Tafel crouched by the edge of the flowing river and exhaled. At long last, she found a source of water. She was also sure it was safe to drink because the traces left behind by Emile and Susan indicated they spent a long time in the river. Tafel dipped her hands into the river and cupped a handful before bringing it up to her lips. She took in deep gulps and exhaled. Her eyes lit up, and she smacked her lips together. She didn’t know if it was because she hadn’t drunk anything in several days or if it was because the water was just that delicious, but this river water was the best thing she had ever tasted. It was a shame her portals weren’t working correctly, or she could save this place’s coordinates for later.

Tafel raised Minerva’s feather. There were multiple traces Emile and Susan had left behind. They had gone to the right first, but it must’ve been a dead end because the more recent traces indicated them heading towards the left. Although she was curious what was waiting on the right side, she could always ask the two phoenixes what was there when she caught up to them.

After taking two steps, a frown appeared on Tafel’s face. There were footprints in front of her, and judging by the marks they left on the ground, whoever had left them behind was heavy; the ground was a solid chunk of rock. Tafel glanced behind herself, but there weren’t any footprints there. Her brow furrowed. Did someone appear out of nowhere? Perhaps the footprints were left behind when the ground was softer, and over time, it slowly hardened.

Tafel pursed her lips. Why was this place so creepy? She shook her head and continued forward, following the traces the phoenixes had left behind. Eventually, she arrived at the wall where a hole had clearly been melted into the stone. It was the perfect size for two phoenixes to fit in; however, the traces they left behind indicated they had flown away instead of entering.

Thump.

Tafel flinched and turned her head. Ever since she entered the underground cave, she hadn’t seen any hints of the shadowy people. Were they back? She paused and cupped her hand over her ear, trying to see if she had just been hearing things. Another muffled thump appeared, and the images of the heavy footprints returned to her mind. Tafel gulped. Although she was an adventurer, that didn’t mean she wasn’t allowed to be scared. She took in a deep breath and pointed towards the path behind herself. Her horns glowed blue, and an icy wall blocked the cavern. Unlike when it was used aboveground, the ice was crystal clear with hints of white inside.

Tafel half-walked, half-jogged ahead, leaving walls of ice behind her as she went. For some reason, she couldn’t shake off the dread in her chest. It was like she had just turned off the lights in a basement and was dashing up the stairs in the dark. She shuffled along, making sure some of the icy walls behind her had spikes pointing towards anyone trying to approach. Although she didn’t know if it’d stop something like the shadowy people from following her, it was still better than doing nothing. Thankfully, it didn’t seem like anything was following her.

Tafel slowed her pace and resumed walking. A crashing sound soon changed her mind. It sounded like something had broken through the first wall of ice she had erected, and by the sounds of it, whatever had broken through was massive. Tafel sprinted forward, finally understanding why the traces Susan and Emile had left behind were so erratic. They had obviously been chased as well, and all she could do was hope they hadn’t been caught.

***

Gloria glanced down at the bleak landscape below. She could hardly see the outline of the ground, and she wasn’t even sure if she was looking at the right thing. Everything was black, and it was nearly impossible to differentiate the outlines of the clouds and the ground. “This is where our other grandparents live?” she asked and blinked at Grimmy. “It doesn’t look very … friendly.”

“I think I’d rather go back to Grandma Kondra’s place,” Ramon said and made a face. “At least, over there, I could eat moonlight.” He squinted hard and craned his neck downwards. “It doesn’t look like there’s anything to eat here at all.”

Leila glanced around. “I’ve never been here before either.” She stared at Grimmy. “You’ve done quite a number on this place, haven’t you?”

Grimmy puffed his chest out and chuckled. “I did, didn’t I?” he asked. He flapped his wings, propelling him a little higher into the air. “I didn’t think the effects would be so widespread, but my spell propagated really well for some reason.”

“Were you trying to destroy the continent?” Gloria asked.

Grimmy leaned over in the air and rubbed Gloria’s head with his claw. “No,” he said. “I was trying to protect my parents. Anything else was just a side effect.” He took his claw back and scratched his chin. “Now, if only I could remember where they were sleeping….”

Leila raised an eyebrow. “You forgot?”

“It’s been a long time,” Grimmy said and shrugged. “The landscape changed quite a bit. The landmarks that used to be here are gone now. The curse shouldn’t have destroyed monuments and mountains, so I’m not sure what’s going on.”

“Does that mean we’re going to fly around aimlessly until we find them?” Ramon asked and made a face again. “Are we almost there yet?”

“We already finished the hardest part of flying across the ocean,” Grimmy said. “Even though there aren’t any landmarks, that doesn’t matter. I know the general region where they should be located. Just keep your eyes open for a hole in the ground.”

“That sounds like it’d be really easy if I could actually see the ground,” Ramon muttered and rolled his eyes.