Gods of Chaos (Red Magic) (23 page)

The air stayed sweet-smelling and hot, and it was easy to forget that I’d left behind a bitterly cold winter. As I walked, I shed my sweater, balling it up in my bag with my coat and scarf. I looked down at my jeans, wishing I could transform them into shorts, but the creepy Fey man had said magic wouldn’t work here. I rolled up the cuffs, though, and kept moving.

I must have been walking for almost an hour, but the mountains hadn’t shifted at all. Not only were they still visible, but they didn’t appear to have gotten any closer. It was hot and sticky, and I realized I was thirsty. I desperately wanted a drink, but of course I hadn’t packed any water in my bag. Just then, I came up on the edge of a burbling stream.

It startled me; it was as if the water had appeared in response to my thoughts. I knelt eagerly to scoop up a handful of water, but something stopped me. Maybe it was a flash of intuition, or maybe I had remembered something I’d learned in school about the Fey, but I paused. Sitting back, I looked hard at the shimmering surface. I could almost see smoke rising off the water, and I shivered.

I wasn’t thinking clearly. Just because I didn’t know anything about Annwn didn’t mean I didn’t know anything about magic. I’d been so cautious about eating in the Underworld before until Hades promised me he meant me no harm. Why wasn’t I being as cautious now?

Fishing through my bag, I pulled out the pill container of herbs. Thinking for a moment, I pulled out a peppermint leaf and a dried chrysanthemum flower. Mom had said something about that combination of plants being good for breaking enchantments, and I hoped they would keep me safe. Cupping my hands again, I reached into the stream, letting the water run over the herbs in my palm. After a few seconds, I lifted my hands to my face to drink.

The water was cool and crisp, and it didn’t taste like anything except water. I hesitated a moment, waiting for something to happen, but when nothing did, I took another drink, filtering the water over the herbs in my hands before sipping it. After three long gulps, I felt refreshed and less bitchy. Standing up, I picked up my bag and continued walking toward the mountains.

When I had jumped from rock to rock across the stream, I looked up to find that the mountains were gone. I stumbled and almost slipped, but I steadied myself and looked around again. There were no mountains in sight. There was also no sign of Izzy.

I turned in a slow circle. “All right, what do I do now?” I asked the empty air.

A silky voice came from behind me. “If you sheathe that blade, I will tell you.”

I whirled around to see a young woman dangling her feet in the stream.

“Why do I have to put this down?” I gestured with the knife and she flinched.

“Iron is too firm, too grounded for Annwn. The Fey cannot stand this metal.”

That was good to know. I looked at her carefully, studying her beautiful, delicate features. “Are you another fairy?”

“Put the knife away and we can speak more freely.”

I wondered if it might be a trick, but since I’d never intended to use the athame as a weapon anyway, I didn’t see the harm in doing as she asked. Once the blade was sheathed, the young woman shimmered for a moment. Her image settled into place again, but she was more defined. Her black hair was shiny, and the gauzy blue dress that hung on her body seemed more solid somehow.

Standing warily a few feet away, I asked again, “So what do I do now?”

She shook her hair, sending droplets of water across the stream. “That is not the right question. The question is, what do you want?”

“What do you mean? I came here to find Izzy.”

The fairy looked sad. “What if you knew that your friend was beyond your reach?”

I sucked in my breath. “Is she?”

With a shrug, the fairy studied my face. “What if she were?”

I thought for a moment, sorting through my jumbled thoughts. “Then I guess I need to find Marcus. He might be able to help.”

The fairy looked at me sideways. “But is this what you truly want? To help the one who threatens your power?”

“How do you know any of this?”

She laughed, a tinkling sound like an antique music box. “What I know does not matter. What you want is all that is important.”

I gave her a hard look. “I want to help my friend. And I want to stop Hecate from destroying the world.”

The stream grew turbulent, and the sun dimmed. When I looked up, I saw threatening clouds blotting out the blue sky.

“You must take care with your words, Darlena. What mortal has the right to question the gods?”

I was so shocked by her words that I barely registered the fact that this fairy knew my name, too. “You can’t possibly want the world to end, can you?”

Combing her hair with her fingers, the fairy stared off into space. “Once, my people walked above ground. We were driven beneath the earth by your kin, by the mortals who have since destroyed the world they took. So you are wrong,” she stared hard at me and I backed up a step, “to assume that the Fey would not wish to see mortals fall.”

Nervously, I looked around, but we were still alone. “Then why did you offer to help me?”

She smiled. Her teeth were wickedly sharp. “I never said I would help you. I said I would tell you what to do now.”

The fairy didn’t move, but I held up my athame, still in its sheath. She winced slightly.

I forced my voice to sound strong, but I was frightened. “Tell me how to get out of here, and then leave me in peace.”

“Look behind you for a count of one hundred. Then you will see the way.”

Skeptical, I glanced over my right shoulder. “How can I trust you enough to turn my back?”

She bared her teeth. “You can’t.”

Right. I didn’t trust the creature, but I didn’t have any other choice. Taking a deep breath, I turned my head and began to count slowly. My voice shook, and when I reached “ten” I unsheathed the knife. This time, the sucking sound was loud and directly behind me, and I had to fight the urge to turn and look for the river fairy. She’d gotten awfully close to me while I was counting, but I thought that with the knife I should be safe.

I kept counting, even though the fairy was gone. I didn’t want to spoil whatever spell she’d started, especially if it was my one chance to get out of here. When I reached ninety-nine, the air around me shimmered like campfire smoke, and when I said, “One hundred,” there was a low chime like a distant church bell. Slowly, I turned around.

Where the stream had stood was a stone gate. Unlike the entrance to Annwn, this was freestanding in the field. It had a square lintel, and the two columns supporting it were carved to resemble flames.

Vaguely, I remembered that Izzy’s Seeming had said something about the Otherworlds being connected, and I had a feeling this gate would transport me out of Annwn. Where it would take me, however, was a mystery. Holding my athame in my hand, I stepped toward the gate. I closed my eyes and whispered a prayer to Persephone that this gate would serve me better than the last one.

The gate took me to a dark, subterranean chamber. I could still see the fairy hills of Annwn behind me through the gate, but the image was fuzzy, as if I were looking at an unfinished painting. When I turned around, darkness stretched ahead of me. I pulled out the crystal sphere once more and let my eyes get accustomed to the dim glow before I started to walk into the darkness. The sound of dripping water echoed off the rocks around me, and my footsteps sounded loud in the void. Gradually, I became aware of a red flash in the distance, and I sped up.

The dark chamber gave way to a huge cavern., and everything in the cavern was bathed in red light. I blinked for a moment, and then I realized that my eyes weren’t playing tricks on me. My senses tingled, and I groped blindly for Red magic, but it was out of reach. I could feel it, but it was like trying to catch a fish: it kept slipping out of my grasp. Panicked, I unsheathed my knife and took a deep breath, trying to calm down. I hadn’t been able to use magic in Annwn, but I hadn’t felt as threatened there as I did now, even with the crazy Fey.

The cavern pulsed with power, and what I saw almost made me turn and run back the way I had come. In the center of the cave, Marcus was perched on a stalagmite. The tip of the rock dug into his lower back, and his spine curved like a beach ball. He was bound and gagged, and his head lolled dangerously to one side. I moved quietly across the vast cavern, my eyes darting around to see if this was a trap. I couldn’t see anyone besides Marcus, but I was wary.

For a moment, I stood beneath him, wondering what to do. Marcus was unconscious, his breathing low and heavy. I reached up to try and pull him down, but my fingertips barely grazed the edge of his body. The soft sound of water filled the cavern, and I gritted my teeth, trying to focus.

I noticed a large rock sitting near the stalagmite. I hopped up on it and leaned forward. Grabbing hold of Marcus’s feet, I tugged gently. I thought I could move him an inch at a time, slowly. Instead, I was crushed under his sudden weight as his body flew off the tip of the stone. Electricity flowed through me, zapping my skin everywhere Marcus’s body touched me. I struggled to get out from under him, but the tingling sensation took a minute to fade. Gingerly, I poked his stomach with my finger.

He groaned, but didn’t open his eyes. I leaned forward.

“Marcus,” I hissed in his ear, “wake up!”

“Izzy?” he mumbled, his eyes still closed.

“No. Darlena.”

He cracked his eyes and glared at me. “Why aren’t you dead?”

Rattled, I stared at him. “What do you mean?”

“She said you would be dead if you entered. That, or you’d be too much of a coward, and that you’d go home in defeat.”

His words made no sense. “Who said?” Quickly, I untied the ropes that bound his wrists.

“Cerridwen.”

I felt a chill run down my arms at the mention of his patron. “She did this to you?”

He struggled to sit up. “Remove the desire, and the problem will disappear. You wanted me. We thought if I were gone, you’d go.”

“We.” My voice was flat. “You’ve been working against me all along.”

He hesitated. “At first, yes.”

“This is how she rewards good behavior?” I gestured to the rock and snorted. “I’m glad she’s not my patron!”

Marcus glared at me. “She has every right to punish my disobedience however she chooses.” He rubbed his wrists, trying to get his circulation back, and I watched him intently.

“How did you disobey her?”

He didn’t look at me. “It doesn’t matter now. You’re here, and I owe you. Although I’m not sure how you even got here.”

“What do you mean?”

“You shouldn’t be able to move through the Otherworld. You haven’t been trained.”

Ignoring him, I gestured to the rock. “What else was she going to do to you?”

He grimaced. “I don’t want to talk about it.”

“Were you going to help me?”

He looked away, but his silence spoke volumes.

“Well, now you can. I’m trying to find Izzy.”

His eyes flashed. “What happened to my sister?”

I sat back on my heels. “I don’t know. But we’ll find her.”

He shook his head, mumbling something I couldn’t make out.

“What?”

His eyes opened and met my gaze. “I said if she’s hurt, you’re dead.”