Over the foul smelling swamp, the sun rose, and with it the weary travelers. Birds had been singing for more than an hour already, and Emile groggily rolled up the sleeping bag that she’d kicked away from her in the night. The ground here squelched beneath her feet, and as soon as she left the safety of the big canvas tent, mosquitoes started landing on her skin. She swatted them away irritably, and fell into the now painfully familiar routine.

They were breaking camp for the fifth time, and Emile was growing suspicious. Their stay at The Wizard’s Staff felt like a lifetime ago. It had only been nine days since her father cooked her breakfast, but it seemed like an eternity since she had felt safe. Under the doctor’s orders, Sevil, Toby, and Ravenhair had left to hunt down the wizards and mages that had fled from the University, but Emile was beginning to question everything the doctor said.

Julie had insisted on accompanying Emile. She claimed that she owed Emile her life and felt obligated to stay with her, but it felt like she wasn’t very interested in spending time with Emile. Her days were spent lagging behind with Demetrius, lost in deep conversation, punctuated by bursts of laughter.

The five days of traveling seemed to have done Demetrius a world of good, his skin no longer had the sickly pallor to it, and even his hair seemed less greasy. He was also smiling a lot more and no longer walked with his head down. Emile appreciated them both, and occasionally joined them in their discussions about magic and history, but as the days wore on, she felt more and more like she was intruding.

Wendel was no comfort to anyone, least of all to himself. He did the least amount of work possible, refusing to help set up tents, and always claiming that it was someone else’s turn to take night watch. Emile had tried to help him on the first day. She told him that he should cheer up, and he seemed willing enough to follow her advice, immediately. However, within a matter of hours he seemed indignant again, more so even than he was before. After that, he did his best to avoid Emile, walking as far away from her and the rest of the group as possible. There had been a heated argument on the third day, and Emile heard Wendel shout her name. She could not hear what the doctor had told him, but since then he had not spoken to anyone.

Dr. Mendes was inscrutable. Emile had trusted her completely when she said that they needed to find the source of the attack on Uriel before she could help her father. However, as the days wore on, Emile was growing more and more frustrated with the lack of action. The doctor promised that they would arrive at Uriel today, and from there they would be able to ascertain the origin of the attack.

Gypsum was the only one that Emile felt she could rely on completely. The little dragon was growing extremely quickly, her head now level with Emile’s when she stood on her hind legs. Travelling meant hunting, and hunting filled Gypsum with joy. Emile relished her stories. Whenever she would return from a hunt, it was like Emile was doing the hunting herself. Now Gypsum bounded up to the campsite, the rising sun illuminating the dragon’s smooth, green wings. Emile ran off from the group to meet her, and caught the dragon in a warm embrace. Images and emotions flooded Emile’s mind, and she was shocked at what she saw.

Strange desert images flowed into Emile’s mind, and she was surprised to see that there was a clear line Gypsum had crossed from the swampy forest into the beginning of the desert. It looked unnatural, like a line drawn in the sand with a stick. One side was murky swamp, and the other was white sand. Emile rubbed Gypsum’s head affectionately, and ran back to tell Dr. Mendes.

“The desert’s just up ahead!” Emile said to the doctor who was now standing with Julie and Demetrius. Wendel was holding himself apart from the group, as usual. It was hard to gauge the passage of time while Emile talked to Gypsum. Apparently they had finished taking down the tent and packing everything up.

“Yes, the beginning of the Null Zone,” The doctor held Emile’s pack out to her, “I told you that we should be arriving in Uriel today, and I showed you on your map.”

Emile took her pack and slung it over her shoulders, “I know,” Emile felt slightly reassured that the doctor had at least been telling the truth about that, “I guess I was just surprised to see it. The way it’s right next to the swamp. It’s very strange.”

The doctor looked from Emile to Gypsum and back again, then said with a smile, “Many things are strange, that’s what makes life exciting,”

Demetrius interjected, “Actually, it’s quite interesting how that came to happen,” everyone fell into step behind the doctor, heading in the direction that Gypsum had just come from, “The null zone actually used to be very fertile farmlands.”

Julie plied him to continue, “Oh really? What happened?”

Wendel was keeping pace with the rest of the group, but walked a good distance apart from them. He kept glaring angrily as Demetrius began to explain, “There was a very powerful clan of wizards, whose towers were the last to fall,” Emile noticed how enraptured Julie became whenever Demetrius would share his knowledge, “It was unusual during the war for a clan to occupy more than one tower.”

Dr. Mendes had never corrected him before, but she interrupted him now, “That’s not quite true,” she said, not looking back, “I think that depends more on how you define a clan.”

No one said anything, waiting for the doctor to continue. Even Wendel seemed to be edging closer to the group, drawn by the sound of her melodious voice. When she didn’t say anything else, Julie asked, “What do you mean, ‘how you define a clan?’”

“Let us take for an example not the famous Anasazi clan, whose Death Curses tore the land we are about to enter asunder, but rather two who are mere historical footnotes. The tower of Feld and the tower of Byrne.” The were pushing through the mandrakes, making good time now, spurred on by the promise of being out of the gloom of the swamp, “The Feld clan occupied a tower to the north east of here for generations. They were powerful, in their own way, but unambitious. They wanted to maintain, not to expand. All of the research they were doing has been assumed by the University, and as far as I know, though they never had their tower dismantled, it stands simply as a monument to some sort of idiotic family pride.”

“The Byrne clan, however, was very ambitious. They sought to control ever more land, expanding, always skirmishing with neighbors. It is true that they occupied only one tower, but the land that served that tower grew by the day, the smallfolk falling under the boots of the Byrne wizards. Caravans of gold and silver, mined under the cruel whips of abominations that the Byrne wizards set upon the people, streamed steadily to their tower, fueling their expansion. If my memory serves, their tower lay to the west of the Feld tower. It was inevitable, therefore, that eventually the Byrne wizards would try to take the lands of Feld.”

Emile was enraptured listening to the doctor, her worries obliviated by the joy of story telling. The doctor continued, “This was all well before the rise of the good king, and in those days, the occupants of every tower boasted mightily of their pride and prowess. But the Feld wizards were no fools, they knew of the deeds of Byrne. They knew of the twisted abominations, born from earth and fire and twisting the life strands of man and beast. The head of the Feld clan sent an emissary in secret, claiming that the clan Feld wished to join the clan Byrne.”

Wendel had meandered his way close enough that it actually seemed he was walking with the group, he spoke now for the first time in days, “There was no mention of this alliance in any of my classes.” He sounded tentative, but seemed unable to stop himself from speaking.

Demetrius echoed him, “None of the history books mention it either.”

Dr Mendes pressed on, neither slowing nor looking back, “History is written by the winners. The clan Feld still holds lands to this day, but where is the Byrne clan? And what of their tower?”

Julie answered before anyone else could, “I’ve been to Feld keep, I’ve seen their tower. They’re not doing very well there, I don’t know if I’d call them winners.” Her words sounded sad to Emile.

“Yes,” the doctor said, “Barron is a weak ruler. He was a weak ruler even before the wasting sickness took hold of him. Simon would have been the better choice to bring around some semblance of order to those lands, but he took the king’s coin. There was a time when being an officer under the regime was a great honor.” Her voice was wistful, “I digress, however. I was explaining about how ‘clan’ can be defined differently. An emissary was sent, and the Byrne tower received her. She was apparently very convincing, explaining that the Felds wished to join the Byrnes. This was not unheard of in those days, it is mostly just undocumented because of the pride still raging in the bloodlines of those old towers. Everyone wants to be a bastion of independence, but no one stands truly alone.”

“It was so common, in fact, that there was a standard procedure. The Byrne’s were the being supplicated and thus in a show of good faith, the Felds granted the coordinates to their telereception room and let down their wards. Battle ready wizards and their abominations flooded the Feld tower. Access to all of their research and a tour of their tower was given and finally satisfied that they had loyalty, the leader of the Byrne clan met with the Feld’s leader and they signed a nonaggression treaty.”

Julie stopped walking for a moment and said, “That’s it? Just a treaty? Weren’t they worried that the Byrne’s would try to double cross them?”

It was Wendel that answered, he seemed much more engaged than he had been since they left the inn, “Oh, you can’t break a magical contract.”

Dr. Mendes laughed and said, “True as that may usually be, the contract was broken.”

Wendel and Julie asked at once, “How?”

Demetrius was the one that answered, and sounded strangely dismal, “The good king.”

Dr. Mendes picked up his thought, “Correct. King Hubert made an offer to the Felds. Although to be fair to him, he made the same offer to the Byrnes as well.”

Wendel seemed positively jubilant now, by comparison to the past few days, “That’s right! King Hubert sent out emissaries to the five towers closest to him. The Feld clan and the Sireadh clan were the first two to swear allegiance. The emissaries from the other three towers never came back, and that was the beginning of the Unification.”

“Yes,” Dr. Mendes said, “Some argue that those were the only two towers who gave their allegiance freely, but if we consider the position that the Felds were in, perhaps there was no real choice for them at all. By the time Hubert began his rise, generations had passed since the signing of the non aggression treaty. The Byrnes were still blood-bound to the conditions of the treaty, but as I am sure judge Gast can explain better than I ever could, there are ways around the wording of even the best written contract. The Byrnes were constantly making more and more demands from the Feld lands. Their lust for power caused them to engage in a vicious battle westward. Their resources were stretched, and though theirs was a war of their own making, they demanded more and more from the Felds, and there was no choice but to submit. The wizards at the Feld tower were forced into treacherous, often fatal, research. Their own supplies were diverted, and they were compelled to slave day and night, creating wicked weapons and enchantments. When the emissaries from Hubert arrived, it must have been like a rope tossed to a drowning man. Therefore, it is no surprise that they double crossed the Byrnes.”

The story had entranced Emile. She thought of the terrifying monsters in the Feld tower, supervising the creation of deadly weapons, and shuddered. Dr. Mendes pronounced, “Alas, I have allowed myself to fall victim to a tangent. Simply put, there were many such alliances, some much more symbiotic. Demetrius was partially correct though, the Anasazi clan was almost unique in their construction of multiple towers. I merely meant to say that if we consider alliances such as the Byrne-Feld alliance as a form of a larger clan, there were many clans that occupied multiple towers.”

The doctor fell silent again, and Demetrius seemed to take it as a cue to continue where he had left off, turning to Julie and saying, “The Anasazi clan occupied eleven towers in what is now the null zone, and-”

Emile cut him off, “But what about the contract! How did they break it?”

Dr. Mendes stopped walking finally, and turned back to answer, “Hubert told them they had to break it. The blood of many of the Felds boiled in their bodies, as per the terms of the agreement, but break it they did. They turned the weapons they were making for the Byrne’s on their allies, and attacked from within the Byrne’s tower. The attack was a complete surprise, and it was the first of many gruesome battles fought on the good king’s orders. The Byrne line was completely destroyed, and nearly all of the Felds were eradicated,” the doctor stared at the sky, the sun was well risen now, but heavy clouds had drifted in front of it casting a shadow on the land, “Still, Hubert secured his objective, and after the destruction of the Byrne’s tower, it was that much easier for him to impose his will on the other towers.” She turned again, and started walking, but Emile stood stock still for a moment, considering the implication. It frightened her to think that the king sacrificed his first allies so callously.

Julie lightly put her hand on Emile’s back, and she let herself be pushed along. Demetrius started his explanation about the formation null zone again, but Emile was hardly paying attention. Death Curses were not a novel concept to Emile, everyone told their children bedtime stories about the terrifying effect of a tower wizard’s last breath. Each one was different, some creating fiery explosions, others supposedly ripping the very souls from any who were unfortunate enough to be in proximity.

Demetrius was explaining how the Anasazi clan had concocted a chain reaction that was triggered if any of them were killed. It was supposed to be a deterrent against attacking their towers, but apparently that had not stopped Hubert, and as a result the null zone was created. Emile was only drifting in and out of the conversation, her mind kept circling back around to parts of the doctor’s story. Everyone always referred to Hubert the First as the ‘good’ king, but was he?

Distracted as she was, it did not seem to take very long to reach the edge of the swamp. Just as Gypsum had shown her, it seemed to stop abruptly as though there was an invisible line that seperated life from death. On one side there was a dense swampy forest filled with birds and insects, full of sound and motion. On the other, desolate white sands stretched as far as Emile could see. Through her own eyes though, Emile could see a patchwork of tiny green plants in the distance that she had not noticed through Gypsum’s vision.

“I thought you said nothing could grow here?” Emile heard Julie ask Demetrius.

“Well, that’s what it said in the book, but I’ve never been here before.” Demetrius seemed just as surprised by the foliage.

The doctor was still standing inside the boundaries of the swamp, and turned to address the group as a whole, “The null zone is receding. The town of Uriel would not have been able to exist inside of the null zone proper. Nothing grows there, and more importantly,” she turned to Wendel, “Enchantments, spells, and wards do not work within. I know that you understand that intellectually, but being inside is a different thing entirely. You will feel it when we enter.”

“Are you certain that we have to go inside?” Wendel sounded nervous at the prospect.

“When we get to Uriel, I will finish my investigation, and we shall see.” The doctor stepped out of the mud and into the sand.

Travel became much easier now. The clouds in the sky seemed to grow and grow as they went. It was very flat land, and Emile could see far into the distance. Before long she could make out tiny specks that grew and grew until they became the red walls of buildings. The ground changed subtly as they approached Uriel, shifting from white to red, and the green shrubbery became denser, though still very scattered. It was an eerie sight entering the tiny village, corpses littered the streets, most picked clean of their most tender flesh. The stench was overpowering.

They walked into the town proper, and Emile noticed that Demetrius had stopped walking some ways back. She turned to see if there was something the matter, and from a distance noticed that he was convulsing slightly. Julie broke off from the group, and ran back to check on him. Emile followed her, concerned, noticing the look of disgust on Wendel’s face. As she passed him, she heard him mutter something under his breath about ‘weakness’.

“Demetrius?” Julie was an arm’s length away from him now, and reached out to caress his face.

His voice was hitching as he spoke, “I don’t think I can stand to look at them, can you ask her if I have to?” He turned away from the village, and stared back towards where they had come from.

Emile didn’t want Demetrius to cry, “I’ll tell her that you don’t have to.” She ran off back into the village to catch up with Dr. Mendes, passing the wretched bodies with indifference. Poor man, she thought not about the corpse but about Demetrius.

Dr. Mendes was kneeling with Wendel, carefully examining nearly invisible tracks in the sand when Emile approached her, “I don’t think Demetrius can come into the village, he’s crying.”

The doctor looked up, “Tell him that he and Julie may keep watch outside the village then.”

Wendel looked up smugly, “They’d only get in the way.” Emile and the doctor both looked at him cooly, and he returned to making a show of examining the tracks in the sand.

“Like you’re so much help!” Emile chastised him, and then said to the doctor, “I’ll tell them, thank you.”

She returned to the outskirts of the village, to find Demetrius sitting cross legged on the sand, Julie had an arm wrapped around his shoulder, “The doctor Mendes says that you don’t have to come into the village. She says you two should keep watch out here.”

Emile didn’t know what she could do to help the doctor with her investigation, and it seemed wrong to stay with Julie and Demetrius outside the village. She busied herself instead by exploring the town. There was no inn, which surprised her. The houses were all very small, and made of the same reddish stone, and after a while she got bored going through people’s things. She had been hoping to find a book to read or something, but there was almost nothing interesting in any of the houses. The sun set behind the dark clouds, and it was a very dark night in the overcast. When pressed, the doctor said that the tracks definitely came from the null zone, and that tomorrow they would make their way west. No one seemed excited at the prospect.

Emile was exhausted, she wanted to sleep in one of the houses, but the doctor insisted that the group stay together, and sleep in the big canvas tent again. It would have been easy for Emile to press the issue, but she knew that the doctor was probably right, and so she tried to make herself as comfortable as possible in her sleeping bag. Julie and Demetrius were going to take the first watch shift. Gypsum usually hunted at night, but she seemed anxious to stay by Emile’s side, and so with the doctor and Wendel curled up in opposite corners of the tent, Emile fell asleep with her arms wrapped around the dragon’s neck.

The sounds of shouting and a struggle brought Emile to consciousness abruptly. Gypsum was on her feet hissing. The tent was dark, but Emile could make out the doctor and Wendel struggling with two people she didn’t recognize at first. Then she realised who they were, though now they were wearing bizzare garb, “Ludlow? Vidian? What are you doing here?”

Wendel was struggling with Ludlow, who seemed to be wearing a cloak made of strangely tattered bits of cloth that hung all around him like feathers. Light flared from the flap to the outside. Demetrius and Julie burst into the tent. Demetrius was holding a flickering lightstone, that illuminated the tent in flashes like lightning. Emile could see now, that the doctor was easily pinning Vidian to the ground, holding her down by her wrist which was wrapped up behind her back awkwardly. Vidian was also wearing a feathery cloak, but her hood had been pulled back to reveal her sickly and beautiful face.

“You know these people?” The doctor spoke very calmly, as if she was sitting down for tea rather than pinning a woman to the ground with one hand and her knee, “Who are they?”

“They sold me the egg. Gypsum’s egg.”