by Linsey Hall
Determined to get through this trial and back to solving the mystery of the stolen magical beaker, I inspected the map.
We were supposed to land on a shore, where we’d be greeted by someone—no idea who—and from them we’d learn about where we could spend the night.
The night? This was an overnight thing?
Though part of me was annoyed, more of me was grateful. We’d been rowing for hours, battling sea monsters, and I really could use a freaking nap. I spun around, hoping to see land.
For once, something went right. I could see the shore. It glittered like a pale rainbow, a thousand colors glinting in the moonlight. Past the beach, there were trees. Short, stunted things with silvery white bark and tiny leaves.
It was breathtaking.
“We’re nearly there,” I said.
Ares turned around, then grinned. “Good.”
He put some more muscle into it, rowing us even faster toward the shore. I turned around, crouching in the bow so I didn’t lose my footing when we beached.
Up close, the beach was even more beautiful. Tiny pebbles glittered white with the fire of rainbows within.
Opals. The beach was made of opals.
The bow plowed into the opal beach and I leapt out, then dipped down and picked up a handful. I held it out to Ares. “Is this how you’re so rich? Your beaches are made of gemstones?”
“There’s no shortage of valuable resources here.” He jumped out of the boat and pulled it onto the shore.
I was about to demand more information—this beach was made of freaking gemstones!—when a rustling came behind me. A clattering sound, almost. Like someone was running on the beach.
I spun, guard up.
A small person charged me. But not a person. They glittered like the opals, all rainbows and sparkle.
I held up my hands. “We come in peace!”
Like a bunch of aliens?
I didn’t have time to examine my ridiculous word choice. The opal monster, who was only about four and a half feet tall and had no facial features, plowed into me, throwing me back onto the ground.
I was too slow, too weak from the jellyfish. The creature plowed a fist into my gut. Pain flared and I oofed out a breath.
Shit!
This little guy was fighting dirty. I planted my hands on his—her?—chest and heaved, throwing him off me. I leapt on him, trying to pin him to the ground.
His flesh was hard as stone—too hard to punch, too hard to stab. He thrashed beneath me, stronger than I expected.
Beside me, Ares struggled with three of them, unable to hurt them because they were made of gemstone but also unable to completely throw them off.
“What the hell am I supposed to do?” I demanded.
“The map!” Ares threw off an opal monster as another charged him. “It told you!”
Shit, what had it said? That I’d meet someone who would give me information about finding a place to stay?
The opal creature with no face wasn’t very friendly. And it didn’t even have a freaking mouth! How was it going to give me directions?
It thrashed beneath me, landing a hard blow to my shoulder. My mind raced. I was supposed to use my new powers.
That made this pretty obvious.
But I’d never even tried to use the Informa gift. That magic had sat so easily and comfortably within me that I hadn’t had to. I’d only practiced the Destroyer gift because the magic was making me sick.
But this was trial by fire. These little monsters weren’t going to let up.
I strained to keep the opal creature immobilized while I searched my memory for what Cass had told me about using my Informa power. Thank fates I’d asked her to look into it.
I just had to touch him to suck the information right out of his head.
Creepy.
Invasive.
I really didn’t like this.
The creature wiggled, freeing an arm and landing a punch to my side.
Oof.
Pain streaked through me. Getting punched by a rock hurt like hell.
I leaned heavily on the little creature and touched my hand to its head.
“Sorry about this,” I muttered.
Unsure of what to do next, I decided to try just asking. “Where can we stay tonight?”
Information blared into my mind, pictures and words and sounds.
Holy crap! I heaved backward, too shocked to maintain contact.
“I got it!” I scrambled away from the creature, not wanting to attack or be attacked.
“Finally.” Ares grunted and threw an opal monster off of him. “Pazūdi!”
I could read another language, but apparently I couldn’t understand them when spoken. Whatever it was he’d said, the creatures froze, their heads turning toward Ares. They stopped their attack, then ran off, scampering towards the woods.
I scrambled to my feet, exhaustion weighing down my muscles, and turned to Ares. “What the hell was that?”
“Part of the challenge.”
“Using my Informa gift.” I scowled. “But you had control of them all the time.”
“They obey the Vampire Court. Though it’s their instinct to attack those on the opal beach to protect the stones, they’ll stop if I tell them to.”
“They’re protecting the stones?”
“Yes. Otherwise this place would be mined to oblivion.”
That’d be terrible. I was suddenly glad that Ares didn’t get his wealth from here, while being simultaneously annoyed at his manipulation of the situation. I hated not being on the same side. He’d protect me and help me, but I never knew when he was orchestrating something. That opal creature had packed a hell of a punch. My side blazed in two places from his blows.
I turned and started toward the house I’d seen in my mind. Every step was exhausting.
Fortunately, the opal creature had given me directions as well as an image of the house. I was grateful to find that I’d only gotten the information I asked for—nothing more or less. I didn’t want to know about that weird critter’s sex life, for example.
Ares caught up quickly, his steps quiet on the beautiful beach. The place was magnificent. As we neared the trees, I caught sight of small furry creatures sitting on the branches. Black squirrels, with fur of obsidian and eyes that blazed a bright green.
“Night Terrors,” Ares said.
“These little guys?”
I approached one, holding out a finger for the creature to sniff. It bared its teeth, revealing vampiric fangs. I jerked my hand back. “Okay, I get it.”
The squirrel closed its mouth, looking cute as a button again. I turned to Ares. “Your world is weird.”
“But wonderful. In a terrible way.”
“Yes.” I entered the forest, where the trees were short and twisted. They were only a few feet taller than me, their branches as thick around as my thigh and so gnarled that they looked to be thousands of years old.
“This forest is ancient, isn’t it?” I said.
“Very. Thousands of years old.”
I was careful not to touch the trees. Who knew what they had up their sleeve. Ancient creatures—even plants—knew how to protect themselves.
“How far are we?” Ares asked.
“Another ten minutes, I would guess.”
We walked silently through the woods, weaving our way between the trees. The path was so narrow that Ares kept behind me.
When we came upon the cottage, I gasped. It was fairytale perfect, made of pale gray stone with a thatched roof and pink roses climbing up the sides. Upon further inspection, I realized that it was ramshackle, some of the glass windows cracked and the door hanging off its hinges.
“Have you ever been here?” I asked Ares.
“No. I’ve only been as far as the opal beach. But this place was once owned by a hermit who preferred the company of the Night Terrors. He left this realm about ten years ago.”
I almost made a joke, but remembered Doyen and Magisteria.
I might have preferred the Night Terrors, too, if they were my alternative.
I kept my senses alert as I approached the cottage, but all was quiet. The door opened easily. Moonlight filtered in, revealing a simple one-room space and the shadowy form of a couch across the way. A bed was pushed against the right wall, a kitchen against the left. Everything looked to be in pretty good shape, thank fates. Not a bad place to spend the night.
There was a table in the middle and a few candles sat on an iron plate. I approached, conjuring a match and lighting the three ivory candles.
They flared to life, brighter than normal candles. “Nice.”
While Ares inspected the kitchen, I took stock of my situation. I was famished, filthy, and my whole body hurt.
First things first, then.
“Any food in there?” I asked.
“No.” Ares turned to me, looking too big in the tiny cabin. It had not been built for a giant vampire enforcer.
“Hmm.” I walked to the door, stepping out into the darkness. Maybe the hermit had had a garden. I could conjure some food, but I should start to save my magic. Who knew what Ares would throw at me. He might be acting like everything was normal, but I couldn’t go on that alone.
I followed an overgrown path to the back yard, finding a wild vegetable garden. It was bordered on all sides by the stunted silvery trees, though a few of them looked like they might bear fruit.
I rooted around in the wild greenery until I found a few cucumbers. At the edge of the garden, one of the trees was dotted with fat apples. Though the bark was silver, the apples looked red and tasty.
Footsteps sounded behind me. I turned to see Ares. “Can I eat these?”
He nodded. “They’re fine.”
I pulled one off the tree and tossed it to him. “You first.”
He grinned, though his eyes darkened, as if he were hurt that I didn’t trust him.
That was weird.
But he should expect it. We weren’t exactly in the easiest situation here.
Fortunately, he bit into the apple without hesitation. Good.
I pulled down a few more, then returned to the house with my loot. Ares had set a couple plates out on the table, so I conjured some big blocks of cheese, bread, and beef jerky. With the cucumbers and apples, it wasn’t the worst meal.
Ares stepped through the door.
“It’s your lucky day,” I said. “Because I’m going to share.”
“Is that just because you’re worried about me biting you?” he asked.
“I considered it, sure.” Ares was a vampire. When vampires got hungry, they got all vampy and bitey. Since I didn’t need any of that business right now—or ever—it was definitely in my best interest to feed him.
“You know I won’t bite you without your consent.” His voice was dark. Rough.
“Why would I consent?” I sounded squeakier than I liked, that was for damned sure.
“You know why.”
Oh, shit. I swallowed hard, my insides heating up embarrassingly. To distract myself, I grabbed an apple and chomped down. Tart sweetness exploded on my tongue.
Delicious.
I chowed through two apples, not even bothering to sit down, then moved onto the bread and cheese and jerky. I finished the meal with a cucumber. Ares had sat and was eating more slowly.
“Feel better?” he asked.
“Yeah.” I looked around, searching for soap or a bathroom. There was nothing but an old bar of soap on the counter. “Do you think there’s anywhere to get cleaned up?”
“Most cottages in the forest like this are built near rivers. That would do for a bath.” He pointed to the right, which I thought was north. “There should be one a dozen yards that way. I thought I heard rushing water.”
“Thanks. I’m going to get cleaned up.”
“Stay alert.”
I nodded and grabbed the bar of soap, then hurried out the door and toward the north, following the noise of the river that I could hear once I got a few yards from the house.
It was a beautiful sight, the water a deep blue that glinted under the light of the moon. Pale green ferns bordered the river, except for the area around a little pool formed by a rock wall. The river water flowed through it, creating a natural bathtub.
Jackpot.
I shrugged out of my dirty clothes and climbed gingerly into the pool. It was cool and perfect, an ideal temperature in the warm night air. I sank down until the water brushed my chin, sitting on a natural stone bench.
As I let the water soothe away some of my aches, I stared up at the moon. It was so bright that it was hard to see the stars, but I managed to pick out a few. Two bright red specks flew high overhead, glinting in the moonlight.
The Pūķis. Keeping me company. I grinned. Though I couldn’t see them clearly, I knew it was them. They must have flown around the giant silver lake.
“You seem to be spending a lot of time in our realm.” The feminine voice made me pop up, my heart thundering.
I searched the forest, frantic to find the threat. I had so little magic left after the trials of today. And a fight? It’d be a tough one to win, given how I was feeling.
Laima sat on a rock across from me, one knee crossed over the other and her head propped on her hand. Her wild blond hair fell in tousles over the left side of her face and her red lips were pursed. She looked amazing.
No wonder Corbatt had lost his mind over her.
“Stalking me, much?” I asked.
Laima laughed. “That’s no way to talk to a goddess.”
“But it is a way to talk to a stalker.”
Laima laughed again. She stood and magic swirled around her in silver sparkles, replacing her silver jumpsuit with a silver bikini.
She climbed into the water, taking the seat across from me. “I’m really old. The years get boring after a while, and you’re a new person.”
“Yeah, I can see how that might get boring. Being alive forever.” I tried to relax against my seat, but it was tough.
Though she was friendly, and technically sharing my bath, power radiated from her. Her magical signature was off the charts, and there was something in her eyes that said Don’t fuck with me.
Message received, goddess.
“So you’re just here to chat?” I asked.
“Basically. This is normally Bridge night, but the other girls had to beg off. Too much ambrosia last night. They’ve got hangovers like you wouldn’t believe.”
“Gotcha.”
“How are you enjoying our fair realm?” She waved a hand to indicate the scenery around us.
“Well, it’s really pretty. But mostly it’s just kinda tries to kill me a lot.”
“I’ve been watching.” Her brows rose. “But you’ve done well. You used a lot more magic this time.”
“I had to. Part of the challenge.”
“They’re really putting you through the ringer. Doyen and Magisteria must not trust you.”
“What about Ares?” He’d made it clear he didn’t yet trust me.
“Oh, he does. Totally.” Laima nodded knowingly. “I’ve been watching that one for years.”
“Watching?”
“Oh yeah. For gods, spying is just like watching soaps. There’s no TV here, unfortunately. What I get is through magical means, and the channels suck. So watching vampire machinations is half our entertainment.”
“You and the other girls. Who are also goddesses?”
“Yep. Three of us are fate goddesses. There are some others as well. Harvest, Death, Courtship, and Chaos. We have a wine-and-spy night.”
“Spy night. Not spa night?”
“Yeah. For spying. It’s like humans getting together to watch the Bachelor. Except we only got two seasons of that and are desperate now. So we spy on the Vampire Court. Along with some of the nobility.”
I grinned. I was in a magical hot tub, gossiping with a goddess about the Vampire Court? Score. “See anything good?”
“All the time
. Magisteria has a very active love life. And Doyen isn’t so bad either.”
Right. She was most interested in girls. But what I wanted to know about wasn’t Magisteria or Doyen. “What about Ares?”
Her eyes gleamed. “Oh, he’s my favorite.”
Okay, boys and girls for Laima. “Why?”
She tapped her chin. “That one is the puzzle. But it’s clear he trusts you. And likes you.”
“How can you tell? And what do you mean by puzzle?”
She shrugged a slender shoulder. “Well, he’s all business. Warrior first, person second. A machine, almost. Ever since he came into his majority ten years ago, at eighteen, he’s taken his role so seriously you’d think he was the god of Death.”
“He’s pretty serious?”
“As the grave.”
I chuckled. I loved a bad pun. “Tell me more.”
“Well, he spent most of his young adulthood chasing anything in a skirt.” She held up a finger. “Not goddesses though. He’s not an idiot. But he really seemed to enjoy life. People. Parties.”
“And then?”
“Then he became the Enforcer. It changed him. The responsibility or something, I don’t know. Hasn’t shown interest in having a life since.” She scoffed. “Much to our dismay, as I’m sure you can imagine. That’s one whole part of the Vampire Court with very little drama.”
“So he just works and that’s it.”
“Until you.” Laima pointed at me. “I’ve seen him break the rules for you.”
“Like healing me at the volcano?”
“And giving you hints today.” She tsked. “He’s never done that before.”
Hmmm. My heart fluttered. Settle down, you. “So, what? Do you think I can trust him?”
She shrugged again. Her signature move, I’d guess. For a fate goddess, she was pretty good at giving unclear signals. “I think there’s a good chance you can. He’s treated you like no one else in the ten years since he’s changed. Something about you, maybe.”
“That’s crazy.”
“I don’t know. You seem pretty great. You’re special, Nix.”
I blushed. A hot goddess was flirting with me?
I’d take it! My ego could use the boost. And maybe I was just making it up. But whatever.
