I could see it in his face the moment he inhaled to the moment he stood to his true full height out of that cavern where he had been trapped for who knew how long – he was free. His chest heaved as he sucked in breath after breath.

I couldn’t help but notice the smeared blood along his neck or the wounds that leaked sluggishly by his neck where he was attacked. Even the hand where I now saw was smattered with the viscus fluid.

A sudden bout of dizziness had me leaning forward, slightly hunched against Steele’s hand. I sucked in the chilled air of the evening. The enormity of what just happened just hit me.

Steele had escaped – a practically impossible feat – and all because I asked him to.

A fragment of acid that I had been ignoring rested at the back of my throat and threatened to do something more. I was more than grateful when the thunderous voice of Steele recaptured my attention.

“Where is Cr…Cree? Wood?” he asked. I blinked a few times and looked around, barely recognizing where we had emerged from The Turret.

“That way!” I called to him, pointing toward the northwest. Steele’s eyes followed where my hand pointed and he simply gave a nod.

“Yes. Raina, hold on,” instructed Steele.

“WAIT!” I shouted just as the Orion took a few steps forward. He halted almost instantly. “Are you okay? Are you alright? Er… Viyoo-en rhonor?” Steele seemed worn out from the escape, and rightfully so. The circumstances, however, decided fate for me as the bells began hammering in their towers. There were shouts and screams nearby. Steele looked at me.

“No time. I am alright. Now, hang on.” A shiver coursed through me as Steele’s hand once again drew close to his chest and, with an unbelievable speed, began to step through and around the fields near The Turret.

My heart hammered in my chest, leaping with every step. When we arrived at a gap in the road, Steele merely hopped over. For him, it was barely an inconvenience to skip a step to traverse the small river. For me, every part of me screamed with an unbelievable energy, reminding me of when I slipped from the ledge and fell freely through the air.

I knew he was being careful; however, I could still recall how scared I had been of him not too long ago and could practically hear the thoughts of terror and awe from the neighbors and citizens of the city. It pained me to think someone could fear Steele after all we had done together.

What once terrified me now exhilarated me. As terrified as I felt before, everything now seemed possible. We were going to get Terrilyn and, with everything I had, I promised myself that Steele would stay free.

~~~~~^*^*^*^~~~~~

The bells of the city had left us and the only thing remaining were the sounds of the evening and Steele’s footsteps. He had just stopped another stretch of running to better catch his breath. He was exhausted, and it broke my heart and frustrated me to no end that his stubborn determination kept him upright.

That protective part of me worried what would happen if Steele were to encounter this other Orion and be too tired. I simply had to trust him. He asked me to, and it was the least I could do in return.

The concern reignited with each step that seemed to falter or hesitate.

Trust me.

There were moments I wanted to have the same unwavering faith in Steele that he seemed to have in me. It was in my nature to worry; being a mother taught me that much.

Steele’s pace suddenly slowed to a stop. Naturally, I looked up at him, but his eyes were not on me; they were on the sky and the twinkling lights far above the heavens.

“Beautiful… I… had almost forgotten…” Steele muttered. “Sylstaryn.” I looked up, realizing only now that Steele hadn’t seen the sky and its stars for years. His awe reminded me of my daughter’s natural wonder of the world. How long had it been since I had seen that look in her?

I looked back over the land, eyes burning slightly from the cold. I must’ve been shivering because Steele’s free hand came up to create a partial dome over me. The warmth of his hands already were radiating in this partial shelter. I leaned into his fingers and let his pulse lull me and release the tension that had kept my shoulders tight.

“Are we close?” asked Steele.

“Yes,” I replied. “You’ll know it because of the forest.” Steele nodded once before tightening his grip slightly and beginning his brisk walk again. I didn’t need to see him to sense his determination.

My fretting returned, making my chest hurt. What was going to happen when we arrived? What would we find? What happened next?

I worried, suddenly, about what my daughter would think of Steele. Would she be scared? She had always been so fearless among other challenges and so brave when I told her I needed to leave to work in the city. Why would now be different? The answer was simple – Steele was an Orion and, unfortunately, I had instilled in her.

I could only hope that, when the time came, she would be brave.

Steele suddenly stopped and I heard him inhale deeply.

“Raina…” His tone was grave. Everything in my dropped. All of the warmth he provided with his magnificent and gentle fingertips dissipated in an instant.

“Steele? What is it? What’s wrong?” I asked. I breathed deeply and knew instantly why his tone carried such a weight.

Smoke. It smelled like a fresh wood fire.

No…

Steele carefully lowered the hand that wasn’t holding me and uncurled his fingers to reveal the dark smoke swirling into the sky. Part of the forest was ablaze and, if I squinted my eyes, I could see the outline of some hulking figure beyond the smoke. They were sitting, but their position wasn’t what was on my mind.

Terrilyn.

“Raina, where is she?” asked Steele, quietly lowering his body to be more level with the land. His violet eyes were locked onto the distant figure while his mind obviously was locked into helping me find my daughter.

“She…” my mouth felt like I had shoved cotton into it. My mind was racing. Was my daughter safe? Was she alright? Had the family run away? Had they taken her? I swallowed nothing but unforgivingly dry and ashy air. “There’s a cottage just on that side of the forest.”

Steele looked down at me as I pointed to the southern side of the forest. I didn’t need to see him to feel his violet eyes examining me. I suddenly felt two massive presences against my arm and back. Steele had pressed the side of his middle finger against my left arm while his index finger laid against my back.

“Raina, she is good – safe. I will make her safe,” said Steele. I looked into his eyes and knew, somehow, that it was true. Steele brought me close to his chest once again as he stayed low, cautiously stepping along the way, barely making a sound. He kept his eyes fixed on the flames and the distant figure while following my instructions.

I didn’t realize how close the cottage was to where the figure was. Thankfully, it looked like the figure was getting up and moving further away. Was he going? Was he going to leave? I could barely register anything except for the pounding of my heart in my ears. All feeling had completely left my body. The only two things tethering me to consciousness and sanity were keeping my daughter safe and making sure Steele was alright.

After an agonizing time, I could finally see the cottage. My breathing was deeper and faster. Every menacing voice in my head that Steele had chased away started whispering again. I was trying think straight.

Steele, thankfully, lowered me to the ground very near the cottage.

“Go, and I will watch,” he whispered as low as he could. I nodded and stood shakily on his palm, stumbling with a few of my steps as I left his hand and walked onto the frostbitten ground. I ran across the path, still smelling the smoke lingering in the air like a bad omen, and grasped the handle.

As I went to open the door, however, it refused to open. I tried again and again. Was it stuck? Was it locked? I began knocking as loud as I could.

“Terrilyn? Baby? It’s me. It’s mommy. Please open up. Mr. Finch? Mrs. Finch? It’s me! It’s Raina. Please, open the door!” I called out over and over, seeing not a single motion inside. My breath came in ragged, hitching gasps. I choked back a sob and tried to keep my composure; something I was failing miserably at.

“Mr. Finch? Mrs. Finch? Please! It’s me, Raina!”

“Raina,” Steele’s voice tethered me to reality once again as his massive finger reached past me carefully and, with a simple controlled flick, knocked the door off of its hinges.

“Bromidian,” I said instinctually as I ran into the inn. The moment I entered, I could see the entire Finch family huddled under the cabinets, their own children tucked under their arms, and, in the far corner, Terrilyn.

“Terrilyn!” I said in complete relief as I rushed across the room.

“Momma?” my daughter, tears in her eyes, looked up at me, stood, and threw herself into my outstretched arms. Everything in that moment felt right again. Her warmth spread like candle light against a storm filled sky.

She was safe.

She was unharmed.

She was with me – and I was never letting her go again.

“Keep quiet! The both of you!” spat Mr. Finch. “The Orion is outside. Get down or you’ll get us killed!” Terrilyn looked up into my eyes, her beautiful deep blue eyes lined with tears.

“Momma? Is it… really outside? Are we… going to be okay?” she asked, fear in her voice as she tugged at her auburn curls. I looked over my shoulder and then back to the Finch family.

“The Orion attacking is not the one outside. Please, I don’t have a lot of time to explain. The Orion outside, his name is Steele, he’s a friend. He’s helping me,” I pleaded, realizing now how it must sound coming from someone who didn’t know Steele.

“Helping you?” asked Mrs. Finch, voice and frame quivering as she held two children close to her chest while the other clutched onto her arm. “Y-you… you’ve made a deal with it, haven’t you! Your safety and your daughter’s safety at the cost of our own!” She was choking back tears.

“No! Steele isn’t going to hurt us. Please, we have to leave now. You have your cart, correct? We have to leave,” I urged. I knelt to look my daughter in the eyes. Every instinct that was motivated by fear was now surging with protection for my daughter. “Terrilyn, my darling, I have missed you so much. I wish I could tell you about everything, but right now we need to leave. It’s time to go. Come on.”

“But momma, what about the Orion outside?” she asked, wiping her nose with the back of her sleeve; a bad habit I thought I had broken her of.

“His name is Steele, and he’s going to help us,” I said, immediately seeing more tears gathering in her eyes. “Terrilyn, I know it sounds very scary, but you’re my big brave girl and I need you to trust me. Can you do that for momma?” Terrilyn sniffed, tugged at her curls once more, and then gave a single, determined nod.

“That’s my girl,” I said, leaning forward and kissing her forehead with the force of every good-night I had missed. “Mr. Finch. Mrs. Finch. You have to leave. Please. Let Steele help you. Let us help you.” They looked uncertainly at one another before shaking their heads vigorously.

“You’re being tricked by an Orion,” said Mrs. Finch as I let Terrilyn clutch my arm.

“And you’re letting your fear fool you,” I said as I guided Terrilyn and myself out of the cottage.

I heard Terrilyn’s little gasp as she looked up and caught her first glimpse of Steele, who was still crouching and scanning the area. I heard the smallest of whimpers, but she did not retreat back inside. I led the way further outside and back along the path.

“I’m going to call out for him, okay?” I asked, receiving only part of an acknowledgement from my daughter. It would have to suffice.

“Steele!” I called, my voice leaving a plume of moisture in the air like my own cloud. Instantly, his eyes turned from scanning the environment down to me. Terrilyn pulled closer to my side and clutched my arm tighter. “Don’t be shy,” I coached as I tried to stand up straighter.

“Raina,” said Steele, voice cracking just above a whisper. His eyes were completely captivated by Terrilyn, eyes absorbing every detail about her. He looked awed by her before looking back to me and braving a fragment of a smile. “This… your daughter?”

I looked at him with a beam of pride as I leaned into my daughter’s form.

“Yes. Steele, this is Terrilyn. Terrilyn, this is Steele,” I said. Terrilyn, completely captivated by Steele’s violet eyes against the nighttime sky, could barely manage to respond.

“N…n-ni-nice to m-meet you,” said Terrilyn. I knew Steele couldn’t hear her very well by the way he narrowed his eyes, but he smiled all the same and nodded.

“Pleasure to meet you,” replied Steele before looking back to me.

“Raina, we need to leave. He walked off…”

I felt it and heard it and, before I knew what was going on – a deep, quick rumbling in the ground like an earthquake was upon us.

I noticed too late.

Steele noticed too late.

Evidently, Steele wasn’t the only one who could move quietly across the land.

Coming from seemingly nowhere, a sprinting Orion rushed at us, foot reared back and ready to drive us into the air. I clutched my daughter close as I watched an immense foot kicking up debris as it made contact with the ground and hurdled toward us. My heart stopped. I tried to shield her with my body.

CRACK!

There was a horrendous, dull crack and I turned just in time to see Steele throw himself in the way of the foot, throwing his arm down onto the ground beside us while crouching over us like a tent. I held Terrilyn close as she let out a sobbing scream, burying her face into me. Steele only had enough time to look me in the eye as he hovered directly over me and say with a tone of finality.

“Trust me. Run.”