The clang of a heavy door being closed and locked rang through Shade's head as he was sealed into his cell. He wanted to yell at the guard that had brought him here, but he knew better than to do that. No one in the entirety of Lymeria ever questioned their queen's leadership. Anything he said against her would reach deaf ears. Shade looked down at the shackles that bound his hands together. There was no way to take them off without a key, and he couldn't get one unless he left his cell.
The boy groaned out of frustration and leaned back against the stone wall behind him. The mark they had burned into his shoulder that revealed him to be a criminal ached dully. Staring up at the ceiling, his eyes started to close as exhaustion took its toll. However, something grabbed his attention and woke him up. A window! It was on his left, and was just the right size for someone to crawl through. Shade walked over to it, but saw bars running across it and stopped. He would never get through the window with those in his way. Maybe the prisoner in the opposing cell could help.
Shade inched close to the window and peered through the bars with narrowed eyes. The little chamber was dark and appeared to be empty. Just when Shade had given up hope of any outside assistance, a silhouette of an old woman appeared to him. He couldn't see much of her in the dim light, just her pale gray hair and the thick black cloak that concealed most of her body. There was a crescent moon shaped mark etched into the top of her right hand, which made him smile. A mage! They were humans with the ability to cast spells and predict the future, basically the benevolent counterparts of witches. Though they weren't as powerful as fairies, they were still fairly strong. He was saved! Shade moved a little closer to the barred up window, and called out to her softly, hoping the woman was in a helpful mood. "Hey, um..could you help me with something, ma'm?"
The mage lifted her head slowly. Her dark, tired looking eyes were deeply set in her face, and her wrinkles looked like jagged stripes in the dark. "That depends on what it is. What do you want, child?"
Shade sighed. "What most prisoners want.
I'd like to get out of here."
"For what reason?"
"I..need to save my chosen human."
The mage's eyes glittered. "Ah, so you were a Guardian." She crossed her arms and turned away, her cloak fluttering behind her for a moment. "Why should I help you? Many other fairies have been trapped here in Outerworld for ages. What makes you any different from them?"
Shade put a shackled hand over his heart, doing his best to sound honorable. "I have a mission. My chosen, though lacking in magic power, is very important, more important than any other."
"Why?"
Shade lowered his voice down to a whisper.
"She's a Hybrid."

Lily gasped. She nearly ran into Kara when she stopped in front of a pair of doors. They were wrapped in chains, their locks immovable. "Kara?" she wheezed. "Why..are we stopping?"
"These doors. They seem important."
Kara went up to the doors to get a closer look. They were black, with red outlines, and the golden doorknobs on them were scratched up and rusty. She grabbed for the chains to try to pry them loose, but Lily shook her head to stop her. "No, Kara. They look interesting, sure, but I doubt they would lead to bedrooms." She started to leave, looking fearful. "Whatever they are, they were probably chained up like that for a reason. Just leave them be."
Kara wasn't sure. The queen had so many secrets. What if this was something important?
At last, she gave in. They would probably have time to come back later. "Fine. Where should we go now?"
Lily looked down at the hall to her right. "That way. There aren't any creepy doors over there."

Caleb and Foster entered a forest on the outskirts of Kara's and his neighborhood. Kara's father pulled out a dusty old book with a golden dragon on the cover. Foster recognized it instantly. It was Legend of Faerie, the same old spell book that Kara had used the first time they had ventured to Lymeria. He began to object to this, but he stopped himself. His opinion about the issue wasn't important. Kara's safety was the most important thing right now. She had to come home, safe and sound..she had to. Foster didn't think he would be able to handle it if she didn't. Kara's father was murmuring something under his breath. The spell for transportation. Foster felt sick to his stomach. Caleb finished the first part of the incantation, then shouted the last bit. "Take us to Lymeria!" There was a space in front of them, a space devoid of any trees. All there was in the spot in front of them was dirt, a few scraggly patches of grass, and some leaf litter.
That was more than enough space for their Gateway. The air seemed to shudder, and then a purple and red vortex appeared, seeming to tear at the ground and anything immediately close to it. It became a door, one that looked old and half rotted. Foster stepped back a little, but Kara's father went right up to the strange door and opened it, going inside confidently.
Foster shook his head and went in after him, worry squirming around in his insides like worms. Horrible things had happened to him the last time he was here. What would stop something like that from happening again?
Foster decided to ignore these thoughts and went after Caleb, hoping desperately that they could find Kara soon without anything going wrong along the way.