Tris and Mia showed similar yet varied reactions in the presence of Ypro Fyful.

  Mia was nothing but fidgety, her eyes couldn’t stay in one place even if she closed them. She did everything she could to portray a calm expression though her trembling body betrayed her.

  Meanwhile Tris kept his eyes straight ahead and stood statue still. The only part of him that moved were his eyelids.

  Fyful simply stood with a warm smile under a tranquil gaze. They were the only ones in a large hall.

  A lengthy white rug separated the two Tyrovivs from their commander. Aside from that, nothing else could take their attention away as Fyful continued to stare at them. The seconds were long.

  “Did you ever think we would meet like this?” the Aerviv asked them. Both Tyrovivs shook their heads sharply.

  “While true that I can get pretty busy at times, I still yearn to see every member whenever possible. I understand that for people in positions like yours, the job can seem a little thankless.”

  Mia hung on every word; she responded with short breaths. Tris only made a series of light nods in acknowledgment.

  “But even if feels like gratitude’s in short supply, don’t think that you’re ignored or unappreciated for your efforts.

  “From the tallest of tasks to the simplest of errands, a fine deed should always be commended and that’s why I’ve called for you two. What are your names?”

  “I’m-I’m Mia.”

  “Tris…sir.”

  “Well then as Aerviv of the Cosondera, I want to say good job to both of you Mia and Tris. Fine work apprehending that thief while also keeping to your current task.

  “Deeds like those shouldn’t go unrecognized and I will assure the two of you it won’t. Well done.

  “Now back to your posts, but don’t get too comfy. Bigger and better things will come your way soon.”

  Those words finally put the two Tyrovivs at ease. They posted smiles at Fyful then each other. Afterwards they snapped their bodies straight, bowed their heads, and tucked their faces behind their bent right arms.

  “Carry on.”

  The two Tyrovivs departed before the Aerviv went on with his own business and walked further down the hall. On his way, a servant ran up to him with a folded article of clothing.

  “The cloak is ready sir.” he said with his eyes on the floor.

  “Excellent. I’ll take that off your hands.”

  “Yes sir.” He dashed out as quickly as he arrived.

  The Aerviv made his way down the hall to a door at the end. A twist of the knob and a slight push in, Fyful entered a brightly lit room with ornate furniture.

  Quin nearly dozed off in one such chair when sight of the Aerviv popped him up to his feet.

  “Please. Please. Make yourself relaxed,” he told Quin with a raised hand. “I mean no harm.”

  The day had been everything but relaxing as crowded clouds hid the sun and covered the city.

  The bright vibrant colors Quin saw earlier dulled under the darkened skies. Business sailed on ahead.

  “As founder and Aerviv of the Cosondera, I hereby invest in you the rank and title of Tyroviv, protector of the bay nations, Cosondere in service of Lady Sexené,” Fyful proclaimed as he donned Quin in a fresh new cloak, complete with a gold clasp.

  “Welcome to the team.”

  Quin also had a dry set of clothes and together with the new cloak, it seemed like he never stepped outside.

  As he took in the new clothes, it dawned on him. He officially became a member of the cloaks. An actual Cosondere.

  The doors opened again and in came a young man in a blue cloak with brown curls that traveled to his chin. His expression matched the sky in dourness with eyebrows and lips that sagged.

  “Ah there he is,” Fyful said as he beckoned the Neraviv over. “This is my son Ythan. He’s been informed about your situation.”

  “Lightly,” Ythan added before he squinted and rolled an arm at Quin. “This is who you’ve been bending backwards for? I don’t understand. What exactly is your plan here?”

  “All you need to understand is that this is your second chance.” Fyful pointed. “There won’t be anything I can do for you if you squander this. Now get him acquainted with his squad. I’ll try and arrange a mission.”

  Fyful departed into another room and Quin found himself alone with his new source of anxiety.

  Officially a Cosondere and now on a new team just like that, nobody would think he arrived from the Pit that morning.

  Ythan groaned before he turned to his new subordinate. The anatomy of his face bunched together as he looked up and down at the new Cosondere.

  Quin thought his boss would break the ice. Instead, the blue cloak made his first order.

  “Follow me.”

  In no time, Ythan rushed out past the doors. Urgency compelled Quin to grab his things and follow suit.

  The rain abated outside as Quin looked in each direction, immediately unsure where Ythan went.

  To his fortune, a Neraviv could be easily spotted in town. Quin found the Neraviv up on the roofs seemingly half a mile away.

  Quin had to move now. He sprinted through the Cosondera grounds on his way out. Right about the wall that separated the HQ from the city proper, he launched himself off the ground.

  He vaulted over the barrier and several passerbys before he landed on a second story building.

  He had no time to get used to the feeling, Ythan showed no intent to stop. Quin sped across roof tiles, too concerned with his pursuit of the blue cloak to be caught up in his fears.

  Before he knew it, Quin went from hops across ledges to leaps across buildings.

  Bricks and glass blurred in his periphery. Shouts to slow down from the other cloaks instantly went distant. The voices beneath him quickly became a series of tones and inflections.

  These observations had to go in and out of his head as he desperately tried to catch up.

  Nature soon faded into Quin’s view; he practically flew out of the city and into the mountains.

  A trip usually an hour long, Quin’s newfound speed allowed him to reach the peaks in mere minutes. It looked like their travel would take them to the one tower amongst the heights.

  Up ahead, two Tyrovivs waved farewell down a path when Ythan caught their attention. They rushed up to flock around him.

  “So are we good?” asked the taller of the two cloaks. “Are we still a squad?” He looked around. “Where’s the new teammate?”

  Out from the depths and over their heads, the one Cosondere in a mask shot up to the sky.

  While airborne his limbs moved erratically then he landed and slid across the ground.

  Crouched down with one leg bent and the other jutted out, he had a hand on the earth and a sack over his shoulder.

  Quin retained his crouched pose as he faced his new team. He applied the graceful movements Ner. Arelis taught him and could only hope his presentation made an impression.

  Across from him stood three people. Without a doubt, they were unimpressed.

  In the center stood Ythan, stone-faced with a frown. To his right stood the taller Cosondere with a darker tan and dark red hair. His scar folded above his raised eyebrow as he stared in confusion.

  On the other side, a slender lady. The palest in complexion, her thick eyebrows amplified the scorn and revulsion on her face.

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  Their silence shot up Quin’s nerves. Any response was preferable, even ridicule. Scents of dirt and sweat swirled up inside his mask.

  “Is that him?” asked the slender lady as she pointed to Quin and faced Ythan.

  “Yes,” answered the Neraviv, his mouth the only part that moved.

  “Huh, beggars can’t be choosers I guess,” stated the red-headed Cosondere.

  “Keep an eye on him,” Ythan instructed. “I have to get the camp supplies.”

  The blue cloak jumped out of the scene on route to the tower. Out of his pose, Quin lifted himself off the wet dirt.

  His hand left a mark that looked like an “m” surrounded by a circle. He stared at his two Tyroviv colleagues who stared back in puzzlement.

  “So we’re still a squad,” said the taller Cosondere who then raised his fist in the air. “Yeaaah! That means we’ll be back on the road again. Some good news for once.”

  His partner responded with loud silence. Her scowl remained with a glare that could burn a hole through Quin’s mask. He already missed Tris and Mia.

  Soon a young girl emerged from one of the paths, her lungs kept her speechless as she waved for a Cosondere’s attention.

  The anger on the lady’s face lifted slightly. “What? What is it now Cori?”

  “My...apologies,” said Cori between breaths. “My comb...I dropped it somewhere...can you help me find it?”

  “Consider it a lesson.”

  “Oh come on, what’s the harm Onyl?” asked the red haired Tyroviv. “We even have the new guy as another set of eyes.” On his way to Cori, he caught Quin in a headlock and dragged him along.

  “Sure why not?” he answered to Cori before he turned to Quin. “Should be quick ‘n’ easy right brother?”

  “Oh thank you Conon,” replied a relieved Cori.

  Up along the peaks laid narrow paths barely spacious for two people side by side. The Tyrovivs took to different heights as they helped Cori trace her steps.

  Her and Onyl looked further down the path while Conon, the tall redhead roamed up the higher rocks.

  Quin searched in the middle, all he saw were puddles. Though not on par with the chase earlier, time gave him a reprieve to think his next move.

  It would be a bad experience for everybody if he couldn’t mesh with his teammates.

  He knew there were some among the cloaks who wouldn’t see eye to eye with him. He knew some among them had views about the Yerps he didn’t agree with. He also knew it would do him no favors to have every Cosondere hate his guts.

  At the very least, the people on his squad had to like him.

  Conon seemed easy enough to get along with. Onyl on the other hand, much less so.

  Nothing ventured, nothing gained however and as Naim Noma wrote, “No future is firm without actions made in the present.”

  Quin decided to walk up to the irritable lady and tried to engage with her.

  “Um excuse me?” he started. “I figured since things are calm right now, we could take this moment to get to know each other.”

  “There will be other moments.” she said with her back to him, they were off to a good start.

  “Okay ummm if nothing else, I should introduce myself. I’m Quin.”

  “I am busy, as should be you.”

  The very dismissive attitude that’d typically crawl under Quin’s skin did so right then. He simply drew a light sigh, he’d have to find another time.

  All he could do now was end the conversation politely.

  He said to her, “Well if you need something from me, don’t hesitate to ask. We’re partners now.”

  “I need not ask, I will tell you,” she stated with her back still toward him. “Now part to your section of dirt.”

  Quin was peeved.

  His attempt to start on a positive note ended with agitation. He only wanted to get familiar with his new team on friendly terms but he only received cold disregard for his efforts.

  “I’m trying to get along damn you!” he blurted before he covered the bottom half of his mask.

  Onyl finally turned around; it took no time for him to regret his outburst.

  The skin between her wide eyebrows scrunched together as her face contorted in anger. Red lines enveloped her irises as her pupils shrank.

  Enough to sink a heart was her face. Sharp shrills of the wind didn’t help.

  “Hey, I think I found it,” claimed Cori who fortunately forced Onyl’s sight away from Quin. “Wait. Wait no, that’s not it. What is that?”

  Though only a child and thus the most imperiled of the group, Cori kept a straight face as she walked closer to the edge to get a better look.

  The moment her head peeked over, trouble seized her foot as she slipped off the path.

  She slid down the slope near the edge of a steep precipice. Cori’s calm demeanor gave way to fear.

  She desperately clung to anything that could stop her slide. Just when gravity nearly pulled her over, her movements came to a halt.

  Her legs dangled over the edge as her arm constantly slipped off the slick ground. Her other arm stayed in place thanks to a thin shade.

  On the other end of that shade, Onyl rose her staff high to the sky.

  Framed with a fabric canopy on top, it looked like a makeshift umbrella. Though no rain fell, she hovered it over her head.

  Her silhouette then protruded out from under her but with every inch, it slimmed down until Cori’s life hung by a thread.

  “Keep still,” said Onyl as she kept herself aligned between the umbrella and her shade.

  “Can’t your shadow do that?!” screamed a terrified Cori.

  “Too many clouds weaken the effect,” she replied. “Furthermore I told you, it is a puppet not a shadow.” She turned to Quin. “What are you waiting for?” she snapped. “Go grab her!”

  Quin had every intent to save Cori, but no intent to see how high up they were. He quickly inched his way toward her.

  “Faaster!” Onyl ordered.

  Quin willed his body as much as he could, but something inside greatly refused.

  Perhaps if he closed his eyes, he could move faster, he thought, but how could he see where to go, he realized. This was not a good impression, he understood, but this was all new, he reasoned.

  Quin’s sluggish movements struck Onyl’s last nerve.

  “New guy!” she bellowed. “Get over your shortcomings and sa-ahh!!”

  Her lost cool resulted in lost focus. The wind snatched her umbrella out of her hands and her puppet vanished in a blink. Cori’s fate appeared to plummet off the edge along with her.

  Then a clasp of her forearm stopped her descent. Without a thought, Quin covered the distance between them and made a firm grip.

  He just needed to pull her up and use his aura to walk up the slippery slope, but he caught sight of the bottom and his senses went off-track.

  Sounds became distant. Now he saw two Coris. The forest underneath became a sea of green as it waved left and right before his eyes.

  Quin had to act. He had to act now. He. He lost himself and started to slide as well. Both appeared to give in to gravity’s hold.

  But then, it was denied once more. This time when a chain clear as glass wrapped around Quin’s torso.

  On the other end stood Conon, who clutched onto the chain that stemmed from his hand.

  “Don’t worry brother, I got ya!” he yelled before he hoisted the two up. “Quick ‘n’ easy!”

  Relief appeared to be on the way, but Cori’s expression implied death had yet to leave.

  “Are your eyes closed?” She spotted in horror. “Can you please open your eyes? I’d really like it if you opened your eyes.”

  “It’s okaaay.” Quin responded with eyes clenched closed. “I won’t drop you. You’ll be fine I promise.”

  In short order, Quin and Cori were back on solid ground where they could finally breathe easy. As Cori collected herself, she noticed a glint in the corner of her sight.

  “There it is!” she exclaimed as she rushed over on hands and knees to a pile of rocks.

  There, she reunited with her comb. Coated in gold, bedazzled with colored gems, it certainly looked like an item one would loathe to lose.

  “Thank you guys so much,” said an elated Cori as she clutched the narrow toothed tool. “I don’t know what I would’ve done if I lost this.”

  “You should thank Conon. His efforts are what really saved you,” Onyl stated before she looked at Quin scornfully.

  He didn’t have a chance to feel bad about the ordeal. Conon dropped from the heights above and landed between his two colleagues.

  “Heeeey hey we’re a team now,” he told them. “This was all a team effort.”

  “Well thank you all.”

  “We are usually busy people,” stated Onyl. “Do not take these favors for granted.”

  “I know. I’m sorry. I would have looked on my own but I heard talk of a crazy Sentar’i roaming around here and I didn’t want them to find me by myself.”

  Quin immediately knew who she referred to.

  “You mean the guy who was kidnapping Yerps? You don’t have to worry about him anymore, he should have been taken care of weeks ago.”

  “How exactly would you know that?” Onyl challenged with a bushy brow raised.

  “Cause I was there when it happened.”

  “Where?”

  “He had me tied up. I was going to be his next victim but a Cosondere saved me. She wore a mask though, so I don’t know who she was. Do you guys have some way to find...”

  Quin couldn’t help but be distracted at the widened expression of shock on Onyl’s face. Up until then, he had never saw her without a frown nor a scowl.

  “Lift your mask,” she told him as she waved her fingers up.

  Quin hesitated for a couple of seconds before he obliged. He pulled up his mask and a perspired face revealed itself for all to see.

  Onyl’s remained incredulous as she looked at Quin top to bottom. She couldn’t find a word to utter before she simply turned away and walked off.

  Now Quin had a turn to be confused. So far his relationship with the new team didn’t mix quite as smoothly, but now an unknown element added itself into the mix. So much for his attempts to be no problem.