by Olivia Ash
Sophia sighed.
Refocus.
Branded as fugitives, staying in Ezekiel’s ancestral home was not an option. At some point, they’d have to leave this dusty old inn as well.
Winston and the Nameless Master were after them. In order to survive and get through what they were bound to face sooner than later, they needed a plan for finding the heirs.
She turned from the window. “As much as I would love to loiter here and pretend like we are living normal lives, I still have a job to do.”
“Find the heirs to the throne,” Edric said, setting his cup on the table near the couch.
She nodded. “The oracles have tasked me to do this, and I won’t let them down.” She flexed her fingers and rolled her shoulders, eager to get back into action. “Besides, I’m sure when we find them, they will pardon us for our crimes. Then, Winston and the duchess won’t be able to touch us. They won’t have the power in Nighthelm to so much as even point a finger at us.”
“Let’s think… where else could we look to find information on the heirs?” Edric asked.
“Let’s figure out where we have been,” Andreas said. “Then we can explore where is left to look.”
Sophia smiled as she let out a breath she hadn’t realized she was holding. Her men were with her regardless. Even so much as taking on a task that was appointed to her.
“We need to do some research in the castle archives about the royal family,” Edric suggested. “That would be the first place I would look. It’s supposed to hold all the information regarding them.”
“The last time I tried to get into the castle, the stone and brick rearranged itself and wouldn’t let me in.” Before that night, Sophia had no idea an inanimate stone structure could do that. But magic was powerful. She’d seen it do mystical things, especially at the command of someone capable and dynamic. Ezekiel had impressed her several times with the things he could do. She even surprised herself with how much control she had gained over her own powers.
“The ruler controls the castle,” Ezekiel said as he paced the room. “Perhaps the duchess had been made aware of your gifts by the headmistress and wanted to keep you out.”
“If that’s the case, then we can’t go anywhere near the castle or it will probably trap us inside, like rabbits in a snare,” Sophia said.
“Where else is there to look?” Andreas asked. “There has to be information somewhere.”
Ezekiel snapped his fingers and said, “What about this? We’ll go to the Metropolis Library and infiltrate the forbidden section. But we’ll have to be very careful.”
Andreas snorted from the sofa. “Oh yeah, nothing more dangerous than sneaking into a library.”
“Coming from someone who probably has never read a book.” Ezekiel made a face at Andreas.
Andreas looked appalled. “Hey, I’ve read a book.”
“When?” Ezekiel asked.
Andreas shrugged. “In the academy.”
“That was like, fifteen years ago, during our primary education.” Ezekiel shook his head, his lips twisted up into a wry grin.
“Yeah, but I have read a book. We can’t all engage in carnal relations with tomes on conjuring and spellcasting like you, Zeke.” Andreas snorted.
Edric crossed his arms and gave the other men a hard look. “Can we focus on the task at hand, please?”
Andreas shrugged and gestured to Edric to continue, as he leaned into the corner of the booth, draping his arm over the top.
“Do you know the workings of the library?” Edric asked Ezekiel.
“Yes.” He stood a bit taller. “I know every entrance and exit on every floor.”
“Good. Then you’ll lead us in,” Edric said.
Another loud shout and a bang filled the room, and Sophia looked out the window again.
“Are you sure they can’t get in?” she asked Ezekiel.
“If they try, they get a nice little zap. They don’t know we’re here, and they can’t come inside. If they manage to get through the initial wards, albeit painfully, alarms would sound here. I’ve laid traps throughout the house and on the grounds leading to the house. If the alarm sounds, we will have the time and chance to escape.”
She nodded. She trusted him and his abilities to ward and trap and provide them a means for at least temporary shelter. But the city would likely turn against them for killing the beloved Headmistress Mittle of the Nighthelm Academy. Though Winston hadn’t publicly announced the death of the headmistress, it was inevitable he would soon. Then every citizen of Nighthelm—every guard, every merchant, every noble person—would know what they had done and would hate them for it. But they didn’t truly understand what was going on inside the walls of their own city. Blind faith and all.
“Perfect,” she said. Haris groaned.
She approached him and pet his flank. “It’s okay, my friend. This won’t last forever.”
He nodded his head and snorted.
Edric moved to stand behind Sophia. She melted into him, breathing him in. In his arms, she felt safe. Protected. But she wasn’t sure she could return the gesture for him or the others. He was isolated, as were Andreas and Ezekiel, from their jobs and families. She knew that Edric’s post as commander of the city guard was part of who he was. And he pushed that aside… for her.
She vowed she would make it right for him and Andreas and Ezekiel. They had sacrificed everything for her, and she would be damned if she didn’t do the same thing. For twelve years she didn’t have a real family. Now she had one. The men were her team. And she loved them dearly and would go to the ends of the world and back for them. Considering what they were up against—the duchess, the city guards, and the sorcerers of Nighthelm Castle, grimms, and a Nameless Master with more power than she’d ever thought possible to exist within one person—she just might have to.
Chapter Two
Sophia
During the dead of night, when the streets were clear of most guards, they snuck out of the inn and traveled across the city to the Metropolis, a museum and library. They kept to the shadows to prevent being seen, and Ezekiel cast a cloaking spell for when they were on the more heavily guarded roads.
When they reached the Metropolis—a large three-story, white and black stone building, circular in shape—Ezekiel used a special, enchanted key to open one of the side doors which was covered by vines growing up one side of the smooth structure. Sophia remembered breaking into the building through one of the windows on the second floor, which she had reached from the domed roof. She was tempted to tell Ezekiel about that, but she suspected he’d already known about her secret activities as he nearly caught her that particular night.
“No one uses this entrance, so there shouldn’t be any guards nearby,” he said, as he pushed the door open for them to enter.
“I’ll still keep a look out, just in case,” Edric said.
Ezekiel nodded.
One by one, they filed into an empty foyer that led to the cavernous, opulent lobby. Ezekiel led them across the marble-floored room to the far side, where they came up against another locked door. He opened that and led them down another corridor to yet another door.
“How many secret doors are in this place?” Andreas asked.
“As many as there needs to be,” Ezekiel answered, his voice was flat yet patient.
Andreas frowned. “Is that some kind of clever sorcerer riddle?”
“Both of you shut it,” Edric said, “and concentrate on what we need to do.”
Ezekiel opened the next door that led to a dark staircase going down into the basement. There were no torches available, so both Ezekiel and Sophia created balls of green light to light their way. Ezekiel grinned at her over the glowing sphere in his hand. She did the same.
Sophia loved using magic with Ezekiel. She didn’t have to hide her abilities any longer. In the future, she hoped they would have time for him to teach her some simple spells that would be useful for defense. For now, she would just have to r
ely on him to use his magic to defend them in the event something happened.
The air changed when they made it down more than two levels and reached the bottom of the stone stairs, as though they descended into damnation itself. The damp air chilled Sophia, and a shiver rushed down her spine. Something besides the cool, stale air bothered her. She couldn’t put her finger on the source, but it seemed like they stepped into a different realm altogether. She knew they were underneath the library. The stone walls were rough and jagged. The ceiling was low and jagged as well. The state of the corridor made Sophia wonder if the builders had given up on this part of the building, but there was something else that gave off that different feel down here. And judging by the looks on the others’ faces, she wasn’t the only one experiencing the odd sensation.
Andreas shifted his gaze, his hand going to the dagger strapped to one leg. “Anyone else feel that?”
Edric nodded. “Be ready for anything.”
As they moved down the dark corridor, Ezekiel in the lead, Sophia behind him, and Edric and Andreas taking up the rear, glimmers of light shone in the distant darkness. Light that seemed to bounce up and down, like they bobbed in water.
Sophia’s pulse spiked as adrenaline shot through her bloodstream. Every muscle in her body tensed in preparation. After being cooped up for days inside the old inn, she ached for some action. After all, being raised in the Witch Woods, training every day with a sword and bow and arrow and her bare hands, she lived for the thrill of the hunt. And that’s what this felt like.
A hunt.
A few more feet, and Sophia knew what waited for them in the darkness. “Wisps,” she murmured. Others called them fool’s fire.
They were fairy-like creatures, no bigger than fruit gnats, which were known to lure men to their deaths out in the marshes of the Witch Woods. But in here, their presence didn’t make sense. They were one of the many dangerous beings that lurked in the forest. What were they doing inside the basement of a library in the middle of Nighthelm?
Sophia touched Ezekiel’s arm to get him to stop. They needed to confer with each other and find a way around those creatures, because they were obviously on the right path. Someone was protecting whatever was behind the wall of wisps.
“Those are wisps,” Sophia said, referencing the inviting lights bouncing around in the air thirty feet from where they stood huddled together. “They are very rare creatures, hard to capture. Whoever put them there doesn’t want anyone to pass.”
“I heard wisps will appear when there is something valuable nearby,” Andreas added.
Sophia nodded. “Yes, there is lore to support that theory.”
“There have been rumors for years about a secret vault in the basement,” Ezekiel said. “A vault that contains long-buried secrets about the origins of Nighthelm and the royal family.”
“That is definitely what we’re looking for,” Sophia said.
Edric’s eyes narrowed as he looked at the wisps. “How do we combat them?”
Sophia had handled wisps before, during one of her many patrols through the woods. They had tried to lure her toward a pit of venomous vipers, with their warm, inviting light and melodic, chiming voices, but she’d managed to resist by blindfolding herself and moving pass them carefully. The trick was not to look into their light. Only within their light did the wisps have power.
“Their power resides in their light,” she said. “The only way through them is without seeing.”
“You want us to close our eyes and walk through them?” Andreas asked.
She shook her head. “Has to be a blindfold, or you risk accidentally looking.”
“Let me try a dark smoke spell first,” Ezekiel said. “Maybe it will darken them enough for us to pass by.”
Edric nodded. “Do it.”
After handing over the ball of green light to Edric, who clutched the sphere warily, Ezekiel moved out of their huddle and walked toward the wisps. When he was about fifteen feet away, he stopped and clapped his hands together. He rubbed them vigorously against one another, and Sophia could see the blue sparks of his magic undulating over his fingers. His head was lowered, and she wondered if he’d closed his eyes so he couldn’t be influenced by the wisps. She heard a few mumbled words from him, but nothing she could discern. Within a few moments, a black sphere formed between his palms, and as he drew his hands out, the dark mass swelled in size.
Once the swirling, black smoke nearly filled the corridor from side to side, Ezekiel pushed the magic toward the wisps. He returned to stand with the group and watched.
“Kind of looks like you, Andreas,” Ezekiel joked.
Andreas punched the sorcerer in the shoulder, hard enough to send him stumbling sideways. “You’re a funny guy, Zeke.”
Sophia shook her head and smiled. Watching her men rib each other filled her with joy. A month ago, she suspected that Andreas would’ve shifted into his wraith form and terrorized Ezekiel for his remark. But not anymore. Now, it was like two brothers picking on each other.
The dark smoke flowed down the corridor and enveloped the wisps, snuffing out the light, plunging them back into darkness with only the green balls of witchlight illuminating the immediate area around them.
“That should keep the wisps at bay until we pass by,” Ezekiel said.
They regrouped and moved down the corridor. Soon, they stepped through the dark smoke, and the balls of witchlight diminished with each step until they disappeared altogether. Sophia could no longer see Ezekiel in front of her. With caution, she extended her left hand behind her, locking fingers with Edric.
She didn’t want to get separated from her men in the darkness. They would have a better chance of completing the mission together. Her right hand went to the hilt of her sword, though she was wary of the possibility of having to draw it in a tight space. What if she accidentally harmed one of her men?
“Be on guard.” Edric must’ve picked up on her thoughts. Knowing him, Sophia figured he had his hand on the hilt of his own sword as well.
She took another two steps and was blinded by a sudden flash of bright, white light. Gasping, she clamped her eyes shut, but she was too late. The damage had been done. All she could see behind her lids were dancing spots of light.
“Sophia!” Edric called for her.
“I’m here,” she said, as she reached out with her hands.
He grabbed her hands and pulled her to him. “Where are the others?”
“I don’t know.” She risked opening one eye, but quickly closed it again when the light pierced her retina and pain stabbed her head. She called out, “Andreas? Ezekiel?”
The only answer was the miniscule tinkling sound of wisp laughter.
Chapter Three
Ezekiel
Ezekiel stopped mid-step, frowning at the dancing light in front of him. Something was wrong. Confused, he looked around. He glanced down at his hands, wiggling his fingers. He was sure he’d produced some kind of magic only moments ago.
He shook his head, trying to clear it of the fog that seemed to cloud his mind, and moved forward, following the warm light that seemed to lead him to something extraordinary. That, he was certain of. Maybe it would be buried treasure. He had read about pirates from the Serpent Sea burying the gold and jewels they had stolen from vessels on small, uninhabited islands.
Wouldn’t that be something to find?
Delighted by the prospects, he picked up his pace, hurrying after the moving light. He took another few steps, a shuffling noise echoing behind him. He quickly glanced over his shoulder. Startled, he stopped and turned around to face Andreas.
“What are you doing here?” he asked.
Andreas frowned, and a puzzled expression took over. “I don’t know. Following you, I think.” The wraith-shifter blinked at him.
Now that Ezekiel wasn’t looking directly into the light, he too became confused. Or, maybe, less confused? He surveyed the corridor they stood in. It was different than before. “Are we in
the right place?”
Andreas looked at the jagged ceiling and walls, then back to Ezekiel. “I’m not sure.” His frown deepened. He rubbed his face with both hands. “I don’t feel right. My head is clouded.”
Ezekiel shook his head again, removing some more of the fog. He remembered Andreas from before. He also remembered Edric… and Sophia.
Yes, Sophia. Beautiful Sophia.
They were all here, together. Weren’t they? He peered over Andreas’s shoulder into the darkness behind them. “Where are Edric and Sophia?”
They came here to do something. Something important. He just couldn’t remember exactly what that something was. He couldn’t quite recall where here even was. Ezekiel pressed his fingers to the wall on his right and closed his eyes. He focused his thoughts and tried to think through the remaining fog that clouded his mind. He picked up sensations from the rock—a tingling feeling, power, familiarity. All of the books on spells and casting and conjuring called to him from beyond the stone wall. He remembered.
The library.
They were in the dark passageways below the Metropolis searching for… he couldn’t quite grasp the memory that tapped at the back of his mind.
Ezekiel! Andreas! A female voice whispered from somewhere far, far away. The words drifted on the wind, yet no breeze so much as tickled the scruff on his cheeks. Everything around him was thick and oppressive, and the damp air pressed down on him with the scent of mold and age.
“I think…” He trailed off as confusion set in again. “I think we’re lost, Andreas.”
Andreas shook his head as if he tried to clear fog from his mind as well. He glanced behind him at the thick darkness that closed in on them more and more as the seconds trickled on. He turned back around and pointed down the corridor. “Let’s keep following the light.”
