The Portal Keeper

by S. T. Sanchez

  The leaves on the trees were much bigger for one thing. Vines grew everywhere, and hung down low from the trees. She crossed her arms and waited and waited and waited. Where was Ajax? Ought not he have come through right after her? Would he really allow her to travel here on her own? After all, it was his idea to enter the portal in the first place.

  After waiting for a long time, Niv decided it was up to her. Something must have happened. Perhaps the portal closed, or maybe someone showed up and stopped Ajax from following her through. Whatever transpired, she was alone and had to deal with that. Her mother had always cautioned her that her stubbornness would someday put her in some foolhardy predicament. Those words had never rung truer than they did today.

  She tried to keep her mind from panicking. Picking up a rock, she cut a mark into the tree. At least she'd be able to tell from which direction she had started. That calmed some of her anxiety. If she could keep walking in a linear direction the jungle would have to end at some point.

  As Nivara started walking, her mind flickered to all the paintings of the Prince fighting off wild animals. A shudder ran down her spine.

  After scanning the jungle floor she found a stick that seemed sturdy. It wasn't much, but it made her feel safer to have something in her hand that could be used to defend herself.

  It was humid and hot, but Niv continued forward until her feet were aching. The journey was slow-going, climbing over roots, and under branches, trying to avoid getting tangled in a web of vines. She was about to sit down and give in to her exhaustion, when she stumbled onto a rough path beaten in between a thicket of trees.

  As she headed down the path, she heard a commotion. Nivara stepped closer, careful not to make a sound.

  “Get out of here, Sky,” she heard a male voice say.

  “I’m not leaving you,” a small voice squeaked.

  “Go, or I’ll throw you off. It’s too late for me,” the male voice pleaded.

  Nivara crept closer and peered around the corner of the path. In the center was a pale creature she had never seen before, with a bright blue squirrel-looking animal perched on his shoulder. They seemed to be sinking slowly into a green, grassy substance.

  The squirrel-like animal could have easily escaped the situation, but refused to abandon the other creature. Niv wondered if it just wasn’t intelligent enough to jump off.

  The substance had qualities that reminded Nivara of quicksand. She had never seen any, but read about it in some of the palace books. It seemed to have the same effect. The more the male struggled, the more he sank.

  She glanced around looking for the other voice, but saw no one.

  Taking a deep breath, Nivara stepped around the corner, feeling braver after witnessing the loyalty of the small blue animal.

  The squirrel squeaked when he saw her. “Help us!” he cried.

  Nivara froze. “Did the small animal just talk to me?” she asked, not realizing she was speaking out loud. There had been two voices, but the second one coming from a squirrel had not entered her mind.

  “Would you be so kind as to help us?” This time, the pale male creature spoke, trying to appear calm as he slowly sank. He held his arms up in the air the substance had engulfed him up to his armpits.

  She reached her stick out towards him. He began to reach for it, but she pulled it back quickly.

  “Hey!” he shouted, surprised.

  Nivara made sure she was on firm land and held the stick barely out of his reach. “Before I offer you any aid, give me your word that you aren’t going to harm me. Or eat me,” she demanded, noticing he seemed to be carrying some weapons. She could make out a bow and quiver of arrows, and she wasn’t sure if there was anything already swallowed by the green goo.

  The creature nodded. “I give you my solemn vow. I shall not harm you and I will be in your debt.”

  Nivara took a deep breath, hoping she was doing the right thing. She pushed the stick out further, and when he had gripped it, she began to pull.

  It was a lot harder than she imagined, pulling him out. He didn’t seem that big, but the green goo seemed to suck at him as she pulled.

  “Sky! Jump off to safety!” the creature urged the blue squirrel.

  Sky, who Niv assumed was the squirrel, jumped off now that he saw her making progress with his friend.

  Huffing and puffing, she was finally able to pull him up and out of the goo, with the creature’s assistance. Exhausted, they both collapsed on the road.

  Sky scurried over enthusiastically and cuddled up next to the male.

  “Thank you,” the pale creature said after resting for a few minutes. He pushed himself into a sitting position. “I am called Leif,” he stated, and then pointed to the squirrel. “This is Sky.”

  Nivara sat up and stuck out her hand. “Nivara, but you can call me Niv.” She hadn’t really noticed in her rush to pull him out how blue his eyes were. They were akin to nothing she had ever seen.

  Leif nodded, but didn’t seem to know about handshakes, so Nivara dropped her hand awkwardly.

  “So, what is that stuff you were stuck in?” Niv asked.

  He shook his head, looking humiliated. “It is sinking grass.” He petted the back of Sky. “I should have been paying better attention. I mean I know this is the Sinking Jungle, but I really did not expect to find any on the road. It has spread a lot since the last time I was here.” He rubbed some of the goo off on a large leaf. “Just so you know, I am nothing like the lot of them.”

  “Who are you referring to?” Niv asked.

  He stood up, trying to brush as much of the green off as possible. It seemed to be drying fast. He was able to get off some huge chunks.

  “The other elves. I do not hate everyone else. That is why we are leaving. We want to get far from here. Find somewhere pleasant to live.”

  Where had she ended up? Elves and talking squirrels.

  “That’s good to know. What about Sky?”

  “Oh, he’s a nice cambriar. But really I do not imagine I have ever met one that is not.” Sky perked up at his name. “Although he cannot change anymore,” Leif lamented sadly. “Unless we find some new creatures, he will be stuck as a hoosula for the remainder of his days.

  Niv simply nodded, although she had no idea what the elf was talking about.

  “So where are you headed?” he asked as he stretched.

  Niv thought for a moment. She had no idea where to go or what to do.

  “You gave me your word that if I aided you, then you would owe me. Can I trust you?” Niv verified.

  “Of course. You saved me. I am in your debt.”

  Niv tried to weigh her options quickly. She had saved him, so if he had a shred of decency, he would keep his promise. She was in a new world, with creatures and exotic life that she had no idea about. But the squirrel had been loyal, so it gave her pause to hope the elf was honorable as well.

  “Ok. So, you may not believe this, but I’m not from here. I stepped through some sort of magic tree, a portal, and it brought me here to your world.”

  Leif gasped and took a step back. “You entered through the portal?” he confirmed, looking horrified.

  Niv hesitated, shrinking back at the sight of the elf’s expression, and nodded slowly.

  Leif shook his head as Sky scampered up on his shoulder. “You have to turn her in. You know what they will do to you better than anyone. You’re an elf,” Sky said, his whole body shaking.

  “Turn me in,” Niv repeated the words slowly, stepping backward. This conversation didn’t appear to be going well.

  Leif looked to Sky. “No. I would not do that even if she had not saved me.” He sighed. “Let us get off the road. It is not safe for you. I shall find a better location, and then we will talk a little about my world that you chose to enter. Ok?” the elf asked.

  Niv nodded, but picked up her staff. She hoped that he was telling the truth, but Sky seemed ready to just turn her over. She needed to be ready in case she needed to make a run for
it. Nivara had a feeling she didn’t want to meet whoever was making Sky so scared.

  Niv followed Leif through the wilderness. He pointed out perils as they traveled further away from the road. After seeing how much there was that held danger, Niv thought she was lucky to have made it as far as she had unscathed.

  The elf stopped at a cave carved into the face of a small mountain. He held up his hand, stopping her. “Let me check it out first. Last time I was here it was uninhabited, but things can change rather quickly in the jungle.” He set Sky down on the ground. “Stay with Niv; keep her safe.”

  Sky sighed but didn’t argue. He turned around, stretching his body out. This was the first time Niv really got a good look at him. He was longer than she had first thought. He looked more akin to a ferret, but he had extra skin between his legs.

  A traveling peddler had once brought a flying squirrel to the palace, and Nivara wondered if Sky could soar like that. His ears were a little bigger too.

  “Just don’t touch anything,” Sky muttered once the elf had entered the cave.

  “So, what exactly are you?” Niv asked. “Leif called you a camb-something.”

  “Cambriar, or shapeshifter,” he snorted.

  Her eyes widened. “Can I see you change into something?”

  He rolled his eyes, not really looking at her. “I don’t change merely for the heck of it. Besides that, I’m stuck in this form for now.”

  Niv stepped closer, trying to examine him. “Are there rules to shifting? I don’t get it.”

  Sky spun around, giving Niv his full attention.

  “Cambriars can shift into any animal they have seen. But we can only do it once. We are stuck in that form until we transform into another creature, but once we have changed we can never go back to that animal again. Eventually when we find a shape that fits us, we claim it as our true form and then never shift again.”

  “Oh,” Niv said simply. She reached out and pet him. Niv could tell Sky enjoyed it, even though he acted as if he was put out. But she noticed that he didn’t shy away. “So, this is the shape you claimed? I feel like I would have picked something with wings.”

  Sky pulled back angrily. “No, I did not pick this,” he answered hotly. “This was forced on me,” he added bitterly.

  “I’m sorry,” Niv apologized. “I’m confused.”

  “Leif is different, but most elves are mean. They care of nothing but themselves. They are selfish creatures, looking down on all other beings,” Sky began. “I was captured as a baby and given to Leif as a pet.” He shook his head in disdain. “His father would make me change shape daily. Sometimes more than once. Leif enjoyed it and would clap and laugh, making it worse.” He paused and looked up at Niv. “I don’t blame Leif, he was just a baby. How was he to understand? His father would bring in books and drawings of animals when I couldn’t turn anymore. If I didn’t transform, all sustenance was withheld from me.”

  “Oh, that’s horrible!” Niv exclaimed.

  Sky sauntered closer again, and arched his back. Niv took that as a sign she could stroke him some more.

  As she pet him he continued.

  “Things got better as Leif grew and became more aware of what was happening. He finally put a stop to it, but I had already shifted into so many animals, I can’t remember one I haven’t been. So, I decided to accompany him when he ran away. Hopefully we shall see new kinds of animals as we travel, and I will find the form for me.”

  Niv rubbed his belly, and Sky started to smile.

  “I hope you find a fantastic body. You know there are lots of animals where I’m from. Perhaps I can draw some for you.”

  “Really?” Sky asked, rolling over. “What’s the best animal y—”

  “All clear,” Leif called. “It is safe to enter.”

  Sky scampered in after the elf. Niv picked up her staff and followed after them.

  As she stepped in, Leif was bending over some sticks, scraping rocks together. A spark flew out and he fanned it cautiously. Once it started to take hold, he blew softly, adding bigger pieces of tinder to the fire. After a few minutes, a small blaze was beginning to light the cavern.

  Niv sat on the smooth floor, and the elf joined her. He pulled out a large black water skin. “Are you thirsty? I have water,” he enquired, offering it to her.

  She hadn’t realized how thirsty she had become until he mentioned it. “Thanks,” she smiled, accepting it from his hand. She took a few long drinks, and then passed it back.

  Leif took a large swig and then Sky came and sucked some out of the skin.

  Gross, Niv thought to herself. Although, did it really matter if it was a ferret thing, or an elf?

  “So why is it so dangerous here?” Niv asked.

  “Hmm,” Leif hummed as he tucked the water skin securely in his pack. “Where to begin?” He paused for a moment. “Did you know hundreds of years ago there was free travel between our worlds?”

  Niv looked at him skeptically. “Really?”

  He nodded. “We used to trade, get along…everything was blissful but the elves had to ruin it. The sorcerers kept things in line on this side of the portal. I assume someone watched over your world, but after a few hundred years some of the details are foggy.” Sky climbed up in his lap.

  “Elves ruin everything,” Sky spat, but quickly added, “Present company excluded.”

  “Well, the story says that the elves decided they wanted to control your world. Magic ruled this side, but your side was barely beginning to learn about magic. Some of the sorcerers had married women from the other side of the portal. The sorcerers had once been just like your people. They became magical with help from the dragons.

  “The elves created some catastrophe here. The details are vague, but it drew the sorcerers back on our side. When all the magic was here, the elves began to storm through the portal, killing all in their path, as they searched for the leader of your world.

  “Well, once the sorcerers realized what was happening, they went after the elves, but the destruction was so vast and widespread, the men on your side wanted war. They wanted revenge for all the lives the elves took.”

  He sighed. “You can see why I am not keen to group myself with them.” He patted Sky, and continued. “In order to appease the people of your world, the grandest sorcerer cast a spell on the portal. There was no avenue to destroy it, so he limited the time it was open. Then he destroyed the entryway here. Only people from your world can enter the portal. Only a sorcerer can alter the spell. Hence, from this event, the seer Nogard gave us the prophecy:

  “‘When the blood of the first returns to his home, the battle for power will begin to unfold. Search for the dragon or all will be lost as the monster escapes to wreak havoc untold. And balance restored by the sorcerer’s hand or death covers the realms and forever takes hold.’”

  “So all the humans here became magical? There were no ordinary people left?”

  “At first, but when trading was opened, people came here too, just as some of the sorcerers moved to your world. Now the race of humans is all but extinct here,” Leif explained.

  Niv leaned back. “Wow, that’s a lot to take in,” she replied as she poked her stick at the fire. “So, I can’t get home unless a wizard fixes the portal, and doing that might bring death to everyone.” She laughed. “Just great.”

  “What is a wizard?” Leif asked curiously.

  “Only another name for a sorcerer. But we don’t have those in our world,” she paused. “Too bad we can’t talk to Nogard. It would be beneficial if he could clarify this prophecy.”

  “Maybe we can,” Leif replied, perking up.

  Niv’s eyes widened. “Does everyone here live forever?”

  He laughed. “Not everyone. But I have heard rumors that Nogard is still alive.”

  Niv stood and began to pace back and forth in front of the fire. “Okay, so we need to find some really old seer, and then just pick up a wizard, and then I can go home.”

  Lei
f shook his head. “A sorcerer is going to be harder to come by. I believe they have all died off. Or…” he hesitated.

  “Or…?” Niv asked.

  “Been killed by the elves,” he added sadly, avoiding eye contact.

  “What!” Niv exclaimed.

  “Elves still want power. They want the portal to open again. For the last few hundred years, elves have been hunting down wizards, and torturing them into opening the portal. Some tried to fix it, but none were successful.”

  “Oh great,” Niv said as she kicked a rock across the cave. “I’m going to be stuck here forever.” Suddenly she thought back to the Prince. He had utterly slipped her mind, after finding Leif. “I need to find my companion.”

  Leif jumped up. “You did not enter through the portal alone? Why did you not speak of this sooner?”

  Niv put her face in her hands and shook her head. “I don’t know!” she cried. “It’s been a little overwhelming coming to a new world. Meeting talking ferrets, learning about elves, finding out I’m in danger.” She looked back over to Leif. “I still don’t get it. Why do the elves care that I’m here? It’s not as if I can open a portal.”

  “Look closer at the prophecy,” Leif pointed out. “The first line says, ‘When the blood of the first returns to his home, the battle for power will begin to unfold.’ We have been studying this for generations. The general hypothesis is that one of the sorcerer’s offspring will return here, to the land of their heritage. They will have the power to fix the portal. When that happens, the elves will do all they can to make sure they maintain control. They have dominion over most of my world.”

  Niv thought about Ajax. He had real magic. Or at least the medallion he carried did. Could this prophecy be about him? What if he was the descendant who was supposed to come home? For the first time since she had arrived, Niv was glad for whatever reason Ajax hadn’t followed her through the portal.

  “Well I certainly don’t have any power and neither does Prince Blake,” Niv admitted, although that wasn’t entirely true. He had an altogether different kind of power.

  “This Prince Blake is your friend. Is the human male or female?” Leif asked.