Teal left his quarters and started to climb the hanging wooden steps that wound round the thick, giant tree. Five floors up, he would reach upper most level of Princess Aleeria’s quarters. The wooden steps swayed softly in the breeze, but he had already become accustomed to their ability to move and adjusted his gait to match their movement. It was evening and the sun was setting. Soft swirls of orange and reds lay across the horizon, capturing the small fluffy clouds and turning them pink. He was on his way to meet Princess Aleeria to spend their evening together.

The past week had flown by in a blur, and he had emersed himself into his new world. Queen Alaroundra and Princess Aleria had been true to their words and spent every waking moment with him. His father, unfortunately, had returned to the northern front. Neither of them specified what was occurring there. Teal sensed some kind of threat. What could be more threatening than the Lombock, Teal did not want to ask just yet. His father returned every other evening to spend time with him and for that, he was grateful.

His mother and sister had taken him on tours of the entire city, visiting different parts each day and giving a rundown of the important sections and buildings. It spread further than he had imagined and did indeed wind its way down to the ocean. The blossom tree forest ended at a certain point, but the Lombock were indeed in favour of sculptured gardens and fountains. The nights were his favourite, where the city glittered in the darkness from a multitude of heights. It captivated his imagination but also made him pine for all the times he had missed witnessing such a grand sight.

At each place they stopped, his mother and sister were greeted with respect and honour. The other Lombock acknowledged him with curiosity, staring at him but quickly turning their heads away when he tried to meet their gaze. They also took it upon themselves to introduce him to other family members and their court. He had quickly drowned in confusion at all the different Lombock names and positions. Despite himself, Teal couldn’t help but think about how it reminded him of when Jale had taught him of all the important people in the palace at Dalenia.

The most confusing and confronting aspect were the humans he saw, and there were many. It was clear that they were of a much lower social standing than the Lombock. They were treated with respect, but it was clear the humans served the Lombock. It took him several days to work out that those who served were different to the ones the Lombock ate. Whether it was from his prolonged time with humans in the Talbecan Empire or not, Teal did not want to ask further into the protocols of how they chose the humans they wished to eat.

At other times during the week, Teal had been consumed with exhaustion. He suspected it was from both his long journey to reach them and also from all the information he was learning. No matter what though, he was happy. Never before in his life had he ever felt so centred and at peace. He belonged here. He was normal here. There was only one thing that Teal wanted to know about, but it had been ignored by Princess Aleria and his mother so far. The Everold. It was still an enigma, and he wanted to know more.

Teal’s attention shifted as he reached the final stair and stepped out onto an open platform. He had been here once before, and even he had taken a step back when he saw how high they were without a physical barrier for safety.

“Teal!” Princess Aleeria stated. She stepped towards him and took his hands into her own. After a soft squeeze, she dropped them and turned to the side. “I want to introduce you to your cousin, Thereden,” she said.

Teal looked at the other young male Lombock. If his memory was correct, it was the same Lombock who had smiled to him when he had first arrived in the dining room.

Thereden approached and lifted his hand. Teal had quickly learnt the Lombock greeting in his time over the past week. He lifted his hand as well and placed his palm against Thereden’s.

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“I wanted to introduce myself earlier, but it was decided to let you get to know Princess Aleeria and the Queen first,” he said.

“Thanks,” Teal said. “I am glad to meet my extended family though.”

“I can imagine it’s been a lot after being a prisoner with the humans for so long,” Thereden sneered.

Teal gulped. “It wasn’t too bad,” he said. “There were good times amongst it.”

Thereden frowned and Teal sensed his cousin was trying to process what he had said.

“No matter how it was,” Thereden said. “It will always be better here.”

Teal nodded. He would give it time before he went into great detail about his life in the Talbecan Empire, although his was aware that Princess Aleeria knew more than others.

“So, what do you want to do this evening, brother?” She smiled and turned to Thereden. “Can you believe I get to say that now? My brother!?”

Thereden smiled and wrapped his arm around Princess Aleeria’s shoulders. He gave such a fond look in her direction, it eased some of Teal’s immediate concerns towards Thereden.

Teal cleared his throat. “I was hoping you could tell me more about the Everold and how the Lombock use it.”

Princess Aleeria gave Thereden a look where she wriggled her eyebrows. “I guess we can’t keep him away from it any longer.” She laughed and pointed to several cushions arranged on the floor of her platform. “Come, we’ll sit and talk.”

“It was you that I saw, wasn’t it?” Teal said as they settled on the floor.

“Yes,” she said, smiling gently. “I watched you for a while after you had been kidnapped and I witnessed you attack Princess Estina.”

Teal shook his head. “That’s what I don’t understand. How do you even know who Princess Estina is?”

“The Lombock can use the Everold for different purposes. It’s how we connect with other beings. We can either see the world through their eyes and then use that connection to shapeshift into them. The spell prevents us from shapeshifting into the Empire and beyond, but we can still travel through it.”

Teal shifted on his cushion and wondered at how he managed to shapeshift within the spell’s regions.

“That’s how I wandered through the Empire to search for you,” Princess Aleeria continued. “I was determined to find you. I wanted to make mother and father happy. I was so excited when I finally did find you. I couldn’t believe the trouble you were in, and it was horrible that we couldn’t do anything to help you. It took four of us just to keep the eagle close enough to know what was happening. It was exhausting.”

“Thank you for trying to watch over me,” Teal said. “I thought I could only shapeshift into a tiger.”

“I’m surprised that you were able to even do that within the spell. You haven’t been able to shapeshift with other animals?”

“No, but I’ve never tried.”

Princess Aleria seemed to consider his words while Thereden listened on. “That’s definitely something to ponder later on. Could the spell be weakening?” She looked at Thereden and he shrugged. “It would be interesting to see if we went within the spells walls whether we could shapeshift as well.”

Teal frowned. “But what is it? What is the Everold?”

“Why don’t you just show him,” Thereden said. “There’s no better explanation than actually being in the Everold.”

Teal’s eyebrows rose. “Can you show me?”

Princess Aleeria frowned towards Thereden. “Mother wanted me to wait.”

Thereden kept his mouth closed but he continued to stare at her. Princess Aleeria sighed and instead, she shifted her attention to Teal. Tilting her head to the side, she seemed to consider Thereden’s suggestion.

“You held me there before?” Teal said, starting to feel frustrated. “What’s so different this time?”

“It is different this time.” She clapped her hands together.

“It’s his first time doing it properly,” Thereden said. “I don’t think you’ll need to worry about it.”

“Fine, I’ll do it. We can pull you there, but to learn how to do it by yourself will take time.”

“Going in and out of the Everold can be a bit tough when you don’t know how to do it,” Thereden said.

“We’ll take it easy and stay close to what’s around us,” Princess Aleeria said.

Teal nodded quickly. “Please, I really want to know more.”

Princess Aleeria shook her head and she glanced at Thereden. “If mother finds out.”

Thereden simply shrugged. “If it happens,” he said, “it happens. He’ll find out sooner or later.”

“Find out what?” Teal asked.

Thereden turned to him and smiled. “You’ll see.”

Confused, Teal turned his attention back to Princess Aleeria, hoping for an explanation. He didn’t like the sudden secretiveness.

Princess Aleeria took a deep breath and held out her hands. Thereden reached for one and held out his hand towards Teal. Slowly, Teal reached out and gently clasped his fingers around each of their hands.

“Close your eyes,” she instructed. “And breathe.”