Page 16 of Graevale

Alex’s forehead creased. “My next what?”

“Thy quest to visit the races of Medora and warn them of the impending evil threatening the lands.”

How dideveryoneknow what she was planning?

“Does the Lady Alexandra remember the first day thou happened upon this here knight?”

Alex barely managed not to laugh, since there was no way she would ever forget their meeting. It wasn’t every day that she was chased by a deranged,headlesssuit of armour hell-bent on murdering her with his axe.

“I remember,” was all she said in response.

“When thou seeketh the old kingdoms of this world, that be the corridor of doorways thou shalt need to calleth upon for thy first foray into the yonderlands.”

Alex recalled the unending hallway they had travelled together. Each doorway they’d opened had led to fantastical places the likes of which, at the time, Alex had struggled to fathom.

“But there were so many doors,” she said, unable to keep the trepidation from her voice.

“When thou ventures there next, the number shalt be much lessened,” Sir Camden promised. “And Lady Alexandra needeth only access the corridor until thou hath familiar knowledge of where to guide thy doorways in the future. Once the first journey hath been made, thou shalt be able to return there again by calling forth a door from anywhere and willing it to thine destination.”

That wasn’t as bad as Alex had feared. She considered it to be like a Bubbledoor—as soon as she knew where she was going, she’d be able to open a doorway from anywhere in the Library and avoid the overwhelming corridors altogether.

“And if the Lady Alexandra should require assistance at any time, all thou needeth do is call upon Sir Camden and I shalt cometh to thine aid.”

“Thank you, Sir Camden,” Alex said, with feeling. “You’re the best.”

“As always, it be an honour and a privilege to serve the fair Lady Alexandra.” He bowed again before walking through the nearest wall, disappearing from sight.

“Uh, bye, then,” she called, startled by his abrupt departure. She was more amused than offended, and she chuckled quietly at the eccentricities of the strange knight.

“Let’s do this,” she said to herself, straightening her shoulders.

Seconds later, she summoned a doorway in the middle of the corridor, and stepped through it.

Five

Within moments of walking through the doorway,Alex was transported high above the clouds and into a familiar mountain-rimmed valley.

Nostalgia hit her like a knife to the stomach as she took in the barren, icy wasteland. When Xira had first flown her up to this particular floating island, the meadow of bioluminescent wildflowers had glowed like rainbows in the darkness. But that was all gone now, as if without the draekons, there was no point for life to remain.

Shivering from more than just the cold, Alex turned away from the miserable sight and towards what could only be described as the Meyarin refugee camp. They had done much in the last six days, including assembling more of the Myrox-lined structures—some large huts, others smaller tents—that made it seem more like a longer-term settlement. But it was still a far cry from the glory of the city they had previously inhabited.

As Alex wound her way through the shelters, she was relieved to see the Meyarins she passed were no longer shell-shocked, even if their faces remained grim and lined with the horrors of what had happened. She knew that if they managed to move past their trauma, they would be more likely to fight back when the time came. And that was exactly what Alex needed them to do.

Feet crunching as she tracked a path through the snow, Alex mostly kept her head down as she travelled directly towards the large, circular hut at the centre of the settlement. Murmurs rippled through the camp as the Meyarins began to notice her presence, and soon a crowd started trailing in her wake.

Skin prickling, Alex sensed a growing discontentment from those behind her and picked up her pace, eager to find Zain and Kyia.

She was only a few feet away from entering Roka’s shelter when fingernails latched painfully onto her arm and spun her around.

Her reflexes kicked in immediately and she yanked herself free of her assailant’s grip, crouching into a defensive stance.

“You are not welcome here, human,” spat the enraged Meyarin before her—a familiar face, to her despair.

“LoroGaiel,” she said, before stretching the truth—considerably. “I’m glad to see you made it out of the city.”

“No thanks to you, mortal,” he hissed through his teeth.

As the head of House Varsae, Gaiel had never been pleasant to Alex, except during her time in the past when he’d thought she was Meyarin. But aside from being scornful and derisive to her human self, he’d never been outwardly antagonistic towards her, especially not physically.

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