Beyond the Veil

by Knightdale

"The prophecies spoke of a savior, one who would bring order to Chaos, only to release Chaos on the innocent. One who would restore the Balance, only to finally break it."

4. Tale 1 - Chapter 03

Author's note: This Chapter has been edited due to a previously made mistake on my part regarding the architecture of Newport. As of July the 14th it differs from the original version and reading it over is strongly advised.

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Tale One - The Breach

CHAPTER 03

The next morning April woke up to faint skylight pouring from the wide curtainless windows into the room, her own jumbled thoughts she had neatly arranged the night before, and a terribly distorted voice coming from the street, sounding through what must have been very old or very broken loudspeakers, as well as growling of an engine. At first it was hard to make out the words due to the poor sound quality and April herself being still groggy and disoriented after short restless sleep. As the voice gradually got closer, she rubbed her eyes and mentally shook herself, listening more intently. She finally made out some of the words repeated through the speakers over and over again and understood that the city officials were announcing a curfew for an undetermined period of time, advising citizens to avoid going outside unless it was necessary, and to stay away from all sorts of communication devices and vehicles. On a brighter note they said they were already fixing the problems with running water and were promising to restore it by the end of the day.

She heard a few neighbors grumble, their voices carried over faintly through nearby windows. From the guestroom there came sounds of heavy, slow steps, creaking of furniture. She slowly got up, folded her blanket neatly and put it on the couch. Seeing how it was the only thing she could do around the place she put on the former Colonial's pants, her shoes and trotted off to the kitchen. There she couldn't help turning the tap on, just in case. To her surprise and short lived excitement it gave a couple of sharp jolts and spat out a bit of water, but it died down almost right away. Oh well, she thought, at least it seems they really are working on it, that's something.

A sound of shuffling feet announced Vestrum Euan's arrival. He entered the room yawning and gave her a small nod and a short, formal morning's greeting. He habitually switched the light on, since the room was quite shady so early in the morning. Against both their expectations the effort was not lost. The bulb lit up cheerfully, making them jerk their heads in surprise. "Well, that's something." Euan said, "But I suppose there's no water yet?" Electricity alone did not cheer him up all that much.

"They announced it would all be restored soon," April relayed the news to him.

"Yes, I heard them," he grunted with no enthusiasm. "Shouldn't they have taken care of that first?" he muttered more quietly, glancing over to the sink filled with a pile of dirty dishes.

There was an awkward pause, or at least April felt so, standing there doing nothing and getting in his way while the Vestrum bustled around crafting something like breakfast.

"Thank you for letting me stay for the night", she said after a while.

"It's no trouble," he answered without looking at her. For some time it seemed he wasn't up for any chitchat, concentrated on picking usable dishes. Then he asked, glancing over his shoulder while he was searching the cupboard, "What are you planning to do today? Will you wait for the Minstrums with the rest of us, or do you have any pressing matters to attend to?"

"Oh... Are they arriving today?" she asked.

"I don't know, some of them might. I've already told you I haven't had the opportunity to contact them. I hope they are safe and can get here in one piece, but if they don't show up in due time, I'll have to search for them myself, or see if father Raul volunteers for the job. I daresay at a time like this leaving this place without at least one Sentinel present won't do, or we would both go to collect them."

April thought about it, there was no way of knowing whether or not these people were fine. Considering the situation, she could think of too many ways they could've been prevented to get here, each possible scenario more unpleasant than the last. In the meantime she had her own friends to check on, and the fate of the disappeared Draic Kin to investigate - hotter the trail the better. An almost crazy, dangerous idea concerning MTI had seeded itself into her brain since sometime past midnight - one that, if successfully executed, could give her a lot of precious information and a lot to contribute to the approaching gathering. She decided that waiting around would be a waste of time. She didn't feel like voicing all her thoughts though.

"I have to find my friends," she told him, "at least one of them was severely injured the last time I saw her, I need to see if the rest of them are okay as well." Euan gave her a dubious look, "I'll get back as soon as I can!" she hastily added, then carefully, "Besides, I want to go and investigate that place, Grendel Avenue."

He stared at her, "You think you can get in there?"

"Why not?" April shrugged, surprising even herself by how confident her words sounded, as opposed to how she felt about it, "I've already done it once, I can do it again."

"I don't think it will be the same this time around," he argued, abandoning the meal preparations to face her sternly, as if she were a naughty child he was telling off. "All things considered the entire upper level is bound to be fortified, probably on a full lockdown while the rest of the world tries and gets itself together."

"Yeah, you're probably right," she sighed, unable to argue a very obvious and logical point, "still, I'm resourceful. I'll figure a way in. Someone has to do it and sooner the better. You do agree that at a time like this, as you put it, we need the Draic Kin more than ever… At least one of them?"

At these words the Vestrum gave her a peculiar searching look, "I understand urgency," he said almost cautiously, "but we have to prioritize our tasks. You venturing out there will mean taking a great risk. Furthermore, if you wait till we have our meeting, we can all decide together what the next action should be and make some kind of a plan."

"Which sounds great," April countered, "except, God knows when other Sentinels are going to get here, if they can get here at all. And more we wait the less chance we have to find out what happened to the Red and the Green Dragons." He opened his mouth, intending to argue again, but she wouldn't have it anymore, "I've already made my decision." She said, impervious to his disapproval, her chin set stubbornly, "I'm going whether you agree or not. I don't need permission, I just wanted to wait until you were all awake, to tell you where I was going."

It looked like the news displeased him a great deal, which didn't feel very unexpected. She didn't think anyone would approve her running around the hazardous city and poking her nose in dangerous matters, not when the best course of action seemed to be laying low and waiting for the events to unfold before them, and to act after there was some stability back in the world. In a hindsight she saw sense in that strategy and not terribly long ago she would've agreed wholeheartedly to that kind of a plan. But, whether it was her recent experiences affecting her judgment, or that she had grown overconfident, or maybe even overly desperate, she longed to throw herself into action right away. The chaos that had broken out seemed like the perfectly muddled water to catch fish in.

Her determination must have been easily readable on her face, since it brought the end of their short argument. Euan pursed his lips and turned back to his business, looking very troubled. "I can't stop you, of course," he said, lowering his voice again, putting a few cans on a small table with extra care, as if trying not to slam them loudly, "I still think it's a bad idea." after a few seconds he added with a very purposely neutral tone, "If you somehow get out of there alive, be mindful that you're not followed to this place. The last thing we need is being stormed by armed goons."

April was sure she'd gone red in the face, though she remained silent. Well, she thought bitterly, that's as much faith as I can ask of him. Or as much help, for that matter.

Soon they were joined by the rest of their little team, which proved very difficult by the general lack of space in the tiny kitchen. Four grown people were too much for it. They crammed awkwardly until Euan let out a frustrated groan and asked them all to go back to the living room. "Whoever approved this project needed to be shot." He complained while they single filed through the narrow corridor. April tagged along behind them, not feeling particularly hungry and the anticipation of what she had planned for the day seeping in already, the usual restlessness that accompanied her before starting on improbable missions like this, was slowly building up again. Then, a sudden thought gripped her.

When the three men were seated, she remained standing in the doorway. "May I borrow the Talisman of the Balance?" She asked Euan loudly enough to cut through the conversation he was having with Raul. He looked mildly surprised.

"Why?" He asked.

"Why do you think?" She shifted her weight to one foot and put her hand over her hip, a habitual bossy manner she assumed when chiding someone, or preparing to face being chided herself. "I'll need anything I can use out there. It has already saved me more than once after all. It's not like you can arm me or anything and I don't want to go on a dangerous mission unprepared, do I?"

Euan hesitated, and clearly took advantage of an interjection from Raul, who was looking confused from one to the other. "What dangerous mission?" the priest asked her.

"I'm gonna try to find out what happened to Cortez." she replied, deciding the best approach would be to word it in a way he'd have an easier time accepting her decision. It didn't make much of a difference.

"How?" he asked, eyes wide in alarm.

She sighed, "Revisit the crime scene, of course."

"You're going to Grendel Avenue again?" he admonished, "April, that's dangerous, especially now! With all this chaos there will be upgraded security, they will be keeping their eye out for any possible danger and anything even remotely suspicious will draw attention!"

"When are they going to be relaxed about a security breach?" April asked, trying to sound as worry free as possible. "This chaos might even provide enough confusion and distraction to make it easier for me to get inside! I know the risks, father. I also know that it has to be done, soon. And, after all, Cortez trusted me with saving the worlds, I think I can be trusted with a little investigation for his benefit… for our benefit."

Raul got to his feet. "You mustn't go alone." He insisted, knowing she wouldn't back down and determined to follow her through hell, no doubt. But his good intentions aside, he was a middle aged man with hardly any physical exercise to help him along. She didn't fancy having to leave him behind if the worst happened and she had to depend on her agility and stamina, fleeing for dear life.

"Yes, I must." She said, more stern than she had ever sounded, even when telling Owen off. "I'm sorry to say this, father, but you won't be able to catch up with me." Raul hung his head somewhat. "Not that I don't appreciate your offer!" she added hastily, trying to keep things with him as friendly as she could.

"No, I understand." he answered, "And you could Shift out of harm's way if it came to that". He gave her a hopeful look and April bit back the initial, stupidly honest answer that she just might not manage to do that because the place seemed to have some barriers to prevent Shifting the last she'd been there. But there was hope that the technology behind it, which, to April's understanding involved magic, would be out of order just like so much else.

"Yeah, there's that too." she said instead with a careless air and turned to Euan again, "So may I have the Talisman or not? I'm kinda in a hurry."

Euan, who hadn't moved the whole time, shook his head slightly, his face now set in that trademark stony expression she was starting to hate with passion. "I don't think that's advisable." He said, "You're going straight to the lion's den. You have the right to, if you want. But, as a Vestrum, I can't allow you to take this unique, priceless, powerful object and conveniently deliver it right to the Vanguard's doorstep, placing it in the hands of our worst enemies."

April felt her anger bubbling up in her throat. This man, this useless person, who so far had provided her no substantial answers, no solutions to her problems and had taken away one object, one token she possessed that could prove she'd played a role in anything, was now denying to even lend it to her to help her out in a dire need, while outright stating his belief in her failure should she try and carry out her plan. She was sure her fury showed on her face, she could feel her cheeks burning, her fists clenched and she grit her teeth to prevent herself saying things she might regret later. Her display of rage wasn't going to change anything and she couldn't take the medallion back by force.

"Fine!" She cut it short with her voice raised noticeably louder (though not quite shouting) than she had allowed herself in a long time. "I'm not very hungry, so if you don't mind, I'll be on my way." And with that she turned to the drawing room, grabbed the satchel she had left there and headed to the door. The door seemed to be the only one that did mind, considering the trouble she had opening it. In the meantime the rest of the company didn't do or say anything to stop her departure, or at least calm her down. The only person who even said anything was Adrian, asking what had just happened. She struggled with the key until she realized that the door had a small bar she needed to pull instead. Now angry at herself as well as the Vestrum, she marched out and came close to slamming the door behind her, only stopping in the last second and taking a deep breath. It's just the nerves. she told herself, Throwing tantrums won't solve my problems. So she headed down the stairs, determined to stretch her legs with a bit of a morning walk and taking a few gulps of relatively fresh air - fresh by Newport's standards.

The yard was silent and peaceful. April hadn't given much thought to the time of the day, but it seemed very early. Soft light of early dawn fell on gray asphalt. She smelled smoke, yet the air felt almost pleasant in spite of this. Must be because I was stuck in that tiny room with all the doors and windows shut. She thought absently. Stepping outside was a relief, and so was being left completely to her own devices for a time – just what she needed while mentally going over her plan for the day.

Returning to the border House had to be her top priority. More than anything else she wanted to know about Emma's current state. April summoned the memory of the strange portal, which came to her aid so unexpectedly during the chase at the Bridges of Venice, the mysterious old woman who had assured her that Emma had survived and would be fine. All things considered, the old lady seemed to belong to the (very short) Trustworthy People list. But being told by someone wasn't the same. She needed to see her best friend, talk to her – if her condition allowed – and explain the reason she'd suffered… and let her do what she would with that information.

April exited the narrow backyard and went out into the empty street, contemplating the plan, making sure she wasn't missing any important details. The form of transportation had to be Shifting to Arcadia and back, this was something she had decided days ago. She had a vague idea how to get to the Hope Street, since she remembered some of the walk from the day before, but hardly knew which general direction she should head from there to find Venice. As for getting to Grendel avenue – no clue of its whereabouts. She was only aware of the subway station she needed to take to get to the Interlevel Elevator. Other than that she'd be lost looking for it. But more she thought about it more impatient she got. Maybe I should rearrange the schedule and go to Grendel Avenue first? She asked herself. It seemed reasonable, she herself had argued with Stark's Vestrum about the urgency of finding the Draic Kin trail. Having started on her way so early also made her realize that it was better to try and infiltrate the enemy territory when people were bound to be sleepier as opposed to later in the day when even the laziest and the most spoiled rich upper level citizen could be alert. She stopped and looked around, scratching the back of her neck. "I didn't think this through…" She muttered to herself.

Nobody seemed to be out in the street, the whole neighborhood was empty and silent. But April well knew that while there might not be anyone out in the open, small alleys and nooks and corners of the city were a very different case and she could easily be watched from any number of windows. Causing a scene – and a very magical one at that – was the last thing she wanted to do. When she looked around to find the closest well secluded place from which to depart to the other world, she saw a familiar face. Adrian was running towards her. She waited for him, wondering if he had been sent by Vestrum Euan to stop her, starting to get angry beforehand.

"Thank God I've caught up with you!" He panted coming to a stop in front of her.

"What's going on?" April asked uncertainly.

"Well," He sucked in a deep breath, "when you left, I asked the Vestrum where you had gone and what you'd talked about. He told me and…"

"You're not gonna try and convince me not to go, are you?" She cut him off, annoyed.

Adrian took a moment to appraise her, until slowly replying, "I would have, if I'd thought it a bad idea, but I'd be better spending my breath trying to convince you not to go alone. I'll go with you!"

"No," April argued, "you won't. I'm going to Shift."

This seemed to surprise Adrian greatly, "Shift? I thought you were going to a place in this city…"

"I am," she explained impatiently, "but it's too far, so I'll Shift to Arcadia and then open a portal to wherever I need to in Newport. Do you understand now?" She almost pleaded, "You can't follow me, you don't know the place I want to Shift to."

He couldn't possibly argue with this, so April expected him to wish her luck and back away, but it didn't happen. Instead he tilted his head a little and asked in a very casual tone, "This place, it's the one where the leaders of the Vanguard reside, correct?"

"Or did, at any rate. Yeah." She confirmed before inquiring, with growing unease, "Why?"

"I know that place, I've been there." He said simply. "They brought me to their leader and held me captive for days until sending me to that… metal vessel in the sky."

"Yeah, but I can't Shift to your prison cell or anything! We'd have to Shift to two different places and waste time looking for each other!" She was starting to get very irritated, but before her temper could blaze up as it had acquired a habit to do at the weakest prompts lately, the Twelfth Guardian splashed it with a bucket of icy water.

"I tried to Shift to Arcadia many times when I was there." He declared, "They have means to prevent us using our powers. I cannot say if it still works properly, or if it's failed like so many other pieces of technology you've got in Stark now, but if they do work, you won't be able to get in that way. What will you do if you discover Shifting inside that place is still impossible?" Adrian asked.

April cursed mentally. Of course! She had almost forgotten that, since he was a Shifter too, naturally, he would've tried to get away from danger at some point during his imprisonment, meaning he would know her limits in that place. But she wasn't going to give up so easily. "There are other ways," she informed him, "first of all, I don't have to Shift inside that building, just the district."

Adrian shook his head, "No, I mean the district. I suppose that's what it was, enormous towers high up in the sky, with vast bridges and hanging streets up in the air?"

She stared at him in disbelief and horror. "You mean… you couldn't Shift from anywhere on the Upper Level?"

"Just so." He confirmed.

This was bad news. April was caught reassessing her plan, now with the notion that not only did she have to break into the MTI headquarters, but the Upper Level of the city as well, a risky move on its own, but nothing compared to the flight she would have to take to Grendel avenue by a shuttle. She had not been counting on such a turn of events and hadn't given a moment's thought to the logistics of such process. Her hand automatically moved to the satchel to feel the items inside it. She still had a few vials from Roper Klacks' castle, saved by the grace of the scanner's confusion at having to analyze magical substances, when she was checked going aboard the spaceship. She had been mentally going over possible problems she could solve with them when getting in and out of MTI. But now she had to come up with a whole new plan and she'd very probably have to use them up for that one alone. But she was getting a little ahead of herself, it wasn't all hopeless yet.

"I'm counting on the barriers having broken down though", she said, "almost everything else is. If that thing involved magic, Gordon should've disabled it by now. Besides, I still have a few items from Arcadia I can use to sneak in. This isn't any worse than everything I did during that week of restoring the Balance. I'll find the way." And she tried very hard to convince herself that she meant it.

"Ah, I'm not arguing with that!" Adrian announced, now annoyingly triumphant, "But if the barrier has been restored, on the off chance that it still works, it will complicate matters, not only in getting inside the place, but afterwards too. You won't be able to Shift out of there in case of trouble. You could use assistance and I want to help. We can walk to the place, can't we?"

Here April saw another way out of it. "No, that would take hours," she retorted, "if I can't Shift directly to the Grendel Avenue, I can still Shift as close as possible, right there at the entrance."

"Is the entrance that place just beneath an enormous tower, from which a small metal cabin whisks you up?" he asked.

"Yes…" She said slowly, taken aback by the fact that he knew the place.

"So can I!" he answered happily, eyes gleaming.

"Excuse me?"

"I can Shift to that place too! That's where I landed when I got out of the Realm and was wondering around, before guards in strange armor snatched me and took me up there! I can Shift to Arcadia and then to that entrance just as well as you can. So, if you fail to Shift directly to… Grendel… Avenue – that's its name, right? – just return here and tell me, then we can both Shift to the entrance."

April couldn't help but stare at the man speechless. While she'd considered him a positive person, their first meeting had left her with the impression that he was meek, weak willed, and someone who wouldn't get mixed up with anything dangerous unless they absolutely had to – a trait she had always attributed to herself, if she was completely honest. Yet here he was, ready to hop into the tangled mess she was resigned to solve without hesitation. Of all the people she'd had to ask for help, hardly anyone knew better than him the sort of people she was up against, the evidence of it was all over his body, even showing through the low growth of dark hair on his head. He still bore the telltale signs of the treatment he'd received in hands of the MTI goons in a form of various cuts and bruises – none placed randomly by accident, but in strategic places for their respective procedures, designed to force the information out of him, information he had never possessed. If April had to guess, she would've guessed and declared with absolute certainty that Adrian would never have agreed to willingly start messing with those people. Despite this, he stood there expectantly, volunteering to help more insistently than anyone had done for her so far. She didn't know what to make of it. It was unsettling.

"You know what you're getting yourself into." She said slowly and quietly, it was not as much of a question as a statement.

"Certainly!" he said, anticipation in his eyes growing.

"You know we can get caught and what might… No, what will follow." She continued.

"Yes." He answered, now grinning widely.

"And you're suicidal." She said without changing her tone or expression. It halted Adrian's answer quite a bit, he visibly struggled trying to decide whether or not to take it as a joke, until deciding on a careful smile and a "No, I'm not." April arched one eyebrow, not accepting it so easily. "I'm not," he repeated, "not any more than you are. I just want to help. Besides, I haven't forgotten that I owe you. A lot!"

"Is that what this is all about?!" She exclaimed, promptly bringing her voice down, "Look, you don't owe me anything."

"Of course I do!" he argued, incredulous that he even had to, "If you hadn't released me from my imprisonment…"

"I didn't do that for you! It was to… To save the two worlds… The Balance." There was some unexpected hesitation there. The sort April didn't quite understand herself, nor did she like it. It felt wrong to say it for some reason, to take credit for everything she'd done. It was almost as if it left a bad taste in her mouth.

"I know," he said with a careless air, "but the worlds include me, right?"

Smartass, she thought irritably. "Yeah, and it includes me," she said, lowering her voice even more, "you could say, I did it for myself." Ah, there it was, the cause of her discomfort. The moment she said it the voice of Bak-Baar's dark vision echoed through her mind again, "You're doing it for yourself, April!" it mocked her once more, as if she was still in that cave. April wanted to slap herself for repeating those hateful words. She sighed very heavily.

"That doesn't diminish your deeds, you know." Adrian said, looking rather thoughtful, choosing his words carefully. She wondered if he somehow guessed her train of thought, as unlikely as that was. "It was still you," he went on, "who broke me out of there, it's still you I owe my thanks to."

"You've already thanked me. You don't owe me anything anymore, consider yourself free."

He grinned again, "Good! A free man can decide for himself whom to help, can't he?!"

April let out a frustrated groan. Even Owen was never this clingy. "Listen," she started, in the last valiant attempt to talk him out of it, keeping her voice calm and serious, "Just a few days ago they shot my friend, only because she was my friend and she was there. I still can't forgive myself that I got her in such trouble and I'm trying to prevent such things from happening in the future, can you understand that?"

Adrian's face had turned somber, but far from yielding. "I understand. You too must understand that you're not the only one involved in the matters of the Balance. I'm not just some random person tagging along on your personal quest. I'm offering you to team up."

His voice held no anger, but she was taken aback, not only by him unexpectedly bringing it up, but also the way he chose to word his position and certain intensity that appeared in his eyes when he said it, the way he had straightened his back and subtly brought his chin up, reminding her that there was someone important standing in front of her – a man that, for a very long time was essentially a God. That was it, she knew she'd lost the case. Who was she to tell the twelfth Guardian of the Balance to stay away from the matters of the two worlds or the Draic Kin? She looked up at him, grim and resigned. "We'd better go somewhere nobody can see." she said walking forward and Adrian trotting after her. "I'll Shift to Marcuria for the start. Don't wait for me for too long, if I'm not back in twenty minutes at most, just go. If it doesn't work, I'll come back here and then we might have a long discussion, it's gonna be a big change in my plans, you know…"

"Alright!" He said, perfectly cheerful now that he got his way. His attitude was so boyish, April found herself unable to be properly angry with him.

"Over here!", she stopped in front of a half-destroyed storefront. Its large glass doors had been smashed. Beyond it she could see sizable bookshelves with some of the merchandize surprisingly still on them. Not all the neighbors had found a need to make a bonfire yet, it seemed. The two entered it with great care, avoiding shards of glass scattered on the floor. April scanned the surroundings to see if they had company. There was a backdoor that revealed a dark corridor beyond and a few compartments, a storage room and offices, but nobody seemed to be about. She couldn't help opening all the doors and calling for people. Only once she had quelled all the suspicions did she turn back and looked around. Some shelves obscured the view of the street completely, it was the perfect place. "I think this spot will do." She told Adrian, who nodded and stepped back a bit to give her some space for the portal. April concentrated. The last time she'd Shifted, she'd chosen the Journeyman Inn as her destination. It seemed safe enough, or as safe as any place considering Arcadia's own version of Armageddon that had been happening. The Inn had already proven useful too, providing her with the little she had needed. Not to mention, at this point it had turned into a very familiar place, one she could very easily fix her mind on - the perfect haven for a rookie Shifter like her. She closed her eyes and recalled it, reached out to it, called for it. Something in her mind clicked and she knew she'd done it, the Shift blossomed in thin air, radiant and inviting. Barely detectable forces washed over her subconsciousness like a cool breeze when she stepped towards it.

"Good luck!" Adrian called after her.

April knew this path well enough already, she pushed her way through with ease, almost dancing along familiar currents. Dreams surrounded her and guided her, and she guided them in return, directed them to form the passage. In a few seconds she had crossed the Divide in time and space and was on the other side, standing on the dusty wooden floor of the Inn's main hall.

A quick look around the room showed that it was still empty and silent. Soft light beams entered from the windows and birdsong could be heard from outside. She suddenly remembered that this place had an old fashioned but fully functional bathroom on the next floor that didn't rely on high-end automated tech or electricity to be usable. Of course, there was Adrian, who would be waiting for her return in case she found the anti-Shift barriers intact, but she still had twenty minutes in reserve. Opening a Shift didn't require much time, after all. Deciding to make up for a bit of what she'd been missing for the past few days April headed to the entryway leading in the backroom and the stairs to the upper floors. When she was in the backroom, however, a loud bang from the hallway made her jump violently and her heart nearly jumped out of her chest. She whirled around to find the source of it and the sound came again from the front door, someone was trying to break their way in. To her horror she heard that whoever or whatever they were, there were definitely a few of them. Tyrens? She backed away. Now, she had to Shift now. In a state of panic, she scrambled through her memories of Grendel Avenue. Another bang. Of all the places she had seen there McAllen's office was the only one she was sure would be empty. She shut her eyes and pictured it. Bang! Sound of splintered wood, triumphant exclamations in an unfamiliar language, cold unresponsive wall beyond Arcadian reality. Shit! She backed away towards the stairs, sneaking up slowly, trying harder. It felt like switching the lights on when there was no electricity. Not working! The door must have been removed completely already, heavy footsteps came from the main hall. Orders were given in the same unfamiliar language. They'll search the storage and the basement first! She thought desperately, almost crawling higher up the wooden steps, hoping against hope she wouldn't make them creak loud enough for the uninvited guests to hear. Some other place! She told herself. Somewhere else! The reception! The lab! The MTI building entrance hall! Metro Mall! No. No. No. No. The Vanguard had indeed blocked Grendel avenue, as well as the Upper Level in its entirety for Shifters and it was still blocked after everything that came to pass. How could this even be? Why would they do it? She kept distancing herself from the threat downstairs, and her Shifting spot - from her real destination. She mentally poked and prodded at every single place she remembered on the upper level while sounds of them rummaging through Benrime's supplies reached her. Frustration gripped her as she realized that indeed all of the Upper level was closed to her.

She had gone up all the way to the next floor and was at the end of the corridor, out of desirable options to Shift to, as well as a place to run to when a Tyren's head poked in. She'd never seen them up close, only as a distant mass of an invasive army some days ago. Now that she finally got the opportunity, she realized she hadn't been missing much. This particular specimen looked like a crossbreed of an Orc from popular classic Fantasy and a Dobermann. It stood still only for a second after seeing her, probably out of surprise rather than anything else, then bared its fangs and charged. April saw the raised harpoon almost in slow motion, the creature's eyes were lit with wild ferocity. A true predator. A little earlier she would've cowered and frozen on the spot. But this was at least the fourth time she had a beast advancing at her and she found now that the experiences of the past had taught her more than she had realized. Her instincts kicked in, not to try and run or hide from her assailant, but to calmly do what she knew she could. The bookstore. The Tyren leaped. The mental blink. And the next moment the floor had turned into a pool of swirling light and she had submerged into the well of dreams, quickly closing the entrance only a split second before her pursuer could fall after her.

It had been too quick. It took a few seconds of elation and waiting in vain for the dream currents to take hold of her, before she came to a ground shattering realization: it wasn't just the entrance she'd closed, but the exit as well. She stood dumbstruck at what she had done, not quite sure whether to start being very afraid of being potentially stuck between worlds, maybe even for a few hundred years like Westhouse had the misfortune to be, or give in to the fascination with what she had slowly started noticing all around her.

The structure of her former passage was changing. April had always felt it to be one whole. Something like an underground tunnel with a wind flow that directed her - with her own mental prompting - to where ever she wanted to relocate herself. Now she witnessed something very different. The passage started dismantling itself slowly, minuscule pieces detached themselves seeping away gently, but they didn't leave empty space behind. There was a rush as others started filling in. It was still a current, only there was a new kind of flow to the movement. Instead of the linearity characteristic during Shifting, there was irregularity. The substance of Dreams went in almost all directions and soon it became turbulent and overwhelming. The tunnel slowly transformed into a more bubble like construct, swirling around her. Inexplicably, April felt chills all over her body, vague perception of emotions, memories of voices and images was being uncovered in the deepest layers of her own subconscious, as if responding to some new stimulation.

It was very tempting to experiment, to wait for an indefinite amount of time and see what happened, to reach out and touch those dreams with her mind. But there was caution, a very clear notion that these were forces to reckon with, not toys to entertain herself with. The dreams drew ever closer, at a few points she could've sworn she heard ghostly whispers, which disappeared the moment she tried to concentrate and listen to them. A song, a distant song carried from distant times and realms, ancient yet fresh, impossible to grasp, a vocal version of seeing nonexistent things from the corner of one's eye. She shook herself mentally. She had to remind herself where she was supposed to be instead of standing there and admiring the "view". I have to go back. I need to reopen the Shift and return. If I can… She was well aware that she was not opening a Shift in what could be called normal conditions and there was an increased risk of failure.

April concentrated, and found she didn't need to try quite as hard. At the slightest prodding there was an immediate response. The aetherial substance surrounding her rushed past her and started flowing in a form of the familiar passage, ending with a proper vertical whirlpool. She exhaled slowly, relieved at her success. A second later she emerged among the bookshelves and stood facing a thoroughly distressed Adrian.

"Finally!" He exclaimed, eyes wide and his face much paler than usual, "What happened?!"

April blinked at him, surprised. "Did I take too long?!" She asked hesitantly, "You shouldn't have waited for me, I told you…"

Adrian waved it off, "No, the first portal opened soon, but then it closed and you were nowhere to be seen! I thought… I thought that something might have happened to you and you couldn't cross, maybe you were gravely injured or something like that! I was just about to Shift to Marcuria myself and start looking for you!"

"Right, sorry about that." April rubbed her temples. "There were a few incidents on the way." And she told him everything that had happened since she had Shifted to the inn and the nontraditional way she Shifted back.

"You stopped in between? In the Middle of the Dreaming?" Adrian was completely bewildered, amazed, "What was it like?!"

"Weird." This was the best description April could come up with.

"I never knew one could do that." He said, furrowing his brow in contemplation. "So you're saying a Shift can be opened one sided? From there?"

"Looks like it." she confirmed. "In fact, it was even easier to do than it usually is."

He looked hesitant and somewhat shamefaced. "It is advised against, to be honest," he told her. "When they trained me, I was given strict warnings not to mess with the Dreaming. But…" he shook his head. "It would be so fascinating to explore it!"

"What did they say might happen?" April wondered.

"Well, one can't be sure, of course, but I'd imagine if you accidentally upset the powers that tie universes together and maintain the Balance of All, it could do damage."

"You have a point there." She admitted and fell silent. "Anyways", she went on, bitterness slowly building up in her voice, "It looks like we're gonna follow the plan B, which I don't have yet."

Adrian, to his credit, didn't interrupt her. He merely walked to the nearest wall and leaned onto it, waiting for her to contemplate in peace. The first thing she thought of was to Shift directly inside the elevator that connected the three levels of Newport. The suggestion was discarded after Adrian revealed that a Shift would not be moving even if the place it was aimed at - was. If the elevator was being used or was about to be called when they opened a portal inside the car… They were already taking too many risks as it was. "There will be at least one security guard down there." She thought aloud. "We will need to distract him, or them, if there are more." Her companion listened in silence. "If the elevator doesn't work… Though if there's electricity anywhere in the city, it has got to be there, they would restore everything on the Upper Level first. If it works, we'll need to sneak in the elevator after distracting the security and go up, it could be as easy as that."

"How are you going to distract them?" He asked.

"I have a few potions," she answered vaguely.

"Potions?" Adrian asked blankly, "You mean, magical potions?"

"Yes, I have some left from my… recent adventure."

"Are you sure they're going to work, considering the circumstances?" he asked tentatively.

April sighed, "I'm not sure of anything anymore." She scratched the back of her head, "But I think there's a fair chance, yeah. The barriers still work after all." From the look he gave her, Adrian clearly had reservations, but she merely stared back. "You don't have to come with me, if you don't want to." She reminded him, but he shook his head quickly, which April took as his insistence on going with her anyway. "Well then," she straightened her back, "it's time to Shift."

"Right." He stood ready as well. "Have you got a safe place to Shift to?" He asked.

"There's one place I know that should be safe from the Tyrens." She said. "The Isle of Alais. I was told they hate water and pretty much never travel by it."

"Right." Adrian thought for a few seconds. "I was going to Shift to the Temple of the Sentinels."

"That's dangerous." She argued immediately. "They would probably break in and rob it or something."

"Not necessarily." He said thoughtfully, although he seemed to be contemplating this option too, "Even savages may have some consideration for other people's most sacred monuments. Out of their own superstitious nature if nothing else." April arched her brows skeptically at this. She thought he might be right in general, but she couldn't see the Tyrens - the beasts she'd seen, especially when winded and directed by the Vanguard, being reverent towards the temple. Adrian must have guessed what she'd been thinking. "Besides, the Sentinels would never leave it unprotected." He added, "Whatever magic was at their disposal, they would use it."

"I get that, but that doesn't mean the Tyrens couldn't break through the defenses, does it?"

"The chance is slimmer than you think." Adrian said, "There was a whole system of underground passages and protected vaults in the temple. You could say the place is three times as big below the ground as it is above it. The entrance is well sealed and concealed, even if the Tyrens were to barge in, they would be wondering around, never suspecting its existence." He took in April's surprised face, "I daresay you haven't seen it either." She shook her head. "Anyway," he went on, "I have no hope that any place I've seen in Arcadia has remained recognizable, I don't know what I might get myself into if I Shift anywhere else."

He seemed very much set on his decision and in the end April gave up arguing. She only asked if he preferred for her to Shift to the same place, but he refused it, saying it would be an unnecessary risk on her part. She itched to remind him that taking an unnecessary risk by going with her was what he was doing, but refrained knowing she'd be wasting her time anyway. Besides, after her initial reluctance to accept his offer, she'd started feeling that she should be a bit more grateful to even have anyone volunteering to help her in such a risky affair.

The next thing they needed to agree on was Shifting back to Stark at the same place. April had serious misgivings about it, since she didn't quite trust Adrian to remember the surroundings well enough to Shift. He must have been so confused back then, so shocked by the insaneness of the sights that greeted him, he couldn't have taken it in all that well. But he insisted he remembered it and could Shift to the right place. After that they debated over what the "right place" was supposed to be exactly. April was not willing to risk Shifting in plain sight and it took additional persuasion on his part until she was somewhat hopeful that he could pick an unremarkable dark corner to Shift to. "If you run into anyone, especially someone with a gun, just raise your hands and tell them you're unarmed." She repeated at least a dozen times before she was confident enough that he'd do just that. Finally there was only one thing left to do.

Their Shifts opened side by side, just a Foot apart. For a second, before stepping into her own, April directed her attention to Adrian's Shift. There was a different feel to that one. There were similarities, but it came with the sense of foreignness, it felt strange and forbidding. Then he went in, only pausing for a moment to look at her and make sure that she was stepping into her portal too.

The beach was the most pleasant sight she'd seen in days. It was the exact same spot she had first emerged from the water after the underwater trip. It was familiar, safe, calm and serene, waves whispered gently and the air was so fresh and transparent. Newport often made one forget what the air was supposed to be like. The warm Sun was shimmering on the water and the whole place was inviting, even more so when facing the prospect of infiltrating a hostile, dangerous place with her and her companion's lives on the line. She threw a yearning look at the sea, aching to submerge into it and wash off all the dirt and sweat and all her worries she'd been carrying for days. But the second Shift opened before she would give in to temptation, by her resolve to sort out her priorities well and the knowledge that Adrian would be waiting for her, as well as how easily he could've gotten into any silly trouble when left in the middle of Newport all by himself. Before leaving she swore to herself to make Alais her returning spot when she was done with her mission and take full advantage of the comforts it provided, before taking the trip back to her bleak world.

April emerged from the Shift slowly, and instantly thanked herself for it, since she realized her portal had opened very close to a wall and she would have walked into it facefirst had she been faster. Still need to work on it, she told herself. Though to be fair, it was a place she barely knew and had never inspected up close. The glowing whirlpool behind her vanished with a swish. She looked around. It was a small denture in a building of some sorts, which, predictably, the locals had turned into a garbage deposit point. It was dark, it stank and the asphalt was littered with the most "pleasant" things: used condoms, empty plastic bottles, wipes covered with God knew what substances and many empty card boxes that, to her recognition, had served as packaging for Amathin distribution. Just my luck to land in a place like this, April thought grudgingly as she tiptoed out of the concealed corner. It was so narrow, it was a miracle her aim hadn't failed her. There was at least that encouraging thought she came out with.

She was in the Metro circle alright. The outside looked almost as empty of civilians as the neighborhood she had just left. She quickly noticed a small group of people on the far end of the street, on the other side, huddled together, but just at the moment they seemed preoccupied with other things and looked like they were in the middle of an agitated conversation, or an argument. A few were twirling what might have been knives or other sharp, shiny objects designated for similar purposes. She decided she didn't want to wait around for them to notice her. But looking around she couldn't spot Adrian. This did not bode well. What if he got lost and Shifted somewhere completely different? she thought worriedly and moved along the sidewalk towards the stairs that would bring her down past the subway station, her shoulders hunched a bit, stepping carefully, trying not to make a sound. Calling his name was an option, of course, but it would draw attention, and she couldn't risk that.

The humongous buildings towered before her and they had not come out of the battle with the Chaos unscathed. Huge holes in them, burnt marks and sometimes missing roofs spoke of their trials. On the other hand, the fact that the rest of them were still standing strong and were even livable, gave praise to the people who had planned and built them, giving them such endurance. Someone actually cared for quality control, imagine that. The whole pavement was littered with rubble, of course, but she had come to expect that. What she hadn't dared to expect were lights coming out of a few windows – too bright and steady to be feeble candle lights, or flashlights. Even some neon signs flickered in the distance. The city looked functional, and it was a reassuring sign. It meant the elevator would work!

The forbidden entrance to the higher levels of the city was right ahead – the massive concrete tower adorned metal constructions. April felt more uneasy with every step she took towards it. The plan seemed a lot more sound and plausible when it was just in her head. She rummaged in her satchel nervously, grasping the vials, without taking eyes off her target. The entrance was a lot more heavily guarded now than the last time she'd approached it. Perhaps the excess of guards was responsible for relative peacefulness of the usually sinister and messy place. They stood with their guns at ready, but their body language was relaxed. They clearly had been standing like this for a long time and were not actually expecting trouble anymore, they moved deliberately from spot to spot. Just like the police troops she'd met the previous day, they were out of their suits. April gulped, the sight of their guns as well as facing the imposing building in reality once more gave her chills. Being on the location seemed to make the scale of her trespassing and the consequences of failure more real than when she was building the plans. What she was about to do was one of the most dangerous, even improbable acts she had ever credited herself with, which, given the events of the past week or so was saying a lot. Her state of mind could've been affected by the fact that she had always thought of Arcadia as a place of fairy tales, a place where the heroine was protected by the laws of plot and the grace of destiny, which had a mission for her that needed to be fulfilled. Here, in front of the Oh So Forbidden place, facing the armed security ready to shoot her down without a moment's hesitation, she felt stripped of her protection and left with the reality she had lived before, only an even darker version of it. Anything could go as horribly wrong for her as it was possible at any given time and she would suffer all the consequences just like anyone else.

April took a deep breath and released a vial she had been gripping too hard. She stopped at the foot of the stairs that descended from the Metro Circle subway station entrance, not daring to get any closer to the building just yet. Where the hell is he? She thought angrily at Adrian, she was starting to get worried too. If he had missed his mark too much, there was no knowing where he could possibly be and how long it would take him to find his way, if he could do it at all. She didn't know for how long she could afford to wait for him, or what to do if he failed to show up. God damn it! She kicked the stone ledge on the side of the platform she was standing on, I should never have agreed to take him with me. I don't have time for this!

After fuming silently for a few minutes and abusing the architecture April decided to take some time to come up with a more refined plan, and if that time was not enough for Adrian to finally find his way, she would proceed without him. The thought of leaving him behind made her feel guilty, but it couldn't break her resolve. She did not ask him to join her, and would not back down because he couldn't keep up. She could not start wondering aimlessly throughout the entire neighborhood for who knew how many hours, on a slim chance that she could find him at all and not get into trouble herself. Nor did she feel like doing the same in the temple of the Balance, braving mysterious enchantments and looking for secret entrances in vain. She tried not to think about him anymore, concentrating on the monstrosity before her instead.

The entrance to the Grendel Avenue was, of course, isolated from its surroundings to an extent, its base went down below the subway entrance platform, firmly rooted into the low level where scum like herself were left to dwell and gawk up in wishfulness. A bridge connected the platform with the entrance, directly in front of the elevator doors. Five guards stood there. April wasn't sure there was any other way to get to the elevator, from another side. She thought hard about it, this required a foolproof plan she knew she would never come up with. No matter how she looked at it, there were only too many risks. First of all, the elevator may not have been in a working condition, even after the electricity returned. In such case, if, by some miracle she got to enter it, she'd be breaking her way up onto the car roof and rope climbing a frightening vertical distance, after which she would be facing the risk of running into guards that could be stationed at the doors she would use to exit. She didn't know what the situation was like on the mid and upper levels. If there was a curfew down here, she expected an even stricter one up there - increased security for the elite citizens, for sure. But there was no other way to enter those levels. Theoretically one might try and climb up the elevator building from outside… and fall to one's death at the bottom of it because it had certainly not been built to accommodate rookie alpinists.

It looked nearly hopeless, but April wasn't completely unprepared for the venture. There were Roper Klacks' vials still holding what remained of the potions she'd brewed, little as there was. She had already tested the Invisibility potion in Stark and it had worked like a charm. Although it was worth remembering that this had happened before restoring the Balance, therefore there was no knowing what effect it might have, if any at all, after the very laws of nature had been altered. Still, she had a gut feeling that it would work. April still remembered the four tiers of magic recounted for her by the innkeeper, and alchemy was the bottom one, the only one not requiring its wielder to have any magical powers whatsoever. If only it was non-magical enough to slip by the Guardian's attention, she could use it. She checked her stock again. There were only four vials left. The Magic Enhancement potion had been very thoughtlessly wasted by her smashing the glass vial onto her… no, the thirteenth Guardian's talisman. The Invisibility and Wind potions were very nearly out. The Wind potion was only enough to color the bottom of the vial, what with her having made very generous contributions of it to the tasks like steering a flying castle and a sailing ship. There were still a few gulps of the Invisibility potion left, but it would be drained after using it a couple of times, for sure. If she used them, she would have to make sure it worked out, there would be no second chance. Then there was the Explosive potion. This she had plenty of, having only sprinkled it out once. The potion was destructive enough in small doses to last her for a long time, longer than the other three at any rate. And of course, the Light as a Leaf potion, more than a half of it had been preserved. For a moment she was caught up in an imaginary climb up the building with its help. While, again, theoretically possible, remembering how long it had lasted when she had used it - which was not very long at all - the thought was quickly thrown aside. She looked up at the top of it which pretty much disappeared out of her sight in all the smog hovering in the air. If she didn't reach it in time before the effect ran out, or didn't stop conveniently somewhere she could hold on and keep climbing in normal conditions, she'd plummet down like a stone. An even bigger problem would be being seen and easily targeted on the facade of the tower. This can be simple. She repeated to herself. All I need to do is distract the security, get in the elevator and then up - either by the elevator or by rope climbing and I'll make sure I'm fast enough.

It took five more minutes of deep contemplation and encouraging herself. There was a bit of a daredevil like flare to the whole thing. But April was starting to learn that it was precisely this sort of plans she could ever come up with and more often than not, they helped her achieve her goals. Taking one more hopeless look around she made sure there was no sight of Adrian anywhere. Oh well, she couldn't wait for him forever, so she set to her plan. I will need a really good distraction to distract them long enough to get into the elevator unnoticed. And she kept repeating that in her head while opening the almost empty vial of the Wind Potion and the almost full one of the Explosive potion. She started to pour the contents from the latter one into the former, keenly aware of the possibility that it could blow up in her hands any second. The moment two potions touched, there was a reaction, the substance changed color and became a deep indigo, it also started whirling and released a few cracks to April's great terror. Please, don't blow up, please! She begged mentally, preparing to throw the thing away as far as she could at a moment's notice. It didn't. The sparks soon died down and the potion kept playing a whirlpool. After waiting for a few seconds to make sure there was no imminent danger, April sighed in relief, shut the cork on the explosive potion's vial which still held quite a bit of the hazardous liquid and took the next one - The Light-as-a-Leaf potion. Repeating the process she eyed the vial in wonder. The new mix was a more grayish liquid that left the bottom of its glassy container and whirled hovering in the middle of it, as if free of gravity. She pulled the last one - the invisibility potion and poured as little as she could afford into the vial. Adding it seemed to have no effect, at least none visible to the eye - very fitting, once she thought about it.

In the end she didn't know what she could expect from the final result of her impromptu brewery, but if she wanted to create a mayhem worthy of attention from all the security guards, she needed to go for the messiest thing she could think of. She didn't know what was scarier: the improvised potion not working well enough, or working too well. She sighed again, pursing her lips. There was no point contemplating that, when she knew there was nothing to be done but try it in practice and see how it went.

Putting on a brave face April walked along the edge of the platform. She tried not to get too close to the edge or look in the direction of the elevator anymore. She already noticed a guard glancing her way with obvious suspicion and drawing their attention to herself was not what she was trying to achieve. It took more walking than it should've if the city urbanists had done their job better, but she got to a spot that faced the opposite side of the elevator tower. She was right, there was no other bridge connecting it to the surroundings, but she didn't need one. She figured if there had been any, there would definitely have been more guards stationed at it. The tower wall was not too far away, she couldn't physically reach it herself, but a small object thrown with enough strength would have no problem.

Adjusting the satchel on her shoulder, April made sure she knew which vial was which well enough and could pick the right one the second she needed it. There could be no mistakes here or she would pay a dear price. Screwing up her courage she lifted her right arm and threw the vial of the new mixed potion with as much strength as she could, hitting the thick wall and smashing the vial into tiny sparkling pieces that shot apart with a lot more speed than it was normal. They looked like tiny meteorites rushing in all directions, leaving faint glowing trails behind. Immediately there was a roar, a small, yet incredibly powerful tornado rose from the spot she had hit. The gust of wind almost knocked her back off her feet and from the dismayed yells that came from the other side, the security had very nearly done so too. The tornado glowed sea green and seemed to produce dark cloudy swirl from the inside. April found herself rooted to the spot, horror struck, recognizing the familiar visual traits of the thing she had unleashed. It moved fast and chaotically around and up along the circular tower, smashing into it from time to time, with a series of spectacular loud explosions.

Sounds of running footsteps and uncensored exclamations led April out of the stupor. Just before the guards came running around their post to see what the hell was going on she quickly gulped down what remained of the invisibility potion and bolted back to the bridge that led to the elevator door. She didn't need to wait for the effect. The guards that came into view only a moment later clearly didn't see her and she was absolutely sure the loud bangs would drown the sound of her footsteps. In a few seconds it took her to cross the bridge - now unprotected - something happened. There was a vaguely identifiable sound of some sort of an engine shutting down and the elevator button - initially glowing with red electric light – darkened. Her eyes widened in panic. She hit it desperately, even knowing that it would be in vain now. Nothing happened. She looked around frantically and saw that the few lights she'd noticed earlier in partly demolished buildings hadn't gone out. It looked like the city as a whole was not bereft of such luxuries as electricity, only the part where she needed them most. And yet, she had been prepared for something like that and this was no time for second thoughts or hesitation. Not allowing herself the time to mourn the loss of an easier way, she practically tore open the vial of the Explosive potion, took a few quick steps back and splashed a small portion of it with a surprisingly well-measured hand gesture right onto the door. With a bang it tore a sizable hole through the thick metal. April immediately ran to it and clambered inside, hoping the security guards were well occupied and that the new explosion hadn't stood out to them among the ones that were still taking place wherever the tornado was. From the sounds of yelling, swearing and the Alchemic storm still thundering outside, it seemed like she was right. It wasn't until she had found herself in the darkness with both feet firmly on the elevator floor that she even remembered, the car could very easily have been absent and in that case she would have found herself falling down God knew what distance to certain death.

The noise was starting to subside, and soon she would lose her chance to go unnoticed. Fumbling around in nearly full darkness, since the hole she'd made didn't provide much light, she found a corner to crouch in, curled up trying to make herself as small as possible and covered her head with her arm. She mentally contemplated the size of the elevator and where the opposite corner of the ceiling would be. With an upward jerk of her hand she threw a fraction of the explosive potion up in what she hoped was the right direction. The cabin shook violently and for a moment she thought it would be torn off and racing down after all, but it didn't. Debris rained down on her and on the floor around her, but nothing too heavy or too sharp fell on her directly. Grateful for her incredible luck, she stumbled forward, arms outstretched, hands searching, trying not to fall over anything. There was a gap, she could just feel it above her head and she couldn't reach its top edge. It could be big enough. Her hand touched the hard, uneven surface of the wall just outside the car, which had suffered from the blast as well. The dent was sizable, almost like a small cave etched into the massive wall, and April's heart leapt with realization that she could probably climb out very easily. Wasting no time she held onto the jagged edge of the hole, put a foot onto the wall and pushed her body up and away from it, lifting the other leg and doing the same thing with that foot as well. She gained a whole new level of appreciation for whoever manufactured the soles of her boots that helped her up on this slippery wall. She moved her right hand on the side to a slightly higher spot on the hole's edge. When she was confident that it would not be breaking off under pressure, she shifted her weight and lifted herself up, propping her body on the left arm. She pressed her lips hard and stifled a whimper when the sharp edge cut into the skin of her palm, almost causing her to fall back, but she didn't stop. She managed to curl one leg underneath her and bring it up high enough to press her knee onto the edge as well. It was a very painful effort but it paid off. And soon she was out of the cabin, on the "floor" in the cavelike wall, with one arm up, seeking a purchase onto the roof. She found it none too soon, since that very moment, she thought she heard someone running to the elevator door. It wasn't loud enough for her to be sure, but April froze and held her breath anyway. Had one of the guards returned to the post? The noise from her made-to-order Chaos Ministorm had become more distant and maybe the guards were snapping out of their bewilderment and remembering their duty. In any case she couldn't remain where she was, so, as carefully as she could, she started climbing out of the ruined car, hoping that the very obvious dent in the door would be blamed on the magical phenomenon they'd all witnessed and they would not be scrabbling inside after her to check for intruders. She carefully felt the edge of the ceiling of the denture above her head with one hand and the damaged ceiling of the elevator car with the other. They were closer together than she'd hoped, but she was almost sure the gap between them was big enough to get through. With that thought she leaned to the gap and pulled her head and hands through it, finding purchase on the roof and crawling through. She tried her best not to grunt when she grazed her back onto the wall, or not to hit anything with her feet loud enough to give herself away. Her progress was made very awkward by the limitations of space and freedom of movement.

She had crawled all the way up to her waist when she heard exactly what she had been dreading to hear: shuffling and steps inside the cabin. The person outside was crawling in. She froze a second time, gripped by indecision, not knowing whether to stay unmoving, hoping there would be no flashlight in her direction and counting on the darkness to hide her, the effect of the small doze of her Invisibility potion already having eft her body - until they left in peace, or to throw caution to wind and get away as fast as possible, revealing her presence in the process.

There was no sign of a flashlight, but more voices came from outside, not shouting anymore, but speaking loudly, ranting, exchanging their displeasure and shock. The fact that she could hear them meant they were near and would be resuming their posts pretty soon. The instinct to run took over. She put both hands on the roof, and putting all her strength in her arms, dragged herself up as fast as she could, digging her feet into the harsh hard surface of the wall denture this time, causing some rubble to fall down. Before she was completely up, she was stopped by an unexpected hoarse whisper from the intruder. "April? Are you there?"

"Adrian?" She almost cried out with shock and relief and indignation, but managed to gather her wits in time to whisper more forcefully than she usually would. "Where have you been? How did you..."

"No time!" he cut her off urgently, "The guards are almost here, tell me what to do!"

"There's a hole here," she answered immediately, hoping he would find it by following her voice, which he did. A moment later she felt his hand brush her boot, "climb up." She said shortly and followed her own advice, drawing her whole body upwards, finally clambering up completely, sprawled gracelessly on the uneven surface adorned with massive metal parts, waiting with baited breath for Adrian to do the same. His progress was even slower, but it seemed to be due to his attempt at stealth. Good thinking too, since the talk outside got very close. Thankfully the guards were loud enough to drown the tapping and harsh breathing inside. He worked his way up diligently. April's fear that he may get stuck, since he was considerably thicker build than her, was almost proven right at one point, when his head poked out of the hole - her eyes had adjusted enough to see a faint outline even if there was nothing visible on a considerable distance from the hole, some brave photons were probably to be credited for having travelled all this way after them through the hole in the elevator door - and halted, going completely still, but the next moment she knew he had simply heard something she hadn't.

"God damn it! Even here?!" came an exasperated voice from one of the guards, a few swore loudly. Then, to April's horror there was a slight shimmer of pale light along the edge of the gap. A flashlight! They're checking inside! She stood as silently as she could and groped around blindly, feeling the walls and finding them frustratingly smooth, no ladder was attached to any of them. Climbing would be impossible, as far as she could judge without proper eyesight. "Wait! It's different! Look!" Said another man and there were footsteps very close indeed. Adrian must have sensed the danger since he renewed his effort to get up there. He was very good at keeping it quiet, she realized, she could barely hear him herself. "This one's real!" the guard shouted to her surprise. "Look at this! I can put my hand in!" April couldn't understand what in the world they meant by that and didn't have time to properly think about it. She kept searching around, trying not to step on Adrian in the process, until she was absolutely sure there really was no ladder installed in the shaft for repairs. They would have to use the steel cables attached to the car to climb all the way up. The only reason this task didn't seem impossible was a portion of magic still in her possession. "Wait! Someone did this on purpose!" Said a rough voice. And finally the twelfth Guardian's nerves took over. In his last struggle to drag himself upwards as fast as possible, he failed to get a good foothold. He slipped and while he was no longer in danger of falling down, the rubble underneath his feet was and did just that. The worst happened, they immediately heard the reactions from the guards. "What's that? Someone's in there!" The words were shouted, a beam of light flashed at an odd angle through the hole they had both climbed up through. If the guards hadn't gotten in yet, they would now.

Adrian was on his feet. He hurried to her side and whispered "what now?" Guns clicked outside, the security ready to fire.

"We know you're there! Come out of the elevator immediately, or we will use force!"

April quickly removed the cork from her final vial - the Light as a Leaf potion, which glowed faintly. She smelled it to make sure it was the right one. "This potion will make you very light." She whispered to him.

"We're not messing around! Until the count of three, if you're not out or don't give us any sign that you're surrendering, we'll blast the damn elevator!"

"We'll drink this and be able to jump very high."

"One!"

"Use these cables to go up quickly and hold on when the effect wears off."

"Two!"

She took one generous gulp from it, found his hand in the dark and shoved the vial to him.

"Three!"

Even as Adrian took the vial to his lips, April jumped with as much might as she could, unwilling to waste a second of the familiar sense of weightlessness spreading from her stomach to her very fingertips.

"Blast the damn door down!" she heard the voice rapidly growing more distant as she sped up the steely wires with tremendous speed, using her hands and feet to steer herself vertically by constantly gripping the cables and throwing the rest of her body up with renewed momentum.

Blasts! The sound was deafening, their echoes filled the shaft and almost made her stall, the cables shook with the assaulted elevator car. A quick glance down proved that the security guards had taken down the doors, but hadn't destroyed the car completely, there was still the uneven patch of now a lot brighter light that indicated the dent her explosive potion had made, meaning at least the roof was intact. The good news was that she could see a bit more now, and she could see that Adrian was safely on her tail, ascending in the same fashion.

"Hurry up!" she called, not bothering to keep her voice down quite as much anymore and tried to apply even more strength to her efforts, trying to keep her body more straightened vertically and reduce the air resistance this way, trying to keep her hands as close to the cables as possible, aware that she could lose this magical ability at any second. The shouting voices of the guards were coming from unbelievably far already, echoing faintly and practically indiscernible. She didn't know how high they'd climbed (jumped, flown) up and how much was still left, knowing only that they would need to get all the way up to the last floor for the most desirable result.

Unfortunately, like all good things in life, this magical ride didn't last very long either. In a few minutes April felt her usual weight settling down her body drop by drop. She continued up frantically, trying to take advantage of every fraction of a second she remained under the potion's influence, until all of a sudden she had to grab the cables and wrap her legs around them, gripping as tight as she could as she came sliding down a little distance and earned a constricted yelp from Adrian, when her boots hit his fists and almost pushed him off. The rope like texture of the cable chafed the skin on her already abused palms. They burned and stung painfully, her left one in particular was on fire, already having been injured down in the elevator. She was sure she would be leaving a continuous bloody trail with it when she tried to climb normally. How much further? She thought desperately, looking up as if she would actually be able to see anything in pitch black darkness.

"Are you alright?" Adrian whispered, his voice uncertain and full of concern. He hung there unmoving, it looked like he too had been subjected to gravity again.

"Yeah…" April whispered back, even though she thought whispering was unnecessary. The truth was, she didn't trust her voice not to break if she spoke aloud, even her whisper came out strained. He must have realized the state she was in, at least partly.

"Can you continue?" He inquired.

"Yes, I can." April said fiercely, ordering herself to believe it was true. Almost trying to spite her own weakness, she moved her injured hand up and torturously, stubbornly dragged her body up, refusing to listen to the burning pain of her hand, of skin being peeled off the flash. They could only hope that they had come close to the upper level, because otherwise she didn't trust herself to be able to go on for too long and she definitely couldn't rely on Adrian to carry her up while climbing with one hand himself. She inched up slow as a snail, Adrian followed her after waiting to make sure there was enough distance between them. Her breathing became heavy and less and less controlled, she couldn't stop a few grunts and whimpers escaping her.

"April, there's still a bit of the potion left in this!" Adrian said suddenly, causing her to halt and look down at him in shock. "Very little, but probably enough to help you go up a bit more."

"What about you?" She asked meekly, but in truth relief flooded her and she was ready to snatch it out of his hand the moment he extended it.

"I'm fine, I'll keep climbing. Just take it." He said. The cable shook a bit more, she guessed Adrian had adjusted his weight to reach into his pocket for the vial. Indeed, the faint magical glow that followed the potions announced its emergence from Adrian's safekeeping. April prepared to reach with her doubtlessly bloodied hand and take it from him, but at that very moment they both stopped dead in their motions. There was loud squeaking and scratching and banging on metal that was coming from below, somewhere in the endless pit. Oh what now? She saw a small white bright patch grow in the wall several meters below them. Someone opened a door they couldn't see before. The very blood in her veins froze. They both hung unmoving – an excruciating task when it involved metal cables and wet, injured hands - and trying not to breath too loud. There was movement, shadows in the bright light - two people poked their heads in, one had a flashlight pointed down. April squinted a bit. She couldn't be absolutely sure, but it looked like the other had a gun. While she contemplated what to do, they spoke, their voices echoed loudly.

"Can you see them?"

"Nah, they must be too far down yet. We're wasting our time if you ask me, no way they can get all the way up here, this shit is huge! They will either fall down or climb down."

"Unless they have some equipment to help them up."

"How long are we supposed to wait for them here?"

"Until we've got them, or we're told we can go."

"Shit."

The guards kept their faces peering downwards, unaware that their targets were already well above them. Not thinking that even with special equipment they could have gone at such a speed, and in truth April herself was surprised to see the progress they'd had in what must have been two or three minutes. A sudden realization came to her - the two guards that waited for them at the doors must have been on the mid level, and being as high above it as they were… She glanced up again, careful not to alert them with her movement. She couldn't see what she was looking for but she thought… She hoped their exit was not too far away anymore. After all, while the mid and high levels were elevated worlds above the low level of the city, they were relatively closer to each other. How much further? She asked herself again, this time with a spark of hope. And would they be able to stay undetected while they climbed? The cables would move, their scrabbling would make sounds. Would it be enough for them to realize the signs of movement were coming from above and not below as they had been convinced? And what if guards were mobilized at the upper level exit as well? No, she assured herself it was very unlikely. No door had opened above, not yet at least. Whoever found a way to contact the mid level probably found it unnecessary to alert anyone up there.

In any case they had only one way left to go and a limited amount of time and energy to do so. April's hands were slipping painfully again. She grit her teeth and gripped them tighter and looked down to Adrian to gesture up, letting him know they should go on. Adrian, however, had done some decision making of his own while she had been deliberating. He slowly removed the cork from the vial with his teeth and held it in his hand with the vial itself, not daring to drop it. Then, after one last quick glance at the danger below and an encouraging nod and a smile at April he put the vial to his lips and consumed all the remaining substance in one go.

April only had time to blink incredulously at him, for suddenly drinking the potion he had offered to her just a minute ago. Before she could feel adequately indignant at his less than chivalrous behavior, he put the vial hastily back in his pocket and was off in an instant. When he leapt up, April tried to shrink herself to avoid collision and falling off. To her surprise though he stopped exactly at her level, hanging (if one could call it that when he was practically levitating) with his left hand on the cable right above her head. In a second he hooked his right arm around her waist, pulling her tightly to himself and yanking her off the cables with one forceful jerk. The movement caused the cables shake violently and voices from below let them know that it had not gone unnoticed or unnoted. April, realizing his intention, was positively horrified, but acting on instinct, she grabbed at his shoulders, practically hanging on his neck in a tight, desperate sort of embrace and they continued upwards, not quite as fast as before, but at a speed she wouldn't imagine possible with only one of them being a living Antigrav unit and having to move on strength of one arm only. That is, until she realized that she didn't feel her own weight anymore - a fact she failed to notice while concentrating on gluing herself onto the twelfth Guardian in an admittedly embarrassing fashion for people who barely knew each other, but secure enough to avoid being splattered onto the car roof countless feet below. Somehow - April didn't know how and didn't care to find out at that exact moment - the potion's effect had extended to her and there was hope again. They could reach the upper level, they were so high up already! If only the guards wouldn't think to search for them above… An indiscernible mix of shouted words caught up with them. If only!.. She thought more hysterically, sensing the danger, her intuition already beginning to tell her how fate had betrayed her again just as an earsplitting sound of a blaster gun almost made her scream and Adrian settled for a sharp intake of breath. Not only had the security seen them, they had opened fire without so much as a warning. It hit the shaft wall somewhere above them and she heard the rubble pouring down. Another shot was fired, then another, missing the targets thanks to all consuming darkness around and the amount of space between them, but after everything that had happened, April knew better than to rely on her luck for too long. Even a blind shot could hit them by accident, and Adrian was already slowing down.

Resigned for one of the worst risks even by her own new found standards, April looked down where she could still see the bright opening. With one hand she quickly reached into the satchel to pull out the explosive potion one more time. Since the direction in which the entrance to the mid level (or what she considered to be the mid level entrance) lay that way, it was a reasonable assumption that the upper level one would be on the same side, only several floors above.

"Get ready, we're going outside!" She said to Adrian in a strained voice and, aiming below, threw the whole vial itself , hoping that the amount still left in it would be enough to break a hole through the massive wall. The explosion was nothing short of spectacular, almost outshining the first time she used that particular potion in Roper Klacks' castle. The outburst of light was blinding, the loud bang was accompanied by now familiar magical swooshing sounds, red sparks flew everywhere and the debris fell down in large chunks and small splits. The two of them were almost thrown upwards if not for Adrian grabbing the cables with both his hands and hooking legs around them, holding on with all his strength, and April holding onto him the exact same way.

They both quickly looked at the damage they'd done and April's heart leapt seeing a bit of light coming from it. It also became obvious just how thick the walls were, after Adrian, taking advantage of the weightless state that was quickly dwindling away, took a leap of faith right onto the new cavelike formation the explosion had made, which still wasn't a tunnel with an open exit. April jumped off her carrier, pushed aside the urge to fall down and curl up into a fetal position and pushed what remained of the wall that still stood in their way. It was a thin sheet of building material only. Adrian joined her after taking a few deep breaths and together they punched and kicked the feeble obstacles out of their way. Breaking their way out of the wall altogether.

A view of a simple deserted and barely lit corridor and the synthetic smell of washing and disinfectant liquids had never been so welcome, nor the sight of a solid floor just three or four feet below them. She jumped without thinking twice, landing with a heavy thud thanks to her freshly regained weight and sprinted along it with all the speed she had, Adrian silently catching up with her.