Chapter 27
Chapter Twenty-Seven
My friends scream. I can't make a sound. Two pairs of glowing eyes approach through the darkness. Four more blink open behind them.
The Shroudmaidens stop. One steps forward, separating from the rest. No one moves. I feel Malachi pass his lantern to someone behind him. See his hand drift toward Vida's hilt.
Through the bond, I feel the crackle of his energy. The restlessness coiled beneath his calm exterior. It reminds me of Jordi, but different. Jordi's energy is reactive, sharp movements born from contained anger. Malachi's is deliberate. Controlled. Honed by centuries of patient vengeance.
At the edges of my vision, Kage's shadows coil. Margot's gray smoke rises beside them. Both ready. Both waiting.
The Shroudmaiden lifts an arm. Extends a long, crooked finger. The limb shifts as I watch. First smoke, like Kage's shadows.
Then bone. Then flesh, cycling through colors: green-blue, gray, leathery brown like my skin, olive like Margot's. As if it's trying on bodies. Remembering what it was. None of us breathe.
"We only want her."
The finger points at me.
Malachi's arm tightens around my waist. "You can't have her."
The Shroudmaiden's eyes pulse. It lowers its hand. Stares.
We stare back.
Malachi moves. So fast I don't register his arm leaving me until Vida is drawn between us and the creature, glyphs blazing along the blade.
"She is not yours to claim, warrior."
Malachi begins to speak. Low, guttural words in a language I don't recognize. The Shroudmaidens shriek, the sound ricocheting off the stone walls. Margot's smoke surges around us, forming a barrier.
"She. Is. Not. Yours. To. Claim."
The voices speak as one. Deep. Ancient. The memory stones in the walls flicker in response, as if awakened. The Shroudmaidens launch into the air.
Lanterns rise behind us. The light spreads, revealing what the darkness hid. The Shroudmaidens hover beneath the dome. But beyond them, the walls glow with countless memory stones stretching into an endless hall.
And between those stones, suspended in the air, more Shroudmaidens than I can count. My pulse thunders.
"Oh gods," Margot breathes. Her smoke barrier wavers.
Kage's shadows tighten around us, compensating.
The Shroudmaidens laugh. The sound is terrible. Wrong. It echoes off the walls like breaking glass.
One of them dives. Its smoke-body bends, and suddenly a face materializes inches from mine. Glowing eyes. No features. Just light and hunger.
"You fed—"
Malachi's blade cuts through the air. The creature vanishes before it can finish.
Silence.
They're gone. All of them. As if they were never there.
I press a hand to my pounding heart and stare into the dark hall. I don't know what horrifies me more: the endless memory stones, or the accusation the Shroudmaiden started to make.
You fed, it said. Fed what? The Shroud? Them?
Naima's voice pulls me back. "That sword. What are those glyphs?"
"Wards against evil."
I frown at his answer. There's more to it. There has to be. But the narrow staircase looms ahead, and we're out of time for questions.
Kage sends a shadow upward with a lantern. The light climbs and climbs, swallowed by darkness long before it finds the top. When he lowers the lantern, I notice the steps more clearly.
Steep. Chipped. As if no one has walked them in centuries. That doesn't make sense. None of this makes sense.
Kage retrieves his shadow and turns to face us. He taps the side of his temple. "Dray?"
Draven dips his chin. Some code between them. I don't ask.
The plan is set. Draven and Margot stay below. Malachi and Naima search for the scepter. Kage and I find Jordi.
I should tell Malachi what Mortiana said about the scepter. That it's not here. That she'll give it to us herself. But the words won't come.
Kage gives Malachi the same signal, then moves toward the stairs.
"Wait." I catch his arm. "Naima should go first."
Malachi shakes his head. "We stick to the plan."
"What if the door is locked?"
“I’ll pick it,” Kage says.
"She doesn't need a key. She can just open it."
Kage's eyebrows rise as realization dawns on him. "Metal forger.” He glances at Naima. “A true metal forger.”
Her responding smile is small. Wary.
Another wordless exchange passes between Kage and Mal before Kage shrugs and allows Naima to take the lead. I glance back at Mal as we begin the climb and nearly collide with his face, inches from mine.
"Can you get inside people's heads?"
He stares at me for a moment. "If I say yes, will you let me into yours?"
"No."
I turn forward and freeze. The stairs aren't touching the walls.
"What?" Malachi asks.
"The stairs."
Everyone stops. The structure wobbles beneath us.
I stop breathing. "Oh gods. Oh gods, oh gods, oh gods."
"Calm down." Kage's voice is steady. "We're not that high yet."
I look down. He's right. A fall from here wouldn't kill us. But if the entire structure collapses while we're on it? That's a different story.
"This is the only way in," Naima says. "What are we supposed to do, use the front door?"
"We run," Kage suggests.
"Run?" I gasp. "Have you lost your mind?"
"If we slip, we're dead. Maybe not you with your fucking shadows, but the rest of us are!" My voice cracks. "And if the whole thing crumbles? Then what?"
Naima and Kage’s eyebrows shoot up. Through the bond, I feel Malachi's surprise. My eyes widen as I register the word that just left my mouth. Not because of the curse itself. Because of how rare it is in Lunaris. Because I sound exactly like him. As if I needed another thing to process right now.
"Relax,” Kage says softly.
I growl at him. Actually growl.
His eyebrow rises. "How did you not see this when I sent the light up?"
"You were the one who sent your shadow up! How did you not see it?"
The staircase groans. Sways. I make a sound that's embarrassingly close to a whimper.
"How many steps to the top?" Naima murmurs, tipping her head back.
I see her calculating. Measuring the distance with her eyes. Panic claws at my chest.
"Naima Stonehand, I swear to every deity that has ever existed, if you run up those stairs and we survive, I will kill you myself."
A surprised laugh bursts out of her. Kage snorts. Even Malachi huffs behind me. Before I can yell at them for laughing, warmth floods the bond. It sinks into my bones, loosening the tension in my muscles.
"Send another shadow up," Naima suggests. "Let's see what we're working with."
"And one down," I add. "To see what's beneath us."
Kage scoffs. "Sure, why don't I just drain my entire gift before we even get inside?"
"What's taking so long?" Margot hisses from below.
"The stairs aren't stable."
Her eyes widen as the structure sways. "Goddess."
Draven appears beside her. "How did you miss that, Yosh?"
"Excellent question," I mutter, glaring at Kage.
He has the decency to look uncomfortable.
"This is the only way in," Draven repeats.
I press a hand to my forehead. "Oh my gods. We know that, Professor."
Draven snorts.
"Kage." Malachi's voice is calm. Commanding. "Can you wrap a shadow around each of us?"
"I can. But you know what that could mean inside."
"Do it. Or we never make it up."
Kage summons his shadows. I watch one coil around Naima's torso like a dark serpent. Another wraps around me. I gasp at the coldness of it.
"Naima." Malachi's voice is low, steady. "Slow steps. Distribute your weight evenly."
She nods. Looks up. Looks back at us. "Ready?"
"Go."
The stairs shift the moment she moves. I bite my lip. Hold my breath.
They sway harder when Kage follows.
"How do we get out?" I whisper over my shoulder.
"Side door," Draven calls up. "Every temple has one. We'll meet you there or across the street, depending on how crowded it is out there.”
A hand presses against my lower back. "Your turn."
I take a breath. Look up at the darkness waiting above. I climb. Hands on the steps ahead, weight distributed like Naima did. Without a lantern to manage, I move faster, but the darkness pressing in from all sides does nothing to calm my nerves.
The stairs groan. Sway. I squeeze my eyes shut. Force myself to breathe. Then keep climbing. When I finally reach the top, I sag into Naima's arms.
I turn to watch Malachi climb. He doesn't have a shadow around him. Nor is he distributing his weight or placing his hands on the steps. Of course he isn't.
My heart stops as the stairs sway beneath him. He keeps moving as if it's nothing. As if gravity is a suggestion he's chosen to ignore. When he reaches us, he opens his mouth and shuts it when the staircase groans louder.
I grab his cloak without thinking. We watch in horror as the entire structure swings from one side to the other. If any of us had still been on those steps, we would have fallen.
"What the ..." Kage breathes.
Malachi grabs me and spins us toward the door. "Open the fucking door!"
We spill through the doorway as the world shakes. Malachi yanks me against his chest and slams us into the wall. Kage wraps Naima in shadows as they crash beside us.
Then, stillness.
I summon flames to my palms. Kage produces four thin torches, and I light them one by one. Malachi and Naima crack the door open, peering into the darkness beyond.
"I was sure it collapsed," Naima breathes.
"It didn't?"
She shakes her head. "Crashed into the wall, but it’s still standing."
"We need to move," Kage says. "Now."
The smell hits me first. Decay. Something rotting, though nothing visible to explain it. We step out of the chamber and walk toward the rotunda.
At its edge, we stop. The temple is ruined. What must once have been opulent white stone and gilded columns is now chipped, crumbling, covered in dust. Abandoned. That's the word for this place.
Everything I've heard about the Keep describes elegance. Luster. This is the opposite of that. I can't imagine the Council setting foot here.
Our footsteps echo as we cross toward the dome at the center. Only remnants of a fire pit remain, cold and dark. A prickling sensation crawls up my spine. I remember, suddenly, what else lurks in Council territory.
"Watch for silent guards," I whisper. "The birds.”
“Have you ever seen the legion guards use their gifts?” Kage whispers back.
I exchange a confused look with Naima before looking at him. “Why do you ask?”
“He thinks the silent guards are shifters,” Mal responds.
I stop in my tracks and spin to face them. “What?”
“It’s just a theory,” he says, but the way he looks at Mal tells me it’s more than that.
“We can talk about this later. Right now, we have to find Jordan and get out,” Mal says, his tone not leaving room for argument.
Kage nods and sends his shadows spiraling outward, scouting. "No way the scepter is here."
Malachi murmurs something in agreement.
Naima moves to my side. "You're going to have to use your serephony.”
Malachi turns sharply.
Kage recalls his shadows and glares at me. "This is what I meant during planning."
"You were talking about stopping time," I argue.
"She doesn't like using it. For obvious reasons," Naima snaps before Kage can respond, and takes the torch from my hand.
Understanding dawns on his face. "Because you're an empath. Both gifts at once ..."
He doesn't finish. He doesn't need to. It’s a recipe for disaster. I do it anyway. I take a breath, close my eyes, and focus on Jordi's energy signature, that particular hum I'd recognize anywhere.
In my mind, I move through the temple. Out of the rotunda. Down halls I've never walked. Between columns I've never seen. Searching.
The air grows colder as I search. That strange energy from the tunnels is here too. Watching. Waiting.
Something brushes my arm. I jolt, trying to see, but my mind's eye can only show me places I've been. The darkness beyond is a void.
"Pull back if you sense danger," Malachi warns.
"Unless you can pinpoint its location," Kage adds.
"No." Malachi's voice sharpens. "We don't know what's down here."
Naima hisses for silence.
Cold touches the back of my neck. I spin in the darkness, heart pounding. What if he's not here? What if this was all for nothing? The cold pursues me. I move faster, but it stays at my heels.
I'm passing a chamber when I feel it. Not the cold. Something else. The incessant chatter from Mortiana's summons, loud and painful.
But beneath it, underneath all that noise, a familiar hum. Restless energy. Sharp edges. Scattered warmth.
Jordi.
My eyes fly open. "I found him."
Malachi studies my face as Naima presses the torch back into my hand.
"There's something else here," I say as we move. "Something I can't explain."
"The birds?"
"No." I shudder. "Something ... evil."
"Shroudmaidens?"
I shake my head. "They don't feel evil."
"What do they feel like?" Mal asks. There's hesitation in his voice. Something that makes me pause.
"Grief." I meet his eyes. "They feel like grief."
His expression gives nothing away. I file that away for later as we reach a set of double doors. Malachi and Kage push through together. I follow, torch trembling in my grip.
The chamber is smaller than the main rotunda. And every surface, from floor to domed ceiling, is covered in memory stones. At the center, a raised platform bears the symbol of the Everlasting, crafted from the same dark stones. Above it, a white stone table.
And on the table, my brother.
He's pale. Gaunt. He looks like he hasn't been fed in weeks. A sob rises in my throat. I move toward him without thinking.
Malachi's arm catches me around the waist. Hauls me back. "You stay here." His voice is a low growl against my ear.
"But—"
His eyes pin me in place. "I don't want you anywhere near those stones. Do you understand?" His grip tightens. "We're running out of time."
"He's right," Naima says quietly. "Even I can feel them. And I don't have your gift."
I swallow. Nod at her, then at him. "I'll stay. Just ..."
"I'll be careful with him." He releases me and turns toward my brother.
I want to tell him to be careful with himself, too. The words won't come. I push the feeling through the bond instead. Be safe. Please.
If he receives it, he doesn't show it. He and Kage study the room. The stones. The safe paths between them.
They debate whether Kage's shadows can reach far enough. In the end, that's how they do it. Kage's shadows lift my brother from the table and carry him back to us.
Back to me.