Chapter 3 #2
“Well, there are several places in the world with inherent power. The Waters of Pain located next to Heathermoor is one of them. I can’t help but feel like this is it, only they stopped calling it that because, you know, optics.”
Certainly, “Waters of Pain” as a destination wouldn’t have attracted many tourists.
We were directly across from the church now, and the few lights in the windows of the building reflected here and there off the shallows.
“I sure hope Liam was right about the Nessies not being very active this time of year because I don’t think I have the heart for it.
Fighting off that vampire was bad enough. ”
Ross grabbed my arm. “I’m sorry, uh, what the fuck did you just say?” Then his eyes went wider as if the rest of what I’d said hit him. “Wait, when was there a vampire?” Ross’s voice went up about four octaves and he was breathing hard.
I looked at Marina and she shook her head.
“I was planning to tell them later. He’s a little freaked out about monsters in general –” She put her hands on his arms and spoke softly to him.
I looked at Gary who just shrugged, seemingly unbothered by the mention of both Nessies and vampires in one sentence.
I opened my mouth, but a skittering sound behind me cut the words off short. I wheeled around.
“Did you hear that?” I whispered, my arms breaking out in goosebumps.
“I would if I wasn’t shoved so deep in your pocket that I’m halfway to your asshole,” Calypso snapped.
“I heard something.” Fable ignored Calypso as did I, moving closer to me as she strained to see in the darkness, looking for whatever had made the noise.
“Uh, guys?” Ross murmured from my left. “I’m pretty sure I just saw . . . eyes? Glowing in that copse of trees over there.”
Without a word spoken, we all moved as one, until we were in a tight cluster, our backs pressed together so we could see in all directions.
Tension in the air anyone? The feeling of being watched intensified as little flickers of glowing green lit up between the trees. Eyes at different heights.
The sound of branches snapping. Two directions, so at least two creatures.
“Be ready.”
My voice seemed to beckon them. Two vampires launched themselves at us. And they weren’t singing or humming anymore. Nor were they just after Gary and Ross.
The one with the deer head came first, shooting straight at Caterina and Marina.
The second vampire had the skull of a horned cow, fangs hanging from the bovine mouth even as she bellowed a moo that rattled into a wet snarl. That one came for me and Fable.
It bellowed a second time, the decidedly odd mixture of growl and cattle-lowing reverberating in my chest.
I didn’t think, not really. I stepped into the charge, driving my left fist into the vampire’s open ribcage, cracking through the strange branches and twigs – its momentum helping – until my hand found the creature’s spine. Which brought me well within reach of those fangs.
“Fable! Binding rune!” I dropped to my ass, yanking the vampire down with me, smashing its oversized head into the dirt, one of the horns digging in deep and holding it there.
“On it!” She spun the rune and it wrapped around the cow-head vampire with electric speed. Faster than I’d ever seen her cast before.
I snapped my hand back before I could be bound in with the rune. She locked it in tight, and the creature thrashed but couldn’t get up.
“Ross, fire.” I scooted back as Ross stepped up and cast a rune, flames lighting up along the edges of the cow head, eating at the branches and twigs that made up the creature’s body.
A geyser of water shot up from a ditch to the side of the road, sending the deer-headed vampire deep into the woods, scattering it into nothing but kindling. I hoped.
The one at our feet broke through the binding rune, got to its cloven hooves and bolted toward the forest, still on fire. Whether by chance or choice, it stumbled into the stream of Marina’s geyser, putting out the flames.
“Holy shit.” Ellie had her hands pressed to her belly. “That was . . . that was close.”
“Got ’em!” Gary whooped, startling all of us, even as Ross let out a nervous chuckle.
But I wasn’t ready to celebrate yet. “We scared one away, and she came back with a friend. I’m not saying I know for sure what happens next, but . . .”
“Crap, you’re right,” Marina said, her smooth brow wrinkling.
“Either we dig in and prep for a battle with who-knows-what, or we get onto the other side of that lake. Maybe I can split it in two long enough for us to . . .” Her words died as she stared at the sheer size of Loch Shin.
From here, I couldn’t even see the island that Heathermoor was supposed to be on.
We were getting stronger every day, but that would be some feat, even for someone with her Quirk.
“Even if you could, Sage Thalienne surely would have some sort of ward to keep that from happening,” Fable said.
“So how do we make this happen? At Neverthorn it was a coin for each of us to pass. Even if we get the boat . . . what do we do next?” Caterina asked. Her questions were on point.
I looked at Fable. “Fabes?”
She flung a hand toward the water, brows furrowed with worry. “I don’t know! Liam is supposed to be here for this part. I think we should wait for him. Maybe we could hide in the church?”
But as the trees rustled in the distance, and the sensation of being watched intensified, I knew waiting was not an option. We had no idea when – or gods forbid, if – Liam would arrive.
I lowered my voice to the faintest of whispers. “It’s not safe to stay on this side of the lake with the baobhan sith on the prowl. We have to cross. Now.”
Thieving 105: Listen to your instincts and move fast.
The church – Liam had said that the boat was stashed somewhere near it. It didn’t take long. A quick search and I caught sight of the tip of a pointed bow jutting out. Bingo.
Away from the dampening spell at Neverthorn, it seemed like my intuition was getting better and better. “Over here!”
I strode over to the opening, motioning for the others to follow and help.
“How did you know it was hiding there?” Fable stared at me like I’d sprouted another head as we dragged the little skiff down to the water’s edge.
“Thief’s intuition,” I said, flashing a smile despite the circumstances.
“Awesome. I can propel us across using my Quirk, no problem.” Marina touched Fable on the arm. “We got this, don’t stress.”
I motioned for the others to get into the boat ahead of me.
They climbed aboard as I stepped into the shallows with a gasp and gave one good shove before jumping into the back of the boat to join them, my boots soaked, jeans wet up over my knees.
The push gave us enough momentum that we caught a minor current, which took us out into deeper water, but it wasn’t long before we drifted to a dead stop.
“I’ve got this.” Marina lifted her hand and whipped off a quick rune that sent the water rippling into a wave behind us. The skiff rocked and dipped at the rush of water swirling around it but then shuddered to a halt again.
Shit.
“There’s no paddle,” Fable said, her voice quivering as she shot a frantic glance to the shore just a few yards away. “I don’t like this!”
“It’s not going to be the same as Neverthorn,” Caterina said.
“Agreed.” Think, Harlow, think!
At Neverthorn, Charon required a coin to cross. Made sense that there was a price to pay here as well. But what was it?
The others threw ideas around. A special rune. A promise to be good at school. Gary dropped a coin in just in case.
Ellie pulled a few strands of hair and cast them over the side and the water shimmered – the biggest reaction so far.
Waters of Pain.
“We’re starting to float backward!” Ross said. “If you’re going to come up with something, do it quick.”
A steady warble grew in the distance, and we all turned to the shore to see six sets of glowing eyes moving toward the lake. Behind them I was pretty sure I was seeing more eyes, different colors.
Maybe more than just the vampires this time. Fuckfuckfuckfuck.
“Harlow, if you’ve got something,” Fable whispered. “Please have something.”
“Just . . . give me a second.”
“Thirty seconds before we’re in the shallows and my Quirk isn’t working on this water.” Marina said.
No pressure. I put my fingers to my temples and closed my eyes as I spoke. “If ol’ Bones wants gold to fill his riverbed, maybe this loch requires something more visceral, less about power, more about Fae magic. And Fae magic is more about . . . Fable help me out.”
“Um, nature . . . Ellie’s hair gave the best reaction – what if it was something like that?”
Something more vital than hair. But still a piece of us.
It felt like when I picked a lock and the tumblers set into place perfectly.
“Ten seconds!” Marina said.
If I was wrong, we’d all be swimming back to shore and fighting half a dozen vampires and gods knew what else . . . while bleeding.
The thing was . . . I knew I wasn’t wrong.
Sort of.
“Please be right . . .” I mumbled as I pulled a small pocket knife out of my jacket and flicked it open.
I pricked my finger and squeezed a drop of blood out and into the water. It spread out in a ripple that rubbed up against the boat, pushing us a little way from the shore.
“All of you, stick out your hands! Everyone has to donate!”
I risked a glance behind me, and my pulse spiked as the vampires broke into a run – limbs working like four legs, sometimes on two as they picked up speed. Could they leap far enough to reach us? We were twenty feet from the shore. They’d leapt at least that far before.
“Let’s go, let’s go!” I shouted, trying not to let the panic creeping up the back of my neck take over.
Ellie was the first to extend her finger, and the others followed suit as I pricked each of them as quickly as I could, without even taking time to wipe the blade tip first.
As each drop hit the water the loch swirled around the boat and we were moving away from shore.