Page 121 of Blackwicket

“From where?”

I didn’t know. My mother had talked of other cities far away, but never named them.

“Do you know why they closed this port, Eleanora?”

“The Authority cracked down on illegal magic being smuggled in.”

“The Authority—ourAuthority—was responsible for those ships, and they were full of magic, that’s true. Magical items to filter some life back to this place. But it didn’t work. The curses got worse. So they shut it all down.”

“This world is dying, my dear,” Hannah picked up the explanation with a tenderness she wielded well. “It has been for a while. It’s why the Fiend was so interested in it. Now there’s nothing left to be done but close it off for good so its sickness can’t spread. The rest of Elsewhere is already struggling; it doesn’t need this problem as well.

“Is Elsewhere where I’m from?” Jack asked.

Hannah put an arm around his shoulder like an indulgent grandmother.

“Elsewhere’s everywhere we know of, all the pockets of existence floating in Dark Hall, connected by the magic that sustains us all.”

Her tone was pious, and not for the first time, something about her disquieted me.

I looked to Victor, searching his face for a sign he believed what we were being told. He offered a tight dip of his head, an affirmation.

“What happens here?” Thea asked. “To this world?”

She seemed to be searching for a reason to stay, to face whatever odds there might be.

Ramsey cast a glance around us, considering.

“The Authority will let the Fiend do its work, clean it out. And who knows, maybe once the fields are scorched, the magic will return. Grow again.”

“We’re working in a few other pockets, much bigger than this one, that have been nearly magicless for centuries, but arestill somehow hanging on,” Hannah said. Ramsey eyed her with long-suffering irritation.

“At any rate,” he said firmly, making it clear he wanted his wife to say no more. “There’s hope as long as someone believes there is. As trite as that sounds, we’ve found it to be true. You’re all welcome to stay if you want, try to ride out the storm.”

He looked at me.

“Though I don’t think it’s a good idea, being what you all are.”

Not waiting for us to discuss or ask more questions, he turned toward the waves, and in a long arching motion of his hand, he pushed aside space, cleaving it in twain, and I felt Dark Hall, strong as ever. With very little effort, Ramsey formed a Narthex, and I became aware that the magic I’d sensed in him the night of High Tide had been only a fraction of what he was capable of.

Before us stood a portal, dark and diaphanous as any I’d ever seen, but stable, the simple shape of an arched doorway.

“Were you always able to do that?” I asked, angry that it had been so easy.

“Like we said,” Hannah replied. “We get one. One exit. We’re using it now, and you’re all coming. No arguments.”

She motioned for Thea to come forward and stand next to Jack. With a somewhat bewildered expression, the woman did as she was told. Hannah stood at their backs, a hand on either of their shoulders. Jack glanced at me, nervous. I couldn’t reassure him.

“Here we go!” Hannah said cheerfully, marching them both forward into the dark.

Ramsey approached to follow, and Victor glanced down at me, waiting.

“Whatever you decide,” he murmured.

“You coming?” Ramsey asked.

“You’ll excuse me if I have little reason to trust you,” I said.

“You’re right.” Ramsey agreed, scratching his grey stubbled cheek. “But now that Hannah’s out of earshot, I’ll let you in on something. Neither of you is safe, no matter where you go.”