It didn't take very long for the twins to pack for their journey. They both had matching backpacks fashioned from beast hide leather and cords and made sure they had enough water and dried meat for the trip. Before turning to Night with spear and beast-tooth blades in hand, they gave each other a once over to be absolutely sure they were prepared for whatever might come their way. Yunkef, in contrast, felt vulnerable and as out of his element as he could possibly be.

Night saw Yunkef's unease and put a hand on his shoulder. "I'm sorry for all this. It must be moving too quickly for you."

"No, it's alright," Yunkef muttered. "I mean, I have to be alright with it. I don't have much of a choice from here on out, right?"

The guide was silent for a few minutes. "I could simply drop you off at your Settlement if you wished."

The boy shook his head. "But you need help with something, and it seems important enough to need a whole team of people. And besides, if I end up like Zealous..." he trailed off.

"You wouldn't want what happened at the Citadel to befall your Settlement." Night finished the thought.

"Yeah. I don't want to risk being a crazed darkness-touched back home. They don't deserve what happened at the Citadel."

The guide nodded and took up the green glass lantern again. "For all the Citadel's righteousness and their faith in the Eternal Flame, they couldn't see the darkness festering under their own noses." Night mused, leading the way out of the twin's cabin. "Darkness begets darkness, and you are correct, Yunkef. It may be safer to be with others like you, for now at least."

Yunkef followed Night out into the twin's small mushroom field. Across from the field was the glowbird coop and a modest barn fashioned out of a large, rectangular structure made of rusted corrugated metal. It still had paint on its side, much faded from time, though patches of white could still be seen. The words 'Red Cross' were painted in a now pale red upon the white.

Yunkef pointed at it. "What's that?"

"It's our naming sign!" Red beamed, coming up behind Yunkef. "It was here when Night let us have the area, so we took our names from it and made the long box a barn. Oh, that reminds me. Night, who will take care of the glowbeasts while we're gone? We can't just let them roam through the field unattended! What if beasts come and eat them?"

The guide thought about it for a moment. "Perhaps I could return here every cycle or so to tend to them. Otherwise, you could let them roam free within the mushroom farm anyway. Our lady's creatures will not come to harm them, I promise."

Red sighed her hands on her hips. "Well, I guess we'll have to let them eat the mushrooms. They were just about ready to harvest, so I don't feel right letting them have at it all they like."

"They'll be fine," Cross said shortly, approaching them with his spear. "I don't think we'll be back for some time anyway. Am I right, Night?"

The guide nodded their head, and the hood swayed slightly in a breeze.

"You may need to prepare for a time away from the farm, Red and Cross."

"It's okay! We packed what we need, and we don't have much else anyway." Red adjusted the straps of her backpack on her shoulders. "Oh hey, I got some mushrooms and dried meat for you too, Yunkef!"

Yunkef blinked in surprise. "For me? Oh, um, thank you!"

Red laughed at Yunkef's shy stammer, while her twin rolled his eyes. Cross led the way away from the farm, making sure to lock the gates behind all of them. Once the small homestead was secure enough for the twins, Night raised the green glass lantern. The soft light fell on all three of them, and though there was light, it didn't hurt the darkness-touched to look directly into the lantern.

"I will warn you now, there will be beasts where we are going." Night said clearly.

"What? Why?" Cross said in protest, clutching his spear. "I thought you were trying to keep us safe?"

"I am. But these beasts will not attack, and neither should you try to kill them." Yunkef could hear the slight smile in Night's voice. "Trust me, it will be alright. Now gather round under the light."

Just as before, the darkness turned thick and absolute around Yunkef. His breath hitched in his through as the familiar feeling of panic gripped him, though it was tempered with the knowledge that it was only Night's power, and he was in the company of friends. Or at least, he hoped they would be friends.

After a faint sensation of movement, the thick darkness receded and Yunkef could see with his heightened vision. They were at another homestead constructed of stone and scrap metal, but where Red and Cross's farm was like a small Settlement, this was a shack in the middle of nowhere. Beside the roughly made cabin was the entrance to a cave. Its mouth was dark, so dark that Yunkef could not see inside it, enhanced as he was. Strewn around the mouth of the cave were bones and shredded bits of hide; a clear sign of a beast's nest.

"Night?" Yunkef said cautiously. "Are we in the right place?"

"Of course we are. Stay close." The guide said simply as they strode towards the cabin. Night had barely raised a hand to the flimsy door of rusted metal when a voice sounded from inside.

"Night! It's been a while!"

The guide stepped back to allow the door to swing forward, and a young man stepped out. He was scraggly and unkempt, with long, matted hair hanging in front of his face, though he grinned wide.

"How did you know it was I?" Night said with a soft chuckle.

"I heard your footsteps approaching, don't think I don't know them by now!" The young man laughed. He then looked side to side and angled the side of his head towards Yunkef and the twins. "You brought guests? First time that's happened!"

"I have, yes. Anre, these are Yunkef and the twins, Red and Cross." Night gestured for them to come closer. "Darkness-touched, much like yourself. May we come in?"

Anre sniffed the air as the others came closer. "Inside the... Oh, you mean the cabin. I thought you wanted to go into the cave for a second. If you want to see my beasts, that's fine too!" He laughed and went back into the cabin, waving for them to follow.

"Your beasts?" Red gasped in awe. "Do you mean you raise them?"

"That I do!" Anre said with a laugh as he led the way into the little shack. "They're sleeping in the cave, do you want to see them later?"

"Yes!" Red clapped excitedly while her twin scoffed.

"You can't raise beasts." Cross sniffed. "They're mindless, heartless creatures that can't be trained or reasoned with."

Anre angled the side of his head towards Cross and was silent for a moment. Instead of replying to Cross's comment, the young man gestured to a table.

Much like the twins' homestead, Anre's shack bore no source of light at all. Unlike the twins' homestead, Anre's shack barely had any furnishings or belongings. He had a pile of castoff fabrics on the floor, something approximating a table and one chair, and nothing else. The shack was to keep out the elements and nothing else.

"It's a nice place," Yunkef said slowly, with much hesitation, as he looked around.

"Oh no need to be polite, I know it's not." Anre chuckled as he sat heavily on the fabrics. "I hardly spend time here though, usually I'm in the cave tending to the beasts. I just want some time to myself while they're asleep, and it does get cold outside sometimes."

"How can you live like this? What do you even eat?" A sneer crept across Cross's face.

"I get by alright, and I'm satisfied." The young wild-man grinned in Cross's direction. "No need to be jealous."

Night chuckled and waved a hand placatingly, making sure to stay between the two in case a fight would break out. "Now, now, we are still guests in Anre's home. And now that we are all here, there is something I need to discuss with you all."

"Yes, what is it? What is so important that you made us leave our farm, Night?" Cross grumbled, and Red simply pat him on the back.

"I have a request to make of you, of all of you." Night started slowly, sitting in the single chair and putting the lantern on the table. "I have the ability to get everywhere in the darkness, within the blink of an eye. You all know this, this is how I have been able to transport you or bring you the supplies you might need." The guide turned their hooded face to Yunkef. "It is how I managed to save you from meeting our lady in full."

"If you didn't pull me out of the cave, then I would have..." Yunkef trailed off, horror in his widening eyes.

"Worse than death." Night sighed, lifting up a hand. Another small, worm-like creature was burrowing into the guide's pale skin, and the sight of it made Yunkef shudder. "Maybe not become someone like me, of course, but our lady would have all sorts of uses for her minions."

"Wait, wait that means that you met the Lady Black? In person?" Cross stepped forward towards Yunkef, still holding his spear. "You've never told us that!"

"I didn't feel it relevant to mention before." Night said. "But now it is, as circumstances have changed."

Cross glared at Yunkef, his jaw clenched tight. His twin laid a hand on his arm and pulled him away from Yunkef, whispering to him in a scolding tone. From the floor, Anre waved at Yunkef dismissively as if to tell him to ignore Cross. Yunkef, caught between the two young men, couldn't help but feel tense.

Night continued. "There is a place within the darkness that I cannot reach. I can travel from one end of the world to the next in a second, and yet past a certain point, I cannot even see. There must be a reason why." The guide looked to each of the youths they assembled in turn. "I believe the Lady Black is hiding something past the darkness; that there is something there she does not wish me, or anyone, to see."

"This is where we come in?" Yunkef asked. "You want us to help you find out what's beyond the darkness?"

The guide nodded. With shoulders slumped and arms folded in, the hooded figure looked small. "Yes, I need your help. Whatever is beyond there might hold the secrets to freedom. Both my own, and yours."

"Why us though?" Anre barked from where he was reclining. "You keep calling us darkness-touched and special and different, but isn't having some darkness in you what's stopping you from seeing it yourself?"

"I have theorized about this. Those who live in the light would be a good candidate for this, but they would be even more susceptible to the dangers within the darkness. The beasts would find them easily, and they will need to rely heavily on sources of light. Unlike you four."

Anre laughed. "Definitely won't need it."

"But I do believe that you four will be able to reach beyond the darkness because you are only partially..." Night trailed off for a moment, thinking. "Corrupted, let's say."

"Corrupted?" The worry was clear in Yunkef's voice. "You mean we could still get worse? Like Zealous?" The sight of Zealous's wide, manic eyes and the way he threw himself into the task of destroying his home and everyone in it was still distressingly clear in his mind.

"There is always that possibility, Yunkef." Night was patient. "But I do not believe it likely. Red and Cross have been living the way they are for a long time indeed. Anre as well, and they haven't become raving lunatics."

"Thanks, Night." Cross said dryly, folding his arms over his chest.

Yunkef sighed and wrung his hands. "Alright then. You're saying that we're just corrupted enough to pass through the darkness easier than most people, and not so corrupted that we're insane or like you?"

"Shackled like me, yes. As I've said, I tried and I cannot do it." Night held their hands palm up, helpless. Another small critter skittered up the sleeve of the robe.

Cross stepped forward and laid his spear across the table, the spear point facing the guide. "Let's say that we agree and we actually do this. What's in it for us?" he said carefully, deliberately. "Because you're asking for a lot here, Night. We had decent lives where we are, and you're asking us to go out into the unknown."

"Cross!" Red snapped. "What's gotten into you? It's Night! The least we could do is help out with this after all Night's done for us!"

Anre chuckled, and Cross rounded on him. "What's so funny?"

"I don't know about you, but I hear something really funny." Anre grinned.

"What are you talking about?"

"Sounds to me like you're scared."

Yunkef didn't see Cross pull his arm back for the throw, but he heard the whistle as the spear sped through the air. Anre was quick to roll out of the way as the spear hit where he was just a moment before and bounced off the stone floor. Getting to his feet, the wild-man put two fingers to his mouth and blew. A sharp, clear whistle sounded through the shack, and for a second nothing happened. Then, they all heard it.

The scrambling of beast claws on stone, the huffing and snarling of creatures with ropes of drool hanging from their mouths. The beasts in the cave were coming out to answer Anre's call.

"Beasts eat you!" Cross swore as he dove for his spear, snatching it up easily and rounding on Anre who nimbly dodged out of the way of the spear thrusts, chuckling.

"No, no, my friend. Beasts eat you!" Anre laughed and ducked out of the shack. Red yelled for Cross to stop and stand down, Yunkef pleaded for the two of them to calm down. Night, on the other hand, did nothing. The guide simply took up the green lantern again.

Cross chased after Anre and emerged from the shack. Standing there, flanked by beasts of all sizes with a varying number of mouths and eyes, was Anre. Laughing.

"Try throwing your spear at me again, friend!" He taunted. "See if my pets don't think you want to play fetch!"

Cross grit his teeth and dug in his heels. He brandished his single spear with its single beast-tooth and faced down Anre's horde. "Coward, hiding behind your pets! Fight me one on one!"

"That will not be necessary." Night said. The guide led Yunkef and Red, with the two standing just behind them, and instructed them not to interfere. The emerald light from Night's lantern fell on the two young men and the beasts. Cross shut his eyes as if the light was blinding him. Anre hardly blinked as the bright light fell on his milky eyes. The beasts that surrounded him Anre snarled and whined in the light, silently chastised by the guide. They turned away and skulked back into their cave, retreating without a fight.

"You didn't need to do that, Night!" Cross said in protest, eyes shut. "I could have taken them on my own!"

"Hah! You know you couldn't!" Anre barked back.

With the beasts out of the way, Red rushed forward and pulled her twin back. "Cross, let it go! He was just taunting you, come on."

Cross struggled in his twin's grip, but it was halfhearted. He scoffed and turned away.

"What's gotten into both of you?" Yunkef said softly. "There was no need to fight. We're all on the same side, aren't we? We want to help Night." he turned to Cross pleadingly. "Right?"

"Yeah, yeah," Cross said noncommittally. "Fine."

“I am ready and willing to help Night, no question.” Anre sniffed, putting his hands on his hips. “And for nothing in return! I don’t need anything but my beasts, and after all Night did to help me personally, I don’t need any sort of payment. I’d be insulted even if you made me take payment for this. So don’t even try it!” he pointed to Night, who only chuckled.

Red clapped, getting the attention of the group. “It’s settled then! We’re going to help out Night! Stop squabbling, it’s like Yunkef said; we’re on the same team! So Night, what do we do?”

Three heads turned towards the guide, their eyes reflecting the lantern’s emerald light. Anre stood stock still, focusing on every little sound the others made.

Night nodded, letting the lantern’s light wash over all of them. “I will take you to the edge of the darkness, though I can go no further than that. I worry because you will be on your own. I cannot protect you from there. But past that edge of the darkness, well…” The guide fell silent.

“Can I bring my beasts?” Anre asked.

“No!” Cross rounded on him.

“Bring at least one beast.” Red chimed in, patting Cross’s arm. “If you have the beasts, would they keep the feral ones at bay?”

Anre shrugged noncommittally. “I guess? Maybe. Most likely.”

“That’s not very reassuring, but I’ll take it.”

“Anyway!” Yunkef said, raising his voice slightly to return the other’s attention to the task at hand. “What are we supposed to be looking for past the… the edge of the darkness?” He looked to the guide expectantly, taking slow breaths to calm his nerves. If he didn’t commit to the task now, he might panic and run.

Night sighed, letting the lantern hang lower. “That, I cannot answer properly. I don’t know what lies beyond, only that I have the strongest feeling that freedom from this, from our Lady is what is hidden there. And I believe, though without proof, that freedom for all of you can be attained there.”

“Freedom, for us?” Yunkef said softly. “What do you mean, for us?”

The guide looked at Yunkef and seemed to soften. When they spoke, their voice was gentle. “Life has not been kind to your four. The darkness and its beasts ripped you from your homes and from the lives you know, and our lady made sure to keep you for her purposes. It is not fair, not in the slightest. You are all young and have so much ahead of you.” The guide paused and sighed heavily. It was if the weight of the entire darkness was on Night’s shoulders. “There must be a way to free all of us from the curse of our Lady Black laying just beyond the edge of the darkness. There must be.”

Silence fell upon the group. The twins shared a look, one of uncertainty and determination. Anre still said nothing, content to listen to the soft rustle of the wind blowing through the gaps in his rough cabin.