I rounded the corner and came to a halting stop. Kylian was on his knees in front of some kind of fire-elf thing. He bowed his head. “We wish for passage.”
The fire elf was deathly pale with what looked like lines of lava flowing through her skin. Her pale eyes glowed with rings of lava around the irises. Her light blond hair flowed in the gentle breeze, yet that too had flames dancing among the strands. A silvery dress flowed from her shoulders all the way down past her toes, and I couldn’t tell if her feet were actually touching the ground or not. She reminded me of an angel or fiery fairy. She smiled down at Kylian.
“Have you learned nothing from the last time?”
He lifted his head, peeking up at her. “Now, Bridget, my sweet, I made it through without incident last time. I will do so once more.”
The lines of lava running through her skin warmed as though she was blushing. “Words are sweet, my sweet. Yet death is eternal, and a fiery death does not a memory forget.”
Beckett dropped down beside Kylian and sucked in a breath. “We seek not our own passing but to prevent it from happening. Please, kindest lady, bid us passage.”
“Silver-tongued mortal.” She floated lower and landed on her feet just in front of him. She bent down low, meeting Beckett’s eye. “Kylian searches for the missing pieces. What is it that you search for?”
Beckett squared his shoulders. “Family.”
Her face softened into a delicate smile. How was she so small yet stationed here to guard the gateway? Was she truly that powerful to keep everyone out of Unseelie?
She laid her delicate fingers on his head. “A noble reason. Beware the guardian and the further steps you take. Moving through night does not simplistic make. Find the light and the shimmer of worlds don’t hesitate to open doors.”
“I understand.” He offered her his hand and she laid her fingers in it. Beckett placed a feather-light kiss of respect on the back of her hand.
She began to back away. “I’ll be seeing you once more, dearest Kylian.”
Kylian gave a humorless chuckle. “Oh, dearest Bridget, I wouldn’t count on it.”
She moved back toward the closest lava river and dove backwards into the flowing fire, disappearing from sight. Kylian popped to his feet and gave Beckett an appraising look. “Well done.”
“Don’t sound so surprised.” Beckett rose to his feet and gave him a cool smile. “I am, after all, a Warlock.”
Kylian shook his head and turned to continue along the path. “Stay quiet, follow my every step, and whatever you do, don’t wake the thing.”
“The thing? What thing? Should we know about a thing?”
Thing was not a descriptive word. A thing could be anything. A demon cat, a new bag, a giant bug, what the hell was a thing? In the world of Evermore, I learned that “a thing” could be a very, very, very bad thing.
As we came to the lip of the volcano, Kylian pressed his finger to his lips, signaling for my silence. Great, face the thing with no knowledge of the thing. When I glanced over the edge of the rocky lip into the bubbling pool of lava, my heart leapt up in my chest and I sucked in a sharp breath. That was definitely a thing… a freaking huge thing.
Chapter 28
Astrid
Astrid
“A lava monster, are you kidding me?” This thing wasn’t just any monster.
It was at least fifty feet tall with horns that jutted from the sides of its head like giant stabbing wings. They went straight out to the sides then curved up at the ends into sharp points. This monster was the bodybuilder of monsters with hulking thick arms, rippling abs and tree trunks for legs. He held a sword that was easily twenty-five feet long. It hung loose at his side, yet I imagined that thing swinging down toward us, chopping us all in half. Bubbling lava dripped from his entire body. It seemed to bubble to the outside and ooze back into his insides.
With each step he took, part of his leg disappeared into the lava then reformed as he lifted his foot. The ground quaked and he seemed to be bored with his situation, just pacing back and forth, swinging the sword lazily around. Kylian pointed to something on the other side of the volcano. Across the great expanse of lava pools and jagged rocks was a shimmering sight that stood out among the glowing red, thick smoke.
“That’s our destination.” It was barely visible, yet I could feel an odd power coming from it.
“So that lava monster stops people from going in and out? Are you sure there isn’t another way?” I didn’t want to walk into this without looking at all our options. Because if we faced that monster, it was not going to go well.
“There are other places, but we don’t know where that’ll put us in the Unseelie world. And judging by how desperate your guy is over here, we don’t have the time to go trekking across the Unseelie world. It’s as big as ours.” He shook his head. “No, this is our only option.”
Nova pointed down toward a small rocky path that led around the interior of the volcano all the way toward the opening into Unseelie. “That’s our path?”
Beckett threw out his hand and a blue portal opened right next to us. But when I gazed out over the lava pits, only a fizzle of the other side of his portal showed up. It sparked a tiny bit of blue next to the Unseelie door then disappeared. He looked down at his fingers. “What the hell?”
“Unseelie magic, bro.” Kylian clapped him on the shoulder. “Portaling around a different realm is going to be tricky if it works at all. Looks like it’s not going to for you. But your other powers might work.”
“Might?” I’d only just got my powers a little while ago and I already relied on them. Not having them in a world where I needed them wasn’t going to help.
He didn’t answer, just jumped to his feet and launched himself up and over the ledge we all hid behind. He slid down the rocky slope into the volcano. The small rocky ledge down by the lava seemed barely big enough for a person, yet he was going right for it at full speed. Dust kicked up around him and small rocks tumbled down with him, but the giant monster didn’t seem to take notice. He landed with one knee on the ground and the other bent beside it. He didn’t even look back toward us, just simply waved his hand over his shoulder for us to come along. Ashryn zipped down behind him without a single word.
“So, we’re doing this?” Nova motioned for Beckett and me to go. “After you.”
I swung my leg over the side of the cleft with Beckett right beside me. He thrust himself forward, sliding down the steep slope. Now or never. I sucked in a deep breath and kicked my other leg over and shoved off. Friction built under my butt and thighs, but my thick leather pants bore the brunt of it perfectly. Gravel slid down beside me, and I let my hand trail behind like I could stop myself. This was a slide to hell, and I was riding it. Who was I kidding? I couldn’t stop if I wanted to. My feet hit the little shelf and I came to a hard stop. The impact vibrated up my legs and I tipped to the side, smacking my elbow on the rocks beside me. I ground my teeth together to stop from crying out. That’s going to leave a mark. I glanced toward the lava giant; still he seemed taken with his sword, swinging it around.
A loud cracking sound broke the quiet of the bubbling lava. My head snapped up in time to see the top part of the slope break off right under Nova. An avalanche of rocks slid down toward us. Boulders tumbled and I jumped to the side before one smashed into the pit, sending lava spewing in the other direction. The ledge on the side of me crumbled into the pit, and I scrambled back from the ledge before my leg hit. Nova slid right toward the missing piece of shelf and I just leapt for her.
I grabbed her arms and yanked her to the side, taking her with me. We skidded across the other side of the walkway, our legs and arms tangled together. The huge chunk of rock she’d been on sunk into the lava. The ground shook and quaked. My head snapped up to see the lava monster charging toward us.
“Up now, now up!” I grabbed Nova’s glove-clad hand and yanked her up behind me. Beckett called out to me, but I couldn’t turn back now.
; “Thanks for that.” Nova sucked in gasping breaths.
“Don’t thank me yet.” The monster barreled toward us with its sword held high in the air. I let my magic flow over the two of us, and we moved even faster around the edge of the volcano. The sword swung down, chopping the top of the volcano right in front of us in half. That sword stuck up from the side of the mountain, glowing and dripping with lava. The heat rolled off it, scorching the area around it, making it an even darker black. Giant shards of rock fell all around us and at any moment, one would smash us like a bug.
I back-stepped, bumping into Nova, and we both scrambled away from the crashing. The sword came down once more behind us, and we were trapped on the tiny shelf. I held my arms above my head and called upon my magic. There was only one way we were going to get out of this—kill the monster.
Giant clouds formed over his head and a deluge of rain poured over him. Like a waterfall worth of rain. Steam filled the whole area, blinding me to my surroundings. Nova moved in closer to me. “Smart but not, at the same time.”
“Yeah, I gather.” The fogging steam was so thick I could barely see a foot in front of my face. “Is it dead?”
“I don’t think so.” Purple sparks filled the air around her. “I can still feel its soul and it is very much alive and getting more pissed by the second.”
“How do we get out of here?” A blue light appeared right below us and we fell in.
A second later, we fell into a heap right next to Beckett. I rolled off Nova’s knee and staggered to my feet. We were on the other side of the volcano, almost back to where we started. I felt Beckett’s hand around my arm, and he pulled me to my feet. “Thank God that worked.”
He dragged me toward his chest, wrapped his arm across my back, and pressed me to him. I looked up at him. “I thought your portals didn’t work here?”
“Just not next to the Unseelie opening.” He sucked in a heaving breath. “Now, come on.”
Kylian gave me an appraising look then took off running down the other pathway that wasn’t destroyed. With their elven speed, Ashryn and Kylian took the lead. I pumped my arms, trying to keep up with them as best I could, yet my eyes were drawn to the lava monster across the way. The lava pool began to bubble up his legs, flowing over his body in a rush. He turned from cooling black lava to bright glowing red. He turned in our direction and roared an Earth-splitting yell that made my brain shake. “Plan! We need a plan!”
We weren’t close enough to the doorway to Unseelie to make a run before he would reach us in two big strides. He pulled back his arm and threw a ball of lava right at us. I grabbed the back of Beckett’s shirt and pulled him up short. He turned and fired his blue magic right at it, stopping it just before it hit us. It dropped into the pit and sent a wave outward that rolled up onto our little pathway. I scrambled back and manifested water all over it, putting it out before it melted our feet.
Another ball volleyed toward us and another. They fired in rapid succession. All the while, Beckett was knocking them aside like ping pong balls while I cooled the area around us. “We can’t keep doing this. We need a plan.”
“Bit busy.” Sweat coated Beckett’s face and his eyes bounced from one target to the next. If he missed, we’d all be toast.
“I got it.” I dashed to his side and whispered in his ear.
He did a double take at me. “Are you insane?”
“No, it’ll work. I’m sure of it.” Another ball launched our way and he knocked it to the side.
The lava giant roared once more and gathered up its sword. I smacked Beckett in the shoulder. “Now. Do it now.”
He threw out his arm and a blue portal appeared right next to me. I shoved my head in and yelled, “Yo, M! A little help here!”
I popped back out and turned to Nova. “Stand behind me and close your eyes.”
“Close my what? In the middle of a battle—”
“Do it now!” The portal twisted and whirled a bright glowing blue.
Nova stepped behind me just as one of my very first friends stepped through. “Oh, my God, are we in Hawaii? You know, I’ve always wanted to explore the islands. I wonder if I’ll need sunscreen for my babies?”
She reached up and ran her fingers over the snakes on her head. She cooed at them and petted them on and a time.
“Medusa, girl, please focus.” I motioned to the monster. “Help.”
She was smaller than I expected, standing at only a few inches over five feet. Her features were delicate and elf-like, with a small pert nose, pink rosy cheeks, and full bow-shaped lips. Her eyes were bright violet and hypnotic, but they were hidden with thick sunglasses that I’d made for her. She had the body of a complete bombshell and topped it all off with black and purple snakes flowing from her head. Last time we met, she was all dressed up… now she wore a bright purple fuzzy robe and platform fuzzy purple slippers. She marched out in front of me and wiggled her fingers in Beckett’s direction.
“Hi, Beckett, hiiiiiiii.”
“Hey, Medusa.” He stopped a ball from hitting us and threw it back at the lava giant.
It smacked the giant right in his chest. He paused, absorbing the lava back into his own body. Medusa leaned in and whispered to me, “So are you guys like boyfriend-girlfriend now? I feel like there’s a connection, a sizzle so to speak.”
“Focus, women, focus.” I motioned to her glasses. “I need you to, you know, do your thing.”
“Okay, but then you owe me pizza.”
I nodded. “Yes, absolutely, we will have a pizza night.” If I survive this…
“And these things called tater tots. I want those too.” She put her hands on her hips.
“Tots. Deal.” I put out another wave of lava. The cooling lava was starting to form a small wall around us.
“Can I open my eyes now?” Nova bumped into my back.
“No!” all three of us yelled at the same time.
“One statue, coming up.” Medusa turned away from me and Beckett, making sure he was behind her. She shoved her glasses to the top of her head and the snakes all wound around them, holding them in place. She opened her eyes toward the lava monster. “Hey, big boy.”
The monster went still, glancing down at us. Medusa blew him a kiss and wagged her eyebrows at him. “Take… a… peek.”
Blinding purple light flashed from her eyes like two spotlights. Their gazes locked and his sword fell into the pool at his feet. He opened his mouth to roar in her direction, but gray stone began to spread out from his eyes. It flowed over his cheeks and into his mouth. Foot by foot, the stone roamed over his body, turning him from burning lava to cold rock. Not even an ounce of steam rose up from his body. Lava flowed over his feet, suddenly stopping and turning to that hard gray stone.
The world went silent and I let go of a breath I didn’t know I was holding. I threw my arms around her and yanked her in for a hug. “Yes!”
“Glasses, need the glasses.” She scrambled to yank them from the snakes on her head and cover her eyes. “Better, much better.”
“Now can I open them?” Nova’s voice was laced with impatience.
“Yes.” I hunched over and put my hands on my knees. “Shit.”
Medusa bent over to be face-to-face with me. “Don’t worry, I got your back. Anytime.” She wagged her eyebrows. “So, boyfriend-girlfriend status?”
I chuckled and gave her a light nod. “Yeah, I guess you could say that.”
She squealed and clapped her hands together. “Totally fated. I knew it.”
A sharp whistle cut through the air, and we all turned to spot Kylian who motioned widely toward the statue monster. A light glow started from under the stone. “Oh, shit.”
“Run!” Kylian called out.
“Come on, Medusa. Let’s go.” I took a step.
“No… I didn’t kill him.” She stared up at him in awe. “You go. I’ll distract him.”
“What?” I shook my head. “That’s suicide.”
“No, don’t
you see I didn’t kill him? Maybe we’re fated like you two.” A small smile played on her lips and she gave a lovesick sigh.
“But he’s made of lava…”
Beckett grabbed my hand and started pulling me away.
“Not every relationship is perfect, duhhhhh.” She turned toward the monster. “I got this. Go.”
“This is like a fish loving a bird. It’s not going to work out.” I tried to convince her in the seconds we had left.
She shrugged. “You never know.”
“Astrid, come on.” He gave me a light tug.
I wanted to stay, to help her, to stop her from making this mistake, but we didn’t have time, and I had faith that this immortal would indeed stay undead. “Okay, good luck.”
“Fated.” She sighed again and began to lift her sunglasses just as fissures cracked over the stone statue.
I let my magic blast over Beckett, Nova and I. We sprinted for the door. In a flash, we were there before the first piece of rock even fell from the stone lava monster. Kylian waited just outside the shimmering doorway. “You’re friends with Medusa?”
“Don’t sound so surprised.” I shrugged like it was no big deal when, in reality, it was a very big deal.
He motioned to the open doorway. “This way to Unseelie.”
I swallowed the ball of nerves in my throat and stepped through the door into pure hell…
Chapter 29
Beckett
Thick grayish-brown clouds covered the sky as far as the eye could see. The air was freezing cold, yet a hot breeze blew through the area, confusing my body completely. Was it summer or was it winter? There was no sun, no grass, just nothing. We must’ve stepped out on top of a small mountain peak, almost like this world was a mirror of ours… but completely lifeless. I looked out over the rocky valley below at the thick fog rolling over the dark terrain.
Gray, ashy flakes fell from the sky like snowflakes, yet they never gathered on the ground, only caught in my hair or disappeared before they touch the dirt. I couldn’t tell if the smell of sulfur lingered from the volcano or if this was what Unseelie actually smelled like. It was oppressive and burned my nostrils. I pressed the back of my hand to my nose. Stinging tears streamed from the corners of my eyes, not from emotion but from the air around me. It was like nothing I’d ever felt. It was thin, too thin to breathe, yet felt like thick fire in my chest at the same time. I frowned. I couldn’t decide if I liked it or hated it… Strange.
Wicked Curse (The Royals: Warlock Court Book 4) Page 17
