A few days, no, a week passed of trying to survive this new environment. I began weighing the consequences of just heading back home, when one very early morning a shining light came up behind me. Too early for the sky to brighten up, my eyes had to adjust as I swiftly turned to look. It wasn't another traveler waving their torch at me, it was another bat! A bat with a... phoenix relic like me?

"Greetings! There is rumor of a demon from Growling Spire wandering these parts! Much to my surprise it happened to be someone just like me!" He let out a rather loud laugh, he let the flame he was holding go out, but the flame around his neck kept on. By contrast, no words could sneak out of my mouth. My expression probably read as just fear but I was feeling that as well as confusion, bewilderment, the list continued.

"Fear not!" he broke the awkward silence," I'm not here to hurt you like the rest were, I'm here to bring you back to my kingdom."

"Y-your kingdom? You have a kingdom-?"

"Answers will come in due time! It is a short flight East from here, I trust you have the strength to make it...?"

"Yes but-"

"Good! Follow close!" He spread his feathered wings and was already soaring in said direction in a blink.

I, too, spread my wings and ascended with quite a few more flaps than he needed. Keeping up with his pace was quite the challenge with the combination of how weakened I was feeling, and his flight expertise. A short flight was quite the understatement, by the time he descended my breaths were audible. My wings were not meant for distance. We landed in front of the steps of an obviously noble household. By the time we arrived the sun was fully up for the morning. In the light I could see this new bat has my village's attire? This is quite the small world!

"Servant! Fetch this lady some nourishment!"

The servant, surprisingly not a bat but a local, scrambled to action and came back with a shining bowl with some fruit. I sheepishly grabbed and ate some. These were really good, better than what I could get out in the wild, vastly superior to what was the norm in my village.

"Many thanks, sir" I squeaked out between bites.

"Sir? Please, call me Fervor!" He said his name with noticeably much pride. "You probably have many questions, as do I, but I must show you around!"