“... fucking sunbeam hits it like a spotlight. Never would’ve found it otherwise.”

  Thomas and I quickly found the others in a cramped courtyard, already gathered around an old well. Part of a wall had fallen on top of it, half-burying it in rubble. Cael was standing proudly beside it, nudging a chunk of debris with the toe of his boot.

  “It was odd,” Sir Dave rumbled. “This place never changes, from what I understand. I’ve never heard of the sky clearing. I’ll have to mention it to the Institute.”

  Nope. Not dealing with it. If the Heroine needed a sunbeam, she was on her own.

  “Right.” Autumn turned and surveyed us, his hands on his hips. “Our goal’s to go as far down into the Labyrinth as we can and get back up here safely. The Commander and I are part of your team, but you three are in charge. You guys’re making all the decisions, including when we turn around. Got it?”

  Thomas snapped to attention. “Understood, Sir Autumn.”

  “Great!” Cael pointed at Autumn with a triumphant smirk. “I vote Sir Breathing scouts for us.”

  Thomas raised his hand hesitantly. “I’m not sure that’s a good idea, Master Cael.”

  “Just ‘Cael.’ What’s the problem? He said we’re in charge.”

  “He did, but… why didn’t Sir Autumn warn us about the rock imp?”

  The three of us stared at my brother expectantly.

  He shrugged. “Rocks don’t breathe. Lots of monsters don’t.”

  Cael groaned. “… Fuck.”

  ——————————

  The spiral staircase twisted deep into the ground, far deeper than I’d expected. When we finally reached the bottom, we were standing in a series of bright, warm caves.

  Sunlight streamed in through large fissures and long flowering vines that clung to the ceiling and trailed down into small, crystal-clear pools. We handled the kobolds and goblins easily enough. The bright green snakes that dropped from the vines and the stalactite bats were a hell of a surprise.

  I was primed for more fighting the moment we hit the second floor, only to be greeted by a single room, completely devoid of any signs of life.

  It looked like the inside of an ancient, Egyptian tomb. A golden sarcophagus dominated the centre of the room, raised on a plinth and surrounded by guttering torches. More torches lined the intricately carved walls, shining off the inlaid stone floor. Beyond the sarcophagus, a pair of tall gold-inlaid doors were set in the far wall.

  Autumn groaned. “Hells. It’s a damned puzzle box.”

  “Sir Autumn?” Thomas asked, looking over at my brother nervously.

  He pointed at the golden doors. “The stairs are behind those. Only way to get through is to solve the stupid puzzle. Gods, I hate these things.” With a massive sigh, he pushed the lid of the sarcophagus aside and reached inside. “Let’s just… get this done fast so we can move on.”

  Still grumbling, he fished out a scroll. The others gathered around him as he unrolled it. The scroll bounced down the steps of the plinth as it unwound, rolling all the way back to the stairs.

  … Right. They had this. I’d never been great at riddles.

  But I was good at crime scenes.

  I ignored the others’ furtive murmuring and began walking the room, trying to look at it through an investigator’s eyes.

  The room looked old, but it felt off — just like the city. I ran my hand across the carvings decorating the walls, my fingers coming away with flaking traces of old paint. It was too even, like it had been weathered with a sandblaster. And the inlaid floor was too polished — I would’ve expected heavier wear away from the edges and corners.

  I followed a carved vine along the wall. It ran up onto one of the golden doors, intertwining with others to form one-half of a large tree. The doors were tall — towering nearly twenty feet above me. Cradled in the tree’s trunk was an elegant lock, the keyhole subtly hidden in the curving vines. Solving the riddle must give you the key.

  As my trailing fingers brushed the gilt wood, the door moved, just a little.

  I pushed at it again.

  The door swung a fraction, shifting slightly against its partner.

  “You planning to help, Princess?” Cael remarked, sauntering over.

  “I am. I think the door’s locked.”

  “… Well, yeah. That’s the point.”

  I rolled my eyes. “No, I mean the doors are locked. There’s nothing holding them closed.” I ran my fingers over the keyhole. “It’s not even enchanted, as far as I can tell — it’s just a lock. Autumn said we have to solve a puzzle. Isn’t that what you keep telling me a lock is?”

  He blinked at me, then grinned. Without a word, he reached into his coat and handed me his leather bundle of lockpicks.

  I looked at him uncertainly. “Are you sure? I thought you–“

  “It’s your idea, Princess.” He waved at the massive doors. “You can’t learn much just picking the lock on your bedroom door. Now we’re in a magic Labyrinth — no distractions, no rush. Not gonna get a better chance.”

  I couldn’t argue with that. I set to work accompanied by the sound of Autumn’s bitching.

  “….so, Commander, you stand on a red tile in that corner and touch the octopus and the squirrel while Thomas goes… What do you mean there’s no red tile?!”

  “Problem?” Cael asked when I grunted in frustration.

  “One of the pins is sticking. I can force it if I have to, but I don’t want to break something.”

  “Might’ve jammed it. Relax your tension a little and wiggle it around. Just don’t drop the others.”

  “…Okay, now stretch straight up and you should be able to reach the… what the hells is a ‘platypus?!’”

  “A semiaquatic mammal with a bill and webbed feet,” I shouted over my shoulder. “They lay eggs and have venomous barbs. Look for something halfway between a duck and a badger.”

  “… You’re… that’s a thing?!”

  “Yep.” I replied, cheerfully popping the ‘p’ as the stubborn pin finally gave. Reapplying the tension, the tumbler slowly started to turn. And then ground to a halt.

  I swore.

  Cael grinned and held out a third tool. “Didn’t think it’d be that easy, did ya? Hold the other two steady, and feel around the back,” he instructed. “Might be something there keeping it from turning.”

  Autumn threw the scroll down in disgust. “We’re going back up, getting you guys a new key, and trying again. I’m done dealing with this godsdamned bullsh—”

  A soft click interrupted my brother as the bolt retracted. The door swung gently open, revealing a wide set of marble stairs beyond.

  His mouth slammed shut as I handed Cael back his tools.

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  Cael clapped my shoulder. “You’re pretty good at this shit.”

  ———————

  We descended through the Labyrinth floor, fighting monsters as we went.

  Goblins and Kobolds were still common enemies but fought smarter: goblins started poisoning their weapons and struck from ambush regularly. A thrill of fear still hit me every time, but a reassuring pat from Cael or a quick hug from Thomas kept me grounded. Kobolds, meanwhile, turned out to be trap masters.

  Orcs didn’t have any special tricks, but they were strong and tough. The knights engaged them directly while Cael and I wove through the fight, slashing tendons and striking at joints.

  Shambling skeletons had to be smashed to pieces. Dismembering them wasn’t enough: they reassembled and kept attacking. We even ran into a large, cloak-like thing that mimicked a shadow before it struck. We only spotted it in time because the shadows ‘felt wrong’ to me.

  Slimes were the worst — they reformed almost instantly when slashed or stabbed, and were capable of spitting blobs of acid at us from a distance. Only Cael’s tonfa and Sir Dave’s massive gauntleted fists seemed to have any real effect.

  Stepping out onto the fifth floor, we found ourselves swallowed by an ocean of fog, with thin spires of rock rising from the clouds below. Some were topped by platforms connected by rope bridges that creaked in the wind. Others rose in sharp spikes, vanishing again in the clouds above.

  Monsters glided between the spires, leaving only swirling eddies behind. We relied heavily on Autumn’s Talent to track them.

  As we pushed onward, the stone columns grew more clustered, until I could reach over the side of the bridge and brush them with my fingers. Here and there columns had fallen like old trees, held at odd angles by the surrounding spires.

  Slowly, the fog ahead of us began to brighten and thin out. A cracked and fractured courtyard melted into view, supported by broken, shattered spires, and tilted at a slight angle like it had fallen from the sky and crashed into the stone forest below. Toppled pillars lay scattered across the shattered flagstones like a giant game of pickup sticks. Only four of the elegant columns still stood, marking the sunken square of the next stairwell down.

  I sped up.

  I was more than ready to get the hells out of here — this floor made my heart race and the spot between my shoulder blades itch. Even having Cael and Thomas close by hadn’t been enough to keep me from breaking out in a cold sweat.

  Autumn grabbed my arm, stopping me.

  “There’s a lot of… something up ahead.” His eyes darted around like he was trying to see through the fog. “More than I can count; everything’s overlapping.”

  …Shit.

  Thomas went still and stared intently ahead, his ears focused. “Harpies,” he whispered. “I can hear them chirping.”

  My brother swore.

  “I’m guessing that’s bad?” The Ancient Civ class I had taken in middle school had been a long time ago.

  “They’re fast and vicious.” Thomas swallowed nervously. “They like to hunt down travellers. Then they let the corpses rot before they eat them. A full squad of knights gets sent to deal with one of their nests.”

  Great. “What damned key did you pick, Autumn!?”

  Autumn looked at me in wide-eyed innocence. “It was supposed to be challenging!”

  “This is not ‘challenging,’” I hissed through my gritted teeth. “This is attempted murder!”

  “They’re not very smart,” Thomas offered quietly, his ears flattening down against his hair. “If I act as bait, I think I can distract them long enough for you guys to get past them.” He smiled weakly. “I’m pretty fast, so I should be fine.”

  “No,” I told him firmly. “We’re not using you as bait. But… it does give me an idea.”

  “What’s that, Princess?” Cael asked, grinning at me.

  I grinned right back. “My ‘puppet show’ and I are going to make you eat your words.”

  ——————————

  Cael and Thomas slowly guided me across the slanted courtyard.

  All my focus was on my massive shadowy figures lurching through the fog. This close to the staircase, the harpies’ birdlike chirping seemed to come from everywhere at once. Based on the excited noises they were making, fast, violent movements were their favourites.

  We almost made it.

  A scant few metres from the staircase, Cael slipped, sending some loose pebbles skittering across the flagstones and suddenly pulling me off balance.

  I managed to catch myself before I went down, but the unexpected stumble broke my concentration. My stomach dropped as my shadows vanished.

  The chirping stopped instantly.

  We froze.

  The silent tableau held for five long seconds. Then one of the harpies screeched.

  Thomas threw himself at the stairwell, Cael and I hot on his heels. My foot was just coming down on the lip of the stairs when something caught on the ribbons lacing my vest, dragging me into the air.

  Sir Dave lunged for me, grabbing my hand and yanking me free. He pulled me down into the shelter of the stairwell.

  I slammed into his breastplate just as the harpy crashed into the low archway, shrieking and clawing at nothing.

  Fucking hells — the Greeks had badly undersold just how ugly these things were. They had gotten the half woman, half bird part right, but had failed to mention the goddamn meathook talons that made the velociraptors’ claws from Jurassic Park look cute. Long, stringy hair hung limply down to its waist, and it stared at me with hungry, too wide eyes. Its mouth gaped from ear to ear, full of needle-like teeth. It looked like someone had hit it in the mouth with a porcupine.

  It screeched and flapped wildly as it scrabbled futilely at the threshold, blasting us with the stench of wet feathers and rotting carrion.

  “It can’t get through,” Autumn assured me as I flattened myself against the commander’s chest and tried to climb him like a freaked-out cat. “There’s a barrier. Monsters can’t leave their floors.”

  “The goblins left their floor!” I yelled from my perch in the surprised Sir Dave’s arms.

  “Okay, goblins can move around a bit. Kobolds too, I guess,” my brother ceded, scratching his cheek. “And the rock imp. Not sure how that thing got up there…”

  “This is not reassuring!” I hissed.

  “Relax. If that thing could move between floors, it would’ve eaten you already.”

  I was going to strangle him. Slowly.

  —————————

  It took me a minute or two to get my heart rate back down to normal.

  Mercifully, there was a landing I could recover on. Out of sight of the damned harpies.

  I did my best to put the monster bird-women aside as we descended, at least for now — they were a problem for later.

  There was a loud thump behind me, followed by a string of curses from my brother.

  I looked behind me. …When had I gotten ahead of everyone? And when had it gotten so dark?

  Autumn had missed a step and was hugging the wall, his legs splayed. A few steps above, Sir Dave had his hand on the wall and was looking down uncertainly.

  Looking past them, I could see that the torch on the wall that we’d just passed was little more than glowing embers. They must have slowed down because of it. I’d been too preoccupied to realize.

  “Saint’s balls,” Cael groaned, feeling for the edge of the stair with his foot. He was moving faster than the two knights, but I could tell he couldn’t see much either. “You doing ok, Princess?”

  “Yes… mostly. I can see the bottom. Do you need a hand?”

  He huffed in amusement. “I’m good — I know how to get around in the dark. Just keep anyone from falling on me. Where’s Thomas?”

  “Here!” Thomas’s voice called up. He appeared at the foot of the steps, his eyes reflecting an eerie golden yellow.

  Cat. Right.

  “Sorry. I went ahead to scout the next floor.” He sighed, his ears flattening unhappily. “It’s not better — you’ll see. Or, uhm, not see, technically.”

  Getting everyone to the bottom was… interesting. Autumn latched onto me so hard he nearly sent us both tumbling down the stairs.

  We passed through a low opening and out into a small, dark clearing surrounded by towering trees. I took a deep breath. The cool night air smelled clean and earthy under the sharp scent of pine.

  “Think I hate this place,” Cael grumbled as he joined us. “Hate doing shit in the dark.”

  “Can you see anything?”

  He looked around, then looked up. “Sky’s pretty. Lotta stars — wish we got a moon too. Can tell we’re in a forest, but that’s it. You?”

  “It’s a pine forest — an old one,” I told him. “There’s a trail going deeper in.”

  “That’s impressive, Lord Violet,” Thomas remarked as he and Sir Dave joined us, the commander’s hand resting on Thomas’s shoulder. “You have good eyes.”

  “I’m a Body mage. I can’t make out detail, but at least I won’t walk into a tree. I don’t suppose anyone brought a magelight?”

  Cael squinted over his shoulder, back into the dark cave. “Could go grab a torch from the stairs.”

  “I don’t think we can... Those looked like solid metal spikes hammered into the wall.” Thomas’s ears perked up. “But I can make one! Lord Violet, can I borrow one of your knives? And both your handkerchiefs, please.”

  With the items in hand, he quickly scaled up one of the trees and hacked off a long branch. He stripped the twigs and split the fat end, then stuffed one of the handkerchiefs inside. Wrapping it with the second one, he fidgeted impatiently as the pine sap soaked into the cloth.

  He dashed past us back into the stairwell. A moment later, there was a sudden flare of light, and he strutted back down, holding the brightly burning torch aloft.

  “Hells yeah!” Cael cheered, pulling the surprised knight-trainee into a one-armed hug and taking the torch from him. “Fucking genius.”

  “I, uhm… thank you. But we should hurry,” Thomas added, glancing nervously at our light source. “It won’t last long.”

  We set off immediately with Cael in the lead, the torch held high to light the tiny game trail.

  He’d barely passed the first trunks when it suddenly guttered and snuffed out.

  “… This is fucking bullshit!” He threw his hands in the air, nearly smacking Autumn in the face. “The fuck with this godsdamned nightmare hunk of real estate?!”

  He took slow, deep breath. “Fine. Y’know what? Princess, you lead.”

  A flash of hurt crossed Thomas’ features, his ears flattening. “I can do it. I know the torch didn’t work, but I can take point.”

  “He’s right,” I added. “He’ll be a better guide.”

  “The torch was brilliant, this place just FUCKING CHEATS!” he yelled into the darkness. “Normally, you’re right. But.” He spun in a circle and walked a few clumsy steps, nearly tripping over a tree root. Then he pointed right at me.

  I blinked in surprise and took a few steps to my left. His finger followed me unerringly.

  “You can see — no…” I waved my hand at him. No reaction. “You can See me.”

  He grinned. “Nope. But I can always feel you, sort of. Thea said Sight’s all interaction-y. I guess it’s interacting with the bond. So, I can follow you without holding your hand, and the one guy who can actually see shit is free to go watch for things about to eat us.”

  Interesting. And slightly disturbing.

  Thomas blinked, his ears rising and his shoulders relaxing. “That’s… a good plan. Sorry — I should have trusted you had a reason.”

  “You’d be my go-to otherwise.” Cael tossed the burnt-out torch at the nearest tree. It hit with a satisfying thwack. “I know what happens when you put Princess in charge of shit.”

  “Shut up. That hedge started it, and you know it.” I sniffed haughtily. “And it was an ugly hedge anyway.”