He laughed and said, "You're the recently deceased, eh?"
"Yeah, that's right," I nodded.
"I'm sure Anais told you about the food, but this stuff won't hurt you. It only has a slight effect, makes it easier to get around." He explained. I looked hesitantly into the glass, but he laughed again and said, "but suit yourself."
A loud whistle split across the bar and everyone grew silent. It was Anais from where she stood on the bar.
"Listen up everyone, I know you all have a lot of questions, so If you listen carefully I'll do my best to get to everyone." She shouted to the bar. There was some amount of grumbling, but everyone seemed to acquiesce.
"First things first, I'll try to tell you everything I know, then if anyone has heard anything from any of the other inns I'll give you an opportunity to share that. So far, we know that the Guardian of the Gates is missing. We have no word on her whereabouts. As I'm sure you are all aware this has caused massive confusion... especially for the newly deceased." She glanced at me momentarily. There were rumbles of indignation all over the bar. What was she talking about? The Guardian of the Gates? I was clearly missing something.
"All I can say is the Nightside Inn will continue to operate for as long as there are customers." She paused. "Now, I'll take your questions."
One stout woman of ambiguous age stood up and began speaking very loudly, in a strange accent. "What are we supposed to do now? I've been trying to reach my final destination for quite some time now. Isn't someone supposed to show me the way?"
Anais looked uncomfortable, "I understand your frustration," She mediated, "But as of right now the torches are unlit and the gates are closed. It seems that for the time being all spirits will have to remain in the liminal world."
The torches? That sounded like what I saw on top of the stone wall. How long had they been unlit? Could this have something to do with my mother?
Then another man stood up, he was stout and very tall with pointed ears. "If something did ya know, happen to the Guardian, what then? Will we get a new one?" He asked.
"I want to assure you all, that while this is completely unprecedented, the Gates will not be unmanned for long. I personally hold faith that the Guardian of the Gates will return, but if she does not then in time, a new Guardian will certainly arise."
The same woman from before interjected, "You don't have any proof of that. Has anyone tried to just open the gates?"
That caused a lot of chatter amongst the others in the bar. It took me a moment to put all the pieces together, but I was beginning to understand. The Queen of Witches must actually be the Guardian of the Gates. The Torch that she held was used to light the torches along the wall. Those torches must be found all throughout the liminal world.
Anais was shouting to regain order, but it was difficult to hear her over the din. Suddenly a strange figure burst through the door of the inn. A man robed in black stood in the doorway. Anais sighed, and I saw her shoulders drop.
"Excuse me," He said, and his voice resonated strangely across the room. It caused an involuntary shiver to go up my spine. "It is not my intention to interrupt.." His voice was oily, as if interruption might be his very intention indeed. "But I must let you all know, the torches have been lit."
At his words, the entire room exploded in energy. I became frightened as everyone around me moved frantically.
He shouted, "Stop." And the movement stopped immediately. He had some kind of power over these people. "I must ask if anyone has any information."
The room went still. Nobody said anything and I could feel the tension begin to build. Energy was starting to travel down my arms. My magic was trying to release. Why? I looked at the cloaked man and shuddered. Something about him was so familiar. His eyes were dark and black, almost inky. The murky energy that followed him reminded me of the demon from my first year. He should definitely not find out who I am and that I'm here.
He continued despite the fact that he received no response, "I'll be posted outside until morning if someone wants to share what they know."
As soon as he walked out the door, the bar exploded once more into movement. People were packing up and leaving or heading to their rooms. I moved against the tide of people toward Anais.
"Who was that man?" I asked.
She was cleaning glasses behind the bar. "Oh, most likely he's in the employ of some minor demon." She rubbed her temple. I had suspected as much, but I made my face neutral.
"I still don't really understand what's going on," I gestured to the chaos around us.
"Follow me," She said, dragging me into a back room behind the bar. "I'll try to explain everything."
The bar was nearly empty already as I joined her in the dingy looking root cellar.
9
Journey through the Liminal
I gazed at Anais expectantly as she sat down on top of a large barrel. I sat across from her.
"As I told you before, the Inns are like waypoints along the path of the spirits as they journey through the Liminal World." She explained. "We have always received communication from the Guardian of the Gates as long as we have been in existence. This is the first time we have ever experienced an event such as this."
"So what happened? Did she just disappear? Or did she.... die?" I asked. She pondered me for a moment.
"Well,
