• Night had returned when Yuna next woke. She sat up and stretched, her injuries completely healed, with the exception of slightly raw skin. She stood and strode out of the cave, and grew feathery black wings from her back. Rhea opened her butterscotch eyes and looked around for Yuna, she wasn't there. Rhea sighed heavily, she should have known, she had no friends. She stood and stretched her stiff muscles, and walked out of the cave. “Oh, you’re up.” Yuna said turning and smiling at Rhea. Her moon white fangs glittered in the light of the half moon. Rhea smiled at the sight of her friend.
    “You didn't leave; I thought you might have left. Could you possibly tell me what you are exactly?” She asked, tilting her head curiously to one side.
    “Oh, what I am… Well, I am a vampire, but these wings, I don’t know…” Yuna replied, staring at the moon.
    “So what about you? What are you?” she asked. Rhea looked a little taken aback.
    “Me? I’m complicated. I’m a hybrid, vampire werewolf cross, possibly the first, I don’t know. My history… well it’s a little complicated.” Rhea said.
    “Oh, were you a slave? I heard alarms the day I met you.” Yuna asked,
    “No, not a slave… I guess you could call me an experiment of sorts.” Rhea explained.
    “Oh, yeah, I was the same. Just a weapon the Vampires made.” Yuna replied knowledgeably.
    “I don't know what I’m for. I just know I've been in a Labyrinth for all my life and don’t even remember being human. And this is the first time I've ever been out of the Labyrinth.” Rhea replied.
    “Well, it seems we’re a lot alike, you and I.” Yuna replied, pulling her wings back into her body.
    “I guess so. I just want to get as far away from here as possible. So where to?” Rhea asked.
    “I’m not sure. Well, we’re going to need a map or something.” Yuna said thoughtfully.
    “Hmm…” Rhea bit her lip pensively. “Do you have any idea where we can get one?” she asked.
    “Well, if we wait long enough a soldier may come by.” Yuna suggested.
    “Yeah, possibly. But we shouldn’t linger too long. We’re still close to the fortress, and they may still be looking for me.” Rhea agreed.
    “That’s true. Well I could go, and take one from them and you could stay here. I need to feed anyway.” Yuna said, running her tongue over her fangs.
    “OK, that sounds good. I’ll wait here, but if you take too long I’ll come after you.” Rhea said nodding.
    “Then I won’t be long.” Yuna replied spreading her feathery black wings and she flew off into the night, as Rhea sat just inside the cave.
    The star filled night provided Yuna with plenty of light and the fortress quickly came into view. Her glistening white hair danced around her face as the wind played with it, and she landed lightly on one of the pillars surround the dark, dreary fortress. It looked like a Dracula’s version of Frankenstein’s castle mixed with medieval cult architecture and feeling. Surrounded by a dark, murky moat, and mile high walls dripping with slime, water and bracken, ivy choking the doors and clinging hopelessly to the pillars; The building itself looked like a cross between Dracula and Frankenstein’s castles and a medieval Notre Dame. The only modern looking things were the guards armed with various weapons, and guard dogs. And watch towers placed on the corners. “Now where would they hide maps?” Yuna asked herself, looking around. Then her eyes fell on a lit storeroom under a watch tower.
    Back in the forest, Rhea was waiting just outside the cave, for Yuna to return. She stared dazedly up at the moon, lost in thought and memories. A twig snapped off to the side she jumped, startled, and leaped lightly and quietly to her feet. She shifted into a defensive, but slightly offensive position, ready to attack; a defensive snarl escaped her lips. A creature stood in between two trees, now bathed in moonlight. Rhea scrutinized the creature closely with hunter’s eyes.
    The creature looked human enough, stood tall like a human, and had natural hair like a human. But he had gold cat-like eyes and had calico cat ears poking though his mud-brown, cropped hair. He also had a calico cat tail that was twitching nervously. He also possessed abnormally long, claw-like fingernails. He looked vaguely familiar to her. “Who are you?” she growled, showing white fangs, ready to change in a heartbeat.
    “My name is Daven, who are you?” the cat person replied.
    Meanwhile, at the gothic fortress Yuna had found a drafty old shack, which looked very out-of-the-way and held possibilities. She looked inside, it was similar to a scribe’s room, with boxes upon boxes of parchments scrolls and other writings all stacked on shelves. Nailed above a low shelf was a map, it was drawn on worn-out aged parchment, but it looked like a very recent and accurate map. She reached up to take it down, Perfect; this should help us get out of here. She thought. She paused suddenly, listening, voices outside, headed her way. She seized the map, ripping one of the corners, and slipped outside. Once she was safe in the shadows she spread her wings and took to the skies, heading back to find Rhea.
    Back at the clearing Rhea eyed the new stranger, Daven, curiously. "My name is Rhea, what brings you here?" she asked suspiciously.
    "I am looking for someone; I did not mean to intrude." Daven replied. Yuna flew overhead, flying quickly, worried for her new friend. As she reached the clearing she saw Rhea and what appeared to be some kind of Denom. She folded her wings and dropped to the ground in front of the Demon, with elongated fangs bared.
    "You, what do you want? Why are you here?" she asked. Daven stepped back a couple paces, hands raised palm upward in a peaceful gesture.
    "Peace, I am merely traveling, trying to find someone." he said. Yuna's eyes narrowed.
    "Who are you looking for?" she asked suspiciously.
    "I…" He paused. "I don't know exactly. Only that it's a girl, and she's different from humans." he said, a little confused, as though he hadn't realized this before now. "However, I do not know this land very well, and need a guide." he continued, and, upon seeing the map in Yuna's hands, asked. "May I travel with you?" Yuna looked him over, judging his aura and physical capability, then grabbed Rhea by the wrist and walked a few feet away into the shadow of the trees.
    "He doesn't seem dangerous, but still, he is suspicious." she whispered.
    "I'm not so worried about him being a threat to us, more like me being a threat to him. I have neither knowledge of nor control over the full extent of my abilities." Rhea said, and then glanced back over at him. "Yet, he seems familiar, like I know him from somewhere, but I can't place him." she said thoughtfully. Yuna titled her head to the side curiously
    "Familiar? How so?" she asked, the question showing on her face and in her voice.
    "I don't know, there's something nagging, tugging at the edges of my memory, but I can't say what." she said, then shrugged and sighed. "It's probably nothing."
    "Do you think your memories were stolen?" Yuna asked.
    "Stolen? What do you mean?"
    "Like, taken from you when you were experimented on."
    "Hm... I don't know it's possible I suppose. I don't remember anything about my past except the experiments and trials." Rhea said. "But, if my memories were erased, why would I suddenly remember them?" she asked thoughtfully.
    "Good question, I don't know either." Yuna said. She turned and walked back to where the youkai was. Rhea hesitated for a minute then followed her friend. Yuna looked up, meeting Daven's gaze, after looking him over once more she finally nodded and said.
    "Well, since you don't seem dangerous, and you intentions seem naive enough you may come along is Rhea doesn't mind." she said, glancing back at her friend. Rhea shook her head.
    "I don't mind, but my powers are dangerous and sometimes unstable, so traveling with us could be hazardous." she warned.
    "Well, being a weapon does that, it's a con of the job. By the way, my name is Yuna." Yuna said, flashing moon-white fangs at him. Daven smiled impishly and extended razor-sharp cat claws.
    "I'll consider myself warned, but I can take care of myself." he said, and then retracted the claws, his calico tail twitched and flicked back and forth before he stilled it. "So, where are we headed?" he asked. Yuna shrugged.
    "Don't know, heck, we don't even know where we are, much less where we're going."
    "Well, that's comforting." Daven said, half-sarcastically.
    "Well, let's just look at the map and see. I'm actually pretty good with maps; I did live in a Labyrinth after all. It was kind of a necessity." she said, taking the map from Yuna. Yuna shrugged and helped her roll the maps out on the ground. She whispered in her ear,
    "You've been awfully quiet, something on your mind? Or someone, more like." she said smirking. Rhea smirked back at her,
    "Really, I thought that was you." Yuna looked a little taken-aback.
    "What? You're the one who knows him." she said.
    "Well, they say familiarity breeds contempt, therefore, he's more your type." Rhea said, and then shrugged. "Besides, my powers are too uncontrollable for a relationship." Rhea said, flattening one of the bigger maps and pinning it with pebbles to examine it. Yuna just shook her head and sighed.
    "Well I need to go feed, be back in a bit." Yuna said, and with that she spread her wings and took to the sky. Rhea knelt down and traced lines and patterns on the map with her finger, Daven looked into the skies, watching Yuna leave.
    "So, uh, how long have you and her known each other?" he asked.
    "Hm, oh, just a couple days. Why?" she asked distractedly, focused on the map.
    "Oh, just curious, you two seem really close." Daven said.