Rab plunged through the swamp water, getting more panicky every moment. There was no sign of them at all, and no sound of their voices. He kept stopping, hoping, and listening. But all he heard was the bubbling swamp water and a few birds. He was sick, so sick, and he could barely see, but he was driven on by his fear for the two of them.

He didn’t want to shout – who knew if it might bring the Witch back their way again? But he was going to have to do it. There was no other way. Even though his sight was dim and his head swam with dizziness, he was terrified at the thought of Nem and tiny Lyb wandering alone through the muck while it got darker and darker as the night set in.

He realized after a few lost, confused moments that he was kneeling in the mucky brown water, and just staring into the mud. There was a little mud hill popping up out of the swamp in front of him. He crawled up to the top of it and tried to gather his strength so that he could shout out their names as loud as he was still able.

Then there was a splash behind him. He whirled around, afraid it would be the witch again.

But it was Nem and Lyb.

"We heard you walking," Nem said. "But we hid until we were sure it wasn't the Witch."

He nodded.

"Poison," he said. "Can't talk."

Nem stared at him.

"What do we do?" she said. She sounded almost as tiny as Lyb.

"Keep moving," he said. "Get out of swamp."

Lyb walked up to him and held her arms up.

"He can't carry you Lyb," Nem said kindly to her. "We both have to walk so he can get better."

Lyb stared at him for a second, then turned around and stared out into the swamp.

Nem looked back at Rab. He could see that she was scared.

"Should we find somewhere to rest?" she said. She sounded like she didn't know what to do.

"Go," Rab whispered, "Just go."

He couldn't do anything else. But they needed to get far away from the witch.

Lyb sloshed through the ooze on her own, following Nem.

It was getting worse. He felt so sick that all he could do was keep moving. He couldn't talk, he couldn't do anything. He just stared at the swamp and watched his feet splash into it.

He dropped the sword in the slimy water and didn't even notice. Nem ran back and tried to pick it up, but it was too heavy for her to carry, so she dragged it along behind her with both hands.

Some part of him felt terrible that Nem had to be the one keeping them going, deciding what direction they should move in. But he just couldn't do it. He felt like the world was getting darker even though the sun was high up in the sky.

They splashed and plodded through the muck for what seemed like ten days. Twice they came to the edge of huge lakes, and had to go the long, long way around. Rab looked up for a moment, and he could see hills. Nem was heading them for dry land.

Good thinking Nem, he thought, but he didn't have enough strength to say it out loud.

But the swamp was huge. They were still in it when the sun started to go down.

"Camp," he whispered. "Set up torches."

He would be able to stop. That seemed like the best thing in the world.

As the stars started to come out, Nem suddenly said, "There. That's where we'll go."

He didn't look up to see. One place was as good as another. It was dry land though. He fell face-first onto it and let Nem run around setting up torches. He fell asleep without even checking to see if they were in a good spot.

He woke up with a huge gasp, like he'd been holding his breath for hours.

Lyb was sitting nearby, watching him, with her arms folded around her legs.

Where was Nem?

He looked around in a panic. She wasn't anywhere!

"Where is she?" he said. His voice sounded rough, like he had a cold.

Lyb just stared at him, watching. Her eyes glittered, reflecting the moonlight.

But then there was a noise behind him, and when he whirled around Nem was right there.

"Sshh!" she whispered. "You're too loud! There's two Bonewalkers over that way."

"Where did you go?" he whispered back.

"I was trying to get up on one of the pillars," she said.

"Really?" he said. "You were messing around while Lyb was here all alone?"

Nem looked offended.

"I wasn't messing around," she said. "I wanted to see if I could tell what direction we should go in."

"Oh," he said. "Okay, sorry. Wait, what pillars?"

Nem pointed, and Rab realized that they were camping near a bunch of shiny black columns that made sort of a wide half-circle around them. They looked ruined and ancient. He could see where Nem might have been able to scramble up to the top.

"You're looking better," Nem said. Her eyes were a little hopeful.

"I do feel a bit better," he said. "What is this place? Was it a village?"

Nem shrugged.

"I don't think so. Those columns are weird. They're like glass."

She showed him her fingers. She had cuts that oozed blood.

"They're sharp, too," she said. "I couldn't get very far up."

He grabbed her hand and examined it. The cuts were long, but not very deep.

"Okay, don't do that again," he said and frowned. What if she had cut herself badly while he was out? "Who knows what kind of nasty stuff is in the swamp water?"

"I didn't know how long you'd be sick," she said. "I was so worried I couldn't even sleep. I had to do something."

Nem looked like she was on the edge of tears.

"It's okay," he said. "You did a good job today. Really."

He'd kind of forgotten how young she really was, since Lyb was the baby now.

Her lip quivered, but he watched her control it until her face was calm again. It made him feel bad. She shouldn't have to act so grown up. But what were they supposed to do?

"You can sleep now," he said. "I'll stay up and watch."

"Okay, thanks," she said.

But she never even got the chance to lie down.

Lyb jumped up suddenly, and ran behind Rab, wrapping her arms around him. It was like she was trying to hide.

"Lyb, you're trembling!" Rab said.

Nem stared into the swamp.

"Get the sword out," she said quietly. "There's something out there."

Rab knew the sword wasn't going to be any help. He didn't think bluffing a Prowler or a Bonewalker would work the same way it had on the witch.

If he actually had to use the sword, he might as well have been carrying a stick. It would do them about as much good.

It wobbled in his hands, even though he tried to keep it steady. It was too heavy, and it still seemed like it moved on its own. It was nearly impossible to control.

But it was all they had.

There was something moving in the swamp. Rab could see that much, but he couldn't tell what.

He was really worried that there might be a lot of things moving in the swamp.

Then there were two glowing blue eyes staring at him, and there was a whirl of sparks.

"Umbrals!" he said.

His stomach sank. Nothing was going to protect them from umbral shadows. They were mysterious, powerful, and... just very, very strange.

"Don't look it in the eyes!" he said to Nem and to Lyb.

He knew he shouldn’t look up - everyone always said that - but he could feel its eyes on him.

Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

They weren’t really shadows of course. But they were dark and filmy, and you could see right through them. Their eyes glowed a dim blue, but their faces were smooth and featureless. Rab had never heard a story that explained what they were. They were things to be avoided. If one showed up in the village, the only thing villagers would do was go inside and shut the doors, and wait for it to leave again.

It stepped onto the dry land.

"Take Lyb and run behind the pillars," Rab said.

Nem tried to grab Lyb, but her little hands tightened around Rab's waist.

"Lyb, please!" Nem said, but the little girl wouldn't move. She was shivering like she was freezing.

But when the Umbral tried to walk into the circle of the old black ruins, something flared up in front of it. It was like a pulse of fire, and the creature drifted quickly back and shrieked a horrible scream into the night sky.

Three more Umbrals appeared out of nowhere.

"Oh no," Nem said.

Now there were four of them, hovering just a few blocks away from Nem, and Lyb, and Rab. Their glowing eyes were very bright, and they made strange chittering noises. They must have been talking to each other.

Then all four of them tried to move into the circle at once.

Rab knew there was nothing they could do. It was ridiculous to even try to fight four umbral shadows. He might as well try to fight lightening.

But he wasn't going to just give up.

He held up his wobbling sword, and screamed back at them, just like he'd done to the witch the day before.

They didn't even seem to notice.

But when they tried to move into the circle again there was another flash of flame and heat, and they jumped back.

They started making that weird noise to each other again.

Rab halfway expected even more Umbrals to show up.

But instead one of the four seemed to drop down to ground level, and a wavering bit of darkness like an arm pointed at him. From the creature came a sound very much like a bark that echoed through the night.

Something flew straight at him. It was just a bright blue flash, but nothing stopped it. It sank straight into his chest and made a popping sound.

He was sure they had killed him. But nothing happened.

The flash shot out behind him and twisted around in mid-air to hit Nem. She yelled and swatted her hand at it, but it just flew straight into her and then out her back again, and then disappeared.

Rab and Nem stared at each other with their mouths open.

The creature that had shot at him raised itself up to full height again. All four of them drifted awy into the darkness without another word.

After a moment Lyb finally let go of Rab, and sat down on the ground.

"Are they gone?" Nem said.

"I have no idea," Rab said. "Is Lyb okay?"

"She's still shaking, but I guess so. What was that? What happened?”

“I wish I knew,” Rab said.

They waited a long time, but nothing came back for them. Rab was going to tell Nem to get some sleep while he kept watch, but the sky was already starting to turn red. They had made it through the night, at least.

They kept walking through the swamp together, and Lyb was willing to walk by herself between them now. Which gave Rab time to pull out the sword. Something was making him want to handle it. He stared in amazement when he had it in his hand.

It didn't wobble. It felt good. Like he could control it. It felt like it balanced perfectly, and was almost a part of his own arm.

When he swung the sword, Lyb and Nem both looked back at the noise.

"Look at this!" he said.

He jumped up out of the water and slashed at a plant. It dropped down into the water.

Nem smiled at him.

"See, now that's why I was telling you to practice," Nem said.

Rab didn't think that was what had helped.

"I think it was the Umbral. I don't know what it did, but I can use the sword now. Before it felt like it was trying to get out of my hand."

Lyb was staring at him as well. Her little eyes were very serious.

"You see that, Lyb?" Nem said. "Rab can kill a hundred Bonewalkers now if they get anywhere near us!"

Rab didn't think that was true at all, but there was no point in worrying Lyb.

He nodded.

"You bet," he said. "I think we might even be able to make it to the next village!"

Nem gasped.

"That's it!" she said. "Maybe you can teach them how to do it too!"

He shook his head.

"Let's just worry about finding someplace first, okay?"

He didn't think it would be that easy.

But he and Nem looked at each other for a second. He held out the sword to her.

“Now you,” he said.

She swallowed and tried to hold it. It was too heavy for her. She could barely even lift it up straight.

“No good,” she said. “I’m too little for it.”

The swamp finally ended at some hills. There was no sign of a village anywhere.

Lyb pointed up at the top of the hills.

"I think she wants to go that way," Nem said.

Lyb nodded and pointed again.

Rab looked around. There were some tall jungle trees far to the north. Were there villages in the jungle? He didn't know. South and west was just more swamp. Maybe more witches.

Rab shrugged.

"Why not? If we get high enough maybe we will be able to see which way to go."

As they walked he played with the sword some more, keeping his swings far away from Nem and Lyb. It was amazing. It felt like it was balanced in his hand now. The sun glittered on the sharp edge, and every time he swung, it hissed through the air.

It made him feel safer. It wasn't walls and a good strong door, but it was a lot better than nothing.

The sun was almost gone. The sky was red, and the stars were coming out.

Rab felt in his robe for the torches. If they set them out in a circle, then they could keep monster spawns away, and the three of them would all sit very quietly without moving all night long.

If anything came after them, he had the sword. He didn't know if he could use it - not for real - but at least they could do something other than run.

"Lyb, come back!" yelled Nem all of a sudden.

The little girl was climbing ahead of them. It was like she was trying to get to the top first.

"This is no time for games, Lyb," Rab yelled after her. He scrambled up the rocks desperately.

They both climbed to catch up with her, but by the time they did she was already at the top of the peak.

When they reached her, Nem gasped.

There was a deep valley stretching out in front of them, and more low hills after that, far away into the distance.

But at the end of the valley, there were lights. Torches.

Plus a door. An actual, real door. Right on the side of the hills.

"It's...," Rab said.

"A house," Nem said. "It has to be the entrance to a Player house. Who else could make a house in the middle of nowhere?"

Rab patted Lyb on the head.

"I think you just saved us," he said to her.

She turned her little head to stare up at him, and Nem grabbed her from behind in a big hug.

"Lyb!" she said. "You're so smart! Now we're safe!"

Lyb didn't look all that happy, though. She just shrugged away Nem's arms and started down the hill. Rab and Nem looked at each other.

"What's wrong with Lyb?" Nem said. "She seems strange."

"I don't know, but we can worry about it once we're inside."

The thought was amazing. To be locked inside again! It seemed almost too much to hope for.

They stumbled down the blocks together, chasing Lyb's little shape in the dimming light.

"What if there's a Player there?" Nem said.

"I don't know. I really don't know," said Rab. "I guess we look first."

But Orb’s stories had said that Players didn't stay in just one place. They often made things and then moved on. Sometimes for just a night's sleep. Maybe they would get lucky.

When they got to the bottom of the valley, it was dark.

"We need to hurry," Rab said. The door was so close. He couldn't see any mobs yet. But they would be out soon.

Then there was a hissing sound, and flash of brilliant red light.

Something appeared in the dark, ahead of them. It was a square of whirling, shining magic that moved like water, but it looked almost like a door.

"What is it?" Nem said.

Rab had no idea. He thought of the Umbrals, but somehow he was sure it was them.

Before they knew it, Lyb had walked right up to the swirling magic doorway.

"Lyb!" Rab yelled. "Get back! It might be dangerous!"

Lyb stood beside the door and turned around to face them. She smiled. It was the first time they had seen her smile.

It wasn't a nice smile at all.

"It is dangerous," Lyb said. She had a tiny child's voice, but the way she spoke wasn't like that at all. It sounded too sure of itself.

As soon as she spoke, a flood of Ashmen began to pour through doorway. More than Rab had ever seen before. Their soft moans echoed through the valley. Bonewalkers came through the gateway too, mixed in with the misty Ashmen, and carrying cruel, rusty swords.

Rab grabbed his own sword with both hands and held it up.

He knew it was probably useless. There were just so many of them. He had to do something, though.

"Lyb! Run for the Player house!" Nem yelled.

But Lyb just stood there, watching them and smiling.

"Run," Rab said, and pointed at the door that had to be a Player house. "Nem, get behind me!"

But the mobs didn't attack. They stood still, in a groaning, swaying crowd. It was like they were waiting for something.

Lyb moved away from the doorway and walked beside the mobs, running her fingers along the shining white arms of the Bonewalkers as she went past them. They didn't attack her.

"I was going to have some fun with you two at the next village," Lyb said. "But since you can use that thing, I can't wait any more."

When she said that thing she pointed at the sword in Rab's hands.

"Lyb?" Nem said. "What's happening?"

Lyb didn't say anything. She just raised her arms up towards the sky.

Then she said something that they couldn't understand. It didn't even sound like words. It was a weird, sizzling noise.

She burst into flames. But she wasn't on fire. She was fire.

She began to spin, faster and faster until she was a whirling circle of pure searing flame that light up the night.

"I know what that is," said Nem. Her voice sounded sick with fear. "It's called a Flamethrall. Orb the Librarian showed me a drawing in a book once."

Now Rab understood why Lyb had wanted to bring them into the empty hills.

“It’s from the Underworld,” said Nem. “It’s a monster.”

"It was taking us out here where there was nowhere to run," he said.

"That Maker house was a surprise," the Flamethrall said in Lyb's little voice. "But it won't matter. You can't get there now."

"Lyb!" Rab yelled. "Why? Why are you doing this?"

But the creature didn't answer at all.

"The fires," Nem said quietly. "All the fires. It was her."

The Flamethrall rose into the air, and spun away up over the heads of the mobs. It whispered in a voice like flames, "Kill them."

Then it floated into the shining portal without another word. The portal flickered out and disappeared with a hiss once the Flamethrall was gone.

Without a sound, the mobs began to shuffle forward toward Rab and Nem.