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"Sage, we want you to save the Borderlands," played over and over in my head, like a steady drum, unrelenting.

Sage, we want you to save the Borderlands.

Sage, we want you to save the Borderlands.

Sage, we want you to save the Borderlands.

Sage, we want you to save the Borderlands.

Sage, we want you to save the Borderlands.

I could hear the distant rumbling of people around me, but I could not comprehend what anyone was saying — not when I couldn't even comprehend the words broadcasting through my mind.

Somehow, in the span of a day, my life flipped upside down. One minute, I was safely in the confines of the Borderlands. Then the next, I was in the Outside. Not only that, but somehow I had — imagine my luck — found a beast who claimed to be my mate. I was subsequently kidnapped by said man. My friends were then thrown into a cell. I then smashed through a window, hurt my wrist, and fled from the beast to find the Borderlands had only what I could assume was an underground compound.

Yet, the most insane thing of all was what had been proposed to me seconds ago.

Sage, we want you to save the Borderlands.

The world must really be crumbling down for the Council to depend on me. I'm not even trying to be humble or self-deprecating. I just know I am not the best woman for the job. Born and raised in the Borderlands, I had never been more than an arms-length away from help and protection. On top of that, my entire life was sheltered from the Outside; I knew bits and pieces of the horrors of the Outside, but I would not be able to navigate a life outside on my own. How I was then expected to help the countless men, women, and children of the Borderlands was beyond me, especially if I was to entangle my life with a beast.

The Borderlands were doomed, I concluded. I was going make history as the sole reason why the quaint life of the Borderlands had ended. I didn't imagine there were many worse ways to be remembered. Or any worse ways to live your life.

"Sage."

A bit of resentment started to bud inside of me. Why couldn't Memphis have been asked to do this? Sure, he was not mates with Theo; that I know of, anyway, but he did have family connections outside of the Border. His family must know of a witch, or they could at least try to find out. They at least know how to navigate the Outside, a world so foreign to me.

"Sage."

Another bit of me knew I deserved this punishment. If I had only stayed inside, none of this would have happened. The consequences I was facing were a direct result of my actions. Of course, I would give myself some leeway for the fact I didn't think I could have predicted these consequences in any lifetime.

"Sage."

Only the tiniest part of me thought I maybe had a one percent chance of coming out of this on top. I was a natural-born follower, not a leader. I think it was best demonstrated when Memphis so easily persuaded me to go to the Outside.

"Sage."

It seemed like my whole world was shaking — no, I was being shaken. Pa had rested a hand on my shoulder and was gently shaking me.

"I am sorry, Councilmen, she is not normally so speechless. I'd say she is usually the opposite," Pa apologize on my behalf, snapping me out of my intense thoughts.

"I am so, so, so, so sorry," I exploded. "I think you have the wrong person for the job, though. I surely am not the most qualified person to...well, to save the Borderlands."

Councilman Fletcher chuckled warmly. "I'd say you are just the person for the job, Sage. You have been born and raised in the Borderlands just like your Pa here. The Borderland way runs in your blood. It is ingrained in your very being. For that, I'd say there's no greater a person to help save our land than someone who has been born and raised in them."

"Very well said, Fletcher. Unfortunately, time is of the essence here. You have been away from your mate for about twelve hours. The longer we delay you and Theo reuniting, the more suspicions we raise," Beatrice reasoned. She did not seem thrown off by the mention of mates; she spoke of the Outside world so easily. Would I soon be as comfortable as her in due time? I almost shuddered at the thought.

"Beatrice, while you are correct, Sage has not quite agreed to our proposition yet, has she? So, Sage, what do you say?"

I looked at Pa, his face flashing me a weary smile. I would do this for Pa. I had to do this for Pa.

"I'll do it."

After I had agreed to help the Councilmen save the Borderlands, they hastily explained their plan in a little bit more detail. They, of course, wanted me to find a witch or wizard (witches were easier to come by, however), but they stressed that it must be done in three months' time. While they did not know how long the protection spell would last, the witch — before her death — said that a spell like that would outlast the one who cast it. For how long was quite unknown, but no spell, in her experience, had faded before three months' time. So, I had three months, two months preferably just to be safe.

Two months to save the Borderlands.

They advised that, while I would mostly be on my own on the Outside, the strange man who had guided me to this room, Gunther, could reach out in dire situations. Only he could communicate to me, however; the reverse would be simply too dangerous. Meanwhile, once I had procured a witch, I was to go to the Western side of the Border. They would take things from there.

To explain my disappearance, I would get back in the car Memphis used aid my escape less than a day ago. Memphis would drive for some distance before purposefully crashing the car. It was the only way for the beasts to not question our whereabouts for the past twelve-ish hours.

Pa tried to persuade the Councilmen out of such drastic measures. He reasoned that surely we did not have to put ourselves in so much danger before finding the witch had even begun, but the Councilmen remained steadfast. There was no other way, and so it had to be this way.

Saying goodbye to Pa was undoubtedly the hardest part. I clung to his embrace, face flushed with tears. I had spent less than a day without him, and it was undoubtedly the worst day of my life. Three months without him would be unbearable, especially since I knew for those three months (hopefully two), he'd be thinking and worrying about me.

The Councilmen said there was no time for goodbyes with Gran and Pop. I would just have to say hello to them when I came back instead is how they explained it.

It was not as reassuring as they thought it would be.

When Memphis greeted me, not even he could muster up a smile. His hands were shoved into his pockets, and he cast his eyes downward. He sighed, "Sage, you have to know that when I decided to take us all to the Outside, I never imagined this would happen."

"I know, Memphis," I tried to smile, but all I could feel was the edge of my lips quivering in an uncomfortable way. "It's not your fault. If this didn't happen to us, then someone else would have to brave the Outside in order to save the Borderlands. There's no good alternative option."

"But they could have chosen me, Sage. I have family on the Outside. I could have tried something —"

"—Isn't it obvious?" Gunther interrupted. "Excuse me?"

"Isn't it obvious? Memphis has nothing to lose if the Borderland's protection fades. He has family on the Outside. Sage, on the other hand, has everything to lose. The alternative to her saving the Borderlands is living her life with a beast... a fate worse than death. Make no mistake, the Council knows what they are doing," Gunther said impatiently like we should have automatically assumed this was the case all along.

"We wouldn't even be in this situation if the Councilmen had a backup plan," Memphis pushed. "Shouldn't' they have planned for this?"

"It is not that simple."

Memphis' eye twitched slightly, as he was getting ready to push Gunther even further in conversation. Gunther was paying no mind to Memphis, however.

By now, we were huddled around the exit to our underground protection, getting ready to make a quick departure in the car. We wouldn't have much time once we left our shelter; the Council stressed that Theo would likely be able to find me pretty quickly once we had left the underground. We were not too far away from his pack lands and resurfacing to the Outside would put my scent back into the area.

"Both of you ready?" Memphis and I just nodded meekly. "Good. When you leave, immediately go to the car. Memphis, you have the key? Good. Get on the highway but make sure to go East — towards Theo. We want him to believe that you were coming back to him to keep them from wondering why they couldn't find you as soon as you were so close by. Got it? Good."

The severity of the situation had yet to sink in; or, at least I was keeping my comprehension of the situation at bay. I could not process what was about to happen — and what had happened — right now without breaking down. I couldn't process the fact I might have said goodbye to my Pa for the last time. I couldn't process that I was about to get into a purposeful car crash to be able to go back to...him. It was all too much.

"Good luck. You'll need it," Gunther said as a send-off.

We were just about to exit the underground area when Pa busted through the room.

"Sage," Pa sighed, relief filling his word.

"Pa, what are you doing?"

"Chuck, the Council will not be happy to hear of your interference," Gunther chided.

"It'll only take a second." Pa turned to me and wrapped me up into a big bear hug before whispering so no one else could hear: "Find out what happened to Ma for me."

"Okay, that's enough, Chuck. We've already made enough exceptions for you as it is." Pa pulled out of the hug, squeezing my hand and nodding towards Gunther before Pa was swiftly ushered out of the room.

His words loomed over me. Find out what happened to Ma. She was dead.

She was dead, I told myself, case closed.

I hated to admit the fact that it had never really crossed my mind that Ma had survived. She went over the Border, and she was as good as dead. I used to dream of her coming home, running to me that it was all just a misunderstanding, but as I got older, that dream faded away. I began to realize that there was no way she could have been equipped to live in the Outside.

She was dead — or had she only just been dead to me all this time?

"We've wasted too much time," Gunther expressed, unlocking the door in front of us and pushing us out the door. Memphis and I stumbled, almost tripping over the steps we were pushed into. "Good luck. Don't mess up."

Slowly, Memphis and I emerged to the Outside world. This time being in the Outside did not feel so invigorating. Instead, it made me want to crawl back where I came from.

Without hesitation, we both ran to the car. I climbed on the opposite side of Memphis, and he urged me to buckle my seat belt. He assured me it would help with the crash. I closed my eyes, trying to think of anything but the impending crash. Anything but the next two to three months of my life — longer if I messed everything up, I assumed.

We were both silent as Memphis navigated the car onto what looked like the road towards... him. My heart beat out of my chest.

"Close your eyes, Sage. I'll try to make it quick."

Before I could process what was happening, Memphis rammed the car into the divider between the two different roads, and I was thrust into darkness.