Destan swallowed, but his tongue stuck to his palate. He tried again, but his mouth was too dry for it to have any effect. Cold sweat on his back gave him goosebumps.

You will have the honour of being the first to die...

How he hated himself for letting Nero get to him.

Staring at the younger guard, who squirmed under his gaze, Destan coughed and said, "So... What exactly –"

"Shut up! You're our prisoner, you're not meant to talk!" the guard spat, clutching his gun tightly.

"Jeff!" The older guard sighed. "Mate, seriously, get a grip."

"What did he mean I'll be the first to die?" Destan blurted out before he could stop himself.

Jeff had already lifted his gun higher up when a giggle froze him on the spot. The click-clack of footsteps sounded until she was right next to Destan's chair. A glint lit up her eyes.

"It's very simple, you know," she said in a sweet voice that made his skin crawl. "When we arrive at that campsite you call a home, we will show that filth that we are not to be messed with. And you..." Alicia ran her finger across his cheek. She giggled as he jerked his head away. "You get to be the centre of it all. You will be the one we start the war with."

Angry bile rose in his throat and he yanked at the cords. The young guard flinched, but the girl only laughed. He spread his hands out behind his back, hoping to connect with something, anything, he could use as a weapon. But before his power had sought anything out, the girl pushed the barrel of her gun in his neck and hissed, "Do that, and I will not hesitate to kill you now."

Destan begrudgingly folded his fingers into a fist again, his heart sinking with another missed opportunity. Desperate, he glanced around the room. It was stripped bare. No table, no chairs except for the one he sat on, no cabinets in the corners, not even a painting on the wall. The only thing still there was the simple metal clock to his left, showing the time at eight thirty. It was the only thing he could use to his advantage, if he was able to use his powers.

Scrap... What am I going to do? If only my powers worked without my hands.

The atraments on his arms directed the power, collecting it from all over his body and gathering it in his hands. They were like containers, where the power was stored before it could be sent it out into the world.

What if I could skip that step? Something flickered in the back of his mind as the idea began to take shape. The atraments helped him bend atoms to his will. What if he didn't need his hands to direct them? His atraments steered the power, not his hands.

Though very unlikely, Destan didn't have another choice. Pretending he'd lost all hope, he dropped his chin on his chest and closed his eyes. Without opening his hands, he focused on the power coursing through his body, directing it through the atraments on his arms. He felt it tingle and itch, as if eager to be set free.

With the power contained in the palms of his hands, Destan shifted his focus to his own shoelaces, just to try it out. He touched the molecules of the fabric with his mind, then slowly, carefully, steered his power in the same direction.

The inside of his palm stung and he only barely managed to stop himself from flinching. It was as if the magic had gotten stuck inside his hands and tried to fight its way out.

Spreading his fingers slightly, hoping the gaps would be enough to let the magic out, Destan tried again. This time, it didn't sting, but the magic flowed aimlessly into the air. He'd have to find a way to direct it.

So he tried again. And when that didn't work, he tried again.

By the time Destan lifted his head up to stretch his neck, the moon was rising, shining a weak blueish light through the only window. The rain had stopped. He'd managed to lift up his shoelace, but he'd need a lot more power than that if he was to escape.

Destan's head snapped forward when the door suddenly opened, making the young guard squeal and jump. Three scruff-looking guys with beards and guns walked into the room, gesturing at the guards that they could go. Alicia giggled as she walked past on her way out.

"Enjoy, boys! Not much longer now."

For a few long moments, his news guards stood in silence. Then the one behind him said, "Why are there three of us here? He's just a kid, what's he gonna do?"

If I wasn't chained up, I'd show you what I can do, Destan thought angrily.

Just as one of the men in front of him opened his mouth to respond, a voice came from outside the room. Two other voices soon joined the first, in what was unmistakable arguing.

Destan strained his ears to try and find out what was going on, but the door blocked too much sound out, distorting the voices into nothing but chunks of noise. Parts of words, sounds without meaning, was all he could gather. The two guards in front of him glanced at each other.

A few moments later the voices stopped and the door swung open. Alicia, her lips pinched in a look of annoyance, made a strange gesture with her hand. "All of you! Out!"

Once the stunned guards had left the room she stepped aside and let a woman through. Destan recognised her as the one who had been arguing with Nero when he came in. Just like the others, she wore a gun. The girl glared at her, but the woman paid her no mind. As the door shut behind her, she shot one glance at Destan, then crossed the room to open the window.

What the hell...

Destan could hardly believe she'd done that. It provided him an easier escape. If he could eliminate this woman and get out of his ties, anyway. But it was more than he'd had before.

He spread his hands out to try and use his magic but before he had the chance, she pulled a pocket knife out of her back pocket and came up behind him.

Scrap!

Destan struggled against the cords, tugging his arms as she disappeared behind his back. A sharp snap filled the air and the sudden ability to move his arms had Destan frozen in his seat.

The woman stared down at him, her eyebrows drawn close together. "Go," she said, gesturing her head towards the open window. "Wait for me by the stream."

***

Twenty minutes later, Destan still couldn't fathom what had just happened. He'd been locked up by the Inops, guarded by three people with guns, and yet... Someone had set him free? Why?

The woman had been an Inops, he was sure of that. She'd been arguing with Nero. Maybe she wanted to stop the war too? But how could she possibly know that was his mission? Why had she assumed he wouldn't hurt her?

Who was she? Destan was sure he'd seen her before, he just couldn't remember where.

The sound of footsteps made him jump up with his atraments at the ready. Yet what he saw made him quickly lower his hands again. It was the woman, and she'd brought someone with her.

"Julia?"

Julia stared at him wide-eyed, half-hidden behind the woman.

Destan glanced between the two. "I don't understand..."

"Why were you going to steal those weapons?" the woman shot back, holding her hand on Julia's arm in a protective manner.

Destan's jaw dropped. Did she not trust him after all? Why would she set him free if she didn't trust him?

"To stop the attack, of course!" said Destan.

"Were you going to take them back to your tribe?"

"No, I was going to just get rid of them... Somewhere."

"Where?" she pushed.

"I... I hadn't thought that far ahead yet," Destan muttered.

She narrowed her eyes at him. "Are you really Julia's brother?"

Destan's eyes flitted to his sister, unsure how he should answer that. The last time he'd said that, she'd fled from him.

Yet here she was.

"Yes," said Destan, not taking his eyes off Julia. "Yes, I am. She was born without atraments, so they sent her off to live in Grimsby, where she'd be among those of her kind. Those without power."

A lump in his throat stopped him from speaking. He swallowed, but it wouldn't budge.

"Yet you know she's your sister," said the woman. "Isn't that against your rules?"

"Yes, but..." A sudden thought interrupted him. "Wait, how do you know that?"

She lifted an eyebrow, but otherwise ignored him. "Why did you come for those weapons alone?"

"Because..." Heat rose up his neck until his cheeks burned. Because I've been kicked out of my tribe. "Because nobody would help me. Who are you?" he added, before she could ask another question. "How did you get those guards out of the room and why did you set me free?"

For a few seconds she just looked at him. Then she glanced at Julia and sighed. "I gave them something to think about, something to discuss. My name is Emily Huntley. I'm Julia's teacher."

"Teacher?" Of course, that was where he knew her from! She was the woman who had sat here on the bench and taught Julia about the myths of the mages in the forest. She was the one who knew.

"Indeed. Julia told me everything. We sent you that note hoping you and your tribe could stop this silly attack. I knew you wouldn't just attack us back, because it's obvious you care about Julia."

"I do!" said Destan. "Of course I do. You're my sister, Julia. I was there when you were born. I watched you grow up. I've missed you, so much..."

"You do the flowers, right?" she squeaked.

Destan chuckled. "Yes. Yes, that's me. I did what I could to help you. I know it wasn't much. Not that it matters now... I've ruined everything."

"This whole war started because you showed yourself to Nero, didn't it?" said Miss Huntley.

Destan averted his gaze, unable to look his sister in the eye. "Yes. This is all my fault."

"No, it's not! It's all Nero's fault. He's a stupid, stupid brother!" Julia stomped her feet with her outburst.

"Nero lost his sister a long time ago," Miss Huntley explained. "She was killed by a triber. They'd been exploring the forest, doing what kids do. He was there when it happened, only a child himself, watching his sister die. An accident, most probably, though he has always claimed they'd been attacked. He's never been the same since."

Destan hesitated. He knew exactly what it felt like to lose a sister. But that didn't excuse him starting a war. It didn't excuse him being horrible to Julia all those years.

Before he could figure out how to respond, Miss Huntley continued, "But this war between our people is ridiculous. We have to stop it."

"How?" Destan exclaimed. "My tribe won't listen to me, I failed at sabotaging the Inops, I don't know what else to do."

"Well, you can't just give up!" said Julia, stepping out from behind her teacher's back. "You have to keep trying."

All his life Destan had wanted someone to share his concerns and fears with. Now that Julia was finally standing in front of him, it felt oddly disappointing, like he was letting her down.

"I'm sorry," he muttered, hanging his head.

"Your sister is right, Destan," said Miss Huntley. "We can't give up. We just need some help."

"I want to help, I really do, but I'm out of ideas. Isn't there someone in Grimsby who can help us? Like... Like... Like your parents! Nero's parents, can't they stop him?"

Miss Huntley smiled sadly. "They lost their daughter by the hands of a triber," she said. "They're on his side."

Destan groaned.

"But your people... Destan, your people have powers. Actual, magical powers. There must be someone in your tribe who can help us, surely?"

Destan hesitated, shoving his hands inside his pockets. "Maybe. But they don't listen to me."

"You can try. We need you to try."

"I did!" Destan snapped. "I did, okay? All they did was kick me out!"

Fighting against the tears in his eyes, he turned his head away. The next moment was way too silent for his liking.

"They banished you, didn't they?" said Miss Huntley softly.

He couldn't help but stare at the Inops woman. "How do you even know what that is?"

"That," said Miss Huntley, "is a very long story. Suffice it to say that I've had a run-in with the tribe before. I know how stubborn they are, but I also know what they can do. So if there's anyone, anyone at all you can think of that might help us..."

"There isn't! There really isn't! My mum is... bedridden, my dad died years ago, my uncle Lys betrayed me, my grandfather doesn't trust me, neither does Keara... The only one who might perhaps listen is Aruna, but I can't get to her. I'm not allowed inside the forest anymore."

"D-did you say Aruna? As in, Aruna Asala?" Miss Huntley stuttered, her jaw dropped.

"Well... Yes... Y-you know her?"

Miss Huntley stared through the trees behind him, something akin to longing gracing her face.

"I didn't think she still..." She shook her head. "Yes. Yes, I know her. She's the mother of my late husband."

"What?" Destan gawked at her. "That's impossible!"

Miss Huntley smiled sadly. "Yes, that's what everyone kept telling us. A triber and an Inops, it's not right, they used to say. But it doesn't matter what someone is born as. What matters is who they are. Who they love."

For a few moments, Destan just stared at her. So this is the woman Aruna's son ran away with. Then his gaze rested on Julia. The girl who was born without atraments, but should've been with the Kardos family all along. "Yeah. I guess you're right."

"I can go talk to her," said Miss Huntley suddenly.

"Go talk to who?" She wasn't serious, was she?

"Aruna. I'll go talk to her. You're not allowed in the forest anymore, so I'll go."

"You're an Inops! They will kill you, especially now."

"No," said Miss Huntley, already stepping past him, into the forest. "Aruna will remember me."