Raf woke up in the evening sun. Hinata was in the distance, walking toward him, carrying something. In the golden daylight, Raf could see their features more clearly. They had strong, muscular arms, broad shoulders, and an easy smile. Their clothes were loosely fit, allowing for free range of movement but modest and practical. On their waist were several straps and utility belts, which connected to a central harness.

  He got up and waved. Hinata waved back, and for some reason, Raf's stomach fluttered. Sophia called them 'the chainfisher,' and said they had a part to play.

  What part? Can I trust them? Either of them? They saved my life, so I have to trust them. What choice do I have? No one else can help me now.

  With his crisis of faith more or less settled, Raf decided to tell Hinata the truth and hoped they could keep a secret.

  Raf stood to greet them. His legs were still sore, and his shoulder hurt to move, but his head injury wasn't too bad. At least he could stand, and his vision wasn't impaired.

  Hinata ran the rest of the way, shouting excitedly, "You won't believe what happened! While you were sleeping, an angel came to me! They said I was to help you get somewhere and-"

  "Sophia spoke to you?" Raf interrupted, stunned.

  "You know them!?" Hinata's eyes widened. "Sophia… Yeah, they told me you'd need my spare chain. I had to run home to pick up supplies and tell my parents not to worry."

  Raf pondered. Surely Sophia speaking to them meant Hinata could be trusted.

  "Is this the chain?" Raf pointed to the bag Hinata brought.

  "Mhm. I only have the one grappling harness and rig, so I suppose we'll have to share while you practice."

  Raf looked in the bag and pulled out the chain. It was heavy and well-forged. Unlike Hinata's chain, there weren't any attachments or hooks. This was a simple chain.

  Suddenly the bag began to glow. The chain lit up a fiery red and moved with a life of its own, twisting and flattening into a thin layer, then rapidly snaking itself up Raf's arm like a tattoo.

  His first reaction was one of shock and fear. He dropped the chain, shook his arm, and fell to the ground; yet the chain floated midair and continued its progression up Raf's arm, across his back and shoulders, and then down his other arm; coiling like vines around a branch. As the last of the chain flew out of the bag onto Raf's body, it spread down his back and around to his chest.

  It was heavy, like chainmail or a suit of armor, but it moved as he moved, as if it were alive and reacting.

  Sophia's voice sang out, and the chain/tattoos on his arms and torso seemed to vibrate with sound.

  "This will shield you from damage and allow you to reach the peak more quickly. I will remain with you and guide your movements until your mission is complete."

  Hinata watched all this happen, too shocked to do anything but stare, mouth agape. A moment of dumb silence passed until Hinata finally found the words to ask, "Who are you? What mission?"

  Raf inhaled sharply. "My real name is Rafael Avalyn. A fallen killed my father, tried to kill me, and now possesses my sister. Sophia told me that the only way to stop the fallen and save my sister is to go to Oceania and learn soul magic. I don't know what that is or how to get there, but according to Sophia, my first destination is the 'last peak on Crescent,' whatever that means."

  Hinata looked conflicted. Yet pensively, they looked up toward Castle Moondial. "If that's the first peak, the last peak must be on the other side of the island."

  Then they turned to Raf and said, "You lied to me, Ryan." There was ice and anger in the accusation.

  Raf felt a stab of panic. He looked down. "I'm sorry. I was scared and wasn't sure whether to trust you." His eyes met Hinata's. "I trust you now. I'm choosing to trust you. Please forgive me. I won't lie to you again."

  They blinked in surprise and shrugged, "I guess. You're not what I expected."

  "What did you expect?"

  Hinata hesitated but then didn't hold back. "I figured stewarding families were shameless cowards. How else could they have surrendered?"

  Raf was aghast. "How could- Adam destroyed Inari and everyone on it! He would have done the same thing to all of us! My grandfather had no choice!"

  "Better to die free than live in servitude. He knelt and served Adam all the same."

  "That's not true!" It was Raf's turn to hesitate. How much should he tell them? "My family conspired with the last firefox to assassinate Adam. That's why my father's dead and why I'm supposed to be dead, too. You're alive because my grandfather surrendered. We survived this long because my father pretended to serve."

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  Hinata was taken aback. "I didn't know that. I'm sorry. Like I said, you're not what I expected."

  Raf cooled down. "It's alright. Sorry for getting defensive. I never knew people thought those things about my family. I guess it hurt my pride."

  Hinata smiled, and their eyes sparkled. "You're for real! This is wild! No, impossible! What even happened to that chain? Can I touch it?"

  Raf laughed, silently amazed that such a thing was still possible.

  "Sure." He pulled up his sleeve, revealing his new chain tattoo. It glowed a molten reddish gold. Sophia seemed to have compressed the metal in the chain down to a liquid form. It looked like it would burn at the touch, but it was warm, like a chain left out in the sun. The molten tattoo reacted to Hinata's touch.

  Sophia minded the chains, Raf supposed, and the visual expression of Sophia's mind was awesome. Magnificent, like solid fire.

  Hinata looked amazed but was playing it cool. They shot Raf a daring smirk. "Let's see what it can do." They pulled out two grappling chains from a holster on their lower back.

  "Huh?" was all Raf could manage to respond.

  "Follow me. If I'm right, Sophia will make sure your throws connect."

  Hinata ran toward the ledge and then jumped off the cliff, throwing their grappling hook to the nearest pole, swinging to the next pole, and throwing their other grappling hook. Repeat. Repeat.

  Raf followed them to the edge of the cliff and hesitated. He'd never been afraid of heights before, but after being thrown to his death, looking at the beach from this high up sent his heart racing.

  "You'll catch me, right, Sophia?" Raf asked. Silence. "Sophia?" Still no response. Raf felt embarrassed.

  "Come on," Hinata shouted, not far off in the distance, dangling elegantly from a chain. "This is how we'll get to the last peak. Trust me, I can get us there."

  Raf's heart fluttered again. He wanted to trust them. He had to trust them. Closing his eyes and taking a deep breath, Raf leaned over the ledge. Immediately the chain flew from his arm, uncoiling itself and extending to latch onto a pole. Raf swung down and back up again, and then the chain behind him released, and he was freefalling again. He panicked and yelled, reaching with his other arm for Hinata. But the chain was alive and lifted his arm higher, aiming for another pole and firing out to grab onto it. Raf was swinging. He bumped and spun against the side of the cliff, but the chain held, and once he swung up, the chain released, and Raf extended his other arm forward. Repeat. Repeat.

  "I'm doing it!" Raf cheered.

  "I knew you could do it!" Hinata answered. "Follow me."

  They swung forward and up. Raf followed joyously.

  It felt like flying. They climbed higher and traveled far in a short time, but Raf was quickly exhausted. His arms were still sore from last night's exertions, and his shoulder hurt terribly. He called out to Hinata, and they found a place to rest on a naturally formed shelf, wide enough to sit down.

  The outer coast of Crescent was mostly cliffs and hills. Legends say the island was the peak of an extinct underwater volcano. In the inner bay of the island was the crater, and Crescent made up the land surrounding that crater.

  They sat on the outer side cliff facing the ocean, far above the shore. With the sunset behind them, the sky was turning darker shades of blues and oranges.

  Raf was a little more confident with heights than before, but whenever he looked down, his body started a panic response, so he always looked up or forward.

  Hinata passed him some food: nuts and dried fruits, another musubi, and the water canteen. He had forgotten to eat before jumping off the cliff and was again famished. Once he was fed, he looked at Hinata.

  "You saved my life. You gave me a golden chain and showed me how to use it. You fed me twice. How can I ever repay you or thank you enough?"

  Hinata blushed and laughed nervously, looking away toward the horizon. "I dunno." They were pensive for a moment. "You really know a firefox?"

  Raf nodded. "The last."

  "I wanna meet them," they said reverently.

  Raf sighed. "I don't know where they are now. Somewhere safe with my little sister Lyn is all I know. I'm sure our paths will cross again someday, but I can't promise it."

  That almost seemed to satisfy Hinata, but not quite. "And you truly believe Adam can be killed?"

  "According to Rowan, if Adam were separated from the Blessings, he could be killed."

  Hinata leaned toward him, wide-eyed. "Rowan is the last firefox?"

  Raf nodded.

  "What are the Blessings?"

  "Five gems, the source of his power, embedded into Adam's regalia. Remove those, and he's still ageless but not immortal."

  "And you intend to steal them?" Hinata whispered breathlessly.

  The question terrified Raf beyond words. "Right now, I only care about saving my sister and banishing the fallen that killed my father... Then yes, Adam will suffer."

  Hinata smirked with satisfaction. "Alright. Keep your word, Rafael Avalyn. I'll take that as payment for helping you."

  Then Hinata yawned and stood up. From their lower back satchel, they pulled out their hooks, resembling sharp question marks.

  "It's about time to make camp. You can go on a bit farther, yeah?"

  Raf sighed. Carrying the chains on his body was a constant strain, and his muscles were already sore from heavy exertion. "Yeah, but not far. My shoulder hurts pretty bad."

  "Let's see it," they said, and Raf pulled his sleeve up to the shoulder. The bruise was big and purple, spreading far down his arm and around his back. "Oof. That looks pretty bad." They gently poked certain places, inquiring as to the pain level. "I don't think it's broken, just banged up," they concluded. "Come on. I know a place up ahead where we can make camp. Try only using your one good arm to swing. Watch, like this."

  Hinata put one grappling hook away and jumped off the shelf, throwing the free hook to a pole, swinging, twisting midair to release the chain, and throwing it forward again. Somewhat less graceful, and it looked much more difficult but also doable. He took a deep, fearful breath and followed Hinata off the cliff. Raf was much less graceful, but Sophia guided his arm and the chain so he never fell.

  The camp spot was farther than Raf had hoped, but it was perfect. This shelf was much larger than before, lush with trees and bushes, and a firepit already built in the center of a tiny grove.

  Fireflies danced in the air. Lizards and insects scurried by as Hinata and Raf collected dried kindling to start a fire.

  Both Hinata and Raf were adept firestarters, and it wasn't long before a roaring campfire was going. Raf helped Hinata set up some tarps to shield from the elements, and once that was done, the two of them promptly fell asleep.

  No visitors interrupted his slumber this time, which were a mix of nightmares of falling and drowning alongside dreams of soaring through the air with Hinata.