Maxon

by Christina Bauer

  “So something else is going on? Why can’t you just say it?” Ty’s dancing around big news and it’s getting on my nerves. “Spit it out, man.”

  “Zephyr’s sent an emissary. He wants to talk with all the royals. You in particular.”

  A shock of awareness zooms down my spine. Zephyr wouldn’t send an emissary unless he wanted to talk terms. And he wouldn’t do that unless…

  “Does he have Lianna?” All of a sudden, I’m breathless and flustered. Part of me registers that this is more emotion than I’ve felt in a year. More of me is beyond caring about all this emotional crap. Lianna could be in the hands of that monster.

  “We don’t know yet,” answers Ty. “We’ll find out when everyone shows up.”

  A low hum sounds as a large door-sized hole appears in the center of the room. Out of the portal steps Walker, my parents, and an Air Valta. I’d know this elemental anywhere. He’s one of the kids who tried to seal Lianna and me into a cavern. In other words, he’s a dumbass. That’s good.

  “Greetings,” says the Air Valta. “I am Caius.”

  G nods toward the door. “Please excuse us, everyone.”

  There’s a lot of bowing and “Yes, Your Majesty” as Ty and all of G’s team hightail it out of the room. Meanwhile I give Caius a careful once-over. The guy has an all-gray body, baby face, and Roman armor. I tilt my head.

  “You’re the one who screwed up in the Philippines.”

  “Come again?” asks Caius.

  “You let Lianna and me escape,” I explain. “How are you alive?”

  Caius tips up his chin. “Zephyr was merciful. He only killed—” He clears his throat, most likely to hide a sob. Suddenly, I feel bad for the kid. He’s too young to be in this job.

  “He let me live,” says Caius.

  And killed your friend.

  “Look, whatever happened with your buddy, I’m sorry. I’ve been in battle, I know what it’s like to lose someone.” I fold my arms over my chest. “Now, what does Zephyr want?”

  “Lianna is in Zephyr’s compound,” says Caius.

  When I speak again, my voice takes on a deeper ring of menace. “We guessed that already, Caius. What else you got?”

  “They’re in deep negotiations on how to jointly rule all elementals,” says Caius. “Any attempts to cease this peaceful process will be taken as an act of war. Emissaries have been sent to Heaven, Hell, the Dark Lands, and Purgatory. All have the same message.” He focuses on me. “No coming after Lianna.”

  And leave her with Zephyr? Never.

  Every nerve ending in my body zings with rage. “Negotiations? You’ve got to be kidding. If Lianna is with Zephyr, she’s a prisoner.”

  Caius looks pointedly at my parents. “What is your reply?”

  “There will be no official rescue party from Antrum,” says Dad. “Is that acceptable?”

  A breathless pause hangs in the room. Dad specifically used the word ‘official.’ That means I can do something on my own, assuming Caius agrees.

  I love my Dad.

  “Excellent,” says Caius. “That’s exactly what we were hoping for.”

  G nods regally. “I’ll have my scribes put it in writing.” According to G, diplomacy is all about writing stuff down. I’d rather zap a few lightning bolts, but that’s me.

  Mom steps in to close the deal. “You’ve done an impressive job here today, Caius.” She grins and bats her eyes. Classic move. Mom does this all the time in negotiations. The woman can win over almost anyone with an X chromosome. Turns out, even elementals aren’t immune.

  Caius blushes. “Thank you, Your Highness.”

  “We’ll finalize the agreement immediately.” Mom gestures toward Walker. “Please join the Queen Emeritus and Walker in the Throne Room.”

  “As you command,” says Caius.

  With a wave of his arm, Walker quickly opens a ghoul portal. Along with G and Caius, he steps into the darkness and disappears. Once the three of them are gone, I face my parents.

  “I’m going after Lianna,” I say. “Unofficially.”

  “I know, my boy,” says Dad with a sad smile.

  “What can we do to help?” asks Mom.

  “Nothing,” I say. “This is a solo mission.”

  A muffled voice sounds from beyond the door. “Forget it! I’m going with you,” calls Ty.

  We all share a knowing smile. Ty must have cast a listening spell. I whip open the door. All the guys are there.

  “Where did you all come from?” I ask.

  “I might have called them here,” answers Ty.

  “You can’t have all the battle fun without us,” adds Uth.

  I try to pretend that I’m pissed, but do a shit job of it. “You’re a bunch of sentimental dicks, you know that?”

  “Yeah,” they reply in unison.

  I turn back to my parents. “We have some planning to do, and then we’re off.”

  “Be safe,” says Mom.

  “I can’t believe you said that, Myla.” Dad shakes his head. “Kick some ass, son.”

  “That’s the plan.” I speed out the door, ready to make a plan and get my girl.

  Don’t give up, Lianna. I’ll be there soon.

  Lianna

  I’m so thirsty, I could scream.

  Only I can’t.

  In fact, all I can do is stare at the same stretch of blank white wall. Not that I have a choice where I look, either. Chimera’s paralytic venom lives up to its reputation. It works like a charm on almost anybody. While I keep up the stare fest, the infirmary door opens with a menacing creak. I sense more than see an oily presence sidle up next to me.

  “How are you feeling?” asks Chimera.

  At this point, I’d love to tear the old dragon’s heart out. Hell, I’d settle for being able to shift my weight or even twitch, but I can’t. In fact, all I can do is make sarcastic comments inside my head.

  “Ah-ah-aaaaaah,” says Chimera. “You want to move again, I can tell.”

  You think?

  “Have I told you about my paralytic venom?”

  Only fourteen times.

  “Works on anything in the after-realms, and I do mean anything.”

  Must save you money on date rape drugs.

  And so it goes. Chimera’s been nothing but irritating for hours.

  “Ready to give me what I want?” he asks. He wiggles the Kristalli of Water, which has been strapped to my hand.

  The movement reminds me for the millionth time that Fisk was the last one to have the Kristalli. I really hope he’s okay.

  “Come on,” coos Chimera. “Charge up the stone with your power, and all this will be over.”

  That’s so not an option. No way am I charging the Kristalli just so Zephyr can shoot up.

  Chimera taps the stone with his claw-like finger. “Not filling with power, I see.”

  Wow. Something we agree on.

  “Ah, well,” Chimera sighs. “Time for more venom.”

  Ugh. My stomach would heave if I could move the muscles. Every fifteen minutes, Chimera shoots another dose of his personal paralytic into my neck with a syringe. He could spit into my face too, but the nurses were complaining about getting paralyzed while they cleaned me up. So, syringe it is.

  Did I mention that I hate needles?

  Chimera rises to his feet, taking care to stay in my limited line of vision.

  Thanks for the freak show, creep.

  A pair of smiling, reptilian faces stare directly at me. They’re Chimera’s. The two heads have different colored scales, but both end in the same lean body. Chimera’s a wily guy in a black waistcoat with matching breeches. Or at least, it’s what left of a waistcoat. Since Chimera’s in his hybrid form, his pair of heads have shredded the top of his outfit.

  Chimera tilts one of his heads back, plunges the syringe into its venom sack and fills the glass vial with a bunch of green goop. Again, he’s super careful to make sure I don’t miss a second of the action. Wow, do I ever hate him.<
br />
  “More paralytic, coming up.”

  After stepping up to my bedside, Chimera jams the needle into my throat and chuckles. My soul seethes with held in rage.

  What I wouldn’t give to be able to kill the old bastard, right now.

  “Ready to charge up your Kristalli? All it takes is a little force of will and—whoosh—in it goes. Zephyr has given me his solemn oath that once you’re drained of your powers, you’ll be free to leave.”

  That’s because I’ll also be dead.

  “Perhaps you think someone is coming to save you?” Chimera asks.

  Hey, I’d be insane not to fantasize about Maxon busting down the door.

  “I’d give up on that idea, little monarkki.” I can hear the smug smile in Chimera’s voice. “Escape is impossible.” His clawed finger runs down the side of my face. “Why not transfer the power? You’re going to die; what could it matter?”

  He has a point. Hopelessness weighs down my body, heavy and cold as blocks of ice. I don’t doubt my escape is impossible.

  Still, if death is all I have left, then it matters quite a lot.

  Maxon

  I stand on the abandoned loading docks of Arx Hall. A silver Pulpitum disc glitters underneath my feet. Lianna and I used this very transfer station when she first came to Antrum. It was such a thrill to hold her as the platform rushed around.

  Now, Zephyr has her imprisoned. Adrenaline kicks through my nervous system.

  If that freak touches one hair on her head, I’ll kill him.

  I roll my eyes. Who am I kidding? We’re about to launch a rescue mission for Lianna. No matter what’s up with her hair, if I get the chance, I’m killing Zephyr.

  A familiar voice breaks up my thoughts. “You okay, M?”

  It’s Uther. He and Ty are standing nearby, waiting to get started. We just finished the fastest planning session in the history of the thrax military. Now, we’re waiting for Zee and Raj to show and we’re ready to roll.

  Uther raises his voice. “I said, are you okay, M?”

  “Give him a minute,” whispers Ty.

  I rub my eyes and refocus my thoughts. “Nah, I’m good. Just thinking.”

  “You reworking the plan?” asks Ty.

  “Nope, it’s a good plan.”

  Actually, it’s a long shot mess, but I can’t say that to Ty.

  In my mind, I run it through everything one more time. First step, we use Uther’s phase bomb to open a doorway to Zephyr’s realm. Assuming Uther’s toy doesn’t kill us all, then we go straight to step two, finding Lianna. So we find and rescue her. And then—if we’re all still alive after that—we move onto step three, killing Zephyr. His place will be crawling with Air Valta and my lightning only does so much. That’s why I’m about to send Ty to Furonium. He’ll ask Tempest for help.

  On second thought, calling this a ‘long shot mess’ is sugarcoating things. That said, it’s the best plan we’ve got.

  I turn to Uther. “Are your bombs ready?”

  Uth raises two small metal boxes in his arms. “Two identical bombs, ready to go, just like you asked.”

  “Good man,” I say. “How’d the final tests go?”

  “Uh, fine.” Uther stares at the floor. That’s his ‘I’m so guilty it isn’t funny’ look.

  “Anything more for me than that?”

  “Nope, not really,” says Uth. He keeps staring at the ground. That’s not good.

  “So, you’re sure those can punch a doorway into Zephyr’s realm?”

  The whole plan hinges on Uth and his bombs. It was tough enough getting into the Water Palace, and that was with Lianna at my side. And Ty couldn’t even stop some random elemental lights from twinkling out of the ground. No way can he open a portal into Zephyr’s backyard. Unless Uther’s bombs work, this plan will stop before it gets started.

  “No worries,” says Uth. “These babies can open a portal anywhere in the after-realms, including Zephyr’s compound.” He purses his lips. “Only…”

  Here it comes. There’s always a catch with Uther’s stuff.

  “Only what?” I ask.

  “We can’t do it a ton.”

  “Define ‘a ton.’”

  “Well, I’ve been working on these bombs for months. I did one last test before I came here.”

  “And?”

  “The space-time continuum got a little wonky.”

  “Wonky?” Ty gasps. “What the hell, man? You’ve been fucking with space-time?”

  “It’s not like I meant to,” says Uth. “I’m a scientist. Mistakes go with the territory.”

  I step between Uth and Ty before they start whaling on each other. “Get to the bottom line, Uth. What’s the deal?”

  “Well, we can only do a few more blasts,” says Uth. “Or bad things will happen.”

  Here we go again. You have to be super-specific with Uther.

  “Define ‘bad things.’”

  “Oh, well…”

  My voice takes on a warning tone. “Uth.”

  “The universe might collapse or something,” says Uther really quickly. “Or, you know, it could be fine, too.”

  Ty shakes his head, dismayed. “That is wrong on so many different levels, I can’t even begin to tell you.”

  Uther folds his arms over his stocky chest. “I said this is science, man. I wouldn’t expect you to understand.”

  “Understand?” asks Ty. He’s almost screaming, so I need to shut this convo down. I raise my hand, palm forward. Both guys go silent.

  “Look, you two. Right now, all that’s important is one thing.” I turn to Uth. “Can we safely do two blasts?”

  “Yes, absolutely.”

  “Good. We’re using one bomb to go to Zephyr’s realm, and Ty’s taking the other one to Furonium for Tempest.”

  Uther frowns. “Why can’t I take the bomb to Tempest?”

  “We covered this already,” I say.

  “Many times,” adds Ty.

  Uther looks unconvinced, so I go through it again. “Tempest doesn’t know you, Uth. He’s only ever met Ty.”

  That’s not entirely true. Tempest has met Zee as well. But Ty has a reputation as the best warlock in the after-realms. Dragons are big on magic. We’ve a better shot at getting help with Ty pleading our case.

  I point between Ty and one of the metal boxes. “You know how to operate that thing?”

  “Yup,” says Ty. “Picture where I want to go, and then hit the red button.”

  “It’s a really simple interface,” grumbles Uth. “You could say something nice about that, you know.”

  That’s our Uther. Still prissy that Ty bad-talked his bomb.

  “Okay, fine.” Ty rolls his eyes. “Nice job putting a big red button on the machine that almost blew apart our universe. Feel better now?”

  Uth hands him the bomb. “Yeah, I do.”

  Ty holds the box like it’s radioactive. Hell, it probably is. Good thing Ty has a spell to counteract that kind of thing. I lean back against the wall and hitch my thumbs into the pockets of my body armor.

  “Go through the plan with me one more time, Ty.”

  “I’ll ride the Pulpitum to Furonium and ask for Emperor Tempest.” Ty’s mouth presses into a worried frown. “You’re absolutely sure he’ll help us? Everyone else in the after-realms seems scared that Zephyr will retaliate against them. We’ve got no official help coming from the Dark Lands, Antrum, Purgatory, or even Hell. Maybe we should nix this part. I should be with you guys on the strike team.”

  “It’ll be fine, Ty. The Furor love a good fight. They practically held a party when Zephyr attacked them to get at the Kristalli of Fire.”

  Okay, so that answer’s only partly bullshit. The Furor do like to fight, but I’ve no real idea if Tempest will pitch in. He’s a moody son of a bitch. “Be sure to tell Tempest that our intel says Chimera is with Zephyr. That may change his mind.”

  Or not. T is really a wildcard.

  “Got it,” says Ty.

 
“You ready to roll?” I ask.

  Ty nods.

  “Good man.” I cup my hand by my mouth and speak a little louder. “Activating communications system to Transfer Central. Diana, are you there?”

  A sultry voice fills the stone room. “Hello, Maxon.”

  “Hey, Diana. I need you to send Ty here into Furonium. Make it the Pulpitum right inside Emperor Tempest’s palace.”

  “As you command, Your Highness. Waiting on your mark.”

  Uther stares at the bomb in Ty’s arms. The way Uth looks at that thing, you’d think Ty was stealing his baby. Well, maybe he is. I gently rest my hand on Uther’s shoulder and guide him away from the circular metal platform on the floor. Uth can’t be anywhere nearby when the transfer starts or he’ll get mushed into road kill. Once Uther’s safely out of range, I give the countdown. “Initiating transfer in three, two, one.”

  A burst of white light fills the room as Ty’s platform takes off through the ceiling. The brightness blinds me for a few seconds, and then my eyes readjust to the dim room and torchlight.

  “Will you need another transfer today?” asks Diana.

  “No thanks,” I reply. “Over and out.”

  Raj and Nizam rush into the room. Both are decked out in black body armor, like me and Uth. However, they’re also loaded down with heavy backpacks. An odd assortment of crossbows and knives are strapped to their arms and legs. Jetal sits perched on the top of Raj’s pack. She does not look happy about her new nest away from her master’s shoulder.

  Playing around in the armory again. That’s Zee and Raj for you.

  “You’re late,” I say.

  “Sorry,” says Raj. “We got caught up.”

  “I see.” I make a big show of eyeing them from head to toe. It’s a wonder the two of them are upright, considering all the crap they’re carrying. “Think you got enough gear, guys?”

  “Why?” Zee’s mouth falls open with worry. “Do you think we need more?”

  “Maybe we should go back,” says Raj. “They got in a new shipment of nun chucks this week.”

  “Stay right where you are,” I order. “Gear time is over. We’re going to Zephyr’s compound now.”

  Zee frowns. “How’s that gonna happen?”