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Leonarra’s question hung in the air, and Asp did not raise her head from her bow. But Leonarra cleared her throat, and Asp did incline her head to make eye contact with the imposing elf.
“I’m so sorry for the misdirection, Lady Leonarra,” she said in her normal voice. “I am not a child, nor am I an elf.” She reached up and removed the wax extensions of her ears. “I meant no disrespect or real deception. We have faced a great deal of prejudice in many of the places we have gone, and I meant only to get by without causing a fuss. Please accept my sincerest apologies.”
Leonarra chuckled. “I introduced myself as Myrdin, did I not?”
The Rangers around them laughed too, though whether at the surprise of Asp’s disguise or at Leonarra’s comment, she could not tell.
“If you are not an elven child,” continued Leonarra, “who are you?” She turned to Steel-Eyes and Larkin. “Who are all of you?”
Larkin smiled. “I’m Larkin! I help people and cast spells and I have a cactus friend named Spike!” She held Spike out to Leonarra to demonstrate.
Leonarra faintly smiled and turned to Steel-Eyes as he spoke.
“Steel-Eyes is inventor. Made Guy and Bird.” He gestured to his mechanical companions.
Leonarra nodded and turned to Asp, who had still not spoken. “And you–who are you?”
Asp looked back up at her. Leonarra’s eyes were fierce yet gentle, the warpaint around them giving them an extra edge. Asp didn’t know what to say. Who am I? Huh. I know who I’m not. I’m not Asp or Penelope or Delia or Gilbert. I’m not really a con artist anymore, even if I still know how to do that in a pinch. Am I who I mean to be yet? Am I a healer of Idunna? Asp stared into Leonarra’s face. The Queen of the Mountain’s eyes were focused intently on her, yet Asp did not feel threatened or afraid.
“I am a healer of Idunna,” she said eventually.
Leonarra nodded. “And your name?”
Asp hesitated again.
“Silly Penelope,” said Larkin.
Leonarra offered another faint smile. “We must go. There is much to do.” She turned to the Rangers and gestured to their fallen ally. “Bring his body.” Two of the Rangers took the corpse in their arms and laid him on the back of one of the remaining boars. “Mount up.” The other Rangers leapt atop their boars, helping the adventurers up to join them. Every Ranger except Leonarra had someone else with them, and they took off at a trot further up the mountain.
Nearly half an hour later, after heading through a snowy mountain pass and riding past towering evergreen trees for what felt like forever, they arrived in a city. At least, it was like a city. There were large stone buildings, roads, and a few guards patrolling the area. But there were no people. There were not even animals. It was as though the city had been abandoned, or its inhabitants were all ghosts. It was incredibly eerie, and as the boars trotted through the streets, Asp fought the nausea from the battle and her own nerves–she had never seen a place so deserted.
“Where is everybody?” asked Larkin.
“A city can be more than its surface reveals,” said Leonarra. The adventurers waited, expecting more, but she said nothing else.
Leonarra led the line of Rangers into an impressive keep. Once all the Rangers were inside, everyone dismounted their boars, and a few of the guards from outside led the animals away and closed a metal gate, sealing the group inside the keep. Leonarra walked down a wide hallway, her boots clicking on the stone floor, and the rest trailing behind her. They emerged into a huge chamber with a beautifully-carved stone throne at one edge of the room. Leonarra made for it, then cut to the left into a smaller hallway. They walked down it for a moment and then into a square room with chains at each corner leading up into the ceiling. A Ranger pulled a metal grate across the doorway, and the group entered, Guy still holding the werewolf leader tightly. Leonarra pulled a lever, and the floor lurched downwards before settling into a more gradual lowering. The floor of the hallway rose and rose–or more accurately, they sank and sank.
“You okay, Penelope?” asked Larkin. “You look sick.”
Asp laughed uneasily. “It’s not this. I don’t– killing makes me uncomfortable.” Gunther’s limp body struck the wall beside her in her mind, Nicole touching her stomach and coming away bloody danced before her, the slain foes of their journey thus far shimmered in her memory.
“Awww, it’s okay,” said Larkin, placing a hand on Asp’s shoulder. “You didn’t do anything wrong.”
“She’s right, little one,” said Leonarra gently. “You did something that needed to be done. You likely saved at least one of my men.”
Asp looked back at Leonarra gratefully. “I appreciate that. It’s just that . . . it’s hard every time.”
Leonarra offered her faint smile. “It gets easier.”
I don’t want it to get easier, Asp thought. I want to not have to do it.
The chamber lowered and lowered for a few minutes, then came to a halt. One of the Rangers pulled the grate open, and before them was a bustling city. Overhead was a dark surface that looked like stone. Around them were buildings of all shapes and sizes, most of them made from large stone brick. The area was mostly dark, but glowing glass orbs on pillars not unlike those in Lo’Alarai lit the street level. Elves walked through the streets–hundreds, maybe thousands of them. It was a proper city, only underground.
The group left the chamber. A pair of Rangers hauled the body of their fallen alley out ahead of them, and several more carried the werewolf leader away.
“Wait,” said Asp. She turned to Leonarra. “May I?”
Leonarra looked uncertain but nodded.
Asp walked forward and closed her eyes. She began to pray over the corpse of the fallen Ranger.
Idunna, please bless this man. He gave his life so that we could reach this city and hopefully complete our mission. He was brave and selfless to the end. Please give him safe passage to the next world. I love you.
She opened her eyes and realized that Larkin stood beside her, also praying. As she watched, a light of pale green like sea foam bathed the man’s body, and a swirl of ethereal cherry blossoms hung in the air around him. Two of the flowers settled on his eyes and congealed into physical form. Asp nodded to the Rangers, who carried the body away.
“Thank you,” said Leonarra. She took the lead and reached an intersection. The elves here parted as Leonarra walked, and their expressions showed deference, not fear. She turned back at the corner. “We must go to the Palace. Come along.” She walked calmly onward, the city’s chaos calmed as she passed through it.
“Look!” hissed Larkin, patting Asp’s arm to get her attention. The hornkin was pointing to a long, wide aquarium in which wide-snouted fish with dark brown and green scales dotted with silver looped and swam through the vessel. “Cave fish,” explained Larkin, her eyes alight with excitement.
She knows them, thought Asp. She sees something familiar here. What must that be like?
They continued on behind Leonarra. At another corner, Asp saw a group of elves with pitch-black skin and bright white hair, their irises a faintly-glowing purple-red. The dark elves laughed and jostled each other, and they stood up straight when they saw Leonarra. And again, Asp saw no fear of consequences on their faces–only a desire to pay respect to the Queen of the Mountain.
Could they be? thought Asp. They’re dark elves, they have pale hair, they live underground. Are they sundered elves? But in the stories I’ve heard sundered elves are terrifying. They wouldn’t stand around joking on a street corner–they’d be slaying innocents and eating babies or something. They can’t be sundered elves. It must just be an effect from being down here or something.
They passed through more of the subterranean city, a thousand little wonders that were, on reflection, just variations of the life Asp knew on the surface. It was like remembering who you were as a small child; everything was different, and yet so much was the same. They eventually reached a large domed building cut directly into the stone wall of the underground chamber they were in, and Leonarra walked confidently across the threshold and inside.
The Queen of the Mountain passed down a few hallways with an efficiency that spoke to her familiarity of the building. She brought the group into another throne room, this one with two thrones which were cut from the same stone as the cave itself and adorned with black and silver jewelry and gems. In the throne on the right sat a dark elf, her purple-tinged silver hair hanging down from where it was fixed by a silver circlet, an eight-pointed star at its center. She wore a long, elegant purple dress with a black shimmering cape that bore spiderweb designs on the shoulders, and a mass of amethyst rings and necklaces covered her fingers and throat.
Leonarra sat down on the throne on the left and placed her hand delicately on top of the dark elf on her left. She smiled proudly at the adventurers. “I would like you to meet my wife, Lady Haellica, Queen of the Sundered Elves and Priestess of our Realm.”
Sundered elves! thought Asp. The stories must have been lies. This place is far kinder than Lo’Alarai, and they’re married! A place where people like me can live in peace and even be leaders! Where in the fuck are we?
Asp remembered herself and bowed before Haellica.
“Please, stand,” said Haellica, her voice soothing and otherworldly. “Allow me to speak to my wife for a moment.” She and Leonarra whispered a few short sentences, and Haellica laughed lightly. It was an enchanting laugh that tinkled like bells and reminded Asp of the dead of night. “From whence have you come?”
Asp turned to Sash, expecting them to speak as they did when addressing royalty. But Sash simply stared at the Queens, rapt with the same realization Asp had had moments before. Wary of waiting too long to respond and seeming disrespectful, Asp spoke.
“We began in Lo’Torrin. We were enlisted to help a merchant cross into the Ronan’el lands, and we unwittingly upset the treaty line when we crossed.” She gestured very slightly toward Sash to explain how this happened, but kept her face as neutral as possible. “We wanted to right our wrong, and we obtained the consent of the Ronan’el to permanently end the war. From there, we returned to Lo’Torrin and spoke with Lord Arokosiel, who agreed to sign the new treaty. Then we went to Lo’Alarai and spoke with Lady Norasynia. She gave her tentative agreement should the other elven leaders sign. We were headed to speak with Lady Eerith when our mission grew more complicated. We visited the town of Lo’Enthias and assisted in the slaying of a group of vampires, and we encountered an agent of Lord Arokosiel’s, who told us to seek you out next. We have come to see if you would lend your support to ending the war with the Ronan’el. We hope that your wisdom will direct you to sign so that all elves can enjoy an era of peace.” She bowed deeply.
“I consent,” said Leonarra immediately.
“As do I,” agreed Haellica.
“You–” began Asp, surprised at how quickly they had answered. “You do?”
“Of course,” replied Haellica. “The war is a mockery of what is right.”
A mockery of what is right? She’s nothing like the sundered elves I’ve heard of. I thought they loved violence.
“What I’m curious about,” said Leonarra, “is how you got the Ronan’el to agree to peace.”
Larkin giggled. “Penelope suggested a treaty, and they talked about it, their only objection was that they didn’t think it could happen. They wanted peace.”
Haellica smiled. “Perhaps the stories elves tell slander more than the sundered elves.”
Leonarra smiled too. “Peace would benefit us all. We’ve had a plan for a while that peace would make possible.”
Asp cocked an eyebrow but said nothing.
Haellica saw her expression and nodded. “The sundered elves have lived in secret for millennia. We were facing extinction when our own capital, Lo’Arran, began to collapse. It was only when Lady Leonarra took us in,” she explained, squeezing Leonarra’s hand, “that we began to hope for a world in which we could have a future again.” She looked each of the adventurers in the eyes one by one. “We wish to go public with the fact that the sundered elves still exist. That we are valid members of elven society. That our lives can be of value outside of this city.”
“There is one thing that seems to be still unexplained,” said Leonarra. “You diverted your path from Lady Eerith to come here. Surely, you did not know what awaited you here. Why Lo’Thalas? Why march out of your way to come to a city that people know nothing about?”
Asp bit her lip. “We had an ally. His name is Kast. He is . . . he’s half-elf, half-Ronan’el. He was meant to be an emissary, a way to show the more oppositional elven leaders that a union between the elves and Ronan’el was possible. But he was kidnapped.”
“Do you not know where he has gone?” asked Leonarra.
Asp sighed. “We believe he was taken to the In-Between.”
Haellica said something quietly that sounded like elven but more obtuse, filled with combinations of vowels she had never heard.
“You knew we have portals to other realms,” said Leonarra. “Correct?”
Asp nodded. “We believed that if we could gain your favor, you might help us with more than a signature.”
Leonarra gazed at Asp, who knew the look well. Leonarra was surprised by her. Asp wasn’t sure what the source of the surprise was–her skill with a crossbow, her blessing of the fallen Ranger, her facility with diplomacy–but she also saw a glimmer of respect in the Queen of the Mountain’s eyes. She vowed not to let it go to waste. And then something occurred to her. Apart from the elven kid thing, I haven’t lied to her. I just did my best to be decent, and she likes me.
“We need to go to the Old Palace,” announced Leonarra, rising from her throne. “Walk with me.” She crossed the throne room, Haellica close behind, and went back down the hallways and into the city. As they reached the streets, Leonarra turned to Asp. “Tell me about the situation with Kast.”
Asp sped along to keep up with Leonarra and Haellica. “We were fighting a vampire infestation. Kast was keeping watch outside. He heard us fighting in the farmhouse where we found the vampires, and he came in to help us. The vampire we were fighting–we’d already killed one and several thralls–saw Kast and got really . . . enraged. It was almost like he recognized Kast, or maybe had a reaction to the half-elf, half-Ronan’el thing. He grabbed Kast and opened a portal. The portal had strange sounds, laughing and bells and stuff, and he took Kast through. He closed the portal before we could follow him.”
“Vampires . . .” muttered Leonarra. “Did you see anything specific or out of the ordinary around the vampires?”
“I found this sword!” cried Larkin, producing the ancient blade. “The first vampire used it when we fought him.”
“Let me see,” said Haellica. She studied it in the light of a glowing orb atop a pillar as they passed. “I recognize the craftsmanship. This is an old vampire you dealt with. This is from the old capital, Olympianor. Lo’Thalas was built on what remained of it. If the vampire who took your friend was alive back then, then your friend might be worse off than just being in the In-Between.”
“Worse off,” echoed Steel-Eyes.
“He could be a vampire himself,” explained Haellica. “They may have taken him expressly to convert him.”
Leonarra cut down a side street and towards a large, darkened building. She hurried down the street and into the entryway of the looming structure. It was dilapidated. Stone arches around them had fallen and been left, crumbled on the floor. Rats lurked in the corners and let out squeaks as the group entered the room. It was dark, and Haellica muttered something in the unfamiliar tongue, producing a faintly purple light that shifted between shapes above her fingertips. In the pale light, the room looked even worse. Parts of the floor had been chipped, and the group had to move carefully around the room to avoid tripping. Pieces of cloth tapestries were torn and lay on the ground. Dead rats, half-eaten by the rats still alive, littered the floor. Leonarra picked her way through the rubble and down a long hallway. No doors lined this hallway. Asp shuddered. No doors down this way means that whatever’s at the end is supposed to be far away from the city. They finally reached a large steel door, a small pen of boars just next to it. Leonarra knocked on the steel door three times, and loud clangs reverberated through the hallway.
She turned to the group. “This is a privileged space. Only us and its keeper have been here for years.”
“Who’s its keeper?” asked Larkin.
The door swung open. On the walls of the circular room beyond were glowing portals, nine pulsating surfaces that shone different cascading colors beneath metal plates bearing elven labels. Before them stood a figure who was eight feet tall and heavily muscled. He wore a mask over his mouth and nose that looked like some manner of ancient rune. His long, white cloak was tattered and had been stitched and restitched back together. Beneath it, a pale grey outfit of thick cloth was held together with blue steel buckles and belts. He wore heavy steel boots in an array of colors–gold, silver, blue steel, brass, and blackened steel–and white kneepads and gloves protected his frame. Above his mask, blank steel-colored eyes with no irises or pupils stared down at the group. He leaned down and brought his face down to the larger of the adventurers’ level, facing Leonarra and Haellica.
“Hi, Lady Leonarra,” said the figure in a deep and emotionless voice. “Lady Haellica. You brought friends.”
“We need your help,” said Leonarra quietly but firmly.
The figure turned his gaze back to the adventurers. “Nice to meet you,” he boomed. “I’m Jarn.”
—
Jarn stood up and stepped backwards into the chamber. Leonarra and Haellica entered and motioned to the group to join them. Uncertainly, they did, glancing around at the glowing portals and their shifting colors.
“So what do you need?” asked Jarn, his voice level and calm.
Leonarra turned to the group. “Why don’t you explain?”
Asp swallowed hard and tried to look Jarn in his featureless eyes. It was not easy. “Our friend was kidnapped by a vampire and taken to the In-Between.”
Jarn exhaled deeply. “The In-Between.”
“The In-Between!” echoed Larkin.
Jarn sighed. “And you want to go there?”
“That’s the plan,” replied Asp.
Jarn shook his head. “That’s complicated. For a number of reasons. Our portals are powered by very strong magic, but throwing four people and a couple of homunculi into one is a lot."
“Just four,” corrected Asp. “Wayseras here would like to attend your university.” Wayseras waved nervously.
“This can be done,” said Leonarra. “We will take him in a moment.”
Jarn sighed impatiently. “Four is still complicated. Not to mention, the In-Between is especially unstable. Physical space is unstable there. Time is unstable. Reality itself is unstable. And even if we get you there, I imagine you’ll want to come back?”
“Also the plan,” confirmed Asp.
Jarn scowled. “This is asking a lot. I can try to get you there, but I can’t make any promises that you’ll all actually get there together, or in one piece, or that I can get you back. You should consider other options.”
Asp looked down at the chamber’s stone floor. “We don’t exactly have other options.”
Jarn stared back without expression. After a moment, he said, “If you have no other options, and you have to go to the In-Between, I can do my best. But it’s a gamble, and I don’t like to gamble.”
Larkin laughed. “We’ve been gambling this whole time. Right, Penelope?”
Asp laughed bitterly. “We sure have.”
Jarn looked at the group and shrugged. “You’re sure about this?”
Asp turned to Leonarra and Haellica. “Is there any other way to get there? Or a way to make this more of a sure thing?”
Leonarra shook her head. “Jarn knows what he’s talking about. He knows more about portals than anyone alive. If he says this is a big risk, then he’s right.”
We’re risking our lives to try to save Kast. I get that being a good person means taking risks to help people, but why does it have to be something that’s next to impossible? Asp sighed. “I’m in. What about you?” she asked Larkin.
“I wanna save Kast,” replied Larkin. “He’d do it for us.”
“He would,” said Asp. “Sash?”
Sash nodded. “We’ve come this far. We can’t stop now.”
Asp smiled. “We have come pretty far, haven’t we?” She turned to Steel-Eyes. “You in?”
Steel-Eyes stared back for a long moment, then shrugged. “Steel-Eyes will go. There is much to learn.”
Asp turned back to Jarn. “We’re going if you’ll send us.”
Jarn sighed. “If you’re going, I’m going. You’ll need my help getting back.” He began to fiddle with a panel on the wall between portals.
Asp nodded. “Thank you.” She tried to search her mind for the right thing to say, but knew on some deep level that there wasn’t really something that could fix the situation. “If we might not make it back, we should make arrangements.”
“Arrangements?” asked Larkin.
“Make peace,” said Asp. “With your god, your family and friends, yourself. Set up a plan for if we die or get lost in there.”
“I will,” said Sash. They headed to a space between portals and knelt to pray.
“I wanna make sure someone takes care of my mom,” said Larkin. She turned to Leonarra and Haellica. “Can you make sure that Daneel is taken care of?”
“We’ll see what we can do,” said Leonarra.
“And tell her goodbye for me,” continued Larkin. “And my friend Hespat, and my other friend Argin?”
“We will,” Haellica gently.
“Tell my parents Steel-Eyes says goodbye,” said the dwarf. “And the dwarves at the high forge in Gritt.”
Leonarra nodded. “Consider it done.”
Sash rose from their prayer, their face calmer. “Please make sure the archipelago is cared for. And say goodbye to the other protectors for me.”
Haellica smiled. “Of course.”
Leonarra and Haellica turned to Asp. Leonarra asked, “Any goodbyes for you? Plans for if you don’t return?”
Asp bit her lower lip. “No. I, uh . . . I don’t have anybody.”
Leonarra and Haellica turned and looked at one another, faint frowns on their faces.
Asp shrugged. “It’s okay. I just . . . I guess I haven’t lived the kind of life where anybody will miss me.” Something inside her shifted her attention. “Besides, we’re coming back. When we do, we need to know how to go about getting Lord Farboriel and Lady Eerith’s support. Do you have any ideas?”
Leonarra smiled. “That’s the spirit.” She reached under her armor and pulled out a round stone with a hexagon imprinted on it, one corner of it etched in gold. “Take my sigil. It will show more support than my signature.”
Haellica reached into a pocket of her dress and withdrew a similar stone, a different corner etched in silver. “And mine.”
Asp took the sigils and tucked them into her bag. “Thank you. This means a great deal.”
Leonarra nodded. “As for Lord Farboriel–he’s basically Lady Norasynia’s pet. He won’t take her tentative signature as her support. But you can appeal to the fact that his people have already been hurt and will continue to be hurt by the war. If the war doesn’t end, the winged elves will suffer more than anyone.”
Asp tried to forget that she had no one to say goodbye to and focus on Leonarra’s words. “That’s perfect. Thank you.”
“Lady Eerith, on the other hand,” continued Leonarra, “will be your biggest challenge. She is proud and wants to make a name for herself, so what the others do will mean little to her. You could try to overpower her–overwhelm her with her reasons to cooperate–but it is likely that only doing her a favor will convince her. And I must warn you: that favor is sure to end in blood, and you must be sure that the violence she asks you to commit will be worth it.”
“Of course,” said Asp, bowing. “Your help is appreciated and valued.”
Jarn returned from the panel and shrugged. “Okay, we’re ready. Everybody good to go?”
Asp closed her eyes and tried to focus. Idunna, please give me clarity of purpose. Help me to be the best servant to you I can. I will do anything and everything I can for you. Please help me. I love you.
She opened her eyes and could smell cherry blossoms. The familiar daisy danced before her eyes. She felt calmer. In her imagination, she saw herself playing with a lonely child, healing a sick woman, tending to a flower garden. She resolved to make these a reality.
She turned to Wayseras. “Good luck at the university. Make us proud. Make your parents proud. Make yourself proud.”
Wayseras swallowed hard and nodded. “I will.”
Asp looked to Jarn. “I’m ready,” she said.
“Ready!” cried Larkin.
“Steel-Eyes is ready,” announced the dwarf.
“I suppose we’re ready,” said Sash.
Jarn nodded and turned, walking through the portal. One by one, the adventurers followed–Larkin, then Steel-Eyes, then Sash, and finally Asp. The portal’s energy was cold, but her skin felt tight and tense like on a hot summer’s day. For a moment, it was hard to breathe, and then a rush of air filled her lungs. Her foot came down not on the hard stone floor of the portal chamber, but on soft grass.
They were in the In-Between.
—
Around them was a mess of chaotic colors. The grass they stood on was every shade of green Asp had ever seen or imagined and then some, plus tinges of blue, yellow, and purple. In the distance were trees, every species beneath the sun mingled together in a dense cluster, the trunks and branches sprouting in every direction. The sky was a dazzling kaleidoscope of colors, blended together in impossible ways that made it hard to look at. Asp could smell a thousand different scents–plants, decay, animal life, well-cooked meals, burning metal, excrement, alchemical creations. There were so many sensations around them that she was overwhelmed, and it was several seconds before she realized that they were surrounded by a dozen strange armored beings.
The troops bearing down on them had mostly humanoid forms with animal heads. Some of them were slim and angular like elves, others meaty and broad like dwarves, and still others different combinations of features she had never seen. It was all too much to process at once, and her brain ached from trying to understand what she saw.
One of the troops shouted something in a tongue that sounded less like words and more like indistinct combinations of sounds from the natural world. She heard antlers clashing, the pawing of dirt, the bark of a dog, the crash of thunder. The soldier frowned when they did not respond. He opened his mouth again, and this time, words emerged.
“Are you from the mundane world?”
“Yes,” cried Asp. “We came through a portal.”
The soldiers frowned, their faces bearing the message that they did not understand her. I learned basic phrases in the lands I traveled to. They probably only know how to ask if we’re from the mundane world. I’ll try again.
“Yes,” she said, articulating the word carefully. “Mundane world.”
The soldiers nodded. “Come meet the king,” said the soldier who had spoken before.
The troops pointed their various weapons, for none was armed or armored the same as the others, and forced the group to march.
The land around them was a sight to behold, or at least, it would have been had it been comprehensible. They passed rolling fields with occasional towering trees that appeared to have different segments of bark and even species as they rose above the plains. They passed rivers that flowed in opposing directions at points, creatures living in the waters, only some of which traditionally lived in water. They passed a huge desiccated forest of identical withered trees, and the soldier who had spoken shook his head bitterly.
“Product of order,” he muttered.
They finally reached a building with impossible architecture. Turrets sprang from turrets that sprang from turrets which floated in the air. A massive keep twisted as it rose from the ground, facing every direction at some point in its structure. They came to a large door composed of wooden planks, stone bricks, and obsidian, which the soldiers opened and hurried the group into.
As they were ushered down the hallway of the castle, they saw courtiers and servants attending to business. Some were treefolk, others humanoid rabbits, and some just floating wisps of colored air. Larkin reached for her cactus, attracting angry stares from the soldiers, and when she held Spike before her, it was clear that the cactus had grown to three times his previous size. The soldiers pushed them into a throne room where the patterns of the tiles ebbed and collided in headache-causing combinations. Asp tried to focus past them and study the man on the throne.
He was glaring malevolently down at them from his raised seat, the throne a twisting mass of wood that grew in patches of every shade of brown. His deep, glowing green eyes lacked features aside from their intensity, and impressive antlers rose from the pale blond hair on his head. He was heavily tattooed in distorted geometric patterns, and bracers and boots of thorns wrapped around his forearms and legs. He wore a loincloth and pauldrons of fur from different animals and a cape of pale leather. A golden amulet hung from his neck, and curling tusks sprouted from beneath his pointed ears.
“Who dares enter my realm?” thundered the man. “You dare to impinge upon the Baron of Chaos? Bow before me.”
Asp, Larkin, Sash, and Steel-Eyes bowed, laying their faces down on the cool tile of the throne room. Jarn stood defiantly for a moment, but the Baron of Chaos glowered at him, and Jarn took a knee, keeping his face directly aimed at the Baron of Chaos.
“Why have you come?” shouted the Baron of Chaos.
Asp raised her head from her bow and spoke quietly. “Our ally was kidnapped and brought here. We came seeking him.”
“Ally?” cried the Baron of Chaos. “What ally?”
“Kast,” said Larkin uncertainly. “Our friend.”
The Baron of Chaos laughed fiercely. “The half-elf, half-Ronan’el is your friend?” He shook his head. “He is a creature of my realm. His composition is of chaos. He belongs here.”
“We need his help,” said Sash.
The Baron of Chaos chuckled derisively. “Unfortunate for you.”
“Is there something we can do for you in return for our friend?” asked Asp. “Perhaps you need something we could help with?”
The Baron of Chaos roared with laughter. “Something you could help with? You seem scrawny fools to me.”
“We’re more able than we look,” said Asp tactfully. “Is there anything you want but don’t have?”
The Baron of Chaos smiled. “My realm is not big enough for my taste. I want more land. If you were to give me more land,” he said with a frightening grin, “perhaps I could give you your friend.”
“We don’t need a perhaps,” retorted Jarn. “We give you land, you give us Kast.”
The Baron of Chaos frowned. “Fine. You bring me more land, and I give you the man you seek.”
“And you don’t let anyone go through the portal we came through,” added Jarn.
The Baron of Chaos smirked. “If you can give me more land–and a lot of it–I will see to it.”
“Thank you, Baron of Chaos,” said Asp. “We will bring you more land.”
The Baron of Chaos laughed. “Good. Now go. And do not play games with me.” He smiled, his sharp teeth showing. “That’s my territory.”
The group turned and hurried back down the hall to the door where they’d entered. A pair of guards allowed them outside and closed the door behind them. They hiked away from the castle and paused a way aways.
“Holy shit,” muttered Asp. “What is this place?”
Jarn chuckled ruefully. “This is the In-Between. You said you wanted to come here.”
“Spike got really big,” said Larkin. “He barely fits in his pot anymore.”
Steel-Eyes frowned. “He seemed nasty.”
“We shouldn’t trust him,” said Jarn. “Fae are notorious about breaking deals.”
“He has Kast,” argued Asp. “We need to do this to get him back.”
“He says he has Kast,” countered Jarn. “And getting him land could be even more unstable than this place as it is. I say we break into the castle’s holding cells and break Kast out. If he’s there.”
“It would be unfortunate to empower the Baron of Chaos and then not get Kast back,” said Sash.
“Maybe we can get land for him without upsetting anybody,” suggested Asp. “I mean, we came here to get Kast. We need to focus on that.”
“Who can we get land from?” asked Larkin. “We didn’t see anybody on the way over.”
“If we go to the edge of the Baron of Chaos’s land and start looking around,” said Asp, “maybe we can find someone.”
Jarn folded his arms at his chest. “We try the land grab for a while, and if we don’t get results, we go break in.”
Asp withheld a frown. Like one stubborn weirdo wasn’t enough, she thought, looking at Steel-Eyes and then Jarn, now we have two. Fine. We’ll just have to make it work on the first try.
“Then let’s get going,” she said. She began to walk away from the castle in what would have been north in the mundane world, unsure of how to tell time or distance here in the In-Between. The group fell in behind her, marching through the nonsensical nightmare landscape before them, looking for signs of someone who didn’t pay fealty to the Baron of Chaos.
—
They had been walking for a while. Or at least, it seemed like a while. Every step they took unveiled a new surprise–an impossible plant, a patchwork creature, a geographical feature that defied the laws of physics. Asp’s body was not tired, but her mind had been spinning since they’d arrived. Her brain was not made to understand the In-Between, and the longer they were here, the more disorganized her mind felt. It was as though she were in a dream that spun more and more out of control with every second, and she couldn’t orient herself.
“Hey look!” cried Larkin, pointing. “A city!”
Asp followed Larkin’s gaze to a point in the distance. There was a glowing green city with architecture like that of the elves.
“See?” Larkin said. “Let’s go there.”
“It looks far,” said Sash. “It might take–”
The ground beneath Larkin and Sash gave way. The two of them began to sink, and the dirt and sand underfoot sucked downward. They began to be submerged, buried to the knees. Jarn planted his feet at the edge of the sinkhole and reached his arms down to grab them at the torso. He wrapped his massive hands around them and lifted, planting them back on solid ground beyond the hole.
“Careful, now,” said Jarn as the bottom of the hole continued to sink. “We don’t want to find out where that goes.”
They continued on their way, everyone silent and dealing with the topsy-turvy world around them. The landscape continued to change, but not in a constant or uniform way–the changes happened from foot to foot, and it was hard to tell how far they had traveled. The glowing city in the distance seemed as far as it had been when they’d first sighted it, which felt like hours ago.
“You hear that?” asked Sash. They turned and glanced around, trying to find the source of the noise.
“What do you hear?” asked Steel-Eyes.
“It’s like a crackling and popping,” explained Sash.
Larkin spun quickly around. “Maybe it’s that,” she said.
The group wheeled. Thirty feet behind them was a panther-like creature with waving tentacles that came from its sides. Its glowing yellow eyes stared at them like they were prey, and it opened its jaw and hissed.
Steel-Eyes drew his hammer and threw it hard at the beast. The hammer flipped through the air and was about to make contact with the thing’s face, but then pop! It blinked away, no longer where the hammer was aimed. The hammer thudded to the ground, and the beast reappeared where it stood.
Larkin drew the Bow of Sariel and nocked an arrow. She aimed and loosed the arrow, which sailed at the beast. Again, just as the arrow was about to strike it, the thing disappeared, then reappeared once the arrow buried itself in the ground behind it.
Sash gripped their trident and sprinted forward, lunging at the beast. The trident’s points were inches away from the creature when it blinked away. Sash furrowed their brow and kept the trident there, but nothing happened–the beast did not reappear. Shrugging, Sash pulled back the trident, and the beast returned to its space on the road.
Asp had recognized the pattern. She had raised her crossbow and aimed it at where the creature was when it disappeared. As soon as Sash began to pull their trident back, she pulled the trigger. Her bolt soared through the air and plunged into the beast’s chest before it could disappear. It snarled and stepped back.
Jarn took a boxer’s stance, sinking into bent knees with shoulders raised. “Move!” he bellowed. The others stepped aside as quickly as they could, and Jarn slammed his wrists together. From his hands sprang a burst of orange light that flew in an instant toward the beast. The light struck the creature, which flailed and fell on its back, dead. Jarn clapped his hands together as if to clean dust off of them.
“Don’t kill the next creature we meet,” he said. “I want to study it.”
You’re the one who killed it, thought Asp, but she said nothing.
“I will help you,” said an unfamiliar voice. “Ignore the city. Follow my voice.”
Asp spun, looking for who spoke. She saw no one, but she did see her allies likewise searching for the voice. “You heard him too?” she asked.
“Yeah,” said Sash. “Who was that?”
“I will help you,” the voice said again. Asp craned her neck to hear better. The voice was coming from their left. “Ignore the city. Follow my voice.”
“It’s over there,” said Larkin, pointing in the same direction Asp had heard it from.
“Do we follow,” Steel-Eyes half-asked.
“I don’t know,” said Jarn. “Trusting some random voice in our heads might not be wise.”
“They say they want to help,” said Asp. “Maybe this is our way around working with the Baron of Chaos.”
“All we have to do is follow the voice,” argued Larkin. “We should see where it takes us.”
Sash nodded. “The city isn’t getting any closer. Might as well try this.”
Asp looked out in the direction of the voice. In the distance was a tear in the land where scorched earth formed a wide cut in the landscape. “It looks like a big scar. Let’s follow it.”
They set off from the path they had followed and found to their relief that they soon reached the scorched earth. They followed it up over a ridge and saw that the scar narrowed as it headed toward a cave in the distance. Hurrying, they traced the path of the scar, walking in the burned and caked dirt as they went. Every so often, the voice returned, bidding them to follow it. It grew louder and louder as they approached, and by the time they reached the cave, it was as though someone were speaking to them from inches away. They mounted a small hill up to the mouth of the cave and stopped outside.
“Be ready for anything,” instructed Jarn.
“I hope they’re really going to help us,” said Larkin.
Asp nodded. “Me too. Fingers crossed.” She stopped herself and chuckled. I don’t need crossed fingers anymore. Idunna, please bless us and give us good luck in this cave. Please protect us and help us to find Kast. I love you. “Let’s go.”
They stepped inside the cave, and it took a moment for their eyes to adjust to the darkness there. When they could see, they saw an unlit fire in a simple circle of rocks, a bedroll beside it, and a stonework chair. In the chair sat a very old Ronan’el with a long white beard wrapped in green, yellow, and red traveler’s clothes. He looked at them with no expression.
“I think we can help each other,” he said in the same voice they had followed. “Please, sit down.”
—
Uncertainly, Asp and the others approached the Ronan’el in the stone chair and sat a distance from him.
“I won’t bite,” he said. “Come closer.”
They hesitated. After a moment, Asp shrugged and scooted in closer until she was only a few feet from the Ronan’el.
“Hi,” she said. “How can we help each other?”
The others, content that Asp was still safe, joined her closer to the man. He smiled sadly. “So you’ve come to the In-Between. I’m sure it’s a jarring experience. Things here are not as they should be.”
“You’re telling me,” said Jarn. “Everything is different from what you’d expect.”
The Ronan’el nodded. “In the In-Between, chaos reigns. That is why things are so strange. Whatever should be, isn’t. Whatever shouldn’t be, is. Beings like us, who are used to order and structure, we struggle here. We are not meant for a place like this.”
Larkin breathed deeply. “Why are the people here all . . . mixed up?”
The Ronan’el chuckled. “That is the way of the In-Between. The Fae and the others like them here, they are creatures of chaos. It is their nature to be like that. To them, it is the way of the world.”
“But how can we help each other?” persisted Asp. “You said we could help each other.”
The Ronan’el nodded. “We can. Do you know who I am? I’m sure you can guess.”
“A Ronan’el elder,” guessed Steel-Eyes.
The old man shook his head. “In a way, but not exactly.”
“You’re here,” said Jarn. “But you must have come from the mundane world.”
The Ronan’el nodded. “I did. But not the same way you did.”
“Who are you then?” asked Larkin.
He smiled sadly once more. “I am Ronaan, god of the Ronan’el.”
Asp froze. As soon as she could regain her senses, she bowed. “Ronaan,” she said quietly. “We have been serving your people. Or trying to.”
Ronaan smiled. “I know. I am aware that you have sought an end to the war with the elves. And it is good work you have done.”
“Can you help us with our deal with the Baron of Chaos?” asked Larkin. “He wants more land.”
Ronaan sighed. “The Baron of Chaos is a proud, vicious man. He seeks to control all of the In-Between. He cannot succeed.”
Asp’s eyes widened. “Our deal with him–is it a problem for you? Can we do anything to get out of it?”
“It was not forged in writing,” said Ronaan. “It is not valid. And he probably meant to use that to avoid giving you Kastark. You will not be served by working with him. It would be better to appeal to the Empyrean Court and the Clandestine Court. They will abide more fairly by you.”
Asp nodded. “But you said we could help you. How do we help you?”
“I was imprisoned here,” explained Ronaan. “This cave has been my prison for ages. If you could release me, then I could help you here and in the mundane world.”
“Um,” mumbled Sash. “Can we talk?”
Ronaan nodded. “I know I’ve given you a lot to think about.”
Sash walked to the mouth of the cave, and the others followed them. They turned to Asp. “It’s good that you want to help, but I don’t know if we can trust Ronaan. Do you know why he was imprisoned?”
Asp shrugged. “Does he seem like a threat to you? He’s an old man stuck in a cave.”
Sash shook their head. “He tried to overthrow the other gods. He tried to take over the world. He tried to kill a lot of people.”
Steel-Eyes grunted. “Doesn’t sound good to Steel-Eyes.”
“He’s dangerous,” agreed Jarn. “The stories passed down say he was a tyrant.”
“People change!” cried Asp. The group stared at her. She furrowed her brow. “Right?” They made no motion, nor said anything. “Besides,” she went on, “our mission matters. He’s our best ticket to getting Kast and getting back.”
“Ronaan needs therapy,” said Steel-Eyes. “Lots of emotional problems.”
Asp looked back at Ronaan, hoping he hadn’t heard that. His face was still. She looked apologetically at him, then turned back to her allies. “We can’t keep him here. If we go back to the mundane world and the Ronan’el find out we left him here, they won’t care that we ended the war.”
“We don’t serve the Ronan’el,” said Sash. “We are on a mission of peace that serves both sides.”
“If we’re serving both sides, we owe it to the Ronan’el to help Ronaan,” argued Asp.
“It is strange,” interrupted Ronaan from his chair. “The Bow of Sariel resides with a hornkin, not an elf. Why does your elf not carry it?”
“It chose me,” said Larkin proudly. “I don’t know why.”
“Stranger things have happened,” concluded Ronaan.
Asp faced Ronaan. “What do we do about Kast?”
Ronaan smiled. “Breaking him out of his jail would be an option,” he said. “You could also speak to the Empyrean Court. They may be sympathetic. Or you could simply give the Baron of Chaos what he wants. He may cooperate.”
Asp turned back to her allies. “We’re in the In-Between. Chaos reigns, right? Our most chaotic option is the jailbreak.”
Ronaan nodded. “I am a being of order. My very presence here is destructive. The scar you saw as you came here is what happens when I travel the land. A chaotic move may be your best bet.”
“Why can’t you just leave?” asked Jarn. “Walk out the cave and go?”
Ronaan smiled. “I am imprisoned. I cannot pass through the mouth of the cave. I am prevented.”
Jarn looked to Asp. “I’m gonna trust your judgment here, and I’m gonna trust him.” He placed his wrists together facing the wall of the cave, and a jet of orange light sprang forth from his hands. It blasted the cave wall with a thunderous noise. Everyone but Ronaan held their ears in pain. Asp found a trickle of blood on her palms when she withdrew them. But the cave wall stood firm, untouched by the magic blast. Jarn scowled. “Worth a try,” he said, which Asp could just barely hear over the ringing in her ears.
“I say we go back to the Baron of Chaos’s palace,” she said a little louder than she meant to. “We break Kast out, and then we figure out how to get Ronaan out of here.”
Sash sighed and looked down. Larkin nodded uncertainly, glancing at the rest of the group. Steel-Eyes grunted and stood impassively, and Jarn shrugged. “If you have other ideas of how to get him out, go for it.”
Asp turned to Ronaan. “We’ll figure something out. For now, we have to go rescue our friend.”
Ronaan nodded. “Do what you can. But be swift. Time is not on your side.”
Asp marched to the mouth of the cave and looked out at the scar. Well in the distance was the impossible castle of the Baron of Chaos. She turned to face it. “Let’s go get Kast,” she said.
“For Kast!” cried Larkin.
“For Kast,” echoed Sash.
The group set out along the scar, hurrying as much as they could. They did not speak, but they were united in purpose.
We’re coming for you, Kast. Just hold on.
You can read the next chapter here!
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