“You get used to it.”
“To killing people?!”
“It’s worth it for the power,” said Taylor. “It’s… you can’t understand. Blood magic is intoxicating. It’s like a drug. Once you taste the power, you can never go back to just being a normal witch. The need for the power outweighs any guilt you feel. The sacrifices blur together eventually.”
Yet, she had only been here for five months. I remembered that Fletcher said he was a blood wizard before he went to Miami and, I assumed, came here.
“Were you a blood witch before you came here?”
“Yes. But if I had known…” Taylor paused and looked away.
“You said this was a mistake,” I said softly.
“The moment you get to the cabanas they take you to meet Alaria,” she said. “She conducts the initiation ceremony right then and there. Before you start asking questions. Before you have a chance to notice that nobody else has a familiar with them… I thought… I…” Her eyes welled with tears. “I thought it was like one of those stupid movies. The ones where a character has to prove their loyalty by shooting someone they love, but then the gun isn’t loaded and it was just a test.” Tears began to roll down her cheeks. “I thought it was a test!” she sobbed. “But it was real. It was real…”
I stood awkwardly, wondering how on earth to comfort someone who had apparently murdered her own familiar or if I even wanted to.
Taylor wiped away the tears angrily. “But it, I don’t know, it made me disillusioned. It broke the spell blood magic held over me and allowed me to see Alaria for what she is.”
“What is she?”
“Evil,” Taylor snarled.
“What…” I hesitated. “What exactly makes her… evil?”
I was answered by a bitter laugh. “I won’t waste my time trying to convince you that not all blood casters are bad,” Taylor said. “But Alaria is different. I was taught to… to respect my sacrifices. To be grateful that they died to grant me power. My sacrifices are unconscious, and the ritual is over quickly; most don’t even realize I’ve captured them and none realize their fate. Alaria… she’s sadistic and cruel.” Taylor shook her head, frowning. “She likes her victims to be afraid, to know what’s happening. She likes to experiment, to see if different experiences for the sacrifice result in different power.”
“Different experiences?”
“Weres in animal or human form, elementals who are using their power, or not, when they die. Different phases of the moon. More blood, less blood. Victims who are already nearly dead when she finally kills them. Victims who are totally unharmed. She tries it all and she enjoys it. If I had known…”
“Are there others like you? Who want to escape?”
“Not currently,” she said sadly. “Well, there’s Burton but…”
“But?”
Taylor shook her head. “He doesn’t want to escape, he’s just angry because he has realized the truth about Alaria.”
“The truth? That she’s evil?”
“No. That she’ll never share her secret. Alaria has discovered, or I should say rediscovered, arcanism.” She paused as if it was a dramatic reveal and I remembered that she didn’t know I had seen the sacrifice. I let out a gasp and it seemed to satisfy her. “Alaria claims to be directly descended from Dewinnos, the first arcanist. She tells us that she’ll teach us all. But it’s always in the future. She always has an excuse or a reason for why she can’t teach others arcanism yet. The truth is she never will; she will never share her power. The disciples are her pawns, her scapegoats. That’s why, in spite of her strength, she isn’t looking for you personally. She won’t risk putting herself in harm’s way, when she can have others die for her.”
“If you aren’t learning arcanism, what are you doing here?” I asked.
“It’s supposed to be the starting point. We spend six months here as initiates. We work in the resort.” Her tone made it plain she wasn’t pleased by that arrangement. “We periodically are permitted to sacrifice humans who stumble into the labyrinths,” she continued with a sneer. “Mostly, we are forced to watch Alaria torture her sacrifices and gain even more power. I think it’s supposed to scare and inspire us. It works on most of them, except for the ones who realize they’ll never learn her secrets or the ones like me.”
“How did you end up here in the first place?”
“Oh, blood casters talk. We have ways of recognizing each other and, unlike Alaria, we typically like to share new discoveries and advancements. I've been hearing about Alaria for a few years and how they say she just rediscovered arcanism…” Taylor shrugged. “I was interested. Who wouldn’t be, for a chance to wield that kind of power?” She shook her head. “I discovered that Alaria was taking on students. They told me to call the Mystic Cay Resort and request a cabana. It's mostly staffed by non-magics, but when you request a cabana you’re transferred to one of us. I called and all I had to do was tell them the name of one of the disciples.” She chuckled. “I never actually met her, but I was given her name and said that she had recommended me.” Taylor had started smiling fondly at the memory, but her face fell and she shook her head. “Maybe if I had met her first, I would have realized what I was getting into... Anyway, they told me to arrange for a six-month absence from my job as soon as possible. Then, to let them know what day I'd be arriving; go to Miami, catch the ferry to Mystic Cay. As soon as I got to the cabanas I met Alaria… and that was that.”
“What happens after six months?” I asked.
“Assuming Alaria doesn't get angry and kill me, which apparently she does from time to time, I'll become a full disciple and go on to serve her in other ways. She's been a bit unclear on the specifics.” Taylor added, wrinkling her nose. “I suspect that's just one more way she keeps us on a tight leash.”
It occurred to me that we had been standing around for quite some time; I glanced around nervously to make sure nobody had snuck up on us.
“So, what was it you wanted to talk to me about?” I asked. Probably not any of this, considering I had been asking most of the questions. “You were waiting here to find me.”
“I thought you were a blood witch,” she said, still sounding slightly annoyed that I wasn't. “I was going to find out how you escaped from the island the first time and try to see if I could figure out if you were here to become an arcanist yourself or if you were planning to kill her, in which case…” Taylor shrugged. “I thought I could help you. I was under the impression it has been quite some time since the last person escaped. Everyone else was convinced that you'd be hiding in the hotel or lurking somewhere near the ritual site. But I figured if I were you, I would want to stay near the labyrinth where I came in. I see that I was right.”
I nodded. “Why don't you just go through the labyrinth?” I asked, suddenly suspicious. She obviously knew exactly where the labyrinth doorway had been. “If you really want to escape so badly.”
Taylor shook her head. “Only Alaria and her full disciples are able to come and go through the labyrinth as they please. Initiates are trapped here.”
“I assume the ferry is out?”
She frowned in annoyance. “There are always a couple of disciples on the ferry. They'd recognize me and that would be it.” She shrugged. “Besides, I don't have one of the ID cards and they won't let you board without it.”
“There's no other way off?” I asked. “Maybe by water?”
Taylor grimly shook her head again. “There's a blood magic barrier surrounding the island. If you get too far out in the water, it will kill you.”
“Even humans?”
She frowned at me curiously; my fingers clenched around my wand as I realized my mistake.
“I mean non-magics,” I said with a shrug, trying to play it off. “I hang out with a lot of non-humans.”
Still looking somewhat suspicious, she nodded once. “Everyone. A couple of non-magics have been affected over the years. We tell them there's some sort of venomous coral in the non-public are
as and that if you get sick, it’s your own fault for not obeying the posted…” she trailed off with a frown.
I swear I heard a whisper and turned in alarm, looking for the source. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a rush of motion; was Taylor trying to catch me off guard?! I spun back to her in alarm, ready to defend myself but the movement I had seen wasn’t Taylor rushing me, it her being knocked her from feet somehow! She stood slowly, drawing her wand.
“Burton,” she growled.
I turned in horror to see a blood wizard advancing on us, wand drawn and ready.
“Taylor,” he said with a sneer. “I suspected your heart wasn't in it, but I never imagined you'd be helping her.”
“Run,” Taylor said to me. I glanced back at her and to my horror saw that she was wiping a trickle of blood away from under her nose. “Run!” she repeated urgently.
I turned and sprinted for the water, running as fast as I possibly could. I splashed in up to my waist and got ready to dive in headfirst, hoping Mariana was ready.
“Skal-gul!” came an angry shout.
Water began to churn around me, forming into a swirling wall in front of me. I took a step back in alarm; I had a feeling that diving through it to the other side was not going to be an option, especially since he was using blood magic to do it.
He strode calmly down into the water after me. I raised my wand, hoping that if he also thought I was a blood witch, he'd hesitate. He raised his wand and held out one hand, taking another step closer to me.
“Give me your wand,” he said.
I risked a glance behind me at the towering wall of water, heart pounding. I had nowhere to go.
“Hold!” Alaria’s icy voice cut through the air. “Lower your wand, Burton,” she commanded.
“What?!” he demanded, turning in shock toward her voice. “Where…” he said, looking around in confusion.
I turned to look too; there was nobody there! Then, with a splash, Mariana hurled herself out of the water toward him! She opened up her mouth and for a second it looked like she was trying to hiss at him like a vampire, then a jet of black liquid shot out and hit him square in the face.
Burton screamed and staggered back, frantically trying to wipe the thick, sticky ink out of his eyes.
Marianna splashed back into the water and spun around in a blur, slamming Burton the back of the legs with her tail, knocking him down into the water with her. I thought of the occasional fantasy novel I had read where mermaids were portrayed as vicious sailor-drowners instead of fun, playful creatures and for the first time I could really see it. The water around them lit up as bolts of electricity arced over their bodies. A moment later he was still, and Mariana heaved a sigh.
Mariana slowly straightened up and we looked at each other, eyes wide. We both knew that if we didn't pull Burton out of the water quickly he would drown; yet I wasn't exactly sure if that would be a good idea. Before we could make up our minds, Taylor cried “Gul!” The water rushed around Burton and I could feel it tugging powerfully on my legs as the wave swept away, dragging him out to sea with it.
Mariana and I both looked at Taylor in horror as she lowered her wand.
“He would have told Alaria about you,” she said coldly. “And it would have been the end.” She looked at Mariana curiously. “Alaria is certain you are alone. You have a huge advantage.” Then she groaned in pain and sank to the ground, clutching her head.
I looked around, making sure there were no other blood casters in sight and then ran back up the beach to Taylor. The veins in her face and neck were dark and I could see black blood dripping from her nose. Unlike my last encounters with blood magic, getting in water or drinking blood wouldn’t help her.
“I don't know any healing spells,” I said.
She shook her head. “Only blood magic would work. Otherwise my natural healing won't be fast enough,” she said. I started to reply but she shushed me. “I don't have much time. Let me do at least something right.” She sucked in a deep shaky breath. “There’s another doorway into the labyrinth. Go back to the cabanas, then toward the coast and you'll find our ritual site.”
“I know where it is,” I said quickly.
She nodded “The doorway… is…” She paused, trying to catch her breath. “The doorway is near—” She cried out and pain and grabbed her head. “Blood! You need—"
Taylor collapsed.
“No!” I gasped.
I sat there for a moment trying to think if there was anything I could do for her, but I knew there wasn't. Black blood began to drip from her nose and ears. I backed away, casting another nervous glance around us in case there were more of them out there or worse, Alaria herself.
“Jen!” Mariana called.
“Thank you,” I whispered to Taylor.
I turned and rushed down the sand into the water and dove in with Mariana.
We reached the dock again quickly to find the party was still in full swing. Even though it felt like we had been gone for hours, I realized the entire exchange hadn't taken nearly that long. We crept along under the dock and made it to the far side; the table we used before was miraculously still available, even our plates were still there! We carefully made our way toward it, making sure that nobody nearby turned their heads in our direction.
I didn't see Mariana shift back into a human, but as I climbed onto the stool at the table, trying to act casual, she did the same on another one and clearly had legs. Once again, we sat there for a moment, making sure nobody thought we seemed suspicious.
I felt safer having made it to the resort, but I knew we wouldn't truly be safe until we were back in the room, even then we would still be trapped on an island, surrounded by blood casters who were looking for us.
At least now we knew there was another doorway into the labyrinth. I assumed that if Taylor had bothered to tell me about it, then it meant Alaria must not have sealed it yet.
My heart sank as the location of the doorway suddenly clicked; it was near the ritual site on the wrong side of the blood magic barrier. Unless we went with this same plan and I went through alone, the others would be putting themselves in terrible danger. But what other choice would we have?
Chapter Seven
Jen
Something woke me. I blinked sleepily and looked around trying to figure out what it was, next to me Thomas was sitting up too, looking confused. There was just enough light coming in through the curtains that I could see the traces of blood magic on his face were almost gone. On the other side of the huge bed, Dani and Charlie were waking up, too, and so was Mariana. Even without the sunlight, I would have known it was morning; TS was in human form again, still sprawled across everyone’s feet at the bottom of the bed.
“What was—” he began.
Then I heard it again; someone was knocking on our door. We all looked at each other in alarm.
“Excuse me!” a muffled voice called. “I need to speak with you at once.”
“It sounds like the same non-magic who was here last night,” Thomas said.
“It is,” Dani said confidently.
“I guess I'll get it then,” Mariana said nervously, as she climbed out of the bed. After getting back to the room we had switched back to our regular clothes and she was fully dressed, but she grabbed one of the complimentary bathrobes off a nearby hook.
The man knocked again. “Hello?”
“Just a second!” Mariana called.
“Hang on,” Dani said quietly. I saw a glimpse of a knife as he rolled off the bed. He positioned himself in the bathroom, near the door. Thomas stood too and edged closer to the corner, obviously ready to help if something happened.
Mariana took a deep breath and opened the door. “Yes. What is it?” I couldn't tell if her yawn was real or fake.
“I’m so sorry to wake you,” the guy said. “But it's urgent, There's a hurricane on the way.”
“A hurricane?” Mariana repeated skeptically.
“It was just a tropical depre
ssion and nobody was worried about it,” he said. “But it seems that overnight it gained a lot of strength and changed course and is on pace to hit us head on this afternoon.” There was a long silence, then he added. “It's supposed to be a category five by the time it gets here.”
“A category five hurricane is coming this afternoon?” Mariana said. I wasn't sure if it was that unbelievable or not, but I trusted a mermaid would know better.
“We need to evacuate,” he said quickly. “I'm afraid you won't have any time to uh, shower.” I could hear the embarrassment in his voice, no doubt thinking of the incident last night. “The ferry is on its way and as soon as it docks we’ll be boarding. Breakfast will be served on board. Please pack everything quickly. And don't forget the cards you were given when you first boarded the ferry. I'm sorry. Please try to be on the dock within half an hour.”
Mariana thanked him, then closed the door and we all quickly gathered in the main part of the room.
“Does anyone think it's a bit of a coincidence that a category five hurricane is about to hit us?” TS asked.
“Yeah, it seems like a stretch,” Thomas agreed.
Dani had gone out onto the balcony and was standing with his arms crossed and his head tilted to one side, frowning.
“Is it bad?” Charlie asked nervously.
“If you're referring to the hurricane,” Dani said flatly. “There isn't one.” He slowly spun in a circle a couple of times, looking toward the sky, eyes churning with dark blues. After one more rotation, he shrugged and came back into the room. “I can't sense anything anywhere that feels like even the edge of a hurricane. Unless this thing is moving ridiculously fast and is really far away right now...” He shook his head. “I don't think there is one. It's a trick to get us all on the ferry.”
“Alaria knows Jen came in through the labyrinth,” TS said. “So, she knows that Jen won't have the proper card to get back on the ferry. If she tries to board, they’ll have her. The only other option, assuming,” He tilted his head toward Dani, “she doesn't have a handy water elemental, is to try and sit here and ride out the storm, which I imagine she doesn't expect Jen is going to want to do.”
Rise of the Arcanist Series: Books 1 - 6 Page 37