Falling Ashes (45 page)

‘Ethel, get inside!’ Jack demanded.

‘No!’ she snapped, sweat beading on her brow as she concentrated on keeping the shield up. ‘I have to protect the Realm!’

‘You’re going to get killed!’ he shouted at her, but she didn’t listen.

Too late, Avalon threw her arms forward, and the explosion that followed was akin to that of a volcanic eruption. Behind the shield, Jack felt the unbearable heat seeping through, and could smell Ethel’s hair burning. She cried out with the effort it took to keep the forcefield alive, but it wasn’t enough. It shattered into a thousand fragments and vanished.

He didn’t think; Jack tackled Ethel to the ground, shielding her body with his own. The liquid fire engulfed them, and Jack’s body was consumed with agony. He tried to heal through the onslaught, tears stinging his eyes as Avalon’s relentless attack continued. He must protect Ethel. He tried to heal her, too, but the effort drained his energy. 

Finally, the barrage ceased, and Jack was left smouldering in a black crater. He looked down at Ethel, whose body was cradled beneath his own. She was still. Her dark skin was charred and blackened.  Jack began to heal her, slowly. It took a long time for her to come back from the brink of death. By the time the last patch of skin had healed, Jack felt very weak. Ethel stirred, but she didn’t open her eyes. She had almost died trying to protect him.

Suddenly, something pierced Jack’s ribcage, pinning him to the ground. He howled in agony and reached around, trying to rip the arrow out of his body. He wrapped his hand around the stem and yanked it from his body so he could heal.

They weren’t going to give him a chance to get away. Their attack was merciless.

Sure, her intentions may have been good, but the ease with which she caused pain was frightening.

Jack rolled away from Ethel’s body, panting furiously, to see that the two Vulmessian’s had landed on the ground and were approaching him.

Ethel stirred feebly.

Hawthorne stopped in his tracks when he spotted Jack. Avalon, on the other hand, hadn’t noticed that it was him.

She urged Hawthorne forward, but he refused to take another step. Avalon looked up to see why he had ceased, and her eyes met Jack’s.

Her jaw dropped open.

Chapter Thirty-Five

Jack’s Betrayal

AVALON REDDING

Jack lay on the ground, his clothes and face blackened, but I would recognise those blue eyes anywhere. His hair had been shaved off, and he wore a guard’s uniform.

Several emotions flared in my stomach. Guilt, hurt, betrayal, anger, and regret.

‘Avalon,’ he croaked, trying to get to his feet.

I dismounted Hawthorne at once and strode towards Jack, my expression impassive. 

Behind him lay the shield-Mage that had made Fae’s role very difficult. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing; Jack, protecting a Realm’s guard with his life. He had joined them in my absence. Had he always felt this way? Had he jumped ship as soon as I was out of the picture?

I clenched my teeth together, breathing hard through my nostrils as I approached him. Jack gulped, his Adam’s apple bobbing in his throat.

I didn’t know what to say, so I did the only thing that came naturally. I marched up to him and slapped him hard across the face.

‘Jack Greenwood!’ I hissed, tears in my eyes. ‘You coward!’ I looked at his uniform, an expression of betrayal on my face.

‘Avalon!’ he grabbed me by the shoulders, but released me immediately when he felt how hot my skin was. ‘I’ve wanted to talk to you all day!’

I ignored him. ‘A guard, Jack? You’re a
guard
?’

‘Yes,’ he said, licking his lips nervously. ‘But for
you
. I joined for you.’

He tried to bring me closer to him, but I pushed against his chest. ‘Get off me!’ I snapped.

‘Ava, ask your father. Ask Ræven.
They’ll
tell you the truth.’

‘R
æven?’ I repeated. ‘Where is she?’

To be honest, Jack hadn’t seen R
æven at all since the battle had begun. She was meant to be part of the infiltration squad, but he hadn’t seen her flying around anywhere.

‘I think she is inside,’ he said truthfully. ‘Look, I know you’re angry and confused right now, but you must believe me. I joined the guard so I could help by getting information.’

I chewed on the inside of my cheek. My chest felt tight, and I wanted to hit him again, but despite everything, I believed what he said.

At that moment, Fae landed beside us, an arrow pointing straight at Jack’s head.

‘Why isn’t he dead?’ she said, pulling her arm back further.

‘It’s all right, Fae,’ I said, holding up a hand to stop her. ‘This is Jack.’

Fae’s eyes narrowed on Jack, contempt creasing her brow. ‘This is the Healer? The one who lied to you?’

I gave Fae a challenging look, that quite clearly told her to shut up. This was no time to talk about the locket, or Jack’s lie. Lives were in danger, and we needed to get the cure. My own father had been one of the many Mages to run through the Realm doors after it had been broken down. He had mentioned something about holding off the guards while the infiltration squad scoured the levels.

‘Fae, Jack says that Ræven is here,’ I said. Fae’s eyes widened immediately.

‘She is? Here?’

Jack nodded, wiping the charcoal from his brow. ‘I thought I saw her fly inside after the door was broken down.’

‘I didn’t see her,’ said Fae, biting her lip. ‘Avalon … I’m going to go look, okay?’

‘Go,’ I nodded. ‘It’s fine.'

Fae galloped away on Shadow’s back, leaving me and Hawthorne with Jack. We were standing almost completely alone on the battleground, amidst injured people, and various stragglers. All other guards had gone inside to defend their headquarters.

‘What was that thing?’ Jack said once Fae had vanished inside.

‘What? Oh … Shadow?’

‘That … that other Vulmessian!’ He pointed over his shoulder.

I sighed. ‘Look, I’ll explain later, okay? I don’t have time for this right now.’

Jack looked at me, confused. ‘Aren’t … aren’t you glad to see me?’

It took me a long time to answer. ‘Yes … I missed you.’

It was the truth. Jack leaned forward and tried to kiss me, but I looked away.

‘What’s the matter?’ he asked, placing a hand on my waist.

‘I knew it!’ shouted a voice behind Jack.

I looked around him to see the shield-Mage getting to her feet, and pointing a shaking hand at Jack.

‘Ethel,’ said Jack, pulling away from me. ‘I can explain-’

‘You’re a traitor!’ she gasped. ‘I thought you were different!’

‘Who is this woman?’ I asked, my jealousy flaring immediately.

‘She’s no one,’ Jack muttered to me. ‘Just another guard who …’ he trailed off.

‘What?’ I pressed.

‘Another guard I made friends with,’ he finished lamely. ‘Please, don’t jump to conclusions.’

Suddenly, a strange pressure began to swell inside my body, as though a balloon were inflating. At first I thought it was anger flaring within me, but this was no emotion.

I held my stomach, gasping in pain.

‘What is it?’ asked Jack. ‘Where does it hurt?’

The swelling continued, to the point where it felt like my insides were being crushed.

I fell to my knees, gasping in pain. ‘Argh! Jack!’

Confused, Jack looked around, his eyes falling on the shield-Mage called Ethel.

She was staring at me, a hand outstretched.

‘What are you doing to her?’ Jack demanded.

‘I’ve created a force field inside her body,’ said Ethel, panting with effort. ‘It’s expanding, crushing her from the inside.’

Black spots exploded in my vision. The pain was too much. I collapsed to the ground, writhing in pain.

‘Stop it!’ Jack demanded at once. ‘You’ll kill her!’

Ethel did not stop. She continued to grow the shield inside me.

Everything was becoming blurry.

Fire destroyed her shields. I knew what I had to do, but the pain was too great.

Through my eyelids, I saw Jack charge at Ethel, who was distracted by my impending doom. Jack tackled her to the ground, breaking her contact with me. The shield stopped expanding, but the pain didn’t end.

With all the strength I could muster, I allowed the fire to consume me. My very flesh rippled, and the grass near me wilted and turned brown from the heat wave emanating from my body. Even Jack and Ethel looked up to see why the temperature around them had changed so dramatically within seconds.

I exploded; fire seeping from every pore. The force was so incredible that I felt my feet slowly lift from the ground. I was nothing but flame at that moment. The sheer intensity of the heat broke Ethel’s shield, but something was still not right.

Something inside me was damaged.

Chapter Thirty-Six

The Cure

CECILIA PINSCHMIDT

Cecilia was far too old for this. According to Xara, the human registration department was on the third floor. Lucky for the infiltration squad, it was deserted. Most of the fighting took place in the entrance hall, or on the staircase.

The Realm swam with intruders, H.W.L being a majority of them.

Beside Cecilia was Kenneth Redding, Ræven Blacklock, and Xara Swanson.

They raced up the stairs together, R
æven in the lead in her flight form, with Xara following closely behind. Cecilia and Kenneth were rather out of breath, being far older than the two teenagers.

There had been more members of the infiltration squad, but they had already fallen before entering the Realm.

As she ran, Cecilia thought about Helena and Anya Redding, who were currently staying in a small Inn near Cecilia’s home. She hadn’t even told Kenneth that they’d arrived in Concord City. Anya had asked to keep it a secret.

‘This way,’ said Xara as they reached the third floor. She took them down a corridor, her red cloak billowing behind her. ‘The human registration department is along here,’ she said.

Cecilia felt her chest burning with anticipation. If they found the cure, they could revive the memories of every single human taken by the Realm.

Xara slowed to a jog and pointed at the corridor ahead, which had many doors. ‘In there are offices, and the laboratory,’ she said. ‘I do not know where to find the cure, exactly.’

‘That’s okay, we’ll spread out,’ said Kenneth, running forward and opening the first door. 

Beyond, was a cold, clinical room that looked something like a surgery. Cecilia hated to think about what went on here.

‘Search every nook and cranny,’ Cecilia ordered, heading straight for a glass cabinet containing numerous glass vials. She pulled bottle after bottle down, but had no idea what it was she was searching for.

Xara concentrated hard, and duplicated herself as many times as possible. Each projection flickered in an unstable way, but they were able to assist in the search.

Kenneth made a beeline for the paperwork on the desk, shuffling through the notes while Ræven turned into her Mage-self and began to open drawers.

‘It’s got to be here somewhere,’ said Cecilia, after checking every single bottle. ‘Do we know what it’s called? What it looks like?’

No one answered. They had no clue what the cure looked like.

‘Are we even sure this cure exists?’ asked Kenneth, throwing various sheaves of parchment over his shoulder. ‘Is it a drink? An injection? A pill?
What
?’

‘Oh, it exists,’ said a voice in the doorway, ‘but you’re looking for the wrong thing.’

Cecilia’s head snapped up, and she stared at the man in the door. He was unfamiliar. He was a man in his fifties, with a black beard, which was flecked with grey. His eyes were cold and small, and his teeth were strangely long.

‘Who are you?’ Cecilia demanded. Judging by his expensive clothes, he was obviously a Realm employee.

‘My name is John Mackerville,’ he drawled in an American twang. ‘And I am … the cure.’

Cecilia detected no lie in his statement. She stared, slowly placing the vial she’d been holding on the counter.

‘You what?’ said Kenneth, dropping the paperwork he’d been holding. Xara and Ræven stood close to one another, watching John Mackerville apprehensively.

‘I can bring back lost memories,’ he said calmly, a smug grin on his face.

‘Well?’ Kenneth said, looking at Cecilia. ‘Is he?’

‘He isn’t lying,’ she confirmed.

‘Why did he reveal himself?’ Kenneth demanded. ‘Why tell us who you are?’ Flames appeared in Kenneth’s hands, and he took a step towards Mackerville.

‘Not so fast, Fire-Mage.’ Mackerville held up a hand to stop Kenneth. ‘You wouldn’t want to harm me, would you?’