Etched in Stone: Twilight Court Book 9

by Amy Sumida

  “Wonderful,” I said. “Thank you, Head Councilman.”

  “And there's also an underground in China,” Daxon said. “I'll call the Prince and have him march his army to the site.”

  “You'll have to wait until we can clear the city,” Murdock said.

  “Underground, Councilman,” Daxon reminded him with a grin. “Most of the march will be beneath the city.”

  “Excellent,” Murdock said. “Godspeed to you all.”

  “Goddess-speed,” Raza corrected him with a grin. “But thank you for the sentiment.”

  We headed out, and the twins fell into line with us.

  I looked over at them in surprise. “You're coming with us to China?”

  “Of course,” Alex said.

  “No offense, but we need soldiers more than telepaths,” I said.

  “Do you?” Alexis smirked. “I believe you said something about needing all the help you can get.”

  “Have it your way.” I shrugged. “The more, the merrier. As long as we can all fit on the jet.” I considered what I'd just said and then pulled out my scry phone. “Duke Dylan Thorn,” I said to the crystal.

  The men looked at me askance, but I just smiled. I was still smiling when Dylan answered.

  “Well, it must be good news if you're smiling,” Dylan noted.

  “Actually, it's dismal.” I laughed mirthlessly. “We're on our way to the airport where we'll be taking a plane to China. Lana is planning to awaken the Terracotta Army.”

  “What did you just say?” Dylan growled. “Is that woman insane?”

  “Yes,” I said simply. “Danu sent Raza and Tiernan to help, but I had a feeling that you might want to go with us.”

  “To China?” He asked in surprise.

  “Yes.”

  “Right now?”

  “Yes.”

  “To possibly fight an army of Golems?”

  I paused and blinked as I thought about it. “Is that what they are?”

  “Of course.” Dylan frowned.

  “I thought Golems were Jewish?”

  “And you also thought that the Jews came up with the idea all on their own?” Dylan scoffed. “Their folklore started as all do; with the truth. The magic was witnessed by some Jewish people and recorded. Years passed, and it became myth.”

  “Interesting.” I followed Raza's wide back out of the Council House and to the van distractedly. “So, do you want to come with us or not?”

  I was so wrapped up in the conversation that I didn't notice that Raza had stopped, and I barreled into him. He reached around to steady me, and I slipped up beside him. Surrounding our vans were several motorcycles, and standing in front of them were the Gorgons.

  “I heard that you might need a little help,” Medea said with a cocky grin.

  “I'll be there,” Dylan said.

  The crystal faded, but I barely noticed as I distractedly slid my scry phone back into my jacket.

  “Who told you that I?” I asked Medea.

  “A little birdy,” she said and then nodded to someone behind her.

  Another gorgon shoved a harpy forward. The harpy's wings were broken; flapping pitifully around her hunched shoulders. She cringed when she saw us and tried to bolt. Medea grabbed her by her tangled hair and drug her forward.

  “This one told us that Lana Clach was bragging about going to China to begin her annihilation of the human race,” Medea said. “Annihilation, Your Majesty; it's a pretty serious word. I thought you might want to hear about it.”

  “We were just about to head there,” I said. “But thank you for coming to warn us.”

  “You're going there now?” Medea asked in surprise.

  “Lana is going to attempt to awaken the Terracotta Army,” Raza said.

  “Fuck!” Medea hissed.

  “Do all the Unseelie know about this army?” Tiernan asked with irritation.

  “Yes,” every unseelie fairy there answered.

  “That's very disconcerting,” Tiernan grumbled.

  “Come with us,” Raza sort of requested, but more like commanded. “We could use your help.”

  Medea looked at the other gorgons questioningly, and they all nodded.

  “As our king commands.” Medea gave a snarky bow.

  “Thank you,” Raza said sincerely. “Your assistance may help to save millions of lives.”

  Medea straightened and ditched the attitude. “Forgive me, Your Majesty. It will be an honor to fight and fly beside the true King of Unseelie.”

  The Gorgons saddled up, and I sent some of my Guard back inside with the harpy; to put in a cell with the other imprisoned fairies. I didn't ask if there were any harpy survivors because I didn't want to know. Yeah; it was a little immature, but I had too much shit to deal with without adding dead harpies to the list.

  As we drove to the airport, I scried my father and told him what was happening.

  “I'm glad they're all with you,” he said confidently, but his expression was deeply worried. “I'll send our army over to assist when twilight arrives.”

  “Thanks, Dad.”

  “In fact, I'm going with them.”

  “Dad, no,” I growled.

  “Seren, I am the King—”

  “And you will be the only king of Fairy if this goes badly,” I whispered. “I'm sorry to do this to you, Dad, but today you're the designated survivor.”

  Keir took a deep, shaky breath, and then let it out with a nod.

  “I'll send Bress in my place,” he finally said. “He can be your second-in-command.”

  “Ask him first, Dad, I—”

  “He is honor-bound to obey me and to fight for his kingdom,” my father growled. “I will not ask; I will command, and he will obey!”

  “Okay,” I gave in. “It's going to be all right.”

  “I hope so, Seren,” Keir whispered. “But if it isn't.” He swallowed roughly and started again. “If it isn't, you hug your mother for me and tell her how much I've missed her.”

  “I will, Dad.”

  “And I love you, Seren,” he added as tears filled his eyes. “I love you more than all the magic in Fairy. Please don't leave me.”

  “I love you too, Dad. I'll try my best to make it home alive.” I closed the phone before I started to cry, and then looked out the window; away from all the prying—but well-meaning—stares in the van.

  I had ended up pressed between the window and Raza, which I was grateful for right then. I laid my cheek against the cool glass and closed my eyes.

  “Remember what I said,” Raza whispered in my ear as his arm slid around me. “I will end this for you, mo shíorghrá, and we will be free. I know you miss your mother, but you will not be seeing her anytime soon; not ever, if I can help it.”

  I turned into his side and laid my head in the curve of his neck. Raza pulled me closer and kissed my forehead.

  “I have already scried Raye,” he said. “I bid him stay and hold the throne, but Hana, Kader, and Chiwen are with the Unseelie Army, on their way through the rath to China.”

  “All we have to do is beat her there,” I said. “If we can stop Lana from getting into that tomb, she won't be able to command the army.”

  “I don't think that's going to happen,” Alexis whispered.

  We all turned to her with matching expressions of irritation.

  “Sorry,” she huffed. “I thought you'd want to know.”

  “Hope is precious,” I said. “Even when it's a lie. Next time; leave us with the lie, Extinguisher Kavanaugh.”

  “Yes, Ambassador,” Alexis mumbled.

  Chapter Forty-One

  Dylan was waiting for us on the plane. It was the Human Council's plane—as opposed to my father's private jet—so there were more seats, and we were able to accommodate everyone in our party. The Extinguisher reinforcements, who had assisted with the San Marino situation, had a separate plane that they had flown in on. They—and the Extinguisher team from the SSF Council House (including Brandon)—wou
ld be using that plane to travel to China. Except for the Telepath Twins and Abby; I took them with me.

  All in all, we were relatively comfortable. However, the flight to Xi'an, China took nearly seventeen hours, and with our mixed company, it seemed even longer. There was one bedroom which I felt bad about using, but not bad enough to give up the chance to get some much-needed sleep. The bed was only a queen, so I wasn't able to share it with more than two men, or one Raza. So, Raza and Daxon took the floor, while Tiernan and Killian shared the bed with me. After we got some shut-eye, my Uncle Dylan claimed the room. That was kind of a relief. If we had left it open for the other passengers to fight over, everyone might not have reached China in one piece.

  The long flight was only the first step. Once we landed, we were met by a cavalcade of black SUVs driven by Extinguishers. We climbed in for a seven-hour drive to the Lintong District. Along the way, we were briefed.

  “We have the tomb surrounded, Ambassador,” our driver said. “There's been no sighting of Lana Clach yet.”

  “Really?” I was shocked, and a little disappointed that Alexis was in a different SUV. I would have liked to have seen her reaction to being wrong. “That's great news.”

  “The Twilight, Chinese Underground, and Unseelie Armies have also arrived. We have people at the tomb and at the museum,” he reported, “and the surrounding district has been evacuated. If Lana shows up, we're more than ready for her.”

  “Looks like the Trance Twins may have been wrong this time,” Killian said what I was thinking.

  “We'll see,” Raza said cryptically. “Fairies are tricky. We have ways of getting past even the most impossible barricades.”

  “Raza, didn't you hear what I told Alexis earlier?” I chided him.

  “Sorry,” he mumbled.

  We went silent as the drive wound on; the serene countryside rolling by. Rounded mountaintops were interspersed with sharply pointed peaks; creating a strange horizon that was distinctly Chinese. It begged to be painted in watercolor, but I'm no artist. All I could do was admire the real thing.

  Lakes reflected the verdant land and clear sky with their rippled surfaces, and birds landed near the shores to feed. It was enough to make you sigh; except for the fact that we were headed to war. I wondered how much blood had fed this land during the first emperor's reign, and how much more would be spilled today because someone did too good a job at sealing his tomb.

  We were only minutes away from the burial site when our driver's radio went off.

  “We have a breach! Repeat; we have a breach!”

  I leaned forward in my seat as the driver hit the response button.

  “This is Extinguisher Kalvin Teagan,” he said. “I have the royals with me; report.”

  “Your Majesties, we're not sure what happened,” the same voice said. “There was a flash of lightning without the warning of a storm, and then the tomb was open, and the body gone. It was barely a minute.”

  I leaned forward to push the button. “She'll be going for the soldiers next. Have the soldiers at the museum start destroying the clay warriors!”

  “Yes, Ma'am!”

  Everyone in the van looked at me in surprise; we hadn't discussed this option. I knew it was extreme, and we'd be destroying precious Chinese artifacts, but if they were brought to life, we'd be doing that anyway. Frankly, I was wishing that I'd given the order sooner.

  “We tried to protect the tomb, and that failed.” I shrugged. “Now, we take away the army before Lana can claim it.”

  “There are over eight-thousand soldiers,” the driver said. “And that's not including the archers, the chariot drivers, and the cavalry. It's going to take awhile to smash them all.”

  “Cavalry?” Killian asked. “They have horses too?”

  “There are roughly five-hundred-twenty horses attached to one-hundred-thirty chariots, and then there are one-hundred-fifty horses in the cavalry,” the driver gave us the full list. “There are armored soldiers and unarmored infantry, all progressing in height with rank; the largest being the generals. There are even acrobats, strongmen, and musicians. And those are only the pits that have been excavated.”

  “There are pits that are still buried?” I asked with dread.

  “Four main pits have been unearthed; one of them empty,” the driver said as he took a sharp turn. “They're about a mile from the burial mound. But the archaeologists have said there are thirty-eight square miles of underground rooms.”

  “Get me one of my generals,” Raza said.

  The driver got on the radio and repeated Raza's order. A few minutes later, a man's voice came through the radio; it was Chad, AKA King Chiwen.

  “Your Majesty?”

  “Chiwen, I need you to destroy as many of those clay bastards as possible,” Raza growled. “Blast them to dust and cast them into the wind!”

  “Yes, Your Majesty!” Chiwen didn't wait for further instruction; he was gone.

  And then we were driving past the museum entrance, with its bright flower beds, and up to a massive stone structure which covered the main pit. There were two armies already there, and thankfully, one was the Unseelie. Both humans and fairies were spreading out over the complex and getting to work at hacking the terracotta soldiers to bits, but the fairy magic was doing the most damage; lifting and smashing the statues into useless chunks.

  At least, we thought they were useless.

  I jumped out of the SUV and ran to a pit with my men in tow. I was preparing to add my own magic to the destruction when a hum started vibrating through the air. Everyone froze, and I realized that the humming was coming from the statues. When I focused into my Second Sight, the room burst into light around me. Magic emanated from every piece of pottery in the room; broken or not. I watched in horror as the pieces start to vibrate, and then the broken bits pulled back together; particles of dust flying through the air along with larger chunks to set themselves precisely where they belonged. The Golem Army was repairing itself.

  “Everyone get out,” I whispered without realizing it. Then I shouted, “Everyone out! Bar the doors and surround the building.” I was running out with the others, but I could still hear the magic gaining in pitch. “Hold them in for as long as you can!”

  As soon as we were all outside, our armies began blocking the doorways with anything they could find. The other armies were still on their way to the museum, and we needed to buy some time. Fairies sealed metal with fire and moved boulders into place with air magic, while extinguishers joined witches to guard the fairies as they worked. But this was only one pit, and it was the only one that was covered.

  There were two other pits with potential golems in them; one held cavalry and infantry, while the other was full of officers and a chariot. We sent more soldiers to those pits to strike down golems as they rose, and then I started searching the area for Lana. She had to be there somewhere, and my gut was telling me that killing her was the only way to end this.

  “Seren,” Raza held out Danu's apple to me. “Hurry.”

  I grabbed the apple and bit into it immediately; there was no time to hesitate. I handed it back to Raza as I chewed, and he took his bite before passing it to Tiernan. Killian was next, and then Daxon; as soon as Daxon lowered the apple from his mouth, it crumbled into dust. He smacked the dust off on his jeans as he looked up at us.

  “I don't feel—”

  Daxon's words were cut off as we all started shouting with pain. Fire rushed through my veins along with a shuddering darkness, and the acidic taste of poison filled my mouth. My teeth sharpened as screaming echoed in my head, and a roar erupted from my throat; from all of our throats. I could feel them inside me; Tiernan, Raza, Killian, and Daxon. Their magic was a touch away, and their thoughts were right beside mine. I breathed in deeply, and they breathed with me.

  We got to our feet together and stared at each other in wonder for a moment before we nodded simultaneously. No words were needed; we could hear each other's thoughts and feel our inten
tions. Our bodies, minds, and magics were aligned, and we knew how to utilize each of our strengths best. When Danu said we needed to stand together, she meant it.

  “Seren,” Bress ran up to me; the Twilight Army had just reached the museum. “That lightning that blinded us before the corpse was stolen; I recognized it.”

  “Everyone back!” Alex shouted. “They're coming through!”

  The slam of fists, weapons, and boots against the doors of the main building caused such a sudden commotion that I couldn't hear Bress' next words. We both turned toward the building as it started to shake. Our armies backed off just as the barricades failed and pieces of debris went flying. Shouts filled the air as soldiers and horses started to climb out of the other pits, but my attention was utterly fixed on the sight before me.

  Real men were striding out of the blasted doorways. Real men holding real weapons; flesh and steel. Their battle cries rang out as they ran forward, and our people rallied to meet them. Extinguishers shouted their motto of “Riamh Eagla an Dorchadas” while the hunters called out Danu's name, the other fairies cried out for their kingdoms, and the witches roared their tribal chants. Magic flared; lighting the area brighter than high noon, and metal rang on metal.

  When the first few golems fell to our swords, my confidence grew. These were simply men; it was only their numbers that made them strong. Against the might of three fairy armies, a combined army of Extinguishers, Hunters, and Witches, and one group of very pissed off gorgons, the Golems didn't stand a chance. I glanced to my left and saw Uncle Dylan smirking back at me.

  Duke Dylan Thorn of Unseelie was armored up in sleek, ebony plate and black leather. His short hair was slicked back beneath a matching helmet, and his glamour was gone. I could see the excitement in his fully-blue eyes; even without the definition of an iris to go by. Dylan was delighted to be a part of this. He lifted his hand like a king and waved his magic over the horde of golems. Men erupted with thorns, but no matter how real they looked, they didn't feel any pain, and they kept coming. Instead of being upset, Dylan chuckled as he pulled his sword free and ran into the battle.