Chapter 9
The next day in the common area, Lolita excitedly hurried over to speak with Rune and Stone. “Look at my fancy new boots!” She turned her foot this way and that to show them off. “I received those from my sponsor, Queen Alicia of the Golden Fae, for winning the Escape Room challenge.”
“A queen. How wonderful. I love your boots,” Rune said, admiring them.
Stone smiled. “They look great on you.”
“I love your new boots too,” Lolita said. “I got a golden dagger for the Pirarucu Challenge.” Lolita showed it off.
“Oh, I received a soft hoodie for the Pirarucu Challenge,” Rune said.
Stone smiled. “Ena got me a matching one.”
Lolita laughed. “They know you’re going to be mated wolves.”
Then the Game Master showed up and told the gathered competitors about their next mission.
“The next game will take place in No Man’s Land.
The goal is to safely reach the Hawk Fae Kingdom without getting yourself killed.
Sandworms live in the sand, and when you reach the other side of the desert, you’ll face wraiths.
You’ll be scattered across the hostile territory and must make your way across.
If you are in danger of being killed, you will push this button on your pack, and you’ll be rescued by a dragon shifter.
They’ll be standing by. You’ll earn a penalty if you have to be rescued, but it won’t automatically send you home.
Your goal is to reach the Hawk Fae Kingdom, where you’ll wash up and eat, and then you’ll stay overnight at the Phantom Fae castle. ”
“Can we fight the creatures?” Vesper asked, showing off his new sword.
Rune wondered how he got a replacement so quickly. A sponsor?
“Yes. That’s why you have your weapons for this challenge.
They’re not easy to beat. Though you can run as a wolf, if you prefer and if you think you can get across faster that way.
Like with the other challenges, you can’t use your fae powers.
When you cross the sand, the iron ore rock is deep in the soil, which will prevent anyone from fae traveling across that stretch of desert. Even us,” the Game Master said.
“Is there anything else you can tell us about the creatures?” Pari asked.
“They hear sound. So you need to get across without them hearing you. They’re large, serpent-like sandworms with large teeth.
They come out of the sand and arch up if they’re after dragons flying overhead.
If you’re on the sand, they’ll stay low and slide across it to get you.
They eat their prey, pulling them into the sand.
It’s a silent trial where you want to always be quiet, as if you were a wolf hunting a bird.
If you can get across without making any noise, more power to you. ”
Everyone looked a little uneasy. Rune was used to prowling, stalking, walking as quietly and quickly as a wolf. She wasn’t sure she could do so as the fae. She’d have her sword, but she wasn’t sure it would help fight against large sandworms.
Still, she could switch between forms if needed.
“Once you reach the other side, you have to deal with wraiths. They float about in the woods, ready to take your lives. You can fight them with weapons, but they will fly away and swoop back down in a never-ending mission to take you out.”
So lots of fighting. Rune just hoped they could do this without having to request a pullout from the area. Especially if she made it to the forest and got past the desert all right.
“Okay, we’ll be transporting you to the Phantom Fae Kingdom that borders No Man’s Land, and it will take a few hours. You’ll stay at the castle of the Phantom Fae this evening. And then tomorrow morning, you can cross the desert.”
“Would it be safer to go at night?” Lolita asked.
“No. They hear sound. They live under the sand. Nighttime and daytime crossings make no difference to them.”
“Will our swords work against them?” Vesper asked.
“Better than throwing stars,” the Game Master said.
Maeve was already gone, so she didn’t have to worry about any more challenges.
“An ax?” Silas asked.
“An ax, if wielded properly, could deter the sandworms. Bow and arrows could.”
“How long do we have to get across it?” Pari asked.
Rune thought that was obvious. However long it took!
The Game Master said, “The quicker the better, but for everyone, I’m sure, they will take their own time to try and make it over safely. If there are no more questions, go to your quarters, pack your backpack with anything you need, and meet back here. Once everyone is here, we’ll leave.”
Rune stayed away from Stone for the most part, but when the others left, she noticed he was waiting to speak with her. “So what do you think?”
“Use our swords when we need to. Move as a wolf if we don’t need to fight.”
“That’s what I was thinking. Also, something isn’t being said.” Rune had pondered the situation for a while.
“What are you thinking?” Stone asked.
“That the goal isn’t exactly to reach the Hawk Fae Kingdom on our own ahead of everyone else.”
“The pack members are deliberately being scattered across a hostile area so they won’t be close to each other to help their pack members out,” Stone said.
“I was thinking the same thing. Maybe we’re supposed to help as many other fae to make it across No Man’s Land—a commitment to leaving no one behind.”
Stone smiled. “Yeah, that would make for a better pack leader than someone who is fending for him or herself.”
“I agree.”
When they arrived at the Phantom Fae castle, it was late. They were welcomed for dinner and then given guest rooms to stay in, doubled up like before, though Rune had her own room since Maeve was gone.
In the great hall where they gathered for dinner, they didn't have room for the newcomers to sit where they wanted, so they just found seats where they could. Many of the Phantom Fae were tattooed and dressed in colorful robes.
To her surprise, Brett and Ena showed up and sat with the royal family at the head table.
"Welcome," a fae said to Rune, smiling. He seemed interested in her, but she cared about nothing except making it through the challenge tomorrow. She didn't care if she was first or last, just that she made it across No Man's Land and beyond.
She wondered whether they had to return the same way. She hoped they would get a dragon ride back.
“Brett is an anomaly,” the fae said.
“Oh?”
“Yeah, he’s a phantom fae, but also a dragon shifter fae. And he has his talent for magic, though he had to work at it to learn how to use it against his enemies. But he was hidden in the human world for years, and everyone thought he was a fae seer.”
“Wait, so he could hide his faeness?”
“No, he was spelled, so that it wouldn’t show. As a ‘fae seer,’ he had been responsible for taking Princess Alicia of the Golden Fae hostage, though now she is queen.”
“The one who is Lolita’s sponsor?”
“Aye. And Ena swooped down and freed Alicia and took Brett hostage.”
Rune’s jaw dropped. “Then they ended up mating! I mean, Ena and Brett.”
“Only after paying for passage across No Man’s Land by turning Brett over to the Phantom Fae.”
Rune realized that not only had she and Stone had a hard past, but so did others. "Have you ever been across No Man's Land?" she asked, then took a bite of a chicken leg.
"Only by dragon. I haven't had any real need to go over there. When we have dragons staying here, we can go. I hope you can make it all the way without having to be rescued. I see you have a fine sword. That should help against the sandworms."
"Thanks. Me too. Even though the challenge requires us to do it as fast as we can, especially since the faster we get out of there, the faster we're safe."
"Too bad you can't use magic to stop them from biting."
She thought about her sword and its ability to numb a body part. She hoped she could cut through the sandworm and make it numb enough that it returned to its sand home.
She looked around to see where Stone was seated. He was sitting between two female fae who were smiling at him and talking away as if they were best of friends or wanted to be.
She was glad the Phantom Fae were so friendly toward them.
Once they finished their meals, they were escorted to their guest quarters. The bed looked super fine, and Rune was eager to get a good night's sleep before the trial tomorrow.
She was ready to climb into bed when a knock sounded on the door. Now what? She hoped the guy who'd been interested in her at the meal hadn't decided to drop by.
She opened the door to see Stone standing there.
She smiled, glad it was him. She pulled him into the room and shut the door.
Knowing him, she knew he wanted to strategize further, but she figured once they began the journey tomorrow, they wouldn't be able to really plan it. They would have to see what happened.
"Okay, so there are eleven of us still. I know we said we would help each other, but if there's a problem, we need to deal with it."
"You mean someone might want to sabotage the other players?" Rune said. "Like I did when I cut the rope bridges for the other competitors."
"Exactly."
"Okay. Only this time someone could get hurt or killed." She hoped no one would be that petty, but she could see it happening.
"I just want you to watch your flanks as you're trying to make it across the desert. If someone is trying to hurt you, forget the idea that we need to get everyone across to safety."
She sighed. "I might have screwed up by sending all our competitors into the river on the rope bridge challenge then."
"No one said you did the wrong thing, but who knows? We might have to look at these challenges differently," Stone said.
"Well, we've never had a pack to be in charge of, so this is all new to us."
"That's right. Even though the others are in packs, they don't seem to know how to handle the challenges any better. We can figure it out as we go along. I'll let you go so you can get some sleep. We both need to be well-rested tomorrow."
"Night, Stone."
"Night, Rune." But he kissed her before he left. Now she would have pleasant dreams!
Then he left, and she returned to bed. Tomorrow would come way too early.
The next morning, the wolf fae competitors ate breakfast with the Phantom Fae, and then they headed to the border of No Man's Land.
Everyone's heart pounded, and they looked nervous. Stone tried not to feel that way, but the unknown was always a challenge.
Vesper was way down from Stone, Lolita closest to him by thirty feet on Stone’s right flank, then Silas, Fang, and Caspian. On Stone's left flank were Iris, Xena, Rune, Pari, and Elon.
Each of them was about thirty feet apart, and he figured it was because they needed to be far enough from each other so they wouldn't make as much noise together.
The Game Master motioned for them to begin, not saying a word as two men waved a flag to verify what she wanted them to do.
They started cautiously across the sand. The desert was an island between two rows of forest, the island stretching to the sea. And it continued to the west, but there was no telling where it ended; it stretched so far. Mountains towered in the distance.
His heart pounding, he continued to move across the sand without any trouble, being careful to move as quietly as he could. When he reached the halfway mark, he heard the rumbling of a sandworm off in Rune's direction, and he glanced that way.
Pari must have gathered a bunch of rocks to thwart Rune and was throwing them in her direction; some landed in front of her, and some hit her hard. Rune ran toward Pari, startling the woman. Rune unsheathed her sword and cut Pari in the leg.
Pari cried out and sank down on the sand. Everyone had stopped, afraid to disturb any more sandworms, worried about how things would end between Rune and Pari. Rune pushed the button on Pari's backpack shoulder strap, calling for a dragon to come get her.
The sandworm moved beneath the sand under Elon and Caspian, making them fall.
A green-scaled dragon swooped across the desert, grabbed Pari in its talons, and carried her to the forest they had just come from.
The sandworm came up out of the sand and turned to see Elon, who was closer to it. Rune raced to reach it and struck the sandworm in the head, cutting it. The sandworm dove back under the sand, and she helped Elon to his feet.
Stone was sure he was embarrassed that the fae they hated had saved his butt.
Elon continued across the soil, while Caspian got to his feet and started moving again. As if Pari's treachery had given Vesper the idea of destroying his competition, he raced toward Silas and struck the sand with his sword, the flames melting the sand it touched into glass.
Silas hurried away from him, trying to put distance between himself and Vesper, but Vesper was already well on his way across the sandy landscape.
The rumbling of the sandworm grew closer until it popped its head out of the sand. But Silas wouldn't call for help. He had a bow and quiver of arrows, but the sandworm appeared too quickly for him to take action.
Stone raced to aid him, wishing he had just called for a dragon, but he wasn't doing it, and Stone couldn't let the sandworm kill him. He struck the sandworm as soon as his head appeared, freezing half the side of his face. The creature went back into the sand and vanished.
"Thanks, man," Silas said, and hurried off.
Vesper was already in the forest, fighting a wraith.
Stone glanced back at Lolita. She struggled to cross the sand, sinking in and fighting to get back out. He was afraid she wouldn't make it. He returned for her and took her on his back. If they had to fight a sandworm, he would let her down, fight it, and carry her further.
She was holding on tight, fearful for her life. "You shouldn't be helping everyone. You could be in the forest already," she whispered. "And what about Rune?"
Rune was busy fighting another sandworm while Iris kept moving toward the forest.
"She has got this." But Stone did worry about her. Lolita just couldn’t manage on her own though. "Can you fight the wraiths with your short sword when you get there?"
"Yes. Are you going back for Rune?"
"Yes, and for anyone else who needs help."
"Vesper is gone. He'll have won the challenge."
Stone wasn't sure he had. But it didn’t matter if he had. All that was important was that all the fae competitors made it to safety. He finally reached the forest and told Lolita to run.
Then he returned to help make sure Elon made it to the forest. "Help take care of Lolita."
Elon had his bow and arrow ready. He nodded and took off after her. "Wait up, Lolita!"
Stone went back into the sand while Rune helped Iris to the three-fourth mark. The next thing he knew, Xena had joined them. She had throwing stars like Maeve, and they wouldn't have worked against the sandworms.
He went back to help Caspian. Silas had used his ax against a sandworm, but the problem with that, and the throwing stars, was that the thrown weapons would just go back under the sandy soil with the injured sandworm, and the fae wouldn't have another weapon to use.