Alex Verus Novels, Books 1-4 (9780698175952) (103 page)

Heat pulsed from the wall of flame ahead. The comforting grey cloud of the mist hung to my left, inviting me to enter, but I'd told the others to go right and that was where I ran. Normally when I create these mist clouds I run into them, using my magic to pick out a path where others would be blind. But I'd done it a few too many times lately and I knew that was exactly what Onyx would be expecting. Onyx couldn't see through the wall of fire but he could see the mist cloud, and I heard the hiss as a spray of force blades cut through it. A moment later we'd put the building between us and Onyx, and as we ran back into the hedgemaze I felt the familiar warp-and-twist of Vitus's teleport spell. I couldn't see where Vitus landed and I didn't stop to check. We were back in the maze and safe . . . at least for now.

We hurried through the maze, my divination magic picking us out a path. From behind I could sense the flash of attack spells as the battle continued. “Who's winning?” Variam called from behind me.

“Don't care!”

“They're all still there,” Anne called. “Vitus, Crystal, Lyle, and Onyx.”

The door at the far end took us back into the mansion. The sounds of battle had faded into an eerie silence and once more Fountain Reach seemed to be watching and waiting. I led us towards the exit, abandoning stealth in favour of getting us out as fast as possible.

As I approached the door by which Crystal had entered, I felt a presence ahead of me. “Alex,” Anne whispered. “It's—”

“Crystal,” I said. “I know. You guys stay back.”

“Screw that—” Variam began.

“You'll stay the hell back,” I said sharply. “Crystal is not stupid. If she's there she's got something planned. You and Luna stay ready. Vitus is still around and we know he's after Anne.”

Luna nodded. Variam looked frustrated but didn't argue. I walked around the corner.

The corridor was narrow and led to the same small door. Without the key in my pocket I knew that door would open onto nothing but a blank wall, but
with
that key it would take us out of here. Crystal was standing halfway down the corridor, blocking my path. The weird half-light of this place blended with the yellow shades of her hair and clothes, turning her into a pale figure in the shadows. She watched me silently. I could tell she was holding herself ready, but I didn't know for what.

I hesitated an instant, then started walking towards her. “Not bringing your friends?” Crystal asked softly.

I didn't answer. I'd closed half the distance to Crystal, my knife ready in its sheath. Crystal watched me take two more steps, then shrugged slightly. “As you like.”

From behind me I felt a surge of magic as Vitus Aubuchon teleported into the middle of Anne, Variam, and Luna. And at the same instant Crystal drove into my mind with all her power, trying to seize control.

She was horribly strong. I'd been ready for her, but even so I was almost overwhelmed in those first few seconds. It felt like an enormous weight bearing down on my thoughts, crushing me. I staggered back but the pressure didn't let up; if anything it grew stronger. Desperately I tried to force Crystal away, stopping her from getting any further in.

Dimly I could sense that a furious battle was going on next to me. Vitus's horrible form was blocking the hallway: He'd trapped Anne in a prison of twisted space and was attacking Variam, trying to crush him. Variam was dodging from side to side, a snarl on his face, while Luna's whip curled around Vitus, the silver mist soaking in. But I couldn't spare any attention; if I took my concentration off Crystal for even a second I knew she'd have me. I could feel tendrils snaking into my thoughts, trying to seize control, and I pushed back with all of my might.

“Coming here was a very poor choice on your part,” Crystal said calmly. She didn't even sound out of breath.

I didn't answer. I focused on trying to hold Crystal back, drive her out of my mind. It was unbelievably difficult, like trying to push a car uphill, and in a sudden flash of understanding I knew that this was how all those missing apprentices had been brought here. “Just so you know,” Crystal said, “I'm going to make you kill Luna and Variam with your own hands.” She tilted her head. “How does it feel to know that you've failed completely?”

I felt a flare of white-hot anger and threw myself at Crystal's mental pressure, hammering at it. And it shifted. It was only a tiny, tiny shift, but I'd managed to push Crystal back just a fraction and all of a sudden I knew she wasn't invulnerable. “I don't know,” I managed to say. “You tell me.”

I took a step forward. It felt like wading through deep water but the first one was the hardest. I took a second step and then a third, and with each one I shoved Crystal a little further back. I saw a flash of surprise in Crystal's eyes, followed by concentration. The mental pressure redoubled and my progress halted.

Crystal and I stared at each other across the corridor. Neither of us moved but we fought as surely as if we wrestled on the floor. “Vitus is going to kill them,” Crystal said. “I hope you know that.”

I could still hear the sounds of battle behind me but I didn't let myself think of whether Crystal was right. “You think you're the first mage to try to possess me?” I said. I took all my anger and all my fear for Luna and Anne and Variam and threw it at Crystal, forcing her back. I took a step forward. “You think you'll be the one to break my will? I've beaten a mind mage who was stronger than you'll ever be.” Another push; another step. “I've had enchantresses bewitch me and elemental mages burn me. I've stood against one of the most powerful battle-mages in this country and watched him die. I've faced Light mages and Dark, constructs and assassins, elementals and dragons, and
I'm still here
.” Another step. “You think you'll be the one to take me down? You think you're going to succeed when they couldn't?” Another step. “Not you. Not today!”

And I felt Crystal's domination spell shatter, the force of her will scattering away and leaving my mind clear. Crystal staggered back and I moved forward, my hand going to the hilt of my knife. “Lyle!” Crystal shouted. “Help!”

Lyle burst in from a side door and I swore. “No!” I shouted, stopping him just before he could launch an attack. “We're on the same side, damn it!”

“Put your weapon down, Alex!” Lyle shouted. He was standing near Crystal protectively, ready to strike.

“Lyle, I don't know what Crystal has been telling you but I promise you it's wrong. She's the one who's been bringing those apprentices here. It's her
house
, for God's sake! You seriously think she's just an innocent victim here?”

Lyle shifted uneasily and I knew that whatever story Crystal had spun, it hadn't convinced him completely. “Look, we're just trying to get out of here,” Lyle said. Now that I got a better look at him I could see that he looked dishevelled and rattled but he didn't seem to be hurt. “You've got the key, right? Just give it to us. Please?” His tone was pleading.

Crystal was standing motionless but I knew she was speaking with Lyle, even if I couldn't hear her. I bit my lip in frustration. Crystal was right there . . . but if I made a move to attack, Lyle would too, and I couldn't fight them both. I couldn't hear the sounds of battle from behind anymore and that filled me with dread. I needed to get back there fast. “You want the key?” I said. “Take it.” I pulled Crystal's key out of my pocket and threw it to Lyle.

Lyle caught it and stopped. He seemed to be at a loss. Crystal looked taken aback too; whatever she'd been expecting me to do, it hadn't been that. “What are you waiting for?” I asked Lyle. “Open it and go find the Keepers. Unless you want to stay here?”

The words broke Lyle's paralysis and he hurried past Crystal to the door, inserting the key. I felt a flash of magic as it turned in the lock and then the door opened, spilling a wash of brilliant light into the corridor. “Crystal!” Lyle called from the doorway.

“Come on, Crystal,” I said. “Let's go see what the Keepers say.”

Crystal looked at me, then darted for the door.

I sprang after her but Crystal had thought and acted in an instant and I hadn't had any warning. Crystal made it through the door and swung it closed behind her. I had just a fleeting image of Crystal's lips curling in a slight smile, then the door slammed shut, leaving me in darkness.

A second later my hand closed on the handle and I yanked the door open to see a blank wall. I felt for the keyhole and swore. Crystal had taken the key with her. I stood there, staring at the wall, then turned back to where I'd seen Luna and the others and ran.

*  *  *

B
y the time I got there it was all over. Variam was propped up against the wall, blood on his clothes; his right arm had been horribly mangled and was hanging limp by his side. Anne was kneeling next to him, her face lit up by a soft green glow and filled with concentration as she worked her hands around Variam's injured shoulder. Luna was leaning against the other wall; her face was white and she was shaking. But Vitus Aubuchon's body was on the floor, blackened and decaying into nothingness.

“Are you okay?” I asked.

“Where's Crystal?” Variam said.

“Gone,” I said. “She locked the door behind her.”

Variam looked at me, then away. “Um,” Luna said. “Is there another way out?”

“I don't know,” I said. I was trying very hard to think.

“Alex, we can't survive another attack,” Anne said. She didn't look up from where she was working on Variam, and her voice was calm.

I didn't know what to do but I knew we couldn't stay here. “We've got about five minutes until Vitus comes back,” I said. “And Onyx is on his way too. Let's move.”

With Anne supporting him Variam made it to his feet and we started walking. I picked a direction away from Onyx that I thought would give us the most cover. “Okay,” I said. “If anyone has any ideas, now would be a good time.”

Anne gave me a quick glance and shook her head. “Can we get out?” Luna asked.

“I'm not sure there
is
an out,” I said.

“Gate magic,” Variam said.

I looked at Variam. “Can you get out of a shadow realm with that?”

Variam gave a small nod. He was badly hurt and I could tell the adrenaline rush that had got him through the battle was wearing off; it was an effort for him to talk. “Harder, but yeah.”

Luna looked at me. “That other place we went to from the British Museum. Deleo got out of there with a gate, didn't she?”

“Your stone . . .” Anne said.

I thought quickly. Gate stones didn't work inside the real Fountain Reach; the wards blocked them. But the wards didn't cover
this
Fountain Reach. I wasn't sure it would work, but I couldn't think of a better plan. “Let's try it.”

We came into what seemed like this Fountain Reach's copy of the duelling hall. It was higher and narrower than the one in our reality, with an arched ceiling and pillars along each wall. I picked out a side room that looked defensible and headed in.

Once we were inside Anne helped Variam down on a chair and I pulled the gate stone from my pocket. The focus was dark in the shadows, the rune barely visible. “Anne,” I said, holding it out. “Do you think you can work it on your own?”

Anne looked at it for a second, then nodded. I placed it into her hand. “Get going. I'll buy you as much time as I can.”

“Wait,” Luna said. “What about you?”

“Don't worry about me. This is what I do. Just get that gate open.”

Luna's eyes flashed. I knew she was scared but even so she wanted to fight. “I'm not leaving without—”

“That was an order, not a request,” I said flatly. “Stay here.”

“We won't leave without you,” Anne said. She was clasping the stone in one hand and her eyes were steady.

I nodded and walked out into the duelling hall.

*  *  *

O
nyx strode in one minute later. The darkness seemed to follow him as he moved, and his eyes were black slits. I knew he'd been fighting both Vitus and Crystal but he didn't look so much as scratched. His eyes flicked from left to right, coming to rest on me.

“Looks like you're getting your duel after all, Onyx,” I said. I was standing on one of the pistes.

“Nowhere to run?” Onyx asked. He walked into the room and stopped, turned slightly side-on to me, his hands ready by his sides.

“You wanted a traditional duel,” I said. “Bring it.”

Onyx tilted his head and studied me for a moment.

I was moving before Onyx threw his spell and the force blade hit the spot where I'd been standing a moment ago. Chips of wood went skittering across the floor as I ducked behind a pillar. “Run and hide,” Onyx said contemptuously, walking forward. He kicked one of the wooden splinters, sending it clattering into the corner. “What does Morden want with a coward like you?”

“Speaking of Morden,” I said, taking care not to poke my head out, “didn't he tell you to work
with
me?”

Onyx just laughed. He started to circle the pillar at a leisurely speed, not taking his eyes off my hiding place. I moved to match him, keeping the pillar between us. “Aren't you supposed to be getting rid of Vitus?” I asked.

“Vitus isn't going anywhere,” Onyx said. “I've been waiting for this.”

“Yeah, I bet you have,” I said. “Remember our chat in the basement? As soon I saw that look in your eyes I knew what you were planning. I've seen it before.”

“Talk, talk, talk,” Onyx said. He was circling to a position where if I kept trying to keep the pillar between me and him I'd come up against a table. “Let's see what you got.”

Just before Onyx could trap me I moved sideways and back. A second later Onyx came around the edge to see nothing but empty space. “What I figured,” Onyx said.