Amaya tapped her finger against her cheek. She had placed her face into her hands as her green eyes scanned the movement of the clouds. The twin suns were beginning to set, so she only had an hour or two left. She had to go inside before night settled in.

"Okay." Bek started, "I'm here, but I've go'da go home before it gets too dark."

Amaya leaped up, looking behind the rock she sat on. She gave out a big bright smile. "Okay, I found this really cool thing the other day when I was playing! When Ryan and Emmeny get here, I'm going to show you!"

Bek smiled brightly, "What is it?"

Amaya pondered a brief spell before replying half-defeated, "I don't know. Oh! But maybe Emmeny will know."

Bek nodded repeatedly, "Yeah, she's really smart!"

Ryan walked up with his bow slung over his back. He had ten arrows hanging by his waist, neatly placed in a quiver. His small knife hung by his belt as he walked towards his friends, hands in his pockets. "Okay, this better be good, I ditched archery practice for this!"

Amaya smiled brightly, looking behind Bek to find the shy Emmeny. "Of course it is! I found this weird thing yesterday while I was playing! Me and Bek think Emmeny will know what it is!"

Ryan looked at them puzzled, this was peculiar. He rubbed his chin, it was something he noticed Akoma do before he talked to people. "Well, it sounds cool. What do you think Emy?"

Emmeny nodded, "If you go, I'll go too."

Ryan smiled with fire in his eyes, "Okay let's go."

Ryan had known Bek, Amaya, and Emmeny for about a little under a year now. They mostly hung out at school, though Amaya had been wanting to show them something she had found. This was supposed to be better than tag, or other games they always played. They waited for this night in particular, there wasn't school tomorrow so they were permitted to stay up later. It was rare for Akoma to let Ryan practice archery on his own, so the young boy concidered himself lucky.

On the other hand Emmeny had been learning their language well. She still struggled with bug words and long sentences, but she had enough to communicate.

The four children ran as fast as they could, knowing they didn't have too much time to spare. After a good distance had been crossed, they each panted to catch their breaths. Bek pointed towards wooden stakes in the ground. The wooden stakes represented territorial boards, Dark Water having no walls led to this particular practice.

"Isnt that the border? We should turn back, we aren't supposed to cross the border." Bek stated.

"Why not?" Emmeny asked.

"My parents told me that monsters exist out there. Haven't any of you heard about the wraith?" Bek replied.

"You don't actually believe them do you? I live outside the boarder and I've never seen any monsters!" Ryan challenged.

"I've never seen any either, besides what I want to show you isn't that far away." Amaya replied.

"But what if they're really monsters out there?" Bek asked nervous.

"What's a wraith?" Emmeny asked.

"I've never heard it either." Amaya announced, folding her arms.

Bek looked over his friends, "You've never heard about the wraith? That story goes back to the beginning of Dark Water. Before the name was changed from Dry Water. It's a legend. Your parents never told you?"

Ryan made a sour face, as he crossed his arms "It sounds familiar."

"Well apparently my great grandfather knew the wraith. He was investigating crimes in Dark Water, and after a week he found out that a twelve year old boy was sneaking into the village at night and killing people!"

Amaya's eyes went wide, "What! No way! How could anyone do such a thing!"

"He wasn't himself! The scariest part is. He never knew he did it!" Bek added.

Emmeny started biting her nails as she glanced over the group, "You think there's more out there?"

Ryan rolled his eyes, "There's no way that's true!"

"Even if it is, Ryan's a good shot with his bow." Amaya countered, "He can protect us."

Ryan smiled more confidently, "Yeah I can shoot a bullseye!"

"No way!" Bek called back. "You're really good!"

Ryan smiled, "Yup."

Bek scratched his head, "Well, I guess we will be okay as long as we stick together."

The four children rushed ahead, at a slightly slower paste. Amaya gave off a bright smile once they made it. She raised both her arms into the air in a grand fashion.

"Welcome to my fort!" The girl yelled.

Bek looked around uncomfortably. "Should we really be yelling? Couldn't we attract something?"

"Don't be a wimp!" Amaya growled, slamming her fist into Bek. The boy whimpered as he rubbed his arm.

"Ow! What was that for?" Bek questioned with his brows furled.

"Because." Amaya pouted.

Ryan didn't wait for the other's he just started down the sight they were each beholding. Just over the giant dirt hill they climbed, a ball like object sat in the center of a crater. It's exterior was dirty littered with decay and black soot. Around this giant metallic ball were others like it, burred in the sand, in no better condition. Some of the metal was missing, as if a scavenger had come by.

Ryan looked it over, peeking inside the giant ball. It was easily big enough to fit three or four people. There were even chairs inside as if it was supposed to do so, though some of the seats were broken. Ryan spotted dry blood on three of the four seats, and iron bands around each of the armrest of the chairs. There was some sort of door a ways off nearly half buried in dirt. The joints on the door had been completely splintered. 

Ryan looked back as the others caught up to him. Amaya was obviously the first, and she started right in.

"I think it's something the monsters made!" Amaya shouted excitedly.

Ryan shook his head, "That doesn't make any sense. This looks more like a meteor to me. These things crashed here. And they were made to hold people."

"Have you ever seen a meteor?" Amaya challenged. "It looks nothing like this! Besides people don't come out of meteors."

"It's a rettungskapsel." Emmeny replied, rubbing her hand against the ball. She spaced out as she looked over the dirty object.

"A what?" Amaya asked.

"A rettungskapsel. I've seen some before... just none like these. They look different." Emmeny answered, squinting her eyes at the ball more intently.

"What do they do?" Bek asked.

"They protect you when running." Emmeny told Bek, looking directly at him.

"How are you supposed to run with something like that?" Amaya laughed, trying to lift the pod.

"You obviously can't carry them." Ryan told Amaya, "Can't you tell us anything else about them?"

"When your raumschiff or pendeln are attacked, you use rettungskapsel to run before sprengen." Emmeny said, peering inside the object, "Look, chairs in here."

"How is it that you can even know about something like this?" Bek asked confused. "I've never seen anything like this, or even heard of an ret- rattungskapsel?"

"Rettungskapsel." Emmeny corrected.

"Me neither!" Amaya added, "Do they like roll on the ground? I'd imagine that makes you dizzy."

"No," Emmeny replied, "They fly in space to a nearby planets, or raumschiff."

Amaya leaped on top of the broken down object, climbing the now rigid surface with her body. "So these things can fly?"

Emmeny nodded, "They should be able to, if you can give it power."

"Power, like what electricity?" Ryan asked, "That's nearly impossible to find!"

"We should collect all the electricity we can so we can fly in this!" Bek said excitedly.

"That's not a bad idea." Ryan added.

"Uh, do you guys even know how to collect electricity?" Amaya asked.

"Doesn't it come every-time it storms?" Bek replied.

"No she has a point." Ryan said in thought, "We will need a way to catch it. Maybe we could use lighting bugs?"

Bek shrugged his shoulders, "Man this seems impossible."

"We can do it!" Amaya replied, "It wont be that hard. We just have to catch alot of them!"

"That wouldn't work." A robotic voice called out.

From behind the four children stood a humaniod figure clad in white, red, and black robes. Where his head should have been, a square headdress took its place. Clothing hung down to his shoulders. In his hand he held a staff. The apparel worn made the enigma of a figure appear to be straight and flat besides his arms clad in long white sleeves stretching out from his supposed torso. They were made of a fine material, one foreign to the children. Dark blue fingers protruded from the hand wraps worn, and his face was covered with steel, leaving nothing beyond his fingertips exposed.

Ryan scooted back, his face wide eyed at the sight of the figure. It was a deacon. They heard stories about them. The deacons were a group of cultist that concidered piles of junk sacred relics. They worshipped them, and killed trespassers for desecration.

The four children dashed as fast as they could, trying to put distance between them and the deacons.

The Deacon continued forward as three others were spotted behind the first. He pointed his finger in the air as he pointed at the children, "Kill them. These humans never learn!"

The other three less robed Deacons rushed after the children. They carried small steel batons that could be light to produce green fire from their tips. They called them torches.

"We have to split up!" Ryan yelled as they were running, "I can't beat all three of them alone!"

"Right!" Bek called back. "Someone should go back to the village to get help!"

Amaya nodded, pointing towards a nearby rock pillar, "Head over towards the canyon!"

"Amaya should go back!" Ryan yelled, "She's the fastest."

"Yeah, we'll lead them away!" Bek said, looking back at the pursuing Deacons.

"Alright, Bek you break off first with Amaya," Ryan yelled up.

Bek followed Ryan's instructions as the four children split into two groups. Emmeny and Ryan continued strait as two of the three deacons followed suit.

"Hide over there, in that cave!" Ryan said.

The young girl nodded as she rushed into the cave. Ryan looked back; the two remaining pursuers were caught off guard. He watched one run back to go fined Emmeny in the cave. Ryan twisted his fingers hoping this was the right decision. He wasn't even certain he could take this guy on but he was outpacing him. In a few moments all Ryan would have to do is loose him and run back for Emmeny.

Ryan glanced back as he twisted and turn around rocks. After a few lucky turns Ryan leaped behind a rock and struggled to slow his breathing. He heard the heavy footfall of the seven-foot humanoid run past him. The boy glanced up from where he lied.  The deacon ran still, likely because it thought Ryan was still running that same direction. Ryan quickly got up and rushed towards the cave where he had told Emmeny to hide. He had to act quickly for two reasons, first there was no promise he would be safe if he stayed put, second because Emmeny was still be pursued if she hadn't been captured, or worse, killed. He quickly made his way back towards the cavern, hoping Bek would be okay in the meantime.

The sun settled on the horizon, its twin light past the mountain ranges. Ryan didn't think they had been gone long but if they somehow survived this, their parents would have their heads. He crawled high and low over the rocks inside the cavern. He could barely see at all. The dwindling moon light wasn't easy to work with to begin with, but the heavy shadows inside the cave made it impossible. The boy stopped in his tracks suddenly when he heard the gurgling noise of the deacon. Human's would struggle to even make the sounds they spoke, in the end only portions of the dialect could even be mimicked. Ryan had no idea what it was saying, but it didn't sound pleasant.

Ryan watched as the blue skin began to shimmer from the moon's hard reaching light. He quickly knocked an arrow into his bow string, taking aim at the center mass, towards the heart as taught. He spotted Emmeny squirming as the Deacon came closer. It moved the right rock at a timely moment, revealing the little girl. His arm swung low grabbing Emmeny by the leg, trying to pull her out from cover. Ryan watched in shock as his arrow flew loose. The deacon looked back at the attack, hovering its hands over its heart.

Ryan rushed up to Emmeny, his knife in hand. He watched the small girl cuddle the rock wall in a soft sob as he came closer. He slowed down.

"Ryan!" Emmeny called as a baton slammed into the boy's side. An electric pulse surged from the point of contact into a bright light.

Ryan hit the side of the cave wall, nearly knocked unconscious. He tried to get up, but his body wouldn't move. He turned his head towards his nearby knife, trying to reach it as the Deacon he had previously lost now approached him.

Ryan couldn't make out a word the figure said as it knelt down with it's baton, poking and prodding. Each prod released and eletric shock, causing the young boy to squirm in pain. He could here Emmeny crying out his name nearby. Ryan watched Emmeny scream as she extended her hand, and between the Deacon's garbled words, Ryan's knife flew up from the ground straight into the Deacon's head. The iron knife went completely through the helmet, into the cave wall. Emmeny's hand was stretched out still.

Ryan's body felt weak. He looked up to spy the sobbing girl nearby. Tears were running down her cheeks in streams and snot dripped below her nostrils. Emmeny's arms were folded over her head, as her body had entered the fetal position. Ryan struggled to get to his feet, but couldn't manage to move his arms or legs further than an inch off the ground. He lied there afraid and alone. He didn't want to die.

His vision began to fade slowly, he was just so tired. Yet he knew Emmeny had made the knife fly into the Deacon's head. She had killed the very thing threatening her life. Ryan's vision was gone but he could still hear the crying. Strangely enough, he didn't want it to stop. When it stopped he was afraid he would die. Slowly his consciousness fell, and he couldn't hold to the sound any longer.