Galen dusted snowflakes off his hair as he peered into the distance. Even summers in Zamsune weren’t safe from the occasional snow flurries. The Yubal mountains were in the background, making a beautiful view. He held a bundle of firewood under one arm and was walking toward Thuraya’s house. The wood was uneven in length, standing testament to his skill with an axe. He entered the cabin and saw Thuraya giving Nessa lessons at the kitchen counter.

Nessa wasn’t an eager learner and was restless, especially during her sit-down lessons. Thuraya taught the theoretical, and he covered the practical. Nessa had fun doing spells, but she didn’t like him critiquing her. He was relieved that she already knew Oxuri as it was one less thing to teach her. The most frustrating concept to get her to understand was keeping her magic a secret. Vera's feeble lie of not wanting to offend people only worked so well, and her inherent loquaciousness made her want to blab to anyone who would listen. Since he and Thuraya never brought people home, her main target became Senior Officer Usoro. The officer kept true to her word and randomly showed up every week or every other week. They had to stay on alert and bend over backwards to make sure Usoro didn’t find out they were asteris.

The main problem about teaching Nessa was that it stirred up thoughts about Severin. He tried not to think about him because the happy thoughts always dragged up the unhappy, but moments popped up here and there. Less than four months have passed since their last conversation, and he still felt a lingering melancholy from that day. Severin, an enthusiastic learner, was the complete opposite of Nessa. Although, he did have over twenty years on her.

He wondered if he made a mistake, if he could have avoided their falling out. He often spiraled into countless what ifs. Nessa or Thuraya were able to snap him out if it most days. He set the firewood down by the fireplace and endeavored to stop his thinking right there. He had better things to do.

Nessa's voice called out from the kitchen, "Galen! Show me how to do that one spell again!'

"Which spell?" he called back, "What have I told you about being more specific?"

"The one where we turn water into ice."

"Have you finished your lessons with Thuraya?"

Thuraya answered for her, "Yes, she's done. Go out back. Galen will meet you there."

Nessa cheered and ran out the back door. Thuraya walked to him, crouching in front of the fireplace. She threw in a few logs and lit the wood with a match. She said, "I'll start dinner."

"Thanks." He went to get two glasses of water from the kitchen. After filling the cups, he met Nessa out back. She was poking a bug with a stick. "Nessa, grab this."

Nessa took one of the glasses of water and set it down on the ground. He set his glass next to hers and said, "We want to do this without Oxuri. Remember the first step?"

"Yep." She closed her eyes. Her brow furrowed in concentration. Magic gathered in her hand, and purple wisps encircled her fingertips.

"Good. Now visualize the water freezing."

"I am."

"Compel your magic to do what you visualize." Magic pooled in his hand. He forced the magic into the water, freezing it.

Nessa's brow furrowed further, and her eyes squeezed tightly. The magic in her hand flickered before fizzling into nothing. She opened her eyes and saw her water didn’t change. She sighed, "I can't do it."

"You can," he encouraged, "What went wrong?"

"I imagine the water freezing, but I can't make my magic move. It stays stuck to my fingers."

"Let's step away from freezing the water. Bring magic to your hands." Nessa's fingertips glowed once more. "Try to pull the magic from your fingers like you're stretching dough."

The magic surrounding Nessa's hands moved up a little. She looked up, "I did it! It moved."

"I see that. Can you pull it more?"

The magic rose higher. "Look!"

"You're doing great. Turn back to the water and try to freeze it now. Stretch your magic to the glass."

Nessa nodded, completely focused. The purple extended from her hands and reached the glass, but nothing happened. She recalled the magic with a frustrated huff. "It didn't work."

"Were you visualizing the water freezing or were you just stretching the magic to the cup?"

"Just stretching."

"You have to do both. Try again."

Nessa grabbed her magic for a third time. This time she visualized the spell and stretched her magic. When she touched the cup, the water froze. She grinned and jumped around. She yelled, "I did it! Galen, I did it!"

He smiled and watched her bounce around. Thuraya came out of the back door and asked, "What did you do?"

"I froze water with my magic," she said excitedly.

"Congratulations," Usoro appeared from the side of the house with a smile on her face, "An impressive feat."

Galen and Thuraya froze. They turned to each other with a frantic look in their eyes. Nessa responded, "Yeah, it was super hard for me."

He took over, "Nessa, why don't you head inside with Miss Thuraya. I'll talk with Miss Usoro."

Nessa nodded her understanding. "You don't want her to know that we're asteris. I got it."

Usoro's smile widened, and Thuraya proceeded to bang her head on the door frame. Nessa gasped, "I wasn't supposed to say that."

He pinched the bridge of his nose, needing a second to comprehend what just happened. He asked, "Is there any chance you didn't hear that?"

Usoro laughed, "No, I heard it loud and clear. You three are asteris."

Thuraya's banging grew louder. Nessa ran to her side, pulling her away from the door. A red mark laid on her forehead. Nessa said, "Miss Thuraya, you'll hurt yourself."

Thuraya sighed, "If I only I knocked myself out. Nessa, go inside."

Nessa pouted but did as Thuraya ordered. He pleaded, "Please don't tell anyone, especially not anyone in the military."

Usoro said, "If you do me a favor, I won't tell."

"Blackmail."

Usoro shrugged, "Blackmail. Extortion. Call it what you want. Do you accept?"

Thuraya asked, "What do you want us to do?"

"Get me out of the military and out of this country."

"What?" he asked incredulously, "You want us to smuggle you out of Zamsune?"

"Uh-huh."

Thuraya snorted, "How will we do that? The military is Zamsune's honor. Its pride. They won't let you leave easily."

"You'll figure it out if you want me to keep your secret."

He shook his head, "Can you give us the night to make our decision? This is a lot."

"Affirmative," Usoro said. She straightened and gave them a quick nod before turning and marching away.

He frantically paced. "What are we going to do?"

Thuraya sat on the back steps, resting her head in her hands. "We can't risk this getting out."

Galen made nonsensical gestures, "How will we do this?"

"We'll think of something. It's fine." Thuraya soothed.

"Fine? We're being blackmailed!"

"I am well aware of that," Thuraya snapped, "We have to do it."

He sighed, "Yeah, we do."

Usoro arrived bright and early the following morning. Thuraya opened the door as soon as she knocked. She said, "We accept. We'll discuss in the kitchen."

Usoro stepped into the house. "You work fast. I like that. I'm confident in your ability to help me."

"You didn't give us a choice."

"No," Usoro conceded, "But you're taking the initiative."

"I want this to be over. We don't need this attention." With that, Thuraya walked into the kitchen. Usoro followed behind her and sat down at the table. She smiled at him. He scowled in response.

He asked, "Do you know what to do? Where do we even start?"

"I don't know," Usoro shrugged. She held up her hand to stop the two's complaints. "I know someone who does. He will tell you."

"Why didn't you bring him here?" Thuraya questioned.

Usoro gave a cheery smile. "He doesn't know he'll be helping yet."

"What?" he took in a deep breath. "What do you mean he doesn't know he's helping us?"

Usoro opened her arms wide as if she was presenting Thuraya and Galen. "You will convince him to help. I believe in your powers of persuasion."

"I hate you," Thuraya said, glaring at Usoro.

Usoro laughed. The exact opposite response Thuraya wanted. She said, "You don’t know how often people tell me that. I’m no longer offended."

"I can imagine."

He brought the conversation back to the situation at hand, "Who is this man?"

"Eamon Oyola. My previous commanding officer. A high ranked official in the Zamsune military. If he found a way to leave, I can too."

"How do you know where he is?"

"I heard rumors about a man that matched his description."

Thuraya interrupted, "So, you don't know if it's him for sure?"

"No, but you two are capable of figuring out the legitimacy of the whispers."

He said, exasperated, "Are you going to contribute anything?"

Usoro smirked, "If you didn’t interrupt, I could finish. Also, which one of us has the upper hand here? You or me?"

He gritted his teeth, "You."

"Thank you," Usoro smiled, "The rumors originated from the town of Ardogris, which is 500 miles west of here. I have train tickets for you. The train will depart tomorrow, and it will take a full day of travel before you arrive. When you arrive at the city, look for a little girl named Jivanta. She sells flowers in the town. Do not ask her about Eamon. Just follow her."

Thuraya raised her eyebrows, "You already bought the train tickets."

He added, "And we need to leave tomorrow. And we have to adhere to your sketchy orders."

"What will we do with Nessa? We can't leave her alone," Thuraya said.

"Ah, Nessa. Where is she?" Usoro asked.

"Sleeping."

"I will watch the girl."

He shook his head, "Absolutely not."

"Who else do you know?"

Thuraya whispered to Galen, "She has a point. We can't risk Nessa telling anyone else."

He whispered back, "I refuse to let Nessa stay here with her. You don't have to come with me. We don't need two people to get information."

"That's fair."

He cleared his throat, "No, Thuraya will stay here. I guess one train ticket will go to waste."

Usoro tilted her head in thought, "I can come with you."

"That is not necessary."

She snapped her fingers, "No, this is perfect. You will be assigned a guard anyway since you’re a foreigner. What better guard to follow you than me? I can contribute like you want me to."

He sighed, "I suppose that makes sense. If you go with me, will someone else need to monitor the house?"

"We will only be gone for a short while, so no other guard will be necessary. I don't check on you every day, do I?"

Thuraya said, "That settles it."

"Yes, I will leave you to pack and tell Nessa of the plan. Galen, I will take you to the station. I’ll see you tomorrow." Usoro stood from the table and left the house.

He exhaled a long breath and laid his head on the table. Thuraya pat his back and said, "It could be worse."

His voice was muffled because his face was smooshed into the table, "This is ridiculous. The Ethereal Mistress must be laughing at us."

"Try not to think about it. I should get breakfast ready. You can start packing your bags."

"If only we had something to hold over Usoro's head. Something that could make her back down." He lifted his head, "Thuraya! Maybe you could, you know, peer into the future for an opportunity like that."

"I already looked, but all I saw was her babysitting someone's child when she's an old woman."

"That's not useful at all."

"I control when I see, not what I see."

"I'll just have to deal with it, then. I'll go wake up Nessa."

"She's going to complain about breakfast not being ready."

"She can wait."

He walked to Nessa's room and opened the door. Nessa was sprawled out on the bed, her limbs akimbo. Smiling, he gently shook her shoulder. The little girl jolted awake. She sleepily said, "Huh?"

He shook her again, "It's time to wake up. Breakfast will be ready in five minutes."

She whined, "No, I don't want to get up."

"We have important news to tell you, but we can only talk at the kitchen table."

Nessa squinted her eyes at him, "Okay."

He reentered the kitchen and sat down at the table. Galen could hear Nessa dragging her feet from her room to the kitchen. Thuraya greeted the girl when she took her place at the table. "Hello, little star. How was your sleep?"

"It was good until you woke me up," she grumbled.

"Did Galen tell you we have important news?"

"Uh-huh."

"Well, Galen and Miss Usoro are going on a trip and will be away for a couple of days."

"I want to come too!"

"No. This is an adults-only trip. You'll be stuck with me."

"Okay," Nessa said, "Does this mean I can't do magic until Mister Galen gets back?"

"Yes," he held up a stern finger, "No magic."

"No," Nessa whined, "Lessons are so boring."

"No magic," he repeated. Nessa pouted, but she agreed to his terms. Thuraya finished making their breakfast and served the two of them. They all abandoned talking in favor of eating the food in front of them. Nessa, like always, finished her meal first. She jumped out her chair, put the plate in the sink, and raced back to her room.

Thuraya called, "Lessons are in thirty minutes."

Nessa's groan echoed throughout the house. He snickered, "She hates learning doesn't she."

Thuraya shrugged, "She hates learning, but loves the outcome."

He rose from his seat, stretching his arms over his head. "I'll start packing. Though, I don't know what to bring."

Thuraya shook her head, "Don't worry, I'll go through and make sure everything looks to be in order."

He nodded and made his way to his bedroom, thinking about what he needed to pack. He thought about how complicated their stay in Zamsune had become in so little time. Not even Thuraya could have predicted this.

***

Galen stood outside the house with his bag. Nessa got up early to send him off. This was the first time they would be separated since they met each other in Minastav. Yesterday, Nessa wasn’t affected by the news, but she had been weepy this morning. She hugged him tightly and told him about how much she would miss him. He was touched by this but reminded her that he would be gone for less than a week. Thuraya managed to console her and distracted her with sweets.

Nessa clutched his pant leg and asked, "You'll be back soon?"

He patted her head, saying, "I told you already, Nessa. I'll be back before this week is out. Don't worry."

She sniffed, "I'm not worried. I just don't want to be bored with Miss Thuraya."

"Hey!" Thuraya called.

Nessa giggled, "Sorry, Miss Thuraya, but it's true."

He crouched in front of Nessa, looking her in her eyes. "I'll be back before you know it. You won't even have time to be bored."

Nessa crossed her arms, "If you say so."

"I know so."

The sound of a horse reached the house, so he rose from his crouch. The stagecoach came into view. Usoro sat in the front with the driver. Once she saw the group, she waved and slid out of her seat. She greeted Galen, "Hello, fellow traveler. Are you ready to leave?"

"Yes,” he swung his bags into his arms.

"Great, we can go." Usoro took his bag from him and put it into the back. He followed her and was about to climb into the cart when Usoro stopped him. She grasped his arm and dragged him to the front. "Don't be shy. There's room for all of us up here."

"I'm more comfortable in the back."

Usoro laughed and pulled him into the seat next to her. "Nonsense. You will sit here with me. You aren't scared of me, are you?"

"Of course not." He settled onto the bench. He turned, seeing Nessa and Thuraya waving goodbye. He waved back to them and felt the stagecoach kick into action. He continued to wave at them until they were gone from his sight.

Usoro nudged him with her shoulder, "Are you excited?"

"I'm excited to get this over with. I'm tired of dealing with you."

"You can't be tired. We've barely gotten started."

He breathed a deep, heavy sigh, "I can't wait."

They fell into silence for the rest of the ride to the station. When they arrived, Usoro gathered the bags, and he entered the station to find a place in the queue for the train. Usoro handed him his bag when she met up with him. The train arrived shortly after. Boarding the train, he and Usoro took their seats. The train departed with a jerking start, and he readied himself for the trip.

"So," Usoro started, "How has your stay been in Zamsune?"

"Terrible," he remarked dryly.

"How was it before I blackmailed you?"

"Fine. Can we not talk?"

Usoro pursed her lips and shrugged, "Okay."

They continued to not talk for the first quarter of the train ride. However, Usoro soon became restless. She jiggled her leg and tapped rapidly on the armrest. He tried his best to ignore her incessant noise, but his annoyance got the better of him. He snapped, "Stop tapping."

"Sorry," she apologized, ceasing her tapping. But she was only able to still her hand for a moment before resuming the movement.

He glared at her, "You're doing it again."

"Oh, sorry. I don't mean to do it."

"What will make you stop?"

"We could talk. I wouldn't feel so jittery."

"Okay, let's talk."

"Now I don't know what to talk about."

He rolled his eyes, "I'll start. Why do you want to leave?"

Usoro chuckled to herself, "That's a loaded question. The simple answer is that I don't want to be in the military."

"I thought civilians only had to serve five mandatory years. Why not wait until they're over?"

"I'm a special forces officer. We don't get to leave."

"What makes the special forces so special?"

Usoro leaned in and whispered, "We're Zamsunian spies. We look out for our country's interests overseas."

"I see. If that's the case, why are you here? Watching us?"

"As part of my punishment, I have been demoted to doing grunt work."

"Punishment?" He narrowed his eyes, not liking the sound of that.

"For leaving the military without permission."

"What!" he shouted. His loud voice drew the attention of the other passengers. They looked at him with annoyance. He quickly apologized and lowered his volume. "You've escaped before?"

"Yes, so they're keeping an eye on me."

"Do you realize how much harder that will make this?"

"I am aware."

He slumped in his seat. "I can't deal with this right now. What about your man, Eamon? You said you have a description."

Usoro hummed, "Description is a loose word for what I have."

"Description is the word you used yesterday."

"I'm not very honest. I heard about a man who vaguely resembled Eamon. I have to say their description of the man’s temperament is what really drew me to suspect it was him. Moreover, he showed up in Ardogris around the same time he vanished from the military."

"That's all you have? Really?" He was a hair's width away from becoming angry.

"It's hard to find information about someone who's dead."

He ground his teeth. If he spoke now, he wouldn’t be able to stop himself from screaming at the officer. He composed himself. "Eamon is dead?"

"Supposedly. He was declared dead four years ago."

"We're looking for a dead man?"

Usoro sighed, "Look, I know you won't believe me, and I haven't been truthful, but I know he's alive. That man in Ardogris is Eamon. I know it."

"You're right. I don't believe you. Why would I believe a lying—" The train screeched to a halt, throwing people out of their seats. Mummering filled the air as people wondered what was happening.

A steward entered their train car, announcing, "Please stay calm. Everything is being handled."

A passenger called, "What's happening?"

"An astera has attacked the train," the steward answered.

"Are we safe?" another passenger yelled.

"Yes, please stay calm. Soldiers will come to deal with this shortly." Other passengers yelled their responses to that. The steward blew his whistle, silencing the clamor. "I can't make them come any faster. We will be safe for the time being."

Usoro made eye contact with him, who made a questioning gesture. She motioned her head to the steward. He shook his head, not understanding what she wanted. Usoro stood, and he snapped to attention. He hissed, "What do you think you're doing?"

Usoro ignored him. She said loudly to the steward, "Do not worry. Me and my partner are officers. We can help."

The steward raised a suspicious brow as Usoro wasn’t in her uniform, "You are?"

Usoro slipped her badge out of her pocket, showing it to the steward. "Is this proof enough?"

"My apologies, Senior Officer Usoro. Thank you for helping us."

"Where is the beast?"

"Five cars up. We've evacuated all the passengers."

"Got it. My partner and I will deal with this."

He pulled her down to him, whispering, "I am not helping."

"It's too late. I said we're both doing it. You don't want to help those poor people?"

He just stared fiercely at her. She tutted, "How cold-hearted. Think of it this way: the sooner we deal with this, the sooner we get to Ardogris. The sooner we get to Ardogris, the closer you are to getting rid of me."

"Whatever," he spat. He followed Usoro out of the train and into the forest. Evergreen trees surrounded them and a thin blanket of snow covered everything. Up ahead, he could see wolf-like figures hitting the exterior of the train.

"A pack," Usoro frowned, "This will be harder than I thought."

"What's the plan? Do you have a weapon?"

"I have this," Usoro pulled out her reuûn'oard. A staple weapon for high ranked Zamsunian soldiers to have. A reuûn'oard was made of runes twisted into the shape of a rod that allowed non-magicians to cast magic. The user of the reuûn'oard needed to know the Oxuri word or words to activate the various spells. Depending on the runes it was composed of, its uses and power changed dramatically. The rod needed to be remade when it was out of charge, so the soldiers were asked to use the weapon sparingly. The sword that was required for all soldiers was enough for most situations.

"What can it do?"

"Simple fire and earth elemental spells."

"That will have to be enough."

"I have a plan. I'll approach from the front and get the astera's attention. You can go around and take them out from the back."

"That sounds risky. How about you get their attention, and I'll cast an illusion that has them trapped? You can roast them after that."

"Brutal. I like that." He rolled his eyes and motioned for Usoro to walk in front of him. She took the lead, running up to the astera. Galen followed a couple paces behind her. As soon as she got close, the astera abandoned the train and faced them. They were wolf-like but lacked the distinguishing ears and tails of actual wolves. They were bulky and half of their fur was replaced by rotting spots like they had gangrene. Their eyes had no pupils and were as white as their bared teeth.

Usoro used the reuûn'oard to shake the earth, ensuring the astera had their attention focused on her. Behind Usoro, his hands glowed. To him and the astera, glass walls enclosed the creatures. Galen said, "They're trapped."

"Perfect," Usoro smirked. She held the rod in front of her and whispered, "Ntiugiea."

A fire ignited the astera. The creatures yelped and rolled on the ground, trying to put out the fire. Unfortunately, a magical fire couldn’t be put out easily. Their yelping grew louder as the flames expanded. The illusion trapping the astera broke from their frantic attempts to put themselves out. The combined scent of burning skin and fur caused him to gag. Eventually, the yelping stopped, and all the astera fell over. They weren’t dead, but they were close to it.

He asked, "Do we leave them here?"

Usoro nodded, "The other soldiers will take care of them. If they are alive, they will heal them. If they are dead, they will harvest them."

"Ugh, I need to get away from this smell." They headed back to their car. They entered the cabin and informed the steward that the astera were taken care of. The steward took the information to the conductor of the train. The train didn’t resume activity for another forty-five minutes. During this time, he and Usoro fell asleep.

They woke up to the steward declaring that Ardogris was the next stop. Usoro took their bags down from the overhead compartment, handing him his luggage. They exited the train onto the platform, which was bursting with people. They shoved their way out of the station and landed onto the busy street. He held his bag closer to his body.

Usoro said, "First thing we have to do is find a girl named Jivanta."

"The girl with the flowers. Kind of vague if you ask me, but what isn't with you?"

"You're figuring me out, Galen. Let's start looking."

They walked through the city, searching for any sign of Jivanta. He realized this was no easy task because all of the city appeared similar. Dull gray surrounded them as if the city had laws against using color when making buildings. Ardogris was a mining city, and its purpose was reflected in the people. Men with pickaxes and covered in dirt milled around every block. Women carting wheelbarrows full of coal passed them. Galen assumed they were taking them to the station. Cargo trains must come through the area often.

In the distance, he heard a woman calling, "Jivanta! Come here, dear."

They turned their heads to hear the voice better. They went in the direction they heard the woman call from. Rounding a corner, they saw an older woman talking to a girl a little older than Nessa. The old woman said, "How much for those daisies?"

"Two crurni, please." The old woman fished out two copper coins from the pocket of her apron.

"Is that all for today, dear?"

"Yep, I've got to help out at the smithy for the rest of the day."

"I told that man a forge is no place for a little girl."

Jivanta grinned, "I like it there. It's the warmest place I could be."

The old woman shook her head, "If you say so."

Jivanta waved goodbye and walked away, weaving through the commotion of the town. He and Usoro followed her quietly. They watched her make small talk to various shop keepers and workers. The young girl was always ready to make pleasant conversation with the people who crossed her path. Jivanta reached the end of her journey, entering a blacksmith's house.

"We're here," Usoro said.

He replied, "I hope your hunch is right."

"I hope so too."

He knocked on the door. Usoro stood behind him. A gruff voice asked, "Who is it?"

"My name is Galen. I am looking for a man named Eamon."

"He used to be a part of the Zamsune military," Usoro added. The door swung open, revealing a hulking figure.

"Neve?"