"Any plan?" Aster shouted over the screaming.

"Hold on tight," I shouted back. I leapt onto a statue by the fountain, then onto the nearest low roof. Tiles scrabbling beneath my feet, I leapt to the next tallest roof, then to the SPD temple itself. Its steep roof made climbing difficult with the sliding tiles, but I made it to the roof's peak. Pumping hot air into my bones, I flung out my wings and jumped from the top of the temple.

Hot air carried me upward, past the tip of the temple's tallest tower. I was more floating than flying, but I guided my floating by flapping my wings and splaying my tail feathers in one direction or another. Aster's grip tightened on my neck as the air grew thin and my ascension slowed. The city was a map sketched on a napkin far below me.

"Where are you going?" Aster called over the wind whistling through my feathers.

I wasn't exactly sure. Going back to the inn would no doubt bring unwanted attention with us. I would have to land outside the city and walk back in. Where would be the best place to land?

I scanned the part of the city perimeter I could see. The road we'd come into town on was still relatively vacant, just a single cart that would pass soon enough. I could land there.

Movement caught my eye, and I lazily drifted toward it. Far below, a train was coming into the city. Hmm, I'd forgotten those existed. They weren't super common back home, and Shade had never talked much about them being a big deal on Mystica. It was entirely possible this rail line hadn't existed when he lived here. Not that he'd lived in the physical realm, really. He'd only observed it in the memories of sleeping Mysticans.

If we were lucky, we could hitch a ride on the train and make better time than a steamboat going to the next place the portal would open. We might have to jump on the roof or sneak into a storage car, though, since I hadn't had a chance to sell my feathers to Neza. Then again, we could make a pit stop at his place before heading out of town. One full-sized phoenix feather should be more than enough to pay for our passage.

I bugled happily, already imagining a comfortable trip all the way to the next portal. At this rate, we would get there early and have plenty of time for a well-earned vacation and to plan what we were going to tell our families before we went home.

Angling my wings and tail, I headed toward the road we'd taken into town. The cart I'd seen had already made its way into the city, leaving the road free for me to land on. Wanting to dive but unwilling to risk Aster falling off, I lazily spiraled down to the ground.

"I'm going to need that coat. Put the translation charm in the pocket; you can't go walking around with it uncovered." When he scowled, I added, "Don't worry, Vance and Izzy are supposed to be picking up more clothes for us. Then you can wear the charm to your heart's content."

He reluctantly took off the coat and charm. I gestured for him to turn around, and he did.

I plucked a dinner-plate-sized chest feather to sell. Feeling more energy-filled than I had since we got to Mystica, I shapeshifted in record time to my human form and threw on the coat. Immediately regretting the decision to try and be inconspicuous, I danced from one freezing foot to the other. I moved as close to Aster as I could without literally standing on his feet. My frozen digits greatly appreciated his warm aura.

"Okay, first we stop off at Neza's to offload this, then we'll have enough for train fare, then it'll be easy sailing all the way to the portal." I knew I was being overly optimistic—something would undoubtedly come up to delay our travel—but whatever it was couldn't be nearly as bad as what we'd faced so far.

We started into town, walking close and in tandem.

"What's it like where we're going?"

"Kadelt's a tropical island but scarier, so not great. The good thing is, the man-eating plants aren't a fan of fire, and I can make fire."

"We can make fire, if you'll let me."

I laughed. "I'm full to the brim with magic, but I wouldn't recommend using it in town. People might freak out." Even the idea of terrifying strangers couldn't bring down my mood. I'd known I hadn't been feeling great, but I'd forgotten what it was like to feel really good.

As we headed through the market toward the inn, I had to fight against the desire to skip ahead of Aster. Getting frostbite would probably be more than enough to break my good mood. So might the yowling cat I heard down a side alley. It sounded like it was really hurting. I didn't want to get in the middle of a cat fight, but Aster's thick hide could probably take their claws without any trouble. No, I didn't want to get off track.

"Mars," a strident voice cried from the alley. It sounded like Fleck—or maybe Izzy—but either way, she was definitely in trouble.

Aster and I ran down the alley and bolted around a corner. Even at my top speed, I fell behind and felt the pain of my frozen feet against the cobblestones.

All of a sudden, Aster stopped and held out his arm to keep me back. The sight of him growing half a foot taller and sprouting horns made my heart skip a beat. Something was wrong, something I couldn't sense as a human. This alley was narrow enough that I would be practically useless if I transformed all the way.

I peeked out from behind Aster to see Neza standing in the middle of the alley, holding Fleck aloft by the scruff of her neck. His scaly hood was spread all the way, his eyes had narrowed to slits, and he brandished a small silver torch and a gold cuff on the opposite wrist as if they were proper weapons.

I could transform halfway, to give me a layer of warmth and protection from whatever attack he might unleash, but I didn't want to risk letting him see me do it. The emerald kapi had been excited and practically reverent when he found out about me, but I highly doubted Neza would be. He seemed like the kind of guy who'd like to lock me in a basement and use me like a golden sheep.

Claws fully extended, Aster advanced on Neza. "Let her go."

"Of course. I have no stomach for harming kittens." He tossed Fleck aside, and she scrambled to hide behind me. Neza's tail rattled against the brick wall beside him. "Dragons, on the other hand..." He tilted his cuff from side to side, sending blue-white flames dancing across its surface. "Harming them is quite lucrative."

Tucking the feather I'd plucked in my coat, I moved to stand so I could see him more clearly around Aster. "I told you before, I don't know where my boss's phoenix is. I never saw her."

"Is that so? Pity, I'd hoped to test this little beauty before delivering it to Ren. Ah, well." He started to turn away.

My gut told me to shut up and leave, but I had to know. "Ren Witherspoon?"

"Yes." He paused, the corners of his mouth tilting up. "You know him?"

"We've met. When did he order the torch?" Maybe it was an old order; Ren hadn't made it recently, so that meant he was still dead. I didn't have to worry about him.

"Two days ago. It's a shame about his sister, isn't it?" His voice was cool, calculated—not sympathetic at all.

I hadn't fooled him. He knew I knew where the dragon was, and he wasn't going to let me out of this alley without handing her over. That much I could tell from the way his cuff was still flaming. How could I convince him to let us go? Simple—a bluff that wasn't exactly a bluff.

"Yeah, it's a right shame. We'll be leaving now. Boss's got us testing some flame artifacts." I held out one hand and tapped the sleeve of my coat with the other, summoning a ball of fire as I did.

Neza's torch flared, sparked, and sputtered out. He raised his brows. "I suppose I'll have a chance to test it after all."