Destroyer Rising (21 page)

“You can’t keep me away from this, Damian. Don’t even
try.”

The look on her face reminded me of better times. She
used to get that look right before she kicked my ass, generally
right after I fed her toys to Jasper. I smiled slightly and the
fierce lines of her scowl softened.

“Then we go together,” I said.

“Always together.”

Jasper purred beside her.

I nodded and turned toward Mike. “What do we need to
do?”

“Take the Key of the Dead and carve the center rune
into her back,” Ward said.

My gaze slowly turned to Ward. “What?”

“It is the rune mannaz. A symbol of your intertwined
destinies that lies at the center of the knot.”

Something crashed downstairs. “Foster!” I shouted.
When no one responded, I said “Frank?”

“The store’s closed,” Hugh said.

“Frank’s at the Pit,” Sam said. “The fairies left for
Falias, as far as I know.”

Rapid footsteps beat their way up the stairs. A
bristly green head with a black snout popped up over the top step.
I exhaled and patted my knee. Peanut wandered down the aisle and
stopped by Mike.

The demon scratched the cu sith’s ears, and Peanut
purred like a pony-sized cat.

The footsteps on the stairs didn’t stop. “Who’s
there?” I snapped.

“Peace,” Hugh said. “It is Elizabeth, Cornelius’s
apprentice.

I glanced at the werewolf as the blood mage reached
the end of the aisle. She held up a hand in greeting.

“Why are you here?” I asked.

“Wow, you
can
be an ass,” Elizabeth said,
stopping beside Mike and Peanut.

“Told you,” Sam said.

“Cornelius could not help me bind the knot,” Ward
said. “Elizabeth volunteered.”

“What the hell goes into one of these things?”

“That should be obvious by now,” Elizabeth said.

I frowned.

“Wards, blood, and souls. That’s what it’s always
been. You’d think the guy would be a little more appreciative of my
help. I can never bind another Devil’s Knot, you know that? This is
it. One and done.”

“You should probably apologize now,” Sam said.

I blew a breath out and glanced at the ceiling. “I’m
sorry. I’m a little stressed right now.”

“Get the dagger,” Sam said. “Quit stalling.”

Her words jarred me. She was right. I had been
stalling. I didn’t want to touch anyone with the Key of the Dead,
much less use it to carve something into my sister. I grimaced and
pulled the chest out of the wall.

I picked up the velvet pouch that held the dagger. I
looked up at my friends, and Sam. No one was looking at me, no one
except Jasper. I could have sworn his black eyes were fixed
directly onto me. The others couldn’t look at me, not really, not
so long as I had my hands on the trunk. I lifted the small
stone—decorated with whorls of green and red waves—and slid it into
my pocket before closing the trunk and setting it back into the
wall.

“That is … disturbing,” Hugh said. “I know you did
not leave this room, but I could not focus on you.”

“Blame Zola,” I said with a weak smile. I looked at
Hugh and then Ward. “What if this doesn’t work?”

“What if you fail to perform the ritual correctly?”
Hugh asked.

I nodded.

“Vicky could become the Destroyer and inherit the
power of the Ghost Pack.”

“Shit,” I said. “Seriously Ward?”

“Yes,” he said as he ran his hand over his bald head.
His cloak sleeve slipped enough to reveal the farthest edge of the
tangled wards tattooed on his flesh. “The answer is clear.”

“It is?”

Elizabeth laughed quietly. “Don’t fuck it up.”

I sighed and pulled the Key of the Dead out of the
pouch, tracing the circle of runes around the pommel. I tested the
edge of the dagger with my thumb and raised an eyebrow. “This thing
isn’t sharp enough to cut a banana.”

“It won’t need to be,” Ward said.

“Do it,” Sam said as she lifted her shirt up over her
head.

I blew out a breath and kneeled on the floor beside
her. She lifted her hair, exposing the tip of the knot at her
hairline with one hand while she squeezed Jasper to her chest with
the other. I laid one hand on her back in an effort to steady
myself. Her skin was cold. It may not have been as pale as some of
the other vampires, but it certainly wasn’t as dark as it had been
when we were kids.

“You’re sure?” I said.

She nodded.

I was afraid I’d have to push hard to cut her, but
blood ran freely the instant the blade touched her flesh. The blade
moved like it had a mind of its own, and my hand was only an
extension of it. The x formed first before the blade traced a line
down either side, extending past the base of the first cuts.

The Devil’s Knot flared into life.

I leaned back and watched the golden fire ignite
across my sister’s back. The Devil’s Knot spun, and the arm of the
design that had peaked at Sam’s neck became the arm that aimed at
the floor.

“Are we done?” Sam whispered.

I nodded. I realized she couldn’t see me so I said,
“Yes.” A steady light throbbed inside the knot. I didn’t need to
ask Ward if it was done. The spell was plain to see.

“You must carve the rune into Vicky’s neck,” Ward
said while Sam rearranged her shirt. “It is likely she will fight
you if Prosperine has already begun her rise.”

“Super.”

“Do not worry,” Hugh said. “It gets much worse.”

I frowned at the wolf. “What do you mean?”

Ward brushed a green dust bunny off his cloak. Peanut
sniffed at the floating bit of fur and then huffed at it.

Ward took a deep breath. “Once the key has tasted the
blood of those who would be bound, you must plunge it into your
heart.”

“What!” Sam and I both snapped. Jasper echoed our
outcry with a high-pitched whine.

“So long as the ritual is performed correctly, and
the carving of mannaz is complete, you should survive.”

“Oh,” I said. “I
should
survive. Super.”

“As Elizabeth said, perform the act precisely and
you’ll be fine.”

I ran my hand over my hair and sighed. “Okay. I can
do that. Sam doesn’t need to be in the Burning Lands? We’re sure
about that?”

Ward nodded. “Timewalkers are not bound to any realm.
Their bonds can be forged at the greatest of lengths. Even through
the Abyss.”

“How much time do you have left?” Sam asked.

I closed my eyes and frowned. “Not much. Mike?”

“We should return.”

Jasper chittered and whined as he hopped out of Sam’s
arms and flowed into my backpack.

“Take care of him,” Sam said.

“I will.”

Jasper released a low stuttering chuff from inside
the pack.

“At least the furball understands.”

I frowned at Sam. “Harsh.” I winked at her. “No sense
in long goodbyes. I’ll see you all soon enough.” I walked down the
aisle. Ward tapped my arm as I passed him and I offered a nod.

I paused by Elizabeth. “Thank you. For bringing the
book, and for this.”

“Just … just save the girl, yeah?”

I nodded.

Mike tore a hole in the world and stepped through,
vanishing into the hellfire gate.

“Why did he even come?” I asked.

“Probably to make sure he hadn’t killed you in the
transition,” Ward said.

I adjusted the backpack. “Strange demon, that.”

“Damian,” Hugh said as I reached the stairs.

I turned to face the werewolf.

“The Demon’s Sacrifice … from what Koda and Ward have
said, I believe it is a variation on an art known as the Army of
Souls.”

That tickled something in my memory. “I’ve heard the
name before.”

“See if you can find the reference. It may be wise to
consult Zola. She knows much of the darker arts.”

“It won’t change my mind.”

Hugh shook his head. “I have no intention of changing
your mind.”

I eyed the wolf for a moment and nodded. “Sam is
risking just as much as me Hugh. You already know what I’ll do to
keep her safe.”

“I do.”

I turned and started down the stairs. I heard Hugh
whisper.

“This will be worse.”

Why didn’t I tell them? Was I afraid they’d stop me?
I frowned at the Key of the Dead in my palm as I walked to the 1932
Ford Victoria in the back lot. They wouldn’t think I was doing
anything out here. No one would try to stop me. I settled in and
closed the door before pulling the bloodstone out of my pocket.

It didn’t look like anything more than a pretty rock.
I leaned forward and set it on the narrow dashboard.

I laid Gaia’s arm across the seat beside me. Jasper’s
black eyes peeked out of the backpack.

“You ready to go for a ride?”

He purred and it shook the car.

“I shouldn’t do this without Zola.” I reached for my
phone, and then hesitated, remembering her last words to me.

We’ll meet again boy, be it in this life or the
next.

I needed to do this alone, or as alone as I could be.
Sam was already in danger, and the wolves of the Ghost Pack had
basically agreed to lay down their lives to kill a devil. I cursed
and slammed my palm against the steering wheel.

Jasper let out a whining purr.

“Hold on,” I said. “Guard the stone, okay?” I pointed
to the bloodstone on the dashboard. Jasper stared at me. “I’ll be
back as soon as I can. I need to talk to Gaia.”

I wrapped my fingers into Gaia’s before I really
considered what a bad idea this was. I felt Jasper climb back into
the backpack and wanted to curse at the furball. The light dimmed
as the vortex swallowed me and wrapped me in darkness. I stepped
into the Abyss with the Key of the Dead gripped tightly in one hand
and Gaia in the other.

Gaia recoiled when she saw the weapon in my hand.
“You should not have brought that here,” she hissed. A confused
look crossed her face before the placid smile returned.

“I aim to speak to a demon, and free another from her
fate.”

Her eyes didn’t leave the Key of the Dead. “You move
to break the bond with the Destroyer?”

“I do.”

She leaned away from the dagger. “I do not wish to be
close to that blade, though I am compelled to be near you. The
conflict is … confusing.”

“I will not burden you with its presence. Send me to
the stone. I have to talk to Tessrian.”

“You need only cut the air and step through. A key
such as that will always take you into the nearest bloodstone when
stepping from the Abyss. Wound the air twice inside the bloodstone
to return to me. I will wait here.”

“Will I need your hand?”

She shook her head. “It cannot travel into the stone.
Be well.”

“Thank you.” I held the blade up and slashed at the
air. Reality screamed and bent and a red gash opened in the Abyss.
I released Gaia’s hand, and stepped through.

***

The blackness of the Abyss vanished in a burst of
blinding red light. The souls inside my head screamed, only to fall
silent moments later. I was on a cold, faceted floor. Darkness
wrapped itself around me, and what little light there was bounced
off flat planes of crystal, or vanished into deeper shadow.

“Long have I waited,” said a low, grinding voice.
“Come at last, Adannaya?” A foot paused just inside a circle of
light and a tattered gown swept forward. I heard something inhale
as my eyes adjusted to the dim light of Tessrian’s prison. “You are
no necromancer. The scent is wrong. The magic is wrong. Gaia. The
Betrayer. Titan of old, come to see the enslaved?”

“I am no Titan,” I said, climbing to my feet. I held
the Key of the Dead firmly in my grasp. I felt for the backpack,
relieved to find it still there. “And I am not my master.”

Tessrian stepped into the light. My heart hammered a
frantic staccato and I had only a fraction of a second to compose
myself. She looked like Prosperine, smooth red skin marred by black
canyons of flesh.

“I can hear your heart, boy. You fear me. You are a
fool to come here, where I have power and you have none.”

She didn’t attack. Did that mean she was curious? Did
she know something I didn’t? Dammit, I should have called Zola. I
stood up straighter and joined her in the light. Tessrian’s eyes
flashed to the Key of the Dead, and then she locked her gaze with
mine.

“You meddle in dangerous things.”

“I need a key into Prosperine’s enclave.”

Tessrian turned away from me. She settled on a
squared-off outcropping of stone. “I should kill you now.”

“You’ll never be free of this stone if you do.”

“You would grant my freedom?” She released an inhuman
laugh, the sound grating like shattered crystal. “You must think me
a fool.”

I needed to crack Tessrian’s resolve, and I didn’t
think I could do it by force. Not here, not without access to the
ley lines. I wasn’t even sure if a soulart would work in the
confines of a bloodstone. I had one card to play, a card that I
didn’t know to be fact. I gambled. “Zola freed Ronwe.”

Tessrian narrowed the black pits that passed for
eyes. “I have no love for Ronwe.”

“She knows how to free you. I know how to destroy
you. Which would you prefer?”

Tessrian paused. Her gaze lowered, and I wondered if
she was listening to my heartbeat. She’d find no hint of a lie. I
did know how to destroy the bloodstone, and Mike would help me do
it.

“We’re going to kill the Destroyer,” I said. “There
will be a power vacuum in the Burning Lands. You could return
there.”

Tessrian slowly raised her eyes to mine. “You will
fail.”

“What if we don’t? Can you pass up the chance?”

Tessrian looked away for a time. When enough minutes
passed, I worried she’d stopped speaking to me at all.

“I have to leave for the Burning Lands. What’s your
answer?”

“You have no guarantees. No proof of your power other
than that key. I cannot help you against Prosperine with so little
evidence.”