The last flight of stairs led to a long passageway and at the end, another set of doors similar to those outside. These were a little more fortified—gears and strange mechanisms were inlaid in the copper and gold façade—and when locks were on doors, it could only mean one thing. Treasure.
We stared at the door, neither of us knowing what to say, let alone do.
“That’s a problem,” Aiden stated, his voice quivering.
“What are you talking about?” I asked. “It’s a door.”
“Can’t you feel it?” He pointed to the lock. “I haven’t felt that kind of power since—”
“The Twin Flames,” I finished as the same power washed over me.
“And it’s behind a locked door. Madeleine…that’s a vault.”
Then the million-dollar question was, what was inside? There must have been thousands of relics hidden in here, but the most logical explanation for the Dark’s digging had to be this. No one locked something deep underground if it wasn’t powerful and dangerous to boot.
I pressed my palm against the door. The metal was cool to the touch, but warmth ebbed from within and I snatched my hand away.
“Light,” I whispered.
“Light?” He inspected the carvings but didn’t move to touch like I had.
“Aiden, the Twin Flames turned out to be people, not swords,” I said. “What if it’s a prison?”
“A prison?” He contemplated my theory. “The Dark held Camelot for centuries…”
“What if they caught something?” My heart skipped a beat. “What if the Naturals caught something?” The only other creature we knew who held the same kind of power was the one who’d given it in the first place. “What if it’s the Lady of the Lake?”
“No,” Aiden replied. “Scarlett said she locked herself inside Avalon after the timeline changed. This can’t be her.”
I swallowed hard. “Then it’s something else.”
“Whatever it is, we have to protect this place.”
“We need Wilder,” I said. “Trent and Maisy said he hasn’t come back from the castle. Well, we’re at the castle…”
Shuffling footsteps echoed behind us and we spun. I reached for my arondight blade just as Wilder appeared inside Aiden’s halo of Light.
“Wilder, I—” I hesitated when I saw the sheen of sweat beading across his forehead.
He stumbled and leaned against the wall, his breath rattling in his lungs.
“He’s sick,” Aiden said, frozen. “The Flames shouldn’t get sick.”
“Madeleine,” Wilder rasped and I went to meet him, “can you…”
I held his hands and gasped as my newfound power reached out towards him. His Flame was dimming.
“Scarlett…” he rasped, collapsing against the wall. “I need Arondight.”
I looked to Aiden, my heartbeat speeding up. “What’s wrong with him?”
“Madeleine. Let him go.”
I snatched my hands away and Wilder slid down the wall, gasping for breath. Aiden thought I was draining his power.
“No,” I said, shaking my head. “It isn’t me. Aiden—”
“Stand back,” he ordered, edging himself between me and Wilder. “I can’t take that chance.”
“I’m not that powerful!” I exclaimed. “I can’t dim a Flame!”
“We don’t understand what you’ve become.” He shook his head and knelt beside Wilder, who’d fallen into incoherency. “I’m sorry, Madeleine, but I will have to lock you up after all.”
“No.” I shook my head and backed away. “I won’t go back into that cage.”
“It’s for your own safety.”
“Yours, you mean.” I jabbed a finger at the vault door. “It’s that thing that’s making him sick. Don’t you think it’s a coincidence? The Naturals lock it away, the Dark wants to dig it up, and now Wilder’s sick?”
He hesitated, glancing at the Inquisitor.
“Aiden,” I snapped, “we need to get him to Ramona.”
He blinked and rose to his feet, snapping to attention. “Help me get him up.”
Together, we lifted Wilder and began the long trek to the surface. I could sense Excalibur waning, his silver Flame dimming like a candle in the wind. Whatever was in that vault, didn’t bode well.
“Straight to the infirmary,” Aiden reminded me.
I just hoped we got there in time.
* * *
We dragged Wilder through base camp, picking up a trail of bewildered Naturals as we went. They lingered outside as we burst into the infirmary.
Ramona stared at us, her mouth falling open. “Madeleine? What—”
“He’s sick,” I interrupted, helping Aiden lay Wilder on bed. “His Flame is dimming.”
She snapped to attention and leaned over him, administering her Light. Her eyes fluttered closed as she ran her hands over his head and chest. She went so deep into his mind I wondered if she would ever come out.
“Ramona?” Aiden urged. “What’s happening to him?”
She lifted her hands and shook her head, distraught.
“Ramona?” I murmured, laying a hand on her shoulder.
Her gaze met mine, disbelief clear in her eyes. “He’s in a coma.”
“A coma? How is that possible?”
Aiden sucked in a sharp breath. “But he’s Excalibur. He can’t—”
“It’s that stupid vault!” I exclaimed, my power sparking. “And that bloody Balan, Ikakantor. I’ll kill him.”
I went for my arondight blade, but Ramona grasped my wrist. “Madeleine.”
“Holy…” Aiden stared at me.
“What?” I demanded. “While we stand here like morons, Wilder is slipping further away. Where’s Scarlett? We need to—”
“Madeleine,” Ramona said, “calm yourself.”
I tensed as Aiden handed me the tablet. Looking at the screen, I saw the screen was open to the camera. My image stared back at me, angry and otherworldly. I gasped and dropped the tablet. My eyes were black and thin veins had spread outwards across my face like a morbid mask.
“We have to report this to the Regula,” Ramona said to me. “All of it. We’re dealing with things we don’t understand.”
I drew in breath after breath, my heart speeding up. “What’s happening to me?”
“We don’t know.” Aiden stood beside me, his expression full of worry. “But we’ll figure it out. Together, okay?”
I needed Wilder and Scarlett. I needed my family and friends. Most of all, I needed Elijah, but he was gone. He had faith in me, challenged me to open my mind, and forced me to see the strength I was capable of. It was time to accept what he’d been trying to beat into my stupid head and run with it.
“I know I’ve disappointed you,” I told them. “I just hope I can live long enough to make it up to everyone.”
“Madeleine, you saved us,” Ramona said. “That’s all the proof I need of your allegiance. The Regula will see reason.”
“Ditto,” Aiden said.
I looked to Wilder. His skin had taken on a greyish hue, his breathing shallow.
“Screw the Regula,” I said. “Now, we save Excalibur.”
* * *
Madeleine’s adventure continues with DEMON SWORN, the second book in The Camelot Archive!
A buried secret and a goth girl with a massive attitude.
The bad guys don’t stand a chance.
Keep reading to the end of this ebook for an exclusive peek at the next chapter…
OTHER BOOKS IN THE CAMELOT ARCHIVE
by Nicole R. Taylor
Demon Bound #1
Demon Sworn #2
Demon Forged #3
Demon Eternal #4
* * *
Go back to where it all began:
THE ARONDIGHT CODEX
An ancient war with demons. A lost sword with the power to end it all. And a woman with purple hair is the world’s only hope.
Dark Descent #1
Dark Illusion #2
Dark Abandon #3
Dark Genesis #4
Dark Crucible #5
See what titles are FREE at: Nicole’s Free Reads
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Nicole R. Taylor is an Australian Urban Fantasy author.
She lives in the western suburbs of Melbourne dreaming up nail biting stories featuring sassy witches, duplicitous vampires, hunky shapeshifters, and devious monsters.
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Demon Sworn (The Camelot Archive - Book Two)
A sneak peek…
CHAPTER ONE
London was busier than I remembered.
I’d been at Camelot for a month, but it felt like an eternity after everything I’d been through. The city was crowded, buildings pressed in on me, and it was full of pollution. After spending my whole life dreaming of being stationed here after my training, it was ironic that I was longing for the countryside. Stillness and stars were foreign concepts here.
I sat inside the London Sanctum, the headquarters of the Naturals—the demon-hunting mages who protected the Earth from the Darkness beyond—awaiting the ultimate question time.
The hall was empty, though I could hear the murmuring of voices through the carved double doors in front of me—and they didn’t sound happy.
I shuffled my boots over the marble floor tiles, studying the pattern of black and grey as it splintered through white stone. Anything to keep my mind focused.
In the last month, I’d broken just about every rule, regulation, and covenant laid out in the Codex. The humans had their various religions with their sacred texts, and the Naturals had theirs in the Codex. No one was exempt from a higher power, though we knew for sure ours existed. The Lady of the Lake, a celestial being of unknown origins who’d gifted the first Naturals with their power and had given us Excalibur and Arondight.
“Madeleine Greenbriar.”
My heart leapt and I looked up to find a familiar face staring down at me. A tall, gangly man with messy brown hair and a rumpled T-shirt with the slogan ‘keep calm and respawn’ on the front grinned down at me. I assumed the writing on the shirt was a video game reference—he was a professional gamer before joining the Sanctum—but it went straight over my head.
“Jackson?”
“Hey,” he replied and sat beside me. “I can’t say I’m surprised, but that’s a nice jacket. It goes especially well with the combat boots.”
“Still hilarious, I see.”
He grinned and leaned against the wall. Jackson was the human best friend of Arondight—otherwise known as Scarlett Ravenwood—and had once been like me. As a victim of Human Convergence, he was mutated with demonic genes through possession. He’d been cured after the death of Mordred—the twisted Natural the Dark had synthesised the infection from—and was now one hundred percent human.
“How’s Esme?” Esme was his wife and fellow Human Convergence survivor.
“Great,” he replied. “She’s heading up the infirmary while Ramona is at Camelot.”
“And how are your inventions coming along? Built anything yet?”
“I’m working on a device to detect demonic possession,” he told me. “It’s to do with particle waves and quantum physics. I know you’re supposed to be able to do that stuff now, but we’re not as lucky.”
“I didn’t ask for this, you know.”
He frowned. “Yeah, I know. I don’t think anyone saw this coming when Scarlett saved your soul.”
“I’m glad she did, though. Being wiped from existence would have sucked.”
Jackson nodded towards the assembly. “What are you going to tell them?”
That was the question of the day. The enemy had captured me, I’d been imprisoned by my own people—twice—escaped both times, constantly defied orders, and teamed up with a demon to save Camelot. Most of those things were punishable by exile, even with the stripping of Light—the power that made a Natural who they were—but I wasn’t exactly the same person I was when I’d been demoted to guard duty at the archeological site of Camelot.
The greater demon, Ikakantor, had awoken the dormant demonic mutation lodged in my soul, intending to use me to uncover some secret buried below the castle. After being forced to accept who I was becoming to save my friends, I was now half Light and half Dark.
And what that meant exactly was anyone’s guess, least of all mine.
Then there was Elijah…
“I don’t know,” I said, finally replying to Jackson’s question.
“The truth always helps,” he commented as he glanced past me. “What happened to Wilder wasn’t your fault.”
Following his gaze, I noted the guards stationed at the end of the hall. Looking in the other direction, two more men stood by the double doors leading out to the main foyer of the Sanctum.
They trusted me…to a point. It wouldn’t take any effort for me to walk out of here. I wouldn’t even have to raise a hand. Being a part of both worlds, I could nullify the powers of both. I hadn’t tried the Dark yet and had failed miserably when I’d tried, but I understood Light and getting past it was easy. Training your whole life to become a warrior was good for times like these, though it was terrible for building trust.
“Madeleine.”
I looked up at the Natural down the hall. The tall man I didn’t recognise was a representative from the Regula, the governing body of the Naturals.
“They’re ready for you.”
I nodded and rose to my feet, smoothing down my black suit jacket. First impressions counted, especially when you were accused of consorting with the enemy.
“Good luck,” Jackson said, rising with me. “Remember—”
“Jackson.” I pouted and brushed him off.
“I know, but my fickle human heart wants to say it out loud.”
I attempted a smile, but I was entirely positive it looked like a twisted grimace. Turning towards the doors, I pushed them open and strode inside. Better to get this over and done with as soon as possible.
The gallery was a large round room with a domed skylight. Tiered seating surrounded the entire space, climbing five levels. Eight hundred Naturals could cram themselves in here, but only one hundred were stationed in London at any one time. They weren’t all warriors, but support personnel like scientists, doctors, cooks, trainers, researchers, and assistants. Of that number, less than half patrolled the city, protecting its people against demonic possession.
I supposed that’s why everyone took things so seriously around here. The loss of one was the loss of many.
I stood in the centre of the gallery, illuminated in a circle of overcast light filtering through the dome, and looked up at the representatives sent by the Regula. Wilder was the Inquisitor—the Naturals’ version of a Prime Minister—but ever since he’d fallen into a coma—which was another reason I was here—Greer had taken his place.
Greer was the protector of the Codex. Selected by fate and powers beyond reasoning, she alone was tasked with keeping the powerful book safe, recounting its lessons and adding new pages. If an unworthy touched it, they’d burn from the inside out. It was one hell of a firewall, pun intended.
She could be sweet with her angelic face, blemish free skin, shiny almond-coloured hair, and perfect wardrobe, but her wrath was terrible.
To her right sat Aldrich, Scarlett’s uncle and long-time council member at the London Sanctum. He now served as part of the Regula beside the Inquisitor. Grey-haired and weathered by decades fighting on the front lines, he was wise, calm, and the fatherly figure everyone wish they had.
To her left was a man I didn’t recognise and to my annoyance, no one bothered to introduce him. He looked a little young to be sitting beside such esteemed Naturals, but I wasn’t in the position to question the authority of our government. They assured me I wasn’t on trial, but it sure felt like it.
I could tell the new guy was handsome, but he wasn’t my type. He was clean cut and impeccably dressed in a tailored black suit jacket and crisp navy shirt. His sharp green eyes stared at me like I was transparent. His caramel-coloured hair even had that artful swoosh that was meticulously styled to look like he rolled out of bed that way. Even so, I wasn’t blind. He was good-looking, but I usually went for men with darker colouring and who were a little rugged around the edges—like Elijah.
My heart twisted at the thought of him. The last time I’d seen the half-demon, he’d given in to his Dark side, cut Ikakantor’s head off to save Camelot, then told me to take all the credit so I could keep my place amongst the Naturals. Who knew where he was now?
“Madeleine Greenbriar, you stand here accused of treason, assault, and conspiracy,” Greer said, her voice echoing through the chamber. “Among other things.”
“You conspired to flee with a demon,” Aldrich said. “Why?”
I cleared my throat. “He freed me from a greater demon’s lair. In exchange, all he wanted was help with finding a cure—”
Demon Bound: The Camelot Archive - Book One Page 17
