Forged in Fire (The Forged Chronicles Book 3) (14 page)

I was wrong. A white wolf was brought in with a muzzle and a harness over him. Something about seeing him treated so much like a dog upset me. Despite his rudeness, Talen deserved better treatment than that.

“Remove that muzzle thing, please,” I pleaded. My opinion of the Elves had changed in the matter of moments. They knew he was a man yet treated him like an animal.

Malton rubbed his chin. “I thought you were not a fan of this wolf.”

Talen’s fur stood up at the remark.

“I never said that. I merely said he was rude to me. You brought him here to talk to us I assume, so please allow him to talk.”

Malton gestured to his guards. One removed the muzzle. “Talk, wolf.”

Talen howled.

“I can’t understand him as a wolf. He needs to shift.” Then I thought of something. “But please have some clothes ready for him first.”

Elron laughed.

“What? I have no interest in seeing a naked man, and I would think your mother would feel the same way.”

Elron smiled. “Humans and their feelings on nudity.”

“As if Elves were different? I saw and heard your reaction to the stuff with James.”

“Because I knew what human expectations were. That did not fit with the image I had.”

“Ahem.” Someone cleared their throat.

I turned from Elron and found Talen in his human form holding the muzzle in front of his lower region. “Sorry, Ainsley. This is all I had.”

I moved my eyes up to his face and left them there. “What are you doing here?”

“I could ask you the same thing.” His expression was unreadable, but his words were light.

“Elron found me while I was trying to find you.”

“Trying to find me?” Talen asked with surprise. “Why were you looking for me?”

“James sent me to Icentris to get help finding Belgard.”

“James did?” Talen furrowed his brow. “Do you? Do you know what has happened to him? I felt it, but I have not seen him yet.”

“If you mean the Cipher stuff, yes.”

“The Cipher stuff?” He tossed away the muzzle, giving me an eyeful as I looked down in surprise. “Nothing about the Cipher should be used with the word stuff.”

“Ok, calm down.” My choice of words was getting me into trouble way too often. “I didn’t mean it that way. I was just trying to explain things. Maybe I need to build my vocabulary, but with everything else going on that doesn’t seem like all that pressing of an issue.”

Elron moved to stand next to me. “Please explain why you are here. So far you have only upset her.”

“What? You moving in on her now? Trying to steal her while James is helpless to do anything?” Talen puffed out his chest.

“What?” Elron gasped. “Are you implying that I am making advances on Ainsley?”

“Let me handle this.” I stepped toward Talen while trying to ignore his nakedness. “There is nothing going on with Elron and me. Ok? Got it? I need help. James is the one who sent me to get help. They know how to help me, so next we have to find James. Either you help us with that, or get out of my way.”

Talen grinned. “You have changed.”

“No. The situation has gotten worse. I have no time to waste.”

“Why are you looking for James? Aside from your need for him.” Talen did not meet my eyes.

“What makes you think there is another reason?” I wasn’t going to give away any information until I understood his presence.

“Because the Elves do not care about your life all that much.”

Elron hissed. “We do not disregard life.”

“But you would not be involved if this was only about her,” Talen challenged.

“Since more is involved, the question is moot.” Malton paced around the room. “The Cipher has taken another human form. That means the power has returned. We were uninvolved with Blake, and this is the result. The Cipher has returned and looks to have even more power.”

“More power?” I asked. “Why would you say that?” From what I knew Blake had been crazy powerful. What was different about James?

“Because of you.” Malton stopped pacing and stood inches from me. “He has you as an additional weapon. He may have miscalculated on how your blood would respond to the darkness, but that does not change that you hold the darkness.”

Talen paled. “What do you mean her blood?”

“She is a Winthrop,” Elron explained. “The daughter of Monty.”

“What?” Talen’s eyes nearly bugged out of his face. “Does James know this?”

“Yes, although I don’t think he did before.” At least I highly doubted it. “He seemed to have learned a whole lot more once he took his father’s help.”

“Ainsley, you cannot go to Belgard.” Talen’s expression darkened.

“Why not? I mean aside from Charlotte not helping James.”

“Charlotte and Liam are going to assume the worst. They are going to assume you are there to take over.”

“Take over?” I blanched. “That’s insane.”

“Is it? You are of Winthrop blood but have been infused with darkness. You may be the one person alive strong enough to destroy Charlotte.”

I shook my head. “Impossible.”

“I am not going to pretend I believe you would do that—” Talen started.

“Her heart is pure,” Adaline interrupted. “She cannot be used by Blake.”

“But would anyone else know that? Would the Essence? Would her Gerard?”

Elron shook his head. “No.”

“Exactly. James was sending you into trouble, and that makes no sense. Unless…” Talen turned away.

“What?” I walked toward him. “What were you about to say?”

“Unless he was doing it on purpose. Unless he wanted you inside the castle for a reason.”

“Why would he want to turn me over to the enemy so-to speak?”

“Because then you would be in place when he got there.”

“Ok.” I felt slight relief. “That isn’t the plan. I might as well just tell you. He’s building a new gate to the lost world so he can take over.”

“Why?” Talen narrowed his eyes. “Why would he need a new gate when he could use the others?”

“I don’t know.” I hadn’t thought about that before. There was so much I hadn’t thought about.”

“Ainsley.” Talen leaned toward me. “What was James like when you left?”

“I don’t know. Out of it. He wasn’t himself. I saw that when he tried to kill Gregor, but—”

“He tried to kill someone?”

“Yes. His half-brother.”

Talen frowned. “He does not have a brother.”

“Evidently Blake wasn’t celibate after James’ mom.”

“Oh.” Talen paused before continuing. “Back to my question. What was he like?”

“I already answered.”

“I wonder if he even knows what ideas are his and which are his father’s. Maybe he is confused. Maybe he only thinks he is building a gate to the lost world.”

“You mean he is actually doing something else? He has another plan?”

Talen nodded. “I can only guess that there is more at work. His actions make no sense, and I see no reason for him to want to take control of the lost world. The Cipher cares nothing for a lesser world.”

“A lesser world?” I bridled.

“Sorry. I only mean Energo will always be the supreme power because of the Source. The Cipher would want Energo. Not your world.”

“So what does any of this mean?” My head started to spin.

“It means we cannot trust anything James told you. We cannot trust that he is him at all.”

“We need to believe he is still in there.” Elron touched my arm gently. He was keeping very close now that Talen was around. “Otherwise we have no hope of defeating the darkness.”

“What if defeating the darkness means destroying James?” Talen watched me. “Would you do it?”

I shook my head.That possibility didn’t work for me. “And not just because it would mean my death too.”

“Oh.” Talen paled. “Your connection.”

I nodded.

“It will not come to that.” Elron squeezed my shoulder. “If his love for her is as strong as she believes, our plan will work.”

“His love for her is strong.” Talen looked me right in the eye. “But there are things even love cannot fight.”

“And sometimes we all need to have some faith.” Adaline spoke softly but captured all of our attention. “Right now no one can afford to forget that.”

“There is only one way to know for sure.” Talen appeared pensive. “And it is dangerous.”

“We have to find him.” I understood. “The danger doesn’t matter. Everything about this situation is dangerous. Whether he’s trying to destroy the lost world, or Energo, it needs to be stopped.”

“I hope he is strong enough,” Talen said softly as if to himself.

“James is stronger than any of us will ever know.” I only hoped believing in those words somehow made them true.

T
he howling sounded far away
. At first I thought I was imagining the noise, but the farther I rode from the prison, the less likely that seemed. I tried to ignore the howling and focus on the blue crystal key in my pocket. It had to be important, but I did not know why. It felt like a weight in my pocket, an anchor holding me in place. For such a small object it seemed to hold significant meaning, and far more questions than answers.

It was easily ten below zero, yet I felt perfectly comfortable. The fact that the temperature drop did not register with me until well over an hour after arriving in the region was a testament to how much my body had changed. My new temperature response felt natural though, like a second skin.

I tried over and over to retrieve any memories of the key, but I found nothing. Nor was I able to find any memories of Icentris beyond my own. It was as though an entire section of my father’s memories had been removed.

I pushed harder. Searching for something. Anything. But it was all to no avail. I did have the key. The key had to lead somewhere, and maybe that was the trick. If I could figure out what gate or doorway it opened, I would figure out how to end the nightmare I was living. Or I would walk into another. I could not underestimate that possibility. My mind was so muddled I was growing afraid I could no longer separate my own thoughts from his.

For once I wished I could hear my father’s voice in my head. I wanted to know if there was any way out. Was there anything I could do to save Ainsley and myself from the fate we had been dealt? Giving the power to Gregor was out of the question, but my father had known love. Maybe he could understand how important it was for me to save it.

Love is fickle
. The thought surely was not my own. A few weeks before I may have believed that, but not after meeting Ainsley. She was the only good thing I believed in anymore. I had to hold onto those thoughts. I had to hold onto Ainsley.

A loud neigh in the distance, as if from an injured horse had me turning from my course. I was not alone in the icy wilderness, and I needed to discover who else was out there.

The wind picked up, spraying white snow in my face as I road in the direction I believed the noise had come from.

I heard nothing for a few moments, until a human cry called through the night. It had come from the same direction, so I kept moving. Everything looked the same. All I saw was an open expanse of snow covered ice.

Minutes passed, and I heard nothing. I stopped my horse so I could make sure I did not need to once again change course. I heard nothing, but I smelled smoke. I squinted through the swirling snow and saw black smoke billowing up into the sky far in the distance.

I got my horse moving again—heading toward the source of the smoke even though it was surely danger. Nothing could hurt me, and a thrill spread through me as I thought about confrontation. I wanted to fight. I wanted to get out the anger and energy pulsing through me.

I unsheathed my sword in anticipation, watching the green blade glow against the white landscape. I had barely used my sword in months, and now I might have a chance.

I rode on through the ever increasing darkness, following the billow of smoke for the night had fallen silent again.

I saw the fire from a mile away. Red and orange flames lit up the dark sky. They beckoned me, and I hurried toward them.

The temperature rose as I neared the fire. I hopped off my horse and walked toward the flames, wiping sweat from my forehead in the process. The flames of the fire danced, and I watched transfixed as an image appeared inside the flames. A girl on her horse ran away from a wild beast. She rode faster and faster in a circle, but the beast was on her tail. I moved closer and closer to the flames, determined to find out if she could outrun the animal. I looked closer at the girl. It was Ainsley. She needed my help. Just as the beast was about to grab her the flames disappeared.

I felt heat everywhere. An intense burning that would not stop. I could see nothing but flames—fire encircling me. I closed my eyes, trying to handle the intensity of the heat. My thoughts turned erratic. I thought of Ainsley and pushed through the pain. The flames disappeared from my vision and instead I saw blackness, before I fell into another memory.

I was in Belgard, but not like any Belgard I had ever known. A thick coating of snow covered a market a quarter of the size of the one that existed now. There were small buildings right outside the castle, and a cobblestone walkway connected the cathedral directly to the castle. The walkway had never existed in my lifetime.

A man wearing a heavy hooded cloak dashed from the cathedral west toward a stone house. He entered the building, closed the door, and pushed off his hood. I did not recognize him. I had never seen the man in my life. He stood in the mostly empty room staring at the door. A few moments later the door opened, and another cloaked man walked in. He pushed off his hood, and I noticed his pointy ears. He was an Elf.

“The storm started earlier than predicted.” The Elf shook off snow from his cloak.

“One can never predict the weather anymore.” The man did nothing to remove the small amount of snow still coating his own cloak.

“Are you sure it is not your Essence?” The Elf narrowed his eyes.

“Do you believe my Essence plays games with the weather?” The man must have been a Gerard. No one else would dare describe an Essence as his.

“It would not be the first time. Her predecessors have done it on more than one occasion.” He unbuttoned his cloak and removed it. He was wearing green dress robes underneath.

“I forgot that you have lived long enough to see several Essences.”

“I have.” The Elf walked over to a long wooden table. The table and the six chairs around it were the only furniture in the room.

The man walked over to stand behind a chair on the opposite side of the table from the Elf. “I can assure you my Essence is too busy to play games. As am I.”

“Do you believe I am here to play games?” The Elf draped his cloak over the chair.

The man shook his head. “No, but I do not understand the urgency for this meeting.”

“We must have an alliance. Give us one of your daughters.”

The man shook his head. “Absolutely not.”

The Elf’s eyes darkened. “It is your turn to provide a daughter. A daughter of Belgard has not moved to North Loriet in over a century. The balance will be lost unless you send one.”

“You talk of a balance as if it is written in stone. We have no proof it matters.”

“The proof is here. Even if your kind cannot feel it yet, we can.” The Elf’s expression darkened.

“You think I will give up one of my daughters on the words of an Elf?”

“You talk as if you are turning her over to barbarians. She will be a princess. She will have everything her heart desires.”

“Except her family.” The man frowned. “We will not send away either daughter.”

“You have no choice. There will be dire consequences if you fail to uphold your part.”

“My part?” The man eyed the door again as if expecting someone else to show up.

“No.” The Elf shook his head. “The part required of your people. The agreement was struck years before even I was born.”

“And what if it is all a lie? An elaborate hoax our ancestors played to keep peace between human and Elf?”

“And what if it is? We cannot risk finding out.” The Elf leaned over the table.

“Have you seen the darkness?” The man stepped around the table toward the Elf. “You have lived for many years, but have you actually seen the darkness?”

“Never.” The Elf shook his head. “But I have heard stories of it from people who lived through it the last time it was in control.”

“In control?” The man narrowed his eyes. “The darkness was never in control. The Essence has always able to keep it contained.”

“Contained? What of the millions who died?”

“It did not take over.” The man rubbed the back of his neck. “Belgard held strong.”

“Belgard, yes.” The Elf nodded. “And is that all you care about? Your city? But what of the others? What of the other worlds?”

“My duty is to my people. The People of Energo. I owe no loyalty to any others.”

“You do.” The Elf straightened. “As do I. You are the people of the Source. We are the keepers of the realm of the dead. We must work together.”

“And I will give more soldiers to keep the peace in the East if necessary. That does not mean I will turn over either of my daughters.”

The Elf closed his eyes. “You are making a monumental mistake.”

“No.” The man shook his head. “I am taking care of my family.”

“At what cost? All of us and the other worlds?” The Elf pounded his hand on the table. “We cannot afford this.”

The Gerard appeared unmoved by the Elf’s words.

The Elf’s face and neck reddened. “If the darkness comes, be ready. Your people may not be as lucky this time.” The Elf grabbed his cloak and headed toward the door.

The man stared at the closed door and headed toward it. He noticed a shimmer on the floor beside where the Elf had stood. He bent down and picked up a crystal blue key. He stared at it for a moment before putting it in his cloak pocket. “Crazy Elf. The darkness is gone, and the the Cipher is dead. We have no need for alliances anymore,” he mumbled before heading out through the wooden door.

The memory faded away.

The burning sensation stopped. I blinked and found myself standing in the middle of an open snowy plain. My body had no burns, and there was no evidence of there ever having been a fire. Had I imagined it all? The image of Ainsley in the flames? Was I losing my mind truly and completely?

I heard the howl of a wolf in the distance again. I checked my pocket. I once again examined the blue crystal key. What an odd memory. If that was what it was. It surely was not my father’s. By the look of Belgard, it must have been years before his time.

I brought the key closer to my eyes. Could it be an Elven key? And if so, where did it lead? As far as I knew there were no gates to North Loriet.

I heard a howl again. It was as if the entire experience with the fire had never happened. I returned to my mare who waited exactly where I left her. She was such a loyal creature even if she did seem frightened of me. I mounted and rode off toward the howls.