Three days later, they entered the mountain range. According to Aegin, Jerrica was situated in the Seisin Mountain Range south-east of Barday. Though, it was still a decent journey from the Academy city. The journey was made especially long from any direction around and through the mountain range because the roads were too winding, and the forest surrounding it too thick for anyone to move quickly through. Considering Rassa's captors had decided on a little used path, it was safe to say that their progress was even slower.

It was as they entered the foothills that Rassa finally heard from the leader of the party who until then had kept his silence, using only hand movements or looks to convey his orders. It was brought up by the other adult that Rassa hadn't eaten or drank anything in the ten days or so since they'd captured him. Clearly, they had no idea that Aegin had been feeding him.

"We've still got another four days until we reach Jerrica, he needs to eat or he's going to die," the one who wasn't the leader had said.

"Feed him," the leader ordered simply.

"No need," Aegin stated from his perch on top of the carriage, "Apparently our food won't do him any good anyway".

They both looked up at Aegin, clearly surprised.

"What do you mean?" asked the one who'd brought up the problem.

Aegin sighed, "He's not human, he doesn't require food or water like we do".

"You've fed him?" asked the leader, his tone lower than before.

Aegin picked up on the change in the air quickly, and hesitated because of it, but nodded in the end.

The leader moved so quickly that Rassa felt a little scared. He'd never seen a human move that fast before. Suddenly, Aegin was being held against a tree by his throat, though the boy did not seem to want to struggle as he chocked. Rassa watched on with wide eyes, completely unprepared for this event.

"You interacted with it?" asked the leader.

"..y..yes," Aegin struggled to respond.

The leader dropped Aegin, only to punch him in the gut then knee him in the nose and toss him to the side.

"We were ordered not to converse with it," snapped the leader.

Aegin didn't fight it as he was punished, as the leader continued to hit him while he was down. It disturbed Rassa greatly. In his eyes, Aegin had done nothing wrong, but clearly by conversing with Rassa, he'd done something unforgiveable. Rassa couldn't for the life of him understand why. Was it simply because he was a prisoner and Aegin was his captor? That didn't seem enough of a reason to garner this kind of consequence.

Rassa found himself leaning forward to cling onto the bars of the carriage, as he watched Aegin take the punishment. The chains holding him shifted, and the noise made everyone pause as they turned to look at Rassa.

The leader met Rassa's gaze with a glare.

Rassa did not glare back. He was not angry, nor sad, nor was he begging for the punishment to stop. Or begging for anything really. All that Rassa held in his dark eyes, was curiosity. Why was Aegin being punished for conversing with him? Was there something they were actively hiding from him? Despite not saying it aloud, the leader immediately realised his mistake. He hadn't been careful enough to realise who intelligent Rassa was, how observant he was. But as soon as the leader saw the question in Rassa's eyes, the question he'd been ordered not to answer, he turned away looking down at where Aegin lay sprawled on the ground.

"Don't talk to it".

With that said, the carriage pulled forward once more. Rassa looked at Aegin as the boy pulled himself to his feet, then got back on top of the carriage without a hint of complaint. Whoever these people were, they certainly weren't normal. Nothing about this situation was normal.

***

Following his father's orders, Aegin did not attempt to converse with Rassa again. Every few nights he would hunt some game and help Rassa out of the metal mask so that he could feed, but they did not speak as they once had. To Aegin's surprise, Rassa did not seem bothered by this change in attitude. He understood.

Aegin had broken the rules. Defied orders. And so he'd been punished for it. It was clear that Rassa didn't like these orders, but he understood that Aegin had to face the consequences anyway. So, instead of speaking, they kept a companionable silence with one another. When Aegin wasn't being ordered around, he stuck by the carriage, whether it was sitting on top of it or beside it. Rassa appreciated the company, even if it was only a presence.

Yet again, Rassa was drawn into a lesson with Victor. Alas, another day of political intrigue. But as Rassa settled down to watch the proceedings, something was said that perked his interest. The exact words, from a little known sub-coven head who ruled on the outskirts of the Star Crash Coven's territory, were as follows, "Keltair are pushing on our borders more and more desperately. It appears the damn dogs can't keep to themselves".

Rassa had heard the name Keltair before, and assumed it was another sub-coven that was little liked. But this...who exactly were they? As soon as he had a moment alone, he asked Victor.

"Ah, good, you picked up on it," Victor stated, "I wish the rest of us had been as attentive".

Rassa frowned, "Why, are they that important? I assumed they were a sub-coven but dogs...how are they a threat to us?"

Victor smiled, and for a moment Rassa couldn't figure out why, then it clicked, Rassa was beginning to consider himself one of them. A Vampire. He'd said 'us'.

"To answer your question, little one," Victor stated affectionately, clearly in a good mood after seeing Rassa's changing attitude, "Vampires were not the only race to emerge from the Chaos. There were other...more beastly races that existed too. Keltair was not a sub-coven, Keltair was a pack. A pack of one of the only races that was on par with us in terms of bloodlust, though for entirely different reasons".

"Dogs?" asked Rassa. It still did not sound all that threatening. Amazing that the only races Rassa had ever felt threatened by since the change, were those that took a humanoid form.

"Wolves to be more precise," Keltair admitted, "Their official name, was Lycanthrope, though they were more commonly referred to as werewolves. Men who turned into beasts with the call of a full moon".