The Obsidian Order Boxed Set

by martinez, katerina

  “And she shirked her responsibilities so she could secretly carry me to term. The Gods only knew why. She’d have been better off without me from the start.”

  “You really expect me to believe all of this?”

  He pointed at me. “I expect you to believe it because it’s the truth. So far, I haven’t lied to you about a single thing, but he has. And yet I’m the one you’re standing at odds with. Why is that?”

  “Because Draven isn’t trying to bend people’s minds like you are. He doesn’t have an agenda that involves the killing of innocent people.”

  “I haven’t killed any innocents yet. If anyone’s died by my hand, it’s because they’ve deserved it. I like to think I have strong morals.”

  “I’ve met cats with stronger morals than you.”

  He grinned, still spinning around me. “I’m sure you have… but that doesn’t change the fact that I’m not here to lie to you. I’m here to help you fill in the blanks, learn the things about yourself and your past that you won’t remember. Like me, like what your family truly is, and what it means to be you.”

  A woman running through a tunnel with a baby in her arms. The image flashed across my eyes as we spoke. I’d only seen it for an instant, and I hadn’t known what it had meant then, but it made sense, now. Somehow, I’d seen the night my mother smuggled Valoel out of the city… she’d smuggled him out through the same secret passage Draven and I would use to meet.

  “She spared you…” I said.

  Valoel paused, his grin widening even further. “There was a little passage under the city…” he said, his voice soft and low. “Maybe you know of it.”

  I swallowed hard, but said nothing.

  “I came early,” Valoel continued, “And before anyone could find out I’d even been born—”

  “She wrapped you up in a golden blanket and helped you escape…”

  Valoel’s eyes narrowed. “How did you know it was a golden blanket?”

  “That’s not important…”

  “I suppose not. What’s important is, you know I’m telling the truth. Our mother helped me escape the city using the same passage you discovered many years later. The one you used to bring your boyfriend into the city most evenings. The same one the House of Night used to murder your people… because of you.”

  Because of me. That stung, and I couldn’t deny it, either. It had been my fault. If I’d never had told Draven where the passageway was, he never would’ve been able to guide his soldiers into the city through it. Inside, I was screaming. I wanted to break, but I couldn’t. I had to keep it together.

  “Do you know who was waiting to receive me?” Valoel asked.

  I shook my head. “Your father…”

  “Yes. And do you want to know what he did with me? What he did to me?”

  I swallowed hard. “Yes…”

  “He hated me,” Valoel hissed. “Our mother ended their relationship that night, told him to leave and made him swear never to come back. He blamed me for that. Blamed me for the loss of the woman he loved. He would beat me when he wanted to. He would disappoint me every other day. When I was old enough, he forced me to join the military, that way he could be rid of me forever.”

  “If you were smuggled out of the city that way, then that means the House of Night knew about that passage for a long time. Why did they never use it until Draven?”

  “My father never said a word about the passage. He was hurt and enraged, but he was an honorable man. Draven, on the other hand, he was driven by a special kind of rage. The alleged desecration of his father and brother hit him very hard. Until then, the idea of an Aevian cutting off another Aevian’s wings was unheard of. The word itself hadn’t been uttered in centuries. But he was convinced he had been told the truth, and he acted out of emotion, as he always does. A stronger mind would’ve asked for proof. Not Draven, though. His blood boiled, and he was out for revenge, even if that meant hurting you.”

  I hated to admit it, even if he could probably already tell, but what he was saying didn’t sound… insane. He was, after all, right about all the Draven parts. Could it also have been true that my mother fell in love with, and had a child with, a soldier of Night before she married my father? Yeah, sure it was. Could it also have been true that she smuggled that child out of the city to avoid the scandal? Sure. Especially considering I’d seen it happen, somehow.

  My father, though, he’d never have done what Draven had accused him of. He just wasn’t like that, he wasn’t capable. He, like Valoel’s father, was an honorable man, only he loved his family. His wife, his children, his home. Draven should’ve trusted that.

  “So, what are you going to do with all these people now that you have them under your spell?” I asked.

  “Ah, I would tell you, but you’d disagree with what I want,” he said. “In any case, I only wanted to show you how much my power has grown. The fiends were the easiest to control; their brains just weren’t that complicated. The others took a little more force to break down, but once I’d figured out the way to do it, the rest was easy.”

  “Why did you want to show me what you could do? Why not just kill me?”

  “Because I’ve told you before, Seline. I don’t want to kill you—I want to help you.”

  “Yeah, see, every time you say that it makes me want to punch you. You’re the kind of person who only wants to help yourself.”

  He stopped circling around me. “Yes, on principle I agree. But this is one of those rare instances where helping someone else benefits me indirectly, so I figured, why not?”

  “Let me get this straight—I join you, and all of this goes away? You’ll let everyone go and you and I can shoot off into the sunset where you’ll tell me the truth about my past and I’ll go and do amazing things?”

  “It’s along those lines, yes.”

  “You’re the second person to try and offer me something like that tonight, and I’m going to tell you the same thing I told him. Go fuck yourself.”

  Valoel’s bemused grin deflated and became something of a frown. “I’m disappointed,” he said, “For someone who has wanted little more than to learn who she truly is and what she’s capable of, I thought you would’ve taken the opportunity.”

  I shrugged. “I guess I’m one of those people who believes in alternative solutions to problems. I’ll figure out whatever I’m supposed to figure out soon enough, with or without your help.”

  “And if you never get where you’re going?”

  “Then I’ll look back at tonight as the night I let my memories slip from my grasp for good. And you know what? I’m fine with that, if it means I get to beat your scrawny ass.”

  He took a deep breath in. “Well, then… in that case, we should better get started, only…”

  “Only?”

  Valoel clicked his fingers, and movement caught in my periphery. Ferrum. My heart lurched into my throat. I watched him plummet from the height of the crane and go hurtling toward the concrete ground beneath him like a sack of bricks.

  Time slowed to a narrow point that stretched so long even my rapid heartbeats sounded like they were minutes apart. From where I was standing, I could clearly see Ferrum falling from the sky and racing to a swift death. I could also see the sword Valoel had pulled from out of nowhere. It gleamed against the ambient light bathing the area and gave his intentions away.

  If I didn’t stop him, he was going to turn Draven into shish kebab. If I didn’t at least try to save Ferrum, he was going to die right here, right now. There was no way he’d survive that fall. There was no way I’d be able to live with myself if I didn’t at least try to save Ferrum and hope, pray, that Draven would be alright.

  I know I don’t usually pray, but if there’s a God listening, please help me.

  I threw my head down and started running toward Ferrum. He had less of a chance of surviving than Draven did. I also had this wild thought that maybe, just maybe, I’d be able to get to them both before Valoel’s sword co
uld come down on Draven’s defenseless body. It was a crazy, stupid thought, but I had the stone now, and the stone allowed me to do incredible things.

  I called on it now, praying in my mind for its power to work through me, to fill me. Praying to Gods I didn’t really know, asking them for help like they’d just reach out of the sky and pluck Valoel up for me. Real life didn’t work like that, but thinking that way kept my legs pumping, kept my body moving.

  The power of the stone both filled me and radiated out of me like I was some kind of beacon. I jumped higher than I should’ve been able to, and when I grabbed Ferrum, he was lighter than he should’ve been. Or maybe I’d gotten stronger? I didn’t know, but it didn’t matter. I had Ferrum in my arms. Somehow, I’d reached him in time.

  Suddenly I felt a shift in my stomach, like it had been yanked into my spine. There was no pain, only a feeling of immense power, and then I saw the light. I could’ve sworn I was soaring through the air on golden wings, time itself moving at a crawl around me; and there, on the horizon, sunlight bloomed like a flower.

  My eyes widened. I’d seen this once before. It felt like a lifetime ago when I’d been facing off against the Caretaker and the sun itself peeked over the horizon to send it scurrying back into the darkness. Draven had called it a level three supernatural event, or something like that, but he’d never spoken about it again.

  And now it had happened for a second time.

  The sun continued to rise, its mighty glow washing across the ocean and flooding the warehouse district. The wind felt like it was pulling backwards instead of pushing forward. I could feel the sun’s heat on my face, and it invigorated me, recharged me. By the time I remembered I was falling, I was almost on the ground. It took all I had for me to duck into a roll as I landed, shielding Ferrum’s body from harm with my own.

  But the sunlight continued to shine, and not only shine, but burn.

  Oh shit.

  Six.

  I spun around on the spot and searched for her. The blinding sunlight didn’t hurt my vision at all. I could see everything and everyone perfectly, despite the brightness; and there was Six. She was covering herself with her wings, protecting her body against the sun’s rays.

  If she could protect herself, then she could think, and she could act. And if she could act, then it meant the spell was broken. All around me, people were starting to regain themselves. Some of them were groaning, their minds slow to recover. Others got right back into the fighting.

  Felice roared and plunged her sword into the shoulder of a man wearing a leather jacket. Blood spilled from the wound, and when she pulled her sword out blood splattered across her face. Valoel turned around and started running, fleeing into a dark, old warehouse; the sunlight was too much for his eyes.

  Any second I expected Six would go down. I’d watch her skin turn grey and start to sizzle and burn. But she didn’t go down, and while her wings were smoking, she wasn’t burning or too badly hurt by the sunlight. She unfurled her wings slowly, and I saw her staring at me, her eyes glowing amber in the shadow created by her wings.

  As quickly as it had risen, the sun disappeared beyond the horizon again, dragging the warehouse district into darkness. That was the moment when my own brain snapped back into action. Valoel. He wasn’t going to get away this time. This time, I was going to bring him down and lock him up for good.

  The mages were in retreat, but I had no idea where Aaryn or any of the others Draven had brought with him were. An SUV squealed out of the warehouse district, its wheels screeching on the wet concrete ground. Its windows were tinted, and it was large enough that there could’ve been hostages inside.

  Another SUV peeled out of the area, followed by another, and another. I yelled for Felice and pointed at the SUV’s. She nodded, knowing exactly what to do without the need for instructions. She called out for a couple of prospects to join her and leapt into the sky, giving chase to the fleeing vehicles. I looked around for Slade, but I couldn’t find him anywhere. Had he left? He must have, and I didn’t have time to go looking for him.

  “Draven!” I called out.

  He looked over at me when his ability to think returned, then he picked up his sword and looked for someone to stab.

  I started running in the direction Valoel had gone, going past Draven as I went. “He went in there,” I said to him, “Take to the sky and make sure no one leaves that warehouse.”

  Draven nodded, stretched his kithe out, and leapt into the air. On dark wings he soared, becoming one with the night just as I slid through the warehouse door. My golden wings disappeared as I entered, allowing darkness to bloom. The warehouse loomed large and ominous around me. The air was thick and stale. Rusted old steel beams crisscrossed above like a ribcage, chains rattling between them.

  It was like being inside the carcass of some ancient, dead beast.

  Large, metal containers stacked near each other created narrow corridors I had little choice but to squeeze through. I couldn’t figure out why Valoel had come into this place instead of flying off, though I had two theories. Number one, the instinct to find darkness had been too strong for him to fight off. Maybe he thought the sunlight would remain, and he’d be forced to deal with the pain of such intense brightness.

  It was the same reason Draven was rarely seen out during the day.

  Maybe, though, and this was way more likely, I was walking right into a trap. Alone. Without backup, and in the dark. My hair started glowing just enough to allow me to see, but it would also help Valoel see me if he was watching. I needed to be extra cautious, so I stalked between narrow walkways as quietly as I could, keeping my eyes and ears open for signs of movement.

  A chain rattled somewhere, the sound echoing throughout the warehouse. A chilling thought hit me, then. Where are the Serakon? According to Six, and even Scythe, Valoel had been using the singing stone to mind control Serakon into joining his army. I hadn’t seen a single one besides Six on this battlefield, so where were the others?

  In here.

  I didn’t want to think it, but I couldn’t help myself. The obvious answer to the question was right in front of me. Serakon lived in the dark, as did Aevians of Night. I was in a dark place right now that was probably big enough to house a whole army of Serakon. I had no idea what I was going to do if I came across them.

  Run, probably.

  Yeah, retreat would be a good idea.

  Right now, though, I couldn’t retreat. I had to press on. Valoel was still in here. I’d watched him go into the warehouse, and I hadn’t seen any signs that he’d left. No side doors he could’ve slipped through, no smashed roof section where he’d taken off, and no vortex of crackling light. Okay, that wasn’t definitive proof he was in here, but—

  Another sound, this time like a pipe falling to the ground. My entire body stiffened, the hairs on the nape of my neck stood on their ends. I pressed my back against a cargo container and could hear my own heart beating through my ribs and against the metal. I swallowed hard, keeping my emotions in check.

  There was no reason to be scared, but there was every reason to be quiet. Maybe Valoel didn’t know I’d come in after him. Maybe he was working on an escape route, and I was about to catch him before he could pull it off. Another sound, this time like a stone slab scraping across a stone floor. I readied my dagger, took a deep breath, and slipped around the corner and into a clearing of cargo containers.

  Valoel was there, his wings drawn, his back turned. It looked like he was working on something, something laying on a metal tray in front of him.

  “Turn around,” I said, aiming the tip of my knife at him.

  Valoel stopped, his wings pricked, and he turned his head to the side just enough that I could see his face. “Glad you could join me, Seline,” he said.

  “Your people are gone,” I said, “They’ve abandoned you.”

  “It would appear those mages were weaker of mind than I gave them credit for… either that, or I told them to leave.”
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br />   “Why would you do that? You had us there, you could’ve ordered them to kill us all.”

  “There were more of you than there were of us. Far easier to pick you all off if you’re split into smaller groups.” Valoel set something metallic down on the tray in front of him and turned around. In his hand was the stone, burning black and crimson. “Answer me this… aren’t you the least bit curious to know why the stones have a different effect on us than they do on other people?”

  I was curious to know why his skin wasn’t cut up the way mine had been when I’d held that stone. The gashes opened all over my body like I was being attacked by invisible knives, hundreds of them at once, each slicing right through my clothes and into my flesh. I’d felt every ounce of pain from those attacks, and even though after a time I became numb to the pain, it haunted me now as I thought about it.

  “I don’t want to know,” I said, “What I want is for you to give me the stone. None of us have to die.”

  “I’m afraid that’s where you’re wrong. One of us has to die if the other has any hope of succeeding in their goals.”

  “You don’t know anything about my goals.”

  “You want to stop me and return the stone to your vault so it’s never used for personal gain again. I’m afraid your goals are quite predictable and two dimensional… the only problem is, there’s a flaw with that plan.”

  “Enlighten me.”

  Valoel smiled. “These stones don’t want to be kept locked in a vault. They don’t want to be sent in to the middle of frozen wastelands to sit and wait until someone comes along and finds them. These stones want to be found and used, and not by just anyone… by us.”

  “What are you talking about?”

  “Think about it. There are only five of these in existence. Five stones on this giant, blue marble, and somehow, we have discovered three of them. Sure, two is a coincidence, but three… three starts to form a pattern. The fifth will follow, and when it does, you’ll see what I see. You’ll know the truth I know.”