They followed the Shadow to the palace. Iris was looking curiously around her when they approached the crumbled remnants of what used to be a wall. Even though the place looked alarming with all the shadows and darkness coiling around them, Iris felt oddly at peace. Her head almost stopped throbbing entirely, and all the tension that accompanied her since they'd entered the Shadow Realm disappeared.

While crossing the big empty area that must once have been a front courtyard, she noticed more shadowy creatures. They all cowered from them, hiding in the safe darkness of the corners of ruined buildings. They appeared almost human-like.

Alaife - that's how the Shadow asked them to call it – opened the heavy wooden door and gestured them to follow it. They entered the main building. Most of the walls remained solid, while the roof was a patchwork of holes. But there was no rubble inside as if someone cleaned it all up to make it look more like a place to live. In the main hall, they were walking on the thick carpet that probably had some intense hue back in its glory days, but now it was only plain grey, like everything that surrounded them.

'Isss thisss not exciting?' asked the Shadow when they approach another door. They looked solid and undamaged by the ruination that held all the palace in its grip. Iris noted that there were no other doors that she could see here. Mostly it was just empty frames indicating that there were some doors there at some point. But this one in front of them looked brand new. It didn't have any carvings and looked rather bulky, like not very experienced carpenter made it. 'The reunion after sssuch a long time!'

'Spare me your comments, Shadow,' hissed Kara, looking at the creature with hostility.

'Apologiesss, my lady.' Alaife bowed their head, and they sounded almost sad. Then they took a handle and used their shoulder to push the door. It opened with an ear-splitting sound of wood scratching the stone floor. It was not fit well into the frame.

The room they entered must have been some reception room in the past. It was spacious. The walls were once fitted with big windows that reached from the floor all the way to the ceiling – now only holes remained there. It felt as if the room was surrounded by columns supporting the roof.

In the middle of the chamber stood an oversized chair that looked like a throne. A man was sitting on it, his posture sloppy, with head propped on the elbow and another hand tapping at the armrest. Iris couldn't help thinking that he looked bored. But when they entered, he perked up, his back straightening, his head held up. Iris looked at him curiously.

He was human, there was no doubt about that. It must have been Kara's husband. But he looked slightly off, although it was hard to put the finger on the exact reason why. His face was thin and gaunt, his brown hair matted and peppered with grey, his skin was ashen, and his whole frame was incredibly lanky. He must have been handsome once, but now he looked more like a wreck of a man, exhausted by the hard life he had to endure. But his eyes were shining. And they were completely black.

Kara stopped dead in her tracks, her mouth opened, her face unnaturally pale. She looked as if she saw a ghost. Which was entirely accurate, considering she just met the man who was supposed to be dead for years now. It was one thing hoping for this to happen, then another seeing it with one's own eyes.

'Nightingale! It is you! I can't believe it!' the man bellowed. His voice, unlike his frail body, was strong and boomed in the spacious room. He jumped off his set and dashed towards them. Before anyone could react, he closed Kara in a tight embrace. She seemed to be too shocked to move, though, her eyes wide.

'S-Sam?' she stuttered, her voice weak and shaking. She gently pulled away and raised her hand, fingers hesitantly touching his face, as if she were probing if he was there. Then her eyes filled with tears, and a sob escaped her mouth. 'Oh, Lord Sun, it is you!'

'It is me,' he whispered and kissed her, pressing her tightly to his chest. 'I can't believe you are here, love. What are you doing here? When I was told you are here, I didn't believe it. I was certain it was another trick of this hellish place!' he gasped, his hands caressing her face and stroking her hair. 'I never dared to hope....'

Kara interrupted him with another kiss. Iris turned away. This moment seemed so intimate she didn't want to intrude. They seemed so endlessly happy at this moment as if they were the only people in the whole world. Like nothing else mattered if only they felt each other's touch. Iris felt warm and fuzzy inside. It was beautiful, and she wished she could stop the world from moving to give them more time to share this moment.

She noted Myr and Arlo were strolling towards them. They must have been sitting on the bench behind the throne at the back of the room. That's why she failed to notice them earlier. To her relief, they didn't look harmed in any way. Though Myr's face was crossed and unhappy, Arlo seemed to be his usual cheerful self.

'Well, that's a heart-warming welcome if I've ever seen one,' he said with a wide grin.

Kara snorted, resting her brow against her husband's. He gently wiped her tears with his thumbs and said: 'Forgive me this rather emotional outburst, but I couldn't help it.'

'Take all the time you need,' said Marcus gently. Sam looked at him, and his face lit up even more. He hesitantly let go of his wife and turned to him.

'Marcus, my old friend! Am I glad to see you!' They exchanged an enthusiastic handshake. 'How is it possible you are here? Is the word true then? Do you have a Realmfarer with you? Who is it?' He looked around, and his black gaze stopped at Jayden. 'Is it you?'

Jayden shook his head and gestured toward Iris.

Sam looked at her, not bothering to hide his surprise. 'This little girl?'

'I'm not a little girl!' she protested. After everything she's been through, someone patronising and treating her like a child annoyed her.

'Of course, you're not. Forgive me!' He came up to her, fell on his knees, and grabbed her hand. Iris gasped, surprised. His hands were freezing, and his touch almost stung, leaving pinpricks on her skin wherever he touched it. 'You are my saviour, my sunshine, my only hope in this cruel and merciless realm!'

'Enough,' Myrica appeared next to them and shoved the man back, away from Iris, ignoring fierce protests from Kara. 'First things first. Before we take you back, you have some explaining to do. You are reeking of the Shadow Magic,' she accused him with evident disgust marring her beautiful face.

Sam scoffed and then laughed as if she said something funny. 'So that's why you were glaring for me all this time! That's it? That's your only concern?'

'It is a big thing, Sam,' said Kara, her voice quiet and sad. 'Your eyes... What did you do?'

'I did what I have to,' he replied, his voice cold and firm. 'How do you suppose I survived in this place, hm? There is no light here. My magic was utterly useless,' he sighed. 'I don't even know how much time has passed. How long?'

'Eight years,' said Kara, her voice barely louder than a whisper.

'Eight years,' Sam repeated, run a hand through his hair and chuckled. 'I thought surely it was longer. You see, the time is funny in this realm,' he paused and looked at them all in turns. They all still have distrust painted all over their faces. He sighed again and crossed his arms. 'Fine, I know what you all think. Cursed Shadow Magic and all that nonsense. Well, that's not far from the truth, but while I'm here, corruption is not working the usual way, all right? Besides, there is so much you don't know about Shadow Magic. You can't even imagine!'

'Well, that's partly why we are here,' grunted Marcus. 'We were hoping you can help us in that matter. I don't know if you are aware of what's happening in our realm?'

'Just bits and pieces. We do get occasional peek through the veil, but not for long.'

'The Grand Inquisitor seized all the power and used the Shadow Magic to keep it,' said Marcus.

'That was a short but oddly accurate description,' snorted Arlo.

'The Grand Inquisitor, you say?' Sam said, rubbing his chin in thought and looking at Alaife. 'Do you think he's the one Brath allied with, ?'

'It ssseem ssso, Massster,' replied the Shadow. Iris jumped at the sound of their voice. They were standing near the door all this time, without making any sound, so she completely forgot they were there.

'That would explain why he became so unbearably powerful lately.'

'Brath?' asked Marcus raising his brow questioningly.

'We have much to discuss,' said Sam walking towards the door. 'Follow me, folks. We can talk in the library.'

'You have a library here?' asked Marcus with disbelief.

'Oh, you're gonna love it, old pal!'

Picture by darksouls1 fromPixabay