Well, crap.

The courtiers were pushing away from us, I realized, creating a void around their emperor. No one wanted to be too close. Lucky us.

The fury on Emperor Nabar’s face was clear. Aron took a step back, bowing carefully.

“Your majesty, I know that my actions were…hasty, perhaps,” he said, rising. “But I act only in the interests of Talmarn. Morlath faces a threat to its very existence. We need-”

“Whatever Talmarn needs, Talmarn will provide,” Nabar snapped, striding closer. He wore a set of tall boots, the heels hard enough to clack against the flagstones with every step. “I said as much then, did I not?”

Aron winced. “I…suppose so, and yet-”

“But you consider yourself above such commands,” Nabar said. His eyes narrowed. “I should have you cast out for such flagrant-”

“My lord, please,” Aron said, dropping to the ground. In an instant he was on all fours, pressing his forehead to the ground before the emperor’s feet. “We don’t have the soldiers or the expertise to best these foes. Morla cannot afford to delay. I beg of you, do not waste this opportunity. Punish me if you will, but save my clan. Allow the hunters to help.”

“We do not need help,” Nabar said, his brow furrowing. His dark gaze swept to us, and I shrank back from that piercing stare. “Certainly not from a trio who look barely into adulthood. It is but an Aradheian overstep, a plot to spy into our innermost workings. I’ll never-”

“If I may?” It was my own voice speaking. I almost didn’t recognize it, with my veins full of icy adrenaline. I felt every set of eyes in that audience chamber turn to me. Taking a step forward so I was alongside Aron, I bowed, just a little. Couldn’t hurt, with how things were going.

“My name is Trellin,” I said, looking back to him. The look being sent my way would shear straight through steel, but I kept going. If we were going to figure out the fiend mystery—and save Nella—then we needed to be here in Talmarn. There was no other option. “I’m a chitin-tag of the Hunter’s Guild, and the personal shadow of Guildmaster Avira. She sent me here as head of this expedition.”

Nabar let out a huff, scowling. “I don’t care what your mistress said. That’s not-”

“The guildmaster sent me here as a show of good faith to our neighbors,” I interjected, my irritation rising by the second. I fought it back as best I could. “Not Aradhen, and not King Tomart. We are contracted hunters, nothing more and nothing less.” I bowed again, for good measure. “You have fiends, and we’re fiend-slayers. Allow us to honor our contract, and remove your problem.”

“Guildmaster Avira was generous enough to send her hunters at the guild’s own expense,” Aron said, sidling closer again. He kept glancing between me and his emperor, eyes wide. “To turn them away after such a commitment has already been made, without even allowing them into the country-”

“That’s enough from you, Representative,” Nabar said, his eyes flashing. I swallowed a grin. Argue all he would, the point had been made—If they sent us home without even letting us try, after Avira had put the guild’s own coin into the expedition…Well, it would be seen as an affront, and even if the Hunter’s Guild wasn’t really in the business of international politics, it would not engender Avira toward helping Talmarn in the future. Which, if my suspicions were correct…Talmarn was going to need the help of hunters here very soon.

So I waited, counting the seconds, as Emperor Nabar’s turned awan, pressing a hand to his chin. I could see the wheels turning in his mind. We could still convince him this was a good idea—if we didn’t come off as trying to corner him into it.

At last, he sniffed, turning a scornful look on the four of us. “It is of no matter,” he said. “Four pups could not outdo Talmarn’s own soldiers.”

Kevin sidled away, a panicked smile etched onto his face. “A-Actually, I’m not a-”

“Your majesty, we are hunters,” I said. I could recognize the gauntlet when it’d been thrown. I smiled thinly, locking eyes with him. “We’re mages, in our own way, and our magic is specifically created to fight fiends.”

As if to reinforce my point, Korinn swung her fiendhorn from the ground, settling it across her shoulder with a whumph. The few courtiers creeping closer to her stopped.

“This is our purpose,” I said, more quietly. “This is what we do. I promise you, we can handle your fiends. Give us a few weeks, and we can make your problem go away, nice and quiet. There won’t be a need to risk your own soldiers.”

Nabar made a face, looking away. “Leave me,” he said.

I twitched forward, a flash of horror running through my mind. “But-”

“I must think on this,” he said, shooting a sharp look my way. “Do not overstep, Hunter. If I decide to allow this, then we will meet again.”

“Oh,” I said. Okay. So this wasn’t game over, just a pause. That…made sense. “Yes. Of course. Thank you.” Myles stomped on my toe. I flinched, my eyes watering. “Y-Your majesty.”

“Find them somewhere to wait, Morla,” Nabar said, turning his glare to Ysandre. When Aron moved to follow, he grabbed the representative’s arm, hauling him back. “Not you. You and I need to talk.”

Aron blanched, licking his lips, but there was no escape and all of us knew it. “Yes, my lord,” he mumbled, bowing—and when Nabar turned back for his dais, he trudged after him.

“Come on,” Ysandre said, appearing in front of me. She didn’t look any happier than Aron, but she was doing a better job of keeping a lid on her panic. “Come with me. We’ll…” She glanced around at the room of now-staring figures, and sighed. “I think I know somewhere we can talk more privately.”

“Good,” Myles said. “I think it’s about time we did.”

“I definitely wouldn’t mind some answers,” Korinn muttered, wrinkling her nose.

With one last regretful look to her clansib, Ysandre gestured for us to follow, hurrying away toward a side passage. As soon as we passed beneath the archway, a set of spiral stairs took over, leading us upward.

“What in Myra’s icy embrace was all of that?” Korinn said as soon as we were out of earshot of the rest. She scampered forward, reaching for Ysandre’s arm. “I thought you two were-”

“We may have- Exaggerated, a little,” Ysandre said, her voice tight. She quickened her pace, pulling away from my companion.

“A little?” Kevin said, his voice shrill. “That man looked like he wanted to gut us.”

“Not ‘that man’,” Myles hissed. “The emperor. Don’t talk like that. Not here.”

He looked worried, I realized. Not that Korinn and I weren’t, but I could see the tension in the corners of his eyes.

I supposed that made sense, too. He’d been with Verrick for years—a solid portion of his decade-long reign, at least. He’d probably had plenty of exposure to how the royals of Aradhen behaved. Of course, if that made him nervous here…I had even more questions about how things in Linead operated.

Someone had tried to hang him. I swallowed a sigh, grimacing. That was probably all the answer I needed.

“So,” I began, still climbing steadily. Wherever we were going, the stairs just didn’t seem to stop—and there hadn’t been any exits, either. A window came into view, giving us a shot of the city far beneath. My legs were starting to ache, and I was tired of caring about propriety. I fired my aura up, sipping off the top to bolster my calves. “Did you even have permission to come to Aradhen? I’m gathering you definitely didn’t have permission to recruit us.”

“Um,” Ysandre said.

I groaned. “Aethir’s ashes.”

The staircase finally flattened out ahead of us—and gave way to an open-sided platform edged by a waist-high railing. Ysandre stalked out onto it, raking her hands through her hair.

We followed after, mute and silent. Well. Silent except for Kevin, who panted for every breath, red-faced.

Nella leaned toward him, nuzzling his face with an inquisitive squeak, then leapt onto the railing. She stretched her wings out, testing the wind.

Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.

“No, girl,” I said wearily. “You can fly later. Not now.”

She let her wings fall again, a wave of reproach rising from her scales. I didn’t care. Some guard wouldn’t know she was mine and not an attacking fiend, and they’d take a potshot, and I just- I couldn’t deal with that. Not now, not after everything else.

“I’m so sorry, hunters,” Ysandre said, spinning back to face us. The wind caught at her dark hair, pulling it this way and that. “Everything was supposed to be sorted out by the time we landed.” Her eyes tightened. “Dust take Mona and her stupid, accursed-”

“Back up,” I interrupted, holding a hand up. “What do you mean? Start from the beginning.” I smiled thinly, even though I wasn’t feeling a lick of amusement. “I think we deserve that much.”

Ysandre nodded, closing her eyes. “Yes. Of course.”

I drifted over to lean on the railing alongside her, letting her pick her words. My eyes turned to the city below. This high, we could see…everything. The blackstone palace beneath us, and the new buildings beyond, all covered in green. The city walls dipped down, meeting a river that looked more like a ravine. It cut a line through the city, continuing on into the jungle where Maurana ended. If I strained, I could almost see the verdance tapering off as I looked inland down its length.

I heard Ysandre shift, and turned my eyes back to her.

She shook her head, drooping against the rail. “What we told you was not a lie,” she said. “Morlath was beset by a terrible creature, one that our best efforts to fend off failed. When we realized it couldn’t be contained, we turned to Karnarthia, and to Emperor Nabar.

“But,” I said slowly.

“But he turned us away.”

I turned at the new voice. Mona strode up the stairs, her blue-dyed skirts swishing about her feet. Her face was long, as pale as Aron’s.

“Mona,” Ysandre whispered.

“We tried to convince him,” Mona said, her eyes locked onto mine. “Without the aid of Talmarn’s army, we were doomed. But he would only commit a few squads to patrols through our clan’s territory. It wasn’t enough to stop the beast from threatening our settlements.” She sighed, looking to Ysandre. “And they haven’t helped as our situation worsens.”

Ysandre started forward, her eyes going wide, but I waved my hands. “Wait. Hold up. We’ll get there in a second. How did ‘he said no’ turn into ‘let’s all go to Aradhen and tell the guild lies’?”

“We needed hunters,” Ysandre said, whipping back around to face me. “Everyone knew it, and Aradhen…” She shook her head. “It’s not a short voyage. We couldn’t wait for Nabar to come around. So-”

“So you set off without permission,” Myles said, coming up alongside me. His arms were crossed, his face unreadable. “And…” His gaze flicked to Mona. “You were supposed to continue the work, weren’t you?”

Mona looked away, making a face. “I’m Aron’s second,” she said. “I stayed behind, covering for his absence. And, yes, continuing to try and convince the emperor to reconsider.” Her shoulders slumped. “We were supposed to have gotten him on board by the time your ship arrived. It should all have been settled by then.”

“Looks like that went well,” Ysandre muttered. Mona looked up, her eyes sharp, and advanced.

I groaned, rubbing at my face, and turned away as the two set into each other. I leaned against the railing again, drinking in the splendor of Karnarthia rather than have to deal with them.

“I…hate to be the one to suggest it.” Korinn slipped up alongside me, turning to face Myles and I. “But if they really don’t want us here, we could always go back.”

Myles nodded begrudgingly, his eyes dark. “It isn’t what the guildmaster wanted,” he said. “But I think she’d understand. And…” His fingers rose, brushing at his neck. My skin prickled. “It’s still a long journey. I’m mostly healed already. By the time we get back, I’ll be good to go again.” His gaze settled on mine. “I still…I owe you. And I appreciate what you did. But I won’t be caught off guard a second time.”

I made a face, caught between a smile and a grimace. “Yeah. About that. We…We can’t go back. Not yet.”

“Huh?” Korinn said.

“It’s about Nella,” Kevin said, dancing away from the Talmarnan women as their argument crescendoed. “Uh…We don’t really know what’s going on exactly. But the guildmaster and Trellin think it has something to do with….you know.” He jerked his head toward Nella. “With her.”

“Something happened to cause all the problems in Aradhen,” I said as Korinn and Myles both looked to me. “Ayanella is the matriarch’s daughter, and the matriarch was…something very old, and very powerful.”

“Is,” Kevin said. “She’s not dead.”

“Yeah,” I said. “That. It’s…possible that she’s related to everything that’s going on back home. And if that’s the case, then-”

“She might be connected to the fiend problem here, too,” Korinn said. “Myra’s tit’s.”

“Keep it down,” I hissed, glancing to Mona and Ysandre. I shouldn’t have worried. They were at a full yell by then, totally oblivious to the rest of the world. I inched farther down the platform from them, though. No sense in risking it. “Yeah. We- We don’t know. But if it’s a possibility, then-”

“She’s not going to kill Nella, is she?” Korinn said. “That- She wouldn’t possibly-”

“We want to avoid that,” I said with a groan. “But…You saw how it was back home. You see how it was here. Fiends, appearing in other countries? And…” I bit my lip, eying Mona as she thrust a finger at Ysandre, bellowing something about unreasonable expectations. “I think Mona there said something about the fiend situation in Talmarn getting worse. If things are escalating, we…we may not have a choice.”

“That’s why I’m here,” Kevin said. His hands quivered, but when I looked over, his jaw was set. “We’re going to get to the bottom of this. I need to figure out what’s causing this. Because it’s not Ayanella.”

“Yeah,” I whispered, smiling, and glanced over to Nella. “There’s no way it’d…be…”

“I can’t believe she’d even consider something like that,” Korinn said, stamping a foot. “Why, Nella wouldn’t hurt a fly.”

“She bit you last night,” Myles said.

“Guys,” I said.

Korinn rolled her eyes. “Yes, but only because she thought I was stealing her roast. She didn’t mean to.” She waved a hand toward the hatchling. “She loves Nella! I saw her slip a toy into Trellin’s pack before we left.”

“Avira has to look out for the whole country,” Myles said. “It’s…not an easy choice, but that’s what being the guildmaster is. She can’t ignore a threat just because it’s tied up in something she’s fond of.”

“Shut up,” I said. “Right now.”

They stopped, turning. “Trellin?” Myles said. And then he stopped, too.

Because Nella was humming. She stood balanced on her hind legs, her wings half-upraised, and just…stared out across the city. Her tail lay still behind her. Her eyes were fixed, unmoving.

I crouched alongside her, running my hand down her spine. There was fear rising off her, even if she didn’t look afraid. Fear, and a sort of single-minded focus I’d never felt from the krytir before. “It’s okay, girl,” I murmured. “What’s-”

Her hum increased, rising to a keen. Behind me, I heard the argument stop. “Is something wrong?” Ysandre said.

“I don’t know,” I said. I peered out across Karnarthia, my eyes narrowed. And then they widened. “What’s that thing?” I said.

“What thing?” Mona said, striding over briskly. “Show me.”

I waved a hand out at the horizon. “That…That giant mound-looking thing. She’s staring right at it.” It was set right in the middle of the river, a towering heap of rock and…my brow furrowed. No, it wasn’t rock. Not entirely, anyway. There were boulders poking from the water, but also fingers of pinkish-blue coral, bleached by the pounding sun. Flags and banners dangled off it—and if I looked to the banks of the water, there were statues on either side.

“That?” Mona said. “That’s Sarcarthin. It’s…I suppose you could call it a religious site.” She shrugged, spreading her hands as if to explain. “There are ancient stories that tell of a plague of beasts, you see. Winged repytne flying through the skies, big enough to blot out the sun, and vicious besides.”

“Oh,” I said. A horrible feeling was starting to take root in my mind.

“According to the legends, the very heart of Talmarn rose to fight them off,” Mona said. She was starting to smile, her eyes misting over. “They say that Terintha Zolomi rose then, the great protector, to ward the attackers away from Talmarn’s cities.”

“Oh, no.”

“Some texts say it was Terintha’s tireless steps that wore the Sandscar into the land itself.” Mora shrugged again, gesturing toward the mound. “And…when the threat was ended, Terintha came to rest at Sarcarthin. Its bones returned to the soil, becoming part of Talmarn again.”

“Wait.” Myles was quick on the uptake. He twisted to face me, even as Nella’s scream reached a fever pitch. “You don’t think-”

“I don’t know,” I said, the blood draining from my face. “But-”

My tattoos sang as a flash of aura radiated outward. Text flared across my sight.

Alert: Shallows of Mauruana

Regioncore Distress Confirmed

Corruption Purge Registered and Validated

Countermeasures: Initiated

Worldbeast Awakening Confirmed

From the corner of my eye, I saw Korinn and Myles jump.

“Wait,” Korinn said. “A region alert? Here? But-”

A ping burst across Mauruana, melding and twisting with Nella’s song in an otherworldly harmony. In an instant, she was clambering over my shoulders, burrowing and burying herself into my shield.

“W-What?” I gasped, hopelessly startled as she abandoned that and plunged down the front of my tunic. “Nella, what’s-”

I stopped. She was dead silent, now, no hum or keen left in her And…she was shaking, I realized. I could feel the tiny quivering of her scales against my undershirt. I’d never felt her scared before, not like this.

“What’s going on?” Korinn said, creeping closer. “You two. Talmarnans. What’s going on?”

“I…I don’t know,” Ysandre whispered. “I’ve never-”

A crack ricocheted across the city, like a rock splitting open, like the ground itself cleaving in two. We all jumped back a step, our eyes snapping to that mound in the river.

“The banners,” Myles whispered. “They’re…moving.”

“No,” Mona said, a nervous laugh in her voice. “No, that’s- that’s not-”

“I see it too,” Kevin said. He fumbled in his pockets, grabbing a plate out, and thrust it toward Sarcarthin. “Just- Let me-”

Before he could say another word, a second crack followed the first. This time, we were all looking—and all of us could see the rocks tumbling down off the mound’s sides, splashing into the river. I swallowed hard, clinging tight to the platform’s railing as the ground started to shake beneath us.

“We’ve got a problem,” I said.