Portia (16 page)

I roll myself into a seated position. My new tail starts to stir under my long leather duster. On reflex, I set my hand atop the arrowhead end. My tail quiets. Until I know what’s going on, I don’t want to announce how I’ve changed.

I look into Alden’s smug face.
What a chump I’ve been.
“I can’t believe I fell for that trick again.”

“Oh, I can.” Alden takes another pull from his smoke. “I figured that after a little bleeding heart action, you’d be dumb enough to get close.”

My brows lift with surprise. Who is this guy and what happened to Alden? The helpful man who’s been begging for a second chance is gone. Now, Alden glares at me with a predatory air, like he’s a lion and I’m raw meat. A chill creeps up my neck.

Danger.

I scan the clouds.
Should I attack, run, or wait for Tempest?

“You can watch the skies all you want,” says Alden. “Your boyfriend won’t show.” He takes one last drag off his cig before stubbing it out on a tombstone. “I cast a ton of wards over this place. It’ll take him a year to break through.”

I worry my lower lip with my teeth. If backup isn’t coming, then I need to deal with this myself. Closing my eyes, I search for magic in my soul. I brace myself for the onslaught of combined Furor power and Firmament energy.

Nothing comes.

I frown, confused. Maybe I need a different tactic. I try an old-fashioned word-based spell instead. I can’t get that out, either. Alarm charges through my nerves. “You blocked my magic.”

Alden casually brushes some dirt off his loafers. “I had to protect myself. Level One spells are pretty lame. Still, you might cause me trouble.”

My shoulders slump with relief. Alden doesn’t know that I can do advanced magic. That’s a good thing. The fact that I’m now Furor is a secret. I file that fact away.

For now, I need a way to fight. I pat the holster on my thigh. It’s empty. I curse under my breath. Alden took my dagger, too. My pulse thuds faster.
I’m completely defenseless before this creep.

Calm down Portia. What did they teach you on demon patrol?

We covered situations like this in training. My best bet is to try and get him talking. That way, I can stall for time and come up with a plan. “Why am I here?”

Alden shrugs. “That’s easy. We never got a chance to have our little ceremony. Will you go willingly this time? Or do I have to persuade you?” He cups his hand by his mouth. “I’ll give you a hint. The persuading part will hurt.”

His cold stare ties my stomach into knots.
Think, Portia.

My mind whips through options at top speed. Tempest always talks about his inner dragon. Now I have one, too. The timing couldn’t be better. Closing my eyes, I search for the dragon inside me. There’s nothing. I try again. Same thing. Disappointment weighs down my shoulders. Maybe it’s too early for me to use my powers.

Alden chuckles darkly. “Starting to realize your options are about zero, huh?”

A chill curls up my spine.
He’s right
.

Alden snaps his fingers in a ‘come here’ motion. “We’re leaving, Portia. Now.”

I take a cautious step backward. “I’m not going anywhere with you.”

“You are, and I’ll tell you why.” He rubs his hands together. “I captured the Scintillion.”

My breath catches. The Scintillion? I just healed the Firmament. With the Scintillion at large, it won’t take long before it’s torn apart again. I scan Alden’s gloating face.
This could all be another trap.
“How can I believe you? You’ve kidnapped me twice now. And you just threatened me, too.”

“Guess you’ll have to come with me and see for yourself.” He tilts his head. “Or are you willing to put the Firmament at risk again?”

I huff out a worried breath. If Alden has some news on the Scintillion, then I need to find out what it is. “Okay. I’ll go.”

Alden kicks off his tombstone. “Now, was that so hard?” He hikes off into the mist. “Follow me!”

I trail him through a series of neat graveyards covered in thick mist and grass. As I trudge along, my researcher’s brain goes to work.
I’m missing something, I know it.
A fact rises to top of mind. Alden once said that he only has a little residual Firmament magic left. But today, he cast wards strong enough to block both Tempest and my powers. Alden could never do that with leftovers. He’s been getting a regular infusion of Firmament magic, and on a huge scale, too. More pieces of the story fall into place. Alarm slams into me as I realize the truth.

Like a sleepwalker, I stumble along behind Alden. My head feels fuzzy. We end our hike in a valley that’s filled with open graves. Alden waits for me at the first tombstone. “And here we are.”

The words tumble out of my mouth on their own. “You’re the Scintillion, aren’t you?”

Alden grins. Little by little, he slides his open palm down his face. The motion acts like a magical zipper opening. One second, Alden’s a regular guy. The next, he’s the Scintillion. My blood chills.

Alden swipes his huge claw upward, and he looks human again. Only this time, he doesn’t have a scratch on him. He does a golfer’s clap at me. “And the Princess solves our first mystery. But will she figure out the rest?”

My mind whirls through different scenarios. I picture Alden being chosen as one of the Marked. He can play the nice guy really well, but that’s only skin deep. My hands curl into fists. “You never even opened a seedpod, did you? You figured out how to steal the Firmament magic instead.”

Alden quirks his brow. “Good job, Portia. You’re not as dumb as you look.”

The rest of the pieces tumble in place. “When you wouldn’t take on the quest, you turned into a Void demon. Every time a new Marked came to the Grove, you attacked them and siphoned off their power, didn’t you?”

Alden gestures to an opened grave. “See for yourself.”

Warning bells go off in my head.
Watch out for another trick, Portia.
With hesitant steps, I walk to the nearest tombstone. It’s a thin white slab of stone with two words scratched on it: “Marked #23.”

My body chills over with alarm.
Is Alden burying the Marked here?

A rasping groan sounds from inside the open grave. Every instinct I have tells me to run. But I can’t. If something happened to the other Marked, then I need to know that, too. I force my gaze down.

A Void demon lies twitching on the bottom of the grave. Its features are contorted in pain. My heart cracks. This poor soul failed its quest and turned into a Void demon. What a tragedy. All this person wanted to do was help the after-realms. Now, they’re trapped in a nightmare.

I scan the graveyard. All the blood drains from my face. “You did this to hundreds of people.”

“Right again,” says Alden. “The Firmament was low on energy—I blew off my quest, after all—so the Grove kept sending in new Marked to start their own quests.” He makes little quotations marks with his fingers when he says quests. “Chumps, all of them. I took their power and liked what I got.”

My jaw clenches. “I can’t believe this. The after-realms were falling apart because of you!”

Alden rolls his eyes. “There was never any real risk, Portia. I’d have given the Sacred Trees enough juice when the time came. I can take as well as give. It’s just that I don’t always feel like it.”

His words make my skin crawl. “Spoken like a true addict.”

“This isn’t addiction. This is a new power rising in the after-realms.”

“Sure, it is.” I gesture across the lines of opened graves. “And I suppose you’ll tell me that all this is a ‘ceremony,’ too.” I make little quotation marks with my fingers when I say ceremony.
Take that.

Alden’s voice lowers to a growl. “It is a ceremony.”

“No, it’s a serial-killer style ritual for murdering innocent people.” My voice drips with loathing. “You make me sick.”

Alden defiantly raises his chin. “I take care of the Void. I give them everlasting life.”

I remember the Void demon twitching in its grave. “No, you don’t give them life. You control them like zombies.”

Alden’s mouth becomes a slash of anger. “I’ve been patient. That patience is running out.”

My brows furrow with thought. Alden hasn’t attacked me yet. That can only mean one thing. “You want something from me. You brought me here to scare me. That way, I’ll tell you whatever you want to know. What is it?”

“Fine.” He curls his hand and huffs out a breath on his nails. “I’m tired of being at the mercy of someone else for more power.” He wags his finger at me. “You’ve been a naughty one, Portia. You’ve done something to Firmament magic. You healed that Sacred Tree without getting trapped in its trunk. I want to know what you did. And I want that power, too.”

A knot of alarm tightens in my chest. Alden wants to know the secret of combining Firmament and Furor magic. He’d never be the equal of Tempest and me, but the creep is right. He could get a transfusion of Furor magic and cause some serious damage. I can’t let that happen.

I keep my face carefully neutral. “Who says I did anything?”

“Don’t play games. I’m going to drain your power and kill you, make no mistake. But if you tell me what I want to know, I’ll let you die clean.” He scans me from head to toe, a sick smile on his lips. “Maybe I’ll even keep you alive for a while. We could have some fun together before it’s over.” He licks his lips. “You’re a beautiful woman, Portia.”

Nausea and fury move through me in waves. “Never.”

Alden loosens the top two buttons on his shirt while bobbing his brows up and down. “Last chance.”

My hands clench into fists. This creep is the biggest threat the after-realms have ever faced. “How about we try another deal? I kill you instead.”

Wow. Did that come out of my mouth? Why yes, yes it did. And it felt really good, too.

“And here I thought you might be smart.” He transforms into his demon form, leans back, and lets out an earth-shaking roar.

Every inch of my body tingles with adrenaline. I’ve got one option when it comes to fighting. I need to change into a dragon, fast. Trouble is, I have no idea how to do it.

Alden lumbers toward me. My breath quickens. I close my eyes and call to the Furor energy inside. Nothing happens.

Alden swipes his opened hand toward my head. I dodge at the last second and run. While I search for a good hiding spot, I whisper incantations for transformation. Just like before, the words can’t get past my lips. Panic speeds down my spine.

Pounding footsteps sound behind me in the mist. The Scintillion is closing in. There are no large tombstones here, and I can’t hide in one of the opened graves. With my mind blurring from panic, I reach for my inner dragon one more time.

I sense her. At last.

My dragon stirs in my soul and wow, is she ever pissed. All I get from her is mindless rage. I try to coax her with soft words.

I need you. Please take form.

The Scintillion finds me instead. I sprint off in a new direction, but he pounds his fist hard into my back. I tumble face-first onto the grass. Pain and panic slam into me with equal force. I plead with my dragon.

Get out and fight!

Suddenly, her battle rage ricochets through my body. Strength pumps through my every cell. My bones snap. Scales appear. Fangs grow. I gain a long neck, huge body, and spiked tail. I look down on the Scintillion from a new height.

I’ve become a massive red dragon.

The Scintillion roars with rage and rushes toward me. I call out to my dragon once more.

Give me fire.

My dragon guides me again. Instantly, I know what to do. I suck in a deep breath while triggering flames in my chest. My lungs burn with held-in fire. As Alden closes in, I blast a shaft of bright red flame straight into his chest. He stops and shields his face. Alden doesn’t die, not that I expected him to. After all, he didn’t get hurt when Tempest scorched him. But he does slow down enough for me to come up with another plan.

Please, let it work.

The last flames leave my lungs. Alden rushes me again. I do the same to him. My huge clawed feet tear up the uneven ground. Alden raises both arms. Razor sharp talons glint in the dim light.

As we get closer, I call on my new dragon instincts once more.

Help me fly.

Fresh instincts tell me exactly how to make my wings unfurl. They beat in a steady rhythm and lift me into the sky. I scoop Alden into my talons. I pump higher and higher, the Scintillion writhing in my clutch.

My plan is simple. Alden said that he cast wards and other spells around the graveyard. If I fly high enough, I’ll break past the range of his spells. I’ll be able to counter-attack with my own magic.

Up and up I climb. When I wing past a jagged line of mountains, I feel the magic flow back into my body once again. Joy pulses through my veins. I broke through Alden’s barriers. My powers have returned, and I know just what to do with them.

Alden wanted to know how I healed the Sacred Tree. That gave me an idea. If I could use Furor and Firmament magic in order to change the tree, couldn’t I change Alden, too? Instead of charging him with extra magic, I’ll change him into a human.

I launch a similar spell to the one Tempest and I used to heal my Sacred Tree. Streams of energy flow inside me. The Furor power protects and structures the Firmament magic. Around me, the air shimmers with magic. Golden Firmament power drips down my claws and onto the Scintillion. Alden tries to consume the energy, but I block him with Furor magic.

Not happening, Alden.
I focus the spell on transforming him, not energizing him. Alden writhes and roars in my grasp. He doesn’t like that he isn’t getting fed.

The spell takes its toll. Pumping my wings becomes a huge effort. Too much of my focus is going into transforming Alden. Every inch of me becomes tired and boneless. Gritting my teeth, I pump more of my magic into Alden. I chant one word over and over in dragon tongue.

Transform.

Alden flickers between demon and human shape. Adrenaline and excitement pour through me. With one last push of power, Alden changes back into a human. He’s now smaller and more vulnerable. I’m having a hard time keeping him in my talons.