Isa’s POV
I was staggering now as Lily and I continued to move around the forest. I was panting against a tree as I said to her, “I don’t think I can do this for six to seven more weeks, Lily.”
I slouched against the base of the tree as Lily nuzzled me with her snout. “No! Isa, I won’t let you give up!” She protested. “When I linked Mathis last, he said he’d freed Nikolai from the cells. That means he’s going to find you and get you out of this. We just have to keep moving until then.”
I nodded between breaths. “Okay, okay.” I rose back up to my feet, looking towards the horizon. “God I wish there was even just a water fountain nearby, damn.”
Lily gasped. “That’s it— Isa, this world isn’t all forest— we have a beach, and I think it could help you! Come on, this way.”
The light gray wo
