Beyond the Pale by Jak Koke Page A

I was instructed to incapacitate you if anything out of the ordinary occurred. When you insisted on seeing Harlequin and started going on about Dunkelzahn, I judged you a threat. It was his idea.” She pointed to Harlequin as she stood. “Not mine.”
    “I had to test you against a real security force,” Harlequin said to Foster. “And if Mister Mercury hadn’t been along, you’d have handled them well enough.”
    Harlequin turned to Ryan. “I must admit I’m impressed. Even after all I’ve heard about you—trained by Dunkelzahn himself and all that—I never expected the banishment.”
    “What?"
    “You banished that fire elemental, my friend.” Harlequin chuckled. “Frag, you don’t even know what you can do.”
    “I can’t banish elementals,” Ryan said. “I simply disrupted it with the force of my blows.”
    “If you say so,” Harlequin said, then his tone changed. “Now, tell me why you are here.”
    Ryan nodded. Here goes, he thought. If he decides he wants the Dragon Heart, I’ll have to run for it. Ryan doubted he could put up much resistance to the mage, but he would try.
    “Dunkelzahn gave this to me,” Ryan said, as he pulled the Dragon Heart from its pouch at his waist. The orichaicum artifact glowed bright yellow in the sun. “With instructions to give it to Thayla so that she could prevent the Enemy from crossing over.”
    Harlequin drew close. “Let’s go inside to discuss this. I’d like a closer look.”
    “Certainly,” Ryan said. “But I can’t just leave my team stunned and unconscious on the ground.”
    “Frosty will attend to them,” Harlequin said. It was a statement of fact. An order to comply with his instructions, not subject to debate by either Ryan or Foster.
    Ryan nodded.
    Foster groaned.
    “Let me know when everyone’s awake, and you have unloaded the armor,” Harlequin said.
    Foster snorted. “Yes, your highness.”
    Harlequin laughed. Then to Ryan, “You’ll have to remove your communication headgear.”
    Ryan considered objecting, but decided against it. This elf's cooperation was crucial to the success of his mission. He had no choice. He pulled the tacticom out of his ear, and peeled the mic from his throat, then nodded to Harlequin.
    Ryan followed the elf through the archway and into the ancient prison, passing into a broad courtyard, complete with French gardens, sculptured hedges, immaculately trimmed trees, and a variety of blooming flowers. The rich fragrance of roses filled the air.
    Harlequin led Ryan along the central flagstone path and through a set of huge wooden doors, recently varnished, but scarred and ancient-looking. Just inside was a verandah with a high arched ceiling, stone walls covered with tapestries. Pristine suits of armor and medieval weapons from a wide variety of cultures were displayed on either side of the hall as they walked through.
    The verandah led to a huge central room that used to be an interior courtyard, but was now covered with a macroglass ceiling three stories up. Balconies on each level gave a view of the room, which was furnished with ornate wooden Renaissance chairs and tables. A massive hearth dominated one end of the room, though no fire burned in it.
    Harlequin led Ryan up onto the raised parquet flooring, around what looked like a study area dominated by a massive cherrywood desk and a small cyberdeck, and over to the hearth. Harlequin indicated that Ryan should take a seat in one of the Louis XIV chairs.
    “Talk,” Harlequin said as he returned, sitting in the opposite chair. “I’m listening.”
    Ryan nodded. “Let me tell you a story,” he began. And Ryan did. For better or worse, he unfolded the story of his quest to Harlequin. He opened himself up to this elf. He explained about his mission to Aztlan, about discovering the Locus, reporting it to Dunkelzahn just before getting caught.
    Ryan brushed over his experience with Thomas Roxborough’s personality transfer, skimming to his escape from