by K.N. Lee
“Bloody Soul Haven,” a female voice said from behind Yara.
Yara looked over her shoulder, startled.
A small young woman with shoulder-length pink hair stood there, a bucket of glasses in her arms, a stunned look on her tanned face.
Yara frowned. They girl looked oddly, familiar, but she couldn’t place it.
Green eyes looked Yara up and down. “No way,” she said. “It can’t be.”
Yara stepped away from her. “Please. I need to find my friends. Can you tell me where they are?”
The girl licked her lips, her eyes wide. “Friends?” She asked, a blank look in her eyes.
Yara wrung her hands, spinning around to see if Asher or Hero were around somewhere. “Yes,” she said. “Two men. Are they here?”
Wherever here was.
The girl’s eyes widened with realization. She nodded and walked over to the bar in shoes that had a skinny heel much higher than Yara had ever seen. She set the bucket on the bar’s surface and straightened her short black leather skirt.
“Okay. Yes,” she began, holding her hands up. “I tried to stop them, but the coppers took the two dudes away. They locked them up in the palace prison.”
Yara’s face paled.
“Sorry,” she said, rubbing her forehead with her fingers. “But, it could be worse! At least you didn’t make it through the time portal at the same time as the others. I think the skeleton key must have known that danger waited...and kept you from getting caught.”
“What? Time portal? What does the key have to do with anything?”
Yara felt sick. Frustrated. She sat down in the closest chair and buried her face in her hands.
“Hey, now. Don’t worry. We can fix this. Sirus said you’d be coming, and so we’ve been waiting for you. Thank the spirits you waited until the bar was closed. I don’t know if I could have lived with myself if you’d have been picked up by the coppers as well.”
The girl’s heels made a loud clicking sound on the wooden floor as she walked over to Yara.
Yara looked up, tears burning her eyes. The thought of Asher and Hero being locked away in a prison made it so that she could barely breathe.
“Who are you?”
“I am Keo,” the woman said, her thin eyes looking Yara up and down again. “And you’re Yara Ortuso. The last Spell Slinger come to save us. Dear spirits. I can’t believe I actually lived to see this day.”
The color drained from Yara’s already pale face. “How do you know who I am?”
Keo went down to her knees, a look of wonder on her face.
“Sirus told me.”
Yara couldn’t begin to process all that this strange girl babbled about, but she knew she had to focus to understand what she’d gotten herself into.
“Who is Sirus?”
“The prophet.”
CHAPTER EIGHT
FROM HIS BARRED ROOM, Evan watched as the palace fell into chaos. He frowned at the spectacle and drank another sip of his wine. King Loric paced the courtyard just as the sun was setting. Everything was left in its orange and pink glow.
Evan chuckled when he saw King Lori slap Fern, the eldest of his children. He shook his head, amused.
If anyone deserved a good slap, it was Fern.
Evan couldn’t keep count of how many times he’s seen Fern starve her personal slaves, or make them stand on their bare hands and knees on uncooked rice. Sometimes, she’d make them strip in front of her annoying guests, and whip them.
Just for fun.
Evan would never hit a girl himself, but he couldn’t help but feel that she deserved it…even if it did come from the man that had stolen them from their families.
He grimaced.
Evan was supposed to be the good one, the one that the people of Allarya loved and looked up to, but the charade wore on him at times.
Sometimes, he simply had to rebel.
And now, he was imprisoned for it.
He knew that he wouldn’t be in his cell for long. It wasn’t like he was stuck in the lowest levels of the palace with the real criminals, but for once he almost wished he was. Rumors of two shifters had spread made its way to Evan.
He had his ways.
Ways that King Loric would kill him for. The only reason Evan was alive was because he was strong, and could handle the tests.
Evan tapped the bars on his window. “I’m as much a slave as the rest of them,” he murmured. “A slave with privileges, but a slave no less.”
There came a loud banging on his door. Evan cursed under his breath. He closed his eyes and cracked his neck.
“What?” He was already agitated. The sun hadn’t even completely fallen yet, and they were already bothering him to greet the new night.
“The king wants you.”
Evan recognized the voice. “Tell him I’m still sleeping, Kel.”
Sirus cleared his throat. “I’m sorry, but he insists that you come to him right away. This is not the time to be insolent”
Evan came to his feet. He picked up his sundial and slipped his wrist into its golden bracelet. Twelve hours until the sun rose again.
Evan glanced at the mirror before he turned the knob. His blond hair was messy. He smiled. It was just the way he liked it. He was sure father would not approve.
Perfect, he thought and gave his reflection a wink.
The moment he opened the large, wooden, door, Sirus stepped back and bowed low.
Evan rolled his eyes. “Stop doing that. I should be the one bowing to you, Kel.”
Kel’s blue eyes met Evan’s. He had red hair that was shaved very short. Kel was an enough to be Evan’s grandfather, and sometimes Evan thought of him as just that.
He gave him a nod. “So, what’s all of the fuss about?” Evan leaned against the closed door.
Kel’s eyes widened. Bushy red eyebrows rose, and he lowered his voice. He leaned in closer to Evan. “I’ve been informed that she has arrived. I think it’s time that you reveal who you are.”
“What do you mean? You can’t be serious.”
“I am. And so, we must act quickly. You must pull it together and regain the king’s favor.”
Evan lifted a brow. He was even more interested now. “Sure. I can do that. He’ll forgive me once I agree to the stupid test.”
“Good. Come this way.”
Evan frowned at how noisy it was in the palace.
What was the king angered about now? People were shouting, thundering footsteps echoed throughout the halls, and bells starting clinging outside the palace walls.
The crazy thing was that those sounds weren’t coming from the living.
They came from the dead.
Everyone was in a fit of worry and fear, sensing that something was very wrong this time.
“What is going on?” Evan looked around in confusion.
Evan turned the corner of the dark hall and was greeted by a hall filled with lit torches along its walls. It was a necessity for the palace to have many forms of light to back up the electricity when it went out, which was a normal occurrence when King Loric was angry. His temper could suck up all of the power in the palace.
Two maids dressed in red skirts, black tights, and white collared shirts, walked past him. They lifted their silver eyed gazes and gave him weak smiles.
Evan was really worried then. Those two would usually flash their most charming smiles, hoping that one day they’d gain his favor and become a mistress.
Evan would never dare to have a mistress. He didn’t even want to get married. Not like this. He didn’t want to bring an innocent woman into his life. He just wanted to be free from his servitude.
The further he walked down the hall, the louder the king’s shouting became. Evan cringed before he even opened the large wooden doors that led out of the palace and into the main courtyard. He looked around and noticed for the first time that everyone had stopped what they were doing.
Evan frowned. They were all watching him, whispering, t
rying to act as if they weren’t staring. Even Trey, his younger brother watched him from the top of the main spiral stairs. His brown eyes stared at him with fear.
Evan opened the door and stepped out into the frigid night air.
“Lovely night, isn’t it?” Evan asked King Loric.
King Loric glared over at him. He wore a huge bear skinned coat lined with wolf’s fur. His narrow brown eyes seemed to cut holes into Evan’s body.
Evan didn’t flinch. He was used to being looked at that way.
“What took you so long?”
Evan shrugged. “I seemed to have been locked in a cell for shirking a certain test; a certain king wanted me to take.”
“I don’t care. You come when called. Is that understood, boy?”
Evan felt his face heat, but he kept his smile up. “Of course. Understood.”
They shared a long glare and finally Evan looked away. There was too much evil in the king’s eyes to hold his gaze for long. He stroked his bushy black beard seemed to settle a bit.
“Tell Sworv I’m sending Evan along with his men.”
Evan raised a brow. “What?”
King Loric was the one to smile now. “Time to prove yourself, and show off the new skills you’ve learned. I want you to go with the soldiers for a night sweep of the city.”
Evan paled.
“Why would you send me out there?” Evan pursed his lips, realizing his mistake.
“Oh, are you afraid. I suppose I could send Trey in your place?”
Evan shot a glance at the youngest of Loric’s children and shook his head.
“I’ll go,” Evan said. “You leave Trey out of this.”
King Loric grinned. He knew Evan’s soft spot better than anyone.
“Good boy.”
CHAPTER NINE
THE STREETS WERE CALM, QUIET, free of all humans. That didn’t ease Evan’s hesitation for being there. Even wearing the armor his father’s team had developed, most soldiers didn’t survive an attack from a Meta. Some even came back, their bodies taken over by a Meta, and would be used to kill other soldiers back at the barracks.
They now had to be cleared by scanners to re-enter the barracks or to return to their homes.
Evan thumbed his sword and sighed. It was too quiet.
Ben raised a finger to his lips, his eyebrows furrowed over a sharp glare. “Shhh.”
Shrugging, Evan leaned his back against the glass storefront of a women’s accessories store. He yawned. Only a few hours until he could go back home and sleep the annoyance of his weekly visit to the palace away.
The moon was bright that night, brighter than usual. Maybe that was a good thing. Metas liked to darken the area when they were around.
A scream came from inside the shop, making Evan’s blood run cold. He stood and spun around to look into the window. He almost ran to the door when he saw a woman being held by a ghostly figure wearing a black cloak from another time period. The ghost’s eyes met Evan’s sending chills up his spine.
The soldiers got into their positions, crouched low with their weapons raised and ready to strike.
Evan swallowed and stepped toward the back. He was good with a sword, but he’d never faced a Meta.
Ben led the way, breaking the glass of the shop with a bomb that exploded with a burst of light that was harmless to humans, but deadly to Metas. Just not all Metas were affected by it.
Evan prayed that it did. That woman needed depended on them.
If only real magic still existed.
The soldiers stormed the shop, and it was revealed that there were four other Metas inside, waiting in the shadows of the back hallway.
Evan did all that he could. He ran into the shop, and grabbed the terrified woman under her arm and carried her out before another Meta could take her from him.
“Hold on,” he said, escaping from the store while the soldiers continued to fight beings that weren’t even solid.
Lasers were shot from guns strapped to the soldier’s wrists.
Cries of pain made Evan stop. He held the woman up, her sobs echoing throughout the empty streets.
And watched the store go up in flames.
CHAPTER TEN
THIS WORLD WAS ODD TO YARA. Full of color, and technology that she’d never thought was possible; it both frightened and intrigued her.
She hadn’t slept at all. Keo took her to her home in a tall building that had more than thirty floors that served as flats and shops. She’s snuck out of the room Keo had told her was all hers and walked down the long hallway to the front room. However the people had accomplished building something so impressive was beyond Yara.
Morning was different here. The thick fog that covered the city was unlike anything she’d seen back home. But, apparently this was home.
Just in the future.
Keo opened and slammed cabinet doors in her kitchen, mumbling curses to herself as she did so.
“Crap,” Keo said. “Damn. Damn. Damn. I don’t have any sugar.” She sighed. “Is honey okay?”
Yara nodded, rubbing her arms as she looked down the city of Allarya. She wasn’t sure she approved of the vents in the ceiling that pumped cold air onto her.
“That’s fine,” she said. “Thank you.”
“Sweet! Coming right up.”
The buzz of the flying motorcars was almost muted from the other side of the thick glass that stretched from floor to ceiling across Keo’s entire flat. While terrifying, this world was beautiful.
“Right, love,” Keo said, carefully carrying over two cups of hot tea from the kitchen to the sitting area. She set them on the glass table before motioning to the white leather sofa beside it. “Let’s chat.”
Yara nodded, looking around the room, not entirely comfortable yet. The leather was softer than it looked and seemed to mold to her bottom as she sat down. She raised a brow, impressed by how comfortable it was. She reached for her cup of tea and glanced at Keo who stared at her.
“What?” Yara asked before taking a sip. “Why are you staring at me?”
“Sorry about that. I just still can’t believe that you’re here. You know, the resistance has been waiting for you for centuries?”
“What year is it?”
“Oh yeah. That’s right. You’re from way back in the past. Holy fudge balls,” Keo said, shaking her head.
Yara realized that she was going to have an awfully difficult time understanding most of what came out of Keo’s mouth.
“It’s 3106. Year of the dragon.”
“My goodness.” The gravity of how far into the future she’d traveled hit her hard. She stared down into her cup.
“Yeah. I know. Crazy, right?”
Yara nodded and sipped her tea again. The warm liquid eased her mind, if only slightly.
Keo set her cup down and stretched her tattooed arms over her head.
“So, Sirus is coming over today. He will be able to fill you in on everything. I mean, we’ve been waiting so long for you to arrive, we don’t even know where to start. But, he does. So, don’t worry.”
“How can I get my friends out of prison?”
“The prison is magic-bound, so it’s going to take some trickery. That’s for sure. Totes.”
Asher and Hero must be miserable inside a prison in the palace. She wondered how much the dungeons had changed since her time. King Loric never treated his prisoners as more than dogs.
Her stomach churned. She shot a look at Keo, an eerie thought coming to mind.
“Who is the current king?”
Keo sat back in her chair and sighed. “Good ole’ King Loric,” she said, crossing her knee-length black boots over the table. “He’s been in charge for thousands of years, and only you can change that.”
So much seemed to rest on Yara’s shoulders, much more than she even imagined before she set off on this quest.
A knock came from Keo’s door. She hopped from her seat and straightened her short skirt over her hole-ridden black tights.<
br />
“It’s Sirus,” Keo said and hurried over to the door.
She opened it and there stood a tall, older man with pale white skin, short white hair, and green eyes.
Yara came to her feet and watched him enter the room.
“Dear me,” he said in a soft voice. His eyes lingered on her white hair, and then to her silver eyes. “You really are the last Ortuso.”
“I am,” Yara said. “Please tell me that you can help me find my friends.”
“Which friends?” Sirus asked.
Keo spoke up. “You didn’t hear? Two shifters made it through with her. Well, before her. That skeleton key is a trickster.”
“Very well,” Sirus said, nodding. “We can rescue them in the process.”
Yara breathed a sigh of relief, a smile coming to her face. “Thank you.”
Keo grinned as she looked from Sirus to Yara.
“Sweet.”
“Now, Yara Ortuso. We have much work to do. I hope you are ready.”
Yara nodded. “I am. Ready to do whatever it takes.”
“Good. Very good.” He touched her raggedy shirt. “Let’s get you some proper clothes. You can’t impersonate a proper lady wearing…whatever that is.”
Yara didn’t know what impersonating a proper lady would do to help, but she didn’t care. All she wanted was to see her love again.
I’m coming for you, Asher.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
YARA SWALLOWED AS HER EYES locked with Prince Evan’s.
Her target.
The mission was clear. Find a way to get invited to the palace. The easiest way they could think of was to get Yara to infiltrate his inner circle. The most popular of the king’s young children, Prince Evan was clearly well-suited for being a man of public favor.
Prince Evan as the complete opposite of Asher and Yara scolded herself for comparing this stranger to the man she loved.
With Keo by her side, Yara still felt out of place at the weekly sports gathering, where teams would compete in the stadium for prizes and bragging rights.
Today, it was fencing, and the prince had won.