by Brandon Mull
“It’s actually a cloak of innocence,” Newel said. “It offers enormous protection if worn by someone new to the sanctuaries who has broken no rules and means no harm.”
“And you came here without permission,” Seth said. “Grandma and Grandpa are going to skin you alive.”
“We had the cloak, and we stayed on the road,” Knox said.
“We had help from the lion bird,” Tess said.
“We ran into a griffin on the road,” Newel said. “One of the ones that went looking for you but was forced out of the sky by dragons. He was heading back to the keep, but he agreed to carry Knox and Tess here. On foot, of course. Paws and claws, not wings. Doren and I ran.”
“We’re good runners in a pinch,” Doren said.
“I don’t want to do that again soon,” Newel said. “My sides got sore.”
“I’m not sure I’ve ever sweated so much,” Doren said. “Not even when Newel and I play tennis.”
“I’m glad you got here safely,” Tanu said. “These are very foolish times to explore the sanctuary.”
“We weren’t exploring,” Knox said. “We were on a rescue mission.” He looked around. “Where is Kendra?”
“She’s with the talking animals,” Seth said.
“The eagle can talk,” Knox said.
“They have a whole territory,” Seth said. “Kendra is there. And we need to get there. Or I need to get there.”
“You want to leave this city?” Knox asked. “Have you seen the girls? They’re almost as pretty as the ones in Texas.”
“Almost?” Seth asked.
“Yeah, pretty close,” Knox said.
Seth rolled his eyes. “You should stay, then. I bet a bunch of them want a thirteen-year-old boyfriend with a basketball full of fake signatures.”
“That’s okay,” Knox said. “I want to help get Kendra. My job is only half done.”
“You’re not saving me,” Seth said. “I’m fine.”
“In a dungeon is not fine,” Knox said. “You were lost, and we found you.”
“And we rode a lion bird,” Tess said. “It’s been a good day.”
Seth looked at Tanu. “What do we do?”
“I have an idea that could get us to the Zowali Protectorate,” Tanu said.
“How many of us?” Seth asked.
“As many as want to come,” Tanu said.
“I’m interested,” Lomo said, “if we can break out.”
“Are any of the doors here locked?” Seth asked.
“The outermost one,” Lomo said. “Security is lax.”
“This whole dungeon is weak,” Knox said, looking around the comfortably appointed dining area. “The Fablehaven one looked more legit.”
“The food is excellent, though,” Tanu said, patting his belly.
“I’ll talk to the chef,” Lomo said, rising. “He’ll prepare some sustenance for you newcomers.”
“I like how this guy thinks,” Newel said.
“Get him on the team,” Doren advised. “Are these cream puffs?”
“Where has this dungeon been all my life?” Newel asked, smelling the cobbler.
“Shall I take a message back?” Creya asked.
“No,” Tanu said. “We’ll need you. I must have words with the chef as well. I have a potion to brew.”
Shrunken Chances
“Seth, wake up.”
Jolted out of sleep, Seth sat upright with his fists clenched to find a goat standing by his bed. Seth relaxed and stared at the animal through squinty eyes. A quick taste of walrus butter revealed the goat to be Newel.
“Scary dream?” the satyr asked.
“Tough week,” Seth said. “Lots of running for my life.”
“Ready for more?” Newel asked. “Come on.”
The satyr left the room. Seth slid out of bed and slipped on his boots. Returning to the dining area, he found Tanu, Lomo, Newel, Doren, Calvin, Creya, and Knox already there. Knox looked newly awakened, his eyes puffy. He wore his hair short on the sides and longer on top, and right now the longer part was disheveled and matted.
“What time is it?” Seth asked.
“Maybe an hour before dawn,” Lomo said.
“I did the quick and dirty version,” Tanu said, indicating a bowl of beige fluid on the table. “It should shrink us, though.”
“To my size?” Calvin asked hopefully.
“A little bigger than you,” Tanu said. “Strong stuff, though. Three or four inches.”
“What if the bird just eats us?” Knox said.
“I don’t eat talking creatures,” Creya said. “Ask our rodents.”
“We can trust Creya,” Lomo said. “Her reputation precedes her.”
“You’re coming?” Seth asked Knox.
“Sounds like you need all the help you can get,” Knox said.
“Are you an expert with cursed castles?” Seth asked.
“Are you an expert dragon fighter?” Knox countered.
“I killed one with Kendra,” Seth said.
“Really?” Knox asked, surprised.
“A poison one,” Seth said.
“Well, maybe you have some experience, but you had to start someplace,” Knox said.
“True,” Seth said. “Do you get that you might die? We all might.”
“Not me and Newel,” Doren said. “If magical folk can’t enter the castle, no use in us tagging along. We’ll watch Tess.”
“Keep her safe through Midsummer Eve,” Seth said.
Newel winked. “We’ll hole up here. Eat dungeon chow.”
“I might try for a life sentence,” Doren said, patting his belly.
“You may get in some real trouble if Dalgorel determines you helped me escape,” Lomo said.
“We’ll play dumb,” Newel said.
“It’s a specialty,” Doren added.
“Anyway, I’m in,” Knox said to Seth. “If you can take this risk, so can I.”
Seth shrugged. “Your funeral.”
“The brew I made will shrink our clothes,” Tanu said. “But no items. And no magical clothing. And certainly no magical items.”
“My clothes didn’t shrink last time I used a shrinking potion,” Seth said.
“Tiny naked Seth Breath,” Knox said with a smirk.
“It’s more complicated to get the clothes to shrink,” Tanu said. “But I had dragon parts to work with. Superior ingredients.”
“My sword?” Seth asked. “It could be useful.”
Tanu held up two small drawstring bags. “Creya is our ride to the Zowali Protectorate. She will carry two bags.” He held up one. “This one is normal. We’ll ride in it.” He held up the other. “This one was just loaned to me by Lord Dalgorel. It’s an extradimensional bag.”
“Like the knapsack we used to have?” Seth asked.
“Yes,” Tanu said. “The inside of this little bag is the size of a large trunk. We can bring anything that will fit through the mouth.”
Seth retrieved his sword and the vial of horrors and put them inside the magical bag. He removed his fleet boots and stuffed them in as well. “They’re magical,” he explained. Lomo added a sword.
“I already included some of my gear,” Tanu said. “Lord Dalgorel reluctantly let me store many of the dragon parts I collected in an ice house here.”
“Won’t the bag be heavy with all that stuff inside?” Knox asked.
“Doesn’t work that way,” Tanu said, handing Knox the bag. “The little bag still feels empty. All the bag actually contains is a small gateway to a pocket dimension.”
“This breaks the laws of nature,” Knox said, reaching his arm deep inside the tiny bag.
“It enhances the laws of nature,” Tanu replied. “Makes clever use of them.”
Knox ha
nded the bag back to Tanu. “The goo in that bowl will actually shrink us?”
“No time like the present to find out,” Tanu said. “Might be wise to use the cover of night while it lasts.”
“How much must we drink?” Lomo asked.
“You’re with us?” Seth asked.
“This problem is bigger than all of us,” Lomo said. “The Fair Folk won’t like it, and they can disavow me if they must, but I can’t withhold my help.”
“This is a potent batch,” Tanu said, producing a measuring cup. “A quarter cup should do it.” He dipped the cup in the bowl. “Who wants first try?”
Seth intended to volunteer, but Lomo beat him to it. The man took the cup from Tanu and downed it. Over a matter of seconds, his body diminished in size until he was no bigger than Seth’s pointer finger. His clothing shrank with him. The measuring cup sat on the floor beside him.
Tanu picked up the measuring cup, refilled it, and handed it to Knox, who stared suspiciously at the gooey fluid. “What’s in this stuff?”
“You probably don’t want to know,” Tanu said.
“Camel snot,” Seth said. “Oyster slime. Dragon sweat. It’s sort of a chowder.”
“Must be where you get your Seth breath,” Knox said, drinking it down. “Not bad,” he said as he started to shrink. “Not good either.” His voice sounded higher as he got smaller.
Knox dropped the measuring cup, and soon he stood beside Lomo on the floor. Seth retrieved the measuring cup and handed it to Tanu. “Any word about Eve?” Seth asked.
“She is basically a prisoner in her room,” Tanu said. “Lord Dalgorel was not happy with her.” He gave the cup back to Seth.
“Down the hatch,” Seth said, tipping the cup back. The creamy fluid tasted like a mix of sweet and salty, with a grainy texture. Seth tried to banish thoughts of camel snot as he gulped it down. He quickly set the cup on the table once he was done.
Tingles sparked through his limbs as the table went from the height of his waist, to eye-level, to a towering structure high above him. Tanu and the satyrs looked like giants.
“Let’s get you on the table,” Tanu said, crouching. Seth, Lomo, and Knox climbed onto his large brown hand. It felt like an amusement park ride as Tanu lifted them to the dizzying heights of the table and let them hop off his palm. At their normal sizes, Lomo was taller than Seth, and Knox was a bit shorter. Their sizes relative to one another remained the same.
“Hi, Seth,” Calvin said from a little farther down the table.
“Hey, Calvin,” Seth said. The nipsie ran to him, and Seth found that the young adult came up to his chest.
“We still don’t quite match up,” Calvin said. “But closer than before.”
Tanu sat on the edge of the table and drank a quarter cup of the potion. He promptly shrank, still sitting on the edge of the table. He got up and hustled to the others. “Your turn, Newel!” Tanu called.
Newel brought the regular drawstring bag, opened it, and let them climb inside. Seth quickly discovered that it was not comfortable to sit at the bottom of a bag with four other people.
“This is how we’re traveling?” Knox complained as he jostled against Seth.
“No,” Tanu said. “Soon we’ll be dangling from an eagle’s talons hundreds of feet above the ground.”
“I will carry you true,” Creya said, her voice coming from somewhere above the bag. “I slip by dragons all the time. I got here just fine.”
“Keep silent,” Newel told the inhabitants of the bag. “I have the eagle and am heading out.”
Seth could see nothing from inside the bag. The opening was closed tight. Newel carried them some distance, then stopped as he spoke to some unseen person. “I’m bringing the eagle out,” the satyr said. “Creya has to get home.”
A door opened. Newel walked some more.
“We’re out,” Lomo whispered.
Seth sat in silence, swaying in the bag with his friends. Newel paused again. “Good luck,” the satyr whispered.
Seth’s stomach lurched as the bag soared upward. The acceleration drove the occupants of the sack into each other. For a brief while Seth had most of Tanu on top of him, until the Samoan shifted.
“We’re away,” Creya announced. “Best to keep quiet. Some predators have excellent hearing.”
As they reached a steady speed, the bag leveled out, swaying gently. Sometimes the eagle ascended or dipped down or turned, making the bag swing one way or another. Invisible forces tugged at Seth in unpredictable ways. It was difficult to rest. He waited and listened, wondering if a dragon would spot them.
After some time, Knox asked in a loud whisper, “How do we get big again?”
“It’ll wear off,” Seth whispered back.
“What if it wears off while we’re flying?” Knox asked.
“We have enough time,” Tanu said. “At least ninety minutes.”
Seth waited in the wobbly darkness. The air got stale and took on the slightly humid odor of multiple bodies. Seth tried to relax and let time go by. He tried to appreciate the fact that they were not being attacked by anything.
“We’re over the Zowali Protectorate now,” Creya finally announced. “Feel free to speak.”
“Calvin, is this how you feel in my pocket?” Seth asked.
“A little,” Calvin said. “But your pocket is more stable. And I’m alone. Also, I can sometimes stick my head out for air.”
“I’m sorry,” Seth said. “This gets old.”
“You see why I sometimes want to get out and stretch my legs,” Calvin said.
“The smell in here!” Knox said. “I keep trying to hold my breath. It backfires because then I breathe deeper afterwards.”
“Slow and steady,” Tanu suggested.
“On the bright side, I may never be part of a stranger jailbreak,” Lomo said.
Everyone laughed.
“Three inches tall, dangling from an eagle in a little sack?” Tanu asked.
They laughed again.
“Here we are,” Creya announced. “Shelter. We beat the sunrise. Not by much.”
The bag came to rest on a hard surface. Fingers pulled open the top, and Seth stared up into the face of an enormous chimpanzee before the bag slumped sideways and he crawled out. Seth found himself on the floor of a gigantic stable or barn. The air smelled fresh compared to the stuffy sack, although there were definite odors of animals and hay.
Gargantuan animals surrounded them. At his current size, Seth thought the immense animals seemed significantly larger than the dragons. The chimpanzee stood nearest. Creya had alighted on a perch high above them. Seth also saw a huge tiger, a buffalo, a pair of wolves, a camel, a horse, a vulture, some rabbits, and a bear, most looming like colossal monuments. He had never felt tinier.
“Can they all talk?” Knox asked.
“Welcome to Shelter,” the tiger said. “I am Raj Faranah, guardian of the Zowali Protectorate. We expected Creya to return with information, not passengers. Most ingenious. One of you is Seth Sorenson?”
“That’s me,” Seth said, waving up at the gigantic tiger. It seemed unlikely that such an immense beast would hear or notice him. “Creya said my sister, Kendra, is here. Can I see her?”
“Your sister is currently resting,” Raj said. “You are most welcome here.”
“Does she have a plan?” Seth asked.
“We’ll get to that in due time,” Raj said. “The stingbulb of Patton is out doing reconnaissance. A very agreeable man.”
“I’m excited to see him,” Seth said.
“Nobody will eat us, right?” Knox asked.
“Humans can be so fearful of animals,” the chimpanzee said in an educated accent. She scratched her head. “Do you know what predator hunts the most species in this room?”
“People,” Seth said.
The chimp tapped her nose and pointed at him. “People hunt all of us for food. For decoration. For sport. Some of us are poisoned like vermin. Others are enslaved. Or used in experiments. Once we could roam the wide world, our only limit the division between earth and sky. Now we cower where we can, our options ever shrinking, bordered by humanity on all sides. Who should be afraid of whom?”
“We’re tiny,” Knox said.
“I see,” the chimp said. “You’re currently vulnerable. You worry about vengeance. Or perhaps you realize that weaponless, even a full-grown man is no match for a tiger. Take solace that if you perish, your species will be just fine. Not many mammals number in the billions. Those who do tend to be rodents or domestic animals like cattle or sheep. Some species of animal, including tigers, are down to the thousands. Or even the dozens. Some of us are no more.”
“You’re in no danger, human,” the bear said. “None of us eat other creatures who can speak. Is this the proper time for activism, Tasha?”
“It’s always the right time for positive messages,” the chimp replied.
“Remain here until you regain your size,” Raj said. “The Shelter is a safe place for all creatures great and small. There will be time for plans soon enough.”
“Thank you for your hospitality,” Tanu said with a bow.
“I won’t be growing like the others,” Calvin said. “Don’t be disappointed. I’m a nipsie.”
“You are all welcome here,” Raj assured them.
Knox stretched. “I’m going to get some sleep.”
Seth nodded. “Tomorrow could be a long night. Wake me when Kendra gets up. Or if we’re going to eat. Or if dragons attack.”
Preparations
Kendra awoke to a juicy tongue sliding across her cheek. She started with a little shriek.
“Sorry,” Sherman the fox said. “I wasn’t sure the best way to wake you.”
Sitting up, Kendra rubbed her cheek dry. “You startled me.”
“I wasn’t trying to be rude,” Sherman said. “The licking is something foxes do. I wasn’t tasting you! I promise.”
“Is Patton back?” Kendra asked.
“Not yet,” Sherman said. “I hear he is on his way. But you have other visitors.”
