Treasure of the Fire Kingdom (The Elemental Phases Book 4)

by Cassandra Gannon

  “Give the Council a chance and they will offer you all amnesty.” She assured them. “I promise, Job, of the Earth House is fair and you can trust him. And if he does screw you over… how much worse off can you really be?” Lifting her shoulder in a shrug, Hope left the ice cream shop.

  Given time, she knew the Banished Phases would see she was right. And in the meantime, maybe she could pass the time with some other good deeds. Balancing the replacement for her replacement ice cream cone in one hand and her clipboard in the other, she frowned down at the map she stolen from Kingu’s library.

  Alright, since preserving the universe from an invasion Banished Phases was a bust, who else could she heroically save? Hope’s gaze fell on the picture of the jail where they’d kept her earlier. Where they kept all the prisoners/gladiators/interesting people…

  “I’d have thought Kingu would have killed you by now.”

  Hope’s head snapped around to see Galen standing beside her. Mr. I-Am-The-Law-Of-The-Cloudland looked as cheery as ever. He was seriously pissed she’d survived her execution and not even bothering to hide it as he glowered down at her.

  “Kingu would never harm me.” She said with absolute confidence. “I’m his destiny.”

  Galen expression somehow got even darker. “You’re nothing but a dirty human whore who’s beguiled him. Even someone as stupid as that oaf will see through your lies, though. It’s just a matter of time.”

  “Really?” Hope took a step closer to him and smirked. “Then why do you look so worried?”

  “I heard you in there, trying to incite a riot among my people. Trying to get them to trust Job, when he’s the one who Banished most of us. I don’t know what your game is, but I won’t allow you to endanger my kingdom.”

  “Your kingdom?” She looked pointedly at the olive streak at his temple that marked him as a Stone Phase. “Did I miss the part where you converted to the Cloud House?”

  “I’ve claimed this land for all the Banished men and women the Council wrongfully expelled over the years.” He loomed over her like he expected her to be bullied. “I don’t care what kind of powers you’re hiding, I won’t see my work ruined by you or that deformed reptile you’re fucking.”

  Someone really should have told him that Fire Phases didn’t intimidate easy.

  Rule number eighty-one of being a Fire Phase: When someone threatens you, it just means you’re doing something right.

  Hope’s eyes narrowed and her third ice cream of the day bit the dust. Without even stopping to think about it, she slammed the cone into Galen’s stupid, fussy uniform. All around them, the Banished Phases who’d been covertly watching the exchange burst into laughter.

  “Shit!” Galen leapt back, ineffectually wiping at the dripping mess on his shirtfront.

  “Say another word about Kingu.” Hope got right in his face. “I dare you.”

  Galen was thrown off balance by her refusal to back down. He actually retreated a step in confused alarm. Obviously, most of the Banished Phases were easier to strong-arm than Hope. “You have no idea who you’re dealing…”

  “No, you have no idea who you’re dealing with.” Hope interrupted. “I have a humongous god on my side and don’t even need to call him in to beat you senseless. I can do it myself, if you push me.” She gave his shoulder a taunting shove. “You saw what I did in that gladiator ring and I wasn’t even trying. Push me and I’ll show you what my House does to wormy little assholes who are stupid enough to get in our way.”

  Galen’s face was bright red in humiliation. “I am the leader of this kingdom and no one treats me this way.”

  “You’re not the leader of anything. You have all these people trapped here, terrified of the Council because you want them under your control. Well, guess what? As soon as I get home, I am going tell Job alllll about this place and how you tried to kill me. Then he’s going to come here. He’s going to save all your ‘followers’ from you and there’s not a damn thing you can do about it.”

  “Yes, there is.” Galen hissed. “I can make sure you never get home.”

  “Hope? Are you alright?”

  She glanced over and saw Kingu pushing his way through the crowd that had gathered. “I’m fine.” She stepped back from Galen and waved an unconcerned hand at him. “You can go, now. Unless you want to threaten me some more in front of the really pissed off monster who’d kill for me.”

  Galen’s mouth thinned in hatred, but he went stalking off through the snickering mass of Phases around them.

  Asshole.

  Hope dismissed him from her mind and turned to Kingu. “I’m still not speaking to you.” She informed him.

  Kingu didn’t seem to care. “What did Galen want? Did he hurt you?” His red gaze scanned her body for injuries.

  “Of course not.” Hope rolled her eyes. “You think I’d let myself get hurt by someone so lame?”

  One large hand came over like Kingu wanted to touch her hair and then he let it drop. Kingu cleared his throat. “Galen is sneaky and dangerous. Don’t go near him, alright? In fact, I should probably just go kill him, right now.”

  That was sweet, but Hope refused to be taken in. “I’m not speaking to you, no matter what romantic things you say.” She reiterated firmly. “I can handle Galen, so just leave him alone. The guy’s a coward who’s been given a tiny bit of power and uses it like a club. He’s not even worthy of a real warrior’s attention.”

  “If you weren’t dignifying him with your attention, why did he just leave here covered in ice cream? I’m pretty sure that’s your calling card.”

  “He said something that annoyed me.”

  “What did he say?” Kingu still seemed convinced he should just go slaughter the guy.

  Hope made a face. “Nothing.” She muttered.

  He wasn’t letting it go. “Was it something about you?”

  “No.”

  Kingu hesitated at her grouchy tone. “Wait… something about me?” He translated incredulously. “Hope, tell me you didn’t get into an argument with an armed idiot because he insulted me.”

  “I’m not telling you anything, because I’m not speaking to you.”

  He ignored that. “Jesus Hope, you did, didn’t you? Why? Do you think I care what Galen says about me?”

  Actually, yes. She did think he cared. Not about Galen’s opinion particularly, but about how people as a whole treated him. Kingu was lonely and mistreated and… Damn it, she was not going to forgive him, yet. Not until he apologized.

  “I’m going to go buy another ice cream.” She grumbled and headed back towards the shop. “Well, actually you’re buying it. I’m charging it to your account. Deal with it.”

  “Hope?”

  She turned back to him, feeling put upon.

  Kingu’s eyes met hers. “Thank you.” He said softly. “It was a stupid thing to do, but no one’s ever tried to defend me before. It was… nice of you.” He looked sincerely touched and kind of amazed that anybody would stick up for him.

  “I didn’t do it to be nice.” Fire Phases never did anything to be nice.

  “Then, why did you do it?”

  “You’re a smart guy. You figure it out. And when you do, maybe I’ll speak to you, again.” Sighing loudly at his baffled expression, Hope headed back into the ice cream store.

  This time she was going to sit perfectly still and eat the damn cone right there in the shop.

  Chapter Twelve

  Let's think of the human elements

  Wadsworth Camp- “The Abandoned Room”

  Tessie, Queen of the Earth House and Keeper of the Quintessence, missed getting her arm hacked off by less than an inch.

  “Son-of-a-bitch!” She scrambled backwards, ducking behind a statue of some guy getting pulled apart by hungry wolves. “Okay, I’m reconsidering this whole… Shit!” The sword sliced at her again, taking off two of her black curls when she ducked a fraction of a second too slow.

  “If she was a Fire Phase, she would so
not be winning the swearing contest.” Pele mused, watching the fight rage around the living room with a thoughtful eye. “I mean, the losing the sword fight was a given. But the cursing would really sink her.”

  “It’s all about self-control.” Djinn agreed from his position on the arm of Pele’s chair. He reached down and grabbed a handful of popcorn from the bowl on his Match’s lap. “Can’t really blame Tessie for sucking at battle, though. Who would’ve taught her anything important? Seriously, does that asshole Job even own a sword? The guy thinks we should all settle of differences with hugs.”

  “Can’t say ‘asshole,’ D.”

  “Fine. That ass-wipe Job.”

  Pele gave a “much better” sort of nod and munched on her popcorn.

  Teja was too distracted to even listen to their commentary. Although it was certainly easy enough to hear from the second she jumped back into the palace, even over the pulsating girl group doo-wop that had been the soundtrack of Frankie’s practice sessions since the 1950s.

  Frankie always trained to popular music, claiming the beats of love songs worked best for counting off footwork. When he’d trained Teja, troubadour ballads had been in vogue. Maybe one day she’d be able to sword fight without mentally humming Greensleeves.

  She automatically moved to avoid a flying vase, so immune to chaos that she didn’t even glance in the fighters’ direction. She vaguely processed Tessie and Frankie’s training session as she stalked through the living room, but it didn’t really surprise her.

  When Job’s Match needed training, there’d never even been a question about whether or not Frankie would help. The Fire Phases might refuse to let Job through the door just on general principals, but they still liked the guy.

  Kind of.

  Frankie taught everyone in the family and Job was family. Maybe not genetically, but the Fire Phases didn’t worry about DNA when it came to claiming relatives.

  There’d also never been a question as to where the practice sessions would be held. Technically, Frankie was a Heat Phase, since his Match came from that House. But, he’d been born in the Fire Kingdom and he tended to spend about sixty percent of his time in his homeland, destroying stuff or hiding bodies. The poor Quintessence looked like she just might wind up as his latest victim, if she didn’t learn to guard her centerline a little quicker.

  Teja was way beyond giving a damn about the furnishings, her honorary uncle-in-law’s murderous idiosyncrasies or the welfare of a certain Divine super beings in flip-flops. Inside she was so shaken up by Sullivan Pryce that it took all of her willpower not to lock herself in a closet and just hide.

  “This is not what I signed up for.” This time, Tessie heaved a TV remote at Frankie to avoid a renewed attack. She’d apparently prepared for this epic battle by dressing in cutoff shorts and a tank top with the Playboy symbol outlined in glitter. Tessie’s all-too-human body would have been so damn easy for Frankie to hack apart. Teja distantly conceded that her uncle must’ve been really trying not to kill her. That was a big step for him and one that Tessie apparently didn’t appreciate.

  Tessie pushed her dark hair out of her face, violet eyes blazing. “You’re supposed to be teaching me to sword fight, Frankie, not slaughtering me!”

  “You’re learning by doing.” Frankie retorted. He was a huge man with a bushy black beard streaked down one side with a red stripe. Frankie was the only Elemental whose facial air carried a House designation. No one knew why, but most people chalked it up to Frankie being a weirdo. “Only way to learn not to die is to get really close to dying and see where you went wrong.”

  Djinn and Pele nodded in agreement.

  The Quintessence didn’t look convinced. She shifted position so she was behind the sofa, panting for breath. “That’s the stupidest thing I ever heard. In fact, this whole ‘you training me deal’ was a big mistake. Job was all freaked out because so many people don’t like me and the damn barriers are down. He asked me to give this a shot, but I think I’d rather take my chances with crazy assassins than with you.”

  Frankie tilted his head. “Wow. Ya know, those were my mom’s last words.”

  Tessie stopped her rant, her eyes widening “Oh shit, I hope he’s kidding” style.

  A lot of people got that look around Frankie before they realized that he was never kidding. He was just… eccentric.

  Or possibly insane.

  “Ah, mom.” Frankie grinned reminiscently. “Now, she was a lady who could put up a fight. Let me tell you. Dad never saw it comin’.”

  The point of Tessie’s blade tipped towards the ground as she goggled at him.

  Pele tossed a popcorn kernel into her mouth. “So how’d it go, Tej?” She didn’t turn around in her seat to ask that non sequitur, so Teja wasn’t sure how Pele even knew she was in the room. Pele was always saw too much.

  “Hey, Tej.” Djinn glanced over at her and arched a brow. “You save Alder from the humes or do we need to go down there and jailbreak him? Please, say jailbreak.”

  “Jailbreak?” Frankie’s expression lit-up.

  “No jailbreaking. I got Alder. He’s fine. End of story.” Teja did not want to discuss any of the rest of what happened. Not until she figured out what to do about it. “Did Hope show up, yet?”

  Djinn and Pele shook their heads.

  “Hope’s fine.” Frankie gave his sword a jaunty twirl. “That girl was born under a lucky star.”

  The music switched from the Patience and Prudence singing Tonight You Belong to Me to the Crystals’ He’s a Rebel. Teja ground her teeth. She had to get out of here or she was going to snap.

  “Family meeting!” Alder burst into the living room with his typical subdued energy. “I texted the others and told them to come, too. We’re having a family meeting, right now!”

  Shit!

  Teja flashed him a deadly look. “No, we’re not.”

  “Oh yes, we are.” His expression was resolute. “You know we have to, Tej. I told you if you didn’t do something about that guy, I would have to tell the family you were screwing up your life. You didn’t listen, so…”

  “My life.” Teja interrupted furiously. “Not yours. Not theirs.” She waved a hand a Frankie, Djinn, Pele and the rest of the world in general. “Mine. And I will decide how I live it.”

  “Only you don’t always make such good choices, so sometimes we gotta step in.” Frankie put in casually. He leaned against his sword like it was a cane, his head moving in time with the “he’ll never, ever be any good” part of the song. “Remember what you did after the Fall?”

  Everyone turned to stare at him.

  The Fire Phases didn’t mention Teja’s actions after Oberon’s death. Not ever. As with all rules, written or unwritten, Frankie ignored that fact, though.

  Teja’s mouth thinned. “You guys wanna have a meeting? Fine. Have fun. Take votes. Make speeches.” Turning on her heel, she started for the stairs. “I’ll be in my room.”

  “The meeting’s about you, though.” Alder complained. “You have to stay here while we do an intervention. Didn’t you ever see that TV show where the humans agree to go to rehab after their families read them letters that are all ‘you ruined your life in the following ways’?”

  Djinn frowned in annoyance. “Oh man, we have to write letters?”

  “So… do I have to stay for this meeting or can I go?” The Quintessence asked.

  Satour jumped into the room before anyone could answer her. “Alright. I’m here.” He was carrying a spear and what looked like the greenish leg of some kind of unidentified creature. He dropped the oozing mass of flesh onto the carpet. “Seriously, I was sort of in the middle of something, so this had better be good.”

  Tessie’s eyebrows climbed.

  “Alder!” Missy skipped into the room, wearing an Alice in Wonderland style dress and combat boots. “The humans didn’t execute you in their jail, after all.” She smiled the wide, off kilter smile favored by serial killers and lunatics. “Yay.”

&n
bsp; “You left me there to get arrested!” Alder stabbed a finger at his little sister. “I was holding your fucking torch and I couldn’t even kill the stupid human handcuffing me because then I’d have Job whining…”

  “Uh-oh. You said ‘fuck’.” Missy sing-songed. She shook her dark curls. “Too bad.” Cinderella blue eyes danced with madness and glee. Missy was without a doubt the scariest person Teja had ever met. “Looks like I’m still in the game today, but you’re disqualified.”

  “That doesn’t count!” Alder bellowed.

  Tessie edged towards the door. “I really have to go, so…” She backed right into Qadesh. “Jesus!” She leapt away from him in panic. “Don’t sneak up on people like that!”

  Qadesh ignored her. He excelled at ignoring people. He wore a black trench coat, accented with villainous chrome weapons. His eyes were a flat, opaque turquoise and they skimmed around the room taking a headcount. “Where’s Hope?”

  Hope was his favorite. Hope was everyone’s favorite. That feeling of unease whispered through Teja’s mind again, louder than before. Hope meant everything to the Fire House.

  Where was she?

  “Still haven’t found her.” Djinn ate some more popcorn. “She probably jumped into somebody’s basement and got locked in, again. Frankie says she’s fine.”

  Teja rolled her eyes. “Yeah, I’m sure she’s super. When’s the last time that girl stayed out of trouble for more than an hour at a time? Huh? And she’s been missing all day, but –Hey!-- I’m sure there’s no reason to worry. Let’s have a meeting about me instead.”

  “We’re having a meeting about you?” Satour demanded. “Why? What did you do, now?”

  “Nothing. That’s why this is all so stupid. I did nothing.”

  “She did nothing.” Alder agreed. “It was unreal how much nothing she did. Let me set the stage for you guys. We’re in the police station in Mayport Beach. It was me, Ty, and Gion in the cop’s dungeon, right?”

  “Oh God, you attacked Guy and Sully?” Tessie groaned.

  They ignored her.

  “I was totally being interrogated.” Alder nodded. “The human was trying to break me and make me confess to everything. I’m pretty sure he had a chainsaw.”