Release (The Protector Book 3)

by M. R. Merrick

  One thing was clear: whatever Arian knew about the Protector, I needed to know. If there was a way to stop my magic from tearing me apart, that was the key to stopping Riley. That was the key we needed to find.

  Chapter 34

  Our trip to Vortan was postponed a few days. We were already splitting our numbers by going in two groups. It wouldn’t make sense to go with even fewer people, or worse, take the injured with us.

  I’d never seen Tiki hurt, but I was amazed at his ability to heal. Within twenty-four hours his wounds had closed, leaving only a small pink scar that he claimed would be gone in another day. Rayna and Willy took a few days longer, but after some rest and another shift, they were ready.

  Marcus wasn’t kidding when he said he hadn’t given up his search for Eric, and it had saved our lives. While Marcus and Chief had been at the Hollowlight’s camp getting supplies, Marcus had finally managed to reach him. Eric and the hunters had gone underground when Riley attacked and had only recently reemerged. Lucky for us, Marcus had received one of Grayson’s voicemails, and managed to get in touch with Eric.

  I didn’t like Eric’s methods or his attitude—the guy gave me the creeps—but he’d saved my life and I was thankful for that. Without his arrival, there had been no chance all of us would have survived.

  After a long talk, Marcus and Eric worked out their issues. Eric wasn’t happy about fighting alongside demons, but now he’d seen firsthand what Riley could do. After losing many of his hunters and being forced to go into hiding, he approached the idea of working with demons with a bit more tact.

  I still wasn’t happy about the idea of dividing everyone up, but the other leaders seemed to think it was the smartest idea, even Eric. Part of me felt like too many people were trying to lead all at once, but it hadn’t caused any problems yet, so I tried not to make a fuss. That, and when I had objected again, I’d been shot down before I could state my point.

  Everyone gathered in the clearing just outside of Stonewall. I couldn’t feel Elyas’s presence and I missed it. I had tried calling her forward like I was supposed to be able to do, but I had yet to succeed. So far she had only ever spoken to me on her terms, and I needed to figure out why.

  Grayson stood in the field with his head down and his arms stretched out. He was Dunopai, and rather than waste Tiki’s and the witches’ energy, he would open the stone archway for both groups. When his magic began to swirl in front of us, small prickles tingled over my skin like my entire body had fallen asleep. The air rippled and our reality faded, blurring in the background as a stone archway appeared.

  He repeated this task a second time and created another arch beside it—one that was slightly smaller and covered in vines and moss.

  Multiple glyphs in the Dunopai language were chiseled into the stone of each arch. Grayson stepped back and read the words and a yellow light illuminated both his hands.

  The inside of the archway became misty. Steam poured from between the stones and the archway slowly turned into a mirrored surface. Each portal now reflected the groups in front of it, magic glimmering back at us.

  I took a deep breath and went first, reaching toward the reflective surface. When I touched it, the portal shimmered against my fingers and small ripples moved outward toward the stone. I took another breath and stepped through.

  A wash of heat engulfed my body as I stepped into a lightless corridor. Rai gripped my shoulder and magic nipped at my back. I walked faster, rushing towards an emerging blue light.

  Everyone else entered behind me, with Eric and a few of his hunters stepping through last. An intense heat beat down upon us and I found myself already praying Jax, Chief, and their groups were okay.

  Tiki knew very little of Proto, the other dimension, and our research turned up next to nothing. It turned out that not only did people not like to talk about Ithreal or his dimensions, but they also didn’t want to write about them either.

  What we did know was that the Visceratti lived in Proto, and that made me nervous. Seeing their queen in my vision reminded me of what I’d done. I had killed their princess. That vision I had shared with Marcus was the first I’d ever received—one I could only assume was at the courtesy of my air element.

  Remembering the vision made my shoulders tense and a shiver spiral down my spine. I hadn’t meant to kill the princess; I’d only been trying to survive, and now I hoped that didn’t come back to haunt us. We’d just gotten rid of Arian; the last thing we needed was a new enemy to take his place.

  The light grew in front of me and the portal opened into a long corridor of blue rocky walls. At the top sat wide and strange-looking trees. Their brown and green trunks looked normal enough, but they led up to long green branches that didn’t appear to be made of wood. They slithered in the air, and as we walked past, their limbs stretched towards us with an unnerving screech—like the sound of a terrified child.

  Spongy blue rock made up the road. My foot sank in ever so slightly with each step, and it made the bottom of my shoes feel uneven.

  Rai jumped off my shoulder and flew into the red sky. She cawed and flew at a speed I’d never seen. Her body grew smaller and I tried calling her back, but she squawked in reply and slowly vanished from sight.

  Every so often a deep growl or high-pitched scream would echo in the distance. The sounds made images of torture chambers and beasts I had yet to meet form inside my mind. Each passing moment left me feeling more vulnerable than before.

  “How do we know where to go?” Eric asked from the back of the group, his bottom lip swollen with a large chew of tobacco. His hunters drifted around him like a mobile shield and his finger hovered over the trigger of his double-barreled shotgun. The handles of two blades could be seen behind his shoulders, and his hip was covered with a belt holding shotgun shells and throwing knives.

  “We don’t, really,” I said.

  “What does that mean? We’re just supposed to wander forever and hope it magically appears in front of us?”

  “Thank you!” Vincent said. “Someone who finally understands what I’ve been saying all of this time. This is not just another dimension. There is a whole world here. We might not be anywhere near the soul piece.”

  Eric mumbled something under his breath and spit a wad of tobacco on the ground at Vincent’s feet.

  Vincent pursed his lips and stared at the black wad as it stopped in front of his feet. He had only brought a few of his vampires while the rest remained in hiding. Certain his mother was watching at all times, Vincent took a new level of precaution in all that he did. I was just happy I didn’t have to fight to get him to hold up his end of the deal. He was complaining already, but he was here and he would fight. That’s all that mattered to me at this point.

  “Elyas usually guides me. She just…isn’t here yet.”

  A loud crack sounded and we all turned at once. The sound of blades being drawn from their sheaths echoed off the earthy walls, but there was no monster behind us. The portal’s energy had broken and the arch had disappeared and consumed itself.

  “Sorry,” Grayson said with a sheepish half-smile. “If I don’t close them myself, they only stay open for a few minutes…”

  “This is ridiculous,” Eric muttered, readjusting his grip on the shotgun.

  We marched up the incline at the end of the corridor and the temperature rose with each step. It was already hard to breathe in the heavy air, and with the heat flooding over us, sweat ran down my body.

  The incline became steeper as we ascended. When we were nearly at the top, it was like climbing a smooth rock wall. Without any sort of handle to grip, we constantly slipped.

  Upon reaching the top, everyone was panting and cursing, but the world had opened up in front of us, exposing Vortan. Endless miles of red earth stretched out in front of us, leaving nothing but mountainous terrain in the distance.

  The same desert stretched out to the left for a few miles before stopping at a bizarre-looking forest filled with the same moving
trees we’d just spent an hour avoiding. Dark shadows moved deep inside the jungle-like forest. Screams and growls reverberated from inside, and goose bumps rose along my skin.

  On the opposite side of the forest was a wide lake. It was only a few feet away and appeared to be black with foamy white bubbles bursting from it. A rotting wood dock reached out into the waters and steam wafted into the air. That path was definitely out of the question.

  “So has your magic goddess said anything yet?” Eric snorted and beads of sweat dripped down his face.

  I shook my head and Eric muttered under his breath.

  “Ma—maybe we should take a vote?” Willy asked. He crossed his arms, uncrossed them, and then put them in his pocket. His eyes panned the ground and he shifted his weight from one side and then the other.

  “That’s a fantastic idea,” Vincent said. “Which gloomy fate can a group of uneducated guesses place us in? Why don’t we just go relax and take a swim in that lovely lake?”

  “Chase is the Protector,” Grayson said. “He is our leader and he will guide us. The gods have blessed him for a reason, and in him we must have faith.”

  Everyone glared at Grayson but he didn’t back down. He may not have been a Warrior, but he stood by what he believed in.

  “I ain’t got no leader,” Eric mumbled. “And if I did, it wouldn’t be a damn kid.”

  There were two red suns that blazed over us with scorching heat, and everyone was wiping sweat from their brow.

  Strands of red hair stuck to Rayna’s face, and as much as she brushed them behind her ears, the warm wind threw them back in her face. Her tight blue jeans and black halter clung to her body, and her skin glistened in the suns’ rays. Her green eyes found mine and she offered a smile that settled my nerves.

  Everyone watched me, waiting for an answer. I reviewed our options in my head once again. The liquid bubbled beside us and the heat baked the desert floor in front of us, but when I came back to the intensely creepy forest, something about it drew my attention, regardless of the flashing Impending Doom sign that I imagined hung over it.

  “Come on, Elyas, which way?” I whispered. No response. I took a few steps away from the group. “Where are you?” I asked, but still she never spoke. “Unbelievable. I know you can hear me.” I gritted my teeth and Marcus touched my shoulder.

  “What do you think?” he asked quietly.

  “Now you want to know what I think?”

  “What is that supposed to mean?”

  I shook my head. “Nothing.”

  Rayna stepped up beside me and her fingers brushed against mine. “The forest is kind of giving me the creeps,” she said. “But it looks like the best option.”

  “Chase?” Marcus asked.

  I hadn’t taken my eyes off the forest. Something about it spoke to me. If it had been a photograph, I’d have said there was something powerful about it. I could feel it, hear it, and it coaxed me closer.

  “I think Rayna’s right. The forest seems like our best bet, and…I don’t know. There is something about it.”

  “Elyas has not spoken to you?” he asked.

  I shook my head and Marcus frowned.

  “So, which disastrous path is this young, inexperienced hunter taking us on?” Eric asked.

  Vincent laughed and both Eric and I glared at him.

  “We’re going this way,” I said, grabbing Rayna’s hand and jerking her alongside me.

  “You okay?” she asked.

  I nodded and then shook my head. Looking over my shoulder to make sure the others couldn’t hear me, I leaned in slightly. “We never should have split up.”

  Rayna frowned. “It was the best option. We doubled our chances of getting a soul piece this way.”

  I stared out at the forest that oddly seemed further away than it did a moment ago. “Or we cut our chances in half.”

  Rayna squeezed my fingers. “We’ll be okay.”

  The air cooled as we walked. My arms became dotted with tiny little bumps and all the sweat that covered my body had dried, allowing the cold to seep into my bones.

  Everyone was noticing the change. They rubbed their arms—with the exception of Tiki, who, even shirtless, didn’t seem bothered by the change.

  After what I imagined was an hour, the forest wasn’t any closer. The bright red suns that had washed their heat over us hadn’t moved, but they seemed smaller. Thick gray clouds began to roll through the sky and it didn’t take long before the suns were covered. The breeze changed to brisk, bone-chilling winds.

  “This is crap!” Eric shouted. “We’ve been walking for hours and we’re not getting anywhere.” He stopped and all his hunters followed suit.

  I sighed, looking at the distance between us and the woods. The red desert that should’ve been to our right was gone, and the mountains were much closer than before.

  The black lake had disappeared completely, lost somewhere on the trail behind us. That wasn’t right; the lake was massive and we hadn’t been walking long enough for it to have completely vanished.

  “I have to say, Mr. Williams, I’m a little disappointed with your lack of direction,” Vincent said. “I thought this was going to be an in-and-out kind of job.”

  “Thanks,” I said. “Because your approval means so damn much to me.” I turned back towards the forest. It was now only a few hundred feet away.

  “What the hell?” I whispered to myself.

  Flakes of sparkling snow began to drift around us and the air grew still. The black long-sleeved shirt I wore was quickly covered in dots of white.

  “Some of Ithreal’s dimensions are ever changing,” Tiki said. “I have already explained this.”

  “Then which way do we go, smartass?” Eric asked.

  “Tiki’s never been here before. He doesn’t have the answers. Nobody does,” I said.

  “Then what the hell are we even doing here?” Eric’s voice was gruff, and his attitude was wearing on me.

  “You know what, Eric? If you’re so pissed off, why don’t you turn around and try to find your way back.”

  Eric locked eyes with me and sucked his bottom lip into his mouth, spitting another gob of tobacco on the ground.

  “Use your abilities, Protector,” Grayson said, his voice soft and almost too quiet to hear.

  “What abilities? You, Arian, and everyone else seem to know everything about what I can and cannot do, so why don’t you fill me in?”

  “Chase!” Rayna tore her hand away from mine and her eyes burned through me.

  I hadn’t meant to sound angry, but I was. I wasn’t happy with the decision to split into two groups, and now this confusing world was warping around us. The seasons had changed in a matter of hours, I was cold, and what little patience I did have was fading fast.

  “It’s fine.” Grayson stepped forward, his hands clasped behind his back. “His frustration is warranted. Unfortunately, I do not know much more than you. I am aware that the Protector has the gods on his side, and as such, should be able to summon them to his aid.”

  “I don’t have the Ring of Contact. Riley does. And even if I did, they haven’t been much help. When Athaniel came, Serephina promised him a swift punishment for breaking their rules.”

  “If the gods will not speak to you about your path, there is a reason for it. You are missing, or have yet to complete, a piece of the puzzle. The ring you speak of does not influence your abilities, as far I know.”

  The snow fell faster and the red desert floor was taken over by snowflakes that merged together in an expanse of white.

  Grayson walked through the snow, shook it from his sandaled feet, and smiled at me. “The gods, although infuriating at times, are often misunderstood. They have their rules, just as we have ours, and to break them is near unforgiveable. Although I have faith given the circumstances, Athaniel will not be punished too extremely.”

  “You act as if you’ve met them,” Marcus said.

  Grayson shook his head. “Not until the day I b
reathe my last breath. But the Callers speak to the Spirits of Yore. They are our ancestors, and they are privy to knowledge far beyond ours. They have met their makers, so to speak, and as such, have relayed some of what it is to be in their presence. Our Callers often share those experiences with us.”

  “Then I can’t help,” I said. “I don’t know how to call them. I thought all this Mark did was give me all the elements, which is more of a curse than a gift at this point.”

  “I mean no disrespect, Protector, for I hold you in regards nearly as high as the gods. However, I must repeat there is a piece you are missing. Something you have done, or have not done, is preventing you from achieving what you need.”

  “Well, unless you know what that piece is, this puzzle remains unfinished.”

  “Can we stop with the history lesson?” Vincent asked. “Even for a vampire I’m getting cold, and I don’t enjoy the feeling of tiny needles riding up my body. Unless one of you is prepared to open a vein, I suggest we continue forward, even if we are walking an endless circuit.”

  The forest that had been so close just a short while ago was missing. The black lake sat behind us now, and the specks of white falling from the sky were swallowed by the bubbling warmth of the lake. The snowfall had begun to slow and with it, the cold air carried a hint of warmth.

  “What’s going on here?” Eric asked, looking down at his feet as he and his hunters stood on a rickety, rotted dock. “This place don’t make no sense.”

  The black lake was expanding and seemed to grow wider with each passing breath. An island—left untouched from the snow—sat in the middle of the lake, and a thick forest started just off its sandy beach. The green tendrils of the forest moved of their own accord, and the trunks seemed to shift from side to side. Their roots tore from the earth as they moved and replanted themselves a few feet away from where they had begun.