The Opal Blade (The Ashen Touch Trilogy Book 1)

by Kristy Nicolle

  Turning from this supernatural wonder, I shift to see what Xion is up to.

  “What are you doing?” I query, looking out over the city below as I take a few steps toward the cinnabrite railing.

  “Looking for the on switch. Sometimes I train up here… I thought some music might help calm you.”

  He’s so thoughtful. Too thoughtful.

  “Oh.” I reply, unable to come up with any other sentiment. I wonder if he realises how he’s coming off. I mean, it’s almost as if he actually likes me or something.

  Surprising myself, I speak without thought,

  “Well, I did promise you a dance.” The words fall from me and he turns, a look of surprise, and then a smile, creeping across his face as sparks fall around us, causing the scarlet sky to dim and our facial features to soften and accentuate.

  “I don’t have anything retro… I know you like that…” He sounds hesitant, but I shrug.

  “That’s okay. Maybe it’s time for something new,” I muse, letting my gaze fall upon the Exilia Multum as my hair is momentarily pulled back from my face, a slight and unexpectedly cool breeze capturing it.

  As Xion fumbles with some kind of music player that’s built into the wall of the building, I begin to wonder whether or not I’ll ever see my home again. If I do escape the Demon Lords what will going back to everyday life be like? I mean, I know for sure that Xion won’t be there. He has a job to do here and a seemingly important one at that. Once I don’t need ‘protecting’ anymore, I guess I just won’t see him around.

  Sound sputters into the air which looks like it’s been subject to a slow-motion firework explosion, and I turn as Firestone, by Kygo, seeps out into the air. Xion steps forward in bare feet across the rooftop, closing the distance between us.

  “Madame?” He holds out a hand, giving me a ridiculously over the top bow.

  “Oh god, I don’t have foot insurance… I’m going to regret this aren’t I?” I joke, reaching out and taking his hand. He pulls me into his body as the modern melody pumps in the air around us. The bass is light but easy to dance to, and soon I’m caught up in a heady concoction of sparks crossing my vision and the scent of pomegranate filling my head.

  He can move. Not like Haedes, but there’s no denying that he can dance despite his usual lack of grace.

  “I’m pleasantly surprised. You’re not bad at dancing,” I admit, smiling up at him and trying to keep things casual.

  “I should be okay at it; I did grow up in the fifties,” he reveals, and I smirk.

  “Some people would call it wrong, an old guy like you dancing with a young pretty thing like me,” I tease him, but as he spins me out from his body, his face turns grim.

  “It is wrong. I’m a demon, Sephy,” he reminds me of this painful truth.

  “You’re still my friend. You’re like Casper the friendly ghost… only… with wicked swirly tattoo things.” I try to comfort him, but he looks suddenly guilty.

  “I’m sorry that you’re having nightmares.” He changes the subject, and I shrug.

  “I’m sorry that you think you’re less of a good person because of who your father is,” I counter, trying to stop him from avoiding the subject. I should know his tactics; after all, I utilise most of them myself.

  “You don’t know what I’ve done,” he replies.

  “You’ve done nothing but be nice to me. That’s what I know. I mean you’re like Mary freaking Poppins with the reheating and the bath and everything…” I tease him again and he laughs.

  “Don’t let my epic microwaving skills fool you. I’m dangerous. That’s okay. It is what it is. But don’t forget that. Please.” He sounds like he’s begging me now.

  “Oh, don’t worry, I still have my asshole detector,” I retort, and he can’t help but smile.

  We dance the rest of the song, surrounded by falling sparks of fire in a multitude of hues, ranging from ruby red to cobalt and then finally to lilac. When the song ends, Xion looks down at me, his molten gaze consuming my field of vision.

  “We should get back inside. If this shower gets any heavier, we’ll be at risk for burns,” he mutters, as if I’ve almost gotten too close to him.

  “Okay,” I sigh, dreading sleep.

  He moves to turn off the music, and I feel myself getting panicked. As he turns to face me, his eyes widen, once again brimming with concern.

  “What’s the matter?” he demands.

  “I’m scared to go back to sleep,” I mumble. I know I sound pathetic, needy and weak. I know that in this moment, I’m losing my grip on what makes me Sephy, but I’m being hunted, and I could die. That’s terrifying, especially to someone who has never truly feared death.

  “I know. It’ll be alright.” He strides over to me, placing a hand on my shoulder and pulling me into his body.

  “It won’t be alright. What if I die? Nobody is going to miss me. Not even my own damn father,” I whisper. Xion snorts.

  “Don’t be so ridiculous. I’d miss you. Who would give me my daily slap of sarcastic disdain if you weren’t around?” he asks, and I laugh.

  How does he do that? Even when I’m flailing, he still manages to make me laugh, even when I don’t want to. “I’ll tell you what, I’ll… suppress your sympathetic nervous system until you fall asleep. How’s that?” he suggests, and I stare at him, totally puzzled.

  “Excuse me? You’ll do what?” It sounds kind of dirty when I think about it, but he merely rolls his eyes.

  “When cattle are slaughtered, they’re forced through a small tube; it stops them panicking or being afraid. The applied pressure on their bodies causes them to relax.” He takes my hand and leads me from the rooftop as my face morphs into a scowl, trying to understand exactly what it is he’s saying.

  “Okay… so I think you just tried to say that you want to hold me until I fall asleep… then again that’s the most freaking creepy way of describing a hug ever… either that, or you just called me a cow… I’m not actually sure,” I retort, feeling paranoid at the explanation. It’s such an odd thing to say.

  “Sorry… I thought you’d find it forward of me if I said hug.” Xion explains, and I sigh. He’s right, I probably would have told him to grow some balls and stop treating me like some damsel in distress.

  “Alright… we’ll try the cow thing. But only until I fall asleep okay?”

  His eyes fill with anxiety, and we walk back into the apartment, under the glow of multiple cobalt sconces, which cause us both to look weary.

  “I promise,” he replies, looking hopeful, and I let myself smile as a feeling of contentedness floods my gut, extinguishing my anxiety faster than I’d thought possible. But why?

  We climb into the hold of the velvet sheets once more, and he holds out an arm for me to crawl under. I lie across his chest, hearing his rapid heartbeat in my ear. He places a hand on the top of my head, and wraps the other around my shoulders, pulling me close.

  I relax into him, inhaling his sweet musk and feeling my eyes begin to droop at his proximity. It’s almost as if he makes me feel safe.

  I know it’s wrong, because I don’t have feelings for him. I’m using him, and I feel guilty, but then again, I’ve used men before when it suited me.

  Why does it bother me so much now?

  Chapter Eighteen

  Come On Baby Light My Fire

  SEPHY

  I’m woken by the sound of a harsh and unapologetically loud knocking at the door. I stir, feeling his weight around me even still.

  Oh crap.

  We must have fallen asleep together, and that is just a little closer than I want to be to any man I have no intention of actually sleeping with. I struggle from his burning limbs, crawling out of his clasp and off the bed. Xion doesn’t wake, which surprises me.

  Some security guard he is.

  I roll my eyes, curious about who could be at the door. As I tread with sleep still fogging my vision, I worry it’s someone who could potentially be a threat, but as the knock
comes again, I realise that I’m probably overreacting. I mean, what kind of demon knocks politely before entering to kill you?

  Grabbing the handle of the door, I pull it open, utterly shocked to find none other than Haedes standing in front of me with a cool expression plastered atop his edgy features.

  “What are you doing here?” I demand, my face falling into an expression not unlike the one I reserve for people who I actively want to punch in the eye.

  “I came to… apologise.” He leans sideways, cocking his angular hip and glancing over my shoulder to where Xion is still asleep on the bed. He looks at me once more, examining my attire, and then his mouth and eye both twitch on the left side of his face, an involuntary response which gives away discomfort.

  “Great. Just what I always wanted. An apology from Haedes, god of being a giant prick.” I slam the door in his face and spin in my fury, finding Xion has finally startled awake behind me.

  “What are you doing?” he exclaims, totally disoriented.

  “Haedes is back. He wants to apologise. So, I slammed the door in his stupid face,” I explain casually, and his eyes widen. Maybe I’m acting like a child, but seeing as how Haedes seemingly is just as immature, I guess it fits.

  “Why did you do that?!” He looks outraged, getting up out of bed and moving swiftly over to the door.

  “Um… because he’s a jackass!” I retort, shocked he doesn’t immediately see my side in all of this. After all, he was the one who went all This is SPARTAAAAA on him only last night.

  Xion takes the length of the apartment too fast, suddenly in front of me with his hands on my shoulders before I have even had a chance to blink.

  “Sephy, I know he’s not the most… pleasant of people. But honestly, I think you might want to listen to him. He is the only one who can teach you to defend yourself,” he’s pleading with me now, like my survival means more to him than it does to me. He walks past me, flinging the door open, only to find Haedes still standing behind it, unmoved, with a bored expression on his face.

  “Hi,” he says again, his eyes, dove grey, glowing a slight electric blue around the rim of his pupils.

  “Sorry about that,” Xion apologises for me, and I narrow my eyes.

  “Why are you apologising for me? I’m not sorry. He’s an asshole!” I turn on my heel, storming over to the couch and sitting down, trying to put as much distance between us as possible now.

  “She’s not wrong. I am an asshole.” Haedes shrugs, stepping over the threshold in his finely tailored black velvet suit. He’s far too suave for a guy with blue hair, and I realise now this should have made me suspicious from the start.

  Crossing my arms across my chest, I prop one foot on my knee and allow my bare foot to bob up and down, trying to indicate that I don’t have all freaking day to waste on hearing his stupid ass apology. Looking at me with an inexpressive stare, he takes a seat in an armchair opposite.

  “This is uh… cosy.” His grey eyes flit between Xion and me, both of us dressed in only underwear and t-shirts, both of which belong to Xion. He looks like he wants to say something, but I deepen my scowl to the point where my face actually begins to ache, and so he simply coughs before continuing. “Look, last night was… it was a disaster. I’m no father; I’m aware of that. But after some serious thought I’ve come to realise that I can at least teach you to master your powers. I owe you at least that much. You can even come back to stay at the Exilia if you wish.” He’s trying to be sincere, but he’s still coming off cold, calculated, almost like this is a business deal and nothing personal at all.

  “You had to seriously think about teaching me how not to die? Gee, father of the year award goes to…” I know it’s spiteful. I know that I’m showing now, more than ever, that perhaps I really had been hopeful for undiscovered family, but still, I can’t help it. I’m furious. “And as for the Exilia, I’m good here thanks. I really don’t fancy being left homeless next time you have a little one of your outbursts,” I add, and he sighs deeply.

  “Very well. But you should still allow me to teach you how to wield The Eternal Flame and convect. It could save your life.” He doesn’t respond to my anger, though I note that the tips of his hair turn slightly orange. I had seen him entirely red headed, like me, last night, but I hadn’t connected the fact he’d been mad then. I must be getting under his skin. I smile.

  “Sephy, I think you should go with him,” Xion pleads once more with his gaze, and between the two of them, I feel utterly backed into a corner. I don’t want to go, but I know, as I have known for a while now, that in this world it doesn’t matter what I want.

  “Fine,” I bite out, pissed off beyond what I’d thought possible for being awake merely moments. “I don’t even know why the Demon Lords want me dead so damn badly, but it’s really starting to get on my nerves,” I announce, and Haedes smirks a little at this.

  “I can imagine. As for why they want you dead I’d say it’s some sort of ploy to get to me; though I can’t say what or why.”

  “Well, neither can I. It’s not like they can use me against you. You’d have to give a shit for them to do that.” My words cut him visibly like a knife, and he sighs once more.

  “Either that or they simply want to kill you for parts; demi-gods have all the powers of a god with the bonus of mortal bone, flesh and blood, plus you’re weaker than a full-blown god, easier to pick off.” He cocks his head.

  “Well that’s just grand; I’m a demon Happy Meal.” I roll my eyes, my heart beating louder and louder in my chest the longer I’m talking to him. He certainly isn’t a bringer of light or good news in any sense of the word. In a way, I can see why he got put in charge down here. He’s brooding and cynical as they come, tortured even.

  “I’ll meet you outside,” he relinquishes, but I glare at him with an irritated expression, pursing my lips hard.

  “No, take me to my suite now. I don’t have anything to wear here. This is as good as it’s going to get.” I gesture down at my makeshift night clothes, and he raises one eyebrow.

  “Oh, right, of course.” He clearly hadn’t thought about the fact that he’d left me without any form of clothing, personal artefact or otherwise. He takes my hand, pulling me toward the space near the kitchen.

  “Hold your breath,” he instructs. I open my mouth to ask why, but before I can, my lungs are full of smoke and my eyes are streaming. The world is closing in around me, warping and twisting in a bright and paranormal cobalt light. I feel like I’m going to suffocate, until suddenly, in an instant, I fall forward. My hands don’t hit the kitchen floor. Instead, they bury between lush blades of green grass.

  As I sputter, I wonder if I’ve somehow been brought back to the mortal world, but as I try to draw breath by leaning back on my haunches, I find that the sky above is still bloody, and the sun still ultraviolet in its unending burn.

  “I did warn you,” Haedes breathes out, grabbing my wrist and trying to help pull me to my feet as I continue to splutter.

  “You call that a warning? What the hell was that?!” I yell, confused beyond anything. I see charred marks in a ring around Haedes feet where he’s stood on a quartz lined path, and look up behind him to find the Exilia towering over us both.

  “We convected. Travelled back via fire.”

  So that’s what convecting is. I realise, finally finding my feet and catching my breath, purposefully pulling away from Haedes’ attempt at aid.

  “Where the hell are we?” I look around, stood in Xion’s clothes as I turn on the spot, and the baggy cotton tickles my skin. It’s cooler here for some reason, and I can hear trickling, like running water.

  “This… this was your mother’s.” He’s reaching out to me, trying to be kind, or so it would seem, but I’m wondering how he thinks bringing up the fact that my mother had an affair with another man will be helpful. He might have loved her, but I loved her too, and I loved my father, Adam Sinclair.

  “She… grew all this?” I gape around at t
he green grass, the tall luscious trees which boast a variety of red fruits, and flower bushes which blossom sweet smelling floral varieties. When I take a closer look though, I see a more lethal light to the beauty of it all; poison ivy, deadly nightshade and water hemlock can also be spotted, hiding among the camouflage of lush benign green.

  “Yes, I made her a space for gardening, created a fresh water spring to make the soil fertile for her. Even in this place, she managed to nurture things to life, to make them grow where others have failed.” He doesn’t sound nostalgic, just heartbroken with a chill edge of formality.

  “It’s beautiful.” I compliment the space, not for him, but for her, before turning to face him and realising that whether I like it or not, he’s in my life right now. Maybe, just maybe, my mom would want us to at least try and get along. I mean, clearly, she saw something in him. Maybe it’s just buried deeper now she’s gone.

  “Can you teach me to do that thing… you know, convect?” I ask him, and he nods.

  “I don’t see why not, but first we need to get you producing the flame at will.” He’s all business again as he shuffles in his shiny shoes and kicks the gravel like a small fidgety child.

  I look to the exit but merely find a gate, shackled in chains and heavy duty looking locks. Clearly, this isn’t a space he lets anyone frequent.

  “I’d like to get dressed so we can begin.” I try to keep momentum, not wanting to stop in this living momento mori of my mother.

  “Very well.” Haedes once again takes my hand, but this time I’m ready. Holding my breath, I let the fire consume us both as we convect out of the living past and into my very uncertain future.

  “Focus!” Haedes barks, sipping yet another glass of whisky as I hold out my hands for the millionth time this hour. My hair is yanked up in a high pony tail, and my yoga pants and black sports bra are soaked in sweat.