by K. Ferrin
She leapt high, grasping the lower rungs of the cage and trying to swing herself up onto the lowest bar, but the bars were slick, and she soon lost her grip and fell to the ground, sliming herself in filth. She swore under her breath and tried again, this time keeping her grip on the cage.
“This would be easier if we could use magic,” she muttered. Magicless shook his head vehemently at her. They’d agreed not to use any magic unless absolutely necessary in case it drew unwanted attention. She said nothing as she scrambled up to the top of the cage and struggled to pull out the pin that held the woman in place. With a screech that reverberated through the silence of the cavern, the pin slid free. The force of it knocked Leali from her perch and she clattered to the ground. The woman fell soundlessly, landing hard on those gathered below. They laid her gently on the ground as Leali pushed them aside to kneel beside her.
Her eyes were closed, her breathing slow and unsteady. She was not sleeping. That fall would have awoken anyone who’d been in a normal sleep. Her skin was pale, her body wasted and bony, and try as she might, Leali could not wake her.
Leali looked at Magicless frantically.
“No, Leali, you can’t. Not yet. We need to defeat Amentis and get Alekka out first. Don’t destroy our chances now.”
She glared at him but didn’t argue. She knew surprise was their only hope, they all did. They had to maintain whatever they had left of it. “We don’t leave until they are all free,” she said with a curt nod.
Magicless nodded in return. She looked back at the woman, smoothing the grimy blond hair back from her forehead. “Rest, sister. I’ll be back for you.”
They continued up the ramp, encountering several more rooms like the first, and Magicless wondered where Amentis had taken them all from. Surely there were more here than only from Dorine Lillith? He thought of the Ghosts with dread, wondering where those poor, wretched children were housed.
Smooth rock face slowly turned to grey brick as they moved upward through the castle. Their caution seemed, at least for the moment, largely uncalled for. They saw a few Ragers lurking in the distance, but no guards. No one seemed concerned, and Magicless began to hope that they were unexpected after all.
The sound of laughter echoed through previously silent corridors, and Magicless heard the faint sound of music. He exchanged glances with the others and moved toward the sound. Warm firelight flickered through an open door and conversation, laughter, and the the scuff of feet against the stone floor spilled from the room. Magicless crept to the door, motioning to the others to keep an eye for anyone approaching. He peeked his head around the corner.
His mouth sagged open in shock and he forgot himself, coming to his feet and standing fully in the doorway staring into the room, hands limp at his sides. He felt Ashier yank him down, and he lay there, staring, unable to say what he’d seen. Elisa darted her head out, scanned the room, and ducked back to the side. She looked at Magicless first.
“We are lost,” she mouthed.
Magicless shook his head and motioned that he was going in. Ashier gripped him hard, shaking his head no, and a scuffle ensued as Ashier struggled to pull him into a small chamber several doors down. Tredon closed the door quietly behind them and stood facing the others.
Magicless shoved Ashier off of him. “We go in now and we take her,” Magicless said. “She is obviously under some spell. We break the spell and then do what we came here to do.”
“Spell or no, if she has fallen under his influence then we truly are lost,” Elisa said, brows drawn together, her face pale. “Perhaps the ‘balance’ in the prophesy that Anet and Freen spoke of meant that we are the ones out of balance, and she came to restore him fully to power. Who says that the prophecy’s on our side?”
“Impossible,” Magicless hissed. “She’s clearly spelled.” And he is the one who’s been spreading violence and tragedy and grief across the land for thousands of years, not us. Everyone knows that.”
“Yes, but everyone always thinks they are on the right side of history, don’t they? Every villain believes themselves the hero of their own story,” Ashier said.
“Enough with the philosophizing. What do we do now?” Jobin asked. “Whether or not she’s spelled, we still need to do what we came here to do. If we don’t have her on our side, what then?”
Ashier paced from one side of the room to the other. Jobin stood with his hands on Elisa’s shoulders, her head leaning against his chest. Tredon hung on the door, leaning heavily against it. No one said anything.
“I will create a diversion,” Jobin said at long last. “I’m strong enough to be able to make it look convincing by myself. The rest of you go in, restrain Amentis, and try to break through to Alekka. Micah, try to get close enough to touch him so she can see him as he really is. We need to get her back. If not, we do whatever is necessary to kill Amentis.” He paused and looked at Magicless. “Anything necessary, Micah. Anything.”
Magicless’ heart hammered in his chest. He felt like he’d been tossed into a deep ocean and didn’t know how to swim. The promise he’d made to Alekka ages ago came back to him as if she’d made him swear only yesterday. All he could think of was getting her back. He thought he’d been gutted when Alekka had lost her powers and with them any chance at the two of them ever being together, but at least they still had their friendship. Now she might be the enemy. He couldn’t consider such a thing. Could he, could any of them, really kill her? He swallowed thickly and nodded once at Jobin. They’d have to find a way. Amentis had to be stopped at any cost. How many times had Alekka herself said those exact words?
“I’ll go after Alekka. Elisa, you’re with me. Leali, Ashier, and Tredon, the three of you go for Amentis. I’ll join you once I’ve seen to Alekka,” Magicless said.
“You’ll know when I’m ready. There will be a very clear sign,” Jobin said. He embraced Elisa and the two kissed fiercely before Jobin moved to the corner of the room, closed his eyes, and began flowing through the forms he’d been practicing now for months. Magicless watched him slip flawlessly from one position to another without pause, every movement precise and exact. The hair on his arms stood on end. He could see nothing, hear nothing, smell nothing, but he knew there was a storm gathering.
[ 32 ]
Magicless’ pulse thudded in his veins and sweat trickled down his back. Alekka was just down the hall—so close, but he could do nothing but wait. The vision of her laughing and dancing next to Amentis left him cold. He’d recognized the look on her face. It was the look he saw every time she looked at him.
Suddenly, Magicless could hear nothing. It was as if he’d abruptly gone deaf. He raised his head to look up at the others, wondering if they felt it, too, when a concussive force lifted him from his feet and sent him flying through the air. His vision spun—he didn’t know which way was up and which way was down. He couldn’t breathe—there was an incredible pressure on his chest. He felt his body slow and then stop, as if he were suspended in a batch of his father’s bread pudding.
He looked about him, unable to make sense of what he saw. He hung suspended in the air and everything around him was scattered randomly without regard for the basic laws of gravity. The bed in the room hovered in the air vertically, one end at the ceiling and the other just off the floor. It had exploded into a million tiny pieces—only it hadn’t finished exploding. It looked as if it was frozen in ice, all the millions of its pieces hovering there in the air. Magicless realized he was likewise frozen in mid-air, upside down, limbs flung akimbo.
The entire room had exploded outward, as if flung from the impact of a giant’s hammer. Everything had shattered, splattered, and then stopped. He looked for Jobin and saw him just as he’d been moments before, standing calm in a paused maelstrom. Jobin’s eyes were still closed, his face pale, his tendons and muscles bulging with the effort of controlling his power. Magicless felt himself moving slowly, as if through thickened gravy, until he was set gently down on a piece of brick still largely intact in the floo
r. Just as quickly as it had gripped him, the weight abruptly lifted from his chest and he could breathe and hear and move freely again. He stood for a moment in shock, staring at Jobin’s calm and now-open eyes.
“Jobin.” Magicless could barely get the word out.
“I’m fine, Micah, but I won’t be able to hold it forever. We need to get Alekka, deal with Amentis, and get out.” Jobin’s voice was measured but Magicless could hear the edge of strain underneath his words.
“Let’s move,” Leali replied, jumping across the uneven floor, aiming for the larger pieces of debris she could find to balance on. “We no longer have surprise in our favor. Let’s not give them more notice than we must.”
The door was nothing but splinters and dust, and as they emerged into the hallway the full extent of Jobin’s diversion became apparent.
The entire tower was burst open from the inside out. Ragers had been ripped apart where they stood—sprays of their blood hanging suspended in the air. Magicless could see outside through huge, gaping holes where enormous bricks had been only moments before. He had no idea how long Jobin could hold the force of that explosion in check, and he didn’t wait to find out.
Leali was out the door in a flash with Ashier right behind her. He glanced back at Jobin as he ran through the door and saw his friend leaning heavily against one wall, head bowed. The room around him trembled, the clamber of stone rattling against stone deafening. Dust fell from the ceiling above him as the tower settled.
“Micah, go! I’ll help with Jobin. Elisa, go with him,” Tredon said. “Jobin will be fine. We’ll be fine. I won’t leave him.”
Elisa’s full lips flattened and her eyes pinched with concern, but she nodded her assent. With his heart in his throat, Magicless dashed down the hall toward Alekka, moving as fast as he could while jumping over yawning cracks and balancing on chunks of stone. He weaved between Ragers as he went, many whole and floating randomly in the air or scattered along the floor, many more torn asunder from the force of Jobin’s blast. He focused on Alekka, trying not to worry about how long Jobin could hold the line.
He flew into the dining room and saw Alekka standing dazedly on the far side of the table, one hand raised to a bleeding gash on her forehead. Noz was hanging in the corner, lying still in an exploded cage, but he was awake and whole, his eyes shining and watchful.
Amentis had apparently been barreling around the far side of the table heading for the door when Ashier and Leali had burst into the room. Leali sparked and smoked, lightning sizzling out of her palms before fizzling out against an emerald green shield that surrounded Amentis. He could see a faint shimmer blocking Amentis from the door and realized Ashier was holding Amentis, had caged him within the room. Magicless dismissed them with effort—he itched to help, but they would have to take care of Amentis. Alekka was his first concern.
Magicless vaulted the table, itself in the process of being destroyed by the force Jobin had unleashed upon the tower, sending dishes and food flying as he shoved them aside. He leapt to his feet on the far side and sprinted across the remaining distance to Alekka. With great effort, he stopped short of clasping her to him.
“Do you know me?” He asked, as softly as he could.
The room rumbled around them, dust again filling the air and threatening to choke them all. He could feel the ground vibrate under his feet before it settled again into silence. Alekka looked at him as if through a thick fog, confusion clear in her wide eyes. She tried to back away from him.
“I... I don’t know. You’re scaring me!” She replied, her voice shrill. “What’s going on? Why is the castle shaking like that?”
“Alekka! Look at me! Do you know me?” He tried again, the urge to touch her almost overwhelming his self-control.
“Micah, calm yourself.” It was Elisa, pushing him aside and clasping Alekka’s hands in her own. “I’m sorry, Alekka. He’s afraid is all, please forgive him. Here, sit down.”
“What is happening? Where is Amentis?” She looked around the room. On the far side of the room Magicless saw Amentis fighting hard against Leali and Ashier. They had him enmeshed in a frothing bubble. He was contained but clearly not incapacitated, wrestling and struggling against the force containing him. Ashier had a large purplish bump forming on one side of his head and Leali had burns streaking her face. Jobin was leaning heavily against the wall about ten feet from the door, Tredon standing in front of him with hands raised. Ragers had broken free from Jobin’s hold and boiled at the door, trying to get through the barricade Tredon had placed over the door.
The tower shook, shuddered, and the debris around him jumped into motion. Magicless dropped as a hunk of wood flew by his face, almost taking his head with it. He saw Jobin sink to his knees against the wall, his face ashen. Magicless struggled to keep his feet as the room shifted around him and then stopped, frozen around them once more.
“Oh, Amentis!” Alekka shouted, and tried to run to him, but Elisa held her down.
“I’m sorry my dear. I can’t let you do that,” she said, gripping Alekka’s hands tightly.
“But he needs me. Those men are attacking him!” Alekka cried, struggling.
“Alekka, please,” Micah begged. He put himself directly in her line of sight and he summoned every bit of love he felt for her and poured it into his gaze. “Please. Do you know me? Try. Please.”
Her eyes focused on him at last, and he saw a glimmer of something deep within them. But then they shifted from their normal, gentle brown to a brilliant emerald-green hue, filled with rage.
“You intend to kill him. I can see it in your eyes. I won’t let you harm him, Boy Without Magic.” Her tone was sharp and cold.
Her words wounded him more than any magic ever could have done. She had never called him anything but his given name. He tried to harden his heart against it—against what he might have to do.
“Alekka, my name is...my name is Micah, remember?” He spoke his name clearly, and with pride.
“I won’t let you destroy him,” she said again, but it was not Alekka’s voice. It was a deep voice, many voices whirling and diving together in a manner that caused the hair on Micah’s arms to stand on end. She raised her arms and advanced on him. He backed away from her, dropping his sword to the floor. He would not harm her, couldn’t harm her. No matter what happened, he had to believe he could break through to her.
He heard a shout behind him and turned to see Leali collapse in a blaze of fire. Ashier rushed to her side, trying to hold his attack on Amentis and shield Leali from Amentis’ magefire. He was badly injured, blood dripping down his face and the cloth burned away from his right leg.
Tredon roared, and Micah spun to see him trying to help Ashier while holding the barrier on the door. Micah heard Jobin snarl in frustration as his grasp on his spell slipped free once more, the room shifting violently under his feet and throwing all of them to the ground. Tredon fell hard, the barrier on the door vanished, and Ragers spilled into the room. Tredon roared again, crawling toward Jobin, who was down on hands and knees, and Micah couldn’t see his face. In an instant, the two of them were swarmed by Ragers.
“Jobin, stop! You’ll lose yourself, stop!” Elisa screamed at him. Tears streaked from her eyes but she held Alekka firmly.
We are losing. We are all going to die. Micah looked at Alekka, and the rage kindling there, directed at him, at them, at her companions. He had to get to Amentis. If he could touch the man, he could break whatever he had done to Alekka, he knew it suddenly, clear as day. He could stop his attack against Leali and Ashier. He might be able to save them all.
“Hold her here, Elisa, there’s something I have to do!” He shouted. Micah scrambled to his feet, struggling against the violent shaking of the room around them. He jumped the table, cursing as the debris held stationary in the air sliced at his body as he pushed his way through. He was mad with fear, for Jobin and the risk he was taking, for Leali and Tredon and Ashier and Elisa—and for Alekka, Alekka above all.<
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He barreled his way right through a thick, blazing stream of Amentis’ magefire, leapt into the air as far as he could launch himself, and wrapped the man in his thickly muscled arms, twining his legs around Amentis’ slight form. The whirlwind of power around them stopped like a candle flame snuffed by a heavy wind. They were both carried to the ground from the impact of Micah’s weight.
Amentis screamed in fury as they rolled to a stop on the trembling floor. “What are you!” he screamed in Micah’s ear as he struggled fiercely to free himself. “What have you done!” His voice dropped into a vicious growl as he fought madly against Micah’s hold, but Micah held fast.
“You have no power here, Amentis,” Micah answered. “Not now.”
Amentis was scrawny, nothing but skin over bone, but he fought viciously, and Micah struggled to hold on.
“How dare you come here and attack my castle. I should have killed everyone in that pathetic little town you call home. You can be sure I won’t make that mistake again,” Amentis growled, spit flying from the corners of his mouth.
Micah said nothing. He breathed deeply and tightened his grip. The room gave another violent jump, tossing them around on the ground. Micah held on, pressing the length of his body against Amentis to keep him pinned to the floor. He frantically sought out Alekka, and when he found her Micah’s eyes went wide.
Her body was stiff, her arms and legs jutting straight out to her sides, mouth open and eyes staring wide at him and Amentis.
Micah could hear nothing over the sound of the tower grinding itself to dust. Hold on Jobin, he thought.
“Micah.”
It was Noz. The man was kneeling at his side, somehow holding himself oddly still in the whirling chaos around them. Amentis let out a keening cry and redoubled his struggle in Micah’s arms. “Let me,” Noz said softly, and placed a hand to either side of Amentis’ face. He bowed his head, and Amentis’ cries rose to screams.
