“That’s disgusting.”

  “What?” asked Elijah, his knife slicing through the fish’s belly. He’d only just caught three decent-size trout – which was just enough for his supper. Assuming Sadie didn’t want any. And given the look on her face, that was probably a valid assumption.

  “You know what.”

  Elijah shrugged as he removed the fish’s guts, tossing them into the stream. “Can’t eat those parts,” he said.

  “I’m well aware,” she responded.

  “Then what’s the issue?”

  “Is that a real question?”

  Shaking his head, Elijah admitted, “Not really.”

  “At least do that elsewhere.”

  “Fair enough,” Elijah said, picking up the flat rock he’d used as an impromptu table. He then headed downstream a bit, just enough that he was out of Sadie’s sight, then finished the process. Most of the time, he tried to keep her dietary preference in mind, but at times, he failed in that endeavor.

  Sadie didn’t so much have a moral issue with meat. Not really, at least. Her feelings were complicated, but she didn’t equate killing animals to murder or anything like that. Rather, she just found the whole idea disgusting. So, it was understandable that she would have issues with watching him gutting fish only a few feet away from where she was preparing her own meal.

  Once Elijah had finished his task, he tossed the inedible bits – as well as the rock – into the stream where the scent wouldn’t attract any predators. Then, he returned to the camp where he intended to take advantage of the fire. Sadie had already made use of it, where she was boiling a pot of soup comprised of various edible fungi and vegetables they’d found along the way. Both had packed plenty of supplies, but neither wanted to dip into those stores unless absolutely necessary.

  After all, the Primal Realm was a hostile environment that wouldn’t always lend itself to easy foraging or hunting. And considering he still experienced infrequent nightmares about consuming flesh spiders, he had no desire to go back to eating wildlife local to whatever scenario the system had dreamed up.

  Sadie scrunched her nose at the smell of cooking fish, but she didn’t complain. There was only one fire, so they needed to share.

  It had been two days since they’d left the hill goblins behind, and in that time, they’d traversed some truly magnificent locations. During Elijah’s previous trips through the mountains, he had been in no position to appreciate the natural beauty of the region. But now that he had budgeted a few extra days for travel, he’d allowed himself to bcome immersed in the wilderness.

  Their current campsite, which stood next to a babbling mountain brook, was one of the highlights. Largely, that was because of the family of river otters that lived nearby.

  “I think they’re Congo clawless otters,” Elijah remarked, gesturing to the creatures, who were chasing one another through the water. “Though I’m no expert on river mammals, and those were pretty rare to begin with.”

  “How do you know?” Sadie asked, smiling at their antics.

  “Size, mostly. See how big they are?” he asked. The two adults were nearly four feet long. “They’re the second biggest otters in the world, right behind the South American giant otter. But the mottled coat is a sign as well. Honestly, I’m not certain enough to stand behind that categorization. Especially not now that so many animals have changed.”

  Indeed, Elijah had seen boars the size of pickup trucks, a crab as big as a cottage, and a leviathan that would have put some cruise ships to shame. So, it wasn’t outside of the realm of possibility that normal, North American river otters had changed enough to masquerade as the more elusive Congo clawless otters.

  “You sound like you wish you could study them,” Sadie remarked.

  Elijah shrugged, pulling a piece of white meat from the fish and downing it. It wasn’t the best food he’d ever eaten – in fact, it was a little bland due to his lack of Cooking skills – but it was satisfying enough, largely because he’d seasoned it with salt he’d acquired from Hafnarfj?reur. That helped, even if it was a bit of a waste.

  “Truthfully, I just want to play with them. I mean, look at them. They’re adorable.”

  Sadie gave him a smile. “They do look cuddly.”

  “They’re also wild animals with strong jaws and sharp teeth,” Elijah cautioned. “I think we’d be okay, but I had a friend who lost a finger to a sea otter once. Snipped it right off. She learned a valuable lesson that day.”

  “What was that?”

  “Don’t corner a wild animal, especially one with babies to protect,” he answered. He sighed wistfully. “In most cases, they’d have already disappeared. We probably wouldn’t have even seen them. The only reason they’re so comfortable around us is because of my attunement.”

  “Comfortable around you,” Sadie pointed out. “I’m pretty sure they’re watching me very closely.”

  That was probably true. If she’d been the one to approach the stream, the otters would have bolted.

  “I sometimes take it for granted, but I can’t help but wonder what kind of truths we could have discovered if we didn’t spook the wildlife every time we came near,” he admitted. “I mean, I’ve seen more animals in their natural habitats during this trip alone than I saw in the whole time I was a working biologist.”

  And Elijah knew that he was one of the lucky ones who’d engaged in quite a lot of field work, especially as a graduate student. Once he’d gotten his doctorate, he’d worked a lot more in a laboratory setting – which was one of the biggest contributors to the apathy that had begun to infect him. He’d long since learned that he cared a lot more about seeing interesting animals and environments than actually working as a scientist.

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  But the curiosity remained as intact as ever.

  They spent the next couple of hours enjoying their respective meals and watching the otters. The animals disappeared with nightfall, and Elijah and Sadie soon followed their lead and headed to bed.

  The next day came with a bit of a snow flurry that soon turned into a wild blizzard that made traversing the mountains much more difficult. In the end, they had no choice but to return to the road, which was kept clear by an ingenious ethereal device that melted the snow the second it hit the path.

  Because they were reduced to traveling like everyone else, the rest of the trip through the mountains was a lot more boring. Sure, they still saw some interesting rock formations, but there were no animals around.

  It was a lot quicker, though, and it let them see the effects of peace on the region. Without the threat of the war elves to worry about, Kalki had established trade with New York. So, aside from troops of soldiers moving between the various forts along the road, there were tons of Porters and Teamsters transporting goods between the two cities.

  Seeing that prompted Sadie to recount the tale of the most important man who’d ventured into the Red Marsh. Solomon was just a man who specialized in carrying extremely heavy burdens, but he’d made himself invaluable to their defense of the fortress. Even if that was the extent of his help, he would have been just as central as any of the other elites.

  “But then he carried that chest across the swamp and to the pass,” Sadie explained. “That burden weighed so much that I could barely lift it, much less carry it for weeks at a time. Without Solomon, we would have all died.”

  “Good thing he was around, then. I’ll have to buy him a drink next time I’m in Argos,” Elijah responded, glad that the man had been there to play his part. However, he quickly changed the subject because he knew that, if he’d been allowed to enter the Red Marsh, he could have carried that burden himself.

  It was still a touchy subject, and for both of them. So neither wanted to continue that thread of conversation.

  They reached the other side after only a few more days. The terrain on the other side of the pass was still hilly, but as they’d descended the mountains, the temperature had skyrocketed. After having experienced it in the past, Elijah was ready for the tropical environment, but Sadie was caught by surprise. It wasn’t long before she retreated into the privacy of their tent and changed clothes to something lighter and far more appropriate to the sweltering atmosphere.

  Soon enough, they were back on the road that cut through the dense jungle toward Kalki. Along the way, Elijah recounted his previous experiences. At first, he tried to skip over the degree of death he’d seen, but Sadie pulled it out of him.

  When he spoke of the fall of New Delhi, she went silent. Elijah didn’t miss the few tears flowing down her cheek as she said, “But for a stroke of luck, that could have been Hong Kong.”

  Of course, much of her native city’s population had fallen as well. However, the number of dead in Hong Kong didn’t come close to matching the sheer magnitude of death that had destroyed New Delhi’s population. Much of the Indian city’s fate had been written by the war elves, who’d invaded and killed countless people. But even before that, they’d fought against one another, and to the point where Anupriya Pandey had been forced to lead her people to a new safe haven that would eventually become the fortress city of Kalki.

  A couple of days later, they came upon the new Conclave spires, where Elijah learned that Hu Shui would meet them in Kalki. So, they made a slight detour toward the city.

  When it came into view, Sadie let out a gasp, saying, “I didn’t expect it to be quite so large.”

  “It wasn’t last time I visited,” Elijah admitted. Indeed, Kalki had grown since then. Not surprising, considering it was the focus of Anupriya’s class. She was a Citadel Sage, and Kalki was her seat of power. It would continue to grow so long as her progress didn’t stall. Given the woman’s personality, Elijah didn’t expect that to happen anytime soon.

  In any case, the walls had expanded since his last visit, reaching hundreds of feet into the air. It still looked like the Agra Fort, with thick, sturdy walls made of red sandstone, but that was all just cosmetic. The true defenses came from the ballistae atop the massive towers and the dense flow of ethera through those walls.

  “Their siege weapons hit like modern artillery,” Elijah remarked to Sadie. “Huge explosions. There’s a reason the war elves failed to breach their defenses.”

  “Impressive,” Sadie said with a nod. “To be expected from someone of her stature. She was in the top ten, right?”

  “Probably still is, even if the rankings no longer exist to show it.”

  They continued to study the wondrous structure as they drew closer. When they came within sight of the gate, an entire squad of soldiers, each one dressed identically in elaborately embellished chainmail armor, combined with round shields and domed helmets bearing tall spikes at the crown. Their armor glistened with ethera, evidence that it was made by a talented Blacksmith. At each hip hung a curved tulwar that reminded Elijah of Anupriya’s favored blade.

  “Elijah Hart. Sadie Song,” the leader intoned when they drew close enough to hear. The soldiers had arrayed themselves in precise formation. “Welcome to Kalki. We have been instructed to escort you to the palace, where Prakara Devi awaits your arrival.”

  Sadie spoke up. “Prakara Devi? That means…”

  “She Who Guards the Walls,” the leader intoned.

  Elijah was surprised that they hadn’t named her queen, though he didn’t give that thought voice. Instead, he and Sadie agreed to follow the soldiers into the city, and soon enough, they found themselves inside.

  The philosophy that had prompted the militaristic exterior was evident inside as well, with every single choice driven by the singular focus of defense. However, there were softer characteristics as well, with a prevalence for hanging gardens, parks, and ornamental pools. They stood next to frequently arrayed watchtowers, marrying beauty and function in a way that seemed wholly unfamiliar to Elijah’s sensibilities.

  But even if it felt somewhat alien to him, he could appreciate the thought that went into it. An impregnable fortress that still endeavored to represent aesthetic beauty – an odd combination, but one born of necessity.

  The people showed a similar dichotomy, with plenty of soldiers and civilians walking side-by-side. However, it was further complicated by the existence of obvious classes, as evidenced by their attire. Still, the disparity didn’t seem as obscene as it was in other places, though given that Elijah hadn’t seen the entire city, he chose to withhold judgement until he knew more.

  Sooner than he would have expected, they reached the palace. Upon further thought, Elijah realized that Kalki, as large as it was, wasn’t nearly as sprawling as places like Seattle or New York. In that way, it was similar to Ironshore, which accounted for why their journey through the city wasn’t as lengthy as he had expected.

  The palace itself represented the overall philosophy as well as any other. It had clearly been built for defense – like a medieval keep, though aesthetically unique – but with enough nods to beauty that it stood apart from all others.

  And at the top of the steps leading up to the gate was Anupriya Pandey, attired almost identically to the last time he had seen her. Her hardened leather armor had been dyed black, and it was engraved with thousands of gilded whorls. A red sash stretched from one shoulder to the opposite hip, where her sword hung. Her hair had been arranged into a single thick braid, and a red bindi decorated her forehead. Finally, a delicate gold chain stretched from a nostril piercing to her ear.

  Hu Shui, dressed all in white, stood beside her.

  Elijah and Sadie climbed the steps.

  Sadie spoke first, bowing deeply as she said, “We are honored to enter your city as allies.”

  “You honor Kalki with your friendship. May we weather the coming storm together,” Anupriya replied, nodding her head slightly. “Come. We have prepared a feast to commemorate your arrival.”

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