Kara and the others arrived back at the castle just as night fell. Jessica had sent a message just ahead of their arrival and Gavell met them in the small castle courtyard where carriages dropped off passengers.

“Welcome back, Emissaries of Light.” Gavell said and didn't sound like he was making fun of them as they started to climb down out of the carriage. “The queen has been very pleased by your progress.”

“She's going to be even more pleased when we tell her what's been going on.” Josh said and helped three of the women out of the carriage. Gavell's eyes opened wide as a blue haired woman stepped out next without taking Josh's offered hand, then Gavell stared as Steven stepped out and carried a lamia in his arms. Her wrists were bound and she looked happy for some reason.

“Yes, she will be very interested in what we have to tell her.” Kara said. “When will she be free?”

“The queen has set aside the entire morning to meet with you, after you all have a good night's sleep.” Gavell said and then he caught his breath as a tall and very tanned man stepped out of the carriage and stumbled slightly. He caught the tanned mans arm to steady him and felt how muscular it was. “Oh, my.”

“This is Allirynn.” Jessica said. “He doesn't talk much.”

“He shouldn't have to.” Gavell whispered and took in all of him. “Is he a new member...”

“No.” Allirynn grunted and didn't say anything else.

“When we met Hunter, he had rescued these three.” Josh said. “I've been trying to heal them in my spare time, between handling things for the Goddess.”

Gavell looked at the three people and saw that they looked a little worse for wear. “It doesn't seem like you've done much for them.”

Josh sighed. “Yeah, we've been pretty busy on the way back here and I had to rest a lot.”

Gavell still held Allirynn's arm to keep him steady and looked at his face. “Will you allow the queen's healers to help you?”

Allirynn nodded and Gavell smiled warmly.

“What... about... her?” Imiryl raspy voice asked as she stepped next to Allirynn and she pointed at the lamia, Siada.

“She seems to be a prisoner.” Gavell said. “Will we need to...”

“No, I've got her.” Steven said. “Are the rooms in the castle ready for us?”

“Of course.” Gavell said and waved a couple of guards over. “Take them to their rooms and stand guard. The emissaries are not to be disturbed.”

“Yes, sir.” The guards said and one walked ahead and the other stepped aside to let the emissaries pass. As they walked by, Josh told Gavell that the lamia needed healing as well and Gavell said he would send someone to the rooms. Josh, Kara, Jessica, Aimee, Evangeline, and Steven with Siada in his arms, left the courtyard with the guards.

“Hey, where's my money?” The kid asked.

Gavell chuckled and let Allirynn's arm go to take out a gold coin. “You actually did a good job this time.” He said and held it to the kid. “As promised.”

The kid looked at the coin for a second and reached for it, then snatched it from Gavell's outstretched hand as if it was going to disappear or be taken away.

“Before you try biting it to see if it's real, you have my word that it is.” Gavell said and the kid stopped in mid-motion. “The teeth marks are fine. It's the slobber that most people can't stand.”

“Yeah, whatever.” The kid grunted and tucked the coin into a pocket and ran out of the small courtyard.

Gavell laughed as the kid disappeared and he turned to Allirynn and Imiryl with a smile on his face. “The guest room isn't far from here. Can you make it without assistance, or can I offer my arm for support?”

Allirynn thought about it, then sighed and held a hand out.

“I would ask for the story of what happened; but, that can wait until tomorrow.” Gavell said and offered Allirynn his elbow, then he held an arm out to Imiryl as well. “If you are who I think you are, then the queen is interested in meeting you.” He said and led them the short distance to the guest room. Allirynn and Imiryl stared at the luxurious room and Gavel helped them over to the bed. “I'll let her know that you are here as well.”

“Healing.” Allirynn said and sat down on the bed.

“Don't worry. I'll send them right in.” Gavell said and pat Allirynn's hand. “Do you want to bathe and change...”

“Healing first.” Allirynn grunted.

Gavell chuckled. “All right.” He said and left the room.

A few moments later, ten beige robed people stepped into the room and motioned for Allirynn and Imiryl to lay down on the large bed. They did and the first five healers surrounded them and started to chant. Mana flowed and swirled around them, then they were bathed in it. They both felt much better right away; but, they knew that was a false feeling, since they had felt the same way when Josh had healed them that first time as well.

They needed to wait and see if the healing would actually take hold.

*

“They are people that Hunter saved, you say?” The queen asked Gavell.

“If the story the captain of the guard told you is accurate, and we both know it is, then these are the ones that had their carriage destroyed by that band of evil doers.”

“The ones that the captain of the guard suspected they have something important about them for those people to not have killed them immediately.” The queen said. “What of the bound lamia you said was with them? Is it in a cell?”

“One of the emissaries, Steven, has assumed guarding her. I assigned two guards to the emissaries rooms, just in case.” Gavell said. “The emissary Josh said she needed healing, so I sent five of them.”

“Good.” The queen said. “The captain of the guard is right. We need to find out why they weren't just killed like the others.”

“You have the entire morning set aside for the emissaries.” Gavell said.

“I doubt I will need the whole morning.” The queen said. “Unless they are not as eloquent as Hunter.”

“Your majesty, I sincerely doubt that anyone is as eloquent as him.” Gavell said. Allirynn might be a close second, if he spoke more than a few words at a time. He thought and smiled. Not that I mind. Being quiet is nice sometimes, too.

“Very well. I will cut the emissaries visit short and try to get as much information out of them as quickly as possible.” The queen said. “After that, I will meet those two. The lamia will have to wait.”

“Yes, your majesty.” Gavell said and left her knitting room.

“Come back in, Milly.” The queen said, and Milly opened the door to the side room and came in.

“What do you think about this?” The queen asked and Milly climbed onto her lap and sat regally.

“The emissaries aren't as... for... fourth... what's that word, mother?” Milly asked.

“Forthcoming.” The queen said.

“Yes, forthcoming.” Milly said. “They aren't as forthcoming as Hunter. He only hid the details of what happened, so we wouldn't be shocked; but, he still told us what happened and didn't hide anything.”

“I was just thinking the same thing.” The queen said with a brief smile. “I'm very happy that you picked up on that subtle difference.”

“Are you going to mention it to the emissaries?” Milly asked.

“Perhaps.” The queen said. “I don't believe they will be too concerned about anything after they find out that Hunter has already left.”

“You should wait until after talking to them before telling them that.” Milly said, wisely.

The queen smiled briefly again. “Do you think they will leave to go after him, without talking to me first, if they know he's gone?”

Milly nodded.

“I'm so happy to have a daughter that's so smart.” The queen said and gave her a brief hug. Milly blushed at the compliment and hugged her mother back.

*

The healers worked for most of the night on Allirynn and Imiryl. Since Allirynn seemed to have been hurt both physically and magically, because of the lamia venom that had poisoned his own mana, he took the longest to heal. Both he and Imiryl had fallen asleep as the healers worked. When they woke up in the morning, they were alone in the room.

Allirynn sat up and looked at her. “How do you feel?”

Imiryl sighed. “Empty.”

Allirynn nodded. “I can't believe they're gone.”

“I... I know.” Imiryl said and rolled over onto her side to face away from him. She stopped fighting the tears that she had held back since it happened, and her body shook while she stopped herself from loudly sobbing. Allirynn laid back down and slid in close to her and put his arm around her waist. She tried to push it away, because if he comforted her at all, she was going to lose her self control. He knew this, so he dug his hand down in front of her and pulled her in tightly to his body to spoon her.

“N-no! Don't hold me like... like...” Imiryl's plead stopped as her mind finally gave in to her despair. All of the feelings she had repressed about losing the man that she loved came out and crushed her resolve. She burst out crying and sobbed as she held onto Allirynn's arm tightly while her tears soaked the pillow under her head.

*

Steven opened his eyes and looked at the lamia in bed beside him. He hadn't done anything to her, despite really wanting to, especially after they had shared the bath the night before. He had really needed it and had offered to help her wash up as well. She hadn't tried to get away or shook her head no, so he had bathed her. He had a very difficult time trying not to grope her with the perfect excuse of cleaning her.

Siada must have sensed that or had guessed his conflict, because she didn't try to stop him or encouraged him in any way as she stared at him the entire time and waited to see if he was going to grope her. Even now, she stared at him as if she expected him to do something to her.

“Good morning.” Steven said. “Thanks for not slithering away.”

Siada looked at her still bound wrists and back at his face.

“If it was my choice, you know I'd let you go.” Steven said and sat up. He only wore his underwear, since the silly nightgown the staff had offered to him was laughable, and he wouldn't wear it even on a dare. He thought the lamia looked great in it, though. “I'm sorry that the healers couldn't do anything for your voice.”

Siada took a breath and let it out in a long sigh.

“We'll get it figured out. Don't worry.” Steven said and got out of bed. “I wonder when...”

There was a knock on the door and Steven pulled on a robe and walked over to answer it.

“Breakfast is being served in the room at the end of the hall.” The young man said, handed Steven the pile of clothes he had asked to have washed the night before, then the man walked away.

“That's great timing.” Steven said and shut the door. “Breakfast is served.”

Siada sat up and motioned to her night dress.

“I'll help you get changed first.” Steven said and did exactly that. He untied her hands and tied one of them to the bedpost, then he slipped off her nightgown. His eyes lingered on her bare breasts and he admired how prominent they were. He had seen them quite a few times so far and he delighted in seeing them again, be it ever so briefly. He quickly put a shirt on her free arm, switched it with the hand that was tied to the bedpost, and put her other arm through the shirt and buttoned it.

It was one of his shirts, because her clothing had been damaged and not worth saving. Steven untied her hand from the bedpost and tied her hands together, then put the long skirt from the laundry on her. It slid up and over her long tail easily and he pulled it up and over her hips, then he looped the belt around her waist to hold both the shirt and skirt in place.

“I hope that's okay.” Steven asked her and she shrugged. “All right.” He said and finished getting dressed himself, then he motioned to the door. “Want me to carry you?”

Siada rolled her eyes and he laughed.

“I honestly don't mind.” Steven said and she shook her head. He put his hand around her elbow and escorted her out of the room and down the hallway.

“Good morning.” Josh said and waved at they entered the room at the end of the hall. Evangeline, Aimee, Kara, and Jessica were there, too.

“Better than some, not as good as others.” Steven said.

Josh nodded his understanding. He hadn't slept well, considering that he and Evangeline had agreed to extend their celibacy until they were back in a private room, because being in the castle and fooling around was not a good idea.

“We should hurry up and eat.” Kara said and took some food from the small buffet table. “We have to meet with the queen and we shouldn't make her wait.”

They all got food and sat down in various spots, not quite together and not quite apart, and Steven quickly ate and then helped Siada eat. They all finished eating and then someone came into the room.

“The queen will see you now.” The young man said and waited for everyone to come over to the door before he turned and led them to where they needed to go. It was a large room with only a desk and two chairs behind it. The queen sat on one and a young girl sat at her side on the other chair.

“I hear you have quite the tale to tell me.” Queen Celestina said and looked at them. “I believe you are both a party member short and have an extra party member.”

“Actually, this is one of the people Hunter rescued.” Jessica said.

“What happened?” The queen asked.

“Unfortunately, the circumstances of that encounter weren't relayed to us.” Kara said. “All we know is that she was involved with the people involved in the ambush and the other victims, which is why she is bound to prevent escape.”

“That doesn't explain why she's here with you and not in a cell or with the other two.” The queen said.

“I accepted responsibility for her.” Steven said, and the queen looked at him. “Until we find out what really happened, she needs to be both watched and protected.”

“Which fits your role as a Paladin perfectly.” The queen said and Steven nodded. “She doesn't need to be present for this, so if you are responsible for her, both you and she can go back to your rooms to wait.”

Steven held in his sigh. “You could have told me that earlier.” He whispered and led Siada back over to the door of the room. “I could have slept in.” He kept whispering and shut the door behind them.

“Obviously, he didn't realize that words spoken in this room are amplified so I can hear everything clearly.” The queen said. “Would anyone else like to complain about how I'm handling this?”

“No, your majesty.” Kara said. “I'll speak to him later about...”

“That's not necessary.” The queen said. “Can you tell me what has been going on?” She asked. “Your messages were quite short and contained no real information.”

“I didn't want to waste your time with all the details, your majesty.” Jessica said. “We discovered that we would meet Hunter and would be back here before I needed to send another message.”

“You wanted to tell me everything in person?” The queen asked. “Then it mustn't be important for you to wait this long to tell me.”

Jessica glanced at the others and saw their uncomfortable faces that matched her own. “Actually, we... we found out that only some of the reported creatures are native to this world.” She said. “The others, usually the persistent ones, arrived here through portal cracks in the world.”

The queen's eyes widened and she raised her eyebrows to the highest they had ever been, which was the most shock she had ever shown in her entire life. “Did you say cracks in the world?” She asked, her voice a full octave higher in pitch.

“Yes, your majesty.” Jessica said and told her about them and how many they had encountered so far.

The queen picked up a little bell and rang it.

Gavell came into the room and walked over to her. “Yes, your majesty?”

“Gather the court mages. I need to send word to every town and city in the kingdom to warn them about an immediate threat.” The queen commanded in her normal tone.

Gavell nodded and left at a fast walk.

“Your majesty, I don't believe it's an immediate threat.” Josh said. “We've been...”

“What you believe is irrelevant.” The queen said and cut him off. “What I perceive as a threat to the people in my kingdom is more important than your opinion.” She said. “How many people have died trying to investigate these cracks? How many have died trying to fight these... otherworldly creatures?”

“Your majesty, this has been going on for years, even decades, according to some of the witnesses.” Josh said to try and mitigate the mistake they had made in not telling her before now.

“How many have been lost or killed around the whole country, or around the world, since you found out about them over a week ago?” The queen asked with deadly precision to cut off his defense.

“There's no real way to calculate that, since we don't know how many cracks that exist or where they are.” Kara said.

“Yes, that is correct.” The queen said and saw them relax slightly. “However, people are still dying and I've lost a week of time for my magic users to try and discover a way to find them.” She said. “Hopefully, with two magic users that have felt and seen these cracks, it will cut down on the time we need to discover if they can be found.”

“We will gladly do everything we can to help.” Jessica said.

“You mentioned that you managed to close these cracks on your way back here.” The queen said. “How exactly did you do that?”

“It... wasn't actually us that did it.” Josh said. “We prayed and asked for divine intervention, then the Goddess Chaiya embodied one of the Acolytes of Light and she closed the cracks.” He glanced at Evangeline and Aimee. “I've never actually seen it myself because it drains me and I fall unconscious.”

The queen's eyebrows raised up to as high as they had ever been, for the second time in her life, and she stared at them with wide eyes. “I thought you claimed that you needed your other party member to be more effective?”

“We do need him.” Both Kara and Jessica said at the same time.

“You just told me you brought a manifestation of a goddess into being and she used her powers.” The queen said. “How can you be more effective than that?”

“It feels like... like something is missing.” Jessica said as she tried to put her thoughts into words. “We're working well together and we're doing things that none of us has ever thought possible; and yet, every time we go in to fight the monsters or to call for help from the Goddess, it seems like... like... it's not complete. There should be something else. Something we're missing. Since we don't have it with us, it feels a little off... or a little wrong.”

Josh leaned close to her and turned his head to whisper in her ear. “You didn't mention that before.”

Jessica didn't say anything in response.

“I haven't felt anything like that.” Josh whispered. “When did you...”

“I can still hear whispers.” The queen reminded them and Josh jumped a little and turned his head back to face her with surprise on his face. “So, while I wait for the mages to prepare, you might as well tell me all of those details that you thought I was too busy to hear.”

The others looked at Kara, who was the only one that had been conscious each time the Goddess Chaiya had been called, so she started to tell the queen everything that had happened since they had left the capital city.