Deadlands (The Healer Series, #2) (4 page)

“You’re lucky there’s a gate between us, Pretty Boy, because I could do some serious damage to that
face of yours right now.”

“We don’t have a choice, Chase,” Willow reasoned. “Besides,
Declan and I have flown hundreds of times. It’s fun…and safe. Trust me.”

“I like solid ground thank you very much,” Chase crossed his arms
obstinately.

Elirana chimed in, “Summon your brooms. Flying will be the fastest way.”

“Flying it is,” Chase said instantly and stepped towards Elirana. She backed up slightly, but Chase continued his pursuit. “You’re so smart, Eli baby.”

Declan turned to Willow
and whispered. “What’s up with them?”

“Who knows? With Chase, it could be anything.”

Declan laughed. It was a beautiful sound that sent Willow’s heart soaring. It was carefree and happy. She could stand there listening to him laugh all day, but unfortunately she didn’t have that kind of time. Closing her eyes, Willow tapped into her magic, feeling the zing stirring within her body. She whistled a low sound, summoning her broom. A Witches’ broom was enchanted to recognize the owner’s call. The first time a Witch accepts a broom, an immediate bond forms that enables the broom to be connected to the Witch. For her sixteenth birthday, Willow received a new broom from her sisters. The fastest model invented so far. Her broom should hear Willow’s call and fly at incredible speeds to reach her.

A flash of green light caught Willow’s attention and she found that Declan was creating an opening in the gate to pass through. “Declan, how are you able to open the gate like that?”

“I’m part of the Emerald Circle, Willow Tree. Figure it out.” He winked.

“What
is that supposed to mean?”

“We are
the most powerful Order. Only Warlocks who are part of the Circle can open it.”

“But how?”

“Don’t worry about it.”

“You are
so frustrating, sometimes,” she said curtly and stepped through the gap.

Declan snorted. “So are you.”

“Well, your broom is here already, Healer,” Chase said looking up. A black silhouette of Willow’s broom traversed from the sky down towards them. It was as black as the night but flew fast, like a shadow passing through the stars above. It was effortless as it soared in the sky. Willow smiled. It reminded her of a happier time, when she was with her sisters.

Declan’s broom also made it to
the scene. His broom was high tech and durable. It was large and silver-almost machine looking with an added booster on the bottom for speed. Willow swore her broom was faster, and silently made it her mission to make it to the mountain first. She hadn’t flown in so long and an unexpected feeling of excitement bubbled inside her. The group was finally complete and Willow’s journey to the Deadlands had just begun.

It was decided that Elirana was flying with Declan, since Declan refused to allow Chase on his broom. Chase was pissed though, because that meant Eli
rana had to hold onto Declan. Chase, of course, had no problem holding onto Willow’s waist. In fact, he was clinging to her to the point of discomfort. Jealousy in boys could be so stupid sometimes, but what about the other way around? It was clear Elirana was content with wrapping her slender arms around Declan’s waist and even though it was necessary for the flight, it didn’t make Willow like the Elf maiden any more.

Once everyone was situated, Wil
low kicked off into the air and Declan followed close behind. With Elirana guiding them and pointing out which direction to fly, the majestic sight of Iceland soon came into view. The glacial coast of the island continent stretched for miles. It was fall here, but the weather felt anything but. The wind felt like sheer icicles against Willow’s face, and the dark waters below were already frozen over. The icy shores led to jagged cliffs that turned into the mountain of Eyjafjallajökul, or Eyja for short.

Plateaus and lowlands
dominated the terrain of Iceland, apart from the massive volcanic mountains. Mount Eyja was just north of the small village of Skogar. It was an active volcano covered in ice. A great crater was at the top of the mountain, like a meteor had crushed the pointy tip of it and flattened it long, long ago. But the top was not what Willow was concerned about. Centuries back, the Elves created the Deadlands
within
the mountain, meaning they would have to go
into
it to retrieve the key. The mountain was ice on the outside, but she had learned in her studies that the Deadlands was just the opposite. Fire, boiling waters, sulfur pits, and excruciating temperatures was what she had to look forward to, and sooner rather than later.

Elirana ins
tructed them to land on the north side of the volcano. Willow and Declan placed their brooms in a valley between two large rocks and walked up the basalt surface to the base of the mountain. It was massive, at least five thousand feet high. Elirana stopped to stare at the mountain, contemplating something. She walked along the base, looking up every few feet. It was an ordinary mountain; an immovable stronghold of solid rock. There was no indication of an entrance to the Deadlands whatsoever.

Finally, Elirana turned to
face the group. Her small eyebrows were wrinkled and a look of confusion was evident on her face. “I forgot something…”

“What is it? What are y
ou forgetting?” Willow asked exasperated. She wanted to make sure Elirana knew she was frustrated with her.

Eliran
a glared at Willow. “The way in. I must ponder a while,” she said and sat on a nearby rock. The crisp wind bit at Willow’s body as she crossed her arms watching the Elf close her eyes and go into some kind of Elven comatose state. She didn’t acknowledge them anymore.

Willow cringed. They were here. They made it to the location of the Deadlands and they couldn’t even get in?
This wasn’t happening! Willow knew Elirana’s memory was fading, and she tried not to hold it against her, but it was infuriating. Ever since her people attempted to erase memories of Chase from her mind, she hadn’t been the same. Willow wondered, not for the first time, what Chase had done to Elirana that she would go to such a length as to erase her memories.

Her
memory loss had consequences, though. Elirana was forgetting more than just what the Elders took from her. Certainly the way into the Deadlands was not one of those things. Willow had looked into Elirana’s mind and found a darkness that she couldn’t heal, and the darkness was spreading. But it wasn’t Willow’s fault. Willow knew she could heal Elirana’s mind, but it was Elirana that refused the healing, and so, the Elf’s memories were dwindling because of it.

“Nothing’s ever easy, is it?” Willow muttered irritably and walked away to find a rock to sit on, making sure it was well away from Elirana. She knew she was pouting like a little girl. She knew she was complaining and had an attitude that only made the situation worse, but she couldn’t help it. Every step forward felt like two steps back. Chase went towards the Elf and sat on the ground, and Willow saw that Declan was making his way over to her.

As soon as
Declan sat next to her, Willow’s stress dissipated. Before she spent time with him, Declan always made her tense and nervous. Now, all she wanted was him because he made her feel calm. Her connection to Declan was odd and something she did not want to reflect on at the moment.

Warmth radiated
around her. Declan’s doing. Even the wind didn’t penetrate through the barrier he created for her with his magic. Willow watched a small weed poking out between the rocks swaying in the wind that she didn’t feel. She tucked her unruly spiral curls behind her ears and looked at him out of the corner of her eye. He was smirking. “Better?” When Willow’s frowned deepened, Declan softly asked, “Are we okay?”

“Does it look like we’re okay, Dec?” She scolded.
Even though Declan temporarily suppressed her anxiety, her fear was still there, constantly nagging and eating away at her mind. “We made it to the Deadlands, but the freaking Elf girl doesn’t even remember how to get in because her mind is screwed up. I’m freaking out because we’re about to go into a place even more evil than the Everwild. And above all, I miss my sisters so bad it hurts.”

“That’s not what I meant.”

Oh. Willow looked at him and her mouth went dry. She knew what he was implying. Were they okay, relationship-wise? Willow didn’t know if she could answer that. She had broken up with him because Bane made her do it. She still loved Declan with all her heart, but a part of her wanted to keep Declan at arm’s length. She had lost everything around her because of Hekate. She didn’t want to lose Declan too, even though he had agreed to come along. She would protect Declan no matter what. But to get involved with him again…physically? Did she really want that? Her heart was screaming yes, but her mind was screaming no. She was torn and that put her in a vulnerable place.

“I’m sorry Declan. I can’t give you an answer to that.”

“Can’t, or won’t?” His hazel eyes flared dangerously.

“
Um…yes?” It came out as a question.

“You said you broke up with me because of Bane, but that now that he’s dead, you still don’t want me back?
That doesn’t make sense. What we had….” He frowned, “You said you loved me,” he accused her. “I don’t understand.”

“People can change.”

“Not that fast,” Declan cut her off sharply.

“Well, you certainly moved on quickly.”

“What do you mean?”

Ha! As if he didn’t know. Willow
rolled her eyes and then looked at him critically. “Hmm, let me think. How about when you came downstairs with that
human
girl at Darkmeer? What about that, huh?”

“Chasity?”

“Oh! The bitch has a name?” Willow was upset and still jealous when she thought about what happened at Darkmeer. The girl could’ve been the sweetest person, but in Willow’s mind, she was a bitch for swooning over Declan like she had a chance with him. She
should’ve
put a spell on her for even looking his way!

Declan smiled and shook his head. “It’s
so cute when you’re jealous, but there’s nothing to worry about Willow. I was just helping her carry down the snacks. She almost tripped and fell but caught my arm. Let’s just say she was slightly disoriented. ”

Likely story
, Willow thought. “Well it didn’t look like it,” Willow crossed her arms. “She was hanging all over you! It hurt because I thought—” She stopped when she realized her mistake. Declan’s eyes went wide.

“
So you do still feel something for me,” he pressed. When Willow didn’t say anything to that, he frowned. “There’s something you aren’t telling me.”

“There’s nothing else to say, Declan.”

Declan stood up and towered over her fisting his hands by his sides. Willow’s hair blew b
ehind her from the rush of cold wind. It automatically sent shivers across her body. Willow frowned. It looked like sweet Declan had left the building. He changed moods so fast it was hard to keep up. “Nothing left to say? You can’t sit there and tell me that when it’s written all over your face. Tell me the truth, Willow. Tell me how you feel.”

“I don’t know! I don’t know how I
feel Declan! You have to give me space, okay? I have to sort things out. It can’t go back to the way it was. It just…can’t.”

“I can give you a lot of things, Willow,” Declan said with a scary calmness to his voice, “but space is not one of them.”
Declan stormed off back to the group.

“You just did,” Willow grumbled watching Declan walk away from her.
She put her hands in her face and leaned on her knees. How was she supposed to come to terms with not being with Declan when he was constantly around? But she wanted him around because of the way he made her feel. It was like giving someone a water bottle in the hot desert and telling them not to drink it. But even holding onto the water bottle, no matter how thirsty you were, still felt good. Yea, she had problems.

Before she could reflect any further, Chase was calling her back. When Willow approached them,
Elirana spoke up. “I remember the words to summon the Gatekeeper. But there’s a slight complication if my memory is correct. One can bring many through…but only if the price is accepted.”

“Price?” Willow asked
hesitantly, remembering the situation that placed her into the Everwild. The Seeker Carmela had asked for a price to tell them the location of her talisman. Granted, the Head Warlock Emerson “happened” to have an emerald to offer as payment. This time, there was nothing to offer the Gatekeeper.

Elirana nodded dismally.
“The cost to get through the gate to the Deadlands is a blood sacrifice.”

Oh. Except that.

“Blood?” Willow exclaimed
loudly. “We have to go kill something and offer it to the Gatekeeper?”

Elirana fidgeted uncomfortably befor
e looking at her. “Um. No. It’s more daunting than you think. You see, the blood must be…tainted.”

“Tainted
? What do you mean?”

“In order to pass through the gate, one of
us must possess destructive or evil intent. The Gatekeeper will test a sample of our blood to determine this…”

“So basically…only evil people can enter an evil place?” Chase asked. “Will they come out if they willingly go in?”

“Well…I think you cannot come out the same way you go in,” Elirana said. “But like I said, I’m going off my memory. It has been many years.”

“
So…what if our blood doesn’t work?” Declan asked casually, as if the thought of cutting himself to draw blood wasn’t a big deal.

“Then we must go in search of an evil creature,” Elirana said coolly. “The village is down the hill, there,” she pointed. “Surely
we can find something sinister lingering among the humans. A boggart, perhaps…but nevertheless we should try ourselves first.”

Willow
was freaking out. “No! No way am I doing that! Not going to happen!”

“You won’t have to, Willow Tree,” Declan
said confidently, “Because the Werewolf’s going first. He’s sure to have some kind of evil flowing in his veins.”

“What the hell is th
at supposed to mean?” Chase asked furiously and stormed up to Declan, who was laughing hysterically at his joke.

“Back off, Wolf,” Declan said
turning serious, pointing a finger at his chest. “You
will
go first.”

“And who made you the boss? I don’t remember taking order
s from Warlock scum---”

“But you follow them so well...”

“Why you sarcastic little prick!”

Declan yelled a string of profanities in return, with Chase firing insults right back at him.
Here we go,
Willow thought and rolled her eyes. While the guys continued to argue and pay no attention to anything relevant around them, Willow watched interestedly as Elirana walked up to the volcano and pressed her hands on the cold hardened rock, whispering something in Elvish. When she stepped back, a thin transcript appeared about ten feet above the place where Elirana gave the incantation. The fancy script was carved deep into the stone and had turned to a dark orange color. Surprisingly, Willow could read the script. It was in Latin! All spells performed by magic casters were done in this ancient language. Why would Elves have a Latin inscription for the gate to the Deadlands? It read:

Porta ad Malum

Roughly translated, it meant, The Gate to Damnation. “Uh, guys?” Willow asked still staring at the scary calligraphy on the rock wall. Declan and Chase ignored her and continued to fight. “Hey Guys! Look!” Willow shouted louder. Chase and Declan stopped at her outburst and turned their gaze upon the mountain.

“The Gat
e to Damnation,” Declan said walking up. He brushed up against Willow’s shoulder. Apparently, he was refusing to acknowledge Willow’s request to give her space. “So this is the grand entrance to the Deadlands?”

“You expected something grand?” E
lirana asked strangely.

He shrugged. “
Not really. Elves are so secretive. It makes sense that you’d hide the entrance from everyone.”

“If we want to protect all races from the dangers within, then yes, we will conceal it and keep the knowledge of how to get in to ourselves.”

Declan gave Willow a look that said, “What
-freaking-ever.”

“Elirana, why is the inscription in Latin?” Willow wondered out loud.

“The writing is enchanted to appear legible for any race to read it. I am seeing the writing in my language, Elvish, while magic casters will see what they are familiar with. I assume it is the same across races who encounter it.”

“Holy Shit!” Chase cried
loudly and stumbled backwards. His outburst frightened Willow so badly that she jumped into Declan’s side and wrapped her arms around him in a Kung Fu grip. Declan smoothly pushed Willow behind him.

When Willow had the courage to peek around
Declan, her breath caught in her lungs. Standing below the inscription on the wall was a small boy. He looked like an average human, probably about eight years old. He had a smooth complexion, dark hair, and ratty, dirty clothing on. Willow dropped her hands from Declan’s waist and gave an awkward, apologetic smile.

“What are you doing here?” the boy asked them
with an inquisitorial look. It was a simple request, but something was off. Way, way off. The way he just suddenly appeared out of nowhere for starters. And right under the entrance to the Deadlands, no doubt. Was this the Gatekeeper?  

“We ask for passage to the Deadlands,” Elirana said formally
to the boy, confirming Willow’s suspicions. Willow didn’t know what to expect of a Gatekeeper to the Deadlands. An ogre, a troll, an Ankou, even the Grim Reaper for goodness sake! Not just a simple boy…or was he?  

The boy laughed huskily
and responded in a statement that sounded far beyond his years. “You do not know what you ask, unless you ask for death itself.”

“It’s the Dead
lands,” Chase spoke up and the boy shot his head to the side to glare at him. “It doesn’t mean that everything inside is dead or has experienced death. It’s just a place of condemnation.”

“No one who has entered has ever com
e out alive. Is that enough proof? Death is sure to take you.”

The confidence in the boy’s voice made Willow shudder. Maybe there was another way to open Pandora’s Box that didn’t involve navigating through the Deadlands.
Maybe there was a way to force Hekate to let the souls out and free her sisters. She doubted it, since Carmela would have told her if there was another way. But if anything could get her out of this situation, she would do it in a heartbeat. Yet here, at the footsteps of the mountain, a cold shiver ran down her spine. There was no other way, no safe route, no easy button to press. This was her fate.  

“Do your bidding, Gatekeeper,” Elirana said sternly. “I am tired of playing this game. As Elirana Carpathiamin of the
A’minthrid Elves, I command you to conduct the examination.”

The boy’s face fell and grew dark. His eyes
glowered cruelly toward the Elf, but Elirana, as ethereal as ever, stood patiently staring back at him. Finally, the boy relented. “So be it,” he said, only this time his voice was garbled and deep. Nothing like the young boy’s voice heard just moments ago.

Slowly, the boy’s appearance began to change. First, it was his eyes. His big brown eyes
grew bigger and brighter. The whites of his eyes started to glow until the large almond spheres lit up like a flashlight. Next, large white pointed ears stretched out from his black hair extending beyond the top of his head. Instead of getting taller, though, the boy grew shorter and wider. The ragged clothing turned to black shredded strips of cloth hanging on him. The boy had totally transformed into a goblin of some kind. Willow could tell from the feeling of darkness and evil enshrouding him.

The goblin
stood there silently watching them through his strange glowing white eyes. The creature’s head turned slowly to regard everyone and stared. And stared and stared and stared. Finally, he spoke up in his garbled tongue. “Who’s first?”

Without discussing it first,
Elirana walked up leisurely to the goblin and extended her right hand. The goblin smiled with sharp fangs. In a flash so fast it was nearly impossible to see, the goblin grabbed her hand and bit down in the center of her palm squirting blood from her veins. Elirana squeaked in pain and then ripped her hand away from the goblin stepping back.

Chase rushed up to Elirana and grabbed her wrist. With his shirt, he p
ressed down on the wound the Gatekeeper created to stop the flow of blood. Elirana was biting her lower lip and trying to be strong and not show pain. Elves do not show inferiority or weakness, at least, not in front of others. There was a hint of familiarity in Elirana’s eyes before she pulled her hand back to nurse the wound herself.

The goblin
stood back, still once again. After several moments, he said. “Pass, you do not. Next!”

Elirana’s blood failed the test. Willow looked around a
nd shivered as the temperature slowly dropped. One down, three to go. Did the boys expect her to go next since Elirana, a female, volunteered to go first? She hoped not since she was visibly shaking from fear of the mere thought of having the goblin bite her to ingest her blood.

Chase turned to Declan. “Rock, paper, scissors?” he suggested.

“How about if you don’t go first, I’ll conjure a rock to hit you on the head?” Declan asked. A green spark flew out of his fingers and Chase glanced down at Declan’s show of power and
attempted intimidation.

“If you’re
too scared to get your blood tested, you should’ve just said so. But being the brave Werewolf I am, I’ll go before you,” Chase joked. Declan only frowned and grumbled at Chase’s insult. Chase smiled and turned his back on Declan to walk up to the goblin. Chase’s hand was in direct line with the goblin’s razor sharp teeth, so the goblin just had to move his head to stab Chase’s hand. “Geez, ow!” Chase said and jumped back holding his hand and wincing in pain.

“
Big Baby,” Declan muttered under his breath, but it was loud enough for a Werewolf’s ears to hear. Chase just gave him a dirty look in response as they waited for the goblin’s reply.

The response of the goblin
was quicker this time. “Blood is sound. Next!”

“Ha!” Chase hooted. “See? I’m not evil…”

“I think the Gatekeeper made a mistake.”

“
Next!” The Gatekeeper said impatiently and Willow saw that Declan was tense as he approached the little, ugly goblin. Willow watched his back without shame. Declan was hot-from all angles. Then, she mentally slapped herself for desiring him so badly. She was the one who refused him, so she should
not
be thinking delicious thoughts about his body at a time like this. She was the one with insecurities and uncountable issues, not him. Thinking about Declan’s attractiveness was just torturing her further.

They should just stop wasting time testing everyone here and go find an evil soul in the streets of Skogar. No one here will have tainted blood for sure
and she didn’t want to go next! It wouldn’t be hard to catch something, as evil loomed around every corner, especially when it involved humans. Evil creatures tended to attach themselves and enjoy tormenting the lesser beings of the world. Humans were so naive, gullible, and easily frightened. Even as she thought that, she could see the city lights flickering on as the morning waned. Just one small trip down the hill…

A
shrill noise erupted from the goblin and Willow quickly turned her eyes from the city to see what was happening. “Ugh! Phew! Blah!” The Gatekeeper coughed and spurted, spitting Declan’s blood out of his mouth onto the ground. He took a small clawed hand and wiped his mouth off, and then spit some more. Declan stepped back shocked.

The Gatekeeper
’s eyes locked onto Declan. “Evil nasties are in your blood! Powerful! Gross! Never have I tasted potency of this kind. You have blood of a Destroyer!”

Willow’s heart leapt in her chest. Destroyer? What
did that mean? What was the goblin talking about? Declan continued to walk backwards, as if he was afraid of the Gatekeeper. His stunning hazel eyes were wide with surprise.

“Passage granted,” the goblin
said melting back into the rock, leaving everyone stunned and speechless. The Gatekeeper had vanished and Declan, the one Willow still loved, had evil in his blood.