When Titania woke, she wasn’t alone. Instead of her captors, however, she saw her mother chained to a chair. The woman looked like a different person. Her eyes were sunken and hollow. Her hair, which was once radiant and full of life, was now dry, dull, and listless. She stared at Tia, yet there was no recognition in them. They didn't even seem to be taking in anything. Her lips moved tirelessly as if she was speaking, but no sound came out.

     “Mom?” Tia asked, her voice breaking. Her words were disregarded, however. Whatever had been done to her mother had left her senseless.

     “Talking to her is useless, I'm afraid,” Tepestia said as she entered the room.

     “What did you do to her?” 

     The woman walked over to her mother and slapped her. “See? She no longer registers with this world. Balekapısö has no love lost for those who scorn her gifts.”

     “What are you going to do to her?”

     “Balekapısö will take her body and descend from the Divine realm. Once here, she will establish her rule, and all will fall under her dominion.”

     “It’ll never work.”

     “Silly girl, this plan has been thousands of years in the making. The only one besides us who has any magic is you, and yours is sealed,” she said with a chuckle. Tia flinched as the woman raised her hand toward her face. Tepestia laughed again and left the room. Tia wept as her mother burbled in her chair.

 

*****

 

     Boreas flew through the wall into the living room. Sarah and Lizzy were still sitting on the couch, comforting each other. Lizzy looked up when she realized the boy was there and put her finger to her lips.

     “She cried herself to sleep.”

     “She might want to wake up.”

     “Let her sleep. I don’t know how to say this… but…”

     “Mother has been captured,” he interrupted.

     “So you knew?”

     “Her presence disappeared. But I ran into some people who might be able to help,” Sarah stirred and opened her eyes. They settled on the young spirit and filled tears.

     “Sweetie, now isn't the time for tears. I need to get the door. Boreas said he found help,” Lizzy said as she rubbed her girlfriend's head.

     “I'm sorry,” Sarah said to him as Lizzy went to the door. 

     “Mother is fine, and they will help her soon,” he said.

     Lizzy returned a moment later with the rest in tow. Sarah stood up and gave the group a slight nod. 

     “Hello,” she began, unable to stop herself from glancing at the Elf and Dragonkin standing before her. “Are you friends of my sister?”

     “Your sister? Do you mean the queen's sister? Are you a spirit?” Tasha said from her place at the rear of the group.

     Sarah looked at Boreas, who shook his head. “My sister is half-human but also the spirit queen.”

     “A human turned into a spirit? What is wrong with this world?” Tasha said, shaking her head.

     “Nothing is wrong with us…” Sarah said defensively.

     “She was simply making an observation and nothing else,” Cardwin said and began introducing them.

     “I’m Sarah, this is my girlfriend Lizzy, and you’ve already met Boreas,” she said. Then after a momentary thought, she asked. “Are any of you hungry?”

     “If you’re offering, we only brought light supplies,” Cardwin said.

     Sarah stood up and made her way to the kitchen. The party spoke amongst themselves in their native tongue. Lizzy watched them in open wonder. She saw real-life fantasy races. She, of course, knew Titania was a spirit, but she was still partially human and looked human most of the time. Sarah returned with a selection of snacks, sliced veggies with ranch dips. Some puffed rice snacks and a bowl of tortilla chips.

     “I’m not sure how hungry you are. If this isn't enough, I can cook something,” she said, setting the tray on the coffee table. “Please sit, make yourselves at home,” she added with a Tension-filled smile. Lizzy grabbed her by the shoulder, gently sitting her on the couch. As she hugged her girlfriend, Sarah broke into tears again. The dragonkin looked uneasy at the display of emotion. 

     Cardwin silently walked over and gently rested his hand on the crying girl's shoulder. “I promise we will save your sister.” He chose not to mention they had a vested interest in her rescue.

     “Thank you,” Lizzy said to him for Sarah, who was still sobbing uncontrollably. “She may not be related to me by blood, but she's still part of my family.” 

     He nodded at her words and resumed speaking. “That is admirable since she is important to the future of your world. She’ll need all the allies she can.”

     “What do you mean future?” Sara asked, her crying down to just the occasional sob.

     “Without a spirit queen, a world's balance falls out of order. Eventually, they reach a point where the world breaks down. Yours isn't there yet, but the signs have appeared. Has there been drastic climate changes recently?”

     “Wait… you’re saying that global warming is caused by lack of spirits?” Lizzy asked.

     “In a sense,” he replied.

     “Damnit!” she exclaimed.

     “What's wrong, babe?”

     “I was writing a paper about climate change and human environmental impact. If I continue it, I’ll be knowingly lying.” 

     “Well, not entirely. It was humans who ultimately caused this,” he shrugged.

     “That doesn’t matter right now,” Sarah said. “My sister was kidnapped.”

     “We’ll find her. I promise,” Cardwin said. “They won't do anything to her until they finish their ritual.”

     “When will they finish?” Lizzy asked.

     Cardwin glanced at Tasha. “Several days to a couple of weeks,” she said as she looked around. “What is this black rectangle?”

     “It's a TV,” Lizzy said. She picked up the remote and turned it on. The TV flicked to life. She opened the TubetoYou app and selected a video on electric vehicles.

     “What is this?”

     “It is the internet. It contains the collective sum of all human knowledge.”

     “And anyone can access it?”

     “Yes.” 

     “Fascinating, may I?” Tasha asked.

     “Of course,” Lizzy replied, handing her the remote and showing her how to use it.

     Tasha turned her attention to the TV and began to browse through videos. 

     “Why is this happening to my sister,” Sarah asked through tears. 

     “We’ve come from a different world,” Cardwin began. Sarah nodded, “our spirit queen was attacked. And rather than let herself be captured, she chose to reincarnate. However, something went awry, and she ended up trapped in your sister, but we aren't certain why.”

     “But who would be able to kidnap her? And why would they want her?”

     “Because your sister is this world's spirit queen, most likely the people who kidnapped your sister follow an eldrich being who refers to itself as an outer god. They are always trying to find ways into reality from their abyss.”

     “But why her?”

     “Because the queen has a connection to the divine realm,” Tasha said, turning her attention to Sarah. “With her power, they can open portals to other worlds and with enough energy to the divine realm.”

     Sarah looked increasingly worried, “How can we save her?”

     "We are still working that out but will implement it tomorrow,” Cardwin said.

     “Right…,” Sarah said dejectedly, “it's late. You all are welcome to stay here for the night.” She stood up and went to the hall closet, returning a moment later with an arm full of blankets. “Please make yourself at home,” she added.

     “Thank you,” Cardwin said with a smile.

     Sarah and Lizzy returned to their room, leaving the otherworlders in the living room.

     “This planet is weird. I've been using my detection magic, and this world has no mana, spirit, or divine energies. Yet they have accomplished things that aren’t possible with magic. This Tee Vee, for example, is possible, but only with linked crystals and the proper sigils, and even then, it's only a two-way transfer,” Ardin said once they left. 

     “This is amazing. Once we rescue the queen, we should stay for a bit to learn,” Tasha said.

     “We’ll have to stay anyway. We must convince her to return with us. Both to train her and to resurrect our queen,” Cardwin said. “How are you feeling, my friend?” he asked Faurik. 

     “I'm here to fight, that is all,” the dragonkin replied.

     “Fair enough, those of us who require rest should get some. It's a busy day tomorrow,” he said, clapping his hands.

 

*****

 

     “Bishop Moros, it seems there are some visitors to this plane,” said a robed man as he bowed.

     The man turned around. He was tall and handsome. He had thick black hair that was slightly curled. He had sharp piercing blue eyes. His lips parted in a smile showing off his perfect pearly white smile. The half-crazed look in his eyes betrayed his chiseled good looks and conventional handsomeness of his face.

     "It seems that some rats slipped aboard the ship,” he replied, his voice smooth and powerful.

     “Should we inform Tepestia?”

     “No, if she couldn’t spot them, then we shant inform her. Now begone I must prepare for her failure.” 

     “As you say, my lord,” the man said, bowing again before leaving the room.

      Moros locked the door and closed his eyes briefly before saying, “Alnac ilc heidt.” his hand glowed as a flash of light filled the room, then quickly faded. He removed a crystal from his pocket and spoke its activation phrase.

     “Greetings Bishop. I wasn't expecting you to contact me so soon,” came a voice through the crystal.

     “Thank you, archbishop. It seems someone came into this world. Without a doubt, they are here to rescue the queen.”

     “It was an excellent idea to let them have the ruins, Array. You’re to eliminate the visitors and return with the queen.”

     “What of our hosts?”

     “Let them fail or dispose of them. I’ll leave that decision to you. Praise be to Vaught, master of the dark abyss.”

     “Praise be,” Moros returned the greeting as the spell cut off. “Tomorrow is going to be a fun day,” he said with a smile.

 

*****

 

     “Priestess, I don’t trust those men,” the attendant said as she brushed Tepestia’s hair. 

     “Nor should you. They follow a god of deception, even deceiving its followers. They will undoubtedly betray us and attempt to steal the queen from us,” she pointed to another woman and called her over.

     “Yes, priestess?”

     “How soon will the ritual be ready?”

     “The preparations are nearly complete. We will be ready tomorrow night.”

     “Excellent, you are dismissed,” she waved the woman away.

     “Tomorrow will be a wonderful experience,” she smiled.

 

*****

 

     Tia stared at the stone floor. Her body was sore. Alternating between depression, rage, and sadness, she wallowed in her situation. For the first time, she cursed her human heritage. She wanted to sleep but was unable. She tried to escape, but her human body bound her. 

     Her mother's burble pulled her attention. Tia shed the tears her mother was unable to. Lamenting her situation wasn’t the healthy thing to do, but her body and power were bound. All she could do was wait for the end.

     “Jessie…” her mom whispered.

     “Mom? “ she asked frantically. “I'm here. Can you hear me?”

     “I… sorry…” she croaked. Tia knew her mother still didn't see her. Her eyes were dull and unfocused.

     “It’s ok, mom. I know you didn’t want to. You tried to shield me from him,” she wept as she began to tell her mother everything that had happened to her about her new school, her son, and her new powers. She bared all, letting out everything that had built up since the day that had shattered her world. And finally, ending with her fears about the future. She had no idea how much time had passed since she was captured. 

     “Hello, your majesty. I hope you’re ready for your big day,” Tepestia said, entering the room.