The woman's whistle rang out, long and clear, as though it could pierce through anything.
They did not wait long.
An old man emerged from deep within the blaze.
He was hunched and stooped, seemingly ancient, but his eyes were keen and alert. His steps remained steady on the burning mountain path. Most frightening of all-there was a shield around him.
It seemed to keep out the flames and heat.
He walked out of the fire, his drooping eyes sweeping over the four of them.
The woman grew solemn and lowered her head. "Priest."
Even Qiu and the young man, who had been so arrogant, stood up and obediently bowed their heads.
Dummy did the same.
The old man looked at Dummy and frowned. "Who is he?"
His cracked voice was hoarse and somewhat grating.
The woman thought for a moment before answering, "His name is Dummy. He's new. He delivers energy sources for the others. He's terribly stupid, completely useless."
She frowned at the thought of the boy's stupidity.
Dummy was so stupid that whenever she thought of him, his foolishness came to mind first, rather than any suspicion.
The old man nodded and looked away.
The woman clearly knew this boy well, so there was nothing to worry about.
Otherkind had always hidden among humans. No one had ever seen a human hiding among Otherkind.
Who would do that?
For one thing, it would be difficult. For another, what would be the point? Were they looking to die?
The old man said nothing more. He released several transparent shields into the fire, then headed back, leaving them with one instruction:
"Come back. The ritual is about to begin."
They hurried into the shields.
The boy followed, his golden eyes darting about as he examined the transparent shield.
The