Nathaniel and his men waited for three days and three nights.

The days and nights on Elysium Isle shifted at an unsettling speed. Blazing summer heat scorched them during the day, while snow fell from the sky at midnight.

The soldiers took turns keeping watch outside the yard. They watched the morning glories on the fence bloom and wither repeatedly. The baskets of wild fruit inside the yard emptied and filled again. However, they never saw the child again, nor did they find any sign of the i