Guardians of Fire Read online

  “What the…?” I jumped to my feet, wide-eyed. My Empyrean blade had never done that before.

  “What’s it doing?” Anna asked. My siblings all watched as the blade began to turn, its glow pulsating as it moved, until it came to a stop and began to burn a cobalt blue.

  “I have no idea. I’ve never seen it do that.”

  “Didn’t you say the blade carries memories of our ancestors?” Shade leaned forward and looked the direction it was pointing.

  The blue flames slithered across the room onto a trunk that flipped open. All the books flew out of it. Now empty, the bottom of the trunk lit up, sending an acrid taste of smoke and gunpowder shooting through the air as the bottom of the trunk blew up into splinters.

  As quickly as it had begun, the sword fell dormant. I got up and slowly approached the trunk. Residual smoke wisps floated into the air as I leaned over it and peered inside.

  “Whoa… that was wicked! Thanks for the show, Uncle Brendan!” I reached in and yanked out a grimoire from beneath the ashes. It had been hidden in a false bottom. Fortunately, the fire had not harmed it; it was intact but undated and looked to be as old as his other journals.

  Shade was at my side immediately, pondering the leather cover as I opened the volume and read the familiar bold, loopy longhand I recognized as Brendan’s.

  “This journal documents the hidden birthplace of magic I encountered one eerie fall in the year of 1702: The Heart of Fire and Ice.” I peered up at Shade, whose excitement was as apparent as mine. “This is it!”

  “Check if there’s a map or something we can follow.”

  I flipped through it until I found my uncle’s chicken scratch of a map. It seemed that The Heart lay in the mountains of northern Alaska.

  “Is that Alaska?” Anna asked as she squeezed her way between Shade and me. “No way! We can’t go to Alaska right now. It’s the dead of winter. We’ll die of exposure!”

  “I agree.” Shade pressed her lips together. “But even in winter we can warm ourselves with our magic. Still, I don’t want to hike through ten foot drifts. Maybe Camulus can help us travel there now that we have the exact location.”

  I turned toward Shade, who’d begun pacing the room. Her thoughts were churning, and I knew better than to interrupt her while she thought things through. I wasn’t sure what kind of dangers this place held, and knowing Shade, she was concocting some sort of backup plan.

  “Okay, then, let’s get through the rest of these pages and see what it has to offer.”

  I stared hard at the ancient book, the words loopy and faded. My uncle had a way with words, and his prose always pulled me into his stories. I wondered if my siblings had gotten through all the grimoires before. I doubted it. Surprised to find another one of his books was exciting to me, though, and I couldn’t wait to dive in.

  Shade returned and looked down at the page I had open. “Benton, it says to not tread there lightly. That only those of fire and ice can enter safely. If that’s true, how did Brendan enter? He only had elemental fire powers, not ice magic.”

  I looked up at Shade and shrugged. I honestly didn’t know how Brendan had pulled it off. I turned my attention back to the book and flipped through the pages to find any mention of ice.

  “Here.” I pointed to a paragraph surrounded by doodles and symbols. Many of them meant nothing to us. Only one was decipherable, and it meant “fire”.

  “To obtain access, I had to show that I could command both the fire and the ice. It was difficult to obtain, for I had to purchase the blood of an ice elemental from a disreputable faery merchant. For a dear price, he could locate anything I might need, and rarely did I dare question his methods. Once I had the blood, I had to smear it across my hands and ignite it with my powers. Unfortunately, it was not pleasant to wield the ice power. I would not want to experience such an ordeal again. The magic caused the tips of my fingertips and toes to suffer frostbite, and the ensuing pain was unbearable, but it, in part, granted me access to The Heart of Fire and Ice.”

  We threw each other a look, not liking where this was going.

  “What does he mean by ‘in part’?” I asked.

  Shade shrugged. “It means there’s something else that needs to be done… or known. And if he didn’t write that down, you know where we’ll have to go to figure it out.”

  “Arthas,” I groaned. Kilara had said Brendan and Arthas had knowledge of the place we sought. I’d hoped we wouldn’t have to go to the slumbering Ancient, but now it seemed we didn’t have a choice.

  I turned another page. “I’ll go through the rest of the book, but at a glance, this looks like the only part that mentions actually getting inside.”

  Shade nodded. “No one can do it but me,” she whispered. “There’s no need for us all to go. I have both fire and ice powers, so I won’t need to obtain anyone else’s magic. And no one else should have to deal with Arthas.”

  “You can’t be serious. I won’t let you go alone. What if something happens? We need another plan in case you can’t enter.” I shook my head. My sister was as stubborn as they came, but I’d have the last word.

  “Benton—”

  “Don’t ‘Benton’ me. I’m going with you, and that’s final. We’ll deal with Arthas if we have to, but for me to get in, we need the blood of someone with ice magic. Corb! We need Corb’s blood!”

  “I don’t like that idea.” Shade frowned as she thought about what to do. I could practically hear the gears working in her head. At any moment, I imagined to see steam shoot from her ears. The image ran away from me, and I began to laugh.

  She threw me a disgusted look. “What’s so funny?”

  “It’s just… nothing. You’re thinking too hard. Really. Look, if something happens, if you get trapped or injured, I have to be able to help you. So I need a vial of Corb’s blood.”

  “Why not mine?” she asked. “I stole some of Corb’s ice magic.”

  I shook my head. “You know how this ancient magic works. It knows. It remembers. It won’t let me in with your magic after having just let you in. It’ll know we’re trying to pull a fast one. And besides, you’ve shed enough. He can donate some for the cause.”

  “Fine.” Her frown deepened as she closed her eyes, but I could tell she knew I was right. She began rubbing her temples. “Learn the spell, but I go in alone. You only follow if I need you. Got it?”

  “Got it.”

  She nodded and blew out a breath. The four of us were silent for a moment. The air was thick with the grim understanding this mission wasn’t going to be easy no matter what spells, charms, or other magical preparations we had. We wouldn’t be able to let our guards down until it was all over, Kilara had the magic she needed, and we were safely back among our friends.

  “I wish Kilara was gone,” Shade suddenly said, her voice breaking the spell of the moment. “She’s caused nothing but pain to us all.”

  “Her time’s definitely coming.” I walked back to the desk, picked up my Empyrean sword, and slid it into the sheath at my hip. “If anyone needs to go, it’s her.”

  Shade nodded, her eyes gleaming wet. My sister’s life was far from easy, and I never envied it; she’d had nothing but trouble, especially since our mother’s death. At least we had each other. The four of us together were an unstoppable force, but from the concern etched on Shade’s face, I could tell that it weighed heavy on her all the time.

  “Benton?”

  “What’s up, sis?”

  “Do you think I should try to take Kilara’s place?” She stared back at me, her eyes hard with the knowledge of what she had to do. We’d both done so many gruesome things for the Land of Faerie, things neither of us often spoke of.

  “When the time comes, you’ll know what to do for sure. If it comes to that, yes, do what you must, but try not to worry so much. You’ll wrinkle your immaculate skin.”

  I snickered and received a slap on the arm from her. There was the sister I missed so much. She hid behind the m
ask of royalty and responsibility well, but the young girl from Portland who heard voices and kept to herself was still there, deep inside, fighting for release.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Dylan

  “If it isn’t the captain of the guard himself. Or is it ex-captain?” Sylphi’s voice bounced off the cavern walls. I cringed. “I heard a rumor you no longer held the position. Not since that half breed wench took you away from here for good. Tell me, it can’t be true, can it?”

  I turned toward last person in the world I’d expected to see in the Teleen Caverns. Sylphi. The Sylphi who’d treated Shade like an abomination during our first journey through Faerie and had nearly put her in the hands of a dangerous faery queen. Sylphi, who never had her fill of annoying the crap out of me and who falsely claimed I was hers whenever she was around.

  Other Teleen men would be happy to have her attention. Far greater men than I would all but die for her hand in marriage. She should have already gotten some fool to ask her, but from the looks of her flashing steel grey eyes and ringless fingers, this wasn’t the case. For someone who was notorious for smooth-talking her way out of things and getting anything she wanted, Sylphi’s presence was more than surprising.

  I frowned, knowing it was just a matter of time before her real agenda came to light. “What are you doing back here? I thought Queen Gretel had banished you.”

  I threw her the most unpleasant scowl I could muster then glared across the cavern pools, far more interested in the scenery than her petty conversation. It was an understatement to say I wasn’t happy to see her.

  “Oh, Dylan, are you so out of touch? A call went out to all Teleen that a new ruler must be appointed. Any Teleen were invited, regardless of banishment. Queen Gretel is old. Tired. Her replacement will need to be vivacious, strong, and younger, of course. I’m applying for the job.”

  I turned, drilling my eyes into Sylphi. What the hell? She wasn’t really going to go for the position of queen, was she? It was too absurd.

  “Why am I not surprised?”

  I blew out an impatient breath, hoping my stiff, broody demeanor put her off. She wasn’t easy to swat away. She’d never been one to give up so easily on something she wanted badly enough. I’d been her target for several years until she’d up and turned against Shade. Now, with the call out for a new ruler, all Teleen were welcomed back with open arms, no matter how serious their crimes.

  The hell I’d ever vote for her. Shade was more a queen than Sylphi ever would be. Too bad the woman didn’t know it.

  “Because you missed me?” She snickered and reached out to caress my chest. I was shirtless, but my glamour kept my blue glow under wraps. If I could scorch her fingers with my electrical fire, she’d be toast. Too bad she was of Teleen blood too; my powers did nothing to her.

  “Don’t flatter yourself.” I pushed her hand off my chest and headed for the ropes to rappel down the slope. I was surprised she’d climbed all the way up there alone. Maybe she’d been watching me and knew I went up there to think. I had to give it to her, she noticed details others didn’t. Still, she was the last person on earth I wanted to see let alone spend any kind of time with.

  “I heard about Shade choosing Soap over you. How’s that for an ingrate? You know, I could’ve saved you so much pain if you’d just listened to me. That wretched girl was nothing but a—”

  “You will not speak of my wife in such a way. Am I clear?” I threw sparks off my skin as my glamour unraveled. The fire licking the surface of my body amplified, growing to such a brilliant white Sylphi had to shade her eyes against it.

  “Sorry. I didn’t know she meant so much to you, Dylan. I must say though, I never would have hurt you in such a way. Ever. I’m always open for further chatting if you like. If there’s one person I never let drift from my thoughts, it’s you. It must count for something… all those years between us. Don’t they? Or did it mean nothing?”

  I paused as I snapped the rope into place, looping it firmly through my belt. I refused to look at her, because her words dug into me unlike anything I’d known before. Back when being captain was the most prestigious job to have and I was pretty much in charge of the whole place, life had been easy. Fun, even. Even with Sylphi’s constant attention. Though mostly unwanted, she’d been a decent distraction.

  Now, as king of the faraway Scren Palace in the south, I felt inferior. Lost. I’d never held so much power, yet felt lost. Even though these feelings hadn’t manifested until Shade had taken Soap’s engagement seriously, it was only when things fell apart that I’d realized how disconnected I’d become to what I’d been before Shade. What was I now? I didn’t know, but the drive to discover who I was without her made my blood ignite.

  I turned toward Sylphi, who watched me with grim curiosity, a look I recognized as more amusement than trouble. She knew how to dig into my very soul, I had to give that much to her. She’d been my girlfriend, in a way, since we were young. How she’d soured in her adult years had repelled me and severed our friendship.

  But the bitter, selfish, and insecure woman I’d known when I’d met Shade wasn’t the same woman staring back at me now. The change was obvious as she quietly waited for me to either walk away or turn and take her into my arms. The master manipulator in her had clearly matured, and now her patience was as lethal as the anger that used to burst from her pretty lips. But I had also changed.

  She could be a match for Shade. She could help me figure this puzzle out and help me either win my wife back or lose her forever.

  “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to offend you, Sylphi. I just have a lot going on in my head, and you probably wouldn’t understand.” Or would she? I cleared my throat. “Meet me down below, and we can have lunch together.”

  She perked up at the mention of eating a meal with me. Inside, I felt a Cheshire smile widen at her interest. Yes, she could be of use to me, and the timing was impeccable.

  “Oh, did you see the angel girl? Her wings? Wow!”

  I nodded, and she beamed as I confirmed her observations. “Isolde is Benton’s friend from before the war. I guess they went to school together.”

  “It’s fascinating to find that Nephilim still exist, isn’t it?”

  I shrugged. Her attempt at conversation was good, but I wasn’t sure yet how I felt about hanging out with her. I had to get used to it fast, or she’d see through any ruse.

  “Hey, Dylan?”

  “Yes?”

  “I’ll meet you down below, but on one condition.”

  “What’s that?” I asked as I watched her belt up to rappel down the slope.

  “Next time you go climbing, you wait for me and we’ll race. I’ll beat up the mountain with minutes to spare. Guaranteed.”

  I laughed and shook my head as she leaned back and leaped off the ledge. “You’ve got yourself a deal.”

  Chapter Fourteen

  Soap

  The pinnacles of The Scren Palace towers reflected the sun into our eyes, making us avert them until we passed out of the overbearing glare. Shade had been silent the entire trip back except for small yes and no answers to mine or her entourage’s questions.

  Her dark demeanor told me everything I needed to know. Dylan was gone. His absence caused the entire group to feel glum along with the queen. I wondered if Shade realized how much her emotions affected us. Most likely, she was oblivious to it. It was just as well because nothing would cheer her up, not even my untimely and unsavory jokes.

  They used to work well, but this time, a piece of her heart was missing. She’d expected Dylan to follow behind and accept the dual marriage, but he’d done something neither of us had expected: he’d refused to return to The Scren with Shade. Divorce had not been requested, but the implications of it were hanging in the air nonetheless, and it tasted bitter to all involved. Especially Shade.

  I’d never meant to cause her this kind of pain, though I knew it was possible. There was no magic to cleanse it from her mind or soothe the wound. I�
�d racked my brain to see what I could come up with, but there was nothing. Dylan had been my enemy, then comrade, and now, enemy once more, from the looks of it. Something told me his internal struggle included accepting me as Shade’s second husband, but the other side of him, the insecure and yet determined side to remain Shade’s true love, had stepped above the other and had churned up a mess no one knew how to resolve. Not even my love, Shade.

  “We’re almost home!” I exclaimed. Shade glanced up momentarily at her castle, but the joy of seeing home once more dimmed her eyes even further. My heart wrenched as I watched silent tears form in her eyes as we approached the gates. To Shade, it meant she was here without him, and as always, I might never be enough. Not alone. Not without him there too.

  The thought I’d have to accept Dylan even more than he accepted me was inevitable. It was then that I decided I’d help her convince Dylan to return, even if it meant I’d only have her half the time. It was better to have her happy than to never see her smile again.

  A voice greeted me the moment we stepped past the castle gates. “Sir, your mother requests your presence.”

  I peered at the manservant questioningly. “Already? We’ve just arrived.”

  He bowed and retreated, leaving me to my dimmer mood.

  “It’ll be good to see my mother again, all settled in her room. I’ll have to check the wards while I’m there. Is there anything you need, Shade?” I wanted to scoop her into my arms and fix all the wrong in our lives, but there were matters pressing on both of us right now. There was no rest for the weary.

  She shook her head, never looking my way. “I need to get in contact with Corb or even Ursad. For some reason, I can’t sense Corb. If anyone else has ice blood, it’s Ursad. Even if it’s dormant, it could be of use when we go to The Heart of Fire and Ice. After that, I really need to lie down. These travels are wearing me ragged.”