“No one lives here,” Tarron said. “These houses feel empty.”
“Agreed,” Aeri said.
I perked my ears, but heard nothing from within the structures. They didn’t look like they were in a state of abandoned disrepair, but I had to agree with Tarron and Aeri. Something had driven these people away.
I shivered and kept going, my eyes on the huge structure ahead of us. It was more than one building—or at least, it had been. Once upon a time, it would have been an enormous complex bustling with monks. Now it was a maze of broken walls and different levels of grass flooring that had replaced the tiled ground.
We stepped between the first set of walls, and the heavy weight of history bore down upon me. So much had happened here, so long ago.
“What are we looking for?” Aeri asked.
“I have no idea,” I said. “My vision wasn’t very clear.”
“Do you feel that?” Tarron tilted his head. “We’re not alone.”
I shivered. “Yeah. It’s like we’re being watched.”
Tarron called upon his wings, and crackling lightning flared behind his back, brilliant and beautiful. He launched himself into the air and surveyed from above. I closed my eyes and sniffed, but got no hint of magic from other supernaturals. I couldn’t hear anything out of the ordinary either. Just early morning birdsong.
Declan called upon his fallen angel wings, the black feathers were tipped in silver. He shot toward the sky, joining Tarron in his aerial survey.
Aeri tilted her head back and stared up at them. “They look pretty good, huh?”
I followed her gaze, catching sight of the two men. The morning had turned pale gray as the sun approached the horizon, so there was enough light to see them well. They were graceful and powerful all at once, both too handsome to be real.
“Yeah.” I shook my head, trying to get my focus back. “I don’t think anyone is here.”
“Neither do I,” Aeri said. “Just an abandoned village and ruined church.”
“Then why do I feel them?”
Tarron and Declan joined us a moment later, landing gracefully on brilliant green grass in front of us.
“I saw nothing,” Tarron said.
“Same. We’re alone here.”
I frowned. We needed to learn something from this place, and it clearly wasn’t going to come from people. “Let’s look for a clue. Something inscribed on a wall maybe, or buried under the ground.”
“We should spread out,” Aeri said.
“But stay within sight of each other,” Tarron added.
As everyone scattered, I called upon my Seeker sense, asking it to find me a clue. How was this place linked to the Dragon Bloods? How could we find them?
My magic tugged, so slightly that I almost couldn’t feel it. Almost like it was instinct more than anything. I followed the pull down the grassy lane, walking between the tall pillars of stone that had once formed a fantastic corridor.
All three of my companions were within eyesight as they stuck close to the building walls, looking for a clue. I followed them, diverging into a smaller stone room that had most of the walls still standing but no roof.
It led to a huge chamber that had probably once been the main worship hall. An enormous stone altar stood at one end, majestic in the early morning light. Flowers grew around it, their buds opening beneath the dew.
I hurried toward the altar, spotting a carving in the stone at the base.
What the heck was it?
As I knelt by it, Tarron joined me.
“That’s the first possible clue I’ve seen so far.” He crouched at my side. “But what does it mean?”
I squinted at the squiggles. The inscription was so old and worn that it was impossible to say if it was writing or an image.
Aeri knelt at my side, staring hard at the faded artwork. “In pagan times, altars were for sacrifices.”
“This is a Christian church, though,” I said.
Declan appeared behind the altar, studying the surface with a frown.
I caught his eye. “You’re a fallen angel. This has got to be your area. What do you think?”
“Aeri isn’t wrong. And there were periods when local Christian sects adopted some pagan traditions as a way of influencing those people to join.”
“So you’re saying we should make a sacrifice?”
He shrugged. “Can’t hurt.”
I frowned. “I’m not about to sacrifice an animal on here. I can tell you that much.”
“There’s not much more than squirrels around here anyway,” he said.
“I’m definitely not doing that to some poor hapless squirrel.” I searched my mind. “But I like this idea. Being a Dragon Blood is all about your blood, right?”
“So, we should spill a bit here,” Aeri said.
“It’s worth trying,” Tarron added.
I sliced my fingertip with my sharp thumbnail and swiped a bit of blood across the top of the altar.
Nothing happened.
“Damn.” I swiped some blood across the faded stone carving.
Still nothing.
“Let me try,” Aeri said.
I nodded, watching her cut her finger and drip a few brilliant white dots onto the stone surface. We were both Dragon Bloods, but only she had the pure white blood that was commonly associated with the species. My black blood had been modified—I didn’t like the word tainted, even though it came to mind—by my Unseelie heritage.
When nothing happened, Aeri swiped her bleeding finger across the stone inscription.
Magic sparked on the air.
I stumbled back, watching as the stone grew. The faded inscription became clearer, almost like time was turning backward. The wear and tear of the ages was being reversed.
“I still can’t read it,” Aeri said.
“It’s gibberish,” Tarron added.
They were right. Whatever language the words were in, I couldn’t read it. They were much clearer now, though.
“Guys…” Declan’s voice was tinged with warning. “We’re not alone anymore.”
5
I whirled around, spotting the back of a figure cloaked in a simple brown robe.
Whatever that inscription said, clearly it had done its job. The ancient monk had appeared out of nowhere, and now stood facing away from us, so he hadn’t seen us yet.
“Crap!” I hissed.
Tarron lunged behind the altar, joining Declan. I followed, along with Aeri.
The four of us crouched behind the huge stone altar and peered over the top.
I caught sight of the roof overhead and whispered, “That wasn’t there before.”
Aeri jerked her head to the left. “Neither was that wall.”
“Or that monk,” Tarron added. “And he’s partially transparent.”
“We’ve brought this place back from the past,” Declan said.
I whistled low under my breath. “Cool spell.”
“No wonder we didn’t feel like we were alone.” Aeri peeked up from behind the altar to get a closer look.
A few more monks filed into the room, immediately turning away from us to do something along the far wall. I couldn’t figure out what it was, but it was giving us a short time to get the hell away from here.