The Veil (11 page)

“Then why were you just about to eat now?” the one holding me asked Gabriella.

“Because we were hungry and fancied a snack. Sorry, is being peckish a crime?”

“Well, no…”

She’s doing a damn good job of this.

The Lightwarden pulled his hand away from me, and it was then that I felt the blood seep from the wound on my neck and soak through the robe I was wearing. Reflected in the glass I saw the Lightwarden stare down at his hand, which was no doubt covered in my blood. He seized the robe, yanking it away and exposing the telltale injury I’d received.

“This is a Daxis mark!” he cried. “Lightwarden Jaran said he hit one of the targets. It’s them!”

A glancing pain ran up the back of my head as the warden struck me with the end of his gunpike with enough force to make me taste blood. I kicked out backwards and took out his leg, making him drop to one knee. I spun around in time to see the other Lightwarden raising his weapon at Gabriella, who had her hands raised in surrender. My eyes went wide when I realised that he was going to fire regardless.

No!

I ripped one of the electronic tablets from its wall rack and threw it as hard as I could at the warden’s face. It smashed into his helmet in a shower of glass and sparks, and the warden stumbled sideways, smashing into the buffet table and sending plates scattering all over the place. The second Lightwarden was on us in seconds. I shoved him backwards with enough force to send him colliding with his comrade and making them both tumble to the floor. Gabriella and I tried to take the narrow opportunity to escape the carriage, but the Lightwardens were well trained and had recovered in a split-second, blocking our path.

There was nowhere to go.

We sank further back into the carriage, both of our hands raised. “This is all a misunderstanding,” appealed Gabriella. “Take us to Highwarden Caria, and we can explain everything.”

Their collective expression was one of fury and indignation. “You attacked a Lightwarden of Fenodara,” seethed the one I’d hit with the tablet, shards of glass still peppering the exposed sections of his blonde hair. “That is an offence punishable by death, regardless of status.”

In unison both Lightwardens raised their gunpikes to a horizontal position and aimed them at our center mass. The weapons started to glow red from the base as they built up energy. My heart stalled in my chest.

Gabriella seized my hand.

“STOP!”

The sound that escaped her lungs was far more shrill and powerful than I had ever heard – almost metallic in its frequency. At the same time, a tremendous internal force ignited in my chest and shockwaved outwards in a wave of excruciating fire, shooting up the arm she was holding. A blinding pain shot through my temples as I sank to one knee, my lungs seizing up. Everything slowed and became still as I started to automatically draw from the energy inside me. The world became vibrant and rich – filled with new colours and scents. I could hear the thudding heartbeat of the Lightwardens, could hear the rush of their blood as it poured through their veins.

Gabriella continued to speak, her words piercing the air like vocal needles. I glanced up at her and saw that her eyes had turned a shimmering white and that her hair was billowing around her face.

“LOOK AT ME AND HEAR MY WORDS. WE ARE NOT THE ONES YOU SEEK. CITIZENS SAW THE PERPETRATORS DISEMBARK EARLIER. TELL YOUR FELLOW WARDENS THAT THEY ARE SEARCHING IN THE WRONG PLACE. LEAVE US
NOW!
”

The eyes of the Lightwardens became glazed and distant. “You are not the ones we seek,” they repeated at the same time. “Apologies for disturbing you, Guardians. Please have a nice evening and enjoy your stay in Fenodara.” They both turned on their heels and walked out of the carriage, the door sliding shut behind them.

Oh my god, it worked!

Gabriella let my hand go and instantly collapsed to her side, slamming into the arm of a seat and rolling onto the floor. She took a rasping breath and then started to convulse from the energy overload.

“Ella!”

I tried to stand, but my legs felt too weak. What she had done had drained a
ton
of my battery. So instead I crawled over to her and cupped her face in my hands, spittle flecking onto my fingers as she continued to seize. I felt the deep part of me – the place of pure power  – recede, being replaced by the connective energy of our soulmate connection.

“Ella. Ella, can you hear me?”

Her convulsing began to steady and her breathing slowed. After a minute she nodded her head. “I can hear you. I’m okay.”

“Can you get up?”

“I-I think so.”

Using the seat for support, I managed to climb to my own feet and then bend down and help her onto hers. She took a few unsteady steps forward and then we both slumped down onto the chairs. I wiped a thick layer of sweat from my forehead.

“I-I can’t believe that actually worked,” she breathed.  “I charmed a non-human.”

I tried to wipe more sweat from my neck, but my hands were trembling too much, the echo of her actions still rolling through them. “Gabriella, that was utterly incredible. What made you think of it?”

“Back on Atlantis Outpost, when you healed those people from the dead using your new power through me. I thought…I wondered whether or not it could work the other way around. With me using you to amplify
my
gift.

“Well you’re an absolute genius.” I held up my trembling hands for her to see. “Although I don’t think its something we should take up on a daily basis.”

Gabriella let out a laugh. “Agreed.”

I thought for a moment and then nudged her side. “You should have asked them where the White Keep was while you were at it.”

Gabriella rolled her eyes. “Now you remind me.”

7

Alex

Scarlett, Delagio and Sophia were standing together by the elevators when we stepped off the shuttle. I could feel the eyes of the wardens still onboard scanning us as we walked over to the group, but none moved to accost us.

I felt drained – my stomach was churning and my mouth tasted like I’d been chewing on old leather all day. Being extra
-
superpowered didn’t stop my emotions or physiological reactions to events – they were always ready and waiting to kick my ass when the immediate threat had disappeared.

“Don’t say anything,” Gabriella whispered as we reached the team. “Just look pleased to see us.”

Sophia gave Gabriella an OTT smile and a hug that was all theatrics. I could see Gabriella stiffen under the false embrace. I shook Delagio’s hand and then gave Scarlett a quick hug. Instead of a greeting, I cut Sophia a stare and she shifted uncomfortably on her feet.

A moment later, the shuttle pulled out of the Railport. Only then did I allow myself to turn around, and I was relieved to see that all of the Lightwardens had gone – clearly searching other parts of the city for their targets.

Still, we’re not out of the woods. I don’t have enough energy to charm more Lightwardens, not yet.

“That was close,” Gabriella said, puffing air out of her cheeks as we walked towards the platform elevator.

Scarlett lowered her voice, although there wasn’t really anyone around to listen. “Is that you two they have footage of?” she said as she thumbed the button and the elevator sank down to street level.

Gabriella groaned. “How bad is it?”

“You’ll see.”

The elevator doors opened, and Scarlett gestured out at the shopping Ziggurat.

Oh god.

Dozens of electronic displays were fixed to the numerous gold-domed buildings spread around, making the area look like an otherworldly version of the Piccadilly Lights.  And without fail, every single one of them showed looping footage of Gabriella and me running from the Lightwardens.

Violent. Dangerous. Hostile.

The words beamed out from everywhere, accusing us from every angle. I noticed how the short video conveniently left out the Lightwardens shooting at us.

“Y’all must have caused one hell of a ruckus,” said Delagio with a grin as the elevator doors closed behind us. “Ya’ll the talk of the city.”

“Don’t we know it,” I said.

Sophia folded her arms across her chest; Midnight perched on her shoulder in the form of a small lizard. “I think I speak for all of us when I say, what the hell is going on?”

Gabriella spoke quietly, filling them in on everything – how the Kor’Istis Games had been violent and had made her question the safety of Iralia. About how no one would tell us where the White Keep was, and how when we had tried to check out the darkened areas of the DIAS it had resulted in bringing the Fenodarian equivalent of World War III down on our heads. She explained how the Lightwardens had attacked us rather than arresting us, without giving us an opportunity to plead our case, and finally how Gabriella had used my new power to amplify her gift into a new territory.

When she had finished, Delagio let out a whistle. “So much for staying out of trouble, huh, Boss?”

Gabriella sighed. “No one understands that more than me, Del. It wasn’t our intention to cause problems.”

“Yeah but they’ve pissed me off now,” I added. “Now I want to know this city’s dirty little secrets. The way they acted…they must be hiding something.”

“Is that such a good idea? I mean, you’re already on thin ice here,” said Scarlett.

“I know,” said Gabriella. “But I they have one of our own held god-knows-where. I value the safety of Iralia above any trouble it might land us in.”

“So what’s the plan?” asked Del, looking around him, noticing several Pandemonians were watching the screens with tense expressions.

“We’re obviously not safe yet. We managed to Charm a couple of Lightwardens to throw them off the scent, but there are thousands more, plus a lot of wary citizens. Won’t be long before someone compares us to that image and works it out.”

“So tell us what to do, Huntmaster,” said Sophia, dipping a hand into a small bag she was holding and bringing out some kind of grain, which she fed to Midnight, before softly stroking his black scales.

“We need to change our appearance. They are looking for two people fitting our description with paint-covered robes, so obviously that needs to change. But we can’t change our outfits too much, or that’ll be obvious too.”

“So you want clean robes that look kind of like what you were wearing before,” said Del.

“Exactly. Alex and I need to stay out of the public’s eye though, so you’ll need to get the clothes for us. Del, you’re about Alex’s size and Sophia you’re about mine now. I need you to get me something to help change my hairstyle too.”

Sophia sighed. “Fine.”

“Where shall we wait?” I said looking around at the hordes of shoppers. “We’re kind of exposed here.”

“There.” Scarlett pointed to a cobbled alleyway between a run of the large, domed buildings. Rickety signs hung at awkward angles, and dusty awnings jutted out from the walls, competing for space. “There’s older stores down there – odds and sods stuff. We took a shortcut through earlier, and it was basically empty. You shouldn’t get noticed.”

“Great,” said Gabriella. “Alex and I will wait at either end. Please hurry guys, and thank you.”

With no more preamble, the group broke apart. Scarlett and Sophia headed into the nearest dome, which led to a large, marbled floored area crowded with shops and stalls, like an otherworldly version of a mall. Del went in the other direction, into a smaller dome that was filled with ornate wood and wall-hanging vines, giving the shop a rustic vibe. Gabriella went into the alleyway first. I hung back for a few minutes and then followed, keeping my head down and shoulders hunched.

The alleyway was tight and haphazard, as if the bigger, newer buildings had forced their way into the area, bullying the older shops into a huddle. The area had an underlying scent of old dust and dampness, which was topped with the eye-watering stench of burning herbs.

I passed by a few stores, which sold quirky items, like handmade rugs and tablecloths, carved bowls and herbal medicines. I paused by one shop, pretending to be interested in the items laid out inside the grimy window. It was mainly knick-knacks – worn out books, ugly carvings, music boxes and partially used candles – the sort of misfit items that could only ever find a home in a place like this one.

A Redcap crone was sitting in a rickety chair inside the cluttered shop, spooning some kind of noodle soup into her wide mouth. Her red hair hung like bloodstained straw around her pale, leathered face. She glanced up suddenly and caught my eye – studying me for a while – before speaking Dahari in a low, croaky voice.

“Been pokin’ yer nose where it ain’t wanted, ’ave you boy?” she said with a cackle.

My stomach knotted. “Excuse me?” I replied in her language from the doorway.

The crone wiped a splash of soup from her slightly bearded chin and set down her bowl onto a scuffed side table. With some difficulty she leaned over and picked up one of the tablet newspapers from the dirty floor. “You’re one of them pair that them Lightwardens are lookin’ for,” she said in a matter-of-fact tone and flicked her chin to the door. “I just saw ya accomplice walk down ‘ere a moment ago.”

My throat went dry. The old Redcap crone continued to stare me down, a crooked smile fixed on her withered face. There was no malice in her expression, just a sort of casual amusement mixed with a hint of dark curiosity. “What makes you say that?” I asked as nonchalantly as I could. But at the same time I had moved forward, barring the door.

“Cos those who ’ave lived as long as me ’ave nuthin better to do wiv our time than pay attention.” She curled a crooked finger, inviting me into the shop. Glancing around me, I stepped inside and walked over to the corner where she sat hunched over the tablet. With the same finger she pointed down at the image on the screen. I leaned over her curved shoulders so I could get a better look. She was pointing directly at the electronic version of me from the footage reel. She held her finger on the image and it zoomed in, focused on an exposed part of my arm. I knew what she had discovered because I could see it too. “You ‘ave some type of strange markin’ there.”

With surprising speed, she seized my hand and pulled the sleeve up a few inches, exposing a section of the now-white tattoo that had wound its way around my body. “I noticed that the minute you looked in my window and made the connection. You would do well to conceal it better.” She let my hand go, reaching for a smoking pipe on a table on the opposite side, and revealing the source of the herb stench in the process. “I am a six-hundred-and-thirty-nine-year-old Redcap Mare with about half of my mouldering brain still intact,” she said in-between heavy pulls on the pipe. “If I noticed it, them wi’ betta mental facilities certainly will, sooner or lata.”

My heart was thumping.
This old woman knows? What do I do? I can’t…hurt her.

“Don’t look so alarmed human,” she said, surprising me when she spoke in English. “Unlike many o’ me kin, I ’ave no interest in mischief ‘n malice. I’m too old for all that bollocks. I ain’t gonna turn you in, I don’t fink you’re a threat to me city.” She pointed her finger at me. “I don’t see any evil in your face.” She studied me for a moment longer, as if trying to solve an equation. “Nah, I fink you’ve both got yerselves mixed up in some ugliness. Comes back to my original point. You’ve been pokin’ yer noses where they ain’t wanted ain’t ya? Been trying to pull back that curtain that those in power keep draped over this city.” She must have noticed something change in my expression because she nodded. “Yep, that’s it.”

It’s pointless trying to hide anything from her; she’s way too switched on.
“You’re right,” I conceded. “Something just feels off about this city. Can you tell me why we can’t shake this feeling?”

“You can’t shake that feelin’ cos you can’t ignore truth.” The crone sighed. “I ’ave seen a great many things in my long time in this world and yours. Some have been beautiful, but most have been ugly. Fenodara is the rare and deadly mix of both. Beautiful on the surface, but rotten at its core.”

“Tell me then,” I insisted. “What’s happening here?”

The woman exchanged the pipe for her food bowl, passing a lumpy spoonful of the grey substance through her cracked lips. “If ya want ta uncover the
dark belly of this city, then ya must go behind one of them doors and see for yourself,” she said through her mouthful.

“Someone else mentioned doors!” I exclaimed. “Is that where we’ll find the White Keep too?”

“It’s where all of Fenodara’s shame is swept.”

Where do I find one of these doors?”

“They’re everywhere. Just pay attention.”

The crone gave a final smile and then nodded her head towards the window. “Looks like yer friends are ‘ere.”

I turned to see Scarlett and Delagio standing in the doorway, the latter holding a black cloth bag.

“We’ve found what you were after,” said Delagio, nodding at the bag.

“If yer lookin’ to change yer clothes to disguise yer appearance, you can do it behind that,” said the Redcap, pointing towards a grime-covered dressing screen at the back of the shop, standing between a stack of old books and an inexplicable mound of mouldy teacups. Scarlett and Delagio cut me an alarmed stare.

“It’s okay.”

Taking the bag, I moved behind the screen and pulled out a white robe that was almost identical to my old one, save for tiny gold trim on one sleeve. As I changed, I caught my reflection in a dusty mirror. Leaning forward, I tugged at the robe lapel and checked on the wound made by the gunpike. Luckily it was healing fast.
Another half hour, and it’ll be gone completely.
I finished changing as quickly as I could and stuffed the old painted and bloody ones into the bag.

“Just leave yer old clothes ere, I’ll burn ’em,” called the crone.

I froze, staring down at the bag for a moment.
Can I really trust her?

I realized I didn’t have much choice. I wasn’t going to hurt her, and if I were caught with the change of clothes, it would be obvious to anyone why we’d switched outfits. Beside, something just as instinctual as the bad feeling I’d had since I’d stepped through the Veil told me that I could trust her. So I set the bag down in the darkest corner behind the screen and headed out to the others.

“Alex,” said Scarlett quietly, looking between the old Redcap and me. “She seems to know quite a bit.”

“It’s fine, she’s been helping me.”

“You sure about that, bud?” Del said, frowning. “Redcaps ain’t known for their compassion. You and Ella could do that super-charm thing on her.”

“I’m sure. Besides, I don’t have the energy to do that again right now.”

He shrugged. “Okay.”

I turned to the old woman. “Can we buy something to thank you?”

“Looks like she could use the money,” muttered Scarlett as she stared around the shop, her eyes settling on a half-melted candle carved into the shape of Prince Ashan.