We had hopped onto another bus. Just as the doors had began to close, we had run up, waving our arms. Luckily the bus driver was a decent person, and he opened the doors. This bus was smaller than the other one, and the back was already filled. We chose seats as far back as we could. We leaned down, and talked in hushed tones.

   "So, we need to think of new identities." She was right back at.

   "Fine." I rolled my eyes. "You can be in charge of that. Give me whatever name you want. I really don't care."

   She grinned. "Okay, hi Bobo Knuckleface."

   "Alright, maybe, make something up, that actually sounds legit. Like Benjamin Smith."

   "Hey Ben. How are you?" She didn't even pause. "Perfect. I love it. Now, I need a really interesting name. Yours is the boring one. How about, I'm Nemy Callio. Is that good?"

   "Where'd you get 'Nemy' from?"

   "I read something, at some point, about someone with the name Nemy. And Callio? It's a random mix of letters that sounds sorta legit." She shrugged. "If you have any suggestions, I can change it."

   "Nemy's fine," I agreed. "And about the money thing, I'll look it up later."

   We sat in silence. It was late afternoon, and we sat for hours. The bus stopped jerkily every few minutes. Eventually, the sky darkened, but we stayed on the bus. As it became dark, I felt Marella dozing off, but I kept alert. As the moon rose, she began to breathe softly, and I knew she was deep in sleep. Her head rested on my shoulder, and slowly slid into my elbow. I held her. I felt like I couldn't move. I brushed the hair from her eyes, and I could have sworn she smiled in her sleep. But when I looked again, she had perfectly innocent, sleeping look on her face. I felt a smile growing on my own face.

   People embarked, and disembarked, and the bus kept moving. The driver changed twice. Finally, Marella stirred. My eyes began to droop.

   "Can I sleep for a bit?" I asked, as her eyes opened, and she sat up.

   "Sure. Have I been sleeping all evening?" She wiped crust from her eyes, and licked her lips.

   "Pretty much. It's fine, though. You were tired. If you wouldn't mind just staying awake for awhile, I really want to sleep for a bit. I think the buses stop at ten o'clock, so we have another hour. Running from evil is tiring." She smiled at my words.

   "That's fine. I'll sit here for a bit. Try not to drool on me."

   "What? I don't drool! That's gross," I exclaimed. She laughed.

   "Everyone does. And everyone says that."

   "Even you?" I asked.

   She opened her mouth, and then closed it again. "You got me there."

   I smirked with victory, before closing my eyes, and leaning back on the cushioned seat.

   I fell into a sort of sleep-like haze. But I was conscious of the passing time, and I woke immediately, when Marella shook me.

   "Time to get off, sleepy head." I stumbled off the bus, and we walked down the dark streets. We went into the nearest hotel, and the bright lights helped me wake up a little more.

   "I'd like to get a room for the night," I said.

   The man at the desk was very helpful, and in what seemed like minutes, we were collapsing on the soft white beds.

   Marella stood up, and walked over to the coffee table, she reached down, and picked up a long skinny card.

   "Hey Dex, I think this is one of those things Sophie told me about. It's where you can call someone on the telephone, and they will bring you food." I sat up quickly.

   "What? Like, they'll bring you food right to your room?" I had never heard of something like it. Why didn't they have that in the Lost Cities? It was a great idea. It could boost so many businesses.

   "Yeah. There are a whole bunch of symbols. I think they match up with the ones on the telephone." Now she walked over to the bedside table, where there was a white telephone. She picked it up. "Can you tell me what the symbols are from the start to the end?"

   I held the card, where I saw the human numbers. "There is a symbol like two circles on top of each other. Then a circle like symbol, but it's more like a vertically pointed oval. Another one of the circular ones, and then a horizontal dash."

   "I don't see a dash on here. I think that is just intended as a space."

   "Alright, after the space, there is one like with a vertical line on top, and below that, a diagonal line below it."

   We went on for another few minutes, until she had the full number sentence.

   Then she clicked the call button.