The Elder Stones Saga Boxset: Books 1-3

by D. K. Holmberg

  He pushed on the stone, trying to Slide through it, but he couldn’t. Twisting his sword, he attempted to pry it free, but the blade bent and then snapped, the end of it sliding across the floor and reaching Lareth.

  “Lareth!” Daniel yelled. “You have to get up!”

  Lareth didn’t answer. He didn’t even move. He had to be sedated with something similar to slithca. Daniel glanced back to the fallen Forgers.

  He Slid, emerging back with Carth.

  There were more Forgers here.

  “What happened?” Carth asked when he appeared.

  “I found Lareth, but…”

  “You can’t get to him.”

  Daniel shook his head. “I can’t Slide into his cell, and I can’t break through it.”

  “I might be able to,” she said.

  “We have to get out of here first.”

  “I’m not so sure we’ll be able to. If we run, they’ll move him, and we won’t be able to find him again.”

  “What choice do we have?”

  There were nearly a dozen Forgers, and Alera. They all held the slender rods, weapons that Daniel was all too familiar with. If one of those weapons struck him, he wouldn’t survive. They could use the power within it to change him and then control him, the way they had controlled Lucy.

  “We fight,” Carth said, squeezing her eyes shut.

  “Why do I get the sense that you don’t want to do that?”

  “Because I have avoided using my magic—all of my magic—for quite some time. It’s become unstable.”

  “What sort of magic?”

  “This kind.”

  Heat began to build. The shadows shimmered and flickered, and Carth raised her arms and then pushed out.

  Power slammed into the Forgers, and they were thrown back against the walls.

  Daniel stood frozen in place, but not Carth.

  She slid on her shadows and darted around the room, slashing across each of the Forgers’ throats, cutting them down. It happened in little more than the blink of an eye. When she was done, she stood in front of Alera.

  Alera simply watched her.

  “That was impressive. And now it’s my turn.”

  Some sort of power pressed out from Alera.

  The energy of it sizzled through the room, crackling against Carth, who seemed to be doing all she could to simply hold her barrier in place.

  “You expended too much, Carthenne Rel. We know your limitations. We have trained. Studied. And we have become like our enemies in order to survive.”

  Daniel looked at the others with a different understanding. They were not Forgers, then, but something else.

  Could they be responsible for the attack on the Aisl? The Forgers hadn’t succeeded all these years, and they had attacked after his father had had the tchalit meet with the C’than representatives…

  “Do you think you’re the only one who has studied over the years?” Carth asked.

  “Ah, but your studies have been ineffective, Carthenne Rel.”

  Carth grunted, trying to hold her hands in place. She glanced back at Daniel. “This is the time when you could be helpful.”

  Daniel blinked. What could he do? He couldn’t fight, not against someone like Alera who had power he didn’t even understand. It would’ve been hard enough for him to even consider fighting someone like Carth, and at least he thought he understood some of her abilities.

  He could Slide.

  He attempted to but couldn’t get past the barrier.

  “Carth?”

  Alera grinned. “You will see that we have learned a great number of things about the limitations of power. That’s how the C’than have managed to maintain the balance.”

  “Doing this won’t reset the balance,” Daniel said. “I’ve seen what the Forgers are willing to do.”

  “The Forgers aren’t the end of the plan,” she said.

  Carth pushed back, fighting against her, but the force seemed less than it had been before. Whatever effort Carth was exerting was beginning to overwhelm her.

  What happened when she failed? What would Alera do?

  “What is it that you plan?” Daniel asked.

  Alera pushed Carth back, and they were forced toward the doorway. “What we plan? Unfortunately, you won’t be alive long enough to learn what we plan.”

  “This isn’t your plan,” Carth said through gritted teeth.

  “No. I’m not responsible for it, but I am the one carrying it out.”

  “You have betrayed your oaths,” Carth said.

  “My oaths?” Alera laughed, a harsh and bitter sound. “What an intriguing thing for you to claim, Carthenne Rel. How many oaths have you sworn over the years? How many times have you betrayed those oaths? I find it interesting for you to be the one to accuse another of betraying their oaths.”

  “I have never betrayed the oaths that bind me.”

  “And what oaths are those?”

  “The ones I live by.”

  Carth pushed. Heat and shadow mixed together and exploded against Alera, but whatever magical shell she created held them back.

  Alera only smiled. “You are mistaken, Carthenne Rel. And now you have brought others into this. Elaeavn was meant to fall. It was needed. Much like other places have fallen over the years.”

  His father wouldn’t have known that. He had a hard time believing his father would do anything that would risk the city. Which meant that he had been betrayed, too.

  “You only want them to fall so that you can acquire the Elder Stones.”

  “That is but a part. We need them to fall so that power can be redistributed. Too much is concentrated there. Look at Lareth. Look at the abilities he has. Such abilities should not exist unchecked, and yet within Elaeavn, abilities like his run rampant.”

  “He is not the only one with such abilities.”

  “No, but other places have been destroyed over the years, as you very well know.”

  Carth grunted.

  They were forced backward and down the stairs. The power of Alera’s magic built, and while Carth resisted, he could feel how she struggled. The strain was written on her face more clearly than he had seen it on her before.

  “If we head down here, we won’t be able to get out,” Daniel said.

  Carth grunted. “I’m not giving up on this.”

  “We could Slide—”

  “Can you?”

  Alera pushed, and Daniel was forced down another few steps. Each time she pushed, he was forced down more, and it wouldn’t be long before he would be squeezed.

  What would Alera do then?

  They wouldn’t be able to withstand her power, and maybe this was her way of pushing them back, of trying to get them down into the prison with Lareth. If they were captured, if they were forced down into the cell, then there might not be any escape. He didn’t want to suffer from the same sedative they had used on Lareth. He’d experienced slithca once, and it had been unpleasant.

  “The tunnel gets narrow up here,” Daniel said.

  “I hope so,” Carth answered.

  “Why?”

  “Because I have to use less energy to resist.”

  They turned the corner. As they did, Carth sagged but managed to regroup quickly.

  “How long will you be able to hold us up?”

  “Until we get down there,” Carth said.

  “But I can’t get into the cell. I’ve already told you that.”

  “It’s not so much you getting in as it is her.”

  “Why?”

  “She holds the key to reaching Lareth in the cell.”

  Alera rounded the corner and shoved against Carth. The force of it caused Carth to slip and stumble back a few steps. Daniel caught her, holding her up, but he wouldn’t be able to keep her standing against magic like this.

  He still didn’t understand what Carth was after, and why she intended to allow Alera to force her back. Once they reached the cell, they would be trapped. The room was entirely
enclosed, all stone that prevented Sliding.

  That couldn’t be what Carth intended.

  She slipped again, and Daniel was there, propping her up. Her shoulders sagged and her arms trembled. With each step, Daniel found himself supporting more and more of Carth’s weight as they continued to make their way down.

  She wouldn’t be able to keep going for much longer.

  He glanced over his shoulder. Where was the entrance to the cell? They had been descending for long enough that he thought they should be near enough to see it.

  They turned again, and there it was.

  Even if they reached it, how would he open the door? The last time, he had Slid into the room. Would he be able to Slide this time, or would Alera hold him back?

  “The door was locked,” he said to Carth.

  “Let me take care of that,” she said.

  “I’m not sure how well you can take care of it all at this point,” he said.

  Carth slumped forward, and Daniel continued to drag her down the stairs.

  When they reached the door, she stretched one hand out behind her, pressing it against the door. Shadows and heat exploded from her hand, slamming into the door, and it shuddered open.

  She collapsed in his arms. Somehow, she still managed to hold on with her magic, still pushing away, but for how much longer?

  And when her power failed…

  Then Alera would win.

  Daniel couldn’t believe the Great Watcher would allow them to have come so far, to have finally found Lareth, only to be unable to rescue him. It seemed a cruel joke.

  They staggered into the room, and as before, Lareth lay unmoving in the middle of the cell. This time, Daniel had to drag Carth with him, trying to keep her upright as Alera forced them back.

  “What were you thinking you could accomplish here, Rel?” Alera asked.

  Carth managed to hold on to her power, pushing out with it, and Daniel couldn’t deny that he had the same question. What did Carth intend? It didn’t seem they would be able to accomplish anything like this.

  “Lareth,” Carth said.

  Alera laughed. “Lareth is not going to be of much help. We made sure of that. We didn’t want him to cause too much trouble before we were able to bring him to the Ai’thol. And once they have him, we can move on with the rest of our plans with Elaeavn.”

  “It was you and not the Forgers,” Daniel said.

  “We used their knowledge. And we used their plan for him. Exchanging Lareth for that knowledge was an unfortunate but necessary price.”

  They were responsible for Lucy, and not the Forgers? Daniel glanced over his shoulder to Lareth. If they could wake him, they might be able to even the odds. Daniel knew how powerful Lareth was. But even if he came around, if they had injured him badly enough, there might be nothing Lareth could do.

  Carth remained still. Her power continued to explode out from her, but Daniel could tell it was weakening.

  “You could be useful,” Alera said, looking over to Daniel. “The C’than have need of soldiers. We can augment you even better than the Ai’thol.”

  “I’m no soldier.”

  “No? These bodies would say otherwise.”

  “It was a necessity. I was attempting to rescue Lareth.”

  She laughed. “There will be no rescue of Lareth. We have made entirely certain that none of his people could reach him.”

  “What of Carth?”

  “Carth is troublesome, but she won’t be able to resist for much longer. You see, we’ve studied her over the last few decades. She’s not the only one with her particular talents, though she does have them in a unique combination. And even Carth would tell you that there are ways of defeating someone with shadows and flame.”

  Daniel didn’t know anything about the flame, but he had seen her wield the shadows. She was potent, but weakened as she was, there might be nothing more she could do.

  “Let me go,” Carth said.

  “You can’t even stand,” Daniel said.

  “That’s what she needs to believe,” Carth whispered.

  Daniel slowly lowered Carth. If Carth had a plan, he wasn’t going to be the reason it failed. When she was on the ground, Alera pushed forward.

  Daniel backed up, pressing his back against the stone.

  “Lareth,” he hissed, trying to get his attention.

  Alera continued to approach, and Carth lay there, unmoving.

  “I never thought that I would be the one to bring down the great Carthenne Rel.”

  “What makes you think you’ve brought me down?”

  Alera hesitated before grinning. “Still so stubborn. I’ll admit that you have proven a challenge, but everybody falls eventually.”

  She pushed on her magic. The hairs on Daniel’s arms stood on end.

  Carth resisted.

  Alera continued to push, fighting, but Carth managed to keep on resisting.

  Standing over her, Alera pressed down with her magic, and Carth simply lay there, power flowing out from her. Heat began to build. Daniel had felt the same presence before, when Carth had mixed whatever magic she possessed together, somehow using the combination to explode, throwing the Forgers off her.

  Her power flooded out from her now, and Alera was thrown upward. She slammed into the ceiling.

  As she came down, Carth leapt back, appearing much stronger than Daniel would have thought possible considering how weak she had looked all of a few moments before. Carth pressed another explosion out, and Alera slammed into the bars of the cell.

  Carth sagged. How much energy was it taking from her? How much more strength did she have?

  Alera shook herself off and got to her feet. “Clever. You were feigning your weakness, but even that wasn’t enough. As you’ll see, we are prepared for such efforts out of you, Carthenne Rel.”

  Another burst of power surged out from Alera.

  When it struck Carth, she was thrown nearly to the doorway.

  Daniel attempted to Slide, but it failed.

  He threw himself at Alera, to keep her from harming Carth if nothing else. Alera caught him, her magic holding him in the air.

  “You will stay right here,” she said.

  Daniel tried to resist, tried to Slide, but he couldn’t move.

  Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Lareth lying there. What would Lareth do? He would have managed to escape. He would have managed not to have gotten caught—but then he hadn’t. Lareth was trapped here the same way Daniel was.

  That fact as much as any strengthened him. It was a strange thing to realize that Lareth—a man so many in the city had idolized for as long as he could remember—was no more powerful than him. Defeated… and it wasn’t even by the people he’d long fought.

  That might be the worst part of it. The people of Elaeavn believed the Forgers responsible, but they weren’t. They wanted Lareth, but they hadn’t been the ones who had managed to capture him.

  Alera exploded power, striking Carth. Somehow, she managed to hold him in the air at the same time, and he was forced to watch as Carth was thrown back and back. With one more push, Carth sagged, collapsing into the empty cavern behind. Daniel waited, half-expecting her to get up, but she didn’t.

  “And now that Rel has been dealt with, it’s time to deal with you… and then to make the exchange.”

  41

  Lucy

  Small snippets of memory came to Lucy.

  She lost track of time, lost track of almost everything, including herself. Every so often, she was aware of the fact that she remained a captive, that she was trapped somewhere by the Forgers, brought here by the Architect, but other times she knew nothing.

  In the moments of clarity, she recognized that she had control over her abilities.

  Occasionally, she would attempt to Slide, but any effort to Slide beyond the cell failed. Whatever metal they used trapped her here. She could Slide within the cell, though, and she realized that her control over her ability to Slide was greate
r than it had been before.

  Had she been practicing?

  She recalled so little of what had happened. As much as she wanted to remember, no memories came to her the way they should.

  Her Sight allowed her to See within the cell well enough that she could make out the smoothness of the walls. Sections of them seemed slightly brighter than the rest, though she couldn’t tell why. No sounds came to her, other than that of her heart beating and her steady breathing, her constant companion in the days she’d been trapped.

  Or had it been longer than days?

  Lucy no longer knew. Perhaps it had only been a day or two, but she had a sense that it was longer—possibly much longer.

  Confinement gave her endless opportunity to sit and work through everything she had experienced, but she never came up with any satisfactory answers. As she drifted off to sleep, strange visions flashed before her eyes, but she didn’t know whether they were real or not.

  In them, she saw others from Elaeavn. She knew them by the brightness of their eyes, and even recognized some of them. All were men, and most were Elvraeth, though a few of them were from the palace. Why would those images flash in her mind? From what she saw, it seemed she wasn’t alone in having the strange metal implant buried in the back of her head.

  She drifted off to sleep, jolting awake with other visions. She saw villages destroyed, and in one of them, metal tore through, knocking down the walls, devastating everything. It left her feeling as if she had been there, but standing off to the side and observing.

  If she had been there, why wouldn’t she have intervened?

  Visions like these came time and again, each time leaving Lucy with a troubled sense, as if she needed to do something—anything.

  Most of the visions were painful, filling her mind with imagery and sounds and smells. The screaming seemed far too real, but that had to be within her mind, too. Maybe it was part of whatever the Architect was doing to her, whatever torment he was trying to inflict, his way of forcing her to See exactly what he wanted her to See. As much as she fought against it, straining to hide from those images, she could not. They remained, lingering in her mind, something about them calling to her, trying to force her to remember.

  In other visions, she saw enormous cities, places that reminded her of Elaeavn but were clearly not. None of them were along the seashore, and in none of them did she ever return to her home, forever trapped somewhere else.