The streets of New York City were just as Kara remembered. Giant stone and glass buildings surrounded her on either side. Masses of people milled in and out of shops as they went about their daily routines. She had been here once before, in search of the missing field agent, Catherine, when she had first joined the CDD team. Only this time, she was alone.
She had left her friends at the foot of the cliff and had watched them disappear into the icy ocean. She hoped the Healing—Xpress would heal them. David had squeezed her hand gently and tried to convince her that this wasn’t her fault. But she couldn’t shake the feeling that she should have gone into the cave alone. If Peter’s soul didn’t recover, his true death would be on her.
The only good thing was that she had found her backpack in the middle of one of the passageways in the cave, as if it had been waiting for her. Maybe Olga’s magic had kept it safe for her.
As Kara stood on the corner of 59th Street and Lexington Avenue, she wondered if Ariel and the legion had known that the old witch couldn’t leave Shadow Cave? Had Ariel known that Kara’s elemental powers might resurface in her mortal body—enough to take on the warlock?
But first she needed to find the man called Gideon. She figured the tunnels under the city had to be the subway system. But once she got there, she had no clue what to do. The New York subway system was gigantic...and time was running out.
She had waited ten hours for a flight. Today was December twenty first. Jetlagged and sore, Kara had only a few hours to find Cleopatra’s Needle and destroy the dark warlock—all before the winter solstice. No pressure. Piece of cake. Just thinking about it made her feel sick. She clasped the pendant in her hand. How was she going to do it?
Kara followed the line of people milling down the 59th Street subway entrance. After studying the subway map, she saw that the N train would take her to 42nd street—but how would she find Gideon? Which tunnel would he be in? She didn’t have time to ride the entire New York subway system.
Kara made her way along the concrete floors peppered with gum stains. She caught the appalling scent of cigarette smoke and bleach. The only source of light came from the long neon light fixtures that ran the length of the station. They flicked and buzzed as she passed under them. Except for some graffiti near the entrance, beige bricks covered the walls. She followed the signs for Downtown and Brooklyn.
She glanced at her watch—12:35 pm.
Crowds of people poured in through the other entrances.
And then she saw it—glowing green runes covered most of their faces. Just like her mother’s and Sabrina’s, their skin was a pasty grey color, and their eyes were sad and lifeless. Like robots, they shuffled through the crowds, not knowing that they had been marked by a dark warlock. They would soon be very sick and die—they would lose their souls.
She tightened her fists and rushed through the crowds. She was running out of time.
“Gideon, where are you?” she whispered.
The pendant brushed against her skin. She stopped and pulled it out. She traced her fingers over the symbols. The stone felt warm in her hand, and she could feel a rhythmic pulse almost like a vibration. The runes glowed yellow and the pendant rose from her hand and floated in the air like a tethered balloon. With the string taut, it pulled her westward, steering her like a floating compass.
She caught it in her hand and pulled it down, but the pendant rose again just like a bar of floating soap in a tub.
“Do you know where Gideon is?” she asked the pendant, feeling a little foolish. But she sensed it knew where he was.
The string pulled her westwards again. Kara let the pendant steer her. She hid it between her hands to avoid the weird stares she was getting from the passersby.
The pendant pulled her toward the sign for the N train, to Downtown and Brooklyn.
Suddenly, one after the other, the neon lights overhead began to explode. Kara and dozens more people were showered in shards of glass. She ran and cowered against the opposite wall, shaking tiny shards from her hair. People screamed as they ran for cover.
And then all the lights went out.
Kara and the others were left in complete darkness. Was it her power or the pendant’s causing this? Then just before people started to panic, the lights flicked back on.
Kara prayed the lights would stay on. With the pendant still steering her, she took a deep breath and walked towards the ticket booth. The lights flickered above her, but stayed on. She sidestepped and swerved in and around the crowds, trying to avoid them as best she could as the pendant pulled her along.
Kara reached the ticket booth just in time to remember that she didn’t have any money.
She doubled back. People poured through the turnstiles. She watched them for a moment and then flung herself between a bald man in a large grey trench coat and a heavy middle—aged woman with more bags than she could carry. She slipped through the turnstile easily.
But just not fast enough.
“HEY, YOU,” yelled the ticket master through his glass cage. “You need to pay. I’m calling the police.”
He pounded his fists against the glass. “Get back here!”
Kara tightened the straps on her backpack and made a run for it. She rocketed down the stairs to the first platform. She stole a look behind—no one was chasing her. She relaxed a little and looked around. Besides the nasty garbage and pee smell, the subway looked normal. It was huge, with three concrete platforms separated by subway tracks.
Masses of people stood waiting for their trains and more than half glowed with green warlock runes. No one took any notice of her. She appeared to be the only person who could see the warlock’s mark. It pained her to watch them.
The pendant pulled her to the left of the platform. Kara obeyed the amulet and followed its direction. She reached the end of the platform, where the tunnel began, and still the pendant pulled. It wanted her to go into the subway tunnel. She remembered reading about people living under the subway system, in old abandoned tunnels. Maybe Gideon was one of those people? Kara held onto the sidewall and peeked into the depths of the tunnel. It curved and then disappeared into shadow. Wind brushed against her cheek. The platform vibrated slightly. Kara turned and saw a small bright light at the opposite end of the tunnel. It was getting larger by the second. She didn’t want to slip and fall into the train’s path accidently. She didn’t have time to jump down now and stepped back from the edge. The oncoming train squealed as it rushed past her and then came to a halt. Her clothes fluttered in the strong gust of wind.
“THERE SHE IS! GET HER!”
Kara whirled around. Three men in uniform with walkie—talkies sprinted towards her pointing, their faces contorted angrily.
She turned her back to them, whistling causally and at the last movement jumped into the waiting train. The doors slid shut. The train kicked into life. The men in uniforms hit the glass with their fists, but they were too late. Kara watched their angry faces disappear in a blur as the train pulled away from the platform. Sighing loudly she threw herself into an empty seat. Now what?
As if in response, her head started to throb again, the pain was worsening by the hour. And to make matters worse, she felt weaker, like the first signs of a cold. Pressing her nose against the glass, she strained to see through the dark tunnels. No sign of an old man anywhere. This was crazy. She would have to get off at the next stop and slip onto the tracks to look for him. It was the only way.
The train car was alive with people young and old. The dark warlock’s glowing green runes were everywhere. A sudden feeling of evil came at her again, only this time it was stronger, as though the threat were closer. The pulsing increased on the pendant. It hovered for a moment, and then it dropped back down against her chest.
The lights went out.
The train stopped with a powerful jerk, as if it had hit a brick wall. People and their belongings went crashing to the ground. Kara grabbed the metal pole just as the train finally lurched to
a stop. People screamed. The emergency lights flicked on, bathing everyone in a blood—red color.
Kara’s vision adjusted to the semi—darkness, and she could make out other tunnels winding away into the darkness. They were somewhere buried deep in the underground train system. The cars in front of them were twisted and off the tracks in a big Z. Kara felt a gigantic bump beginning to rise on the side of her head. Had they hit something?
A middle—aged man started to curse loudly about missing an important meeting.
BOOM!
The metal roof of the car collapsed, as though a giant boulder had landed on it.
She pulled out her blade and waited.
The train shook as a series of thumps and crashes came from the roof, as though it was raining rocks. Kara covered her ears as an eerie piercing screech wailed over the frantic screams of the people inside the train. The train shook like a boat in a storm. Terrified people left their belongings behind and ran past Kara to the next car. As she rushed to join them—her body jerked back. Her coat was caught in the gap in the seats.
“This is so not happening right now.” She was struggling to free her jacket when the back of the car was blasted open. She ducked as sharp metal planks flew past her head.
A rat the size of an English Mastiff crawled into the car. Its black fur glowed as green runes moved around on its body. Its glowing red eyes were fixed on her. It snarled, revealing four enormous incisors that belonged more on a saber tooth tiger than a rat. A thick black tail twitched behind it nervously.
It sat still for a moment and opened its large maw.
“I see we meet again, elemental.” Its voice screeched like feedback on an old radio station, and Kara knew right away the rat was just a conduit for someone else.
Green ooze dripped from the corners of its jaw as it continued, “The witch thought she could hide you from me, but I have eyes and ears everywhere—and I know everything. You cannot escape.”
The car swayed as five other enormous rats crawled through the broken windows. People from the next car screamed and shouted, but the new rats stayed behind the rat that had been speaking to Kara, as if waiting for orders.
Kara’s pulse raced, and the pendant felt like she was wearing a brick. She waved her soul blade before her. “What do you want from me, rat?”
“Your little escape in the woods was remarkable,” said the same rat. “I’ve been wondering about you—about what you are. You left me quite vexed, you see. You’re not a normal teenager, are you? It takes great power to cut through my bonds—and then it occurred to me that you must be an elemental. The earth’s energy responded to your call for help. I was very impressed. I could use someone like you in my circle—”
“Never,” Kara spat. “You steal the souls of mortals and leave them for dead. You’re a vile creature—and I’m going to stop you for good.”
The rat’s eyes widened as it laughed. “Yes, I thought you might say that.”
The rat’s nose twitched. “I’m afraid you pose too much of a threat for me to let you live. I would kill you myself, but I’m sure my little pets will finish the job for me.”
“I’m not that easy to kill.”
The rat sneered. “You’re just a teenage girl with a little power, and I will kill you. I am far more powerful than you, elemental. You are alone—your spirit walker friends cannot help you now. I will tear you apart, and my pets will feast on your blood.”
The rat leaped.
Kara reached over and cut her jacket free, just as a giant paw with razor sharp nails tore the seat in half. Blocking another swing, she jumped onto the next seat. She doubted her chances of survival against six giant magical rats, but she would avenge Olga’s death, even if it meant dying in the process.
Whack!
A tail hit her from behind, and Kara fell hard on the metal floor. Hot pain exploded in her knee. She pushed herself up.
Suddenly she was being dragged backwards. She turned around. Blood seeped from her jeans where the rat’s front claws had perforated her leg like five knives. It pulled her toward it. She looked into the mouth of the giant rat and putrid drool dripped onto her face. It lowered its head.
Kara brought her blade up from under the creature’s jaw in an arc and pushed the blade into its brain. Green ooze splattered the floor. The rat dropped dead. The runes vanished from its fur. It sizzled and popped and slowly returned to its original size, the size of Kara’s boot.
She heard nails scratching metal, and the five other rats charged.
Kara ran towards the exit door at the back of the train. She wrapped her hand on the handle and pulled, but it would not move. She pulled and pulled. Nothing. A man’s face watched her from the other side of the glass. He shook his head. And Kara understood—they had locked her in.
She banged on the door. “Please, let me out. You can’t do this! Open the door!”
The man just shook his head. Another man came, and Kara thought she was saved, but he just pressed his weight against the door and looked at Kara with a sad face, as though she was already dead.
Rage poured through her. Idiots. She was giving her life to save these morons, and they wished her dead.
With the soul blade held tightly she turned to face the rats. Five pairs of eyes fixed on her, their hatred reflected in their glowing red eyes. She could feel the dark warlock watching her.
She planted her feet firmly. There was nowhere to run or hide. She would have to stand and fight. The pulsing of the pendant echoed the beating of her heart. She was ready.
The first rat lunged at her throat. With a sideways strike, Kara slashed at the creature’s own throat, and it fell at her feet and shrunk back to its normal size. Before she could leap out of the way, another rat jumped on her.
It pinned her to the ground. Its sharp teeth were inches from her face. Desperately, Kara kicked her legs into the creature’s sensitive underbelly. Its lips pulled back in a snarl, and it spoke.
“You’re finished,” said the same voice as before. “Good bye, elemental.”
Her breath escaped her suddenly as the weight of two more rats landed on her. White—hot pain surged through her legs, as the rats pulled and bit them. Her heart hit her throat in a loud crunch. Her blade rolled out of her hand. She couldn’t move. She couldn’t breathe. She couldn’t even cry out. Putrid drool fell into her face and she closed her eyes and prepared herself to die...
The pendant pulsed a shockwave through her. Her anger awakened. She wasn’t ready to throw in the towel. She tapped into that place deep inside where the power waited.
The subway car shook. She felt a cool wind wash over her. She could smell the earth from the underground tunnels. She could feel the earth’s energy like tiny vibrations. Her fingertips tingled. Then her elemental energy rushed through her body like a bolt of lightning. Her muscles tensed. She opened her eyes. When she could contain it no longer, she released her elemental power.
Silver energy exploded from her. The rats flew through the air and smashed into the side of the car with incredible force. Their bodies were wrapped in coils of silver electricity. Their screams resonated and then silence. They fell to the floor, twitched, and then all that was left of them were charred normal—sized rats that looked like burnt toast.
Kara stared at her hands—as a guardian her power had been golden, as a mortal it was silver.
The light in the car flashed on and off and then it exploded. Shards of glass fell from the ceiling like brilliant gems.
Kara wiggled her nose. The scent of burnt flesh filled the compartment as vapors rose from the bodies. She heard the yells from the neighboring wagon and ignored them. She realized that she was shaking, not only because of the cold—but also from fear that she was capable of such enormous destruction. She bent down and picked up her blade.
She could feel the eyes of the people in the next wagon, but she didn’t look at them. They had left her for dead.
“Don’t leave us here,” she heard
a man’s voice through the glass as he pounded on it. “We saw what you did—you can save us!”
Kara’s anger was still fresh. Part of her wanted to punch the man in the face because he was the one who had locked the door. She watched them as they fiddled with the lock.
“ELEMENTAL!”
A thunderous voice reverberated throughout the underground tunnel. Concrete pieces and stone showered the crippled train again. The people in the next wagon screamed and cowered under the seats.
“I WILL KILL YOU!”
She could see streaks of red light bouncing up and down outside. At first she thought they were flashlights, but then she saw that ten giant rats were scurrying towards her car. They were coming for her. If she stayed, the passengers in the next cart would surely die. She couldn’t take that chance. The pendant pulled her towards—there was only one thing to do.
Without turning back, Kara sprinted towards the front of the train, jumped down onto the tracks, and bolted into the darkness.
Chapter 15
The man on the roof
Marked, Soul Guardians Book 1 Page 123
