I thought about thanking Barrowind. Sometimes human politeness went a long way. This really wasn’t one of those times. I didn’t need what he was providing us. He needed me and Faelix. Instead of saying anything, I nodded at him and turned and went into the tunnel, which was big enough for a bear the size of Barrowind to move through it on all fours with plenty of space all around.

As the armoire fell closed and Faelix’s natural luminescence lit up a small portion of the space, I asked, “Light or no light?”

“I’d prefer light,” he said.

“Done,” I said and willed a small orb of light to float near us as we walked.

I looked around, watching the walls of the tunnel, and noticed patches of small mushrooms growing at intervals along the walls, close to the ground. I considered asking Faelix about them, to see what he knew and what I needed to know but decided against it. Not knowing about mushrooms wasn’t a problem for me. I didn’t need to know about them. I’m practically deity. On the other hand, the fact that a single, giant mushroom could do whatever it was it did, and supercharge my natural abilities, made me reconsider some of the holes in my knowledge. Mushrooms being one of them.

At the end of the tunnel was another bark door, except bark and door are both the wrong words for how the entrance was covered. Apparently, Barrowind and, presumably, bears really like their privacy. Faelix landed on top of my satchel as I stuck my head out and determined it was clear enough before stepping out and putting the bark door back into place. There was nobody around, as far as I could tell, though Faelix took off to check the immediate area, somehow dampening the natural glow that always seemed to surround him. He was almost back to me when he turned and darted off into the trees. I watched as he went and then followed where he went even though I could neither see nor hear him, before he turned and flew back toward me.

“You need to get off the path,” he said. “That way. There’s a tree over there with a hollow underneath it.”

I responded by ducking into the trees and fishing the one with a natural hollow underneath it. Sitting inside, I found I could see the direction that path was following, though not where it had come from. Faelix alighted on my legs, which were now crossed in front of me. “There are some faerie scouts following the path. We should wait here for a bit.”

Having no reason to contradict him, I decided to close my eyes and meditate. Faelix went back inside my satchel and everything around me seemed to grow quiet.

When I opened my eyes again, I was looking directly at Ant, the jackalope.

“Hello,” I said.

“You’ve done a lot in a very short amount of time,” Ant said.

“I wasn’t expecting to do anything,” I said.

“Of course you were,” he said. “You simply had no idea what to do. Getting back your powers, the access to magic, was imperative.”

“Yes,” I agreed.

“And so you followed the clues.”

“If you can call them that,” I said.

“I can. And you found the trapped creatures of the forest,” Ant said.

True.

“Now what?” I asked.

Ant looked at me and then looked past me into the tree.

“The other jackalopes still don’t want me talking to you,” he said. “But I am compelled.”

“Okay. Any changes to what you’ve already told me? Don’t get wet.”

“No. That’s still true. Though the nature of what or how to keep yourself dry is something you’ll have to discover on your own,” he said.

The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

“That’s not helpful,” I said.

“I never said I was here to be helpful,” he said.

“Then why are you here?”

“The castle still stands.

“The hoards await.

“Once the barrier falls,

“The weather will change.

“When the wind blows

“You’ll see what comes next.

“Be careful of enemies who

“Pretend to be friends,

“After the cold comes,

“The world, to you, returns.” he said.

“What’s that supposed to mean? I asked.

Ant didn’t reply and I don’t know whether or not I really expected him to. He just sat on his haunches watching me.

“What do I need to do next?” I asked.

“Wake up,” Ant said. “You’re sleeping.”

“I don’t sleep,” I said.

“Okay. Well, open your eyes then,” he said.

I opened my eyes, now suddenly aware they were closed and looked out into the forest before me. Faelix came out of my satchel and took off, returning a few moments later.

“Let’s go,” he said. “It’s clear.”

I looked around, momentarily confused that Ant wasn’t still sitting in front of me, and smoothly stood up while stepping out of the hollow of the tree. Faelix flew toward the trail and I followed him back onto the trail, running toward the river and ignoring anything that might be behind me.

We were silent as we made our way through the trees along the path that seemed to appear directly in front of me and disappear almost as soon as I passed by. I didn’t question any of it as I wanted to get to the river and it was nice watching Faelix flit about looking for other faeries and anyone else that might try and impede our progress.

After I broke through the tree line onto the floodplain along the river, I looked back again and thought I saw something, but then it was gone and I allowed myself, in that moment, to dismiss it without second thought. Second thoughts are best had later.

We slowed and then stopped before reaching the river and Faelix directed me to an area of karst below the cliffs and upriver of the castle, neither of which were immediately visible to me in the darkness.

I ducked into an opening in what I assumed was limestone rock and Faelix followed. Using the same magic as in Barrowind’s tunnel, I created an orb of light and followed the naturally formed cave back until I was unable to see the entrance and then sat down on a broken stalagmite and listened.

Caves are interesting places. They’re often very dark and vary quiet, that is, unless the cave has running or dripping water. Then there are magical sounds that can, in equal measures, drive someone insane and enchant them. A lot of what happens depends on the person and how well they can live in their own mind. Most people, I’ve come to realize, don’t live well in their thoughts.

In this case, I had Faelix and Faelix was someone I was certain would have no problem being trapped inside a cave deep underground. Neither would I, truth be told, but that wasn’t an issue as I sat there waiting for something to happen, for someone to show up at the cave entrance and make their way toward us.

I looked around the space we were in and saw him sitting in an indentation close to the ceiling of the cave. His wingers were folded back and he was working on something I couldn’t quite see.

“Want to tell me about yourself?” I asked, deciding to ignore whatever it was he was holding.

“Not much to tell,” he said. “As a male faerie, I have no rights. Everyone looks down on me, if they even see me. My mother likes to tell me she supports my choices, but she’s one of the first to shove me into a corner when I try to interject anything.”

Oh. That was right, I still didn’t know who Faelix’s mother was. I mean, I had my guesses, but I couldn’t presume to know before he decided to tell me.

“Why are male faeries hidden away?” I asked instead.

“Were rare. Maybe one in a thousand faerie born are male. Most of us don’t amount to much beyond being sperm donors. Almost like a skipped over passage in a book about a kid who never grows up, we tumble about in the forest and there are a lot of female faeries to go through before a night is done and then more the next night and the night after. Even for me, a lot of important faeries spend their nights in my rooms and in my bed.”

“I don’t know whether that sounds amazing or one of the worst things I’ve ever heard,” I said. “I’ve done that to people, but it’s more of an intentional punishment over anything else. Or so I believe.”

Faelix nodded. “It is,” he said. “Not having the same moral or ethical guides as humans make things confusing. Especially when you have to figure out what’s going on or who you are. I’d think you’re going through some weird introspection at the moment and questioning some of your past actions.”

I nodded. Though, to be frank, I wasn’t reconsidering my actions in light of this new experience and, instead, considering why it was I wasn’t reverting to past behaviors when dealing with the creatures of the forest.

“Why aren’t there any humans in the forest?” I asked, realizing I’d yet to notice or question the lack of real, flesh and blood, human beings.

“Don’t know,” Faelix said. “From what I understand, there weren’t any when the barrier finally set and since nothing can come in or leave, none have showed up.”