The letter fluttered out of Reiko’s hands. A chance breath of wind caught it, dancing it across the air and right into Jiro’s lap. “What the?...” Belatedly realizing the location of the missive, she lunged across the path to snatch at the escaped paper. “Give that back!” she snapped. “That’s private!”

“Too late,” he said, sluicing water over an abrasion on one elbow.

“Well, at least it was private.” She folded her arms.

“Again, too late.” He unsuccessfully tried to peer at the freshly rinsed injury. “Looks like we’re stuck, unless you want to totally ignore your friend, which I’m thinking you don’t really want to do. If we go back they’ll just send us both right back here without a by-your-leave.”

“I- you- we-” Her mouth worked. “I guess you’re right,” she muttered, eyes firmly fastened on the road.

“Yo, I’m not down there, Bright Eyes.”

“And what makes you think I want to look at you?” She prodded her own cuts, winced, and dug into her backpack.

“People normally do when they’re talking....”

She pulled out a small cardboard box, opened it, and set to work. “This is an exception. You’re not really what I want to see right now.”

“What, and you think it’s not mutual or something?”

She humphed, flipped the box shut with her thumb and clambered to her feet, reaching over to whap him upside the head along the way. He flinched, rubbing the spot. “Yo, what’s that for?”

“Just ‘cause you needed it.... Oh, yeah. Here.” She dropped the box in his lap, carefully not looking at him.

He raised it to eye level, studying the words printed on the front. “Band... Aids.... What’s this? Helpers for musicians?”

She snorted. “Don’t be a half-wit. At least not any more than you already are, anyway. You put ‘em on your cuts. Like this.” She held out her arm, rolling up the sleeve to show the application. “I keep ‘em around for Karate practice. Never know when you’ll get hurt. Stick a couple on the worst of those suckers.”

He blinked at her. “Why the sudden change of heart? You wanted to break my neck a minute ago.”

“Well- uh- look, if I’m stuck with you for the time being, you may as well try to be useful. And you’ll be about as handy as a parka in July if you run around bleeding everywhere. Besides, I don’t like beating on someone who’s already hurt.”

He nodded semi-sagely. “Knew you couldn’t just be worried about my welfare.” He delved into the box, studying one of the little paper packets found inside. “But how the hell do you use these things, anyway?”

Reiko sighed. “Here,” she said, voice resigned, “since you’re obviously even more useless than I thought, I guess I’d better show you....”

“Yaarrgh!” Reiko madly tried to swat out in several directions at once. “I just got bitten again! This’s gotta be the hundredth time since you dragged me into this godforsaken bog! What the hell kind of route is this, anyway?”

“It’s a shortcut,” Jiro muttered, ears tinged red.

“Ha!” Another swat. “Some kind of guide you are.”

“Hey! You think you’d be doing half so good without me right now?”

“I know I wouldn’t be getting eaten alive by a never-ending stream of vampire bugs! Why? Because I have the sense God gave a walrus to know to avoid a place that all but has a giant ‘Welcome to the world’s biggest mosquito farm!’ sign in front of it!”

“And how much sense does a walrus have?”

Reiko only paused a fraction of a second before shooting back, “You seen one around here yet?”

“Well, no, but-”

“Exactly! They, unlike some people, know to-” Another insectile drone approached. “Ack!” Jiro hastily dodged out of range of the following flurry of smacks. “Damned little bewinged bloodsuckers!” Her glare swung towards the boy. “Hey, how come I’m the only one getting bitten around here?”

Jiro shrugged. “Beats me. Heck, why anyone or anything’d want to bite you in the first place is beyond me.”

She snorted. “Oh, yeah. Anything that bit you would probably keel over from shock the second it sunk its little buggy fangs into you.”

“Mosquitoes don’t have fangs!”

“Oh, whatever!” Another swipe took her hand perilously close to his face, a move that felt, at some deeper level, deliberate.

He ducked. “You’re no one to talk! I’m surprised they’re not dropping like flies after biting someone as sour as you. Must’ve developed a taste for vinegar.”

“Then it’d be you they’d be bothering, not me.”

“That’s a matter of opinion.”

“Hmph. I’d say it’s no contest.... Gah!” A smack followed another squawk. “Gotcha, you buzzing bloodsucker! Serves you right for messing with me.”

Jiro gave her a wide-eyed look. “Remind me never to get on your bad side.”

An angry grunt preceded yet another mosquito squashed. “Too late for that. And it’ll only get worse if you don’t get us out of this flaming swamp soon....”

“Yo, don’t get your knickers twisted up. We’ll be outta here in no time flat. Just leave it to everyone’s favorite adventure guide.”

“Favorite? Since when?”

“Since now, of course.” He pulled his collar closer around his throat, eyes nervously following an insistent buzz circling his head.

“Who did you poll to get that opinion? Yourself?”

“No, I- yeowch!” he abruptly smacked the side of his face. “The little monster just bit me!”

“Serves you right- I’ve been thinking I must be wearing mosquito attractant or something. About time you got a taste of your own medicine.”

“Listen, I’m only doing my job, y’know!”

“Since when was it your job to turn me into mosquito fodder?”

“Consider that a lamentable side effect on an otherwise worthy journey.” Reiko just humphed as she swatted another offending insect.

Jiro squinted. “Yo, I think I see something up ahead.”

“With our luck, it’ll be the home nest,” Reiko grumbled.

The boy squinted further. “Nah. Way too big for that.”

“Not to judge from the number of bleeding bugs that have been feasting on me since you dragged me in here.”

“Hey, look, it’s not like I made you follow me or anything!”

A snort. “I wouldn’t have if you hadn’t swiped all the maps last night while I was sleeping! And that you still have my Journey Stone!”

“It’s the guide’s job to take care of maps n’ stuff. And I only took the stone to give you a chance to cool down-”

“What, and I’m not cooled down now!?” she shouted.

“Let’s put it this way- if you were a volcano, I’d definitely be looking for shelter somewhere out of firing range.”

“You’re not exactly the guru of cool tempers yourself, you know!”

“Only ‘cause you won’t give it a rest!”

A kick to the ground sent a clod of moist earth into temporary flight. “How can I, when you seem to have been put here for the sole purpose of driving me totally insane?!”

One corner of his mouth quirked up. “Gotta do what I’m good at.”

“If you keep it up,” she ground out through gritted teeth, “I’m gonna do what I’m good at and smack you into next year!”

Green eyes glittered with mischief. “Just so long as you promise not to try to bang me while you’re at it-” An almost preternatural instinct made him duck even before Reiko swung at him. Spinning, he tore off across the swamp as if his life depended on it. Given Reiko’s expression, it quite possibly did.

The distant anomaly accelerated closer; a thinning of trees and brightening of light indicated that the exit was nigh. Jiro set his pace to full throttle for the road to freedom- or at least the road to potential preservation of life and limb.

Anyone passing along said road at that moment would have been thoroughly startled by the tornado of swamp greenery that exploded through the little opening out across the dirt path. They would have been even more startled by the immediate follow-up of a boy, arms windmilling, legs pumping, yodeling incoherently at the top of his lungs as he careened across the road head-first into the bushes on the other side. Seconds later another burst preceded the arrival of a girl, aqua ponytail streaming behind her, visage furious and determined enough to take on a whole army.

“Flame Brain?!” she bellowed. “Where the hell are you?”

A rustle, a crunch, and the Flame Brain in question stumbled out of the hedgerow. “Whew, if I didn’t know better I’d say the god of bushes is out to get me today. Yeesh, right in the kisser, that one....”

“Hmph.” Reiko folded her arms. “No more than you deserve.”

“Bright Eyes, I may like to live dangerously, but I’m not the only-”

A handful of wet leaves whapped him in the face. “Don’t even say it,” Reiko said as she wiped her hands on his backpack. “Just tell me where the hell we are and I might rethink slugging you.”

“Uh....” Jiro gazed around. His grin faltered. “Just lemme think for a minute, I’ll figure it out in no time flat....” Various bits of gear sailed past overhead as he rummaged into his bag in search of a map.

“You know, I’m really thinking I need to hit you after all....”

“Hold it, hold it!” He ducked behind the selected map like a shield. “Just lemme work on it a sec! I’ll have it in no time!” He peered at the map, flipped it over, peered closer, and flipped it again.

“Uh-huh. Sure. Why the heck Kagami thought I’d ever need you, of all people, is beyond me.” Fiddling with the end of one sleeve, the girl absent-mindedly wandered further up the path.

She didn’t hear Jiro muttering to himself, nor notice him repeatedly turning the map over and over. Brown eyes fixed on the horizon. Something is there, a voice whispered at the edge of thought. Just ahead. Keep walking....

“What the?...” She shook her head like a dog trying to shake off water. “Hearing things.” Only yourself, the voice answered. Reiko thrust out her chin, hitching her bag up. She’d never been bothered by weird voices in her head before, not even that time she’d sparred without a helmet and been knocked into the dojo wall during the match, and she was damned if she was going to start now. “That kid really is driving me nuts,” she grumbled.

That’s right- keep following, the voice said. Reiko halted in her tracks. Without realizing it, she had been steadily hiking further up the path. Jiro called out, “Yo, Bright Eyes! Where d’you think you’re going up there!?” But the sound had a distant echo to it, like a voice at the other end of a cavern. More persistent was the one inside her head, the voice that sounded continually more like her own. Follow me and you will find that which you seek....

Another whisper followed, this one a sound out of memory. Miara, the morning they sought her out for a full story only to find themselves the destined saviors of this unknown world.... When you get close to the actual Dunamis you’ll feel a connection. It’ll draw you like a lodestone to the right area....

This must- that connection, the draw- “Yoo-hoo! Bring your head outta the clouds, Bright Eyes!” Jiro’s yell didn’t register. Hitching up her backpack again, Reiko set off in a full-blown run.

“Yaagh! What the heck’s she doing?” Jiro scurried around madly stuffing his scattered belongings back into place, slinging one arm through the straps of his own pack and sprinting away in pursuit.

Man, what’s up with her? I swear they sent me along ‘cause she’s insane! Neither the volume of his hollering nor the potentially incendiary form his bellows took could attract the attention of his fleet-footed partner.

Nor could he gain more than a few feet on her. It felt as if there was some invisible force speeding her along. By the time they halted Jiro’s face was crimson, sweat trickling down into his collar, and he was sure he’d left a trail of belongings in his wake that a blind person could have followed. Reiko wasn’t even breathing hard.

“Yo, cool those heels for a sec and lemme breathe,” he said- or, more accurately, gasped, though he tried to hide it.

Reiko glanced back at him. For a second there he’d have sworn the glint in her eyes was green.... Then she blinked, and any hint of strangeness was gone. “Oh.” The presence of Jiro and his haphazard backpack- a shirt, two sets of trousers, and a mysterious garment that was probably underwear stuck out from under the flap like the half-eaten dinner of a luggage beast- came into full focus. “You’re here. I forgot that for a second.” Her voice had a strange distance to it.

“Yeah, I noticed.” Breath still coming back, he fumbled for his water skin. Her gaze wandered further up the path, and she idly wandered after it.

“Aw, no you don’t.” One hand latched onto her pack while the other hastily stuffed his errant garments back inside his own. “I know being hotly pursued by a guy is probably a novelty for you, but I wanna know what the heck you’re running after. Unless it’s your brain, which seems to have gone off to pick daisies somewhere.”

It said something about Reiko’s distracted state that she didn’t respond with either a smack or sarcasm. “It’s my senses,” she said, ruffling her bangs. “I- Miara said we’d know when we were getting close to where our Dunamis was, that we’d be drawn to it. And I kinda think that’s what I’m following.”

“Sheesh. Sooner you than me.”

“My sentiment exactly.” At that point her feet decided to continue the journey without consulting her mind on the matter.

Now I know why they sent me along- she needs a bloody keeper! Slinging his bag back into its designated position, the boy chased onward.

In the distance something split the sky in two. One second the horizon was clear except for green hills rippling the landscape. The next, a great green dome breached the blue, ruffling and undulating like the hair of a slumbering giant.

That- that’s a tree! Reiko tripped over her own feet, reeling forward solely by moment for a few paces before regaining her balance. The redwoods of California were saplings compared to what confronted them now. Roots a grown person could easily lie down on swelled from the brown earth, twisting into a trunk that a god would be hard pressed to span single-handedly. Leaves of the most vibrant green rustled far overhead like the voices of airy spirits at the very edge of hearing. No other trees grew anywhere nearby; the massive spread of leaf and branch above shielded this area from all encroachers. None uninvited came near this tree.

“Holy Hells,” Jiro breathed.

“You can say that again.” She stepped towards the tree.

Jiro swallowed. “Uh, just hold it a sec there, Bright Eyes, might not be too good an idea to go too near this thing-”

“No.” Her pace didn’t quicken, nor did she try to dodge, but for some reason he was unable to physically halt her approach. “This is what I was looking for.”

“So- uh- the little faeries in your head told you that, huh?” He tugged around his collar, eyes darting side to side.

Reiko didn’t respond. Eyes narrowed in concentration as a hand skimmed the trunk of the great tree, bark rough beneath her fingertips. Her palm settled on a round knot, worn smooth enough to shine faintly in the trace of light that slipped between the branches. A touch of pressure; the knot sunk into the surface around it.

For a moment, nothing happened. Then there was a faint rumble, the noise of a giant rising beneath its mountain. The ground trembled. Leaves confettied down around their heads. Another vibration shook the earth. Both of them braced themselves against the trunk as a second rain of leaves poured down.

Then the giant awakened.

A roar flooded their ears. And the earth dropped out from under their feet.

For an eternal moment they fell through nothing, pelted by stones and chunks of dirt. Thwump! The pair tumbled down an earthen slope, trying as best they could to shield themselves from the harsh bite of protruding rock.

When they finally stopped Jiro lay flat on his back, eyes closed as he took in lungfuls of musty air. After a few seconds he was able to prop himself up on his elbows. “What,” he gasped, “the bloody hell did you do?!”

Reiko had already gotten to her feet, though one hand remained on the wall for support. “I got us in here,” she said. “And we need light, because I, for one, can’t see a blasted thing.”

“No worries. Got just the thing.” Jiro fumbled through his pockets. A few seconds of searching produced a sphere of transparent glass about the size of a golf ball; a dot of light winked inside, barely visible. He held it out on one palm. “Elaphros.” The little globe rose into the air and floated above them, filling the chamber with light as it did so.

“What the-”

“It’s just a light globe,” Jiro said. “Anyone can use ‘em. Adventurers like me buy ‘em in magic shops in case we need to crawl into any dark spots. They follow you around. Useful, especially when you get dumped into the hole.”

“Uh-huh.” Reiko was too busy absorbing their surroundings. An incline of hard-packed dirt ascended behind them, scattered dust marking their chaotic descent. Threads of root trailed through the walls like veins; every now and then a rock protruded. The scent of earth as old as time filled their nostrils. The glow of the light globe illuminated a staircase stretching into a shadowy void.

“So- this is it,” she finally said.

“Looks that way.” Jiro gulped. Booted feet shuffled back and forth. “So- guess going through that swamp was a good shortcut after all, eh?” He tried a grin, eyes flickering sideways.

Reiko humphed, scratching one of her numerous bites. “I would’ve preferred a shortcut that didn’t turn me into a walking chow line for every bug in miles.”

“Okay, now I know you’re back to normal. You’re insulting me.”

“Only because you need insulted.” She took a deep breath, squaring her shoulders before taking the first step. It took a few stairs before she realized that Jiro was still standing there. “So, are you coming, or what?”

Fwoom! Crimson explosion shook the corridor. Reiko and Jiro tore around the corner; she grabbed his arm and threw them both flat face-down as the blast cannoned overhead, so hot the very rock seared.

Reiko shouted, still coughing through the clearing smoke, “What the hell did you think you were you doing?!”

“Yo, don’t blow up at me-”

“Why not? Everything else’s just blow up because of you!” A finger jabbed towards the sagging, molten mass that had once been another doorway.

“I’m you’re guide- I was just doing what I’m supposed to do-”

“You’re never supposed to press the big red shiny button! Even a half-wit like you should know that!”

“Well, I still found the way through, didn’t I?”

“Only because of me threatening you life and limb to get you moving after you didn’t realize your most recent foray into moronsville-”

“You’re always threatening me life and limb!”

“What, and it’s not mutual?” She snorted. “But there you were, ‘Oh, this’s gotta be it, see how it stands out!’ Everyone knows something bad happens when you push the shiny red button! But nooo, not you, you’re so proud of yourself, if I hadn’t given you a prod to get you out of the way-”

“Prod? More like a wallop!”

“You needed something to knock some sense into you! If I hadn’t been for me we would’ve been barbecued!”

“But the fact remains that we’ve moved along, right? And look at the bright side- the next door’s a puddle instead of a puzzle, right?” Reiko humphed. “So maybe we got a little scorched- it’s all part of the fun, right?”

A snort. “I don’t exactly call going through the Temple of Gloom with the world’s biggest flame brain fun and games, you know.”

“Look, I didn’t ask for it either, but we gotta grab adventures when we can, right? And now we can just step right through there and move on to whatever’s next. Places like this like to be symbolic and use threes, so I’m thinking there’s probably only one more before we hit the mother lode.”

“Yeah, and here’s hoping you don’t royally screw up again. You were supposed to be important here, remember? I don’t think me saving your sorry neck was part of the equation.” Reiko scrambled through the gaping hole in the wall, careful not to make contact with any of the now-cooling molten metal. “Neither was getting burned to a crisp. So watch what buttons you push, or I’ll push you- right into the path of whatever big ugly we meet next.”

The little light globe bobbed over Jiro’s head like the soul of a friendly dog to illuminate their new surroundings. This time they were confronted by a great black chasm, a deep yawning hole whose jagged rim brought to mind monstrous teeth. A set of broken- and now slightly charred- posts indicated the presence of a bridge sometime in the past. The only way to reach the other side, and the portal beyond that, was a narrow ledge circling the wall.

Reiko stiffened. “Let’s go back,” she said abruptly.

“What the-? When we got this far?...”

“But- just look at that.” Her voice tightened. “Too narrow. Not practical at all. Gotta be another way to go.”

“From what I’ve seen of this place, there ain’t but one way, spitfire. What, you afraid or something?”

“Me? Afraid?” Her pitch grew unnaturally high. “Of course I’m not- why would I be afraid of a ledge that’ll just drop you into the pit of doom if you slip?”

Jiro gave her a suspicious look. “What the heck’s gotten into you?”

“Into me? What’s gotten into you? I’m not afraid of anything-” Her foot snaked out onto the ledge. She quickly plastered her back up against the rock face, arms stretched wide, fingers pressed so hard into the grainy stone that her knuckles whitened. Her complexion blanched slightly. A tic worked beside her mouth as she took in a sharp breath. Slowly, she edged her way along crabwise, gaze firmly fixed on the wall opposite. Jiro scratched his head, then followed.

“Yo, spitfire, if we keep up this snail’s pace we might get across sometime next year,” he said after a while, risking a quick sidelong look.

“We’re going fast enough,” she returned in strained tones. Her hunched shoulders practically brushed her ears. A stray pebble bounced off the ledge into darkness. The tic twitched feverishly.

“What’s wrong with you-” Somewhere beneath them, more stones skittered down the chasm with a rattle like ancient bones. Black nothingness swallowed the noise.

Reiko froze at the telling clatter of even larger stones tumbling away. Her color drained as something cracked below. “What-” A slow, creaking snap, and a fissure split the ledge under her feet. Rocks poured, rattling, down the cavern wall. An earsplitting noise like the crack of thunder. Her section of rim tore away.

It was the first time Jiro had ever heard her scream. Reiko’s cry split the air as surely as the rock had split. The boy snatched her wrists just before she, too dropped into the void. She dangled in emptiness, hands clutching the boy’s wrists so hard he wondered if they might break, too. Brown eyes filled her starkly white face, enormous with panic and something he never would have thought to see there- terror.

The universe narrowed down to that tableau, that second. “C’mon, Bright Eyes, I can’t hold on forever....” he ground out.

She finally blinked; the paralysis in her eyes faded. Inhaling sharply, she braced her feet back against the wall, thrusting up and scrambling as Jiro heaved.

The girl slumped against the rough stone wall, eyes closed. Her shoulders heaved as she dragged in breath after rasping breath. A touch of color returned.

Jiro slouched, releasing a whoosh of air. He wiped sweat off his forehead. “We’re almost there,” he said. “C- c’mon. Let’s go.”

As soon her feet touched the other side Reiko went limp with relief, clutching her knees as she gulped air like someone who had just escaped drowning. “I hope to hell I never do that again.”

“You said it- saving you nearly pulled my arms out of their sockets.”

She glared. “Don’t let it go to your head. Even though there’s more than enough room there.”

“Yo, is that any way to talk to the guy who just saved your life?”

Reiko flinched. “Uh- I- wha-” She fidgeted, rubbing the back of her neck. “Thanks,” she mumbled, determinedly looking at the ground.

“Don’t mention it,” he muttered, crossing his arms. Jeez, I’m not asking her to leap into my arms or anything, but she could be a little more grateful.

She shot upright, spine stiffening. “Afraid? Me?”

“Yeah, you, unless you think I’m talking to my invisible friend Lou.”

She snorted. “Knowing you, anything is possible.”

“I’m not the one with the ‘I’m not afraid of anything’ trip! Honestly, you can be such a stupid-”

“Donce, right?” She snorted again, folding her arms.

“You got it. I couldn’t tell what was up- you usually just barge in-”

“Thanks a lot!” she spat. “I’m surprised you didn’t just let me fall!”

“Now I’m wondering why I didn’t!”

For a second the two stood in silence, arms mutually folded, glaring determinedly in opposite directions. Then Reiko set her shoulders, countenance shuttered. “I’m going on. Follow or stay here, I don’t give a damn. Just don’t get in my way.” She stalked at the nearest portal, still not looking at him. “Oh, and I am not ‘afraid of heights.’ I just don’t like them. There’s a difference.”

“So-uh- I’m guessing this is it, eh?”

Reiko glanced backward. “I thought I told you not to get in my way.”

“How can I be in your way if I’m standing behind you?”

“As far as I’m concerned, you’d manage to get in my way on the other side of the world.” She turned back to perusing the portal ahead of them.

It was the biggest one they had seen yet, double doors two stories high and as wide as half a house. Bronzed metalwork glinted in the light globe’s illumination, sinuous patterns of vines, leaves, and other plants seeming on the verge of movement. Despite sculpture of cold metal, the thing somehow felt organic, as though it had grown out of the rock itself, wholly formed by force of nature alone. Somehow this portal had escaped the touch of time; no dust settled on the curves of ornamentation, no sign of wear showed on the edges or massive handles. It was as pristine as if it had just been put in place that very day.

“At least there’re no big red buttons this time,” Reiko growled, giving her companion another dark look.

“Honestly, do you ever let up, Bright Eyes?”

“I find it a little hard to overlook being nearly toasted, Flame Brain.” Her jaw hardened as she spun her gaze back towards the door. “Just got to find out how to get through this blasted thing....”

Jiro spread his hands. “Push?...”

She whapped him upside the head. “I know it’s hard, but at least try not to be an idiot. You can’t just push open doors this bleeding big! There’s got to be a way- I’ll probably regret asking, but is there a lever anywhere around here?...”

“Hey, what are those words under the handle?”

“Words?” Reiko leaned back, squinting. Until this moment, a trick of the light had made the plaque blend into the interlacing pattern of the door. Even now, the words seemed to pulse and flicker with barely suppressed energy.

“Aw, damn,” said Jiro. “I’ve never been any good at these riddle things.”

“Then shut up and let me think.” Reiko transferred her study from the plaque to the patterns surrounding it. Okay. The first three lines are saying to get in the next room, I have to remember your eyes can be tricked. It’s the other three that are the problem.... She examined the pattern closer. Twin eyes of vine....

The light shifted, a subtle flicker of movement. Different shadows threw a new detail into focus; at shoulder height, the sinuous pattern twisted into a matched pair of rings, chased around with leaves, one stretching into the center like the eye’s iris. Reiko pulled in a sharp breath. Hardly daring to think about what would come next, she raised her hands to rest them, palm down, in the center of the matched loops.

She nearly jerked them back when they encountered not chill metal, but supple warmth. It felt as though a cloud of golden steam shifted beneath her hands. Solid is air, and complexity clear.... Closing her eyes, she moved forward.

Jiro made a strangled noise in the back of his throat. “Ga-wa- what d’you think you’re doing?”

Reiko didn’t open her eyes or turn away, standing with her arms halfway through the mirage. “The riddle. This door is fake. You can walk through it if you put your hands where I did. Don’t let your mind trick you. It’s just like air.”

“If... if you say so....” His gulp just registered on the edge of hearing as she passed through the illusory portal.

Jiro stumbled through just behind, nearly colliding with her as he did so. “Riddle or not, that’s freakin’ weird.” The two took in their new surroundings; a room tall and circular, reminiscent of the Temple of the Four Directions.

It was Reiko’s turn to swallow. “Not half as weird as that....”

It took a good bit of willpower not to let her upraised hand shake. Something waited for them, seated over a double ring graced by strange, angular symbols; all pulsed with a faint green light. Massive paws the size of platters ended in lethal claws well able to score the pale jade marble beneath. Golden-furred haunches curved up under a pair of winched-in russet wings. A tawny mane of hair framed the face of a woman, slant-eyed, golden-skinned, and ageless.

“Holy Hells,” Jiro croaked. “It’s a- a Sphinx....”

The Sphinx lowered her great head, endless eyes boring into what felt to be their very souls. “Who are you, and from whence have you come?” Her voice was low and resonant. “Countless years have passed since mortals have breached my lair.”

Reiko cleared her throat before responding. “I- I am the Zantara of Earth. I come to seek my Dunamis.” She hiked up the edge of her pant leg. “Here is my birthmark, as proof of my identity.”

The Sphinx hissed; a gust ruffled their hair. “So long has it been since the Zantaros have been summoned that it strains even my memory to recall the last. Grave must things be.... A challenge must be undertaken to allow the final passage.”

“A challenge?...” Reiko’s expression set. This was familiar territory. “I can handle a challenge.”

“Not you, oh Zantara of Earth. Your champion.”

“My what?...” Reiko looked around. Eyes and mind both settled on the boy behind her. “He’s not my champion! No one sticks up for me but me!”

“Nevertheless, he is the recipient of the challenge. It is always so.”

Jiro stepped around her, tugging at his collar. “Yo, don’t worry about it, spitfire- I can handle this.” His voice and smile were confident, but the sheen of sweat on his forehead indicated a different nervous state. “Go ahead- I’ll catch you later.... Oh, yeah. Here.” He dug into his pocket and tossed her something; she caught it instinctively. It was her Journey Stone. “I think you’re cooled down enough now.”

“Better believe it.” A ghost of a smile flashed across her countenance. “Just don’t do anything stupid while I’m gone.”

“And don’t you be a donce.”

A leonine paw descended between them. “Zantara of Earth, your final destination lies forthwith past mine circle.” Bottomless golden eyes fixed on Jiro, sienna mane rippling. “Champion- let the challenge begin.”

Reiko stepped past the circle and into another world. The air felt hot and heavy, smelling vaguely of earth and wet moss. Murky shapes of green and brown surrounded her like the ghosts of trees. Mist coiled about her ankles, effectively obscuring the ground, which gave softly underfoot. She moved a step or two forward, searching for any sign that would tell her what she was next to do.

“Welcome, Zantara.”

Reiko would have sworn a second before that she was alone. Now she found herself confronted by a young man. A green vest belted over brown trousers, tucked into a strange boot whose overlaid wrappings brought to mind Roman sandals. Dark brown leather vambraces encircled his wrists. Brown hair bound back into a waist-length braid, and slanted brown eyes watched her from a face outside the flow of time.

She advanced another step. “Who are you?”

“I am Dymek, elemental keeper of the Dunamis.”

“Keeper?...” She studied the figure before her. It now came to her attention that he carried a sword- one with two blades. “Where are they? Do I fight you for them?” Already her mind was working on strategy against an armed opponent....

“No. Your final test is not combat.”

Reiko squared her shoulders. “Then let’s do it.”

Dymek smiled enigmatically and held out his hand. The gap between them closed. She accepted what he proffered; strong fingers closed around her own. He drew her closer, other hand settling on her waist. A chance breeze tickled her cheek, carrying the faint rustle of leaves and branches on a spring morning.... Sensations of air and leaf surrounded her, caressing and rustling, wrapping themselves around her....

A flash of a second, and it all changed. Wind roared in her ears. Something- ropes, vines, whatever- snapped about her wrists and ankles, jerking her straight into oblivion. She threw her head back with a cry as the first jolt shot through her, then another; it felt as though lightning seared her from within, as though an unseen force attempted to rend her limb from limb.... The wind screamed in harmony with her wordless howls....

Thump. Reiko fell limply to the ground, gasping; her arms instinctively went up to shield her head as she tumbled over and over on the cold ground. Wait a minute- the ground before- it was soft- Finally, she raised her head.

There was no sign of Dymek, nor of the spirit glade of her ordeal. She was back in the marble temple of the Sphinx. Only it was a shambles. Grooves scored the marble; a column lay on the floor, cleft in half. Another had been reduced to dust. Reiko steeled herself against the struggle to stand....

No struggle was necessary. Not so much as a wisp of pain lingered; rather, she felt as though she had just arisen from the most restful sleep. Blinking, she surveyed the unexpected chaos. There was no sign of the guardian. But behind the broken pillar, there was a splash of red....

Jiro?... Clambering over chunks of shattered marble, skidding on the scatters of stone dust, Reiko hastened to the spot. Spears of hair poked up at her approach, the rest of his head quickly following. For some reason, as soon as he clapped eyes on her his ears turned crimson.

She veered to a halt; from the look of things, he’d been hiding back here for some time. Somehow, he had both their backpacks with him. “What the hell happened in here? Where is she? Why are you-”

“Well- uh-” Jiro tugged around his collar, the rest of his visage flushing as red as his hair. “You know- uh- the challenge? Well, turned out it was a riddling challenge, and well, I kinda lost.... She went nuts, lucky I’d already asked for our gear and that I’m good at hiding or she probably would’ve eaten me for lunch-”

A high-pitched screech rent the air. Jiro shot to his feet, apparently uninjured other than his pride. “Hell! She’s coming back! Move it!” He snatched her elbow and tore off across the room, madly stumble-leaping across the debris. Something glittered. “Yo, now’s not the time to put on your jewelry, spitfire!”

Reiko nearly fell over yet another hunk of marble. “Jewelry? I don’t know what-” Something gold flashed again, under the edge of her sleeves. Thrusting up the cuffs, she beheld a pair of wide golden cuff bracelets, a luminous oval of a green gem nestled into the center of each one. “How did-” Memory resurfaced; the mural of Terralia the earth goddess in the Temple of the Four Directions.... “These- these are my Dunamis....” That was the final test-

Another screech shook them to their very bones. “That’s great, but now it’s time to move our butts outta here! Find your stone, and fast- sounds like she’s coming back for dinner, and if we don’t hustle, dinner’s gonna be us!”

“Whoa!” This time he nearly jerked her off her feet. “What the- dinner? Us? What the hell are you talking about!?”

“Sphinxes,” Jiro gasped, “like riddles. They also like to eat the people who can’t solve them. When I lost, I- hid. Tore the place up looking for me. I-”

“Damn it, I told you not to do anything stupid!”

“Is it my fault that I- yaaaah!” What little light filled the corridor got blocked out. A wingspan to rival a small plane soared overhead.... Shrilling cries rang out; the creature descended, swooping down like the goddess of war.... A massive wing crashed into the wall... shattered rock rained down around their heads....

A gigantic boulder dropped. Yelling, Reiko wrenched her arm from Jiro’s grasp, flinging him against the wall. It was falling too fast to dodge- she thrust her arms up in a futile movement, shouting again-

The boulder exploded. Dust both fine and gritty settled over them, where just seconds before they had expected to be crushed. A chance bit of stone bounced off Jiro’s shoulder. He look at her, dazed. “What the hell did you-” Another Sphinx cry shrilled above them. A shadow swooped-

And two hands finally found their Journey Stones. Punching skyward, the pair cried as one, “Anastrepho!” The air flashed green, wind rustled, and as the Sphinx descended, an unseen force swung them into the sky and safe oblivion.