Beneath the Earth (Seven Wardens Book 3) Page 9

  She nodded and did as he instructed. The world went black and she scrunched her hands into fists before releasing them again. This was uncomfortable to say the least. Hopefully they could be done with it quickly and she would be left to get on with whatever path he selected for her to walk.

  The air thrummed with unfamiliar magic, both around the stones and around Macey herself. She wasn’t actually sure where the kludde started and where the magic from the stones did. All she knew was that she didn’t feel like her normal self.

  Something tugged to the left and she turned, only to see a forest of flaming trees. Macey shrunk back, the heat almost burning her face before disappearing as the magic in the air shut it down. That wasn’t the path she was supposed to take then. She couldn’t say she wasn’t relieved.

  This time, the magic tugged her to the right, where a great wave crashed down onto a seaside town. Macey raised her hands and tried to ward it off, but her own magic was bound by that of the stones and nothing happened. Once again, the image was shut down. That path probably wasn’t the right one to go down either.

  The magic was back. This time it felt like it gripped around her whole body, turning her around so she was facing the opposite way to where she had before. Or at least, she thought so. There was no actual way for her to be sure. With her eyes closed and her other senses pretty much useless, she could have been standing completely still for all she knew.

  As before, a scene rose up before her. An older version of herself sat in a comfy chair with a small bundle nestled in her arms. A door opened behind her and an older Flint stepped in, an adoring look on his face as he approached older-Macey and began to talk to her. Macey had no idea what they were saying, but the pure joy on their faces couldn’t be denied. Older-Flint leaned down and tickled the bundle, which squirmed in older-Macey’s arms. A baby. That was what it must be.

  The scene faded away in front of her, this time much less abrupt than before. Somewhere deep inside, Macey knew this meant that path might still be possible, but it wasn’t the one she should be taking now. A weird longing welled up inside her. She hadn’t realised how much she wanted that until this very moment.

  A new image drifted into being. It was Izban, his blue hair the only colour in the otherwise bleak and dark scene. He was talking to someone who purposely stayed in the shadows, his face hidden under a large black hood. Izban kept looking around, as if he was scared of being watched. Then he passed a little brown parcel to the hooded person and a flash of pain crossed his features. The metallic taste of betrayal ran over Macey’s tongue. Somehow, she knew that’s what Izban was doing. Betraying them.

  Another scene started. Macey looked about the same as she did now, though she was surrounded by a whirlpool of water. Other-Macey lifted her hands up, controlling the water as it spun higher and higher into the sky.

  A weird sensation made Macey step closer to the image, though the movement may well have been in her head rather than actually real. The vision changed, transforming before her into a great pit in the ground with Jared at the bottom and other Macey climbing down into it. The look on her face was pained but determined. Much like she’d actually feel if the situation arose.

  The vision changed again, removing other-Macey and Jared from the equation completely as her other men rose to the forefront, the crashing waves of the sea behind them as it broke over the rocks.

  They were in a small boat, shouting to one another and trying to gain control of it. Panic began to make itself known within her as she struggled to not to run to their aid. If they needed her help, then why were she and Jared still in Belgium with a kludde and not there? They shouldn’t have split up in the first place.

  As suddenly as it had all started, everything went black and Macey swayed back and forth, her consciousness somewhere between awake and asleep.

  Strong arms wrapped around her waist as the swaying intensified, almost going as far as falling.

  “The sea,” she muttered aloud. “We need to go to the sea.”

  “What?” a familiar voice asked.

  “We need to go to the sea,” she repeated, hoping Jared would listen this time. If it was Jared holding her at all. Though she was pretty sure it was.

  “We can’t go to the sea,” he said.

  “She’s responding to what she saw in her visions,” a different voice said. “It probably won’t come to pass like she’s seen it, but that’s the path she needs to travel the most.”

  “And it’ll end well?” Jared asked. His voice broke a little, betraying his concern over the whole thing. It would only have been noticeable to someone who knew him well and she longed to reach out and comfort him but didn’t seem to have use of her arms yet.

  “That will really depend on her.”

  “I can’t travel on the Staran,” Jared said, anguish spreading in his voice. “And I’ve used a lot of my earth magic to get us here. If I use any more, I won’t be of any use once we get to the sea.”

  A sudden image appeared in Macey’s mind, like an echo of the visions she’d been shown.

  “I think I can do it,” she muttered.

  “But… only Cam and Flint are able to.”

  “That was before I helped heal the Staran,” she said weakly, the last tendrils of the vision still running through her, making her unsteady on her feet. “I was inside of them, back when I first encountered Self-Doubt. I think it changed something. Let’s try it, it’s worth a stab.”

  Jared nodded. “Alright then. How do we do it?”

  “I’ll leave you to it,” Wilg said with a smile. “It was a pleasure meeting you. May you always find the right path, and may you always find the way back.”

  Macey wasn’t quite sure what to say to that, or if there was a phrase she was expected to say. “May the path be with you,” she stuttered. “Thank you for your help.”

  “The kludde will be ready to assist you, should we be needed,” the Teacher said while already turning away from them. “I hope you’ll manage to heal the earth. The world. Everything. Your path will be difficult, but there is a chance that you may succeed.”

  With that ominous statement, he disappeared into the mists surrounding the stones.

  “We will definitely succeed,” Jared muttered defiantly. “There’s no way we won’t.”

  Macey gave him a grim smile. “We’ll do our best. Now, any idea how to summon the Staran?”

  Jared shrugged. “No idea. Maybe think of them? Wish them into being? Honestly, I have no idea. Usually I travel with one of the others, and I’ve never thought to ask them how exactly they’re doing it.”

  Oh well, Macey would just have to try. If her men could do it, so could she. At least, she hoped so. It was just a hunch after all, and all the earlier vision had shown her was them travelling on the Staran, not how she entered it. Maybe they’d supposed to ask Wilg for help? It was too late for that now.

  She did as Jared had suggested and closed her eyes, thinking of the Staran.

  “Tell me if anything happens,” she warned the incubus, before focussing on the feeling of the Staran, the strange scent of them, the stomach-lurching feeling of travelling on them. She remembered the first time she’d done this. It felt so long ago, yet she could recall every detail. Every sensation.

  She instinctively pushed her magic into that memory, and Jared whooped.

  “It’s there!” He hooked an arm around her waist. “Quick, think of where you want to travel and hopefully they’ll get us there.”

  That’s when Macey noticed that she had no idea of the actual place her men were. All she’d seen in the vision was the sea, with no visible land or islands in sight. But what was it what the guys had told her when they’d first taken her to travel on the Staran? That they were sentient and sometimes knew where they were needed?

  She brought the image back into her mind. Flint, Cam and Rónán in their little boat, the waves threatening to overturn it. The looks of panic on their faces.

  Without thinking, she
took a step forward – and was catapulted into the Staran.

  Orca

  Twelve

  “Ehm, Macey? How are you doing this?”

  She opened her eyes and looked around. They were standing on solid ground – and below them was the sea. And the ground wasn’t there. Their feet were on nothing but air. But it felt solid. Macey tentatively took a step forward. Yes, solid.

  “I’m not doing anything,” she said. “It must be the Staran.”

  “Well, they got us to the right place.” Jared pointed to somewhere on the horizon. “I think I can see their boat. But now the big question is, how do we get down there? And then, how do we get to them? I’d like to avoid swimming in the ocean, if that’s possible. I’m not a great swimmer.”

  “If it comes to that…” Macey took a deep breath. “I’d let you ride on me.”

  Jared stared at her, then broke into laughter. “I’d never thought I’d ever ride you in that way.”

  “I take it back. You’ll have to swim.”

  Suddenly, a warm breeze surrounded them. It almost felt like a hug.

  “Jared… I don’t think the Staran are holding us up here.”

  His eyes widened slightly. “Air?”

  Macey nodded. Talia? She asked in her mind, but didn’t get a response. She hadn’t really expected one. Air was living inside of her, but it was more like an extra source of magic rather than a person or spirit.

  “Ehm, bring us down to them?” she asked tentatively. Luckily, Air seemed to understand. The warm breeze grew stronger and embraced them even tighter, until they began to move slowly, very slowly, through the nothingness of empty space above the sea.

  “This is so weird,” Jared muttered, and Macey wholeheartedly agreed. This way of travelling didn’t rank very high in her list of transport methods. To be honest, most of her recent trips hadn’t been very nice. Travelling through the earth with Jared… claustrophobic. Travelling on the Staran… creepy and nausea inducing. No, she much preferred swimming, walking, or even driving in a car. Maybe she was a bit conservative or anti-magic in that aspect.

  The closer they got to the boat bobbing up and down on the wild waves, the faster Macey’s heart beat. The men in the boat seemed calm, not shouting like she’d seen in her vision. Did that mean they’d arrived after or before the events in the vision?

  “They look okay,” Jared said, echoing her thoughts. “Do you think they’ve dealt with the Orca yet?”

  Macey shrugged. “No idea, but I think we’re about to find out.”

  They were now within shouting distance, so Macey put two fingers in her mouth and whistled loudly. Her brothers had taught her to do that when she’d first come onto land.

  The guys turned and even from the distance, Macey could see their jaws drop. They had to look ridiculous, floating down from the heavens like angels. Or demons, in Jared’s case.

  “Macey?” Cam shouted and Macey waved innocently.

  “Hey guys! We didn’t want to miss the party.”

  Inside, she wasn’t feeling as calm as she pretended to be, but she didn’t want to worry the men just yet. Maybe the battle was already over and everyone was safe. Maybe the vision of her standing inside that column of water wasn’t going to happen, or some time in the future, not now.

  Air pushed them forward one last time until they were hovering a few feet above the boat. Then she let them drop, and Macey landed in Flint’s arms, his mouth pressing against hers before she could even react.

  Jared hadn’t landed as softly, judging from his shouts, but Macey didn’t care. Flint’s lips were teasing her, welcoming her, and all she could think about was how comfortable she felt in his arms. They’d not been separated for long, but a lot had happened since they’d split up at Malan’s place.

  “My turn,” Cam grumbled and a moment later, Macey was ripped from Flint’s arms. She opened her mouth to complain, but Cam used that opportunity to kiss her, his tongue meeting hers in a breathless kiss. He ran his hands over her back and she melted into his touch. Now that she was with all her men again, she could feel the pieces in her come together; pieces she hadn’t even noticed breaking apart. Only now she felt how she’d not been whole.

  But now she was.

  When Cam ended the kiss, she stepped back and turned to Rónán. He was standing there, watching her, apparently not quite sure whether he could welcome her the same way as the other two.

  She smiled at him and opened her arms. Faster than she could see, he’d moved to her and hugged her tight, his lips seeking hers.

  “Sorry to interrupt your little boat trip, but have you fought the Orca yet?” Jared asked, reminding Macey that they had more important things to do than kiss her men.

  “Yes and no,” Cam said, his demeanour turning serious. Macey broke the kiss and turned, leaning against Rónán who wrapped his hands around her waist.

  “We found it, threw some magic at it, but it dived and disappeared without us being able to follow. So now we’ve been waiting here for it to resurface,” Flint explained. “It’s strong and seems quite resistant to magic. Even my fire didn’t leave a trace on its skin. No idea why it fled and didn’t fight.”

  “My fellow selkies are searching for it just now,” Rónán said from behind her, his chest vibrating softly as he spoke. “They don’t have a chance fighting it, but they’ll try and drive it to the surface so we can attack it. They’re giving me updates every few minutes.” He sighed. “It’s attacked two of their settlements already and several selkies have died. We need to kill it as soon as possible before it can slay any more of my people.”

  “Why can’t the selkies fight it?” Macey asked in confusion. “Don’t you have magic?”

  “Most of us don’t,” Rónán explained sadly. “I’m a bit of an anomaly. I know most kelpies have magic; maybe that’s why my people are jealous of you. The intrinsic selkie magic allows us to shift, but having offensive magic like me is rare.”

  Macey almost felt sorry for the selkies. It was natural to her to have magic; and she couldn’t imagine having shifting as her only power. Sure, it was great to be able to be both a kelpie and human, but she loved her water magic and the thrill it gave her whenever she used it.

  “So all we can do is wait?” she asked at the same time as a seal head broke the surface. She stared at it in wonder. It was larger than a normal seal, and the skin seemed to glitter in a slightly blue hue. She’d never seen a shifted selkie before; especially since Rónán wasn’t able to shift for some reason.

  The selkie made a strange noise and Rónán moved to the edge of the boat to talk to it with the same whining sounds. It was a very different language to the clicks the kelpies used to communicate.

  “It’s about a mile away,” Rónán translated and pointed to their left. “That way. It’s getting closer to the surface, so we might have a chance this time.”

  The boat began to move and it took Macey a second to realise that it was Cam propelling it with his wind.

  The selkie dived and disappeared in the dark waters.

  “Was that a friend of yours?” she asked Rónán and he grimaced.

  “I wouldn’t call her a friend exactly. More like a bully who I’d usually avoid. But right now, we’re all working together to fight the Orca.”

  The boat was racing over the waves, sea foam flying through the air and hitting Macey’s face. She wiped it away, tasting the salt as it touched her lips. She preferred freshwater, but swimming in the wild sea was almost as good. They didn’t have many waves in the loch she’d grown up in, only during the winter storms.

  “Almost there,” Cam warned them. “Better prepare for a fight.”

  They spread out so that they were able to watch the water around them in all directions. There was no sign of the Orca, nor of any selkies.

  “Did you manage to injure it at all?” she asked.

  “I don’t think so,” Flint replied, frustration lacing his voice. “But it dived too quickly so we didn’t get to
check. Let’s hope we can engage it longer this time.”

  The vision of the whirlpool flashed through Macey’s mind. Maybe that was the answer. If she managed to create a ‘hole’ in the water so the Orca couldn’t escape, the others might be able to kill it. But would she be strong enough? Her powers had increased, but creating a whirlpool like in the vision seemed way too difficult. If she failed, she might sink the boat.

  Another selkie head broke the surface and said something to Rónán.

  “It’s coming,” he warned the others. “Prepare yourselves, it’s almost below us.”

  Macey looked around, hoping to spot the Orca before it reached the boat. A dark shadow appeared to her right, far bigger than she’d expected.

  “Holy waves,” she muttered, before raising the alarm. “Over here!”

  The others turned to face the shadow that was rising quickly to the surface. It was too fast, too big. It was going to hit the boat.

  “Brace yourselves!” Macey shouted and clutched the railing just in time. The Orca’s head crashed into the boat’s side and the sound of splintering wood filled the air. There were screams behind her, but she didn’t have time to turn around before she was thrown into the sea, the piece of railing she was still holding flying along with her.

  She broke the water’s surface and before she could react, the shift came over her. She had no choice in the matter; one moment she was human, the next kelpie. She’d never shifted this quickly before. It should have scared her, but there wasn’t time. Her men were in danger.

  She focussed on finding them. Not many people knew that the antenna on her head was her seventh sense, a way to locate warm bodies in the water. Maybe it had evolved as a way to find other kelpies in large bodies of water, or prey – it didn’t matter.

  She sensed all four of them, three of them struggling in the water, one swimming confidently. That had to be Rónán. He didn’t need any help, so she focused on the other three.

  Two of them were close together, but the other one was drifting off, sinking further with every untrained swim stroke. Her antenna sense couldn’t tell her who it was, but he needed help, no doubt about that.