“Dadan!”

  The shout came just as Eastwei left his abode. Yushir hurried up, slightly out of breath and with a bleak expression.

  “My uncle has requested you come immediately and report the matter to him personally,” Yushir told him.

  “I will do so in a moment,” Dadan replied as he continued his journey.

  Yushir blinked at him before he shook off his surprise and hurried after his friend. “What could be more pressing a matter than the barrier?”

  “The barrier.”

  The reply left Yushir’s brain in a muddled mess. “I am afraid I do not follow you, old friend.”

  “I am going to inquire into the spell I used to bind the creature,” Dadan revealed.

  Yushir set his hand on his ring and pursed his lips. “I see. You hope to discover why it was cracked so you will have more information to tell my uncle?”

  “Yes.”

  The prince furrowed his brow before his eyes shot wide open. “Then you intend to go to her?”

  “To whom else shall I go?” Dadan countered with a faint hint of a smile.

  Yushir wrapped one hand around the other and shuddered. “I do not envy your task, my friend.”

  Dadan’s eyes twinkled a little. “Then you are not coming with me?”

  The prince’s face blanched a little but he lifted his chin. “I may as well accompany you all the way.”

  The pair strode through the streets without incident until a voice called to them. “Emperor Eastwei! Your Highness!” The pair weren’t at all surprised to see Pampir scurry up to them. He smelled of fresh roses and lavender, and a towel was draped over one arm. “My sincerest apologies, but you appear to have a purpose in your steps. Are you in need of assistance?”

  Dadan continued on his way, leaving the prince to deal with the eager lord. Yushir kept one jealous eye on his retreating friend as he dropped his other one to the man’s arm. “We would not wish to trouble you.”

  “No trouble at all!” Pampir assured him as he tossed the towel over his shoulder. “I have just finished my bath and am completely free to assist you as I did before.”

  If only he knew how his presence had delayed our reaching Lord Leiren’s home Yushir thought to himself even as he plastered a smile on his face. “Very well, but I doubt you wish to come with us.”

  Pampir cocked his head to one side. “Why?”

  Yushir continued on his way and threw out the reply over his shoulder. “Because we are headed to Gastdao.”

  Pampir’s mouth dropped open. “G-Gastdao? My goodness. . .” He shook off his shock and scurried after the prince, much to the prince’s disappointment. “Why in the heavens are you going there?”

  “To inquire of certain matters,” Yushir replied as he eyed a group of chattering women whom they passed.

  The lord furrowed his brow. “Is something the matter with the, um, you-know-what?”

  “That is a matter of the utmost secrecy,” the prince insisted.

  Pampir patted his mouth with the pressed fingers of one hand. “You may rest assured that I will not tell another living soul of the matter. That is if you would confide in me the problem.”

  “You will have to earn that information by coming with us to Gastdao but there really is no reason to trouble yourself,” Yushir assured him.

  The lord stretched his neck and lifted his chin. “I am determined to assist you however I can, Your Highness, even going to Gastdao with you.”

  Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  At least I will not be the most fearful there Yushir sighed as he studied Eastwei’s back.

  The trio walked over many bridges and down many white-rocked streets. They were surrounded by the majestic beauty of bright flowers and glistening green leaves of fruit and ornamental trees. That is until they approached one particular bridge on the far reaches of the heavenly realm.

  The cheery atmosphere was stomped out by the ornamentation on the bridge. The ends of the balustrade were adorned with hideous figures of gargoyles with laughing and sneering faces, their wings outstretched as though they were ready to jump any unwary visitor. Wooden serpents were twined around the railing all the way to the other side and back again, their tales being consumed by their own mouths.

  Eastwei strolled onto the wooden boards without hesitation but the other two slowed their steps, creeping over the arched decking. Pampir scooted closer to Yushir who silently cursed Dadan for not waiting for them.

  The warmth from the sun was muted by the strange atmosphere that curled around them. A faint fog drifted across the bridge to greet them and entangled itself around their persons, sending a deeper chill over them. The mist was so thick that they couldn’t see the opposite side of the bridge except for a few vague outlines of gnarled trees.

  Pampir shivered and grasped Yushir’s left sleeve. “This is too unnatural.”

  “Magic often is,” Yushir mused.

  Pampir grabbed his towel and waved it in front of him. The fog was temporarily dispelled but returned as soon as he stopped. “Why has His Majesty not ordered her to remove this heinous fog?”

  “I doubt she could remove the magic even if she wanted but I know she allows such thickness to keep the children from crossing the bridge,” Yushir told him.

  “Or any others. . .” Pampir muttered as he inched closer to the prince.

  Pampir’s foot stepped on Yushir’s heel halfway across the bridge and the prince stumbled before he caught himself. Yushir whipped his head around and frowned at the lord. Pampir shrank beneath the scolding look and sheepishly smiled. “M-my sincerest apologies. I-I have no idea what has come over me.”

  A faint glimmer of a smile slipped onto Yushir’s lips as he nodded in the direction they headed. “Have you forgotten the spell cast around this place to ward off unwelcome visitors.”

  Pampir shot straight up and lifted his chin. “I would never be unwelcome.”

  He marched ahead with his head held high. The prince, a bemused expression on his face, followed behind him. The gallant stride of the pompous Pampir slowed considerably as he approached the end of the bridge. Eastwei had long ago disappeared into the fog and not a sound was heard from the ghostly mist. The lord waited for the prince to catch up and the pair walked side by side into the shadows.

  The gnarled trees they had glimpsed at the other end of the bridge now loomed up in front of the pair. Their deformed branches seemed to reach out for them as they passed under those shadowed boughs. The air was heavy with moisture and tension as they tiptoed through the gloomy woods. There was no grass, only malformed scraggly bushes and a few sparse helpings of weeds. The path was made up of sharply angled stepping stones that were more hindrance than help as they veered off in different directions.

  “Curse that Dadan for not waiting. . .” Yushir muttered.

  “What was that, Your Highness?” Pampir whimpered.

  “Nothing,” Yushir replied as he tried to avoid stepping on Pampir’s feet. The lord had again grown close to him, close enough that their toes nearly stepped on each other. “Would you mind stepping away just slightly before we both fall-”

  “Caw!”

  The cry was followed by a dark shadow that swooped between their heads and made both of them jump a foot in the air. Pampir landed on the ground running but only in place. His feet scuffed the earth and he ended up tripping over his own toes. The lord crashed chin-first onto the ground so hard his teeth almost shattered.

  A soft groan came from the lord as Yushir whipped his head about. Movement on a nearby crooked branch caught his attention. A bright yellow eye stared at him out of a black feathered face.

  He straightened and glared at the dark crow that stared at him with its head askew. “If you are quite through with your games, An, we would like to pass.”

  The crow tilted its head and opened its beak. “Caw!” The creature opened its wings and took off, disappearing into the misty depths of the shadowed island.

  Yushir shook his head as he cast his eyes to his companion eating the ground. “If you are finished with your meal, we can continue. Lord Eastwei is no doubt waiting for us somewhere in this mess-” A hand clapped on his shoulder. Yushir let out a high-pitched yelp and spun around, his hands filled with swirling orbs of water.

  The water balls reflected the amused face of Dadan who stood behind him. The prince breathed a sigh of relief before his terrified expression turned to irritation.

  “What in all the realms are you doing?” Yushir scolded him as he closed his fingers, extinguishing his water balls. “I could have seriously dampened more than your fun.”

  “I thought to guide you,” Dadan revealed as Pampir crawled onto his hands and knees.

  The lord sat back on his haunches and looked to at himself with distaste. His front was covered in gray dust and bits of gnarled twigs. “His Majesty really should order her to clean this island.” His attention fell on his towel which had fallen from his shoulder. He picked it up between his finger and thumb, and wrinkled his nose at the dirt that floated down from its thick fibers. “Or perhaps the island should be set adrift completely.”

  “Do we even know if she is at home?” Yushir wondered as Pampir climbed to his feet.

  Dadan strolled past him and paused a few paces ahead where he turned to his companions. A faint smile lay on his lips. “Have you ever known the witch of Guren to leave her island?”

  Yushir sighed as they pressed on. “No, but one can hope.”