Conceal, Mosaic Chronicles Book Six Read online

  Lizzie folded her arms. “I know. But it sucks, always being left out of things like this library trip. I’m positive I’d be included if I could use my magic better.”

  “These sorts of things aren’t as awesome as they might sound,” Austin said, pulling onto the highway. “We usually get hurt.”

  Nicole nodded. “Besides, you’ve been with us several times.”

  “Yeah, and I appreciate that. It’s just . . . watching you and Austin work your stuff makes me wish I’d focused more on my own abilities.”

  “You’re nineteen, sweetie. It’s not like you’ve lost your chance.”

  Lizzie’s face brightened. “Will you help me?”

  “Of course. It would be so much fun, especially after how much you’ve helped me.”

  Nicole really hoped Lizzie would remember this new goal once the excitement wore off. It would be awesome to have her best friend up to speed on magic. They did pretty much everything else together—having Lizzie go on all these expeditions would be wonderful.

  Austin dropped the girls off and headed to campus and his next class, and Nicole and Lizzie settled in to do homework.

  Nicole knew the weekend would be difficult, but she still looked forward to it—being able to do something physical again, to go on a long trek, would be good for her. The trip to Anna Morse’s dimension had been like taking a casual walk to the store, thanks to how fast Jacob’s key worked.

  Just then, the doorbell rang. Nicole got up to answer it and was surprised to see Sandy and Denise, their upstairs neighbors, on the other side. She opened the door wider, inviting them in.

  “So, I heard you joined the Tarians,” Sandy said, tucking her salt-and-pepper hair behind her ear while Nicole gave Denise a hug.

  Nicole rolled her eyes to herself. Sandy had always disliked Aretes, and even though she also disliked Tarians—the fascist group of regular humans who’d wanted to kill all Aretes—she was always trying to find fault in Nicole and other magical people.

  “Yeah, she joined them,” Denise said. “And promptly kicked their butts!”

  Nicole smiled. Denise always stood up for Aretes. Nicole appreciated that.

  “Hey!” Lizzie said, walking over to join them. “Our favorite neighbors! What can we do for you?”

  “Well . . .” Denise started, “Sam was here a little while ago and said he heard weird noises coming from your apartment.”

  Sam was their landlord. Nicole and Lizzie looked at each other. “Weird noises?” Nicole asked. “What sort of weird noises?”

  “You’d have to ask him,” Sandy said. “He’s the one who heard ’em. Denise has been watching from her window, waiting for you to come home.”

  Denise nodded. “We wanted to make sure you kids were okay.”

  “Thanks for checking in with us,” Nicole said.

  “Yeah, we appreciate it.” Lizzie glanced at Nicole with a concerned expression. “Who do you think it was? Your parents?”

  A sympathetic frown crossed Denise’s face. “I saw the news about your mom and dad. What a horrible thing to happen.”

  Nicole exhaled, not really wanting to discuss it. “Yeah, it’s not every day your parents try to kill you.”

  A couple of months earlier, when things had gone bad with the Tarians and Aretes, Nicole’s parents had paid her a visit in the middle of the night, along with a creepy guy Nicole knew. Tiffany, Nicole’s mom, had been a member of the Tarian group and wanted revenge for Nicole destroying her chances at leading a world organization. Instead, she’d shot Nicole in the leg and accidentally murdered the guy. It was horrible. Nicole would be okay with never thinking about the incident ever again.

  She glanced at Lizzie. “Last I heard, Dad was on trial and Mom was still in jail, awaiting her next court appearance. It wasn’t them who made the noise, I’m sure of it.”

  “Either way,” Denise said, “I think you need to have another guard stationed around the apartment.”

  Sandy tilted her head, a sour expression on her face. “Only because you like flirting with them.”

  Denise flushed, sputtering. “What . . . I . . . harmless. They’re so much younger.”

  Nicole laughed. “It’s okay, Denise. Even I noticed that some of them were pretty hot.”

  “Thank you,” Denise said, then glared at Sandy. “Well, anyway, let us know if we can do anything for you girls.”

  Nicole and Lizzie agreed, then shut the door and turned to each other.

  “I’ll call Sam,” Lizzie said.

  “Good idea.”

  While waiting for Lizzie’s conversation to end, Nicole did a quick inspection of the apartment. Nothing appeared out of place, and nothing was missing—at least, not that she could tell immediately.

  Lizzie set her phone on the counter. “He said it sounded like something big was shuffling around.”

  “Big? Was it human?”

  “He wasn’t solid on that point. I think he’s been really weirded out by what happened in July.”

  “I was weirded out by what happened in July.”

  Lizzie giggled. “Yeah, next time we have otherworldly visitors, I plan to be far away.”

  “Same,” Nicole said absentmindedly. “I’ll call Coolidge and ask him to arrange to have the place watched again. Then I need to get back to my homework. Too much to do before the weekend.”

  “He’s resting now, but I’ll give him a call soon. You go ahead and get started.”

  Nicole thanked her friend and settled in at the table to study. She struggled with concentrating at first, though, worrying about who or what had gained access to her apartment. It had been a long time since she’d felt unsafe there.

  A couple of hours later, she pulled herself from her books with some effort, her stomach growling. Lizzie also took a break, and they cooked dinner together.

  “What did Coolidge say about the guard?” Nicole asked.

  Lizzie glanced up from the noodles she was straining. “He got one in place immediately.”

  Oh, good. “How long should we keep them around this time?”

  “He suggested at least a week out in the open, then three weeks undercover.”

  “Great plan.” She hoped it would be long enough.

  The two ate dinner, then finished studying. Nicole couldn’t wait until the weekend came—she really looked forward to exploring another world and taking a break from homework.

  ***

  Nicole’s first impression of Akeno the Makalo was that yes, he was blue. Even though at first glance he looked human, he definitely wasn’t. The eyelash thing didn’t bother her, but the blue really was disconcerting, especially when she noticed that his left ring finger was very blue. Weird.

  Other than that, he was completely adorable. He was skinny and very short, had thick black hair and beautiful eyes, and was kind, shy, and cuddly looking. She wanted to pick him up and squeeze him.

  Jacob opened up a link to Macaria, the city Dmitri had mentioned, and led the way through. He turned, glancing back at Nicole, Austin, and Coolidge. “Too bad Gallus isn’t home—I’d love for you guys to meet him.”

  “Who’s Gallus?” Nicole asked.

  “The owner of Macaria’s store,” Coolidge said.

  “Oh, that’s right, Mr. Coolidge—you’ve met him,” Jacob said. “I forgot.” He adjusted the knapsack he wore, then started down the dusty street.

  Nicole gazed at the buildings as they passed. Most of them looked like they’d been blasted by bombs. And fairly recently—within the past couple of years. Instead of focusing on that, she decided to admire the pristine whiteness of the city. It was as if the entire place had been bleached.

  “Gorgeous,” she murmured, slipping her hand into Austin’s.

  “Who, me?” He sent her a smile.

  Nicole chuckled. “No, the city. Though yes, you’re gorgeous as well.”

  “Thank you.”

  Austin squeezed her hand, and they continued in silence. Nicole could tell that the city had e
ndured a lot—those bombings must have taken so many lives. The reverent, somber feeling that followed the people she saw cemented that impression.

  She surveyed the vast green prairies and the white-capped mountain on the other side, grateful she was in good company. They had a lot of traveling to do.

  ***

  It had been a while since Nicole had done so much walking, and by the end of the day, her feet ached. She couldn’t believe she’d actually been looking forward to this.

  She was almost too tired to be surprised when Akeno put his left hand on the branch of a nearby tree and several little huts sprang up, formed by the trees and underbrush.

  “Whoa,” Austin said, eyebrow raised. “What just happened?”

  “Akeno controls plants,” Jacob said.

  “I don’t actually control them,” Akeno said. “I ask them to do things for us, and they kindly oblige.”

  “That’s convenient,” Nicole said, sitting against a tree and pulling off her shoes. She couldn’t wait to plunge her feet into the nearby stream.

  The group was silent as they ate the dinner Akeno and Jacob prepared. Nicole enjoyed the scenery. They’d started ascending a mountain and had a fantastic view of the landscape they’d left behind. First were the prairies, then Macaria, gleaming in the fading sunlight, and a huge lake to the left of Macaria that graced the center of the beautiful valley. In the distance, on the other side of the lake, she could see Dmitri’s castle and Maivoryl City.

  Jacob pointed out the mountains to the right of Macaria, telling them that was the way he’d entered the valley the first time he’d come to Eklaron.

  Nicole and the others had set up camp in a small forest made of what Akeno called Kaede trees, but which Nicole swore were really maple trees. She decided not to pursue the topic and was the first to turn in for the night.

  The next day went smoothly, even though Nicole’s feet and legs were screaming from the exertion of the day before.

  By the fourth day of travel, her body adjusted, and she was able to enjoy walking—or at least tolerate it.

  The last few days had presented them with mostly rugged, hilly terrain. They didn’t see any signs of civilization. Akeno’s map showed ruins of villages that had been destroyed when the Lorkon rose to power.

  Around noon on the fourth day, she started seeing weird birds. They were beautiful—deep blue with bright red beaks, tails, eyes, and feet.

  Jacob watched the birds suspiciously. “I think I know what these are,” he said, clutching his knapsack to his chest.

  By this time, Nicole knew that he carried a small metal container in his bag where his Minya, Early, lived. He was understandably possessive and careful with Early. From what it sounded like, they’d been through a lot together.

  “What are they?” Coolidge asked, looking up at the nearest bird. It was about three feet from head to tail, with a massive body.

  Jacob squinted at them. “Azuriah told me about them. They’re blood suckers. Vampire birds.”

  Nicole frowned. “Who’s Azuriah?”

  He glanced at her. “A Shiengol—a creature who controls his magic through his eyes. He’s really intelligent and has helped us a lot. He’s also really cranky and doesn’t like people asking him questions—you should know that in case you meet him some day. But he’s usually right, and he said to avoid them if we saw any.”

  “Why didn’t you say something earlier?” Austin asked.

  “I wasn’t sure—they were far enough away that I didn’t see the red.”

  No one responded, but Nicole could feel the chill that descended over the group, despite the warm air. She stared up at the birds, wondering how they sucked blood but hoping she wouldn’t find out.

  Suddenly, the nearest one opened its maw and sprayed Coolidge with green stuff. Coolidge’s eyes widened and he gasped. His body crumpled to the forest floor.

  “Everyone, take cover!” Jacob shouted.

  Nicole looked around—cover where? The forest was thin, the trees sparse. There wasn’t undergrowth where they could hide.

  She and Austin glanced at each other, and instead of running, they jumped to each other, standing over Coolidge’s inert form.

  “I’ll keep watch,” Austin said. “Check him out.”

  Nicole dropped to her knees next to Coolidge. She shook his shoulder, careful not to touch the green stuff, then checked his pulse. “Professor? Are you okay?”

  He didn’t respond. His eyes were glazed over, his pulse faint.

  Nicole looked around, wondering where Jacob had gone.

  She gasped when she saw a flock of the birds attacking him. He must have created one of his shields, because the birds were bouncing off the air around him. It looked like he was struggling to maintain his grip—his face was red, his arms shaking as he held them out. Nicole began gathering her magic, but what could she do? These birds looked strong enough to fly through any windstorm she created.

  Just then, Austin dropped to the ground next to her, covered in green stuff.

  Nicole panicked. The two strongest Aretes in their group were down. She quickly gathered more magic, but nothing happened when she pushed it toward the birds. What was going on?

  “My magic isn’t working!” she yelled to Jacob. “What do we do?” She was not equipped to fight crazy birds without her powers!

  A branch whizzed through the air, striking the largest bird. It fell to the ground near Nicole, either dead or unconscious.

  With a frenzy, branches started flying around, knocking other birds from the air. It didn’t take long for the evil creatures to figure out what was going on and fly away, hovering out of reach of the trees.

  “Make sure Austin and Mr. Coolidge are okay!” Akeno called to her from the nearest tree. He must have been controlling the branches.

  Nicole turned her attention back to Austin and Coolidge. “What do I do? How do I know if they’re okay?”

  “The stuff isn’t poisonous,” Jacob said, dropping near her. “It freezes them in place.”

  “Paralyzes them?”

  “Basically.”

  “How long until it wears off?”

  Jacob knitted his eyebrows. “It won’t ever wear off—they’ll be like this forever.”

  What? That was awful! “How do we undo it?”

  “We don’t.”

  Nicole started. “What do you mean?”

  “I need to check with Azuriah, but I think we’ll have to force one of the birds to bite them. Then we have to free them before the bird drains their blood.”

  Nicole stared at him. “You’re kidding, right?”

  “Let me double-check with Azuriah.”

  Jacob brought out his Minya. She stood on his hand, her black curls billowing slightly around her.

  “Go ask Azuriah about the vampire birds. Have him confirm what we need to do to get someone free from their sludge.”

  She nodded, then disappeared in a burst of light.

  Nicole turned her attention back to her boyfriend. “Are they in pain?”

  Jacob shook his head. “I’m sorry—I don’t know.”

  Nicole held Austin’s hand, rubbing it, hoping Jacob’s friend would deliver better news.

  Early reappeared, a solemn expression on her tiny face. She held on to Jacob’s thumb. “Azuriah says to leave him alone—he’s already told you what you need to know about the birds.”

  “Great,” Jacob muttered. “Tell him thanks for nothing. Wait.” He held up his hand. “Don’t do that. Just . . . let’s see if there’s something else we can do.” He looked at Akeno, whose hand was back on the tree, probably so he could knock the birds away again. “Do you think Kaede sap would help?”

  Akeno shook his head. “I don’t know.”

  Jacob glanced at Nicole, an apologetic expression on his face. “Early’s right—I do know what needs to be done. The bird’s bite is the only cure for their spray. It unparalyzes the person for a moment. Then, like I said, we have to move the person really fast
before the bird drains them.”

  Jacob bit his lip, not meeting her eyes. “Also, the bird uses magic to pull the blood to itself. It can do a lot of damage in only seconds.”

  “This gets better and better.” Nicole swallowed, trying to keep tears from filling her eyes when she looked at Austin. “Tell me what to do.”

  “Get your powers ready. I’ll have Akeno use the trees to pull a bird down to us, then I’ll have it bite Coolidge.”

  Nicole shook her head. “I don’t think my magic would be any good against them. I tried it earlier, and nothing happened.”

  Jacob nodded. “That makes sense. I wondered why neither of these two did anything to defend themselves.”

  Nicole reached for her magic, then gasped when she couldn’t feel it. “Oh, my gosh. I can’t even sense my powers anymore—they’re completely gone.” What an awful feeling. She had never been completely stripped of her powers. Even before Restarting, she’d sensed the magic that swirled around her. She felt so helpless without it.

  Jacob called instructions to Akeno, then handed Nicole a knife. “If you can’t use your powers, you’ll have to kill it with this instead.”

  Nicole gripped the knife, her hand shaking. How much time would they have from when the bird first bit to when it sucked the men dry? She hoped they wouldn’t find out.

  A ton of squawking above let her know that Akeno was trying to catch one. It took several tries before he succeeded, and then a bird was lowered to them, a small branch wrapped around its maw, probably to keep it from spraying anyone.

  Jacob grabbed the bird, holding its wings tightly to its sides, and Nicole held the knife where the bird could see it, hoping the creature would recognize the threat.

  Jacob placed the beak of the bird next to Coolidge’s arm. “Release its beak!” he shouted to Akeno.

  With a sudden flurry of movement, the branch loosened, and Jacob swung the bird closer to Coolidge.

  The bird must have sensed the blood in Coolidge’s arm because it immediately snapped onto him. Coolidge gasped.

  Nicole finally sensed magic, but it originated from the bird. She raised the knife, thrusting it at the creature, but the bird swiveled out of Jacob’s grasp and away, its beak remaining around Coolidge’s arm. Nicole tried again, scrambling forward. Again, she missed.