Sunrise added a pink hue to the sky as the four walked past the first handful of red-brick buildings that marked the entrance to Laryth. Their nervousness seemed to have transferred to the whole city. It seemed like every person they saw stared at the sky, then at them, then at the beast behind them, before they turned, ran, hid, or stepped aside. Hundreds of eyes fell on them from every direction. While no building in Laryth reached even half the height of a Crescentian tower, they could see people staring at them from windows beneath vaulted ceilings several stories above. It reminded Kylie of her vision of the Absentia’s home. Yet, for all the attention, no one stood in their way, stopped them, or even asked what was happening. So far, the Absentia prowling the streets had done no harm to Laryth. This atmosphere wasn’t panic, but the anticipation of it. 

When focusing on the constant gawking grew boring, Kylie’s attention shifted to the city itself. Cobblestone roads spiderwebbed between the buildings, giving the city the impression of organization, though Kylie still felt she would easily get lost if not for Naomi. There was a circular nature to Laryth; every road curved in a way that implied symmetry even if it wasn’t plainly visible. This theme carried into the aesthetic of the buildings as well, with nearly every large structure having a circular stained-glass mural of some fantastical creature or historic event. Kylie thought about asking Naomi what they meant, about where they were, and if any of these places they walked by were places that meant anything to her. But Naomi stayed quiet, so she did as well. Eventually her mind wandered away from Laryth and back to Rodehills, until she felt barely present in the city at all.

As they travelled further, the distance between them and the Absentia grew. Naomi made no attempt to stop. It would catch up eventually. She noticed that they’d picked up a few new companions - several people in multi-colored formal robes, likely mages from other schools. They followed from some distance, mostly watching the Absentia from around corners while occasionally turning to the kids and Asalya. Some seemed prepared to fight. They stood wide, arms extended and spells at the tips of their tongues. Others seemed to be taking notes, ready to record and analyze this bizarre extraplanar phenomenon. Naomi snidely hoped to get to read the updated revision of The Summoner’s Encyclopedia.

Laryth was a massive city, and traveling through it took some time. By midday, the distance between the Absentia and them was wide enough that they’d lost both it and the prying scholars. With each turn down a new street, a road Naomi had been on a few times before turned into a road she knew well, then into a road she’d grown up with. There was a cafe in this neighborhood that she visited often; its flavored coffees were never as good as the ones in the Central Laryth cafe, but there was never any line and it was much closer to the sanctuary. In the apartment they now walked past lived Ms. Vasquez, a woman who collected locally-written novelettes and would donate ones she felt were child-friendly to the kids at the Order. It was a bitterly familiar part of town. Many stories and memories ran through her head, but none that she felt like sharing with Kylie right now

From here, she could see the lake by the sanctuary. With a few more steps, the building itself came into view. Unlike most buildings in Laryth, grass and shrubbery, both maintained by the students, were allowed to grow around the building. Many large vines had seized that opportunity to spread completely throughout the many floors of the sanctuary’s brickwork. Being winter, all the plant life had turned brown and brittle. It gave the impression of a building much older than the ones around it.

Naomi stopped as she and the wolves stood in front of the sanctuary. Before them sat a large set of double doors, made of a sturdy redwood not native to the region. Above that, a large, circular stained-glass mural of rays of light emerging through clouds was built into the brickwork. Such an innocent looking image had never felt so ominous.

There was noise coming from inside the building, as Naomi imagined there would be. The Order were presumably the only ones who knew what the ward around Laryth falling meant. It was time to let things play out however they might. Kylie and Naomi hadn’t discussed a plan, because there wasn’t one. After her brief pause to stare at the mural, Naomi took a deep breath, clenched her fist, and walked to the doorway. Kylie followed, spreading her claws apart, just in case. Asalya followed Kylie’s lead, her head lowering as she assumed her hunting stance.

Naomi wrapped her hand around the bronze door handle. She closed her eyes and pulled one of the double doors open. 

And within a moment, the noise inside ceased.

Naomi saw her the instant she peeked inside: Grand Cleric Jeiflet, standing in the center of the main hall. Her red and gold mask was turned away from them, appearing instead to be directing the rainbow of other clerics that flitted from room to room and peered over the balconies above. She stood still, with her fingers locked together over her stomach, much as she always had. Though she was thin and frail, her posture demanded reverence. Jeiflet’s head turned towards the door. Jeiflet adhered strictly to sanctuary rules, and had been Grand Cleric for nearly twice Naomi’s lifetime. The young healer had never seen her face. And she knew, staring at that mask once again, that she never would. 

Naomi stopped in the entranceway, holding the heavy door open by letting it rest against her back. Kylie and Asalya stood beside her, hidden behind the other door. Gradually, silence and stillness rippled through the room. 

“Welcome back, Young Miss Birch.” Jeiflet spoke as though nothing was wrong, although she seemed to wait for everyone to be quiet enough for her to be heard through the room. Her attention turned momentarily to a couple clerics behind her. “Would you please fetch Mr. Fletcher and Mr. Arket? I require their presence immediately.”

No matter how much she tried to hide it, surprise must have shown on Naomi’s face. Jeiflet cleared her throat. “I called the other Grand Clerics here shortly after your incident in Larbroque. I was just as surprised as you that they managed to pass you on the road, but I suppose such things can happen if you were to take a rather indirect route.”

Of course they’d be here too. Whatever, that only made this easier. Naomi kicked the door open wider with her heel, and started walking further into the room. Kylie stuck her walking stick against the door, prying it open as she stepped inside. Her eyes widened when she saw the sheer amount of clerics staring back at her. There was no way they’d win in a fight. Still, she held the door open for Asalya, and the two wolves walked on either side of Naomi. The sight of Asalya caused a murmur among the clerics.

“So, I take it that this is Kylie?” Jeiflet turned to the wolf girl. “I hope you are here because you’ve come to understand just how dangerous the forces you’ve been playing with are.”

Kylie smirked. If all they had to hurt her with was passive-aggressive shame, then they had absolutely nothing.

Her grin only grew wider and more fanged as two more red-masked grand clerics entered the room. One was tall and thin - Kylie didn’t recognize him but Naomi knew this man was Arket. He hurried in beside a similarly tall but much more muscular man. The bandages wrapped around his head underneath his mask let Kylie know it was Fletcher. 

As Fletcher stopped next to Jeiflet, Kylie waved at him, extending her claws. She giggled when he jumped back in fear. Her laugh sent out another murmur among the clerics in the room. They told themselves that the cursed girl delighted in their fear, and they were right. Only they portrayed it as unjust.

While Fletcher tried desperately to regain a semblance of composure, Arket spoke to Jeiflet. “Grand Cleric, I continue to insist that we should apprehend and remove the curses on these children, especially since they’re in our doorway.”

“Just give me five minutes to get rid of that werewolf, Jeiflet,” Fletcher spat through his mask.

Asalya growled before Kylie got the chance. Kylie said, “Good luck.”

Jeiflet raised her hands above the faces of her fellow Grand Clerics. They both fell silent. 

“Your opinions on this matter have already been noted several times. Yet I continue to insist that such actions and risk for further injury…” Jeiflet pointedly looked to Fletcher. “... are unnecessary. Furthermore, they are in my doorway, and if we have devolved into discussing this conflict in terms of ownership of the building, I think you’ll find that Young Miss Birch has more right to claim that ownership than you. We are going to resolve this like adults, and not let our emotions get the better of us.

“Now, Naomi,” Jeiflet continued, “I am willing to begin negotiations. You were always a model student and I apologize that we were incorrect in our assessment that you were an ideal candidate for the task of Lightbringer. While your infractions against our Order are numerous, I understand that extraneous circumstances and persistent accursed influence are partially responsible. Yet, as I see it, you have now completed your assigned task. Once you hand over the Light and apologize to these two men, I will gladly accept you back into my tutelage.”

Naomi had never imagined she’d be able to be forgiven. She stared up and down the candlelit wooden entrance of the place she was raised in. There was no warmth or comfort in the gentle flickering of those lights. She pointed at Fletcher. “He knocked out my tooth.”

“Then he owes you an apology as well.”

“Why?” Naomi muttered, “I thought I was ‘tragically but frankly, unnecessary.’”

Jeiflet cocked her head to the side. “Are you referring to the journal of Grand Cleric Vris? Unnecessary does not mean unwanted, dear child, and I personally feel that those particular passages of Vris’ writings are far too emotionally charged. It’s my understanding that you have some grievances with Order customs? Once you are back and reintegrated into Order ranks, I’d love to hear your suggestions and would place your concerns under review.”

There had to be some tactical reason for that offer, Naomi knew. Maybe they were worried about Naomi exposing their secrets to the world. Or maybe this was an attempt at genuine sympathy and an offer of help. An utterly meaningless one.

“Shut up,” Naomi said, closing her eyes.

“Young Miss-” Jeiflet tried to interject.

“Just shut up,” Naomi stared at the red mask of the man who had insulted her, then the man who had hurt her, then to the woman who had allowed all of that to happen. “I’m so tired.”

Through the double doors, Kylie heard the familiar arrhythmic crashing. She moved behind Naomi, next to the closed door, and placed her hand on the doorknob. Asalya rested the weight of her body against the one they’d left slightly ajar. 

“Young Miss, being rude is not conducive to anyone here meeting their aims.” Jeiflet spoke to Naomi, but the way she moved her mask suggested she was watching the wolves.

“I don’t care.”

The crashing grew closer. The clerics heard it now too.

Fletcher stepped back.

Arket’s baritone voice shook. “Grand Cleric, we need to act now.” 

Jeiflet ignored him and the approaching noise. “Young Miss Birch-”

“Grand Cleric, we must-” Arket shouted over the noise. 

Jeiflet stuck her hand in his face and pushed him aside, stepping toward Naomi. By now many of the clerics spectating were in motion - running, hiding, ducking low for cover. Fletcher took one more step back before he turned and ran for the back door.

Naomi stared at Jeiflet’s mask. Jeiflet stared back, waiting for some explanation. When none came, she shouted to be heard over the noise, “Young Miss Birch, this behavior is unacceptable for a cleric!”

“I’m not a cleric,” Naomi replied.

Kylie threw open her side of the doors. Asalya followed suit. An instant later, the Absentia - with all its mass of dripping shadow and claws - crashed through the Order of Rejuvenance’s door. The force shook Jeiflet off balance, but Naomi stood tall.

“I’m a witch.”

The halls of the Order fell silent as the clerics inside watched and waited, their breath soft but their bodies shaking with the anticipation of disaster. But when the beast did not attack, their fear gained an element of awe. The sight in front of them painted a clear picture. Naomi, in some cases their student, in other cases their peer, for all the ideal they’d been told to measure up to, now stood in front of a monster. And it waited for her. She commanded it. Dark magic had corrupted this child. She had become a witch powerful enough to destroy them all.

 While her teachers and colleagues gawked in silence, Naomi began to chant a magic spell. Wisps of light encircled her body, raising her hair high into the air. Then, the wisps circled around her chest, rapidly spinning until a bright light appeared over her heart. The lights outside Naomi’s body guided the light inside it up into her shoulder, down through her arm, and into the palm of her hand. Even with her fist closed around it, the Light of Laryth was so bright that none could stand to look at it. The wolves and the clerics both had to turn and shield their eyes. No one saw Naomi turn back and carry it toward the Absentia.

Her eyes closed, and her head turned, she held the Light up to the shadow. She said, “Thank you.”

Naomi didn’t get to watch the Absentia as it reached a single claw out towards her. When that claw connected with the Light, the little ball in her hand grew dark. Naomi had only an instant to notice this behind her closed eyes before it suddenly grew bright again, brighter than before, bursting skyward. The force of the sudden eruption left Naomi untouched, but knocked Kylie and Asalya to the floor. The great doors of the sanctuary crashed against the outside wall. The blast pushed the clerics in the hall deeper inside and blew out the candles running along the walls. Cracks ran through every inch of the stained glass above them. And just as quickly, all had passed. It seemed safe to open their eyes again.

When they did, the Absentia was no longer there. Kylie wished for a moment that she had said goodbye, but knew there was no need for that. It was home now. She hoped it was happy. Above them, an effect that took no form except a general brightness in the sky nevertheless moved northward. The light was returning back to Crescentia. Naomi watched it go.

With no light or darkness left with them but their own, Naomi walked to Kylie and helped her to her feet. Asalya scrambled back upright as well, where she stood, waiting for the kids. The wolf girl grabbed the door beside her and pulled it closer to her, propping herself against its edge once she stood. 

From inside, Jeiflet looked up toward the cracked mural above her doorway. She straightened herself up and resumed her hands-folded posture. “Fine. If this is what you want, you can have it, Naomi. Was that your form of revenge? If so, you should know that this damage is superficial at worst. The Order of Rejuvenance will still be here tomorrow and for centuries more. Since you have apparently chosen to forsake your duties, we will simply appoint another Lightbringer soon.”

“I can’t stop you,” Naomi said, looking up from Kylie but still holding her hand, “And stopping you is not my responsibility. You all have taken every bit of me that I’m capable of giving. Right now, I’m tired. I’m going home.”

“This is-”

Kylie and Asalya slammed the doors shut. The last the Order ever saw of them was the wolf girl, holding the child they abandoned, and looking at her with a fanged smile.

They ran. Kylie hopped on Asalya, and the young witch ran alongside the wolves, through the busy streets of Laryth, as far away from the Order as their legs would carry them, until they were outside of the city and the sun began to set.

If the Order had even made an attempt to pursue them, the kids had gone too far to catch. They’d made it to the wide dirt road that led from Laryth to the town of Cerflyn. From there, roads led most anywhere that they’d know to go. Kylie proposed that they find an inn there, rest a while, and decide on their next destination. The tension in her gut told her that they would inevitably head back to Rodehills. Naomi thought much the same, but they both felt better having decided to at least discuss other options first.

They wouldn’t actually make it to Cerflyn that night. It had been over a day since any of them had slept. The physical and emotional exhaustion caught up rapidly. They began looking for a spot near the road where they could set up camp, when Naomi noticed a path cutting into the woods. She turned to the wolves and said, “Follow me.”

The trail through the piney woods did not seem carved deliberately, unlike the main road. Rather, it appeared that many feet over a long time had scratched away the plant life and etched the trail into the dirt. The groove had cut deeply enough that the narrow path was recognizable even under the coating of dried pine needles that blanketed the forest. Kylie kicked some aside as she trudged behind Naomi, feeling ready to fall asleep at a moment’s notice.

They soon came to a clearing, beside which the ground sloped down sharply. Further down the incline, Kylie could see the entrance to a cave buried into a hillside. Thinking of the first night they truly camped together, Kylie assumed the cave was their destination, and was surprised when Naomi veered to its left. They sat down soon, beside a cliffside where they could peer over and see the cave.

It was an unseasonably warm evening in the forests around Laryth, a fact not known to either Kylie or Naomi, both of whom had lost track of the days and assumed they were on the cusp of spring. Kylie thought about digging the dragonfire stone from her bag, then thought of making a fire, but ultimately decided neither was worth the effort. Naomi pointed over at cave mouth while they settled in. 

“That’s the cave the local bats live in. I wish I could show them to you. It seems like something you’d enjoy.”

“It sounds really cool,” Kylie said, lying on her back. “You must really love watching them. It’s one of the only things you’ve ever told me about Laryth.”

“Really?” Naomi hadn’t meant to be secretive about her hometown. Her mind had just been elsewhere. “I guess I thought you’d be interested in hearing about the animals, what with your whole wild nature girl thing.” 

Kylie grinned and growled. Naomi scratched her ears. 

“And, well, I think it’s one of the few things here I wish I could take with me. There’s probably more here that I’m going to miss than I realize, but that’s something that I can’t replace.”

Naomi started crying. It happened so suddenly. She wasn’t sure why, even though she knew there were too many reasons. And she couldn’t seem to stop.

Kylie looked up to see her friend wiping tears from her face. It had been a long and exhausting day that didn’t even have the courtesy of being the end of their long and exhausting trip. The family Naomi had just said goodbye to had never been good to her, but that hadn’t made this easy. Crying wasn’t weakness, but choosing to leave her old life behind had taken a lot of strength. A lot of pressure needed to release. As Kylie glanced at the face of the witch beside her, it occurred to her that she was looking at one of the bravest people she’d ever known. 

Kylie sat up and wrapped Naomi in a hug. She had no words of comfort to offer, so she didn’t speak. Soon Asalya curled up beside Naomi as well. Naomi cried for a good long time, until the sky turned red from the setting sun, and she had become so exhausted from crying that all she could do was try to move on.

 “So, is Rodehills our destination, then? We go in a full circle for me and then for you?” Naomi asked, peeling herself away enough to look in Kylie’s eyes. 

It was time to go home, Kylie knew. They needed rest. They needed to head back. Part of her even wanted to. Yet it didn’t feel right. She couldn’t bring herself to say it. Looking now into Naomi’s eyes, Kylie knew she needed to summon some of that courage.

“No.”

“No?” Naomi’s surprise was so visible that if she had Kylie’s ears they would have shot upright.

Kylie’s ears actually fell toward her head. “Well, yes and no, I guess?”

Naomi looked to Asalya, as if she knew more about what Kylie meant.

“I mean, I think we should head back to Rodehills, but that’s not where I want us to end up, you know? I think it should just be sort of another stop along the way.”

“To where?” 

“I’ve been doing a lot of thinking today - about what we talked about last night and about what you did today.” Kylie sat upright and looked straight ahead. “My dad and I have a lot to talk about, and a lot to fix. But I don’t think I want to cut him out of my life. I know I want to have those conversations someday. But I don’t know if that’s something I’m ever going to be comfortable doing so as long as I’m living in his house, under his rules. I think it’s going to take time and distance to heal.

“So let’s not spend too long in Rodehills.” Kylie turned back to Naomi with a wide, bright smile. She pumped a fist toward the sky. “We’re tough, we’re cute, we’re brave and even if we’d had help along the way, we’ve proven that we can do great on our own. I want to talk to my teacher about building a new home in Nighthills, one for all three of us. What do you think?”

Naomi took a moment, less because she was uninterested and more because she enjoyed seeing Kylie get this passionate. She replied, “I definitely think that’s something I want to try.”

Kylie beamed with enthusiasm as Naomi leaned over, resting her head on Kylie’s shoulder. Kylie’s back felt a little straighter, her smile a little wider. She’d freed herself of the fear that going back home meant going back to how it used to be. She had a plan. 

“So, what do you mean we’re cute?” Naomi asked, putting on a forced, false naivety.

Kylie’s face turned red and ears perked up. “Umm-”

Her ear twitched. There was a high-pitched chittering coming from the cave. Asalya peeked her head up and looked towards it at the same time Kylie did. Naomi, not hearing anything, followed their gaze.

A single bat flew out of the cave, spiralling up into the sky. When it reached the full height that it wanted, it directed its spiral back downwards. Its flight was strained and awkward. As it gained height, its left wing seized and it would dip low, having to catch itself in mid air. It carried on in a slow, struggling descent until it flew in circles just over where the kids and the wolf sat and watched it fly.

“This isn’t normal, right?” Kylie asked, seeing it was hurt but hoping Naomi would provide more details.

“No, not at all.” Naomi said. Her voice trembled with worry. “Beyond just the apparent injury, it’s not the right time to see them in this cave. The mother bats give birth here in late summer and teach their pups how to hunt in autumn. Them being here and being still active could have horrible implications about the state of the whole colony. And this one is being incredibly oddly sociable.”

“Maybe it recognizes you?” Kylie offered.

That seemed unlikely, Naomi thought. But if anyone knew about oddly sociable creatures, it would be Kylie. Taking that lead, she tentatively reached out her hands, cupped together, with her palms open and facing skyward. She jumped when the bat actually landed in her hands. 

Its fluffy torso sat directly in the center of her hands, its mouth still open and chattering, showing its long, thin fangs. The bat’s little black eyes looked around in sudden twitches of its head, even as its body remained mostly still. Naomi, unsure what to do and somewhat worried about being bitten or scratched, asked Kylie to look it over as well. 

“It looks like the joint at the top of its left wing might be dislocated, or something?” Kylie pointed toward it, moving slowly to not scare it. “I can see a scar over that area. It might be kind of an old injury.” 

“Do you think I can heal it?”

Kylie cocked an ear. “You’re the healer, you tell me.”

“Right. Yeah, okay.” Naomi began chanting. Without the Light inside her, the wisps that formed around her weren’t as wide, or as bright. They barely moved her hair as they flowed through it. Still, when they formed around her fingertips, it seemed like it would work much the same. Naomi pinched the tip of the bat’s wing between her thumb and index finger, and held it a while. The bat, though its head still moved frantically, made no attempt to flee.

Naomi released her fingers and let the spell dissipate. When she did, the bat instantly spread its wings and flew back to the cave. Naomi had shielded herself from the bats’ wings, and was just lowering her arms when the noise of the bats still inside the cave grew loud enough to reach her ears.

Two more bats flew out of the cave, then back in. Several more did the same. Then more and more, until it seemed that hundreds were circling in and out. As they did, their chittering filled the forest. Soon, hundreds more flew from the cave out in a straight line, rising up to the sky in front of them, then turning towards them. The kids felt the wind of thousands of wings blowing against their faces. A black cloud of bats swirled around them.

“What could be causing this?” Kylie asked, now raising her voice to be heard over the noise.

It had to be us, Naomi figured. They had brought down the barrier around Laryth, maybe that had affected the bats? As she poured over that possibility, a line from a book she had read entered her head.

Rumors that the presence of Absentia have strange effects on the behavior of nocturnal wildlife are persistent…

Naomi jumped to her feet and turned around. She looked past the screeching cloud of bats to the forest beyond. She couldn’t see it, but knew it was here. The wind blew her braids into her face. As she brushed them aside, she saw it. No, them. Dozens of pairs of red eyes peering through the trees. Eventually one of those pairs settled on her.

She’d known there were more Absentia, but never seen it before so plainly. They must have been drawn by the fall of the ward, or maybe, she realized with dawning horror and rising anger, by something even worse.

“They have more light,” Naomi whispered to herself.

“What?” asked Kylie, shouting over the wind and noise.

“They have more light!” Naomi shouted back, stamping her foot to the dirt. “That’s why there’s more than one Absentia, and why they didn’t even seem to care that I destroyed that one! There’s more than one Light of Laryth, and they’ve been hoarding them!”

As she shouted, a handful of bats flew now to the sky over the forest, above where the many Absentia waited below. 

Kylie rose from the ground to stand beside her friend, just as Naomi cupped her hands and called into the forest, “Hey!”

The red eyes that peered from the woods all turned to her.

She pointed. “Your light is that way!”

The Absentia didn’t move, but the bats did. The ones beside her flew around her, swirling her hair in every direction. They joined the bats flying over the Absentia, until the whole swarm gathered above. The ones leading the cloud turned south, towards Laryth.

Naomi noticed this, and knew instantly that she had gained another new ally. “Guide the Absentia to the sanctuary. If they try to hide it from them, please help them find it. Help them get that light back.”

The shadow beasts soon turned to the bats above them, and one by one, began to follow.

Naomi shouted, “And when you tear that place apart, tell them I sent you!”

Kylie hugged Naomi tight. Asalya nestled beside them. The three stood and waited as the thousands of bats above and dozens of Absentia passed them by. They stood there as night fell, and the squeaking and chattering faded as the last of the bats began their hunt.

They sat back down in the same place they had been, the emotion of the moment washing over them and passing, the exhaustion of the day coming back twice as hard. They still held each other as they lay down on the ground, ready to find some sleep.

But a thought kept Kylie awake. She couldn’t shake the image of Naomi, surrounded in a swarm of bats, shouting into the woods, full of power and righteous fury. At least not without sharing something first.

“Hey, Naomi?”

“Yeah?” Naomi mumbled.

“You know how you said you can’t take the bats with you? You might be right, but I couldn’t help but think that you’re kinda like them in some ways.” Kylie stumbled, not really sure of her point. “There’s some similarities there.”

“Like what?” Naomi asked, peeking up to meet Kylie’s gaze.

The wolf girl saw the fearsome witch snuggled against her, and found the words she wanted.

“You have fangs.”

Naomi gave a wide grin, showing the gap in her teeth. She cackled, a laugh that felt as cruel as it did warm, kind, and honest.

“Damn right, I do.”