The first time something had abruptly woken me was when I couldn't sleep, the second time had been because of Kanin, but this time I awoke to the feeling of something soft and heavy tickling my cheek.

I grunted, thinking Kanin or Xylin had done something to set me off, and batted it away annoyed.

It returned a moment later and I sat up frustrated, "Kanin I swear I—" I froze, slowly turning my head, not believing what I saw.

Wings.

Giant silver feathered wings enveloped me like a shield.

I put a hand over my mouth in shock.

I rolled my shoulders, they moved. I twisted, they brushed against the stone floor. I gulped nervously because I could actually feel them brushing against the floor. It was suddenly colder than usual. The wings—my wings, felt like an extension of myself, like another arm I never knew I had.

I remembered what my father had told me before when I was little. We had been sitting silently on a grassy hill admiring the birds flying by.

"Father, why can't we have wings and fly like birds?" I had asked.

I hadn't known back then that he could fly, but he had given me his best winning smile and said, "You don't have to have wings to be able to fly, Raila," I had stared at him confused, "But, if you do get wings one day, be sure to remember that wings are a part of you. They aren't your closest friends. They are nothing but you, and only you." I hadn't known what he meant when he had said it. I had pondered over that saying until the day the guards had come and my father had shown me what he had meant.

The memory burned in my stomach like bile. I stood up and gave them a few practice flaps to see what it felt like. I felt confined, like a trapped animal. Well, considering I actually had wings, that was pretty close to the truth. I quickly scanned the room, everything felt sharpened, like all of my senses had finally woken up and were constantly scanning for possible attacks.

I don't know when I started laughing, but I couldn't stop. I was part arkryllian alright. A part arkryllian girl with a pair of arkryllian wings. I wouldn't exactly call this a power, but I silently thanked my father for being who he had been, "I'm an arkryllian half-breed." I laughed harder until Kanin groggily opened his eyes.

He blinked slowly, took one look at me, at the wings peeking over my shoulder, and froze. It only made me laugh harder until I had to stop to suck in much needed air.

Kanin stared at me like I had finally gone insane after so many days of captivity, "Three moons..." he whispered getting up.

I smiled broadly and stared behind me to admire them. They looked like my fathers and I was proud of them. I loved them—three moons, I admired them. They were slightly smaller than my father's, but I loved them nonetheless. I pulled my gaze away from them reluctantly and faced a slack-jawed Kanin.

"Well...?" I asked cautiously.

He shook his head, "definitely not a petty thief," he muttered.

"Ah ha, and he admits it." I shouted triumphantly, pumping my fists in the air. He scowled and walked over.

I didn't know what he intended to do before he raised a hand and hovered it over a wing, "May I?"

I nodded slowly, not knowing what to expect. He lowered his hand in awe and traced the arc of my wing from shoulder to wing tip, whistling softly as he did it again slower. I unfolded it to its maximum length, feeling it stretch across the room and just barely brush against the opposite wall.

I broke the silence and gently took ahold of one of his hands, "Do you like them?"

He stared at me like I was crazy, "Do I like them? Raila, you're the first arkryllian I've ever met who has silver feathered wings—silver!"

"Maybe because I'm part arkryllian?" I asked shyly.

"Wait a minute, then that means someone in your family is arkryllian," He gave me a stern look, "Who is it? Why didn't you say so?" He asked in an 'you can't win this arguement' tone.

"Because it isn't my secret to tell."

He let out a breathless laugh, "Good point. Whose is it? Actually nevermind, you don't have to tell me. You know, we have a few arkryllians in the rebellion, but I've never seen anything like this."

I shifted uncomfortably, "Like I said, part arkryllian."

"Nah, this is something else," He furrowed his brows in thought, "We can help you, the others... they can tell you more about your wings than I can."

I laughed, "Three moons, I'm coming with you, don't worry." The blank expression that was usually plastered on his face was now completely stripped away and replaced with a look full of determined excitement. He looked like he was bursting with joy like a kid who had just been praised.

"Wait, will I have to live with these out in the open for the rest of my life? I don't know where the rebel base is located, but are there some strict rules or anything?"

He gawked at me, "seriously Raila, think. Did your family member walk around with his or her wings visible at all times?"

I thought of my father walking around completely unconcerned about anyone noticing his true form, "No."

"Exactly." He stated proudly. I was letting him have too much fun.

"So how do I make them disappear?"

"I don't know—"

"Oh great! That's just—"

"Try imagining that they're not there." I tried that, it didn't work.

"Next."

"Okay, concentrate Raila."

I opened my eyes and glared at him, "I am."

"Con-cen-trate. Think of them folding back into you, like you were bending an arm or something," he paused, something must have been happening, "That's it. You are in control, they don't control you, you do...that's it!"

I opened my eyes and looked behind me. Nothing. I turned back around, "Thanks Kanin."

He winked, "anytime."

I hesitated, "you can't tell anyone about this, understand? Not until we're out of this prison."

"I understand. Completely."

"I mean it, Kanin."

"I know you do," he said softly. And then he said in a lighter tone, "You know, the only reason I knew that trick was because we used it on the kids whenever they started freaking out."

"I was not freaking out!"

"You totally were."

"Ugh, you are so immature."

"So I've heard."

"Idiot."

"Petty thief."

"Immature-stupid-complaining twenty-four year old."

"Immature-complaining twenty year old."

"Annoying never-shuts-up cellmate!"

"Whining stupid girl."

"Hey, stupid has already been used," said a new amused voice. We both turned.

"And immature," said Captain Sandrien leaning casually against the cell door, "Do you two ever shut up?"

"Yes. When we're asleep," Kanin said defensively. Captain Sandrien snorted and faced me.

   "What did I miss that caused you two to go at each others' throats?" I narrowed my eyes suspiciously, so he didn't know. Good.

"He was being an idiot." I said threateningly. I curled my hands into fists at my sides to stop myself from walking over and pummeling his smirking face until he couldn't even stand.

"An idiot? Well then that's a problem." He pushed himself off the cell door, "You know Miss Felynis, I hear he's not the first person you insulted. Prince Xylin has told me a lot about you. Too much frankly."

I froze, "Quintus..."

"And apparently our boy Xylin has been telling you too much about him as well."

"Go away."

He smirked, "You are in no position to boss me around Miss Felynis. Just like your father."

All thoughts and feelings left me as I roared and lunged at him, but Kanin took ahold of my arms and yanked me back roughly, pulling me to his chest protectively. Captain Sandrien's gaze briefly flicked to Kanin's and back to me, completely at ease with the situation.

"I see you have been able to tame the rebel captain, Miss Felynis. Impressive."

"Go away," I snarled. He blinked, but didn't move a muscle.

"You care about him," he stated blankly, a slow, wicked, grin spreading across his face.

"The only thing I care about is killing you."

"You care about Xylin." Those four words took the breath out of my lungs. I clamped my mouth shut. He was looking for weaknesses and I had just shown him my greatest one.

"You do care about him," he let out a raspy laugh and stared at me, black irises gazing into my soul.

"Raila, he is just trying to get to you," Kanin's voice soothed something in me and I found enough courage to control my breathing, "Isn't that right, Gloomy-head?"

Captain Sandrien scowled and glared at my protective stance, "you would have been such an amazing soldier in the Army of Arien."

"I will never fight for you."

"I know. And that is why you should never have forced me to show my hand. My guards are collecting your precious Xylin as we speak. I suspected for a while that he had feelings for you. I was confirming my suspicions the day he distracted me so you could get away." At my surprised expression, he elaborated, "The shadows sensed your presence. I was going to kill you then and there to break poor Xylin's heart, but he happened to appear at the exact moment when I was about to unsheathe my blade."

"You were going to kill me?" Why did I sound so surprised, "But I'm no one."

"No one? Not to Prince Xylin you aren't. Not to me you aren't. Or have you forgotten about your father? How I skewered him like a pig. But don't worry, your father will be the least of your worries after I kill your favourite prince."

I let out a guttural scream, but ended up finding that I couldn't let it out. Captain Sandrien raised his hands and wrapped my mouth with a gag made of shadows. I could feel Kanin fighting behind me as he clawed at his mouth as well, desperately flinging out his hands, but seemed to remember that his powers were currently out of reach.

Captain Sandrien gazed at us in amusement, signalling to the guards on duty as they stood to attention and the prison door swung open, revealing Xylin walking in, completely oblivious as to what was happening here. No, no, no, no, no, I would not let him die before the rebels came.

"Quintus, what is the meaning of this?"

"Oh, my dear brother, I overheard these two prisoners planning on escaping. This one—" he pointed at me and I narrowed my eyes in a silent threat, "—admitted that she was using you after all." I screamed in outrage through the shadow gag, but Captain Sandrien shot me a look that practically screamed 'if you want his life to last longer, shut up'. I shut up of course.

"I see..." said Xylin carefully, eyeing me, "let her speak."

"Excuse me, dear brother?"

"I said let her speak."

"I rather she not."

And then all hell broke loose around us.

One second Captain Sandrien was in front of our cell door; the next, he had his sword drawn and was raising it in a graceful arc towards Xylin's exposed neck. The gathered guards all drew their swords simultaneously and immediately formed a circle to isolate the fight. I howled in rage as the shadow gag finally disappeared and I ran to the cell door, slamming my hands repeatedly against it as though it would spring open. Kanin ran up beside me and tried opening it as well to no success.

I settled for shouting: "Xylin!" He blinked and reacted reflexively, twisting around and away from the blow just as the sword sheared through where he had been mere seconds ago.

"Raila!" he shouted. I tilted my head confused, why would he be shouting my name? He was the one being attacked.

"You should have let me killed her when you had the chance, but now, I think I'll settle for killing you!" Captain Sandrien charged and attacked Xylin with a ringing three-sequenced stroke, but since Xylin had no weapons on him, he vanished from sight and instead managed to land a brutal punch to Captain Sandrien's face, sending him staggering back a couple steps.

I growled loudly in frustration. Why weren't the guards breaking it up? "Because they're in on it too," I whispered. I whirled on Kanin, ignoring his glower.

"We need to help him."

"And how are we supposed to do that, almighty-and-wise-one?"

"Enough with the sarcasm for once. Please Kanin," I pleaded.

He gave me a hard look and gazed at the battle behind us, "get these cuffs off of me first."

"How?"

"You're a thief!"

"Right," I whispered, "I'm a thief." A plan formed in my head, and before I knew what was happening, I hurtled towards the cell door and kicked a guard behind the knee, watching him fall before I slammed his head against the cell door. The other guards jerked their attention from the fight to me, but by then, I had snatched the keys off of the unconscious guard and had inserted the first one.

It didn't work. I tried the next and the next until the fourth key twisted into place and the cuffs sprang open. Captain Sandrien noticed the change in attention and looked towards us. Xylin took the opportunity and stepped back to recover from his multiple injuries. I snarled in warning as Captain Sandrien shouted out an order, but I barely heard it over the roaring in my ears as Kanin shoved me out of the way, his body now thrumming with power, and raised his hands.