by Hanna Peach
Alyx spun. She was stunned at the sight of Ana storming towards them.
“How dare you! I did not give you permission to teach him any of that fighting stuff.”
Ky stepped out in front of Alyx. “But Mama−”
“Ky, I am not discussing this with you right now. Go to your room.” The glare that Ana gave him was enough to send Ky flying back towards the Aradale building.
“Alyx,” Ana said when Ky had gone, “I did not give you permission to train my son. Do not do it again.”
“What is your prejudice against me?”
“It’s not against you. I just don’t believe that it is right to teach children how to fight.”
“Ky is turning into a man. He needs to know how to defend himself. Especially out here.”
“No.” Ana shook her head furiously. “We came out here so we could get away from all that. So we could be safe.”
Alyx pressed her lips together. “There is nowhere safe right now. Not while the Darkened and the Elders are up to something.”
“Do you have children?”
Alyx’s fingers flinched towards her belly. “No.”
“Then you wouldn’t understand.” Ana sighed. “I know you must think I’m being too hard on him. But he’s already too brash, too bold…” Ana’s fingers went to her forehead.
“Ana, you won’t be able to continue to protect him like you do.”
Ana shook her head. “Ky is my son and I shall protect him how a mother knows best. Don’t train him anymore. He is not to become a warrior. I won’t let it happen.”
Ana stormed off back to the building. Alyx stared at her retreating form. There was more to Ana’s story than Ana had told her. But Alyx doubted that Ana would share this with her now. And she doubted that Ana would be sympathetic if she confided in Ana about her possible pregnancy.
Yael,
This is the last letter I will ever write to you. I have tried for many weeks now to hold on to faith that you will find your way back to me. But now I understand that you do not want to return.
I leave tonight for Aradale. And when I do, I will leave all hope for us ever being together again behind. Know that I will keep a part of you − a part of us − with me always.
Siana
Chapter 11
The next morning they were all summoned to Tobias’s room. The others had obviously been told about Elysia because Alyx could see the mournful glances that were cast her way. Alyx gritted her teeth. She didn’t want pity. The best thing she could do for Elysia was to stop Samyara.
“The swallows have started returning,” Tobias said. “A community in Thailand has advised us that one of the Buddha statues in a Hindu temple was carved from Black Stone. Unfortunately, that statue was stolen a few days ago.”
Marin looked like he was going to start ranting, but Tobias put up his hand to halt him. “Not all the swallows are back. We could still get lucky.”
“Meanwhile they keep stealing Black Stone before we can get to them,” Marin grumbled.
Something was whirring in Alyx’s head as she thought over the items that they knew had been stolen. Meteors in mortal museums, mortal monuments, mortal statues...
“Maybe we’re looking for answers in the wrong place,” said Alyx, leaning forward. “Jordan, didn’t you say that Black Stone came back to Earth as meteors?”
Jordan nodded.
Alyx continued, spurred on by a sliver of hope. “What if we look through the mortal records? Surely they keep records of all the meteors that have crashed to Earth. Maybe they would even have a record of whether the meteors were kept intact or whether they were used to create something else such as a statue.”
Jordan was leaning forward now as well. “Black Stone is a beautiful and incredibly strong but easily forged metal. It’s not surprising that it appears to have been utilized by the mortals to make statues and the like.”
“It’ll take too much time to go through all of the mortal libraries looking for records,” Marin said. “We don’t have the time.”
“At least it’s a start,” said Alyx.
“It’ll be even faster if we get access to a meteorite database,” said Israel. “If I can get access to the Internet I can do a bit of digging.” Israel looked at Tobias. “You guys have access to the Internet here, don’t you?”
Tobias shook his head.
Israel’s face twisted in disbelief. “At least tell me you know what the Internet is?”
“Yes, we know what the Internet is, but we don’t allow access in Aradale. There are too many risks that outweigh the possible benefits of having an Internet connection. We need to keep Aradale as safe as possible.”
“Okay, then we’ll find Internet access outside somewhere. The local library usually provides free Internet access.”
“I’ll go,” said Alyx. “You just tell me what to look for.”
Israel raised his eyebrows at her. “Have you ever used the Internet before?”
Alyx blanched. “What? It can’t be that hard, can it?”
Israel shook his head. “You need me. I’m coming with you. The library should be open during the day, which is better for us if we’re walking around, right? No Darkened and lightwarriors running around when it’s light, isn’t that right?”
Alyx was about to argue back, but Vix spoke up, “It would be safer during the day and there are still a few hours of light left. And it would be faster if we had someone researching who knew what he was doing. I say let him go, Tobias.”
“Yeah,” Marin interjected, “the mortal should be doing something to earn his keep.”
Alyx couldn’t believe what she was hearing. Surely Tobias would see the danger in letting Israel leave Aradale…
Tobias spoke slowly, “If you were to go with him during the daylight hours, Alyx, I think that should mitigate the risks. How soon can you leave?”
* * *
The Nordlingen library was near the center of town, a block away from the Saint George cathedral. It was too far on foot, but Tobias had instructed one of the resident Seraphim to drive them in Aradale’s sole vehicle: an ancient van with rusted doors that wailed when they were opened and a passenger side window that wouldn’t wind down.
Through the scratched glass, Alyx could see that the streets of Nordlingen were narrow with no sidewalks, the level road extending right up to the blunt face of the three- to four-story buildings that lined it, which made Alyx feel like they were driving through a trench. Ornate Victorian lamps hung from hooks that extended out from buildings at about the height of the first story.
Finally, they pulled up to the Nordlingen library, a gray brick building with steps leading up to the entrance and dusty-looking pillars standing guard. The Seraphim driving said that he would let them out here, then find a place to park.
Alyx stepped out onto the cobbled street, scouring the faces of the people who passed by. She stepped in front of Israel, holding him behind her and glaring at a group of passing students.
“No offense,” Israel said, “but I thought the point was to avoid drawing attention to ourselves.”
“What are you talking about?” she asked, her eyes snapping to the faces of a couple who were crossing the street towards them.
“You. Looking like you’re about to kick the ass of anyone who comes too close to us. Relax a little.”
Alyx felt his fingers thread through hers and her arm tingled all the way up to her elbow, causing her shoulders to soften. As he pulled her towards the library entrance, his thumb rubbed small circles on the back of her hand and the feeling of release grew. It was so strange that his touch could ease the tension in her like that.
Inside, Alyx and Israel made their way past the reception desk and towards a small section that had four boxy-looking computers. There was only one harried-looking youth sitting at one; the others were free. Israel pulled a chair over to a computer and motioned for Alyx to sit next to him. Alyx sat quietly, watching curiously as Israel leaned over the keyboar
d.
“Here,” he said after a few minutes, “the Bureau of Meteorology. And it looks like they have a database of known meteor landings.” His fingers tapped at the keys as he said, “I’m just putting in a bunch of search criteria. Hopefully we’ll get lucky.”
Alyx nodded, feeling a sense of gratefulness that Israel was here with her. She studied the crinkle that he got between his eyebrows and the purse of his full bottom lip when he concentrated. The light from the monitor cast his perfectly imperfect profile in a silver halo. He looked over and caught her staring. “What?”
Alyx shook off the growing blush and looked down into her lap. “Nothing. Just... nothing.” Out of her periphery she could see a smile tugging at his lips even as he fixed his sights back on the monitor. Apparently her blush hadn’t gone unnoticed.
“I think I have it,” he said finally. “It looks like there have been several meteors of Black Stone-like substances across the world.” His brow furrowed. “Dammit.”
“What?”
“It looks like all of the meteors have been removed from their original locations.”
“Does it say where they’ve been taken?”
Israel frowned and clicked the mouse some more. “There are a few addresses here…museums. I recognize one of them as being that science museum in Germine that was robbed. I’ll see what I can find about the others.”
He opened another window and began typing in those addresses. As each search result came up, Israel began to look more and more morose. Finally he pushed back in his chair and blew out a huff. “The Darkened have been busier than we thought. All of these museums have been robbed of their meteors in the last few weeks. These addresses are located worldwide, which would explain why we didn’t hear about most of them.”
When Israel turned to her, his face crinkled with a mixture of frustration and hopelessness. “What the hell do we do now?”
Alyx became very aware of how near their faces were. She leaned back. She mustn’t let herself get carried away with him again. “Those are just the sites of the registered meteors, aren’t they?”
Israel nodded. “It goes back around 150 years, but the records get sketchy prior to that.”
“So there’s still the possibility that they haven’t found all the Black Stone. We’ll figure something else out.”
* * *
Back at Aradale, Alyx and Israel reported their findings to Tobias. Until the swallows returned with more news, there was nothing to do, so Tobias dismissed them both. Alyx felt an edge of guilt that she hadn’t been able to spend much time with Mini since they arrived, so she decided to check on her.
Alyx walked into Mini’s room. “Mini?” The room was empty and the bed was unmade. Alyx looked on the front of the door where there was a small message board so that Ky or Jordan or anyone could leave a message if they had taken Mini somewhere. But there was no message.
Alyx called out Mini’s name louder. She fell to her knees to check under the bed. Not there. She snatched open the cupboard door. Not there. Where was Mini? Where could she have gone? She wouldn’t have wandered out on her own, would she?
“What’s wrong?” Israel stuck his head through the doorway.
“Mini’s not in her room,” Alyx said, slamming the cupboard door.
“The window’s open. Have you checked outside?”
“No.” Alyx looked towards the window. The light curtain was blowing in with a soft breeze. A horrible thought flashed through Alyx’s head. What if Mini had fallen out of the window?
Alyx raced across the room and pushed the curtain aside. She stuck her head out and looked around, her heart in her throat. Her chest released a little when she didn’t see a body on the grass below. “Mini?”
There was a guttural noise coming from above.
Alyx cursed. “I think she’s on the roof.” She pushed out of the window and soared up to the roofline.
Mini was squatting with her back to Alyx just on the other side of the peak of the sloping roof. Alyx breathed a sigh of relief. “There you are. You had me worried.”
Mini turned towards Alyx.
“Oh my God.” The sight of her twisted at Alyx’s stomach.
Mini was holding a swallow in her hands, dead and floppy, neck ripped open and bleeding. There was sticky crimson across Mini’s fingers. The same crimson was smeared and dripping all over the lower half of her face and staining her pale yellow dress.
Mini grunted and brought the swallow to her face, her lips pulling back, showing her teeth.
Chapter 12
Alyx had brought Mini inside and sent Israel out to fetch Tobias. Unfortunately, Tobias happened to be with Jordan and Lukas at the time, so they had both insisted on coming too.
Now Tobias, Jordan, Israel and Lukas crowded Mini’s small room. Alyx held Mini in her lap on the bed. She had cleaned the blood off Mini’s face and hands and thrown the towel away, but the stains on her dress were still glaring evidence that something was seriously wrong.
Being an Animale, Lukas had had the strongest reaction to what Mini had done. “She’s some kind of monster,” he cried.
“She’s just a girl,” said Alyx. But was she? What would cause Mini to do such a thing?
“Are you so sure? Are you willing to take that risk? To put us all in danger?”
“She’s right here. She can hear you.”
“She doesn’t understand anything.”
Tobias raised his hands. “Please. Please. We can settle this if we get Dianne to look through her mind.”
“Dianne?” Alyx asked.
“She’s a MemorySong,” Tobias explained. “She’ll be able to tell us what this little girl is hiding.”
* * *
Back in Tobias’s office, Alyx sat next to Mini, holding her hand. The tension in the air was so palpable, it felt like it pressed against Alyx’s skin. Tobias, Israel, Jordan and Lukas were scattered around the room. Dianne was setting a large white screen up on one wall. Everyone was silent.
“We’re ready,” Dianne said, causing the nervous buzz under Alyx’s skin to hum even louder. As Dianne approached, Mini started to shift and whimper in her chair.
“It’s going to be okay, Mini,” said Alyx, even though she wasn’t sure it would be. “No one is here to hurt you.” Turning to Dianne, Alyx asked, “It won’t hurt her, will it?”
Dianne shook her head. “She’ll feel some discomfort, but it won’t hurt. I promise you,” she added when Alyx frowned.
“What’s the screen for?”
“As you probably already understand, with MemorySong magic, only I can see her memories. But using this clever invention,” Dianne held up a round misty-glass lens, “a MemoryViewer, I can project her memories onto that screen for all of you to see. The MemoryViewer will also keep a record of the memory.”
Alyx brushed Mini’s curls from her face and rubbed her arm in an attempt to calm her. Then Alyx gave up her seat to Dianne. Everyone else had gathered silently around the back of Mini’s chair.
Dianne placed one hand on Mini’s forehead. Immediately the room became warmer and the air felt thick. Alyx watched Mini closely. She began to frown but she didn’t look like she was in pain.
Dianne gasped, turning a shade paler.
Alyx leaned forward. “What?”
“She’s…my God…I didn’t think it was possible.”
“What?”
Dianne’s face seemed to drain of blood. “No. It is. I can see it clearly.” Dianne twisted in her chair to face the rest of the room. “This girl is part-demon.”
Those words were like an electric shock that stunned the room into silence.
“Part-demon…not Darkened, but actually part-demon?” asked Tobias.
Dianne nodded.
“Where the hell did Michael get a part-demon from?” said Lukas.
“And why was he keeping her in the Hollows?” said Israel, quietly. Alyx felt her stomach drop in a sharp unease. She could think of one reason…
Diann
e twisted around again. She seemed to stare at Israel for a second, but Alyx could have been imagining it.
“There are some things you should see.” Dianne held out the MemoryViewer towards the screen, her hand visibly shaking. An image flashed on the screen – an image as seen through Mini’s eyes.
Mini was in her cell, in the Hollows. It was dark, but with her unnatural senses, she could see the dim shapes of the bars in front of her.
There was a noise. Someone coming and bringing with them a glow of light. The ground crunched under her feet as Mini backed away from the bars. Alyx began to hear a muffled thudding from the screen. It took her a moment to realize it was Mini’s heart, beating loudly in a quickening pace.
“Hello, Angelique.” The glow fell across the cold face of Elder Michael as he appeared at the bars of the cell with two guards.
In her chair, in Tobias’s office, Mini was starting to whimper.
On the screen, Angelique had run to the corner of her cell and covered her face with her fingers, allowing only slits of light between them. As if she was trying to hide.
Michael snapped his fingers and a guard unlocked her door. He entered. Alyx felt her own heart start to join the drum of Angelique’s.
“Leave us,” Michael commanded, and the guards left.
Michael made his way slowly to her, repeating softly like a chant, “pretty girl, pretty, pretty.”
When he reached her, she tried to run. To where? They were trapped in this cell together. It was just a desperate reaction of someone trying to delay being touched by him for even just an extra second.
He grabbed her around her waist. She began to kick.
“Where are you going, Angelique? Pretty, pretty.”
Angelique cried out. And the cry was echoed by Mini, being held in her chair by Dianne.
“Jesus,” it came from Jordan. When Alyx glanced at him, he was ashen-faced. This picture would be all too familiar for him.
Angelique was spun and pushed against her cell wall. The image of Elder Michael’s looming face jittered as Angelique’s little body shook with terror. Then it went to black as Angelique squeezed her eyes shut. It didn’t stop the sound.