“We need something from Cerix to get us there,” I repeated the problem.
Lead weighed down into my stomach, as I looked around the two tables we’d occupied in the middle of the library. I wasn’t the only one feeling like this.
“We’ve got nothing,” Varga replied, a muscle twitching in his jaw.
I found myself following its sharp lines, combined with his curly, brownish blond hair, and his deep blue eyes. His skin carried its pearly, vampiric sheen, artfully stretched over toned muscles and long, athletic limbs. I could only imagine what I’d find once I peeled away at the layers of clothes.
A second later, I mentally chastised myself for falling into the Varga trap again. He was dangerously handsome, downright gorgeous, and a prince. Well, the latter part would’ve made my mother swoon, since she was the one who cared about royal bloodlines more than most. Personally, it annoyed me. I’d had enough of the royalty crap already. I liked my normal life more than anything. To think I’d almost married Draven. I could’ve been a queen of this castle. Eek!
“We have something, actually,” Riza chimed in, then turned a journal around for everyone to see. We got up and moved around the table, so we could all have access to those handwritten pages and the translated texts appended to them. “The Druids kept a museum of sorts on Persea, a long time ago. They stored soil and rock samples and various other artifacts from every planet they visited.”
“Remind me again,” Varga said, “how Druids found these planets via interplanetary spell, if you need something from said planets to find them, in the first place?”
“Well, technically, and with a potent swamp witch on board, you can influence the trajectory of an aimless interplanetary spell,” Amelia explained. “The Druids took some risks to explore the In-Between like that, but it obviously paid off. Riding an interplanetary spell without a destination isn’t something I’d recommend to the layman, though. I suppose the Druids knew what they were getting themselves into, and they also trusted the swamp witches.”
Varga’s shoulder brushed against mine, and a wave of foreign but delicious heat burst through me. How the hell could I burn like this? What would happen if I touched his skin, directly? Would I explode, like a dying star? He leaned over the table, squinting over the journal pages.
“So, we’re hoping there’s something from Cerix in that place?” he asked.
Amelia smiled. “Yup. It’s almost certain, thanks to Riza’s discovery. Based on the descriptions in this document, the Druids made sure to bring sufficient samples from every planet they visited, since they intended to go back, with the prospect of establishing new trade routes.”
“Then a visit to Persea is in order. Where’s the museum?” Raphael asked.
I could almost feel the hope blossoming in our chests, until Amelia crushed it with a pout. “It’s a pile of rubble, now. From what I understand, after Azazel came to power, one of the Druids’ last efforts to conserve their work was to transfer the contents of the museum elsewhere. Somewhere outside of Eritopia, shortly before the Daughters cast their time-lapse spell over the galaxy. The museum building was destroyed when Azazel invaded Persea.”
Raphael frowned, as he seemed to remember something. He rushed back to one of the nearby shelves, then came back with another log book of sorts. He rummaged through its pages until he found what he was looking for.
“Aha!” He cackled, as if having discovered the secrets of the universe. “I knew I remembered something about a museum transport!”
He showed us the pages. We read the translations, then exchanged confident glances. Hope was emerging once more, this time stronger than ever. Even Amelia’s factoid realism couldn’t stomp it.
“There was a transport made to Akvo,” Draven said, after reading the logbook entry. “About fifty years before the Daughters isolated Eritopia from the rest of the In-Between. Crates with various artifacts were loaded onto an interplanetary travel spell and sent from Persea to the water fae’s planet. That was the last time an interplanetary travel spell was used. Azazel killed the swamp witches shortly afterward, if I remember correctly. And Lumi was imprisoned on Neraka at the time.”
There were four star systems that belonged to the fae, each associated with their predominant element. The Fire Star was, despite its name, a planet and the home of the fire fae. Akvo, in the neighboring solar system, was the water fae’s domain. The Emerald belonged to the earth fae, and Zephyr was a haven of the air fae. After the Blackout, all four worlds had increased their elemental power and, by default, the fae’s abilities. Fires burned hotter and brighter. Winds blew stronger. Water swelled and pummeled when commanded, and the earth rumbled, its fruits fuller and tastier than ever before.
According to the log book, we now had to venture to another solar system, deep into fae territory. Akvo could hold the key to our mission of getting to Cerix via interplanetary spell. However, there was a weight pressing down on my heart. I’d begun to associate the fae with the Hermessi—after all, the former were emissaries of the latter. Maybe it wasn’t a wise thing to do, but I reserved the right to have my doubts. Something told me there might be danger afoot, though I had nothing to back me up in this suspicion, so I kept it to myself.
“Okay. We’re definitely getting somewhere, and it’s only been a day,” Taeral said, suddenly brighter and perkier than before. He gave us all an encouraging smile. “Well done, team. We’re going to Akvo!”
Maybe I should’ve been more thrilled about this, like the others on my team. But I wasn’t. I did smile back and tried to look on the bright side. I’d wanted to travel more for months, now. So far, I’d trekked the In-Between plenty already, in less than a day. So, there’s that.
Taeral
Needless to say, I was feeling a lot better.
The investigation had a clear course now. We had leads and means of following up on them. Most importantly, a resolution seemed closer than before. My people needed closure, and plenty of innocent lives could be saved in the process.
Granted, I had no idea how to stop a rogue fire Hermessi, and there was no guarantee that the shipment from Persea to Akvo had actually contained the museum samples, but I couldn’t let any of that get me down. We knew a lot more now than we had this morning. We didn’t know how or why this entity was committing such atrocities, but I figured we’d ask him once we found him. The fae side of me was strong, and I was determined enough to summon the fire Hermessi as soon as we learned which one he was.
With that in mind, I guided my team back to the portal on top of Luceria. I had Akvo’s coordinates handy, along with many others, stored in a little black notebook I kept hidden in a chest pocket. We’d made some progress with installing new portals on the four fae planets, thanks to the discovery of serium—it still wasn’t an easy feat for the witches, but the glowing blue crystal had helped establish new access points on Zephyr, Akvo, the Fire Star and the Emerald, along with the existing ones in Eritopia, The Shade, Neraka and Strava. We said goodbye to Draven and Serena again, and promised to stay in touch via our earpieces and Telluris in case the equipment failed.
Amelia had already briefed the rest of GASP, so we were leaving Calliope with all our affairs in order. By the time I introduced Akvo’s coordinates into the portal’s stone frame, the moon had risen proudly above. Midnight was only a couple of hours away.
“Everyone ready?” I asked, then glanced over my shoulder to check on the team.
Amelia was the first to nod, after she put her tablet away, then pulled her hood and mask to cover her head and face. She noticed my curious expression and shrugged.
“It’s daytime on Akvo. I checked,” she said.
“Ah, nice one!” Varga replied, then covered himself.
Eva grinned, then did the same before she looked at me. “So, yes, we’re ready.”
“Raphael? Herakles? Riza? How about you?” I asked.
Herakles had a mouthful of casserole, gleefully scarfing it down. Varga had kept his promise and brought up some food from the castle’s kitchen shortly after dinner. We’d finished late in the library, so, by the time we got to the dining hall, the tables had already been cleared.
“I’m great,” Herakles managed after he swallowed.
Raphael couldn’t take his eyes off Herakles. “Yeah, we’re good,” he said, half smiling.
I, too, was amused by the hilarious contrast between Herakles’s bulky, massive figure and his often-childish demeanor. He was a rebel and a pirate by nature, but that was mostly when he was left on his own—that was when he was most prone to rising against the system, in general. However, when in a group, Herakles sort of changed. He was still a remarkable fighter, fierce and with sharp instincts, but he was more sociable, noticeably relaxed and focused on the littlest pleasures of life. It was as if he could chill for a little while, knowing that he had us by his side, watching his back.
Then again, Herakles had always had a certain nonchalance about him. I thought he was simply coming into his own now. Luckily, his monstrous appetite and “hangry” fits didn’t kill any of his charm. Judging by the glances that Riza stole at him, she probably found him endearing.
I turned around, content to have this crew with me, and put in Akvo’s coordinates. The mist turned pale blue, and I could almost smell the salty ocean air, already. I set foot inside, ready to tackle the next stage of my mission.
The water world opened up before us.