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Then she held her breath as she saw the wolves and the mountain lions sniff the array of scents on the gust of wind that wove across the plain.
    She pulled up the hood of her knit cowl to protect her ears from the stiff breeze, which still blew in the best direction as to hide their scent.
    Neve sat crouched next to her, looking fierce for a girl who just last night decided to leave the safety of her city’s walls.
    They watched in silence as the men slowly marched across the plain.  As the Scouts became smaller and smaller in the distance, Sylvia saw some of the beasts bound off, free of their tethers, and she cringed.  They would have to be very, very careful following them.
    As the last Scout shrunk to a small dark pinprick on the plain, Sylvia and Neve stood.  Sylvia reached up to the sky and stretched her muscles out;  her back cried out in joy to be free from the cramped position that they had held for over an hour.
    With one last glance at Lightcity’s gate, they headed south, following the Scouts to the fifth city—the place Governor Greyling thought was important enough to start a war.

 
    Seven
     
    The Scouts had stopped for a rest, so they did too.  Their journey had already led them through the wilds between Riftcity and Meadowcity, and Sylvia knew they must be getting closer to the fifth city as they traveled south.
    Thoughts of home had beckoned as they passed the area she knew to be close to Meadowcity.  A pair of Scouts had separated from the group at that point, but they headed west, presumably for Riftcity.
    Riftcity’s plight still lurked in the back of Sylvia’s mind, but Meadowcity’s needs always overpowered it.  Sure, she had seen firsthand what the Scouts had done to Riftcity: the violent destruction it had left on the beautiful city’s structure, and its people, but Meadowcity was her home.  She must protect it, and those inside.
    And Meadowcity would burn much faster.
    Neve was proving to be an admirable traveling partner.  She managed to keep quiet as they moved about, unlike those last two memorable traveling companions, Flint and then Ember, who had both seemed committed to making as much noise as they could as they moved through the wilds.  Neve didn’t talk much either, and Sylvia could tell she was struggling with something inside—perhaps she felt guilty for leaving her uncle?  It sounded like he was the only family she had, from what little they had spoken so far.

 
    The first night tailing the Scouts, Sylvia had been too nervous to sleep, and had taken watch all night.  It was still her first time back on the trail in months, and she had a hard time trusting a girl she just met to watch her as she slept.  But she knew she couldn’t continue that habit.  Without any sleep she would be useless on the trail.
    So she had been forced to place her trust in Neve the next night to keep watch.  It reminded her of the hasty journey back to Meadowcity with Ember—a girl she had barely known at the time.
    Back home, she couldn’t get rid of Ember these days—she was living in the villa, helping to train Luna, even playing with Sonia at times. The girl was always trying to stay busy, and Sylvia knew she didn’t like staying cooped up in the unfamiliar city.
    Sylvia wished she could have brought Luna with her, but when she left, the plan had been to infiltrate Lightcity.  At the time, she had no idea how long she was going to be inside the city, gathering information.  She certainly hadn’t expected to leave the next morning.
    Through the dark trees, Sylvia could see several camp fires flickering from the Scout’s camp.  Sylvia and Neve couldn’t light a fire, or any lamps, but they were used to it by now.  She settled in, pulling her dinner out of her pack by the dim light of the stars and moon, trying to think of something to talk about.
    She had already told Neve the whole story of Meadowcity and Riftcity’s involvement in the war, about Flint’s escape and his