ã€ŠSources and Sorceryã€‹


 In Which it All Begins

    Ding ding...

    The little golden bell that hung above the door to the small store rang as the door swung open. Outside was an endless expanse of black, broken only by the single lonely street light that stood by the road in front of the store. From that darkness stepped a young girl. She pulled her well-worn cargo jacket tighter around herself in an attempt to overcome the biting cold that had followed her in through the open door. The cashier, who seemed to be the only other person in the store, half heartedly looked up from the comic he was reading and grunted an annoyed greeting. The girl did her best to smile and nervously nodded at him before starting towards the back of the store.

    On the way there, the girl caught her reflection in one of the curved mirrors that were used to prevent thievery. Even in the curved and distorted surface of the mirror, it was easy to tell how skinny she was. Anna Nommins was also slightly shorter than most fourteen year old girls. Her shoulder length brown hair was unkempt, mostly due to the fact that she didn¡¯t own a hair brush. She couldn¡¯t quite make out her own eyes in the small mirror, but if she could have, she would¡¯ve seen two bright green circles staring back at her. Her skin was pale, but so was everyone else¡¯s in the area. It was always cloudy in this part of Indiana around this time of year, so unless you drove forty five minutes to the closest tanning salon, you weren¡¯t getting much of a tan.

    The distorted reflection also didn¡¯t hide the fact that her clothes were far too thin for the current climate. She really should have been wearing a coat, and not the small green cargo jacket she currently had on. It had snowed once already in the last week, and it was only going to get colder in the coming weeks and months. The jeans she wore were adorned with holes, and not the stylish kind of holes that people paid to have in their jeans either. The pant legs were starting to show her ankles, and a slight draft told her that her left shoe was coming unattached at the toe.

    But at the moment, Anna had more important things to worry about than her appearance. Tonight, she was on a mission. She made her way to the part of the store where the cake rack stood. In front of her were all the sweets a girl could ever dream of: cupcakes and swiss rolls, doughnuts and eclairs and all other sorts and assortments of sweets. Anna grabbed the snacks wantonly, not really caring what she snatched, and started stuffing them in her pockets. The jacket might be old and thin, but at least it had a lot of carrying compartments.

    Once she had stuffed a snack or two into each of the jacket¡¯s pockets, she grabbed one more package of miniature doughnuts and headed towards the cashier¡¯s station. She sat the package on the counter but had to wait another thirty seconds before the large boy actually sat his book down and acknowledged her. He looked a few years older than Anna, sixteen or seventeen maybe, and the red work shirt he wore matched the curly mop of hair he sported.

    ¡°Aren¡¯t you cold?¡± he said in a weezy, condescending voice.

    ¡°Not too much,¡± Anna replied, unable to make eye contact with the cashier.

    Instead, she settled on the spot of light gleaming off of his pock-marked forehead. He grunted in an unsympathetic response and rang up the pack of doughnuts.

    ¡°A dollar, seven,¡± he said, giving Anna a dirty look.

    She began to rummage in the small pockets of her jeans. She made a bit of a show of it, pulling the pocket lining out and trying her best to look exasperated.

    ¡°Jeez, I must have left my money at home. And I walked all the way here too,¡± Anna looked at the guy and gave him her best sad face.

    He didn¡¯t look very compassionate.

    ¡°In those shoes?¡± he questioned, leaning his large gut over the counter to look down at her dirt colored Skechers.

    Anna was pretty sure they had been white at some point, but not since they had been handed down to her.

    ¡°Get outta here, if you ain¡¯t buying anything, you got no business being in here,¡± he barked before shoving the doughnuts under the counter and picking his comic back up.

    Anna sighed, gave an obligatory, ¡°Sorry¡± and turned to head for the door, now trying her best to suppress a small grin threatening to form on her lips.

    She made it all the way to the door, so far she even heard the ding ding of the bell again as she pushed it open, before she heard that weezy voice behind her say, ¡°Hey, wait a minute.¡±

    She turned to see the cashier marching towards her, his comic book rolled up in his hand and his belly jiggling with each step. It seemed as if the cold from outside had frozen her solid, for Anna was unable to move. Maybe it was the breeze, maybe it was the blood quickly leaving her face, but Anna felt a shiver run down her spine. Run, she thought to herself, move, turn around and get out! But she stayed rooted to the spot.

    The cashier stuck his rolled up book in his back pocket before crossing his arms and saying, ¡°Empty your pockets kid. All of your pockets.¡±

    Anna stammered for a minute before finally finding her voice and saying, ¡°Wh-why should I?¡±

    ¡°If you ain¡¯t got nothing to hide, you won¡¯t mind showing me what¡¯s in your jacket pockets. You were making an awful lot of crinkling noise when you walked away and that jacket might be thin, but it ain¡¯t made of cellophane.¡±

    ¡°No,¡± Anna said weakly.

    ¡°Empty your pockets or I¡¯m calling the police,¡± he demanded, puffing his chest out almost as far as his belly.

    ¡°No!¡± Anna repeated, this time much more forcefully.

    ¡°Alright, you¡¯re coming with me,¡± he said in an annoyed voice before reaching to grab Anna¡¯s arm.

    Adrenaline caused the mental ice holding her in place to thaw, and she did the first thing that came to mind. She planted her right foot, drew her left foot back, and kicked the boy right between the legs as hard as she possibly could. He let out a loud ¡°oof,¡± before buckling to his knees clutching his stomach. Anna didn¡¯t make the same mistake twice; she turned and ran as fast as she could into the pitch black night.

    She ran for a few minutes, jumping fences and cutting through alleys, before finally coming to an exhausted stop next to a dumpster in one of the alleyways. She bent over, hands on knees, and gasped loudly. The cold air seemed to soothe her burning lungs and she inhaled deeply for a few moments, eyes closed and back against the brick wall. Her exertion had kept her from feeling the effects of the biting wind, but now that she was stationary, the chill was slowly starting to creep back into her bones. She needed to get back to the orphanage before she froze to death.

    Anna straightened up, and crept cautiously to where the alley met the street. She peeked out from behind the corner, back towards the general direction of the store she had just fled. From what she could see no one was following her. Just as she decided it was safe to make a break for it, however, something happened that caused her to turn back towards the darkness of the alley. Except it was no longer dark. A blinding flash of light behind her had caused Anna to turn, and even though she had been facing away from it, the light had been so intense it made her eyes hurt in the contrasting darkness. At first, she wasn¡¯t quite able to comprehend what she was seeing.

    Where the alley had stood still and silent only seconds before, there were now two figures, shrouded in dark cloaks. They seemed to be arguing, though Anna was too dumbfounded to really make out what they were saying. It wasn¡¯t the flash of light that was causing her brain so much dysfunction, nor was it the fact that these two people seemed to have poofed and appeared out of thin air. These things were odd, but what Anna now saw was simply unexplainable.

    The figures seemed to be circling each other, each pointing something at the other and firing bolts of what looked like pure light back and forth from whatever it was that they were holding. Both of the figures looked to be surrounded in some kind of strange, translucent bubble. Each bolt fired seemed to smash against the other''s bubble, which sparked and fizzled and seemed to ripple with waves of rainbow as it was struck before turning opaque again. Anna ducked down low and snuck quickly back over to the dumpster she had been hiding behind in an attempt to get a closer look at this bizarre scene.

    As she got closer, she was able to see what each of the people was brandishing, though that didn¡¯t do much to help her confusion. The smaller of the two seemed to be holding some sort of stick, while the larger one seemed to be clasping a cane or walking stick of some sort. The flashes and sparks of light seemed to glint off the larger one¡¯s hip, and Anna suddenly noticed that he had a large knife strapped to his waist. She felt the air around her grow just a little colder at the sight.

    From what she could tell, they were having some sort of battle, and the larger one with the knife seemed to be getting the upper hand. The smaller figure¡¯s bubble thing seemed to be growing weaker with each blast it withstood, and small cracks of glowing blue were beginning to show each time it was struck. Anna crept a little closer, staying crouched behind the dumpster to stay out of sight, and she was finally able to make out some of what they were saying.

    ¡°The council will find you and you will pay for your crimes!¡± the smaller figure shouted, and Anna could tell from her voice that she was an older woman.

    If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.The larger one let out a humorless laugh and said in a deep, male voice, ¡°Your council will fall. Those fools will eat themselves from the inside out with their squabbling and bickering, and I will be there to take every last ounce of power they hold.¡±

    The woman let out an angry yell, before waving her stick-thingy around in a fanciful way and shouting something Anna didn¡¯t understand. The dark night air that filled the alley began to wriggle and squirm and shift before, suddenly, what seemed like thousands of bats burst from the blackness, seemingly appearing out of thin air. They came from everywhere, rushing past Anna and towards the man, brushing against her as they passed and causing her to bite her thumb in an attempt not to scream. The bats surrounded the man in a cloud of black and seemed to melt together into a tornado of shadow and wind. It was so strong, Anna could feel it pulling her forward and she had to hold on to the dumpster to keep from being sucked into the spinning shadows.

    It was the man¡¯s turn to scream, and his was a scream that sent Anna¡¯s hair on end. It was loud and feral and inhuman in a way Anna couldn¡¯t quite describe. Suddenly the shadow bats were blasted away and disintegrated almost instantly as a cloak of fire erupted around the man. The flames were unnaturally red, a deep crimson color instead of the normal red-orange that fire usually was. The force of the eruption and heat seemed to penetrate the woman¡¯s bubble-shield, and she was knocked down to one knee. The man began to walk slowly towards the fallen woman when suddenly¡­

    POP!

    Anna felt as if she were going to throw up. In her fear and amazement, she had leaned too hard on one of her pockets and the cellophane wrapped snack cake had ruptured with a loud pop of air that reverberated through the alley. Even through the noise of his raging flaming cloak, the man had heard it. The flames dispersed immediately, and the alley fell completely silent. Even the autumn wind seemed to have been scared to a standstill by the imposing figure.

    Without her knowledge or consent, Anna¡¯s feet lifted off the ground and began to carry her forward. The man had reached his arm out towards her and it seemed to be acting like a magnet, pulling her step by step closer to him. Anna tried to stop, she tried to turn and run, but her legs no longer seemed to belong to her. It was as if the nerves that controlled them were now connected to a different brain. This was wholly different from the store, where fear had kept her legs rooted to the spot. The man was exerting some sort of unnatural power over her to force her to come to him.

    ¡°Is this the little bird you were seeking, Gwendolyn?¡± The man seemed to be asking the older woman. Anna had no idea what this was supposed to mean.

    ¡°You will not touch her!¡± the woman, who¡¯s name was apparently Gwendolyn, yelled.

    A blinding beam of white light erupted from her weapon towards the man. Suddenly, Anna was being thrown through the air as the man turned the hand that had been pulling her closer towards the beam that was being jettisoned at him. The last thing Anna saw was a disk of red light appearing in front of the man¡¯s outstretched hand which seemed to swallow the beam of light whole. Her viewing was cut short as she collided with a stack of pallets that had been stacked behind one of the stores connected to the alley.

    For a moment, Anna couldn¡¯t move. Her ankle was throbbing in a way she had never before experienced and the word broken flashed through her mind. If it weren¡¯t for the scene she knew was unfolding mere feet away, Anna might have just laid there and allowed herself to slip into the blackness that was seeping into the edges of her vision. Another loud explosion, followed by a shrill scream jolted her back to reality, however, and she began desperately trying to clear the debris on top of her. As she emerged from the pile of broken wood and splinters she witnessed a horrible sight.

    Gwendolyn was now sitting up against the wall with the man towering over her. There was an unnatural glow surrounding them and Anna could see that the man had discarded his staff in favor of the knife that had previously hung on his hip. The knife was no longer a shining silver, but was instead soaked in a dark red liquid that Anna knew was blood. Gwendolyn had dropped her little piece of wood and her hand was clutched over her stomach. Some sort of blue light seemed to be seeping from between her fingers, almost like glowing smoke.

    ¡°How pathetic,¡± the man spat on the ground next to Gwendolyn before continuing, ¡°the great and powerful Gwen of the Winds, reduced to this. Now that you are out of the way, taking the rest of the council''s power will be easy.¡±

    This man was about to murder this woman; Anna had to do something, but she had no idea what. She looked around frantically before noticing a large, dirty plank of wood that had broken off one of the pallets she had collided with. She might not be able to shoot fireballs or whatever out of it, but it looked pretty heavy. Anna limped over to it and hefted it off the ground. It was definitely heavy, but she was able to lift it without too much trouble. She hoped and prayed that the man stayed distracted long enough for her to execute her plan. She began to limp as quietly as she could towards the man who¡¯s back was turned to her as he towered over Gwendolyn.

    To Anna¡¯s surprise, she saw him sheathe the knife and extend his open hand forward. The luminous smoke that was slowly seeping from between Gwendolyn¡¯s fingers now began to pour out in heaps and seemed to surround the man¡¯s hand. Her back arched and she let out another shrill scream of agony. He appeared to be absorbing the swirling light, first through his fingertips, then his whole hand, and suddenly his arm as well. As Anna crept closer, the man¡¯s whole body began to glow and pull in the light pouring from Gwendolyn¡¯s wound. His head fell backwards as his deep, maniacal laugh began to fill the alley.

    ¡°Hey creep, aren¡¯t you bored yet?¡± Anna said loudly.

    ¡°Huh?¡± the man said, his head turning towards her direction.

    WHACK! The entire width of the plank connected with the mans face, and he fell backwards from the force of the hit. The light surrounding him faded and began to recede back towards Gwendolyn¡¯s now limp body. Anna hobbled towards her as quickly as she could and collapsed next to the woman. There was a large gash in the center of her cloak, and blood had begun to soak the hand covering the wound.

    ¡°Sit still,¡± Anna said as soothingly as she could, ¡°don¡¯t worry, I¡¯m gonna find you help.¡±

    She needed to do something about the man before he regained consciousness first and began looking around in a panic for something to tie his hands up with. As she went to stand up, however, Gwendolyn grabbed her wrist. Anna was surprised at how tight Gwendolyn¡¯s grip was, even in this mortally wounded state.

    ¡°My wand,¡± she croaked.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry?¡± Anna said, confused.

    ¡°My wand, my wand, give it to me quick you daft child,¡± Gwendolyn said in a much more annoyed voice.

    Anna ignored the tone, deciding to cut the woman some slack since she had just been stabbed, and began looking around on the ground. Anna assumed the woman was referring to the stick she had been using to produce that surreal light show moments before. She quickly spotted it lying on the ground a few feet away and hobbled over to it. She picked it up, doing her best not to put too much weight on her ankle as she bent down, and brought it back over to where Gwendolyn lay. Anna noticed the man was beginning to stir and felt a stab of fear in her chest.

    ¡°I really should tie him up or something,¡± Anna started, but before she could say anything else, Gwendolyn sat up and quickly snatched the wand from her.

    She pointed it at the prone man, and lines of illuminated gold burst from its tip and began to entangle and snake around the man¡¯s form. The threads continued to ensnare him when all of a sudden, the golden glow seemed to collapse inwards and the man vanished. Anna blinked, stared, then blinked rapidly a few more times.

    ¡°What the he-¡± she began but was cut off.

    ¡°I haven¡¯t much time to explain Anna,¡± Gwendolyn interrupted.

    ¡°How do you know my-¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s no time for that now. I¡¯m not long for this world, and there¡¯s something I have to give you before it¡¯s too late.¡±

    Part of Anna was terrified and was screaming at her to run, to leave this whole bizarre scene behind her and try to forget any of it had happened, but a much larger part was fascinated and curious, and though she couldn¡¯t explain how she knew it, Anna knew this slightly bitter old woman meant her no harm. She moved a little closer to Gwendolyn who reached up and gripped her wrist again, but this time the grip was noticeably weaker.

    ¡°You are going to be amazing, Anna,¡± Gwendolyn breathed and before Anna could respond or question this remark, the glowing smoke that the man had been attempting to absorb from Gwendolyn¡¯s wound began to flow out again rapidly.

    Except it didn¡¯t seem to pain her this time. If anything, she seemed to want it to come out. The swirls of brilliant, fluorescent blue began to curl around Gwendolyn¡¯s arm, then wrist, then fingertips before slowly beginning to swirl around Anna¡¯s arm. Anna briefly thought it was strange how she didn¡¯t want to run, thought that surely she should be feeling fear, but she couldn¡¯t feel anything at all besides the warmth from the blue glow that was slowly surrounding her whole body.

    At first, Anna could only feel the warmth on her skin, but before long it was seeping inside of her. She could feel it in her heart and her stomach and even buzzing in her brain. The blue seemed to fill her vision as the alley around her disappeared, completely erased by the light now seemingly filling every ounce of her being. And then everything went black. Anna collapsed on the ground, eyes closed, and Gwendolyn did her best in her injured state to catch her as she fell.

    As Anna fell into darkness, she heard Gwendolyn speak, ¡°Sleep well, my dear. I fear it may be one of the last peaceful sleeps you get for a long while. But I know¡­ You will be amazing, Anna,¡± Gwendolyn repeated into Anna¡¯s nearly unconscious ear.

    And though Anna did not see it, Gwendolyn picked up her wand and readied herself to cast what she knew would be her last spell. Threads of gold shot from her wand a second time, this time surrounding the figure of the small girl slumped against her. After a moment the girl was gone in a flash of light and so was Gwendolyn. The alley stood completely still, and apart from the broken pallets, there wasn¡¯t a single sign that anything out of the ordinary had happened here at all.

 An Heirloom Lost

    ¡°ANNA! Get your butt out from under those covers and into this kitchen this instant!¡± A voice called from somewhere far away.

    ¡°Ughhhmmmm,¡± groaned the mass buried under the covers. There was some movement underneath the itchy fleece blanket, followed by stillness.

    ¡°Young lady, unless you want lashings immediately, you will attend to me when I call for you!¡± The shrill voice rang out again, sounding somewhat like nails on a chalkboard.

    Or Ms. Whitney anytime she opened her mouth.

    ¡°I¡¯m coming, geez, give me a second,¡± Anna yelled back.

    There was some more stirring, followed by the uncomfortable blanket being tossed aside in a heap on the ground. She sat up but immediately regretted it. Upon rising, her head felt like it was going to split open and spots appeared before her eyes. I feel like crap, she thought to herself. Suddenly, the previous night''s events came rushing back to her and her head began to hurt even more.

    ¡°It was all a dream, it had to be,¡± Anna muttered to herself.

    There was no other explanation for the things she remembered seeing the night before. People shooting lights out of sticks? What else could it have been but a dream? But then, how did she get back to the orphanage?

    Before she could give the events any more consideration, however, the bird downstairs squawked again, ¡°I¡¯m getting the lashing stick!¡±

    ¡°God, I¡¯m coming, let me put some clothes on!¡± She called back in frustration.

    Ignoring the throbbing in her head that was threatening to make her vomit, Anna swung her legs over the side of the bed. She rubbed her eyes with the palms of her hands hoping to make the spots of light go away but she was having no luck. Maybe she was having a stroke; perhaps that would explain the hallucinations she had experienced the night before. She looked down at herself and to make the whole thing weirder, she had somehow gotten into a pajama shirt which she definitely did not remember doing the night before. She stood up and made her way over to a heap of clothes on the floor near where she had tossed the blanket. Though she had washed them nearly a week ago, she hadn¡¯t found the motivation to fold them or put them away yet. She briefly wondered about her leg, which no longer seemed to hurt. But of course it wouldn¡¯t; it had all been a dream after all.

    She grabbed a white button up shirt from the pile, along with the blue vest that all the kids at the orphanage were required to wear during the day. She changed into them but did not bother to change her pants. They may have been full of holes, but her other pairs weren¡¯t in much better shape and she may not get the privilege of washing any of them again for at least a few weeks. Ms. Whitney didn¡¯t like when they wasted water on such frivolous things as clean laundry. She looked around for her cargo jacket but noticed it was nowhere to be seen. Anna thought this was odd, but then remembered that she didn¡¯t even recall coming home last night which was definitely a bigger mystery than where she would have taken her coat off once she got there. With a terrified start, she placed her hand to her chest, but immediately felt relief. The pendant that she always wore was still slung around her neck and though the metal was freezing against her skin, she was glad to know that she hadn¡¯t misplaced that as well.

    Anna took a quick glance at herself in the hanging mirror, attempting to brush her wily brown hair as best she could with her fingers. There was nothing for it; she had managed to tame the worst of it but without a brush there wasn¡¯t much hope. The girls at the orphanage weren¡¯t provided hair conditioner during shower time either which just made it all the more tangled and disheveled. She knew she would get reprimanded by Ms. Whitney for her clothes not being ironed and wrinkle-free. The Ladies of the orphanage were sticklers when it came to the dress code. The irony of the kids¡¯ lack of actual dress pants was lost on the Ladies apparently. Anyways, they should have figured out by now that Anna wasn¡¯t too bothered by being reprimanded with words. The lashes that accompanied the verbal reprimands weren¡¯t exactly fun, however.

    She gave herself one last look-over in the mirror, and though not even remotely satisfied with her appearance, she knew it would have to do. Well, I guess I should go see what the old bird wants, thought Anna. She opened the door and light from the hallway suddenly flooded the dim room. Just as she left, she made small notice that the other girls that shared the room with her were awake and gone already. Anna wasn¡¯t too surprised by this however as it was pretty much a daily occurence. She made her way down the hallway, feeling the cold November chill that permeated the walls biting against her skin. She really wished she knew where she had left her jacket. The Ladies refused to turn the furnace on for anything warmer than a comfortable thirty two degrees outside, not counting Ms. Whitney¡¯s office or the Ladies¡¯ lounge area of course. The blank grey walls didn¡¯t help to make the orphanage feel any warmer either. Even the light bulbs seemed to cast a dull, gray light from their glass shells, as if the warmth of their light was being sucked away just like her own. They did do a great job of highlighting the peeling paint on the walls and the lovely cobweb decor that littered the ceiling though. Anna rubbed her arms in an attempt to warm herself and hobbled warily towards the kitchen, descending the stairs down to the second, then the first floor of the orphanage. Upon entering the kitchen, she came face to face with Ms. Whitney in all her morning avian glory.

    Anna didn¡¯t refer to her as an old bird strictly out of love and affection for the orphanage matron. The woman truly did resemble a giant, withering, old grey bird. Her nose seemed too large to fit on her face, skinny but far longer and protruding than a person¡¯s nose had any business being. Anna was honestly surprised she was able to hold her head up so high but had a theory that the thick grey bun that she always wore her hair in acted as a bit of a counterweight. Her lips were perpetually pierced tight together, as if she had just taken a bite of a particularly sour lemon. She was taller than most men and her beady, sunken eyes were seemingly all dark with no real trace of an iris in sight. As she usually did when she was preparing to yell at one of the kids, her hands were placed on her hips and her beak was stuck up slightly in the air.

    ¡°Well?¡± Said Ms. Whitney in a shrill voice, eyeing Anna up and down and tapping her foot impatiently, ¡°explain yourself.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not sure what you mean Ms. Whitney,¡± Anna said, attempting to sound as innocent as possible. While it was somewhat true that she wasn¡¯t sure what Ms. Whitney was so angry about, that was simply because she had done a lot to possibly anger the Bird since the last time she had been scolded.

    ¡°Don¡¯t feign ignorance with me you stupid child,¡± spat the matron, ¡°You were in such a hurry to hide in your room after breaking curfew last night, that you decided to leave your jacket in the middle of the kitchen floor. And look what I just happened to find in your pocket when I went to pick it up this morning.¡±

    She reached behind her and grabbed a cellophane wrapped snack cake that Anna now noticed was laying next to her jacket on the kitchen table. The cellophane had ruptured and the cake looked slightly squished, as if it had been sat on. Anna wanted to feel relief that the only jacket she owned had been located, but all she could feel was dread welling up in the pit of her stomach.

    ¡°Now I know you didn¡¯t get this from the orphanage seeing as how we don¡¯t keep this kind of junk on the premises and you damned sure don¡¯t have the money to have bought it. That leads me to one conclusion: you stole it, didn¡¯t you?¡±

    She had posed it as a question but Anna knew better. Even if she had been innocent, Ms. Whitney had already decided it was stolen and her mind wasn¡¯t being changed.Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.

    ¡°Um, I found it,¡± Anna said, trying to sound as convincing as possible, ¡°yeah, see, I took the trash out late last night, I had forgotten to do it earlier and I found it on the sidewalk near the dumpster. I figured someone must have dropped it on their way home from the store and they weren¡¯t around for me to return it to, so I picked it up and must have forgotten it in my pocket. I was just so tired when I came in last night, you know, from taking the trash out, that I must have dropped my jacket on the floor. But I swear Ms. Whitney, I didn¡¯t steal it. I would never do something so dishonest.¡±

    She realized at this point that she was beginning to ramble and with each word the skeptical look on the Bird¡¯s face was growing more and more unbelieving, so she shut up.

    ¡°Oh, really?¡± questioned Ms. Whitney pacing back and forth. She lifted Anna''s jacket up to reveal several more snack cakes.

    ¡°You filthy liar of a child. I suppose you found a whole box did you?" She asked but before Anna could respond, she continued, "I don''t believe a word of it. Quite frankly, I don''t believe fifty percent of what you say and another fifty percent of what comes from your devious little mouth. You are a foul girl, a blight on this orphanage and on me. I''m sure you have stolen these, you selfish brat. I bet you wanted a sweet little treat all to yourself, thought you deserved it did you? You deserve lashings, whippings, yes that''s what a troublemaker like you needs.¡± She stopped pacing and glared directly at Anna, who released the breath she hadn''t realized she was holding.

    This whole time, Anna had not so much as fidgeted nor blinked.

    ¡°Lucky for you, I have no proof, but I daresay your time of reckoning is fast approaching. Dress violations may not be enough to remove you from our care, but one way or another I will have you out of this institution and on the streets! Oh ho ho, there is proof that you are doing something felonious, you miscreant, and Ole Miss Whitney will be the one to find it and have you removed! The next time I see you, that shirt better be ironed or you¡¯ll be cleaning the bathrooms with a toothbrush. Your toothbrush to be precise.¡± she said, sneering.

    ¡°But you did break curfew and for that you deserve some sort of punishment,¡± she said with a sick grin on her face.

    She reached her hand towards Anna, who was expecting her to grab her shirt and drag her to where the Ladies kept the whipping sticks. Instead, her long, bony fingers closed around the chain wrapped around Anna¡¯s neck and pulled. Anna felt the clasp break free from her skin.

    ¡°No!¡± Anna yelled, trying to grab the necklace, but Ms. Whitney held her hand out flatly to stop her.

    ¡°You live under my roof and so long as you continue to disobey me, you will continue to be punished. Seeing as how lashings don¡¯t seem to get through to you, perhaps losing your only worldly possession might do the trick,¡± and with that, she turned and walked through the kitchen, down the hall, and into her office.

    She slammed the door so hard behind her, the silverware on the table rattled.

    Anna felt like her blood was boiling. For a moment, she considered marching into the Bird¡¯s office and demanding she give her necklace back. She also considered breaking something; perhaps the dishes, or possibly one of the rickety wooden chairs that sat in the kitchen. But what good would that do? Then she would have lost her necklace and she would be getting lashings. She needed some fresh air, maybe that would calm her down some. She grabbed one of the ill-gotten cakes from the pile and made her way to the door in the main hall. She made sure to shut it behind her with quite as much force as Ms. Whitney had slammed her own door.

    Anna stood on the porch for a moment, staring at the warped wood and derelict support beams. One corner of the porch''s roof was sagging from old age. After a minute or two, Anna decided to walk to town. There wasn¡¯t really much she could do there but the walk would do wonders for clearing her head and calming her down. It doesn¡¯t even matter, she thought to herself. For a brief second, she played with the idea of just waiting until night time and sneaking into Ms. Whitney¡¯s office to steal the necklace back once The Bird was asleep. But she quickly gave up on that plan; it would just make things worse once the matron noticed she had it back. Anna would just have to try and behave herself for a while. Hopefully Ms. Whitney would decide to give it back in exchange for Anna doing extra chores or something. It wasn¡¯t likely, but at this point she didn¡¯t have any better options.

    She stomped down the front porch steps, hearing them creak and groan with every step. Like everything else in the orphanage, the porch was old and rickety and while it may have once been a bastion of beauty and craftsmanship, years of neglect had allowed it to fall into disrepair. The only time any kind of maintenance crew visited the orphanage was whenever something necessary broke, such as the time when the main sewer line had frozen and busted. Other than those few and far between emergency fixes, the Ladies seemed completely content to allow the building to die a slow and unremarkable death. The dirt driveway that led up to the orphanage connected to a gravel covered road that led straight into the town a few miles away. As Anna¡¯s feet met the dirt, she let out a yell and kicked up a cloud of dust in frustration. It served no purpose, but it did make her feel a bit better.

    She made her way down the driveway and onto the gravel road, muttering obscenities and vague threats about Ms. Whitney the whole way. What little sun that was attempting to shine through the overcast sky was quickly blocked by the tree canopy that spread out above the road. There was a good amount of forest that surrounded the land that the orphanage was built on, with very few breaks in the trees along the journey to town. The wind began to pick up, howling through the trees as it travelled. Anna quickly found herself wishing that she had had the forethought to grab her jacket from where Ms. Whitney had thrown it down before she stormed out, but she wasn¡¯t going back for it now. The November air might be uncomfortable, but the thought of being face to face with the Bird again was absolutely unbearable. Anna began to walk a bit more briskly in an attempt to warm herself up some.

    For a while, she was carried along by the fuel that was her hatred of Ms. Whitney. Her dislike for the woman burned inside of her and thoughts of revenge played inside her head. She considered adding powdered bleach to the Bird¡¯s laundry detergent to ruin her clothing. She played with the idea of adding sugar to the gas tank of the old station wagon that Ms. Whitney drove around in like it was a Bentley. She even considered removing the shower head in the Ladies shower room and putting hard candy in there so that when Ms. Whitney took a shower, all of her clothes would stick to her in a hilariously uncomfortable way. She would never do any of these things of course. Ms. Whitney would know who had done it regardless of whether or not she had any proof. Everything bad that ever happened at the orphanage was somehow Anna¡¯s fault, even when it wasn¡¯t. But the thoughts of Ms. Whitney getting her comeuppance helped to ease Anna¡¯s anger and frustration, and it was fun to think about getting her revenge even if she never actually would.

    After a good mile of walking, Anna¡¯s thoughts began to drift away from revenge and towards the events of the previous night. It was all a dream,  Anna thought again. But was it really? If it had been a dream, it had certainly been a realistic one. As a matter of fact, she still seemed to have some dirt on her palms, as if she had actually picked up a dirty board to smack someone with. But still, it couldn¡¯t have been real. People couldn¡¯t do the things those two had been doing in that alleyway, it just wasn¡¯t physically possible. And the woman had known Anna¡¯s name but Anna was absolutely positive that she had never met that woman before in her life. She was pretty sure she would remember someone name Gwendolyn who could summon a swarm of bats with a stick. And she had definitely stolen the cakes... But before Anna could think on the subject any longer, her thoughts were interrupted by a voice coming from the trees somewhere near her.

    ¡°Oh, she¡¯s pretty, but she needs a bath.¡±

    The voice was high pitched, and seemed to have a sort of sing-song quality to it, and while it sounded more curious than threatening, Anna was immediately unnerved by it. Her head began to swivel back and forth, looking for the person to whom the voice belonged. She was the only person on the road in either direction as far as she could see, and it would have been impossible for anyone to sneak up on her through the woods without making some sort of noise on the fallen autumn leaves that littered the ground. From the trees above her came a sound somewhere between a bullfrog croaking and a pig snorting. Anna looked up, her head swiveling back and forth, for the source of the foreign sound. What she saw immediately removed any thoughts of the phantom voice from her head. Perched in the trees about ten feet from the road was the strangest looking bird Anna had ever seen in her life.

    The bird was quite a bit larger than any Anna had seen in the area before. It¡¯s upper body was covered in shining white feathers that almost seemed to glow against the brown backdrop of dead leaves and wood behind it. A plume of black feathers protruded from the back of the birds head and a ring of red feathers encircled it¡¯s coal black eyes. The eyes themselves were adorned with the longest eyelashes Anna had ever seen on a bird, or even a person for that matter. The bird stood on two long legs that were covered in pitch black feathers that clashed brilliantly against it¡¯s white upper body. Something about the bird seemed oddly formal to Anna and for a moment, she imagined the bird cartoonishly filing paperwork in some sort of office.

    The bird cocked its head in a look of curiosity at Anna for just a moment before abruptly taking off in a graceful flight, shaking a few dead leaves from the branch it had sat upon. Though the area above the bird was a maze of tree branches, it navigated them flawlessly before disappearing out of sight. Anna heard it¡¯s call again as it took to the air and couldn¡¯t help but think that for such a pretty looking bird, it sure did have a goofy sounding call. It was definitely strange though; Anna had lived in this area her entire life, but she had never seen any sort of bird that even slightly resembled the creature she had just encountered. As she continued her walk towards town, Anna couldn¡¯t help but think that she had been having a very strange day. Between the crazy dream or memory or whatever from the previous night, to waking up in her bed with no memory of how she¡¯d gotten home, to hearing a disembodied voice from the trees followed by a strange bird spying on her, Anna briefly began to wonder if she was going crazy. Insanity would certainly explain the last twenty four hours, but Anna had a nagging feeling that her mental health wasn¡¯t the cause of the strangeness.

    She continued her walk, lost in her thoughts, for another half hour before finally, she could see the break in the trees that told her she had made it to town. If she had known what awaited her ahead, she would have turned around right then and went back to hang out with Ms. Whitney. As it was, Anna was neither a psychic nor was she particularly great at staying out of trouble, so she continued on her way.

 Bullies, Birds, and Brodericks

    Upon finally making it to town, Anna quickly realized she wasn¡¯t really sure what to do. Her anger at Ms. Whitney still hadn¡¯t dissipated, so the walk hadn¡¯t done what she had hoped it would. On top of that, the headache she had been experiencing since waking up was still coming in spastic and threatening waves, causing her to feel nauseous every few minutes. For a brief moment she considered trying to snag some more sweet cakes from one of the little stores that sprinkled the small town, but the events of the previous night had caused her to get cold feet as far as shoplifting went. Even if it had all been a dream, something about the whole situation had her nerves on edge.

    At the town limits, a small weathered sign had been hammered into the ground to mark the boundary. It read:

    Welcome to Darjeary, Indiana

    Pop. 12,345

    Not a single extraordinary or remarkable thing to mention. No attractions or museums, no historical sights, nothing even slightly approaching picturesque or noteworthy. Years of being exposed to the elements had taken their toll on the sign, so much so that the ''a'' and ''j'' had peeled off completely and the sign seemed to read ¡®Dreary¡¯ instead of the proper name. Anna felt that the correction was rather fitting however, for the word dreary perfectly encapsulated the small midwestern town. There was hardly anything to do but most of the people in the town still always seemed to be in some sort of a hurry. Everyone seemed too busy to stop and say hello or even notice the other denizens around them even though the town didn''t really have anywhere for them to be going. Many of the buildings that lined the streets had been forsaken and boarded up so that the town seemed to be made up of small, run-down thrift shops, a few gas stations, a couple of restaurants, and a coffee shop that all the older kids with long hair liked to hang out at while smoking cigarettes they had stolen from their mom¡¯s purses. Anna wasn¡¯t much of a coffee drinker herself, not that she could afford it even if she was, but she did rather enjoy walking by the place and basking in the sweet aromas that emitted from it.

    Since there wasn¡¯t much to do in the way of shops or entertainment, Anna also knew that this meant there was not much work to be found within the Darjeary area. The main center of employment, she knew, was a large manufacturing center, located about twenty miles outside the town limits. She had never been there herself, but had gathered that there were several different kinds of plants, from a meat processing center, to a plant that made packaging for food. All of the plants were owned by a single man: Alexei von Daringard. Even the few people who didn¡¯t work at one of his plants knew his name. The Daringards probably had the biggest house around for at least fifty miles, and it seemed that he enjoyed riding around the rickety old town in his limousine just to flex his power and wealth to the other residents.

    The Daringards also owned most of the land that the town was built on, especially the farmlands that surrounded the town. Apparently, his father had come through some years ago and bought up large swaths of land during a time of economic recession. Many of the original farmers and store owners had had no choice but to sell to him; it was either that or face total bankruptcy and possible homelessness. It was a not-so-secret secret that Mr. Daringard essentially ruled the town. Bo Pokeep was the mayor, but everyone knew who really called the shots and made the decisions. Even at her young age, Anna had realized that money went a long way towards influencing decisions.

    The wealthy socialite also had a daughter named Alexis whom Anna hated with a passion. If she was being totally honest with herself, a small part of her was perhaps jealous of the girl¡¯s wealth and status, but she mostly hated her because she was a big, gaping buttmunch. Anna would frequently witness her frollicking around town and treating people as if they were no more than the dirt she walked on. She would go into stores and drop glass bottles purposefully, letting out a high pitched ¡°Whoops,¡± followed by an evil giggle, just to watch the workers have to clean it, all while making offhand remarks about how she¡¯s glad that she would never have to work such a job. Both Alexis and the mistreated workers knew that she couldn''t be stopped or reprimanded. To do so would risk facing her father''s wrath which no one with any sense would bring upon their business. Anna absolutely hated her for this sort of behavior. Anna may not have been perfect, and in fact she caused a fair bit of trouble herself, but she never crossed the line into straight cruelty that Alexis seemed to flirt with at every opportunity.

    Truthfully, the most trouble Anna ever really caused for the town were her bouts of stealing food. She felt bad about it most of the time, but the orphanage barely fed the kids enough to survive and Ms. Whitney liked to give Anna half rations as a punishment whenever she so much as sneezed the wrong way. Anna also tended to try and only take from stores she knew were owned by or connected to Mr. Daringard. This was both because she knew he could afford to replace the lost items and also it provided her some small sort of revenge against Alexis, who had been making fun of Anna every time they crossed paths for as long as she could remember.

    Anna meandered around town for a bit, mostly just walking around aimlessly trying to keep her mind off of Ms. Whitney and the pendant she had taken from Anna. She passed the dollar store where most people went to get supplies whenever their shopping list didn¡¯t require a larger shopping center, which they would have to drive forty miles or so to the next town over to reach. Across the street from the store was a small park where Anna figured she could sit on a swing and take a small break. As her feet met the small pebbles that covered the playground, she felt a few small rocks penetrate through the holes in her shoes. She didn¡¯t even bother to remove them, knowing that more would enter and irritate her as soon as she got rid of the first ones.

    Ignoring the small stabs of pain she felt with each step, she made her way past the tall steel slide that was covered in rust and over to the swingset. At some point, it had clearly held three swings, but one had either broken or been taken so that now only two swings hung from the metal frame. It had been that way for as long as Anna could remember. Just as her hands closed around the icy chain of the swing and her rear end fell into the seat, she heard a noise that made her look up towards the store across the street.

    Tink-tink.

    The bell on the door sang as someone began exiting the store.

    ¡°Oh if it isn''t little Orphan Annie!¡± a voice shrieked from across the street with a spiteful sort of glee.

    Anna felt her heart drop into her stomach so hard and quick that it was almost audible. The pounding in her head seemed to intensify ever so slightly as she watched three figures walk out of the store entrance. As if her day had not already been complicated enough, Alexis von Daringard was now making a beeline straight towards her, flanked on either side by two boys who seemed to follow her wherever she went. As Alexis approached closer to Anna, she seemed to puff out her chest in what she clearly thought was an intimidating manner. Intimidating to a field mouse maybe, Anna thought to herself.

    Alexis was three years older than Anna and quite a bit taller. It didn¡¯t help that Anna was still sitting slouched in the swing which only served to make Alexis seem even larger. She realized this was a precarious position to be in and immediately stood up to face Alexis. Alexis sat her designer handbag down on the bottom of the rusted slide and came within a foot of Anna, the two boys on either side.

    ¡°How¡¯s Little Orphan Annie doing today? Come to dig through the trash for some scraps?¡± Chided Alexis.

    She was the kind of popular girl you usually see on TV harassing everyone else for not being as picture perfect as she was. The kind of girl who tended to be prettier than everyone else in the room, and would not hesitate to point it out to anyone who would listen. She sported the seemingly oh-so sought after combination of blonde hair and blue eyes that people seemed to crave so much and there wasn¡¯t a blemish or pimple to be found on her face. On top of that, she had curves that could make most older women jealous, and was not shy about using her looks to get her way with the boys and men around her. In quite literally every sense, she was the Anti-Anna. Not that this particularly bothered Anna too much. She had no interest in being anything like Alexis.

    ¡°Huh-huh, looks like she done dug through the trash, Lexi. I reckon that¡¯s where she got them clothes she¡¯s wearin'',¡± said the boy to Alexis¡¯s right in a thick country accent.

    Anna recognized this boy as Cletus. His face was not quite so unblemished as Alexis'' face. Between the freckles and acne, it was hard to tell what color his skin was supposed to be. He was usually right on Alexis¡¯ heels, barking on command and begging for scraps like a good little boy. He was not nearly as well-spoken as Alexis, nor as wealthy and it definitely showed. Anna figured that Alexis kept him around in order to make herself seem smarter, richer, and better looking by comparison.

    ¡°Oh Cletus, don¡¯t be so mean. It¡¯s not her fault that she doesn¡¯t have any parents to buy her clothes. Though, they probably left because she¡¯s so ugly, so I guess it really is her fault,¡± replied Alexis, shooting a nasty smile at Anna.

    The three kids guffawed like a bunch of howler monkeys.

    Anna balled her fists and said through gritted teeth, ¡°Keep talking Alexis, I¡¯m sure your daddy can afford to buy you some new teeth once i knock yours crooked.¡±

    Truthfully, Anna did not want to fight Alexis. Anna was not scared of her, but Alexis still had the height advantage and Anna would not put it past Cletus to hit a girl in order to defend his dear ¡®Lexi¡¯. On top of that, Alexis¡¯ father could probably afford to buy the orphanage, and Anna could only imagine what horrors that would bring. But still, she wasn¡¯t about to let Alexis walk all over her like she did everyone else in her path.

    ¡°Oh, go right ahead sweetheart,¡± said Alexis, provocation dripping from every word, ¡°I¡¯m sure Ms¡­ What was her name? Ms. Witness or whatever, would just love to receive a call from my father¡¯s lawyer.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong, too scared to fight your own battles?" Anna shot back, "I¡¯d be scared of me too if I were you. Haven¡¯t you heard? I¡¯m crazy!¡±

    As she said this, Anna stuck out her tongue and shook her head violently, doing her best to look as maniacal as possible. This greatly increased her pounding headache but it was worth it. She reveled in the looks of disgust that passed between the three older kids as they each took a few steps backwards. Her reputation as a trouble maker could only help to serve her purpose.

    But Alexis quickly regained her composure before rebutting, ¡°¡°I¡¯m not scared of anything, especially not some ratty, underfed, unwanted little orphan like you.¡±

    Anna did her best to not show the sting that the words carried with them. Clearly she didn¡¯t mask it well enough as Alexis pushed forward with her insults.

    ¡°It must be so sad, to know that you had parents who didn¡¯t want you. I wouldn¡¯t know though. But they could have at least left enough money for you to afford a brush for that nappy mop of hair on your head. I mean really, I know you live in an orphanage, but surely they must at least give you shampoo right? Clearly not as it smells like they don¡¯t even give you soap for your clothes to be washed with.¡±

    Anna suddenly became very conscious of the myriad of stains that adorned her shirt. She immediately found herself wishing that she had found a cleaner outfit to wear that morning so as to not give Alexis more ammunition.

    ¡°At least I don¡¯t need my dad to buy my friends,¡± Anna spat at her.

    Unfortunately, this only seemed to please Alexis.

    ¡°Apparently your dad doesn¡¯t need you at all,¡± She retorted with a twisted smile.

    The heat Anna had felt earlier during her confrontation with Ms. Whitney suddenly came rushing back, completely overshadowing the cold wind that was permeating her ragged clothing. Without giving it a second thought, she brought her arm back and swung her fist right at Alexis¡¯ face, intent on wiping that smug smile right off of it. Unfortunately, this didn¡¯t go quite as she had hoped.

    Just as her fist was about to make contact, the second boy, whose name Anna didn¡¯t know, reached towards her with a speed that didn¡¯t quite match the stupefied look on his face, catching Anna¡¯s wrist in midair. Anna looked over at him but before she could really register what had happened, Cletus had reached around to grab her other wrist and the two boys now held her in place, completely at Alexis¡¯ mercy.

    ¡°Tsk, tsk,¡± Alexis said, ¡°Poor Orphan Annie, perhaps all the dirt on your clothes is weighing you down,¡±

    ¡°Get some new material,¡± Anna said and without hesitation, she kicked Alexis directly in the kneecap.

    The girl fell to the ground, howling in pain. Anna felt a sweet rush of euphoria sweep through her but it was short lived. Alexis stood back up almost immediately, a look of rage contorting her pretty features. Her hair looked markedly more disheveled than it had a few seconds before. Anna grinned at her. Alexis eyed her with disgust, let out a snort, and then spat on Anna. Before Anna could share in her disgust, Alexis had taken advantage of Anna being bound and smacked her across the face followed by a hard shove. Anna toppled backwards, tripping over the swing before landing with a hard thud on the ground. The three kids erupted in malicious laughter. Anna could feel her eyes begin to burn with tears.

    ¡°You know, you¡¯re braver than you look. You¡¯re also stupider than you look and that¡¯s really saying something,¡± Alexis said.

    Anna dropped her head and did not reply. She did not want to look up at her three tormentors. She knew she had messed up and was fully expecting that she was about to get her butt handed to her in a fight she had no chance of winning. But the blows she expected didn¡¯t come. Instead, Alexis turned and began walking towards the slide. She grabbed her purse and returned, her hand fishing around inside the bag for something. She pulled out a small rectangular shaped object that Anna recognized as a cellular phone. Anna didn¡¯t have one herself of course, but she had seen other kids with them as well as the advertisements for them in magazines she had stolen from various stores. Alexis clicked around on the screen a few times before bringing the phone up to her ear. Anna felt a shiver run down her spine that was quite unrelated to the piercing cold. Whatever Alexis was doing, it could not bode well for Anna.

    ¡°Hi daddy!¡± said Alexis enthusiastically after a few moments of silence, ¡°You know that poor little homeless girl who gave us some trouble a while back? Yes, yes, that¡¯s the one. Well, she¡¯s causing me some problems again and I think I know just how to take care of the issue. Are you still playing cards tonight with Sheriff Owens?¡±

    Anna¡¯s heart began to sink. After all the trouble she had caused in the last few years, her and Sheriff Owens were quite familiar with each other. It wasn¡¯t a ¡®friendly¡¯ kind of familiar either. The words ¡°juvenile detention¡± had been thrown around by the sheriff a time or two and after Anna¡¯s most recent run in with him (it involved a call made by Ms. Whitney herself) she had begun to feel that she was really pushing her luck. There were some muffled noises coming from the earpiece of the phone.

    ¡°Oh no daddy, that isn¡¯t necessary, but I do have a few things I¡¯d like for you to speak to him about tonight. This girl is really becoming a problem I can¡¯t tolerate any longer.¡±

    Again, anger began to boil underneath Anna¡¯s skin, replacing the shivers with a long-building hot hatred for Alexis. She hated everything the girl stood for, everything she did, everything she had. It¡¯s not fair, Anna thought to herself as Alexis continued to complain to her father. The hatred began to feel as if it were ringing throughout her body, she could feel the waves of fury pulsing through her very veins. She had never done anything to deserve the hand she had been dealt. Sure, she had stolen some food here and there, maybe a magazine or book a few times, but she was merely a victim of circumstance. Anna was simply trying to survive, she wasn¡¯t actively trying to hurt the people around her. Alexis was another story. She had been handed the whole world on a silver platter and still it wasn¡¯t enough for her. She chose to push and poke people, drag them through the mud and kick them when they were down. Anna despised her and that feeling of malice had never been so strong as it was in this moment.

    ¡°Hey, what¡¯s up with your hair, freak?¡± said the second boy that Anna only knew by sight.

    ¡°Looks like she went and rubbed a b¡¯loon on her head Jay,¡± said Cletus, eyeing Anna up and down.

    Anna wasn¡¯t paying them any attention, the whole world was being drowned by the ringing in her ears, and all she could seem to focus on was Alexis.

    ¡°Stop,¡± said Anna quietly.

    ¡°I¡¯m so sorry daddy, could you repeat that, the riff raff around here was being too loud,¡± said Alexis into the mouthpiece, completely ignoring Anna.

    ¡°I said stop!¡± Anna shouted with as much conviction as she could muster.

    As she did so, the phone in Alexis¡¯s hand suddenly exploded, sending plastic and metal and smoke flying everywhere. The force of the blast was enough to knock Alexis straight off her feet, and she crumpled in a heap on the ground. For a moment, nobody moved or even breathed. Anna was dumbstruck, she did not understand what had just happened.

    ¡°She¡¯s a witch, she¡¯s a witch!¡± Yelled Cletus at the top of his lungs, ¡°She¡¯s a witch and she done killed Lexi!¡±

    ¡°What did you do to her?¡± said the boy, who was apparently named Jay, accusingly.

    ¡°I¡­ I didn¡¯t... I don¡¯t¡­¡± Stammered Anna.

    But the boys¡¯ faces showed that their minds were already set that Anna had somehow been responsible. She didn¡¯t know what to say, she didn¡¯t know how to respond; it felt as though she were in some kind of dream. To make matters worse, her head had began aching so much that she could black spots now swimming in her vision.

    ¡°Ughhh¡­¡± Moaned Alexis, as she tried to sit up.

    Her two lackeys bent down automatically to help her. Anna didn¡¯t have to look long to see the damage. What had just moments before been a perfectly symmetrical, beautiful face, was now a bloody mess on most of one side.

    ¡°Cletus, go inside and use the Mason¡¯s phone to call 9-1-1, tell them to send cops and an ambulance. Hurry!¡± Urged the boy called Jay, who then turned to look at Anna while still supporting Alexis. ¡°Oh, you¡¯re done now, freak. You¡¯ll be sent away over this for sure.¡±

    Anna did not know what else to do, so she did something she was reasonably good at. She turned, and began running as fast as she could. She looked back briefly to see Alexis being helped into the general goods store by Cletus and her heart dropped as she realized that Jay had decided to give chase to her. She was fast on her feet, but Jay was several years older and his legs were quite a bit longer. Luckily for Anna, she had a little experience trying to evade pursuers and Jay was a bit on the heavy side. She hung a right down the first street she came to before cutting a sharp left into a dank, narrow alleyway. Images of the previous night flashed in her mind for just a moment, but she couldn¡¯t think about that now. She pushed the thoughts to the back of her mind while also pushing her legs a bit harder.

    About halfway down the alleyway was a rusted chain link fence. In the manner of someone who has had lots of practice climbing fences, Anna shimmied over the top and hopped down the other side with ease. She stopped and turned, but only for a moment. To her horror, Jay¡¯s weight did not seem to affect his fence climbing ability and he was almost over the top. Anna bolted before waiting to see if he would climb down the other side or jump from the top as she had. If the loud thud behind her was any indication, he had chosen to jump as well.

    Anna wound her way down cramped alleyways, through abandoned side streets, and past derelict buildings, their uses and inhabitants long forgotten. She didn''t dare turn around again, but she could hear the thump thump thump of Jay¡¯s sneakers as he followed closely behind her, the sounds of their shoes echoing through the quiet streets. Doesn¡¯t this guy ever give up, Anna thought to herself before almost losing her balance on some gravel as she took another sharp right into another extremely tight alley. Before she could get far though, something peculiar happened. A paint-stripped door creaked open just as Anna was passing, and a hand reached out of it with lightning speed, grabbing Anna forcefully and yanking her inside.

    ¡°What the--!¡± Anna exclaimed as she lost her balance and toppled through the doorway.

    The door shut quickly, but quietly behind her. Anna was instantly enveloped in a cloud of darkness and silence as the door closed. She did not dare even take a breath in case Jay were to be listening at the door. Luckily, a few moments later, she heard the thudding that told her Jay was passing by the door and taking his pursuit further down the alley. When she did finally take a breath, the deep, labored gasp seemed even louder in the placid room. Slowly, her eyes began to adjust to the darkness. As they did so, a person¡¯s silhouette began to take form just a few feet away. It looked as if the stranger was beginning to reach toward Anna. She began to crawl back frantically, terror starting to grip her all over again. But the hand wasn¡¯t reaching for her. Instead, it was getting a light.Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on.

    Quite literally getting a light in fact. The hand had stuck out in the dark, and a ball of warm, glowing light had slowly floated up from it¡¯s upturned palm. With the help of the light, Anna could now make out the features of the person to whom the hand belonged: it was man, an old man. The man had wispy white hair that hung down to his shoulders and a short, silver colored goatee that did little to hide his wrinkles. The accentuated laugh lines on his face told the story of a man who smiled often, and that very smile happened to be present on his face at that moment. It was a smile that seemed to reach his eyes, which in the light Anna could see were a bright silvery-blue color that matched well with his bushy white eyebrows. They had a mischievous sort of twinkle behind them that belied his elderly appearance. As strange as it was for Anna to find herself alone in a dark room with a strange man, the genuineness of his smile helped to put her at ease.

    He was a bit hunched over, and he carried an ornate looking walking stick that he seemed to be using to help him balance better. The stick itself was adorned with some kind of fanciful symbols that Anna had never seen before. A brilliant blue, perfectly round orb sat atop the walking stick and the wood of the stick seemed to have grown around the orb naturally somehow. The strangeness of the whole situation was increased by the man''s attire. He wore what Anna could only describe as robes, but not the kind you put on after a bath. These robes were sweeping and ornate, with bits of lace on the cuffs and shiny gold buttons on the front. They were colorful, with hues of reds and blues and purples coloring whatever fabric they were made of. His robes were so colorful, in fact, that the man would have stood out like a sore thumb on the grey, drab streets of Darjeary, Indiana.

    ¡°Hello,¡± the man said in a reassuring tone, ¡°my name is Broderick, and you must be Anna.¡±

    ¡°I told you she could use a bath,¡± came another voice from somewhere behind the man named Broderick, but Anna could not see anyone else in the room with them.

    The voice sounded oddly familiar to Anna for some reason. She heard some scuffling from behind Broderick and suddenly a bird shuffled into the light. Not just any bird. It was the same white bird that Anna had seen perched in the trees earlier during her walk into town.

    ¡°Pretty, but dirty. And underfed. Told you so,¡± the bird said in a matter-of-fact tone.

    I¡¯ve definitely lost my mind, Anna thought.

    ¡°Nope. No, no, nope. I¡¯m out. That...That thing just talked and I¡¯m stuck in a dark room with some crazy old guy. Move please,¡± Anna said but she didn''t give Broderick the opportunity to comply.

    She pushed herself past the man and the bird, who squawked in a way that Anna could only describe as indignantly. Her hand had just reached the handle of the door when the man said something that made her hesitate.

    ¡°Don¡¯t you want to know what happened last night? What happened with Gwen?¡±

    Anna felt a cold shiver run down her spine. How does he know about that, she thought. She turned to face the man. For some reason his words had made her angry and her next words came out louder than she meant them to.

    ¡°How do you know about that?! Were you the one who attacked that woman?¡± she said with an unmistakable tone of accusation in her voice.

    The man looked hurt at her words. The joyous twinkle had faded from his eyes somewhat.

    ¡°I would never harm Gwendolyn,¡± he said quietly, ¡°she was the very best friend I could ever, or will ever have.¡±

    Something in his voice told Anna that he spoke the truth. She felt her anger dissipate, only to be replaced by shame. She was also intensely curious to see what the old man knew about the craziness she had experienced in the last twenty four hours. She wanted answers and perhaps this Broderick fellow could give them to her. But she wasn¡¯t prepared to fully lower her guard just yet.

    ¡°I¡¯m listening,¡± Anna said, somewhat hesitantly.

    ¡°Well, aren¡¯t you a spry little chick,¡± the bird said.

    Anna felt the urge to leave again due to the sheer strangeness of a bird speaking, but she decided to confront the strangeness head on instead.

    ¡°I wasn¡¯t talking to you,¡± she said before looking Broderick directly in the eyes and saying forcefully, ¡°what happened in that alley last night?¡±

    ¡°Truthfully, I¡¯m not sure,¡± Broderick replied.

    Anna didn¡¯t find this answer very satisfactory.

    ¡°Well, if you can¡¯t tell me what happened, I¡¯ll be leav-¡±

    ¡°I believe Gwendolyn granted you her magic,¡± Broderick stated, as if this were a completely normal thing for a human being to say.

    Anna laughed. She hadn¡¯t meant to, but his response had been crazy, ludicrous, delusional even.

    ¡°Yeah, okay,¡± she said with obvious sarcasm, ¡°I thought you were strange. I see now that I was wrong about you. You¡¯re just insane.¡±

    ¡°Surely you¡¯ve felt it. I can see it in your eyes. Can you explain what occurred last night? I¡¯m not privy to the exact details as I wasn¡¯t there, but Gwendolyn¡¯s magic is radiating off of you like a beacon. I imagine you saw some things that you can¡¯t quite make sense of. Otherwise, you¡¯d have opened that door and left already,¡± Broderick said.

    He spoke with a sureness that made Anna nervous for some reason. This old man was off his rocker, wasn¡¯t he?

    ¡°Look, pal, I¡¯m not a kid. I learned magic isn¡¯t real a long time ago. If it was, this world would be a much better place than it is now,¡± Anna said.

    ¡°Can you tell me what happened? I can feel Gwendolyn¡¯s magic reverberating from within you, but truthfully, I¡¯m not sure how she would have given it to you. In terms of history, I can¡¯t recall any sorcerer or sorceress passing their magic to another person before. As far as I know, it is unheard of. But the traces of Gwendolyn on you are unmistakable. Perhaps, if you can recount last night¡¯s events to me, we can figure out exactly what happened together,¡± Broderick replied, as if he hadn¡¯t heard a word Anna had just said.

    He spoke with such conviction that Anna was having trouble finding another denial. Perhaps it had all been real¡­ What did she have to lose by recounting the story to him, anyways? The man was clearly insane so it¡¯s not like he could exactly judge her too harshly. Anna looked around for somewhere to sit before attempting to recount the outlandish events of the previous night, but there was no furniture in this room. There was only the three of them and a cloud of dust that seemed to sparkle like glitter from the glow of the ball of light Broderick was brandishing. The flooring of the abandoned building had warped from years of neglect and floorboards jutted up at awkward angles. Anna didn¡¯t imagine it would be too comfortable to sit on, but it would have to do.

    As if he had read her mind, Broderick said quickly, ¡°Allow me,¡± before tapping his staff on the ground.

    The crystal orb that sat atop his staff began to glow a brilliant blue light, almost as bright as the light he held. The blue traveled quickly down the staff and seemed to dissipate into the floorboards. The ground beneath Anna began to shudder and vibrate. As if they were alive, the warped boards began to wriggle and move and change. It was as if they were made of liquid. Anna could not believe her eyes and for a second, the urge to run away was almost unbearable. The floorboards rose and intertwined, a faint shimmer of blue light emanating from them. This lasted for just a few moments before the glow disappeared and, where only moments before had been empty space, a makeshift chair now sat, formed from the floorboards themselves. Anna had been so fascinatingly preoccupied watching her own chair form, that she hadn¡¯t noticed a second one forming behind Broderick.

    ¡°Oh sure, I¡¯ll just sit on the floor then,¡± the bird squawked before turning away from them and beginning to preen herself.

    Anna wasn¡¯t exactly in tune with the feelings of birds, but this one definitely seemed annoyed. Broderick ignored the bird¡¯s remark and took a seat in his magically makeshift chair. He gestured for Anna to sit as well. She hesitated for a moment before taking the seat across from him.

    ¡°There. Now that we are comfortable, tell me what happened. Please,¡± he said.

    His friendly demeanor was still present, but there was also a slight sign of pleading in his tone. So Anna told him. She told him everything she could remember, skipping past the part of why she had been running before coming to the alley of course. For some reason, she didn¡¯t think this Broderick fellow would be very impressed at her petty thievery. At some point, the bird had stopped preening herself and was focused intently on what Anna was saying. Finally, after what felt like an eternity, she came to the end of her tale.

    ¡°And the next thing I knew I was waking up in my bed this morning with no idea how I got there and a splitting headache,¡± she finished.

    She was surprised to feel the beginnings of tears in her eyes. She wiped them away quickly, feeling ashamed.

    ¡°It is rather dusty in here, isn¡¯t it?¡± Broderick asked before wiping some moisture from his own eyes, ¡°Would you like some tea?¡±

    Without waiting for an answer, he moved his hand from the ball of light and started to rummage around the inside of his robe. Anna was somewhat surprised to see the ball stayed hanging in the air, as if suspended by some invisible rope. After a moment, Broderick pulled out a nondescript wooden box. It wasn¡¯t overly large, but she still was not sure how he had managed to conceal it so fully under his robes. He popped the lid of the tartan box open to reveal two small porcelain cups and an assortment of what looked to be different kinds of tea bags. Broderick removed the cups and sat them in the air in front of him. Much like the ball of light, and to Anna¡¯s endless amazement, they floated in the air between them. He grabbed his staff, which he had leaned against his floorboard chair, tipped it over one of the cups, and began to pour steaming hot water from the crystal as if this was a perfectly normal thing to do. He then did the same with the other cup before steeping a tea bag in each one.

    His hand made a waving gesture towards one of the cups and it began to bob through the air towards Anna, spilling a small drop as it made its way to her. She retrieved it somewhat hesitantly from the air and took a sip. Her mouth had become rather dry from all the talking she had done combined with the thick dust hanging in the air and the tea brought her much needed relief. She had drank tea at the orphanage before but this tea was absolutely exquisite compared to what the orphanage had provided. She was used to not having sugar with her tea, but even without sweetener, this tea had a sweet, almost honey-like taste to it and it seemed to float across her tongue, sending a warming sensation down her throat and into her belly that spread to the very tips of her fingers. The headache that had plagued her all morning began to subside quite a bit as she drank the tea.

    ¡°Well, Anna, I can¡¯t be precisely sure what happened, but I can make an educated guess,¡± Broderick said.

    He was giving her a deep, searching sort of look that made Anna feel somewhat exposed.

    ¡°Please do, I¡¯ve just been thinking I¡¯ve gone mad,¡± Anna admitted.

    ¡°My dear, you are definitely not mad, and despite what your mind might be telling you, this is all far from a dream. I will tell you what I think happened, but first I need to provide you some context. We, as in my people, have a magic thief in our midst. He, or she, has been plaguing my community for many months now, murdering and stealing the magic of our citizens. I believe that this is the person you saw Gwen dueling with last night.¡±

    ¡°But I thought you said people couldn¡¯t pass magic to someone else?¡± Anna said, remembering what Broderick had said earlier.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t say it couldn¡¯t be done, just that it hasn¡¯t ever happened before to my knowledge. Before now, at least. And there is a rather large difference between giving one¡¯s magic away and stealing someone else¡¯s. There are dark and forbidden methods for taking another sorcerer''s magic, most of which are ancient, and all of which have been outlawed by the Five Kingdoms.¡±

    ¡°The five who?¡±

    ¡°Kingdoms. The Five Kingdoms who bear magic. Throughout the ages, some dark sorcerers and sorceresses have conspired to steal the magic of others, almost always in an attempt to make themselves stronger, to gather power for one nefarious deed or another. One of the most well known and well documented methods of this is the Saccularus Blade. The blade¡¯s origins have been lost to the deep annals of history, but it¡¯s misuse is quite well known to most in my world. It has been used several times by wicked souls to steal the magic of others. To steal another sorcerer¡¯s magic is a vile and traitorous deed, and eventually, the blade was locked deep within the vaults of my own kingdom.¡±

    ¡°Despicable,¡± the bird cut in.

    Anna jumped; she had almost forgotten the bird was there.

    ¡°What¡¯s with the talking bird?¡± She asked.

    ¡°How rude of me,¡± said Broderick, ¡°this is Misaada. She is what is known as a secretary bird and she is the most wonderful assistant one could ask for. She goes wherever I go.¡±

    ¡°Only because you¡¯d be helpless without me,¡± the bird proclaimed in a very matter-of-fact tone.

    Broderick smiled at this before focusing back on Anna.

    ¡°Now, where was I?¡±

    ¡°The knife was locked in some vaults,¡± Anna said, eager to hear the rest of the tale.

    ¡°Ah, yes. Many years ago, the blade was reclaimed by the Royal family and locked deep within our most secure vault, deep below the Kingdom castle. But at some point, it was stolen,¡± Broderick said with a sigh.

    ¡°Your secure vaults don¡¯t sound very secure,¡± Anna said sarcastically.

    ¡°Yes, well, that is another matter, one of which I have my own concerns. But we shall save that for later. Truthfully, no one realized the Saccularus Blade was missing at first. For all we really know, it could have been missing for years. Unfortunately, the contents of the vault aren¡¯t examined very often, so it¡¯s hard to say when exactly it may have been taken. It only really came to our attention that a burglary had occurred when the murders began.¡±

    Anna felt a chill run down her spine.

    She took another sip of tea before saying, ¡°That was the blade that the man dressed in black had last night.¡±

    ¡°That is my best guess, yes,¡± confirmed Broderick, ¡°and whomever you saw was attempting to steal Gwen¡¯s magic. It makes sense, as much sense as any of this can make in any case. Gwen is¡­¡± he paused, seeming to collect himself before continuing, ¡°Gwen was one of the most powerful and accomplished sorceresses of our time. It only makes sense that she would be a target of the magic thief.¡±

    ¡°But none of this makes sense,¡± Anna said, sounding exasperated, ¡°why on Earth would two people from your¡­ world or country or kingdom, whatever, be here. We are literally in the middle of nowhere. Even the people who live here don¡¯t want to be here. Why would someone of your kind choose to come to this run down town?¡±

    Broderick sat silent for a while. Anna began to think he wasn''t going to answer her. Misaada seemed to shift uncomfortably, her long claws making soft scratching noises against the worn flooring. Finally, Broderick sighed, before speaking again.

    ¡°That is something that I don¡¯t know. I honestly couldn¡¯t even hazard a guess. It is rare for people of my kind to come to your world, and I couldn¡¯t begin to think what Gwen thought she might find in such a place as this.¡±

    Anna felt a pang of annoyance at this.

    Another moment of silence passed between them before the bird spoke again, ¡°You must tell her more Broderick, the poor girl needs answers.¡±

    ¡°Yes, yes, I¡¯m getting there,¡± he said, waving an impatient hand at Misaada, ¡°she is referring to how Gwendolyn managed to give you her powers. It is my belief that Gwendolyn knew that her time was short. She understood the gravity of her situation and the wound inflicted by the Saccularus Blade was causing her magic to leave her body. For reasons only known to Gwen, she must have seized on this opportunity to gift that escaping magic to you.¡±

    ¡°But why?¡± Anna asked frustratedly.

    ¡°Dim girl, didn¡¯t you hear him say for reasons only known to Gwen?¡± Misaada asked, flapping her feathers in an annoyed gesture.

    Anna scoffed indignantly at the bird, but any witty comeback she might have had was cut off by Broderick.

    ¡°Gwen was the smartest sorceress I knew. She was meticulous and careful, and whatever reasons she had for doing what she did must have been good ones. I have never met a more capable person in my life and she wouldn¡¯t have made the decision to give you, someone not of our world, her magic without a reason or intention. It is for this purpose, and others obviously, that I must extend an invitation to you to come with Misaada and I back to our kingdom.¡±

    Anna was dumbfounded. She felt her jaw physically drop as she stared, somewhat stupidly, at Broderick''s calm expression.

    ¡°Well, that silly look isn¡¯t quite so pretty on you,¡± Misaada remarked.

    ¡°An invitation? To your kingdom?!,¡± Anna finally spat incredulously, ¡°You really are crazy. I can¡¯t come with you to¡­ To¡­ To God knows where. This is insanity!¡±

    For some reason, Anna was beginning to feel a bit claustrophobic. She went to take another sip of tea but it seemed to have lost some of its sweetness.

    ¡°My dear, you must understand, things are no longer safe for you here. If I was able to find you so quickly and easily, it will only be a matter of time before the thief is able to find you as well. And on top of that, you have magic now. You must be taught to control it or the consequences could be dire. You¡¯ve had magic for less than a day and you¡¯ve already managed to blow some poor girls face up!¡±

    Anna had no idea how he knew this information, nor did she care.

    She bristled with anger at this before shouting, ¡°Poor girl? POOR GIRL?  Did you even hear what she said to me? Clearly you were listening in somehow,¡± at this, Misaada seemed to look away in shame,¡±so you must have heard the things she was saying to me. Poor girl, seriously? I had nothing to do with that stupid phone blowing up in her stupid face and even if I did, it was less than she deserved!¡±

    Anna¡¯s words rang through the empty room. At some point during her shouting, she had stood from her makeshift chair, though she couldn¡¯t remember exactly when she had done this. Misaada began shuffling her claws on the floor nervously. Broderick opened his mouth, then closed it again and coughed. He seemed to be searching for the right words to say. Anna¡¯s entire body began to feel uncomfortably warm and suddenly, the room she found herself in was threatening to choke her.

    ¡°Anna, please, that¡¯s not what I meant. I just meant that...¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t care!¡± Anna shouted.

    She had had enough of this. Sorcery, and hidden kingdoms, and thieves of magic. It was all utter nonsense and she would not entertain this crazy old man any longer. It was time for her to go. She sat the cup haphazardly onto the seat she had just vacated, causing it to tip over and spill everywhere, before rushing towards the door. She heard Broderick stand up behind her, heard both him and Misaada protest her leaving, but she ignored both of them. She smashed through the door and began sprinting as quickly as possible. She felt some small tinge of relief that Jay was nowhere to be seen as she ran through the streets of town. She passed the park, then the sign welcoming people to town, and before long, she was back on the rundown path that led back to the orphanage. She didn¡¯t dare stop running however. Her legs ached and her lungs felt like they were on fire, but she kept moving as quickly as she could, completely intent on getting as far away from Alexis, and Darjeary, and that old man and stupid bird as she could. Even Ms. Whitney was preferable to the crap she had dealt with since arriving in town.

    A few times, she thought she saw movement in the branches of the trees that lined the road to the orphanage, but she dared not look. She was too afraid that she would see white feathers among the tree limbs again, and right now, she was fine with never seeing another bird in her life. She did not see Misaada again however, and after a while, the trees began to clear somewhat and the orphanage began to show on the horizon, growing larger with each of her thumping footsteps. Finally, Anna reached the front porch of the orphanage, where she stopped for a moment to catch her breath. Her hand came to rest on the rusty handrail that led up the crumbling stairs. The cold metal felt soothing against her hands and seemed to help her slow her breathing. After a moment in which she did her best to collect herself, Anna stomped up the stairs and charged through the door.

    She had opened it with more force than she had intended, and the door crashed into the wall with a loud BANG. She stood as still as possible, doing her best to quiet her labored breaths. She fully expected Ms. Whitney to come barreling towards her, head ablaze with anger at the way she had slammed the door open. But Ms. Whitney did not come, and after a moment Anna figured she was in the clear to continue to her room. She made her way through the drab hallway, intent on making as little noise as possible. She did not want to see or speak to anyone right now. She just wanted to get to her room and hide under the covers. She wanted this day to end.

    Upon entering the kitchen, she saw a most unwelcome sight, however, in the form of Ms. Whitney, sitting at the table. She had a set of headphones perched onto her head that were connected to a small black cassette player. This explained why she had not come running when the door slammed. While Anna couldn¡¯t hear what was playing, she would be willing to bet a full course meal that it was one of the self-help seminars that Ms. Whitney so frequently listened to. She should really ask for her money back for those, they haven¡¯t helped her at all, Anna thought dryly. She made to turn around, hoping she could go the long way around the orphanage to her room, but it was too late. Ms. Whitney had looked up and laid her beady eyes upon Anna.

    ¡°And where have you been?¡± Ms. Whitney said in an accusatory manner.

    ¡°I¡­ Uhhh, I,¡± Anna stammered, not sure what to say.

    I¡¯ve been hanging out with an old man and a talking bird, discussing how some lady gave me magic and a thief wants to take it from me, Anna thought to herself wryly. Somehow, she imagined Ms. Whitney would not entertain this nonsense. Luckily, she didn¡¯t have to explain herself.

    ¡°Honestly, I don¡¯t care. It¡¯s your turn to help prepare dinner. Wash up and start cutting the celery.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m sick,¡± Anna said without thinking, ¡°I started feeling ill a while ago and had hoped that the cool air would help me to feel better.¡±

    Click-clack-click-clack rang through the kitchen as Ms. Whitney¡¯s long fingernails tapped against the wooden table.

    ¡°You¡¯re sick?¡± she asked, her eyes narrowing in a suspicious gaze.

    ¡°Uhhh, yeah,¡± Anna said weakly.

    The chair made a loud screeching noise as Ms. Whitney stood up abruptly and started marching towards Anna, reaching into the pocket of her apron as she did so. She whipped something out causing Anna to flinch and close her eyes, fearing what was coming from the apron.

    ¡°Open up,¡± Ms. Whitney said.

    Anna opened her eyes, but quickly realized her eyes weren¡¯t what Ms. Whitney was referring to. She held a small white digital thermometer in between her bony fingers and was pointing it towards Anna in a menacing manner. Anna opened her mouth obligingly and allowed Ms. Whitney to stick the thermometer under her tongue, feeling a jab of pain as she placed it in with far more force than was necessary. A most uncomfortable minute passed as Anna waited on the bird to realize she was lying. Finally a beep issued from the device and Ms. Whitney checked it with a dubious look on her face.

    ¡°One hundred and two¡­¡± she said slowly, "You are quite sweaty and nasty looking.¡±

    Anna breathed a sigh of relief. Of course her body temperature was up and she was sweaty; she had just ran a few miles back home after all. But luckily, Ms. Whitney was mistaking her physical exertion for illness, and obviously Anna was not about to mention her recent marathon run. Ms. Whitney walked to the old-fashioned sink, which was covered in lyme and calcium deposits, and washed off the thermometer while Anna waited in anticipation. Finally, she turned towards Anna, her lip curled in a disgusted manner.

    ¡°Well?¡±

    ¡°Um, well what?¡± Anna said confused.

    ¡°What are you waiting for you little germ infested brat? Get out of my kitchen and into your bed. The last thing I need to deal with is an epidemic because you don¡¯t know how to wash your hands and cover your mouth when you sneeze. Filthy beast,¡± she snarled before turning and beginning to dig through various cabinets, muttering more insults through her beak.

    Anna did not need to be told twice. She rushed past Ms. Whitney and bolted up the stairs, not daring to look back. She heard Ms. Whitney slamming cans down onto the cheap laminate countertop in frustration, clearly angry that she would have to start the dinner preparations. Upon entering her room, Anna did not even change out of the clothes she had on. She made a beeline straight for her bed, only stopping to grab her itchy blanket from where she had tossed it this morning before crawling into her iron-framed bed. It creaked and groaned under her weight, but it did not bother her like it usually did. Neither did the itchy, scratchy blanket that was long overdue for a wash. The smell of the blanket, the irritation on her skin, the metal spring that poked up from the mattress and stuck her in the back all felt familiar and safe to her at that moment. She briefly wondered if the sheriff would be calling Ms. Whitney to tell her what Anna had done to Alexis. But the phone never rang and Ms. Whitney never came marching to her room. She eventually figured that mess would come to a boil by the next morning, but right now she didn''t care all that much. Her mind was more preoccupied with other things.

    Magic¡­ It was all absolute madness of course. Maybe she really was sick. After the last twenty-four hours she had experienced, she started to feel like she might be in need of a brain doctor far more than the Orphanage nurse. She had a feeling that no antibiotics or cough syrup would help her with whatever illness was causing her to see talking birds and men who could make chairs from floorboards. But what if I do have magic?  She thought to herself, allowing her mind to wander in the blackness as sleep threatened to pull her in.

    She could get back at everyone. She could get revenge on Ms. Whitney for the way she had always treated her, she could put Alexis in her place, she could make all the people who had ever treated her like dirt pay. Dark thoughts though they were, they seemed to help warm her a bit and push away the cold that was beginning to permeate her thin blanket. Soon, Anna fell asleep, thoughts of vengeance and finally getting back at the people who had wronged her following her into her dreams. It was not a peaceful sleep.

    She tossed and turned and began having nightmares of a flaming, monstrous person chasing her through dark, cobblestone covered streets that looked nothing like the worn roads of Darjeary. At one point she awoke, terror gripping her heart and sweat soaking her blanket. But the terror that had come from her nightmares was only allowed to leave for a brief moment, for the flames that had haunted her dreams seemed to have followed her into the waking world. Outside her window, the world seemed to be burning.

 Through the Fire and Flames

    For a moment, Anna was convinced that she must still be dreaming. The orange light from the blaze outside was causing the shadows in her room to jump and dance in a surreal way. In an attempt to wake herself from this nightmare, she pressed her hand against the spring in her bed, hoping the pain would shock her awake. Unfortunately, it didn''t work so she pressed her hand against it again, harder this time. She gasped as the sharp jolt of pain in her hand made her realize she was most definitely not dreaming.

    She noticed she could smell smoke, and though it didn¡¯t seem like the fire had reached her room yet, it was noticeably warmer than it had been when she had fallen asleep. She sat up and looked around in a frantic manner, trying to see if either of the other girls she shared the room with had woken up. Though there were four iron-framed beds in the room, only two other girls besides Anna currently lived in the room. In one bed, she could see a slowly rising and falling mass of covers that told her that Dani was still asleep and in the other bed, a pair of feet that was missing one sock told her that Teresa was still in the room as well.

    Anna jumped up from bed and immediately ran towards the door to the hall, tripping over her pile of clothes on the floor. For a brief moment, she scolded herself for not being more organized but that line of thought was quickly extinguished as she reached for the door handle. There was a small bit of relief though: apparently Ms. Whitney had added her jacket to the pile at some point during the day. Anna threw it on before continuing to the door.

    ¡°Crap!¡± she yelled loudly as her hand touched the handle.

    It was burning hot and now that she looked, she could see orange light emanating from the crack under the door. Clearly the fire had spread to more of the orphanage than she had originally realized. She stood for a moment, frozen by her fear, but she didn¡¯t allow it to keep her for long. She quickly began looking around the room and her eyes soon found the window. That was her only chance of escape. But it was also three stories up and she did not fancy escaping a fire just to fall to her death. Her eyes scanned the room again. She saw the two dressers, mostly devoid of any personality, the hanging mirror which was reflecting the light from outside in an odd, distorted kind of way, and the two other occupants of her room, still sleeping peacefully while the world around them burned. Finally, her eyes fell to her bed and the empty bed adjacent to hers.

    The bedsheets.

    Quickly, she began to formulate a plan of escape. It was not a perfect plan, but it was the only chance she had if she did not want to become more burnt than Ms. Whitney¡¯s usual dinner attempts. For a brief moment, she considered waking the other girls up to help, but quickly figured they would only get in her way. She did not have time to waste. She rushed to her bed, ripping the sheets off of it before doing the same to the empty bed. She began tying the sheets together, adding her thin fleece blanket after she had finished with the sheets. In a matter of minutes, she had constructed a makeshift rope. She balled the sheet-rope up and tossed it onto the unoccupied bed. The rope wasn¡¯t pretty but it would be enough to hold her weight. Hopefully.

    Anna ran to the window and went to thrust it open, but she was rebuffed by the rusted old latch that held the window shut. Cursing under her breath, she reached up and flipped the latch over to unlock the window. She pulled up on it and this time, she was successful. She was immediately hit by a whirlwind of smoke and warmth. Under normal conditions, the warm air would be a relief to the typically freezing temperatures of the orphanage, but in that moment, it was a stark reminder of the danger that surrounded her. On the ground below, she could see a few people running away from the building and in the distance she was sure she could hear screams. Ignoring the bedlam below, she marched over to the empty bed closest to the window and began pulling on it.

    On Anna¡¯s first pull, it didn¡¯t budge. These old beds were heavier than she had anticipated. Planting her feet into the ground, she yanked harder, and though it scratched the floor and screeched as it moved, the bed slid a few inches. She yanked again, and again. And again. It took a few minutes, but eventually she had gotten the bed within a foot or so of the open window. The fire outside was roaring, the screams were now clearly audible, and Anna had been making a fair amount of noise herself. She was amazed, then, to see that neither of her roommates had been awoken by all of the chaos and noise that was unfolding around them. But Anna didn¡¯t give them much more thought. She sat to work tying the rope she had made to the frame of the bed. Upon completion, she stood back and gave it a hard tug. To her great relief, it seemed to hold well enough. Now it only needed to hold well enough to allow her to get to the ground.

    She tossed the rope out of the window and watched as it bounced against the outer walls of the orphanage. It didn¡¯t quite reach the ground, but it was close enough that she could climb down and drop the rest of the way with minimal damage. Without another thought, she flung one leg over the window so that she was saddling the sill. She began to slowly lower herself out of the window until only her head was still above the edge.

    "Hey you guys might wanna wake up," she called to the two sleeping bodies.

    Neither of them stirred. For a fraction of a second, she considered just going ahead and saving herself. She looked at the two other girls that shared the room with her. Neither of them had ever exactly been nice to Anna, and she definitely wouldn¡¯t call them friends, or even friendly acquaintances really. But no one deserved the fate that awaited them if they stayed asleep in their beds. With another curse under her breath, she started to pull her body back up. Her heart seemed to skip a beat as she felt the bed slide a bit under her weight, making a loud BRRRT noise as it did so. Luckily, both the frame and the rope were holding and she wasted no more time getting back through the window.

    After scrambling back through with all the grace of a frog trying to ice skate, Anna rushed to the bedside of Dani, who was closer to the window. Anna was only a few feet away, when something grabbed her ankle, causing her to trip and fall forwards towards the frame of Dani¡¯s bed. CRACK! Anna felt a searing pain burst like a bubble, outwards from the center of her face. As she completed her fall to the ground, she also began to feel a wet, sticky sort of warmth coming from both nostrils. Anna groaned and reached up towards her nose instinctively. She pulled away a palm covered in blood and knew she had managed to bust her nose wide open on the bed frame. Through a hazy fog of vision, she could see what had tripped her: the makeshift rope, which had wrapped around her ankle in her haste to reach Dani.

    ¡°Ughhh, what the heck are you doing Anna?¡±

    Dani had apparently been awoken by the sound of Anna¡¯s face bouncing off of her bedside, and she had popped up over the end of the bed with a look of confusion. Anna looked up to see Dani¡¯s round face, which was slightly red and wet with drool on one side. Her naturally curly blonde hair was sticking up at all kinds of crazy angles and there was a thick layer of sleep-boogers blemishing her normally pretty brown eyes. She rubbed palms against her eyes in an apparent attempt to rid herself of sleepiness. Dani moved her hands away from her face and looked at Anna a little more clearly. She immediately shrieked so loudly that Anna thought her ears might start bleeding as well.

    ¡°Jesus, what happened to your face?¡± Dani said with shock, the look of sleepiness now completely gone from her eyes.

    ¡°What are you two doing?¡± came an angry whisper from underneath the pile of covers that was Teresa, ¡°I¡¯m trying to sleep and Ms. Whitney is gonna be pissed if you wake her up.¡±

    ¡°Fi-fi¡­¡± Anna managed to stumble out but her brain seemed to be malfunctioning a bit.

    The world was swimming before her in an uncomfortable way and she felt her body begin to waver back and forth a bit. She was snapped back to reality by another loud shriek from Dani.

    ¡°FIRE!!!¡± Dani yelled out like some sort inflammable banshee.

    ¡°Shut up you two!¡± Teresa said, her voice quite a bit stronger now, ¡°You¡¯re not funny Dani and we are going to get into a lot of trouble.

    ¡°Terry, get your lazy butt out of bed, the building¡¯s on fire, the building¡¯s on fire!¡± Dani said fervently.

    She seemed to be getting more manic by the second.

    Teresa shot up with a look of fury on her face, staring daggers towards Dani, but her look of anger quickly melted away, replaced by a look of terror. Then her eyes found Anna, who was using the edge of Dani¡¯s blanket to try and stem the flow of blood from her nose. Dani noticed this too.

    ¡°Ew, freak, get off my blanket,¡± Dani shrieked before yanking the edge of the cover away from Anna.

    ¡°You moron, it¡¯s about to be burnt to a crisp, and so were you before I so graciously saved you,¡± Anna remarked snidely.

    She stood warily to her feet and gave a bow, as if thanking them for their applause. This turned out to be a bad idea, however, as she was hit by a wave of vertigo and came crashing down on top of Dani who began to scream again. Anna was really beginning to wish she had just climbed out of the window. Or at least tried to wake Teresa first.

    Anna climbed off of Dani¡¯s bed, who was looking with a mortified gaze at the spots of blood Anna had left on her blanket. Anna opened her mouth, just about to say something witty and smart, not to mention extremely cunning, whenever Teresa spoke again.

    ¡°You made a rope,¡± she stated, picking the sheets up off the floor and tugging at the knot in her hands, ¡°a pretty good one too.¡±

    At some point, while Anna was busy falling all over herself and Dani was occupied with trying to shatter glass with her vocal chords, Teresa had gotten up and made her way over to the jerry-rigged rope Anna had made. Teresa was always a bit more level headed than Dani, but Anna was still impressed by the calm demeanor she held in the face of the chaos that raged just outside of their window,

    ¡°Uhm, thanks,¡± Anna said, not used to being complimented by Teresa.

    ¡°Well, come on then,¡± Teresa replied, looking mildly annoyed at the mess of blood and tangled hair that was Dani and Anna.

    She grabbed tightly onto the rope, swung her leg over in the same way Anna had done, and dropped out of the window without another word.

    Anna felt her jaw drop just a bit. She was always annoyed by how Teresa loved to act like she was cooler than Anna, but in this moment, even Anna thought she was cooler. She slowly turned to look at Dani and noticed she was staring slack-jawed out the window as well. Seeing how stupid she looked immediately caused Anna to shut her own mouth. She walked over to the window, and tugged on the rope just as Teresa had, both in an effort to ensure it was still safe to use and to try to look as cool as Teresa just had.

    ¡°Wait, don¡¯t leave me,¡± Dani said frantically before throwing her own covers off and jumping out of bed.

    She scrambled across the worn wooden floors towards Anna before joining her at the window. Dani looked out towards the flames and then, to Anna¡¯s surprise, she backed away from the window again quickly. Anna saw Dani swallow hard before looking Anna in the eyes. They had roomed together for years but this was the first time Anna had ever seen this particular look in Dani¡¯s eyes. She was, unmistakably, terrified.

    ¡°I just saw a man in the flames,¡± Dani whispered before stepping back from the window a few more paces.

    Even with the heat blowing in from the flames outside, Anna could feel the blood leaving her face.

    ¡°Wh-what do you mean?¡± She stammered, but she had a feeling that she knew all too well what Dani had meant, ¡°You mean like someone running away from the fire right?¡±

    Dani shook her head slowly before saying, ¡°No¡­ I¡­ I mean, like, he was in the flames, like a part of them¡­ I know what I saw.¡±

    She looked at Anna with an expression that clearly showed she knew she sounded crazy, but Anna knew she wasn¡¯t crazy at all. Anna did not doubt for a second that Dani had seen the man wreathed in flame, but at the moment she couldn¡¯t let Dani know that. She needed to get both of them out of the building as quickly as possible, or soon it wouldn¡¯t matter what horrors awaited them in the fire outside because they would be part of the fire inside.

    ¡°Come on, we have to go,¡± Anna said forcefully, trying to sound as confident as possible.

    Dani didn¡¯t budge. She seemed frozen in place by the fear that so apparently gripped her and while Anna could sympathize with her fear completely, they didn¡¯t have time to dawdle. She grabbed Dani¡¯s wrist and pulled her toward the window. To Anna¡¯s relief, she put up hardly any resistance. If anything, she seemed to stumble forward a bit from the force of Anna''s tug.

    ¡°Go on then, you first,¡± Anna said encouragingly.

    She glanced briefly at the door behind them and immediately noticed the large amount of smoke that was now billowing in from beneath the door and through the keyhole. Anna felt a brief, slightly insane urge to laugh hysterically, but it did not last long.

    ¡°Anna, I can¡¯t,¡± Dani said weakly.

    ¡°You have to, or we are both going to roast to death in a matter of minutes,¡± Anna said, a little less encouragingly and a little more urgently than before.

    Dani looked out at the flames again, a mixture of uncertainty and terror etched onto her face before swallowing hard again. Her face was shining from the sweat that covered it and the soot blowing in from outside was making her skin look quite a bit dirtier than usual. She finally looked at Anna and nodded. The terror was still there, but she also understood the gravity of their situation; regardless of what awaited them outside, they would never get the chance to survive it if they didn''t get out there first.

    Dani grabbed the rope just as Teresa had and swung her leg over the window, albeit much less gracefully than Teresa had managed to look. She glanced at the ground one last time and apparently decided she would be better off if she closed her eyes. She shut them tight and swung her other leg over the sill of the window. Unfortunately, she slipped a bit as she was dropping her other leg out, causing her to smack against the old wooden panel siding of the orphanage with a thud. To Anna¡¯s relief, Dani held on tight and managed to make her way down to the ground. Anna watched her drop the last few feet before falling hard on her butt. Dani let out a wail of pain before finally standing up and looking around like some kind of small trapped animal. She looked back up towards Anna.

    ¡°You can get down on your own right?¡± Dani yelled up at her.

    Without waiting for an answer, she turned towards where Anna had seen people running over and took off in a sprint. Anna felt a pang of annoyance that she had decided to stay behind and save both Teresa and Dani and neither of them had extended the same courtesy to her, but she also wasn¡¯t exactly surprised. She didn¡¯t have time to dwell on her annoyance for long however as at that moment, she heard a crackling noise from behind her. The bottom of the door had erupted into flames and the fire was quickly spreading outwards from that point. Without any more hesitation, Anna flung herself out of the window and lowered herself down at last. She reached the bottom of her makeshift rope and dropped to the ground herself. To her relief, she managed to stick the landing much better than Dani had. She looked around to try and gauge her surroundings. Dani was already long gone, but in the distance, Anna could see a few figures making their way towards where the road was.

    Their escape seemed almost pointless however. The flames seemed to have engulfed the entire surrounding forest, helped along by the fact that the ground was covered in dead, dehydrated autumn leaves. Most of the orphanage was also covered in a bright orange blaze, but there were also parts of it that looked to be yet untouched. Anna knew it wouldn¡¯t be long before the entire thing was razed to the ground though. Even if Darjeary had a competently funded and competent fire department, which it definitely didn''t, the fire had already spread too much to have any chance of fighting it.

    The vibrant, warm air that surrounded Anna was filled with smoke and ash and burned her lungs with every breath. Being fairly inexperienced with blazing forests and orphanages, Anna made the mistake of inhaling a large amount of smoke, causing her to go into a fit of coughing. She felt tears begin to stream down her face, partly from the coughing, partly from the smoke in her eyes, and if she was being truthful with herself, just a bit from fear. She did not let her overwhelming circumstances freeze her, however, and without wasting much time she began to make her way towards the front of the orphanage. Hopefully the other people she had seen running towards the road had the right idea and she would find some sort of relief from the chaos in that direction.

    She had only made it a few paces, however, when something caught her attention that did freeze her in fear. A figure was walking towards her menacingly, flames whipping and swirling around it. The figure seemed to have large, winged appendages and stood much taller than Anna did. The backdrop of fire made it all the more terrifying. She stood, mouth agape, as the figure marched towards her with a purpose. Anna thought of running, but there really weren¡¯t many options for where she could go. As the figure grew ever closer, Anna began to make out its shape a little more clearly. Dark black boots met with the bottom of a tartan grey skirt in which a white button-up shirt, tainted with soot, was tucked into. A black cloak was wrapped haphazardly around the dirty shirt, whipped around by the wind.  From the collar of the shirt sprouted a long, thin neck which led up to a gaunt, beaked face.

    ¡°Anna Nommins!¡± Came a shrill squawk, ¡°What on Earth have you done?¡±

    Ms. Whitney had emerged from the flames like some sort of nitpicking, disciplinarian fire demon and she was marching right towards Anna with a fiery fury in her eyes that the surrounding blaze could not hope to match. Anna felt a strange mixture of relief and spite at the sight of her.

    ¡°Me?¡± Anna asked incredulously.

    ¡°Yes, you, you little devil of a child. I know you have something to do with this mess, you always have something to do with the messes around here.¡±

    What little relief Anna had felt at the sight of Ms. Whitney was quickly being washed away and replaced by a feeling of great indignation.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t do anything,¡± she said, ¡°all I did was wake up and make sure Dani and Teresa got out too. I notice you didn¡¯t bother to come and wake us.¡±

    ¡°Like I could be bothered to do that,¡± Ms. Whitney said, as if the idea of making sure the children she took care of were safe was absolutely ludicrous.

    Anna noticed now that she had a bag slung around her neck and Anna could see a few things poking out of it. A small statue that sat on Ms. Whitney''s desk, a golden chain that was hanging out of the pocket, and various other trinkets and treasures that Ms. Whitney had clearly found more worthwhile to save than the people living under her roof.

    ¡°You¡¯re horrible,¡± Anna said through narrowed eyes.

    ¡°I am practical,¡± Ms. Whitney retorted, ¡°Now make yourself useful. Go around the ground floor windows that haven¡¯t been burnt to a crisp yet and wake anybody you see still slumbering. We are meeting at the roundabout in the driveway and I need to get there and do a headcount.¡±

    And with that, she turned on her heels and marched away. Anna was seething with rage. That evil old bird, the only thing she is counting are the valuables she managed to save, Anna thought angrily. She did not particularly want to do the task Ms. Whitney had set for her, but she also cringed at the thought of what might happen if she didn¡¯t. There wasn¡¯t much to check of the east wing of the orphanage as most of it was already covered in flames. Anna just had to hope that whoever was in there had gotten out safely. Luckily, there weren¡¯t many occupants on the East side of the orphanage, apart from Anna''s room and a few others. With any luck, the few residents that did live there had managed to get up and out safely. Not all of the Ladies were as black-hearted as Ms. Whitney and Anna was sure at least some of them would try to wake as many children as possible to save them from the fire. The West wing, however, was a bit more fully occupied.This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

    She started at the nearest window, the one directly across the yard from her room, and immediately noticed several large masses sprawled out on the beds inside. She tried to open the window but to her dismay, it was locked. She began beating on it furiously until a boy in the bed closest to her, whom she knew was named David, finally woke up to see what all the racket was about. His black hair stuck up in the back of his head from how he had been laying and his pointed, thin face was still red from sleep. For a moment, his dark eyes gazed at Anna with a slightly stupid expression. Then, he noticed the scene behind her and his eyes opened wide with terror. He immediately jumped from his bed and began waking the other boys in his room. Feeling that they could figure the rest out, Anna began making her way down the row of windows and repeating her actions. Thankfully, only two more rooms still had occupants in them and she managed to wake everyone in those as well. It then occurred to her that there may still be people in the rooms on the second floor. For a moment, Anna felt panic begin to rise within her and she began to look around frantically, trying to think of what to do. Her eyes quickly found some baseball-sized stones lying near her.

    Now, in her time as a ¡°bad kid¡± Anna had broken a few windows out of (mostly) abandoned buildings in town. It was a great way to release her frustration, so she had quite a bit of practice at what she was about to do. Luckily, the West wing didn''t have a third floor or she might not have had enough rocks for her plan. She scooped up a handful of large stones, took aim, and began to shatter the second story windows one by one. Four windows, five windows, six. The rooms all seemed to be empty and she slowly began to feel a sense of relief. Just as she took aim at the seventh, and second to last window, however, she heard a shriek from the fourth window she had broken. A small girl, probably half Anna¡¯s age and a newer arrival at the orphanage, was standing in front of the window looking absolutely mortified. She was screaming for help and looked to be on the verge of crying. Anna went ahead and shattered the seventh window just in case and then ran back to the window with the small girl.

    ¡°Open the window and jump!¡± Anna yelled.

    ¡°I can¡¯t,¡± the girl said in a squeaky voice, and at that moment she burst into tears and began wailing.

    ¡°You¡¯ll be fine,¡± Anna called reassuringly, ¡°I¡¯ll catch you.¡±

    The girl was still sobbing quite hard, but she nodded and unlatched the window, sliding it up with trembling hands. The girl climbed onto the window sill but was clearly hesitant to make the leap.

    ¡°I¡¯ll catch you, I promise,¡± Anna said, ¡°just close your eyes and jump.¡±

    The girl gasped and sobbed some more, but she did as she was told. Truthfully, Anna was just as terrified as she was, but she couldn¡¯t let the little girl see that. WIth her eyes shut tightly, the girl leaped. Anna had to step forward a bit to be in the right position, but she managed to catch the girl. The weight of her falling was more than Anna had anticipated, however, and Anna fell backwards hard. Her head bounced off of the ground and for the second time that night, her vision wavered a bit. She tried to sit up, but the girl was latched onto her with a furious tightness. Anna pried her hands off, and sat the girl upright before getting up herself. The girl was looking at her with a look of wonder and admiration that made Anna slightly uncomfortable for some reason.

    ¡°Now listen to me carefully, you know where the roundabout is?¡± Anna asked.

    The girl shook her head. She stood there in a dirty, ragged old nightgown that had clearly belonged to several girls before her. Her large brown eyes were filled with fear and confusion and tears. The girl had red hair that fell past her shoulders and seemed to match in a strange sort of way with the flames around them. Red freckles covered her face and hands and legs and Anna couldn¡¯t help but pity the small child.

    ¡°Look, what¡¯s your name?¡± Anna asked.

    ¡°D-Daisy,¡± the girl whimpered. Her sobbing had quieted a bit but had not stopped altogether.

    ¡°Okay, Daisy. You know the big rock circle in the driveway out front right?¡± The girl named Daisy nodded a yes this time, ¡°I want you to run there as quickly as possible. The Ladies and the other children should be there and you will be safe. But you need to hurry.¡±

    ¡°But¡­ But what about you?¡± The girl whimpered.

    Anna felt a warmth in her heart for the little girl. She was the first person in this whole ordeal to actually worry about Anna and that touched Anna¡¯s heart in a way she wasn¡¯t used to.

    ¡°I¡¯ll be fine,¡± she said with a reassuring grin, ¡°I need to check the last room and then I¡¯ll be right behind you.¡±

    Daisy was reluctant to leave Anna, but she assured Daisy again that she would be fine and she would be right behind her before giving her a little motivational shove towards where the other children had been running. Daisy took a few hesitant steps before finally scurrying off towards relative safety. With the knowledge that she was safe, Anna picked up another rock off the ground and ran to the last window, shattering it just as she had the others. When it seemed as if that room was empty as well, she finally decided it was safe to get to the meeting spot herself. She had taken only a few steps however when she had a thought that made her heart drop into her stomach. Her necklace was still in Ms. Whitney¡¯s office.

    It was a silly thing to worry about, Anna knew, especially given the chaos unfolding around her. But it was the only thing she had from her mother. She didn¡¯t even have a memory of her mother, but she did have her necklace. She had to at least try to get it back. Anna took off running towards the window of Ms. Whitney¡¯s office. The heat around her was unbearable and the flames from the surrounding forest seemed to be trying to reach the moon itself. Anna ran until the end of the brick wall and quickly turned right as she reached the corner. Her foot slid in some small gravel, but she managed to keep her balance and stay running. She turned right again so that she was now on the other side of the ¡°U¡± shaped orphanage. The second to last window would be where Ms. Whintey¡¯s office was. Anna felt some small relief that the fire did not seem to have spread far on this portion of the orphanage.

    Finally, she arrived at Ms. Whitney''s office window. It was quite easy to discern from the others as it was the only window that looked like it had been replaced in the last half century. Anna looked around for another rock. She quickly found one, and just as she had before, she launched the rock through the window, shattering a huge hole in it. She felt a certain sort of satisfaction; she''d always wanted to do that but had never imagined it would be under the current circumstances. There were still quite a few jagged pieces stuck to the window frame, so she removed her jacket and wrapped it around her hand for protection before knocking the rest of the pieces of glass out with her fist. She clambered through the window, tumbling over the edge and landing with a thud on the floor of Ms. Whitney¡¯s office.

    Anna scrambled to her feet and looked around warily. Even with the building burning down, she still felt like Ms. Whitney might bust through the door and start chastising her for trespassing at any moment. But Ms. Whitney didn¡¯t come in. As a matter of fact, the room was relatively calm compared to the scene she had just exited from. It was mostly dark apart from the light coming through the window and silently still in a way that made Anna uncomfortable. Her eyes looked over the various chests and dressers, the dust covered filing cabinets. They looked scanned the desk, covered in multiple dried up coffee rings. Finally, they fell upon a small lockbox with a numbered dial on the face, tucked beneath the legs of a small table. She ran over to it, skidding to a stop on her knees as she fell towards the lockbox.

    Anna pulled the box out from under the table and tilted the dial up towards her. It was about the size of a large lunchbox, grey in color, though it had spots where the paint had chipped and the bare metal was showing through beneath. Anna thought for a moment, but she already had a pretty good idea of what the combination might be. She entered the number eleven, then she turned the dial all the way around to the number ten, before spinning it all the way back again to 42. 11-10-42, Ms. Whitney¡¯s birthday of course. Anna heard a click. With her heart racing, she reached towards the small lever that sat next to the dial on the box. She lifted up on it, and to her great relief, it slid up and the lid of the box sprang open. She looked inside of the box and was overcome with joy. Her necklace sat right there, curled up on some stacks of old paperwork next to a few wads of money, bundled up with rubber bands.

    The golden chain of the pendant glittered from the flickering light of the fire outside. It was mesmerizing in a way and Anna found herself thinking she had never really appreciated how beautiful the necklace was. Even though she had never given it a proper cleaning, it still glimmered and sparkled with the same radiance it always had. The teardrop shaped opal pendant that hung on it looked particularly awesome in the light of the fire; rainbows and orange red flickers danced together along it''s smooth, rounded surface. Anna reached a trembling hand out and picked it up by the chain, holding it aloft in front of her. The rainbows and oranges faded. So did the glittering gold chain, followed quickly by the light from the fire outside. Everything around Anna went black.

    Anna stood and turned around quickly, but the room was gone. Or, at least, the light was gone and she could no longer see the room. Anna felt the hairs all along the back of her neck stand on end. It became cold with a swiftness usually associated with walking from a heated building out through the door into a windy, wintery night. Anna felt fear begin to creep into her in a way that she had never quite experienced before.

    ¡°You have something that belongs to me,¡± said the silhouette of a person now standing before Anna.

    It was strange, though there was no light in this place at all, Anna could see its outline quite clearly. It was almost as if the figure was a deeper shade of black than the darkness that had swallowed them. The tricklings of fear Anna had been feeling were quickly turning into outright panic and claustrophobia was beginning to set in amongst the pitch black. She cleared her throat and tried to speak but no words came out. She was clutching her pendant close to her chest and she felt the unshakeable urge to curl up in a ball to hide herself. She opened her mouth again and had a little more success this time.

    ¡°I-I have no clue what you¡¯re talking about,¡± she said in what barely came out as a whisper.

    ¡°DO NOT LIE TO ME!¡± the figure bellowed in a voice that boomed and rang throughout the room.

    The way the voice echoed indicated that the black space Anna found herself in was somehow much larger than Ms. Whitney¡¯s cramped office. In a flash, the dark shape was no longer just a silhouette. The figure had burst into a man made of flames right in front of Anna and before she could react he was rushing towards her, hands held outwards. Anna couldn¡¯t help it; she dropped down to her knees, and still holding her pendant, she threw her hands over her head tightly.

    ¡°Please don¡¯t hurt me!¡± she screamed, and she could feel warm tears begin to well in her closed eyes.

    Anna felt a hand on her shoulder. She expected pain to come, perhaps a burning sensation from the flames that covered the thing, or for it to yank her up like some kind of ragdoll. What she actually felt was not at all what she had expected, however. A hand, seemingly not on fire as it didn¡¯t burn when it touched her, grabbed her shoulder firmly and Anna felt herself being yanked back. It was the absolute strangest sensation she had ever felt. It was as if her feet had floated right off the ground and she was flying backwards, her body being sucked through a massive straw. She was still huddled up, eyes shut tightly, but her body felt weightless and there was a tingling feeling in her stomach. Suddenly, all of her weight seemed to return and she felt her bottom hit the ground hard.

    Part of Anna had no interest in opening her eyes. She would just stay here, curled in a ball of fear forever.  But a braver, and perhaps stronger, part of Anna knew that she needed to open her eyes and see what was happening. She opened them up and lifted her head tentatively. What she saw surprised her immensely. She was no longer in that place of pure darkness, and she wasn¡¯t in Ms. Whitney¡¯s office either. And she was no longer with the man of fire. As far as Anna could tell, she was in the forest surrounding the orphanage, but far enough away that she could see the burning orphanage and woods some distance away from her. But the company she now found herself in was even more surprising than the location she had somehow gotten to: kneeling on the ground in front of her, panting and sweating as though he had just run a marathon, was the old man from town, Broderick.

    Broderick looked up at her, and though he looked to be in pain, he smiled and said, ¡°Fancy seeing you here.¡±

    For a moment, Anna was speechless as she stared at Broderick. She felt like that was happening a lot lately. The wind blew and the sound of rustling leaves spread through the air. In the direction of the orphanage, Anna could hear faint shouts and screams. The blaze in the distance was large enough that it was casting light to where Anna and Broderick were, causing the trees to have a faint shading of orangish-red to them. Directly overhead, the stars shone clearly and brightly, but the sky closer to the orphanage was blotted out by huge clouds of smoke rising through the air. The smell of fire and soot was strong even at this distance.

    ¡°Where did you come from?¡± Anna asked, finally finding her voice.

    She had a million questions jumping around in her head, but this was the first one that found its way to her lips.

    ¡°Oh, you know, I happened to be in the neighborhood and thought you might be in need of some assistance,¡± Broderick said through strained breaths.

    Broderick¡¯s staff was laying on the ground in front of him. The light from the moon overhead glinted off the blue crystalline orb that adorned its top. Broderick picked it up and used the staff to help himself off the ground. Anna realized a moment too late that she probably could have helped him up, but she was still trying to process exactly where she was and who she was with.

    ¡°I don¡¯t understand,¡± Anna said, ¡°how did you know I was in danger? How did I get so far from the orphanage? And who was that fire-guy who attacked me? How did he make everything go black and what do I have that he wants?¡±

    The questions swirling around in her head were spilling out one after another and her voice was growing more desperate with each one.

    ¡°My, you are a curious girl. Let me see¡­ Misaada has been keeping an eye on you since earlier. I had a bad feeling that you might need saving before too long. You got here through teleportation magic, which mind you, was no easy feat. Teleporting small inorganic objects is taxing enough, humans are a completely different beast and far more complex than, say, a teacup. As for who attacked you, I am unsure, but I would hazard a guess that it is the same fellow who took Gwen¡¯s life. And the darkness he pulled you into is what we call a skewed realm. It is a very advanced form of magic that pulls you into a small pocket removed from this reality. I am unsure how he was able to make a realm so easily without the use of a ritual circle and other mages however.¡± Broderick paused and placed his hand on his chin in a pensive sort of expression.

    Anna felt a headache beginning to form. For the answers he had just given her she had a million more questions and wasn¡¯t entirely sure how to even ask them. She opened her mouth to speak, but Broderick cut her off.

    ¡°There will be plenty of time for any and all of your questions later, but for now it is imperative that we go. You are in grave danger here and we must get you back to Monsadasia with haste.¡±

    ¡°Monsa-what?¡± Anna asked, bewildered.

    ¡°Monsadasia. The kingdom from which I hail, the Kingdom of Mountains,¡± Broderick explained.

    Broderick let go of his staff and began rummaging around in the inside of his robes. Anna was surprised to see the staff stayed upright even though Broderick was no longer supporting it. She realized she was still holding tightly to her pendant and quickly clasped it around her neck for safe keeping. After a moment, Broderick let out a sound of triumph before brandishing a small white stone in front of him. It reminded Anna of a piece of chalk, albeit not as uniformly shaped as the ones the Ladies used when teaching.

    Broderick seemed to recognize the look of confusion on Anna¡¯s face before quickly explaining, ¡°This is a gatestone. It will connect us to one of the Monsadasian travel gates without me having to expend more magic transporting us. Truthfully, I¡¯m not sure if I have enough left in me to transport us more than a few feet.¡±

    Broderick held the small stone out towards Anna as though wanting her to take it. She hesitated for a moment, causing him to shake it at her impatiently. Anna reached out and took the stone from him. Broderick immediately fell to the ground and began brushing dead leaves and twigs out of the way, clearing the ground in front of them. Anna had to back up to make room for the area he was trying to clear. She stood there awkwardly, unsure of whether or not she should help.  Before she could decide one way or the other though, Broderick stopped, seemingly satisfied with the amount of space he had cleared out. There was now a patch of cleared earth in front of them, roughly five or six feet in diameter. He reached his open palm out towards Anna.

    ¡°Gatestone please,¡± he said.

    Anna handed the small chunk of rock to Broderick, who began to draw on the ground with it. To Anna¡¯s amazement, the spot in the dirt where the tip of the stone touched against began to glow a vibrant blue color, and the glowing line followed the path that Broderick was tracing. He drew a few squiggly lines and shapes on the ground first before beginning to draw a large circle around the symbols. Just before he completed the circle, however, a whistling noise caused both him and Anna to look up. A ball of fire came speeding through the trees and before Broderick or Anna could react, it smashed directly into Broderick¡¯s chest, sending him flying through the air and directly into the trunk of a nearby tree. He let out a gasp of pain as he collided with the large tree. S

    everal small branches fell from its limbs due to the force of the impact. Anna looked fearfully towards the direction the fireball had come from and immediately felt the color drain from her face. The man of fire was speeding towards them, setting everything around him ablaze as he moved. His feet did not even seem to be touching the ground, it was as if he was gliding on the flames that encased him like some sort of humanoid rocket.

    Anna¡¯s fight-or-flight response began to kick in immediately. Seeing as how she had no possible way to fight a person who could shoot fireballs from their hands and create miniature dimensions from thin air, her instincts were leaning far more towards fleeing than fighting. She turned away from the oncoming figure of flames, ready to run faster than she had ever run before. Hopefully adrenaline would be enough to carry her far, far away from her impending doom. But then she saw Broderick, slumped against the base of the tree and groaning in pain. Broderick, who had saved her from immediate danger twice now, clearly putting his own life in harm''s way to save her from the monster barreling down on them. She could not leave him. Anna had always been the type to run away from problems if the opportunity presented itself. Some might call it cowardice, but she preferred self preservation. But this time she would not run. She would stay and defend Broderick as best she could, because somehow she knew he would defend her if their roles were reversed.

    Anna quickly grabbed the largest branch on the ground that she could pick up and readied it like a batter at home plate. If this was where she went down, she would, quite literally, go down swinging. She stared determinedly at the imposing beast rocketing towards her. He was only a few yards away now. She gripped the branch even tighter, so hard that it hurt her hands. She clenched her teeth and twisted her feet a little to plant them in the ground better. The figure had his arms outreached and she could see the hatred and fury even through the flames that covered his face. Just as he was about to collide with her, though, she heard Broderick shout from behind her and a large, spectacularly glowing dome erupted from the ground between them and the man of fire smashed into it hard, the inertia from his movement causing him to flatten against it in an almost comical way. The shield rippled and sparked and the man was thrown backwards, smashing into a tree just as hard as Broderick had. Anna dropped her stick in surprise and turned around. Broderick had gotten to his feet and was pointing his staff in Anna¡¯s direction. A thin glowing line was streaming from the crystal on the staff to the shield that had likely just saved Anna¡¯s life.

    Using his staff to support himself, Broderick hobbled over to Anna and said, ¡°We must go, now!¡±

    He began looking around on the ground and Anna quickly realized he was looking for the chalky piece he had dropped when the fireball struck him. Unfortunately, before he could locate it in the darkness of the forest, a roar of rage came from their attacker. He had gotten to his feet as well and began walking towards Broderick and Anna. With one hand, Broderick brandished his staff towards the man while simultaneously using his free hand to move Anna behind him. The man seemed completely unconcerned with Broderick¡¯s staff as he continued his advance towards them. Through the flames on his face, Anna could see what appeared to be a smile.

    ¡°You think you have enough power to stop me, you old fool?¡± He asked Broderick in a goading voice.

    In the light of the moon, Anna could see the sweat glistening on Broderick¡¯s temples. His fear was apparent, but he stood his ground all the same.

    ¡°Probably not,¡± he answered truthfully, ¡°but I¡¯d be willing to bet I could do some damage before you finish me off.¡±

    The man stopped and let out a mirthless laugh, throwing his head back as he did so. The flames that surrounded him seemed to shrink in their intensity a bit, but did not fully dissipate.

    ¡°If your dear great and powerful Gwendolyn couldn¡¯t mark me, what makes you think a doddering old weakling like you could reach any other outcome?¡±

    The hand that Broderick had used to move Anna behind him had begun to rummage in one of the back pockets of his cloak. The man of fire seemed too preoccupied with their conversation to notice.

    ¡°Well, you see,¡± Broderick replied confidently, ¡°I have something that Gwen didn¡¯t.¡±

    Tha man looked slightly amused at this.

    ¡°You have nothing that Gwen did not possess. Her magic was leagues above yours and the rest of the Council¡¯s and even she drew her last breath before my power. You will fall just as she-¡±

    Before he could finish his sentence, Broderick seemed to find whatever it was he was searching for in his cloak. He said another foreign word and a bolt of lightning shot from his staff. The man threw his hand up, and without touching it, deflected the bolt so that it flew up and around him. It struck a tree and exploded loudly. As the man was distracted by this attack, however, Broderick''s other hand flew forward in a flash, his movement far quicker than Anna would have expected the old man to be capable of. For a brief second, Anna saw something leave his hand, or rather, some things. Several small, round, pearlescent white objects flew from his hand, glinting in the air from the moonlight. The small objects struck the man. Immediately upon impact, they exploded with the force of a small bomb. For the second time, the man was blown backwards from the force of the impact. Unfortunately for Broderick, he was so close to the explosion that he, too, was blown backwards from the concussive force. His body crashed into Anna¡¯s and they were both knocked backwards onto the ground.

    An intense ringing filled Anna¡¯s ears from the shock of the explosion. As she looked up at the sky from the position she now found herself in, the stars seemed to swim and the branches of the trees above seemed to be vibrating. Double vision clouded her eyesight and two moons seemed to float in the sky above. She tried to shake her head to clear the shellshock but her head suddenly seemed too heavy for her neck to support and instead of shaking it, she just kind of bobbed it slowly from one side to the other. She could feel the full weight of Broderick¡¯s body on top of her. From what Anna could tell in her disoriented state, Broderick had been knocked unconscious. Her vision slowly began to come back together. At least, the two moons in the sky had become one moon again. The ringing in her ears was a little more persistent.

    Anna tried to heave Broderick off of her, but his slumped body was too heavy for her to move. As it was, he was sprawled on top of her legs trapping her in place. For a brief moment, Anna had a horrible thought¡­ What if the blast had¡­ But then she saw Broderick¡¯s chest rise and fall and she knew he was still alive. Anna let out a sigh of relief and began to look around, trying to contain her panic. She noticed they had managed to land directly in the middle of the chalk circle Broderick had been drawing. A few yards away, Anna heard a moaning noise. The man of fire had landed in some shrubbery not far from them and he seemed to be quickly regaining his composure. He was slowly getting back to his feet, shaking his head and managing to do so much more successfully than Anna had.

    The flames that cloaked him seemed to have dimmed even more, but they were still present, burning eerily and unnaturally around him while not actually burning the man himself. After taking a moment to get his bearings, he looked directly at Anna and let out an inhuman scream of rage. The dampened flames around him burst outwards with a renewed vigor, rising high up in the sky. A few birds in the trees above cawed and squawked and took off into the air in fear. At that moment, Anna very much wished she too could sprout wings and fly away from this horrible place. She began grabbing and clawing at the ground around her, digging through leaves and small twigs, not really sure what she planned on doing. She needed to escape or find a big stick or a rock or¡­

    Anna felt something small and hard beneath her skin. It was the piece of chalk that Broderick had been using to draw the circle that the two of them now lay in. The man was approaching them furiously, his feet burning the ground with each step he took. Anna looked at the chalk circle on the ground. The circle was almost complete, save for one small section just to the right of where she lay. Anna was not sure what made her do it. All she knew was that Broderick had seemed intent on drawing the circle and she didn¡¯t exactly have a lot of options left to her. She desperately reached outward towards the broken line, her arm just barely reaching, and placed the chalk to the line. Just as the man was about to breach the circle, Anna drug the chalk on the ground and completed the outline.

    What happened next happened so quickly that Anna was barely able to register it. The man let out another howl of rage, the chalk lines began to glow intensely, and almost instantly, Anna felt as if her entire body were being rolled up and she was being sucked through a straw again. Her and Broderick seemed to be ripped from the ground, or maybe it was the ground that had been ripped from them. The feeling was so alien and unlike anything Anna had ever felt before that she wasn¡¯t even really sure how to describe it to herself. The breath seemed to be sucked from her lungs and her eyeballs felt like they were being pressed into her skull. One thing was for sure: it was a very unpleasant feeling. Lights and shapes and strange sounds zoomed past Anna so quickly that she couldn¡¯t make any of them out, but she could still hear the scream of rage from the man in a haunting and distant sort of way.

    After a moment, or perhaps hours, it was really very hard to tell, Anna felt her bottom crash against the ground and she let out a gasp of pain. She heard, and then saw, Broderick land facedown on the ground just next to her. His body was sprawled out in an awkward position and he still seemed to be very much unconscious. Ignoring the pain in her rear, Anna crawled along the ground frantically and over to his side. Using every ounce of strength she had, Anna placed her hands under Broderick and attempted to flip him over. It took her three pushes to get him on his back successfully. She could see trickles of blood coming both from his ears and nose. Sweat and dirt discolored his face and made him look even older than usual.

    ¡°Broderick,¡± Anna gasped, ¡°Broderick!¡±

    She shook him vigorously. A small voice in her head told her she should be a little more gentle in case any of his bones were broken, but her desperation to wake him drove all sense and rationale from her mind.

    ¡°Broderick, wake up!¡± she screamed.

    His chest rose and fell as he took in labored breaths, but he did not wake. Anna could feel tears beginning to well in her eyes. For the first time, she looked around at the location they now found themselves in. It was a very strange place. The moon and stars in the sky, as well as the canopy of tree branches above had disappeared. There was a light in the sky though and it was unlike anything Anna had ever seen before. The entire sky had a bright orange tint to it that did not resemble any sunlight or moonlight Anna had ever experienced. It seemed to be emanating from a source just out of sight. Anna was sure she could feel a warmth from the light. Her and Broderick seemed to have landed in the center of some sort of grassy clearing. All around them were large stone archways jutting from the ground, covered in strange symbols and seemingly erected in random locations. The edge of the clearing seemed to be surrounded by trees, but they were very different from the breeds of trees that made up the forest around the orphanage.

    ¡°Over here, quickly!¡± A voice rang out from somewhere within the trees.

    Suddenly, three, four, six, twelve or more people began to pour out from the small forest. They were clad in elegant looking armor that almost seemed to glow from the crystallight above and they moved with haste towards her and Broderick. Before Anna could feel fear or joy or relief or confusion, they had formed a tight circle around her. Each one of them had either a wand or a staff pointed at her and Broderick. A few, it seemed, even had swords brandished at them. One of the people, Anna thought it was a woman but it was honestly hard to tell beneath their helmets and armor, stepped forward from the barricade they had formed. When she spoke however, Anna¡¯s suspicion was confirmed.

    ¡°Female Nontribus,¡± she said in a formal way, ¡° by order of the High Council, you are hereby placed under arrest for the murder and theft of magic of Gwendolyn Daltoria and the attempted murder of councilman Broderick Codswaller. If you resist, you will be struck down where you stand¡­ Er, lie, I mean.¡±

    Anna did not dare resist.

 I Stand Accused

    It had been five days.

    Or, at least, Anna thought it was somewhere close to that. There was only one window in this room, covered by a latticework of wrought iron bars. Outside, she could see the sun shining serenely, but it never seemed to move from the same spot in the sky. This made it hard to determine exactly how long she had been locked up for. She was making a bit of guesswork based on when she got hungry and tired to figure out how long she had been imprisoned. Upon being ripped away from Broderick¡¯s limp body, she had been blindfolded and shuffled roughly along for a while before being thrown into the prison cell she now found herself in. It was kind of hard to think of the spacious room as a prison cell, however.

    There was a bed underneath the barred window which was covered in an assortment of pillows as well as the most comfortable blanket Anna had ever felt in her life. Not even the constant sunlight beaming in was enough to keep her awake once she laid in the bed, which compared to her bed at the orphanage felt like sleeping on a cloud. There was a shelf littered with books at the foot of the bed, but they were filled with some strange writing and language that Anna had never seen before so they did not do much to interest her. The floors were laid with a beautiful white marble that had swirls of black running through it. Paintings of breathtaking forest scenery and creatures Anna had never seen before hung on the walls around her. Anna¡¯s favorite painting was a rather strange portrait that appeared to show a woman falling from the sky. She even had her own bathroom that she did not have to share with anyone. Perhaps even better than that, she had actually found an elegant looking brush in one of the drawers underneath the sink in the bathroom. Again, it really was hard to think of this place as a prison when she compared it to her usual living quarters.

    Along the wall opposite the window was the door which she had been tossed through when being placed in the cell. The door had no window or handle, but she could occasionally hear footsteps trotting along outside or the soft sound of voices chatting just on the other side. There was some kind of strange orb that hung above the door, suspended by a metal arm. The orb seemed to emit a strange glow that Anna was sure followed her as she moved about the room. If she had to guess, it was some sort of contraption to keep an eye on her. Anna had tried to open the door only once but had learned that was not a good idea. As she had neared it the orb above began to flash a red color and upon touching the door she received quite a nasty shock that nearly made her wet herself. She was not keen on experiencing that sensation again anytime soon.

    Her favorite part of the room, even better than the bed or the bathroom or the brush, was the food. Sitting directly in the center of the room was a small white table. A single, intricately carved white wooden chair was sat at the table. Three times a day, a plate full of hot, delicious food would appear seemingly from thin air, with a fancy fork and spoon to top it all off. There would also be a glass of some sort of juice that Anna could not quite place each time the food appeared. At first, she was wary of eating the food, afraid it had been tainted or poisoned somehow, but desperation and hunger won out in the end and she was quite glad it did. There had been rolls sweeter than Anna had ever tasted, vegetables cooked to perfection with all the right seasonings, roast chicken drumsticks and pork chops, eggs and waffles and even syrup. Anna did not even know what the dish she had been served last was called, but it was most definitely delicious. To her utter astonishment, each time she had finished her meal and gotten up from the little table, the plates and silverware and glass of juice disappeared, leaving the table absolutely spotless upon their vanishing.

    Still, despite all the wonderful commodities she now found herself with, Anna could not help but be afraid, as well as a little bored in the small room. She was starting to feel a little stir crazy in her confinement. Mostly, she found herself worrying about Broderick. The last time she had seen him, he was most definitely the worse for wear and she couldn¡¯t help but wonder if his status had declined even further since then. She had a feeling that if he was still alive, he had not managed to wake up from the wounds inflicted on him that night at the orphanage. If he had, she was sure he would have come to get her from this place. Surely if he had woken up, he would have explained what Anna had told him about Gwendolyn and cleared this whole mess up. But he had not come and so she feared the worst for him.

    Of course, it was possible that he had woken up and had just chosen to not come for her. This thought had plagued Anna more than once in the last few days. Being alone with your thoughts for days on end was not always a positive experience. To combat the negativity threatening to creep in, Anna had been doing her best to keep herself busy with her limited options. Among the strange books, she had found what appeared to be sticks of charcoal as well as some blank pieces of paper rolled up in tubes. She had never been a gifted artist, but Anna did enjoy doodling silly pictures occasionally and with nothing better to do, she had made quite a few doodles over the last few days. She had drawn a little stick figure army, some rather ugly looking cats, and even tried to recreate the painting of the falling woman that hung on the wall. Her attempt was quite hideous, however, and she ended up tossing that one into a rolled up ball on the ground. Similar to the food, it seemed to vanish into thin air after a few minutes.

    She also had been taking quite a few more baths than were absolutely necessary. Not only did they help to keep her mind clear, but it was the first time in her whole life she had been given the opportunity to take a long hot soak in an admittedly rather oversized tub. At the orphanage, you could only take five minute showers. The water was so cold and the smell of mildew so pervasive that no one wanted to take a shower for any longer than that anyways. The bathtub itself, on top of being massive, seemed to be carved out of the same pearlescent marble as the floor. And not just as in it was made of the same material either. Anna had inspected it closely and as far as she could tell, the floors and tub were actually carved from the same piece of stone without a seam or break in sight. There was only a single golden handle with dotted silver accents and the water emitted from a similarly ornate golden faucet. The water that poured from it always seemed to be just the right temperature and had a faint floral smell that pleased Anna very much.

    Anna¡¯s captors had even been so kind as to provide her with a change of clothes. Upon looking around the room on her first day there, she had found a stack of folded white shirts made of what Anna thought might be silk. She had never actually owned or felt anything made of silk, so it was hard to be sure, but whatever the shirts were made of was far more comfortable than any clothes the orphanage had ever provided her. She had also found a similar stack of various colored pants made of the same soft, smooth material. Similar to the food and wads of paper, whenever she changed into a new set of clothes, the discarded clothing would disappear into the void. Without anyone entering her room or restocking her supplies, there would be brand new sets of clothing in the same spot every morning. No matter how many times this occurred, Anna was still amazed and a little freaked out by it. She still had not fully accepted what Broderick had told her, that magic existed. Part of her still thought this was all some kind of crazy, elaborate dream her mind was cooking up. Perhaps she had fallen and hit her head climbing from her window the night of the fire and she was now in some kind of coma.

    But another part of Anna was beginning to believe that perhaps Broderick was not so crazy after all and that what was happening was as real as her dislike for Ms. Whitney. She doubted her brain was even creative enough to have come up with all of this on it¡¯s own anyways. One thing was for certain: she was not nearly as miserable here in this prison as she probably should have been. Unfortunately, that was about to come to an end.

    On this presumable fifth day, Anna dried off and got dressed after another wonderful bath. She clasped the pendant she had nearly died for around her neck, still surprised that her captors had not taken it from her, when something finally happened. Anna heard footsteps and inaudible muttering coming from the other side of her door. This time was different than the other times she had heard them, for the footsteps continued to grow louder as someone approached her room. They finally came to a stop just outside the door.

    ¡°Stand back prisoner,¡± a demanding male voice said from the other side.

    Anna gazed at the door with apprehension as it swung open forcefully. Standing outside in the dimly lit hallway were three guards, clad in the same ornate armor as the people who had arrested her on her first night in this place. For all Anna knew, they could have been the exact same guards who had done the arresting.

    ¡°Do not move and do not try anything funny,¡± said the middle guard in a voice that Anna recognized.

    It was the female guard who had been there the night she arrived here with Broderick. The same female guard who had barked orders at her before ripping her away from Broderick¡¯s limp body. She dressed no differently than the two guards on either side of her, but something about the way she spoke and carried herself radiated a sense of authority. Anna felt a sudden rush of anger as she realized who she was now in the company of.

    ¡°Where¡¯s Broderick?¡± Anna said heatedly.

    ¡°That is none of your business. Now you will move up against the wall behind you and place both of your arms out,¡± the guard replied, moving her hand to the sword hung around her waist as she did so.

    Anna noticed the gesture but didn¡¯t care. Her thirst for answers and her anger at the guard drove away any fear she might have felt.

    ¡°It is my business,¡± Anna said.

    Anna stepped forward as she spoke but she did not get far. As Anna made a movement towards them, she noticed the two guards on either side of the woman begin to reach for something at their sides. Not swords, like the woman had, but what Anna thought might be wands. It made no difference however, as before they had so much as gotten a good grip around their weapons, the female guard had drawn her sword, crossed the room, and slammed Anna up against the wall with enough force to knock the wind out of her, lifting Anna off the floor with her forearm as she did so. Anna felt the urge to gulp but was afraid to move her throat at all now that a sharp blade was pressed against it.

    ¡°Give me a reason to run you through, murderer,¡± the woman whispered menacingly in Anna¡¯s ear.

    The courage Anna had felt from her anger subsided rather quickly and she could feel tears beginning to well in her eyes.

    ¡°Captain,¡± one of the other guards said, ¡°there must be due process.¡±

    The female guard, apparently the ¡®captain¡¯ of these other two, gazed deep into Anna¡¯s eyes for far longer than was comfortable, keeping Anna held a foot off the floor and the sword against her skin the entire time. There was a kind of hatred in her eyes that Anna had never quite experienced before. Finally, the Captain turned her head sideways and spit on the floor before letting Anna fall hard to the ground. She landed squarely on her rear end and did not dare try to stand up.

    ¡°Filthy nontribus. You¡¯ll get what you deserve for trying to steal magic from our people, from Gwen,¡± the captain said.

    Anna had no idea what a nontribus was and she wanted to protest about stealing Gwendolyn¡¯s magic, but all words seemed to have escaped her in her fear. Before any words could come back to her, one of the other guards had rushed up to where she now sat on the floor and pulled out a set of what looked to be glowing chains. As he moved them towards Anna, she quickly realized they were a rather strange set of handcuffs. They did not look to be made of metal, but rather looked like they were forged from light made solid, almost like the neon signs that shops would often hang in their windows.

    ¡°These will dampen your magic so there will be no use in trying any funny business. It won¡¯t help you escape but it will cause you a considerable amount of pain,¡± the guard said matter of factly.

    ¡°But I don¡¯t have mag-¡± Anna began to protest, but before she could finish her sentence the guard had locked the handcuffs on to her wrists.

    A wave of intense nausea immediately swept over Anna. If she had not already been seated against the wall, it very well may have caused her to fall over. At the same time, her mouth felt as though it had been stuffed with cotton balls. Her tongue had gone completely dry and numb and she doubted she could talk if she wanted to. In her stupor, she felt the Captain grab her arm roughly and yank her up off the floor. Anna¡¯s legs felt like jelly beneath her and she felt herself begin to falter. Before her legs could give out and send her crashing to the floor, the two lesser guards were on either side of her, supporting her weight. They seemed to have expected this reaction from the handcuffs.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± the Captain said.

    Anna tried to say ¡®okay¡¯ but only managed to drool a little. They led her out of the room into the corridor outside. It stretched for what seemed like miles in either direction, lined with doors just like the one to Anna¡¯s room. The hall was dark and had a musty sort of smell that made Anna¡¯s nausea worse. Between each of the doors hung some kind of strange lights. It took Anna a moment to focus, but she soon realized that the lights were some kind of crystal, seemingly growing right out of the stone walls. They gave off an eerie and unnatural orange glow. Before Anna could inspect the glowing gems any closer, the Captain prodded her in the back with what felt like the hilt of her sword.

    ¡°To the left, nontribus,¡± the Captain said.

    One of the guards holding Anna up gave her an almost sympathetic look before giving her arm a light tug towards the left. Anna obliged and with the help of the two lesser guards, began to make her way leftwards down the hallway. Before long, they came to a descending flight of stairs and Anna was led down those into a similar looking corridor. She was led, and sometimes prodded, down several more hallways and up and down many flights of stairs. Luckily, Anna seemed to be growing used to the adverse effects of the glowing handcuffs. The fuzziness and weakness of her limbs remained, but the nausea had began to subside greatly.

    Some of the hallways she was led down were similar to the one outside of her room, door after door only separated by those strange wall crystals. Others seemed far more grand and unique, containing white doors with gilded gold patterns and chandeliers hanging every so often. Anna noticed that even in these chandeliers, the light seemed to be coming from small gemstones that appeared to grow out of the metal frames of the lights. Some hallways were filled with a bustling chorus of people who quickly parted to allow Anna and the guards through. Their eyes followed Anna with a deep suspicion and malice that made her feel extremely uncomfortable. Some hallways were massive in a way that made Anna wonder if they had been built large just to appear grandiose or if there was a more specific reason they were so large.

    More than once, Anna stopped to gawk at the strange things she was seeing. In one instance, there was a man moving a large metal cauldron down the hall, but he was not carrying it with his hands. He was pointing a wand at it and making it float a foot in front of him. In one of the larger halls, a man seemed to be lighting a fireplace, doing so by shooting a spout of flames from the tip of his wand. Another time that caused Anna to stop and look on in wonder was a woman carrying a jar. Normally, this would not be anything spectacular, but something seemed to be moving inside this jar. As the woman passed, Anna got a closer look at it. To her amazement, there seemed to be a small tornado, whipping and thrashing about inside of the glass container. Each time she stopped to stare at something, the Captain prodded her in the back hard with the hilt of her sword and the guards pulled her along forcefully.

    One area in particular, however, caused Anna to ignore the jabs and pulls multiple times. There was nothing too otherworldly or magical about this hallway in particular, but it was the most beautiful place Anna had ever laid eyes on. This hall seemed much shorter than the others, but it made up for size in beauty. The floors seemed to be carved from a shimmering sort of stone that flickered with reds and greens and blues and purples as Anna¡¯s eyes wandered across it. The walls were inlaid with a multitude of different colored gemstones, rubies and emeralds and sapphires that danced and glittered from the lights above. Unlike the other hallways, with their illuminated crystal lanterns and chandeliers, this hallway had ornate torches hung along the walls. They burned with an unnatural and captivating white flame unlike any Anna had seen before. Paintings of dignified and regal looking men and women hung along the walls, painted in a way that their eyes seemed to follow Anna as she moved. Something about them seemed familiar, though she could not quite figure out what it was. Midway down the hallway, the walls widened into a circular shape and in the middle of the floor sat a fountain carved of the blackest stone Anna had ever seen, all except for a white orb that seemed to float in the air above the rest of the ebony fountain.

    The fountain itself was familiar to Anna, for it depicted the same scene as the painting that had hung in her cell. The floating white orb seemed to be pouring water down upon a woman who seemed to be falling towards the base of the fountain. As the water hit her body, it cascaded down into the bottom in droplets of water like falling diamonds. Upon reaching the midway point where the fountain rested, Anna realized the droplets weren¡¯t just falling into an empty basin though. Inside the base of the fountain were hundreds of carved, miniaturized people. Each one was reaching up towards the much larger falling woman, as though hoping to be showered by the water falling from her. Anna stopped for a second too long to look at this causing the Captain to jab her in the back harder than ever, causing Anna to release a gasp of pain.

    ¡°You have no right to gaze upon the Source Fountain, nontribus. Now move,¡± the Captain said venomously.

    Anna began to turn towards her to point out the fact that she had to look at the fountain, seeing as it was right in the middle of their path, when the door caused her to stop again. Anna had not been able to see it at first due to the curved walls around the fountain but now that they were closer, she could see it quite clearly. To the right of the fountain was a set of double doors just as fanciful and magnificent as the rest of the hall. They were carved from some kind of opalescent material that Anna would have thought was stone if she had not been able to see the wood grains in them. Similarly to the walls, glittering gemstones seemed to be inlaid along the edges of the doors. SIlver and gold accents danced along the wood in beautiful circular patterns and strange shapes. Where the doors met there was a tracing of what was clearly a mountaintop, carved from a much darker wood that the rest of the door so as to make it stand out even more. Atop the mountain sat a star, clearly made from some kind of crystal. It glowed with a radiant light, much brighter than the lanterns in the previous hallways. Like Anna¡¯s room, this door had no handles and she found herself wanting desperately to push it open to see what was on the other side. Before she could yank away from the guards and act on this impulse, however, the Captain placed something against her back. This time, it was much sharper than a hilt had any right being and Anna quickly realized the captain had the actual blade pressed against her back.

    ¡°I said move,¡± she whispered.

    Anna obeyed, allowing herself to be led past the fountain, past the magnificent door, and towards yet another flight of stairs.

    It felt like they had been walking for hours. Surely that had walked up and down at least a hundred flights of stairs, travelled down countless hallways. But really, Anna had no idea how many steps she had walked down. The fog that clouded her brain made it extremely hard to keep count of just how many sets of stairs she had been led down. More than once, her legs threatened to give way underneath her and only the help of the guards, along with a little motivation from the Captain¡¯s swords, had kept her upright and moving. She had thought the nausea was getting better, but it seemed to ebb and flow in waves and at times, she could barely comprehend where and even who she was. After what seemed like and eternity travelling, they came down yet another flight of stairs and emerged into a rather dark corridor.

    The crystal sconces that had adorned the other walls were present here, but they were placed much further apart and seemed to glow with far less vibrance. The walls and floor were all carved from a drab, dark grey stone and there were no paintings or decorative gems in sight. There was a musty, damp smell in the air. Anna¡¯s nausea had been on a downward trend, but the pervasive smell of mildew brought it back with a vengeance. Plain doors, made of a dark red wood, sat on the right side of the hall, while metal framed chairs adorned the left side. For the most part, the hallway was completely empty, save for a single, ragged looking man sat in one of the chairs. His head was down against his chest and Anna got the impression that he had fallen asleep. The guards led Anna down the hall and forced her down into a chair a few seats down from the other man.

    ¡°They will call when it is your time,¡± the Captain said.

    ¡°Who will call?¡± Anna asked.

    The captain stared at her in disgust for a moment, before turning back the way they had come and walking away. The guards promptly followed her.

    Anna watched them until they turned towards the flight of stairs and disappeared up them. She wanted to call after them, to ask them where they had taken her and what was about to happen, but she knew there was no point. The guards had not been exactly forthcoming and the captain had an obvious disdain for her. Anna pulled her knees up to her chest, laid her head on them, and began to sob. The fear and loneliness had finally caught up with her.

    ¡°First¡­ Time?¡±

    The man sitting a few seats down from her had spoken before letting out a loud hiccup. He had not lifted his head up as he spoke. Anna tried to dry her tears on her knees before looking up to answer.

    ¡°Y-yes¡­ Where am I?¡± Anna asked, trying to control her voice.

    The man hiccuped again before finally lifting his head up and turning to look at her.

    ¡°Yer in court, girly. Must¡¯ve done something bad too, if they put the spellbinders on you,¡± he said, nodding towards the handcuffs on Anna¡¯s wrists.

    She noticed that the cuffs on his hands weren¡¯t like hers. His hands were bound by typical metal shackles, though they did seem to have strange symbols carved into the metal.

    ¡°What¡¯re ye¡¯ in fer,¡± he said through slurred speech.

    Even from feet away, Anna smelled the unmistakable stench of booze on his breath. She had smelled the same thing on Ms. Whitney from time to time, whenever she would emerge from her locked office after a few hours to yell at Anna for any random thing. It took every ounce of will she possessed to not succumb to the nausea and vomit everywhere. She pulled her cuffed hands off of her knees and pinched her nose. The man simply smiled at the gesture and waited for her to respond.

    ¡°I¡¯m¡­ I¡¯m not quite sure really,¡± she said.

    Her voice sounded awkward with her nose being pinched.

    ¡°HAH, never admit to the crime. I like it,¡± the man said with a guffaw, ¡°Public intoxication and disturbing the peace myself. These stuck-up fancy pants coun...council members just don¡¯t know how to have fun.¡±

    Anna nodded but did not reply. The man gave her an up-and-down look as if he was inspecting her.

    ¡°You¡¯re not from around here are ya?¡± he asked.

    ¡°No,¡± Anna answered.

    ¡°Didn¡¯t think so. You got a lost sorta look about ye,¡± he said matter of factly, hiccuping again before continuing, ¡°Don¡¯t worry too much. Whatever ye¡¯ve done, it¡¯ll be worked out. Yer just a child so it probably wa...wasn¡¯t anything too awful. The council¡¯s usually pretty lenient. ¡®Specially for first time offenders. Just look at me, this is my second time in this chair this month and I¡¯m not sweatin¡¯ a thing.¡±

    A wide grin spread across his face and Anna noticed he was missing several teeth. She let go of her nose and tried to smile back but gagged almost immediately. Silence fell between them and Anna was thankful for it. The man seemed nice enough but his stench was overbearing. A few minutes passed when finally something happened. A door down the hall to the right swung open and a voice came from inside.

    ¡°Nontribus to court room 6,¡± the voice called.

    The drunk man was now giving Anna a funny, curious kind of look.

    ¡°Think they mean you girly. Tribeless, eh? First one I¡¯ve ever seen,¡± he said.

    Anna looked at him for a moment and something in her face must have shown him how scared he was. He spoke again in a much more sympathetic tone.

    ¡°You¡¯ll be alright, just keep your chin up,¡± he said.

    ¡°Thank you,¡± Anna replied.

    She stood up, doing her best to fight the cloudiness and nausea, and turned down the hallway towards the room. She began walking in what felt like some kind of death march towards the open door. As she reached it, she closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She opened them again and stepped through the doorway.This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

    It took a moment for Anna¡¯s eyes to adjust to the renewed brightness in this room. The lights around the walls were only slightly brighter than the lights out in the hallway, but what sat in the center of the room was another story. In the middle of the room was a beam of pure white light that almost looked to be flowing like water. It reminded Anna of the way that sunlight would cast a beam in a dark, dusty room. How the particles of dust would dance and flitter about in a way that made the fluorescent beams look almost alive. Anna had the impression that the movement she saw was not dust, however. The flowing light had a sort of fluidity to it, and she found herself wondering if it would feel wet to the touch.

    As her vision cleared, Anna took notice of what was sitting in the beam of light: a single plain wooden chair was sat upon the floor, right in the center of the illuminated waterfall. As the light touched it, it did indeed seem to flow and drip off the edges of the seat like droplets of water. Suddenly, a voice rang out through the room, causing Anna to jump a little.

    ¡°You may be seated.¡±

    The voice was deep and booming and had a fancy sort of quality about it. Anna slowly approached the chair. As she drew closer, she was able to see beyond the bright beam to what lied behind it. On the wall opposite the door was a raised bench, built into a semicircle protruding from the wall. Anna could see the shadows of figures seated at the bench, all facing her direction, but the light was still too bright for her to make out their finer details.

    ¡°I said you may be seated,¡± the voice repeated in a much more demanding tone.

    Anna looked down at the chair. She was now just inches from the watery light, afraid of what would happen when she entered it. What if she couldn¡¯t breathe? She wasn¡¯t a fish after all. But she could feel the eyes of the shadowy figures watching her relentlessly, even if she couldn¡¯t actually see them, and knew that she had no choice. Without any more hesitation, she plunged herself into the seat, into the waterfall of light.

    For a moment, she was afraid to take a breath, afraid she would be drowned and lost forever if she did so. Perhaps that was why she was here. Maybe that was how this place conducted executions. But after a moment, she realized that the beam was not exactly liquid. While droplets of it did land on her, creating glowing beads on her skin and clothes, it did not feel wet. If anything, it felt like stepping into a warm ray of sunshine after having been inside of a building with the thermostat turned down too low. Despite her surroundings and her fear, the light on her skin felt nice. It felt comfortable. She could feel the warmth spreading over her, inside of her, heating her to her very core. In a way, it seemed to be driving the fear from her heart and replacing it with a sense of contentment. Her fear of breathing dissipated and she exhaled and inhaled deeply. The feelings from the light seemed to get even stronger.

    Now that she was seated in the middle of the light, she could more clearly make out the figures who had previously been obscured in shadow. Six people were seated at the bench, each of them casting a wary gaze towards her. Anna noticed that there was a spot for one more person to be seated, but it appeared to be empty at the moment. Each of the people were wearing fancy looking robes of varying color. Three of them were adorned in vibrant colors that stood out on the dimly lit bench, different patterns and stripes, one even sporting robes decorated with sparkly silver polka dots. The other three people were dressed in a more reserved fashion. Their robes were each a singular color, one wearing dark green robes, one wearing robes of a royal blue. The man in the middle of the seating arrangement had on jet black robes that gave off the impression that he found this to be a very serious and somber affair. He had short, white hair and a long, angular face. While his wrinkles told Anna that he was at least as old as Broderick, his eyes held none of the same warmth. In his hand was a wooden gavel and a moment after Anna had sat, he smacked it hard on the bench. The noise vibrated and echoed through the room.

    ¡°Without any objections, the Council will now come to order,¡± he said, and Anna realized his had been the voice that had told her to sit down, ¡°This is a hearing to be conducted under review of the full Monsadasian council, with one member being in absentia due to life threatening injuries.¡±

    As he said the last part, the man gave Anna a particularly nasty look. She began to get an idea of who the missing seat might have been meant for.

    ¡° Without any delay, I will now call the roll for all present members,¡± the man said, ¡°Madam Palistrode?¡±

    ¡°Here,¡± the woman in the polka dot robes called.

    ¡°Madam Deltarva?¡±

    ¡°Here,¡± said the woman in dark green robes in a rather haughty voice.

    ¡°Madam Gorka?¡±

    ¡°Here,¡± said a small, tinny voice. Anna had trouble telling where it had come from due to it being so quiet, but there was only one more woman on the bench so Anna assumed it had to be her.

    ¡°Master Stuvelle?¡±

    ¡°Here,¡± said the largest man on the bench, the one wearing the robes of royal blue, in a gruff voice. He had a salt and pepper goatee and a thick head of hair that matched.

    ¡°Master Roderung?¡±

    ¡°Here,¡± said the last man on the bench.

    For some reason, this Master Roderung stood out to Anna more so than any of the others on the bench. Perhaps it was his robes of gold and silver with sky blue stars that shone so brilliantly in the darkness, perhaps it was the fact that he was considerably younger, probably in his early fifties, and more handsome than any of his fellow members. He had a playfulness in his eyes and as he announced his presence, he grinned at Anna in a mischievous way. This was a far cry from all the others, who had been looking at her as if she were the grim reaper or something.

    ¡°And I, head councilmember Rokus, will be presiding over this trial.¡± the man in black continued, ¡°Now then, I hereby inform you, defendant, that you are sitting under the Falls of Probitas.,¡± he continued, ¡°It will compel you to tell the truth in any inquiries we may ask and will make things very unpleasant for you should you try to utter falsehoods. You shall also remain in the spellbinders during the entirety of this procession, so any attempts to cast spells or free yourself via sorcery will be pointless. I warn you¡­ We will not hesitate to use lethal force in this very courtroom in the event that you try to escape. Now, first things first, what is your name and from where do you hail, child?¡±

    For a moment, Anna did not answer. She was still trying to wrap her head around the words ¡®lethal force¡¯ but her silence did not last long. Without her consent, she could feel the answers to his questions coming to the forefront of her mind, pushing out any other thoughts, and before she realized what was happening, her lips were moving and sound was emerging from them.

    ¡°My name is Anna Nommins. I¡¯m from Darjeary, Indiana,¡± she said.

    As soon as the words had left her, Anna immediately closed her mouth harder than she meant to, accidentally biting her tongue as she did so. Though she would have answered truthfully anyways, she did not like how the words had been compelled from her. As she answered, the woman called Deltarva gasped and put her hand to her chest, as if Anna had said something highly offensive to her.

    ¡°So our suspicions were right. She is a nontribus, ¡° she said in that haughty, superior voice, ¡°filth amongst our walls,¡± she added scornfully.

    Anna already did not like this woman one bit. Even if she didn¡¯t know what a nontribus was, she did not care for this woman¡¯s tone of voice.

    ¡°Are we sure that she hasn¡¯t had her memory modified in some way to fool the Falls?¡± the man named Stuvelle asked the others. He scratched his beard as he gazed at Anna. ¡°What if one of the other kingdoms-¡±

    Wham!

    Rokus had slammed his gavel down hard and several of the council members were casting an aghast expression towards Stuvelle.

    ¡°Master Stuvelle! You would do well to watch your tongue. Aspersions will not be cast towards our brothers and sisters in the other kingdoms in this court,¡± Rokus said sternly.

    Stuvelle rolled his eyes before continuing, ¡°I mean to cast no aspersions towards anyone Master Rokus, I am simply reaching the most natural conclusion of the facts at hand. This child claims to be from the human world, but we also have evidence that she has attacked and overpowered at least two of our esteemed colleagues. One of which, may I remind you all, was one of the most powerful sorceresses to ever walk this kingdom.¡±

    He looked around at them all and their stern looks seemed to dissipate under his frightening gaze.

    ¡°So I ask all of you, what is more likely? This girl, not of our world, managed to lure and murder one of the best of our kind and also figure out a way to steal magic from us, or is she a spy? Bewitched, perhaps even unknowingly, to sow chaos amongst our council and society. We must consider all options here, fellow council members, and not be foolish or naive in our thinking. While the five kingdoms may live in relative peace, we are all aware that some kingdoms are not so inclined towards our way of life as the others.¡±

    ¡°But Stuvelle, that would violate the Source Armistice,¡± said the small voice of the woman called Gorka.

    She seemed to tremble with anxiety as she confronted Stuvelle. Anna couldn¡¯t say she blamed her and found herself a bit impressed by the woman¡¯s bravery; Stuvelle was a very imposing man.

    ¡°Hah,¡± Stuvelle spat out in a humorless manner, ¡°that is nothing but conjecture and guesswork. This court holds the most esteemed members of our kingdom, so let us not fool ourselves with false hopes and dreams. None of us really knows what would or would not violate the Armistice. Who is to say that one of the other kingdoms hasn¡¯t figured out a way to circumvent the Source¡¯s intentions?¡±

    Anna was becoming more confused by the minute. All this talk of armistices and sources and whatnot had her completely lost.

    Wham! Wham! Came the sound of the gavel as Rokus smacked it against the bench again.

    ¡°Order, there will be order in the courtroom. Master Stuvelle, you will hold your tongue,¡± Rokus said.

    Stuvelle crossed his arms and a nasty look fell on his face, but his mouth stayed shut.

    ¡°We will deal with facts in this chamber, not errant accusations. The facts before us are this: Miss Anna Nommins entered our realm uninvited, apparently through the use of a gatestone. She arrived in the gateyard with the beaten and badly injured body of fellow council member Broderick Codswaller. Upon inspection of her after her arrival, it was determined that she had traces of our dear Gwendolyn Ventusia¡¯s magic flowing through her veins. Regardless of where this child hails from or what her motives were, all evidence points to her having murdered Gwendolyn and stealing her magic. Clearly, she was attempting to do the same to Master Codswaller. My guess is that he managed to force her here before the job could be completed,¡± Rokus said, his eyes staying on Anna¡¯s through the whole speech.

    ¡°Such clear evidence and egregious actions can only lead to one verdict in my opinion: Anna Nommins is guilty of murder and attempted murder, as well as the most heinous act of stealing magic from another sorceror,¡± Rokus concluded.

    Anna finally found her voice.

    ¡°That¡¯s a bunch of bullcrap,¡± she yelled angrily, her voice echoing throughout the room.

    Rokus arched an eyebrow at her and looked a bit taken aback at her sudden outburst.

    ¡°Excuse me?¡± he said.

    ¡°You heard me. I said your story is bullcrap,¡± Anna repeated.

    Rokus smirked at her.

    ¡°Then answer me this, girl. Were you present when Gwendolyn was murdered?¡±

    Anna gritted her teeth. She could feel the Falls¡¯ effects coursing through her body. The urge to answer his question completely, without any elaboration, was immense and uncomfortable. Her mind formed the word ¡®yes¡¯ and her mouth wanted so badly to say it, but she knew it was a loaded question. Anna summoned every bit of willpower she had. Her skin began to burn and her head felt like a spike was being rammed into it, but she resisted. She would tell the truth, but it would be the whole truth and not this partial truth that Rokus was attempting to pull from her.

    ¡°Thats¡­ Not¡­ How¡­ It happened,¡± she managed to say through her teeth.

    She knew the falls¡¯ were pushing her to answer his question without any deviation. And it was true, she was there when Gwendolyn died. But she did not cause the death and she was not about to let this pompous moron push her into that corner.

    ¡°She is clearly lying,¡± said Deltarva, ¡°look how she trembles with the effort of her lies.¡±

    ¡°I was there when Gwendolyn died,¡± Anna said. The words flowed much easier this time, and now that she wasn¡¯t under the weight of a narrow and specific question, she felt she could tell the whole story. She continued, ¡°But I was not the one who killed her,¡±

    ¡°Lies!¡± shouted Deltarva, ¡°We have just heard the nontribus admit to being there when Gwen was killed. You all just saw how she shook and struggled when trying to deny the fact.¡±

    The group erupted in a cacophony of noise as each member tried to interject among the others. All except the man, Roderung. He had crossed his legs nonchalantly and was looking around at the uproar that had enveloped his colleagues. After a few moments, he leaned forward as if he were about to speak, but someone else beat him to it.

    ¡°Perhaps we should allow Ms. Nommins to attest to her version of the events in question.¡± said Madam Palistrode, speaking up finally.

    A silence fell amongst the members. Anna felt an immediate warmth in her chest towards Miss Palistrode

    Palistrode looked around at them all before continuing, ¡°I mean, what if there is more to this story? I suggest that we postpone this hearing. Our medics should have Broderick in tip top shape before the ink even dries on this report, what harm would it do to wait a day and hear his version of events? Or to allow Miss Nommins to regale us with whatever tale she has for the reason in which she finds herself with Gwendolyn¡¯s magical signature on her? It can¡¯t possibly be any more outlandish than Master Stuvelle¡¯s entertaining theories.¡±

    Palistrode¡¯s opposing view had led to a few nasty looks from several of the council members. Stuvelle looked as if he were ready to choke her. Anna, however, was liking this woman more with every word she spoke.

    ¡°Yes, please, I-¡± Anna began but Rokus cut her off immediately.

    ¡°Silence, nontribus! I have had enough of your childish outbursts. You will not speak in my courtroom unless you are addressed first,¡± he said.

    ¡°Well, I agree with Madam Palistrode,¡± Roderung said.

    Everyone at the bench turned to stare at him. Palistrode gave him the barest hint of a smile, but his eyes were locked on Anna. He leaned back in his chair before finally breaking eye contact with Anna and looking around at his colleagues.

    ¡°I say we let the girl speak. As a matter of fact, I would like to enter a parliamentary inquiry in the record to ask her what her story is. Will anyone second my inquiry?¡± he continued.

    ¡°Seconded,¡± Palistrode said without missing a beat.

    Rokus was visibly frustrated by this turn of events and for a moment he seemed to have lost his voice. Anna could tell that Deltarva was muttering to herself discontentedly and Stuvelle was still staring daggers at Palistrode. Gorka looked extremely uncomfortable and Anna had the impression that she would rather be anywhere else in the world right now besides this courtroom. Anna could definitely empathize with that sentiment.

    ¡°It¡¯s settled then,¡± Roderung said with a satisfied smirk, ¡°please let the record show that a parliamentary inquiry has been entered and affirmed to hear the testimony of Miss Anna Nommins. Please Miss Nommins, I would like to know how it is you came to be here in our kingdom with the body of our own dear Broderick, and how you might explain the traces of Gwendolyn¡¯s magic on you that we have detected. I know our head councilman has already informed you, but I would reiterate: the Falls of Probitas that you find yourself under will compel you to tell the truth. Though I have a feeling that they will be unnecessary.¡±

    Deltarva scoffed at his last sentence but did not object any further, nor did the others. They all sat silently and expectantly, their eyes and ears intensely focused on Anna. She felt a warm sensation in her cheeks that she didn¡¯t think had anything to do with the Falls.

    ¡°Uhm, o-ok.,¡± she stammered.

    Now that she finally had the opportunity to speak, she found that she was having trouble collecting her thoughts. The nausea from the spellbinders had returned and the light from above was causing her head to pound intensely. Finally, she decided to just start at the beginning.

    ¡°Well, it all started in an alleyway,¡± she said, and she began to tell them the whole tale, leaving out the less flattering parts about her own behavior.

    During the times when she glossed over details that she didn¡¯t want to reveal to the council members, such as how she had been caught by Ms. Whitney for stealing the cakes or when she had possibly been the cause of a phone exploding in Alexis¡¯ face, she could feel the push of the Falls inside of her. The words wanted so badly to escape from her, they wanted to be spoken and told to the council but Anna did not want to let them. Her skin would begin to burn again and the pounding in her head would increase tenfold, but somehow she managed to maintain her composure and only barely spoke through gritted teeth. She was afraid each time that Deltarva would call her out or make a snide remark, but she kept her mouth shut. As a matter of fact, they all seemed to be enraptured with the story Anna was telling them.

    The more she spoke, the easier it became for her to tell even more. Where at first, she had been having trouble recalling the details or deciding how even to explain the things she had seen over the last week or so, she was now finding that the words were flowing from her rather readily. Perhaps she needed to tell the story for herself. Maybe it was therapeutic or cathartic in some way to say it aloud to people who at least wouldn¡¯t say she was crazy for speaking of magic as if it were real. Eventually she came to the end of her story, telling it all the way to the point where her and Broderick had been attacked in the woods.

    ¡°And then I grabbed the piece of chalk or whatever it was, and completed the circle. The next thing I knew, we were laying in some grassy area with a bunch of stone structures and your people had surrounded us. And then you locked me up,¡± she finished.

    She had spoken so much that her mouth was feeling uncomfortably dry and she found herself wishing that the Falls raining down on her were actually water so she could take a drink of it. The council sat in silence before, finally, Deltarva broke it with her annoyingly superior voice.

    ¡°Well, what a crock of utter nonsense,¡± she said.

    Stuvelle and Rokus both made murmurs of agreement, but to Anna¡¯s surprise, Gorka was the one to dissent.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know, she sounded very convincing to me,¡± she said quietly.

    Anna waited for her to say more, but Gorka seemed to have retreated back into her shell of silence after that.

    ¡°While it may have been a very¡­ Colorful tale, I find myself agreeing with Madam Deltarva. The whole thing sounds fabricated beyond belief to me. A sorceress giving her magic to a nontribus? It would never happen. I don¡¯t even believe it¡¯s possible,¡± Rokus said.

    ¡°I thought this was a court of facts, not beliefs,¡± spouted Palistrode sarcastically.

    ¡°Yes, head councilman, just because none of us have ever heard of it does not make it impossible. We all know that Gwendolyn was far from a conformist,¡± Roderung added.

    ¡°I think we should listen to Madam Palistrode¡¯s advice, we should wait to hear from Broderick¡± Gorka said in barely a whisper.

    She looked absolutely terrified to be going against the obvious wishes of her head council member, but she looked directly at him as she spoke.

    ¡°I...I,¡± Rokus spluttered.

    He was clearly getting flustered by the fact that now half of his courtroom seemed to be dissenting from his conviction. As his frustrations grew, so did Anna¡¯s hopes. Perhaps they would just let her go. Decide this whole thing had been a misunderstanding and send her back to the orphanage. At this point, she would gladly take Ms. Whitney¡¯s accusations of wrongdoing over those being cast by Stuvelle, Deltarva, and Rokus. Her hope did not last long.

    ¡°I see no reason to wait. We have all the evidence we need to make a decision,¡± Rokus said, ¡°to allow this criminal and murderer to go free would be an abhorrent abdication of our duties to protect the citizens of Monsadasia. What if she decides to kill again, to take more of our magic?¡±

    He had a wild and frightening look in his eyes.

    ¡°But Rokus, she is just a child,¡± Palistrode said.

    ¡°Silence!¡± he shouted back, ¡°she is a child who has taken the life of one of the greatest and most powerful of our people. This is plainly clear by our own tests. She carries the magic of Gwendolyn Ventusia on her, we have all seen the proof.¡±

    ¡°With all due respect, Master Rokus, that is utter nonsense,¡± Roderung said defiantly, ¡°we have at most circumstantial evidence of that, and to think that a child, one of whom has no magic of her own was able to take out Gwen is laughable.¡±

    ¡°I will not tolerate the misguided lip service of the most amateur member of our ranks,¡± Rokus spat.

    Anna realized why Roderung was so much younger than the rest of the members.

    ¡°I agree with Rokus. What if this girl is a spy for one of the other kingdoms. Even if she isn¡¯t, what if she is working for some nontribus group that has discovered us and wishes to take our powers? We have managed to stay secluded and hidden for this long, but I have said for quite a long while that it is only a matter of time before their kind rediscover us and wage all out war to steal our abilities,¡± Stuvelle said.

    ¡°Yes, their filth has always envied and coveted our abilities. It would be just like them to use a child to throw us of their scent,¡± Deltarva added maliciously.

    ¡°But I,¡± Anna tried to say, but Rokus cut her off immediately.

    ¡°You have not been spoken to, you will not speak!¡± he said, almost shouting at this point, ¡°as the head of this council, it falls to me to lead this procession and to call for a vote. I have reviewed the evidence of all able parties and my conclusion is this: Anna Nommins murdered Gwendolyn Ventusia and proceeded to steal her magic. She attempted to do the same with a member of this very council, Broderick Codswaller. Whether or not her methods have anything to do with the theft of the Saccularus Blade from our own vaults remains to be seen, but in the case before us that is rather inconsequential. The fact remains that she is, in my opinion, guilty of the charges this council has levied against her.¡±

    ¡°I propose the harshest of punishments for this most heinous crime. Anna Nommins, per the vote of the council members present, should be sentenced to the Silent Realm. There she will remain trapped, for the rest of eternity. Until time draws to an end and the universe closes.¡±

    Anna had no idea what a ¡®silent realm¡¯ was but it sounded very unpleasant. The urge to both vomit and cry became quite strong and she had a feeling that neither of them were being caused by the spellbinders on her wrist.

    Rokus continued, ¡°WIthout any other further delay or distractions, I hereby order a vote on the sentence suggested via my authority.¡±

    While Stuvelle had the grace to at least look grave towards this sudden turn of events, Deltarva was wearing an expression of utmost joy. Palistrode and Gorka both had a rather disturbed look about them, but Roderung looked absolutely distraught at the vote that he now had to cast.

    ¡°But Master Rokus, please listen to reason,¡± he attempted but Rokus was not tolerating any more dissent.

    ¡°It is time for a vote Roderung,¡± Rokus said coldly, ¡°all those in favor of the banishment of the defendant?¡±

    Rokus raised his hand, as did Stuvelle. Deltarva nearly fell out of her chair, her hand shot up with such fervor and enthusiasm.

    ¡°All those opposed?¡± Rokus said with a smirk.

    Palistrode, Gorka, and Roderung all raised their hands. They all had a defeated look about them that gave Anna no comfort. She immediately wondered how the tie would be resolved.

    ¡°How unfortunate. It seems we have reached a split decision,¡± Rokus said, with what Anna clearly recognized was mocking concern, ¡°unfortunately, and by that I mean unfortunately for you miss Nommins, the rules and laws that guide this court are quite clear. There are to be seven members on this council at all times to keep from the agony and indecisiveness of a split decision. However, in the event of extenuating circumstances, where one or more members is not present and the vote does result in a tie, the most arduous task of breaking said tie shall fall to the most senior member of the council. Which just so happens to be me.¡±

    Anna felt her heart drop into her stomach before jumping back up to feel like it was beating in her throat.

    ¡°As the head of this council, I shall hereby cast my vote to break the tie, and my vote is-¡± but before he could finish, someone spoke from behind Anna.

    ¡°Well, it¡¯s a good thing for all parties involved that the vote will not be a tie isn¡¯t it?¡±

    Anna tried to turn to see who had spoken, but the chair and the spellbinders kept her from being able to turn fully. She heard the sound of footsteps marching across the hard stone floor and several of the council members gasped in surprise.

    ¡°You?!¡± Rokus said in disgust.

    ¡°I thought you would be a little more happy to see me Rokus, alive and well. From what I gathered from the sound of your shouts before entering the room, you were most concerned about my well-being only moments ago,¡± the voice said.

    The unknown speaker finally reached a point where Anna could clearly see him and she felt hope rise like a geyser inside of her at the sight of him; Broderick had finally returned to her.

    ¡°Broderick, so glad to see you up and on your feet,¡± Roderung said.

    ¡°Yes, I was just telling these ninnies on the other side of the bench that it was only a matter of time before you were in tip top shape. Some of us here, however, are a bit hasty in their foolishness,¡± Palistrode said, giving Rokus quite a dirty look as she spoke.

    Gorka did not say anything, but she gave a meek wave towards Broderick which he returned with a smile.

    ¡°Do some on this court doubt the astounding capabilities of our most esteemed healers? Or perhaps they think I have grown frail in my old age,¡± Broderick questioned.

    He had his staff in hand and looked to be using it for support more than Anna had seen him do before. He was a bit pale as well, but other than that, he looked completely healthy to her.

    ¡°No, no, of course not Master Codswaller,¡± Rokus said hurriedly, ¡°I never doubted you would make a full recovery.¡±

    ¡°Well I did,¡± Deltarva interjected, ¡°you looked half dead last I saw you and you are getting quite up there in years. I was fully expecting to be voting in a new member of the council next week.¡±

    ¡°Good of you to always be prepared,¡± Broderick replied with a wry smile.

    ¡°How did you know this procession was happening?¡± Stuvelle asked with a raised eyebrow.

    ¡°Luckily enough, not long after waking and being cleared to be up and about by the healers, I just so happened to run into Captain Galatea. Well, truthfully, I may have went searching for her. I was quite interested to know what had happened to Anna upon our arrival here. I thought she may have been placed under temporary internment due to our odd arrival and a comment made by Healer Raurus about how she had been found by my injured body. The Captain informed me that Anna had been brought down here for trial about an hour before I found her. Suffice to say, I never would have dreamed that such an esteemed and judicious court such as this would dare hold a hearing against a defendant without first gathering all the facts, but alas, it seems I was mistaken.¡±

    ¡°We have all the facts,¡± Rokus shot at him angrily, ¡°this nontribus murdered Gwendolyn and attempted to murder you! She could not be allowed to remain unpunished while we hoped that you made a recovery.¡±

    ¡°I would appreciate you not accusing her of trying to murder me. For one, it greatly discounts my own magical prowess, and for two I can tell you that she, in fact, did not attempt any such thing. If anything, she saved my life,¡± Broderick said.

    A few of the members began murmuring and Stuvelle even looked a bit ashamed.

    ¡°And honestly,¡± Broderick continued, ¡°to say that this poor child was capable of Murdering Gwendolyn the Great, Gwen of the Winds, is absolutely laughable and anyone who even considered it would do well to feel a modicum of shame and embarrassment. Gwendolyn was one of the best of our kind, sharper than any blade and able to cast spells that I wouldn;t even dare attempt. I daresay, she could take on at least three of you simultaneously.¡±

    ¡°That she could, I wouldn;t have challenged her to a duel even in my younger days when my wand was quicker and my brain sharper,¡± Palistrode said with a smile.

    Roderung¡¯s mouth had twisted into an amused smirk at Broderick¡¯s words and Gorka was shaking her head enthusiastically in agreement. Rokus, Stuvelle, and Deltarva each wore an expression as if they had just been slapped.

    ¡°Why I never!¡± Deltarva said indignantly.

    ¡°Oh pipe down Deltarva, Gwendolyn would have cast circles around you and you know it,¡± Palistrode said with a roll of her eyes.

    Anna felt a bit of satisfaction that someone had finally told Deltarva to shut up.

    ¡°So what then Broderick? You actually believe this girl just so happened to run into Gwendolyn in some alleyway in the nontribus world, witnessed her almost get murdered, and then Gwen willingly gave up her magic to this outsider? It¡¯s a load of rubbish. You¡¯ve said a lot of foolish things during our time together on this council, but your belief and trust in this girl at the moment might top them all,¡± Rokus said heatedly.

    Broderick did not look upset or angry at Rokus¡¯ words. As a matter of fact, he had a calm smile on his face and even seemed to be regaining some of his color. Anna got the impression that he quite enjoyed getting Rokus all ruffled up like this.

    ¡°I may be foolish at times Rokus, but you outshine me in that department any day of the week. How could you not believe her when you have gone to the lengths of placing her under the Falls of Probitas. I, myself, would not be able to withstand their magic. It is born straight from The Source itself. None of us here would be able to lie under the Falls¡¯ almighty gaze.¡±

    ¡°She looked to be lying earlier, it was clear that she was withholding¡­ Well, something from us. Her teeth were clenched and she could barely speak the lies that fell from her mouth,¡± Deltarva said.

    ¡°By the Source, Deltarva, think of what you are saying and the situation this girl finds herself in. She is in a strange world, has been a prisoner for days. And then you lot come along, go to the extreme lengths of putting spellbinders on her and then place her under the Falls in front of the highest council of our kingdom. I¡¯d like to see you not pass out from the sheer stress of that situation. Odds are, you¡¯d be ejecting your last meal just from the effects of the spellbinders,¡± Broderick said to her.

    ¡°So what do you think we should do Broderick? Just allow this girl to return to the outside world and reveal all of our secrets to her kind?¡± Stuvelle asked.

    ¡°Of course not. She has magical abilities now. She must be incorporated into our society and trained properly. Otherwise she is a danger to herself and all those around her,¡± Broderick replied.

    ¡°But who would train her? Most of our people are not exactly fond of her kind, and with good reason,¡± Roderung asked.

    ¡°I will,¡± Broderick said simply.

    Half the court was looking at him as if he was crazy, and Anna almost couldn¡¯t blame them. She had not been in this place for long, but she got the feeling that Broderick would face some kind of ridicule or shunning from taking her under his wing.

    ¡°Well, I think that¡¯s a splendid idea,¡± Palistrode said happily.

    ¡°As do I,¡± Gorka said, louder than anything else she had said so far.

    ¡°Would you like to do the honors Broderick?¡± Roderung asked.

    ¡°Be my guest,¡± Broderick replied.

    ¡°All right then,¡± Roderung said with an ecstatic smile on his face, ¡°I move to force a vote to clear the defendant of all charges levied against her and allow her to be released into the custody of our colleague, Broderick Codswaller.¡±

    ¡°Seconded,¡± both Palistrode and Gorka chimed before any of the other could object.

    Rokus looked absolutely furious. He was looking around from Roderung, to Broderick, and then back to Anna, his mouth moving in a wordless fury. His angular face had gone a deep shade of red. He seemed to realize that his hand had been forced, however and after a moment he finally spoke.

    ¡°Very well the Broderick. If you want to accept this burden into your homestead, who am I to disabuse you of your outlandish wishes. The motion brought forth by Master Roderung has been adopted. All those in favor?¡±

    Broderick, Roderung, Palistrode, and Gorka all raised their hands. The other three kept their hands down, not that Anna had expected them to do any different. Deltarva was looking at Anna as if she wanted to strangle her. Anna desperately wanted to stick her tongue out at Deltarva and perhaps make a rude gesture involving one of her fingers. She thought better of it however, and instead decided to look down at the floor. It was better to not be tempted.

    ¡°Fine, fine,¡± Rokus said angrily, ¡°cleared of all charges. Now get her out of my sight.¡±

    He banged the gavel hard on the bench.

    ¡°Come on Anna, we are going home,¡± Broderick said to her with a smile and a twinkle in his eyes.

    He stepped forward and pointed the crystalline ball on the tip of his staff directly at the spellbinders on her wrists. The crystal glowed brightly while simultaneously, the light from the cuffs disappeared. After a moment, they looked no different than any other pair of handcuffs. They seemingly unlocked themselves and fell to the floor with a clatter that echoed throughout the room. Broderick reached down a hand to help her up. As she stood, the nausea and relentless pounding in her head seemed to evaporate. Relief swept through her body and she almost felt giddy at this unexpected turn of events.

    ¡°Broderick,¡± Rokus said expectantly.

    ¡°Yes Rokus?¡±

    ¡°If this nontribus so much as steps a toe out of line while she is here, it will be your head I come after,¡± Rokus said, and with that he stood up and exited the room through a door behind the bench.

 Welcome to the Jungle

    Anna followed Broderick out of the courtroom. Neither of them said a word as they departed. Anna wondered if Broderick was just as ready to leave the courtroom as she was. Upon exiting the room, Anna looked around for the man whom had been in the hallway with her earlier, but he was nowhere in sight. She sincerely hoped that he was given the same lenience that she herself had been granted.

    Broderick led her back up the set of stairs that led down to the court chambers. They ventured through several new hallways, and up several more flights of stairs. Along the way, a few people waved at and greeted Broderick. He seemed to be very well liked amongst the people they encountered. Almost all of them, however, acted as if Anna was not even there, and the only acknowledgement she seemed to get was a funny look here and there. This didn¡¯t bother her though. Nothing was going to break the elated feeling that rang through her soul after the way she had just been saved.

    ¡°Broderick, I want to thank y-¡± Anna started but Broderick interrupted her.

    ¡°No need to thank me my dear. It was the right thing to do. And even if it wasn¡¯t, it was worth it to see Rokus get all rustled up like that. I haven¡¯t been lucky enough to see that old coot so frustrated in a long time,¡± Broderick said with a chuckle.

    After a while, they ended up in a rather large and open area, with a curved ceiling decorated with more of the crystal chandeliers Anna had seen previously. There were a few different exits in this area, but by far the most eye catching one was an ornate set of double doors situated just past the entranceway Anna and Broderick had just walked through. Just before these doors there was a large wooden desk, at which sat a young looking man with dark hair, likely only a few years older than Anna. She followed Broderick as he led her towards the fancy doors, and just before they reached them, the young man spoke.

    ¡°Leaving for the day already Master Codswaller?¡± he asked.

    ¡°Yes, dear Hopsin, I have some business to attend to so I likely won¡¯t be returning for the day,¡± Broderick replied.

    ¡°I understand. I¡¯m glad to see you up on your feet after that nasty scare you gave us in the gateyard. Some people thought you were done for, but I knew better. Told ¡®em, Broderick¡¯s tough as an ox, he¡¯ll be up and back at work in no time. Glad to see I was right.¡±

    ¡°I appreciate the kind words. It¡¯ll take a lot more than a fireball to keep me down,¡± Broderick responded cheerfully.

    He waved at the young man, who was now giving Broderick a rather quizzical look, and led Anna out of the double doors.

    During their journey out of the courtroom and through the twisting and turning halls that led to it, Anna had been wondering what they would see once they got outside. She hadn¡¯t the slightest clue what to expect from a so-called kingdom, having only ever seen her small midwestern town. She hadn¡¯t really seen much of the kingdom upon her arrival, apart from the glade her and Broderick had appeared in. Almost immediately after being captured, a sack had been placed over her head as she was led away from Broderick. As he opened the door for her, Anna squinted instinctively. After the last few hours in that dim courtroom, she expected to be blinded by the sunlight that had shone through the window in her cell every day. It turned out, it wasn¡¯t very bright outside at all. Nor was there a sun in the sky.

    The heavens above Anna did not resemble the same sky Anna had seen every day and night for all of her life. Instead, the sky seemed to be an endless expanse of black that seemed to go on forever. There were no clouds in the sky, nor were there any stars or moon either. That wasn¡¯t to say there wasn¡¯t any light source at all, however. Hanging in the sky, seemingly only a few hundred yards up, was a massive orange crystal that glowed brightly, lighting up the world beneath it. The crystal emitted a warmth on Anna¡¯s face very similar to how the sun would, but the light it cast was a slightly different color than the daylight Anna was accustomed to. It was slightly disorienting, but also breathtaking.

    ¡°It¡¯s quite beautiful, isn¡¯t it?¡± asked Broderick, who had noticed her staring up at the strange orange crystal in awe.

    ¡°What is it?¡± Anna asked curiously.

    ¡°It is known as the Sol Regnum, the Star of the Kingdom,¡± Broderick said.

    ¡°I don¡¯t understand, where¡¯s the sun. Where are we?¡±

    ¡°I will explain everything and answer all of your questions as soon as we get home, I promise.¡± Broderick said.

    Home. The word sounded so foreign to Anna. She had lived at the orphanage all of her life, but she had never really thought of it as a home. For some reason, this thought made her a bit uncomfortable. As they walked forward a bit, Anna turned to look at the building they had just exited. She had assumed it was a rather large building, based on the flights of stairs she had traversed over the last few hours, but she would not have believed just how monumental it was if she hadn¡¯t been staring at it with her own eyes. Her head tilted back and back even more, until it hurt her neck to look up any further. She lost track of the number of floors the building contained. Building wasn¡¯t even an accurate moniker for the structure; it was more like a skyscraper¡­ Or maybe a castle. As Anna surveyed the polished stone walls, she noticed something peculiar. Much like the bathtub in her cell, she could not discern where the walls of the castle began and the ground it rose from ended. Broderick seemed to know exactly what was on her mind.

    ¡°It is all one piece,¡± he said.

    ¡°What do you mean?¡± Anna asked.

    ¡°There is a reason this kingdom is called Monsadasia, my dear. You see that mountain off in the distance?¡± Broderick asked, pointing off in the distance to a greyish rocky peak that stood out against the black backdrop of the endless sky.

    Anna nodded her head.

    ¡°Monsadasia means the land of the mountain,¡± Broderick explained, ¡°Once upon a time, long ago, this kingdom resided in a mountainous region. Well, I say kingdom, but back then it was more akin to a tribe. At one point, the actual date being lost to the annals of history, some of our greatest architectural sorcerors carved one of the peaks into the castle you see before you.¡±

    ¡°So this castle was made from a mountain?¡± Anna asked in awe.

    ¡°Precisely,¡± Broderick responded.

    Anna had so many questions swirling in her head that she couldn¡¯t seem to focus enough to form a singular one. After a moment more, Broderick waved at her to follow, and she did so obligingly. They had only made it a few yards however, when Anna stopped again. Between the massive glowing crystal in the sky and the imposing figure of the castle, she hadn¡¯t really paid it much attention at first, but located just outside of the castle entrance was a fantastical fountain. It seemed to depict a man, a woman, and a young girl. The man and woman figures had wands extended into the air which were erupting with jets of water, falling into a wide pool below the statue. The statue was carved with such loving and precise detail that if it weren¡¯t for the monochrome copper color, she could have easily mistaken them for actual living people.

    The man was tall and handsome. Even in this petrified state, his eyes seemed to reflect a wisdom and understanding far beyond his apparent age. An intricate crown sat atop his head, with what looked to be a large, smooth jewel carved into the front of it. He did not wear the robes Anna had seen most people in Monsadasia wearing, but rather was carved wearing a buttoned jacket, complete with a set of cut gemstone cufflinks. The woman had on a long, flowing dress that, even though it was made of solid metal, seemed to twist and swirl around her like some kind of majestic wave. The young girl was staring up at both of them with a warm smile and a look of adoration on her face. Anna had the impression that they were a family.

    ¡°Who are they?¡± She asked, slightly afraid that she was going to annoy Broderick with all of her questions.

    ¡°They are the Royal Family,¡± he responded. A slight look of sadness passed over his face and Anna had the feeling that it had nothing to do with her incessant inquiries.

    ¡°Do¡­ Do they live in the castle?¡± Anna asked tentatively.

    ¡°They¡¯re dead,¡± Broderick answered with a solemn face, ¡°except for the lost princess of course.¡±

    Anna wasn¡¯t sure what to say. Part of her wanted to ask what happened to them but another part of her could tell that Broderick was upset by the subject. In the end, her curiosity ended up winning.

    ¡°How did they die?¡±

    ¡°They were murdered by a member of our own kingdom,¡± Broderick said sadly, looking up at the fountain with despair written all over his face, ¡°they were two of the greatest rulers this kingdom has ever known. The king was wise and calm. He always considered all angles before making any diplomatic decisions and encouraged his advisors to tell him when they disagreed. It takes true power to admit when one is wrong, and he was always open to hearing others¡¯ interpretations and thoughts on any subject.¡±

    ¡°The queen was just as wise and even more caring. She would walk through the streets each day, talking to the people of lesser status, asking about their problems and woes. She carried around a little notepad and made sure to take note of each and every issue that the citizens brought to her attention. She would then return to the castle and figure out a way to address them, one by one. They were a blessing upon this kingdom. And then they were taken from us.¡±

    ¡°And the princess?¡± Anna asked. Broderick had said she was still alive, but had referred to her as being ¡®lost¡¯ which greatly intrigued Anna.

    ¡°She disappeared. In the middle of the night, vanished without a trace,¡± Broderick said with a sigh, ¡°The king and queen were murdered¡­ A few days passed and then the coronation ceremony came. The princess was set to be crowned the de facto ruler of the kingdom in the wake of her parents¡¯ deaths. The princess was just a girl, only fifteen at the time. And then, the night before the ceremony, she just¡­ Disappeared.¡±

    ¡°She disappeared?¡± asked Anna in wonderment, all thoughts of bothering or offending Broderick gone from her mind.

    ¡°Yes, vanished without a trace,¡± Broderick replied, ¡°but she is still alive, and as long as she still lives, there is hope,¡± he continued in a slightly happier tone.

    Anna¡¯s eyebrow raised in confusion. Broderick must have noticed the funny look because he laughed before continuing.

    ¡°It must sound crazy to you; the princess vanished without a trace, yet we are sure that she still lives.¡±

    ¡°Well, yeah, kinda. If no one knows what happened to her, how could anyone be sure that she is still alive?¡±

    In response, Broderick pointed his finger up at the sky. Anna followed the trajectory that he was pointing at right to the brilliant floating crystal that hung over the kingdom.

    ¡°The Sol Regnum has burned brightly for centuries. It was raised and empowered by the royal family long ago and carries with it an immense and powerful kind of magic. Should the royal line ever end completely, the light that emits from it would begin to dim almost immediately and the kingdom would be plunged into darkness. The fact that it still shines just as luminous as ever before is proof positive that the royal line still survives.¡±

    They continued walking, past the fountain and down the cobble stoned trail that led up to the castle. The castle grounds seemed to be surrounded by a large stone fence, with the trail leading right up to an old wrought iron gate held shut by a square shaped metal lock. As they approached it, Broderick pointed his staff at it. A clicking sound came from the lock and the gate slowly began to open outwards. As they exited the gate, two guards on either side nodded at Broderick. He waved at them before leading Anna into the streets of Monsadasia.

    There did not seem to be many people wandering about. Even though there was no sun or moon in the sky to indicate time, Anna had the feeling that they were out and about quite early in the day. As they moved through the quiet streets, Anna took notice of the buildings that lined the walkways. They consisted of all different shapes and sizes. Some had red ceramic tiles for the roofs, while others just had wood shingles or straw thatching. Most of the windows that adorned the buildings seemed to be covered by a frosted glass that blocked the view of their insides. Light was emitting from several of the buildings¡¯ windows and as Anna and Broderick passed, she could hear the muffled voices of the occupants inside, engaged in some conversation or activity that Anna could not see.

    Anna found herself wondering what might be going on inside the buildings as she walked past them. Perhaps there was a witch inside that one, stirring her cauldron of glowing green potion with a large paddle. A crash from one building made her think that someone inside was making the objects in the room levitate and dance with their wand. A pink light coming from one window seemed to glow extremely brightly before dimming momentarily and then lighting up again, like some sort of strange strobe light. Maybe the person inside was summoning some sort of otherworldly entity, or perhaps enchanting a pair of shoes to give them magical properties. Anna¡¯s imagination ran wild with the possibilities with each house they passed.

    At one point, they walked by a side street. Anna looked down it and could see it led to a large, open area littered with different booths and stalls. From what Anna could see with her limited view, there seemed to be a various array of stores and shops that lined the edge of the open area. She wanted badly to go down the street and check the area out, and for a moment, she stopped walking and contemplated sneaking away from Broderick to satiate her curiosity.This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

    ¡°That is the town square,¡± Broderick said, apparently noticing Anna¡¯s look of intrigue and moving to stand next to her.

    ¡°Can we go down there?¡± Anna asked.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, you will see the square, and much more that the kingdom has to offer in due time. For now though, we must return to my home. My apprentice is likely worried sick about me and you need some food.¡±

    Broderick continued walking but Anna hesitated to follow. The square had a few people moseying around and Anna dearly wanted to know what they were up to. From just out of the lines of her sight, flashes of light and shouts of joyous laughter rang out. On the opposite side of the square, Anna could see a large woman acting rather peculiarly. In one hand, she carried an oversized pickaxe, holding it over her shoulder like it weighed nothing. Her other hand was pulling on a leash that seemed to have some unruly creature pulling back just out of sight. Anna just got a glimpse of something large and scaly attached to the leash before Broderick yelled her name.

    ¡°Anna, come please. It would not do to have you getting lost on your first journey through the kingdom.¡±

    Anna thought about what Rokus had said about coming for Broderick if she stepped out of line. Reluctantly, she turned away from the street and followed.

    They continued on for another ten minutes, turning here and there until Anna had lost track of which ways they had gone. She only knew the general direction because she could still see the castle in the distance, towering majestically over the whole rest of the kingdom. Much like the castle, Anna noticed as they walked how most of the buildings seemed to be erected straight from the stone that made up the ground. She assumed that they had been carved from portions of the mountain as well, albeit with less care and professionalism than that of the castle. While the castle walls were almost as smooth as glass, the walls of the smaller buildings were rougher and the seams where they met the earth were quite a bit easier to spot.

    ¡°Ah, there it is,¡± said Broderick as they turned on a street that seemed to be a dead end.

    At the end of the road was a decently sized two-story home. They made their way up the street to the home at the end. As they approached it, Anna began to be able to make out the details. The small patch of grass in front of the house seemed a bit overgrown. There were rose bushes lining the outer walls, meeting on either side of a small front porch, complete with a rickety looking porch swing. The walls of the home were carved from the same stone as the rest of the town, but the windows were not frosted like many of the buildings. Instead they seemed to be blocked by deep red curtains hanging in each of the windows. As they walked up the narrow stone pathway that led from the road up to the porch, Anna noticed white feathers littered here and there in the unmanicured grass. She had a decent idea of what, or who, the feathers might belong to.

    The front door of the house was made from a very old looking wood that had a deep brownish-red color to it. There was a brass knocker fastened to the door in the shape of a lion''s head, and as they approached the door Anna was sure that the lion¡¯s eyes looked at her momentarily before darting away. Broderick reached for the handle of the door, but before he could reach it, something happened that made Anna jump in surprise.

    ¡°Welcome home Broderick,¡± the lion¡¯s head knocker said in a deep growling voice.

    The metal of the knocker bobbed up and down as the lion¡¯s jaw moved, making a clinking sound as it did so.

    ¡°Good to see you Freyas,¡± Broderick said to the knocker, as if a talking door ornament was a perfectly normal thing.

    Anna however, was staring at the lion in complete and utter shock. Now she was absolutely positive that it¡¯s shining brass eyes were looking at her.

    ¡°I see you¡¯ve brought a guest with you,¡± the lion clinked.

    ¡°This is Anna, she will be staying with us for a while. Is Nelson home?¡± Broderick asked.

    ¡°Probably so. I haven¡¯t actually seen him for a few days, but I¡¯ve heard bangs and the occasional curse word coming from inside so I assume he¡¯s in there,¡± the knocker responded.

    Anna was staring at the lion¡¯s head with her mouth agape and her eyes bugging out of her head a bit. He seemed offended by this.

    ¡°Your mind silly or something child? You act like you¡¯ve never seen a sentient door knocker before,¡± the lion said with a scoff.

    Anna closed her mouth, but was still having trouble not looking at the lion a little crazily.

    ¡°She hasn¡¯t,¡± Broderick told the lion, ¡°could you unlock the door for me so I can show her to her room?¡±

    ¡°Sure thing,¡± the lion said, still eyeing Anna with a suspicious look about it¡¯s brass features.

    There was a click, followed by Broderick reaching for the brass door handle and turning it.

    As the door swung open, Broderick said, ¡°Welcome to your new home Anna.¡±

    Broderick held his arm out, as if inviting Anna to go before him. A bit reluctantly, she stepped past him and poked her head into the now-open room. It was a bit dark, but the beam of light cascading from the open door was enough for her to make out some of the room¡¯s features. The first thing she noticed was the dust. It floated through the air in a way that almost made the streaming light tangible. Anna briefly wondered if it was dusty because Broderick hadn¡¯t been home in a while, or if he simply didn¡¯t care to use a duster. The second thing she noticed was the books.

    They were everywhere. Piles upon piles of books, stacked haphazardly in every direction that she could see. Some of them were leaning so precariously that Anna was amazed that they hadn¡¯t toppled over into a pile on the floor already. Indeed, there was a vast array of books strewn across the floor as well. Some were flipped open, with their pages bent and their spines face down. Anna¡¯s eyes were moving over the scene, when suddenly, a stack of books started to wobble before crashing loudly to the floor.

    ¡°Gosh darnit,¡± the pile of books seemed to say.

    Only moments before, Anna would not have believed the air could possibly hold any more dust, but the falling stack of books sent an even thicker cloud into the air which obscured her view of the talking stack of books.

    ¡°Go ahead,¡± Broderick urged her.

    Anna took another few steps tentatively into the room, being careful to not step on any of the exposed pages of the books. After a moment, the worst of the dust began to settle. Anna kept her gaze on where the pile had come crashing down, keen to see what a talking book looked like. As the hazy particles dispersed, she began to realize that the voice had not come from the books at all. It had come from a boy sitting behind where the stack had been only moments before.

    ¡°Oh, hello,¡± he said in a nasally voice.

    He reached his hand up to his nose and pushed his glasses up to sit more comfortably on his face. Anna immediately noticed that the boy was dressed rather awkwardly. Where everyone else she had seen so far in the kingdom wore robes, apart from the guards and their armor, this boy was wearing only a white shirt and a pair of white underwear. He was a heavyset boy, with dark, curly hair that hung past his ears and two rather large front teeth. The boy pushed a few books that seemed to have fallen on his legs when the tower collapsed onto the floor, before standing up and dusting himself off.

    ¡°Anna, I¡¯d like you to meet my apprentice: Nelson Porter,¡± Broderick said, as he moved into the room.

    Broderick closed the door behind him, shutting off the beam of light that the door had provided.

    ¡°Nelson, why are you working in the dark?¡± Broderick asked.

    Broderick clapped his hands together and said, ¡±Ignis.¡±

    Instantly, several sconces on the wall ignited in a bright orange flame and the room was flooded with light. As Anna glanced around at the newly lit torches, she was briefly amazed at how the flames acted. They did not dance and sway the way that normal flames would. Instead, they seemed to be motionless; suspended in place as if frozen in time.

    ¡°I¡¯m trying out a new enchantment on my spectacles,¡± Nelson answered.

    Anna looked at him and noticed that his metal framed glasses seemed to have a slight glow or aura about them.

    ¡°Well not all of us have apparel with a night sight enchantment on them,¡± Broderick said testily.

    ¡°Sorry, master,¡± Nelson said quickly, ¡°were you out all night?¡±

    He looked at Anna curiously before returning his gaze to Broderick.

    ¡°All night?¡± Broderick asked.

    ¡°Yeah, I haven¡¯t seen you for a bit. I figured you were on some business for the council yesterday and just ended up sleeping at the castle.¡± Nelson responded.

    ¡°Nelson, I haven¡¯t been home for over a week,¡± Broderick said, sounding slightly exasperated.

    ¡°Huh, has it been that long?¡± Nelson responded.

    His stare moved to Anna again for a moment, who was beginning to feel uncomfortable, before jumping back to Broderick. Broderick was looking at him a bit dumbfounded. After another few seconds of this, Nelson shrugged before bending over to pick up a book from the floor.

    ¡°That¡¯s not it either,¡± he muttered in an annoyed tone before tossing the book aside.

    It slid past Anna and landed at Broderick¡¯s feet.

    ¡°Nelson, have you cleaned up at all since I¡¯ve been gone?¡± Broderick asked, eyeing the book now laying before him.

    ¡°Nah,¡± Nelson responded nonchalantly, ¡°been busy with research on the magical properties of pearls.¡±

    ¡°Well, you¡¯re pearl plumbs work, a little too well actually. Just ask Anna, here,¡± Broderick said.

    That got Nelson¡¯s attention in a way that nothing else Broderick had said had managed to so far. He immediately perked up, standing at attention and tossing aside another book. He began working his way closer to Anna, not bothering to move the tomes in his way and nearly tripping and falling on his face in the effort to do so.

    ¡°You saw them?! How well did they work? What was the explosion radius? Were they used on organic or inorganic material?¡± Nelson spat out, almost falling into Anna as he slipped on another book on the floor.

    Anna had absolutely no idea what he was talking about and felt the urge to back away from this underwear clad boy quickly. She did not want Broderick to think she was a scaredy cat however, so she held her ground.

    ¡°Nelson is referring to the small white balls you witnessed me throwing at our pursuer at the orphanage a few nights ago,¡± Broderick explained.

    Anna quickly recalled what Broderick and Nelson were referring to. She vividly remembered Broderick¡¯s hand flying from his robes, the flash of small pearlescent orbs colliding with the flaming man and the vast explosion that occurred as a result.

    ¡°Oh, yeah, the little bombs,¡± Anna began.

    ¡°Pearl plumbs,¡± Nelson said insistently, ¡°a Nelson Porter original invention,¡± he continued proudly, putting his fists on his half naked waist in a very proud expression.

    ¡°Um, they blew up really well,¡± Anna said hesitantly.

    Nelson looked at her expectantly.

    ¡°And they really messed up the guy chasing us,¡± Anna continued.

    Nelson threw his arms up and groaned.

    ¡°Ugh, you¡¯re just as imprecise as Broderick,¡± he complained before turning around and bending over to begin sorting through more volumes in another pile.

    ¡°As I said Nelson, the pearl plumbs worked just as intended,¡± Broderick said, sounding slightly annoyed, ¡°They could even do with having a little less destructive magic fed into them. They are rather dangerous at close range. And for the Source¡¯s sake, go put on some pants already! We have a lady in the house.¡±

    ¡°Well, excuse me,¡± came a sing-song voice from the hallway located behind the stack where Nelson was now searching.

    There was a flapping sound, a flash of white, and another loud crash as a second stack of books toppled over. A renewed cloud of dust was sent flurrying into the air causing Anna to start coughing.

    ¡°Am I not a lady?¡± said the feathered white thing that had just erupted into the room.

    ¡°Ah, Misaada,¡± Broderick said lovingly, ¡°you are the fairest lady of them all.¡±

    Misaada made an angry croak that sounded more like floorboards creaking than any birdsong Anna had ever heard before, but she did not respond. Instead, she started pecking around at the mess on the floor, using her long elegant claws to begin restacking some of the fallen books. Anna noticed that some of her feathers seemed to be standing on end in an angry sort of manner.

    ¡°I am so glad that my house fellows are filled with joy and relief to see me alive and well,¡± Broderick said with just the slightest tone of sarcasm.

    Misaada stopped picking up the books and a few of her feathers seemed to flatten out some. She looked at Broderick with a worried expression. Anna was finding Misaada¡¯s human-like expressions slightly uncanny, but she figured if she could get over the fact that the bird talked, she could get used to her mannerisms as well.

    ¡°Oh Broderick, I was terribly worried about you. First you sent me home, despite all my protests, so you could collect this child. And then you don¡¯t return for days on end. Of course I was worried about you,¡± Misaada said in a much more sympathetic tone than Anna had heard her use before.

    ¡°Well, I wasn¡¯t. You can handle yourself,¡± Nelson said with a grin, followed by a loud yell of pain, ¡°Ouch! Whad¡¯ya do that for?¡±

    Misaada had nipped at Nelson¡¯s bare leg hard enough to draw blood. He was giving her a look that clearly said he felt like stuffing her and roasting her for dinner.

    ¡°You didn¡¯t even notice Master Broderick was gone, you imbecile,¡± Misaada said scathingly, ¡°You are always so worried about your experiments that you miss the world around you.¡±

    ¡°Now, you two get along. I¡¯m here, I¡¯m fine, and you all are going to make Anna think you don¡¯t like each other,¡± Broderick told them.

    ¡°Nelson knows I love him,¡± Misaada said dismissively, ¡°he¡¯s just a tad moronic at times.¡±

    Anna had finally managed to get over her coughing fit from the dust she had inhaled, and she began to laugh at Misaada¡¯s words. The bird had spunk and Anna quite liked it. She watched through slightly tear filled eyes as Broderick stepped forward towards Nelson.

    ¡°Allow me,¡± he said, before pointing his staff at Nelson¡¯s leg.

    The staff began to glow, and Anna watched in amazement as the blood seemed to evaporate and the torn skin began to stitch itself back together. After a moment, Nelson¡¯s leg looked good as new.

    ¡°Thanks master,¡± Nelson said.

    ¡°Can you do that with any injury?¡± Anna asked in wonder.

    ¡°Oh heavens no, I¡¯m far from a healer myself,¡± Broderick said with a chuckle, ¡°but small scrapes, cuts and burns are something I can manage well enough. Fixing broken bones or major injuries is not in my repertoire unfortunately. It takes a special kind of sorcerer to be a healer, and I never quite had the touch for it. Now, for the love of the kingdom, please go put some pants on Nelson.¡±

    ¡°Oh, yeah, right,¡± Nelson responded.

    He stumbled over the mess on the floor, past where Anna and Broderick stood, and up a flight of stairs that ran up the left hand wall. As he crested the top, he disappeared out of sight. Anna could still hear his footsteps padding against the hardwood floor above them, followed shortly by the creaking of a clearly old door being opened.

    ¡°Both mine and Nelson¡¯s rooms are located upstairs. The room you will be living in is up there as well,¡± Broderick said, turning to look at Anna, ¡°This room is¡­ Or is supposed to be the study, or the first library as Nelson likes to call it.¡±

    ¡°First library?¡± Anna asked, recognizing the implications of this name.

    ¡°Yes, this room is where we keep certain tomes and encyclopedias of magical knowledge and a few books I just enjoy for fun. The research library proper is located downstairs in the workshop. That is where I keep most of my books on sorcery, the elements, rituals, and other sorts of things.¡±

    Anna was amazed. This dust filled room already seemed to contain just as many books as the Darjeary town library. She was having trouble imagining a room with even more.

    ¡°Anyways,¡± Broderick continued, ¡°down the hall is the washroom, the dining room, and the kitchen. As well as the stairway leading to the aforementioned workshop. That is where Misaada¡¯s tree and nest are located as well as the location where we will perform most of your training. Once Nelson gets some more appropriate attire on, we can have some breakfast and I will show you to your room. I¡¯m sure that after your ordeal you would probably like to relax for a day before we start your vigorous magical exercises.¡±

    Anna had almost missed the last part of what Broderick had said; she was still trying to work out that he had casually mentioned having a tree in his basement. Based on Misaada¡¯s size, it would have to be a rather large tree if she lived in it. But then she realized he had said something about her training.

    ¡°You are going to start giving me lessons tomorrow?¡± she asked.

    ¡°Yes dear, you possess magic now and you must be taught to control it. A wild flame will burn all it touches and in order to keep that from happening, you must learn to control your new powers.¡±

    ¡°But what about Nelson? Don¡¯t you have to train him too?¡±

    ¡°Nelson can manage on his own. He is rather learned in most forms of magic. Or, at least, he is well-versed in the theories of magic. If he needs help with anything, I will still be here to help him.¡± Broderick replied.

    ¡°I see she¡¯s had a bath finally, and brushed that nappy head,¡± Misaada cut in.

    Anna should have felt offended by the comment, but she had to admit she had been pretty filthy the last time she had seen the bird.

    ¡°Ah yes, you also have a washroom in your living quarters. It is admittedly smaller than the bathroom downstairs, but it will afford you more privacy,¡± Broderick said.

    ¡°Wait a second. You¡¯re telling me that I have my own room and my own bath?¡± Anna asked in amazement.

    She was beginning to wonder if she hadn¡¯t died the night the fiery man had attacked her after all. This was clearly all too good to be true.

    ¡°Well of course, you deserve to be accomodated,¡± Broderick said, looking at her with a mix of pity and amusement, ¡°it is no mansion of course, but this is your home now, Anna. It is not all fun and games however. You are woefully behind others your age in the mystical arts and will have to work twice as hard to catch up. But for today, we eat and we rest. One more day won¡¯t hurt anything.¡±

    At that moment, Anna heard a door shut upstairs, followed by the pitter-patter of feet on hardwood. Nelson emerged from the top of the stairs and came bounding down them two at a time.

    ¡°Did I hear you say eat? Thank goodness, I¡¯m starving,¡± he said.

    He was still wearing the same dirty, white shirt, but he now also thankfully had on a pair of gray sweat pants.

    ¡°Good, then you can go and start cooking,¡± Broderick said with a wink.

    Nelson groaned, dropping his head, and he, Broderick, Misaada, and Anna made their way down the hallway deeper into Anna¡¯s new home.

 Where the Magic Happens

    Anna awoke the next day sprawled out in a bed at least twice as big as the one she had so often awoken in at the orphanage. There was no spring poking her throughout the night and interrupting her sleep. There was no itchy blanket that scratched and irritated her skin. As a matter of fact, the bed she now found herself in, along with the warm, soft blanket draped over her made her reluctant to even wake up at all. She decided to go back to sleep. She did not get to snooze for much longer though.

    A noise interrupted her sleep daze, coming from the old wooden door leading to her room. It sounded as if something sharp was tapping against the door. For a moment, Anna felt a bit of fear, but the voice that followed the tapping put her at ease.

    ¡°Anna, please open up if you can. I don¡¯t do so well with door handles,¡± Misaada¡¯s voice spoke from behind the door.

    Anna sat up and stretched her arms far into the air, yawning as she did so. The window in her room was covered by a thick, crimson curtain. It did well to block the unending light from the Sol Regnum, but some of it still managed to bleed through at the curtain¡¯s edges. The orangish-red light emanated into her room in thin columns. One of the thin beams ran across where her hand laid and she could feel the warmth it carried with it. Anna blinked sleepily at the door, wanting to get up and open it for Misaada, but not yet able to summon the motivation to leave the warmth and safety of her new bed. She heard a screeching noise as the handle to her door began to jiggle.

    ¡°Darn these claws, if only I had been blessed with thumbs,¡± Misaada seemed to mutter to herself.

    Anna giggled before deciding she should probably help the bird out. She pushed the blanket to the side and tossed her legs over the bed and onto the floor. As she stood up, the bottom of the white gown she had worn to bed danced over the tops of her feet, tickling her a bit. It was quite possibly the most comfortable garment she had ever worn. Broderick had sent Nelson out the day before to acquire her clothes from the market. Nelson had stuck to relatively simple articles, mostly white sleeping gowns for bedtime and black robes for daywear. Anna did not mind the simplicity however. She was just happy to have clothes on that weren¡¯t littered with holes or two sizes too small. At first Anna had asked Broderick if she could go with Nelson, but he indicated that it probably wasn¡¯t a good idea for her to be wandering about town so soon. He did not give her an exact reason, but she had gotten the impression that her arrival with Broderick had caught the attention of at least a few citizens.

    A part of Anna felt a bit of irritation at the fact that Broderick had told her no. Ms. Whitney had often barred her from doing things she wanted, but Anna usually didn¡¯t let the absence of permission stop her from doing it anyways. But she felt like she owed Broderick a bit more respect than she had given Ms. Whitney. For one, he had stood up for her, against his own people. Ms. Whitney would never have done anything of the sort. So she stayed put, chatting with Broderick and Misaada and assisting them in cleaning up the mess of books in the front room. She had felt a sense of wonder and amazement upon reading many of their titles, and had acquired about them so many times that she began to feel like she might become a nuisance. Broderick had patiently explained as much as he could but had also told her that much of their content would not make sense until after she had started her training. And today was the day that it began.

    The thought of this sent a shiver of excitement down her spine and Anna hustled to the door a little more quickly. She opened it to find Misaada on the other side, her claw still up in the air where she had been trying in vain to operate the door handle. Anna grinned at her.

    ¡°Oh, don¡¯t look so smug,¡± Misaada said smartly, ¡°I¡¯d like to see you grip a metal door handle with nothing but your claws.¡±

    ¡°Luckily, I¡¯ve got thumbs,¡± Anna said with a wink.

    She felt a certain sense of giddiness inside her. All of her time at the orphanage, she had always felt so empty, like she had no purpose. The thought of training, of learning something new instilled in her a drive like she had never felt before. She could not exactly describe what she was feeling, but she knew she liked it.

    ¡°Oh, aren¡¯t you a smart one,¡± Misaada replied sarcastically, ¡°get dressed and then come join us in the kitchen for breakfast. Broderick wants you well fed before your informal education commences.¡±

    She made a noise that sounded like ¡®harumph¡¯ before turning and waddling away. Anna watched her march down the hall towards the stairs. Rather than walking down them, Misaada jumped over the banister and glided down to the lower floor. Anna shut the door, grinning as she did so, and quickly changed into the jet black robes Nelson had purchased for her. She carefully tucked her pendant away beneath her collar and was surprised that the metal felt almost warm against her skin. While he had been in town, Nelson had also had the foresight to purchase her a hairbrush. She gladly used it to straighten her bed-ridden mess of brown hair. Glancing at herself in the mirror that hung in her new bathroom, Anna was astonished at how different she looked compared to only a few days ago. It wasn¡¯t just the new clothes or the fixed hair either; there was something in her expression and in her heart that she couldn¡¯t remember feeling in a very long time.

    She felt hope.

    Satisfied with her appearance, she marched out of the room and down the stairs, making her way to the kitchen that she had eaten dinner in the night before. Before she had even reached the stairs, she was able to smell the wonderful scent of sizzling sausage and biscuits being baked. Her mouth salivated at the aromas that were in the air and she arrived in the kitchen with her stomach ready to be filled. Broderick was sitting at the large wooden dining table. He had a newspaper sprawled open in front of him and looked to be deep into whatever he was reading. Nelson was frying eggs in a pan on the stove.

    ¡°Pass me the salt, will you Misaada,¡± Nelson asked.

    Misaada, who was giving Nelson a rather dirty look, picked up a salt shaker from the counter with in her beak and brought it over to him.

    ¡°Thanks,¡± he said.

    ¡°Must you cook those vile things in front of me?¡± Misaada asked in a disapproving manner.

    She eyed the eggs with a look of disgust.

    ¡°Yup,¡± Nelson said unapologetically, ¡°they¡¯re packed with protein, and you know we need a lot of it. Besides, you know these eggs were made with duplication magic. They probably came from an egg that was laid years ago.¡±

    Misaada still looked annoyed. She marched away from Nelson and joined Broderick at the table. Rather than sitting in a chair, though, there seemed to be a special perch at the table built just for her. It was shaped much like a tree branch and was bolted tightly to the floor to keep from tipping over under her weight.

    ¡°Why do you need a lot of protein?¡± Anna asked curiously.

    She had noticed the night before, during dinner, that both Broderick and Nelson had eaten an unordinary amount of meat. For that matter, they had eaten more food of all kinds than she would have thought any two people could ingest. She had wondered about it then, but had felt silly asking about it. Perhaps they had just been extremely hungry. But now Nelson had mentioned it explicitly and she saw an opening to get answers.

    ¡°Magic,¡± Nelson said simply.

    ¡°I don¡¯t understand,¡± Anna replied.

    At this, Broderick finally looked up from the paper he had been reading.

    ¡°Lesson one Anna, magic is an energy just like any other. Just like running, or doing any physical task, magic requires you to exert energy. For this reason, sorcerers and sorceresses must intake an abnormally high amount of calories. Otherwise you risk fatigue and injury when casting spells. Not to mention your spellcraft is far less effective if you don¡¯t have the energy to feed it,¡± Broderick explained.

    ¡°I haven¡¯t felt any hungrier than usual,¡± Anna said, wondering if this wasn¡¯t all a big mistake and she did not actually have magic at all.

    This was not the first, or probably even the hundredth time she had thought this since arriving at Broderick¡¯s home the previous day. Broderick, however, chuckled light-heartedly and waved a dismissive hand.

    ¡°Well, you haven¡¯t exactly been doing much spellcasting, have you?¡± He said jovially, ¡°Now come and sit, eat. You will need the energy for when you do begin to use your newfound abilities.¡±

    He gestured to the seat across from him at the table before folding his paper and getting up himself to help Nelson begin carrying food over. Anna took a seat and finally took notice of all the food that was available to her. Between what was already on the table, and the food that Broderick and Nelson were now placing upon it, there was a cornucopia of deliciousness: strips of fat-covered bacon, eggs fried sunny side up so that the yolk glowed and glistened, blueberry muffins and pieces of french toast coated in some kind of fine white powder. There were links of sausage, dishes filled with gravy, and jars of honey, syrup, and jelly. Fresh fruit of different sorts, apples, oranges, and even watermelon, had been cut into neat slices and placed upon a serving tray. In front of Misaada sat a rather different assortment of food. She had a tray that seemed to include an array of dead insects and a roasted snake. Anna did her best to not let the sight of Misaada''s meal ruin her appetite for the rest of the buffet that now sat before her.

    After carrying the last of the food over, Broderick sat an empty plate in front of Anna, along with a cloth napkin wrapped fancifully around ornate looking silverware.

    ¡°Dig in,¡± he said cheerfully.

    Broderick and Nelson both filled up their plates with far more food than the dishes were built to carry, bits of egg and fruit hanging over the edges in a dangerous manner. Broderick sat back down in his cushioned chair and again opened his paper, shoveling food in his mouth as he continued to read. Nelson was sticking three sausage links and an entire egg on a single fork before placing it all in his mouth in a single bite. Anna stood up and, feeling a bit sheepish, placed a single piece of bacon, a single egg, and one piece of toast on her plate. She sat back down and began to nibble at the toast.

    ¡°Wha¡¯re yo¡¯ doin¡¯,¡± Nelson said with a mouth full of food.

    ¡°Eating, same as you,¡± Anna replied in a slightly sarcastic manner.

    Nelson gulped down his truck-full of food before responding.

    ¡°What are you, a field mouse? That¡¯s not a plate,¡± he said, throwing a few more pieces of bacon and fruit on his own platter before continuing, ¡°this is a plate,¡± he finished, lifting the plate-full of food up towards her.

    ¡°At the orphanage, we were only allowed-¡± Anna started, but Broderick interrupted her.

    ¡°You aren¡¯t at the orphanage anymore, dear. This is your home and you can eat to your heart¡¯s content. You will need the sustenance soon enough,¡± he said.

    Anna hesitated for a moment, her eyes moving back and forth between Broderick and Nelson. They were both eyeing her expectantly.

    ¡°All right, then,¡± she said finally.

    She began loading up her plate in a similar manner as the other two, until food was hanging over the edges. It was a strange feeling, being able to eat whatever she wanted, but it was definitely a good kind of strange.

    As Anna ate, Broderick continued to flip through the newspaper that he was engrossed in. The front page had a headline that read ¡®A Clueless Council; Magic Thief and Murderer Still Marauding¡¯. That piqued Anna¡¯s interest, but it wasn¡¯t until Broderick had flipped through a few pages that something in the paper caught Anna¡¯s attention enough for her to inquire about it. Staring back at her from the black and white page was a picture of herself; a rather unflattering picture if she was being completely honest.

    "Why am I in that paper?!" She blurted out incredulously.

    Now that she was looking at it more closely, she realized there were actually two pictures of her printed on the page. The first one, the one that had caught her eye, was of the first night she had arrived in Monsadasia. Even in black and white, it was easy to tell how dirty and soot-covered her face was. She had just been ripped away from Broderick and was being marched away by the same Captain who had escorted her to her trial. Anna was making a rather ugly face in the picture, with her mouth half open and her eyes in the middle of blinking. She hadn''t realized she was in the second picture originally because it was a shot further away so that her face wasn''t as in focus as it was in the first photo. She really only realized it was her in that one as well when she took notice of the room the picture was taken in. It was a picture of her locked in her cell. Anna was a bit confused as to how either of the pictures had been taken; she certainly did not remember any flashes or photographers in that clearing or in her prison.

    Broderick sighed, setting down his paper and looking Anna in the eye before answering, ¡°Your presence in our kingdom has caused quite a stir, unfortunately. It¡¯s not often that a tribeless person joins our community. It is actually quite a unique occurence to tell you the truth.¡±

    ¡°It was all anyone was talking about when I went to the market yesterday,¡± Nelson added, ¡°you wouldn¡¯t believe the number of people that stopped me to ask about you. And the things they were saying and postulating. Crazy, I tell ya.¡±

    Anna felt her cheeks getting warm. Broderick was casting her a wary gaze and Misaada looked at her with a look of concern. Nelson kept shoveling down heaps of food, apparently unaware that what he had said had bothered Anna. She took a few more bites of food, trying her best not to worry about what Nelson had just said. After a moment, her concern got the best of her.

    ¡°What were they saying?¡± she blurted out.

    ¡°Oh, just the wildest things,¡± Nelson replied nonchalantly, ¡°that you were a murderer, that the council was crazy to let you go into our community, that you were some kind of demon come to wreak havoc on our way of life. All a bunch of nonsense really. They asked me if Broderick had finally gone insane and if I was afraid that you¡¯d take me out next. A bunch of nonsense.¡±

    At this point, Nelson finally stopped focusing on his plate and began looking at Anna. She knew that she must look absolutely miserable, for now even he had a look of uneasiness about him.

    ¡°Hey now, don¡¯t worry about what the townsfolk say. They¡¯ll be occupied by the next silly drama or rumor that comes along by this time next week,¡± he said encouragingly.

    Broderick cleared his throat before adding, ¡°our kingdom is small, Anna. Naturally, something that has never occurred before is going to draw a lot of attention. But as Nelson said, it will all blow over soon enough and people will be on to the next affair. In the meantime, you just have to lay low and keep your head down. A perfect excuse to stay in the house and learn,¡± he added with a smile.

    ¡°That¡¯s why you didn¡¯t want me to go into the marketplace,¡± Anna said, understanding now why Broderick had been so adamant about her staying in the house.Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions.

    ¡°Yes,¡± he admitted, looking slightly ashamed.

    Silence fell across the table, apart from the slurping sounds coming from Nelson. Anna picked at her plate, moving things around with her fork, but her appetite had almost completely dissipated. She had been in trouble before. There had even been instances where it had seemed like the whole orphanage was mad at her, such as when Ms. Whitney had banned everyone from using the washer for two weeks because Anna had swapped out the laundry detergent for dish soap. Most of the first floor had been flooded with bubbles and Ms. Whitney was so angry that she decided to punish everyone, not just Anna. But even that did not compare to what she was feeling now. She had never had an entire kingdom full of people be unanimously angry and suspicious of her. For the first time since arriving at Broderick¡¯s, she almost wished she was back at the orphanage.

    For the rest of breakfast, Anna didn¡¯t really say much. She half listened as Broderick and Nelson made small talk, but her mind was elsewhere, distracted by negative thoughts. She caught snippets of Nelson asking more questions about his pearl plumbs and of Broderick talking about the council¡¯s shortcomings, but she couldn¡¯t bring herself to pay much attention. After half an hour and three full plates of food, Broderick stood up and put his plate in the sink.

    ¡°Nelson, would you mind cleaning up while I go prepare the workshop for Anna?¡± he asked.

    ¡°Not at all,¡± Nelson replied before standing up and carrying his own plate to the sink.

    ¡°As soon as you finish eating, meet me downstairs Anna. Nelson and Misaada, you¡¯re welcome to join us if you¡¯d like,¡± Broderick said.

    He picked up his paper from the table and rolled it up, stuffing it into a pocket in his robes. He smiled at Anna and departed from the kitchen, disappearing through a door down the hall. Anna could briefly hear his footsteps fading away down a long flight of stairs. She looked down at her plate again and sighed.

    ¡°Oh, cheer up,¡± Nelson said to her.

    ¡°Yes, don¡¯t let the simpletons around town get you down,¡± Misaada added.

    Misaada departed from her synthetic tree branch, flapping her wings a bit as she did so. She picked up her own plate with her beak and carried it over to Nelson. He had mostly cleared the table so that the sink was now full of dirty dishes, bits of egg and grease still slathered on top the wooden dining table. Anna did her best to finish her own meal, but the knot that still lingered in her stomach was making it hard. She watched Nelson, expecting him to begin running water for the dishes. Instead, he began looking around on the floor as if he had dropped something.

    ¡°Would you like some help washing the dishe?¡± Anna asked after a moment, picking her own plate up and carrying it over to the sink.

    ¡°Nah, I¡¯m just looking for¡­ Ah, there it is,¡± he exclaimed, apparently finding whatever it was he was looking for underneath the stove.

    He tried to reach his arm underneath it, but his thick wrists were clearly preventing him from reaching whatever he was trying to get to. He gave Misaada a pleading look.

    ¡°Oh, move out of the way,¡± she said impatiently before sticking her claw into the space that Nelson had been unable to reach, ¡°I keep telling you to exercise more.¡±

    Nelson chuckled at this but didn¡¯t seem to take the suggestion very seriously.

    ¡°Why would I do that when I¡¯ve got you around to help me get into tiny spaces?¡± he asked her.

    ¡°One of these days I¡¯ll tell you no. What¡¯ll you do then?¡± Misaada replied.

    She made a noise of triumph before withdrawing her claw from underneath the stove. Grasped in her talons was a long stick of wood, with several gemstones embedded along its shaft.

    ¡°My wand!¡± Nelson said happily.

    Anna observed with a curious fascination as Nelson pointed the wand at the dishes in the sink. He muttered words that Anna had never heard before and the crystals on the wand began to glow one by one. A shimmering beam of light erupted from the end of the wand and spread over the pile of plates and bowls. The mess and grease that adorned them seemed to disappear almost instantly as the light touched them, but that wasn¡¯t all. As each plate was magically cleaned, it floated into the air and came to a rest in a dish strainer next to the sink. After a few moments, the strainer was full and the sink was empty. Nelson did a fancy twirl with his body like some kind of ballerina before pointing his wand at the table. In a matter of seconds, it was shining spotless and polished without a trace of food on it. If Anna had not seen food on it moments before, she wouldn¡¯t have believed that any food had been consumed in the kitchen at all. It occurred to her that she hadn¡¯t seen this display of magic the previous evening, but she remembered that Broderick had sent her upstairs with the suggestion that she get some rest for her vigorous training before he or Nelson had finished eating.

    ¡°That was amazing!¡± Anna said excitedly.

    ¡°That was nothing,¡± Nelson said with a wave of his hand, ¡°one of the first spells I learned. Broderick might not care about dust in the study, but he¡¯s a stickler for a clean kitchen. ¡± he finished with a chuckle.

    He moved around the kitchen, picking up ingredients and spices and putting them up into various cabinets above the counter top. At one point, he opened up a rather strange looking stone fridge and Anna felt a blast of cold air spread over her skin. She wondered how it worked and then briefly questioned whether or not they had electricity in Monsadasia.

    ¡°Nelson, can I ask you something?¡± she said to him.

    ¡°You ask a lot of questions. I like that about you,¡± Nelson said, snorting.

    Anna took that as a yes and asked, ¡°what powers everything around here. Is it electric or gas or something else? The lights seem to glow, but I haven¡¯t seen a lightbulb or switch anywhere.¡±

    He gave her a funny look, as if trying to figure out if she was being serious. Anna felt a bit stupid even having asked.

    ¡°Don¡¯t look at me like that,¡± she snapped, ¡°this place is completely different than where I¡¯m from. You can¡¯t expect me to just know these things ya know.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s powered by magic,¡± he answered, still looking at her in an amused way.

    ¡°What a cop out of an answer,¡± Anna replied sarcastically.

    Nelson laughed before continuing, ¡°well, you heard Broderick. Magic is an energy just like any other. Different forms of magical energy have been harnessed and utilized here to make life more comfortable for everyone. You tribeless people aren¡¯t the only ones who care about having a civilized society.¡±

    ¡°I have another question for you,¡± Anna said, not bothering to ask permission this time.

    ¡°If you want to know how our toilets work, it¡¯s not magic, it¡¯s just gravity,¡± Nelson responded with a bit of sarcasm himself.

    ¡°Nelson, don¡¯t be a jerk,¡± Misaada said to him.

    ¡°Well, she didn¡¯t have to have an attitude, I was just answering her question,¡± he said defensively.

    ¡°The poor girl is in a strange new world, of course she¡¯s brimming with questions. With as many questions as you ask Broderick, one would think you¡¯d be a little more sympathetic to her plight,¡± Misaada shot back, staring daggers at Nelson.

    Anna was grateful that Misaada had come to her defense, and for his part, Nelson looked a bit ashamed at his own condescending attitude.

    ¡°What¡¯s a tribeless?¡± Anna cut in before their argument could continue.

    Nelson and Misaada both stopped staring at each other and turned to Anna. Nelson seemed to shuffle his feet in a nervous sort of way and in an almost comical fashion, Misaada mirrored him by shuffling her claws. The scratching of her talons on the wooden floor seemed to vibrate through the kitchen and Anna could tell from the uncomfortable silence that they had not expected her to ask this particular question.

    ¡°Well, tribeless... Um, you see¡­ It means,¡± Nelson stuttered, wringing his hands nervously.

    ¡°I¡¯ve never seen you lost for words before,¡± Misaada said wryly.

    ¡°Fine then, you tell her you cranky old bird,¡± Nelson spat.

    ¡°Ok, I will,¡± Misaada said defiantly, ¡°Anna, you see, a tribeless is¡­ Well it¡¯s a word for¡­ You know, someone who¡­¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve never seen you lost for words before,¡± Nelson said in a tone that was clearly meant to mock Misaada¡¯s voice.

    ¡°Oh shut up and finish cleaning the kitchen. A tribeless is someone without magic. A person who isn¡¯t a part of the five kingdoms,¡± Misaada said finally.

    Anna ignored the uncomfortable looks that Nelson and Misaada now wore on their faces and pressed onwards, ¡°and a nontribus?¡±

    ¡°Same thing,¡± Nelson said before Misaada could answer, ¡°it¡¯s an old word, from before the time that the five tribes grew to be kingdoms. Some of the old folks still use it, I think they believe it carries more weight and malice. But most of the younger people of the kingdoms just use tribeless instead. It feels more modern I guess,¡± he finished.

    Anna¡¯s mouth cocked to the side as she contemplated this. It was apparent that, even though she now apparently had magic, that she wasn¡¯t really a part of this world that she now found herself in. This shouldn¡¯t have bothered her. She was used to being an outcast, after all, but it hurt more than she wanted to admit. The hope she had felt while staring in the mirror seemed to have dissipated some.

    ¡°I won¡¯t use that word anymore,¡± Nelson said, cutting into her thoughts.

    ¡°It¡¯s fine,¡± Anna replied, quieter than she had meant to.

    ¡°No, it¡¯s not. You¡¯re one of us now. This is your kingdom as much as it is mine,¡± Nelson replied, placing a hand on her shoulder.

    Anna looked at him to see a big grin on his face. A little bit of her hope seemed to return at the sight of it.

    ¡°Now get going, Broderick is waiting for you,¡± he said.

    ¡°Aren¡¯t you coming?¡± Anna asked.

    ¡°Of course, but I¡¯ll be in the research library mostly. Clearly I have more studying to do to complete my pearl plumbs. I think they should probably be a little less lethal,¡± he replied.

    He finished putting the rest of the food up, Anna assisting under his guidance, and all three of them made their way down the hall to the door that Broderick had said led down to the magical workshop. Nelson opened it and gestured for Anna to go first.

    ¡°Prepare to be amazed,¡± he said.

    Before her, Anna could see a spiral staircase leading downwards, leading heavily to the left. The top of the stairs were dark, but she could see a warm glow coming from the lower floor. With a bit of apprehension, she began to descend down into the workshop. As she began to come into the light from downstairs, the first thing that she noticed was the tree. It was hard not to, seeing as how the staircase wrapped around the whole thing. The tree seemed to be planted directly in the middle of the workshop. Anna took notice of the large yellow flowers that adorned the tree. As the stairs spiraled around it, they seemed to move inward so that the whole structure took on a tornado-like shape. Halfway down, she noticed a mess of branches and feathers that she assumed were Misaada¡¯s nest. As if to confirm her suspicions, she heard the flapping of wings behind her as Misaada glided over to the nest.

    ¡°Ah, home sweet home,¡± she said, settling into the tangled clump.

    Upon reaching the bottom, Anna finally saw Broderick. He was sitting in a fine chair that looked to be covered in some kind of leather. There was a small table in front of him as well as an identical chair on the other side of the table.

    ¡°Welcome, welcome, to the magical workshop,¡± Broderick said enthusiastically, standing up and throwing his hands into the air in a grand fashion, ¡°our first lesson will take place over here, but please feel free to look around.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m going to the library, let me know if you need me,¡± Nelson said.

    ¡°And likewise, if you need assistance from me, don''t hesitate to call,¡± Broderick said as Nelson passed him.

    He walked around Anna, past Broderick, and through a doorless entryway into a room on the wall opposite where Anna now stood. Now that she was in the workshop proper, she noticed that the walls formed a sort of pentagon, with entryways leading through each of the five walls. The walls looked to be made of fine wood paneling on the upper half which met with intricate brickwork on the bottom half.

    Anna was looking around the room now. There were so many things that caught her eye that she didn¡¯t know where to start.

    ¡°Please, have a look around,¡± Broderick said encouragingly.

    And so she did. Broderick sat back down and watched patiently as she wandered around the room. Next to one entryway was a rack with a set of staves set on to it. They were each intricately carved with different colored gemstones set into the wood that formed them. There were multiple glass cases filled with amulets and bracelets. Anna could have been imagining it, but she would have sworn that she could see a glow coming from the various assortment of jewelry. A tabletop in one corner had a vice attached to it, along with several different colored gemstones. Some were cut but others were perfectly round in a way that Anna had never seen gemstones shaped in before. She briefly glanced through some of the doorways along the five walls. One seemed to lead to a room with some sort of mannequin, and Anna noticed several weapons set into racks along the wall of that room. Another area had a circle etched onto the ground, with five smaller circles lining the inside of it. The entire design appeared to be made of some kind of metal set into the floor. She glanced into another room to see some kind of strange device that she had never seen before. On one end of it was a thin metal cone, while the other end sported a rather large screw. Below the whole thing was some kind of foot pedal.

    There was a shelf on one wall with a label on it that said ¡®Elementals¡¯. This was perhaps the most fascinating thing in the entire workshop to Anna. On the shelf sat several glass jars, each with something different inside. One jar seemed to have some kind of hurricane raging inside of it. A miniature tornado swirled around the inside as tiny clouds and streaks of lightning adorned the top of it. The label on the jar read ¡°Storm Elemental¡¯. Another jar had a light burning in it that was so bright, Anna almost couldn¡¯t bear to look at it. Through squinted eyes, she was able to read the label ¡®Celestial Elemental¡¯. Next to that one was a jar seemingly filled with sand. But the sand was not just sitting in the bottom of the jar, lifeless and inanimate. It was moving in waves along the glass, occasionally playing with the lid on the jar as if trying to escape. This label read ¡®Silica Elemental¡¯.

    ¡°Fascinating, isn¡¯t it?¡± Broderick asked from right behind her.

    Anna jumped. In her state of wonder and excitement, she hadn¡¯t realized that Broderick had gotten up from his chair to join her.

    ¡°They¡¯re beautiful,¡± she said in awe.

    ¡°And dangerous,¡± Broderick added, ¡°they are rather rare specimens and each of them could wreak havoc upon our kingdom were they to be released. Now, are you ready to begin?¡± he asked.

    Anna stared at the jars, transfixed, for a moment more before turning to him.

    ¡°I am,¡± she said, her tone overflowing with determination.

    She followed him back over to the set of chairs and the small table. Upon being seated, she noticed that there were several small, round objects sitting haphazardly on the table. At first Anna thought they might be pebbles, but upon picking one up and inspecting it, she realized they were actually some kind of seeds. Broderick watched her curiously as she inspected one of the seeds.

    ¡°What are these for?¡± Anna asked him.

    ¡°We shall get to those in just a moment,¡± he replied patiently, ¡°but your first unofficial lesson will first require some context.¡±

    Anna nodded in reply and waited for him to keep going.

    ¡°Usually, your training and learning would have started when you were around five years of age,¡± Broderick continued, ¡°so we have a lot of ground to cover. Since you are going to be receiving a condensed crash-course, it¡¯s hard to determine where exactly we should begin. But I believe the basic tenets of magic and how it works would be as good a place as any. You see, Anna, there are many different schools of magic that exist. Each of them has a different set of purposes and uses, and some spells don¡¯t really fall into any single school. Or perhaps it would be better to say that certain spells are a mixture of the different curriculums.¡±

    ¡°Like using a word problem in math?¡± Anna asked.

    ¡°Very much so,¡± Broderick replied excitedly, ¡°a multitude of simple spells work by manipulating the four cardinal elements: earth, wind, fire and water. Every sorcerer will learn spells from different branches of magic, but some choose to excel or specialize in one specific branch. Those whom choose this path are typically referred to as acolytes.¡±

    Broderick was interrupted by a loud crashing noise from the library.

    ¡°I¡¯m okay,¡± came Nelson¡¯s voice.

    It sounded as though he were speaking from under a pile of books.

    ¡°Anyways,¡± Broderick started, but Anna interrupted him.

    ¡°Are you an acolyte?¡± she asked.

    ¡°Oh no, I prefer to be a jack of all trades while a master of none,¡± Broderick replied with a smile, ¡°but I am rather good at illusory magic.¡±

    He picked up his staff, which was leaning against his chair, and tapped it against the floor. Instantly, he vanished into thin air. Anna began looking around in surprise, wondering where he had gone.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯m still here,¡± came Broderick¡¯s voice from the chair he had seemingly vacated.

    Anna heard the sound of his staff hitting the floor again and he instantly reappeared in front of her.

    ¡°I thought you teleported somewhere,¡± Anna said excitedly.

    ¡°Oh no, teleportation magic is extremely advanced and dangerously taxing on the body. I nearly killed myself teleporting you away from our little friend the other night at the orphanage. We rely on gatestones to get from place to place quickly. Otherwise, sorcerers are very good at walking,¡± he said wryly.

    ¡°That was the little piece of chalk we used,¡± Anna realized.

    ¡°Precisely,¡± Broderick confirmed, ¡°now it is also important for you to know that magic is based on intent. Your will matters in spellcasting.¡±

    ¡°I will what?¡± Anna asked, feeling rather stupid.

    ¡°Not ¡®you will,¡¯ your will. Your spirit, the faculty upon which you initiate your desires with. You want something to happen, and so you make it happen. Most practitioners of magic use a wand or staff,¡± he waved his hand at his own staff, ¡°to better channel their magic and control it. But in order to do that, you must first learn to summon forth and control the innate magic inside and around you. Which brings us to our first practical lesson.¡±

    Broderick picked up one of the seeds sitting on the table between them. He closed his fingers around it tightly. After a moment, a faint light began to emanate between the cracks in his fingers. He opened them slowly and Anna watched in amazement as the seed in his hand glowed brightly. It sprouted a root, followed by several more, and then began to grow into a full fledged plant in his palm. The whole show culminated in a flower blooming atop the plant as Broderick closed his fingers around the stem. He handed the flower to Anna. She took it in one hand. Her gaze moved back and forth between the newly grown flower she now held in one hand and the seed she had been absentmindedly playing with in the other.

    ¡°Now, your turn,¡± Broderick told her.

    ¡°Uhhh, I don¡¯t think I can do that,¡± Anna replied nervously.

    ¡°Self-doubt is the father of failure my dear,¡± Broderick said back, ¡°belief is what you need in this moment. Now, listen closely. I want you to hold that seed tightly in your closed hand, just as I did.¡±

    Anna hesitated, looking at Broderick in what she was sure was a crazy sort of expression.

    ¡°You can do it Anna,¡± Misaada called encouragingly from up in her nest.

    Anna looked up at her and noticed that Misaada was watching them intently. She looked over to the doorway that Nelson had disappeared through and noticed his head poking out to watch as well. As her eyes fell upon him, he quickly lifted a book he had been holding up to his face and pretended to be reading its pages intently. The fact that he kept peeking up at Anna, as well as that he was holding the book upside down, told Anna that he had not quite stopped watching. Her nerves increased quite a bit under the scrutiny. She tried to ignore them and did as she was told. As her fingers closed, she could feel the indention of the small seed against her skin.

    ¡°Good, now try to clear your mind of errant thoughts,¡± Broderick told her, ¡°I want you to picture a light in your midsection. Imagine it swirling, living, breathing. Think of it as a part of you, no different from your brain or your heart. It is a muscle, one that you will exert control over and use to do your bidding.¡±

    Anna tried her best to picture what Broderick was telling her. She was slightly distracted by the sound of Misaada¡¯s claws scratching against a tree branch in anticipation. She attempted to block out the distraction and picture the ball of light inside her like Broderick said.

    ¡°Now, in your mind¡¯s eye, think about a branch, a stream, breaking off from that ball. View it moving up through your body, traveling in your chest, down your arm, and into your palm. Force it to exit you and enter the seed, granting it energy and nourishment. Want the seed to grow,¡± Broderick continued.

    Anna felt a slight pang of annoyance at his expectations and the vagueness of his instructions, but she did as she was told. This is stupid, she thought to herself, this is never going to¡­

    Before she could finish the thought, however, she began to feel a warmth in her palm, followed by what she could have sworn was the seed wriggling and moving. She began to get excited. Perhaps it was working after all. The warmth grew and grew and became hot. Now it was unbearably hot and she felt like her palm was burning. She opened both her eyes and her fingers. Immediately upon doing so, the seed burst into flames and popped, leaving a burn mark in the center of her hand. Broderick looked extremely surprised.

    ¡°I don¡¯t understand,¡± Anna said in frustration, ¡°I thought it was working.¡±

    ¡°It was,¡± Broderick said, trailing off into silence for a moment, before finally continuing, ¡°you called forth your magic with ease.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve never seen someone get a reaction from a seed on their first try,¡± Nelson added from the doorway.

    As Anna suspected, he had been watching the whole ordeal. Broderick reached out to her and took her injured hand in his. He sat his free hand atop her burn. The pain she felt vanished and as he removed his hand from hers, the injury had disappeared as well.

    ¡°Intent matters,¡± Broderick reiterated, ¡°you called forth your magic excellently, but you did not exert your will enough to control it. And the only way to remedy that is to practice.¡±

    He picked up another seed from the table and placed it in Anna¡¯s hand.

    ¡°Now, try again.¡±

 Familiar Strangers

    ¡°Ughhh!¡±

    Anna¡¯s scream reverberated off of the hardwood walls of the workshop. In her hand, just moments before, had been a seed that had sprouted a root and began to grow a stem. Now, though, there was only a pile of black ash and a rather painful burn. She stood up abruptly, causing the chair she had been sitting in to topple over. There was a small crack as one of the legs seemed to break off of the seat. Anna was too angry to really care about it at the moment.

    ¡°This is so stupid!¡± She yelled, ¡°this is never going to work, Broderick.¡±

    Broderick, for his part, had stood up and made his way over to her fallen chair. As Anna fumed, he inspected the chair before tapping the leg with the end of his staff. It glowed faintly, wobbled a bit, then jumped up as if it were alive and reattached itself to its recently departed other half. He then approached Anna and tried to take her hand in his. She jerked back from him angrily.

    ¡°I don¡¯t want healed, I want to be able to do this. We¡¯ve been at this for nearly three weeks now and I¡¯ve made zero progress,¡± she told him heatedly.

    ¡°Your seeds have been exploding with a little more vigor,¡± Nelson called, in what he clearly believed was an encouraging manner, from over by the shelf he was busy dusting.

    Anna turned to him and opened her mouth, ready to call him a few choice names, but Broderick cut in first.

    ¡°I think maybe we should take a break for a bit,¡± he said.

    He reached for Anna¡¯s hand again. This time, she allowed him to take it and he set to healing her wound.

    ¡°Why don¡¯t you go upstairs and grab a bite to eat Anna,¡± he recommended, ¡°I am in need of supplies and need to make a list for Nelson to pick up from the marketplace anyways. Misaada, can you bring me a quill, some parchment, and some ink.¡±

    There was a flapping sound, accompanied by the sound of a branch bending and leaves swishing around as Misaada departed from her perch. She landed near a desk on the other side of the room and began rummaging around the various items on it with her beak and opening drawers with her talons.

    ¡°I just don¡¯t understand,¡± Anna bemoaned in frustration, ¡°we¡¯ve been at this for weeks and nothing¡¯s changed.¡±

    At hearing Broderick mention sending him to town, Nelson had stopped dusting and come over to join them.

    ¡°You¡¯re trying too hard,¡± he said simply.

    ¡°That doesn¡¯t help,¡± she replied, ¡°Broderick tells me to just try harder, you tell me I¡¯m trying too hard. This is stupid,¡± she repeated.

    ¡°Anna dear,¡± Broderick began, ¡°there¡¯s nothing to get upset about. The ease with which you¡¯ve already managed to manipulate your magical energies is phenomenal. I would¡¯ve thought it would have taken weeks, maybe even months before we got to a point where anything happened at all. You managed to do something on your first try. You weren¡¯t born of this world, none of this is natural to you.¡±

    ¡°Nothing has happened, I just keep blowing my hand up,¡± she replied.

    ¡°But that is something,¡± Broderick reassured her, ¡°you are already able to summon your own inner magic and bring it outside your body. That is a remarkable success in and of itself.¡±

    Anna must have been giving him a dirty look because he hesitated for a moment before continuing.

    ¡°Er, what I mean is, as I told you before, we start our young on their path of training at an extremely infantile age. Some children take years before they are able to complete this task. We have jump-started your training a bit in an attempt to catch you up. If you would like, perhaps we should consider working with some more basic techniques to help you get a better grasp of the fundamentals. There would be no shame in-¡±

    ¡°No!¡± Anna said vehemently before he could finish.

    Broderick looked a bit taken aback by the forcefulness of her answer.

    ¡°Anna, I meant no disrespect, I only meant to say that we are attempting to start off far from a point where normal training would commence. It would not hurt to take a few steps back and work on something a little easier.¡±

    At this point, Misaada walked up to him with a rolled up piece of parchment in her beak. She dropped it on the table and it unrolled to reveal a long black stick.

    ¡°I couldn¡¯t find a quill so charcoal will have to do,¡± she told Broderick.

    ¡°We could use one of your feathers,¡± Nelson told her, grinning.

    ¡°Why you disrespectful little-¡± she said, before attempting to nip him as she so often did.

    Nelson jumped backwards and Broderick quickly interrupted them before their spat could escalate.

    ¡°Charcoal will do just fine,¡± he said before picking up the utensil and beginning to write up a list, ¡°I am in need of a few herbs and potion ingredients, Nelson. They should all be available at the apothecary. I also need some amber dust. You should be able to find that at the apothecary as well, but you may have to visit Bardis and Facetia for it.¡±

    Nelson nodded and took the list. Upon it, he seemed to have an idea as his face lit up with excitement

    ¡°How about I take Anna with me?¡± he asked enthusiastically.

    A look of trepidation fell upon Broderick¡¯s face and for a moment, he looked lost for a response. Misaada and Anna both looked back and forth between the two, waiting on Broderick to respond. Finally, he spoke.

    ¡°Nelson, I don¡¯t think that¡¯s a good idea,¡± he said slowly.

    ¡°Oh, c¡¯mon Broderick. She¡¯s been locked in this house for weeks, trying the same thing over and over. She¡¯s probably going mad from the confinement,¡± Nelson responded.

    Anna did not interject, but she silently agreed with Nelson. She was definitely feeling a bit stir crazy.

    ¡°But Nelson, you know as well as I do what the townspeople have whispered about her presence here. I do not think it would be beneficial to expose Anna to such vicious and unfounded murmurs,¡± Broderick said quietly, as though Anna could not hear him.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know if you¡¯ve noticed,¡± Nelson said, ¡°but I think Anna is perfectly capable of handling a few dirty looks. Misaada has the dirtiest looks around and Anna weathers those without flinching.¡±

    In response, Misaada gave him an absolutely filthy look, but also seemed to agree with him in principle.

    ¡°He¡¯s right Broderick,¡± she said, still staring daggers at Nelson, ¡°the poor girl needs some fresh air. It would do her some good to get out of the house and clear her head.¡±

    ¡°But-¡± Broderick attempted to say, but Nelson interrupted him.

    ¡°Anyways, the folks in town have probably already moved past Anna¡¯s arrival and are more than likely talking about whatever the newest gossip is,¡± Nelson said, ¡°Old Man Corcoran fell asleep under an invisibility cloak earlier this week, causing an entire manhunt to find him. I guarantee you people are more interested in that than a tribel-... I mean, Anna¡¯s coming to the kingdom.¡±

    ¡°But-¡± Broderick tried again, but growing tired of other people speaking on her behalf, Anna interrupted him this time.

    ¡°Please Broderick?¡± she said, attempting to sound as sweet as possible, ¡°it really would make me feel better to get out of the house for a bit. Being confined probably isn¡¯t good for freeing my will.¡±

    She had no idea if this statement had any truth to it, but it was true that she was feeling a bit claustrophobic being stuck inside. Plus, she was absolutely dying to take a trip to the marketplace that had so enticed her during her first venture through the kingdom. Broderick looked between Anna, Nelson, and Misaada, who seemed to have formed a defiant semicircle around him. He looked annoyed for a moment, but finally he relinquished.

    ¡°Fine,¡± he said, sounding somewhat reluctant, ¡°but Nelson, it falls to you to keep Anna out of trouble. Are you willing to accept that responsibility?¡±

    Nelson looked Anna up and down, as if sizing her up.

    ¡°I got this,¡± he said finally.

    Anna beamed at both of them.

    ¡°I¡¯ll be on my best behavior,¡± she promised.

    Broderick still looked slightly annoyed, but continued to write on his list of objects for Nelson to pick up. Fifteen minutes later, Anna was closing the front door behind them and they were setting off to the marketplace. She sported a grin on her face that felt a mile wide.

    ¡°Out for errands?¡± the lion¡¯s head knocker, Freyas, said as they walked down the steps.

    Anna had almost forgotten about the rather strange ornament and jumped a little at the sound of his growling voice.

    ¡°Yup,¡± answered Nelson, ¡°hold the fort down while we are gone. Make sure Broderick doesn¡¯t burn the house down.¡±

    ¡°Funny, he always says the same thing about you,¡± Freyas responded wryly.

    Anna and Nelson walked to the end of the dead end road that Broderick¡¯s home resided on and were soon snaking their way through the cobblestone streets of Monsadasia. They passed many people along the way. Almost every one of them stared at Anna, some even stopping in their tracks to do so. Their looks of distrust made her feel slightly uncomfortable, but she did her best to ignore the feeling. She chose not to mention it to Nelson, but she was sure he had to have noticed the glares they were receiving.

    Before long, they arrived at the exact spot that she and Broderick had stood on her first day in Monsadasia. The side road that led to the marketplace was now much more occupied, with bustling groups of people both entering and departing the town square. Luckily, the sheer volume of people, along with their preoccupation for the things they had either bought or were discussing purchasing kept most eyes from falling on Anna.

    ¡°Are you ready?¡± Nelson said, looking at her with a bit of concern.

    Apparently, he had indeed noticed the looks they had received during their walk. Finally, Anna addressed it herself.

    ¡°All these people keep staring at me, I feel like a freak,¡± she admitted.

    ¡°Don¡¯t,¡± he assured her, ¡°nothing cool ever happens around here. You¡¯re the first exciting thing to come along in my memory.¡±

    His words bolstered her spirit. Who cared what these people thought. She had people who both liked and cared about her now and that was more than she had ever known before.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± she said, with a smile on her face.

    She followed closely behind Nelson, so as to not get lost in the thick crowd of people surging in and out of the market. As they came to the end of the alley, the full scale of the square came into view and took Anna¡¯s breath away. The Sol Regnum seemed to be positioned directly above the center of the marketplace, casting its warm orange glow among all of the shops and citizens. The square itself was absolutely chock full of people engaging in all manners of business.

    There were children running around playing, with concerned parents chasing after them. A street performer had a booth set up near where Anna and Nelson had entered the market. People watched in awe and splendor as he performed what seemed to be simple sleight-of-hand magic tricks. A sign hung on the booth that sat in front of him reading ¡®Non-Magic Magic¡¯. Upon his wrists seemed to be a pair of spellbinders to keep him from using his actual magic. Anna was thoroughly impressed that the performer seemed to have trained himself to ignore the inherent adverse effects that came along with wearing the cuffs. The crowd ¡°ooh¡¯d¡± and ¡°ahh¡¯d¡± as he performed complex card tricks and made balls move between cups on a table without ever touching them.

    Many people seemed to be in a hurry, rushing around from shop to shop, pushing past the crowds gathered at various booths. They carried cloth bags full of items in their arms and Anna found herself wondering what could possibly be inside of them. As her and Nelson slowly pushed their way through crowds of people, she stopped multiple times to look at the kiosks scattered throughout the market. One particularly interesting one was manned by a person who did not look like a person at all. Their skin was covered in orange fur with black stripes and their cheeks seemed to be sporting whiskers. They looked to be some half-human half-tiger hybrid. The tiger-person had set up a booth that was selling miniature magical beasts. There was a sign attached to the front of their table that read ''No Permit Required''.

    Upon their table sat small cages filled with a various assortment of creatures that Anna had never seen before. One cage had a lizard-looking creature that seemed to only have two muscular front legs and a long tail. The inside of it¡¯s cage seemed to be lined with glass and the creature occasionally would spit a liquid onto the glass that would smoke and bubble before evaporating. Another cage had what was clearly a miniature dragon inside of it, while yet another cage had a rather strange looking monster made up of one large central eye surrounded by a mess of other smaller eyes attached by creepy looking tentacles. It had a sign in front of it that read ¡®Beholder.¡± The booth also had several wooden stables behind it filled with miniature unicorns, an animal that sported the body of a lion and the head of an eagle with a sign indicating it was called a griffin, and a pig like creature with a nameplate calling it a calydonian boar. Next to these stables was a large tank of water with a few different tiny creatures mulling about in the water, some looking like strange fish and others looking like some kind of seahorse. Though Anna didn¡¯t know their names, a sign affixed to the front of the tank told her that it contained hippocamps, abaia, and isonades. These words meant nothing to Anna, but the tank captured her interest anyways.

    The tiger-man selling these creatures growled through a megaphone to the crowd gathered around him, ¡°come one, come all, feast your eyes on wares straight from the Kretcher Kingdom. Need a pet to guard your wares, but don¡¯t want a full grown dragon eating you as soon as you step outside? Look no further, we have miniature dragons, drakes and wyverns that will scare off the bravest of looters.¡±

    Anna watched with fascination as he removed one of the small dragons from a cage. It climbed onto a leather glove that the man wore and looked at him expectantly. He grabbed a piece of raw bacon from his table and tossed it high into the air. The dragon leapt from his glove and spread it¡¯s tiny wings to take flight. It shot a burst of fire at the strip of bacon, instantly turning it crispy and filling the surrounding air with its scent, before swiftly grabbing the meat in its mouth. The dragon returned to the man¡¯s glove before gulping down the entire piece of food.

    ¡°I have no interest in dragons, but it would be cool to own a miniature griffin,¡± Nelson said from Anna¡¯s side.

    She jumped in surprise. In her reverie, she had quite forgotten that Nelson was with her.The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

    ¡°They are beautiful,¡± she responded in awe, ¡°what is that man, the one selling the creatures?¡± she asked.

    She realized that her query might come off rather rude, but her curiosity had gotten the better of her.

    ¡°He¡¯s from Kretcher, another of the five kingdoms. They are called the animal kingdom, I¡¯m sure you can see why,¡± Nelson told her.

    ¡°Do they all look like tiger-people?¡± Anna asked him.

    ¡°I don¡¯t think so,¡± Nelson replied, ¡°from what I know, some of them choose to undergo some kind of magical transformation to become closer to the animals that they revere. But many from their kingdom are content to just love and bond with creatures, rather than full out altering their DNA. Now come on, there¡¯s plenty more to see.¡±

    Somewhat reluctantly, Anna followed him away from the show. They passed several more kiosks and stalls along the way. A flamboyantly dressed vendor was selling pieces of jewelry and clothing advertised as being enchanted with various wards and charms. One booth was selling ¡®one-use wands¡¯ while another had a sign that exclaimed you could have your future read there. Anna was very interested in this one, but Nelson scoffed at her.

    ¡°Fortune-telling is a load of nonsense,¡± he said dismissively.

    ¡°You can shoot fireballs from your hands and make pearls that explode upon impact, but you¡¯re calling that nonsense?¡± she asked him.

    ¡°There is no such thing as clairvoyance, Anna. We all have our own free will. You make your decisions, I make mine. No silly fortune-teller can tell either of us where those choices will lead,¡± he responded.

    Finally, they arrived at a store that lined the market with a large sign that read ¡®Apothecary¡¯ above the entrance. On either side of the sign sat an oversized cauldron, one blue and the other purple, with wisps of smoke erupting out of their tops. Each of them seemed to have a massive spoon going into the cauldron which looked to be stirring whatever was inside of them.

    ¡°Finally, we made it. I hate coming into the market when it¡¯s this busy. At least I have some company this time though,¡± Nelson said.

    The doors to the shop reminded Anna of the old saloon doors she saw in buildings in the old western movies that Ms. Whitney sometimes watched. A multicolor of smoke and haze poured out from the space above the batwing doors. Nelson pushed them apart and Anna followed him into the store. Upon entering, a huddled old witch with a blue bonnet on her head greeted them sweetly. Nelson exchanged pleasantries with her before grabbing a small shopping basket and leading Anna into the maze of shelves and racks that littered the store.

    The store itself was filled to the brim with strange objects. There were skulls of various creatures for sale, flowers that Anna had never seen or heard of, and large glass jars with different sized eyeballs floating inside. One shelf was covered in legs from different breeds of spider, while another contained small vials filled with different snakes¡¯ venoms. There were wings from urchins and ell-maids, claws from something called snotlings, and spikes from a creature called a howler. The size and rigidness of them conjured the image of some kind of dog covered in porcupine-like spikes in Anna¡¯s mind. Jars of bubbling liquids and trays of burning herbs released a myriad of aromas in the air. Some were pleasant, while others nearly made Anna gag.

    Nelson guided her through the store, checking Broderick¡¯s list every once in a while before grabbing objects from the shelves and placing them in the basket. They had seemingly found everything on the list, but Nelson was having trouble locating the amber dust that Broderick had requested. After a few minutes of searching, he decided to ask the store clerk.

    ¡°Excuse me,¡± he said politely, ¡°do you have any amber dust for sale? Broderick told me you may have it but if not I can check with Bardis and Facetia.¡±

    ¡°No, no dearie,¡± the little witch said in a voice that sounded like dust given sound, ¡°I keep it behind the counter here.¡±

    She ducked down and rummaged around beneath the counter for a moment. Jars clinked together and what sounded like a cat hissed loudly before she reemerged, holding a small jar of golden dust.

    ¡°Awesome, that saves us a trip,¡± Nelson said excitedly.

    He put the rest of their supplies on the counter. The old woman priced the objects, weighing some of them with a scale on the counter. She wrote down the price of each object in a little notebook she had. Finally she told Nelson the total.

    ¡°That¡¯ll be five aurums and three argentums please,¡± she said.

    Nelson pulled a small pouch from inside his robes and rummaged around inside it. He pulled out five golden coins and three silver ones and sat them on the counter. The clerk took the money and placed it in a drawer underneath the counter. She then whipped out a wand and waved it over the piece of paper she had been transcribing the sale on. A second, nearly identical piece of paper appeared from thin air next to her notepad and she handed it to Nelson. The only difference was that this one had the word ¡®receipt¡¯ transcribed along the top. Nelson thanked her for her service and led Anna back outside the store.

    Upon reentering the marketplace, Nelson turned to Anna.

    ¡°You hungry?¡± he asked her.

    Anna did not want to impose her appetite upon Nelson and quickly said, ¡°No.¡±

    As if in response to her denial, her belly growled loudly, audible even over the loud furor of the marketplace.

    ¡°Let¡¯s get something to eat,¡± Nelson said, laughing.

    He led her through the various crowds of people to a booth that was emanating an absolutely wonderful smell. It had a big, red, sparkling sign indicating it sold something called dragonears. There was quite a large queue lined up for these dragonears. Anna and Nelson waited patiently until it was their turn to order.

    ¡°Two, please,¡± Nelson said, handing over another golden coin for the food.

    After a moment, they were handed two warm plates with some kind of fried pastry atop them. Back in Darjeary, the state fair had come through once before. The lights, sounds, and smells of the place had of course attracted Anna when this occurred. On one of her trips, she had unceremoniously been digging through the trash for food when she had come across something called a funnel cake. The pastry that she now held in her hands reminded her somewhat of that. Two big differences were that this one was not half-eaten, and also that it was covered in some kind of glowing red powder. She and Nelson made their way over to where a group of tables were arranged, eventually finding an empty, albeit slightly messy, one on which they could enjoy their food.

    ¡°Well, go on then,¡± Nelson said expectantly.

    Anna had the impression that he wanted her to take a bite of hers first. She felt a bit of distrust at this, afraid he was playing some kind of joke on her.

    ¡°No, you first,¡± she responded.

    ¡°Oh, come on, don¡¯t be scared. They¡¯re delicious, and carry a real kick with them,¡± he told her, ¡°I dare you.¡±

    Something about those three words did it. Anna was not the kind of person to turn down a dare, and she wasn¡¯t about to let anyone think she wasn¡¯t doing something because she was too scared to. Without any more hesitation, she ripped off a piece of the dragonear, forgoing her fork altogether, and shoved it in her mouth. It was delicious and sweet and warm. In fact, as she swallowed, the warmth seemed to run down into her belly, before coming back up her throat and filling her whole head. Suddenly, smoke began to erupt from her ears and nose and small jets of flames shot from her nostrils. At first, Anna was terrified, but she quickly realized that the flames did not seem to burn or harm her at all. Across the table, Nelson had eaten a piece as well and was now having the same fiery reaction as Anna. The flames and smoke stopped. Anna burped loudly and another small spout of flame shot from her nose. She made eye contact with Nelson, a moment of silence passed between them, and suddenly they were both erupting with laughter at the effects of the dragonears.

    They took turns eating bites of the pastries, seeing how big of a flame they could get to come out of their noses. With each jet of flames and smoke, more fits of laughter filled the air between them. It was the most fun Anna could remember having in a long time, possibly ever in her life.

    ¡°Well, if it isn¡¯t Nelson Porker,¡± a voice called from the crowd, ¡°and he¡¯s hanging out with the filthy tribeless too.¡±

    A teenaged boy with a strangely familiar angular face and piercing dark eyes pushed his way discourteously through a crowd of people nearby. He was followed by a few other boys and one girl. Anna immediately remarked internally on how pretty the girl was. She had arctic blue eyes and shoulder length blonde hair. She reminded Anna of another blonde haired, blue eyed girl she knew. One she did not like very much. The gaggle of teenagers approached Anna and Nelson¡¯s table, each walking with a haughty sense of self-importance that immediately put a bad taste in Anna¡¯s mouth.

    ¡°Ya know, Porker, I would never think a sorcerer could overeat, but that pig belly of yours really proves me wrong,¡± the boy with dark eyes said maliciously.

    ¡°What do you want Lucar?¡± Nelson said, not looking up from his dragonear.

    ¡°For the Source¡¯s sake, you can¡¯t even look up from your plate to have a conversation,¡± the boy called Lucar replied.

    Anna felt a great sense of deja vu at the entire situation. The group of kids walking up while she and Nelson were minding their own business. The demeaning comments meant to belittle Nelson. She quickly realized that this Lucar boy was Nelson¡¯s own personal Alexis. She did not need to see any more to immediately decide she didn¡¯t care for Lucar one bit.

    ¡°I know you don¡¯t have any friends, Porker, but hanging out with a tribeless is low, even for you,¡± the girl of the group said.

    ¡°Come now, Mikel,¡± Lucar said to her, ¡°it must get lonely only having a neurotic bird and a crazy old nutjob like Broderick to talk to all day. It makes sense that he would befriend this freak considering the usual company he finds himself in.¡±

    The group of kids all chuckled in amusement. Anna had heard enough. She didn¡¯t much care that they had called her a freak; it barely ranked on the top ten list of insults that had been lobbed at her before, but they had now talked bad about Nelson, Misaada, and Broderick. She stood up from the table and balled her fists. Nelson gave her a pleading look, but she paid him little attention.

    ¡°It¡¯s amazing that I¡¯ve been in Monsadasia for less than a month, and yet you still somehow manage to be the most moronic person I¡¯ve ever met, in my world or this one,¡± Anna said coolly.

    Most of the group wore looks as if Anna had slapped them, but both Mikel and Lucar simply smiled.

    ¡°Color me surprised, the tribless can string together a sentence,¡± Lucar said.

    ¡°Yes, I wasn¡¯t aware that savages could speak so well,¡± Mikel added.

    ¡°I would say that your repetitiveness is pathetic. But seeing as how you guys barely have a full brain between the two of you, I guess it makes sense,¡± Anna replied.

    ¡°It would be a shame for me to have to humiliate you in front of the entire kingdom,¡± Mikel responded, pulling her wand from her robes and tapping it against her leg.

    ¡°Do you always have a girl fight your battles for you?¡± Anna said to Lucar.

    This seemed to ruffle his feathers in a way that her other insults hadn¡¯t. He stuck his arm out to push Mikel back as he stepped in front of her.

    ¡°I think you¡¯ve opened your mouth enough , filthy nontribus,¡± he said venomously.

    ¡°Don¡¯t call her that,¡± Nelson said quietly from the table.

    He still was not looking at Lucar, but he had moved his hand to the inside of his robes, presumably to grab his own wand. Lucar laughed mercilessly.

    ¡°You think you stand a chance against me Porker? Come on then, stand up,¡± Lucar chided.

    Nelson remained sitting. Anna could feel her skin getting hot and tingly. Her ears seemed to be ringing as well. At first she thought it was just her anger bubbling to the surface, but she quickly realized it was something more. The image of an exploding phone and Alexis on the ground, covered in blood, quickly flashed through her mind.

    ¡°That¡¯s what I thought,¡± Lucar said, looking at Nelson in disgust, ¡°you¡¯re a coward just like your father. It must be hard to be the son of the town drunkard.¡±

    Nelson finally looked up at Lucar. He had fear and anguish written all over his face.

    ¡°Stop it Lucar, you¡¯re going to make him cry,¡± Mikel said, though her tone showed no sign of actually wanting Lucar to relinquish.

    ¡°Well, I guess it¡¯s understandable. I would probably drink myself to death too if my wife had-¡±

    Whack!

    Lucar did not get to finish his sentence. Anna could feel the magic inside of her rising to a crescendo. She knew that she had to do something before it erupted out of her like it had the last time. So she did the first thing that came to her mind. She took the fist that she still had balled up, and planted it as hard as she could on Lucar¡¯s nose. He had clearly not been expecting a physical attack and did nothing to defend himself or limit the damage. His cohorts had apparently not been expecting this development either, as they all recoiled backwards in horror. Lucar stumbled back, tripping and falling over an empty table.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± Anna said demandingly.

    She did not wait for Nelson to comply. She snatched the burlap sack containing Broderick¡¯s supplies from the table, then grabbed Nelson¡¯s wrist forcefully and yanked him upwards. A few people in the marketplace had turned to see what all the commotion was about, but before anyone could really register what had happened, Anna was dragging Nelson down an empty narrow side street and into the tangled mess of roads that made up Monsadasia. The sense of deja vu she had felt earlier was now stronger than ever.

    ¡°Left,¡± she said decisively, ¡°now right. We need somewhere to lay low.¡±

    Nelson was having trouble keeping up, but Anna did not let go of his wrist. It was clear that he was not nearly as fast as she was, and his heavy panting told her that he did not quite share her physical stamina either. Every ounce of her self-preservation told Anna to let go of him, that she could run faster without his lagging weight, but she fought her instincts and kept a tight hold on him.

    ¡°Keep an eye out for a rundown door. Do you know if any of these buildings are abandoned?¡± Anna shouted to Nelson.

    ¡°You seem like you have experience with this,¡± Nelson panted.

    "Maybe a bit," Anna responded.

    They ran along the slightly crowded stone streets, Anna leading the way even though she had no idea where they were going.

    "Outta the way, move!" Anna heard someone shout behind her.

    She looked back to see Lucar and his group giving chase. Luckily, their strength in numbers was a weakness when it came to moving quickly through large swaths of people.

    "See that alley up ahead," Nelson huffed.

    "Yup," Anna replied.

    "Turn there, I have an idea."

    Anna did as he said, nearly knocking over a chatting couple as she and Nelson sped around the corner. They came screeching to a halt and Nelson gasped loudly for air.

    "You can breathe when we are hiding," Anna said impatiently, "where are we going?"

    "Down¡­ There," Nelson said through labored breaths.

    He had one hand on his torso as if he had a stitch in his side while the other hand was pointing further down the alley. The buildings on either side of them blocked the light making it hard to see, but Anna was just able to make out a cutout in the back of one of the buildings.

    "Come on," she said.

    They made their way hurriedly through the cramped alley, past the old wooden crates and trash bins that made up their surroundings. As they approached the cutout, Anna finally noticed the door that sat nuzzled inside it. It was covered in dark dirt and grime which made it hard to notice amongst the shadows of the alley and the dim walls. She also noticed that the door lacked a handle.

    "Great, brilliant idea Nelson," she said sarcastically, "now what?"

    "Move," he said, pushing her out of the way.

    He drew his wand and pointed it at the door.

    "Recludo," he said.

    There was a small click and the door popped open. Nelson grinned at her as if to say ''I told you so''. He grabbed the door and pulled it open all the way, pushing Anna into the dark space that greeted them before coming in himself and shutting the door behind him. The darkness swallowed them and the noise from outside quieted instantly.

    "It smells funny in here," Anna said, pinching her nose in the pitch black.

    "Shhhh," Nelson responded.

    Anna could not see him but she had the feeling that he was pressing his ear to the door to listen. A few moments of relative silence passed, broken only by their labored breathing. Finally Anna felt Nelson move backwards, bumping into her as he did so.

    "Lux," he said, and crystal fixtures along the wall immediately flooded the room with light.

    Now that Anna could see properly, she was able to make out the shoddy room they now found themselves in. There were several mop buckets and brooms near the back of the room. A few shelves lined the walls, covered in sponges, rags, and different sized bottles and containers. Anna had the impression that they were filled with some kind of cleaner. That explained the funny smell that was currently permeating her nostrils. They seemed to be in some kind of custodial office. She sat the sack of supplies down and turned to Nelson.

    ¡°Is this a janitor¡¯s office,¡± she asked.

    ¡°Yup,¡± Nelson answered, ¡°it¡¯s the headquarters of the kingdom¡¯s custodian, a man named Gortimer.¡±

    ¡°Will he be mad that we are in here? And what¡¯s with all the cleaning supplies; couldn¡¯t he just clean stuff with magic?¡±

    ¡°Gorty¡¯s cool, if he comes back he won¡¯t mind that we are here. I help him out around the kingdom from time to time when he needs it, so he likes me. And o¡¯ course he could, but Gorty¡¯s not the type to use magic to solve all his problems,¡± Nelson puffed his face out in a ridiculous manner, and said in a growling voice that was clearly meant to imitate this Gortimer person, ¡°elbow grease and bleach cleans a mess ten times better than a wand ever could, Nelson.¡±

    At that, Nelson burst out laughing. Anna must have missed the joke.

    ¡°What¡¯s so funny,¡± she asked, feeling rather stupid.

    ¡°I can¡¯t believe you just punched Lucar Rokus right in the nose. I¡¯ve wanted to do that for years,¡± he responded, still giggling hysterically, ¡°to tell you the truth, I¡¯m sure there¡¯s quite a few people who¡¯ve felt the urge to do just that. He¡¯s a pompous prick.¡±

    Anna felt some of the color drain from her face. She did not find Nelson¡¯s words very humorous at all.

    ¡°Did you just say Lucar Rokus? As in a relative of the same Rokus who¡¯s the head of the council?¡± Anna inquired, a slight tremble invading her tone.

    ¡°Yeah, the grandson of that old coot,¡± Nelson replied, but he seemed to guess what Anna was thinking, ¡°don¡¯t worry though. He won¡¯t tell his grandfather. He couldn¡¯t bear the shame of having his lights knocked out by a girl, much less a tribe- er, I mean by someone from the non-magical world.¡±

    ¡°Are you sure? Councilmember Rokus said that if I stepped out of line, he would come after Broderick¡¯s head. Then Broderick will be in trouble and I¡¯ll be kicked out of the kingdom, I¡¯ll have to go back to the orphanage, or have to go back to court and wear those awful spellbinders and be sent to the shadow whatever,¡± Anna said hysterically.

    She knew she was rambling, but a million dark and depressing thoughts were suddenly invading her mind all at once. A look of concern fell over Nelson¡¯s face. He moved closer to her and placed a comforting hand on her shoulder.

    ¡°I promise, it¡¯ll be fine. Even if he did tell, his grandfather wouldn¡¯t bring it to the court. As ashamed as Lucar would be at the whole situation, his grandfather would sooner die than admit one of his kin had been beaten up by you,¡± Nelson said soothingly.

    Anna could still feel the panic beating in her chest, but Nelson¡¯s words did a decent enough job to drive the worst of her fears away. He pulled his hand away and took a seat in one of the rickety old chairs in the office. He dug in his robes and pulled out a bag of what looked like trail mix before shoving a handful of it into his mouth.

    ¡°Want some?¡± He asked through a mouthful of nuts and dried fruit.

    ¡°No, thanks,¡± Anna replied.

    She did not have much of an appetite after the ordeal they had just undergone. Silence fell between them once more, and after a moment, Anna took a seat as well. She rummaged around in the pockets of her own robes and pulled out a few of the seeds she had been using for training earlier. She sat them in her lap and took one in her hand. For what felt like the millionth time, she closed her eyes and did as Broderick had told her. She felt the wriggling in her hand that told her something was happening. She could feel the warmth again, followed by a small root sprouting. Just as she began to feel hope that she was finally getting it, the warmth grew unbearable and the sprout in her hand burst into flames once more.

    ¡°I can¡¯t heal burns nearly as well as Broderick,¡± Nelson said.

    ¡°This is pointless,¡± she said, pressing her burnt palm into her knee to try and dull the pain, ¡°I¡¯m never going to get it.¡±

    ¡°You can be a real negative person, you know that?¡± Nelson said rather bluntly.

    Anna gave him a piercingly dirty look but he ignored it.

    ¡°You need to try a little optimism every once in a while. And you know what else your problem is?¡± He asked.

    ¡°Why don¡¯t you tell me, oh wise and all knowing Nelson,¡± Anna said scathingly.

    ¡°You¡¯re trying to hard,¡± he said, repeating his words from earlier.

    ¡°Hah!¡± Anna let out a mirthless laugh before saying, ¡°and all this time, I¡¯ve been thinking I just haven¡¯t been trying hard enough. You¡¯re a real motivator, you know that?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m serious,¡± Nelson replied, ¡°listen, you¡¯re trying so hard to force your magic out. That¡¯s not your problem. Truthfully, I¡¯m envious at just how easily you were able to call your magic from within you. But you¡¯re forcing so much out at once that it¡¯s like a dam breaking and it just ends up destroying things.¡±

    ¡°Then what should I do?¡± Anna asked, a little less scathingly this time.

    ¡°Magic is inside of you now. It¡¯s a part of you,¡± he explained, ¡°bringing it out to utilize it should be more like breathing and less like blowing. You are just trying to exhale, not fan a fire. Instead of trying to force it out, to push it, just let it flow out of you just like the air in your lungs.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s stupid,¡± Anna said dismissively.

    ¡°Negativity,¡± Nelson chided, ¡°I¡¯m serious. Instead of trying to release as much magic as you can, just let it seep out. Look, take another seed and close your eyes again.¡±

    Anna rolled her eyes but did as he said. She ignored the pain in her palm as she did so.

    ¡°Now breathe,¡± Nelson said, ¡°In, out, in. Breathe slowly and deeply. Picture the magic inside of you moving like waves, moving with the air that enters your lungs. Then, just let it flow from within you just as easily as your breath.¡±

    And so Anna breathed. She inhaled, then exhaled, slowly and surely. She focused on her breathing, on the cool, slightly chemical laden air that entered and exited her body. And then she felt a warmth in her hand. She felt the same wriggling as she had before, followed by the feeling of a sprout emerging from the shell of the seed. She began to get excited.

    ¡°Stay calm and breathe,¡± Nelson said soothingly.

    Anna pushed the excitement away and continued to focus on her breathing. She felt the sprout in her hand grow and expand and fill her fist.

    ¡°Look,¡± Nelson said.

    She opened her eyes and gasped in amazement. In her hand was now a beautiful purple flower, attached to a healthy looking green stalk.

    ¡°I can do it,¡± she whispered, almost unable to believe it.

    ¡°Now there¡¯s the positivity I like to see,¡± Nelson said smiling.

    Anna jumped from her chair and gave him a massive, rib cracking hug.

    ¡°Thank you,¡± she said.

    ¡°Er, it was nothing,¡± Nelson said, blushing a little.

    Anna released him, a huge grin on her face.

    ¡°Think the coast is clear?¡± She asked.

    ¡°Probably not,¡± he replied.

    ¡°Let¡¯s see some positivity Nelson,¡± Anna said, picking up their bag of supplies ¡°I¡¯m ready to go home and show Broderick what I can do.¡±

    ¡°Hah, alright then,¡± Nelson said, standing up himself.

    They made their way to the door and back out into the bustling streets of Monsadasia. The only proof they had ever been there was a beautiful lavender flower sitting in the chair.

 Trials and Tribe-ulations

    The return trip home had been a rather giddy one, filled with laughter and uplifted spirits. Upon exiting the office of Gortimer, both Anna and Nelson had been slightly wary of running into Lucar and his crew, but they had experienced no such trouble. It seemed the bullies had moved on to another area in their pursuit, or perhaps they had just wandered off somewhere for Lucar to lick his wounds while his friends consoled him. Though the Sol Regnum shone brightly above as always, Anna had the feeling that it was getting to be quite late in the evening. They had been gone for much longer than they had originally planned. The two bound up the front steps of their home, Nelson doing a wonderfully accurate reenactment of Lucar¡¯s face upon its meeting with Anna¡¯s fist, when Freyas spoke to them.

    ¡°There you two are, finally. Broderick¡¯s in an awful state at your prolonged absence,¡± Freyas barked.

    The pair stopped their raucous laughter and looked up at the lion¡¯s head door knocker.

    ¡°What do you mean?¡± Nelson asked, ¡°we were only gone for a few hours.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Freyas responded, ¡°go in and see for yourself. All I know is he was discussing with Misaada about sending a search party out for you two. By all the ruckus inside, you¡¯d think you had someone after your head or something.¡±

    Anna and Nelson exchanged concerned looks.

    ¡°Let us in please,¡± Anna asked Freyas.

    ¡°Sure thing, just tell the old man to quiet down a bit. I¡¯m trying to sleep and it¡¯s near impossible with all of his loud pacing and nervous chatter.¡±

    The door clicked obligingly and Anna hurried to push it open. Neither Broderick nor Misaada were in the front room, but the door to the workshop was open and they could hear noises emanating from its bowels. They made their way quickly to the descending staircase.

    ¡°Broderick, is everything ok?¡± Anna called down as her and Nelson hastened down the stairs.

    As they arrived at the bottom, a cry of relief greeted them.

    ¡°Thank goodness, thank goodness,¡± Broderick said, almost hysterically.

    He was crouched on the floor with some kind of strange, polished black disk in front of him and the workshop was in a very messy state. Drawers and cabinets were yanked open haphazardly, and different objects and papers were scattered about the floor. Misaada¡¯s feathers were also strewn among the mess.

    ¡°What on earth happened here?¡± Nelson asked.

    ¡°We will be asking the questions,¡± Misaada demanded as she came storming out of one of the side rooms.

    ¡°Where have you two been? I¡¯ve been worried sick,¡± Broderick said in a voice that was a mixture of exasperation and relief.

    He stood up, still clutching the disc, and rushed over to them.

    ¡°We- well, we got a little hung up,¡± Anna said nervously, ¡°I just got a little over excited at all the sights of Monsadasia.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, c¡¯mon Broderick, we were only gone a few hours,¡± Nelson chimed in.

    ¡°Yes, exactly!¡± Broderick cried, ¡°I sent you to the market for a few supplies. It should have only taken you an hour, two tops. You¡¯ve been gone for nearly six hours!¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t see what the big-¡± Nelson started, but Misaada spoke up.

    ¡°Be quiet, Nelson,¡± she snapped, and he shut up immediately.

    ¡°I knew it wasn¡¯t a good idea to let you out of the house without me,¡± Broderick said, ¡°Anna don¡¯t you get it?¡±

    Anna did not answer. She thought she knew where this was going and the first inklings of shame were beginning to creep up inside her.

    ¡°You are not safe, in your world or this one,¡± Broderick told her, ¡°the assassin who killed Gwen, the others, and who tried to kill you is still out there. He is still pursuing you, even if he has chosen to lay low for a while. This house has many protective charms and artifacts that protect you while you¡¯re inside these walls, but there is still a great danger in you wandering off in the kingdom.¡±

    ¡°We didn¡¯t wander off,¡± Anna said, somewhat defensively, ¡°we were in the market, surrounded by people. Surely this assassin wouldn¡¯t be so brash as to try and murder me there would he?¡±

    ¡°Wouldn¡¯t he,¡± Broderick responded, looking at her with pity, ¡°no one would have thought that this person would kill a council member, or be able to kill Gwen, yet here we are. I let you go out, against my better judgement, and anything could have happened.¡±

    ¡°Broderick, it¡¯s my fault,¡± Nelson said.

    ¡°No, it¡¯s mine,¡± Anna contradicted, ¡°I was the one who held us up. Nelson had nothing to do with it.¡±

    ¡°You are both to blame equally,¡± Misaada chided, though her tone had softened somewhat.

    ¡°All three of you convinced me to let her go,¡± Broderick said, his gaze jumping between each of them.

    Anna and Nelson looked down in shame and Misaada scratched the floor nervously. Broderick closed his eyes and took a few deep breaths.

    After a moment, he spoke, and his voice was much more controlled, ¡°You are safe, and that is what truly matters. I didn''t mean to overreact, but you must understand Anna. You are in my care, you are my responsibility.¡±

    At this, Anna felt a bit stung. Broderick was only upset because he felt as if he had some duty or burden to care for her. For some reason, this hurt Anna, but then Broderick continued.

    ¡°I would never forgive myself if something happened to you. You are part of this family now and it is my job to take care of you and keep you safe.¡±

    Her hurt was quickly replaced by more shame. She was so quick to believe that Broderick did not actually care for her and she now realized that it was quite the opposite.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± she said weakly.

    ¡°It¡¯s okay,¡± Broderick replied, ¡°just please try not to make me worry like that again. And I will try my best to not overreact. We just have to keep you safe until this murderer can be brought to justice.¡±

    Nelson had begun picking up the random discarded objects and putting them back in place. As he shuffled some pieces of parchment together, he looked around curiously.

    ¡°What exactly were you doing down here,¡± he asked Broderick.

    ¡°Oh, this mess?¡± Broderick said, looking around at the rather wrecked workshop, ¡°I was looking for a scrying mirror. I was trying to check up on you two before I resorted to going to the kingdom guards and creating unnecessary trouble.¡±

    ¡°Like these?¡± Nelson asked, picking up two polished discs just like the one Broderick still held in his hand.

    ¡°None of them work,¡± Misaada told them, ¡°We even tried a fourth one. I think Broderick tossed it into the library out of frustration.¡±

    She waddled off towards that direction, presumably to fetch the thrown mirror. She returned moments later with a jade green disc in her beak. There was a large chunk missing from one of its edges where it had cracked upon impact.

    ¡°I don¡¯t understand,¡± Anna said, ¡°what¡¯s a scrying mirror?¡±

    Broderick made his way over to the set of chairs he and Anna so often sat at and took a seat. He placed his mirror upon the table before answering.

    ¡°It is a magical tool used to view places and people. The distance it allows you to look is finite, usually no more than a few miles depending on the mirror, but any of mine should have been plenty sufficient to find you two. It was¡­ Rather infuriating that they were not working.¡±

    ¡°Now I¡¯m not getting it,¡± Nelson said, a look of confusion on his face, ¡°I¡¯ve seen you use those mirrors a dozen times at least. Why would they stop working now?¡±

    ¡°Truthfully, I haven¡¯t the slightest clue,¡± Broderick replied with a sigh, ¡°as you know, Nelson, their powers are limited. Most high profile sorcerers will have wards against them, but there is no reason I can think as to why scrying would not work on you two. As you can imagine, the fact that they weren¡¯t working did a number to increase my worries.¡±

    Nelson nodded in understanding. As Anna looked at Broderick, who looked somehow older than he usually did, her eyes fell upon the mirror now sitting on the table. It was situated right next to a small pile of black seeds. Anna felt a bit of excitement rise inside of her. In all the commotion upon their arrival, she had completely forgotten why she had been so eager to return home in the first place. Now that things were dying down, however, the memory of her accomplishment came rushing back to her. She hesitated for a moment, afraid that the mood had not quite settled enough to try and demonstrate her new skill to Broderick, but her enthusiasm won out in the end.

    ¡°Broderick, I want to show you something,¡± she said warily, taking the seat across from him.

    ¡°What¡¯s that my dear?¡± he asked, looking at her with interest.

    She grinned at him and picked a seed up from the table.

    ¡°It¡¯s okay, Anna, we can just eat dinner and rest for the night. We can resume practice tomorrow. It¡¯s been a long enough day,¡± he said.

    ¡°Just watch,¡± Nelson told him.

    Anna shut her eyes and clutched the seed. She took slow, measured breaths, just as she had with Nelson. She felt the same wriggling and moving in her hand as before, and she heard both Broderick and Misaada gasp in surprise. She opened her eyes to a healthy, full bloomed flower in her hand. She held it out to Broderick, who was looking at her mouth agape. He took it from her slowly.

    ¡°I thought you might want to see that,¡± she told him, trying to contain her excitement.

    For a moment he stared at the flower before finally looking up at Anna with a smile of his own.

    ¡°Tonight, we feast. Tomorrow, your real training begins.¡±

    And so it did. The days turned into weeks. As time passed, Anna was presented with a new set of challenges and training regimens. Of course, there was the workings of magic and spellcraft, but there was so much more than that than Anna had ever expected. First, she had to learn to manipulate the four cardinal elements: earth, wind, fire and water. The day following her showcase of her flower growing abilities to Broderick, she came down to the workshop to find a new sight at their usual table. A pile of dirt.

    ¡°Watch closely,¡± Broderick told her.

    He moved his hands over the pile, making strange waving motions. Slowly, the dirt separated into two piles. One was still dirt, but the other seemed to be made of sand. Anna watched in amazement as Broderick made more gestures and the sand seemed to become soaked with water. Without touching it, he forced it to shape into a ball, the sand holding its shape fairly well since it was wet. Once he had a crude ball formed, he held both hands above it and Anna could feel the heat radiating from between them. The ball began to glow a bright red. Broderick pointed with two fingers at the ball. A small, concentrated gust of wind erupted from them, cooling the glowing ball of sand. When he was finished, a smooth, round sphere of glass sat between them.This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

    ¡°That was amazing,¡± Anna said quietly.

    ¡°That was nothing,¡± Broderick said, though he sounded rather proud, ¡°it is a simple exercise I have devised for learning to work each of the elements. You control the earth to separate it from the sand. You then pull the moisture from the air to make the sand easier to work with. Using the fury and rage of the fire element, you glaze the ball into glass. Finally, you summon a small gust of wind to cool it down quickly. Now you try.¡±

    This was the most arcane part of Anna¡¯s training, but there was much more to learn than the actual practice of magic. For one, there was the history of Monsadasia and the five kingdoms. The best part about this was that Anna finally began to understand what the painting in her prison cell represented. She finally learned what, or who, the Source was.

    ¡°Magic has been the foundation of the five kingdoms for centuries,¡± Broderick explained during one of their lessons.

    ¡°Where did the kingdoms get their magic?¡± Anna asked in her usual curious fashion.

    ¡°Ah, I¡¯m glad you asked,¡± Broderick replied, looking excited, ¡°that is exactly the point of today¡¯s lesson. Today, you shall learn of the source of all magic.¡±

    ¡°I keep hearing that word, ¡®the source¡¯,¡± Anna said, ¡°what does it mean?¡±

    ¡°It is the cornerstone of our entire civilisation, or rather, she is the entire cornerstone. The foundation upon which each of the kingdoms was founded. And the reason that we have had peace for so long between us.¡±

    Broderick led Anna into the library. He pulled an extremely old and well-read book from one of the shelves. Nelson was in here as well, and upon Broderick and Anna¡¯s appearance, he watched them curiously. After realizing what book Broderick had grabbed, his interest piqued.

    ¡°Mind if I listen?¡± he asked, ¡°I love this story.¡±

    ¡°Not at all,¡± Broderick said jovially.

    He cracked the book open to the first few pages. A cloud of dust erupted as the spine split open. As Broderick opened it, Anna was just able to make out the words on the cover, embroidered in fancy gold lettering: The Five Tribes, a History.

    The three of them went back to the main room of the workshop. Nelson pulled a chair from one of the desks and joined Anna and Broderick¡¯s usual seating arrangement. Misaada, who had been sleeping in her nest, was awoken by the scraping sound of Nelson dragging his chair on the floor. She cursed at Nelson, but upon realizing what book Broderick was holding, fell silent.

    ¡°This tale is centuries old,¡± Broderick began, ¡°and guides us even to this day. It is the basis for all we do and all that we have.¡±

    Anna sat with suspense, ready for the lesson to really begin. Even though Nelson had clearly heard this story before, he looked excited as well.

    ¡°No one is really sure of the date,¡± Broderick continued, ¡°but all of the kingdoms are sure of one thing¡± a teardrop fell from the stars.¡±

    ¡°The stars cried?¡± Anna scoffed.

    ¡°Shhh!¡± Nelson and Misaada both scolded at the same time.

    ¡°Yes, a teardrop from the stars,¡± Broderick confirmed, smiling, ¡°at least that¡¯s what the historical records tell us. Anyways, the teardrop fell, and created quite a commotion when it landed. The force of it shook the entire planet. At the time, five small tribes lived in the area. They were separate from each other, but close enough to know of the rest of their existences. When the teardrop fell, each tribe was terrified. It seemed as if the heavens were raining down upon them. But after a day or two, and the world not ending, each of the tribes decided to investigate the site of the impact.¡±

    ¡°What did they find?¡± Anna asked excitedly.

    ¡°A woman,¡± Broderick answered.

    ¡°More beautiful and resplendent than any who ever existed,¡± Nelson recited, as if from memory.

    ¡°Right,¡± Broderick said, ¡°and she was hurt. Her fall from above had damaged her greatly and the five tribes questioned whether she would live or die. And so they intervened. Working together, they brought her what she requested and, in time, nursed her back to a stable state. But then the conflict began.¡±

    ¡°Why would there be conflict,¡± Anna questioned, ¡°if they were working together to heal her?¡±

    ¡°Because the tribes could sense the power she held. And though they were mostly a peaceful people, the power that she held was invasive, enthralling, all powerful. No single mortal could hope to resist the temptation that her power inflicted. Each of the tribes thought that they could use her power as their own. And though their reasons for wanting it differed, their conclusion was the same. Her power belonged to them, and none of the others. And so the wars began.¡±

    ¡°Small, though the tribes were,¡± he continued, ¡°their numbers were fierce and loyal. Blood shed and bodies fell as each of the tribes battled over the fallen star. And then, one day, she had seen enough.¡±

    ¡°This is my favorite part,¡± Nelson said.

    ¡°How did she stop it?¡± Anna asked Broderick.

    ¡°You see, over time, the woman had learned to love each of the tribes. They had helped her when she was hurt, they had brought her gifts to earn her blessing. They had shown her the value and beauty of mankind and she, in turn, had come to value each of them. Both for their positive attributes, and for their flaws. And so she sent out a message to the rulers of the five kingdoms. During the night, they each had a dream,¡±

    ¡°She used magic,¡± Anna realized.

    ¡°Yes, she used the amazing powers that she possessed to speak to each of the rulers in their sleep. She beckoned them to join her where she had fallen. The leaders were wary of coming.¡±

    ¡°Of course they were, they were at war with each other,¡± Anna surmised.

    ¡°Exactly,¡± Nelson said.

    ¡°But they came, all the same,¡± Broderick continued, ¡°however great their fear was, their love of the fallen star, of The Source, won out over their fear. And so they gathered, the five representatives of the tribes, along with the woman whom they had been warring over for months. And in that place, she put forth an offer they could not refuse. If they would enter into a treaty with one another, she would grant each of their five tribes power unlike any the world had ever known.¡±

    ¡°And they agreed!¡± Anna said.

    ¡°Well, kind of,¡± Nelson responded.

    ¡°Yes, as Nelson indicated, they did agree,¡± Broderick said, ¡°but the leaders had a burning question: how would they rule their subjects if everyone was on equal footing. But, as always, The Source provided an answer. She agreed to give each of the five rulers unlimited access to her power. Their followers would be allowed to siphon the energy she held, but the rulers alone would be granted permission to use the most ultimate of her power. They would be granted source magic.¡±

    ¡°How is that different from what we can do?¡± Anna inquired.

    ¡°We can use magic. We can pluck and bend the strings of the universe that connect all things in order to bring forth our powers,¡± Broderick answered, ¡°but source magic, or royal magic as most now call it, is something else completely. It allows you to not just bend the rules of the world, but to change them entirely.¡±

    ¡°That sounds awesome,¡± Anna exclaimed.

    ¡°Indeed,¡± Broderick responded, ¡°but it came with a caveat. The five tribes had to agree to live in peace from there on out. Each of the rulers had to make a blood promise, meaning they had to physically add their blood to a ritual spell, in order to enact the pact. They had to agree to keep the five tribes at peace, no member of one tribe was allowed to spill the blood of another, lest all five of them lose their powers forever.¡±

    ¡°Seems kind of harsh,¡± Anna said.

    ¡°It was, but it has been the driving force of peace between the five kingdoms for centuries, perhaps even millenia,¡± Broderick said, ¡°we have had our differences over the years, but we have always managed to resolve them peacefully. After all, none of us wants to go back to a time before we had magic. It would not only be the end of our way of life, but quite possibly the end of our civilizations altogether,¡± he added darkly, ¡°Magic is so ingrained in our natural systems that to have it removed would likely be fatal.¡±

    A thick silence fell between them for a moment.

    ¡°Is that what causes the magic thief¡¯s attacks to be fatal?¡± Anna inquired.

    ¡°Yeah, and the stabbing doesn¡¯t help much,¡± Nelson said bluntly.

    Broderick gave him a scolding tap on the back of the head before continuing, ¡°Yes, despite Nelson¡¯s callousness, the act of stealing magic would likely be deadly, even without the mortal wound. The power provided by the Source is a vital organ to our peoples. And so, The Source is revered above all else. After the original pact of the five tribes, she disappeared into a plane that we can not follow, according to the tales. Her power, though, remained, and has done so unto this day.¡±

    Something occurred to Anna suddenly, "If there was a pact made to prevent violence between the tribes, doesn''t the fact that people have been murdered for their magic violate that pact?" She asked.

    "Ahhh, the great loophole," Nelson said, sounding slightly amused.

    "Unfortunately, as we''ve learned over the centuries, the pact does not extend to members of the same tribe," Broderick lamented.

    "So then the murderer must be someone from Monsadasia," Anna surmised.

    "Sadly, that does seem to be the case," Broderick sighed.

    Apart from the history of magic and the practical arcane lessons, there was so much more to learn that Anna had never even considered when Broderick had told her that she would learn magic. For one, she had to begin studying latin. According to Broderick, it was not necessary for her to be able to speak it fluently, but she did need a basic grasp of it in order to effectively work verbal spells when the time came to learn them.

    ¡°So I take it that the five tribes from the story spoke latin,¡± Anna observed.

    ¡°Not exactly,¡± Broderick told her, ¡°we tend towards latin for a few reasons. For one, it¡¯s not likely to come up in a normal conversation. You wouldn¡¯t want to ask for a glass of water and accidentally produce a jet of water from your wand. Or remark on it being a windy day and accidentally summon a tornado. But more importantly, latin has very deep roots,¡± he explained.

    ¡°It¡¯s the basis for many modern languages, and that gives it a unique power,¡± Nelson, who often joined their lessons these days, added.

    ¡°You see Anna, words have power,¡± Broderick remarked, ¡°and the history and influence of latin make it a particularly powerful type of language. Think of verbal spells as templates of sorts. You can summon your magic, and you can use it to interact with and mold the energies of the world around you. Verbal spells make that easier to do without so much concentration. And so the long and storied use of latin makes it especially effective for that purpose. Other old languages, such as arabic and gaelic have a similar power, but the kingdom of Monsadasia has gravitated towards mostly latin spellwork.¡±

    Anna, who wasn¡¯t even the most fluent speaker of english, had a lot of trouble with this. The orphanage had never offered classes in a second language and the english classes that the Ladies would sometimes give were sorely lacking. Luckily, Nelson seemed to be a latin wordsmith, and he helped tutor her even when Broderick was busy doing work for the council. Honestly, Anna was surprised that they even found time for lessons. Broderick was often receiving messages and summons to come to the castle for a council meeting. Sometimes these came in the form of a written letter delivered by carrier, and other times his scrying disc would glow and a face would appear in it beckoning him, like some kind of strange phone call. But regardless of his normal work, he still found time almost every night to further Anna¡¯s teachings.

    She also took lessons in magical flora and fauna. She was surprised to learn that, due to the magical energies that surrounded and emanated from the five kingdoms, plants and animals had been affected over the centuries. This led to special wildlife evolving that could only be found in or around the kingdoms¡¯ boundaries. One area that Anna found absolutely fascinating was wand lore. After she had been training for a few weeks, she had finally plucked up the courage to ask Broderick if she would be getting her own wand.

    ¡°You will be acquiring one eventually, but you must first study the different types of wand wood as well as the magical properties and energies of different crystals,¡± he told her, ¡°you will need to be decently versed in these matters for when you begin making your wand.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m going to make my wand,¡± she said, slightly flabbergasted at the prospect.

    ¡°Yes, your first one won¡¯t be perfect by any means, but it will be made by your hand.¡±

    ¡°I figured that would be something we had to buy from the market,¡± Anna replied.

    ¡°We could, there are definitely wand makers and shops in the town market, but I find it¡¯s not quite the same as when you make your own,¡± Broderick explained, ¡°forging a wand requires magical energy to be poured into a seedling, and the wand works so much better when that magic comes from the individual who does the pouring. We will be making a trip to Bardis and Facetia¡¯s shop to purchase the crystals required, though.¡±

    Anna had heard Nelson mention Bardis and Facetia before, and from what she had gathered, they were miners of sorts. Apparently, they supplied the kingdom with different sorts of magical crystals and gemstones from the mountain. And so she studied the different types of wood; from the finicky acacia, which would only work for it¡¯s true owner and often refused to work for them unless they were exceptionally skilled, to the fibrous and flexible willow which seemed to be particularly effective for healing magics as well as non-verbal spellwork. Anna figured the ability to cast spells quickly without having to rely on words would be very useful whenever dealing with a life threatening injury in which time was of the essence. To complement her wand, she studied the properties of different crystals and jewels. Broderick allowed her to inspect and handle the different gemstones he possessed, and again she was surprised at the perfect roundness of some of them. She had never seen gems come that way.

    ¡°That is a Monsadasian specialty,¡± he had told her when she inquired about it, ¡°we are famous amongst the five kingdoms for our naturally grown round gemstones.¡±

    ¡°These come from the mountain,¡± Anna stated, rather than asked.

    ¡°Precisely,¡± Broderick said happily, ¡°long ago, our ancestors figured out a way to cause gemstones of all kinds to grow in perfectly round formations. It is a closely guarded secret and a major product we provide to the other kingdoms.¡±

    ¡°Is there a benefit to them being round?¡± Anna asked him.

    ¡°It allows for magic to channel through the wand more efficiently,¡± Broderick replied.

    ¡°Less facets and faces means less interference,¡± Nelson added.

    The fact that she would have to make her own wand meant that Anna finally learned what the strange device with the cone and large screw attached to it was. She had seen it during her first trip into the workshop, but it was only after a few weeks that Broderick had informed her of its use. He had dubbed it ¡®the magical lathe¡¯. He demonstrated for her how pieces of wood could be attached to the large screw and held in place by the cone on the other end. He then placed his foot into a strange pedal on the floor, etched with different symbols and runes. As he fed magic through this pedal, the wood would spin ridiculously fast. Using various metal tools and chisels, Broderick would then shape the wood into different shapes and sizes, almost like he was making pottery. Anna would have to learn to use the lathe effectively in order to make her own wand. She did not want to tell Broderick that the device gave her no small amount of fear, and so she watched his lessons with feigned interest and earnestness.

    On top of all of her studies from books and tomes, Broderick also wanted Anna to begin exercising regularly. Apparently, being in good shape made it easier to cast magic efficiently without it taking too large of a toll on the user''s body. Anna, Nelson, and Broderick would frequently go on runs through the forests that surrounded their home and the base of the mountain. Misaada would often follow them, gliding through the air freely and occasionally divebombing a snake or lizard for a mid workout snack. Invariably, Nelson always had trouble keeping up, but Anna was blown away at how physically fit Broderick seemed to be despite his old age. When both she and Nelson were bent over, gasping for air and in desperate need of a rest, he would be jogging in place and chiding them for their lack of motivation.

    Running wasn¡¯t the only kind of physical training she partook in though. She also began to practice swordwork on the dummy in the workshop. Despite his rather heavyset appearance and lack of stamina, Nelson was rather good with various types of weapons. He could twirl a pike deftly between his fingers and throw an axe into the dummy from the other side of the room, hitting his target almost every time. Anna was impressed at his level of skill, though she had no interest in learning how to use most of the weapons on display. Upon picking up one of the short swords from the weapons rack though, she found that she quite liked the feel of the blade in her hand. And so Nelson began to teach her different techniques such as how to effectively use the range of her weapon, how to move her feet, and how to focus on different points of attack for the greatest effect. It was not quite the same as bench pressing weights, but the heft of the sword and the rigorousness of Nelson¡¯s lessons left her exhausted and aching all the same.

    Things did not always go as planned, unfortunately. At one point, when trying to work the four elements, Anna lost control of herself. A spout of flame erupted from her hands causing her to lose balance and fall backwards. The jet had managed to catch part of the workshop on fire and Anna had, what she felt, was an appropriate hysterical reaction. That is to say, she screamed loudly and began trying to beat the flames with a blanket. Broderick just laughed merrily, pointed his staff at the flames, and shot a spray of water to extinguish them. A few moments later and he had used his staff again to dry the workshop and repair the damage. Anna had been quite disheartened by the entire incident, but neither Broderick nor Nelson seemed to fault her.

    ¡°It wasn¡¯t the first time the workshop¡¯s been caught on fire and it won¡¯t be the last,¡± Nelson said with an amused chuckle.

    ¡°Cheer up, my dear,¡± Broderick said, ¡°the important part is that you summoned and controlled the element. Now we just need to put a little more emphasis on the control part.¡±

    Anna was upset by her loss of control, but there was something else bothering her that she did not want to tell Nelson or Broderick about. A few weeks into her time in Monsadasia, she had begun having a very strange recurring dream. Each night when she fell into a slumber, a woman dressed in all white, who¡¯s face Anna could not see, would speak to her in her sleep. This woman would wave a beckoning hand at Anna, as if calling her forth. Anna could not understand the words the woman said, nor could she ever manage to reach her no matter how hard she ran. Each night, she awoke in a cold sweat and with frustration gripping her. The dream unsettled her, but more than the uneasy feeling it gave her, she desperately wanted to reach the woman. She wanted to know why she was being called to, what the woman wanted so badly to say. But each night, Anna failed to reach her.

    Still, she wasn¡¯t about to let a silly dream keep her from progress, and so she did her best to drive it far from her mind. It was hard when she dreamt the same thing every single night, but somehow she managed to keep her head mostly focused during her lessons. The weeks turned to months and once again, Anna found herself sitting with Broderick, the small table between them. He watched her with pride as she moved her hands in a fluid motion over a small pile of dirt. He watched as the sand separated from the dirt. He looked on as Anna wetted the sand and shaped it into a ball without touching it. He smiled with joy as the ball began to glow red hot, followed by a gust of wind cooling it to the touch. Broderick reached out and picked the glass ball up from the table. Nelson and Misaada watched the whole scene as well, barely taking a breath between the two of them. Broderick held the glass ball out to Anna, who took it, feeling her own sense of pride rising.

    ¡°I believe, my dear,¡± Broderick said, ¡°that you are ready to forge your wand.¡±

 A Blessing of Unicorns, a Dread of Drabulls

    ¡°Have you decided?¡± Broderick asked as he entered the library.

    He was carrying a travelling cloak in his hands and threw it around his shoulders as he came in. Anna was sat cross-legged on the floor with a book spread open in front of her.

    ¡°I think so,¡± she replied, somewhat hesitantly, ¡°I¡¯ve decided to use fir wood.¡±

    ¡°May I ask why?¡±

    There was no negativity in Broderick¡¯s question. It was posed out of genuine curiosity, but Anna felt like she was being judged a bit all the same.

    ¡°Mostly because it¡¯s soft and easy to work with,¡± Anna admitted, feeling her cheeks go slightly red as the answer left her, ¡°what is your wand made with Nelson?¡±

    ¡°Pine,¡± Nelson wheezed as he climbed down from a ladder he had been using to replace a book up on the highest shelf, ¡°it¡¯s perfect for experimentation and doesn¡¯t protest much when trying out new spells.¡±

    Anna stood up, closed the book she had been using to research wand woods and placed it back on the shelf.

    ¡°And the three jewels you will be using for your wand?¡± Broderick asked Anna, watching her expectantly.

    ¡°Well, I was thinking that I could use blue topaz for the base crystal,¡± she answered, ¡°it is my birthstone and should tune well with my magical abilities. For the top crystal, I figured I could use sapphire. From what I¡¯ve read, it helps its users to remain calm when casting and works well for channeling your intentions through your magic.¡±

    ¡°Both splendid choices, and I see you¡¯ve done your research. Those stone¡¯s work quite well together,¡± Broderick praised.

    Anna gave a knowing look to Nelson who winked at her. Truthfully, he had helped her with just about every bit of her research.

    ¡°And what did you choose for the core?¡± Broderick continued.

    The core was arguably the most important choice. It was the gemstone placed directly in the middle of the wand. Not only did it have to keep balance between the two end gemstones, but it also did the brunt of the work in actually channeling the magic through the wand.

    ¡°I was thinking of using fire opal,¡± Anna answered, ¡°it works well with both the four elements as well as most other gemstones. And it¡¯s also the type of stone set into the necklace my mother left for me.¡±

    ¡°And what necklace is this?¡± Broderick asked curiously.

    Anna was tentative for a moment. The last time she had exposed her heirloom, Ms. Whitney had yanked it right from her neck. And then she almost died getting it back. But the feeling dissipated quickly. Broderick was a far different, and kinder, guardian than Ms. Whitney. He would never take Anna¡¯s only real possession from her. And so she reached her hand into her cloak and pulled her necklace out into view. It was the first time she had allowed anyone to see it since arriving in Monsadasia. She was usually very careful to keep it tucked away.

    ¡°Well, that¡¯s quite a beautiful-¡± Broderick started, looking at the necklace.

    But then he paused and a look of incredulity and confusion fell upon his face. He blinked rapidly a few times before looking up at Anna, then back down at the necklace.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, where did you say you got that from?¡± He asked, his voice shaking a bit.

    Anna was slightly alarmed at his expression. Broderick began to reach out to her, as if to touch the pendant, but his hand froze in midair. He looked almost afraid.

    ¡°My¡­ My mother left it for me. It¡¯s the only thing I have from her,¡± Anna said tentatively.

    She wanted to step backwards, away from Broderick¡¯s outstretched hand, but she fought the urge. His hand slowly fell back to his side. Nelson was looking at both of them bewildered.

    ¡°You okay Broderick?¡± Nelson asked.

    ¡°Yes...Yes¡­ Of course,¡± Broderick muttered, though he continued to stare at the necklace.

    His eyes moved back up to Anna¡¯s face. It was as if he were examining her, searching for something. His mouth opened a bit, then closed again. Anna had the impression that Broderick was warring with himself, trying to decide whether or not to say something. The air was still and silent. At that moment, Misaada came sauntering in the room and it was as if a spell were broken.

    ¡°Are you all ready to set out?¡± she asked cheerfully.

    ¡°Yes, we should get a move on,¡± Broderick said, finally looking away from Anna and towards Misaada.

    ¡°Good, I¡¯m ready for some peace and quiet. I am in desperate need of some ¡®Misaada time¡¯. I haven¡¯t had a good nap in weeks with all the racket you three are constantly making,¡± Misaada said snarkly.

    Anna knew Misaada too well at this point to actually be offended by her words. Broderick laughed heartily, and suddenly it was as if the last few moments had never happened.

    ¡°Well that is a beautiful necklace you have, my dear. Your mother had exquisite taste. Still, for safekeeping, you should probably keep it tucked away. It does look rather valuable and people around here are drawn to valuable gems,¡± Broderick said to Anna.

    It was a rather ominous warning, but she did as she was told, tucking the pendant safely back into her robes. Part of her very much wanted to ask Broderick what the heck had just happened, but she thought better of it. She made a mental note to ask Nelson what he thought it was all about next time they were alone together. They finished getting ready and a few minutes later, they were off to the market. After a while, the strange situation had all but left Anna¡¯s mind. She was too excited to visit the market again to worry about it.

    Having Broderick with them made the trip a bit different than when Anna had travelled solely with Nelson. She noticed she received far fewer strange and uninviting looks. A few people still gave her a wide berth, but they kept their dirty expressions out of sight. Walking with a member of the council seemed to demand a certain amount of respect.

    ¡°We can eat lunch in the market after we get the supplies,¡± Broderick told them.

    This delighted Anna. After her experience with the dragon ears, she was quite looking forward to trying more of the strange and exotic foods of Monsadasia. Her excitement was short lived unfortunately. A bellowing voice from down the road managed to rip any joy she felt straight from her heart.

    ¡°Broderick!¡±

    Rokus was approaching them. The elder Rokus. Fear began to swim in Anna¡¯s heart and she felt her pulse quicken. Dark thoughts began to invade her head, just as they had in Gortimer¡¯s office. What if Lucar had told him about what happened? What if he was marching towards them to have Anna arrested, to bring her in front of the council again to be punished? Her heart beat faster with every step Rokus took towards them. But as he got within speaking distance of their party, he ignored Anna completely. He did not even glance at her. His eyes were locked on Broderick instead.

    ¡°Headed to the market I presume,¡± Rokus said smugly.

    ¡°That is the direction we are moving towards, isn¡¯t it?¡± Broderick replied kindly.

    ¡°And what, pray tell, are you in need of today?¡± Rokus asked.

    ¡°Oh, a little of this, a little of that, you know,¡± Broderick said evasively, ¡°and what might you be doing out and about on this fine day?¡±

    Rokus was not quite as polite as Broderick.

    ¡°That is entirely none of your business,¡± he said curtly.

    ¡°Then it appears this conversation will be rather short lived, unfortunately,¡± Broderick said, smiling.

    ¡°Not so fast,¡± Rokus said, grabbing Broderick¡¯s arm as the latter began to move around him, ¡°have you been keeping a close eye on this filthy nontribus?¡±

    Anna felt her skin prickle at the word. It seemed to carry a bit more of a sting now that she understood the meaning behind it. She was still just an outsider, no matter how far she had come.

    ¡°Oh yes, the closest,¡± Broderick said, nodding his head vigorously, ¡°and I assure you, she¡¯s kept the murdering down to a bare minimum.¡±

    Anna gaped at Broderick while Nelson appeared to be doing his best not to erupt in a fit of laughter.

    ¡°You¡¯ll watch your tongue,¡± Rokus warned, ¡°your little stunt with this girl has caused quite a stir you know. Your popularity has waned a bit under your opinion of this interloper. The kingdom has been filled with mutterings about your¡­ Mental acuity.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯d rather them talk about me going crazy than talk about me being a stuck up, pompous, prick. I¡¯d rather not be compared to you, after all,¡± Broderick said.

    Rokus¡¯ face went beet red and he looked lost for words for a moment. It did not last long.

    ¡°Your time will come Broderick, and you will regret the insolence you have continued to show towards my authority. Good day to you,¡± he spat.

    He gave Anna a look that could wither flowers. She, for her part, did her best to stare at him defiantly, though she could not help but to withdraw a bit as he passed by her.

    ¡°Well, come on you two. If we hurry, we can beat the worst of the crowds,¡± Broderick told them.

    They sauntered off from the meeting and before long, they had entered the market. Again, Anna¡¯s spirit and wonder was ablaze at the sights she saw and the people she encountered. The tiger-man selling the miniature monsters had set his booth back up and the smell of dragonears called to Anna. She stopped every few feet to gawk at this or that. Broderick was patient, allowing her to stop and check out each kiosk and store-front in turn. Though the market was not very large, it took them a good half hour to get from the side they had entered on to where Bardis and Facetia¡¯s shop was located. The sign above the shop made it hard to miss. It read Monsadasia Mineral and Mining Supplies. The words were written in large, blocky lettering and there were massive gemstones and mining tools painted around the words. They had just about reached the store when another voice called out to them.

    ¡°Fancy seeing you here, Broderick. And Nelson and Anna too,¡± the velvety smooth voice rang out.

    They turned to see councilman Roderung jauntily marching towards them. Anna found it disconcerting, albeit a bit comforting, that Roderung carried himself in such a different way than Rokus did. Where Rokus looked as if he hated the world and everything in it, especially Anna, Roderung looked so much more alive and carried an air of pleasantness with him. He looked genuinely happy to see the three of them here, even Anna, whom he smiled at pleasantly. Unlike Rokus, he spoke to Anna immediately.Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.

    ¡°And how are you liking your new home beneath the mountain, Anna?¡± he asked.

    ¡°Oh, uh¡­¡± Anna stammered, taken off guard at being addressed first, ¡°it¡¯s been great. Broderick and Nelson have been really nice.¡±

    ¡°Splendid,¡± he said jovially, ¡°and Nelson, the old man hasn¡¯t been too hard on you has he?¡±

    ¡°Nothing I can¡¯t handle,¡± Nelson said proudly.

    ¡°Come now, Benedict, you speak as if I torment my poor apprentice,¡± Broderick said, though he spoke in good humor.

    Anna realized Benedict was Roderung¡¯s first name. It then occurred to her that, apart from Broderick and now Benedict Roderung, she did not actually know the first names of any of the other councilmembers. She made a mental note to ask Nelson about that later. At this rate, she would have quite a few questions for Nelson before the day was over.

    ¡°I just hope you don¡¯t treat him the same way you treat our dear head councilman,¡± Roderung said, wagging his finger in a shameful sort of way.

    A moment of silence passed and then both men burst out laughing.

    ¡°I only treat those whom I have a true disdain for that way, as you are well aware my friend,¡± Broderick told Roderung.

    ¡°Between you and I, that disdain is well earned,¡± Roderung replied, putting his hand next to his mouth as if to speak in secret.

    He turned his attention back towards Anna.

    ¡°Have you been learning a lot? I know Broderick here is a fantastic teacher and Nelson is quite adept at making things. Even if they do explode sometimes,¡± he said, grinning.

    ¡°Oh yeah,¡± Anna said excitedly, ¡°I¡¯ve learned a ton since I¡¯ve been here. Watch this.¡±

    She pulled a seed from within her pocket. She had gotten into the habit of carrying a few of them with her wherever she went these days so she could practice her control whenever she had free time. Effortlessly, she caused it to grow and bloom. She grinned at Roderung, who was looking mightily impressed.

    ¡°Would you look at that,¡± he said, ¡°you¡¯ll have moved on to elemental manipulation then, eh?¡±

    ¡°Yes, I¡¯ve gotten pretty good at that too,¡± Anna said, aware that she was boasting a bit, but also being excited to have someone to tell.

    ¡°No doubt there, you are in excellent hands. And what brings you three to the market today?¡± he asked.

    Unlike with Rokus, Broderick was far more forthcoming with Roderung, saying, ¡°we are here to visit Bardis and Facetia. Anna, here, will be making her first wand soon.¡±

    Broderick looked at her, and the pride on his face was evident.

    ¡°How riveting! Well, I shall not hold you all for any longer, I am sure Anna is popping at the seams with excitement over her first wand. By the Source, there are few precious moments in life like getting your first one. Anyways, I must be getting to the castle, there are some authorization forms in need of my signature,¡± Roderung told them, sounding slightly annoyed about the last part.

    They exchanged a few parting pleasantries before Roderung set off. The encounter with him had left Anna feeling much better about her place in Monsadasia than the one with Rokus had. The three of them set off again, and moments later found themselves outside the front doors of Bardis and Facetia¡¯s shop. Broderick pushed the door open and held it for Anna and Nelson to walk through. A rather chaotic scene greeted them.

    ¡°Gimme, gimme, it¡¯s mine!¡± a young girl shouted at an older boy.

    She was yanking on a small stuffed unicorn, which the older boy appeared to be trying to take from her. The boy was laughing at her distress. Next to him was another boy who looked very much like the first, who was also laughing at the girl.

    ¡°Beedus, Belvis, you leave your sister alone this instant or I will sick Spitshine on you!¡± a woman yelled, storming into the front of the store from a back room.

    Anna was taken aback for a moment by this woman¡¯s appearance. For one, she was larger and more muscular than any female Anna had ever seen in her life. For two, she sported flaming red hair that seemed to glow, pulled back in a ponytail, and was covered head to toe in tattoos. Anna very much liked the tattoo she had of a pickaxe wrapped in barbed wire. It made the woman look tough and rugged. The woman was covered in dirt and wore thick, leather cover-alls.

    ¡°Ah, Facetia, I see you are enjoying some good old fashioned family bonding,¡± Broderick said to the woman.

    Facetia looked at him and grinned. She reached a large arm in between the fighting children and plucked the unicorn away with ease, handing it to the whimpering girl.

    ¡°Broderick, good ta see ya mate!¡± Facetia said cheerfully, ¡°Oi, Bardis, get your butt out here, we have customers!¡±

    Facetia¡¯s voice rang out in such a way that it felt like the floorboards should be shaking from it.

    ¡°Coming, dear,¡± a much smaller, and higher pitched voice called from the back room.

    There was the sound of metal objects being shuffled around and set down haphazardly, followed by a pitter-pattering of feet. A man emerged from the back room a few seconds later, whom Anna presumed was Bardis. After seeing Facetia, Anna was slightly surprised at the man who appeared before her. Where Facetia was tall and fit, Bardis was short and squat. His round belly protruded slightly from beneath his shirt. He had a set of strange, thick glasses settled on his forehead, causing his mousy brown hair to flare up at odd angles. A thick, curly mustache covered the entirety of the space between his round nose and his mouth and, indeed, Anna had a great deal of trouble telling where his nose hairs ended and the mustache began. He waddled up to Anna on short, stubby legs, and held a leather-glove wearing hand out to her.

    ¡°Pleased to meet you,¡± he said.

    Anna took his hand and shook it.

    ¡°Facetia, Bardis, this is my new apprentice, Anna,¡± Broderick told them.

    ¡°Oh, the new girl, been wondering when we¡¯d get to meet ya,¡± Facetia said, grinning again.

    It struck Anna immediately how Bardis and Facetia were reacting to her. At this point, she had almost grown used to the nasty and evasive looks that came her way from nearly everyone in Monsadasia. Those looks were nowhere to be found among Bardis and Facetia. They both beamed at her as if they were truly glad to meet her. It gave Anna a strange sense of comfort. The two boys, who Anna thought might be twins based on their appearance, began wrestling with each other.

    ¡°Now boys, acting like monkeys isn¡¯t going to impress our new guest,¡± Bardis said patiently.

    The two wrestling children broke apart and smiled at their father. The resemblance they shared to their mother was immediate. Not only did they have the same grin as Facetia, but they both sported the same muscular build and flaming red hair as their mother. The small girl approached Anna, holding her stuffed unicorn in front of her face as she did so.

    ¡°You¡¯re pretty,¡± the girl said.

    Anna could feel her cheeks going red a bit as Nelson laughed.

    ¡°Well, thank you,¡± Anna said sheepishly

    ¡°As I¡¯m sure ya gathered, I¡¯m Facetia, and this pot-bellied hunk of a man is my husband, Bardis,¡± Facetia told her, ¡°and these three are our pride and joy, and sometimes headaches. The twins, Beedus and Belvis,¡± at this the two boys stuck out their chests in an attempt to look macho, ¡°and our daughter, Felicity.¡±

    Where the boys took after Facetia, Felicity took just as much after her father. She lacked the protruding nose whiskers, but she shared the same brown hair and short, round nose of her father. She also had his kind, brown eyes.

    ¡°Nice to meet you,¡± Anna said to all of them.

    ¡°What brings you to our humble shop today?¡± Bardis asked.

    ¡°We are in need of some gems for a new wand,¡± Broderick explained.

    Looking around, Anna saw that there were heaps of different gemstones in the shop. Some were in fancy glass cases, while others were sat out in large volumes in wooden boxes. Many of them were of the perfect orb shape that Broderick had explained were perfect for wand use. Others were cut and faceted, glimmering from the lights of the shop.

    ¡°Beautiful, aren¡¯t they?¡± Bardis said to Anna, noticing her look of fascination.

    ¡°Yeah, very much so,¡± she replied, ¡°how come some of them are cut? Broderick told me that the round shape is ideal for casting magic.¡±

    ¡°And Broderick knows what he¡¯s talking about,¡± Facetia said, ¡°but where the round stones channel and amplify magic better, cut stones hold magic in more efficiently. Much better for enchanting items and storing magic for longer periods,¡± she explained.

    ¡°So what kind of stones are you wanting for your wand?¡± Bardis asked Anna.

    Though Broderick had not told them who the wand was for, he had clearly guessed that Anna was the one making a new wand.

    ¡°Now, now, not so fast,¡± Facetia cut in, ¡°we haven¡¯t seen Broderick for weeks. And I¡¯d like to get to know the newest resident of Monsadasia. Won¡¯t you three stay for some tea and lunch?¡±

    ¡°We would be delighted,¡± Broderick told them.

    Nelson¡¯s eyes lit up at the prospect of food, and Anna¡¯s own belly started to growl. Facetia led the group through the shop. They passed through a room that Anna thought was some kind of workshop. There were tables with magnifying glasses and vices attached to them. Different tools, such as chisels and hammers were spread out and hung on the wall. One vice had a gemstone that looked to be only half cut, one side covered in sharp facets while the other side was still perfectly round. Perhaps that had been what Bardis was working on when they first entered. They exited through the back of the shop and onto a spacious patio.

    Facetia motioned for them to sit at a rather large picnic table. Felicity seemed to be rather interested in Anna and opted to sit right next to her.

    ¡°You can hold Uni if you want,¡± Felicity said, holding out her stuffed unicorn to Anna.

    Anna took the toy, feeling gratitude that the girl was trusting her with what was clearly a prized possession.

    ¡°Right, I¡¯ll go whip up some lunch,¡± Facetia said, ¡°Bardis, entertain our guests.¡±

    ¡°Yes dear,¡± Bardis said to his wife.

    The group sat around, chatting about various subjects for a while. Bardis was very interested in how Anna had seemingly obtained her magic. He was not malicious about it, though. If anything, he seemed fascinated to learn of her unique case. He asked about how her time in Monsadasia had been so far and what she thought of the kingdom. He even asked about what her life had been like before her encounter with Gwendolyn. It seemed to sadden him whenever Anna told him about her life at the orphanage.

    ¡°You poor thing,¡± Bardis said sympathetically, ¡°well at least you have a good home now, a place where you truly belong.¡±

    Other than when she was with Broderick and Nelson, it was the first time Anna had begun to feel truly welcome in Monsadasia. After a while, Facetia came back out. She had several trays of food levitating in front of her, as well as a large pitcher. With a flick of her wand, the trays sat themselves upon the table. With another flick, empty plates, cups, and silverware spread out to each of the diners.

    ¡°Bardis, could you get everyone their tea, hon?¡± Facetia asked.

    Bardis pulled out his own wand and waved it through the air. The pitcher lifted from the table and began filling each of the cups around the table. More than once, a cup would be overfilled and would spill out onto the table.

    ¡°Er, sorry about that,¡± Bardis said, looking slightly embarrassed, ¡°I¡¯m not the best sorcerer around.¡±

    ¡°But you can cut gems better than anyone who ever lived,¡± Facetia told him, looking lovingly at her husband, ¡°well, dig in!¡±

    Everyone began to shovel food onto their plates. A comfortable silence fell as the group busied themselves eating delicious sausages, pork chops, salads, and fruits. The twins began fighting over a piece of steak, but quickly broke it up under a warning glare from their mother. Twice, Facetia¡¯s wand began to glow, and she would hop up and reenter the store.

    ¡°Customers,¡± Bardis explained to Anna.

    As Anna ate, she began to look around the back yard. Her eyes fell upon a large, wooden pen. Inside the pen were a group of sleeping animals that Anna had never seen before. They were each the size of a large dog. They were covered in glowing bronze scales, and appeared to only have two sturdy looking front legs. Their hind quarters consisted of just a long, thick tail. Each of the reptiles had their tails curled around their faces and their two legs tucked underneath their heads.

    ¡°Wha¡¯re thoth?¡± Anna asked through a mouthful of food.

    ¡°Ah, that is our dread of drabulls,¡± Bardis said proudly.

    ¡°Dread?¡± Anna asked, having finally swallowed her food.

    ¡°Yeah, like a murder of crows or a blessing of unicorns,¡± Facetia explained, ¡°a group of drabulls is called a dread. They can be rather dangerous if you don¡¯t train them up right, but all of ours are completely domesticated. Heck, we even let Spitshine roam around in the house.¡±

    Facetia put her fingers to her lips and whistled loudly. A few of the sleeping drabulls poked their heads up with interest. They had flat, spade shaped heads with holes in the sides. Anna presumed these were their ears. One of the drabulls yawned and Anna could see its large, curved teeth. There was the sound of slow, heavy steps as something moved from inside the store. A drabull came tramping through the back door and slowly approached Facetia, who began scratching underneath its chin. This drabull¡¯s scales were not quite as shiny as the ones in the pen. Anna had the impression that this one was quite a bit older than the rest.

    ¡°This is Spitshine,¡± Facetia told Anna.

    Spitshine stuck her long, forked tongue out and drool dripped onto the wooden patio. Smoke began to rise from where the drool landed.

    ¡°Bad girl, you know not to drool on the patio,¡± Facetia scolded.

    She took a piece of steak from the table and threw it out into the yard. Spitshine followed its arc through the air and then bumbled after it.

    ¡°Drabulls are able to produce acidic spit,¡± Facetia explained to Anna, who was looking at the smoking drool on the deck.

    ¡°Very useful in the mines,¡± Bardis added, ¡°not only do they serve as excellent protection, but their spit is highly advantageous for breaking stubborn gems away from rock that doesn¡¯t want to let go.¡±

    The other drabulls were now all awake and watching Spitshine with jealousy. Facetia noticed, and took a plate filled with meat over to them. She tossed it into the pen and each of the drabulls began happily eating their meal.

    ¡°Why would you need protection in the mines?¡± Anna asked.

    She figured magic would be all the protection you could need, and Facetia looked perfectly capable of handling herself in a physical altercation if it came to that.

    ¡°There¡¯s dark things in the mines,¡± Facetia replied grimly, returning to the table, ¡°and magic doesn¡¯t work so well down there. Some places have so much natural magic, that it interferes with our spellcasting.¡±

    They finished eating and everyone chatted pleasantly for a while. The twins took turns attempting to show Anna their muscles, while Felicity asked her questions such as what her favorite color was and if she liked unicorns or butterflies more. Anna gladly entertained her questions and remarked on how strong both of the twins clearly were. They looked overjoyed at her response, but quickly started arguing over who was stronger.

    After a while, Bardis and Facetia began to clean up. Facetia sat one of the trays of leftovers in the yard for Spitshine to munch on. They all returned to the front of the store, and Anna felt anticipation rise in her at the prospect of purchasing the gems for her wand.

    ¡°So, what were you thinking of using,¡± Bardis asked her.

    Anna told him of her three choices. As she mentioned she wanted a fire opal core, she saw a look of apprehension pass over Broderick¡¯s face. Remembering what he had told her earlier, she decided not to mention that she had a necklace with that particular stone. Bardis did not seem like the type to covet a jewel, especially when he had so many of his own. But Broderick¡¯s reaction earlier had admittedly scared her. She did not want to receive the same kind of reaction from Bardis.

    ¡°All fine choices, if I do say so myself,¡± Bardis said cheerfully, ¡°I use yellow topaz in my own wand. We have the sapphire and blue topaz in stock, so I can give you those today. Fire opal is a little more rare. Facetia will have to go to the deep mines in order to acquire that one for you.¡±

    This made Anna feel slightly guilty. She began to tell them not to worry about it, that she could pick something else, but Facetia quickly stopped her.

    ¡°It¡¯s not a problem,¡± she said, ¡°I¡¯ve been meaning to make a trip to the depths for a while anyways and this gives me a perfect excuse.¡±

    ¡°Facetia likes a challenge,¡± Bardis told Anna.

    ¡°What will the price be of those three?¡± Broderick inquired.

    ¡°It¡¯s on the house,¡± Bardis replied.

    ¡°Oh, that isn¡¯t necessary,¡± Broderick said, looking slightly taken aback.

    ¡°We insist,¡± Facetia added, ¡°a first wand is a special thing. Let this be our gift to you, for the pleasant company.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know what to say,¡± Anna said quietly.

    ¡°Thanks would work,¡± Nelson told her.

    ¡°Don¡¯t mention it,¡± Bardis said, ¡°you should feel welcome here in Monsadasia, this is your kingdom now too.¡±

    At that moment, a loud bell began to ring. It reverberated through the entire market, shaking the walls of the store. Simultaneously, everyone began looking around alarmed.

    ¡°Something¡¯s happened,¡± Broderick said.

    ¡°What is that?¡± Anna asked fearfully.

    ¡°The siren, it¡¯s the warning system for the kingdom,¡± Nelson explained.

    ¡°Bardis, Facetia, do you have a scrying mirror I can use?¡± Broderick asked, sounding a bit desperate.

    ¡°Of course,¡± Bardis said.

    He began ruffling around behind a counter, looking for the mirror.

    ¡°Here it is daddy,¡± Felicity said, pulling the mirror from a low shelf.

    He took it from her and handed it to Broderick, who began to wave his hand over the surface. Nothing happened. He did it again but was met with the same result. Broderick cursed under his breath. He tried a third time, and finally someone¡¯s face appeared inside the mirror. Anna recognized her immediately as councilwoman Palistrode.

    ¡°Dorothea, what has happened?¡± Broderick asked her.

    Though Anna could only see her face, Madam Palistrode appeared to be moving. She was clearly out of breath.

    ¡°Broderick, you must get to the castle immediately. Stuvelle has been murdered.¡±

 Some Who Wander Are Lost

    Anna and Nelson made their way glumly through the streets of Monsadasia.  The moments following Broderick¡¯s scrying call with Palistrode had been hectic to say the least.  Unfortunately, Felicity had heard the announcement. She had burst into tears, causing the twins to immediately begin trying to comfort and console her.  Bardis had lobbed question after question at Broderick while Facetia began closing up the shop for the day. Fear was in the air and it was infectious. Amidst the chaos, Broderick had ordered Anna and Nelson to return home with haste so he could get to the castle and help in whatever way he could.  Anna kicked a pebble in frustration.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± Nelson said soothingly, ¡°I know you were really looking forward to getting started on your wand.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s fine,¡± Anna muttered, even though she didn¡¯t think it was fine at all.

    The streets were strangely empty.  Following the siren, the marketplace had cleared out in a matter of minutes.  Even the man from the Kretcher kingdom had somehow managed to pack up his animals and giant fish tank and disappear.  It would¡¯ve been quite impressive if Anna hadn¡¯t been so frustrated.

    ¡°Clearly the store where we would have bought my seed would be closed anyways, even if Broderick didn¡¯t have to rush off so quickly,¡±  Anna said, trying to make herself feel better.

    ¡°You don¡¯t buy your seed,¡± replied Nelson.

    Anna stopped walking and looked at him quizzically.

    ¡°What do you mean?¡± she asked.

    ¡°You ask the Alltree for your seed,¡± Nelson answered, as if this cleared things up completely.

    ¡°The Alltree?  Broderick never mentioned that.¡±

    ¡°He probably wanted to show you,¡± Nelson said, shrugging his shoulders.

    ¡°And where exactly is this Alltree,¡± Anna asked, trying to sound nonchalant.

    ¡°It¡¯s in the heart of the Wandering Woods,¡± he replied.

    ¡°Is that, like, one of the forests around the mountain,¡± Anna probed.

    ¡°Not exactly,¡± Nelson said, looking at her suspiciously, ¡°you have to go through the gate in the gateyard with the tree carved into it.  I know what you¡¯re thinking Anna, and it won¡¯t work. You have to be authorized to open a gate, not just anyone can do it.¡±

    Anna tried to make her face as pitiful as possible, going so far as to stick out her bottom lip.

    ¡°Come on, Nelson,¡± she pleaded, ¡°can¡¯t you just take me to see the gate.  Even if we can¡¯t get through, it would cheer me up to at least see the place where I¡¯ll get my seed.¡±

    ¡°Well, you would only be seeing the door to the place, actually,¡± Nelson corrected, ¡°and absolutely not!  Broderick told us to get home and I am making sure you get home safely. You remember what happened the last time we wandered off for too long, I¡¯m sure.¡±

    Anna cocked one of her eyebrows, looking Nelson right in the eyes.

    ¡°Fine, I¡¯ll find it myself,¡± she said before turning and walking away from him.

    She had no idea where she was going, but she would walk around the entire mountain if she had to.  Nelson sat, seemingly stunned for a moment, before reacting.

    ¡°Anna, wait up!¡± he called.

    She heard his heavy footsteps as he ran to catch up with her.

    ¡°Seriously, Broderick will be super mad if we don¡¯t return home.  And it''s my job to keep you safe,¡± Nelson said pleadingly.

    ¡°Then come with me and make sure I¡¯m safe,¡± Anna replied.

    ¡°This isn¡¯t funny,¡± Nelson said, sounding annoyed, ¡°and you¡¯re not even going the right way.¡±

    ¡°Thank you for the advice,¡± Anna said before turning down a different street.

    ¡°Ugh, that¡¯s not the right way either!¡± Nelson exclaimed.

    ¡°Then show me the right way,¡± Anna demanded, ¡°we can check it out and be back home before Broderick even leaves the castle.¡±

    Nelson had a furious expression on his face, but Anna could tell he was mulling it over despite himself.  He looked around, as if expecting Broderick to pop up behind them. He let out a long sigh.

    ¡°Fine, fine, we see the gate and then we get back home.  Deal?¡± he said.

    ¡°Deal,¡± Anna replied, grinning.

    ¡°Come on, we need to go this way,¡± he said, sounding annoyed.

    Anna followed after him, barely able to suppress a smile.  Nelson led her through the winding, cobblestone streets of Monsadasia.  The lack of people made their movement much easier than usual. Ahead of them in the distance, poking up far above the short rooftops, was the white capped top of the mountain.  It watched silently over the city. For the first time, Anna truly appreciated it¡¯s massive size. She found herself wondering how there could be snow at the top in this strange dimension, but when she asked Nelson about it, he merely shrugged.  Anna could tell he was annoyed with her. As they walked, he occasionally muttered under his breath. Anna was sure she caught the words ¡°nonsense¡± and ¡°unbelievable¡± but she ignored them. Her excitement drove away any guilt she might have felt.

    ¡°Stop,¡± Nelson said suddenly.

    ¡°Come on, we¡¯ve come this far, there¡¯s no point going-¡± Anna started, but before she could finish, Nelson had grabbed a hold of her arm tightly.

    He yanked her quickly off of the road and pulled her down beside a small flight of stairs leading up to one of the buildings.

    ¡°What are you doing?¡± Anna demanded.

    ¡°Shut up,¡± Nelson said forcibly, ¡°please,¡± he added a little more kindly.

    He was watching a spot in the middle of the road about twenty feet ahead of them.  Anna followed his gaze, but saw nothing. No, wait, that wasn¡¯t right. There was something there, but she wasn¡¯t quite sure what it could be.  The air was shimmering, as if there were some source of heat bearing down on the road.  But it was no warmer than usual. The shimmering turned to waves, distorting the appearance of everything behind it.  There was a blinding flash of light and, suddenly, a person stood in the middle of the road. Anna felt her breath leave her.  The person, the man, was completely featureless.  A black silhouette set against the mountain backdrop.  The only thing that made him distinguishable was the rippling coat of flames that completely surrounded his black figure.

    The man wreathed in flame was bent down on one knee.  Anna had the impression that he was trying to catch his breath, or else brace himself for something.  He slowly turned his head back and forth. Anna and Nelson ducked behind the stairs in a flash, neither of them even daring to breathe.  They waited in fear and anticipation. What if the man had seen them? But then, another flash lit up the street. In unison, they slowly began to peek back over the edge of the steps.  The man was gone. The street stood just as still and empty as it had moments before, save for a small scorch mark in the middle of the road.

    Anna¡¯s heart was racing and she was still trying to catch her breath, but she wasn¡¯t going to let that stop her.

    ¡°Come on,¡± she said, jumping up and beginning to walk again.

    ¡°You can¡¯t be serious,¡± Nelson replied exasperatedly.

    ¡°Look Nelson, I¡¯m not going to live my life in fear of that man, so let¡¯s go,¡± she said defiantly.

    ¡°He just murdered Stuvelle. He would have probably done the same to us if he had seen us,¡± Nelson told her.

    ¡°And now he¡¯s gone.  Likely on the run from the castle guards and councilmembers,¡± she said,  ¡°I¡¯ll bet that nasty captain of the guard is leading a full battalion in search of him right now.¡±

    ¡°And what if we are so unlucky enough to run into him again?¡± Nelson asked.Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

    ¡°What would be the chances of that?¡± Anna retorted, ¡°you saw him teleport away, chances are he¡¯s going somewhere to hide while things die down.¡±

    Nelson flinched at the word ¡®die¡¯.  Anna ignored him and continued walking.  Nelson hesitated for a moment, but apparently decided to continue accompanying her.  They walked in silence for a few more minutes before the buildings broke. They had arrived at the edge of a sparsely populated forest.  Nelson stepped in front of Anna and made his way to the treeline.

    ¡°Hurry up,¡± he said, turning back to her, ¡°I want to get this over with so we can go home.¡±

    Anna followed him into the trees, being careful not to trip over the ancient, exposed roots on the ground.  After a while, she began to be able to make out a break in the forest and a clearing up ahead. She felt a small wave of exhilaration flow through her as they emerged from the foliage.  The warmth from the Sol Regnum washed over her face. Anna looked around in awe at the massive stone gates that littered the clearing. She had seen them before, of course. The first night she had arrived in Monsadasia was through one of these timeworn stone archways.  Due to the circumstances of her arrival, she had not been able to fully appreciate their beauty and grandeur at the time.

    Each gate had symbols and runes etched into the stone.  Anna had seen some of the runes during her studies and immediately recognized the symbol for ¡®open¡¯ carved on all of the archways. Their tops were adorned with a different emblem for each gate, imprinted on a stone circle, as well as a spot clearly meant for a hand to be placed in on the right side.  In the middle of the clearing stood the four most impressive gates, arranged equal distances apart. They were not only larger than the rest, but had slightly more intricate insignias at their tops as well, sculpted on a shield rather than a circle.

    The closest of the four sported a tiger¡¯s head emblem, with amber jewels for the eyes that glinted in the light of the Sol Regnum.  The left gate had a beautifully carved rose that was so detailed, Anna almost believed she would be able to smell its fragrance if she got close enough.  The right gate¡¯s shield was embossed with a set of scales, the weighing pans made from what appeared to be solid gold. The furthest gate had a spear and sword etched into its emblem, and the entire gate seemed to have a more brutalist, blocky design than the rest.

    ¡°Where do those go?¡± Anna asked in amazement.

    ¡°Those four lead to each of the other kingdoms, they are the main method of travel for our kind,¡± Nelson answered, clearly still annoyed at this little side adventure, ¡°they are not our concern right now though, and we aren¡¯t here for a history lesson.  That¡¯s the one we are here to see.¡±

    He was pointing to a much smaller gate, barely big enough for someone like Facetia to fit through.  He went to take a step to lead Anna to it, but before his foot had hit the ground, she had started running towards the gate.  She stopped just in front of it, taking in the allure and artistry of the stone archway. Though it wasn¡¯t as detailed as the four kingdom gates, it still had an elegance to it that Anna had never quite seen before.  Parts of the stone were covered in moss and age-old dirt, though it only served to add to the mystery and style of the gate. At the top was a simply carved pine tree, barely more than a few lines. She heard Nelson¡¯s thumping footsteps approaching behind her, stopping a few feet back.

    ¡°Okay, you¡¯ve seen it, can we go now?¡± he asked exasperatedly.

    ¡°Just a sec,¡± Anna said quietly, stepping even closer to the gate.

    She ran her fingers over the rough stone.  It was warmer than she had expected, likely from its constant exposure to the light from above.  She traced around the outline of the handprint, wondering what would happen if-

    ¡°It¡¯s no use, you can¡¯t get through,¡± Nelson said matter-of-factly, ¡°you aren¡¯t authorized to use the gate.  Only those whose magical signature has been sanctioned can open them.¡±

    Then it won¡¯t hurt anything to do this, Anna thought wryly.  She placed her open palm into the indention and the effects were immediate.  The imprint began to glow all around her skin, and the runes carved into the gate began gleaming and shimmering with an arcane radiance.  The rune for ¡®open¡¯ started emitting a blue light, brighter than the other runes.

    ¡°What the-¡± Nelson began.

    A rush of wind seemed to erupt from the gate.  There was a flickering of light in the open space between the archway.  Suddenly, the flickering exploded throughout the whole opening so that the gate was now filled with a wall of light and Anna could no longer see through the arch to the other side.

    She looked back at Nelson, a mischievous grin spread across her face.

    ¡°Don¡¯t you dare,¡± he said warningly, sounding slightly afraid.

    Anna removed her hand and, feeling her heart racing with a mixture of elation and fear, stepped through the expanse of brightness.

    Her discomfort was immediate.  Just as the last time she had traveled through one of the gates, she felt as though her entire body was being stretched and compressed, as if she were being vacuumed through a tiny straw.  She could not breathe and she felt a crushing pressure on her skull. It did not seem to last nearly as long as the last time though, and a few moments later she found herself crashing to the ground.  Fallen leaves shifted under her palms as she attempted to pick herself up. Fighting the disorientation and vertigo she now felt, she clambered to her feet.

    It took Anna¡¯s eyes a moment to adjust to this foreign place.  The eternally shining light provided by the Sol Regnum had disappeared, to be replaced by a much darker atmosphere.  The smells around her had changed as well. Where the gateyard had tinted her breaths with faint scents of stone and moss, this new place smelled of flowers and nectar.  It was inviting and enticing in a way. A thick fog was settled all around her. When coupled with the darkness, it made it very hard to see more than a few feet in front of her.  She could just barely make out the silhouettes of massive tree trunks encompassing the gate she had just come through.

    Anna turned to the gate to see if Nelson had planned on following her.  To her surprise, the gate seemed to have closed after her odyssey through it.  The ¡®open¡¯ rune was no longer glowing. Instead, a rune that Anna did not recognize was now emitting a much more sinister red glow.  A bit of fear began to creep into Anna. She had no idea what this place was, nor where she actually needed to go. It began to dawn on her that she hadn¡¯t thought things through very well.  She quickly decided that perhaps it would be better to go back through the gate and return home with Nelson. She could come back for her seed later with Broderick.

    She placed her hand in the imprint.  Nothing happened. The bit of fear grew just a bit, and Anna bit her lip nervously.  She removed her hand and then put it back again. To her horror, nothing happened this time either.  She closed her eyes and took a few deep breaths, trying to remain calm. An idea struck Anna. Leaving her hand on the gate, she attempted to send her magic into it, hoping to activate it that way, but something was wrong.  She could feel her magic inside of her still, but she could not will it to come out of her. Something in this place was interfering with her control. Frustration was quickly replacing her fear.

    ¡°Ok then,¡± she said aloud, ¡°don¡¯t panic Anna.¡±

    She thought about the choices she had at this point.  She could wait here; Nelson would likely go find Broderick and they would eventually come for her.  Hopefully. But she did not like the idea of sitting around waiting for someone to come rescue her. Chances were, regardless of what she did, Broderick would come at some point.  So she figured that until that time came, she might as well begin exploring her surroundings. Perhaps she could find a different way out of this place. Maybe she could even manage to find the ¡®Alltree¡¯ Nelson had told her about.  She wondered if she would even be able to recognize it if she did find it. From the look of things, there were a lot of trees in this place and she had no idea what the Alltree looked like.

    She turned back to face the darkness.  A small flash of light floated in the air in front of her, reminding Anna of a lightning bug.  Anna reached out for it, attempting to catch the tiny thing. As her hand closed around it, though, it disappeared.  As Anna looked around, she noticed more of the little sprites. They appeared to pop into existence in the blackness, flitting around for a moment, before disappearing back into the nothingness.  Though the light they emitted was faint, it did allow her to see a bit of her surroundings. She realized she could use that to make her way through the inky forest with a little more ease.

    Doing her best to silently encourage herself, she stepped into the crowded forest, trying not to run into any trees.  Ignoring the creeping fear in the back of her mind, she began trekking through the wood. Before long, she could no longer make out the shape of the stone gate behind her.  Anna became slightly worried that she might get lost in the forest, unable to find her way back to the gate, but she pushed on anyways.

    The shadows and sounds of the forest began to play tricks on her after a while, adding to her anxiety.  She kept thinking she could hear whispers coming from somewhere around her, but she could not quite pinpoint the location of the sounds.  Every once in a while, she would hear strange, ethereal laughter causing her to quicken her pace through the trees. Anna feared that the laughter might be at her expense, and she was not keen to find out what was so funny.  Occasionally, flashes of light would illuminate the trees in front of her, but as soon as she would turn to find the source, the light would dim and vanish. She tried once or twice to produce a small flame in her palm, but again something in this place interfered with her magic.

    Multiple times, she could have sworn that she saw the shape of a small child peeking out from behind the trees around her.  As she would approach to investigate, a sound like a baby¡¯s rattle would echo through the trees, and the evasive observer would quickly disappear.  Anna¡¯s ability to keep calm was quickly disappearing as well. She was beginning to understand why this place was called the Wandering Woods.

    After what felt like hours of walking, the sounds of the forest seemed to change.  The laughter and rattles subsided. Up ahead somewhere in the distance, Anna was sure that she could hear the sound of music.  It was simultaneously beautiful and tragic, a haunting, melancholy melody floating through the air. It seemed to grow louder as Anna progressed.  Something inside of her told her that she should follow the notes, and so she continued travelling in the direction that they were coming from. The sound continued to rise, while at the same time, the trees seemed to thin out around her.  The pitch blackness was lessening as well, replaced by a faint blue light that had no source that Anna could see. Something shining stood up ahead.

    Anna finally seemed to reach the edge of the forest.  A wave of relief swept through her as the claustrophobia of the tightly knit trees dissipated.  The music sounded as if it were coming from all around her now, and it had reached a crescendo. She could feel the rhythm in her very bones, though the great volume of it did not seem to actually hurt her ears.  In front of her stood a regal and impressive statue. It depicted a weeping willow tree. The bark and branches were molded from rich, resplendent gold while the cornucopia of leaves looked to be made from shining plates of silver.  Anna approached it slowly. The statue was giving off a heat that reminded her very much of the warmth provided by the Sol Regnum.

    She ran her hands along the smooth, metallic bark of the willow.

    ¡°Wow,¡± she said quietly.

    The word did not quite do justice to the majesty of the sculpture, but Anna was lost for words to describe the beautiful creation that stood before her.  As she looked past the tree she noticed her next obstacle. At the opposite end of the glade stood a soaring hedge. There was a break in it, and Anna knew that it was some kind of entrance.  She felt a sadness in her to leave the splendor and warmth of the willow, but she had come this far and she did not plan on stopping now. She moved towards the gap in the hedge, halting a few feet before it.  Silently, she steeled herself against whatever lay ahead before forcing her feet to move, carrying her through the entryway.

    As she passed through, the music died immediately.  It was replaced with a silence unlike any Anna had ever experienced before.  The quiet was so absolute that she could hear her heartbeat in her ears like a drum and her breaths rang out with the intensity of a windstorm.  In front of her stood more of the massive, viney hedge. It ran down both ways before turning off into the unknown.

    This is a maze, Anna realized.

    As the thought occurred to her, she faintly remembered a story she had read somewhere long ago.  A boy had been trapped in a similar kind of maze and had found his way through it by keeping his left hand on the wall as he travelled through the winding halls of the maze. It would be a rather arduous undertaking, but it was the best chance Anna had at this point.  She turned down the left pathway, placing her hand on the wall, and started walking.

    It was very hard to tell the passage of time in this strange place.  It felt as if hours had passed since she stepped through the gate, but she felt no hunger in her stomach, nor the fatigue she would have expected from walking that long.  As she reached the end of the path, she turned right to continue down another. After a while, she lost track of the directions she had turned down. She kept her left hand to the wall, hoping that would be enough to get her through the maze.

    At one point, she grew weary of trying to traverse the labyrinth.  She had the idea to try to peek through the hedge, thinking maybe she could squeeze through and make her trip quicker.  To her surprise, a stone wall covered in strange, swirling symbols met her. Apparently, the vines were actually growing over this barrier.  Frustrated, Anna decided to just climb the wall. It was a long climb, but she figured she could make it without too much trouble. Plus, a bird''s eye view would allow her to figure out where she needed to go much easier.  She gripped the vines tightly and began to pull herself up. She regretted the decision immediately.

    The plants seemed to come to life, wriggling and squirming like a mass of snakes.  They quickly began to wrap themselves around her wrists and ankles, gripping Anna with enough force to make her cry out in pain.  She let go in surprise and fear. To her utter relief, the vines released her as she released them and she fell backwards onto the cold ground.  Anna picked herself up, and to her shame, felt the beginnings of tears welling up in her eyes. She should have listened to Nelson, then she would be safe at home right now, eating a warm meal and laughing with him and Misaada.  Instead, she was stuck in this dark, dreary place with no idea of how to escape and no hope of making it through. She was only allowed to wallow in her self-pity for a short time.

    The silence that had been so pervasive in the maze was suddenly interrupted.  A roar rang out, piercing the quiet and sending an icy terror straight to Anna¡¯s very soul.  From somewhere not so far away, she could hear the sound of stone being broken apart, smashed into presumable pieces.  The crashing sound repeated a few more times, growing closer with each eruption of noise. Anna¡¯s heart was beating so fast that it hurt.  She placed her left hand on the wall again and started running, hoping beyond hope to put distance between herself and the cause of the commotion.

    BOOM!

    Anna felt bits of rubble pelt against her back as the wall behind her exploded.  She tripped over her own feet, falling hard to the ground. She scrambled on the floor, trying to pick herself up from where she had fallen.  Her fright felt nearly insurmountable and she felt the urge to curl up in a ball and just accept whatever was coming for her. She fought the feeling and forced herself to get up and face whatever was now just behind her.  Legs shaking, she turned around to the source of the explosion. She did not like what she saw one bit.

    A massive, monstrous creature now shared the hall of the maze with her.  It had the appearance of a large humanoid tree-like creature, with dead, decaying branches on its crown.  Its feet resembled roots that squirmed on the ground as if looking for earth in which to find purchase. The mouth was a gaping hole with shards of bark making up sharp, menacing looking teeth.  The monster¡¯s eyes seemed to glow red in the darkness of the maze, and it¡¯s long arms ended in jagged claws. The smell of rot and mold invaded the air, causing Anna to have to fight the urge to wretch.  There was something much worse than it¡¯s frightening appearance or it¡¯s horrid smell though.

    The monster had noticed Anna and it was now headed right for her.

 The A-maze-ing Chase Pt. 1

    The ground trembled with each lumbering step the tree-monster took. The vines on the walls were shaking from the force and Anna was oddly aware of the rustling noises they made. An all too familiar fear kept her rooted in spot, staring dumbly at the creature barreling towards her. With each step it took, its root-like feet dug into the floor of the maze, ripping up pieces of dirt as it moved. Within moments, it was upon Anna, but she still could not bring herself to move.

    This is it. This is where I die. I should have listened to Nelson, she thought.

    The monster roared furiously. The sound penetrated Anna¡¯s eardrums and traveled straight into her heart. It swung its head back before snapping forwards again with a speed that Anna never would have expected it capable of. The inertia of the movement was carrying the thing¡¯s whole body with it, bringing the entire tree crashing down towards her. Something inside Anna seemed to jump-start and she stepped backwards in a mixture of clumsiness and quickness, nearly falling over again. The monster¡¯s head smashed into the ground where she had just stood, its crown of jagged branches embedding themselves in the dirt and the rocks.

    Anna had not managed to completely escape the tangle of branches, and she could feel spots on her face burning where the sticks had cut and scratched her, now surrounding her like a cage. She considered trying to dig herself out, away from the monster, but quickly decided to go over it instead. The halls of the maze were narrow, and with any luck, the massiveness of her foe would cause it difficulty in turning around. It planted its branchy arms on the ground, seemingly to rip its head out from the earth. Thankfully, it seemed to be stuck, held in place by its own wooden hair.

    Anna wasted no more time. She grabbed one of the thicker branches protruding from the monster¡¯s head and pulled herself up onto its backside. Nearly losing her footing, she scrambled down its long trunk of a body, jumping over its roots as she reached the bottom. Her feet hit the floor and she stumbled forward, but managed to stay upright. For a brief second, she turned to look at the monster, still attempting to free itself from the ground. Something shiny and metallic caught her eye, embedded in the monster¡¯s foot. She did not have time to inspect this peculiar object, for at that moment, the monster broke free of the earth, bits of dirt falling from its head as it rose up. Anna turned and ran.

    She could hear the monster behind her, the sound of wood creaking and breaking as it moved. She looked over her shoulder, and to her horror, it had somehow managed to turn around in the narrow corridor with apparent ease. It was now running after her with a burning fury. Anna cursed under her breath. A wail rang through the corridors from behind her, and she almost thought it sounded like the thing was in pain. She was quickly approaching the hole in the wall that the monster had come crashing through moments before. Rather than run through the maze the way it was designed, she decided to take the shortcut provided by her pursuer. She bolted through the makeshift doorway, doing her best not to trip over the rubble and debris that littered the ground.

    Anna immediately realized that more than one wall had been smashed through. It made sense when she considered all the noise she had heard before the monster had come crashing into her hallway. She decided to head the way the monster had come from. If nothing else, it was at least a quicker way through the maze than how she had been travelling. Her feet continued to pound against the ground as she made her way through the destruction that now littered the labyrinth. The sounds of the monster giving chase plagued her with every step she took. Anna¡¯s fear was overcome by her curiosity, and despite herself, she turned to see how close it was. But it was nowhere to be seen.

    Looking back turned out to be a disastrous mistake. She slipped on a piece of debris, sending her tumbling to the ground. Anna let out a gasp of pain as her knee cracked hard against a jagged rock. She had to force herself to choke down the tears and sobs that wanted so badly to erupt. A little ways down the corridor to her left, another wall exploded as the monster came barrelling through. It turned its ghastly, rotted face towards Anna and let out another howling roar. She felt her blood run cold with fear, followed quickly by a hot shot of adrenaline that sent her straight back to her feet. She ignored the throbbing in her knee and continued her flight.

    She made it through a few more of the tree-monster sized holes before finally being met with a wall. Her lungs burned and her sides ached. She silently thanked Broderick for making her run every day. Otherwise, she would have likely collapsed from exhaustion already. She did not have long to feel grateful to her master. She knew that the monster would burst into this corridor in a matter of moments. She turned right and let her legs carry her as fast as they could. Hopefully she was running away from the monster rather than right into its craggly, branched claws. She tried in vain to summon a fireball in her hand as she ran, to even feel her magic churning inside of her, but something was still suppressing her abilities.

    As Anna traversed the winding halls of the maze, she realized that her surroundings were beginning to change. The thick, green ivy that smothered the walls was becoming less of a verdant color and more of a glowing, golden hue. Where it had been covered in only leaves, these new vines were sprouting beautiful white and blue flowers from their stems. The pervasive smell of rot that had filled the maze since the monster had arrived was being replaced with a wonderfully sweet aroma. It was so pleasant that it managed to drive some of Anna¡¯s fear away. A faint green luminescence was beginning to peek out from beneath the vines. Though Anna could not inspect closer, she had the impression that the strange carvings that littered the walls were the source of the light.

    In spite of herself, Anna decided to risk another look behind her. She could still hear her persistent stalker crashing and breaking things somewhere in the maze but at the moment, he was no longer directly behind her. As her head swiveled back around, she felt her heart drop into her stomach. Her pathway was coming to a dead end. From further back, she had assumed the trail would split to the left or right like it had every other time, but this time it just ended. She could hear the crashes and bangs growing ever closer from behind her. Anna stopped just as the path ended, looking at the wall before her in despair. Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more.

    In an act of desperation, she decided to try and climb the wall again. She wasn¡¯t sure whether it was preferable to be smothered by vines or crushed by a walking tree, but at least the former sounded like it would be less messy. As she moved forward and grasped the vines, tears filling her eyes, she noticed something that made her blink in surprise. There was no stone wall behind the vines. Tentatively, Anna pulled the golden vines aside to peek through. Upon closer inspection, the curtain of foliage seemed to be concealing another pathway. And more importantly, it appeared to lead to¡­

    ¡°An exit!¡± Anna said triumphantly.

    Without any further stalling, she pushed through the vines and raced through the hidden passageway. It wasn¡¯t very long and Anna¡¯s heart pounded as she grew closer to the literal light at the end of the tunnel. She burst from the maze and immediately had to squint and cover her eyes from the brightness that exploded into her vision. As her pupils adjusted to the light, she took in her new surroundings.

    Anna had emerged into some kind of meadow, surrounded on all visible sides by the stone walls of the maze. The vibrant grass beneath her feet appeared to be lit by sunlight, though there was no sun shining in the pale blue sky. A warm breeze travelled across her face and she had to brush a strand of hair from her eyes. A hill rose in the middle of the meadow. At the top of it sat the strangest tree Anna had ever laid eyes on. Despite her rather urgent situation, she found herself drawn to the tree, the desire to inspect it closer filling her. She marched up the hill, her legs burning from their recent exertion.

    As she reached the tree, she was able to fully take in the oddity of it. The bark that covered the trunk reminded Anna of a patchwork quilt; some of it was smooth and pale while other patches were a rough, ebony material. Many of the branches that sat atop the tree were thick and strong, while others hung down, almost sweeping the ground, like the branches of a weeping willow. The leaves that covered the branches were just as bizarre as the rest of the tree. Some of them Anna recognized, maple leaves, oak leaves, and even pine needles. But other leaves were unlike any she had ever seen before, some large and waxy and others small and filled with vibrant colors. A multicolor weave of flowers decorated the various branches of the tree as well.

    The variance of the tree¡¯s bark and foliage was unlike anything Anna had ever seen before. Sure, she had seen some unimaginable things since coming to Monsadasia, things her mind would have never thought possible, but everything about this tree seemed simultaneously magical and natural. Not the product of a spell cast from some magician¡¯s wand. Anna had no way of knowing, but still felt it deep inside of her that this tree was, and always had been, a different kind of magic from what she knew.

    Her reverie was not to last, as she could hear the rumblings and bangings that told her the monster was growing closer to interrupting this peaceful glade. Her respite would be cut short in just a few moments. Panicked, she began searching her surroundings. Other than a few crumbled statues and pedestals littering the ground, there really was nowhere for her to hide. Her eyes fell upon the tree again. The large, sweeping canopy of the tree would make for excellent cover, but Anna knew it was no use. She was not nearly tall enough to reach any of the branches that would be strong enough for her to pull her body up, and the tree was far too round for her to attempt to shimmy up the trunk. It was no use.

    As if reacting to her thoughts, the bark of the tree began to wriggle and change. Big, rough knots sprouted from the side of it, making for perfect handholds. Anna did not question the strangeness of it. There was no use questioning her good fortune when time was of the essence. Instead, she grabbed a hold of one of the knots and began to pull herself up into the camouflage of the tree. Seconds after she reached a point high enough to be obscured, one of the walls around the meadow exploded, bits of rock and dust flying onto the green grass. The tree monster came stalking in, roaring its horrible scream.

    Hiding from a tree in a tree, Anna thought wryly.

    She watched the morbid beast stomp and charge around the area. Over and over, it did the same few things. It would lumber around for a moment, wail loudly, and then repeat the motion of jumping up and slamming its thick trunk of a body into the ground before ripping its head up from the dirt. Luckily for the monster, and less so for Anna, the ground here was apparently more soft and aerated. The monster¡¯s crown of branches did not stick into the ground as it had in the maze, and it was able to quite easily right its body after face planting. It cried and shrieked in¡­ Frustration? No, that wasn¡¯t it.

    It¡¯s in pain, Anna thought again.

    This time she was sure. Something was ailing the great behemoth.

    ¡°Then why don¡¯t you help it?¡± A voice reverberated from somewhere very close to Anna.

    She looked around, bewildered, but there was no one around her.

    ¡°Great, now I¡¯m hearing voices. Fear has driven me mad,¡± Anna said quietly.

    ¡°You¡¯re not crazy, and besides, you have more pressing issues than your sanity,¡± the voice spoke again.

    It seemed to come from all around Anna. as if it were echoing off each and every one of the leaves surrounding her.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know how to help it,¡± Anna replied in a frustrated whisper.

    ¡°Perhaps you just aren¡¯t looking close enough.¡±

    Anna decided to ignore the fact that she was hearing voices and instead chose to take the advice of the ethereal speaker. She watched the creature intently. It wailed, it jumped, and then it smashed into the ground. Over and over, it repeated this process. Every once in a while, when it was at just the right angle, Anna again noticed the glint of something silvery stuck in the monster¡¯s roots. Other than that, she could not see anything else that could possibly be the cause of its pain.

    ¡°Even if that is the problem, I don¡¯t know how to help it,¡± Anna said quietly.

    ¡°Well, you better figure it out quickly,¡± the voice told her.

    Anna began to feel the wood beneath her rumble. She looked around in fear and surprise and saw the branches shaking around her. Suddenly, the entire tree bent forward in a way that should not have been possible and began shaking violently. Anna was unceremoniously thrown to the ground. She let out a gasp of pain as her rear end smacked against the earth.

    ¡°Yoohoo,¡± the voice rang out through the meadow.

    To Anna¡¯s utmost fear, the monster heard the call. It turned to face her with a look of murder on its bark-covered face.

 The A-maze-ing Chase Pt. 2

    The monster began a lumbering charge towards her. The ground rumbled beneath her feet, causing leaves to fall from the treetop above her head. They floated to the ground peacefully, in a strange juxtaposition to her current situation.

    ¡°I¡¯d move if I were you,¡± the voice suggested quietly.

    Anna did not need to be told twice. The monster covered the space between her and it with lightning speed. She had just managed to vacate the spot where its spiky arms came crashing down upon. It turned its menacing face towards her, let out another howl, and began chasing after her with a fury. Anna had barely any idea what to do and her ¡®fight-or-flight¡¯ response was in full on flight mode. In an act of desperation, she made a beeline towards one of the crumbled statues that littered the meadow. She scrambled behind it and tucked her head into her knees.

    Barely a heartbeat later, she heard the roar of the beast from behind her, followed by a loud whoosh, before feeling bits of rock and cement sprinkle her robes. She lifted her head and turned to see that the monster had swung one of its arms and completely demolished the top half of the statue that she had tried to hide behind. Anna stood up, her knees wobbling terribly from the fear that beat throughout her body, and turned completely towards the menacing thing. It raised its arm high, intent on swiping her from existence, but her feet did their job and began carrying her forward.

    She was just a moment too slow. As she ducked beneath its arm in an attempt to escape, her shoulder began to scream with pain where a stray branch caught her. She glanced at it and saw her robe ripped and torn, though she did not have time to inspect the injury closer. Ignoring the throbbing pain, she made her way to the other side of the almost peaceful glade. Her fear and adrenaline was clouding her mind, and before she realized what was happening, she had reached the wall at the other end of the maze.

    Anna¡¯s hands fell upon the vine covered wall. She closed her eyes. She took in the smooth, waxy feeling of the golden vines that littered the wall, experiencing relief from the cold stone that soothed the heat of her rushing blood. She breathed in deeply, a renewed purpose coming with the breaths. She had a good idea of what was ailing the monster. It was the lion with a thorn in its paw and she was the mouse. It was her role to help it. It was her only hope. But how could she get behind it?

    Her mind raced, going over everything she had witnessed from the beast so far If only she had grabbed the shiny object when she had first clambered over the monster! That was her best, and so far, only opportunity to get a hold of it. But that wouldn¡¯t work now. The ground here did not hold the monster the way it had in the maze and her foe now stood between her and the entrance she had traversed to enter the meadow. She only had one shot; if those branchy claws managed to catch her again, she wasn¡¯t sure she would have the willpower to keep going. And besides, when it jumped¡­

    When it jumped...

    An idea suddenly struck Anna. A rather stupid idea, it was true, but it was an idea nonetheless. She inhaled one more deep, bracing breath, Hopefully it would not be the last deep breath she took. She turned from the wall to face the thing that had plagued her for what felt like an endless amount of time. The mass of bark, roots, and rot was charging straight towards her without mercy. Anna began running towards it. The monster roared and the sound echoed throughout the meadow. In an act of defiance, Anna yelled as well. She did her best to sound more intimidating and less frightened, though she was not sure she succeeded. If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it.

    I¡¯m an idiot, Anna thought to herself as she approached the monster.

    She was thirty feet away. Twenty. Ten. The grass of the meadow seemed to dance around her, glinting in the light. She felt the breeze on her face as she ran. She lowered her head in preparation for her death wish of a plan. The monster lifted both of its arms, preparing to jump on her in the same way it had attempted in the maze. Its roots curled up, ready to spring its trunk into the air. They straightened out, launching the monster off the ground and right towards Anna.

    Here goes nothing, she thought.

    As the monster lifted from the ground, Anna dove. She twisted her body so that she was perpendicular to the monster, and ignored the ache in her injured shoulder as her body hit the ground. As the tree rose unnaturally into the air, she rolled underneath its roots as if she were on fire. It smashed into the ground, causing her whole body to vibrate, and she turned towards the now exposed roots of the nightmare that had been tormenting her. The unidentifiable light glinted off of the object lodged into the foot of the monster. It was some sort of handle. Anna wasted no more time thinking; she grabbed the handle and she yanked with all her might. She felt it slide out from the monster¡¯s wood like flesh. A small blade was attached to the handle, covered in a thick, sap-like substance.

    Anna sat up immediately and began scooting away from the monster vigorously. She watched in utter terror as the monster rose and turned to face her. It bent down to her level, the wood of its trunk creaking and moaning as it did so. It roared right into her face. Anna released a squeal that she was not proud of, but it was the only noise she was capable of making at the moment. Her fear getting the better of her, she put her head between her legs and covered it with her arms, the withdrawn blade still clutched tightly.

    She waited for the ending blow to come. To hear the deafening scream of the monster and experience the pain of her bones being crushed beneath its massive body. But that pain did not come. She sat in the same position, afraid to look at the scene that waited just past the cover of her arms. A minute or two passed and she realized she had yet to be crushed, or worse, eaten.

    She lifted her arms and dared to raise her head just a smidge. She opened her eyes the smallest amount possible, allowing herself to witness the display before her though lash-laden vision. The monster had vanished.

    Anna raised her head completely and opened her eyes fully. Her head swivelled left, then right, but her pursuer seemed to have evaporated into thin air. Confusion filled her, and it was only when she felt a tugging on the leg of her robe that she decided to look down.

    In front of her stood a small, rather strange looking creature. It had a light, rough looking skin that somewhat resembled the bark of a birch tree. Despite the similarity in having bark-like skin to the monster that had pursued her, this new creature shared neither the monster¡¯s size nor its abhorrent smell. This new creature had short, stubby legs, covered in small, leafy protrusions. They supported a rather rotund body. Upon its head sat what looked like a mask carved from wood. The ¡®mouth¡¯ was carved into a slight smile and one of its eye holes was slightly larger than the other. It was kind of cute, in a creepy sort of way. Upon further inspection, Anna realized that this was actually part of the little creature''s face, connected to its neck by wooden grains. She looked down and saw that it was still grasping on to the leg of her robes.

    Tentatively, Anna reached out towards the small creature. With a healthy bit of apprehension, she poked its round belly. It made a noise that could best be described as a giggle. It began to tug on her robes again in a rather forceful manner, and Anna had the impression that it wanted her to come with it. It released her robes and began running towards the tree in the middle of the meadow. She stood up and attempted to brush the dirt and grass from the knees of her clothes. Somewhat reluctantly she followed the little guy. As she drew close to the tree, her new friend approached her again. Struggling slightly, it began to climb her robes, finally coming to a rest perched on her shoulder.

    Just as it had done when the multicolor tree had formed footholds for Anna, the bark that covered it began to rearrange itself again. This time, however, it did not form handles for her to grasp and climb. The bark morphed and changed, bits of it falling into place like some sort of puzzle. Slowly, a face was formed, glaring intently at Anna.

    ¡°Hello,¡± the tree said, in the same voice that had urged her to help the monster.

    ¡°Who are you?¡± Anna asked, feeling somewhat disrespectful.

    ¡°You would likely know me as the Alltree, that is what your people tend to call me. But you, brave soul, you can call me Engaia.¡±