Greatwater Lake I spend my night dancing with my own shadow

Feeling safer here than he did on the other side of the valley, Screech chose to continue tempting fate after his reunion. He did not venture straight back to the forest as he should have - no, instead he ventured south, wondering if it were possible to find a route back to the Caldera that would allow him to see home once more. He got to the lakeside before he stopped for a break. From there, with the Sunspire behind him, he could look out over the lake at the distant smudge of gray on the horizon; he didn't know if he was looking at Moonspear or the Caldera, but he chose to assume it was home.

This was as far as he would get. If he stayed too long in the wilderness he not only tempted the Cerberus, but outright ignored the warning by the matriarch of the mountain. He knew if he was caught now then all bets were off and he would be dead. Along with that came his attachment to Ravensblood; he hadn't spoken a word to Constantine or Durnehviir about embarking on this stupid adventure, and they probably thought he had abandoned them. No, he had to return.

So he stopped at the lake and had a drink, laying low among the foothills and the forest, with the full intent of embarking north again. The scent of old blood was a prevalent current beneath the chill of the winter air. Finding himself hungry, he investigated that scent - only to come across a dark figure by the lake. Screech didn't move upon sighting the silhouette — he thought maybe it was the Cerberus this time (as it often was, his luck being the absolute worst) so he did not expose himself and was too petrified to even run.