I Am the Night (The Night Firm Book 3)

by Karpov Kinrade

Instead, I focus on the two men standing over a body. Both are ablaze in flames that would have seared me in the past. Now, I can walk right up to them and hug them if I want, though I might still burn my clothes off. So I wait for them to de-flame, which they do the moment they see us.

  "Eve, Sebastian!" Ifi grins and throws himself into a hug, first with me, then with Sebastian, who looks a little taken back but recovers quickly enough and embraces the Ifrit. I smile at the exchange, glad we have these guys as friends.

  While Ifi regales Sebastian in his latest drama, Elal hugs me, his golden eyes more serious. "Sounds like you have had quite a time with the dragons," he says.

  I snort. "That's the understatement of the century. What have you heard?"

  Ifi joins us, dragging Sebastian by the hand. "Oh darling, what haven't we heard? Dead dragons, a visit from the Mother of Dragons, your Fate powers going super nova. The Otherworld is getting lit!" he explains with a swivel of his hips.

  I burst out laughing and Elal chuckles. "We took a visit to Earth recently. Ifi really liked the socializing on media part. He learned some new words."

  "Yeah, I can see that," I say, still chuckling. "But honestly, how do you guys know so much about what happened already? There were only a few of us there."

  They share a glance. "We have our ways," Ifi says with a conspiratorial wink.

  Elal frowns. "We also know of other, more disturbing things," he says. "End of the world rumors."

  I suck in a breath. "How?"

  "It is hard to explain. But rest assured this is not common knowledge, and will not become so, not by us at least. While Ifi might be an irredeemable gossip, even he knows when to keep his mouth shut."

  I look over at Ifi, who makes a motion to zip up his lips and toss away the key.

  "We need to solve this case," I say. "Everything depends on it."

  "Then let's get to it, shall we?" Elal says, and with a flick of his finger he gestures for one of the cooling units to open, and a table comes rolling out with Lyx's body laid out reverently on top, covered in a white sheet.

  "We have never autopsied a dragon before," Ifi says, clearly trying to contain his excitement.

  "Normally their bodies disintegrate upon death," I say. "Why didn't hers?"

  "Our working theory," Elal says, "is that their body remains if their soul was torn from them without their willing consent."

  "Does this mean Lyx can't move on? To… wherever dragon souls go when they die?" The afterlife is still a mystery to me, clearly.

  "We can't answer that," Elal says.

  "Can you tell us what killed her?" Sebastian asks, his voice soft, his demeanor more subdued than normal as he gazes at Lyx.

  Elal reaches for a clay sculpture on one of the shelves and holds it up. "Something this shape and size," he says. "I made a mold of the puncture wound and created a sculpture from it."

  I take it from his hand and examine it, turning it over in my hand. It's made of grey clay and has a cylinder base that narrows into a sharpened tip with ridges spiraling it. "What does this look like to you?" I ask Sebastian.

  He frowns, studying it. "A unicorn horn."

  "Right. But there's presumably only one left, and it wasn't the murder weapon, so where does that leave us?"

  "With another mystery to solve in just a few days."

  "Can we keep this?" I ask, holding up the sculpture.

  "Sure thing," Ifi says. "It's some of my best work." He winks and I grin at him.

  "Now, are we ready for the last wish?" Elal asks.

  "Yes," Sebastian says softly.

  We all step back several feet in anticipation of Ifi's transformation.

  He walks over to Lyx's body and stands by her side, then bursts into flames. The fire burns brightly and Sebastian shifts uncomfortably, sweating. I reach for his hand and use my water and air magic to dampen the heat for him. He pulls me closer to him and kisses my head as Ifi begins chanting in his own language. As before, his voice becomes layered with other voices, the vibration of them shaking the room. It feels like an earthquake moving through the mausoleum and then a loud screeching fills the air. Flames dance against the marble walls and ceilings, and the body of Lyx begins to shake as Ifi's magic fills her, animating her from within.

  She sits up and turns to us, light filling her body, her soul returning to her eyes. She looks at Sebastian first. "Son," she says, "Keep your light close."

  Then she looks at me and her face contorts in terror. "The mother must be stopped."

  I expect her to drop back to the table, dead once again, but instead, she bursts into explosions of light that go off like fireworks in the contained space.

  As vials of liquid begin exploding, I grab Sebastian and put up a shield, using a blend of light, air, water and darkness. It seems to do the trick as sizzling chemicals splash against the shield and slide off harmlessly, and projectile balls of fire and light crash into it and fizzle out. I feel the hits to my magic but withstand it easily as Elal and Ifi rush to contain the damage.

  Eventually the light show dies down and then Lyx's body bursts into dust and disappears, leaving nothing but a massive mess behind.

  "That was fire!" Ifi says in awe.

  Sebastian looks confused, so I clarify. "It's a meme thing. It means cool."

  "Fire means cool? That wasn't any more clarifying."

  I snort. "Welcome to my world."

  The Note

  We are weaned from our timidity

  In the flush of love’s light

  we dare be brave

  And suddenly we see

  that love costs all we are

  and will ever be.

  Yet it is only love

  which sets us free.

  ~Maya Angelou, Touched by an Angel

  Sebastian and I wait in Ifi and Elal's private quarters while they put out the last of the fires in their lab. I offered to help, but they insisted there were too many variables to allow other magic to interfere.

  I look around in surprise at their very modern studio situated upstairs in the mausoleum. It's all leather and steel, tasteful and sparse, juxtaposed against stone walls and marble floors. Their kitchen is small but gourmet, with some definite black trade gadgets from my world. "How do they even make a cappuccino machine work without electricity?" I ask.

  "Magic?" Sebastian postures as he takes a seat on the leather sofa.

  He's been pretty quiet since we got up here, so I take a seat next to him and place a hand on his knee. "You okay?" I ask.

  He grunts.

  "So that's a no," I say. "I know you all have a history with the Light Dragon. Do you want to talk about it? This must be hard for you."

  It was unusual that she had two 'last wishes'. Not to mention that she blew up after. The Ifrits look shook—as Ifi might now say with his new grasp of earth modern lingo.

  "She was my mentor," he finally says. "Before I became a Druid."

  I nod. "I knew you’d been close at one point, before your falling out."

  "Falling out," he says, with a bitter undertone to his words. "Yes. We certainly did. She turned her backs on us—on me—because she didn't like the direction the Order was going."

  "Because of the Fates," I say, and guilt floods me even though I'm not really the same person as back then. At least I don't feel like I am.

  "Yes, in part. There were a lot of complicated politics at play. And then Cole did what he did, and she sided with him against the Order and the Fates, severing ties with us all, just as Cole did."

  "And you lost your brother and your mentor all at once," I say. "That must have been heartbreaking."

  "I spent the first two decades of my life being trained by her to prepare for my initiation into the Order. Hours every day which became longer the older I grew. She taught me the history, the lore, the use of my powers, the control of my emotion. She was the only mother I really ever knew."

  "Who were your parents?" I ask, shocked that I've never had this conversation with
any of them.

  "I don't really remember them," he says, his eyes losing focus as his mind is drawn into the past. "My brothers and I were born on a farm. Our parents were poor, and when they discovered we had powers, they feared us cursed by demons. The Druidic Order heard about us and sent Lyx to acquire us. My parents were more than happy to take the gold to get rid of us. Hell, had they had any money to begin with, I think they would have paid to have us taken away."

  "Did you all develop your gifts at the same time?" I ask, my heart breaking for the little boy whose parents didn't want him.

  "Strangely yes," he says. "It was after Cole was born, once he developed his light powers at age two. Somehow that triggered it for all of us. Liam burned down part of the barn that day—which likely explains why our parents thought we were a curse. Our magic was so raw and untapped, we caused only grief for them."

  I reach for his hand and hold it in mine. "Did you ever see them again?"

  He looks away, unable to meet my eyes. "Their village was destroyed when we were cursed and lost control of our powers." He pauses, and the weight of his words hit me with a visceral force. "That's when we decided to end our lives."

  Now tears are burning my eyes, and I let them fall. I know how awful that time was for them. I remember the pain when they first told me what happened. But this… this is so much worse than I even imagined. I want him to know that I see his pain and hold space for him.

  He lifts his free hand and runs the pad of his thumb across my cheekbone, stealing my tear. "It has been many, many lifetimes, and I am not who I was then."

  His hand, still caressing my cheek, moves to the back of my head, his fingers tangling in my hair as he pulls me forward.

  With an urgent need he claims my lips, pulling me onto his lap as he does.

  Like an earthquake, everything shifts between us, and I adjust my legs, straddling him on the couch to get closer. His hands fall to my ass, pulling me even nearer, fingers digging into my flesh as he deepens our kiss.

  I nip at his lower lip and he growls and hardens beneath me, pressing himself between my legs. An agonizing need crashes through me, creating a temporary amnesia to where we are.

  It's not until the door opens that we both remember we are guests at the Ifrits home. Startled, I roll off his lap into the couch next to him and he casually covers his pants with a throw pillow.

  I can feel the blood rushing to my face and know within moments I'll look like a disheveled beet.

  Ifi raises an eyebrow at us as he walks in. "Looks like you two have been having fun with out us," he teases.

  They both left their white lab coats downstairs and Ifi is dressed in torn jeans and a band t-shirt. Elal is wearing more of a Renaissance style outfit of dark leggings with a long sleeved shirt and doublet. Elal heads to the pantry and pulls out a bottle of wine. "Ifi, leave them be." He glances at us. "Care for a glass?"

  "Sure," I say. "Thank you."

  Elal pours four glasses and brings them over, then they both take a seat across from us.

  "Was the lab too badly destroyed?" I ask, sipping my drink.

  "Thank the fires, no." Elal says.

  "But it's an unholy mess nonetheless," Ifi interjects, already on his second glass of wine. "Still, worth it. Who else can say a dragon blew up in their morgue."

  Elal shoots Ifi a glance that is absolutely couple-speak for, "she was their friend, don't be such an ass." And his face changes to, "by the fires you're right, what a nob I'm being."

  At least that's how I interpret it. But Ifi stammers an apology. "I can be an insensitive prat sometimes."

  "It's fine," Sebastian says, finally able to move the pillow off his lap. "It was pretty remarkable. What do you think caused that?"

  "My best guess is when Ifi pulled her dying wish from her, it cleared her soul of the karmic energy to move on," Elal says. "Or another magic interfered because they didn't want her sharing anything more."

  My breath hitches at his words. "Is that possible? Could she have said more? I thought you only got one wish, but she said two."

  "Oh the dead can say whatever they damn well please," says Ifi. "They just usually don't have much umph left in them, if you catch my drift. But the Light Dragon, she was one of the most powerful beings alive. I’d bet she could have solved her own murder if she could’ve spoken longer."

  "But who could have done that to her?" I ask. "What kind of power?"

  "That's why that particular theory seems most unlikely," Elal says, casting a frown at Ifi. "Because it shouldn't be possible. Not with the spells and counter spells on this place, plus Okura and Akuro guarding it. Likely she'd fulfilled her death wish and moved on."

  Once we are done with our drinks, Sebastian and I stand to take our leave. "It's been so good seeing you again. Come over for dinner sometime," I say at the door.

  Elal gives me a hug and Ifi screeches and bursts into flames, startling us all.

  "What the hell?" Sebastian says, rushing out of the way of the flames.

  Ifi simmers down and apologizes. "I've been having hot flashes lately," he says. "Especially when I remember something important."

  "I'm thinking hot flashes mean something different for you than they do for my world," I say. "But regardless, what did you remember?"

  Ifi heads over to a desk and pulls out an envelope. "We were asked to give this to you, and only you."

  Curious, I open it, and find a note written in heavy script font with dripping black ink.

  Meet me at Landal's Tomb when you get this. I have information that could help you. Come alone or I won't be there. ~Dath'Racul

  "What's Landal's Tomb?" I ask.

  "Doesn't matter," Sebastian says, reading over my shoulder. "You're not going."

  "You know I have to," I say. "Too much is at stake and we know too little right now."

  "Then I'm coming with you." Sebastian crosses his arms stubbornly over his chest.

  "No, you're not. He won't show if you do. Besides, I think I've proven I can take care of myself."

  "Uh oh," Ifi singsongs. "A lovers' quarrel. But they do make the best make-up sex."

  Elal shushes his lover and I blush for the second time today. Sebastian looks away, and I know we are both thinking about being in bed together for the first time. That moment needs to happen sooner rather than later.

  "He could be the killer," Sebastian says.

  "That seems unlikely. The dagger isn't the murder weapon."

  “Dragons don’t need a horn, remember?"

  I sigh, wishing we had more clues. But that’s exactly why I need to meet with him.

  "Even if he didn't do it, he's dangerous,” says Sebastian.

  "I faced off his mother, I think I can handle him," I say. "Besides I'm not going there to fight him, just to hear what he has to say." I turn to the Ifrits. "Where, and what, is Landal's Tomb?" I ask again.

  Sebastian falls into a melancholy sulk while Elal answers my question.

  "Landal's Tomb is where one of the three original Fates was buried."

  My ears perk up at that. "Are there tombs for all three Fates?" I ask. In my mind I'm wondering if I'm buried somewhere, which is such a weird and creepy thing to contemplate.

  "Nope," Ifi says, linking his arm through Elal's. The bigger Ifrit pulls Ifi closer, their bodies conforming to each other's as they speak. "She was the only one whose body was found after they disappeared. The other two were presumed dead, but no one knows for sure what happened to them."

  "How did she die?" I ask.

  "She was murdered," Ifi whispers, as if this is top secret information. "But no one knows by whom. However, there aren't many beings that can kill a fate. The list is short."

  "Ifi," Elal says sternly.

  "What? It's not like she can hear us. Not here."

  Elal frowns. "It's best not to speak ill of her regardless."

  "Speak ill of who?" I ask, though I'm beginning to suspect who they're talking about.

  They share a conc
erned glance and Elal sighs. "All I can say is this. Be careful with the dragons. And go to that meeting."

  Sebastian grumbles but doesn't argue.

  "I need to know where it is," I say.

  "Well you're in luck, darling," Ifi says, throwing an arm over my shoulder and walking me to the window. He points across the field of gravestones to the far end where a larger structure stands. "That's the entrance. The rest is underground. Go in and follow the steps down. You'll find what you're looking for."

  I glance at Sebastian. "Will you wait here for me?" I ask.

  "I guess I have to," he says, reluctantly sinking back into the couch.

  Elal holds the door open for me, but I shake my head. "I've got a faster way to travel these days."

  I close my eyes and think of the location Ifi just showed me, tapping into my darkness, and then I disintegrate.

  I land just where I plan, outside the door to Landal's Tomb. It's getting easier to do this teleporting thing, which pleases me.

  Vines and moss cover the stone structure before me with lifetimes of growth, and creepers hang down over the entrance, covering the door. Though it looks to have been recently disturbed.

  I push through and open the entrance. It squeaks and cracks as it opens and the scent of mildew and dust clogs my throat. I cough, choking a bit before I remember I can use air magic to clear some of this up. A flick of my wrist and I can take a deep breath with more ease. That handled, I navigate down the stairs, casting a ball of light on my palm to guide the way.

  Cobwebs catch in my hair and something squishes under my feet, but I don't look to see what. I don't really want to know.

  When I finally get to the bottom, I enter a cavernous space full of candles. The room has a tall ceiling, and in the center is a sculpture of a beautiful woman draped in a see-through gown. The stonework is incredible, truly magnificent. It's as if her soul was brought to life, and a chill runs down my spine as I stare at her form.

  In another life, she and I were friends.

  Or sisters.

  I'm unclear.

  But we were close.

  Who were the other Fates? What were they like? I have so many questions I can never hope to get answered.