Ifrit and Lilac were given the update on Albert’s plan the morning after. He also told them about the impending Hellish Incursion that would surely involve more than just hellhounds. The words Hellish and Incursion troubled Lilac the most. They sounded ominous, and possibly apocalyptic.

“(I didn’t know they are planning something that big),” said Ifrit to Eshdar. “(I thought they’re just out for royal blood).”

“(Don’t you think burning down a village and massacre a bit too excessive? The fact remains that Royal hellhounds like us somehow presents a problem for their plans. I don’t know why we are the problem considering we don’t have any power to raise an army to oppose them, but I always know these bastards are kooks).”

“(And fodder, now that I think about it).”

“(Whoa. Hope those words won’t bite you in the ass later).”

Ifrit thought otherwise. Up until that point, the hellhounds who attacked or hunting him were not dangerous. He could easily slip away or kill most of them if it wasn’t for the fact that he was protecting those he cared for. For Ifrit, that challenge was the one he could respect, not the hellhounds underestimating him every step of the way. It made him sound arrogant, but he couldn’t afford to. His enemies weren’t that much of a challenge, anyway.

Stelikan, the town where they arrived on train from Sandorf, was a big and industrious city, completely different from the quaint countryside towns and villages the crew had visited. The city wasn’t built for peace in mind, but for progress. The city also seemed to be split into two. One was the grimy and dirty industrial half that did not seem to be a great place to live except to work, while the other half was the half where people lived and where the services were at, especially the train station.

Ifrit considered the industrial half to be similar to Drundas in many ways. It was seedy, grimy, and not a good place to live. He had never been to the center of the city, considering how notorious he was, so he could only imagine how bad it was living with all the violence and crime. Lilac, however, was more concerned that the dirty industry was the future. If that was the case, then the people of Ternor would inevitably destroy themselves without needing an incursion. The incursion, by that point, would just be the means to an end.

Still, the non-industrialized half wasn’t all that bad. In fact, it was very inviting for weary travelers like them. Even so, Albert felt that Stelikan was not a good place to lay low or even relax. He took them to a less industrialized town nearby called Brenik, using the same train service they used before. Unlike Stelikan’s Central Terminal, Brenik’s station was simpler and could only accommodate two trains instead of six. Albert claimed that only one platform was used unless there’s unusually high traffic. Albert told the group that the train itself wasn’t supposed to stop for passengers, but the growth of the made it necessary for passenger services.

“You seem to know a lot about trains,” said Lilac.

“My friend works for the Ustolfe Bahn, or Dusdolfian Railroad,” said Albert. “I know the basics, but not how they decide the schedules. So, don’t come to me when there are delays.”

Brenik, unlike Stelikan, was a smaller town compared to Stelikan, but was still bigger than most Tragorian towns. The place was sufficiently contemporary in the sense that most, if not all, of the roads were paved by what Albert called bitumen. Eshdar heard about the project of paving the roads and increase transportation quality, given the problems with the horses causing the drop in sanitation issues in bigger cities.

Unlike Stelikan, with its brick jungle and iron supports, Brenik was less of an industrialized city and more of a quaint brick town, perfect for someone from a countryside trying to adapt to town life. Lilac felt that Stelikan was more a place for work than for living, and she preferred Brenik if she wanted to settle in a town. Brenik would be a good place to stay for a bit while they discuss what to do next.

Then the night came. As Albert and Eshdar continued their conversation from the night before, Ifrit and Lilac decided to spend their evening together again, this time in a little town that’s less covered in smog. The town had enough Lycan population in their werewolf form so that the two would not stand out. Still, they decided to take a walk at the park.

Lilac was still adapting to her newfound identity as a pseudo-hellhound Lycan. Three days were the longest she had ever been in her werewolf form and the feeling was weird for her. With the loss of her ability to transform, she felt as if she lost a part of her. She thought that living more than one life was overwhelming. Now, she wasn’t even sure if running from that struggle was right. She didn’t object on finally having a decision, but then she felt unnatural. It was as if she started to regret her decision. It was barely a day, and she already felt uneasy.

She voiced this concern to Ifrit, who could only tell her he was sorry about what happened to her. While Lilac did not blame Ifrit for what he did not know, she wondered if Ifrit preferred her as a therianthrope or simply one single being. So, she asked him about it.

“Ifrit,” said Lilac. “Do you prefer me as a Lycan or a hellhound?”

“I only saw your werewolf body once, and it’s stunning,” said Ifrit. “I ask you a question. Why did you not show me that? I know you can without full moon.”

“I should’ve done it a long time ago, but I can’t,” she said with a sigh. “I thought you wouldn’t recognize me as a werewolf, and I was afraid people might see me differently.”

“No one talk about that to me. Not in front of my face.”

“Maybe it’s because you are too menacing for them? There are no Lycans wearing piercings or eyes as sharp as you.”

“Maybe so. But I have a feeling that Albert is protecting us.”

“From them? He knows more of Tragoria than I do, so it is possible.” Upon saying that, she chuckled. “Ironic, isn’t it? I was born and raised Tragorian, but I have absolutely no knowledge beyond the borders of my own village. And then I met you…and now I’m deep in Adaline, used a train, and turned into a not-hellhound Lycan. And it all happened under a month.”

“Do you blame me for all that?”

“No. Never. Rather, I’m grateful. I can see why Hans risks his life traveling the unknown sea. I think somewhere down the line, we both know we can’t die without knowing what the world beyond Sidve is like. Well, I did not expect myself to end up questioning my own Lycan blood, but here we are, I suppose.”

“Any regrets?”

“To be honest with you…I did. But I can’t change it, so I might as well learn what it means to have one permanent form.”

“If you need, I be there,” said Ifrit.

“Thanks, Ifrit,” said Lilac with a sincere smile on her lupine face. “You’re far too kind.”

Ifrit smiled as they both touched their snouts together. Just as they decided to embrace each other, Ifrit felt a tingling sensation that prompted him to look around. Lilac, caught by surprise, could only pull away.

“What’s wrong?” asked Lilac.

“No. A familiar feeling. I don’t know what,” said Ifrit, confused. “(Whatever it was, it gave me shivers).”

“What’s that?”

“Ah, sorry. It…shocks me.”

Ifrit looked around again, thinking that they were going to be ambushed. After a tense minute or so, there wasn’t anyone who looked suspicious, so he relaxed. Maybe he was just imagining it. However, he also realized that sitting around on a park bench was too conspicuous, so he decided that they should just go back to the hotel instead. Lilac agreed.

Unbeknownst to them, something was watching them, but they wouldn’t be able to notice it because they would not expect anything that’s not humanoid. It was watching them from behind a tall grass near the bench they sat on, and was following them until they reached the hotel. It decided not to go in.

It had a plan for Ifrit, after all.

***

Ifrit thought he was just being paranoid when he felt the tingling sensation. Maybe he was just thinking that it wasn’t such a good idea talking on a park bench with potential danger lurking around the corner. However, he soon decided that being safe was worth it, and the hotel room was a good place to be private. He did not go out of the hotel after dinner, deciding to just cuddle with Lilac until they both went to sleep.

While sleeping, Ifrit started dreaming. However, it wasn’t the nightmares that once plagued his sleep. It felt more like a memory or an experience of someone or something. It was as if he was possessing them and began seeing things on their perspective. Their eyes became his eyes.

IIfrit was in the interior of a gloomy castle. From the look of it, he was in a library or a sitting room with several bookshelves. Ifrit noticed that the words were in Hordo, and quickly assumed that he was back in the Underworld. Ifrit also noticed that his vision was close to a floor like he was in prone.

“(You can’t do this),” said a female hellhound. “(Please, my love, I can’t bear to lose him, too).”

“(Yet the news I heard is troubling),” said the male hellhound who was presumably her husband. “(If they are correct about this uprising, then he will be surrounded by enemies. He is not safe, within our without).”

“(He is just a cub, Hynorsi! You can’t throw him out like you threw him out!)”

“(I did not throw him out, and I certainly won’t do it this time. Ilteas and her husband will be his guardian until it is the time for him to learn the truth. I trust her judgement and I’ll trust her in these critical moments. We’ll do it in secret, so no one will see us).”

“(But why? Isn’t Nergora enough for you?)”

“(Nergora is old enough to know his responsibilities. Ifrit is still a newborn cub. If I had a choice, I’d let him stay and grow older, but the uprising won’t give him that chance. We must let them survive and hope they will survive long enough to know what happens and maybe, make things right).”

“(And what will happen to us?).” Her question was responded by a rather stern and grim face of Hynorsi, one that she knew what. Her face, similarly grim and acceptant, looked down to her hands, which were holding something wrapped in white.

Then her expression turned determined, and she turned towards where Ifrit was looking. “(Sammael),” she said as she walked towards him. Ifrit had no control over his body, but he felt himself moving towards her.

“(Yes, mistress?)” said a voice that’s obviously not Ifrit.

“(Take Ifrit to Ilteas and tell her this: Protect him at all costs. Tell her queen Leahn commands it so).”

“(I will do what you say, mistress),” said Sammael.

“(And one more thing. You must follow Ilteas and check on Ifrit from time to time. Will you do this?)”

“(I…will. But what will happen to you?)”

“(Just…do what you’re told to do. Remember the contract, Sammael. Even if we die, the Schelkz blood with continue. Our journey might end here, but yours are not. I know you’re capable of it).”

The memory soon faded as Ifrit’s vision turned around. Then, he heard a voice calling him.

“(That is enough memory for now),” said the voice. “(If you want to know more, meet me outside the building. Trust me. I am your ally).”

And then Ifrit woke up. That vivid experience from his dream felt more like a memory of someone. No, Ifrit knew what it was.

“(It was a message. From someone),” he thought. “(But is it a trap?)”

Ifrit knew that the only way to find out was to get out and see who was calling him. So, he put on his pants, shirts, and vest and got to the hotel’s lobby and out to the streets of the town of Brenik.

The town was very well-lit at night, thanks to the innovative electric-powered lamps that kept the darkness at bay. It also made walking through the town’s downtown area less dangerous and quite pleasant, although it was a little too pleasant for a hellhound like Ifrit. Still, he appreciated the atmosphere. Even he did not wish to be in a dangerous situation all the time. He wanted to stay out of danger and problems that were not his own.

Except by this point he knew that problem would never leave him for as long as he was alive, and just as he had started to realize that, he had a visitor from his past, one that he barely knew, but also someone close to him.

“(You’ve grown up. I can’t even recognize you if not for those tail piercings),” said the voice.

Ifrit turned, but all he saw was a hairless, black dog sitting under a light. This dog was not like the mangy dog he saw back in the industrialized town of Stelikan where the street was dirty and the air was thick with poison. Brenik was a pleasant town that was not industrialized, and the innovative lighting made it more pleasant to walk at night than it was in the crowded lunch time. So, a hairless dog almost the size of a hellhound wearing a skull over its head felt so out of place, especially when Ifrit knew what that dog was.

“(Did you just…talk?)” said Ifrit. “(I’ve seen many Blood Beasts and believe me when I said they can’t talk except growl and bark).”

“(Oh, but I’m not just any Blood Beast),” said the Beast, which startled Ifrit. “(In fact, I look similar, but I’m not. I’m a Barghest).”

“(And that memory. That was you?)”

“(A little trick to make explanations easier, considering how you’ll react upon seeing me).”

“(Hey, don’t blame me. I kill Blood Beasts for dinner).”

“(I am not a Blood Beast),” repeated the Barghest. “(A Barghest is not even from the Outer Rings. I’m a demon. A proper one. That makes me of higher authority that you are, Ifrit Schelkz).”

“(Then how the hell is a demon calling someone a master?)”

“(That’s a long story, so let’s not waste any more time and let me tell you who I am before the surface people sees me and start screaming. Let’s find somewhere else to talk).”

Ifrit never thought he would be talking to a dog from the Underworld, especially one who claimed to be a demon who could share his memories. Yet, there he was. It wasn’t a dream, though he did wonder about his latest dream. The couple in that memory called his name a couple of times, yet they were referring to a different person. It did not take long for him to connect the dots after he sat on a park bench and think about it.

“(So, that couple in my dream…was my parents. My real parents),” said Ifrit.

“(Hynorsi and Leahn Schelkz),” said the Barghest with a nod. “(The former king and queen of the kingdom of Drundas).”

“(And you’re Sammael).”

Sammael chuckled. “(You are a quick learner. You really are his son).”

“(Let’s exchange pleasantries later. What is your purpose?)”

“(To reunite with you, because you are still my master and I am still bound to the Schelkz family as their guardian, which is something that I’ve failed miserably. I was supposed to be part of your childhood alongside Griske and Ilteas Hyles, but I waited in the shadows, protecting you without you ever know who I was, until it was too late).”

“(If you’re supposed to protect me, then why didn’t you when they attacked my foster parents?)”

“(My job is to protect you, not them. They are your guardians as much as I am to you. In fact, they know I am around, but they chose not to tell you of my identity).”

“(Why?)”

“(Will you believe that a talking Blood Beast is your protector? I bet you don’t).”

“(I was a child, Sammael. I know I have vivid imagination).”

“(Nevertheless, things happened, and you ran as your enemies were pursuing you. That’s when I realized that they were not just hellhounds. There were…creatures from hell. No, not Barghests, but different lesser demons. I made short work of them, of course, but then I lost you).”

“(I stumbled upon a portal and ended up on the surface).”

“(That’s what I thought, too. But, I took a different portal and ended up here. I lived by scraping through the trashcan like a wild dog, but I’m smarter than one. By sheer chance, I saw you traveling with another hellhound prince and I decided that it’s a good time to contact you).”

“(Purely by chance?)” said Ifrit while raising an eyebrow. “(You sure you weren’t expecting me?)”

“(If I were, I wouldn’t be here scraping for food every night),” said Sammael. “(So, I expect you to give me something proper).”

Ifrit was amused by how cheeky the demon was.

“(That communicating by dream thing was…kinda awesome. But spooky).”

“(It’s much simpler than telling you the things you clearly don’t know).”

They looked at each other for a while before Ifrit said, “(So, what’s next?)”

“(May I travel with you? I blamed myself for my incompetence, so the least I can do is make up for it by being your guardian again. I was summoned to be the family guardian and a loyal pet. Also, it’s good if you have someone you know from your life, right? I can tell you about master Hynorsi and mistress Leahn if you like).”

“(Well…).”

“(So, what about it, master Ifrit?)”

“(Let’s start with names, alright? Just call me Ifrit. I can tell you don’t like calling me master and I’m pretty sure that summoning was rather forced on your part).”

“(What gave you that impression?)”

“(You are a demon summoned by my parents, who are hellhounds, and who are of lesser being than you. None of those sound mutual. Also, I prefer we’re talking on equal terms, not as a master and pet, but as equals. You got that?)”

“(Whatever you want. I don’t really think of it that much).”

“(Glad we can straighten that out. I might need to explain things to the rest of the crew, seeing that you’re clearly not a surface dog and you talk. One of them might end up shooting you first. Also, we travel in trains. Given your appearance, there is bound to be people questioning what you are).”

“(I can sleep practically anywhere there’s a surface),” said Sammael. “(Within considerable comfort, of course).”

“(That’s easy enough. Oh, and Sammael? Can you call you Sam, instead?)”

“(Whatever you want).”

“(Thanks, for all those years guarding me. If it wasn’t for you…).”

“(No need to thank me, mas…Ifrit. It’s what I do).”

Ifrit smiled, acknowledging the fact that he was never alone down there in the Underworld and up on the surface. He was glad that part of his life was not that far from him. That hellhound who supported his family from Snohand might be a little too overzealous about his intentions, but he was right about one thing.

That Ifrit still had allies up on the surface.

So, Ifrit decided that the hairless dog-like demon would prefer sleeping in a place warmer than the cold brick sidewalk of the town. He had no other place in mind, so his hotel room was the best place to be. He walked in slowly, trying not to wake Lilac up while Sammael simply sit on the floor and slept. Ifrit hoped Lilac would not overreact upon seeing a weird looking ‘dog’ on the floor the next day.

He never thought how wrong he was.