Overcome with dizziness, I lean against his chest. I am completely defenseless, as weak as a twig physically yet strong with the knowledge of purpose. I don’t have pretty much any of the details, but our fate is definitely intertwined with the Shifters, and maybe we can help them to the extent that we would be rewarded. There seems to be suffering here, which could be the root of all the strife back in the other world.

The salty air tickles my nose, and I look up at Xavier’s face. “We’re close…can you feel it?”I ask, and he nods in response.

“I can’t wait until we get to the ocean. Then we can have a beach party.”Xavier winks, making me blush. I quickly back away and straighten my body, though feeling a bit nauseous as I do so. “Are you feeling alright?”

“Yeah, sure.”I turn away, peering at the trees to my right. I can’t make out anything, but I’m pretty sure the saltiness is coming from that direction.

“Do you still want to…meet up, tonight?”He asks in a low tone, his hand pulling on my arm. It burns from his touch, but not in a bad way at all.

I can’t help but look into his eyes, and shakily give an affirmative nod. “I…mean, if it’s okay…”I stumble over my words, unsure of myself.

“Of course it’s okay.”His hand rises to lift my chin. I find myself sucked into his gaze, and he leans closer to softly kiss my forehead. “Don’t misunderstand, Mona.”

“W-what are you t-talking about?”I ask quietly, my own eyes widening.

“I want you, more than anyone in this world,”he whispers, his lips close to my ear. “In any world, I guess I should add.”His face retreats from my own, and I can see his eyes again. They are glowing with an animalistic desire, making shivers run down my spine.

“Then…why?”

“I told you why last night.”He finally steps away, and I can finally breathe again. “I know my feelings, but I don’t know yours.”

“But-“

“No. I’m not going to let you lie to me,”he says calmly, “I think I know you well enough by now that I would be able to catch you if you did.”

“That’s not what I was going to…”I trail off as Xavier turns to walk back to camp. I guess he isn’t interested in my response. Irritation sears through me as I quickly follow him, a tight knot loosening in my stomach. Time to shut the feelings off.

But seriously, I wasn’t going to lie to him about feelings or lack thereof. Who does he think I am?

“We should go, guys,”Xavier calls to the others once they come into view. Probably knowing he was going to say that before he actually did, Griffin and Ray are already packing up supplies.

“To the coast!”Ray yells, fist pumping the air in a silly burst of enthusiasm. I roll my eyes as I pick up Xavier’s backpack.

“What are you doing?”He asks, but I wave him off with my hand.

“Grab Danae’s bag. I haven’t been carrying anything for a while.”The truth is, I have gotten so tired of watching other people deal with their own stuff. Griffin and I were the only ones without bags, so we’ve had to mooch off everyone else without being much help to anyone.

Without looking at the others, I start moving quickly, trusting that the others will follow. And they do, their footsteps pounding behind mine.

It’s probably going to be a long run, but I’m pretty sure we can reach the ocean by nightfall.

* * *

When I see a vast expanse appear on the horizon, I nearly have a heart attack. Which may seem weird, but after a couple hours of travel, seeing anything at all besides moving Shifters and dead foliage is a big surprise. At the sight, my stomach starts grumbling furiously, probably more ready than I am to reach the ocean.

We continue to travel, our footsteps pounding in unison. But now that we can see the end, it seems like we are running at a slower and slower speed. I find myself impatient, and I speed up, the rest of the group keeping up easily. The ocean grows larger and larger, along with my excitement.

It finally creeps upon us, and we can finally slow down to a steady walk. The others cheer beside me. Ray seems especially excited, jumping up and down with his backpack in his hands.

Xavier looks at me, and we make eye contact. His face is twisted into a tentative smile, and it is easy to notice that he may have a few misgivings about the whole thing. “What is it?”I ask softly, not noticing that my arm is swinging towards his until it brushes against his side. After the contact I jump half a mile into the air, edging away from his body. “S-sorry.”

“Mona,”he laughs, “no big deal. I’m just pretty tired.”His expression is strained, doing nothing to alleviate my concerns.

“Yeah right. Don’t think you can get away with not telling me,”I warn, wagging my finger at his face. This time his features crinkle into a genuine smile.

“It’s really nothing. I’m relieved that we finally made it.” He starts walking into the wind, spreading his arms wide. I narrow my eyes after him, unconvinced.

The sand is like pure crystals, each grain soft and illuminated by an unearthly glow. The trees have shifted into ones with skinnier trunks and long, generous branches. They are similar to those that appear at a normal beach, and it leaves me with the same sense of awe that I experienced years ago. And on either side, it seems to last forever, the white expanse continuing as far as I can see. The only thing is that there is something so empty about this atmosphere. Maybe it is just the lack of color, or the chilly air, but the beach doesn’t seem as inviting as I remember.

There are small plants by the edge of the beaches. Immediately Danae rushes over to it, fingering the leaves with avid fascination. I leave her to it, putting Xavier’s backpack by the base of a tree. Just as before, I place my toes in the sand, hoping to immerse myself in the beauty of the moment. My feet disappear, sinking in to my ankles.

It feels nice, and I’m not unwilling to admit it to myself. Pretty much exhausted, I sink to my knees, and then to a sitting position. Watching the others’ reactions with interest, it surprises me how happy they are behaving. Griffin is walking towards the water, and Ray is lying on his back. Danae is holding several ripe fruits in her arm, heading towards the outskirts to probably set up some sort of camp.

“We shouldn’t stay here long,” Xavier says, looking in my direction. I return the look, baffled at his words, yet receiving the same ominous feeling about these ghostly beaches. He’s probably right, but I need a minute to myself… to rest.

“Don’t be a party pooper!” Ray laughs, jumping immediately in the water. Once he hits the water, his face immediately turn stark white. He freezes in place, startling both me and Griffin, who was about to jump in.

“What’s wrong?” He asks, taking a step back. Ray says nothing, his face now an scary shade of blue.

“Ray!” I stand up, and run over to the shore. The water rises and falls, but he doesn’t move an inch.

I inwardly groan and take a step into the water to grab his arm. As soon as I make contact with the ocean, I immediately understand Ray’s reaction. This water… is something else.

“Wow, it’s like stepping into liquid ice,” I complain while wrapping my arm around his. “It’s probably not healthy to stay in here for too long.” Tugging him out of the water, I practically have to drag him at this point. “Good grief,” I mutter quietly, bogged down by his weight.

Xavier is waiting at the edge, and he hurriedly rips Ray away from me. “Always getting into trouble, huh?” He asks, slapping Ray heartily in the back. The action seems to shake Ray back to life, and he awkwardly jumps away.

“It’s pretty cold out there. I advise not jumping in.” He uncomfortably shivers, and I run to grab him a dry shirt.

“I’m thirsty,” Griffin says out of the silence, “does anyone have some water?”

“I don’t think so,” I reply while shuffling through the bag. “We ran out early today. You could drink from the ocean, but…”

Oh no.

Everyone’s face darkens as they have the same revelation I am experiencing. I don’t really know why it hit me just now—when it hadn’t on the whole journey up here—but it hurts like a ton of bricks.

Griffin sticks a single finger in the water, swirling it around and then flicking his tongue at it. “It’s about as salty as the Dead Sea,” he comments, smiling dryly.

“What the crap,” I mutter in a scathing tone to myself. “What was I thinking? And I thought we were getting closer to a water source…”

And we were, I correct myself mentally. Except it’s a salty mess that everyone can look at and not drink while we are dying of dehydration.

I put my head in my hands, slumping against the base of the tree. Mona, you should be better than this.

“Mona.” Ray walks up to me and takes the shirt from my hands. “It’s okay. We’ll just keep going after this.”

“But… what if we don’t find anything?” I ask him, nervously clenching my fists.

“Well, that’s pretty pessimistic.” He grins. “Although I guess it suits the rather anticlimactic situation we got going on here.”

“Yeah, unfortunately we need to leave before long,” Xavier says, repeating the same worry that I know has been haunting him since we reached the beach. He starts to gather up our belongings from their locations on the sand.

“We can gather our energy for a minute,” I say weakly, “It might be a few hours before we reach another water source.”

“We can… but just remember that every minute we spend here is a minute we have to continue without any water.” Xavier scans the area, his eyes narrowed in suspicion.

“Xavier, what’s wrong?!” I ask him, frustrated by his unexplainable behavior. “You never act like this.”

He whirls around to face me. “Do you not feel that?”

I just sit, staring at him openmouthed, while at the same time trying to feel exactly what he’s feeling. I concentrate for a minute, focusing on the wind and the waves as they roll towards the beaches.

“Nope. I got nothing.”

Xavier crouches down and covers my ears with tender hands. “Don’t think. Just feel. And smell.”

“What the crap…” I close my eyes, draining myself of thoughts and feelings. As I do so, a slight wrinkling of the nose reveals a strange, familiar scent that has the hint of some odious flavor I can’t identify. “What… is that?”

“I don’t advise staying here to find out,” He replies, edging towards the outskirts. “The scent is much stronger than it was a few minutes ago.”

“Doesn’t that smell like… human? Or even werewolf?” Ray asks, standing by my side. His eyes are closed, his face bent in concentration.

Xavier’s eyes widen. “You’re right, Ray. What the…”

Griffin is staring out into the distance, as if searching for something. “Look!” He calls, and then immediately starts running. Terror enters my heart, and I start shaking nervously. What could be out there?

The cold takes over my body, and even as Xavier tugs on my hand, the fear only increases. This is something unlike anything I have ever felt in this world. But, like most things, there is some nostalgia associated with the emotion that unsettles me.

“Hey!” I can hear loud shouting in the distance, and immediately I start to run towards them. Xavier looks at me as he starts running as well, and I can see his concerned face in the corner of my eye. But I disregard it, speeding as fast as I possibly can towards the others. They are all stopped in a strange semicircle, piquing my curiosity in the worst of ways.

“What’s going on?” I ask breathlessly as I approach them. My knees are heavy, so I lean down and put my hands against them. With my head down and a heavily beating heart, I feel the apprehension building beyond control.

Finally, I cast my gaze upwards, and nearly jump a hundred feet in the air. “What the… no…”

A blonde man is lying before us, covered in blood, and drenched in sweat. He looks to be barely conscious, his eyelashes fluttering in a struggle to stay awake. With his clothing ripped down the back and side, strange indentations had been made in his body that could have never been made with human hands. Newfound chills ripple down my spine.

“Wes?” I ask, the name flowing as easily from my lips as it did with the others in my group. Yes, I know him. I could never forget that golden hair, tumbling past his ears and glittering in the sunlight. In this current state, the brightness has been dulled, tainted with both red and brown.

Xavier is ahead of everyone else, walking towards him and trying to lift his body without touching his wounds. “What… happened?” He asks with concern. Wes’s eyelashes flutter, and eventually his eyes flicker open. As soon as his consciousness is fully gained, he immediately starts kicking and thrashing, attacking Xavier weakly. “Wes? Wes! It’s me!” Xavier yells, trying to pacify him.

“X-Xavier,” He whispers, and then gradually gives up on all resistance. “Hurry… can’t stay…”

We all turn to look around, anxious for what else could be on the coast. The markings on Wes’s back indicate that we could be facing a real enemy, and in a world with no rules, who knows who or what could be the threat. And there’s no ignoring that our group is weaponless, with the exception being my spirit spears.

Another head appears from the forest, glistening with iridescence. We all turn to look at him as he barrels onto the coastline. In a similar state to Wes, with his clothing in tatters, he casts a glance at the ocean and curses beneath his breath. Turning to look at Wes, he sees the rest of us and his mouth opens wide.

“Xavier? Mona?” Jake asks, clearly surprised to see us. But the surprise quickly dissipates on his rugged features, leaving only resignation. “We’re probably cornered by now. Do you guys have any weapons?”