Note from Author: It's time for another mature warning. This chapter is a dark chapter. Those who are feint of heart probably should not read this. There's a bit of gore and, well, some 'not nice' things.

"Hurry, Kumiko! We need to move on!" Serenity called out to the young fawn as she followed Freya.

Kumiko limped behind the group, "I'm coming!" Her ankle was swollen and sore. Any amount of pressure she placed on it caused her to grind her teeth to fight back the pain.

Maia leaned heavily against Freya as they stumbled along. Her breathing was short and heavy. A trail of blood dripped as she walked. Her eyes were dazed; her head spun as she grew dizzy from lack of blood. Constant stayed close to her side, looking up at his mother with a mixture of fear and sadness swirling in his eyes. Once in awhile he would glance back at Kumiko hoping that her radiant face would bring him some hope in his dark hour; but the discomfort she felt made her once sparkling smile fade, leaving him with nothing to look to.

"Can...we rest...?" Maia asked between her gasps for air.

Freya and Serenity looked at each other. They had been pushing the group hard to escape the fire. Even though the flames were out of sight behind them, the smell of smoke and burning wood lingered. They knew they did not have much time before the flames would catch up but they had no choice. Maia could not continue on in her condition and Kumiko was falling farther behind.

Freya nodded as she bent down allowing Maia to collapses slowly to the ground. She tucked her legs in under her with her head resting on the cool soil. Her fur was stained red even though a light sprinkle fell on them. A small pool red ooze began to form under her. Constant nuzzled up to his mother for comfort; the thick blood clumped onto his fur as he laid beside her. Kumiko had laid down as well with her back leg extended out.
Serenity who gazed at the others with misty eyes. She sighed as she leaned in towards Freya to speak, "I knew he would do something like this..."

"I knew you and Castor said Silvanus was dangerous but I didn't expect this," Freya replied as she looked towards Maia and Constant. She hardly knew the doe and her fawn; she had never seen them in the forest but then again, Freya rarely left the ivy patches due to wanting to stay near her blind mother. Despite them being strangers, she took much pity on them.

"I hope Castor is ok..." Serenity silently said as she turned around and looked down the path they had just walked. The rain rolled down her long face and stiff back as she stood as tall as she could hoping to hear Castor's footsteps, but to her disappointment, only the sounds of rain and fire answered her pleas.

"We need to continue on," Freya announced as she started towards Maia. "Even with this rain, it won't stop the fire. We need to get over those mountains and fast."

Serenity nodded as she walked over to Kumiko. She helped the injured fawn to her feet and the two stood waiting as Freya attempted to help Maia off the ground. However, she could not stand. Even with Freya's help, she was too weak. Her legs would tremble under her body weight and her head grew light. The world spun around in circles as she fell down to the earth once again. The cool rain hit upon her face as she laid on her side in the mud. She closed her eyes, praying that the end had not come though deep in her heart, the cold feeling of death began to grow.

"I...I...Can't go on..." Maia whispered for she had even grown to weak to speak. "Everything...is fading..."

"Mommy?" Constant took his muzzle and rubbed it against Maia's cheek. His eyes turned red as the tears began to develop. "Please, Mommy, you need to get up. Please get up!"

"Constant...I...can't..."

"But you have to!" the tears began to roll down his cheek as he stepped over to her side. With all his strength, he began to push on her trying to get her to her feet. As his weight shifted, the mud moved out from under his hooves tripping him. He fell to the ground as mud splattered onto him.

Kumiko did not understand what was going on. All she knew was that Maia could not get up and that Constant was now laid on the ground crying. Without speaking, she stumbled over to him and nuzzled him. "Don't cry, Constant," she said as she snuggled closer, "Don't cry."

Constant stood up with mud covering his whole lower body, "I can't, Kumiko. My mommy's hurt more than you."

As the two fawns tried to comfort each other, Serenity and Freya stood before a dying Maia. Her eyes were closed and her breaths were weak. She gave a raspy cough as blood trickled from the side of her lip. Then she spoke, "Please...Take Constant...Please save him..."

Serenity replied in a calm, soothing voice, "Of course."

"Thank...you...This is...my fault...I cannot...thank you...enough for...your kindness..."

Serenity shook her head disagreeing, "Do not blame this on yourself, Maia. You did not know Silvanus' true past nor did you know how violent her could be. I hope he pays dearly for what he's done."

Maia did not respond. She laid still and her breathing had stopped. Serenity closed her eyes along with Freya. The two does gave her a moment of silence as they prayed to the Divine her guide her lost soul to peace. As their eyes opened, they noticed the faint glow of the fire in the distance. They had wasted enough time; it was now time to move on.

"Come along, children, we need to go," Serenity quietly said as she began to move them along.

"Wait!" Constant called out as she pushed him forward. "I can't go anywhere without Mommy! Please make her get up!"

Freya and Serenity looked at each other. They did not speak; their eyes did the talking for them. They both knew that Constant did not understand death even from when he lost his father. Serenity sighed as she looked down at the fawn, trying hard to not cry herself as she looked at him with his broken heart.

"Constant," she said as calm as she could, "I'm afraid your mother won't be coming with us."

"What?!" he screamed as he began to panic. His heart raced wildly as his ears and tail stood straight. "We cannot just leave her here!"

"Constant, don't make this harder than it already is!" Serenity yelled in frustration. It was difficult enough to accept the fact that she had to tell him that his mother was dead; his innocence only made it more difficult. She took a deep breath before continuing on, "I'm sorry for snapping at you. It's just..."

"Just what?" He looked up at her with tears streaming down his cheeks."

"She needs to rest more and she asked me to take you on ahead with us. She said she'll catch up," Serenity lied.

Constant looked over at the body. He had never seen his mother act this way but flashbacks of the day his father died returned to him, "She looks like Daddy did..."

Kumiko stumbled up beside him. She looked at him with her ears pulled back and a worry look upon her face, "But your dad isn't completely gone, remember?"

He cocked his head as he looked at her, "What do you mean?"

"Don't you remember what you told me the other night? About your dad and the stars?"

"Oh yeah," Constant replied. "Do you think Mommy will be there, too?"

Kumiko nodded. Her long, floppy ears bounced around her round face, "Yes. And I think she'd want you to be safe. It's not safe here so we should go with my mom and Aunt Freya."

Constant looked over at Maia's still body. He closed his eyes as more tears came ot him but he nodded, "Yeah...I guess..."

"And I'll be with you."

Constant gave a faint smile as he looked at her, "I'd like that..."

The air grew hotter and thicker as the glow slowly creeped closer. The sound of crackling wood roared over the gentle sound of the rain. Freya motioned to Serenity with her head that they needed to go. She nodded in return and once again began to nudge the fawns onward. Hesitating, Constant bid his mother a silent farewell before following Freya with Kumiko limping closely behind.

Most of the wildlife had already escaped, leaving the two does and fawns alone as they dragged their feet. Without Maia, they were able to move a bit faster but Kumiko was still pulling them back for she could hardly stand on her back leg. Each step sent a horrible pain that shot through her whole body. Constant walked slowly beside her trying not to look at her. His heart was already broken with the lose of his mother, seeing Kumiko injured only drew a spike deeper into it.

Serenity glanced back over her shoulder to look at the two, silent fawns. Kumiko's face was full of misery while Constant's showed a depression that she had never seen before. His eyes were bloodshot and the fur on his cheeks was padded down. The poor thing... she thought to herself he's cried so much that he can't even cry anymore... Her eyes then lifted from the fawns to the path behind them. They darted side to side looking for signs of Castor's figure in the distance but all she saw was their home burning slowly.

"We need to be careful," Freya announced breaking the silence. "We're getting close to the mountains and there's a chance of mud slides."

Serenity stopped when they reached the bottom of the mountains. The slope stood steeply in front of them. The dark brown soil was soaked from the rain; a few small stones had already been knocked free from the ground's hold and collected at her feet. Trees scattered the landscape. The farther up she looked, the few trees she could see.

"You think you'll be safe over there?" she asked as she once again looked at the fawns. "Yes, I'm almost certain," Freya replied with confidence.

"But Kumiko..." her voice trailed off.

"The climb maybe difficult for her but she's a strong fawn, Serenity. I'm sure she'll make it."

Serenity noded with a faint smile. She wanted to believe Freya but something in the back of her mind caused doubt. The slope was dangerous enough since the ground was slippery, but for a weak fawn to climb it with a broken leg would be worse. Shaking her head, she tried to not think of the worst. With a might leap, she jumped up onto a ledge above them and looked one last time at the forest's edge. She let out a heavy sigh as disappointment fell over her; Castor was no where in sight and the fire growing closer.

Constant slowly began to climb up after her, watching each step carefully. Freya stood at the bottom watching him and Kumiko. Kumiko tried to follow her mother and Constant, but the pain in her ankle was almost too much to bear. She cringed her teeth as she barely lifted herself up with Freya pushing her up. Serenity hopped down to help Freya. The two does stood below the fawns, ready to catch either one.

As they climbed, a horrible crack and pop echoed through the land. The air was full of a creaking, crackling sound as a giant oak tree snapped in half. The fire had engulfed the lower branches of an oak tree near the mountain's base. It had chewed through the lower trunk as if it were a beaver made of flames. Without the support of the whole trunk, the tree collapsed. Serenity and Freya both gasped and screamed as they dodged the falling, burning log by jumping down to a ledge lower than where they were. Thud! The trunk landed heavily on the ground separating the does from the two fawns. It began to roll down the mountain side, spreading the fire to the underbrush that covered the mountain's side. The flames beat down on Serenity and Freya as the trunk rolled closer to them.

"Mom! Aunt Freya!" Kumiko called out over the roar of the growing flames.

"Kumiko!" Serenity yelled in return as she tried to find a safe path back to her and Constant. However, her efforts were proven to be fruitless. The grasses and moss were still fairly dry and caught fire quickly. The fire began to cover the mountain side with the fawns caught in the middle.

"Kum...Coughcough...Iko!" Serenity gasped and coughed rapidly as the smoke began to choke her. "Run! Coughcough Run! We'll...Coughcough...Meet you and Constant...Coughcough...On the other side!"

Kumiko stood in horror as she saw her mother and aunt disappear in a sea of flames. Her lower lip trembled and her legs shook. Constant was beside her begging her to move. Horrified, she felt as if she turned to stone and continued to stand there.

"Kumiko, come on!" Constant yelled directly into her ear as he bit it. It was a gentle bite; he did not want to hurt her but he did want to get her attention. He began to pull at it forcing her to follow him. "We need to get away from here!"

He began lead her through the a clearing to a higher part of the mountain. Staying close, she followed him. He jumped from rock to rock as quickly as he could, trying to escape the fire that surrounded them. Kumiko could only stumbled. She attempted to keep up with him but without being able to use one of her legs, she was only slowed down.

"Kumiko, hurray!" He called out from somewhere in front of her. His body hidden in a cloud of black smoke. "I...I don't want to lose you, too!"

"Constant!" she screamed out. "Constant, wait for me!" She came to a gap in the rocks; there was no way to easily walk across, she would have to try to jump. Steadying herself, she prepared to jump. Her running started was messed up due to her swollen ankle. She leap came too short. Instead of landing nicely on the rock on the other side, she hung off the ledge. Her hooves clawed away at the stone as she tried to pull herself up. Weakened by everything, he grasp gave. The young fawn tumbled down the mountain side. The world spun madly around her until she felt a sharp pain in her head. Her head smacked up against a stone sticking half way out of the ground. Her vision blurred and the world grew dark as she rolled to a halt.