Free Story's End by Marissa Burt Page A

give you to the Taleless and be done with you.”
    Elton looked from Fidelus to the Red Enchantress.
    “Have you brought the book?” the Red Enchantress asked.
    Elton nodded and drew out a tiny book from his coat pocket. The binding glimmered in the darkness of the room. He laid a piece of paper atop the glittering book and examined it closely. Snow could see his hands shake.
    “Now. Perhaps we will find the Apprentice today,” Fidelus said in an eerily calm voice. “My sources tell me the Warlock was a regular visitor to the Villain in this Tale. Rip it open.”
    “Yes, milord.” Elton pulled a white cloth from his pocket and blotted his forehead. He opened the book, and a faint glow shone around him, much like the light Snow remembered from entering the examinations. Elton began to read from the book aloud, but it was some strange language, and Snow couldn’t understand the words.
    There was a resounding crash, and the room filled with a blinding glare. Snow covered her ears, but she couldn’t block out the echoing sound. Her eardrums throbbed with the ringing. When she could stand it, she looked up. A shimmering sphere hung in the air in front of Elton, who clutched the book to his chest.
    Fidelus sighed with delight. “Excellent, Elton. Excellent.” He ran a finger across the smooth circumference. Then he brought his hand back, and gave a loud cry as he smashed his fist into the circle’s center. The luminous surface shattered into a shower of pieces, leaving a ragged, gaping hole. Tendrils of silvery mist seeped over the edges, trickling down to the floor.
    Snow could see Fidelus’s countenance now. His profile was striking: a strong face, a high brow that sloped to a straight nose. Angled cheeks and a chin that looked unnervingly familiar. The face creased into a smile. He pulled hard and drew out a misty shape that slowly came together into a silhouette.
    “Hello, there,” Fidelus said. “Who do we have here?”
    The mist solidified into the shape of a woman, who, if not for the glowing light, might have looked like any ordinary character. But Snow’s mouth went dry with horror. She knew with certainty what the man was doing. Elton was right. It went against all the laws of Story. Fidelus wasn’t just ripping open already bound Tales. He was ripping characters out of them.
    “I am Morgana,” the Taleless said in a haughty voice. “And who , may I ask, are you?”
    “Well met, Morgana.” Fidelus laughed, a low, rough sound that grew louder. “We will find you a woman’s body, but first you must tell me why the Warlock of Amaranth was a frequent guest in your castle.” He turned toward a low bench under a window, the shade drifting along beside him.
    The Red Enchantress hissed in her breath. “Someone is coming through the forest,” she breathed as she stared off into the distance. “It must be Jaga. I should’ve killed her the last time she brought me fake quills.” She glanced over to where Fidelus and Morgana sat. “You’ll have to continue without me. That stupid hag has unlocked the enchanted door.”
    Snow’s mother jerked hard on her elbow. “We’ve seen enough,” she whispered, and then she jolted into action. With the next breath they were through the black doors and back at the sleeping madman’s side. Her mother touched his face and woke him with a word. Pressing one hand on his spine, she propelled him along in front of them. “Hurry!”
    Snow picked up her skirts and ran after her mother. Her own fear at what she had just seen was magnified by the wild-eyed looks her mother was casting back over her shoulder. Who was this Fidelus? “They’re ripping open Tales?” Snow gasped as her mother paused at the place where two hallways met and quickly led them down the smaller one.
    “No time for questions,” her mother said sharply. “I told you to obey. Do you want to get us all killed?”
    Whatever anger Snow might have felt was swept away by the fear in her mother’s