Dark World (Book I in the Dark World Trilogy) (33 page)

A longing tugged at her heart. She
wished she could go back, relive every moment of her human life and
appreciate it. Do it better. Fate wondered what Shelby was doing.
Her parents. Even her brother. Were they still out looking for her?
Had Rory been brought to justice?

Rory
. Anger lit in her fragmented soul.
How could he have done this to her? If he had truly become
immortal, as Vale suggested, he would continue doing to this to
countless people for centuries to come. Fate seethed, her blood
boiling with the notion that more would suffer as she did. But she
was stuck down here. Rory was free, alive, on the Surface. There
was nothing she could do. Was there?

Vale and Xia held back as Fate
approached the circle of necromancers. The little zombie girl in
pink, previously decaying and covered in rotting flesh, now
displayed a perfect body covered in shimmering, metallic skin. Her
once wild and blonde hair was now sleek and dark blue. The pink
dress, apparently evaporated during the transformation, had been
replaced by a downy-soft, navy robe.

Fate waited patiently for her turn with
the newborn. Finally, the crowd parted and she approached to the
girl.

“
Hi,” Fate began, wondering
if she should offer her hand in greeting. “I just wanted to
congratulate you on your win.”

The girl turned her head, inspecting
Fate with her new swirling eyes. A lengthy moment went by before
the girl spoke. “Thank you,” she said with a soft smile arcing her
chrome-like lips, voice tinny and hollow, but hypnotizing in
texture.

Anxious to learn more, Fate inquired,
“Do you remember much about your life on the Surface?” Fate was
anxious to reminisce about home. To remember with another who had
been there so recently.

“
The Surface?” the girl
repeated, her smooth forehead, devoid of eyebrows,
furled.

Fate’s heart dropped a little. The girl
didn’t remember. A comforting arm suddenly appeared on her
shoulder, a familiar voice soothed her, “She doesn’t remember,”
Vale confirmed, “she’s not like us.”

“
Why?” Fate asked, her voice
small.

“
They are brought back to
life, but they don’t receive their original souls,” he
explained.

She turned, giving him an incredulous
look. “Then whose soul do they get?”

He gave her a small smile. “They share
one.”

Fate’s eyes widened. “They
share
one
?”

He nodded as Fate assimilated
the information. How do thousands of beings share just one soul?
She wondered if that was why the necromancers’ souls didn’t appeal
to her. Why the monster within remained at bay. Maybe this
one soul
was spread so thin
between hosts that it didn’t leave anything for her to
consume.

Fate turned back to the former zombie
girl, still intrigued. “Do you…have a name?”

“
The elders have named me
Aura,” she stated, her radiant eyes blazing even
brighter.

Upon returning a smile, Fate heard a
tiny peep emanate from the pouch on her hip. “Spark!” She hastily
opened the bag and released the tiny phoenix. She’d completely
forgotten about him! Poor thing was likely going crazy being kept
captive in the small purse.

The tiny flaming bird darted madly
about the arena, ping ponging off imaginary walls, leaving trails
of orange fire behind him. Fate and Aura shared a giggle as they
watched him literally burn off some energy. After a few moments,
Spark returned and settled onto Fate’s shoulder, his chest
fluttering from exertion.

“
He’s beautiful!” Aura
said.

“
Thanks,” Fate responded.
“Would you like to hold him?”

Aura held out her hands with the
enthusiasm of an eight-year-old. Spark dimmed his fire, allowing
Fate to take him from her shoulder and place him on Aura’s open
palm.

“
It…tickles!” Aura exclaimed
as Spark’s tamed embers licked her steely skin.

One of Aura’s attendants spoke, “Please
forgive us, we must take Aura to be prepared for the
ceremony.”

“
Ceremony?” Fate
questioned.

He nodded, prompting Aura to return the
phoenix to his master. The group of red-robed necromancers then
guided her new friend out of the arena.

She turned to Vale and Xia who were
chatting amongst themselves a few feet away, then asked, “What
ceremony are they preparing her for?”

Vale’s luminous eyes settled on Fate’s.
“Her inauguration,” he explained, then added, “We should get going,
we have to get ready ourselves.” He extended a gallant arm to her,
taking Xia on the other.

“
We’re going too?” Fate
asked, excitement building within.

Vale grinned. “Yes, my lady, we are
going to the ball.”

Facing Destiny

Kane’s indigo eyes surged with
ferocity, hatred fueling his rage. Many of the shades’ eyes
narrowed at him, a mutual mistrust and instinctual revulsion
mirrored within. His arm muscles flexed, legs set apart in fighting
stance. He knew he could kill at least a few before they ganged up
and took him down.

“
Be calm, prince,” one of
the necromancers stated as he approached Kane, raising his silver
hands. “These shades are…tame.”

“
Tame?” Kane repeated, logic
warring with instinct. How could they be tame? Fate had been the
only shade he’d ever encountered that had shown the ability to
suppress the murderous desire. “How? Were they born…alone?” He
couldn’t fathom it. Had the ritual on the Surface changed? Had
Malus found a way to communicate with her human minions on the land
above? Impossible. The only way to the Surface was through the
fissure, and it had been sealed for centuries.

“
No,” the necromancer
explained in a gentle tone. “They escaped Malus, and Vrill took
them in. They are welcome refugees in Necrosia.”

“
Vrill?” Kane reluctantly
put away his sword. “Who is Vrill?”

“
Come,” the necromancer
waved the demon forward. “Follow me.”

“
Wow!” Fate’s eyes couldn’t
look around fast enough. The great hall of the palace was both
eloquent and macabre. An odd mixture. Slender, crisscrossed bones
formed the walls around them, latticed and interwoven with thin
golden twine. An enormous ivory staircase wound upwards like a
corkscrew, the delicate gold strands barely visible, leaving the
stairs to appear floating in midair. Extensively long crimson swags
hung from the ceiling, undulating with every soft breeze that dare
enter the room. Black candles flickered from every corner, shadows
danced, creating an ambiance both sinister and mystical.

Xia excused herself and departed into
another room, leaving Vale and Fate to themselves. “Shall we?” he
inquired, extending his open palm to her.

She set her hands onto his, giving him
a questionable glance. “Shall we what?”

“
Meet my master,” he said
quietly, leading her to the winding flight of steps.

A flutter of nervousness swam through
her chest. She had no idea what to expect of Vale’s master. Was he
frightening? Kind? Images of the demon city flickered through her
thoughts. Though many of them had been afraid of her, even hated
her, she’d felt strangely at home in the underground palace. She
might have stayed if it weren’t for Kane. Would Necrosia leave her
with the same sense? Would she be welcome here?

They climbed the stairs, Fate’s
wariness increasing with every step. How different her life had
turned out than she’d imagined. On the Surface, her life seemed
mapped out for her, like destiny had already drawn invisible paths
to her final destination. Birth, school, marriage, kids, death.
There wasn’t any question to how her life was to unfold. Here,
though, all that existed were questions. Uncertainties. Where did
she fit in? Which way was she supposed to turn next?

It’s hard to plan a life without the
expectation of death. Normally, on the Surface, this might be
considered a good thing, even desired, but now being in this
predicament, Fate was unsure as to how to proceed. What does one do
with eternity?

“
In here,” Vale’s voice
stole her from the philosophical daydream.

He led her into a darkened room, a deep
lavender scent exciting her nostrils. The same décor had followed
them upstairs: scarlet drapes, onyx candles, with the addition of
furniture assembled with various bones.

Vale moved towards a set of French
doors on the right. “I’ll be right back.” And he disappeared
through the entrance, closing the doors behind him.

Fate swallowed. The growing anxiety in
the pit of her stomach beginning to annoy her.

She walked slowly about the room,
examining every oddity and splendor. Statues, both small and large,
decorated the room. Adorned from all the rocks and gems available
in the underworld: jade, sapphire, ruby, diamond. The list went on
and on.

She stole a glance at the French doors,
hoping Vale would return. Dismayed, she continued.

In the center of the room sat a most
peculiar, yet beautiful, item. An orb. Nested on a black, marble
pedestal, the swirling blue and white sphere pulsated with power.
Fate took a tentative step forward, as though the gleaming ball was
begging her to touch it. Caress it. It seemed to call
her.

Intoxicated by its energy, she raised
her hands to set her palms upon it. The moment her skin made
contact with the cool glass, the room behind her disappeared. All
that existed was peace. Oneness. Power pulsed at her core, in the
emptiness where her soul used to reside. It warmed her. Cajoled
her. Satiated her hunger.

“
Ah, I see you’ve discovered
the Nexus,” a hollow voice commented from behind her.

Fate pulled her hands from the orb as
though she’d been burned. Guiltily, she spun around. A male
necromancer stood before her and, even without introduction, she
anticipated this was the infamous Vrill. His long ivory robes
swished against the black marble floor, silver hands tucked into
his sleeves.

“
Um, hello,” she stammered,
looking for Vale who was nowhere to be seen. “I’m sorry, I was
just…”

“
Feeding,” he interjected.
“I understand.”

“
Feeding?”

He nodded, his galactic eyes twisting
with silver stars. “Yes, this is the source of our soul,” he
explained calmly.

“
This,” she eyed the shimmering
sphere, “is
your
soul?”

“
Our
soul,” he emphasized. “The
necromancers.”

She nodded, recalling how Vale had said
the elusive species shared a massive soul of sorts. But feeding?
Had she fed? She didn’t feel the hunger anymore. Was that
considered rude to feast from the strange soul container? She hoped
not.

“
Please, sit.” He slid past
her, seating himself upon a skeletal chair.

She looked the fragile-looking bone
chair up and down, certain it would bust into pieces the moment she
put any weight on it. Testing it slowly, she eased herself in,
praying it wouldn’t collapse beneath her.

Fate pointed to the Nexus. “I apologize
if I wasn’t supposed to…feed from that,” she said, stumbling over
her words.

Vrill chuckled lightly. “Please, do not
concern yourself. The shades within the walls of this city are free
to utilize the Nexus as they need. The Nexus cannot be drained. Nor
destroyed. So, please, use it as you need.” He then moved on,
asking bluntly, “Vale tells me that you are the Devil’s heir, is
this so?”

She smiled wryly. “So I’ve been
told.”

“
Does that displease you?”
His nonexistent eyebrows creased.

Fate sighed. “I don’t know exactly what
it means to be the heir. No one has…fully explained it to me. I’ve
gotten bits and pieces of it…” her voice trailed off. She honestly
didn’t know how much information she should divulge to this
stranger. This world had a lot of politics going on that she didn’t
understand. A lot of shady politics.

“
I see,” he said quietly,
removing his silver hands from within the robe and bringing them
together, fingertip to fingertip, his angular, steel face etched in
deep thought. “Vale also tells me you’ve befriended the
demons.”

She hesitated, then nodded, uncertain
how accurate his statement was. It was true she’d made a few
friends within the demon community, but not enough to commit to
being comrades with the lot of them.

“
Ah,” he said suddenly,
glancing behind her. “I believe we have one of your friends here
now.” He rose and greeted two necromancers as they entered the
room. Fate sensed another figure in the room, not by sight—but by
smell.

A demon.

And she knew that delicious scent
anywhere.

Surprises

Fate had nothing to say. Her eyes
locked with an ocean of sapphire, heart beating wildly in her
chest. Here he stood, only a few feet away, and her tongue refused
to function. If Kane hated her, his eyes were truly magnificent
liars. Boring into her slivered soul, the energy he exuded seemed
to reach out and embrace her with uncontrollable lust.