by Simone Pond
“Are you supernatural?” Charlotte asked.
“I’m a white witch,” she said, grinning with pride.
“So what information do you have?” I asked.
Geneva kept her gaze on me. “You’re the most-wanted woman in the city, missy.”
“I kinda figured that,” I said. “We need to get out of here and find those Scrolls. So, are you here to help us?”
“You won’t be going anywhere.”
Laughing, because I hoped she was using her witty humor again, I said, “Sure, no problem. I’ll just stay put while Cagliostro destroys what’s left of humanity. But could you bring me a change of clothes? I feel a bit overdressed.”
She smiled and her eyes shifted from a watery blue to a magnificent silver, then rays of light shot from them directly at me. My body jerked and twitched, heat burned across my chest. The old witch was killing me. I wanted to scream, but I was paralyzed from the inside out.
When the sizzling ripples of heat finally stopped, Geneva rubbed her hands together in delight.
“Perfect!” she said.
Charlotte and Rocco stared at me, their eyes bugging out.
I glanced down at my body. I was no longer wearing the beautiful blush gown. My legs weren’t even my own. I studied my hands and chest. She had turned me into a man. A rather bulky and muscular one at that.
“That’s impressive,” Charlotte said, gawking.
I tried to see my reflection in the chrome walls, but all I could see was smudges of a silhouette. “Is this permanent?”
“Of course not,” Geneva said. “You have about two hours. I suggest you use them wisely.”
“What about them?” I asked.
“I’ll get to them,” she said.
She went to work on the others, while I tried not to worry about Asher. I had to believe he was okay. That was the only way I’d be able to focus on what we had to do.
“Do you have any information for us?” I asked the old woman.
“Instructions will be sent to your phone,” she said.
“What sort of instructions?”
“Directions to the Protectors.”
“What about the Scrolls?”
“We don’t know. That’s on your end, Protector,” Geneva said.
If we could get to the other Protectors, then maybe the seven of us would be able to locate the Scrolls using the power of our magical Armor. Together we’re stronger.
I grabbed the sequined clutch off the floor and dumped its contents onto the bed. A lip gloss, the business card with Thomas’s number, and the burner phone. Sure enough, Somer had texted exact directions to the location where Cagliostro was keeping the other Protectors.
Geneva put the finishing touches on Rocco. The three of them were now wearing tattered and filthy linens. Bruises and cuts covered their pallid faces and their skin was nearly translucent and hanging from their bones. The white witch had disguised me as a guard and the others as prisoners.
“You’ll take the tunnels,” Geneva said. “They’ll lead you straight to the facility. A fish warehouse on the northeast part of the city. Once you’re inside, you take these three to the nearest guard and request help getting them back to their cell. The guard will take you right to the other Protectors.”
It sounded like a solid plan. Now all we had to do was get to the fish warehouse, find the other Protectors and escape from the facility—in under two hours.
twenty-six
We walked through the maze of chrome houses all the way to the end of the labor camp, where we found the manhole leading to the underground tunnels. The disguises were convincing. Not only had the white witch made them look malnourished and anemic, she had also turned Rocco and Charlotte into men in their mid-thirties, and Soraya into a young woman in her mid-twenties. Charlotte kept laughing every time I spoke, saying my disguise was too convincing.
The tunnel smelled worse than outside, and I’m pretty sure we were walking through all the sewage of the entire city. Somer’s text gave specific measurements for turning points and such, so we couldn’t use our Armor speed, otherwise we’d lose track of the directions. I had to concentrate on counting steps. The others stuck to limited conversation and mouth-breathing to avoid smelling the toxic stench.
“Can’t your shields protect us from this disgustingness?” Charlotte asked.
“Worth a try,” Rocco said, lifting his arm to call on his shield.
But nothing happened.
I stopped so I wouldn’t lose count. “What’s going on?”
“Armor ain’t workin’ for some reason,” Rocco replied.
Soraya called on her sword, but absolutely nothing. “Mine is down, too.”
We were up shit creek without a single weapon. “It has to be the disguises. I’m sure once they wear off, the Armor will be operational. What about you, Charlotte?”
Charlotte—now resembling a lanky fellow with shaggy hair and sunken cheeks—lifted her hands, palms facing up. She closed her eyes, but not a single spark of pink healing light appeared.
“Nada,” she said.
“Well, let’s hope we don’t run into any trouble or need any healing along the way. Let’s keep moving. We have less than two hours, and according to this text it’s gonna take at least an hour to get there, if we walk fast.”
After two thousand and eighty-eight steps, we came upon another tunnel perpendicular to our orientation. The text instructed us to turn right and keep going another mile, a little over five thousand feet.
“I wish one of us had one of those step counter things. This is tough,” I said.
“We can take turns counting,” Charlotte suggested.
I was ready for a break and needed to zone out for a bit, so I let Rocco take over. Plus, I needed to talk to Charlotte about Asher. I was sick to my stomach over what had happened. “Do you think he’s okay? He’s with the Monarchy, right? That wasn’t evil that took him away.”
“I know for a fact he’s fine,” she said.
“A fact?”
“Okay, maybe not a fact, but he’ll be okay. I mean, he found you in that insane desert of Cagliostro’s. And didn’t you say he was a prince? They probably needed him to help keep things in order up there.”
Soraya seemed distant and detached as we trekked through the tunnels. I figured she was worried about her daughter.
“You doing okay, Soraya?” I asked.
Turning to me, she appeared as a young woman with blond hair that was matted in dreadlocks, dark circles under her pale eyes. I couldn’t see an inkling of the striking brunette woman I had come to know.
“Oh, I’m okay, I guess … That orb must’ve done a number on me. I don’t know how it happened. Why it happened. They shouldn’t have hit me. I should’ve been protected,” she mumbled in a frenzy.
“It’s not like any of us could control what was coming at us. You didn’t get your shield up in time, that’s all,” I assured her.
She released a heavy sigh and forced a smile. “Yes, you’re right. I just feel a bit off. I haven’t felt right since Charlotte healed me. I’m worried there was permanent damage.”
“We’ll get to the other Protectors soon. I’m sure between all of us, we can fix you right up.” I gave her an encouraging pat on the back, causing her to jerk away in surprise.
“Whoa. You okay?” I asked.
“Sorry, I’m having some strange after-effects,” she said. “But I’ll be okay. Everything will be okay. It will all be okay.”
“Ladies, I’m at fifteen hundred. I need a break,” Rocco said.
“I’ll count,” Soraya volunteered.
Something told me that wasn’t a good idea; the woman was a mess. She might have us turn down one of the wrong tunnels.
“Why don’t you rest your mind? I’ll count,” I said in a way that made it very clear it wasn’t a suggestion.
She didn’t argue, instead she trailed behind the rest of us a few yards. I stayed quiet and counted in my head, trying hard
not to drift into thoughts of Asher. The next phase of this mission was going to require everything I had in me. Many lives were at stake, not only Protectors, but what remained of humanity. If we didn’t get to the others and find those Sacred Scrolls, Cagliostro would eventually figure out a way to get to Ezra’s dimension, then the Monarchy.
twenty-eight
We made our final turn down one of the last tunnels, and not a second too soon. I could actually feel the sewage seeping into my pores and knew it was going to take a lot of hot showers before I ever felt clean again.
“Twelve hundred more steps,” Charlotte said.
Though I should’ve been relieved, something definitely didn’t feel right. Sure we were about to enter a danger zone with heightened security, but something else was clawing away at me. Enough to make me stop in my tracks.
“Hold on,” I said.
Rocco turned around, eyeing me. “What’s up, Farrow?”
“Something isn’t right.”
“Well, no kiddin’. We’re walkin’ in shit into a shit storm.”
“I know that, but I feel like … I don’t know. Maybe we should turn back and go down another tunnel. Sneak into the warehouse another way.”
Soraya ambled over to me with her frail young girl disguise and took my manly hand, holding it gently with her bony fingers. “We don’t have much time. These disguises are going to wear off soon. This could be our only chance.”
Charlotte stayed out of the conversation, knowing it was better to let the three Protectors debate the particulars. But I wanted her opinion. Maybe I was being paranoid—I had been known to go overboard with overthinking things. However, I had also made some pretty dumb moves in the past, like trusting her succubus sister and then being tricked into thinking Cagliostro was Charlotte. Sure, I had the gift of discernment, but sometimes this supernatural crap was a real mind fuck.
“What do you think, Char?” I couldn’t look at her because seeing my best friend as a man in his thirties was too distracting.
“I say trust your instincts. If you don’t think it’s safe, let’s find another way.”
Both Rocco and Soraya shook their heads in adamant disagreement. I understood why Soraya was determined to get inside; she wanted to save her daughter, Hayden. But Rocco didn’t have anybody to save. In fact, he was taking a huge risk because all Cagliostro needed was his blood to unlock the Scroll he already had in his possession. I was the biggest flight risk, though. If I got captured, my Scroll completed the set.
“Why don’t Rocco and I stay back since Cagliostro needs us the most?” I suggested.
“You’re joking, right?” Charlotte asked, laughing.
Soraya squeezed my hand. “I implore you, Fiona. We must stick together. It’s a terrible idea to separate. Together we’re stronger.”
Upon hearing those words, I released a stale chestful of air and nodded. “Okay, I just got spooked. You’re right, together we’re stronger. And if we can’t use our Armor, we can still use the Logos.”
We continued trudging through the tunnel, none of us speaking for fear of being heard. The closer we got to the exit, the tighter my throat got, like some invisible creature had a noose around my neck. Rocco plowed on ahead and stopped under the exit latch.
“You should go first, Farrow. Just in case we got company waitin’ for us,” he said.
I climbed up the iron ladder and used all my strength to move the covering, but the thing barely budged. “Gonna need some help,” I grunted. “I guess these disguises don’t actually match their outward appearances.”
Rocco climbed up the ladder and the two of us shoved and heaved until the cover shifted up and over. He had to go up ahead of me to get the lid fully off to the side. After he was out of the hole, I pulled myself up to the ground floor. The stench of fish made my eyes water, but it was better than the sewage below.
When I got to my feet, I froze. My heart did a triple flip, then bellyflopped into my gut. Rocco was standing next to a guard, with a gun aimed at the back of his head.
I didn’t wait for questioning, I just went right into our act.
“Caught the little bastard trying to escape,” I said. “Had to chase the rat for quite a while in those rotten-stinking tunnels.” I shoved Rocco’s shoulder.
The guard nodded. “Don’t know how these worms keep finding their way out of the cells.” Then he clocked Rocco’s skull with the butt of his gun, causing him to sway and nearly pass out.
“I got it from here,” I told the guard.
“That’s okay. You get cleaned up, I’ll deal with him.”
No. No. Fucking no! I didn’t want to sound desperate and make myself look any more suspicious than we already might’ve looked.
I laughed and patted the guard hard on the shoulder. “I got this one, buddy. I wanna show him my appreciation for making me get my boots dirty.”
He looked down at my boots and at that very moment the magic spell was starting to wear off. My black combat boots shimmered ever so slightly to reveal my bare feet. When I glanced up at the guard, he now had the gun on me.
“You think I’m stupid or something? You supernatural sons-of-bitches always lurking around trying to pull your magic bullshit. Wait till the boss hears about this one. Posing as a guard.”
Slowly, I inched toward him. “Don’t know what you’re talking about, dude. I just wanna get this punk back into his cell before the bossman finds out.”
“Bullshit,” he yelled.
Rocco shoved the guard, distracting him for a second. I batted the gun from his hand, then kicked him in the gut. My Armor strength was starting to return because he flew back and smashed into the wall.
Rocco motioned down the hall to a group of men heading in our direction. A bullet whizzed by our heads, the loud pop echoing through the warehouse. We had to get out of there. Another gunshot fired, hitting Rocco in the leg. He dropped. The Armor wasn’t at full capacity yet. We had no protection against the men. Another shot rang out.
From the distance, a familiar voice yelled, “I need them alive, you fools!”
Cagliostro.
Just then, Rocco shoved me down the hole and moved the lid back over. “Run, Farrow. Use the Logos until the Armor resets!”
“I can’t leave you, Rocco!”
“Go now! He’ll keep me alive. Just go!”
I grabbed Charlotte and Soraya, and we tore down the tunnel, not counting our steps. We didn’t look back, but I screamed the Logos repeatedly, hoping the ancient invocation would shield us from any supernatural forces coming our way. I noticed Soraya wasn’t saying the words; she must’ve been in shock. Being so close to her daughter only to fail.
Either the Logos was doing the work, or Cagliostro had other plans for me because nobody chased after us. Maybe they knew they’d catch up to us at another exit. After all, we were like trapped rats down in those tunnels. Or maybe Rocco was sitting on top of the manhole cover refusing to budge. Cagliostro needed Rocco alive, and he probably didn’t want to use his demon mage powers around any human constituents. Not yet any way. Not until he was fully prepared for the big day—the day he’d send his army of slaves and supernatural factions to go to battle against the Monarchy. And with Rocco in his possession, the bastard was one step closer to reaching his goal.
twenty-eight
As we ran through the tunnels, the magic began to wear off and the disguises faded away, leaving us in the clothes we had on earlier. Charlotte and Soraya were in their exotic togas and I was in the sequined gown that was most definitely ruined by that point. But our Armor was working again, and since Cagliostro was well aware of our presence inside his city, using it would no longer be an issue.
I grabbed Charlotte’s hand, squeezing tight, and took off at warp speed. Soraya followed behind. We went as far as we could go, then burst up through the last manhole cover, the metal lid clanging to the cement as it landed.
Looking around, we tried to figure out our location. The Spire stood about a
mile away.
“Where are we?” Charlotte asked.
“I don’t know, but we need to hide before they track us,” I said. “And don’t use the Armor or supernatural anything for now.”
We briskly walked down a path, turning off into a stately park with a vast rose garden. Between the tall bushes of thorny branches and bouquets of exquisite roses, we stopped to discuss a plan. I inhaled the sweet fragrance emanating from the soft petals. Such a wonderful change from the rank air in the tunnels.
Charlotte pointed toward a tower with one flashing red light. “That’s the entrance to the city. I remember it from earlier today. I think we should get back outside to the others. Maybe if all of you join forces, you can go back to the warehouse and save the other Protectors?”
Soraya’s face hardened. “No. I don’t want to leave Hayden. I want to go back and get her before it’s too late.”
Soraya might’ve been older, but most certainly not wiser. That was the lamest idea of them all.
“Charlotte’s right,” I said. “We need the others. Once we regroup, come up with a new plan, then we can go back for them.”
“And how do you propose we get out of the city? You honestly think that’s possible?” Soraya’s laugh was slightly sardonic, if not bitter. “We’re stuck in here. I vote we go back and fight. Our Armor is working now. Aren’t you worried they’ll be able to reach headquarters?”
“Of course I’m worried about that. My parents are still there. But if I’ve learned one thing from my Guide, it’s to prioritize. The Scrolls are the most important thing here. We can’t get them without all of the Protectors working together. Cagliostro is entirely too powerful.”
“I’m sorry, Soraya, but I’m with Fiona,” Charlotte said.
“You two are like peas in a pod. Best friends. I don’t stand a chance! And now my daughter is going to die at the hand of that evil bastard.” Her anger stabbed with a fierceness that shook the rose bushes.
“I think I know a way we can get out of the city,” I said.
“Please share,” Soraya snapped.