Endure (25 page)

Heavy breathing filled the cell when I felt it. All the hairs on my neck rose and a new demonic presence fell over my skin. The glass wall outside our cage turned black, expanding over the surface. A pit of darkness covered a sizable hole, and the pale complexion of Drake Sellowind stepped into the room.

Drake looked back and forth down the long row of cells and smiled. “What have you gotten yourself into this time?”

“Do you really need to ask? You always seem to have the answers.” I looked over at the others, waiting for them to wake, but they didn’t move.

“Touché. This was not the original distraction we had planned, but it sufficed as necessary. And do not worry about your friends. My power will keep them sedated for this visit.”

“You put us here?”

Drake shrugged. “I cannot take all the credit. Darius has a way with poisoning the mind.”

“How did you get in here? Tiki said the dome was supposed to protect the city.”

“From demons, yes, but not from gods.”

“You’re not a god either.”

His smirk faded and he pursed his lips. “Alas, you are correct. Look at you starting to get things right.” He walked down the hall, examining each empty cell before coming back to ours. He gripped the glass bars and gave them a shake. “In need of some assistance I see.”

“I don’t need anything from you.” I almost regretted the words as soon as I said them. An escape was exactly what we needed, but the last time I made a deal with Drake, it cost me Ithreal’s dagger.

“Please, Chase, humor me. How do you expect to get out of this one? The Queen has gone mad, and you stand little chance against a platoon of these pure bloods in the arena. They are some of the fiercest warriors known to man. It’s why we tried to recruit them. Why else do you think we had to disrupt that creature’s weak mind? She wouldn’t cooperate, so I had to make her.”

“How convenient.”

“If we’re sharing truths, it was really more of an inconvenience.”

“I doubt the truth has ever come from your mouth. Just more lies and tales to get us where you want us.”

Drake shrugged and crouched outside the bars. His eyes were almost level with mine, but I remained on the floor leaning against the glass.

“Since the beginning, I’ve shared a great many truths with you, Chase. In fact, I think it’s fair to say I’ve been more honest with you than anyone you know. And I hardly understand your frustration. After all, I’m here to help.”

“Right, because you
need
me.” The exhaustion had seeped into my voice now. “Let me guess, you do this for me, and I cooperate with some grand scheme of yours? No thanks.”

“Not exactly. I do this for you, and you say yes to one favor.”

I wanted to laugh, but I didn’t have the energy. “I’m not helping Riley invoke Ithreal.”

“Of course not, I would be naïve to request such a thing. There is nothing you can do to stop that. My favor comes after. Once Ithreal is here.”

“If Ithreal is here, that means I’ve failed and I’m dead, so I won’t be much help then.”

Drake frowned. “Such defeat in your voice already. I’ve told you, once you complete the rite you’re going to be a demigod. Had you done that before coming here, these glass bars would be no match for you either.” He paced outside the cell, both hands clasped behind his back. “In light of being honest, I’m going to share something with you. Something your father does not even know.”

I didn’t move; my eyes panned back and forth, following his every step. I couldn’t imagine what he was possibly going to share with me, but I was curious nonetheless.

“Your father isn’t going to invoke Ithreal.” Drake paused, and at first I thought it was because he wanted my reaction, but I soon realized it was only for dramatic effect. “That was an idea planted in his mind, just like all the others. Your father is going to become a gateway, and shortly after, a vessel for Ithreal’s essence. He will not be taking control of Ithreal’s power; Ithreal’s power is going to take control of him. All these soul pieces he’s collected have not been for the ritual, but rather to strengthen his frail shell and prepare it to hold true power. Much like what you have done with the souls inside you.”

“But Ithreal is imprisoned.”

“The gods’ powers are like chains, holding Ithreal in the center of an unfinished hell. With some remaining magic, they fabricated a thin veil around his dimension—one that prevents anything from going in or out. The gods are weak, Chase. All their magic is being used to contain a single god. Why do you think they’ve set aside a reserve for you? Why do you think you’re fighting their battle?”

I couldn’t tell if Drake was telling the truth, but as much as I tried, I had yet to find a reason for him to be lying. “And what’s your point?”

“My point, dear brother, is that Ithreal’s true form may be bound to his world for now, but when we break that veil, part of him will be free. Ithreal is going to pour as much of his pure essence into your father as he can without sacrificing his true form. He is going to take your father’s body and use it as a tool to break the chains that bind him.”

“How? If he can’t break them on his own now, what’s going to change when part of him is in Riley?”

“That’s where you come in. You see, unless Ithreal’s full essence is set free on Earth, the gods will not interfere. However, with Serephina’s ring, the Protector has not only the ability to speak with the gods, but to tear them down from their heavens.” Drake stepped closer, his face pressing against the bars. “You can summon them forth and Ithreal will take care of the rest. Or, you can give up control of yourself for but a moment, allowing Ithreal’s essence to enter you and do this for you. A god is the only one who can kill a demigod. Do this and Ithreal will spare you, as well as your friends.”

I laughed. I hadn’t meant to, but it was the first response to come to me and I didn’t fight it.

“You think this is humorous?”

“You thinking I’ll agree to this is humorous.”

Drake looked suddenly angry, staring at me through the bars. “I do not need you to do this, Chase. This happens whether or not you agree to it. But given my empathy for your situation, I feel inclined to offer you this as a kindness.”

“That’s really sweet, but how do you expect to force me to do this?”

“Should you refuse, Ithreal will attempt the easy method first: threatening your surviving friends. If that does not work, he will kill them, and then break you until there is nothing left but a shell of what you were. When you are at your weakest, he will leave Riley’s body, and force himself into yours. Of that, I can assure you, you will not survive the outcome.”

“And what if I decide to not go through with the rite?”

“It does not matter. The rite will merge the gods’ souls to yours, leaving you in control. If you do not complete it, one of those souls will take over and they will bend to our will. Ithreal doesn’t need
you
, he only needs your body and the power it contains.”

I wanted to snap back with a witty retort, but my mind was frozen. Drake was right, if I didn’t complete the rite, something else would take over. Then nobody would be safe.

“There is no way to avoid this fate. It’s already done, but you can save many people from unspeakable pain and death. When the time comes, all you have to do is say yes.” Drake studied my face before pushing away from the cell. “There isn’t much time before the Death Throne begins. Should you decline this offer, I will return as necessary and take you and Rayna away. The other two will be left to their fate.”

I felt like I’d been backed into a corner and I wanted to lash out, but I didn’t. I felt beaten, weak, and in that moment, helpless. But I wouldn’t agree. I couldn’t.

“Don’t make this harder than it is already, Chase. I’m trying to help you. Although I understand your defiance, I cannot help but grow frustrated. This may be the final offer I extend to you. Be wise and consider it.”

“There’s a way to stop all this, I know there is, and I swear to you I’ll find it.” I don’t know where the words came from. I felt battered, but something inside me flourished in that moment, giving me the strength to at least sound like I was sure of myself.

Drake gave a sympathetic frown before his power rose, opening a dark walkway in the wall of glass behind him.

“Your father was sure he could stop us too, and look where it got him. Unfortunately, because of his choices, that fate has fallen to you as well. For him, there is nothing left. The soul pieces inside him are destroying his mind, but for you, there can still be life. It may be different from what you envisioned, but it’s a life nonetheless. Your friends here, they can have lives too. You don’t have to give up everything. Deep down inside, all you want is for your loved ones to survive this, and they can, but it’s up to you to give them that opportunity. Your decisions are their fate. You’d do well to remember that.”

Chapter 21

Drake had been gone for more than an hour and I stared at the frosty white glass outside the cell. Emotions swarmed inside me, battling with exhaustion. What was I supposed to do? The question played out in my head. I prayed to the gods, to Serephina, but she didn’t answer. I had even tried calling Athaniel’s name, but still there was no response.

This path we were on was barren and empty, full of unanswered questions. Without the gods’ guidance, how would I know what was right and true? Was Drake being honest? Was there really no way for us to win? If my father’s choices had sealed this fate to me, were my choices going to seal the fate of my friends? I looked over each of them as they started to stir, shifting along the floor, but they remained asleep.

I curled my legs to my chest and focused on the bars. I thought about Willy and what his life had been like since he met me. I was all out of sadness and too confused to feel anger. Thinking about Willy led me to thoughts of Grayson. I hardly knew him, but he reminded me so much of my lost friend. I wondered why he would return to Silas and the people who had hurt him. They were a neutral people who refused to choose sides. Why would he think they would help? I remembered our time in Silas and the arrogance of the Dunopai. They were so set in their ways it was impossible to get through to them. Was that how I used to be? So stubborn and sure of myself that I refused to listen to anyone else?

Thoughts ran rampant through my mind and I wanted to know more about the Brothers. What did he mean when he said my father thought he could defeat them once too? Riddley had told me Riley had changed for no reason at all. One day he was the hunter everyone admired and loved, and the next he was just…different. What had happened to him? Where did the father I remember go? The Brothers didn’t have such power as to change a person entirely, did they? My thoughts were broken at the sound of movement. Rayna was asleep and Vincent sat awkwardly against the bars, his head on his own shoulder. Tiki was in the opposite corner and his eyes were open, staring at me. My heart lurched and if the wall hadn’t been behind me, I might have jumped back.

“I’m sorry, Chase Williams,” he whispered. “I did not mean to startle you.”

“It’s…fine. I was just thinking.”

“There is no way to escape, my friend. I spent many years in these cells as a child.”

“Not about that, about everything that’s happened.”

“It is of no use to live in the past. There is nothing there but the present we used to know. And dwelling on the future will not help either, for it is undetermined. We have now, my friend, and that is all we are guaranteed.”

“Yeah, well, there isn’t a whole lot happening right now, is there?”

“Perhaps not…so you are using lessons from your past to seek answers to our current problems?”

“There’s nothing in the past but memories. Nothing that can help us now. At least not that I can find.”

“Are you asking the right questions?”

“What should I ask, or better yet, who? The gods remain silent and you all know as much as I do. The only ones who seem intent on telling me anything are Drake and the screaming souls inside me. I don’t know what I can believe from the Brother, and these souls have been nothing but a pain in my ass.”

“There are many souls inside you; pieces of old gods that have been trapped since the beginnings. Perhaps you need to ask one of them for the answers you seek.”

“I’m not supposed to talk to them. Krulear said to ignore them completely, that conversing was dangerous. We’ve seen that already.”

“Everything we do at this point is dangerous. And Krulear was not always right. She was only an interpreter for the visions she saw. And those visions change constantly as our actions dictate our future.”

“So you think I should dive right in and try to strike up a conversation with the very things that want to take me over?”

Tiki shrugged. “The Dunopai elder and Caller, Alaric, said the Protector should be able to call forth the Goddess’s spirit. You are the soul piece for the Earth dimension, Chase Williams, and Elyas is within. You may have a swarm of godly souls floating inside you, all of whom want to merge with you, but she is a part of you already.” Tiki rested his head back against the bars and was apparently done talking. He crossed his arms and closed his eyes, adjusting only slightly before becoming still once again. I stared across at him, feeling both confused and inspired. Was that how I was supposed to speak with her, by reaching inside and pulling her out like an element?