by Sarah Noffke
Liv grabbed the hilt of the sword, enjoying the moment that her hand met the metal and she reconnected with her other half. With a yank, she released Bellator from the demon’s chest cavity, black blood spurting all over the white snow.
“Metuendas Dcemonis violentias,” Liv began, repeating the ancient words that would release the soul trapped inside the demon. Simultaneously she swung Bellator over her head, using that momentum to stab the demon who thought he was about to sneak up on her. It was an injury most demons could survive, but not when done with Bellator. Liv twisted the sword, watching as the demon coughed up blood.
She pulled up her foot and kicked the demon off her sword, allowing it to lead the way. “Dimittere unam animam de amicae tuae involasti, permittens eos tandem requiem,” she continued. To her surprise, the sword came straight up in and in an arch like she was a batter hitting a grand slam. It sliced across the demon at her back, cutting off a portion of its top half. Liv didn’t have a chance to determine what portion of the top half. Two down. One to go.
Under the fallen snow, the last demon was stirring at last, his screeching growing louder.
Liv positioned herself just in front of him, gripping the bloody blade with burning heat in her eyes. She pulled in a breath. “Ad infernum, a quo factum est tibi in sempiternum in ipse comburetis,” she nearly yelled as the demon shot out of the snow. Before it was even close to out all the way, Liv swung Bellator around, lopping off its head, leaving her in silence. She looked around at the evidence of the massacre marking the snow before peering at one of her most trusted companions—Bellator.
Chapter Three
“So you didn’t need my help?” Stefan said. He was standing majestically at the top of the snow embankment holding a sword and breathing heavily, his brow covered in sweat.
Liv gazed at the severed head of the biggest demon lying on the snow and shrugged. “Yeah, I guess not.” She motioned to the blanket of black-stained snow. “If you want to clean up, though, that would be welcome.”
He laughed, his voice echoing over the hills. “Oh, no. I’m not cleaning up after your blood bath. Getting demon blood out of clothing is the worst.”
Liv tried to laugh, but it was fake. Even though Stefan was acting strong, she saw the fatigue etching his features. Every day it was deeper, making him look darker—taking away from his human features. Each day he looked less like himself, and they ignored it; pretended it wasn’t happening to him…to them. That things weren’t a day, a week, or a month from changing.
One day, she might be hunting him.
The ache of that potential reality was too much for her to process, so she pressed it down and pretended that he’d always breathed heavily and had the pale complexion and hollow eyes. In the back of her mind, she remembered Stefan Ludwig as he had been before the demon bite got worse. She remembered him as being strong and outrunning her. Liv remembered him as agile, chopping down the wood for the fires at night. Now, he wasn’t capable of even gathering water before dinner, his chest heaving dramatically from the simple act of breathing.
Presently though, he was trying to pretend he was strong and she could have used his help. Liv indulged him with a smile.
“Was that all of them?” Liv asked.
Stefan gazed around at the snowy hillside. “Yeah, that’s it.”
That was what Stefan was good at. They’d actually made the perfect team because the demon blood in him enabled him to find and track them. He knew where they needed to go, saving weeks of time. Never had they found Sabatore. No, finding the demon who had bitten Stefan was not part of the equation. However, they slaughtered many others. Well, Liv did. Stefan led them to the right location, and Liv used Bellator to make the job easy. It was a great arrangement, except that it was getting harder.
Stefan could point her in the right direction, but then he preferred to stay back. It was getting harder for him to slaughter demons since he saw them as his own. He recounted to Liv over the evening fires that he felt more akin to them than magicians these days. She shook her head, refilling his water, telling him they’d find Sabatore and save him. However, she didn’t believe that anymore. What they needed was a strategy they hadn’t tried before. Tracking down demons and questioning them wasn’t working any longer. They needed to revamp things and do something unconventional. Stefan didn’t have much more time and they both knew it, even if no one said it out loud.
“We’re no closer to finding Sabatore,” Liv finally said after a moment, suddenly feeling the cold after the intense battle.
“Well, then we start again tomorrow,” Stefan stated, sniffing the air. “There are more demons to the east.”
Liv shook her head. “No, I think we need better eyes.” Sensing Stefan’s reluctance, she corrected herself. “I mean, we need to use our contacts. You yourself said that you were blocked from him, so finding him ourselves won’t work. We need an expert on the subject. Someone who watches such activity.”
“What do you have in mind, Beaufont?” Stefan asked, climbing down a safe area of the embankment and taking the spot next to her.
“Well, I’ve used the brownies before for such things,” Liv began. “They have eyes everywhere. Maybe they can help us. I have a friend in the government center.”
“Of course you do,” Stefan said with a laugh, which made him cough, spitting up blood. They both pretended like that hadn’t happened as Liv kicked at the snow.
“Yeah, I’m now thinking that maybe they know where Sabatore is,” Liv continued in a hurry, trying to cover her nervousness. She knew all too well that Stefan could turn into a demon at any moment. No longer did she worry about herself if she was caught in that situation. She slept with Bellator beside her, and anyway, she hardly slept. She worried about Stefan. If…when he turned, she had orders that she wouldn’t ignore. And killing what Stefan Ludwig became? That would forever live in her soul. Still, that was the agreement they’d come to after many late-night discussions. She’d made promises, though. She’d stand by them. And she believed in them. She just hoped things didn’t come to that.
“Okay, fine,” Stefan agreed, his voice tired. “You enlist your brownies. But you’ll have to do that after you update the council.”
Liv looked up at him suddenly. “We’re hunting demons, as they requested. Why do we need to give them an update?”
Stefan shook his head, looking away from the scene of the slaughter, unable to stomach it. “It’s easier if you check in with them regularly; better that way. Adler gets unruly if you let too much time go by.”
“Well, why do I have to do the update?” Liv asked, but they both knew the answer.
Stefan was in no shape to go before the council. They’d know immediately that there was something wrong with him. They had to buy a little more time. Keep the council from getting suspicious. Find a different strategy. All they needed was time—and a miracle wouldn’t hurt.
“Yeah, fine,” Liv said. “I’ll cover for your ass. But this is the last time.”
He winked at her, hiding his wheezing breath. “Thanks. Last time, I promise.”
Chapter Four
Even though Liv knew she was close to being late for the meeting with the Seven, she couldn’t force herself to look away from the Black Void.
“Black Void,” she muttered to herself. Why did that sound so right? She hadn’t known what to call the swirling darkness before. No one knew what it was, so they hadn’t called it anything. Hell, most didn’t even notice it when she pointed it out. They’d see it and then forget it immediately.
Liv didn’t understand. How could magicians walk by the black abyss all the time, but no one saw it? Her parents had always dismissed her when she cringed as they walked by it on the way to the residential wing, telling her it was nothing. It didn’t feel like nothing. It felt like a foreboding presence that might squash her if she got near it.
Actually, it felt like the very end of the Earth, and more than once she had the urge to hurl herself over i
t. That had been after her parents’ death, though, when Liv had feared she had lost all hope for any happiness in the future. With her world destroyed and her heart broken by the community she was supposed to trust, Liv had sunk to her lowest, having many deranged impulses. But that was one of the many reasons she left the House of Seven—wishing to be a mortal living in a less complicated world.
The Black Void was different now, but Liv didn’t know how or why. She couldn’t look away from it easily. Although it was only darkness, she could have sworn she saw a rotating pattern drawing her in, begging her to continue staring. And then she heard it!
A ghostly whisper emerged from the Black Void, and Liv leaned closer. What was it chanting? Was that her name? No, but whatever it was, it sent a shiver down her spine. It seemed almost like a threat. Liv strained to hear it, nearly hanging over the edge into the Black Void.
“Back away or else,” she thought she heard a voice say. That couldn’t be right. Liv pressed her eyes shut, focusing on nothing but those four words as they were repeated, trying to discern them.
“Ms. Beaufont!”
Liv’s eyes popped open, and she straightened to face Decar Sinclair. His long white hair was braided down his back today, contrasting with his black robes. Disapproval was heavy in his light-colored eyes, spraying the area around them with wrinkles. “What are you doing?”
Liv kept herself from looking back at the Black Void. Something told her she shouldn’t ask Decar if he saw it too or knew what it was.
“I’m looking for Clark,” she lied. “We’re playing a game of hide and seek, and I thought he might be disguised as the wall here.” She pointed to the area beside the Door of Reflection.
Decar shook his head. “You and your brother play such games? Don’t you have more pressing matters?”
Liv couldn’t tell him that it was her brilliant little sister she played this game with and that she was incredible with disguises, so she simply nodded. “Yep, it’s our thing.”
“Don’t you think you’re both too old for such things?” Decar asked, condescension heavy in his tone.
Good, he believes I’m an immature brat now, Liv thought, grateful she’d thrown him off, even if it made her look ridiculous.
“I’m sort of having a second childhood,” she explained with no shame on her face.
“Well, if you can act like an adult for a little while, the meeting is about to start.” Decar strode past her and straight through the Door of Reflection, disappearing at once.
“I’d rather act like a kid than a stuffy old magician who is zero fun at all,” Liv muttered to herself, looking over her shoulder at the Black Void before heading for the Door of Reflection. She didn’t know what it was, or if it was hiding something, or if she had in fact heard a threat from it, but she was determined to find out more.
What blanketed her vision next was a blow to the stomach. Before her, she saw her parents standing together, their arms crossed, shaking their heads in disappointment. “You really let us down, Olivia,” her father said, his blue eyes brimming with frustration.
Liv’s mother dropped her chin as if she couldn’t stand to look at her. “We were counting on you.”
Tears welled in her eyes, threatening to burst from her, and Liv’s insides were shaking. She hadn’t felt this close to losing it…well, since after her parent’s death. Pushing down the ache, she reminded herself that this wasn’t real. These were her fears appearing as waking dreams. It might feel very real, but it wasn’t. It might appear like she could reach out and touch her parents, but they weren’t there. It was all her imagination.
Stepping through the Door of Reflection, Liv sped toward her spot, keeping her head down to cover any rogue emotions she hadn’t corralled yet. She nearly walked into the white tiger, who was standing on her spot, staring casually at the council.
Liv halted abruptly, hoping that the tiger would realize he was in her place and move. She even considered that he’d glance at her with those old-soul eyes and then move. Instead, he stoically stared ahead, not seeming to notice her.
Adler, as usual, was lecturing Trudy about something. The Warrior had dropped her head with a look that was undoubtedly shame.
Since no one had seemed to notice Liv yet, she cleared her throat quietly, hoping to gain the white tiger’s attention. It didn’t work.
“How many times have we been through this?” Adler asked, borrowing his brother’s condescending tone. “Unregistered magicians aren’t given second chances. If you let them go, they aren’t going to immediately run off and register with the House. They are rebels who are going to revel in the fact that they’ve beaten the system yet again. You realize you’ve made us look like fools, don’t you?”
“It’s just that it was a family,” Trudy explained, her tone troubled. “The parents had young children, and it didn’t seem right—”
“The law is clear on how we are to handle offenders, regardless of whether they have offspring,” Adler interrupted.
“Actually, we should be even more strict on offenders who have children, since they are going to perpetuate the problem by handing down their rebellious ways to their offspring,” Bianca imparted.
Lorenzo nodded, stroking his black goatee. “That’s a valid point.”
“Justice is about doing the right thing,” Liv found herself spouting before she could stop. “Just because something is the law doesn’t make it the correct action to take.”
Clark pressed his fist into his forehead.
How come he didn’t realize by now that I was going to open my mouth and say something that would make him cringe? she wondered. That was her role. He was the uptight rule follower, and she was the rebel. That was part of the balance, right?
Adler directed his cold eyes at Liv. “Ms. Beaufont, why haven’t you taken your spot?”
Liv pointed at the tiger, who still didn’t seem to notice her standing there.
Hester and Raina snickered, finding this amusing.
“Ms. Beaufont, we don’t have time for your games,” Adler said, not finding this entertaining. “Take your spot, and we’ll hear your update on the demon case.”
Liv cleared her throat loudly, looking intently at the white tiger. He didn’t move. What was she supposed to do, push him out of the way? The only time she’d dared to pet the tiger, the council had nearly fallen over in surprise. Feeling lost, Liv threw up her hands. “I’m not sure how I’m supposed to take my spot when the tiger is occupying it.”
Haro lifted an eyebrow, his lips pursed. “She’s correct.”
Adler jerked his head to the side, giving the tiger a serious expression. “Move on, then. A Warrior can’t address the council unless they’re in position.”
The tiger blinked up at him impassively.
“If the white tiger isn’t moving, maybe that’s a message,” Haro mused.
Alder shot him a frustrated look. “Nothing that animal does makes sense. How is this a message?”
“It may not make sense to you,” Raina began, “but the role of the white tiger and black crow is to create balance.”
“I know that,” Adler nearly yelled.
“Maybe,” Haro began, thinking, “the tiger is trying to say that Warrior Beaufont shouldn’t be here today.”
Adler sighed. “I think we put too much stock in the strange and mysterious things that animal does. I for one think we should start ignoring it.”
This brought startled reactions from many of the council members.
“The Founders stated that the tiger and crow were always supposed to be part of these proceedings,” Haro stated. “It was mine and the Beaufonts’ grandfathers who supposedly created the animals to ensure—”
“Yes, I know that,” Adler cut in. “Yes, yes, it’s all about balance. But how are we supposed to conduct business with the tiger interfering?”
“I can just stand there,” Liv said, gesturing to the spot beside the tiger.
“Fine,” Adler said dismissively.
“Report to the council about your case.”
“We’ve been killing lots of demons,” Liv began proudly.
Adler’s eyelids fluttered with annoyance. “Yes, we know that, Ms. Beaufont. Do you want to be more specific?”
“The nest in the north has almost been wiped out,” Liv stated.
“That’s most impressive,” Hester exclaimed, her eyes darting to Stefan’s spot. “And where is Warrior Ludwig?”
Hester was the only person besides Liv who knew Stefan was battling a demon bite. As a healer, she’d know he had limited time. “He is tracking more demons in the territory. I came to deliver the report.”
“Very well, then,” Adler said, looking bored. “And Decar, you’re done with your case?”
His brother nodded, his chin held high.
Usually that was Liv’s cue to leave, but given the strange business with the white tiger and extra activity of the other Council members, she decided to stick around.
“Good, good,” Adler said, offering the first bit of praise Liv had ever heard from him. “It’s that time of the century again. We need you to pay the giants a visit on the Isle of Man.”
Liv’s mouth slammed shut as she froze, listening intently. That was where Rory’s mother had taken Turbinger. It was apparently where most of the giants lived, away from society and other magical creatures.
“Yes. Although we’re certain that the giants will decline to join the treaty,” Bianca stated, “it states that we are to offer them a chance every one hundred years.”
“You, Decar, are to go to the Isle of Man and explain to them the benefits of being part of the alliance,” Adler said. “They will say no, and we’ll have fulfilled our mandate for another century.”
“I’ll do it,” Liv nearly shouted.