Chapter 10 #3
“You have barely had time to practice with any of your magical gifts,” Donovan said.
“You will master them all eventually, as you master all things. And if I could reassure you further, you should remember that Connor was corrupted by the innocent blood he consumed first, not by the power of the stones he devoured.”
“And he was a little shit well before that,” Cecil added.
“He came out of the womb with a superiority complex. You worrying about being too powerful is silly, Chosen. You’ve only just managed to scratch the surface on that deep well of magic you possess inside of you.
You can literally manipulate matter, babe, and there’s not a creature in any of the worlds that can do that.
You’re already the most powerful being alive. ”
The knot of anxiety re-tied itself. “Thanks, coat,” I muttered.
“Well, you’re being a dick about this. And besides, if you don’t want the stone to give you any power, just… just ask it… not to.”
Wow. I looked back at Donovan. “Is it possible? Can I do that?”
“I do not know if it is possible or not. But I know that you can do it.” His eyes twinkled. “For you can do anything.”
“Oh.” I licked my lips. “Well, that does make me feel far more comfortable about the whole situation.”
Some of the tension melted out of the hard lines in Donovan’s jaw. “I do not mean to push you, Chosen, but I hope this means you will reconsider closing the fae stone as soon as we return to the human realm.”
“Well… shit.” I didn’t swear very often—not out loud, anyway—but the occasion called for it.
“Now I feel really bad. I’m so sorry, Donovan.
The last thing I want is to cause you to worry.
We can go and do it right now, if you want.
” My eyes flicked towards the Ancients at the gleaming black table, still frozen like statues. “This was probably a waste of time.”
“Yeah,” Cecil said. “This party blows.”
“I don’t want Connor getting his hands on their stone, but if they’re not sure what they want, then I’m not going to waste my time trying to convince them what would be best for them. They’re a bunch of arrogant peanuts.”
“A-hem.” Kathryx, the blonde Ancient, cleared her throat pointedly. “We can hear you, you know.”
“Can you?” I turned to face her and smiled a little sheepishly. “Well… good.”
She stared back at me. “Is it true?”
“Is what true?”
“You do not wish to close our stone?”
“Oh.” I frowned. “I mean, I was having some issues with the whole idea, but I’ll do it if you really want me to. If you don’t, then that’s fine, too. Just as long as you keep it safe and away from Connor’s clutches.”
“It is safe. Revealing the stone takes an immense amount of power and requires the permission of all of the Ancients.”
“Well, it’s up to you guys then.”
The vampire Ancient stared at me for a while, and I sensed a strange zing in the air, a very faint pulse of energy. Finally, I realized what was going on.
The Ancients were communicating telepathically. They were probably having a good old chit-chat inside their heads.
I shifted on my feet. “I don’t mean to be rude, but can you hurry this up?”
“The discussion is almost complete.” Kathryx rolled her eyes, an infinitesimal movement.
“We are more reluctant than most, because if it is true that you closing our stone will halt our evolution, then the consequence of that is that we will be frozen as we are. We will not grow or evolve until the stone is opened again. And some of us”—her eyes flicked to the right, down the row of ancient vampires—“are concerned that we will not be able to age ourselves any further.”
“Oh.” I looked at the little boy Ancient at the end of the table. “Is that it? I suppose that’s a fair thing to be worried about. I was actually wondering why you’d choose to stay as a little kid in the first place.”
The little boy stared at me; his eyes were a thousand years old. “I like being spoiled as a child.”
“...Okay.”
“And Fortnite. I like Fortnite. If I grow older, my voice will change, and I will be laughed off the server. They will call me a pedophile when I am competing in a Battle Royale. No other player will take me seriously.”
I pressed my lips together. When I was sure I could open my mouth without laughing, I bowed my head towards him. “I understand. You have a difficult choice to make. But it is your choice to make.”
The boy nodded, just once. “Then I shall stay as I am.” He curled his lip, ever so slightly. “Free from the suffering and pain of puberty and adulthood.”
Kathryx cleared her throat again. “May we have a demonstration of your power before we make our decision?”
“Nope.” I shook my head. “Don’t get me wrong, I’m not trying to be an asshole, but I don’t think I have anything I can easily pull out in a non-combat situation, and what I can do is probably not that impressive.
If you want to go ahead and give me two truths and a lie, I can tell which one is a lie. ”
She hesitated. “Perhaps not. The Ancients have far too many secrets.” After another long silence, she gave an infinitesimal nod. “It is decided. You will close our stone.”
I held up my hand. “Only if you’re sure.”
“We are. We will now bring it forth from its secret location. You must understand that it has not been revealed in thousands of years. Just the act of being within its presence is a holy experience.”
I got it. “You honor me with this privilege.”
Kathryx nodded sharply, just once, and the Ancients began to move. They drifted like ghosts, smoothly and silently, gliding in front of the black marble table.
It really was eerie to watch. They whirled and clustered together in perfect synchronicity—arms up, palms out, touching each other—as they arranged themselves into a twelve-point star in front of the table.
Suddenly, I became acutely aware that Jillian was crying right next to me. I glanced over. Blood tears poured down her beautiful face. Oh. This really was a big deal.
The Ancient vampires began to chant in deep tones, their voices low and dark, scraping like the sound a gravedigger’s shovel makes as it carves away the earth for a fresh coffin. Donovan moved closer to me, slightly in front, shielding me, as the intensity of magic built.
The temperature dropped; my breath came out as clouds of vapor.
A circle of black flames appeared above the Ancient’s heads. As one, they reached up, their hands disappearing into the circle of flames. After a second of loaded silence, they began to chant again and pulled, their faces visibly strained.
The ground beneath my feet rumbled, and a tingle slithered up my spine.
It didn’t feel good.
The rumbling returned. I shifted uncomfortably on my feet. Something about this didn’t feel right. “Wait.”
They didn’t hear me. My voice was lost to the increasing chants of the Ancients, as their voices built in both volume and intensity.
Donovan moved closer to me. “Something is wrong. I can feel it.”
Jillian let out a sob. “It is the most holy,” she whispered. “The source of our magic is overwhelming.”
“Yes, it’s nice and all.” I looked around, terribly worried. The vampires were arrogant, but they were sure they had protected their stone properly. And they had…
Until now.
Oh, no.
The vampires moved and pulled as one, as if tugging on a giant rope. A deep red glow appeared within the circle of flames, the color mingling with the candlelight in the cave and turning the golden light blood red. I gnawed on my lip. “Donovan…”
He wasn’t looking at the Ancients anymore, either. His gaze roamed around the giant cave, peering through the stalagmites that surrounded us.
I had to stop this. “Wait! No! Don’t pull the stone out of its hiding spot?—”
It was too late. The Ancients pulled again, their faces contorted with the effort, and a large blood-red crystal emerged from the void within the circle of black flames.
The rumbling under my feet became a mini earthquake, and I fought to keep my balance.
“Chosen.” Cecil’s voice trembled along with the cave around us. “What’s going on?”
The far corner of the cavern shifted, and rocks tumbled to the ground. A shape detached, pulling off the wall, and huge rocks rolled over each other, kneeling first, then straightening up.
Donovan swore. “Grisela.”
Shit.
She had hidden herself against the wall of the cavern, completely naked, blending in with the rocks around her, waiting for this very moment. Waiting for the Ancients to bring their stone out of hiding.
Connor had sent his most suitable assassin to get the vampire spark stone.
Panic clawed at me. Grisela was a troll, an animated pile of rocks. She was overwhelmingly strong, she didn’t bleed, she was immune to most magic, and the only way to stop her was to run as far away from her as you could.
There was no distance to be had in this cave. Even if I was to throw her, the stalactites above me would crash to the ground, and we’d be buried in razor-sharp rocks. This situation couldn’t be worse.
I flung Cecil off my shoulders; I needed to be able to move. “Stop!” I screamed towards the Ancients.
It really was too late, though. They’d already done it; they’d brought their spark stone out of hiding. They stood in a circle, eyes wide and exhausted, mouths open, panting, holding the basketball-sized gem in their outstretched hands.
The circle of flames above them had disappeared. They’d used all their strength to open the pocket dimension.
Grisela moved slowly at first, then faster, each huge rock that made up her whole body rolling carefully around to where it was supposed to be—huge round trunk, two fat arms, bulbous hands, stubby legs.
The crack of her mouth split open, and a rolling guffaw echoed through the room.
“Stone,” she rumbled, lurching forward, smashing straight through the spiky stalagmites around her. “Give me stone. Now.”
The Ancients watched her come. Those cold, icy faces were finally animated—eyes wide, mouths slack.
They looked scared.