I woke up to the crackle of the fire. The cool mountain air contrasted the heat from the flames. I rolled over, opening my eyes Emery stood stoking the fire. I rolled back feeling the dull ache in my muscles.

"You awake Phyn?" Emery asked, looking over. "Unfortunately. " I muttered

"If you want something to eat I cooked some rabbit earlier" She offered, walking over and shoving the meat in my direction. I turned my head, sitting up. "Thanks." I muttered staring at the slightly charred meat. It wasn't the most appetizing.

Emery walked back to the fire,"Ya whatever, I had to eat anyway." She poked the flames with a stick. I bit back a grin. I had a feeling Emery cared a lot more than her tough exterior would allow. She shot me a quick glare and I turned my head.

I took a big bite out of the rabbit. It was a bit gamey but it wasn't the worst thing I'd eaten. It felt good to get some food in my stomach. Get some strength back for whatever today would throw at me.

"You're going to finally teach me about my gifting, yes? I'm getting tired of being useless." I complained. Emery rolled her eyes, "Yes, we'll get to it."

"We should get started before the Carnivore king wakes up." I offered, pointing at the sleeping Ari. His snores resounded loudly. Emery sighed, "You're probably right."

She picked back up her staff. I stood up, shoving the rest of the food in my mouth, I wiped the grease off of my fingers. Emery motioned for me to follow, turning the heel of her boot. She walked deeper into the forest leading me under the cover of the trees.

We walked until we reached an odd shift in the landscape, an almost circle like space surrounded by rocky terrain. Trees towering over, completely shading it. It almost looked man-made, a ruin of sorts that the forest had integrated into.

Emery marched me to the center, leaving me in the middle as she paced. I took a deep breath preparing myself.

"So what am I doing wrong?" I narrowed my eyes, sick of watching her pace. "Slow down Phyn this isn't your show." Emery scolded, pausing in place.

"You're forcing your gifting Phyn. It's not meant to be used in intense focused energy bursts. It's supposed to flow, pulse in rhythm with what's around you. All this strained focused energy is hurting you in the transition. " She stated, crossing her arms.

"I don't know how to do it any other way." I muttered, receiving a decisive glare.

"Tell me about the first time you used your gifting." She stopped locking eyes with me, going back to walking in circles. I stuttered, on the spot, "Um well you mean the night Birdman first came after me?"

Emery shook her head, "No, although that instance may also apply to my point but that isn't really the first time you used it." Her voice echoed unwaveringly.

I frowned, biting my lip, "I don't know what you're talk-" I stopped remembering something. A sliver of a memory taking shape in my mind.

"I fell out of a tree, a year or so earlier. I ended up at the bottom staring up at it, on my feet, as if nothing happened. I thought I just hit my head and blacked out or something." I pondered, surprised at the realization. Emery smiled, "Yes, quite interesting isn't it, how the mind rationalizes the unexplainable."

Emery turned back to her frown, "Tell me, did you think about the ground, all its details, what it would look like to stare back up at the tree?" I shook my head, I hadn't even known what I was doing.

"Did you imagine the details and focus really, really hard?" She added patronizingly.

"No." I spat. Emery nodded, crossing her arms, "Exactly." She swung her staff around, resting it triumphantly. "You don't need to, in fact it hurts you when you do."

She stepped back, onto the ledge surrounding the center. She left me in the middle, staring down at me. "

What do you expect me to do?" I gave an exasperated laugh. I didn't want her mockery. "Unlearn what you've engrained." She smirked, kicking a rock the size of a fist towards my head. I ducked, stumbling back.

"What do you think you're doing?!?!" I hissed, staring up at her shocked. "I'm pushing your limits, Wanderer."

She picked up another rock. I stepped back just missing her aim. She laughed, disappearing back into the woods. Her grayish green cloak blending in well with the surroundings. I bit my lip trying to track her.

I cried out in pain as a rock slammed into my leg. How was she so fast?

"You're going to have to rely on more than your reflexes little one." She advised. I rubbed my leg turning, finding her already gone.

I gave a frustrated sigh, "This isn't fair!" I called. I didn't want to play her games. The Monty incident, still fresh in my mind. Emery seemed to like to tourture me.

I kept my ears open, continually turning. I heard a quick whip of the next rock, I shut my eyes visualizing the other side of the arena. The rock hit me straight in the stomach just as I disappeared. I stumbled over, my hands shaking in anger. The rock falling at my feet. I wasn't fast enough. I needed a different strategy.

I ran across the space, darting to and fro. I'd give her a moving target at least. I caught her eyes through the trees, side stepping away from the next flying rock.

I laughed, "See I don't even need my ability." My smirk interrupted by a second stone hitting straight my ribs. I hissed in pain. How was she so good at this?

I turned around, tripping over my own feet. I watched one more rock flying towards my face. I rolled out of the way just in time. Frantically pulling at the grass trying to stand, I caught Emery hoping down from the ledge.

"If I can take you out with a couple of rocks how do you expect to stand against anyone?" She grumbled standing over me. "You set me up to fail!" I yelled, my face red with embarrassment. "Ya maybe but you're going to have to find a faster way to use that power of yours otherwise you'll be eaten alive." She offered me a hand up but I refused to take it. She shrugged, walking away.

"I think I've given you enough of a beating for today. That ends our first lesson." She briefly looked back. I got back up to my feet, stomping after her. "I didn't learn anything!" All she gave me was a few well placed bruises.

"You will."

"I hope all our training sessions don't involve you wiping stuff at my head." I scowled. Emery ignored me, the swagger in her step, annoying me all the more. I shook my head following her. Why was she like this? I would storm off if I had any idea of where we were.

"When we get back we'll pack up and head out." Emery commanded, pretending that I wasn't fuming behind her.

"I'm still mad at you." I called, dragging my feet.

"Oh I know." She didn’t look back. I gave an exaggerated sigh, stomping through the serene forest.

We got back to the campfire, Ari still snuggly curled up asleep. Emery stared at him, gave a loud obnoxious cough. He popped open one eye, scampering up. "I AM AWAKE." He echoed, blinking up at us.

"Good we need to get going." Emery muttered, starting piling up her stuff. I rolled my eyes, getting to packing as well. I threw everything back in my pack, ignoring the throbbing places across my body that were sure to turn into welts.

Ari hoped to his feet, his clothes a wrinkled mess. "You can eat some rabbit if you want." Emery offered Ari the same charred meat I ate earlier. His eyes perked up, as he snatched it from her, devouring it like an animal. I shook my hand, watching the disaster.

Emery looked up with a chuckle, "Well at least Ari enjoys my cooking." She muttered. Throwing her own bag around, she waited with her walking staff.

"Let's get moving." She walked past me, down the mountain. I let out a sigh, throwing on my pack and followed.

Today would be more walking, again. My feet were ready to protest. "Lead the way." I huffed reluctantly, starting on our trek again. Ari ran ahead, getting distracted every five seconds by some new discovery. Whether it was a weird bug or strange plant, it all seemed to interest him. He was just a big kid in that sense. Always excited and no attention span, it was exhausting to watch.

The cool morning breeze, drifting in and out. It was enough to make me shiver. Towering cedars surrounding us on all sides, blue mountains poking out over the barely visible horizon.

The space between me and Emery lessened as I found myself catching up with her. After putting up with her lesson this morning I felt entitled to some answers.

"Tell me about Stellar." I asked, causing her head to turn. "What?" She stated surprised. "I'm curious. I've heard it mentioned a lot and yet I don't really know anything about it." I expanded, walking beside her now.

"Well...Stellar was wonderful...and horrible." She muttered, a glazed look in her eye. A distance in her words.

"They were based heavily on tradition and the magic arts. Very religious, Stellar’s king was more of a high priest. Most of it was nonsense and they knew it. The gods they idealized had no place in reality. They became ideas more than anything. When your leaders don't believe what they teach you have a problem." Her voice drifted off. Her eyes narrowed.

"They arguably were the only ones who could have stood against the Remedy. Their magic was nearly a rival to theirs. They fell because they were too fixated on themselves...and because they underestimated me." Emery gave a concluding nod. I frowned, remembering the man accusing Emery of being a traitor.

"What do you mean by that?" I asked cautiously. She let out a surprised chuckle, "Well that’s a hornet's nest you might wanna leave untouched. I was different back then, very different."

"Whatever happened to answering my questions." I complained, narrowing my eyes. "It is just that you have so many! Do you expect me to pull out all the skeletons out of my closet?" She stopped walking for a second.

"No I guess not." I frowned. "Just stop baiting me then with all these cryptic phrases if you don't want to talk about them." I argued sternly. She smirked while debating something.

"It's not that I don't want to talk about it, I just never really have." Emery said, her eyes hollow. I stared at her, waiting. "It's not a short story." She gave as an excuse, putting back up some of those walls. "It's not a short walk."

She let out a groan shaking her head, "Fine. I give up, whatever." She admitted, her eyes looking up to the sky as if trying to recall.

"I was the daughter of war heroes from a well respected family line. Both my parents died when I was young and for the most part it was just me and my little brother. We were close." She blinked, brushing a pine needle from her hair.

"Believe it or not but in my early years I was much too sensitive for my own good. Very quiet and timid, a breeze could knock me over. I felt awkward around most people, I didn't really fit anywhere. My brother Eamon was my world though, we were inseparable. Eamon was my opposite. He loved to joke around and be the center of attention. Everyone liked him." She smiled at the memory.

It seemed to be quite a far back place to start the story. Why did Emery want me to know about her brother? Emery's eyes grew dark, "Eamon's the reason I did what I did." Her voice ran cold spending chills down my spine. The greenish-brown forest looking suddenly a shade grayer.

Emery swallowed a lump in her throat. "You see when my gifting first started manifesting I kept it secret. They still marked people back in my day and the thought of it frightened me to death. I figured it was better no one knew, and no one did...expect Eamon." She smirked, contrasting the pain in her eyes.

"I told Eamon everything. This was no exception, I used to share the stuff I picked on other people with him. It became our little game, he'd get people talking and we'd see what I'd glean. We had fun till one day Eamon took it too far…" Her voice trailed off.

"He used something I told him and someone caught on. They figured out someone was a Realever. Eamon knew I didn't want anyone to know about my gifting, so in a stupid rash descion he claimed it was him. It was the most selfless thing anyone has ever done for me." Emery smiled to herself, her breathing shallow. I stared intently, nearing tripping on a branch.

She took a deep breath, "Normally when they mark someone they burn a scar into their hand or their shoulder. People get weird about Revealers, we make people uncomfortable. No one wants their secret spilled but they still want to find out the secrets of others." Emery frowned.

"They marked his face."

I turned my head in shock, "They wh-"

"They burned his symbol across his face.” She pointed to the numeral four on her glove.

“He was never the same after that. The happy sociable brother I knew recoiled into himself. I knew he had fallen into some sort of despair but he wouldn't let me see it. I blamed myself and I wasn't strong enough then to do anything about it." Emery muttered, echoing something found in my own soul, that acidic guilt.

"I spent the following years doing what I could to help him. I fed him my observations to keep up the facade but it was different between us. He was distant. Despite my building anger I played the perfect devote. I followed all the statutes and rites, I remained invisible best I could, that is until the rotation of sacrifices." Emery's last phrase caused the hairs on my neck to stand.

"The rotation of sacrifices?" My voice warily echoed.

Emery nodded, "I know you're somewhat aware of blood magic. Finding high caliber blood is difficult in times of peace. The rotation of sacrifices was Stellar's way of augmenting their supply. Plus the high priest was certainly using it to extend his youthfulness." She snorted.

"They'd pick a different young person every three years." Emery stopped at my horrified expression, "They don't really kill them Phyn." She studied my gaze. "Oh good." I muttered relieved. "They just let some of their blood every so often and collect it." She explained.

"And that's supposed to be less creepy?"

"A little."

She stopped, watching Ari lap up a puddle. "Ari stop that's probably not clean!" She yelled, running up and chasing him from it. I chuckled slightly at Ari's wide eyed expression as he leapt from the puddle.

Emery let out a hiss of frustration, "What a primeval slob." She muttered under her breath, "You can't leave him for one minute." She hissed. I laughed at her bewilderment. She slowed joining me once more in walking.

"What happened at the rotation of sacrifices?" I asked, my curiosity eating at me.

Emery sighed, "I was chosen."

She threw stone from her hand sending a bird scattering. I could see her hands shaking. "I wasn't supposed to be, not with my parents status. I should've been exempt but they called my name. Everyone cheered, it is supposed to be a great honor. I was understandably horrified." Her voice steadied, turning with a tone of resentment.

"I began to suspect something was going on behind the scenes. My brother wouldn't tell me anything about it, but it became apparent that they were holding me over his head. I was a pawn in their game. I remember being angry, so angry." Emery clenched her fists, "Something in me snapped. I don't know quite what it was but I realized that day that I was smarter than they thought I was. I had an ability they didn't know about and a life they didn't care about. I was powerful and invisible." Emery's voice picked up, excited.

"I needed to protect my brother. The high priest of Stellar had to go and I decided that I would be the one to do it." I stared at Emery a little shocked at her boldness.

She met my gaze with a guilty expression, "I am not a hero Phyn. I'm sorry if you think I'm one. I was ready to kill him and do it in the most cruel way I could. I was done letting people trample over me." Her fists, tight, around her staff.

"I started with his greatest fear. Something that's child's play for a Realver. It wafts around people like foul body odor." She snorted at the analogy. I was still gawking at her. Emery shifted, setting her eyes on the road. "Not that I needed to really use my gifting. Men who crave power are open books. They fear being weak more than anyone. " She added, loosening her posture.

I frowned hesitating, "How did you…"

"Kill him? I didn't. I left him to a worse fate." Emery returned, a slight gleam in her eyes.

"There is an interval between the start of my bloodletting and the previous sacrifice's. I started taking low doses of a toxic herb, not enough to really harm me but enough to introduce it to my bloodstream. I slowly increased my dosage, building up my tolerance. This particular drug in high doses induces a sort of paralysis, it causes permanent damage to motor functions of the unfortunate soul who ingests enough of it. So there I was on the day of my blood letting, my bloodstream chock full of this poison. I knew he would use it on himself, and his body wouldn't have built up a tolerance. I let them take my blood and I let him use it. I took down the high priest of Stellar without lifting a finger." Emery smirked, a small degree of pride that scared me a little.

"The next day Stellar was chaos.The poison coursing through his veins he became paralyzed. Their great leader now couldn't even dress himself. It was then that I took my chance, running over to enemy lines. I let them do the rest." Emery stated dryly.

I furrowed my brow, "I thought Stellar was at peace then?" I asked watching Emery avert my gaze, "None of us are really at peace with the Remedy around."

I stopped, Emery turned back to look at me. She shifted uncomfortably. I couldn't breathe, anger clouding my vision. "You helped the Remedy!?!" I growled, tightening my fists.

"For a time yes. I told you I'm not a hero Phyn. I didn't really care to know what they were at the time. I thought anyone was better than Stellar." She fought back, stiffening.

"Ya but they-"

"Ya but they what? I did my best ok? I'm not proud of that alliance. I know better now but I didn't back then." Emery's voice broke and she turned her back forward. I had a sick feeling in my gut. How could she help them? I couldn’t get past this. Her excuses weren't enough to satisfy me. She helped the people who killed Freya. She should have known better.

I bit my lip and kept walking. I didn't know what to say to her after that. I didn't want to talk to her. I wouldn't talk to her. She must've picked up on that, not pressing it further. We walked in silence, the birds being only ones who dared to break it. Even Ari was quiet.

My anger settled and I started to feel bad. Maybe I was being too harsh. She had shared something very personal with me and I had rung her out to dry.

A creeping feeling replaced my anger. This was more than just the uncomfortable silence between me and Emery, the air was heavy. Something was off. It felt like we were walking right into something. Dark forces looming over, I was afraid but I couldn't quite put my finger on why.

Emery looked a little more rattled than normal. I couldn't tell if that had to do with her story or this invading feeling. Ari stuck close, less chaotic in his movements. Him being steadier was unnerving.

I gripped my fists and marched forward. I wasn't one to back down. The shadows of the trees looked more sinister, twisting up in creepy shapes. The sky looked darker, a chill in the air drifting through the trees.

"A shadow grows close." Ari whispered, freaking me out that much more because of the lack of volume in it. Emery nodded, "I'm sorry. He's here because of me." She echoed briefly. I took a breath preparing myself.

"We stand together." I tightened my fists. Emery turned her head, eyes surprised. "You still stand with me Wanderer? Even though I've helped the enemy." She whispered, a vulnerability in her tone, that caught me off guard.

"I'm still here aren't I?" I settled on my statement.

"Thank you."

The three of us stood at the center of the clearing. "Who's coming?" I asked. A zing of a sword blade seemed to answer my question.

"Oh beteryar you're a hard one to track down." A voice growled from behind us. Emery's posture stiffened.

"I try not to stick around long." She stated cooly.

"I wonder why." The stranger mocked, making Emery scowl. I turned to see a man, in red and black armour, a sick look in his eyes. I stared in horror recognizing him. Whinnie, the man who killed Freya, was standing before me alive.