The tunnel ran alongside the castle wall for several hundred yards. I had never seen a wall so long, and of course only a small portion of its height was exposed here in the underground passage. I could only wonder how enormous the castle was and how high above ground it towered. This was nothing like the treehuts and holes of Harken.

Could the pirates have built such a thing? What else were they capable of? The thought was an alarming one.

As I continued to follow the glow of my lightorb deeper into the void, I tried to focus on the journey ahead. Suddenly my world had become very, very small and insignificant. I’d spent my life hiding in the treetops, collecting spices for the Last Ones and hording enough for my own survival. The inhuman lumbering pirates of Mapless were relentless. Their raids grew more frequent each month. I doubt any of us still held onto hope for the future of our kind.

When I met Bag Man, I could see he was different. His eyes twinkled knowingly of larger places and better days.