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Chapter 3

As the night approached them like dark veil, the two of them finally found the ornament indicating that they had reached Aushagen. From afar, it wasn't look like much, but Ifrit found out that the place was covered in winter veil of snow, and unlike the other towns he saw, the place had distinctive wood carvings.

"(It seems that your curiosity gets the better of you, Ifrit Schelkz)," said the female hellhound with a smirk. "(Aushagen is an ancient port town that had dated far before the First Alliance. There were many different civilizations then, most of them had perished now)."

"(You do know many of human's history for a hellhound with fair snow-colored fur. But, why Aushagen? It's snowing and freezing here)."

"(We have an ally here. Don't worry, we're not alone in this)."

The female then directed Ifrit to a small fisherman's hut that was sitting near the coast. The hut wasn't as big as many other houses, but it sure was littered with fishing equipment unlike those seen in tropical regions. He felt unsure whether he wanted to believe the female that he himself had no idea about her name. Yet, he dared to come forward, and said, "(What's your name?)"

She then replied him, which gave him a major disappointment.

"(My name is not your concern, Ifrit Schelkz. Your name is still my concern, as do all of us. Yet, you asked, and I disappointed you)."

She pushed a door inward, and Ifrit was met with a dark room. There wasn't anything to turn any lights on except a small candle, which burned a bright green fire that lit the whole tiny room. As it lit the place, he noticed a shadow, and it led into the underground tunnel previously hidden by the darkness.

"(Come. Let me show you the way to my friend. And, my name is Mizarka Agedal, just call me Miza. Both of the names still have meanings to each other)."

"(Okay, Miza, I want to tell you one thing. Call me Ifrit or just Schelkz. You're not some weird hellhound, are you? Just askin')"

Miza then smirked. "(And here I am thinking that you're a grumpy fellow)."

The stair went into a complete darkness with only scent to help both of them and a strong heat at the end of the tunnel. Ifrit was fortunate that the stairs went in a straight line and was tidy, so he had no fear on tripping and making an embarrassing show by falling down and accidentally pushed the first female hellhound he had ever met for two years, which could make first impression bad.

Yet, he managed to stay cool and reached the end of the stairs with no incident, and he was greeted by a very strong heat that was comfortable, yet not very natural.

The room was lit with strong lights coming from some sources that was definitely not candles. The place had a small platform to the side, yet to the open side there was a boat, lit with the same green light from the hut. Ifrit could see a black figure on the boat and from how there a pair of ram-like horns was jutting out from the figure's hair, he could say that this was a demon.

As he came closer, he could slowly see the figure's features were more canine and exhaled in relief. It was a hellhound. Ifrit didn't like most other demons since they had different lifestyles, and thus didn't like to talk to them when he was still back in the underworld.

"(Miza, who is that)?" said the hellhound calmly. "(I can't see very well in the dark)."

"(It's Ifrit Schelkz, Anenka, so we're off to a warmer place. Is that boat ready?)" "(I can't guarantee another ride with three hellhounds)," said Anenka. "(This shit is leaking hard the last we use it)."

"(Don't you have something that's even longer lasting?)"

"(Just hop on, Miza, Ifrit. Hey, can I call you that?)"

As Ifrit nodded for approval, he tried to jump to the boat. His leg was then met with ice cold water that quickly gave a freeze up to his brain, which was, of course, noticed by Anenka.

"(Kid, just touch the green fire and you'll get yourself warm in a matter of seconds. Miza, hop on and we're off)."

The night was long for them, and the wind and air was so cold that it started to penetrate Ifrit's bare-chested furry body, despite of the heat. The coldness also started to make him shiver, and if not for Anenka giving him a leather coat that he could at least attained his temperature. Despite of the warmth of the green fire of mystical origins, they needed to turn it off to avoid detection once they reached the man-made canal to go inland.

Ifrit slept most of the journey in a disoriented condition that caused him unable to focus, quite possibly a post-comatose condition, in his opinion. Miza would wake him up for them to eat at a port, before resuming their journey with a coin of gold-worth old steam paddle, transferring to it while selling the boat for around 32 bronze coins (a fact that Miza said a little ironic, given the condition of the boat).

As they finally reached a water elevator to go down the cliff leading to the river at the base of the tower, they needed to wait an hour before crossing it. After some minutes processing anything to come through, Ifrit asked about the tower, to which Anenka said, "(That's an elevator, a Dusditch design and a technological marvel)."

"(Dusditch?)" "(An outsider of Dusdolf region called the locals that)," said Miza. "(We can travel back to Dusdolf again if you want to travel, but that's for a brighter day)."

"(What's actually going on when I am out? You two seems too suspicious, and despite of the kindness you gave me, as a hunted hellhound, I can't trust any hellhounds until I know if they are not deceiving me)."

When they stared at each other a minute too long, Ifrit again said, "(If you can't give me a good answer, I'll stay in Dusdolf and try to find my friends. At least they are honest to me. Now that I'm not all that disoriented from the coma, I ask you this, and what you said depends on what I'm going to do the next minute)."

"(Then there's nothing we can do to keep quiet, then)," said Anenka with a sigh. "(Never thought that fabled sense of yours work like a charm to always keep you survive. Miza, I think it's best we tell him)."

"(Tell him?! He won't gonna like that. He knew our names already)."

"(Damn it, girl, just stop whining. I believe he can see reasons)."

The black hellhound then adjusted his glasses to make a better vision, and he lighted a cigarette, puffed one billow of smoke, and said, "(We're both once from the hellhound kingdom your family once ruled, but before the coup, we deserted your kingdom, and you know us by deserters)."

"(Nope, never heard of that. But, if you are deserters...you betrayed my goddamn family?!)"

"(It's not like that, Ifrit! I know, our past is very much conflicted and we indirectly caused your bitter life, but you must know that we still have reasons, and that reason is...)"

"(You're holding yourselves from killing me because the Schelkz family do something awful to you, right? Now, tell me: Are you going to kill me?)"

Anenka then hesitated, and said, "(We could've killed you when you're still disoriented. Ifrit, you're currently in a crisis of trust. Something must've happened before this that you can't trust any hellhounds or Lycans you met, but believe us, kid. We're not trying to make things worse. The past is the past, okay? Though many of us still resent you family, we have resolved to help you anyway we can, before it's too late)."

"(Too late for what?)"

"(We face a very dangerous threat to our community up here)," said Miza. "(And everything you know will be gone if we can't continue the work that was inherited from your father, and that is to save the hellhounds and this surface world from invading demonic hordes)."

Ifrit tried to make something to talk to them, but he knew they were talking the truth. The hellhound realized he was lost in the ordeal, and with a sigh, he said, "(Can I take your word as a truth)?"

Anenka then turn to him, eyes serious. "(We are your friends, Ifrit. Don't worry. We'll take you to our leader in the jungles of the Tanah region. There, you can understand everything that happened after two years)."

Without anything to do and anything to understand, Ifrit agreed on it, albeit reluctantly. He knew he was signing a death threat