Two Months & Three Weeks Ago, Hssyri River

The city of Ess’Sylantziis, capital of the Empire of Jii’Kalaga, was grander than I had ever imagined. From the deck of the aazh’kaa, Kyrae and I could see the immense city spreading out up the banks of both the Ean (Kyrae called it the Greatriver) and Hssyri rivers. At their confluence, an immense stone monument marked the meeting of the waters, and the deeper blue of the Ean met the rich earth tone of the Hssyri in a sharp line that faded as the two waters mixed.

The monument was a step-ramped base, pointing toward the confluence and topped with a statue of a lamia—I couldn’t tell if they were ke’lania or lania’el—treating with an elf. I didn’t recognize the clothing of either of them, but under them looked to be mountains and two rivers with a line between them.

Behind the monument, immense gardens walled off a building of shining green that peeked through gaps in the leaves.

“The Emerald Palace!” Kyrae exclaimed, then continued in an awed whisper, “The empress lives right there.

“She does?” I tried to peer through the cultivated jungle, but could only catch a glimpse of a tall glass window and a brilliant green wall. “I wonder what she’s like,” I mumbled.

“Me too!” Kyrae said excitedly. “I heard she’s kind to elves. I know we can’t meet her, but I’m happy we get to live in the same city.”

I nodded, still trying for a glimpse of the elusive palace.

Kyrae grabbed my shoulder excitedly and pointed to the stone monument as we passed closer. “And that’s the Jii’Llesu monument. We learned about both it and the palace at the orphanage, remember?”

“We did? And it’s called the ‘all-river’ monument?” I asked, my eyes sliding past the statue and upriver to the multitude of thronging ships along the banks, and the sprawl of immense stone buildings. Somewhere further inland, the black, angular hump of an immense stone ziggurat rose above everything else.

Kyrae sighed. “Yes, Issa—I swear, did you learn anything—”

“The Grand Temple,” I breathed, pointing.

“Huh?” Kyrae followed my finger. “That’s… right. That’s the Grand Temple. Seat of the Temple of Jaezotl and home to the Jii’Ssyri.”

I nodded. “It’s huge.”

“Yeah,” Kyrae agreed, “it is.”

We stared at the immense dark-stone ziggurat as the city drew closer, the shining palace becoming lost behind the wilds of its gardens. The Grand Temple rose above everything now, its presence solid. Even still, the city sprawled out upriver, size far surpassing the seemingly endless streets of Ess’Siijiil.

For a moment, I wondered if we’d find opportunity, or be swallowed up in the unending tide of people.

Kyrae shoved a bright smile in front of me, interrupting my bad thoughts. “Come on, Issa! We’re free now—in the greatest city in the world! We’ll make it!”

I nodded and smiled.

Kyrae frowned. “I hope you feel more like yourself soon, Sis. It isn’t like you to be the quiet one.”

Huh? I thought back—had I really been acting differently?

“Just like that!” Kyrae poked my nose and interrupted my thoughts. “You always acted first and thought later! Remember the night everything went wrong? You practically dragged me under the warehouse and up inside of it!”

I… had, hadn’t I? I forced a one-fanged smile and tousled Kyrae’s hair. With that little push, I felt more like my old self. “You’re right, Sis! We’re gonna get the biggest house in the city, maybe even by year’s end! We may not be kss’kaa, but we’ll show everyone we should be!”

Kyrae smiled up at me, big and genuine before pulling me into a hug. “That’s my sister!”

“What are we waiting for then?” I kept going, my mood pulling itself out of the gutter. As the ship pulled closer to the city, I had an idea. “Let’s hop off and swim in—no time like the present!”

“Issa! You can’t be serious!”

“Why not, Kyrae—it’s not like we have anything that we can’t get wet.” I pointed a thumb at myself. “We just have our clothes on our backs and fires in our bellies!” I looked out over the water, suddenly serious. “I’m totally serious—besides, we gotta touch the river before we cross it. You know that!”

“I do!” Kyrae protested, stamping her foot. “But we already did on the way in and we can’t just dive in!”

The ship had pulled close to a spit of mud jutting into the slow flow near the river’s bank. A wooden dock sat maybe five of my lengths away. I coiled up and leapt over the railing, my tail tip banging the wood on my way down to the Hssyri river. Cool water splashed all around me, scattering sunlight across my scales.

From above, I heard an exasperated shout. “Issa!” And then someone splashed into the water beside me.

I surfaced, laughing and hissing. Kyrae came up next to me, spitting water and pouting. I turned my lower body and cut through the water easily, one hand dragging my protesting, smiling sister. When we pulled ourselves up onto the docks, we were met both with glares and a few laughs of approval from the dockworkers and passersby.

I turned to Kyrae. “See, I told you I coul—”

I let out an “oof” as my sister’s tackle-hug pushed the air out of my top set of lungs. Off-balance and slick with river water, I tumbled to the ground laughing. Our eyes met, and we both smiled.

Ess’Sylantziis was going to save us for sure.

***

Two Months Ago, Ess’Sylantziis, Capital of the Empire of Jii’Kalaga

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My hand shook as I reached for the doorhandle. It was a simple handle: dark wood carved slightly unevenly, a splinter sticking out near where it was fitted into the door. Kyrae placed her hand on the old door almost reverently before she moved her slender fingers over my own thin digits.

I took a deep breath, grabbed the handle, and pushed. The door swung open on wooden hinges to reveal a single, small room bathed in sunlight that streamed in from the window. Wooden shutters to keep the rain out were the only other thing in the small empty space. Moving inside, my scales slid over wood well-worn by prior occupants. Kyrae trailed behind me with her hand still holding mine.

“Issa…” Kyrae whispered breathlessly, tears forming at the corners of her eyes.

My own vision grew blurry and I wiped the tears away, pointedly ignoring the paler-than-usual tinge of my skin. “Kyrae.”

“It’s ours, Issa.” Kyrae let go of my hand and twirled in the empty space, her new clothes—ill-fitted, but clean—billowing around her thin body.

I nodded with a big, single-fanged smile as I pulled the door closed with my tail.

Kyrae stopped spinning and looked around. “It’s a home.” She walked up to me, beaming.

“Yeah, it is,” I agreed, letting my elf sister pull me into a hug.

“Our home,” Kyrae said eagerly, running over to look out the window.

Our room looked out across a jumbled mess of buildings sprawling out south of us; the furthest southern reaches of Ess’Sylantziis.

“That way’s the Greatwood!” Kyrae pointed to the southeast. “Elven lands!”

I slithered up next to her, my head going out the window as well. It was a warm day, and the heat felt good on my skin. No shadows here.

“Does that mean that way’s where lamia are from?” I asked, pointing to the southwest. Kyrae always did pay more attention than I had during lessons at the orphanage.

“Yep! Lamia, like you anyway—lania’el. Viper lamia as the elves would say.”

“What about ke’lania? Are they back up north?”

Kyrae nodded. “Further down the Hssyri, yeah.”

“If lania’el are ‘viper’ lamia, what about ke’lania?” I asked, curious. I knew the elves had terms, but I’d just never known—and Kyrae had always used the lamian name rather than the elven.

“Boa lamia,” Kyrae answered easily. “Once we get some more money, I’m getting you lessons!”

“I know plenty!” I protested, frowning.

Kyrae poked my nose. “Not enough, Sis!”

I relented. “Okay, fine. But we need to get bedding first, even if this is a nice floor!” I gestured around the room. “It’s really empty in here.”

“But it’s clean!” Kyrae protested. “And I’m going to keep it clean, okay?”

I nodded. “Okay, Sis.”

Kyrae spun again and plopped down into the middle of the room, crossing her legs in the weird way she usually did. “You start tomorrow, right? I’m getting paid again soon, but we’re gonna have to sneak food for a little bit.”

“You’re good at that though! We’ll eat like empresses!”

Kyrae giggled. “Yeah!” Her voice cracked and she frowned. Putting a hand to her chin and the few hairs that poked out, she winced. “I’m going to need a blade for this.”

“I’ll work extra hard then!” I said, sidling up next to her. “And we’ll get you whatever herbs you need. And once I get an even better job, we’ll make enough to get you magic and make everything perfect!”

Kyrae smiled, but her eyes looked downcast. “I don’t know about the magic. Herbs should be enough—hopefully it’s not too late.”

“Of course it’s not! You’re my cute elf sister—and besides, I’m fine and I’ve got two of the things. No problems yet despite, well, ya know…”

Kyrae nodded. “Yeah, I know. But I… uh, never mind. She pointed to my shirt. What about that?”

Huh? I poked a finger down. My chest had been itching for some time, but I hadn’t found the rash, and nothing was in my skin that I could find. Still, it was swollen and sore. “I hope it’s nothing dangerous…” I muttered.”

Kyrae looked away, face red. “Dangerous… yeah. So, how have you been sleeping?”

“Great!” I lied.

Kyrae tensed and narrowed her bright green eyes. She was probably thinking about how bad we’d had it up until now when she asked, “Really fine?”

“Yep!” I lied confidently again, giving a lamian smile that stretched wide across my whole face.

“That’s a relief.” Kyrae relaxed and leaned back onto the floor, stretching her arms and legs in all the space.

I joined her, reveling in the feeling of stretching my whole lower body and tail out into clean, dry space. “Once we start eating good, I’m sure we’ll both feel even better! And I might get a little longer!” I was surprisingly big for how little I ate, but I was still undersized for my age. And now, I wouldn’t need to use my size to seem like a little kid.

“Bigger,” Kyrae said and she almost seemed disappointed.

“Yeah, bigger!” I tried to cheer her up.

She met my gaze, then dipped her eyes lower and blushed. Reflexively, I looked down. While my new shirt was really itchy around my chest, it wasn’t like Kyrae could see the sore bits.

“I should go to work,” Kyrae said suddenly, still red in the face.

“But I thought—”

“I might be able to earn some extra if I go now.” She stood up, stretching again, and a bright smile plastered itself on her face, her ear tips twitching to the sides.

“Oh!” I brightened immediately. “Okay! Have fun!”

“Will you be okay here?” she asked, pausing at the door.

“Better than okay!” I pulled myself toward the sun, pressing my scales into in the warm wood. “I might even take a nap!”

Kyrae giggled, then nodded, jogging back over to where I lay on the floor. We hugged one last time, although Kyrae chose to hug from the side instead of the front for some reason, and then she left quickly. Once the door closed, I noticed how truly empty our room was. Even with the sounds of the city outside, I felt alone. The mild shadows in the corners of the room pulled at me, but I turned away to the light instead.

Lately, my powers pulled at my mind until I used them. Hopefully my new job cooking rice would take my mind off it. I still couldn’t believe how much I was being paid—I could eat for three days on one days’ pay!

I coiled up in the sun by the window and watched the clouds slide by. Eventually my eyelids drooped and I slumped against my warm lower body, relaxed and happy. Hopefully my sleep wouldn’t feel like days on end trapped in black nothingness this time.

As I slipped away, I thought of happy warm times with Kyrae and of the food we now got to eat daily. This time, I felt the presence in the darkness differently—distantly. I couldn’t truly dream anymore; on the ship to Ess’Sylantziis was the last time I’d found myself in a place other than emptiness.

Even so, the void felt warmer, just a little. Or maybe I was warmer? Either way, I finally felt, if only for a fleeting moment, able to rest. Time passed more quickly; I didn’t seem to feel every moment of my rest and I truly rested.

When I woke, Kyrae had returned with warm food and the sun had dipped somewhere to the side, painting the sky in violet, red and orange. I stretched out in the empty room with a yawn, my jaw popping all the way open, and my second fang even showing itself alongside its less-shy partner. I flicked my tongue and blinked, blearily rubbing the sleep out of my eyes.

“Back already?” I asked, triggering another yawn and stretch. Warm. I still felt a little tired, but I also felt properly hungry for the first time in days.

Kyrae smiled warmly, looking up from the food she’d been arranging with more care than usual. I picked up a plate and put a skewer on it, running my hand along the clay rim.

“These are ours,” Kyrae said, heaping her own plate high. “Nothing else yet, but I wanted to eat off plates to celebrate.”

I took a bite and my next words died before I could speak them. Delicious.

“I actually did get paid extra, and I thought you could use it. You’re looking thinner than usual, Sis.”

I swallowed. “Am I?”

Kyrae nodded. “But you also look like you slept well.”

I thought for a moment, staring at a piece of spiced meat. Meat. That we bought ourselves. “Yeah,” I answered honestly, “I guess I did.”

***

It wasn’t until that night that my powers pulled at my mind again. I ignored the headache as best I could, until I had to slip a warm, sleeping Kyrae out of my coils and slither off into the night to practice shaping shadows. I felt better after doing so, but I also felt cold—colder than I probably should have in the warm, humid night. At least my headache was gone; the chill that had seeped into me brightened the night’s shadows and let me relax.

Kyrae shivered when I wrapped back around her, but she relaxed soon enough. I spent the rest of the night staring at the ceiling, fighting off fatigue and anxiety both.

Everything’s going to be fine, Issa. Don’t burden Kyrae—keep positive. Just keep your head down and power through it.