In another secluded area on the strip of the beach, far from the henchman, Perry and Kasey collected together in silence. She sat before the ink waves, a few feet from being swallowed, and listened to the empty echo. Like her emotions, her brain, once filled with chaotic thoughts, was now completely blank.

Kasey was content with the silence, wrapped up in his own world.

Perry couldn't tell if he was worried, angry, or scared. Maybe he was none of those things. With his back to her, facing the direction from where they came, it was impossible to tell.

Was he waiting to see who the victor would be?

Though Perry was prepared for the worst, she wasn’t prepared to see the pyromaniac freak again. Just seeing his face in his mind made her splash her face with the ocean water.

For once she wanted to cool down, not heat up.

"Finally!" she heard Kasey exclaim, exasperated. "I told you we should have switched roles. I would have been much faster."

Perry glanced over her shoulder and saw Destery greeted by Kasey with a punch to the chest.

Destery appeared untouched, unharmed—exactly how she saw him in The Sunshine Diner.

"What are you?" she demanded, turning around.

The two spun to her, clearing having forgot the situation they were in.

"We're a race called Ignis Volucres," Kasey explained, throwing one hand in the air dismissively.

"Is that what I am?" Perry inquired.

Kasey glanced at Destery, relieved. "She's smart. I thought we'd be going through this for hours."

"I'm not saying I believe you," she argued. "But if you guys can do what I can-"

"We aren't the same," Destery interrupted, confident.

Lydiana blinked. "What do you mean?"

"You can walk out of your body. We can't."

She coughed uneasily. "Then how do you know about me?"

Destery hesitated at this question. "Because we've met before."

"But I don't remember you." She scowled, disbelieving him.

"Which is really weird," Kasey admitted. "Ignis Volucres are supposed to remember a majority of their past lives when they are reborn."

"Reborn," she repeated. "As in reincarnated?"

"Normal people would call us human phoenixes," Kasey snickered, "but that’s only because of the whole being born-out-of-ash thing. And fire powers. And a bit of flying. But we're not birds and we have no feathers."

“So you’re, what, a phoenix-”

“We’re not birds,” Kasey enhanced. “We just have similar qualities.”

Perry scoffed. “Qualities like being a freak reborn from your own corpse? You must be joking.”

After a few moments of silence and no reassurance, Perry panicked.

"Oh god. Don't tell me I was born out of ash."

"Well, not...," Kasey began cautiously.

"Oh my god," Perry repeated, crouching down with one hand stamped over her face while the other remained in Destery's possession. "Please tell me this is a dream. Or I'm being pranked. Today has got to be a joke. Or a nightmare. I mean, it has to be. All of it!"

Kasey mouthed to Destery: "Do something."

"Um," Destery cleared his throat, "it's not bad being one of us. And you don’t have the same abilities, so you aren't our kind of freak. You’re a different kind of freak, which could be better."

"Could be."

She glared up at him. "I don't understand."

Kasey sighed and walked forward, presenting a giant ruby radiating in the dark. "This is called an Illuminos. It helps us find people we used to know or has memories of ours."

Perry's brows furrowed. "Has memories?"

"We've been searching for you with this."

Perry forced herself to ask, "Why have you been searching for me?"

Kasey chose his words carefully since he and Destery themselves did not quite understand the situation themselves.

"You disappeared for a while. No one knew where you went."

"What do you mean by ‘disappeared?’"

"Well, when we die we are instantly reborn. You weren't."

"Like rising out of the ashes?" Perry lamely joked.

"No, it doesn't work that way. The Dusters..." Destery struggled to find a proper way to explain.

"Anyways," Kasey began, pushing them back on track, "You were kidnapped."

"How do you know?"

"We were told."

Perry laughed. "Just because you were told? If I told you that Santa Claus really existed, would you believe me?"

"This is different. This came from the Ash Order. They are legit. Everything they say is true," Kasey answered defensively.

"Think about it," Destery urged softly, his eyes matching Perry's. "Haven't you ever felt suspicious of your uncle? Felt something was wrong?"

Perry paled. "How do you know it was my uncle?"

"Sid Perry is part of a similar race called Charcoal Volucres. He’s an enemy."

"What are you saying?" Perry whispered, holding down her defensive shriek. "That my uncle isn't really my uncle? What do you know about us? Nothing!"

Kasey and Destery exchanged uneasy glances.

"In one of our past lives, we saw him attempt to kidnap you," Destery gently answered.

She closed her eyes and prepared for the worst. "And did he?"

"You," Destery turned his head away in shame, "got away."

Perry forced herself to continue with the next question. "Then how did he get me now?"

"We don't know," Kasey answered. "We were hoping once we found you, you could tell us everything."

"This is too confusing.” Ignis Ales? Volucres? She shook her head. "I need to go somewhere and think."

"Go where?" Destery pressed. "To your "uncle"? He's a bad guy. If you leave now, you'll be trapped forever."

Trapped? Her entire life didn't seem like a trap. But after today, she couldn't discount Destery's warning.

"We can give you answers," Kasey assured her. "If you come with us, we'll tell you anything you want to know. And if you still want to leave after that, then we won’t stop you."

The thought of finding out who these people are, how her uncle was related, how her powers were related, was tempting.

Perry thought about how the intruder could burn things with his hands.

Is that what her uncle could do?

"Do you feel scared around us?" Destery inquired, concerned. "Do you get the same feeling you have when you are with your uncle?"

Perry analyzed her emotions.

"If not, then trust us," he pleaded.

As she turned to face them, ocean spray clung to the left side of her overcooked bare skin.

Perry was scared, but who wouldn't be? Her entire life was falling apart, and it wasn't exactly like she had the option to change the past. She was already a part of this, somehow in some way. If she can find out why, or at least have shelter for the night, where was the harm?

"Fine," Perry agreed. "But once you’ve told me everything, I get to decide what to do."

"Got it." Kasey nodded in understanding.

"Of course," Destery added. "Now, come on. Keep an eye out for any beach campfires."

Perry scrunched her eyebrows. "It's way past curfew."

"Leftover firewood will work," Kasey cut in.

Instead of bombarding the boys with a million questions, Perry trailed after them in the cold night, seeking for any dead campfires. The million questions would come later.

Not long after, they discovered a cluster of chard dead wood, perfect for a good bonfire.

When the three reached the mountain of wood, Destery opened his right jacket pocket and shuffled his fingers around in search of an object. As Perry came closer, she saw him pull out a shimmering gold and crimson feather glowing brilliantly in the night.

"What is that?" she breathed in wonder. "Some kind of peacock feather?"

"A phoenix feather," Destery answered, polite and distracted.

"What are you doing with it?"

In response, Destery dropped the feather onto the wood and watched as it exploded into an awe-inspiring fire, spouting high into the black sky before finally dropping down to Destery's height.

"Waaaaah," was all Perry could say.

"This is our gateway," Kasey explained. "It'll take us to the Ash Order."

Perry glanced nervously at Kasey, who stood on the opposite side of Destery. "Do we want to go to the Ash Order?"

"If you want answers," Destery answered, holding out his hand. "Come on."

Perry accepted it the same way she would when climbing into a tall truck—only she couldn't see the inside of this bonfire.

Kasey stepped in first, followed by Destery gently tugging Perry's hand.

The fire did not burn, but it was certainly hot. She could feel the flames tickling her skin, licking her wounds, playing with her hair, and she squeezed Destery's hand to the point her fingers numbed.

"Number 164, Number 165," Destery took one apprehensive glance at Perry, "and Number One..."

Perry's heart hammered against her ribs. 

If she was to back out, now was the time.

"Adere caligo."