***

What happened? All Alex knew was that Emma had passed out. Is she okay? Why was it so dark? The only thing she saw was darkness. Was she in a dark place? Wait... No, that wasn't it. Her eyes were closed. Slowly, she started to become more aware of what she was feeling and hearing. She was warm and laying on something hard. Alex could swear that she heard the faint sound of people calling her name. Someone was shaking too.

"What the hell?" Alex managed to get out. Her voice barely came out, though the people who were there with her were able to hear it. A sigh of relief came from one of them. Alex opened her eyes and could see two blobs standing over her. As her vision started to clear up, she was finally able to make out the blobs. It was Ray and Emma standing over her. "Oh, hey. How's it going?" She sat up and looked around at her surroundings. They were in some kind of cave.

"Is that really all you have to say?!" Ray asked her. His eyes were wide showing that he was clearly surprised by her lack of awareness. Anybody else would have been wondering how they got where they were, but not her.

"Never mind that!" Emma quickly cut in, "Are you okay, Alex?"

The redheaded girl went to answer when she suddenly stopped. There was something off. There was something here that she should notice. Alex held up a hand to stop either of them from saying anything, "Hold on... Something's up," Silence rang in the air for a moment. That's when it hit her. Alex whipped her head around to look at Ray with wide eyes, "You're okay!" She hugged him tightly. They hadn't lost him. He was still here with them. Alex was grateful that the boy hadn't died like Norman did.

"You can really be dense sometimes," And of course, he had to ruin a touching moment. Alex pulled away from him to punch him in the arm. He let out a small noise of pain, "What was that f-" Ray cut himself off when he saw her watery eyes.

A smile appeared on Alex's face, "I'm glad you're okay," She turned to Emma, "And you too." She and everyone else had been really worried when the girl just fell over like that. Emma just acted like nothing was wrong as usual. That was one thing she needed to stop doing.

"We're glad that you seem to be fine too, Alex." Emma shared a grin with Alex.

Alex went back to surveying their surroundings. The only light was from Ray's lantern. The cave they were in would be completely dark without the light. Alex finally decided to ask them where they were, "So, um... Not to ruin the moment, but where are we? Where is everyone else? The last thing I remember was seeing a girl with a hood." Was this the place that she took them to? Had they moved her and Emma here while they were passed out? What about Ray? He wasn't even with them when they passed out, but he was here now.

"So you're in the dark, too," Ray stated.

"What do you mean?" Alex shot him a confused look.

"I see," Ray didn't answer her question. He placed his hand under his chin in thought, "So we were all saved... At the same time, in different places. The hooded man and the hooded girl... Are they together? Who are they?" So there was not only a girl but a man too? The hooded man must have saved Ray based on what the boy was saying. "And, are they really on our side?"

Neither Alex nor Emma seemed to have an immediate answer. Alex had no idea about their saviors' motives and that freaked her out a bit. Though, they didn't take them back to the farm so they had to be somewhat good... Right. Emma hesitated before reply, "I think they're not hostile, probably... I only have a vague memory of her, but her voice stayed with me... She was so kind and gentle... I feel like she's been nursing us... Yes, her voice was beautiful and kind."

Ray gave Emma a blank stare, "That's not really the point here. If they're enemies, I can't understand why they'd be doing this."

"Exactly," Alex agreed, "If they were with the farm then they would have taken us back, but they clearly didn't. So are they working for someone or no one at all?" It was clear that they didn't work with the people at the farm. So if they didn't work with them, who did they work for? Are they even working with anyone? Was it just the two of them?

"Couldn't it be... Couldn't this be Minerva's doing?" Emma smiled. Ray looked a little skeptical about what she was saying. Alex didn't really know what to think. She wasn't sure if their saviors were working for Minerva. It sucked being completely in the dark. "It makes sense, right? A human who fights against the farming of children..."

"It's possible, yes. Even if Minerva himself isn't here, these might be his comrades," Ray started to say. That was when the three of them noticed a light in the distance. They had walked out into the tunnel so they were right in the open. They all stared at the light that was slowly coming toward them. "They're coming..."

The light came closer and closer as seconds passed. Alex could feel herself getting anxious as the light came toward them. As the light got closer, Alex was finally able to see where it was coming from. It was a lantern that was being held by the hooded girl. The girl seemed to stop as soon as she noticed the three of them standing there. No words came out of Alex's mouth. She didn't know what was going to happen, but she was definitely worried about it.

The one to speak up was Emma. There was a slight hesitation in her voice, "Excuse me-" The orange-haired girl cut herself off from surprise.

The hooded girl had run over to her and Alex. When she reached them, she had touched both of their arms, "You're both better!" Her voice was full of happiness. She seemed like she was one of the good guys... Though it could just be an act.

"Y-Yeah, I think so," Alex replied to the girl's statement. She didn't feel bad anymore so she probably was better. The adrenaline that came from running from the demon from before made it to where she didn't even realize how bad she actually felt. When they met the girl and were able to calm down was when it really hit her.

"I'm so glad you've recovered," The hooded girl said, "How do you feel?"

"Er," A smile slowly rose on Emma's face, "Yes, fine, thank you!"

"I feel mostly fine." Alex nodded.

They were only able to see the bottom half of the girl's face. Alex was able to see a grin on the girl's face as well. The hooded girl let go of Emma and Alex, "The bleeding stopped, and it seems like the fever let down too... The healing herbs worked fine then! However, you three are forbidden from hard work."

This took all three of them by surprise. They were being lectured by a girl they just met. Alex whispered to herself, "Never thought I would get scolded like this any time soon." It felt... Kind of nice.

"If you get sick again, it'll get dangerous!" The girl grabbed their hands, "You all did a great job... Escaping from that farm. It's all right now. You're safe here with us. Please relax and rest here for the night. Okay?"

Emma smiled at this but stopped when a sudden thought hit her, "Sorry, but... Where are our friends? The ones who were with us..." She trailed off. It was like she was worried about the answer.

"That's right!" Alex exclaimed, "Are they okay? Did anything happen while we were out?" She hoped that they were okay. The last time she saw them was before she passed out. They were fine then so she was just worried about what could have happened while she was passed out with Emma.

"They're fine!" The hooded girl turned her body away from them. She was still looking at them even with her back to them, "They're right over here. We've just finished setting up dinner. Come, let's go!"

The four of them started to make their way down the hallway. The girl was leading them with her lantern illuminating the area around them. Ray, Emma, and Alex all shared a smile. Everything was seemingly going smoothly. Alex turned to Emma with a big smile, "I'm glad everything seems to be okay with her so far." Emma nodded in agreement.

There was silence between them. Emma and Alex just didn't really have anything to say. Ray, on the other hand, had something to say, "Excuse me, but what about the Hooded Man who saved me?" Ray spoke up. "Is he your companion?"

"You mean Sonju?" The hooded girl glanced back at them. After a moment, she turned her attention back in front of her, "Yes, he's over here too."

"'Sonju...' So that wasn't Minerva..," Emma said. The hooded girl questioned her about Minerva. "William Minerva. Perhaps you've heard of him?" The girl shook her head.

"That's unfortunate," Alex commented. At least they knew that their saviors didn't work for Minerva. Though, if they didn't work with Minerva, who did they work for? They didn't work for the farm of Minerva... Did they even work with anyone?

"Hey, listen..," Ray suddenly stopped in his tracks. Everyone else stopped along with him. Alex gave him a questioning look. What was he about to say? "Thank you. Really, thanks for helping us. You got me out of a real pinch, I'd say. I have to say that I'm truly grateful," Ray hesitated. It was like he was preparing himself for what he was going to say next. "I'd just like to ask you one little thing," Ray grabbed the girls' hands, "Why did you save us?"

"Why ask?" Alex was looking at him with an expression of confusion. "Would you have rather stayed where we were?"

She got no answer. The only thing Ray did was ignore her. He smirked at the hooded girl and inquired, "Say... Why are you demons protecting your livestock?"

"'Demons?'" Alex felt her heart plummet down into her stomach. She cast a worried glance at the hooded girl. She was a demon? How did Ray figure that out? Was he right? The hooded girl didn't say anything.

"Wh-" Emma started to say.

"Both of you are demons, right?" Ray spoke up again. "You and that man. What do you mean to do?" Emma let out a noise of shock when she noticed something. There was a very tall man, or demon, behind them. Alex could feel her hands shaking from fear. What kind of situation did they get themselves into? "Could you go ahead and explain it to us then... Dear demon?"