I looked up the huge cliff face. At night-time, it looked even more eerie than it did in the day, the mists blanketing the night sky so we could hardly see a thing. I thought about the rest of the Impartial Ministers floating in the water like dead bodies in a lake. I shuddered. At least it would be light in the cave.
“Not looking forward to finding the entrance in the dark,” Ash muttered.
“We should send the vamps first—amazing night vision.”
“Oh, really?”
I nodded, laughing at his look of amazement. If he was impressed now, I couldn’t wait till he saw them fight. I kept forgetting that Ash had no experience with vamps, werewolves, dragons and Hawks—it was so strange to me now to come across someone who wasn’t aware of our kind.
My mom, Rose and Derek approached us.
“What now?” Derek asked.
“There’s an entrance where the cliff meets the valley walls, over there.” Ash pointed in the direction of the slit in the rocks. “You might be able to navigate it better.”
Derek nodded, immediately seeing the entranceway. I looked back at the team with us. All of GASP had come along, and most of the ministers—the rest of the kids, villagers and guards had stayed behind, maintaining the barriers. Still, it meant that our group was easily over one hundred.
Ash followed my glance.
“We should leave the sentries out here to guard. GASP and the rest of us go in,” Ash said.
Derek nodded. “Are we expecting danger inside?”
“No,” Tejus replied, “it should only be the Impartial Ministers in there, if anyone—but we can’t be too careful.”
Derek and Sofia were the first to enter the passage, with Ash, Tejus, Hazel and me following. I doubted that Derek would be as amazed as we were the first time he saw the ministerial home, he’d seen a lot in his time, but when he approached the blazing light and stepped through to the miraculous open-air chamber, the vampire stopped still.
He turned to me and Hazel.
“We need Ibrahim. The light in here is bright.”
We fetched Ibrahim, asking the rest to stand back in the valley while the warlock worked his magic. A few moments later we were given the all clear, and the rest of GASP entered the large chamber.
Ash, Tejus, Hazel and I strode over to the water, looking down into its white waters.
“Where are they?” I asked. The waters were empty; the bodies of the Impartial Ministers had vanished. The rest of us looked as puzzled as I did—I didn’t know why they’d leave, the whole point of the water was to restore them.
“Did we bring the Impartial Ministers?” Ash asked.
“We did.” Tejus nodded, walking back toward the group. A few moments later he reappeared, with both of the Impartial Ministers following behind him.
“This is sacrilege!” one of them chastised him, banging his walking staff on the polished marble floor so it echoed loudly around the room. Tejus rolled his eyes, leading them up to the edge of the basin.
“Where are they?” he asked bluntly.
Both ministers peered down into the water, shaking their heads in sorrow.
“Perhaps they went to hide—to find a safe haven far from the dangers of this land. Far from you, Tejus of Hellswan!”
“Didn’t they need the water?” I asked.
“They did,” the minister grunted. “And probably won’t last long without it. The same as us. You may well be trying to destroy the entity with this foolhardy effort, but you will end us—the guardians of the very land you’re trying to save!”
I glanced over at Tejus and Ash. I knew the Impartial Ministers weren’t even close to being a priority right now, but I felt bad for the men. I knew they’d been stupid—arrogant and blind-sided by rules and propriety, but still, they had only been doing what they thought was best, and perhaps they deserved some compassion.
“What’s Derek going to do with the water?” Ash asked, completely ignoring the minister.
“I don’t know yet,” I replied. “But maybe we can save some…for them?”
I looked over at the Impartial Ministers, who scowled at me.
Never mind.
“We’ll see,” Tejus replied.
After admiring the massive chambers, the members of GASP were making their way over to where we stood. Derek walked with Ibrahim, Mona and Corrine, all in deep discussion. When they approached the basin, Ibrahim placed his hands above the surface of the water and closed his eyes.
“It’s powerful,” he murmured.
At the opposite end of the pool, Sherus and Nuriya bent down to get a closer look. Sherus placed a finger in the water, gently rippling its surface.
“These are the waters of immortalitatem,” he confirmed. “See the eternal light? It continues to blaze brightly for all time, yet the waters remain as cold as ice.”
I looked down at the bottom of the pool, the pure white light glowing just the way it did in Hazel’s dagger.
“What can you do, Ibrahim?” Derek asked.
The warlock considered the question for a while, staring down at the water as if working out some puzzle, his hand continuously moving over the water, testing its power. After a while, he turned back to Derek.
“I can infuse our weapons with the waters, ensuring that we each have access to the water’s power. For those who don’t carry material weapons, natural ones will work too.”
“Fangs?” Erik asked.
Ibrahim nodded.
“Excellent,” Kiev muttered.
At the warlock’s request, we all stood back while the witches went to work. Mona, Corrine, Brock and Arwen stood around the pool, their hands out in the same way Ibrahim held his. Soon the water started to move, rising up to meet the tips of their fingers, the light from within shining bright and pearlescent as it was drawn up into the sunlit chamber.
“Each come forward and state your weapon of choice,” Ibrahim announced.
An orderly queue stood behind the warlock: Ash, Tejus and I brandishing swords; Benedict clasping a crossbow and bolts; the dragons and Hawks requesting that their claws be cast in the water, all transforming into the supernatural state in preparation; and the vampires and werewolves, most holding weapons, but all grinning, showing their deadly sharp incisors.
Ash was first, but sidestepped and gently urged me forward to go first. I didn’t think he was worried, more a gentleman, but I was looking forward to his reaction when he saw what Ibrahim could do.
I stepped up onto the edge of the basin, holding out my sword. It was an impressive-looking piece, a light blue steel with an elaborate handle, bearing the markings of the Memenion kingdom. Ash had given it to me before we left, making sure that I would have something to protect me from the shadows.
I held it aloft, and Ibrahim muttered incomprehensible words under his breath. The water started to move toward me, a thin stream rising up in mid-air, breaking off from the pool. Slowly it began snaking itself around my sword, without touching it. Droplets started to fall on the weapon, each landing with a hiss as if the blade was burning. Soon the snake of water had disappeared entirely—the water had infused into the weapon, making it gleam brightly.
“Wow,” I whispered.
Ibrahim smiled at me.
“Take care, Ruby.”
“I will,” I replied, staring at the blade. The handle felt warmer than it had before the infusion, but that could have just been from holding it—and I could have sworn I could actually see the bright light glowing through the steel.
I stepped back down, letting Ash take his turn. He looked a little paler than usual. When Ibrahim had finished, working his magic on the sword of Hellswan, he joined me.
“How was that?” I prompted.
Ash was silent for a few moments.
“Amazing,” he said, still looking a little out of sorts.
“You’ll get used to it eventually,” I replied, taking his hand. “I guess in the same way I’ve gotten used to the sentry stuff you can do.”
“What about the jinn?” he asked.
“They’ll probably rely on their own magic. Technically, the waters were supposedly created by them in the first place.”
Queen Nuriya whispered something to Aisha. The younger jinni left the room with her husband, returning later with some small water flasks they must have taken from the saddles. Then Aisha and Horatio joined the back of the line.
“Aisha, what are you going to do with the water?” I asked.
“We will do our own thing, infusing it into our bodies and our magic. But we don’t trust a warlock to do it. No disrespect to Ibrahim, he is talented, but we must do it ourselves.”
I nodded, noticing the dragons in the line whispering amongst themselves. No doubt they had their own reservations about this—they never took assistance from the witches if they could help it, at least when it came to travel.
“We should make sure the other sentries and guards all have their weapons spelled as well, right?” I asked, turning to Ash.
“We have a few barrels with us, we’ll fill them and take them back to the palace.”
“Should we take it all?”
“We need to take what we can,” Ash replied, glancing at the Impartial Ministers sitting on the bottom of the steps that led up to the basin, muttering to one another.
“What about them?” I asked.
“We don’t have a choice, Ruby. If it’s between saving the rest of Nevertide’s citizens and keeping a few angry old men alive, I have to choose the former. I need to see the bigger picture, and I want a fresh start for Nevertide once this is over. No trials, no entity, no Impartial Ministers deciding the outcome for the rest of us.”
“Okay,” I whispered.
“You’ll see.” He smiled, squeezing my hand. “You’ll see.”
Ash
“Meet me downstairs in a few hours.” Tejus turned to me the moment we re-entered the barriers surrounding the palace. The witches had ‘vanished’ us here from Ghoul’s Ridge on the return journey, now they knew the route, and the dragons had flown. I’d been dubious about being influenced by that kind of magic – I could hardly comprehend it, but I couldn’t deny how convenient it was to be instantly transported.
“We need to decide the best strategy for attack,” Tejus continued. “We should involve GASP as well.”
“Don’t you think it’s best if we let the entity come to us? We can better protect ourselves here than out in the open, especially if you’re thinking of going down to the cove.”
“Perhaps,” he mused, looking at the barriers—still holding strong after the visit from the shadow.
“Ash?”
Ruby’s mother called my name. She was standing on the terrace that surrounded the entrance to the palace, along with her husband. The rest of the army were returning indoors, the warlock and witches remaining outside to infuse the weapons of the guards who had remained here.
“Damn,” I breathed.
“Good luck.” Tejus smirked. I didn’t know what he was looking so superior about. I had absolutely no doubt that his time would come. Hazel’s parents and extended family clearly knew what had happened. If Tejus thought he’d be getting away with that, then he had another thing coming.
I left Tejus, making my way to Claudia and Yuri. Dawn was coming, and the vampires seemed more deadly than usual—both lit by the red light of the sky, looking like demonic versions of my judge, jury and executioner.
“How can I help?” I asked, clearing my throat a couple of times before I could get the words out.
“We need to discuss Ruby,” her mother replied, tense and frowning.
“Our engagement?” I prompted, hopefully.
“Among other things.”
Like transforming her into a sentry?
I really didn’t want to have this conversation right now. I still didn’t know Ruby’s thoughts on the matter—not fully anyway. What she’d been saying to Tejus earlier had given me hope that she might even welcome it, but I doubted her family would feel the same way. Though I didn’t really understand why. The more I observed, the less difference I saw between their kind and ours.
“I know you have feelings for our daughter,” Claudia continued. “But I’m worried that you’re going to ask too much of her. Have you thought about the future at all? What will happen if we all survive this, and Ruby sees her friends and family returning back to our dimension, and yet you want her to stay here?” She stared at me, her brown eyes cold and calculating.
“We haven’t discussed it yet,” I replied. “I don’t know what Ruby will want to do. I don’t know what I’ll want to do yet.”
That was a lie, and Claudia knew it. If Nevertide made it through this, I wouldn’t abandon my people. I couldn’t.
“My daughter doesn’t belong in a place like this,” she snapped. “Since she was little she’s wanted to become a member of GASP. I don’t see how all that could have changed.”
I was starting to lose my temper.
“Maybe you should be speaking to Ruby about this,” I snapped.
Big mistake.
Claudia’s eyes burnt through me like coals, her fangs protruding.
“Claudia,” Yuri murmured, reaching out to clasp his wife by the arm. She scoffed, looking up at me, both our tempers sparking.
“Ash, we want you to give this some thought,” Yuri said. “Think about the kind of future that Ruby would have here—away from everyone she knows and loves. We’re concerned about our daughter, and we just want to make sure that you’ve both thought this through. Ruby can be…impulsive,” he added, glancing over at his wife. “I just want to be sure the two of you aren’t running headlong into something that will end up making both of you miserable.”
I nodded, swallowing. Yuri’s more measured explanation of their concerns made me feel terrible. He was right, we hadn’t given this much thought. But I also knew that we felt the same way about one another—and wasn’t love supposed to conquer all? Wouldn’t there be a way to work this out, as long as we did it together?
“I understand,” I announced. “I get your concerns—we both do. But you have to let Ruby and me work this out. I wouldn’t ever do anything to hurt her.”
“Not intentionally,” Yuri replied softly.
“Not intentionally or otherwise!”
This conversation needed to be over. I understood where they were coming from, but in all honestly, until we’d faced our immediate danger, I didn’t want to hear it.
“I’ll speak to Ruby,” I promised.
“Make sure you do,” Claudia replied. Her face had softened marginally. I supposed she just wanted to be heard, to have their worries known. Still, I wished they’d kept this to themselves or spoken to their daughter. I obviously didn’t have the answer they wanted to hear—and I wasn’t going to lie to make anyone feel better.
The pair of them left, and I stood on the terrace, turning back around to see the witches still casting their magic on an assortment of weapons. I couldn’t deny that their world—and the regular human world—appealed to me. But I had been right on the day that the Impartial Ministers had crowned me emperor of Nevertide. My duties were chains to this land and its people, and I didn’t quite know where that left me and Ruby.
After a while, I made my way back upstairs, wanting to speak to my fiancée before I discussed tactics with Tejus.
“Hey, you,” she greeted me sleepily as I came into the room. She was wrapped in a huge bathrobe, steam still escaping from the bathroom. “Let me just get dressed and I’ll be with you in a moment.”
“Good idea, Shortie.” I smiled. “Unless you’re looking to get turned into a sentry tonight?”
She made a face at me, then, laughing, vanished back into the bathroom. A few moments later she reemerged, fully dressed, her blonde hair still damp and cascading down her shoulders. It was a pleasant sight.
“Has my mom been speaking to you?” she asked archly. “I kind of had the feeling that she might. Ignore what she says—she’ll come around, I promise.”
“I think there might be conditions on that,” I replied dryly. “Like me returning you to The Shade, and not letting you out of her sight.”
She sighed, slumping down next to me on the bed.
“We’re not ready to decide that yet. We don’t even know what’s going to happen today—how can we make plans for the future?”
“I don’t know. But we should at least talk about it. We’ve been avoiding the topic, among others, for a while. Shouldn’t we have some kind of plan?”
“We have plans,” she pointed out, waving her finger in the air. “Marriage plans. Which I can’t even get properly excited about thanks to all the impending doom.”
I laughed out loud. That was one way to look at it.
“Look, I have an idea. Just trust me, okay?”
“Okay,” she answered slowly. I could faintly hear her heart rate picking up, and I wondered if she was worried that I was going to outright ask her to live in Nevertide with me.
Not a good sign.
“I want us to mind-meld, and basically imagine where you want to be five years from now. Just for a few moments, what we’re doing, where we are—just whatever comes to mind. I’ll do the same, and maybe we’ll have a better idea about what we both want…”
“Without having to come out and say it?” she retorted. “Why can’t we just talk about it later?”
“Because we’ve been saying that for a while, Shortie—and we haven’t. So just trust me on this.”
She inhaled a deep breath, and then exhaled, letting her body relax.
“Okay, let’s do this.”
She reached for my hand, closing her small one around it. Her skin felt warm and soft, and she edged closer to me on the bed till our arms were brushing up against one another.
I closed my eyes, focusing on the energy that she was sending out toward me. In my mind, I saw it as semi-clear and fluid, almost white. Honesty. She wanted to be honest. I grasped onto it, sending my energy back to meet hers. For a few moments, nothing happened—we were both so exhausted I’d wondered if this was going to work at all, but after a few moments, images started to form. She was going first.
A Shade of Vampire 40: A Throne of Fire Page 14