Heeeey. Looong pause, I know. Forgive me!

This is kinda short, I know. :(

I hope you all enjoy it anyway.

Giving Back

Yu woke in a cold sweat, shivering and feeling the weight of needle-sharp anxiety churning heavily in his stomach. Flipping over into his back, he let himself sink into the comfortable mattress of his bed and focused on breathing deep, one breath in, the other out. It was only when the shaking subsided and the churning stopped that Yu ran a hand over his face, skin feeling clammy under his palm in the wake of his dream.

Or maybe nightmare was a better word. He thought back, but for the life of him, he just could not remember what it had been about. All the same, it had left it's mark in the form of a deeply unsettling burden of dread.

Breathing again, he sat up, knowing he wasn't going back to sleep again anytime soon, if at all. Looking around, he took stock of the three other beds in the room, whose occupants all remained undisturbed. After Tiruviel departed, they'd been taken to their rooms, ones they had to share. It was not exactly an issue, really, and the beds were incredibly comfortable compared to the cots from before. As Yu sat there, watching, he felt himself grow marginally calmer. Whatever had upset him in his nightmare, he could feel it's grip gradually slipping away.

Still, a persistent little thread of trepidation clung to his heart. If he'd been home with the Dojimas, he would have made himself some hot milk and maybe walked around in the backyard for a little bit before returning to his room. He did not know if such amenities were available to him now, though.

Hm . . . the balcony area they'd visited beforehand wasn't far from this room . . . perhaps he could make a quick run to it and get some much needed fresh air, then head back. That would surely help relax his nerves.

He glanced over where his best friend lay, pondering for a few moments before ultimately deciding against waking him up. It wasn't fair to bother Yosuke at whatever hour this was when all that had occurred was a silly little nightmare. Better to just let him sleep and Yu could sort it out on his own.

Stealthily creeping out of bed, he crept over to the door and grabbed the handle. It opened soundlessly, and with a quiet smile, Yu stepped out into the hall.

Only to run right into two robed figures standing gaurd just outside. He jumped, but only slightly, recognizing the faces beneath the hoods as the two of the servants Queen Edda had assigned them. What surprised him more was to see them still up, at least together. When was the last time they slept?

Both men stared down at him, and Yu swallowed a little as he realized just how tall they were. At least six and a half foot, if not more. Belatedly, he realized they may not be human, though that was less a surprise and more a reasonable assumption by this point.

They made no move to shove him back inside, however, so . . . perhaps he could explain?

"Um . . . my apologies," he said, hoping they understood him as he closed the door, "I just wanted to get some fresh air."

He pointed down the hall, to where he remembered the balcony area was, "Just down there. I won't take long, I promise."

Both men followed his finger, and whether they understood his words him to not, they seemed to at least understand what he was on about. With a look and a singular, shared nod, one made to stand in front of the door while the other came to Yu's side.

Um . . . alright.

The man was looking down at him, like he was waiting for Yu to move. With a tentative glance back at the door, Yu slowly asked, "So, its alright if I go?"

Silence. Then, a slow nod.

Yu felt his shoulders dip in relief, bowing respectfully, "Thank you."

He turned around, keeping his feet light so as not to disturb any others who were sleeping. It took him a few moments to notice that the other man was following him.

He glanced back at his 'guard', blinking but keeping his peace. Right, he should have expected this. Their task was, after all, to keep watch over them. To not instill any bad blood, he gave the hooded man a faint smile and nod, hoping it conveyed his appreciation. There was more silence for a few long seconds . . . then the man nodded in return, seeming to accept it.

Yu carried on, trying not to let himself be too put off by the company. If only the man could talk, then it might have actually been enjoyable, a perfect chance to take his mind off things. As it was, with their 'vow of silence', a conversation seemed very unlikely.

The walk only took a minute or two, with the soft, cool trickle of fresh air being the first thing to greet him in the hallway adjoining to the open causeway he'd seen. He and his companion rounded the marble corner, and Yu could just see the glimmer of stars between the smooth columns bordering the balustrade.

As well as the four figures down the way.

Yu paused when he caught sight of them, recognizing Cahira, Ylvaria, Yvir and his own counterpart Yalathas standing in a circle and looking like they were deep in discussion. He could just hear the muted echo of their voices in the silent corridor, but they were indistinct and hushed. Even if he did hear them, it was unlikely he'd understand them. If he and his friends weren't present, there was no need for them to speak in their foreign tongue.

A moment later, Ylvaria and Cahira detached from the group, and Yu thought he glimpsed them conjoin hands as they departed down the opposite end of the hallway. But he was too far away to tell for sure.

Yalathas and Yvir hadn't noticed him yet, eyes on the departing pair, heads tilted in such a way as to suggest they were whispering to each other. Yalathas turned his head to look at his companion more fully, still whispering, and Yvir laughed and pushed him away in a manner Yu could only describe as playful. The silver-eyed paladin laughed in return, and his arm came up, reaching for Yvir's waist-

And then Yu was looking at the ground as something small yet remarkably heavy dropped onto his head.

He couldn't stop the startled and slightly pained cry that escaped him, and the weight vanished a moment later. Looking up, he caught sight of Aife shooting down the hallway on his bright wings, landing on Yvir's shoulders and bringing to attention that the two most assuredly saw him now.

Rubbing the back of his head to both ease the pain of Aife's landing as well as slight admonishment, Yu decided to bite the bullet and walk over to the duo.

Yvir had an inquiring eyebrow cocked while Yalathas smiled at him patiently (but with a touch of amusement, Yu noticed as well), both men waiting for an explanation.

"Um . . . good evening," Yu said, waving sheepishly, "Sorry, I was just coming out for a little fresh air. I wasn't trying to eavesdrop."

"Specific denial noted," Yvir said, but his lips were turned up teasingly, thank god.

"You're allowed to go where you please," Yalathas said. After a moment of reflection, he then added, "Well, mostly. Divistan."

He nodded to the man behind Yu, who returned it with a small one of his own. Oh, was that his name? It hadn't occurred to him to ask someone if they knew.

Aife warbled tunefully, wings fluttering as he placed his forepaws on Yvir's head, eyes boring intently into Yu. He shifted uncomfortable, not quite sure what to make of the fae-dragon's stare. The sorcerer he perched on peered up, looking equally perplexed, "What is the matter with you, Aife? Did you accidently eat something Cahira made?"

The small beast hissed irritably, then flapped over to Yu. He froze as the dragon landed back on his head, feeling his tiny claws prick at his scalp. What in the world did this dragon want from him?

Yalathas glanced at his friend, who was giving the dragon an incredibly incredulous stare, when something flickered on in Yvir's eyes and he suddenly slammed his fist into his palm, "Oh, I think I get it! Yu, you didn't happen to have a nightmare, did you?"

Yu started in shock, "How did you-?"

"Aife is a type of fae that's attuned to the dream energy humanoids give off. Nightmares tend to make him a bit fussy over the people who have them. He's sort of like a dream gaurd-dog," Yvir explained.

Yu blinked, "Really? That actually sounds really nice to have."

"Believe me, it is," Yvir agreed, smiling as the dragon began preening Yu's hair, "Don't worry, he'll stop after a few minutes."

He could feel the creature's purr reverberate through his skull, soothing and soft, and Yu smiled a little at Aife's attempt at comfort. It was sort of working, the uncomfortable knot of anxiety in his stomach loosening, and he appreciated that.

"Would you like to talk about it?" Yalathas asked, tone gentle but not prodding.

Yu shrugged, "Honestly, I don't even remember what it was about. But I'm sure it was nothing."

"I'm sure, but it never hurts to offer," the paladin replied.

Yu nodded gratefully, "Thank you."

He glanced where he had seen Ylvaria and Cahira leave, weighing over whether or not asking about their conversation was worth it, when the corners of Yalathas' lips twitched up into a knowing smile, "Wondering what we were talking about?"

Well, looks like there was no avoiding it now, "Um, well . . . sort of."

Yvir glanced at his companion, then to Yu, then back again, face thoughtful, "It's not like it'd be bad to tell him. Honestly, I think we should."

"I was thinking the same," Yalathas nodded before glancing at the figure standing behind Yu, "No objections, I presume?"

Yu looked at his guard, hoping that the Queen hadn't ordered her secret police to keep his friends and himself in the dark and that for once he could learn something of value. To his immense relief, Divistan shook his head.

He looked back to the pair, hoping his eagerness wasn't too obvious as he waited for them to speak.

Yalathas gestured to one of the balconies, "Let's sit first. The view is very nice tonight."

And he was right. Yu couldn't see the city as well as before, just the shadows of the buildings and the occasional spark of a lit torch. But the sky . . . the sky was something to behold. Back on his world, the night had always seemed as drab as slate beneath the electric haze of city lights, reflecting only the tepid orange glow of world beneath it. Only the most persistent of stars could hope to shine there, and even then their lights were nothing but a faint, far away glimmer. In Inaba, with its clean mountain air and distance from the chaos he'd once called home, Yu had been treated to a much brighter, star-speckled sky that had looked impossibly vast to his inexperienced eyes.

And it all paled in comparison to the sight he saw now.

The sky was so much more than just a slab of ebony tossed with stars . . . here, he could see colors ranging from amethystine purple to deep azure to velvety black, whorls that blended and ran together like paint across a dark canvas. And the stars . . . the stars in the sky were so many in number they were impossible to count, millions, billions, all existing together in one vast space, overlapping and twining and twisting together in beautiful pandemonium! They gathered like great clouds of diamond dust upon a storm of colored darkness, changing every time he blinked, never still, never stopping, a brilliant disorder that took his breath away.

This was his first time truly seeing the night sky of this world, he realized. It had been impossible in the Underdark, and on the surface, the chaos encountered had captured all of his attention. Yu wondered if once, long ago, the night sky of his world had looked just like this before it had been hidden behind a wall of light pollution, pure, undiluted chaos of the most radiant sort. He felt a pang of regret at the thought.

"You weren't lying . . ." he breathed, eyes never leaving the sky, absorbing as much of it as he could.

He could feel both Yvir's and Yalathas' amused gazes on his back, Yvir jokingly asking, "What, don't you have stars where you're from?"

"Not like this," Yu said without thinking about it, still staring. It was a really nice sky.

He didn't see the puzzled glances the two shared, but he did hear it when they sat down, and finally tore his gaze away from the sight above to look at the duo. Without speaking, Yalathas gestured to the other end of the circular bench, and he politely did as he was asked.

Out here, with the fresh air, the beautifully clear sky, and Aife's continuous kneading, Yu was beginning to feel much better. He hoped the coming conversation didn't upset that.

Yvir spoke first, placing an ankle over his opposite leg, "So, you and the rest of your friends are probably starting to get really annoyed that no one's telling you anything, huh?"

Yu pursed his lips and slowly glanced out over the balustrade, thinking for all of two seconds before nodding 'yes', "I know people think they're just protecting us that way, but whether we're told or not, we're still being affected by whatever's going on. We need answers."

Yalathas gave an acquiescing nod, "I know. But the truth was, is none of us really knew what was going on ourselves. Truthfully . . ." he looked reluctant to say it, "We still don't."

"But Queen Edda did have a little more information for us," Yvir added, "You remember what Tiruviel told us that day by Sedgeridge, right?"

Yu nodded. He remembered it very well. It was hard to forget conversing with a dragon.

"Queen Edda believes that the portals appearing around the lake are not isolated from each other. She told us that these were simply symptoms of a larger problem, one no person in living memory has seen or experienced before," Yalathas explained, "However, it may be that this event has taken place before."

Yu sat up straighter, now alert, "Something like this has happened beofre?"

Both nodded, the paladin continuing, "Tiruviel is a collector of many scrolls and books of ancient lore. One in particular spoke of a day when 'all boundaries ceased to be', and many excerpts involving portals was written alongside that story."

"What does it mean by 'all boundaries cease to be?" Yu asked, eyebrows knitting together at the curious phrase.

"It might have to with a weakening in the veil between the Planes, which would make logical sense for why all these portals keep appearing," Yvir said, "Its a pretty big 'might', though. No ones exactly sure how that would even happen, or why."

"But you all think that's what's happening now?" Yu pressed, leaning forward in interest. Aife wavered on his head, but kept his balance, wings fluttering.

"Perhaps. Unfortunately, like most old books, the passages were faded and frustratingly vague. We're lucky we were able to find anything at all," Yalathas said, leaning back and leaning his head against the marble railing, "But what we did find was too similar to dismiss completely. If its true, then this phenomenon would explain how you and your friends all came to be here."

Yu's eyes fell to the floor, thinking. An event that occurred long ago, that was happening again? Hm, very apocalyptic, that, and not at all ominous.

"Buuut, we're not completely out of luck!" Yu looked back up as Yvir spoke, the sylph wearing a prideful smile, "Because there might be someone out there who would know if this legend is accurate or not! Someone I know!"

Yu blinked, surprised, "You know someone like that?"

Yvir's smile broadened, "I sure do! And, uh, it might do to actually check in anyway, its been a while since I last visited."

He lifted an eyebrow, curious, "Who?"

"Easy, it's-" Yvir didn't get to finish, because that was the moment Aife decided his job was done and shot back to his master, claws tangling in the sorcerer's dark hair, "Ah! Aife!"

"Well, you did say he'd be done in a few minutes," Yalathas cheekily put in, smiling.

"Oh, shut up," Yvir said, no heat behind it as he relocated Aife to his shoulder. With a half-smirk, he retorted, "He's still not as bad as the one dumb cat you found in Dresden."

Dumb cat? Yu thought, offended. There was no such thing.

Yalathas pursed his lips, unamused, "You startled her. The only dumb one in that situation was you."

"Is this your way of saying a cat is smarter than me?" Yvir asked, crossing his arms.

"No, only that you were the one in the wrong," Yalathas stated.

"Cats don't start fights unless they feel threatened," Yu put in. He's not sure what his two cents will achieve, but for the sake of cats, he felt he had to speak up.

Yalathas pointed a hand at him and looked at Yvir, as if daring him to speak up against such solid evidence. The sorcerer sighed and threw up a defeated hand, "You know what, whatever. There's no point trying."

Aife hummed from his perch, and Yalathas' dropped his stoic expression to smile and laugh.

As the two went on, Yu's eyes trailed back to the starry expanse overhead, pondering over his new knowledge. Overall, it wasn't much, like they said. But it was new, and offered a first step in solving the mystery before them. If nothing else, it was hope, and he looked forward to sharing that hope with his friends.

"Excited for tomorrow?"

Yu glanced to his counterpart, at first wondering what he was talking about when it came back to him; training. With a serious nod, he replied, "I am. Anything that can give us an advantage in this world is worth the effort."

"That's the spirit!" Yalathas said, looking pleased. Then, with a more meaningful look, added, "But by that same token, it is hard work. You should head back to bed."

Yu gave an assenting nod at that. It was late, and he had to try to sleep if he wanted to be spry and appropriately energetic for tomorrow.

"Thank you for talking with me," he said as he rose to his feet, grateful that despite the Queen's desire to keep them in the dark, the champions had offered them the information they wanted.

"Of course. You shared so much with us, its only fair we give something back in return," Yalathas said as he, too, got up, Yvir just behind him, "Sleep well, tonight. You have along day tomorrow."

"And try not to have any nightmares, unless you want this guy crawling into our bed," Yvir added teasingly, stroking Aife's chin. The dragon purred, eyes rolling closed in delight.

Yu huffed a laugh, "I'll try not too. Good night, Yvir-san. Yalathas-san."

They parted ways after that, Divistan falling in step behind him as Yu left.

So, a 'day where all boundaries ceased to be', hm? It was curious. Potentially concerning, if it was actually true. But at the same time, Yu felt the heavy weight of uncertainty being lifted from his shoulders. At last, they had something to focus on rather than just blindly groping in the dark. A thread to cling to in search of the answers that had long eluded them.

Yu gave on last parting glance to the beautiful, starlit scene above him before turning the corner completely, and felt that sleep wouldn't be so hard coming tonight after all.

(*)

The mouth of the cave was a massive, yawning hole that descended into nothing but pitch black darkness, so large no less than ten elephants stacked atop one another could easily slip inside, the smell of marsh water, mold, and rot wafting up from within. Moss, thick, slimy, and slippery, coated the stone all around, the turgid swamp water pooling in the basin just before the entrance sloshing along the embankment. Shallow grooves dotted the ground, filled with filmy water that smelled sour.

It would suit her purpose just fine.

With a wave of her hand, the moss and flotsam in one of the pools cleared away, leaving it and smooth and polished as crystal. The waters churned, roiling and twisting as color began to bleed across the surface, molding into shape as soon as it settled.

The face of Lady Phaedra stared out from the newly created image, the drow's lips turned down into a tight, serious frown, "Have you arrived?"

The woman nodded, "Yes, I have. Dismal as I would expect, but as they say, beauty is in the eye of the beholder."

The drow sighed irritably, patience apparently quite thin today, "Have you spoken with the beast?"

"In due time," she replied sweetly. Cloak shifting, she withdrew a massive emerald as large as a human skull, surface flawless and sparkling radiantly in the gloom of the swamp, "Appeasement comes first, My Lady."

Lady Phaedra tsked, "As you say. But do make it quick. I grow tired of entertaining that oafish bloodsucker. Such parlaying tricks our for those below my status."

The woman smiled, "Lord Gethen is a man of peculiar tastes, but I must implore My Lady to keep him interested lest he . . . pursue other diversions. Diversions that may cause you an even greater headache."

"Hmph," with that, the water faded back to its newfound clarity, and the woman turned back to her mission, emerald in hand and quite visible to any curious eye.

She only had to wait for a handful of minutes before the ground beneath her began to tremble. Stringer and stronger they came, a sound like thunder accompanying every footfall that echoed from within the cave until something came to halt just within the drapery of darkness.

A single eye, as green as an acid lake and just as burning, peered out from the black, as large as a tower shield was tall. Then, a voice as old as the swamp boomed out from within, so powerful and deep it sent ripples cascading along the water, "So, you bring me quite the offering just to get my attention. Do tell, little witch, why do you come bearing such lovely gifts?"

The woman smiled, holding the emerald out so the beast could better see it, "Allow me to elucidate for you then. Sometime soon, as I'm sure you know, a great party will take place in human lands. An attendee of which, you know most personally. The one who guards the lake. The one who took your eye, as I recall."

A green light rose up from the darkness, illuminating the shadows of fangs as long as a giant's glaive, sabers of ebony that gleamed most malignantly in the glow of thallium fire, "Aaaah, yes. For your sake, you best tell me your intentions to bringing her up, and pray that I like them."

She bowed humbly, "Of course. I would not waste your time otherwise. But shall you listen, great one?"

"Hmmm . . ." a great claw as massive as an small hill reached out the cave, claws as great as ironwood trucks plucking the emerald from her hand with a care most delicate. The eye examined the jewel with appraising care, then withdrew into back into it's clutches, "For this trinket . . . you have earned the right to speak. Now speak."

And she did, smiling all the while. For soon . . . soon, it would all finally fall into place.

And yeah. About two more chapters before things start to pop off.

I hope you're all ready. :)