1

Eli stood at the entrance to a long, dimly-lit alabaster tunnel. His webbed, ridged feet gripped the stone floor, and his toes clenched with bored impatience.

From his perch in the tunnel, he saw the nobles down below, waiting, outside the tunnel and all throughout the Palace Circle, to wish him and his Takers well on their mission. They made up a large, flashy congregation. Their cheerful chatter buzzed in Eli’s mind.

Eli felt the pressure of a scaly hand on his shoulder and the gentle outward ripple of Dad’s presence, his aura reaching out to touch Eli’s. Emotions glowed like colors in Dad’s aura— blues, teals, and golds, calm, pride, and satisfaction.

“Steady, son.” The words echoed in Eli’s mind. “You know the drill.”

Eli nodded and pulled in a deep lungful of water, releasing it in a heavy sigh. He was always impatient on these nights, the monthly full moon Taking. The Eltana, their reclusive goddess, had ordained these Takings from the very foundations of the Tognir kingdom.

So he’d been taught, anyway.

His fingers fiddled with the clasp holding long, glittering blue robes around his shoulders. His blues. He smiled as the fabric caught the light from the glowstones ensconced in the walls. For five years he’d been Guardian, and he hadn’t tired of seeing those blues shine yet. Being Guardian meant he held third-in-command ranking from the King—it was a highly-coveted position, and not without its lavish benefits.

But being Guardian also meant the heavy responsibility of ensuring the Takings went off without a hitch.

His smile faded as he noted the shifting movements of the Takers, his men, behind him. They stared at him, waiting, their eyes stark against the dark scales of their faces.

Eli turned back and scowled at the palace. “Come on, come on, come on.” For all King Dom’s bragging piety towards the Eltana, he sure did like to make her wait. Dom was usually late for announcing the Taking, but his tardiness grated at Eli’s nerves even more than usual tonight. The little, bratty king thought he could show up whenever it pleased him. But they had things to do and places to be.

The nobles burst into polite cheers.

Eli fixed his eyes on the shining, white palace, rising to touch the cavern ceiling which terminated in darkness high above where the glowstone’s feeble light could reach.

From the top of the lowest tower came Dom, golden chains hanging from his pale neck, dark hair swirling around his face, green eyes aglow with the strange, musical power all Tognir kings possessed. He beamed and his rainbow-colored aura filled the Palace Circle.

The nobles cheered louder.

Eli rolled his eyes.

“I see we are all assembled.” Dom’s words bubbled as his feet touched and gripped the lip of the tunnel where Eli stood with his men.

Eli crossed his arms. “It’s about time you showed up.”

Dom shot him a glare that only he could see. “Don’t push your luck.”

Eli smirked. He could get away with antagonizing Dom in ways not even Dad, who was second-in-command, dared to try. Growing up side by side in the Tognir court with the little brat had stripped away whatever respect Eli might have had for Dom.

Not to mention the fact that he could lay Dom out, any time, any day. Dom knew it, too.

Still, he maintained some shred of formal respect for the King. After all, Dom did hold the power to strip him of everything he had. It was a delicate balance of power, but it worked.

Dom extended his arms in welcome, first to Eli and the Takers, who responded with their kneeling salute, and then turning, to the nobles who sunk into bows.

“We gather tonight to ask the Eltana’s favor on our humble mission to please her. We ask that she may aid our quest to find a victim for her just rage, a subject for her terrible vengeance, a suitable sacrifice that she will accept.” Dom gestured back towards Dad. “May our High Guardian, Luc and Guardian, Eli, lead the Takers ably and swiftly, that the Eltana may be avenged, our kingdom may thrive, and be spared from the consequences of the Eltana’s horrible wrath.”

“May it happen so.” Eli repeated the words with the others. His fingers clenched and unclenched. This was taking forever, as usual.

Dad’s grip tightened on Eli’s shoulder. He tried to relax.

“For Mom,” Dad said in the soft tones of a ritual, so that only Eli could hear.

Eli nodded. “For Mom.”

They moved forward then, at Dom’s signal, and passed through the crowd of nobles, whose auras touched theirs with sentiments like blessings. Then, as a unit, Eli, Dad and the Takers turned and bowed to the people.

The nobles returned the gesture.

Eli and Dad made brief eye contact before kicking themselves up through the water, up to the dark outline of a cave high in the outer wall of the Palace Circle.

They reached the cave, and as the Takers caught up, they all filed inside. No glowstones lit its interior, but each of them knew its circular layout by heart. It was simple, large enough to fit twenty Tognir comfortably inside, and rough, free from the alabaster that covered nearly everything else in the kingdom.

And on the back wall, shimmering in Eli’s vision, was the Threshold, the gateway to the human world.

The Takers assembled in their two-by-two ranks behind the Threshold. Eli walked the length of them; fourteen of the best Tognir in the Kingdom stood waiting for his command.

He paused at the front of their lines.

They waited, the whites of their eyes radiant in the dark cavern.

“Ready.” Eli swept off his glittering cloak, and the Takers imitated him in one smooth motion, revealing the mud-colored tunics and pants of their profession.

Eli grinned. “Remember. First to find one wins.”

Pale grins blossomed in the darkness at his words. He saluted his men, then Dad. The Takers returned the gesture and, with Eli at their head, filed through the Threshold. Dad stayed behind as always, the vigilant High Guardian, ready to guide them and take over should something go awry.

The water temperature rose as Eli passed through. Though it was well into the night in the human world, the late August sun had scorched the river through the day.

He kicked up from the river bed, glancing down as he always did toward the circular stone, embedded near the bottom of the tall bank, that marked the Threshold’s location. The Takers continued to pour from the stone’s circumference like shadows, and they followed him to the Claw, their hiding place, a mass of tree roots that dangled down into the river from the park banks.

Tiny, circular ripples dotted the river’s surface, highlighted by the dim glow of a hidden full moon. Eli smiled. Looked like rain.

“It’s very dark tonight, gentlemen,” Eli said as they assembled in the Claw. “Raining. Perfect weather. So I don’t want to hear any excuses.”

Ron and Ian, two of Eli’s best men, exchanged glances in the front row.

Ned gulped in the back of the line, and his aura flashed violet.

“You know your sectors. Ned.”

The youth glanced at Eli.

“I want you to tag along with Ron and Ian this time. See how they do things.”

The two veterans leveled a glare at Eli, but he ignored them and saluted in dismissal. As the Tognir dispersed, Eli heard Ron’s muffled complaints and saw the venomous look Ian shot him over his shoulder.

He laughed. They’d get over it.

“Eli. Status report.” Dad’s voice rumbled deep in Eli’s mind.

“Just sent them out.” Eli replied.

“I’m worried about Ned.”

Eli shrugged. “The kid’ll be fine. Just needs some on-the-job training.”

“He’s too nervous. Too jittery. One wrong move can cost us a Kar-Tog.”

“Do you remember my first day?”

Dad paused then, and a moment later Eli heard his hearty chuckle. “I wish I could forget it.”

“Look at me now. Five years later, and I’m leading Tognir twice my age. Trust me, he’ll be fine.”

Dad’s aura swirled with aquamarine pride. “You’re right, son. But with every new Taker, there’s more of a chance-”

“Dad.”

Dad sighed. “Alright. Update me when you get one.”

“Will do.”

Dad’s aura faded as their thoughts disconnected.

Eli emerged from the Claw and hauled himself up onto the banks. The air felt only a bit thinner than the water, and a steady rain blanketed the park with soft patters of white noise.

He stepped silently into the shelter of a giant oak. Once settled, he reached out to the Taker’s auras and slipped inside their thoughts one by one. To call them outright might interrupt a Taking in progress, but Eli knew well how to get the information he sought.

His findings confirmed they were hot on the trail of a potential Kar-Tog already, their minds focused as one, their feet fast approaching the target.

So Eli sat, and he waited, listening to the droning frog song amid the steady fall of water on earth. He didn’t mind it so much. He’d had his fair share of scoping for humans as a Taker. Most of his teenage life had been spent on Taking missions with Dad, who’d always try to hide a little disappointment if Eli hadn’t been the one to find a victim. But for the last five years he’d been Guardian, and out of those five years there hadn’t been a single failed Taking.

When they confirmed a human, he’d be on the scene to finish the job, and there’d be plenty enough excitement for the night. Until then, it was his duty to watch and wait.

He didn’t have to wait long.

“Eli. I win. Sector 9.” Cor’s voice cut through his thoughts.

Eli grinned. He leapt up and ran through the trees along the riverside, toward the bridge that towered high above the open park.

“On my way.”

His webbed feet flung mud as he ran, his eyes opened wide to catch every detail in the rain-shrouded vegetation around him. He pushed out his aura just ahead of him. A flood of light touch the edge of his mind, throbbing with terror.

He shielded his mind against the blinding brightness of the human’s aura. It was close, just beyond the bridge near the edge of the river.

He grimaced. It had to be a kid. That was the only factor that could keep the Kar-Tog’s typically-bright aura blinding even when the Takers had them stupefied. But what was a kid doing out in the rain so late at night?

Eli pushed the thought away before it could prick his sympathies.

Doesn’t matter. We’ve got a victim. That means the Eltana gets her revenge, and we stay safe for another month.

He was in sight of his men now, who’d formed a circle around one of the bridge’s support beams.

“Sir, he’s fighting us,” Ned called. The Takers held the kid there with a paralyzing lullaby that gained its strength from numbers. Eli felt the strain in their auras, especially Ned’s.

The kids always fought. Always.

“I’m here.” Eli emerged from the trees and approached the ring of Takers. As he drew closer, he glimpsed the human kid over their tall figures. A boy, no older than twelve, and terrified. His knotted, blond hair and clothes hanging with dirty threads told Eli all he needed to know. He frowned. That’s about how old he’d been when…

“Sir,” Ron insisted, jerking his head toward the kid, then at Ned’s trembling form. His aura strained harder than the rest. He was pulling Ned’s weight.

Eli gathered himself and nodded. “Right.” He strode between the Tognir and stood in front of the kid.

The boy, his aura bright as the sun and quivering like flame, stared at Eli, unable to move.

“What are you?” he thought.

“We are the Tognir,” Eli said. “And you’re coming home with us.”

Before he could let the kid’s innocence change his mind, Eli plunged deep into his mind and wove a tight song around his thoughts. He saw, like a mirror reflected, the boy’s grotesque vision of him— his aquamarine eyes burned like lanterns in the dark, and his teeth glowed white in a menacing smile.

Eli’s song pierced deeper, and the boy cried out. Eli grimaced but didn’t relent.

“Mom! Mommy!”

The words struck too close.

Eli and Ned both faltered. The boy began to crawl backwards. Thirteen minds clamped down hard on the kid’s instinct to run.

Frozen in place, the boy gaped up at Eli while tears leaked onto his face. Eli stared at him and heaved in a couple of ragged breaths.

“Sir.” Understanding and strain fought for control in Ian’s tone. “You’ve got to do it. Now.”

Eli nodded, but his eyes were still fixed on the boy’s.

“For your mother, sir,” Ron put in. “Remember Rin.”

An image of her, dark hair floating, green eyes crinkled and smiling, surged through his mind and infused him with strength.

Eli’s thoughts began to pull themselves back in order. Looking through the boy’s mind, he saw himself straighten and his glowing eyes narrow in determination.

“For Mom.”

Without hesitation, he delved back into the kid’s mind and began to weave his song. The notes shut down the boy’s consciousness one thought at a time.

Eli watched his mind go black. The boy’s eyes closed. His breathing paused.

He finished the song, making sure it was woven tight, and then released it. The Takers, too, released the kid.

Now he was ready. When he woke up, he’d be one of them.

Eli felt hands on his shoulders and back, pushing hard, and realized he was falling.

“Whoa, sir. Steady.”

Eli struggled to catch his breath and let the Takers lower him to the ground. The boy, the ground, even the sky seemed to be spinning.

This always happened. Every time. Every time it was a kid.

“If you hadn’t picked a stupid kid,” Eli began, then stopped. Speaking made him feel even woozier. He knelt beside the child and dug in his pocket for the drug.

“Hey. He was the easiest target,” Cor put in. “And I know you want to get to the party.”

“Yeah.” Eli snorted. “I’ll have a lot of fun stumbling around the ballroom, let me tell you.”

The Takers laughed.

Eli opened the shell vial and drained its contents into the child’s mouth. “Hey, Ned!” he called.

The Takers quieted and parted to let Ned approach Eli.

Eli put the stopper back in the vial. “You’ve got to get it together, okay? There isn’t room for cowards here. You can’t have everyone else pulling your load.”

“I tried, sir-”

“Well, try harder.” Eli clutched his forehead. “This is a team effort. If I don’t have fourteen Tognir holding kids like this down, I can’t do my job. There may be only one of me, but I need fourteen of you.”

“But what about you, sir?”

Eli narrowed his eyes and struggled to keep his stomach from churning. The figures of his men swam before his eyes.

Ned’s dull brown gaze pierced the darkness. “You hesitated. You needed help.”

“I did my job,” Eli hissed. “You abandoned your comrades when they needed you most.”

Ned lowered his gaze.

“I think a little re-training is in order. Next week, you’ll be with me. Next full moon, you stay in.”

“Sir-”

“That’s final, Ned.”

The Tognir youth stared at him for a long moment.

Eli glared back. “Am I clear?”

Ned gave a stiff salute and retreated behind the other Takers.

Eli held his head in his hands. The throbbing was getting worse.

“We’ll bring the kid down,” said Ron. “You go and pull yourself together, sir.”

Eli nodded and got to his feet, but now his vision was fading fast.

“Sir?”

He saw the ground rushing to meet him, felt scaled hands grabbing for him, and then, nothing.