Treasure

Lilac closed her book, putting away her frustration. Captor knew about this book, he thought it would convince her to give up eventually, but she couldn't give up, she had to keep looking forward.

Rachel whistled, "Over 3 years in a stuffy old tower, you have my respect."

Lilac chuckled, the movement feeling strange, she hadn't laughed that way before, it had always been more of a snort, exhaling air, but now it was like hiccups almost manic.

"So, what are shades?"Lilac brought Rachel back to the topic at hand. She had to know what to expect once she got out of here.

Rachel nodded, "Right, shades. No one's exactly sure what they are. They're like, living shadows."

Lilac's gut dropped, Rachel was talking about her people, the Ouna were called shades by foreigners. She listened to Rachel, desperate to know what her people had done when she had been captured. Her mother must still be furious.

"They appeared 3 years ago," Rachel continued, not noticing Lilac's alarm, "They began possessing things a year later. First it was animals, monkeys and birds. We call shades with bodies phantoms." Lilac nodded, that's how Ouna's matured, they would choose an animal to bond with, then grow enough power to appear as foreigners did, as humans did, though they chose to stay animals the majority of the time.

Rachel shrugged, "A year and a half ago they started possessing humans. They've wiped out villages, anyone walking out at night or has their window open is a target."

Lilac blinked, possessing humans that couldn't be right, humans were weak, bonding with one of them was a waste of an Ouna's power. Lilac bit her lip, she had to escape, tonight, her people needed her. If she could get outside, even for a minute, she could reach out to her people and lead them to her. The Ouna shared a mind, thoughts connected to each other. The stone in this tower stopped her from connecting, like a wall Ouna put in their minds to keep privacy from each other.

Rachel sat on the bed, "You seen any treasure up here?"

Lilac exhaled to stop from laughing, "Not in this room." The room was 10 by 10 feet and only really had room for her bed, that meant when she slept on the floor she could touch her bead with one hand and the wall with the other.

Rachel sighed, "That's what I thought." She walked to the door, then moved to the bricks beside it, tapping on them. Lilac walked to her, watching the girl pause on a brick just above her head. Lilac wanted to ask what her plan was, but she stepped back, letting Rachel do whatever she had to. It looked like Rachel was going to get into the rest of the tower, something Lilac had done many times before, she had never made it out though. The rest of the house was a labyrinth that seemed to move, doing everything to keep her trapped. Maybe Rachel would find a way through it.

Rachel pulled out another metal rod, this one skinnier and emerging from her thick hair, it came from a blue streak. Rachel lined it up with the spaces between the stones. There was a flash, then the smell of smoke. Rachel put the rod back into her hair and pulled the brick, it slid out in her hands, creating a hole in the wall. Rachel put the brick on the ground then winked at Lilac.

"I'll be back with the treasure." Then Rachel jumped, a parrot appearing in her place and diving through the hole. Lilac blinked, Rachel wasn't an Ouna, but she still had another form, so she wasn't human either. Maybe humans were the myths.

Rachel went to her bed and pulled out her rope, starting to weave again. Rachel would be able to fly out, so she was still on her own for escaping. Rachel had come here looking for a treasure to stop Ouna's from possessing people. The situation seemed strange, Ounas had never possessed a foreigner before, to do so would break the covenants that tied them to their bond animal. Animals would give you council and instincts that humans couldn't match. Lilac ran her fingers through her matted hair, this form came from him, before bonding she had been an Ouna, or shade as the foreigners labeled, just a living shadow. Her bondmate had turned her hair black, and had given her a true form. That was how Lilac liked it, it brought him closer, even though she hadn't been able to hear him since entering this tower. She missed him, she hadn't been alone before, when she had been free.

Lilac lost track of time, waiting for Rachel to come back. She just kept weaving, knowing she needed this done tonight. Lilac froze as she heard footsteps. She grabbed her rope, hiding it again. It was too early for the captor to come again, but she knew that thumping. It was him. The door opened, the man glaring at her before flinging a green bundle at her. Lilac caught it, breath hitching as she looked at the limp parrot. Her wing was bent wrong and eye bleeding.

Lilac placed the parrot on the ground, not noticing the man as he walked out, locking the door behind him. Rachel's wing was broken, she would need a splint. Lilac waited a moment, wondering if Rachel would transform to her human form. After a few moments Lilac shook her head, time to get moving. She pulled the blanket from her bed.

"Hang in there Rachel," She murmured, her tongue reverting to her first tongue as she tried to figure out how to wrap her wing.

Rachel opened an eye and opened her beak, a key fell onto the floor, a ruby ring laying next to it. Lilac grabbed the key, tapping her foot on the floor.

"Change of plans." She grabbed the blanket, tying it around her shoulders, a pouch being formed by her tying. She picked Rachel up, slipping her into the pouch on her front. "Time to get out of here." She grabbed her rope, hoping it wasn't too short because it wouldn't just be her on this trip.