We step onto the dusty surface of a tall, mesa-like structure. The sun appears to have just set below the horizon. “What is this?” Hîvānë-my’naa looks up at a large sessile organism resembling a mushroom that has a wide, dish-like structure which has closed up like a crocus flower. “Some kind of mushroom?” “In a desert?” “Maybe there’s water underground.” “Look.” “What is it, Oo?” “It looks like a tunnel entrance.” With a few grunts, she pushes the door open and turns to face us. “Surely, whoever lives here wouldn’t want people just going inside. I’m surprised they didn’t lock the door.” Then, a distant rumbling draws our attention. “What’s that?” “Sounds like wind.” From the side of the sky opposite the sunset, I see what look like flashes of lightning. “I think we should get underground.” “Agreed.” The five of us follow Oo in going inside, with Mom securing the door with a layer of thick ice. It’s completely dark in here, aside from the softly glowing roots of the giant mushroom. “Hopefully, there’s a place to sleep down there.” We follow the tunnel downwards through the mesa until it opens up into a massive cavern punctuated by glowing roots and echoes of nocturnal insect calls. In front of us we see a stream running towards the far end of the cavern. “This will be a good place to rest.” “We came out of that basement too soon.” “It’s not your fault, Your Majesty. She had already been stung.” “I suppose so.” Mom, Dad, and I fall asleep, but the Queen stays awake and wanders to the edge of the stream beside the water to think about her daughter. Oonagh continues grooming her wings, brushing dust out of her feathers. She falls asleep in the softness of the sand. The Queen nods off, laying her head near the water, a few strands of her snow-white hair drifting in the water and the strands cause the water to freeze around them.
Friday: 06/28/2030: In the early morning, we are woken up by the voices of children. “Who are they?” “I don’t know. Let’s tell Princess Firenzë.” Two sets of rapid wing beats retreat further into the cavern when Queen Hîvānë-my’naa sits up in curiosity. “Who was that?” “Just a couple of kids, Your Majesty.” “These are the people of this planet?” “Sounds like it, Your Majesty.”
Lyral is at the hidden temple, back at it trying to reproduce the silver apple bloom paste Lindsay made. She spends much of the morning turning out different versions of it until she happens upon the right consistency, which she makes an entire bottle of and stashes in her amulet before returning to the house. Ida sees her approaching. “I see you’ve been spending time at the hidden temple, then.” “Yes, I somehow managed to figure out how she made that paste. I still don’t know what it’s for, though.” “Apparently, Kyle gave my number to Lindsay’s friends to call me in case Nameless comes for them.” “Why did he do that?” “He found them texting her phone and told them about the curse on the store and about Nameless’ power.” “Far from it for me to expect Lindsay to bring her phone with her to places without cell reception or a wall outlet.”
Now, three sets of wing beats land beside us. “Who are all of you? How did you get in here?” Hîvānë-my’naa jumps abruptly and lets out an ice blast at the air above us, scaring the rest of us into a fully awake state. “And may I ask who you are?!” The sixteen-year-old girl, her wingspan looking roughly 20 feet wide, gathers her thoughts. “Well?!” “My name is Firenzë Duryng and I am the daughter of Queen Myngara X Duryng of Yran’t. I didn’t mean to frighten you.” “Well. No harm done. I’m Hîvānë-my’naa, Queen of Iâ. I’m here looking for my daughter Orinda. She looks like me but younger.” “Forgive me, Your Majesty, for my intrusion. I’m afraid I have not seen a young girl fitting the description you give, and if I did see such a girl, she would likely have a nasty sunburn.” Firenzë notices the ice layer on the water and the frost on the ground beneath Hîvānë-my’naa’s feet. “How does Your Majesty make ice?” “I am of the Iâni. Anytime my skin encounters moist air, a layer of frost forms as my skin draws heat out of it. Have you never seen it before?” “No, at least not naturally.” “These are the little granddaughters of the Zim’qa of this cavern.” “Who are they, Firenzë?” “They are visitors from various planets, girls.” “Various planets?” “How many?” “Go back to your Zim’qa’s house, girls. Tell your grandmother and your mother.” “Yes, Firenzë.” The two girls take flight towards the far end of the cavern. “I must leave this cavern for another one 20 miles to the north where my mother already is. I will try to help you find your daughter, Your Majesty.” “I would very much appreciate that, Firenzë.” “What about radiation? And, you’re the only one who can’t fly.” “You’re right.” “I will bring food as you five will likely be hungry and thirsty from your journey. We also have cloaks for you all to wear as the sun is very harsh to the skin of both children and foreigners.” Firenzë’s skin looks like it has a shimmering effect to it, making her appear to reflect many colors as light from the Yran’ti sun filters through windows in the ceiling of the cavern. This is likely an adaptation against the harsh UV rays of the parent star of Yran’t that is as yet absent in the two younger girls, which means that their skin undergoes this transformation during puberty, after which these people can spend more time on the surface during the day without being burned by the light due to what must be, like on Ijen but to a greater extent, a weak ozone layer. Her hair is raven black and also flecked with tiny iridescent particles and is also braided in intricate fashion, like a beehive bun. Her wing feathers are most iridescent in the filtered sunlight, going from black to shining with bright pinks and blues. “How many are the people of Yran’t, Firenzë?” “Roughly one billion, Silver Guardian. Earth’s sun must either be weaker or Earth herself must have a thicker ozone layer, for your skin is un-shimmered like the little girls. We must hurry, friends. There is something I think you want to see, that you might be here for. I found them as a child when we used to visit this cavern.” “Did you believe them to be the creations of your gods?” “Actually, Ælura. I did. My mother had a dream several nights ago that you were coming soon and told me to fly to this same cavern so I could give you the stones, to help you defeat an ancient evil.” “We were told to come here for the stones before we could confront the Darkness.” She then looks curiously at Oonagh. “I see you are to one day be the new Reverend Mother of Tewira, Your Highness.” “I have heard of Mother Syngva XV from the other elder witches of the Galaxy. She is of the oldest of this Galaxy’s Golden bloodlines.” “Indeed. Soon you will meet her.”
The water around Orinda-nari cyclically freezes and melts as she works and as her skin tries to adjust to her new environment. She feels faint and Dagmar lets her lay her head on her lap. “It’s so hot in here, Mama.” “I see you miss your parents, my dear. I have no doubt that one way or another, we will escape from this place.” She then looks at the crystal eggs. “All of us.” “Come get your bread! Now or tomorrow!” The three stand up and walk up the mound of eggs and each receive half a loaf of stale bread from the goblins and then return to base camp to eat their lunch. “If the Alvearium is inescapable, then how do we get out?” “Same way anything gets in here. I guess only those with Shadow magic can get in or out of here. It was a Shadow who put me in here.” “And it’s a Shadow who can get us out of here.” Then, the lake glows with three little lights as three of the largest eggs hatch, almost in response to their words. The three lights emerge silently from the water and approach them at which they take meaningful forms: two females and one male. At once majestic and beautiful yet innocent and childlike in their appearance. The boy approaches TJ first. “You, of Immortal blood, have shown us the truth of our mother’s nature. We will not become corrupted, and nor will the others piled up here become part of her army.” “We can help you three leave this mountain, for only our mother and members of our kind can bring things and people in or out of this cave.” “There is great danger, especially for us. If we are caught, we may be destroyed as traitors, for the Dark Queen will suffer no disloyalty among her children.” “Then what are we waiting for? Let’s get out of here.” “Yes, we shall leave this cave.” “Hold both our hands. Each of you.” Each spirit takes both hands of each of the three, teleporting them out of the Alvearium and reappearing at the tree line of Queen’s Hill. “This is much cooler.” Orinda-nari is no longer sweating profusely. “All right. Now we need to climb this mountain.” Queen’s Hill is topped with a tower, dark and terrible, as if carved from a single black stone. Concealed by the power of the three newly hatched spirits, they begin their ascent.
Xena and Spock and all the other animals on the farm are huddled together at the hidden temple, as if waiting for Lindsay and the others to come home. “I have not heard from Ælura for over a week.” “Nor from Verdis have I heard in even longer.” “What are they up to, Amina?” “It is not like our most powerful to go away for so long, with no news of their progress, especially with terrible things afoot.” Xena turns and walks towards the Bridge. “Where are you, Lindsay?”
I suddenly hear Xena’s voice. “Xena?! Is it you? What’s going on at home?” “A Nameless force of fear and hate is abroad in the town. Crawford’s General Store has been placed under a dark spell of Eldritch origins. Ida and Lyral are trying to formulate a plan to cleanse the premises.” “Ælura, what is it?” “It’s Xena. She says that the General Store has been hexed by a Nameless being and is closed.” “So, the people of your world are capable of using magic, Ælura?” “A tiny minority of my species can use magic. An even smaller number of us are Immortal, and thus the most powerful magic users on Earth.”
“The afternoons and late evenings are often when dangerous dust storms blow through this valley during the winter. They should start blowing through here in less than an hour.” “How do your people grow food underground?” “We direct sunlight through lenses and mirrors into the caverns where we grow our food. It lets us filter out the bad light that burns our young and helps light our caves. Our sun farms would have thousands of acres in area during the winter if not for the constant dust storms.” “What is summer like here?” “We’re in the tropics, so we do get some rain during the summer, which helps us not dry up and die.” “Well, it’s summer in the north on Earth. In the eastern part of my country, it is hot but not a desert.” “Are your people capable of interstellar travel, Firenzë?” “No, though we do trade occasionally with the people of Ijen. Last I heard, their Queen was taken by the Shadows. However, as far as I know, the Shadows have not bothered us. Not that I know why that is.” “I hear water.” We fly with Firenzë through the air, Mom carrying Hîvānë-my’naa, to a far corner of the cavern where the water emerges from the deep bedrock. “Here they are, Ælura.” An oasis, just as Firenzë said, appears in the near distance. “And they should be in this pond, Silver Guardian.” She wades into the water and comes back up with two octahedral stones: one a clear quartz and the other a moonstone, Air and Night, respectively. “Thank you, Firenzë. Is anyone thirsty?” “I am.” “Me, too.” Oonagh and Hîvānë-my’naa step in the water briefly to wet their faces and take a short drink before the afternoon dust storms roll in. Hîvānë-my’naa is quickly surrounded by ice in mere seconds of entering the water.
Once everyone has had their drink, Firenzë looks towards the tunnel leading to the top of the mesa. “We should start heading to the nearest syana to the north. My mother, the Queen, is waiting for us there.” I stash the stones in my amulet, and feel stronger, far stronger than I’ve ever been to date. As we make our way back to the entrance to the mesa, I pray to the Ancestors to protect Yran’t and its people even though they’ve never been terrorized by the Shadows. Like with all the others, a bright flash encompasses the Yran’t System. “What was that?” “That was the Ancestors establishing a sphere of protection around this Star system. The Shadows will not be able to enter here.” We emerge onto the surface once again, with all save Firenzë wearing cloaks to protect from the harsh sun. “You won’t have to worry about any of your people being abducted now.” “Thank you, Ælura.”
We take off, following Firenzë north through the hot desert air and are close to the bright disk of the syana when we hear a familiar rumbling in the distance, forcing us to quickly retreat inside the tunnel. “That was close.” “My mother wishes to invite you to dinner tonight. I imagine you all would like to wash up before eating.” “Yes. I know I would.” “Very well. Follow me.” Firenzë leads us down into the cave system and the passage opens up into another wide cavern full of people, who gaze at us in puzzlement. “See what Princess Firenzë has brought from the south.” Two guards fly deep into the cavern to inform the Queen. “Mother, they’re here!” The guards return with an older woman behind them. “Mother.” “Firenzë. I trust you’ve shown them where the stones were.” “Yes, Mother.” “I reckon you’ll all want to wash up before dinner.” “Of course, Your Majesty.” Hîvānë-my’naa steps forward, likely wanting to bathe first, and the Queen, having been informed by Firenzë of her title as Queen of Iâ, leads her to a subterranean pool of water. She returns from her bath covered in fresh frost and wearing clean Yran’ti clothes, iridescent and colorful. “They’ll be taking care of my hides and furs while we eat.” “My turn next.” Oo goes ahead and takes her bath. She comes back, like Hîvānë-my’naa, wearing Yran’ti clothing, saying that her clothes are being cleaned. Then, Mom, Dad, and I wash ourselves in the water, but we don’t need our armor cleaned and Dad’s heat dries us off. We then return to Firenzë and her mother and join them for dinner. Like Princess Firenzë, Queen Myngara’s skin and wings shimmer with pink and blue, but also with gold and silver. Oonagh sees the Queen’s tattoos and knows she is a Reverend Mother. The Queen looks back at Oonagh. “See me in my chambers after supper, Your Highness. There is another elder who wishes to give you something before you go to the Nightmare Hills.” “Yes, Your Majesty.” Her Majesty’s hair, like that of Firenzë, is braided but hers is formed into the shape of a crown, with metal and crystals woven into it.
Having ascended to the base of the black tower at the peak of Queen’s Hill, TJ, Dagmar, Orinda-nari, and the three spirits look up to what they presume to be Billy’s window. “You can fly, right?” “I could. I’ll try.” TJ attempts to lift himself into the air, but the wind he conjures shakes the tower strongly. “Good way to get up there if we want to get busted.” They find the tower’s outer wall is dotted with bricks protruding from the surface. “Maybe we can climb these to the top.” They then begin climbing these protrusions until they hit an invisible barrier. “What gives?” “Her highest chamber is protected by a shield generated by her throne.” “So, we have to destroy her throne to get to Billy and the last egg?” “No. She can pass through just fine. You would need to be in physical contact with the Queen while she ascends the tower in order to get in.” “I need to get captured again, then.” “Too dangerous, Cheetah.” “I’ve been able to cloak myself in this place before. I just need to get close enough to her to sneak up there and get Billy and the last egg.” “What do we do in the meantime?” “Climb aboard.” TJ takes Dagmar and Orinda-nari into his amulet, climbs down a few feet until he comes to a window leading towards what must be the Shadow Queen’s throne where he climbs in and turns himself invisible. Hidden from all eyes, he wanders this level of the tower until he comes to the large room containing the throne, a chair of black crystal, of terrible height and evoking great dread. The room is lit only by torches emitting black and white flames. Then, he hears someone coming in from the opposite side. “I expect that those warships are fully armed and ready to reinforce the new situation on Vädi, General. Do not fail me.” “I shall not fail my Queen.” He looks to see the nebulous dark cloud occupying the throne, unsure if she can see him in his invisible state. Then, as though being prompted by some planted suggestion, the Queen stands up again and begins moving out of the throne room, up a staircase, and through the barrier around the highest level, TJ just barely hanging onto her veil of darkness. He is astounded when she doesn’t seem to have noticed being followed through the barrier. She then enters the room where Billy is asleep, with TJ right behind her. He tries hard to contain his excitement at seeing his friend for the first time in weeks. The Shadow Queen wakes Billy, if only to give him more delicious food in the hope that he’ll eventually reveal to her what she has been seeking for ages uncounted. Frustrated with what seems like him withholding answers, even though he still knows nothing, she leaves the room, but not before saying that her cooking must not have been enough to convince him to talk. Once he is sure she is gone and out of earshot, TJ reveals himself to Billy, who is shocked by the sudden appearance of his friend and neighbor. “TJ!” “Shh!” “Sorry,” he said, whispering. “I can’t believe you’re here. You came for me. How did you get up here? Without her seeing you?” “Never mind that. Have you seen a large smooth egg in here?” “No. Why?” “It’s the last of 53 eggs stolen from an alien race called the Tewir. The Vädish woman said it was in this room.” “Huh?” “I’ll explain later.” “Maybe it’s under the bed.” Billy gets up and looks under the bed, seeing a pearlescent object. “I see it.” “Give it here.” Billy retrieved the egg and hands it to TJ, who stashes it in his amulet. “Good. Got them all before they hatch.” “Good. Now get us out of here.” “I can’t. Not now.” “Why?” “There’s a barrier preventing anyone but the Shadow Queen from entering or leaving this room, except if they’re in physical contact with her form. I’ll take you into my amulet and cloak myself. Once the Queen comes back, I’ll cling to her veil, and she’ll unwittingly aid in our escape.” “Brilliant.”
Oonagh and Hîvānë-my’naa get their clean clothes back. “That was amazing, Your Majesty. I am thoroughly sated.” “Good, Silver Guardian. Our people have full faith that you will defeat the Shadow Queen in the near future. Princess?” Oonagh follows the Queen from the table towards a curtained area. “Someone is here to help you, Sister Sídhe.” Another woman, veiled and dressed in a gold and silver cloak, with only her green, feline eyes gazing out. “Mother Xuxat. It is good to see you, Your Wisdom.” “Here is something that your great-grandmother left with me before she died. Give me your sword.” Oonagh gives the veiled Reverend Mother her sword and the latter ties a lock of gold and silver hair around the blade, where it embeds into the metal. “She consecrated this, the hair of her mother, after she foresaw the theft of the 53 eggs in the hope that you would save them.” “Thank you, Your Wisdom.” “We will see you soon, Oonagh Rhianh.” Mother Xuxat turns to Queen Myngara as Oonagh returns to the table. “It was indeed tragic for the late Mother Sídhe for her second son, grandson, great-nephew, and their wives to betray Tewira and join the Shadow Queen. That was what killed her just a month before the three Princesses hatched. And now your husband and Mother Fir’qa are prisoners.” “Indeed, Mother Syngva. But with the Earth having been liberated from the grip of that Tainted Gold four xex’en ago, it may be that world that decides the fate of the Galaxy.”
“Goodbye, Ælura. Good luck.” “Goodbye, Firenzë. Farewell, Your Majesty.” “You must leave now, Guardian?” “Now that we have all the stones, it is time for us to confront the Darkness. We must go to the Nightmare Hills now.” “Very well. I bid you farewell.” The five of us leave the caves and emerge into the night air of Yran’t. “I only hope that my daughter is safe, Ælura. She may not be able to tolerate heat very well.” “I have no doubt that she is safe, Your Majesty.” I bring out the Book and call the Bridge. “Where does the Dark Fortress of the Shadow Queen lie?” The Bridge and Book show a planet, tidally locked to a red dwarf star and shrouded in thick clouds. We look at it, trying to gather our courage for the final stage of this cosmic “road trip”, wondering if our friends, the treasures of Earth, Tewira, Ijen, and Iâ know that we are coming for them. “We’re coming to bring you home, TJ.” “Here goes nothing.”
Previous Episode: Ice Planet.
Next Episode: The Dark Planet.
