The quiet snow covered the fields and paths as the travelers made their way across Arula's land. The horses they rode traveled safely through the Shurli Woods, only running into a pack of saber-tooth wolves once. The wolves ran in a straight line, hunting, but not them. They were chasing down a herd of deer. The travelers stayed put for the moment, allowing the deer and wolves to pass without difficultly. Jason found the wolves very fascinating. "Why not just make regular wolves?" He asked Karma as they rode out of the woods.

"Because that would be boring." Karma answered him. "If I just put boring old wolves in here, then my world wouldn't be as magical as it's supposed to be. Take this little monster for an example." She pointed to Shari, who had the pleasure of riding first class on the white speckle horse, Pepper, head. The ferret seemed to enjoy the ride. Jason grinned at the little ferret, knowing very well that Karma was not fan of the little critter.

Dagner complained the rest of the day, saying how a ryder wolf is must faster than a simple horse. The horse that Dagner rode on wasn't really a horse, but a pony, because his short dwarf legs can't climb on a real horse. "Can't this thing move any faster!" Dagner complain, kicking the pony in its hide. The pony snorted in protest but pranced a little faster. Karma and Jason snickered. It was funny to see their dwarven friend ride on such a small unintimidating animal. Jason was actually glad they decided to ride the horses than the wolves. The wolves made his allergies act up, and that would not make a fun journey. His allergies already acted up whenever he was Angel, he rather not push his limits with the wolves.

The travelers made it to Unra Valley by dusk. They all knew they had to find a village and fast. Winter nights in a valley can get extremely cold. "If I'm right," Dagner said. "I would say that Arkum is the closest village right about now. It would take about another hour or so to get there." Karma groaned, remembering the last time she passed through Arkum. She wasn't quite sure if the locals there would enjoy her revisit.

"What about Bergen?" Karma suggested. Dagner shook his head.

"Too far." The dwarf said. "It would make us turn around. Bergen is at the edge of the valley. We need to get deeper."

"Yeah, I know. It was just a thought." Karma said as she kicked Pepper in the side and trotted forward. A cold, long hour later, Arkum came into view. The travelers sighed in relief. They urged their horses onward. Luckily there was still a horse stable open. Unfortunately, it was the same stable as last time. Though the stable master didn't seem to care about faces as he took the money, the horses, and the pony. As they made their way through town, Karma suggested once more to stay at a different inn from last time. But every inn they went to was full due to the horrible weather. That left only one inn. Karma sighed deeply.

They entered the inn and went to the bar. The same bartender from last time came up, he recognized Karma. "Well!" He bellowed. "Isn't the pretty little red-head who stayed here... what? Two years ago?" He laughed. "And what's this? More men to accompany you? What happened to that scrawny tall fellow, eh?" Karma growled under her breath.

"I would just like three rooms. One-night stay." Karma said, refusing to humor this fat man. The bartender shrugged and grabbed three keys, handing them to Karma. Karma threw down some coins, took the keys and walked off with Dagner and Jason close behind, but not before Dagner shot the bartender a dirty look.

"What was that all about?" Jason asked as he took the key that Karma handed him.

"Long story." She said. "The short version is that Omar and I passed through this village a couple years ago." Jason nodded, not wanting to press it. Dagner was handed his key as they headed upstairs to their rooms. Their rooms were all on the same floor to Karma's relief. Karma went into her room without another word.

"Is she okay?" Jason asked Dagner as they went to their rooms.

"Ah, she'll be okay." Dagner said. "The lass as a lot on her mind. It isn't easy being the creator of an entire world, just remember that, lad." Jason nodded and went into his room. Later that night, as Jason was sleeping, the window blew open and a gust of cold wind flew into his room. Hurriedly, he jumped from his bed and shut it. Jason looked around his dark room, wondering what could have caused his window to open. Shrugging, he went back to his bed.

"A long way from home, aren't you?" Said a voice. Jason jumped and whirled around. Standing in the shadows was a cloaked man.

"W-who you?" Jason asked, terrified. "H-how did-"

"Don't worry about that," the man said. "And you can just call me a friend." The cloaked man stepped out of the shadows. His hood was over his head, covering his face, and the cloak itself wrapped neatly around his tall, thin figure. A creature with large ears, wings on its back, four feet, a snout with fangs, and whip-like tail, sat on its hunches on the man's shoulder. It squawked at Jason. "Shush, my creation." The man said. Creation? Jason thought.

"What do you want?" Jason asked, and he could tell from how the man stared at him from under his hood that he was smiling wickedly.

"Oh no, it's what I can do for you, my boy." He said. "All ask is a small favor."

"What can you do for me?" Jason asked, truly terrified. "And what favor?" The cloaked man chuckled from under his hood.

"Why! What you've been desiring since you've arrived here in Arula... a portal way home... back to the Otherworld, or better known as Earth." Jason went ridged. A way home? He thought. But that's impossible.

"But... Karma said that-" the cloaked man put up a hand.

"Yes, but she doesn't know, my way."

"And what is your way?" Jason couldn't help but pay attention now. A way home, he kept thinking. But at the same time, an alarm in the back of his head was going off. "What's the favor?" The cloaked man nodded.

"All I asked is that you take the Creator's book she always carries." The man said. Jason looked confused. Book? What book?

"What book?" The cloaked man tilted his head. Then he let out a small laugh.

"Ah, I see." He said. "She hasn't trusted you yet for you see it, has she?" Jason looked more confuse than ever. "The book is what makes Arula, well, Arula. Without the book, nothing in Arula would exist. It's how she makes everything in this world."

"And what do you want with it?" Jason asked. He need to get his head straight.

"I'm afraid I can't tell you that." The cloaked man said. "But I can tell you this... once you take the book and give to me, I can get you home." The cloaked man let his words sink in. "I'll give you three weeks to decide. I have feeling that your Creator friend will solve the little illness problem pretty quickly." Jason looked up at him.

"You caused that disease?"

"Ah, ah, ah," the man said. "I can't tell you that either." The man then walked over to the window and opened it. A gust of cold air blew in the room. "Three weeks, boy. When you've made your decision, my pet here will show you what to do next... and I would choose wisely, boy, because you're in war that you don't want to be a part of." And like that, he was gone, vanishing into the winter storm. Jason closed the window and sank to the floor. He shut his eyes and banged his head on the wall. What am I going to do now? He thought as he listened to the howling of the wind.