Page 52 of Ever Dark Academy, Vol. 7

The silver eyes in the Kaly-slice burned brightly and then they went dark. The body went slack. The hand on Charlie’s neck released and the body fell to the floor like a cut tree. Fiona let out a gasp as it was Tanis’ body that was now truly empty of any soul. But it should be that way. Tanis’ soul wasn’t in it. But still, it hurt to see. Seeyr was touching her.

“I know, my dear. I know,” she whispered as she stroked Fiona’s arm.

Fiona turned towards her. “Seeyr, please tell me if there's some way for us to help you. We can’t just leave you like this.”

Seeyr gave her a small smile and nod. “But you already know that’s exactly what you must do. I must remain here and you must go.”

“But you know what happens–”

“Yes, in the near, mid and the far. And it is the far that matters,” Seeyr reminded her.

“It was hard enough to leave Eyros,” Fiona found her throat getting tight, “knowing what will happen to him in the future, but you…”

There was something in Seeyr’s eyes that stopped her. Something about Eyros? She wasn’t sure. But the smile was back. A soothing smile as Seeyr nodded.

“I know this is hard, Fiona. But you do hard things all the time with style and grace,” Seeyr reminded her. “I’m afraid that you must continue to do them here.”

Charlie, still looking like Tanis, had dropped down to the Kaly-slice’s side and was rifling through her pockets. There was a jingling sound and Charlie pulled them out with a sigh of satisfaction.

“Found them!” Charlie said as he brandished the keys. “Now to get you out of there, Fifi. I really don’t think we can linger much longer.”

“Right. Of course.” Fiona stared down at Tanis’ still form. Would they be able to take that body with them? Should they risk it? Or could Caemorn simply reform her once they found her soul?

Another Kaly-slice will take her over if we don’t remove her. Can’t allow that.

“Open the cage, Charlie,” Seeyr urged.

“Wait! We need to speak to you! That’s why we’re here,” Fiona said rapidly even as Charlie inserted the key into the lock.

“That’s why you came. But I’ve told you all you need to know,” Seeyr answered.

“No, you haven’t. I still don’t know how to use the–how to get us back to our right time, Seeyr,” Fiona protested.

“But I have,” Seeyr insisted.

That was when Charlie turned the key and a shudder went through the entire Spire. All three of them looked up as a blaring siren went off. It wasn’t just a physical sound, but a mental one, too.

“Oh, dear,” Charlie murmured, “It seems we’ve set off the alarm.”

Capable Of Change

Could anything else go wrong? This was what Ryder was asking himself as he was face-first in the dirt while Dani, Legion, Lawson, Natasha and whoever the Hell else might recognize him and Grayson were tangling with the Mers. Nothing, absolutely nothing, other than getting to Grayson in time and turning him had gone even somewhat according to the plan. Except, of course, turning Grayson in the way he had was not supposed to happen.

But things weren’t only going wrong for him and Grayson. The Mers had something up their sleeves for the Vampires. But, unlike when Grayson held somebody firm, evidently Dani and the other Ashyr Vampires–five of them altogether–couldn’t do that against the Mers.

Marinus swiped the strange weapon that looked like a silver, hollow rocket launcher off the ground just as he was lifted into the air. Before Dani or the other Ashyr had a chance to freeze his fingers, he had fired off one of the blasts in the general direction of the Vampires. Many of them scattered. Some did not. Those hit full on with the blast simply evaporated. Ryder felt his heart clench–not for the loss of lives, though perhaps those Vampires had simply been misled–but at the thought of what could have happened to himself and Khos.

Perhaps it was his greater strength, perhaps the Mers had put the weapon on some kind of stun setting before, or perhaps it had just been luck, but he had merely been hit with the force of a freight train going at full speed. Arms and legs broken. Rib cage crushed. Neck at a very odd angle. Organs were very bloody. He was not fully recovered, but seeing what it could have been had him very anxious to get the hell away from the Mers and their secret weapon.

Dying was not something any Vampire wanted to do. As an Immortal, death was an anathema for him. But the truth was, he was more worried about Grayson. He had just turned his beloved. Grayson needed his blood to become as strong as he could be as fast as he could become. Maybe Caemorn could also feed him, but that was uncertain. Grayson needed him. He had to live for his beloved to keep him fed, if for nothing else.

The blast also had the effect of breaking Dani and the remaining Ashyr Vampires’ concentration on the Mers who dropped down to the ground like stones. Though not as graceful and quick as they were in the water, the Mers recovered their feet more quickly than he was sure the Vampires would have liked.

With eyes full of black hate, Marinus laid down more blasts from the weapon, causing the Vampires to leap out of the line of fire. He half crouched as he fired it again and again.

Dani screamed, “Rip him apart!”

Ryder’s heart clenched. While he was angry at Natasha’s betrayal and lies, what would Grayson’s reaction to Dani being here be? She had never said that she was in the Order, let alone that she had worked with Legion in any capacity. Did that mean she was part of the Sect? Or like Tanis, had she been swept up in the Order’s lies?