Chapter Eight

The large creature sat back on its haunches and uttered a hardy laugh in response to me. Its laughter startled me, but I calmed down and waited for it to finish and regain its composure. The Po'ele straightened up and looked down at me in clear amusement.

"It is about time someone figured it out!" it chortled. From its gruff voice and massive size, I knew it was a male.

"What? He cannot be our guide! Just look at him!" Archer spat, his sword still pointed at the Po'ele.

"Well that wasn't very nice," the creature said, "And were you ever taught not to point sharp objects at others? You're going to poke someone's eye out with that thing!"

Archer cautiously lowered his blade, but he still clutched it firmly in his hand as he surveyed the creature. He didn't look convinced at all by him.

"Are you…the guide we have been waiting for?" Aden asked him warily. He didn't seem to want to believe it either.

"Depends, are you the bunch of kits I was instructed to lead through the dry lands? Lucky for you I was out on a mission instead of a hunt or you'd all be dead now," he said, casually scratching behind his ear.

"We cannot trust a Po'ele! Anabelle would never leave us in his…claws," said Archer, still not buying it.

"Ah yes, the lovely Anabelle. How does she fair? It has been days since she sent word to me about this little expedition," he said slouching back against the canyon wall.

"I don't believe this," Aden muttered to himself, still twirling his knife around in his hand. He seemed unsure of what to do.

I stared wide eyed at the creature, curious of its sudden lack of interest in trying to kill us. He must be telling the truth; he didn't seem like he meant us any harm.

"How did you know, Shelby?" Aden asked, looking back at me.

"Yes girl, I'm very curious to know myself how you figured it out," the creature said with his dark eyes boring into me. "My kind is the enemy, why did you not pick up a weapon and join the fight?"

"You didn't seem to be fighting back," I said.

His ear twitched. "Not true, I was giving it my all back there," he said lazily.

"Well, like you said, if you had meant to kill us we'd be dead by now, and we aren't," I said.

No one spoke; they all just took in my words.

"Whether he was sent by Anabelle or not, I don't trust or work with Po'eles," Archer sneered at the creature, his voice full of scorn.

"We have no choice if we want to get through this desert," I said to him.

He glared at me in disgust and turned away.

"You will have no say in the matter! This is not your home and these creatures have not killed your loved ones!" he snapped at me.

I wonder who he had lost to a Po'ele. I remembered how Aden said he had lost his father and then I looked back at the creature's razor sharp claws uneasily.

Aden placed a steady hand on his cousin's shoulder. "Shelby is right, we have no choice if we want to complete this mission in time. We cannot let our prejudices blind us and prevent us from doing what must be done."

Archer sharply pulled away from him, a dark look crossing his face.

"You're a bunch of traitors! All of you!" he shouted, storming off and going over to his neon bird. He jumped on her back and roughly dug his heels into her ribs. I winced as I saw her cringe too before she took off into the sky.

"He won't go far. He just needs to cool down," Aden breathed.

"What are we gonna to do?" I asked him, looking over at the creature leaning against the wall again as he watched us curiously as well.

"This is your mission, so I'll leave it up to you," he said.

I felt the pressure suddenly shift to me, crushing my shoulders. I want to get back home as quickly as possible, and to do that I have to find this crown somewhere out here, and to do that we need some guide. If this possum thing was here to guide us and get me home faster, than I was all for letting him lead the way. Getting the rest of them to trust him was another story though.

"I trust him," I said, looking back at Aden's face.

"Then so do I," he agreed.

We both turned towards him, and he looked almost bored as he gnawed mindlessly on a rock. Aden still seemed warier of him than I did. As we approached, Aden stood defensively in front of me so I had to peer almost around him to view the monstrous creature. We stood a few feet away and he suddenly looked up at us and stopped grinding the rock in his mouth.

"So what's the verdict?" he asked, his tone sarcastic, "Shall I be blessing you all with my presence?"

Aden nodded stiffly at him and he gave a yawn, slumping back again. A second ago he seemed like a vicious fighter who had been in many battles and was full of experience and ambition, but now he just seemed really lazy and careless.

"What do you call yourself?" Aden asked him slowly.

"I am he called Anadar," he replied, his whiskers twitching like those of a mouse. He stared to sniff wildly at the air until his eyes locked onto Angie and Adalynn. "What ails them?" he asked out of the blue, his nose still twitching.

I remembered how good their sense of smell was and how Aka and Adamu had smelt Aden and mine's thoughts. It was probably easy for him to smell that they were sick; he could probably even tell what was wrong with them.

"We do not know, they both suddenly fell ill and I do not know what to treat them for," Aden sighed, looking hopelessly at his cousin.

"May I investigate?" asked Anadar casually, getting to his feet and watching Aden's face carefully.

Aden nodded, not sure what he'd do, and we both watched the possum crawl over and cautiously whiff the air around them. His pink nose brushed along Adalynn's hair and her arm and then he sat back, casually flicking his tail as he pondered to himself.

"Did you burn anything from the jungle?" he asked suspiciously.

"Yes, we made a fire at night, but it went out before we went to sleep," Aden said.

Was he concerned we'd start a wildfire?

"Do you remember what you burned? What the trees and plants you used looked like exactly?" he hinted.

Aden thought for a moment, his forehead creasing as his mind raced back to last night. "We used dried bark from a thick dead tree nearby and found some yellow flowers that burned well too."

A knowing look crossed Anadar's face. "Well that explains it. You burned Oleander, an incredibly poisonous flower. Inhaling the smoke from burning flowers can be deadly to full sized adults."

A look of fear crossed Aden's face as his eyes darted over to his unconscious younger cousin, who was shivering and mumbling in her sleep.

"Is it…treatable?" he stammered. "What can be done?"

"Well, it's only been since last night that they breathed it in, so yes. Do you have any remedy with you?" he asked.

Aden pointed toward the medical bag he brought and Anadar stuck his nose into it, sniffing around at each bottle until he found what he needed. He pulled out a shapely purple vial with his teeth and dropped it at Aden's feet. Aden picked it up and studied it carefully. His eyes grew round and the creature nodded at him. He poured a few drops down Adalynn's and Angie's throats, and within a few moments both of their eyes slid open and stared blankly ahead.

"What happened?" Adalynn asked dryly, trying to sit up but still too weak to do so.

"Rest, you will get better now," Aden said, lightly kissing the top of her head.

She smiled up at him and let her eyes close again. For once, they didn't seem to hate each other. They seemed like real family, almost like brother and sister. Angie let her eyes slip closed too, hearing Aden's words. That grayish hue their skin had taken on faded and became its normal pearly tint once again.

"Thank you," Aden said softly to Anadar, who just nodded and crawled back over to his slouching wall.

Just as the pinkish gray sky started to fade, Archer came back and Alivia looked wiped out. She could barely land she was so tired, collapsing to the ground before dragging herself over to Aliza to curl up beside her. Archer didn't even glance up at anyone, he just picked up his sword and began sharpening it and talking quietly to Amrit, his usually cocky and self-assured demeanor now sullen and stormy as he scraped a rough stone against the smooth sword's tip. Aden was preparing food for us all and Adalynn and Angie were still resting, already looking much better from the medicine.

I sat by myself all alone. I had removed the pictures of my family from my bag and held them close to my face to see. A tear dripped off my nose and onto the picture of Ava and I smiling into the camera at our soccer competition. It made me realize how much I missed her more than anyone, my sweet little sister who just wanted to be with me. I had never appreciated her then, and now I may never see her again. What if I die down here and never get home? They'd never even know what happened to me.

"Why do you weep?" Aden asked, making me jump.

I looked up and saw him frowning down at me. I hadn't heard him make his way over, the sand muffling everyone's footsteps. I quickly reached up and wiped the tears from my eyes even though he had already seen them. He sat down beside me and watched my face closely, draping a soft blanket around my shoulders, more so for comfort than warmth.

"I just really miss my family. I was thinking about my sister…" I held the picture out to him and pointed my index finger at Ava's sweet little face.

He chuckled. "What is that paint on your faces?"

"It's eye black," I smirked. "You wear it for sports games when it's really hot and sunny out. We both play soccer, it's one of things we do together all the time."

He gave me an unsure look. "What is soccer?"

"It's a game, you kick a ball around and you aren't allowed to use your hands. Each team has a big net, and you have to defend your net while trying to kick the ball down the field into the other teams net to score points," I told him, hoping I explained it well enough.

"It sounds intriguing. Maybe you could show me some time," he smiled.

I smiled back. "I'd like that."

We were both quiet as we stared at the photo. "She looks a lot like you do," he whispered.

Ava and I do look alike, except her hair is short and mine is long. Ava's a little bit more skinny than me, and not just because she's nine and I'm sixteen, but because she's always been frail and bony. I always thought when Ava grew up she'd be prettier than me. She had daintier features and shinier hair than I do. I like her smile better too. She has a dimple in her cheek like Aden does, his kind-hearted smile reminding me of her.

"I love her so much. She's like my best friend," I sighed, lightly touching her face in the faded photo.

"What is her name?" he asked curiously.

"Ava," I answered.

My shy, sweet little sister, Ava, I thought dreamily to myself, remembering the deep indigo of my sister's eyes that seemed to lure you to the depths of the ocean where mermaids swam and buried treasure lay.

"You will see her again," he reassured me. "I'll make sure of it."

"Thanks for that."

The food was ready, so we got up to go serve everyone. Aden had some more fish and squeezed some of that orange fruit juice over it. He placed a piece on individual wooden boards that would serve as plates and he also gave us some bread, mushrooms, and a large hunk of cheese. We passed them around and everyone ate hungrily in silence. It was delicious and it made my mouth water, especially the fish. It tasted like Aunt Josie's grilled salmon, my favorite. Something felt wrong though as I chewed, guilt sinking into my gut and ruining my appetite. Aden had made four bowls of fish mash for the birds and prepared six plates of food, but I counted in my head and realized there were seven of us now.

Anadar sat hunched back against the canyon wall away from us all, chewing on a jagged stone. I watched his nose twitch as the smell of the food hit his sharp senses. I looked around at everyone in disbelief as they all seemed content filling their bellies while he went hungry.

"What about him?" I asked Aden sharply.

An expression crossed his face signaling me to just leave it alone, and this made me even angrier. I put my plate down and got to my feet, glaring at them for having no remorse for what they were doing.

"He will be fine Shelby, let him eat his rocks," Archer said disdainfully, popping a small mushroom in his mouth and swallowing it sharply.

I felt myself steam. "After all he's doing for us, you can't give him a crumb of food?"

"Shelby…" Aden said to me, looking up with soulful eyes.

I glared down at him, not believing he was being like this. I expected it from Archer, who made his feelings towards Anadar clear, but Aden always seemed so understanding and kind. How could he agree and think this was okay? Whether we know him or not, and whether he's a Po'ele or not, he's helping us out and the least we can do is show him decency and feed him.

"How can you do this after he helped Angie and Adalynn? He could have said nothing and let them die! It's not like any of you care what happens to him!" I exploded.

"You expect us to feed the enemy just like that? To share what little food we have with him?" Archer spat at me.

"He's not the enemy!" I retorted.

With his eyes narrowed, he spat, "Why not just feed him from your hands than? You seem to trust him enough not to bite them off!"

"You can't blame him for what other Po'eles have done to you! I'm not going to let him starve because you're all blinded by your own prejudice!"

"You do not understand our strife, you are just a human of the surface, what could you possibly understand about our prejudices and why they exist?"

"I don't need to be from down here to have a heart," I spat. "It seems like something this world is greatly lacking. You should all be ashamed of yourselves."

Aden lowered his eyes in shame while Archer just shook his head at me and turned away. I stormed over to the food basket with my own plate, not wanting to be near them.

I cut up two large extra pieces of cooked fish, angrily grumbling to myself as I laid them on a wooden board along with a pile of mushrooms, a chunk of bread and a big piece of cheese. I also threw on a handful of some sweet smelling blue berries since his appetite was probably about ten of a human's. Holding one plate in my right hand and the other in my left, I walked over to the slouching, lazy Po'ele who leaned hungrily against the wall.

"For me?" he asked, sounding appalled.

I nodded and held the plate out to him. I wonder if he had been listening to my angry rant a moment ago. It's not like he couldn't have heard it, he was right here and I was kind of yelling. He took the platter cautiously in his paws and set it on his fury lap.

"What a pleasant surprise…" His eyes studied me carefully, like he was wondering if I had poisoned it.

"Do you mind if I join you?" I asked, not wanting to go back to sit with any of them after that. He shrugged casually as I slid down beside him with my own plate on my lap.

"Why are you doing this for me?" he questioned, tossing a piece of fish in the air and dropping it down his throat with a gulp.

I shrugged. "I don't know, you're helping us. It's the least we can do."

He didn't say anything in response, he just bobbed his head up and down as he listened, devouring the cheese in one bite. I had been right about his big appetite, but it was not hard to guess considering the size of him. I plopped a bite of cheese in my own mouth and focused on the sharp, smoky flavor.

"I appreciate your generosity," he whispered, swallowing the other large piece of fish before looking over at me. "You are right."

"About what?" I looked up at his furry scarred face.

"This world lacks heart. It has for a long time."

I popped a bite of fish in my own mouth and chewed it up as I mulled over his words. My mind wandered off for a while, and I started daydreaming about everything. I imagined getting back home and seeing my family again. I thought of how Mom and Dad would wrap their arms around me, how I'd hug Ava and Kyler so tight that they wouldn't be able to breath, and I thought of how Dominic would kiss me and tell me how much he'd missed me.

"You are determined to leave Palekana," I heard Anadar say softly.

I looked up at him, forgetting he had been there the whole time. "Can Po'eles read minds?" I asked him.

He let out a deep chuckle. "We cannot read minds exactly. We can more so sense intentions of others through our sense of smell. We can detect emotions and thought patterns in others. I can sense that you intend on returning to the surface as soon as possible. I sense melancholy on you," he said.

"I miss my family and I just want to go home. I don't even want to be here right now, on this stupid journey…" I grumbled, pushing away the other half of my fish and most of the mushrooms that I was sick of. I'm sick of all this strange food; I want normal food from home. I want a cheeseburger, or pineapple, or a Poptart, and man do I miss cherry Coke.

"Well why are you here then?"

I sighed, feeling more anger build inside of me. I glared over at the group around the fire. "They won't let me leave. I'm their prisoner because I'm apparently some savior who's supposed to bring back a crown and end a war."

If I wasn't being held hostage and if I thought I could maybe outrun all of them, I'd be gone, but there was no way I'd make it.

"A Kaua 'Anela…" Anadar whispered, looking down at me curiously with his dark, round eyes. He searched my face for a long minute.

"That's what they call me," I grumbled. "What does it even mean?"

"It can be translated to Our Angel."

I narrowed my eyes at the ground. Seriously, they think I'm some angel now because of the stupid birthmarks on my back? That means nothing; it's just a coincidence, not destiny.

"That's stupid," I grumbled, "I'm no angel."

He licked up any remaining crumbs on his plate and then sat back, his stomach satisfied. "Are you sure about that?" his voice sounded taunting like he wanted me to question and think about it. Am I sure?

I bit the inside of my cheek, "Yes? I can't be. I'm just one kid, I can't save a whole world."

"I think you are wrong," he said adamantly. He twitched his whiskers and lightly sniffed the air around me like he smelt something in particular.

"Why am I an angel? Angels have wings, and halos, and they live up in heaven where everyone loves them. No one back home even seems to like me, and I don't think I'm nice enough to be an angel…" I said.

He sniffed again. "Well, your definition of an angel is a little off," he said, drawing a small circle in the dirt with his sharp claw.

"What do you mean?"

"An angel isn't just a heavenly winged creature that wears a white robe and a golden halo above its head. An angel is a savior and a protector." In his dirt circle, he drew a triangular shaped body below with a wing on each side and a small oval floating above so it took on the basic shape of an angel.

"I'm a savior?" I scoffed.

"Well, according to their people you are. And let's hope they got the right person so we can end this whole conflict." He shook his head slowly.

"What would happen…if I'm the wrong person?" I asked him, tucking my knees up into my chest and resting my head on them.

"The crowns may never be found, and they hold the key to ending the war between us," he said.

I couldn't tell how he felt about all of this from his facial features. It was easier for me to read people, probably because I'm more used to them, but its hard reading an animal's feelings.

I rested my head back against the wall. "Well, if I'm not the right person and I go on this quest anyways, can I still find the crowns and save everyone? Anyone can do it, right?"

"Only the 'Anela can find them. It is said the Princess's spirits will guide her there and reveal the secrets to only her. I think you can do it."

"You do?" This surprised me a little.

He nodded and looked back down at his drawing. "Once you get this image out of your head," he tapped the angel with his claw, "and realize what kind of angel you really are, you should have no troubles with your destiny." With that, he slid his claw over the drawing, right across where the angel's throat was so there was a line between the circle and the triangle.

I saw quietly and to myself for the rest of the night. The fire went out and the next thing I knew I was dreaming.

There was a dark silhouette of a girl up ahead. As I ran closer, her features grew more distinct in the light of the burning fire around us. She was tall and elegant with flowing black hair and dark almond shaped eyes. Her lips reminded me of two soft flower petals as she smiled at me and held out her hand. I took it and she spread her wings. The wings were large and feathery, looking as white and pure as freshly fallen snow as they branched out between her shoulder blades the way a blossom opens in the sun of spring.

She twined her fingers around mine and with that she told me to spread my wings too. I went to do so, but I felt nothing happen. I looked back and saw nothing but the bare skin of my back. I realized with horror that I had no wings, and that I couldn't soar into the air with her. I tried to tell the girl I couldn't fly, but she ignored me and lifted me up into the air. I clung desperately to her hand, feeling all security gone as I feared I would slip at any moment. No matter how hard I cried and begged for her to let me down, she didn't listen, almost like she couldn't hear what I was saying as she continued to smile.

The girl looked down at me and her eyes suddenly grew dark, her soft rose petal lips wilting into a grimace of disgust. Her once gentle eyes turned black, raging like storm clouds as they burned into me. She started shouting things at me in a language that I didn't understand, and I felt her fingers loosening on mine.

"Make loa! Make loa!" she screamed at me in fury.

I felt a scream rise up my throat at the sight of my suddenly withering forearm. I watched in terror as my skin slowly rotted away like the flesh was dead, revealing plain, raw bones underneath. I saw the branch-like structure of my bony hands wrapped weakly around her flesh covered ones. I cried as the flesh started to deteriorate around my humerus, all hints of skin and muscle gone so I was nothing but bone.

I lost my grip and fell as she shouted "make loa" at me one more time. As I plummeted, I watched my skin dissolve into thin air, leaving behind only my bones and my screams. I could clearly see the solid, white matter of my ribs, my chest looking like a bird cage. Inside of that bird cage sat my heart, writhing around to the quick tempo of my pulse until it too started to disappear like dust in the wind. As I looked below me, I saw a dark hole deep in the Earth surrounded by taunting, clawed creatures. Once the ghost of my heart was completely gone, I hit the ground and felt nothing after.

I screamed back in reality too, and I guess it was really loud, because I sat up and saw everyone's eyes on me. Some looked frightful while others seemed irritated to have been woken up. I wasn't breathing right; I was gasping and sobbing and sweating, my whole body shaking uncontrollably as I tried to calm down. My scream seemed to echo through the canyon, ricocheting off the rocky walls and thumping against my ear drums.

"S-sorry," I apologized, feeling heat spread up my neck, "Bad dream."

Everyone grumbled and then drifted back to sleep, and within a couple of minutes everyone was shallowly breathing again, except for me. I couldn't get my heart to stop pounding against my ribs.

I pulled my partially working phone out of the pocket of my soft pants and hoped it would light up a little. I flashed the dim ray of light across my arms and my hands, seeing my flesh was there again as I opened and closed my fist. I put my hand across my chest and felt the slowing thud of my heart. With a shaky breath, I slouched back down and felt something warm at my side. I looked up and saw that I was lying closely beside Anadar. After I ate I must have dozed off and curled up beside him without even realizing. My heart jumped when I saw his wide-open eyes shimmering from the light of my phone as he looked down at me.

"Sorry," I whispered, embarrassed slightly as I scooted myself a good couple feet away from him.

He stared at me for a few more seconds before he let his eyes shut. I wonder what he had detected in me with his sense of smell that seemed to be able to sense your fear. I wonder if my feelings of terror had awakened him before my scream had.

I closed my eyes again, struggling to fall asleep until I finally managed to doze off for a few more hours, drifting in and out of consciousness as strange dreams raced through my mind and terrorized me. Once I woke again, I tried to remain awake to keep the dreams away, but I couldn't stop myself from drifting in and out.

A faint noise disturbed my shallow sleep. It sounded like feet stepping quietly and skillfully in the sand around me. I peeked open one of my eyes and my heart leapt into my throat when I saw Archer standing above me with an angry scowl on his face.

I realized he wasn't looking down at me though. He was looking to my left side where Anadar was sleeping. My stomach dropped as I watched him raise my golden bow, two arrows strung on it, and he aimed it straight at the sleeping giant possum. I wasn't sure if I should do something, because this might be a dream. When I saw the malice in Archer's dark canvass colored eyes, I knew I wasn't creative enough to imagine a look like that. He took aim and got ready to shoot and kill.

"Stop!" I screamed, quickly jumping to my feet as I saw Anadar's eyes pop open. By the time the words had left my mouth, he had already pulled back and released the sharp weapons in surprise at my outburst.

Anadar let out a roar of fury as one of the arrows stuck into his abdomen and I felt a hot burning feeling enter the back of my calf. Anadar's teeth were bared and rage crossed his features. His razor-sharp claws ripped three jagged lines across Archer's chest and his tail flicked up and knocked the bow from his hand. Archer fell back and looked up defenselessly at Anadar, who towered above him at an intimidating height. I wanted to tell them to stop but I had no voice. I tried to step forwards but the muscle in my leg tightened around a painful lump in my calf and I dropped down to my knees in agony.

"What is going on?" Aden shouted, running over to us looking dazed as he took in the sight before him. Archer and I were wounded and bleeding on the ground while Anadar towered above with saliva dripping from his fangs.

"This beast!" Archer shouted, "Was trying to eat Shelby in her sleep, so I was trying to kill it."

I felt my jaw drop as I stared at him. Anadar looked taken aback too by his words.

"You're such a liar!" I growled at him, my voice cracking as I winced in pain, "You were gonna kill Anadar in his sleep! This is your fault, you shot us both!"

He narrowed his eyes at me. "If you had not screamed and caused all this trouble, I could have killed him and we would be safe again!"

"If you kill him, we have no guide to the crown!" I snapped back.

"We are all in danger with this monster guiding us, and when he picks us off one by one our deaths will be on your head!" he spat.

"He isn't going to hurt us, Archer!"

"Shows what you know about Po'eles! Until one has eaten your father alive, I suggest you don't voice your opinions of them!"

That stopped the next attack from jumping off my tongue. Behind Archer's fiery eyes I could see fear. I hadn't known that about his father, and his trust issues with Anadar suddenly became more apparent.

"Might I add, she doesn't smell too appetizing, so there is a slim chance of me ever eating her," Anadar said, pulling the arrow from his stomach and snapping the tip off in his teeth.

"Hey! I'm defending you over here!" I snapped at him.

He grinned coyly. "My apologies, it wasn't meant to be an insult, more of a statement to help prove my innocence."

I rolled my eyes and then looked up at Aden, who was glaring at Archer begrudgingly, seeming to take my word over his conniving and deceitful cousin's. His eyes looked furious, but beneath the surface of his pellucid eyes was a layer of shame.

"Archer, this behavior won't be tolerated. You got what you deserved," Aden growled at him as he glared back in detest.

"I can't believe you would take this creature's side over your own family's!" he spat at Aden.

"I am not taking sides, I am trying to keep peace so we can finish this voyage for the sake of our people," Aden retaliated.

"How can you trust a Po'ele to help our people? Have you forgotten they are the reason your own father is dead?" Archer snapped at him.

"Enough, Archer."

"Do you not recall our fathers went out on a scouting mission together and were ambushed and brutally devoured and torn apart by monsters like him?" Archer shouted louder. "Do you not live with that pain every day that you will never see your father again because of creatures like him—"

"Enough!" Aden shouted, so loudly it silenced everything. His voice reverberated off the canyon walls around us.

I've never heard Aden speak in such a fierce and sharp tone before.

"He is nothing but a lying rat and we can't trust him!"

"I guess lying rats can have two legs as well as four," I sneered at him as he shot me a dirty look.

"You need to refrain from acting on your predispositions, Archer, and you need to start doing what Anabelle has instructed us," Aden reprimanded him. "You are old enough to show some restraint, we are not children anymore."

Archer glared at Aden. "When you all wake up one day and realize you were wrong to trust this monster and that he has turned on us, do not expect me to save you."

"Now I'll have to patch you all up," Aden sighed, ignoring Archer's threats and going over to get the supply kit that held all his medical stuff.

First, he started with me. Turns out the second arrow Archer had shot managed to somehow hit the canyon wall, bounce off and drill into the back of my leg, sinking deep into my muscle. Aden had me lie on my stomach while he worked on removing the arrow from my flesh. This was hard though because I wouldn't let him.

"Ow, don't touch it!" I cried, trying to crawl away before he dragged me back by my ankle.

"Shelby, hold still!" he snapped.

"Stop, it hurts!" I whined.

"Just stay still so I can—"

"No, don't touch!"

"Shelby!"

"Owwww!"

Every time I moved I winced, feeling the arrow head wriggle around in the soft tissue. He kept trying to hold me still but as his fingers slightly grazed the shaft of the arrow, I'd blanch with pain and then kick away. When he tried again, I reflexively kicked to get away and accidently kicked him under the chin, knocking him over backwards in the sand. He sat up rubbing his jaw, giving me an irritated look.

"I'm so sorry!" I apologized. "But in my defense, I told you not to touch it."

"If you would just hold still it would be done in a second!" he grunted in frustration as I pulled away for the fifteenth time now.

"No, it hurts!" I moaned, dropping my face into the sand.

He laughed. "Would you quit acting like a child and hold still?"

"It hurts and I'm too squeamish," I croaked, jerking my leg away as I felt him apply slight pressure to the arrow.

"How about a distraction?" Anadar suggested, "Do you enjoy riddles?"

I nodded and he sat down on his haunches before me, thinking for a moment for one that would keep me occupied. I wasn't really good at riddles and puzzles; they always infuriated me to a point where I'd want to punch a hole through a wall. I inherited a temper from Mom's side.

"Alright, a boy who weighs one hundred and fifty pounds and is six feet tall is riding his bike down a hill with a one-hundred-and-twenty-degree slope. He peddles fast down the hill and once he reaches the bottom he makes a sharp turn to avoid a crack in the road but he hits a fence. What is the first thing he would say?"

I felt confusion cloud my face like a storm. My mind kept coming up blank. He was smirking down at me smugly, seeing I had no answer.

"The answer is…ow!" I shrieked, flailing my legs as Aden applied pressure to the arrow. I looked back at him and saw he was smiling self-satisfied at me, twirling the bloody arrow between his fingers like a baton. I sighed with relief that it was out finally.

"Correct," Anadar said, and I looked back at him bemused.

"What? I didn't even give an answer though," I said.

"Yes you did. Your answer was 'ow' which is just what the boy said." He laughed as I raised an eyebrow in confusion. "I had asked what the boy might have said. Well, he just hit a fence at a high velocity, so the first thing he'd most likely say is 'ow'. Wouldn't you?"

I narrowed my eyes but couldn't fight back a grin, seeing it wasn't even a riddle you had to think about, it was just common sense. I was grateful for the distraction and glad the arrow was out of my leg for good now.

My leg burned suddenly and I became aware of my wound again. I let out a high pitched shriek and twisted around to protect my wounded limb. Aden pushed me back and I saw he was spreading some yellow liquid over it. The stuff smelt horrible and it made my leg feel like lightening was coursing through it. He pushed me back down as I struggled against him.

"It needs to be cleaned before I can stitch it and wrap it, and this will help it clot faster," Aden explained, "You're bleeding badly since the wound is so deep." He glared over at Archer.

"H-how deep is it?" I stammered.

"The tip seemed to pierce the muscle, so it may be hard to walk on it and it will definitely be sore for quite some time," he sighed.

Great, just what I need to make this trip even more fun.

He tied a tourniquet above my knee and had me roll onto my back and hold my legs up to keep them elevated so the bleeding would stop quicker. Blood had soaked through the leg of my pants and was getting on the other, so Aden just cut the pant legs off for me so they were more like a long pair of shorts now. I was glad since it's so hot out here in the desert. The bleeding finally got more under control from the clotting medicine and Aden stitched it up and wrapped my leg in a thick layer of soft, silky gauze.

I was finally able to put my legs down, but I had to keep an eye on the wound to see if it would start gushing blood again. I could see light red already starting to stain through the soft white cloth, but it wasn't soaked yet. Aden quickly took care of Archer's wounds, not saying a word to him as he cleaned and wrapped his chest in gauze. He turned to Anadar next, who was still bleeding from his abdomen. He was adamant at first about not needing any care, but Aden was adamant until he finally sighed in defeat and let him bandage him up too. I was proud of Aden for insisting.

Once we were all fixed up, Adalynn and Angie had woken up too and were looking around disoriented. I saw the fear and confusion cloud their reflective eyes as they took in Anadar. We had to explain to them he was on our side since they had been asleep with fevers when he had arrived earlier. They seemed unsure of our judgments, and Adalynn seemed just as distant towards the creature as Archer, even though he had saved her life. Maybe it was just normal for them to hate each other; children are probably raised to hate the other with a burning passion. We loaded everything up onto the birds and got ready to set out into the desert again. Everyone mounted up, but the only problem for me was that I couldn't.

Whenever I attempted to stand, my left leg would give out on me and send me to my knees. I tried hopping on one foot, but that became strenuous after four jumps. Aden got off Ashlynn and came over to help me, shooting Archer a dirty look and he rolled his eyes back, not showing any signs of remorse for what he did. As Aden guided me over to Ashlynn, I asked if we could keep the old riding arrangement, so I could ride with Alfozo again. It was strange, but I had started to really like the big, somber bird. I remembered yesterday when we went for a little sky diving expedition and smiled. Aden seemed a little surprised by my request, but he did not refuse and he redirected us.

He brought me over to Alfozo and tried to help me up onto his back. The large golden bird held his wing out to me like a life preserver and I clung to it as he hoisted me up. Once I was on finally, I scooted myself so I was resting on my belly against his strong, soft neck. As we took off, I felt my body relax as the gentle breeze flew past me and blew my hair around behind my head. I peered down over the side and saw Anadar running up ahead while the birds stayed locked on him like a target. For someone his size, he moved incredibly fast, not looking the slightest bit tired as he dashed through the sand.

After we flew across this endless sand box for a good few hours, the birds couldn't go any farther and had to land. They all collapsed in a heap in the sand, and I felt my body rise up and down rapidly with Alfozo's ragged breathing. I couldn't blame them; this excessive and intense heat was unbearable, my hair clinging to my clammy face and neck. Aden and Adalynn hopped down and brought water over for the birds while the rest dismounted to take the heavy packs off their backs. I wanted to dunk my head in a basin filled to the brim with ice cold water, or stick my whole body into the freezer at home. Where does this heat even come from? There's no sun down here.

"You stay and rest. We won't be long here," Alfozo said to me, holding his wing up to block my path as I tried to drag myself down.

"I'm fine, I can't just sit around while everyone does stuff," I said.

He remained persistent, stubbornly not settling his wing back down until I huffed and plopped back down against his neck like a lazy blob.

"Why are we stopping?" Anadar shouted, sounding a little annoyed.

"The Manus cannot fly anymore, they need rest for a while," Aden said.

"Well we cannot rest here, we have to keep moving!" I heard him snap his teeth together irritably.

"They can't go another wing beat, they'll drop straight from the sky!" argued Aden, his tone remaining strong as they fought. They squabbled back and forth like this for a while.

"Well if you all want to be foolish enough to sit here out in the open than you better have some shovels ready, because I certainly am not digging your graves!" hissed Anadar.

We are pretty exposed out in the open like this, a dot in the middle of the desert, sand extending for miles on all sides. It made me anxious as I thought what else might be out here with us that was so dangerous.

"We will not be long," Aden insisted.

"At least have your weapons out and ready!" the possum scolded. "And where is our 'Anela?"

Upon hearing my title, I pushing myself up and peered over the top of Alfozo's head. "Here I am!" I piped up and he looked over at me warily.

"You are our top priority now. If anything happens to you the mission will be jeopardized so everyone defend her at all costs!" he ordered.

"Can I help with anything?" I asked.

"No!" Anadar barked at me, "Just stay up there and try to keep yourself concealed as well as possible, understood?"

"Sir, yes sir!" I saluted him and he growled sharply at me.

"Don't get wise with me girl," he warned, his tone with an edge of lightness to it though.

I just lie down on Alfozo's back, making mindless conversation with him for a while. He didn't talk anymore about his Nazi dad, not that I blamed him, and so I told him about my dad instead. Thinking of Dad made me feel more homesick than I've felt the whole time I've been trapped down here.

"He works for this big company that my grandpa owned, and he's like never around," I told him. "I hardly ever talk to him anymore, he's always too busy…"

"I wish that was the case for me," the bird sighed, "my father is constantly trying to get me to come home and help him lead his armies. I wish he would just forget about me…" He just shook his head sadly.

"Well, as bad as he sounds, if he didn't talk to you ever maybe you'd miss him," I said.

He snorted. "I would miss my father like I would the plague."

"I thought something like that before too," I whispered, "and now that I'm stuck down here, I see that I was wrong. I miss my parents more than anything."

I actually miss Dad, a lot. Mom too. Sure, we hardly have time to talk these days and I never see him much, but even those short fifteen seconds to say hi were always better than the nothing I was getting down here. I felt like the couple years whenever I talked to Dad, he always find things to scold me for, but we had our good times too, especially when I was younger.

I remembered back in Lammi when I was nine, Dad and I built a tree house in the backyard. One night Mom had let us sleep up there. We brought up a bag of marshmallows and flashlights and made shadow puppets on the walls for hours. I also remembered whenever there would be a thunderstorm, to keep me from being scared Dad would have me count how many seconds were between each lightning bolt. These are the things I want to remember my dad for if I never see him again.

"How come Anadar is so worried about us stopping out here?" I questioned. "What's out here that's so dangerous? I haven't seen anything alive out here besides us."

Alfozo suddenly tensed beneath me, his neck muscles going rigid under my back. I rolled onto my stomach and dragged myself up on top of his massive head. I looked around and saw the other birds apprehensively huddled together while Anadar sniffed wildly at the air, standing up at his full seven feet. His lip curled back over his knife shaped fangs and it made me shudder into Alfozo's feathers. The other's sensed the animals' edgy positions and looked around as well.

"Everyone on your feet!" Anadar shouted, "This is what you get for not listening to me!"

Coming over the horizon were about a hundred scuttling little creatures. As they grew closer, I realized that they weren't so little after all. These creatures were huge, a good eight or nine feet tall. I had no name for them; they looked like nothing I had ever seen back at home before, or anywhere else on the planet. They reminded me of hairy reptiles mixed with tarantulas. They stood on eight massive, prickly legs and had long black fuzzy bodies with scaly tails like crocodiles. Three big, red eyes rested on either side of their heads, a total of six targeting our every move. I also saw that they had long muzzles with thousands of sharp teeth protruding through the gums.

"Shouldn't we be leaving now?" I called down nervously to the others, who were frozen in terror as they watched what approached.

"Won't do any good," said Anadar, "they can jump high and climb the canyon walls just as quickly. They have our scent now, so they'll never stop hunting us. We'll have to stay and fight, kill them all."

I swallowed the hard lump that formed in my throat and got chills looking at them. Something told me these things could tear us apart in seconds and wouldn't think twice about it.

"What are they?" I heard Adalynn ask in bewilderment. She stood with her sword ready, now fully recovered and ready to fight.

"Sand crawlers," Anadar said, flashing out his intimidating claws and taking position ahead of us. "They're vicious with locking jaws, so don't let them sink their teeth into you because you won't be getting out. Watch how you swing your swords; they tend to go for stray limbs."

Even though they weren't anywhere near me yet, I still pinned my arms cautiously to my sides. My stomach rolled at the thought of them ripping my arm clean off my body with their fierce locking jaws.

"What should I do?" I asked Alfozo, thinking of my wounded leg.

"Stay with me, I will not let them near you," he said calmly, staring out at what awaited us.

"I can still fight while sitting up here." I looked around and saw my bow resting by a picnic basket on the ground. Angie saw me staring at it and she scooped it up, tossing it to me with a smile on her face. She also threw me up the quiver of arrows and I slung it onto my back.

"You two, flank me on either side," Anadar called to Aden and Amrit, "and you two take to the rear," he instructed Adalynn and Angie.

"What about me?" Archer asked the giant possum, who just gave him a bored, uninterested look.

"Just don't get in our way."

The look on Archer's face made it hard to stifle my laughter and a little giggle came up my throat. I suddenly felt a stronger likeness for Anadar when I realized he too couldn't stand Archer. I think he heard because Archer glared in my direction and I quickly lowered my eyes, still grinning though. We all stood tensely, waiting for the blood to stain the sand.

"Attack on my mark," Anadar ordered, crouching down, looking ready to pounce and kill. We all waited and once the head sand crawler got within five feet Anadar shouted, "Now!" In a flash he turned into a blur, one second in a crouched position, the next beside of the crawler that no longer possessed a head.