Bugz led Feng through a cedar bog and into a clearing. At its center stood a huge circle formed by large rocks stacked on top of one another.

“Here it is,” Bugz announced, walking up to the oracle. “The Thunderbird’s Nest.”

“I can’t even see anything,” Feng said, enraptured by the autumnal glow of his phone. “It’s nothing but energy.”

“Put your phone away. You’re going to let your stupid friends know where we are.”

“Right.” Feng complied. “So this is your secret.”

“This is my secret.”

Bugz sat down on the earth beside the nest and patted a spot beside her. Feng sat, legs crossed. He watched as Bugz closed her eyes and whispered a prayer in the Anishinaabe language beneath her breath. When she opened her eyes Feng quickly cast his gaze away, as though he’d been staring at something else.

“I don’t know why you’re nervous.” Bugz broke the silence. “I always feel at peace when I come here. It’s the only time I feel this calm. In the real world, anyway.”

“What is this place, really?”

“I told you—it’s a Thunderbird’s Nest,” she said seriously, before cracking a smile. “My dad brought us here when we were kids. We’d come here and make a tobacco offering before we’d go hunting or picking medicine in the area.”

Bugz pulled a curved blade with a wooden handle from her pocket. It looked more like a carving knife than a weapon.

“He gave me this on one of those trips.” She handed it to Feng. “I bring it with me everywhere I go.” He nodded and handed it back before motioning to the nest.

“Who built it?”

“Thunderbirds, obviously.”

“I’m guessing a Thunderbird is one of those giant eagles with the lightning bolts that you ride around on in the ’Verse.”

“Yup.”

“But who built this one in the real world?”

“Thunderbirds did.” Bugz appeared to study the lichen growing on the rocks closest to her. “That’s my story and I’m sticking with it.”

“I don’t believe that,” Feng said.

“Believe it,” Bugz replied.

“Seriously, though, what is this place?” he asked.

“This is where the Thunderbirds are born. My Ancestors came here to thank them for taking care of us, for bringing the storms that nourish the land in the summer and scaring off the underwater panthers that threaten us.”

“I thought that leopard-snake thing was your friend.”

“He is. But my Ancestors were afraid of his kind.” Bugz turned to face a puzzled Feng. “Hey, sometimes you’ve got to be bad if you wanna be this good.”

Feng laughed at her unexpected swagger, apparently unsure if his automatic translator was working properly.