Demon Stone (Ascendancy Legacy 4)

by Bradford Bates

  “I can’t believe how big this place is,” April said between bites of her sandwich.

  “I know. It almost seems too big. Marcus, do you think someone could have used a spell similar to the one used on your bag?”

  “I guess it’s possible, bro. It would take a ton of power to maintain a spell like this. The space is just so large. To keep it active for a long time would require some kind of major magical power source.”

  “Maybe that’s what the heart of cinders is,” April said. “Maybe it powers this entire place.”

  “Well, then, I’d hate to think what would happen if we took it out of here.” After I said it, I couldn’t stop thinking about it. Would this place just fold in on itself, trapping us here forever? Or would it simply cease to exist and us right along with it?

  No one really felt like talking after that. I decided to take the first watch and sent Marcus and April off to their beds. I was tired, but I could handle a few hours of alone time to figure out what direction to go in next.

  Sitting down, I rested my back against one of the palm trees and pulled out the scroll. There was nothing new showing. So no help there. I guess when it came down to it, I already knew the answer. We were going to have to face whatever was at the center of the island. If we could destroy it, we lived and recovered the heart of cinders. If we didn’t, then our adventure ended here. While I was okay with dying fighting for what I believed in, I wasn’t ok condemning humanity to life under control of the demons because we failed.

  A rustling sound came from the bushes a few feet to my left. Great, just what we needed now. Something else trying to kill us. I cast a light into the air, so it hung about ten feet overhead, illuminating the grass around me. I couldn’t quite make out what I was seeing, so I leaned forward to get a better look.

  The thing sprang out of the grass and bounced off my shield. A weird gibbering noise was emanating from behind its mask. At least, I thought it was a mask. For all I knew, it could have been the creature’s actual head. It resembled one of those overly large tiki masks. This one was so large that the only thing you could make out was the creature’s arms and feet. The thing’s entire body was hidden behind the mask. The little thing held a spear in its hand, but as far as I could tell, it wasn’t trying to attack me yet.

  More of the little tiki creatures poured out from the grass. If any of them were over two feet tall, it would have surprised me. Although they were small, their sheer numbers meant I needed to start thinking of them as a serious threat. The one standing directly in front of me stopped its gibbering and pointed at me and back toward the water. When I didn’t answer, it started to point its spear at me. The other tikis responded in the same way.

  “I’m not sure what you’re asking. Do you want to know if I came from the water, or do you want me to go back into the water?”

  This time, the creature continued to speak extremely fast. It was still so quick, I couldn’t understand it. Then it pointed to me, out toward the water, and then made a shooing gesture. Clearly telling me to leave the island and go back into the water.

  “I’m not sure if you know this, but there are some pretty big monsters in the water.”

  The creature stomped his foot and made the shooing gesture again. Then he jabbed me once in the leg with his finger, pointed at the water, and made the same gesture again.

  “We can’t go back into the water. There is something we need to do on the island first.”

  All of the mysterious tiki creatures fell silent, and then they all started repeating a word I couldn’t understand. Two of the little tikis came back from where we had made camp and started talking to the one in front of me. They gestured and spoke in their high-pitched tongue, and then the tiki pointed at me.

  Something hit me in the back of the neck, and I reached back to pull it out. There was a tiny dart in my hand. Already it was growing hard to think. Some of the little tiki creatures rushed back into our camp. I fell to my knees as they started to drag Marcus and April out of the camp. I motioned for them to stop. My throat had grown dry, and I couldn’t speak. The tikis ignored me and continued to drag my friends away. If I hadn’t been on the verge of passing out, I would have appreciated the little travois they made out of our sleeping bags. Instead, I cursed them as my vision wavered. Whatever happened next wouldn’t be good.

  Slowly, my vision started to clear and then my limbs started to work. What in the hell had just happened? Did some weird little island tiki people just drug me and steal my friends? That couldn’t be right, could it? Maybe that giant eel had scratched me with one of its teeth, and it was poisonous. Had I just fallen into some kind of poison-induced hallucination?

  There was no way I could walk yet, so I crawled back toward our camp. A quick look confirmed my worst fears. I hadn’t dreamed it at all. Our stuff had been rifled through, and my friends were gone. Fucking little tiki people. You couldn’t trust ’em. Whoa, whatever was in the dart was still affecting me.

  Some of the numbness was leaving my arms and legs. The feeling was starting to come back, and it wasn’t a good thing. Every movement felt like someone was jabbing pins into them. Slowly, using one of the trees, I made it to my feet. I stood there, swaying for a few moments, and then the giant roar of whatever the fuck was waiting for us echoed across the island again. My adrenaline spiked, and I started to focus on my magic. I hadn’t done much healing yet, but I knew enough about magic that I could give it a try.

  The power rushed into me, and I thought of what had happened. I directed the magic to look for the poison and to purge it from my system. It was crude, and any healer on campus probably would have laughed at me, but slowly my vision started to clear. After a minute, I could stand without the support of the tree.

  A scream ripped across the island again. That was going to have to be enough healing. I needed to find my friends before that creature did. I broke out into a shuffling run as my legs continued to wake up. After the first few yards, my gait started to even out and I picked up the pace. I could smell the sickly sweetness of the poison oozing out of my pores as I started to sweat. It was like having a really bad hangover without any of the fun from the night before.

  After a mile, I finally started to feel like myself. I called on my gift again and used the magic to strengthen my limbs and make me faster. The murderous roar ripped across the island again, and then everything was silent. I hoped that I wasn’t too late. I couldn’t lose April now. I needed her. She was my mate.

  My mate?

  Where had that come from? She was my girlfriend, and hopefully if I didn’t screw it up, she would be more than that someday. But my mate? Did people have mates? I thought that was an animal thing. Then I realized part of me was an animal, and that part wouldn’t hesitate to do anything to get April back. The ground underneath me seemed to rocket past as thoughts of her pulled me forward.

  The trail in front of me ended abruptly in a clearing. The little tiki people were gathered around two wooden daises. Lying on them were Marcus and April. Behind the daises was a huge entrance to a cave. The roar came again, and a sheet of dust fell from the rocks covering the entrance to the cave. Whatever was making that noise was inside of the cave, and those tiki bastards were trying to offer my friends as sacrifices.

  I rushed forward into the clearing as the tikis started to chant. One word they kept repeating over and over again. Just for a moment, I thought it might have sounded something like cinders, but there was no way to be sure. The roar ripped across the open space, and the tikis scrambled away. Whatever was in the cave was coming and quickly, and they didn’t want to be here when it did.

  Some of the little monsters saw me and started to head in my direction. I snapped my shield in place and felt a few of their darts bounce harmlessly off of it. They continued to run toward me, their spears ready to attack. If that was how they wanted to play it, then I would be more than happy to show them what it meant to cross one of the Ascended.

  My anger finally
reached a point where it was bubbling over. The first spear bounced off my shield, followed quickly by five others. Reaching out with one arm, I sent a wave of fire at the tikis. Their masks caught fire, and they tried to run for cover. I could have put the fire out, but instead, I fed the flames until their screams stopped. The rest of the tikis took one look at their friends and then ran into the deep grass to hide.

  I could see April was struggling against her bonds, but Marcus had yet to move. Another scream rose from the tunnel, and they were still getting louder. Pulling one of my swords free, I cut April's bonds, and she jumped down from the wooden platform. She wobbled for a moment, and then I pulled her into my arms. Another cry from the tunnel washed over us as we hugged. In that moment, I could have almost tuned out the sound, I was so focused on how she felt in my arms.

  We broke apart, and I kissed her once before holding her out to look her over.

  “I’m fine,” she said, swatting away my hand. She took a few steps and didn’t fall to the ground.

  I took that as a good sign. “Good. Help me get Marcus down and then get him to the edge of the clearing. If you see any of those tiki things, burn them on sight.”

  “I’d be more than happy to give them a little payback.”

  Together we cut Marcus free and laid him on the ground. April hooked her arms under his shoulders and grunted as she started to pull him away.

  I turned away from her and headed towards the cave. “Whatever you do, stay safe, and don’t interfere.”

  “Jackson, I’ll be by your side in a heartbeat if I think I can help.”

  “Right now Marcus needs your protection, and I need to end this.”

  She nodded once in acceptance as she continued to pull Marcus away. I knew that she would keep him safe, but there was no way she would stay away from me if she thought that I needed her help. Her face was set in grim determination as she worked to carry him to safety. That was the face that I loved. No matter what the obstacle was that happened to be in front of her, she wouldn’t stop fighting until she had won.

  The roar came from the tunnels again, and this time, the sheer force of it almost knocked me back a step. It would be here soon, and I would have to face whatever it was alone. I reached out and pulled magic in from the world around me, strengthening my reserves. With a flick of the wrist, I set both of the daises on fire. There would be no offering for the creature today. I wondered how many other people had made it this far only to die here. I wasn’t going to be one of them.

  The creature rushed out of the cave. When it saw that its normal offerings were on fire, it let out a scream of rage. The sound of it was so loud compared to the others, that it actually knocked me back a step. The monster fixed its gaze on me, and it rose to its full height. The fire from the daises winked out as the creature pulled the flames into itself. Its chest glowed orange as it consumed the fire, and then it roared at me in challenge.

  I had never seen anything like it before. The beast seemed to be a mixture of rocks held together by vines of some kind. While it resembled a man, I had no illusions about its nature. The beast was a magical construct, a golem of some kind. The center of its chest glowed with a bright orange fire. That had to be the heart of cinders. Now I just had to figure out how to beat a twelve-foot monster made out of living stone.

  The stone in the center of the creature’s chest flared brightly, and then a jet of flame shot from its mouth. I managed to dodge out of the way, and as I did, I cast out a few spells to probe the fire. The small shield I created seemed to block the flames, but the ice I shot into it only seemed to spread the flames out as it melted on contact. What kind of fire melted ice and then used it as fuel? The creature seemed to almost suck in the air around it, and the flames flew back into its body. What in the hell was I going to do?

  The rock beast started to pull air in again, and that meant more fire was coming my way. I started running sideways, hoping that I could just outrun the flames and then dash in to strike. The fire started licking at my heels as soon as the creature spewed it out. Taking a risk, I doubled my shield and reversed direction through the flames. The air inside of my shield super-heated, but before it could burn me, I was free of the flames.

  Pulling my swords, I dashed toward the rock monster and rolled under a swing of its outstretched arms before coming up with a hard swing of my swords. Sparks flew off of the rocks, and my swords bounced harmlessly away. It was pretty much what I had expected to happen, but it still came as a shock. I had seen these swords cut through almost anything, but the rocks were impervious to it.

  Still thinking about what to do next, I was too slow dodging the lumbering strike of the golem. Its meaty fist hit me right in the center of my chest, sending me flying backward gasping for air. When my body hit, I rolled across the rocky ground before coming to a stop. I heard April cry out. She was in a battle of her own with the tikis. Marcus stirred beside her, but he wouldn’t be able to do much until the poison was out of his system.

  The golem roared again. This time, I hoped it was with the same frustration I was feeling. Its fire couldn’t hurt me, but it could still crush me to death. So far my magic only seemed to make its fire stronger, and my swords had no effect. I stood up and dusted myself off while keeping a watchful eye on my opponent.

  The golem seemed to have come to the same conclusion as I had, and instead of spewing more fire at me, it lumbered forward. This time, I was going to try something different. I raced forward, dodging between the golem’s legs. I managed to duck under a backhand it threw at me, and then I struck. Calling on my gift, I hit the golem’s hand with a blast of water. No, I wasn’t trying to erode the rock. The fight couldn’t last ten thousand years. Instead, I continued to dodge around the thing’s legs, waiting for the water to seep further into the rock.

  Somehow I managed to stay at it long enough and still be alive. With a thought, I froze the water solid. Then I swung out with my sword. I was rewarded when the rock broke apart into tiny shards. The golem howled and spun around quicker than it had before. Again I took a shot to the chest and was sent flying backward. This time, I managed to slow my descent. While I didn’t land on my feet, I also didn’t bounce along the rocky ground.

  Maybe I had a plan, or maybe I was crazy. I’d find out soon enough. If it didn’t work, maybe this time I would land on my feet after the golem smashed my ribs in. I called on my gift and started to cast all of the water I could summon right at the golem's chest. Steam rose as the water splashed against the heart of cinders. I planned on using the same trick but with a new twist this time.

  The golem continued to chase me around, and I managed to stay just out of its reach. When I thought enough of the water had seeped in, I cast the same spell, instantly turning the water into ice. As I ran at the golem, I sent out a sheet of ice from my hand. The golem’s next step sent it crashing to the ground. When it hit the ground, I cast out tendrils of ice, trying to hold the creature in place. Before it could break free, I leaped and landed on its chest, bringing the hilt of my sword down on the creature’s chest. The golem started to suck in air for another attack. It was now or never. Shielding my hands, I plunged them into the beast’s chest and ripped out its heart.

  The heart landed on the ground behind me, the heat of it scorching my back. I turned in time to see the golem’s fist coming straight at me. I ducked, turning my shoulder into the blow, hoping not to take the hit to my head. Before the fist landed, the golem turned to ash. Instead of being sent flying across the clearing, I was covered in black ashes. I rose to my feet, coughing out the remainder of the golem. The guardian of the heart of cinders was dead, and the heart was mine.

  The heart seemed to be cooling and shrinking now that it was outside of its magical construct. I waited until it had gone from the size of basketball down to golf ball before trying to pick it up. It was still warm but bearable. With the heart in hand, I turned to check on my friends.

  The tropical forest behind them was bathed in flames
. April was running toward me, and Marcus was staggering behind her, trying to keep up. There were tiki spears dotting the ground all around where they had been fighting, but not a tiki in sight. I really hoped that would be the last we saw of those creepy little fuckers. I wouldn’t be able to relax at a Hawaiian barbecue ever again.

  April jumped into my arms and rained a few kisses down on me. I swung her around before setting her down on the ground and giving her a proper kiss. Just as we broke apart, Marcus made it to us. I gave him a high five, and he grinned.

  “Still alive? I thought we had finally rid the world of your presence.”

  “It won’t ever be that easy, bro. I plan on going out a bang,” Marcus replied quickly.

  I made a gun out of my index finger and pointed at him. “Bang, bang.”

  “That’s cold, bro.”

  He held out his fist, and I bumped it without hesitation. He pulled his back and blew it up. We both started laughing, and April looked at us as if we had lost our minds. Maybe we had, but we were still alive and onto the next part of our journey.

  When I pulled out the scroll, nothing looked different. It was still the same lines of text, but that didn’t fill me with confidence. That meant we were up to the get swallowed by the earth part, and I wasn’t looking forward to that at all. Realizing that my companions still had no idea what I was looking at, I took pity on them and filled them in.

  “I was kind of hoping that being swallowed by the earth had been taken care of when we swam through the cave, but that doesn’t appear to be the case,” Marcus said.

  I couldn’t have agreed with him more.

  April said, “Me too.”

  “Well, I see one more creepy ass cave right in front of us, guys, and the last thing it spat out tried to kill us. So that seems like the right direction to go in.”

  “Jackson, you say all the sweetest things to a girl.”