"There's some sense," applauded the squinty goblin.
"This way," the armored man said to Kendra.
They escorted her deeper into the bowels of the dungeon, finally opening a thick wooden door. The potbellied goblin motioned for her to enter.
"You're sure?" Kendra asked.
"Don't get smart," the goblin spat.
The door banged shut behind her and the guards tromped away. When she had first been led away from the Sphinx, her captors had made her take off her shirt of adamant mail. She felt much more vulnerable without it. Feeble torchlight seeped in through a peephole, but Kendra didn't need it. To her eyes, even the deepest shadows of the room were dim, not dark.
The only furniture in the dank space was a flimsy cot. Water dripped steadily in one corner. A hole in the floor appeared to serve as a latrine. What most caught Kendra's eye were the messages scratched on the wall. She roamed the cell, reading the crudely inscribed phrases.
Seth rules!
Welcome to Seth's House.
Seth rocks!
Seth was here. Now it's your turn.
Seth Sorenson forever.
Enjoy the food!
If you're reading this, you can read.
All roads lead to Seth.
Is it still dripping?
Seth haunts these halls.
You're in a Turkish prison!
Seth is the man!
Use the meal mats as toilet paper. And so forth.
Cold, hopeless, and alone, Kendra found herself giggling at the messages her brother had scrawled. He must have been so bored!
Kendra sat on the cot. Where had her brother gone? One of the guards had mentioned that the cell needed to be inspected. Did that mean Seth had escaped? It fit the discussion she had overheard, but seemed too much to hope. Escaped to where? After all, they were on a hostile preserve in Eastern Turkey.
Should she search for a way out? Could Seth have dug a tunnel? He had been captured less than a week ago. Unlikely or not, it seemed faithless not to look. She probed the walls and floors, tapping, pulling, trying to dig her fingers into cracks. She scooted the cot aside, in case it helped mask some kind of false panel. Her attempt at optimism began to wane. If Seth had excavated an escape tunnel, could he possibly have hidden it so well?
The Sphinx had suggested she might cross paths with her brother. What had he meant? Remembering the bickering guards, she assumed that the Sphinx had taken an active role in selecting her cell. Was the point for her to see the messages on the walls? That was sort of like crossing paths.
Would he have deliberately assigned her to a cell with an escape tunnel? Not likely.
She began to really worry about Seth. If he hadn't escaped, what had they done with him? Could the cell be faulty in a dangerous way? Would she cross paths with her brother by dying from the same type of accident? She studied the stone roof, half expecting it to cave in at any moment.
Search as she might, the dismal room offered no clues. She detected no means of escape, and perceived no particular threats. Maybe Seth had had the right idea. Maybe her time would be best spent scratching messages on the walls for the benefit of the next occupant.
From the back of the cell came a deep grating of stone on stone. Kendra watched in startled awe as a portion of the wall slid aside. Had she inadvertently stepped on a hidden trigger?
An unapproachably attractive young man with a white light in his hand ducked through the gap left by the sliding wall. He froze when he saw Kendra, wincing and tilting his head away. He raised a hand to shield his eyes.
"Who are you?" Kendra challenged.
"One of the neighbors," the stranger said. "I thought my sources must be mistaken when I heard they had already filled the vacancy here."
"You know who was here before?"
"I do. Can you turn it down a little?"
"Excuse me?"
"Hit the dimmer or something? You're shining like a lighthouse." Blinking away tears, he made brief eye contact with her.
"Most people can't see my light," Kendra said. "Including me."
"Right, give me a second, my eyes will adjust." Blinking frequently, he turned his head toward her more and gradually widened his eyes. "Okay, I think I can handle it." His wincing expression diminished, replaced by something more like wonder. "Wow, you'll never be dim."
They stared at each other for a moment. His threadbare clothes hugged an athletic build. He had thick, longish hair; expressive, silver-blue eyes; and flawless skin. His boyishly charming features would look much more at home on a magazine cover than in a prison.
"I'm Bracken," he said.
"Does the Sphinx send you to all the new girls?" He was way too good-looking to be anything but a spy.
He held up his hands as if to calm her. "You're wise to be cautious."
"Believe me, I've learned caution. Tell the Sphinx to let me rot in peace."
"Now, don't write me off just yet. I'd have the same suspicions about you, but you're obviously fairykind. Which must mean ... you're his sister?"
"Whose sister?"
"Seth's."
Kendra resisted getting excited by the mention of her brother. Of course he knew about Seth. He was just trying to push her buttons. "Where is my brother?"
Folding his arms, Bracken regarded her appraisingly. "He never mentioned you were so ... bright."
Kendra felt herself blushing. "Answer the question." Her voice was hard.
Again Bracken raised his palms. "Sorry. I will. He's gone. I'm not sure where. Probably Fablehaven."
"What?"
"Somebody brought the Translocator to him and he teleported out of here."
"How is that possible?"
"Your guess would probably be better than mine. Hopefully he'll contact me before long."
Kendra huffed in exasperation. "Are you guys pen pals?"
"I gave him a coin that lets us communicate telepathically. I know he's far from here, because I can't hail him. Once he uses the coin to reach out to me, we should be able to speak."
Kendra frowned. "A magical telepathy coin? Who are you? At least, who are you pretending to be?"
Bracken chuckled and shook his head. "The truth sounds absurd."
"Try me."
"You don't even believe I'm an actual prisoner; you're not going to believe this."
"Give it a shot. You might want to stutter--that could help sell it."
"Stutter?"
"Long story."
He glanced away. "I'm a unicorn."Kendra's jaw dropped. It took her a moment to recover. "Did you just say a unicorn?"
Eyes hesitant, he shrugged using hands and shoulders. "I warned you."
Kendra laughed incredulously. "Look. Bracken. You need to go back to spy school. In fact, maybe you should just try a different career path. You obviously weren't hired for your brains."
"Maybe you're right. I would be a suspiciously lousy spy."
"What, you're saying I should believe you because you're incompetent? Or just because your story sounds crazy? I don't suppose you can prove that you're actually a horse?"
"I'm stuck in human form. I lost my horn."
Kendra covered her eyes with one hand. "This is actually worse than feeling lonely."
"You're fairykind. Can't you perceive my aura?"
She looked at him. He was undeniably handsome. That was all. "I've never been good at seeing that stuff."
His eyes lit up with an idea. "I am now speaking the secret fairy language. Can you understand me?"
"Yes."
"Can you tell I am no longer speaking English?"
Kendra tried to focus. She heard English, but something did feel different. "I interpret intuitively. Keep talking."
"What should I say? I suppose it doesn't matter. I'm trapped in a dungeon with a girl who thinks I have lost my mind."
"I can tell you're speaking another language," Kendra said. "But I can't tell the difference between the various fairy-languages."
"At least it's a start," Bracken said. She perceived that he had reverted to English. "I can take you to visit some of your friends. Maddox, for example. Mara."
"The guards just let you roam free? Don't they know you're sneaking around in the walls?"
"Our captors look the other way if we stay unobtrusive. I've been here for a very long time. This dungeon is vast and ancient, riddled with forgotten tunnels and unused spaces. The rest we dig-- we meaning the prisoners."
"What about my parents?"
"I know of no accessible route to their cell. I looked into it for Seth."
"But they're here?"
"I believe so."
"I'd love to contact them. They think I'm dead."
"Wish I could help. Hopefully Seth will show up soon and rescue us. He can vouch for me."
Kendra considered the statement. "It might take more than Seth's endorsement."
"Don't underestimate your brother. He was careful. He didn't trust me right away. In fact, maybe he still doesn't really trust me. I hope he uses the coin."
"If you gave him a magical toy, he'll use it."
Bracken sighed. "I can't believe you're fairykind and you can't recognize a unicorn. You know, the sooner you trust me, the sooner we can play ping-pong."
"Huh?"
"Nothing. Lousy joke. It'll make sense later. Unicorns aren't very social creatures. I'm doing my best."
"You're fine."
"Doesn't help that you're so ... brilliant."
"Is that sarcasm?"
"I meant brilliant as in shiny. Should I stop talking?"
She was starting to entertain the possibility that Bracken might be legitimate. Wouldn't the Sphinx's dungeon be full of good creatures like unicorns? Many of his prisoners should be potential allies. Of course, every time she started trusting a stranger, it seemed like she got burned. Gavin had seemed great before his true nature was revealed. She would be slow to offer any real trust. "You're saying you could take me to Maddox right now?"
"I'm saying--" he stopped. Suddenly he looked stricken. "I don't believe it," he muttered in a completely different tone.
"What?" Kendra asked.
"I have an intruder in my cell." He sounded astonished. "How do you know?"
Bracken turned to face the gap in the rear wall. "I created a magical detection system that would signal me if anybody entered while I was away. It has never alerted me before. Nobody ever visits my cell."
"What does it mean?" Kendra wondered.
"I have no idea. This has been the most eventful night this dungeon has seen in decades. I have to investigate. My cell is some distance away. Care to join me?"
If he was an enemy, she supposed he could harm her as easily here in her cell as out in some secret passageway. "Sure."
He smiled. "Follow me." His expression seemed so playful, Kendra found herself wanting to please him.
They slipped through the gap and Bracken closed the sliding wall. Using the light from his stone to guide them, he led Kendra on an elaborate path, through hidden hatchways, down stairwells and ladders, along tight crawl spaces. They headed mostly downward, until at last they reached an area that looked like a natural cave, with no clear path and glistening rock formations that appeared half melted. Soon they sat and scooted down a cramped incline of oily stone. No wonder Bracken's clothes looked so ragged!
Just before the bottom of the incline, he directed Kendra into a branching passageway. They hurriedly proceeded along a crudely excavated stretch of tunnel and finally reached a dead end. Bracken held a finger to his lips. Leaning his mouth to Kendra's ear, he whispered, "My visitor awaits us inside." He produced a short, sharp knife. "Stand back."
Kendra stepped away. Bracken waved a hand and sang a few unintelligible words, and a portal opened. Glowing stone in one hand, knife in the other, Bracken entered.
"Who are you?" Bracken demanded.
"A friend," came the answer. Kendra knew that voice!
"I hope so," Bracken replied. "You have a much larger knife."
Kendra peered through the opening into Bracken's cell.
The spacious room was more cavelike than her cell, but equally bare.
The intruder was Warren, warily clutching the fancy sword he had claimed back at Lost Mesa.
She caught his eye. "Kendra!" he exclaimed.
"You know each other?" Bracken asked.
"This is my friend Warren," Kendra said. "Or I guess he could be a stingbulb."
"How did you get in here?" Bracken challenged.
"I understand you can protect those around you from outside scrutiny," Warren said. "Sort of a psychic shield."
"Yes," Bracken said. "How would you know that?"
"Are you doing it now?"
"I always do it. Nagi Luna is constantly trying to spy. The only scrying tool I can't thwart is the Oculus. I see that you have a charm that protects you from scrutiny."
Warren fingered the feathery, beaded amulet around his neck. "A recent gift. We need to talk."
Putting his knife away, Bracken approached Warren. "First, I need to confirm you are not an imposter."
"How?"
"Remove the amulet, and give me your hands." Warren glanced at Kendra. "Do you trust this guy?" She shrugged. "A little, I guess."
"I won't do anything hurtful," Bracken promised. "He says he's a unicorn," Kendra inserted. "So I've heard," Warren said. He removed the amulet and took Bracken's hands. They stared at one another. "Just relax," Bracken said. "Think about what you hope to accomplish by visiting me." Soon he released Warren's hands. "He's not a stingbulb. Nor is he an enemy. Good to meet you. I'm Bracken."