Sevana sat mentally swearing, her head turning sharply this way and that, trying to ascertain where she was as quickly as possible. A forest, one on a steep incline with a rocky feel to it. The scenery around them was lush and the air ridiculously hot, like she was in a tropical environment.

A robust man with a round belly, oblong hat of silk, and droopy black mustache was shaking a finger to emphasize his point. “—not to be confused with any other Artifactor or magician. She is the one that has saved not just one royal family, but three!”

“She is known as a curse-breaker,” a large...wait, what was he? His shape seemed to shift between a man and a large black bear, making it seem as if he were shifting from one to another in a constant transition. “There is no curse here to break. What good is she?”

“While I agree that her reputation does not give her the qualities we need, I am also inclined to think that she may be the most suitable to help us.” The third and final member of the group was not human, not beast, but something that Sevana had only ever read about. This was a Qi-lin. It simply had to be. It resembled a dragon with scaly red skin and three horns on its forehead, but it was in the general shape of a deer, and had hefty manes of hair flowing out. They were not to be confused with a unicorn, even though their general body shape made one think they were a cousin of that race.

There was only one place in the world that the Qi-lins lived. “I’m on Nanashi Isle,” she blurted out incredulously. How?! This place was impossible to access from the outside world unless someone was expressly invited. Even then it was tricky to manage!

All three stopped and turned to look at her. 

“You are,” the mustached man confirmed. Well, the term ‘man’ was misleading. There was no way he was a regular man, not with the way he was glowing. “Sevana Warren, stand and speak with us. We wish to see if you are adequate to the task.”

He made this sound like a job interview instead of a kidnapping. This was not the first time that Sevana had been abruptly re-located in her sleep. In fact, it was the third. Well, unless you counted that unfortunate incident in her youth (which she strove not to remember even on the best of days), in which case, it would be the fourth. She found herself once again without much on her except for the bag that she’d had next to the bed. It had an anti-theft charm on it that had magicked it along with her, fortunately.

Sevana stood, but did so crossly. After all, she was still in her nightclothes (although fortunately she was wearing pants and a shirt as a precaution since she had half-expected to be yanked out of bed) and didn’t have any shoes on. If they imagined that she would meekly go along with whatever they wanted, they were sorely mistaken. She’d come up with suitable payback shortly, but first she had get the full scope of the situation. Making her way gingerly across the forested floor, she tried to avoid any fallen twigs or stones, and came to stand with them. “First, who are you?”

They seemed taken aback at her brusqueness. The Qi-lin’s mane actually huffed out like an enraged cat’s. “You do not know who we are?”

“You are a Qi-lin,” she riposted flatly. “So I’m assuming that I’m on Nanashi Isle, and you are the inhabitants, perhaps the minor deities of the Isle, but I want proper names. Who are you?”

The Qi-lin’s golden eyes narrowed to mere slits. “I am Chi-lin.”

Oh? Sevana’s memory was a bit dusty as she hadn’t studied the Nanashi mythology in some time, but if memory served, if a Qi-lin took on a variation of the race’s name, they were very highly ranked.

Without prompting, the bear/man took a half-step forward. His form settled more into that of a man, black hair, slanted dark eyes in round face. “I am Da-Yu.”

“Cheng-Huang,” the last man introduced himself, the only person to not have a challenge in his voice. He seemed more inclined to study her as she caught up. “You are correct. We are the deities of Nanashi Isle.”

At least she’d guessed that part right. They were likely not the only ones—her memory drew a blank on how many there actually were—but that was fine. She had enough to contend with at the moment with these three. “Why did you bring me here?”

Da-Yu gave a pointed look at Cheng-Huang. “I didn’t.”

“Artifactor Sevana Warren,” Cheng-Huang faced her squarely, “there is a disaster facing our Isle. It will consume it utterly unless it is stopped.”

In spite of her better judgment, she felt herself becoming intrigued. Sevana never could turn down a challenge. It was a failing of hers. “Three minor gods can’t handle it, but you believe I can?”

“You are of the Fae,” Cheng-Huang answered simply.

“She also solved two major problems for the Fae,” Chi-Lin added, more toward Da-Yu than to her, “which is why I’m inclined to at least let her try. Our powers are not suitable to this task.”

“Despite all of the prayers we’ve been getting,” Cheng-Huang added sourly in a mutter.

Yes, this had to be good. Sevana didn’t know what ‘two’ problems they were referring to. She had given children to the Fae, certainly, but that wasn’t a ‘solution’ to her mind. She’d also helped magic-proof the Fae storerooms to prevent any more thefts, but that wasn’t a ‘solution’ either, not really. It had barely been a problem to begin with, what with that evil prodigy dead. For the moment, she wouldn’t argue either point. She wanted to hear what was so dire that they had brought her here. “So what is the problem?”

“You are aware that Nanashi has an active volcano on it?” Cheng-Huang inquired. At her nod, he continued, “It will explode soon. The pressure is rising quickly and there’s little that we can do to stop it.”

A volcano? Sevana’s eyes threatened to pop out of her head. “You want me to stop a volcano?!”