The Source: Book III of the Holding Kate Series (10 page)

Corey dug into his backpack and pulled out his and Kate’s badges. Kate had refused to give them up for sentimental reasons and Corey had tucked them into an inner pocket for safekeeping.

He held it up. Kate raised her eyebrows and shrugged. Corey drew a deep breath, cast his gaze between the badge and the swipe pad, then slid the badge. Sure enough, the door swung out, allowing entrance.

Kate’s mouth dropped open.

“This is magic to you, too?” Candol whispered, eyes round as she stared at the blinking green light. Stealthlin reached out to touch the magic box.

“It’s technology magic,” Corey explained. “We’re surprised to realize we’ve been here before.”

They stepped into an underground facility with dark halls just like the facility that housed the Inner Circle. Walking several feet, they came upon their old rooms. The bunks were still in place and the makeshift kitchen was exactly as they left it.

“We were here at the village the whole time,” Kate whispered. “Why did they drive us around for an hour?”

“I guess to throw us off.”

“Corey, we really shouldn’t get caught down here,” Kate hissed, glancing down the hallway.

“Kate, we own the place, remember?”

“Oh. Yeah.” She frowned. “I can’t quite get used to that.”

“All the same, I don’t want to get slowed down by anyone. Let’s go this way. I think it leads to the tunnel that will take us to First Cabin.”

“Was this facility on your schematics?”

“No, just a large junction, but the tunnels were on there. This must have been built after the tunnels.”

They passed through the facility to an unfamiliar area. Few technicians roamed the halls and they were able to stay out of sight. They approached a section marked with warning signs and radiation protocol posters.

Curious, Corey swiped the badge through the panel and a thick vault-like door opened. They stepped into a room much like the one where Mama Ty had taken them to view the Inner Circle. Corey scanned the room of computer stations and blinking lights, stepped up to the viewing window, and looked down into the chamber.

Blue light radiated from a central object. A robotic female voice called status reports overhead. “Source Ring functioning at optimal capacity.”

Several monitors showed close-up shots of the central object. Corey crept closer to a monitor that Stealthlin stood beside and touched the screen. The object, a tiny pewter colored ring that would fit a child rotated in the air. Four silver strands were braided together to form the ring. Occasionally the blue light would pulse, causing miniscule sparks to fizz around the surface. The four strands would separate to form a sphere, then meld back together.

“Source Ring quantum capacity 100%,” the voice announced.

“I know that ring.” Stealthlin touched the screen. “That is Tsian’s Veil ring. She used it to access the One.”

Corey slowly turned to the warrior.
The Veil Ring! The source of the quantum spheres is the ring? My great-great-grandmother’s ring?
“Are you sure?” he asked.

“Absolutely. I saw her access the One many times with Ystava while we were on our journeys. She said the One gave it to her when she touched the veil. It actually crawled out of the veil onto her finger.”

Stunned, he stared at the ring for a moment, putting the pieces together. The ring actually powered the spheres. If Mattovdzky didn’t have such a source to power his spheres, then he was stealing power or spending enormous amounts of money on them. It explained why his spheres were faulty and not perfectly round like the ring. It also spoke to his motives for destroying Heartwork Village. He wanted the source? Did he even know what the source was?

“We should go,” Corey finally spoke up.

“Corey, what is it?” Kate asked. He translated as they left. She whipped her head around to stare at the monitor as Corey pulled her from the room.

They passed through the facility and through another large metal door, back into a tunnel, and picked up the pace. They stopped at a dead end with rungs leading up a cement tube. They climbed to the top, pushed aside an iron cover, and found themselves in the back of the tool shed next to the boathouse at First Cabin. They went straight to the QHR.

“Wallace!” Corey called.

He stuck his head out from behind a computer monitor. “Hey! I think we found your time.” Schmitz tinkered over a contraption on the counter.

“Talk to me.” Corey had spent the prior afternoon with Wallace discussing the connection that Ampeliagia and his world had. There were just too many coincidences between the two worlds, and Corey’s theory was that there had to be a record of them visiting in the history. When Donnie mentioned the paradox theory and Eunavae talked of the many times they had frequented Ampeliagia on their jumps, Corey realized the two worlds were inextricably intertwined. His great-great-grandmother’s ring sourcing the quantum jumps seemed to solidify his theory. Corey had even begun to wonder if the Dragon Wars were somehow a result of quantum interference.

Since Corey dropped off Tsian the Wise’s journals the day before with instructions to find the Keepers represented in the timeline, Wallace had pored through the records seeking a reference to strangers in the history. “It’s vague, but all other references have the names of the people that visited.”

“Tell me.”

“It’s a period of time right after the Dragon Wars. The population was decimated by a disease that the dragons unleashed. None of the Cheleuthi were affected by it. I think your DNA made them immune. As a matter of fact, records show that a remedy came out of the Crags from a clan of alien people with special magic.”

“That sounds like us,” Kate laughed.

Corey turned to Stealthlin and Candol and explained the plan. “Are you sure you want to do this with us? It could be decades before you are able to return to your home. We don’t know how it will affect you. You may continue to age.”

“We are of one mind.” Stealthlin wrapped his arm around Candol. “We will see this quest to the end.”

Candol nodded.

Corey subconsciously reached to touch the small of Kate’s back. “They’re in. Wallace, did you get our supplies readied?”

“Yes, everything you could possibly need is packed in those trunks. Schmitz even upgraded the med kit in anticipation that you would be part of the cure.”

“You’ve got every piece of equipment you could ever require, solar generators, particle sterilizers, everything.” Schmitz set aside a soldering tool.

“Send the others as soon as they get back, then erase the coordinates out of the system,” Corey ordered.

“This is the smallest remote I could come up with in such a short time.” He handed Corey a box about the size of toaster. “Spare parts are in the supplies. It has a solar power source. This button will bring you home, but the sphere will get smaller and smaller with every year that you wait.”

“How long do we have before the sphere is too small for one person?”

“Two hundred years and the whole team can come back, three hundred years and the sphere is a pinprick.”

Corey nodded. “Make another one for Dirk’s team. We could be there a hundred years before they get to us.”

Schmitz nodded. “I’ve already started on a backup unit. It will be finished in a couple hours.” He pointed to the box in front of him.

They stepped onto the QHR pad beside the trunks. “Happy travels,” Wallace called, pressing several keys on the control panel. The sphere fell, transporting them to The Crags of Ampeliagia.

TRIP FOLLOWED THE
black dragon’s trail as it fell from the sky and skidded across the grassy knoll, plowing a row with his snout, Brashtor’s spear buried deep in his chest. Tara leapt on him and drove her sword into his brain to finish the work. Starlythe and Staid relaxed from their fighting poses and grinned at her. Trip walked up to the side of the dragon’s neck, and Tara executed a spinning jump, landing in his arms as she had done numerous times in the arena.

Brashtor walked up and said something in their language. Tara and Starlythe threw back their heads and laughed.

Tara explained to Trip, “He says now he knows where Starlythe got her dragon slaying tendencies from.”

Trip grunted, distracted by Tara’s nearness. She hadn’t been this close to him in a long time. He’d forgotten how incredibly blue her eyes were, almost lavender. A familiar pang lanced through his chest when he set her down on the ground. She stilled, in awkward hesitation. Tension spiked between them, then they both took a step apart. Trip tucked his fist into his pocket. Tara pivoted her face away but he thought pink flushed across her cheeks.
It might have been from the fight, though. Probably was
.

They scanned the campus. Quiet blanketed the destruction. Monsters lay in heaps of smoke and blood, uprooted trees and mangled buildings spread across the horizon. The warriors waited, watching the skies. No more spheres fell, so they hiked toward the center of town and met up with Chaps and Dirk.

“They’re all dead.”

“Even the giant insects?” Tara asked.

“I hope so. That would be a horrible infestation, I wonder if Orkinex would even touch it?” Chaps laughed a bit hysterically. He had a large gash across his cheek and several burn patches on his clothes. His Stetson still smoked.

Trip surveyed the village and saw most of the Keepers and Chartreuse team and several other jumpers and campers. Kate and Corey were nowhere in sight. Some of the Cheleuthi warriors were missing too.

“Where’s Corey and Kate?” Trip asked just as Mel and Eunavae approached.

Chaps nodded toward the Chapel, “Basement.” He pointed. “Corey said the monsters were targeting Kate.”

“Urgh!” Tara growled.

“True. The giant thingy called her by name,” Mel said grimacing at green viscous fluid splattered on her sleeve.

Dirk whistled and wiped his brow of blood, sweat and what appeared to be zombie parts. Tara translated for the Cheleuthi, while Trip stared at the Chapel, expecting Corey and Kate to come out at any moment. Unease balled his fists. When they didn’t come out he started moving toward the Chapel. Starlythe jogged to catch up, giving him a nod of affirmation when he glanced at her. She was also worried about them.

When the two got to the basement, they saw no evidence of their whereabouts. Chaps met them at the back door as they emerged.

“They aren’t here Chaps,” Trip said.

“I didn’t see them leave.”

“Do you think a sphere came for them?”

“I don’t—” He tilted his hat and scratched his head. “I don’t think so. I don’t remember hearing any spheres after I left them.”

“Where are they?”

“Corey said he was taking Kate to safety as soon as possible. Maybe they jumped.”

Trip touched Starlythe’s arm. “Come on.” He motioned with his head in the direction of the others, and she nodded.

They met the Keepers and the Cheleuthi warriors in the middle of the street. “They aren’t here.”

“Candol and Stealthlin are missing too,” Eunavae said.

“They were with Corey and Kate.” Chaps took his singed hat off and wiped his head with a bandana.

“Let’s get back to First Cabin. I have a feeling they jumped and that is why the spheres have stopped falling here,” Tara surmised. “You got this?” she asked Chaps.