Emory scowled and paced in another quick circle around the base of the Raven Queen's statue, the heels of his stealthy boots quiet even against the hard stone below his feet. On the west side of the courtyard there was a faint, glittering trace of pink and purple glyphs that kept fading in and out of view. That meant Rubius had drawn the teleportation circle, but had not yet spoken the final words to cast the spell and activate the circle.

Unfortunately, due to the magical defenses of Gloomhaven, whenever someone attempted to use the teleportation circle in the courtyard, Emory's skin sparked and itched all over with the warning of impending visitors. So it had been a solid ten minutes now of itching and sparking and cursing, and Emory was thoroughly enraged.

It didn't help that the midge in his bed had refused to tell him anything. He could see it in her eyes, she knew exactly where she came from. The only thing stopping him from shaking her and demanding answers was the genuinely lost look that filled her eyes when he told her she was on the Mundane plane.

She must be from elsewhere, then. The pool that had opened on his sand dune must have been a portal to or from somewhere. Emory hadn't met anyone like this creature Midge before, but the realistic options for where she came from were limited. There was the Shadowfell, of course, Emory's original home. It was a place for creatures who loved dwelling in darkness, embracing the inevitability of death with glee. Nightmarish horrors were never hard to find if one was looking for adventure, but Emory had fled that plane long ago. It was possible this Midge had originated there and was some sort of vampire variant, perhaps, but none like Emory had ever seen, and she had asked for water, not blood.

She could be from the Beastlands maybe, but Emory had met several humanoids from the Beastlands and all of them were animalistic shapeshifters of different varieties. Their animal forms were always close at hand for any situation in which they felt vulnerable or frightened. If Midge had been able to turn into anything but what she was, she'd have done so immediately, that much was clear to Emory.

That portal had not led to the Nine Hells, or to one of the gods' Elysium planes locked behind the Divine Gate. There was a vague possibility she had emerged from the Elemental Planes of Chaos, but she did not exude the fierce, blinding power of nature that such elemental creatures possessed. The Astral plane was only used for traveling.

That left the final and at this point most likely option...

Before Emory could complete his thought, the sparking on his skin culminated to an electric surge that was not painful, but was certainly unpleasant, and he stepped around the edge of the statue just in time to see the teleportation circle flash to life. With the sound of ancient machines attempting to start up, clicking and far off clunks from beneath the ground, the glyphs brightened and sent out a gleam of light that made Emory wince back and close his eyes.

When he opened them again, the ancient and wizened Rubius stood in a circle of drifting smoke, the glyphs fading back to solid stone once more. He was a human man, ninety years old if he was a day, with a white beard that trailed down to a wispy point at mid-chest, and a matching ponytail drawn back from his sallow, wrinkled features. Dressed in his customary purple robes, he was in the midst of polishing his golden spectacles and looked surprised that he had appeared where he was. Lots of that going around.

"Rubius. Finally. Why did you let the damned circle hover for so long?" Emory demanded, striding to the old fellow and crossing his arms.

"Oh, dear. Emory, so sorry." When Rubius spoke, his voice was strong for one as old and frail as he. "I was trying to complete the circle but  the market owner kept insisting I was not allowed to leave."

"I see." Emory peered at the glowing green necklace around Rubius' neck. "And it had nothing to do with that jade stone you bought with all the money you definitely have?"

"No compassion for an old man in need of simple magical supplies," was all Rubius would say, sniffing and perching his spectacles back onto his nose. "Now, I believe dear Rita was trying to tell me something about a pond that needs looking after."

"No, no pond, more like a muddy pool. You ought to take a peek at that later, as well. First, however, I need you to examine the creature that has arrived through the unpleasant portal. I think it may be from the Faewild."

It was the only option left that made a remote bit of sense. Creatures did not travel to or from the Faewild very often, as the chaotic magics of the plane tended to play havoc with time; a clueless person attempting to pass from the Faewild back to the Mundane plane could easily land a hundred years in the past or future, sheerly out of bad luck. Thus, not much was known of fae creatures, other than fauns who were wildly populous in every plane Emory had ever visited.

"Ought to get Rita to look at her," Rubius grumbled, but he was already shuffling past Emory to the circular trap door entrance of Gloomshadow.

"She already did, and I plan to have her do it again, next time she messages me to check in. But you are the island researcher and magical creatures expert, so I expect at least a modicum of effort, Rubes. And Rita was the one who found it, I presume if she already knew what the thing was, she'd have said so."

"Very well, very well. Open the door then, you paranoid sky-rat." Rubius' dark brown eyes flicked sharp and keen up at Emory from beneath his shaggy brows.

"You are not very nice to the fellow who could kick you out of that remote, picturesque beach-side mansion of yours at any time, dear Rubius." Emory leaned down to plunge his key into the trap door and hauled it open.

"It's more of a picturesque beach-side hut. You're a stingy youngster."

Emory rolled his eyes and helped the old fellow down to the first step, ignoring that 'youngster' comment. The human was incredibly skilled at the casting and memorization of teleportation circles, which was the main reason Emory had invited him to retire on the island three years ago, not his sparkling personality. Emory's own fast-travel options were limited by the Raven Queen's inevitable demands.

They made their way down the spiraling steps to the long, dark hallway once more, the eternally flickering blue lamps outside his office door serving as their guiding beacon. The door answered only to Emory's touch, so he took the lead into his office.

"Stand here, next to me," he ordered Rubius, then grasped the raven statue on top of the desk. With a lurch and an ominous rattle of chains, the entire central portion of the office began to descend, slow at first, then picking up speed until Rubius fell forward to clutch the desk for balance.

After only a few moments, the elevator settled to a stop in his second office, the one that held Emory's personal teleportation circle, long in disuse, as well as all his tools and gear for the Raven Queen's missions. Ornate chests lined the walls, some full of old books he wished to keep locked away, some stocked with disguise kits, some with weapons and armor. It was really more of a storage space than an actual office, but it felt glamorous to Emory to be able to say his 'second office,' so he did.

Stepping off the elevator, he waited for Rubius to follow, then tugged on the matching raven statuette mounted into the wall near the desk. The large section of floor containing the desk ascended once more, leaving a polished stone floor behind and filling the gaping hole in the ceiling above.

Leading the way out of his Second Office, he closed the heavy black stone door behind him. Rubius followed, producing a small stone from his pocket and tossing it up in the air where it caught and hung, rotating in a slow circle around his head and casting a circle of dim light in the corridor.

Emory gave him a queasy smile. "Wonderful."

It had been difficult enough bringing the unconscious Midge here, where none but himself had stepped in so long. Now, on the same day, he was bringing a very clever if slightly befuddled old wizard into his private domain, completely awake? What was wrong with him? He had to get rid of this nuisance from the Faewild, things were already going to the Nine Hells around here.

"Don't be looking around too closely, now," Emory said, squinting at the wizard, who merely blinked in a startlingly accurate imitation of an owl. "And keep your grubby hands off."

"Off... of what?" Rubius questioned, following Emory through the twisting tunnels, ducking through the narrow doorways fashioned for one of a Shadar-kel's small stature. The halls were all carved through solid black rock that had been polished to gleam in the faint white light from the wizard's floating stone.

"Everything." Emory knew he was being unreasonable; if he were a bird, his feathers would be ruffled. Fluffing his cloak so it streamed dramatically behind him, he swept around the next corner and stopped before an unobtrusive stone doorway set into the side of the tunnel. The only indication of its existence was a line of blue light glowing from the cracks in the rock. Normally there would be no sign of his bedroom door at all, but he had left the candles lit for Midge's sake. This sort of light didn't bother him, anyway.

Pushing open the door, he peered inside to ascertain the status of the new arrival. Her long, pale grey hair was scattered across his black pillow, and her angular face looked just as lifeless as before, unless... was it his imagination, or were her cheeks beginning to go a little pink? Her translucent eyelashes were nearly invisible, but they glimmered faintly when her eyelids trembled. She didn't wake, however, when Emory crept in and stood upon the soft carpet before his lush bed.

Rubius stepped in after Emory, considerably less quiet with his shoes clacking against the stone before he reached the carpet, but Midge's brows merely wrinkled before smoothing again.

Emory allowed Rubius to take the lead; the wizard rummaged within the depths of his luxurious robe and produced a large, leather-bound tome. Undoing the clasp, he flipped with practiced ease to a page he clearly used often, stroking his beard as his eyes scanned the strange wizarding symbols Emory didn't recognize.

Then his fingers began to trace in the air, and he looked up again, closing the book with a snap. Looking at the bed, a frown began to sag the old wizard's features.

"What is it? What are you doing?" Emory demanded in a whisper.

"I'm detecting magic on her person. I think your theory must be correct," Rubius answered, his voice a little too loud in the pristine atmosphere. "She's covered in conjuration residue, of the Chaotic variety."

Conjuration was the wizard school of magic that teleportation spells belonged in, that much Emory knew. He opened his mouth to reply, but before he could, Midge began to stir. Her papery forehead wrinkled in a frown, and her wide mouth mirrored the expression as her flat grey eyes opened once more.

She half-sat up in the bed, body tensed and fingertips tight on the blankets, staring at Rubius first, then looking back to Emory. "Hello..."

"Sorry to bother you again so soon. How are you feeling?" Emory hadn't intended on apologizing, but something about the elegant, yet animalistic way Midge was poised in his bed, like a predator whose den had just been invaded, set him on his heel. Not nearly as meek and confused as when she first woke.

"It is all right." She paused, looking down at herself, then the bedside table where Emory had left a glass of water. Reaching for it, she drained the entire thing in a moment, and when she spoke again her voice was less raspy. "I feel... better. Good. Excellent. How long is it since I arrived?"

"You've been sleeping a few hours, now," Emory replied.

"Oh. That's strange. I feel like I've been sleeping for days." She swung her legs out from beneath the blankets. She was no longer naked, but clad in some of his pajamas and a robe, which Emory was glad of; he had not found the sight of her grey skin clinging to her bones at all pleasing.

"You move with more energy than I'd have anticipated, for a starving woman," Emory commented, watching her push to her feet and pace towards them, stopping at the foot of the bed.

"I'm not starving," Midge replied, tilting her head to one side. "I just never get hungry. Although now that you mention it, I am rather hungry right now."

"Well, I'll bring some food soon, then." Emory crossed his arms, determined to regain control of the situation even as he had to tilt his head back to look up at the looming Midge. "But first things first. I know you remember where you're from. Tell me. Is it the Faewild?"

She paused again, as she seemed to every time before speaking. "Yes. Yes, that must be it."

That must be it? She was still trying to play her cards close to the chest. Emory supposed that was fair, as she had only just arrived, but it was frustrating not to be able to ascertain her threat level. He wanted to foist her off on the village if she wasn't a danger to anyone.

"Well, perhaps you'll feel more forthcoming after your free meal, provided by my good self," Emory said. "First, however, despite your feeling of good health, you still look terrible. Allow my doctor, Rubius, to attend you."

She blinked, glancing back at Rubius and pushing a hank of limp, grey hair behind one ear. "You would have him as my physician?"

Emory glanced at Rubius and laughed. "What? Do you have a problem with wizard doctors?"

"Not generally, but he's human. And he's so y--"

Rubius cleared his throat to cut her off. "Please, Emory, we'll have a private examination and get to know each other without your oppressive presence. If you don't mind? Doctor-patient confidentiality and all that."

Emory narrowed his gaze at Rubius, but he trusted the old wizard. "Very well. I will leave you to your examination. But I expect to hear anything that's relevant to my island or the safety of it."

"Yes, yes," Rubius said with a wave of his hand.

Emory stepped back to the bedroom door, keeping his eye on Midge and Rubius the whole time, who continued to keep an eye on each other in silence until Emory closed the door behind him, leaving himself back in the darkened hallway, alone.

Alone, except for the queasy feeling that his close and trusted ally, Rubius, was keeping something from him, which followed him all the way back to his Second Office.