by Candy Crum
Cathillian, Arryn called mentally.
Oh, look who’s awake! Have you returned from the dead, or is this just a brief reprieve from your death sentence? he responded.
She smiled. I think I'm awake. Is it day or night? I can't tell down here in the dungeon.
It's midday. Corrine came up a few hours ago. Seems you two have a lot in common.
She yawned and sat up, stretching her achy body. She needed food and a lot of it if she hoped to feel more like herself again.
Get out here and get some food. Amon made all of us big-ass steaks!
Her eyes widened as her belly growled. "Don't have to tell me twice," she said to herself.
As Arryn stood, a bright light flashed in the room. She gasped when she saw a blood-red demon standing in front of her, its jaws wide open to reveal razor-sharp teeth. It snapped at her, and she dropped to the floor.
Her eyes flashed black as she scooted back several feet and arced her hands over her chest. She shuffled up to her knees, ready to throw the fireballs in her hands when she realized there was nothing to attack.
The flames illuminated a room that was devoid of any living creature other than her, but she spotted the switch across the room to activate the magitech lighting. She extinguished one of the fireballs as she stood on shaky legs to cross the room. As soon as the lights came on and she could see she was in no danger, she extinguished the other fireball.
What the hell was that? she wondered as she placed a hand on the wall to steady herself.
That was a glimpse of what you'll face when you reach your destination. Margit's harsh warning flowed through Arryn's mind, and she realized she hadn't checked in with the mystic in several days because of her magically induced coma. What happened?
Arryn's stomach growled, and she groaned in response. She wanted food, but she also needed to update Margit. It appeared the old woman was quite concerned for her well-being, not that she could blame her. Grown men didn’t scare Arryn, but that thing had made her whole body tremble. She hadn't realized how terrified she was until then.
Opening her mind, Arryn sent a stream of images Margit's way, filling her in on what had happened since she'd last checked in. She could feel the mystic's disappointment through the connection.
Child, you're going to get yourself killed at this rate.
Arryn sighed. Trust me, I figured that out. I've had a lot of close calls, but I always managed to pull out of them just fine. That one was a little too close, though. It was different somehow, even though I feel like I've seen worse. I wasn't myself.
There was a pause before Margit replied, That's not how you want to start the biggest journey of your life—with doubt. You're strong. Very strong, but that doesn't mean you're invincible. You need to stop taking unnecessary risks. Start assessing situations better. It will allow you to use less magic and conserve your energy.
Flashes of what Margit had shown her whirled through her mind again. She realized that in all the times she'd fought before, it had been her survival instincts urging her on. Everything had been different back then. Now, those survival instincts urged her to run, but that wasn't an option. Running was never an option.
Believe me when I say I got a heaping helping of humility after that fight. Unfortunately, like you just said, it's made me unsteady. I'm in a new world with new people, surrounded by new versions of magic, and about to fight something I've never seen or heard of before. I'm worried I won't be enough.
Even across the connection, Arryn could hear a sigh from the old woman. You won't be alone. More will come. You'll have help, and I think you'll find yourself capable of much more by the time you get out of all this. Just remember to meditate every day. Stop slacking. That little trick on the beach was pulled straight from your ass out of fear.
Arryn nodded to herself. I don't think I could recreate it if I tried. Speaking of which, how the hell did you create an illusion in my room this far away?
A dry laugh echoed in Arryn's mind. That was no illusion. Your mental barriers were down even before you let me all the way in. It wasn't hard for me to plant a strong image in your mind. Think of it more as a hallucination than an illusion.
Well, I need to learn that one, Arryn responded.
You will in time. IF. YOU. PRACTICE!
Arryn smiled. Okay, okay! I got it. I'm starving. I need to eat something and check on Corrine and the others, then I'll meditate. Does that appease the queen?
The mental image of Margit rolling her eyes and shaking her head as she heavily sighed fluttered through Arryn's mind. I'm no queen, child. You, however, are a royal pain in my ass.
Arryn laughed. Well, I try.
Unfortunately, you succeed. Often. Now go eat. I expect you to check in before nightfall.
Yes, ma'am, Arryn said before closing the connection and putting up her mental barrier.
She took a deep breath and slowly blew it out, steadying herself. Though it had been a few minutes, the mental image of what she'd seen still haunted her.
More will come. Those words echoed in her mind. Did the old woman know something she didn’t or had she meant Arryn would find help once they arrived in Kemet? With most people, she wouldn’t have even thought about it, but with Margit, she could never be too sure.
After going to the main room, Arryn was seated at a reserved table with a large steak waiting for her. It was medium, just how she liked it, and came with mashed potatoes and green veggies. Her mouth had started watering the instant she’d smelled it, and the taste was even better than she'd imagined. At that moment, she was certain this was the place Mariana had talked about.
Once her belly was full, she made her way to the bar, where Amon put down a tray of drinks for one of the girls to take to her waiting tables.
"Thank you for lunch. That was the best steak I've ever had, but if you ever go to the Dark Forest, don't tell the Chieftain I said that."
He laughed, the sound deep and rich. "You got it. I'm glad you liked it. How are you feeling?"
She nodded. "I'm better. Much better. I can't believe how quiet it is down in our room. I assumed that with a bar here, it would be noisy as hell."
"That was a neat trick. When I built this place, I hired Kemetian builders from the city. They're much different than builders anywhere else. The building above the ground is all wood. I couldn’t reinforce the upper floors and make them soundproof because of the added weight, so I decided to put the brothel up there. Downstairs, however, it's well insulated with concrete created by Jadid builders. It's quiet enough we could have secluded rooms down there for our more…innocent guests."
The more she heard about the Kemetian people, the more excited she was to meet them. Though they were already in Kemet, Jadid was the heart of it. From what she could tell, the people in the city were like the people of the Dark Forest—well-trained, each specializing in a specific task and using it to benefit the community and help it flourish and grow.
"It worked. Money well spent, I'd say," she replied. "Speaking of, when would you like us to take care of your friend's child? I'd say we've racked up quite a bill for two days' stay with room and board, stables, meals, and anything else you've provided."
He smiled. "Your friend Cathillian has helped some. Small healing sessions. I told him not to tire himself. The boy looks much better, and he's able to eat again, which was his mother's biggest worry. Why don't you take a few minutes to acclimate and get used to being back among the living?" He winked. "Once you're ready, I'll take you to them."
She was grateful for his kindness. Not only had he cared for all of them and gave them shelter and safety, but he was also very patient. Most people would see their fatigue and make demands in such a situation. While she didn't like sitting around while a child suffered, she knew healing him too quickly could cause adjustment changes and do harm too. Chronic illnesses were nothing like acute issues.
"Thank you for being so kind and patient. I appreciate it. I would like to see my friends. Where
are they?"
He pointed toward the kitchen. "They went out back. The young one wanted to train."
Arryn rolled her eyes. "Of course, she did. She's been awake for a few hours after being in a magical coma for days, and the first thing she wants to do is push herself."
The man smiled and shrugged. "She's strong. Resilient. She wants to be like her adopted mother. Kids bounce back easier than we do. You're what, twenty-three?"
"Close. Twenty."
He nodded. "Even as young as you are, that energy is gone. If you let her push herself, let her go as hard as she chooses, there's no telling what she'll be capable of."
"I think you're right about that," she said. "Though, if I'm any proof, going too hard for too long can wear you down to the point you have a tough time getting back up."
She often wondered what would have happened if her learning hadn't been stunted when she was Corrine's age. It was true that she’d had a hard time with magic when she was younger, but had she been able to attend the academy and continue training with her mother, she might have been much more powerful.
Then again, it was possible she might have been weaker for it. Without her mother's death and the belief that her father was dead, too, she might never have realized her potential.
If she could help it, she would never make Corrine ask herself that question.
"Duty calls," Amon said, pointing to a patron. "If you head through the kitchen, you'll find a door leading out back. That's where they'll be."
"Thank you," she said, offering a quick smile before making her way through the building.
The group was much calmer than they had been when she first arrived, and she was happy about that. She didn't like Corrine seeing the women and the behavior of the rude men in there, but she reminded herself it was her Arcadian side telling her that.
Truth was, in the Dark Forest, there was no shame. Sex wasn't a forbidden topic. Arryn remembered overhearing a rather adult conversation shortly after arriving there. She'd been embarrassed, but then curiosity had gotten the best of her.
She'd repeated what she'd heard to Cathillian, and he’d told her in detail what they'd meant. He hadn't been much older than her, but to him, it was no big deal. Everything in the Dark Forest was relaxed, and no one batted an eye if they walked in on someone bathing or changing. The body was considered natural. Seeing a breast was no different from seeing an arm.
In Arcadia, however, things were much different. Unless they came from people from the Boulevard or drunks at a bar, sexual comments and topics were considered rude and uncivilized. That wasn't to say they weren’t heard, but Arcadians were far more prudish than druids.
Most of the time, Arryn didn’t care, but when it came to Corrine, sometimes an overprotective Arcadian mother came to the front instead of a druid.
Arryn smiled as she looked left out the back door. The stables sat sixty or more feet behind the establishment. The horses were drinking water from a large trough, the tigers lying in the sun not far away. Cathillian laid on the ground with his back against Dante. He was shirtless, with his arms under his head and his eyes closed.
While she could feel the intense heat where she stood in the shade, as she took a few steps closer, she noticed at least a fifteen-degree decrease in temperature. Cathillian was controlling the temperature in their area with little effort as he rested. She sometimes forgot how powerful he was.
Farther to the left, she saw Bast, Cleo, and Corrine. They had their backs to Arryn, so she was able to watch without being seen. Each of them stood in a similar position: feet wider than shoulder-width apart, squatting with their arms in front of them. Their arms swayed like thin branches on a tree in the wind. Gently and methodically, they moved to their left and then to their right. It looked like a dance.
Bast and Cleo stepped back, but they urged Corrine to continue. Arryn watched with interest as the young girl continued to sway. Her movements became smoother and more agile. Soon, she saw the sand at the girl's feet swish back and forth.
"Keep going!" Bast encouraged. "You're doing it!"
Arryn could feel Corrine beaming from there. The little girl had learned so much and was driven to learn even more. She seemed infinitely older than she was. Thinking about it, she wasn't sure when Corrine's birthday was. From what she knew of Corrine's life, she wondered if the girl even knew.
Without warning, Corrine screeched when she got too carried away and a small wall of sand was thrown at the stables. Cleo was quick to stop it, stomping a foot forward and throwing a flat hand directly out in front of her. The sand looked as though it hit an invisible wall as it stopped hard and fell to the ground.
Arryn looked down and reached outward with her nature magic, but she felt nothing. There was no connection with the sand. She wondered if the twins used telekinesis to move the sand or if it was something else.
She was able to move sand with physical magic, but it was clunky and not controlled like with the twins' magic. She'd always assumed they'd used an altered form of physical magic, but maybe they had some kind of connection with sand and rock like she did with plants.
"Arryn!" Corrine called before running at full speed toward her.
The druid smiled and absorbed the impact, hugging her tight. "Hey, tiny. I'm glad you're feeling better!"
"I am! I've missed you! I'm glad you're feeling better, too. Did you see what I just did? It was good, right? Well, until I accidentally almost hurt the horses."
Arryn laughed. "I saw. You did a great job." She looked at Cathillian, who hadn't moved. She reached out mentally and realized he'd fallen asleep in the short time since she'd spoken to him.
She sighed. "You're lucky I'm still waking up," she said to his sleeping form.
Corrine laughed. "You want to mess with him, don't you?"
Arryn nodded. "It feels like forever since I've played a good joke on him. One day… One day soon."
Chapter Twelve
Asim hadn't slept well after everything that had happened. She'd been so focused on the potential threat down south that she hadn't thought of anything more domestic.
By the time they'd returned, she was exhausted, and so were the others. She'd sent rested soldiers as messengers to the other two locations to retrieve the others while she and the guards who'd accompanied her got some much-needed rest.
When she awoke, she headed to the jail instead of going down to get breakfast as she normally would before going back to work in the tunnels. Upon arriving, she saw Faraj and Shai were already there, standing guard and waiting for their queen.
Asim gave each of them a nod of acknowledgment. "Good morning. Have you spoken to our prisoners?"
Shai shook his head. "No, Your Highness. We wanted to wait for you so you could hear with your own ears."
"There's something you should know before going down there," Faraj said. She looked at him curiously, and he continued, "One of them, the one you said surrendered to you? He's originally from Jadid. He's the clothing merchant you used to take the princesses to see."
Her eyes widened. "What? Nafari?"
Faraj nodded. "Yes. While I didn't ask him anything I thought you might want to hear an answer to, I did verify it was him. It seems he left here out of fear of the monsters to the south."
She shook her head. "I don't understand that logic. I've heard people are worried a larger group makes for a larger target, but I have to believe we’re safer in numbers, especially with all the magic users in the city."
"Their way of thinking is strong. Perhaps we should talk to him and get his side. Maybe he can make things clearer for us," Shai suggested.
Asim sighed. "I suppose you're right."
She extended her hand, inviting them to show her to the prisoners. They made their way through the large stone building toward the back, then walked through a door on the right and down a flight of steps down to the cells. Asim turned a corner and went into a separate room that was used for questioning.
She didn't have t
o wait long before Faraj and Shai brought Nafari in. The moment she saw his face in the magitech lighting, she recognized him. Even with a half-moon, while in the shadow of the house, she hadn’t been able to make out his facial features the night before. Thinking back, she recalled how familiar his voice had sounded.
"Why didn't you say anything?" Queen Asim asked as Nafari took a seat across the table from her.
He shrugged. "Shame, I suppose. It only took a couple of seconds to realize you had no idea who I was. I wasn't sure if that was because you'd forgotten me or if you couldn’t recognize me in the darkness. Either way, I didn't want you to see me like that."
She scoffed. "That's interesting to hear."
"I suppose it is. I can't blame you for not believing me."
There was a pause as she peered into his eyes and searched his face. He seemed genuine to her, but she hadn't spoken to him enough yet to know if that was true.
"I don't know what to believe yet," she said, tapping a restless finger on the table. "What happened to you? You were the royal clothier and a friend to me and my girls—your princesses. I want to know why you left, but I'm more interested in how you ended up…here!" She gestured to the interrogation room. "Speak freely. I want to know everything."
"You can ask me anything, my Queen. I will answer to the best of my ability."
Asim let out an unamused laugh. "Am I? Am I still your queen?"
He nodded. "Yes. This might look bad, but I assure you, my loyalty never wavered. I'll explain."
She sat back in her chair and crossed her arms over her chest. It wasn't the most regal position, but she didn’t feel the need to be perfect every moment of every day. She shared that trait with her daughters.
"When the portals first opened months ago, nothing came through. At least, no one witnessed anything. They were there for a week or two, maybe more, before anyone saw anything. The beasts were small, no larger than a small or medium-sized dog. They'd come through, sniff around, and then go back. Honestly, it didn't seem like much of a threat, though it was terrifying that a hole had been ripped in the world.