As the darkness tip toed away, the husky twilight squatted where the stars had been, not longer than a few moments ago. The red rocks woke up, but none of them had the energy to get up and stretch; They wished to snooze for a little longer. The landscape was sleepy; nocturnal animals were huddling down, ready to sleep through the hot day.

I followed Saguaro (or Sarah) through the sleeping land.

"They're a little skittish, and they'll come off as rude at first, but don't worry, they'll get used to you." Saguaro babbled on, flicking her carmelish tail back and forth.

I needed to pick up the pace of my limp in order to keep up with her happy gait. I couldn't tell where we were headed at first, but as soon as sunlight striked the red cliffs, I could see a shallow cave in the face of the stone. It was taller than the largest tree I had ever seen (which wasn't saying much, trees didn't get very tall in the desert) and barely deep enough to provide shade. A little pool of water glittered in the base of the cave like a mirage, reflecting spider webs o light across the ceiling. Looking at it made me remember my dry throat. I hoped it was real.

"Does your . . . flock live in the cave?" I asked.

"Yep! It's nothing fancy, but it has everything we need: shade, water, a connection to the spirit realm-"

"Wait, what?" I cut her off. "Connection to the spirit realm?"

"Would you stop interrupting me? It's very rude, and I'd appreciate if you wouldn't do that!"

"Sorry." I mumbled.

"Spirits can't come to this world unless they have a connection, a bridge or a ladder, from the spirit realm. Reflected light from water, especially shaded water, is a great stepping-stone for spirits." Saguaro said.

I waited for her to pause before I spoke. "Wait, what is the spirit realm? And why would they want to come here, where it's hot and dry?"

"Oh dear," she stopped and turned around to stare at me. "you don't know what the spirit realm is? The place where the unearthly creatures come from, where they travel across the starry sky?"

I shook my head. I think I had heard of the spirit realm, from an old pup-tale, but I couldn't remember anything besides the memory of being snuggled up in a den of the Piedra tribe's hollow, looking up to the stars in the sky while Creek told Sego and I the old stories . . . the memory made me ache.

"I don't know all the details, but the spirit realm is basically a place where creatures who don't live on Earth can travel across the sky, moving all around the Earth, other planets, or even other galaxies. My flock rests at our cave during the day and travels in the spirit realm during the night. They're scared of the darkness. I think that's weird, the sky is even darker than Earth! Anyways, I should let them explain it to you. They're a lot better at talking than I am." Saguaro said.

"Really?" I asked sarcastically.

"They are so good at talking! They use all sorts of fancy words, I can't understand them most of the time. But they're really smart. They know so much. You'll love them!"

I didn't love them. I didn't like them either.

A flash of light shimmered from the pond, and the water began to stir. I thought my eyes were just playing a trick on me, but after a heart beat, a dozen shimmering forms of light crawled out of the water and onto the sand. They didn't have any distinctive form or shape; just soft, glowing bodies, floating around the cave like feathers caught in a warm breeze. If I followed one with my eyes, it looked like a rabbit, or a small coyote, but in half a second it turned back into a shapeless form.

Saguaro ran down into the hollow, yipping with excitement. "My flock! My flock! You're here!"

I followed her warily. I didn't trust those spirits, even if Saguaro claimed she was part of their flock. Come to think of it, I didn't trust Saguaro.

Saguaro wagged her tail and jumped around the spirits in circles; they returned her excitement by rapidly twisting and doing summersaults in the air. The spirits made happy humming noises. It was an odd, surreal scene to observe.

"I'm happy to see you too, Betsy! I hope you had a great trip, Bobby! Yes, I am doing well today, thank you Sally!" Saguaro called to the spirits.

"Are you talking to them?" I asked.

"Yes! I'm not sure if they can understand me, I don't speak their language and they can't speak ours. But I think they like listening to me."

This made me worried. How did Sarah know the Guerro even existed if her flock hadn't told her about them?

"Do you . . . have any other friends, besides your flock?" I asked.

"Not really," Sarah mumbled, taking a break from her happy hellos. "But I guess you're my friend now! Hey, guess what guys! This is my new friend Astor!"

When the spirits heard my name, they immediately stood still. I had the eerie feeling that they were staring at me, even though they didn't have eyes.

"I found him. It's okay, he's just a coyote, like me!" Sarah yipped.

They seemed more relaxed and began moving again once Sarah spoke. I think they were relieved to know I wasn't anything dangerous.

One of the spirits twisted around Sarah's ears, humming deeply. She listened very quietly.

"Yes Kenny, think that would be a good idea." Sarah replied.

"So you can understand them?" I growled.

"I don't know exactly what they're saying, but I can tell what they're feeling. Usually I can get the gist of what they want."

"And it wants . . ."

"Kenny wants to help you feel better. I think he wants to heal your wounds, if you'll let him."

There was no way I was going to let those spirits touch me, I didn't know what they would do.

Saguaro saw the discomfort on my face and drew closer to me. "It's ok, they won't hurt you. They're the most gentle creatures in this world, probably the entire galaxy."

"Oh, I bet they are . . ." I said sarcastically.

Apparently, they didn't understand sarcasm. All dozen spirits surged on me, humming with enthusiasm. I didn't have enough time to run away or attack one of them before they turned into tiny, shimmering threads and swam their way into my fur, skin and muscles.

"Ahhh! It tickles! Stop it!" I barked, jumping around, attempting to shake the spirits out of my body.

"Hold still! They're trying to fix your injuries, bringing the broken flesh back together!" Sarah barked, grabbing me by the scruff.

"No! No! I-"

"Hold still! You'll make them upset!" Sarah barked through a mouthful of fur.

I stopped writhing, allowing the spirits to flow through my body. My muscle fibers twisted back to where they were supposed to be, the bones in my sprained ankle moved back to their proper positions and the white scars on my body sprang up with caramel fur, even the long cut on my chin.

As the spirits seeped from my pores, I sighed with relief. My muscles felt unknotted and my nerves became soothed, as if I had just gone for a long run.

"Was that so bad?" Sarah asked as if I were a little pup trying fresh meat for the first time.

I didn't respond; I wasn't going to give her the satisfaction that I felt in my relaxed body.

Sarah turned around to address her flock. "Hey, guys? Astor needs some help. A nasty shifter took control of his tribe and exiled him into the desert. I was thinking that if we could get the Guerro to come up North and help him, that would be great. What do you guys think?" She spoke up into the air so they all would hear her, but none of them seemed to be listening.

A slower, less colorful spirit descended from the air and slithered around Sarah's ears. I couldn't hear him make any sounds, but Sarah jumped at his unspoken words.

"Leave! I can't leave! I've never been out of the canyon, not since I was a little pup!"

"Is . . . there something wrong?" I mumbled. I almost wished the slow spirit would come whisper in my ears so I could understand what Saguaro was so nervous about.

She looked back at me, her tail dropping and her ears sagging. "No, no . . . well, a little . . . " she mumbled on until the spirit floated away and she turned to me. "Yes, there is, but it's alright. I was really scared for a moment; Lenard told me that the only way for the Guerro to come is to travel to Noo Meksiko and invite them to be your personal army. I was afraid of leaving my home and my flock, but then he showed me your tribe. He showed me how worried you were about them, especially an older brown coyote . . . I want to help you find the Guerro."

"You'd do that for me? Why?" I inquired.

Sarah suddenly found great interest in a gray pebble under her toes. "The spirits knew how you felt when they healed you. Lenny showed me a bit about how you feel. I feel really bad about wanting to stay . . . you must feel horrible."

I did feel horrible. Leaving Hare, Sego and everyone else to the shifter and Snake, felt worse than whenever Horizon called me unloyal, scarier than when Hawk told me his daughter was in love with me, and harder than never understanding why my family had left me.

I needed to save my new family.

"Thank you Sarah, but you don't need to leave your flock. I can go by myself." I whispered.

"No, you don't know the way. I'll show you. Let's get started, it's a long journey." Saguaro said, standing up and shaking herself. "Bye bye, guys! Have a good time while I'm gone. Be careful, the rains will be here soon."

The spirits didn't reply.

She trotted back the way we came. I whispered a small thank you to the strange spirits, then quickly leaped after her.