A Valley of Darkness

by Bella Forrest

  “Our Fiona,” Jax replied. “And we have to take all options into account before we go after her. Even daemons.”

  “I should’ve kept my eyes on her at all times.” Hansa was distraught, staring at the floor. I then remembered all the sisters she’d lost three months earlier, during the Red Tribe massacre, and understood her torment.

  “You were there, Hansa,” I said, “and you were ambushed. There’s nothing more you could have done. Don’t blame yourself, please!”

  “She was my responsibility!” Hansa barked, her emerald-gold eyes flaring with anger, mostly aimed at herself.

  “We’ll get her back.” Jax’s firm voice seemed to anchor her more than my feeble reassurances. “It doesn’t matter who split you two up. She could very well be on her own down there. We don’t know the attackers’ exact motives at this point. And even if she is surrounded by hostiles, nothing can beat the power of raw, untamed fire.”

  He then glanced at Blaze and Caia.

  “You two go after her. Bring down fire and fury on anyone or anything standing in your way,” Jax commanded. “Demolish the entire east side of the mountain, if you have to. You have my approval to do whatever you need. Get Fiona back, by any means necessary.”

  Blaze and Caia both nodded. Hansa tried to move from Jax’s hold.

  “I’m coming with you,” she said.

  “No, you’re not.” Jax cut her off, his grip firm, though she gave him a shocked look that quickly turned into a frown, then a spine-chilling scowl. “Hate me all you want—we’ll be stretched too thin without you. If the daemons come into the city tonight, and chances are very much in favor of that happening, I’ll need you up here with me.”

  “But Fiona—”

  “Blaze and Caia will handle it,” Jax interrupted. “A damn dragon and a fire fae! They’ll get her back! And I’m not letting you out of my sight again!”

  No one spoke for several moments, as Hansa and Jax stared at each other.

  “We’re going,” Blaze finally said, breaking the awkward silence. He thrust his foot out the door. “We’ll see you all back here later.”

  “Wait!” Patrik called out. “Hold on, I’ll give you something to help you track her down.”

  He rummaged through his supply bag and pulled out a small amulet carved from a piece of obsidian, with traces of pink crystal scratching the surface. It was shaped like a thin disk, and it came on a thin, metallic chain. He handed it to Caia, who put it around her neck.

  “It’s a swamp witch tracking spell,” Patrik briefly explained, then handed her a small scroll, which she quickly read, then stuffed in her back pocket. “I made a bunch of these and packed them for the road. You read that incantation, and it’ll activate and take you to Fiona. You need an object of hers, though.”

  “I got that,” I said.

  Using my hyper speed, I rushed out of the infirmary, ran up to the Inn, went through Fiona’s room and picked up a handful of string bracelets she’d left on the nightstand. I then rushed back and gave one to Caia. She nodded and gave me a reassuring smile.

  “We’ll get her back. I promise. We will turn this whole city upside down till we find her,” she said, then left with Blaze.

  Harper closed the door behind them, then moved to the table. She was livid, but doing her best to keep it together. Our “fun” was just beginning. Scarlett was strained as well, her lower lip trembling. Patrik gently squeezed her arm. She looked up at him, and he gave her a slight nod.

  “Time to activate the spell,” Patrik said, and moved to the center of the chalk drawing.

  He muttered the Druid chant, his hands out, palms facing downward. His skin shimmered golden all over, then small flames shot down from his fingers, lighting the contents of all four bowls on fire. The proprietary blend of herbs and powders burst into bright red flames, and the entire chalk circle glowed in a warm amber light.

  “Give us the strength of life,” he chanted from the swamp witches’ repertoire. “Give us power, give us light, give us energy…”

  He bent down and pressed his hands against the red symbols painted inside the circle. The entire building shuddered, the furniture rattling and the glass-doored cabinets clinking until it all came to a halt and a powerful golden light burst out of Patrik and the circle, and exploded outward, beyond the infirmary walls.

  It washed over us, and I experienced a split second of sunlight on my skin. It didn’t burn. It felt nice and warm. The spell wave dissipated beyond the terrace edge. I could see it glimmering as it settled around the mountain.

  Patrik took a deep breath, then nodded.

  “I think it worked,” he said. “Now, let’s just hope it’s enough to keep the daemons out tonight.”

  “It’ll be interesting to see what they do if we break their pattern,” Jax muttered, moving closer to the table and pulling Hansa with him. He was serious about not letting her out of his sight, for sure.

  “What do you want us to do?” I asked, feeling restless with Caia and Blaze out. Heron’s hand gently brushed against mine, but I was too anxious, my nerves stretched too thin for me to enjoy the feel of his skin.

  “You and Heron go into the city and follow the Correction Officers,” Jax said. “Find the prison. Based on what Arrah told us about it, chances are there are innocent people in there, including her brother. The Correction Officers are bound to report to a commander in the prison by ranking logic, or, if you get lucky, maybe even make an arrest tonight. You never know. Either way, if you do find it, see if Arrah’s brother is there. Maybe he can shed some light on why he’s been targeted. It might help us untangle the Sienna mystery, which is quite the sore spot right now.”

  “Given the mountain layout,” Harper said, her eyes on one of the detailed maps we’d brought in, “the prison is most likely beneath the city.”

  “Inside the mountain,” I muttered, then looked at Heron.

  “Maybe the tunnels Hansa and Fiona found lead there, too.” He voiced the second part of my thought. “Maybe Fiona’s somewhere close to the prison.”

  “Okay.” I nodded, suddenly energized by the prospect of potentially finding Fiona by beginning our search from the other side of the mountain.

  “Good. Harper, Hansa, and I will patrol the second-level area,” Jax continued, pointing at the map. “This hotspot here… We’ll keep to it. If the daemons get past the spell, this is where they’re most likely to strike.”

  Hansa and Harper gave each other a brief glance. They’d always had great synergy during sparring sessions, and I knew Harper enjoyed every chance she got to be around Hansa. Two peas in a pod, in more than one way. Though Hansa did have a great training relationship with Fiona most of the time, she often enjoyed bringing Harper into the mix, as the sentry was the cool breeze to the succubus’ fire during combat sessions.

  “What about us?” Scarlett asked, a faint tremor still present in her voice as she stood by Patrik’s side. She was slowly leaning into him, but something told me she wasn’t aware she was doing it. He didn’t seem to mind, though.

  “Watch over Minah,” Jax replied. “I don’t want anyone outside of GASP to come near her body. Someone might decide to make it disappear without a trace. We’ll need to give her a proper burial in the morning, and, most importantly, our Druid needs to keep an eye on the protection spell, and be kept out of the Exiled Maras’ reach.”

  “He’s right,” Patrik said. “This magic circle cannot be tampered with, or the protection spell breaks…”

  With our tasks set out, we agreed to meet back at the infirmary by three in the morning, and Heron and I parted with the team and went into the city, actively looking for Correction Officers. I was determined to find that prison and untangle this whole mess revolving around Sienna, once and for all. My stomach was tied up in knots, as I had trouble getting my mind off Fiona, but I had no choice but to stay on course and let Blaze and Caia do their thing.

  No creature in its right mind would dare cross a fire dragon.
<
br />   Avril

  (Daughter of Lucas & Marion)

  It didn’t take us long to find Correction Officers in Azure Heights. It did take us about twenty minutes to shake the ones we had tailing us, “for our protection”, as Lord Kifo had put it. Once we got rid of our followers, we snuck down to the first level, to the so-called “slums” of the city. I’d found the term to be an exaggeration, as the lower parts of Azure Heights were simply more modest, with fewer architectural embellishments and more Imen living in three-level townhouses.

  We were walking down one of the main alleys, keeping a low profile between the dozens of Imen going home. The two moons above reminded us that it was almost midnight.

  “There’s one,” Heron said, his voice low. He was looking somewhere straight ahead. I followed his gaze and saw a Correction Officer talking to an Imen couple in front of their home. They both looked intimidated by the Mara: the husband held the wife close, his arm around her shoulders in a protective manner.

  We moved closer and stopped around the corner of a neighboring townhouse, watching as the Correction Officer asked the couple some questions.

  “Wait, I know this street,” I muttered, remembering Caia’s list of interviewees. “The families of Imen abductees live here.”

  “What’s the Mara doing, then?” Heron frowned. “Interviewing them again?”

  We tailed him for a while, and it turned out that Heron had guessed it right. The Correction Officer was asking them questions, mostly about the GASP agents and the interviews they’d had with them. I noticed the Mara using his mind-bending abilities on the Imen, his eyes glimmering gold.

  “He’s mind-bending them, too,” I whispered as we got closer, and hid behind a large potted fern. The big, dark green leaves did a good job of concealing us while we continued eavesdropping. It sounded as though the Mara was basically asking the Imen to tell him what Caia and Blaze had asked them, and what answers they’d given.

  “You know what, this whole illegality of mind-bending is starting to sound like a crock of nonsense to me,” Heron grumbled. “Just look at how he’s leaving them, all blank and pale.”

  I followed Heron as he went up to the last Iman that the Correction Officer had interviewed, just before he closed his door.

  “Sorry,” he said to the old Iman, “but can you tell me what that Correction Officer wanted from you?”

  The Iman raised his eyebrows at Heron, confusion imprinted on his wrinkled face.

  “What Correction Officer?” he asked.

  “The one that was just here,” Heron replied, pointing down the street at the Mara, who was busy talking to another household.

  “I don’t know. I just thought I heard a knock, but there was no one here. I didn’t talk to anyone.” The old Iman shrugged and shut the door in front of Heron, who cursed under his breath.

  “They’re even mind-bending them into forgetting they ever spoke to Correction Officers,” he muttered. “This is really annoying…”

  “We clearly can’t trust House Kifo and their officers,” I replied.

  We’d both seen the Mara interview the old Iman; we knew for a fact that they’d spoken. Why would he mind-bend him into forgetting he was ever there, unless he had something to hide?

  “We’ll keep tracking him for now,” Heron whispered, then took my hand as we rushed from one shady corner to another. “Let’s see where he takes us.”

  I nodded and followed, light on my feet, my arm tingling from the feel of his skin against mine. I kept my eyes on the Correction Officer at all times. I couldn’t let him out of my sight. Not until he led us to the prison. My nerves were jittery in Fiona’s absence, but I had to keep my head in the game. At least four lives depended on me for that—Arrah, her brother, Demios, Fiona, and even the still-missing Sienna.

  Caia

  (Daughter of Grace & Lawrence)

  We reached the east side of the mountain, and I looked up at a sky darkened in shades of tourmaline and black, sprinkled with stars, with two moons glowing above the ocean, and a third one slowly rising from below. It all looked so quiet and peaceful—it continued to contradict the underlying problem of people disappearing and bloodthirsty daemons.

  We found the edge from which Fiona and Hansa had rappelled down to the small beach below. The bolts were still firmly implanted into the stone, both ropes hanging from their hoops. We used the same method of descent and reached the base of the mountain, with its abandoned jetty, deep shoreline, and three tunnels. The only sound we could hear was that of water splashing against the rocks that isolated this place from the rest of the shoreline.

  “Wow, Hansa wasn’t kidding about that controlled explosion,” Blaze muttered as he stared at the collapsed tunnel.

  “How do we clear it fast?” I asked, then glanced at the other entrances. “I’m not sure we should try the other routes, as they might not lead us to Fiona…”

  Blaze gave me a confident smirk, then started taking off his combat suit, prompting me to blush and turn around. My cheeks burned as I heard zippers and buttons being undone.

  “Sorry, Caia, but you’re going to have to get used to me doing this,” Blaze said, amusement lacing his voice. “You might want to go up on that boulder there, too—I don’t want to accidentally knock you over with my wings.”

  I nodded, grabbed his backpack—which he’d left, along with his clothes, by my feet—and did as he asked. I heard his heaving breath, and allowed myself to face him again once he had burst into his full fire dragon form. His large scales glistened gently beneath the moons, and his claws sank into the soft sand. He looked at me, his big blue eyes filled with warmth and familiarity.

  He growled, and it echoed all around us, scaring the nocturnal birds out of nearby trees. He first used his enormous tail as a whiplash, the bony spike breaking down the massive stone clutter blocking the entrance to the middle tunnel. Whatever Blaze’s bones were made of, they were stronger than the limestone he was cracking open like a dozen eggs. He then used his front claws to grasp the broken slabs, further loosening and pulling them out until he had cleared the tunnel completely.

  Dust billowed out in thick rolls, and he sniffed a couple of times—I found it adorable despite his humongous size. I got off my secure boulder and rushed to the tunnel entrance. I took off the pendant that Patrik had given me, and unraveled the spell scroll.

  He brought his massive dragon head close, his hot breath warming me up like a fireplace, while he peeked at my scroll. I gave him a smirk over my shoulder.

  “Can you even read this with your eye… size?”

  He purred again, like he’d done earlier in the day, making me giggle and shift my focus back to the spell, before I lost myself in the midnight of his gaze. I held Fiona’s bracelet and the pendant in one hand, making sure they made contact as I chanted the tracking spell.

  “Light in the dark, guide through the nocturnal frost,” I recited. “Oh, compass of the ancient souls, will you show me the way to the one I have lost?”

  The obsidian pendant started to glow bright and orange, and I held my breath as it swallowed Fiona’s bracelet and turned into a sphere of pure light. It left my hand and hovered around for a couple of seconds, then started floating through the tunnel.

  Blaze lowered himself and nudged me with his head, so I quickly climbed onto his back, gripping the scales protruding from the thick skin covering his spine. The light darted through the tunnel, and Blaze went inside, as there was enough room for him to fly through it.

  He flapped his wings, and we shot through the underground passage, the light guiding us through. My heart thundered as we followed the tracking spell, my mind set on Fiona.

  Hold on, Fi… We’re coming…

  Harper

  (Daughter of Hazel & Tejus)

  By this late hour, the second-level crowds had thinned. The curfew was midnight, though some still ignored it. It was more of a “polite request” from the city’s leadership, anyway. Most of the Exiled Maras who spent
their evenings down here in the common taverns had retreated to their homes, and only a handful of Imen were left, walking down the narrow alleys in pairs, fearful to go anywhere on their own.

  Hansa, Jax, and I patrolled the streets, constantly paying attention to any noises or sudden movements. A couple of Imen children darted past us, giggling as they ran inside one of the townhouses on the west end. Their mother reprimanded them before she locked the door and pulled the shutters down.

  The moons cast their warm light over the city, while the nocturnal winds rustled through the massive tree crowns overhead and billions of stars cluttered the sky. I looked up and found the asteroid belt, a string of purple shimmers stretched from the southeast to the northwest. What a beautiful sight, and what a troublesome phenomenon, given that it was most likely responsible for blocking our Telluris.

  “Let’s get a higher vantage point,” Jax said, and climbed up on top of a townhouse.

  Hansa and I followed, and we settled on the edge of the roof. We could see the whole second level of Azure Heights from there, including the stairs coming down from above. I nudged Hansa, prompting her to follow my gaze. I could see Rewa headed down from the third level, accompanied by two Imen servant girls.

  “What is she doing here at this hour?” Jax frowned, noticing the Exiled Mara.

  “I thought Darius would keep his daughter on a shorter leash after this morning’s events,” Hansa muttered, moving closer to the corner to get a better look.

  My jaw clenched as I noticed invisible figures rippling through the air on the second level below, just below.

  The girls were talking and giggling, completely unaware of the five invisible daemons, prowling a stretch of road just five houses down from us, as they circled an unsuspecting Mara couple.