“They don’t have lands,” he hissed, holding up a hand to silence her.
Liana raised her crossbow while fire flared in her other hand.
The cold feeling intensified as a chill ran down Bastian’s spine, making him pull out his stunner, with magic at the ready. White mist billowed out, forming into the shape of a skeletal figure. Bas fired a shot; an energy ball flew straight through the strange creature.
His holstered his stunner and gripped his knife tighter, magic flaring in his other palm. His mind raced through spells. “Reveala,” he said, muttering a spell to break through glamours.
The creature let out a high-pitched screech making Bas and Liana wince. It lunged at Bastian, who rolled out of the way to dodge it. Here we go again! He thought and said, Li, this bastard needs to be put down!
Li threw a fireball, it too passed straight through the creature, exploding a tree behind them.
Sera, Niall, get up here, Bas ordered. We’re under attack!
Bas, we can’t sense you, Niall responded. Where…
Niall’s voice faded away as claws slashed at Bastian, ripping into his arm. Bas ignored the pain, using his free hand to grab the creature’s throat. His hand made contact with cold slimy flesh. “Li!” he gasped.
Liana threw a fireball, making the wraith howl in agony. Bas used his other hand, brought his knife up, ripping through bone and cartilage as he thrust the blade up through its abdomen. Liana pulled out her short sword, slicing off the creature’s head. Bas felt the icy sensation vanish, but the feeling of another mind had been there too – yet it seemed far away.
“Bas, are you okay?” Liana lowered her sword, shuddering as she stared at the beheaded wraith.
“Yeah.” In truth he felt ready to pass out. “That thing took my energy.” He took a few deep breaths. “Thanks.”
“No problem.” Li scowled at the dead thing. “Can I burn it now?”
“No, I want to know what it is and where it came from.”
Niall and Sera came running up the track. “Everyone alright?” Niall asked.
“Yeah, we’re alive,” Bas muttered, clutching his bleeding arm.
“Wow, that’s the wraith?” Niall grinned. “Good job, spitfire.”
Sera came over, touching Bastian’s arm. He felt the strange tingling sensation whenever they came into contact. He’d never felt it with another woman. Get a grip, Novare. You’re thinking like a lovesick idiot.
Bas pulled his arm away. “Just bandage it.”
Sera’s eyes flashed. “It could get infected. Hold still.”
Bas waited while Sera patched him up. Her soft hands sent a rush of desire through him. He let out a breath when she finally pulled away. “What is that thing?” He moved closer to the wraith’s body. “It doesn’t look fey.”
Niall and Liana knelt examining it. “Doesn’t smell fey either,” Liana remarked.
Sera joined them, pulling out scanner. “I thought I felt the presence of another mind,” Bas told them. “I think someone else controlled it.”
“Blondie and I will run some tests to see what we can find,” Niall said. “It’d be easier if we can take it back to the city with us.”
Bas nodded. “Maybe now we can get guild to take us seriously.”
7
Sera felt her wings fluttering against her spine as she sat at the kitchen table. She reminded herself not to be nervous. It wasn’t as if she wanted to be a real hunter. Her loyalty would always be to the Ashran and her own people.
Liana sat fidgeting beside her. “What’s taking so long?” she muttered. Dragons weren’t patient creatures.
“Relax, would you?” Sera said. “It’s not important.”
Li’s emerald eyes flashed. “Not important?” she scoffed. “You need to be inducted as a hunter to stay here, remember?”
“And I don’t see why I wouldn’t be. Bas taught me well.”
“Right, but it’s harder for women to get into the guild and even though you’re brilliant with experiments…” Liana poured herself some coffee.
“Li, would you stop?” she snapped, running a hand through her hair.
To surprise, Liana grinned, sipping her drink. “See, it does matter. You’re not as cool as you think.”
Li always said Sera was too cool to show her true emotions, but Sera didn’t agree. She was just good at compartmentalising. She had to in order to get things done.
I’m going to look at the secret door again tonight when I visit Clara, she said.
Good. I managed to get you this. Liana handed her a scroll. Memorise this, then destroy it.
Sera opened it and saw a map of prince’s manor, including the security points. Where did you get this?
I bribed a librarian in city archives – if you know what I mean.
Li, you shouldn’t…
He won’t remember anything. Your memory dust works better than you thought.
Sera winced. Memory dust erased short-term memories, but it could be dangerous too. I told you not to use it.
It was important. You needed a way to get in there and find the keystone, now you have one.
Sera felt a sharp ache in her chest. She hated using Clara an excuse to get near the vault. Clara seemed such a sweet thing, Sera enjoyed spending time with her in the evenings.
You’re right, thanks. She stuffed the map into her pack.
Bastian and Niall came in, their expressions unreadable.
“Well?” Li demanded, almost spilling her coffee.
Sera rolled her eyes. “She’s more anxious than I am.”
Bas’s lips curved into a smile. “You’re now officially a hunter in training.”
Liana squealed and hugged her. “Finally, we can stay together for a while,” she hissed in Sera’s ear.
Sera returned the hug and forced a smile. “Good.” She didn’t feel excited, instead numbness washed over her. On one hand she liked some aspects of being a hunter. It felt good to be part of a team and have close allies. On the other, she’d have to be more focused on her mission than ever. She couldn’t get distracted by any lingering feelings she had for Bas.
Alward had been insisting on regular updates and grew frustrated by the lack of progress. She couldn’t understand why he’d suddenly become so impatient. He knew this mission would take time. She couldn’t just go rushing headlong into the vault or she’d only get herself captured and killed.
“I knew you could do it.” Bas wrapped his arms her, then pulled away just as quickly, looking awkward.
Sera smiled. “Thanks, I couldn’t have done it without you.”
“Good job, blondie.” Niall gave her a squeeze too. “We should celebrate.”
“We should get back to work,” Bas said. “Has anyone got news to report about the wraith?”
“There’s been reports of another death,” Liana told them. “Sera and I will check it out.”
“Hey, what about me?” Niall pouted, pretending to look offended.
“We’ll catch up with you in an hour or two.” Bas replied. “You and I have a meeting with McGregor.”
“Is it about the wraith?” Sera surprised herself by asking.
“Among other things,” Bas answered. “Take the jumper – but be careful with it.”
Liana beamed. “You’re letting me pilot the ship? Wow, it must be a day for miracles. I can’t wait to see what –”
“Li, don’t you dare crash my ship,” Bas warned. “I mean it!”
“I’ll keep an eye on her.” Sera laughed. “I have to get my gear.”
Liana followed her upstairs. “You’re not coming with me, are you?”
Sera pulled her hair back in a loose knot. “No, I need a safe place to keep my stuff, it’s too risky keeping everything here. Plus, I want to check through the archives myself.”
“For security?” Li asked, playing with a strand of loose hair. “Or because you’re keen to dig through the mages’ history?
“Yeah, security and I need to know more
about the wraith. Maybe I can dig up something.” She checked the items inside her bag to make sure she had everything she needed.
“Careful, you’re starting to sound like a real hunter.” Li grinned. “Good thing Papa Dearest can’t see you right now, not sure if he’d be proud or appalled.”
Sera tried not to wince. “I’m not though, am I? Neither are you.”
Liana shrugged. “Doesn’t bother me as long as I know I’m working for a better future for us.” She squeezed Sera’s hand. “Be careful.”
“You too. Don’t crash the jumper, Bas will never forgive you.” She gave her foster sister a quick hug.
Li frowned. “Hey, is something up with you and Bastian?”
“What do you mean?” Sera pretended she didn’t know what Li was on about. She didn’t want to think about Bas.
“I don’t know – like, do you fancy him?” Li waggled her eyebrows. “He’s not bad looking if you like the dark rugged look.”
Sera laughed. “How could I? He’s a hunter.”
“Yeah, he’s also a mage. Our enemy, remember?” Li’s smile faded.
“You don’t have to remind me,” she muttered. “You don’t have to worry; Bas and I are ancient history.”
“One of these days you’re gonna have to tell me what really happened between you and Bastian ten years ago. I know you haven’t told me the whole story.”
Sera headed out through the city, the constant cacophony of sounds and blasts of smoke and steam made her long for the peace and tranquillity of the forest. Ithereals were meant to be around nature, it boosted their own natural abilities. She liked it when the team left to go on missions, but the city also fascinated her too. The mages had come a long way in terms of technology over the past centuries. That both excited and terrified her since most of it would be used against her people.
She needed somewhere to keep her most incriminating pieces of gear. It would be too dangerous to keep them at the house. Niall had already stumbled onto her things when he’d gone looking through her pack on their last outing together, but she’d managed to brush off his curiosity with an excuse.
She considered hiding her stuff in Clara’s room but that would be just as risky. Anyone could stumble on her things there. She needed somewhere secret, away from prying eyes. On most missions she hid her stuff inside walls, floorboards or ceilings. Wherever she could find an empty space. For this mission, being more complex and long-term, she would need somewhere else. If she did get caught, she didn’t want anything which might lead back to Alward or the Ashran.
Sera wandered around, passing the different shops and street lenders but nowhere here could be used. Someone could see her coming or going. In the distance, she saw the ruins of an old guard tower. Bas had pointed it out to her a few days ago and had said neither the hunters nor the city guard used it since they now had better watch towers. She headed towards it, moving out of the city chaos, careful no one followed her. The steps leading up had fallen away in places but the tower itself still formed part of the original wall the mages had built during the great war.
She scrambled up the broken steps, wishing she could fly up but she didn’t dare run the risk. She almost slipped but kept hold of the grooves in the wall as she climbed. She let out a breath when she got inside. To her relief, it looked dry with only a few gaps that shone splinters of light over the rough wooden floor. Sera set her pack down, glancing around. The circular room had a few small trees growing out of the stones. It felt peaceful there compared to the chaos in city a few metres away. She walked out onto the balcony. Part of it had already crumbled away. She should be able to land there if she flew up to it. Now for the hiding spot.
She scrambled around on the floor, found nothing and then turned her attention to the walls where she found a small space large enough to hide the scroll, plus some of her crystals and potions. Once they were inside, she hurried out, knowing she’d only have a limited time to scan the archives.
Liana knelt examining the body of a man when Sera hurried over to her. “What took you so long?” Li hissed. “Bas and Niall will be here any minute.”
She shrugged. “Sorry, I got distracted in the archives.”
Li rolled her eyes. “You and books,” she muttered. “Did you find anything?”
“Maybe, I read a lot about…”
Bastian and Niall appeared in a swirl of gold dust.
“Did you use dust?” Liana whispered to her.
“No, I flew.”
Liana’s eyes widened. What the hell were you thinking? What if you were seen?
I used a glamour. Dust is only for emergencies and it was the fastest way for me to get here. Sera knelt by the body.
“Found anything?” Bas asked.
“Not yet, but it looks like another wraith attack,” Liana answered.
Sera examined the wounds, noticing the same pinpricks on his chest as the other victims. Ithereals could sense things but most couldn’t read minds, yet Sera wondered if she could cross that boundary. If mages could learn to probe people’s thoughts, so could she. Natural energies were easy for fey to sense and they spoke to each other in thought or through the use of crystals.
Bas had taught her how to read someone’s surface thoughts, but he had said it didn’t work on the dead unless they had only just passed. Whilst mages took energy, the fey used their own energy and that of nature. Fey learnt that everything had energy. Even something dead would still retain some energy.
Sera closed her eyes after checking no one was watching her. She sent her senses forth, scanning the body. Almost all life force had been drained away, yet remnants remained.
Fear clawed at her, the man had been terrified. A loud high-pitched screech, then flesh tearing, feeling like something had torn him from the inside out.
Kill, feed, must feed, stray thoughts ran into her mind.
“Kill him,” a voice commanded. “Bring me his power.”
Then everything went black.
Sera opened her eyes to find herself back in her room. She blinked against the bright orange glare from the lamp beside her bed. Outside the window the sun had been swallowed by a blanket of darkness. No, it couldn’t be nightfall. It had only been around noon when she’d flown to Liana.
“Sera?” Bastian rose from the chair. “Are you alright?”
Her head pounded. The light stung her eyes, so she turned away from it, covering her face. “No, I’m not. How did I get here?”
“You passed out; you’ve been unconscious for hours.” Bas reached out to touch her shoulder. “The healer couldn’t tell us why – useless idiot! What happened?”
“I don’t know.” Memories came back, she’d felt the man’s fear as he lay dying and she’d heard something else. The wraith’s thoughts and – what? Had it been the killers? “Wait, I remember.” She grabbed her pack. “I found something about the wraith.” She pulled out book she’d found at the archives. “Here, it talks about wraith.”
Bas glanced at the book, eyes narrowed. “Spirit magic? That’s not possible. It was outlawed decades ago. No mages would be able to use it now,” he said. “The guild only keeps records of it. It must be the fey – some new trick conjured by them.”
“Why must you blame them for everything?” she snapped. “They only want peace, not more death and destruction.”
His jaw tightened. “How do you know that?”
Sera winced, realising she’d gone too far. “A fey saved me the night of the fire. He helped me to heal. They’re not all bad.” Alward had indeed saved her that night. Bas didn’t need to know he was her father. “I wouldn’t be here if…”
Bas sighed. “Fine, never mind, but I can’t see a mage using this.”
“Fey don’t use it either. Their magic is natural.” She bit her lip when Bas frowned. “I learned quite a bit about their ways.”
What had she done? Had she revealed too much?
“Good job with this.” Bas tucked the book under his arm. “I’ll hold onto
it. Will you be okay?”
“I just need some sleep.” She laid down again.
Bas walked to the door. “Glad you’re alright.”
She nodded. “Bas, if that book is right, someone controlled the wraith. They could be targeting the council.”
“That’s what I’m afraid of.”
Once he’d gone, Sera pulled out her crystal. Ignoring her pounding head, she appeared in Alward’s study.
Alward looked up, frowning. “Have you made progress on the vault?”
“No, not yet. I needed to ask you something.”
“What’s taking so long?” he demanded. “You’ve been in the city over a month, you’re a hunter now. Have you lost access to the prince’s home?”
“No, I’ve almost figured out the way through the door,” she said. “The wraith I told you about, it’s some kind of spirit from the netherworld.”
“The netherworld is a myth.”
“Maybe not.” She told him what she’d seen.
Alward’s azure eyes narrowed. “You’re using mage magic? Why?”
“I had to learn it – it’s part of my hunter duties. Could the killer be in a Ithereal?”
Her father laughed. “An Ithereal would never touch such magic – that’s one thing both sides agree on.”
“If I can read minds like mages can, who’s to say a fey couldn’t use dark magic?”
“Sera, why are you wasting time?” he snapped. “Your mission is to find the keystone – an artefact that belongs to our people, not them.”
Sera folded her arms. “You said I had to blend in, be a hunter. That’s the only way I can access the vault. The mission could take weeks, we both know that. Why the rush?”
“Because the mages are stirring up trouble. War could break out again.” Alward ran a hand through his hair. “You can’t afford to be distracted.”
“I’m not. My first priority will be my mission, I promise you.”
8
Bastian rubbed his temples as they throbbed. After four deaths and three wraith attacks he thought he’d be able to convince McGregor to let his team use more of the guild’s resources to track down the killer.
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