“No, Father,” Thalia said. “You will not harm him.”

“Shut up.” The king’s jowls wiggled with rage. He turned to his guards. “Seize him.”

She yanked Oliver from the pond, pulling the top of her dress over her shoulders as she went. Her dress had sopped up gallons of water and poured onto the flagstones.

The guards came forward apprehensively. They’d likely seen or heard about what Oliver had done against the enemy.

“We’re all going to die,” the king said. “They’ll slaughter us all, but you’re going to suffer more than I.”

Oliver had no idea what to do except retrieve his weapon. He leaned down and snatched it up with one hand. And then the cloak.

Elstina whistled, and Saj, Charity, and Sigrid came into the garden and skirted the pond. Halfdan, too, moved to join the target of the King’s ire.

“It’s true? They’re taking the castle?” Oliver asked.

Halfdan pulled his axe from the loop on his belt. “Halshan Castle falls.”

Elstina whirled on the guards but first whispered angrily. “I didn’t take you for a womanizer. While you enjoyed yourself, the giants broke through.” She raised her force in a show of command. “The Malarite Crown has claimed this man as the elves' property, and you’ll bring hell down on this place if you kill him.”

“Hell is already here,” the king said.

How bad could it be? Lord Emrich would take the castle for his own and betray the elves. He’d rise in the ranks and become even more of a challenge to defeat. The more important question was whether he’d join Coda.

One of the guards stepped forward. “So greedy you live for centuries and eventually own it all. The elf witch brought this on us and even sided with the Witchfriends.”

Before anything else could be said, a thunderous crash created a stone waterfall from the walls. Stone projectiles whistled in and slammed into a tower and one in the garden, shaking the ground.

Quickly, Oliver brought up his display and sent a message. Eldrin, I need you. He turned to his companions. “To the top of the tower. I’ll explain when we get there.” To his relief, his companions followed, and the princess led the way up a round stairway without rails and into an arched door.

“After them,” the king said. He and his guards followed with swords rasping from their scabbards.

Elstina moved to the foot of the tower stairway. “There’s Mistgass in a nearby mountain cave. If we could get there, we could—”

Oliver took the first flight three at a time. “No, that would lead me back into your mother's hands.”

Elstina turned back and raised her hands. Ice formed on the ground. A hot wind blew away from the spot and singed the tapestries on the walls.

The guards skidded to a stop and threw their hands up. The wind hit them, and they cried out in pain. Red-faced, they continued and fell on the slick ice.

What’s the matter?

Heart hammering, Oliver read the message but couldn’t respond until he reached the top. He glanced back and saw his companions falling behind but almost at the end of the fifty-odd-story climb.

The guards and king were nowhere to be seen. They wouldn’t be able to keep up, as they were armored. They probably were trying to catch their breath far below.

They ran through the corridors, following the rush of knights and guards. Rubble tumbled across the floor where the stone had struck. Outside, on a small parapet, Halfdan and Sigrid peered at the horizon. Saj stood by them, pointing. Owen lingered near a corner, baffled by the technology of catapults and ballistae.

The stairs spiraled the outside of the spire at the end. The world was laid out like a battle map, with small soldiers moving like in a real-time strategy game.

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Oliver gained the very top, where he could stand on a flat part of the roof discolored with patina. He gripped a flagpole and looked down as his companions joined.

They looked at him in confusion.

“We’re here,” Elstina said. “Now what?”

He sent a message back. Can I change worlds if I gain speed from falling four hundred feet?

Then, he released Star Beams at the giants, tearing down the inner wall. Maybe if he weakened the army, they’d have a chance. It was a stupid thought. He could see the Dark Captain and Lord Emrich riding over the rubble and into the castle. If he couldn’t even stop them, how would he have a chance against Coda?

It’s dangerous, and I advise against it, but that’s enough speed to put you ninety percent in the green.

Oliver looked at his companions. They’d followed him because of their faith in him, which was nuts. Well, maybe Thalia only came because she was bored. “I’m going to ask you guys to do something insane. Eldrin can move us to another game world. We have to jump.”

Hunter spoke first. “I’ve been to another world with Oliver. I believe him.”

“You’ve left us no choice, Oliver,” Elstina said. “If the king doesn’t kill us, the Lord Emrich will.”

The group broke out in an argument. Saj came to his side quickly, but they wanted to know every alternative. But one by one, they agreed. The princess was the last of them and believed it was a story to sugarcoat ending it all before the enemy did.

“Hold hands,” Oliver said. “We can’t go separately.” He opened his display and saw the option to change worlds.

Select the option, and it will pop up and ask if you’re sure. Press it. Then hit yes when you’re in the air just before you hit the ground.

Even Halfdan, who seemed unphased as a rock, struggled to stay calm. He muttered some prayer to a mountain god.

Oliver felt Elstina shake. “It’s going to work.”

“If we die,” Saj said. “I want all of you to know—”

Halfdan cut him off. “We’re not going to die.”

The jingle of armor preceded the guards. They climbed the external stairs toward them. “You have nowhere to go,” one said.

Another one said, “Princess, come over here. Your father’s having great pain in his chest. This might be the last time you see him.”

“Where is he,” Thalia asked.

“About halfway up the tower.”

Elstina gripped her arm. “If you go back, you’re dead.”

“Let me go,” the princess said, struggling to escape.

“Head first. Now,” Oliver said and jumped.

They all took to the air, with the princess yanked off the edge by Elstina. The wind rushed upward as they gained speed. Below them, the battle raged, and arrows streaking with fire filled the air.

The windows of the tower flashed upward. The garden grew in size, the swimming pond a growing circle.

Oliver tried to shout to his companions to dive, to go faster, but the wind tore his words away. He felt his cheeks flapping.

The transparent display showed, are you sure, and the ground behind it seemed a split second from impact. Selecting yes would remove the danger, but the faster they went the greater their chance of survival.

Oliver waited until it seemed like the ground was inches away. The world warped and sucked into a black hole. He still felt hands in his and like he was falling.

Everything went bright, and he lay face first on a cold, white floor surrounded by walls of light.

Saj sat up and looked around. “This is the afterlife.”

Charity and Sigrid walked the room's perimeter, sliding their hands on the smooth surface.

Bing. Oliver, it looks like it worked from my end. Is everyone all right?

Yes, we’re in a room.

There’s a door. It’s a perfect fit. Hard to find, but it will bring you to the world you want to visit.

Owen and Thalia looked around bewildered. He drew his sword.

Halfdan banged on the wall. “I don’t think the afterlife would look like this. We would run free on fertile fields.”

Oliver took the blade of his swordstaff and ran the tip along the wall. The material was so hard it didn’t scratch. He ran onto a click. The blade had crossed a line. He thought immediately of Las Calas when he pushed.

The door vanished, leaving a rectangular hole with a view of the desert. A tumbleweed rolled into the door.

Hunter crushed it with his foot. “Where are we, Oliver?”

Elstina finally stood. “It feels different.”

How would he explain this world to them? All he said was, “I’m home,” and he stepped out onto the sand.

The sun blazed overhead, casting no shadows over the small bushes dotting the rugged landscape. A hot wind shuffled the dirt.

Everyone stepped out of the portal, and the sand crunched under their feet.

A dome-shaped off-roader crawled over a nearby hill. A man with a beard and sunglasses turned it sharply and approached. He slid to a stop and opened the door. He raised a shotgun. “Who the fuck are you guys?”