The library building in Tayonne, supported by columns covered with a creeping plant, is waiting for us. A new statue of a wolf pack sits right in front of the entrance. Compared to the old, almost historic building, it looks out of place. Soon the complex will become the first Academy in Athran. And as such, it has very old archives full of valuable volumes under the ground floor. I’m guessing that’s the interesting part.
I let my long, annoyingly conical dress disappear in a flood of white smoke. As soon as the smoke cleared, my white armour remained. Decorated with the golden rays of the sun. I wished for a lion's head, but my beloved uncle had no regard for it. I almost forgot how good it felts to have the armour on. Every part of it hugs my body tightly, yet it doesn't restrict my movement. And along with the armour appeared my sword, safely hanging at my side. Ready for anything to come.
"Pretty cool," Cayden muttered admiringly.
"It's..." a loud bang interrupted me, the library building shook with a massive explosion, the glass panels from the huge windows shattered, and along with other pieces of wood and rock flew in all directions. I lifted my shield to protect us from a shower of sharp bits and a cloud of swirling dust. "...convenient," I finished my thought when everything fell silent again.
"I'm surprised the whole thing didn't fall," Lukas assessed the situation with a smile. He’s been frowning all day and this lifts his mood? I thought the same thing, though... One explosion is probably not enough to turn a huge stone structure into a pile of rubble, but...
"You should be glad it's still standing because you're going in," Emmett said behind me, completely freaking me out. What does he want here?
"Really? That's some fucking news to me!" Lukas smirked and made his way to the door leading to the building. I should reprimand him for his tone, but I'm still mad with Emmett.
"The statue doesn't have a scratch, fucking unbelievable. Father would freak out if something happened to it," Emmett said as we walked by. If I had more time, I would have taken care of the stone pack myself. It’s just so ugly.
The massive door is surprisingly easy to open, Lukas didn't even have to lean into it. The lobby is a terrible mess, but nothing seems to suggest that the whole building should collapse to the ground any minute. Shattered glass and loose papers apparently took the worst part of the impact.
But the thing we're all here for is safely hidden in another place. At least I hope so. Yesterday I came here for a very old and rather dangerous book. The administrator claimed he had never heard of such a book and he did not have access to such volumes in the archives. And to my misfortune, the bastard wasn't lying. So I had no good reason to get rid of him, and since I could easily get permission from the man who rules the country now, I had decided to respect him for once. One more day didn't seem like a very long time to wait for a book, that’s been sitting here for ages.
"I need to get to the archive, the one below the place." there's a map on an employee's desk, not that it's useful. Just upper levels.
"Do you know what's going on here?"
"No... I'm here for the book club," I tapped my fingers on the tabletop, whoever worked here wasn't a mage. I can't follow any of his or her tracks, no tiny spells, bored formulas, nothing.
"I'm here for the book club," Emmett repeated in a high-pitched voice. With a serious face, he shook his head and folded his arms. What is he even doing here, shouldn't he be lecturing someone back home? "Seriously, Ans..." he returned to his deep voice. "The archive is on the other side of the courtyard. In the building opposite, down the stairs." Emmett gestured toward the long hallway. If nothing else, at least he knows his way around here.
He's still wearing a suit, something sturdier, would be a lot better option. I should point it out to him. If this building starts to fall apart, it will come in handy. Like my armour, its protected by a few spells. It won't stop the falling rocks, but it will give him a good chance over the smaller ones.
There is a loud bang from behind the door he pointed to. This time no shock wave followed.
All four of us ran in that direction. One wing is ajar, the other is completely missing. I was the last to run to the courtyard. Unnaturally blue light floods the small space with its rays. Dust is swirling in the air and a putrid stench is spreading around us. I hear the clang of steel and a strange grunt, but I see nothing. I tried to wave my hand and clear the space in front of me, but nothing happened. What kind of bloody magic is this?
Another loud bang, the ground beneath my feet shook. The shock wave came from nowhere, the ground disappeared. With a thud, I landed on a pile of rubble. This time the building wasn’t so lucky, one of its walls began to collapse. Pieces of stone wall with loud bangs fell to the ground. So much for the new Academy at this place.
The armour engulfed most of the impact, but it didn’t stop the darkness. I struggled to stand up, my whole body ached, but I'm pretty sure I didn't break anything. I looked around, the first thing I have to do is to find my idiotic friend. He can take care of himself better than anyone, but I'll be calmer when I find him. "Em?" puffs of dust hide piles of rubble, and with each falling rock, their fine particles rise again into the air, where they almost stop. I took a few steps.
Emmett is already getting up from a pile of rocks not far from me. He screamed as he did so, holding his right side. I got to him, caught him before he could head down to the ground again. I should have warned him. Instinctively, I slid my hand down my left.
We passed a grunting blue-eyed monster trapped under a stone. I’d like to free this thing from its suffering, but I’m still holding Emmett and I don’t want to let go of him. It seems that the dust is starting to settle very slowly, I can't see much, but it's improving. Pieces of bodies twitch on the ground. And I noticed a familiar fabric on their bodies. Well, that solves one mystery.
"They're wearing military uniforms," Emmett gasped. "your uniforms."
"Technically Athran," I looked at him. There is surprise in his face curved by pain. Some strands of hair fell to the side. I pulled them back and let him go, after making sure he could stand on his own. "We need to find the others and get to the archive before it's too late. You’re good?"
"Yeah, peachy. Fuck the archive, I thought... you're here for Steve," he said, pausing to breathe. He took a few uncertain steps, as my heart stopped.
"No, why... I thought he is in Dithune." it's like I'm flying through the air again, crashing into another pile of rubbish, only much harder. And this time is harder to recover. I didn't even think he could be here. Why would he do something so stupid? He may be under one of those piles of rubble... I thought he was safe… but he’s not.
"So you didn't come to... save his ass." he shouldn't waste his breath. I want to run around and search every single pile of rocks on the ground. And I have to force myself to take a single step. The comfortable armour turned into an unimaginable burden that holds me in place. What the fuck does he think he's doing?
The still-standing wall of the library emerged from the dust screen. We’re going around the square, taking the longer route. On the map back in, it seemed smaller. "Maybe now... he won't even want... your help," he gasped again, still can’t forgive himself for the remarks.
"Zip it, Em." I clenched my teeth, I wanted to hit him so badly, but I keep telling myself that broken ribs hurt him much more with every move. I would welcome the opportunity to hit anything. With my sword or fist… How did Steven get the idea to come here? I have to find him and make sure he's okay. Before I go crazy. Or I'll faint. Both are quite likely.
Emmett stopped out of nowhere and held up one finger. I can hear the grunts too. It doesn't sound human, it's too deep for that, and it doesn't resemble any animal. I switched places with Emmett, soon I would need the blade in my hand. I need to concentrate and stop thinking about Steven. Damn.
I took a few more steps, Lukas's body emerging from the dust screen. My friend lies motionless on the ground with his throat torn and his eyes wide open. I cried out in fright, Emmett cursed loudly beside me. This isn’t good. It’s bad actually, really bad. I bent down to my dead friend's body and pulled down his eyelids. It's worse than I thought. The Guard is made up of the best of the best. It's not just about how they fight, they're men with a lot of talents that ordinary people lack, soldiers and commanders lack. Besides, it's not just a group of randomly selected men in uniforms. They are trained to do everything I need, whenever I need it. And what’s worse, over the years we have become close.
And one of them lays on the ground, in a pool of blood.
"Ans, we don't have time for that right now."
"I know," I wiped away a tear as I struggled to stand up. I know I have to keep going. And I have to leave his body behind.
"I'm sorry." Emmett squeezed my shoulder gently.
"Me too," I shook off his hand. I know that damn well. It doesn't matter that one of my best soldiers is lying in a pool of blood. That my friend lies there. It sucks. It hurts. And there’s nothing to do about it. The cup of my patience overflowed. Fear is slowly replaced by adrenaline. I have to help the living. I have to find Steven and Cayden. Now.
The square is a lot bigger than I thought. The paths in the grass are not usable due to the ubiquitous debris, and when I’m going around the big stones, I have to be careful to turn back in the right direction. There's damn dust everywhere. It makes me breathe shallowly and cough. And I have to keep going anyway.
The second guardsman slowly retreats from a group of approaching enemies. I see three, the first, only a few steps away from Cayden standing with his back to me. I know how fast they can be and I'm not going to lose another friend. I need to slow them down. Elemental spell is quite useful for this. Frost slows down everything, fortunately even the three of them. With one slash, I knocked off the head of the first of them. I didn't even look where it landed, and with another slash I cut open other's skin. His head didn't completely separate from his body, but after a while he stopped twitching on the ground. The sticky black liquid stained my armour, slowly trickling down in disgusting streams. It's definitely not blood. And I really hope I don't have to clean it up.
Cayden tries to deal with the last one of them. the attacker is missing his arm and weapon, black liquid slowly oozes from the wound and falls to the ground in thick droplets. But that doesn't stop him from running up to Cayden and trying to rip out pieces of flesh with his teeth as Cay keeps dodging without getting a chance to repay the attack. "Kick him to me!" I shouted. Cayden obeyed immediately. A mountain of flesh in a familiar uniform rushes in my direction. I braced my legs and grabbed the sword with both hands. The tip passed through the black cloth on the back and immediately came out on the other side. I felt it stop against the chest plate on the other side. With some effort, I pulled the blade out of the wound and took a quick step aside. To my surprise, the sticky liquid does not stench. It smells rather sweet. Whatever has become of their blood is full of magic.
The body collapsed to the ground beside me. I bent down to wipe my sword a little on the dead man's clothes. His face looks familiar. I've seen that wide nose and a scar on the chin before. I may have met him on one of my visits to the training town, but I'm not sure. I don't want to think about it for too long, in case I’d remember.
"Ans!" I quickly stood up and hurried to the sound of Emmett's voice. Through all the debris on the ground and the dust still in the air, I can't see anything. I'm starting to get annoyed by it, but I don't have time to examine the blue light and the reasons as to why the dust around it doesn't want to settle down. With each step, it becomes harder to breathe. I'm running out of air and getting dizzy, possibly not only because of the dust.
Emmett bends over a seemingly motionless body, next to a pile of rubble. Green eyes are closed, hair scattered and full of dust. I can't see any injuries, I'm not sure if he's breathing. I can't even check it, my eyes immediately filled with tears. My knees buckled, I hit the hard rocks beneath, and didn't feel the pain. My worst fear came true, my heart stopped. All thoughts cleared the field, and only a terrifying emptiness remained.
I looked up and found an old friend's gaze. He smiled and winked at me. It took me a few more quickened heartbeats to figure it out. "Fuck..." I was so relieved I could only start laughing.
"It looks like... you can save his ass after all," he smiled gleefully. Which contradicts the way he behaves. His brother's head rests on his thigh, Emmett very carefully rolled up his sleeve, pressing his thumb to his brother's wrist. I watched his every move, he moves him carefully, almost screamed in pain several times and not swearing once. That’s not at all like him. He acts as if the flabby body was made of porcelain and could turn into a pile of shards at any moment. That short teaser told me everything I wanted to know about their relationship. Emmett cares. A lot. "He's waking up, shall I hand him to you?"
"Stop it," I shook my head. I'm not in the mood for his jokes. I wiped away my tears and picked myself up. "Just get out of here. Both of you."
"Are you planning on staying?" several more rocks came loose and hit the ground behind them. Emmett shouted. "Are you crazy?!"
"No," I hope not, but I can't be quite sure. Ever since I met Steven, I can't rely on my own common sense. The strength and determination to keep going is leaving me. I want to go back with him, watch him wake up, but I can't. I can't drop everything. Not even because of him. I don't know what's going on here or who's behind it. All I know for sure is that I need to get the book. Everything else has to wait. Lukas's body, Steven, Emmett, the bodies of those things... "Cayden?"
"Ready." Cyaden's voice sounds as calm as ever. He had to come to the same conclusion -first, the thing we came here to do. Others have to wait. Cay jumped over smaller rocks and almost disappeared from my sight in the swirling dust.
The door leading to the second building are open, I can't see anything in the corridor behind it. The view is blocked by a piece of wall that didn’t crumble into smaller stones on impact and still holds together. I squeezed between the rocks and the wall and added to my stride. We almost ran down the long corridor and continued down the staircase in complete silence. Cayden is usually talkative, now I'm grateful for his silence. I'm beginning to understand why they wanted to turn it into an Academy here. The rows of rooms and potential classrooms are endless.
The stairs lead to a huge hole in the wall, roughly where I would expect a door. That would explain the tremors. This place is supposed to be protected magically, but instead of securing the entire building, or at least the door, it seems only the lock was secured. The whole, intact mechanism lays nearby. Dust isn’t held by any field here, it managed to settle down. Pieces of destroyed walls and doors remained in a small circle around the hole. The archive seems intact as well. It is already clear to me that we are too late here. Whoever was here has a huge head start.
I ran down a long alley, surrounded by shelves of books. I pass them one after another. Endless rows of high shelves with more and more books. The Tayonne archives are so much larger than I thought. I know everything important and Athran ends up here, but still. I'm running and there is no end to it. I'm starting to feel pain in both knees, until now I haven't realized how much it hurts. The soles of my tall, heavy boots slide on the polished tiles under my feet. And I’m still not fast enough. The pain brings tears to my eyes, I see everything around me blurred. The shelves must end somewhere. I took a heavy breath and tried to run even faster, each step sending a sharp pain from my knees to my whole body.
The wall, finally.
I turned sharply to the right, I can't run any faster, but I can't slow down. I remind myself there will be time for everything later. I just have to keep running. To make up for the time I allowed myself to lose. The white tiles slip under my feet, I run out of breath, my muscles slowly stiffen. I can't stop now. My muscles don't listen to me at all. I tripped and fell on my aching knees, sliding to the end of the aisle.
I'm looking at the same hole in the wall as before. The door leading to the safe no longer exists. An empty pedestal in the middle of the room confirms the sad truth. We are late. "The fucking book isn’t here," I gasped softly, hearing approaching footsteps. Cayden stopped just behind me.
He didn't say a word. He helped me back up and leaned me against another of the endless shelves. The gray-green eyes are full of anger and sadness. He braced his fists on the shelf and exhaled, and in the next moment he began to pull out thick bundles of books and throw them against the wall opposite. Torn pages descend a little more slowly to the ground. I didn't stop him, I understand how he feels, if I had the strength to do it, I would join him. Gladly. He kicked the shelf several times until he calmed down again. "Of course it’s not here. It never is."
"Cay,"
"You have to get back to the Palace, Andrea. Before things get more fucked up." Cayden is still holding one of the books. He breathes heavily. "I'll go get Lukas's body, take him back, and the others and I will wait for you with a drink... or a whole bottle."
I've made a small list in my head that will help me not to break down or at least I firmly believe in it. Even though all plans have a tendency to go terribly wrong.
The first point is to get the black goo and all the dust out of me. Without armour, I can check my knees, the dark purple colour doesn't look very nice, and every movement hurts terribly. My guess is that it will take a few hours for it to fully recover. Minor bruises from the impact are surprisingly nothing in comparison. I just can't remember what exactly I came across. Stones wouldn't do that.
Hot water is anything but pleasant. Burning drops hit the bruised skin and like small needles stab into it. I turned on the faucet, only to find that the cold is even worse. I give up.
I'm not going to stand here looking for the right temperature. I sat down on the dark tiles and let the pain fill me. I came to the conclusion that it’s better than the emptiness that filled me for a while and could come back at any time. Only other times, it's much easier to run from it.
Edgar tries to promise me an end, to scare me with the idea of death. But what's worse than emptiness? The kind that would be here without him? How to fill the hole left in life after someone snatches a loved one from their arms.
Loved one, yeah… that fits. I've never felt something so strong for anyone before. I still feel like I don't even know him yet, and I can't bear the thought of anything happening to him. This idea has become a regular topic of my nightmares. Along with everything else, it's almost unbearable. I care so much about him and I can't even tell him. I’m sitting on the floor in my own shower, with a waterfall of my own tears, paralysed by my own life, by my fears. As if I’m not too old for that shit.
I wiped away tears with the back of my hand. My attention was caught by a black spot on white armour. I finally solved the first mystery. My father is a good liar, so good he doesn't even have to lie. It's blood. Strictly speaking, it just turned into something that resembles syrup in its consistency and smells almost like pure magic if not for the pungent aftertaste. Thanks to the stolen book, I can be sure that whoever is behind it is not exactly a mage. For all spells they need a crutch, there’s a need to draw. And a really good reason for me to cut their head off. It’s a fucking imitation of a mage. And if I had gotten into that archive yesterday, I could have saved myself all this trouble.
But would that save Lukas?
Whoever opposed me there, knew the book was still there. Right? Or did someone planned an attack on coronation day so that no one would pay attention? The library was empty because everyone is celebrating. It should have been empty. Free for anyone to explore.
I pulled on tight pants and a tank top and walked out of the bathroom. Emmett is waiting for me on the couch with a glass at the ready. Without saying a word, I took it and drank it before sitting down next to him.
He changed too into a clean t-shirt, short sleeves revealing part of the tattoo on his right arm. "Don't you have your own couch, in your own messed up city?"
"He wants to talk to you." didn’t even protest. He’s usually so proud about his city. "I think he has a concussion. He was awake when I left."
"You know... I thought for a moment," I bit my lip. I don't want to say it, I can't finish that sentence. I know I won't shake the image -him lying there, motionless- and it'll be chasing me in my dreams for quite some time.
"I know, Ans, I wouldn't call you if he was."
"You care," he set the decanter down on the table. Pouring his own glass, but he has not even touched its contents.
"What?" he grumbled, lifting his legs and carefully resting his head on my thighs.
"Steven, you care about him," I looked into the hazel eyes. He seems rather confused. "You're protecting him. You take care of him. You didn't even swear in front of him, even though he was unconscious."
"Very funny," he smirked. "He's my baby brother, of course I care."
"Then why don't you ever talk to him?" I really want to understand. He squirmed on the sofa, carefully raised his left hand, and found mine. He picked it up and slapped it on his forehead. My hands are usually ice cold and he often uses them as his personal ice packs. "You don't spend any time with him."
"How can you know what I'm doing? You’re in here all the time, playing with the crown and contracts. And why are you suddenly so interested in me and my free time?" Emmett is still smiling. How much painkillers did they give him?
"Just answer."
"I love my baby brother and I talk to him," the smile disappeared. "we just don't understand each other any more."
"How so?"
"Damn, you're so annoying today, why don't you ask him. You aren’t fucking me," I lifted my fingertips and patted his forehead. Emmett laughed, clearing his throat, his face twisting in pain. So much for the painkillers. "I think when he grew up, he became an ox. Maybe I wasn't there to check on him every day, but when he was a kid, I helped him build forts and climb trees. But the older he got, the more arrogant and bossy he became. Same as father. And the less we understood each other. Now with his new crown, it’s sealed."
"You're such an idiot," I took him off me and stood up, finishing my glass again without having the slightest idea what it was. It's strong, that’s what.
"What?"
I knelt down, looking straight to Emmett’s eyes. "You are an idiot. You're doing to him the same thing Luke did to you. Avoiding him and leaving Edgar with him for days. And have the audacity to complain he's like him." Emmett frowned, but didn't object. "Go talk to him."
"I'll go to him after you promise you'll tell him." his left hand flew upwards. He wiggled his ring finger and put it down again. "The whole thing."
"Why does it matter to you so much?" he annoys me with it. I don't want to talk to Steven about it. And I don't like the way Emmett pressures me to. What does it matter if we should have gotten married or not? It didn't happen. I don't have to discuss everything that could have happened with Steven. I have enough of what truly did happen. Steven doesn't know even a quarter of it.
"As if it's ever about what matters to me," he sat up with an effort. He reached for a drink and took a sip. "Father didn't want me to tell Steven and I mean he straight up told me not to. I don't know why, but he insisted. Which is weird and I don’t like it."
"Since when have you been listening to him?" I waited until he had drunk and set the glass down in his place.
"If I’d listened to him, I wouldn't talk to you about it, would I?" he handed a pillow. I reached at his feet and pulled out a furry blanket to cover him. "Promise me, Ans."
"Get some sleep and get out of my place, I promise I'll talk to him, later. The Guard is waiting for me… goodnight, Wolf." I kissed his forehead, reached for a red coat. Saying goodbye to Lukas is another item on my list. The talk with Steven is at the very end. I feel like it will be the hardest.
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