Treasure of the Fire Kingdom (The Elemental Phases Book 4) (29 page)

He’d
been such a fool.

Kahn
would gladly lie down and die, if it meant he got to hear to even one more
ridiculous demand from any of them.  Seeing one of his best swords used to
reach things on tall shelves, or having nail polish spilled on his belongings,
or being poisoned by his sister Prinny’s cooking… he’d die to have
any
of that back, now.  He shoved the thoughts away, because it was so much easier
to deal with the anger than the crippling grief.

“Why
is deciphering this thing important?”  He asked grudgingly.

Chason
pounced on the opening.  “So, you
can
read it?”

“No. 
But, if you tell me what you know, I’ll see if I can fill in some blanks.  Then,
I want you gone.”

That
was apparently good enough for Chason.  “Whoever took Mara has the Liberty
box.  I need to know more about the Tablets if we’re going to find out who it
is.  This writing could help me with that.”

Kahn’s
jaw tightened.  “Alright.  Fine.  There are ruins here that have that same
writing on them.  It’s like the archaic form of Light Phase.  Mara was the only
one left who could read it and she’s gone, so whatever it says is gone, too.”

“Take
me to the ruins.”

He
should let the guy try and find the site on his own.  With luck, Chason would
starve to death, wandering in circles.  “I don’t have fucking time to take a
nature hike through the…”

Light
writing suddenly appeared on the underside of the jungle canopy, illuminating
the forest in every direction.

Don’t
seek out what you don’t yet understand.

All
answers will come in time.

This
is your final warning.

Chason
looked up at the words in annoyance.  “This again?”

“You
saw this before?”  Kahn tried to process what that meant.

“Yeah. 
A couple months ago someone bat-signaled my sky back home and these messages
have been showing up ever since.  I figured it was some Light Phase fucking
around and I’ve been ignoring them.  Wait,” he flashed Kahn a suspicious frown,
“are
you
doing this?”

“Of
course not, you asshole.”  None of the other Light Phases in the kingdom would
have written such a thing either and no other Elemental had the power to pull
off a light trick like that.

What
the hell was going on?

Chason’s
head tilted to one side, his gaze tracing the letters over and over.  “Oh my
God.”  He finally whispered.  “He’s been
planning
it.”  Purple eyes cut
back over to Kahn.  “How could he project skywriting into my kingdom without
the Liberty Box?  The barriers were still up, then.  He must have
planned
to
take my Match, all along.  This,” he waved a hand at the glowing message, “this
is
him
.  This Light Phase has Mara.”

Kahn’s
jaw tightened.  Logically, there was only one explanation.  One that all the
Light Phases already suspected, but didn’t like to mention to outsiders.

“Another
Light Phase must have survived the Fall, then.”  He glanced over at Chason. 
“Someone we don’t know about.  And, if the bastard’s been hiding for the past
two years, ripping down barriers and kidnapping women’s bodies… chances are
nobody’s gonna break out the fatted calf to him welcome home.”

The
elements seemed to rage around us.

Gaston
Leroux- “The Phantom of the Opera”

“I
could just kill the guards for you.”  Kingu offered for the tenth time. 
“Really, it wouldn’t be a bother.  Or I could make the entire building vanish…”

“No.” 
Hope tugged him down beside her and peered at the Cloudland’s prison through
the puffy pastel bushes.  It was a hard, rectangular structure amid the pretty,
curved landscape.  “I told you, I don’t want you thinking I’m trying to sell
you my body for personal gain, so you can’t do anything.  Now shhh!”

Kingu
sighed.  The two of them were hiding in the foliage at the edge of the park. 
Only morons as stupid as the Banished Phases could have missed them lurking
around the perimeter of the jail.  Hope was not a subtle woman.  It was an
endearing trait and one Kingu identified with, but they really were wasting the
whole morning on this misadventure.

“What
if I promise to only think about what
I’d
be gaining?  Then could I…?”

“No.” 
Midnight blue eyes looked up at him earnestly.  “Really, this is all for your
own good.  Once you see that I’m being
completely
upfront about how hot
you are, you can absolutely help me explode buildings all the time.  For now,
though, you need to just me do it on my own.”  She patted his arm.  “Also, if
you could be a
teeny
bit more inconspicuous, that would be great.”

Kingu
tensed.  “This is the extent to which I blend in anywhere.”  He told her
stiffly.

“But
you’re wearing a
suit
.”  She wrinkled her nose.  “I just don’t see why
you couldn’t have created yourself a camouflaged outfit.  I
told
you we
were going to be sneaking around outside.  Yes, okay, camouflage for the Cloud
Kingdom would be pink and kind of… girly.  But, you could’ve at least
considered the mission and not just looking good.”

Kingu
frowned.  She’d been talking about his
clothes?
  “Oh.”  He relaxed a bit
and glanced down at his tailored navy jacket.  “I can compromise on gray,
perhaps.”  He snapped his fingers and turned it into a steel colored Armani. 
“Better?”

Hope
made an “ummm” noise that told him she still wasn’t completely happy and went
back to spying.  She was taking this plan of hers very seriously.  She’d even
had him change the color of her poodle skirt and sequined sweater into muted
sunrise shades.  Now, she blended into the foliage, right down to a little knit
cap with a pink pom-pom on top, which was
really
cute.

Why
had he ever thought her taste in clothing was silly?

Hope
looked perfect in the outfit he’d created.  She looked perfect
all
the
time.  Perfect beside him.  Perfect in his house.  Perfect in his arms.  From
her chaotic blonde curls to her sequined sneakers and everything in between,
she was just… perfect.  Even this pointless plan to rescue what’s-his-name the
Metal Phase seemed like the perfect way to spend his day, so long as Hope was
there.

Time
consuming and overly complicated, but perfect.

“Okay.” 
She stage whispered.  “Now, I was here yesterday, so I know the interior
layout.  There aren’t too many guards in there, because everyone’s locked up in
cells.  But they do have those guards out front and a big plastic door blocking
us.”  She studied the prison with an intense sort of frown.  “We definitely
need dynamite.”

Finally,
some forward momentum.  “For the guards?”

“For
the
door
.  I don’t kill people.”  She paused.  “Intentionally.”  Another
pause.  “Often.”

Kingu
glanced down at her, his mouth curving.

“Hey,
the gladiator thing was a total aberration.  I swear.  I hardly ever stab
anybody.”

“Yet,
you knew what you were doing with that broadsword, yesterday.”

Hope’s
expression lit up.  “You think so?”

“I
was certainly impressed.”

“Well,”
Hope gave what she obviously intended to be a modest shrug, “I
do
have
some training.  My Uncle Frankie teaches everyone in my family how to fight,
but I’d never actually won anything…”

“Wait.” 
His amusement faded.  “Frankie, of the Heat House is your
uncle?
”  Even
Kingu had heard of that maniac.  It wasn’t like “Frankie” was a common name
among the Elementals.  “How is he connected to the Color Phases?  Didn’t he
kill about forty of you in some war?”

Hope’s
eyes went wide.  “Yes.  He…
did. 
But… I mean, that really was
all
the Color House’s fault.  They –
we
-- never should have incited him with
the matador.  It was basically suicide!  They –
we
-- held a bullfighting
thing as a tourist draw and Frankie
hates
matadors.  He blames them for
Lincoln’s assassination.  Everyone knows that!”

“Abraham
Lincoln?”  Kingu squinted at her.  “The human with the tall hat?”

She
nodded earnestly.  “Yes.  Frankie’s sure that Abe Lincoln was really George
Washington in disguise.”

“I
don’t think that’s true.”

“Well,
they
were
both US presidents.  Anyhow, Frankie’s
also
sure that
he once met George Washington at the circus.  They each liked the little
horses, so there was a
real
bond there.”

“And…
how does that involve matadors and the Color Phases?”

“Because,
the Color House reopened his wounds with that rodeo and he was very upset! 
They should’ve known better.  Frankie really took the whole Ford’s Theater
thing hard.  I mean, he won’t even
look
at little horses, now.”

Kingu
should just drop this, except… “Matadors don’t ride horses.”

“Oh,
Frankie’s reaction comes from
emotional
memory. Matadors remind him of
bulls, which remind him of cows, which remind him of horses, which remind him
of
little
horses, which remind him of the circus and meeting George
Washington, which reminds him of poor Mr. Lincoln.”  Hope sighed.  “Plus, he sometimes
confuses matadors with the Confederacy.”

“A
common mistake, no doubt.”

“The
point is, anyone he decapitated during the
really
short war that the
Color Phases
totally
started –Well-- it came from a place a true grief.”

“Right.”

“It’s
not his fault.”  Hope insisted as if Kingu was arguing the point.  “Why does
everyone always blame my family for every single murder that happens?”

Kingu
was mesmerized.  “Your family’s blamed for many murders?”  The Color Phases
were apparently a bloodthirsty lot.  He never would have suspected that from
all the stupid rainbows they liked to make.  He’d assumed they the only waged
war on sepia tones.

“Yes,
of course they are.  It’s so unfair.  Frankie is my cousin’s Match’s uncle. 
We’re very close, so I
know
he’s not serial killer.  Don’t listen to the
rumors.”

“I
see.”  Kingu didn’t see, but whatever.  “You must have a very forgiving
cousin’s Match’s aunt, I suppose.  If Frankie slaughtered her people and she
still Phazed with him.”

He
wasn’t an expert on Elemental rules, but it seemed like she must have also been
okay with him keeping his own House designation after they’d Phazed.  He wasn’t
called “Frankie of the Color House,” after all.  Kingu couldn’t blame the
woman, though.  Hope could have wiped out whole planets, while calling herself
Charlemagne, and he wouldn’t have given a damn.  Why would this Color Phase
feel differently about her mate?

Hope’s
eyes narrowed as if he’d started speaking in some alien dialect.  “Auntie
Hera?  Forgiving?”  She hesitated.  “Um… Okay.  Just don’t ever say that to her
face.  Please.  It wouldn’t be good.”  She cleared her throat and refocused on
the flat, ugly building.  “Let’s just concentrate on the jailbreak.  What step
were we on, again?”

“Dynamite.” 
Kingu reminded her helpfully.

“Right.” 
Hope chewed on her lower lip.  “We’ll need to steal some from the armory.  I
expected that.  Don’t worry.  I know right where it is.”  She patted his arm
and his heart turned over.

“How
are you planning to break into an armory to steal dynamite, without dynamite to
break into the armory?”

She
frowned over the question, like she was really considering it.  Then, she
hesitated and blinked up at him in surprise.  “Wait… Are you teasing me?”

“Maybe
a little.”  It did seem out of character, now that she mentioned it.  Kingu
didn’t really joke with anyone.  But then, he’d never really had fun before
either and he was enjoying this madness.  It was hard to know how to react, so
he was just doing what he wanted.

“Wiseass. 
This is very serious business, so no kidding around.”  Her eyes sparkled, even
as she kept her expression severe.  “Just behave and be good team member, like
you promised.”  She crooked her finger at him and leaned up to quickly press
her lips against his.  “Kiss.”

Gaia,
he just adored this woman.

Kingu
touched the side of her face, his thumb tracing the curve of her jaw.  The
higher gods had never cared about him, but someone, somewhere, had screwed up and
gave him the only thing he’d ever wanted.  Hope was his dream.  Even more
amazing, she didn’t seem repulsed by him.  Kingu couldn’t explain that.  It
seemed like one of those miracles that only ever happened to other people.

Hope
refocused on the jail, her palm grasping his like it was the most natural thing
in the world.

Kingu’s
breath caught in shock.

No
one in the history of existence had ever held his hand before.  Her red
manicured nails touched the rough, inhuman skin on the back of his palm and –amazingly--
the contrast didn’t look terrible, at all.

Whatever
this woman wanted, Kingu would give her.  Anything, at all.  If Hope wanted
them to spend the morning prowling around in bushes, Kingu was certainly
willing to accommodate her.  But, that didn’t mean he couldn’t try and help out
a bit here and there.

He
searched for the best way to speed up the process and keep her happy.  “Hope?”  He
gave her fingers a gentle squeeze.  “I really would like to be a team with
you.”

“Oh,
we are.”  She said sincerely.

“Good. 
I should have a bigger role in this plan, then.”

“Well…
I don’t want you to feel left out, but we’re still building trust here,
remember?  So you can see I’m not a prostitute.”  She nodded like that made
perfect sense.

Kingu
suppressed a wince.  “I
know
you’re not a prostitute.”  Would she never
let this craziness go?  “If you wanted to use sex to manipulate me, it would
honestly be a huge relief.  I’d at least understand that.  You wanting to kiss
me for no discernible reason, I find a lot harder to process.”

Bottomless
blue eyes stared up at him.  “But, Kingu, I told you the reason.”

He
wasn’t going to let that simple, mysterious statement distract him.  “Let me
just have five minutes.  Before we go steal dynamite and blow up building
–Which honestly, I am
completely
willing to do, if you’d like-- let me
have five minutes to see if I can streamline the plan.”

She
frowned at him.  “I don’t know if that’s…”

“I
want to contribute.  I guarantee, I will not accuse you of pushing me into
this.  It would just make me really happy if we could save this guy quickly and
go home.”

Her
lips pursed.  “Five minutes and then you’ll be satisfied?  You swear?”

“Yes.”

“Alright. 
But, I still don’t think… Hey!”  Her words ended in a yelp as Kingu stood up
and marched straight through the bushes towards the jail.  “You can’t just walk
right up to the door!”  Hope dashed after him and caught hold of his palm,
again.

“I
have four minutes and forty seconds to prove you wrong.”  He lifted her hand to
his mouth for a kiss.  “Just, stay right beside me, okay?”  They reached the
boundaries of the prison grounds and Kingu snapped his fingers to unlock the
plastic gate surrounding the damn thing.  Elementals relied far too heavily on
plastics.

“You’re
still not understanding the stealthy part of the plan.  Any kind of direct
attack is gonna end badly with me along.  I’m going to get you hurt, if we do
it this way.  I’m bad luck.”

“Not
to me, you’re not.”  The woman brought him nothing but joy.  Kingu even enjoyed
the sexual frustration he felt around her.  Not that he wouldn’t be even
happier
if he could relieve some of that frustration, but just feeling something at all
was a delight.

His
answer confused her.  “I really am jinxed.”  She insisted.  “I don’t want to
endanger you, so if…”

“You
won’t endanger me.”  He interrupted.  And even if she somehow
did
, he
didn’t care.  “You aren’t a jinx to me.  Getting shoved into acid by you was
the luckiest moment of my life, Hope.”