by J. M. Briggs
The Iron Chalice
Book Four of the Iron Soul Series
J.M. Briggs
© 2016 by J. M. Briggs
© 2016 by J. M. Briggs
All rights reserved. No unauthorized reproductions permitted except for review purposes.
Published by J.M. Briggs
www.authorjmbriggs.com
Printed in the United State of America
Third Printing 2017
ISBN 978-0-9967826-8-5
For all the puppies who have graced my life: Cleopatra, Molly Brown and Sophia.
1: Hope in Magic
2: Dark Flight
3: Badb
4: Choosing a Direction
5: On Top of the Tor
6: The Smith
7: Video Conference
8: Break a Few Eggs
9: Light in the Forge
10: Scuffle in Cardiff
11: Hostel Healing
12: Revelation of the Lady
13: Heart Ache
14: Bran the Blessed
15: The Dead Aflame
16: Fog of Myth
17: Welcome to Pembrokeshire
18: Fire and Sight
19: Fishguard
20: The Iron Age
21: Crack in the Mountain
22: Legend of Dinas Emrys
23: Emrys
24: Birth of a Myth
25: Shadow of Stonehenge
26: Funeral Rites
27: The Chalice
28: Battle for Stonehenge
29: Long Overdue
30: Goddess of Death
31: Return to Ravenslake
32: Intensive Care
33: Surrender of Cathanáil
34: Welcome Home
35: Telling the Family
1
Hope in Magic
Magic. It had started all of this. Nicki actually regretted it now: regretted being a mage and finding herself in the sort of magical adventure that she’d read about growing up. At first, it had been wonderful and Aiden had been there with her. They’d both been born to be mages and the years of friendship seemed to have led to some glorious story that they’d help write. There had been monsters to fight, new friends to make and even Merlin and Morgana le Fey there to teach them. She’d gained power over water and ice and had even learned how to heal wounds with magic. Even in the terrifying moments against Sídhe Riders and Hounds, it had been exciting and a dream come true. Her dull life in Ravenslake had become important and special.
Last year it had been much simpler; maybe not easy, but she’d thought she’d known who the bad guys and good guys were. There had been a plan, well maybe not a plan, but at least a pattern. She and the other mages had used fantasy books and movies to give them ideas for using magic and had gradually been getting stronger and more confident. She’d made friends with Alex and found herself enjoying the first real female friendship of her life. Yet now Nicki couldn’t think about Alex without an odd, painful twinge of anger and guilt in her chest. The story had taken a nasty turn. Arthur, the paragon of the all-American boy; the quarterback with his tall muscular figure, blond hair and blue eyes, wasn’t the hero. He wasn’t the Iron Soul, despite everything seeming to point to him. No, instead the real Iron Soul was Alex, the tall blonde girl with the gray eyes who’d fallen head over heels for Arthur, and nearly been killed by him in return.
They’d all been stupid. They’d all been so confident that they were genre savvy, that they knew who was who and what was going on. Nicki had felt like part of a team that was unbeatable even when things were dangerous. Now Aiden, her best friend, was lying helpless in a coma and Arthur had left Ravenslake to meet up with the Evil Queen of the Sídhe, who was so confident that she’d called to gloat.
Nicki shook her head and tried to banish the dark thoughts from her mind as she marched into the hospital and headed straight for the ICU. The smell of the intensive care unit made Nicki wrinkle her nose. She could see movement through the small windows as the nurses moved around for shift change. Looking at the sign that forbid access until the shift change was over, Nicki sighed and barely reigning in the desire to kick the door.
As she waited the anger faded away as a sad fog began to roll over her mind; a spinning sense of being trapped in a growing storm and knowing that far too soon it would overwhelm her. The air felt too dry against her skin and the lights were too bright, adding to the sense of displacement. Her eyes itched as she looked towards the doors and tried to catch a glimpse of Aiden’s room, but she held back the tears. If she started crying then all of this would become real: it would mean that Aiden was dying and that their best chance to save him was some kind of ancient cup. Bran’s vision hadn’t given them much to go on. All he’d seen was an old chalice and a skull, probably underground. All Morgana had to offer was that it might be in Wales somewhere. It was next to useless, and yet their best chance.
She’d never believed in any deity; her grandmother had been a lapsed Protestant of some kind as long as she could remember and had never tried to instill any beliefs in her. In her high school days she’d been interested in paganism and had entertained a passing curiosity in Buddhism, but nothing ever took. Still, there was a sudden desire to pray, though to who or what she didn’t know. If there really was a God, or if Earth was somehow sentient in the form of Gaia or an Old One was listening and could help, then maybe it could achieve something. Maybe they could help Aiden, or at least give them more to go on than Wales.
But she didn’t pray. Instead Nicki pushed herself away from the wall and glanced towards the clock before stepping into the small waiting room. She sat down, ignoring the soft weeping of a couple on the far side of the room. Movement in the hallway made her look up, and she caught sight of Morgana looking through the ICU windows. There was a slightly helpless expression on her face, and her eyes were pensive. Nicki wondered how much hope Morgana had in them actually returning with the Iron Chalice. Was this whole quest just for Alex’s benefit; so she could look back and know that she’d tried?
Nick’s stomach twisted at the terrible thought and she focused her attention on Morgana. The older mage understood the reality of things, Nicki reminded herself. She wasn’t praying, screaming or trying to bargain with anyone, or even crying for the loss of Aiden. Morgana understood that they were all just flickers of life in a huge universe; all except for her and Merlin. She wondered if Morgana even mourned for those who died around her. It was a nasty thought, but it was Aiden: her brother in all but blood, her best friend and someone who had always and was supposed to always be there. He couldn’t be in danger of dying.
Tears were prickling again, and this time Nicki wasn’t able to hold them back. A short sob escaped her and tears slid out of the corners of her eyes, running down her cheeks. Someone set a hand on her shoulder and squeezed it gently. There was a soft, warm pulse of heat down her arm that settled in her chest. With a sniff, Nicki looked up and blinked in surprise to see Morgana watching her with a sad and gentle expression. She’d never seen the professor look at her like that.
“They’re opening the doors,” Morgana said gently. “Say what you need to say; I suspect you’ll be leaving soon.”
“We’ll be back, won’t we?” Nicki shivered, her voice was weak and childlike. “We’ll save him right?” She asked before she lost her nerve.
“I hope so.” Morgana squeezed her shoulder again, sadness flashing in her eyes.
It wasn’t an answer. There was no reassurance in the statement, there was no promise to it, but somehow knowing that Morgana did care made her feel a little better. Nicki swallowed and pushed the sorrow away. It would be back; she knew that, but for now she sniffed and stood up. Outside the doors were opened by one of the nurses and Ni
cki forced herself to walk into the ICU behind the weeping couple.
Everything was clean, and the packrat and messy artist in her hated it. The floors were too shiny, the walls too white and the glass separators and doors that divided the patients were too clean. Nicki nodded to the nurse at the station by Aiden’s room and forced herself to step in. It was wrong to see him lying there so still. There was a small tube in his nose and four different IVs leading into his arm. Somehow he already looked pale and frail against the stark white sheets. Aiden was breathing slowly, and the rise and fall of his chest helped her step all the way into the room as the nurse gave her a soft, knowing look. His dark brown hair was messier than usual and made him look smaller and more childlike.
“Hey Aiden, it’s me.” Nicki chuckled nervously. “I’m back. Your Mom and Dad are taking care of a couple of things, but they’ll be in soon.” She glanced around the dim room before she sank down into the uncomfortable chair that his mother had been using the night before. “Things are pretty nuts right now. Alex is safe: you saved her. I’m not sure if you knew it at the time, but Alex was the real Iron Soul.” She exhaled and reached over to take his hand. “We have a plan Aiden: we’re going after the Iron Chalice. You did a lot of damage to yourself when you healed Alex, but the chalice can fix it. Apparently, it’s the prototype for all those Celtic myths that inspired the Holy Grail story.”
He didn’t react; she hadn’t expected him to but hadn’t been able to quiet the hope that he’d respond to her voice. She looked over at the counter where a large cardstock board with pictures of his parents and sister Aisling had been put up. A well-worn copy of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone was sitting next to it with a bookmark about half way through.
“I remember when your gramps gave you that book,” Nicki chuckled. “It was weird reading all the British words. It’s only sort-of the same language now. Is your mom reading it to you?” Nicki paused and sighed softly. “I’m sorry: I don’t know how to do this. It’s always just been me and Gran, and thankfully she’s never been sick. Never had to visit anyone in the hospital before; not that I had to do this of course I mean I love you, you’re my best friend and my brother so I had to come and see you, but no one made me. I’m rambling now.”
Nicki shook her head and used her free hand to pull off her coat, letting it fall back in the chair. In the corner of her eye out the window, she thought she saw Morgana glance in and then move away. With a soft sigh, Nicki forced herself to look back at Aiden. She didn’t know what to say and wondered if he could hear her at all. Squeezing his hand, Nicki pulled on the spark of magic beneath her heart and felt it warm her hand. She closed her eyes and willed a little more power through her hand and into Aiden, aware that Morgana would yell at her if she was caught.
“I can’t save you with my magic,” Nicki admitted in a low voice. It hurt just to say the words. “You hurt yourself pretty bad saving Alex. I guess it was a good thing otherwise we would have lost the Iron Soul, but I wish you could have just… I don’t know, stabilized her and called an ambulance. But we’re going to find the Chalice; it can heal anything.” Nicki let the flow of magic fade. “Bran’s interested in it too, I can tell. With you injured he doesn’t want to bring it up, but I know he’d love to get his leg healed.”
She was going to say more. She wanted to keep talking to Aiden like he could hear her and might respond at any moment, but the sound of someone moving outside made her pause. Her back was to the doorway and Nicki glanced over her shoulder quickly.
“Nicki,” Alex called softly from the doorway.
She hadn’t been back to her dorm room since finals were over. She hadn’t seen Alex since yesterday morning, and a lot had changed. Alex was pale with dark bags under her eyes. Her long blonde hair was back in a ponytail but looked dull and dirty. Her gray eyes were locked on Aiden’s prone from and she looked ready to be sick. Nicki began to release Aiden’s hand in preparation for grabbing the trash can, but Alex swallowed thickly and bit her bottom lip. Nicki remained silent as Alex stepped into the room a little further.
“We’ve got to get going,” Alex said.
“You’ve arranged tickets?” Nicki stood up from her chair. “Already?”
“Yeah, Jenny took care of it: guess having daddy’s credit card is a good thing.” Alex’s darted between Nicki and Aiden. “I, uh, went ahead and packed you a bag and grabbed your passport.”
“Okay, just a second.” Nicki turned back to Aiden, wondering if she should encourage Alex to come in and see him. Turning back to look at Aiden, she stood up and leaned forward to kiss his forehead. “I love you,” Nicki whispered. “Don’t you dare slip away while I’m gone. We’re going to find the Chalice and save you.”
Alex walked over behind her and Nicki almost felt like she could hear the other girl’s internal conflict. Nicki almost left the room to give Alex a moment, but couldn’t bring herself to do it. A small spark of anger flashed in her chest that she did her best to quickly smother. She stepped back from the bed just enough to pull on her coat as Alex glanced between her and Aiden. Nicki didn’t meet her eyes and just waited as Alex walked around the hospital bed to stand next to Aiden.
“I’m sorry,” she heard Alex whisper. “Thank you for saving me. Now I’m going to save you.”
Nicki bit her lip to keep from saying anything in response. Emotions were churning painfully in her gut and her blunt nails were digging into her hands. After a moment Alex stepped back from Aiden and glanced towards her before they stepped out into the hall. A few Christmas decorations were already hanging above the nurses’ station despite it only being December 14th, but winter break had officially started in the small college town, which meant it was Christmas time. Morgana was nowhere to be seen and Nicki decided not to mention her.
Nicki walked a little slower than normal and forced herself to stay a step behind Alex so the other girl could lead her out. She made a mental note to tell her grandmother to come and get her car, or maybe Morgana would take care of it. Rather than taking the elevator, Alex led Nicki into the stairwell, and they both shivered at the sudden temperature drop. A few turns on the main floor and they stepped out into the rear parking lot next to a snowdrift.
Lance was leaning against the side of his large truck and looking down at his cell phone. Even at a distance, she could see Bran and Jenny inside the cab. The emotions in her stomach jolted at the reminder that the former Lancelot and Guinevere or whatever their names had been were coming along. She glanced towards Alex and wondered how the real Iron Soul was taking that part of the big reveal. She’d lived with Jenny for a year and even walked in on them once. It had to be a mess.
“We’ll all fit,” Alex told her softly. “It’ll be tight, but less to worry about.”
“What’s our route?”
“We have to drive to Portland: the first leg is to Minneapolis and then to Amsterdam,”
“Amsterdam?” Nicki brushed a stray strand of red hair out of face and frowned.
“Cardiff isn’t a major American flight destination.” Alex shrugged as they arrived at the truck. “There weren’t many choices.”
“At least the layovers are short.” Lance offered her a small smile as he pulled open the back door.
“Do we have return tickets?” Nicki asked, eying Jenny on the far side of the back. Bran turned around and looked at her.
“No.” Jenny straightened up and giving Nicki what seemed to be a warning look. “We’ll handle getting back once we have the chalice and we can save your friend.”
Nicki slowly nodded. It didn’t feel like the right answer, but she supposed it was the best they could offer. She grabbed the seat and hoisted herself into the rear seat of the pickup. Alex followed her a moment later and closed the door with a heavy metallic thud.
2
Dark Flight
Nicki was asleep with her head against a pillow tucked into the window niche. Across the aisle from her, Bran was slouched in his chair and absentminded
ly playing some kind of game on the personal screen in front of him with headphones on. Thanks to the assignment of their seats, Alex had found herself in the middle seat of the center aisle between Lance and Jenny, with stiff legs and sore shoulders. Jenny was soundly asleep with her head resting on Alex’s shoulder at an awkward angle as she cradled the pillow she’d been given in her lap. Lance was snoring softly on the other side of her with his head tilted back and his face completely relaxed.
She wasn’t even sure what time it was anymore. Her phone was stowed in her bag beneath her seat and she didn’t dare move. The airplane was dark and almost completely silent. Behind them, she could hear some low voices and the sounds of someone moving around, but the earlier noise and bustle was gone. She wished that she could move over by Bran and at least talk with him about what they were going to do. In Minneapolis, they’d managed to locate a book on the British Isles, but it was in Nicki’s bag and out of her reach.
Alex knew she should be asleep; she really should be asleep. They’d be in Amsterdam soon and then it would be just a quick flight to Cardiff, and Alex had no idea of what would happen then. Nicki had mentioned heading for Glastonbury where there was a lot of Arthurian myth, but Alex doubted they’d find the Iron Chalice there. Bran had slept from Oregon to Minneapolis like the dead and had been asleep the first few hours of this flight, but she had yet to sleep. Even Nicki, who was so stressed about Aiden’s condition and not being there for him, was asleep.
