The Forgotten Sibling

Prologue

20 years later...

She's been on the run for well over two decades.

She didn't feel like she aged at all. She should have known that this island was an anti-aging trap. Especially when two of your friends are presumably dead.

Crystal's feet burned from the hot sand. As she glanced up at the sun, she stubbed her toe on a rock that seemed to be conveniently placed there. She hissed with pain and took off her sock to see the damage. Her big toe was already swelling, the area around the cut a nasty purple.

"That's what I get for not paying attention," she muttered to herself. "God, I'm such an idiot."

She sat down on the sand-almost squishing a beetle- and inspected the wound. As long as anything didn't get in it, the wound should heal just fine.

If I'd known that I would be caught, I would have brought band aids, she thought with frustration.

She frowned at the rock. It didn't seem right for it to just be there. Then again, there's so much sand on the dunes that there may be hidden rocks everywhere, if she had the time to look.

She looked up and squinted off into the distance. A massive structure made out of stone and... metal? She couldn't see that well far away. She always assumed that the problem was caused by lack of sleep, but now that she thought about it, perhaps she needed glasses.

She put her sock back on her foot and slid her foot in her shoe. She got up and sighed. It was going to be a long journey.

Far off in the stone structure, a black pelted Catwing looked at the human girl. "That's her."

His friend glanced at him. "How can you be so sure? She's several paws away from here."

"I can tell by her hair," Littefhur explained. He turned toward Lhrioun. His gray fur looked like smoke in the burning sun, and his eyes glowed like fire. "Besides, what type of human would come to the desert for no reason?"

Lhrioun shrugged. "I don't know, but I do know that she's on the run. Maybe that's why she's here."

Littefhur growled with frustration. "Jhaufyther would be able to tell us his thoughts if he was here."

"But he isn't," Lhrioun hissed. "He's been gone for two decades, for Comet's sake."

"I know that," Littefhur snapped back. "But I just need his advice right now."

"I feel the same way," Lhrioun said. "But we need to make sure that that's the right human. Otherwise, we might kill a random human who wandered off due to curiosity."

Littefhur turned back to look at the girl again. She kept looking to the side as if someone's about to pop up and harm her. "I don't know. Something about her seems familiar."

He heard Lhrioun climb up beside him. His tail rested draped over the wall, and his eyes lit up with curiosity. "She does seem familiar."

"THANK you," Littefhur said, exasperated.

"What's she doing out here though?" Lhrioun asked, turning toward him.

"Whatever it is, it doesn't seem good," Littefhur replied.