Running in the forest was a nightmare. The sounds of battle behind us gave me nothing but worry, and the roots and briars underfoot were a tripping hazard. At least with Schula by my side I had some comfort, and not long after our climb down the oak tree Puko met up with us once again.

We could hear them. The Winter army that crept through the Summer forest. Keeping well to the side, our only option was to stay hidden as we made our way to the hawthorn grove. I missed having Spaulder nearby, not only his comforting presence but also the dragon magic in him that allowed us to speak silently between our minds. 

Puko was a source of stress, considering how loud he could be at times. But Mother help us, he managed to sit silently on my shoulder as we went.

The sun, which was high in the midday sky when we left Yusellia, was now beginning to dip into a golden afternoon glow before true evening set in. A few sounds caught my ears as our energy began to wear thin. Schula's breathing, the hammering of my heart from anxious stress, the ruffling of Puko's feathers.

Until finally, Schula stopped under the twisted trunk of a tree that had been fighting for its share of the fleeting sunlight through the forest canopy for a very long time. The earth beneath it was a cool reprieve from the blistering summer heat, and we both sank to the ground to catch our breath.

"How much farther do you think we have to go?" I asked, keeping my voice to a murmur.

Schula sighed, laying her head back against the rough bark of the tree. "A ways. We're going so slowly because of the Winter court, I don't know if we can make it before dark."

I bit my lip, looking over my shoulder at Puko as I reached up to stroke his head feathers. "Are you alright to keep going? We can take a longer break and I can find us something to eat."

"No... no." Schula shook her head, using the tree to stand up again. "It's just so hot out here, and I'm... anxious. I want it to work out, I want it to be Teyber when we get there."

"But you have worries?" I asked softly, reaching out to hold her hand.

She startled as I laced my fingers with hers, then she tightened her own grip as she met my eyes. "We've had an awful lot of letdowns. I'm just preparing for another, I suppose."

I sighed through my nose, pulling Schula into a hug. "We need to press on. If it really is Teyber, we finally have allies by our side again."

She nodded. "You're right. Let's get on with it then."

Schula moved forward, breaking away from the hug when I heard something light but out of place for the forest.

I pushed her back against the tree, making eye contact with what must have been an expression of panic. Her eyes widened, but she stayed silent.

The forest is not a quiet place. The buzzing of insects, the rustling of the endless foliage. But certain sounds can stand out so harshly against the rest of the environment that I can pick them out as though the rest of the world was still as stone.

And the sound of a blade sliding into its sheath is one of them.

My heart beat frantically in my chest, enough so that I prayed the one who wielded a weapon in the forest did not hear it. Had the Winter force gotten so close without us noticing? Had our short break been a mistake?

The sound stopped though, and nothing could be heard over the rest of the sounds of the forest. It was a long pause before we heard rustling from that same direction. It could be anything. Wind, a bird. But we couldn't just go find out without risking being seen.

Schula moved slowly, silently, bringing her hands together to where she could call her ice magic out. Once she had a shard of ice, delicate and already cracking in several places, it would shatter the moment it hit much of anything solid.

She lifted her arm, poised to throw, and jerked her head the other direction. I nodded. She would throw, and we would run.

Schula launched the ice high into the trees over where we heard the noise earlier. I saw the burst as it hit a tree branch and sparkling ice shards rained down in a huge mist. The light bouncing through the ice glowed a brilliant gold with the sun. It was a flash, a distraction, and in that moment Schula took my hand and we ran.

Light on our feet, we couldn't go as quickly as I would have liked considering we didn't want to cause more noise than we had to. Still, we made a good run in a different direction than the ice shards. Then, we heard him roar her name.

"Schula!"

We both froze. I knew that voice.

"Thain!" Schula answered back, just loud enough for him to hear but not enough to alert more of the forest than Thain already had.

Thunderous rushing through the underbrush, a blur of midnight against the green summer trees, and suddenly he was standing before me.

I must have looked like hell, scratched up and wearing days old clothes. He looked little better, his shirt tattered nearly open and with fresh scars across his chest. His pants and boots were black, of course, but at least they managed to remain on him better than his split open shirt.

"Wren," he breathed.

I didn't even have the air in me to answer him, my feet simply started walking forward, then sprinting. Puko flapped away, choosing a branch above rather than to continue riding my shoulders as I rushed to Thain. He was ready to catch me when I wrapped my arms around his neck and buried my face in his shoulder.

"What happened?" Schula asked in disbelief. "Thanantholl, it..."

"It stands," Thain answered. "Barely."

He rubbed his big hand up and down my back, soothing me as I continued to hug his neck. The familiar smell of him, his hard arms holding me tighter than they ever had before. The pendant that hung low under my tunic was hard as it pressed between my ribs and Thain's chest.

"We heard steel, but you don't carry it," Schula said. "Who are you with?"

Thain moved his head slightly, gesturing back the way he came. "What's left of Thanantholl's most able warriors. When we held the Winter army for so long, they beat us back into the grotto. There, we made a last and desperate stand, turning the tide as the Winter court retreated. Well, retreated or moved onto another target."

His eyes slid to me before looking back up at Schula. "We've been following them slowly, picking off the fighters at the back when we could. If it weren't for your trick I wouldn't have known you were here."

"It's a good thing you recognized it then," Schula said. "What are you doing now?"

Thain gently removed me from his neck, helping me to stand next to him. I noticed he kept an arm tight around my shoulders as we stood, and I made no effort to resist sinking against his side. He was so warm, and alive.

"We tracked your direction at first," Thain said. "It was obvious you were headed to Yusellia so we went this way as well. It wasn't long before we ran into the Winter force, so we've been crawling behind them since, picking off the end of their line when we can."

Shula nodded grimly. "Where is Eb?"

Thain cracked a rare smile. "Ah, that would be a part of our last stand. Eberon can have a brilliant mind, when it comes to protecting or court. The Stars knew what they were doing, leading a fae like Eberon to a weapon like me."

"What did he do?" I asked.

Thain's mouth twitched in amusement. I don't think I'd ever seen such a face from him before, and my curiosity was at a boiling point.

"Spit it out!" Schula grumbled.

"One of the few things that can protect the throne of the Autumn lands against all other odds, is when it has a master upon it with the blessing of the Wyldes."

Schula gasped, her eyes darting in the distant direction of Thanantholl. "No..."

"Varthas practically pushed him onto it. He objected fiercely, as did several others, but once the throne took him as its master there was nothing the rest of us could do about it." Thain's amusement faded a bit, taking on a more serious tone. "The Autumn court has a new king."

My lips parted in surprise. Eberon... king...

"He can't be handling that well," Schula said in disbelief.

"He isn't," Thain answered. "But his claim is undeniable, however underhanded his throning was on Varthus's part. The Autumn lands accepted him, and so did the power that comes with that."

Schula shook her head. "I just can't believe it..."

A rustling behind Thain announced the arrival of others. Several I recognized from the battle at the gate. I suppose fighting alongside Thainalan the Ravager would be a boon of protection, so many of those fae still lived and were well enough to fight. Heyra was also among them, the quiet dryad who followed Captain Uldur so unwaveringly. It made me wonder what fate had befallen the captain.

Thain cleared his throat, now looking between me and Schula. "Now, what happened to you? Where is Spaulder and the rest of the Autumn people?"

"Spaulder will come to find us soon," I answered, looking to the skies. "Though, we need to reach the meeting place in order for that to happen."

"The Autumn refugees made it to Yusellia," Schula added. "But now the Summer city is under siege, though we sent our people up the mountains to safety before it started."

Thain nodded, his expression dark. "Then we are needed at Yusellia."

I reached an arm around Thain, holding him tight as I looked up into his silver eyes. "And we are needed..."

I didn't want to reveal Teyber just yet. "We are needed elsewhere to meet Spaulder. It's urgent."

Thain closed his eyes slowly, sighing through his nose. "Then we both have a task at hand and there is little reason to delay."

He lowered his head, taking me by surprise as he placed his lips on mine. Warm and soft, I felt my fists clench as they grabbed the fabric of his tunic. I leaned into the kiss, not willing to be the first to break away from it.

When Thain finally pulled back, the space he left behind was cold and empty.

"Will you stay to fight with Peyorla?" Schula asked, her expression calm but cold.

"No. I would if we had more warriors, but as it stands we are barely able to pick off a handful of the enemy at a time. No, our goals now are to find our people and bring them back to Thanantholl."

"Good," I said. "She is blinded by the past."

Thain sighed. "I feared as much."

Schula stepped forward, placing a hand on Thain's shoulder. "Be safe, old friend. Get our people back, and we will see you again soon."

"Caw!" 

Puko chose that moment to fly down and land on my shoulder once more. I had to stand up straighter to support him as he made himself comfortable.

I reached up to pet him. "I suppose... we'll see you again as soon as we can."

Thain reached out to tuck a lock of hair behind my ear. "Very soon, Wren. The war is far from over, and Thanantholl has retribution in its eyes."

Schula nodded. "Good, there will be blood to pay."

Thain's expression fell blank again. That hard to read face he put off when he didn't want to talk about something. Instead, he placed a hand on my shoulder, and the other on Schula's.

"Stars keep you both. We will meet again soon for the blood that is owed." His eyes hardened for a moment as they flicked forward to Yusellia.

"Stars keep you," Schula said sadly. "We... we need to go."

He sighed, letting his hands fall. "I know. Be safe, be weary."

I bit my lower lip, resisting prolonging our meeting any more. I didn't want to let him go again, but he had something important to do, and so did I.

Mother, if I do as you say and find the elven ruins, I want only one thing in return. I am so tired of saying goodbye.

Let me keep the ones I love. Somehow, let me keep them safe.

Thain and the others went on their way, and Schula and I went ours.

And I vowed to end this insufferable war, if only to hold all the pieces of my heart in one place again.

I would end this war for my home, and the next step to achieving that would be to find Teyber.

With renewed vigor, I ran with Schula to the hawthorn grove.