Orion had become increasingly annoyed with the rest of his party as the day went on. It was nearly pitch black outside, and he feared they had barely made any progress. Time was running out before the sale date. He already anticipated their complaints about the cold. Surely they would demand to stay the night by the warm fire instead of pushing further. Every time he turned his head, they seemed further behind. He glanced back and saw Ariel staring into the trees with no urgency.

  “Ariel! What are you looking at? Come on,” he goaded.

  She didn’t seem to hear him, and cautiously stepped closer to whatever it was that had her attention. The other three horses had stopped to watch her.

  Orion turned down the path with his ears pinned back. “This is a waste of-”

  At the base of a sturdy cedar, a yearling filly was bundled tightly in a cloak. The whites of Rune’s eyes started to appear as he tried to force down a vision. Ariel silently crept over to her.

  “She’s alive, thank Epona. Just sleeping,” Ariel whispered.

  The filly’s head shot up, and she jumped to her feet. She thrust her hoof forward and her magic threw Ariel backwards, choking her against a tree.

  “Put her down!” Marmalade shouted, running after the filly.

  The little black yearling tossed her head and sent Marmalade to the ground with a loud thud. Knight dashed to Marmalade with his ears flat back, eyes flashing with a murderous glint. Orion had never seen him that angry before.

  Knight summoned his powers, and the wind whipped fiercely against the filly until she could hardly stand. He galloped toward her, head raised in challenge. She released Ariel and tried to escape, but not before Orion’s magic pulled her back. She fought against his grip, but her legs would not move.

  “Who are you?” he asked.

  “Get away from me!” she screamed.

  She struggled against him harder, shivering violently. He came closer and put a hoof to her neck, quieting her. Her skin was freezing cold to the touch.

  “Relax. We’re not going to hurt you,” Orion said.

  Marmalade held Knight’s trembling shoulders in a firm bear hug to steady them. “Calm down, honey. She’s too young to know better. I’ll be fine.”

  Rune shook away the last of his vision, and recognized the filly right away. “You’ve run from ERUJ, haven’t you?”

  She stared at him in shock. “How do you know about that?”

  “It’s okay. We’re on your side,” Orion said. “Come sit by the fire and we’ll talk.”

  The fire Rune had sparked up worked wonders on the filly, and she soon warmed herself enough that she could relax. Orion had wrapped her tightly in more blankets to protect her from the biting wind.

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  “Let me get this straight. Glacial Divinity has magic and got mixed up with Laci, and their evil ancestors got involved, and that’s how you met Daphne?” she scoffed.

  Marmalade shot a sour look at the filly. She had spent the last half hour trying to handle Knight’s mood while the little black filly warmed herself by the fire. He still shivered with fear beside her, but it was preferable to him trying to crack the nearest horse’s skull open.

  “Yes,” Orion confirmed.

  The filly sipped from her cup of tea. “You really expected me to believe that?”

  “I know it sounds outlandish. But you’ll have to trust me,” he said.

  “No way. I met you five minutes ago,” she argued.

  Rune sighed. “You haven’t even told us your name.”

  “Why don’t you figure it out, magic Mustang? I thought you could see the future.”

  Orion’s ears perked up. “Or why don’t you? You don’t have to just believe me. You can read my mind and you’ll know I’m telling the truth.”

  “Careful,” Rune whispered to him.

  She rolled her eyes. “You’re sure you want me going through your memories? I better not end up scarred for life.”

  Orion nodded.

  “Fine. But you better not whine about it.”

  She freed herself from the cave of blankets Orion had built around her and put a hoof to his head. She took a lock of his mane firmly, and his body went limp. His head hung loose in her hoof, and his eyes rolled back to the whites. The Amulet’s signature glow began to emit from beneath Orion’s cloak. Rune seemed worried by the sight.

  “Calm down. You’ve never seen a horse read a mind before?” she said.

  The filly looked through his memories until she was satisfied, then let him go again. He gasped and jerked his head back up again, and Rune was relieved.

  “Fine. My name is Lilith, and yes, I did just flee ERUJ. But what does it matter to you?” she said.

  “Your parents seriously named you Lilith?” Ariel said rashly.

  “Nevermind that. We need you to tell us what you know about ERUJ so we can get Laci out of there,” Orion explained.

  Lilith looked surprised. “If you’re planning on freeing Laci, that ship has sailed.”

  Orion startled at her words. “What happened to her?”

  “Chase happened to her. You go anywhere near her, she’ll tear you limb from limb,” Lilith said.

  “We know she’s been hurt, but she’s our friend. We’re not giving up on her,” Rune said.

  Lilith wrapped herself in the blankets again. “You don’t know what you’re getting yourselves into.”

  Ariel laid her ears back and stood up. “For Epona’s sake, Lilith, or whatever your real name is. I can tell you think you’re so much tougher than the rest of us because ERUJ captured you and you escaped. Well, I don’t care. I didn’t spend a year sitting in a stasis tank just to get sassed by you. Tell us what this Chase moron did, or run off into the woods and see how well you make it without us.”

  Everyone stared at Ariel, stunned. Lilith shrunk down into her blanket.

  “They put copper shoes on her. They do that to all of them. She looked sick when I saw her. She’s got scars all over her now where Chase has beaten her. I know she’s been backed a few times. I think they are going to sell her,” Lilith said.

  “Has she hurt anyone?” Orion asked.

  The little black filly nodded quietly.

  Orion sighed and mussed his mane with a hoof.

  “The only reason they’re not afraid of her is because of their own magic. Almost all of them have Daphne’s healing magic-and they can fix up any injuries they get from the horses they keep there,” she explained.

  “If they sell her, that safeguard goes away. She’ll really hurt someone,” Marmalade said.

  “We have to make it to ERUJ before then,” Orion asserted.

  Lilith flickered her ears nervously. “You’ll have to be quick. Even running as fast as I could, I only made it this far in an afternoon. The sale is scheduled for tomorrow.”

  “We should get some sleep,” Rune said. “We’ll go early in the morning.”