4. The Dire Demands

It took five minutes before the gods noticed they weren’t alone. Leion had tried his utmost to follow Tikidas’ advice. He’d smeared himself with mud and stuck leaves against it. He didn’t run at full speed, but at a snail’s pace without sound.

Five minutes was better than nothing, right? he thought.

Cosmo looked grumpy, but Eeris lowered her neck again. “Or, brave Paraat, are you still walking yourself?”

He wanted to refuse, but he was no longer in Paraat now. He’d left that behind. Why waste more energy than needed? He was tired, he wanted to sleep, so it didn’t take long before he snored atop Eeris’ back.

Until her entire body shook and bounced unexpectedly. Fortunately, his reflexes were more than quick enough not to fall off.

Before them stood a beautiful pinkish fox wearing multiple necklaces.

“Feria! We were just looking for you!”

“I was looking for you too.”

“Where have you been?”

“Garda. There’s a whole world out there, dears, on that other continent. We can’t just stay on Origina. But that’s a matter for later. Let me guess—Bella’s been abducted?”

“How did you know?”

Feria shook the necklaces until they fell to the ground. She knew the top one by heart.

“You’ll get your sister back if you promise to disappear from this world.”

“But we can’t disappear! If we knew how, we’d have gone back to the Heavenly Palace long ago.”

Leion scanned the entire area for danger. It tired him, but he couldn’t stop. He could easily imagine Tikidas following him, to test another of his nighttime surprise attacks on him.

His eyes noticed the broken twigs on several trees. The five stripes on a trunk that probably came from a large claw. The raindrops slowly falling on lower and lower leaves.

Cosmo impatiently flew back and forth. “Why did those criminals give this to you?”

“Did they leave nothing behind in the throne room?”

“Just chaos and some numbers on a door.”

Feria thought for a moment. “Because I was closest by. My new throne is in Preza, which holds at least half of Garda by now. Must have been someone from there.”

“Unlikely,” said Cosmo. “I didn’t even know Preza existed. You don’t steal a god just for fun.”

“We’re no enemies of theirs,” added Eeris. “We don’t even know who they are.”

“I don’t mean to interrupt,” said Leion, pointing. “But could that be a raccoon pawprint?”

Eeris pressed her snout to the trunk. Her study didn’t take long.

“Yes! Bella’s the only one with such large paws and five toes. She passed this way.”

The gods immediately started running. Leion didn’t understand. His voice shook with each of Eeris’ hops. “Where are we going?”

“The kidnappers didn’t pass my throne,” Eeris said. “Gulvi would have seen them if they went by the Wise Sea. So, we know they must have gone diagonally westward, toward Darus’ Impossible wall.”

Surrounded by these godly beings, who could come up with such things instantly, he felt even smaller. He reminded himself that, at least, he could run faster than they could. That was his sole advantage.

If the gods ever attacked Paraat, though, they wouldn’t survive. Despite all their great soldiers. He had to warn Tikidas, but he’d just laugh at Leion and train the boys even harder.

When evening fell, they halted at the High Hills. They purposely did not take the easy Green Path. Leion didn’t dare ask why, so he’d pondered it for hours until the answer became glaringly obvious. It’s a wide path, always full of creatures. So you can’t run very fast there and the secret kidnappers would never take it.

Who knows, maybe I’ll grow smarter than the gods someday, he thought. Because as strong a solider as them … I’ll never become.

“We can’t leave this planet,” said Eeris. “So what do we do?”

“We find Bella without the kidnappers’ help,” said Cosmo.

Feria lay on her belly, gazing at nothing with sad eyes. “I can’t believe anyone overpowered her. I hope they’re treating her well. That she’s not in pain.”

“I’m sure she is,” said Eeris. Her laugh was fake, like Tikidas’ smile when he encouraged Leion and said he was doing great. “She’s probably chatting with them, asking all kinds of wise questions until they release her voluntarily.”

“So that’s it?” said Leion, as he started a fire, the way Paraat had learned from the apes: with stones, wooden sticks, and lots of patience. “You have one risky plan?”

“He’s right,” said Cosmo.

“If we don’t find Bella,” said Feria, “then we make the kidnappers think we’re leaving.”

“That will never work,” said Leion. “You get Bella back, but a few months later they show up at your doorstep to wage war over your broken promise.”

“But we get Bella back,” Eeris said softly.

“What if we overpower the kidnappers? A reverse kidnapping?” said Cosmo. “We call on all Clansteads to fight together. We ask Paraat to come help after all.”

“No,” Eeris said curtly. “They’re savages. Look what they do to their children!”

Feria paced around the fire that had finally sparked. “Preza is big, brother, I’ve seen it. The culprit may have more power than you think.”

“How did everyone travel from Garda to Origina?! Darus’ mountains should block them! And if not those, the Dolphin Pass should!”

“Unless … that’s not so.”

They exchanged glances. Leion had to leave the warm fire again, to his annoyance, because the gods had found a new location to visit.