‘It seems we find ourselves in a world not your own, Aliana.’

Aliana said nothing to Moonlight as she walked. When the fog of the initial attack had cleared, she’d found herself lost among a bizarre landscape that in no way resembled the land of roots and tunnels she’d come from. She was walking through a maze of neatly-trimmed hedges that towered over her, with grass growing beneath her feet. The height of the hedges betrayed them as unusual, as they were far taller than those outside Lady Elcevier’s home or in any of the wealthier sections of Indervel she’d seen in her life.

Exactly what Moonlight said bothered her, the words sticking in her mind. Not her world. Which part stood out more, the fact that this was another world altogether? Or the fact that this implied Moonlight was not a being of her world?

But Aliana could not stop to question the living weapon now. With a dark sky overhead and grass and hedges stretching out and turning through corners, Aliana did not know where she was. Nor did she know where her companions were. She was alone here in this strange… place. She didn’t bother to ask what Moonlight had meant about this being another world. It was likely just trying to confuse her.

Aliana walked along the grass of this hedge maze. She turned a corner, then another, yet saw only more plants. Perhaps she could climb. Were hedges sturdy enough for that? But with how tall these were, stretching up taller than great trees, maybe it would be better to cut through them.

'Do you seek your allies, Aliana?' Moonlight asked.

Aliana examined the hedges. She gripped Moonlight's hilt, drawing the weapon. Its light was nothing compared to the brilliant glow of Seraphim. At the very least, with the stars in the sky, there was light in this place. No moon, however, Aliana noticed. She did not think too deeply about that. She swung Moonlight against the hedges, slicing through a layer of them and making a hole through the wall of plants.

'What do you hope to accomplish, Aliana?'

Aliana continued to hack down the hedges, forcing an opening large enough that she could walk through. Beyond it, when she could finally see through, there were only more hedges.

'Where do you intend to go in this place? Following the path or cutting through makes no difference—‘

"Shut up!" Aliana shouted, her emotions finally giving way. Every word this thing said grated on her nerves. She hated being trapped here with it. With no one else around her. "Leave me alone!"

'I cannot do that.'

"You can stop talking!" The thought of simply tossing the weapon to the ground and leaving it here crossed her mind. Would that work? Surely it could not be so simple to be rid of it. It would keep Aliana from hearing the weapon talk, perhaps. It would also leave her with nothing to defend herself should the need arise.

'I only hope to help—'

"No, you don't! You want me to die! You want me to hurry up and fall over dead so you can have your own body, I already know that!"

'You are useless to me if you are ripped apart, Aliana. I do not want you to die. Not so soon.'

"You want to kill me yourself."

'You phrase it in such a cruel manner.'

"What else is it? How else should I describe it? You're going to murder me, Moonlight! Maybe that isn't such a horrid thing wherever you come from, in your lifeless void that you must have come from, but that's exactly what it is!" Aliana felt the rage boiling in her chest as she screamed. Could she snap the blade of this creature? Would that be enough?

'You are likely correct, Aliana. We must look at these things differently. I have never lived. I have never tasted the meat the harpies of your world cook. It is a sad thing for a life to end, that I understand. But it is the way of your world. I wish to partake in that. And then, one day, I too shall die.'

Aliana stared down at the translucent blade and its silver glow. She hated this. Why was she talking to it? What was she doing? Now was no time to be arguing with an object. She looked at the hedge that she had left partially cut away. She could already see beyond this one, seeing yet again only more hedges. She hated the thought that Moonlight was right. That it had helped her—warned her in the graveyard of the lost. Warned her when she and Misha had almost been lured into a trap by the fey of this village those weeks ago. It was helping. Aliana did not want that. She did not want to admit that it was right. But hacking through these massive hedges was accomplishing nothing.

Aliana turned away from the hedges and began walking down the path between them, her boots rustling the grass underfoot. She heard crickets. Or she thought she did. They sounded off in some way that was difficult to put a finger on.

The path continued. Aliana turned a corner. Still, the path went on. It went on and on and Aliana saw no change. Frustrated, she finally shouted, "What do I do, then?"

Silence.

"What do I do?!" she repeated.

'You are addressing me, Aliana?’

"Who else?!"

'I expected you did not wish to hear from me.'

"You said this isn't my world. What is it, then? How do I get out?"

‘I am not certain that is within our power.’

"What are you talking abou—" Though Aliana asked the question, she was not able to finish it. Instead, a voice echoed out through the air.

"Come now, child. Come to the center of my garden, please." The voice was strange, hard to place, and lacking in any tone or inflection. Listening to it made Aliana uneasy, as the words sounded as if they came from something that was trying to be mortal, but not quite succeeding. "Please, come visit me."

Aliana scanned her surroundings for any sign of the voice's source. Nothing looked any different.

"This way, child."

This time, the voice seemed to come from some distance behind her. Aliana turned, dreading what she may lay eyes upon. She spotted a change in the hedges immediately. The ones she had hacked through and the ones beyond those had changed, with archway openings in them leading into a straight path ahead. Beyond the end of the path, Aliana could see an exquisite water fountain. The sort of ornate decoration that she had only seen when passing wealthier homes in the cities.

"Come join me for a time," the voice continued. "I can help you find the path you seek."

Aliana froze. She could hear Moonlight's words telling her, 'Do not listen to its beckoning, Aliana,' not that she needed the advice. To hear such an obvious statement from Moonlight irked her.

"Will you not join me?"

Aliana clenched her jaw. She felt afraid to answer whatever this being was, despite the fact that it clearly already knew of her presence. She turned away from the opened pathway and continued walking among the hedges, her pace picking up as she did.

"You do not wish to join me?" the voice continued. It did not sound any further away than when Aliana had first heard it.

'You would do well to be wary of this creature, Aliana.'

"I know that! I know that, Moonlight!" Aliana shouted, her fury and her fear building up in her chest and slipping through once more. She had broken into a sprint now, running through the hedge maze. Every time she turned a corner, she saw that pathway again. It beckoned to her, the archways welcoming her to the fountain. She continued to run.

"Come, join me," the voice said. "I have tea, and all manner of delectable treats. Surely you are tired, and would like a time to rest."

Aliana stopped as, once more, she turned a corner and saw the path of archways before her. She focused her attention on Moonlight's hilt in her hand. "Moonlight..." she said, her voice low and quiet and desperate. "Can you help me?"

'I am a weapon, Aliana. I can help in the ways any blade can.'

"Sure, because that’s all you do. Can we fight that thing?"

'I wish to believe so. But I am not certain. Thus I have not advised it as of yet.'

"Will that give us a way out of here?"

'I do not know.'

"But it will keep us safe..."

'Ideally, yes. My power is yours to command should you wish.'

Aliana tightened her grip on the hilt, and then began to walk down the path. Slowly, with each of the hedges that she walked past, that fountain drew closer and Aliana could see that the hedges opened into a large clearing. When Aliana passed through the last of the arches, she saw a garden table with matching chairs set up near from the fountain. Shrubs colored with bountiful flowers decorated this garden. At the table, Aliana saw a creature, and knew immediately that it was the source of the voice.

The being sitting in front of her was at first glance a large centipede-like being. Unlike a normal insect, it dwarfed Aliana in size. A number of what looked to be fins like an ocean fish protruded from its sides above some of its legs, however, and its carapace glinted a glistening blue color in the starlight from above. Aliana noticed the body of the creature extended out to the fountain, its very end resting in the water. Several of the centipede's legs at the front were far longer than the others and moved with great dexterity, working together like a mixture of fingers and arms to manipulate a tea cup the creature held, lifting the cup to its mandibles. It hadn't been lying about the tea or treats, given the teapot and spread of pastries on the table.

"Do you not wish to join me, child?" the centipede asked. Where the voice came from, Aliana could not tell. Somehow, even without anyone else to confirm it, she knew it was not the mental speech that Moonlight used. The centipede spoke aloud in some way or another, whether physically or by magic.

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"I want to leave."

"But you've only just arrived."

"I need to find a way out," Aliana said, hoping the centipede to be reasonable.

"What a pity." The centipede turned its head towards a shrub covered in large red roses. "It seems our guest does not wish to partake with us, Alraune."

Aliana looked to the shrub of roses. It had a name? What was the centipede referring to?

The shrub moved. Leaves parted, and Aliana saw a face among them. The face looked to be that of a young woman, her eyes studying Aliana in turn. The leaves then returned to covering the face quickly. The centipede shook its head, the said, "Do not be so rude, Alraune. Our guest is frightened."

"I did not wish to invite her, Ophelion," the shrub replied, voice muffled by the leaves.

The centipede returned its attention to Aliana. "I apologize. Alraune is rather shy. She takes such delight in knowing her beautiful garden is seen by new eyes, however. Perhaps you would like to come sit and speak with her about the flowers? I am Ophelion, by the way. Guardian of this estate."

"Estate?" Aliana looked around. There was nothing here to call an estate. What did this centipede mean by that? "What do you want from me?"

"Only polite company," Ophelion replied. "Our great queen has decreed that I maintain this land and has assigned Alraune as my personal gardener at my request. Unfortunately, we have few who visit us here. We primarily provide somewhere for Her Majesty to hold balls. Or she intends us to do so. Her reign is quite new."

“Well, this would make a lovely place for a ball if I weren’t trapped here, I’m sure…”

“I apologize that some of Her Majesty’s servants take advantage of this place for other purposes.”

"So... When you say your queen, you mean Limalsa?"

Ophelion nodded, then reached out with a leg and patted the arm of another chair at the table.

'Do not listen to them, Aliana,' Moonlight hissed. Aliana did not want to listen to the sword. She did not want to listen to these fey, either, but they were far better company already than the creature which wanted to take her life. They had made no threats to her so far. And, if they knew about the fey calling herself queen, this could be an opportunity to learn more of the situation. Aliana took a seat in the chair.

"Then, are you…” Aliana began tentatively, “Were you one of the people from this village, like her knights? From when mortals lived here?”

"No. Alraune and I," Ophelion explained, "have lived here in the mountains for a very long time. Our existence is far from new.”

“I heard that she’s taken certain fey to her… To her palace, though. Why is she doing that?”

“Fey are just as imperfect as you mortals, I am loathe to admit. Not all of us live up to Her Majesty’s standards. And so, the ones who do not are taken to her palace so that adjustments can be made, should Her Majesty deem it needed, or feel she has room in her servitude for improved servants.”

Aliana’s throat felt dry. Even the fey themselves were not safe. How many of them were following Limalsa out of fear, then? “Why is… Why is Limalsa so… So determined to rule?”

"Ah, you see, she feels that this world... What is it you call it? Lundeir?"

The fey centipede meant the whole of the known world, then. Perhaps fey knew even more or it than mortals like Aliana.

"This 'Lundeir' of yours is lacking in feyish rules. Simply put, you are disorderly. Struggling, ruled by those great scaled beings that you see about the land."

"The Dragons..."

"Yes... Powerful creatures." Ophelion paused then, tapping a leg to his mandibles. He lifted a teapot then, pouring its contents into a teacup which he slid over to Aliana. It had a fragrant scent, like some flower Aliana knew but could not place in this moment. "This is why we feel your world needs rule."

"Because of a lack of fey?" Aliana stared down at the tea before her.

'Drink not the tea of the fey, Aliana. Do not accept their offerings.'

"Or is it because of the Dragon's scale shard? That's the real reason she's doing this, isn't it?"

"Scale...? Is that what her blessing comes from?" Ophelion hummed thoughtfully. "I see, yes, it makes sense. The blessing Her Majesty has gained is one of darkness, of our sinister brethren. The beings you call 'rotted stars' I do believe. But there is another power melded there as well. One that has amplified her great magic and made her capable of such great things."

"And what about the bracelet that she was wearing?" Aliana wondered suddenly. The bracelet that had been struck from Limalsa, and was now worn by Remerick to hold his curse at bay.

"Yes, the bracelet, that is right. As I did say, her blessing comes from our sinister brethren. With that in mind, not all of it is best left to its own unattended devices. That was why the bracelet was created, a means to hold back that part and take advantage of her other half of the blessing. The half that we now know to have been given by a Dragon. It would be Opal, yes? The being of white scales."

"That's... that's right, yes," Aliana said.

"I see... But, you are right to ask about it. I admit Her Majesty's orders have become far more... straightforward since the loss of the bracelet. Lacking in subtlety. Though I do not believe the bracelet was powerful enough to subdue the rotted magics entirely to begin with. Such a shame, as Her Majesty's most powerful subjects put their efforts into that."

"She..." Aliana felt herself go numb as she considered what that statement meant. "She... destroyed this village because she lost the bracelet?" It all added up, Limalsa herself had said the bracelet was for this people. But now, there was no avoiding the facts. Her and Misha's meddling were the reason things had escalated this far. The villagers had been in danger the whole time, but if the bracelet hadn’t been lost, maybe they’d have lived long enough for at least some to be saved.

"Oh, dear..." Ophelion tapped his legs upon the table. "You seem quite distressed. What a pity. We do not mean to upset you in such a way. Here, do have some tea." He once again gestured to the tea in Aliana's cup.

'Do not listen, Aliana,' Moonlight hissed. 'They seek to trick you.'

These words from the thing that threatened to kill Aliana simply by existing. "Do you... Do you obey her still? The queen?"

"Why, yes, we are her loyal servants," Ophelion answered. "But she is far more powerful than any of us at any rate. It would be foolish not to. What of you? Do you wish to follow our queen?"

"What?"

"There will be nothing to harm you if you stay here." The words, soft and whispering, were Alraune in her shrub. "Would you not like that? Safety from all this?"

"What... What do you mean? Safety?"

"Should Her Majesty wish for you to become one of her servants, you are you are now would exist no longer. You would instead be a fey wearing your skin, so to speak.” Ophelion leaned forward, his gigantic form looming over Aliana. "I sense that you are already doomed to such a fate, whether by our kind or others."

Aliana's throat tightened and her eyes fell to Moonlight's hilt at her side. Ophelion leaned back and said, "Yes, as I suspected. I do have an eye for such things. You need not let that be the end for you, little one."

Aliana stared up at the great big fey being. "Can you… help me?"

'Aliana.'

"That is simple. It has been some time since I have had one such as you who asks questions, one who engages in conversation. So very long. The other fey do not respect Alraune or I. They come only when our Queen sends them, when they have need of my or Alraune's services, or our garden. All other times, it is only the two of us. Should you stay here, I can make a proposal to you. You will not be harmed. Not by our queen, for I shall make a special request of her. And not by... this fragmented entity that keeps a half-existence in your sword."

"Fragmented...?" Aliana did not understand what that term meant, what a 'fragmented entity' was. She studied the tea in the cup she held. She would have to be a fool to listen to such a creature, would she not? To believe its proposal, and assume it would not betray her. But this was a chance.

'Aliana, do not be swayed by this fey.'

Aliana paid no mind to Moonlight. It was not worth listening to. It was not to be trusted. Was Ophelion any less trustworthy than the very thing Aliana had given her life to? Or any less trustworthy than Elcevier had been? What of Veldin, who even now still struggled to accept Elcevier's wrong-doing and would clearly kill as a mad beast would? It was not as if this were the most dangerous choice available to her.

"Come, will you not accept my offer?" Ophelion asked, refilling his own cup of tea. "I assure you, you will quite like it here, never wanting for companionship, or for comfort or safety."

Aliana's hand moved as if by its own. Her head felt empty, no thoughts of her own coming to her. Her fingers closed around the handle of the teacup.

'Aliana!'

Aliana lifted the cup to her lips.

'Will you forsake your mentor for this lie? Will you turn your back on the Dragon you so idolize?'

Aliana paused.

"Is something the matter, my dear?" Ophelion asked, watching Aliana carefully.

'Did you not say you would reclaim that wretched blade of light? The one you think of so much more highly than I? If you do not trust your companions to fetch it, then who shall? Will you condemn the child of Opal to be shattered much like their sibling?'

Aliana slammed the teacup down onto the table, shattering it and spilling tea all over the tablecloth and onto the ground below. Alraune let out a surprised shriek, her flowers covering the front of the shrub where her face would be. Aliana stood from her seat and took a step back from the table, drawing Moonlight from its sheath.

"Oh dear, oh dear," Ophelion said, rising up as well and drawing his tail out from the fountain. He moved, slithering about the garden courtyard.

"You're a liar and a monster!" Aliana shouted. She saw the path she had taken here to the garden and began running for it. Ophelion lunged forward, cutting off Aliana's escape as he landed between her and the pathway.

"Alraune!" Ophelion called out. "It seems our guest would like to leave!"

"Oh, no, no," Alraune murmured from within her shrubbery. Aliana saw the path of hedges she had come from begin shifting as the hedges grew before her eyes, the openings closing shut. Ophelion advanced, mandibles clicking together as he circled around Aliana.

"You cannot be leaving so soon, my dear," Ophelion said. "No, I do not like for you to be leaving at all."

'These fey think they can fight us with their trickery,' Moonlight spoke up. 'The large one may be a problem. The one in the flowers, however...'

Aliana felt directions in her mind like instincts telling her what to do, just as she had the first night she had wielded Moonlight.

Ophelion's tail lunged for Aliana, the stinger at the end of it aiming directly for her. Aliana felt Moonlight's power course through her body. She followed the instinctive directions Moonlight provided her with, leaping back over the tail stinger that plunged for her. Aliana flew back, clearing Ophelion's great body with a height that she could never attain naturally with a jump. She flipped, landing behind Ophelion and on her feet with ease. She was stunned for a moment. She had never seen even Liessa and Seraphim doing something like that. But when she saw Ophelion turn back towards her, Aliana knew there was no time to ponder it. She turned and began running towards her target—the plant bush of Alraune herself.

Alraune shrieked, seeing Aliana run towards her. The grass grew, stretching out into grasping limbs. Aliana jumped over the hurdle and swung Moonlight to cut down an array of roses that sprung up on stems to block her path. The moment the blade sliced through the steams, however, their petals and thorns scattered in a burst, as if the roses were determined to fight back even in death. Aliana shut her eyes, feeling the sting of the thorns pierce the skin her armor did not protect. She gritted her teeth against the pain, feeling the warmth of blood drip out from her wounds.

'Do not let this stop you, Aliana!' Moonlight commanded.

Aliana dared to open one eye and saw two stalks of leaves rising up from the ground between her and Alraune. They shimmered like more like blades of metal than plants in the starlight above. Aliana saw a shadow on the ground, that of a hulking form overcoming her from behind. Ophelion.

Aliana had this one chance to move. She ran forward, swinging Moonlight as the razor-blade leaves that tried to counter her in turn. Moonlight's blade cut through them, its glowing power far too strong for these plants, and Alraune screamed. Aliana closed the distance between herself and the shrub. She swung Moonlight down, and the sword cut clean through the fey shrub before them.

'These fey stand no chance to our might, Aliana.'

Alraune screamed, a pitiful wail that was cut short as the leaves fell off the shrub that had been sliced in two. The branches and twigs collapsed and the plant wilted with great speed. Though Aliana saw no corpse here now, she did see the hedges all around her begin to crumble, their leaves disintegrating into dust now that the fey who commanded them lay dead.

"No!" Ophelion shouted, his voice filled with rage. He lunged for Aliana once more, face-first to bring the crushing weight of his body down upon her. Aliana leaped out of the way with ease, gracefully hopping up atop Ophelion's head and avoiding his snapping mandibles. In an instant, she brought Moonlight up, then plunged it down into the head of the centipede creature. Ophelion reared up one last time in death throws, flailing before his body began to collapse to the ground. By the time it had, Aliana had already jumped back to the ground safely, clearing space between herself and the two dead fey. She allowed herself a moment to catch her breath, then looked down at the sword in her hands.

"Why?" Aliana asked, panting.

'Why?' Moonlight repeated, curious.

"Why did you help me?"

'I cannot make use of your body if you are trapped by fey.'

Aliana shook her head. "No, but... But what you said..."

'That seemed to be the only way you would listen.'

Aliana found herself saying, “Thank you.” This was the creature that would kill her, and she had just thanked it.

'I see. You can say that if you wish, but I only did what was needed. We have another problem to handle now, Aliana.'

Aliana looked around. Moonlight was right. The remaining hedges were crumbling and falling apart, as was the grass beneath Aliana's feet, leaving only dead dirt. But, in their place, she saw darkness. Stars above, dirt below, and nothing else. "You don't know the way out, do you?" Aliana asked, knowing not to be hopeful.

'If I had, I would have said so.'

"I thought so..." Aliana sighed. "We had better get searching for a way out of here."