Infernal Father of Mine (42 page)

"The pit isn't empty." I looked at the others.
"The Nazdal are camouflaged."

"Just like in their realm," Dad said. "They
blended perfectly with the terrain."

"Why now?" I asked.

"Either they know we're coming, or maybe
they're sleeping." He shrugged. "Let's assume the
worst."

Elyssa blew out a breath. "Good
idea."

"I just hope there aren't any Nazdal surprises
hidden near the door," Dad said. He slipped on his magic glasses
and surveyed the area. "I don't see any heat signatures near the
door. Looks like we're clear."

"Good idea," Elyssa said, putting her glasses
back on. She stared at the pit. "I can't tell how many Nazdal are
down there. It looks like they're clustered in groups."

I activated the camouflage on the carpet. The
spell concealed us, the bows, and other stolen gear while allowing
us to still see each other. Once we stepped off it, we'd have to
rely solely on the Nightingale armor to conceal us. "Let's set up
near the door."

I'll wait here
, my minder said.
Good
luck. Don't let anything happen to our hot
girlfriend.

I sent him the mental image of me rolling my
eyes.
Did you ask any other minders to help us?

I tried, but like I told you, they're locked
into minder duties unless…
Minder Justin trailed
off.

Unless what?

Maybe if their owners think really
hard about summoning them, they'll come. Minders can sense the
people they're connected to, but only if the intent is
strong.

I raised an eyebrow.
You mean Elyssa and the
others can ask their minders to come?

It's worth a shot.

Hope bloomed in my chest.
Great
idea.

You'll have to figure out a way to
get us inside, though. We can't phase through walls.

I nodded.
I'll think of something. Is there
anything else we need to worry about with the brain? Can they
detect us by our thoughts?

Minders whose owners are dead can't
sense thoughts unless they're touching you. They can hear sound
when you're near them, though.

That much I knew from talking to Serena's
minder.

"Ready?" Elyssa asked.

I told her and the others my minder's plan,
including the limitations of the brain minders.

"I hadn't thought about the possibility they
could sense our thoughts. Thank goodness they can't." She pursed
her lips. "The help of our own minders could be
crucial."

Elyssa gave a signal. We descended slowly until
we were only twenty feet off the rubble-strewn ledge next to the
rear door. Elyssa held up a fist, indicating a full stop. We
inspected the area, looking for anything out of the ordinary. I
figured that included just about everything in my life, but opted
to keep the smart remarks to myself.

After convincing ourselves nothing hidden
lurked below, we landed near the gray door and waited. Elyssa
activated the camo on her armor. She didn't so much vanish as she
blurred into a very hard to see smudge on my vision over several
seconds. When I tried to look directly at her, it was as if the
camouflage deflected my eyes somewhere else. She touched my head,
and suddenly I could see her again.

"I activated the squad spell that'll allow us
to see each other," she explained, activating the camouflage on my
parents' armor.

I traced a circle with a slash through it on my
chest to activate the camo. Even though I could see the others, it
was like looking through a slightly distorted window.
"Weird."

Elyssa took the rigid flying carpets and bent
them into semi-circles so they'd stand on edge, and aligned them
next to the fortress wall so we could duck behind them in case the
aether charges on our armor ran out. If that happened, the armor
would recharge, but we'd be exposed for a long time.

"Why don't we keep the camo turned off and hide
behind the carpets?" Dad said.

Elyssa nodded. "Good idea."

We hid behind the carpets and deactivated the
spells on our armor, lowering the face-concealing masks as
well.

Elyssa examined the door, but there wasn't a
handle to be found. Like the others, it slid into a recess in the
wall when opened. "Justin, you told me the doors open and close
without anyone actually touching them, right?"

I nodded. "The minders must respond to whoever
is walking through them."

She hugged the wall to the right of the door.
"When it opens, we'll have to wait for whoever is coming out to
clear enough space for us to slip through. We'll have only a few
seconds to get inside. From what Justin told me, we can't just hold
open the door. It'll probably crush anyone who doesn't make it all
the way through."

Mom nodded. "If this place is dreamcasted by
minders, anything could happen if they detect us."

"Like the walls crushing us?" I
asked.

"Or spikes shooting from the floor and impaling
us?" Dad added.

I widened my eyes. "Or the floor falling into a
bottomless pit?"

Dad grimaced. "Or into a lake of burning
lava?"

Elyssa and Mom turned highly disapproving looks
on us.

"Jarvis said only parts of the fortress are
dreamcasted," I said. "But that doesn't mean they can't conjure
traps wherever they want them."

"I need silence," Elyssa said in a harsh
whisper. "We can't afford any distractions." She motioned toward
the side of the wall the door opened away from. "Everyone line up
and be ready to go on my signal. Remember, once we're inside, no
talking. The brain might detect us."

I just hoped it couldn't detect us merely by
our stepping foot inside.

We did as commanded with Elyssa standing
closest to the edge of the door. The wait dragged on and on, making
it difficult to keep my guard up despite the dangers of invisible
Nazdal sneaking up on us from the pit. Their nifty camouflage trick
must have been how Maloreck was able to get into and out of the
fortress so easily. Either that, or Serena had granted him access.
Somehow, I doubted the woman allowed him free reign inside the
complex. The Nazdal had proved himself too clever and too strong to
trust.

Then again, it wasn't as if the creature had
lied. In fact, he'd been pretty straightforward about wanting to
kill me and take my life essence. I shuddered. Elyssa glanced back
at me. Her alarmed looked turned questioning. I didn't have time to
answer the unspoken question because, at that moment, the door
grated open.

We quickly activated our camouflage and raised
the masks on the armor.

A slobbering ghoul shambled through the door.
It looked dazed. A string of saliva hung from its slack lower jaw.
The skin was as green and mottled with liver spots as the others of
its kind I had seen. A thick iron collar bound its neck. I realized
with a shock I recognized this ghoul. It was the Arcane, Wax. The
minders must have drained the poor man already. My fists tightened
as two sentinels walked through the door behind Wax, each one
gripping a thick metal pole attached to either side of the iron
collar.

Elyssa looked through the door and jerked her
head back just as Jarvis strolled through, a smile across his
face.

"Should have eaten more vitamins, Wax," the
chubby man said. "You might have lasted longer in the
brain."

Wax was obviously far past understanding
anything. Elyssa jerked my arm, dragging us through the door as it
grated closed. We whisked past just in time.

My girlfriend said nothing as she moved
forward. I didn't think the walls had ears, but in this place,
there was no sense taking any chances. We crept down the corridor.
Going by our memories, Dad and I directed the group through the
grid of hallways. Thankfully, it was almost a straight shot to
Serena's lab. Voices echoed down the hall. Elyssa held up a fist.
We halted. She pointed to her eyes and made a circling gesture.
Once again I wished I'd studied Templar black ops signals a little
more, but Elyssa didn't stick around to elaborate before
disappearing inside the lab.

"They attacked the church," hissed an angry
female voice. "My church!"

My heart almost stopped. Daelissa was
here.

"Why did they attack it?" Serena
asked.

"Perhaps they thought the Slade boy was still
there," the Seraphim replied. "I do not have all the details yet,
but there will be suffering."

"The Cataclyst—"

"Do not call him that!" Daelissa screamed. "He
is a speck compared to me."

"The speck," Serena said, "was indeed
instrumental in showing me the way to realign the Shadow Nexus to
Seraphina."

"His sister is still too young. Her voice still
unsuitable," the angel said.

"It wasn't his voice that showed me the way,"
Serena said. "He may have escaped, but he unwittingly gave me the
key. I can attune—"

"My church, my church, my church!" Daelissa
sounded as if she were losing her mind.

"The church doesn't matter," I heard Serena
say. "I have already—"

"Doesn't matter?" Daelissa shrieked. "This will
not stand. I will personally erase the Borathen scum from the face
of Eden."

"Please reconsider, Daelissa." Serena's voice
sounded sweet and soothing, much like the one she'd used in her
attempt to con me. "You have still not rested or fed after the
battles in Colombia. Please return to Eden via the Gloom arch at
Kobol Prison. Regain your strength. When you are ready, we will
open the way to Seraphina, you will have your army, and we will
march an unstoppable force into Eden."

Elyssa returned from scouting the room, and
pointed toward a large silver box to the right of the door. She
made some hand signals which I assumed meant she wanted us to
follow her lead.

"It is happening again, and so soon," Daelissa
said. She actually sounded scared. "I'm losing myself."

"Replenish your energy. You must be completely
stable to open the gateway." Serena's voice was soothing.
"Seraphina will heal you, but it will take time, and you must be
ready in case there are unforeseen dangers waiting on the other
side."

I will return in two hours," Daelissa said in a
low voice. "Be ready by then."

Elyssa motioned us inside and pointed to a
large silver box about ten feet away.

"Of course," Serena said. "Let me walk you
out."

Elyssa flattened against the wall and pressed
me alongside her. Mom and Dad mimicked us just as Daelissa and
Serena appeared from behind a row of bulky devices.

The pair walked toward the door we'd just
entered. I saw beads of sweat on Serena's forehead as she closed to
within a few feet of us. Despite the armor veiling our presence,
any movement would be detectable standing this close. I didn't dare
breathe.

Daelissa's face contorted with rage one moment
to an odd vacuous expression the next, as if a war were being waged
in her mind. She suddenly stopped, nostrils flaring. "They're
here." Her eyes went wide. "How dare they come against
me?"

My heart went cold as ice. My knees felt like
jelly. It was all I could do not to run.

Serena looked confused. "Who's
here?"

"The leyworms dare to side with Moses against
me?" Daelissa raised a hand, and a bolt of searing white melted a
metal table with glass vials on top of it. The vials spilled to the
floor, shattering when they hit. She stopped her attack, staring at
the mess on the floor. "That will hold them for now."

What in the hell is she talking about?
This woman was out of her ever-loving mind.

White as a sheet, Serena seemed to muster some
courage and took the angel by the hand. "Daelissa, you must feed."
She led her towards the door. "You must regain your
strength."

The Seraphim blinked and flinched. She looked
at the Arcane as if suddenly realizing where she was. "Get me to
the flying carpet. I will return to Eden and feed. I expect to see
my homeland when I return."

"Of course," Serena said, wasting no time in
escorting Daelissa from the room. Their voices faded as they went
down the hallway.

I noticed Elyssa's chest deflate at the same
time I let out the breath I'd been holding.
That was way too
close.
I also noticed Elyssa's camouflage veil fading in and
out. The charge in our armor was running low. She led us to the far
end of the room where we hid behind crates of equipment and lowered
our hoods.

"This room is empty except for the brain at the
other end of the room," Elyssa whispered. "Keep your voices
low."

"For a minute I was thinking we could take
Daelissa's crazy ass out," Dad said. "Then she blasted that
table."

I shivered. "If that's how powerful she is with
the Gloom dampening her abilities, I'd hate to face her at full
strength."

"We need to plan our next moves carefully,"
Elyssa said. "Hopefully we can sneak past the brain."