by Sarah Noffke
“That’s exactly why. These are parallel universes. The pyramids were created on Earth, but what is constructed there becomes tangible here and vice versa. However, over time the things created change. The magic on Oriceran preserves things, in a way,” Chibale said.
“Is it possible that there are natural portals between our world and Earth, and they present themselves in New Egypt? Like holes or tears between the worlds due to this siphoned energy?” Azure asked, thinking of the strange light she saw earlier in the hallway.
Chibale pushed out his chair and stood suddenly, leaning over Azure with a strange intensity in his eyes. “Have you seen one of the holes?”
Azure bristled at his sudden reaction. “Yes, I think so—earlier in the hallway. Why?”
“The river spoke of these tears recently. It told our people that answers to the vampires could be found on the other side of one of these. We’ve searched the kingdom and never found one. Where was it?” Chibale straightened, peering at the hallway she’d come in from.
“It’s gone now. So you’re saying it’s in Egypt? We need to go to Earth-Egypt?” Azure turned to Ever. “Can you create a portal to there?”
He shook his head. “I’ve never understood why until now, but I can’t create portals to Egypt.”
“That’s because the only way directly there is through one of these tears. Queen Azure, you must find a tear again and travel through it. This is the most hope we’ve had in quite some time.” Chibale’s expression was a mix of anxious worry and excitement. He was vibrating with it.
“Easy-peasy. Azure, we need you to walk around New Egypt until you find a tiny tear in the world. That shouldn’t take long,” Monet drawled, leaning back in his chair with his goblet in hand.
Chibale turned slowly and looked at him. “She’s the only one who has seen a tear. Maybe it’s the necklace. Whatever the reason, we need to find the tear again and go through.”
“Maybe there’s another solution.” Azure felt around and realized that she had left her bag in her room. “I have a genie’s lamp. Maybe I can have him—”
“You have a what?” Chibale cut her off, somehow mustering even more astonishment.
“A genie’s lamp. We found it on our way here,” Azure said, standing as well. She was tired of Chibale leaning over her.
“That’s simply incredible. No lamp has returned to New Egypt in quite some time,” he said.
“Bob, the genie… He’s afraid of New Egypt. Can you tell me more about the lamp’s history?” Azure asked.
“I can, but not now. It’s a very sordid tale, and will take much longer than we have. But don’t waste a wish on trying to find a tear. By the time you get there it could be gone, and then you’d be down one wish,” Chibale advised.
“Okay, so back to strolling around the desert willy-nilly. Good plan.” Monet stood, swaying slightly as if his feet had gone to sleep while he sat.
“I wish there was another way, Queen Azure, but this is our best chance. My people are relying on you,” Chibale said.
Monet had already come around the table and hooked his arm through Azure’s. “Let’s stroll around and find this tear between the universes. My flask is newly filled, so we’ll get drunk while we do it.”
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Azure stopped at her room to get her bag, which contained the lamp. She couldn’t believe she’d left it behind; such a treasure really shouldn’t be forgotten. What if someone had stolen it? She strapped the bag over her shoulder and set out to find the tear.
“Where do we go first?” Monet asked, handing his flask to her. Ever had returned to the hotel to check on Laurel and Manx, although Azure also thought it was to get away from the witches and wizards here. They all gave him strange looks and treated him as an outsider.
“I saw the tear in the hallway next to the dining hall, so let’s go in that direction.” Azure set off for the hallway with the giant fountain and scanned for the bright light as they walked.
“What do you make of this Chibale character?” Monet asked, pulling a package from his robes.
“What’s that?” Azure asked, taking a small sip from the flask. It was a bit too early to be drinking, but searching for a mysterious break between universes to find unknown information on stopping vampires was definitely a reason to break the rules.
Monet opened the wrapper to reveal a piece of yellow candy. “It’s Laffy Taffy. I scored a whole bag of Earth candy in the Dark Market for this trip.” He took a bite from the stubborn piece of candy, stretching it to three times its normal length. After chewing a great deal he grimaced. “Gross—it’s banana-flavored. Why would anyone ever make something banana-flavored?” Reluctantly he swallowed, a sour look on his face the whole time.
“To answer your question, I think I trust Chibale. I think he’s governed by certain traditions, and maybe he’s a bit closed-minded about those who aren’t witches and wizards—like Ever—but he seems to be a strong leader. I couldn’t imagine if our people were being hunted by vampires,” Azure said, turning to scan the hallway they’d just come through.
“Oh, you couldn’t imagine your people losing their magic due to a deadly virus?” Monet mocked.
“Okay, well, I guess I could.” Azure laughed. “I still wonder why Mage Lenore intended for me to have this necklace. And why can I see the tears?”
“All curious questions which I’m sure we won’t find out for three more books,” Monet said, unwrapping another Laffy Taffy.
“What are you talking about? Are you drunk?”
“Why, yes I am. Do you ever think that we’re just characters in a book and there’s this author person writing our story? I bet the readers love the hell out of me.” Monet’s cheeks were pink from the alcohol.
“You’ve lost your damn mind. I’m certain that if our story were in a book everyone would want you dead.” Azure looked at the ceiling. “Author person, if you exist and are writing our story, will you please kill Monet in the next act?”
He shook his head as he read the wrapper. “Hey, this candy is going to break my teeth, but on the bright side there are jokes in the wrappers. Listen to this one.” Monet cleared his throat. “Why is a bad joke like a bad pencil?”
“I don’t know,” Azure answered as they approached a new set of rooms.
“Because it has no point!” Monet gave a fake laugh and slapped his thigh.
“Ha, ha.” Azure paused when they entered a large space that reminded her of the greenhouses in Virgo. Palm trees lined the walls, almost hiding them, and the floor changed suddenly. It was covered in dirt, and plants had been scattered everywhere. A path snaked around the room.
“Uh, did we just step outside? I thought we were underground,” Monet said, looking up from the new piece of candy he’d just opened.
“We are, but I think this is where they grow their plants and herbs,” Azure said, looking up. There was a strange source of light that resembled the sun.
“Hmmm. I should probably investigate some of their native plants to see what properties they have,” Monet said, still chewing on the candy.
“You’re supposed to be helping me find a rift between worlds, remember?”
“That’s boring. I’ve decided to provide the entertainment instead. Okay, new joke time.” Monet held up a wrapper and read. “When do you stop at a green and go at a red?”
Azure strolled along the path, searching everywhere. “I have no idea.”
“When you’re eating a watermelon…” Monet said, his voice trailing off.
“I don’t get it.”
“Yeah, me either. Must be an Earth thing.”
“Speaking of Earth, I wonder what is in their Egypt that will help with the vampires,” Azure mused, peeking around a tree at more of the tropical garden.
“Beats me. Maybe a stake? That’s how you kill vampires, right?”
“Actually that’s a myth.” Something suddenly occurred to her, and she wasn’t sure why she hadn’t thought about it ear
lier. Azure dug into her bag until she found the knife that Drago the orc had given her. “The orcs were pivotal in hunting the vampires when they took over a century ago. It was something about the way they forged their weapons that made them so successful. The metal they use for their blades was unique to them, and apparently deadly to vampires.”
“And conveniently you have an orc knife.” Monet looked up at the ceiling. “A bit too convenient, storyteller.”
“Oh, shut it. This knife has saved your ass a bunch of times.” Azure pushed it into Monet’s hands along with the flask. “I want you to take this. That way, if you run into any vampires you can defend yourself.”
“And what about you?” Monet asked, taking the flask but pushing the knife back in her direction.
She turned and walked farther away, not taking the weapon. “I’ve got a magical necklace, remember?”
“Fine, fine, I’ll take your knife.” Monet stuck the knife in the inside pocket of his robe.
Azure stepped off the path toward a strange red flower. It had thorns on the petals, something she’d never seen before. Usually the petals were soft and the thorns were on the stem.
“That’s an interesting flower,” she said, pointing.
“What’s that?” Monet asked.
She turned to him, but was blinded by a light behind him. Instantly she pulled up her arm to shield her eyes.
“You okay?” Monet asked.
Azure lowered her arm, realizing at once what the light was from. It was still bright but it wasn’t too much, only at first glance. “Monet, behind you! There’s a tear!”
Monet wheeled around, full of excitement, and then deflated completely. “How much centaur vodka did you drink?”
“Look, it’s right there.” She pointed directly at the tear. This one was wider than the one she had seen in the hallway. It hung in the air. On the other side was mostly darkness, but a structure of some sort was visible—maybe a column?
“Are you fucking with me? I don’t see a damn thing,” Monet said.
“No, are you fucking with me? It’s here.” Azure strode forward and put her hand through the tear. It was warm on the other side, the air stuffy as if there were no ventilation.
“Oh, fuck me! That’s gnarly.” Monet’s mouth hung open.
“What?” Azure asked, pulling her hand back.
“Your hand disappeared. You’ve really found a tear, haven’t you?”
“Yes, but I’m not sure how long it will be here. We need to go through before it disappears like the other one,” Azure said, sticking her hand through the opening again.
“Unfortunately, love, I think you’re on your own. If I can’t see the tear, then my guess is I can’t go through it,” Monet said, waving his hand where hers was. It stayed visible.
“Damn it! I have to go alone? What the hell?” Azure wasn’t sure what she’d find on the other side. Worse, she didn’t know where she’d be. It looked dark. And how would she get back to New Egypt? She’d have to find another tear.
“You’ll be fine. If anyone can do this, it’s you.” Monet placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder. “I’ll go back to the hotel and wait with Ever. If you’re not back in a day, we’ll open the closest portal we can find and come looking for you.”
Azure nodded, grateful that Monet had her back. She wanted to say something else, to arrange more of plan, but there was no time. “Thank you,” was all she said before she stuck her arm all the way through the opening. The feel of the air was different from where she was, but she tried not to think of or fear any of that. As if she were slipping between the sheets of a bed Azure slid her body through the opening, picking up her feet to step through the crack. Her foot came down on a hard surface, much different than the soft ground where she’d been. The last thing she brought through was her head, and the last thing she saw was Monet staring at her with hesitation on his face. She looked around her new location and saw only blackness.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
It took several seconds for Azure’s eyes to adjust to the dark room. She stayed completely frozen, taking in the smells, sights, and sounds around her. The air was dank with dust and it was warm, so warm that Azure was already sweating. And there wasn’t a single noise, which made her feel deaf. She turned back to the tear between the worlds, but it had vanished. Of course it was gone, she thought. She’d have to find a different way back.
Lifting her wand, she said, “Illustrant.” The tip of the wand lit and Azure suddenly backed up three giant steps.
A skeleton lay just in front of her. “Of-fucking-course. I had to land in a place with dead bodies.”
She turned in a circle, taking in the space. Besides the skeleton, she was alone in this mostly-empty chamber. She couldn’t see the ceiling, but had a feeling it was high above her, as those in the chambers under the Sphinx in Oriceran had been. The walls were covered in spider webs, which did nothing to increase her comfort. “Just me and the spiders down here,” she whispered to herself.
Down here, she thought. Why did she think she was down here? The tear had led her to Egypt, which was parallel to New Egypt. There she’d been under the Sphinx, so it made sense she’d be in the same place on Earth.
Azure backed up to the large square columns. This did seem like a tomb or temple of sorts. What had Chibale said? New Egypt and Egypt were twins, similar yet different. That meant that the way out of this was up ahead, down a narrow corridor. Azure longed to be out of the dark musty prison, so she strode forward and nearly slipped on a slick surface. Lowering her wand, she narrowed her eyes at what had caused her to lose her footing. On the stone ground it was hard to see anything due to the dust, but she made out the faint outline of a piece of parchment. She tentatively picked at the edges until she had a grip. Lifting the parchment, she held her wand to it. There were rows and rows of hieroglyphs. The page was torn on one side, like it had been ripped from a book. Book, she thought. Wasn’t there a significant book that had belonged to the Egyptians? From seemingly nowhere a title popped into her head. Book of the Dead. She’d heard that before. Could this be from that?
Behind her she heard something shuffling and she spun, wand high. On the other side of the chamber a single black spider the size of her palm crawled out of a corner.
“Fuck, that’s a big spider!” she whispered, slightly disgusted. At least there was only the one.
A great scurrying filled the chamber suddenly and Azure backed away from the noise. Black spread on the stone floor behind the single spider, engulfing it. The blackness covered the walls like paint. She guessed the black had overwhelmed the ceiling above too. Azure blinked and then realized that the black was hundreds, maybe thousands of large, menacing spiders. They paused, forming a wall several feet away. “Oh, fuck,” she said, stuffing the parchment into her bag. She took another step back and met stone and air. There were stairs behind her.
Without warning, the spiders raced at Azure. She whipped her wand in their direction and shot a bolt of fire at them, hitting the first line. Smoke filled the chamber, which instantly made her eyes burn. She wheeled and raced up the stairs, sprinting in an unknown direction. The skittering of spider legs filled the space behind her but she didn’t dare turn around. She could only keep racing forward, although she was unsure what she’d find ahead.
Now she was running blind, having lost the light from the fire. She brought her wand up again and lit it, and immediately halted before running straight into a stone wall. She was stuck—there was no way out. The scuttling grew louder, so loud it hurt her ears. The spiders would be on her any second now. Azure could fight off some of the spiders, but there were too many. Did she have time to get the lamp out of her bag? She didn’t think so.
She backed up, expecting to feel stone behind her, but instead she felt nothing. Another step backwards, and still no wall. When Azure turned, she saw a strange light and more steps. But how could that be? Then she remembered the barrier wall beneath the Sphinx in New Egypt. What if th
at was what this stone door was? An illusion to keep what was in the chamber there and only allow in magical species? Azure took three more steps backward, and to her relief she could now see the stone door in front of her. On the other side were the faint outlines of the hundreds of spiders who had raced to the top of the stairs. They had halted only a few feet away and their angry red eyes stared around, but they couldn’t cross the barrier.
Letting out a breath, Azure turned and shielded her eyes. At first she thought she was seeing another tear between the worlds, but then she realized it was moonlight. A warm white light shone at the top of the stairs. Taking the steps two at a time Azure ran to the top, grateful to be outside again and not trapped underground. It had made her feel claustrophobic to be under the Sphinx. She halted at the top, not at all prepared for what she saw next.
The Sphinx on Earth was not at all like the one on Oriceran. It was the same shape and general size, but the painted face of the pharaoh was only one of the differences. The headdress was significantly diminished here on Earth, and the nose had been destroyed. On Oriceran the Sphinx still looked as it had for millennia. This Sphinx had suffered from time, eroded by sand and wind and sun.
Azure was less surprised when she looked at the Great Pyramid and saw the same thing. It was not a pristine structure like the one on Oriceran. This pyramid, even from a distance, was worn and looked like it might crumble away. She hoped desperately that it didn’t. Was this what the magic on Oriceran did? Preserved these structures, whereas on Earth they wasted away more each year?
This surprise had stolen Azure’s attention, but she soon realized how cool it was. During the day in the desert the heat was stiflingly oppressive, but at night the cold desert air cloaked her, making her shiver. A single moon hung in the Earth sky, making her long to be back on Oriceran. She had the parchment. That had to be what the river had referred to, or at least it was one of the many clues she needed to fight the vampires.
