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Seth's group reached the rendezvous point under the dewy morning sun far before the others that had been sent to retrieve Raxtus had. Kendra and Garreth had spent the hours immersed in the old temple's faded design, while Seth had napped through the sunsnow weather.

By mid-afternoon, Seth was scouting out a less-snowy place for his next nap when he heard Eve scream. He rushed to the noise, feet catching in the snow and pine branches whapping his face, and burst onto the scene.

Eve had her arms thrown around Raxtus' neck and his snout leaned on her back. Warren was clapping Patton on his back, Ronodin was bickering with Newel and Doren (already), and Muriel and Kendra were speaking near the tents. Garreth arrived and went to congratulate Raxtus on his escape. Seth let out a sigh of relief.

It had been an excited scream.

Later that night, the crew shared the story of how they rescued Raxtus. Of course, Muriel, Patton, and Ronodin did their part to dispatch the guards and break the crystals, but all-in-all Raxtus had truly shined. He wasn't the weak, defeated dragon Seth had met in the mines anymore. Raxtus had grown into his claws and impenetrable hide, proving the immense strength of a single dragon.

Eve beamed with pride.

Patton even drew a little sketch of the Raxtus in his adventurer's notebook with a list of the dragon's traits. Seth made sure Patton added "sass." Raxtus's repeated digs at his charming nature remained ingrained in his mind.

Over the next few days, planning consumed their long hours. Kendra outlined her desires, complete with the seal of the Fairy Queen's approval, and others planned how to execute her goals. After intense deliberation, the group prepared to enact their layered, ambitious plan.

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All sub-groups were set to dispatch at the early hours before the sun's rising tomorrow. The timing protected their necessary stealth as the majority of creatures inside the ziggurat slept the sunshine away. This way, the majority of the ziggurat would be asleep when they hatched their rescue.

It had been Eve's idea, actually.

That anticipatory night, Warren sent Seth and Eve out to gather more tinder for the fire. They left their cozy spots around the campfire and braved the cold. It was what they got for being the youngest.

Wood-gathering was a never-ending job, and it was quite tedious to find dry tinder in the snowy conditions. Seth stuck out his tongue to catch snowflakes and relished the cool drinks of water. But, the longer he shivered out in the cold, the more he wanted to run back to Raxtus's warm wings.

"You know, I like not having to hold my tongue in the rafters anymore," Eve said. She kicked a rotting log open and leaned to inspect the contents. Dead, withered fungus greeted her. "It's nice."

Seth knelt and inspected the fallen tree beside her. Along the dark bark, he scraped off green lichen. "I bet."

"No one ever listened to me back in Terrabelle."

"You listened to everyone else," Seth said. Literally. With the tunnels and rafters, everyone's private conversations became Eve's entertainment. Seth worried, briefly, about the few conversations he had had prior to learning of Eve's extensive espionage system. Had he said something embarrassing?

She laughed and moved onto a new tumble of branches, brushing off the snow. "Yes. And, it's nice to have that reciprocated. They're using my plan for the timing of the mission tomorrow."

"I'm glad," Seth said. He stood up and scanned the area for more lichen. His teeth chattered against his skull. "I-It's really good."

"Thank you. I really feel in my element."

Seth ran his hands up and down his arms to build warmth. When that proved futile, he used his magic to pull heat toward him. Mmm. Warm and toasty. "I hope this mission goes well, because I cannot wait for you to join me and Patton on our expeditions."

After a little while, Seth had gotten over his original resentment of having to share Patton's attention. It was childish, of course, and Eve was his friend. She had never had a warm authority figure before, and her delight at impressing Patton was heart-warming. So, he learned to be happy with sharing.

"Don't even say that!" Eve spun around, her two face-framing braids smacking into her cheeks. Three pearls stopped the end of each. Whenever Seth saw a pearl now, he couldn't help but think of Terrabelle. The markets had always been crowded with them. "I'm too excited. Newel and Doren have been telling me about your guys' missions and everything."

"They don't even tell the stories well," Seth complained. He pulled dry leaves off a branch and tucked them in his pouch. The satyrs always remembered Seth's most embarrassing moments and seemed to forget his heroism. Funny how that worked.

"They tell them well enough," Eve defended. She used her dagger to peel off layers of bark off a tree.

Seth forgot about gathering tinder and focused on warming himself up again before his fingers turned blue. He glanced at Eve, who looked perfectly fine as she collected more bark.

Eve never complained about the cold, but she had also been the only one who had packed for this mission. She even had a light blue, oversized fur poncho decorated with a pearl trim that kept her extremely warm. Seth knew, because he had worn it before. Somehow, Eve had also kept it relatively clean throughout the whole trip.

Out of all of them, she always seemed the most put-together fashion wise. Even her hair looked nice. Two finger-width braids stopped with pearls hung in front of her face and the rest of her hair was in a pouf, framing her head like a halo. Once, Kendra had told Seth that she hoped Eve's fashion sense would rub off on him. That hadn't seemed likely then, and still didn't now.

"I hope everything goes well tomorrow," Eve said. She didn't turn back to look at him, and he could hear the congestion in her voice. He remembered his first mission—how it had felt to be away from home and doing things that scared yet excited him. It hadn't been easy.

He crossed the distance to Eve and hugged her. Her nose smashed into his shoulder and she sniffled. Rubbing circles into her back, he leaned down to speak.

"It'll be okay. I promise."

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The sky bled pitch black as Seth said his final goodbyes. The tall pine trees of their camp loomed over their group, and the snow looked like ash under the low light of the receding moon. Ronodin and Seth were the first to be dispatched, and everyone else kept glancing at them like they were already corpses.

While Ronodin reviewed the plan with Warren and Eve, Seth spoke to Kendra far enough away from camp to be private. Snow fell thickly, clumps hitting his shoulders and sliding down his scabbard. Pine trees formed a ring around them, stopping some of the snowfall. She created a small orb of light that floated between them, casting warmth on his forehead.

"Be safe," Kendra said. Her voice warbled. She pursed her lips and she looked down. Whenever she had bade him farewell on missions in the past, it had always been all smiles and just mild reassurances of safety. He had always had Patton, and the missions were never truly dangerous.

It was different this time.

"I will," Seth said. "You too, okay?"

She nodded. "I'm not saying goodbye."

Seth smiled. Warmth blossomed in his chest. "I love you."

"I love you too." Kendra hugged him tight. It reminded him of when he was little. Kendra would squeeze him so hard he couldn't breathe. But, now they were older and the same size so she had lost that kind of leverage. They had both grown so much and they would continue to do so because today wouldn't be the end of their lives--Seth was sure. But, the sun was going to rise soon and Seth needed to begin his leg of the mission.

"I have to go," he whispered.

She unwrapped her arms and nodded. Tears welled in her eyes and sparkled in the moonlight. "Tell them...tell them I love them when you see them."

His heart rate spiked. Fatalistic talk before a mission always unnerved him. He grabbed her clammy hands. "You can tell them yourself."

"I will. But, please?"

He nodded and swallowed the goodbye on the tip of his tongue. With one last crushing hug, Seth left the camp.

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High in the sky, freezing wind sliced his face as he leaned down on Raxtus. It was hard to keep a good grasp, considering that Raxtus was invisible. His invisible hands had a tight grip around nothing. His entire body was nothing, and so was Ronodin behind him—all invisible nothingness.

It freaked Seth out. At least when he shadow-walked, he could still see himself.

Raxtus cut an arc over the top of the ziggurat and Seth held his breath. Since everything was invisible, Seth had a clear view of the ziggurat. Enormous, gray steps of the pyramid rose out of the mountain of stone. But, the top wasn't their destination.

Dew collected on Seth's invisible face as they swirled through clouds. He blinked it out of the way as they dived down the other side of the ziggurat. Plants Seth didn't recognize burst relentlessly through the snow on cliff-side terraces, scraped out of the side of the mountain. Fablehaven had mild winters, but even they didn't bother cultivating crops during the cold winter.

Magic must be involved. Kendra would be excited about that. She loved practical applications of magic. Using it to grow crops during the winter? He could practically imagine her squeal.

Longing seized his lungs. He would see her again. He would.

Down below, small figures toiled the land. While the important residents slept away the day, the servants had shifts at all hours. Ronodin had told them that. It was the first piece of information Ronodin had gleaned and gave to them that proved to be true. A sunny omen.

Raxtus glided into a cluster of trees close to one of the farms. Brambles of thorns and overgrown vegetation attacked the impenetrable scales. Seth and Ronodin slipped off his back as he landed. His skin wasn't as impenetrable as Raxtus's and Seth winced as a thorn stabbed his ankle.

Raxtus breathed a little green mist out of his nose and the vegetation grew denser around them. They had their own hideaway now. "Be careful."

"Don't you worry," Ronodin said. He bowed to Raxtus. A unicorn custom? Maybe that was how unicorns said thanks for the ride. But, Seth wasn't a unicorn so he used his words.

"Thank you." Seth hugged Raxtus and leaned into the warmth.

Raxtus cloaked himself and took off, creating a wind that pushed against their backs. The dragon was going to go pick up more people and drop them off at their respective positions. Kendra, Muriel, and Garreth were a team, and so were Patton, Warren, and Vanessa. Eve was the coordinator. She spent hours memorizing the overlapping plans and the exact timing of Raxtus's arrivals and departures in all the various goals. Meanwhile, Seth and Ronodin only had a singular focus: reaching and extracting Grandma and Grandpa. It was a mission that required the utmost stealth, which lended it to the sneakiest of the group.

Together, they began to shadow-walk towards the farm. It was easy with the weak moon still hovering over the horizon and the night's darkness still a blanket. Servants shifted from harvesting to hefting bundles of dark purple grain into wagons all over the cliffside. Again, the timing was perfect. Thanks, Eve.

Ronodin pointed to the wagon closest to them.

"That one?" Seth whispered.

He nodded and they approached it.

While the servants grabbed another bundle, Ronodin boosted Seth into the wagon. He fell, but the dense purple wheat broke his fall. Ronodin tumbled in after him and Seth felt the familiar cool prickle of Ronodin's shadow falling over him as well. Seth let his own go, as Ronodin could easily cover them both.

Seth felt a bit bad about dirtying up all these people's produce, but then he remembered how they had his grandparents. But, he also knew how terrifying fear could control people. His most formidable tool was his magical fear, but it was something he used very sparingly. He remembered the terror Bahumat had caused him. The paralysis of the body and mind. He just felt horrible to inflict that on others. The Sphinx didn't have any qualms about that, though. Through fear-mongering rhetoric, he turned masses of people into hateful servants.

But Seth didn't call them victims—there was a fine line. He felt empathetic for scared people amidst the great anxiety that had descended on magicals and mortals alike. But, there were still consequences to letting something like fear gain control over you. While emotions may be manipulated, someone's actions were their own.

So, while Seth might have dirtied the wheat he lay in, he had no guilt; his hands were clean.

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The wagon clanked over the sharp stones and traversed tight turns up the cliff sides. Hitchhiking in a wagon officially ranked as Seth's worst form of transportation. He kept banging his head and the bumps made their positions change over and over again. This time, he ended up with Ronodin's feet in his face.

Seth wrinkled his nose and whispered into the dark purple wheat-y ether. "You smell bad."

Ronodin kicked his foot out. "Shut up."

The wagon stopped rolling and fear froze Seth's limbs. Their words didn't do that, did they?

"Route?" said a gruff voice speaking the goblin language. It had taken time for Seth to be able to tell when other creatures were speaking different languages since the translation came so effortlessly. But, he had finally gotten it.

"To the dungeon kitchens," a similar gravelly voice answered. Relief flooded Seth. No, they hadn't heard them.

"On your left, level five."

The image of Ronodin's map flashed into Seth's head. The majority of the ziggurat was underground. The first level was the top they had flown over. Level five was just underneath the skin of the mountain. There were many more levels beneath that, but not all of them numbered.

The creak of a door opening accompanied the wagon travelling again. Once the door slammed shut, the servants began to mutter. They had entered the ziggurt. Seth shivered despite the increased warmth. Avoiding the Sphinx had characterized the past season of Seth's life, and now they were entering the den of the beast.

The same gravelly voice began complaining to his servant partner. "I know the way. I don't know why he always feels the need to ask."

"They think we're dumb."

"You are dumb."

"Shut up."

The ride became smoother and quieter. Maybe there were quiet hours during the day so the demons and the like could sleep. Seth snuggled into the wheat. Ronodin also tried to get comfortable in the wagon, but ended up kicking Seth's stomach in the process. He grunted.

"Did you hear that?"

The wagon stopped. Icy adrenaline sped through his veins. He was going to strangle Ronodin after this, if no other demon completed it for him.

"No. But, my arms hurt so bad."

"Got a good harvest, I guess. The wagon's so heavy. Way heavier than usually."

Naturally, Seth assumed that was because of his immense, gigantic muscle mass weighing the cart down. Ronodin was a twig, and it couldn't possibly be him.

They continued traveling once again and the subtle rocking of the wagon, the low light, and the quiet almost lulled Seth to sleep by the time they got to their destination. Nevertheless, he was awoken by a rude stop.

Seth heard a knock at the door. Followed by another, louder one. They waited a few minutes but nothing else happened. Was this their destination?

The gravelly voice complained again. "They never hear."

"Well, I'm not going into the kitchens. I hate the smell of that food."

Personally, Seth found the aroma pretty appetizing. Was that apple pie? He wiped away his thoughts before his stomach growled, but it just smelled so good.

"Whatever. Let's just go."

The servants' footsteps rescinded until there was no noise but the rush of blood in Seth's ears. But, Ronodin could hear better and after he rearranged once again to be next to Seth, he slapped a hand over Seth's mouth. Seth was really tempted to lick it. Minutes passed as Seth fought the urge.

He almost lost the battle but then Ronodin took his hand off. Missed opportunity. "Let's go."

They climbed out of the wagon and emerged into a cave-like hallway. After he surveyed the dark surroundings, Seth's eyes landed on Ronodin and he slapped a hand over his mouth to suppress his laughter. Purple splotches like paint splashes covered Ronodin's skin. The wheat's natural dye must have rubbed off on him. "You look like you took a bath in a wine cask."

"You don't look much better." Ronodin grabbed Seth's purple hand and held it up to his face as proof.

Huh. He inspected his hand. Seth had always thought of purple as Kendra's color, but he was kind of rocking it. But, there was no time for such diversions, unfortunately. Seth put his hand down. "Where are we going?"

"A few more levels down."

Seth followed Ronodin through a series of passageways and stairways carved out of dark stone like Ronodin's rings. Sconces were lit at intervals too distant to be helpful, and lichen grew along the damp corners of the corridors. With the feeble torch light, Seth wished for Kendra's magic vision. Ronodin was doing just fine, however. Stupid unicorn night vision. But, it was more than that. Navigating these dungeons seemed like second nature to Ronodin.

Seth tilted his head. "How do you know this place so well?"

Ronodin sighed as he sped down steps two at a time. "I had a cousin who was locked up at one point and I had to break him out."

"I thought you didn't get along with your family?"

"I don't. But, my aunt is really powerful and it's nice to have something on her," Ronodin said. His tone was flippant, but he casted his face away like he only did when he wanted to hide his expression. This was personal for Ronodin. His dedication to the mission made more sense. His earlier given reasons were superfluous but this—this was personal.

Seth watched as Ronodin kept collecting shadow from the dark corridor to build a darker cover around them. The dark layer chilled the warm, earthy air and Seth could see his white breath again. "Did you get him out and everything?"

"Yeah." Ronodin glanced over at Seth. He put a finger to his lips and narrowed his eyes. "So I know I can do this. But I also know the Sphinx still holds a grudge about my previous break out, so it would be best if we do this quickly and silently."

Laughter bubbled up in Seth at Ronodin's frank dismissal, but he suppressed it for the unicorn's wish of silence. "Noted."

The ziggurat's tunnels looked as if huge moles had carved straight into and hollowed out the mountain. For some reason, he had always thought of the ziggurat as a step pyramid standing tall in some field. But, it made sense, in hindsight, that the mountain cloaked most of the ziggurat. Otherwise, it was kind of hard to defend such an eyesore.

Supposedly, they were using service pathways used only by the servants but Seth's memory of the map was a little too fuzzy to be sure of that. But that was okay. He trusted Ronodin's guidance. Sure, the guy was mischievous and a total scammer, but he also has been somewhat of a friend to Seth for the past several years. Plus, there really was no alternative to not relying on Ronodin. No one else had even an iota of familiarity with the ziggurat. And Ronodin had proven multiple times that he did.

Sweat dampened the fur of Seth's heavy coat, and his hat became uncomfortably warm even despite the cold shadow cover. Deep inside the mountain, it felt like they were wading through the earth's damp, hot breath. Seth unbuttoned his coat and flapped it around as they continued their journey. The heat was just absolutely oppressive.

Soon enough, the scrape of a sword against a sheath interrupted the silence of their slinking. It sounded close. Just around the bend up ahead. Instinctively, Seth flattened to the wall.

Ronodin leaned down to Seth. "Follow my lead."

Seth nodded, and followed Ronodin's confident strut a step behind.

Around the corner, two guards leaned against the entrance to the dark metal dungeon doors. Upon seeing Seth and Ronodin, they frowned. Scales covered the sparse uncovered skin of the guards underneath their heavy armor that was as dark as the new moon's night sky. They lounged on the wall and one used his dagger to pick his nails.

A split tongue flickered in between the green-skinned guard's teeth. "ID?"

Ronodin rolled his eyes. "Do you not recognize me?"

The green-skinned guard narrowed his eyes. The other one, with bright purple scales, stopped grooming himself with his dagger and straightened. "Do you have an ID?"

"Of course not," Ronodin snapped. It came natural for Ronodin to act like a priss. He just had to drop his usual polite act.

Goosebumps prickled on Seth's skin as the temperature dived toward freezing. The torches flickered in and out, and the shiver of magical fear spread across the room. If there was any doubt about the source, Ronodin ignited a cold blue fire in his hand. "Have you ever met a shadow charmer who relied on a card to certify their status?"

Frost sprouted from the cracks in the grout and crept over the boots of the guards. The implicit threat had the guards sizing Ronodin up. Evidently, they came to the conclusion that many had before in confrontations with Ronodin—that his charming appearance was simply a facade and weighed, instead, the malice in his eyes. After careful consideration, the green-skinned guard shook his head. "No, sir."

The purple-scaled guard bowed. "Your name, sir?"

Seth knew the unicorn was eating this up. Lording his power over others was probably the man's favorite pastime. A self-satisfied smirk grew across the unicorn's face.

"Ronodin."

The smirk dropped and Ronodin tensed ever so slightly. At that moment, Seth knew Ronodin had messed up. His stupid reflex had damned them. There was no doubt the Sphinx had popularized the name of a jail-breaking dark unicorn, and he had just told them his real name.

The green guard crept backward towards a rope hanging from the ceiling. Probably a warning bell. Well, that wasn't going to happen.

Seth thrust out his hand and froze the damp air. The burgeoning ice dust on the green-skinned guard's boots burst into icicles that wrapped around the green guard's legs. He toppled to the ground.

Seth drew his sword and slashed the dangling rope before anyone could get any ideas about it. The green guard drew his own blade and hacked at the ice around his feet. Seth swung his sword flat-side into his nose and watched the guard fall limp over his iced feet.

In his own altercation, Ronodin dodged the swipe of the purple guard's dagger and kicked his midsection. Ronodin's foot ricocheted off the dark armor with a painful wince. "Holy fuck."

Instead of more kicks, the unicorn tackled the purple guard to the ground. The helmet rolled off, and he punched him squarely in the nose over and over until consciousness fled the guard and his face was unrecognizable. Ronodin rolled over with a sigh. His knuckles were sticky with silver blood.

Seth lowered his sword with heavy breaths. "Just follow your lead, huh?"

"Shut up," Ronodin said. His face was flushed. "We need to get going."

"Think anyone heard all of that?"

"Don't have time to decide," Ronodin said. He wrenched open the dungeon doors. They clanged against the wall. A long, dark hallway with arches on either side leading to dark cells waited for them.

"Where are we going now?" Seth asked.

"We're here. This is the level for non-magical, important prisoners. Your grandparents," Ronodin said.

Excitement flooded Seth. He was almost to his grandparents. "Lucky us."

They embarked down the first dimly lit hallway. Damp air hung still and stuck to their faces, a sharp contrast to the dry coldness outside the ziggurat. A roach crept down the wall and turned into a cell. Seth gagged. Metal bars stretched from the floor to ceiling on the cells, but most of them were empty. Maybe the Sphinx didn't have that many non-magical prisoners. It would take a lot of resources to move far-flung opponents all the way to the mountains. Maybe he just killed them instead.

With no warning, a tremor ran through the floor, bouncing little rocks along the way. Seth lost his footing and crashed to the ground.

He quickly scrambled up. "What was that?"

Ronodin picked up the pace. He hasn't fallen, and just pushed his dark hair out of his face. "Let's not find out."

After their hallway proved to be deserted, they returned to the main corridor and took different routes.

The hallway Seth chose had people. Some jumped at their bars and hissed at him while others sat silently in the corner of their cells. It was extremely depressing.

He scanned every cell for a glimpse of his grandparents.

Seth wanted to release everyone, but the enemy of his enemy was not always his friend. He had learned that before on missions. Plus, if Kendra's plan worked out, they just might be able to release everyone. He trusted in her to complete her part and focused on completing his for now.

"Seth?"

Seth startled. That was his grandma's voice. He froze and doubled back to the voice. How could he have passed his grandparents?

He hadn't recognized them at first glance, but did now. Their cell was the same dark stone as everyone else's, and he slashed his sword across the bars. It just banged off. Hopefully Ronodin heard that loud bang and would come running.

"It's Seth, Stan," Grandma said. Her hair was a rat's nest, futilely tied up with a ribbon. Dirt and tears massacred her fine clothes, her eyes sunk far deeper into her skull than he had ever saw, and her face sagged with wrinkles. But, most jarring of all, her bones jutted out of her paper-thin skin.

In Grandma's lap was Grandpa's head, and he didn't look much better. He could barely open his eyes. "Seth?"

They looked like corpses. Seth was used to the undead, sure, but this rattled him more than anything he had ever seen. But, they didn't need to know of his shock and so he schooled his face. He could be strong for his grandparents, like they had been all his life until now. Their care-giving roles switched as was inevitable in any aging family. But, that didn't dull the sting of grief.

"I'm here," Seth said. He grasped the metal bars and cooled them down until cracks began to appear. He drew his sword and slashed through the frosted bars, cutting through the top. He did the same at the bottom of the bars, and the severed poles clattered to the ground. This had been his dream ever since they had been sieged, but he couldn't indulge his thoughts or emotions at the moment. If he did, he would collapse with heartache and relief.

He stepped in and pulled Grandma up. Grandpa's head clunked to the ground.

"Go out the opening," Seth said.

"But, your grandfather."

"I have him." Seth heaved to pull his Grandpa to his feet and hooked Grandpa's arm around his shoulder. As just skin and bones, he wasn't terribly heavy but carrying a man of such tall stature still encumbered Seth.

Grandma coughed and shuffled forward. Seth likewise struggled to get Grandpa out with him leaning on him. He couldn't do this. Not quickly enough. Not alone.

"Ronodin!" Seth yelled. He hadn't seen any guards along his way and hoped that still held true. "Ronodin!"

Seth gasped for air with Grandpa leaning on him. "Try to stand, Gramps."

"He can't," Grandma said. "He's been sick."

Hot tears began to roll down Seth's face. His grandparents were so beaten down; it was terrifying. They had always been his figures of absolute regal stability, and now Grandpa leaned all his weight on him. Life was a circle.

By the time they reached the end of the hallway, Ronodin sped down the adjacent one to meet them. He took in the scene and picked up Grandma bridal-style. If she had been more lucid, she would've kicked and screamed, especially since it was Ronodin. Seth's heart twisted to witness his loved ones so subdued.

"It's time to get out of here," Ronodin said.

They doubled back the way they came, slower with their cargo. Grandpa spit up a bit on him, and if Seth wasn't so terrified, he would have reacted with disgust. As it was, he was just grateful his grandfather was alive.

As they reached the dungeon doors, long shadows marched across the wall and a group of guards turned the corner. Before the guards could take in the two unconscious guard men, Seth, and Ronodin, Seth thrust out his hand and created a barricade of icicles.

They ran back the way they came.

"Where do we go?" Seth yelled. He shifted to carry Grandpa bridal-style and grunted as he kept going.

"I don't know. We're going to need to—AAAH!"

A blinding light seared Seth's eyes. His entire surrounding became bright white before fading. They froze in their tracks.

"What is going on?" Ronodin yelled.

Seth blinked his eyes out.

"It's the Queen," Grandma whispered into Ronodin's chest. "It has to be."

"The Fairy Queen?" Seth asked. Kendra was succeeding. It had to mean that. The alternative was that it was some kind of mourning and he wiped that thought away. Fatalism succeeded in nothing helpful.

"Whatever they're doing, I don't care. We have to keep going," Ronodin said.

Seth nodded and gulped down breaths. Exhaustion pulled at his strained arms. His lungs felt fit to burst; every breath filled with knives slicing his throat.

He forced his jerky legs to move again. Breaking-down was for later. Survival was now.

They jogged down a different hallway with the same dark, dim stone. There was not a single identifiable mark. Seth felt trapped in a never-ending mirror maze. The walls squeezed in on him.

"We can try to find another exit," Ronodin said.

"Where?"

"I don't know!"

Seth sucked in a breath. Focus. What could they do? Go back the way they came?

No, there were guards that way. Maybe there really was only one exit and it functioned as a bottleneck for the dungeon. But, Seth had looked at the sketches of the ziggurat, too, and he knew that the mountain hid levels upon levels of dungeon.

There was no way, administratively, that the entire dungeon could be serviced with one exit. Sustenance and surveillance were needed. Even with Fablehaven's own jail, there were multiple exits for the brownies and other administrative help. That had to hold true for the ziggurat. Logistics caved to no mortal.

"We should find a servant's tunnel," Seth said.

"They weren't on the map I saw last time I was here."

"That doesn't mean they don't exist. Think about it. They were everywhere else. They still have to serve food down here. The map-makers probably just didn't want outsiders to know the details of the dungeon," Seth said.

Grandpa's drool seeped through Seth's shirt. He just needed to hang on a little while longer. Seth would get them all out of here. He had promised Kendra she would see their grandparents again, and he meant that. She would. They would all return and pick up their broken pieces and become a family again. Seth kissed Grandpa's forehead. Stay awake.

Ronodin nodded. "Okay."

They jogged slower now, inspecting the walls as they passed. Frustration began to build in Seth as the same identical cells never seemed to end, but then something caught his eye. Of course! It wasn't going to be in the corridor in plain sight.

Seth slowed down and set Grandpa down on the floor gently. He did the ice trick on the bars of the cell in front of him again and slashed them away. Once he sheathed his sword, he stepped into the cell.

"Look," he said. On the far cell wall, a slab of the wall stood slightly ajar—just enough for Seth to notice the slight shadow. It must be a hidden servant's door.

"You're a genius, Seth," Ronodin said.

Seth preened as he stepped back out to pick up his Grandpa. All together, they entered the servant's tunnel.

Once Ronodin closed the door behind him, there was no light at all. Seth created a small fire on his fingertip to light the way, careful of his Grandpa in his arms. He held the finger far away from him. Everything ached—his heart, his back, his arms, his legs, his eyes. Exhaustion weaseled in to his fiber, weakening his will.

After a few minutes, they arrived at another stone door complete with the same never-ending black stone. Only his nightmares had ever had such perfect uniform cages.

He nudged the door open with his foot.

They were in another kitchen, yet this one was deserted. It made sense. The dungeons would need a place to make food. But, where was everyone? The thought escaped him. He didn't care.

Seth looked around. "Where to, now?"

"Well, I think we've lost them," Ronodin said. He looked at Seth up and down and concern turned down his lips. "A quick break while we're alone."

"I'm fine," Seth said. "We can keep going."

"No," Ronodin said. "My calves hurt."

No they didn't, Seth thought. But, he took it for what it was and laid Grandpa down. For a few moments, he sat on the cool floor and breathed in and out. The peace and quiet energized his mind.

Ronodin sat Grandma beside Grandpa, and poked around the kitchen.

"If this is the same as the one we first entered, there should be a corridor straight to the exterior of the mountain. For farming purposes," Ronodin said, which made enough sense.

"Where are all the workers? I thought they worked all day," Seth said. His mind had caught the thought again after his brief rest.

"Me too. I don't know. Something's happening."

"Something good, I hope."

Ronodin came back and picked up Grandma. "That would be fortunate, yes. But, either way, we need to get moving. I think I found the corridor we need."

Seth nodded, but then hesitated. Desperation moved his tight lips. "First, can you do something? For them, I mean?"

He knew Ronodin was a unicorn. Even though he had mastered more dark magic than light, Seth believed he had to have dabbled in some type of healing before. He had to. Please, please—he had to.

His grandparents were so freakishly out of it and it was terrifying Seth.

Ronodin grimaced. "I always sucked at healing."

Seth pushed the hair back from Grandma's forehead. She grabbed his hand, and focused her lost eyes on him. "Seth?"

"Please, Ronodin."

The unicorn sighed and knelt next to Grandpa first. With his hand held over Grandpa's forehead, he exhaled. Seth didn't see anything happen, but Ronodin moved on to Grandma and did the same.

She smiled faintly and closed her eyes again. Her grip dropped from his hand.

The adrenaline left Seth's body and it shook on its departure. Tears rolled down his face and his hands trembled. He wasn't safe yet, but he felt safe. His grandparents were stable. "Sorry. Thank you."

Ronodin looked uncomfortable. "No. It's okay. I'll take your Grandpa this time. Just...it's okay, Seth. Unicorns are notoriously bad at emotions, but—"

"That explains a lot," Seth laughed wetly and sniffled.

Ronodin grinned. He knelt and picked up Grandpa. "I suppose it does."

Seth pushed himself to his feet and waited for the last of his tremors to subside before doing the same with Grandma. He still shook, but not as bad as he just had.

Seth had not been as prepared as he had thought he had been. But, truly, there wasn't much he could've done to anticipate his grandparents' conditions without worrying himself into the ground.

They embarked through the new corridor. Seth didn't know if it was similar to the one before, because they had been buried under purple wheat at the time, but the damp, earthy smell was familiar. Plus, the dark stone was the same as every other place in the ziggurat.

After a lengthy walk, they came to a wooden door and Seth exhaled in relief. Finally. Something other than the dark stone. Ronodin nudged it open.

Gentle sunlight filtered through the mountains. Paintstrokes of red, pink, white, and blue formed the cloudy sunrise. Dry, cold air rushed in to greet their damp faces and snow chilled the sweat under their coats.

In a section of hidden deep brush, they set down their sleeping charges before sitting down themselves. The worst was over. Together, they had recovered his grandparents successfully. Something that had seemed like a dream months, weeks, or even hours ago.

Seth let the excitement, pride, and exhaustion wash over him. Now, they just had to wait for Raxtus to find and airlift them.

Dry wind tousled the leaves that Seth watched the sun rise through. The glowing sun broke the horizon, its rays finding Seth's face and warming the chill the months of winter had inflicted on him.

It was warm.

The sun was rising.

And it was a new day.

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thank you for reading!

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