I let out a deep sigh, rubbing my face. There was dried daemon blood all over me—and the rest of my team, for that matter—and I longed for a hot shower and a soft bed. I wasn’t going to get them anytime soon, but the quicker we got our fighters together, the better.
“We need to destabilize Draconis from the inside out, like we did with Infernis,” Jax said, gazing at the fire. Hansa slowly relaxed, leaning against him. He put his arm around her waist and pulled her closer, while Caia and Blaze awkwardly huddled closer to one another.
Harper was virtually drained, and I knew she’d need to replenish soon. Not just where blood was concerned, but also to boost back her sentry abilities. Caspian held her tight, discreetly kissing her temple, as they both stared at the flames, while the Ekar settled on a ledge.
I couldn’t help but think about Zane, worrying about him still down there—a prisoner to his brother’s whims. Fortunately, he was still a daemon royal, and there was only so much that Cayn could do without stirring his father’s wrath. Traitor or not, I had a feeling that Shaytan would want to deliver the punishment himself.
“We have to get Zane out of there,” I murmured, “before something worse happens to him.”
“I agree,” Jax replied. “Zane is our ally, and we must help our own. Provided all ends with a toppled daemon kingdom, we’ll need someone to take over from Shaytan. The king is too addicted to souls and power. I doubt he’ll be willing to agree to a truce.”
“No, no, Shaytan is mine,” Harper said through gritted teeth. “For everything he’s done, and for everything else he intends to do, rest assured, he won’t live to see a free Neraka. And neither will the Lords of Azure Heights.”
“Velnias is gone,” Vesta said. “Though that might not be necessarily a bad thing. If we can find him down there, we could still count on him. He’s gone into hiding, for sure, to avoid prison.”
“We could, I suppose,” Hansa mused, her head resting on Jax’s shoulder. “We have a lot to do. Most importantly, we need an entry strategy. The spells that Laughlan gave us will certainly help. We’ll need to gather the ingredients.”
“We’ve made it this far, right?” Harper smirked, her eyes drooping.
“Besides, Patrik and the others are hard at work in the northeast,” Jax added. “They’ll come back with allies, too.”
“Yeah, I’m positive about the Adlets,” Vesta replied with a nod, then frowned slightly. “Though I’m not sure they’ll find any Dhaxanians. Then again, who knows? You people have already exceeded my expectations.”
“And you’ll see your parents again, soon enough.” Hansa gave her a reassuring smile.
Pheng-Pheng cleared her throat, then huddled closer to Harper. Her wide-eyed expression reminded me of a little girl looking up to her older sister. “The Manticores are with you, too,” Pheng-Pheng said, and Harper replied with a smirk.
“Yeah, a handful of warriors against an army of daemons and a heavily guarded city that’s surrounded by deadly gorges and an unfriendly ocean,” Harper replied. “What could possibly go wrong?”
Technically speaking, everything.
But we’d come too far. We’d lived through too much already. Our families were waiting for us back home, most likely unable to get through to Neraka. The likes of Laughlan and the rest of his delegation had spent thousands of years locked inside meranium boxes. The Imen were constantly terrorized for their blood and their souls, as were other Nerakians.
Yeah, everything could go wrong.
But it couldn’t be worse than what was already happening. I wasn’t ready to let the daemons and Exiled Maras win just yet. Not while I was still alive and kicking.
With so much kicking left to do.
Draven
I summoned Derek to a brief one-on-one meeting on the third evening since we’d deployed a team to Neraka. The inconsistencies regarding the Druid delegation didn’t sit well with me, and, shortly after I came back from The Shade, I started looking into the galaxy itself.
Serena was busy with Field and the rest of the Calliope GASP team, managing the second team’s deployment to Tenebris. The rebels had surprised us with an ambush, but they’d all made it out alive. I trusted her and the Hawk with handling this, just like I trusted them with my life.
Ruling an entire galaxy like Eritopia was not easy—far from it. Some days, it bordered on insane. Fortunately, I’d bonded with Serena on a sentry level, and it was finally starting to show. I didn’t have any of her abilities, but my energy levels were through the roof, and that came in handy while rebuilding an empire. With twenty planets in my care, I had my work cut out for me. The Shade, GASP, and all the Eritopians I’d allied with during our war against Azazel gave me their full support, though. I was lucky.
Which was why I was taking this whole Neraka business more than seriously. Our people were out there trying to restore balance to a world we knew nothing about. Others had taken a leap of faith for me when I’d needed them, several months back—it seemed only fair for me to give the Exiled Maras the same benefit of the doubt, despite their turbulent history.
And yet, something just didn’t feel right. Viola and Phoenix were busy studying the galaxy to which Neraka belonged. Hopefully, I was going to get more information about it by morning. Although Derek had suggested that we discuss a course of action in a couple more days, it didn’t do anything to ease my suspicions that something was, in fact, wrong with Neraka. I just couldn’t put my finger on it. If anything, it got worse with every hour that passed, to the point where I could no longer hide it from Serena.
With Harper out there on Neraka, the last thing I wanted was to give her cause for concern. After all, it could turn out to be nothing—or something unrelated to the Exiled Maras.
I reached out to Jax via the Telluris spell, just as Derek came in and closed the door behind him. He greeted me with a brief nod and took a seat next to me.
“Telluris Jax!” I called out.
I’d done this spell many times before, and yet only with the Neraka team did it take so long to get a response. I still had trouble accepting distance as a factor in a spell designed to connect two souls, transcending time and space altogether.
“Telluris Jax!” I tried again, slightly frustrated.
A light frown settled between Derek’s eyebrows. Looking at him, I wondered what it must have been like for him, in the early days. Six hundred years ago, Derek was a wide-eyed vampire first making his way to a remote island that would soon become home to a plethora of supernatural species—a sanctuary that spawned an incredible organization, which I was humbled and proud to be a part of. I couldn’t help but see an inkling of myself in him.
I, too, had a sanctuary to build.
“Hey, Draven,” Jax’s voice finally came through. “Sorry about taking so long to respond. I don’t know what the hell the asteroid belt is doing. How is everything over there?”
Derek watched me quietly, analyzing my every expression as I listened to Jax.
“We’re good over here, just waiting for Viola and Phoenix to gather some data on Neraka’s galaxy,” I replied. “The Tenebris operation had a bit of a hiccup, but they’re all okay, and moving ahead. We should be seeing results by the end of the week. Apparently, the locals are getting tired of the incubus rebels. The factions have proposed nothing of value to rebuild the kingdom after Azazel, so there’s a chance they’ll be ousted soon, with a little help from GASP. How is everything going over there?”
“It’s getting complicated, but still manageable,” Jax said. “There are signs of another species living here, besides the Imen, but we’ve yet to see them. Upside is that no one’s gone missing since we got here, though I’m not holding my breath at this point.”
“Another species on Neraka?” I repeated, for Derek to hear. “That’s interesting. Plus, it might explain the disappearances. But the Exiled Maras have been living there for almost ten thousand years. Surely they must’ve noticed something.”
“They seem as baffled as we
are, but we’re still in the early days,” Jax replied. “We’re planning an expedition farther to the south tomorrow, to corroborate some of the Imen’s accounts of suspicious activity. One thing I have to admit, Draven. The Exiled Maras have really done well for themselves here. Azure Heights is a beautiful place, and peaceful, too. It’s a shame to see it plagued with abductions.”
“It’s strange to hear this coming from you,” I said. “I remember you were the one most opposed to anything regarding the Exiled Maras.”
“Consider me impressed, then. They’ve really turned their lives around here. The culture they’ve developed is interesting, too. A bit too artsy for my taste, but the girls are loving it.” Jax chuckled.
“Good. That’s good to hear,” I replied, then decided to shift the conversation back to where it poked my instincts. “Jax, I need you to do something for me, as soon as you can.”
“Shoot.”
“I need you to talk to the Five Lords about the Druid delegation,” I said. “According to the Druid archives, they never made it back to Calliope. I know Rewa said they bid the delegation farewell and never saw them again, but can you just double check with the Lords? Try to get some details regarding their departure. If they saw them actually leave Neraka’s atmosphere, if they noticed any strange phenomena in the sky, that kind of stuff. Try to get a feel for the room, too. Just to make sure they’re truthful. Avril could sniff out something, if needed. She’s a living, breathing lie detector.”
A long pause followed. It gnawed at my stomach.
Derek’s eyes were on me, and, as soon as my gaze found his, it was as if he could read my mind. He shook his head slowly, and mouthed his question: “No answer?”
I replied with a shrug, quietly waiting. “Jax? Did you hear me?”
“Yes! Yes, I heard you,” Jax said—but it didn’t sound like Jax. The voice was lower, scratchier than the Mara Lord’s timbre. I closed my eyes for a second and took a deep breath. “Sorry, got cut off for a bit. It went quiet all of a sudden,” Jax continued, and this time I recognized his voice. “I’m intrigued. I’ll definitely speak to the Lords about this, leave it with me.”
“Thank you, Jax,” I murmured, a vein throbbing in my temple. Everything about this conversation felt wrong, but I didn’t want to raise the issue—not yet, anyway. Not until I figured out what was going on with Telluris and that asteroid belt. I had a feeling that Viola and Phoenix’s findings might help.
“I’ll be extra diplomatic when I talk to the Lords about this, too,” Jax replied. “We didn’t exactly hit it off from day one, but I’m starting to grow on them. Anything else?”
“Are the others with you?” I asked.
“They’re down on the second level, in the infirmary. Patrik is preparing supplies for the southern expedition. I’ll be joining them soon,” Jax replied, once again not sounding like himself.
I couldn’t resist this time. “Jax, there’s something weird here. You don’t sound right. Are you sure everything is okay there?”
Another pause, before Jax’s husky voice came back. “Yes. I don’t know, Draven, it has got to be the asteroid belt. You’re not sounding much like yourself, either. Maybe the belt is distorting communications. We’ve floated that theory before.”
I nodded slowly, and decided to quit asking Jax about it. “That’s true,” I murmured. “That’s probably it. Thank you, Jax, and we’ll talk again in six hours.”
“Sure. I’ll summon the Lords tonight and see what they can tell me about the Druid delegation in the meantime.”
With heavy silence filling my head once more, I exhaled, then looked at Derek.
“Let me guess, something didn’t feel right?” he asked.
“Yes. And, for the life of me, I can’t figure out what. Jax just didn’t sound like himself, but he said it must be the asteroid belt.”
“What are you thinking, exactly?” Derek replied, frowning. “Give me your wildest theory, the one that’s shaping up in your head, and that you’re wary of sharing with anyone else. As crazy as it may sound.”
I stilled, surprised by his intuition. The thoughts I’d been struggling with didn’t exactly fall into a believable theory. They were wild ideas, impossible to even fathom in the absence of more information. But Derek was still able to sense them.
“Your intuition continues to amaze me,” I muttered, leaning back into my chair.
He smiled, gazing at the hand-drawn map of Calliope beneath the glass surface of the meeting table. “I’ve been around for a long time, Draven. I’ve seen the craziest things come true, things I’d never dared to think could ever happen. Just say it out loud. It might not make sense, but it might at least make you feel better.”
“I don’t have a specific theory in my mind right now, but I’m thinking that maybe our Telluris communication was somehow compromised,” I managed, scratching the back of my head.
Derek paused, his eyes widened and his eyebrows raised. “Wow. Yes, that sounds a little extreme, but still.” Worry filled his eyes. “Do you think it’s possible?”
“I have read about Telluris in every single Druid manuscript I could find. No one has ever experienced such issues with it before. They’ve used it with Druid delegations in previous expeditions, mostly around the same period of time as the one that crash-landed on Neraka. No one ever mentioned anything about Telluris glitching like this. Technically speaking, the asteroid belt around Neraka really shouldn’t affect the spell itself.”
Derek thought about it for a while, then let out a deep sigh. “So we have two massive unknowns, on top of the Nerakian mission’s objective. Firstly, the Druid delegation that never made it back. Regarding that, you’ve got Viola and Phoenix digging into the archives, looking for information on the entire galaxy, and I’ve also asked Corinne to put together a special telescope to peek into the area. At this point, one can say that it’s being taken care of, right?”
I nodded, suddenly eager to see what Corinne would come up with. We had the data, but a witch as gifted as Corinne could easily help us get a good look into the galaxy itself.
“Second, you’ve got a glitching Telluris spell, and team members who don’t quite sound like themselves, right?” Derek continued, and I replied with another nod. “Without knowing more about this, all you have are shots in the dark, so why not take them?”
“What do you mean?” I frowned, not sure I was following his line of reasoning.
“Take all the theories about this, even the craziest ones, and start working to eliminate them, one by one.”
That did make sense. A lot of sense, actually.
“Well, the first one, and the craziest, off the top of my head, is that Telluris is compromised,” I said.
“Would the Nerakian team be aware of that?”
“They would certainly say something, if they were. Unless…” My voice trailed off, my mind boggled by a concept that sounded too crazy, even for this conversation. But Derek didn’t let it go.
“Come on, Draven. Say it. What are you thinking?”
“Jax didn’t sound like himself. Maybe it’s not Jax I’ve been talking to?” I said it out loud, and I couldn’t believe it. I shook my head, eager to let it go. The implications were downright terrifying. “No, that’s insane. Other than transmission issues, and Jax’s abrupt change in voice, there’s nothing else to point to such an insanity.”
“Nevertheless, we’ll both sleep better if you cross that one off the list.”
A minute passed as I mulled over it. “You’re right. But how do I cross it off the list? Telluris is my only way of reaching out to the team.”
“Okay. Assuming the theory, as crazy as it sounds, is true… You’ve been talking to Jax, Hansa, and Harper, right?” Derek asked, and I nodded. “You know them well enough to test them. Ask the right questions, the next time you talk, and confirm it’s really them. If someone is posing as Jax, for example, surely they won’t know everything, absolutely everything, about him, right? An imposto
r is not impossible to spot, no matter how crafty they are. Give it a shot. Dig deep into your memories, find a moment you shared with Jax, away from everyone else, and bring it into the conversation. See what he says. In the meantime, Corinne, Viola, and Phoenix are hard at work dealing with the first issue.”
I had to admit—I was glad to have called Derek over. Most importantly, I was thankful to have him in our lives. His experience, his wisdom, and his ability to see past the “crazy” labels made him a powerful influence, and a true eye-opener. I couldn’t help but smile.
“Thank you, Derek. Not just for your insight, but also for your ability to drill me, without regard for whatever might sound… insane.”
Derek sighed, running a hand through his dark hair. “It’s the least I can do. Part of my family is on Neraka right now. And there is nothing I won’t do for family. Even if that means finding reason in the middle of crazy.”
He had a point. Sure, it sounded ballistic to think that Telluris was compromised, and that it hadn’t been Jax I’d spoken to. But it was what my instinct was trying to tell me. And yes, I did feel better just by voicing that thought.
All I had to do was wait for my next Telluris chat with Jax so I could put the theory to the test. Best case scenario, it was nothing. Worst case, Telluris was compromised, and I was in touch with impostors and had no other way of reaching out to my team—my friends, my family.
My skin crawled, so I shoved the thought away.
One question. The right question. That was all it was going to take for me to put this issue to rest. And if Jax gave me the wrong answer, well, at least I’d finally know what the hell was wrong with Telluris in the first place.
Ready for the next part of the Shadians’ story?
Dear Shaddict,
Thank you for reading A League of Exiles!
The next book in the series, ASOV 57: A Charge of Allies, releases March 2nd, 2018!
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