The Iron Seal

by J. M. Briggs

  “Nicki told me.” Avani’s smiled faded away, and she shook her head. “I understand that Arthur used a similar method to attack your parents. I’m sorry you had to be reminded.”

  “It’s fine,” Alex said. Shrugging, she pulled another chair over and sat next to Nicki. “I’m just glad that Bran’s okay and coming back.”

  “Oh?” Nicki asked. She raised an eyebrow and looked at her expectantly. “When was that decided?”

  “He called this morning. I’m not sure what he told his mother, but he was still shaken up,” Alex said. “Said it was best if he was in Ravenslake since Arthur was targeting him. He’s really worried about his mother being pulled into this mess.”

  “What about Jenny and Lance?” Avani asked. “Are they returning?”

  “Jenny is on a trip with her Dad, but she’ll be here in a few days,” Alex said. “Lance will be here tomorrow.”

  “And what if Arthur is targeting your families again?” Avani asked. Her eyes were on Alex, and she frowned a little when Alex stayed silent. “Do you have a plan for that?”

  “No,” Nicki said. She was looking at Alex in the corner of her eye. “There are blood spells in the towns to keep Sídhe and hopefully Arthur out, but if he takes over someone outside of the blood spell and sends them in there isn’t much we can do.” Nicki leaned closer to the camera. “Unless you have some thoughts?”

  “I’ll ask grandfather,” Avani promised. “I hate the idea of your loved ones being in danger.” Then there was a stretch of silence. Avani was considering them both. “I have a confession,” she said.

  “What’s that?” Nicki asked. Resting her chin on her hand, she smiled. “Unless you’re secretly a Demon I think you’re probably safe from us.”

  “I applied to Ravenslake.”

  Nicki’s elbow slid off the table and she banged her knee against the edge of Alex’s chair as she suddenly jolted. Holding back a laugh, Alex grinned as she watched Nicki’s face turn red and she blinked rapidly at the screen.

  “I know I’m not a mage,” Avani said. “But I am a magician, and I might be able to help. Jenny and Lance had only a little instruction, and while I can keep giving them advice that doesn’t replace a real teacher.” Taking a deep breath, Avani relaxed her posture. “I understand that it is sudden, but staying in India while I know the situation just seems wrong. With the portal closed, Shiva is handling the cleanup of violent Demons just fine. There is a limit to the help I can offer from here, but in Ravenslake I could keep working with Lance and Jenny, and maybe help Nicki with some of her projects.”

  “If you’re sure,” Nicki said. The eagerness in her eyes was adorable. “But… you shouldn’t give up your life over this. Magic sucks you in and doesn’t let go.”

  Turning to look at Nicki, Alex held back a sigh and reached over to squeeze her friend’s hand. “If you want to come, Avani, we have no objections,” Alex said. “And there is room in the house for you if you don’t mind sharing.”

  “Hell, you might have your own room if Lance and Jenny decide to room together,” Nicki said.

  “Would you be alright with that, Alex?” Avani asked, suddenly sounding worried.

  “Yes!” Rolling her eyes, Alex almost laughed and groaned at once. “Honestly, it doesn’t bother me. Yes, I’ve been involved with Jenny’s prior incarnations in other lives, which is a strange thing to have to say, but I’m glad they’re happy. Hopefully it will let their souls move on, or at least get out of this cycle or whatever happens.”

  “Sorry,” Avani replied. Giggling, she smiled at them. “I suppose you’re tired of those concerns by now. My apologies. You seemed very comfortable with him while you were here. I shouldn’t have said anything.”

  “No,” Alex said. “It’s fine.” Exhaling, she made herself smile. “This place is pretty crazy, Avani, and much smaller than Mumbai.”

  “It’s like a city block in Mumbai,” Nicki said.

  “You’ll have to catch up on a lot of things,” Alex continued. “So please don’t be afraid to ask questions.”

  “Excellent,” Avani said. “Then I shall make my arrangement to fly to Ravenslake.”

  “Portland,” Nicki corrected. When Avani blinked, Nicki gave her a soft smile. “There isn’t an airport in Ravenslake. Portland is where we usually fly out of.”

  “Uh… then perhaps I’ll see if Shiva will open a water tunnel for me.” Avani waved her hand dismissively. “The point is that I will be there soon and I’ll keep you informed.”

  “Right,” Alex said. Her head was spinning a little. “Sounds good. Let us know if you need anything.”

  “Well then, I’d better go and take care of some things here,” Avani said. She smiled sweetly at them, and Alex could all but hear Nicki’s brain turning to mush. “I’ll be in touch. Stay safe.” Her smile lingered on the screen for a moment before a ding indicated that the call was over and the window vanished.

  “I can’t believe she’s coming here!” Nicki jumped to her feet, almost hitting her knee again. “This is going to be terrible!” She started pacing through the room while Alex watched with amusement.

  “Terrible?”

  “I’ve never lived with a crush before.” Nicki’s eyes widened, and she spun back to Alex. “If Jenny and Lance keep separate rooms then you need to bunk with her. I can’t! It would be too weird!”

  “We’ll see what happens.” Standing up, Alex patted Nicki’s arm. “But it’ll be fine. I think she likes you too.”

  “You think so?”

  “Well, she hasn’t been calling me,” Alex said. “And I’m the Iron Soul. You’re the one she’s been keeping in contact with.”

  “Right… maybe.” Nicki flushed bright red, but her eyes were bright with excitement. “We’ll just have to see, I guess.”

  “It’ll be nice to have her here,” Alex said. She softened her smile. It wasn’t fair to tease Nicki about this, not right now at least. “I never saw her use much magic, but she has a good head on her shoulders.”

  “And access to her family library,” Nicki said. “You weren’t around, but we talked a lot about enchanting items. She liked my idea of making something to help hide Cathanáil and maybe even Mjǫllnir from non-magical eyes. It would be nice if we could walk around with better weapons than just our daggers. Especially Lance and Jenny.”

  “Yeah,” Alex agreed. She licked her lips, suddenly unnerved at the idea of Lance and Jenny coming back. “I hope they’re safe right now.”

  “I’m sure they are,” Nicki said. Reaching over, she squeezed Alex’s shoulder. “Bran alerted them, and they’re both going to head back first thing tomorrow.” Nicki shook her head. “And I can’t see them as Arthur’s prime targets.”

  “Why?” Alex asked. “I care about them, and they can’t protect themselves as well.”

  “But they also aren’t a threat to him,” Nicki said. “If I was Arthur, I’d focus on the mages first and avoid getting you too mad until I had to.” But then she paused, and her expression darkened. “Though… I still want to flay him alive.”

  “Nicki!”

  “I do,” Nicki said. Her tone was even and deathly serious. “He stabbed you and left Aiden in a coma. But I admit that you have more of a right to kill him than I do.”

  “Revenge… I hadn’t thought about it that way,” Alex said.

  “Which just proves that you are a better person than I.” Nicki shrugged and seemed completely unbothered by it. “I’ve been dreaming up ways to hurt him. Sadly, he’s just hurt us since then. We really need to figure out how to stop him. Not just delay him or foil his plans; stop him. And if he has to die in the course of that, well, I volunteer if you don’t want to.”

  “A few moments ago, you were gaga over your crush,” Alex said. “And now you’re volunteering to kill Arthur.”

  “It’s not like we can turn him over to the authorities,” Nicki said. “When we stop him, we’ll be stopping him for good.”

  “You’re right,” Ale
x said. “I know that’s true; there’s just been a lot of other things to think about.”

  “I understand, but Arthur wanted the sword, and now you have it. He and his mother were controlling the Fae, and you destroyed the Iron Chain. Now he’s mind controlling humans to kill us, and potentially he’ll try to take the sword that way.”

  Alex shuddered at the idea. “I hadn’t thought of that.”

  “Which is why I want to figure out a scabbard that will hide the sword, so it is always with you,” Nicki said. Then her serious expression brightened. “Which Avani can help with.”

  “Hopefully.” Alex sighed and leaned against the wall. “You’re right about Arthur though. We’ve cut him off once again, and he’ll do whatever he can to get the sword.” Her chest tightened as fear, and a touch of anger, took over. “I don’t want to see any of you hurt.”

  “We’ll keep working on defenses,” Nicki said. Her tone was gentle, and she touched Alex’s shoulder again. “We’re all in this together. We’ll figure out the next evil plan and keep pushing Arthur and the Queen back. Sooner or later we’ll get our shot, and I don’t think that any of us will hesitate to take it.” Nicki almost smiled. “In fact, as much as I want to kill him, I’m almost inclined to hand him over to Jenny first. Just to see what she’ll do to him.”

  Alex wasn’t sure how to even respond to that. Her smoldering anger made it funny, but she was also worried about what would happen when that moment came. Arthur was a traitor and possibly an outright psychopath, but he was clever enough to fool Morgana and Merlin. Not to mention all of the rest of them. Shame flared in her chest. It was familiar. Arthur had been… amazing, in her eyes. Gorgeous, kind, and smart. He’d been understanding and supportive, but when she’d handed him Cathanáil, he’d stabbed her.

  “Stop it,” Nicki said. She poked Alex’s nose with a serious look.

  “Stop what?”

  “Stop feeling guilty over what Arthur did,” Nicki answered. Giving Alex a stern look, she added, “None of it was your fault. He was a snake and very good at deception. I trusted him too.” Nicki rubbed her hands together. “And there are more important things to worry about, like the fact that Avani is coming and this house is a mess. We’ve got to get our stuff organized!”

  Smiling, Alex watched Nicki dash off to clean. In her chest the ache still lingered, but every time her friends reassured her that it wasn’t her fault, it got a little easier to deal with. She looked around, eying the stack of boxes next to the kitchen that Timothy had yet to get to. The house was slowly coming together, but Alex now had the feeling that it was about to be become organized and spotless even by Timothy’s standards. She just hoped that Nicki didn’t run over their house Brownie in her haste. Leaning against the wall of the kitchen, she looked out the window into the backyard.

  Still, Avani joining them could be very helpful in figuring out how to deal with Arthur’s new strategy. Besides, with all the doom and gloom, watching Nicki deal with her crush would be amusing. She’d always assumed that Nicki was upfront and confident regarding romance. Apparently, that was not always the case. It should be very amusing.

  Shaking her head, she opened the fridge and pulled out a can of soda before heading back up to her room. The sugar rush on her tongue when she took her first sip gave her a boost, and Alex turned her attention to the stack of boxes still waiting to be unpacked in her room. The first box didn’t take long as she unloaded the extra t-shirts and socks she’d collected into her new dresser. Some old hair ties went into a plastic drawer set, her alarm clock got plugged in, and she set up her computer speakers on the desk.

  The next box had books. Old textbooks and a few childhood favorites that she’d brought to college in case she needed to be distracted. Sadly, despite needing them, she hadn’t had the time to read them lately. Alex examined her room critically. The full bed would have to go if Avani was staying with her here. If they could replace that with a bunk bed and move it to a wall, then there would be room for a second desk. They wouldn’t be able to fit another dresser, but maybe one of them could have the closet and the other the dresser. They’d make it work. Morgana would probably be irritated, but they’d make it work.

  Pulling out a few more books, Alex packed them onto the small bookshelf next to the desk. She was quickly sorting some of them when she reached into the box for the next book only to have her fingers brush something glossy. It wasn’t a book cover; it slipped away, and she quickly looked down.

  They were old photos. Alex didn’t even remember packing them with her books for school. The glossy surface caught the light as she slowly turned the stack so she could see them. There were random photos from different vacations and birthdays. In one, she was next to her brothers as her mom held her blonde hair away from the candles of a cake. In another, she and her brothers were crowded together in front of a colorful hot spring at Yellowstone. She flipped through them slowly. Dozens of small little moments she’d forgotten about came rushing back.

  Tears burned in her eyes. Alex’s chest tightened, and a soft sob was ripped out of her. Whatever defenses she’d had against grief was gone. This wasn’t for her parents; this was for her brothers. The young men in those photos that she’d never see again. Those men that she’d never have a chance to know. It crashed over her, sending shivers through every limb.

  Dropping the photos back into the box, she crawled to her bed and hoisted herself up onto the mattress. Her stuffed dog Galahad was on the pillow waiting for her. Pulling it into her arms, Alex began petting the dog’s head with one hand as she turned her face into the pillow. More tears rolled down her cheeks, and another shudder wracked her body.

  She missed them. The knot holding back the grief was gone. She’d thought she didn’t need it anymore. Alex bit her lip. She’d been fine. Why did this suddenly matter so much? How did a stack of photos hurt like this? Rolling onto her stomach, she buried her face into the soft material and sobbed. Doing her best to muffle the sounds, Alex prayed to anything that could hear her that someday all of this would get a little easier.

  6

  Weight of Fear

  Podlasie Province, Poland 983 C.E.

  It was another warm day. Another day when things should have been going well. The crops should be growing as it marched towards summer, and he should be enjoying the warmth. Winter would come soon enough, leaving food and heat as a concern during the long dark nights. Yet, everything was going wrong. Their crops weren’t improving no matter how much rain the early spring storms dropped.

  So here he was in the forest once again, gathering all the berries and roots he could find. The leather bag across his back already had some long leafy plants and a small basket tied to the bag filled with dark berries. Sweat rolled down his back and his trousers were sticking to his legs. But he kept moving. More and more villagers were taking to the hills, and some were talking about up and moving. It was important to get as much as he could as soon as he could.

  Berries could be dried out for winter, the roots would keep for a while, and the seeds and flowers could be stored. Some of the grasses could be dried out for the animals. Already he was calculating how many they could keep alive into winter. Moving forward, he knelt next to another berry bush to check them for ripeness. The bush yielded some more wild dark pink berries, and the weight on his back eased momentarily.

  Dobiemir kept moving through the forest. The trees provided some relief from the heat, and the ground was still a bit moist from last night’s rain. His foot sank into some mud as he walked out onto a game trail. Glancing down, a long line of tracks made him freeze.

  Kneeling, he examined the tracks. They were large and should have been deep in the mud. Yet they weren’t. It was like the creature had barely touched the earth. The tracks reminded him a bit of a wolf’s in shape, but the toes were a bit too long. Something about them was off. He wasn’t sure what, but Dobiemir was certain that they weren’t from a normal animal.

  A shiver went down his spine
and he looked around in alarm. But the sun was shining, and the world was still bright. It had to have been that creature, or something like it. The thing was unlike any normal beast. It had moved too lightly, and too quietly. Just thinking about it made his stomach turn. He eyed the tracks again, trying to convince himself that it was a wolf. That wasn’t much better, but at least a wolf was frightening in a tangible, normal way. It or its pack would kill his livestock and they might starve, but at least he understood it. Swallowing, he grabbed his bag and moved away from the tracks. They followed a small game trail that he would avoid.

  Gathering the roots took longer than normal. Every sound made his stomach tighten, and he would look around in worry every time. Since he was avoiding the game trail and the tracks, he had to push his way through the underbrush.

  Bending over, he dug up the roots of a small flower with yellow petals. It wasn’t much, but it was something fresh. Every bulb, every root and all the seeds he could find would help keep them alive. He carefully gathered up fallen pine needles with plans of making tea for Slavko. A few feet away a branch creaked, and he froze in place. Looking up, he didn’t dare breathe until he saw a rabbit scampering away. Next time he’d have to bring some snares, but this time he was just too grateful it wasn’t that horrible black creature.