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Chapter Twenty-One

"Come on, peanut," Nathan was the first to move, breaking the silent spell of the tree's beauty, "We need to get out of here before the shadows come out."

He gifted her an arm, smiling as she fit her palm between his own before tugging her to her feet with a lurch. Still a bit woozy from the unexpected flare of energy, Sang swayed a bit as she got her footing, but Nathan was quick in stepping forward, wrapping a steadying arm around her shoulder.

"I think we're a little late for that," she managed to offer once she settled, "The shadows have been out for hours now."

Nathan only snorted, keeping her tucked close in case her footing faltered again, "Not those shadows."

He led the charge toward the woods, minding his step over the tree's branching roots. Waiting for Sang to catch up, he sent one last inquisitive look at the tree before setting pace back into the woods.

"Then what shadows?" Sang frowned up at him as she followed, a wrinkle forming between her brows, "I haven't seen anything other than you since I got out here."

"You're lucky then, usually I've run into a couple hell-hogs by now," missing her step, Sang squawked in confusion and Nathan laughed, "You haven't seen a hell-hog, yet? Gosh, peanut, we got to get you up to speed."

Eyeing the surrounding trees with a new sort of wariness, Sang brought a finger up to her lip. There was still a faint glow of power burning under her skin, but the wild rage it had possessed early seemed to have cooled.

"I'd rather we didn't," Sang muttered mutinously, stepping over a vine that curled across the earth, "I think I've had enough surprises to last a lifetime."

He nodded, grabbing her hand to help her step onto a fallen log. Her foot barely missed a small frog blinking at them from the trunk of the tree, it's blue eyes neon in the oppressive dark. When Sang paused to examine it, Nathan scared it away with a swoosh of his hand, "Don't give me that look," he grabbed her waist to help her jump off the log, "Little man's poisonous."

"What?" Sang stumbled over her feet, brows raised at the back of the little frog jumping into the woods, "But it looked so normal?"

"Yeah, that's where they get you," Nathan watched her gain her footing back before waving her forward. He stayed at her back, blue eyes constantly roving over the surrounding forest, "Watch out for anything and I mean anything," he emphasized, "that looks like it does on earth."

"Why?" She blinked at him over her shoulder, "That doesn't make sense."

"It's a luring mechanism," Nathan explained, "A lot of people and things that visit here once lived on earth, so they seek out things that remind them of home. It makes them feel safer."

Her steps slowed, realization sinking in, "Oh."

"Yeah, oh," he chortled, giving her a sympathetic pat on the shoulder, "If you see something that looks like a dog, you better climb the nearest tree. They nearly got Kota a couple times when we first showed up."

"He's okay, right?" she didn't even want to image what may have happened, "They didn't get him?"

Nathan shrugged, a grimace pulling between his cheeks, "The first one got pretty close. Apparently, no one had a chance to warn him. He's always had a soft spot for dogs, had one before he got sent up here. Max, I think."

"That's— that's terrible," a lump built in her throat, phantom grief making her mouth dry, "I bet he misses him."

"Yeah," Nathan's voice was thick when he managed to respond, "Definitely. He tries to avoid going to earth as much as he can. Seeing everything and not being able to live it— it's difficult for him."