A swirl of pink light filled our surroundings, and through it, gravity’s downward force eased and we moved faster. Less than ten minutes and the people in the spatial hub were out of my range, offering an ignorance that filled me with dread. None of us spoke, which meant the air was filled with the pounding of footsteps, panted breaths, and the sound of Surya’s wings brushing against the confines of the tunnel.

What felt like years ago I’d been in a situation like this before: travelling through the mines of Malnor, afraid that a monster would pop out of every corner, hating everyone for not putting my wishes at the forefront. The fear was still there, but this time I felt driven — Clyde ran in front of me, the months of meagre eating visible with him in how heavily he breathed, and my friends were around me.

All were people I wanted to protect.

This time I wasn’t going to freeze. This time, I wouldn’t have to think my way past emotions, tricking myself into seeing the bigger picture. The picture was a small one, but it was no less important.

Every few seconds stone became liquid and sloshed, rising in a tide before solidifying — a sound that was much like the cracking of ice but lower in timbre. The two Urocy who’d built the wall ran after us, catching up before they raised another wall.

Then they appeared. Eight in total, four behind and four ahead.

A plan had been discussed, possibilities of how this attack might play out. The Urocy had kept the tunnels narrowed so the spatial mage had to be careful about how they teleported people in, which meant they wouldn’t move too many people with the space too closed in. Only the elite guards would be transported, and Allyceus, his ladies-in-waiting, and Owain Junior would want to be part of the assault.

There would be two groups with a mix of ranged and close-combat fighters, bringing with it an amount of predictability in how the groups would be formed.

“They’re here!” I shouted, wrenching my mind from the stream of thought. A moment later, a crackle of electricity filled our narrow surroundings, its shriek getting louder as the projectile flew close; through instinct, my gun shot up and went off. The bang was loud and the bloom of fire harsh. Jaslynn’s disc jumped up, only to be knocked back by a golden spearhead that rippled out of existence a moment later.

“Widen our surroundings and disappear!” Surefoot intoned as Matthaeus shouted, “Down!”

I ducked, a yelp reverberating as I pulled Clyde down with me.

The air rushed as Matthaeus spun on a dime, giving his hammer momentum before it slammed into the barrier behind us. The wall the Urocy had created hurtled back without breaking and the points behind us were forced back by the barrier. There was a crash, but none of the four points blinked out of existence.

“Someone’s coming!” I said as the walls and ceiling were thrust out to make the tunnel into a room; the effect didn’t reach very far, only serving to give us more room, while the others were still closed in. It was a stalling tactic, pulling people back from nowhere was harder than sending them away and we hoped by doing this — especially with the mage still having to work through the Urocy’s strange spatial obelisk — it would give us more time in the second phase of the run.

Whoever had been closing the distance — running along the wall — was forced to jump, thrusting themselves forward with great speed.

They appeared, illuminated Surefoot’s pink light: a man wearing big armour and carrying a sword with a large and long blade; a scream ripped through him as he swung the sword down, and magenta light concentrated around it before it escaped in a slash of concentrated gravity.

Surefoot acted, the sea pink around us turning magenta before hurtling to either side. We were tossed aside, missed by the slash of gravity which created a great cut at the centre of the tunnel. Where the rest of us had to catch ourselves to keep from falling, Surya had used the now open space to fly up — which meant the thrust of gravity slipped off him as the magic of his wings infused him.

Surya levelled his spear and three thumps rang out, followed by clangs as Eleus blocked the spearheads with slashes of his sword. Matthaeus’ hammer found ground and, as quick as lightning, a crack travelled towards an Eleus whose sword was still mid-swing; a roar reverberated as a pillar jutted out of the ground, Eleus had been prepared for it however, thrusting himself back to be swallowed up by the darkness of the narrow tunnel beyond.

The Urocy intoned a sound that might have been a phrase and the ground rippled, surging into a wall that blocked Eleus off; behind us a deep groan reverberated, not the sound of earthen magic, but something cutting into or hitting the stone barrier.

Eight Urocy — two protected Mellowwind, two ran from one side of our alcove to the other, building another wall, and the other four making the hole that would lead us deeper into the earth, and deeper into the dens of the Briarpatch.

“Stay close together,” I said. “The mage is using us to get a sense of this place’s dimensions. If we spread out, they’ll know how wide this place is and they might teleport people in.”

Everyone got closer. Surya dropped from the air and landed with a huff, staying at the edges of the group, his spear sometimes spinning in his hands. The Urocy were at our feet, closer to the rippling stone.

The hole opened. Surefoot, ran and jumped in; Mellowwind was hurried in with two of her guards, the motions furtive. I grabbed Clyde by the arm and shoved him in just as the wall ahead shattered into great pieces that hurtled in our direction, wreathed in pink light.

Matthaeus and the Urocy acted, the former with his hammer and the latter creating liquid. The two abilities messed with each other and whatever each of them had been going for was lost as earth splashed up, solidifying into lump rocks, smaller than the chunks hurtling towards us.

Move.

I jumped to the side, barely dodging a chunk of rock that would have hit my head. There was no time to reel because Eleus had returned and in his company was Allyceus, dressed in his leather armour, his eyes filled with a fiery anger, and in his hands a rapier and a dagger.

“Take the Champion!” Eleus intoned as he slashed his sword. The Urocy ducked into the ground, dodging the slash of pink. Matthaeus raised a barrier wall that caught the effect, cracking under the assault — in the ground below I felt the Urocy stumble at Matthaeus’ use of earth magic.

Allyceus met my eyes — don’t freeze — and I pointed my gun in his direction; with no hesitation on my part, I shot.

What followed next would have been amazing had it not been a train hurtling towards me: Allyceus’ armour could control gravity around himself, meaning he could choose which direction was down and fall towards me; against me, he used the power to dash this way and that, left and right, steadily getting closer while the blooms of fire missed in each turn.

If he got close he would end me. I needed to destabilise.

“You said we were friends,” I said as I stepped back, firing again to force a series of dodges. “That you would protect me. But that meant nothing. Those were just words.”

Allyceus said nothing, his features resolute.

Dig it in. Make it hurt.

“Just like it meant nothing for you to throw Cybill aside,” I continued. “Did you care about her? Did you love her as much as she loves you? Or was it all pretend?”

Anger flashed through Allyceus’ eyes and a cruelty much like Jaslynn’s took its place soon after; his sword rippled out of existence as he got in my personal space, a leg extending and kicking my gun out of my grasp. My armour absorbed most of the impact but it was still enough that fingers bent oddly and pain shot up my arm. He didn’t stop moving, Allyceus’ other foot leaving the ground for a kick that would have caught me at the side of the head had I not stepped back — utilising training from both Allyceus and Matthaeus.

Allyceus landed much quicker than he should have and slid forward, a punch shooting out. My arm went out, catching the punch and thrusting it aside, the impact entirely absorbed by my armour.

A hint of surprise flickered across Allyceus’ expression, but it disappeared as quickly as it had come.

You can fight, I thought. Maybe not the best but you have training. Remember your tools.

My temporal ring really wasn’t suited for a fight, controlling my body became finicky when my mind was so quick, but I’d gotten good at stretching seconds for quick thought and then letting it go to move. Allyceus went on the attack and I fended off two quick punches, thought I was blocking a third but it was a feint — out of nowhere a punch landed in my jaw and I saw only stars.

He became a blur and I knew what was coming. I eased gravity’s hold a second before the kick landed. My armour absorbed the impact as I was thrust back, spinning through the air, allowing me long seconds where I could gain my bearings; time slapped back to normal a moment before I hit the ground, rolled and then jumped to my feet, skidding to a stop.

Allyceus was already upon me, preparing a shoulder check.

And then Hatim was there, shiny black claws extended and running through the air. Allyceus stopped short but the claws were magic, stirring the wind with such intensity that I could see their effect; massive claw marks had been drawn on Allycea’s armour, thin but sign that Hatim’s claws were dangerous.

Those claws feel like a weapon, I thought as my jaw pounded, but as I watched them fight I wasn’t complaining. I’d thought Allyceus was fast, but Hatim was spry as fuck. Allyceus tried to punch but Hatim wove out of the way, pushing hits away before finding an opening and going on the attack. Hatim landed a punch and Allyceus was struck off his feet, sent spinning to land in a three-point landing.

Allyceus came up with the air shimmering around his hands, calling forth his rapier and dagger. By some unspoken signal they moved.

Don’t freeze, I reminded myself and I looked around. The Urocy had been hard at work, closing off our atrium and fortifying the protections because it gave us the numbers. Surya was still in the air, adding offensive fire while Matthaeus worked to impede Eleus’ footing. In the seconds that Allyceus had been beating me up, the terrain had changed to making the ground hard to walk on, while the walls were filled with spires.

Gun, then leave, I thought. You’re not helping.

Left and then right. I saw it and then ran, my mobility increased by a combination of my armour and the circlet. Eleus noticed and spun on his axis, something that meant a wave of pink light rolled out, catching every piece of debris and sending it hammering towards me. Not thinking, I raised the circlet’s dial to its maximum and jumped up, sailing above the attack.

Eleus — still under assault — flicked his sword up and the rocks, some as big as my head, changed direction; the manoeuvre allowed Matthaeus opportunity to raise a pillar under the knights and that sent him closer to a swooping Surya. I heard the scream of armour shearing as Surya’s spear punctured it, but seeing it was beyond me as I curled into a ball, protecting my head, and braced for impact.

The first stone hit me in the chest, so hard that it passed through the impact absorbing magic of my armour and changed my momentum. I was flung and spun faster. It would have been so easy to unwind and reveal more of myself, but I was a ball and that was how I was going to stay until I hit the ground; two more hits, one finding an exposed bit of head and leaving behind a throbbing headache that made it harder to think. I couldn’t see anything with my eyes pressed shut and any concept of down was lost to me until I hit the ground.

Pain flashed through me, not bad but awakening the ire of my other injuries. The noise of battle surrounded me and for a long moment I wanted nothing but to reel, but I couldn’t. We were still in combat. Head pounding, I opened my eyes and pushed myself up.

Spires and boulders littered the ground. Eleus still moved, swiping away Surya’s projectiles and skipping back when Matthaeus disturbed his footing; the man’s armour was scraped and it looked like it had lost some aspect of its manoeuvrability as he favoured his left leg. Hatim and Allyceus still fought, with the former looking on the backfoot before the ground near him surged — something that caught Allyceus by surprise — and Hatim struck, a kick that slammed Allyceus into a thick pillar.

Hatim looked in his element, his eyes focused and a grin sometimes finding his expression before it was overcome by guilt. Allyceus found his feet again, pounding forward while slashing; Hatim leapt to the side, his foot finding chunks of rock that he used as a base to jump before striking with a kick. Allyceus tanked it but the prince was rocked, whatever trick he’d been thinking off as a follow-up disappearing because he’d underestimated Hatim’s strength.

The Urocy, I thought and my spatial sense resolved. Some had left the atrium and were instead hitting the people caught in narrow tunnels, and others were beneath us, scurrying about instead of helping.

“Khaya!” I turned towards Hatim. “The hole!”

It took too long before the thought. I looked around and found it, then began moving, having to stumble past debris and sliding to a stop as the air in front of me rippled and two forms began to appear. In seconds they resolved and my heart leapt up to my throat — the knight, Alfred, and Owain Junior.

Don’t freeze, I thought, using the circlet to jump back. Owain leapt to meet me, his sword rippling into existence as it slashed through the air; his gravitational magic was leagues above mine, and the distance closed. My armour was protection but it could only go so far, the sword broke through, finding and biting through skin; a fierce, fiery pain lashed through my chest and all thought disappeared, returning again as I crashed into the ground, something that produced tears as the pain redoubled.

A great clang reverberated as Owain landed in front of me, only part of his face visible through his helm — a smug smile.

“Nowhere to run now,” he said, his cape fluttering against the greater activity of the room. Owain effortlessly kept track of Surya as he moved through the air, doing his best to keep Hatim from being overwhelmed by the combined effort of Allyceus and Alfred. “No words to speak that will get you out of this.”

“They were trying to kill you,” I ground out, not even a thought so much as a passing thought. “In the mines.”

Hesitation flickered across Owain’s eyes as he thought through the events of that day, putting the pieces together. It hadn’t been something I’d ever confirmed, but it had felt right then it was a tool now.

Except I couldn’t quite fully utilise it without my gun.

So I ran, decreasing my weight and then pushing myself back. Owain was a trained warrior, however, and he darted forward, anger lancing across his features as he sword struck down. My life flashed before my eyes and I felt weightless before it connected that the ground had disappeared from under me; I increased gravity’s hold and fell, dodging the downward plunge of Owain’s blade.

I wasn’t the only one, two others fell and in the air Surya swooped with great speed, getting into one of the holes. Above me, Owain followed and he fell much faster, his sword still pointed down. The fall was much shorter and quickly after I was caught by Surefoot’s gravitational effect.

“Owain!” I screamed, the words laced with pain.

Surefoot reacted at once, shifting the down so I fell to the side. Owain landed and dropped as he found himself surrounded by magenta; the man stood with little trouble and Surya’s effect doubled still, making him drop once more, the ground cracking beneath him. Then everything changed and Owain was thrust back, sent hurtling into the deep darkness.

“The Champion?” Matthaeus’ rang out.

A person ran towards me and stopped over me — Hatim. “Alive,” he said. “He’s bleeding.”

“It is not much further now,” said Surefoot. “We are almost at the edges. Clyde and my sister have surely reached safety.”

“Take the lordling,” said Surya, his tone grave. “We may use him as a hostage.”

“No,” said Surefoot. “Humanity might have broken its word, but the Urocy will not. We protect ourselves and that is as far as we will take it.”

A wall rose, blocking Owain from us and us from him.

“Take the Champion and move,” said Surya.

Hatim was gentle but the pain was fierce and blinding, making the word slip into darkness as I was jostled as we moved. I wanted to still do good, to help, but trying to sense the goings on around me meant only fuzzy awareness.

The world slipped and when it solidified again we were in a room lit by luminous gems. I was on the ground, my shirt being taken off and a scream ripping through my throat. Hatim’s expression was hard, but he kept working, manipulating my arms so my arm and my clothes could be slid off. The air in our alcove was limited, but it added to the fierce melody of pain in my chest.

“…are for the Urocy,” Surefoot was saying, his voice so far away. “The medicines are for our bodies. But there might be a way. It will take time. There are some I will need to convince.”

“Right now the wound needs pressure and there are potions for the pain,” said Hatim, reaching for a pouch at his waist. He pulled out a vial and brought it to my lip, not even giving me time to consent before a bitter liquid slid over my tongue and down my throat.

Should have brought the satchel, a far-off part of me thought. You should always have your bag of holding.

“I shall be back soon,” said Surefoot.

A thought that felt at the cusp of ridiculous.

“Clyde,” my mouth said without any conscious thought.

“Here, Champion,” Clyde said and he looked fine albeit tired.

Good, I thought. He was safe. He had a family to get to and rebuild the settlement, and this entire shit-show wouldn’t be for nought.

Good, I thought, slipping once more into unconsciousness.

***

“Champion,” a voice said, wrenching me from my slumber. A variety of scents were the first thing that hit me, so strong that they made my head pound. The room felt different, with a shorter ceiling, the roof domed and painted to look like roots. I tried to get up and instead my heart froze — I couldn’t move. “At ease, Champion, this is only a means to keep you from experiencing pain.”

“What’s going on?” I said, my tone all panic. The feeling was identical to sleep paralysis and like that I tried to brute force my way through it, hoping that I’d waken and finally be able to move.

“You were hurt,” said Surefoot, his tone calm and fatigued. “With a healer’s attention, the wound would have taken months of healing, which would have put you at too much risk for my liking. The Urocy gave our word that the meeting would end on good terms for both sides, and though the Althorean king has acted against us, we have done our best to keep our word.”

The words were important, I knew, but I was too panicked to fully take them in. My subconscious was in the driver’s seat, and it told me that if I kept pushing I’d be able to move again.

“Can you stop this, please?” I said. “I want to be able to move.”

“I can return movement,” a voice said, “but with it will come feeling and pain.”

“It’s fine,” I said, only to grit my teeth a second later as my head throbbed with new vigour, my chest burned like the fires of hell and my sides ached with pain. There was something around my chest, a tight binding that I strained against each time I took a breath. “Fuck,” I muttered, but I could move again.

“I can remove the pain entirely again,” the voice said, though there was a hint of irritation. I pushed myself and saw the speaker, a plump Urocy with greying black fur, wearing a necklace beset by an opal stone at its centre. The woman had one paw on my leg, surrounded by a white mist I had seen from the healer, Ethelinda.

“No,” I said, looking around. There wasn’t a lot of furniture and the door was small, adorned with braided tassels; at the centre of the room was a large hole that had been stuffed with a dried plant, a low flame set at the bottom and a thin smoke spilling out. “Where am I? Where are the others?”

“Matthaeus, Surya and Hatim are in the upper dens,” said Surefoot, doubly as tired. “After much discussion, you were moved much deeper into the dens where a secret we have withheld for a long time has already been made for you, and with it, there will be a question that will go unasked but nonetheless we hope you are lucid enough to understand.”

My head was still pounding and it was hard to think. “Can you dull the pain,” I said, mentally preparing myself for the discomfort. As though a dial had been turned, I began to lose all feeling and mobility — though panic still found root.

I closed my eyes and lost myself in thought, putting all the pieces together. Surefoot had shared that his people hadn’t trusted their peace with humanity and some part of them had been expecting the worst. The healing gem — one of the rarest celestial gems — was card up their sleeves and if they were found out, things would be much, much harder for them.

The Urocy didn’t lie and I could guess that asking anyone else to lie would be tantamount to doing the same.

Which was why Surefoot couldn’t ask.

“I get it,” I said. Surefoot nodded heavily, gesturing towards the healer. A sliver of feeling returned — cold pinpricks stabbing that ran up my legs to cover my entire body. “You said you would keep your word, does that mean you let them go?”

“We left them in the old dens,” said Surefoot. “Since our exit it is likely their mage eventually retrieved them.”

“What,” I stopped as the white fog rose up my beck and some of it got into my mouth. It tasted like nothing. “What about your brother?”

“I will have to ransom him and the Urocy that were taken. King Orpheus will likely make demands, which is why I am going to tell you this. If things do not go well and my brother is not freed, the Urocy of the Briarpatch Dens will meet with Champion Rowan. Hopefully you will be able to make it so.”

One of the Kings of the Sunward Empire had done the same thing, throwing insults at King Orpheus while talking to me. Surefoot’s words weren’t meant for the king. I was only a vehicle to bolster his claim.

“I can make that happen,” I said and Surefoot nodded. “Then what?” I asked. “I don’t think your people can take this lying down.”

“No,” said Surefoot. “We cannot, but that is best left unsaid. Your Clyde has Prince Allyceus’ signed terms. I hope that you will uphold your side of the agreement.”

“Barring the unforeseen, Corneleus will be freed,” I said.

“Good,” said Surefoot. “We should be silent lest we disturb Soothsay too much.”

“Sure,” I said.

The mist ran over me completely, the feeling of being plunged in ice running over my body. I closed my eyes and controlled my breathing, paying attention to all the little shifts I felt inside my body as the magic worked.

The process was slow and careful, and at some point I slipped from consciousness, waking up in a large, empty room, my armour — cleaned though it was still scuffed up — set to one side. I put it on, stowing my knife in its holster and feeling dread at the empty holster where my pistol usually sat. It had been a gift from Odysseus and I’d lost it. I didn’t think I’d ever be able to retrieve it.

As I touched my marble, my spatial sense expanded and I felt four people not too far away, and a bunch of Urocy on the other side of the area — keeping their distance, not wanting to be amongst humanity. Slipping on the temporal ring, I left my room and found the others.

They stood as I entered, surprising blooming on their expression.

“How?” said Matthaeus.

“They have a hyperbolic time chamber,” I said without missing a beat, schooling my expression. “Between that and their herbs and salves, I healed quickly. But I’m so hungry,” I added as my stomach groaned.

“Healing tends to take it out of you,” said Hatim, getting close and slapping me on the shoulder. He smiled. “It’s good to see you on your feet. You had us worried.”

“And the secrecy of the Urocy certainly was no help,” Surya muttered.

“I don’t think they’re in a place to trust humans,” I said. “Not that I blame them.”

“What did they tell you?” Matthaeus asked. “How will they act now?”

“Surefoot said that if your father doesn’t release his brother then he’d talk to Rowan,” I told him. “I think there’s something else that’ll happen, but Surefoot wasn’t very forthcoming.”

Matthaeus shook his head. “This course of action was very foolhardy,” he muttered. “The Urocy are not enemies one should make lightly, and this was done to achieve what? Our capture?”

“I think it might have been to capture you,” I said. Matthaeus’ head snapped in my direction. I shrugged. “Your father didn’t care about me in the castle. I don’t think this was really about me. Things happened after Odysseus figured out you were working with Rowan. I think that might be the straw that broke the camel’s back.”

“Are you sure this was not a ploy by Rowan?” Surya asked. “It seems as though events have taken a course that serves him best.”

“No,” said Matthaeus. “Rowan only offered me advice. I am the one who chose this course, and all of it for nought. My brothers did not heed my words.”

“There’s still time, friend,” said Hatim.

“I worry that there might not be as much as I would like,” he said gravely. “We have lost the trust of the Urocy. Cousin Corneleus’ life was endangered and there is likely to be resentment there. Althor will be splintered after this.”

“Good,” I said, the words slipping out. Matthaeus’ expression was filled with questions. “I want autonomy for commoners. I don’t want chaos, but…honestly, I think it works better for the little man. The power the nobility have is through their unity, if they don’t have that, then the little man will be able to take power for themselves or find opportunity to run while everyone else is looking elsewhere.”

“And my brothers?” said Matthaeus. “They will be caught within that chaos.”

“At this point, we’ve made our own decisions and we have to deal with the consequences,” I said with a shrug. “I’m sorry at how callous this is, but Allyceus and Odysseus, they’ve shown that they want power more than anything, and they’re willing to do a lot to protect it. I just…I don’t care anymore.”

My words left a cold silence.

“Clyde, do you still have the contract?” I asked, focusing on what was most important.

“Yes, Champion,” he said.

“Then we should get back,” I said. Hatim stood and Matthaeus’ expression became surprise, some part of him must have expected that he and Hatim would keep travelling together. I looked at Surya who leaned against a wall. He didn’t move. “I have no idea how long it’s been and I don’t want Quinn to screw us over.”

“We should,” said Clyde. “This is more excitement than I ever hope to experience.”

“But you made it out alive,” I said. “That means something.”

“I feel that it might not be as much as it means to you, Champion,” he said, already making his way towards the door.

I stuck on the spot, looking at Matthaeus and Surya. Was this really goodbye?

“Ji-ho?” Surya said.

“She will stay with the settlement just like me,” said Hatim.

The Falconer smiled sadly. “So we finally go our separate ways,” he said.

“You know where we’ll be,” Hatim returned. Surya nodded. “Will you two be going to Rowan?”

Surya smiled. “Marcus told us that we had been brought together for a reason,” he said. “Now I see the truth of his words. Khaya, the work you put into helping the people of the settlement has made me see the folly of my ways — how blindly ignoring my past has done nothing but allow the continuation of the same hardships that bore me. I seek change just as you do, but mine might be more achievable with the power Rowan holds.”

“I get it,” I said. “Like Hatim said. You know where we are.”

“And Ris granting, we shall see each other again,” he said. The man closed the distance and gave me a hug, his wings folding around me. My heart leapt and I felt hot, for a moment unable to swallow or control my body. Surya stepped back.

“At Rowan’s side I can keep my siblings safe,” said Matthaeus. “That’s where I’ll be.”

“Then this is goodbye,” I said.

The man smiled but it didn’t reach his eyes, he was too tired. Hatim and I left, with me leading the way as we went to the closest Urocy. A heavy silence between us.

“Champion,” Clyde said. I turned to him. “It is something my aids and I have talked about, something I had hoped to broach before now. Our new home, for so long it has been called the settlement. If you permit it, then grant us the honour of allowing it to be named after you — Khaya Village.”

“Name it Khayalethu.”