by M. S. Dobing
The library was in ruins. At least it seemed so at first glance. Most of the tall shelves had either fallen during the initial attack or had rotted and simply collapsed since then. Ruined books and soiled parchment lay strewn across the wooden floor, creating a treacherous surface to navigate. The roof had largely caved in, exposing grey clouds that scudded across at speed. The lectern still remained, the last book read still there, open, strangely undamaged. Blocks of masonry, some showing the intricate artwork that had been carved into the ceiling, lay scattered amongst the ruins.
Where to start? Seb almost gave up there and then. He knew where the book would be - roughly - but the odds of it being found intact, amongst all this? Slim was being too optimistic. But if recent experience had told him anything, it wasn’t over until there was no life left in your veins. If he could survive that thing that nearly ripped off his arm, he could sure as hell survive trawling through a near-destroyed library for a book that was no doubt ruined.
He stepped past the lectern and made his way to the back of the library, where the protected tomes had once stood.
For a brief moment he’d hoped that perhaps some kind of protection had remained in this area, that the magi would have some kind of lingering effect that would’ve protected them from damage. But as he ducked under the arch that led to the book’s alleged home, his hopes were quickly dashed.
Destroyed.
The whole thing had been wiped out. The floor was covered with a thick layer of ancient stone that had cracked into smaller pieces. The wind was stronger here too, with a much stronger chill in the air. As Seb moved further inside he saw the massive gaping hole in the side of the building that opened out on the hillside, where, strangely, even more rubble lay, several yards from the mansion.
Then it hit him. A memory came. The battle for Skelwith. Marek had launched some kind of projectile at them that destroyed the roof. Thanks to Seb’s warning Cade and the other brothers had only just survived after leaping onto the grass below. The rubble had followed them down, and they’d only just made it out of the way in time. The side of the building had been ripped out when Farouk, Marek’s daemon soldier, had burst through the brick like it was nothing more than paper.
Seb shivered, but not from the cold. How the hell had anyone survived that day?
He crept further inside. The sheol were still nowhere to be seen but that didn’t stop a strange sense of dread from itching its way into his gut. His sense revealed nothing, but the feeling still persisted.
Seb squatted and half-heartedly moved some of the rocks out of the way. All of the books he found were beyond use. Even those that had remained intact had been washed through by rainwater, the ancient texts corrupted beyond reading.
Moving towards the perimeter of the room, where the bookcases had fallen backwards against the walls, he didn’t fare any better. Instead of the elements it was fire that had done its work here. The wood was largely black and charred, with nothing remaining of the books but shrivelled fragments of paper and vellum.
He had largely given up and was turning back towards the door when he caught sight of something in the bookcase in the far corner. This one had fared no better than the others - burned beyond use - but it was the second shelf down that drew him in. He stepped closer.
Odd.
The books were all there, still in place, but obviously ruined by water. But in the middle of them, obvious by its very size and shape, was a large book-sized gap in the middle.
What were the odds?
He ran his finger across the spines. Most he couldn’t read, but on a few the title was just about visible, including the book before the space and the book after.
Origins - After Temperos.
And after the space -
Origins - Finding the Weave.
His skin broke out in gooseflesh.
Where the hole was for Origin: Before the Forge, only a blank hole remained.
Someone had taken it. Someone had taken the book.
CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR
The journey back to Sanctuary had been tricky at best. With nearly twenty magi in tow, all of them young and frightened, herding them through the world of the Unaware towards the nearest Way had been an exercise in frustration. Even Barach was a challenge. Covered in dried red blood, he drew several curious expressions as he walked through the streets of Manchester, slumped across Sylph for support. Sylph gave her best don’t ask look, just praying that passers-by would assume he was just a drunk who’d gotten into a bar fight, and not someone worthy of police attention.
Thankfully, they made it out of the city and arrived at the Way relatively unscathed. A handful of the magi simply fled into the woods at the sight of the portal, and Sylph had let them go willingly. She didn’t have the time nor the resources to catch them. She didn’t blame them, either. They’d seen enough. They hadn’t signed up for this, is what they’d said. And so they just ran, taking their chances on their own.
As they’d approached the vast cavern entrance, hidden in the side of a quarry near Masham Tarn, the shadows around the bushes had shimmered with movement. For a heart-stopping minute Sylph thought the sheol had found them. Then she’d seen the yellow eyes glinting in the gloom and breathed a massive sigh of relief.
‘Cade! Thank Balor!’
The warrior glided out of the dark, surrounded by ten of his warriors. He could barely hide the shock on his face when he saw the sea of magi, bloodied and battered, Sylph at the front. Barach stepped up beside Sylph, clutching his arm. Cade regarded him for an instant, but when the mage did not offer any words he settled back on Sylph.
‘What the hell happened?’
‘Let’s just get inside.’
Cade’s eyes widened.
‘What? These…magi?’
‘Yes, Cade. All of them. This is all that’s left of Domus, perhaps all of the Families.’
That shut him up.
‘Let them in, Cade. I won’t leave them. Not now. We need them.’
Cade was looking amongst the magi, his eyes moving more furtively with every second.
‘Where is he?’
‘Seb?’
‘Yeah.’
‘I don’t know.’
‘Is he dead?’
‘No, I don’t know. At least, I don’t think so.’
‘What does that mean?’
This was starting to piss her off. ‘Cade, are you going to let us in or are we all going to stay out here and freeze to death?’
CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE
‘And you’re sure?’ Gough said, turning back from the fireplace. ‘Sedaris has been possessed?’
Sylph took another long drink of the healing draught Gough had given her, the tonic already working wonders on the various cuts that split her skin. She pulled the blanket tighter around her, and nodded. ‘I couldn’t tell at first, none of us could. But Seb saw through his disguise. For some reason he could see Sedaris for what he was. Some kind of sheol, apparently.’
‘Who helped him?’ There were no other sheol, you said, apart from the giant daemon,’ Gough said.
‘The Ninth.’
It wasn’t Sylph that had responded. All heads turned to the corner, where until that point Barach had sat in silence.
‘How do you know?’ Gough said.
‘They had the audacity to wear their own smocks. They obviously didn’t expect anyone to escape.’
‘It could’ve been another Family looking to frame the Ninth?’
‘It was them,’ Barach growled. ‘I confirmed it when I ripped the mind of one of their fallen.’
‘Do we know what he wants?’ Cade said.
Barach scowled across at the warrior. Cade raised an eyebrow.
‘Mage, you are here as our guest. Many did not want you here, and others wished for something more severe to be inflicted upon you,’ Gough said, his voice hardening. ‘However I do not believe you are evil to the core. Misguided, yes, but evil, I do not think so. However, as a guest you can choose
to either engage with us, or move on. This does not have to be our battle.’
‘I’m afraid that’s not true, whether you want it to be or not,’ Barach replied.
‘How so?’ Cade said.
‘I saw their plan. I know what is it they intend to do.’
‘What is it?’
‘The sheol. Sedaris intends to bring them through to earth. All of them. He plans to open a portal to their world.’
Now it was Shimmer’s turn to show attention, who up until that point had been leaning against the door frame, feigning indifference.
‘How is that even possible?’
‘The Ninth have an ancient Way, deep underneath their fortress. It is sealed with magic modern magi have no knowledge of. This Way is what’s known as the Manyway. It has no fixed end, and is controlled by complex Runic Script. From what the soldier knew, Sedaris was able to activate the Manyway. Sedaris, or whatever he was, called to the sheol, and now they march. To this realm.’
‘I don’t understand,’ Gough said, ‘surely the Consensus will crush them? That many sheol coming through at once?’
‘There is more,’ Barach continued, ‘there was a reason Sedaris massacred the magi like he did, rather than just securing access to the Manyway.’ Barach leant forwards, his eyes suddenly showing fear for the first time. ‘It’s the Consensus. The force that controls reality. Imagine it as a dam, holding together the collective will of the Unaware. Imagine how much power that has.’
‘I don’t understand,’ Gough said, looking to each person in the room for guidance but only getting equally blank responses in return.
‘What controls the Consensus?’ Barach said.
‘The Spoke Stones,’ Cade replied.
‘And who protects each of the Spoke Stones?’
Gough gasped. Cade cursed.
‘The Families,’ Sylph said.
‘The very Families that Sedaris has just annihilated.’
‘He’s after them. After the Spoke Stones,’ Gough said.
‘And without the magi to protect them, he’ll be able to get them all,’ Barach said.
Cade shot off his feet. ‘It can’t be that simple. He gets them, and then what? What will he do? What can he do?’
‘He effectively controls the Consensus. He brings the sheol through, and instead of them being crushed he uses his new found powers to allow them to enter without restriction.’
‘With the Consensus gone, the sheol would roam free in a world with seven billion bodies ripe for possession.’ Gough slumped into his chair.
The room fell into silence, only the crackle of the fire making any kind of sound. Eventually Barach stood and made for the door. Shimmer barred his way.
‘Are you going to let me leave, white eyes, or am I going to make you move?’ Barach growled.
‘I’d very much like you to try,’ the giant warrior said with a smile that looked like it belonged in a shark’s mouth.
‘Shimmer, stand down, this isn’t getting us anywhere. Barach, where are you going?’
‘To find Sedaris. This is a problem created by the magi. I must deal with it.’
‘Barach, wait!’
The mage stopped, Gough’s voice demanding attention.
‘Is this a problem created by the magi? Yes, it is. Is it something you need to solve on your own? No, most definitely not. If what we think Sedaris intends to do is true, then it affects all of us, all the Aware.’
Barach looked at Cade, as if seeking assurance.
‘Gough speaks sense,’ Cade said. ‘This is an attack on all of us. Mage, Brother, all of the Aware. Hell, even the Unaware. It would be pointless for us to let someone of your talents go out there on your own. Especially since it would only end up with you ending up dead.’
‘Thanks for the sentiment.’
‘Look, let us not lie to each other,’ Cade said. ‘I didn’t like you. I didn’t like pretty much any of you. I felt you were arrogant, blind and elitist. It was the easiest decision in the world to leave your kind behind.’
‘Stop it, you’ll make me cry.’
‘But I don’t hate you. Our views may differ, but we want the same thing. We want this reality safe. Safe from the sheol. Safe from corruption by the Weave. Plus, Sylph has told how you helped rescue many of the acolytes. Without that then I doubt we would see so many here today.’
Barach sighed. His shoulders dropped. He slumped back into his chair. ‘So what do you propose?’
Everyone looked at Cade, who jerked back, startled. ‘What?’
‘Come on, Cade,’ Sylph said, smiling, you always have a plan.’
‘You want to hear what I think?’
Gough tipped his head. ‘I bow to your knowledge on this, I’m learning as we go.’
‘Then it is simple. Sedaris is a threat to us. To all of us. If he’s allied with the Ninth, then they are our enemies too. If he intends to gather the Spoke Stones and bring the sheol through the Manyway, then we have only one option. We strike before he can do so.’
Sylph’s face dropped. ‘Why did I know you were going to say that?’
***
Sylph found Cade on a boulder near the centre of Sanctuary. It had been carved into a bench, and the warrior sat watching a group of children chasing a phantom horse and carriage that an old woman had conjured. They squealed as they ran, screaming in pretend fear when the woman sent the horse chasing after them.
‘You mind if I sit?’ she said.
Cade shuffled up. Sylph sat beside him.
‘Are you okay?’
‘Sure, why wouldn’t I be?’
‘You left straight after the meeting. You seemed…distracted.’
Cade sighed. He leant forwards, his head resting in his hands.
‘I should’ve been there,’ he said. ‘I should’ve been there, at Domus.’
‘Why? It was a bloodbath. You probably wouldn’t have been here today if you had been.’
‘I might’ve been able to do something, perhaps stop it.’
‘It’s Seb, isn’t it?’
The silence answered that question.
‘You couldn’t have done anything for him.’
‘I should’ve been by his side, like he was with me at Skelwith.’
Sylph looked at the warrior. He simply stared forwards.
‘Seb made his own choice. We all made our own choices. He chose to stay. You chose to leave. You both had good reasons, even with the benefit of hindsight.’
Cade looked at her with an eyebrow raised. ‘You sound like Gough. Have you been taking his counselling lessons?’
‘No. Just common sense. You should try it some time.’
Cade grunted. ‘You didn’t see him die, did you?’
‘No. I couldn’t get close. That thing…’ she shuddered… ‘We just couldn’t get close. Barach though, he says he thinks Seb managed to teleport out.’ She looked down. ‘We didn’t see a body, anyway. Although it all happened so quickly.’
‘That’s something I suppose.’
Sylph pulled her coat tighter around her. ‘Is there no heating in this place?’
‘The orb warms up after a while.’
‘What next then? What do we do?’
‘I’m meeting with Barach, Gough and the others shortly. I just needed some time to think.’
‘Barach? You’re letting him come with us?’
‘We need him. He’s not a bad person. Just misguided.’
‘If you say so. Do we have a plan?’
‘I’ve got some ideas. Barach does too. We’ll figure something out.’
‘There’s not many of us that are able to fight. We’ll be going up against the Ninth with all their magi and soldiers. Then there’s Sedaris and that thing.’
‘From what Barach ripped he thinks that many of the Ninth will have been sent through Junction to the other Families. With most of their elites and adepts dead the resistance should be minimal. The last thing they’ll be expecting will be an attack on the Ninth dir
ectly.’
‘Still, there will be some protections. Sedaris will be there, as will that thing that could’ve wiped us all out on its own. With what we have…’ She let it hang in the air.
Cade looked at her. ‘Your point?’
‘It might be a one-way trip.’
Cade turned back, his gaze drawn to the children. They all groaned at once as the woman allowed the horse and carriage to vanish into thin air.
‘It’s better than the alternative.’
CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX
‘I know you’re pissed about the book, Seb, but is this really the answer?’
Caleb hurried after him as they trudged across the lawn. The sun was just cresting the trees, night receding into shadow, the sheol now hidden for the day.
Seb didn’t slow. He carried on marching towards the stone circle. The one where he’d seen Cian train on countless occasions in the past. ‘Someone took it, Caleb. Someone took the one book that could shed light on this. Why?’
‘Just luck? Someone probably had it out when the sheol attacked. It’s probably in there now, just rotten to a pulp.’
‘No. It’s gone. Someone took it. Someone who knew what it contained.’
‘There’s lot of things in the Origins books, they are old and popular tomes.’
‘No. I know it. This is different. Someone took it, and now I’m back to square one.’
They reached the circle. Seb bent down and picked up a loose rune-covered stone, one that had fallen out of the circle. He stopped at the far side, where the only gap in the stones remained, and looked back at Caleb, who’d now sat on a stone bench, breathing heavily.
‘You ready?’ Seb asked.
‘Me?’ Caleb laughed. ‘I’m not the fool who’s trying to resurrect Cian’s old training partner.’
‘The book’s gone. There’s nothing I can do about that. So I need to get back. The others need me.’