"Ngh..." Sylvi could only muster a groan as she opened her eyes, staring down to her feet to see where she was.

"Huh?! Where am I?!" She jolted up, reaching for the pouch that was still slung around her waist. The girl was surrounded by wooden walls, waking up on a bed that seemed more comfortable than it looks...

She kicked her feet off, falling to the ground with a soft thud.

"Neowolf?" She called out softly, looking around the room but to no avail, she was alone. "Neowolf!"

CREAAK

The cry of a floorboard caused her to jolt. Her heart pounded in her ears as she watched the door, the wooden handle turning to see a figure that towered over her, its shadow stretching across the floor.

"its...its—One of you reptile things?!!"

"Rude! We’re called Erpeopians you brat!" The voice snapped causing the girl to flinch at his sharp tone. He was bigger than the others, his green eyes gleaming down on her and white scales covered in patches of gray stripes.

"Anyway...what are you doing all the way out here—" he muttered.

"I’m not telling you anything!" She declared, holding the pouch close to her chest. "You can torture me if you want! I still won’t talk!"

"Huh? Torture?! Let’s slow down a minute—" he reached down trying to calm her but Sylvi was convinced, no longer hearing what he had to say. She bit his hand and made a sprint past the door. As the Erpeopian tried to catch her she stumbled on himself, grunting as he tried to stand.

"I need to get out of here!" She panted, running through the narrow wooden hallways, they all started to blend together for her, almost having no end. Her head felt like it was about to burst as she saw the same door repeated over and over. Eventually she tried her luck and just open a random door, bursting in with a loud thud.

"H-huh?!"

She was met with a room of sick Erpeopians, lying on beds made with leaves and cloth. It was clear they were in their last moments, struggling to even groan and complain at the noise.

"You need to keep quiet!" Arms wrapped around her mouth and swiftly picked her up, the Erpeopian from before finally catching up to her.

"Let me go!" She screamed through his palm, though he muffled the noise.

"Just let me explain ok?!"

"I said let me go!!"

***

"Freya?" Sylvi murmured, seeing Freya laid out on a bed in a room away from the others. She ran up to the unconscious body with tears welled up in her eyes as she clinged to her. She felt something soft by her toes, the girl overjoyed when she looked and saw the Neowolf curled up under Freya’s bed.

"She’s alive, but unconscious," The Erpeopian explained, his hand to his chest as he spoke to the child. "This is a refuge, we found you both in the forest and brought you here."

"I assume you’re with the Celestial?"

"Celestial?" Syvli murmured, her eyes widened once it all clicked. "Yeah! Astra!"

"Astra...so that’s her name..." He muttered, taking the name to note before bowing before the child. "Forgive how sudden it is but..."

"My name is Valdik, I’m the prince of this land..." His gaze raised to meet the child, who clung to the pouch like it was her lifeline. "I also lead, the alliance that will overthrow the king"

"My father..."

"Please, will the celestial help us? I beg of you,"

Sylvi watched into the reptile’s earnest eyes, turning back to Freya who sleeping so peacefully, her wounds taken care of and her skin once again cooled.

The young girl bit her lip, ton.

"And that’s how we got here!" Sylvie announced through the window’s cell, recounting her journey with a smug smile on her face as Veira wrote down a new note.

They stood outside, the village surrounded by trees from the forest. Buildings built up high along the tree’s thick bark, while the palace stood in the center of it all, like a tree itself yet made of wood and stone.

The prison at the very bottom floor of it all.

"You could’ve gotten yourself hurt!" Zelr argued, though Valdik stood closer by the girl’s side.

"That is true, but this is fate, without her we couldn’t have met this day,"

"Not true," Veira interrupted, rolling the note in her hand. "You knew we were here, If I didn’t know any better you planned to come and see us eventually, am I wrong?"

There was a moment of silence, Valdik’s eyes shut as he crossed his arms. "While true, it would’ve made things difficult."

"How so?"

"Meeting the Celestial for one, do any of you know where she is..."

"Oh I do, I do! That weird bird guy said she was with them!" Sylvi waved her hand ecstatically, waiting for any sort of acknowledgement.

"The Poulians..." Viera mumbled before handing the note through the cage. "There, that’s my answer, also any findings we could use,"

"Does that mean?" Lailla murmured, waiting for the greenlight.

"Yeah, we’re throwing the glove in this war too."

"T-thank you so much—!" Valdik bowed, only to be cut off.

"However, I must ask," Veira pondered, her starry gaze narrowing down at the man who bowed before her. "What do you want to overthrow your own father,"

"Is it power, money? Don’t tell me you actually feel bad for the Poulian’s..."

Everyone looked at her, now that she mentioned it, they were curious to the answer, the silence remained heavy as the reptile finally stood straight once more.

"I don’t...I don’t agree with my father’s methods at all, not with the way he’s running our race, nor the war."

"He’s doing this for his own selfish gain, not for the people," His hands tightened to fists, his claws digging into this clenched palm as crimson flowed through the cracks. "So I must put a stop to him, not for the Poulian’s, but for my own people!"

"Well then, how about we strike a deal,"

"A deal?"