by Stark, Jenn
I narrowed my eyes. “Please don’t tell me you want me to find your genie.”
Ahmad spread his hands. “For many hundreds of years, I was afraid to look myself. I did not want to call attention to such a prize. I watched as kingdoms rose and fell, barbarians rolling across the land like a bloody tide. I watched once-proud fortresses descend into ruins and mighty empires rise up on their ashes. But no one came. No one looked. My father’s djinn remains trapped in Sheba’s palace. I am sure of it.”
Despite myself, I couldn’t deny a growing interest in this story. “But you’re already Connected. What would be the benefit of more magic?” It was a somewhat facile question. No magician on earth was ever satisfied with his current magic if he could somehow gain more. But I wanted to hear Ahmad’s specific answer.
He lifted his glass and took a long, considering sip before he answered. “The kind of magic that the djinn was to gather for my father was regenerative. Its purpose was to grow within whatever vessel held it—ideally, that would have been within my father’s body and soul, but that was not meant to be. Instead, it grew within the djinn’s vessel, doubtless infusing him with terrifying strength. All these thousands of years later, it would be a rare and mighty power indeed, an unknown magic entirely, and one that only a few bearers on this earth could control. You are one of them. The Magician of your Council is another. I, sadly, am not.”
I narrowed my eyes. “You want me to find this djinn—and take its magic from you?”
And then, of course, I got it. “You want to sell it. To the Arcana Council.”
“I do,” Ahmad said without embarrassment. “My decisions do not always keep pace with my dreams of late, and I would not come into active involvement with the Council as a poor relation. I am as proud as my father once was.”
I blew out a long breath considering that, and Ahmad kept going. “Of course, there is another concern.”
I grimaced. “Which is?”
“As long as this reservoir of magic remains in the world, we are at risk. I cannot overstate how powerful it is. If it were to fall into the Shadow Court’s hands…”
“It cannot.”
I was already lifting a hand to wave off Ahmad’s concern when Eshe spoke, her voice thick with an odd, otherworldly intonation. I jerked my attention toward her to see her eyes wide, unfocused, and milky white. Her hand was loose around her chalice, her lips stained with wine. A lick of fury ripped through me, but Ahmad lifted both hands, warding me off.
“There’s no poison,” he declared, accurately guessing my concern. “I do not…”
Both he and Hassan looked at Eshe with worship in their eyes. It took me aback for a second, but it wasn’t the first time I’d seen her generate that reaction, even among the Arcana Council. The Emperor could be a fangirl as well.
“They are close. Too close, Sara Wilde,” the High Priestess continued. “They seek to distract and destroy, and on your bones make new magic.”
I curled my lip, but it was Nikki who gave voice to my thought.
“Well, that took a dark turn.”
“They are close,” Eshe said again. Then she slumped a little in her seat, blinking. Reaching for her glass, she took another long draft of her wine, and Danae leaned toward her to put a cool hand on her arm.
Ahmad turned to me excitedly.
“You see? You see. You must find the djinn before the minions of the Shadow Court do. There can be no other reason for them to have come so close to where I believe my father’s djinn to have been buried. I never would have broken my own silence unless I was truly worried.”
He seemed earnest enough, but I couldn’t stop my unease. “Then why are they poking me at all?” I asked. “If they’d left me alone, I may or may not have come at all, and certainly not this fast.”
“You misunderstand the true desire of the Shadow Court,” Hassan spoke up. “The magic of the djinn is great, countered only by a few who walk this earth. But your magic is great as well. If both could be constrained in one stroke, if the Shadow Court could amass not only the magic of this ancient carrier but conquer yours as well, there is no one in the Arcana Council, either singly or together, who could withstand them. In one swift act, they would have the power of a god. Perhaps, the power of the one true God. And unlike the Council for all these long millennia, they would not hesitate to use it within the world of man.”
“Sweet mother Mary on a tricycle,” Nikki muttered, while Danae had gone still again. I stared at Hassan, struck by how forcefully his words rang in my ears. He was telling us a fact, not merely a truth. He definitely had some witch magic in him.
“Where are they now?” I asked.
“The Shadow Court?” Ahmad grimaced. “They are being feted by three royal families of the Emirates at once. You should consider that. It is very likely that the promises they have made are extreme and the action they will take immediate, the moment they have the magic of the ancient djinn in their hands.”
That…didn’t sound good.
“It gets worse,” Ahmad said, reading my reaction exactly. “Where I’m sending you, it is not merely an abandoned tomb. It is occupied by an army of djinn…and possibly other creatures too. The queen’s burial chambers have become a stronghold for the defiled, probably drawn by the deep magic the place possesses. I didn’t mind so much for a long time, because it kept out any enterprising artifact hunters. But it is a den of cobras, make no mistake.
“All right,” I said. “Then I’ll need a full team.”
Ahmad brightened. “Of course, of course. I can offer any of my men.”
“No,” I said. “I’ll get my own men. But Eshe, here, I will need returned to the Arcana Council. Immediately.”
The High Priestess blinked at me, clearly startled by my order.
“I need you with the Magician,” I said, and to my surprise, she merely nodded. In fact, I saw something approaching relief in her expression and once again, I wondered how drained she truly was. I slid my gaze to Ahmad, and was equally surprised to see anger ripple across his face.
“You don’t trust us to take care of a member of the Council?” he asked stonily.
“I don’t trust myself not to be distracted,” I said. “She’ll go back. What she does after that is on her.”
Ahmad blew out a long breath. “Agreed. But I implore you, summoning outsiders to assist you is not only unnecessary, it is very dangerous. Djinn magic is very subtle. My men have been trained against this very task for generations, their skills transferred from father to child. They’re ready for this challenge.”
“I’ll take my chances.”
A tiny flare of panic sparked in Ahmad’s eyes. “I’m telling you, these are not demons you’re dealing with here. In many ways they’re human in their temperaments, their needs, and their emotions. But when they act, they are fully magic in their manifestation and might. There are no ordinary humans who can face the kind of danger they present.”
“Well, lucky for me, I’m not going to rely on any ordinary humans. I’m calling my own people. That’s final.”
Ahmad exhaled heavily. “Very well,” he said. “But you leave me without any reassurance that you will return with my djinn. After all these millennia, I must have that reassurance. My father lost his life for that djinn, and I’ve never known who betrayed him. Along with the magic that is rightfully mine, I demand the right to learn the truth about my family’s betrayer.”
I made a face. “That’s ancient history, Ahmad. That villain’s family is doubtless long dead and buried.”
“Nevertheless, it is my right to know,” he said again, sounding ever so slightly unhinged.
“And I will bring the djinn to you. I have no problem with that,” I countered.
“I would like to believe you, but I still need my reassurance that you will return,” Ahmad said. His eyes shifted to the left, and I felt more than saw the caress of them against Nikki’s jet-black hair. Fury licked up within me, quick and hot.
; “Don’t,” I said.
Ahmad’s gaze returned to mine, startled. “It is customary—”
“Fuck your customs,” I snapped, and everyone in the room froze. “I will find your djinn, Ahmad. I will keep it from the Shadow Court. I’ll even give you your moment of absolution. But do not threaten my people, and do not piss me off. I’m only warning you once.”
Nobody said a word.
20
“You have to understand what I’m dealing with here,” Ahmad whined for about the fifteenth time nearly an hour later as we walked down the back corridor of his home and out to the veranda. Night had fallen, and the entire expanse of his palatial residence looked serene, leading out to the silent sea. The skies above sparkled with stars. “It’s important for us to go about this as carefully as possible. I’ve been planning against this potential opportunity for quite some time.”
“I told you, I’m good with—Oman? Was that his name?” I hadn’t expected to be able to go into the ruins without a local guide, I could even accept it would be one of Ahmad’s choosing. But I was itching to move. “We start tonight?”
“Yes, yes. Oman,” Ahmad said. “But timing is important. It is not a site that draws a great deal of attention, mainly because it is so plain. It’s not an active dig site either. Far from it. A search party going out at night might be noticed. A crew going out during the day, however, has a greater likelihood of success, particularly if it can be assumed to be something else.”
“Are the ruins open to visitors?” Nikki asked.
He turned and favored her with an approving smile. I fought the urge to roll my eyes. “It is, and only a short drive north of here. I took it upon myself to win the contract for maintaining the grounds and have managed to make an important find, which I’ve kept hidden from the authorities. A gallery room that, when it is eventually discovered, will bring a host of activity to the ruins. It’s only a matter of time before I’ll have to stage an unfortunate accident at the site, a cave-in, to reveal the room to the authorities. But I have held off. I simply…could not share it yet.”
“Well, you’ll definitely be sharing it if you send a crew in during the daytime,” I said, shaking my head. “As it is, the Shadow Court knows I showed up this afternoon. An even slightly strange-looking crowd of workers going into the ruins tomorrow morning is going to attract attention. We should go now, if your guide is ready.”
“If…I don’t know.” Ahmad sighed. “I simply cannot be certain that you’ll get into the ruins unseen.”
“Why don’t you let me worry about that. You think your guide is ready?”
“Yes. Oman is one of the best guides in the Arabian Peninsula. He knows each of the castles attributed to Queen Makeda, most notably this one. And he knows its secret ways.”
“Excellent.” I considered Ahmad again, my mind working through the angles. “You’ve been cleaning these ruins for over two years, you said. Why haven’t you searched it yourself? Beyond this gallery room that you’ve found?”
A smile flickered across Ahmad’s face. “We have, to the extent that we can. We know there is one subterranean chamber, likely part of a larger level that does not show up on any architectural renderings of the queen’s castle. The archaeologists did not find it or the welcome gallery, and we have taken great pains to ensure they still don’t know these rooms exist.”
“And how did you pull that off, again?” Danae asked.
“One of my skills as Sun—I can manipulate light and energy as a distraction,” Ahmad said modestly. “Interfere with readings, deflect attention away. The illusion has been draining to maintain over time, but I would have gone much further in the ruins if I could have. There are guardians beyond that first chamber, however, that have proven sufficiently difficult to overcome without drawing undue attention to the effort.”
I lifted my brows. “Demons?”
“Not in the traditional sense,” Ahmad said. “Very old, and very dangerous. Oman can tell you more when you see him. I suspect you will find him very helpful.”
He turned and gestured to one of his staffers, who nodded and hurried away.
“Suffice to say the danger proved too great on multiple fronts to carry on the search,” Ahmad continued. “We instead turned to researching spells that might deter the guardians. We suspect they are only the first layer of protection, but they are a formidable one.”
“That usually seems to be the case,” I said.
He nodded. “I believe you will find that the public access point holds no information you will need, and the subterranean chamber itself is quite barren, though the gallery in between remains an interesting study. I remain convinced there is more beneath the chambers we’ve found, however, an entire network of tunnels and ancient rooms said to hold great secrets. We’ve attempted ground penetrating radar from the air to determine if we can see anything beneath the earth’s surface. The results are indistinct, but to me, significant. There is something down there. Whether natural or man-made, I can’t say, but definitely something there. Regrettably, we’ll only have one opportunity to find it. And you’ll need to be quite careful. If you’re discovered, the local governmental response will be…unfortunate.”
“Understood.” I moved to turn away, eager to start preparing for the trip, but Ahmad raised a hand.
“I know it goes without saying, but there is one more thing I need to remind you of. It is through the generosity of the house of Ahmad that I’m releasing the High Priestess back to her home. We will arrange for transportation, of course.”
I shrugged. “I think the Council probably can handle that.”
“It is a grace I’m extending to you in good faith,” Ahmad pressed. “When you find the vessel of the djinn, I must insist that it be returned immediately to me. You dare not betray me in this.”
Irritation didn’t just spurt, it rocketed through me. There were a great many things that I dared, and this really wasn’t all that high up on the list. But I was a game girl. “Fair enough.” I shrugged. “I will return the vessel to you and no one else. Anything else we need to clear up?”
Ahmad smiled broadly. “I think we understand each other perfectly. I appreciate it very much.”
With that, he released us, but, wary of the surveillance equipment, we did not discuss much on the way back to our rooms together to gather what belongings we needed. By the time we met again behind Ahmad’s palace, only a scant hour had passed. Ahmad stood there with his usual entourage of security guards, but with him now was a small man dressed in overalls and a cap with long tails intended to keep off the sun. We’d been given similar outfits to wear, in case we were detained on the way to the dig site, but the caps were particularly foolish given the fact that night had long since fallen. Still, we had all donned the heavy uniforms. Nikki walked as if she might catch a rash from the material.
“This is Oman,” Ahmad said. “You’ll be in good hands.”
Oman, for his part, surveyed our small group distrustfully, which made me like him instantly. “None of these are warriors,” he said, his voice as dry as sandstone. “Sorcerers, yes. Fighters…” He gestured to Nikki. “Yes. But not warriors of the caliber I told you we would need.”
Ahmad drew in a breath, but I cut him off. “We’ll talk about that later,” I said gruffly. “If we’re gonna do this, we need to go.”
Ahmad lifted both hands in a conciliatory gesture, and there was no denying his excitement. “Of course, of course. You are eager to get underway, and after so much time, I should be eager to let you. But I cannot deny wanting to savor this moment. I’ve waited so long to have hope again. And knowing the end result of your efforts, I believe this quest will succeed. It is an auspicious moment.”
It was everything I could do to resist a snide comeback, so I contented myself with nodding.
“We’ll be back probably before daybreak,” I said. “Sooner if there’s nothing there.”
Oman turned to me, a fire in his eyes now that matched Ahmad’s.
“Oh, there’s something there, I promise you. Finding it will not be the challenge. Spiriting it out from beneath the guardians of the ancient queen, that is another question altogether.”
“Roger that,” Nikki said, saving me the trouble.
A bulky cleaning van was waiting for us beside Ahmad’s mansion when we exited several minutes later from the service doorway. We entered the vehicle without speaking, leaving the High Priestess and Ahmad standing side by side, surrounded by his minions. I couldn’t help myself. I turned and watched as we sped away, wondering exactly how…
Eshe disappeared in a sudden whirlwind, smoke bursting up around her like a dust devil, disappearing just as quickly into a scatter of birds. One second she was there with Ahmad, the next, she was gone with Ahmad jerking around, his robes flying and his hands raised, his head tilted back in alarm.
I chuckled as I settled into my seat. Whether Ahmad was a long-lost Council member bristling with mystical powers or not, the Magician would not have been able to resist a show of strength. Ahmad would have to figure out how to play better with the Council after all this was said and done.
I glanced up to see that Oman was watching me carefully, his mouth set in a grim line. “I know Sheikh Ahmad has filled your ears with magic and hope, and he is right to be awed by the mystery that lies beneath Sheba’s palace,” he said. “But there is great danger, too. We are not the only ones interested in the vessel you are seeking. There will be watchers.”
“Yeah, I figured that. So, how well do you know the ruins? The subterranean chamber and, more specifically, the room that leads directly to it, the access point?”