“Loku?”
But the god didn’t answer her. Her palms grew damp, and her mouth went dry. Perhaps I should turn back…
But then she remembered Dev’s betrayal and Kell’s anger. There was no reason to go back. She was better off on her own.
She kept moving forward, replaying Varrik’s reaction when he saw her. He almost seemed surprised to learn she was his daughter. She couldn’t believe him when he said her mother had left him, though, not based on the hours her mother spent crying over him. It had to be the other way around.
Or maybe he was telling the truth, and her mother’s tears were due to regret rather than heartache. And if that was the case, why did her mother leave him? And did she know she was pregnant at the time?
A long, narrow lake cut off the path she’d been walking on. She stopped and pressed her palms against her temples. She didn’t remember this. Where am I?
The placid water reflected the twinkling stars overhead, undisturbed by the chaos in her life. She stared at it, wishing she could harness its peace.
A ripple formed in the water, disturbing its surface with the circles. The waves grew faster, higher, with each new ripple. The lake came toward her, licking her toes. A new chill raced through her body, setting off every warning bell. She backed away.
A wall of water rose from the lake, taking the same shape of a hand as the prior attack. Arden raised her shield and ran away from it, praying her feet would be fast enough to carry her out of its reach. The hand of water slapped against the earth behind her. Its remnants rained down in her, soaking her dress, but she’d managed to escape it.
She paused between two vine-covered arches to ease the burning in her lungs. Her attacker had to be near. She needed to let Dev and the Mage Primus know he was here.
The air around her became charged, and her stomach dropped. Another attack was coming. She darted forward, but the knee-high shrub ahead quadrupled in size, blocking the path. She turned around, trying to find a new way out, only to be greeted by a growing wall of plants.
“Loku, help!”
The vines on the arches slithered toward her like snakes. Her heart pounded. She tried to elude them, but one managed to snare her ankle. She fell. The taste of blood filled her mouth. She battled with the ever tightening vine on her ankle. Another snatched her wrist, pulling her back.
The plants closed in around her, blocking out the sky. They coiled around her arms, her legs, her throat. The more she struggled, the tighter they squeezed. She screamed.
Then a flash of magic pierced her shield. Waves of pain rocked her body before she lost consciousness.
Chapter 29
Cinder bolted out the door as soon as Dev opened it. The claw-marks scratched into the door revealed the fire wolf would have carved his way through the door if Dev hadn’t released him when he did.
This doesn’t bode well.
A chill hung in the air and constricted his airways. He cursed Arden’s hair-trigger temper over and over again while chasing after Cinder. When he found her, he was going to lock her up in those mithral chains just so she would quit being a danger to herself and everyone around her.
He caught up with Kell and Varrik. “Any sign of her?”
Kell shook his head.
Cinder plunged deeper into the gardens, not caring if he stayed on the paths. Dev struggled to keep him in sight under the dim light of the one moon. Magic rushed past him, drawn to a source gathering it up ahead. He ran until his legs burned, hoping he could catch the person behind the attacks before he harmed Arden.
A thunderclap ripped apart the silence. The shockwaves that followed sent them all sprawling on the gravel. A woman’s scream faded into the distance. Dev’s gut knotted up when he heard it.
Arden.
He jumped to his feet and raced toward the source, running into a half-dead hedge as tall as him. The leaves withered before his eyes, revealing black branches. They snapped in his hands, but still prevented him from moving forward.
“Arden!” he called. No reply came back. Kell and Varrik joined him, but their calls were answered by the unnatural silence.
The hedge finally gave way to allow them in a small circle. Tangled vines covered the ground, also in the final stages of death. Cinder sniffed the area, whining the whole time. The heavy aura of magic hung in the air with the familiar taint of law. But Arden was nowhere to be seen.
“Dev, come here,” Kell said. He went to where the prince knelt. “Recognize this?”
The blood rushed from his head, and he fell to his knees.
There, dangling from Kell’s fingers, was Arden’s necklace.
***
The Empress burst into the room, a scowl on her face. “Tell me what happened.”
Dev looked around the Empress’s study, wondering who would answer first. Varrik clutched the necklace in his hand and stared straight ahead. Kell paced back and forth, raking his fingers through his hair. Arano stood by the window overlooking the gardens. None of them said anything.
And they didn’t have to. He was the Soulbearer’s Protector. He was the one who lost Arden. He stood. “The Soulbearer has disappeared.”
“That’s the second Soulbearer you’ve managed to lose in less than a year.”
Shame squeezed the air from his lungs, but he couldn’t dwell on it. What mattered now was finding Arden. “We think she was taken by the person behind the attacks.”
Marist’s face went blank. “I pray to Ivis that’s not the truth.” She went to her desk and opened the locked drawer, pulling out a crystal attached to a leather cord. “Let me help you find her.”
She unrolled a map of the Empire and dangled the crystal over it, letting it sway as she slowly moved from one end of the border to the other. Her lips murmured silent words as she focused on the crystal.
Arano approached her desk. “Empress Marist, it won’t work. My charm will keep her hidden from any magical searching.”
“I still have to try, Mage Primus,” she replied, her voice tight. “Perhaps she managed to lose it.”
But a full sweep of the empire revealed nothing. She sank into her hair and rested her head on her hand. “Any other ideas, Mage Primus?”
His father gave a questioning glance at him and took a deep breath. “Perhaps.”
“Then tell me. The Soulbearer’s life may depend on it.”
Dev’s muscles tightened. Something about the way his father stared at him set his nerves on edge.
“We both know that sometimes a connection can be formed between two people that spans the miles,” Arano said, still looking at Dev. “Especially if they are very close.”
“Don’t look at me.” Dev came closer to the desk. “She hates me right now.”
Kell snorted. “Probably not as much as she hates me.”
“Or me,” Varrik chimed in, still holding the necklace.
His father pulled him aside and spoke in Elvish. “I’ve seen the way you two look at each other. Your bond is far more than just Soulbearer and Protector.”
“But that doesn’t mean I’ll be able to reach her.” Dev twisted away from his father and backed up. Those that understood what his father had said watched him with a mixture of curiosity and expectation. Kell just looked confused. “You’re making presumptions.”
“Am I? What about the day you told me you heard her screams from across the Conclave? The bond is there—you just need to stop denying it.”
The old familiar ache returned to his chest, as it always did when he thought of how much he wanted her. But in order for the bond to form, she needed to love him as much as he loved her. “I have no guarantee it will work now.”
Kell butted into their group. “Will someone please tell me what’s going on?”
The Empress gave him a faint smile. “The Mage Primus is talking about a bond that can form between two individuals of elven blood.”
Kell’s face hardened. Dev knew all too well the thoughts going through his mind, to love someone a
nd know she didn’t return his affection. He’d lived with that internal torture every night when Arden shared a bed with the prince.
Then Kell nodded. “If it will help find her, then do it.”
Once again, they all turned to him. He wiped his hands on his pants. “I don’t know the first thing about using the bond to access her mind.”
Varrik held out the necklace. “It helps if you have something she already has a strong bond with.”
Dev took and ran his thumb over the Milorian rose. If he had a chance to go back in time, he wouldn’t have taken her to meet Varrik. He’d known she would’ve been upset when she finally came face to face with her father. He should’ve risked disobeying the Empress in order to keep Arden safe by his side.
He wrapped his hand around the pendant and closed his eyes. Magic gathered inside him. He pictured her face and tried to funnel the magic into finding her. Nothing happened.
His father laid a hand on his shoulder, breaking the spell. “The bond is not magical. It’s formed by something more. Use that power to reach her.”
Thankfully, his father had the discretion not to say the obvious in front of everyone gathered there. He knew the power the Mage Primus spoke of—love. He looked to his heart and channeled his feelings for Arden through the necklace and out into the world. “Please, Arden, show me where you are.”
Seconds ticked by in black silence. Then, as light as a whisper, he heard her ask, “Dev?”
His heart leapt into his throat. By Jussip, it worked. He focused harder on the faint sound of her voice, trying to strengthen the weak bond that they’d formed. “Arden, we’re trying to find you, but the charm is keeping you hidden. Please tell me where you are, and we’ll rescue you.”
“It hurts, Dev.” Her words were slurred, and he longed to hold her in his arms and comfort her.
“Show me where you are.”
The blackness faded. The images she sent him were hazy at best, but he was able to see what looked like the inside of a temple. She was moving as though someone was carrying her over his shoulder, giving him only a quick glimpse of her surroundings. Statues of the gods stood in a circle, separated by jewel encrusted columns. Torches illuminated a far wall with writing on it, but he could only make out a few words. Then the blackness descended on him again.
He called her name several times, but no response came.
“Damn it!” He jumped to his feet, squeezing the pendant so hard, he could’ve branded the mark into his palm. “I had her for a few moments, but then I lost her.”
Kell moved in front of him, his face grim. “What did you see?”
He described the temple room Arden had shown him to the others. “I’ve been in most of the temples of Queembra, but I didn’t recognize it. There was writing on the wall, something about a Tribunal of deities and protection of life, but I couldn’t read it all.”
The Empress paled, her eyes wide. Her hand drifted away from her face. “I should have seen this coming.”
Dev rushed to her chair. “What are you talking about?”
Every time he’d dealt with the Empress, she’d always seemed so calm, so cold, so in control. The woman in front of him was none of that. Fear glowed from her eyes, and her hands shook. “I don’t know if I can reveal that information.”
“But you know what he’s planning on doing to her, don’t you?” He braced his arms against the back of her chair, standing in front with his eyes level with hers. “You know where she is, and you’re not going to tell me?”
Anger replaced some of the fear on her face. “It’s not that simple, Sir Devarius. I swore a solemn vow, and I would be breaking it if I told you everything I knew.”
“I swore a solemn vow, too, and I would be breaking it if I let you get away without telling me where she is.”
She looked to her uncle first, then to the Mage Primus. Then her eyes turned silver like the moons. She bowed her head. “There is a secret temple here in Queembra where the Tribunal of the Gods meets as needed to keep the people of Gravaria safe. She is there.”
One step forward. But Dev refused to back down until he had all the information he needed. “Where is it?”
The Empress hesitated again. “I don’t know the exact location.”
“But you’ve been there, haven’t you?”
“Yes.” She looked up, the silver ring around the blue of her eyes still glowing. It reminded him of the ring in Arden’s eyes that flashed whenever Loku spoke to her. “I have been ordered to bring you there before Nelos kills both her and Loku.”
He released the chair, his mind reeling. Could some deity be giving the Empress orders? But the more important question, “How can Nelos kill another god?”
The Empress stood, her usual calm and confident demeanor returning. “He can with the serum from the Flower of Lireal.”
Now it was Arano who turned a shade whiter. “Sazi mentioned that someone had managed to steal one of the flowers from the Ornathian lands. That was why she returned home.”
The Empress nodded. “The High Priest of Nelos has been threatening to destroy Loku for months, but we all doubted his ability to do such a thing.”
The pieces of the puzzle were slowly falling into place, and Dev’s gut twisted. “But if he was able to channel the power of his god like Arden can channel Loku…”
“Then that would explain how he was able to carry out the attacks and retrieve one of the Flowers of Lireal,” Marist finished for him. “The serum has the power to destroy the soul of a person when it enters their heart. In theory, it can also destroy the soul of Loku if it enters the heart of his Soulbearer.”
Dev’s muscles burned. He wanted to eviscerate that high priest and pour the serum into his heart for everything he’d done to Arden. “We need to stop him before he does that.”
The Empress lifted her chin and stood straighter. “And I will take you there, but first you must swear in the name of Ivis you will never speak of what you see tonight.”
One by one, they all made that vow.
“Then follow me.” She led them to the inner rooms of her private chambers. In the dressing room off her bedroom stood a gilded mirror that ran from floor to ceiling. The glass came alive as the Empress touched it, shimmering like the surface of a lake.
Then the Empress passed through it.
Chapter 30
The rough stone ceiling slowly came into view. At first glance, Arden thought she was in a cave. But as her gaze travelled down the walls, the stone became smooth and covered with gold. A circle of statues stared down at her, their stoic faces as cold as the marble they were carved from.
Fatigue weighed down her limbs, but when she managed to move her arm, the clink of metal chains reverberated through the room. She cursed. I’ve been here before.
“Yes, you do have a knack for being knocked unconscious and waking up bound in mithral chains, don’t you?”
A jolt of hope surged through her aching body. “Loku!”
“Happy to hear me now, aren’t you?”
She tried to sit up, but her arms and legs were bound to the floor, turning her body into a large X. “Help me get out of this.”
“Didn’t you just say an hour ago that I wasn’t any good to you?”
“I take it back.” She pulled against the chains, testing for any weak links. “I’m so very lucky to have you. Please help me.”
“I can’t.”
Stupid fickle chaos god! “Why not?”
“You’re bound in mithral. The only way I can help you is if you surrender complete control to me.”
She stopped struggling and let her breathing slow. Once again, it came back to that. He wanted control over her, and if she gave it to him, would it be enough to kiss her sanity goodbye?
“What use is sanity when you’re dead?”
Her fingers gripped the edge of the stone block she was laying on, and her blood chilled. She wasn’t on the floor—she was chained to some sort of altar. “Why does he hate you so mu
ch?”
“Because he is chaos,” a man’s voice answered, making Arden curse her lack of shields. Someone had finally gained access to her thoughts, and the violation left her feeling weak and helpless. “He is everything Nelos stands against.”
The figure came into view from the shadows beyond the statues. He was perhaps five or ten years younger than King Heodis, and wiry. Deep wrinkles creased his face, making him appear older than he probably was. His cowl fell back, revealing his shaved head. But it was the vicious madness glowing from his eyes that sent a streak of terror straight into her heart.
“After tonight, my child, you’ll no longer be burdened with the god of chaos.” He ran his hand along the edge of the altar. “After tonight, the world will submit to the peace and order of the law.”
“What he means is that he’ll destroy both of our souls for something that will never be,” Loku argued. “Chaos will always exist, whether or not my soul lives, but I am the one responsible for reining it in. Without me, chaos will run amok and destroy the world.”
Fane’s words about law and chaos being entwined in an eternal dance echoed in her mind. “If you destroy Loku, you’ll upset the delicate balance between law and chaos.”
The man’s nose wrinkled, and his lip curled up into a snarl. “See how he’s already poisoned your mind? He’s deceiving you in order to bend you to his will.”
“No, I heard about that from a follower of Nelos.”
“The infidel!” The torches flickered, and a blast of wind blew through the room. “When I’m done with you, I’ll purge the world of the non-believers. I’ll make every person bow down before Nelos.”
“Uh-oh, we’ve pissed off one highly unstable zealot.”
“No kidding.” A blanket of magic wrapped around her as Loku added, “We need to get you out of here now, my little Soulbearer. Surrender control to me, and I’ll shatter this temple and free you.”
Before she could answer, the man was in her face. “Wait and see, Soulbearer. Your service to Loku will end tonight. Too bad you won’t live to see the dawning of a new age.”
A Soul For Chaos (The Soulbearer Trilogy) Page 26
