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A portal into another world.

Awe made his heart beat faster.

TheEcotone, unaltered beauty untouched by time. Stories had been passed from one generation to the next, telling of a time when people moved freely between worlds, but he’d never seen it. Never scented anything so fresh, so pure, so light. The portal smelled of nothing and everything, all at once.

“Go, then.” Raising a black-tipped fingernail, Lyonesse pointed him toward the breach. “I will await your successful return.”

“And I, my prize,” he said, moving toward the doorway.

“Do not fail me, Slayer.”

He didn’t plan on it. Freedom lay at the end of his mission. A chance to put his plan into action while living free. To right past wrongs and build a better future for Azlandia, one filled with hope and new purpose. He could finally see the light at the end of a very long tunnel, and nothing and no one would stand in his way.

8

THE SUCKAGE OF HER LIFE

Half frozen in fear, half hopped up on adrenaline, Truly struggled to decide. Did she want to start a fight with the beast? Seemed an incredibly stupid thing to do given the size of the thing transforming from monster to human being in her foyer. Thinking fast was better than fighting. She needed to figure out how to talk it down — or at least, waylay it — given tackling the creature wasn’t a plan she wanted to employ.

She didn’t want to tangle with the thing.

Letting it escape her house, however, felt like a worse option.

Looking around, she kept one eye on the beast and searched for a weapon with the other. Maybe if she lassoed it, she could trip it, tie it up, then —

Bright yellow eyes trained on her, the beast hissed while backing toward the front door.

“Stop right there.” Both hands raised, she took a step toward it. “Don’t move a muscle.”

“Or what, Door Master?” Half transformed, looking more human by the second, the creature positioned its new head on top of a thinning neck.

“You won’t enjoy my reaction,” she said, injecting authority into her voice. Not that she held out much hope of it working. She might sound convincing, but the thing had a mind of its own. “You’re not going anywhere.”

It laughed, the cackle almost human. “How’re you going to stop me?”

Good question. One in need of an immediate answer.

Truly knew her own strength. Understood her weaknesses too, which helped her come to an inescapable conclusion. No matter what she said, she wasn’t going to be able to stop it. A major problem in the ever-growing pile of trouble inside her new house.

She might not understand what was going on, but having a giant, saber-toothed monster with six eyes standing in her entryway was a real eye-opener. The fact the thing continued to morph into a man added that extra special something to already thickened sauce. Which didn’t inspire confidence. Or the requisite amount of sanity to carry on a conversation.

It tilted its head. “I didn’t think so, though…”

“What?”

“If you were stronger, able to control your magic…” Trailing off, it crouched to tie its bootlaces. “You might’ve given me a run for my money.”

“Magic,” she whispered, not understanding. “What magic?”

“You have no idea who you are, do you, little Truly?”

“You know my name.”

“I picked it out of the air. The house keeps few secrets.”

Terrific. A haunted house. An irreverent monster. The suckage of her life had just rocketed into the stratosphere. “You wanna maybe stay a while, have a chat… clue me in?”

“Nice try, but no need for me to educate you. The queen will see to that soon enough.”