"'Amongst the Village of the Stars lies an evil creature. This beast, sometimes taking the form of a bear and other times the form of a woman, bribes our citizens with temptation. Countless people that have witnessed this creature have fled our small forest town in the middle of the night, never to return. High payment to the wizards who bring this beast to us alive,'" Vanya read from a crinkled flyer as we made our way to our next job. We traveled by cart this time; the Frost Tribe insisted on not only providing our transportation for our job, but taking our reward from them back to the guild. Our load was so heavy at this point that the back of the wooden cart almost dragged the ground.

"Village of the Stars? I knew this route looked familiar," our driver spoke. Though we were far away from the mountain at this point, he still wore his heavy coat.

"Do you know a lot about them?" I questioned, peeking my head out of the front opening in order to hear the man better. He turned around and looked at me for a brief second before shrugging his shoulders.

"They are more reclusive than our tribe, if you can imagine that. I once traveled out there to trade with one of their merchants. Odd people. As soon as my business was finished, they sent me off without so much as a farewell. They were not rude, only very secretive," the man explained. I had to admit, that struck me as odd, too. Since I had known Vanya, I had visited many tribes and villages, all of them being very hospitable. Maybe they would react to us differently considering we were going to be helping them.

"I see," I replied, sitting squarely in the cart once more. "So, Vanya, what made you choose this job? It doesn't sound like people are actually getting hurt at all." She looked up at me from the flyer, a puzzled look resting in her eyes.

"Something about this does not bode well with me," she muttered. I waited for her to elaborate, but she said nothing else.

I looked out the side window and watched as Eldrid glided on the warm breeze. Her orange and red feathers floated softly in the autumn air. I listened as she chirped out a sweet and melodic song that contained no words but immense meaning. She looked so much happier than the first time I saw her, caged and helpless. When she saw that I was watching her, Eldrid flashed me a smile and flew back into the carriage. She perched carefully in the seat beside me as not to damage the cushions that we sat on.

"You sing beautifully, Little Bird," Vanya spoke. Elle instantly sat up a little straighter, chirping a couple more notes.

"Thank you, Princess Vanya!" Eldrid chirped modestly. I scratched Elrdid's back, making her let out a long and contented chirp.

As we rode on, the scenery began to change. We had started out in the brisk mountain air, moving at a slow pace due to the snow. Now we were moving at a very swift speed, leaves and trees only blurs as we passed by. The smell of the forest always enticed me with its mystery while also giving me a feeling of nostalgia. Most of my life had been spent in the woods, but not the same ones we now traveled through. No, the leafy canopy that I called home for a majority of my years was in a faraway world, one that I almost hoped to forget.

It was as I replayed my past in my head that we slowed in pace. I looked over at Vanya for a moment and she nodded toward the window. When I stuck out my head, I realized that we were approaching a new village, one that was far different than the one that we had just come from. Much land had been cleared away to make room for this town that seemed to spread forever in the middle of the trees that bordered it. Huts made of bark and leaves spiraled from the outside of the camp to the inside, where a large and elaborate housing structure stood with a totem pole looming in front of it. The place had a tense air about it, almost warlike in nature. The only people that were out were two guards that stood and the village's entrance, large spears in hand. As we came closer, I saw that they were very simply clad, wearing clothing made from the same tanned fabric Vanya wore, only they also had many feathers adorning their heads. Their faces were stern and unwavering. We halted at the entranceway when the two warriors blocked our way with their spears.

"No outsiders are allowed," one man said sternly and emotionless. I looked over at Vanya and nodded before we both got out of the carriage. Instinctually, the man that had spoken lunged his spear towards me. I grabbed it right before it pierced my throat, immediately burning it to ashes.

"Now, now… I do believe you are getting a little carried away," I crooned. For a split second, the man's eyes gave a glint before he backed off.

"You must be the wizards that are to rid us of our dilemma," the other man spoke as his partner backed away from me.

"That's us! Princess Vanya, Lady June, and me! I'm Eldrid!" Elle sang, bolting out of the cart and flying to my shoulder.

"Well, yes. I am sure the chief would like to have a word with you. Akio shall retrieve any luggage from your mode of transport and transfer it to your lodging. I, Haruka, will take you to our leader," the second warrior spoke. I glanced over at the Frost Tribe member and raised an eyebrow. He replied with a slight nod and a shrug. This must have been what he meant. No real hospitality to outsiders, I thought.

Head down, Akio began to unpack the carriage. Vanya, Eldrid, and I gave our thanks to the man who carried us such a great distance before being led though the village. At this point, the sun was setting, giving the surrounding forest a stunning glow. However, something was amiss with the rest of the land. The civilized part of the area seemed to be shrouded in darkness. Even Eldrid seemed to notice, going from fluttering and singing to huddling into my neck. Vanya and I glanced at each other, both noticing the same thing.

"So, may you give us some background on the village as we pass through?" Vanya spoke.

No response.

Vanya and I glanced at each other again. How odd it was for Haruka to not even give so much as a nod or a grunt in acknowledgement. These people did seem off, that much seemed certain.

As the four of us came to the middle of the village where the totem and large hut loomed, I noticed two men, standing in front of the abode. One was a large and burly man, muscular and clad in tattoos. His eyes were flaming red and piercing, black and curly hair hanging down to his broad shoulders. Arms were crossed in front of his defined chest as if to show us what immense strength he possessed. The other man seemed to be his exact opposite; he was short and wiry with pale blue eyes. The shorter of the two seemed weary and concerned, wringing his hands and looking from side to side. His salt and pepper hair seemed to stand on end.

"That is far enough, young wizards," the larger one spoke. The four of us stopped in place, quite a few feet away from the two. "I assume you are all here in attempts to rid us of our beast?"

"That is right," Vanya replied, speaking cautiously.

"I do suppose your lot will do. I am Haji, and this is my brother, Gen. We both lead this tribe and attempt to protect it as best we can. It does seem that we need your assistance at this point in time, though," Haji explained, not wavering in his defensive stance.

"I understand. Why don't we discuss more details about your problems before we start our search in the morning?" I questioned cheerfully. I felt Vanya tense as soon as the words came out of my mouth. I glanced over at her and saw her head bowed, as if she were ready to face punishment.

"N-no! Absolutely not, you will leave now!" Gen shouted in such a way that made all of us, including Haruka, flinch. The only one that kept their composure was Haji.

"My brother is correct. The job flyer we sent to the guild was all of the explaining that is needed. Return by darkness tomorrow with the creature or we shall find someone more qualified to do the job. It always appears to the east of the village, so I suggest going out that way. Well, on with you, then. You have fewer hours than you think," Haji told us before he and his brother went inside of their hut. Vanya and I looked at each other and then behind us to see that Haruka was walking back to the tribe's entrance.

"These people are not friendly..," Eldrid muttered. I took her from my shoulder and held the Phoenix in my arms.

"There is for sure more than meets the eye," I responded under my breath. Vanya nodded in agreement as we began to walk east.

It wasn't long before it was too dark for any of us to see. Just as I had when we had traveled up the mountain, I willed orbs of fire to dance in my palms. Despite how weary we all were from the journey to the village, we knew that we didn't have much time to complete the job. Why we were on such time constraints was beyond us.

"Do you think they just want the bear lady gone? I mean she sounds pretty scary, and maybe that's why they seemed so unwelcoming," Eldrid proposed from atop my shoulder.

"I suppose it is possible, but the man that brought us here told us that they had always been this way," Vanya countered. "Maybe they just prefer to keep things within the tribe, which I understand. That is how my own tribe does business. However, we always show some sort of kindness to outsiders when they do business with us."

As the two continued to discuss, I looked around us. The ground showed no tracks, bear or human, and the trees had no markings that would indicate bear territory. I guess I could see how someone could wander into a "trap" like this one. Though, that being said, I had a feeling that there was no trap at all. No, there was some other force behind all of this.

"Juniper?" Vanya's voice broke through my thoughts. I took my mind away from my ponderings and looked over at her apologetically. She gave a smirk back at me. "Ah, I see your wheels turning. You must have a hunch of what is going on here."

"I just have a feeling this 'beast' isn't what is causing the trouble, but unless we return with something, we will never be able to talk to the people in the tribe to get their side of the story. Did it not seem odd to you that it was early evening and yet not one person was out of their home?" I spoke, more to myself than the others.

"Why yes, I did think of that, but only briefly. The question is, what story must we conjure up in order to be able to delve into the town's history? It is quite troublesome," Vanya replied.

After Vanya's statement we continued to walk in the darkness, only occasionally making comments in hushed tones. Every once in a while, a bare footprint of a human or a dog would show up, but it was never anything too major at all. Nothing to raise suspicion. As the moon rose to its highest point in the sky, the three of us became weary. Eldrid was able to doze in and out atop my shoulder, but even this was not enough to keep her peppy attitude. Though I was tired, I was somewhat used to long nights, especially due to staying away from nightmares. Vanya seemed to have in the hardest, suddenly stopping every so often to gather her wits.

"Vanya, why don't we take a break? I know time is limited, but none of us are any use walking around like corpses," I tried to persuade her. Arms crossed, she just shook her head sternly. I sighed, knowing that there was no persuading her. I felt Eldrid's talons sink into my shoulder in frustration, her feathers beginning to puff up.

"If these people had just told us what to look out for, I could fly up and find out where this thing was, but no! There are a million bears and women in the world, and they couldn't give us one unique detail?! This job is stupid!" Elle squawked out. The frogs around us stopped croaking, the crickets ceasing their singing. Eldrid looked around after her outburst, clearly embarrassed. "Sorry," she mumbled.

"No, no, Eldrid! In fact..," I began.

"Her wheels are turning again," Vanya chuckled.

"I guess you could say that," I smirked. "Eldrid, how good are you at flying blind?"

"S-say what?" she sputtered out. I heard Vanya give a short laugh.

"Hear me out. If you fly me up, I can light up the sky with Leo's magic. So much so that we should be able to see the whole land."

"But what difference does that make? We're still looking for one bear in the midst of a hundred, maybe even a thousand in these big woods!"

"True… But there are very few tribe members out at this hour, right? If we're questioning this village's morals from knowing them less than a day, surely there are people that are out seeking the truth after living there their whole lives. And we roughly know what attire they wear, we just need a bird's-eye view," I explained.

"I can accompany, as well. You may both be blinded temporarily with the immense amount of light, but I can keep an eye out for the person we may find," Vanya added. I nodded in agreement as Eldrid flew from my shoulder. She was wide awake now, ready for a little bit of action. Vanya began to transform into her Wyvern Queen once again.

"Come on, we don't have forever! Up we go!" Eldrid chirped, grabbing onto the collar of my shirt and flying upward before I even had a chance to comment. That was one thing I could always count on the Phoenix for, being ready to go at a moment's notice. The brisk night air wrapped around us and Eldrid and I spiraled upward, Vanya coming in close behind.

"Alright, let's see if I can remember how he did this..," I muttered to myself. I bent my right arm, fist up toward the sky. I rested my left hand on my bicep, immediately feeling a new power coursing through me. "O, Regulus..," I began to chant, "… Grant me your strength!"

I threw my right hand upwards into the sky as a fierce beam of light rained down. It went into my body and ran through my veins with almost a comforting coolness. In what felt like an instant, I felt like my whole body was nothing but light. It was at that point that I balled my hand back into a fist and redirected it at the ground. Saying a silent prayer that this would work in the way Leo had always done, I opened my hand back up.

Blinding whiteness.

For a moment, I almost lost control. I quickly grabbed my wrist with my left hand, using all of my muscle power to keep the light going straight down so it would have a chance to spread outward and reveal the land. Elle's talons sank through my collar and into my neck as she tried to keep us in place. I heard Vanya's immense wings flapping swiftly around us as she searched the ground. I heard her make some exclamation but could not make out what it was. I called out for her, panicked, before I felt her clawed hand grab my shoulder.

"Keep going, Juniper!" she shouted. "Eldrid, release her!"

"Wh—"

"Eldrid, trust her!" I interrupted her opposition. Without so much as a peep, I felt her hard grip release. When she did so, Vanya's grip on my shoulder tightened as we plummeted toward the ground. My eyes were still unable to process the area ahead as I felt myself being directed around obstacles at a painfully quick pace. In moments that seemed like decades, I heard Vanya's voice ring out loud and clear.

"Found you!"

As the last of the light vanished from the spell, we hit what felt like a brick wall. The three of us rolled along the forest floor until we finally came to a halt. Vanya's grip was released from my shoulder as she was thrown to the side. I could feel my body resting on top of something, but it still took my eyes a minute to catch up with my other senses.

I heard a dog barking close by, but not in a malicious way. I smelled what almost seemed to be burning wood and leaves. My shaky hands grabbed what was beneath me. Cool, bare skin.

Finally, after straining my eyes to see, I was just able to make out a blurry figure beneath me. His clear eyes seemed surprised, his expression not nearly as hardened as the others had been.

"Akio?!" I exclaimed, pulling myself shakily off of him. He sat up and began rubbing the back of his neck in embarrassment.

"It seems as though I have been found out, does it not?" he muttered, giving a weary smile.

"Found out?" I began. "What do you—"

"Akio, are you alright? Akio!" I heard a rushed female voice approach. Brush parted next to us, revealing the woman whose voice had come from the shadows. I held out my hand to form a small flame and made out her thick and muscular frame. Her brown hair rested right below her shoulders in ringlets, her body clad in think, brown fur over her chest and waist. Her eyes were round and wide in shock. Somehow, her appearance was familiar to me, but I could not for the life of me remember why. We held each other's gaze for a moment, like a wild animal and a human trying to speculate what the next move should be.

The dog barked again, this time close enough to bring rustling with it. Not long after it jumped from the bushes with Vanya and Eldrid following right behind. At this distraction, my gaze broke with the woman's as she covered her eyes. Her form began to waver, the fur that clothed her wrapping around her whole body. Hands and feet began to resemble colossal paws, ears migrating to the top of her head while growing smaller, a snout forming in place of a nose. As this happened, none of us moved. None of us breathed. Even the forest creatures stopped their movement as the bear formed in front of our eyes. When her new form had been achieved, she set all four paws on the ground, revealing the same scared eyes that were there when she first appeared. She quickly looked at all of us and backed away slightly. She wanted to bolt, but I had to say something to make her stay.

As she quickly turned around to run away, it hit me.

"Callisto."