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Prologue

Ember's lungs ached with just how much he breathed in and out as he ran at a full sprint through the forest, huffing and gasping for air while he looked back behind him to make sure that he wasn't still being followed. But when he heard the rustle of bushes and tree branches above and around him, he shrieked and ran faster.

He twisted and turned with every second as he ran faster and faster as his legs could carry him. He even started to sweat and he knew that eventually, he could never outrun what was following him through the forest of the Sydney Nation. He tried calling for help earlier, but that just gave his pursuer even more advantage of getting closer to him.

Where the hell were Peril, Urchin, and everyone else when he needed them? He had been running for at least ten minutes, and his adrenaline was starting to wear off slowly, and he desperately needed water to quench his thirst from puffing out huge gulps of air. He gasped and wheezed and swallowed more air as he went on.

He looked over and saw the bushes running along the path beside him were moving and twitching as his pursuer was gaining on him with every second, and he was running out of time. It was only noon, and there was no way he was going to die on an empty stomach when Fawn didn't even feed him yet.

He passed tree by tree by tree and bush by bush, but his follower still never lost momentum, since it had obviously been doing this for a longer time than him. He was just playing a game with the girls until he made a mistake and found himself sprinting away from his threat. He whimpered and huffed and looked all around to make sure that he wasn't still being followed.

When he heard nothing but silence, except for the wind rustling the leaves of the trees and bushes, and stopped to look around for a quick glance before he continued on. He breathed in and out, panting loudly while he put his hands on his knees and hunched over. He had hardly ever been as terrified as he was now. He had taken down a man twice his size and three times as buff just a week ago, but this threat was the real deal.

When he poured some water from his canteen into his mouth, then he gasped in relief and lowered it to look back around, making sure he was safe now. When he turned to look one way, a rustle came from directly behind him, and he turned around sharply. Eyes stared at him viciously through the leaves of the bushes, and his pursuer kicked off from his side and leapt up in the air. He screamed in terror and fell backward, and his threatening follower hovered just over him, pinning him to the ground. He screamed and yelped for help, but he couldn't move an inch.

Then he stopped moving and gave up, resting his head on the ground and a small smile crept onto his face. He looked up at his attacker, and saw that it was smiling back too; mockingly. She had white hair and small purple horns, deep blue eyes and pointy ears. She had her wrists held tightly at his throat, while her legs were holding down his arms, not letting him move.

"Ten minutes, you're getting better." Glory smirked, getting up off of him and brushing herself off. "You still the biggest dummy I've ever met, though. Always will be."

She held out her hand, and he rolled his eyes as he took it and she pulled him up to stand in front of her. They both had jeans and boots on. Glory had a black tank top on, and Ember had a navy blue t-shirt. His hair was more ruffled and untidy than normal, and her's was tied back into a wild ponytail. She also wore fingerless gloves.

"Do you really need to break everyone's body when you catch them at hide-and-seek tag?" Ember asked, and Glory tilted her head to the side and gave him a sarcastic grin.

"Fine, if you hate my methods, Good Sir, then next time I'll make sure to kick you when you're near a cliff." Glory spoke formally.

"Please don't, you'll never hear the end of it if I survive, I promise." He narrowed his eyes.