Will stopped, reining his horse in, and raised his hand to motion that the others do the same. After having walked on ahead on foot, the group had made a decision to go back and get their horses. The path had widened and cleared, and the agreed that they never would be able to catch up with Devic (y) by walking. Devic (o) rode up next to him, "What is it Will?"

"There is someone in the clearing up ahead...I can hear them speaking..."

Phi frowned, "Is it Trycos and Devic?"

Will shook his head, "I cannot be completely sure. It is difficult to comprehend their words...But one of them is definitely a man."

Alex gazed ahead, "So, what do we do?"

Devic frowned thoughtfully, then drew his sword, "Will, ready your bow, but do not notch an arrow. Phi, Alex, I believe that there is a sword attached to both of your saddles."

The two Californians peered around and barely managed to untie a sheath from the leather harness before they each pulled out the sword, holding tightly in one hand. Phi grimaced, "This is a lot heavier than I remembered..."

Devic turned to her, "Do not worry, if there is a battle, both of your old instincts should resurface. I would recommend that you keep the young one behind you Alex..."

Alex nodded and turned to Luke, muttering in English to the little boy, "Listen carefully Luke. You're going to have to stay behind me or your mother no matter what happens next, okay? Don't run off or get separated from us at all, all right?"

They small child stared up at him, "Why not?"

"Because I don't want you to get hurt."

Luke nodded, wrapping his arms around Alex's waist and nestling up against his back. Alex smiled briefly and glanced at Phi, giving her a small nod of assurance. After they had finished, Devic spoke up, "Now, on my signal, get your horses into a gallop, swords drawn. Even if they are not Trycos, who ever is waiting up ahead could have a trap planned so be on your guard...I cannot sense any use of the Gift, so I think we are safe in that concern...Everyone ready?"

The others nodded silently and Devic raised his hand. When he dropped it, they would charge into the clearing and to whatever awaited them.

***

Trycos rolled his eyes, "Gods, all this drama over such a small decision..."

Suddenly the sound of pounding hooves filled the air and the ground seemed to quake from the hammering from horses as they galloped towards the clearing. Devic (y) crouched down, his head in between his knees and his hands clapped over his ears. Trycos shook his head, walked calmly to the side of the open space where the others were coming from and stood there coolly, his arms crossed across his chest.

The first one to come through was Devic (o), his sword drawn and as soon as he spotted Trycos, he brought his horse to a sudden stop, almost causing Phi, Will, and Alex's horses to crash into his own. The commander stared, wide-eyed at the psychopath, a strange mixture of revenge and worry playing across his face. Before anyone could speak, Trycos stepped forward and said evenly, "It is about time you arrived. I have been waiting for you to catch up for two days now...Of course, I should have expected your tardiness."

Devic was about to reply when Phi managed to navigate her mare around his stallion and dismounted in a smooth jump, walking right up to Trycos despite Alex and Devic's protests. She pulled out her sword and pointed it at Trycos's heart and said in a strained voice "Where's Devic? Where's my son?"

Trycos gave her a small smile, "Phiona, my dear, so good to see you again..."

"I'm serious you bastard! Where is he?"

Trycos sighed, "If that is the way you want to act, so be it." He closed his eyes and the tree that was in the middle of the clearing, the one he was standing in front of, completely disappeared. And behind the tree was the huddled, trembling form of a ten year old boy. Phi let out a small gasp and raced towards him, falling to her knees and pulling him into a large hug. The boy twitched momentarily at the physical contact, but then dared to look up.

When he saw his mother, Devic broke into racking sobs and buried his face in her chest, "Mommy..."

Phi wrapped her arms a little more tightly around him, silent tears sliding down her cheeks, "Devic, we were so afraid that you were...that you...Thank god you're all right!"

Devic (o) had already dismounted and helped Alex to unsaddle Luke so that he could join his wife. After he had gotten off his horse, Alex grabbed Luke's hand tightly in his own and as he walked past Trycos to get to Phi and his other son, Devic (o) could have sworn that he saw sparks fly between the two men as they made eye contact. Devic himself was trying desperately to keep control, although his face had flushed and his hands were visibly trembling, his knuckles white as they gripped the hilt of his blade.

Alex made it over to where Phi was sitting and sat down next to her, Devic (y) now falling into his father's arms, although the sobbing had mostly subsided. Luke greeted his older brother with a wide smile, completely unaware of the situation and why everyone was acting so strangely.

Will remained perched up on his steed, watching the events unfold with the curious eye of a concerned observer. Never before had he laid eyes upon the man called Trycos and for some reason he felt disappointed. The man was nothing extraordinary, at least in appearance. After all the stories he had heard from Devic (o), all the rants, all the talking in his sleep, and after all the compulsive behavior he had witnessed, he had really been expecting Trycos's figure to be a little more...intimidating.

Trycos cleared his throat, making them all jump, "Now, if you are quite finished with all this nonsense, I believe that we had some business to discuss..."

Devic (o) nodded, "Oh...I would say so...For instance, how would you prefer to die? Decapitation, or being spilt clean in half by the edge of my sword?" His voice was terse and stretched, as if every muscle in his body was ready to spring upon Trycos and kill him.

Trycos just sneered, "Oh please. You still have not gotten over that have you? What I did to you so many years ago. Well, you are just going to have to learn how to deal with it, because that was far from the business I had in mind—"

Devic interrupted, spitting out his words as if they were some sort of poison, "Deal with it? I have been "dealing with it" for the better part of half of my life. I have thought of you every day: how to kill you, where you were hiding, how close I was to finally seeing you again face to face. Dealing with it has caused so much distraction and pain in my life that I do not even know who I am anymore. And you tell me now, to my very face, to deal with it? I will deal with it all right...By cutting off your head!"

Trycos frowned and shook his head, murmuring, "And they call me crazy..." He raised his head and turned to Devic, "Go ahead and kill me, but before you do, I should probably warn you...You happen to be in the presence of one of the few people on this continent that has the particular ability to open the portal that will allow your friends to get back home. If I die, they become trapped here forever."

Phi started and stared up at Trycos and Alex scowled, "You're obviously forgetting about Numair. I'm sure he'd be happy to take us back! We don't need you..."

Trycos rounded on his, as if he had been insulted, "And you are obviously forgetting about a certain particular matter called Scanrans and immortals. If you have not noticed, and I can imagine that you have not, you are in a forest, redolent with shadows and hidden perils. If you kill me and try to leave, you will not make it back to the capital alive. Four adults, only two of whom are actually battle trained, will not last very long against any aggressor. So I suggest that you become a little more agreeable Alexander, before I become annoyed with you."

Alex narrowed his eyes, but kept his mouth shut. Phi glanced at him assuring before asking, "What is this business you referred to? Why the hell did you take Devic in the first place?"

"To get your attention of course...How else would I get both of you to approach me so eagerly and willingly?"

"A letter would have worked..."

"I shall remember that for the next time I am in need of your assistance."

Alex glared, "What makes you think that we would do anything for you?!"

"What makes you think you have a choice?"

Devic stepped in, eyes raging, "What makes you think that I will not kill you anyway? I think that I will risk your death..."

Trycos pursed his lips, "This is getting monotonous...Devic, this really does not concern you at all. You are free to leave."

"I will not abandon them to deal alone with your deceit and treachery!"

"Suit yourself...But do try not to slow us down...William is free to tag along with you if he pleases, although I would not advise it..."

Will frowned, "I will go as well."

"You are all so stubborn...."

Phi continued to stare at Trycos, holding Luke and Devic (y) close to her, "What on earth do you need us for? I thought that you could handle yourself all on your own."

Trycos walked over to her, "I need a favor. After all, if I am to send you back to your world, it seems only fair for you to do something to me."

Alex stood up, a triumphant look on his face, "Wait a second! Even if Numair won't be able to help us, Tom will just bring us back!"

Trycos turned to face him, "I do not think that he will be able to..."

Phi blinked, "Tom! We haven't talked to him in days! I bet he's worried sick! I wonder why he hasn't talked to us?"

Trycos smirked, "Do you still not understand? He cannot reach you in this world. His Gift is not strong enough. You may be able to contact him, but he is unable to start the conversation himself. You are trapped here until I see fit to send you back, which, if you keep being so offensive, might be a very long while in time."

Phi frowned, "Fine. You still haven't told us what you want us for."

"I need the both of you to help me eliminate one of my competitors in the North. He has...talents that are similar to my own, and if I attempt to dispose of him myself, it would just end in a stalemate."

Alex looked suspicious, "So why do you need us?"

"Because I could not break you. Your minds are strong enough to withstand the effects of his magic...And, of course, I hold power over you, as of right now."

"So you're looking for some cheap mercenaries?! Is that it!" Alex's face flushed, "I will not allow you to use me or Phi as your assassins!"

"I did not ask you for your permission! Now be silent!"

Alex opened his mouth, but nothing came out. Phi stood up, "What did you do to him?"

"I just shut him up. He will regain the ability to speak once he has calmed down. Now...We must move on if we wish to arrive in time. I suggest that you saddle up."

All four adults scowled but did as he said, slowly getting onto their horses. Phi pulled Devic (y) up behind her and Alex raged silently as he kicked his mare gently to get it moving.

Trycos just smiled at him and walked along next to their horses, although slightly ahead of them, guiding them back into the woods and down another overgrown path. He was surprisingly able to keep up with the horses as they trotted along, and continued to saunter along at their speed. The ride would have been almost pleasant if the circumstances had been different.

***

Another day had passed and as the others started to set up camp, Phi sat off to the side, resting on a stump, and closed her eyes, and tried to contact her brother, 'Tom...Tom are you there?'

Tom started, nearly falling off of his chair, 'Phi! There you are! What happened! Why didn't you call! Or talk, think, whatever! I was worried about you!'

'I'm sorry Tom! I just...forgot. There's a lot of stuff going on, you know?'

'Fine...Well, I'm assuming you escaped the Spider immortal all right?'

'Ya, we managed to escape, thanks to your plan. We found the boys...They had been spilt up and we just found Devic. You'll never believe who had them.'

'Who?'

'Luke was with Devic and his cousin Will, and Devic was with Trycos.'

'Trycos? You ran into him again? Has he done anything to you?'

'No, but he has a favor for us to do for him...Tom, is it true that you will not be able to pull us back to our world?'

'Phi...I tired to tell you...There's nothing I can do for you unless you call, and then all I can do is give you advice. Do you need help?'

'No bro...I just needed to know...'

'Sorry sis...How are the boys?'

'They're doing good...Devic is a little traumatized, I think, but Will says that he should be fine as long as we stay close to him, and Luke is as innocent as ever.'

'How's Alex doing with Trycos?'

Phi smiled, 'Not well. He's already been cursed by Trycos to lose his speech. Devic, the knight, not my son, has tried to remove it, but hasn't had any luck so far...You know, I still think he's upset about what happened last time.'

'Well, now that you're his wife, he almost has the right to get upset if Trycos tries to pull that again. He doesn't let things like that go very easily.'

'Don't I know it...sorry I didn't talk to you sooner Tom...'

'Just make sure you don't forget about me again...'

Phi laughed softly, 'All right, I'll try not to...Bye.'

'Tell Alex I said to keep it under control...Be careful Phi.'

Phi glanced up and gazed around. Trycos had wandered off somewhere or another, and for once the men had cooled down. Alex walked over, his arms folded across his chest, and looked around. Phi smiled at him, "What's the matter sweetie, cat got your tongue?" Alex pantomimed laughing mirthlessly, and scowled. "I'm sorry Alex I couldn't help it. You had better calm down, that's the only way that Trycos said his spell would be lifted, and it would be very dull to be married to a mute for the rest of my life..."

Alex pouted then relaxed, his arms dropping to his sides. After taking a deep breath, he opened his mouth tentatively, "That's not nice...Hey! All right, I can talk again! Now, where'd Trycos go! I'm gonna kill him..."

Phi shook her head, "You'll never learn, will you..."

"What do you mean?"

"Never mind...Where're the kids?"

"Over by Will. He's teaching them how to build up a fire. So, did you talk to Tom?"

"Ya...Alex, Trycos is right. Tom can't bring us back..."

Alex sighed, running his hand through his hair, "Damnit..."

"So that means that we need to play along with Trycos until he sends us back. Otherwise we'll be stuck here forever."

Alex grimaced, then glanced around, "It's not so bad here..."

"Alex!"

"Fine! Fine...But I'm definitely not going to like it..."

"You don't have to, none of us will...Devic and Will don't trust him, I don't like him being around the kids, and you don't like him around me. We all feel about the same."

"I know Phi...I'll...I'll try to be more...open towards him...I guess..."

Phi kissed him quickly before standing up to stand next to Luke and Devic (y). Devic (o) walked over to Alex, his arms crossed across his chest and a scowl on his face. Alex glanced at him, "You thinking what I'm thinking?"

Devic smiled dryly up at him, "That we pin Trycos down, force him to open a portal, and then kill him?"

Alex sighed, "No, that's what I'm wishing...I'm thinking that we're going to have to deal with him until he agrees to send us back..."

Devic sighed, his scarred face drawn into a scowl, "This is going to be a long week..."