Bonds That Break (The Havoc Chronicles Book 3)

by Brant Williams

  We booked our tickets through my concierge. I had to admit it was nice to have her back again. The quickest flight took us into Oslo, which meant we would have a long drive ahead of us once we landed there.

  And that was even assuming we could find the place. I had seen it from space and in a dream. That didn’t exactly translate into driving directions.

  There were a few things I wanted to do before we left. On the top of the list was see my dad.

  It was not an easy visit as we filled him in on everything that had happened. When we were done, he was quiet and stared off out the window.

  “They’re all dead,” he finally said.

  I nodded. “They are.”

  “And you lost your powers?” he said to Rhys.

  Rhys’ jaw tightened. I could tell this was still hard for him to deal with. “Yes.”

  Dad nodded thoughtfully. “I still expect you to keep her safe.”

  “I will do my best, Scotty,” Rhys said. “I will do everything in my power to protect her. But right now, she’s the one with the fate of the world in her hands.”

  “I know,” said Dad. “My little baby, the girl whose diaper I changed, is somehow supposed to save the world?” He looked at me and shrugged. “No offense, Madison, but it’s hard for a dad to not look at his daughter and see the little girl she once was.”

  I wiped away the stray tear that had started running down my cheek. “I know, Dad.”

  He reached out and took my hand. “I think I’m ready to go back home,” he said. “If I have to sit this out, I don’t want to do it alone.”

  When arrived at the house, I told my mom I was going to leave. She was concerned, but when I told her it was for Berserker business, she got that blank look and zoned out.

  I never had liked keeping all of this a secret from her, and I remembered Dad’s comment about not wanting to go through this alone, so I made an executive decision. I raised my hands, but this time instead of a blue mist coming out of my hands, I put my hands on her head and pulled the mist out of her.

  She stared straight ahead, unblinking for a moment, and then suddenly gasped. She looked at me wide-eyed.

  “Madison!” she said. “You... you’re a...”

  “A Berserker, yeah I know,” I said. “You’ve known too, but we didn’t want you worrying about what I was up to.”

  “And Bruce? He’s one too!”

  “He used to be. Now he’s just a normal guy who loves you a lot.” I reached out and gave her a hug. “I’ve got to go do something very dangerous and if anything happens to me, I wanted you to know the truth about us.”

  “Dangerous?” Mom said. “I don’t like the sound of that.”

  “I know. Me neither, but it’s something that has to be done.”

  “Does your dad know?”

  I nodded. “He doesn’t like it. But he knows there isn’t much choice.”

  “I don’t like either,” she said. “But I trust his judgment.” She reached out and gave me a hug. When she pulled back she wore a thoughtful expression. “Maybe I should go talk with him.”

  “Yeah,” I said. “That might be a good idea.”

  Rhys and I finished packing and headed out to the Portland airport. It would be several long flights, so I was once again really glad that Berserkers could travel in style. We had first class seats for all the legs and did our best to sleep as much as possible.

  When we landed in Oslo, it was mid morning and the temperature was twenty one degrees Celsius. Which meant absolutely nothing to me. Like most Americans, the Celsius system didn’t make a lot of sense to me. The temperature range just felt so compressed with a couple of degrees being a big swing in temperature. I would be perfectly fine with switching to the metric system in most things – meters and liters I could understand. But they could take my Fahrenheit system when they pried it from my cold, dead fingers.

  Not that I had any strong feelings about it.

  We rented a car and started driving north and west following the major roads. The mountain we needed to get to was somewhere in that direction.

  I had never been to Norway before and was surprised by how beautiful it was. Everything seemed open and wide, like being in Utah or Montana. Mountains and fjords were all over, providing breathtaking views.

  We had been driving for several hours when I finally saw where we were supposed to go.

  As we reached the top of a pass, I saw a bright blue column of light shooting up into the air. It was the same column I saw in my dream.

  “There!” I said and pointed at the light. “We need to go that way.”

  But Rhys couldn’t see it. It was noticeable enough that he wasn’t just overlooking it, so it must have to do with being a Berserker or Binder that let me see it. Which would also explain why everyone in Norway wasn’t in a mad panic, wondering what that massive blue light shooting up into space was.

  I leaned over and cuddled close to Rhys while he drove, knowing that it was possible that this could be the last time we were able to do this. I felt the warmth coming off him. I memorized his feel, the sound of his breathing, even his scent.

  Having lost him once, the possibility that I could lose him again was very close to the front of my mind. But if I was honest, the more likely scenario was that I died and he lived.

  While he drove, I played navigator and made sure we continued toward the pillar of light. Sometimes we hit dead ends, but once we got close enough, I was able to look on the map and guess what roads would take us in the direction we needed to go.

  The farther we got from Oslo, the more rural everything became. Farming, orchards, and raising animals seemed to be common occupations out in this part of Norway. Eventually we came to a small village called Stryn in the Nordfjord region. It was at the entrance to Jostedalsbreen, a large national park that was the location of Verenix’s binding place.

  It seemed like every word I read was some impossible combination of sounds that couldn’t actually be pronounced by the human tongue, but Rhys seemed to have no problem with it. Another one the perks of living an extended life with lots of time to learn anything you wanted.

  It was getting late by the time we got there, so we found a couple of rooms in a small hotel that catered to tourists. The plan was to spend the night there and then go out to the mountain in the morning.

  We had a quiet dinner and then tried to watch some TV in my room. The few channels that were in English had nothing but news and sports, so we ended up talking instead.

  “What was it like being dead?” I asked.

  “There was this bright light and I started walking towards it...”

  I gave him a light smack with the back of my hand. “Really? I set you up with endless possibilities and you bust out the old cliché ‘go towards the light?’ Sad. I expect more from a ridiculous made up answer.”

  Rhys bowed his head in mock shame. “That was rather pathetic, I admit. I promise to have a better ridiculous made up answer next time.”

  I gave him a curt nod to show that I accepted his insincere farce of an apology. “Good. Now what was it really like?” I asked. “The truth this time, no ridiculous made up answers.”

  “I really don’t have much of a recollection of the being dead part,” he said. “I just sort of woke up.”

  ‘Well, that’s rather anti-climactic,” I said. “No last visions of me, or seeing yourself floating above your body?”

  “Sorry, none of that.”

  “It was probably because you were just mostly dead. And mostly dead is partly alive after all.”

  “That was my thought as well,” Rhys said. “I did think several times that I would have been less nervous if I had a pill from Miracle Max to bring me back to life rather than relying on the imprecise hocus pocus of modern medicine.”

  I laughed, pleased he was playing off my Princess Bride reference. “True. You were at a bit of a disadvantage.”

  Rhys smiled at me. It was one of his truly dazzling smiles that made hi
s entire face light up and made it hard for me to breathe. “But I did have one thing going for me,” he said.

  “Oh, what was that?” I asked distractedly.

  “I had something to live for,” he said in a passable imitation of Cary Elwes. “To blave.”

  That got my attention. I laughed and scooted closer to him, thinking how much I loved this man and how glad I was that he hadn’t stayed dead.

  I pulled his head in close to mine and gently kissed him. “Good answer.”

  Chapter 23

  My Informant Revealed

  We eventually separated and went to bed. I tossed and turned, thinking about what was going to happen tomorrow. It took much longer than I had thought it would to finally fall asleep. I guess the prospect of imminent life-threatening danger in the morning has that effect on a lot of people, so I probably shouldn’t have been surprised.

  What was surprising was the fact that I didn’t have a dream with my informant. I had been expecting some sort of final instructions, or at least a moderately inspiring pep talk. Instead I got nothing. No dreams. No messages.

  Nothing.

  Rhys and I awoke and ate breakfast together. The hotel catered to international travelers so there was plenty of normal food to eat. Which was a good thing, because some of the local cuisine made my Berserker taste buds cower in fear.

  Which reminded me of the fact that Rhys had lost his powers. I wondered what that had done to his senses. I had tried asking my dad when I had found out he had once been a Berserker, but it had been so long ago that he really couldn’t remember the difference very well.

  I almost asked Rhys to describe the difference for me, but after hearing him tell me how difficult it was to not have his powers any more, I decided not to deliberately remind him of their loss.

  After breakfast, we set out to the national park whose name I had stopped trying to pronounce after watching the smile on Rhys’ face every time I tried.

  I wasn’t a fan of its name, but it was truly a wonder of nature. I loved beautiful views, and this was about as amazing as I had seen. Mountains, fjords, and trees created a majestic tapestry that almost made me forget why we were there. I wanted to skip the part where I freed Verenix and just hang out as a tourist for a while.

  What was the rush anyway? Why couldn’t we just take a couple of days to enjoy the view and decompress from the stress of everything that we had been through over the last few months? I certainly needed – and to be honest deserved – a nice long vacation. The weight of the world can be pretty draining to hold on your shoulders.

  I was about to tell this to Rhys and make the suggestion that we take a day off when I felt something – a dark feeling. A presence that felt wrong and made me nauseated.

  A Havoc was nearby.

  And that was the reason we couldn’t just take a day off. The Havocs were still out there, and I didn’t know what they were going to do. I had thought they would keep as far away from me as possible out of fear I might rebind them, but this feeling told me otherwise.

  I looked at Rhys expectantly to see if he felt it too, but he just looked back at me, his brow furrowing in concern.

  “What’s wrong?” he asked.

  And then I remembered. He had no powers anymore. His special bond to the Havocs was gone. He could no longer feel their presence as he once could. As I still could.

  “There’s a Havoc nearby,” I said.

  “Where?”

  “I can’t tell yet,” I said. “I’m just starting to feel him.”

  Rhys looked around, as if expecting to see Osadyn or one of the other Havocs leap out of woods and attack us. His hands tightened on the steering wheel, and his lips compressed into a thin line. His beautiful blue eyes had turned cold and hard, scanning for danger. Rhys was prepared to battle with everything he had.

  But it would not be enough. He was unmatched as a swordsman. I had seen that time and time again. But without his powers, he was just a normal human being. Yes, he was unbelievably skilled, but without his Berserker strength and speed he was no match for a Havoc. I wasn’t even sure if he was still bound to his varé or not, and at the moment I didn’t dare ask.

  “I don’t think he’s close enough to attack yet,” I said.

  “Do you think he’s going to try and stop us?”

  “I don’t know. Maybe. I just don’t know enough about what they want to predict what they’re going to do.”

  Rhys took in a deep breath, and relaxed his grip on the steering wheel. “From what you’ve told me, they’ve had plenty of opportunity to kill you.”

  “Yes.”

  “But each time they let you go.”

  I watched the scenery flow by as we continued driving toward the mountain that bound Verenix. “Yes. And sometimes, they even protected me.” I thought about the attack on the Manor house when the Thuanar had stopped Tez from killing me.

  “I can’t imagine that any of the Havocs suddenly changed their mind,” Rhys said. “So, if they aren’t here to kill you, what are they here for?”

  That was an excellent question and one I did not have the answer to. “I don’t know,” I said. “But a Havoc being here can’t just be a coincidence. I’m guessing we are going to find out why soon enough.”

  We continued our drive toward the mountain and the feeling of heat and nausea continued to grow stronger. At one point Rhys had to pull the car over because I thought I was going to throw up. Miraculously, I managed to keep my breakfast down and we continued driving.

  By the time we reached the parking lot at the trailhead closest to the mountain, the feeling was so strong that I was sure there were multiple Havocs nearby. Based on how strong this feeling was, it could be all of them.

  Then a thought hit me. “What if it isn’t the Havocs I’m feeling?” I asked. “What if the feeling is so strong because I’m feeling Verenix’s presence, and not a Havoc’s?”

  Rhys considered that idea for a moment. “It’s possible,” he conceded. “We don’t have any information about what it’s like to be in the presence of Verenix apart from your own visions. If the Havocs have that kind of feeling associated with them, it’s possible Verenix has a much stronger one.”

  We parked the car and put on some coats and sturdy hiking boots. It would take several miles of hiking just to reach the base of the mountain. And who knew how much exploring we would need to do once we got there?

  When we were both ready to go, we stared awkwardly at each other.

  “So, uh, how do we want to do this?” I asked. I wasn’t sure how to proceed. We could both hike together, but it would be hours before we reached the mountain going at normal human hiking pace. But would it be too emasculating to Rhys to have me carry him and run? I knew my Dad had a hard time with that idea and always had one of the other Berserkers carry him when needed.

  Rhys rolled his eyes. “Let’s not talk around the issue,” he said. “We both know you can travel much faster if you carry me.”

  I nodded uncertainly.

  “Yes, it feels a bit embarrassing after all these years to have to have someone else carry me. Especially the girl I love. But I’m not going to let my pride get in the way of saving the world.” He smiled at me and reached out his arms. “Let’s do this.”

  I turned around and caught Rhys as he jumped on for a piggyback ride. I had a sudden flashback to the time I first met the Berserkers and Eric had done this for me. I had been so scared I had ‘zerked and almost squeezed off Eric’s head.

  There was no one around, so I ‘zerked and took off at a run. I zipped through the trees and leaped over rocks as I made my way toward the mountain. I stayed off the trail as much as possible to avoid being seen. I was able to rely on my hearing to know when we were coming up on hikers and make a wide circle around them.

  After a while I noticed that Rhys had his eyes closed and had pressed his face into my shoulder. I slowed down to check on him.

  “Everything ok?” I asked.

  Rhys lifted
his head a bit. “It’s fine,” he said. “Running through the woods is a very different experience when you are not invulnerable or in control.”

  I kept running, but at a somewhat slower pace than before.

  When we reached the base of the mountains, I set Rhys down and let him stretch his legs. Being held for an extended piggyback ride couldn’t be comfortable.

  “So what now?” asked Rhys once he had rubbed the circulation back into his legs.

  “I’m not sure,” I said and proceeded to throw up. Now that I had stopped running, the heat and nausea hit me hard. I had never in my life felt it this strongly before. My head felt like it was getting pummeled by sledgehammers wielded by angry gorillas and my strength seemed to be draining out of me. My legs gave out, and I dropped to the ground. Fortunately I fell backwards and not into my own puke. Thank goodness for small miracles. No one wants their boyfriend to see them laying in vomit.

  Rhys ran over and pulled me to a sitting position. “What’s wrong?” he asked.

  “Havocs,” I said, my throat still burning from stomach acid and my voice a hoarse whisper. “Too many.”

  All around us the Havocs began to appear. First came Osadyn, his long neck thrashing about on his elephant sized body. Next to appear was Thuanar with his long, sinuous body and six legs clawing at the ground. After Thuanar came Pravicus, the living tank. He towered over the others and swung his head from side to side, his massive horns whipping through the air in deadly arcs. Next was Margil, his feline features fierce and angry. His spiked shell looked even more formidable than when I had bound him in Hong Kong. And finally, Navitan, the weirdest looking of all the Havocs with his giant squid body and six insect legs. He was the one Havoc I hadn’t seen in real life. Here, under the sun, he looked even more disturbing and out of place.

  Rhys pulled out his varé and stood between me and the Havocs, ready to fight. I smiled at his gallant desire to protect me, but I couldn’t let him fight the Havocs for me. One against five were impossible odds even with Berserker powers. Take those powers away and his life-expectancy would be measured in seconds.