Fallen University: Year Two

“Evidence of mining,” Xero said thoughtfully. “Tracks, tools, piles of sand.”

“I meant the rocks.” I squinted into the dim light. “What do they look like?”

Xero hesitated a moment, trying to find words while sketching a size and shape in the air with his hands. “Well, they’re all different colors—”

“Are they porous or crystalline?” Jayce asked, his eyes alight.

“Shiny and cold or rough and warm?” Kingston asked.

I grinned. “Sounds like we’ve got two world-class rock collectors here.”

Xero chuckled. Then he shrugged. “They are all of those things. Simultaneously.”

Kingston and Jayce shared a look of wonder and disbelief. “In the same rock?” Jayce demanded.

“In every rock.”

Jayce and Kingston radiated excitement, and it did something funny to my heart to see the two men bonding over something so positively nerdy. I remembered one of their earliest interactions in the pub on Mönkh Saridag, and how at odds and completely opposite they had seemed. It was almost hard to believe these were the same two men.

Kingston raised his torch and the two of them hurried on ahead, down a gently sloping passage with a sharp right turn at the end. Kai and I followed close behind, and Xero kept watch at our rear.

“Do you think we’ll get caught?” I asked him over my shoulder.

He shook his head. “This place has been closed up for a long time. I don’t think anybody will come. As long as Vee didn’t give us up.”

I hoped he was right, but the deeper we went into the dark, twisted cavern, the more alarm bells went off in my gut. I told myself I was just anxious because we were stealing precious artifacts from the enemy, but I didn’t believe myself. I wanted to scream at the guys to walk in step with each other so I could hear something other than their footfalls, but I bit my tongue. This was no time to get crazy.

Then Kingston stopped short in front of me so fast I almost ran into him.

“Can you feel that?” His voice was full of shaky excitement.

All I could feel were my own rattled nerves, so I took a moment to center myself the way Jayce had taught me and tapped into Kingston’s feelings. Excitement. Awe and greed. Something so close to lust it was almost indistinguishable. As I widened my senses, I could almost feel the stones myself. It was like magic was thicker down here, and I was positive we must be getting close. If we could—

A pebble skittered down the passage behind us.

With my senses on full blast, still charged up from our moment in the woods, I heard it first. My eyes flew open and I spun around, prepared to fight whatever monster was after us this time.

Xero, Jayce, and Kai followed my lead. Kingston was still radiating that gem lust, focused only on the thickening air deeper down in the cave. I gestured for Kai to go toward the sound on the left, Xero on the right, and for Jayce to stay by my side. We crept forward as silently as possible, hoping to take whatever it was by surprise. My heart thudded so loudly that I was sure the intruder would hear us even though our footsteps were silent.

Xero and Kai were in position, almost invisible against the dark walls. Jayce and I stopped just before a soft curve in the passageway, ready to take the unknown monster from the front while the other two attacked from the back.

It would have worked beautifully. My muscles were tensed and ready, my body and mind primed to take on whatever new threat the underworld had thrown at us—but the instant the person following us turned the corner, I froze in shock.

What the ever-loving fuck?

The guys froze in place as the woman with milky skin and red hair passed by them and came face-to-face with me.

“Sonja?” I blinked, utterly confused. “What are you doing here?”

Rather than giving me an answer, she shifted into her demon form and started building up a fireball.

“Oh, no, you don’t!” Xero leapt out of the shadows and pinned her arms to her sides.

She kicked and screamed, wriggling to get free, but he was at least twice as strong as she was in either form. When she tried summoning another fireball, he head-butted her, and the spell fizzled out of existence. Physically spent but still radiating fury, she fell limply back into her human form as Xero spun her in his arms to face me. Her fiery eyes glared at me from beneath her hair.

“Sonja,” I said again, pushing persuasive power through my voice. “Why are you here?”

“To stop you,” she said breathlessly, the answer pulled from her against her will. “I knew it. I always knew you would betray the light the second you had the chance! Ow! Let go, you’re hurting me!”