The next night, as I tried to get at least a few hours of decent sleep, mind plagued with Ice’s words and my near-death experience at the hands of guards that had not yet been found, I felt an odd presence in my room. I softened my breath, soon hearing another pair of lungs. The door has not opened whatsoever in the past hours. I felt the weight shifting at the end of the bed. The creature, seeming to be four-legged, crawled up to my head.

My eyes snapped open at the feeling of a tiny, cold hand over my mouth. I struggled, raising my legs to attempt to kick the small person off me. I grasped for their head and neck, making a move to attempt to strangle them. My fingers brushed against silky clothing and smooth hair.

“I am not here to harm you, Doctor. Technically I’m not here at all.”

That made me pause. My eyes had partly adjusted to see a faint outline of the figure above me. They seemed to have shoulder-length hair. They kept their small hand firmly over my mouth. Was this… a child?

“I am here to deliver a message, Dr. Davidson,” the child said, voice light and deceptively sweet, yet laced with poison that chilled my blood. “There are enemies abound. I can sense at least a dozen here in the dorm rooms.” My eyes widened. “But that is not the message. The General wants to speak with you, Doctor, to ensure that you are worthy of her protection. She will communicate primarily through her brother. He will request you, and you must go. Now, I am going to take my hand off your mouth. You may ask two questions. If you call for help, we will not help you, and you will be on your own against those who tried to kill you. Understood?”

I nodded, and they removed their hand.

I thought carefully. “How do I know you’re not an enemy?”

They lightly laughed, “A fair question, one I’m… not entirely sure how to answer.” They fell silent, clearly thinking.

“The longer you hesitate, the more I think you’re an enemy,” I warned, hands slowly moving to their throat. My fingers wrapped all the way around it.

They chuckled, although it seemed a bit strained. I loosened my grip. “My kind was brutally massacred after having visions of the kingdom’s fate ‒ as well as the fate of the other realms ‒ should a certain royal take the throne, leaving only one of my ancestors… or as is assumed. We don’t really know how I came to be.” My grip loosened, hands moving closer to their collarbones. A cold silver chain brushed against my fingers. “Now, I watch from a distance, for I am the last, and must be kept safe. But now and again, I show myself to specific people, especially when times are… convoluted. Such as your situation. Now, your second question?”

I paused, lowering my hands. I looked them up and down. They couldn’t be more than eleven or twelve, and appeared male. They wore a robe that revealed their right side, firmly tied around their waist with sashes. Their right arm was clad in a long black arm glove, with golden bands keeping it in place at the bicep, wrist, and middle finger. There was a necklace with two pendants around their neck, as well as a black choker, but I couldn’t see what the pendants were.

I spoke the only words that came to mind, “Please protect my son.”

Their gaze and voice softened, as did their posture. “We have agents in the area; they’ve been keeping an eye on him for reasons unrelated to your work. Should anything unkind befall him, they will be the first to know, and they will act swiftly. But that was not a question.”

“I’m thinking,” I hissed. I looked them up and down. “You’re a soldier in this war that Ice mentioned? The one that sometimes freezes and other times boils?” It sickened me to think of a child in a war as anything more than moral support or perhaps a scrap metal collector or victory gardener. “How old are you?”

They chuckled, “I have not fought in… quite some time. Since I am the last of my kind, I must keep my distance. But, yes, I am completely capable of combat, and I have fought these people on the battlefield before, for I am far older than I appear, and I am not afraid to do so again.” They sat back on their knees, straddling me. “Keep your eyes out, watch your back, stay calm, and, whatever you do‒”

“Don’t trust anybody,” I nodded, Ice’s words still fresh in my mind.

“I was going to say only trust inner gold but, yes, that too.”

“Wait, wh‒”

They were already gone.