A warm blackness comforted her, a hazy sensation buzzing through her head. Her eyes opened cautiously, greeted by a harsh brightness. She squinted against the early morning glare of sunlight filtering through ivory curtains.

I thought they were cyan?

Her eyes moved to the figure beside her bed. Judas stared intently at a book in his lap. For a moment, either because she had just woken up or she wasn’t quite coherent, she could have sworn the glyphs moved, dancing in her waking eyes. The thought was preposterous. Muted sounds returned, becoming sharper as if her ears were stopped up. The crackling of the fire serenaded her. Birds chirped in the distance, bright and cheerful.

The warlock’s azure eyes flickered to her, and he smiled, snapping the book shut. His warm voice crackled with life. “Good morning. Glad you’re coming along just fine now. Gave us quite the scare last night.”

A woman’s voice spoke up in the distance. “Is she awake?” Worry saturated the voice.

“Yes, she is,” he called over his shoulder.

Julie stirred in her bed, opening her eyes wider, trying to sit up.

“This isn’t my room.”

“No. We moved during the night. Welcome to Cape Gythmel.”

“Why?”

“What can you tell me about last night, my dear?”

“I went downstairs,” she stated, the memories crawling back. “I was hungry.” In a flash, she remembered the handsome young man and the desires calling to her. Her will crumbling as his hand gently caressed her flesh. She omitted this. “I got some food and returned to my room. I remember a light outside and went to the window and saw a building on fire and went to get you.”

“Anything else?” Judas asked, leaning forward in his chair.

“The building was shaking, my window broke, and there was someone or something else that came to my room.”

“What did this person look like?”

Julie’s face bunched up as she tried hard to remember. “Large. Shadowed, the edges blurred, distorted. It grabbed me by the throat. Its face kept changing, obscured. One face I saw clearly was feline, like a cat, but bigger.” She shook her head. “I felt something here,” she spoke in a rush, moving her hands down to her abdomen’s left side. “My clothes, these aren’t my clothes. Where are my clothes?” Judas leaned back in his chair while a movement caught her gaze. A woman stood from the long chair, moving over to his side.

She had vibrant shoulder-length hair, a dark orange—almost red, amethyst eyes, and pale, porcelain skin. She was short, probably the same height as Julie, but it was hard to tell from the bed. Her frame was petite, smaller in the waist but bigger in the bosom.

“I took the liberties with your clothing,” the other lady informed, her voice soft and sweet.

Judas cleared his throat. “Julie, this is my lifelong friend, Madam Meristal Raviils. She helped me last night.”

“Helped?”

“They stabbed you, child,” the older woman stated.

“Right where you thought they did,” Judas finished, pointing at Julie’s stomach. Julie looked down at her stomach, but she found no trace of the wound. “Meristal healed you.”

A puzzled expression formed on the young woman’s face. “I’m not ungrateful, but why didn’t you?”

“Oh,” Meristal hummed happily in her throat, “you were right, she’s a quick one.”

Judas chuckled. “Healing’s an art form, much like painting. Meristal’s better for such things. My gifts lie in a different direction.”

“Why was I attacked? What about the fire?”

Judas’s mouth moved, and Meristal shifted her feet. They looked at each other before speaking. “We’re of different minds on this.”

“I think your assassination attempt was a distraction,” Meristal informed. “The real target was Judas, but he wasn’t in his room. He went to investigate the fires, and a good thing, too. Dlad City was under siege by vampires.”

“Attacked?”

“A small group,” Judas acknowledged, waving her worry away. “Nothing like a battle, more of a skirmish. But yes, I wasn’t in my room.”

“When they couldn’t find him, I think they came after you,” Meristal finished.

“I have no doubt whoever assailed you is part of the people hunting us.”

“Any ideas on who?” Julie inquired, hoping he had an inkling.

“A few. Xilor’s minions or an apprentice I don’t know about. Ralloc, too; a council member was in Dlad City last night, and after I disarmed him, I went to Ralloc and sort of … embarrassed the consul. So, possibly them as well.”

“You went to Ralloc? I thought you said the capital wasn’t safe!”

“I couldn’t sit idly by while a member tortured a goblin.” He sighed. “Anyway, I returned and found you on the floor in your room. I called for Meristal, and she came and healed you.”

“You forget that I changed her clothes. Judas wouldn’t have anything to do with that,” Meristal chimed in, a tightlipped smile forming.

Julie sent the woman a look of gratitude, and a small smile curved at the corner of her mouth. A thought crossed her mind, and she turned her attention back to her master. “What about the thing that attempted my life, the shifting faces and the cat-like aspects?”

The warlock took a deep breath. “I have a theory. Whoever it was used a curse from the Derengi branch, which brings out your worst fear; few know the branch, fewer would stoop low enough to use that pestilence. The only known counter to Derengi, oddly enough, is my own affinity, Rumigul. I digress. Since afflicted with amnesia, your worst fears are yet realized, but I have a suspicion you once were afraid of an animal looking much like cats.”

“Cats?” Meristal chided Judas.

“Big cats,” Judas clarified, waving his arms for emphasis.

“Wait! You’re telling me I was attacked by a hallucination?” Julie interrupted.

“Yes and no,” Meristal offered. “The person was real but came as a hallucination.”

“The Derengi curse allows the receiver to visualize something they greatly fear, and the subsequent attack masked their true presence. I wanted to bring the weapon but left it in the event they could trace it through magic. If the blade were in our possession, it would be like a beacon to our location. The attacker came close to you and stuck the knife into your stomach before leaving you for dead, which was good as you are still alive.”

“Good? I nearly died, and you say good?”

“Of course good! Unbeknownst to your attacker, you possess an affinity to heal.”

“What’s so special about Derengi?” Julie asked, rubbing her eyes.

“Derengi is an afflicting magic, capable of spreading diseases and afflictions not only of the body but the mind and soul.”

“I don’t follow, about me being a healer. I can barely call my essence.”

Meristal chided Judas. “Judas, speak in full, simple terms. She doesn’t understand. She’s not inept, just not educated.”

Judas huffed, swept his long hair past his ears and scooted forward in his chair. “Your wand was made with the wing of a fairy and a tress of hair from a unicorn. Of all in Ermaeyth, those two races bear the highest affinity for healing. You and the fairies share a bond, and they’ll give you life and aid as long as they are alive. Even if they all died and only one survived, as long as one fairy lived, you would, too, barring something catastrophic like decapitation or worse.”

“The fairies kept you alive; the hair of Staell augmented that,” Meristal explained.

“I remember Staell saying something about healing when he gave me his hairs for my wand. Is that what he meant by me being a healer?”

“In short, yes. You have a greater ability to heal yourself, to fight off disease and infections, or even afflictions from spells,” Meristal admitted, sliding into the conversation with ease. She held herself with a tranquility Julie knew she would never attain. The woman seemed at peace. Julie couldn’t help but be captivated by her charismatic charm. Even her smiles seemed wholesome and special, just meant for her. “Once you learn to harness your essence properly, you can direct your healing energies to others, healing them with the slightest touch. If what Judas says about your aura is true, perhaps you’ll be strong enough to heal without touching them and heal from a distance.” Her smile widened. “I’d be very interested in witnessing the achievement.”

“Is that possible?”

Meristal nodded.

Julie turned her eyes back to Judas. “Who can cast these Derengi spells?”

“Aren’t you always the investigator? The attacker could be anyone with enough potential to invoke the curse. It’d be simpler to find out who can perform Derengi, and how they learned, and who instructed them. Beasts and sentient beings of the realm control a natural presence about them similar to the spell. Wizards can mimic the effects but with difficulty. What’s natural for creatures becomes sinister in the hands of a mage. Again, I hold to the belief of an unknown agent of Xilor.”

“So, a creature? Can we track them down?”

Judas shook his head. “I didn’t bring the blade with me, but that doesn’t mean I didn’t inspect the weapon. The knife was of centaur origin, but they couldn’t have orchestrated the attempt because their magical skills are far too feeble. And there are other obvious reasons, I might add. We shouldn’t rule out more than one culprit, either. Perhaps a team, a goblin to formulate the affliction, and a wizard to carry out the deed. Never rule anything out.”

“So, how do we find out?”

“Well, we don’t, and we do. We must find out who’d profit the most from your death. You might scare wizards because they’reuncertain of you—you’re something new and strange—but that wouldn’t be a reason for them to want your death. The centaurs hold tightly to their strong prejudices against everything. Most of them, at least. You’re still too young in training to be a threat. Goblins I’d almost rule out as improbable but not impossible. With the vampire attack last night, I’m more inclined to lean towards that theory. They’re agents of the dark lord and cultivate that unique ability, a side effect of their creation using alchemy and Derengi. The pieces fit together almost too perfectly for coincidence, but they’re unaware of your existence.

“Dwaven, unicorns, and elyves we can rule out because they’re not violent unless provoked. Fairies don’t apply because of the bond between the elder fairy and you, marking you the Head of Creatures. Sheols, saricrocians, and gorrillians we can also rule out. When a sheol is spotted, the alarm is sounded, and everyone bands together to hunt them down. Most cities and villages invoke spells and wards to trap them if they came too close to civilization. Saricrocians and gorrillians are too large to fathom even.”

“Gorrillians and saricrocians?”

Judas was about to go into an explanation when Meristal cut him off with a gesture of her hand. “A lesson you can have on the way, Judas. Now we need to get her ready and get you two on the road. Don’t fill her head with conspiracy theories.”

“I wasn’t—”

She cut him off again. “More important than branches of magic, murder weapons, and creatures … who knew you were in Dlad City? Who could track you down?”

The warlock grew pensive. “Staell, you, and a few dozen people at the inn.”

“Todd,” Julie added, her voice small. Meristal arched a thin, attractive eyebrow at her, a smirk of knowing on her face, but the smile faded when she turned her attention back to Judas. “You let that buffoon know you were in Dlad City? He could be the one who assailed Julie!”

Judas rolled his eyes, and Julie tried to shrink back in her pillow, sensing an argument arising. “The buffoon as you said can hardly cast the spell to make his quill scratch out the words spoken. He uses journey stones to travel.”

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

Meristal shrugged. “So?”

“If he can’t teleport, and uses journey stones, he doesn’t command the power to call on Derengi. An improbable impossibility! Where would he receive such training? That’d take years to master, ages, and he’s scarcely an era out of school.”

Meristal held up a hand to cut him off. “Fine Judas, fine! You’re far too trusting. It’ll be your downfall.”

“Are you saying you don’t want me to trust you?”

Meristal rolled her eyes. “I think you know me better than everyone else combined, and I know you far better than any journalist would ever dream of uncovering.” Her voice dropped lower, softer. “Do you forget how many times I was by your side? Burying loved ones, surviving friends, in battle, in—” she stopped suddenly, a look of hurt coming to her watering eyes.

Meristal’s amethyst gaze caught Julie watching the exchange unfold. She swallowed, a flush rising in her face, and she hoped she had the courage to break the sudden silence. “Are you two married?”

Meristal burst into a bright, bubbling laughter, covering her mouth with her hand while Judas shook his head in silence. Julie changed the subject, hoping to distract them, break the tension and the awkward moment. “How are we getting to where we are going? Journey stones?”

The warlock snorted, standing. “We’ll be walking and teleporting. Since we are in the Cape, the Corridor is near. Afterward, we’llteleport to where we’re going.”

“So, I’ll learn to teleport?” Julie begged, hopeful. She pushed the quilt away from her, swinging her legs over the side of the bed.

“You have to be capable enough to complete the journey, and you have the potential, but your control needs mastering. We must work on your ability to reach out and have it respond to your will. Teleportation is the simplest way to get around, but fatal if done incorrectly.”

“That doesn’t sound easy!” Julie said, standing.

“He said simplest, not easiest,” Meristal reminded her. She moved away from the warlock and Julie, her arms crossed over her stomach. Most people appeared standoffish in this pose, but she managed it with grace. Her arms seemed to drape about her in elegance.

“There’s also the visible element to teleportation. If someone teleports near you, you can perceive the aura if you’re more powerful, or if they haven’t mastered their essence. In addition to teleporting, there’s winking and blinking. Blinking’s a precursor to winking. Blinking’s moving between two points near instantaneously, but the distance is short comparative to teleport or winking. Winking is just the same as teleporting but no cast time and no visible elements; you can’t even feel the surge of aura before their arrival. Only the most powerful can wink in and out of places.”

“So … they’re pretty much the same?” Julie argued, her words were drawn out. They all sounded the same to her.

“Well—” Judas started.

“Yes, they’re the same, in concept,” Meristal chimed in, cutting the warlock off. She shook her head at Judas. “You’re going to bore the poor girl to death and badger her with technicalities; not everything needs to be so long-winded, deary.”

Judas’s lips moved, but he said nothing to Meristal. To Julie, he spoke. “To answer your question, Julie, we’ll utilize the teleport to cover great distances. I’ll teach you what I can, or at least the theory of how, but it’s far too dangerous for you to attempt. Promise me you won’t be foolish.”

“Promise!” she affirmed, both giddy with excitement but solemn in her vow.

“If separated by some chance during our journey, you can visit any city and ask a journeyman to port you to wherever you want to go. The destination’s Wizard’s Pass. I’ll give you some money before we set off if that happens.”

“Journeymen are the guys with the stones, right?”

“Correct! They craft and charge stones to teleport the user where they need to go, but once invoked, it becomes a one-way trip. All the energy will deplete afterwards and are more expensive the further you travel. Their cousins-in-cause, the Portal Masters, take groups. Now then, I’ll inquire with the innkeeper about some food for our journey. Excuse me.”

Judas left the room, and Julie grew conscious of Meristal appraising her.

Breaking the growing silence, Julie murmured. “Thanks for changing my clothes.”

The older woman smiled and winked at her. “Well, Judas wouldn’t. He’s far too prudish, even if the situation, like yours, warranted it. But I sensed something when I addressed your wounds. The remnants of lust? Did you copulate before the incident?”

“No!” Julie said, her answer swift and resolute. “Almost, but no.”

“If you did, don’t be ashamed. I’m amazed you had the fortitude to fight off the magelust. The fact you did implies the longing lacked strength. Perhaps the fault lay with the man. Was it a man?”

Julie nodded. The fact that she could go into lust with a woman never crossed her mind, an impartial yet intriguing idea.

“One day, you may face one too compelling to fight.”

“Any advice?”

Meristal’s lips poised, hesitating to speak. “Enjoy the moment, regret afterward, move on. It’s the only thing you can do, I’m afraid.”

“Have you ever been affected by it?”

Meristal nodded, a slow movement. “Yes.”

“Did you regret the moment of indecision?”

This time she shook her head, and a small smile spread across her face. “Don’t tell Judas. It would tarnish the image he built up around me.”

Julie remembered the question she wanted to ask Judas, about the two percent of the population, but now that he wasn’t here, a comfort settled over her about inquiring. “Am I like all the others who can’t filter out the lust, or will I master the technique in time?”

Meristal shrugged. “Let me tell you something that’s very much against the accepted quo of each Rallocan. The people of Ralloc are a pretentious lot, prudish and closed-minded. Probably has to do with all the nobility and the city’s long history. Speaking as a foreigner to the capital, don’t be too quick to dismiss or shut down everything. Judas is fairly progressive as far as open-minded people go, but in certain matters such as this, I’d caution against broaching the subject. His prudish Rallocan side balks of such talk. If you need someone to talk to, I’mhere for you. Having been one who entered the magelust, it’s not as bad as most people make it out to be. Everyday people have sex; they make love with their wives or husbands or lovers, and no one bats an eye. Lords and arystos frequent brothels and bed mistresses, a duality of their culture that reigns supreme. It’s okay for the men but not for the women? Rubbish! Don’t let the confines of society define you. I’d suggest be a lady and keep your private life veiled in secrecy, but never shame your choices, especially if you reside in Ralloc.”

“Is there anyone I won’t go into the magelust with?”

Meristal shrugged again. “Sure. Everyone says the magelust is more to do with aptitude and the inability to ward yourself. That’s true to an extent. A natural attraction is another part. If you view someone as old and infirm, or see a close friend like a family member, the magelust won’t work. Most who enter the lust are around strangers.”

“Well, that explains why Judas never triggered lust within me.”

Meristal’s smiled widened. “Very true. He does seem too old or fatherly.” She smiled. “He was also warding himself and dampening his aura.” Meristal glanced at the door and back to Julie. “Better get dressed while he’s gone.”

Julie went to her pack, heeding Meristal’s advice, and dressed quickly. The other woman was kind enough to give her privacy by turning her back. Meristal claimed the long chair while Julie dressed. She shrugged into her robes of forest green and tan, the outer and inner robes, respectively. Dressed, she moved to sit beside Meristal on the long chair.

“How long have you and Judas been friends?” Julie asked as she sat.

“Since the war. A long time.”

“He’s trained a lot of apprentices?”

Meristal arched an eyebrow. “Having trouble?”

Julie winced. “Yes, but I think it’s more to do with me than him.”

The other chuckled, something warm in the back of her throat. “Our established friendship goes back a long time. I think it’s safe to say it’s a matter of both, not just you. Judas has great abilities and is a superb teacher for those he doesn’t teach from the beginning. He’s a reserved man and likes to hold things close to his chest.”

“Secrets?”

“Perhaps.”

“Secrets involving me?”

Meristal’s eyes narrowed. “Probably, but he keeps secrets from me. You either learn to live with it, or it drives you away. I get a distinct feeling it’ll do the latter to you. Address this with him. He’s not an unreasonable fellow, just set in his ways.” She smiled. “Has he mentioned me?” Julie tried to think back and shook her head. “Typical,” Meristal snorted. She leaned forward, conspiratorial-like. “Well, I’m sure he’ll get around to it. I’m an Apparel.”

Confusion flickered across Julie’s face, and Meristal explained. “I can change my features at will.”

“What? Can you teach me?”

Meristal smiled. “In time, maybe. Not now. From what Judas has said, you’re having trouble getting your essence to respond. Once you obtain better mastery, I could teach you, as long as the affinity is there. It’s a rare gift.”

“Can you show me?” Julie quizzed, excited. Meristal smiled, and her amethyst eyes changed colors to match Julie’s own amber hue and then slid back to purple. “By the gods! Are there others like you?”

Meristal’s face faltered, an emotion flaring into existence for a fraction of a second before she composed herself. Julie witnessed the myriad of expressions dancing in front of her eyes. “Yes, there are others, but I only know of one. Daylynn Reese. She’s a member of the Kothlere Council.” She waved the subject away. “I don’t have anything polite to say about the woman, so it’s best not to say anything.” Meristal leaned back, changing the subject. “Has he told you about the archangels?”

Julie shook her head, her eyes widening. “No, he hasn’t! You’ve seen them?”

She nodded. “They’re steeped in majestic power. You can feel it roiling off of them. Their wings are large, white—almost transparent like a unicorn,” she recalled the memory, her voice charming and bright. “They’re the fiercest creatures in the entire realm, if inclined. Beautiful and deadly, with brilliant, strategic minds, but rather emotionless, almost apathetic. If you see them, don’t run. Your first reaction is panic; it’s natural. If you run, they’ll sense your terror and rationalize you’re afraid because you’re evil. They’ve been known to kill.”

“How many times have you been around them?” Julie asked, dumbfounded.

“More than anyone else, as far as I know.”

“Enough to be old hat?”

“Old and worn and patched back together again,” Meristal answered, a chuckle escaping her.

“So, who’s your student? Where are they? Are they here with you?”

“I don’t have one, hon, not for a long time,” Meristal lamented. Julie watched the other’s face settle in a visage of deep remembrance.

A brittle silence filled the gap between them, and Julie tried to ease into returning to the conversation. “Well, you can teach me something!” she said, smiling.

“No, I’m afraid not.”

“Why not? Is there a law against it?”

“No….”

“Well, then, there isn’t an excuse, is there?” Julie reasoned, not giving Meristal a chance to back out.

“Well…” apprehension clouded Meristal’s face, and she cast a wary glance back at the door.

“Oh, come on. It won’t be that bad, will it? I mean, sure, I’m pretty much terrible, but I’m sure you can show me something that’llhelp.”

“Why do you say you’re terrible?”

“Other than a few basic spells, my magic always flounders. I can never complete a task on my own. I think Judas and the fairies are wrong. I can’t be the mage from their myth.” Julie read the doubt on Meristal’s face, not in regards to prophecy, but inner doubt.

“If it’ll boost your esteem, then who am I to deny such a request?” Meristal relented, sighing. “Best not tell Judas. We skirt a taboo, teaching another’s apprentice without expressed permission. Alright, what has Judas taught you so far?”

Julie discerned the uneasiness of her voice and the instructive intuition creeping forward. After a moment of reflection, she realized Judas hadn’t divulged much. “He made me find my essence by trying to influence a candle. It was late last night when I finally started to sense it, and I managed to bend the flame without resorting to emotions. And he showed me enhanced vision, but that ended in disaster.”

“Is that all he taught you, child?” Meristal asked skeptically.

“Er—yeah, pretty sure,” Julie answered, her voice guarded. “He showed me the incantation to levitate; he wrote it down for me, wanting me to practice on my pillows, but I couldn’t lift them. I think the incantation is as broken as I am.”

“I see,” Meristal said solemnly. “How are you ever going to make it in the Corridor with such little knowledge? Very well, here’s something that’ll definitely help you. Pull out your wand.” She motioned her arms together as if she were drawing curtains shut in the air and muttered something quickly under her breath. A skittering hush fell over the room, the curtains drawing shut along their rails, engulfing the room in darkness.

Julie took out her wand, and Meristal instructed her on the incantation. She repeated the word several times, each syllable stressed.

“Okay. Now you try,” Meristal instructed.

The young woman pointed her wand steadily and spoke the incantation. The white tip of her wand spewed a tiny, bright light.

“Now, point it at an object in the room.”

The apprentice complied, and the speck of light shone brightly against every surface she pointed it at, and she giggled with excitement.

Meristal was about to say something but stopped, her ear turning towards the door. She muttered under her breath again, and the curtains flung themselves back open. Light flooded the room, revealing Judas.

“Teaching again, are we?” he teased Meristal.

“Better than you, apparently,” she retorted.

Judas turned to Julie. “Could you give us a minute? Grab your bag and wait outside for us, please.”

Julie left silently, but her spine stiffened as she walked between the two friends. She didn’t feel like hovering against the door. While curious as to what they were going to talk about, it felt too much like eavesdropping, her face hot with shame. Somehow, Julie knew she’d be the center of discussion behind the closed door, but for good or ill? What else would Judas say or not say about her?

She retreated down the stairs. The new inn was much smaller and only two stories, four rooms to each floor. Julie didn’t stop at the front desk, where an old man with wispy gray hair gave her a withering glance, his lips moving as he mumbled something under his breath.

Outside, warmth greeted her, the morning air much hotter than Dlad City had been. From the Transference Judas performed, she had a rudimentary idea of where Cape Gythmel was on a map. It was south by southeast of Dlad City, but she couldn’t recall how far south it was. The Corridor was just outside the Cape by a league, and Gythmel was the furthest south settlement in Ralloc’s domain. Once through the isthmus, they’d be in the Marcoalyn domain.

A bird twittered, and Julie’s head turned in that direction, hoping to catch sight of the winged creature. She saw a streak of blue and a flutter of wings and it was gone. Few pedestrians walked around the small town which boasted a dozen buildings. It wasn’t even a quarter of the size of Dlad City. Julie could see all ends of the town from her current position. She glanced to the north and the large, rising blue sun.

Apor, she recalled. I wonder if Praema will rise today as well.

A galloping horse drew her attention back towards town, and she watched a man drive his steed hard through the main street, his leather reins hitting the backside of his mount. “Hyah!” the rider accented with each smack. He thundered past without a backward glance.

The door to the inn opened behind her, and Julie watched Judas and Meristal exit. She tried to read their body language but couldn’t glean much from it. Their expressions were blank.

What did they talk about? Did they talk about me? Is it about one of those secrets Meristal mentioned?

For the first time, it struck her that there may be more to the Judas-Meristal relationship than they let on. How did two friends who survived the Wizard’s War together never become romantically involved? She wanted to ask now, but the timing wasn’t right. She could ask Judas later and judge his reactions. Would he hold back or lie outright? Reluctantly, she let the question fade away.

Today was the start of her trip through the Corridor of Cruelty. Apprehension snaked its way through her, and even though she didn’t fully trust Judas and his openness, she didn’t worry about her safety.

He’ll be there to protect me, won’t he? she reasoned.

She faced Judas and Meristal and waited for the two to join her.