't do anything to help. To contribute. All you could do was staying put."

She grimaced and looked to the side, avoiding my gaze. "It's not like contributing with taking over villages is that great."

"No, but it's something. I'm not saying what you do is easy, Dy." I leaned forward and put my hand on her knee. "I'm not saying that at all. I'm saying, sitting in the back of trucks, not doing anything but showing my face is hard. Especially when I want to do so much more. Now I've got a chance to do something actually productive and helpful. And so does Huck. He can help up there."

Huck nodded. "Besides, I've made something new." He rose from his seat and went into another 'room', sectioned off by a blanket hanging from the ceiling in the old factory building.

He came back with a backpack with what looked like a telephone on it.

"It's portable. We'll be able to stay in contact with base like this. But I haven't had the time to teach anyone but Regin to use it. And then I know how to use it. So I'll also be carrying this so we can contact base."

It seemed like Dy forgot about being angry then. "Like a portable phone?"

"Yeah!" Huck said all excitedly. "It uses the same kind of frequencies as a radio, except with this it's not transmissions that are replayed. It's like live radio. But only between two transmitters."

"You're a goddamn genius, Huck," Dy said and rose to her feet to get a better look at the portable radio telephone. "Is Regin going to teach anyone else how to use it while we'll be gone?"

"Yes, he'll teach all the troops and mass produce them as much and as fast as he can. So ideally every group would have one of these with them and we'd never lose contact."

"This means it'll be so much easier to meet up with the others after we've gone to the temple," I chimed in and smiled at Huck. "You really are a magnificent creator, Huck."

"Oh don't say that," he laughed. "Only Barr can say that without it sounding incredibly cheesy."

"He does have a way of saying things, huh?" Dy smirked at her friend and the tips of his ears darkened.

"I guess," he muttered under his breath. "So... I can come to the temple?"

"Sure, but you better be careful!" Dy said, her harsh tone back. "And you'll do as I say, got it?"

"Aye aye, captain!" Huck saluted her, slapping himself in the forehead.

We went early in the morning in the hopes of covering as much distance as possible before it got dark again. Luckily with summer being on its fullest, we had a lot of sun. Especially the further north we came. Twelve days during the summer it wouldn't even get dark in Bursaaq at all. We had recently passed those, and it'd still get dark in Paamut. No one felt comfortable about driving in the dark, so instead we'd set up tents.

Both Rakiili and Aleks joined us for our trip alongside a group of Aatskina tribe members. All had their heads shaved like Dy, but different kind of patterns tattooed on their bald spots. It was fascinating to observe so many different patterns. Once this was over, I would've loved to study the different tattoo traditions in Aatskina. Maybe even get to tattoo someone myself.

We halted when twilight came creeping up on us and set up camp. It was a lot better to have tents than sleeping in the car and overall it seemed a lot more organised this time around. Also safer. While Dy hadn't ever failed at keeping me safe, it just felt better with more people around.

"Can I ask you something?" I was hesitant as one of the Aatskina tribe members looked down at me. His name was Pavia and he looked quite scary with his massive frame and entirely bald head, safe for the top of it still having long hair growing out of it. His head was tattooed all the way around.

"Sure," he said with a deep voice.

"How come you have almost your whole head shaved and not half like Dy?"

He softened a bit and glanced over at Dy. She snorted and continued eating the soup we had brought along for the trip.

"It is customary for someone of my rank. I am a Samua. It means I have spoken with the spirits."

"Technically so have I," Huck chimed in. "I'm dating one. What does that make me?"

Pavia rolled his eyes. "I have seen the spirit world in visions. I have a connection with the spirits that could almost be compared to the one you have. Of course, it is not as strong, but it's strong."

"So you could be a temple priest?" I asked and tipped my head to the side.

"I am one, actually. But I am also a warrior. So, to show my full devotion to both my warrior spirit and the spiritual connection, I get the back and sides of my head shaved and tattooed. Once I lay down my weapons, I'll shave my whole head and become a full-time priest."

"That's amazing," I said, probably with a stupid amount of awe in my voice and eyes.

He chuckled and rubbed the back of his neck. "It's nothing compared to the spiritual connection you have. I mean, it's literally painting your blood blue, yes?"

I nodded. "Yeah."

"Now see, that is amazing. And I'm honoured to be allowed with you on this trip. I have dreamt of seeing the old temples in Bursaaq for years, but never had the chance to go. Not to mention, you'll connect with the spirits there. I can't imagine how it must feel for you."

I scratched my arm and grimaced a bit. "I don't know. It's a little overwhelming. It definitely was the first time." I showed him the palm of my hand where Nila had left a mark.

"They marked you," he said softly and took a closer look at my palm. "That's amazing."

"Just wait until she connects with the spirits. Now that's a sight," Dy said and put her metal bowl down on the ground.

"What does that look like?" I asked. I had never even thought about that.

"You get this glow around you. When we were in the temple, you actually hovered above the ground. And then you spoke." She stopped, almost for dramatic effect. "You spoke the old language but with several voices. Like when you connected with Nila in Antraaq, where you saved me."

I couldn't help but laugh a little. It sounded so far out. It wasn't like I didn't believe her, but it sounded too unbelievable.

"How has your spiritual journey been?" Pavia asked.

"It's been very... Odd. I wasn't very spiritual before this. I didn't think much about the spirits, as odd as it sounds. We've lost our connection to the spirits in Andahavn. We go to the temples on the holidays, but it wasn't really there. If that makes sense?"

He nodded. "We all need to have that epiphany of some sort. You need some way to actually open yourself up to the spirits."

"Did you do that?"

He smiled and nodded. "Yes. I was not a happy kid. Going to the temple actually helped me and I got touched there. I felt them. I talked to them and they answered me. One in particular guided me to a better path. You might have met him. His name is Karuu."

"No, I didn't meet any other spirits than Nila which is my spirit and then Barr, who's Quinn's spirit."

"Maybe one day he'll appear for you too. He's very kind and has appeared to several in my family as well. We view him as our main spirit in my family."

I glanced over at Dy. "Do you have one in yours too, Dy?"

"No, we don't have that kind of connection to the spirits. Not as directly as Pavia's. We're more open to all impressions from all spirits, but they don't talk to us. Not with words anyways. You might say they're not as literal" She got a cup of coffee from Aleks, who was in charge of handing that out. He offered me one as well and I sent him a grateful smile.

"How will you connect with your spirit when we get to the temple?" Pavia asked and took a sip of his coffee.

"I'm... Not actually sure. The last few times I've done it, it hasn't been entirely voluntary. Also why we're going to the temple. We need to not be in a city with hundreds of people I could accidentally kill."

"I could help you, if you want. When I connect with Karuu, I go into a trance. Breathe a certain way and just go into myself, to find the connection. It is within you, you just have to know how to find it."

"I'd love the help. Thank you."

I was so grateful. No one had ever offered to do something for me before. I mean... I had entire tribes helping me and Dy, of course. But this was different. Dy had helped me with my spiritual faith a bit, but this felt different. Pavia was about to become a priest. I desperately wanted to connect to the spirits even more than I already was.