“The heart of the Earth?”
“It’s like Marcus said,” Delilah said, in answer to Alice’s question. “Darkness planted its seed in the heart of every living being, and in the heart of every world we inhabit.”
“Okay, but like… not a literal heart, right?” Alice asked. She raised an eyebrow as she stared into the pit at the festering darkness. “It’s just the core of the Earth. A ball of magma and stuff, right?”
“Perhaps it is easier to think of it as a soul,” Marcus said, “something that we never think of as physical. But worlds have souls, in a different sort of way from us mortals, but a soul nonetheless.”
“Listen, gramps, you gotta change your story,” Alice said, shaking her head. “This isn’t making any sense.”
“The Library of Solitude has a heart,” Isabelle said. “We were really close to its secret door when we went to the Dream Forge. Mommy used to tend to it alone, but she taught all of us how to do it, too.”
“We ensure Darkness doesn’t seize the heart of the Library,” Maribelle said. “But this…” She grimaced at the sight in the pit. “The Earth is festering with it. Full of it, like nothing I’ve ever seen.”
“The Earth has always teetered on the edge of falling to Darkness,” Marcus said. “There are other worlds like that, as well. Some have fully fallen, having no one to protect them, or being abandoned by their protectors. Others, like the Library of Solitude and many other Bastions, have had the Light properly tended in their hearts, so that Darkness seems nonexistent.”
“So why is the Earth like this?” Delilah asked. “If your people were here all along, right next to the Earth’s heart…”
“There is a second pit like this,” Marcus said, “in my people’s other city, now the mage city Renault. Their view of the Earth’s heart has always shown more Light than Darkness. Even with our greatest efforts here in what would become Grimoire, we could never fully quell the Darkness on this side. It is… strange.”
“You don’t have answers?” Alice asked.
Marcus smirked. “I do not know everything.”
“But what do we do about this?” Delilah asked. “Even though we planted a Relay and got rid of the well of Darkness that Blaise brought up beneath Grimoire…”
“There is no mortal without Darkness in their heart,” Marcus said. “Yet there are many who resist the Darkness, and even those who never once give into it, even a little. The existence of Darkness is not a sign of the end. When we tend to the Earth’s heart, we can subdue the Darkness, keep it at bay, inactive.”
“So you’re gonna do that now, right?” Alice asked.
Marcus shook his head. “I cannot. Not alone. And the Darkness here… it sits there in the pit, but not because it is trapped there. It is merely waiting.”
“Waiting for what?” Delilah asked.
“I do not know,” Marcus said, his tone thoughtful. “But we mustn’t linger.”
“We’re just gonna leave it?” Alice asked. She gazed into the darkness, a strange look in her black eyes.
“For now,” Marcus said. “We came for the city’s keystone. Within the city, we may find a proper solution.”
“Why take us so close if it’s dangerous?” Isabelle asked.
Marcus tapped his staff on the floor. All twelve bells rang out in beautiful harmony. The inside of the pit lightened, and the inky Darkness thrashed for a moment, then sunk in a flash, so deep that it vanished beyond sight. “Because it needed a reminder,” Marcus said, turning away. He started back up the stairs, and the rest followed… except Alice.
“Alice,” Delilah said, looking back at her. “You okay?”
Alice was still standing at the edge, gazing down into the pit. She turned away, her black eyes flicking to white. “Yeah, I’m good,” she said. She started along with Delilah. As they ascended the stairs, following Marcus, Alice turned her attention to him. “Why are you so cryptic all the time? You should just say things plainly more often.”
“I don’t think he’s so cryptic,” Delilah said.
“I speak the way I do to stimulate your own thought,” Marcus said. “And because not all is immediately plainly seen. You must learn to think deeply, Alice, and to look more closely, beyond what seems to what is.”
Alice, surprisingly, didn’t respond to that. Walking beside Delilah, she looked thoughtful.
Back at the top of the stairs, Marcus then took them up the tunnel they hadn’t taken before, which sloped gently upwards. It wound around to rise in the opposite direction, and then leveled out as it opened into a wide, domed chamber. The walls had a faint, bluish hue to them, and glowed softly in places. But many cracks and pitted craters lined the walls, floor, and ceiling.
In the center of the chamber was a short stone pedestal, and atop it, a glistening white crystal. It flickered dimly, but there were no cracks or damage apparent. As Marcus approached, the flickering brightened and then turned to a steady glow, responding to his presence.
“You have done your duty well,” Marcus said, placing his hand atop the crystal. “Now I have come home, and need access to the rest of the city.”
The crystal flashed brightly, sprinkling motes of white light all around the chamber and down the tunnel, like millions of tiny stars. A low rumbling shook the chamber for a moment, and then went still. Marcus smiled.
“The city is open,” he said. “We may not have time to explore properly tonight, but if the path back is too long, we can rest and return in the morning.”
“I am starting to get tired,” Isabelle said, stretching in a mighty yawn.
It’s way past midnight. I’m starting to feel it, too.
They started heading back. And though the tunnels were the same, Delilah thought they seemed a little bit brighter.
——
Caleb had been exploring the strange stone seal connecting the underwater city’s main tunnel to the more underground area that he’d already seen, the hall of models, for a long time. Even with so many other divers, all with their own types of magic and pools of knowledge, none of them could solve the riddle of this massive stone roadblock.
“Another wasted night,” said the diving leader with a sigh. “Nice try, Greyson, but it doesn’t seem there’s any way to remove this.”
Caleb glared at the immovable stone. He had a way through, of course — he could just Phase Step, and indeed he had, twice — but that wasn’t a solution for the stone. Neither side of the roadblock revealed a way to move it.
But just as their group was about to give up, a sudden rumbling sounded. It didn’t last long, but when it finished…
The stone was gone.
“What just happened?” the diving leader asked, swimming closer. The stone had been enclosed within the tunnel, so even with its disappearance, the hall of models and beyond weren’t flooded. But…
“It just disappeared?” Caleb asked, staring in shock. “Did anyone… do anything?”
Negative responses went around. No one had done a thing, yet the stone roadblock was gone.
“Let’s go contact the others,” the diving leader said, starting to ascend. “They should be able to expand their expedition into the city proper in no time.”
“Yeah, you guys go on ahead,” Caleb said, waving at them.
Now that the roadblock was gone…
He swam down, Phase Stepping to pass through the tunnel and stand inside. The diving leader was giving him some choice words, but he removed his helmet and deactivated the communicator, taking a deep breath of the air in here.
He’d already been in this tunnel twice, but this was the first time he smelled the air in here. It smelled… old. Stale. But the air wasn’t thin, so he should be able to proceed easily.
The first of the places in my visions lies ahead. The center of the city.
He could have gone at any time with a single Phase Step, but he wanted to solve the riddle of the roadblock so everyone else could get into the city. Sure, he could have taken passengers with him while Phase Stepping, but doing that over and over again for dozens, or even hundreds, of others would have been far too exhausting, and potentially dangerous, for him to handle.
But with the stone taken care of…
He still didn’t want to go straight to the center. It felt like cheating to swim up to the chamber from the outside and then Phase Step inside.
And doing that wouldn’t allow him to explore the city itself.
He stifled a yawn and shook his head.
I’m out of practice being up during Hollow Hour. But still…
I’m too excited to sleep.
He removed the flippers of his wetsuit and donned ordinary shoes from his watertight backpack, then started forward. His flippers could fold up, making them easy to store, and his helmet hung from a notch on his belt.
They really thought hard about these suits.
Forward Caleb walked, constantly looking up and around at the glassy, transparent domed ceiling and wall of the tunnel. Seeing the underwater world from inside here was still fascinating, but strangely took away from the alien, otherworldly atmosphere when actually swimming in it. The diving leader swam up to the wall, knocking on it from the outside and making some gestures at Caleb. Caleb grinned, waving pleasantly at her, and laughed as she shook her head and swam away.
She’ll be okay.
The tunnel brought Caleb to the first of many towering structures. It was here that Caleb stopped, feeling a quietude descend upon him. The glowing stonework was beautiful, the huge, decorative windows marvelous, but there was a haunted feeling in here. The emptiness was wrong. This was a place that begged for life, for noise, for music, for laughter, and yet…
It was empty and silent.
And it really is a city.
That struck Caleb the most. He’d always seen the ruins from outside, poking out from under the waves, and thought of them as nothing more than curiosities. Even swimming down into the Bay, seeing the towers from outside in all their splendor, still didn’t make him realize it.
It was only standing there, in the center of the first tower, that he understood. This was a city, long abandoned. And cities didn’t feel right when they were empty and silent.
He continued on, through domed tunnels and into one tower after another. Each tower was so open, with exposed stairways spiraling around the perimeter to various landings that begged to be explored, but Caleb had somewhere he needed to be, and time marched ever onward.
Soon, Caleb saw it. He stepped into a tunnel and, through its glassy ceiling, he recognized the central tower — the place from which he’d seen the image of the ruins during his Trial.
But he only took a few more steps down the tunnel before a familiar figure appeared before him. Like a phantom, she gleamed with blue light. Skin, hair, eyes, dress, all of her was the same blue light.
“You’re… the woman,” Caleb said. “From my Trial. But what are you…?”
The woman shook her head once. She didn’t speak, and even though her hair moved with the motion, nothing made a sound.
“What do you mean?” Caleb asked. He started towards her, but she held up a hand, shaking her head again. “I’m… but I saw the place up ahead. That’s where I’m supposed to go, isn’t it?”
The woman lowered her hand. She had a smile on her face, but there was a melancholy air to the expression.
Caleb had a thought about her, and he entered Time-state. The world became awash with the blue of the River of Time, and before him, the phantom woman became solid, no longer translucent.
“Can you talk in here?” Caleb asked.
But the woman shook her head. She held up her hand again, and Caleb understood.
Now is not the time.
“But then… when?” he asked.
But the woman said nothing.
Caleb exited Time-state. Before he could open his mouth to ask one last question…
The woman had vanished.
Caleb stood in that tunnel for a while longer, staring. His destination was just a few dozen yards away. He could see the entrance!
But…
The woman’s melancholy smile stuck in his mind. Her hand, warding him off.
Now is not the time.
Caleb turned away, donning his helmet and flippers again before Phase Stepping through the wall and starting his swim to the surface. He could have taken the walk to the library instead, but…
When he breached the surface, Caleb lay on his back, floating in the water, staring at the dark, murky sky. He needed time to think, and there was nowhere better to do that than in the water.
——
Shana awoke the next morning groggy and bleary-eyed, fumbling for her phone to switch off her alarm. Next to her, Altair squirmed his way out of the covers, and beyond him, Annabelle stirred.
“Good morning,” the Princess of Solitude said, sitting up in bed and smiling at Shana.
“You’re not exhausted?” Shana asked, rubbing her eyes. Altair tried to get in her face and lick her nose. For a few moments she shoved him away. It turned into a game, with him trying to sneak around her defenses, and after a few rounds, she let him through, laughing at the wet doggy kisses. “Yeah, yeah, I get it, I’m up.” She sighed, wrapping Altair in a hug. “I’ve never stayed up that late before.”
“But we did so much good,” Annabelle said. “Dozens of Nightmares purified, and dozens of children able to sleep soundly now.”
“Yeah,” Shana said, smiling. But after all of that, when she’d returned home and gone to bed, she’d been taken into Dreamworld, along with Annabelle and Altair. And there, Heart and Nocta had told them of the next steps.
“Do we leave today?” Annabelle asked.
Shana hesitated. She was still confused by what she’d been shown and told, by what she was supposedly supposed to do next. It seemed odd to leave now, just when she was learning to use her powers to purify Nightmares and end the fear plaguing Grimoire. And she hadn’t been given many meaningful answers, but instead a great deal of vague riddles.
“I… think we probably should,” she finally said. “I don’t want to leave when we’re doing so much good here, but… I think the only way we get proper answers about what awaits us there is by going.”
“The Woven Nest,” Annabelle said thoughtfully. “I’ve never heard of it. I wish I knew what to expect.”
“And all we saw was that image,” Shana said. Through a window, Heart and Nocta had shown them a snowy forest, but despite the snow, the trees were blooming with blue flowers. “And… to get there, we have to go through…”
Hollow Island.
The name had sent a chill down her spine. She hadn’t been there, but she’d heard the stories from Chelsea, Delilah, and Isabelle. She didn’t want to go there, not ever, but now it was the path to her destination. The only path.
“We can’t get there by normal means,” Annabelle said. “But my magic will take care of that.”
Shana smiled. At least getting there — and getting back — would be easy enough.
The girls finally got up and got dressed, and by the time Shana opened her bedroom door, there was quite a bit of a buzz downstairs. Callum, Deirdre, Caleb, Shias, and Delilah were up, and Chelsea, Addie, Alice, Lorelei, Gwen, Will, Oscar, Marcus, Maribelle, Isabelle, Mercury, Jupiter, Olivia, and Sonya were all here. Breakfast was being prepared, with Reginald working with Deirdre rather than kicking everyone else out of the kitchen — the butler cat was learning to cooperate in his butler duties.
Shana watched the activity from the second floor for a moment with a smile, and then raced down the stairs, Annabelle right behind her, Altair darting ahead of them. “Good morning!” she cried happily, tackling Shias in a hug. Her grogginess was fading fast. “We already have a full house so early!”
“Kathryn, Rae, and Ben are coming over around lunchtime,” Shias said. “And Madeline’s out with Neptune and Ciel. Toryu’s in Fae’s room, keeping an eye on her. But yeah.” He smiled. “Pretty full house already.”
“Anna!” Isabelle said, racing over to hug her twin. “Good morning! Did you sleep well?”
“Yes,” Annabelle said, squirming slightly in Isabelle’s embrace. “I see you did, as well.”
“How could you tell?” Isabelle asked. “I barely slept at all!” She giggled. “But I feel so energetic!”
“You always sleep like a baby,” Annabelle said. “It’s very restful.”
There was so much going on all around the Manor. Jupiter was locked in an intense one-on-one card game with Alice, the pair seated across from each other on the floor and completely oblivious to all the chaos around them. Lorelei, Chelsea, Caleb, Will, and Oscar were deep in intense conversation in the corner of the family room. Next to them, Chelsea’s owl and Will’s firrin Summon Trevain were playing. Marcus and Maribelle were talking by the fireplace. Delilah and Mercury were teaching Olivia, Sonya, and Gwen a Great Feline Adventures-themed board game, one of Shana’s favorites. Addie followed Deirdre and Reginald around, watching and talking far more than she was helping, but they seemed glad for the company. Callum was bouncing from one bit of activity to the next, all smiles and loving the full house. He came over to Shana and wrapped her up in a hug, bidding her good morning.
“Breakfast will be ready in just a few minutes,” he said, grinning. “I was just about to come wake you girls up.”
It wasn’t long before they were all sitting at the table, passing around platters of food and piling up their own plates. Conversation lulled somewhat as eating took over, but there were predictable elements — Caleb and Callum ate the most and yet were finished with their meals first, launching into conversation while others around them finished up. Shana, for her part, just took it all in. It was a lot when she’d only been up for half an hour, but she loved it.
But after breakfast, as everyone was helping clean up, Delilah came up to Shana. “I need to talk to you about something,” she said. “Not right away, let’s finish cleaning first.”
Once the cleaning was over, Delilah led the way with Alice into a separate sitting room, a quieter area while most continued their antics in the larger family room. Shana was joined by Shias and Annabelle, and the trio waited for Delilah to start talking.
“In Revue Palace, I discovered something,” Delilah said. “I’m still learning more about it, and there’s too much I still don’t know, but this is probably the answer for how we stop the Endless Night, if we can just figure it all out.” She reached into her shirt and pulled out a key on the end of a silver chain. The key was curved and elegant, pearly white, with a fixture of a crescent moon at its base. “This is called the Key of the World. It’s… well, just let me explain everything I know so far from the beginning.”
Delilah explained, occasionally aided by Alice, and Shana, Shias, and Annabelle listened closely. Delilah also had a strange sort of book, formed by wooden panel “pages” bound together by corded rope, which aided in her explanation. But halfway through the book, the Greyson Manor front door opened, and Madeline, Neptune, and the young boy named Ciel entered. While Neptune went straight to rejoining her sisters in the family room, Madeline and Ciel caught onto the conversation about the Key of the World, and entered the sitting room. “Can I see that key?” Madeline asked. When Delilah held it up to her, her eyes widened in recognition. She pulled out a folded sheet of yellowed paper, which showed the same key, but inserted into a pedestal on a wide stage. That picture made Delilah respond in surprised recognition.
“You should be here for this too, then,” she said, and Madeline and Ciel sat down. Delilah started over from the beginning, and then continued onward.
“The book’s incomplete,” she said as she came to the last page, “but I think this covers a lot. Along with my own discoveries, and what I’ve learned from Revue and Marcus…”
“You can’t find or turn the Key by yourself,” Shias said. “ ‘Through the dreams’ from the verse means one of the Keys is in Dreamworld, most likely. You’ll need Shana. And the Key in Madeline’s picture is exactly like what you saw through the mirror — ‘through the glass’.”
“Three Keys, but one,” Madeline said thoughtfully. “The one you carry came from the ‘depths,’ then?”
Delilah nodded. “There are still pieces we’re putting together. But… and I know you both have other things to deal with. Especially you.” She nodded to Madeline, her brow creased with concern. “But… once Fae’s healed, and you’ve found the Orphan of the Dawn and all that… I’m going to need your help. If you can spare it.”
“You’ll have it,” Madeline said. She held out her picture again. “The word at the bottom: ‘Finale.’ It’s not hard to imagine what that means. We already know a lot of the journey ahead of us, but… this is the end. And everything we’ve done… and everything Fae and the others did before I joined them… it’s all connected, it’s all led from one thing to the next. I’m sure our journey will lead me back to you. But if it doesn’t on its own, I’ll come back. I’m… sorry that I can’t help you right away, but —”
“No, no, don’t be!” Delilah said, waving her hands. “I… I understand. Fae needs help, as soon as she can get it. What she’s going through… it’s awful. So please, help her first.”
“I also have a place I’m supposed to go to,” Shana said, somewhat sheepishly. “I want to help you right away, but —”
“Don’t apologize,” Delilah said. “Like I said, and like I shared with you, there are far more questions than answers about the Key of the World. Marcus and the rest of us still have a lot of work to do here, exploring the Bay ruins. I have a lot I need to learn, but knowing who else can help in advance makes a big difference. I just wanted to let you know what’s going on and what probably lies ahead for us as soon as possible, so you’re prepared. I’ll keep searching out answers, and you guys focus on what you need to do right away. I’ll make sure to let our parents know where I am if I leave Grimoire without you.”
She’s so organized. Where did my baby sister go?
“What’s that look about?” Delilah asked, cocking her head to the side as she looked at Shana.
“Oh, no, it’s nothing,” Shana said, shaking her head. “I’m just thinking about all of this stuff. I…” She nodded. “Yeah. I’m in. I’ll help you as soon as I can. Next time I go to Dreamworld, I’ll ask Heart and Nocta about the Key, too. If it’s there somewhere, they have to have at least heard some rumors or something.”
“And I’ll keep this in mind,” Madeline said, folding up her picture and carefully tucking it in her bag. “When the time is right, I’ll find you. And I’ll stay aware of any clues that come up regarding the Key.”
“This is so cool,” Shana said, giggling. At the questioning stares from Delilah and Madeline, she replied, “I just mean, we’re kind of putting together a super team. A big team! Not right away, but laying the groundwork is still… really exciting.”
Delilah smiled. “Yeah,” she said. “I’ll make sure to stay in touch about developments. But I thought it was important to be talking about this as early as possible.”
“Thank you,” Madeline said. “I’m glad I walked in when I did. But for now…” She stood, looking upstairs.
“Take care of our sister,” Shana said. “Make sure she gets better.”
Madeline nodded. “I will.” She left, Ciel following.
“The Key of the World…” Annabelle murmured, gazing at the images in the book. “I’ve never even heard of it. I thought I was widely read, but…”
“Maribelle didn’t know about it, either,” Delilah said. “But your mother… she had definitely heard of it. And she responded very harshly when I brought it up with her.”
“She did?” Annabelle asked, staring at Delilah in surprise. Delilah explained, recounting the Daybreak Council and Lady Kodoka’s instant shutdown of her proposal regarding the Key of the World. Afterward, Annabelle sat back, her gaze deeply thoughtful. “And she didn’t explain at all… not even to Mari? I want to say that doesn’t sound like her at all, but…” She sighed. “She was gone for so long, and upon her return from her self-imposed imprisonment in the Storm… she has seemed different. Anyone would change after all she’s endured alone, but…”
“She’s your mother,” Shana said, giving Annabelle’s hand a gentle squeeze.
Annabelle nodded. “It’s… difficult.”
“Technically,” Delilah said, “we’re investigating the Key of the World against Lady Kodoka’s wishes. And… well, I guess you could say our little team is a rogue group of Paladins and Sub-Paladins. We’re not involved with any of the groups and objectives formed from the Daybreak Council.”
“That’s how we operate,” Alice said, grinning as she nudged Delilah. “Even if we were with the Council stuff, Revue would demand plenty of our time, so we wouldn’t be working with them much, you know?”
“But Mari and Marcus are on your side,” Annabelle said. Delilah and Alice nodded, and Annabelle smiled. “Then you have nothing to fear. I’m sure there is a good reason why Mother is opposed to this, but… as long as the right people turn the Key, I don’t think we should worry.” She turned to the pages of the book that showed warnings. “Whatever the Key’s power, it can be turned to evil by those with evil intent. As long as we ensure the Key — or Keys — remain hidden and protected even after we find and turn them, all should be well.”
“We won’t let anyone mess with them,” Shana said.
“And we’ll do our best to learn all we can,” Shias said. “There’s a lot going on with everyone — Caleb and Chelsea seem like they’ll be leaving again soon, Fae’s group is leaving soon, we’ve got our tasks and you’ve got yours. But even though things seem scattered and divided, the fact that we all came together here, at the same time… I don’t think that’s coincidence at all.”
“Even when it looks like we’re all chasing different things, it turns out we’re all united,” Shana said, smiling. “But I’m so excited! Once Fae’s better, and once we know all about the Key of the World, then all of us get to focus on the same mission together! Caleb’s the only one being left out… I wonder if we can rope him into it somehow.”
Delilah chuckled. “Let’s not get ahead of ourselves just yet. For now, we know what lies ahead. And we know what we need to focus on right now, so let’s do that.” Reginald came in, holding a tray with a teapot and cups and saucers, and served them all tea.
“I love you,” Shana said softly, reaching out towards Reginald as he left the sitting room. Delilah giggled. Shana wrapped Altair in a hug and buried her face in his fluffy fur. “He’s always been my favorite, but having him actually here doing butler stuff… it’s the best thing ever!”