“Yes, he asked her out. It wasn’t that hard, it seems,” I said flatly.

Herakles was surprisingly quick to capture my tone—but so was my mom. “Miffed that Herakles didn’t ask you first?” She giggled. It got her a deadly glower from me. However, that didn’t have the desired effect. It only made her laugh harder, while my dad eyed Herakles and me as if we were some kind of comedic performance.

I’d missed something, for sure. “What… What do you mean?” I asked her.

“Oh, come on, honey. Do you think the two of us are blind or something?” she asked, nodding at my dad. “It’s so obvious, it’s hilarious.”

“I’m confused,” Herakles croaked, his forehead smooth. Beads of sweat budded gently along his temples. I could only imagine the heat of embarrassment that was burning through him, for I was feeling my own. The two of us had stumbled beneath my parents’ magnifying glass, and there was no way out.

My dad pointed a finger at him, then at me. “You like her,” he said, and proceeded to point at him again, “and she likes you. You two are either in denial or completely oblivious about it. Frankly, I’m rooting for the former, not the latter, because you’re both intelligent creatures, and, well, I didn’t raise a slow-poke!”

“Wow…” I managed.

Herakles was swift to surrender. He sighed deeply. “You’re right. You are absolutely right. Please, accept my apologies. I am in denial. I’m not sure about Riza, but I know myself.”

“What are you apologizing to us for?” Mom asked, still very much amused, while I squirmed in my chair, wondering why I wasn’t just teleporting myself out of the room to save whatever was left of my ego. My parents never pulled any punches with people, especially those they’d deemed important or meaningful to me. Clearly, Herakles had popped onto their radar. “Make it right, Herakles.”

He nodded energetically and looked at me. “Would you like to go for a walk tonight?”

“What the—are you serious?” I snapped. “At least be original about it.”

“Yeah, don’t copy me. It’s insulting,” Raphael intervened as he got up and pulled Amelia’s seat back so she could join him. “Now, if you’ll excuse us, we’ve got a date,” he added, grinning like the sly devil that he loved to be. Amelia held back a chuckle of her own as she followed him outside.

Suddenly, Herakles and I were the stooges, while my parents, along with Amelia’s, had set their sights on us. Their relationships had flourished in different times and circumstances, and they seemed to have very little sympathy for tribulations such as my own or Amelia’s. I didn’t hold it against them; it was a parent’s job to embarrass the child whenever they got the chance. I’d been weak to let this happen, in the first place.

“You may not have as much time as you might think,” my mom said, suddenly turning serious, her voice trembling slightly. “If you want to take advantage of it, we’ll never question your decision.”

I opened my mouth to respond, but Fallon shot to his feet and sucked in a wheezing breath, startling everyone at the table, including Herakles and me. His eyes rolled wildly as he threw his head back. Varga was quick to jump to his aid, but Fallon recovered and kept him at arm’s length.

“Hold on,” he said. “It’s not a possession. Wait…”

He inhaled deeply several times, enough to regain his composure.

“What is it, then?” I asked, eyeing him with concern.

“A Hermessi is coming,” he replied. “I can feel him. I felt Kabbah before, too, and even Brendel. It’s like a strange tickling in the back of my neck. I learned to pay attention after our episode in the white space.”

Derek was the first to reactively stand up. “A Hermessi is coming here?”

There was fearful anger in his eyes, and we all understood him perfectly. It was a common feeling among all those who were alive and aware of the threat that the Hermessi posed against us.

“Don’t even think about possessing me!” Fallon shouted, nervously looking around. “I’ve had enough of that crap, dropping like a log whenever one of you mooks needs to talk to us!”

Amelia and Raphael were already out, but I didn’t think we should call them unless absolutely necessary. Unless there was hostility here. My instinct told me that wasn’t the case. A crackling sound made us turn toward the door. A bright green figure stood before us, the vibrant energy licking at the air around it. His voice echoed across the hall. “I do not wish to harm anyone.”

“Who are you?” Derek asked, his frame stiff and tense. Sofia slowly got up, staying close to him. “What do you want?”

“I am Tebir. Your Earth Hermessi,” he replied. “I speak on behalf of the few rogue elementals left to fight against the ritual.”

Almost instantly, I felt my muscles relax. The tension that I’d been compelled to cut through with a knife, moments earlier, had begun to dissipate. We knew of Tebir. We knew of all four Hermessi of Earth and their pacifist intentions. This was a friend, not a foe, for the ritual’s influence had yet to reach this dimension, as far as the local Hermessi were concerned.

“This is… unexpected,” Fallon blurted. “Also, thanks for not hijacking me.”

“I don’t need to possess you, hybrid, though I admit, it is tempting. Your being is full of power and potential,” Tebir said. “I do see what Kabbah saw in you. But I am here to speak to you all, not hold any kind of leverage against you.”

“Okay… How can we help?” Sofia asked.

“I’d like to first apologize for showing up here unannounced,” Tebir replied. “I would rather have stayed in my side of the realm, but the dire situation demands my direct involvement.”

“Oh, you weren’t unannounced,” Varga grinned and gave Fallon a friendly slap on the back. “This one felt you before you walked in. Our own personal Hermessi alarm, it seems.”

And what a wonderful development this was. Fallon had unwillingly proven himself a tricky component to our crew, since he was practically a sitting duck for Hermessi possession. But knowing that he could also sense the elementals had just added a new and extremely useful dimension. He hadn’t known about this before, but, like he’d said, he’d learned to pay attention since our encounter with Brendel.

“I’m here on behalf of the rogue Hermessi, actually,” Tebir said. “I am aware of Kabbah’s noble intentions, but I’m worried there won’t be any rebel elementals for him to work with until the children are returned to safety.”

“The chi—the Hermessi children, you mean?” Derek replied.

“Yes. My brethren are terrified of operating against the ritual now because their children are at risk, under Brendel’s absolute control. I’d like to suggest an action plan, if I may?”

Derek looked at all of us, as if expecting some form of approval. It came with faint nods, and he breathed a sigh of relief as he smiled at Tebir. “We’re all ears.”

The Hermessi didn’t have souls quite like ours, but they cared about their children and even about their planets—that much we knew for sure. Tebir walked in and slowly moved around the large dining table, his green light flickering in fleeting reflections across the crystal glasses.

“I’ve thought about this, long and hard, since I learned about Ramin’s mischief with Brendel,” he said. “If GASP can help set up an operation to infiltrate Yahwen and snatch the Hermessi children, I and a few loyal rogues will help smuggle them all into The Shade.”

Sofia nodded. “We’ve actually discussed a mission to Yahwen, but we’ve yet to hash out all the details. Do you think the children would be safe here?”

“The Hermessi don’t have easy access to the Earthly Dimension, as you might’ve noticed by now,” Tebir replied. “Otherwise, you would’ve had hell to pay, and the Earth’s Hermessi, myself included, wouldn’t have been able to do much to help you. If you put Devil’s Weed on all the Hermessi children and keep them here, even the rowdy ones—and by rowdy I mean those who’ve already been seduced by Brendel’s promises—they’ll be safe, and all the potential rogues will find making a decision easier, as far as the ritual is concerned.”

I frowned. “But this access to the Earthly Dimension isn’t very clear to us. Won’t Brendel come here looking for them?”

“Not if she doesn’t know where they are,” Tebir replied. “It’s why I came to you, here. Of course, the entire operation wouldn’t be without risk. But said risk can be minimized if you take precautions, including moving the fae sanctuary from here to, say, Calliope. It’s important that there be no potential fae conduits in The Shade while the children are present.”

“That means moving our children and loved ones to Calliope, closer to Hermessi danger,” Derek said, clearly skeptical.

“When the first fae begin to die, the Hermessi will have better access to this dimension,” Tebir explained. “Though I don’t want that to happen, I must operate on the assumption that it might. If their power increases, they will be able to overhear things through their fae conduits, without you even knowing it. But, if you remove all the fae from The Shade, temporarily, we’ll have a higher chance of success in keeping the Hermessi children safe.”

“No fae is dying on our watch,” Sofia said.

“Forgive me, Sofia. I appreciate your determination, but I know what foes we’re dealing with,” the Hermessi said respectfully. I couldn’t help but appreciate his honesty—I certainly understood his point of view.

Lumi raised a hand. “I dare say I agree with Tebir, here. If we hold the Hermessi children in The Shade until the ritual is averted and minimize their risk of discovery by moving the fae into the Calliope sanctuary, it’ll help the other rogue Hermessi who are currently on the fence. Like Wei, or even Firr, whose message none of us have forgotten.”

Firr had destroyed Mount Agrith. There had been no casualties, but the intention had been obvious. It was his warning for us to stop meddling. Lumi was right. Even Firr could be swayed back in our favor, if he knew his child was safe—without being aware of an actual location, of course.

“It is a complicated plan, but I am more than willing to assist you in the logistical process as best as I can,” Tebir said. “I believe it’s worth trying, because we need more rogues to help us, given what comes next.”

He looked at Taeral, who immediately understood what he’d meant. “Brendel will be on us like crazy as soon as she catches our scent, whatever her methods.” He sighed. “Yeah, we’ll need all the backup we can get.”