Lincoln groaned beside me. “How did you pull up so well? You drank more than me and you partied harder than me. I couldn’t keep up. Even my Nephilim blood isn’t enough to recover. I’m shattered. But you’re perky as anything today. Your skin is totally glowing, man.” He gestured to my face.
“It’s simple Lincoln, I went to bed early and got my beauty sleep.” I slid a glance right back. “I can’t say the same about you though, maybe you should think twice about blowing your study time for party time.”
“Pfft, you did not go to bed early. Well, you did, but then you came out and joined us. Then you stayed up, drank, ordered room service, danced, drank some more and did some home shopping with Reaper and Mary. After you gave those two dye jobs, you modeled the lingerie for us then you all pinky swore you were sisters for life. With too much estrogen in the air, there was no chance of us boys getting any further than second base. Eventually, I told them all to piss off, and I hit the hay. Alone. Do you know how annoyed I am that you hijacked my chicks?”
While he was busy figuring out the extent of his anger with gesticulating hands, a heavy feeling settled in my stomach. I didn’t like the idea forming in the back of my head so changed the subject. If I ignored it, it didn’t happen.
Chapter 9
The elevator doors opened to a second sub-basement level with the same layout plan as the first. Immediately opposite us on the wall was the oroboros symbol. A long curving corridor that no doubt ended back where it started greeted us on either side. Everything was circular here. I guessed it was to remind us of the symbol they had plastered everywhere.
Squid moved. Lincoln and I followed. We walked right. The outside walls had the same surreal fake windows as the top level. When we moved along, I noted more house names on plaques above each door. There was Cetus House with a wood carving of a whale looping through the letters. Epsilon House with a snake, Corvus House with a crow, and Aldebaran House with a bull’s head and horns. They were the ones who came for dinner last night. Their motto was Citius, Altius, Fortius which meant faster, higher, stronger.
I stopped at the front of that door and wondered where Cash stayed, whether he had his own House plaque and what his motto was, then forced the thought away. I had to stop thinking of him. If I couldn’t, I’d never be able to do this on my own, and I had to. I simply must. For the names on that list, for my friends, and for my freedom.
But Cash’s face wouldn’t fade from my mind. It had only been one night since I’d seen him last, but the memory of our embrace at the registrar’s office was a siren calling me back to him. My traitorous heart missed him. I rubbed my chest, aching with longing. That same ache gave me the strength to steer my thoughts away because, when we eventually split up, through death or something else, my heart would shatter. Better to toughen up now than to be too weak to hold it together.
“Hurry up,” Squid growled a few feet in front of me.
Lincoln noticed me staring at the plaque on the wall. “Bunch of bull-headed meat-heads, if you ask me.”
Squid cleared his throat.
Right.
After more walking, we turned inwards into the center of the Ludus where there were more rooms. The sound of people talking, and the buzz of auras filtered through before we reached the double doors. The vast space inside was a cross between an auditorium and a stadium. Not football sized, but large enough to have a middle concrete field and a few rows of seats on the outside for spectators. Kind of like an indoor gladiator pit. The middle area already held a number of people engaged in combat style training activities, their sounds echoing in the chamber. We must have come down another two levels for the ceiling to be so high. The seats around the outskirt slowly filled with spectators. I took a step inside the door with my mouth open in awe. Lincoln shoved me in the back so I continued to the center of the room.
As we moved, a hush came over the crowd and with it, the weight of many eyes landed on my shoulders.
I felt myself shrink a little as I followed Squid to a circular padded mat where a strong looking woman and a lithe, tall man were engaged in a sparring match.
Squid didn’t speak. He simply walked up to a man watching from the sidelines and stared wordlessly, eye-to-eye. The man, who appeared to be the mentor of the two, lowered his gaze, bowed and signaled the two on the mat to follow him.
And just like that, we had a place to train.
Squid moved to the side of the mat where the other mentor had stood and folded his arms, assuming the vacant position.
“So…” I let my voice trail off as I surveyed the room. “What happens now?”
Lincoln shrugged and pulled out his phone to check his messages. I felt rather awkward standing on the exercise mat without exercising. And dressed in jeans. All other participants wore Lycra fitness attire, and the occasional fighter wore leather armor plates across their arms and chest.
I tapped him on the shoulder. “Hey.”
He sighed and deigned to look at me from under his scruffy curls. “What.”
“Aren’t we supposed to be doing stuff, like, you know, training and stuff?”
“Nah. If Dad isn’t here, we don’t have to do jack.”
“At the risk of sounding like a broken record, what about the trials? Shouldn’t I be learning how to pass them?”
He raised an eyebrow. “If you haven’t got it by now, you’re not going to.”
“But that’s shit! I don’t want to be canceled.”
“You won’t. You’re royalty. Like I said, you’ll be kept to breed. It’s not the worst thing in the world. So it’s like, why bother trying to pass the trial if you will be here, anyway?”
“But if we pass the trial, we can do what we want, right?”
He glanced at Squid then shrugged me off. “If we pass.”
Fury boiled in my veins. The weight of attention pushed at me. It grated me. Everyone else worked hard with their teams while I stood there, awkward and in jeans, waiting for something to do.
I could do this on my own. No mentor, or a stupid royal father. Me on my own. I could pass and then leave.
I stormed the short gap to stand in front of Squid.
“I’m going to the depository.”
“No.”
“Try to stop me and I’ll make you hurt.”
He looked down at me, unperturbed. “No.”
Whatever. I turned. A rough hand to my shoulder spun me back around. My temper exploded, and I let instinct take over. I knew there were tactics that didn’t work on him, like a zap of electricity to his body. Unable to feel pain, he’d almost laughed when I did that earlier. But, like Cash, who was immune, I always found a work around.
I had the power to manipulate air. It wasn’t storm and tempest type manipulation, but more telekinetic. I silently threw up a shield of thickened air around his body, then, hoping he wouldn’t notice, I contracted that shield so it drew closer to his body, inch by inch. His hand fell from my shoulder as the air pushed it away. I tightened the shield, cranked it up. His blank expression turned inwards, and a frown etched between his eyebrows as he understood the silent attack. He opened his mouth, but I stuffed thick air in. His mouth opened and closed like a fish and I realized I’d gone too far. I eased up and let a little air trickle in, only enough to keep him alive.
Then I left. Screw them all. I didn’t give a rat’s ass if Bruce turned up. He didn’t give a damn about me. Off to the depository. Wherever that was.
I asked a few passersby in the corridor for directions. The first few gaped at me like I had two heads, but then I noticed a petite girl dressed in a long, scholarly type robe rushing past. The swish of her fabric rustled with her urgency like a whispering heartbeat. She looked so smart. Surely she headed towards some sort of learning area. I rushed after her and tried to hail her down, but the minute she caught sight of my face, she ignored me. It didn’t matter, anyway. I trailed her to some doors that showed a glimpse of books beyond when they opened. Above the doors, the sign sai
d: Depository. Bingo.
Outside the room, I leant against the cold, concrete walls and caught my breath. If I went in looking as I did, it was likely I’d get the same reaction. Nobody wanted to talk because I was the red headed soul-eating princess.
I had to look different.
Instantly, I closed my eyes, counted to ten and willed my hair to change from red to a fuzzy brown. My skin changed to a similar color. A thousand electric ants skipped over my body as the metamorphosis took place. The physical change was real, not an illusion-construct or glamor like Marc could do. Every time I used my witch-like powers, a little thrill of achievement skipped up my bones.
When I opened my eyes and held my hand in front of my face, I saw smooth brown skin. Perfect. It might be temporary. It might hold. I wasn’t too sure. Fingers crossed it worked.
Chapter 10
I strode into the depository triumphant and then stood at the entrance to soak up the atmosphere. The air smelled of ink, dusty paper, and ancient leather bound books. Excellent. Containing my excitement was hard as I surveyed the shelves filled with books from top to bottom throughout the large room. Just like you’d see in a public library, there were nooks scattered throughout to sit and read or study. Golden candelabras dangled from the ornate paneled ceiling. They matched the decor on the study tables below.
I went straight to an official looking counter in an alcove not far away where a man in a maroon hooded robe peered at a large, open leather-bound book. There was an embroidered whale at the breast of the robe. Must be Cetus. They were the House with the whale on the plaque. His hood had pooled around his shoulders, revealing a balding head. Little tufts of hair remained around his ears. It reminded me of a monk from the Robin Hood story. His aging hairstyle didn’t match his youthful face and his aura was a little on the strong side. No star-map as far as I could see. All of these things made me think he was Seraphim, not Nephilim.
The pages the monk turned were yellowed, frayed and very fragile. He flipped each leaflet with a short stick, afraid to let the oils of his fingers taint the paper. The book must be ancient.
“Excuse me.” My voice echoed loudly in the large room. “Could you please tell me where to find the books on soul manipulation?”
“Shh,” came a hiss from somewhere behind him. A quick glance confirmed there was another robed man reading at a desk further away in the dingy alcove. A tiny lamp shone on his tiny book.
I tried again in a lower voice. “Hello.”
The monk scanned my appearance with derision. “Are you talking to me?”
“Yes, I am. Are you the librarian?”
He blinked, as though he still couldn’t believe I had the nerve to speak to him. He must have decided he couldn’t possibly deign to respond because he huffed and returned to his book, mumbling under his breath: “Librarian.”
Too late I remembered my faux pas. Marc had mentioned he’d visited a librarian once, and it was someone who worked with memories, not books. “I’m sorry, I really need help,” I said.
The only move he made was to turn a page.
Not getting anywhere, I contemplated the room. I could search the catalog myself, but it was massive. Thousands of books.
Okay. So, what now? Maybe the person sneaking up behind me could help. I sensed the aura timidly approach and decided to pretend I hadn’t noticed.
Someone cleared their throat behind me.
I turned around to discover the robed girl from earlier. Cut into a short, cropped style, her boyish hair suited her face and gave her a pixie appearance. Everything about her was delicate and demure from her pale skin to her thin bones. I just wanted to wrap her in cotton wool and protect her from every sharp corner in the place. With her softened features, and eager expression, I naturally warmed to her, despite her avoidance of me earlier.
“I’m sorry, I couldn’t help overhearing. I can show you where to look, if you like?” she said, voice breathy and light.
“Oh my God, thank you so much,” I gushed.
“That’s okay.” She moved away, glancing at me over her shoulder. “He’s not a librarian, you know. He’s a historian. Librarians are another department. This way.”
“Yeah, I kinda figured I had something mixed up.”
I promptly followed her toward another section of the room. A full head taller than her, I felt like a clunking giant. My steps dropped heavily next to her dainty ones and, by the time we made it to a far corner of the room, I developed a weird gait to try to smother my noise. None of that mattered though, because when she turned into an aisle and slowed down to read the spines of the books, my mind instantly detoured. The books were older here and smelled more intense. She ran her finger along each, taking her time, her little lips silently moving as she read the words in her mind.
“Here. This is where the section starts.”
“Fantastic. Thank you so much.”
I blinked a few times, trying to read the titles of the leather bound books. As before with the Latin plaques over each house, the jumble of letters made sense in my mind. Another skill I’d siphoned from my passengers and the absorption of The Book of the Dead. Extraordinarily, I could read Latin. If only The Others were good at math.
After a few moments, I realized the girl stood there watching me. I caught her gaze and opened my smile.
Catching herself in an embarrassing position, she jolted. “Sorry. I was just, it’s only that, I…”
I straightened to let her know I listened. No need to rush.
“I… uh.” She glanced at her feet. When she lifted her gaze to mine, it was more purposeful and confident. She gestured at my face. “You changed.”
“Yes, I did.” I went back to the books and read through the titles. “People were being weird to my other appearance, so I thought to try this one. Plus, I’m hiding.”
“Oh, I won’t tell anyone. Don’t worry.”
I smiled and returned to the shelves. A title stood out. Histories of the Inner Workings of Incorporeal Essences. I hooked my finger on the spine and slid the book out.
“How did you know?” I asked, trying to appear disinterested. I didn’t want her to know it was a big deal because then she really might blab and any advantage I had whilst in this place would be gone.
“It’s my job to be perceptive. Cetus House is about discovery and invention. I saw you outside in the same outfit asking other people about the library. Plus, there’s your hair.” She touched her own blond crop. “It’s a little darker than we’re used to seeing down here. I’m sorry I didn’t stop, I had to sign in before my mentor noticed I was late. He’s a bit of a ball buster. The last time one of us was late, he made us sort all the paperclips into height order. It took two days! Anyway, I put two and two together and guessed who you are.”
I palmed my head. The hair color. Of course. It was more common to see an African American looking person down here with blond hair, not brown. “Wow. You are perceptive. I must be more careful in the future. And, don’t mention not stopping. I’m glad you eventually did though.”
“If I may,” she said and pointed to the book. “This one doesn’t have much information on actual soul manipulation. It’s just the history of the inner workings—things like emotions and instincts. This one might be more to your liking.”
She pushed my book back into its spot and retrieved another leather-bound volume. A little frown appeared between her soft brows. “But some of it is in ancient Latin. I can find someone to translate this for you if you like?”
“I think I know how to read it.”
“Oh, you do?”
“Well.” I thought about it. I honestly did not understand there was a difference between ancient Latin and normal Latin. “Can I take a look?”
The girl opened the book in her arms and turned it to face me. She flicked past the first few pages until she found one to her liking.
“Can you read this?”
“Yes. Something about electro-magnetic fields being used to ampli
fy manipulation.”
Her eyes lit up. “Wow. I’ve been trying to decipher that for a while but most of the Watchers don’t bother helping. As long as we pass the trials that’s all they care about. This is truly amazing. What about this?” She pointed.
“Um. That says, something about the weight of human versus Seraphim energy.”
“How interesting.” She flipped to a new page, but the more she turned, the heavier my heart became. The book didn’t appear to have specifics of what I needed about getting The Others out of my body.
“Do you have anything else?”
“Of course. Was there anything in particular about soul manipulation that you wanted?”
I chewed my lip. How much to tell? To help me decide, I scrutinized her aura. It felt smooth and calm, no animosity emanating off her. Every instinct said to trust her, but I’d been wrong in the past. Petra had masqueraded as my Aunt Lucy for three years in front of my face and I had no clue.
“I’m Wren, by the way,” she said and tapped the tiny whale on her robe. “I’m from Cetus House.”
The Others stirred. Wren. Why was that name so familiar?
Urser’s list, they answered.
Oh my God. They were right. Wren’s name was on the list with the future date next to it. This poor, innocent delicate girl was going to be a victim of my father. The worst scenarios played in my head and I had to bite my lip to stop my thoughts meandering down a dark path.
She waited expectantly.
“What’s Cetus House mean?” I asked.
She laughed, and it filled the rooms and echoed. She slapped her hand over her mouth. “I’m sorry. It’s just I’ve never heard of anyone who didn’t know that.”
Heat rushed to my cheeks. “You said something about inventing, right?”
She nodded. “That’s part of it. Mathieson is our mentor. He’s one of the stuffy historians you met out there. Cetus House is all about knowledge, and yes, inventing and discovering. In here, we’re the keepers of history on this planet. We have another lab where scientists work to make things. That’s always underground and not really my thing. I prefer the quiet predictability of books, at least with them I can get outside now and then to visit human libraries. With the science lab, you’re stuck between four white walls every day, but it’s the way of the House. See, the whale is our emblem, and our motto is ‘Scientia Potentia Est’.”
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