I was free.

A bright morning greeted me as Arian and I walked toward the archway. It was the day after my harrowing trial and my entire body trembled with excitement as we approached the entrance. I stopped at the border between nearly all I had known these last two weeks and a bright new world.

Arian looped an arm around mine and gave me an encouraging smile. “You will not be lost with me at your side.”

I nodded and took a deep breath before I stepped out onto the walkway. There was no evil monster or savage guard to greet me, only a fresh breeze that blew past. I inhaled deeply and smelled the sweet scents of foreign flowers and trees mixed with fresh water.

“Where would you like to go first?” Arian asked me.

I grinned back at her. “What about the kitchen?”

She blinked in response. “The kitchen?”

“I want to see where all this magical cooking takes place,” I explained.

Her face brightened and she nodded. “Then I shall take you there first.”

We strolled down the straight streets of the realm and I quickly realized heaven really was huge. Path after path led to one intersection after another, and those ran to cloud-covered hills and floating islands far beyond my sight. Rivers and streams broke the monotony of civilization and were diverted into pools where fish lazily swam about. Pavilions and gazebos decorated the communal gardens through which the paths wandered. Benches and couches tempted weary wanderers with relaxation and a chance to enjoy the view. Flowers bloomed under shady trees and their sweet smells brought a smile to my lips.

The heavens were also not some vast plain, but a mess of huge islands that floated above the clouds. I strained my neck to catch sight of the edge of the island on which was located my home. The land ended abruptly and one could dive into the clouds a few yards below. “How many islands are there?”

“Dozens though none quite as large as this one,” Arian told me. “They are connected via bridges and many are a wilderness of trees and stones, though Kang does occupy one of them.”

I lifted an eyebrow. “Kang?”

“The owner of the beast whom you met yesterday,” she explained.

“Oh. Right.”

We reached a long, low bridge that stretched over an extra-large pond. I paused in the middle of the bridge and leaned over the railing. Koi and other fish swam toward my shadow and skimmed the surface looking for tasty handouts. The nearby trees were reflected in the crystal-blue water and lilypads glistened in the bright sun.

“I wish I had some paper. . .” I murmured.

“Paper? Do you wish to write something?” Arian asked me.

I sheepishly smiled at her. “I’m not very good at it, but I dabble in drawing sometimes.”

Her face lit up. “Do you? I would love to see some of your work.”

I laughed. “You’ll have to wait for me to make something here since I left all my notebooks back at home.” My heart fell a little at the word. It reminded me that I was still in a foreign land.

Arian bowed her head. “I will be sure to fetch you some paper and a pencil the moment we return to the hall.”

I nodded. “I’d like that very much, but first the kitchen.”

Arian led me onward down the straight path and to the communal kitchen. The space was a single room larger than the whole of my hall and featuring vats, barrels, and canisters filled with all kinds of herbs and spices. Large windows looked into the square building, allowing one to see the many grills, sunken cooking pots, and chopping boards where all the fine cooking took place. There were dozens of workstations where a knife and other utensils sat at the ready for someone to take up the task of cooking.

A half dozen maids were busy working their magic for the coming meal. Some of them were literally doing just that. We entered the building and I stopped to gawk at the wisps of blue magic that flitted in front of each of the spell casters. They conjured fish and steak from the ether and lowered them to the waiting plates on the counters. In this way, they were able to fill several dozen plates in a minute, complete with spices and garnish.

Other maids went about the cooking process the old-fashioned way. They pulled out a variety of fish from coolers filled with ice and set them on the racks over open fires. The meat sizzled and filled the room with a thick juicy scent. Vegetables were chopped, gossip was exchanged, and I was reminded how much I had missed of life in my seclusion.

“What do you think?” Arian asked me.

I smiled at her. “It’s wonderful. And everyone in heaven eats out of here?”

“Occasionally someone will call for a portable grill or will cook outdoors in their gardens but yes,” she confirmed as she watched the proceedings. “These are the maids to Lord Kang. He is the owner of the beast that attacked you.”

My face drooped as I recalled yesterday’s incident. “Oh.”

She smiled at me. “You needn’t worry about the beast again. Lord Kang is a master at taming creatures and he is even able to speak with them. That is how he tamed the monstrous shadow creature.”

“His home wouldn’t happen to be near mine, would it?” I wondered.

Arian laughed and shook her head. “Oh, no. His beasts worry many other of the lords and ladies so he has a stable at the far reaches of the imperial city where he keeps his pets.”

The maidservants finished their preparations and walked out in single file, each bearing with them a covered platter of their delicious results. The room fell silent and so did my interest. Another sound caught my attention that was far more lively than the empty kitchen.

It was the chatter and laughter of children.

I half-turned in the direction of the joyful noise. “Are there kids here?”

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“Oh yes,” Arian told me as she nodded in the direction of the bridge we had crossed. “The children often play in a pond at the end of the stream.”

“I’d like to go see that pond,” I told her.

“It’s this way.”

We crossed the bridge again but instead of heading straight we turned a sharp right and followed the stream. The waters were guided by low white walls of stone that led straight to a large patch of grass a hundred yards further south. The large grassy plot surrounded a pond some fifty yards across and the same width. The bank gently rolled into those calm, lilypad-speckled waters but I could see the dark center of the pond was deep.

A dozen children scampered around the grass field chasing one another with cattails pulled from the shore. They tickled and teased one another with the soft brushes and much laughter echoed over the area.

Two elegant women strolled past along the path that wound its way around the grassy area. I recognized one as being Lady Shian and the other was the woman I had seen seated at her side during the banquet. They were in such deep conversation they didn’t notice the children scurrying about. One of the children in their eagerness to escape one of their friends ran into Shian’s lady friend.

The woman nearly lost her balance but fell against her friend who caught her. A fury of anger swept across the stranger’s face as she righted herself. The child had fallen to the ground and was only then climbing to her feet when the woman grabbed her shoulders.

“You little brat!” she snapped as she tossed the child onto the grass.

The little girl tumbled down the gentle incline and rolled to a stop in a mess of tears and terror. Her friends scampered back, fearful of the taller women. My eyebrows crashed down and I marched across the green toward the trouble.

“Lady Anna!” Arian hissed.

Her warning didn’t even break my stride as I rushed over to the crying child. I knelt beside her and grasped her arms, drawing her against me. “Are you alright?” I whispered.

The child sobbed into my chest and her words came out between her sniffles. “That. . .that mean lady. . .she pushed me!”

The woman lifted her pointed nose and sneered down at the child. “You should have watched where you were going.”

I glared up at the woman. “She’s just a child and it was an accident.”

“Accident or not, she mussed my robes with her dirty hands,” the woman snapped as she brushed away the invisible bits of dirt supposedly left by the child.

The child sobbed and I rubbed her back. “It’s okay. Why don’t we get you back to your friends, alright?” She nodded, so I lifted her in my arms and turned away.

Shian’s voice called me back. “You’re that new goddess, aren’t you?”

I half-turned to the imperious women and nodded. “I am.”

“What’s your name again?” she wondered.

I had half a mind to not tell her so I told her only half my name. “Anna.”

She wrinkled her nose. “What a strange name. Have you no other?”

“I do, but only my friends know it. If you’ll excuse me.” I turned and strolled down the grassy incline. I was glad when I heard the women move away, chatting in low, angry voices.

The other children backed away from me as I neared them, but one bold boy of eight stepped forward. He was a little shorter than the other kids his age and wore an elegant robe of white trimmed with purple. The boy held his head high and met my gaze with a slightly shaky look.

“Put her down,” he commanded me.

His tone was so comically imperious coming from someone three feet tall that I had to suppress a laugh. However, I did stop and set their friend down. The little girl had other ideas and one of her hands clung to my robe.

“Come here, Lia!” he called to her.

She bit her lower lip and looked up at me. “Thank you for saving me.”

I smiled and shook my head. “It was my pleasure, but you’re sure you’re alright?”

She nodded before she scampered over to her friends. They congregated around her except the master of the group. He inclined his head to me. “Thank you for your help.”

“My pleasure,” I replied.

The boy rejoined the group and they set off, leaving behind their forgotten cattails. I picked one up as Arian came up beside me.

“That was too bold, Lady Anna,” Arian scolded me.

I wagged a cattail at her. “Just Anna, and why was it too bold?”

“Lady Shian is the mistress of all the palaces,” Arian explained as she cast a furtive look in the direction they had gone. “Her family holds a great deal of influence over the court and the king thinks highly of them all.”

“A little too highly if that’s how her friend treats his subjects,” I countered.

Arian looked aghast at me. “You cannot say such things!”

I sighed and the fight left me with the breath. My eyes dropped to the soft cattail that I grasped in one hand. “I know but I just, well, I thought I’d left the cubicle life behind me.”

She cocked her head to one side. “Cubic?”

I laughed and shook my head. “Just a horrible box with a lot of rules and hierarchies. Kind of like around here, I guess.” I tossed the cattail on the ground with the rest of them. “Anyway, who was the woman with Shian?”

“Lady Bidao. She has only just returned from a trip to the mortal realm.”

I lifted an eyebrow. “Is that a big thing?”

Arian nodded. “We immortals may only visit the mortal realm briefly as the living there slowly drains our magic. To use our magic is also forbidden as it weakens our bodies to the point of death.”

My face drooped. “Then you guys really can die?”

My maidservant pursed her lips. “Through that way and sickness and battle.”

A sigh escaped me as we continued on our way. “I guess I’ll have to stay away from there then.”