Hellfire (9 page)

“You said your friend stayed
behind. Is there any way to reach him?” She wriggled her fingers in the air
between them. “You know, like telepathy?”

He shook his head. “Not until
we pass through the energy veil. I’m going to try as soon as we’re on the other
side.”

She stared at the pulsing
golden wall in front of them. It reminded her of a waterfall, but it could have
been molten metal. The air was cool, though. Melted gold would have to be
really hot, wouldn’t it?

Still, when Alton stepped through,
she just about freaked, but he tugged on her hand and gave her no choice. She
shut her eyes and followed him through the flowing wall of gold.

There was absolutely no
sensation at all as they passed through. Within seconds they’d popped out on
the other side into a long, wide tunnel that wound deep into the earth. Ginny
planted her feet once again and stared around her, at the tunnel leading
forward, at the flowing wall of gold at their backs. Not in her wildest dreams
could she have imagined anything even remotely as unbelievable as all of this.

“C’mon. We might as well just
go for it.” Alton tugged her hand once again.

Ginny shook the tension out of
her shoulders, squeezed his fingers tightly, and walked beside him down the
wide tunnel. So this was Lemuria? She almost giggled as she thought of her
friend, Eddy, and all the years they’d teased Eddy’s father about his fervent
belief that Lemuria existed. Eddy’d definitely had to eat some crow over this.

They passed a few smaller
tunnels that led off to the right or left, but Alton kept to the main route.
Suddenly he stopped.

“Nine hells,” he cursed. He
dropped his pack and his fingers flew as he unbuckled his scabbard and shoved
the sword and scabbard into Ginny’s hands. “They’re coming for me. I reached
Taron, but it’s too late. He said there are armed guards on the way. Here’s my
pack. Take HellFire and find Taron. Use the sword. It should be able to lead
you.”

Ginny slung his pack over her
shoulder and clutched the leather scabbard. “But, I don’t—”

“Hide. They’re almost here.”
Alton leaned over, kissed her hard on the lips, and shoved her into a narrow
passage.

Ginny stumbled and almost
fell, but she managed to slip back into the shadows as a group of soldiers
dressed in weird blue robes descended on Alton. Heart thundering in her chest,
she bit down on her fingers to keep from crying out as two men even bigger than
Alton grabbed him roughly and twisted his arms behind his back.

He didn’t look her way.
Did nothing to betray her.
He didn’t fight his captors,
either, even when they lashed his hands behind his back and tied his arms
tightly all the way to his elbows. He never made a sound, though the pain had
to be excruciating.

The one who appeared to be the
commander of the small force shoved Alton forward with a muttered curse. Then
they marched him quickly back the way they’d come.

It had taken less than a
minute from the time the soldiers had arrived until Alton disappeared from
sight. Ginny stayed behind, hiding in the shadows with Alton’s sword clasped to
her chest, praying that no one would hear the staccato pounding of her heart.

The sound of the men’s heavy
footsteps grew distant as the soldiers marched away with Alton.
Ginny waited, paralyzed as much by fear as indecision.
Should she try and find Taron? Or should she go back and try to contact Eddy
and Dax?

No. She had to stay here. She
couldn’t leave Alton alone.

Trembling, alone in the dark
passage in a strange, unfamiliar world, she tried to figure out how she could
possibly rescue her Lemurian.

Ginny had no idea how long she
remained huddled in the dark corridor with HellFire clutched in her arms. She
had to find Alton if she was going to be able to help him, but she wasn’t ready
to go after him yet—not until she was sure they were far enough ahead that she
wouldn’t stumble over the soldiers who’d taken him. They’d been heavily armed.
Their swords didn’t appear to be crystal, but a blade was a blade.

She held perfectly still,
conscious of the distant roar of the energy field they’d passed through and the
thundering beat of her heart.

Then another sound intruded.
Footsteps.

Trembling, she squeezed back
into the shadows and held her breath.

The whisper sounded just
beyond her hiding place. “Ginny? Ginny, are you here? It’s Taron. I’m Alton’s
friend.”

Ginny let out a huge breath.
Taron!
Finally.
She poked her head out of the opening.
The man in the long, white robe walking softly toward her, studying the ground
as if he searched for prints in the dust, was every bit as tall as Alton,
though his skin looked almost tan, not nearly as fair. Instead of silvery blond
hair, his was so red it was almost scarlet. He wore it pulled back from his
face in a long braid that looped over his shoulder. His eyes were as emerald
green as Alton’s.

She slipped out of the
shadows. “I’m here,” she whispered. “I’m Ginny.”

Taron’s head snapped up and he
grinned. “That you are,” he said. “Exactly as Alton described you. Come
quickly, before someone sees us.”

She nodded, clasped the sword
against her chest, and adjusted Alton’s pack and hers over her shoulder.

“Here. Let me.” Taron grabbed
both packs, took her hand, and led her down the
tunnel,
in the same direction the soldiers had taken Alton. After about a hundred
yards, he turned off to the left and followed a narrower route. They walked in
silence along a tunnel that appeared to be lit from within. There were no
visible lights, yet Ginny could see perfectly.

After about ten minutes, Taron
turned down another, darker tunnel, then another and another until Ginny
realized she was hopelessly turned around and entirely confused.

She couldn’t have found her
way back to the portal if she’d tried. She had to trust Taron, trust the fact
that Alton trusted him. It wasn’t easy, hanging on to a strange man she’d never
met before, following him through unfamiliar tunnels deep within a mountain
that actually existed in another dimension from the only world she knew.

Oh crap.
She couldn’t let herself start thinking along those lines. Not if she wanted to
stay sane and help Alton.

Taron stopped in front of a
swirling wall of light. “In here,” he said. He let go of her hand and stepped
through, the light swirled shut behind him, and he disappeared. Ginny stood,
locked in place, staring at the light. She could do this. She had to do this.
Just walk right into…what?

Suddenly a hand popped out
through the mass of colors and light.
A hand, part of an arm,
and a swirl of light and color.
Crap, crap, crap…
Closing her eyes, Ginny latched on to the hand so tight her knuckles turned
pink, and shut her eyes when Taron—at least she hoped it was Taron—dragged her
through the doorway.

Because that’s exactly what it
was.
A portal of sorts, one leading directly into what must
be his private quarters.
She’d stepped through a wall of light and color
into a comfortable living area with furniture that could have graced any
suburban family room back home in Evergreen.

She knew she must look
bug-eyed to the tall Lemurian standing in the middle of the room with his arms
crossed over his chest. At least he was smiling.

“So, you’re Ginny,” he said.

She swallowed. “So, you’re
Taron,” she mimicked. Then she grinned at him. “Thank you. I had no idea what I
was going to do next. I was terrified when they took Alton away, but he seemed
to expect it. Do you know if he’s all right?”

Taron nodded and tapped a
finger to the side of his head. “We’ve been close friends for so long, our
telepathy is very strong. I’ve been in contact with him. They’ve put him in a
holding cell, but he’s okay. He’ll be going before the Council of Nine in about
an hour, which is comparable to light speed in this place. He wants me to bring
you with me once he’s taken into the court. You’re sort of his ace in the hole,
to use a human saying.”

Ginny let out a deep breath.
“He said he has a death sentence hanging over him. What if…?” She hugged
HellFire close. When it came down to specifics, she hardly knew Alton, but if
anything happened to him…

She couldn’t think about that.
She just couldn’t.

“I think they’ve decided to
drop the death sentence. Have a seat.” He gestured toward a low couch. “There’s
really nothing we can do until he contacts me.” Taron reached into a cabinet
and pulled out two glasses. He reached into another and grabbed a bucket of ice
and filled the glasses. Then he poured an amber liquid into each of them. “It’s
tea, nothing more.” He handed one to Ginny. She sat with HellFire in her lap
and a glass of what had to be the Lemurian version of iced tea in her hand.

Taron seemed perfectly relaxed
when he dropped into a chair across from her. If he wasn’t worried, maybe
everything would be okay. She hoped.

He took a sip of his tea and
set the glass on a low table beside his chair. Then he leaned forward, planted
his elbows on his knees, and rested his chin in his hands. “I’ve been arguing
with the council ever since Alton left. I think the capital crime he was
charged with has a lot to do with Alton’s unhappy relationship with his father.
Artigos hates to admit an error, and he has to know he acted precipitously by
sentencing the two humans to death without a trial. That’s not the way we as a
people behave. I don’t want you to think that.”

Ginny nodded. “Alton said as
much. That’s why he helped them escape. He said it was wrong—that Dax, once a
demon, had acted with more honor than the Council of Nine.”

“He’s right, and most of the
council agrees. It’s been a rough week for Alton’s father. He is not a man to
admit an error, and having the son show more honor in his actions than the
father has been difficult for Chancellor Artigos to accept.”

“You’re not kidding it’s been
a rough week.” Ginny sipped at her cup of tea. It had a totally unfamiliar but
wonderful taste. And it was cold and refreshing. A good thing when she needed
to keep her head clear and her thoughts in order.

“How are Dax and Eddy?
And that little sprite, Willow?”

Ginny shook her head. “Good,
as far as I know. I’ll let Alton fill you in on the details since he was there
and I wasn’t, but I did hear that Willow is now living inside Bumper the dog
since a demon ate her body.”

Taron leaned back.
“Nine hells.
Really?
Is she okay?”

Ginny shrugged. “As far as I
know, she’s fine. According to Alton she slipped her consciousness out of her
body before the demon swallowed.” She waved her hand in the air and laughed.
“Sorry. It’s all still beyond me, but Alton said Willow is happy inside Bumper
and they’re both just fine.”

Taron suddenly focused on the
sword clasped in Ginny’s hands. “Isn’t that HellFire you’re holding?
Alton’s sword?”

Ginny nodded. “It is.”

Taron shook his head. “But how
can you handle it without risk? We’re taught from birth that only a man may
wield a sword, and only the one he’s gifted when he comes of age. I don’t
understand how you can hold it without harm.”

Ginny stared at the sword in
her lap. HellFire
glowed
a soft blue through the
leather scabbard, proof he was listening to them. She carefully slipped the
sword free of the leather and set it on the couch beside her.
“HellFire?
Did you hear Taron’s question?”

Taron’s soft gasp caught Ginny
by surprise. “The sword speaks?”

“I do.”

“Nine hells.
He’s sentient.” Taron moved closer and knelt beside the couch, but he kept his
hands folded tightly across his chest. Obviously he wasn’t willing to risk
touching the blade.

Ginny shrugged. “Alton told me
he started talking after a big battle they were in with a demon. It was up on
the side of Mount Shasta and Dax was actually killed before the Edenites
brought him back to life, but then Eddy grabbed HellFire and destroyed the
demon’s avatar, which Alton said was enough to send the demon back to Abyss.
The problem is, he’s not going to stay there, or at least we don’t think he is,
because now we’ve got demons in Sedona and—”

“Whoa.” Laughing, Taron held
his hand up to stop her rapid-fire flow of words. “You’re going to need to go
slower. So Alton’s actually been in battle? He’s fought demons in Earth’s
dimension?”

Ginny nodded. “He said that’s
when HellFire finally started talking, though Eddy’s sword and Dax’s started
speaking as soon as they appeared.”

“Wait a minute…Eddy and Dax
have
crystal swords, too?”

Again, Ginny nodded. “That’s
what Alton said. He told me that HellFire replicated himself, except Eddy’s
sword is female, which I think is just cool.” She laughed with the tale she was
telling. Bizarre didn’t even come close.

“Anyway,” she said, stroking
her fingers along HellFire’s glowing blade, “now you’ve got me curious, too.
HellFire,
how is it I can hold you and speak with you when
you belong to Alton?”

The blade shimmered brightly,
then
dimmed just a bit.

“You are a daughter of
Lemuria. Your loyalty to Alton is pure. You hold him in your heart. Alton, son
of Artigos, is a warrior true. You stand beside him, not behind him. You honor
the warrior, therefore you honor Lemuria. You are worthy of bearing crystal.”

Taron sat back on his heels.
“Amazing,” he said. Then he scrambled to his feet, crossed the room, and opened
a closet door. Reaching inside, he pulled out a scabbard similar to the one
holding HellFire. Inside was a sword of the same design.

The blade was dark. There was
no sense of life to it when Taron removed it from the scabbard. He held it up
and let the light shine off the crystal blade, but there was no fire from
within.
Nothing like HellFire’s inner glow.

Taron studied his sword,
turning it to catch the light before setting it on the couch beside Hellfire.
“Each male carries a crystal sword.” His rough voice, barely above a whisper,
sent a shiver along Ginny’s spine.

Clearing his throat, he
continued in that same harsh rasp. “Mine will glow, but has never spoken.
Swords never do—not anymore—but we’ve all heard the stories of their sentience,
of swords coming to life. They’re supposed to be the souls of fallen warriors
come back to be our brave companions in battle.”

He turned to Ginny and his
eyes sparkled. “Did you know that legend says a sword dies if the warrior who
bears it is killed in battle? The blade turns black, like obsidian. If a
warrior acts in a cowardly manner, the blade shatters. All my life I’ve heard
of swords coming to life, heard of them speaking…but until now, I’ve never
actually heard one speak.”

He stared at Alton’s sword
with pure longing written in his eyes, on his face. Finally Taron sighed. “May
I touch you, HellFire?”

“You may.
But
only the blade.
Do not touch my hilt.”

Taron raised his head and his
eyes twinkled. “Wouldn’t think of it,” he said, but Ginny noticed that his
fingers trembled when he ran them the length of the crystal blade.

His sword remained lifeless
and silent. Taron stroked HellFire for a moment. Then he quietly returned his
own sword to its leather scabbard and once again stowed it in the closet. “One
day I hope to join Alton in the battle against demonkind. For now, though, I’ve
discovered that my strengths lie in another direction. My powers of persuasion
are better than I’d realized. My arguments are what swayed the council to drop
the death sentence.”

Ginny replaced HellFire in the
leather scabbard. “Does that mean your people will join the fight?”

“Not yet, but I see more and
more of the men leaning in that direction. It’s not going to be easy to change
thousands of years of inaction, even with Alton’s sentient sword. We are no
longer warriors.”

“Alton is. If he is, so are
you. So are the other men. I don’t think it’s something you lose, not if it’s
born inside of you.” Ginny stood up and started pacing. She couldn’t sit still,
not when Alton was a prisoner. Not when demons were taking over pets and wild
animals in the town of Sedona and somewhere up in Oregon. Not when she hadn’t
been able to reach Eddy and had no idea if her friend and Dax were safe or not.
And what about Evergreen?
Was her town okay? Now that
she was free of Alton’s compulsion, she remembered all the weird stuff that had
happened in her hometown just last week.

How could she ever have
forgotten that horrible bear with all those teeth?
Or Alton’s
bravery?
He’d leapt up on the bear’s back and risked his own life to
save hers. She’d never seen anyone act so bravely—or foolishly—in her life. And
he hadn’t even known her. He’d acted purely on instinct.

A warrior’s instinct.

For that matter, Alton hardly
knew her now. They were still essentially strangers, yet she was here, hoping
to help him, somehow, hiding out in another dimension deep within a dormant
volcano—only she wasn’t really in the volcano as she knew it on Earth. She’d
entered through Bell Rock in Arizona—yet here she was, same place, same Mount
Shasta she saw outside her window in Evergreen, California, only a different
dimension, and it was all so unbelievable it made her head hurt.