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I had taken the helm again, snapping the stallions' reins to get us moving southward. Along the road, I scanned all around, hunting for any indication of Twi's movements. I recalled a time years back when we'd gotten seperated in a thick patch of woods. I'd had to meticulously track her down, as she did the same to me. We wound up circling one another for some time, unaware that if either of us just stood still, the other would catch up eventually. This little recollection made me wish things could be so simple this time, and they almost were. We had been so close to seeing each other again.

But, a mysterious robed figure had managed to ruin that.

Speaking of, the man himself was currently in the back of the wagon, conversing politely with the guild boys, learning their names and whatever other information they were stupid enough to hand out. Despite his supposed knowledge on all the goings on, or perhaps because of that knowledge, I didn't trust him. Magick was a thing of myths, fables to tell children at bedtime. It wasn't supposed to be real. And I still hadn't forgotten the odd reaction Mikhael gave when Rin sputtered out as such. It was like he didn't know magick wasn't real.

Who was this guy? Where did he come from? What even is this magick of his? And above all, did he really know about the tears in the sky? I needed to find a way to get him to talk. He'd made it seem like this information wasn't going to be readily given out if we just asked for it, but every man has his price. I just had to find out what his was.

"...and what's the relationship he has with this lizard woman Twi?" My ears perked up at this question of Mikhael's. I almost had the urge to yell back at him to stop poking his nose where it didn't belong, but I swiftly realized it was my own poking that had landed us in this situation to begin with. I kept listening in.

Ursh's rough voice returned, "They're lovers." When he said it, I could hear the subtle disgust in his words.

"A human and a lizard? Seems a bit odd." Mikhael had continued to use the disparaging word. Despite how often he'd used it, Ursh had never corrected him. To be fair, I didn't either. It wasn't much of a shock as to why.

"Believe me," Ursh remarked, "I have never understood it. Why she chose him, of all people. It never made sense." I was likely the only one who could make out the little spits of anger he let loose with each word. Not particularly loud, but enough so that if you paid attention, you'd pick up on them. This wasn't exactly my idea of a fun conversation to listen to, hearing Ursh bitch and moan about my relationship with Twi. So, to avoid listening in on him whine even more, I started to tune it all out, returning my focus entirely to the path ahead.

The south road ever so slowly round its way back around east, and just in the bend, where the rocks met the grass, was another discarded item. I forced the beasts to halt and climbed off to investigate. In a flash, Mikhael appeared in the corner of my vision. His sudden arrival set me on edge, and I almost reached for the dagger at my side before reminding myself how ineffectual that course of action had been the last time. Approaching the side of the road, I came across a small leather satchel. Inside, I discovered a compass and an empty coinpurse, neither of which looked familiar to me. These had nothing to do with Twi, and in my frustration, I threw the compass down onto the rocks, its glass face shattering open with a crash.

A thoughtful hum came from the magick man beside me. "No luck, eh?"

My lips parted as I let out a soft breath. I turned to face the white clothed man, his golden hair falling about his face in a way that made his angelic appearance shine bright. "Why do you care?"

He said rather bluntly, "If we find this Twi woman, we find the dragon scale."

In response, I asked in a moderately annoyed tone, "If it's so damn important, how did you even lose it in the first place?"

Another thoughtful hum as he shifted on his feet, seemingly awkward about the question. His eyes looked to and fro, avoiding direct contact with my own as he, I assumed, thought of a way to answer. Seconds passed as I waited for his response, but it never came, only more little noises. Giving up on getting more out of him at the moment, I climbed back onto the wagon, barking out for him to do the same. However, when I looked again, he was already sitting patiently inside. A loud, exaggerated groan eminated from deep within me as I snapped the reins to get us moving yet again.

Along the now east moving road, I saw some more left behind items; a broken comb, a busted up wagon wheel, an empty flask which smelled strangely like rose water, some torn pieces of fabric (none of which looked anything like Twi's clothing, sadly), and a few others. Either the thieves of Proslin were lacking in their duty or these thrown away articles were of no interest to even them. Perhaps I was wrong in my assumption Twi had left the crossbow bolt as a clue. It was possible it was simply dropped on accident, and would have meant this detour of ours was completely pointless. The irritation of this line of thinking was getting to me.

If this entire course had been nothing but a blind guess, it meant there was no telling where Twi had gone. Mikhael was still unhelpful, not delving anything of what he knew, and had still refused to tell me why Twi had started the fire at the barn. My mind began plotting ways to get him to talk. Alcohol was a good way to start, but we didn't have any on us, and I suspected he'd be quick enough to understand why I'd buy any going forward, or at the very least not stupid enough to fall for that plan. Another idea that popped up would be to tie him up while he slept, hoping his magick wouldn't be able to free him. But, the problem with that was I had no way of knowing what magicks he could do.

As I was going over other ideas on how to pry information from the man, a small glint in the path ahead reached my sight. After stopping the horses, I walked over to find it was another familiar crossbow bolt. All my frustration left at once as I picked it up and saw a marking on the reverse side of the head; scratchings and marks that read out in small lettering "north."

I was right. Twi had rounded back to avoid her presumed attacker, and was currently making her way back to the proper route, off to wherever that blue streak had ended up. If only I knew where that was, I could easily make my way to her and finally put an end to this. In a second, the wagon's covering was thrown open as I pulled it aside to stare at Mikhael. He must have known what and where that streak was. If I knew that, I could find Twi.

"You," I accused. Climbing aboard, the wagon bounced with my added weight, and I stood up to look down on the robed figure.

"Me," he delivered back with that annoying grin.

"You're going to tell me what you know right the fuck now," I demanded, tossing the bolt at his feet. "Twi is off somewhere, searching for a thing we have no idea about. But you do, don't you? You know so much more than you're letting on, and it's pissing me off you're hiding it all."

Without giving it a single second of thought, he said, "I am under strict orders not to-"

"I don't give a damn who's ordering you!" My crossbow raised up and I took aim right at his face.

Ursh sat upright, yelling, "Graham, put it down! You already tried that, you know it won't work."

"He's right," Mikhael breathed out. He shifted in place and raised one hand. The weapon was torn from my grasp once again, clattering to the floor in an instant. "However, I suppose a little insight won't do much harm. Especially if it means you'll stop trying to shoot me." After taking a moment to collect himself, he asked calmly, "So, what do you want to know?"

No sense beating around the bush, I told myself. "The blue streak from the second hole in the sky. What is it and where did it go?"

An eyebrow raised before he snickered out, "I'm surprised you haven't figured that out yet."

"Meaning?"

Both arms waved outwards, gesturing to his own body. "You're looking at it."

"You?" I couldn't believe it. The thing we saw shoot across the sky. The thing Twi was currently hunting for. It was this asshole?

He smiled, looking pleased with himself. "Yes. My arrival was intended to be the same place the scale had ended up, but it appears mistaked had been made." Running a hand through his hair, he continued, "Also, I do apologize about the way the scale and I both entered, making those tears and all. I didn't realize that was how it would be."

Now, that was a juicy tidbit. "What are you talking about?"

A hand reached up, a lone finger wagging my way, like he was a parent chastising a child. "I am unable to divulge such information until I have the scale back, unfortunately."

My lips curled into a large scowl, and one of my eyes twitched. I tried to think of a way to get him to finally answer my damn questions. Scratching at the back of my thoughts, one idea began to form. An idea that might actually work, assuming this Mikhael had some decency to him.

"Mikhael, please," I spoke with words coated in false heartache. "Wherever you're from, I'm sure you have at least one person you'd do anything for, someone you'd give your life for if it meant they'd live happily. Please," I feigned, "I need to know what's going on."

His eyes turned down and his smile wavered, softening into a contemplative pout. It appeared as the faux anguish had worked, as he began to sink in place, as if the weight of my words was crushing him. The man had a softer heart than I thought if he was taking things this hard. I honestly wasn't even expecting that ruse to be all too successful.

Mikhael swallowed a gulpful of air, then release a long sad sigh. His gaze moved upwards to meet mine and he said, "I can't tell you everything, but...I can at least explain the situation at the barn."

I had to remind myself not to appear too eager, and to keep the facade up for a little longer. I calmly sat down, my face still cast in a sullen look as I awaited to finally get some answers.

After some deliberation, he started. "As I said before, the scale was lost to me, and I came in search of it. I was initially to end up in the same location, but complications arose in my manner of transport. When I finally made it here, I had landed in a valley not too far from here. After realizing the mistake of my arrival location, I began walking south, towards the last known location of the scale. I have a way of sensing if the scale is nearby, but it only works in a certain range."

If he had that kind of magick, why didn't he bring this up before we set out on the south road? Nevertheless, I sat still and listened on.

"To get to the point, I had stumbled my way to the farm when I sensed the scale miraculously heading my way. I didn't quite know what to expect, so for the time being I hid away. I saw the lizard woman...uh, Twi, and realized she had it. So, I calmly and politely made my presence known and asked for the scale, at which point she jumped back and-"

"And?!" I urged.

The brief pause that followed felt intentionally awkward on his part. "And...well, there's no other way to explain it, but she shot fire from out of her hand."

"What?" The combined confusion of Ursh and myself was loud enough to pierce the sky. From there, the two of us began a flurry.

"How was this even possible?"

"Twi isn't magick."

"This doesn't make any sense at all."

"How did she even do that?"

Mikhael eased us down, gesturing for us to sit back down and let him finish. I didn't even realize I had stood up until he had pointed it out. Begrudgingly, I returned to a sitting position and allowed the man to continue on.

"You see," he started the explanation with a wince, as if it pained him to even say it, "a dragon scale holds a piece of a dragon's power." We knew this already through Ursh's findings in those old research notes. Mikhael further stated, "Well, a person can tap into that power, and channel it through their very being, thus producing a small amount of that dragon's magick."

My eyes went wide at this sudden realization. Mikhael had said it like it was old news, something anyone should already know. But, it couldn't be anything but the furthest thing. If the scale could give people magick, it made it a lot more dangerous than I originally assumed. And Twi was off somewhere carrying this unstable object in her pocket, the risk of an incident accidentally leading to another fire now a possibility.

This also meant I had a secondary reason not to entrust it in the hands of Tanno and her guild.

I tore through the front end of the wagon, jumped up onto the driver's seat, and got the horses sprinting in a hurry. If what Mikhael said was true, then I had to get to Twi as soon as possible. My sights set northward, I whipped the reins like a hurricane, forcing the stallions to take a speed they hadn't achieved before.

We zipped past Proslin, the wind rushing by as dashed up the road. Every single step, ever gallop of the stallions, my eyes were racing around trying to find any sign of Twi or Vox. I tried to find something, anything that could lead me to them, but nothing came. No more missing bolts on the side of the road to point me in the right direction. There were also no noticeable tracks in the path that was slowly morphing from one filled with rocks to one of dirt and mud. Too many horse and wagon tracks to really make out something like Vox from the crowd. Every now and then, we'd pass a traveler heading south, and I'd stop to ask if they'd seen the saurian woman and her steed, but either they hadn't seen her or they just didn't pay enough attention to anyone else on the roads.

Despite these setbacks, I kept our heading north. There would have to be something that would lead me to her, I repeated to myself.

As we passed by an old oak forest, Mikhael suddenly yelled out, "There!"

The random shout got me to halt the wagon and I looked back to check in on him, only to find him pointing at nothing in particular.

Rin crept up to the man and asked him what got him so excited out of nowhere, to which Mikhael answered, "The scale, I sensed it for but a second, coming from that way." Well, that explained the pointing.

Checking the compass, I learned Twi was likely somewhere north-northwest, but the map would show there wasn't much of note out that way. An expanse of woods leading to a small collection of hills seemed to be the only interesting thing, and that was being generous. At once, we were off yet again, ditching the road in favor of open valleys and fields, our destination set.

As we made our way along, Mikhael poked his head out of the wagon, looked around, and then offhandedly mentioned, "Hm, this all looks rather familiar."

Ursh pried, "What do you mean?"

"I walked through this area after I arrived." The words came out in a huff, as if the man was annoyed Ursh hadn't pieced it together himself. Speaking of his 'arrival,' once we had the dragon scale back, I'd have to remind him to spill his guts about everything.

We sped along the fields towards where the robed man claimed to 'feel' the scale. Every minute or so, he'd mention a slight shift in our heading, which I would do so with a bit of a grunt, wondering to myself if he was even being honest. Rin and Ursh were looking over the map, making notes aloud about any streams or bridges in our path, things of that nature. I didn't really listen to them, my focus solely on reuniting with Twi again.

It wasn't long before Mikhael's directing became more and more frantic, signifying we were getting close. As I rounded pass an outcropping of wild flowers, the man in question ordered me to halt. Grasping the reins tight, I pulled back hard, forcing the stallions to finally come to a rest, their breathing gone ragged and heavy now that they were allowed the chance to relax. Ahead of the wagon was a large crater, similar to the one Twi and I retrieved the dragon scale from. However, this one was massive, like a hand of a god had punched down into the earth itself. All around the crater, there was no grass, no trees, nothing of any kind save for dirt, stone, and loose soil.

This must have been the place where Mikhael landed. I hopped off the wagon and took a good look around. Surrounding the perimeter of the indent in the ground, life went on as normal. The valley went on, some trees poking up here and there, bugs buzzing about, all the usual stuff. It was only within the hole itself were things were lifeless. During this little act of recon, I could find no hint of Twi or the dragon scale, but if Mikhael was sure they were here, I didn't have much of a choice but to at least hear him out.

I turned to call for the robed man, but before I uttered a single sound, he was already right beside me. A second later, I heard Ursh and Rin jump out the back of the wagon and they soon joined us.

"So," I grunted towards no one in particular. "Where could they be?" My sights landed on the white clothed man beside me, and he nodded at once.

A long finger rose up to point off towards our left. "The scale is that way. I'm sure your friend shall be there, as well." He took a step in said direction, but I moved to get ahead of him. His head tilted and he waited.

"When we find Twi, you're going to tell us what's going on." It wasn't a request, nor a question, nor even a humble appeal. Mikhael didn't seem to mind, however, as he nodded once more, agreeable to the terms. As he walked on, I stayed back a second to consult with the guild boys.

I took one look at each of them and said, "You're not bringing this thing back to Tanno."

Ursh, for the most part, seemed to understand and accept this. I imagined on some level that he saw things similar to myself. Something this dangerous did not belong in guild hands, least of all the merchant guild's hands. Rin, on the other hand, looked about ready to argue in his master's favor, like the good dog he was. Even now, he wanted to obey his orders. It was almost respectable.

"You signed a contract," he stated, as if that meant I was beholden to anything.

"Indeed," I agreed. "But, I think you and I both know this is for the best." The dog sighed and retreated a few paces, lagging behind Ursh and me as we all followed after the strange magick man. I faint smile graced my lips at this small victory.

The four of us walked on for a bit, passing by brush and an assortment of twigs and other plants. I could make out some stomped down flowers and such as we walked, a telltale sign someone had been through here recently. Hope was rising within me. In no time at all, we came to a stop in a large open field. There underneath a mighty oak, sat a lone figure dressed in a thick gambeson, a crossbow at their side.

The saurian woman looked up at the sound of our approach, and swiftly grabbed the crossbow and shot directly at Mikhael. Similarly to my own prior attempt, he magicked the bolt to freeze in place only to then let it fall to the ground beneath him. In the pause that followed, her sight flowed over to the rest of us, her gaze softening as it did. Anger was replaced by questioning as she rose up from her spot, calmly making her way over to us.

While she was walking, Mikhael called out to her. "I do apologize for startling you before, but please stop trying to shoot me. I've already had to deal with that from your friend here," he said as one hand sweeped over me as a demonstration.

When she got within earshot of us, Twi spoke. It was nice to hear her voice again. "Is he...with you?"

Rin stepped forward with, "It would seem that way. He claims to know the truth of this whole mess." His normally rough voice had raised an octave or two as he spoke. Despite how he tried to hide it, it was clear he was glad to see his sister.

Brushing passed Ursh, I pulled Twi into a quick embrace. She was safe. It was all that mattered at the moment. Her body tightened for a second before relaxing into me, and I could feel her arms snake around my waist as she returned the hug. We stayed like this for a brief time, just both of us content to see one another.

"I'm glad you're ok," I whispered as I tightened my hold on her, as if worried she'd slip away if I let her go.

She snickered. "Don't you think you're being a bit too sentimental?" I could see through her, though. I knew she was just as happy as I in this moment.

A throat cleared. "I'm sorry to break up this tender moment, but I would very much like my scale back now." Reaching into Twi's pocket, I pulled loose the dragon scale, the skystone we initially found, and handed it over to the Mikhael. A warm smile formed as he accepted it, not the charming grin that rubbed me the wrong way, but a genuine happy face. Turning it over in his palm, he examined the scale and then let out a long breath.

"I suppose it's time I answer some questions now," he stated.

The guild dog finally made his move. "Quite," he said as he got close. "First things first, what were the holes in the sky?"

"I'll start at the beginning." A loud cough came as he cleared his throat once more. "To start, those are not 'holes' as you say. They are portals. Think of them as doorways to another realm. My realm, to be specific. My home is similar to this one, but as you're sure to know now, we have magick whereas here...it appears to be nothing but a fantasy. Legends and myths.

"From my realm, I was tasked with sending the dragon scale to another such realm, but the spell I cast was made in error. That is how the scale wound up here. I originally thought it might have ended up in a place much like its true destination, where magick is also a reality, but as I said, there was a mistake. I won't go into the intricacies, just know your realm was not the target.

"Anyway, upon realizing the scale had not reached its destination, I reexamined my work, found the error, and repeated the spell exactly the same way so I could get the scale back. And that's about the long and short of it."

Quiet ensued as we all took this bit of wisdom in. Other realms, portals, spells. All of it would be so hard to believe had it not been for the first hand experience of seeing Mikhael perform magick.

"And so, thank you for helping me get back what was lost. I wish you all well in your futures." And before any of us could stop him, Mikhael simply floated upwards towards the sky, and a familiar cropping of black clouds began to swirl.

~~~

We were back in Tanno's office. The old kalrin had just been told of our little trip. Everything from the magick man, the truth of the scale, this strange information about other realms, and why exactly we had returned sans dragon scale. The white furred women listend intently as we recounted our tale.

"Is all this true?" I didn't see if she was talking to Ursh or Rin, but one of them must have nodded in the affirmative, because she leaned back in her chair and took a deep breath. When she returned upright, her eyes were cast my way. "I hope you understand this means you won't be getting paid."