IT WASN'T LONG before we realised that looking for Jona in the village was useless. The whole place was abuzz, but the girl was nowhere to be found. Neither, I realised, was Mayor Bryce.

"This is your fault," I accused Erik.

"My fault?" he asked incredulously. "How is this my fault?"

I gestured at the village. "Look round," I said. "Neither Jona nor Mayor Bryce are here. We would have noticed if she'd been spirited away in the middle of the night. She must have got up this morning and gone to tell Bryce that she wouldn't summon Lleviathan any more!"

Erik pursed his lips, clearly irritated. "The question still remains," he said, "of how this is my fault. Or did you not see that she was troubled by what was occurring here? She would have gone without my telling her that summoning the fish was a bad thing."

"You could have at least warned her to be careful about it," I started, but then Nick stepped between us.

"Stop it, you two," he said in a tone that brooked no argument. "It doesn't matter whose fault it was. All that matters is making sure Jona's okay."

Cristine nodded. "Let's talk to Bryson," she said. "He's still here, at least. There's a chance he'll know where his dad took Jona."

Reluctantly, I put my irritation aside and hurried across the village with the others. We found Bryson standing by a gate out of town, looking worried.

"Bryson," Cristine said, and the boy turned. He seemed frightened until he saw that we were only a few years older than him – and Cristine's quiet, musical voice couldn't have been anything but helpful in relaxing him. "Jona's gone – have you seen her anywhere?"

"I knew it," Bryson said, biting his lip. "Jona came by here and told Dad she didn't want to call Lleviathan any more! You should have seen Dad's face! Fierce beyond, it was! Then he took her off to Cuddiedig Cliff. I've got a terrible feelin' about all this. I think you should go after Dad and Jona."

The four of us looked around at each other. My stomach sank.

"Thanks, Bryson," Nick said. We hurried out the gate and out towards Cuddiedig Cliff and, hopefully, Jona.

My anxiety didn't abate any on the rush through Tywill Cave. I managed to trip over a knocktopus's tentacles, thoroughly irritating it. As I scrambled away and the thing lunged for me, Cristine jumped forwards, drawing her fan and slicing through a tentacle in one smooth motion. Feminine as she could be at times, the girl was every bit as skilled in a fight as she was on the stage.

Suddenly feeling the need to lash out, I uncoiled my whip and snapped it at the knocktopus. The whip cut deep into the monster's knobby head with a satisfying noise. I smiled grimly.

As soon as it dissolved into the usual purple dust, we headed onwards.

Cuddiedig Cliff was all the way through the cave and out again into the warm spring sunshine. Normally, the warmth would have made me smile, but right then I was too worried. Which was strange. This was a bad situation, sure, but the severity shouldn't have been enough to have my stomach knotted up and my nerves on edge like they were.

Jona was standing near the edge of the cliff, facing the sea. Mayor Bryce was beside her.

"There's beautiful, eh, love?" he asked. As my nerves increased to near breaking point, I realised what it was. Somehow, the songs had vanished, but the emotions were still there. Cristine, Nick, Erik, Jona – they were all worried, even frightened in Jona's case.

Mayor Bryce was still talking. "I fancy you'll be able to clear youer head a bit by here and then we can have a tidy little chat."

Jona looked down wordlessly, her whole body rigid. Her fear curled into a hard knot in the pit of my stomach.

Bryce put a hand on the girl's shoulder, and, impossibly, she tensed further. "You must be awful tired, what with all the summonin' we've had you doin' lately, eh, you pooer thing," he said in a soothing tone. "Well, I wanted you to know that if you give youer Uncle Bryce the word, I'll see that the summonin' stops tomorrow. I'll just tell everyone in the village that you've lost the power to call Lleviathan. Simple, see?"

Everyone looked at Mayor Bryce in shock, including Jona. "Mr Mayor, I…"

"And then," Mayor Bryce said, still in a soothing tone, "you can pop down by here with me once in a while, and we can have a little summon in secret. There's all kinds of coral and pearls and such at the bottom of the ocean, see. And all that treasure in them sunken ships too. You could be askin' Lleviathan to bring the likes of that up for you now, couldn't you? Instead of borin' old fish, eh?"

Jona pulled away, staring at the mayor with a look of indignant shock mirrored in my mind. "Pearls?" she asked incredulously. "Treasure? Mr Mayor! I can't believe I'm hearin' this! Outrageous, it is!"

The way Mayor Bryce leaned in was meant to be comforting, but Jona was only unnerved. "Now, now, love," he said. "Don't get all het up. I only meant every once in a while. Whenever youer feelin' up to it, like. Just think how much happier we'd all be. All rich and contended, like."

Jona froze, shock turning to confusion. The others felt the same way, too. I didn't know what I felt – I couldn't pick my own emotions out of this bloody melee. That was unnerving!

Erik glanced at me, and nudged me slightly. I jumped as concern poured into me, and I pulled away sharply. More confusion joined the mix now – not as strong as the concern from the touch, but more. I tried to block it all out and keep my attention on Jona and Bryce.

"Rich…?" Jona asked, blinking slowly. And then, more hesitantly, "Contented…?"

"That's right, bach," Bryce said gently. "And all you have to do is accept that youer father isn't comin' home and let me adopt you, see."

A sudden shock turned my stomach over.

"Simple. I'll be youer new father, love. There's tidy, eh?"

Jona was already shaking her head, seeming about ready to back away. "No!" she snapped. "Youer not my dad, and you never will be!"

The ground started to rumble beneath our feet as hot anger went through me.

"My dad's –"

"Er…Erik…." Stella said, looking out towards the ocean.

Before he could say anything, there was an almighty splash, and a giant fish burst out of the sea and landed on the edge of the cliff, glaring down out of yellow eyes. Jona and I stumbled back and fell over from shock. Cristine knelt down beside me and helped me up. I tried not to recoil from the rush of emotion that came with her touch.

We hurried forwards to see Mayor Bryce genuflecting in front of the fish. I restrained the urge to snort derisively.

"O mighty Lleviathan!" he cried. "Thank You! You heard ouer callin' and You've come to bless us with Youer help again!" Then he glanced over at Jona, who was still on the ground. "Come on, Jona, start prayin'. Ask Lleviathan to go and bring us some treasure by here!"

Lleviathan didn't seem to like that idea. It roared angrily, blowing Bryce backwards so he landed on his back. He screamed like a girl, I realised.

Then the fish reared up, exposing its red underside.

"J-Jona!"

Lleviathan jumped, mouth open, and came down to snatch Jona up in its jaws. Bryce scrambled away, not wanting to be next. My head was reeling. Terror, shock, anger – I didn't know whether I wanted to run away screaming or hack away at everything in sight.

Stella unwittingly made herself my first target if I decided on the latter option. "Yikes!" she exclaimed. "That was a bite from the blue! Something seriously fishy's going on here…"

"That's my line," Cristine murmured. "Come on! We have to get Jona out of there!"

We raced forwards, past the still-shocked Mayor Bryce, and started to fight the fish. I felt like I was being swept along in the tide of emotions, only doing what I was because the influence of my friends was strongest. I wasn't sure I'd have even been able to move otherwise. As it was, I was acting purely on instinct and habit, unable to summon any reason to use instead. My brain was overwhelmed. My body was the only thing working properly.

But, working with Nick, Erik, and Cristine, it was enough. Moving together in a way that wouldn't have been possible without the dozen or so battles we had under our belts together – not even mentioning the four years Cristine and I had spent fighting together – we managed to surround Lleviathan, threatening him from all sides so he couldn't focus on any one of us at a time. Dimly, I recognised that the emotions were doing the same thing with me.

I whipped the fish's sides, causing it to rear up, roaring in pain. Erik dug the razor claws on his left hand into the soft flesh on Lleviathan's underside and ripped upwards, scoring deep scratches that extended nearly three feet long as he scrambled back and the fish came back down to land. Lleviathan roared again, struggled for a moment, and then rolled onto its side, growing still. Its mouth fell open to reveal a terrified Jona, kneeling, with her eyes squeezed shut.

When she realised the battle was over, she blinked, rose shakily, and walked out of the fish's mouth. Then she glanced back. "I…I'm fine…" she murmured, surprised.

Then she looked at us. "Youer not hurt, are you?"

I shook my head along with the others, feeling relieved as the wild storm of emotions started to abate. I could think again!

Jona started moving towards us. Then Lleviathan's eyes gleamed, and a thrill of horror went through me. As it roared, Jona's eyes went wide and she whirled around. "Aaaaaah!" she screamed, seeing the fish lunge towards us. Then, to my shock, she stepped back and flung her arms out in front of us. "No!" she yelled. "P-Please! Don't hurt them!"

Lleviathan stopped flat, looking at Jona in what I could only describe as surprise. "But they're some of Mayor Bryce's stooges, aren't they?"

All of us stared at it – no, him, the voice was definitely male – and the amount of shock in everyone's brains threatened to overwhelm me again. This time, when I struggled to block it out, I dimly thought that I'd had a bit more success.

But more than anyone else's surprise was Jona's. She stared at Lleviathan, her blue eyes wide. "Y-Youer voice…!"

A soft, gentle blue light materialised over Lleviathan's head, and he grew still. The light resolved itself into the shape of a tall, muscular man with a moustache, ponytail, and short beard. I knew the sudden jolt of recognition and joy I felt wasn't mine.

"Da…Dad?" Jona whispered. "Dad!" She raced forwards and stopped in front of the fish, gazing up at her father with such a powerful feeling of relief and the now-familiar gentle emotion that I felt my eyes start to tear up. I didn't begrudge her seeing her father again – at that moment I literally could not have been happier for her, sharing her emotions as I was – but Almighty, this was annoying! I hated crying, and now here I was doing it for an emotion that I'd never felt myself. Certainly I'd never felt it for my own father – the heartless prat had probably been happy when he'd realised I'd run off. I knew I had been.

"Dylan!" exclaimed Mayor Bryce. "What in the name of…!?"

"What is it?" squawked Stella. "What the flap's going on!?"

Dylan was looking at us. "I'm sorry for what I've put you trav'llers through," he said. Then he looked at his daughter, and care bloomed across his rough features. "And Jona, bach… I can't tell you 'ow sorry I am for all the pain I've caused you."

He looked up. "That night of the storm I was thrown tidy from the boat, like. Then all of a sudden, this golden fruit drops down next to me. Fadin', I was, good an' fast, so I just grabbed hold of it, see. All I could think of was you, Jona –" he looked back down at her, "– back there on the shore. I was thinkin' 'ow you'd get on without me, you bein' still such a young dab an' all… And out there that day, right in the middle of the ocean, I died. Only, next thing I know… I'm not dead at all, I'm swimmin' round lookin' like a big old whale. Shocked, I was, I don't afto tell you!"

Jona was staring up at her father, extremely confused. "I… I don't…"

She may not have understood, but I did. Erik, Nick, Cristine and I exchanged glances. I could read the same thing in each person's face: a fygg!

"I was bringin' all those fish by the village there so's you wouldn't afto go without, love," Dylan said. "I never thought it would bring all the rest of those gannets runnin' like it did… I've kept out of it 'til now, but enough is enough. Come on, love, let's leave this greedy village and its rotter of a mayor behind. You won't afto worry about nothin' once we're away from by here. I'll take care of you from now on."

"Oh, Dad…" Jona whispered, shaking her head sadly. "I can't. I, I just can't do that. I want to stay by here and help with the fishin', see." Her voice shook a little, but there was an edge of strength to the sadness. "I afto learn to stand on my own two feet. I've watched you workin' away all these years, and now it's my turn. I'll be the tidiest fisherman Porth Llaffan's ever known, just you wait and see."

I practically felt her swallow.

"I'll make you proud, Dad," she said quietly, looking up at him with such a strong rush of the gentle emotion that I thought I was going to cry. "I can't go on relyin' on you forever. It's time I started makin' my own way in the world. You understand, don't you…?"

"J-Jona…" Dylan murmured, looking down at her.

Then I heard Bryson's voice from behind us: "Jooonaaaaaa!"

He sprinted up the steps and stopped beside Jona, breathing heavily. Jona blinked. "Bryson?" she asked. "Whatever are you doin' out by here?"

"Are you alright?" he gasped, massaging a stitch in his side. "I-I'm sorry about my dad… I was sick beyond worryin' about you, I was. I had to come after you." Then he caught sight of Dylan, and his eyes went wide. "That's… That's youer dad, isn't it?"

Jona nodded. After several seconds adjusting to the new development, Bryson turned to look at the ghost of Jona's father.

"You can rely on me, sir," he said, straightening his shoulders, determined to make a good impression. "I'm no flag. I'll look after youer daughter when I grow up."

Jona looked at him, and I didn't need the broad smile spreading across her features to realise how happy that made her. "Bryson…"

Then she looked at her father. "Thank you so much for becomin' Lleviathan so you could carry on lookin' after me, Dad," she said. "But I'm alright now, see…"

Dylan looked at her for a long moment, a funny expression on his face – half-sad, half-proud. "Jona… I was so caught up worryin' about lookin' after my little girl that I never realised she'd grown into a fine young woman… If I'd only stopped to notice, I'd never afto 'ave caused you all so much trouble… I know you can do it, love, so I'm takin' you at youer word. I'll be watchin' over you every step of the way, mind." He smiled. "Good luck makin' youer own way in the world, bach. And goodbye…"

There was a bright gleam and a sudden upswing in the gentle emotion. As it died away, I felt a hole open up inside me, and the tears that had been massing in my eyes suddenly spilled over. Gone again…

"Look, Erik!" exclaimed Stella. "A fygg!"

I blinked and looked up to see a fygg floating down towards us from where Dylan's ghost had been hovering. Erik took it and put it in his bag.

Bryson hurried over to us. "Thank you ever so much," he said. "You really helped everyone in the village out." Then he turned to look at Jona. "Jona. D'you want to head back now?"

Jona was silent for a moment, staring out over the ocean. "Mmm…" she murmured. Then she turned and walked towards Bryson. Erik, Nick, Cristine and I looked at each other, and I rubbed viciously at my face to wipe away the tears as we turned to follow them back to the village.


I was in the forest again. This time, I wasn't disoriented. I knew exactly who and where I was. And I knew what I needed to do.

Hello? I called, starting to search through the trees. Please, where are you? I need to talk to you!

I am here, Tamara.

As soon as I heard the voice, I relaxed a little. I turned to look at a tree to my right. That was the source of the voice, I realised.

A sense of approval washed over me. You are more perceptive.

Yes, I am, I replied. Why is that?

Powers grow stronger when they spend time in their sources.

I blinked. Wait, you mean –?

Amusement emanated from the tree. You seem so shocked, my child, chuckled the voice. Is it so surprising?

Erm…yes, I said, and laughed a little. What does it mean if my powers came from here? Is empathy even really a "power"?

All things can be considered powers, Tamara, she replied. Your abilities, in particular. Few people can see ghosts, after all; few can sense the emotions of others; fewest of all can see the vanished wings and halo of a Celestrian. I would certainly call that a power.

Um, okay, I said. Then I paused, basking in the warmth of the forest and the gentle pulse of emotions around me. What do I do about it? It's not always exactly pleasant.

What do you do about your own emotions when you need to regain control?

I snorted. Go off on my own and try to calm down.

There was a sense of slight exasperation from the woman. That is not what you need to do, she told me. Remember what I told you: you were not meant to be alone. No one who can share in others' emotions can live out their life on their own.

I've done pretty well so far. But, far from sounding rebellious, it just came out sad. Which was pretty much the same way I felt about it.

Tamara. The woman seemed to be done. You must go now; it is nearly time for you to awake. Keep in mind what I said. You cannot live alone.

Wait! I exclaimed as the forest started to fade. Tell me one more thing!

What?

What's your name?

The woman didn't sigh, but I could feel her quiet resignation. Very well, my child, she said. My name is Aegil.

My eyes went wide. The last of the forest faded into darkness, but my mind didn't stop reeling. Because I knew that name.

I'd asked Dad once about why my middle name was so weird. He said it had been my mum's name.

My middle name was Aegil.


And now I officially feel like a slug...urgh, I feel like I've taken so long to update this chapter! There's just a lot going on - our teachers have decided that the last three weeks of school make the perfect time for project-assigning, and I've got this apprenticeship at the local theatre. I love it there, but it leaves me with pretty much no time. I wrote almost this whole thing yesterday afternoon, at the coffee house thing we have before youth group. And then, of course, I didn't have time to proofread before bed, so here I am on Wednesday at almost eight o'clock, just now updating, and I haven't even gotten to watch the season finale of Hawaii Five-0 yet...

Okay, sorry, ignore my complaining. See, this is why I write - my characters might have hard times, but they, at least don't have to deal with school and work!

May all the bodies of the heavens watch over you.