As soon as they were back, she knew this was home. They had been gone for a while now and it felt both infinite and miniscule but she felt satisfied with what they had home. Their family, all of them, were living happily together. For the first time in a while she felt content, the guilt leaving her heart as she thought about how happy Arty was and how big he had grown.

Soaring next to her best friend in the mid-afternoon sky, she felt light-hearted and excited. No more doubts or worries getting in her way, she was ready to settle down and commit herself to becoming a member of a herd. Though she had known that she had grown attached to those in the Edge, returning confirmed all her thoughts. Yes, this was home.

The painted pair make to land in the Fields to rest for a moment or two before moving onto the Edge, to home. She so looked forward to seeing Kahlua again, to proving that she had kept her promise, but even as she was thinking of the reunion her stomach plummeted. There was an unnatural darkness sweeping over the land, shadows consuming everything they could, and bringing fear with it.

It had been so long since fear gripped her heart as it did in that moment. Helovia was supposed to be safe, was supposed to be free of demons. For that was the first thing that popped into her mind – that the demons were crawling out of the earth and that they were here, here to take over and turn this world into yet another made of darkness. Maybe they had followed them, eager to find a new land to destroy.

And what, she wondered, would their return mean for her companion.

He had not had the manners of a demon but she would not wish reverting to that state on anyone.

She was certain he would not be able to hear her yell over top of the thunder of her own heartbeat, never mind the wind and the rustle of their wings. “We have to get to the Edge!” She knew the thought would have come to him as well – they had friends there. Did they know about the darkness consuming the lands? And then came the worse fears: that perhaps the Edge already knew and had fallen. They circled above the glass wall and the herd, looking for signs of life among the trees but it was too difficult to tell – nothing stood out clearly.

Following Mikey’s lead, they landed in the grassy meadow near the cliffs – the clear autumn sky giving a deceptively sunny backdrop to what she was sure was anything but a cheerful day. As they stand there in the brown autumn grass she felt sick with worry. Kahlua, Brisa, Resplendence and everyone – they were not her children but she felt protective of them as if they were part of her family, no matter how little she knew them. They mattered to someone, and so they mattered to her. She only hoped it wasn’t too late.

But there was still that little bit of hope – that maybe everything was fine. Maybe the Fields in the mountains routinely were consumed with thick darkness – there was certainly magic here, it would not be completely out of the question.

Words choke in her throat as she forces herself to hang onto those hopeful thoughts. It cannot possibly be as bad as it seemed.