by Aaron Ehasz
“Knock knock,” she said to Lujanne at a volume that would break even the most transcendent trance. Rayla caught one of Lujanne’s eyes open the tiniest sliver. She tapped her foot loudly on the temple floor.
“Can I help you?” Lujanne asked, opening her second eye. She looked annoyed.
“I’m sorry, were you meditating or something?” Rayla said. She opened her eyes wide and batted her lashes innocently.
“I was,” Lujanne said.
“So, you’re done. Good,” Rayla said. She walked closer to Lujanne. “We’re leaving. Heading out for Xadia. And the other humans—Soren and Claudia—they’re coming with us.”
Rayla wasn’t sure, but she thought she caught Lujanne raise an eyebrow.
“And you’re unhappy with that,” Lujanne said. “Moonshadow elf to Moonshadow elf.”
Rayla nodded. “Callum trusts them, but I know they’re hiding something.”
Lujanne looked up at the sky pensively. “You see, Rayla, to every truth, there is a dark, shadowed side. Consider the half-moon—”
“You already did this,” Rayla said. “You gave me this speech before.”
“Oh. Have I?” Lujanne said. She didn’t look the least bit embarrassed.
“Yeah,” Rayla said. “I think I’ve got all the moon-themed advice I need.”
“Oh,” Lujanne said. She sounded a little disappointed. “Moon themes are really all I’ve got … unless you’re in need of a spooky monster or some fake food.”
“Actually,” Rayla said. “There is something you can help me with along those lines. An illusion would help me reveal Claudia’s and Soren’s darker side.”
“Whatever I can do,” Lujanne said.
It was late at night, but Viren was drinking cup after cup of hot brown morning potion. He lifted the cup to his lips with shaking hands and sipped the potion wearily. Viren had been up for what seemed like days, but he would not rest until he had learned more about the room in the mirror.
And then he saw something. In the mirror, the light beneath the door went dim, and the doorknob began to turn. Viren stared without blinking. Finally, the door swung open, and a mysterious stranger entered the room.
Viren sucked in his breath and blinked his eyes. He’d been up so long he thought he might be hallucinating. But the figure didn’t disappear. It glided into the room. A sweeping, midnight-blue cloak decorated with shimmering stars and gold trim draped its shoulders.
The figure’s face was obscured from Viren. It quickly made its way over to a bookcase. As it selected a single volume, the cloak slipped back, revealing an arm covered in twinkling star tattoos. Viren watched, rapt. He held his breath and leaned forward in his chair. But once the figure had the book, it turned to leave the room. Viren stood up, spilling his hot brown morning potion.
“No, no, no—come back here!” he yelled. He couldn’t let this mystery slip away.
But the figure was gone. Viren slid back into the chair, defeated.
“Who are you?” he asked the empty mirror.
Soren joined the crew gathered near the Moon Temple. Claudia was there with Lujanne and Ellis. Ava the three-legged dog stood nearby, panting. Where were the prince and step-prince? Running late, Soren supposed. He decided to fill the time with some intense preparatory stretches.
“Where are Callum and Ezran?” Claudia asked. Soren lunged forward, feeling a burn in his quadriceps.
“Oh! They’ll be here soon,” Lujanne said. “I think Ezran’s still packing up his dragon.”
Figures, Soren thought. The crown runt wasn’t strong enough to control a tiny dragon. He pulled one arm across his chest and breathed into the stretch.
“It has been a pleasure to have you all here,” Lujanne said. “I truly have enjoyed you all sneaking past my defenses and desecrating this sacred place these past few days. It will be lonely—quiet, but lonely—without you.”
Soren wasn’t sure what “desecrating” meant, but he felt a little bad for the lonely mage who appeared to love their company. It seemed like the wolf girl felt bad for her too because she jumped up into Lujanne’s arms.
“I’ll miss you so much, Lujanne,” Ellis said. Lujanne knelt to hug her.
“Ellis, you will always be welcome here,” Lujanne said. The wolf barked happily. “And you too, little one,” Lujanne said, patting the enormous wolf on its fluffy head. “And here’s the Moonstone collar I gave you so long ago.” Lujanne pulled out a thick blue collar decorated with half-moon jewels and slipped it around the wolf’s neck. A sparkly blue stone hung from the center of the collar.
“You don’t need the illusion any longer,” she said to Ava. “But I hope it serves as a reminder that someone is always looking out for you.” As she removed her hands from the collar, it glowed a brilliant gold, pulsing with magic.
Soren stopped stretching—he wanted to see the wolf’s fourth leg grow back. But nothing happened. Moon magic was boring.
When Soren looked up, he saw the princes approaching.
“Finally,” Soren said.
“Okay! Everyone’s here now! We can all hit the road!” Rayla said.
Even though Soren hated Rayla, her excitement was a little contagious. He jumped up and down a little. “All right! Time to go to the magical land and do whatever!”
Claudia and Soren walked behind the princes, Rayla, Ellis, Ava, and Bait. As they descended the slope of the great caldera, the trees thinned out and the mountain’s cool mist dissipated. When she was sure the others were out of earshot, Claudia turned to her brother with an expectant look.
“So, you’re ready to do this the Soren way, right?” he asked her. He flexed a bicep in Claudia’s face, and she winced.
Claudia was resigned. She had wanted the princes to return to Katolis willingly, but she would do whatever it took.
“Yes. There’s no other way,” she said.
“Good. Then when it’s time to strike, I’ll give the signal,” Soren said.
“What’s the signal?” Claudia asked. She did not recall any discussion about a signal, but Soren sure did look proud of himself.
“The signal … is me attacking the elf,” Soren said.
Claudia rolled her eyes, but focused her energy on Rayla, who had just glanced back at them.
“It’s going to be a long journey,” Rayla shouted. “Let me just go around this bush corner and see if I can find some berries or something …”
Rayla wandered off the trail. Claudia couldn’t believe the opportunity. She looked at Soren and widened her eyes until they seemed about to burst out of the sockets.
“I should go now?” Soren whispered.
Claudia nodded vigorously. She watched as Soren went through the bushes behind Rayla. Then Claudia approached the princes from behind. She raised her arm, allowing her sleeve to fall backward toward her shoulder. She was wearing two identical bracelets: emerald-eyed snakes entwined with chains. Claudia felt the dark magic surge inside her as she began to chant: “Meht dnib leets gnirehtils …”
The bracelets began to glow. To her delight, they transformed into two magical snakes with bright green eyes. She bent her knees and lowered her arms to the ground, releasing the snakes in the direction of the princes.
At the last second, Callum and Ezran turned around, but it was too late for them. The snakes coiled around the princes’ legs, tripping them, and then wrapped themselves around the boys’ bodies before transforming into heavy chains. As Ezran fell to the ground, Zym tumbled out of his arms.
Claudia had executed the spell perfectly. The only thing left was to get rid of that wolf. Claudia glanced in Ava’s direction, but the wolf was so spooked by the snakes she’d fled on her own. As Ellis chased after Ava, Claudia couldn’t believe her luck.
Zym stood alone, unhindered by chains but aware of the danger. Claudia ran toward him with an open brown sack. The little dragon tried to get away, running on his tiny legs, but he didn’t stand a chance. With a few long strides, Claudia had caught up with him.
Quivering in her shadow, Zym cried desperately and flit his tiny wings—but he still couldn’t fly.
Claudia caught a look of horror on Ezran’s face as she stepped past Zym to cut him off. The dragon fumbled to a terrified halt.
“I’m sorry, little guy,” Claudia said. She did feel bad for the tiny dragon. “You have to come with me.” And with that, she dropped the sack over Zym’s head.
Mission complete. She couldn’t wait to get back to Katolis to show her father—he would be so proud. She looked around for Soren, hoping he’d finished off Rayla by now.
After Rayla left the path, Soren spotted her at once. Maybe elves weren’t so stealthy after all. Rayla was leaning over a bush picking berries, with no idea what was about to become of her.
Soren smiled. Then he closed in, allowing his shadow to fall over Rayla. He whipped his heavy blade directly at her head, but just missed. At the last possible moment, Rayla dodged to the side and regained her balance. Then she whipped out her own blades.
“Oh no. It’s a trap!” Rayla said.
“Yup,” Soren smirked, even though the elf didn’t sound as surprised as he’d hoped.
“But why ever would you do that?” Rayla asked. “I thought we were friends.”
“Sorry, but no. I’m just a nice guy and people get the wrong idea sometimes,” Soren said.
“You don’t speak sarcasm so good, do you?” Rayla asked.
“No, I do not,” Soren said. Then he lowered his head and charged.
Viren’s eyes never left the mirror, and eventually, his attention paid off. The mysterious figure returned to the room and walked directly toward him. Could it see him? Viren wasn’t sure. The figure’s gaze was intent.
Viren stood up and looked closely at the figure. It had deep blue skin and pointed ears and horns. Its star-dappled hands had only four fingers. A four-pointed silver star was emblazoned on the figure’s chest. Viren couldn’t believe it—he was staring at a Startouch elf!
“An elf? You’re an elf?” Viren said to the mirror. The figure walked directly toward the mirror, and Viren tensed. The elf’s eyes focused on Viren, and he held out his own hand to touch the mirror. Was he visible now?
The figure stared thoughtfully, eyes narrowed, and seemed about to wave back at Viren. But then the elf straightened his collar and tugged down his tunic, confident and satisfied. Viren relaxed. “You can’t see me. On your side, it’s just an ordinary mirror …” He smiled, glad to have the advantage once again.
Whoomph!”
Claudia heard Soren and Rayla fighting, but she couldn’t see them, so there was no way to know whether the battle was almost over. Claudia had hoped Soren would have ended things by now. Still, judging from the crushing sounds of Soren’s heavy sword, Rayla was on the defensive.
Claudia scrambled to get closer to the fight. She left the princes chained up on the dusty ground. They weren’t going anywhere.
“What? You’re running away?” Soren asked Rayla.
Rayla quickly swung herself up into the branches of a tree.
“Hey! Do either of the tiny princes want to fight? This elf’s a coward!” Soren shouted.
“Just finish it, Soren,” Claudia called out. Neither Callum nor Ezran responded to Soren’s taunting, but Claudia wasn’t surprised. Guilt-ridden, she looked over at Callum. He wouldn’t even return her gaze. She walked back over to him.
“I’m sorry, Callum,” Claudia said. “I know this feels like a betrayal, but I can’t let you go. I have to do what’s right—I have to take you back home.”
Callum kept his stony silence. Claudia couldn’t stand it; she wished he would fight back.
“Please don’t give me the silent treatment, Callum. Say something! Say you hate me. Say anything!”
Still, he said nothing. This behavior was unnerving. Claudia bent down so she was face-to-face with Callum. But the look in his eyes was vacant, as if he were an empty vessel.
Claudia looked at Ezran and saw the same vacant stare.
Claudia started to feel dizzy. These bodies in chains—they weren’t the princes.
“Soren, something’s wrong! This is a trick!” Claudia shouted.
But it was Rayla who responded with a hearty chuckle from her spot way up in a tree. “A trick? Us? No!”
Claudia knew it! Rayla had undermined them.
“Wait, she’s using sarcasm, Claudia,” Soren called out. He jumped with excitement.
Claudia slapped her palm on her forehead. What a time for Soren to finally comprehend the rhetorical use of derision.
“That’s right!” Rayla said triumphantly.
“What did you do, elf?” Soren asked.
“I can’t wait for the look on your big stupid face when you see this,” Rayla said. Then she winked at Claudia.
“Ellis! Show them!” Rayla hollered.
Claudia watched, furious, as Ellis emerged from the bushes where she’d been hiding with Ava. The little girl tugged the Moonstone collar from Ava’s neck. Claudia watched, eyes wide, as the collar released the spell. The chained “princes” shimmered with silver magic and then disappeared. The chains binding them clattered to the ground.
“Goodness, they’re … illusions,” Claudia said. Lujanne must have enchanted the Moonstone collar. How could she have fallen for such a simple trick?
“What?! You’re saying they’re not real?” Soren asked.
“That’s what ‘illusion’ means, Soren,” Claudia said. She was out of patience with her brother.
Infuriated, Soren lunged for Ellis and Ava, who dodged him easily. Claudia shook her head. Speed was not her brother’s strong suit; he had no chance of keeping up.
“Not even close,” Ellis squealed. “Woo-hoo!”
“Where are the real princes?” Soren asked breathlessly. He stopped running.
“We’re up here!” Ezran shouted from way up high.
There was a bright flash of blue light. Claudia looked up. Phoe-Phoe flew overhead, carrying Callum and Ezran on her back.
When they saw the escaped princes, Ellis cheered and Ava howled. Rayla reached up from her tree branch and grabbed Phoe-Phoe’s talon, which hoisted her up into the sky.
“Claudia! They’re getting away,” Soren said.
Claudia looked up into the sky toward the escaping moon phoenix. Maybe they had tricked her, but they would pay for showing off.
“No, Soren. They’re not,” she said. Claudia opened a bag containing a mummified tentacle. She dropped it into her hand, crushed it, and uttered an incantation: “Nwod meht gard psarg gnih tirw.”
Claudia’s eyes turned black, and dark energy enveloped her arm, taking the form of a massive tentacle. It writhed and expanded until it was several times her size. Then Claudia snarled and thrust the tentacle at the moon phoenix. It coiled around the terrified bird.
“Claudia, please,” Callum begged from atop Phoe-Phoe. “Don’t do this.”
But Claudia only tightened her grip. She didn’t feel so sorry for Callum anymore. Slowly but surely, she dragged the bird and its passengers toward the ground.
“AHHHHH!” Claudia suddenly cried out in pain. Out of nowhere, a metal chain wrapped around her hand. She looked back and saw a tracker—maybe one of General Amaya’s men—holding the chain. He gave a strong yank, wrenching Claudia’s arm backward into a strange angle.
“Stop! Let them go!” the tracker shouted.
Claudia dropped the gnarled tentacle, which crumbled to dust. Immediately the spell dissipated, releasing Phoe-Phoe. The magical bird regained flight and soared into the sky, taking Rayla, Callum, and Ezran with her.
“What are you doing?” Claudia asked.
“Protecting them from you,” the tracker said evenly.
Claudia felt her eyes turning back to normal. She glared at the tracker and tried to pull away, but the chain held her arm tight.
Claudia desperately tried to come up with a spell to get her out of this situation—some magic to get her out of this literal bind. Thi
nk, Claudia, think. Then Soren’s blade sliced through the chain, and it fell to the ground, severed and useless.
“Big mistake, Chain Man,” Soren said. He knocked the tracker on the back of the head with a rock.
Corvus had been tied up and taken prisoner by the brother-sister duo, but he didn’t care. His arms were bound and he was scowling, but he knew he had saved the princes.
“You know you’re going to pay for this, traitor,” the brother said.
“Traitor?” This idiot had to be kidding. Corvus had done nothing but follow orders from the princes’ aunt. “General Amaya sent me to protect the princes of Katolis—and you just tried to kidnap them. Please tell me who the traitor is,” Corvus said.
The blond kid seemed to consider this point. He looked to his sister for guidance.
“Everyone who votes this guy is a traitor, raise their hand,” the brother said. He raised his own hand. Then his sister raised hers.
“Two against one. Traitor,” the brother said. He tied a gag over Corvus’s mouth.
“What are we gonna do?” the sister moaned. She slapped her hand against her forehead. “We betrayed our friends, and it was all for nothing.”
Corvus couldn’t agree more, but it was hard to voice his opinion with the gag.
“It wasn’t totally for nothing, Sis,” the brother said with a smile.
“What do you mean?” she asked. She followed her brother’s gaze to the wriggling brown sack on the ground, and her face brightened. “The dragon! We still have the dragon!”
Corvus froze. He had only been focused on the princes. He hadn’t even thought about the baby dragon.
The brother picked up the bag and began to open it. “Come on out, you little—”
But much to Corvus’s relief, a couple of moon moths flew out of the bag and into the doofus’s face. There was no dragon inside. The brother flailed and swatted as the moths relentlessly fluttered around his head.
Ezran looked down from his seat on Phoe-Phoe. Ellis was sitting on Ava’s back, waving and cheering.
