Shift - 02 (39 page)

Darkness swallowed us and I pawed desperately through the shadows.
 
When I felt Tiki’s warm flesh, I squeezed my hand around it. I could feel my nails digging into his shoulder and it took all I had to keep my grasp on Vincent. Keeping my magic focused was hard enough on a good day, doing it while mid-teleport was a different story.

Weight shifted around me, compressing my body as though it might implode. I fought to keep my breath, my magic wavering as my body writhed in pain. I had to keep my hold on Vincent; he’d be no good to me if he showed up lost somewhere in Theral.

I gritted my teeth as the power tightened its grip around us, building up and crushing my lungs and skull. The darkness broke and a faint glow shone beneath us. It grew brighter, turning into a rainbow of colors that became a kaleidoscope of power. The pressure grew, squeezing the air from my body as the rainbow faded and a gray surface came into view. As the portal expanded, the gray turned to blue and black stone. It went on endlessly in every direction, spikes of stone jutting from the earth. Cold air hammered against my skin as I neared the opening, but I was losing my elemental grip on Vincent.

The portal ripped open, letting the blue glow flood the darkness before the last push of magic spat us out. I hit the ground hard and tried to land on my feet, but the force made my legs buckle and my body rolled against the ground, breaking my focus. My element disappeared, sucking itself back inside of me.

With the exception of Tiki, everyone gasped for air and groaned from the impact. Tiki stood on his feet, strong and unaffected, but he looked weathered. Transporting this many people, even with Elyas' help was hard on him.

The black hole above had opened into a dark sky, floating on the air. I scanned the litter of bodies around me, but the vampire wasn't here. Panic filled me, and then the pale figure of Vincent came rushing out of the portal, followed by his scream before he smashed into the ground. Once it released him, the portal began to consume itself. Shrinking smaller it folded into itself until it was gone, leaving a starless navy sky above.

I clambered to my feet and struggled with the first few steps, my legs aching from the rough landing. Rai’s feathers were ruffled, but still they glistened in the light as she spread her four wings and leapt onto the cold air.

There was a huge blue moon shining to one side of us, and a green moon on the other. They seemed so low in the sky I felt as though if I walked far enough I could touch them. The bright glow lit the world in an eerie light. Tiki was right; this was nothing like Drakar.

We sat in the valley of a cold, rocky wasteland. Arches of stone were so black they gave off a reflection of everything around them, like a polished onyx. Blue rock walls grew up around us, with high cliffs on either side. Loose boulders and crumbling pillars made up the rest of the landscape, no hint of life anywhere to be seen.

“You imbecile, what have you done?” Vincent stormed towards me.

“You got exactly what you deserved. You’re a deceiving little cockroach and now you’re right where you belong: in the Underworld.”

“You forced me into another dimension?” In a blur, his hand was on my throat. His breath came in angry waves and the smell of coppery death poured from his lips. I channeled the fire element through my body and into my neck, picturing my skin to be scalding to the touch. Vincent tore his hand away, his pale skin marred and steaming.

“That’s right, and you’re going to help us or you’re going to die, whether at my hand, or your ancestors.”

“What ancestors?” He waved his hand in the air, watching the pale skin fold over and repair itself at a rate that alarmed me.

“Vampires, just like you. Only pureblood, making them older and more powerful,” Rayna said.

“Such things are a fallacy.”

“They are not,” Tiki said. “They are very real and very dangerous. The pureblood vampires are no laughing matter.”

“This is ridiculous,” Vincent muttered.

“Maybe next time, you’ll think twice before you cross me,” I said.

Vincent mumbled something under his breath in a language I couldn’t understand.

“Any ideas where the temple might be?” Rayna asked.

Everyone shrugged.

There was nothing but high walls surrounding us. The air was cold enough that I could see my breath, and I wondered how Tiki wasn’t freezing. He'd refused to come to Theral wearing the clothes we'd bought him, but even with his baggy pants and shirtless body, he seemed unaffected.

“Follow the moon.”
A voice echoed around me.

“What?” I asked.

Everyone turned to me with a strange look.

“Who said that?”

Rayna shook her head. “Nobody said anything.”

“It is I, Elyas. Follow the blue moon and it will take you to where you need to go.”
Elyas’ voice echoed through my head. I turned in a circle trying to find her, but she wasn’t here.

“You must hurry.”

“Should we just pick a direction?” Willy asked.

“No,” I said. I shook my head as the feeling of Elyas faded. “We need to walk towards the blue moon.”

“How do you know?” Rayna asked.

“I don't…” I started, but as bright green eyes looked at me, I started again. "It’s Elyas; she told me.”

Rayna arched a brow.

“It's like she's in my head.”

“Wonderful. Our fearless leader hears voices,” Vincent said.

“Let’s go. You’re up front,” I commanded.

I could see the hate in Vincent’s eyes. He wanted to respond. He wanted to kill me, but we both knew I was his only ticket home. Until he got there, he was going to do whatever I told him. Vincent's first priority was Vincent. I could count on that.

We walked for hours in silence. My senses were alive and straining to pick up a hint that something lived here. We knew there were pureblood vampires, but there were other creatures here, too. We just didn't know what.

The fact we hadn’t seen an inkling of life made my stomach clench. Tiki had been here only once before. He knew the power the vampires held, but still, he came. He knew I had to do this and he felt obligated to come. I glanced at him as he walked behind me. He was focused and ready for battle, but I found myself doubting him. I didn’t understand why he was helping me. Without him, I never would’ve been able to save Rayna and I’d be trapped in Drakar. But we only met by chance and once he found out who I was, he’d sworn some silent oath to me. He’d been loyal so far, but he was still a demon: untrustworthy to the end.

Tiki’s orange eyes were wide, scanning the world around us. Two short swords sat in a sheath on his back, moving with each step. Marcus trailed behind him. His brown gaze moved out over the endless rocks, looking for signs of life. His midnight skin reflected the moon and the look on his face was fierce. In this moment, he wasn’t the Marcus I knew; he was a soldier.

“You okay?” Rayna asked.

“Yeah, I’m fine. I just want to find the dagger,” I said. I’d promised to be honest with her, to tell her everything, but this wasn’t the time or the place. Besides, I wasn’t even sure that what I had to say was worth sharing. I was questioning someone I had no reason to question. I shook the feeling away and gave Rayna a smile I knew she’d believe.

“Okay,” she replied.

The scuff of rocks constantly made my pulse jump. My hand moved to my blade and my eyes shot to each and every face, watching the people I trusted stand guard around me. My gaze fell on Marcus again and all I could feel was hatred. His dark brown eyes never told you anything, even when you knew he had something to say. He was all about secrets. He was the reason my mother was dead. If it hadn’t been for him, none of this would’ve happened.

My eyes opened wide and I couldn’t believe what I was thinking. I knew better than that. I'd forgiven Marcus. It wasn't his fault my mother asked him to keep it a secret. He was honoring the request of a lifelong friend. Someone he loved with all his heart. After all he'd done for me, I owed him some respect.

I brought my water element up and let it calm me, pushing the anger aside. The cool river of magic flowed through my veins until it washed the emotions away.

“You sure you’re okay?” Rayna asked. “You look…weird.”

“I’m sure,” I said, trying to look genuine. “It’s just what happened back there…with the earth element. Suddenly, I have another power and I don’t understand it. I'm starting to be able to control the two I have, adding two more to the mix isn't helping. It’s strange, that’s all.”

“We’ll figure it out. Don’t worry.” Rayna gave a reassuring smile.

I smiled, but it was insincere. I wasn’t worried. I was happy to have more power. More power meant I was getting stronger. I would be harder to defeat. Soon, Riley would be begging for my mercy. Power meant respect. Power meant it’d be easier to take out the traitors surrounding me.

We walked for more miles than I could keep track of. I didn't doubt Elyas’ words, but I could feel everyone else doubting me, even in their silence. I shuddered, and I wasn't sure if it was because I knew what they all thought about me, my power, or if it was the filthy demons surrounding me.

I checked in on everyone, watching what they watched and keeping an eye on their weapons. They all paid close attention to the columns of black rock that jutted from the earth, each pretending to be there for me, but I knew they were only here for their chance to get the dagger. They wanted to steal the power that was rightfully mine.

The eerie feeling that someone was watching me moved through my body. I looked out to the rocky hills and tried to distinguish something, anything that might be there, but it was useless. This was a wasteland of stone and moonlight.

When I looked back at the group, I found Rayna staring at me. She scowled, and even though her lips weren’t moving, I could hear her words in my head.
“You think I don’t know? I do. I know exactly what you think of her, and me for that matter. You’re a liar. I’d love to beat that smug look off your face. Gods, it would feel good to hurt you.”
Rayna shook her head and her eyes changed from angry to confused. She turned away and watched the path ahead.

“Weird,” I whispered to myself.

“What was that?” Willy’s voice snapped at me. His brown eyes were angry and his beast was staring out from behind them. His forehead was creased and his eyebrows furrowed.

“Nothing.”

I could feel his angry gaze even after I’d turned away. It was burning through me and I wanted to keep an eye on him. I knew he’d stab me in the back the first chance he got. He was a shallow demon; a cheap shot was just up his alley. Wolf or no wolf, he knew he couldn't take me face to face. He'd be the first to try and get to me.

I shook the thoughts away. I didn’t really feel that way…did I? No. Willy would never do something like that. Besides, Willy was a coward on a good day. I didn’t even know why he was here; he was as useful as a knife with no blade. He wouldn’t fight back if I threatened to kill his Grams. Come to think of it, that wasn’t a half bad idea. I hated that old broad.

“If that’s really what you think, why don’t you say so?” Willy asked.

“What?” I turned around and anger filled me. Surely this small, lost, little demon wasn’t talking back to me.

“You heard me. If you think I’m so useless, why keep me around? In fact, why don’t you just kill me yourself? You’re supposed to be a big bad demon hunter, but given the company you’re in, I’d say your daddy issues have you confused.”

Anger raged inside me, and with it, the air element came. I turned around and my magic blew Willy’s body off the ground, throwing him back into a black column of rock. The pillar’s base broke and crumbled with the impact, and we all jumped back as it fell.

“I’ll kill you, you stupid mutt!”

A deep, earth shaking sound echoed through the valley as the pillar hit the ground, and Willy growled in pain and anger. He jumped to his feet and his wolf took over. His eyes shifted and thick claws jutted from his hands.

“Hey! What’s the matter with you two?” Marcus stepped between us.

“Don’t stop them; let them have a go.” Vincent’s yellow eyes were gone, replaced by solid black. “Let the little wolf bite him and see what happens. Once he’s out of the way, I’ll make a nice snack out of you.” His pale skin vanished and his demon broke through. Long, bonelike talons sprouted from his hands, and I could see the black blood pumping through his veins, pushing against his glassy skin.

“Something’s not right.” Rayna sounded confused, but I didn’t take my eyes off Willy. A deep growl rumbled from his lips and I slid a silver blade from its sheath.

I whistled. “Here, doggy, doggy.”

Rayna’s magic fell over us. Her element moved through my body and sparked the same element inside me. The power pumped through my veins and it brought a calm over me.
 
All the hatred I felt faded, and the horrible thoughts vanished, replaced by guilt. Rayna’s magic amplified my own element, and our powers merged, pooling together and spreading out around the others.
 

“She’s right. Something isn’t right here.” I rubbed my temples, trying to rid the feeling of someone poking around in my brain. The grainy feeling inside my skull reminded me of the night at the Circle with Riddley’s magic.