Chapter Forty

Rhenn

Rhenn quietly led the way up the corridors. She knew exactly where the Thuros room was and the quickest way there.

They both kept an eye out for N’ssag’s high primes, but neither she nor L’elica saw any. At one point, Rhenn heard the sounds of battle, but it came from down a corridor to the left, toward the enormous throne room she’d seen the last time she’d been here.

Rhenn gave a significant look back at L’elica, who glanced tensely to the left. There was still a battle. That meant there were survivors, but the blond woman had been right. If they were to stop N’ssag’s plan—not to mention the hopes of whoever this Ventat Obrey was—they had to get out of here. The best outcome would be if N’ssag simply couldn’t find Rhenn, didn’t know she was at V’endann Keep, didn’t know that she’d come to the nuraghi during this battle.

They nodded together, jogged down the right-hand hallway, and arrived in the Thuros room.

The colors of the Thuros swirled, eternally waiting for those who knew its secrets. Rhenn pulled the Plunnos from her pocket and stepped onto the dais. She could hardly believe it. She was here at last, yet she hesitated, turning the giant coin over and over in her hand.

Rhenn had dreamed of returning home since she had been abducted, of seeing her friends again, but now that she was here, everything had changed. She was a bloodsucker. Would even Lorelle receive her as a friend? Luminents believed in the sanctity of life. Lorelle had never killed anyone in her life, even throughout all of the battles they’d shared together. How could a Luminent condone that Rhenn now had to feed upon the living?

“Why do you hesitate?” L’elica asked. “Work the portal.”

“I just…” Rhenn began.

“We are not safe here, Rhenn. It is sheer luck we made it this far. We shouldn’t linger.”

“You’re right. Of course you’re right.” Rhenn flipped the coin at the swirling colors. It struck and bounced back directly into her hand. She thought of home. Of the basement beneath her father’s study. Her study.

The swirling colors retreated toward the stone arch of the Thuros. The basement room appeared beyond.

A hiss rose behind them, and L’elica spun, crouching.

A high prime slunk into the room, followed by another, and then another.

“They found us,” L’elica said. “Go! We must go now!”

Rhenn charged into the open portal with L’elica right behind her. The oozing feeling slid over her body and through it. She and L’elica landed on the dais on the other side.

“My queen!” a breathy voice called after her.

Rhenn spun, arm raised to throw the Plunnos and shut the gateway, to cut off her kingdom from this hellish place. But she froze.

Beyond the Thuros and across the room, N’ssag stood in the doorway. His greasy ponytail hung down across his face like he had been running. Breathing hard, he held his ruby-topped rod in his hand. The ruby glowed, and the sharpened end was slick with blood that dripped onto the ground.

“Don’t…” he said. “Be hasty. Don’t be so hasty.”

“Close the portal,” L’elica demanded.

Rhenn was about to throw the Plunnos when two high primes dragged someone else into view behind N’ssag. The muscled man hung limp between the powerful high primes, his curly hair lank in his eyes and bearded face downcast.

“E’maz!” Rhenn yelled.

He raised his head at her voice. One eye was swollen shut. His left cheek was bruised and he had a cut from brow to chin. His tunic was stained red. There were two puncture wounds high on his right side, like he’d been shot with arrows.

N’ssag had stabbed him with that damned rod!

“This is your lover, yes?” N’ssag said, moving to E’maz’s side.

“Rhenn, close it!” L’elica said.

“You told me he was dead!”

“I thought he was. I saw him fall!”

“Let him go,” Rhenn said to N’ssag, approaching the portal.

“Oh I will… Of course I will, my queen. But you see… we have unfinished business, you and I. If we can just… finish it. Then I will let him go.” N’ssag beckoned for her to come back through the Thuros.

Rhenn’s heart hammered. “Give him to me.”

“Yes…” N’ssag said. “Yes… I will. Of course I will. Just… come back through.”

“Rhenn, close the—”

N’ssag stabbed E’maz in the side, deep. He cried out and drooped in the grips of his tormentors. The ruby glowed brighter.

Rhenn screamed and leapt through the portal.

“Rhenn no!” L’elica shouted.

But all Rhenn could see was that insidious rod sticking out of E’maz’s side. All she could see was his blood as N’ssag yanked it out. She landed on the dais on the Daemanon side and drew her sword.

“I’ll kill you!” She leapt at N’ssag.

Something hard slammed into her sword arm, and her strike went wild. Her sword clanged to the ground, slid across the stones. Someone had hit her from behind!

Rhenn whirled to find that two of the high primes had somehow crept across the room and positioned themselves on either side of the Thuros. They’d attacked the moment she’d come through.

She slammed a fist into the face of the one on the left and kicked at the knee of the one on the right. Her fist landed solidly, blasting the creature back, but her kick missed. The bloodsucker clambered up her, grabbed her right arm and sank its teeth into her.

She punched, but another high prime caught her left arm.

“No!” she shouted.

Then L’elica was there. She slammed into the bloodsucker who had bitten Rhenn’s arm, tearing him free. The teeth took flesh, and Rhenn shouted through the pain.

She spun, but two more high primes slammed into her before she could orient. Then another. And another.

She kicked and punched and fought, but she’d lost her leverage. They were all as strong as she was. Keening like a wildcat, she struggled as they lifted her off the ground and slammed her back down. Each had a different limb, and they pulled, spread-eagled her on the ground.

Rhenn craned her neck wildly, looking for a weapon, something to turn the battle.

All she saw was L’elica, held similarly against the ground, blood leaking from slashes across her face, except there were only two high primes on her, one with both her arms, the other with both her legs. They seemed sufficient to hold her.

N’ssag smiled as he crossed from the captive E’maz to Rhenn.

“Ooohhh,” he said. “Oh, you are beautiful, my queen. Oh, the things I wish we had the time for…” He pushed aside his voluminous cloak and drew a dagger from his waist. She recognized it as E’maz’s magic dagger.

“You remember this, I think,” he said. “I found it at the baron’s keep. Such powerful magic inside. I do love it so. It tends to undo my creations. I think you remember that.”

“I’m going to kill you…” She seethed.

N’ssag chuckled. “No, I was foolish enough to give you one chance, back when I hadn’t yet perfected my new process. No more chances.” He glanced at L’elica. “Oh, my sweet. My dear, traitorous L’elica. You broke my heart. I gave you everything. Everything. And you betray me? Your fate will be the worst, I think. I will slice you with this dagger until you stop moving. You see, I’m very interested in its properties, in what it does to my primes. Clearly, I cannot afford to destroy my useful primes. But the two of you, yes. I believe in taking responsibility for one’s actions. I made you. I will unmake you both.”

“Better do it quick or—”

“Or what? Or what, my queen?” He shook his head and brought the tip of the dagger up to her eye. She turned her head away, but one of the high primes grabbed it and forced it back. “No, I’ve seen through your act, my queen. The way you swagger into a room. The way you command those around you. You pretend you have an army at your back, but you don’t. You have no one and nothing. A lone, pitiful woman with delusions of power. This is my kingdom, not yours—”

A retching sound came from behind Rhenn, like someone was vomiting.

“Oh,” someone said, as though trying to talk while they were still throwing up. “That is… That is just fascinating. Those people are dead. All of them, except maybe the greasy one. They’re dead! How are you doing that?”

Rhenn wrenched her head.

Slayter stood in the archway, eyes glowing with interest as he wiped vomit from his chin. A dark cloak unfurled behind him, slithering back to reveal a woman who looked like a Luminent except with midnight skin and hair, all save one glowing blond lock at her brow. The cloak retreated behind her body, and Khyven the Unkillable stepped around her.

He walked through the Thuros, eyes narrowing. Slayter followed, his shoulders jumping as he shivered at the sensation, and the black-skinned Luminent came last.

Khyven smiled his charming smile, the one that seemed friendly. The one that meant he was ready to kill.

“That’s our friend you’ve got there.” He pointed at N’ssag with his sword. “I suggest you let her go.”