Vesik 04 - This Broken World (19 page)

“My King,” Nixie said, bowing her head.

“Formalities have no place here,” Glenn said. “I must be brief and return to the council.”

“Why come here on your own?” I asked, emboldened by his statement of this being a casual meeting.

“Can you think of no better question for the Lord of the Dead?” Glenn asked.

“So, are we underground here?” I asked.

He nodded. “We are not so much beneath the ground as we are within it.”

“Huh?”

Glenn actually smiled a little as Nixie tried not to laugh at me. “It may be simpler to think of it as another dimension. A sideways step into a realm beyond your own.”

“Your definition of simpler, and my definition of simpler, are vastly different.”

Glenn nodded. “Nonetheless, we are there, within the earth.” He paused for a moment and looked at the bronzed vambrace on his wrist. “There are many realms beside your own. The Frozen Waste, The Burning Lands, and what we call Faerie are but the tip of what we know.

“I am of the opinion there are many more. The void you walked with Gaia?”

I nodded.

“I believe that is a realm all its own, and perhaps a junction from which you can access an infinite number of realms.”

“Like an alternate,
alternate
dimension?”

“Just one alternate,” Nixie said. She curled her fingers around my upper arm. “An infinite number of realms, only one dimension away from our own.”

“Exactly,” Glenn said. “I believe it is where the Old Gods and the Eldritch things have been sealed away for so many millennia. We don’t truly know where they were sent when we banished them from the known realms. Other than the few seen within the void, we do not know where they’ve gone. The dark-touched have not been seen since Camazotz drove them from your realm.

“Regardless,” Glenn said, “Ezekiel is the immediate threat. You have the Splendorum Mortem.” It wasn’t a question.

“Yes,” I said

He nodded. He didn’t ask to see it. Didn’t insist I hand it over. Just nodded. “Leviticus will not stand idly by when the time to face Ezekiel is upon you. If it comes to it, you must be ready to strike him down.”

“No,” Nixie said. “That’s terrible.”

“I am aware of that,” Glenn said. “You know what he’s capable of. We must be ready.”

The thought had crossed my mind before. What if he truly lost control? There was scarcely a being that could stand up to him, much less defeat him.

“I hope it doesn’t come to that,” I said.

“As do I,” Glenn said. “You will not travel to Gettysburg alone. I have arranged for some of Samantha’s Pit to travel with you. Hugh insists that Alan guard you. I am sure the Ghost Pack will be close to you.” He looked away as he said, “There are others that will be guarding you, but you will not see them.”

I had a feeling he meant Jasper, but perhaps there were more?

“I have discussed the rift between the packs with Hugh,” Glenn said. “They are making good progress gathering allies, and the help of the Irish Brigade has been invaluable.”

“They’ll never have enough wolves to face Ezekiel,” I said.

Glenn shook his head slowly. “You are right. It is why I am sending Ward to walk among them.”

“Ward agreed?” Nixie asked as she leaned forward. Her eyes were wide.

“Yes,” Glenn said before he turned his gaze to the stone floor. “Ward witnessed a terrible event with the fall of Falias. I know we’ve had our issues in the past, but we are both wise enough to know when to set those differences aside.”

He looked back up with his pitch black eyes and met my own before he said, “Aeros will join you in Kentucky. I have other business for him to address in the meantime. There are a few things in which I believe Hern is in the right. It is time we reclaim our place as Guardians of this realm.” He raised his hands as if something was between them. Black mists drifted from his shoulders, spinning in the void between his fingers, and finally obscuring his face as they formed the semblance of ghostly horns. Slowly the mist solidified. Glenn opened his hands over his head, leaving his face in shadows behind a dark bronzed helm. A curved faceplate showed a violent streak of white that faded and wound into the textured antlers rising from his head. Two red orbs began to glow within the darkness. “It is time.”

I stared at the Lord of the Dead, and he stared back. I wasn’t afraid of him in that moment, but I respected the ever loving hell out of his power.

“Nixie, Damian, be wary. I am sorry to have interrupted.”

I blinked, and my vision returned just in time to see the black whorl vanishing behind Glenn. He was gone, as silent as he’d arrived.

“You ever feel like he is scary beyond all reason?” I asked as I looked at the empty air where Glenn had vanished.

“I thought you weren’t afraid of him anymore,” Nixie said. She hopped off the bed.

“I didn’t say that out loud, did I?”

She grinned and shook her head. “Just a feeling I had.”

“I kind of didn’t think I was afraid of him, but my common sense is coming on strong.”

“We should find Zola,” Nixie said. “I’d like to hear what she has to say about all of this too.”

“It’s late,” I said. “Let’s get her in the morning. She gets grumpy without her beauty rest.” I grabbed Nixie around the waist and tossed her onto the bed.

She crossed her arms and frowned at me. “And just what do you think you’re doing?”

I grinned as I hopped up on the bed and kissed her.

Her frown cracked into a smile as she said, “Morning would probably be fine.”

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

W
ith Nixie beside me, I slept better than I had in a year. Once we got to the sleeping part, anyway.

Nixie was still asleep when I crawled out of bed, donned my jeans and t-shirt, and slid
The Deathspeaker, Leviticus Aureas, and the Fall of Atlantis
off the end table. I was anxious to read it, and was pretty sure I’d be combing through snippets of the book as I could over the next few days.

I sat back down on the bed and leaned back into the oh so perfect pillows. The cover crackled slightly as I gently pried it open.

If there was one thing I never expected to say about the fall of our beautiful city, it would be a word in the defense of Leviticus Aureas. Yet the fall may have been triggered by his mighty battle with Anubis, but at what fault of his? Had he not been there, what chance would the people of Atlantis have had?

With our sisters spread across half the world, engaged in a war with no apparent end, Ezekiel would have taken Atlantis and buried it in the sea regardless. Our Queen was a fool to cross swords with Gwynn Ap Nudd. He is the rightful King of Faerie, slayer of the Nameless King.

Here, I will record the story as I remember it. The story of a lost soldier, a new King, and the final days of our terrible Queen.

Nixie slapped me on my stomach and I almost dropped the book in my surprise. She grinned at me and said, “Good morning.”

I leaned over and kissed her. “Good morning to you.” I eyed the explosion of hair running off in every imaginable direction.

She narrowed her eyes at me. “What?”

“Nothing.” I opened my eyes wider, trying to achieve an image of absolute innocence.

She tugged on the explosion of hair. It came away easily from the tangle of sheets. She shook it out once or twice, and it looked like she’d been styling it for hours.

“Sam would be so jealous of that,” I said with a laugh. I turned back to the book and closed it. “Does Zola know about this?”

Nixie had crawled out of bed and was pulling her dress on from the day before. “Zip me up, would you?”

I stood up to help her. “Does she?” I asked again as I zipped Nixie’s dress up the rest of the way.

“She knows of them, yes, but she does not know I’ve given you one.” She paused. “I don’t see any harm in showing her. She already knows Levi, and probably knows almost everything in that book already.”

“Yeah, Zola’s like that.” I slid the book into my backpack. “You ready? Let’s track her down.”

“She was staying close to the vampires,” Nixie said. “It’s a bit of a walk.”

I nodded. “Nothing like a romantic subterranean walk to start the morning.”

Nixie narrowed her eyes at me. “Are you possessed?”

“What?” I said with a half laugh.

“You’ve had no coffee, or caffeine of any kind, and you’re almost … chipper.”

“Don’t tell anyone,” I said in a serious tone.

She took my arm when I offered it. I escorted her immaculately dressed self down the hall in my slightly wrinkly vampire skull t-shirt and jeans. We turned the corner, walking beneath the embattled monoliths towering above us.

I’m not sure if they built the place so large to intimidate the guests, or simply to accommodate the largest of the Fae and their guests. I imagined Aeros would be quite at home with the oversized dimensions.

“Wait,” Nixie said. She pulled on my arm. I glanced at her, and she was staring down the hallway to our left. “That’s where we need to go.”

A man stood at the end of the hall. He wore a dark cloak with a hood pulled low over his eyes. His entire face was lost in the shadows. My hand brushed the Splendorum Mortem concealed at my waist. The rest of my weapons were in the room, in accordance with the laws of the Concilium Belli.

“Though I am sure whatever you have concealed at your waist could kill me, there is no need to draw it.” I recognized the voice as the figure began walking toward us.

“Ward?” I asked.

He reached up and flipped the hood of his cloak back as he nodded.

“Ward,” Nixie said. “You scared us.”

“I apologize for that,” he said.

I heard the cackle of an old Cajun before I saw Zola step out from behind the pedestal of an elaborately carved knight’s boot. The click of her knobby cane on the marble grew louder as she approached. “Ah think that may have been the most insincere apology Ah’ve ever heard.”

Ward’s mouth curled up into a small smile. “It was her idea.”

I crossed my arms and cocked an eyebrow at Zola as she settled in beside Ward. The dark gray fabric of her cloak looked new in the light from the sconces around us.

“Somehow I’m not surprised,” I said.

“Why are you still here?” Nixie asked as she looked at Ward. “The King said you’d be travelling to meet … allies.”

Ward nodded. “I will be.

“He came to warn you,” Zola said. “Ah believe you’ve been marked for execution, Nixie.”

“What?” I said.

“I am not surprised,” Nixie said. “I declared my opposition to my Queen today.”

“Zola is right,” Ward said. “One of the King’s … men, heard the order issued.”

Nixie almost snarled, her lips curling back. “She means to go to war with the King. She issued those orders here, knowing they would be overhead.”

“She wants you to see her coming,” I said. My hand trailed over the Splendorum Mortem. I had a sudden urge to test it out.

“No,” Zola said. Her eyes trailed from my hand back up to my face. She frowned slightly as her gaze passed between me and Nixie. “Do you have one of the blades?”

Nixie shook her head.

“Ah’m afraid you’ll need it.” Zola gestured toward Ward.

Ward pushed his cloak aside. I caught a glimpse of a leather jerkin adorned with bronze rivets. Every rivet had runes carved into it. As I focused my Sight more intensely, I could see the ley lines around us being bent towards each ward, ever so slightly. It was subtle enough as to not be noticed by a casual observer, and those wards were channeling enough power into the man to burn most practitioners to a crisp.

He unbuckled a sheath at his side and pulled a gray blade from it. It was wide like a small spade at one end and it tapered down into a bronze hilt. Twisted knots and runes formed wards all over the knife. Ward looked around before he handed it to Nixie.

She nodded, not verbalizing her thanks as she slid it into the folds of her gown.

“It is not one of the originals,” Ward said. “Most of those have been lost. It is a copy I made to the best of my ability. It should work just as well as the ancient tools.”

“What is that?” I asked.

“We do not speak of it,” Zola said. “Not in this place. Gather your things and meet us in the Royal Court. Glenn will open the Ways for us. Sam already left with her Pit” She motioned down the hall with her head. The Magrasnetto charms in her hair clinked together as her braids moved.

Ward extended his hand to shake mine. The sleeve of his cloak slid back, revealing flesh so densely covered with tattoos and wards. It was jaw dropping. I eventually raised my eyes to meet his.

“That must have stung a bit,” I said.

Ward blew a short breath out through his nose. “You are not mistaken.” He smiled as he shook my hand in three short, controlled cycles.

I watched Ward and Zola turn left down the hall toward the Royal Court. He was taller than the old Cajun, but not by a large degree.

I didn’t offer my arm, and Nixie didn’t take it. We didn’t have to speak to each other to know it would be idiotic to be tangled up out in the open.

“Damn, I’ve never been to Europe before,” I said, glancing up at the ceiling far above. “Now all I’ve seen are these damned hallways.”

“You’ve see the Royal Court of Faerie, Damian.” She glanced at me, and then turned her attention back to our surroundings. “Think of how many commoners wish they could say the same.”

“You’re right,” I said. “I know I should appreciate what I’ve seen, but …”

“We’ll come back,” Nixie said. “I’ll take you sightseeing.” She smiled at me and I couldn’t help but smile back.

I heard footsteps echoing, out of rhythm with our own. My pace slowed, and Nixie’s slowed beside me. The footsteps died away.

“How much of a threat?” I asked.

“Serious,” Nixie said. “I betrayed our own royalty. They will strike soon.”

“But here?” I said. “Under Glenn’s nose?”

“Yes. By his own laws, he cannot retaliate.” Her eyes scanned the intersecting hall as we passed it. It wasn’t long before we reached our room.

I walked through the doorway first, my right hand never leaving the hilt of the Splendorum Mortem.