The Daath Chronicles- The Complete Series

by Eliza Tilton

  The speeder accelerated as we passed through the main gate of the city and out onto the dry plains. My palms sweat, a nervous reaction I wasn’t accustomed to, but then, I’d never defied The Council or my father before. Our wills had always been in alignment, until now. What they wanted and sought wasn’t what I needed to do to truly protect our people. The stronger I became, the better a ruler I would become.

  Thunder echoed around the abandoned fields, shaking the ground, and heavy clouds moved closer across the horizon. Acid rain fell from the sky, singeing the area. The air hazed.

  Just a little farther.

  “There.” Romulus pointed to the gnarled trees growing near an acid pool. “We’ll destroy the vehicle.”

  I parked the craft and we quickly exited. Using our strength, we pushed the speeder forward into the pool. Once it tipped and dove in, we ran, letting the rest sink. Romulus surprised me with his speed by keeping pace with me. He grunted, but didn’t slow, and soon the gate pyramid appeared.

  “And how are we going to bypass The Council guards?”

  “With these.”

  Romulus handed me a silver bracelet. He snapped one around his wrist and vanished. Invisibility? The smooth metal bracelet had no defining features. I clasped it on, and my arm disappeared.

  Two guards stood at the open entrance. A giant pyramid enclosed the gate, keeping the magic contained. I couldn’t see Romulus, but I assumed he walked with me. In slow steps, I walked past the guards. They stared ahead like statues, not noticing our approach. I held my breath, not wanting to risk the chance their keen ears could hear.

  We entered without incident, and I grinned at the simplicity of our passage.

  Inside the pyramid, runes covered the floor and ceiling, creating a labyrinth that matched the one in the temple in Daath. There were no guards in here.

  “Romulus?” I reached the beginning of the descending stairs into the pit.

  “Go,” he hissed.

  I took one last look behind me, then stepped into the gate.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Jeslyn

  Shells clinked around in the bin as I moved them back and forth under the fine sand, rubbing remnants of the sea away. Grandfather had taught me how to clean the shells by applying candlewax to remove the calcium deposits to bring out the shell’s natural beauty. Strange these once belonged to a creature.

  I took out the shells and laid them on a cloth to let them dry. One of the shells moved.

  “Oh, no.” I picked it up and squinted, trying to see inside. I thought I’d removed all the snails.

  Taking the shell, I walked outside to the purple crabapple tree. Near the bottom of the trunk lived an ant mound. I placed the shell on the mound and waited.

  Little black ants scurried in and around the shell, taking pieces of the flesh and returning to their homes. Grandfather didn’t understand why I wouldn’t just drop the shells into a boiling pot and pick the snail out with a wooden pick. In both situations, the snail died, but by letting the ants take the body, the snail was used for food.

  On the farm, every part of an animal is used. We couldn’t afford to waste anything.

  When I walked back inside, Grandfather sat on a stool at the opposite end of the workshop, spectacle on one eye, staring at a red gem that resembled a ruby with a deeper hue.

  I’d learned almost all the different aspects of stones, both precious and not. The more I learned, the more I understood his hunt for the blue eye. Each gem had a specific attribute that separated it from others. While I didn’t really believe the blue eye to be magical, I still thought it would be the grandest stone to ever exist.

  Grandfather smiled. His mustache hid his mouth, but not the smile lines on his face. He waved me over.

  “What’s that?” I stood beside him, my gaze on the gem in his hand.

  He wrapped an arm around my waist. “That, my girl, is a blood crystal.”

  My mind sorted through all the gems and stones he’d talked about until I remembered the significance of a blood crystal.

  “That disrupts magic!”

  He nodded. “These stones are becoming rarer, as The Order controls all the mines and very little of the crystals slip past them.”

  The crystal wasn’t pretty, but knowing it could perform such a feat made its color shine with intrigue. In the right light, it did resemble a ruby. “What are you going to do with it?”

  “It’s a commission piece. A merchant came to me this morning, asking if I could fashion it into a ring. Normally, I would pass, these crystals are dangerous, but he’s paying well—well enough that I can start my expedition.”

  “I’m coming with you then.”

  “Oh, no. Your momma would have my head. You’ll stay with Ms. Gen. She already offered. You’ll come and open the shop, then go back to her place at night.”

  “Grandfather . . . .”

  He put the crystal down and took my hand. “I won’t be gone long.”

  “You won’t send me home?”

  “Home?” He laughed and grabbed my cheeks. “And lose my apprentice? Never.”

  Apprentice. When I came to Luna Harbor, I just wanted an escape. I never expected to fall in love with the busy docks, the salty air, and the workshop, but I did. I missed Calli and wrote to her often, but the farm held too many memories.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Lucino

  The air in Daath had a different smell than Mirth: fresher, cleaner. I took off the bracelet as Romulus appeared next to me.

  “We should not linger.” The old man headed to the back of the temple. “I will go to Dune Island. When you have the human, bring her there.”

  I nodded. Luna Harbor would be a long journey, but with the invisibility bracelet, I could pass through the underground tunnels to reach it there in two weeks, less if I ran. “Keep your communicator with you in case I need to make contact.”

  Romulus grumbled and waved me away, shaking his head. He appeared to be frustrated with his return. He enjoyed his human experiments. The thought made me wonder if he knew the truth of my birth mother. A revelation of that extent would be hard to keep secret around him and all his prodding. When the time was right, I would tell him. If The Council thought I was more dangerous due to my human side, I would need Romulus’ help to understand why. Emotions couldn’t be the only explanation.

  We parted ways, him heading to the sea, and me heading to the forest where I would enter a nearby tunnel. I would need a different form to approach Jeslyn. The human figure she recognized was the only human I had killed for their essence, and that had been a very, very long time ago.

  Draining the essence from any type of being would affect mentality. There were a few cases in Mirth of Reptilians draining too many different essences, and the changes began to warp their minds. Any count more than five could cause irrevocable damage. I hadn’t planned to drain any other humans or creatures after that first one.

  It must be done, I reminded myself.

  Human essences didn’t hinder most Reptilian abilities like other creatures did. If you chose the right one, your power would amplify.

  I wanted to see what my dear sister was concocting. With Dago in Daath, Lucy wouldn’t be far from him. I pondered sneaking to the mansion to reveal what plans my sister had laid, but I had no time.

  Luna Harbor sat on the southern border of Tarrtainya near the marshlands. Humans went missing frequently in the marshes; the bog monsters and the decaying landscape were inhospitable to anything living. The lord of this land, and his guard, had worked hard to keep the small settlement protected from danger.

  Choosing a husk from the marshlands would be less suspicious.

  Large weeping trees lined the first bridge heading to the marshes. Rain fell everywhere and my boots sunk into the soft ground with each step. Hidden by the bracelet, I walked onto the wooden bridge, ex
amining the village on the other side. Lights from small house windows resembled beastly eyes staring out from the mist.

  Stone houses lined the narrow dirt street, each with its door shut for the night. Bog monsters lived far beyond the village where water mixed with grass until you couldn’t tell which was land and which was not. Lucy and I had travelled to the marshlands during our first years here, more out of curiosity than necessity. Lucy loved the bog creatures. They reminded her of the large monsters on Mirth we used to haul crystals: loyal, dim-witted beings. She even had one as a pet.

  Standing in the middle of the street, I looked at the houses and listened to the voices coming from the tavern. I needed someone my age, not an old drunkard, which meant I’d have to find a place to rest for the night and wait until morning.

  I stayed near the stables, but not so close to stir the horses. Animals in this world weren’t too fond of me.

  The stable doors groaned as a black-haired boy walked into the barn, alone. I followed him and waited behind one of the columns while he gathered hay.

  The horses neighed.

  “Shhh, doll. It’s all right.” He stroked the horse’s muzzle.

  I slipped off the bracelet. To drain an essence, I needed to make eye contact.

  With his back to me, the boy reached to take a bucket off a hook, and when he turned, I grabbed his throat.

  His eyes widened and he raked my arms with his hands trying to pull me off, but I was beyond his strength. I pushed him against the stable door. His horse whinnied and rammed the gate. Red mist swirled around my hand and my mind whirled from the high. The boy’s skin withered, and his frantic hands loosened their grip until they fell at his sides. When his essence had fully siphoned, his eyes clouded white, and I let his body sag to the floor, a shell of his previous self.

  I knelt and lifted him over my shoulder, then clasped the bracelet back on, making both of our bodies invisible.

  I’d rather not go off course, but the boy would need to appear the victim of a drowning. The closest bog took a bit to get to, but when I tossed the boy in and his form disappeared beneath the murky surface, my chest swelled with relief.

  With the first part of my task completed, I left quickly, the still-sleeping townsfolk oblivious to my presence.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Avikar

  “Go, go.” Cael rushed forward, and we ran into the icy pass.

  I stopped, hypnotized by the sheer size of the walls on either side of us. Sheets of jagged ice reached to the clouds. “What is this?”

  “The pass. It’s the only path through the mountains.” Cael lit our torches. “Keep the fire going. It’s the only weapon we have against the spiders.”

  “Did you say spiders?” A chill ran through me and not from the cold.

  “Ice spiders.” Cael walked slowly. “Bigger than the size of men. Fire keeps them at bay.”

  I hated spiders. Their legs and beady eyes were out of place on their big bloated bodies.

  It had to be spiders. Anything else I could’ve handled.

  “Walk slowly and quietly. Avikar, cover our rear.”

  I nodded, pretending my heart wasn’t racing. I’d fought plenty of beasts. Spiders shouldn’t scare me. They were just insects.

  Light from the suns glinted off the ice, burning my eyes. I squinted, but a white fog blocked the distance. We walked at a steady pace in silence. Cold air swept through the pass, lifting snow into the air. Raven held a torch in one hand, her dagger in the other.

  I shouldn’t have brought her. Lucy would’ve come for me, only me. Raven would’ve been safe at Jericho’s. Why didn’t I tell her to stay?

  Raven trudged through the snow, face hard and determined. She was more than just a girl I loved, she was a partner. If we were attacked, she would protect my back, better than most men.

  Crack.

  I whipped around. Nothing. Just the wind echoing off our steps. This place distorted noise and made every single sound more ominous. I waited a few moments, examining the white fog around us. Nothing seemed out of place, but the hairs on my body stood upright. I’d spent enough time tracking animals to sense when one followed me.

  Please don’t let it be spiders.

  “Avikar.”

  Raven waved me over. She stood a good distance in front of me. I walked toward her, looking back over my shoulder every other step.

  Cold seeped into my boots. We had to get out of this weather and into warmth before nightfall. There was no shelter in sight and I didn’t think we would survive the night out here.

  That gnawing feeling of being watched hit me again and I stopped.

  Where are you?

  I took out my bow and strung an arrow. Wind whipped the snow around, making everything white.

  “What is it?” Raven whispered.

  “I don’t know. Something’s out there.”

  She didn’t question me. Instead, she whistled for Cael to stop.

  All three of us stood, waiting. Moments passed, and no signs of life or danger appeared.

  “We need to keep moving if we want to clear the pass before night.” Cael turned around and started walking again.

  Come on, I know you’re out there. Show yourself.

  Turning around, I aimed the bow forward into the white fog, and then I saw it, a place where the snow didn’t fall. At first, I thought my eyes were playing tricks, but they weren’t. Big fat snowflakes fell everywhere but this one area, an area that had nothing in it.

  On a hunch, I released the arrow.

  Thump.

  The arrow stopped in mid-air. Around the arrow, the air distorted until an armed figure, taller than my father, appeared. My arms moved quickly, notching another arrow and releasing it.

  “They’re invisible!” I yelled to Raven.

  “What do we do?”

  I shot arrows at the same figure who howled and fell, then switched to my sword.

  “Run.” I grabbed her arm, pulling her alongside me.

  Cael dropped his pack. “Behind me.”

  “What are you doing?”

  He pulled out a long tube.

  “Once this is lit, run, and don’t stop.” Frayed cloth stuck out of the tube and he lit it, then threw the tube in front of him. “Go!” He snatched his pack, and we ran.

  Boom.

  Noise and heat vaulted us forward, tossing us onto the ground like dolls.

  My ears rang from the noise and I shook my head trying to make it stop. I lifted myself onto my knees and looked for Raven. She lay on her stomach, face buried in the snow.

  “Raven!” I crawled over to her, rolling her onto her back.

  “Wake up.” I patted her cheek.

  She moaned, and I helped her sit.

  “What was that?” She rubbed her head.

  We both looked behind us.

  Cael lifted himself to his feet, and behind him, on the ground, also rising, were our pursuers.

  Five armed figures. Their faces and skin completely covered in black armor, except one.

  Lucy.

  She dressed in a similar armor, smooth and shiny, and it molded to her body like skin, but her headgear didn’t cover her face, and the morning suns shined on her bright blue eyes. At this distance, I couldn’t hear her clearly, but she had a hunger in her eyes and a smile on her lips. She lifted a sword and pointed to us.

  I reached for my bow, but it wasn’t there. It lay on the ground, out of my reach. It must’ve fallen off when the blast hit. I ran to it, sliding on the ice, and crashed into the clear legs of a giant spider.

  “Ahh!” Grabbing my bow, I rolled as one of the eight terrifying legs tried to jab me.

  “Avikar!” Raven yelled my name, and I rolled again.

  The spider’s legs rose, then slammed down, each spindly leg attempting to stab me. I
rolled back and forth, just out of way of the gigantic fangs. My bow was useless at this angle; I had to get my dagger.

  I waited until the arachnid raised its fat body and came at me. Crouching, I grabbed my dagger, in a reverse grip, from my ankle sheath. I dove into a roll as one of its chitinous front legs tried to impale me. Completing the roll, I pivoted to a half spin and drove the dagger deep into its underbelly. The blade easily cut through its icy coat.

  Raven charged in from the left, her swing true and firm. Her dagger rang off the spider as if she had struck solid steel. The creature leapt back. Raven grabbed my arm and helped me to my feet, then we backed away from the insect.

  The bug’s head had twelve black eyes. All twelve focused on us. Blue trickled from the spot where I cut its skin. My heart raced faster than my feet could move.

  “Where’s your sword?” Raven said.

  I walked backwards, away from the advancing spider.

  This can’t be real.

  After facing Daath’s guardian snake, and then Lucino, after everything it took to save Jeslyn, nothing should surprise me, but it did. Fangs from the spider’s mouth worked back and forth. Webbing shot out from the spider, and I had just enough time to shield my face with my arm.

  Numbing cold ran across my skin, making it feel like solid ice. I dropped to the ground and the dagger tip caught on one of the strands, dissipating it.

  “Avikar!” Raven screamed.

  Cael fought one of Lucy’s comrades while more ice spiders descended around us. Lucy fought off three of them. We had to get to Cael and get out of this pass.

  However, we weren’t going anywhere with the biggest spider coming after us.

  “Flank it,” I finally said to Raven while spinning the dagger in my hand. “You go left, on three.”

  She nodded, her front foot adjusting into position.

  “One . . . two . . . three.”

  On three, we separated, dashing to each side. Not knowing which way to go, the spider turned toward me, and I was ready.