Brigora was taking a walk in the palace courtyard when two slim girls wearing white dresses walked up to her. One had long brown hair, the other short red.
The brunette declared, “We wish to serve you, your majesty. I am Lyla and my sister is Zae. I have mastered the art of healing while Zae is learning it.” Brigora was wary. She turned and fled into the palace, the healers trailing after her.

The sack was tipped upside down and Framata and Aiela fell out onto the prison floor. The merte holding the sack strode out of the room.  Aiela saw Framata but could not speak for the gag had been fitted firmly around her mouth.
Instead she said, “Mmmmhhh.  Mmnnhhj!”  Framata’s bindings had loosened during the trip and she shinnied out. She scurried over to Aiela and began untying her ropes.  The next thing she knew Aiela had keeled over.  She was dead.

When Kailer had fallen through the portal, she hadn’t died. She had fallen into a room with no walls. Instead of walls there were emptiness, space. She hadn’t worked up enough courage to jump into that never-ending blackness. Instead she sat on the floor, to ponder her life.
Mom would have dove into the blackness in a heartbeat.   I will never be as brave as Aiela. Kailer thought. She laid on her stomach, thinking despairing thoughts. She didn’t even know if her mother was alive. She wasn’t dead yet, but she would be. She would die of hunger and thirst. On that happy note, she took a deep breath and dove off the side of the platform.

Framata body-slammed the gate, Pandra tried negotiating with it, and Ladaria punched it. Brigora, on the other hand coated it in ice, and then burned it so hot the bars melted. Framata, Pandra and Ladaria ran throught the lake of steaming water yelling things like
“Yippee!” and “Free at last!” While Brigora picked her way carefully around the scalding puddles, holding up her silver-grey dress. Once she was through the water she aimed a shot of wind at it and dried it all up. Her friends would need a “shot of wind” too. To clear out their brains. What had happened to their brains she didn’t know, but they certainly weren’t in their owners heads!

Framata was so excited. Aiela had promised to start archery lessons today! She styled her hair into a hasty bun and pulled on the white blouse and green pants that Aiela had given her. She raced down hallways and tripped down flights of stairs. Finally she reached Aiela’s door. She collected herself and knocked. Aiela didn’t answer. Framata cautiously opened the door. Aiela was lying on the bed, tied up and gagged. A merte was standing beside her. It lunged at Framata, rope in hand, and in a second she was tied and gagged up on the bed like Aiela. Both of them were tossed into the same sack, and then a merte grabbed the sack and hauled her out of the room. After that there was a lot of silence. Finally, she fell asleep.

One Day Brigora, Framata, Pandra, and Ladaria were having a meeting concerning the battle, When iron bars slammed down over the quartz archway leading into the throne room. That was the only exit. They were trapped. Everyone except Brigora panicked. Brigora cooly rose from her seat on the throne, donned her silver crown and walked towards the gate. She alone could see a man with black hair and a blonde girl, standing on the other side of the bars. The man had a crown. It was black with red jewels embedded on the points.
He said, “I am Eliah, king of evil.”
The little girl said, “Daddy, don’t do this to her.”
Eliah said, “Be quiet Zia,” and with that he strode away. Brigora walked back to the girls who had by now, calmed down. She walked to a chest in the room and opened the lid. She extracted four blankets and laid them out on the floor.
“Why are you being so quiet Brigora?” asked Pandra.
“I am thinking,” said Brigora slowly, and Pandra knew she wanted to concentrate. Brigora then said, “We might as well get comfy, we might be here a while.” Framata reached into her bag and withdrew some grapes. She passed them around. Brigora sighed. She was trapped again.