.^^ Namean Weasel^^

— James —

I supported Athenos as he fell. He had woven a spell, but I couldn't see anything different yet. As soon as I touched him, however, he shocked me, and then reared back as if it had been far worse, on his side.

"Whoah! Are you alright?" I asked, confused.

He flexed his hand, then looked at me. "Yeah... I am now. I was drained, after building you and the Cerberus a second story to the house. Now you have the top floor to yourself... how did you do that? Did you mean to give me magic?"

I shook my head. "No? Perceval said I had a lot of it, when I was experimenting last night, but I thought he was exaggerating."

He snorted. "No. Show me what you made last night?"

I nodded and led him into the library garden, and he looked closely at the Bonsai. "Hmm... positively thrumming with power... a normal Mage would have been cold for weeks, after giving away this much."

"The coldness can last for weeks?!? Eesh." I shivered.

He nodded. "Mm. Or until you sleep, and regain some of it. This is impressive. I never thought I'd have a Battle Mage for a son, but I suppose your mother's Clan must be quite gifted... anyways, let's show you the upstairs." He carefully picked up the Bonsai, and carried it with us.

I grinned at the Giant room, and explained to Riley (the Cerberus,) that it was all hers and Perceval's. She dove into a pile of toys, and came out holding a goldfish-shaped squeaky toy.

Perceval leapt into the rafters, drawing my eyes to them, and I smiled. "This is awesome. You're sure we can have it? You weren't using it?"

"Not for more than my dust collection." He laughed, and pet Riley's head gently. "You're very welcome, Cerberus."

"I've named her Riley." I commented, sitting on my bed.

"Riley, Huh? Better name than Cerberus, I suppose." He nodded, and pet her some more, scratching her belly when she rolled over and demanded it.

"You do like dogs, huh? Unlike cats." I asked.

He shook his head. "I like all animals, except maybe birds. Cats and dogs definitely. I just can't handle them leaving their fur everywhere. I like my house clinically neat. Up here, though, there's no problem, because I'll never have to see the mess. And the bottom of the stairs should let out into the yard, now, so she can go if she needs to, once you've properly trained her."

I grinned. "Not much training necessary, when you can talk to them. She knows the rules."

"If only my dog's when I was younger had you around." He chuckled.

"Is the Gift of Tongues or whatever a rare gift? You didn't seem surprised at all, when you realized." I decided to ask.

He hummed, and sat in one of the chairs, after tossing the toys populating it into the pile, prompting Riley to dive into it. "Well... In my family? Not really. Not many have it, to my knowledge, but everyone in my family has a Gift of some kind. Yours is languages." He nodded.

"What's yours?" I asked.

"There's some debate about that, actually. My instincts for danger are top-notch, but I also remember every word I've ever read. In every language, every rune, everything. Learning to read a new language is as simple as reading a translation dictionary, and translating word for word as I read. So whichever, to be honest." He shrugged.

"That Sounds awesome. Bet it helped a lot in Med school, huh?" I asked.

He chuckled. "Your mother said the same thing, when we first met." He got quiet again, then shook his head, and left.

I sighed and got to work translating the book about magical plants.

—

A month. A month of weird, zany, interesting house calls and surgeries, and at least two more dragon's, (though we only saw one, and it was when we gave it pneumonia medicine,) before I got around to asking about what had attacked my mum again.

He shifted uncomfortably, when I asked at dinner, and I knew he had some information.

"Spit it out! I see you've got some information!" I frowned.

He sighed, rubbing his face. "The thing that stabbed her used a dagger coated in Elder Ashe. I've studied her toxin screenings, and I found something that resembled the Ashe, so I compared the two, and confirmed it. And what stabbed her was a shadow beast-kin of some kind. I confronted it in the Shadow-Realm, and it melted away. And your mother used a rune to hide from it, with her own blood. That's all I know, Alright?"

I sat down, shocked. "Okay... So wait, I thought Elder Ashe was a good thing, it helps you control Wild Magic?"

"Yeah... unless your life-force is Nature Magic." He sighed.

"Can you give me some context?" I asked.

"Your mother is likely a Fire or Nature Fae of some sort. Maybe a Dryad or a Nymph, or whatever the Irish version is. That's why you have red hair, even though I don't, and red hair is a recessive gene. She used magic I don't recognize, and she wasn't shy about it." He sighed.

"Oh... okay, so she's a Fairy? That's your answer?" I asked, confused still.

"Something like that, Yeah. She must be. And one of her sisters must have sent the Revenants after us at her request. It may also explain why she left me. The Fae are a very exclusive club, so to speak. That I had sired a Halfling, they must've been mightily pissed. And that's why she never taught you magic, as well, because she probably knew you didn't have her type of magic, but rather mine, and she wasn't allowed to bring you into her world." He sighed. "Are you Sorry you pried, now? These are things most kids wouldn't want to know."

"Yeah, but it's all just hypothesis, right? Until I can talk to her, we won't know for sure!"

"True." He nodded seriously. "That's very true. And to do so, we may need to find the cure for Elder Tree Poison, as well as the bastard that stabbed her. I swore we'd find and hurt the bastard, and we will."

I nodded. "Okay, let me catch up... mum is still sick with blood poisoning because the poison is magical."

"A-Yep."

"And we are going to go find the cure."

"A-Yep."

"And then we find the person who hurt her, after interrogating her and finding out if she knows exactly who were hunting, and then we hurt that person, and give them to the proper authorities, AKA the Ogres."

"Exactamundo, compadre." He nodded.

"Alright, What are we waiting for?"

"Breakfast, for one thing." He smiled.

—

"Keep up, old man!!!" I laughed, and stood at the top of the trail.

"I'll have you know... Huff... that I am in excellent health... huff... for a man my age!!!" He growled at me, down the slope a bit.

"Yeah, do you need an Advil for your back-pain?" I smirked.

"As a matter of fact." He said saucily, and drank a bit of whiskey from a flask on his belt.

"You've never hiked before, have you?" I asked.

"You've never experienced arthritis before." He quipped back. "And for the record, I used to hike quite a bit with my mother and father, through! Huff! The nine realms! And beyond!" He finally reached the top with me.

"Oh yeah? Like where?" I asked, and started down, towards our destination, the portal doorway in the bow of the mountain. He'd gotten us on a plane all the way to Wyoming, in the Rocky Mountains, in hopes of finding a doorway just like it.

"Well... Helheim was a favorite, because of the many crystals there... it's where I lost my mother, but that's a different story. I've been to Muspelhein, fought a dwarf there for a ring, won, then brought it back." He frowned.

"A wedding ring?" I asked casually.

"I sold it back to the dwarf for a pound of Dwarven Gold, a week later." He said stonily.

I hummed. "What about your dad? You said he was still around, yeah? Will I meet my paternal grandfather?"

"Definitely, Yeah. He lives in Athens, actually... you'll meet him, and the rest of my clan, when I take you there next summer." He nodded.

"Making plans already?" I laughed.

"Oh yeah. And I'll sneak you off for a weekend in Laos, as well... Cambodia is a great place, full of magic. The dragon's are very wise, as well, and much less likely to eat you than western dragon's." He grinned.

I grinned back, and grabbed his arm, touching the portal.

"Not that Kind." He commented, when nothing happened, and then walked us through.

We stood in a sort of twisted forest. The trees felt me, but didn't have enough energy to care about me, which was heartbreaking.

I pushed magic into the ground underneath me, and the grass turned green for a few seconds, before something leeched it all away.

"Not wise, child. To give to this land is to give of yourself, and you do not want to pay what it will ask of you." A beautiful woman appeared, walking amongst what I had thought were plants, but moved, and showed themselves to be zombies.

"Dayum... zombie lady is thicc, huh?" I murmured in appreciation of the lovely and plentiful womanly curves.

Athenos smacked my skull, while she only raised an eyebrow, clearly having heard, but choosing not to be offended. "Ahem, I appreciate you warning him, Miss...?" He asked.

"Rafaela. Rafaela Nero." She bowed pleasantly, and I nudged him with an elbow.

He growled at me softly. "You horny pubescent boy I swear I will end your life if you don't grow manners on top of those hormones!!!"

"Sorry." I mumbled.

"Ahem, well, it's pleasant, meeting you, that is, miss Nero. I wonder, actually, if you could point us in the direction of the lord of this Realm? I have questions about a member of the local Shades, he stabbed a friend of mine with a knife coated in Elder Ashe?" Athenos asked.

She blinked. "I am second in command, in this particular kingdom, and I can tell you that which you seek, for a price."

"Dinner? Breakfast?" I grinned, and Athenos cut his eyes at me, glaring like death himself. "Sorry."

"What would you like in return for information?" He asked her.

"The Boy makes another comment, my price will be his boyhood..." she said calmly, but she was obviously less than amused.

"He will silence himself, Rest assured." Athenos glared at me again pointedly.

"Mm... well, as it happens, I am in need of a supply of blüdmoss, and some other small herbs that do not grow in this dimension." She sighed, and sat on a tombstone.

"I have a good amount of anything you need, ma'am, though, as a doctor, I must say that Tide-Grass is much better for monthly pains and blessings, and any spell, as well. Much more potent, for the more potent-... symptoms." He said casually.

She blinked in surprise, and blushed, but nodded. "I see. Well, a doctor's advice is always appreciated. I also need, for unrelated potions, Hair of a Dwarf, Blood of an Ogre, and perhaps I'm running low on Toad-Stones."

He nodded and laid out what she asked for on a fallen tombstone, which seemed disrespectful to me.

She saw me squirm, and nodded. "Rest assured, Boy, these tombstones are not Sacred. No soul was ever put to rest under them. This entire realm is nothing but a stage-play. A deadly one, with real swords and monsters, but it never had actual cities and such."

I nodded slowly, remembering I wasn't supposed to speak.

"Hm. Anyway, you've kept your end, I suppose. I do know of the Shade you speak of. Beast-Kin, a great Hunter. Recently summoned by an Asian sorcerer in America, Midgard... he is still summoned, I believe. He hasn't returned." She answered easily.

"Do you have any of his essence, so I may track him?" Athenos asked.

She hummed, examining her flawless nails. "Perhaps."

"Don't play games with me, he stabbed the boy's mother and left her for dead, I WANT HIS HEAD!!!" Athenos roared, and the trees flexed away.

She blinked, and leaned back, surprised. "Oh? That's unfortunate."

"What. Is. Your. Price?" He asked slowly, attempting to appear calm, though the ice that was forming on his knuckles belied that image.

She kept her eyes on the same thing as I had, and answered faux-casually. "Oh you know how it is... he's technically a minion of mine, I can't sell him out without there being a lot of riddles and nonsense involved..." she sighed theatrically, but her hands drifted closer to her hips, where a small dagger sat.

I gripped his shoulder, feeling Danger come for him, if he took a step forward.

He glanced at me, and slowly nodded. "Perhaps... I lost my temper. I apologize. Please, hoops are no obstacle to me. I only want to find him." He forced his voice calm.

She nodded, relaxing, and looked at me. "The Boy is at an annoying age, but has instincts most have fought and killed for. I will give you what you seek, in return for one of his eyes."

"No deal." He said stonily, when I almost took a step forward.

"Truly? Such an easy way out... Eyes can be regrown." She shrugged.

"No. Deal."

She sighed. "Hoops it is, then. Retrieve for me seven flowers that begin with the Omega rune, and end with the Alpha rune, by sundown, and I will give you what you seek."

I grinned and began pulling plants out of both of our bags, careful with each, until I had seven plants that started with Z, and ended with A, or started with O, and ended with A.

She looked grudgingly impressed, and sighed. "Fine... Here." She tossed Athenos a small bottle, which held a murky essence, and a card, which held unmistakable digits. She smirked when he looked at her. "As Long as the boy's mother isn't an issue... and you don't mind the 'Thicc Zombie Chick'." She said flirtatiously.

He grinned and tucked the essence in his pocket. "Absolutely. I'll give you a call, next time I'm not busy. Doctors are always busy, you know, so don't be offended, you know, if I don't call for a while, my schedule's pretty hectic, and-"

"Uggggh you Sorry old man! Shoo! That was your exit!" I picked up his bag, placing it on my own shoulders, and then shoved him through the portal. Then I  looked at the woman, and sighed. "Sorry if I was rude. I'm still getting used to male role models, and figuring out the difference between Guy time and... every other time."

She smiled. "Oh I know. My son was the same, around your age, and I imagine my daughter will be far, far worse. Now you'd better go, before- ahhh, Fuck." She looked behind me, and sighed.

I looked, and groaned at the locked portal. "You don't happen to have a spare key, yeah?" I asked her.

She shook her head. "Not one you could use. I'm only here because you showed up. Usually I'm at home, selling fake Voodoo to Tourists."

"So, What, we open the portal, and you get a page on your pager to show up to work?" I asked.

"Nail on the head." She shrugged.

"And when you return... what? You just... Death-Poof?" I asked.

She laughed loudly, clutching her stomach. "Yes, that's exactly it!!! HAHAHAHA!!! I 'Death Poof'!!! HAHAHAHA! Oh gods above I'll tell that too my grandchildren!" She giggled uncontrollably.

When she called down, I sighed. "So let me guess. To get out, many hoops."

"Nail on the head..." She sounded much less happy about it this time.

"Alright, well, let's get started." I rubbed my hands together.

—

Good thing, about the Dark Dimension: Most everything was made of magical ingredients of some kind.

Bad thing, about the Dark Dimension: Most everything was magical, and therefore dangerous as all hell.

I knew, from my lecture before we got here, and my studying, that time flowed differently in these types of dimensions, unless you had something to anchor you on the outside.

In this particular dimension, time moved much, much faster. So much so, that a year in here wouldn't even be a few minutes, out there.

It would take at least that long for him to try to get me out, but I had his bag, so I was, effectively, on my own.

I had Perceval and Riley with me, which was a good help, and Rafaela had been nice enough to give me a Sword that drove away and wounded dead things, before she left me with instructions.

She checked on me every few days, getting an update, or just giving me food, which was appreciated. Not much food was to be had, here, except the occasional not-dead creature, but I found myself having a new appreciation for roots. They were the most proliferous of all the plant-life here, and imbued with fascinating magical properties.

I did, however, spend about a month peeing Black and having the squirts, after eating a tasty-looking mushroom I found. Rafaela told me I was lucky it wasn't even worse, as I'd eaten a Deathcap.

Silver lining, I had Athenos's bag, and all the magical talismans and books in it. So I used the time between challenges, (there were so many of them, and you had to take breaks between them, for some stupid reason, likely the creator being a sadist,) to read, and study.

The entire realm, about 60 kilometers squared in a oblique ellipse of some kind, was littered with crystal trees, by the time I finished the last challenge.

They were the only types of plants I could make that didn't wither, and still healed the land a bit, injecting pure, unadulterated proteins and minerals into the soil, and reviving nearby plant life forcefully.

The realm couldn't take away as fast as they were giving, and Rafaela expressed several times how happy she was there was some color in the landscape at last.

I collapsed out of the new portal, into Athenos's arms, and grinned. "Did you call her yet?"