Rosaluna’s eyes widened, and she leaned forward, examining the seamless ring of dull grey metal. It oozed dark force such as she hadn’t before encountered. She reached a hand across the table, not touching it, but appraising. The power of the device was considerable. Chi stood for it for a minute or two before replacing the lacy cloth.

“As I said,” Chi resumed, “I was a slave. Until I was freed by one of my targets. A potential hero by the name of Jack Grenell.”

Freed? The thought stabbed into her head.

“Oh,” Chi allowed. “I don’t harbor any notions that it was intentional. In fact, I think I can say with utter assurance that it was completely involuntary. And very nearly fatal. But free I am, nevertheless. And free I shall remain if I have any say in the matter. Despite this cursed collar.”

So you came to Mund with Jackson?

“Dragged along in his wake when your local god snatched him out of the void between worlds,” Chi nodded. “We were spell locked at the time, although entry through Mund’s portal appears to have severed that lock.

“I woke up in a tree with a dire wolf staring up at me, growling about how I didn’t belong there.”

The Hero’s Glade, Rosaluna decided, and wondered why she hadn’t been informed of the event. The demon would appear to have a particular gift for making unusual friends. She nodded, the movement barely visible. It made a certain sort of sense.

“I was escorted out of the wood by the dire wolf pack,” Chi continued the tale, “and wandered until I found this place, where I was welcomed. And so here I stay.”

Welcomed? The old woman wondered disbelievingly.

Chi flushed and looked down at herself. “Oh, granted,” she admitted. “I didn’t look like this when I first arrived. That came later.”

Rosaluna was torn. Everything she was seeing and everything she was hearing was telling her that the demon was not an enemy. At least not to the populace of Tumblebrook. Not one villager had thus far shown any sign of having been charmed or ensorcelled. Even her watchers had confirmed that the demon was an integral part of the community. And yet, it was a demon.

Hard upon the subversion of the avalanche of expectations Jackson Grenell had been responsible for over the past nine months, she found herself edging towards the idea that it might possibly not be a good idea to purge the creature for the sake of having one less demon walking the world. The notion stung, but she examined it nonetheless.

And what do you know of Jackson Grenell? She wondered.

Chi crossed her arms before her. “Jack Grenell?” she chuckled, her voice going low and throaty. “Quite a lot, if you must know.”

You are from his world, then?

Another chuckle, lacking the lewd undertones. “Not remotely,” she smiled. “I’ve spent a good deal of time there, though, in my... studies.”

Rosaluna was eyeing her up and down, not happy to be taken so casually. The creature clearly understood the disparity in their powers. So why wasn’t it more frightened? Or had she simply grown so used to being the madwoman who so dominated the nightmares of the dark ones that the expectation of the terror of her in all creatures of darkness had led her to complacency?

And so you are an ally? She had trouble believing that.

“An ally?” Chi mused. “I don’t think I’d go that far. But I mean him no harm, and I’m certainly not his enemy. Is that why you’re here? Jackie Boy sent you?”

Rosaluna regarded her more calmly as her mind wrapped itself around and settled into the notion that a demon might not be arbitrarily an enemy of all life.

You may leave us, she told the mayor. Your demon is safe with me. For the time being, at any rate.

He turned to Chi, who nodded slowly, a weather eye on the old woman.

“How do you know Jack?” Chi asked once the mayor had excused himself and departed.

Rosaluna regarded her deliberately. I found him in the Hero’s Glade soon after he arrived, she told her. More dead than alive. I nursed him back to health and sent him on his way.

“Ah, so it was you, then,” Chi smiled. “All I knew was that somebody had hauled him away. Thank you. I owe you for that.”

I beg your pardon?

“The last time I saw him,” Chi told her, “he didn’t look like he was going to make it. That bus hit him pretty hard, and the translocation spell hadn’t done him any favors either.”

You were there, then?

“Spell locked, remember?” Chi reminded her. “I was initially spell locked to the front of the bus, casting the translocation spell with my sister, Cha.”

Rosaluna’s face closed down again. Just when she’d gotten used to the idea....

“Oh, don’t get me wrong,” Chi waved a hand. “That wasn’t my idea, remember?” and she tapped the hidden collar. “And luckily, Jack’s a pretty good bouncer, so I didn’t have time to finish.”

Are you deliberately obfuscating? Rosaluna demanded.

“Hmm?” Chi paused. Then, “oh, sorry. When the bus hit him, he bounced off the front bumper, then off the wall of his living room and finally sailed right over the top of the bus. On his way over,” she gave Rosaluna a crooked smile, “he kicked me square in the face and knocked me loose. Smack!” she pantomimed a slap to her face, rocking her head back. “Into the void between worlds for the both of us.

“And the instant the portal closed behind,” she smiled. “The Dread Lord’s connection to the collar was interrupted, and I was a free devil girl.”

Rosaluna took a moment to absorb the tale, adjusting it to the original as told to her by Jackson Grenell upon his first awakening.

“I know,” Chi gave her fingers a snap. “Have you got a couple of sheets of paper?

Whatever for? Rosaluna was caught off guard.

“I said that I owe you, right?” Chi told her. “How’d you like to learn Identify?”

Rosaluna was silent for a moment, wondering if this might be some sort of trap. And what rank might this spell be? She inquired suspiciously.

Chi shrugged Noncommittally. Lev— oh, right...” she gave it some thought. “Under your system... your spells advance through tiers and ranks, yes?”

A nod.

“This particular one?” she cradled her chin in one hand, tapping her cheek with a forefinger. “Truthfully, it’s kind of a cheat. You’d be skipping over the first couple of tiers and all of their internal ranks. I suppose you’d rank it as an unmodified form from the Divination tree. Rank two, maybe. I’d surmise it would require a practitioner of around rank twenty or twenty-five to cast, depending on affinity.”

Closer to thirty, Rosaluna mused. For a dedicated practitioner, given those parameters. And yet you claimed not to be his ally? Gifting a third tier spell as thanks argues otherwise.

Chi blushed, although it was unlikely the old woman noticed. “Okay, ya got me,” she admitted. “Jack and I... might have some history together. He probably doesn’t even remember.”

Rosaluna snorted in spite of herself. I find that very difficult to believe.

Chi couldn’t resist. She fed the old woman a sly smile and slid smoothly into her Chi the adventurer form, which her current clothing was designed to accommodate.

The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

Rosaluna’s eyes went wide, a truly surprised expression washing over her face. She’d never seen anything like this in all her years. Her brows furrowed and a frown crept to her face as she belatedly wondered if this might be a thing that all devils could manage.

She examined the creature closely searching for clues as to what it truly was. Only its aura gave it away, and the ungifted would neither see that nor understand its meaning if they could.

“Me,” Chi told her in that low, husky voice, “he absolutely remembers.”

So, you and he—

“A lady never tells,” Chi smiled as she reverted to her true form. “Now, would you like the spell or not?”

Rosaluna watched closely as the demon traced the magic circles on the parchment sheets she’d withdrawn from her bag, using some sort of strange device it had removed from its belt pouch. Five sheets, for the circle had five layers.

“For this first one,” Chi explained idly as she drew the circle in purple sharpie, “you should use silver iodide powder in an alcohol suspension. You have that here?” she didn’t listen for an answer.

“I’m drawing at a reduced scale as well,” she noted. “This key will translate,” she pointed to a pair of lines along the lower edge of the parchment. “For every increment of the shorter line, replicate with the longer measurement.”

She went on in this way for a significant period of time, explaining the process as she went, making notes in the margin in perfectly legible Tandrian. It was obvious that she was no stranger to such endeavor, and had probably taught a number of other practitioners in the past.

Through all of it, Rosaluna remained silent, examining the demon’s output intently.

Several times during the process, she was able to catch the mayor sneaking nervous peeks in through the doorway. Other than that, they seemed to have the place to themselves. Not even the innkeeper had shown his face since his wife had brought their initial drinks.

“Done,” Chi announced, looking up at last. “I’ve noted the Somatic and aural components in the margins, along with timing and order. Theoretically, once you’ve learned it, you can cast it silently just by envisioning it.”

She passed a hand over the stack of parchment and rolled it into a tube, handing it over without further ceremony. “You should be aware that it’s single use,” she warned. “You won’t be able to pass it along unless you do the work yourself to recreate the scroll.”

Rosaluna nodded, taking the rolled parchment and slipping it into her bag. She’d want a good deal of studying before chancing the learning of this spell. Several of the forms she’d seen weren’t familiar at all, and, she suspected, not of Mundian origin. Come to that, she supposed, none of it would be, would it?

Chi stood and stretched, loosening kinked muscles. Then, with a quick shake, she moved over to the bar, sliding behind it. “Would you like another drink?” she asked. “Don’t worry, I’m running a tab.”

Do they have a decent mead? Rosaluna wondered. I do believe that I’d like something stronger than tea to deal with such as you.

Chi let go a soft bark of laughter. “Empire bee, clover fed,” she said. “Still a little green for my taste, but the villagers seem to like it.”

You were a creature of the demon lord of Tarr, were you not? Rosaluna asked over her second mug.

“It calls itself Dread Lord,” Chi corrected. “But yes.”

And you know of jaegers?

Chi stiffened. “Yes, I know of them,” she said. “Third set of the bastards came through yesterday.”

Again, Rosaluna found herself surprised. And you know this how?

Chi touched the cloth covering the collar. “Every time that damned portal opens,” she grated, voice low and intense. “It connects us to the Dread Lord’s realm, if only momentarily. And every time that happens, this sonofa— this thing starts in choking the life out of me.” she looked up and directly into Rosaluna’s eyes. “I’ve been a bad girl, see? I’ve run away and that can’t be tolerated. Punishment is part of the collar’s function.”

Rosaluna forced herself not to be moved by the pain or sorrow in the demon’s eyes. She wasn’t entirely successful. And what will you do about them? She asked. These jaegers?

“Me?” Chi seemed surprised at the question. “Nothing. I’m not going anywhere near them.”

Rosaluna frowned. Haven’t you styled yourself this area’s protector?

“And what of it?” Chi wondered. “They’re no danger to me or anyone else here. They’re only interested in Jack.”

The old woman’s frown deepened. The same Jack whose rescue compelled you to gift me an incredibly valuable spell? She asked, confused. And why should his safety suddenly be unconcerning?

The question brought forth a long burst of laughter. “Jack?” Chi struggled to throttle the guffaws enough to answer. “Worry about jaegers?” She nearly doubled over, gasping for breath, such that the old woman began to think she might be growing hysterical. “Why on three worlds would Jack Grenell be worried about jaegers?” Chi demanded.

Rosaluna didn’t understand. These creatures are very dangerous to the low-ranked, are they not?

“Well, sure,” Chi admitted, gasping as she got her mirth under control. “Normally. But Jack Grenell isn’t exactly normal, is he?” She wiped a tear from one orange-red lava eye and took a couple of deep breaths. “Three gun Jack?” she grinned. “Long as he’s got that ten mil on his hip, they’re less than bugs to him. Thirty seconds from the moment he spots them —and that’s if he’s being all cautious and going full Mozambique drill on them— and he’s harvesting loot drops. Less if he just double taps them and calls it good.”

Ten mil? The old woman felt a lump forming in her stomach.

“Sure,” Chi assured her. “I know he had it on him when we came through. I saw it on his belt as his butt was flying past my face there in his living room. Long as he’s got that pistol, he’ll be fine.” She gave the issue a moment’s thought, and then revised. “Anyway, as long as his ammunition holds out.”

Rosaluna Galbradia put a hand to her forehead. This pistol thing... her sending was weak. On his belt, you say?

“Of course,” Chi nodded. “Right here,” and she slapped the back of her right hip.

Black? L shaped? In a scabbard of leather and some smooth horn-like substance?

“Yes, that’s called a pistol,” Chi confirmed. “He’s very good with it, I’ve seen him compete.”

Compete? It was getting worse, the lump.

“Oh, yes,” Chi told her happily. “ On Jack’s world, at least in his country, they hold regular competitions with firearms. It’s actually a professional sport, although Jack only competes as an amateur. Three gun, they call it. Rifle, pistol, and shotgun. I think he took the regionals in his area last year, although that was before I was assigned to watch him.”

And should he not have had it with him when he encountered the creatures?

Chi winced. “I don’t even want to think about that,” she husked. “They’d probably kill him.” But then she brightened. “Ah, but don’t worry about that,” she waved a dismissive hand. “He never goes anywhere without that pistol on his hip.”

These pistols, then... Rosaluna’s sending was feeble. They’re such powerful weapons?

Chi shrugged. “Yes?” she was slightly confused at the tone of the sending. “I mean, as firearms go, pistols are at about the bottom of the ladder, although it’s not really a linear scale, and there are short and long guns that basically use the same ammunition to lesser or greater extent.”

But Jackson’s pistol?

“Ten millimeter is pretty powerful as pistols go,” Chi assured her. “Lots of people think they’re too much of a handful, but Jack seems to like his. Not as powerful as a service rifle or shotgun, though. Supposedly, it’s range is around fifty yards, but I’ve seen him shoot his farther.”

And it is not so powerful that it can destroy a city?

Chi suppressed a chuckle. “Where did that come from?” she wondered.

Eighty years ago, Jackson’s people were said to have had weapons so powerful that a single one could destroy an entire city in the blink of an eye.

Chi narrowed her eyes, lowering her head. “Yeah, those are called atomic bombs. You don’t carry those around on your belt.”

But, eighty years... have they not progressed at all? If progression such could be called? Are his people not a nation of barbaric conquerors?

Chi wiped her smile away by main force. “Okay, “ she said slowly. “Clearly somebody’s been telling tall tales out of school.”

I beg your pardon?

“Sorry,” Chi held up a hand. “Idiom. They sneak in every now and again. English is a colorful and infectious language. I meant that somebody has been telling you things that you should probably have been more skeptical of.

“Look,” she went on. “A pistol, even Jack’s ten millimeter, is no more than a slug thrower. Comparable, say, to... uhm, d’you have Earth Bullet here?”

The old woman gave it some thought. Ah, I believe so. Stone Shard, yes?

“Sounds right,” Chi decided. “Okay, so, say a Stone Shard, Minor. Probably cast at about, oh, say, a high rank two or a low three. But one shard at a time. I mean, quickly, but one after another, not a cloud of them all together. That’s more a shotgun. The difference is that anybody can use a pistol, not just mid or high ranked mages. Even the ungifted.

“A rifle, now? Now we’re talking an unmodified Stone Shard, that can range from a high rank two all the way to a five or higher. Journeyman mage territory. And if it’s an actual select fire service rifle, we’re probably talking... ah... Earth Barrage...? Lots of projectiles so fast they seem like a stream?”

Rosaluna pressed both hands to her face, thoroughly disheartened. Torrent of Stone, she sent. That would be Torrent of Stone .

Rosaluna could feel her composure crumbling. She should have asked him. She should have seen that he wasn’t what the haunted boy had described, and asked him of the device. But she’d been.... yes, she’d been bitter and resentful. And so she’d simply made the decision to assume the worst.

If... if you’ll pardon me, she sent. I believe I’ve learned what I needed to learn for now. If you would please pay me a call at my cottage, there is further discussion I would have with you.

Chi was having trouble figuring out what was going on. Was the old woman commanding or requesting? And why the sudden change of demeanor? “Alright?” she said tentatively.

The old woman reached for a jewel adorning the strap of her bag. Holding it to her forehead, she closed her eyes for a moment, her lips moving. After a moment or two, she held out the stone. When you’re ready, toss this gem to the ground several feet from you and say, ‘Rosaluna Galbradia,’ and it will lead you to me.

And with that, she stood and hurried out of the inn, her cane thumping heavily against the floorboards.

By the time Chi had realized what was happening, she’d already gone. Running outside, she just caught the heel of a white boot disappearing through a circular patch of shimmering air.

She turned from the portal and realized that the anxious mayor along with half the village were still gathered there, arrayed on benches and chairs, plates and bowls to hand. Apparently, the innkeeper had moved his trade out here while his place of business was being occupied.

“Uhm... how did it go?” Mayor Longhan asked.