She froze as wisps of violate mist gathered, slowly at first, but gaining speed and density rapidly. A being formed before her, clothed in the shimmering mist. She stood paralyzed with fear as the spirit being grew more defined.

‘A djinn’ she thought in alarm.

After the Earth had ceased quaking, she found the mountain path she was retracing back to camp was impassible. A detour was required, miles in the opposite direction, which had allowed her to drop into a valley in an attempt to make her way back to the main road.

The djinn, blocking her path, was an entirely different type of danger. This encounter had the potential for both melovolance and benevolence.

She stood unmoving, eyes wide, as the spirit grew into the likeness of a dragon-man hybrid. Scales covered the bi-pedal figure, tall and foreboding, glittering like the mist from which he formed, with eyes of liquid copper.

It was impossible to believe, and yet the djinn was here before her in this small mountain meadow, blocking her path.

Though normally verbose and highly opinionated, the girl dared not flinch, much less speak, for fear of provoking the ancient, powerful being.

His deep gravely voice sounded both aloud and in her mind silmoutaniously ‘This path is closed to you girl’ he hissed.

Her mouth grew dry as the dragon being stood motionless. She slowly raised both of her hands in front of her body.

‘What are you doing?” She gasped

His molten eyes bored into hers as he responded ‘saving your spirit chi shugra.’

As suddenly as he appeared he evaporated back into mist as the girl registered the sound of something moving rapidly in the wood line behind her.

The shock from the presence of the djinn still gripping her, anquoring her to the spot as a man burst through the thick underbrush into the clearing with her.

The shock and fear finally caught up to her, exeracibated by the familiar sight of John now in front of her. Her knees hit the ground and he took off running the last few yards to reach her.

‘Mina!’ He shouted as he hit his knees before her and gripped her shoulders tightly to hold her upper body steady.

Her hands came up to rest on his forearms, strengthening the support.

‘Are you hurt?’ He questioned ‘the earthquake was incredibly intense.”

She meet his gaze and he mistook her shock for a sign of injury. He moved his hands up to run through her thick dark hair seeking limps or bleeding from a head injury. The inexpected, and incredibly personal way he was touching her finally jogged her back to reality. She removed her hands from his arms and slowly but deliberately removed her self from such close proximity.

‘No,’ she answered and cleared her throat, ‘I’m not injured, I’m fine’

He rose, still eyeing her wearily, and helped her to her feet. The man attempted to move them along the path the djinn had previously blocked, but the girl stayed rooted to the spot. The man looked back at her questioningly, and for the first time the girl purposefully lied to their guest.

‘That path is blocked by a slide cause by the earthquake. We need to find another way around.’

The man nodded and the pair set off east, back into the mountains in search of a route back to the main road.