Mist & Whispers

by C. M. Lucas

  ‘Go for it. I’ll do anything if it means we get Steph back,’ she said.

  ‘There is a way to pass magic on to someone who doesn’t possess the abilities, though the power isn’t as strong, and it’s not permanent. It would give you a few hours, four at best. It wasn’t considered good ethics in the days before the Darkness, but given that this may yet be our darkest hour yet, I think we can make an allowance.’

  ‘So, I’d have magic powers?’

  ‘For a short time, yes.’

  Anya considered this for a while. In any other circumstance, having magical abilities would have been the ultimate in cool, but this was serious. Steph’s life and the fate of Virtfirth would be riding all on her, and now she knew the prophecy wasn’t real, success was no longer a given. Anything could happen. She could fail her friends, fail Theone, and fail the whole Kingdom. What if she couldn’t control the power once she had it? What if she was as skilled with magic as she was with a sword?

  The way she saw it, she didn’t have a choice. Either she would go along with the idea, save Steph, free the Princess from Morcades and rid the Darkness from the Kingdom, or she’d die trying.

  ‘I’ll do it.’

  ‘Good. I’ll need to switch some of my blood for yours, and show you how to counter the enchantments.’

  ‘Why switch it with mine, won’t that weaken your powers?’

  ‘Not enough to affect me. And we must switch to ensure you don’t have too much blood running through your veins. Too much blood in one’s body and it can stop the heart from beating.’

  ‘Wait,’ Lorcan said, looking at Anya with both admiration and concern. ‘You said Morcades could sense the magic in your vambrace, and that he was going to make you drink the Dark Blood? Well, if you pass on the magic, won’t it be taken away as soon as she drinks that stuff?’

  ‘He’s right,’ Theone said, burying his head in his hands. ‘He’ll sense the magic in you straight away. We’ll have to think of something else.’

  ‘Maybe not,’ Anya said, this time knowing something Theone didn’t. ‘I think I know a way we can get round it.’

  THE PLANS WERE put into place in quick time. At Anya’s request, Theone summoned something from the camp for her part of the plan, which she stowed in the bag Trace had given her. Then he sent a message telepathically to Linos, ordering him to rally the Crown Guard ready to fly them out to the Big City on horseback. Lorcan had volunteered to keep the Black Dragon busy whilst the King’s men made way, an offer that Theone was most humbled by.

  ‘We have wronged you for so long, and yet you wish to stay and fight at our sides. You are a better man than I believed.’

  Lorcan shifted uncomfortably. ‘I’m not fighting for you,’ he told the King, and his eyes fell upon Anya.

  She was perched on a group of rocks, retying the laces of her Converse trainers. They’d taken almost as bad a battering as she had herself. She looked up as the words left his mouth, and though he didn’t say anything else, she got the impression that he left something unsaid. He gave her a parting smile and took off, into the sky.

  ‘Are you sure you want to do this?’ As the King spoke, all the majesty disappeared from his tone, and for the first time Anya heard his paternal voice.

  ‘I’m sure.’

  ‘You know, I think about what my daughter would have been like, had she still been here with us. I would like to think she would have been like you. Smart – courageous – fiery. Full of heart. I believe your parents would be proud if they could see how far you have come.’

  He could never have known that such beautiful sentiment would carry such a sting. A moment passed where only the silence of the forest could be heard. She could feel her eyes welling, but couldn’t bring herself to explain she’d never known who her parents were.

  Theone removed his gauntlet, keeping his eyes on Anya. ‘This isn’t going to be easy, and it’s going to feel strange for a while, but it’ll be bearable.’

  ‘Perfect,’ she said, her use of sarcasm masking the terrible sickly feeling building in the pit of her stomach. ‘So, if you give me your blood, why does it only last a few hours? I was terrible at science, but shouldn’t it last all the time your blood runs through my body?’

  ‘Think of it like two armies going to war – they’ll attack each other, your blood and mine, but your blood will win the fight simply because there is more of it. It’ll get to work straight away, destroying my blood and with it, my abilities. Once you’re inside, you must move swiftly.’

  ‘Right,’ she said.

  ‘Give me your arm,’ he instructed, and as she did so, he locked his hand around it, allowing their wrists to rest together.

  ‘First, I will need your blessing, otherwise it cannot work. I need you to give me something of yours, something personal, as a sign of your consent.’

  Something personal? She quickly surveyed what she had about her that she could give him, then when the idea popped into her head, she didn’t hesitate. She leant over and placed a kiss on the King’s cheek. ‘You have my blessing,’ she said.

  ‘I’m honoured,’ Theone smiled. ‘Now, it will be quick but don’t flinch once I start. Veins are a delicate thing to cast over.’

  Anya swallowed hard, the sickly feeling still churning, her stomach beginning to bubble and rise. She watched with conflicting fascination and fear as he raised his free hand and let it linger around the place where their wrists met.

  He didn’t have to glow for her to realise the magic had begun.

  A pain shot the length of her arm, spreading right out from her wrist, up to each fingertip and down to her elbow, making her arm feel as if it were going to burst open.

  The veins began to pop up, right to the surface of her skin, small lumps undulating along them like a caterpillar shuffling its way across her arm. White spots filled her vision as faintness greeted her, and her stomach tumbled over itself repeatedly, leaving her sure she’d cover the King with puke before it was over.

  Initially, the infusion felt hot, but it cooled quickly and soon, ice filled her blood. The white spots vanished, and she began to shiver and sway. She could feel the colour draining from her face, and the last thing she thought before he pulled away was how much she wished she was in a hospital, being monitored in case the procedure had gone wrong.

  ‘Anya? Anya?’ It was Theone, but his voice didn’t sound right. It echoed, the sound waves bouncing into her ears from different directions, giving him a sense of omnipresence.

  She blinked hard, trying to stop everything around her from spinning but nothing helped. Still, the King did not let go of her arm until the blood had been switched. Once it was over, he helped her to sit.

  ‘I’m freezing,’ she said, a cold sweat pouring from her trembling forehead.

  ‘I can see; your lips are blue.’ He picked up a small branch from the ground beside them and conjured a flame at one end. ‘This should make you feel warmer. I can’t explain it, that shouldn’t have happened. Blood transference has never done that to anyone before. If anything, it should have made you feel really warm and slightly nauseous. Do you think you can go on?’

  With Lorcan already heading into battle with the Black Dragon and only a matter of time before Eleazar and Morcades returned to the castle, there was only one answer she could give.

  ‘Yes. Just help me up, I’ll be fine.’

  ‘Do you remember what I showed you, how to take the enchantments down?’ He put the fire out and helped her back to her feet.

  ‘Yeah, I remember.’

  ‘Good. I’ll make my way to Harrion and the others, and pray Lorcan does us proud. Even if the Crown Guard do not make it, I’ll come for you.’ And with that, Theone was gone.

  Anya closed her eyes. She remembered the look on Steph’s face as she screamed at her to run, not even an hour ago.

  She crossed her fingers in the hope that Eleazar and Morcades were still out there, and set off into the forest, ready to give herself up.

 
; SHAKEN AND FEVERISH from the merge of magical and mortal blood, Anya emerged from the bank and took shelter among the fallen trees, the victims of Eleazar’s fury when he sent her flying through the air. She could still feel where each tree had collided with her back, and looked forward to Theone healing her later. For now though, she needed her injuries for the ruse.

  She tucked herself beneath a fallen trunk and tried her best to spy on the clearing where Eleazar and Morcades had apprehended her and Steph. The shadows that clung to the sky were thicker than usual – perhaps they sensed a shift in the status quo? – and without one of Harrion’s enchanted lanterns, she was struggling to see anything.

  She contemplated what she should do next, then remembered that before she could move, before she could risk anyone finding her and making her drink the Dark Blood, she had to put the rest of her plan into action.

  She reached into her bag and pulled out the jar Theone had summoned from the medical hut. Inside were the three Vampyre Leeches that Grinling had been studying.

  She brought the jar level with her reddened eyes and shuddered at the sight of them. ‘Right, listen up,’ she said, her voice aquiver with the effects of the magic transference. ‘I don’t want to do this anymore than you but we have no choice. I promise I will let you go as soon as I can, so don’t freak out. And hopefully I won’t freak out either.’

  She took a deep breath then opened up the jar. As she reached inside the leeches craned back their necks, expecting to be fed. Grinling had them trained well.

  ‘Don’t worry, with any luck you’ll have plenty of food really, really soon,’ then she fished around the jar until she had one of the little creatures between her fingers.

  She retched a little at the feel of it in her hands. It was covered in a black, stringy slime, much like raw egg. Bad egg too, by the smell of it.

  ‘Steph better thank me for this,’ she said to herself, and then she opened her mouth and placed the leech as far back onto her tongue as she could.

  She wanted to scream. She wanted to vomit. She wanted to run around in circles, shaking her hands in the air and making grossed-out noises like a squealing schoolgirl but thankfully, the chill in her blood was growing colder, and the nausea and dizziness suppressed the urges.

  She closed her mouth, trying her best to ignore the rancid bag of blood sinking its teeth into her tongue, and climbed out from under the tree. She walked around for a while on weak feet, focusing on looking conspicuously inconspicuous, so that if she were to be found, it wouldn’t appear as though she was leading them into a trap.

  Still shaking, she wiped her sleeve across her forehead, trying to soak up the beads of sweat that were dropping onto her eyelashes. Then her concentration started to slip and she found herself blinking at everything, her wandering aimless and unsteady. She thought about the moment when her and Theone’s wrists had met – the flash of heat followed by a shivering, subzero pain that bit at her insides. Theone said that had never happened during magic transference before. Why had it happened to her? And why was she so cold? Maybe something had gone wrong with the blood switch? Maybe Grinling hadn’t quite removed all the venom from the leeches? Whatever was happening to her, she couldn’t control it. All she could do was fight and hold on to that little beat of fire in her heart, but simply walking was becoming a battle in itself.

  ‘There you are little birdy,’ came a voice from behind her. She fell to the ground, partly to show Morcades she’d given up running, but mostly because her legs had begun to shake violently.

  He came toward her, his face still obscured by the hood of his robes and a phial of white liquid in hand. ‘I knew you were the one with the magic blood.’ The lid of the phial vanished as he brought it close to her nose, and the tempting aroma of cinnamon was thrust upon her. Her hands desperately cupped the phial and, just as it had in Silver Forest, the liquid turned a damning shade of black as it touched her lips, spidery little hands reaching for her mouth, desperate to strangle the magic Theone had given her.

  Inside her mouth she felt the leech retracting its teeth and opening its own mouth wide, so wide in fact, Anya almost choked on it. It must have sensed the blood about to be delivered.

  The cinnamon flavour was divine as it washed over her taste buds, but it was soon stolen from her by the creature quickly expanding from its feed. She found herself jealous of the little beast, but deep in her conscious she was thrilled her plan was working. ‘Let’s get you to the boat, hmm?’

  THE FROZEN SURFACE of the lake cracked and shifted as the boat glided through it. Morcades stood on the bow, willing it onward whilst Eleazar sat arrogantly twirling one of Steph’s arrows, watching the girls he’d found in the forest. He looked upon them like they were a banquet laid out before him; a feast all of his own.

  Steph sat, staring through their surroundings as if they were made of glass. She looked ill. Her eyes were heavy and red, and her skin had turned a shade of grey. The Dark Blood was taking its toll. Anya glanced at her friend, wondering how long it would take for the effects to wear off. It was painful to see her in such a way. Not smiling, not warm and glowing – not Steph.

  The hairs on Anya’s arm stood bolt upright and she could see each and every breath escape ahead of her. It was colder on the lake than anywhere else she’d been in the Kingdom. She held herself tightly, trying hard not to let it show that inside her body, coursing through her blood, Theone’s magic was changing her.

  She kept her sights on the castle. It was surrounded in mist, and though it still stood tall, it was as much a prisoner as she was now, chained by its aura of damnation.

  It was still a spectacle, even with the Darkness and the neglect from its new ruler. Pearlescent, octagonal towers rose from its main body, a body that appeared to have risen from the very rock it stood on and formed as naturally as a mountain. Hints of the Royal’s blue could be found in the details around the windows, painted on the pearl walls, and in the slate tiles of the roofs.

  As the boat neared the dock, a shrill cry leapt out of the sky, and though she could not see him, she knew the battle for Lorcan had already begun. She closed her eyes and prayed silently, for if there were Gods out there somewhere, she’d want them to watch over the Dragon-Boy closely.

  After passing through the castle walls, the girls were marched up a set of steps that spiralled around one of the towers. The thought of the sheer drop beside them became harder to bear the higher they climbed; one slip of the foot and they’d be on a one way trip to that great big light at the end of the tunnel, and Anya was already shaky as hell. For a moment, she considered pushing her captors over the edge, then thought better of it. Eleazar had wings, and Morcades appeared to have the power to shimmer from place to place, not to mention probable immortality; God of the Damned sounded like a job that came with eternal benefits.

  Inside, the castle was lit as the camp’s pavilion was, only the bowls of fire that levitated through the halls were shaped like floating butterflies, the flames that rose from them burned menacingly white, devoid not only of colour but warmth as well.

  A fine mist of grey hung in the air, making the dark corners of the castle appear like chasms, black holes that could house all manner of monsters and creeps. Anya was on edge as Eleazar leading them, and not because of the creepy corners. Within a few passages from the castle entrance, Anya discovered what had become of the missing women of Virtfirth.

  They had been enslaved to Eleazar and held in the castle, down-trodden by the effects of the Dark Blood that so clearly presented itself upon their faces. Like Steph, their eyes were red and heavy, and their skin had greyed, only theirs was a much darker shade.

  As terrible as the blood transference made her feel inside, at least it gave Anya a similar appearance to all these women. Otherwise, her captors may have noticed that the Dark Blood was actually fed to the greedy little Vampyre leech that was still nestled on the back of her tongue, instead of their intended victim.

  The women of the castle meande
red from room to room, carrying out jobs such as mopping floors and cleaning clothes, but their minds looked like they were somewhere else completely. Some of the women must have been members of the Royal family, as they had butterfly wings too, though they were wilted, presumably another effect of the Dark Blood.

  The more Anya saw, the angrier she felt. There were courtyards with other noble looking men, grotesquely leering at scantily clad, grey women who were dancing around them, their bodies provocative yet their stares as vacant as a starless night.

  Through closed doors that she passed, she could hear sobbing and even screaming, though the screams were defenceless. Her fists balled in frustration. Right now, there was nothing she could do to stop the atrocities that were happening in the castle. She had to wait, and bide her time until she could take down the enchantments. Until justice could be had. Hold on, her thoughts spoke to the women.

  Eleazar lead them through corridors, up flights of endless steps, across open bridges, from tower to tower, until they came to a room in the west wing of the castle. A nod of his head was all it took for its grand, gold doors to open, and as they did, Anya could see that they were standing in the doorway of a chamber fit for a queen.

  On a dais in the centre of the room sat a bed, with eight posts and pale pink, crushed silk drapes. The blankets and cushions were a mix of pinks, pastel greens and gold.

  On the bed lounged three young women, only these women weren’t like the rest. The lights of their eyes were dazzling, and their skin glowed a perfect, even-toned peach. Their dresses were made with luxurious fabrics, so stunning that Anya thought they must have been raided from the Queen’s personal dress collection. And on their backs, the signature of their heritage – butterfly wings. These young women were Royals too.