The pain in his shoulder returned as the hall swam back into focus. He groaned and rolled onto his side, careful of the dull pain of the wound. Olivia looked down at him from a sitting position, her back pressed to the iron door.

  “Saul? Are you alright?”

  “I’m awake.” He felt for the talon stuck in his shoulder and then abandoned the motion with another groan to match the flash of pain.

  “They stopped banging on the door half an hour ago.”

  “How do you know?”

  She held up her cell phone. “No signal, but it still tells time.”

  He crawled onto his hands and knees. “How long was I unconscious?”

  “Long enough.” A woman growled from behind him.

  Saul lurched forward with a jolt of fear. He tried to stand, but slipped on the sweat-slick floor and sat down again. He twisted awkwardly to look toward the voice.

  She wore a gray robe, cinched just under a heavy paunch with a metallic cord. She towered over him, almost six feet high in all, and crowned by a cloud of gray frizz. She glared at him with cold blue eyes. “Useless, ain’t ya?”

  “Shit.” Saul tried to stand again, and this time succeeded. “Who are you?”

  “I’d ask you the same thing. Except Olivia here already told me.” The old woman nodded to Olivia. “You did a bad thing, boy, passing out to leave the woman to hold the door alone. Typical shit. All action and intrigue ‘til you’re dead or dying.”

  Olivia flushed and held out a hand toward the old woman. “Saul, this is Nivanti. She lives here.”

  He grunted, then faced Nivanti. “Okay. Nice to meet you. Where is here?”

  “Mataya’s Tower. The lowest level to be exact. Now, what are you doin’ here?”

  “Running away from Iago. You know who he is, right?”

  “Just a test, boy.” She sniffed. “Olivia already said the same.”

  “Great.” Saul stretched his back and found the talon was gone. He reached back and found the wound bandaged with some kind of padded gauze. “Who patched my wound?”m

  “Without me,” said Nivanti. “You might not have lasted. Iago got ya deep.”

  “Why help us?”

  “Why not?” Nivanti smirked. “I’m the lowest sleeper in this tower. We’re all just lucky the door woke me when it slammed. I’ve given ya help. Now it’s time the two of you paid me back.”

  Despite her mockery, he recognized their debt. Being alive was better than not, and it sounded as though she hadn’t told anyone else about him and Olivia.

  “Sure. We’ll pay you back. But first, what is this tower? You said it belongs to Mataya? And you’re a sleeper.”

  “Grand Sleeper Mataya. By the all-father, boy, do you know anything?”

  His hand trembled. He clenched his teeth. “Look, neither of us has ever been to this city before. We just arrived.”

  “Alright.” Nivanti folded her arms. A dagger dangled from one hand. “Which realms do ya come from?”

  “Earth,” said Olivia.

  “I’m originally from Hidria,” said Saul. “But I was exiled to Earth five years ago.”

  “So you’re a maker.” Nivanti shook her head. “We don’t like makers on Rokar. Boy, you just keep getting in deeper.”

  “Two other makers just arrived in this city. You’re telling me they’re not welcome either?”

  Nivanti raised her eyebrows. “Two other makers?”

  “A man and a woman. Rufus Sullivan and Irene Chambers.” Saul sighed, but the truth had served him well back on Earth. It could serve again. “We followed those two, and two other men back here.”

  “And ya don’t even know what this place is, do you?”

  He took a deep breath. “Precisely? No. More thoroughly, we don’t really know what Rokar is.”

  Nivanti glanced at Olivia, who shook her head in reply. The old woman whistled. “Of course, you wouldn’t know. This place is a well-kept secret to the outside worlds.”

  The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

  Olivia walked to Saul’s side. “What is it?”

  “This city is a sanctuary for Adam Vaust and his children. That means me. And if you’re not a maker, girl, it might mean you.”

  “Adam Vaust.” Saul turned the name over on his tongue. “He lived millennia ago.”

  “And he still lives to this hour. He is one with this city.”

  “He’s thousands of years old?” Olivia took a deep breath. “How is that possible?”

  “Same way Iago is possible.” Nivanti motioned to Saul. “You know this one, don’t ya boy?”

  He gritted his teeth. “A maker can bond his taph to his art-children, like the city lord’s bodyguards back in Mortressa.” He turned to Olivia. “Adam Vaust was a maker ages ago. Before there were humans on Earth, he was murdered by Apahar and went on to the world beyond Hidria, Fanar. But a group of makers, led by Seffuin, brought him and a few others back from Fanar.”

  “How did they do it? I thought your people didn’t even know you could come back from there.”

  “You can’t come back the same. But there was one art-child the ancient makers spent decades working on to pull humans back to Hidria.” Saul shrugged his head. “When the makers saw what had happened to Adam and the others, that they had lost their maker abilities, the returned were exiled to Earth by the council.”

  Olivia’s eyes went wide. “You mean. They settled the Earth?”

  “Yeah.” Saul turned to Nivanti. “When I was young I learned that was where they all stayed. That’s why people live on Earth at all. I never heard of a sanctuary for exiles, let alone one that hovers between realms.”

  “How much did he tell you, Olivia,” Nivanti said, “about the way makers treat exiles?”

  “We’re just slaves on Hidria.” Olivia narrowed her eyes at Saul.

  His stomach felt as though it had turned over. He did not meet her gaze.

  “Makers want to rule all the realms. They think they’ve got the right.” Nivanti sneered. “They’re wrong.”

  Olivia scowled at Saul. “I should have known you were just using me.”

  “I can’t apologize for my people. But I can tell you, no good will come from letting Luther use the hilt, whether it’s for Rokar, or for himself.”

  “What makes you so sure?” Olivia asked. “Makers aren’t perfect. And besides, they’re the ones that exiled you.”

  Nivanti stepped back, arms folded, wicked grin firm on her face.

  Saul turned to Olivia. “Then why is Luther using Rufus and Irene? They’re makers too.”

  “Luther Mansard has been to Rokar before.” Nivanti sheathed the knife she had been holding. “He may be carrying out a higher will. Like you said, he’s only using those two makers.”

  “Saul, she might be right. Would it be wrong to let Luther use the hilt?”

  Thoughts raced. If he uses the hilt I have to start all over. But I can’t just go back to Earth after what I did to get to Hidria. I’d be caught by the guardians, one way or another. Sure, the gern attack on Mortressa might be bad, but the council won’t forget.

  He swallowed hard. “What can I say? I wanted the hilt for myself. I don’t know exactly what Luther wants to do with the new universe when its made, but I do know he’s a murderer. Even I haven’t crossed that line. That’s why I was exiled in the first place.”

  “What?” Olivia started. Her gaze faltered. “What do you mean?”

  “Jackal wanted me to kill an exile. Five years ago. He said if I killed her he would send the council his recommendation. I could have become a worldmaker.”

  Nivanti frowned at him.

  “Why didn’t you do it?” Olivia asked.

  “It would have been wrong.” I cared for her. “Jackal said I didn’t deserve the position if I wouldn’t kill for it. I guess he was right at the time.”

  “Holy crap. Saul, who was she?”

  “That doesn’t matter now. Jackal killed her, and I couldn’t stop him.” Tears beaded in Saul’s eyes. “Look, I may not like living with exiles, but I don’t go around killing them either.”

  Nivanti’s frown morphed into a vicious snarl. “Don’t listen to him. They’re all killers.”

  "Then why did you wait for me to wake up at all?” Saul said. “Look, you don’t have much reason to trust either of us, and me least of all, but give us a hand, and I’ll make sure your city is safe.”

  Her expression slipped. She hesitated, one gnarled hand on her knife’s grip.

  Olivia gave her an imploring look. “Please, Nivanti. Let us through. We won’t hurt your city.”

  Nivanti’s shoulders slumped. “I’m listening. I might even believe you. But I can’t just let you into the city. Gotta take you to the Grand Sleeper.”

  “Mataya?” said Saul.

  “She lives at the top of this tower. It’s been a long time since I saw her, though.”

  Saul frowned. “How long is a long time?”

  “How old are you, boy?”

  “Twenty-eight.”

  “Your parents weren’t born when I last saw Mataya.”

  “Shit. You’re sure she’s still up there?”

  “The other sleepers say she is. That’s good enough for me.” Nivanti motioned for them to move past her down the passage. “I’m behind you. Gotta keep my eyes open.”

  Saul grunted, not liking the chance it could give the old woman, but took the lead. He and Olivia moved up the passage to a ramp carved into the shadow-streaked crystal. Nivanti followed them up to a raised chamber that overlooked the passage they had just left through an opening in one wall. In the center of the rectangular room stood a gold filigreed sarcophagus decorated with images of fire, humans, and other creatures, maybe gern or art-children, that varied vastly from one another. Along either wall were shelves of books, bowls, as well as stranger implements.

  They walked past the sarcophagus toward the base of a broad spiraling ramp that led up upward around a circular column of black steel. Saul glanced back at Olivia. She did not meet his eyes like she was a guilty woman. Nivanti lagged behind.

  She scowled at Saul. “What you looking at? I’m not gonna stab your back.”

  “Excuse me if I don’t take your word for it.” He walked to the ramp leading up into the tower. “How high is it?”

  “Forty levels total.” Nivanti caught up. “I’m not eager for the top.”

  “What’s wrong?”

  “Mataya sent me down here for a reason. She’s not exactly fond of me.”

  Olivia exhaled loudly, which drew both Saul and Nivanti’s attention. “Nivanti, if this is going to get you in trouble—”

  “I’d be in more trouble if I let you into the city without going to Mataya first. She rules a quarter of the city. She doesn’t need a reason to shit on little old me.”

  “Alright.” Olivia frowned. “If you say so.”

  “I don’t need you worried about me. We just met, girl.”

  “But if we hadn’t, we might not be alive.” She met Nivanti’s eyes. “We already owe you. Both of us do.”

  “Then I’ll add this to your ledger.” Nivanti smirked, and then started up the spiral ramp, abandoning the rear.

  Saul looked after her for a moment, hesitant to follow. Olivia put a hand on his shoulder as she passed. He grimaced, but he saw no other way to get the hilt from Luther. He fell into step beside Olivia.

  Her hand rested on his shoulder.