by John Corwin
"Adam Nosti can crack the wards," Shelton said. "I should be able to shield him while he does it."
"What's the plan once we're in?" Dad asked.
"Templars will secure the sanctuary," Elyssa said. "Justin, didn't you say the Gloom arch was blocked when you tried to come back through?"
I nodded. "We'll need to remove that before we can use it."
"Adam again," Shelton said.
"Justin, this information may be useful." Cinder whirled an ASE and brought up a holographic display of a Gloom arch over the table. "Darkwater acquired some of the Exorcist training videos."
"Videos?" Shelton laughed. "I gotta see this."
"They are quite informational," Cinder said. "As explained in the video, The Gloom arch does not open to a remote destination, but creates a portal to the Gloom in the same place as the arch."
"The Exorcists used a singing ritual," I said.
"The singing ritual is unnecessary, according to the video." Cinder flicked the image of the arch. It vanished and was replaced by the video of a man dressed in the monk-like robes of the Exorcists. Awful easy-listening music sounding like a duet between a pan flute and an organ played in the background. The man spoke to the camera.
"During your time as an Exorcist, you'll see many amazing things. The Gloom arch is one such wonder." He touched the gray structure. "Since exorcism is successful in most cases, banishment isn't used very often. However, you may come across tough cases every once in a while." He offered a reassuring smile as another man in a robe appeared on camera. "Remember, always ask your backup buddy to help you move the possessed into the containment circle." He pointed to his eyes. "Keep a sharp eye out for any silver objects that may have fallen across the circle and might prevent it from closing." The man touched his ears. "Listen for signs of danger from the possessed subject, and don't be afraid to ask your coordinator for more help." The two men smiled vacantly. "Remember, look, listen, and ask."
Shelton roared with laughter.
I sighed. "Cinder, can you fast-forward to the important parts?"
"Of course." Cinder waved his hand over the video and advanced it.
"…the ritual is just for show," the man said, and pressed a finger to the silver circle in the floor around the Gloom arch. "You seal it like any other arch, and will it to open." A portal flickered on in the arch. "If you simply will it to open, it won't rupture the veil between realms and cause the vacuum usually associated with Gloom fractures. The Exorcist ritual leaders typically use the slashing method when opening the portal. This tears through the veil and causes the vacuum between the mortal realm and the Gloom." The man smiled. "This is often used to demonstrate power to prisoners. Don't be afraid to use intimidation. Remember, the possessed are dangerous, and the Gloom is no place you want to end up on accident, right, Phil?" He turned to his partner.
"That's right, Roger. Know your surroundings. Know how to operate equipment. Know how to handle the possessed. Remember the three Ks" Phil turned to Roger. "Now you know."
Roger smiled. "And knowing is half the battle."
Cinder stopped the playback as the two men clasped hands and raised them overhead in some sort of victory pose. The golem turned to us. "This means you can safely enter and exit the Gloom via the arch."
Shelton slapped Cinder on the back. "Nice job, buddy."
The golem regarded Shelton for a moment. "Thank you for your non-aggressive show of appreciation, Harry."
Shelton rolled his eyes. "You sure do have a way of ruining the moment."
"This is perfect," Elyssa said.
The new knowledge encouraged me. "It also means we'll be able to cast spells, at least within range of the arch."
"Will magic carpets work in the Gloom?" Shelton asked.
I shrugged. "I think so. Their levitation spells are self-contained."
"There's a great deal of speculation in the Darkwater database about the Gloom effect on supernatural abilities," Cinder said. "So far, I have found no definitive answers."
"I should be able to use my abilities," I said. "My Seraphim side seems to help me overcome the Gloom limitations."
"Can you draw us a diagram of the Gloom fortress?" Elyssa asked me.
I hadn't seen the entire structure, but remembered enough of Jarvis's tour to sketch the basics. Using my finger, I drew a map on an arctablet and displayed the image above the table. "Here's the pit," I said, drawing the quarry. The pit extended like a semi-circle around the back of the fortress like a barrier. Next, I drew a long rectangle in front of the pit and another large circle behind the complex. "This is the fortress"—I touched the rectangle—"and the circle is the arch chamber." I marked the front entrance and outlined the corridors as best I could. Each bottleneck resembled a roundabout where the sentinels could eliminate any threats. Near the back, I drew Serena's lab, marking the location of the minder brain on the left. Behind the lab, I sketched the round chamber with the Shadow Nexus inside. I drew an X on the back wall of the fortress to the left of Serena's lab. "I think that's where the rear exit is."
Elyssa studied the diagram for several minutes. "The pit provides plenty of incentive not to come through the back." She narrowed her eyes. "Unless flying carpets work. Then we could fly across it and enter via the back."
"The minder brain controls the doors," Dad said. "We'll need to open them somehow."
"What about an invisibility spell?" I asked. "We could wait near the door until someone opens it."
"You're talking about a major power drain," Shelton said with a shake of his head. "Even if an Arcane could cast inside the Gloom, they'd be too tired to do much else after maintaining an invisibility veil."
"We can use Nightingale armor," Elyssa said. "It has rudimentary camouflage, but it won't last long."
I raised an eyebrow. "How long?"
"About ten minutes before it needs to recharge."
"That's not very long," Dad said.
I sighed. "It'll have to do."
Elyssa looked over the holographic diagrams of the Exorcist church and Gloom fortress floating side-by-side above the table. She drew circles, lines, and squares of different colors on both of them. Grunted, and erased them before starting again.
Adam Nosti and his girlfriend, Meghan Andretti, entered the room. Adam gave me a wave and walked over to Shelton. "Got your text," he said.
Dad pulled me to the side. "Why don't you fill me in on the plan later? I'm going to take a walk or something."
I felt my forehead crinkle. "Um, okay. You look a little pale. Are you feeling okay?"
"I'm fine. I just need some fresh air." Dad headed for the door.
I gripped his arm. "What's wrong? Why are you acting so antsy all of a sudden?"
The door to the war room opened. Dad stiffened. A petite woman entered. Nightliss was the spitting image of her sister, Daelissa, though her dark hair, green eyes, and olive-toned skin were in sharp contrast to Daelissa's blue eyes, blonde hair, and fair skin. I wasn't sure there was a term for the kind of twins they were—identical mirror twins?
"Justin!" Nightliss said, and gave me a firm hug. She kissed me on both cheeks. "It is so good to see you." Her eyes grew troubled as they gazed at Dad. "David?"
He grinned, reminding me of the smartass with whom I'd entered the Gloom. "Good to see you again, Nightliss."
"I have not seen you since Vadaemos," she said. "But lately I have begun to remember things from the far past about you and—"
"I was just leaving," Dad said, tipped his head, and headed for the door.
Nightliss shot me a puzzled look. I shrugged.
Dad headed through the door, and plowed right into someone rounding the entrance. He grunted. Blonde hair flashed, and a bundle of parchment paper flew apart and scattered across the floor.
My father's face went white. He recovered quickly with a smile. Alysea, my mother, looked at him in surprise.
"David?" Mom paused a heartbeat before bending down to retrieve her parchment paper
s.
"Here, let me get that for you." Dad leaned down to help her at the same time. They bumped heads so hard I heard the thunk from across the room.
"Ouch," they said, standing up and rubbing their foreheads in unison.
"I don't know if they're a match made in heaven or hell." Shelton barked a laugh.
Elyssa was suddenly at my side, hands gripping mine. "Are we about to have family drama?"
I suddenly understood why Dad had been in such a hurry to leave. He'd known Mom was on her way.
I felt someone grip my other hand and looked down at Ivy. Her young face looked troubled. "Should I go say hello to Mommy now, or wait until she kisses David?"
I wasn't sure what to tell her. "Maybe wait a minute and see what happens."
She squeezed my hand tighter. "Justin, I don't remember David, but now that all of us are here together, I just realized how much I want us to be together forever."
I squeezed her in a hug. "Me too, sis. Me too."
Mom and Dad seemed oblivious to the rest of us as they finished picking up the paper. Mom regarded my father with liquid blue eyes. He cleared his throat nervously and handed her the documents. "Hello, Alysea." He said her name so tenderly it was as if he'd just told her he loved her and missed her, all wrapped up into one word.
She smiled. "David." Affection filled her voice. A tear trickled down Mom's cheek.
Dad gently wiped away the tear with his thumb. "There, there, now." He caressed her cheek, and tilted her face up. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't be here."
Mom took his hand and squeezed it. "I'm glad you are."
I looked around and saw everyone else watching the scene like it was the best reality show ever. I steeled myself as conflicting emotions washed over me. Seeing how much they still loved each other filled me with happiness. Knowing Dad had no choice but to abandon Mom and marry Kassallandra drowned my happiness with intense regret.
This was torture. If it was bad for me, I couldn't imagine how bad it was for my parents. "Hey, Mom," I said.
She turned her solemn gaze on me. "Justin! Ivy!" Mom ran over and squeezed us in a big hug, kissing each of our cheeks. "I'm so happy to be back." She looked over at Elyssa. "Sorry we're late."
Elyssa offered a gentle smile for my mother. "Given the circumstances, it's perfectly understandable."
Mom looked at the diagrams Elyssa was working on. "What's the plan?"
A fierce look came over my girlfriend's pretty face. "It's time to start a war."
Chapter 32
Elyssa enlarged the diagram of the Church of the Divinity. "Two squads of Templars will accompany our infiltration team to the church. The Gloom infil team will consist of me, Justin, and David." She indicated circled areas on the roofs of neighboring buildings. "Alpha Squad will take up positions across the street. Beta will cover the rear entrance of the church. Gamma will occupy and secure the interior once we're inside." Elyssa turned to Shelton. "I'd like you and Bella to accompany Adam while he cracks the shield spell guarding the back entrance."
"You got it," Shelton said.
Elyssa circled the rear entrance with a finger. "I'm allowing a twenty minute window for opening the shield. Is that enough time?"
Adam nodded. "I doubt the spell is even half as complicated as the one we had to break in the arch room, plus I've optimized the spell code."
"Good." Elyssa shifted to an inside view of the church. "Once inside, Justin will activate the Gloom arch."
"I want to accompany your team," Mom said.
"Inside the Gloom?" Elyssa asked.
She nodded. "I have some experience at dreamcasting."
"I don't think that's a good idea," Dad said. "Arcanes can't cast spells in the Gloom."
"The Gloom dampens abilities, but Seraphim are strong enough to still channel magic at a diminished capacity," Mom replied, eyes flashing the same way Elyssa's did when she'd made up her mind and nothing would stop her. "I'm coming."
Dad seemed to know better than to argue. "Great. Let's have a family outing. I'll bring the picnic blanket."
"What about me?" Ivy asked.
Elyssa paused. "I'd like you to accompany Nightliss and the Colombian legion when we activate the Shadow Nexus. You'll be protecting our defenses." She glanced at my mother. "If that's okay with you, Alysea."
Mom looked uncertain. Ivy might be powerful, but she was still a little girl.
"I can do it," Ivy said, defiantly sticking out her chin.
"I will protect her," Nightliss said.
It was Ivy's turn to look uneasy. She'd once thought Nightliss evil due to her being a Darkling. Hopefully, that was a thing of the past. Ivy smiled sweetly. "Maybe I'll protect you." Nightliss laughed.
"Please take care of my little girl," Mom told Nightliss.
The Darkling nodded. "I will protect her with my life."
Elyssa exchanged a look with me. I returned an uneasy nod. She looked back at my mother. "Looks like the infil team will consist of the four of us then. I'll procure an extra set of camouflage armor."
She switched to the diagram of the Gloom fortress. "The Colombian Templar legion will take the Obsidian Arch at the La Casona way station to the Obsidian Arch at the Three Sisters way station. They will then form up inside the control room and wait near the Alabaster Arch for our infiltration team to reach the Shadow Nexus inside the fortress and open a portal to the Alabaster Arch." Elyssa traced a line from the Exorcist church to the fortress. "Once our team has entered the Gloom arch in the Exorcist church, we will infiltrate the fortress by taking flying carpets across Bellwood Quarry, landing near the rear exit of the fortress, and waiting for a target of opportunity to open the door."
"What happens if the camouflage charge on the suit runs out?" Shelton asked.
"We'll have to hope no one sees us," Elyssa said. "The flying carpets also have camo spells. We can cover ourselves with them to buy some time."
"Smart thinking." Shelton looked at me. "Thank goodness one of you knows how to plan."
Elyssa folded her arms and turned a questioning gaze on my mother. "How limited will your channeling be inside the Gloom?"
"Half power. Maybe less. It's been a long while since I've been inside the Gloom." Mom shrugged. "I plan to rely more on dreamcasting than channeling if at all possible."
"How does the Gloom keep Arcanes from casting?" Shelton asked.
Mom strode to stand beside Elyssa and turned to address the group. "When I first experimented with the Grand Nexus in Seraphina, I learned how to sense what lay on the other side of the portal without completely opening it. Seraphina has a shadow realm similar to the Gloom, as do many of the major realms I discovered."
"Seraphina has a shadow realm full of minders?" Shelton asked.
"I'm not sure what's there," she said. "Seraphina, Eden, and Haedaemos are full realms. The Gloom is essentially a shadow cast by Eden. The minders—to the best of my understanding—are shades of the people who live in Eden."
Shelton raised an eyebrow. "We all have our very own ghosts floating around the Gloom?"
Mom nodded. "In a sense, yes. Because the Gloom is not a full realm, entering it dampens your abilities. It's like placing a translucent barrier between you and your soul. While it's not impossible to penetrate, it is very difficult."
I turned to her. "Mom—Alysea, are you saying it's possible for Arcanes to cast spells in the Gloom?"
"It is possible, but extremely unlikely." She held her hand flat. "Imagine my hand is a sponge. Water can flow through the sponge, but only in a trickle. Most Arcanes don't have enough raw power to saturate the barrier enough so it can seep through."
"But the Gloom is chock full of aether," Shelton argued. "From what Justin described, they make the stuff there."
"Yes, but you're still out of phase from the real world." She shrugged. "I don't know how else to explain it."
"I think I got it." Adam's face brightened. "When we're physically in the shadow world, we're essentially shadows of our us
ual selves. Those who are very powerful in the real world will still have some abilities. The rest of us normal schmucks who don't have the raw power of a Seraphim can't cast spells."
"An excellent explanation," Alysea said. "Much better than mine."
"Kind of like someone trying to physically enter the demon realm," I said. "Our bodies aren't made to be there, and it screws us up."
"Exactly," Adam replied.
I turned to Elyssa. "When do we start?"
"Just as soon as the squads involved in the church assault arrive," she said. "That should be any minute now."
I swallowed a ball of nerves. "Alrighty, then."
"Are we late to the party?" said a sultry feminine voice.
I turned to see Stacey and her boyfriend, Ryland, enter the room. "Couldn't resist?" I said with a broad smile.
Stacey strolled to me with cat-like grace, and pressed her soft curves against me. "It's so bloody good to see you, my lamb."
"She's sitting this one out," Ryland said. The lycan stroked one of his mutton chops. "You want to tell them, babe?"
Stacey pursed her full lips into a sulky pout. "Bloody hell. You know I'd be perfectly fine."
I gave her a confused look. "What's going on? Are you injured? Sick?"
"You could say I'm sick," she replied, offering me a sly wink. "Unfortunately this particular sickness lasts nine months."
The women's eyes went wide with delight.
"You're pregnant?" Elyssa said.
"I'm so happy for you," Mom said, embracing Stacey.
"What wonderful news," Nightliss said.
"Oh, you're having a baby?" Ivy asked. "They're so cute. How do you make them?"
The women exchanged uncomfortable looks. Mom stroked Ivy's blonde hair and said, "Perhaps we should save that discussion for after we save the world."
Laughter broke the tension, though Ivy seemed a bit befuddled.
The conversation immediately devolved into discussing whether they knew what gender the baby was, whether it would be a felycan, lycan, or a kid who could switch between wolf form and feline.
Shelton conjured a case of cigars from somewhere and handed the first one to Ryland, slapping him on the back. I congratulated Stacey and walked over to the men along with Dad. My father took a stogie and lit it up. Adam took a cigar, but declined a light.
