The three returnies saw the mountain before them. It was an intimidatingly steep mound of brown earth and green plant life that was topped at the upper levels with glistening white snow. Trees appeared as dots on a canvas of earth. With a breath they began to hike the barely-discernable trail. It was a while before anyone said anything.

 "So, do you two have a plan?" Rozita asked at last.

  "We thought it would be a good idea to get to the top of the mountain, that way we would have a good vantage point to see where we need to go next." Ael said.

  "So, in other words, no. We do not," Kay said.

  "How long do you think this mountain trip is going to take?" She asked.

  "If everything goes smoothly, two days." Ael said.

  "And if it doesn't. . ."

  ". . .Then we'll be stuck here," Ael answered grimly.

  An uncomfortable silence followed. No one wanted to think about what would happen should they get separated. After what felt like hours, but in reality was a few minutes at the most, Kay spoke up. "Rozita, did any merchants or bards or companies of performers come through these mountains?"

  "Not in my lifetime, no. People usually take an airship to the town of Redberg to the south and then take the road up north."

  "Airship? What's that?" Kay said confusedly.

   Ael was shocked. Growing up in Broomfurrugh, airships flying overhead was a part of everyday life. He tried to explain as best he could."Imagine it like a normal ship, but with propellers and a big balloon instead of sails and a rudder."

  "Balloon? Propellers?" Kay was even more confused. Ael fumbled for words.

  Rozita quickly clarified. "A balloon is a spherical hollow shape filled with a light, heated gas. Propellers are large spinning blades that funnel wind."

  "Oh," said Kay. He still didn't know what an airship's shape was, but he understood the basic principle behind the invention.

  "Well, someone's taken this path before," Ael pointed out. "Otherwise we wouldn't be following this trail."

  "Do we even know where this trail leads?" Kay asked pointedly.

  "Nope. Probably somewhere that used to be important."

  They were walking along with no clue where their destination was, through unfamiliar territory. Ael was more excited than he logically should have been. He was snapped from his thoughts by a rustle in some nearby bushes. Ael and Kay drew their weapons, ready to defend themselves. Rozita ignited a small fire in her palm, hoping she wouldn't have to throw it. As the rustle grew louder, they held their breath waiting. . . when out came a little bear cub. They all breathed a sigh of relief, 'it was only a little cub,' before they realized, 'wait, where's the mother?' They soon found the answer to that question as the mother, a ginormous beast of a bear, burst forth from the bushes.

  The three of them went stiff. The mother bear took notice of her cub and walked over to the cuddly little thing. Then the mother noticed the three humans that were alarmingly close to her little one. The three humans in question were unsure of what to do. "Run?" Kay whispered to his side.

  "Maybe if we just inch to the side slowly, she won't maul us to death." Rozita suggested.

  They began to, as Rozita said, inch to the side. However the mother bear had taken this as an action similar to wolves circling their prey, and had elected to maul them to death and feed the remains to her cub. She leaped at Ael, who, quick as a blur, darted underneath. Rozita ignited a wall of fire ahead of her and Kay. The mother bear, frightened by the sudden combustion before her, picked up her cub by the scruff and fled.

  Ael, seeing the bear run towards him, unfurled his wings and took off away from the bear. He flew  for as long as he thought the bear was behind him. It wasn't long before he was out of breath. He dared to look back to find out if the mother bear was still behind him. When he looked back, he saw no bear. He breathed a sigh of relief. "I'm okay, guys," he said. He thought the others were behind him. "Guys?" he asked in response to the silence. He took a long moment to survey his surroundings. He was in a thick forest, where the sun shone in rays and not a blinding blanket. The trees were tall, thick, and deeply rooted. The peaks of the trees were high, and any normal man would have trouble climbing up to them.

  Ael realized then that he was lost. He frantically looked around, hoping to find a trace of the mountain trail, before he realized that Halo could pick up returnie energy signatures. "Halo," he called.

  "Hello! What can I do for you today?" Halo asked in his chime-like voice.

  "Well, if you can locate my friends, that would be great." If balls of light could close their eyes, Halo would have been doing just that.

  Halo paused. "Well, I located one energy signature but it doesn't belong to anyone we know."

  Ael sighed. "It's a start, at least. We're supposed to be looking for returnies anyways."

  Halo started to glide in the direction where the energy was. Ael followed him at a leisurely stroll. They passed several trees before Halo abruptly stopped. "That's odd," he/she/it remarked.

  Ael, who could not pick up energy signatures, didn't know the anomaly that had confused his partner. "What's odd?" He asked.

  "The signature. . . it just. . . it just disappeared. Just gone. That shouldn't be able to happen."

  "So, what does that mean?"

  "I have no idea," Halo said defeatedly. Then he suddenly stiffened, if a ball of light can stiffen. "A different signature just appeared. It's someone we know this time." Somehow, that didn't sound like a good thing. "It's Dracson."

  Ael quickly grabbed the hilt at his side and started to run before he heard a voice behind him.

  "Hello, boy." Halo was correct, Dracson was here.

  Ael abruptly turned around and activated the blade. He shifted into the stance Kay taught him earlier that day. Dracson, seeing the challenge, drew his claymore. "Well, you at least look like you know what you're doing," he taunted. "Normally, I would love to show you how little you know, but today I'm on a schedule and I cannot fall behind." He started to walk off, his armor blending into the shadows of the trees before Ael spoke up.

  "Is the great Dracson of Acyula running from an untrained boy of only seventeen years of age?" Ael asked tauntingly.

  Dracson stopped. "No, Norinth. I am running from a boy that thinks himself a man, and is not worth the seconds it would take for me to ring said boy's neck. I am well aware of what you are attempting to do."

  Ael had no reaction. "Is it working?" The grin was very smug.

  Dracson lost both patience and restraint. "As a matter of fact, yes, it is."  He catapulted himself at Ael halfway through his sentence. Ael jumped to his side just before the attack would have connected. Ael dashed over to Dracson, who was already recovered. The two repeatedly parried each other's blows, with Dracson quickly gaining ground. Ael parried again with force and used the window of opening to direct a light beam at Dracson. Dracson was forced back a few steps.

  Dracson, angered that someone would dare land a hit on him, swung his claymore in a large vertical slash down to the ground. The blade sent a wave of what looked like black flame down its path. Ael unfurled his wings and glided to a nearby tree branch, escaping the void. From Dracson's view, it was as if the boy had just grown wings and learned how to use them in a single second. He laughed. "Well, this is new," he remarked. "Where exactly did those come from?" He pointed his claymore towards Ael's wings.

  "I've had them this whole time. From what I can gather, they only appear to other people when I'm using them."

  "So you had them in Hearthon but didn't think of using them until today?" He laughed. "I can see from your stance and your wings that you have just marginally improved. One day you may be strong enough to actually challenge me." His self-satisfied grin put Ael into a sour mood.

  "I can challenge you today." He said with bitterness. Dracson stabbed his claymore into the ground and kept it there. He opened his arms wide, clearly inviting Ael to attempt something. With a cry, Ael descended from his perch in a dive similar to that of a falcon's. He picked up speed and aligned himself to his target. His sword was in hand, ready to cut right through it's enemy. When Ael was close enough, he readied his arm to attack. Unfortunately, Dracson was quicker. He balled his hand into a fist, and delivered an uppercut straight to Ael's jaw. 

  The blow, combined with his own momentum, sent Ael straight to his back in a manner not dissimilar to a child failing to kick a rubber ball. "I think not," Dracson said. He drew his claymore from the ground. "This was a fun little distraction, but I'm afraid I must be going. There is work to be done, you know." He started to walk off. Then he turned slightly. "And that swing of yours is truthfully dreadful. You'd be well advised to work on it." With that Dracson disappeared into the shadows.

  Ael picked himself up from the ground, Halo already attempting to heal his injuries. He realized that he had work to do as well. He was lost.

***

  Meanwhile, the other two returnies were searching for shelter and a place to stay for the night. Kay stood still, breathing deeply in and out. He had told Rozita it was a mind-clearing technique that the Shinwa monks had taught to him. After a while Kay finally spoke. "There are a few ruins nearby, a large amount of the buildings are still intact. We can shelter there." Rozita agreed, not saying anything.

  They made it into the ruins without any bear attacks or getting lost. The ruins were a humbling sight. They were stone buildings that were ornately carved with the alphabet of a long-forgotten language. The stones were covered in scars that only time and decay could leave. The buildings were almost overtaken by the plant life around them. Rozita and Kay went inside the biggest of these buildings, and decided to spend the night. Rozita kept quiet the entire time. Kay could guess what she was thinking about.

  "You alright?" He asked.

  Rozita nodded halfheartedly.

  "If you want to hide the fact that you're upset, you're not doing a very good job of it. You can talk about it if something's bothering you." Rozita said nothing. "Hey, it's gonna be alright."

  Rozita looked at him questioningly. "I was the one who lost him," she said quietly.

  "Ael knows how to take care of himself. He'll be fine. First thing in the morning, we'll look for him. And it's not your fault, you did what needed to be done."

  Rozita broke out a hopeful smile. 

  "See, that wasn't so bad."

  With that the sun sank down behind the mountaintops, eager to end the day.