In the morning, Zain and Sasha left the hotel.
"So," Zain said, "now we have to go to Lumina Pillar."
Sasha nodded, looking off to the west. "Yes."
Then Zain thought of something. "You know, the forest is dangerous these days, even during the daytime. And you're completely unarmed. We should find you a weapon of some kind."
"But couldn't I just use my PSI?" Sasha asked.
"I don't know," Zain replied. "I think maybe it's not a good idea to rely on it too much."
She looked at him. "You know, for a guy who just discovered the power two nights ago, you act like you know a lot about it."
Zain looked down. "Sorry, I didn't mean to do that," he apologized. "I really don't know much of anything about it. I was just trying to be cautious."
Abruptly Sasha regretted what she had said. "No, I'm sorry, Zain. I shouldn't have said that. After all, you showed me how to use the power to speak with animals, and even heal." She smiled. "Besides, you ARE right about not relying on PSI too much; I wasn't thinking. Using PSI drains your energy, and if you're too drained, you can't use it. You're right; I should probably get some kind of weapon."
"Well, there's a drugstore near here," said Zain. "Let's go there and see if we can find something."

At the drugstore, they looked around at a few different things. Finally Sasha pointed something out. "What about this?"
Zain looked at what she had indicated; it was a slingshot. He nodded. "That should work. In fact, it's a good idea; this way, you'll be able to attack long-range."
Sasha smiled, pleased that he liked her choice. "I'll get it, then."
Zain nodded again, and he looked at the price tag; it was 43 dollars. He dug out his wallet. Looking inside, he frowned; he only had 31 dollars left, after paying for the hotel room last night. He could empty his bank account, but that still wouldn't give him enough.
She noticed what he was doing, and stopped him. "No, Zain. You don't have to buy it for me. You've paid for everything so far."
Zain looked up from his wallet. "But--"
She shook her head. "I have 96 dollars. That's more than enough to pay for this."
Sighing, Zain put his wallet away. Sasha smiled; she appreciated how nice he was.
She paid for the slingshot, and then they left the store.

Once they were outside again, Zain said, "I think we should be ready to go now."
Sasha nodded. "Do we have everything we need?"
"I think so," Zain replied. "If we get hungry on the way, I have some cookies and juice in my pack, and some extra burgers and fries too."
"That's good," said Sasha. "Especially with what I've seen of your appetite."
Zain turned red with embarrassment. "Well, I... Um..."
She laughed. "I was only joking, Zain."
"Well," Zain replied, "you might actually be right."
They both laughed. Suddenly, something in Zain's backpack started ringing. "What's that?" Sasha asked.
Zain took off his backpack and rummaged through it. "It must be the Receiver Phone," he said.
"The what?" said Sasha, confused.
Finally he found it. The Receiver Phone looked a lot like a cellular phone. It had a small display screen and numerical keypad, both of which looked as if they had been added in later. Above the display screen, there was a large black button; Zain pressed it and brought the phone to his ear. "Hello?"
"Hello, Zain, it's Jeff," replied Jeff Andonuts, on the other end.
"Jeff!" Zain cried. "Did you make it back okay?" Sasha started in surprise.
"Yes, I'm fine," Jeff replied. "How has it been for you so far?"
"Pretty good, actually," Zain answered. "I learned a little more about my PSI, and I met someone."
"Another member of the Chosen Eight?" said Jeff. "I knew you would, but I didn't think it would be this soon."
"Well, I'm still not sure about that," Zain admitted. "But it doesn't really matter to me. It's enough just that I have a friend to travel with." Overhearing him, Sasha smiled.
"You're right, that's what matters," agreed Jeff. "It's good to have friends, and I used to have some really good ones..."
He cut off. "Anyway, have you found out anything about the Sanctuary?"
"We learned that it's west of Primera," answered Zain. "There's a cave in the western forest."
"Good," said Jeff. "I'm glad you found out where it is. I tried to look up some information on it, but there wasn't anything; the northern Hawkland region is almost all wilderness."
He paused for a moment. "Anyway, I just called to make sure that everything was okay. I'll call again if something comes up that you need to hear about. You can also call me here at the lab if you need to; the number is saved on your Receiver Phone."
"Okay," said Zain.
"All right then. Remember, it won't cost you anything to make a call with the Receiver Phone. I'll talk to you later, Zain." There was a click on the other end as Jeff hung up.
Zain turned off the phone and looked at Sasha. "That was Jeff Andonuts," he said. "He's the one who told me about what I have to do."
She nodded, and then suddenly remembered something. "I... I completely forgot to call Dad!" she cried, horrified. "I was supposed to call him last night!"
Zain handed her the phone. "Try to call him now."
Sasha took the phone and dialed her father's hotel room number. After a moment, she ended the call and looked at the ground. "...There's no answer."
She gave the phone back to Zain. "He probably thinks something happened to me. I should have called him last night, like I was supposed to."
"Don't worry," Zain said, attempting to console her. "We'll just try to reach him again later. We'll keep trying until we reach him."
She nodded. "Okay..."

They started walking back toward the western edge of town, to enter the forest. Now that they had supplies, they were ready to go to Lumina Pillar.
They had reached the hotel again when suddenly, a dog came out of a nearby alley. Zain smiled and stopped to talk to it.
The dog looked up at him and snarled. Zain stepped back as he recognized the red glint of the Madness in its eyes.
"Zain, what's wrong?" Sasha asked.
"It's a creature of the Madness!" exclaimed Zain.
She froze. "A Madness creature?" she repeated, afraid.
Zain nodded, watching the dog carefully. "See the red in its eyes? That's proof that it's a Madness creature."
Sasha edged closer to Zain. "What are we going to do?"
Just then, five more dogs came out of the alley and joined the first. All of them had the Madness as well.
Zain looked at them, and started as he recognized the dog that he had just spoken to yesterday... The one who had told him where to find Lumina Pillar. "Sasha, look!"
She saw it as well. "It's the dog we talked to yesterday!"
The dog gave no hint of recognition as it bared its teeth at the two humans.
Zain tried to talk to it, using his PSI. "Don't you recognize us?" he asked.
"We just talked to you yesterday!" Sasha cried, trying to communicate with it as well.
The dog gave no response other than to growl maliciously.
Not taking his eyes off of the six dogs, Zain shook his head. "It's useless. The Madness has him, so he won't even recognize us."
Other people on the street started to notice what was going on, and began to stare fearfully at the spectacle. Their attention was diverted elsewhere as more and more dogs began to emerge, growling viciously. A nearby police officer ran to his squad car and radioed frantically for backup.
"Sasha," said Zain solemnly, "if we're going to make it out of this alive, we're going to have to fight."
"But what about the dog from yesterday?" asked Sasha. "We can't..."
"We have to," Zain said. "I don't like it either, but we have to. He has the Madness now; he doesn't know us anymore. We can't hesitate... Because HE won't."
Slowly, Sasha nodded. "I understand..."
"We're outnumbered," Zain continued. "For us to have a chance, we have to stay together. We mustn't get separated, Sasha."
Sasha nodded in agreement. She looked at Zain and managed to smile, even in their current situation. "Together we'll make it."
Upon hearing this, Zain smiled as well. "Together we'll make it."
The dogs began to approach them, preparing to attack. Zain slowly brought out his baseball bat, and Sasha gripped her new slingshot, fitting a stone to it.
In the area around them, people who could escape into buildings were doing so, trying to get away from the Madness animals. Some people, the ones who were brave enough, improvised weapons of their own, or prepared to fight with their fists. A large, heavyset woman brandished her purse like a flail. The police officer, having finished calling for backup, drew his service revolver and started trying to calm down the people nearby. "I've called for backup," he said. "It'll be here shortly. Please remain calm."
No one heard the "remain calm" part; as if on cue, the dogs simultaneously attacked.
One of the dogs leapt at Zain's throat, its teeth bared. Zain swung his bat hard, knocking it out of the air. Standing beside him, Sasha fired her slingshot at another dog who was about to jump; the stone cracked it in the face, and it fell to the ground, dazed; the Madness disappeared from its eyes.
Sasha turned to Zain, elated that the Madness seemed to be gone from the dog. "Did you see that, Zain?"
"Duck!" Zain cried. Almost by reflex, Sasha did so, and Zain swung his bat above her, smashing a leaping dog out of the air.
In the background, the policeman fired his pistol at the dogs, and some of the tougher people who had stood their ground were fighting off other dogs with their fists and improvised weapons. The large woman wielded her purse with great force, sending dogs flying as far as thirty feet away.
Determined not to get caught off guard again, Sasha turned to another dog that was about to leap, and concentrated. "PSI Freeze Alpha!" Freezing winds swirled around her target, blasting it with cold force.
Zain was suddenly attacked by another dog... It was the one he had befriended yesterday. Against his own advice, Zain hesitated... And the dog's jaws closed on his left arm.
Sasha suddenly heard Zain cry out, and turned to see a dog hanging from his arm. "Zain!"
Without thinking, she dashed forward and threw herself into the dog. The force knocked it off of Zain's arm; it hit the ground and sprawled in a heap. Sasha lost her balance and fell to the ground.
Seizing the opportunity, another dog leapt for her throat... And Zain, wielding his bat with one arm, brought his weapon down on its head. "Stay away from her!" Zain shouted. The dog collapsed, and the Madness disappeared from its eyes.
Sasha scrambled to her feet. "Thanks, Zain."
"Well, thank YOU for knocking the other one off," Zain replied.
He turned to the remaining dogs. Some of the ones he had hit before were getting up again, and there were still others as well. Soon they would attack again.
Zain suddenly began to feel very angry. These dogs had probably been quite friendly before, like the one he had spoken with yesterday. And now, because of the Madness, they had been turned into mindless creatures that only cared about killing.
This ends now, he thought fiercely.
Switching his bat to his injured arm, Zain raised his good arm and spread his fingers at the enemy. "This ends now," he repeated angrily.
Sasha stared at Zain in surprise as his eyes turned a smouldering red. She felt an immense force building up within him, ready to break free at any moment.
And then Zain released it. "PSI Hyperion Alpha!"
Sasha watched as a huge burst of light exploded forth from Zain's outstretched hand. From the light, many tiny stars, blindingly bright, emerged from the light and blasted the enemies. Each one of the stars exploded in a burst of sunlight as it connected.
Feeling somewhat fatigued, Zain lowered his hand, and the red color in his eyes faded away. Not a single one of his enemies were left standing.
The other people who were fighting off the dogs stared at Zain, having seen what he had done. "Did you see that?" asked one of them. "What WAS that?"
Just then, the backup that the policeman had called for arrived. Five squad cars drove into the fray and screeched to a halt. At least two officers got out of each car and began taking care of the rest of the dogs.
Soon, the police had the situation under control. All of the dogs had been put out of commission, and most of the remaining ones became tame, losing the Madness.
Zain watched what was happening. He turned to Sasha, and the baseball bat fell from his left hand. "...I guess they have it taken care of, now..." he said. He felt somewhat dizzy.
Sasha looked at his left arm, which was bleeding profusely; Zain had lost a lot of blood. She had to do something, or else...
She placed her hands on Zain's wound, and concentrated, using her gift for healing as Zain had taught her. "Lifeup Alpha!"
The wound closed and disappeared, and the dizziness went away. Able to use his arm again, Zain smiled gratefully at her. "Thanks," he said.
"You're welcome," Sasha replied, smiling back. "We have to watch out for each other, remember?"
She thought back on the power that Zain had used to defeat the dogs. Although not quite as powerful, it had been almost identical to the one that he had used to drive away the darkness in her dream. "What kind of power was that you used?" she asked, curious.
Zain scratched his head. "It's the first PSI power I learned," he explained. "I used it to destroy an agent of the new evil."
Sasha smiled warmly at him; so this was the power that could drive back darkness. "Zain, you're amazing," she said sincerely.
Zain looked down, lost for words... And then he suddenly noticed that the dog they had met yesterday was gone. "Look, the dog's gone!" he cried.
She looked at where the dog had been, and her eyes widened. "Where could he have gone?"
Just then a police officer came up to them; it was the same officer that had been in the area when the stray dogs' attack had begun. "I saw the way you two helped fight off the attack," he said. He focused on Zain. "Especially you, with that large explosion and all. You took out a lot of the dogs with that attack; you've helped to save a lot of people."
Zain shook his head. "It was nothing, officer. Besides, I couldn't have done it without Sasha."
The policeman shrugged. "Well, in any case, I just finished talking to the mayor, and he wanted to meet both of you."
Zain's eyes widened. "The mayor of Primera?"
The officer nodded. "Come on, I'll take you to City Hall in my squad car."

Not long after, Zain and Sasha were in City Hall, standing in front of the mayor of Primera, Norris Rupert. "I am very impressed with the way the two of you fought back against the Madness creatures to protect this town. In an age where the Madness is causing more and more animals to go berserk, it's wonderful that young people like you two can take initiative, and stand up and fight against it."
He cleared his throat and continued. "Therefore, for the service you've done for your community, I hereby present you with this reward. Merras, please give them the reward."
The mayor's assistant walked up to Zain and deposited $1000 into his hand. Zain and Sasha looked at the mayor in surprise.
"You deserve it," the mayor said. "Use it wisely."
Zain nodded. "We will."

The police officer gave them a ride back to the western outskirts of town, warning them to be careful because of the Madness.
Sasha noticed that it was beginning to get dark. She turned to Zain. "I guess we can't go to Lumina Pillar today, either."
Zain sighed. "I guess not; it'll be too dangerous in the dark. We're tired from the fight, anyway. We'll just have to wait until tomorrow, and then set out for Lumina Pillar."
Sasha nodded in agreement. "Let's go back to the hotel." Then she suddenly remembered. "Oh, and I have to call Dad, too."
"Once we get to the hotel," Zain said, "you can use the Receiver Phone to call him." Sasha nodded.
As they set out for the hotel, Zain thought, Tomorrow, we'll finally go to Lumina Pillar.

Meanwhile...

It was snowing when Deckard Petersen arrived in Winters.
From the airport, a taxi took him as far as it could go: to the general store near the Snow Wood Boarding School. Vehicles couldn't go past there, because there was no road.
As he got out of the taxi, the driver turned to talk to him. "They say that the Andonuts laboratory is to the south," he said. "Just go south. When you reach the lake, you can take the ferry across. After that, you have to keep going south, through a cave and past the old Stonehenge ruins."
Deckard sighed mentally. Dr. Andonuts certainly likes to isolate himself, he thought. "Thank you," he told the driver.
"Anytime," the taxi driver replied. "Just be careful, okay? There's Madness creatures lurking around these days."
Deckard nodded, and the taxi drove away. After it was gone, Deckard looked to the south. The only thing he saw was snowy wasteland.
"It's going to be a long trip," he said, trying to prepare himself mentally.
But he had to do it. He owed it to Lexa to do it. Her life and her freedom depended upon him.
Deckard checked the Shining Wind Sword in its sheath, making sure that it was loose enough to be drawn quickly. I promised I wouldn't stop until I found you, he reminded himself. And if I have to go through a frozen wasteland to find you, then I will.
With resolve in his heart, Deckard began the long trek south.

To be continued...