Soul of Darkness (16 page)

His father seemed to be thinking along the same lines.

“No, we will enter the cave. We need to rest for a while,” Malcolm responded after a moment of quiet contemplation, “But remain vigilant. We do not know what this place is…I feel powerful magic in the soil and stone surrounding it…This cave appears to lie at the center of a major site of magical convergence. So…whatever you do, do not attempt to use your gifts, it would be unwise…magic will surely be enhanced in this spot.”

“Perhaps we should just keep going,” Aidan interjected, “It doesn’t seem as if we’d be safe here from the men chasing after us. There are bound to be more of them, and they’re likely to come to this place first. Since they can pick up on the magical vibe it’s giving off, they’ll probably look for us here.”

“I do not think they can sense it,” Malcolm reasoned, “I believe such a magically potent epicenter will have natural defense mechanisms to safeguard this valuable source and keep its secrets hidden…This place is probably heavily shielded…making it impossible for other gifted to sense the magical vibrations of this place.”

“But shields don’t work against the gifted, they can feel this magic. I can feel it as well,” Aidan countered his father’s words.

“That is right,” Malcolm explained, “but this magic is a steadily flowing stream of energy, it is not like a sudden spike that will draw attention through the abrupt change in the atmosphere…Yes, our gifted enemies can sense it, but only if they stand within its boundaries…They would have to come to this beach and stand before this cave to feel the magic surrounding this place. And for that to happen, they would have to follow us here.”

And after he said this, he walked to the spot where the carved steps met the sand and, walking backwards
,
wiped away their footprints in the sand until he reached the cave entrance where the rest of them were standing.

“Or,” Malcolm added, “they would need to be aware of the cave’s existence and presume we would head toward it to seek refuge.”

“Which just might be the case, for all we know,” Aidan admonished.

“Precisely. And that is one of the reasons why I entreated you to be vigilant,” Malcolm stated calmly.

Aaron was amazed. The man seemed to have nerves of steel, seeing as he was willing to take such chances. But he was right: they did need some rest in order to keep on running. Aaron couldn’t argue with that. Not that arguing would have gotten him anywhere with Malcolm. After having spent some time with him, Aaron was pretty sure he knew from whom he’d gotten his own stubbornness.

Holding his arm out in front of him, Malcolm gestured for Aaron to lead the way into the cave.

“Well?” Malcolm said, waiting for his yet reluctant son to enter.

Aaron sighed, took a deep breath, and entered ‘the lion’s den
’
―
or possibly ‘the gates to hell’. He could hear Aidan and Malcolm following behind him, the sound of their combined footsteps reverberating inside the cave’s long and narrow entryway.

After following the path of the tunnel-like entrance for about a minute, mainly by running their hands along the stone walls and feeling their way in the pitch dar
k―
the light of the flashlight would be needed for more important things
―
the wall abruptly fell away underneath Aaron’s palm.

Halting for a moment, Aaron carefully explored his surroundings, his eyes having finally gotten used to the dark. With the help of a yet unknown source of light that dimly lit up the space, Aaron could see the vastness of the cave into which the tunnel had opened.

The ceiling towered so high above their heads, in fact, that Aaron couldn’t see how the dimensions of the cave could actually fit into the surrounding area. For, somewhere above them the street must have been located. Or had they perhaps indeed descended from such an immense height?

The air in the cave was dank and heav
y―
and smelled strongly of earth, minerals, salt-water…and magic.

Maybe Aaron only imagined it.

Maybe because Malcolm had spoken about strong magic, Aaron believed he could sense its heaviness, its power in the air surrounding them…

Or maybe Aaron could detect it simply because it was there and because magic was also a part of him, a part of who he really was.

He had to admit he’d felt the magical vibe of this place before Malcolm had even mentioned it. Therefore, there was no denying the reality of what he’d sensed around him.

To one side of the cave, reflections of shimmering green light, which seemed to be coming from a moving liquid source, rippled across the surface of the rough stone wall.

Moving deeper into the cavern, they came upon a small pond of salt-water tucked away in a corner. The water appeared to seep in from the ocean through cracks in the cave wall.

The pond would have been a normal occurrence if it hadn’t been for the ripples upon its surface and the shimmering green light it emitted. For, neither was there wind to create continuous ripples, nor a natural source of light inside the cave which could have made the water shimmer or cast reflections.

Aaron guessed they might be looking straight at the source of the magic he’d felt weighing down the atmosphere. Malcolm cautiously approached the small pond and stood at its edges in silent contemplation.

“I do not like being here,” he said at long last.

“I think this place is very dangerous,” he added.

“Why? Because it’s filled with magic?” Aaron asked his father. “But I thought magic’s neither bad nor good, that it’s what we make of it,” Aaron quoted what his father had recently told him in one of his first lessons.

“Usually, yes,” Malcolm agreed, “but in this case, I am getting a very bad, a very dangerous, vibe,” he whispered the words, as if speaking too loudly around such a dangerous source of power could have catastrophic consequences.

“Let us stay away from this water,” Malcolm finally said before turning around and heading toward the opposite corner of the cave, as far away as physically possible without actually having to leave the shelter of the cavern.

Once there, he took off the long brown leather coat he’d been wearing, folded it, and laid it upon the ground, fluffing up one end to use it as a pillow.

“Set her down here, son,” he addressed Aidan, who’d patiently stood waiting with Persephone in his arms as if she wasn’t the slightest burden. Aaron had to hand it to him…his brother did not tire easily.

Aidan softly laid Persephone down on Malcolm’s coat, the look in his eyes and the expression on his face speaking volumes.

So, Aaron mused, not only had Persephone felt something for his brothe
r
―
seeing as she’d been willing to sacrifice the purity of her soul for him
―
but Aidan seemed to have feelings for her, as well. Maybe they were just waiting for Aaron to step aside so that they could be happy together.

However…they would never be.

Neither would Aaron.

Because, for each and every one of them, happiness was beyond reach.

For, the world would cease to exist, an eternity of darkness following that one moment of utter bliss.

Nothin
g―
not even one moment with he
r―
could be worth the havoc the act of sleeping together would wreak.

Then why did he still want her?

Why wouldn’t her hold on him finally end?

In his heart, he knew why. It was because she wasn’t done with him yet, because she…because Darkness…needed him to play his role. Once he did his part to end the world, once it was too late, then
―
and only then
―
would he be free of her.

When everything else was lost, his life would be returned…a moment before it ended.

If that was indeed his destiny, he would have to have a chat with upper management. Pretty rough deal for someone who just wanted a normal life. But then again, his life had never been normal. He’d always been screwed, he just hadn’t known how much.

But wailing about it and feeling sorry for himself wasn’t going to change a damn thing. It was time to focus on what had to be done, instead of worrying about things that couldn’t be undone.

“Come here, boys. We need to talk,” Malcolm suddenly spoke, interrupting Aaron’s thoughts. He had started to head off in the opposite direction from where Persephone’s unconscious body lay.

“What’s this about?” Aidan asked Malcolm once they’d caught up with him.

“There are some serious issues we must discuss,” Malcolm said, in turn looking at each of his sons as if to emphasize the importance of his next words, though it wouldn’t have been necessary. They knew exactly how much was at stake.

“Now,” Malcolm went on quietly, “I am sure you understand why it was necessary to step away from Persephone for this particular conversation,” he addressed his sons. “She may act as though she is her old self agai
n―
and perhaps she believes i
t―
but I trust I am right in guessing that neither one of you has fallen for that ruse.”

Aaron saw Aidan twitch uncomfortabl
y―
probably because he’d recalled how intimate he’d been with her at the beach. Aaron wasn’t sure if his brother had really believed Persephone to have been ‘healed’, but he had, nevertheless, ended up kissing her.

Had she perhaps temporarily fooled him into believing she’d been freed of Darkness? Had she perhaps managed to fool herself?

In the end, however, she hadn’t fooled anyone. Not after the massacre they’d just witnessed.

Though the voice of doubt was always present, deep down Aaron still believed that the Persephone he’d known could not have been capable of such a vile act.

But Darkness surely was.

“I need to know if we are on the same page and once again stress the importance of keeping our guard up at all times,” Malcolm continued, pausing slightly to let his words sink in.

“None of us can trust her. So, you see, I could not let Darkness overhear. Let it believe we have fallen for its charade…It is always best to keep the enemy in the dark. I would say it feels right at home there,” Malcolm chuckled at his own joke, making Aaro
n
andAida
n
roll their eyes.

“Anyway,” Malcolm went on after clearing his throat, “let us hope Darkness’s hearing is as bad as my own…Now, shall we discuss our options? We must ponder whether or not it is sensible to return to the castle…or if we should consider heading elsewhere.”

“Before I can discuss
anything
, I would like some answers,” Aidan suddenly interjected, “Like, why you were there in the dead of night in the middle of the road waiting for us…Like, what in God’s name happened to us while we were hiding? And above all,” Aidan emphasized, clearly wanting his father to be absolutely honest in answering this most relevant and disturbing question, “what made the men attacking us so terrifying that
you
―
of all peopl
e―
were trembling in fear?”

The cave was suddenly quiet, not even their breathing disrupting the silence following Aidan’s words. Aaron didn’t know what to expect. Had Aidan just called their father a coward straight to his face?

Malcolm had made them run and hide instead of letting them stand their ground and face the small army of men coming for them. Those were the facts. But was it okay to call him out on it?

Malcolm must be quite the formidable man for Aidan to call him a coward for wanting to run from thirty blood-thirsty and lethal-looking men. Aaron was sure he would have run from just one…maybe.

But his brother knew their father well. And Aidan probably would not have commented on Malcolm’s unwillingness to stand and fight if his father’s stance hadn’t surprised him. Malcolm’s decision to run from peril must have been a very rare occurrence. Aaron guessed there wasn’t much in this world that had the power to make him quake in his boots.

After what seemed like a very long pause…but perhaps it just appeared that way to Aaron, who felt a bit uncomfortable in this kind of situation…Malcolm said:

“Yes, it is true that I chose to run instead of taking up the fight. But in this case, I felt I had no other options. Although you may not understand this, sometimes the only way to fight is by running away.”

That doesn’t make much sense
, Aaron thought to himself, but didn’t dare open his mouth.

“You see,” Malcolm continued, looking straight at Aaron as though he’d just read his min
d―
though, more likely, the doubt in Aaron’s eyes had given away his thoughts
―
“if we do not run and hide when we are faced with an enemy we cannot hope to overpower, we will perish. And if we perish today, who will be left to fight tomorrow?”

“But how come you were unable to overpower them? I have seen you do incredible things,” Aidan demanded.

“I am not as strong as I used to be. My power takes longer to recharge once I have used it. And I had already used a considerable amount of magic to create a portal leading to your location. It would have taken too long to get my energy back for me to have been able to fight…And I did not know if Persephone’s powers would or would not be of any use in protecting us, under the circumstances. Furthermore, those men were likely only the beginning. Wherever they came from, there were bound to be more…For all I knew, the next army of men to come through that portal could have been vast beyond our imagination. For, the force driving these men can command billions upon billions.”