Plague Arcanist (Frith Chronicles Book 4)

by Shami Stovall

  If I had to bet, I’d say anything Theasin was involved in wasn’t pleasant.

  I sheathed Retribution, more uncertain than ever.

  Perhaps it was best… if I rid myself of this weapon.

  The khepera stopped their conversation and turned toward us in unison.

  “We have decided,” the feminine khepera said. “We will leave the Grotto Labyrinth. However, you must know that our sands will always return here. If we die, there is no other place we can resurrect.”

  “We’ll protect you,” I said.

  The khepera buzzed their wings.

  “Not you,” the same khepera replied. “You cannot be trusted.”

  I didn’t protest. If they didn’t want a plague-ridden arcanist to guard them, I understood. I didn’t want to hurt any of them on accident, not like I had hurt Gamal. I just hoped they would be able to cure me before it was too late.

  “Let’s go,” Karna said. She jogged up to each pillar and scooped up the khepera. They were tiny, and they scuttled to her shoulders, one climbing on top of her head—hiding in her golden hair.

  Vethica pointed to the door. “We only have another fifteen minutes before the maze shifts again. We don’t want to be stuck in the central chamber.”

  Everyone headed for the door, except for Adelgis and his ethereal whelk. He didn’t move, and Felicity floated over him, her gestures and movements slow.

  “We’ll catch up with you,” I said to the others as I stood next to Adelgis. “Don’t wait for us.”

  “Will you be able to find your way out?” Vethica asked.

  “We won’t take that long. Just go.”

  The group lingered around the door for a few seconds, obviously debating on whether to leave.

  “Go,” I commanded, harsher than I had spoken to any of them before.

  That motivated them. They left the central chamber. Adelgis, Luthair, Felicity, the pile of Gamal’s sand, and I were the only ones who remained. The small waterfalls in the back of the room trickled down the wall, creating a pleasant melody of nature, but it wasn’t enough to remove the tension and anxiety.

  Adelgis clenched his teeth down on his index finger, breaking skin and allowing the blood to run the length of his hand.

  “Adelgis,” I muttered. A part of me wanted to stop him, but…

  He lowered his hand, wiped the blood off on the edge of his coat, and stared at the floor, unseeing. “My father did a lot more than just kill a majority of the khepera,” he said, his tone dark and serious.

  “Like what?” I asked.

  “Volke.”

  Was he even listening to me? I stepped closer to him, until we were inches apart. “Yeah?”

  “My father doesn’t think mystical creatures are worthy of consideration.” Adelgis smoothed his long hair. His ethereal whelk floated down and used her tentacles to help him. When Adelgis continued, it was with a steely, almost emotionless voice. “He’s written books and papers about how their lack of a soul means they’re no different than a rock or a tree or any other material that can be broken down and altered. I’ve read his thesis many times. The fact that he would destroy khepera to use their bodies for his own personal healing doesn’t surprise me.”

  “You seem upset,” I said, trying to pick my words carefully, even though it probably didn’t matter when he could hear my thoughts. “More so than I’ve ever seen you. If you knew your father would do something like this, why’re you so shaken?”

  “It’s difficult listening to so many unpleasant thoughts,” he stated. “And my own uncertainties don’t help. They’re eating away at my composure.”

  “What’re you uncertain about?”

  “Whether we’ll find you a cure.”

  The statement shook me—I didn’t want to think about that right now. Nevertheless, Adelgis continued.

  “My father’s writing said the khepera’s renewal powers were great.” Adelgis rubbed at his forearms. “But a young khepera won’t have the magic required to cure you. I thought… Well, I hoped… there would be an answer here. An answer to why the khepera weren’t returning—some answer that would help us solve your problem at the same time. Instead, all I found were my father’s atrocities.”

  “You mean, even though Vethica is a khepera arcanist, she won’t have the power to cure me?” I asked.

  “Don’t you remember your first few months as an arcanist? How hard it was to evoke and manipulate basic things? It’ll be years before she has the power to rid someone of the arcane plague.”

  “But you said a khepera arcanist could help,” I said, my voice rising. “We waited here in the city for three weeks because you said it was the best course of action. Now you’re telling me it won’t work?”

  “I had been hoping to find older khepera,” Adelgis said, his voice also rising. “Or something we could use! What if there had been a way to locate khepera arcanists here? What if the source of the khepera renewal was a magical artifact or powerful natural resource? There were lots of possibilities, all plausible.”

  “Are you saying Gamal could’ve helped if I hadn’t killed him?” I asked. Had I inadvertently destroyed my only hope? “Were you just hoping Vethica would second-bond to a khepera that was already capable of healing me?”

  “Gamal’s magic was stronger—perhaps he could’ve helped you—but I heard his thoughts. He never would’ve stopped until we were all dead. It was best you killed him when you did.” Adelgis paced back and forth, only walking a few feet before turning around. Then he stopped. “There are other ways to cure you,” he muttered. “But I don’t know if you’re going to like the options I present.” Adelgis sighed. “Maybe Jozé can help me. He’s quite skilled—more than I thought. I just… I can’t fail you. I refuse. You’re always helping everyone else. You’re always helping me. I need to help you or else…”

  “My arcanist,” Felicity said with a pout. She used a tiny tentacle to grab a lock of his hair.

  Anger slowly drained from my system. I exhaled and reminded myself I still had time. “Let’s get back to the Sun Chaser. We can discuss it more then.”

  Adelgis and I had spoken so long that we needed to run through most of the Grotto Labyrinth to avoid the moving rooms and hallways. The others had already gone ahead—no doubt to avoid being trapped—and by the time Adelgis and I made it to the entrance, we were winded. The maze really was gigantic and the rooms were spaced so far apart.

  We climbed the long staircase to the entrance, but at a slow pace. My legs burned, and the terrible information had taken a toll on me. I needed to sleep.

  To my surprise, a clear day greeted us as we exited the Grotto Labyrinth. Where had the hurricane gone? The plan was to use the last of it as cover as we returned to the Sun Chaser. If anyone saw us leaving the underground maze, they would surely report us. And while I understood why Vethica, Karna, and Fain had run ahead in the labyrinth, why wouldn’t they wait for us at the entrance, where the maze didn’t move at all?

  The streets of New Norra remained abandoned. Sand covered everything and filled in the minor nooks and crannies between bricks. Anything not secured or tied down was strewn across the roads or collected in piles between buildings. Although it appeared messy, there was no major damage. A few days’ worth of cleaning and everything would be back to normal.

  Determined to make it back to the Sun Chaser, I glanced around—and once I made sure no one was watching out a window—I ran for the closest alleyway. Adelgis and I made it from the plaza to the next street over in a matter of moments.

  Adelgis grabbed my arm, stopping me before we went any farther. “Volke. Hunters.”

  Before I could process what he had told me, a group of four individuals stepped around the side of a sandstone building. I didn’t recognize three of them—they weren’t even arcanists—but they held rifles and short swords. The last man I knew. It was the reaper arcanist, Jevel. His reaper eldrin, Ruin, floated alongside him as an ominous hood, cape, and scythe, its many chains rattling
as it swayed through the air.

  Jevel stroked his goatee and smiled. “Oh, I knew we’d find plague-ridden arcanists behind all this. I knew it.” He held up his hand and flashed a crimson bracelet. It glowed slightly, the red hue shining across his skin. “But you can’t hide from us anymore.”

  My mouth went dry, and I instantly regretted traveling anywhere with Adelgis. I didn’t want him to get caught up in a fight.

  Jevel stared at me for a prolonged moment. Then his expression switched from jovial to hardened. “Wait a minute—you’re plague-ridden? No wonder you’re not with Master Zelfree anymore. Everything makes sense now.”

  I pushed Adelgis away. “Go,” I muttered.

  “It’s my lucky day,” Jevel said, his mirth returning. “I still need Zelfree’s name on my chains.”

  Adelgis spoke telepathically, “Volke, you need to be careful. This man intends to incapacitate you and then use you as bait to lure Master Zelfree away from the Frith Guild.”

  31

  A Difficult Choice

  Jevel intended to use me as bait?

  I’d like to see him try.

  I unsheathed Retribution, no longer concerned about whether or not it was wicked. It was a blade, wasn’t it? And it’d cut this man down in a matter of seconds if he thought he was going to use me for anything.

  “My arcanist,” Luthair said from the shadows. “They’re just hunters doing their jobs. Please reconsider this course of action.”

  Holding me as ransom to lure Master Zelfree was far from doing their job, but I supposed the four men with Jevel weren’t privy to his personal plans. Killing them wasn’t necessary. It worried me that my first thought had been to slice them all to pieces.

  Jevel’s reaper wrapped its cloak around him. In half a second, the two were merged, much like how Luthair and I combined our strength to become one living being. The hood of the cloak half-covered Jevel’s face with shadow, the chains of his reaper hung as a belt, and he now held the scythe with both hands.

  In response to Jevel merging with his reaper, Luthair formed up out of the shadows and wrapped around me. The darkness hardened into cold plate metal, giving me a renewed sense of strength. In addition, Luthair’s logic and control helped me regain focus. If I had killed Jevel and his cohorts, I would’ve sent the city into a panic. I didn’t want that to happen.

  “You’re nothing but an apprentice,” Jevel said, his voice dark at the edges—an odd mix of his and his reaper’s voice. “This won’t take long.”

  He readied his scythe, a weapon with a pole at least five feet in length. The blade was chipped and the metal rusty, giving it a timeworn and neglected visage. Just looking at it could give someone an infection.

  Jevel held up a hand and evoked terrors. Normally, a person would succumb to their greatest fears—becoming immobilized with visions only they could see—but my knightmare magic kept me immune. When Jevel lunged with his scythe, I was ready.

  I shadow-stepped away, avoiding his slash. Instead of appearing behind him, which was what most enemies predicted, I emerged from the same spot in which I had gone into the darkness. Sure enough, Jevel had turned around, expecting an attack from the rear. While he was momentarily confused, I stabbed forward with Retribution.

  A small part of me feared I would try to kill him, much like I had killed Gamal, but with Luthair’s stalwart personality mingled with mine, I struck Jevel in the bicep of his dominant arm, just as I had wanted.

  The black blade cut through Jevel without problem.

  Again, no resistance. No drag. It didn’t even feel like I had hit anything solid.

  Jevel’s blood splattered across the sandstone bricks of the street. He leapt again, his teeth gritted, but a smirk at the edge of his lips. He used his left hand to grab at his own bloody wound. Then he arched his hand outward, throwing a smattering of blood out in front of him. I didn’t know what reapers could manipulate, but it became apparent in that moment—the droplets of blood became tiny razors that sailed through the air like throwing daggers.

  I leapt away. One blood-knife sliced through the edge of Luthair’s cape. Another hit my shadow armor and failed to pierce through.

  Careful, Luthair spoke straight in my mind. Injuries from a reaper cannot be healed through magical means.

  Curse the abyssal hells! I couldn’t afford to take an injury and bleed for days.

  Jevel threw his blood knives again, but instead of aiming for me, he went for Adelgis. One sliced through Adelgis’s upper leg, and another gouged a chunk of flesh from his shoulder.

  The four hunters with Jevel all went for Adelgis—no doubt seeing him as the weaker combatant. When I turned to help, Jevel was on me in an instant. He swung with his scythe, which took my attention. I had to dodge, but I also had to come up with a plan. If I wasn’t going to kill them, what should I do?

  Two men lunged for Adelgis. He grazed both of them with a feather-light touch of his fingertips, his hand connecting with the skin of their necks for less than a second. In that moment, both men collapsed to the street, their bodies becoming limp. One snored loud as he hit the ground face-first, like a whole night’s worth of sleep had been trapped in his gut and wanted to escape. Adelgis had forced both men into a magic-induced slumber.

  Instead of attempting to grapple Adelgis, the last two men readied their flintlock pistols.

  I slashed with my longsword and clipped the arm of the first gunman.

  But it wasn’t like with Jevel. I felt the blow to the man’s arm. There was a connection—resistance—it almost startled me, considering there hadn’t been anything before. My attack had been enough to rip open a wound from the man’s elbow to his wrist, disarming him in a single blow.

  Jevel swung wide with his scythe. It caught my side and sliced through the shadows of my armor, but it didn’t break my skin. Panic gripped me—although I hadn’t tested my theory, I was convinced that Luthair would become plague-ridden if I were injured while we were merged.

  Desperate to control the battlefield, I manipulated the shadows of the alleyway. Tendrils lifted up from the blackness and grabbed the legs and arms of Jevel and his four hunters, even the ones who were asleep. The shadow tendrils acted like ropes, holding them in place.

  Jevel slashed and cut and manipulated his blood to tear through my restraints. I didn’t have much time to act, though it was enough to distract him.

  The blood he had splattered on my armor continued to move. It burned—Jevel’s magic had created an acidic blood—and it corroded Luthair’s body. If it went all the way through, it would harm me as well. Not only that, but Adelgis had been hurt by the same attack… Could he hold up with so many injuries?

  I unmerged with Luthair, wanting to keep him plague-free. He returned to his shadow-state around my feet to clear away the harmful blood.

  Knowing I only had a few moments, I ran to Adelgis, grabbed him by the arm, and took us both into the darkness. As a shadow, we slid up the side of the building, but if I took us to the roof, the full force of the desert sun would make using my magic difficult. Instead, I leapt out of the shadows, taking Adelgis with me, and smashed through the second-story window on the opposite side of the alley.

  Glass scattered everywhere as we rolled across the wood flooring. People gasped, but I was too disoriented to see them clearly. My vision had blurred and my ears rang. I hadn’t imagined that the impact would affect me as much as it had, and my second-bonded magic burned throughout my system. I had forgotten how costly it was to take another person through the darkness.

  I clenched my jaw and withdrew Equalizer from its holster.

  Master Zelfree had told me to think like my opponents. I knew Jevel wouldn’t let us get away that easily. He had seen me in the Sovereign Dragon Tournament. He would use what little information he had about my fighting style in an attempt to corner me, which meant he probably knew I couldn’t travel through the shadows very far. He’d assume I’d still be in the building, and once he came in, I’d hav
e to be ready for him.

  I used the pistol’s ramrod to load another manticore bullet, my hands shaky after the collision with the window.

  Adelgis rolled to his side, rubbed at his head, and then examined his many lacerations.

  I didn’t have many injuries due to my armor and the wootz cotton.

  There were people in the room—dressed from head to toe in dark clothing—but they huddled away from us, keeping behind baskets and beds. It was for the best. I didn’t want to get them involved. As an apology, I untied the pouch with the last of my coins and threw it to the nearest individual. Hopefully, it would be enough to repair a window and bedroom.

  The door flew open, and I fired Equalizer.

  It wasn’t Jevel—it was one of his non-arcanist hunters. I hit the man in the arm, and he stumbled to the ground, crying out as he went.

  Jevel had been so craven that he had sent one of his lackeys ahead of him? I should’ve known. Any man who was willing to hold someone hostage wasn’t going to fight with any sort of honor.

  “My arcanist,” Luthair hissed.

  I whipped around and found Jevel leaping in through the broken window. I hadn’t expected him to get up this high—not to the second story—but perhaps he was more athletic than I had given him credit for.

  Jevel swung with his scythe, aiming for Adelgis. I reacted by lashing out with shadows. I grabbed Jevel’s blade with the darkness and forced the shadows to cling tight, but it wouldn’t last forever. I grabbed Adelgis and stepped into the shadows, traveling under the door, into a hallway, and down a flight of stairs. Then I had to emerge. I gasped for air, and so did Adelgis.

  Jevel crashed through the door and rushed down the hall. He would get down the stairs in a matter of seconds, and I didn’t have much time.

  I half-carried Adelgis out the front door of the building. We stumbled into the street, and I wondered if I’d be forced to kill Jevel just to escape him. If it came to it… I would.