《FantasyQuest》 Game Night ¡°There are other worlds. Countless fantastical realms. Tonight, we will journey deep within the stars of time and space, into one such world. A world of adventure. A world of terrors.¡± The boy paused. He stood at the head of a WalMart folding table in his basement. He was the game master. Seated before him was a hodgepodge mix of his friends from different places. ¡°You done?¡± a girl asked. The game master raised a finger. ¡°Choose your class carefully, Anabel. Your colleagues didn¡¯t, and that¡¯s why they are royally screwed.¡± It was at this moment that a freckled chap sitting next to Anabel leaned back a bit too far in his WalMart foldable chair and fell right over. ¡°Ehrm,¡± the boy murmured from beneath the table. ¡°I recommend cleric.¡± ¡°Cleric?¡± Anabel asked, peeking beneath the table. Anabel turned back to face the game master. ¡°What are my choices?¡± The game master removed a three-ring binder from his backpack, flipped through its pages, disengaged its lock, took out a sheet of paper, and placed it before Anabel. The paper was titled ¡°Character Sheet¡±. There were many words on that piece of paper. Far more than Anabel was content with. And few of them made any sense at all. Worst of all, there were many blank spaces. ¡°Oh come on, guys, this is like homework,¡± said Anabel. ¡°Can¡¯t we ride bikes like normal boys?¡± ¡°We ride wyverns,¡± said the freckled boy, now mostly back in his seat. ¡°You ride what?¡± squinted Anabel. ¡°Anyway,¡± said the game master. He removed what looked like a wand from his pencil bag and used it to point to the word Class towards the top of the paper. ¡°Your options are: Fighter, wizard, cleric, or thief.¡± ¡°What are they?¡± asked Anabel. The game master motioned to the freckled boy. ¡°Ernest is a wizard. He casts spells.¡± Then the game master turned to face a tall, quiet boy. ¡°And Gibbly is a warrior. He mostly swings things. Occasionally weapons. And sometimes he hits things too.¡± ¡°All true,¡± said Gibbly. A rare two words from him. He was a quiet one¡ªpreferred to listen, he¡¯d say, always with an amused, confident smile, sitting casual-like, yet with perfect posture somehow, handsome¡ªannoying really¡ªlook at him. Brooding eyes in the middle of a dull moment. What was he thinking about? Hitting things? Dark, sweeping hair. ¡°And then, Charlie,¡± the game master pointed to an empty chair, ¡°he is also a wizard, when he¡¯s not late. We have no clerics or thieves. Clerics are healers. Thieves are¡ª I don¡¯t know, thieves.¡± ¡°I see,¡± said Anabel. ¡°So which is it?¡± asked Ernest. Anabel glanced between the three of them then shrugged. ¡°I don¡¯t care.¡± Her smile softened the blow. ¡°Cleric then!¡± said Ernest. The game master raised a hand towards Ernest. ¡°Anabel, if I may. Imagine you¡¯re¡­ riding bikes. And a goblin comes along, right? No. Not a goblin. A bully. Right?¡± Anabel stared blankly at the game master. ¡°Now, do you hit him with a, uh, bike helmet? Or, do you say a prayer of holy protection, filling said bully with fear and causing him to run away? Or, do you use your brilliance to pinch air molecules with your fingertips at just the right angle and velocity to form a glob of fiery plasma, toss it at him, and explode him into a smoking pile of charred sea glass?¡± ¡°Dude,¡± Ernest said. ¡°This is exactly why we have too many wizards.¡± ¡°Fighter,¡± said Anabel. ¡°The helmet one?!¡± said Ernest. ¡°Well there¡¯s also thief¡­¡± said the game master. ¡°Nah,¡± said Anabel. ¡°I¡¯d hit him with the helmet.¡± The game master nodded soberly. ¡°Alright then. You are a fighter.¡± Ernest sighed. The game master walked over and stood behind Anabel. He reached for her character sheet. ¡°May I?¡± Anabel nodded and the game master rolled some dice a few times and scribbled throughout her sheet, then handed it back. ¡°I made some decisions for you. After our first session, should you want to adjust any of those decisions, I¡¯ll allow it. Once. Let¡¯s get into it.¡±If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. The game master returned to the head of the table and consulted what looked like a mix between a school textbook and a bible. As he did, a door slammed upstairs, then footsteps from one side of the house to another. Dust fell from the basement ceiling. ¡°This house is too old for Charlie,¡± said Ernest. Faster footsteps down the stairs. ¡°Sorry sorry sorry,¡± said Charlie. Charlie had his jacket wrapped over his shoulders, a Victoria Secret bag in one hand, and a white box in his other. ¡°I found something incredible,¡± Charlie said. He looked up and surveyed the room. ¡°Oh, hey Anabel.¡± ¡°Hey Charlie,¡± she said with half a smile. ¡°Wait! Are you¡¯re playing?¡± ¡°I guess.¡± ¡°Heck yeah,¡± Charlie clapped. ¡°Guys, check this out.¡± Charlie dumped the bag out on the table. A dozen or so individually-wrapped shrimp-shaped candies poured out. ¡°Dude?¡± said Ernest. ¡°Slime Shrimps, Christmas edition. Guys, look at the wrapping. Look.¡± Ernest picked one up like it was a bug. ¡°Read the label. Read it!¡± said Charlie. ¡°Slime Shrimps,¡± read Ernest. ¡°And?¡± ¡°Christmas edition.¡± ¡°Yeah yeah yeah, and? And?¡± ¡°Cane sugar?¡± ¡°Give me that!¡± Charlie grabbed the piece of candy from Ernest and examined it. ¡°Here. Sour and spicy!¡± ¡°And shrimp-flavored. Dude. Why?¡± Ernest said. ¡°Not to eat!¡± Charlie said. ¡°Although, I could be convinced to try one. But no no, these are probably worth five dollars, each! Think how much they could be worth in a decade when Sea Treats Inc is defunct.¡± ¡°What¡¯s in the box?¡± asked the game master. ¡°Oh,¡± Charlie smiled wickedly, ¡°the box.¡± He raised his eyebrows. Anabel laughed. ¡°Charlie,¡± said Ernest, ¡°why are you carrying around shrimp candy in a Victoria Secret¡¯s bag.¡± ¡°The box,¡± Charlie said again, somehow with even more dramatic effect than the first time. ¡°Wanna know what¡¯s inside?¡± ¡°Yes,¡± said Gibbly. ¡°Behold¡­¡± Charlie gently picked up the white box and placed it in the center of the table. ¡°FantasyQuest.¡± The room was silent. ¡°It''s a plain white box man,¡± said Ernest. ¡°It¡¯s a game,¡± said Charlie, ¡°I think.¡± Ernest raised his eyebrows. ¡°What do you mean you think?¡± ¡°Looks like it doesn¡¯t it?¡± ¡°It¡¯s your box! How do you not know what it is? Where¡¯d you get it?¡± ¡°It was on my doorstep. Probably meant for Christmas. Look,¡± Charlie opened the box to reveal a red booklet with the words FantasyQuest written above a line art drawing of a dragon. ¡°Let me see that,¡± said the game master. He lifted himself up and reached out across the table to grab it. As he did, a small, flat matchbook fell from between the booklet pages. ¡°Matches?¡± squinted Gibbly. ¡°Why matches?¡± asked Ernest. ¡°Strange,¡± the game master shook his head. He carefully picked up the matchbook and examined it. It too was red with a picture of a dragon on its cover. Anabel got up and walked over behind him. ¡°Who made it?¡± ¡°Check the inside,¡± said Ernest. The game master flipped open the booklet. ¡°CuriousCorp,¡± he read. ¡°Printed 1975.¡± ¡°Woah,¡± said Ernest, ¡°this thing is fifty years old?¡± ¡°It looks brand new,¡± said Anabel. ¡°We don¡¯t have to play it now,¡± said Charlie, while inspecting one of his shrimp candies. ¡°Although, we definitely probably should.¡± ¡°Might as well,¡± said Ernest in a slump. ¡°Anabel went fighter.¡± ¡°Why¡¯s that so bad?¡± Anabel asked. ¡°We need a cleric!¡± said Ernest. ¡°Charlie is in a coma, like always, and I lost a leg. Gibbly got turned into a duck.¡± ¡°A quackling,¡± corrected the game maser. ¡°Whatever.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s just start over,¡± said Gibbly. ¡°And play this?¡± the game master said. He flipped through the booklet. ¡°There isn¡¯t much defined. Very loose rule system it seems.¡± The game master continued flipping. ¡°Look at this,¡± he turned the booklet towards us. ¡°It¡¯s an invitation, from,¡± he squinted, ¡°the Redrock Wizards¡¯ Guild. It¡¯s a quest. A quest to slay the red dragon.¡± ¡°That¡¯s how you win?¡± asked Ernest. ¡°I gotta say,¡± the game master nodded, ¡°it does look charming. This is all handrawn art. Super old school. Says here you can establish a wizard tower within a city, settle down, have followers.¡± ¡°What are the classes?¡± Ernest asked. ¡°Just wizard it seems,¡± said the game master. ¡°Heh, really?¡± asked Ernest. ¡°Not even warrior?¡± ¡°Can I still hit goblins with bike helmets?¡± asked Anabel. The game master shrugged, ¡°Says you can be an artificer and craft your own magical weapons too.¡± ¡°Alright. How do we start?¡± asked Ernest. ¡°Okay,¡± the game master held up a finger and finished reading the current page. ¡°Okay, okay,¡± he flipped back towards the beginning. ¡°How to play¡­¡± ¡°I think I¡¯m gonna eat one,¡± said Charlie, eyeing his shrimp candy. ¡°Go for it,¡± said Ernest. ¡°Okay, you''ve convinced me.¡± Charlie tore off the wrapping and popped one in his mouth. ¡°Does it really taste like shrimp?¡± asked Anabel. Charlie nodded with a laugh, which quickly became a cough, followed by more laughter. ¡°Ew,¡± grimaced Anabel. ¡°Give me one.¡± Charlie obliged. ¡°Okay, okay,¡± said the game master. ¡°Wizard enrollment. Alphanumeric order.¡± ¡°Numeric?¡± asked Gibbly. ¡°So that''s¡­ Anabel, Charlie, then Ernest, then Gibbly,¡± said the game master. ¡°Okay, Anabel. You have eleven points. You may use points to obtain spell books or to unlock special abilities.¡± Anabel¡¯s eyes seemed to glaze over. ¡°Is this gonna take a while?¡± asked Charlie. ¡°Well,¡± said the game master, ¡°I can make the selections for you if you want?¡± ¡°Yes, let¡¯s do that,¡± said Charlie. ¡°Yeah, for this first time,¡± said Ernest. ¡°Very well,¡± said the game master. The game master slowly studied the manual and scribbled something next to each of our names. ¡°Okay, now, it¡¯s time to summon you in,¡± he said finally. He squinted then glanced up at the matchbook in Charlie¡¯s hands. ¡°Huh.¡± ¡°What?¡± asked Ernest. ¡°The matchbook,¡± said the game master, pointing at it. He examined the manual again before looking back up at Charlie. ¡°It says to stand and light the match to begin the game.¡± Charlie flipped opened the matchbook. A single black match was inside. ¡°Light it?¡± Charlie eyed the game master skeptically. ¡°It says, ¡®To begin, stand and light the match¡¯, so, yes.¡± Charlie scoffed a chuckle and tore off the match from the cardboard base then stood to his feet while examining it. ¡°Huh,¡± Charlie whispered. ¡°It¡¯s heavy.¡± He eyed the match between his fingertips. The match head was a deep black with a faint glistening starry texture. Light nearly seemed to bend at its edge. Charlie turned the match in his hand in awe. ¡°Charlie?¡± asked the game master. ¡°Hm?¡± Charlie uttered, glancing up at the others. ¡°So just light it?¡± ¡°Yeah,¡± said the game master with a shrug. ¡°Why is there only one?¡± asked Charlie. ¡°Charlie, just light the match,¡± said Ernest. Charlie placed the match against the striker and pulled. I¡¯m afraid I have no more story here for you. Everything that happened next occurred far away. And if you want to hear that story, you won¡¯t be hearing it from me. You¡¯ll have to hear it from Charlie himself. Summoned As the match ignited, the room changed. It became a dark place. A cave, by the looks of it. I was alone. By the dim light of the flame I spotted a pair of raven eyes watching me. I stared into its eyes in horror. The match burned my fingers and then went out. There was only darkness then. A headache pooled across my mind. The silence there took my breath away. Some time passed. A sudden otherworldly shriek echoed off the walls. In it I found a surge of life and I ran only to bash my head against chalky stone. I lowered and blindly felt around. The ground was stoney, flat, and cold. My fingers traced engravings upon the ground. Far beyond the ache that encased me, I heard muddled, distant echoes. I sat for a time utterly overwhelmed, in shock, panicked. My breaths were only growing heavier. I pressed my hand against my chest. I was hyperventilating. No dream felt this real. I was horribly awake. So helplessly confused. My mind grasped for sense but found none. From the silence came suddenly the quiet echoed patter of distant footsteps. I called out something. My voice echoed. I stammered to my feet, arms flailing above and around, hands hitting against jagged stone above and on all sides. I stood, slowly turning, arms outward. Far into the distance in one direction was a glint of light. The only light. I stumbled forward towards it like it was home. On the ledge as I passed came into view the faint pair of Raven eyes. I recoiled at the sight of them but walked on, following the light. Footsteps behind me. I ran towards the light. A new wave of pain crashed over me. I was on the ground. There was a sharp, fiery, pain, across my back. A cold, heart-wrenching, dull soreness all across my body. From what felt like my toes I heard a hiss that seemed to echo endlessly. For all the pain and fear I had, it was the nausea that drove me to desperation. The world faded from me and I was sure that I was dead. ??? My eyes shot open. The stench of sulfur filled my lungs. Before me were metal bars. Beyond them, a torch on the wall. The torch''s flame flickered as if starved for air. A deep, grinding pain with the pattern of heartbeats faded into my consciousness. I tried to stand but only stumbled. Eventually, flung into a corner, I used the walls to stabilize myself and lift myself up. Some time passed. As my headache subsided, I realized I was shivering. ¡°Awake?¡± spoke the prison wall. It was an unfamiliar girl¡¯s voice. ¡°Yes,¡± my voice cracked. I patted and knuckled the wall, doubting and clinging onto the words. But there was now only silence. I slowly raised myself to my feet. ¡°Yes,¡± I repeated once more. ¡°Hello?¡± ¡°A high man?¡± asked the voice. ¡°I¡¯m sorry?¡± ¡°You are! Aren¡¯t you? A high man, here? How?¡± ¡°What?¡± I whispered. The voice fell silent. I leaned my ear against the wall and waited, but I heard nothing. I waited but no voice came. I began to doubt there ever was one at all. ¡°Hey?¡± I whispered. I slapped the wall and nearly fell over doing so. ¡°Hey!¡± I shouted with desperation. ¡°Where are you from?¡± returned the voice. I took a step back from the wall and glared at it. I pressed my hand firmly against it, feeling the cold, grainy stone. I slid my hand over the stone, then held my hand near my face so I could see my fingers in the flickering light. I slowly touched my fingertips together, feeling the small grains of chalky dust from the stone wall. ¡°Where are we?¡± I whispered to my neighbor behind the wall. There was no answer. I pressed my ear up against the wall and waited. ¡°Who are you?¡± asked the voice. ¡°Are you important? What¡¯s your name?¡± ¡°Charlie.¡± ¡°Char-lee?¡± The voice seemed uneasy or confused. ¡°You hit your head, Charlie?¡± I paused and touched my head. ¡°Something did.¡± ¡°Well that¡¯s the first thing you¡¯ve said that¡¯s made any sense. Are you truly asking me where we are?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Orc country.¡± ¡°Orc¡­¡± I whispered to myself. ¡°You must be important.¡± ¡°What¡¯s beyond these caves?¡± ¡°You mean above? There¡¯s nothing.¡± ¡°Nothing?¡± ¡°Desert is just about nothing, wouldn¡¯t you say? Sand for five horizons.¡± I leaned against the wall and fell into a sit. ¡°Know anyone?¡± she asked. ¡°What?¡± ¡°Back home who might pay your ransom.¡± I shook my head to myself. ¡°Home,¡± I whispered. Suddenly there was a thud, enough to shake the dust off the stone walls and flicker the torch¡¯s flame. ¡°Quiet,¡± she whispered. ¡°What was that?¡± I asked. The wall was silent. It happened again. This time, there were distant high-pitched shrieks. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± I asked, pounding the stone wall. The thuds continued until there didn¡¯t seem to be much dust left on the stone walls.You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story. ¡°Don¡¯t talk to them,¡± replied the voice. ¡°Who?¡± Suddenly a door I hadn¡¯t noticed flung open. A goblin-like creature entered the room. It looked shorter than me, a green tint of skin, yellow eyes, sharply tipped ears. It had the kind of eyes that saw you looking in and didn¡¯t seem to like it. ¡°Locusts,¡± the thing called out in a low voice. It had in one gnarled hand a wooden staff, and the other a silver key. ¡°Which of you is a boy?¡± it hissed. ¡°Me,¡± said the girl¡¯s voice behind the wall. ¡°No, wait,¡± I called out. I rushed over to the bars. The goblin lifted his silver key in the light lunged forward towards the cell of my neighbor. There were loud clanks and clashes of metal, with an occasional inhumane hiss or groan, until with a slam the next door prison cell gate flung open. A blonde girl emerged, shrouded by shadows. She was tall and moved slow. The light of the misbehaved wall torch flame danced briefly across her face, revealing wide blue eyes. ¡°I¡¯m a boy,¡± I called out. The goblin turned and eyed me over, then glanced between the two of us with a confused look. ¡°We are both boys,¡± said the girl. ¡°Bring both,¡± said a deeper voice from the darkness behind the goblin. With a groan, the goblin shoved his silver key into my door and then grabbed me by neck with alarming strength, pulling me out and up against the wall next to the girl, near the flame. As the goblin turned to lock their cells, I examined the girl. She had a light complexion, sharp features, pretty, chin was cut, lips too, and both were swollen. She was examining me back. ¡°What do we do?¡± I whispered to her, motioning towards the creature. The girl scowled at me and said nothing. ¡°Where are we going?¡± I whispered. ¡°Shut up!¡± the goblin hissed, turning to face me. Before I could close his mouth, it struck me across my brow with his staff. The woman helped me to my feet. As I steadied myself, the goblin barked something vile with a haphazard motion that suggested we better follow. Through the door was a deeper black I ever wished to see, especially while following such an unpleasant fiend. Blind and dizzy, I quickly bumped into the goblin. Before I could mumble an apology, I felt the slap of the goblin¡¯s staff against my arm. The swiftness gave me the sobering sense that the goblin could see plainly where I couldn¡¯t see at all. And when it happened again, surely less than a minute later, the staff swiftly swiped my side. ¡°I can¡¯t see,¡± I muttered, half crying with the rush of pain and fear. I hid within a corner of my mind gasping for a sense of where we were going, or why, let alone how any of this was happening at all. On the third or forth whack of the staff, I cursed myself for walking between the goblin and the girl, neither of whom seemed to have a problem seeing in the dark. As we walked on, curving to and fro and occasionally inclining up, my wailing arms sensed the already tiny tunnel was narrowing. I continued to bump against the goblin, but after a while, the hits ceased, though the goblin¡¯s hisses never did. I for a time contemplated trying my luck tackling the little bastard. He was at least a foot shorter than me. Perhaps when better lit, if ever, I thought to myself. We walked for what felt like an hour through the darkness. My fear compounded into exhaustion. Then the numbness came and I became the walk. A hint of light appeared far into the forward. I thought I had imagined it at first. Then I heard murmurs of life up ahead; a dull tapping, perhaps a hammer, and the occasional screech of metal. We eventually entered into the light. It was a cavernous city, full of pig-like goblins busying about. Other goblins too, including others like their goblin, and dark-eyed elves. The cavern was massive. ¡°Wow,¡± I gasped, hardly knowing I did. The goblin tisked and scowled at me, ¡°You barf-minded sloth!¡± A clangy, loud mess of compartmentalized metal rolled into view. Thick smoke poured into the room like death. ¡°A train,¡± I murmured. I wish I hadn¡¯t. For the goblin then kicked me in the shin and punched me in the face. The woman again helped me up, though this time with only one hand, and we followed the goblin onto the train. Two brawny pig-like creatures stood guard on either end of the train car. The train was nice on the inside. Blue leather seats, a lemon-cinnamon smell, otherworldly music. Never in my life had I felt so out of place. Gorgeous dark-eyed elves came and served drinks without any communication. The drinks just came. A pink sparkling something in a crystal bottle with an ornate top came to me. The girl got a yellow one. Mine had a label that said Clarity. I opened the top to smell it. ¡°Don¡¯t,¡± the girl said with a glare. I closed it and set it aside. ¡°Where are you from?¡± she asked with a flare of disgust. It didn¡¯t seem like the type of question to answer. The goblin¡¯s drink was black. He drank it and another came to him just as quickly. ¡°What¡¯s happening?¡± I whispered to the girl. She hadn¡¯t stopped glaring at me. ¡°You lied.¡± ¡°What?¡± She looked around and then back at me. ¡°You know someone.¡± I shook my head slowly. ¡°I don¡¯t.¡± ¡°Someone¡¯s bailing you out,¡± she whispered. She surveyed the train then turned back to me. ¡°Or you¡¯re being sold,¡± she added. ¡°But who buys a boy?¡± I examined the other passengers. There were a few pig-like creatures and goblins, but the majority were large, green creatures with tusks. I glanced back at the girl. She was eyeing me cautiously. She looked afraid of me. ¡°Where are we going?¡± she asked. I squinted like she was mad and shook my head. ¡°I don¡¯t know! Why are you asking me?¡± There was commotion up ahead. Two men¡ªactual ordinary humans, by the look of it¡ªhad just stepped on board and were arguing with the pig-like creature in the front of the train car. One other pig from the back of the train car was rushing over to them. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± I whispered to the girl. ¡°Do you know them?¡± ¡°No,¡± I whispered. The girl scoffed. ¡°I don¡¯t believe you.¡± I examined the men again, as if a closer look would make a difference. One of the men glanced over at me. ¡°You must know them!¡± said the girl. I turned to face her. ¡°I don¡¯t know anyone.¡± Suddenly the girl stood up and turned to face behind them. Our goblin escort leapt to his feet. ¡°Sit down!¡± ¡°Where is this train headed?¡± called out the girl to the other passengers. ¡°Silence!¡± the goblin shrieked. He swung his staff at her head, but she dodged. ¡°Where!¡± she cried out. The goblin tried swinging again, but she directed the staff away and into the wall. ¡°Dawn,¡± a voice called out from somewhere in the train car. The girl sat back down. Her face was white. The goblin towered over us from behind our seats, his staff raised. He cracked his staff across the girl¡¯s head from behind her. He hit her this time. ¡°Stay seated!¡± he hissed. He cracked the staff atop my head for good measure and then sat back down. I watched as the girl¡¯s eyes darted around. Her eyes were wild, nearly frantic. ¡°What?¡± I whispered to her. ¡°What is it?¡± She didn¡¯t seem to hear. She looked terrified. I continued watching her in silence, waiting for her to speak again. I watched as her pupils dilated and her breathing slowed. Finally, she turned to me. ¡°Get off here,¡± she whispered. ¡°What?¡± I asked in a panic. I glanced out the windows into darkness. The girl stood to her feet. ¡°Wait,¡± I grabbed her arm, ¡°Where are you going?¡± The goblin leapt to his feet and pulled back his staff with a shriek. But before he could swing, she ran past him and towards the back of the train car, away from me and away from the arguing orcs and men. As she and the goblin disappeared from sight, chatter broke out across the train cab. The argument between the men and orcs seemed to grow more intense, with frequent glances at me from all four of them. Suddenly the train lit up with red lights and screeched to a violent halt, slamming everyone into the seats in front of them. I ended up on the floor. The train doors flung open. An eerie multi-toned alarm blasted from all directions. I stumbled to my feet and maneuvered into the aisle. The two men and orc guards were on the ground. I stared out the open door. There was only darkness. From the flashing red lights I could see the train was in a giant cavern. I could make out a cluster of neon lights in the very far distance. I took a step towards the door and peered out. It looked like some sort of subterranean city was up ahead. ¡°I can help you,¡± said a voice behind me. I turned to face the voice. It was one of the two men that had been arguing with the orcs. He was tall, middle-aged, tan skinned, with brown hair. The other man, pale with black hair, and younger, stood behind him, watching. I peered beyond the two men at the orcs motionless on the floor. I shifted my eyes back to the man in front of me. ¡°My name is Jacob,¡± said the man, with his hands slightly raised, palms facing me. ¡°What¡¯s your name?¡± I remained silent. I eyed the other man again then glanced back at Jacob. ¡°Charlie, yes?¡± asked Jacob, though he clearly knew. ¡°I can¡¯t help you if you exit here.¡± ¡°How do you know my name?¡± I demanded more than asked. The man remained silent. He glanced up over my head. I followed his eyes. Above the door was a countdown. Sixteen seconds. Fifteen. Fourteen. I turned back to the man and slowly stepped backwards off the train. The man nodded resolutely as if accepting of defeat. ¡°Well,¡± he sighed, and with a hand he dug through his pockets without breaking eye contact,¡± ¡°take this.¡± In a single graceful motion he removed a piece of paper from his jacket pocket and held it out to me. I glanced at the paper. ¡°What is it?¡± The man said nothing. He held his hand extended out to me. The tan paper was folded into a small diamond. I examined the man¡¯s face. His eyes were fixed intently on mine. Suddenly the train doors began to close. ¡°It¡¯s leaving,¡± I said. The man blocked the doors from closing with his free arm. ¡°Take it.¡± I stepped forward and grabbed the paper. As I did, the man lunged forward and stabbed me in the chest. Stone Keep I felt so cold and far from myself. I was without will, without direction, without a sense of time. It had to be some sort of sedative. I was seated again on the train. This time, an inner window seat. Out the window, I saw landscape. The sky was blue. Rolling icy white hills. Dark mountains in the distance. I looked out the window for what felt like days. I drifted in and out of sleep. ¡°Get up,¡± said a voice. I opened my eyes to darkness. The train was stopped. It was raining outside. I felt heavy and dizzy. So dizzy in fact that I dared not move. ¡°Go ahead,¡± the voice said to someone. I felt a hand on my shoulder. ¡°Can you stand?¡± I turned to face the pale man from before. The girl and goblin were missing. I stood slowly and followed the man off the train. We walked down a long, dark dirt path, through thick woods then under a wooden gate. Inside was a winding cobbled path that led us into a bustling market square. I could feel the sedative waning, but my senses were still strung about and left contorted. I was floating and I couldn¡¯t smell a thing. But I saw blacksmiths, cooks, street performers. Fresh bread, saddled horses, wooden signs with etched words. This was a city of men. We walked into a stone building, up a flight of stairs, or two, and into a small room. I fell into a bed. I didn¡¯t care about anything. I slept. I woke in a different room. It was larger. This bed was stiff. Five, maybe six, men were standing over me. I must have tried to sit up, or telegraphed my intent, because one of the men put his hand on my shoulder, keeping me down. The others, one by one, left the room. ¡°Easy,¡± said the man. He was the pale one who I had followed off the train. He and the room were dressed plainly. ¡°I¡¯m Paul.¡± I grunted. He slowly lifted his hand from my shoulder and took a seat next to my bed. I waited, expecting a question, but one did not come. ¡°I bet you¡¯re hungry,¡± he finally said. ¡°I am.¡± ¡°Breakfast is in the works. Wasn¡¯t expecting you to wake so soon.¡± I glanced out the window. It was dark outside. ¡°I was stabbed.¡± Paul nodded. ¡°That was Jacob.¡± I could sense the disapproval. ¡°And I¡¯m sorry about that. He means well.¡± I felt a flare of fear and then anger, but then I quickly became paralyzed by some far grander realization. I¡¯m still here. Here. Where is here? What is this? Have I gone mad? I shook my head and took a forced breath. The room was still. The man was calm and silent. It bugged me. Made him seem in control. I wanted that control. But I had far too many questions burning inside me to just sit there in silence. ¡°Tell me where I am,¡± I said finally. ¡°Haroldville,¡± he said. ¡°Stone Keep.¡± He had a rare sincerity about him, in his voice, his eyes, his movements. A peace. The kind of peace that seemed mad in any world, his or mine. An expression so deeply neutral, steady. His gaze, attentive, though calm and kind. Intense yet easy. ¡°Stone Keep,¡± I said softly, with half a nod. It meant nothing. But I wasn''t sure I wanted him to know that. I needed better questions. This particular room sure fit the name. Stone walls, stone ceiling, stone floor. On the opposite wall, a desk made of, indeed, stone. With a wooden chair, how unsuited, and a window, if you could call it that, small and barred. Not an encouraging sight. ¡°So?¡± I finally said. ¡°You¡¯ve captured me. Explain yourself.¡± The man apparently Paul glanced up. His face was expressionless. He didn¡¯t answer at first, but then he looked down, breaking his gaze from me for the first time since I had awoke. ¡°Rest now.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t feel restful.¡± ¡°All your questions answered, and a few of our own, after breakfast.¡± ¡°Why not now?¡± ¡°Because Tom isn¡¯t here yet.¡± ¡°Who is he?¡± ¡°These are questions.¡± ¡°Yes. They are.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not free to answer questions.¡± I held back a snarky comment and closed my eyes. Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation. Conditions didn¡¯t improve at breakfast. Paul had left and I was alone, save for a pair of over-armored guards posted at both doors of the small dinning room. Served, to me alone, were omelets and some sort of poached egg french toast donut. In and out was a rather skittish cook who, despite her love of all things eggs, hadn¡¯t yet seemed to discover salt or pepper. To make things worse, there was a tick tock¡ª the sort you¡¯d expect from a grandfather clock¡ª coming from somewhere, and for the life of me and despite my best effort, I couldn¡¯t find it. ¡°Is there a tick-tock? Like from a clock?¡± I finally asked the cook. She looked horrified at the question and only barely glanced at me before scurrying away out of sight deeper into her kitchen. I leaned over and glanced under the table. Where is the dang thing? ¡°Do you always rhyme?¡± asked one of the guards. It took me quite by surprise to hear from a guard. ¡°You¡¯re allowed to talk?¡± I asked. ¡°And why wouldn¡¯t I be?¡± ¡°Oh,¡± I said. I hadn¡¯t a good answer to that. It was at this moment that I wondered if this was all just a bad trip from rare toxins in the shrimp candy. Had they been expired? That might be it. The tick-tock brought me back to the room before me. ¡°Do you hear it?¡± I asked the talkative guard. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°So you do hear it! Where¡¯s it coming from?¡± He glanced towards the kitchen without an answer. I followed his gaze. It seemed that in the cook¡¯s sudden retreat, she had left the stove on. Eggs were sizzling and starting to pop. This room had a proper window. It was day now, and a beautiful one. I could see other guards, not unlike mine, posted up at different entrances across a lovely garden courtyard, while fancy others leisurely walked to and fro. I had eaten just about enough eggs and was growing rattled from all the tick-tocking. I stood and faced the friendly guard. He was in the way of the door to the courtyard. ¡°Excuse me,¡± I said politely. ¡°Heading out.¡± He shook his head. ¡°No? Am I being detained?¡± I asked. In place of an answer he shifted his weight with an audible ¡°Uh¡±. ¡°I want to go outside.¡± ¡°Are you finished eating?¡± ¡°Yes,¡± I let my attitude flair a bit. ¡°Follow me.¡± ¡°Where?¡± ¡°To your quarters.¡± ¡°I do not wish to go to my quarters. I wish to go outside.¡± ¡°This is why you don¡¯t talk to them, Roland,¡± said the other guard from across the room. He was guarding the other door. ¡°Fine, I get it,¡± I said. ¡°To my quarters then.¡± When we arrived, I had a guest waiting. An old man with grey hair sat at the foot of my bed. He wore a blue and green robe with golden tassels. He greeted me with a gentle smile. The guards left us. I remained standing at the doorway. ¡°You Tom?¡± I asked. The old man nodded. ¡°Charlie.¡± He slowly rose to his feet. ¡°Why¡¯d you free me?¡± ¡°Oh,¡± he shook his head. ¡°I didn¡¯t. That was someone else.¡± ¡°Who?¡± ¡°You don¡¯t know?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t understand.¡± ¡°I intercepted you.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Curse of curiosity.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t understand.¡± ¡°Do you know who paid your ransom?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°Not even a guess?¡± ¡°No. Who?¡± ¡°Well I find that hard to believe. Your train was headed for Dawn.¡± He tilted his head and eyed me expectantly. ¡°I don¡¯t know what that is.¡± ¡°Okay,¡± he scoffed. His face faded sour. ¡°I¡¯m telling you the truth. I¡¯m not from here.¡± ¡°So where are you from?¡± I shook my head. I wasn¡¯t sure what to say. I sighed. He held up a hand. ¡°Let me get this right. A high man prisoner of the orcish burrows, far fall beneath the vast expanse desert. How that¡¯s possible is a quandary its own. But then, bailed out by the most powerful individual of the underworld, Zalmora the Darklands Queen. I expected a much more interesting conversation.¡± ¡°Wait,¡± I said. ¡°Who?¡± Tom leaned back and sighed and heavy, tired sigh. He shook his head slowly, eyes fixed onto mine. Then he shifted his eyes away into thought. After some time, he looked me back in the eye. He didn¡¯t seem quite as friendly now as he did before. ¡°I regret picking you up.¡± ¡°I¡¯m being honest with you.¡± ¡°Do you want to go to Dawn? Is that it?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°Where then?¡± ¡°I want to ho home!¡± He glared at me expectantly. ¡°Where?¡± ¡°You don¡¯t know it. Not here. It¡¯s¡ª I¡¯m from a different place.¡± He thought for a moment, expressionless. ¡°Speak it.¡± ¡°What do you want me to say? Massachusetts? America? Earth. The Milky Way.¡± ¡°Did you¡ª¡± Tom¡¯s eyes narrowed. ¡°Stop,¡± his eyes flashed disgust, maybe fear, then he let a wicked grin slip through. ¡°Hold on, hold on,¡± he nearly laughed, though his eyes looked horrified. He glanced up at the door, then to his bookshelf, then to me. ¡°Stay right there,¡± he practically threatened. He walked over to the bookshelf and rummaged through multiple stacks of bound pages. ¡°Jacob!¡± he shouted at the door. ¡°Hold on,¡± he murmured to me, before resuming his search. As he dug through papers, he glanced back at me often. I silently stood near the door and watched. After some time, Jacob poked his head in and Tom motioned for him to step in. ¡°Yep?¡± Jacob asked. ¡°Stick around,¡± Tom said, still rummaging. Jacob eyed me suspiciously and then stepped in and closed the door behind him. ¡°What are we looking for?¡± Tom shooed him away. ¡°Eh, eh¡ª hold on.¡± Jacob suppressed a scoff and leaned against the wall. After a few minutes, Tom stopped rummaging. ¡°Here,¡± he whispered, tapping a page, then tracing his line through the words. It looked like a letter. ¡°Say it again,¡± he looked up at me, ¡°where you are from?¡± ¡°The Milky Way?¡± ¡°No, no,¡± he held up a finger, ¡°the other.¡± ¡°Earth,¡± I said. ¡°Earth,¡± Tom tapped the word on the page and showed it to Jacob. ¡°What is that?¡± I asked, moving closer to read. Jacob grabbed the paper and moved behind Tom so I couldn¡¯t see. ¡°Have a seat, Charlie,¡± Tom said, pointing to the foot of the bed. I took a heavy breath and obliged. Jacob handed back the letter to Tom and Tom tucked it away in his pocket. ¡°Can you get me back?¡± I asked Tom. ¡°Hang on,¡± Jacob said. ¡°Are you stuck?¡± Tom glanced at Jacob and then back to me. ¡°That¡¯s what you want?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Why¡¯d you come here?¡± asked Jacob. ¡°I didn¡¯t. It was an accident. Look, I don¡¯t want to be here. I don¡¯t even know where, or how, or why, or anything. I just¡ª I¡¯m here.¡± ¡°How long have you been here?¡± asked Tom. ¡°I don¡¯t know. Days?¡± ¡°You just woke up one morning and you were here?¡± ¡°I appeared. In a dark cave.¡± ¡°My god¡± whispered Tom. ¡°What?¡± I asked. ¡°Okay,¡± Tom nodded, deep in thought. He glanced up at Jacob. ¡°Go. You can go,¡± he shooed him way, then turned back to me thoughtfully. ¡°I¡¯m attaching you to a unit. Do not tell them anything. Do not ask questions. You¡¯re along for the ride. They¡¯ll take you to a man called Edgar. Tell him what you¡¯ve told me. No one else. Got it?¡± ¡°Will this get me home?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± ¡°Why are you helping me?¡± ¡°You want to go home. That¡¯s what best for everyone. Let¡¯s get you home. You leave at sunrise.¡± Tom turned and opened the door to leave. Half way out, he turned and looked into my eyes. His face had change so much from the moment I had entered the room. He looked older now. He looked scared. ¡°Good luck,¡± he said softly. Then he closed the door. The Diplomat The next morning, Tom sent me off with what I would later learn was half his ¡®army¡¯, two guards, both of which I recognized from breakfast the day prior, and a cloth sack of boiled eggs. I wasn¡¯t permitted a weapon. One of the guards was Roland, the friendly chap from breakfast. I was quite happy about that. The other guard, who went by Vite, wasn''t so friendly. We left the gates at dawn. The air was cool, wind heavy, sun warm. On either side of us were fields ripe for harvest. Peasants hauled wheat and what not to and fro, most glancing, none saying a thing. Our initial task, as I understood it from Roland, was to travel to a nearby fishing town to collect a diplomat. Then, we¡¯d set out by ship to ¡°a cold place across the water¡± called Edith where their mission was, and where I¡¯d rendezvous with Edgar. ¡°What do you know about Edgar?¡± I asked. ¡°He¡¯s a strange one,¡± said Roland. Vite let out a grumble. ¡°Strange how?¡± I asked. ¡°Stop telling him things,¡± Vite snapped at Roland. ¡°And stop asking,¡± he added to me. ¡°You two go on quests often?¡± I asked. ¡°Aye,¡± nodded Roland. ¡°Beats guarding kitchens.¡± ¡°I wonder why Tom is sending me to Edgar,¡± I said. ¡°Stop asking questions!¡± yelled Vite. ¡°I was just was just wondering,¡± I said. ¡°Think this quest will be dangerous?¡± ¡°Question,¡± Vite snapped. ¡°Dangerous for the cartographer, perhaps,¡± said Roland with a laugh. ¡°Cartographer?¡± I asked. ¡°Roland!¡± whispered Vite. ¡°Edgar¡¯s hostage,¡± said Roland. ¡°What hostage?¡± I asked. ¡°Stop,¡± said Vite. ¡°The cartographer,¡± whispered Roland. ¡°Roland¡ª¡± ¡°Wait,¡± I stopped walking. ¡°Are you¡¯re trading me for a hostage? Am I a hostage?¡± ¡°No,¡± said Vite. Roland laughed. ¡°Okay, look¡ª¡± ¡°Roland!¡± shouted Vite. ¡°I swear to all that is good, you will stop talking about our mission details to the cargo or I will kill you myself.¡± Roland chuckled and waved Vite away then looked out across the horizon. ¡°Feathers,¡± he nodded ahead. I followed his gaze. Shiny black feathers were on the ground ahead. ¡°Avoid them,¡± snapped Vite. The stoney path turned dirt and occasionally mud, until there was no path at all. There were many rivers, each with a bridge less stable than the one before. Then there was a forest. Here the path was paved with stone and lined with unlit lanterns. On two occasions there were crossroads, each with a neatly chiseled stone sign. The sign indicated which path led to where, as signs do. But rather than name a place by name, it merely described the setting. High Plains, Mountain Pass, and Sea. We followed the path towards Sea. Just as the trees became less dense and the grass less green, we came upon a patrol unit of two men dressed in quaint yellow knit vests atop chainmail and plate armor pants. Each sported a sheathed short sword and fastened-to-the-back shield.Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road. ¡°Day,¡± said Vite in greeting. ¡°Bear back there,¡± they greeted, and walked on. I glanced back. One of the patrol man¡¯s plate leggings was damaged. Dented-in-like. We saw no bear, or sign of one. But we did come across a few more patrols, each wearing the same get-up, though none quite as talkative as the first, though one grunted kindly. We came upon a crossroads with a new destination presented: ¡°Hills¡±. ¡°Are these town names?¡± I asked. ¡°No,¡± said Vite. ¡°Hills isn''t safe,¡± Roland added. Roland shrugged, ¡°Fickle halfling relations. Disputes over sheep mostly.¡± ¡°Dispute?¡± Vite. Roland was silent. ¡°Murderous robber-thugs,¡± Vite grumbled. Roland held in a laugh and shook his head. When we arrived at the fishing village, it was mid-day. Vite led us through a maze of alleyways full of unscrupulous characters and shady establishments to a cozy corner with a few modest shops, a bank or something like it, and a tavern on the docks. We entered the tavern to the sight of drunken high men sailors piled around the bar. Among them was what looked like a little girl drinking whiskey at first. It turned out to be a halfling. ¡°He''s upstairs,¡± Vite shouted over the noise. ¡°Who?¡± I asked. Vite shooed me away. ¡°Our sovereign sponsor,¡± Roland answered. ¡°Do not say a word,¡± warned Vite. He was glaring at me. We went up a flight of stairs to a dining area. It was crowded here too, but the ambiance was calmer. A fine dining sort of vibe, save for the occasional cackles echoing from below. Mostly high men, but the occasional halfling, and what looked like a dwarf sitting alone in a far corner. We continued to follow Vite as he trekked us across the dining area, up another flight of narrow, winding stairs that led to an open air patio dining area on a deck facing the sea, which connected to a busy elevated walkway, with higher-end shops lining the path as far as I could see. Vite beelined to a table where a fat, jolly looking middle-aged man sat. He had blond hair, blue eyes, red cheeks, and a goofy grin. ¡°Hi hey,¡± the jolly man said while standing from the table, his napkin falling off his chest and onto the floor. It escaped his notice. ¡°We¡¯re eating right?¡± asked Vite, shaking the man¡¯s hand. ¡°Oh. No,¡± the jolly man looked down. ¡°Are you hungry?¡± he motioned towards his plate of half-eaten spaghetti. There was no silverware in sight. The jolly man¡¯s hands were covered in spaghetti sauce. Vite glanced down and then away. ¡°We have eggs.¡± ¡°Oh! Good,¡± said the man. I glanced at Roland and he shot me a smile. The jolly man plopped down and resumed eating his meal like an animal. We each found a seat. Oh and the relief I found from it. I don''t believe I''ve ever walked quite that much in a day. ¡°Where are they?¡± asked Vite. The jolly man¡¯s mouth was full. He motioned in various directions, mostly down, then shrugged. ¡°Well, are they coming?¡± asked Vite. ¡°Mm,¡± the man murmured, holding up a finger as he slurped up a wad of noodles. ¡°Your diplomat docked an hour ago.¡± ¡°And the navigator?¡± asked Vite. ¡°Deceased.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°He died,¡± the jolly man shrugged. ¡°How?¡± The jolly man shrugged again. Vite scoffed. ¡°Then we aren¡¯t going.¡± ¡°Oh, we¡¯re going,¡± a woman¡¯s voice bellowed from across the room. I turned. We all did. It was a dark elf, just like the ones on the train. She was walking over from across the room. ¡°But you¡¯re not,¡± the dark elf said to Vite. Vite stood, pushing back the chair nearly enough for it to topple over. He faced her. ¡°Excuse me?¡± ¡°I already did,¡± the dark elf said with a devilish grin. The jolly man laughed. Vite shot him an annoyed look but quickly refocused his death stare back at the dark elf. She walked past our table into the back kitchen. Vite remained standing, with his eyes on the closed kitchen door. ¡°Who was that?¡± I asked. ¡°Quiet!¡± said Vite. ¡°Diplomat,¡± the jolly man mumbled between chomps. ¡°She is our diplomat?¡± I asked. The kitchen doors swung open with a bang and the dark elf re-entered brandishing a half-eaten chicken leg. Roland stepped toward her, ¡°You¡ª¡± ¡°I don''t need two meat shields. Roland is more¡ª¡±, she paused to think, ¡°agreeable, so¡­¡± ¡°No,¡± Vite slammed the table. ¡°Not yours to decide. I need the copper.¡± The dark elf walked over and got in Vite¡¯s face. She was taller than him. She smiled. ¡°Aw.¡± Vite turned red. The angry kind. Rooms carry energy and this one was about to combust. The dark elf tilted her head, as if examining the igniting specimen before her. ¡°Okay,¡± she said softly. ¡°I¡¯ll give you want you want.¡± Vite looked both enraged and confused. ¡°A new quest,¡± the dark elf whispered. ¡°Twice the rate.¡± She walked over to the jolly man and put her hands on his shoulder endearingly. ¡°You full, dear?¡± The jolly man nodded. ¡°He¡¯s full,¡± the dark elf said to Vite. Her face was terrifyingly stern. ¡°Clean him up. Take him to Dingle. Keep him safe. And well fed. And happy. Return him when he says he''s done. Or if he¡¯s killed.¡± Vite took a deep breath, keeping his head high. He shifted his eyes to the jolly man. The jolly man gave a polite nod and smile to Vite. ¡°I''ll wait for you downstairs,¡± Vite told the jolly man, before glancing back at the dark elf. ¡°I need a drink.¡± The dark elf turned to Roland. Her face was now soft, cheeks slightly blushed, lips curved into a sweet smile, eyes easy as night. ¡°Good to see you again.¡± Roland smiled and nodded, ¡°Hi Nessy.¡± She then turned to me. ¡°Yes, I''m your damned diplomat.¡± Pirates After some meandering through the town ¡ª the bakery, a handkerchief shop, and another bakery ¡ª the jolly man took us to our ship. ¡°Isn¡¯t much to look at, but it floats,¡± he had said. He didn¡¯t stay to see us depart. Vite left us as pissy as I had found him. On board the ship, Nessy barked orders at Roland and me, but the wind snatched them up, so Roland and I followed after her squinting with shrugged shoulders. We watched for a time as she busied about, moving one thing or another to and fro, until after a while we found ourselves leaning against the side of the ship chatting. By dusk, we were on our way. ¡°Four days away,¡± Roland said. ¡°Four days!¡± Roland nodded. I took a deep breath. Blue glassy waves set against an amber dusking sky. Seagulls soared above us, curving, encircling. Far fewer of them now than an hour ago. My every breath was filled with salty sea mist. The crashing waves began as a comfort, but quickly became a noise, then eased into a near nuisance. ¡°You know, she''s channeling over there,¡± said Roland, eyeing the ship¡¯s helm. ¡°What''s that?¡± ¡°She''s channeling,¡± he nodded towards Nessy. ¡°She calls it thinkin¡¯, but,¡± he shook his head, ¡°she¡¯s preparin¡¯ spells.¡± ¡°Magic spells?¡± I said with a skeptical squint. Roland nodded slowly, then looked out into the sea. ¡°How¡¯s that work?¡± I asked. Roland looked back over then shrugged. ¡°I use a sword.¡± ¡°You two know each other from before?¡± ¡°Aye,¡± he nodded. ¡°Dated.¡± ¡°Oh? When was this?¡± Roland laughed. ¡°Back when we were the same age.¡± I must have given him a confused look. He laughed again. ¡°Dark elves age differently than high men,¡± he added. I nodded slowly. ¡°What do you know about Edgar?¡± Roland looked over at me and thought for a moment. His hair was wild with the wind, eyes squinted from the setting sun. ¡°Tom tells me things he shouldn¡¯t, given my big mouth.¡± Roland looked me over, then looked back out towards the sea. ¡°I know you¡¯re not from here.¡± I looked out across the sea and remained quiet. ¡°Well,¡± said Roland, turning to lean his back against the side of the ship. He turned to me. ¡°Edgar isn¡¯t exactly from here either.¡± Roland nodded. ¡°Should be an interesting trip.¡± Neither of us had the energy to continue conversation over the increasingly wild wind. We agreed to take shifts. I couldn¡¯t get comfortable, so Roland rested first. He fell asleep disturbingly easily. I was tired, but I was too riled up to rest. I slouched in a corner away from the wind and gazed up at the stars. Was Earth up there? I leaped my gaze from star to star. The boat rocked gently, seemingly in four directions. ¡°Wake up!¡± Nessy yelled from somewhere. I jumped and tripped over a pile of safety rope and gashed my head against some hideous marble statue piece of junk art. I was bleeding. I stumbled up. It was morning. Then I saw it. Four pirate ships sailing parallel to us, one docked onto our side. ¡°How does this happen? Really. I¡¯m curious,¡± said Nessy. She was standing at the deck entryway. Roland was still asleep. This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. ¡°Do we have cannons?¡± I asked. ¡°Are you out of your mind?¡± ¡°Okay. What¡¯s the plan?¡± ¡°Diplomacy! Dammit!¡± She stormed off. I kicked Roland gently. ¡°Wake up, Roland!¡± He didn¡¯t wake up. Is he dead? I tried to check his pulse. I couldn¡¯t feel a beat. I wasn¡¯t exactly sure where to press, so I just pressed harder. Then he moved. Phew. But it could have been one of those movements corpses do right after they passed. I tried pressing his other wrist. ¡°What are you doing?¡± yelled Nessy. She had miraculously changed clothes. ¡°Blah, I don''t know! I''m checking on Roland!¡± ¡°Leave him alone. Follow me. Don''t talk or make weird noises.¡± I followed Nessy to a group of pirates standing on our deck. Oh Jesus Christ. They were halfling pirates. ¡°Welcome aboard,¡± said Nessy. Among the five or six pirates, one parted and walked over to us. ¡°What¡¯s your business?¡± he asked sternly. He had grey hair, purple eyes, a roughed up face, and a hint of a mustache and beard. He seemed rather no-nonsense, despite, well, his looks. ¡°We¡¯re headed to Edith to see a friend,¡± Nessy answered. ¡°A friend? In Edith?¡± ¡°I have friends everywhere,¡± Nessy nodded politely. ¡°Hm,¡± the halfling grunted. He then glanced at me. ¡°I take it you¡¯re one of her friends?¡± ¡°I am pleased to meet you,¡± I said. I tried to keep a straight face. ¡°What?¡± the halfling squinted, then glanced at Nessy. Nessy slapped me across the face. She then turned back to face the halfling and smiled. ¡°He is¡­ a little stupid. My husband. Indentured husband, legally. But very much the master of this ship, bless him.¡± The halfling stared at us blankly. I nodded supportively. ¡°You the captain?¡± he asked me. Nessy looked at me, nodding. ¡°Yar,¡± I replied. I was really having a hard time taking this moment seriously. The halfling glanced at Nessy, then me, then a fellow pirate. ¡°Why did you sail right into my fleet?¡± he asked. It took me a moment to realize he was waiting for me to answer. ¡°I confront.¡± I didn¡¯t know why I started my sentence that way, and I certainly didn¡¯t know how to finish it, so I concluded it right away. Nessy and the halfling looked at me, then each other. ¡°Timeout,¡± I said, turning to Nessy. ¡°I¡¯m not good at this. Why can¡¯t you be the captain?¡± ¡°They¡¯re sexist.¡± ¡°Oh. Don¡¯t you know magic? Can¡¯t you, you know, use it?¡± Nessy closed her eyes and took a deep breath. ¡°A witch?¡± the halfling asked. ¡°Okay, listen,¡± Nessy pushed ahead of me. ¡°Take the ship.¡± ¡°We are not pirates.¡± ¡°Oh, yes, my apologies,¡± Nessy raised her hands, ¡°you¡¯re lawful, good administrators of a kindly sea-wide ship redistribution program. Commendable. All I ask is you byway us to Edith. ¡± The halfling shook his head. ¡°We drop you off at Perch.¡± ¡°One moment,¡± I said, taking Nessy to the side. ¡°Halt!¡± the halfling called out, but Nessy, while visibly annoyed, didn¡¯t seem worried, so I continued to usher her away from them. ¡°Return to our conversation at once!¡± he yelled behind us. ¡°Can we just, like, pick them up and throw them overboard?¡± I whispered. ¡°No you may not,¡± the halfling said. ¡°How¡¯d he hear that?¡± I whispered. ¡°Look behind them, on their ships,¡± Nessy said. I glanced over, squinting. Dozens of halflings lined the edge of all four ships, all holding back one arm. ¡°What are they doing?¡± I squinted. ¡°They¡¯re so tiny.¡± ¡°Slingers. They¡¯ll pelt us with berries if we crap around too much.¡± ¡°Berries?¡± ¡°They explode. Look, halflings are crappy pirates. They¡¯ll take the ship, but they¡¯ll ferry us to a nearby port. I just need to convince them to take us to Edith.¡± ¡°Well where¡¯s Perch? Can we get to Edith from there?¡± She looked at me strangely. And she¡­ smiled. ¡°Stop smiling,¡± I smiled back, in a worried sort of way. ¡°I don¡¯t like it.¡± She turned and walked back over to the halfling pirate. ¡°Perch is far. There¡¯s, what, two halfling stops here to there. You guys are really doing it aren¡¯t you?¡± The halfling didn¡¯t react. Nessy turned to me. ¡°They¡¯re gonna blockade.¡± The halfling darted his eyes. ¡°Look,¡± Nessy turned to the halfling. ¡°You can¡¯t take us to Perch, because we know what you¡¯re about to do. Word will, you know,¡± she shrugged, ¡°get out. Edith isn¡¯t far. Even Edith pigeons can¡¯t fly over the Sorice sea.¡± The halfling turned to one of his co-conspirators, a plump woman with patches over both eyes. ¡°Betsy,¡± he called to her. She nodded and walked over to him and held his hand. ¡°One of you show Betsy to the helm. She is your new captain.¡± ¡°Is she?¡± I said. ¡°Is she what?¡± Betsy said. ¡°How is she, are you, able to, you know, navigate, given the circumstances of your, her, upper head.¡± ¡°She¡¯s not blind,¡± Betsy said. ¡°She has¡­ a couple of eyepatches,¡± I said. ¡°Also, this conversation is really starting to confuse me.¡± Betsy sighed, or perhaps growled. She then tilted her head and smiled slightly. She slowly raised her hand and pointed up. I followed her point, looking up into the sky, shielding the sun from my eyes. I saw something. It was far. What is that? It was getting bigger. Some sort of a¡­ maybe a seagull. It was dive bombing. Towards me! Then it quickly curved up and turned away. I looked back over to Betsy. ¡°What was that?¡± Suddenly bird poop landed on my head. ¡°Okay,¡± said Nessy. She turned and walked away. I stood there and continued watching the bird. It curved around and began encircling our ship. I looked down at Betsy and the halfling pirate captain with a dumbfounded look. ¡°She can see,¡± the woman said, with a hearty humph. She wobbled and fumbled over towards the ship¡¯s helm. The halfling and I watched Betsy stumble around until she was out of sight. ¡°Anyway,¡± he continued, ¡°she¡¯s blind, but the bird helps. Don¡¯t try anything. We will be watching.¡± And with that, he and his posse returned to their ship. I walked to the helm and found Betsy at the wheel. Roland was still asleep. ¡°I see it,¡± she said. ¡°Edith.¡± ¡°How far out?¡± Nessy asked from the doorway behind us. ¡°A day. Get comfortable. Your job is easy now.¡± Edith It was dusk when we first spotted land. Betsy and her seagull were asleep. Nessy had spotted it first, but said nothing. She quietly walked over to the wheel and adjusted course, which tipped off Roland, who then spelled it out for me. Roland and I walked quietly past Betsy and the seagull to get a better look at the coast along the ship¡¯s edge. Betsy was snoring loudly with the seagull sprawled across her chest, also snoring. They were swinging softly in the wind on a hammock. The coast was jagged and harsh. Towering, densely gathered snow-covered trees, steep, rocky ocean walls, little shore to speak of. Nessy joined us, her gaze fixed on the coast. She darted her head around, as the foggy landscape creeped into view. Roland was bobbing around too, but he mostly seemed to be watching for Nessy¡¯s reaction. ¡°We overshot,¡± said Nessy. She left us and returned to the wheel, this time turning us ninety degrees. The ship creaked and bobbed, slowly turning south, and we began sailing parallel to the coast. ¡°How far off?¡± asked Roland. Nessy shook her head with a scowl and walked off. I knew her habits by now. It was her ¡°thinking time¡±. ¡°It¡¯s the ice,¡± Roland pointed. ¡°We¡¯re too far north.¡± ¡°Should we wake the seagull lady?¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s fine.¡± I glanced behind our ship. One of the halfling ships that had detached from the halfling pirate fleet was escorting us. They were close enough that I could see slingers lined up on the edge of their ship. They were watching. ¡°How much longer?¡± I asked Roland. ¡°This time of year, it¡¯s probably an hour out once the snow is gone.¡± It was four some odd hours later when I spotted a lighthouse that bore no light. Roland was dangling up above mending a sail or something. I called for him and he quickly came, along with Nessy. ¡°Barf,¡± Nessy said, jogging to the wheel. She turned us around and slanted us slightly inbound towards land. ¡°We passed it.¡± The landscape was no less wintery than before, but with more fog. ¡°There,¡± Roland called out. ¡°Clocktower!¡± Nessy turned to Roland. ¡°It shouldn¡¯t be icy.¡± The docks were small, enough for perhaps four ships at once. There was another ship docked, one twice our size, dark wood. Nessy and I waited for Roland to come down and armor up. The halfling leader re-boarded our ship and woke Betsy and the bird. ¡°Off you go,¡± he said to the three of us. We walked down to the dock. We were greeted by a man in a black suit. He was accompanied by five guards, each with a scimitar and matching black leather armor. Their emblem was a purple eye. Not one of them had a smile or uttered a word. It was foggy, but I could see the extent of the dock. It wasn¡¯t much. The main wooden path led to a dirt area surrounded by a rather striking thick, ivory wall. There was a single large door with a guard on either side. ¡°I¡¯m Dunkleshaus,¡± the suited man nodded politely. He glanced up at the ship behind us. It began undocking, leaving us behind. ¡°Three?¡± Nessy nodded, then bowed slightly. Dunkleshaus¡¯s gaze was fixed on Nessy. ¡°Well?¡± ¡°Not staying the night, Dunkle. Just a quick pick-up.¡± ¡°Are you entering the city?¡± he asked. ¡°For a moment,¡± said Nessy. ¡°That¡¯s a night.¡± Nessy stood silently for a moment. The man smiled politely at me and Roland then returned his gaze to Nessy. Roland turned to Nessy. ¡°I¡ª¡° ¡°Him.¡± Nessy pointed to me without looking at me. Then she walked forward towards the ivory wall door. Dunkleshaus spun on a dime without breaking suave and paired with Nessy¡¯s pace, matching her stride. The guards split, one following Nessy and Dunkleshaus, two on me, and one on Roland. ¡°This way,¡± one of my guards said to me. His voice was out-of-this-world; like a doom guard from hell. I turned back. ¡°Roland?¡± Roland glanced at me, then looked over to Nessy, and back to me. ¡°We¡¯ll meet you on the other side,¡± he said. He looked upset. I followed my guards. At first we shadowed Nessy, but then the brutes veered me towards the other docked ship. I glanced at Roland. He was following Nessy towards the ivory door. I stopped. Both guards turned and the one that spoke before spoke again. ¡°It will only take a minute.¡± ¡°What will?¡± I asked. The brute glanced towards the ivory wall door. He turned back to face me. ¡°You owe a debt.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t have any money.¡± ¡°You have enough,¡± he said. He boarded the ship. I followed. The other brute walked behind me. The ship was empty. We kept going deeper in. It was dark. We kept walking. The ship didn¡¯t seem this big on the outside. We curved and turned and went downstairs. There was a dim glow from a candle somewhere. Then I saw it. A single candle in the center of an empty room. I glanced around. The walls were mirrored. The two guards positioned themselves on either side of the door we had entered from. I turned to re-examine the room, but as I turned, the candle went out. I heard a scream and a thud. I thought I laughed, but I didn¡¯t. And then I recognized the scream had been me. Perhaps it was my mind playing tricks on me, or trying to grapple with this reality. But I felt myself in others, as strange as that might sound. I woke in a small, dimly lit room, on a bed I didn¡¯t know. I felt far away from something, though I didn¡¯t know what. The room was empty, save for the bed, and enclosed with a quant door that had a window. Where am I! I got up slowly from the bed. The walls were green and patterned with texture, all fancy like. Floor was stone. Basement maybe. I walked to the door. It opened to a crowded cobbled lane. I stumbled into the crowd and flowed. I took a left at every split. Didn¡¯t mind going in circles. I was running away, or stalling. Waiting for my mind to wake up. I tried to ground myself with landmarks, while hiding within the crowd. Where would they have gone? Where would Edgar be? Maybe a keep. The crowds were so thick! It¡¯s the middle of the night! Where are we all going? Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon. I stumbled out of the crowd and by the grace of luck I found a bench. I sat at that bench, feeling violated and free. I will enjoy yelling at Nessy. How will she take it? There was a deep darkness here in this city. You could feel it casted over the crowd. An idle sort of uneasiness. A growing dread. What did they do to me? How could she, and he, do this to me? I was alone. I felt it there on that bench with people passing by. You¡¯re different, a voice spoke to me. A girl¡¯s voice. I startled and turned, but saw nothing. I got up and looked around. All that there was, was a crowd. But the voice had been so clear. Why have you come? the voice spoke again. ¡±I¡ª¡± I mumbled, turning in circles. I felt an unexpressed laugh. A shiver down my spine. I wanted to cry but was too afraid. My fear of the world had turned inward. I felt surreal here. More than before. Like being lost, only to fall deeper. I¡¯m hearing a girl¡¯s voice in my head. I re-entered the crowd. Oh, the crowd was an organism. I became swept up and devoured by it. I felt released, in part, from my will and slowly, dimly did I begin to see. Sight; what a funny thing. This was of a different kind. I could feel molecule me and, equally as apparent, molecule Roland, molecule Vanessa. ¡°Vanessa?¡± I heard myself ask, aloud, to no one. I remembered myself and the crowd around me. But then, I fell back into the higher sight and I saw her again, Nessy, running. Running against the crowd. I saw myself through her eyes. I felt her grab my hand. I grabbed her hand back, hard. Punishingly hard. But I was so relieved. I was no longer alone. ¡°Where?¡± I asked. ¡°To Roland. The inn.¡± I followed her from one stream of people to another. She knew this place too well. We were headed away from the shore, higher in elevation, through a maze of streets and alleyways, and towards a glittering grey stone tower. We curved around the base of the tower, down a slope, and into a forest within the city. There were dwarves here, and elves, high men, and many seemingly habituated beasts of fantastic caliber, none of which seemed to pay me mind, like I had felt those of the crowd had. ¡°Here,¡± said Nessy, her hand squeezing mine. In front of us was our apparent destination. A dark wooden building. I saw light through its colored windows. Noises from within. But there was something deeply wrong here. ¡°The inn. Come,¡± said Nessy. I stopped walking, my hand fell to the side. The inn¡¯s large roof formed a high arch, not unlike a church steeple. A mortuary for the living, said the voice in my head. ¡°Did you hear that?¡± I asked Nessy. But then, did I trust her to answer me honestly? She looked startled, but the look quickly faded. She grabbed my hand and pulled me inside the building. There in the lobby was Roland and a pale girl. The girl was like the ones from the crowds. Roland stopped mid-sentence and rushed over to me. ¡°Are you okay?¡± I nodded but became angry again. ¡°Do you know what they did to me?¡± ¡°We do,¡± said Roland. ¡°And I am sorry.¡± ¡°What did they do to me?¡± I asked. ¡°The price of admission is blood,¡± said Nessy. ¡°And there are reasons why it had to be you.¡± ¡°You could have told me! You could have stayed with me!¡± I was furious. Their reaction had just made it all so much worse. I no longer trusted them, but they were all I had, and that made me hate them more. I eyed the room, but I was examining the world. I wondered what spells Nessy had ready beneath her fingertips. Would it be enough to end me? What will happen then, when I die standing here? Both of them eyed me tensely. ¡°Betray me again¡ªand that is what it was¡ªand I will end everything,¡± I lifted my hands palms up and motioned to the world. It was an idle threat. But this was my nightmare. My only strength was to I could find a way to end it. They both kept their gaze fixed onto me. Nessy nodded slightly but sharply. Her lips were pressed tightly together, her eyes were sharp but her brows were uncharacteristically furrowed. Roland nodded too, with soft eyes and a clenched-teeth frown. ¡°Meet Alice,¡± said Nessy. The pale one nodded politely. ¡°The cartographer,¡± said Roland. ¡°You got her released?¡± ¡°Released?¡± Alice said. Nessy grinned and examined Alice. ¡°From Edgar,¡± said Roland. Alice laughed. ¡°Work in progress.¡± ¡°Where is Edgar?¡± I asked. Alice turned and walked towards the stained glass windows. She held up a finger, as if to tell us to wait, or be quiet. ¡°Alice,¡± whispered Nessy to Alice. Alice turned, rushed over to me, and grabbed my wrist with both hands. She vanished, and so did I. The room had changed colors. We¡¯re hidden now, Alice whispered within my mind. It had been her earlier. ¡°Where¡¯d they¡ª¡± Roland trailed off, turning in circles. ¡°Sh,¡± Nessy shushed Roland. ¡°They aren¡¯t here.¡± I felt a tug at my wrists, so I followed along. Alice led me to a corner and gently guided me to the ground. I felt her sitting next to me, but I couldn¡¯t see her or myself. Alice clinched my wrists so tight that my hands tingled. Then I realized it was my entire body that felt numb. Cold and numb. Nessy took a seat near the fire and Roland stood in place watching Nessy. The door slammed open. Dunkleshaus from the docks and five or six soldiers rushed in. Among them was a snarling wolf. ¡°Nessy!¡± Dunkleshaus called out. ¡°There,¡± he motioned to the guards. ¡°Roland. Where is the other one?¡± Nessy stood up and walked over. ¡°The boy left.¡± ¡°Is that so? Arrest them,¡± said Dunkle. The guards rushed over and brutishly handcuffed Nessy and Roland. Neither protested. More guards rushed in. There were at least twenty armed guards in the room now, swords drawn mind you. ¡°Oh, Nessy,¡± Dunkle tisked. ¡°You¡¯re normally so careful.¡± More guards rushed in. Dunkle himself didn¡¯t have a weapon. He held a brown book. The guards just kept coming. I could see movement through the stained glass windows. Dunkle turned to the wolf-like creature. ¡°Still?¡± The creature barked. Dunkle looked around. ¡°You sure?¡± The creature nodded. Dunkle turned back towards Nessy and approached her. ¡°Last chance.¡± Nessy and Roland were silent. Dunkle tore a sheet from his book, it was aflame with black fire, he balled it up, and threw it at a soldier. The black flames devoured the man and formed him into a dark shadow creature engulfed in purple flame. The creature hovered over to Nessy. ¡°She isn¡¯t scared,¡± it said. Then it turned and encircled Roland. ¡°She loves him.¡± Dunkle smiled at Roland and then turned to Nessy. ¡°I¡¯ll take him, Nessy, you know I will.¡± Nessy was strangely collected. Roland, on the other hand, was not. ¡°Give me the boy,¡± said Dunkle. Nessy sighed. ¡°You¡¯re complicating my day, Dunklehat.¡± ¡°Last chance.¡± ¡°Where is that patience you¡¯re know for?¡± asked Nessy. ¡°A special guest is joining us.¡± Dunkle squinted his eyes and looked at his wolf. The wolf gave him a blank look back. Dunkle turned. ¡°Bar the doors!¡± he shouted at the guards near the entryway. A guard rushed over to grab a chair and another few began moving a heavy piano over towards the door. There was a knock at the door. ¡°Who¡¯s there?¡± Nessy called out with a grin. Dunkle¡¯s eyes were wide. I stared at the door. There was another knock. Dunkle glared at Nessy. ¡°Who¡ª¡± The door exploded, the piano along with it. Strangest sound I¡¯ve ever heard in my life. We were all on the ground. Hate to think what happened to the guards near the door. There was no smoke. Just a cloud of sawdust. A tall man in a black suit with a red cape walked in. The room was silent, save for a few scattered groans. One guard near us backed away until he hit a wall, then he sat. The other guards backed away from the man, clearing a path. Behind the man was a beautiful girl, perhaps an elf, with white hair, also dressed it black. She walked over to Dunkle. I couldn''t hear. She seemed to be comforting him. She led him out of the building. His soldiers followed. The man kept walking, past Nessy and Roland. As he did, the handcuffs binding Nessy and Roland melted off and poured onto the ground as water. He was headed straight towards Alice and me. He grabbed my arm and pulled me up. Alice stood too, not releasing her grip. We were still invisible, as far as I could tell, but it was as if he saw through it. He dragged me, with Alice in tow, over to Nessy and Roland and gathered us into a standing circle. ¡°Let go of him,¡± the man said. Alice released her grip. I felt a rush of warmth pour over me. My skin was white. The man was staring at me. ¡°Why are you here?¡± ¡°Just a pick up,¡± Nessy said. ¡°Alice stays here,¡± he snapped at Nessy, then turned back to me. ¡°Why are you here?¡± Nessy cleared her throat. ¡°Edgar¡ª¡± The man raised a hand at Nessy and kept his gaze on me. ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± I said. Edgar glanced at Nessy. ¡°He find you?¡± ¡°Tom found him.¡± ¡°Here,¡± said Roland, pulling a letter from his pocket. ¡°From Tom.¡± He handed Edgar a letter. Edgar read the letter then turned to me. ¡°Are you dreaming?¡± I could feel the sweat forming on my neck and brow. I looked at Nessy. Her face was neutral. I shook my head at Edgar. Edgar glared at me. He leaned in closer. ¡°Are you dreaming?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± He shook his head. ¡°Not good,¡± he said to Nessy. Then he eyed me. ¡°Not good.¡± He turned and walked away, heading back towards the door. ¡°Good,¡± Nessy whispered to me with a solemn nod. ¡°Good?¡± asked Roland. As Edgar walked towards the door, he flicked his wrist and six skeletons sprang up from the ground. They watched him leave, then turned to face the four of us. They slowly fanned out to form a wall between us and the door. Edgar opened the door and left. ¡°How is any of this good!¡± said Roland. ¡°He¡¯s thinking,¡± whispered Alice. ¡°Which kind?¡± I asked. ¡°He can see you¡¯re different,¡± whispered Alice. ¡°How?¡± I asked. ¡°Because I can. You glow different.¡± ¡°Guys,¡± said Roland. I could tell by his dumb smirk he was about to say something stupid. ¡°I can kill these.¡± One of the skeletons looked over with a grunt. ¡°You can?¡± whispered Alice with a smile. ¡°All of them?¡± Roland nodded thoughtfully, as if double-checking his math. Nessy sighed. ¡°We work with Edgar, not attack his pets.¡± ¡°That sounds painfully diplomatic,¡± said Roland. Nessy took a seat by the fire again. We each followed her over and took a seat. ¡°You¡¯ve grown,¡± Nessy said Alice. Alice smiled and nodded. ¡°We need your help more than ever,¡± said Nessy. ¡°I know, but he won¡¯t allow it,¡± said Alice. ¡°There are laws,¡± said Roland. Nessy shook her head at Roland then turned back to Alice. ¡°This is your life.¡± ¡°He¡¯s coming,¡± Alice whispered. The door opened again and Edgar walked in. The skeletons crumbled into dust. Nessy stood up. ¡°I resolved the matter with the town. Come.¡± The Wizard Tower We followed Edgar out of the inn. It was midnight now. The forest neighborhood was quiet and still. Those who walked the stoney path kept their head down and stayed clear of us. We entered the glistening stone tower. It was little more than a large stairwell. The entire structure, including the steps and handrail, appeared to be made of a sort of grey volcanic stone melded into the exact right shape, smooth, perfectly flat, warm to touch. As we climbed the steps, I kept feeling a fear of heights that I never knew before. There was a tugging feeling that the steps I stood upon weren¡¯t really there at all. As if I was an unwitting participant in magic theater. When we reached the top, I was all turned around. It didn¡¯t help that the windows clearly put us in the center of day. The room was five times as large as possible, for a tower so narrow. ¡°Where are we?¡± I asked. ¡°It¡¯s really more of when,¡± Alice said. Edgar looked at Alice. She scowled at him and his face turned stern. It was as if they were having a conversation none of us could hear. Alice stormed off, heading deeper into the tower and through a door slammed behind her. ¡°It¡¯s her life,¡± said Nessy. Edgar glared at Nessy. ¡°Did you know about him?¡± He motioned at me. ¡°I read the letter.¡± Edgar stared into Nessy¡¯s eyes. She stared back. I looked back and forth between them. ¡°Are you talking?¡± I asked. ¡°Can we talk out loud?¡± ¡°Because he is a boy!¡± Nessy shouted suddenly to Edgar. ¡°And Zalmora is a girl!¡± Edgar shouted back. ¡°Edgar,¡± I said softly. Edgar turned to me. ¡°Are you from Earth too?¡± ¡°I¡¯m from here,¡± Edgar snapped back. ¡°Have you been? To earth?¡± Edgar looked away. He has a life there too, said Alice in my head. I glanced over and saw her peaking out the door she had slammed. I turned to Edgar. ¡°How?¡± I stepped forward towards him. ¡°Can you bring me back? Please¡ªbring me back.¡± Edgar¡¯s eyes narrowed. ¡°You don¡¯t know how?¡± ¡°No,¡± I shook my head, worry laid out across my face. ¡°Can I? How? Tell me.¡± Alice remerged in the room. Edgar had cooley turned away from me now, looking out the window. ¡°I want to go back,¡± I said to Edgar, my voice cracking. ¡°I¡¯m stuck. I don¡¯t know how I¡¯m here. Can you get me back? Help me go back.¡± Edgar seemed deep in thought. ¡°This is your first time here?¡± he finally asked. He turned to face me. ¡°Yes.¡± Edgar¡¯s eyes darted around. He rubbed his chin in thought and shook his head. He glanced over at Nessy. ¡°It¡¯s just like Zalmora, Nessy.¡± The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. ¡°I know,¡± said Nessy. ¡°But he is not just like Zalmora. He is Charlie.¡± ¡°How do you do it?¡± I asked. ¡°How do you go back?¡± ¡°I sleep,¡± Edgar answered. ¡°You sleep? You return home when you sleep?¡± Edgar nodded. ¡°I¡¯m always asleep in one place, and awake in the other.¡± I shook my head. ¡°It¡¯s not the same for me.¡± Edgar nodded and looked at Nessy. ¡°He¡¯s like Zalmora.¡± ¡°He isn¡¯t,¡± said Nessy. ¡°He is,¡± said Edgar, turning to me. ¡°I¡¯ve always known it¡¯s not just her. And here one stands before me. You¡¯re a threat to me, to Alice, to Edith, to all of Midgrey. Do you really not know how you¡¯re here?¡± ¡°A game,¡± I said. ¡°A what?¡± he asked. ¡°I found a game. It had instructions. A matchbook. I lit the match, and¡ª¡± ¡°And what?¡± I shook my head. ¡°Darkness.¡± ¡°Burrows,¡± added Roland. ¡°Where did you appear? What was there?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know, it was dark. Caves. I couldn¡¯t see much. I remember the stone had engravings.¡± ¡°Where?¡± ¡°On the ground.¡± ¡°Graveyard.¡± ¡°There was a distant light. I followed it.¡± ¡°You were alone?¡± ¡°Yes. No¡ªthere was a raven.¡± ¡°What?¡± asked Nessy. ¡°A raven?¡± asked Edgar. ¡°In the¡­ cave. Yes. Why?¡± ¡°Saw raven feathers on the way here,¡± said Roland. ¡°Where?¡± asked Edgar. ¡°Near Stone Keep.¡± Edgar turned back to me. ¡°Keep going.¡± ¡°Something was behind me. It hurt me. Then I was in prison.¡± ¡°Okay,¡± said Edgar. ¡°Edgar,¡± Nessy said softly, ¡°I know you don¡¯t want to hear this any more than you want us here¡ª¡± ¡°Nessy,¡± Edgar interrupted. ¡°I will never forgive you for bringing him here.¡± ¡°Edgar¡ª¡± ¡°No, you listen,¡± Edgar shouted. ¡°Tom¡¯s a fool! He¡¯s put more than himself and Edith in danger. This could change everything.¡± Nessy shook her head. ¡°Return to sender!¡± shouted Edgar. ¡°If Tom is still alive, tell him to never contact me again.¡± ¡°Edgar,¡± Nessy said softly. ¡°Can you get him home?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°Can you try?¡± ¡°No! It¡¯s different. Mine is not a game.¡± ¡°This isn¡¯t a game,¡± said Nessy. ¡°He said it was himself!¡± ¡°This is his life. He¡¯s stuck.¡± ¡°We¡¯re all stuck, Nessy.¡± Edgar turned to me. ¡°Have you ever considered the possibility that here is more real than where you came from?¡± ¡°Can¡¯t you research it?¡± asked Nessy. ¡°Here or there? Talk to someone?¡± Edgar didn¡¯t speak. He looked out the window. ¡°I know that look,¡± said Nessy. ¡°No you don¡¯t.¡± ¡°You¡¯re trying to decide if you should tell me something.¡± Edgar shot her a glare and then walked off. I looked at Nessy and she met my eyes and nodded. She patted Alice on the shoulder. ¡°You want to come with us?¡± Nessy asked Alice. ¡°If Edgar approves?¡± Alice nodded. ¡°He won¡¯t.¡± Nessy nodded with a smile. ¡°It¡¯d be to Redrock.¡± Alice looked surprised. Edgar returned with a stack of papers. He slammed them on a nearby desk. ¡°The I.R. Fancy pamphlets. All but one.¡± ¡°The land of light?¡± asked Nessy. ¡°I.R. what?¡± Roland asked. ¡°A pseudonym,¡± said Edgar. ¡°What is it?¡± I asked. ¡°Whoever wrote these pamphlets found a way to visit Earth,¡± said Edgar. ¡°And it wasn¡¯t through dreams.¡± I picked up the pages and flipped through them. There were drawings of cities, horses and carriages, men in suits with ties. ¡°Does he say how he got there?¡± I asked. ¡°He doesn¡¯t. But he believes Earth is the origin of the high men.¡± ¡°Are there more writings, like this?¡± I asked. ¡°None. I would have found it.¡± ¡°I need to read this,¡± I said. ¡°All of it.¡± ¡°No. You¡¯re leaving.¡± ¡°There could be clues¡ª¡± ¡°There are no clues. I¡¯ve read them a dozen times. Want my advice? Avoid Zalmora. Find I.R. Fancy.¡± ¡°Where?¡± ¡°I have ideas,¡± said Nessy. ¡°Leave, now,¡± said Edgar. ¡°Edgar,¡± said Nessy. ¡°Before we go¡ª¡± ¡°Don¡¯t.¡± ¡°Alice is sixteen, Edgar¡ª¡± ¡°Stop!¡± ¡°You cannot hide her away in this tower her entire life.¡± ¡°You need to leave.¡± ¡°I will protect her.¡± Edgar scoffed. ¡°You can¡¯t protect yourself.¡± ¡°The realm needs her.¡± ¡°She¡¯s not a fighter.¡± ¡°She¡¯s a mind writer.¡± ¡°She stays.¡± ¡°Edgar, Zalmora is at your gates. It isn¡¯t safe here! I¡¯ll take her straight to Redrock. There is no place safer.¡± ¡°I want her here.¡± ¡°What does she want? Have you considered it?¡± ¡°Perhaps when she isn¡¯t a child!¡± ¡°She¡¯s sixteen!¡± ¡°I¡¯m not having this conversation.¡± ¡°Your her father?¡± I asked. Edgar looked surprised at the question. ¡°Of course I¡¯m her father.¡± ¡°I thought she was a prisoner.¡± Edgar glared at me. ¡°Go.¡± ¡°You¡¯re impossible,¡± Nessy said. And with that, she was descending the stairs. Roland followed her. I turned to Edgar. ¡°Thank you.¡± Edgar nodded and motioned his head for me to leave. As I turned to leave, I spotted Alice. She smiled softly. ¡°Bye, Alice.¡± Bye, Charlie. She smiled, revealing what looked like fangs. I nearly fell backwards. ¡°Are you¡ª¡± She nodded. A vampire, her voice rang in my head. Go, Edgar¡¯s voice rang louder. I followed after Roland and Nessy. Flight When we arrived at the dock, all four ports were occupied with ships. A few laborers were busying about and there were far more guards posted than when we arrived. Among the ships was a giant, beautiful vessel with black wood, golden trim, and blood red sails. Nessy led us past it and over to what looked like a small fishing boat. ¡°This?¡± Roland said, his nose wrinkled up as if he might sneeze. ¡°Yes,¡± said Nessy. ¡°Oh my god, man, what?¡± He laughed. ¡°We won¡¯t make it.¡± ¡°Edgar says he¡¯ll lend a hand,¡± said Nessy. ¡°You¡¯re talking with him?¡± I asked. ¡°He¡¯s talking to me,¡± said Nessy. ¡°Hop in.¡± We undocked and slowly drifted away from Edith. ¡°We¡¯re gonna need a lot more wind!¡± yelled Roland. It was ironically very windy, so much so that I could barely hear him yelling. ¡°This ship is trash!¡± ¡°It this safe?¡± I yelled across the wind. ¡°What?¡± Roland yelled back. Suddenly the ship began shaking. I glanced overboard. We were floating above the water. Nessy began laughing. She looked genuinely happy. Roland was not laughing. ¡°Hold on!¡± Nessy shouted. ¡°What?¡± Roland shouted back. Suddenly¡ªand I mean suddenly¡ªwe shot across the sea like a bullet gone astray. I imagine we traveled a mile before I had time to react to the recoil. I tried to pull myself up but had no hint of success. So I just laid there, wondering what happens if I die here. After, I don¡¯t know, fifteen minutes or so, we slowed, enough for me to sit up. We had arrived at the docks from which we came. I looked behind me. Nessy¡¯s hair was a sight to behold. Roland was blacked out. The sun was setting behind us. ¡°Let¡¯s eat,¡± said Nessy. We docked, poured fish-smelling water onto Roland, and had a laugh. Well, Roland didn''t. We walked along the boardwalk towards the tavern. Just as before, the bar was piled with drunks. Although this time we noticed a guard posted at the stairs. ¡°Table for four,¡± Roland said to the guard. The guard looked at Roland like he was mad. ¡°Go home, you¡¯ve had enough.¡± Roland cracked up laughing. ¡°Still blind as a bat. Have I aged that much?¡± The guard leaned in and then cracked up laughing. ¡°The robber¡¯s maid! Rollin Roland Sir Dubious!¡± ¡°Dart in the eye, old man!¡± Nessy walked past them both and up the stairs. ¡°Oh,¡± Roland turned to me and put his arm around me. ¡°Meet Charlie. Charlie, meet Copperpot.¡± ¡°Spittin¡¯ image,¡± Copperpot smiled. ¡°You doof!¡± laughed Roland. ¡°He¡¯s not my son!¡± Copperpot shrugged with a lazy grin. ¡°God,¡±he perked up and hit Roland on the shoulder, ¡°you remember that talking horse we found in the hills? ¡°said Copperpot. You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story. Roland laughed. ¡°I remember the rum we found there.¡± ¡°Why were we even stationed there?¡± asked Copperpot. ¡°Today I¡¯m convinced the general forgot we were there.¡± ¡°Felt like forty years,¡± said Copperpot. ¡°Well it was at least a month.¡± ¡°Not a soul nearby,¡± sighed Roland, ¡°save for the sprites.¡± ¡°Charlie,¡± Nessy called from the top of the stairs. I nodded at the guys and walked up the stairs. ¡°Hungry?¡± she asked me. ¡°Anything but eggs.¡± ¡°Let me show you something. Perk of diplomacy.¡± I followed her to where we had originally met and into the kitchen. She knew each cook by name. A few of the workers rushed over and handed her food to try. ¡°Try this,¡± she said, handing me a handful of what looked like melted blueberry muffin. I devoured it. ¡°Oh and this,¡± she said, handing me what looked like a slab of cornbread between two steaks. I snatched it from her hands and took a big bite. Oh my God. ¡°Maybe I shouldn¡¯t leave,¡± I said between bites. ¡°Right?¡± she smiled. ¡°Maybe you shouldn¡¯t.¡± ¡°What do you think happens when I die here?¡± ¡°When?¡± ¡°If.¡± She shrugged. ¡°What happens when anyone dies here?¡± The cooks were standing around us, smiling. ¡°It truly is amazing food,¡± I said. Nessy nodded to the crowd of chefs. They bowed and returned to their work. Nessy was chomping on a blue, green, and red marbled cake of sorts. Half of it was falling on the floor. ¡°What happens now?¡± I asked. She glanced over with a finger raised and shrugged, mouth full. I nodded and took another bite of my inverted hamburger. ¡°Can¡¯t go back to Tom,¡± she said. ¡°Bet you guessed that.¡± ¡°Why not?¡± ¡°Ah, so you didn¡¯t guess that.¡± I kept munching, contemplatively. ¡°Tom¡¯s liable to send you to Zal. Whatever death is, that¡¯d be worse.¡± ¡°So what then?¡± She shrugged. ¡°Wanna go to Redrock?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Figured so,¡± she winked. ¡°A train away. Tomorrow morning. I have questions of my own for that lot.¡± ¡°What questions?¡± ¡°Oh, no, no, no!¡± She turned to find a nearby chef. ¡°Does this have nightshade in it?¡± The chef laughed and nodded. ¡°Oh, well crap to craps, Gerald, you¡¯re gonna get me loosened up over here. I¡¯m on a quest, you know?¡± ¡°I figured,¡± Gerald the cook smiled. ¡°He knows,¡± she shrugged drunkenly. ¡°She¡¯s usually right,¡± he said to me. Nessy laughed. ¡°I love Gerald.¡± ¡°I love you too,¡± he said. Nessy nudged me. ¡°Let¡¯s go find our dude.¡± I followed her out of the kitchen to find Roland sitting at the table we had sat at last time, laughing up a storm with what¡¯s-his-name, the guard from before. Nessy and I took a seat. Out the window, crowds were thinning, the sun had long set, and there was some drizzle. I always loved the rain. For some reason, seeing the rain here made me sad. ¡°So, is your station so important you can abandon it to get drunk with us?¡± Nessy asked the guard. ¡°See what I mean?¡± said Roland. ¡°She¡¯s always on my case.¡± ¡°His case, in this instance,¡± said Nessy. ¡°I¡¯m Copperpot. Heard a lot about you.¡± Nessy smiled at him, then turned to Roland. ¡°Dear?¡± Roland looked over. ¡°Oh boy,¡± he turned to me. ¡°What did she drink?¡± ¡°It was a cake,¡± Nessy said. ¡°Oh man.¡± ¡°Roland dear, have you asked your friend anything of practical consequence yet?¡± Roland laughed. ¡°Well, I asked him how his family¡¯s doing. They¡¯re doing well without him.¡± ¡°All grown up now, yeah. Timmy too. Strong one,¡± Copperpot said. ¡°Roland,¡± Nessy continued, ¡°you know what I both hate and really, really hate about you? And adore.¡± ¡°What is that, Nessy?¡± ¡°See, you already know it. You know the answer.¡± Roland laughed. ¡°Know is a strong word.¡± ¡°You play dumb.¡± Roland nodded. ¡°Don¡¯t be so sure.¡± ¡°Oh, I¡¯m as sure as a wet noodle or two.¡± ¡°Are there menus?¡± Copperpot asked nobody in particular. ¡°Pardon the thought, Copperpot,¡± Nessy leaned in. ¡°But perhaps you¡¯ve observed certain signs or symptoms of an impending goblin war?¡± The table went silent. ¡°I mean, really, I haven¡¯t seen a waitress in like ten minutes,¡± Copperpot commented. Nessy hit the table with her fist. ¡°Coppercrap, focus.¡± She had achieved Copperpot¡¯s attention. ¡°What is up with this lady, dubs?¡± Roland shot a glance at me, then Nessy. ¡°She thinks we might be positioning for a war with the goblins.¡± Copperpot nodded and sat back in his chair. He gave each of us a solemn look then took a deep breath. ¡°I¡¯ll be honest with you, all of you, and you,¡± he looked at Nessy, ¡°because I like you,¡± he hiccuped. ¡°There is reason to believe we may be going to war with the goblins.¡± ¡°Which is?¡± asked Nessy. Copperpot seemed puzzled by the question. The kitchen door opened and from it a barmaid approached our table. ¡°I am so sorry. What can I get you?¡± ¡°Menus,¡± said Copperpot. ¡°Right. Any drinks?¡± ¡°Yes,¡± said Roland. The barmaid gave each of us a puzzled look then walked off. ¡°What makes you think we may be going to war with the goblins?¡± asked Nessy. ¡°You¡¯re the one that thinks that!¡± Copperpot said back. ¡°I¡¯m just connecting the dots now.¡± There was a scream. It was from outside. A few people ran by the window near where we were seated. Before I knew it, we were all on our feet and walking over to the deck doorway to get a look. A crowd was gathered. Deep into the horizon, high into the sky, there were meteors of fire. ¡°Edith,¡± Roland said. Bat out of Hell There were at least eight meteors still in the sky. Falling slow. They illuminated the night sky over the sea like it was day. Warriors in uniform were dashing across the docks. ¡°Join them,¡± Nessy said to Roland. ¡°Find Edgar.¡± Roland ran off. Nessy turned to Coppertop. ¡°Go back to your post.¡± Coppertop didn¡¯t take his eyes off the falling meteors. ¡°What are they?¡± ¡°Get everyone inside.¡± Copperpot blinked and looked at Nessy. ¡°Aye.¡± With a glance at me, he ran off. There were tiny dark splotches across the orange sky, almost like rising black static. It looked as though the sky was ripping apart. Nessy glanced at me and then motioned for me to follow. ¡°What are the black spots?¡± I asked. Nessy glanced, then looked back at me. ¡°Bats. Follow me.¡± The masses of the town were descending on the docks, where we had been, to get a look at the scene. We were headed in the opposite direction. ¡°Old town,¡± Nessy said, as we entered the shady district. I remembered it from my first arrival in town with Roland and Vite. ¡°Keep your head down,¡± she said. There weren''t many on the street tonight. After long, we entered a plain building with no window display or sign. It appeared to be a home. It seemed empty. Nessy hung her coat and then laid on the couch, almost as if she were a patient of a shrink. ¡°What¡¯s happening?¡± I asked. She opened her eyes to look at me, then closed them again. ¡°For god¡¯s sake, sit.¡± I took a seat on an uncomfortable oversized rocking chair that sat across from her ¡°I''m thinking,¡± she mumbled. There was a knock at the door. I had fallen asleep. Nessy was still laying on the couch, eyes closed. I quietly got up and tried to wake her. She wouldn¡¯t wake. I thought to check her pulse, but I decided against trying. I crept quietly to the door. No peep hole. Another knock. This time, loud, fast. ¡°Who is it?¡± I said. ¡°Me,¡± said a soft female voice. I opened the door. Alice rushed in. ¡°Close it, close it. Lock it,¡± she whispered. ¡°What happened?¡± She paced around the room, arms wrapped around herself. ¡°Where¡¯s Edgar?¡± Alice shook her head and leaned against a wall, head down, crying. I turned to Nessy. ¡°Nessy!¡± I walked over to Nessy and shook her. The doorknob shook. Someone was outside and trying to open the door. ¡°Hey!¡± a man¡¯s voice on the other side of the door. Banging. ¡°Mr. Putty? Mr. Putty!¡± I glanced at Alice. She was rocking herself back and forth, eyes closed. ¡°Mr. Putty, that woman is a vampire!¡± Who is Mr. Putty? The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement. Alice shook her head over and over and collapsed onto the floor crying silently. ¡°No, it¡¯s fine,¡± I said to the door. ¡°She¡¯s a friend.¡± ¡°Hey,¡± spoke the voice, fainter than before. ¡°Someone else is in there.¡± I quietly crept over to Nessy and pushed her, trying to wake her. She was deep asleep. I prepared to slap her, but couldn¡¯t bring myself to it. So I crept into the next room, a kitchen. I opened a drawer. A ton of teacups. Another drawer. Pile of spoons and a spatula. I opened a cupboard. Dozens of plates. Another cupboard. Jackpot; a bowl. Well, a strainer. I filled it with water and rushed back into the living room and dumped some drops of water onto Nessy¡¯s head. Nessy was now somewhat damp, and also asleep. I shook her shoulders even stronger. Suddenly, the floor above us creaked. More hard knocking. ¡°Mr. Putty, stand back!¡± ¡°No,¡± I murmured. Alice walked over and grabbed my wrist. The world changed colors. She hurriedly me to a corner. We crouched down. Now there were sounds of people arguing outside the front door. ¡°I¡¯m coming,¡± a man¡¯s voice from above us. The floor above us was creaking with his every step. I heard footsteps outside. Then I heard muttered chatter. Then silence. Thud, thud, thud, thud footsteps, then whack! The door shot off the hinges and slammed onto the ground. A group of four men entered the house. One held a blacksmith hammer, another a large kitchen knife. ¡°That her?¡± the man holding a hammer whispered, pointing to Nessy asleep on the couch. ¡°Careful! Hey! Hey! Shh. Flank her,¡± the dingus holding the knife said. The one with the hammer nodded and snuck around the couch, but tripped over a footstool and fell onto a lamp, toppling it over and shattering it. Nessy¡¯s eyes shot open. ¡°Stop,¡± said a man from the top of the stairs. I could barely see him. Tall. Elderly. Nessy sat up and eyed the men. Then she looked around the room, perhaps in search of me. ¡°The boy,¡± she muttered, now jolting to her feet. The man with the hammer squinted and looked up the stairs. ¡°Mr. Putty, she¡¯s a vampire! I saw her fly in and enter your house!¡± ¡°A vampire?¡± asked Nessy. Mr. Putty slowly walked down the stairs. We all watched and waited. When he got to the base he groaned. ¡°I didn¡¯t let in crap.¡± I could see him better now. An old, grumpy-looking elf. ¡°She¡¯s standing right there!¡± the one with the hammer said, motioning with his weapon. ¡°For hell¡¯s sake, Loe, you broke my cedar door.¡± ¡°I¡¯m saving your life!¡± ¡°Oh, bugger off, Loe. And go make us tea.¡± ¡°I know what I saw,¡± said Loe. ¡°You dating a vampire now?¡± ¡°She¡¯s my granddaughter, you cobweb. You''re her godfather, for blasted sakes.¡± ¡°Vanessa?¡± Loe said softly, eyeing Nessy. ¡°I don¡¯t remember you,¡± Nessy said. ¡°She grew up,¡± Mr. Putty said with a shrug. ¡°And got bit, it would seem.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not a vampire, you dunce.¡± ¡°Tea, Loe. I¡¯m going to have a headache.¡± Loe dropped the blacksmith hammer on the carpet and went into the kitchen. Mr. Putty slowly fumbled over to the rocking chair across from Nessy. Alice and I remained seated and hidden. One of the other three men left, the other two stuck around near the doorway. I think they still wanted to kill Alice. Mr. Putty eventually became aware of them standing there. ¡°Toot off!¡± They glanced at each other and left. As they did, Alice released her grip on me. She looked strained and exhausted. Without overthinking it, I stood up, picked her up, and laid her on the couch next to Nessy. ¡°Huh?¡± Mr. Putty groaned, one eye squinting. ¡°Hi,¡± I said sheepishly. Mr. Putty shook his head and groaned. ¡°Loe! Just make a pot.¡± I took a seat in the only empty chair next to Mr. Putty. No one spoke. I think we were all too tired and confused. After a few minutes, Loe returned with a tray of teacups. He stopped in his tracks upon seeing me. ¡°Wh¡ª¡± ¡°Sit,¡± barked Mr. Putty. ¡°Do you want tea?¡± Loe asked me. ¡°He doesn¡¯t want tea,¡± said Nessy. ¡°Hey?¡± I said to Nessy. ¡°Fine, he wants tea,¡± said Nessy. ¡°Well, do you or don¡¯t you?¡± Loe asked me. ¡°No,¡± I said. Loe rolled his eyes and set the tea platter on the coffee table next to the hammer. ¡°Who is this girl?¡± Loe motioned to Alice asleep on the couch. ¡°Was she here before?¡± ¡°She¡¯s the vampire,¡± said Nessy. You should have seen Loe¡¯s eyes. ¡°Sit down, you idiot,¡± said Mr. Putty. ¡°You¡¯re too old and stupid to care this much. Drink.¡± ¡°Can Loe leave?¡± asked Nessy. ¡°He¡¯s your godfather,¡± said Mr. Putty. ¡°He¡¯s family.¡± Someone ran up to our door. It was one of the men from earlier. ¡°Mr. Putty, the vampires are invading. Fire in town. Brody heard screams not far.¡± Mr. Putty glanced at Alice and then Nessy. ¡°Sandro is asking if we can¡ª¡± ¡°Go ahead,¡± said Mr. Putty. The man ran off. ¡°You cause this?¡± Mr. Putty asked Nessy. ¡°I did,¡± I said. Mr. Putty looked at me with sullen eyes. ¡°No,¡± said Nessy. ¡°It¡¯s Zalmora. And it isn¡¯t an invasion.¡± ¡°What is it then?¡± asked Loe. Alice coughed and slowly sat up. ¡°Easy,¡± said Nessy. Alice sat up all the way and looked around the room. ¡°Alice,¡± said Nessy. ¡°Where is Edgar?¡± Alice shook her head. Tears rolled down her cheek. ¡°Can you walk?¡± Nessy asked her. Alice blinked and nodded. ¡°We¡¯re leaving,¡± said Nessy. Nessy and I helped Alice stand and together we walked towards the door. ¡°To where?¡± I whispered. Nessy didn¡¯t answer. ¡°Nessy,¡± Mr. Putty called from behind us. She stopped and turned back to face Mr. Putty. ¡°I¡¯m an old elf,¡± he smiled and nodded. ¡°I¡ª These are confusing times for me.¡± ¡°I know,¡± said Nessy. ¡°I can¡¯t give you practical advice for¡­¡± he turned and glanced out the window, ¡°This. Whatever is happening here.¡± ¡°I know that,¡± said Nessy. ¡°But,¡± he raised a hand. ¡°I have sense enough to know, or call it intuition, that this is the start of something important for you.¡± Nessy was silent. ¡°A late bloomer. Like your mother,¡± he smiled. ¡°Go fix this problem.¡± Nessy nodded and led Alice and I outside. Hamlet I was expecting a scene outside Mr. Putty¡¯s home, but the streets were empty. The sky was pitch black. But Nessy saw something in the sky. ¡°What?¡± I asked Nessy. ¡°Bats.¡± I peered up at the sky. It was just black to me. ¡°You have night vision?¡± She looked over with the hint of a smirk. ¡°You have bad vision.¡± I glanced at Alice. Her eyes were closed. ¡°What¡¯s she doing,¡± I asked Nessy, with a nod to Alice. Nessy ignored the question. She kept looking up. It felt from her eye movement as if there were bats flying all around us, though I couldn¡¯t sense any. ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± said Nessy. ¡°Where?¡± I asked. ¡°Stone Keep.¡± ¡°No¡­¡± ¡°Charlie, I won¡¯t let him send you to Dawn. But we need his help getting us to Redrock.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not safe,¡± Alice whispered, her eyes now open. ¡°There¡¯s fighting.¡± ¡°Where?¡± asked Nessy. ¡°The marketplace. The barracks. Armory. Granary. Sawmill. Not just here. Not just Stone Keep. All high man towns.¡± ¡°Vampires?¡± I asked. ¡°Yes,¡± Alice whispered. ¡°There are a quarter million of us. In the sky. Hungry. Tired. Displaced.¡± Nessy was still looking up into the night sky. Her eyes then darted around, to and from nowhere in particular. I imagined her flipping to ¡®plan F¡¯ in her mind¡¯s daily planner. I heard a shriek in the distance behind us. ¡°The hills,¡± said Nessy. ¡°Closest train station.¡± ¡°You have coin enough?¡± asked Alice. ¡°A silver tongue will have to do.¡± There were no guards in the forest tonight. The forest was still and quiet. You wouldn¡¯t know the world around you was changing. ¡°Alice,¡± Nessy said softly. ¡°I know it¡¯s hard, but you must tell me what happened to Edgar.¡± ¡°He was in his tower when it was destroyed.¡± ¡°Could he still be inside, somewhere? Sometime?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know how it works, but it¡¯s gone.¡± The path became winding and the terrain quite uneven and hilly. There wasn¡¯t a single traveler walking about, but we did pass by a few hamlets. We also encountered three fairy patches, which we did our best to avoid, even veering from the path on one occasion. We came upon an area of particularly dense forest. The path here was overgrown. The trees blocked out what little light we had from the stars. ¡°Stop,¡± Nessy whispered, raising her arm up to stop Alice and me from walking further. ¡°Halfling up ahead,¡± she whispered. ¡°Huh?¡± whispered Alice. ¡°What¡¯s he doing?¡± ¡°Laying,¡± Nessy whispered. ¡°Let me check. Stay here.¡± I couldn¡¯t see a thing. I listened. But Nessy moved silently. ¡°Can you see?¡± I whispered to Alice. ¡°No,¡± Alice whispered. After a minute or so, I began to hear faint chatter up ahead. ¡°You think¡ª¡± ¡°Shh,¡± Alice whispered. There was indistinct chatter for a time. Then their voices became louder. I could barely start to make out their words. ¡°I don¡¯t do escort quests,¡± said Nessy to the halfling. ¡°Will you retrieve my hat then?¡± ¡°Dude,¡± said Nessy. ¡°I recognized them. They live just a few minutes from here,¡± said the halfling. ¡°What¡¯s so special about the hat?¡± ¡°Sentimental, mostly.¡± ¡°Well, why do they want it?¡± ¡°Same reasons.¡± ¡°We¡¯re in a hurry,¡± said Nessy. ¡°We?¡± Nessy said something, but I couldn¡¯t make it out. ¡°Please,¡± said the halfling. ¡°I¡¯ll pay you.¡± This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it Silence. ¡°One gold,¡± the halfling said. ¡°You¡¯d pay me a gold to go get your hat?¡± Nessy asked. ¡°It¡¯s real gold,¡± said the halfling. Nessy said something brief. Couldn¡¯t make it out. ¡°I appreciate you waking me,¡± the halfling said. ¡°Yeah,¡± said Nessy. She was close to us now. ¡°Please consider it,¡± the halfling called out from far away. I sensed movement up ahead. ¡°Nessy?¡± I whispered. ¡°Ugh,¡± Nessy groaned. ¡°Stepped in mud.¡± ¡°What¡¯d he want?¡± I asked. ¡°Strange one. Sprites mugged him.¡± ¡°Mugged?¡± Alice whispered. ¡°Sleep dust. Said it was broad daylight too.¡± ¡°Really?¡± whispered Alice. ¡°That¡¯s what he said,¡± repeated Nessy. ¡°You don¡¯t believe him?¡± I asked. ¡°Who knows,¡± said Nessy. ¡°I haven¡¯t known sprites to do that.¡± ¡°What¡¯s the deal with the hat?¡± I asked. ¡°Sprites stole his hat. He offered us a gold if we retrieve it. Makes me want the hat, to be honest.¡± ¡°Where¡¯s he going?¡± whispered Alice. ¡°His cabin¡¯s over there. I can see the smoke.¡± I had no idea which way she was pointing or facing. It was pitch black. ¡°He lives out here?¡± whispered Alice. ¡°Has five sons.¡± ¡°Five!¡± I said. ¡°Let''s get the hat,¡± whispered Alice. ¡°No, no,¡± Nessy said. ¡°Turn,¡± she nudged us. ¡°Walk. Focus. We have a quest. Train station.¡± ¡°A gold¡¯s a lot, Nessy,¡± whispered Alice. ¡°I know,¡± Nessy¡¯s voice raised an octave. ¡°Must be a heck of a hat.¡± A branch whacked me right in the face. ¡°Watch out,¡± said Nessy. ¡°You know we can¡¯t see anything right?¡± I asked. ¡°We could easily take out a group of sprites¡± whispered Alice. ¡°No,¡± said Nessy. ¡°If we had more time, we could muck around. But we don¡¯t. Let¡¯s get going.¡± We continued walking for another hour or so. The hills flattened out and the forest became thinner. When we arrived at the goblin train station, it was empty, save for a tenant at the ticket counter. The glass was nearly covered with signs, disclaimers, warnings, and instructions. There was a young female goblin on the other side of the glass watching our approach. Nessy stepped up to the window. ¡°Three to Redrock Central.¡± The goblin pointed to a sign that read ¡°Closed.¡± ¡°Why?¡± asked Nessy. The goblin pointed to a sign below the closed sign, ¡°Due to vampire pandemic.¡± Nessy scoffed. ¡°Until when?¡± The goblin closed her eyes and sighed. She fumbled around her desk and scribbled on some paper with a fancy pen then slammed up the new sign. ¡°Indeterminate duration.¡± ¡°How do I get into Redrock?¡± The goblin gave Nessy a blank, bored stare. ¡°Why is she here then?¡± I asked. Nessy shot me a glance, then closed her eyes with a sigh. She dug through her pockets and placed four copper coins on the counter. The goblin peered down at the coins. She tapped the glass with her fingernails next to a sign that read ¡°No.¡± Nessy removed the copper coins and placed a silver coin down. ¡°Last offer,¡± she said. The goblin took the coin and then pointed to yet another sign, ¡°No unsolicited bribery.¡± ¡°Wow,¡± Nessy laughed. Her fists were clenched. The goblin smiled devilishly and shrugged. ¡°Oh, you need more security,¡± Nessy said. The goblin stopped smiling. ¡°Shadelands?¡± Alice whispered. Nessy shot an annoyed, crazed look at Alice and nodded. She turned to the goblin. ¡°Stop while you¡¯re ahead.¡± We trekked back the way we had come, through the lovely hills country. Nessy didn¡¯t say a word. ¡°I figured you¡¯d shatter that glass back there,¡± I said. Nessy didn¡¯t reply. And I didn¡¯t push further. After about an hour, we split from the main road and followed a dirt path along a river. It took us to a halfling hamlet positioned at the head of the river. Nessy took us straight to the tavern. This tavern had an entirely different ambiance from the coastal highman tavern. It felt cozy, cheerful even. The room smelled like cotton candy and apple pie. We were the only patrons higher than five feet tall and as we passed each patron, each one, without fail, either greeted us, smiled, or laughed merrily. ¡°I¡¯ll have what they''re having,¡± Alice whispered to me. I laughed. That might have been the first time I''ve laughed here. Every drink I got a look at was more than one color. And all throughout the tavern were brown and orange lights, tinsel, little banners, and flowers. Nessy slammed a copper on the counter. ¡°I need a fighter.¡± The keeper collected the coin and nodded. ¡°Give me a tinkle.¡± He waddled off to a backroom. ¡°What did he just say?¡± I whispered to Alice. She held up a finger as if to say to wait. Behind the counter was very tidy. A mailbox for each room. Additional brown and orange decorations. A clay bowl labeled squirrel food. The keeper returned. ¡°Room two zero. Knock eleven times.¡± ¡°Eleven times?¡± Nessy repeated back with an eyebrow raised. ¡°Precisely!¡± said the keeper. We found room twenty. As Nessy began knocking, the door opened. ¡°Nine more.¡± Alice whispered. Nessy resumed knocking and the door kept opening. ¡°Oh whatever,¡± Nessy said, kicking the door fully open. A half naked dwarf sat in the center of the room on a wooden chair. A female dwarf was giving him a haircut. Both stared motionless at us. ¡°What¡¯d I do?¡± the dwarf said. Nessy closed the door behind us then turned to the dwarf. The dwarf eyed each of us. ¡°Mm,¡± he grunted. ¡°Friends of yours?¡± the female dwarf asked him. ¡°Customers, Marge.¡± The female dwarf, apparently named Marge, smiled politely to us and resumed cutting his hair. ¡°You are customers, right?¡± he asked. He slowly withdrew his hand from beneath his apron to reveal a small handheld battle axe laced with green crust on the blade. ¡°Yes,¡± Nessy said. ¡°What you got?¡± the dwarf said. ¡°We¡¯re looking for a fighter.¡± ¡°Quest complete. Got money, lad?¡± ¡°Not a lad.¡± ¡°He¡¯s been drinking,¡± Marge said. ¡°She¡¯s been talking,¡± the dwarf said. ¡°Escort,¡± said Nessy. ¡°Here to Redrock. And the occasional side adventure, perhaps.¡± Nessy asked. ¡°It¡¯s twelve copper a day or ten a night.¡± ¡°Daily shifts?¡± ¡°Aye.¡± ¡°I require twelve hours off each day.¡± ¡°That¡¯s new.¡± ¡°Maybe you¡¯re old.¡± ¡°Brax!¡± The Marge bopped the dwarf, apparently named Brax, on the head. She turned to Nessy, ¡°It¡¯s a union thing.¡± ¡°This is why no one hires dwarves, you know,¡± said Nessy. ¡°That and bad eyesight,¡± added Alice. ¡°Huh?¡± he squinted towards Alice. ¡°I find plenty of good jobs.¡± ¡°No shifts. But there will be downtime sometimes.¡± Brax let out a sturdy humph and then hopped from his chair. He examined his freshly cut orange hair in the mirror. ¡°It''s lovely.¡± ¡°You''re lovely,¡± Marge said lovingly. ¡°How much we talkin¡¯?¡± ¡°Two silver,¡± said Nessy. Brax slowly turned to Marge with a grin. She silently applauded. ¡°Well, I wouldn''t want to waste a good haircut¡± ¡°Okay,¡± said Nessy. ¡°Insurance?¡± asked Brax. ¡°No.¡± He made a stern, concerned face. He thought for a moment. ¡°Booze?¡± ¡°Sure.¡± He turned to Marge and smiled. She did not. He returned back with a less enthused expression. ¡°One silver deposit.¡± ¡°Later,¡± counter-offered Nessy. ¡°She¡¯s gotta eat,¡± Brax used both hands to showcase Marge. ¡°One silver? Hell of an appetite,¡± said Nessy. ¡°Not here,¡± grunted Brax. Marge nodded with a solemn face. ¡°There¡¯s a famine.¡± ¡°Eh,¡± Brax shrugged. ¡°Food shortage.¡± ¡°And what if I die?¡± added Brax. ¡°I keep your axe.¡± The dwarves were unmoved by the humor. ¡°Are you really this impoverished?¡± asked Nessy. ¡°I¡¯m invested,¡± he said defensively. He turned to me. ¡°Do you want a haircut?¡± I touched my hair. ¡°Why you ask me?¡± Nessy placed one piece of silver on the chair¡¯s armrest. Marge¡¯s hands twitched and her eyes grew wide, but she otherwise showed restraint. Brax picked it up, bit it, and then deposited it into Marge¡¯s open hand. Brax smiled with as much of a bow as you¡¯ll ever get from a dwarf. ¡°I accept your dark elf terms. When do we head out?¡± ¡°Now.¡± ¡°I''m not done,¡± said Marge, motioning for Brax to sit back into the chair. ¡°Duty calls!¡± Brax shouted. ¡°It''ll all grow out anyway.¡± The dwarf stripped naked right before us all without preamble, changed into quite the impressive set of green-tinted armor, and grabbed a giant two-hand axe off a low-hanging wall mount. ¡°Ready,¡± he said. ¡°Introductions on the way,¡± Nessy said while leaving the room. The Cabin Just as we set out it began to rain. ¡°Scout ahead,¡± Nessy said to Alice. ¡°You know the patht?¡± Alice bit her lip and nodded. She handed her bag to me with a soft smile and then ran. Her arms contorted and formed into wings and she leaped from the earth into the sky, a bat. We watched as she curved up and over, forming with the wind until she faded into the fog. ¡°Yuck,¡± Brax groaned in disapproval. ¡°I''m Charlie,¡± I said to Brax. The dwarf looked up with a squint. ¡°How''d you get mixed up with these ones?¡± ¡°It''s maybe more that they got mixed up with me.¡± Brax grunted. Without braking stride, he fastened his axe to his back. His axe had dark blue-green wraps for a handle and a knob so pointy it could kill in its own right. Before long, we were back in the thick forest again. It was much easier to navigate in the day. We hit a fork and Nessy headed towards the sign that said ¡°High Plains¡±. Brax grunted. ¡°We sidetracked already?¡± ¡°Quick detour,¡± said Nessy. It was about mid-day when we approached a lonely cabin in a grassy plains. The front door was open. Shattered glass. ¡°That halfling¡¯s home?¡± I whispered to Nessy. Nessy held up her finger to her lips and nodded silently. Beside me, Brax took out his axe. He was searching Nessy¡¯s face and mine for clues on what we were up to. ¡°What are you getting me into?¡± whispered Brax. Nessy glanced at Brax. ¡°Wasn¡¯t planned.¡± Brax sighed. We creeped towards the cabin from its rear. The house wasn¡¯t well kept. Hardly any paint left on the outer walls. The roof looked about one or two scattered showers from collapse. There was a toppled over wheelbarrow and a sack of wheat in the yard. We quietly stepped up onto the porch. The wood was splintering and in some places were gnawed. Nessy approached the door and pushed it slightly more open with her foot. It was dark inside. No light or fire. Nessy walked in and Brax motioned for me to go in ahead of him. As I did, he turned to examine the treeline behind us. Inside was a mess. Looked ransacked or hastily abandoned. Nessy inspected the fireplace soot then snooped around in the kitchen. Brax checked the side rooms one by room. ¡°Empty,¡± said Brax. ¡°Fire just went out,¡± whispered Nessy. ¡°Check for valuables,¡± Nessy said to Brax. ¡°We¡¯re thieves now?¡± Brax asked. ¡°I didn¡¯t say take them. I think this place was robbed.¡± Nessy and Brax continued snooping. I walked back out the back door to get some air. There was a rocking chair in the corner of the porch. It was painted blueish purple with deep scratches, like from a dog or wolf, all along the armrest on both sides. I took a seat in it. It was more comfortable than I expected. I knew it wasn¡¯t the place for a nap. But I felt one coming. As I slipped in and out of sleep, a raven flew right up to the porch railing. He looked me dead in the eye. I sat up and he didn¡¯t so much as flinch. If anything he leaned in. Stared right into my eye. Most unnerving thing. He cocked his head to the side then shifted left to right, left to right, like he was disappointed in me. Then he flew off. I stood up and walked out onto the grass and watched him soar into the clouds. Nearly tripped over something. It was a wooden stake in the ground. I kneeled down and examined it. Makeshift, chiseled stake with a sharp silver tip pointed up. The wood had chipped blueish purple paint, just like the chair I had been seating in. I stood up and examined the ground. There was another one just two feet away. Same thing. Then there was another one two feet or so next to that one. I walked the perimeter of the house and, sure enough, every two or so feet around the entire house were spikes. This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there. ¡°Hey!¡± Brax yelled from the porch. I startled and jogged over. ¡°What you doing!¡± he said. Nessy walked briskly out of the house. ¡°We¡¯re leaving.¡± Brax eyed her as she walked past him. ¡°What?¡± Nessy flew down the porch steps and walked across the grass back towards the path we came from. ¡°Now!¡± she yelled at me. I followed after her. ¡°What?¡± I called ahead. We made it back on the path. Brax and I followed Nessy back towards the crossroads. But just as soon as we started down the path, Nessy stopped midstep. I nearly ran right into her. ¡°What now?¡± said Brax. ¡°The halfling,¡± whispered Nessy. ¡°Up ahead with others.¡± I squinted. Couldn¡¯t see him. Too far. ¡°Who?¡± Brax asked. ¡°He has militia with him. Five.¡± ¡°Maybe his sons?¡± I asked. ¡°Probably,¡± said Nessy. ¡°What do we do?¡± I asked. ¡°Brax,¡± said Nessy. ¡°Get ready to fight.¡± ¡°We fightin¡¯ halflings?¡± Brax chuckled. He already had his axe in his hands. ¡°Okay.¡± ¡°Maybe,¡± said Nessy. ¡°What''d you see back there?¡± I asked. Nessy shook her head. ¡°I''ll do the talking.¡± Nessy resumed walking and we followed. After a while, I could see them up ahead. As we got closer, the halfling waved and shouted something. He was wearing a green hat. ¡°You came back!¡± shouted the halfling. He looked pleasant enough. Had on a brown suit with red shirt and bow. The halfling¡¯s sons looked less agreeable, but one made an attempt to smile. Each of his sons had a sheathed sword. Two had their hands on the hilt and were eyeing Brax. ¡°Was checking on you,¡± said Nessy. ¡°That¡¯s very kind. Got my hat back.¡± ¡°I see that,¡± said Nessy. ¡°Mind lowering the axe?¡± said one of the halfling¡¯s sons. ¡°Yeah,¡± Brax grunted, but he didn¡¯t budge. I suppose he meant he did mind. ¡°Did you know your house was raided?¡± Nessy said, tilting her head slightly. ¡°What?¡± the halfling tensed up. Three of his boys ran past us and down the road towards the cabin. The other two pulled out their swords and stood by their father. They were both glaring at Brax and his axe. ¡°Wasn¡¯t me,¡± grunted Brax. ¡°Please excuse me,¡± said the halfling. He and the two sons walked past us towards the house, then began to run. We stood and watched them run into the distance. ¡°That¡¯s old man Gentry and his sons,¡± said Brax. ¡°You know them?¡± Nessy asked. ¡°Of them. Forest militia. Contract with the hamlet.¡± ¡°Contract for what?¡± ¡°Burlap brothers. And sprite population control.¡± I gave Brax a confused look. He noticed. ¡°The Burlaps are just common thieves. Outlaws. Old Gentry and his boys keep ¡®em in check. Eventually drove ¡®em out. Beats me how. The Burlaps got ten times the men. Or had.¡± ¡°That may explain what I saw,¡± said Nessy. ¡°There¡¯s a prison in their basement.¡± ¡°A prison?¡± asked Brax. ¡°Yeah and the door was busted open.¡± ¡°Hm,¡± grunted Brax. ¡°Probably made as a holding cell for the burlaps. Although. There hass been two kids missing this season. Never happened before. And that¡¯s not a sprite problem.¡± ¡°Think he took them?¡± I asked. ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± said Brax. ¡°I figure whatever he had imprisoned broke out,¡± said Nessy. ¡°Would explain the mess.¡± ¡°To Redrock then?¡± asked Brax. ¡°How long has the crop problem been going on?¡± asked Nessy. Brax tisked, ¡°There¡¯s no crop problem. It¡¯s a people problem.¡± ¡°How so?¡± asked Nessy. ¡°I¡¯ve seen the yield. More than ever. They¡¯re just selling it down river for a killing.¡± ¡°Nessy,¡± I finally spoke up. ¡°I want to go home.¡± ¡°I know that.¡± ¡°What are we doing?¡± ¡°Not sure why we came over here in the first place,¡± said Brax. ¡°We¡¯re going,¡± said Nessy. We hadn¡¯t made it ten minutes down the path when the raven from before flew right between Nessy and I from behind and landed right in front of us on the path. The raven cawed, snipping its beak at us. We all stopped walking. ¡°Trespasser,¡± said the raven. The raven was looking right at me. ¡°Thief,¡± it spoke to Nessy. I could scarcely breathe. The raven began to contort and shake. Suddenly its bones ripped out of its body with a spray of mist and blood. I heard chords of a hellish choir trill and saw black sparkles pop near the raven and fall into its bones. The bones hovered just slightly above the ground leaving ripples of vibration in the dirt. The bones began to darken and shift. I watched in horror as letters formed. Zalmora. The bones fell to the ground and the vibrations and trill faded. Brax¡¯s face was white. He looked up at both of us. Then he shook his head. ¡°It''s a cheap trick, Brax,¡± said Nessy. I still couldn¡¯t talk. ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± said Nessy. We continued on. None of us felt like talking. The terrain got quite hilly. Once we reached the top of a particularly stout hill, we saw a regiment of troops headed our way on the path. ¡°Local defense,¡± said Nessy. ¡°I¡¯ll talk.¡± There were about forty men. Mostly highmen it seemed. Some halflings, dwarves, and elves. No uniforms. A mix of what looked like warriors and archers. One of them yelled and they stopped marching. Then the same one shouted at us to halt and he came over. ¡°What¡¯s your business?¡± he asked. He was a high man. Looked like an archer. ¡°Travel to the free city,¡± said Nessy. ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Cartography quest from Stone Keep.¡± ¡°Which of you is the cartographer?¡± ¡°He is,¡± Nessy punched me. ¡°Hu-yes,¡± I said. I took off Alice¡¯s backpack and showed him her paper and pencils. ¡°Hired guard?¡± the archer asked Brax. ¡°Aye,¡± Brax nodded. ¡°And you?¡± ¡°Diplomat.¡± ¡°For a mapping mission?¡± ¡°I¡¯m dealing with you aren¡¯t I.¡± He glared at her. ¡°You see a halfling with five armed men?¡± ¡°Only halflings with two arms back there,¡± said Nessy. The archer squinted and examined each of us. ¡°Go,¡± he nodded his head to the side. We walked off the path to allow the troops by. ¡°Stay away,¡± the archer called out to us. ¡°Forest is closed.¡± We watched them leave then we continued walking on. After half an hour, we came upon another hamlet. ¡°This is where they¡¯re from,¡± said Brax. ¡°That army.¡± I peered inside the town. ¡°Dark soon,¡± Brax said. ¡°I could use an ale.¡± Nessy frowned and took a slow, deep breath. ¡°I was promised,¡± Brax added. ¡°Where¡¯s Alice?¡± Nessy murmured. She turned in circles looking into the sky. Then she turned back to Brax. ¡°They have a good tavern?¡± Brax shrugged. ¡°They have ale.¡± Nessy cracked her neck slowly, left and then right. ¡°Fine.¡± ¡°Alright, little man,¡± Brax said to me with a joyful chuckle, ¡°time for drinks. Well, honeysnaps for you.¡± ¡°Little man?¡± I said. ¡°Brax, I¡¯m taller than you.¡± ¡°Okay,¡± he removed his arm. ¡°Water then.¡± Full Moon The town was small but charming. A mixed bag of halflings, elves, and dwarves. The inn was small but warm and cozy. Nessy and I found a table in the corner near a small stage. A performer sat on a stool at the center of the stage. She was drinking a bright blue fizzy drink. Must have been on break. She was lovely. High man, brown hair with a golden streak. Brax joined us holding two stouts and something milky for me. ¡°You know the land, here to the free city?¡± Nessy asked Brax. Brax nodded while chugging his ale. He held up a finger while he finished. ¡°Yes. Helps to have a scout. Which I suppose you have.¡± ¡°Dangerous?¡± I asked. Brax nodded to me, while flagging down a barmaid and ordering another round. Then he drank Nessy¡¯s. ¡°More coming,¡± he said, with a burp. Nessy closed her eyes. ¡°Used to be, you¡¯d go through Black Sheep,¡± Brax said between hearty sips. ¡°But Black Sheep is no more.¡± I shot a confused look to them both. ¡°Ruins not far from here,¡± Nessy said to me. ¡°Hopefully Alice turns up soon.¡± ¡°Oop,¡± Brax grunted, nodding to the performer. ¡°She¡¯s about to start. This¡¯ll be good.¡± The bard had a stringed instrument in her hands and was preparing to perform something. She glanced in our direction and smiled. I smiled back. Then she began playing her guitar. The room hushed to silence. A few nearby cheered for her. She smiled and bowed her head slightly to acknowledge them. ¡°I walk along a brittle shore,¡± the bard sang. ¡°Of scattered sands from tides no more.¡± I heard the sound of crashing waves. I eyed the music box. But it didn¡¯t sound like the waves came from it. The sound of waves were all around us. ¡°A hapless step cracks a speckled shell,¡± the bard continued. ¡°of orange, maroon, and something pale.¡± Before the bard a floating shell appeared. It hovered in the air, twirled slowly, and sparkled. The bard grinned. ¡°But then a funny thing occurred,¡± she paused. ¡°As if by magic the water stirred.¡± Water appeared and formed a spiral around the shell like a typhoon. ¡°A fog enveloped to form a haze, and from the depths, an ancient maze.¡± Suddenly the tavern was filled with thick mist. I could hardly see the bard through the fog. Then the shell spun rapidly and exploded into spinning fractals of light. I could swear I heard music. It was a feeling, a rush. I was entranced. ¡°I swam until I met a wall,¡± the bard whispered. ¡°Turned but then began to fall.¡± It felt as if the entire tavern was falling. The fog vanished as if we fell below it. ¡°Time escaped me for a while,¡± she froze. I felt a chill and turned to Nessy and Brax. They were smiling. I rubbed my fingers together to prove to myself time wasn¡¯t frozen. ¡°A minute, an hour, perhaps a mile,¡± the bard said. Before her appeared a floating ball of light. ¡°Until a glimmer caught my eye.¡± The blinding light collapsed into a small white ball. ¡°A single pearl made me cry.¡± The pearl dropped on the floor and shattered into sand. The tavern returned to how it was before with it¡¯s cozy lights and warmth. But the sand remained. The room erupted with applause. I stood and applauded her. Tears were in my eyes. Nessy and Brax were standing too. ¡°Thank you,¡± the bard said. The tavern door slammed open. A man stumbled in and nearly fell onto the floor. ¡°Maurice!¡± yelled the tavern keeper. ¡°You¡¯re not allowed in here.¡± ¡°Get the guards,¡± called out one of the barmaids. ¡°He¡¯s a drunk,¡± I heard someone at the table next to us say. ¡°Get him out!¡± a man sitting at the bar yelled. ¡°Or I will.¡± ¡°Hey!¡± a guard walked in. ¡°I got it,¡± he reassured the tavern keeper. The drunkard laid motionless on the floor. The guard stepped out and called over someone, presumably another guard to help him drag the drunk out. ¡°Anyway,¡± said Brax. ¡°I¡¯ve seen her before,¡± he nodded to the bard, who was now ordering a drink at the bar. ¡°She tours the world.¡± ¡°She knows magic?¡± I asked. ¡°Aye,¡± Brax laughed. ¡°She knows some illusions. You should talk to her.¡± ¡°Do not,¡± Nessy said to me. ¡°I had drinks with her once,¡± Brax continued. ¡°It was just after she dropped out of Redrock University. I was a young lad then. She won¡¯t remember. Oh but I remember. A real charmer! Go talk to her! Just don¡¯t upset her,¡± he smirked. ¡°Sorcery college,¡± he nodded to Nessy. A woman screamed near the tavern door. ¡°He¡¯s bleeding!¡± she yelled. I leaned over to see. There was blood on the ground under the drunkard who had barged in. ¡°Out of the way,¡± yelled the tavern keeper. He rushed over to the drunkard. There was a lot of chatter and commotion. Many who had been seated at the bar or at tables were now standing to see. ¡°Back up!¡± someone yelled. ¡°He¡¯s been¡ª cut,¡± the tavern keeper shouted. ¡°Guards!¡± ¡°Time to go,¡± said Nessy. ¡°Guards! Look at this cut,¡± cried out the tavern keeper. ¡°Time to leave,¡± Brax said, chugging what remained of his second drink. ¡°There,¡± Nessy said, eyeing the kitchen door. We followed her as she pushed through the gawking crowd. The kitchen staff paid us no mind and were preparing food like normal. We walked briskly past them towards an exit. We made it into a dark alleyway. ¡°We need to leave this town,¡± said Nessy. ¡°What?¡± said Brax. ¡°It¡¯s dark.¡± I heard a scream in the distance. Brax grabbed his axe. ¡°What¡¯s happening?¡± I asked Nessy. ¡°I saw his wound.¡± ¡°And?¡± asked Brax. Another scream, this one from a different direction, and much closer. ¡°Come,¡± she grabbed my arm and walked us towards a shop with a light still on. ¡°Glassworks,¡± Brax said, reading the sign. Nessy banged on the window. An old man from inside motioned for us to leave. Nessy banged hard, then walked around to the door and tried to open it. It was locked. The man cupped his hands, ¡°Closed!¡± Nessy continued to bang on the door. I figured the glass would break but it was impressively strong. The man¡¯s face turned red with anger. He rushed over and opened the door. ¡°We are closed!¡± he shouted. ¡°Where¡¯s a silversmith?¡± Nessy asked. ¡°I beg your pardon?¡± ¡°Silver! Where can I find silver!¡± The man practically snarled at us. He shot a glance at Brax¡¯s axe. ¡°Way down there!¡± he motioned, ¡°Way down! Go away!¡± Then he slammed the door and relocked it. ¡°Time to run,¡± Nessy said. She grabbed me by the arm and we ran down the alleyway. The occasional screams continued. They were uncomfortably close by, seemingly one street over. Eventually we found the silversmith¡¯s shop. The lights were off and the door was locked. The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. ¡°Get us in,¡± Nessy said to Brax. Without hesitating, Brax chopped down the door with his axe. ¡°What are we doing?¡± I asked them both. Nessy rushed in and began digging through crates and boxes. Brax joined in too. As they dug around, a few people ran past the shop. ¡°Shh,¡± Nessy hushed Brax. Another group ran by. One of them stopped and saw us. ¡°Hey!¡± he called out to the others he was with. ¡°In here¡± he yelled. All four came in. The four scurried in and hid in a corner inside the shop. Another few rushed by. One of them was wounded and limped. I stepped closer to the door to see. There was a trail of blood behind him. More screaming nearby. ¡°What is it?¡± I called out to the others. No one replied. Nessy and Brax were using dull silver bars to hit and break open more crates. ¡°Not sharp enough,¡± Brax said, kicking the crate and moving on to another one. A man in robes ran by, and glanced in. ¡°Stay in there!¡± he yelled at us and continued running. He was running the opposite way of everyone else. ¡°Harold,¡¯ said one of the four. ¡°Who?¡± I asked. ¡°Harold,¡± the voice replied. ¡°The shaman.¡± ¡°He doesn¡¯t stand a chance,¡± said Brax. ¡°Better odds than we have,¡± said one of the four. ¡°Cowards,¡± Brax grunted while pushing over a crate. Silver spoons poured out onto the floor. More screams. My hands were sweaty. I could feel my heartbeat everywhere. A beam of light hit one spoon just right, shining light into my eyes. I walked over to the spoon and picked it up. Brax glanced over. I stared at the spoon. I felt an itch. A belief I could pull light out from the spoon. I couldn¡¯t explain it. But in that moment of fear, I pulled the light out. The spoon burst into white light. ¡°Charlie,¡± Nessy whispered. She looked dumbfounded for once. The others slowly stood and walked towards me to get a better look. ¡°Do that again,¡± said Nessy, ¡°to Brax¡¯s axe.¡± Brax looked at Nessy, then me. He walked over to me and held out his axe for me to hold. I raised my hands for him to stop walking. I looked into his axe and pulled the light out. It burst into light. It lit the room. ¡°What are you?¡± asked one of the four. ¡°Do it to mine,¡± said one of the other ones. ¡°You have a sword?¡± Nessy said. She rushed over to him. ¡°Give me that.¡± ¡°No!¡± he argued. ¡°I may need it!¡± ¡°Give it to her,¡± I said. I still had the glowing spoon in my hand. He frowned and handed Nessy his sword. I gazed into it. A wave of nostalgia, dread, and vertigo overcame me. I felt as if I was falling. I dwelled within that sword for what felt like a minute. I pulled myself out and it engulfed in light. I was on the ground. Brax and Nessy helped me to my feet. ¡°No!¡± Nessy cried out. ¡°Are you okay?¡± I nodded and took a deep breath. I pulled away from them and stood up right. I saw flashes of light outside. ¡°Stay here,¡± said Brax. He rushed out with his glowing axe. Nessy followed after him, holding her glowing sword. I followed too. The shaman was forming fire in his hands. He then threw it forward and a ball of fire soared down the road, exploding into a wall. ¡°Missed,¡± Brax said. ¡°Hey!¡± Nessy shouted. ¡°How many are there?¡± The shaman looked over. His eyes widened and he rushed over to us. ¡°Holy weapons!¡± he shouted. ¡°How?¡± He looked at each of us. ¡°How?¡± he asked again. ¡°You,¡± he said, looking at me. ¡°Can you do more?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°No,¡± said Nessy. The shaman turned away from us and ran down the streets away from the enemy. ¡°Hey!¡± he shouted to someone. ¡°Flag down patrol!¡± ¡°Keep it down!¡± said Brax. The shaman ran back over to us. ¡°We can¡¯t kill it with normal weapons.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± I asked. ¡°But we can kill with holy weapons.¡± A group of six guards rushed over, each holding a short sword. ¡°Holy light,¡± one of them said, eyeing Brax and Nessy¡¯s holy weapons. Nessy gave her glowing sword to one of them and he charged down the dark alley. ¡°Do mine?¡± a guard asked. I entered into his sword and pulled out light onto it. The guard dropped the sword in shock, and it fell to the earth. A different guard picked it up and ran off towards the enemy. ¡°Mine next!¡± one of the guards said. I went into his sword and pulled out light from it too. ¡°Hey,¡± Nessy said to me, with a worried look. Brax was no longer standing with us. ¡°Where¡¯s Brax?¡± I asked Nessy. ¡°Thank you,¡± said the man whose sword I just enchanted. He turned and ran down the dark alley with his sword. There in the alley was Brax and the guard from earlier. They were fighting a beast. ¡°Do mine,¡± said another guard, holding out his sword. ¡°He¡¯s done,¡± said Nessy. ¡°One more?¡± the guard said. ¡°They need my help.¡± ¡°Charlie, no,¡± Nessy said. ¡°You were unresponsive for five minutes that last time,¡± she said. I watched as the beast knocked one of the guards to the ground. His sword fell on the ground next to him. He wasn¡¯t moving. ¡°No!¡± cried out a nearby guard. He threw his sword to the ground and ran over. He picked up the enchanted sword from the ground and joined the fight. I looked at the sword held in front of me. I dove into it. I found the light deep inside it and grappled onto it. Oh, I felt my fingers like I never had before. Every little sensation of that touch. The light wouldn¡¯t budge. And I could hear my exhaustion ring metallic. I saw auras of light where there had been darkness. My head pulsed in pain. I tasted iron. I tasted dirt. I breathed in sand. I felt so heavy. Like I was under water. I was stuck. I had pushed too hard. I let go of the light. As I fell away from it and things faded, I realized the light was my life. And it whisked away. Dim. I was heavy. I wasn¡¯t breathing anymore. I tried everything. I tried looking up. There was nothing. I was nothing. I suspect during this time, I actually felt nothing at all. Like a rendering error, I fill the void with my best guess, and it¡¯s all sorts of wrong. Because any description would be insufficient. It was a time of great nothing. And it felt like an eternity. It was the smell that came back first. Dirt. Smoky, sooting, wood smoke. I clung onto those smells like they were dear neighbors. I reached my hands over the fence, hoping they¡¯d pull me over. Please. Bring more. Bring me back. Then it was the taste. You¡¯ve never tasted nothing until you¡¯ve died as I have. I tasted my spit again. I tasted my teeth. I could see. But not with my eyes. I could see from above me. People were all around. I was still on the street. I looked towards where the beast had been to find the corpses of four werewolves and at least a dozen men. I examined the corpses, hoping not to find Brax among them, then I soared over to my body. Beside me was Brax and Nessy. Had we won? I wondered. I could not talk. There was a white light coming into me. On the other end of it was the shaman. He was healing me, I realized. I closed my eyes. I woke some time later in bed. Nessy was asleep in a chair next to me. Beside me was another bed. Brax was in it. ¡°Hey,¡± I moaned. Nessy woke up. ¡°Charlie,¡± she whispered, standing over me. I smiled, I think. ¡°You saved the town,¡± she whispered. Brax healed quickly. After two days and two nights, we were both sitting up and chatting most of the day. I learned all about his long ago adventures traveling across the shadelands. He recommended a full itinerary for once we arrived in Redrock. He had lived there for a century. There was a knock at the door. Nessy got up and opened it. It was the shaman. ¡°How are they?¡± I heard him ask Nessy at the door. ¡°Harold,¡± I heard Nessy say, ¡°come see.¡± The shaman sat next to me where Nessy had been sitting. Nessy stood beside me on the opposite side. ¡°You¡¯re a hero, Charlie,¡± he said. I nodded with a slow blink of my eyes. ¡°Thank you for saving my life.¡± ¡°You have a rare gift,¡± he said. ¡°Nessy tells me you¡¯re headed to Redrock. Through the shadelands,¡± he glanced at Nessy with a judgemental look. ¡°Take this.¡± He held out his hand. In his palm was a crystal hourglass on a golden chain. ¡°When you are in danger, gaze into this hourglass,¡± he said. ¡°I¡¯ve seen you do it with the swords. Same principle.¡± ¡°What happens?¡± I asked him. ¡°For a single minute, your spirit and body will become hidden as sand within this hourglass.¡± I took the crystal hourglass from Harold and examined it in the light. ¡°It¡¯s to hide,¡± said the shaman, addressing Nessy. ¡°It¡¯ll buy him a minute.¡± He glanced at Brax. ¡°How is he?¡± ¡°Good,¡± Brax said, his eyes still closed. ¡°Oh, you¡¯re awake?¡± Harold said. ¡°Thanks to you.¡± ¡°Okay,¡± Harold nodded with a slight smile. ¡°I wanted to thank you too, Brax.¡± Brax grunted. ¡°He killed two of the four himself,¡± the shaman told me. He then turned to Nessy. ¡°Give him this later, will you?¡± He handed Nessy a shiny green trinket of a clover. Nessy took it into her hands and examined it. ¡°Maybe I¡¯ll keep it,¡± Nessy grinned. Brax peeked with one eye. ¡°It¡¯s for good luck,¡± said Harold. Brax grunted. ¡°I¡¯ll let you two rest,¡± said Harold. ¡°Thank you,¡± I said. I fastened the crystal hourglass around my neck. The next morning, we decided it was time to continue on our way. As we left, a guard recognized us and thanked us for helping save the town. ¡°You saved lives,¡± he said solemnly. ¡°We¡¯ve been hunting those bastards for months. They¡¯ve been eating kids in the woods. Didn¡¯t expect them to turn up as they did.¡± ¡°And how was that?¡± ¡°Oh? Haven¡¯t heard?¡± The guard took a deep breath and leaned up against the nearby wall to get comfortable. ¡°Few days ago, four girls ran into town callin¡¯ out for help.¡± ¡°Four girls?¡± said Brax. ¡°They were hollering about how their daddy had locked ¡®em up in his basement.¡± Nessy stepped forward, ¡°Wait a second¡ª¡± ¡°Now hold on,¡± the guard stood up from the wall. ¡°Let me tell it,¡± he held up a finger. ¡°Now they said he had himself an army of sprites and even a few basilisks. And that he was gonna come after ¡®em. Mayor¡¯s a good guy, but he can panic, you know. So he sent sent nearly our whole militia out to that rickety ol¡¯ cabin. And while they was gone, the girls got their full moon. Had it not been for you,¡± he tapped me on the shirt, ¡°this town would be Black Sheep. You¡¯re a hero. And I hear you¡¯re headed to Redrock. Now, I got a thing or two to say about that too.¡± ¡°Hold on,¡± said Nessy. ¡°Where¡¯s Gentry?¡± ¡°Gentry¡¯s dead,¡± the guard said. ¡°So¡¯s his boys. When we showed up, they fought. So they lost.¡± ¡°Wow,¡± I said. ¡°Yep.¡± ¡°So that¡¯s the story?¡± asked Nessy. ¡°That whole family. Wiped out.¡± ¡°No story worth telling¡¯s told in one sitting. We¡¯re piecing together the full story now. Old man Lewie, the drunk, thinks he has memories of a wife at that cabin. Says she was a witch. Suspect that¡¯s how the daughters lycanthropied. There was a time when those burlaps boys owned that forest. That changed one night. Wouldn¡¯t you know it, was a full moon. Some of ¡®em came here, all scratched and gnawed up. Swore on their lives, that night and til their dying day in prison, they were attacked by werewolves. Was that witch, Gentry¡¯s old lady. She turned her girls into werwolves.¡± ¡°Gentry mentioned a hat,¡± Nessy said. ¡°Said the sprites stole it the other day.¡± The guard shrugged. ¡°Where is he,¡± he glanced around. ¡°Come,¡± he motioned to us. We followed the guard over to the tavern we had been at. Sitting outside on a wooden chair was the drunk that had fallen into the tavern the other night. ¡°Hey, it¡¯s you,¡± I said. ¡°You okay? You were bleeding on the ground the other day.¡± Old man Lewie nodded with a slow blink and a tired smile. ¡°Never better, thanks to Pap.¡± ¡°Pap?¡± I asked the guard. ¡°His dad. Passed away years ago. He¡¯s a confused old man.¡± ¡°I see you¡± Lewie said to me. He smiled. ¡°I like this one.¡± ¡°Hey Lewie,¡± said the guard. ¡°Did Gentry¡¯s old lady have a hat?¡± ¡°A hat,¡± said Lewie. ¡°Oh yes,¡± he nodded. ¡°Warden¡¯s. Spent all their contract money on it.¡± ¡°Warden¡¯s?¡± asked the guard. ¡°Before your time, kid,¡± Lewie said to the guard. ¡°Artifact shop, just over there,¡± he pointed down the street. ¡°Ice cream shop now.¡± The guard smiled. ¡°You never know with this guy.¡± ¡°What¡¯s the hat do?¡± asked Nessy. ¡°Huh?¡± Lewie asked. ¡°He didn¡¯t hear you,¡± said the guard. ¡°What does the hat do?¡± Nessy asked louder. ¡°I¡¯m not a hat expert, madame. But I used to go fishing with Warden¡¯s girl. She tried to date me. Gave up on that, glad she did. She¡¯d talk about it, til it was sold. She said it had death magic.¡± ¡°Alright,¡± said the guard. ¡°She tried it once,¡± Lewie continued. ¡°Some bullies were acting up, you know. She had ¡®em keeled over on the ground, just by willin¡¯ it. She could make flowers wilt, lizards sick, people lethargic. Come to think of it, one of those bullies was Gentry¡¯s boys, before he joined his dad out to the country.¡± ¡°It¡¯s getting late,¡± said Brax. ¡°Alright, we¡¯re heading out,¡± said Nessy. ¡°Where? Oh, alright,¡± said Lewie. ¡°Y¡¯all be careful,¡± said the guard. A few others greeted us on our way out. I wasn¡¯t sure which of us hated the attention the most. Outside of town, clouds covered the sky. There was rain pouring in the direction we were heading. ¡°Let it all out,¡± said Brax. ¡°I want it dry by the time we get there.¡± Black Sheep Wall After six hours of walking, Alice swooped down and landed behind us. ¡°Good hell, Alice!¡± called out Nessy. ¡°Hi,¡± said Alice. ¡°Where you been!¡± asked Nessy. ¡°I could ask you the same question.¡± ¡°Please don¡¯t,¡± said Nessy. ¡°I circled back every day. Didn¡¯t see you on the path, so kept scouting. We got rogue orcs playing highwayman up ahead. Day out. Throws a wrench into our path. One sec.¡± Alice went behind me and gently unfastened and opened her bag. She dug through and pulled out parchment and a pen. ¡°Camp here,¡± Nessy said. ¡°Brax, stand guard for a while. You¡¯ll have the later night off. Charlie, go to sleep.¡± ¡°But it¡¯s early,¡± I protested. Nessy walked the path ahead while Alice found a comfortable spot and began drawing her map. I laid on the ground next to her and watched the lines and shapes take form as she drew. Alice didn''t speak, though she hummed. ¡°How do you remember all this detail?¡± I asked. ¡°Oh,¡± Alice smiled. ¡°I just see things and remember what I see. Edgar calls it a photographic memory.¡± She was an incredible artist. A perfectionist too. She used her eraser just about as much as she did her pencil. I watched her until she completed the map. When she was done, she began drawing a portrait of me half asleep. After a while I fell completely asleep. When I woke, Alice was gone. Nessy was back and on guard. Brax was asleep nearby. ¡°Go back to sleep,¡± Nessy said. I yawned and deeply considered it. I¡¯d never known exhaustion on Earth like I knew it here. But something drew me to my feet. As I walked over towards Nessy, she folded up the map and put it into her armor. I sat next to her on a large rock. ¡°Can I see it?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°Why not?¡± ¡°Go to sleep.¡± ¡°Something has been on my mind,¡± I said. Truth was, very little had been. I just felt compelled to talk with her beyond her barking orders at me. ¡°What?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. I guess I¡¯m trying to make sense of everything.¡± ¡°Sometimes there isn¡¯t much.¡± ¡°I felt something at Edith. I felt connected to people. I saw you and I saw Roland. I saw myself through your eyes in the crowd.¡± She said nothing. Didn''t even turn to face me. ¡°Do you know what that was?¡± I asked. She ignored me as if I wasn''t even there. I closed my eyes heavily, feeling tired, lonely, lost, dejected. In the long silence that followed, it became clear she was done talking. I was too stubborn to go lay down and sleep. I fell asleep while sitting on that rock. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Oh,¡± I said half-asleep. I felt her help me to the ground. I woke to a sunrise and a dull ache that began in my feet and ended nowhere. I suddenly felt all those miles I had walked yesterday. The fog hadn¡¯t left, but it had lifted quite a bit, revealing gorgeous flowing hills around us that we hadn¡¯t been able to see the night before. It felt as if we had woken somewhere new. Brax was laying on his belly, sprawled out, and murmuring something to someone. I slowly maneuvered myself to my feet. I spotted Nessy walking along the edge of the hilltop, looking down at something below. Wait, who is Brax talking to? ¡°Brax?¡± A disinterested grunt. My curiosity gave me lift and I walked over to where Brax was laying. He was face to face with his giant axe. A few clever wisecracks came to mind, but with a look at Brax¡¯s face, I thought better of saying anything at all. ¡°We move out in twenty minutes,¡± called out Nessy. I sat on the ground next to Brax and cleared my mind. We sat in silence those twenty minutes. The breeze was gentle and warm. We began walking the direction Nessy had been looking earlier. The clouds moved fast across the sky. What had been ache when I woke was now a burn, which in some ways was easier to manage. I couldn¡¯t fathom tomorrow. I had also grown quite anxious. Alice was gone again. I wanted to ask Nessy about her, but I didn¡¯t want to bother her. I spared us both the trouble, for now. What of the landscape wasn¡¯t shrouded by white fog was remarkable. You¡¯d see glimpses of things, like a waterfall off a cliff in the distance and a valley filled with yellow flowers. I could feel the temperature drop a degree every thirty or so minutes we walked. Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit. Up hills, across hills, around hills. As we went higher in elevation, my ears popped and the fog slowly crept in and surrounded us again, until we were so immersed in it we could hardly see each other at times. ¡°I don¡¯t like where we¡¯re headed,¡± Brax murmured. ¡°Where are we headed?¡± I shouted up ahead to Nessy. You had to ask. ¡°Almost there,¡± her voice returned. It meant nothing to me. But it meant something to Brax. We kept walking. I felt a strange mix of fatigue, worry, hunger, and boredom. A selfish thought continued to surface: I wanted to ask Edgar what happens if I die. Am I missing an easy path home? What if I am dreaming, like Edgar, and all I must do is merely wake up? As the sun began its descent for the day, we came across a battered stone wall. Nessy seemed encouraged to have found it and immediately took a right and had us walk its perimeter. It had to be at least twelve feet tall. We walked alongside it for perhaps an hour until we came across a large breach in the wall. We entered through and found ourselves at the edge of an abandoned marketplace within the settlement¡¯s walls. The terrain of the town was no different than outside the walls, with sudden and steep hills. As we continued our walk upwards within the city¡¯s walls, it became apparent just how big this settlement was. It was a sprawling city. The biggest I had seen yet. But it was abandoned. Many areas of it were in ruins. ¡°What happened here?¡± I asked. My voice was lost in the wind. Grey storm clouds were ahead of us, complete with rolling thunder and occasional flashes of lightning. I could see walls of rain scattered up ahead. We continued onward, still within the city walls, until it was so dark that Brax and I kept tripping over things. ¡°Okay, here,¡± Nessy finally said. She led us into a building and barred the doors. Brax and I sat in the darkness while Nessy rummaged around, doing God knows what. ¡°I can¡¯t feel my anything,¡± I said. ¡°Hate walking,¡± Brax groaned. ¡°Do you know where we are?¡± ¡°Black Sheep. Close to Shadelands now.¡± ¡°What¡¯s Shadelands like?¡± ¡°Dark forest. Dangerous. Nomads. Harpies. Zounds of gnolls. Some undead too.¡± ¡°Lovely.¡± ¡°Not all bad. Lucrative mushrooms and herbs there. Network of goblin foraging tunnels. Leads straight into Redrock.¡± ¡°What¡¯s it like?¡± ¡°Redrock?¡± He raised an eyebrow at me. I nodded. ¡°You a prince or something?¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°You act like it¡¯s your first time outside the palace.¡± I shook my head. ¡°I¡¯m just a normal boy.¡± ¡°Hope not,¡± he smirked. ¡°Redrock is Redrock, kid. World its own. Dozens of interconnected subterranean cities. Goblin capital at the center. A chaos college. Sorcery and arcane too. Massive cave system, the bellows. Great food. The caves keep goin¡¯. Dwarves the other side.¡± Nessy joined us with a candle aflame. She set it on the ground next to us. ¡°Both of you, sleep. Do not blow out the candle.¡± ¡°Where is Alice?¡± I asked. ¡°Sleep. Do not blow out the candle.¡± I laid down and tried to get comfortable. I heard rain. Kept checking if I was wet. I never was. I woke to the sound of distant thuds. The candle was still lit. The thuds continued; they had a pattern, like a frantic heartbeat, and they got louder. It shook the walls and made nearby junk rattle. Brax was on his feet, axe in hand. He motioned for me to follow. He crept towards a corner. I hopped to my feet and began to follow but then I spotted Nessy through a window. She was running towards us. Nessy swooped in and grabbed me by the arm, then yelled at Brax to follow. We ran. Brax was yelling something, I think to Nessy, but I don''t know. The thuds were deep. Felt just as much as heard. And they just kept coming. Only growing more and more intense. Then I heard a long, deep, hellish shout that sounded like it came from a mutant dinosaur on a over-amped megaphone. Nessy screamed to run faster. Brax was screaming in a language I didn¡¯t understand mixed with profanities I did understand. Suddenly the pattern of thuds missed a beat or two, then resumed. I then heard a rushing noise from behind us, a large blur swooshed past my head, then there was a loud explosion in front of us. ¡°Hell!¡± Nessy yelled. Dust was everywhere. I smelled metals and stone. I clung onto Nessy¡¯s hand and lunged forward behind her. We just kept running and the thuds continued. We eventually came to a flat opening. I glanced back just long enough to see our predator. It was a giant, at least twice our size. He was chasing us, boulder in one hand, a giant club in the other. ¡°What is that!¡± I yelled. ¡°He has another!¡± shouted Brax, ¡°Zigzag!¡± I could see the far side of the city wall ahead. But there was no door, or gate, or opening or hole. I was beyond sore, in pain, outside myself, near-resolved to die, but the thuds of the earth behind us inspired me to keep running, forward, somewhere, anywhere, away. Brax ran ahead and split to the right. Nessy grabbed my arm and rushed me onward, straight ahead towards the wall. The giant¡¯s thuds stopped. I turned to steal another look. He was throwing the boulder. It was coming straight for us. Nessy yanked my arm and threw me back while pushing herself in front of me. The boulder crashed into her and exploded into dust. The impact didn¡¯t seem to affect her at all. The giant screamed and began running towards us. Brax the dwarf, now positioned to the giant¡¯s flank, screamed too, charging him from his side. The giant stopped and turned. Brax lunged forward and sunk his axe deep into the giant¡¯s arm. The axe was sunk deep into the giant¡¯s arm meat. The giant recoiled, pulling the axe out of Brax¡¯s hands. The giant, now with Brax¡¯s axe stuck in his arm, was now more resolved than ever to kill us. The giant kicked at Brax, but Brax lept out of the way with a flip and tumble onto the ground. Brax had his smaller axe with green crust on the blade now in his hands. The giant kicked at Brax again but Brax dodged and sliced the giant¡¯s leg with his axe. The giant, now screaming, jumped up with both arms raised, and slammed the ground, knocking Brax off his feet and a nearby house off its foundation. The giant leaped towards Brax, but Brax rolled in between the giant¡¯s legs and sliced the giant in the groan with the blade of his hand axe. The giant screamed and kicked the tar out of Brax, flinging him into a fence. Brax still clung onto his hand axe, but he was not moving. As the giant positioned himself to face the downed dwarf, Nessy stepped forward with her right hand glowing white and aimed towards the giant, palm out. Green light formed at her palm and darted out in an arc towards the giant, pelting him in the back and then his neck. As he turned to face us, a final bolt struck his torso. The magic bolts were a strange mix of glowing goo and green neon plasma that sparkled like an electric fire. It latched onto the giant¡¯s skin and turned bright white, dripping green liquid sparks, and what looked like perhaps blood, onto the ground. The bolts seemed to hurt him, but it would take a lot more bolts to stop him, and Nessy was no longer firing. She was buckled over gasping for air. The giant began running towards us. ¡°No!¡± Nessy yelled. She turned and grabbed me by the arm. ¡°The hourglass,¡± she said, gasping for air. ¡°Use it.¡± I grabbed the hourglass. ¡°No.¡± The giant screamed. I stumbled backwards and turned to face the giant. The world quieted. Time slowed. I felt a warm above my eyes. A sliver of light just above my vision. ¡°Do it,¡± Nessy groaned behind me. Her voice was muted now. ¡°No!¡± I heard Brax shout from the ground behind the giant. He was crawling towards us, dragging his legs behind him. I could see the giant clearly now. It was a woman. Mossy green leather clothing with pink flowers growing from her clothes and hair. Her club, which was larger than me, was pulled back. I could see Nessy yelling at me. But I could no longer hear her. The world was quiet, slow, and dim. I closed my eyes and looked up. I centered my sight on the itch between my eyes, like I had in Edith. I felt a choice, to lift up like I had at Edith, or dive down, like I never had before. I went down and fell deep into my mind. It was an abandoned mall, an barren field, then a vacant grand hotel. I searched its inner corridors. I found long empty halls there and felt nostalgia for lives I never had. I ran faster than my doubt, faster than my fear, and I turned the axis of that world, surfed gravity to make time, and then, I found a warm room of darkness with light leaking in. I entered. Darklands I inhaled atop that foggy hill city, where the giant was mid-plunge, and I exhaled somewhere else. The air was warm. I opened my eyes. I was standing, just as I had been moments prior, but I was elsewhere. Nessy was by my side, where she had been, now collapsed. Brax laid flat on his belly where he had been crawling. But he was no longer moving. The stone giant was gone and the world had gone along with it. The sky here was deep purple. The ground was brown. Not far away was a vast black sea. I fell to my knees. The ground was a strange chalky mix of sparkly dull colored clay, like putty or a clay tennis court. We were somewhere else. Somewhere very else. Had I put us here? Nessy coughed. She sounded close to death. ¡°Where are we?¡± I asked. She spit and groaned. ¡°How are we here?¡± I asked. ¡°You,¡± she coughed and turned her face towards me. She managed a devilish grin. I was relieved to see it. ¡°Are we dead?¡± mumbled Brax. I looked over. He was laying face down still. Nessy nodded. ¡°Yes.¡± We laid there for a time. I kept waking to check if they were still there. And each time, they were. I finally sat up, feeling somewhat rested. Brax was still face down, mid-crawl. Nessy was snoring. At least I knew she was alive. I managed to stand after a few failed attempts. My whole body ached, but my knee caps and shins hurt the most. Up ahead, near the coast, there was a splattering of black trees with white specks in their branches. Across from those trees was a steep hill. This place was surreal The sky was spiraling. There was no wind. It wasn¡¯t like the other place. At least the other place had a semblance to Earth. I tried to wake Nessy, but it was no use. I walked over to Brax and gave him a nudge. He hopped to his feet, his handaxe in hand. He looked me over, then eyed the landscape. ¡°You do this?¡± he asked. ¡°I think so.¡± ¡°Can you undo it?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± ¡°We don''t want to be here.¡± ¡°Where¡¯s here?¡± ¡°Darklands. Try to wake her. I''ll take a look around.¡± Brax headed straight towards the hill near the trees. I walked over to Nessy and shook her until she came to. She sat up and got her bearings. ¡°The dwarf,¡± she murmured. ¡°He¡¯s taking a look around.¡± ¡°No. Where was he before he got up?¡± I turned and looked around, then pointed to the spot. Nessy stood up and turned to where I pointed, then turned herself away from it and pointed forward towards trees and hill. ¡°This way.¡± ¡°What¡¯s that way?¡± ¡°Think you can take us back?¡± she asked. The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°I have no idea. I can try.¡± ¡°Not here. You''ll take us right back to the stone giant.¡± I noticed Brax was running back at full speed. We both turned to face him. He was waving his arms. ¡°Crap,¡± Nessy muttered. As Brax got closer I realized he was ducking. I lowered myself closer to the ground. Nessy remained standing. ¡°What is it?¡± Nessy whispered loudly. She had a way of shouting her whispers. It completely defeated the point. We waited as Brax made his way back to us. ¡°Hellhounds,¡± he said upon his arrival, between breaths. He turned back and pointed. ¡°Just over that hill.¡± ¡°How many?¡± said Nessy. ¡°Four.¡± ¡°Anything else?¡± ¡°They were alone.¡± ¡°Structures? Any anything?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°Were they standing still or roaming?¡± ¡°Still.¡± Nessy sighed. ¡°They¡¯d kill us. I don¡¯t want to backtrack.¡± ¡°We need you to shift us back, Charlie. A stone giant is a nice Sunday afternoon compared to the creatures of this realm.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s go that way,¡± Brax pointed to the peninsula between the forest and the sea. ¡°An hour¡¯s walk or two. Then we shift back. It¡¯ll take us east of Black Sheep Wall. There¡¯s a valley there. There¡¯s bandit camps but we can deal with that. Better than the giant.¡± We walked towards the peninsula. The combination of the swirling purple sky and the absence of wind had me perpetually convinced we were indoors. But we were very much not. As we walked along the shore, we became diverted by a river turned swamp. Brax tried to keep his bearings, but as we contended with the inhospitable terrain, we found ourselves increasingly uncertain how our whereabouts correspond with the other side. We came upon a steep incline in the terrain on all sides. There was no option but to turn around or slowly scale the slope. Once at the top, we could see a great distance ahead. There appeared to be a settlement not too far ahead of us, off to the right along a river. I also spotted what looked like an active volcano far into the distance. ¡°Trolls,¡± Brax whispered. ¡°They aren¡¯t nice, are they?¡± I asked. Nessy laughed. Brax glared at me. ¡°Now what?¡± I asked. ¡°I think we¡¯re still within the Black Sheep Wall,¡± said Brax. ¡°But if we can make it down this other side and half way to that city, then shift, we should be home free. ¡°Risky,¡± Nessy said. ¡°Or, we shift here, and just walk the inner perimeter of the wall until we find some wall walks up to the battlements.¡± ¡°Then what? Jump down and die?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. Magic?¡± Brax looked at me and then her. ¡°We¡¯d fall and die,¡± Nessy said. ¡°We need to dig out a bed. Somewhere with decent cover. And let him sleep.¡± ¡°Sleep? I¡¯m not tired,¡± I said. ¡°My fear is he¡¯s too psychotic,¡± Nessy said to Brax. ¡°What?¡± I said. Nessy turned to me. ¡°You casted Plane Shift on a whim, without pre-casting, without even knowing you could. It¡¯s next to impossible. It¡¯s impressive, but to ask you to do it again in a high pressure scenario is insane. And if we¡¯re going to do it anyway, you need more rest first.¡± ¡°I feel fine.¡± ¡°You can¡¯t go by that.¡± ¡°No, look, I feel great¡± She raised a hand. ¡°You can get stuck.¡± ¡°The ground¡¯s like clay here,¡± said Brax. ¡°Can dig out a little hiding spot to rest. Half an hour tops if we all chip in.¡± ¡°Dig?¡± I asked. ¡°With what?¡± ¡°Our hands,¡± Brax said. ¡°Look.¡± He kneeled down and carved out a handful of clay. ¡°What¡¯s that,¡± said Nessy. I glanced over at her. Her eyes were fixed on the horizon up ahead. ¡°What?¡± whispered Brax. ¡°Get down!¡± she said, pushing us back. We rushed back down the slope and ducked down. ¡°What is it?¡± I whispered. ¡°A draconian. Flying straight at us.¡± ¡°One?¡± Brax whispered. Nessy lifted her head to take a peek, then snapped it back. ¡°Staff! He has a staff. Has to be magician or shaman.¡± ¡°His staff have a golden tip?¡± asked Brax. ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± ¡°Think he saw us?¡± ¡°He¡¯s bearing down exactly on us.¡± Nessy turned to me. ¡°Can¡¯t you talk to him?¡± Brax asked Nessy. ¡°And say what?¡± ¡°Diplomatic words.¡± ¡°There is no diplomacy between dark elves and draconians.¡± ¡°Yet,¡± said Brax. ¡°You¡¯re wasting our time. He¡¯s fast.¡± Now they both looked at me. ¡°How long do I have?¡± Nessy stole another peek. She moved like lightning when she wanted to. ¡°Literally straight at us. Five minutes and he¡¯s on top of us.¡± ¡°And if that happens?¡± I said. ¡°A quick death,¡± said Nessy. I turned to Brax. I was curious his take too. Brax looked up at me and sighed. ¡°We¡¯re not meant to survive here. You gotta get us back to Midgrey.¡± ¡°And now,¡± said Nessy. ¡°Okay,¡± I said. I took a deep breath. I didn¡¯t feel good about this. I felt sick, tired, and afraid. My mind was racing and restless. I tried to calm myself, but I only grew more anxious with each breath. ¡°Go,¡± said Nessy. I¡¯d never seen her so distressed looking. I rolled my eyes back and fell into myself. I stood in the center of a street in front of a house with many doors. I walked inside and ran through the familiar corridor. I found the room that I had entered before. I entered but exited out the same door. I went floor to floor. I could sense the creeping passage of time. I began trying doorknobs to anywhere. None turned. I came upon one doorknob that was cold. I ripped my hand away in pain and terror and gazed upon the door. It was no different than the next door. I heard a slam, turned, and saw a girl down the hall. She backed away, then turned, and ran. I didn¡¯t pursue her. I was relieved she ran. ¡°Please,¡± I spoke. ¡°I need out.¡± I shook my head. ¡°Don¡¯t let me get stuck here too.¡± I sat down on the carpet. I took deep breaths. I cleared my head. The room slowly dimmed, and a distant door glowed. I ran. I saw light beaming through the edges of the door. I turned the knob and it opened. Death Cold wind rushed against my face. I opened my eyes. We were back. We were still inside the city walls. I felt a deep psychological exhaustion. I fell to the ground too exhausted to move. I wished for Nessy and for Brax to come to me, but they didn¡¯t come. I heard nearby thuds. The giant. I crawled my body into a nearby bush. The bush had thorns and as I went deeper the thorns sunk into my flesh. With each stride, thorns pulled my skin apart from me and new thorns latched on. I was resolved to hide my whole body into the bush, but my will quickly wilted and I laid there still, half in a bush, my head, arms, and torso pulsing with my heartbeat, bleeding out, in pain. Each thud of the giant¡¯s footsteps renewed my dread. I worried for myself. I worried for Nessy and Brax. I thought of my mother. My friends. My home. I heard a bird of prey above. There had to be at least twenty large thorns stuck into me. I couldn¡¯t imagine a way to remove myself from the bush without losing a lot of skin and blood. But I couldn¡¯t just lay there and die. I felt hapless. Drained. Defeated. I considered trying to shift back. But I deeply feared I would get stuck in that corridor. And even then, the greatest of outcomes was to arrive again in hell. I debated it with myself anyway for quite some time. Someone tapped my feet. ¡°He¡¯s still here,¡± I heard Nessy whisper. ¡°He¡¯d smell us if not for the wind. We need to move.¡± ¡°Do not move,¡± spoke Brax. He began cutting up the thorny bush with his handaxe. And in short order, I was able to stand, slowly, carefully, and step over the battered shrubbery. ¡°Come,¡± Nessy whisper-yelled. Brax helped me up and didn¡¯t let go. Nessy walked ahead, crouching, one hand touching the ground as she walked. I found myself unable to move or talk coherently. I peered into the sky and it was brown with stones and straw. I looked at Brax and saw an angel jogging beside him. She had blue eyes, and when I looked into them, her eyes widened. Brax caught my fall. We stumbled along after Nessy. Nessy looked back to ensure we were following. We were, but we were so far behind. Again and again, Nessy would stop to feel the earth. It was our chance to catch up to her, but she¡¯d always snap at us to stop walking. We eventually made it to the wall. The thuds continued and there were occasional crashing sounds, as if he was demolishing houses for sport. I gazed up and watched Nessy scale the wall. She motioned to Brax and Brax motioned back. He helped me walk along the wall for a time, then Nessy was down with us, helping carry me forward too. We made it to a part of the wall covered with overgrowth. We stopped for a moment here in the shade to rest. ¡°Watchtower just ahead,¡± Nessy whispered. ¡°There¡¯s a chance it has a wall walk. It¡¯ll get us atop the wall, out of the giant¡¯s reach.¡± We didn¡¯t rest long. I could see the watchtower. It was still very far away. There was so much empty space between us and it. The thuds were, if anything, getting louder. ¡°We have to,¡± I heard Brax say. But I didn''t know what they were discussing. I was between the two of them, my arms across their shoulders. They were saving my life. The mood could not have been lower. There was such fear in Brax¡¯s bloodshot eyes. A bewilderment. Then I saw him. The giant. He didn¡¯t see us. We kept walking. Nessy¡¯s grip on me was painfully tight. There was a roar. I glanced back. He was charging at us. This monster. We ran. I couldn¡¯t think right. I noticed it was just Nessy and I. I kept running. We made it to the stairs, climbed up them on all fours, and crashed onto the floor of the battlements. Nessy crawled to the edge and looked down. I crawled too. Brax was fighting the giant. Brax saw that we were safe and he beelined to the wall. Just as Brax entered the wall walk, the giant slammed his club into the wall. Brax joined us, and the giant continued to slam his club against the wall. He cut deep cracks into either side of our wall section. Then he backed up, ran, and slammed himself against our wall. On his third try, he tackled the wall section, knocking it and us over. We tumbled onto the ground and rolled away from the crashing stone behind us. The giant gathered up two large rocks and then stood there, in the hole in the wall that he created. He turned his back to us and walked back inside the city. We laid there for a while, collecting what rest we could. Then we stammered away into a nearby thicket for cover. This time, without thorns. I heard rodents chewing and felt bugs crawling. I didn''t care. It was a notification I was alive, and so I rested. When I came to, it was dark. Insects buzzed and hummed. Through the hole in the wall, I saw faint reflections of light off the stone. I woke Nessy and Brax. They could see it too. ¡°Let''s look,¡± said Brax. ¡°Probably shouldn''t,¡± said Nessy. ¡°Who could it be?¡± I asked. ¡°Rovers most likely,¡± said Brax. Nessy nodded, then glanced at me. ¡°High elves.¡± ¡°They''d have food,¡± said Brax. ¡°What do you say, kid?¡± ¡°Sure.¡± ¡°You two go. They''d hang me.¡± Nessy handed me her bag. ¡°Offer up to 25 copper for jerky or jam. Sneak a peek first. If it ain''t rovers, get out, silently.¡± If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. Brax and I gathered ourselves and walked over. Once at the wall, Brax peeked in, then shot his head back. ¡°Dead giant,¡± Brax whispered. My mouth nearly hit the ground. ¡°Should we leave?¡± I whispered back. Brax took another quick look then shook his head. ¡°I can see my greataxe. Still in his arm.¡± ¡°What killed him?¡± I whispered. ¡°My poison,¡± Brax whispered. ¡°I''m gonna get a better look. Stay.¡± I watched him enter. He was slow and careful. After a few minutes, he motioned a shrug, so I entered along with him. There were torch lights in the far distance. ¡°A friend of his?¡± a voice behind us asked. We turned to find an elven girl. She had nearly-white blond hair and wore gold armor. ¡°Why are you here?¡± ¡°I misplaced my axe in his arm,¡± said Brax. ¡°Taking it back.¡± ¡°That¡¯s my kill.¡± ¡°You can have it,¡± Brax said, stepping forward with his handaxe in hand. The elf turned to me. ¡°Will you tell your dwarf to stand down?¡± I shrugged. ¡°It¡¯s his axe.¡± The elf eyed me over. ¡°Where are you from?¡± ¡°None of your business,¡± said Nessy. She emerged from the shadows where Brax and I had entered from. Brax turned to face Nessy. He clenched his teeth. ¡°Always a dark elf.¡± The elf turned to Brax and me. ¡°I¡¯ll escort you to safety.¡± ¡°You¡¯ll get lost, I think,¡± said Nessy. The elf scowled and pulled a device from her belt, aimed up, and fired it off. A deafening bang and bright flare shot straight up into the sky. ¡°Cute,¡± said Nessy. ¡°I didn¡¯t mean to imply you had a choice.¡± ¡°Free roam,¡± Nessy said. The elf shook her head. ¡°Not anymore.¡± I could hear the faint rumble of galloping horses. I looked out and saw elven riders coming our way from the distance. Brax turned his back to the elf and walked over to the giant. Brax gave it a good tug, but it didn¡¯t bulge. ¡°I forbid you,¡± said the elf. ¡°I will note you for theft.¡± Brax spat on his handaxe blade and looked up at the elf and spat towards the elf too for good measure. He then carved the great axe out of the giant¡¯s body and shook it off. ¡°We¡¯re leaving,¡± said Nessy. ¡°I¡¯ll try to be more clear,¡± said the elf. ¡°Free roam is not allowed. There are vampires in the area. You will be taken to Lockham and examined there. Then transport will be arranged to your respective capitals.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll slap ya silly with the friendly side of my great axe,¡± said Brax. The elf drew her sword. Brax positioned to fight, but then looked over as the calvary of elves arrived. ¡°Axe down!¡± called out one of the horseback elves. ¡°My lord,¡± the elf called out to a horseman, ¡°these two appear unarmed,¡± she motioned towards Nessy and me. She turned to Brax. ¡°Please,¡± she whispered. ¡°Drop it.¡± Brax dropped his axe and spit on it. ¡°Line ¡®em up,¡± the elven lord shouted from his high horse. Two elves dismounted near me, one grabbing me, the other grabbing Nessy. They put us on our knees facing the apparent leader. ¡°What happened?¡± the lord asked the elven girl. ¡°They settled here last night. Fight ensued. Magic was used.¡± The lord eyed the hole in the wall then turned to face the giant. ¡°The giant?¡± ¡°Death by poison. The dwarf.¡± ¡°Those two?¡± the lord eyed Nessy and me. ¡°Just refusals. I told them¡ª¡± ¡°Field session!¡± the lord shouted, turning his horse in a meandering circle. ¡°Authority on me,¡± he continued, ¡°lord of land and steward. Wherein a field council thereof: Lorels, Kline, Dorshur, and¡­¡± He looked at the elven girl who had found us. ¡°Name?¡± ¡°El.¡± ¡°...are party to the field prosecution. Named, the members of this detached unit. Any material objections to the procession, speak now.¡± The lord paused, but only to take a breath. ¡°Maximum effect per charge one; trespass and murder of one independent giant, refusal of escort for processing, rightful else in service therein. I judicate a field execution. And the members therein say. Lorels?¡± ¡°Stand,¡± said one elf. ¡°Stand,¡± said another. ¡°Stand,¡± said one more. The lord nodded and looked down at El. ¡°Ground,¡± El said. The lord hopped off his horse. ¡°El of?¡± he paused. ¡°Where?¡± ¡°Absinthe.¡± ¡°Absinthe. What of this?¡± ¡°Self defense.¡± The lord scoffed. ¡°This is the giant¡¯s home.¡± ¡°He has no treaty with their kind.¡± ¡°They trespassed and murdered a friend of the queen.¡± ¡°My lord, it¡¯s a Stone Giant.¡± ¡°I render you incapacitated and relieve you¡ª¡± ¡°I contest,¡± she said. The lord''s face narrowed. His eyes dimmed. ¡°El contests.¡± ¡°I stand,¡± said one elf on horseback. The lord glared at the horseback elf. ¡°The matter is tabled subject to investigation but granted on a stay basis with default judgment per field statute.¡± El stepped forward. ¡°I¡ª¡± ¡°I¡¯ll have your post for this.¡± ¡°I cite voluntary malfeasance and petition to suspend field judgment in parlay, full entitlement.¡± The lord threw his gloves onto the ground. His face was red with anger. ¡°While the dead encroach, we fight each other,¡± El said. ¡°The only dead among us was at their hands,¡± the leader said. ¡°You intend to make that right by execution?¡± she asked. ¡°Enough.¡± ¡°My brother would have¡ª¡± ¡°Your presumption of the dead''s desire does not constitute disorder,¡± the lord yelled. ¡°Those two aren¡¯t even armed!¡± ¡°They are of party.¡± ¡°We are of party.¡± ¡°Not anymore. Parcel,¡± the lord snapped his fingers at a rider wearing brown, ¡°bring this ex-rover and those two trespassers for processing in Claris.¡± The lord turned to a rider wearing blue, ¡°The dwarf murderer to the Niles high courts.¡± ¡°Lockham is a day away,¡± El said. ¡°Do not speak again,¡± the lord warned. ¡°Field session closed.¡± We walked apart, each of us separated with a rider in between. Our wrists were bound and hooked to saddle. Our captors were bitter and cruel, tugging at us without cause, switching with leather straps for no reason. We were twelve hours into our trek before we stopped to rest the horses. It was at night when she arrived, dear Alice, the cartographer bat. I heard the familiar woosh in the sky and knew. Nessy must have known too. I saw a smile in her eyes. But she didn¡¯t look up or react in any other way. The guards were near us, at the fire. We were still tethered to the horses. I heard the swoosh again. What will she do? There were four guards, all capable, still armored, all within reach of their swords. If it were me, I would wait until they were asleep. Another swoosh. Could she attack as a bat? Perhaps maul them, or bite them. They were elves though¡ª how could they not see her in the sky? Or hear her as I could? The woosh was faint, I suppose, but why would she risk spoiling her surprise so. I wished for her to stop. Woosh. Then a scary thought occurred. What are the odds it was her? Was it not more likely it was some other vampire, eager to pick us apart like chained up animals? One guard got up in a hurry and looked around. The others followed. Woosh. They searched the sky without satisfaction and all the uneasiness in the world. Nessy must have read me by my expressions. She had a finger up to her lips and a smile. It was all the reassurance I needed. Alice must be both a bat and invisible. What would she do now? Woosh. The guards, sword and shield at the ready, were frantic now. Woosh. One of them placed his sword in the fire, causing it to turn black, then a dull red. Suddenly I heard a yelp and the clang of metal. There were only three guards now, a shield laying where there had been one other. There was a distant scream from above and then the sound of a body embracing with the earth nearby. One guard ran. I heard a woosh and a scream and a thud. She had gotten the one who ran. Then she came again, taking with her one of the remaining two. There was one guard left alive. It was the one heating his sword. He seemed cool and competent. He brandished his sword around him, deterring her from trying to pick him up. The sky was quiet. The guard continued to swing his weapon defensively. His face was tight with tension, maybe anger. As he turned to face Nessy and I, he collapsed onto the ground, Alice was latched onto the back of his neck. He flailed for a time, stiffened, then turned pale. His fire hot sword lay on the ground simmering the dried grass while Alice feasted on his blood.