Runners were sent off in different directions to shout their challenge to the Alp all over the city. The second any of them spotted any illusions or flying cutlery they were to run back to the judgment room.

  Given the Alp had been in the judgment room very recently, this luring process did not take long. In fact, none of the runners even made it back to their start position.

  White smoke suddenly started billowing out from who knew where and vision was quickly obscured, except when Amanda looked in her mirror, she could still see perfectly well. The smoke was an illusion. One that many were falling for.

  Casting her mirror around the room, Amanda could see men and woman walking as if they were blind. One or two even looked to be climbing over invisible walls or pushing thorough bushes that did not exist. It seemed the illusion was not the same for everyone.

  “Hey, Amanda,” Sirius hissed to get her attention.

  She glanced up to where he had emerged from the smoke behind her mirror. “Sirius.”

  He smiled and he reached for her arms. “I’m glad you’re okay.”

  He leaned forward as if he meant to kiss her.

  She narrowed her eyes. “Hang on.”

  She spun the mirror on him.

  It was just as she’d suspected. He wasn’t there in the mirror.

  “You silly girl! He’s not real,” laughed Sirena’s voice behind her.

  Amanda spun. Forgetting that the smoke wasn’t real and her actions would not be hidden, and no longer afraid of Sirena herself, Amanda leapt at the women intent on leaving behind some decent bruises.

  But as Amanda threw her weight forward and crashed to the floor, she quickly realised that Sirena wasn’t real either.

  “Ow,” she grumbled to herself, more embarrassed at having fallen for the thing than injured.

  She pulled herself back upright, but it was too late. In her rush at Sirena, she had accidentally dropped the mirror and now it lay shattered in pieces at her feet.

  As she reached down to pick them up, the fog rushed in tighter, obscuring the ground.

  “Here, let me help.” It was Sirius again. He leaned in close and his fingers brushed hers. But something wasn’t right. They were too cold. She noticed it instantly.

  “Can’t do warmth huh?” she said to the alp.

  “What?” he looked confused, hurt even.

  For a moment she doubted herself. She decided there was only one way to be sure. She ran her hands along the ground until her fingers felt a sharp prick.

  She hissed and yanked her hand out of the mist. “Damn it!” she cursed. She needed to be more careful.

  This time more gently, she felt around. She picked up the largest piece that she could find.

  “Hey, Amanda.” Not Sirius this time.

  Now her father was in the mist, only a few metres away.

  “You are definitely not here,” she told him, now getting annoyed at the creature’s games. Damn it, why had she been so foolish and dropped the mirror?

  She raised the shard she’d found and turned it toward the alp disguised as her father. “How did you even know what he looks like?” she asked aloud, not even expecting an answer.

  “Alps can read your mind,” said Sirena’s voice again.

  Amanda was getting sick of this, and tired of that woman, and angry too. She stood up, and without even checking her piece of mirror, she swiped at the figure.

  Her hand hit something hard.

  “Oh, you’re real?!”

  Sirena growled. Her golden eyes appeared to glow.

  “We should probably deal with this alp,” Amanda said sheepishly, remembering once more what it had felt like to be wrapped up in that woman’s tentacle.

  Sirena seemed to almost pulsate for a moment. Then she gave a huff and was calm. “Very well, let’s get this done.”

  Sirena held out a chain made up of several links. “This is a very expensive binding infusement. It’s blood infused so we don’t need a sacrifice and it won’t kill us if we mess it up. But I don’t have another so don’t mess it up. We just need to connect it to the circle I made, okay?”

  “Got it,” Amanda replied.

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  Sirena held out her hand.

  Amanda eyed it for a full second before a piercing scream from somewhere inside the room propelled her to take it.

  Together, her and Sirena, knelt at the edge of Sirena’s circle. Amanda realised it was made of salt. That made sense. Salt was a common ingredient for a lot of rituals.

  Sirena moved the chain to the hand that was touching Amanda’s so they were both holding it.

  “We have to make sure it’s in there first,” Sirena said. “Once it is, we have to be quick.”

  “How will we know?”

  Sirena nodded toward Mickey, who sat on the large wheel of cheese. “He’s going to let it feed. Once latched, alps take a few seconds to let go.”

  “Won’t the alp know what we have planned if it can read our minds?”

  Sirena nodded. “It will, but it will see it as a challenge. It will assume that it can be faster than we can. We can’t let it, got it?”

  Amanda nodded.

  “I could probably do it myself, but Renault is right, and two is faster, assuming you don’t mess it up,” Sirena told her.

  “I won’t.”

  Silently they stayed, holding hands and waiting. Amanda wasn’t sure what sort of signal they were waiting for. She watched Mickey closely.

  For awhile, nothing seemed to happen. Eventually Mickey leaned back and then his eyes seemed to fix on something that wasn’t there.

  Amanda twitched, thinking this was it.

  “Wait,” Sirena hissed at her.

  Amanda kept her rage in check. Instead she channeled it into her hands and held it there, turned her emotions into power that was ready for whatever signal it was they were waiting for.

  For awhile Mickey seemed to be kissing something that wasn’t there. It was a weird sight to behold.

  Amanda glanced around the rest of the hall. The smoke was still there and she couldn’t hear much other than shuffling about, but it seemed to her that the alp’s illusions were still affecting the others. She could see Mickey. For whatever reason, probably something Sirena had done, the smoke illusion could not penetrate the circle. Mickey could see something though.

  “How come we can see him?” Amanda whispered to Sirena.

  “Because we are on the outside of the circle.”

  “What does Mickey see?”

  “Whatever it wants him to.”

  Amanda was about to ask another question but Sirena cut her off. “Pay attention.”

  As she watched, two red dots started to appear on the front of his shirt where his nipples should be. Blood.

  “Now!” Sirena commanded.

  Amanda took a moment to sense what Sirena was doing and try to match it. It would slow her down a little, but power was not good without purpose. It took her only a second to read the rhythm and barely that to match it. By the time the third second had ticked by, Amanda’s power was dominating. She let Sirena guide it with a magical nudge or two. As much as she hated the woman, Mickey was right there in front of them, and his face was contorted in pain. It hit home that the alp could do harm. That it was a bit more than just a trickster playing practical jokes. She hoped Sirius hadn’t experienced anything similar to what Mickey was currently going through.

  “There,” Sirena said finally. “That should hold it.”

  “Mickey’s still in pain?” Amanda replied, confused.

  Sirena nodded. “The physical boundary is in place. We cannot complete the full binding until we have Mickey out, and even then it will take a minute or two for the illusions to fade.” She stood up and spun around, looking for someone. “Where is the summoner?” she called out. “Who was sent to fetch him?”

  Amanda could hear the worry in her voice.

  “We’re going to summon an entire person?” Amanda asked. She hadn’t thought that was possible. Summoners never did people.

  Sirena nodded. Worry never left her face. “Vlad said there is someone in the city who can do it.”

  “Here I am,” said a red-headed rounded man with a very curly beard. “I hope Cap remembers my aiding in this matter.” He was dressed in robes of dark blue velvet, trimmed with golden silken thread, the sort of thing a sorcerer might wear.

  Vlad made Amanda jump when he suddenly spoke from behind her. “Capilliaria appreciates the gift you are giving today, and in time, I’m sure you will find it repaid in full.” Vlad gave a small bow of the head.

  “Right,” said the sorcerer. He gave a small shake of his hands and on the count of three he shook them again, and suddenly Mickey was right there beside them.

  “Whoa!” said Mickey as he clutched his hands to his bleeding chest. He took several deep breaths. “That was like that one night I had far too many apple margaritas.”

  Amanda looked around for Sirius.

  She walked through the smoke until she found him, sitting near the wall, just staring straight ahead

  “Sirius?” she called.

  But it seemed that the Alp could mask sound. It had put everyone in their own little world.

  He was sitting there, so still, just looking sadly at the space in front of him.

  She came up to him and touched him gently.

  “Sirius, it’s not real.”

  This time he heard her.

  “I know,” he said forlornly. He didn’t look away from whatever it was.

  “What is it?” she asked as the smoke around her started to fade.

  “My mother,” he said softly.

  “Oh, you poor thing.” She threw her arms around him.

  He turned his face towards her as if to kiss her and then hesitated. “Hang on,” he said. He raised his mirror so he could check if it was really her. “Alright,” he said once he’d seen her reflection and he turned and kissed her.

  “You weren’t sure if it I was real?” Amanda said, once they had broken apart. She was ready to tease him for not knowing the difference, even though she’d had to check herself. The alp was good.

  “I haven’t been sure since the moment I met you,” he told her. “I keep thinking I’m going to wake up.”

  His response was so sweet that she decided it earned him a break from the teasing.

  “What are you doing?!” demanded a voice.

  Amanda turned. It was Sirena again.

  “You were supposed to help me finish the bind.”

  Amanda’s eyes widened. In her rush to find Sirius, she had indeed forgotten about that. Oops.

  Sirena opened her mouth to chide her some more.

  Amanda punched Sirena in the face.

  “Ow.”

  “Just checking,” replied Amanda with glee as Sirena rubbed her jaw.

  Sirena glared at her. “If you hit me one more time…”

  “You’ll what?” Amanda asked.

  Sirena glanced back toward the centre of the room. They’d missed Amanda’s hit, but a lot of the councilors were starting to look their way now.

  Amanda smiled smugly at her.

  Sirena huffed, spun on her heels, and returned to her side of the room.

  Amanda turned to Sirius.

  “Hmm,” he said.

  “What?” she asked.

  “Hmm,” he said again. Then he gave a laugh. “I suppose she deserved it.”

  Amanda grinned.

  Renault approached them. “Are you ready to continue?”

  Amanda looked around the room. Half of the attendants seemed a little dazed. No one was seriously injured though. “Maybe a break for lunch first,” she suggested.

  Renault looked around the room the same as she had done and then he looked at his watch. “Ah yes, I guess it is about that time. Alright,” He turned back to the rest of the room and called out. “Everyone get some lunch, we will reconvene in one hour.”

  Amanda turned to Sirius and declared, “I’ve bought us some time.”

  “Hmm,” he said again but she could see that glint in his eye that she knew only too well. There was mischief on his mind. “We should probably find somewhere with food that doesn’t require any cutlery,” he remarked as they walked toward the door.