Promise of Shadows

by Ireland, Justina

  I want to ask her. I really do. Especially since she’s making such a big deal about it. But one of the things I love about Cass is that she reminds me so much of my sister. And after I discovered Whisper’s secrets, our relationship was never the same. Whisper taught me long ago that prying is a big mistake. So as much as I want to ask Cass why I never smell any emotion from her, I don’t. I’d rather have her friendship than her secrets, and I have a sinking suspicion that I can’t have both.

  “Cass,” I say with a sigh. “I trust you. It isn’t important. Besides, just a few hours ago Hades pretty much told me that I’m dead meat. As much as I want to play twenty questions with you, we have bigger things to worry about right now.”

  The words are no sooner out of my mouth than a scream rips through the air, like the sound of tires skidding across pavement. I know without a doubt it came from the direction Blue headed into the woods. But it didn’t sound like him. The noise was guttural and foreign, like it came from an animal. I begin to shake and Cass grabs my arm. She doesn’t look afraid, more concerned.

  “You were saying,” she drawls.

  “Ha-ha.” Another scream tears through my middle, leaving my heart pounding. The skin on my arms has pimpled, and I swallow thickly. “Tell me you know what that is.”

  She shakes her head while tugging me away from the woods. “I think it would a good idea to start running.”

  Another scream splits the day, and Blue comes running toward us through the tall grass. “Go! Go!” he yells, waving us ahead of him. I get a glimpse of blond hair and height before he sprints past us, not looking back to see if we follow.

  We take off running, Cass quickly outpacing me. Blue weaves into a field of waist-high blue grass, and we follow. I feel clumsy as I run, like my feet are asleep. I trip and fall, and everything falls away as the voice in my brain yells, Get up, get up, GETUP! On the ground I can’t see anything but the blue grass, the red sky beyond an ominous warning. I try to climb to my feet, but it’s difficult. The ground shakes beneath my hands, causing small stones to jump.

  Something very, very big is approaching.

  I stumble to my feet and start running, glancing back over my shoulder as I do. Whatever is chasing us seems like it would be too big to hide in the tall grass, but I don’t see anything. That just makes me run faster. I’m not the world’s best fighter, but I’m an excellent runner.

  Still, Blue and Cass have easily outdistanced me, their forms far ahead in the tall blue grass. We can’t see what’s chasing us, but we aren’t waiting to find out, either.

  I finally catch up to Cass and Blue. He skids to a sudden stop, and I crash into him. His arm wraps around my waist to steady me, the sickly stink of his fear overwhelming.

  “What is it? Why are you so afraid?” I gasp.

  “Drakan,” he says.

  I shake my head, not believing him. “No. Drakans aren’t real.” They can’t be real, otherwise I might just lose my damn mind. Drakans are the biggest, scariest thing in the Underworld. They supposedly created the Rift, but no one’s ever seen one before. Now I’m thinking maybe that’s because they don’t survive the meeting.

  A drakan would be bad, worse than a manticore. I’m not sure I’m fast enough to outrun a drakan, if that’s what is really chasing us.

  But the rotten-orange scent of Blue’s fear convinces me that he’s telling the truth, or at least thinks he is. “If you don’t believe me, feel free to stay here and get eaten by an imaginary monster.” He looks around, releasing me as he does. “Come on, this way.”

  We start running again, the kind of flat-out sprint that spins a web of agony along my side. I push my hand into the hollow beneath my rib cage, hoping I can somehow will the stitch away. The pain grounds me, so that I don’t have a chance to let my fear paralyze me. That’s a good thing, I guess.

  The tall grass thins out and the terrain changes to shining black rock. My bones rattle as my feet slam into the hard surface. I’m starting to fall back, Cass and Blue leaving me far behind. If I can’t kick it into high gear, I’m going to be monster chow.

  I really, really miss my wings right now.

  Far ahead of me Cass and Blue stop suddenly, and it doesn’t take long for me to catch up to them. When I draw up alongside them, I can see why they halted.

  The black rock gives way to air. Far below us, yellow water crashes over jagged and deadly rocks. On the other side of the chasm are piles of bones that look sort of like buildings. I bend over, gasping for breath. “What now?” I ask.

  Blue glances over at me. His eyes glow, they’re so bright. His Æthereal blood must be incredibly strong. He sighs, like he can’t believe he’s been burdened with such terrible luck. “I don’t know.”

  “We don’t have all millennium, so we should probably decide on something sooner rather than later,” Cass says, her gaze locked on the way we came. She doesn’t even look winded, while I’m pretty sure I’m going to pass out if I don’t catch my breath.

  Blue pushes his hand through his hair. He looks back at the cliff again and throws his hands up into the air. “We’re going to have to jump.”

  Cass makes a choked noise. “We will never make that,” she says.

  The blond boy grins, and my heart gives an unexpected leap. He’s gorgeous. “Well, it’s either jump or be eaten by the drakan. Me, I’m willing to give it a try.” He apparently has a death wish. Why are all the pretty boys insane?

  Without any more discussion Blue backs up a few feet and sprints forward, jumping at the last possible second. For a long moment I have the aching fear that he’ll fall. I imagine his body twisted and broken on the rocks below. But then he’s on the other side, his feet skidding across the black rock as he slides to a stop. He stands on the far side of the chasm, and his laughter drifts back to us.

  “As easy as pie!” he yells across the gap.

  Cass looks at me and shrugs. “Good luck,” she says. Then she’s backing up while she hikes up the skirts of her toga, tucking them up between her legs so they don’t trip her when she runs. She sprints past me, her arms windmilling as she flies through the air. She moves so fast that she’s on the other side before I even have a chance to worry.

  “Oh gods,” I say. I consider the jump, my stomach turning over. If I still had my wings, I would’ve already been across the chasm. But my wings are long gone and in their place is a newfound fear of going splat.

  On the other side of the gap Cass’s waving arms urge me to hurry, and when the ground begins to tremble I know why.

  I turn and look over my shoulder, but I still can’t see anything. After a second I finally figure out why. The monster bearing down on us matches the sky, its enormous body a shimmering mass that reflects its surroundings. The only sense I have of its size is the way the grass moves from its passage. From what I can tell the creature is huge, like an angry, invisible house moving through the grass.

  Fear freezes me, and I fight to push the emotion away. I’m small and insignificant. Everything comes crashing down on me at once. Whisper and the way she looked when I found her, my trial, Hermes’s abandonment, the vague promise of doom by Hades. So much has happened to me in the past year, and I’m suddenly just so exhausted.

  I’m tired of being afraid.

  The entire mass of the creature regards me, waiting for me to do something. But I’m so sore and tired, and a wave of defeat washes over me. I just can’t see the point in fighting anymore.

  I just have to face the fact that I’m not a survivor. Why should I even bother?

  So instead of running, instead of fighting, instead of freaking out like I should, I just sit there and wait to be eaten.

  No wonder I failed my Trials.

  A strange sense of calm comes over me, and I study the creature as it studies me. It has no form that I can discern, but I can sense its massiveness. It looms over me, pressing down and invading the space. But it’s less a physical presence and more an awareness. The creature feels dark, even t
hough it’s completely invisible. It is fear and anxiety given physical form, and I understand why Blue ran. He said it was a drakan, and if he’s right, then this is one of the fearsome creatures who separated the realms in the first place, using their might to divide up the universe. I guess I should be terrified just thinking about that.

  But the reality is I just don’t care anymore. It’s hopeless. At least now I know how I die.

  “Are you seriously going to sit there and wait for it to eat you, or are you going to cross the chasm?”

  The voice comes out of nowhere, jolting me out of my pity party. I turn, and a boy with long dark hair and pale skin strides through the grass toward me. He stands straight, completely unfazed by the giant monster nearby. Like Blue, his clothes are modern and on the fashionable range of things. But it’s not the familiar smirk that makes my heart pound. It’s the way he’s looking at me.

  I would recognize those fathomless dark eyes anywhere.

  “Tally?”

  He nods and drops down into a crouch beside me. “Why are you sitting on the ground, Peep?”

  “I . . . I was waiting for it to eat me.” I’m not entirely sure that I’m not already dead. How else do I explain my childhood friend suddenly appearing in the Underworld?

  “That’s pretty dumb. Especially since it’s actually giving you a chance to cross.” He studies me, his jaw tight. His brows are pulled together in a scowl. There’s a hardness to him that was never there before, but that’s not saying much since it’s been almost ten years since I saw him last.

  I look back at the drakan, and Tally sighs. “Well, come on. I’ll help you cross if you’re afraid.”

  “It’s not going to eat me?”

  He smiles. “Drakans don’t exactly eat people. But they don’t really enjoy them trespassing, either. They’re very territorial.”

  “Oh.” I’m still having trouble wrapping my mind around the fact that I am not about to be devoured. “How do you know all that?”

  He shrugs. “I’ve learned some things in the past few years.”

  I look from Tally to the nearly invisible monster behind him. “So you’re sure it’s not going to eat me?”

  Tally sighs. “Yes. Now let’s go, Peep, before it changes its mind,” he says impatiently, standing and holding out his hand.

  I open my mouth to argue with him just like I would’ve in the good old days, but then the thing looming over us lets out a chuffing sound that may or may not be laughter. I clamp my mouth shut. It’s strange that Tally appears and all of a sudden the monster stops chasing me. But now isn’t the time to think about it. “Thank you,” I grit out.

  I take his outstretched hand. The contact sends a tingle down my arm, and I snatch my hand back. He watches me, his frown disappearing and one eyebrow raising in question. “Problem?”

  “No, uh, sorry.” I take his hand and he easily lifts me to my feet. The tingle where our hands connect spreads up my arm to my entire body. There’s a flash of cold, and then I’m standing next to Cass.

  I snatch back my hand. “What in the hells was that?”

  “Teleportation. It’s kind of Tallon’s specialty,” the blond boy with the too-blue eyes answers with a grin.

  “Tallon?”

  He shrugs. “I don’t really go by Tally anymore.”

  I turn back to Tally—Tallon now—and shake my head. “You never did that when we were kids.”

  He shrugs. “I grew into my talents.” There’s a hint of something in his voice, and I’m pretty sure that he’s not just talking about teleportation. My face heats but I barely notice it. I’m still trying to wrap my brain around a vættir who can teleport. That’s not exactly a normal talent.

  And Tallon isn’t just any vættir. He’s the boy I used to chase through the woods of the Aerie. I clear my throat. My insides are in turmoil, but I’m determined not to let him see a single shred of it. “So, what brings you to the Underworld?”

  Blue grins and throws his arm across Tallon’s shoulders. “The scenery, of course.”

  Tallon rolls his eyes. “We’re here to rescue you.”

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  BLUE’S EYES GROW IMPOSSIBLY WIDE. “That’s her?”

  Tallon detaches himself from Blue’s embrace without a word. Then he grabs Blue’s arm and drags him toward a cluster of rocks a little ways off. Apparently Tallon wanted to talk in private. I don’t mind, because I want a moment alone with Cass, as well. I walk over to where she stares off into the distance. As I approach, Cass looks at me like she’s waiting for me to grow another head. I give her a small smile.

  “The drakan didn’t devour you,” she says, sounding a little surprised.

  I laugh, but the sound is hollow. “Yeah, seems like my luck’s changed.” Even so, my hands tremble from the near miss. I put my palms against my cheeks and try to focus.

  She looks over toward where the guys are talking, Tallon somber while Blue gestures wildly with his hands. “You know them.”

  I shake my head. “I know Tallon. I’ve never met Blue before. I didn’t even know Tallon had a brother.”

  “Where do you know him from?”

  I bump my shoulder into Cass’s in reassurance. There’s no jealousy in her tone, but her words seem to hint at it. “My nest mother, which is kind of like a godmother, adopted him. My mom said she used to take in strays, and Tally was just one of them.”

  “Tally?”

  I shrug. “Stupid childhood nickname. I guess it’s Tallon now.” Which sounds dangerous, and intriguing. I can’t help but to keep staring at him, comparing the guy standing a little ways away with the kid I used to play hide-and-seek with.

  I am definitely liking the improvement.

  Tallon’s changed from a gawky kid with too-big eyes to a guy who looks like he could break hearts without even trying. He’s tall, with the sleekly chiseled form of a runner. The thin cloth of his shirt drapes over broad shoulders and does nothing to hide the slopes and angles of his muscles. His hair hangs past his shoulders, longer than it ever was when we were kids, but his dark eyes still seem to see too much as he glances at me and Cass over his shoulder.

  Blue may be handsome in a golden sort of way, but Tallon completely eclipses him with his darkness. I’m embarrassed to realize I’ve been staring.

  Cass shifts from foot to foot, suddenly restless. It’s enough to pull my attention away from Tallon. “What?”

  “We need to get out of the Underworld before someone realizes we’re not in the Pits.”

  I don’t like the tone of her words. “What happens if they do?”

  “They’ll send a couple of cerberus to drag us back.” My shoulder aches as I remember my last run in with one of the demon dogs. I swallow hard.

  “Okay, not fun. So what’s the plan?”

  Cass raises an eyebrow. “Why do we need a plan? Aren’t you getting rescued?”

  Tallon and Blue still argue a little ways off, and I shake my head. “I’m not waiting on them. What’s your plan?”

  Cass points toward the yellow river in the distance. “That’s the Acheron. If we follow it south to the Styx, we could get the Ferryman to take us across to the Mortal Realm.”

  “The Ferryman’s gone,” Tallon says as he and Blue return. Blue’s expression is somewhere between sheepish and irritated. Tallon just frowns. His scowl could melt rock.

  Cass’s brows draw together. “Gone? Gone where?”

  Tallon shrugs. “Wherever it is he goes when travel’s been restricted. Hades closed down escorted travel between the realms. War’s brewing.”

  “With who?” I ask, but no one answers me. I take that to mean they don’t know.

  I sigh and turn to Cass. “Well, we can’t just stay here and wait for the cerberus to come and get us.”

  Cass nods. “We need to get going.” She gives Tallon a low bow. “Thank you for saving my friend. But we must take our leave.” It’s clear that Cass doesn’t trust the guys, even though I know Tallon from way back whe
n. I wonder what kind of life she’s had that even friends could be enemies.

  I think of her standing on that hill long ago, challenging an Exalted to a contest that she had no chance of winning. What else don’t I know about Cass?

  Tallon doesn’t acknowledge Cass’s dismissive thanks. “You won’t get far without the Ferryman.”

  I cross my arms. “So, what’s the plan?”

  “I’ll take you both across the Rift. Like I said, I came here to save you.”

  “Who sent you?”

  Tallon gives me a small, wistful smile. “Nanda.”

  My heart aches as I think of the woman who was more of a mom to me than my real mother. Her visits were the highlight of my childhood. She’d blow into town like a whirlwind, a smiling, laughing Harpy who defied the conventions of the Aerie. Sometimes she’d have Tallon in tow, sometimes her bossy daughter Alora. But no matter how long she stayed or when she came to visit, Nanda brought happy times with her.

  She’d been in the same year group as my mother, but unlike my mother she’d given up her spot in the Aerie after only a short while. I never knew why; I just knew that the life Nanda lived was a promise of something more, something beyond the restrictive life of the Aerie.

  It was a life I had wanted at one point, especially after I failed my Trials. But then Ramun Mar killed Whisper, and my entire existence was thrown into a tailspin.

  “Why now?” I ask, my brain grasping to make sense of this sudden turn of events.

  “Alora had a vision,” Blue says, looking bored. I wonder if he feels the same way I do about the so-called visions of Alora. I was always sure she was just being a jerk when she would claim to have “seen” things when we were kids. Mostly because her “visions” always ended up with her getting to go first, or getting the better piece of dessert.

  “We’re going to take you to the Mortal Realm. Nanda will be able to explain everything,” Tallon says, his voice softening slightly. He still looks sort of gloomy, but now it’s more like he heard a sad song, not like he wants to pummel someone.

  Cass shakes her head. “How are you going to get us across?”