The air around me quickly grew dense as I laid a sketch pad over the markings on Solaris’ tomb and etched into it with charcoal, once I moved to Aaryon’s, the air shifted and dust moved as though it was kicked up into the air, gently dancing around me.
I kept my eyes down and focused, whatever was happening was some kind of automatic response to disturbing them. I pressed the charcoal to the paper and continued.
The knot in my stomach intensified.
The answer was right here, all I had to do was find it.
Easier said than done.
I took a deep breath and pulled open another pad and began. There would be numbers, codes, a sequence with a pattern unlike any seen before. All I had to do was pick it out among the million possible combinations. But when I did, I’d have cracked a code no man, mortal or Sensitive has ever cracked before.
By my count, I had twenty-two hours to do it.
***
Aurel
Time was running out. Quickly.
I glanced down at my watch as I sped down the road. St Augustine’s was a place I’d hoped I would never have to go to again.
Bringing my eyes back to the road, I forced an even breath out and focused. I needed two things. A location and a time. Once I had that, I had to make it. In and out.
But that was an ideal world. Hoping that it would go that smoothly was as naïve as and ignorant as I had been. Ace and Illarion, my two best friends, doomed because I was too caught up in my own head to see what they were showing me.
Pain still gripped my heart in a nasty vice with each thought about what I’d done to her and what I’d put her through.
I cringed as the highway exit came into view. The school would be a few more miles from here and eventually, I’d have my answers.
A few miles down the road, the tall gates signaling the beginning of the grounds came into view. I slowed the car as I neared the gate and opened my window. A Watcher came to the door.
‘Agent Arcos.’ I said, flashing my badge.
The Watcher glanced at it and then me and stepped aside nodding. As soon as the gates opened up, I pushed the car into gear and drove through, parking off to the side beside the main doors.
The staff parking lot was full and the guest one was much the same. I found a spot marked as official Agency/Police parking and took it.
Taking in a deep breath I walked through the grounds and up to the large front doors. The foyer was bustling with students and the occasional parent and off to the far right, I recognized the reception desk. It had changed since I’d last been here. But it was still the same shitty place. The same vibes filled the halls and the same sense of dread filled me as I navigated through the crowd. I moved toward the desk and readied my badge again.
As the young, blonde receptionist looked up with a smile, I watched her eyes leave mine, scan the badge and then look back at me. She was a non-Sensitive. Her pale aura hummed as her mind worked reaching over for the phone. Non-Sensitives knew about us here, especially in the higher level of management and those who didn’t fit under that rank were read in as a need to know. Seeing how she moved guests in and out of meeting rooms, I’d say she had a need to know security clearance.
She placed the phone down and flashed me a smile. ‘Ms. Grey will see you.’
‘Thanks.’ I closed my badge and replaced it in my pocket. I rearranged my jacket as best as I could to hide the gun holstered to my hip.
I rounded the corridor dotted with elementary school artwork and stepped through a set of glass doors which opened into another hall of offices. There was no way I would let Lucy would go this hell hole filled with propaganda. Maybe after all of this if there was still a world left, I’d go back to Melbourne. Anna and I spoke about it often and now, more than ever I longed for the laneways filled with art and streets of culture.
But first, I had to ensure we survived this. At the end of the hall to my right, I saw the familiar office marked with a brass plaque reading Principle Eliza Grey.
Before I even moved to knock, the door opened and I came face to face with a woman I hoped I’d never have to see again.
‘Aurel.’
‘Eliza.’ I nodded.
I cleared my throat stepping inside following her to the two armchairs in the middle of her office.
‘You’re here for the location of the Tomb.’
‘Do you have it?’
‘You’re not going to find what you’re looking for there.’ She said, folding her hands neatly across her lap. ‘It’s too late.’
‘I refuse to believe that. I need to find him.’
‘You won’t get to him on time.’
‘Maybe not. But I have to try.’
She paused, forcing my eyes to hers. We were both Sight Sensitives, both powerfully attuned, but she was unlike anything we’d seen before.
The power she wielded was incredible and it was often referred to as freak gene which sometimes occurred – the Oracle gene. We weren’t sure if that’s what she was, but she’d given us enough reason to believe it to be true. The power and the energy it took to use it hadn’t come without consequence. She looked tired, like she’d aged ten years in the last few months. Her dark brown eyes took on a lackluster hue and the shadows under her eyes were getting darker and darker.
‘You understand that this war you’re about to walk into will not end the way you think?’
‘There are risks in every war.’
‘Yes, but this is not a risk, this is an extermination. When the Legion comes and the realms collide, only the warrior’s blood will open the door and only when the door is sealed can the human race be healed.’
‘I’ve heard it before, what does that have to do with Ace?’
‘You’ve seen the Divine Sensitive?’
I nodded.
‘Then you know she’s already gone. She can’t be saved.’
‘You’re wrong.’
She grinned.
‘Only her blood will open it and only her blood will close it.’
‘You’re certain?’
‘You have the sight to see it, like you did before but you chose to remain blind.’
The jab hurt more than I cared to admit. But she wasn’t wrong. A long breath settled in my lungs as I scratched the back of my neck.
‘Where is the tomb?’
She set her lips in a tight line and bowed her head.
‘Tell me.’ I insisted. ‘I know you see more than you’re letting on, I don’t need to know the rest, I just need to know how to find Illarion. I need to know when I can enter the tomb.’
‘If he’s already worked out the code, then you’re too late.’
‘You can’t see?’
‘No. He’s already inside, once he crossed the threshold, I could no longer see him. It works like a shield.’
Okay. I nodded, getting to my feet. ‘If he hasn’t worked it out and I have time, where do I find him? How will I know when to enter?’
‘You need to go before sundown; you need to get in before the last ray of light touches the tombs.’
‘Okay.’ I looked down at her. ‘Where is it, Eliza? Where’s the Tomb?’
‘You already know.’
‘Egypt.’
She gave me one, curt nod.
I sucked in a deep breath. Okay. Egypt was a huge ass country, but okay. I could work this out.
‘You don’t have much time, Agent. I suggest you hurry. Your friends need you.’
Without letting myself mull over those words, I nodded, thanking her before leaving. I rushed through the halls and back out to the front foyer.
I called Anna as I sped down the dark highway, a few minutes later she had me booked on the next flight to Cairo. All I had to do was pray that I’d somehow get there on time.
Chapter Forty-Four
Ace
Aaryon and I stood silently, looking over the vast expanse of the New York City skyline. This was to be our final training session. We were nearing the end. After
today, I didn’t know what the future held for me.
As I concentrated and tried to hold onto the image, I felt it falter and flicker out of my grasp.
This wasn’t the New York I’d come to know; it wasn’t even close. This was a ghost of an image. The buildings faded in and out, held together only by the strength of my sheer will. Aaryon said it’d be hard at first. He wasn’t wrong.
‘Concentrate Ace.’ He said.
‘I’m trying.’
‘Trying isn’t going to make the city appear.’
I shot him a look.
‘Focus.’
‘I am.’
Troy stood beside me and gave me a gentle nudge.
‘You got this Ace, I know you do.’
‘Thanks.’ I said softly and returned my attention the scene in front of me. ‘Come on, New York.’
My brain felt like an icepick was getting slammed into it every few seconds or so. When a slice of pain pinched my insides, I gripped the edge of railing on top of the Agency building.
Aaryon said it would come easier being in an area I felt grounded to and so I chose here. This is where Illarion and I once spoke, he’d brought me up here to apologize about the way he reacted at the Ritz, it was the first time I’d felt that he cared about me.
Aaryon said it was easier when you had an emotional anchor but something that wasn’t too charged, otherwise you could risk pushing yourself into the past. That just blew my mind. Time traveling and plane surfing. He said time was fluid, if I caught the flow, I could ride with it, if I got into trouble, I could drown. The analogy made me shiver. I pictured myself drowning and dying, pulled down into the darkness of what used to be my life. A watery, time travely grave.
But no matter how much I concentrated on the task at hand; the image wouldn’t hold. Central Park seemed to flicker in and out of focus and I’d almost started questioning whether I was just getting a migraine and I couldn’t see properly. But as soon as Aaryon stepped up and brought the scene together, I closed my mouth with that protest.
It wasn’t a migraine. I just sucked.
‘You will get better at this,’ He began. ‘But we don’t have much time to work with.’
I gripped the rail and nodded.
‘Let me try again.’
‘Come on, Ace, you got it.’ Troy encouraged.
I gave him a tight smile and tried again.
Aaryon dropped his hold and the scene around us began to phase in and out again. I grit my teeth and focused. I brought up an image of the lake, the park and all the trees. I closed my eyes and for a moment I remained silent, almost praying that I could make this work.
Illarion was coming after Aaryon and if I couldn’t stop him, he’d be in trouble. Aaryon had come a long way with understanding human emotions but he was still deadly serious about being respected. He wouldn’t take lightly to being attacked by a Sensitive and especially not one whom he’d granted life to, after I nearly killed him.
‘Everything is counting on you being able to hold this plane together, Ace. You have to focus.’
‘I am.’
‘Your mind is scattered. Stop thinking about everything else and keep your focus here.’
‘I can do it.’ I ground out.
‘I know you can, you just have to believe it too.’
As a shift of energy beside me moved, I knew Aaryon had stepped away. He was still close by, I felt him, but he was giving me space.
Troy quickly followed. Great, I was alone.
Slowly, exhaling a long breath I opened my eyes. A smile quickly formed as I swept my eyes across the horizon. It was perfect.
New York City—bustling with people and cars, businessmen and women rushing around, hailing cabs and ordering coffees and off to the right, Central Park was coated in a dusting of powdery snow and through the canopy of trees I could make out the lake, kids were skating across it. The sun was high in the sky and I felt the heat of it on my bare arms.
‘Perfect.’ I whispered, letting my muscles relax.
I leaned against the rail and breathed in the crisp winter air. This was incredible, how could this be real?
The air shifted beside me as Aaryon walked up and stood against the rail, his hip resting lazily against the cool metal.
‘You’re getting the hang of it.’
‘Is it not good enough?’
‘On a surface level, yes.’
I frowned.
‘I walked around down there, they have no faces.’ He said.
‘How can I make every person have a face? That’s impossible.’
‘Not impossible. Difficult, yes.’
I let out a breath. ‘How do I do that?’
‘The average mind holds and stores gigabytes if not petabytes of data, it’s almost too hard to perceive how much can be stored in there. Your mind is stronger, faster and more superior than that. Your abilities are insurmountable. You’re doubting yourself and that doubt is what’s holding you back. That’s all.’
‘That’s all?’ I scoffed. ‘Seriously?’
A wide, perfect smile met me. His grey eyes dimmed to a light silver.
‘Let go of the doubt.’
When I opened my mouth to argue, he was gone. ‘You suck!’
At some point, flurries had started to come down, quickly wetting my hair and my clothes. I moved to seek shelter and just as I did, the sky warmed up and the snow stopped falling.
My arms were dry and not a single part of my hair or clothes were wet. In fact, my whole outfit was different. I was no longer in boots and jeans; I was in a pair of dark denim shorts and a grey t-shirt. I looked down at my feet and my favorite pair of sneakers were there.
This really was convenient. I smiled and made my way downstairs. Half way down, a thought crossed my mind. The world didn’t work the same way here, the same rules didn’t apply. I could move faster if I wanted to, hell I could be outside just by thinking it. And in that moment, I tried it. I pictured my feet on the pavement beside the lake and as I took my next step, the building around me dissolved and in a wild rush of air, the lake was in its place.
The people I’d seen from the rooftop were still here and just like Aaryon said, they had no faces. A heavy feeling settled in the pit of my stomach—was this how we were perceived? Just blank canvases waiting for someone, somewhere to create us.
I cringed, stepping away from a faceless little girl who’d run over to me, holding out a pair of skates. I frowned, there was no more snow…or ice…it was sunny now. I smiled, not knowing whether she could even see me.
A moment later, she took off and ran back to her mother, as my eyes swung up, they met with the striking figure of a woman. She had a face. Her eyes were vibrant and green, her dark auburn hair pinned neatly to the side and her full, pink lips broke into a smile as she looked at me. I stepped back, stunned. She couldn’t be looking at me.
She nodded, motioning for me to come to her and as I neared, the snow-covered trees were back, and the lake was covered in a perfect sheen of ice.
A breath caught in my lungs; this wasn’t possible. My mind was telling me I was losing it, but my heart never lied.
I stepped closer to her, reaching for her hand as she held it out to me.
Her soft fingers gripped my hand and as they did, a torrent of uncontrollable tears consumed me. I dared to look around, each faceless, blurred out person came into focus and when I brought my eyes back to her, a wide smile found me.
This was my family at my sixth birthday and that little girl I’d seen, was me and this woman before me…
‘Mom?’
***
Aurel
I glanced down at my watch, damn it.
The international customs checkpoint took a lot longer than I’d anticipated. That alone cost me almost an hour, God only knew if I’d come here in the middle of the day, it would have been worse.
As I rushed through the terminal and located the car hire counter, I shoved a couple out of the way and make my way thro
ugh.
The sun was due to set in less than three hours and the drive from here, all going well, would be about an hour.
As soon as the car was signed over to me, I barged out, tossing the small luggage I’d packed into the trunk.
I sped down the highway and keyed the location in to the GPS. The Tomb should have been located up in the hills, over a sandy dune where the sun and moon met for the briefest moment and that was the moment I was rushing to make.
But if Illarion had already crossed over, all of this would have been for nothing. Whatever this code he had to crack was, I had no doubt he’d be able to do it.
No one in the Agency had skills or credentials like him and he’d never once let me feel he outranked me by a mile.
I gripped the wheel and pushed the car into fourth and sped down the road. I couldn’t miss this deadline. I kicked on the cruise control and a moment later, the phone rang. The Bluetooth in the car picked it up.
‘Aurel, it’s Elena.’
‘Anna spoke with you?’
‘Yes.’ She answered quickly. ‘Is it true?’
‘Yes. I just landed in Cairo.’
‘ETA?’
‘Hopefully an hour.’
‘Good. Keep me posted.’
I nodded to myself and before I hung up, I added. ‘Keep Ace safe, do whatever you have to.’
‘I will.’
I nodded and disconnected the call.
***
Ace
Tears instantly clouded my eyes. I couldn’t believe that she was standing right in front of me, after all these years.
She stepped toward me and wrapped her arms around my shoulders. I’d never lost composure the way I just did now. My defenses crumbled and my tears came fast and furious.
‘Mom.’ I breathed again, daring to hope that this was real…as real as another plane or time could be. ‘Oh, Mom!’
‘Ace, honey.’ She whispered.
‘Oh my God.’ I tightened my hold on her and buried my face in her hair. She was just how I remembered. Her gorgeous perfume of roses and coconut filled my senses.
Jack of Hart- Wild Card Page 50