Dire Destiny of Ours Page 21

  "Though we control the Obsidian Arch at the Grotto, it would be impossible to transport such large golems through Atlanta without detection." Thomas pursed his lips. "There's simply too much traffic congestion for a camouflage spell to work, and the constructs are too large to haul with a truck."

  I knew Thomas was right and took a different tact. "We don't have the luxury of protecting the noms from our existence any longer."

  Elyssa reeled back from my statement. Thomas gave me a long hard look.

  Apparently, I'd just stepped on their toes. "I know it's in your job description to police the supernatural world and protect the noms from beings who might take advantage of them, but there was a news helicopter flying over our battle, in case you didn't notice."

  "The civilian aircraft was destroyed by a goliath," Thomas said.

  I winced. "What about all the bodies we left behind?"

  "The Custodians are working on that problem right now." Thomas folded his arms. "We're fortunate the area is not heavily traveled, because the size of the task is monumental."

  Just thinking about so many deaths roiled my stomach. "So, you're determined to stick to the rules even though Daelissa is on the verge of plowing through downtown Atlanta with giant golems?"

  "We're looking for alternatives, Mr. Slade." Thomas's voice turned a tad frosty. "Daelissa still controls Kobol Prison, so the arch there is out of play. If it comes down to it, we'll use the Grotto way station. Until then, we have to do everything possible to play by the rules."

  I posed a question I'd long wondered about. "Would it really be so awful if the noms found out about the Overworld?"

  "That is not for us to decide," he replied. "I can tell you from experience, noms have little enough restraint as it is when it comes to their technological means of destruction. I have seen them commit atrocities with magic."

  "I've seen them do good as well," Phoebe said. "Things would balance out then as they have now. I don't think the citizens of the Overworld have done any better of a job behaving with magic than noms would."

  "The citizens of this world are not allowed to use magic?" Ketiss looked befuddled. "Why would you rob them of such a gift?"

  "They use science." Thomas loaded the word with disdain. "Perhaps once you get to know this realm better, you'll understand. Until then, suffice it to say I will not willingly reveal the Overworld to the noms."

  "What if I command it?" I hated to pull rank, but this was ridiculous.

  The tension in the room thickened considerably. I felt Elyssa's hand tighten painfully on my arm.

  Thomas gave me his legendary ice stare for several long seconds. The man didn't even seem to breathe. His eyes narrowed.

  I remained stoic before his glare even though I desperately wanted to bust out with an irreverent comment to break the tension.

  Thomas took a deep breath and released it, as if he were pushing the frost from his lungs. "You are ultimately in command, Mr. Slade. If you truly think it's necessary, we will trample on centuries of secrecy and reveal ourselves, to hell with the dire consequences."

  I maintained my own steady gaze, unwilling to lose this staring contest. "I respect your judgment and beliefs, Commander Borathen. If I make such a decision, it will not be done lightly."

  No one spoke for a moment. Ketiss's eyes flicked back and forth between my face and Thomas's as if he were watching a mental tennis match.

  "It's settled, then," Phoebe said, using her own command voice. "Let's continue."

  Thomas looked at his daughter. "Agreed."

  "Okay," I said.

  Elyssa squeezed my hand a little more gently this time. "Yes."

  Phoebe resumed the playback of the battle. The video remained focused on Daelissa and Arturo. Daelissa swept her arm in an arc as if indicating the surroundings on several occasions. Arturo nodded and said something. Unfortunately, the ASEs had been unable to record whatever was said over the roar of battle.

  "Why does she keep doing that?" Elyssa paused the video.

  I looked at Daelissa caught in the act of scratching her hand.

  "What do you mean?" Phoebe asked.

  Elyssa rewound the video and pointed out several instances where Daelissa scratched at the palm of her hand. "See how she grimaces? Her hand must really be bothering her."

  "Interesting," I said, "but I don't think we can rely on a hand rash to end this war."

  "That is her feeding hand," Ketiss said. "Perhaps she has overindulged."

  I shrugged. "I wouldn't put it past her."

  "During my time with her, I recall several instances where her hand appeared to be bothering her." Phoebe tapped a finger on her chin. "It was usually after she expended a great deal of power and drained several noms to replenish herself."

  Ketiss grimaced.

  "Aether overload?" I asked.

  Phoebe waggled her hand in a so-so gesture. "Do you remember Montjoy?"

  I blew out a breath. "How could I forget that pompous ass?"

  "He procured what he called pure specimens for Daelissa to feed from." She looked down and fiddled with the arctablet, as if still ashamed that she'd once served under the former leader of the Exorcists. "Supposedly these noms contained very little dark soul essence and were able to limit Daelissa's mental episodes to a minimum. Once she began binge-feeding on those types of noms, her hand started to ache."

  Thomas turned to his eldest daughter. "While this sidebar is intriguing, I don't see how it's pertinent to the current discussion."

  "I'm just highlighting a possible weakness in the enemy, Commander." Phoebe met his gaze. "Right now our army is in no condition to fight Daelissa's, at least not in a head-on fight. Perhaps it's time to consider covert options."

  Elyssa caught on to her meaning. "Like assassination?"

  "That's one possibility." Phoebe clasped her hands together. "We have specialized personnel like Kanaan who might be capable of infiltrating Thunder Rock and taking out either Arturo or Daelissa."

  "Removing them from the equation still gives us no guarantee the war would end," Thomas said. "Another Brightling might simply take their place."

  "It buys us time," Elyssa said. "It might even sow confusion and chaos."

  Phoebe's plan wasn't ideal, but it seemed to me the best way to push the enemy off balance long enough for us to gain strength. "Isn't Kanaan on another mission?"

  "Yes." Thomas consulted another arctablet. "I'll speak with Captain Takei. Perhaps he has another Magitsu master who could actually pull this off."

  Kanaan was amazing to see in action, but deep down inside, I knew even he might have a problem killing Daelissa. Getting close to her might not be a problem for someone with his particular talents, but summoning enough power to finish her off would be the trick. Then again, I'd seen him detonate a seraph's head by shooting a spell up the poor dude's nose. If he stuck his wand up Daelissa's nose, I hoped he'd record it because the look on her face would be priceless.

  It occurred to me there was another eminently qualified individual for such a job—someone I hadn't heard from in quite a long time.

  "You just got that look on your face," Elyssa said. "Don't tell me we're going to recruit the tragon again, because the Darklings are in Colossus Stadium and there's nowhere else big enough to keep it."

  I couldn't deny the idea held a lot of appeal for me, but we simply didn't have the logistical capability to transport an unruly dino-dragon to Atlanta without using the Grotto way station. I wasn't that ready to run roughshod over Thomas's desire to keep the Overworld secret.

  "No, I have something else in mind." I leaned back and let the suspense build for a few seconds.

  Elyssa punched me in the shoulder. "Will you spit it out already? This isn't a television drama."

  Despite the awful situation, I smiled. It's great having my baby back. "I'm going to talk to Underborn."

  Chapter 24

  Ketiss was the only person who didn't look shocked by my idea. Technically, Thomas didn't lo
ok shocked either, but I figured he just repressed it as usual.

  "Is that a person's name?" Ketiss asked.

  "Underborn is an assassin," I said.

  Thomas scowled. "He's not to be trusted."

  "He's the master of all assassins in the Overworld," Phoebe added.

  Elyssa topped it off with her opinion. "He's a dirt bag."

  "All true." I stood and stretched. My brain still felt a bit fuzzy from whatever Dad and Kassallandra had done to heal me. "But if anyone can kill Daelissa, it'll be him."

  "You're probably right," Thomas said. "However, I must note that he's probably been aware of Daelissa for quite some time and has never, to my knowledge, taken direct action against her."

  "He has his own agenda." Elyssa shook her head slowly. "I don't think he'll help us."

  "Maybe he will, maybe he won't." I shrugged. "Even if he doesn't agree to kill Daelissa, he has access to artifacts that might help us defeat her."

  Elyssa tilted her head. "The Relics of Juranthemon?"

  "Precisely." I paced away from the table. "According to Underborn, there are seven relics. The key, the map, and the Chalon are the only three I know of, but it stands to reason he might have more."

  "What about Jeremiah's vault?" Thomas said. "Have you searched in there for anything that might help us?"

  Thinking about the vault reminded me of the snow globes. The snow globes made me think about how Nyte's father had broken his leg in a snowstorm Elyssa and I had made. I pushed the thought from my mind. Now isn't the time. "No, we haven't been back."

  Thomas nodded. "Perhaps you should exhaust that option before seeking the help of Underborn."

  I held up a finger. "Before we go down that road, hear what I have to say." I put my hands on the table and leaned forward. "If we procured the key and the map from Underborn, we'd have the ability to transport even our largest assets wherever we needed them."

  Elyssa scrunched her forehead. "But the key only works on doors, Justin. We'd need a massive door on both ends."

  I grinned. "Exactly."

  Ketiss tapped me on the shoulder. "Could you explain this key and map?"

  "Sure." I pushed back from the table and walked around to the other side so they could face me without having to turn in their chairs. "The map is used to link a door anywhere in the world with another door. Once linked, the key can be used to open either door for instant travel from one location to the other."

  "Could you link a door from this realm to one in another realm?" Ketiss asked.

  I shrugged. "I don't know if the map only works in Eden, or not."

  "What about giant doors?" Elyssa challenged me with an eyebrow.

  "Simple. You know those siege platforms your Arcanes use?"

  Her other eyebrow joined the first. "Now you've completely lost me."

  Phoebe gave me a similar look. "Your mind works in weird ways."

  I held up a hand. "Bear with me." I grabbed the arctablet and projected the video of a siege platform in its compact shape—roughly the size of a small wooden plank. "This platform goes from being just a couple of feet long." I advanced the video as the platform unfolded into a large tower about fifty feet tall and ten feet wide. "To a structure with cubic dimensions nearly sixty times larger." I hadn't really done the math for a complete answer, but figured making it up on the spot wouldn't hurt anything. I could've sworn I saw light bulbs blinking on above the others' heads.

  "You want to create unfolding doors." Elyssa seemed shocked that I'd come up with something so clever. "We could link the doors and transport them anywhere."

  I smacked the back of my hand into the other's palm. "Precisely. We could use omniarches to place them anywhere."

  "Provided the key and map work with this little hack of yours," Elyssa said. "For all we know, the door might not even show up on the map, or moving the door might destroy the link."

  I shrugged. "There's only one way to find out."

  She narrowed her eyes. "Didn't Underborn extort the map and key from us so you could save Felicia from the vampling curse?"

  "He did, indeed. I don't think there's any way I could convince him to let me borrow it." I smiled in the way I imagined a con artist would smile after assuring everyone that his plan to rob a bank couldn't possibly go wrong. "If diplomacy fails, we're going to steal them."

  Everyone spoke at once, except for Ketiss who still didn't seem to understand who this Underborn character was or how dangerous it was to piss him off.

  I held up my hands. "Simmer down, everyone."

  "Putting yourself at such risk is unacceptable," Thomas said. "While your idea to use the map and key might be sound, I suggest we open a dialogue with Underborn."

  "Maybe there's something in Jeremiah's vault we could trade him for the relics," Elyssa said. She snapped her fingers. "We still have the original Chalon and the Chalon from the Shadow Nexus. Maybe we could trade him one of those."

  "You'd give him the very key to the Grand Nexus?" Phoebe shook her head vehemently. "Not a good idea."

  "The Chalon is redundant." Thomas touched his chin in a thoughtful manner. "Since Daelissa is using the Chalon she gained in Seraphina and she controls the Grand Nexus, we can't use either Chalon in our possession."

  Elyssa nodded. "They're useless."

  Phoebe gave her a warning look. "Unless there's something about them we don't know."

  "I studied the Chalon with Jeremiah and he didn't seem to think it had any other use besides attuning the Grand Nexus." I exchanged my sly expression for something professorial. "The Chalon enables a gateway between realms while the map and key operate similarly to an Obsidian Arch. Since the Chalon requires a very specific arch to operate, I think we can safely trade one to Underborn." I just hope he actually wants it.

  "Sounds a lot safer than trying to rob an assassin," Elyssa said with a relieved look.

  "We should thoroughly examine Jeremiah's vault to be sure there's nothing else of value there," Thomas said. "Perhaps the answer to our logistical problems lies within."

  "The vault is huge." Elyssa widened her arms as if to encompass the room. "It would take us weeks to search it, and that's provided we even understand what we find."

  "We sure as hell don't want to cause any more snowstorms." I made a sour face. "For all we know, Jeremiah stored certain items in there to make the world a safer place."

  "We're going in circles." Phoebe looked exasperated. "I'll speak with Captain Takei about having some of his most knowledgeable Blue Cloaks catalogue Jeremiah's vault while you two open communications with Underborn and find out if he's willing to trade. That will be the most efficient plan of action."

  I had to agree with Phoebe. Thanks to Daelissa's "blessing," Elyssa's sister was exceptionally smart and would be a good person to lead this effort. "Okay, you're in charge of that operation."

  Phoebe smiled. She looked so much like Elyssa, I had to glance at my girlfriend again to see the differences.

  "Thank you for trusting me, Justin." Phoebe stood. "I'll get on this right away."

  I nodded. "Elyssa and I will move on the Underborn angle." I took out my arcphone and transmitted an image of the vault to Phoebe's phone. "There's no other way into the vault except using that picture with an omniarch."

  "Understood." Phoebe looked at me for a long moment before clearing her throat and glancing at her sister. "I'll be on my way then." She hurried from the room.

  I turned to Thomas. "Can you can coordinate with Fjoeruss and find out what sort of assets he has? We'll need a count of his battle golems and their capabilities."

  "I'll speak with him." Thomas stood and turned to Ketiss. "Please check on your troops and make sure they're having no difficulties feeding from noms or using the prisms. Their health is vital."

  Ketiss nodded. "I will do so immediately."

  There was so much to do if we wanted to survive. Despite the dire circumstances, I couldn't wait to be alone with Elyssa again. Every part of me ached to touch h
er.

  Elyssa and I left the war room, took a left, and went up the main staircase in the large common room. We walked quickly without saying a word. She and I looked at each other. The intensity of her gaze flushed my body with heat. The moment I got her inside our bedroom, I slammed the door and attacked her lips with mine. She wrapped her arms around my waist and pressed herself tight against me.

  "I missed you so much." The words trembled in my throat.

  She wiped a tear from her eye. "You went to the ends of the earth and back for me." Elyssa kissed me gently on the lips. "I don't ever want us to be without each other."

  "Promise me you'll never die or almost die again." I smiled and kissed her forehead.

  She rolled her eyes. "I can't promise you that, but I can promise something else?"

  I raised an eyebrow. "What would that be?"

  "How about I give you a calisthenics workout you'll never forget." She pulled off my T-shirt in one fluid move and ran kisses up and down my chest.

  I shivered. "Best workout ever." I assaulted her clothing and before long, we were under the bed sheets and working out like it was our last day on Earth.

  A couple of hours later we showered, put on fresh Nightingale armor, and ate.

  I idly formed a gray ball of Stasis and stared at it while I waited on Elyssa to finish off her food.

  "Any luck figuring out what Clarity does?" she asked.

  I shook my head. "It's really bugging me too." I turned toward her. "I keep thinking about the vision I had when I made the choice."

  "The one where you saw the rivers of Brilliance and Murk?"

  "Yeah, and the sky was like a fountain of gray Stasis."

  She pursed her lips. "You said an inner voice told you the choice was clear and you realized you could choose everything."

  I noticed the gray sphere I'd channeled was fading, and blew it. It scattered like smoke. "If choosing this clear magical element was so important, why doesn't it do anything?"

  "Maybe you haven't been testing it correctly." Elyssa took my hand. "Try it out on me."