Steel Maiden (22 page)

“How so?”

“Well,” said Mad Jack. “The stone is called
the Heart of Arcania because it is a talisman that represents
power. To possess it would bring great honor to the winning
kingdom. It would bring back hope to the kingdoms who had lost it
when the priests turned everything to hell. No one has ever been
able to claim it before. It would show strength to claim a prize
that even the priests had failed to grasp. And if someone actually
does manage to retrieve it, then I think it’ll signal a new
beginning.”

We walked in silence. The high priest had
told me that the stone was a symbol of power, too. But what if it
was more than that? Would the royal families risk their lives for a
stone that was merely symbolic? Or was there more to this
mysterious stone?

CHAPTER 22

W
E PASSED THE REST of the day in
agreeable conversation, reminiscing about our childhood in the Pit.
I was surprised at how much Mad Jack and I had in common. We both
grew up poor. We both got into loads of trouble as kids. We both
stole fresh bread from Mr. Aird’s bakery, and both our parents were
dead. (I didn’t tell him that my father was a priest. To me he was
just as good as dead.) His mother had died of the fever eight years
ago, and his father had died a year later in a fishing
accident.

After a while I noticed that Will and Leo
were walking alongside us. They had been listening in on our
conversations, and now they began adding their own thoughts every
now and then. I wondered if they knew of Mad Jack’s involvement
with some kind of revolution. The three of them were as thick as
thieves, and as we talked some more, it became very clear that they
did.

They never spoke to me directly. It was
always more along the lines of
ask her,
and
tell her,
and the occasional
would she
… It became clear that they
distrusted me and even feared me because they had seen me bring the
crown to Mad Jack. They were suspicious because they couldn’t
explain just exactly how I had acquired it. Those touched by
sorcerer’s fire died, and here I was—still alive.

Their apparent hatred for witches or
anything remotely magical made me nervous. I had hoped to keep my
secret hidden at least until the end of the race when I put this
damn stone into the high priest’s hands. The priests had been
drilling the idea that magic was evil into our young heads since I
can remember, so Will and Leo’s fear of me was understandable.
Magic bearers were demons. Anyone involved with magic had always
been executed—until me.

At nightfall, we made camp in a miraculously
green glade. As usual I set out my bedroll away from everyone else.
I was able to make a fire easily because it had been so dry. But
the nights were surprisingly cold, and I was grateful for the
warmth of my little fire.

I had caught Landon throwing glances my way
a few times during our excursion today, but his face had been
unreadable. I suspected that he felt what had happened between us
had truly been a mistake.

It didn’t help that I felt ashamed, too.
Nonetheless, I couldn’t help the heat that flushed my face whenever
our eyes met. I’d been a fool to think there could ever be more
between us. He was a prince while I was a peasant and probably a
witch.

My stomach growled, and I attempted to ease
my hunger with tea. Tea, I had plenty of. Food on the other hand
was scarce, and I was too proud to beg for it. It’s not like I
wasn’t used to starving, I could always manage to find food if I
had to.

I was conscious that Mad Jack seemed to have
taken it upon himself to watch out for me, not that I was going to
need it. I wasn’t planning on another fling with the prince. But I
was surprised that I wasn’t annoyed by his supervision. In fact, I
was rather pleased that he was keeping an eye on me. I didn’t feel
so utterly alone.

We reached Hollowmere City near noon of the
second day, earlier than I’d first thought. Although the sun was
hidden in dark clouds, the city itself was alight with blazing
yellow fires. We marched through the iron gates in silence. It was
a wretched city surrounded by iron walls, and the fires we had seen
as we arrived turned out to be burning above the countless tombs
that dominated the landscape.

I couldn’t see any bodies, but I could smell
the dead flesh. Bone dust blew in the unforgiving winds. And when I
inspected the ground more closely, I could see that the cause of
the dust in the air was bones that had been shattered. It was as
though someone had taken a great hammer and crushed them. The air
smelled of sulfur and rotten flesh. There must have been the bones
of thousands of bodies littering the city. Where had they come
from? And who lit the fires?

“This place smells like death. Is it what
you expected?”

Mad Jack’s expression was just as alarmed as
mine. I regretted sharing my doubts and fears with him, but it was
too late now…

“I’m not sure what I expected,” I answered
truthfully.

A cold shiver rolled down my spine, and I
tried not to panic. “There’s no life here, only death. I feel like
I’m staring at a glimpse of hell.”

“I think you’re right.” Mad Jack stiffened.
“This place gives me the creeps. It feels like all the happiness
would drain out of me if I stayed here, you know. Like this place
feeds on it.”

There was no use pretending that I didn’t
feel it too.

“Yes,” I nodded absentmindedly. “I know
exactly what you mean. I can feel it too. It’s like a perpetual
doom is waiting for us, waiting to devour our souls.”

“Makes you wonder what the hell we’re doing
here, don’t it?” I turned to see Will and Leo walking towards
us.

“This place is unnatural. I’m sure that
witches live here. See all those bones? That’s their doing. They
eat us and spit out our souls. I can feel their wickedness all
around. It’s everywhere. We shouldn’t be here.”

Leo’s pale eyes met Mad Jack’s. “Hope you’re
sure about this.”

The two men watched one another in what I
believed to be a silent argument. The stiffness in Leo’s shoulders
revealed that he wasn’t here of his own accord. Perhaps they came
at Mad Jack’s orders.

“Smells vile,” said Leo. He wiped his nose
rudely with the back of his hand.

“Best be moving if you don’t want to fall
behind.”

“Why don’t we wait here and let them fools
get the stone for us,” said Will. “Then we can steal it from them.
Makes more sense to me that way. Why should we risk our necks for a
bloody stone, anyway?”

It was the same train of thought that I had
had earlier. I was surprised at how openly they discussed their
plans in front of me.

“Forget it,” growled Mad Jack with such
authority that the other two men were silenced. “Stick to the
plan.”

Pinching the stone wasn’t a bad plan, and I
was pretty sure we weren’t the only ones who had thought of it.

“Are you ready?” he startled me. “This is
where the
real
race begins.”

I’d been staring out into the city, lost in
my own thoughts.

“Not really,” I said, which was the truth,
and I tore my gaze away from his. “But what choice do I have?”

Not for the first time, I wished I were back
in the Pit with Rose, conversing about our simple and uneventful
lives.

“Everyone will be out for blood. It won’t
matter if they’re a prince or a princess or a street peddler from
the market—don’t let your guard down for anyone.”

“Even you?” I said dryly.

Mad Jack clenched his jaw. “Don’t worry
about me. Focus on what you need to do and get out.”

My jaw dropped, and I didn’t try to hide my
surprise. “Don’t you want the stone?”

Mad Jack drew his sword.

“We’d best be moving. Watch your back,
Elena. Don’t trust anyone.”

He moved away with his trusted bodyguards at
his side. Their job was to keep him safe, but their faces were pale
and their weapons twitched nervously in their hands.

I followed behind them, staying alert. I
gasped when we reached the gates. I could see mountains of human
bones inside the iron walls.

Statues of dark gods and demons, temples,
and tombs were scattered throughout the city. I had felt a darkness
emanating from the witches’ carved poles when we had come across
them earlier, but this was by far more terrifying. It was a
nightmare. Human bones lay everywhere. Some were so old they looked
like fossils, while others oozed with fresh flesh still clinging to
them. And yet, there were no worshipers, no demons, nothing. I
don’t know why, but this horrid place reminded me of the priests
and the Temple of the Sun.

A cold and heavy rain started to fall, and
the bones of the people who had been sacrificed here lay in a
filthy mixture of shadow and putrid water. I retched. My throat was
burning with bile, and my eyes welled with water.

We all gathered around the gates.

The large man, Otto Sassen, pushed his way
to the front with large battle-axes in both hands. The Duke of
Fransia looked as if he were snickering as he let Otto and his
people move towards the gates. Princess Isabella glared at me
briefly as she whispered to the other Espanians.

It was starting.

I braced myself and followed the others
through the iron gates.

Hollowmere wasn’t a large city. It was more
a village. A few stone structures had doors and windows, so people
did live here, but it was hard to imagine anyone thriving here.
There were still no signs of life. Hollowmere was more like a
shrine where you went to sacrifice animals. The silence was
unnerving.

An array of fantastic gods and grotesque
sculptures were etched into the walls. Their faces had been carved
to ward off intruders and to make sure we knew we were being
watched.
But by whom?

Fires blazed in iron braziers that were
spaced randomly around the city. Someone had lit those fires.
So
where were they?

I recognized the tallest building as the
temple-like structure on my map. It was the complete opposite to
the lavish golden temple in Soul City. This structure was made of
high stone walls covered in stucco. It was a square building with a
flat top and with a wide, double-stone staircase that led to a
large archway. The architecture was simple, elegant, and
unique.

The stone was in there.

It was obvious that everyone knew where the
stone was being held. Nothing in this great race was secret. It
seemed strange that a stone called the Heart of Arcania would be in
such an obvious place. It didn’t make any sense.

We were afraid that any sudden noise would
jinx us, so we moved as quietly as we could. While I could see that
everyone was uneasy about entering the building, they also watched
their opponents with suspicion. The tension in the air and the
gloom of this place gave me goose bumps.

The Espanians and the Girmanians moved with
purpose towards the temple. They moved faster and faster, until
Otto sprinted ahead.

I dropped my bag, drew my short sword, and
started to jog. But something held me back. I felt eyes on me. I
stopped and looked behind me. Nothing. But I felt it. There was
something lurking in the shadows behind the stone buildings.
Something waited.

My senses screamed for me to run, but I
stood there. I turned around. Mad Jack had stopped, too. He was
watching me, and his scowl showed that he felt the same fear as I
did.

“I think…” I frowned at him and fought the
chill that ran down my arms. “I think this is a trap.”

And just as the Girmanians and the Espanians
arrived at the large stone steps of the temple, an army of men
wearing billowing black cloaks and golden-skull masks jumped out at
us from the shadows.

CHAPTER 23