A Tide of War

by Bella Forrest

  “Is this some strange custom I’m not familiar with?” I murmured to Hazel.

  She shook her head. “No…I have no idea what they’re doing.”

  We quickened our pace. When we reached them, the Hawk boys were grinning broadly.

  “You’ve got to take these off our hands,” one of them said, a boy with bright aquamarine eyes. “I feel like I’ve just had about twenty coffees—I’m getting a headache.”

  “From the flowers?” Hazel asked doubtfully.

  “Try them.” He proffered the bunch into Hazel’s arms. She grabbed them, looking sidelong at me with a bemused expression.

  “Oh, wow,” she gasped, her eyes wide.

  “What is it?” I pressed.

  “They’re filled with energy—crazy powerful energy,” the boy with green-blue eyes replied.

  “He’s right.” Hazel turned to me, placing the flowers gently on the ground and keeping only one. They glowed brightly, their center a deep pink hue that pulsed like the heart of a flame. “Try it.” She offered a flower to me and I took it. I felt the energy instantly—it coursed through my veins, its power comparable with the stones that had locked in the entity and his army.

  “Are we sure these are safe? Where did you find them?” I asked the Hawk boys.

  “We found them in the forest—an entire field of them, in the middle of nowhere. The jinn checked them for magic. They said the flowers seemed natural—there was no evidence that they’d been tampered with.”

  Their reassurance mollified me somewhat, but I was still skeptical. Everything about them seemed so similar to the stones—the colors were the same unnatural hue, the power felt the same…

  “How have these never been discovered before?” Hazel asked. “Did you know about them?”

  I shook my head. “No, but if they were found in the depths of the forest then that doesn’t surprise me. Few venture in there…though you say they were in a meadow? I’ve flown near the Dauoa many times—surely I would have seen the lights?”

  The Hawk boys shrugged. Clearly no one had any answers. I had to weigh up the potential danger of these plants against the undoubted benefits they would bring to the entire army—all of us were in need of the energy they could provide.

  I quickly made my choice.

  “Guards.” I addressed the sentries who were nearby, watching us with unabashed curiosity and delight. “Deliver these to those in need—the ministers who are upholding the barriers especially.”

  The guards hastened to their duty.

  Once the flowers were all gone, aside from two that Hazel and I held, the Hawks turned to me, concern taking over from the initial delight they’d felt at delivering such a gift.

  “We hoped that the battle would be won—but it’s not, is it?” one of them asked.

  “The entity holds too much power,” I replied. “We have one option now, which is to lock the portal. There’s no other way out of Nevertide. The entity plans to seep out into the rest of the dimensions—this is the only way to stop it. I’m afraid that our survival might rest on you finding the jinn. The witches are positive now that the creatures still reside here…somewhere.”

  “We’ll find them,” the first Hawk replied, his aquamarine eyes flashing with conviction. “We won’t stop until we do.”

  When the Hawks left, Hazel and I made our way back to the palace.

  My mind kept returning to the vision I’d had. How it had felt, rather than what I’d seen. Almost as if the entity had been there with me somehow—delving into my mind, planting the visions itself. If that were true, it would mean that the entity had managed to find a way to mind-meld with me. How that was possible at such a distance, I couldn’t fathom, but I couldn’t shake the feeling that my suspicions were correct. If it were true, that left me with another puzzle. I had felt a similar sensation when Hazel and I had created that barrier, but I couldn’t put that down to the entity…Why would it help us discover a way to defend ourselves? To get away just at the point when it could have killed us?

  “Before I leave for the cove we should practice creating the barrier again,” I said to Hazel, thinking that I might be able to understand better if I could feel it again—my theories might be completely misguided. Now that we had the added energy of the flowers, there was no need to worry about draining myself before we left for the mission.

  “I don’t want you to go to the cove,” Hazel whispered. “I know it’s important, but I have a bad feeling about all of this. I don’t know what it is…I just don’t know if this is the best plan.”

  “It might not be,” I admitted, “but it’s the only one we have. We can’t wait for the jinn to be found—it’s too risky. Even if they are discovered, they might be unwilling or unable to help.”

  Hazel nodded, sighing. We were about to walk up to the front steps, but I pulled her back. We didn’t need to be at the meeting. I trusted her instincts—if this mission was ill-advised, then I wanted to spend the last moments I had with her.

  “Hazel,” I began, not truly knowing what it was that I wanted to say. I wanted to offer some reassurance, but what good would that do? She knew the slim chance of success that we were facing—she wouldn’t be fooled by false hope. Perhaps, as always with Hazel, honesty was the best policy.

  “I should have married you,” I blurted out. Hazel’s eyes widened, taken aback as I drew her into my arms. “As soon as I could. Not involved myself with the trials, left it all to Ash sooner. That will be my only regret—that I didn’t—”

  “Stop,” she urged. “We’re going to have time for all of that later. We will, Tejus, I have to keep believing that.”

  She drew her arms around me, pulling me into a kiss. It left me breathless and aching.

  “I don’t want you to go to the cove thinking this is a suicide mission. It won’t be—forget what I said. Please. You have to come back to me. Ash survived, against all the odds, and you will too. We’re all going to get out of here. We’re going to live our lives out in The Shade, with a family—children, and grandchildren, great-grandchildren—surrounded by friends and family. We’re going to die of old age, many, many years from now, or we’re going to live for eternity—whatever we choose. But it will be our choice, not the entity’s. It doesn’t get to decide our future. It can ruin this land, it can try to ruin others, but it won’t destroy what we have.”

  I held her head cradled in my hands, gently brushing the tears that had fallen onto her cheeks.

  “Okay,” I promised her, “I’ll come back to you. I promise.”

  I held her tightly against my chest. She hugged me fiercely, her arms wrapped around my waist. I looked out in the direction of the cove. I couldn’t see the shadow I knew would be hovering above the portal, but I vowed that what I’d just promised Hazel would be the truth—I would return to her.

  Whatever happened, I would return.

  Ben

  My father had decided that Sherus, Tejus, Aiden, Lucas and I would join him on the mission to the cove. We would be accompanied by Lethe, the ice dragon, and Nuriya and Ibrahim to close the portal if we got a chance.

  I said my goodbyes to River and Grace, wishing that I could one day put a stop to the pain I brought River in these moments. Of course, she understood GASP’s role and continually put her own life on the line, but it was never easy for her… I guessed that came from me dying once already.

  The ministers created a rip in the barrier for us to pass, and we left the palace behind, the crowds of sentries and GASP members standing silently behind us.

  “I don’t want to transport us straight to the cove… We don’t know what will meet us when we get there. I think it would be prudent to use a cloaking spell instead. I don’t know if the entity or its army will be able to see through it, but it’s worth trying,” Ibrahim informed us as we reached the start of the path.

  “Good idea,” my father replied. “Lethe?” He turned to the dragon.

  “I’ll rely on my own stealth to remain unseen,
” Lethe replied.

  A moment later, Ibrahim’s spell was upon everyone but Lethe. The ice dragon was under strict instruction not to fly until we were sure that the entity was distracted. If its armies saw us now, we would be done for. It would make our journey to the cove longer, but that was fine—it was better to be cautious.

  When we got partway down the track, my dad motioned to the outskirts of the forest on either side.

  “We should keep to the trees, just in case they can see through Ibrahim’s spell. I think we’ll be okay, as long as we don’t venture into the forest.”

  We all stepped into their shade. The sun was starting to set and it made the shadows of the trees long and dense. This light would make it easier for the armies to creep up on us without our noticing. I just hoped the feeling of dread that usually accompanied them would be enough of a warning.

  “Can you see anything yet?” I asked Tejus as we drew closer to the cove.

  He nodded, squinting in the direction of the water. “It seems unchanged—the shadow looms over the portal. I can’t see any sign of Jenus though. We might have to get closer before I can tell.”

  I nodded, relieved that the armies hadn’t yet left through the portal.

  “What’s it waiting for?” Sherus hissed.

  “Perhaps more of its kind?” I suggested. “The planet in the In-Between is full of the stones. They might have broken open at the same time these did—the beings they imprisoned could be making their way here through the portal?”

  The fae king looked at me in horror.

  “Then we are already too late!” he exclaimed in a whisper.

  My father turned around and shook his head.

  “Not necessarily. If Tejus’s visions are correct, then the entity is organizing a well-strategized attack. Ben’s right—it might be trying to unify its forces here before deploying them.”

  “You’re saying they won’t wreak havoc on Earth and the In-Between as they make their way here?” Sherus replied skeptically.

  “I’m saying that they might not,” my father emphasized.

  The fae king sighed, his face dark with anger. Queen Nuriya placed a small hand on his arm, and to my surprise, he visibly calmed.

  We moved closer, the only sound our footsteps on the dried leaves and bracken and the faint sounds of our breathing mingling with the increasingly chilled air.

  Eventually we reached the small path that led down to the cove.

  “Do you have a clear view?” my dad asked Tejus.

  “Yes, I can see Jenus,” the sentry muttered. “He’s standing by the shore…It looks like he’s waiting for something. He’s pacing up and down.”

  My father looked around. We were well sheltered by the trees here, but if we moved further ahead we would be at the edge of the cliff, sheltered by some large rocks that had been thrown up by a tear in the earth.

  “We move ahead,” my dad announced, pointing at the cliff edge, “and we wait there for our moment.”

  To get to the rock we would have to cross a clear path, one that was in direct view of the shadow that hovered over the portal entrance.

  “Ibrahim, can you transport us to the rocks?” Derek asked the warlock.

  He nodded, and a moment later, we were standing right by the rocks—Nuriya appearing at Sherus’s side a second later by her own magic. Now it was only Lethe left on the other side.

  I held my breath as he scurried across the path. It wasn’t wide, but for those few moments he was completely exposed. I could hear Lethe’s heart pounding as he collapsed next to me.

  We all waited to see if they’d spotted us. I dared to look over the rock, seeing if there was any movement from the shadow or Jenus, but all remained the same. I heaved a sigh of relief. Ibrahim’s cloaking spell was still over us.

  “What now, do we just wait?” Aiden asked. “There must be another way—what if they don’t move?”

  “We have to hope that they will,” my dad replied. “It’s too dangerous to venture down there now.”

  We all sat and watched. The sun dipped lower on the horizon, the sky becoming almost beautiful with its pink and purple hues. Now we were close to the shadow, I could feel the foreboding sense of dread and discomfort that its presence had brought about before. My stomach churned at the unnaturalness of it—the evil that it suggested, as if the shadow only knew how to destroy, as if it existed as the exact opposite of everything that was good in the world.

  “Keep your eyes on the stars, Benjamin,” Sherus murmured at me.

  I did as he asked. I focused on the cold, bright pinpricks in the velvet of the night, and soon the presence of the shadow started to bother me less.

  I was being lulled into a false sense of security.

  A moment later, I heard a loud screeching—screams of triumph, echoing from the portal. I jumped, my heart rate accelerating. Storming through the portal were hordes of ghouls—their graying skin stretched over skulls with sparse patches of hair hanging off them, their clawed fingers outstretched, their mouths open, sharp teeth and black tongues lusting for flesh.

  Ghouls?

  What were they doing here? It was the last thing we’d expected to see. Where had they even come from? The ghouls swarmed around the cove, disordered and screeching, so many that their forms started blocking the land below, whizzing around the cliff face. Soon they were traveling so high up the cliff-face that they were only a few feet below us. If even one of them smelt us, or sensed our presence in any way, we would be done for.

  I didn’t dare open my mouth, but knew that the others would be thinking the same thing.

  The ground started to rumble—slight tremors that rattled the stones and dirt by my feet. I looked at the shadow, but it hadn’t moved from its position…what was causing the earth to shake?

  My eyes were drawn to the portal. We heard a loud gurgling noise, like a plug being pulled, and then the blood drained from my face. A loud wailing noise emanated from the mouth of the portal—heavy, wet cries that came from some wretched creature…I knew that sound. It was one I had hoped to never hear again.

  The ghoul queen.

  Sherus gripped my forearm. The fae king recognized it too.

  The portal yawned open, and the ghoul queen emerged. She heaved her paunchy rolls of fat forward, their glutinous appearance making me sick to my stomach. Her cold blue veins were stretched beneath her translucent skin like marble, and she wore the grotesque crown that I’d seen her in last—an assortment of black and green decaying teeth proudly adorning her head. The lank strands of hair trembled with the effort of moving her ginormous figure.

  “Ben?” my dad hissed at me as quietly as he could. “Do you know this creature?”

  I nodded, trying to find my voice.

  “She was in The Underworld—the residence of the ghouls,” I added for the benefit of the others, “I was trapped there in ghost form. I saw her deep underground. The Necropolis, it was called—the furthest depths of The Underworld. I saw her moving through a graveyard of ghosts, wailing like she is now. We left her…Aisha tried to kill her, but she vanished. I didn’t think she would ever emerge.” I didn’t think I would ever see her again. The fae and ghouls had engaged in a battle soon after Sherus granted me my fae body—I was aware that not all the Underworld ghouls had been wiped out, but I’d thought the queen would have been one of them.

  Some stones are better left unturned…

  That was the exact thought I’d had after we’d left that queen alive in The Underworld’s depths… I couldn’t help but wonder now if she was a stone we should have unturned while we’d had the chance.

  “Do you know why she might be here?” my father asked.

  I shook my head. I had no idea why she would be appearing in Nevertide…Unless, of course, the entity was drawing all the dark supernatural creatures here to join its forces? It seemed so unlikely. The ghouls were not known for building allegiances with other supernatural creatures. The only exception that I’d heard of was the
deal with the fae—but that had been to serve their purposes only. What might the entity have offered them?

  I kept watching, barely able to tear my eyes away from the repugnant queen. She certainly hadn’t improved with age. She lumbered forward, and then Jenus stepped into view.

  Instantly, the wailing stopped.

  The queen’s face transformed. The rolls of fat beneath her chin wobbled like jelly, her fleshy gray lips splitting open into…a smile?

  Jenus’s arms opened and she lumbered into his embrace. Her sharp black claws clutched at his soiled robe, her face bearing down toward his. The last rays of sun glared brilliantly in their final descent, and Jenus cried out in exultation before his lips, wetted in excitement by an anxious tongue, leapt onto hers. Their putrid bodies drew together as they grunted into a lustful kiss.

  Bile burned at the back of my throat.

  One of us dry-heaved—I thought it might have been Tejus, but I could not look away to check.

  Suddenly, the screeching of the ghouls stopped. En masse, they darted down to the ground. Slithering like eels against one another, they all bowed down low before Jenus, and then turned, scraping the floor once again to honor the shadow.

  What is going on?

  My mind searched frantically for understanding. Clearly there was a hierarchy of evil here—the ghouls acknowledged that they were lesser beings than the entity and its shadow…and the entity had clearly just been reunited with a long-lost companion. Had it been what the ghoul queen had been wailing for, yearning for, all that time ago in The Underworld? Wandering the graveyards, waiting for its return? Binge-eating ghosts to cope with her misery?

  I thought about what the Impartial Ministers, Tejus and Ash had told us about the entity. How whatever creatures were contained in those stones were the first inhabitants of Nevertide. Had the entity and its queen somehow been parted in the supernatural realm when it had been banished to the stone lock? Were the entity and the ghoul queen somehow of the same species?

  My mind boggled. I looked across at my father and Sherus, both as stunned as me at the unfolding of events.