Kahlest landed gracefully on the Aerie balcony used by Ondrea Taan. She wanted to say something, but was instantly hushed by the total and complete silence inside the rock backed room.

No one was inside. She could hear breathing if need be, sense turmoil if there was any to sense. There was none. The room was starkly silent, not giving away any clue to its occupant's whereabouts. She took another step. The tiny jeweled box the dragon had been living in, was lying on the table. She crossed to it, and carefully lifted it. Her eyes darted around to make sure Ondrea wasn't coming, or her mother for that matter. But when she lifted the box, she instantly knew it was empty. There was no movement within. Nothing.

A slam accompanied the scratch of broken wood. The ancient hinge went skittering across the table and onto the floor. Where was Ondrea? Where was her mother? Where was the dragon?

They'd asked for her help, and on second consideration, she'd decided to take them up on their desire for assistance. She would take them to the sea shore, leave them there, and be that much closer to Quildor's marching army and to the Mountain called Sentinel that housed the dragon, Talisman. She would engage Quildor, or she would capture this dragon, both things were a threat to Valdemar.

But now, Ondrea and Mathilde were gone.

She whirled around. They had gone to the sea by themselves! They had gone on without her!

One arm slashed out and wiped the countertop clean of all accouterments, a dish, a candle, several glasses. It all crashed with a satisfying shattering noise that fueled her anger. "I am left out of preparations for war, neglected and overlooked as a viable source of aerial strategy! Even more, I am left behind."

"Kahlest."

She whirled again, her dagger drawn, and recognized her oldest sister Tabitha. The dagger slipped back into its sheath. "What are you doing here?" She didn't exactly trust Tabitha who had left the Aerie, and flown away as a bird. She'd come to her several times, hoping that Kahlest would join them higher up in the hills where they'd started their own small colony.

Kahlest's fight was very real, it included preserving her family, her city, and her state. She had no intention of using her powers simply for her own benefit.

"Tabitha."

"I'll be brief." Tabitha twisted her long golden braid in her hands and then dropped it, her dark eyes resting calmly on her sister. "It has come to our attention that there is a need for our assistance. Quildor would assimilate each and every Harpyiae and Valdemarian he can touch and turn them into his Minions if he ever reaches this land. We value our freedom, we will not be hunted. We would take action first!"

"Yes!" Kahlest knew that although her mother thought Tabitha, Trista and Honna had simply flown away, unable to think or act rationally ever again, it simply wasn't true. Their inclinations were toward their birdlike tendencies, and they spent much more of their time in bird form, yet they could transform into women when the need arose. They had simply chosen a better way of life... until that life was threatened.

"What do you propose?"

"The answer is simple. We must fight. We must take the Aerie and engage Quildor before he ever gets anywhere near Valdemar. We have the advantage. We are larger, faster and stronger. We can target Quildor himself. The only thing we need do is identify him, and you, dear sister, can still transform completely into a woman, you will have to find him, lure him out of the main camp and then we will kill him!"

What a simple and ingenious plan! "When do we leave? How many of you are there?"

"There are seven in your Aerie, and seven in ours. We leave at first dark, fly all night and arrive five nights later to affect our plan. Galantyne will return to his undersea realm and all will return to its proper place."

Kahlest considered. The idea of luring Quildor out was delicious, to attack him on his own turf brilliant. But then to let everything return to normal? The question was... would it? Would the Elite Quarso Unit simply continue their Lord's quest? Shouldn't Ondrea's scepter be found and returned to her?

"There is a Talisman." Kahlest informed Tabitha.

"Is there? What is that to me? I can breathe! I have been adapted by the planet."

In response, Kahlest's eyebrows rose an inch. "Have you been? Are you more bird, or more woman?"

"I choose the bird form most often, as it is easier for me." Tabitha said. "But I am still woman. My interests lay in defending my own and Valdemar second. You cannot fault me for that. Now are you with me or not?"

"Why do you not seduce Quildor out of his encampment yourself?"

Tabitha looked away. "I have taken a mate. I cannot, according to our laws, lure another man. It is forbidden."

Kahlest held her tongue as she nodded once and then sprang into Harpyiae form and followed her sister to call the Aerie's.

*****

Jerrika fell out of time and space and as they landed and she regained her bearings. She slapped Korlon as hard as she could. "Don't do that!"

Korlon held a hand to his burning cheek, his eyes blazing at her. "Why did you hit me?"

Jerrika's chest was heaving. "I hate being tossed around inside that black bubble. I have no sense of direction when you do that!"

"I got you to the check-point, didn't I? Can't you just trust that I know where I'm going?" He kicked his boot against another rock, with an angry scowl on his face. His whole cheek looked like it had gotten massively sunburned.

Jerrika looked around, noting the change in climate, the way the hills and swamps were no longer on her left, and the arid wavy grasslands seemed to float along forever to the right. "I don't know where we are! I see a strangely shaped cavern that might be the Aerie... I should have gone back to Galantyne."

"But you found Talisman, and he said to locate Kara." Korlon reminded her.

"And I found you, and you haven't helped me much at all."

Korlon's expression was hurt. She had sudden memory flashes of them on the training fields when he'd had no eyes but the ones trained on Kara, and now he was staring directly at her.

"I could just leave you." He stood and put both hands on his hips. "I definitely travel faster alone."

"Why don't you send a sea arrow message to Galantyne, and let him know where we are, if you even know where we are, and then go on ahead to Valdemar and warn them there, help your people get their army prepared. I can fly. I will follow."

Korlon's eyes narrowed. He was being dismissed by this snip of a girl he'd helped to raise. "I was commissioned by the King to care for you and Kara alike, Jerrika. By the King! I am loyal, I don't leave my charge."

"Um hm..." She kicked a tuft of grass. "But, Korlon, we are no longer little girls."

"Yes, you've done very well for yourselves, haven't you? Got yourselves caught inside Sentinel, and caused a war. I'm impressed, Jerrika. She, recklessly searching for you, gets caught by a renegade Foeman, and who knows what has happened to her... and you, freed by a wicked traitor, to what end? To what end, Jerrika? Now you are saying that you are so much more intelligent than me, that you can take care of yourself so much better than I can..."

"I am the daughter of Ondrea Taan!" Jerrika blurted, angry red marks dotting her cheeks. "I deserve respect!"

Korlon was taken aback. He'd always believed the story that her parents were Etrusian refugees high up in their elite aristocracy, and that out of respect for them, Taan had raised her as befit her station. He wasn't sure why she had said these things back at the ruins of Quildor's castle, when Crevan attacked them. Somewhere in the back of his mind he'd registered that she was trying to save their lives. He'd just assumed she was lying to Crevan, and to Talisman. His mouth dropped open in disbelief.

Jerrika dug in without a pause, now that she'd inadvertently told her secret. "Yes! In the castle, when I was held prisoner. She came to me."

"You saw her?" He breathed. "Ondrea? You actually saw her?"

"I saw her in my... my Zalez."

"The word they use for the mind powers?" Korlon was already nodding. "But you don't really know, do you? It could have been Adara tricking you."

"No!" Jerrika was sure it couldn't have been the same person who had forced her to permanently meld with Losira for strength.

"You told Crevan that Talisman protected the blood of Ondrea Aquaria Taan. You told Talisman you were that blood, didn't you?"

"Talisman knew, before I told it." Korlon could see by her face that she was debating whether or not he was right about Adara tricking her.

"But Talisman can't be tricked, is that it? Why are you so gullible? It lied to you, Adara tricked you."

"No! I don't believe you! That's not right! That's not how it felt. I sense things now, truth and lies. I have strength from my kai meld. She can't lie."

"Who knows the truth?" Korlon came to her, pointing a stiff finger at her chest. "Ondrea."

"Yes, Ondrea would know the truth. If she is in Valdemar I must get to her."

"Then come with me!" Korlon insisted. "Why say I have no plan? Why say I cannot help you? I can! I can get you to Valdemar much faster than you can on your own. My power lets us jump through space, yours lets us fly. It would only be about six or seven hours, compared to four or five days, Jerrika, considering you've never been to Valdemar, and don't have a real clue where you're going."

Anger coursed through her at that. "I do know where I'm going!" She transformed immediately, and lifted off. "Go as fast as you want Korlon, but go without me!" And with that, she turned and flapped her giant wings and flew north along the trail.

Korlon shouted her name and ran after her. But alone he couldn't fly. Alone his powers would only get him as far as he could run in a day, not as far as he could fly. He cursed her, shouting her name over and over in frustrated rage. Then he closed his eyes and ran ahead... disappearing along that same trail, hoping to get ahead of her and speak reason to her. If she was the daughter of Ondrea Taan, then Ondrea really was the only one who could tell her so with any validity.

******