accepting food or drink.
“Oh, that’s OK,” I said awkwardly. “We wouldn’t want to put you to so much trouble.”
“I can see you’re not from this world!” The hermit’s smile seemed surprisingly young in such a wrinkled old face.
I’d been hoping we just blended in, but obviously our rustic peasant outfits hadn’t fooled him one bit. He broke off a new piece of bamboo from a plant growing beside the road, bent over his pot and began whisking its boiling contents into a bright green froth.
“I know who you seek,” he said calmly. “And I know the trials that lie in wait, if you refuse to turn back.”
I gulped. Did EVERYONE in this world know what we were up to? Did we have, like, a big sign: “Soul-retrieval in Progress”?
“Thanks,” Reuben said gruffly. “But turning back is not exactly an option.”
The hermit carefully poured the scalding green liquid into an earthenware cup. It looked suspiciously herbal to me. I wondered if this old man was some kind of Limbo wizard. Maybe we’d interrupted him just before he flung in the eyes of newts and dead man’s toenails?
He gave me an amused look. “This is a strange world to you, child; a strange, baffling, perilous world.”
I felt myself going red. The old hermit had virtually read my thoughts!
“You are strangers here,” he said gravely. “Without a guide, it is unlikely you will reach your destination, and no local will venture where you need to go. I advise you to leave while you still can!”
“We’ve got a job to do,” said Reuben stubbornly. “Perils or no perils, guide or no guide, we’re not leaving till it’s done.”
“You’re already too late!” the hermit said to my dismay. “The dark lord already has your friend in his power.”
“There’s a dark lord! Are you sure?” I gasped. “How-what did he do?”
“Do such trivial details matter, child? He used his power! Didn’t your teacher tell you the Dark Forces are more powerful in dimensions such as these?”
“Yes, she did, actually,” I said defensively.
“And did she tell you they have almost driven out the ancient gods who once dwelled here?”
“No,” I admitted. “But it was just a weekend course. Look, I’m really sorry about the nice gods baling out of your world, but we just have to save Tsubomi.” I was close to tears. “We have to.”
The hermit frowned. “Why do you care about her so much? She’s no kin to you.”
“So? Rellies aren’t always all that,” I told him. “But you can meet a total stranger and immediately you know they’re your family. Like, if Reuben here ever needed me, I’d just drop everything and go.”
“Ditto, Beeby,” Reuben murmured.
The hermit’s voice softened. “And that’s how you feel about this girl?”
“She needed us,” I explained huskily. “So we came.”
The old man shook his head. “If you want to save this girl’s soul, you must walk the Demon Road.”
That’s just a name, I told myself quickly. It’s not used by real demons.
“The road will lead you to the Palace of Endless Night. That is where the girl you seek is held captive. I would take you myself, but unfortunately I have business elsewhere. My blessings on your mission.”
“But how do we—”
He’d gone. No shimmer, no puff of smoke. Just gone.
“…find the Demon Road?” I asked the empty space. I almost stamped. “Can you believe that! He was a wizard after all! This world is just TOO scary.”
“I don’t think he was your average hermit,” Reuben agreed.
“Jessica said PODS can cloak their vibes in Limbo, and I totally forgot. He could have been a Dark agent deliberately leading us away from Tsubomi.”
Reuben shook his head. “He gave us his blessing. No PODS would do that.”
I folded my arms. “So if he wasn’t PODS and he wasn’t a wizard, what was he brewing in that manky pot?”
Reuben investigated the pan still steaming beside the fire, turning back to me with a grin. “Smells like
“Oh, that’s OK,” I said awkwardly. “We wouldn’t want to put you to so much trouble.”
“I can see you’re not from this world!” The hermit’s smile seemed surprisingly young in such a wrinkled old face.
I’d been hoping we just blended in, but obviously our rustic peasant outfits hadn’t fooled him one bit. He broke off a new piece of bamboo from a plant growing beside the road, bent over his pot and began whisking its boiling contents into a bright green froth.
“I know who you seek,” he said calmly. “And I know the trials that lie in wait, if you refuse to turn back.”
I gulped. Did EVERYONE in this world know what we were up to? Did we have, like, a big sign: “Soul-retrieval in Progress”?
“Thanks,” Reuben said gruffly. “But turning back is not exactly an option.”
The hermit carefully poured the scalding green liquid into an earthenware cup. It looked suspiciously herbal to me. I wondered if this old man was some kind of Limbo wizard. Maybe we’d interrupted him just before he flung in the eyes of newts and dead man’s toenails?
He gave me an amused look. “This is a strange world to you, child; a strange, baffling, perilous world.”
I felt myself going red. The old hermit had virtually read my thoughts!
“You are strangers here,” he said gravely. “Without a guide, it is unlikely you will reach your destination, and no local will venture where you need to go. I advise you to leave while you still can!”
“We’ve got a job to do,” said Reuben stubbornly. “Perils or no perils, guide or no guide, we’re not leaving till it’s done.”
“You’re already too late!” the hermit said to my dismay. “The dark lord already has your friend in his power.”
“There’s a dark lord! Are you sure?” I gasped. “How-what did he do?”
“Do such trivial details matter, child? He used his power! Didn’t your teacher tell you the Dark Forces are more powerful in dimensions such as these?”
“Yes, she did, actually,” I said defensively.
“And did she tell you they have almost driven out the ancient gods who once dwelled here?”
“No,” I admitted. “But it was just a weekend course. Look, I’m really sorry about the nice gods baling out of your world, but we just have to save Tsubomi.” I was close to tears. “We have to.”
The hermit frowned. “Why do you care about her so much? She’s no kin to you.”
“So? Rellies aren’t always all that,” I told him. “But you can meet a total stranger and immediately you know they’re your family. Like, if Reuben here ever needed me, I’d just drop everything and go.”
“Ditto, Beeby,” Reuben murmured.
The hermit’s voice softened. “And that’s how you feel about this girl?”
“She needed us,” I explained huskily. “So we came.”
The old man shook his head. “If you want to save this girl’s soul, you must walk the Demon Road.”
That’s just a name, I told myself quickly. It’s not used by real demons.
“The road will lead you to the Palace of Endless Night. That is where the girl you seek is held captive. I would take you myself, but unfortunately I have business elsewhere. My blessings on your mission.”
“But how do we—”
He’d gone. No shimmer, no puff of smoke. Just gone.
“…find the Demon Road?” I asked the empty space. I almost stamped. “Can you believe that! He was a wizard after all! This world is just TOO scary.”
“I don’t think he was your average hermit,” Reuben agreed.
“Jessica said PODS can cloak their vibes in Limbo, and I totally forgot. He could have been a Dark agent deliberately leading us away from Tsubomi.”
Reuben shook his head. “He gave us his blessing. No PODS would do that.”
I folded my arms. “So if he wasn’t PODS and he wasn’t a wizard, what was he brewing in that manky pot?”
Reuben investigated the pan still steaming beside the fire, turning back to me with a grin. “Smells like
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