Mo and Katie hurried back practically screaming Sora's name. She hugged them and quickly assured them she was okay. Sora explained that Oliver saved her and they all agreed to follow him so he could lead them to Drake and Ben.

She didn't tell them that Oliver also knew what she was. She shot him a quick glare. She was terrified at first, but she calmed down after she sensed nothing malevolent about his intentions. He'd been excited when he called her a Dragoncaller. He definitely was grateful that she had managed to save Duke. Regardless of Oliver's intention, they couldn't stay in the burning forest. The flames were closing in. They needed to get out of there and alert the fire department. Also, Sora worried that the Harrisons were already on their way. It was unlikely they had missed the dragon fight.

As if he was reading her mind, Mo said, "We have to move." As usual he had come to the same conclusion as Sora, only a moment faster. She smiled at him and nodded.

The flames were quickly closing in, almost ready to encircle them. They ran quickly. Sirens screamed through the night and Sora wanted to be as far away as possible before the fire-fighters arrived. The last thing she wanted was to be caught in the middle of another raging fire.

They quickly maneuvered out of the forest and headed up to the mountains, following a small tracking path. It was getting harder to walk by the minute as the rain pelted down on them, and the air grew colder. Sora and Katie clutched to each other as they walked hoping to draw extra body heat from one another. Up ahead, Oliver appeared oblivious to the cold, and the big hole that Sora had burned into his shirt with her palms.

"Are we close?" asked Mo from behind.

Oliver half-turned, giving Sora a brief view of his flawless profile. "Almost," he said and then flashed a faint smile. Sora knew he must have caught her staring.

They trudged ahead for a few more minutes, and then suddenly, Oliver came to a stop. "We're here," he said spreading his arms out to present the location. The rest of them quickly joined him. Ahead of them on the path headed downhill, there were a couple of pick-up trucks parked. There were some embers glinting in the night from a fire that had died awhile ago. The dying fire was surrounded by three sleeping bags, covered by a plastic see through curtain to keep the rain out.

Sora smiled at what she saw. Sitting on a fallen log next to one of the trucks was Drake. Seated next to him were Ben and Duke and a girl around her age whom Sora didn't recognize. Everyone appeared to be fine. More than fine when Drake shot her a smile. He obviously wasn't concerned about Oliver and his group. More importantly, they were all fully dressed. Probably with Duke's clothes, she guessed. Sora was glad that she wouldn't have to endure more naked men for the rest of the night.

Oliver headed down the hill to the camp, Sora, Mo and Katie tagged behind him. When Oliver reached Duke, he quickly assessed him from head to toe before walking over to the girl and giving her a huge hug. Sora thought the girl looked uncomfortable with Oliver's fingers brushing through her blond hair. She could relate.

Sora turned her attention to Drake who was still resting on the log. "Are you okay?" she asked, barely able to keep her hands from giving him the once over to make sure there were no broken bones. He nodded that he was fine, and she breathed a sigh of relief.

"I am peachy, too, thanks for asking," Ben stated as he joined them. His tone was aggressive, but Sora didn't flinch, she was used to Ben's temper. He brought his head down to hers, their foreheads almost touching, his index finger raised in front of her nose. "Next time you get into my head I will kill you."

Sora didn't even have the time to get out a flippant response before Drake jolted up from the log and shoved Ben away from her. "Don't touch her!" he yelled, his voice filled with rage.

Oliver quickly came over to help diffuse the situation. He grabbed Sora and buried her in another hug and once again, he rocked her from side to side. "You'll be okay," he said softly.

Sora glanced over Oliver's shoulder to see Drake fuming with anger. He stormed over and grabbed Oliver's shirt collar and jerked him back.

"No one touches her," Drake yelled striding over to stand next to Sora.

Oliver got back to his feet, rubbing the back of his neck. Sora was surprised to see a huge grin plastered across his face, he actually looked happy. "I am sorry mate, but I've never seen a Dragoncaller before so feel free to put me back in my place whenever I cross the line," he said, and both Duke and the blond girl gasped at him, turning to stare at Sora.

Drake also shot a fierce look at her. "You told him?" he demanded. Sora just shrugged.

"I used my powers in front of him, and he figured it out," she said. Katie appeared at her side, patting her back trying to reassure her that it wasn't her fault.

"Little Harrison boy, if you've seen her use her powers then you would have noticed the energy that emanates from her whenever she utilizes her talents," said Oliver still smiling.

Sora wanted him to explain what that meant. What kind of energy was he talking about? He seemed to know a lot more about Dragoncallers than anyone else. Drake barged in with his own questions before she had a chance to speak.

"How do you know who I am?" he asked.

Oliver shrugged and took a step closer to them, Duke and blondie trailing close behind. "You are the spitting image of your father," Oliver said his smile growing even wider. "Except the eyes of course," he motioned with his head towards Drake's eyes.

"How do you know my father?" Drake demanded, not bothering to hide the tension in his voice.

Oliver bit his lower lip playfully, and his grey eyes shone silver with excitement. "I used to be like you. Part of the Highlands pack, following every order. But then I got out. I am free now," he said.

Drake sat silently, processing everything, allowing Sora a chance to speak up. "Back in the forest you said something about a resistance army," she said and Oliver's attention snapped to her. He hesitantly stepped toward her, as if wanting to hug her again, but Drake was standing between them, stopping Oliver in his tracks.

"This is what we are. Resistance against the pack," he smiled at her.

"You can't just get out," Drake stated but there was a hopeful note in his voice. He wanted to believe that there truly was a way out, but he feared it was impossible.

"That's right," replied Oliver. "The pack will come after you. That's why I am gathering my forces to fight against the pack, destroy it once and for all."

Sora's curiosity was set ablaze. Could this be possible? she wondered.

"If you destroy one pack, won't another come after you?" Mo quickly interjected.

"That's a good question," said Oliver as he shot Mo an appraising look. For a moment, Sora thought he was going to grab Mo in a bear hug, but he restrained himself. "You see we are the soldiers, the army that provides other dragons with the freedom to live their lives as they wish. Anyone can join our cause and fight with us, but they can also leave whenever they want. I will always fight for their freedom," he said finally.

Sora gave him a faint smile of approval. That is a noble cause, she thought.

"You can join us if you want," Oliver said to Drake and Ben. "We could use the help."

Ben looked at Drake. Sora was annoyed to note that Ben was unable to make his own decisions even though he hated being bossed around.

"I bet you hate Draco's leadership. He can be one hell of a cruel dictator," Oliver said his eyes locked onto Drake's. The two appeared to have reached some common ground.

A leader, Sora thought to herself. The pack has a leader.

She sensed Drake's change of heart before she heard his answer. "If I join you, will we attack the pack? My parents?" he asked tentatively, but Sora knew he was already sold.

Oliver shook his head. "We don't attack, we defend. We help dragons that want to stay free and protect them from threats directed at them by the pack," he said as he took his place between Duke and blondie. Everything about him indicated that he had the presence of a leader, and Sora couldn't help but feel drawn to him.

"You just said that you want to destroy the pack once and for all," Mo commented in disbelief.

Oliver gave him a gentle smile. "You don't have to kill something in order to destroy it."

Before Mo could respond, Drake cut him off. "If I join your army you have to promise me one thing," he said. Sora swiveled to see his face, he was going to be free at last. She smiled sliding her hand toward his.

"The girl will be left alone," Oliver said and Sora froze, her hand in midair.

"What?" she asked confused.

"Okay," Drake said ignoring her. Drake turned to Ben and said, "It's your choice." Then he smiled.

Ben was uncertain. His eyes darted from the resistance army to Sora, Katie and Mo before going back to Drake. He opened his mouth more than once but no words came out. His confusion caused him to become agitated. Finally, he kicked the fallen log, shifting it a few inches.

"You don't need to decide right now," Oliver said calmly. Quickly, trying to clear the air Oliver asked, "Who is up for some eggs?" The question was met with some nods and murmurs and tapping on empty stomachs. Sora soon found herself sitting on the ground with a plastic plate heaped with scrambled eggs and bacon.

They were all eating with their hands but no one seemed to care. Sora couldn't remember the last time she had eaten. During the meal, the group took time to properly introduce themselves. The blond girl remained quiet until it was time to give her name, then she piped up that her name was Amber. Upon hearing her voice, Sora immediately realized that Amber was a Screamer just like Drake's mom. Unlike Patricia's warm brown eyes, Amber had dark brown eyes that were the perfect contrast to her pale skin and light blond hair. After giving her name, Amber fell silent again for the rest of the meal as if she was uncomfortable with everyone around her.

When they were done, Oliver rose from his seat and stretched, a thin line of skin showing under the new shirt he had put on. When Sora lifted her eyes to his face she saw he was staring at her with a lopsided smile. Busted. "We leave at dawn," Oliver said turning to Ben. "You can tell us your answer then." He walked towards one of the cars and sat in the passenger's seat crossing his arms and closing his eyes, and just like that he was asleep. He appeared to be perfectly calm, despite the fact that they were running for their lives.

"You can use the sleeping bags if you are tired," Duke said as he got up. Amber was right behind him. They both walked to the other pick-up truck.

Sora glanced at the remainder of the group. Ben was still struggling with his decision. He finally rose to his feet and said he was going for a walk. Sora felt Katie stirring at her side, probably ready to offer him some company, but she placed a firm hand on her friends shoulder, keeping her in place. Instead, Katie quickly grabbed a sleeping bag and spread it out a few feet away from them.

Now there were only three of them left by the fire.

"So you will go with them?" Sora asked Drake, surprised by the hurt tone in her own voice.

Drake nodded at her from across the small. "You will be safe. My parents don't know about you, and I will make sure Oliver doesn't bother you from now on," he said without looking at her.

"But you will be gone," she said, her voice barely a whisper. She knew he couldn't stay, but in her mind she still hoped he would.

He finally locked eyes with her and she could feel his sadness building up inside her own body. Once again, their feelings had synced.

"Won't they come after us because we helped you escape?" asked Mo breaking the spell between Drake and Sora.

Drake shook his head. "Dragons never hurt humans, not intentionally at least," he said.

"That's nice," said Sora sarcastically.

"We are raised to believe we are the most important creatures in the world. Everything else is below us. To us, humans are nothing more than tiny ants scuttling under our feet. No one bothers with ants."

"Oh," said Sora nearly speechless. She reached up to her necklace, fiddling it between her fingers, its cold surface calming her. Her fingers traced the chain up to the black ribbon she had placed there in remembrance to her parents' death. She had no intention of placing an additional ribbon on her necklace to remind her of another loss.

Mo shuffled over to the other sleeping bag. When he lay on top of it and closed his eyes, Sora dropped down next to Drake. "You go," she said finally. He looked at her surprised. "It's the only way you can be free."

He nodded, although, she saw him clenching his jaw. After a few silent moments, he reached over and took her hand, their fingers intertwining. They sat quietly starring into the flames, enjoying the jolts of electricity from their touch, and then Drake broke the silence. "You know I used to be afraid of the dark."

Sora gave him a quizzical look, but said nothing allowing him to continue.

"It wasn't because I feared that it was hiding something sinister, but more because the dark seems too vast and utterly empty. It reminded me of myself." Drake focused his gaze on the flames dancing in front of him. Sora gave his hand an encouraging squeeze. "I hated that feeling, but in the end I got used to it, just like everything else. I went through life unaware that I was wasting it. Until you showed up," he said and turned to look at her.

She was speechless. She knew he wasn't satisfied with how he used to live, but she never thought he felt that way.

"It was during that walk we took together on Sunday, when you ripped my lifeless existence apart and then reassembled it, putting all the pieces back in the right order." He reached out with his free hand and cupped her face gently. Sora felt the light tingle of sparks dance across her cheek.

"You reminded me of what it means to feel alive. You became the bright light in my darkness. There is nothing left aside from you." He brushed his thumb across her cheek, and she closed her eyes leaning into his hand. "This is why I must go. I must protect your existence."

Sora opened her eyes ready to protest, but she found herself captivated by the resolve in Drake's eyes. "I don't want to lose myself again. I don't want to feel empty."

Sora gave him a sad smile. She wanted him to be happy, feel alive and in order to do so, she knew he had to walk away. Not from her but from his pack. Still she would be left behind and she hated it. "I understand," she finally said, even though her body wanted to grab hold and never let go of him.

Mo stirred in his place flipping onto his side, and Sora was brought back to reality. There were decisions that needed to be made. And Ben had yet to make his.

She slowly let go of Drake's hand and rose to her feet. "Ben should go, too. I'll go talk to him."

"I'll come with you," he said but Sora stopped him.

"I got it. I know exactly what to say," she told him as she crawled out of the shelter into the heavy rain. If anyone could convince Ben, it was her.