“We’ll make you see sense,” said Lex. “But it’s going to be a slow and bitter struggle. One you’ll lose, like the poor fools who lived in this town.”
An odd flickering light caught my eye somewhere in the wasteland. Phantoms. Drawn to the carnage, maybe, knowing more blood would soon be shed. They were inside the tower, too, judging by their close proximity. I stiffened as two of them glided past my cage, and Lex and Roth noticed them, too.
“Go away,” said Roth.
The phantoms swarmed closer, and when they did, the transporter lit up again. Lights flared around the platform, shining beneath my feet.
“Duck!” yelled Miles’s voice.
He appeared behind me, and a cantrip flew from his hand. With his other, he caught my shoulder and yanked me backwards as the bars on the cage burst open under a torrent of flames. Lex and Roth ducked behind the machinery to avoid the spell, while the phantoms continued to drift throughout the room, apparently oblivious to the blast.
Miles released me, pushing to his feet. The crumpled remains of the cage bars lay scattered from the impact of the inferno cantrip. As I climbed upright, a bright light shone from my pocket, dazzling my eyes. The Akrith—my Akrith. Why was it glowing like that?
“Stop her!” Lex poked her head out from behind the machinery, her hair full of ash and bits of splintered metal and wood. Roth didn’t look much better, crouching out of sight as though he could hide from the phantoms surrounding the pair of them. The Elders’ Akrith was still in Lex’s grip, but from the way she squinted, the light from my pocket had dazzled her as well.
My Akrith. Was it resonating with something in this room?
Miles gripped my arm. “The transporter.”
Shock froze my hand on the stone in my pocket as its vibration fell into tandem with the humming from the platform below my feet. The stone was resonating with the transporter… a spell powered by a cantrip. Would it be possible to use the Akrith to open the elves’ realm from here? I’d never have considered the possibility before, but the elves had built this very citadel, and the humming sensation from the stone matched the vibration of the transporter.
Before I could second-guess my decision, I leapt over to the bank of machinery and pressed the stone to the surface.
The light brightened, spiralling around the room like a white flame shining from the heart of the citadel. A torrent of light spread from the Akrith in my hand to the one Lex held, and she released the weapon with a startled cry as several elves appeared in the middle of the room.
Lex and Roth stared openly into the portal to the elves’ realm which now lay open on the platform. Their momentary shock gave me the pause I needed to snatch up the Elders’ Akrith from the floor.
“I believe this is yours.” I held out the weapon towards the elves. “The Elders’ Akrith.”
More elves appeared behind them, outlined in light, and the Family shrank away with horrified expressions. Thanks to their impromptu getaway plan, whatever was left of their army was back in Elysium. Nothing remained here but drifting phantoms, ruins… and us.
One of the elves took the Akrith from me. “Thank you for returning our property.”
As all eyes turned to Lex and Roth, the pair of them froze to the spot. I waited, breath held, certain I was about to watch an execution. Instead, the elves passed the Akrith among themselves, none of them making a move to use it on them.
“There’s no need for bloodshed,” said Elder Veksis’s voice. “Without our Akrith, they will no longer be immune to damage, and eventually, they will age and die.”
My mouth went dry. Both Elders appeared among the crowd, standing on a path which somehow went through the citadel’s platform, transplanted on top of the ruined town below. The phantoms ignored the elves entirely, continuing to drift around Lex and Roth until they both shuffled out from behind the machinery
“Do you want me to kill them?” I asked uncertainly. “Because—they’re still immortal. Or long-lived, anyway, until you take the Akrith away from them. And they’re dangerous.”
“They will be put on trial before our council,” said Elder Datra. “Come with us.”
“Do I not get a choice in that?” Not that I wanted to let Lex or Roth out of my sight, but who knew what I might miss if I left my allies on the battlefield?
“You want to see them punished, do you not?” said Elder Veksis.
Yes. I did. Lex and Roth might appear harmless, shivering and terrified of the phantoms circling them and whispering in their ears, but I wouldn’t rest easily until they were put behind bars forever. My friends would understand.
The elves walked down the path through the citadel’s centre, herding Lex and Roth between them, and I walked into the light along with them.
24
The elves hauled Roth and Lex along the path and into the forest. Instinct told me to turn back, not to leave my allies behind, but I had to see this through. If I didn’t ensure the Family was unable to ever hurt anyone again, I knew I’d regret it. Without them, their army would have no direction, so my allies should be able to take them apart with ease.
The trial took place in the same clearing where I’d first met the Elders. I felt distinctly out of place, standing among a contingent of elves, but since I couldn’t sneak off, I zoned out for the duration of their long speeches. The upside was that everyone was in agreement that Lex and Roth deserved to be punished for their crimes, though they didn’t necessarily agree on the nature of that punishment. Understanding elven legal speech in a language I was barely fluent in was beyond my comprehension, so I left them to it and focused on trying not to fall asleep.
It wasn’t until Lex and Roth were carted away to jail that the other elves began to disperse, at which point I went to talk to the two Elders.
“They’re not going to stay immortal, are they?” I asked.
“Not without the Akrith,” said Elder Veksis. “Which they will never set eyes on again. They’ll fade soon enough during their imprisonment.”
Not as fast as a swift execution, but then again, it’d be fitting for them to perish while slowly losing the immortality they’d fought so hard for.
“The Family destroyed most of the Akriths,” I said, “but I still had mine, and I used it to open a way here via the citadel. Did you know that was possible?”
“I suspected, but our towers have been out of our hands since long before the last war,” he said. “The tower will be linked to this realm for as long as the transporter remains active.”
“That means I can get back now, right?” I said. “Because I need to check up on my allies.”
“Yes,” said Elder Datra, raising the Akrith from its spot next to their thrones. “You may leave.”
The Akrith flashed, and an instant later, I landed on top of the platform in the empty upper room of the tower. While the sun was high, indicating at least a day had passed, the room itself remained a smouldering wreck— the ceiling and walls blasted open, the wrecked cage’s twisted remains littering the ground, and the gleaming form of my own Akrith sitting atop the machinery.
I left it there, descending the stairs with the intention of hunting down a node somewhere in the ruins. As soon as I walked out of the citadel doors, a group of phantoms came to surround me, whispering my name. This time, the whispers didn’t sound sinister to my ears, though part of me was still too dazed with shock and relief to take anything else in.
“They’re gone,” I said to the phantoms. “They won’t hurt anyone again.”
I didn’t know if they understood my words, but the phantoms continued to drift around me as I walked through the ruins until I found a node. I stepped into its path, travelling through the light and landing outside the castle. My nerves prickled as I walked closer to the gates, and towards the two Elemental Soldiers patrolling the grounds.
Felicity’s eyes brightened at the sight of me. “There you are, Bria.”
“Thought you’d show up when all the hard shit was over,”
said Ryan.
“Hey, it’s not my fault the elves’ realm doesn’t run on the same time schedule as this one,” I said.
“That was a joke,” they said. “Not a good one, I’ll admit.”
A joke was an improvement on their former hostility towards me, so I decided to let that one slide. “Are you still trading shifts on guard duty?”
“Not exactly.” Cal strode up to join them. “It’s complicated.”
“How so?” I looked between them. “What’s going on with the Houses? Did they kick up a fuss about us freeing their prisoners even after we saved them from the Family?”
“We told them to direct all their complaints to the Death King,” said Felicity. “So far he’s ignored all of them.”
“Good.” I saw no signs of the Spirit Agents inside the grounds, but Trix the elf was visible nearby, feeding something to the vampire chicken. He bounded over the instant he saw me. “Bria! You’re back.”
“I am,” I said. “Sorry I took so long. I had to watch the Family’s trial.”
“And?” Ryan gave me an expectant look, as did the others.
“They’ve been jailed for life,” I said. “Which will be shorter than they think, since the Elders’ Akrith will no longer have any effect on them. They’ll start losing their powers and ageing soon enough, I’m sure.”
“Good,” said Trix vehemently. “I’m glad of it.”
“Yeah.”
They deserved worse, really, but I wasn’t about to question the Elders’ decision. The Family had destroyed so many lives over the years, and they’d even taken Adair’s future from him as well. Maybe he’d have ultimately reverted to his old ways, but there was no way any of us would ever know that now he was gone. They’d taken away his chance at proving himself a better person.
They’d killed Harper, too. My chest tightened like a vice, and I swallowed, my eyes swimming.
“You okay?” asked Trix. “Are the elves?”
“Yes,” I said. “I think they are. Their trial took a while, so I didn’t get the chance to talk to all of them, but the pathway to their realm is still open in the citadel where I left it.”
“In the citadel?” echoed Felicity.
“Turns out the Akriths work like cantrips,” I explained. “I put my Akrith into the transporter and it created a link, so their realm will remain open as long as the Akrith is active.”
“So that’s how you did it.” Trix gave a nod of understanding. “And you’re going to leave it open?”
“They didn’t tell me not to,” I said. “Is that okay?”
“It’s brilliant!” said Trix, beaming. “I’ll be sure to let the other elves know.”
“Better warn the Elders they’re coming first,” I added hastily. “Anyway, I think the Elders will want to keep the path open so the elves can travel back and forth the way they did before.”
“Of course,” he said. “The Family is no longer a danger, so there’s no reason to keep the realms apart.”
“Exactly.” I looked around the castle grounds. “Where are the Spirit Agents?”
“They went back to their old base in Elysium,” said Ryan. “Miles took them back home once the aftermath of the battle had died down. I think he wanted to make sure none of the runaways from the Houses stole anything.”
“Right… and his parents are free, too.” Things would change for the Spirit Agents, that was for sure. “What does the Death King think of all this?”
Ryan looked over my shoulder. “Speak of the devil.”
The Death King himself walked out of the castle, looking down at me from the top of the stairs.
“Bria,” he said. “I wondered when you’d come back.”
“Sorry I ditched you.” Did his voice sound different than usual? His expression was hard, distant, but it was difficult to tell if that was due to his face being an illusion. “Guess you need your Fire Element back.”
“I won’t need any Elemental Soldiers any longer,” he said. “I’ve disbanded the Court.”
My heart missed a beat. “You… you what?”
“Yeah,” said Cal from behind me. “That’s the complication.”
I frowned at the others. “You’re all still here, though.”
“We’re stubborn.” Felicity shrugged. “And it’s what we’re good at.”
“Damn.” I turned back to the Death King. “You want us to give up our jobs?”
“I think it’s the right decision,” said the Death King. “The Houses are restructuring, and so too is the House of Spirit. You’re welcome to apply to join the security team if I end up starting a new one. For now, though, consider the Court disbanded.”
My mouth parted. “That’s putting a lot of stress on if.”
“It’s up to you,” he said. “You can check in with the Spirit Agents if you want to hear their own ideas for how to work with the Houses as they reform.”
I just blinked at him. Losing my job was the last thing I’d expected of my return from the elves’ realm, but I’d have time enough to question the other Elemental Soldiers about this unexpected new development later.
Had it really only been a day or two since the war? It felt longer, and not just on my end. Everyone seemed to be figuring out their shit, yet I felt like I’d left part of myself out there on the battlefield. The Family were no longer a threat to me. Adair was dead. So was Harper, and Tay, and everyone I’d wanted to protect. Which left me at a loose end. A fire mage without a job, half elf and half human without a home to call her own.
Yet.
I went back to Elysium. It seemed the sensible thing to do, though my nerves skittered at the thought of seeing Miles. He and his family had been reunited at last, but I didn’t know if there was any place for me in his new life. Or vice versa. We’d already pulled off one miracle by beating the Family, but after the loss of my Elemental Soldier status, I didn’t dare hope for anything to be the same as it was before.
Before leaving the castle, I took the time to change out of my muddied clothes. The Death King hadn’t said I couldn’t use my quarters, and besides, I wasn’t about to pass up the opportunity for a warm shower and a clean outfit. I did elect to leave my Fire Element cloak behind, since it didn’t feel appropriate anymore. I ditched my pendant, too, leaving my elf ears on full display.
Only when I stepped through the node and landed in the winding street did the relief hit me that the city had made it through the war. Elysium was the first place I’d chosen as my home, and maybe, if I couldn’t stay in the castle, it would become home again.
My pulse spiked as I approached the Spirit Agents’ base. The house looked none the worse for wear, including the vampire chickens roaming around outside. As I knocked, the shadow of a wyrm flew overhead. I assumed they’d been left to roam free after the battle, given that it just seemed to be flying around, not dive-bombing anyone. A relation of the other wyrm? Maybe. It would explain their loyalty to one another.
Miles answered my knock, and we looked at one another across the threshold for a moment. Then I hugged him, greeting him with a kiss that sent the blood pumping through my nerve endings and healed some of the numb disbelief which had battered me since the Death King’s revelation.
“Thank the Elements,” he said. “I know you went off with the elves, but I was starting to worry you weren’t going to come back.”
“Nah, they just took forever to get to the point in the Family’s trial,” I said. “The pair of them are jailed for life, on pain of… well, pain.”
“That’s good enough for me,” he said. “I don’t care what happens to them as long as they never walk free again.”
“They won’t, and the path between our realms is going to remain open for the foreseeable future,” I said. “Which will at least give me something to do with my time, because I just got fired.”
“Oh.” Miles’s expression dimmed a little. “Yeah. The Death King told me before I left the castle that he was disbanding the Court. If it helps, I know a l
ot of people in Elysium are looking for a new cantrip supplier.”
I groaned. “Yeah, I need a job, but that definitely isn’t for me.”
“I thought not.” His mouth tilted up at the corner. “If it helps, I don’t exactly have gainful employment either. I’ve spent the last few days wrangling spirit mages, escaped convicts and other… people.”
I frowned in confusion at the emphasis on the word people, wondering if there was something he hadn’t told me. Then a door opened behind Miles, and Harper walked out of the living room. Walked.
“Hey, Bria,” she said.
“Harper.” My mouth fell open. “How are you here? How—you’re—”
“Human.” She beamed. “You’re not the only one who pulled off a miracle. We have a lot to catch up on.”
“No kidding.” I looked her up and down, hardly believing she’d survived. Not just survived, but come back to life, which was supposed to be impossible. “How?”
“You know that weapon the Family used on me?”
“The Elders’ Akrith?” I said.
“Yeah, it… kinda had the opposite effect than it would have had on a human,” she said. “When I woke up, I was lying in the ruins draped in my weird lich cloak as if I’d never died at all.”
Holy shit. I hadn’t even considered that using the weapon on a dead person might have the reverse effect to using it on a living one. I doubted it had ever occurred to Lex or Roth, either. Did the elves know? Maybe they did. Given what I’d seen in the citadel, it was pretty clear they were more in tune with the intricacies of magic than I’d ever imagined.
“I’m glad.” I ran forward and hugged her. “I’m so glad.”
“I know.” She smiled as Mav flew over her shoulder, the water sprite’s blue glow as vibrant as ever. “I think that kind of miracle happens once-in-a-lifetime, though this is technically my second life, so who can say?”
Tower of Fire (Parallel Magic Book 3) Page 23
