"What a surprise seeing you here," Rhyndac says, walking up to Ulrika.


    "Really?" Ulrika says.


    "No," she chuckles softly. "You''re like a dog who always follows its master."


    "You watch your tongue bitch," she warns, pointing her finger at Rhyndac. "I am his wife and I will support him no matter what."


    "Even if you despise it?"


    "Yes," she says, putting her finger down.


    "Love is so stupid," she says, then giggles without any restraint. "I''ll be right back. I need to make sure I get what I need from inside. You guys can come in if you want."


    "We''ll stay out here."


    "Oh," she scoffs. "Supportive and the speaker for her husband," she says to her, then looks at me. "You can come in and get out of the sun."


    "I said—"


    "It''s fine," I say to cut off Ulrika before she gets riled up. I wait for Rhyndac to close the door behind her before addressing Ulrika. This will be the second time I have to correct that behavior.


    "Gods, that woman vexes me," Ulrika says.


    "You need to stop speaking for me." When I remind her about the first time, her eyes shoot open. She tightens her lips, crosses her arms, and averts her eyes to the ground. "Need I remind you?"


    "No, my love."


    I step out into the street to cool off my annoyance by checking out my surroundings. The neighborhood looks wonderful here. I''m shocked that I have never come here before. The stone roads are clean enough to walk barefoot on them. Every gentle, loving insect is out and flying about. The colder months are fast approaching, and these colorful insects will soon have to migrate west of this wonderful kingdom.


    "Rhyndac!" Ulrika shouts while banging on Rhyndac''s door. "Let''s go already!" My docile viewing pleasure turns to quick annoyance at the fact that Ulrika and I are still waiting. "Rhyndac!" She goes for another bang, but the door opens quickly. Her fist slams down into Rhyndac''s left breast. Rhyndac''s body tenses up, and her eyes tightly close for a short second.


    "Ouch," Rhyndac says slowly. A man peeks over her head and then steps back out of my line of sight.


    "Who was that?"


    "My handyman," she says, smiling when she shuts the door behind her. I find that statement hard to believe, knowing how seductive her personality is. That man is probably her willing concubine.


    "Really now?" I say to challenge. "You know whoremongering is against Kromagian law."


    "You don''t say?" She chuckles. "I better make sure I continue following the rules," she says with a hint of sarcastic sass. "Oh, Kaioson," she says, slowing down the pronunciation of my name. "Do you still think of me that low?" She stands next to me with her elbow, leaning on my horse, holding her hand up to her head. "Well, do you, sweetie?"


    "Don''t call him that," Ulrika says, giving Rhyndac a stern point. "You''ll only direct him as Kaioson."


    "Is she okay? She''s acting like she''s still in control of you, " she says in my head without moving her mouth. "You won''t hear me say that again," she says, still in my head while looking at her before turning back to me. "Alrighty then," she says out loud, grinning and quietly giggling. "Let''s go on this journey." She sits behind me on my horse with the assistance of a magical thrust. Her arms suddenly wrap around my waist as she scoots close enough to press her breasts against my back.


    "Hey! Ride your own horse!"


    "It''s better we ride like this, Ulrika. Fewer horses to look after." That suggestion makes me smile at how smart that is. Ulrika looks at me like she wants me to say something.


    "Kaioson..."


    "Hop on your horse, Ulrika," I say to avoid them arguing. Ulrika presses her lips to show me how flustered she is. I roll my eyes at her and start heading down the road without waiting for her to mount.


    "Wow, Kaioson," Rhyndac quietly says with her chin over my shoulder. "She looked very unhappy with that." Her perfume hits my nose without remorse. My nostrils tingle from the sweet, flowery scent. It doesn''t smell like any flower I know. It is weak yet powerful to continually linger without fading its potency.


    "She''s," I pause.


    "Protective."


    "That''s correct," I say, looking behind me to Ulrika slowly galloping closer to me. I wave my head to tell her to pick up the pace. She kicks her horse to make it reach me within a few seconds. "Okay, Rhyndac. Where am I going?"


    "Before we start, get off, my husband," Ulrika demands calmly yet sternly. "Stop holding him like he''s yours."


    "Ulrika, enough."


    "But, Kaio!"


    "Stop." She shows me her frustration with a tongue click, then whines something under her breath. For a woman a few years older than me and a bit more mature, that is the most childish reaction I have seen.


    "Alrighty then," Rhyndac says. "Just head straight for the White River. That''ll be our first stop."


    "All right."


    The White River splits Kromagia from the Lavalnora mountains. Several miles beyond it is where the Drows live. Ulrika and I know nothing about their race. History, eating habits, culture, and thoughts toward humans are unknown to us. Rhyndac explains all of my burning questions in great detail. She even manifests a history book to do some light reading when I''m not galloping through valleys.


    "Kaioson, check this out," Rhyndac says in my head. The history book levitates near my lower stomach. To the left of the page is an illustration of a woman touching a male elf''s face inside some sort of pond. He''s on his knees with his head tilted back, shirtless. I can''t tell if he''s scared or not at all. The woman touching is smiling. Her long shirt covers her entire body and submerges in the water. It is damp and transparent. I almost see her figure through it. To the right of the image is a long paragraph written in a language I don''t understand.


    "What am I looking at?" I say.


    "Ahdemnain," she continues in my head, pointing at the first word. "It''s Zadione creating the first of our kind."


    "But, this is an elf, right?"


    "He was. That''s Nessie Cralvan. He''s the forefather of my race."


    "You''re kidding?" I say after I turn my head to the left to look at her. She smiles and shakes her head, no. "What else does this book say?"


    "Kaio," Ulrika says, cutting Rhyndac off.


    "Yes?"


    "What are you two talking about?" For a second, I almost forgot that Rhyndac hadn''t said a word out loud this entire time. "Are you two speaking in private?"


    "No," I say, showing her the book. "I was wondering what she was showing me."


    This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.


    "Oh." Her response doesn''t sound like she''s happy with that answer. She averts her eyes forward, closes them, takes a quick breath, then smiles on exhale. "Do you mind if I know what you two are talking about?"


    "Here," Rhyndac says. The same book that''s in front of me duplicates and flies over to Ulrika. "Read along, child." Ulrika snarls and rolls her eyes before directing her attention to what''s on the page.


    "I can''t read this shit," Ulrika says. "What the fuck am I looking at?"


    "Ease your tone. Why do you sound agitated all of a sudden?"


    "You fucking know why," she says, leaning towards us. "I''ve been watching you carefully for miles."


    "Ulrika," Rhyndac grunts in a sigh.


    "Kaioson, stop for a moment." I click my tongue a few times to stop my horse without using the reins. Ulrika swings her horse to face the opposite way and puts her horse close to mine. She stares down Rhyndac with a threatening gaze. "I''m going to say this once. Get off his horse, now."


    "I''m going to say this once. Get off his horse, now."


    "Ulrika? What''s going on?" I say, feeling confused with a bit panicky. I don''t know what it''s acting like. There is nothing in my mind to make her look this threatening.


    "Really, Ulrika?" Rhyndac says, resting her head on my back. "We''re stopping for this?"


    "Yes!" Ulrika shouts. "I can''t stand how you touch him like you are familiar with him!"


    "Ulrika," I say, calmly touching her thigh. "There is no reason for this."


    "Kaioson," she chuckles as if she wants to scream at me but chooses to withhold her anger. "Don''t do this."


    "Do what exactly?"


    "This is pointless. Kaio, please. Continue riding." The second I look ahead of me, Ulrika says something under her breath. I look back at her to see if she''ll say it again or say something different. "It''s just a name. It isn''t exclusive."


    "She has no right to call you by your nickname." Rhyndac seems to find her frustration amusing. She''s smiling. I don''t think it''s something to smile about. Ulrika is acting extremely possessive. If I don''t calm her down, things might turn hostile.


    "Rhyndac. Take my horse." I hand over the reins to Rhyndac once I step off. "Follow," I say to Ulrika once I hop on her horse. She proceeds to follow Rhyndac without making any sort of fuss. "No complaints?"


    "Hmph," she hums softly. I take that as a nonverbal satisfaction. To ensure the tension between them stays level-headed, I ask Rhyndac to continue talking about her book. She sits backward on the horse to face us before reading.


    "Where was I?" Rhyndac asks, smiling tightly with her lips tucked in her mouth.


    "Nessie Cralvan," I say. She snaps her finger and points at me to confirm I''m correct.


    "And speak out loud," Ulrika says, firmly pointing her finger at Rhyndac.


    "Fine," Rhyndac chuckles before suddenly stopping when at something far in the distance behind us. "What do we have here?" Ulrika and I turn around to see what Rhyndac is seeing. I don''t see anything behind us, yet she''s fixated on something.


    "What do you see?" Her blue eyes darken for a full second before returning to normal. "Are we in danger?"


    "Maybe. Keep riding at this pace."


    "Why? We should ready ourselves," Ulrika says, slowing her horse and turning it around. My horse stops without my command. Rhyndac''s eyes turn dark blue again while she waves her hands as if she''s speaking with someone. She waves both of her hands inward, and a sudden portal appears. Four drows on horseback emerge with swords in their hands. Ulrika and I draw our weapons. Three have dark skin like Rhyndac, but their hair is black. One drow has icy blue hair and white face markings.


    "Guys! Guys! Easy!" Rhyndac says before putting her attention to the drows. "Please, excuse my friends for their caution, brethren."


    "What are Kromagians doing here?" The blue one says.


    "We''re heading to Fasshara."


    "Where heading that way too." He speaks something to the drows around him. They sheathe their weapons and pass us without making eye contact. "Follow. We''ll take everyone there."


    Once the blue-haired drow rides past Rhyndac, she immediately speaks in our heads to put our swords away to avoid attention. My horse again moves on its own, following them without my command.


    "Why is my horse..." I say.


    "It''s me," Rhyndac chuckles.


    Several hours later, in the dead of night, we make it to Fasshara. Unlike the cities I know, this place is within a valley. I wish I could see more of the structures around me. This place isn''t well-lit except for what I think is a castle on top of a cliff to my south. The western wall has three blue-illuminated windows. So far, I''m unimpressed. I''ll have to wait until the sun lights the skies.


    We travel two more miles before reaching Rhyndac''s first-owned home. Her house lights up inside as if someone lit all the candles. The door opens right before she walks into it. I can sense massive amounts of magic emanating from her home.


    "You feel that too, right?" Ulrika asks when I step off the horse. "It''s... everywhere." Suddenly, our bags disappear and then reappear inside Rhyndac''s home. She floats them out of sight as she walks by the door barefoot. "Okay?"


    "Come on, guys! Make yourselves at home!" Rhyndac says.


    "Let''s go," I say, offering my hand to help Ulrika off her horse. "I''ll tend to the horses." Once I secure our horses to a nearby tree, I step inside Rhyndac''s cozy, well-kept home.


    "Here are your rooms. I''ll be across the room," Rhyndac says, keeping her eyes on me when she walks between Ulrika and me. "Bathroom is within the room." Before she closes the curtains to her room, she says, "Goodnight. Busy day tomorrow." Ulrika and I look at each other, sigh in unison, then walk into our rooms to sleep.


    The next morning, I awake to someone''s low rumble voice coming from the back of the house and the smell of freshly baked bread. There''s another voice, but it is higher. It sounds like Rhyndac, but I''m not curious enough to see what''s happening. Seconds later, they stop talking.


    "Good morning, sleepy head," Rhyndac says in my head. "Wake up, Ulrika, and clothe yourselves. Dreca is here." I whisper Ulrika''s name until I see her break out of her slumber. Her brows flex down into her eyes. She presses her nose into my chest, rubs, and claws it before opening her eyes.


    "Rhyndac wants us," I say, keeping my voice soft. "Did you sleep well?" She nods her head yes. "Rhyndac has Dreca here."


    "Ah. The champion?" Ulrika mumbles. "Good thing we don''t have to go through the trouble of finding him."


    "Lucky us." I remain in bed without moving a muscle until she decides to sit up. After a five-minute snooze, we head into the kitchen.


    "Ah, you guys are finally up," Rhyndac says, getting up from her seat at the table. She''s wearing a black, somewhat see-through nightgarment. Her nipples and crotch are covered by the design of the fabric. Dreca is in the right corner of the room, sipping on something steamy. He''s wearing an unbuttoned long-sleeved red shirt. He''s muscular but not as big as me. The left side of his long black hair is in a braid in four strands. Each tip has a golden ornament locking the twists in place.


    "What in the gods are you wearing?" Ulrika says. Dreca looks down at Rhyndac with a smirk on his face.


    "It''s my robes, Ulrika," Rhyndac says with her hands on her hips.


    "You wear that around the house?"


    "All the time," Dreca answers. He puts his cup on the table and approaches Ulrika with his hand in front of him.


    "I''m not shaking it."


    "Wow," he chuckles as he puts his hand down. "Rhyndac, you were right." Rhyndac taps her chair and tells us to take a seat. We don''t talk about the problem at hand until everyone finishes eating breakfast. "So... what is this about?"


    "Do you know what''s going on beyond the mountains?" Rhyndac says.


    "I hear a war is brewing," he says after chugging the rest of his tea. "Wait! Don''t tell me." He pauses for dramatic effect with his palms out to Rhyndac and the rest of us.


    "Get on with it, Dreca."


    "Fine. Why should I?"


    "Because Zadione is a crazy bitch," Ulrika says, taking two steps closer to Dreca.


    Dreca goes on a lengthy tirade about tribal issues he''s been dealing with for two years. Apparently, we are in the middle of an ongoing civil war with several independent tribes and united tribes who are loyal to Zadione. The independent tribes despise Zadione''s actions to start a war. They don''t agree with her becoming the sole goddess of the mortal realm. In my eyes, they''re essentially fighting to keep their free independence and avoid becoming our enemy.


    "Rhyndac, is our mission to aid the independent tribes?" I say.


    "It wasn''t until the loyalist showed up marching past Fasshara''s borders this morning," Dreca says.


    "I wanted to use both of you to deter their advancing armies while I portal anyone seeking asylum," Rhyndac says. "Now we''re going to have to improvise." Dreca crosses his arms and slouches back in his chair, all while looking at Rhyndac. I''m getting the feeling he doesn''t have the slightest idea of what to do.


    "What''s our first move, Rhyndac?"


    "You two," she says, using her index finger and pinky to point at me and Ulrika. "Will enforce security."


    "Are you nuts?" Dreca scoffs. "Two Kromagian chunks of meat will cause a stir."


    "Don''t worry," she giggles through her nose. "I don''t plan on letting them out there looking like that."


    "What are you planning?" Ulrika says.


    Rhyndac waves her hands in a quick sequence at us. The skin on my hand begins to turn dark purple as if I''m soaking in the pigment. Thin white reflective lines swirl up my arms. When I look over to my right to see how far the line is going, I spot Ulrika going through the same transformations. A light-colored purple pigment rushes up, changing her skin as if the sunlight goes behind a cloud. She becomes darker yet lighter than me. Her ears stretch to a point as her eyes match the color of her skin. Everything about her remains intact. Her muscles, hair, face, and height stay as they are. I touch my hair to see if anything has changed for me.


    "I didn''t change that, Kaioson," Rhyndac says. "That texture is pretty common here."


    "So," I say," touching and pinching the skin on my arms. "I guess this''ll work." Rhyndac sits up to tug on my cape. She leans to her right to glance at Ulrika, then says, "You two need to ditch your capes. You can leave them here."


    "No way," Ulrika says, crossing her arms. "This is a gift from him," she says as she points at me with the side of her head. "Just use your illusion magic to hide it."


    "So be it." Rhyndac touches each of our symbols to make them vanish into the fabric. "Perfect! You two are Daracon!"


    "What?"


    "Drows," Dreca says as he stands out of his chair. "I''ll be at my post," he says in Rhyndac''s ear after giving a light kiss on the top of her head. "I''ll see you soon."


    "Go," she playfully shoos him away. He walks out the front door and closes it behind him. Her eyes stay fixated on it for a short moment before they snap to me. "Time for us to get back into the thick of it."