I sat there trying to pass the time as best I could until Enna returned for me. It was surprising how slowly time could pass when you were left with nothing but your own thoughts. Things only seemed to drag more now because, I was waiting to be released. I could only guess at the time and how long it would be until Enna came for me.

I briefly toyed with the idea of taking a nap while I waited, but I was too on edge to fall asleep right now. Eventually I heard the far corridor door open and close, then footsteps approaching my room. I just crossed my fingers and hoped that it was Enna and not another of her suspicious subordinates. There was a clang as the key opened the lock to the cell door, then it pushed open.

Enna was stood in the doorway waiting for me. “Come on, we need to hurry.” She said in a hushed voice.

I jumped up off the bed a scuttled towards the door.

As I did, Enna passed me my sword and potions pouch. “I thought you would be needing these.”

I took the items and started reattaching them to my person. “Thanks, I wouldn’t have wanted to leave without them.”

“I guessed as much… Come on follow me.”

She headed down the corridor back towards the platform I was brought to the cell from. She opened the door to the ledge and stepped out. It was already dark outside. I was glad because it would make our escape easier.

Enna stopped near the edge and turned to me. “Are you ready?”

Celine hadn’t returned yet, but she was sure she would be able to find me again.

I nodded. “Yeah, I’m ready.”

She looked at me and her eyes narrowed. “Okay, whatever you do don’t scream. You’ll alert the others.”

I already had a good idea what was going to happen next. This place was high up in gigantic trees. It was designed for harpies. There were no other observable ways up or down other than from the air. We walked up to the edge of the platform.

Enna stood behind me, she placed her arms around me and then we jumped. The air rushed up against me as we hurtled towards the ground. I was doing my best not to panic and struggle, but I couldn’t escape the feeling that I was falling to my death. Then Enna’s wings flung open. We stopped falling, my stomach was flung up into the air as we shot forward under the forests canopy.

I could already barely make out my surroundings in the dark and because of the speed we were travelling at, everything I could see was a blur. We dotted about from left to right as we avoided the trees in our path.

I understood that we needed to stay under the tree cover to avoid being spotted, but it didn’t make the experience any less terrifying. From this height the fall alone might kill me, I didn’t want to imagine what it would feel like if we crashed into one of these trees. I dangled helplessly in Enna’s arms trying to keep as still as possible so as not make her flight any more difficult than it already was. I told myself over and over that this was something that she was born to do, she was an expert, it was going to be fine. It didn’t make it feel any better.

It was only as we started to slow, that I was able to calm myself. We glided down towards the floor and gently touched down. As soon as my feet were back on solid ground, I breathed a big sigh of relief. We had safely reached the edge of the forest. I almost thought about kissing the ground but thought better of it, because of my company.

Not that my reaction stopped Enna from laughing at me anyway. “Was it really that terrifying?” She asked.

I was still wobbling. “Yes!”

“I suppose you aren’t used to flying.”

“I’m not. That’s only the second time I’ve experienced that.”

“I suppose this time was a little precarious. It’s quite hard flying through the forest in the dark and avoiding the trees. It was a bit of a challenge.”

“I’m glad you didn’t tell me that before we left.”

We were alone at the edge of the wood. There was no sign of Celine or any of the other girls. I wondered how long it would take them to reach us. I needed to contact Celine and find out what was going on.

“How long do you think we have until someone notices that we’re missing?” I asked.

Enna was looking back at the forest section we had just flown through. “Assuming that no one spotted us leave. We should have until the morning before anyone catches on.”

“If all goes to plan, we should be able to meet up with the others before that happens.”

“Depending on where they are, yes.”

“What will happen when they notice?”

She paused for a moment as she thought it over. “I expect there will be some confusion, especially because I’ve gone too. It still won’t take them long to send out a search party.”

“So, they will come looking for us.”

“Yes.”

“I’d better call Celine and find out how far off the others are.”

“Go ahead… If it comes to it, I can fly you to safety. The other harpies will have a hard time catching me, even if I’m carrying you.”

“Thanks, but I need to meet up with the others.”

“What are you doing here that’s so important?”

“It’s a long story. I don’t think I should tell you all the details without the others present. But I can tell you we’re trying to save a friend and stop a war.”

“How?”

“Like I said it’s a long story… I’m going to call Celine. We’ll talk about this when you meet the others.”

“Okay, go ahead. I’ll wait.”

“Thanks… Celine. Celine, can you hear?”

There was no immediate response to my call. I left it for a moment before I tried again.

“She did say she would be able to find you, didn’t she?” Asked Enna.

“She did… I don’t see why she wouldn’t be able to.” I decided to try again. “Celine, are you there?”

“One moment master!” Replied Celine’s voice from thin air.

Enna looked relieved to hear her respond. “Sounds like she heard you that time.”

“Yeah, at least I can still contact her.”

I didn’t try and call out to her anymore, I was expecting her to appear any moment, but a couple of minutes passed, and she still hadn’t appeared.

Then without warning she materialised. “Sorry master!”

“That’s okay. What happened? I was just starting to wonder if I needed to call you again.” I asked.

Celine pouted. “The other girls, they wouldn’t let me go until they had finished talking. Even though you had already called me!”

I held in the urged to laugh. “Oh, I see. What were they talking about?”

She glanced towards Enna. “They wanted to know all about her.”

“I did kind of expect that.”

“I told them everything I could, but they’re going to want to talk to her themselves when they arrive.”

“I was expecting that too. Was that all?”

“No. They were drilling into me that you needed to be protected until they arrived.”

“Oh.”

She placed her hands on her hips and puffed out her chest. She seemed a little annoyed. “It’s not like I need to be told that. I didn’t want to return without you. I went back to them because you instructed me too.”

I patted her head in an attempt to calm her. “Sorry… Do you know how long until they will get here?”

It seemed to work, and she smiled. “It will be at least an hour, probably more like two.”

“Good they’ll make it tonight while it’s still dark. We should be able to put some distance between us the forest before daybreak. Are we in the right location?”

“From what I could tell of that girl’s map, yes. Close enough for them to find us.”

“Great. Then we can stay where we are for now… Can you tell if we were followed?”

“Give me a moment.” Then she vanished. “We’re the only life signs in the near vicinity.” She said as she reappeared. Then she wobbled almost losing her balance and falling.

I quickly took hold of her before she went over. “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine… I’ve just used a lot of energy again.”

She had transported herself back and forth, the last check must have been too much. She hadn’t exactly had a full meal earlier. Was now a good time? I wondered. Realistically it wasn’t safe, maybe just a little top up. Enna would have to be onboard with it though. She was the one that would need to keep a lookout while I fed Celine.

She would understand though surely. She was a demon too. Celine was still looking weak. She obviously wasn’t going to recover without being fed something. I helped her a nearby tree and sat her down.