My mind went blank as I stared at the flames before me. The instincts I depended so much on to protect me, failed to even activate. It was as if I was completely frozen. My brain was even refusing to reboot itself to make any rational decisions. Instead, I stood there as the heat grew closer to me.

“Luna!” Luke’s voice yelled from a far distance. Finally snapping me back into reality.

Scanning my surroundings, the fire was spreading fast. Thunder roared above me as the sky flashed. Part of me wondered where the rain was, but I knew that this was a dry storm. The one that burns everything in its path and makes us homeless for months.

A loud crack made me turn around. But the moment I did, a tree fell towards me. Again my body failed me as I froze, staring at my demise. Only it never came, as a force pushed me out of the way just as the tree crashed on the ground. Making me stare at it like I couldn’t believe I was alive.

It took a while for my mind to register that a strong arm was wrapped around me. There was only one person that had the speed and agility to save me just in time. My eyes followed the arm to the torso it was connected to. Then they traveled to the face of the wolf shifter in our region. Trent had a pained look on his face as he tried to catch his breath. His ember eyes closed as he breathed heavily.

I tried to move away from him, but he held on tighter. “Just give me a minute,” he said in a breathless voice. There was even a hint of pain behind it and it made me think of the disaster that nearly killed him. I’m sure he had injuries that will forever affect him. Tent finally let go as he sat up and looked at me with his ember eyes, “Are you okay? You didn’t get hurt, did you?”

My brain was still malfunctioning as I stared into his eyes. Words couldn’t form, leaving me to shake my head as a response. It still took me by surprise that even though Trent was a good ten years older than me, he didn’t look like it. He still looked the same as when I was a young teenager. The years were completely kind to him, but it usually was with the shifters. Probably due to the genes they developed in order to survive the harsh conditions.

Trent stood up and held out his hand towards me. Making me grab it as he helped me stand. Having him around made me completely forget that the forest was literally burning around us. It was like I suddenly had blinders on and Trent was the only thing I saw.

“Luna!” Luke’s voice was closer. Snapping my attention away from Trent and looking in the direction his voice was coming from. It was coming from the other side of the wall of fire. I could barely make out his silhouette through the smoke and flames.

Pulling me to a safer distance away from the fire, Trent shouted at Luke, “I got her. But we won’t be able to make it to the caves.”

Luke stopped on the other side of the wall of fire. I could barely make out his facial features, but I could tell he was worried, “Is there anything you need me to do?”

“Just tell her mother where she is and that she is safe. I have a place I can take her until the rain comes,” he told Luke. I was sure that Luke wasn’t going to do what he was told but he eventually nodded in understanding before running in the direction he came from. Leaving me to look after him.

Trent’s hand then grabbed hold of my wrist as he pulled me through the burning forest. I had no idea where we were going, but I had to trust him. The whole region did. My life depended on his protection. But my thoughts weren’t just on my need to find safety, but also on the fact that I was being reminded of my childhood crush. It surprised me that the man leading me out of danger still made my heart race.

My throat started to burn suddenly, making me cough. Trent looked at me with concern before he looked around the burning forest. He must have found what he was looking for as he suddenly picked me up in his arms as if I weighed like nothing. I was too busy coughing to pay attention to where he was taking me. But the sudden dark and cool air was a welcoming feeling.

I looked around and saw that we were between two large boulders. Trent took off his shirt and ran out into the burning forest. My coughing was getting worse to the point that it was getting hard to breathe. I was sure I was going to pass out, but Trent had returned and placed his now damp shirt over my mouth and nose.

“I don’t know if it will help, but keep your mouth covered until we get to somewhere safe,” he told me. I just nodded and held his shirt over my mouth as he pulled me back into the burning woods, “Only breathe through your nose.”

Doing what he had instructed, I had him lead me through the fire once again. This time I was clinging close to him as fear was suddenly taking over. Especially when a tree falls close to us. The loud crash and the flying embers made me grip tightly onto Trent’s bare arm. My actions just made him quicken our steps. I’m sure even though he looked so calm, he was probably just as scared as I was.

“There is a clearing up ahead with a small pond. We can rest there until it finally rains,” Trent informed me. I didn’t say anything as I continued to let him lead me to the clearing. But things got a little more dangerous the closer we got to the forest edge. The fire was so much worse with the constant air flow.

Trees full of fire fell all around us. They even fell in front of us, making Trent lead us in a different direction. It got to the point that I was starting to think that we weren’t going to get anywhere safe. But with determination and skill, we broke out of the flames and into the clearing. We didn’t stop running until we got to the small pond. Relief had me collapse onto the ground and I even splashed some of the pond water on my warm face. Trent grabbed his shirt and unrolled it. My eyes watched him discreetly but I couldn’t admire his physique when a massive scar was across his chest with something metal flashed where his heart was supposed to be. Instantly I knew that that was the injury that nearly killed him.

Trent didn’t even care that I was looking at him with shock. He actually looked completely unphased by it. As if he wasn’t walking around with metal in his chest. I knew that not all technology was destroyed during the first major disaster, but it was still odd to me to see. Our region wasn’t known to have any technology left. It made me curious as to where Trent got the technology that is obviously keeping him alive.

“It’s a mechanical heart,” he suddenly said as he threw his shirt back on.

I looked at him, “What?”

He answered as he pointed to his chest, “This metal thing in my chest is responsible for keeping me alive.”

“How does it work?” I heard myself ask.

Trent smirked at me, “Maybe one day you’ll find out.”

Pursing my lips, I looked away. Feeling the heat spread in my cheeks. My mind isn’t sure how to take what he meant by those words. Was he flirting? Or, was he just saying that he looks forward to us being friends? Or, does he realize that I’m the region’s doctor’s daughter? Questions sped through my mind as I wiped the water off my face with my arm.

Trent just sat next to me as he stared at the burning flames that consumed our home. We had no choice but to wait for the rain to come to put out the fire. Before the major disaster, there were vehicles that would be able to put the flames out instantly. There were even places where you could get the water hooked up to tubes to shoot water at the flames. But that was one of the many things that didn’t survive.

I know that there was a region focusing on bringing back the technology that we once lost. I’m sure that was where Trent got his heart from. It was always my dream to go to that region and find out what they have recovered. See what medicine they brought back to save countless lives like Trent’s. But my mother always reminded me that we were always going to be a part of the forest region. She was against me leaving. Especially when it involved trying to find answers to who my father was.

Suddenly, a large shadow covered the clearing, making both of us look up. The silhouette of a large bird carrying something came into view. We watched it fly over the flames and drop something on the flames. It wasn’t long before another bird showed up to do the same thing. The more they continued the routine, the less the fire grew. In fact, it grew smaller with every time the birds dropped something.

“Looks like the Blizzard Region showed up at the right time,” Trent mentioned as he got up and headed towards the now smoking and charred forest. Making me quickly get up and run after him.

“How do you know that it's the Blizzard Region that was supposed to show up?” I asked him as I struggled to keep up with him.

He then turned to look at me, “Because they are here to give me parts for my heart.”