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The Rune Tapper

Part I

Fire and Tears

Chapter 1

The Iron Doors

Tek wished he had been born before the end of the world. In a time when kingdoms and villages could exist outside of walls, and rats weren't forbidden to leave the burrows. Life had become plain for his kind. Painfully so. His daily routine usually went as such. Wake up and try to find something to eat before making the arduous climb to the iron doors. Try not to disturb any dragons when entering the upper peaks of the mountains. Monitor the iron door until the sun begins to set, and practice his rune tapping. Climb back down to the burrows and get what sleep he could before repeating the process the next day, and of course pray the crimson moon never rises.

The sun was particularly hot today and Tek wanted nothing more than to pour his water skin over his fur. Sadly that would leave him with no water for the journey back down the mountains. So he sat in the scarce amount of shade provided by the rocks jetting out around the iron door. Being a rat was enough to make Tek feel small, but being next to the iron doors was enough to fill even a dragon's heart with inadequacy. Stretching higher than any building Tek had ever read about and reaching out wider than a dozen dragon's wing spans, the iron doors were a divine mystery to the world. Glowing runes carved deep into the metal erupted with a constant flow of purple light. Staring into the runes was like staring into a tempest of magic, each rune blazing with energy. Little was known about the iron doors, only that the last time they opened, the world came to an end.

Picking up a stick, Tek etched a rune into the dirt. A bitter sadness welled up inside of him at the sight of the rune, and he violently pushed down memories that tried to creep into the forefront of his mind. A tear dropped from his fur, dotting the dirt next to his freshly drawn rune. Wiping the tear away, he took in a deep breath and cleared his heavy mind.

The smell of sulfur filled Tek's nostrils. A dragon must be making its den nearby. If he followed the scent he would likely find a hoard of treasure along with a fiery death. So he kept quiet, looking over the details of the only rune he ever learned. The rune lay dormant in the ground, a powerless symbol that would appear alien to most, but when Tek placed his hand over the strange symbol, the rune burst with silver light.

"Toying with your little magic tricks again?" A feminine voice called out from above him. Tek looked up to see his sister, Gritta, lounging across one of the rocks that stretched into the shade.

"Tell him to stop wasting his time. We found a better way to spend it." A more gruff female voice spoke. Tek recognized it to be his other sister, Gretta.

Tek sighed, then pulled his hand away from the rune, extinguishing the light. "You found the dragon, didn't you?" Tek asked. Gritta and Gretta jumped down to his side, smiling down at him mischievously.

"Come on big brother, you always enjoy trying to prove you're the more cunning. Why not take this chance to prove it once and for all?" Gretta asked.

"If I wanted to prove I am more intelligent, I would just stay here." Tek said, tapping his spear against the tip of Gretta's snout. She wrinkled it in annoyance.

Gritta pushed her sister aside before sitting beside Tek. "You're already mastered your soul splitting rune. You may spend the rest of your life drawing it into the dirt in this same spot, constantly trying to convince yourself that you're furthering your understanding of rune tapping or, you can come with us. It's a dragon hoard, Tek - do you have any idea how many runic scrolls you could find?"

"You only want the gold." Tek sneered.

"You seek scrolls, I seek gold. What difference does it make? Either way, greed is greed. Don't pretend you're any better by having a differing desire. Imagine how much food we could buy." Gritta said, gesturing to Tek's bag. It contained Tek's meal for the day. A single apple that had already begun to rot.

"No one wants to trade with a rat." Tek said.

"Kobolds will trade with anyone. We give them the gold, they will bring us whatever we want for it, and you know it." Gritta said. Tek looked back down at the dormant rune inscribed into the dirt, but Gritta stomped her foot onto it, smearing it back to nothing. "You've triggered that rune a thousand times."

"Three rats can't outwit a dragon." Tek said, getting to his feet.

"Oh Tek, we both know you don't believe that," Gritta said, smirking. "And if you don't think three is enough," Gritta grabbed Tek's spear and handed it to him forcefully, "Then you can always split your soul into more."

The scent of sulfur grew ever stronger as Tek followed his sisters towards the dragon's den. Smoke billowed into the sky in the distance, heralding the beast's presence. He had never seen a dragon up close before, only massive shadows whenever one of the winged reptiles would fly overhead while he was guarding the iron doors. Gritta and Gretta ran ahead, stealthily crouching in the shadows by a ridge. Tek followed, peering over the rock to see the massive slumbering beast. Puffs of smoke rose from the dragon's nostrils as it growled quietly in its sleep. Tek found himself squinting from the sunlight reflecting on the pile of precious metals the dragon had collected. Yet no scrolls could be seen.

"We'll just need a closer look." Gritta said, reading the disappointment on Tek's face. Gretta punched him playfully on the arm, before running off down the side of the mountain, careful not to make too much noise that may disturb the dragon's slumber. Tek followed, if only to make sure his sisters didn't get themselves killed.

Pulling the front of his hood up over his snout, Tek tried not to choke on the fumes. The air was thick with dragon smoke and the closer they descended to the beast's lair, the darker the air became. Tek could now make out features of the dragon he could not before. Its amber scales had coins and jewels encrusted into them. Two horns erupted from its brow curving back in a spiral. Sharp spines protruded down the length of the dragon's back.

Tek's eyes flicked from the dragon to the hoard surrounding it. Though few in number, he could make out several canisters that could potentially contain the knowledge of rune tapping that he desperately craved. "Looks like there's something here for both of us after all," Gretta whispered into Tek's ear, "You know, we could use more hands to carry some of this gold back to the burrow."

Sticking the butt of his spear into the dirt, Tek etched out the runic symbol for soul splitting, then placed his palm over the rune. Silver light erupted from the symbol and Tek's eyes. He could feel the runic energy fill his body, and removed his hand from the symbol, careful not to draw in too much of its power.

A second identical copy of Tek - both in appearance and knowledge - stood beside him.

He took a moment to get a feel for how much runic energy he had absorbed. "I'd say we have about an hour before my soul converges. Take only the treasure furthest away from the dragon. If something goes wrong I will distract it as best I can. You two just run for safety."

"An hour is all you got from that?" Gretta explained, her ears and tail drooping in disappointment, "I've seen you pull twice as much time from far smaller symbols."

"It's dangerous to take in too much energy. Besides, I'd rather not tempt you with more time." Tek said, before stepping out into the dragon's lair.

Quietly, Tek ran to the first canister, removed the lid, and frowned in disappointment to find it filled with coins.

"Jackpot." Gretta said, yanking the canister from the treasure pile.

A small, but noisy, avalanche of gems and gold spilled down around them.

Both Tek, and his copy stood with spears pointing towards the dragon, putting themselves between it and each of his sisters. If the dragon awoke, then there would undoubtedly be casualties on their end. Dragons were extremely dangerous, and four rats were no match for such a powerful beast.

The best Tek could hope for would be a quick death for either himself or his copy, while those alive escaped. Soul splitting allowed for either himself or his copy to die, so long as the other survived. If Tek were to perish, then all his memories and experiences since the split would return to his copy, and the same would happen if his copy were to die. While this essentially would give him a second life, the trauma of experiencing death itself was a hefty toll he would rather not pay.

Hushing Gretta and throwing her a stern look, Tek smacked her over the back of the head. "Ow" Gretta squeaked.

"Be more careful," Tek said through clenched teeth, "I'd rather not know what it feels like to burn alive." Gretta nodded, then Tek moved onto the next canister. It contained several small scrolls. Carefully removing them from the canister, he skimmed each of their contents, disappointed to find they only contained maps and intercepted messages from the squabbling kingdoms that had shunned the burrow for hundreds of years. He would find no personal gain from such texts.

One canister in particular caught his eye. Onyx in color, with a ruby encrusted in the lid, it looked to contain something of great importance. Getting to it, however, would take him far from their only escape. He signaled to Gritta and Gretta to finish up taking what they could carry. Then his copy made sure to usher them towards the exit. Creeping towards his prize, he slid the lid off, revealing only a single scroll. Drawn onto the scroll was a single rune. A rarity. Each rune was a symbol lost to mortals for thousands of years. Tek rolled the paper around his spear, before tying it off. Turning to take his leave, he found himself being thrown back onto the treasure hoard by an earth shattering boom. The ground shook violently and Tek half expected the entire mountain to collapse.

What in the name of the guardians was that? Tek thought to himself.

The dragon stirred from its slumber, locking eyes with Tek. Unable to spend any time considering what had caused the tremor, Tek tossed his spear with all the strength he could muster. It flew singing through the air, past the dragon's neck as it reared back its head. Gritta jumped into the air by the entrance of the lair to catch the spear, as the dragon's maw opened revealing red hot flames only seconds before they engulfed Tek.

Tek's soul, memories, and experiences he had experienced since the soul split returned violently to his copy. He screamed and thrashed as the feeling of fire biting at his skin burst into his mind. Burning flesh from bone in an intense heat, before being overwhelmed by the icy touch of death. Gritta and Gretta grabbed him by the arms, forcing the three of them tumbling down the mountainside as the dragon roared angrily in the distance behind them. Fire and smoke erupted in the sky as it unleashed its fury on the mountain itself.

Gretta held Tek close, his entire body now trembling as the experience of death lay at the forefront of his mind. He squeaked quietly to himself, as Gretta covered his mouth with her hand as the dragon swooped overhead. Tek spasmed violently. "Hold him still!" Gritta hissed.

"I'm trying!" Gretta said, her voice panicked as she tried to hold Tek still. Gritta pointed out a kobold hole nearby and with Gretta's help, they supported Tek under each of his arms and moved him into the hole. There they would wait out the dragon's hunt until it returned to its lair.

"You're okay Tek. It's not real. You're still alive, we won't let it find you. Stop trembling, you're safe now." Gritta whispered. But it had been real. The fire, the pain, the death. All of it had happened. He merely was able to pass on into his copy. All the memories of the copy had lingered as well. His concern for his sister's safety. His annoyance at Gretta almost waking the beast. His attempt to brace for the convergence. It hadn't been enough.

Gretta pulled Tek's water skin free and poured it over his head. Shaking off the water, Tek seemed to snap out of his trance-like state. The cool liquid helped him push the inferno to the back of his mind, although he knew the memory would never be extinguished. Sitting up and pressing his back against the cool rock he stared at the entrance, too nervous to close his eyes for fear the dragon's flame would consume his mind.

"Are you going to be okay?" Gritta asked.

"Yeah, I think I just need a few minutes." Tek said. He felt exhausted. Rune tapping had never been that physically tolling on his body. Not since... well he chose not to remember that.

Something prodded at Tek's side and he turned to see Gritta poking him with the butt of his spear. His original spear, with the scroll still intact. He smiled and took the weapon, leaving his copy's spear leaning against the wall. He had no use for it now. Opening the scroll he began to memorize the markings.

To master a rune, it had to be drawn perfectly, every detail exact. The dragon would be patrolling for a while, which would leave him with ample time to look over the scroll and try to forget the fiery heat of dragonfire and the resulting cold embrace of death.

The sun had begun to set when the air finally grew still and the dragon had returned to its lair. "You seem better." Gretta said, nervously broaching the subject.

"I'm just trying not to think of it, but I can still feel the sting of his flames." Tek said, not looking up from his scroll.

"We should get moving," Gritta said, getting to her feet and walking towards the exit, "You won't be able to read that scroll in the dark anyway and it's a long walk back to the burrow. Besides, I don't want to..." Gritta paused. Tek looked to his sister to see her staring at the sky, seemingly in shock.

"Gritta?" Gretta asked, stepping away from Tek and cautiously approaching her sister. Tek got to his feet and tucked the scroll between his waste and his loincloth, then hurried to see what it was that had captured their attention. An icy chill ran through his body as the sky was blood red. The Crimson moon hung at the skies center and the distant howl of demons sent his fur on edge. Tek recognized the icy chill that the howling sent through his body. It was one he had hoped he would not have to experience again so soon. The icy chill of death.

*****

"Can you soul split?" Gretta asked, the moon above bathing the land in crimson light made Gritta and Gretta's fur look almost as red as Tek's did naturally.

"I'd rather not," Tek said, crouching behind a rock and keeping an eye out for any shadows that may be lurking in the pass below, "The more bodies we have the harder it will be to hide. We should make for the nearest entrance to the burrow."

"We won't find one for another mile." Gritta said, exchanging a nervous look with Gretta.

"Well then we should start walking," Tek said, carefully making his way down the mountainside, "If we stay in one location a demon will find us for sure."

The cacophony of cackles and howls of beings long bound behind the iron door nauseated the mind. Tek could hear distant shouts in a language whose words sounded almost impossible to pronounce and pained his ears to hear. He tried his best to focus on the path in front of him, all the while staying low and praying a demon wouldn't come across their path.

"This can't be happening," Gritta squeaked, "This season doesn't normally end for another twenty days."

"Did the rest of the world know this was going to happen?" Gretta asked.

"If they did, they didn't feel the need to warn the rat kingdom," Tek whispered, "How typical."

Overhead a shadow eclipsed the light of the crimson moon as a cloud of winged demons swarmed through the air, combing the landscape for any sign of life. Tek thought this would be the end as they passed overhead, until he heard the roar of a dragon in the distance.

Tek's fur stood on end, and his skin burned as memories of the dragon's fire caused him to drop to a knee.

Gritta squeezed his shoulder, bringing his mind back to reality. Getting back to his feet, Tek pressed on. Better to have the dragon deal with the flock of demons than him.

The sound of pebbles tumbling down the path behind then caught Tek's attention, and he pulled Gritta and Gretta back behind the nearest rock. A snarl followed by the sound of claws scraping against stone grew closer. Tek squeezed his spear, and began to outline the rune for soul splitting into the ground at his feet. As the demon drew closer, Tek placed his foot over the rune, and it burst into silver light. His eyes erupted with magical energies, as he split into two beings. One climbed the side of the mountain, his spear held in his mouth. The other remained with Gritta and Gretta, waiting cautiously for the demon to appear. He had only tapped into a small well of the runes magic, his soul would converge in only a matter of minutes. It would be more than enough time. Tek anticipated one of two outcomes, either he would best the demon, or soon they would all be dead.

As Tek's split copy climbed the mountain, he remained with his copy of his spear. Gritta and Gretta pulled out knives they had hidden in their cloaks. Rats always had weapons on them. They were necessary for survival in the mountains. But every rat preferred stealth over combat if possible. In a hostile world, those seen as prey were often at a disadvantage when it came to direct conflict.

Dust kicked in the air, as the demon sniffed the path just around the corner. Hiding was no longer an option, and if they were going to be found, it was best to have the element of surprise. Tek leapt out of hiding and thrust his spear into the demon's gut. It made an awful trumpeting sound, rearing back and spitting some kind of strange liquid at him. He barely managed to dodge it, but where it touched the ground it bubbled and melted the very stone of the mountain around it. Gritta and Gretta screamed defiantly, rushing to aid their brother. With a swing of its arm, the demon nearly knocked all three of the rats off the mountainside. Gretta managed to duck under the attack, while both Tek and Gritta clung to the cliff edge. Gretta stabbed her knife into the demon's leg, but it merely hissed and grabbed her by the throat, lifting her in the air.

Tek cursed. Still clinging to the cliff with one arm, he threw his spear with the other. It was a pathetic attempt, but all he could muster. With a whip of his tail, the demon knocked the spear from the air before it even came close to touching him. The demon cackled, turning back to look at Gretta, who let out a choked squeak. The demon opened his jaws to reveal unnaturally jagged teeth. A drop of saliva slid from his mouth so large that it made a splash upon impacting the ground. However the demon's bite would never come.

The split copy of Tek dove down from the mountainside bringing his spear deep into the demon's skull. In a moment the demon's body went limp. Gretta scrambled away from its grasp as its body burst into a violent display of multicolored fire. Moments later, Tek's soul converged, leaving memories of his struggle with the demon as well as his journey up the mountain to ambush it. Gretta pulled Gritta safely away from the cliff's edge and they continued to make for the burrow. Their conflict had not been a quiet one, and the faster they could distance themselves from the cliff the better.

"I've never been out of the burrow during a crimson moon. Where are the demons coming from? I always thought there would be a portal or something." Gretta asked, between panting breaths as they continued to run.

"I read they can appear anywhere the crimson moon shines its light. They will be all over the continent by now." Tek said.

As the rats reached the base of the mountain the true scale of the invasion had become clear. Demons ran wild across the lands, scouring for victims. Gritta grabbed Tek by the wrist and pulled him towards the entrance to the burrow, but something caught his eye. "There's a kobold out there." He said, noting a small kobold wandering aimlessly in the open. She looked horrified.

"We'll die if we stay out here." Gretta said, "No one would look back for a rat. Why should we look back for a kobold."

"If we don't help her, then we're only proving to the world that we are what they imagine us to be." Tek said, pulling free from his sisters and running for the kobold. He could hear them shouting at him to return, but his mind was already made up. "Hey you!" Tek called out, the kobold saw Tek approaching and ran in his direction.

Unfortunately, Tek's shouting had also gained the attention of the demons, who quickly galloped in his direction. Tek cursed to himself, and threw his spear at the first of the three demonic entities. He managed to hit the demon in the arm, causing it to let out a howl, but it didn't slow their advance. By now the kobold had reached him, and stood looking up at him, confused and scared. Grabbing the kobold by the arm, he quickly led her towards the entrance to the burrow.

A searing pain shot through Tek's left leg and he dropped to the ground screaming. One of the demons had struck him with a serrated whip and the strange bladed weapon dug deep into his skin. Yanking on the whip, the coiled blade tightened, causing Tek's scream to amplify, a visually pleased look fell on the demon's face. The kobold grabbed the center of the whip and bit through the leather, freeing Tek. Tek pulled the blade free from his leg and began frantically etching a rune into the dirt.

A knife flew through the air, nearly catching Tek's ear, and struck one of the demons in the center of the chest. The demon let out an ear piercing scream before exploding into pink and black flames. "Get up you little red idiot!" Gretta shouted, pulling at Tek's arms. Tek refused to leave, completing his rune, as Gritta fought off one of the other demons. Silver light exploded from the rune and Tek's soul split into another copy. This time his copy was just as injured as he was.

"We can't fight them off and they won't leave a chance for an easy kill." Tek said.

"Are you sure about this?" Gretta asked. Tek nodded, but he was fully aware she could tell he was lying. Then he allowed his sisters to pull his copy back to the burrows as more demons came into being in the crimson light.

A nimble demon strode towards Tek. If he could stand, then the demon would have stood about a head taller than him, with a massive scythe that was somehow even larger. The demon looked like something out of a disturbed child's drawing. His arms were too long and stretched like accordions, making their true length impossible to tell, while his fingers came to razor sharp claws. "How noble to let your friends get away," The demon's throat let out a strange rhythmic ticking sound as he spoke. "You will pay dearly for that." His face looked to be carved like a jack o'lantern and a pink fire seemed to illuminate its head. Two long, almost rabbit-like ears stretched over the back of its head like antennas and his skin almost seemed to be the texture of wrinkled paper.

Shifting his gaze from the nightmarish form of the demon, Tek noticed something off about its scythe. There appeared to be a red rune ingrained into. It glowed with a terrible red light, similar to that of the blood moon, yet unlike the runes he drew, this one looked as if its runic energies were trying to tear itself apart, as if trying to escape. The demon let out another chuckle, that same ticking sound emanating from its throat. "Does my appearance frighten you?"

Reaching for his spear, Tek hurled it at the scythe, making contact with the rune. The demon howled as the energy within the now damaged rune lashed at, tearing through the demon's flesh. Moments later the rune stabilized and to Tek's horror the demon was not only still alive, but dozens of glowing hands reaching out towards him from the demon's wounds. "What's wrong rat? Are you scared?" The demon growled. Then it pounced on him, tearing his body apart.

Tek, or rather the copy of Tek it was all the same to him, was pulled into the dark of the burrow. The kobold crouched nervously in the dark nearby as his sister held him, knowing full well what was about to happen. Tek could hear his own screams from outside the burrow as the demon tore apart his other self. Closing his eyes he waited for the pain, memories, and death to come pouring into him. When silence finally fell outside the burrow, Tek let out a wail of torment. It had not been a quick death. Gritta and Gretta held him closely as he thrashed and screamed until the crimson light disappeared and the sun rose once more.

*****

"How's the leg?" Gritta asked. It had been several hours since the sun had risen. Hundreds of rats had gone missing overnight. Confusion and panic was rampant as the world tried to piece together such a violent and unprecedented attack.

"Not as bad as I originally thought," Tek said, standing up and putting his weight on his leg to show he could walk. "The demon's blade must have been made to cause more pain rather than real damage."

"And how are you doing?" Gritta asked.

Tek hesitated before answering. "I think I'll be fine. I'm going to try not to die for a while." He joked, but still tried not to think about any of the events that had occurred in the past day.

"You haven't slept at all." Gretta said.

"Neither have you." Tek retorted.

"We've both napped. Besides, we didn't die," Gritta snapped, holding up two fingers "Twice!"

"I'm here," Tek gestured to himself, "I'm present. Clearly I'm not dead."

"You know what we mean!"

"I'll survive. All pain passes in time." Tek said, You're lying. A voice said in his mind. He pushed the voice away and continued speaking, "How are you two holding up?"

"You're just trying to change the subject, but if you must know, I'm doing terribly." Gretta complained.

"You're what?" Gritta asked, an expression of confusion and disbelief falling on her face.

"I'm the only one of the three of us who didn't kill a demon. Tek stabbed one through the head, Gritta threw a knife into that other one and it exploded! I'm supposed to be the tough one. Everyone is going to know I was the only one out of the three of us who didn't get a kill!"

"They're going to know because you're literally shouting it. Just lie and tell them you killed two. We don't care." Tek said.

"You're the tough one?" Gritta asked.

"I'll know Tek," Gretta said, her voice still raised, "And yes Gritta, I am the tough one."

"If you insist." Gritta shrugged, ignoring her sister's outburst and turned her attention back to Tek. "Your little kobold friend wanted to talk to you, she's been waiting outside the burrow since the sun rose and the demons were banished.

"She left the burrow?" Tek asked.

"Technically she was escorted by the guard. Outsiders aren't allowed in the burrow, you know that. You should be happy they let her stay until the crimson moon set." Gritta said.

"Rats aren't that heartless." Tek said, looking out the tunnel. "I'm going to the iron doors. We should check to make sure they're undamaged."

"We're coming too." Gritta said.

"No, the threat of another invasion is gone, at least until nightfall. I will be back by then. I don't need either of you getting tempted by another stupid treasure hunt."

Gritta and Gretta's ears drooped guiltily. Tek rustled the fur atop both their heads, then left the burrow. The kobold was waiting for him, sitting on a rock. She nearly knocked him over with how quickly she rushed at him.

"You're the rat who saved me!" The kobold said excitedly.

"Yeah, I'm Tek." Tek noticed something he hadn't the night prior. The kobold had runic markings on her forearms and engraved into her horns. Before he could get a good look at the kobold wrapped her arms around him and squeezed.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you!" The kobold said. Tek felt as if she was squeezing the air out of his lungs. "I'm Gimmick."

"Well I'm glad I could help, but if you don't mind me asking where did you get those markings? Are you a rune tapper?"

"A what?" Gimmick's head tilted curiously.

"A you know... like that thing I did last night?"

"The thing where you died and saved everyone?" Gimmick said bluntly.

"I... uh... yeah, kind of." Tek turned to look at the sky. He wanted to make sure he could make the trip up and down the mountain with time to spare. "I have to go now, but I'm glad I could help."

"Can I come? I owe you after all. Maybe I can help carry your stick?" Gimmick gave Tek the biggest grin he had ever seen.

"Well it's a long walk, and I can't really afford to be slowed down. You know, just in case there's another crimson moon." Tek said awkwardly. Gimmick stared at him, her smile not the least bit daunted. Realizing the kobold would likely follow him regardless of what answer he gave her, he sighed, then gestured for her to follow. "What were you doing all alone outside anyway?" Tek asked.

"I don't really remember much that happened before you showed up. I was panicking. I remember there was a fire at my home. I think a dragon must have been disturbed because everything was burning," Gimmick said.

Tek felt as if his heart had been ripped out. Knowing it was his raid that had angered the dragon.

"Then you showed up and saved me." Gimmick continued.

"I'm glad I could help, but you don't owe me anything. You should go back to your people. There might be someone looking for you." Tek said.

"I'm not sure there's anyone left to look for me." Gimmick's voice trailed off and she stood still staring at the ground, distant in thought. "But if you want me to go I understand-"

"No!" Tek said quickly. "No, that's not what I meant, I just... You should really come to check on the iron doors with me. They're quite impressive if you've never seen them before."

"Okay!" Gimmick perked up, "So those were your sisters fighting with you? Do you have a big family?"

"Uh, technically I have thousands of siblings. My mom is the queen so-"

"That makes you a prince!" Gimmick grabbed Tek by the shoulders and shook him excitedly.

"Yeah, but a vast majority of my siblings are sisters and we live in a matriarchy so-"

"Wow, a prince!" Gimmick exclaimed again, still shaking him. Tek removed her arms and not wanting to dampen her spirits allowed her to continue skipping excitedly behind him as if his title actually meant something. Gimmick continued to question him the entire climb. "Can you make me a knight?"

"Do you want to be a knight?" Tek said, thankful they were approaching the iron doors.

"I mean... no, not really." Gimmick said, scratching at her horns.

"Well, good because I can't make you a knight."

As the iron doors came into view, Tek allowed himself to relax a bit. The doors had no visible damage to them and still remained closed. Gimmick was stunned at the sight of such an enormous construct, and Tek had to turn back to get her, not noticing she had stopped following him. "They're quite something, aren't they?" Tek said.

"I never knew they were so big, and the view from up here is amazing! You can see the forbidden valley from here." Gimmick said, staring off over the horizon.

"Surely you've been out past the forbidden valley. I thought kobolds crossed over the surrounding mountains to trade with the rest of the kingdoms." Tek asked, prying to learn more about the kobold.

Gimmick shook her head. "I don't ever recall leaving my cliff..." She trailed off. "In fact, I'm having a hard time remembering anything before last night."

Tek frowned. He had been trying to avoid staring at the strange runic markings on her horns and forearms. It felt rude to examine someone he had just met so closely, but there was something about them that seemed familiar. Then it dawned on him. "Gimmick those runes on your horns and arms. How long have you had them?"

Gimmick tilted her head in thought, "As long as I can remember, which uh... isn't very long." She looked at her feet embarrassed.

"Your runes match those inscribed into the iron doors. They're... oh no." Tek said, a feeling of dread washing over him as he noticed something about the iron doors he hadn't upon his approach.

"What's wrong?" Gimmick asked. Tek could hear the clacking of her claws tapping against the stone as she ran to his side.

"The runes in the iron doors always glow a steady purple glow, but look there." Tek pointed to one of the runes near the top of the doors. The light of the rune had completely extinguished.

"What does it mean?" Gimmick asked.

"It means the iron doors are damaged. We need to warn the rest of the kingdoms before-" Tek froze. He heard something that scared him even more than the dragon fire and demon howls. It was a subtle thing, but he somehow knew it foreshadowed the doom of the entire continent. A slow, but rhythmic pounding coming from the other side of the iron doors.

Chapter 2

A Fond Farewell

"Are you sure about this?" Gretta asked. Tek had burst into the armory and both Gritta and Gretta had been called for concern over his mental health. According to the guards, he was speaking nonsense.

"You can climb the mountains and check for yourself. I'm going out to learn what I can about the runes in the iron doors. With the queen's seal I will have the authority to enter any archive in the continent." Tek said, strapping on his bracers. Gritta and Gretta shared a laugh. "What's so funny?" Tek didn't share their amusement.

"You are Tek. You've spent so much time with your nose in books that you've been blinded to what the world thinks of us. You may be different from the majority of the rats in the burrow, but look at Gretta and I, we're thieves. If you took a long enough look at yourself you'd realize you are too," Gritta said, gesturing to the scroll Tek had stolen from the dragon's hoard. He still kept it with him at all times. "Our mother may be a guardian, but none of the other guardians would give her opinion a moment of their time, let alone a lowly prince."

"Then I'll have to speak with her myself." Tek said, setting down his wooden spear and grabbing one of the steel spears.

"I don't think that's a good idea!" Gretta called after him, but he disregarded her warning and made for the center of the burrow. There he found what was considered the darkest place in the continent. There was a reason that the entrance to the burrow was left unguarded. To an outsider it was a hopeless maze of darkness. Torch-lit tunnels led to hundreds of dead ends, while other tunnels lacked light entirely and sometimes led to bottomless pits. To a rat, they could navigate the tunnels through sheer instinct. Not even a demon knew how to reach the center of the burrow, where their queen ruled from the shadows. Or so that was what they believed.

Two scarlet eyes stared at Tek through the darkness. Rodentia, the vermin queen, towered over any rat. The fact that Tek had shown up unannounced would not go over well with her. "I hear you got yourself killed." Rodentia spoke, her voice echoing off every wall and down every tunnel.

"Twice," Tek said, as if it were an achievement. He lowered himself in a grandiose bow, "Yet here I stand."

"Yet here you stand. So it is true then. The crimson moon has risen off schedule. We will have lost hundreds of our kin over the course of the night. The death toll seems to be rising by the minute, so what is it you're here for? Good news I'm sure." Rodentia asked, drumming her fingers on her throne impatiently.

"I require your seal. One of the runes on the iron door has been extinguished. I wish to access the archives of the other kingdoms for research. The fate of the burrow may depend on it. If the iron doors are to open, we will be the first to face whatever nightmares emerge." Tek said, standing up straight and trying to get to the point as quickly as possible, not to waste the vermin queen's time.

"You know the other kingdoms care little about my opinion, even less so yours. Giving you my seal would do little." Rodentia said.

"There's more. I found a kobold who appears to have lost her memory. She has markings on her body matching those on the iron doors." Tek explained.

"Kobolds have never been an intelligent bunch. She probably saw the marking on the door and copied them onto herself. It's nothing to look into. Now if you're done wasting my time-"

"If we do nothing, then we are all going to die!" Tek shouted. In that moment it seemed the entire burrow fell silent. Speaking to any guardian that way was unheard of, let alone the guardian of his own people.

"You're crossing a dangerous line, Tek." Rodentia warned.

"Like I give a damn. What are you going to do, kill me? I've already died, twice now. Banish me? Great, I'd like to get as far away from the burrow as possible if your plan on dealing with this crisis is inaction!" Tek's tail whipped back and forth furiously.

Rodentia made a motion with her arm, and for a moment Tek thought he was gesturing for his execution, but at the last moment realized she had tossed something to him. Reaching out, Tek caught the object. A massive ruby. He had never seen a gem so red in his life. It practically matched the eyes that were peering at him through the darkness from the vermin queen's throne. "You'll need a hundred times the passion you've displayed here if you are to convince any of the outsiders that you're worth their time. That gem should catch the eye of any authoritative figure, whether you will be able to convince them of your worth is entirely up to you. Come back with the answers to fix the iron door, or be ready to fight the demon hoard when it opens." Tek nodded, placing the gem in the heart of his onyx armor. Then he turned to make the long journey back to the surface, only to be stopped by Rodentia calling after him.

"One more thing." Rodentia said, her claws tapping ponderously on the arm of her throne. "Bring the mole. You'll get to the Skunk Kingdoms faster if she tunnels you there."

*****

"Please don't do this." Gritta pleaded, following Tek and Gimmick along with Gretta.

"You can't just leave us! What if another rune goes out, or there's another crimson moon. Tek, who is going to stop us from making foolish decisions?" Gretta shouted.

"We both know you know the difference between a foolish decision and a wise one. If not, then you'll just have to wait until I come back to make any." Tek teased.

Gritta and Gretta went silent for a moment before Gretta spoke up again. "And what if you don't come back?" Tek froze, turning to face his sisters. They looked up at him teary eyed. "We know you don't like living in the burrow, there aren't enough books to keep your attention. That's why we always made you go on raids with us. We hoped you'd find what you needed to stay with us, but now that you're leaving..."

Tek smiled, and embraced his sisters. They each buried their faces into the plate of his armor. "I promise I'll be back. In the meantime, please make sure you are back from your patrol by nightfall," Tek leaned in so only his sisters could hear him, "And for the love of the guardians no more raiding dragon hoards." They nodded, and followed along until they reached the tunnel that led to the prison cells.

Two guards noticed the queen's ceil embedded in the plate of his armor, and quickly stood at attention. "Bring me the mole." Tek ordered. The guards exchanged a look before opening one of the cells. A massive mole, well over a foot taller than Tek, lumbered her way into the hall, before spitting a massive glob of saliva on the ground.

"Myra Mire, by my command, and therefore the guardian of the burrow's, you will be set free and forgiven of your cimes of collapsing out tunnels, intrusion, and espionage if you tunnel me to the Skunk Kingdom." Tek said. The mole looked in his general direction, she couldn't see, not well at least, but she seemed to be somehow looking him over anyway.

"I don't serve rats." Myra said, yawning as if Tek had intruded on her napping. Then she spat another wad of saliva that stuck to the wall.

"Fine then," Tek said calmly, "Guards, arrange for Myra to be placed in a smaller cell. I'm thinking she'll be better off in one fit for a rat. If she wants to stay with us even longer then we may as well treat her like one of us. And cut the time she's allowed to sleep in half. In fact now that I'm looking at her it looks like she could use a little less food-"

"Alright!" Myra growled, "Damn you, alright. I'll dig your tunnel, but after that I go back to digging my tunnels where I wish, when I wish."

"So long as they remain on the outskirts of the burrow we don't really give a damn. Unless you miss your cell of course." Tek said, raising an eyebrow. Myra didn't respond, instead following behind him quietly. If it wasn't for her stench, he would have guessed she'd run off again.

Never before had watching a sunset been such a stressful event. Tek half expected a flash of crimson light and that strange explosion that shook the mountain to occur at any moment, heralding a swarm the demon swarm. When silver moonlight crested the horizon, they breathed a collective sigh of relief. No demons would assail them tonight. Tek ordered Myra to start digging into a tunnel for them to travel under the mountains. All the existing tunnels housed soldiers from foreign kingdoms that refused to let any rat leave their territory, and the only way out of the burrow above ground was through the forbidden valley. A place no kingdom dared enter.

"Gimmick, take care of our brother, he's smart, but arrogant. Don't let him do anything he knows to be stupid." Gritta said.

"Okay." Gimmick said, kicking her legs from the rock she sat on while staring up at the stars.

"That kobold has no idea what she's signed up for by following you." Gretta said, shaking her head.

"Stay out of trouble you two." Tek called after his sisters as they made their way back to the burrow.

"No promises!" They called back giggling.

Tek shook his head smiling. "What's so funny?" Gimmick asked.

"My sisters never laugh like that unless they've just gotten away with stealing something," Tek explained, "And I am just now noticing the coin pouch I brought is missing."

"Don't we need that?" Gimmick asked.

"Yeah, yeah we do." Tek said, getting to his feet and chasing after his sisters. He found it hard to be mad at them. He knew they cared, and this was just another attempt for them to spend time with him one last time. That's why when Tek felt Gretta snatch it while they were hugging he hadn't said anything. Perhaps he just wanted to spend more time with them too.

One last time.

*****

The journey through the tunnels that would lead them to the skunk kingdoms was a long and cramped process. Tek let out a small grunt of frustration with each clod of dirt that Myra flung at his face with her clumsy claws as she dug them deeper under the mountain. With every dirt clump that stuck to his fur, a tiny kobold hand would sweep it clean. "Can't you dig without coating me in filth?" Tek spat.

"You don't have to stand so close rat boy." Myra said, plucking a work from the wall of the tunnel and dropping it into her mouth. A shiver of disgust ran down Tek's spine.

"Tek?" Gimmick asked, her claws clacking rhythmically against the ground as she skipped along beside him. "Can you teach me how to do that thing you did with the demons?"

"Scream and be useless?" Tek asked, only half joking.

"Useless? You saved my life. I meant the thing where you copied yourself. I want to be a hero like you." Gimmick said, bouncing eagerly.

Tek chuckled to himself. "I'm no hero Gimmick."

"Aren't we doing all this to save the world?" Gimmick asked.

"I'm going to get the help of another guardian who may be able to tell us what's wrong with the iron doors. You're here because those strange markings on your arms and horns match the runes on the iron doors." Tek said, stealing a glance at the runes on the kobold's horns.

"And because we're friends, right?" Gimmick asked.

"Yeah, sure Gimmick," Tek said, the kobold was beginning to grow on him.

"Is Myra our friend?" Gimmick tilted her head to look at the mole, only to be met with a clump of dirt striking her square between her eyes. "Hey you did that on purpose!"

"You can't prove anything." Myra said, not looking up from her digging.

"Well you smell funny!"

"Enough!" Tek shouted. Gimmick crossed her arms in frustration and Tek had to pull on her arm to prevent more dirt from hitting her.

"So will you teach me how to do the magic thing? If it's going to be a long journey we should have plenty of time right?" Gimmick asked.

Tek sighed, but realizing it could do any harm he moved Gimmick away from Myra. Leaving the mole to her work. "Alright, I guess a quick lesson couldn't hurt. Pay attention," Tek began drawing the rune for soul splitting into the dirt with the butt of his spear. "You have to draw each part of the rune as perfectly as possible for the rune to work. The more accurate the lines and the larger the rune, the more magic you can absorb and the more powerful your abilities will be."

Placing his hand on the rune he drew in the dirt, Tek triggered the rune and split into two copies of himself. "This is the rune for the soul. What I am doing is called soul splitting. If I wanted I could stay as two individuals until the runic magic I absorbed is depleted from our bodies," Both copies of Tek said in perfect unison, "We are both essentially still the 'real me'. Each of us retain all of my memories and experiences. When the magic runs out our souls will converge into a single entity. Anything I may have learned or experienced will be as if I had experienced or learned it all on my own. If a copy is killed, then the soul converges immediately. The experience is... unpleasant to say the least."

Gimmick spat on the rune and both copies of Tek gave her a confused look. "What uh... what was that?" The copies asked.

"It didn't work." Gimmick said, stomping a foot and flushing in frustration.

"What didn't work?"

"The soul spitting. It didn't work."

Tek rubbed the brim of his snout in annoyance, before his soul converged into a single entity again. "It's soul splitting, not spitting. Spitting on a rune isn't going to get you anything but a lot of confused looks."

"That's a kind of magic. I can magically get people to look at me funny." Gimmick said, proudly.

"I'm not sure you need a rune for that." Tek said under his breath.

Light poured into the tunnel ahead, followed by a breeze of fresh air. Tek's tail flicked with intrigue. They shouldn't have reached the otherside of the mountain for a few more hours. Where had that mole taken them?

"Where does that lead?" Gimmick asked. The sound of wind blowing through fresh grass and trees echoed down the tunnel, delivering the scent of blooming flowers to Tek's nostrils.

"That's the forbidden valley." Tek said, staring down the tunnel. "Myra what have you done?"

"This path is both quicker and more luxurious. You'll thank me rat boy. Besides, I might be near blind, but even I can tell you could afford to take things a little less seriously." Myra said, "What do you say kobold? Ever eaten a forbidden fruit?"

"I like fruit." Gimmick said happily, making for the end of the tunnel. Tek grabbed her by the tail to stop her. "Rude!" Gimmick said. slapping his hand away, "Don't grab a lady by the tail Tek!"

"We're not entering the valley." Tek's voice was stern.

"Well I'm tired, so either we wait another day for me to rest up, or we travel through the valley. How fast do you want to get to the Skunk Kingdom's rat boy?" Myra asked.

Tek sighed in frustration. Time was a resource he couldn't afford to waste. It could be months before the iron doors opened or it could be days. He couldn't afford to deny any shortcuts. He stepped forwards to meet Myra's grey sightless eyes. She must have been able to hear him as she smiled and somehow managed to make eye contact with him. "If we do this, we do it stealthily."

Gimmick looked down at her legs, then tapped her claw against the ground. It made a loud clack clack with each impact. "Uh... I don't think I can do stealthy, Tek."

"We'll be quick. In and out before any foxes even catch our scent. If anyone finds us I can soul split to lead them away from you," Tek said, gesturing for Gimmick to follow him into the forbidden valley. "Besides, to get away we just have to be faster than the mole." Myra grunted, but followed after him. There had always been stories of who was the more cunning, the fox or the rat. At the very least, this would be Tek's opportunity to find out.

Chapter 3

The Forbidden Valley

Tek had never imagined in his life he would see plants with so many colors. Blues, purples, reds and so much green. Never had he imagined he would see so much green in the world, let alone a single valley. In the burrow, the only colors nature provided him were reds and browns - but here it was so beautiful it was no wonder the foxes wanted to keep it to themselves. He balled his fists at the thought that all this was kept away from his people while they starved in the burrow.

"Tek, come look at this. You can actually see your reflection in the water here. It's so clean." Gimmick said, just as astounded by their surroundings as he was.

Plucking what appeared to be a fruit from a nearby tree, Tek examined the ruby orb closely, not entirely convinced it wasn't some kind of jewel. It was too colorful to be a fruit. Tek squeezed and juice covered his fingers, then he sniffed the object. "Gimmick, it's an apple. I've never seen one so red. Everything here is so colorful." Tek quickly bit into the fruit, letting the juices splash over his tongue. Never had he tasted anything so divine. He grabbed another apple and tucked it away in one of his leather bags. "If Gritta and Gretta could see this they wouldn't know what to steal first." Tek turned to see Gimmick biting the head off a fish she had pulled from the river.

"What?" She asked, spitting out chunks of chewed fish. She swallowed before continuing, "The fish here just let you grab them. All the kobold traders I've talked to always said it was difficult to catch fish. Maybe I should become a fisherman."

"I'm not entirely sure it's this easy in every river. There's something about this place that's just perfect for living in. To think the world hates rats, while the foxes get to live in such luxury." Tek said, grabbing new fruits he had never seen before to try.

There was a loud crunch and Tek spun around to see Myra lounging back on a bush. The plan buckled from her weight as she popped what appeared to be a vine of small purple orbs in her mouth. Such strange fruits that grew here.

Gimmick continued splashing around in the river for fish, frowning as they began avoiding her. "Gimmick, stop all that splashing. We're not supposed to get caught, remember?" Tek whispered as loudly as he could manage without actually raising his voice.

"These fish are more slippery than the last bunch." Gimmick said, falling forwards into the water in another failed attempt to catch a fish with her claws.

As Tek approached the river he could see the fish moving further and further out away from the shore. "Gimmick, get out of there, it's time to leave." Tek said, turning back to look at the dense foliage. He swore he could hear subtle movement when the breeze died down.

"There's a big one over here. Just let me catch this one and it will be enough to last me until we reach the Skunk Kingdom." Gimmick said. Tek turned to see her eyeing a long spiny looking fish.

Tek tried to shout a warning, "Gimmick, don't touch-", but she had already leapt at the spined fish. Recoiling upon touching the fish, Gimmick thrashed in the water, writhing in pain. Tek ran to help her when Myra shouted after him.

"Heads up rat!" Myra shouted, hurling her fruit towards him.

Tek jumped back, enraged that the mole had the nerve to assail him at a time like this. The fruit exploded in mid air, as if it had struck some kind of invisible object. It was then Tek realized it wasn't him that Myra was aiming at.

Colors changed, and what had been invisible became clear as prismatic patterns of black and white revealed a fox that had been camouflaged. Tek knew foxes were cunning creatures, but had no idea they could turn invisible. The fox bared its teeth before lunging at him. Tek dove into the river, grabbing Gimmick and letting the deeper water carry them downstream. The only problem was it was taking them away from the direction they needed to go and further into the forbidden valley.

The sound of Gimmick coughing up water and whimpering in pain kept Tek focused. His armor was heavy and the kobold was heavier. He could feel himself being dragged under water. His mind raced as he tried to think of a plan to keep them alive. He couldn't draw runes underwater, nor did he have the strength to keep both himself and Gimmick's heads above the river.

Pain shot through Tek's body as the water slammed him into a rock. He opened his mouth to yell, but was met with water entering his mouth, causing him to gag. Pulling himself and Gimmick as best he could onto the rock, he gasped for air. One arm holding the kobold as best he could, while the other clutched the rock for dear life. The water pulled at his body, threatening to pull him under at any moment.

"Tek, I don't feel so good." Gimmick cried.

"You're going to be fine. I'm going to fix you up, I promise." Tek said, looking around desperately for any kind of help. Not again. Tek thought, more memories flooding into his mind. Not again!

"I... I can't see anything."

Tek looked at Gimmick's face. Her eyes had grown cloudy. Cursing to himself quietly, Tek did the only thing he could think of. Throwing his head back, he cried for help as loud as he could.

"I know you're out there!" Tek pleaded, "Please, save my friend. You can't just let her die." There was no response except for the sound of the water crashing against them. "Useless fucking creatures, do you have no hearts? I always thought foxes were supposed to be among the most cunning creatures. Yet you can't even keep a rat and a kobold out of your valley? If it weren't for that damn fish and this river, I would've stolen every damn fruit in this valley!"

A net caught around Tek, and in a moment he was flung back into the water. Gimmick slipped from his grasp and was pulled away by the river. Tek tried to scream in rage, but was muted as he began to drown. His vision blurred, before fading. Then darkness.

*****

Pain shot through Tek's chest as he puked water into the grass. He was alive. This was a surprise to him. Immediately he began looking for Gimmick. There was no sign of her, but a dozen foxes stood around him, scowling. Tek glanced back and noticed his spear was still on his back. They hadn't taken his weapon, so if it came to it, he could at least try to fight his way out. So arrogant were the foxes that they apparently didn't consider him a threat, even with his weapon. Now if he could just draw a rune without them noticing.

"Who are you, rat?" One of the female foxes spoke.

"Tek." Tek said, crossing his legs and slowly etching the soul splitting rune in the dirt behind his foot. The rune was small, so if he had to use it he would only be able to make a copy of himself for a few seconds. Hopefully this would be enough to distract him while he ran away.

"Tek, that's it?" The fox asked, raising an eyebrow.

"My family numbers in the thousands. We don't have time for complicated names," Tek said through gritted teeth. He despised being looked down upon. He had seen animals give him the same look the foxes gave him now. The way the world looked at rats. He despised them for it. "Are you the one who caught me in that net?"

"Saved you," The fox corrected, "And you will call me Acre. You'd be wise to be more polite than you were when you were drowning. I'm quickly running out of reasons to keep you alive."

"Where is my friend?" Tek asked.

"The kobold has been retrieved," Acre started, "But she will not live long. No creature foolish enough to grab a needleback by the spines ever does."

"There has to be a way. You have everything you could possibly want in this valley. You'd have an antidote. Foxes would never risk their young getting injured and perishing from one of those things. It wouldn't be paradise unless you did." Tek said.

Acre's tail flicked in irritation. This got a smile out of Tek. There was an antidote. "Give us a reason we shouldn't let your friend die and kill you for trespassing and violating our lands?"

"Because you saw the crimson moon two nights ago. The same as the rest of the world. The iron doors have weakened, and if I don't warn the rest of the world, if I can't fix it, then what do you think will happen to your precious paradise when those doors open?"

The foxes were silent for a long moment before Acre opened her mouth to speak. "Very well. We will let you leave with your life, but your friend must die. There must be a punishment for your crimes." Acre said, turning to leave.

"Then take this in exchange for her life," Tek shouted, pulling the ruby from the chestplate of his armor, "The queen's seal. The world's most perfect ruby. If it's good enough for a guardian, then it is good enough for you."

Acre turned, raising an eyebrow curiously, before approaching and taking the ruby from Tek. Her movements were subtle, but Tek did notice her mouth curve ever so slightly to a smile. Acre turned to the over foxes and gave them a nod, then two of them disappeared into the foliage. "We will save the kobold, but then you will leave immediately. I will escort you out of the forbidden valley, and you will never return again."

*****

Relief flooded over Tek. After waiting for hours under the fox's watchful guard, the two foxes that had left finally returned with Gimmick. She looked dazed, but healthier. Sighing in relief, Tek swallowed his pride and thanked Acre. She turned her nose away from him, then gestured for them to follow her. Moments later four more foxes escorting Myra joined them. Myra appeared unharmed, and her escorts took a step back as she let out a belch and began scratching at her armpits.

"I'm sorry Tek," Gimmick said weakly, "I messed everything up."

"Don't worry about it. Let's just be happy we got out of this alive." Tek said.

"I told you we should have just kept digging." Myra said. Tek ignored her comment.

"Tek, your ruby is gone." Gimmick said.

Tek hushed her, "Save your strength until you've fully recovered. We can discuss the queen's seal later. Acre, why do the foxes hide away in this valley, shut off from the world?"

Acre scoffed. "Would you leave this valley if you could stay? Our world is perfect. We've made sure of it. Everything else simply isn't worth our presence. Where would we go? The east is full of savage creatures and bickering goblins, the kingdoms to the south seem to let anyone who wants to move into their walls. It's disgusting," She chuckled to herself before continuing, "Everyone except for rats, that is. Best of luck with that."

Tek watched as with every step Acre took, her fur changed color, making her feet practically invisible as she walked. The rest of her body seemed to fade to make her nearly invisible, the strange prismatic fur patterns changing to match her surroundings. The only constant was the queen's seal, which she clung onto greedily.

"You know, you could kill us and deliver the news to the other kingdoms yourself." Tek said. Acre remained silent. "What if we returned to the burrow? What if we chose not to warn the rest of the world of the iron doors weakening? Would you leave your precious valley then? What if the world, your world included, was at stake?"

"I suppose," Acre said, pausing and showing off her claws of the paw not holding the ruby, "I would take my chances."

"I never knew something so beautiful could cause so much disgust." Tek said.

"Are you talking about her or me?" Myra asked.

Acre spun around baring her teeth at Tek, but he already had his spear in hand. He swept Acre's feet out from under her, and the queen's seal slipped from her grasp. Tek snatched it out of the air, and with his other hand pointed the spear at Acre's throat. "I don't need you to justify a reason for me to let you live, Acre. I'm not like you. Consider this our new arrangement. I keep the ruby, and in return I won't tell the world about the rat that bested a prism fox."

Acre snarled, before her fur changed colors, causing her to vanish into thin air. Tek kept his guard up, but he wasn't her target. The sound of claws cutting through bark rang out in the night and Tek barely managed to push himself into Gimmick, knocking her out of the way of the oncoming tree. He felt Acre snatch the ruby from his grasp, cackling as she did.

"You're a clever little rat, I'll give you that - but you have a weakness for your little friend there. If you want to be as cunning as a fox, you should consider dropping that scalie burden of yours." Acre said. Then she vanished with the queen's seal, leaving them alone at the end of the forbidden valley.

Chapter 4

The Price of Admission

It wasn't long before the skunk kingdoms could be seen in the distance. Five rings separating the different sections of the kingdom, four ruled over by the princesses, and the center ring under the control of the king and queen, all surrounded by a massive wall. Without the queen's seal, entry would prove difficult, if not impossible for a rat. "What do we do now that we don't have your mother's gem?" Gimmick asked.

"You're not going to make me dig us all the way back so your mom can give you another rock are you?" Myra groaned.

Tek let out a sigh, contemplating his options as they neared the front gate. Guards monitored everyone who entered and exited the kingdom, and by the looks of the walls they were too high to scale. "Well, maybe we should just try walking in. Maybe we'll get lucky. Who knows, perhaps I was wrong about the way outsiders view rats." Tek said, trying to convince himself more than anyone.

Upon approaching the front gate, several citizens exiting the kingdom's walls gave Tek a look that resembled a mix of confusion and disgust. Hoping this was due to the strange Myra's rude demeanor and strange odor rather than the presence of a rat, he ignored them, hoping to simply walk into the kingdom. It would not be so easy.

"Woah now," One of the guards said. He appeared to be some kind of canine, but the armor covering him from head to paw made it difficult to tell. "There's no way a rat would be allowed to enter the realm of the princess of hearts."

Taking in a deep breath, Tek tried to muster all of the charisma he could. "Dear sir, we are but three humble traders, we simply wish to enter for a day of exchanging goods for the better of both our kingdoms."

"Fuck off rat, your kind isn't welcome here. If the kobold wants to enter on her own, she may pass, but no rats are allowed within the realm of any of the four princesses. You can wait outside with..." The guard trailed off, looking over Myra, "With that." Myra snorted, but otherwise ignored the guard's comment.

"I've been sent by the vermin queen herself, the guardian of the northern mountains. You don't have the authority to deny me access." Tek said, dropping the charm and jabbing the guard's chestplate with his finger.

"Prove it, vermin?" The guard snarled.

"Look at my ears, I'm from the same clan." Tek tugged on one of his ears, showing off the black fur on his ear lobes.

"That doesn't mean shit to me, rat. I don't care about your disgusting clans. Besides, even if the rat guardian did send you, her authority isn't recognized outside of your dirty little hole in the ground. So scurry home before the next crimson moon, or else the world will be down one more rat." The guard chuckled before continuing, "Not that anyone would give a damn."

"Come on Tek," Gimmick said, tugging at his arm, "We'll find another way."

Tek leered at the guard, until Gimmick managed to drag him away. Something about that guard felt familiar. Suddenly, to Tek's surprise, his knees buckled and he fell to the ground coughing up vomit onto the dirt. Behind him he could hear the guard chuckling at him. His vision blurred. Was it the heat?

"Come on rat boy." Myra said, picking Tek up and carrying him off. Gimmick followed close behind with a nervous look on her face. Her claws clacking against the ground as she ran.

Tek's vision began to fade. Then he blacked out. When he came to, a blue figure leaned over him.

"Tek?" A familiar female voice called out. "Tek, wake up."

"Iary?" Tek groaned, his eyesight cleared to reveal Gimmick leaning over him.

"You're awake!" Gimmick shouted. Tek winced, his head pounding.

"What the hell happened?"

"Turns out holding the weight of the world on your back can actually be stressful. Looks like it finally got to you rat boy." Myra said, her shadow looming over them from the otherside of a campfire they must have built while he was unconscious.

"I'm surprised you haven't run off." Tek said.

Myra shrugged. "We have to get into the skunk kingdom."

"Because you care about saving the world?" Tek asked.

Myra let out a sound that seemed to be a cross between a laugh and a snort, slapping her thigh in amusement. "Because I could smell their food from outside the wall. Save the world, ha! You crack me up rat boy."

Tek sat upright, ignoring Myra as she continued to chuckle to herself.

"My feet hurt." Gimmick pouted.

"I'm sorry Gimmick. I was hoping we'd be staying in an inn right about now."

"What if a crimson moon rises while we're out here?"

"Then we'll find a place to hide and I will protect you until morning." Tek said, knowing all too well that if a crimson moon were to actually rise, then they would surely die.

Pulling out the scroll he had stolen from the dragon, Tek began practicing etching it into the dirt, trying to memorize the length, curve, and angle of every line. Gimmick watched with intrigue, scooting closer every few minutes to get a better look.

"What does it do?" Gimmick asked.

"I don't know yet. runic magic is the most difficult to learn. There aren't many who can conjure them. There's more than just learning and perfecting how to draw the rune itself. You have to learn to understand what the rune means. Only then will it react to your touch. I can practice drawing this rune every night for the next decade and still not be able to conjure it. It took me my entire childhood to learn to soul split." Tek paused, that sickening feeling was rising up in his gut again. Was he getting sick?

"Can you teach me to soul split?" Gimmick asked.

Tek chuckled to himself, which Gimmick did not find amusing as she shot him a rather disgruntled look. For a moment the sickening feeling in his gut seemed to pass. "Alright, alright." Tek said, raising his hands defensively, "But I'm warning you, it's not easy. Like I said, you may never get it." Tek drew the symbol for soul splitting into the dirt. "Try copying that."

Gimmick squinted at the symbol, then started scribbling in the dirt with her claw. Her tongue stuck out of her mouth in focus. When she finished she smiled, looking up at Tek proudly.

"Not bad. Myra, would you care to join us?" Tek asked.

"I don't see what's so fancy about your little drawings." Myra snapped. Something seemed off. Myra had been standoffish, but Tek's question seemed to set her off more than usual.

Tek decided not to press the matter, instead continuing to instruct Gimmick. "Place your hand on the rune and try activating it." Tek said.

"That doesn't seem so hard." Gimmick said, placing her hand on the rune. She frowned when nothing happened. "It's broken."

"No, your lines are off." Tek said, picking up his spear and pointing the butt of it at several of the markings Gimmick had made in the dirt. "That line is too long. That one is too short. That one is supposed to have a sharper angle, while that one is too curved, and that one is about a half centimeter too short."

Gimmick's jaw dropped as Tek continued to list off all the minute errors she had made. Tek scooted over, making room for Gimmick to sit besides him. "Here, try it again with mine." Taking in a deep breath, Gimmick placed her hand gently on Tek's rune. He could see the disappointment in her eyes when it didn't glow immediately.

"Don't focus on the rune. Focus on yourself. Focus on your passions, your goals, your struggles, and your pain. Focus on the things that make you who you are. Only when you have a full understanding of self can you activate-"

To Tek's complete shock, the rune began to glow. Silver light erupted from the rune and Gimmick's eyes glowed in kind. A second copy of the kobold appeared in front of her, looking just as surprised as she was. Gimmick reached out and placed her hand against her copies, then both looked over at Tek, fear clearly written on their faces. Even Myra got to her feet, apparently sensing what had just happened.

"Gimmick," Tek said, getting to his feet. "This is amazing. It normally takes years to-" The runes on Gimmick's horns and forearms began to glow. She looked down at her arms, then back at Tek. He could tell she was looking for some kind of reassurance that this was normal, but Tek didn't know what to make of it. Then the runic light vanished from her eyes, horns, and arms. Gimmick's soul converged into a single being, and the rune went out. Finally Gimmick collapsed to the ground.

"Gimmick!" Tek shouted, rushing to her side, and holding her head in his arms. "Wake up. Wake up!" The kobold let out a weak moan, before opening her eyes.

"What time is it?" Gimmick asked.

"It's... night time." Tek said, unsure of what to make about what had just occurred.

"Shouldn't we get some rest? We will be leaving for the skunk kingdom tomorrow won't we?"

"I... um... Gimmick, can you tell me what we did today?" Tek asked.

"Walked mostly. You said hopefully we'd be staying in an inn tomorrow and you would show me some rune tapping." Gimmick said, recalling the previous day.

"Gimmick, that was yesterday. We reached the skunk kingdom earlier this afternoon. Don't you remember? I spoke with the guard. You just soul split, it was incredible." Tek gestured to the runes they had drawn in the dirt. Gimmick tilted her head, giving them a quizzical look.

"I don't remember any of that." Gimmick said, fear filling her voice as it began to dawn on her what was happening. "Tek, it's just like the night of the crimson moon all over again. I don't remember anything before you came along and saved me. What does this mean?"

"Calm down, you're alright now. We're going to figure out all of this when we get inside the kingdom." Tek said. His words did little to comfort the kobold as she still was breathing heavily in a panic, her hands trembling.

"And why aren't we in the kingdom? What happened?" Gimmick grabbed at her horns anxiously.

"It's fine, I just have to..." Tek trailed off, trying to think of a way to get them into the kingdom. Then he saw his armor and spear packed near the fire and sighed. "I just have to make a trade to get us inside since we don't have the queen's seal. Get some sleep, Gimmick. I don't think we should have you rune tapping until we find out why you keep having lapses in your memory."

Gimmick nodded, then laid down beside Tek. She looked exhausted and afraid, but within minutes she was snoring loud enough to wake a slumbering dragon. Normally Tek would find this amusing, but there was something terribly off about those runes on Gimmick's body. From what he could tell, she couldn't recall where or when she got them. He only hoped he could undo whatever had been done to her, before it was too late.

There was a sound like crinkling paper and Tek turned to see Myra holding the scroll containing the mysterious rune. "Careful with that!" Tek shouted, running over and snatching the scroll from her hands.

Myra scoffed. "Stupid thing. If it's only good for looking at, then I don't want anything to do with it anyway."

Tek frowned, realizing he may have struck a nerve with the mole. "Rune tapping is more than just drawing the runes. Not everyone can be a rune tapper, which is why I was so surprised that Gimmick was able to tap into them so easily. You need to be broken and often brought to the brink of death to learn a single rune. If it were up to me. I'd never even have this power."

"I won't ask." Myra said, lying down.

"I appreciate it." Tek sat beside her and began to draw out the mysterious rune in the dirt. Then he took Myra's hand and gently placed it over the etched rune. She took a moment to study the feeling of the strange symbol.

"Just squiggles in the dirt." Myra said, rolling over. Tek frowned, but got up and moved to the otherside of the fire. There he fell asleep.

The next morning however, Tek couldn't help but notice several new runes etched in the dirt not far from where he had drawn his own. To his surprise each rune was drawn to near perfection. Myra wouldn't be able to tap into their power of course, but she had been paying attention. Perhaps the mole wasn't so uncaring afterall.

*****

When Myra and Gimmick awoke it was time to make for the same entrance to the kingdom as the day prior. Only this time, Tek kept his armor tied up, carrying it on his back. To his dismay, the same canine guard was monitoring the entrance. "Don't know when to quit, do you rat?" The guard laughed.

"Here," Tek said, tossing the guard the full set of armor, "The metals in this armor are worth more than you'll make in a month. If you let us enter, they're yours."

The canine took his time carefully inspecting the armor. He must have been impressed, because he didn't send them away immediately. "You realize that even if I let you into the kingdom, there's no guarantee another guard won't just kick you out? Then you won't have any bribe to get you back in."

"I suppose that will be my problem then, won't it?" Tek said, glaring at the canine. They locked eyes for a long moment, before the guard finally made a small gesture for them to pass. Quickly, Tek took Gimmick by the hand, and entered the kingdom with Myra trailing behind them.

"Pleasure doing business with you rat." The guard snarled as Tek passed. Something about the way he said it gave him chills. Why was that guard so familiar?

Left with only a hood and loin cloth, Tek made sure to keep his head covered as best he could, pulling up his hood. At first he was concerned about getting mugged without his spear, but then he realized he had given everything to the guard, except for a small pouch he had handed off to Gimmick containing the apple he had stolen from the forbidden valley.

"What do we do now?" Gimmick asked quietly, as they made their way through the crowd.

"That fountain looks like a good place to sit and search for an inn. If we keep our voices down, the running water may make it hard for anyone around to eavesdrop." Tek said, making a subtle gesture towards a rather large fountain. He had to admit it was rather impressive looking. He had only seen pictures of fountains. Never before had he actually beheld one with his own eyes. Never did he imagine they could get so big.

Sitting on the white stone of the fountain, Tek began to scan his surroundings for any sign of an inn. He cursed to himself quietly. "What's wrong?" Gimmick whispered.

"This is my first time in a town." Tek whispered back.

"So?"

"So, I don't know what any of these buildings are for," Tek admitted. Gimmick groaned, dropping her face in her hands.

"I can help!" A cheerful voice called from behind them. Both Tek and Gimmick jumped in surprise, getting to their feet and spinning around to see a frog girl staring up at them from the fountain. "Hi, I'm Penny!"

"Uh, hi." Tek said, surprised to see someone so cheerful about seeing a rat in the kingdom.

"Give me a coin and I can grant you a wish." Penny said, gesturing to the fountain floor. It was littered with coins of all metals. Tek's jaw dropped.

"People just throw coins into the fountain?" Tek asked in disbelief. The wealthiest rats in the burrows would have only a fraction of what lay before him in the fountain.

Penny nodded eagerly. "Mhm! Because I grant them wishes. They throw coins in, and then wish for things."

"You can grant wishes!?" Gimmick said, jumping in place excitedly.

"I sure can. Just toss a coin in and I can grant any wish you want." Penny said, kicking her legs in the fountain.

"Sorry Penny, but we don't actually have any coins." Tek said.

"That's okay, take one of mine, I've got plenty of them." Penny said, plucking a coin out of the fountain and tossing it to him. "I never caught your names, strangers. You know it's rude to make wishes without telling the mystical frog of the fountain your names."

Tek opened his mouth to speak, but Gimmick beat him to it. "I'm Gimmick, that's Myra, and this is Tek, he's a prince!" She said excitedly. Tek groaned, pinching the brim of his snout.

"It's a matriarchy, and I have a ton of sisters, so the title really doesn't mean any-"

"Wow!" Penny interrupted, "I've never met a prince before. Princess Lita would have a field day with you. She's been looking all over for a prince."

"So cool, right?" Gimmick asked. Penny nodded, leaning on one arm and staring up at Tek.

Myra groaned. "Oh for the love of-" Before she could finish, Tek jabbed her in the side with his elbow.

Tek let out a sigh before flipping the coin into the fountain. "I wish we-"

Penny made a gesture, cutting off his wish. "No no no, you're going to waste it! You have to say it like this. Repeat after me. 'Oh mystical frog of the fountain.'"

"Oh mystical frog of the fountain." Tek and Gimmick repeated, while Myra shook her head at them. Gimmick showing far more enthusiasm than Tek.

"I wish, then finish with whatever it is you wish for." Penny said.

"I wish we could find an inn in this town." Tek and Gimmick said. Penny lifted one of her arms straight up out of the water, then pointed at one of the buildings without even looking at it.

"That's an easy one. Check out the Lop Inn. I hear the food is pretty spectacular." Penny suggested.

"Thank you magic, mystical frog." Gimmick said, bouncing up and down, still excited by the ordeal.

Tek turned to head towards the inn, then paused. "Penny, do you sleep in that fountain?"

"Mhm, I don't really have a house, but I'm waiting for my parents to come back for me." Penny said.

"How long have you been waiting for them?" Tek asked.

Penny pondered the question for a moment before answering. "I lost track after about fourteen years of counting, and that was a few years ago. They dropped me off here when I still had my tail. I don't miss that thing." Penny said, laughing awkwardly. Tek's heart sank at the thought of Penny spending her entire childhood in such a small pond. "You know, if you need any good luck, I hear it's good luck for princes to kiss frogs." Penny added, dragging her finger up and down the stone side of the fountain.

"I don't think that's how that myth goes." Tek said. He felt a sharp pain in his sides as bothGimmick and Myra gave him a hard elbow to the ribs. Apparently even Myra felt bad for the abandoned frog.

"Do it Tek, we need all the luck we can get. She's magic." Gimmick whispered.

Tek sighed, not wanting to break the illusion that Penny had created for herself and Gimmick. Then he puckered his lips and kissed Penny on the cheek. When he pulled away, Penny's throat and cheeks expanded as she let out a giddy croaking sound, before flushing and retreating back into her fountain.

"Yes!" Gimmick shouted, "Frog luck!" Then she grabbed Tek by the hand, and ran towards the Lop Inn.

*****

Inside the inn Tek was met by numerous confused and even several panicked faces. A rather short chestnut-colored rabbit looked up at Tek, his eyes darting between Myra, Gimmick, and him before speaking. "I think you're in the wrong inn."

"I'd like to speak with whomever is in charge." Tek insisted. The rabbit raised his eyebrows, then hopped into a back room, leaving them standing awkwardly in the entrance.

"This is going wonderfully." Myra said. Sniffing the air, she licked her lips before wandering towards some food that had been left out on an empty table.

A pink rabbit, much taller than the previous one, hopped out to meet them. "Don't mind Dexter, he's a little bashful around new faces," He started. "I'm Chou Chou, owner of the Lop Inn. Your money is as good as anyone else's as far as I'm concerned - and these are trying times with crimson moons rising seemingly at random. I can give you a room with two beds, unless you'd prefer a room with one?" Chou Chou asked, looking at Gimmick and giving the two of them a wink.

Gimmick gave Tek a confused look, before he spoke up. "Two beds would be preferable, our third companion doesn't mind sleeping on the floor. However, I wanted to talk to you about your payment."

"Go on." Chou Chou said, raising an eyebrow as he looked past them at Myra who was scarfing down what looked like her third plate of dinner.

"We don't exactly have any money." Tek said.

"The door's right over there, thanks for stopping by cutie." Chou Chou said, this time giving Tek a wink. Then he turned and made for the backroom.

"Hey, Chou Chou, where's my dessert?" One of the patrons in the inn called out.

"I'm going to cook it now." Chou Chou shouted back, before disappearing into the back room.

"Tek, do you think Penny will let us stay in her fountain with her?" Gimmick asked.

"Gimmick, hand me the pouch I gave you." Tek said quickly. She handed it to him and Tek ran after the pink rabbit.

The back room had apparently been a kitchen and Tek nearly trampled Dexter in his search for Chou Chou. A mixture of smells bombarded his senses as Tek took in wafts of various baked goods. His stomach gurgled audibly. He couldn't remember the last time he'd last eaten a hardy meal. The pink rabbit was pulling a massive cake out of an oven when Tek found him. Chou Chou turned, and frowned upon seeing him. "You shouldn't be causing trouble in this town, friend," Chou Chou warned, "Rats don't have the best reputation."

"You don't have to tell me," Tek said, opening his pouch and pulling the apple from the forbidden valley out to present to Chou Chou. "I will give you this for a night at your inn."

"Well that's certainly a very... red apple." Chou Chou said, "But I have a lot of apples and I don't think-"

"It's from the forbidden valley." Tek added.

Chou Chou froze, looking back at the apple. He drummed his finger together in an apparent attempt to restrain his excitement.

"The forbidden valley... that's forbidden," Chou Chou said. Tek rolled his eyes, but Chou Chou's were still locked on the apple. "I could make a mean dessert with that. If I brought it to Princess Lita, she might even make me one of her personal chefs." Chou Chou took the apple from Tek and began sniffing it.

"Do we have a deal?" Tek asked.

"I've been told my whole life not to trust rats, but I have a good eye for people. You don't catch me as a bad guy. What brings you to the skunk kingdoms, anyway?"

"I've been sent by the vermin queen to speak with royalty here. I was one of the rats in charge of guarding the iron door. There's been some... complications." Tek said carefully as to not panic the rabbit. It didn't work, as the shock in Chou Chou's face was very clear.

"If what you're saying is true, and this is from the forbidden valley, then you can stay in my inn as long as you want. Give me time to make this into a dessert for the princess and I may even be able to grant you an audience with her." Chou Chou said, examining the apple closely.

"Wait, really?" Tek asked.

"Mhm." Chou Chou reassured him, "Dexter, take my rat friend and his girlfriend to one of the suites upstairs and give them anything they need."

"Gimmick isn't my girlfriend." Tek quickly added.

"Ooo lucky me, open season." Chou Chou teased. "I never did catch your name, friend."

"Tek."

"Enjoy your stay here Tek, and take my advice: avoid spending more time outside of your room than you need to. Otherwise your stay here may be a short one. And try to control your mole friend. We have other patrons to care for."

Tek nodded, then allowed Dexter to bring them to their suite after Tek dragged Myra away from a table of terrified civilians who had been forced to Watch Myra eat almost all of their food. It was unlike anything Tek had ever seen before. Two massive beds and a luxury bathroom. He was royalty and he had never been treated to such finery before.

Gimmick flopped onto her bed face first. "I don't think I could leave this bed if I wanted to." Her voice was muffled, her face buried in her pillow. Myra fell onto her back and was snoring within seconds.

Tek looked out the window, then let out a long sigh. He could see Penny in her fountain. She was still looking at every passerby, hoping to find her parents in the crowd. "Penny should be in a room like this." Tek said.

"She can just wish for a room like this, Tek. She's magic." Gimmick said, her face still buried in the pillows.

Tek crawled into his own bed. Gimmick began snoring loudly, and between her and Myra, it would be a miracle if anyone in the inn got any sleep. Despite laying on the softest thing Tek had ever felt in his entire life, he had too much on his mind to sleep. The world might be ending, Gimmick was mysteriously losing her memory, and now there was a frog living in the fountain outside who had been abandoned by her parents since she was a small child. He closed his eyes for a moment. The world was full of so many problems and he was only one rat. He knew he couldn't fix everything, but that ate him up inside. His thoughts were disturbed by a distant scream.

Not that memory again! Tek thought, but it wasn't a memory. The scream had come from outside his window.

Sitting up, Tek saw the room was bathed in crimson light. Rushing to the window and throwing it open, Tek looked outside to see the crimson moon rising over the kingdom. Penny looked frightened in her fountain, as panicked civilians rushed indoors to safety as guards flooded the streets. Yet Penny had nowhere to hide. Chou Chou's warning played in the back of his mind, reminding him that he shouldn't leave his bedroom if possible. Yet there in the alleyway was a demon wielding a massive scythe. The very same demon that had killed him the night the iron doors were damaged.

Tek took in a deep breath, then leapt out of the window.

Chapter 5

The Princess of Spades

"Hello little frog," The demon said. His voice seemed to ring out in the courtyard, coming from unnatural directions. "What's wrong? Are you scared?"

Tears streamed down Penny's cheeks as she shrank down in her fountain. Still, she shook her head at the demon's question. Trying her best to be brave. "Well then," The demon reached for his chest and tore it open to reveal dozens of clawed hands reaching out for her, "How about now?"

Penny screamed, but as the demon reached for her something stopped him. Tek had slammed into the side of the demon and was stabbing at him violently with his spear. The demon slapped the spear from his hands, but Tek didn't let up. His hands now balled into fists, whaling on the demon instead.

"Interloper!" The demon cried, "Do you wish to die again?" A scythe manifested out of pink flame as the demon extended a hand to grab it. Tek bit into the demon's arm, but it did little other than tear the cloth of the demon's sleeve, revealing yet more clawed arms pouring from the wound. It seemed the demon was nothing more than ragged cloth holding together some kind of nonsensical being.

With a swing of his scythe, the demon cleaved off Tek's legs. Tek let out a scream of pain as he fell onto his back. His spear now within reach, Tek grabbed his weapon and shoved it into the void where the demon had ripped his chest open. It had little effect as the strange hands simply grabbed onto his spear and snapped it to pieces. "Die rat." The demon said, raising his scythe. Tek met the demon's eyes and spat in defiance as the scythe was brought down.

There was a flash of silver light, and Tek felt his legs go numb for a moment. His entire body went cold as the kiss of death washed over him. Taking a deep breath to clear his head, Tek focused on the rune beneath him in the dirt street. The massive soul splitting rune still ablaze with runic light. The demon looked around in confusion before he spotted where Tek had soul split from.

"Clever rat." The demon growled.

"I'm just getting started." Tek slammed both hands onto the massive rune and four glowing copies erupted from his back and charged the demon.

One by one the copies fell. Each sending a wave of pain back to his original form, threatening to break his focus. Every time a copy was slain, Tek would summon another to replace it. Slowly but surely the demon's form was being widdled away by the onslaught of his attacks.

Or so it seemed.

The demon's form was being damaged, but the strange energy that the arms from its wounds stretched from seemed to be growing. As if his form was swelling from its own instability. With a wild arc of his scythe, the demon managed to cut through all four copies of Tek as well as the top of the fountain, sending a slab of stone to shatter in the street. Penny leapt from the water and hid behind Tek.

The toll of soul splitting has done a number on Tek and as he tried to draw in more runic magic he collapsed onto all fours as the rune faded beneath him. Coughing up blood, Tek's vision began to blur. "Tek get up! Please get up!" Penny pleaded, as she shook his arm. His mind screamed in defiance, but his body refused to let him stand.

A claw took Tek by the throat and lifted him into the air, cutting off his breath. "As fun as it was killing you over and over again. I think this kill will be the most fun. Die knowing you did little to save your little frog-"

Before the demon could finish, a blur of pink fell from the sky and with a loud snap, something broke the demon's neck. Chou Chou landed mere feet away, a horrified look on his face as the demon let out a growl, still alive and seemingly unaffected by the attack.

Before the demon could attack, it's body contorted unnaturally and it let out what sounded like a pained cry. To Tek's surprise the demon's body exploded in a violent display of crimson fire that shot across the courtyard. Tek dropped to the ground, gasping for breath, then looked up at Chou Chou who seemed just as confused at what had just happened. They shifted their gaze to see well-equipped soldiers flooding the area. At the front of their lines stood a skunk with burgundy fur, her arm outstretched with the crimson fire hovering inches above the palm of her hand.

*****

"What is a civilian and a rat doing, fighting in the princess's courtyard?" A goat asked, stepping out next to the skunk. Tek could tell by her uniform that she was a high ranking officer in the kingdom's army.

"Millie Billie!" Chou Chou said, cheerfully extending his arms as if to hug the goat from afar.

"You know her?" Tek asked in a whisper.

"I was in the military." Chou Chou shrugged.

"You're a baker." Tek said, still stunned by the rabbit's ability to snap a demon's neck with his feet.

"I said I was in the military. Now I bake cakes." Chou Chou whispered as the goat and skunk approached them.

"I told you never to call me that. You're in too deep this time, Chou Chou. Look at what you've done!" The goat said, gesturing to what was left of the courtyard.

"What they've done," The skunk interrupted, her voice remaining calm and collective, "was save a precious civilian's life at the cost of some stone that can be replaced. Tell me, Millie, what is the tactical advantage of having this courtyard in presentable shape?"

"None, my princess." The goat said, bowing her head respectfully.

"Then I suppose we can forgive them for the damage. Return to your inn, Chou Chou, and try to stay out of any more trouble."

Chou Chou made an exaggerated bow, causing his ears to flop down to the ground.

"As for the rat," the princess continued, "I don't recall ever granting permission to any of my guards to allow your kind into the kingdom. That being said, I've never actually seen runic magic used before, nor did I expect to see a rat wielding it. You're peculiar, and you fight with an incredible passion to protect those from a foreign kindom. Who are you?"

"My name is Tek. I've been sent to warn the world that the iron doors have weakened. I need to find a way to repair their wounds, or they may open once more." Tek warned.

The soldiers behind Millie and the skunk princess began muttering quietly until Millie ordered them to be silent. The princess hardly flinched upon hearing the news. "Very well, I will grant you an audience with the royal family. However, our cooperation comes with a price."

Tek hesitated for a moment. "What price?"

The skunk princess turned from him, and Tek could see the stripe on her tail distinctively ended in the shape of a spade. "That is to be discussed at a later time. Now come, we have much to discuss, and in the morning I will grant you an audience with my sisters."

*****

The strange looks Tek received from the civilians didn't change much, despite being within the presence of one of the four princesses. In fact, it only seemed to increase the unwanted attention as guards followed closely behind them at all times. "So the iron doors have finally begun to weaken? How unfortunate that it should happen in our lifetime, yet how intriguing." The princess of spades said, leading Tek through a gate that would bring them into her section of the kingdom.

Tek kept his eyes focused on the strange ball of crimson fire that the princess of spades kept hovering above her palm. "Do you have an archive that I may look through, or perhaps another rune tapper that may be able to return to the iron doors with me?" Tek asked.

"Rats truly are isolated from the rest of the world, aren't they? You seem to be under the impression that magic is so common that anyone can wield it. Rune tappers are few and far between, rat, you'd be lucky to find a single one in our kingdom within the past ten generations. You're welcome to use our archives, but if you want to learn more about rune tapping, you'll need to travel to Acria."

"And where is that?" Tek asked, as they approached the princess of spades' palace.

"Several miles upwards." Was the only response the princess gave as she led Tek inside. Her palace made him feel unnerved. If there ever were to be a haunted castle in the land, this had to be it. It looked to Tek as if it should be in the fog lands rather than the grasslands of the skunk kingdoms.

"So what do I call you anyways? Just princess?" Tek asked.

The princess sighed. "I suppose you are a prince, so I should have you drop the formalities for now. You aren't very good at them anyway. My name is Lolli." the princess said, leading Tek to a room so dark that it reminded him of the burrow. Lolli gestured for him to follow, but he hesitated. Not even the guards were following them into the room. "Come along rat." Lolli called back to him.

Scurrying after Lolli, Tek made sure to stay close to her. The crimson fire cast strange shadows on the wall that looked like silhouettes of demons. Finally Tek spoke up, "What is this?"

"A prison." Lolli said, her voice still as calm as ever. Her eyes began to glow with crimson light in a similar way to Tek's whenever he would tap into a rune. Torches lit the walls with the same crimson fire that she had transformed the demon into. If Tek hadn't been unsettled before, he was now. The most ominous stuffed animals he had ever seen lined the walls and shelves in the room. Each looked unlike anything he had ever seen before - from strange goat-like demons, to scaled creatures, bat winged monstrosities, uni-horned equines, and fanged monsters.

"I'd avoid looking at them for too long." Lolli suggested. With her free hand, Lolli began outlining a strange circle full of ominous symbols he had never seen before. It looked as if she was marking the floor with some sort of glowing ink, but it manifested out of thin air.

"What kind of magic is this?" Tek asked, studying the symbols closely.

"Demonic." Lolli said, finishing the last symbol and holding the ball of crimson fire over it. A demonic roar that Tek recognized to be that of the demon he had been fighting pierced the air. The sound echoed through the entire kingdom and shook the very foundations of the room they were in. Tek half expected the walls to start crumbling, but as the demon's tormented cry seemed to reach its climax all fell still. The crimson fire spun and twisted, and Lolli placed what looked like a featureless stuffed animal on the circle, The fire funneled into it, like water down a drain. The stuffed animal seemed to contort and writhe, as if the process brought it physical pain. To Tek's astonishment, it began taking on features of that of the demon. Finally the crimson fire disappeared into the stuffed animal. Lolli picked it up, and placed it on a shelf near the others.

"There, one less demon." Lolli said, clasping her hands together proudly.

"You just... keep these here?" Tek asked.

"Better to bind them, than to let them roam free. Killing them would only send them back to their realm. This way they are my prisoners." Lolli said. Tek began hearing whispers coming from the bound demons. Lolli must have noticed his eyes darting around the room because she spoke up again, "They'll get to you if you let them. Best to ignore them. Sometimes I will bring one out to talk to, but they refuse to tell me anything about the increase in crimson moons. You're all a bunch of stubborn jerks." Lolli shouted at the dolls.

"Is it safe to bring them out?" Tek asked.

"With the proper binding spells I can completely control them. My studies at Acria have helped immensely." Lolli added.

"You keep bringing up this Acria. What is it?" Tek asked, following Lolli out of the room and watching her carefully turn several locks on the door.

"The floating academy. The only school in the world that teaches magic. Demonic, runic, illusionist, elemental, all the fun stuff." Lolli said.

"That's where I need to go!" Tek said excitedly. Never did he imagine such a wonderful place would exist.

Lolli chuckled to herself. "Well good luck. You need the sponsorship of a guardian, and Rodentia may be the guardian of the burrow, but her authority isn't recognized. When you seclude yourself from the rest of the world, the world stops wanting you."

Tek could feel his ears and tail droop in disappointment. "So how did you get in?" Tek asked.

"You mean besides being exceptional? I got a sponsorship of course." Lolli said, leading Tek into an empty bedroom.

"Lolli, I need a sponsor. I have to get into Acria." Tek pleaded.

"No guardian will sponsor you if they do not think you are capable, Tek. Even if the world depends on it. Getting into Acria is the most difficult thing a person can do. If you fail to impress a guardian, they will kill you for wasting their time. Tomorrow you will meet with me and my sisters. We will decide your fate from there. We can't have you wasting your life if we don't believe you will survive a guardian's trials." Lolli said, heading towards the door.

"Until then, please make yourself comfortable. There is a library down the hall, but you will find no books on rune tapping. Such texts are exceedingly rare. Sleep well, rat." Lolli said. Then the princess took her leave.

Tek flopped onto his bed face first. He hadn't realized just how exhausted he was until he actually hit the mattress. Beside his bed was a small bedside table. Tek opened the drawer to find a quill and ink, along with several sheets of parchment. Placing the parchment on the table he began etching out what he could remember from the rune he had stolen from the dragon's hoard. If he was going to have to impress a guardian to gain access to Acrai, he would need to know as much about rune tapping as he could. After an hour of nothing but scribbling down runes, there was a knock on Tek's door. Tek opened it to find a guard holding a book out to him.

"Princess Lolli has ordered this to be delivered to you." The guard said.

Tek took the book and returned to his desk. Flipping through the pages he realized it was a book on the guardians. There were more than he realized, although he grew frustrated upon realizing the section that should have contained Rodentia had been completely torn from the book.

"Spindle, the guardian of the endless web," Tek said, reading through the different names, "Hyra, the guardian of the flaming circle.' Tek turned the page and felt a chill run up the length of his spine upon seeing the illustration of the next guardian listed.

A massive sphinx with razor sharp teeth and claws.

Tek scoffed. Just what he needed, a feline with wings. He already wasn't a fan of cats. He had too many bad encounters with mountain sabers, sneaky hook toothed lions that stalked the mountains around the burrow. "Prieda, guardian of the shifting sands." Tek read below the image. He closed the book and set it on the table. Then rolled over and began to drift off to sleep.

Chapter 6

The Court of Cards

Morning started earlier than Tek would have liked it to. He felt as if he had only just shut his eyes when he was awoken to a guard banging on his door. Throwing on his hood and loin cloth, he drearily followed the guard. Tek realized something was off when the guard led him outside and through one of the gates.

"Where are we going? I thought I was to meet with the princesses?" Tek asked.

"You are being brought before the Court of Cards in the central palace. Consider yourself lucky, rat, as you will be the first of your kind to step inside the king and queen's palace." The guard growled from under his helmet.

"I'm to see the king and queen?" Tek asked, staring up at the massive gate that would lead him to the central palace.

"King Zephyrus and Queen Effluvia are off in support of the war effort in the Darkwood. You'll be at the mercy of their daughters. More so the princess of hearts - that was her courtyard you smashed up, after all." The guard sneered.

Tek swallowed nervously as they stepped across the bridge leading to the gate. He stopped for the moment, looking into the moat below. He hoped Penny would be able to find a new home. "Don't linger, rat!" The guard spat, and Tek ran to catch up.

Inside the central walls Tek was met with the scent of flowers almost as breathtaking as those found in the forbidden valley. Butterflies fluttered to flowers Tek had never seen before and the sound of a harp and flute being played put him at ease as he approached the white stone castle upon the central wall. Statues of the four princesses lined the road, and when Tek entered the castle, he was faced with two massive statues that he assumed were of King Zephyrus and Queen Effluvia.

"It smells surprisingly nice here for being a skunk kingdom." Tek mentioned. The guard scoffed in response, but kept walking. When they reached the end of the hall, the guard stopped Tek.

"Wait here." The guard snarled, before entering one of the rooms. Tek was left alone outside, staring awkwardly as the paintings lining the wall. In the distance he heard the trickling of water. Somewhere in the kingdom was a fountain. His thoughts returned to Penny again.

A maid walked by and gasped upon seeing a rat in the kingdom. Tek waved, but the maid looked at him as if he had just given her a rude gesture, and hurried out of sight. "Rude." Tek said quietly to himself.

The door swung open and the guard stepped out, gesturing for Tek to step inside.

Four thrones, each marked with a different suit, stood atop a stairway. Upon each throne were the princesses. Sitting utop the throne of spades sat Lolli, looking down at Tek with the same unamused face she always seemed to have. To her left was the princess of clubs, her fur jet black with a single white stripe. Beside her was the princess of diamonds. Her fur was silver and she sat drumming her fingers upon her throne, looking more irritated than interested in Tek's presence. Then there was the princess of hearts. Bright pink fur, groomed to perfection. She sat, staring at Tek, grinning while holding her head in her hand as she leaned against the arm of her throne.

Not knowing what kind of behavior was customary for this situation in the skunk kingdom, Tek approached the princess of hearts, careful not to step too high on the stairs as to put himself at a greater height. He had read that to do this to some rulers meant an immediate beheading. Getting down on one knee, he bowed his head before speaking. "My apologies for damaging your courtyard, princess. I only wished to protect your people. I am at your service until my deeds have paid off the damages and the necessary repairs have been made." As soon as the words left Tek's mouth he regretted them. Idiot, you don't have the time to be playing fealty.

"Oh, I like him." The princess of hearts said.

Lolli sighed, pinching the brim of her snout. "Tek, get up." Apparently she also had realized how stupid his pledge had been given their circumstance.

Tek got to his feet. The princess of clubs and diamonds gave each other a curious look, apparently intrigued by what he had just done. "I suppose you aren't all sneaky little devils after all, if you can display such honorable devotion to a foreign kingdom." The princess of diamonds spoke.

"Tek, allow me to introduce you to my sisters. Serena, princess of diamonds. Cloe, princess of clubs." Lolli sighed before continuing, "And Lita, princess of hearts." Lita smiled, giving Tek a little wave.

What in the name of the guardians have I gotten myself into? Tek thought to himself.

"We have discussed the news you brought to my attention regarding the iron doors." Lolli said, "We've all come to the same conclusion. The iron doors cannot be left in the damaged state they currently are in. Unfortunately, we don't have any rune tappers in our kingdom who can help you. I will take you to Spindle, my sponsor in Acria. If she deems you worthy, then you will gain access to the academy. If she kills you, then I will carry on your quest and find a rune tapper to save the iron doors. What do you say to this?"

"I accept your offer." Tek said. "When do we leave?"

"Not so fast, Teky," Lita said, getting up from her throne and circling him slowly like a predator to its prey. "You've sworn fealty to me. Remember?"

"Lita, this isn't the time for your little dating games." Cloe added.

"If not now, then when?!" Lita shouted. "Besides, Lolli said she wouldn't help Teky until after the next scheduled crimson moon."

"What?" Tek asked, balling his fists in frustration.

"Lita, we weren't going to discuss that yet." Lolli snapped.

"The next scheduled crimson moon isn't for another ten days. I can't stay here that long." Tek said. He took a step up the stairs and every guard in the room drew their weapons.

"Easy," Serena said, gesturing for the guards to stand down, "Tek, we don't mean to stall you, but with the increased frequency of crimson moons our soldiers are fatigued and morale is low. We aren't keeping you because we don't think your quest is important. We are keeping you because we need your rune tapping to help protect our kingdom."

"Besides, you're mine until my courtyard is fixed." Lita teased.

"Tek, once you reach Acria all your problems won't be fixed so easily. If the answers were so readily available, one of the guardians would have stepped in to fix the iron doors themselves. This will take time. In order to further your rune tapping training in Acria, you'll need to already know how to tap into two runes. Is that something you can do?" Lolli asked.

Tek hesitated before speaking. "I know one rune, but I have access to a second."

"Then you'll need to take time to learn it." Lolli said.

"We don't have time!" Tek snapped. There was a pause, as Lolli slowly stepped down the stairs until she was just a heads level above Tek.

"This is our kingdom, rat - you would do well to remember it." Lolli said, anger finally breaching her calm tone. Tek averted his gaze, trying to bury his frustrations.

"I came here with companions." Tek added. "They're staying in an inn, but I'd like them to be moved somewhere more secure."

"I'll take them in." Serena said. "If you'd like, you can stay in the realm of diamonds as well. I think you'll find it the most suitable for your training and-"

"He's staying with me!" Lita snapped, cutting off her sister. In an instant her voice changed from a shrill shout back to her playful tone, "Besides, he's already familiar with the realm of hearts. Naughty rat, sneaking into my kingdom without my permission."

"It's settled then," Lolli said, returning to her throne, "Tek's companions will be under Serena's care. Tek, you will remain in the kingdom until the next crimson moon heralding the change in seasons. Until then, you've pledged fealty to our sister. Lita, make sure to give him time to practice his rune tapping, and Tek, tend to our sister's needs. May the guardians have mercy on your soul."

"Because of the crimson moon?" Tek asked.

"Yeah, that too." Lolli said. Cloe and Serena snickered as Lita began to lead Tek out of the throne room. His ears drooped as he began wondering just what he had gotten himself into.

*****

"So you don't care that I'm a rat?" Tek asked, sitting across from Lita in her bedroom as she poured then each a cup of tea.

"Nope, you're a prince after all." Lita said, flicking her tail.

"The title is kind of pointless. I have thousands of siblings and we live in a matriarchy, so I don't have any real authority." Tek added.

"Still a prince." Lita sipped her tea, then returned to fawning over Tek.

"There's plenty of other princes out there. Ones who are perhaps not trying to get into Acria."

"Mhm, let me know when you find one." Lita teased.

Tek let out a long sigh, then took a sip of his tea. He had never tried the drink before, and the thought of drinking water with some kind of plant in it confused him. Although admittedly it was fruitier than he had expected. "Long distance relationships can be difficult."

"I'm patient."

"Rats are considered dirty by most."

"I can be dirty."

"I came here with a female partner." Tek said, hoping this would somehow deter her advances. Lita simply raised an eyebrow, giving him a smirk. "I need some air." Tek jumped to his feet and quickly stepped out of the room.

"Having trouble, rat?" A familiar voice asked. Tek looked up to see the same canine guard that took his armor. "I can't believe the princess would be so depraved as to allow you to step foot into her chambers." The canine guard chuckled.

"Is something wrong?" Lita asked, stepping out behind Tek.

"Not at all, princess." The guard said, standing at attention.

"Tek?" Lita asked, looking at him.

"Actually Lita, this is the guard who snuck me into your kingdom. However, he stole my armor as payment." Tek said.

"Oh really?" Lita said, grimacing at the guard.

"He lies, princess!" The guard said in a panic.

"What was it you said to me when I tried to enter?" Tek asked, recalling their prior conversation, "'Fuck off rat, your kind isn't welcome here,' I believe that was the wording used." Tek tapped at his chin in thought with his finger.

"You will return Prince Tek's armor, immediately." Lita said, her tail straightening out as she shook a fist at the guard.

"Impossible, I sold it all already." The guard said, his eyes darting nervously between Tek and Lita nervously.

"Then you'll pay Tek back for twice what you sold it for." Lita said, turning away from the guard and walking back into her room. The guard looked to Tek, who simply shrugged and followed after the princess.

"That was something else." Tek said.

"I am something else," Lita said, sitting at the end of her massive bed and painting her claws. "If there's anything else I can help with, all you need to do is ask." She gave him a suggestive look that immediately made him uncomfortable.

Rather than go back outside with the guard, Tek instead thought of another favor. "Lita, did you know there's been a frog living in the fountain outside in your courtyard?" Tek asked.

"My magic frog?" Lita asked, without looking up. "Yes, she seems to like it there."

"Well the reason your courtyard was destroyed was because I was trying to save her." Tek continued.

Lita put her claw painting on pause for a moment. Looking up at Tek with a scowl. "You're not in love with her are you?" She asked.

"What? No, I just wanted to make sure she was okay." Tek said, throwing his hands up defensively.

"Good." Lita said, her tone returning to its normal bubbliness.

Tek groaned, feeling as if the conversation was going nowhere. "Look, Lita, can you please fix the fountain in the courtyard? Penny has nowhere to live without it. She doesn't even have a family or friends to help her."

"Who?" Lita asked.

"Your magic frog!" Tek said, his frustration reaching its peak. Two guards came rushing in at the sound of Tek shouting and Lita had to gesture for them to leave.

Lita blew on her claws to dry the paint. Leaving Tek wondering if she would even answer him for a long moment. "I love my magic frog. I'll fix the fountain."

"Wait, really?" Tek asked in disbelief.

"Mhm, now go do your rune thingy, Tekypoo. I won't have you missing your training and risk Serena stealing you away from me for longer than she has to." Lita gave him a dismissive gesture, and Tek made for the door. Tekypoo? He thought, humiliated by the demeaning pet name. Stepping out of the room, he couldn't help but wonder if the princess of hearts would keep up on her end of the bargain or if Penny would continue to live without a home.

*****

"Tek!" Gimmick shouted, running to him and wrapping her arms around his waist. Tek barely caught himself from falling over as she threw all of her weight at him. "It's amazing here! Serena has so much jewelry! Look Tek, I look like a princess." Gimmick said, gesturing to two silver clamps on her horns.

"Does Serena know you took those?" Tek asked, looking to make sure no guards were about to rush them.

"They're a gift Tek. No need to worry, this little kobold is no thief from what I can tell, and I am an excellent judge of character." Serena said. "Although the mole you came here with can learn a thing or two about manners." She hadn't even turned to face them. Serena sat by a pond, playing a harp. Tek could see the back of her tail, the white stripe down the center leading to a distinct diamond shape. It appeared each of the princesses' tails were marked with their corresponding suit.

"You play the harp?" Tek asked.

Serena nodded, her gaze never leaving the pond. "I always play here. I find the water relaxing. I was hoping with the music it would help you focus. I wouldn't want my little kobold friend here to lose her mentor when you go off to confront your first guardian."

Tek frowned. "My first guardian? I was told that if Spindle rejected my request for a sponsor she would kill me."

Serena shrugged. "Perhaps, but Lolli has informed me you're a cunning creature, and that kobold seems to think the world of you. If this is true, then I suppose it is possible for you to get away. If not, don't fret. I will keep your little friend safe."

Both Tek and Serena watched as Gimmick tried to catch a fish from the pond. Tek groaned before shouting to her. "Gimmick that's not for you to-"

"Don't," Serena interrupted, "She's been through a lot. They're just fish. I can always find more."

Carefully, Tek laid out the scroll he had stolen from the dragon's hoard, then set up a quill and ink along with several pieces of parchment. Serena continued playing her harp, her eyes slowly falling down upon Tek and his work. Scribbling down the rune over and over with care and precision, he continued to perfect the runic symbol. When he would run out of room on one piece of parchment, he would go onto the next. When he would run out, Serena would order a servant to bring him more. This continued until the sun set.

In the following days, Tek would awaken to Lita calling his name. He would then be forced into long outings filled with shopping, drinking copious amounts of tea, and watching her paint her claws. After that, Lita would begrudgingly let him go and he would finally be free to practice his rune tapping, while Serena played the harp.

"It's been days and all you've done is draw that same rune." Serena said, her voice remaining fairly monotone as always.

"It needs to be perfect or it won't work." Tek said, flipping a rune covered page over and starting a new rune on the back of the parchment.

"Why don't you try tapping into it? Spindle will never sponsor you if you can't tap into more than one rune." Serena said.

"It won't work if I don't know what the rune is for." Tek said.

"Well you better figure it out soon. I'll remind you that the world literally may be depending on it. When the next crimson moon, we anticipate the largest incursion of demons yet. With the other two crimson moons the demons attacked two of the four outer districts. I think they were testing our outer defences. This time they will try to end our kingdom all together. So get rune tapping." Serena said, plucking a sour note on her harp.

"Do you know what rune tapping is, Serena?" Tek asked.

"Magic." Serena said, starting to play her harp again.

Tek sighed, "When the gods forged this world, they did so using runes. It's more than magic, it's their language. Every word they spoke and wrote burst forth into being, creating everything we know. Stone, air, soul-"

"Skunks?" Gimmick interrupted, kicking her feet in Serena's pond.

"I don't think that's how that worked, but more or less, sure." Tek said, before continuing. "These runes are all we have left of them. To tap into the runes is to tap into the very language of a god. It's not easy. You have to perfectly understand the rune without any knowledge of what it actually is. It's almost like an instinct. Usually triggered by-" Tek cut himself off.

"Triggered by what?" Serena asked.

Tek felt his tail and ears droop as he pushed back memories he had been trying to forget his entire life. "By tragedy."

Serena was quiet for a moment. She looked to see if Gimmick was still listening in on their conversation, but she had caught a fish and was trying to bite it while it thrashed in her claws. "So how did you learn your first rune."

"I... don't want to talk about it. Let's just say this isn't my first time interacting with the skunk kingdom." Tek said.

Serena's eyes widened and Tek knew instantly his secret had been found out. "Twenty years ago, we sent guards to the burrows to see if rats would be fit as allies to our kingdom." Serena said.

"And it ended in tragedy." Tek said, his hands gripping the parchment beneath him, crumpling them in his grasp.

"But there were no survivors." Serena said, looking down at Tek in disbelief.

Tek met her eyes, and for the first time he saw Serena recoil in fear. His breathing turned heavy, as anger began to rise up inside him. The realization of what Tek had been trying to get across to her finally dawned on the princess of diamonds.

"You rune tapped to escape."

Serena looked up at the moon as it began to crest over the horizon. The entire kingdom seemed to share a moment of unanimous relief as silver light stretched over the kingdom. There would be no crimson moon tonight. "Why don't you spend the night here? You could use a break from my sister, I'm sure. Besides, I think Gimmick misses seeing you during the day." Serena offered.

Tek nodded silently then Serena showed him to his room. Alone on his bed with nothing but the silver light of the moon, Tek sat and quietly wept. It had been years since he had thought about that day, and now all the memories were pouring back. There was a knock at his door, but he didn't move to answer it.

"Tek?" Gimmick called from outside. The door cracked open and the kobold stepped in, looking shocked to see tears streaming down Tek's face. Gimmick sat beside him and pulled his head close against her. "I know, sometimes it's hard out there." Wrapping his arms around the kobold, Tek let himself weep until his emotions went numb and he was finally able to rest.

Chapter 7

The Midnight Dancer

Twenty Years Ago

Tek ran down the tunnel, a tiny spear held tightly in one hand, Chasing a blue furred rat until light burst at the end of the tunnel. The cold dirt and stone was replaced by warm sun and grass. Taking in the fresh air, he flopped down on the ground.

"You're getting slower." Tek said, between panting breaths.

"Still faster than you." Iary said, punching him playfully in the arm. "How is it that I can spend all those hours studying runes and still outrun you."

"Because you cheat." Tek laughed, earning himself another playful punch in the arm. "You can't even do anything with that rune."

"Not yet." Iary said, pulling out a scroll and etching a copy of it into the dirt. Nothing happened.

"Let me try." Tek said, etching a rather inaccurate copy of the rune next to Iary's.

"That doesn't even look right."

"It does if you squint." Tek said. Iary pushed him over, then grabbed his spear and ran off. "Hey!" Tek grabbed the scroll she had left behind and ran after her.

Iary had stopped by a hillside and by the time Tek caught her he was out of breath. "Look Tek, the peddlers!" Iary said, making her way down the hill towards them.

"Iary wait up!" Tek said, panting, "We're not supposed to go out that far!"

By the time Tek had caught up to Iary, she had already started a conversation with one of the peddlers. "Tek what are you doing here?" Tek heard a voice call from behind him. Tek turned to see a rat with dusty brown fur, pulling a heavy cart full of an assortment of trade goods.

"Sorry dad," Tek started, "Iary ran off with my spear and-"

"If he was faster, he could have caught me and we wouldn't have gotten out this far." Iary teased.

"Well boy, why didn't you just catch her?" Tek's father asked. Tek scrunched up his face in frustration, his ears drooping to either side of his head. His father chucked, shaking his head. "I'm just messing with ya boy. So long as you're here, you might as well help out. Go around back and give this cart a push. Your mother packed it full of the heaviest metals."

Running around to the back of the cart, Tek began pushing as his father asked. He was right, the cart was much heavier than he expected. Iary walked alongside him, with an expression of exaggerated boredom on her face.

"You could help." Tek grunted, putting all his weight against the cart.

"You need this Tek. It'll help you grow big and strong like me." Iary joke, flexing her nonexistent muscles.

Eventually Tek couldn't move the cart anymore and he realized his father had stopped pulling it. Stepping out from behind it he saw several soldiers in black armor, Behind them was an open chest full of coins. Tek's eyes widened. He'd never seen so much coin in his life. "What trinkets did you bring us, rat." One of the soldiers said from behind his helm.

One of the rats approached the soldiers with a basket of fruit, before retreating to the rest of the group. A soldier took one of the fruits from the basket and inspected it for a moment, before chucking it back at the group of rats. "This disgusting filth isn't suited to feed our beggars. Search them!" The soldier ordered. Iary and Tek hid behind his father's cart, while he stood in front of them, shielding them from view.

"We were expecting traders, not soldiers." Tek's father said under his breath. "You should go home. Tell Rodentia."

Peering around the cart, Tek was about to make a run for it, when he saw the soldiers begin to throw the other rats to the ground and stomp on whatever offering they had brought to trade for the coin. Finally the soldier that had been giving orders approached his father's cart.

"You there, elder." Open the cart. Tek's father did as ordered, opening the cart to reveal weapons made from some of the mountain's finest metals. The guard turned to the other soldiers and nodded. Tek's father let out a low sigh of relief, the guards apparently satisfied with what he had brought them. Then the soldier turned and with a swing of his sword, cut Tek's father across the chest. The other soldiers drew their weapons and immediately followed their superior's lead, killing every rat they saw.

Screaming with anger, Iary rushed the soldier with Tek's spear. "Iary, don't!" Tek shouted. The soldier caught the spear with his free hand, laughing as Iary struggled to try to pull it from his grasp.

"Look, even the little ones are disgusting." The soldier said, raising his sword. Tek's eyes widened as he saw the blade cut twice, first through his spear, then through Iary. Falling to his knees, Tek dropped Iary's scroll, which unraveled on the ground next to him. Tears flooded down his face as he looked up at the soldier. "We'll tell them back home it was dragonfire. Get the torches and burn it all. Grab the weapons." The soldier noticed Tek behind the cart and lifting his helmet, gave him a wolfy smile. "Come here little fella." Snarled the soldier.

Feeling a sense that this was the end. Tek tried crawling away, but froze when he felt something strange beneath his hand. Looking down he saw the rune on Iary's scroll as it began to glow a faint silver. Placing both hands on the scroll it lit up with a burst of silver light, and a copy of Tek ran as fast as he could while he held his hands onto the rune. So clean was the soldier's cut, that Tek only felt a momentary cold sting strike his back.

Disorientation threatened to overcome Tek as he turned to see he was much further away from the soldiers than he had realized. In the distance he could see their dead bodies. He had swore he had been there, kneeling before the soldier and then... then the rune began to glow. Not understanding what had happened, Tek ran back to the burrow, as the soldiers burned the bodies of his loved ones.

Sitting alone in the dark, Tek wept. Kneeling on the ground he began etching the rune as best as he could remember it into the dirt. He did this for hours until his hands and fingers bled. Then placing his hand on the most perfect rune he could manage, the rune erupted with silver light.

*****

Tek awoke with a start, his heart jumping in his chest, to find himself back in Serena's palace. Gimmick was snoring at the foot of his bed, not once having left his side. It had all been a dream. He cursed silently to himself. He had hoped to forget all that, and the skunk kingdoms had not been the place for such memories to come rushing back to him. Not here. A knocking sound got Tek's attention and he hurried to the door and swung it open, only to find no one was there. Frowning, Tek closed the door and again he heard the same knocking, only it wasn't coming from the door, it was coming from behind him. Looking over his shoulder, Tek could see a shadow move outside his window.

Carefully, Tek undid the latch on the window, pushing it open. A figure wrapped in dark cloth with even darker fur stood on the rooftop just feet away from him, with a rat tail flicking back and forth behind them. "Iary?" Tek whispered to himself, before stepping out onto the roof. The stranger's fur wasn't the same blue that Iary's had been though, it was jet black, and her eyes were as bright a purple as Tek had ever seen.

"Come with me prince Tek," The figure said, bowing with more grace than Tek could ever manage, "We have much to discuss."

Memories of struggling to keep up with Iary flooded to the forefront of Tek's memory as he struggled to jump from rooftop to rooftop. The stranger not only seemed to do so with ease, but did so gracefully as well, flipping and cartwheeling from ledge to roof, always landing perfectly on her feet. She stopped by one of the palace windows and crouched low, waiting for him to catch up. Tek felt cold as he realized it was Serena's window they were just outside of.

"Tell me prince, why haven't you killed her yet?" The stranger asked, looking from Tek to Serena's window.

"Stop, that's not why I'm here." Tek whispered. The stranger tilted her head curiously.

"The iron doors are damaged. They're going to take me to the guardian of the endless web so she may sponsor my entree to Acria. I'm the only rune tapper in the burrow who can find out what's wrong with the iron doors." Tek explained.

"Oh are you?" The stranger said, holding her palm open before him to reveal a rune he had never seen before stitched into the cloth wrapped around her hand. "You don't need them, prince. I can take you to the guardian now if it would please you. They make you wait, because they want to keep you here. They don't trust you. They don't trust rats. You'll be in a cage before you ever reach the guardian."

"You're wrong. They're different." Tek said, noticing the stranger's ears weren't covered. The darker marking on her ears didn't match his own nor any clan he was familiar with. "You're not from my clan. Who are you?"

"My name is Digit. My clan exists outside of the burrow. When my runic abilities were awakened, I was sent out into the world to find a way to free rats from our torment. I figured finding you would be a good start." Digit held out her palm again showing off her rune.

"How did you know-"

"I know all about you, Tek." Digit said, stepping away from the window and balancing along the edge of the roof. "I've been watching you ever since you left the burrow. The rat prince who wants to save the world. You can't rely on those outside the kingdom to save us Tek. Do you really think the princess of spades will take you to her guardian? Do you know what would happen if you were accepted as her sponsor? You wouldn't be the princess of spades colleague at Acria, you would be her rival. So long as she has those demons bound to her will she can use them to find out what is wrong with the iron doors. You and your little kobold friend need to leave with me before you're locked away, never to leave this kingdom again."

"You're wrong about them." Tek said.

"Am I? Follow me, my prince." Digit said, cartwheeling from the rooftop and making her way towards Lita's district.

Following Digit's lead, they scaled the wall to Lita's kingdom easier than Tek could have imagined. He could have used some of the techniques he learned from watching Digit to get into the kingdom in the first place. Then he wouldn't have had to give up his armor. "Look there prince. The princess of hearts, lives without that for which she is given her namesake." Digit gestured to the courtyard.

"No, she promised." Tek said, looking down in despair. Penny's fountain was nowhere to be seen. Instead a garden surrounded by a fence to keep anyone from stepping inside had been raised up, leaving Penny with nowhere to stay.

"Their words are ash, my prince. I'm only glad I could find you before it was too late. Let us find your kobold friend and leave this place at once." Digit said, turning back towards Serena's district.

"I'm not leaving, not until I've confronted Lita about this." Tek said, jumping from the rooftop and making for Lita's palace. He looked back to see Digit had completely vanished. Scaling the wall of the palace and creeping inside one of the windows, Tek's heart jumped as the door to the room he had snuck into flung open.

"Ah! Intruder- Tek?" A voice called from the entrance.

"Chou Chou?" Tek asked, squinting in the dark.

"Oh lucky me, that rat prince came to visit my quarters in the middle of the night. I knew you'd come around." Chou Chou teased.

"What are you doing here?" Tek asked, trying to stay on topic.

"I'm here because of you!" Chou Chou said excitedly.

"Me?"

"Yes! I made a giant cake for Lita using that apple you gave me. She said it was the most wonderful thing she'd ever tasted in her life! What are you doing on my windowsill? Is this some sort of shifty rat thing?" Chou Chou said, swirling his finger at Tek.

"Uh, yeah kind of actually." Tek admitted.

"Great! Don't involve me!" Chou Chou said, ushering Tek out of the room and slamming the door behind him.

Tek took a deep breath. His heart was still racing. If that hadn't been Chou Chou's room, that could have gone in a very different direction. At least in the halls of the palace everyone recognized Tek as the rat prince courting the princess of hearts, for better or for worse. Making his way past several more stationed guards, Tek had almost reached Lita's room, when he heard someone call after him from behind.

"Hey, rat." A familiar voice heckled. It was the same canine guard that had stolen Tek's armor and, in return, Tek had humiliated in front of the princess.

"I don't have time for you." Tek said, glancing over his shoulder at the guard. The canine stumbled into a wall, clearly drunk from an evening out.

"You cost me a lot of money." The guard snarled.

"That money was never yours. I'm sure you'll get it back by stealing from your own people." Tek turned and began walking towards Lita's room, when the guard shouted back at him.

"Why steal from my people, when rats have all the good merchandise?" The canine guard said with a chuckle.

Tek froze.

"Your food is shit, but the metals you rats mine from the mountains and steal from the dragons is as fine as any." Tek's heart raced as he began to realize where he had heard the guard's voice before. Why the memories he tried so hard to repress seemed to push into the forefront of his mind when he heard his voice. "Not to mention the scrolls." The guard seemed to be enjoying himself. Rubbing in his crime as if Tek didn't know about it.

"It's been two decades." Tek said, his voice quivering with rage.

"What's that rat?" The guard called back.

Tek spun, raising his right arm with his palm facing the guard, while steadying the arm with his left hand. Then a burning rune appeared out of thin air inches away from his palm. Tek's lips moved, forming a word that should be impossible to pronounce and too foreign for his ears to register, yet the word came out all the same, sounding different than the word his mouth tried to form. "Fire." A flaming spear appeared above Tek and he instinctively flicked two his fingers towards the guard. The flaming spear reacting, flying forwards and impaling the guard and pinning him into the stone wall behind him. The guard screamed for a moment before the spear exploded, incinerating the canine and blasting a massive hole into the side of the castle. The building shook from the force of the explosion. Of the guard, nothing remained except for a small pile of ash.

The sound of soldiers shouting out orders echoed down the hallway. Tek looked down at his hands, in disbelief of what had just occurred. The rune that had appeared before him had vanished. As he tried to comprehend how he conjured a rune out of thin air, he realized it was the same rune from the scroll he had stolen from the dragon's hoard. The feeling of the dragon's fire burning at his fur rushed back into his mind and he dropped to a knee.

Guards flooded in around Tek, and he heard one of them approach, sword drawn ready to strike. Tek was not afraid. It would be a sensation he had felt before, twenty years ago. Yet the caress of death never came. Instead a voice cut through the commotion.

"Stand down!" Lita called out. Tek looked up to see her walking down the stairs behind him in her nightgown. "Tek? What happened?"

One of the guards reached a hand out, preventing Lita from stepping any further. "Stand back princess, that filthy animal can't be trusted-"

Before the guard could finish talking, Lita slapped him across the face. "Gather my sister's at once." Lita demanded. Another guard grabbed her by the arm. "What are you doing? Unhand me!" Lita ordered.

"It's too dangerous, princess. I'm sorry. Take her back to her chambers and see that she does not leave until the rat is neutralized." One of the guards ordered. Lita was wrestled back up the stairs by the guard holding her arm.

"Lita," Tek called after her, "You lied to me! You said you'd save Penny. Do you even know where she is?"

One of the guards struck Tek on the back of the head, knocking him to the ground. Tek raised his hand towards the guards, hoping he could conjure fire like he had before, but nothing happened. The guards moved, ready to end Tek's life one last time, when something grabbed him from behind. Tek looked up to see Digit.

"You've forced my hand little prince. I'm sorry it had to be this way." Digit said. A rune woven into the wrappings on her hand erupted in amethyst light, then everything went dark.

The floor below Tek was suddenly softer than the palace floor. His surroundings were darker too. Looking around he realized he was outside of the skunk kingdom's walls, near the forest along its borders. Digit was standing over him. "How?" Tek asked, looking up at her.

"My rune tapping allows me to travel from shadows over certain distances," Digit explained, "You're welcome prince. Now come, let us find your guardian. We don't need the skunk kingdom anymore. We can retrieve your friends later."

Looking back at the kingdom in the distance, Tek's heart sank. He didn't know who to trust anymore, but he had to find the guardian of the endless web. He had to find Spindle. If it meant becoming Lolli's rival, then so be it.

Chapter 8

The Webs We Weave

Digit frowned at Tek, as he hesitated at the forest's edge. "Why do you hesitate, my prince? You have not come this far to be anything but resolute." Tek didn't hear her. He was too busy looking at his palms. Somehow he had conjured a rune out of thin air. Try how he may, he could not figure out how to do it again.

"Tek," Digit said, grabbing his shoulder and snapping him out of his trance-like state, "You need your wits about you if we are to survive entering the darkwood, it is not a place for beings seen as prey." Tek nodded, then after looking back at the skunk kingdom in the distance, followed Digit into the darkwood.

"How do you know how to find the guardian?" Tek asked, his eyes flickering to ever moving shadow and snapping swig he sensed.

"I don't," Digit said, climbing one of the trees, "But Spindle's layer is massive and intruders are not tolerated. It shouldn't be hard to find. Once you enter, she will come to you. Now get up here. The chances of us being eaten are far slimmer if we stay off the ground."

Leaping from branch to branch, Tek could see eyes watching them in the distant darkness below. Not demons, but predators stalking for their next meal. "Keep your head up my prince, if you fall, I cannot guarantee your safety." Digit warned. Tek climbed higher and higher with each leap from a branch he took. He'd rather keep as much distance between himself and whatever it was that watched him from the shadows below. Digit didn't notice his ascent, too busy focusing on her own footing to watch where Tek was going.

Tek leapt onto a particularly thick branch, and nearly stumbled backwards when he landed. It seemed smoother than the other branches and as he placed his palm against the branch to steady himself, he realized he had made a fatal mistake. This was no branch, it was a serpent. The serpent began to slither below him, threatening to send him falling to his doom. Jumping onto the side of the tree, Tek noticed the pale creature's body had nearly every branch constricted in its coils, yet he couldn't see its head.

Something tapped Tek on the shoulder, and he turned expecting to find Digit. Instead he was met with a pair of captivating eyes that burned like the crimson moon. His peripheral vision faded to crimson light, and his will to escape began to sap away from his body. The serpent was unlike any Tek had ever read about. He had not stumbled upon a simple snake, this creature's long serpentine body led to a torso with arms and horns. Any further detail was impossible to notice as Tek found escaping the creature's gaze to be impossible. Something gripped Tek's ankle tightly and he expected to be pulled into the trees with the serpent, never to be seen again. Instead, he was pulled downwards, crashing against the branch below, but snapping him out of his transe.

"Never look an Ophiotaurus in the eyes, my prince. If they pull you into the trees, you'll never be seen again." Digit said standing over him.

The sound of beating wings echoed somewhere nearby. Staying low to the branch, Tek and Digit scanned the shadows expecting something to drop down from the trees. Instead the tree shook from something heavy slamming into the side of it. Tek braced himself on the branch as the sound of bark snapping echoed from below. Looking down he saw a massive shadow with bat-like wings making its way up the tree with frightening speed.

Tek and Digit leapt from the branches, avoiding the bat's claws by inches. The branch exploded from the impact, sending splinters and shattered bark in all directions. The creature growled, his next meal was getting away.

Leaping from branch to branch in the darkness of the darkwood, Tek could hear the sound of beating wings, as the bat pursued them. Shadows darted around below Tek and Digit as well, and at this point Tek was sure all kinds of predators had taken notice of their presence. "Tap into your shadow rune!" Tek shouted. The serpent was catching up.

"Just a little further." Digit said.

Claws raked across one of the branches, shattering it only moments after Tek had leapt from its surface. "Further until what?!" He cried out, knowing he could only jump from one or two more branches before the bat snatched him from the air and carried him into the trees to never be seen again.

The bat let out an ear piercing shriek so loud that Tek had to immediately cover his ears. Losing focus, he missed the branch he intended to jump to, stumbling from the air and crashing into the ground. Leaping to his feet he turned to face his pursuer, hand outstretched in an attempt to summon the runic fire that he used to incinerate the guard that killed Iary, but nothing happened. Cursing, he waited for the predator to approach. Instead he found the nightmares of the forest had completely retreated. A pair of fiery eyes watched him from the distance for a moment, before turning away. But why? Looking up, Tek found his answer.

At first Tek thought a thick fog had fallen upon the darkwood ahead, then it dawned on him. It wasn't fog that stretched endlessly into the darkness ahead. It was a web. Digit dropped down beside him, landing with far more grace than he had managed. "Are you alright my prince?" She asked.

"Just some bruises. Nothing I can't handle." Tek said, rubbing his arm, but his gaze never left the endless web before him. He couldn't help but wonder, if the predators weren't confident they could survive the endless web, what chance did he have?

"You'll need all your cunning if you're to face Spindle." Digit said. The air was heavier under the web. It smelled of death, but worse yet the miles of web seemed to be completely uninhabited.

"Right, I assume you won't be coming with me then. Afterall, why would a guardian find me worthy if I had to bring a friend along to help with the convincing." Tek said, a close eye on his surroundings. The web seemed empty for miles, but that didn't mean he was about to let his guard down.

"Don't be surprised if I'm not here when you get back." Digit said.

Tek spun around, and for a moment he thought she had already left. Digit was nearly invisible against the shadow of the darkwood. "You can't leave me here!" Tek said, shocked she was so willing to abandon him after they'd come this far.

"Prince Tek, if the guardian sponsors you into Acria, then you'll have no further need for me. If she doesn't, then I'm not convinced you'll be coming back at all. I can't be waiting down here not knowing if you've left for Acria or died attempting to convince Spindle of your worth. I'm sure our paths will cross again, but for now I have my own ambitions that I must pursue." Digit said, pressing on one of the runes woven into the cloth on her palm.

"And what ambitions might those be?" Tek asked, but Digit had already disappeared into the shadows. "Wonderful." Tek scoffed, looking at the endless web stretching in all directions. Reaching out, he touched the pale web. Rubbing a small amount of the web between his fingers he pressed the small ball of web against his palm. When he pulled his fingers away, a long strand of web connected from his palm to his fingertips. All my cunning. Tek thought to himself looking up at the web. Then he started to climb.

*****

Tek wasn't sure if he had been climbing for minutes or hours. For all he knew the sun could have risen outside the forest, as the web and trees were so dense the darkwood seemed to be in a state of constant nightfall. The web was the only real indicator that he was still moving in the right direction, as without it sight would be impossible. Tek had assumed Spindle would find him before he found her, but the longer he climbed the more he began to realize the test had already begun. If Spindle was a guardian, then she would have noticed his presence the moment he entered the endless web. If he was worthy of her sponsorship, then he would have to find her. He only hoped she wasn't timing him.

Exhausted from climbing and dehydration from exertion, Tek leaned on a branch against a tree, and poured the last of his water into his mouth. Sighing, he simply let the waterskin fall into the darkness below when he was finished with it. It was hopeless, the web truly was endless. Despite all his efforts, the web still looked the same way it did when he started climbing. Stretching endlessly in all directions.

Something vibrated beneath Tek's leg. It was subtle, almost completely unnoticeable, in fact he wasn't even sure how long the vibration had been present, but it was there. It was a small strand of web. Gently Tek touched the other webs attached to the tree he sat in, yet none vibrated. Tek followed the small vibrating strand of web until it reached an end. There it took him nearly another hour before detecting another faint vibration. He continued to follow the faintest vibrations, sometimes panicking if he thought he lost the web strand, until finally he saw a dim light above him.

Tek could feel his heart pounding in his chest. This was it. Spindle's lair. Glowing threads of spiderweb extended over the darkness above. It looked as if a thousand shooting stars had frozen in place, stretched across the night sky. At the heart of it was a tower that seemed to have been ripped from the ground and hung awkwardly in the web at a strange angle. He prepared himself, then stepped forwards. Laughter could be heard from all around him, and before Tek could react, strands of web shot towards him from above, wrapped around his wrists and ankles and pulled him towards Spindle's web. A voice called out to him from the shadows above.

"Clever little rat."

*****

Spindle emerged from the shadows with all the grace and glory that a being that thought themselves a demi-god might have. Lowering herself on a group of woven together webs that almost resemble a swing, Spindle clapped for Tek. Her many hands created a sound like a mock audience, as if this had all been some weird performance. "Well done! Well done indeed little rat!" Spindle announced. She pulled on four webs with just a few of her many free hands, and Tek found the webs attached to his ankles and wrists, pulling him towards her, making it look as if he was walking across the sky to the guardian.

Tek was surprised by Spindle's appearance. He had half expected a monster to be inhabiting these webs, but she was nothing if not elegant. A tuft of fluff rose from her chest and down her back, where two moth-like wings rested, folded neatly. Two long feather-like antennae protruded from her brow, giving her upper body more of a moth appearance than that of a spider. In fact, if it weren't for all the webs, arms, and eyes staring down at him from Spindle's smiling face, he would have never known she was part spider.

Spindle must have noticed Tek staring, because she gave him a knowing smile. "Oh, thank my webs that you're fawning over me. My little skunk friend was so serious when she came to visit me for the first time. I missed having mortals stunned by my beauty." Spindle said, sounding genuinely pleased with Tek's reaction.

"The runes on the iron door have begun to fade. A pounding can he heard from the otherside of the door. The guardian Rodentia has sent me to-"

Spindle interrupted with a chuckle. "Straight to the point? That doesn't bode well for you. You should know, guardian's like to play with their food. If you rush this, you may find you have far less time on this web than you think," Spindle said, grinning. Tek gulped nervously, before she continued, "Besides, Rodentia never took her guardianship seriously. She never did perfect any kind of magic, instead choosing to watch over her kin and the iron door. As if she can call that living, but I suppose she's doing more than other guardians I know of. Oh there are so few guardian's a woman can rely on these days." Spindle leaned back in feigned drama.

"Didn't you hear what I said? The iron doors are broken." Tek said, in disbelief that a guardian would care so little that their immortality may be threatened by demonic invasion.

"Broken? And let me guess, you think you're going to fix them? A little rune tapper from the burrow, come to save the day. You know, using magic without the sponsorship of a guardian, is punishable by death." Spindle's smile turned wicked, as she tugged on her webs, stretching his arms and legs so tightly it made Tek wince.

"So that's how the guardians work? You only let those who can impress you with their magic into Acria, and if they aren't good enough you use that very use of magic as justification to end their lives." Tek said. The pain in his limbs became more prevalent the longer he remained stretched in Spindle's webs.

"Right on point again. Well done little rat!" Spindle said, again clapping her many hands, creating yet another illusion of an applauding audience. "We can only take the best into Acria, but we also can't have magic users running around these lands unchecked and untrained. They're just as much a threat to themselves as they are the rest of the world. It's nothing personal. It's just the way things have to be. Now," Spindle relaxed her grip on Tek's webs, "You have one chance to tell me what you've learned, or my children will devour you."

"Children?" Tek asked. Spindle smiled, then snapped her fingers. In an instant, thousands of glowing eyes appeared in the dark. Tek felt as if he had been plucked from the planet and tossed into space among the stars. Yet instead of a feeling of beauty at all the tiny glowing lights, he was horrified.

"But don't worry about them," Spindle said, snapping her fingers again, the thousands of eyes disappearing back into the darkness, "If you do, you may not be at your best to impress me. You might waste my precious time," Spindle's expression changed from one of amusement to a scowl as her tone turned serious, "And I that would be very bad for you."

"If you don't let me into Acria, then who will stop the iron doors from opening? Who will save the world?" Tek pleaded.

Spindle looked at Tek with sorrow in her eyes. "Oh little rat. If you don't have what it takes to pass my test, then you never really stood a chance at fixing the iron doors," Spindle rubbed one of her fingers against the bottom of her chin curiously, "And if no mortal can fix the iron doors, then who is to say the world deserves to be saved. The most cunning survive, rat, and if the demons have found a way to breach the iron door, then perhaps it is they who are more deserving of this world."

"Does your own life mean so little to you?" Tek asked.

"I'm not sure I can be defeated by a demon, but if I am, then so be it. Immortality is a long life to live, and I have truly lived such a life. Now," Spindle said, playing several long strands of web like a harp, "You time ends, when the music stops."

Spindle began strumming the strings of the web, creating music unlike any he had heard before. Serena's harp playing had been beautiful, but Spindle's was divine. Pulling on the strands of the web still wrapped around Tek's limbs, Spindle forced him to dance across the web in harmony with the notes she played. Realizing the music could stop at any moment, Tek quickly began pleading his case.

"I've already mastered one rune." Tek said.

"If it's mastered, then show it to me now." Spindle said, focusing still on her music.

"Release me and I can etch the rune."

Spindle smiled, "If you have to etch the rune, then it is not mastered."

Tek frowned. It began to dawn on him just how little he knew about rune tapping. All the more reason why he must succeed to enter Acria. "I was able to summon dragonfire out of thin air using a rune that appeared when I willed it." Tek said.

"Now that's more like it. Summon the rune now. Free yourself from my bindings." Spindle ordered. She frowned when Tek hesitated. "You can't, can you?"

"I've only managed to do it once." Tek said, his disappointment growing as he began to realize he was not going to meet Spindle's standards for entering Acria. She sighed, then her fingers moved like lightning as she finished her song, still making Tek dance to her music. Upon completion, she pulled the webs in a fashion that forced Tek to bow, as she clapped her hands, creating the same mock audience sound.

"I'm sorry little rat, but this is where your journey ends." Spindle said, snapping her fingers. The eyes of a thousand massive insects appeared in the darkness around him. Yet this time Tek did not panic. He had no further need to pretend to be afraid. Instead, he looked up at Spindle, and smiled. She frowned instantly, sensing something was wrong.

"Looks like we will both be disappointed with how this ends." Tek said. A look of amusement fell upon Spindle's face.

"Explain." The guardian demanded.

"Well," Tek started, "I'm not exactly here."

Spindle's eyes widened as she realized what was happening. Tek held up his hand and showed her his palm, revealing the rune for soul splitting stretched across his hand with Spindle's own web. In truth, he was still at the bottom of the darkwood, waiting patiently for his copy to return to him. Spindle laughed so hard she fell backwards in her web. Snapping her fingers, the eyes of her children disappeared into the darkness once more.

"Well played little rat. You may not be ready to enter Acria yet, but that little trick of yours has earned yourself a second chance. Practice your rune tapping. Find the guardian Prieda in the shifting sands. If you can convince her to take you on as her student, then perhaps the other guardians will overlook the fact that you're a rat. You're a cunning little thing, I will give you that, but just because you've won me over doesn't mean that you will be able to win all the guardians over, and you will need to if you want full access to the archives that lie within the school of magic. For that is the only place where you will find the answers that you seek." Spindle explained.

Tek nodded, then pulled out the web forming the rune from his palm. In an instant his soul converged, and he woke up to find himself sitting at the bottom of the forest. Beside him was a freshly carved spear. "Well," Tek said to himself, picking up the spear, "At least I made my time down here useful." Then he made his journey back towards the skunk kingdoms.

Chapter 9

Promises Kept

When Tek exited the darkwood he was relieved to find silver moonlight bathing the land. In the distance was the skunk kingdom. He knew he'd have to return, despite his transgressions. Gimmick and Myra were still within their walls, and he couldn't just leave them there. Stealthily he made his way to the walls surrounding the kingdom. How would Digit do it? Tek thought to himself. Grabbing onto what small protruding stones he could, Tek began to scale the wall. Pausing his ascent whenever he'd hear a guard pass on patrol above him. He lacked the grace to simply scale the wall in moments like Digit could, but he had picked up a few tricks from watching her and he was up and over the wall in no time.

Pulling his hood over his head, Tek did what he could to hide his identity. Although truth be told, he could do little to hide his tail. He knew if he wandered outside too long, he could be caught relatively easily.

The wall Tek scaled put him into Lolli's domain. That meant if he were to be caught, it would be the princess of spades who would decide his fate. Which was exactly what he wanted to avoid. Keeping his head down, he made his way through the streets. Unfortunately, when Tek last saw Gimmick, she was in Serena's palace. He hadn't seen Myra in days, although he'd heard rumors that she'd actually taken up sparring against the princess of clubs. If Tek wanted to get to Gimmick he would have to pass through either Cloe's domain, which was swarming with soldiers preparing for the next crimson moon, or Lita's.

Sighing, Tek made the less risky choice, despite the fact that it brought him closer to Lita. Once inside the princess of hearts' kingdom, Tek found his frustration growing. The courtyard had been completely restored, but Penny's fountain was nowhere to be found, nor was the 'magic frog' that had been so kind to him. He found himself lingering in the courtyard. Looking around he began to replay the events of the night of the last crimson moon in his head. He still couldn't believe Chou Chou had been in the military. A guard began walking towards him, and Tek made for a nearby crowd that looked to be heading for Serena's kingdom for the night. He could hear the guard shouting, but his head remained low. If he could stay out of the guard's sight, he would be fine.

Making his way to the front of the crowd, Tek began to pick up the pace. The gate connecting the Lita's and Serena's kingdoms was just ahead. Stepping into the corridor that would lead him into the princess of diamond's kingdom, Tek's heart sank at the sound of chains and gears, followed by both gates slamming on either side of him. Guards rushed to the outside of the gates, and through them all stepped Lolli.

"Welcome back Tek," Lolli said, looking disappointedly at her intruder, "I've been waiting for you."

*****

"So what happens now?" Tek asked, holding his spear defensively, ready to fight his way out if he had to.

"You incinerated a guard, put a massive whole in the side of my sister's palace, broke my sister's heart, wandered the kingdom unattended, broke back into the kingdom, and I'm willing to guess you also went to see Spindle before you were ready." Lolli snapped.

"I'm sorry princess, I didn't realize I wasn't allowed to wander the kingdom unattended. Was I your guest or your prisoner?" Tek hissed.

Lolli chuckled with false amusement. "Can you guess which one you are now?"

"I should have never trusted you." Tek said, eyeing the guards behind him to make sure they weren't going to try anything.

"What has gotten into you Tek? We had a deal. You would help protect us during the crimson moon, and in return we would allow you a place to train until you were ready to face Spindle. We took you and your friends in. They're still in Serena's palace, wondering where you are. Serena's had to cover for your absence so your kobold friend wouldn't freak out!"

"This is why rats can't be trusted, my lady." One of the guards spoke up. Tek hissed, pointing his spear at the guard. The guards readied their swords, and Lolli quickly raised her hands in an attempt to calm all of them.

"You need to stand down, Tek." Lolli ordered.

"The guards first." Tek gestured to the guards with the butt of his spear.

Lolli paused for a moment, before ordering for her guards to sheath their weapons and take a step back. Tek lowered his spear, but didn't hand it over. Then, against one of the guard's suggestions, Lolli opened the gate, releasing Tek to step out beside her.

"What changed?" Lolli asked.

Tek sighed. "What happened in Lita's palace was an accident. I didn't even know I could create dragonfire. Still, I won't apologize. The guard deserved it. He slaughtered my people, my father, and my dearest friend. If it wasn't for my mother's restraint, our kingdoms may have gone to war."

"I don't understand." Lolli said.

"Then perhaps we should go somewhere where I can explain it to you. Somewhere without your lap dogs." Tek said, glaring at the guards behind Lolli. One of them let out a low snarl and Tek's grip on his spear tightened, but Lolli raised a hand before any fighting could start.

"Very well. Follow me Tek, there's something I want to show you. Something that I hope will convince you to hold up your end of our previous arrangement." Lolli said, dismissing her guards and gesturing for Tek to follow her.

"Lita told me she found you looking scared surrounded by guards. She tried to help you, you know? It's not her fault the guard dragged her away. You know she's the only one of the four of us that never took up any form of combat training." Lolli said, leading Tek to the central palace.

"I won't say I'm surprised to hear Lita never had an interest in combat. That being said, she gave one of those guards one hell of a slap."

Stepping inside the palace, Tek saw a massive fountain inside, dwarving that of the one Penny had been staying in. Tek's surprise must have been visible, because Lolli suddenly spoke up.

"I thought this might have something to do with what happened." Lolli said.

Before Tek could speak, Penny's head popped up from inside the fountain. "Prince Tek!" She shouted, leaping from the fountain, and jumping over to see him, leaving large puddles of water in her wake.

"Penny?" Tek said, shocked to find her inside the kingdom's central palace. Penny nodded enthusiastically. "Thank you-" Tek turned to Lolli, but she raised a finger to cut him off.

"Don't thank me. This was all Lita's idea." Lolli said. "She may be a bit over the top, and even selfish about trifling things, but when it comes down to important matters she's known as the princess of hearts for a reason."

Tek and Lolli watched Penny swim laps happily around the fountain as Tek explained the circumstances that led to his reasoning for attacking the guard. He made sure to leave Digit out of the story, instead telling Lolli the reason he snuck out was to check on Penny. He didn't want to alarm her that another rune tapping rat may be wandering their kingdom unchecked.

"I think given the circumstances," Lolli started, "We may be able to overlook this... incident. If Rodentia's restraint stopped a war over the incident that resulted in so many rat lives, then who am I to deny her of such wisdom over the guard that caused such a slaughter. It's important you know that my sisters and I had no power at the time of your friends death. The skunk kingdoms was a very different place. My parents have been more interested in our war against the monsters in the darkwood than they do in ruling. In truth, the court of cards holds all the power now. My only question now is what will you do Tek? You're free to leave, if that's what you wish. Although I had hoped for you to master your runes here before meeting Spindle. Now it seems you must travel even further south to the ends of the continent."

Tek sighed. "I suppose that will give me plenty of time to master my runes. Still, I'd feel bad abandoning you all during the crimson moon. Although I could use a flight. Perhaps a new deal is to be struck. In service for my skills during the next crimson moon, you provide me with a flight to behemoth bay."

"I think that can be arranged." Lolli said. A loud bang echoed through the foyer and Lita came stomping in.

"Where is he?!" Lita shouted, before spotting Tek and marching angrily towards him.

"You probably deserve this." Lolli said under her breath.

Lita snatched Tek by the wrist and began dragging him out the door with her. "Where are you taking me? Lolli... Lolli!" Tek called back to the princess of spades, but she simply waved as Lita led him back towards her kingdom.

"You owe me so much prince time mister!" Lita snapped.

"Lita there's a crimson moon tomorrow, I don't have time for this!" Tek tried explaining, but Lita was having none of it.

"Well you should have thought about that before you bailed on your duties to me. Now come on! You owe me some serious cuddle time Tekypoo." Lita said. They must have looked quite the site, as the princess of hearts dragged Tek through the streets shouting in front of hundreds of her own citizens. Tek groaned, pulling his hood over his head. The next crimson moon couldn't come soon enough.

*****

"What do you think of this one?" Lita said, stepping out from behind her folding screen to show off her outfit.

"Well it's certainly... pink." Tek said, forcing a smile.

Lita threw her arms to her side and let out a loud grunt. "Tek you said that about the last eight dresses."

"Well they've all been pink!" Tek said defensively.

"Then tell me something else you like about it." Lita said, gesturing towards her dress as if it somehow made it more glamorous.

"It's definitely frilly." Tek added.

"And you think that's good?" Lita asked.

"Do you want me to think it's good?" Tek winced, knowing the question was a bad idea as soon as it left his mouth. Lita marched over and smacked him over the back of the head. He couldn't help but think that if he were to die during the crimson moon tonight, this would be how he'd spent his last day alive.

Tek could hear laughter outside the door. "Her again!" Lita pouted, yanking the door open. Cloe, having been leaning on the door to eavesdrop, nearly fell flat on her face. "Shouldn't you be scooting our soldiers around."

"The term is mobilizing, and Millie is more than capable of setting our defences. I came to free Tek from his monotonous duties as the royal suck up." Cloe said, smugly.

Lita looked as if Cloe had just struck her across the face. She flushed so fiercely that Tek thought her face may have turned a deeper red than his own fur. "How dare you! Just because I hold myself to a higher class than you. I suppose you'd think it better if I was out in some sweaty street brawl with your soldier friends, swinging a hammer around and smashing up my own property."

"It's a mace, not a hammer. You should give it a swing sometime Lita, you might like it. It's not sharp like a blade. It's nice and dull, like you." Cloe said, pointing her tail at her sister. Tek immediately ducked behind Lita's bed anticipating everything that wasn't nailed down to be thrown in Cloe's direction. He wasn't wrong, and the princess of clubs quickly retreated back to the hallway.

"Come on Tek," Cloe shouted, "If you can't get to me without getting hit by Lita's tantrum barrage, then you won't survive a real battle."

Tek crept out from behind the bed, and avoided several pots, and tea cups that crashed and shattered around him before he managed to close the door behind him. "You owe me for getting you out of there." Cloe said, punching him in the arm.

"I think after tonight I'm done owning skunks favors." Tek said, trying to catch his breath.

"Well don't get too excited about being away from Lita. I want you nearby in case a demon makes its way into the kingdom. Lolli was questioning some of the demons she had bound. We believe they're going to try to assassinate one of the Court of Cards. This cannot be allowed. While most of us can hold our own, and our guards have been able to keep her safe perfectly fine in the past, but these are different times. I'd rather not take any risks with my sister's safety." Cloe said.

"Do you want me to stay with her? Or perhaps patrol the halls playing guard all night?" Tek asked.

Cloe laughed, waving her hand at Tek. "Are you kidding? Do you know how many reports I've gotten about a rat scaling our walls and leaping from building to building? You're going on the roof."

Tek frowned, knowing that most of those reports must have been for Digit, who had been moving stealthily through the skunk kingdoms with far more success than him. Still, he couldn't just reveal her presence there. So onto the roof he climbed.

Lita watched him from a window nervously. Below Tek could see civilians rushing to their homes, boarding up windows, and locking doors. Each home had a minimum of two soldiers standing outside, with more patrolling the streets. He hadn't been the only one stationed on the rooftops, but with the armor the other soldiers were wearing, Tek doubted they'd be able to keep up with a demon if it were to move as quick as Digit could when leaping across buildings.

A red light illuminated the horizon, heralding the coming of the crimson moon. Tek hoped to himself that perhaps this crimson moon would be different. The moon allowed demons to inhabit their world for a single night, and there was much in the world to inhabit. There was no guarantee a demon would even show up. Still, a single demon was a dangerous foe, and while Tek had successfully fought off demons in the past, he knew there were far more powerful of their kind out there. He had heard stories of demons with bizarre powers, supernatural speed, and the ability to kill entire towns before the crimson moon set over the horizon. This was why the world lived behind walls. But even walls weren't enough to protect them, should the demon manifest within them.

Tek turned to see Lita, still nervously pacing inside her room through the window. An eerie silence fell upon the kingdom, and air was thick with fear. In the distance the crimson moon crested the horizon, like the blazing red eye of a predator staring hungrily down at its prey.

Chapter 10

Screams of Silence

The wind howled, and Tek swore he could hear the howl of demons clinging to its song as it blew past him. As crimson light bathed the land, Tek found himself surprised to find the landscape devoid of demons. So Tek waited, his eyes scanning every shifting shadow, every subtle movement in the dark of the alleys, every inch of every corner within his field of vision. He found the only thing more ominous than the lack of demons, was the silence. It chilled him to the bone. It was unnatural.

... unnatural. Tek grabbed a rock and dropped it at his feet. To his horror, it made no sound on impact, rolling silently down the side of the roof. Lita had crawled into bed by now, probably hoping to sleep through the night if possible. Tek banged on her window with the butt of his spear, but again, not a sound was to be heard. Tek must not have been the only one affected by the strange phenomena, as Lita didn't stir in the slightest. Then he saw the door to Lita's room slowly open. Tek gripped his spear, ready to throw himself through the window if necessary.

In the entrance to Lita's room stood a shadowy figure. It was too dark for him to make out the figure, but Tek wasn't about to take any risks. Crashing through the window, Tek rolled, putting himself between the possible intruder and Lita, spear at the ready.

A single burning red eye, like a tiny crimson moon in of itself stared back at Tek from the shadows. Then disappeared in a blur of movement. Damn, it's fast. Tek thought to himself. Behind him Lita still slept. Apparently the unnatural silence was affecting more than just the roof. Carefully Tek stepped into the hallway to find it littered with dead guards. He gasped, and found he could hear once more. The soft sound of Lita's breathing could be heard from the bed.

So it must have some kind of sound dampening radius it gives off. Should I leave? Warn the guards or the other princesses? Tek thought, No, it came here. That means Lita is the target. If I leave, she's as good as dead. I just have to hold out until morning.

Tek sat at the end of Lita's bed, not wanting to wake her. If she was conscious, he had a feeling it may be even harder to protect her, should she break out in a panic. Taking out a coin, Tek held it out in front of him. He dropped it, and it made a soft thump against the carpet. He continued this motion for what felt like an eternity.

Thump...

Thump...

Thump...

Thump...

Silence.

The coin struck the carpet without so much as the slightest noise. Picking the coin up again, Tek threw it across the room, but no sound could be heard. Getting to his feet, Tek peered into the hall, expecting to find the demon had returned. Fear rushed through his body to find the walls of the hallway coated in blood smears. No, not smears, words. Written in blood all the way down the hall was the same phrase.

Only I will hear your scream.

*****

Tek's palms began to sweat. His breathing grew heavier by the minute, knowing the demon would not simply wait until morning and then disappear without taking its chance to kill Lita. Something grabbed him by the shoulder and he spun around, spear at the ready, only the one behind him was no demon.

"Myra?" Tek asked. The mole looked horrified.

"It is you! Thank the guardians. I came here because I couldn't stand being around that kobold any longer. Always 'Where is Tek?' 'When is Tek coming back?' 'What if Tek needs us?' I couldn't take it anymore. So I came here and for some reason I keep losing my hearing. All I could do was feel the cold stone and smell blood. Something hit me hard in the back and I fell to the floor only to find a blade held to my throat," Myra said in a panic, "Whatever it was it would let me go, only to hunt me down again and again. I can't see Tek, I can't afford to lose my hearing too! It's like being trapped in a void with a monster that you can't sense, but you know is always looming over you."

"Easy Myra, we just have to make it until sunrise." Tek said, trying to calm her.

"How many guards did that thing kill? I can smell them Tek!" Myra gripped Tek's shoulder so hard that it made him wince.

"I won't leave you. Even if it comes back and drowns us in silence, know that I'm still here with you." Tek assured her. This seemed to have some sort of a calming effect as Myra loosened her grip and nodded. She opened her mouth to say something back, but no sound came from her mouth. Tek's eyes widened as he realized the demon had returned.

The silence clung to the air, suffocating even the smallest of sounds. Tek peered down the hallway again, only this time they were not alone.

The burning red eye of the demon watched him from the opposite end of the hall. Every candle and torch had been snuffed out. Silky streams of smoke rose from where the flames were extinguished, making it seem like the souls of the dead guards were slowly leaving their bodies, disappearing into the air. Slowly the demon approached. The silhouette became more clear with every step it took.

The demon was female, tall with strange hoof-like feet that made it almost look like it was wearing heels. Her fur was a deep burgundy and her body was mostly covered in wraps the color of bone. The wraps covered her entire face, with the exception of her left eye, which burned like the crimson moon itself. Her hair was pulled back in a ponytail and it took Tek a moment to even notice it as the color was identical to those of the wraps covering her body. In the dark it was hard to make out her burgundy skin, giving the ominous illusion of her body only showing what was covered by the wraps. She carried what appeared to be a single massive blade that appeared to have two handles built into it.

Realizing Tek only had a moment to react before the demon attacked, he mustered his courage and rushed her. It was best to take the fight to the demon, drawing the battle as far away from Myra and Lita as possible. Tek had taken precautions for this night, keeping numerous cards on his person with runes drawn onto them. Plucking one out, he tapped into the rune, splitting into two separate beings. He flanked the demon from either side.

The demon leapt into the air, kicking her hooves up as she did, catching Tek's copy square in the nose. Blood squirted from his copy's face, before fizzling out and converging back to him. The scent of his own blood lingered in his snout for a moment, before the phantom feeling faded. The runes on the cards were small and would only last one or two attacks before he'd have to tap into them again.

The moment the demon's hooves touched the ground, she lunged forwards, hacking at Tek's torso. Tek barely managed to avoid a fatal blow, but felt the sting of her blade graze his skin. Gritting his teeth in pain, he tapped into his runes again, this time with a card in each hand, sending two copies out. One leapt at the demon immediately in a wild attack. A feign, which the demon would have no choice but to deal with. A single sweep of her blade, cut the copy cleanly in half. A moment of shock, and the cold feeling of steel struck both Tek and his remaining copy, but so clean was the cut that there was hardly any pain at all. His remaining copy followed up the attack, and managed to drive his spear into the demon's shoulder, before converging back to Tek.

The glow of the demon's eye exploded in red light, although all sound had been eliminated from the hallway, he was sure she had let out a silent scream. Charging Tek with a wild attack left the demon open for a spear to the gut. The spear impaled the demon, as Tek sent it straight through her stomach and out of her back. Yet the demon didn't disappear. The tips of her fur and edges of her wraps began to fizzle and catch fire as her body began to destabilize. Soon she would be pulled back behind the iron door to the rest of her kin, but she was fighting against it with all her might.

Tek caught one of the handles on the demon's blade just in time to stop it from cutting him in half a second time. Only this time, without an active rune, there would be no coming back. The force of the attack sent him onto his back with the demon pressing her weight against her weapon, slowly inching it closer to his throat as he tried to wrestle it away. His knee pressed against her, to keep her at bay. The fire on the tips of her fur began to run up her body, but Tek knew at this rate her blade would reach him before she was banished. When he hit the ground his cards had scattered across the floor and with his free hand he reached out desperately trying to touch any of them, but they were too far beyond his grasp.

Something odd caught Tek's eye. Myra was crawling across the floor, seemingly scratching something into the stone floor. One of the strange carvings was just close enough for him to see. It was the rune he had taught her before coming to the skunk kingdoms. Despite her fear, despite her lack of ability to see or hear, Myra was still trying to help in the only way she knew how. By etching runes into the stone. Unfortunately Tek had only shown Myra the rune that he had stolen from the dragon hoard. The same rune he had tapped into accidentally when he incinerated the guard that murdered Iary and his father.

Dammit, am I really going to die here because I couldn't figure out that one rune?! Tek thought to himself in a panic. He could feel the sting of the demon's blade as it started to pierce his skin. Focus, you've tapped into it before without the rune in your hand. Fire, it created fire. Memories of the dragonfire engulfing his body from the day he had stolen the scroll rushed back into his mind. He had been repressing them, as it was the most painful death he had experienced. Yet he also had learned from the experience. Yes, he knew fire. He had burned before. He had felt the entirety of its power, its energy, its wild fury.

Reaching out, Tek slammed his free hand against the only rune carving within reach. The rune began to glow beneath Tek's fingers. He could feel warm blood begin to seep from the wound as the demon's blade sank in deeper. Closing his eyes Tek took in a deep breath, taking in the runic magic. Focusing the energy, he sent a powerful blast of fire that shattered the demon's blade in half, before bursting a hole through her torso. In an instant the demon's physical form burnt away, sending its essence back behind the iron doors.

Sound erupted back into the hallway all at once. The screams of the guards, the struggle against the demon, and finally the explosion of fire Tek had summoned from his rune. It all came crashing back at once in a cacophony of death. Wearily Tek got to his feet, smoke rising up from his body as he struggled to catch his breath.

"What the hell was that?" Lita called from her bedroom. "Tek? Where's Tek!?"

After picking up his spear, Tek hurriedly returned to Lita's side, not wanting to cause any more panic than she may already be experiencing. The demon must have gone on a rampage through the palace, as it took nearly ten minutes for guards to actually reach Lita's room, meaning most had died.

Looking outside Tek could still see the crimson moon lingering in the sky, although now it had nearly crested the otherside of the horizon. Tek couldn't help but see the moon as the eye of the silent demon staring down at him, her blade only a moment away from ending his life for good. If it wasn't for Myra, he would certainly be dead.

As the sun rose over the horizon the next morning a troubling thought occurred. Tek had to give his life to learn the only two runes he knew. What would the cost of mastering them be? Or perhaps more importantly, what would he have to sacrifice to fix the iron doors?