Cold Front

by Nikolai Joslin

  “We may be able to get some answers that way before talking to them. Maybe we weren’t supposed to talk to the monks. Maybe we were supposed to find something there. We don’t really know, is all I’m saying.”

  “I don’t know if that’s a good idea,” Cam said cautiously. “It could ruin any future relationship if they found out. It’s best if we’re upfront with them.” Cam was watching Regan curiously, probably because she was thinking the same thing I was. Why would she suggest that? It didn’t make any sense in any scenario.

  “Nah, these guys looked tough. I don’t think we should try and pull anything on them. I think we go in and be very nice and hope they don’t find us threatening,” Wulf said gruffly.

  I expected Ston to say something, but he remained silent and pretended to look disinterested, but I caught his sideways glances at Regan. None of us could fathom where she got this idea.

  She must have noticed how we were all acting toward her because she crossed her arms and said, “I can’t explain it. I don’t feel right going there. The closer I get the more wrong I feel.”

  It was strange because I felt the opposite. I could practically feel my body buzzing. “I think that it will be safer to meet them before doing anything rash,” I said before looking back to the map. I could hear Regan huff angrily, but she didn’t say anything else.

  About five minutes later, we turned a corner and there it was. We entered what reminded me of a very wide bowl. It was a large, grassy clearing with high mountain walls. On the far side of the meadow, high above us, there was what one could mistake for a palace built into the rock. On either side of the monastery was a worn carving of some winged beast, but I couldn’t figure out what it was.

  Is it a phoenix? Cinder had lost his puppy-like excitement and instead was in the same stunned awe as the rest of us.

  Maybe. Whatever it is, it’s very old. It may not even exist anymore. I can’t even tell what it is. All I can see is a vague shape and wings. Maybe they aren’t even wings. Maybe they’re weapons.

  Every now and then, the orange light in the windows that had been carved into the rock would flicker, I would assume from someone walking in front of it.

  “It’s a long walk up. We should get started,” Ston said after a moment of silent staring at the sight before us.

  I nodded but couldn’t take my eyes off it as I walked toward the steps.

  We had to walk single file up the steps. Cinder led the way with Ston and then Cam behind him. I was following Cam, and Regan was just behind me with Wulf bringing up the rear.

  “What gods do they worship here?” Regan asked as we finally reached the carving. You could see a worn line across it from where people had run their hands along it.

  “Perhaps they aren’t gods,” Ston said, reaching out to touch it. “I’ve never seen a depiction of a god look so… horrific. Even with only this much left, it’s still quite intimidating.”

  “Perhaps it’s the demons. Maybe they don’t believe the Old Ones are the true gods and stick to the old ways. I’ve heard of people who believe that, but I’ve never met them before,” I murmured.

  “Or maybe it’s something real, like an animal or something,” Wulf grumbled. I couldn’t believe that he refused to acknowledge the Old Ones even after all of this.

  “I don’t know if we should be here, Casey.” Regan’s voice quivered. “This place is putting me on edge. Have you ever walked too close to a bear cave?”

  How could she feel that? My blood was on fire, and I felt like I could take on the world. I swore I could hear a bird’s wings from high above us and feel animals below us. “Have you?” I asked almost breathlessly, unable to really focus.

  “Well, no, but I’d imagine it was like this. Whatever it is Wulf’s vision was about, this isn’t good.”

  “I can hear you,” Wulf said loudly. “And whatever it is I saw, it was important. I’m pretty sure at least. It would make sense if you only saw important stuff, right?”

  “So you don’t know?” Regan almost shouted. I turned around to see Regan facing Wulf, her hands clenched into fists at her sides and her entire body shaking. “We could be here for nothing!”

  I reached out and touched her shoulder, “Regan—”

  She jerked away from me and looked over her shoulder at me. Her eyes were as wide as saucers and her face pale. “I shouldn’t be here, Casey,” she whispered. “And he doesn’t even know if there’s anything here. We should go.”

  “You’re right, you should.” A sharp, clear voice came from behind me.

  We all turned to see a young man in gold robes standing at the top of the steps. I had been so focused on everything else that I hadn’t realized how close we were to the top.

  “Who are you?” Ston asked suspiciously.

  “You don’t need to know my name. I have come to tell you to turn back, go home. There’s nothing for you here,” the man said. The robes left his right arm bare, showing off toned muscles. Wulf had been right. This wasn’t someone I wanted to get into a fistfight with.

  I carefully maneuvered myself around Cam, Ston, and Cinder while I spoke. “We’re not actually sure of that. We were hoping to talk to someone in charge. We’re in a little bit of trouble down there, you see—”

  “Yes, you’re in the middle of a war. And I’m telling you that we cannot help. We do not have any weapons or money you could want from us. We would simply like to worship in peace. We devote our lives to this place and what goes on inside of it. Your politics and wars are not a part of our world anymore.”

  “What exactly is it that you worship, though? Perhaps it is important. Maybe something here could help us. If I could just speak to someone in charge—”

  “You are. I wouldn’t let the others come to meet you. I was afraid you would distract them from our studies here. I am the one in charge that you so desperately want to talk to.” It didn’t escape my notice that he avoided the first question.

  “You’re in charge? You’re what, early twenties?” Wulf piped up from the back.

  “Twenty-four. We have books. None of them will help you in your war. They are handwritten history books. We also have paints, but I doubt they will be of much aid. Or perhaps you are looking for bitter vegetables and fruits we have stored, but they aren’t enough for an army. I could give you a set of robes, though they’re not exactly flattering. I would offer you meat, but the strangely harsh weather has scared off many of the animals so we need what we have. We don’t have much more than faith here, so I suggest you save your time and leave now.”

  “But—”

  “I don’t want to have you removed, but I will not allow you to enter Liun. You can either leave peacefully, or I can have you thrown out, and I mean that quite literally,” he said calmly.

  I looked past him and saw a beefy man in red robes watching us intently. I made a mental note of the monastery’s name and nodded. “I understand.”

  Ston grabbed my wrist and started speaking in a low voice. “Casey, we came all this way, we can’t just—”

  “We’re not welcome, Ston. They won’t let us in. There’s nothing we can do.” I turned back to the man in gold. “Thank you for your time. We’ll be on our way.” I waved my hand at everyone else, signaling for us to leave.

  I SPENT the entire way back trying to think of a way to get back into Liun, but I couldn’t come up with a plan. The only entrance as far as I could tell was the one we had tried to go in. It was built into the mountain, meaning that we couldn’t come in from any other way unless we carved our own tunnel through the mountain.

  We got back before dinner. Liam was still in meetings, so the rest of us returned to the house we had been allowed to stay in—except for Cinder who went off to play with some of the children.

  Regan was oddly quiet and went to take a nap when we got back, and it didn’t take Cam long to realize that I didn’t want to talk much. I went to the desk in the room Regan and I shared and started brainstorming a way to get back int
o Liun.

  I ended up skipping dinner trying to come up with an idea and instead came up empty.

  While everyone was still at dinner, I stood up and released all my frustration into one furious yell as I swept my papers onto the floor, thankful that dinner was outside and noisy enough to cover my outcry.

  “My my, sounds like someone is a little stressed out.” A cool voice came from the doorway.

  I looked up to see Jaysun leaning against the frame. He was inspecting his nails and humming something under his breath. “Why are you here?”

  “I told you, the monks are going to be useless. I can give you what you want. Well, what you need. It’s going to change the entire war. Don’t you want what the monks are guarding?” His green eyes flicked up to meet mine and a sly smile crossed his face.

  “If it’s coming from you, probably not,” I snapped.

  “Don’t lie. I know what you felt when you were getting close. You felt powerful. It was like taking Clerstan again, wasn’t it?”

  My blood ran cold, and I could feel icy fear twist in my stomach. “What?”

  “You felt like you were filled to the brim with power. Your senses were heightened. Your entire being was begging for some action, something to give you a reason to test it out. You felt like more than little Casey Kelley, didn’t you?” I refused to say anything, which ironically answered his question. His twisted grin only grew, and then he said in a hushed whisper, “Maybe because you are.”

  “What are you talking about?” This was who I was. There was nothing more to me.

  “Take a walk. Go just outside the gates. I’ll meet you there, and we can talk a little more.” He disappeared.

  I didn’t want to go, but I couldn’t seem to stop my feet from moving or my mouth from saying I was just taking a walk when I saw the guards at the gate.

  And sure enough, Jaysun was yawning by a tree. “Took you long enough.”

  “What is it you can give me?”

  “Honestly, I can’t give you anything. All I can do is lead you to it. Do you want it?” He was teasing now, trying to get me to play his little game.

  “Go to hell,” I hissed.

  “Oh, honey, you’ve already put me here. Now, tell me, do you want it?”

  I grit my teeth but couldn’t help but say yes.

  “Then say it.”

  “Say what?”

  But I already knew what he meant. The word Cam had warned me about before we had left. The older, darker word for the underfae. The word with power. The one that burned in my blood the closer we got to Liun.

  “I won’t tell you again, Casey. If you want it, you have to say it.”

  “Draaz,” I whispered breathlessly, finally feeling the weight of the word leaving me.

  The second the word left my mouth, a screech shattered the air. I clapped my hands over my ears and dropped to the ground, afraid that the overwhelming sound alone would kill me. I looked up to see Jaysun stretching his arms out and throwing his head back in laughter before fading into nothingness.

  And then something large and gold landed in his place.

  Chapter 18

  I COULD hear people shouting and running toward me, but I barely registered it. Instead I was a little too busy looking at what was in front of me.

  Its scales were like gold, and it was as large as a house, having crushed a few trees in its landing. Its wings were tucked close to its sides, and I could hear its heavy breathing. It lifted a lip and snarled at me, showing long, curved, impossibly sharp teeth.

  A dragon.

  I was looking at a dragon.

  “You have called me from death, human. I should kill you for that alone,” he hissed.

  “I-I-I had no idea,” I stuttered out.

  Regan was first on the scene, sprinting toward me and calling my name. She broke through the trees, looked up toward the golden beast, and skidded to a stop so fast she ended up on the ground. “What the fuck is that!”

  Cam was next. She didn’t see Regan on the ground and tripped over her leg, ending up on her stomach in front of the dragon’s shimmering claws that dug into the earth. She slowly looked up and scrambled back. “Casey,” she said in a hushed voice, “what did you do?”

  Cinder came through next, leaping over Regan and Cam toward me, already knowing the situation, and stopped between me and the dragon. Are you hurt?

  No was all I could say.

  Ston and Liam came next, with an army of elves at their back, and I saw Wulf in the mix of them, but he shrank back at the sight of the dragon. Obviously this had been what his vision had been about.

  “Why am I here, human?” His mouth didn’t move with the words, and yet his voice was loud and demanding for all to hear. It was strangely similar to the way Cinder and I talked. He spoke with his mind, only he broadcast it for all to hear.

  “I-I-I don’t know. I said—”

  “I know what you said!” He snapped his teeth threateningly. “You have said the ancient name of my kind. The fact that you knew the word at all is surprising. It is reserved for those who can do no harm with it, the dead. Like that one.” He looked to Cam who avoided his gaze. “I thought my blood had been diluted enough to no longer matter, and yet here I am. So tell me why you have called me to this forsaken place!”

  “I don’t know how I know the word,” I breathed, feeling a mixture of fear and impossible power surging through me.

  He let out a puff of smoke and made an irritated noise. “Do you know nothing about us? Have we died in your history?”

  “Dragons are myths. They aren’t in our history. They are in our children’s stories,” I whispered.

  He lowered his head so it was level with mine. “Do I look like a children’s story?” I shook my head, and he raised himself up again. “It is obvious your kind has chosen to forget about their history with us, which isn’t surprising given what you did to us. So, let me tell you the truth and you can decide if I’m still just a myth you use to scare children.

  “Long ago there were many dragons. Of course your kind, along with the elves, tried to wipe us out. They very nearly succeeded as well. When our numbers fell dangerously low, we met with your leaders to establish peace. There were some who wanted to kill these leaders, and every last one of those who had hunted us, but most of us agreed that a truce was all that would save our race. So in exchange for our lives, we shared our blood.

  “Five of us gave our blood to an elf or human. The ones who disagreed with this disappeared. These men and women used our blood to obtain positions of power. I gave mine to a young mage who went on to do great things and tried quite hard to help my kind. Another one of us gave their blood to a mage as well. Over time this blood was diluted and lost most of its power.

  “And I suppose you came along. I can see it in you: my blood and one of my friend’s in you. Your family is drawn to one another through this; they gravitated toward each other because of it. On one side of your family you have a long history of my blood, and on the other it is quite diluted. However, you have a natural affinity to using it. You have a lot of power in you. It’s quite surprising that after all this time I can still affect young mages like you. Though I believe you are the only one in many hundreds of years to have been affected this much.” He looked down at me curiously.

  “And the other dragons? What happened to them?” I asked.

  He cast a look over in Regan and Cam’s direction. “They also gave their blood to three humans and one elf. The elf used the power to find the secret to create the ritual that changed them. The humans were supposed to bring chaos to the human world, and they did very well. At times my friends and I worried about how long your races would last.

  “While we were focused on your survival, we forgot about our own. Those who had left returned and attacked while our guard was down. We barely won, and our numbers were significantly lowered. The leader of these traitors was named Arok. His blood runs through that one’s veins.” I followed his gaze, and my eyes la
nded on Regan.

  Her eyes were wide, and she looked toward me and shook her head. “Casey, what’s he talking about?”

  “What’s in her blood doesn’t change her heart. She’s done a lot of good,” I argued.

  “You should not be with her, child. She can only turn on you. It is in her nature,” he said coldly.

  “She hasn’t betrayed me yet. Our blood was never an issue before you said anything. Whatever is in her or me, we are stronger than it.” I lifted my chin and hoped I looked more confident than I felt.

  “Perhaps.” He seemed done talking about the past now and instead flexed his enormous feet, digging his claws deeper into the earth. It reminded me of a cat kneading a couch. “What is it you want, human?” he asked again.

  “We are fighting a war against many of the dark elves and underfae. The underfae—”

  “I know very well what the underfae are. I was there when they were created, long before your kind was ever even an idea. The underfae are what your kind named them, but for eons they went by our name. Am I to understand you want help in this war?”

  “Please,” I whispered, unable to help but feel ashamed.

  He let out another puff of smoke. “Move, dog,” he said. I could feel Cinder’s anger at being called that, but he moved anyways. The dragon reached out toward me with a claw half the size of me and stopped just inches from my chest. “I can restore some of the power in my blood, not much, but a little. Are you sure it’s what you desire?”

  “Yes,” I said, straightening up slightly. Any help I could get would be worth whatever price I had to pay.

  “Your people always surprise me with their determination and resilience,” he said before tapping me with the point of his claw.

  I collapsed to the ground once more as the intense rush of Life Force surged through me.

  “Come here,” the dragon growled.

  I couldn’t move and my vision was coming in and out, but I could see Regan slowly move toward him. I wanted to tell her to stop, but I couldn’t find the words.