Chapter Twenty-Three
Neith
I’m hoping that Griff’s instincts, or whatever it is, will kick in at some point, otherwise we’re just going to wander around aimlessly until we hit the cliffs.
Anyway, because we’re out in the open, I can’t take the unicorn bracelet off and see what’s going on underneath it to make it so itchy under there. I did forget to take it off when I showered last night, so I am assuming that I got soap or something underneath it, and that’s the cause.
If it carries on for much longer, I’m going to have to risk someone seeing the mark below it and take it off.
“Are you okay?” Coen asks me.
I nod, “Yeah, I’m nervous, and my arm itches, and the Voices are being unhelpful assholes.”
Coen’s eyebrows rise slightly. “Well, okay then.”
“What are you nervous about?” Griff asks me as we carry on walking.
“I really want to be your true mate,” I mutter, feeling a little self-conscious about the admission.
“I thought you weren’t worrying about that?” River asks.
I wrinkle my nose, “I was lulled into a false sense of security by the hot chocolate.”
They all give me looks like they’re contemplating my sanity again, and trying to hide their amusement at the same time.
“Right,” Griff says. He pulls me under his arm, and somehow does it smoothly enough that when I, of course, trip over my own feet, he simply rights me without breaking his stride and carries on walking.
He also carries on talking like he didn’t just rescue me from face planting the ground, “You know that even if we aren’t true mates, that doesn’t change a single thing, right?
I’m still yours one hundred percent, without a single doubt, and if it is confirmed that we are true mates, it doesn’t change anything for us, it simply means that something from the old ways is coming back, and we just happen to be the first two people that it’s happened to.
The only person we have to inform is Michael, and even then, if you don’t want to, then we won’t.
” He stops and glances down at me, and repeats his words, “It doesn’t change anything for us, Neith. ”
“Thank you,” I say, as I reach up and pull him down to kiss me.
“Anytime,” he replies when he pulls back.
“So, what way are we supposed to go now?” Raiden asks as he looks around at the vast expanse of land surrounding us.
In all honesty, it sort of reminds me of the moors back home in Ireland. Just jagged rocks, gorse bushes, and grass for as far as the eye can see.
It’s beautiful and cold.
There’s a dusting of snow covering everything, not so much that we can’t see any rocks that may want to trip us up. I have no idea why the snow isn’t as deep here as it was back near the village, but I would have thought that it would have been the other way around.
Whatever the reason, it’s really pretty.
I love snow.
It is cold though, obviously. I’m not sure why I felt like that needed to be repeated, but it really is that cold.
The Voices snicker, and I mentally stick my middle finger at them. I’m only mildly surprised when I get the image of a middle finger sent back to me.
“Huh, that’s new,” I mutter out loud without meaning to.
“What’s new?” Baz asks.
I wince slightly as Raiden, Griff, and Reed look at me curiously as well, the others are all too far ahead to have heard my mutter.
Thankfully.
“Er, I was arguing with the Voices, they were being assholes, so I mentally stuck my middle finger up at them, and they did it back, which is the first time that they have ever done that. Although they are behaving differently now that I know that they aren’t the Voices of the dead.”
Raiden's eyebrows dip curiously, “Different in what way?”
I smile, I’m grateful that he didn’t point out just how much of a crazy thing just came out of my mouth.
“They’re just a lot more responsive,” I explain. “I’ve asked them a few questions, and they have actually answered.”
“Huh. That’s curious,” Griff says.
“I wish I could remember what I knew about the Voices,” Baz says.
I level him with a look, “Do not try. If you go down now because you’ve pushed your memory too far, I will kick you.”
Baz smirks, “You’ll still hold me while I come around though, right?”
“Oh my god, are you actually considering it?” I ask, trying not to laugh.
Baz shrugs as Reed, Raiden, and Griff all chuckle.
Reed claps Baz on the shoulder, “Hook, line, and fucking sinker, my man.”
“Almost immediately,” he replies.
“What?” I ask my nose scrunched up in confusion.
“You know they might be acting differently because you’ve acknowledged that they aren’t the dead, and that’s somehow allowed them to become more of what they really are,” Raiden suggests, completely bypassing the conversation that the others were having.
“Yeah, maybe,” I reply.
“Of course, they could also be acting differently because your magic is free now, and they’re responding to that,” Raiden adds thoughtfully.
“I think that would make a lot of sense, actually,” Griff agrees.
I glance up at him and then stop, pulling him to a stop too as I realize that his eyes have gone completely black.
“Guys, Griff is having a vision,” I call out to the others, as I gently pull Griff to a stop.
Baz and Reed move to stand beside him, ready to catch him in case he goes down.
He hasn’t before, but I think we would all rather be safe than sorry.
“It’s lasting for a little bit longer than his more recent ones,” Doc says with a worried frown.
A golden bubble forms around us, and I look at Ransom.
He shrugs, “Just in case. We don’t know if there is anything or anyone else out here with us, and we don’t know what he’s seeing.
I would rather know for certain that we are the only ones who know whatever it is that Griff is having a vision about. ”
“Good idea,” Van replies, although he doesn’t take his gaze off Griff. “Did he stop walking by himself?”
“No, I stopped him. So, there might be a part of him that is still aware,” I reply, guessing that’s where Van’s going with his line of questioning.
After a few more moments, Griff’s eyes clear.
“Can we have the good news first?” Ransom asks.
“How did you know that there was good and bad news?” Griff asks.
Ransom shrugs, “Lucky guess.”
Griff nods, “Fair enough. The good news is that I think we’re heading in the right direction, although I’m not sure about the exact location of the cave.”
“Awesome, wait, is that the bad news, that you don’t know exactly where it is?” Baz asks.
Griff shakes his head and then looks around, “Actually, no. The bad news is that the old ways are returning, which is a good thing. At least that’s what I picked up from the vision, but along with the old ways, the old threats will return as well, and we will be hunted.”
I shrug, “Sounds about right.”
“Wait, do you mean that you and Neith will be hunted because you are true mates?” Reed asks.
Griff frowns, “Not exactly. Apart from telling me, or well showing me that we are heading in the right direction, and that true mates are a part of the old ways, the warning that we were going to be hunted was directly linked to just Neith and me. I’m not one thousand percent sure that it means that it’s us specifically who are going to be hunted, but it wouldn’t surprise me, given our past experience. ”
“Yeah, that’s a good point,” Van says with a slight frown.
I mean, we should probably be more concerned than we currently are, but Griff is right. At this point, we’re being hunted by a few things. What’s one more, and the chance of us all being hunted because of some sort of old ways is pretty slim, although for us, I suppose it’s not impossible.
“You don’t seem to be as concerned as you should be about the fact that you’re going to be hunted,” Baz comments. “I know you’re being hunted by a few different people, but the old ones will make them feel like child’s play.”
“I wonder if that’s what Winston was referring to when he hinted that there was another threat?” I ask.
“It’s possible,” Griff says.
“Let’s focus on one thing at a time. We’ve got the warning, which means that we can be aware of it, and we can do something,” Van trails off.
He shakes his head, “Honestly, we will just deal with it when we know more about it. There is absolutely no point in worrying about it now. We need to see if Griff and Neith are true mates, and if they are, then that’s probably a good sign that they at least are going to be the ones that are going to be hunted by something else unknown. ”
“Hey, with any luck, it will be something that we already know we’re being hunted by,” River grins, hopping from foot to foot.
“I actually understand your logic,” Raiden replies.
River clutches his hand to his chest dramatically, “You sound surprised.”
“Come on. It’s this way,” Griff says. He looks at Baz, “What do you know about the old ones?”
Baz shrugs, “What most people know. They were those who came before us. We are descended from them, but several different species that were abundant back then are no longer around today. Most have been completely forgotten over time.”
“Like the ones in my vision? Do you think that was a vision of the old ones?” I ask suddenly, and the Voices mutter excitedly.
Baz frowns, “I would be very surprised if it were, the old ones haven’t existed for a millennium.
Having said that, if you and Griff are true mates, which is a sign that the old ways could be coming back, then there wouldn’t just be signs here, there would be signs everywhere, and your vision could have been one of them. ”
“I have to tell you, dude, most people do not know that,” Coen points out. “But then again, everything got a bit fucked up after the war and the shutdown of Trieneliea, so maybe you learned that before then.”
Baz nods, although he looks like he’s deep in thought.
“We need to try and get in touch with Winston and see if he can answer any of our questions,” Reed suggests. “At this point, even if it’s just one thing that he can help us with, that would be amazing. I’m getting pretty fed up with the half answers now.”
“Well, there’s no point in calling him at the moment, we know he’s busy with the other creature that he wouldn’t tell us about at the house.
Which he and the other spirit guides also said was something that shouldn’t exist anymore, so what’s the betting that it’s actually a creature that is tied to the old ones?
” I ramble as my brain puts several thoughts together at once.
“You might be onto something,” Raiden agrees. “You know all of that could have something to do with the so-called old ones.”
“What about the Elders? Would they know something about the old ones?” Ransom asks.
Baz frowns, “The Elders? Did you mention them before?”
“Probably not. They’ve proven to be not worth the time of day, especially with everything else that we’ve got going on.” Griff replies and then quickly gives Baz a rundown of who they are.
Baz’s frown deepens, “Alright, well, it sounds like a lot of shit has changed. Or I don’t remember it.
I don’t remember any group of people called the Elders, so unless I really am forgetting it, which I suppose is possible, then it would suggest that it was something that happened after the lockdown.
Or at least that it gained more traction after then.
” He pauses thoughtfully for a moment, “Or I suppose it could be from a realm that I’m not familiar with. ”
“Well, the general consensus is that they can’t be trusted. They know a lot, but they only share their knowledge if it benefits them,” Van replies.
“So like most people who have been corrupted by power,” Coen adds with a sharp smile.
“Although we didn’t even realize that they existed, so I’m not entirely sure how much power they actually have,” River points out.
“True,” Raiden agrees. “They could have power amongst a circle of supes that we don’t even know about though. Either way, I think we should just stick to the plan of avoiding them if we can.”
“Definitely,” I agree.
Baz
There is so much that I know.
I know that, and yet I can’t fucking access it. It’s becoming more and more frustrating.