by T. G. Ayer
I coughed, bending over and clutching my throat. I struggled to take a breath.
"Mel!" Drake yelled. "Run."
I stared at him. How could I leave without the spell? I had no other way of saving Samantha. That moment of hesitation was all Nathaniel needed. A dark blast of power flew at Drake, thick and solid, an opaque shadow that hit him square in the chest, lifting him off the ground. He flew backwards at least five feet before hitting the stone wall so hard I was sure I heard an ominous crack. He slid to the floor and groaned, pushing himself back up. He rubbed his head and held his hand up, then frowned at the streaks of blood marking his palm. His face darkened and he stood up, holding onto the wall.
I wanted to help him but with Nathaniel facing me, one hand outstretched in my direction, I knew he wouldn't hesitate to deliver the same treatment to me if I moved. Not that I was afraid of him. But I needed to be conscious and aware, not knocked off my feet and unconscious.
Nathaniel laughed, the sound echoing harshly around the room. Drake glowered but the sorcerer paid him little attention. "So, Ms. Morgan, I do believe it's time you made a decision."
I frowned. "What decision is that?" He had my curiosity piqued.
"You need to make a decision right now. No waiting, no time to consider." He fell silent abruptly.
"What's the decision?" I asked sharply, irritated he was dragging this out.
Nathanial smiled, then glanced over at Drake. The necromancer flicked his hand in my friend's direction and I gasped as Drake rose so suddenly up into the air that if I blinked I would have missed it. He now lay horizontal and floated in the air, five feet off the ground. I glared at Nathanial. "What the hell are you doing to him?"
"What anyone would do if they were duped by the likes of you. I am using my advantages." He smiled smugly.
"What do you want?" I shouted at him, uncaring if I angered him or hurt his feelings. They were the least of my concerns right now.
"Your blood," he said, his voice soft and cold as it slithered down my spine. He was going to force me to give my blood. I should have known.
I stared at him. He stared back.
"Don't even try to think of a way out. It will cost you your friend's life."
I hesitated and he saw me, sensed it. Somehow he knew. "Very well, perhaps you need a little more incentive." Nathaniel waved his hand, and I expected Drake to go flying across the room again but he didn't move. Then he grunted, as if in deep pain. He called my name and my stomach twisted as I saw what Nathaniel had done to him. Drake's skin began to darken in color, changing from his normal dark grey skin tone to a lifeless shade of grey. The color of stone. Drake tried to speak but he couldn't move his lips. He just stared at me, eyes wide. I knew what he was saying. Don't give him your blood. I glanced at the necromancer, who turned to smile at me, his teeth gleaming white and making him look like a grinning puppet.
"Still have doubts, Ms. Morgan?" He knew he had me right where he wanted.
I stared at Drake, who was now solid stone. What had I allowed to happen? But Drake had insisted on coming, he'd been certain he would help protect me. And look what it had gotten him. Fury rose within me and my fingers curled into tight fists at my side.
"Come now. The blood, if you please." Nathaniel's voice penetrated my thoughts.
I didn't want to. My chest tightened with fear. Natasha's and Drake's dire warnings rang in my ears. The sorcerer clicked his tongue and Drake began to drop straight to the stone floor. Terror flooded my veins. "Stop!" I screamed, my hand reaching out as if I could halt Drake's fall. If he hit the ground he would shatter into too many pieces. He'd be dead for sure.
I glared at Nathaniel, my eyes filled with tears as frustration, anger and fear entwined into an almost tangible fury.
Nathaniel smiled. "I am tired of these games, Ms. Morgan." He glanced over at Drake. "So, my dear, do you want me to convince you more?" Nathaniel raked me with his cold eyes.
"Fine," I said, my voice shaking. "Fine. I'll do what you want. Just don't harm him."
Nathaniel nodded, his expression pleasant and friendly. "Very good. I hate playing these games." Then he smiled, his teeth gleaming in the dull light of the room. "You know, this was not necessary at all."
I said nothing. Just stared at him coldly, wondering again why I had ever thought this was a good idea. Drake had warned me. And now his life was in danger.
Anger rippled through me, spurring me to move towards the table. I just wanted to get it over and done with and get Drake home. I prayed whatever Nathaniel had done to him was reversible. The necromancer moved towards the table as I bent over and released the knife strapped to my ankle. I hesitated, looking around for a clean receptacle. He placed a clear glass bowl on the table in front of me. He was also eager to get this over and done with.
Nathaniel placed a hand on my arm as I moved to press the knife onto my wrist. He grabbed my hand, picking the knife out of my palm and bringing it close to his eyes, turning it over and inspecting it. Then, without a word, he returned it to me and took one step back.
I glanced at him, sure he could see the hatred in my eyes. But it didn't seem to have any effect on him. Considering his occupation, he probably had a large contingent of haters.
Moving my attention back to the bowl, I placed the knife on my wrist, bracing for the pain. I pressed the blade and watched as the tip sliced into my skin, as red blood welled from the incision. I held my hand over the bowl, allowing the blood to drip slowly into it. The bowl filled far too slowly for my liking, but I had no choice. I was not about to cut myself deeper or anywhere else, just to satisfy Nathaniel. Slow would have to do.
At last, when it seemed there was enough blood in the bowl for the necromancer, I turned my hand over and placed a finger over the cut to stall the bleeding. I glanced up at Nathaniel and he nodded. And I was glad that about half a cup of my blood was enough for him. I had no idea what I would've done had he wanted more.
"Now can you release Drake?" I asked, my tone cold and hard. I wasn't in the mood for niceties.
Nathaniel laughed, the sound high pitched and irritating to my inner ear. "Of course I can't, my dear."
"What the hell do you mean?" I asked, my voice vibrating with anger. "You said if I gave you my blood, you would release him."
"I never promised any such thing," said the sorcerer, eyes gleaming, a smile curling his lip. "The blood is of course the payment for the spell. Nothing more."
Fear rippled up and down my spine as I stared at the sorcerer. "What do you want?"
"Ah, that is such a loaded question, my dear. What is it that I want? I want so many things. But far too many of those things I will never get."
I didn't have time to listen to his crap. I was furious. "So you just take what you want?"
"But of course, my dear; how else would you suppose I get it?" Nathaniel's face was serious as he looked at me. I blinked. I didn't particularly care about what the necromancer wanted that he never got. I wasn't in the mood to get to know him any better. Never would be in the mood.
"Quit the games, Nathaniel," I said coldly. "Tell me what you want in exchange for Drake's life." I glanced over at Drake, who still hung in the air. He’d been totally transformed into stone. His eyes no longer urging me to go.
"I want you to steal a portal key." His eyes challenged me.
***
Chapter 16
"You what?"
"Come now, Ms. Morgan. Don't pretend with me. I know quite a bit about you." Nathaniel leaned forward and picked up the glass bowl. As he walked around the table, the blood sloshed back and forward. I swallowed, suddenly afraid of what he was about to ask me, just as afraid as I was about what he was going to do with my blood. When he reached the opposite side of the table, he set the bowl down and met my eyes again. "You don't have to pretend here. I know you can teleport."
I raised my eyebrows, shock filtering through me. How the hell did he know that? "What?" The smartest thing I could do right now was
to feign ignorance.
Nathaniel laughed. "No need to pretend with me, my dear. You may not exactly be famous, but in certain circles your name is very well known. Which is probably one of the reasons why I'm not going to kill you for trying to cheat me." He paused and leaned to the side, opening one of his desk drawers. He took something out and held it towards me. I silenced a gasp as he opened his palm and revealed a portal key. "I'm sure you've seen one of these before. Although perhaps you wouldn't really need it, considering. This particular one doesn't work for me, of course. And a certain High Priestess has refused to fashion one for me. So now, I have to resort to you."
"Now where the hell am I supposed to find something like that?" I asked, although I knew very well where I could get one. "Why would you need one? Aren’t all your magic and spells enough to part the Veil whenever you want?"
"You are right, my dear. My magic and spells are strong enough for me to part the Veil wherever and whenever I want. But you see, it takes a lot of energy out of me and I am not getting any younger. A few keys will make my life much easier."
I squeezed my fist, anger filtering through me. I winced as the cut burned at my wrist. Blood welled to the surface and I placed a thumb on the incision, pressing firmly.
"So where is it you want me to get the key from? I asked, determined not to make things too easy for him. My back was turned to him, but I'd bet Drake still hovered in the air behind me. I also knew I wouldn't let Nathaniel get away with what he had done to Drake.
"Don't play games with me. You know exactly where to get the keys from. Get them for me. Bring them back to me and your friend will be returned to you alive."
Nathaniel raised an eyebrow at me. He knew I really didn't have a choice, and he seemed to enjoy the fact. But I really couldn't blame him. I'd tried to cheat him. He saw an opportunity. Now he had me by the cojones. And I couldn't do anything about it. Drake's life hung in the balance. And I really couldn't trust Nathaniel.
I glanced back over my shoulder and stared at Drake. So many things to do, so little time. Samantha waited for me. Who knew how long she had. Or what the demons had in store for her. Could I afford to wait any longer to retrieve her? In that moment I made a decision I prayed Drake would forgive me for. I turned back to Nathaniel.
"Is he still alive?" My eyes narrowed at Nathaniel. "Is he okay? Will he be okay once he is normal again?"
Nathaniel nodded. "Your friend is perfectly fine. He is alive. Stone is part of his nature, so believe me, he has no problem being in this form. The only problem he has is, unlike his normal transformations, he is unable to turn back to human form unless I allow it."
"Can he hear me?"
"Yes. He is fully aware of what is going on around him."
I turned again to face Drake, heart thudding against my ribs. I prayed that he would understand my choice. "I will fetch portal keys for you." Behind me, Nathaniel laughed gleefully. "But I will only do it once I'm finished with my mission. And that spell of yours had better work."
"What did you say?" His voice was harsh, the sound clattering against the walls.
"I will get you your keys but you will have to wait. There is someone whose life is in danger. And I need to save her now."
Nathaniel chuckled. "What kind of friend are you? What do you think Drake would say about this."
"I know exactly what Drake would have to say about this. He would want me to go and save the girl." I crossed my fingers and hoped that was true. My stomach clenched. What would I do if that wasn't what Drake would have wanted? I put the thought out of my head. I had to believe that Drake would agree with me. He knew how important Samantha's life was.
"Very well." Nathaniel's eyes gleamed. "I will wait. But don't make me wait too long. Or your friend here will meet with a convenient accident and when you return, you will need a broom to sweep up his remains."
Fear pooled in my gut, solid and painful. But I refused to let him see it. "Don't you worry about it. I will be back soon. And if you so much as damage a hair on Drake's head, I promise you that I will make you pay."
Nathaniel laughed. "I'm not afraid of you, little girl." Then he glanced back behind me. "Do what you have to do and get back here fast. Don't play any games with me. You will not like the price you have to pay."
I didn't answer. Just looked down at the bowl of blood and prayed it would not come back to bite me. I glanced up; Nathaniel looked pretty proud of himself. "Let's get on with it. How about you hold up your end of the bargain. I've given you my blood. Now can I please have the spell?"
Nathaniel's smile faltered. He gritted his teeth and raised an eyebrow at me. "Very well." He headed to a set of shelves against the far wall and rummaged amongst the bottles and books. At last he returned with a brass dish. He placed it on the table and poured a third of the blood I had donated into it. I raised an eyebrow in challenge, but he wasn't looking. I was surprised he was going to actually use my blood for the spell.
He took the brass dish and walked around the desk to an open space beside it. A large pentagram was carved into the stone floor. Again, I was surprised to find that he used normal magic. But it shouldn't have surprised me. All magic was magic to begin with. It was the user's decision to go dark or light.
Nathaniel placed the brass bowl at the center of the pentagram and stood back.
He raised his hands and began to chant, the sound echoing ominously around the room, making the hairs on the back of my neck rise. Bright blue flames began to flicker along the outer circle of the pentagram. Nathaniel chanted louder and the flames grew stronger and higher. Perspiration dotted his forehead. It seemed the magic was taking its toll on his body. At last his voice dropped to a low murmur. He hung his head back as if staring at the ceiling, but his eyes saw nothing. They were blank. They rolled back into his eye sockets, the whites of his eyes gleaming.
He remained that way, so still, I began to get scared. How dangerous was this spell of his anyway? Suddenly his head snapped forward and a bright blue flame streamed out from the ball of blood. I flinched, but managed to stay in place, staring at my blood, now burning with blue fire. The flame rose higher, almost as tall as Nathaniel. He still remained in his trance. I couldn't take my eyes off the strange fire. It was a good thing I didn't as I would've missed the shadows. They roiled from each corner of the pentagram, swirling in the air. The dark streaks coiled around and around, as if reaching for each other. Nathaniel's chanting grew louder. And I shivered.
The shadows met in the center of the pentagram, directly above my burning blood. They coiled into each other, forming a solid column of blackness that flew toward the bowl of blood on the ground. I tensed, expecting an explosion but nothing happened. The pillar of shadow just streamed into the center of the fire in the bowl, straight into the blood. The deep red liquid began to swirl into a whirlpool, spinning until the middle of the liquid fell, sinking deeper into the bowl. The shadow sped toward the depression and disappeared into the blood. As I watched, darkness seeped into the red, spinning and swirling. Streaks of black and red mingled ominously with each other, mixing and blending until red faded to utter darkness and all I saw was a bowl of spinning black goop.
I shuddered. That's what happens when SoulTracker blood mixes with necromancer magic.
Nathaniel fell silent and as his voice faded, so did the flames. They danced, rising and falling until they grew smaller and smaller. I breathed in, tensed for what would happen next. Nathaniel took a step forward and the column of shadows fell straight into the bowl, snuffing out the blue flames which disappeared in a puff of white smoke, leaving behind the burning bowl. He picked up the bowl, headed straight for his desk and set it on the table, then rummaged around amongst the shattered and broken remains of tubes, decanters, and metal stands. He finally emerged with three small tubes, each with screw top lids topped with a metal loop. He glanced up at me as if to make sure I was still there. He needn't have worried. I had no intention of leaving without my spell.
I
waited as he used a small ladle to dispense some of the spelled blood into the three vials. He screwed the lids back on firmly, then held the tubes in his hand, staring at them intently. What was he doing? More dead mojo or was he having second thoughts? My fingers itched to grab my knife but I waited. Nathaniel already had the upper hand. I doubted he would be so stupid, especially since he wanted me to do something for him.
He raised his eyes and stared at me. And smiled, his expression cold steel. Then he held out his hand, the three vials glinting, the black sludgy liquid inside gleamed, unmoving. For a moment I was afraid to take them. The thought of touching Nathanial's skin made me want to shudder. But I controlled myself and reached for them. They were the key to freeing Samantha. That was all the incentive I needed.
But I needn't have worried about touching Nathaniel. When I reached out, he held them out so I had to cup my palm to receive them. He dropped the vials into my hand and moved back. Seemed he also had issues with touching me.
Feeling's mutual, you bastard.
I gripped the tubes in my hand, a shiver running up and down my spine. I held dark magic in the palm of my hand, dark magic created with my own blood. Nathaniel's voice broke through my thoughts. "I have given you three. You should only need one to destroy the circle but I have given you more just in case."
I nodded. I was grateful he had thought of it but I wasn't about to bow to him in gratitude. "Anything else I should know?" He frowned. "Like how I'm supposed to use this in the first place?" I had no idea if I was supposed to smear the substance on me or the floor or if I was supposed to drink the damned thing. Did Nathaniel really think I knew? Or was he playing with me, wanting me to ask questions every step of the way?
He cleared his throat, giving me a thin smile. "Drop the blood on the outer circle and allow it to penetrate the magic until the ward is broken. The magic will not harm you, whether you are inside or outside the circle. Whatever you are planning to do just be quick about it."
"Why? Does the power of the magic fade?"