A commotion to her right drew her attention. The players at one of the tables closest to the wide staircase were now all on their feet, shouting unintelligible words while two brawny men in grey uniforms rushed towards them. So that was security.

The guards were not much taller than her, but a fair bit wider. Leyla sized up their weapons: two daggers on either side of the belts, and a thick rectangular shield strapped to their backs. Their shields were too cumbersome and thin to do much good against her sword, but they would probably work against those pick-axes many of the customers seemed to be carrying.

"Ar Dis Ick !" The bulkier of the two guards growled as he took hold of the crouching body beneath the table. The rest of the table shook their fists, obviously pleased with the guards actions. Another moment went by before the guard managed to pull the figure out into the open and Leyla was surprised to see how short and thin the boy was. The brown sleeves of his shirt fell back, revealing pale white skin as he struggled to escape his assailant. Michael? She waited, hoping to catch a glimpse of his face, but the other guard took his second arm and he was dragged towards the stairs while the customers at the table resumed their seats.

Before Leyla could decide what to do, the little boy let out a cry and yanked at his captors, managing to knock the shorter one off balance. The guard tumbled down five sets of stairs before he managed to catch the slim railings. The taller guard backhanded the boy in anger, sending him flying back towards the opposite railing. That move clinched it for Leyla.

In four strides, she had the smaller guard by the cuff and was flinging him down the rest of the steps. The bigger guard gaped at the sight of her, his eyes flitting from her sword to her face. She didn't need a weapon to make short work of him. "RUD!" he barked, pulling out his knife. Leyla took two steps, grabbed his wrist as he swung the sharp blade down, pushed up on his elbow and twisted the weapon out of his hands. Two short jabs at his shocked face and he went rolling down to accompany his friend at the bottom of the stairs.

"Ler Te Shek." The soft voice belonged to the boy at the railing. His gentle features were scrunched up in pain, his grey eyes grateful. Leyla scanned the mud smeared visage, noting the light brown hair that stuck out from under the ugly brown hat atop his head. Small though he was, he wasn't short enough to be a 9-year old, nor did he have the right colouring.

"RUD!" The sound came from above. Leyla looked up to find another ten guards rushing down from the top floor, knives in hand. Bloody Diya. Grabbing the boy by the hand, she pulled him down the steps and shoved him under the closest table. By now, every eye in the establishment was on the action and the players moved hastily towards the walls. She turned back to face the staircase, her hand itching to grab her bow and arrow and finish this quickly, but she didn't. Neither did she reach for her sword. She had to sort this with as little harm to these men as possible is she wanted the owner of the establishment to help her find Michael.

"AAHHH!" Two guards reached her at once, shouting as the sliced with their knives. Leyla moved out of their way easily, rolled behind one of them and grabbed his weapon. While he spun, she kicked back and up, disarming the second man before whisking his shield off of his back. Both men stared bemused as Leyla raised the shield to ward off the second wave of attack. Three blades lodged into the thin metal and before the attackers could pull them out, Leyla pushed the rectangle sideways and slammed it sharply into their soft stomaches. They doubled over, receiving her side-kick on their faces before toppling like lumber.

Five down, another five to go. Leyla stood her ground, balancing her body and sizing up the last guards who were wearily circling her.

"RET YE!" The command was followed by complete silence as a short man wearing a black eyepatch appeared at the top step of the fourth floor. Judging by the silver cuffs on his wrists and the fancy embroidery on his red tunic, this had to be the establishment boss. It was impossible to tell what colour the eye was that stared at her across the gambling den, but the meaning of his hand gesture was clear. Come here.

Leyla watched as the men she had downed pick themselves up and joined their compatriots on either side of the staircase. The customers had yet to move, their shocked gazes rushing from the Boss to her and back.

Alright. If anyone would know about a foreign boy that had landed in this plateau two weeks ago, it had to be the man on the top floor. She strode forward, then stopping beside the table where the little boy was hiding, curled her fingers in a command for him to get out. He scrambled up and clung to the back of her shirt. Two guards sneered at the sight of him, but Leyla's hand on the hilt of her sword kept them from making a move. With her young charge following like her shadow, she moved to climb the steps. Slowly, customers moved back to their tables and the games resumed.

The third floor had a different feel to it. There were only two tables on either side and at the centre of it all was a throne like chair where the one-eyed boss had resumed his seat. Guards stood along the walls and girls in sheer-red dresses were draped over the laps of pot-bellied men who halted their playing when she came into view.

"Ra-ak!" The boss called out.

A teenager in poor clothing and visible welt marks rushed out from a door nearby, his head bowed low as he approached his master. She felt the boy behind her shiver. Did these people enjoy torturing the young? The boss spat as he continued to bellow commands. The teenager nodded once, twice, three times before he stopped and turned a shocked blue gaze her way.

Jet-black hair, high-cheekbones and eyes that spoke of an intelligence far beyond his years, he stared at her with incredulity. Michael? But it couldn't be. He looked at least thirteen, nowhere near the nine-year old he was meant to be! Still, the similarity to the portrait...

"Michael?" The question drew the Boss's angry gaze and pulled another torrent of unintelligible sounds from his lips.

"You are from the Warrior Kingdom?" The young man replied in the dialect of the Land of Light. So it was Michael. Leyla felt a tremendous weight lift from her chest. She had found him. The Crossing was real. Now all she had to do was take him back to the portal and this nightmare would be over...

"Your parents sent me to bring you home."

Tears welled up in the boys eyes, but he hid them quickly when the Boss shoved at him with obvious irritation. "You have to be careful," Micheal's voice shook with fear. "The man beside me is crueler then you can imagine. If he wasn't curious about your fighting skills he would have had you killed by now."

"Don't be afraid, I can take them all. No one will hurt you anymore." She looked around herself, counting the guards on this floor and adding the ones behind her. Thirty men armed with long-knives. They weren't half as worrisome as the No-Lander ambushers she had faced only days ago.

Tired of weighting for his lackey to translate, the Boss kicked Michael to the side and motioned for his men to attack. The boy behind Leyla pulled on her coat in fear.

"Licha! Licha!" Michael beseeched but the Boss wasn't listening and neither was Leyla. They had to get out of here, now. Grabbing the boy behind her, she swung him to Michael's side and pulled out her sword. Steel clashed with steel as she disarmed the first man and kicked him towards the gamblers to the left. The table went flying, the customers and girls rushing every which way and blocking the paths of guards who were trying to rush at Leyla. Taking two running steps she grabbed onto a pole and swung herself onto the banister. Four floors down, customers who had been alerted to the noise gasped as they watched her balance on the thin piece of wood. She pulled out her bow, placed three arrows at once and fired. Three guards went down. The others slowed their approach, uncertain which gave Leyla the space she needed. Grabbing the arrows, she shot once, twice, three more times, clearing a path between her and the boys.

"Let's go!"

Michael heeded her command, pulling the smaller boy with him as they followed Leyla to the top of the stairs. She made short work of the guards blocking the way down, kicking two of them off balance and using their bodies to knock the ones below off their feet. The boys were right behind her now, "Move. Move. Move!" She knocked out four more guards before they made it to the bottom floor and ran out the door.

Outside, the mud-hut village greeted them with silence. Leyla pushed the boys in front of her and commanded them to "RUN!" then placed another arrow on her bow. The guards were not far behind them and the Boss had finally gotten smart. Leyla didn't know what he had promised them, but a horde of pick-axed gamblers were now also on their tail.

"By Tevvuk's beard, MOVE!" The boys were not fast enough! She spun, kneeling to shoot their closest pursuers. Five men went down, their shrill cries echoing between the buttes. The gamblers fled to the mud houses for cover, but the guards pressed on. Leyla shot several more arrows in quick succession, only stopping when the guards too, ran for cover. It was not a moment too soon; she only had one arrow left.

Spinning round, she followed the boys who were now a good distance ahead. Pushing her muscles for more speed, she caught up to them and led them behind the mud houses to the left. The boys were out of breath by the time they reached the first of the big stacked boulders that marked the end of the plateau. Behind them, she could hear the guards approaching, but Leyla did not turn around.

"Climb!" She commanded.

Despite his thin limbs, Michael climbed quickly. The younger boy, however, was slowing them all down. By the time they were almost at the top, a guard was right below the young boy, his hand stretching to grab his ankle.

"Leave him alone!" Michael's voice rang out as a rock hit the guards forehead, sending him falling back on top of his compatriots. Leyla reached back and pulled the boy up by the collar until they made it to the top of the boulder stack. Several guards and a few gamblers were close on their heals. "We are almost there!" Leyla shouted as she jumped down the other side. The ground was much higher here and there was only a few feet to drop. The boys followed her as they wound around the red rocks to the bird shaped boulder she had marked in her mind. "Grab my hand!" She reached her left hand back to Michael and took the boy's with the other. The pursuers were almost upon them. There would be no time to think, they had to jump into the black puddle without hesitation.

Their pursuers shouted. A pick axe flew threw the air, lodging itself near their heels. Leyla ignored it all as they turned to corner and ran into the clearing, then skidded to a halt.

The portal was gone.