The air here was thicker, tinted purple by the strange glow of fungus clinging to the cliff walls. Bridges of bone and root spanned over sluggish rivers, and beyond them, the jagged outpost stretched like a spider's web.
This was no city.It was the outermost sanctuary of the exiled queen — a hidden fortress carved into the ravine's rock and masked by enchanted mists, its light scattered and dim so that the Dark Elves ruling the central castle would never suspect an army was gathering here. Legionaries trained in shadowed courtyards, their armor etched with symbols of rebellion, while sentries patrolled the bridges in silence.
Caleb stepped out of the vine-curtained hut where he'd been meeting the queen. His expression was composed, though Eliakim caught the stiffness in his jaw.
"How was it?" Eliakim asked lightly, keeping his tone neutral.
"Productive," Caleb replied without pausing.
Captain Vaeryn approached from the shadows. His bone mask caught the flicker of torchlight as he looked between them. He switched to Aelorian, the words flowing like water over stone — and thanks to the Codex of Imreth, Eliakim understood every syllable:
Vaeryn (in Elven): "Watch the one you follow, stranger. Even gold can be poison."
Eliakim tilted his head slightly. "I'm afraid I don't speak Elven, Captain."
Vaeryn's gaze lingered, sharp as a drawn bowstring, before he turned away.
The queen herself emerged then, draped in layers of muted crimson and bark-like armor. Her voice carried across the open platform."Seize them."
Guards moved in, their weapons gleaming faintly in the violet haze.
"Wait—what?!" Ezra's voice cracked with disbelief. "This was supposed to be my dream vacation — waterfalls, maybe some exotic foods. And now… chains?!"
Gideon groaned. "Figures. Can't even go three days without someone throwing us in a cell."
Skyling fluttered down to Eliakim's shoulder, pressing its warm head into his cheek with a soft, anxious chirr. Eliakim brushed its feathers in silent reassurance.
Caleb didn't resist as the manacles — twisted silver and root — closed around his wrists. A glance passed between him and the queen. Eliakim caught the flash of familiarity there, but kept his face blank.
So this is staged, he thought. But whose stage are we standing on?
The prison was hewn into the lower rock of the ravine, its walls slick with damp moss and faintly glowing veins of crystal. The air smelled of cold stone and river silt.
Once the heavy root-woven door clanged shut, Gideon turned on Caleb."Alright," he said, crossing his arms. "What was that about? You go in for a chat, come out looking like you just signed a treaty, and then bam — we're all in chains."
Caleb leaned back against the wall, his eyes cool. "It's better if you don't know right now."
"That's not an answer," Gideon growled.
Ezra threw up her hands. "No, you know what's not an answer? This whole trip! We were supposed to see the crystal falls, maybe eat something that glows, not—" she gestured wildly around the damp cell "—get tossed in some underground tree-dungeon!"
Skyling, meanwhile, had hopped down and was already investigating the space between the bars. With a chirrup, it squeezed halfway through, its wings fluttering as it tried to wiggle free — only to get gently pushed back in by a watchful guard. The beast huffed, feathers puffed in indignation.
Eliakim leaned against the opposite wall, studying the guard through half-lidded eyes. "Interesting craftsmanship on those bindings," he murmured. "Do they hold up well against moisture?"
The guard frowned but didn't answer. A second, larger guard shifted his weight — the chains at his belt clinking — as if subtly signaling the first to ignore the bait.
Tested and noted, Eliakim thought. They're disciplined. Not easily provoked.
For the next hour, he quietly catalogued the rhythm of their patrol, the subtle glances between them, and the way they kept looking toward the inner hall — as though waiting for a signal.
This wasn't a real imprisonment.It was a staging ground.
And somewhere in that unspoken arrangement between Caleb and the queen… was the next move they hadn't been told about.