Shadowstorm (Sorcery and Science Book 6) (32 page)

“When Prince Halo told me he wanted to steal a Varenese airship and fly to Lord Varen’s island, I thought he’d lost his mind.” Jax bowed his head. “A pleasure to see you return safely, Your Highness.”

Davin nodded. “Your assistance is appreciated. As is your discretion.”

“I take it your father is unaware of your voyage?”

“And let’s keep it that way, ok?”

“Of course,” Jax said, his serious voice a far cry from his usual casual self. “Ariella, is that…” His eyes focused on her ring. “Are you…”

“We need to get to Laelia now and report our findings to my father,” Davin said. He stopped mid-turn and looked back at Jax. “What happened to the Varenese crew we displaced from the airship?”

“They caught a ride with another ship. There aren’t any Varenese currently in Seastone.”

“In that case, keep your eyes on the airship while Everett meets with his friends. After that, it’s theirs, wherever they want to take it.”

Then Davin and Ariella walked down the wooden dock, leaving Everett, Leonidas, and Marin alone with Jax.

“It looks like you’ve won yourself an airship,” Jax told Everett.

Davin sure wasn’t wasting time in trying to work off his guilt. An airship. Davin had given him a whole freaking airship. Granted it was stolen, and it wasn’t a very big one anyway. Still, it must have been worth at least a good half million Crowns. The prince of Elitia sure didn’t make subtle gestures.

“Your friends are inside the Pancake Palace,” said Jax.

Everett groaned. “Are they being that obvious?”

Seastone was a neutral port, but that didn’t mean it was safe for people like them. There were still Selpes about. And Avans. And who knew what else. An unhappy image filled his head—that of Ryder and his gang spray-painting ‘Selpes suck’ in bright pink letters all over the brick facade of the Pancake Palace, while brandishing their Rev tattoos for all to see. Ryder was a smart guy. He’d never do anything so stupid. But Everett had a hard time shaking that image.

“Nah, they’re all right,” Jax said. “Most people wouldn’t even notice that they’re Rev. But I’ve worked with you a lot, Everett. I’ve become familiar with the Rev accent. Once you know it, it’s not too hard to pick out Revs.” He lifted his hand to his ear. “In any case, I have a team headed this way now. They’ll keep an eye on your new ride.”

“Thanks.”

“Oh, don’t thank me. Thank Prince Halo.”

That would be the day. He’d promised Ariella not to kill her sweetheart. That was the best he could offer at the moment. Thanks were out of the question.

“Ok, let’s go,” he told Leonidas and Marin, then set off down the dock toward the Pancake Palace.

* * *

527AX January 19, Seastone

‘The Pancake Shack’ would have been a more fitting name for the seaside diner. It was small—only large enough to seat a dozen people—but those people had better come with big appetites. At this restaurant, you didn’t order by the pancake; you ordered by the stack.

As Everett pushed open the diner’s swinging door, a thick, buttery scent mixed with the sweet, heavy aroma of maple syrup. The breakfast crowd must not have arrived yet because Ryder and his two companions were the only three people in the whole place. A soft background sizzle hummed beneath their quiet conversation. At that volume, Jax and his guys would have had to hover over their table to pick up their accents. Or, more likely, they’d just used a mic. The half-Elition wasn’t at all timid about using technology.

Everett walked over to Ryder’s table and sat down, Leonidas and Marin taking the seats on either side of him. Ryder sipped slowly from his water glass, then grinned at them.

“You’ve lost your pretty pink-haired friend and picked up two new ones,” he said.

“She had to go work on something else. Leonidas and Marin helped me retrieve another artifact from Lord Varen’s island.”

Ryder’s grin faded as his brows lifted. “You’re crazier than ever before. No one has ever returned from that island.”

“Not no one. We did,” Everett said.

“Indeed.” Ryder cut off a piece of pancake and dipped it into some syrup. “And was the trip worth it? Did you figure out what these Xenen artifacts have to do with the Selpes’ attack on the Rev isles?”

“Yes. In fact, they’re not really artifacts, and they’re not really Xenen.”

Ryder took another bite of pancake. “Is that so? Then what are they?”

“Altogether, they make up a communication device the Helleans built to communicate with the Xenens. It’s likely that the Helleans are nothing more than Xenen agents who have been given advanced technology in order to facilitate the Xenens’ return to this world. The Xenens have been planning their return for over five hundred years, manipulating everyone and everything they could to make this happen. When Lady Cassandra, also a Xenen agent, lost the device to the Fourteen Phantoms, she saw to it that the Selpes attacked the Rev isles so her people could move in and get it back.”

Ryder’s fork clanked against his plate. “Of all the possibilities… Now, that is something I didn’t expect. By ‘manipulating everyone and everything’ you mean?”

“We’re not sure of the extent of their manipulations,” said Everett. “But I think it’s safe to say their influence reaches far.”

“But the Selpes attacked us using the destruction of Decia as an excuse,” Ryder said. “Either that was a lucky coincidence for Lady Cassandra or—”

“The Helleans were the ones to bomb Decia,” Marin finished for him. “The bombs were so advanced, no one could figure out where they’d come from. Because no one has seen Hellean explosives up close.” She looked at Leonidas. “Except for us, back when we were in their floating cities. I’ve taken apart their bombs. I bet you that stack of pancakes that if I could have a look at the bombs that destroyed Decia, I’d find they were Hellean in design.”

“You look way too smart for me to consider taking that bet.” Ryder slid his plate across the table to her. “But, here, take them anyway. I seem to have lost my appetite.”

While Marin and Leonidas divided up the pancakes between the two of them—and then debated who would get the one fork—Everett turned to Ryder. “What are you going to do?”

“What can we do?” His laugh was strained. “The Helleans’ tech is so advanced, they are virtually untouchable. And now you tell me it’s the Xenens supplying them. And the Xenens want to come back. I’ve read enough history books to know how completely screwed we’ll all be if that happens. The Elitions weren’t the only ones who suffered back when the Xenens were around. Every living person who wasn’t one of them suffered. Forget the Selpes. Their antics are childish tantrums compared to what the Xenens did—what they will do to us all if they come back.”

“It’s not even clear how they can get back here,” Everett said.

“Portal,” Marin mumbled through a full mouth of pancake bits. At an amused look from Leonidas, she swallowed. “Sorry. The answer is a portal. They left by portal, and that’s how they want to return.”

“How?” Everett asked.

“I don’t know. That’s sorcery, not science. It’s a problem the Elitions will have to figure out—and prevent from happening.”

“You’re right,” Ryder said. “And if we all want to survive this, we’d best cast our lot in with the Elitions. As you have, Everett.”

“As I have?”

“Don’t be coy. You’ve been working with Elitions, high-profile powerhouses like Jason Chanz and Terra Cross. And you live in one of their towns. You’re probably the human they trust most.” Ryder nodded to his two companions. “We’re going to do a little reconnaissance. Try to see what can be done against Lady Cassandra and the Helleans. After that…well, what’s the best way to contact you?”

“Talk to Jax, the surfer-looking guy with the multi-colored hair in Seastone,” Everett told him.

Ryder snorted. “You’ve just described half the male population of Seastone.”

The first strands of an idea began to take shape in Everett’s head. “Go to the airship docks now. He’s the one in charge of the team watching your new ship.”

“My…new ship?”

“As you said, I’m living in Elitia these days, so I don’t have much use for it. The airship is yours. Just don’t fly too close to any Varenese. We stole it from them.”

“Everett, that’s… First, you risk your life to go after these artifacts. Then, you give me a spiffy Varenese ship. Thanks. Really.”

“No thanks are needed,” Everett said. “Just go get your new ship. Oh, and leave the rest of your pancakes. I’m famished.”

“Sure thing, Everett.” Ryder nodded to his two companions, who pushed their plates over to Everett. “See you again soon.”

After they’d left the diner—and Everett had eaten a few pancakes—he pulled his sand slate out of his backpack.

“What are you doing?” Leonidas asked.

“Writing to Lana.”

“Lana?”

“Jason’s sister. She has the paired sand slate in Eclipse.”

“Should we be worried that you’re communicating with the assassin’s sister?” asked Leonidas.

“No. If anything, I should be worried.”

“What?”

“Never mind.” Everett brushed the magical sand across the slate, then began to write. “I thought you two might like a place to stay where bounty hunters can’t find you. I’m asking Lana if you can come to Eclipse.”

“Really?” Marin asked, her face brightening.

“Ryder is right. In times like these, we have to gather the people we can trust and stick together,” Everett said.

“A secret Elition town.” Marin’s eyes drifted up as a smile slid over her lips. “What do they do there? What’s it like?”

“She’s excited,” Leonidas told Everett.

“I noticed.” He glanced down at the sand slate, then back up at them. “Lana said yes.”

Marin was bouncing in her seat. Leonidas watched her, snickering.

“I should warn you two about a few things first.”

“Don’t initiate or otherwise engage any Phantoms in a staring contest?” said Leonidas.

“Yes, that one for sure. But also you’ll have to adapt to certain Elition routines and customs.”

Leonidas skewered a piece of pancake on his fork. “The food? The magic? The way they seem to wake up as soon as the sun rises?”

“Yes, all of that,” agreed Everett. “But more notably, the lack of running electricity.”

Marin swiped the fork, pancake and all, from Leonidas. “We can handle that, no problem.”

“You make bombs for a living,” Everett pointed out.

“So?”

“Bombs don’t work in the Wilderness.”

“Actually, that’s not entirely true. There are a number of ways to blow things up without the aid of electricity.”

“Not that Marin has any plans to blow up anything in Eclipse,” Leonidas said quickly. “You can assure your Elition friends of that.”

“Actually…” Everett packed away his sand slate. “I think it’s best we don’t mention anything about explosions to them at all.”

CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE

~
Unified ~

527AX January 19, Laelia

ARIELLA FOLLOWED DAVIN into the Assembly Chamber. She hadn’t seen any Selpes roaming the grounds of Laelia. She wasn’t sure if she should be worried or reassured by that.

“The Selpes know we know,” Davin told her as they walked toward the table where King River sat. “Sorry, I didn’t have a chance to tell you about that. Father sent me to Orion, there was an…incident.”

That sounded foreboding.

“A small Avan team infiltrated the imperial palace and tried to abduct Aaron and me.”

“Were they there for him? Or for you?” she asked.

“Both, I think. The whole kill-two-birds-with-one-stone sort of thing.”

Who needed stones when you had a sword? This marked the third time the Avans had made a move on Davin.

“One more thing,” he said. “The Avan team was led by Ethan Frostwater.”

Ariella’s breath froze in her throat. “He’s dead.”

“Not only is he not dead, he was always an Avan agent. From the very beginning.”

Anger flooded Ariella. “Is there no one left who has not lied, betrayed, or is otherwise guilty of morally reprehensible things?”

Davin cringed. “We are all imperfect beings.”

“Oh, Davin, I didn’t mean you.” She reached out to touch his arm, but he stepped aside. “I’m sorry.”

He spun around to look her in the eye. “No. What I did was wrong. Don’t try to comfort me, and absolutely do not feel sorry for me. I need to make up for my actions, not make excuses for them.”

“Yes,” King River said, standing as they stopped in front of him. “Such are the words of a man worthy of the throne.” He extended his arms. “Such are the words of a man I’m proud to call my son.”

Davin looked at him for a moment, as though trying to discern if this was all some big trick. Then he stepped forward and embraced his father. Ariella felt Davin’s relief—and his joy. It had taken the Selpes’ betrayal and Davin’s guilt to get them back on the same page.

“Now,” King River said, giving his son a final pat on the back before sitting down. “Tell me what you’ve learned.”

Ariella and Davin took the seats on either side of King River. She spoke of the Hellean device, of Decia, and of the Xenens’ plan to return. At some point, King River stood up and began to pace, and he was still pacing long after she’d finished speaking.

“You say the Helleans have been communicating with the Xenens since they left?” King River finally said, his hand clamping down on the back of his chair.

“We think so,” replied Ariella. “We’re not sure how exactly. The only hint of a theory we have is the Helleans used sand slates until they could build these communication devices. And magic portals until they could make artificial ones. But it doesn’t all add up. The only viable interworld portal that we know about is the one the Xenens were expelled through, but that one was sealed. And besides, no one knows where it is.”

“I do,” said King River. “Its location is a secret passed down to each high king or high queen of Elitia. The portal was sealed, yes, but the creation of an interworld portal required such an enormous amount of magic, that even today there’s residual magic in the air. It could be enough to use a sand slate to communicate with the other side. We have never guarded it, for we always believed keeping its location secret was the best defense. We never imagined the Xenens had taken sand slates with them, leaving the linked ones with their agents here. Five hundred years of waiting and plotting. Their patience is troubling.”