I hoped that Kaci got her answers from Geoffrey, whatever they were. Part of me was curious as to what she wanted. Kaci was a fierce young woman. Young woman. Who says that these days? Most people in my group would call her a girl or a chick or even, maybe, babe. But Kaci was different.

  There was something there. She got on with Siraj a bit too easily. Sometimes it was like they had ESP or something. Freaky. Really freaky given the fact that I was pretty sure by now that Siraj had been in some kind of military organization at some point. And if he didn't want to talk about it… what did that mean?

  Honestly, it was all dizzying, and I didn't even know where to start. Should I try to figure out Siraj and whatever secrets he was hiding? Should I try to figure out Kaci and whatever was pissing her off? Could I even do anything to help them if I knew what was going on?

  For the first time in my life, I was seriously starting to doubt my abilities. My mom getting ill had been the wake up call. I was now out of bed and down the road and feeling completely out of my depth. Geoffrey had saved me. I had nearly fucked up. No. I did fuck up. I froze. Shame burned under my skin, and I found myself feeling more grumpy as a result.

  Now I was faced with all of these situations that I had no control over. I wasn't sure if I could help these new friends of mine. I sure as hell couldn't help those poor demon-possessed kids. They'd been tormented, and the best thing I could do was put them out of their misery. I hoped to God that the rest of the overlords would be complete shitbags. I had a feeling that I was going to get a few more reality checks before this little 'fun trip' was over.

  Either way, I couldn't back out now. I mean, you could, Max, I told myself. But you'd feel like such a dick. And you wouldn't be able to live with yourself.

  So I stayed put, aside my guilty feelings, and approached Geoffrey for some training. I trained. I worked. I talked strategy with the rest. I faked it, hoping that one day I'd be actually making it. And somehow, life ticked on.

  A group had been formed with Siraj, Kaci, Geoffrey, and myself at the core. Will and the Brits as well as the Japanese and the Romans had agreed to tag along. Thank goodness. Because after Mammon, I was doubting whether the four of us could take on the overlords without some help. Two days after the battle, other souls trickled in, including a ronin who joined ranks with the Shinto priests. Talking to him wasn't the easiest, but between Geoffrey's Japanese and his smattering of English, we were able to recruit another blade to the cause.

  "Nors and eas'," he said in guttural English. "Night. Darku."

  Mention of 'kage daimyou' led Geoffrey to believe that Ryota the Ronin was referring to a shadowy lord.

  "At least we have a general idea," I said, injecting cheer I didn't feel into my voice.

  "Scared, Max?" Kaci asked, jabbing me in the ribs.

  "Ooof," I said. "You wish, Kaci. You wish."

  "Well, the faster we get on this," Siraj pointed out. "The faster we can get to whatever it is we want to achieve here and then go home."

  "Yes. And who knows," Geoffrey added breezily, "we may find a way for you two to return before you know it!"

  "I'm not leaving you all to fend for yourselves," I said. I nodded determinedly, hand clenching the pommel of my blade. "We'll go back when the Calling is done. Or whatever that Wheel business is."

  "Culling. Then, Cleansing." Siraj shook his head. "Really, Max. You need to clean your ears out or something."

  "Well, I'm fine with my ears the way they are. Someone needs protection against your snoring," I shot back.

  Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

  From there, the conversation devolved into banter and a lot of jokes and some genuine laughter. The first time in a little while.

  As we moved through the land of mist, leaving behind the bright farmlands of Wilsford Village and the Henge, our group of grim warriors fell silent, one by one. Making noises, even quietly talking, could draw unwanted attention. Most of us were tired of being pounced on, and fatigue combined with constant tension could lead to mistakes. Big mistakes.

  Part of me had hoped that Kaci would lead us to another mound, another sanctuary, but when I whispered a short question about sanctuaries, she simply shook her head. Instead, that night, as the fractalizing fog darkened, the camp surrounded in a tight circle. A watch was set up, and the priests planted small posts with rope and painted strips of cloth.

  "A barrier," Geoffrey explained.

  "About as helpful as our canvas tents," grunted Kaci under her breath, "but it's better than nothing, I suppose."

  Well. That's great, I thought as I rolled into bed. Siraj and I had picked the unfortunate middle hours of the watch, so I tried my best to rest as best as I could. Resting in the Other Side, though, was tougher than in the material. I drifted off slowly into a half-doze, dreaming odd jumbled dreams of old memories I had largely forgotten. Images of a small blue bike. My mother bending over my crib. Wacky shit.

  And when Siraj woke me, I felt as though I hadn't slept at all. Later, when I woke up a second time in the morning, it was to a world of grey just like the day before. Nothing had lightened. In fact, as we moved closer to our destination, the mist began to darken. Not thicken, necessarily, but darken. It was as though we had stepped into a twilight world.

  What lay ahead? I could only guess. My imagination, however, was more than ready to supply me with the worst possibilities. I shivered. That's when I looked down and realized that my boots were now making gentle squishing sounds. We'd past from dull grass and soil to rock and now to some kind of soft ground. Soft earth. Boggy.

  Geoffrey and Kaci, who had been leading the group with Ryota's help, halted, raising their hands in warning. That was when we discovered that we were on the edge of a massive swampland—an estuary that bordered the same coastline as Merigor's port did. This was cooler though. Cooler and damper, almost. There was an awful chill in the air. And a stench that hit you like a brick wall when the wind shifted just right.

  "The wind isn't so bad," Siraj told me when I complained to him. "It's clearing the mist a bit at least. I like that."

  "Is your nose broken?" I hissed back at him.

  "Mind over matter, Max," he said calmly.

  "Asshole," I grumbled to myself.

  Still, I had to admit that Siraj was right. The mist was clearing a little. Enough for Geoffrey and Kaci to find a way through the marsh, following narrow paths of crumbling soil and tufted grass… and rubble. Not that I noticed the rubble right away. At first, I just thought that there were oddly-shaped trees dotting the marshland. Then, I began to realize that not all of them had leaves or twisting boughs. No. These were more like poles. Poles. Telephone poles? I was confused.

  Then I saw the floating body in the water, face down. Then, bales and boxes hacked and split open. Broken barrels. Empty canvas bags that twisted and whirled in the restless breeze. Chests emptied. Some still half full. Crates. Shipping containers. And that's when I realized that the poles were masts and the oddly shaped silhouettes of monoliths were in fact the fore or afts of broken hulls. This was a graveyard of ships.

  "They're ships," I said in low undertones to Siraj.

  "Yeah. Not just any." Siraj pointed at one ship now more clearly visible between a break in the mist. "That's an old galleon. Disappeared at sea, I bet." He added in an even lower voice. "I bet it sailed right into the Other Side."

  I stared at the man. Was he finally going crazy? What Koolaid had he been drinking?

  "That's… not possible," I replied.

  "I think…" Siraj's gaze flickered to Geoffrey and Kaci who had moved further ahead to sound out another path. "... anything's possible, Max."

  I grunted, not wanting to get into an argument with Siraj.

  "I think that's what happened to Geoffrey," Siraj added even more quietly. "I think Kaci is trying to bring him home."

  "Damn."

  "Yeah."

  "Damn. So. If Geoffrey could go back home, could the ships as well?"

  "Maybe." Siraj shrugged. "But from the looks of them, it might be a lost cause anyways. They're… wrecks now."

  "Look at that one."

  I nudged him and pointed at another ship. This one was more modern. A war ship of some kind, I guessed. Judging by its colors it probably fought in one of the World Wars. Which one, I didn't know, but it looked modern but not too modern. Siraj nodded.

  "World War Two's my bet," he said. "German, I think."

  "And the next overlord is here…" I noted. "Seems appropriate. Time for another fight!"

  "No." Siraj shook his head. "Safe house first. Then scouting. When we get enough intel, then we fight."

  "Fine. I bet Kaci will agree with y-" I stopped and stared. Geoffrey was gazing in shock at the empty grass beside him.

  Kaci was gone.