by R. L. King
To his relief, the pile moved and coughing echoed through the space. “J-Jason?” Her voice was strained.
It was all Jason could do not to throw himself into the hole without any regard for how he and Verity would get back out. “Are you okay? Are you hurt?”
“Ugh…I’m such an idiot…Didn’t get my shield up in time…”
“Are you hurt?” he demanded again. “Can you get out?” He swung the flashlight around so he could see her, and his breath caught. Dust-covered and sputtering, she lay bent at an odd angle. Her face was drawn.
She winced as she moved, pushing old bits of wood off her. “My leg’s messed up. I think I might have broken my ankle when I landed.” Pain laced her tone.
No, no…not now. “Hang on—I’m coming down there.”
“No,” she said quickly when he started to rise, sending more broken wood down on her. “Stay there.”
“But—”
“Jason—listen to me.” She spoke through gritted teeth, between bouts of coughing. Her fists clenched. “You have to go find Doc. He needs you more than I do.”
“No way! There’s no way in hell I’m leaving you here.” He stretched out again, trying to extend his arm down so she could grasp his hand, but he could see it was no use. She was a good ten feet below him.
“You have to.” Her voice sounded stronger now, and she glared at him. “He’s in danger, Jason. I didn’t see this hole when I stepped on it. It was an illusion. That means Trin’s setting traps. If she’s doing that, it means she knows Doc’s coming.”
“I don’t care,” he said stubbornly. “I am not leaving you here. Let me see if I can find a rope or something—”
“Jason.” She sounded stronger now, and her glare intensified. “I’ll be fine. I can heal this—it’ll just take time. We don’t have time. You have to—” She paused, patting her pocket, and withdrew her phone.
At the same time, Jason felt the buzz of his own phone. He pulled it out too, and saw Stone’s message: Basement below kitchen. Be careful.
“Did you get that?” Verity called.
“Yeah.”
“Go on! If he’s found them, he might need help. I’ll be fine here. It hurts, but I’m not bleeding or anything. It’ll just take me a few minutes to heal, and then I’ll follow.” Her tone changed, softened. “Jason, I know you want to stay here and protect me. I get it. But I’ll never forgive you if something happens to Doc and you could have helped him.”
Jason kept her illuminated in the flashlight beam. Her grime-streaked face was pale, and he could see the pain in her eyes, but he didn’t see any sign of blood or other injury. “Damn, V,” he growled. “Don’t do this to me.”
“Then go,” she ordered. “I’ll heal up and follow you as soon as I can. We know where they are now, and I can levitate out of here once I’m healed. I promise. I’m not the one in danger.”
Still, he hesitated—even as he knew she was right. “Okay…” he said, and it took all his willpower to say it. He carefully rose to his knees, then stood. “But be careful. If there’s one trap, there might be more.”
“You be careful. You won’t have magical sight anymore. I don’t want to let you go either, believe me. Drink that elixir now—it should last for about an hour, and I’ll feel better knowing you’re protected. If this isn’t over by then, something’s wrong.”
“Yeah.” He took the little bottle from his pocket, pulled out the stopper, and downed the contents, sputtering at the sharp, unpleasant taste. “Still no mint.”
“I’ll get right on that if there’s another batch.”
The stuff worked fast. He hadn’t really gotten a sense of that last time, since he’d been badly injured and most of its magic had gone toward healing and regeneration. This time, he could already feel the stuff circulating through his body, energizing his limbs with a pleasant sensation that was both chilly and warm. His arms and legs tingled, his whole body growing lighter and stronger. “I could get you out of there—leap down and jump back out with you—”
“Probably,” she said dryly. “But I think I’m safer down here. I don’t want you bringing down the whole place on top of us. Go.”
She had a point, damn it. He held up his phone. “Stay in touch. If I don’t get a message from you every five minutes or so, I’m coming back here to check on you.”
“Got it.” She chuckled weakly. “Damned overprotective brothers.”
“Damned stubborn sisters.”
“Get out of here, Jason.”
“Yeah.”
He looked back over his shoulder once, shining the beam around so he was sure he could find the spot again. He could see better now, even without the flashlight, so he switched it off. It was one of the hardest things he’d ever done in his life to turn and walk away, heading toward the center of the house.
He didn’t hear any loud sounds of magical battles up ahead, and didn’t know if that was a good thing or a bad thing.
74
Stone stopped as the darkness settled around him. Tensing, he reinforced his shield again and then focused his magical sight, trying to pierce the unnatural black.
A laugh echoed, all around him. It sounded strange, not quite like a woman but not quite a man, either.
“Welcome back, Stone.”
This time, the voice was unmistakable.
“Trin.” Stone flung himself forward, trying to get free of the engulfing blackness, but almost immediately he slammed into a solid wall. Growling, he raised his hands. Even though he couldn’t see the energy crackling around them, he could feel it. It arced between them, building strength. “Gods help me, I will bring this entire house down around your head if you’ve harmed Ian.”
She laughed again—it seemed to be coming from all around him. “I’d be careful about throwing power around. You don’t know where he is, or what I’ve done to protect myself. You don’t want to smash your baby boy under a ton of rubble, do you?”
“Ian!” he called. “Are you there? Where are you?”
“He can’t talk right now. Don’t worry—you’ll see him soon. Nice of you to join us.”
Stone pressed his hands against the wall in front of him, casting bright light spells around both hands. The darkness remained as impenetrable as before.
Illusion. It’s got to be.
This one would be hard to crack, too—it was already dark here, even before Trin’s “help.” He could do it, but it would take time. Jason and Verity would be here soon, if they’d gotten his message—perhaps if they distracted her, he could punch through more easily. Keep her talking…don’t let her know you’re on to her. “Let him go, Trin. It’s not Ian you want—it’s me. Let’s settle this once and for all.”
“Oh, you’ve got it half right. I do want you. And it looks like I’ve got you, too. It was stupid to separate from your friends—now they’re stuck in my little trap and won’t be coming to help you any time soon.”
A chill ran up Stone’s back. She’d caught Jason and Verity? “If you’ve hurt them—”
“You keep saying that. Trust me—you’re not going to care about that, or anything else, soon. I’ve been planning this for a long time, Stone. I’d like to tell you to sit back and enjoy it, but you aren’t going to enjoy it very much.”
Stone continued focusing on the illusion, trying to pierce it. Illusions were tricky, and one of the few things that could still slow him down even at his higher power level. This was a damned good illusion, too—whatever Trin had partnered with had some serious power as well. Trin was right: he couldn’t risk one of his massive energy blasts until he knew where Ian was—assuming he was even here at all, of course. She could already have moved him somewhere else, or killed him. Can’t worry about that now, though. One more thing she’ll have to answer for, if she has.
“How did you survive Burning Man?” he called, trying to divert her attention while he chipped away at the illusion. “You’re working with something else—I already know that. What is it?�
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Her laugh was snide now. “You’re a pretty smart cookie, Stone—that’s something I’ve always liked about you. But I can’t tell you everything. What fun would that be?”
“Is it the Evil? Has it changed its tune now that all its little friends are gone?” Was the darkness lessening, just a bit? He couldn’t tell for sure, but he thought so. Keep focusing…keep her talking…
“The Other?” She snorted. “You’re behind the times. It’s dead. Has been ever since the portal went up, just like all the others. You almost killed me, Stone. I was in bad shape, and that portal ripping the Other out of me made it worse. Not that I miss it—it was getting tiresome having it inside me, always wanting something.”
“How did you survive, then?”
“Let’s just say I had a little help, and leave it at that. And don’t think I can’t tell you’re trying to get past my illusion. You’ll do it, too—I know that. Something’s happened with you, too. You’re stronger than you used to be. Let me make things a little easier for you, okay?”
Suddenly, the lights came up, bright and blazing, to reveal a scene.
Stone’s breath caught in his throat.
It was as if the nearly ten years since he’d been here last hadn’t even occurred. Gone were the charred beams, the sagging ceiling, the damp rot. In their place stood a room lined on both sides with wooden tables and workbenches, bookshelves, and an empty wine rack. Its paneled walls were dry and peeling, the smell of wet mold replaced by dust and disuse.
Stone barely noticed any of this, though. What he noticed, what claimed all of his attention, was the center of the room.
The circle was large and intricate, with candles and crystals placed around its perimeter and a complex structure drawn on the floor in heavy chalk. One of the tables from along the wall had been dragged into the center, and more lit candles and flickering crystals surrounded it.
On the table, semiconscious and bound with heavy chains and manacles, was Ian.
“Bloody hell…” Stone whispered.
She’d perfectly recreated the scene from ten years ago, when she and her two friends had tried using Ethan Penrose as a sacrifice to bring over the vile being that had been trapped between dimensions in the house’s basement for decades following a botched summoning.
Trin stood behind the table. She looked different now: her hair was darker, her face subtly changed, but Stone had no trouble recognizing her. She wore a black, short-sleeved shirt, revealing a series of writhing tattoos that glowed along her arms with faint red brilliance.
“Like it?” she asked, smirking. Her eyes glittered with malevolence, and something about her didn’t look quite human.
This isn’t real. It’s an illusion. It’s got to be. But how much of it is…? Despite his efforts to cast it aside, the sight of the room brought all of his guilt and despair cascading back. Instead of his son on that table, for a second he saw Ethan, his eyes wide open, pleading with him to do something—anything—to save him.
No. That’s what she wants. Do not give her what she wants!
Rage overwhelming the guilt, he pointedly turned from her, focusing on Ian. “Ian! Are you there! Wake up!”
Ian’s eyes were open, but he didn’t appear to hear Stone. He struggled feebly on the table, writhing against the bonds.
“Ian! Come on, wake up! Free yourself! Fight it!”
Trin laughed. “He can’t do that. He’s feeling a little…drained right now.”
Stone glared at her. She’d drained Ian’s power? Of course she had—how else had she kept him under control? But that meant he couldn’t count on any assistance from his son. “What do you want? Who are you working with? Dear gods, are you trying to summon that thing back? Is that why you’re here?”
She rolled her eyes. “Like I said, Stone—you’re always behind the times. That thing’s gone, and it was too unpredictable anyway. I like my power a little more…focused.”
Stone looked around, trying to spot anything else to give him a clue about what Trin had planned. The room was clearly an illusion, just like the darkness around him. Keeping them going had to be taking some serious power, either from her or from whatever she was working with. And if she was telling the truth, Ian would be no help with his magic drained. “Let Ian go. Let’s finish this, you and I—if you’re not afraid of what I’ll do to you.”
“Afraid of you? Not anymore. And Ian’s not going anywhere. He’s still got a job to do. Two, actually, but he’s already done one of them—getting you here. Now shut up—I need to finish this.”
The area around Stone plunged into darkness again, and the room disappeared.
“No, damn you…” She was not going to cast him aside like some unwanted toy until she was ready for him. He reached out for the Calanarian power. It came to him readily, as it always did, and he focused it as he tried once again to punch through the illusionary darkness and the wall surrounding him, but once again both remained stubbornly present. He growled in frustration. He could act. The illusion wasn’t stopping him from letting loose with a magical attack that would level this building. He could probably take Trin out with it, since she wouldn’t be expecting it. But until he could see what he was doing, until he could pierce the illusion, he couldn’t risk it without the chance he’d kill Ian. That might even be what she wanted him to do. What worse punishment could she inflict on him than to cause him to kill his own son?
Think, Stone. Don’t do what she expects, or you’re dead.
But what wouldn’t she expect?
If he could distract her somehow, she might let the illusion slip enough for him to get past it. He’d only need a second.
Yes. That’s it.
He pulled his phone from his pocket. She’d mentioned that Jason and Verity were “stuck in her trap.” What did that mean? Were they injured, physically held somewhere, or had she merely used more illusion to keep them from reaching this area? It was a long shot, but they were some of the most resourceful people he knew, and they had options Trin couldn’t know about. If he could reach them, and as long as Trin didn’t consider them a threat, he might be able to use that. It was worth a try, at least.
He held the phone up to his face and concentrated hard on its tiny screen. At first, he couldn’t see it at all—the darkness was too profound, even though he could feel the button to switch it on. But then he tightened his focus, changing his intent from trying to see out of the darkness to merely trying to see the phone’s glowing screen. It made sense—he should be able to see it in normal darkness—so this should be easier for him to manage. That was another thing about illusions: you could sometimes do an end run around them as long as you worked with the paradigm they presented.
Trin didn’t seem to be paying attention to him at the moment, or at least she wasn’t trying to stop him. He worked fast, turned away from where he’d last seen her to give himself the best chance of concealing the phone from her, and concentrated harder.
The little screen slowly came into view. Yes. Quickly, before it faded, he tapped out a message: I need a diversion. He sent it off to Verity and Jason, hoping they’d be able to come up with something. He stuffed the phone back in his pocket and waited, every muscle tense, ready to act.
“What are you up to over there, Stone?” Trin called. “Don’t worry—I’m almost ready for you. You’ll have a front-row seat for the show, and then after your little boy’s taken care of, you and I will talk.”
“I’ll kill you,” Stone said. Come on, you two—hurry up. “You can’t beat me, Trin. You’re a failure. You’ve always been a failure.” His voice dripped contempt. “You buggered up your summoning here and got your friends killed, then buggered up the whole thing at Burning Man even more. It’s not everyone who can say their own incompetence single-handedly cocked up an extradimensional invasion.”
“Shut up,” she snapped from somewhere in front of him.
“Why? You say you’re going to kill me anyway—why don’t you go ahead and
do it? Oh, right—because you can’t. You’re still afraid of me, aren’t you, Trin? That’s why you’re messing about instead of getting on with it. You talk a good game, but under it all you’re nothing but a pathetic, useless coward.”
“Shut up!” she screamed. “Or I’ll rip you both to shreds, one after the other!”
“Go on—do it, then!” Stone was taking a big chance, but if he could get her angry enough, perhaps her control would slip and he wouldn’t need his friends’ diversion. “Do it, Trin, if you’re not the waste of space I think you are!”
She roared with rage, and then something slammed into his shield, driving him backward. Still sheathed in darkness, he hit a wall hard, but the attack didn’t get through. “Nice try!” he called, puffing but triumphant. “But if that’s the best you’ve got, you’ve made a fatal mistake!”
He braced for a follow-up attack, but none came. Instead, he could hear her breathing hard, muttering something under her breath—but she didn’t seem to be talking to him. Was someone else there? Was he—
From a short distance away, a loud BOOM sounded, nearly deafening in the night’s silence.
75
Stone didn’t wait to act, or even to figure out what had caused the sound. Instead, he gathered his power and let it loose, focusing every shred of his concentration on punching through the illusionary darkness while Trin’s attention was diverted.
The magical energy, bright and strong, pulsed outward with a crisp, burning-ozone smell. The dome of darkness surrounding him shredded, blasting into pieces that careened off in every direction.
Still, Stone didn’t hesitate. At the edges of his awareness, he knew the scene Trin had presented for him had faded: in the dimmer light of flickering candles, the only thing that remained was a circle—a different, cruder one—and the table with Ian bound to it with stout chains. Beyond that, a shadowy figure stood, already wheeling back around toward Stone, power flowering around her raised hands.
Stone didn’t give her a chance to retaliate. Now that he could see her, he didn’t hold back. Pointing both hands, he let loose with a pulsing blast of pure Calanarian energy.
