Daneera waited.

Slow your breathing, she thought to herself. Concentrate.

Her chest rose and fell slowly and silently. It was important, crucial even, that she make as little movement as possible, and even less noise. She was crouching in a low bush at the base of an ancient oak tree in the Bladǎri Forest, her eyes fixed to the game trail a few paces in front of her. She had caught her prey’s scent once already, and now she was lying in wait. She knew it didn’t have to come this way, and could even be behind her by now, but this was the most likely place. All she needed to do was maintain control.

Everything happened at once then. There was movement at the other end of the trail, and Daneera took off running, her long knife in her hand. The werewolf, though, had moved first, and was closing faster. Even with Daneera’s auras augmenting her speed, she could not push her legs fast enough. The werewolf was going to get there first. Cursing in her mind, Daneera cast a quick spell, throwing up a wall of leaves and vines in the beast’s way, but it crashed through with ease. Helpless, Daneera could do nothing but watch as the werewolf pounced and dug in its claws and teeth.

Daneera slowed to a walk and sheathed her knife as she watched Kerik conquer the helpless hart. Blood splattered across the game trail, but the werewolf’s movements were impressively precise, killing the creature instantly and as painlessly as possible. There was no wasted motion, and no ruined meat. In a few short, brutal moments, it was over. Kerik stood for a few seconds staring down at his kill before turning his lupine head in Daneera’s direction and baring his teeth. Daneera smiled back.

“Fine, fine,” she said conversationally. “You win again. What is that, four in a row for you?”

The massive werewolf nodded his head as Daneera approached him. He crouched lower to the ground to allow her to wrap an arm around his thick, muscular neck. Kerik couldn’t speak in his wolf form, but he was able to understand Daneera nonetheless, and the two had learned the best ways to communicate in the short time they had been together. The huntress had always been able to read the body language of wild beasts, and Kerik had learned to exaggerate those motions, as well as several of his human ones, to make his meanings known.

Right now, Kerik was gloating.

Daneera and Kerik had initially hunted for food together, but had eventually decided to make a game of it, and then, a competition. Daneera was an unequalled huntress, and with the help of her enchantments, she could move as quickly and as silently through the forest as a ghost. But Kerik, as a werewolf, was supernaturally strong and fast, with the instincts of an animal and the intelligence of a human. He had also lived in the Bladǎri his entire life, which Daneera maintained gave him an unfair advantage. Since they had begun their competition, Daneera had only won once.

Still, she had no complaints. She was enjoying herself, and was truly happy for perhaps the first time in her life. While Kerik was human, she enjoyed his company. They spoke for hours and never seemed to tire, even as they told one another the same old story again and again. When he transformed, he now maintained control, and Daneera enjoyed his company all the more. There had been one or two moments since that first night when it seemed like Kerik’s primal instincts were going to flare up in potentially deadly ways, but it was no different from any of Daneera’s beastly friends, and his human intelligence always managed to win out.

Kerik pulled away from Daneera and moved back over to the slain deer, lifting its entire bulk with his massive arms, and started back in the direction of the cabin. Daneera grinned and joined him. She wondered briefly how they would have looked, had anyone been around to watch them. A human woman walking pleasantly beside a werewolf carrying a dead hart on his shoulder would have been a strange view on most planes, and a part of her was thankful that Kerik lived so far out from Zǎri, the closest human settlement. It made everything so much simpler.

It was still several hours before dawn when they arrived back at the clearing where Kerik’s cabin rested. The werewolf set the deer’s carcass down at the far end and moved away while Daneera started working on it. She removed a large cut of meat from its side first and tossed it to Kerik, who began to eat it raw. In his human form, the thought of raw meat disgusted Kerik, but as a wolf, his instinct overpowered his repulsion. Kerik inevitably ate the vast majority of their kills, as his huge, bestial frame required far more food to sustain itself than Daneera’s did, so Kerik ate when he needed to, and Daneera dried the rest.

After Daneera finished her work, she and Kerik disposed of the remains and retired to his cabin before the sun came up. They slept for nearly half the day before Daneera woke with a start, which woke up Kerik. He looked up at her, once more in his human form, his gray eyes concerned.

“What is it?”

Daneera did not answer, but instead slipped out of bed and quickly dressed. She moved cautiously over to the door and opened it a crack, just enough to look out. Even from his somewhat awkward vantage point, he could see Daneera’s jaw set. She glanced back at him.

“We’ve got visitors.”

She drew her long knife, and wordlessly, Kerik stood up, dressed, and grabbed his woodcutter’s axe. Daneera nodded once to him, and then opened and stepped through the door, moving cautiously and deliberately. Kerik followed likewise. On the opposite side of the clearing, there were at least two dozen large, muscle-bound shapes standing, staring at Daneera and Kerik. Daneera inched closer toward them as Kerik’s eyes darted from one to another.

“What the hell are those?”

“Gorillas,” Daneera said, flexing her fingers around the hilt of her knife. “They live deep in the Bladǎri, where the mist shrouds their valley.”

“Then what are they doing so close to the forest’s edge?”

“I have no idea, but I’m more concerned about why they're standing like that.”

Kerik scanned their lines and realized abruptly that that was precisely how they were standing. In lines. In ordered, organized lines. And they were staring intently at Daneera and Kerik, a yellow glow emanating from each of their eyes.

“I don’t like this,” Kerik whispered.

“Something is controlling them,” Daneera said suddenly. “Kerik, be careful. This is going to get ugly.”

Kerik nodded, and Daneera concentrated. She drew in mana, both from the surrounding Bladǎri and from the countless other forests she had been to before. Then, one of the gorillas stepped forward, bellowed into the air, and beat his chest with his hands. This gorilla was massive, the largest Daneera had ever seen, a silverback who wore his age and experience on his face. The rest of the apes answered back, and a moment later, they began to advance like a regiment of trained soldiers would. Kerik gripped his axe tightly. He had no idea what was about to happen, but he knew he didn’t like it.

Daneera, on the other hand, knew what was coming. She had experience in battle that Kerik didn’t. She knew that the gorillas would rip them apart effortlessly unless something stopped them, and fortunately, Daneera knew several things that could help with that. Her mana gathered, Daneera knew she needed something large, or the apes would still reach them. With a small smile curling her lips, Daneera called across the æther, and a moment later, felt her call answered. The air in the clearing rippled as æther pushed its way onto the plane and deposited, much to the gorilla’s surprise, a large and angry baloth.

The apes hesitated, and the baloth charged, knocking several of the primates out of the way. Others, though, were faster, and dove aside, while some were quick enough to grab a hold of the rampaging beast and swing their way up onto its back and head, pounding downward with thunderous blows meant to distract, weaken, and potentially kill. The baloth barely noticed at first, but as more gorillas piled on, the cumulative effect of their attacks started to work.

Daneera was beginning to gather mana to summon more aid when Kerik yelled a warning and pushed her out of the way. From the roof of Kerik’s cabin, several smaller apes were leaping down, one of which had been coming straight at Daneera’s back. Kerik buried the blade of his axe into the ape’s midsection, but the next one sent him spiraling away with a backhand. As it closed the distance to finish him, Daneera caught up to it, stabbing it through the back. A third ape leapt at her, but her magically fortified strength allowed her to toss it away, while her equally improved speed let her pursue and finish it off.

An anguished, primal groan sounded out over the clearing, and Daneera wheeled around to see her baloth fall. Rage flared in her eyes as she realized she was too late to save its life. Mentally, she thanked it for its friendship, apologized for her failure, and prepared herself to summon something to avenge its death. The baloth had killed several of the gorillas, but they were regrouping, and their leader seemed to be unharmed. Daneera needed something even bigger, even stronger than her baloth, and she had just the thing.

The gigantic creature broke from the trees one head at a time, and now the apes stopped and turned around, staring upward at their new enemy. Kerik, equally astonished, froze in place. Daneera, overexerted, dropped to her knees, her auras failing her. It was the cost of so large a casting with so little time to prepare. She had to channel all of her energy into it, but from the reaction of the gorillas, she seemed to have made the right choice. The hydra lunged forward with three of its heads at once, each one snatching up a different gorilla.

The silverback ape howled in rage, and the apes attacked the hydra en masse, scaling it and trying to smash it down as they had the baloth. They had little success. Even as they worked on one of the hydra’s heads, one of the others would pluck them off and eat them whole. The battle raged on for some time, but eventually, the apes were destroyed. Daneera, breathing heavily from the strain, thanked the hydra and sent it back through the Eternities, back to its home.

While she was trying to catch her breath, however, the silverback ape appeared out of nowhere, hammering down on Daneera with both muscular arms on her shoulders. Daneera slumped as her body exploded with pain. Kerik roared and charged at the gorilla with his axe held high, but the silverback knocked him away like he were nothing. Then he reached down, grabbing Daneera with both hands by the skull. She could barely see through the swirling of her vision, but the yellow glow of the creature’s eyes registered briefly just before the ape started applying pressure.

Just before Daneera was certain her skull would crack, another massive shape burst into her view, knocking the silverback away. Daneera collapsed to the ground, desperately trying to stave off unconsciousness as the sounds of struggle flooded her ears. She couldn’t see what was happening, but the primal grunts of anger and pain told the story. Finally, she heard a loud crack, and then the sound of a big body collapsing to the ground. A few moments later, Daneera felt a large hand at the back of her head. It turned her to look in a new direction, and she saw the lupine face of Kerik’s werewolf form, his gray eyes projecting human concern.

Then Daneera fell into darkness.

When she awoke, she was in Kerik’s bed, and Kerik, human again, was next to her. She tried to turn toward him, but her shoulder seemed to burst into flames at her slightest movement. Breathing heavily, Daneera laid back and closed her eyes. Kerik was saying something to her, but she ignored him, instead reaching out to the Bladǎri, drawing in as much of its rich mana as she could manage and funneling it into the strongest of her healing spells, concentrating on her shattered shoulder blades. The process was slow, and unpleasant, but eventually, she mended the majority of the damage. The rest would have to come with time.

Finally, she turned to Kerik, who was staring at her in concern. “You were a werewolf.”

Kerik nodded. “I know.”

Daneera shook her head and propped herself up on her forearms. “I thought you could only transform at night.”

“So did I,” Kerik admitted. He was shaking. “I just…I saw that thing standing over you, and I couldn’t stop myself.”

“Good thing,” Daneera said, giving Kerik a smile. He didn’t smile back.

“What does this mean, Daneera?”

Daneera shrugged, which hurt more than she expected. “It means we can hunt during the day now, I guess.”

Kerik gave her an annoyed look, and she laughed. Kerik helped her stand, and together they walked to the door and back outside, where numerous gorilla corpses still littered the clearing. Kerik shook his head.

“What do you suppose that was all about?”

“I have no idea,” Daneera admitted. “Gorillas don’t act that way. That was an intentional, coordinated attack. We weren’t threatening them, their young, or their food supply.”

“You said during the attack that something was controlling them,” Kerik said. “What did you mean?”

“Their eyes,” Daneera said. “I’ve seen that yellow glow before. I don’t know what it is, but I saw it in the Marsh Panthers that attacked Shuru, too.” Suddenly, Daneera froze. “Shuru!”

“What?” Kerik asked.

“My wolf friend,” Daneera said. “I haven’t checked on her in weeks.” She looked around the clearing, frowning at the dead apes. “Something strange is going on in the Bladǎri, Kerik. I need to go check on Shuru. Right now. Will you forgive me if I leave this mess for you to clean up?”

“Of course,” he said. “But be careful, alright?”

“You, too. And if there’s any sign of trouble, you remember that you’re a werewolf, will you? Don’t hesitate.”

Kerik just nodded. Daneera secured her long knife, kissed Kerik once, and set off to the south. It was nearly a four day journey to the wolf’s den, and the sun would be setting in only a couple of hours, so Daneera wanted to move quickly. Her shoulders were still sore, and she needed to use some of her energy to continue the healing process, but the majority of her power went into her speed enchantments. She wanted to get to her friend as quickly as she could, and get back to Kerik just as quickly. Whatever force was controlling those apes was unlikely to try anything again so soon, and Kerik could take care of himself, especially as a werewolf, but that didn’t stop her from worrying.

And Daneera had plenty of time to worry in the three days it took her to reach Shuru’s den. The apes and the panthers bothered Daneera continually during that time, and she frequently thought back to her encounters with both. The panthers, who had worked together to destroy the bulk of Shuru’s pack, had acted strangely, too. And, like the gorillas, they were far from their usual territories. Apes were known to wander in their troops, but rarely so far. But panthers were extremely territorial, and not known for their cooperation with one another. Between their behavior and that strange glow in their eyes, Daneera was sure that something was controlling them magically, but who that was, or for what purpose, were mysteries to her.

Daneera arrived at Shuru’s den as dusk was beginning to fall, and she knew immediately that something was wrong. She couldn’t feel the wolf anywhere. Whenever one of Daneera’s animal friends were near, she could always feel it. It was simply part of her magic as a summoner, part of what allowed her to call out to them, even across the æther. But she couldn’t sense Shuru or her cubs. They might have been out hunting, as the pups would have been just old enough to learn, but even as Daneera cast out her sense farther, she could sense nothing. Daneera frowned. The only thing that had ever caused this before was death.

The thought first worried Daneera, then angered her. Whatever was going on in the Bladǎri Forest had targeted Shuru and her pack once before, and it was not unlikely that it would again. Carefully and slowly, Daneera crept up on the den, intent on investigating it for any signs of what had happened before the daylight faded completely. As she stepped into the entrance, however, she froze as she caught a stray sound from within. Something was still there. Daneera laid one hand on the hilt of her knife, but did not draw it. Although she knew she could draw the blade silently, a stray ray of sunlight could glint off its surface, giving her away.

As it turned out, she needn’t have worried, because only a moment later, a pair of eyes shot open in the darkness of the wolf’s den. Eyes glowing a faint yellow. Daneera’s breath caught as she heard the deep, throaty growl of a predator about to strike. Trusting her instincts, Daneera threw herself backwards back into the forest as two shapes converged on the spot she had been standing, nearly colliding with one another. They had attacked Daneera from either side while the eyes stared. Daneera backed away, and all three shapes stalked after her, followed by four more. In the waning daylight, she saw they were wolves.

She saw that they were Shuru and her cubs.

The wolves, all with glowing yellow eyes, fanned out from the mouth of the den and surrounded Daneera, who watched them, unbelieving. Shuru herself was standing directly in front of the huntress, licking her own snout. Her cubs were panting in primal excitement, clearly looking at Daneera as their next meal. But the planeswalker couldn’t sense any of them, at least not with her magical senses. She could see them, hear them, even catch their scent, but she couldn’t feel them within her like she could the hydra, like she had the baloth. They were strangers to her, and she to them.

Shuru’s eldest launched himself at Daneera first, but the pups were still young and inexperienced, and Daneera swatted it away without hurting it.

“I was there when you were born,” she said as the wolf landed and scrambled back to its feet. “You know me. Stop this.”

Two more came for her then, and Daneera twisted and sprang away from them. “Whatever is making you do this, you can fight it!” She implored, desperation in her voice. She couldn’t fight off a wolf pack for long and still not hurt them.

Then Shuru came for her, and Daneera ran. Running from a pack of wolves was rarely a good idea, but Daneera’s options were to run, to fight, or to die. To fight meant that she would have to kill Shuru and her cubs, and Daneera had no intention to die, so running was all that was left. She had spent a fair amount of time in this part of the Bladǎri over the past few months, and for a while, she stayed ahead of the wolf pack with that knowledge and her enchantments. But Shuru knew the area even better, and led her cubs on a masterful hunt. They managed to cut Daneera off twice, and only her speed kept the chase going.

Unfortunately, they drove her into a part of the forest Daneera did not know. It was a narrow valley lined on both sides with rock faces that, while not unclimbable, could not have been navigated in the growing darkness. Daneera had gone only a few hundred paces into the recess when she discovered it was enclosed. The far wall of the small valley was even more unscalable than the side walls had been. Daneera swallowed hard, slowed her breathing, and turned away.

Shuru was advancing on her slowly, flanked on either side by her cubs. There was death in their glowing, yellow eyes. Daneera drew her long knife and held it out, staring down her friend. “Don’t do this, Shuru. Fight it!”

In response, Shuru simply growled. Daneera could feel nothing of her friend, no closeness, no rapport, no love. There was no way that the huntress was going to get through to the wolf or any of her offspring until whatever was controlling them was taken care of. Daneera growled, annoyed. Whatever was going on in the Bladǎri was a problem that was now affecting someone she loved, and she vowed that she would find it and stop it before it went any further. Meanwhile, she needed to get out of this valley, and as a planeswalker, she had an easy way to do that. Slowly, Daneera gathered herself and prepared to ‘walk away.

Before she could, however, Shuru leapt at her throat, and Daneera moved out of instinct. Her eyes widened in shock as Shuru was impaled on her blade. “No,” Daneera whispered as Shuru’s glowing eyes dulled and shut. The cubs howled in rage and came at Daneera, who was forced to defend herself. Partly, it was in self-defense that she killed them all. Partly, it was in mercy, because their young lives without their mother would have been hard. But partly, it was because she couldn’t stand the thought of whatever was controlling them continuing to do so.

As the last of the wolves fell, Daneera dropped to her knees and wept. She did not cry often, but she couldn’t believe what she had done, what she had been forced to do. It had been only a few months earlier that she had fought and risked her own life for theirs. That she was now the one to take them was just too much for Daneera to stand. But Daneera did not allow herself the luxury of grief for long. Whatever curse was plaguing the Bladǎri Forest was spreading, and she had to do something about it. With one final farewell to Shuru, Daneera started back toward Kerik’s cabin.

She headed back home.

Daneera’s trip back took longer than her trip there. She did not use her mana to speed her journey, nor did she travel quite so carelessly as she had before. First the panthers, then the apes, and then the wolves, all had fallen prey to this yellow-eyed curse, and Daneera had no idea how many more there might be. So, she moved cautiously through the underbrush and avoided as many of the beasts of the forest as she could. As she went, she thought, trying to figure out how to find the answers she needed. The Marsh Panthers were the first she had seen to behave strangely, so maybe the answers could be found near the marshes, but the gorillas came from deep in the forest to the west. Either could be an important lead, or neither could be.

It was an hour or so before noon when Daneera arrived back at Kerik’s cabin. The gorillas were gone, although their blood still stained the grass of the clearing. Daneera walked toward the center of the clearing, but stopped when she noticed Kerik sitting still at the treeline across from her. In his werewolf form. The huntress’s heart lurched in her chest. She hadn’t sensed him. She came to an abrupt stop as her hand reached for her knife without her even thinking about it. On the other side of the clearing, Kerik raised his head to stare at her.

His gray eyes glowed yellow.

Daneera was preparing to planeswalk even before Kerik started moving. Things would not go the same here as they had with Shuru. Daneera wouldn’t let them. Besides, Daneera’s knife would never pierce Kerik’s hide even if she wanted it to, which meant that a fight between the two of them could only end one way. Kerik was fast, and closed the distance between them quickly, but Daneera was running, too, and even Kerik wasn’t quick enough. As Daneera broke into the tree cover, she vanished from Morvata, just as she had the first night she had learned of Kerik’s lycanthropy. But, just like then, she had no intention of letting him go.

Less than an hour after fleeing the Bladǎri Forest, Daneera returned, this time ‘walking directly into the clearing. Kerik was nowhere to be seen, which is what the huntress had expected. Between the gorillas, Shuru, and now Kerik, she was beginning to suspect that whatever was affecting the beasts of the Bladǎri was after her specifically. Kerik seemed to have been waiting for her, and Shuru’s den had been too much like an ambush to discount the possibility. But that didn’t answer the questions of who or why. There were a few people Daneera knew might have wanted her dead, but she dismissed the idea, likely more out of optimism than anything else.

The more pressing concern for Daneera, though, was finding and freeing Kerik. She had little idea how to do either. In his werewolf form, despite his tremendous size, he moved through the trees like the wind. But Daneera was a skilled tracker, and if she tried, she believed she could follow him. The second part was going to be the trick. Whatever was controlling the beasts of the forest had gotten its hooks into Kerik. If he could just transform back into human shape, maybe that control could be broken. If not, Daneera was going to have to find the source of the spell and break it, before she or Kerik would be forced to kill one another.

Fortunately, Kerik seemed to be moving with greater abandon than usual, and Daneera picked up his trail after only a brief search of the clearing’s perimeter. He was moving west. Daneera nodded to herself and activated one of her most useful auras, an enchantment that kept her hidden from the senses of predators. If was not a fool proof aura, nor could Daneera maintain it indefinitely, but it had its uses, especially when trying to remain hidden during a hunt. And considering everything that had happened with Shuru and Kerik, Daneera very much wanted to stay hidden.

She tracked Kerik for days. At times, it was a difficult trail to follow, and she lost it more than once, particularly when night fell and she was forced to sleep until daybreak. But she always found it again, eventually. Kerik was making no attempt to disguise his trail. Daneera wondered at times whether he was intentionally leading her into a trap, and she couldn’t deny that it was quite likely. So Daneera kept up her enchantment, and gathered as much mana from the Bladǎri as she could. She needed to find Kerik, and so, if it was a trap, she had no choice but to fall into it. She simply had to rely on her ability to get herself, and him, out of it again.

After nearly a week of tracking, Daneera came to the end of the trail, and she scowled fiercely as she saw it. Rising out of the forest like a massive gravestone was a fortress of rock carved out of the mountain. The trees of the Bladǎri stretched high and thick, but they were dwarfed in comparison to the walls of the keep, which were themselves dwarfed by the mountainside. Undoubtedly, within that mountain were sprawling halls and endless corridors, where who knew what dark magics played. Daneera’s scowl deepened. In all her time in the Bladǎri, she had never been so close to the Fae Courts.

Kerik’s tracks led straight up to the only gate into the great Fae fortress, the path choked on either side by the trees of the Bladǎri. Standing next to the gate, or rather leaning against the nearby stone wall, was a particularly bored-looking Fae. The Fae of Morvata were larger than on many planes, just a bit smaller than Daneera herself, with gossamer wings and insect antennae. Apart from this, they looked much like humans, and this one was a wispy male who seemed to be preoccupied with checking his fingernails for dirt. Daneera briefly considered sneaking up and attacking him, but she discarded the thought. There were undoubtedly more around, and Daneera needed to find Kerik before she made too many enemies here.

So, instead, Daneera simply walked straight up to the gate. The Fae glanced at her as she first broke from the trees, then went back to checking his nails. Daneera approached the gate and waited, but nothing happened. After nearly a minute, the Fae spoke, although he did not look at her.

“You can’t go in there, you know.”

“Why not?”

The man shrugged. “Rules.”

“What rules?”

“Our rules.”

“The Fae Courts?”

“Sure.”

Daneera sighed. “Look, a friend of mine is in there. A werewolf, actually. He would have passed through here less than a day ago.”

“Could be,” the Fae said, disinterested. “But if he did, he’s either the guest of, or the property of, one of the nobles.”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, nobody gets in here but a Fae noble, or by their invitation. I can’t even get in there, so you see how selective they are.”

Daneera was about to argue her point a bit more forcefully when she saw movement above her and to her left. There, on a branch of one of the great trees, a Fae shifted her position, a bow in her hand, arrow nocked and ready. Daneera quickly scanned the forest and realized, to her dismay, that there were literally dozens of them, all with arrows trained at Daneera. She frowned and turned back to the man. “So there’s no way you’re letting me in here?”

The Fae shook his head. “Nope. I don’t think you’re nobility,” he said, making a show of looking around Daneera at her back. “Wrong pedigree for it. So the only way you’re getting in is by the invitation of a Fae noble.” He paused, looking her in the eye and giving her a wicked smile. “Know any?”

Before Daneera could do anything she would regret, she turned around and disappeared back into the forest. She could hear the obnoxious sound of Fae laughter behind her, but she paid it as little heed as she could. She still didn’t know exactly what was going on, but at least now she knew that whoever was behind it was likely one of the Fae. That wasn’t much, but it was something. Now, Daneera just needed one thing, and she knew where she could get it. Unfortunately, it would take too long to walk there through the forest, especially trying to avoid whatever beasts the Fae would set in her way before she got there. So, Daneera took a shortcut.

Once she was far enough away from the Fae, Daneera planeswalked off on and then immediately back onto Morvata, this time coming in just a short distance from one of the larger villages of Krash Elves in the Bladǎri. While Daneera never particularly enjoyed her time among people, the Krash were about the closest she came. They were a strong people, living off the forest with a determination that Daneera could truly respect. She had found them shortly after first coming to the forest, and had earned their admiration for the ease with which she matched their skills.

The elves, sharing the Bladǎri with the Fae as they did, were the most likely to know what was happening with the Fae Courts. There were also humans in the forest, but they were a far more insular people. The Krash Elves, particularly considering their toughness, were a surprisingly gregarious sort, and welcomed outsiders in as visitors, traders, and friends, but never permanently. Daneera, in her time in the Bladǎri, had visited often, but never stayed long. Long enough, however, to make a few friends.

As Daneera strolled into the Krash Elves’ tiered village, she was greeted by Lutha, her greatest friend there. Daneera was unsurprised that Lutha knew she was coming. The Krash Elves were masterful scouts, and, if they hadn’t seen Daneera materialize from the æther, undoubtedly spotted her shortly after. Lutha was a tall, red-headed elf whose body was half-covered in tribal tattoos of swirling shapes and thorns, marking her as a warrior. She and Daneera greeted one another just beyond the boundary of the village by extending their hands and touching their wrists together, a show of friendship to the Krash.

“It has been a very long time, Daneera!” Lutha said, smiling. “How has the hunt found you?”

“Not well,” Daneera said, wasting no time. “Lutha, I need your help. I believe a friend of mine has been taken.”

“Taken?” Lutha said, surprised. “By who?”

“The Fae.”

Lutha’s face darkened. “The Fae,” she repeated, considering. “This is grave news. The Fae have always played their tricks throughout the forest, of course, but abduction is beyond their usual scope. Can you be mistaken?”

“No,” Daneera said, shaking her head. “The tracks led directly to their stronghold at the base of the mountain.”

“The news grows even more dire, then,” Lutha said. She paused for a long moment, then continued. “There have been strange winds blowing from the Fae Courts of late, Daneera. Things in the Bladǎri have grown…strange.”

“The animals,” Daneera said. “That’s what you mean, isn’t it? The beasts, with eyes that glow yellow.”

Lutha hung her head. “We have seen this, too.”

“Do you know what’s causing it? Or who?”

Lutha said nothing, but instead looked around the village. Nobody was looking in their direction, and Daneera got the feeling it was intentional. When Lutha continued, her voice was low. “Listen to me, Daneera. Something dark is taking place in the Fae Courts. Mourn your friend’s passing and leave this place.”

“I can’t do that.”

“You can, Daneera, and you must. I know that you can hunt in the Beyonds. I have seen you go to them, and have heard tales of you coming from them. You need not concern yourself with…”

“Yes, I do,” Daneera interrupted. When Lutha stared back at her, Daneera swallowed air. “They took my mate.”

Lutha stared for a long time, then finally bowed her head. “I see. I have never heard of the Fae taking a human before.”

“Well,” Daneera began tentatively. “He’s not exactly human.”

Lutha cocked an eyebrow.

Daneera sighed. “He’s a werewolf.”

Again, Lutha stared for a long time. After a few moments, she simply shook her head. “The lycanthropes make dangerous mates. But if anyone would tame one, somehow it does not surprise me that it was you.”

“So, do you know the cause?”

“With certainty? No.” Lutha hesitated. “Glim Murkwisp.”

“Who?”

Lutha sighed. “He is a Fae nobleman. Our spies tell us that he is attempting some sort of power play within the Fae Courts. We have paid little attention to the matter, as Fae politicking is more difficult to follow than a scent in a tornado. But there are whispers in the Bladǎri that the strange behaviors of the beasts are his doing.”

Daneera, seething, set her jaw. “Where is he? I need to ‘speak’ with this Glim Murkwisp.”

“He is where you have come from. At the Fae Courts.”

“I can’t get in there. They only allow Fae nobility, or those invited by them, and I don’t think I can fight my way in.”

“All of the Fae would be your enemy if you tried,” Lutha said. “There may be another way, if you have set your mind to this course of action, but it might not prove much easier.”

“What is it? Do you know a Fae noble who can get me in?”

“No,” Lutha said, shaking her head. “But you may not need one. You can get in yourself, if you were a Fae noble.”

“What are you talking about? I’m not even a Fae.”

“The Fae are thieves, Daneera. Tricksters. They care nothing for who once owned something, only for who owns it now. If you had one of the Fae Crowns, they would recognize you as a noble.”

“You want me to steal a crown from the Fae and pretend I’m nobility?”

“No,” Lutha said solemnly. “I want you to leave the Bladǎri and save yourself from whatever is coming. But you do not want that. You want to save your mate, and I cannot blame you for that. To do that, I believe you will need the crown.”

Daneera considered. “Any idea where I can find one?”

Lutha shook her head. “The Fae would guard such treasures jealously. I am afraid I cannot help you.”

Daneera nodded, thinking back on everything that had happened. From the panthers to the apes to Shuru to Kerik, this Glim Murkwisp had apparently taken everything from her, and destroyed nearly all of it. But she wasn’t going to let him have Kerik.

“Thank you,” she said to Lutha, and then turned around to leave.

“What will you do, Daneera?”

The huntress looked back behind her. “This whole thing is starting to spiral out of control. I’m going to stop it.”