The view of her castle was breathtaking. She had always found this place to be intriguing. She liked the way the spires almost looked like the tops of the firs and spruces. She paused, looking at it. She had always wanted to see the castle refurnished, hadn’t she? That seemed right. Memories of it being completely empty except for skeletons and cobwebs flooded her mind. No, that wasn’t right. The castle had been full of people for as long as she could remember. She just couldn’t remember any of them except for Mathias.

She was certain that it was her fault. She should have gotten to know more of the staff. She had such a habit of wandering off alone, the way she did today. She made her way back. She had gone too far, and her leg was really hurting now. She picked up a branch of a fallen tree and used it to lean on.

She almost stumbled when she remembered a cave. There were people coming to hurt her and she was on the ceiling of a cave. She was hunting. That had to be a dream, but it was like she was there for a moment. Maybe spending time alone in the forest was wrong. She needed to find someone and talk to them. Then she could use their expressions to judge whether or not she was really crazy.

She climbed up the steps to the kitchen and put her hand on the door, but the inside of the kitchen was completely empty. It was spotless. A large pot sat on the stove. There was something in it that smelled amazing. No one was looking. She dropped the stick outside and made her way to the pot of food. Where did the cook keep bowls?

She felt like she was sneaking around her own house. Someone behind her cleared his throat and she jumped.

Mathias was standing behind her. She hadn’t even heard him enter the kitchen. “Your majesty, I am glad you are here. I have someone waiting to meet you in the dining room.”

“Thank you, Mathias. I appreciate how much you have helped me.”

Mathias looked uncomfortable at the praise. Then he cleared his throat and led her to the dining room. A man stood from the table and bowed as she entered. “This is our new captain of the guards, Captain Reginald Hathaway.”

She held out a hand to him and he bowed, kissing her ring. “It is an honor to serve your majesty.” He was an older man with a graying beard and a receding hairline. He kept his hair very short and his green uniform meat.

She sat at the table and he followed suit. She felt uncertain about this meeting. She didn’t know the man and she didn’t want to make a bad impression. The captain of the guards could be a powerful ally or the heir’s worst enemy.

“I know that you are very busy, and so I hesitated to bother you to tell you this, but I fear that we have monsters invading our borders. We must act now or our kingdom will be overrun.” His voice was gravely.

Delilah hesitated. She had so many doubts about her sanity. “Maybe I should come to the borders to see what is going on.” And maybe that would give her time to figure out what was wrong with her.

“As you wish, your majesty. When would you like to leave?”

Mathias cut in. “I am sure that this situation does not require you to risk your own life and the well-being of the kingdom. Surely you can send the soldiers out to battle without taking that chance.”

“I don’t know. I have yet to see the battlefield.”

“I could speak with Lillith,” the captain of the guards offered.

Delilah a flash of anger. She did not like Lillith and she could not remember why. She didn’t want her in her castle. “No!” She said louder than she meant to. She calmed herself. “We don’t need to involve Lillith with every little thing. Will you be satisfied if I just send out the troops?”

“I think that is most wise,” said the captain. Her servant nodded as if that seemed perfectly natural. She wished she remembered what it was about the other woman that made her so angry.

Delilah could send out the troops from the castle. She didn’t need to risk herself. They were probably right, but she had just been wandering around the forest and no one seemed to mind that. She was sure a battlefield was different. She rose from her chair, tryin got keep weight off of her throbbing right leg.

Mathias turned to go, but Delilah stops him. “If anyone with magic comes around, you are to notify me at once.” Mathias bowed and left and Delilah and Captain Reginald went out to speak with the troops. This was her army and she would take charge of it.

“Aaron, I need you to come with me,” Hailey said.

Aaron stepped away from the long table. The other men grinned at him and Donald even waved at Hailey. They were getting used to Hailey demanding his time and so was he. He loved to be by her side. She wore a pink shirt and gray skirt along with a pair of solid boots. He didn’t like the way some of the other men were looking at her and so he led her out into the hallway. “Where are we going?” He didn’t mind that she asked for his help frequently, but he was going to get comments from the other men.

“I need to go consult with Sylphana and I want you to come with me. Look. I have waterskins for us and everything.”

“He stopped walking. But that’s beyond the shimmer.”

“Yes,” said Hailey. “Don’t worry. I can port us back if there is anything dangerous in the forest.”

He swallowed. His heart quickened at the mention of stepping into the shimmer. Some of the other soldiers had done it. Burton’s brother had tried it and had gotten lost. Still, he knew Hailey had been there. He had even gone with her to fight the dragon. That seemed ages ago, and it was one of the most terrifying experiences of his life. Sure, it had finally earned him the respect of his fellow soldiers, but that didn’t mean he wanted to be on the other side of the shimmer ever again.

Hailey seemed preoccupied with things and overlooked his fear. He didn’t want to seem like a coward, but any sane man knew that death awaited them on the other side of the shimmer. She created a portal just outside the castle. These were still new to him, but he stepped through. It was like walking out of a door, except that the weather could change on the other side of it. You could be in a building and then find yourself in the middle of a forest and a thunderstorm.

He wondered how much she took what she could do for granted. Sure, no one else could make passageways to the middle of the forest, but she never talked about how amazing that was. On the other side of the portal, he found himself facing the shimmer. It was a wall that stretched up as far as he could see. It was either blue or green, depending on who you asked and it shimmered in the afternoon sun.

She glanced at him, letting her portal close behind her. She carried with her a small bag and one of the waterskis was strapped across one shoulder. “Don’t worry,” she said. “I can protect you.” She pulled a small book out of her bag and read over it. Then she moved her arms in a wide arc and touched his hand. “Munitura,” she said.

He didn’t feel any different. “Did it work?”

“Yes. The fairies won’t bother you, but they might be annoyed that they can’t do anything to you. They threw pinecones at me when I entered.”

“Ok,” he said, feeling like a complete fool. She took his hand and they entered the shimmer.