Lena was awakened by an apple and two pieces of bread falling on her head.

"Owww," she moaned. She picked up the apple. There was a small brown spot where it had collided with her head.

"Enjoy your meal," Joy said from the shelf where she sat. "The night of streaking stars is two days away."

"Where did this come from?" Lena asked, trying a bite of bread. It was stale.

"They feed us through a hole in the top."

"There's a hole in the ceiling? Why didn't you tell me? We can get out that way!"

"It is heavily guarded by spells and locks."

Lena sank to the floor and took a bite of the apple. It was hard and slightly sour, not entirely ripe yet.

"At least it's not rat meat," Lena tried to reassure herself.

"That is what they gave at Yaşayan Serap," Joy said, dangling her thin brown legs over the edge of the shelf. "I served it to the prisoners deep in the dungeons."

Lena sat up straighter. "I thought you said you couldn't remember anything of yourself."

"I cannot remember these things happening, but I can remember telling my brother about it."

"Doesn't that get annoying?"

"Perhaps."

Lena took another bite of the apple, hurting her teeth. "So you worked in the dungeons? My dad spent some time in those dungeons. Did you know him?"

"Who was he?"

"Bracken. A unicorn."

Joy smiled. "He came many years after we did. The son of the Fairy Queen. The one that didn't give up. He asked me to help him escape several times."

"Why didn't you?"

"Fear. Incapability. Guilt. Uncertainty."

"I get it. He's out now. Well, I guess that's obvious."

"I wish you could send him my congratulations."

Lena leaned back against the wall. "Yeah, me too."

Joy jumped down from the shelf. "There are footsteps approaching."

"What?" Lena asked. She crept over and put her ear on the wood of the door. Her captor had removed the knife and replaced it with several dozen layers of duct tape.

"Let go of me!" yelled the voice of a teenage boy. "When my dad finds out I'm gone, he's gonna track you down and you are going to—"

"Quiet, boy," said a female voice. It sounded like it belonged to a woman in her early twenties', and it had a slight accent that Lena recognized but couldn't quite place—Scottish, maybe?

The door flew open, flooding the little closet with white light that hurt Lena's eyes. A boy who looked about fourteen was shoved in before the door slammed closed again. The boy pounded against the door with his fists, and then with his shoulder.

"Careful," Lena warned. "When I yelled at them he put a knife through the door."

The boy let out a small scream of surprise. "Who's there? I've got a weapon and I'm not afraid to use it!"

Lena had forgotten that not everyone could see in the dark.

"Cool it, buddy. It's just me. A fellow prisoner. And you don't have a weapon."

"Can you see me?"

Lena said yes at the same time that Joy said no.

"Ah! Is there two of you?" the boy asked incredulously.

"I'm Lena, that's Joy," Lena said. "I can see you, she can't."

"How can you see me? It's pitch black in here."

"I can see in the dark. Family trait."

"Figures. Who are you again?"

"Lena. You?"

"Bradley Hutchinson. I'd shake hands if I could see you."

"I'm right in front of you. Just reach forward and—here—"

Lena took Bradley's hand. He pulled back at first at the feel of Lena's hand, but they shook.

"And this is Joy." Lena passed Bradley's hand to the blind girl, and they shook hands as well.

"Glad we all know each other," Bradley said, drawing away from Joy's icy touch. "Know any way to get out?"

"I've been trying," Lena said. "And she claims she has too, but she's given up. But if I knew a way out, don't you think I'd be out by now?"

"No need to get catty," Bradley defended.

"If you had some amazing special powers, however…"

"Special powers?"

"Well, I can see in the dark and talk to fairies," Lena explained. "And she has probably a whole bunch of awesome shadow charmer stuff she has yet to disclose—"

"They took my memories!"

"—and I used to have a magic coin to telepathically talk to my dad."

"Because who wouldn't want their dad lecturing them in their head."

"Well, do you got any powers?"

"If you count killing plants and getting stalked by lizards all the time."

"You get stalked by lizards?"

"My mom says it makes me special."

Lena counted her assets. A boy with a reptile problem, a blind, pessimistic shadow charmer with no memories, and a girl who could see in the dark.

"If this is what we have in here," she muttered to herself, "we've got a lot riding on the hopes of a rescue team."

The note rested between a bowl of grapes and a pitcher of pear juice on the table. It seemed too common and peaceful a place for a message of such evil to lie.

"Where?" the Sphinx whispered. "Where is she hidden?"

The knowledge that Aisha was alive was shocking enough. After centuries of a life such as his, the Sphinx thought there was nothing else that could surprise him. This letter proved him dreadfully wrong.

"They can't hold her for long," he muttered. "She won't consent to being held. But then again…"

He hadn't seen her for hundreds of years. He assumed she was dead. How could she have hidden from him so long? How could she still be out of his reach?

"No. I can't lose her again. I will find her."

Thunder rumbled, rattling the windows. Seth redialed Kendra's number. She answered on the first ring.

"Seth, is there anything special happening on October 21st?"

"What?"

"October 21st. Is there anything special happening?"

"Hold on, let me Google it."

Seth hurried over to his laptop and quickly booted it up, pulling up a search engine. He typed in "October 21st events".

"Um, historically or this year?"

"Whatever."

"St Eusebius ends his reign as Catholic Pope, Florence Nightingale is sent into the Crimean war as a nurse, first can-can performed in Paris…"

"How about this year?"

"There's a Detroit Talmer Bank marathon, a meteor shower, something called Biketoberfest in Daytona Beach—"

"Meteor shower? Like falling stars?"

"That's kind of what a meteor shower is. You okay? You sound kind of shaken up."

"That's the understatement of the year."

"Don't worry. We're gonna get Lena back. Her kidnappers won't know what hit them."

"It's not just that. They're going to kill us."

"'Us'?"

"Me. Lena. They're trying to destroy the Eternals."

"Again? Didn't they learn their lesson about demons?"

"I don't think this is about opening the demon prison. I think this is about revenge."

"Didn't they learn that lesson too?"

"Can we come over?"

"Of course. Why not?"

There was a pause where Seth assumed Kendra was telling Bracken to go to Fablehaven.

"We're on our way right now. Could you try to find out about the other Eternals so we can warn them?"

Seth smiled. "That is so like you. To make sure the other ones get warned."

"Is that bad?"

"It's your best quality. I'll learn what I can."

"Thanks so much. You're the best."

"Don't I know it. See you in a bit."

Seth hung up the phone and started a new Google search.