by Hanna Peach
“Ass-sensical?”
“Something between asshole and nonsensical.”
“Oh, right. Of course. Ass-sensical. Men?” Xiang offered.
Cleo snorted. “Men, indeed. Even worse, beautifully sculpted immortal seraph men. I swear the immortality thing goes to his head and makes him even more…” Cleo’s hand waved uselessly in the air.
“Ass-sensical?”
“Yeah.” Cleo made an exasperated sound. “Can’t live with them. Can’t stab them.”
“Well, you could. Stab him, that is. But he’d just heal real fast and then what would be the point... Oh, right…”
“Ugh. That’s it. I’m not talking about him again.”
“That’s a great idea.”
“I’m not even going to think about his stupid ass again.”
“Good for you.”
“Starting now.”
“Good.”
“Great.”
“Great.”
There was a pause. Cleo chewed her lip. “So what now?”
Xiang shrugged. “There’s always women?”
Cleo glanced over to Xiang. She looked so serious. Cleo couldn’t help herself, she gave Xiang a flirty little wink. “Are you offering?” The stricken look on Xiang’s face was enough to make Cleo burst out into laughter. “I’m just joking, Xiang. Unfortunately, I only love the things that hurt me.”
Xiang frowned for a second, then a look of realization took over her face. “Oh, right. A joke.” She let out a laugh then returned Cleo’s wink. Except her wink was more of a weird cheek-scrunch than a wink; the kind of wink that those who can’t actually wink do.
“If it makes you feel any better,” Xiang said, “women aren’t that easy to understand either.”
Cleo wondered if anyone was easy to understand. She found her eyes going to the open window. Had he left the grounds yet? How long would it take him to get to this strange island? How long it would take for him to get back? Would he miss her? Was he even thinking about her like she was thinking about him?
“Dammit,” Cleo yelled. “I just thought about him. Ugh, and now I’m talking about his stupid ass.” Cleo grabbed the blankets with her fists and mimicked banging her head against the mattress. When Cleo finally looked up at her, Xiang looked worried. “Tell me, Xiang. What do I do?”
“I… I don’t know.”
“Great.” Cleo let her face fall into her arms. “I’m so screwed.”
Chapter 6
Alyx and Tii’la flew side by side across the ocean towards Atlantis, the vast sea giving Alyx a sense of freedom she hadn’t felt since she used to compete in the illegal night races for the RaceKeeper. Alyx stretched out her body and enjoyed the rush of wind through her hair.
When Alyx glanced over to Tii’la she noticed the dark shadows under her eyes. “Are you okay? You look tired.”
“I just didn’t sleep well last night. I’ll be fine.”
“A mission like this can be nerve-racking.”
“Yes, that’s it. Just nerves. So, you and Israel…” Tii’la said, changing the subject.
“Me and Israel,” Alyx breathed, happiness humming under her skin.
“That thing you did yesterday with the mind-connection thing. I mean, wow.”
“Yeah, it’s pretty cool.”
“Do you guys have any other…you know, cool tricks?”
“Not sure I’d call it a trick, but yeah, we do. I pull into his head when he feels fear, basically when he gets into trouble.”
“Does that happen a lot?”
“Unfortunately,” she laughed as she shook her head. “Sometimes I swear he just runs right up to trouble.”
“Hmmm,” Tii’la mused. “It must be even more difficult having to guard someone who you’re in love with. I mean, just being in love with someone means that you’re always thinking about them, worrying about them…I can’t imagine having all that extra pressure of Guardianship on top of it.”
Alyx was pleasantly surprised at Tii’la’s assessment. She had always passed Tii’la off as just another warrior, a good warrior, but she never realized how perceptive Tii’la could be.
“It is hard,” Alyx agreed. “Sometimes I think that whoever chose me to be Guardian didn’t make the best choice.”
“Why?”
“Because I love him so much, I’d do anything to keep him safe…I make choices I usually wouldn’t make. Do things I wouldn’t normally do.” Sometimes things I don’t feel good about doing.
“Perhaps that’s what makes you such a good Guardian. Sometimes you have to do things you would normally never do…” Tii’la’s voice trailed off.
Alyx glanced at Tii’la out of the corner of her eye. Tii’la was staring off into the distance. “What about you?” Alyx asked. “Is there a special someone?”
Tii’la gave her a half-smile. “There was. But…it didn’t work out.”
“That’s too bad.”
“Yeah.”
“Who was it?”
Tii’la’s cheeks flushed. “Just…someone at Michaelea.”
“Someone I know? It’s someone I know, isn’t it?”
Tii’la’s face flushed just a shade redder. “No.”
“Oh come on,” Alyx coaxed, “you can tell me. Who was it?”
“It’s no one.”
“I know…Varian.”
Tii’la squealed. “Curse you for even thinking that. That seraph is horrible. He’s such an uptight, joyless...” Her voice dropped. “God, could you imagine him in bed? He’d be all like, ‘do this, do that, bend over, now drop and give me twenty’.”
Alyx made a face. “Not appreciating the visual.”
Tii’la laughed. “It’s definitely not Varian.”
“Well, tell me who then.”
Tii’la paused before admitting, “Lutando.”
“Lutando!” Lutando was one of Alyx’s old flock mates in Michaelea. She knew him well.
“He comes across as such a tough boy but inside he’s so sweet and kind. He noticed I was falling behind in one of the lectures we shared together. He offered to tutor me. He’s so beautiful I used to wonder why he even noticed me. I know I’m not ugly. But I’m not beautiful. Not like you.”
“Tii’la−”
“I don’t mind. It’s the truth. But he saw through all that. He made me feel beautiful, and that matters most.” Tii’la became very quiet.
“You’re still in love with him, aren’t you?” Tii’la’s face fell. “Sorry, Tii’la, it’s not my place. I shouldn’t have said anything.”
“No, no, it’s fine. I guess it was probably obvious anyway. But it’s all in the past now.”
Alyx’s heart tugged for Tii’la. “For what it’s worth, I’m glad you’re in our community now. Maybe out here you’ll find someone who will bring you lasting happiness.”
Tii’la smiled back at her, but it was a smile weighted with sadness. “I hope so too.”
Alyx felt the sudden urge to turn away consume her. “We’re approaching the mirage around Atlantis. Jordan said it’s strong so we’ll really be urged to turn away. Grab a hold of me so we can stay on course together.”
Tii’la reached out and grabbed her hand.
They pushed on forward, holding on to each other tightly as both of them veered and swayed. The tension from the mirage built up in Alyx’s body until she thought she might burst.
There was the familiar pop in her ears and her body relaxed. They had broken through the mirage. A huge island appeared before her, jagged crystal structures growing out of the green jungle that covered the island like a proliferate moss. The lost Seraphim city of Atlantis.
Chapter 7
The city was made of crystal towers, looking almost exactly as Jordan had shown them, except the structures were broken, partially buried in the encroaching forest and were now homes to birds and other wildlife. Plants and flowers reached out from the edges of the honeycomb-like openings as they made their slow journey towards the sun. It was beaut
iful. But eerie in the absence of Seraphim life. A silent volcano stood watch over the forgotten city.
Alyx and Tii’la moved through the city following the compass trail that Raphael had left her. As she passed near a building Alyx reached out and rubbed her hand along the crystal surface. It was cool to the touch.
Out of the corner of her eye she thought she saw a figure reflected against a piece of crystal. She turned her head but there was no one.
The blue arrow led Alyx and Tii’la through the buildings, past the edges of the city and towards the south side of the island, where the volcano sloped up to an open crater. They flew up to the mouth of the volcano. Down below in the center the blue trail disappeared into a hot lava pool.
“It looks like it goes in there,” Alyx said, pointing down.
“Into the lava?”
“I never promised this adventure would be easy.” Alyx stared at the lava. Why would Raphael lead them into a volcano? Unless… “Maybe it’s a mirage?”
“Or maybe the volcano grew around the entrance to Raphael’s secret Amulet bank and was flooded by molten hot lava, molten hot lava that we, that’s you and I, should not try and swim in. Oh dear, looks like it’s a dead end. End of adventure. Let’s turn back.”
Alyx gave Tii’la a look.
“What? I like my skin where it is, thank you.”
“You can stay here if you like. I’m going in.” Alyx let herself lower down into the mouth of the volcano.
She heard Tii’la curse behind her. “Wait up. I’m coming.”
As they got closer to the lava Raphael’s charm began to crackle. Blue sparks flew from the charm to the surface of the lava. The lava began to swirl into a vortex.
“Look!” Alyx cried.
The level of the lava began to fall as if it were being drained away until there was just a circular rock floor underneath along with puddles of hot liquid. There was a pattern in the puddles as if the rock was depressed in a particular way. Before Alyx could figure out what the pattern was, the puddles steamed and evaporated into nothing.
“Am I the only one who thinks that was awesome?” said Tii’la.
But Alyx was barely listening as she looked at the ground with her Soulsight. From the rock, blue writing shimmered − writing that curved around the edge of the circular stone floor. “There’s writing here,” Alyx exclaimed with excitement. She read it out loud.
“You will find your treasure,
By solving riddles three,
But first to enter,
Your way here is the key.”
Oh goody. Riddles. Why was everything guarded by riddles?
Alyx frowned as she stared at the stone floor. She could have sworn that there was a pattern there. She flew down to the ground. Heat was still radiating from it, but it was cool enough to touch without being burned. She crouched down to study the patterns in the rock, running her fingertips over the rough surface. The pattern was familiar, the way the rock was depressed in this area…and in that area…in that shape…
“Alyx?” She could sense Tii’la beside her. “What are you looking at?”
“It’s a map!” Alyx stood up suddenly, causing Tii’la to take a step back.
“A map?”
Alyx knew she had part of a WaterBearer mark left on her ribs. She drew upon the magic and directed a pulse of water towards the ground. The water sprayed and splashed, then glided over the rock towards the lowest areas until puddles were formed. Alyx grabbed Tii’la’s hand and pulled her up so that they were hovering several meters from the floor. “Look!”
Below them the shapes of all the countries and continents rose out of the thin layer of water. “It’s a map of the world,” exclaimed Tii’la.
“Exactly.”
“What does it mean?” Tii’la asked.
“The answer is in the last two lines of the riddle.” Alyx read part of the riddle out loud again. “But first to enter, your way here is the key.”
Her way here was by the compass that Raphael had left her. It was obvious, Raphael’s compass was the key, but where was the lock?
Your way here is the key.
She stared at the engraving of the world in the floor again. There had to be a link from the riddle to this map of the world. There was a clue in this map. But what?
Your way here is the key.
What if…
What if the last line had a double meaning?
She flew down to land in the miniature Atlantic Ocean. The island of Atlantis was indicated by a small circular piece of rock that jutted forward. If she wasn’t mistaken, there was a slightly circular depression in the rock…about the size of her compass. Here was her lock. And she had the key.
“I think I figured it out,” Alyx said, lifting the charm hanging against her chest. She felt Tii’la’s eyes on her as she pushed the charm into the depression. There was a small click as it landed home. There was a moment’s silence. Then the ground rumbled deep and low like a bass note.
The ground began to fall away like a ripple out from the lock. The charm fell against her again, its weight a small comfort. Tii’la’s hand gripped her arm, pulling her back from the widening hole. The sound of stone and grit pinging against something hard down in the void below. When the rumbling stopped and the air began to clear of dust, she could see the beginnings of a set of stone steps leading down into a bleak nothingness.
Alyx sighed as she stared into the darkness. “For once I’d love a well-lit path with a set of clear directions.”
She spotted a shadow moving on the ground. She looked up, squinting. Against the sunlight were two silhouetted figures falling towards them. “Tii’la, look out!”
Alyx unsheathed her sword just as a blade came for her. She met it with a clash. But the force of the falling body hit her and they both tumbled to the ground. She rolled away and leapt to her feet to face her attacker. It was Do’hann, a warrior in her rival flock when she had lived in Michaelea.
“Hello, Alyx,” Do’hann snarled, his sword clashing with hers again, knocking her back. Alyx ducked and rolled onto her side as his sword came down upon the ground with a huge crash. She leapt to her feet and swiped at his ankles. He flinched his feet away. But his size made him top heavy and he stumbled. Alyx lashed her blade at his hand and his sword clattered to the ground. She raised her point to his throat as he scowled at her.
“Give up, Do’hann.”
“You give up, traitor,” a familiar voice called out from behind her, “or your little friend gets her throat cut.”
Alyx glanced over in horror to see Varian, Do’hann’s flock leader, holding a blade to Tii’la’s back. Tii’la looked stricken. Dammit. How did Tii’la get overpowered so quickly? “If you kill her, I’ll kill Do’hann.”
Varian glared at her from over Tii’la’s shoulder before his face broke out into laughter. “You think I give a damn if you kill him? He’s just another foot soldier.”
“Sir!” Do’hann tensed against her blade and Alyx caught the flash of hurt quickly hidden.
Alyx eyed Varian. He was either bluffing or he really was a twisted bastard. She licked her lips slowly.
“You’re making me impatient, traitor.”
“Okay,” Alyx said, snatching her blade from Do’hann’s throat. “You win.”
Varian shoved Tii’la towards Do’hann. “You handle her. The Guardian and I have got a few things to sort out.” Varian faced Alyx and trained his sword at her. “Now, unsheathe all your weapons and kick them over.”
Alyx begrudgingly dropped her sword and kicked it to Varian’s feet. She removed her second sword from her back and the dagger at her hip before crossing her arms across her chest and glaring at Varian.
“And the rest of them,” said Varian.
“There’s no more.”
“Don’t lie to me, girl. If you’re a trained warrior, you’ll have at least one more in your boot, if not two. Let’s have them.”
Alyx kneeled slowly. Varian hadn’t yet noticed
the small blade she kept strapped near her ribs. She removed both blades from her boots and threw them into the pile. She felt naked without them.
Varian grinned when he saw them. “Once a warrior, always a warrior.”
“Once an asshole,” Alyx muttered, “always an−” Varian stepped up towards her and smacked her across her face. Pain exploded across her cheek as her head snapped to one side. She tasted blood on the inside of her lip.
She watched bitterly as Varian tucked her weapons away on his person, her mind ticking over any escape options. Varian and Do’hann were smart. They were well-trained warriors. They wouldn’t be making too many mistakes.
Varian held a sword to her neck as Do’hann deweaponed Tii’la. “Were you really going to let her kill me?” Do’hann asked Varian as he took Tii’la’s weapons from her.
Varian snorted. “Come on, lad. I was bluffing for her benefit.”
Alyx could see a hint of doubt left on Do’hann’s face.
“You’re going to take us to the missing Amulet piece,” said Varian to her, “or you’ll die, painfully.”
Of course. They wanted the last piece of the Amulet for Michael. But how did they find her and Tii’la? How did they know that the third piece was hidden in Atlantis? Did they happen to be searching Atlantis when they spotted Alyx and Tii’la? Or…did someone back at the castle betray them?
Whatever happened, Alyx couldn’t let them get hold of that last Amulet piece.
“You’ll have to kill me then,” Alyx said, “because I’m not helping you.”
“Oh, I think you will. You’ll take us to the Amulet to save your Rogue friend here.”
Tii’la.
A glance over to Tii’la showed the warrior keeping a defiant look on her face. But the fear was clear in her eyes.
“Even if I help you get the Amulet,” said Alyx, “you’ll just kill us both anyway.”
“How about, I promise to let you both go if you help us. Warrior’s honor.” Varian grinned and he eyed her body like a would-be lover. But the lust in his eyes wasn’t sexual, it was for violence.
Alyx felt a shudder go down her spine. She didn’t believe Varian for a second. But for now she had to play along with it until she could figure some way out of this mess. “Fine. I’ll do it.”