“Good going there, Fox,” Katsuro grumbles. I pay his words no mind. All he does is compin. In my arms, Megan stirs. The bst may have been too much for her. That is on me for not realizing the cauldron was full of contents. Of course, the heart of a mage would set it off. At least it did not do any sting damage from what I can tell. The dungeon colpsed in tune with the bst. This area, though, is different from the area where the ground opened, and we fell into the dungeon.

  Has the spell been lifted? Or is this another trick?

  “We still in the dungeon?” She asks, pressing a hand to her temple. “Ugh, feels like someone took an ax to my head and split it open.” She gnces around the clearing. “Oh! Those women. We have to help them.”

  “Help? Vixen, those women are dead.” There is no helping them. Perhaps if we had gotten there quicker. My mind goes dark. My mate was to be subjected to the same fate. I gnash my fangs. So, this is why many retire to a life of peace after they meet their fated one. This churning in my gut rises and fills my mouth with guilt.

  I failed her.

  She huffs. “I know that, but I mean bury them. Pray over their bodies. It’s not much, but it’s a heck of a lot nicer than leaving them to rot in this field.”

  It is on the tip of my tongue to point out to her that the humans will rot regardless if they are above ground or below it, but I still my tongue. My mate’s heart is as big as the seven worlds. Leaving them would save time.

  “Wait, what happened to the creep?”

  “Creep?”

  “The mage.”

  “Everything save for Apollo is gone. The mage was a part of the dungeon, so when he perished, so did everything he created.” I jerk my head towards the bodies. “They were not a part of the dungeon, and thus, they remain like us.”

  Curious. Some of them wear strange clothing like Megan. Were the mages in the undead forest working with this mage? I bite back a sigh. The dead do not speak. I will have to seek my answers elsewhere. And there is the matter of Apollo. Why did he not perish like the other beasts? Is it because he somehow bound himself to Megan?

  “We could bury them, though I am cking a shovel,” I continue. “Or we could press on and return to the vilge for answers.”

  “Oh.” Megan’s mood deteriorates. “Would it be better to burn them then? I just hate the thought of leaving them here as though they don’t matter.”

  “Burning them would prevent any others from using their bodies. Though that is more common in the Undead Forest.... still, it is a possibility.”

  Katsuro sucks in a breath. “You sayin’ someone would come looking for them?” His human clings to him.

  “Look at them. Some of them wear simir clothing to Megan and Chloe. They must have been transported to this world for a purpose.” I angle my head at Megan and quirk a brow. She indicates for me to set her down, but I am reluctant to let her out of my grasp. “You can look from here.”

  “Roharu.”

  “Fine,” I sigh, letting her go. “So, you wish to burn them?”

  She nods. “We don’t have a shovel, like you said, and even if we tried using our hands, that wouldn’t work.” Megan holds her hands out in front of her and blows out a breath. “Yeah, that would never work. Burning them would be giving them a proper sendoff. They didn’t deserve this.”

  “I’ll go get wood to help,” Katsuro says. “You coming with me or hanging with them?” The st part he directs to Chloe.

  “I’ll go with you. Need some fresh air.”

  We are in the open field, but I do not point that out. If Katsuro and his mate want time alone, then that is fine with me. Apollo trots over to Megan and sits down on his hunches. I eye him for a moment, but the kelpie just sits there as if to give comfort. Perhaps I will always be wary of him.

  “He wanted immortality,” Megan says after a while, once Katsuro and his human have left. “Said he went after humans because it was easy for him to get us. But seemed like he needed a ton of humans to fuel his lifespan.” She hugs her knees to her chest. “He was really interested in the powers Chloe and I have.”

  “Naturally, you would have given whatever spell or ritual an extra boost because you have more energy. All beings have it, but not all can utilize it. Humans are.... well, what they ck in power, they make up with their sheer numbers. A human’s lifespan is nothing compared to a demon’s. But a demon would be harder for the mage to acquire.”

  “He could have been human. What’s the difference?”

  “Mages have longer lifespans, and they can be anything. Human. Demon. Orc. Anything. It’s a special kind of power that they possess. It’s not the same as what you have flowing through you or what flows through me.”

  “Sounds complicated.” She gnces at me for a moment and then continues to watch the bodies. “I think they passed recently.”

  I hum in acknowledgment. “Most likely. We can return to the vilge or press on.”

  “What do you want to do?”

  “Press on, but there may be answers in the vilge. Perhaps that worker will have answers.” If not, I will force them out of her. “On the other hand, I am reluctant to return there just yet. If this was a trap set by them, then returning when we are tired would not be wise. Perhaps we should find another cave to reside in for the night and then make our way back to the vilge in the morning.”

  “Whatever you want,” she murmurs. “I’m running on fumes. A bed would be nice, but I don’t want to walk into another trap anytime soon.” Megan stands and dusts her hands on her pants. “Besides, if we show up with you covered in guts, then they may arrest us or something.”

  I gnce at my arms. Ah, right. There was no time to clean myself. “It is not my blood.”

  “Words I never thought I’d hear someone utter so casually.” She continues to stare at the bodies as if she is expecting a miracle. “The day we met; did you really eat the heart of a mage?”

  “Great source of nutrients. I did not lie to you.”

  She wrinkles her nose. “Gross.”

  “It is no different from when you eat a beast.”

  “No hearts for dinner. Not sure I trust your judgment now,” she jokes. “How’d you guys find us so fast, anyway?”

  Fast? “Vixen, it must have been days that passed. Though we did not rest so it is hard to tell. We fought our way down five more levels to reach you.” My muscles tense in remembrance. Thank the seven skies there were no dragons. We may not have made it. Dragons are fierce creatures. I would rather face down a thousand mages than face off against a dragon in close quarters. Mages are easier. They fall because of their hubris time and time again.

  I stand and turn to face Katsuro. “Firewood?” He carries a tree on his shoulder. There are plenty of trees avaible and yet he went deeper into the forest. His human trails behind him. I sniff.

  So that is why.

  “Yeah, figured since it was so many of them, may as well make sure we don’t run out.” He drops the tree near the bodies with a thud. “You can make fire, right?”

  “Naturally.” I stand back as he punches the tree into more reasonable logs. The wood splits, but he does not seem to notice or care. It is only when the wood is arranged and the bodies are pced on top that I call forth my fmes. Megan sits down once more with her legs tucked underneath. She puts her hands together in a prayer.

  The hairs on my arms rise as my fangs lengthen. I cmp my mouth shut and dig my cws into my palms.

  Not the time. Later, when we are alone.

  “Uh, Megan? What are you doing?” Chloe questions.

  “Praying.” Megan’s eyes remain closed, so she does not see how her body is covered in a purple light nor how the bodies emit the same light.

  “No, I mean, what are you doing to them?”

  Megan opens her eyes and huffs. “I’m praying for their...is that normal?”

  “No,” I answer, watching as the souls drift to the sky with the smoke. The bodies turn to ash. “No,” I repeat. “It is not normal to see the souls depart, though I cannot say I have spent that much time in the cities where the saints reside.” A trip to the capital could yield more answers as far as getting her powers to work, but that would mean putting a target on her back. Saints are always in demand and, as the sun turns, less have been birthed over the centuries.

  “We had a saint this whole time?” Katsuro asks. He kicks at the grass and scratches his head. “The hell did we struggle through the dungeon for?”

  “I don’t know how to use my powers,” Megan retorts, throwing her hands up in exasperation. A sentiment I feel far too often when dealing with the cat demon. “It’s not like it ever works when I want it to.” She lowers her eyes as if she is ashamed of this.

  “Do not expin yourself to him. He is no one.” I pin Katsuro with a gre. He needs to still his tongue before I rip it out.

  “Fuck you, Fox,” Katsuro grumbles. “I ain’t gon say shit. Was just curious is all.”

  Megan turns to me. Her brows pinch together. “What does it matter if he says anything?”

  I sigh. “If word were to get out about what you can do, then the church would seek to keep you locked away where you could perform miracles on their timelines. While it is seen as a position of prestige, you would not be free.” She would not be able to be with me. A growl rips through my throat. No one will take her from me. If I have to burn the cities, then so be it. Megan reaches out and palms my face. “I am fine. You do not want that kind of life. Others do, but you strike me as a female who enjoys her freedom.”

  “My main priority is getting back home, but if mages or something else are making portals to my world to take people, then that’s a problem.” She stands once more and coughs. The smoke must be getting to her. “That has to be against the rules, right? No summoning outsiders to this world?”

  “Rules?” Katsuro scoffs. “The hell are those?”

  “That expins so much,” Chloe jabs. “So, we’re going to the city, then? It would suck balls to get back home, and then some jackass opens another portal and pulls you through.”

  “Suck balls?”

  “Is that the only part you heard?”

  I tune them out and wrap an arm around Megan. “Do you need to eat?” We have no supplies, but there are plenty of beasts lurking in the forest for me to hunt. Megan shakes her head and leans into my side.

  “Bathe and then rex.” She turns and buries her fast into my chest. “Eyes sting from the smoke.” Her hands grip the back of my shirt. “Then maybe eat, but no hearts.”

  “My mother always said females love a bleeding heart.”

  She groans and gres at me, but it cks the usual heat. “That is not what she meant, and you know it.”

  “So, you do not wish for me to present you with a pile of hearts?” How strange. Mother did, in fact, mean she wanted a pile of bleeding hearts. Perhaps if Megan was not so selective with her choice of meats, she would be stronger.

  She rolls her eyes and pushes me. “Oh, come on, at least act like I did something.”

  I take a step back. “Better?”

  “Yes.” She sniffs. “We smell like smoke and guts. Did you see any rivers when you went to get the firewood?”

  Katsuro jerks his thumb behind him. “There’s one close to my treehouse if ya want to join us. But we’ll have to wait for the fire to die down.”

  No, we do not want to join them.

  “We’d love that!”

  Apollo nudges my side. I snt my eyes toward him and exhale. “Yes, we are so thrilled to be in a house that will smell of cat.”

  “Roharu, are you going to be nice?”

  “No, but I am open to persuasion.” I smile, fshing my fangs at her. Megan gives flushes and her scent spikes with need. “This fire is not going out fast enough. We will search for water.” I step toward Megan and lift her in my arms. She huffs, but the smile gives her away. “Do not look for us.”

  “I wasn’t pnning to,” Katsuro mutters.

  Megan sighs as she leans into me. “I could get used to this.”

  Good. If she loves this. Loves me. Then she will stop seeking answers on how to get back home. At least, I hope.

  AutumnBanks

  Thanks for reading and sorry for the dey! Had a family emergency and it kind of pushed my schedule back. Take care! Next chapter will be up this weekend.