“That’s what I’m counting on. If this was Demas, then it wasn’t just some random show of power. It was calculated, everything he does is.” She locked eyes with the mayor, “He was your nephew, Elena. Your family. I’m not going to hide here and let him have his way with Elementals just because they’re not protected by the center. If Demas is in Dalhurst, no one there is safe.”
“That is exactly my point. If he did this to lure you away from the center, how do we know he’s not going to attack while you’re gone?”
“He won’t.”
“And you know this how?” Cyril asked.
“Because it’s too easy. He did this to get my attention, he knew that once we connected the dots to who the victim was, I wouldn’t stay away. If he wants me in Dalhurst, I will be there. I need to play along. Besides, we can’t very well know how to find him from here. We know he was in Dalhurst and there might be clues to where he might be hiding out and if–” she paused.
“If what?”
“If he’s alone. We need to find out if he’s alone or not, so we know how to attack.”
Elena’s face twitched, “you’re planning to attack him?”
“I don’t think we have much of a choice. He won’t stop until we stop him.”
“And if you’re right and he didn’t come back on his own?”
“Then we figure it out. I just know that staying here and waiting is not going to do us any good,” Ruby took a deep breath in and let it out slowly as if to calm her own nerves. “Look, I don’t want to put anyone in danger. And Elena, I understand if you’d prefer not to go considering what happened.”
“What happened is exactly why I will be going with you. If you are truly set on seeking this monster out, I will help you. I haven’t seen Ren since he was a child, I’m sure he needs family right now. But we are not going unprepared.”
She was surprised Elena decided to join. When they broke the news to her about the victim in Dalhurst being her nephew, she wanted nothing to do with the situation. From what Ruby could gather, Elena and her brother had a falling out when she was chosen to take the elder seat, and he had moved his family across the country to get away from her. She was forbidden to contact her nephews, and they grew up with very little knowledge of their elder aunt. Ruby wondered what the reunion might look like and almost resented the idea that she would be caught in the middle of yet another Elemental family drama. Her run-ins with Liam’s parents painted a good visual of what it could entail, and she was not looking forward to it in the least.
“Okay. Thank you,” she said, trying to sound as grateful as she could, “Liam suggested we take the knights, at least some of them.”
“We will join as well,” Cyril added.
“We?”
“Jake and I. He is still a knight, is he not?”
She could sense Liam tense as his mouth barely parted. “Great.”
“Yes, of course,” Ruby nodded, remembering the conversation she had with Cyril before they stormed the old library in Lakeside. “I thought you might prefer if he stayed behind. To keep him safe that is.”
“I think he’ll be plenty safe there,” his gaze shifted to her and she understood immediately what he meant. He had asked her before to keep his son out of harm’s way, and she gave her word to do so. Leaving Jake behind meant she couldn’t watch out for him. It seemed that despite her lack of trust in Cyril, he would not entrust his safety to anyone but her. The added pressure was not something she wanted but she had to admit that he wasn’t wrong, if they had to fight, Jake’s best chance was by her side. “And I’m certain that Elena could use some support in this time of need,” he added, giving the mayor a tight squeeze of the hand.
Elena’s eyes met Cyril’s and she whispered a quiet thank you in return. The years of ruling together side by side had formed a bond between them that Ruby could not begin to understand. She used to think it was romantic somehow, that there was a love there that neither of them could act on, but this was something much more than that. Whatever her own feelings were when it came to Cyril, she had no doubt that he would die for Elena and that the mayor would do the same for him. If she could only get them to extend that bond to the rest of the elders.
“Well, if it’s going to be a jolly field trip, Zag and Leah should tag along. Earth House should have a representative in tow.” Myriam chimed in to break the silence. “And they would hate to be left behind.”
“At least Zag would,” Harvey added with a chuckle.
“I’d like to bring Nola as well,” Ruby added. “It would be good to have another AetherBorn with us.”
“Are you sure she’ll be up to it?” Liam asked, finally able to get a word in.
“Nola? Are you kidding? She’s probably readier than the rest of us! Between her and Leah, we have some serious fighting power on our side.”
“And you. Obviously,” he smiled.
“Right. Which reminds me, I need to go see Zag before we leave. I have an idea for the sword that might make it a little less–” she fished for the right word, “glaring.”
“So, it’s settled then? We’re going to Dalhurst?” Cyril asked.
She moved her gaze over each one of them, making sure there was unanimity in their eyes. When she was confident that they agreed with her decision to go, she pushed herself off the chair to signal the end of the meeting. “We leave in the morning.” She said and turned to the door, walking out before any of them had a chance to back out.
Chapter 11
We might die
The stones in the hilt of the sword reflected the overhead lights, teasing their rainbow reflections across the walls as Ruby turned the blade in her hands.
“You wanna do what?” Zag asked in disbelief.
“Make it smaller. I want to make it more portable.”
“Okay,” he sang, dragging out the word. “But, like, how exactly?”
She sat the sword down on the metal table and the clang of iron on steel echoed down the hall like wind passing through a seashell. “I was hoping you could help with that,” she finally said.
“Huh? How?”
“Remember when we broke the sword apart? Into the five pieces?”
“Girl, you gone bats or something? I wasn’t there.”
“I know,” she sighed, “pay attention please. The way we did it the first time was to have me take all of the sword power into myself, until it was nothing but metal. Metal I melted until it snapped into parts. Then, I used the earth as a conduit to redirect the energy back into the sword pieces.”
“Like a super creeptastic recycling program?”
“Kind of. I guess.”
“So, you’re thinking, what? That you could heat the sword enough to melt it?”
“Yeah. But then what?”
“I can create a mold for you to melt the sword into again. Like a dagger or something?”
“Could you? Without compromising it as a weapon?”
“Well, yeah! But why can’t you just ask Harry or Myriam?”
She bit her lower lip, eyes to the ground before looking back up to meet his gaze. “I’m afraid they won’t like the idea of tampering with the sword again. I doubt any of the elders would. But honestly, this thing is huge and way too obvious to carry around with me.”
“And you need it with you? In Dalhurst?”
“Maybe not but it would be good to have the upper hand just in case. And I’m not really comfortable leaving it unattended.”
“Can I ask you something?” He said, waiting until she nodded in agreement before continuing. “How come you didn’t just keep the swords power? Why put it back?”
“It wasn’t mine to keep. I don’t even know how to explain it really. It’s like I can borrow it, same as I can lend it but never for good.”
“A symbiosis.”
“Yeah.” Exactly like that, “So can you do it?”
Zag rolled up his hemp shirt sleeves and saluted her. “I can do anything, madam! This is no biggie. I’ll
have the molds ready in an hour, just need to run some numbers first. Make sure we don’t mess this baby up!” He ran a finger over the blade carefully, “Hey, so you nervous at all?”
“About what?”
“Dalhurst.”
“Because of Demas? Because he might be there? With other deities? Because we might die?” She counted off the questions until she had no breath left to speak. The fire in her fingers danced and she could see embers begin to jump off her. Her eyes met his, trying to appear calm but she knew the sweat on her brow was betraying her.
“Girl, calm down. I meant because you’ll be meeting new Elementals again.”
“Oh.”
“Yeah, you’re tense, dude. Maybe get some rest before you blow up like this in Dalhurst. Ren is pretty chill but from what I know, Elijah gets his back up pretty quickly.”
“How long have you known them?” She asked, trying to change the subject away from her own shortcomings.
“Ren and E? I don’t even know. Like forever. I met Ren way back in the day, in school. Didn’t even know he was an Air until he told me he was ditching town with his folks. He hated the elders, you know, wanted to help with the resistance. I think his parents found out and got him the hell outta here before Elena could make sense of it. I feel bad for her. I don’t think she ever knew why her family left her out of the blue like that.”
“Parents do weird things to be with their kids,” she said, thinking of her own parents and everything they had done to stay close to her.
“I guess. It’s too bad too. She would have gotten along great with Sam, he was just as gung-ho about power as–” Zag stopped himself, his hazel eyes filling with water at the memory of Ren’s murdered brother. “Well, don’t much matter now, does it?”
Ruby wanted to reach over and hug him, to offer some form of encouragement but thought better of it. Zag was much too prideful to accept condolences or to admit any sort of defeat and to let her hold him, help him in any way, would mean that he could not do something on his own. Stupid, stupid man, she yelled in her head but kept her hands in her pockets and her words buried in her throat. The best way to help Zag right now was to keep him talking.
“So, Ren and Elijah. How long have they been a thing?”
“I think literally since Ren came out. We didn’t keep in touch that much, but I kept tabs on social. It’ll be pretty sweet to meet him in person!”
“Not stalking him from afar like a complete psycho, you mean?” She laughed.
“Shut up,” he chuckled and pumped his fist on her shoulder.
“Come on, don’t lie. Do you know their blood types? Where they live?” Ruby continued to tease, “shoe size?”
“Girl, you best be trippin’. Queen or not, you better stop that nonsense, or you can give cosmetic surgery to the blade on your own.”
She lifted her arms in defeat, still smiling. “Okay, okay. You made your point. I’m going to go get a snack and come back later.”
Running a finger over the Onyx in the swords handle, Ruby pulled a small bit of power from the sword before letting it go. She let it swirl in her body, encircling every molecule and blood muscle until she could feel her heart race a few beats faster. Being near the sword was better than any energy drink she’d ever had, and she was hoping that what her and Zag were about to do would not take that away. “I’m really glad you’re coming with us.” She added as she started to make her way out.
“Me too,” Zag said in almost a whisper. “And Ruby?” He called after her as she was halfway out the door.
“Yeah?”
“I do know where they live, for security purposes, of course.” He winked, sending her laughing down the hallway.
Chapter 12
Pretty easy
The line rang several times before her dad finally picked up the phone. This was her fourth attempt at trying to reach them, and she was both relieved and nervous when his gruff voice huffed on the other end. “Dad?”
“Oh, hey, Rue! What’s going on?”
“Nothing. I tried to call you a bunch of times already. Where were you guys?”
“Just out in the yard. Your mom got some new blueberry bushes, and well, you know how that goes.”
She had no idea how it would go; Ruby had never planted anything in her life and with her powers she could grow whatever she wanted without even so much as a ray of sunshine.
“Right. So, mom’s home too?”
“Yes, of course. Rue, are you sure everything is alright?”
“Everything is fine. I just wanted to let you know that I’ll be out of town for a bit.”
“Out of town? What for? With Liam?”
She took a deep breath in, steadying herself to start the conversation. “Yeah. And the elders. And some other people.”
“I think I should get your mom on the phone too; this doesn’t sound like nothing.”
“No, dad, wait! It’s really not a huge deal. We’re just going to Dalhurst for a few days.”
“Dalhurst? That’s pretty damn far. Isn’t that where that kid died; the one that’s been all over the news?”
“Yeah. It’s why we’re going actually. That kid was an Elemental. Elena’s nephew actually. We think it might be–” she sighed heavily, “Demas.”
“Demas? That’s it, I’m getting your mom. Layla!”
She could hear her dad’s slippers shuffle across the floor as he quickly made his way to the backyard. “Dad. Seriously. Please don’t put mom on. We’re leaving tomorrow and I just wanted you to know so you wouldn’t worry.”
“If you don’t want us to worry then you won’t go.”
“That’s not really an option, dad.”
“And why not? Why is it that you’re the one that always has to be dragged into this?”
“You know why.”
“AetherBorn or not, it shouldn’t just be you in danger all the time. Why are you chasing this Demas person anyhow? Just leave it alone and keep yourself safe,” he whispered almost in a prayer. “I need to call Liam and speak with him. This is ridiculous.”
“Dad! Liam doesn’t control me. And I have obligations. To the Elementals, to the other AetherBorns, even to grandma! I am not arguing over this. We leave tomorrow, I will text to check in. That’s the end of it.”
“What about school, Rue? Your classes?”
Time to rip the Band-Aid off.
“So, that’s the other thing. I’m kind of going to take some time off from school. Just until things settle down at the center.”
“Oh, for goodness sake! Layla! Where are you?” He yelled on the other end.
“Jesus, dad. Calm down. It’s not forever.”
“Not forever? This whole AetherBorn thing is ruining your life, Rue! How can you not see that?”
“What would be better? If I pretended I was never chosen for this? If I walked away from the sword? Like grandma? Maybe killed myself like her too?” She was fuming. She didn’t expect this to go over smoothly, but she was hoping for at least a bit more support. Her dad had always been in her corner, and she was starting to feel hurt that he wasn’t this time when it truly mattered. “Would that be a better life; do you think?”
“That’s not what I’m saying at all. I just don’t understand how, in such a short time, my daughter could go from having the time of her life and studying to be a photographer to some Queen of the Elementals. It’s like something out of a movie, Rue.”
“I know. It’s a lot. I get it. But dad, this is my life now. I was chosen for this. More than that, I want it! I am really good at this and I want to see it through. I can help so many people! And I can’t leave Liam, you know that too.”
“He’s just a boy, darling.”
“Would you leave mom?”
Silence on the other end of the phone told her she had won this round. They could circle back to it another time but her best bet at the moment was to get off the phone before her mom joined to go for round two. “Hey dad?”
“Yeah, kiddo?”
“If this was a movie, who do you think would play me?” she smiled, hoping he could hear it on his end.
“Someone very foolish.” Her dad laughed. “Great! Your mom just walked in; I’m going to put her on.”
“Sorry! Gotta go! I’ll talk to her later, okay?” Ruby yelled into the phone, hanging it up before her mother even said a word. She rubbed her forehead with the back of her palm, drenching it in the sweat that had pooled in the crease of her brows. Going back and forth with her dad left her more drained than any physical fight she might have coming her way.
Kicking Demas’ ass is starting to look pretty easy right about now.
Chapter 13
A happy ending of sorts
Ruby trailed behind Liam through the crowd, trying her best to keep up with him until she was almost sprinting down the train platform. She had regretted not taking a backpack with her as soon as they got their tickets and was now dragging the spinning wheels of her carry-on across the poorly tiled floor like a dead body. I’m going to kill Shay, she thought, cursing her friend’s name for making her doubt how many outfit changes she would need for the trip.
She dodged a group of teenagers in a quick spin of her heels, but her suitcase was not quite as agile, groaning at the turn and knocking her to the side until she almost fell onto the train tracks.
“Goddammit!” She cursed at her luggage, kicking it lightly with her foot.
“You okay?” Liam yelled out, well ahead of her at this point.
“I’m fine! Be right there!”
The sign in front of her hummed with electricity, whispering the information to the crowd below it. Dalhurst, Platform 9. Her lips formed the words as she drudged closer to the center of the platform where the rest of the group was already settled on the benches. Tossing her suitcase on top of Liam’s, she crumpled onto the concrete bench and let her arms slouch at her sides. It was another hour or so until the train came through, and she relished the thought of relaxing for a few moments.
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