Shadow Reign (Shadow Puppeteer Book 2) (2 page)

I waved my free hand in the air above my face, but that stench wasn’t going anywhere. It was thick now and even my good eye clouded with tears. I couldn’t breathe. The rot burned the inside of my nose and the back of my throat. He clicked his long beak at me.

“Your move, Shadow Puppeteer.”

There was that word again. What the hell did that really mean? I wasn’t with Jose long enough to understand it. What I knew about Shadow Puppeteers was first hand and it made me uncomfortable. Sometimes I could feel the shadows. Sometimes I could ask them to do something, but like earlier, sometimes they took care of things on their own.

My shoulders ached from holding my position, ready to stab him. In better conditions, this wouldn’t be such a challenge, but lying stiffly in a grave for an unknown amount of time had its downfall. With no food, water or exercise, I was doing pretty well for a girl who was meant to be dead.

Please, please don’t let me be dead
, I silently prayed to the stars.

It flapped its wings, taking to the air. Adrenaline heated my blood, making me far more nimble than before. Cold air rushed over my head as I pressed upward with the blade at its lower belly. The feathers gave way like a wall of fabric. My blade hit nothing solid and despite myself, there was a tiny bit of relief. I wasn’t prepared to feel my blade rip flesh.

Wrong way to think about this. Survival of the fittest.

His claw caught my outstretched hand, digging into my flesh. I bit my cheeks, but not before a pained hiss escaped my lips. The creature clicked his tongue, amused. My blood was hot, rolling thickly down my arm. It yanked me off my feet and right into a tree before letting go.

A fresh wave of coldness attached itself to my body as I went back first into the snow. I rolled from the ground, feeling off my game. I was too slow. If that creature wanted me dead, it had plenty of opportunities. It was just toying with me. I rubbed my shoulder where it grabbed me, but my cold fingers couldn’t penetrate the muscle.

“So you aren’t completely unbreakable,” he said.

He flapped his wings and raced at me again. I dove towards my blade resting within a patch of twigs, but he caught my shoulders. His talons dug deep and blood burst around the sharp edges, warming my clothes for a mere second before the cold stole even that from me.

He chirped in merriment. “Time to meet your maker.”

I gripped its legs, trying to dig my fingernails into his skin. It couldn’t be penetrated and I was soaring upward through the trees, dangling by his grasp on my shoulders. Branches scratched at my exposed skin, leaving stinging marks, and then we were free from the vegetation. I gave up struggling so I could hold a hand over my right eye. It eased some of the pain in the socket.

The wind pushed against us, making me rock on those sharp talons that held me. My nerves screamed through my shoulders and down my spine. I bunched up, trying to keep the muscles stiff, but it did little for the way I rocked. Something had to give. I gave up holding my hand over my eye and grasped the legs instead, trying to hold my upper shoulders still.

Not only was the cold air considerably thinner, it made it difficult to breathe; and higher we still flew. I hope when he said it was time to meet my maker, he wasn’t thinking about dropping me.

M
ost of my focus was on breathing and not letting the wind rip my skin further on the creature’s talons. I barely felt conscious when we circled twice. My relief was immediate, but I wasn’t going to allow myself hope until we actually landed.

The dive downward stole my breath. His talons withdrew and I was weightless before I slammed into the stone. There was no comfort in having solid ground under my feet when I had to hug it to keep the wind from knocking me over the side.

The birdlike creature landed within grabbing distance, but I couldn’t move when every breath I drew made my lungs sting. My torn shoulder muscle wasn’t nearly as raw as my skin. My nails ached as I fought to grasp the rock to no avail. The harsh wind was still moving me.

“You are the most pathetic female I have yet to bring to our domain,” the bird said.

Aggression oozed off him like heat on a paved road. He wanted me dead, but he feared his master more. I’d take better heed of this if my discomfort didn’t take so much of my thinking space.

“I should let you drop and end your misery,” he said.

Why did he think I was miserable? Things ached, but I still had enough pep to fight.

His attention jerked to something just behind me. I twisted to see what held his attention, but with my hair beating in my face, I couldn’t see what he saw. His energy changed. His anger became uncertainty. I wasn’t sure I wanted to face his master, but this high up, there was no way I’d be able to climb down with my fingers numb and my body nearly frozen, but I wasn’t ready to admit I was at his mercy, either.

He drew close to me and lifted his wings. The wind ruffled his black feathers, but I could live with the stench as long as the wind wasn’t trying to tear my skin off.

“Come now, stupid girl. Your presence is requested.”

I’d let the insult go, this time. Right now, I had two options; face this creature’s master or face the bottom of the cliff when the wind tossed me over. I needed a blade, but I’d settle for the spirits, though they were unpredictable. Bad thing was, the spirits weren’t around.

It took effort getting to my feet. Crawling was an option, but I wanted to move quickly if I had to and crawling didn’t present that opportunity. Now that I stood, though bent against the wind that did make it past his wings, I could see what he was looking at. The dark mouth of the cave waited for me. It could be the maw of a beast for all I knew, but I walked towards it.

I expected something would greet me. There was nothing. It was just the mouth of a cave and though it was cold within, it was far better than the biting wind that wanted me to plummet. I leaned against the wall, unabashed that I needed to collect myself.

“Keep moving.”

His silhouette blocked the cave mouth. From in here, my right eye didn’t hurt so badly. It was a dull pain, but manageable. He flicked his beak in the direction he wanted me to go. If I waited too long, he might snap that hooked end at me and I was hurting enough.

I just wish that empty cavity within my chest would beat beside my regular heart. I wanted to know the shadows were near. What did they do to the wolf pack?

The wolves drudged up thoughts of Rex and Amber. That loneliness never left. It was as internal as my curse, though I was no longer afraid of the dark. There were bigger things to fear than shadows, like the fact that I was a killer.

“Move it,” he barked.

I pushed away from the wall, grateful that the ground was even. It was hard enough keeping balance with my body so stiff and cold. The cave appeared dark at the entrance, but the further in we walked, the walls shimmered with silvery minerals. It wasn’t a lot of light, but enough to see that nothing waited up ahead. The only terrible thing about the hall was that it was as frigid as outside.

If I slowed, feathers would brush the backs of my legs. I didn’t want it touching me. The feel of its energy still pulsed in my shoulders. It felt heavy like poison and all I wanted to do was wash it from my skin. He grunted in disapproval, probably wishing I’d be a little more helpless in the dark. I’m glad to disappoint.

A stronger light reflected off the wall just ahead and the pain was immediate. I cupped my right eye and hissed, wheeling away from the source. What was wrong with my eye?

She’s so bloody
.

Gah! Why wouldn’t Amber’s words leave me alone? I was becoming a monster and that was something I couldn’t give myself room to judge, not while I was here in another unknown situation. Still, the battle down in the Ardent Asylum haunted me. I could still hear the Free-String Walkers screaming. They were afraid of me; afraid of the shadows fighting for me.

The pain in the right socket of my eye was intense. It knocked me off balance and I leaned against the wall, dry heaving. The creature chuckled behind me.

The bird creature chuckled behind me. “Not so resilient are we?”

I shoved away from the wall. He still chuckled, but I forced my shoulders back and started walking toward the light. I focused on my movement, because my weak body barely wanted to corporate and I wouldn’t give him something else to laugh about.

The blue and pink lights grew brighter and I welcomed the mixed scent of sage and lavender. I expected more creatures that smelt like the thing that followed me. The passageway opened into an enormous chamber with crystals dripping down from the ceiling. Globes of light floated about the room in pinks and blue. What startled me, was that they were actually drifting. With my good eye, I could barely make out the wispy body within the glow of light.

“Will-o-the-wisps. You’ll see them in most faerie caves, but there are no faeries here. They’re easy to catch and their energy source is consistent,” a woman said.

A solid form separated from the shadow. The woman in question was at least seven inches shorter than me and I thought Starr, my ex-best friend, was short. Starr, my heart squeezed in thought. I couldn’t go there. I couldn’t wage war on my emotions when I had to keep it together.

The woman was as pale as my left arm. I’m sure it didn’t mean anything. What did bother me was that her eyes had the slight curve mine did. I was Asian mixed, but that was only stating the obvious. I didn’t want to think I was looking at my species. It didn’t mean anything, just yet.

She pushed her black hair over her shoulders. It was so human an action, but something about the movement spoke mimicry. I couldn’t be fooled by her. Her long maroon dress hid most of that pale flesh all the way down to her feet, but her movement was awkward.

“Utan, my faithful envoy, thank you for bringing me the girl, though I see you were rough with her.” She fell back in her chair.

It wasn’t until she made a deal of getting comfy in it, did I realize it was bone. Utan stepped ahead of me and shuddered within the feathers. It was a great deal of black bulk that became detached from his body. One minute he wore it, the next he stood in front of me looking completely human. The fact that he didn’t wear much, helped form that opinion.

He bowed. “By any means possible, mistress, those were your words.”

She wiggled her fingers at him, drawing my attention to her sharpened nails. They were as sharp as his talons, but outside the feathered mass, his feet were as normal as the rest of him. He took the steps with grace and for as little as he wore, apparently the cold didn’t bother him. He bent down on one knee, taking her hand and kissing the knuckles. I stared at his lithe form, catching the curve of his bony back. I didn’t like him.

She petted his head and he released her hand, but didn’t go far. He stood to the side of her chair like the good pet he was. I grinned at the thought and he frowned. Good, I fed off his hate. She was watching me too and though I couldn’t drop my metaphysical shields to read her, I knew that look. Sonya looked at me the very same way when she thought she had the upper hand. There was room for uncertainty and I could openly read that.

“Since you’ll be spending time here, you should meet the rest of the family,” she said.

There was movement among the shadows. Females, as short in stature as my cave host, made their presence known. Unlike my host, they had pointed ears, fierce emerald eyes and wore pine-green dresses that showed a great deal of flesh. Their skin was pale, but not the shade of porcelain my arm was. I’ve never seen auras like theirs, dark and glittery.

“These are Boabhan Sith,” she said.

I wasn’t completely comfortable with the faeries, but I knew their species. Bliss was a faerie, a guard for the Unseelie. I wondered if they knew him.

She reached back and took Utan’s hand. “You’ve already met one of my Callicantzaros. They are hell bound spirits. We spent time in the Underworld together, but once a year, they do get a week in this world to hunt.”

Utan’s upper lip curled back to show his fangs. Even the females had their noses up, sniffing the air.

“They smell your blood, how cute,” she cooed.

I had to disagree on what she found cute. I was tempted to raise a hand to my shoulders and access the damage, but I didn’t dare take my eyes off them. Without weapons, anything I did could appear weak.

The woman clawed her nails over the armrest. “So we finally meet, Belen McKnight. I hear you brought the Ardent Asylum down. The Diablos and Berserkers tried, but they always fail.”

I touched the diablo pin still grasping the thin fabric of my jacket. Actually, it was Katrina’s button and jacket. That night was a frenzy of events, starting with the death of many Xyla habitants and ending with everyone thinking I was dead too. Utan smiled at my silence, but the woman hardly seemed bothered.

“There is great pleasure knowing it took an army to bring you down. I have high hopes that you are my rightful heir,” she purred.

So I finally made it to the Reincarta. Sonya, the leader of the Ardent Berserkers, wanted to trade me to the Reincarta in hopes of getting her daughter back. I wonder if it worked. What I knew about the Reincarta was slim. No one wanted to be caught by them, but that wasn’t avoidable now.

“What do you think, Utan? Does she look like me?” she asked.

I felt stupid standing here with a hand over my right eye waiting to be observed. There was no doubt she already noticed my pale left arm.

“She has your eyes,” he said.

“And her father’s height,” she answered.

I squished the tiny piece of me down that was ecstatic to hear that I had parents. I really wanted to know that I was in foster care on accident, but I wouldn’t take comfort in the Reincarta. This woman wasn’t how I pictured my mother. I didn’t want to be raised in a cave with vampires, even if it was a consistent environment.

“What about the others? You don’t know who your rightful daughter is and don’t forget that Rose was down there too,” Utan said.