EIGHT
“A WEAPON?” SHAY’S question emerged hushed, but not
fearful.
“Technically it’s
two weapons,” Silas said brightly. “But they’re meant to be used in
concert. As a single force.”
“Two weapons?” I
asked.
“Yes,” Monroe said,
his voice still quiet. “Two swords.”
“Swords?” Shay
frowned.
“The Elemental
Cross,” Silas said. “One sword of earth and air, the other of fire
and water. If you look closely at the mark, you’ll see that each
bar of the cross has one pointed end. They’re sword
points.”
“Swords,” Shay said
again. He sounded frustrated and a little
disappointed.
“What is it?” I
asked.
He grimaced, looking
at his hands.
“Shay?” Monroe
leaned forward, brow furrowed.
“It’s just . . . so
predictable,” Shay mumbled. “I never really saw myself fighting
with swords. Particularly now that I’m a wolf.”
A warm current
rushed through my veins at his last words, and I had to look away
from his face to slow the sudden lurching of my heart. Maybe he does understand what it means to be a
Guardian. If that was true, he could help lead my pack,
which in my mind was worth more than any weapon.
“These aren’t just
any swords,” Monroe said. “You’re the only one who can wield
them.”
The only one? That
was impressive. I looked at Shay; his expression was curious but
wary. He laced his fingers together, frowning again.
I laughed, suddenly
putting together his frustration and regret. “I’m sure it will be
fine, Shay, but maybe not as exciting as a whip . . . or ice
picks.”
“Ice picks?” Connor
perked up.
Shay nodded but kept
his eyes lowered.
“I bet you’re
wishing you’d read more of those ninja comics now, huh?” I couldn’t
stop my laughter.
Adne glanced back
and forth from me to Shay. “What are you talking
about?”
“Shay’s childhood
aspirations,” I said, grinning. “And his favorite training
manuals.”
“Swords just seem so
. . . ordinary.” He shook his
head.
“If you’re looking
for graphic inspiration, Path of the
Assassin or Shaman Warrior would
be the best,” Silas offered. “Lots of sword fighting and dual
wielding, which you’ll need to master. I could lend you my
collections.”
Shay brightened a
bit and smiled at the Scribe.
“We’ll continue the
training you began at the Academy this week,” Monroe said. “It
won’t be a problem. Connor can take care of it.”
“I can help.” Adne
shot a dark look at Monroe. He frowned.
“She’s right,”
Connor said. “I know she’s not a Striker, Monroe. But Adne’s got
some serious combat skills.”
He winked at Adne.
“I’m sure we’ll all be lined up to see your first match against the
Scion.”
Adne grinned at him.
“See, Monroe?”
“Very well.” He
sighed. “Adne will help with the training.”
“We still have to
get all four pieces of the cross before that’s even an issue,”
Silas added.
Despite my anger, my
thoughts were churning. Pieces of the cross. Shay had said there
were four maps in the Keepers’ text. Was Haldis one of the pieces?
And what kind of a piece was it? It didn’t look like any kind of
weapon I’d seen . . . unless. The Elemental Cross was two swords.
The cylinder we’d found in the cavern obviously wasn’t a blade, but
I knew what it could be. Particularly since Shay was the only one who could wield the swords. And he was
the only one who could touch Haldis. It had to be.
“No,” I said
quietly. “We only have to get three of the pieces.”
The room fell
silent, all eyes wide and on me.
“Excuse me?” Silas
said at last.
“Shay and I went to
Haldis Cavern,” I said. “He has the piece that was hidden
there.”
Shay blanched. “Uh,
I haven’t told them about Haldis yet, Cal.”
“I know.” I let my
gaze tell him exactly what I thought of that decision. “It’s a hilt. Isn’t it? A sword
hilt?”
“Yes . . . it is.”
Monroe turned to face Shay. “What haven’t you told us about
Haldis?”
Shay reached for his
inside jacket pocket. “Sorry. It’s just that I didn’t know if we
could trust you. But I guess that’s a moot point now.” He withdrew
the shimmering ochre cylinder.
The silence in the
room had grown so thick it felt as though I could reach out and
gather it in my arms.
“When did you
retrieve Haldis?” Monroe finally murmured. His eyes were locked on
the strange object.
“Calla and I went to
check out the cavern in October,” Shay said, rolling the cylinder
back and forth in his palms. The more I looked at it, noting the
way his fingers curled perfectly around its shape, the more
convinced I was that I understood.
“That’s when Shay
used the ice picks,” I said. “The Keepers had a giant spider
guarding Haldis. He killed it.”
“With ice picks?”
Connor’s eyes widened.
Shay shuddered. “It
was horrible.”
“I don’t know,” I
said, a smile pulling at my lips as I recalled the fight. “You
nailed that beast without too much trouble.”
“With ice picks?”
Connor said again, gazing at Shay as if truly seeing him for the
first time.
“Yeah,” Shay said,
but he looked a little ill. He gripped the shimmering cylinder more
tightly.
Silas snorted and
leaned over to dig through a leather satchel half buried under
papers on the desk. When he stood up, he had donned a pair of thick
leather gloves. He reached out toward the gleaming
object.
I started to open my
mouth but then clamped my lips together and watched. His fingers
brushed the smooth surface and he yelped and stumbled back, shaking
his hand. The rest of the Searchers stared at Silas.
“That’s odd,” he
said, reaching for Haldis again.
“I wouldn’t if I
were you,” I said quietly. “The pain gets worse every
time.”
All eyes in the room
focused on me. I stood my ground, returning each gaze with a
challenging stare.
“You knew it would
hurt me?” Silas’s voice bubbled with outrage.
“I didn’t know,” I
said. “Well, at least not for sure. I thought maybe it was just
Guardians who couldn’t touch it. But it seems that only Shay is
allowed.”
Silas’s eyes bulged.
“Even with enchanted gloves?”
This guy was nuts.
“You thought gloves would let you touch Haldis?”
“Well, I had this
theory. . . .” He scratched his head.
Monroe groaned,
dropping his face into his hands.
“Silas, you didn’t
say it was a theory. You swore it would work. We told Anika it
would work!”
“Moron.” Connor
snorted. He inched closer to Shay, examining Haldis while keeping a
safe distance.
“What’s wrong?” Shay
asked, frowning at their defeated expressions.
“Silas devised our
most recent Striker attacks.” Adne smiled thinly. “Searcher strike
teams have been trying to get to the sites in the hopes that we
could pull the pieces of the cross ourselves and keep them safe
until the Scion appeared.”
“But none of you can
touch them,” I said. My confidence in the Searchers crumbled a bit.
Could they really help my pack if they made mistakes like
this?
“We didn’t know
that.” Connor glared at Silas. “And dozens of Strikers were lost in
attempts to even get close to the sites.”
I had to look away,
all too aware that we’d made the same kind of mistake today.
I can’t blame them. We’re all doing the best
we can.
Silas just looked
slightly put off. “I was certain it would work.”
“Why were you
focused on the pieces?” I asked. “What’s so special about these
swords?”
“The Elemental Cross
is the only force in the world that can banish wraiths.” Monroe’s
voice was deadly quiet. “When the Scion wields the swords, he can
expel them from the earth, defeat the minions of the Netherworld.
Even Bosque Mar himself. Nothing else can.”
Shay stared at
Monroe, the boy’s face suddenly chalk white.
“I can fight the
wraiths?”
“Yes,” Monroe said,
placing his hand on Shay’s shoulder. “You can and you will. In
time.”
Silas, apparently
recovered from his moment of humiliation, spoke up. “We must
retrieve the Elemental Cross. It’s the only thing that will give us
victory over the Keepers.”
I nodded, trying to
imagine the type of power it would take to defeat Bosque and his
horde.
“Why did you keep
this from us?” Monroe turned on Shay, eyes flashing with
anger.
Shay looked around
at their dejected faces and sighed.
“I’m sorry,” he
said. “But I wasn’t convinced you were the good guys. I wasn’t
going to trust you until Calla did.”
I bit my lip,
grateful for his words but regretting what it cost the
Searchers.
“Fine,” Monroe said
gruffly, folding his arms across his chest. “Let’s move on. At
least we know the Keepers can’t take the weapon from him once he
has it.”
“It’s good that you
have Haldis, Shay,” Adne said. “That will save us a
trip.”
Shay smiled. “I
suppose it will.” He turned his eyes on Silas. “So who was the
lady?”
“The lady?” Silas
raised an eyebrow.
“The woman who was
in the cavern; she sang, and then all the lights went out and
Haldis was in my hand.”
“Ah.” Silas smiled.
“That was Cian.”
“Who?” Shay looked
at him blankly.
“Warrior,
prophetess,” Silas replied. “The only reason we’re here
today.”
“She was the first
Searcher,” Monroe added. “And your great-aunt several times over.
The Scion’s bloodline begins with the forebearers of Eira and
Cian.”
“Who was Eira?” I
asked.
Monroe’s face
clouded and he looked at Shay. “Your very great grandmother. She
was Cian’s sister and the first Keeper.”
“Her sister?” Shay’s
eyes widened. “How is that possible?”
Silas cleared his
throat.
“Oh, just get it
over with.” Connor groaned. He unceremoniously dropped to the floor
and stretched out, arranging a stack of papers into a
pillow.
“It’s really not
that long of a story,” Silas muttered.
Connor didn’t open
his eyes.
“And it’s a good
story,” Silas pleaded.
“Good?” At that
Connor’s eyelids snapped up. “It’s a bloody disaster is what it
is.”
“I mean it’s
exciting,” Silas amended.
“Yeah, our lives are
ruined and you call it a literary triumph.”
“Just let him tell
the story, Connor,” Adne said curtly, and gestured to Silas. “Once
upon a time . . .”
Silas beamed. “The
spirit world wasn’t hidden from human beings. Societies across the
globe mixed with the forces of the earth and those of the Nether.
That mixing is what most people would call ‘magic,’ but it’s much
more than that.”
“How so?” Shay
asked.
“Connecting to the
elemental powers of the earth is natural. Something that comes
along with life as a being on this planet. Everything is part of
the same system, the same energies. The ability to tap into those
forces varies from person to person, but the latent ability is
there for everyone.”
“So what’s the
problem, then?” Shay frowned. “If magic is just a part of
people.”
“Not just people,”
Silas corrected. “Animals, plants, earth, sky, stone.
Everything.”
“Elemental forces
aren’t the problem, Shay,” Monroe said quietly. “But the earth’s
magic isn’t the only kind that touches this world.”
“You mean the
Nether?” I asked. Cold fingers crept up my spine. “Where wraiths
and succubi come from?”
Monroe
nodded.
“Not bad, she-wolf.”
Silas smirked. “The Nether exists as a sort of oppositional force
to the earth. Never truly part of this world but always alongside
it. Like trains on parallel tracks.”
“Or its evil twin.”
Adne laughed, but there was no joy in the sound.
“Too true.” Silas
nodded. “When more human beings were actively tapping into the
spirit world, some thought it prudent to try to harness the forces
of the Nether for their own gains.”
“Why isn’t any of
this recorded?” Shay asked. “Even though people always knew about
Nether.”
“I’m sorry,” Silas
snapped. “I thought you were supposed to be educated. Haven’t you
read any history books?”
“Of course I have,”
Shay said.
“Well, if you’d been
paying attention, you would have noticed people up until the
mid-nineteenth century talking about witches, demons, and monsters
nonstop.”
“I thought that was
just superstition.” Shay’s brow knit.
“Enter the
scientific revolution and the modern age.” Silas smiled. “Let’s all
give the Keepers a big round of applause.”
Shay and I exchanged
a confused glance.
“You’re getting
ahead of yourself, Silas,” Monroe murmured.
“Of course, my
apologies,” the Scribe said quickly. “The idea of superstition is a
modern invention. Its use of course is to explain away frightening
beings that have always been very real and difficult to control. As
you’ve just demonstrated, superstition was a very useful device and
has had tremendous success in rewriting history.”
Shay was
incredulous. “You’ve got to be kidding.”
“He’s not,” Adne
said coldly.
“So what really
happened?” I asked, still struggling against the wall of lies that
had surrounded my life until now.
“As I said before,
use of elemental power is all well and good, but dabblers in the
Nether realm created problems for themselves and their neighbors.
Creatures of the Nether don’t mix well with humans.”
“What do you mean?”
Shay asked.
“You’ve seen it,” I
said. “We’re their food. Wraiths, succubi, and incubi. They feed on
the worst parts of this life. Thrive on our
suffering.”
Adne’s face was
ashen, but she jerked away when Monroe came around the table and
tried to take her hand.
“Oh,” Shay mumbled.
“Right. Sorry.”
Silas waved his hand
dismissively. “Not a problem. But back in the day, some humans of
noble character took it upon themselves to reign in the presence of
the Nether. They curtailed the practice of irresponsible people who
didn’t realize they were playing with fire, and they fought off the
actual Nether beings that manifested on the earth.”
“But you can’t fight
off wraiths,” I objected.
“Wraiths are new,”
Monroe said. “Well, relatively new, as in five hundred years or
so.”
“That’s new?” I
gaped.
“Historically
speaking,” Silas answered. “Wraiths came with the Keepers. Prior to
their appearance, magicians could only raise succubi and
incubi—they have more human traits and thus can cross over without
requiring much power on the part of the summoner.”
“How did the Keepers
appear?” I asked impatiently.
“I’m getting to
that,” Silas replied, unfazed by my tone. “The warriors who elected
themselves sentinels of the bridge between the earth and the Nether
were successful. Vigilant, patient, and ferocious, they kept the
forces of the Nether at bay and the destruction that its
inhabitants could wreak in this world in check. But then a knight
emerged in the fifteenth century who was beautiful, charismatic,
and seemingly invincible in combat. She envisioned a new purpose
for her peers. Eira.”
Shay’s voice was
barely more than a breath of air. “What did she do?”
“She was ambitious,”
Silas said. “She claimed that the warriors could do more, not just
protect the world, but rid the earth of the Nether once and for
all. Close the doors between our world and the other.”
“That sounds like a
good idea,” I said.
“It is,” Silas
replied. “But the road to hell is paved with good
intentions.”
“Almost literally in
this case,” Connor muttered. He’d thrown his arm over his eyes, but
I could see muscles in his jaw and neck tighten.
Silas spared him a
disdainful glance. “Eira decided she would lead the knights in this
new mission. But in order to close the doors between the worlds,
she needed to know how they had been opened. She sought knowledge
of the Nether realm and it changed her.”
“Changed her how?”
Some of the color had returned to Shay’s face.
“She found the
source, the origin of the Nether’s path into earth. A being more
powerful than any humankind had encountered in their brief touches
of the dark realm. This creature sent its emissaries into our world
to draw power and carry it back to him, making him ever stronger
and widening the doors and allowing more of his creations to
infiltrate the earth.”
I shuddered, feeling
as though I were being pulled into a tunnel, blindfolded and not
wanting to see where I was once the cloth was removed.
“Eira was strong,
but her ambition proved stronger. More than anything else, the
creature hoped that eventually he would open a path broad enough so
that he could himself come into our world and make it his dominion.
Lord of not one but two realms, both Nether and earth. He promised
Eira a place at his side if she would aid him.”
“And she did.”
Monroe stared at his hands, which were trembling.
“She wasn’t alone,”
Silas said. “Too many of the warriors had tired of keeping the
Nether at bay and sacrificing their own lives in exchange. The
hunger for power among Eira’s peers proved too great. She had no
trouble assembling a mass of loyal followers.”
“The Keepers,” Shay
said.
“The name they gave
themselves,” Silas said. “Keepers of a power too great for most
humans. They considered themselves set apart, elite. Elected by
fate to reign over the earth by harnessing the power of the
Nether.”
“But it’s a lie,”
Connor spat.
“Is it?” I murmured.
“The Keepers do reign over the earth; they reap all the benefit of
using their power.”
“They do,” Monroe
replied, eyes distant and broken. “But the power doesn’t belong to
them, and they live in fear of losing it. At the end of the day
they are slaves to that same creature that seduced Eira. Our
histories name him the Harbinger. You know him as Bosque
Mar.”