A heavy silence filled the room. The machine ticked in a steady rhythm, each pulse tearing small fragments of energy from Max. On the cot beside him, Anelle lay motionless. Her face was pale, almost translucent, like wax. Only the faint indicators on the monitors showed that she was still alive. A third cot stood in the room, but it was empty. Max tried not to think about practical things – like the fact that he now had to ask to use the toilet. They had taken his suit as well and removed it somewhere.

  A hollow feeling spread through his chest. The world had narrowed to four walls, metal restraints, and the quiet breathing of someone just as helpless as he was. A strange anxiety crept over him, as if something was about to happen.

  The door burst open.

  Max flinched, his heart jumping. For a split second, he almost forgot he was chained. Ruslan and Kristina stepped inside. Behind them walked Professor Riddick, calm and composed as always.

  “Ruslan? Kristina?!” Max’s voice broke into a shout.

  Kristina rushed to him, sobbing, and grabbed his hand.

  “Max… you look terrible! They’re really keeping you in these shackles!”

  “You look like a mummy, brother. Seriously,” Ruslan muttered, though worry burned in his eyes. “Don’t stress. I’ll get you out of here soon.” He glanced around as if already mapping out an escape.

  Despite the pain, Max smiled.

  “There’s an actual supermarket here,” Kristina added quickly, trying to lighten the mood. “With shelves and cash registers and fruit… It’s kind of strange – they mostly sell the same things. But still. A store underground!”

  Her warm, casual tone brought back a fragile sense of normal life.

  Riddick stepped closer and spoke quietly.

  “I arranged this with the colonel. I wanted them to see you. It should give you strength. As for getting you out… that’s more complicated for now.”

  The moment shattered almost immediately.

  The door slammed open again, and Zhukov stormed in. His face was twisted with fury, his eyes gleaming like those of a rabid animal.

  “What is this nonsense?!” he barked, striding toward Riddick. “They have no right to be here! This is a restricted zone!”

  “Access was approved,” Riddick replied evenly. “The colonel authorized it.”

  “The colonel?!” Zhukov let out a harsh laugh. “He’s nothing here! This is my sector, my experiments! You’re overstepping your authority, Professor!”

  “And you’ve overstepped the limits of humanity,” Riddick shot back coldly. “The boy gives everything he can. You’re killing him. He just turned eighteen. He’s still a teenager, and you treat him like an object.”

  “Stay away from my experiments!” Zhukov jabbed a finger toward Riddick’s face. “Next time, I’ll personally make sure you’re not allowed here!”

  “Next time?” The professor didn’t raise his voice. “You lost the right to call yourself a scientist long ago. And no, you won’t be removing me from this base.”

  “We’ll see!” Spit flew from Zhukov’s mouth as his eyes reddened. “We’ll see about that!”

  “You won’t do anything!” Kristina suddenly shouted. She stepped forward and struck his chest with her fist. “You’re pathetic! You have no magic, you can’t do anything yourself – you just drain power from others!”

  Zhukov’s face flushed red, then almost green. His whole body trembled with rage. In a sudden movement, he grabbed Kristina by the arm.

  “Looks like you’re feeling much better, little girl,” he hissed. “Then we’ll chain you up right next to your brother. Let’s see how he sings then.”

  “Let her go!” Ruslan shouted and lunged forward, but the soldier behind Zhukov blocked his path.

  Kristina cried out as she struggled, tears filling her eyes.

  “Let me go! Please… it hurts!”

  Max watched his sister twist in pain in that bastard’s grip, and something inside him snapped. Something dark and uncontrollable.

  “Step… away… from… her.”

  His voice dropped, deeper and unfamiliar, filled with authority.

  The words struck like thunder. The lamps flared, the machines shrieked, and Anelle stirred on the cot.

  Zhukov froze as if struck by an invisible wave. His fingers twitched. He suddenly released Kristina and stared at his own hand.

  The fingers on his palm were bent backward at an unnatural angle.

  Riddick stood motionless, watching Max. Only then did Max fully understand what he had done. He had used the power of words. He hadn’t held back.

  But he could have handled it with flesh magic alone. He hadn’t needed that power. Why had he lost control?

  Suddenly, all sound vanished.

  The machine fell silent. Even his own breathing seemed distant, felt more in his chest than heard in his ears. The world dulled and blurred.

  Max saw Riddick shouting, his lips moving, but no sound reached him. A piercing hum filled his head, as if red-hot nails had been driven into his ears. Ruslan and Kristina both grabbed their heads at the same time, their faces twisted in pain.

  Then the air in the center of the room split open.

  At first it was only a thin dark line, as if space itself had been cut with a blade. Then the edges blurred and spread like swamp mist. It was a portal – but nothing like the spatial doors Max had seen before. This one radiated foreign, rotten energy that pressed against his chest and chilled his blood.

  Sound returned in fragments. First a sharp ringing, then the metallic clatter of boots as soldiers rushed into the room. The lamps flickered and switched to emergency mode, flooding the chamber in red light.

  A hand crawled out of the rift. It was dry, wrapped in cracked skin. Dark gray dust rose from it, as if the flesh itself were crumbling. Kristina screamed, and the ringing in Max’s ears spiked again.

  Then the rest of the body emerged.

  It was human in shape, but the face… a round muzzle, enormous red eyes, and a mouth filled with sharp teeth. A vampire – but nothing like the ones from human legends.

  Max caught a glimpse of Zhukov fleeing the room, his heels flashing in the doorway.

  Gunfire erupted. The soldiers opened heavy fire. Bullets tore chunks from the walls, glass shattered. The creature didn’t even flinch. With a single swipe of its claw, several soldiers were swallowed by tiny black voids that opened beneath their feet. They vanished without a trace.

  Max stood frozen, unable to look away.

  Then he heard it – not with his ears, but directly in his mind.

  Thank you for the freedom. I owe a debt. A life for a life. Pay one more life, and the services will become two.

  The portal behind the creature folded in on itself and vanished, but the monster remained. It calmly watched Max.

  Kristina, trembling behind the cot, whispered, “What is it saying?..”

  “It says it owes us a favor. I just don’t know what kind,” Max answered hoarsely, his eyes locked on the creature.

  The being tilted its head, exposing its teeth.

  “I deliver. Anything. Anywhere. I am one of the demons of space. I advise you to run. As far as possible. To another world. I passed through first because I am the strongest. But others will follow. When a new passage opens, everyone here will die.”

  “Who will come?” Max forced out.

  “The Pantheon of Pain and Suffering. They are searching for you. Light and dark alike promise a throne for your capture. I am leaving. But call, and I will come. I am Shas-saah.”

  With that, it dissolved into gray mist.

  “Where is he?! Where’s the demon?!” a familiar voice rang out.

  A ghostly girl burst through the wall.

  Julia.

  How did she know about the demon? And where had she been?

  “We need to run!” Julia nearly screamed. “The dark ones are coming!”

  “Run where?” Max struggled to process what was happening. “We’re sealed in here. I’m chained to the bed. And how do you even know all this?”

  “It’s a long story. I’m sorry, Max, but you only have one option. You have to leave your body. We return to the plane. That’s the only place we can hide.” She jabbed a finger at his chest.

  “Is there another option?” A chill crept down Max’s spine.

  “An army will arrive soon. You can surrender. Become a slave forever. Your choice.”

  At that exact moment, another portal tore open in the room.

  The air thickened. Everyone turned toward it.

  “I don’t like this…” Ruslan muttered, backing away. “Max, let’s get the hell out before something else crawls through.”

  He rushed to Max and began unfastening the restraints that bound him to the bed.

  “Your brother’s right,” Julia snapped. “It’s dangerous here! And soon."

  She didn’t finish.

  A black spike shot out of the rift and pierced straight through her shoulder. From the wound flowed not blood, but pale energy that rose into the air in curling streams like transparent fire.

  “Ah!” she cried and spun around.

  Golden armor flared around her body in an instant. The wound closed within seconds.

  Max stared.

  What was that? And why hadn’t she used it before?

  He turned toward the rift, pushing himself off the cot. He didn’t like what he felt. The portal radiated clear, crushing danger.

  Then he understood why.

  Something crawled out.

  A skeleton, its eye sockets glowing red. This creature looked even worse than the previous one.

  Max barely had time to react before another long black spike, as large as a spear, shot toward him.

  It uses magic too.

  The spear shattered against a transparent dome surrounding him.

  Max blinked in shock.

  Had he created that shield? No… it felt different. Subtle. Structured.

  The protective structure.

  He sensed its faint response, like an echo of distant power. Both the skeleton and Julia froze, staring at him.

  “Grab him!” Julia suddenly shouted.

  Max didn’t even understand who she meant. How was he supposed to grab a magic-wielding skeleton?

  The creature swung a metal rod in its right hand.

  Another spike tore through the air and cut Professor Riddick clean in half.

  “Professor!” Kristina screamed.

  Julia reacted first. She hurled a transparent sphere at the skeleton. It struck with such force that the monster was thrown backward into its own portal.

  Max stared at the rift.

  “Close…” he muttered, focusing on it. He felt something shift inside, a dull internal pulse. A portion of energy moved, and the tear began to shrink.

  The portal sealed.

  That… worked?

  “You said you didn’t want to use the power of words!” Julia shouted. “Now they definitely know we’re here! That was a passage to one of the dead planes. That means someone already knows about our fortress.”

  Max rushed to Riddick, trying to reach him with his Aura of Life.

  Too late.

  Whatever that skeleton had struck him with, the professor was dead. Dark, unnatural stains spread across his body.

  For a moment, Max found himself hoping Riddick wouldn’t suddenly rise again.

  “Leave. Now. And take me with you!” Julia yelled into his ear. “Open the door to your plane! Otherwise, this will happen to all of us!”

  “They won’t make it there,” Max said, nodding toward Ruslan and Kristina.

  Ruslan was unfastening the elf girl from the cot. When had he become so fearless?

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  Did Julia really think he would abandon his body and leave everyone behind? Ridiculous.

  And her wound… it had vanished completely. How? Max knew soul injuries didn’t heal that quickly.

  “I’m not running,” he said firmly. “My family is here.”

  Julia rolled her eyes.

  “Your body is doomed. This place will be erased. I’m not joking. You have no idea what forces are coming. Bones will pile into mountains. Dark energy will melt metal.”

  “My family is here,” he repeated.

  “All the more reason to leave! If you stay, you’ll only doom them. Everyone in this fortress will die. What I saw… that was Vurk, a demon of Oron Gao. He commands endless undead armies. He creates bone giants that reach the clouds. If he comes personally, this base is finished. You’ll be buried under bones.”

  “How much time do I have?”

  She hesitated.

  “Your power is noticeable. Very tempting. They’ll want to capture it. That means almost no time. They might already be here.”

  At that moment, an explosion shook the base. Sirens wailed.

  Max clenched his jaw.

  He might have to call that space demon far sooner than he had expected – the one who escaped through the first portal. Shas-saah. The only one who had offered a way out.

  He saw no other option.

  “Max! You need to see this!” Julia shouted and dove through the wall.

  Without wasting a second, Max lay back on the cot and left his body, following her in spirit form.

  Outside, a storm was gathering. Heavy black clouds swallowed the sky, as if darkness itself were closing in on the fortress. The same darkness settled in Max’s chest. This was something bad. Something truly dangerous.

  Rain poured from the sky – but it wasn’t water. The drops were red.

  Death was approaching.

  Launch silos roared open, and rockets shot upward. In the flashes of exploding fire, Max saw something horrifying: within the clouds, a vast black eye socket flickered into view. The giant was so tall it seemed to reach the heavens. The ground trembled with every step, and craters formed beneath its massive bone foot.

  At first, it looked as if the earth itself was splitting beneath it, but that wasn’t the case. A sea of bones churned around its legs. With each step, millions of small bones were crushed, yet the sea did not shrink. As far as Max could see, the land was covered by a skeletal army. Only then did he understand – this was no illusion. These were real bones, bound together by someone’s magic.

  How could anyone stop something like that?

  Time passed. Max returned to the isolation cell. Could he trust that vampire? The creature had appeared far too conveniently. What if his arrival had been planned? Trusting a demon sounded insane. But there was no other option.

  If Max left alone, maybe the attackers would follow him – away from the people on the base.

  “Shas-saah,” Max called the demon’s name.

  The demon appeared instantly. Again, there was no portal. Why?

  “You called me, human, and I came.”

  “You said you could get us out of here?” Max forced himself to meet the creature’s jagged maw and the long tongue flicking between its fangs. He still didn’t understand how this thing even spoke.

  “I can.”

  “How?”

  “I deliver,” the demon replied calmly. “Cargo. People. The living and the dead. Anything. Tell me what and where, and I will take it there.”

  “So you can move people far away from here?”

  “I knew you would ask that. But I need a specific location. Exact coordinates. I can only transport someone to places I have already visited.”

  Max’s face darkened. He didn’t know any safe places in this world. What now?

  Outside, a chain of explosions thundered, followed by bursts of automatic gunfire. Max pictured his home world – Earth.

  “I see the coordinates you provided. That world is closed. I cannot enter it.”

  “You said you could go anywhere!” Max snapped.

  “As you see, there are exceptions,” the demon replied, sounding genuinely surprised. “So then. Where do you wish to go?”

  A plan formed in Max’s mind.

  “Take me, Ruslan, and Kristina,” he said, nodding toward his brother and sister. “And one elf from the fortress. To her home. She said she lives far from here.”

  “That is too much. It exceeds the bounds of a single service.”

  “You said the price was a life!”

  “My life is not that valuable.”

  “What do you want as payment?” Max locked eyes with the demon’s yellow gaze.

  “I will tell you. I need you to join the demons of Space. Become a bearer of a Space ring and dedicate your faith to the Lord of Space. He draws strength from faith. And faith comes from those who carry his rings. The stronger the bearer, the more power flows to the God.”

  The demon leaned closer.

  “I see that you have no primary ring, yet there is an ocean of energy inside you. You are alive, which means you can accept a new one. Join the merchants of Space. Accept a portion of the power I will grant you. Take it as your primary ring. In return, I will help you as one of our own.”

  A new ring? Max had barely begun to understand his previous one – the ring of Flesh. This would be his third. If the demon wasn’t lying, he would gain the ability to move through space itself. But something felt wrong. The demon was offering power too eagerly. And that word – merchant. Trading what? Space? Services? Souls? Or was it simply a title?

  The demon extended a gray claw. A sphere rested in its palm, glowing with blue light.

  “Just accept it,” he said. “It is strong. Useful. No mage in the past ever hesitated when offered this power.”

  “Wait here,” Max replied and shifted toward the librarian. He wasn’t about to take a demon at his word. He needed to check first.

  Old Lub didn’t even flinch at Max’s sudden arrival.

  “Yes, this is a core shard,” the dwarf said, studying the sphere closely. “Space magic. Rare. Dangerous. How did you manage to gather so many different powers, human? The one who created this core shard was a Master of Space. And to forge something like this, he would have had to kill someone who possessed the same magic.”

  “I thought he just shared part of his own…”

  “Then he would have lost it himself. And I doubt that’s what happened. It’s a demon, isn’t it? Demons from beyond the world are often born with such abilities.”

  “But humans can have this magic too?”

  “They can. Very rarely. In the past, the only way to obtain it was to capture and kill a demon. Nearly impossible. Sometimes children inherited the magic, but only a handful.”

  “Then why is he giving this power to me so easily?”

  “Because it’s exactly what you need right now – a way to save your loved ones. The demon senses that and offers what can tempt you most. I suspect they were preparing long before they ever met you.”

  The dwarf tapped the sphere with a finger.

  “There is already a woven structure imprinted into the ring inside. It will remain hidden until you make the ring part of yourself. Your last core shard was clean. This one carries an active weave. The moment you accept it, it will begin working.”

  “What kind of weave?” Max asked.

  “A technique. Which means it activates on its own. And from what I can see, it’s a technique of eternal servitude. It will bind your soul, and all energy from the ring will flow to its owner – the one who placed the seal.”

  A chill ran through Max.

  A simple technique, he had said?

  “You mean if I accept this, I fall into eternal slavery?”

  “Exactly.” The dwarf nodded. “Quite outdated, by the way. Even I’ve seen books with more modern and efficient methods of enslavement that far surpass this ancient craft.”

  Now everything made sense. The demon had offered the core shard so eagerly for a reason. He had tried to win without a fight by giving Max exactly what he needed most.

  But he had left the demon alone with his family.

  Max went cold. He had to return immediately. And yet… he still needed the new magic.

  “Can the technique be erased?” he asked.

  “As long as the ring hasn’t unfolded, it’s simple.” Lub smiled. For a brief moment, an orange ring flared around his chest, and the technique of servitude dissolved. Max felt the change inside the core shard as the tension unraveled.

  Now all that remained was to accept the ring, just as he had before. Space – rare, fascinating, useful. And most importantly, not meant for killing. Exactly what he needed.

  After a brief hesitation, Max pressed the core shard against his chest, where his magic core pulsed.

  When he returned to the world of the living, his heart clenched.

  The demon was in the room.

  His family was not.

  The creature immediately raised its hand. A black chain flared into existence in the air but crumbled before it could reach Max.

  “You did not accept my magic,” the demon rasped. “You figured it out? It cost the life of my… ‘friend.’”

  “A friend? A demon has friends?” Max smiled coldly.

  “And how are we different from you humans? Yes, we lack your morality. But we are intelligent.” The false warmth vanished from its voice. “So let us speak, human.”

  “Where are they?” Max asked, his tone flat.

  “In a safe place,” the demon replied with a crooked grin.

  “You never intended to help us.”

  The demon’s smile darkened.

  “I wanted to make it simple. I found you before Oron Gao did. I expected resistance here, yet instead I found you – a boy without armor, without spirit. I planned to take the easy path, but you forced my hand. I hid them where you will never find them. And I will release them only when I choose. I am not just a demon. I am an angel of the Overlord Mog Dun, and I carry a fragment of his power.”

  An orange ring ignited around his chest – the same color as Lub’s.

  “Tell me,” Max said quietly, “why didn’t your Overlord come himself?”

  The demon burst into laughter.

  “My Overlord will not waste his time on such trash, unlike Oron Gao, who is even now approaching the walls of your fortress.” He shot Max a contemptuous look with eyes that glowed red – though moments ago they had been yellow.

  The demon waved his hand, and a doorway formed in the air – a portal. It looked like a mirror set in a black frame covered with skulls and skeletal hands.

  “Go in,” the demon said, baring his fanged grin. “You will speak with my Overlord, and perhaps your family will remain alive.”

  Max sensed that the door led somewhere unknown. What caught his attention was the layer of Space magic woven into it. This passage would transport not only the soul, but the physical body as well. But where exactly would it lead? And could he alter its direction? He had redirected his own doors before.

  Inside him, the structure stirred. It responded.

  Without hesitation, Max stepped through – and smiled.

  He was home.

  Inside his own plane.

  He turned toward the doorway. One second. Two.

  Then the demon stepped out, still smiling. He hadn’t sensed the switch at all. He clearly hadn’t expected it.

  “What did you do?” The demon froze, fury flashing across his face. Here, his power was instantly restrained by the structure. His orange ring flared, activating its woven techniques, but none of them responded.

  He tried to draw on his other rings, but it was useless. Max had severed him from the outside world. Within his own plane, Max was absolute.

  “How did you do this?” the demon demanded, eyes burning. “No one can interfere with another’s element. You couldn’t have touched my Space magic.”

  He took a few heavy steps forward, breathing hard. Then, unexpectedly, he smiled.

  “Yes, I have no access to my techniques or subspace,” he said more quietly. “But I can wait forever. Torture won’t work on me. And your friends will slowly rot in my labyrinths, starving.”

  “So they’re hidden somewhere inside you,” Max said slowly. The demon fell silent at once.

  How could he force him to reveal the location? Torture was pointless. Pain likely meant nothing to a demon.

  “Tell me where they are,” Max demanded.

  The demon only sneered and lowered himself to the ground.

  At that moment, another door appeared nearby, and Marvin stepped out.

  “What filth did you drag into my plane?!” he shouted when he saw the demon.

  “Your plane?” Max asked, surprised.

  “Is this your Overlord?” the demon burst into laughter and nodded toward Marvin. “This worthless creature? Then your plane will collapse soon enough.”

  “It’s a demon,” Max said quickly. “He claims he’s an angel of someone called Mog Dun.”

  “Mog Dun?!” Marvin’s face tightened with alarm. “How did you pull him in here? Who else knows about this? Destroy him immediately.”

  “Ha!” the demon laughed. “Destroy a demon’s soul?”

  “He hid my family in his subspace,” Max said. “Once I get them out, we can destroy him.”

  The demon didn’t move. Amusement flickered in his eyes. Destroy a demon – especially one bearing an orange ring? Impossible. He would simply be reborn in his own plane.

  “If you destroy him,” Marvin said urgently, “his entire subspace will collapse and burst outward. He sustains it with his own power.”

  “And my family won’t be harmed if we kill him?”

  “The living cannot die in the world of the dead. They will be forced back into the world of the living. Your planes will push them out.”

  “I see,” Max said quietly. “Good.”

  He looked at the demon.

  “Wait!” the demon suddenly shouted. For the first time, real fear flashed across his face. From this boy? How?

  “Die,” Max said.

  He felt no pity. There was nothing human in this creature – only corruption.

  Agony tore through him, as if a piece of his own soul had been ripped free. His breath turned ragged, his ears rang, and darkness pressed at the edges of his vision. He dropped to his knees. Too much power had passed through him. A word strong enough to kill a demon required immense force.

  Fear twisted across the demon’s face. Despair. For a fleeting second – even relief. Then his body began to glow from within and crack like brittle porcelain.

  “My master will know!” he howled. “Hundreds of demons will come for you. They will find your family wherever you hide them. And then they will find you!”

  “Disappear,” Max said quietly.

  The demon exploded into a spray of sparks that scattered in every direction. For a heartbeat, space froze – then rippled in slow, heavy waves.

  Part of that swirling storm of light drifted toward Max. His Space ring flared brightly around his chest. The demon had been a Space demon, and his energy resonated with Max’s ring. It could strengthen it – but the ring was still too weak to absorb that much power at once.

  A single symbol formed on the surface of the ring.

  Max stared at it in surprise. It didn’t resemble a woven structure. What was it?

  “Oh, you obtained an armor symbol?” Marvin said. “Impressive. I had to accomplish real heroic feats to gather my full armor set. And you just casually acquired your first piece.”

  “Armor?” Max studied the symbol with interest. This was something new about magic.

  “With a blue ring? It’s far too early for you to worry about that,” Marvin said, shaking his head. “You don’t have nearly enough energy to activate it. You’ll understand one day. For now, we have more important matters. If Mog Dun and his kin learn that their demon truly died…” Marvin lowered his voice, staring at the place where the demon had stood.

  “What then?” Max asked.

  “Hard to say. It’s been a very long time since anyone witnessed a demon die completely. I never saw it myself. Maybe nothing will happen. The Legions of Light recently failed to break into your plane. And Gao won’t risk coming here personally – they’re cautious enough. Your real danger lies in the world of the living.”

  Max frowned. Legions of Light? Someone had tried to break in? Why hadn’t he known?

  “Marvin, is there something you want to tell me?”

  “There’s nothing to worry about,” Marvin waved him off. “You have no idea how powerful your structure is. Your dragon burned them all without effort. Not a single one remained. We didn’t even learn which pantheon they belonged to. But next time, don’t drag just anyone in here. What if it’s someone stronger than a demon?”

  “Like his Overlord?”

  “Or someone worse.”

  “Why wouldn’t Mog Dun come himself?”

  Marvin gave him a skeptical look.

  “Overlords are cautious. If they can reach their goal through a long but safe path, they will choose that. So prepare yourself. The hunt for you will be slow and patient. Hide your strength. And now, step back.”

  Max barely had time to nod before space churned violently. A black rift tore open where the demon had stood, and from it spilled scattered jewels, chunks of earth… and most importantly: Ruslan, Kristina, Julia – somehow the demon had captured her soul as well – and the elf girl.

  The elf, now conscious, looked around in confusion, unable to understand where she was. Kristina rushed to Max.

  “Max! We were in such a place… such a terrible place!”

  Max hugged his sister and immediately felt what Marvin had warned about. The space around them tightened, as if trying to push them away. Physical bodies did not belong in a world of pure energy. They needed to return to the world of the living immediately.

  “You’d better decide quickly where to send them,” Marvin said sharply. “Before the plane tears them apart or spits them out somewhere random. Then you’ll be searching across the whole world.”

  “I can’t send them back to the base,” Max said. “It was swarming with the undead. It’s probably already destroyed.”

  “Undead?” Marvin snorted. “Then yes, choose somewhere else. Without you there, they may have had no reason to stay – but opening a portal elsewhere is wiser. Your base will likely be attacked again.”

  “But you said moving physical bodies is complicated. Will normal doors work for them?”

  “Of course.” Marvin shrugged. “You have a Space ring now, don’t you? The problem is bringing the living into the world of the dead. The other way around? The plane will gladly spit them back out. Look at how the energy strains around them – the very threads of creation are creaking. Though… you probably can’t see that. Just create a door. The world will push them through.”

  Max felt it as well. The Otherworld rejected this imbalance. The living belonged among the living.

  He wasn’t going to wait for the plane to correct the mistake on its own. He had to create a door – but not to the fortress. That would be too dangerous. Where, then?

  The only one who had been outside the fortress was the elf. Could he trust her people? There was no other choice.

  “I need the coordinates of your home. I’ll take us there,” Max said, looking at the girl.

  He wasn’t even sure it would work, yet his intuition told him it would. That alone felt strange. Max had never relied on intuition before.

  The elf stared at him, stunned. She didn’t understand where she was, who these humans were, or what had just happened. The world around her felt wrong, the energy distorted – though perhaps that was because of the arcane collar still locked around her neck. She hesitated, then nodded. She wanted to go home.

  The plane responded.

  It seemed to sense her desire, and that was enough. A doorway opened.

  Max felt a powerful surge of energy pass through his Space ring, bypassing his body. The plane itself was helping him. Then all of them were pulled into the doorway, as if into a black hole.

  What if I don’t want to leave? flashed through Max’s mind.

  It turned out the plane had a will of its own.

  Or perhaps it was the structure.

  He would figure that out later.