The bear—Saya—paused at the girl's voice. Blood still trickled from its mouth, yet even through the pain, it responded. It turned its head slightly toward her, and the violent shadows that danced across its fur began to ebb, folding back into its frame like smoke retreating into the night.
I stayed alert, chest heaving, lightning still crackling faintly over my skin. My hand tightened around the staff.
The girl stepped forward.
She was barefoot, pale-skinned, with long black hair that framed her youthful face. Her expression was calm, but her blue eyes flicked toward me with a mixture of curiosity and caution. A Feran. I had no doubt now.
She approached the crater slowly, eyes on the bear, hand resting gently on its massive flank.
"That's enough," she said again, softer this time.
Saya gave a low grunt and sat back on its haunches, blood dripping steadily from its injuries. Despite everything, its eyes were still sharp. It was no mindless beast—it had fought with awareness, and now, it obeyed.
I released a breath I didn't know I was holding.
Lightning faded from my skin.
The staff shimmered and dispersed into motes of Essence, curling into the tattoo on my arm. My body ached a little, and my back still burned from the earlier ambush.
The girl looked at me again. Her blue eyes lingered on the bloodstained earth where Saya lay, then slowly returned to my face.
She tilted her head slightly.
"How old are you?" she asked, her voice light, almost curious.
"Seventeen," I replied.
She studied me quietly, eyes narrowing a little.
She folded her arms and muttered, more to herself than to me, "Strange. I've met human youths before. They're usually weaker in the early stages. Your elders, sure, they can be strong but not . Not like you. Curious... very curious."
I said nothing, letting her talk. It felt like she wasn't expecting an answer anyway.
"Are you a Feran?" I asked, keeping my tone level.
She gave a soft chuckle and nodded. "Yes, I am."
Before I could say anything else, a sudden gust of wind swept to my side and Steve appeared out of nowhere.
"Hi there!" he said with a wide grin, completely unfazed by the tension in the air. "I'm Steve, and this guy right here is Billion. You can ignore him, he's a brute."
I turned to glare at him, but he kept going.
"And I'm sorry that he hurt your friend Saya. It wasn't personal."
Then, unbelievably, he turned to the massive bear and bowed slightly. "Apologies for his actions."
My jaw dropped. My mouth opened, then closed, then opened again. I couldn't believe his shamelessness.
Even the Feran girl blinked in surprise, clearly caught off guard. Saya grunted, tilting its huge head as if unsure how to respond.
The girl let out a small laugh.
"No need to apologize," she said, a smile tugging at her lips. "He just defended himself. I'm not offended."
She placed a gentle hand on Saya's thick fur, checking her wounds, then added, "My name is Anastasia. But you can call me Ana."
I gave a small nod. "Billion," I said, reintroducing myself before Steve could interrupt again.
"It's nice to meet you, Ana," Steve said smoothly, stepping forward. He adjusted the sword strapped to his back and looked around.
"If you don't mind me asking… why are you here? Actually, where is here? Are we still inside the Holt-controlled zone?"
Ana's expression darkened. Her smile faded, and her fingers curled slightly at her sides.
"Yes," she said quietly. "We're still in their territory."
She looked past us, toward the dense stretch of trees behind the clearing. Her gaze drifted somewhere far beyond the trunks and branches, and her voice dropped to a quiet murmur.
"There's no exit unless the Holts allow it."
Her lips curled into a faint smile, but it didn't reach her eyes.
"Of course… they don't know this pocket realm exists. That's the only reason I'm safe. But even so, you could say this is my own personal prison."
I frowned. A hidden realm inside a prison? One the Holts didn't even know about?
I blinked and asked, "How did you get here? Are there other Ferans with you?"
The question came out sharper than I meant. But I had to know. If she was part of the Feran group the Holts captured, then maybe she knew where the rest were. If not… then how she ended up here raised even more questions.
For a moment, something in her expression changed. Her eyes lost their calm, and her smile slowly faded.
She let out a soft sigh.
"Well, Billion…" she said, my name landing gently on her tongue. "I don't know who you are. Not really. So I don't think I can share much more with you."
Her gaze fell to my neck.
"You see that collar on you? That lets the Holts track your location. It broadcasts your presence whether you're aware of it or not."
I instinctively reached up, fingers brushing the cool metal band locked around my throat.
She continued, "So, right now, you're kind of a risk. Just by standing here, you're endangering this place. If the Holts ever caught wind of it…"
She didn't finish the sentence. She didn't need to.
The idea hung in the air like a shadow.
Steve shifted slightly beside me, suddenly serious.
I glanced at Ana again. There was no hostility in her words—just caution. And maybe a little sadness.
She was alone here, in a world hidden inside a cage.
Either way, I could tell she wasn't going to trust us easily.
Still, I decided to ask.
"Then… why did you let us in? This place, I'm guessing we wouldn't have found it if that giant crab and the tree hadn't allowed us through."
She let out a soft laugh, amused by the question, and glanced toward the strange creatures gathered around her. Her eyes paused on the small, rat-like beings that had been silently watching us from the shadows.
"Well," she began, "my friends here saw your fight with that Abomination earlier."
She looked back at me, her gaze steady.
"They were surprised. Shocked, even. A human wearing a prisoner's collar… fighting like that? They thought maybe—just maybe—you could be different. That I might be able to form an alliance with you… against the Holts."
Her voice lowered as she pointed toward the apes, the crab, and the other strange beasts gathered around her. Some stood guard. Others simply watched.
"I wasn't worried about my safety," she continued calmly. "I had protection. Even if things went wrong, they'd make sure I was safe."
Then she looked back at me with something unreadable in her expression.
"And besides… the collar says you're a prisoner. But that could also be a trick. A deception. So I invited you here to see for myself."