The Keep Read online

  He was done with questions. He just wanted to be left alone with his thoughts, and the memories of what he had seen. He had no energy left to give.

  Walking back down the stone steps, into the main body of the keep, he didn’t know if he’d ever see either of them again, and, with sudden realization, he knew he was absolutely fine with that. His world would be much quieter without them.

  Chapter 11

  Feeling utterly disoriented, Alex walked back toward the tower room, his head down, hoping his two mysterious “guardians” wouldn’t think about following him.

  Stepping through the door of the tower room, he was met with a wave of tension from his four friends and remembered his and Natalie’s angry exchange. It seemed as if it belonged to another time entirely. A very different Alex had re-entered the tower, though he was determined that they should resolve their differences as best as possible before he began to tell them all about the barrier magic. With everything else going on, he didn’t want to lose a friendship.

  Before he could reach Natalie, however, Jari popped up from his makeshift bed and punched Alex hard in the arm.

  “You had us worried, man! I’ve nearly worn my eyeballs out searching for you—look at them!” he cried, pulling his lids open in a gruesome fashion and pushing his eye as close to Alex as he dared.

  Alex grimaced at the sight, turning his face away. “Just what I needed to see—the inner workings of your eyeballs.”

  “Just showing you the damage you’ve done,” Jari retorted. “We’ve been busy filling beetles with magic and pulling down portals. You were supposed to be working on those module things. Where have you been hiding?”

  Alex sighed. “It’s a long story.”

  “Hey, we’ve been given time—we’re in a prison.” Jari chuckled to himself.

  “I see Demeter has been rubbing off on you,” Alex remarked.

  Jari nodded. “That guy is hilarious! I’m getting some of my best material from him. Seriously.” He paused for dramatic effect. “He’s like a mushroom.”

  Alex shook his head. “Don’t do it.”

  “What do you mean?” A grin spread across Jari’s face.

  “Don’t do it,” Alex repeated, though he was unable to keep the smirk off his face.

  “No, seriously, he’s like a mushroom,” the blond-haired boy said, his eyes glinting mischievously.

  “Don’t say it, Jari,” Aamir warned.

  “Because he’s a fun guy!” Jari cackled.

  Alex groaned and flashed a look at Aamir. “He said it.”

  Aamir deadpanned. “He went there.”

  “Dad joke central, population Jari,” Ellabell quipped.

  Alex was surprised to see Natalie breaking a smile too. She walked over to where they stood.

  “I am French, and even I know that was terrible,” she announced.

  Alex smiled wearily at his friend, and she smiled back, making him realize that much of their former animosity had already been dispelled in the wake of Alex’s disappearance and the group’s shared concern for his welfare.

  “Natalie, can I talk to you for a minute?” he asked.

  She nodded. “I was about to ask the same thing.”

  They walked over to the corner and sat down, conscious of the rest of the group watching them. Jari seemed particularly interested, hanging from one of the windowsills to get a better vantage point for his apparent prying.

  “Hey, no eavesdropping!” Alex shouted.

  Jari grinned. “I have dropped zero eaves, thank you very much!”

  “Jari!” Natalie turned, giving Jari the kind of withering look he seemed to garner from a lot of women.

  “Fine—spoilsports,” he muttered, dropping back down off the sill and retreating to fetch a snack.

  Alex turned back to Natalie. “I just wanted to—”

  “I would like to say sorry, for the things I said,” she said, cutting him off. “We are friends, and I should not have spoken to you like that. It was unfair. You were only looking out for me. In truth, you caught me out and I was defensive.”

  “I shouldn’t have attacked you either,” Alex replied. “I was just worried. I should’ve dealt with it in a better way, and I’m sorry if I came off like a jerk.”

  “I was the jerk,” insisted Natalie.

  “Shall we agree you were both jerks?” Jari’s voice wafted over.

  Alex rolled his eyes. “Friends?”

  “Friends,” she agreed, as they shook tentative hands.

  “You two sorted out your squabble?” Jari asked, grinning.

  Alex sighed. “Yes, as a matter of fact.”

  “So, where have you been?” Aamir asked.

  For a moment, Alex thought about telling them everything, the whole complex tale, but there were much more urgent matters to contend with. If they were going to get Caius to tell them where the essence was, they needed to move fast. There was no more time to waste. He would have to put aside his grief and his confusion for the time being.

  “I figured out how to break down the barrier magic,” he said, choosing the simpler route, before diving into a brief explanation of what they would have to do in order to bring it down. As far as he could tell, as soon as he removed each of the protective shields, they would be able to fit the jammers and then overload the mechanisms, forcing the whole structure to explode and bringing down their chosen section of the barrier magic.

  “That was the definition of a short story,” Jari said. “Here I was, gearing myself up for an epic tale, and you give me that? Disappointing, Webber. I’ve had burps that lasted longer.”

  Alex laughed tightly. “Sorry for the letdown.”

  “Leave him be, Jari, you wind-up merchant,” Aamir chastised. “This is exciting news.”

  “I thought so,” replied Alex. “I’m hoping to start on the shields tonight, but I might need your help in case any of Caius’s curses decide to jump out and take us by surprise.”

  Ellabell nodded excitedly. “Absolutely! I can’t think of a better way to spend an evening.”

  “It’ll give us a chance to get some practice in, to flex our magical muscles before we bring the sucker down!” Jari chirped.

  “Does anyone know where Lintz and Demeter are?” Alex asked, knowing the teachers’ power might be useful.

  “I believe Demeter is with Agatha, tending to her. She was taken ill earlier, and he is keeping an eye on her until she feels better. Lintz is with them too, but he’s working away on the circuit jammers,” Aamir replied. “Shall I get them?”

  Alex shook his head, recalling the image of Agatha rushing toward him. “Better leave them where they’re most needed. We’ll be okay, the five of us. It might sap a lot of my strength to break so many barriers in one evening, but I’ll need you all to be at your peak when the time comes to overload the cylinders—it’s going to take a lot of effort, but it’ll be worth it if we can get Caius to take the bait,” Alex said.

  “Together, we are strong,” Natalie stated.

  “After so many setbacks, I feel good about this. It’s our time,” Aamir said, though Alex wished he hadn’t spoken quite so confidently. It made him fear some sort of jinx being placed upon their plan.

  “Caius will take the bait. We just need to make sure it looks juicy enough for him to bite,” Jari said, grinning wolfishly.

  With that, the group moved from the warmth and comfort of the tower room and headed back down the steps. As they came to the first vestibule area, Alex stopped and moved toward the cylinder that clung to the wall. Using the screwdriver he had taken from Vincent’s sitting room, he unscrewed the detailed golden shell and placed it carefully on the floor, knowing that all of the covers would have to be replaced once the mechanism shields were down and the jammers had been fitted, so the modules themselves didn’t draw too much attention when Caius came to investigate. If the warden saw the deliberately broken mechanisms, Alex knew he might suspect an ambush before they even had the chance to strike, and disappear bac
k from whence he came. With the covers back on, looking like nothing had happened, Alex knew Caius would have to come closer, for a better look.

  Jari gave a low whistle over Alex’s shoulder as the inner clockwork was revealed. “She’s a beauty!”

  “Isn’t she?” Alex said, glad to hear that someone else appreciated the intricate handiwork as much as he did.

  Ellabell stepped up beside Alex. “This must regulate the flow of the barrier magic, keeping it working without the need for a mage. Once the magic has been poured inside, much like Lintz’s beetles, the system does the rest, holding the barrier magic in place, where it wants it. Very clever,” she said, taking a closer look, the golden shimmer reflected in her blue eyes.

  “I imagine it must monitor the fog outside too, as part of the system,” Natalie added.

  “Yeah, it sounds like it’s constantly in use—like it’s funneling the barrier magic, directing it this way and that, stopping it from escaping into the atmosphere,” Alex replied, watching the delicate cogs whir incessantly and move the metal arms and pumps that kept the magic flowing as it should, filtering it and sending it back out into the walls in an endless stream.

  Ellabell squinted at the mechanism. “Do you think they’re in any specific order?”

  “What do you mean?” Alex asked.

  “Well, if this is, for example, number one, do you think the next one down is number two, and so on and so forth?” she said. “If there were some way of knowing what order they were in, we could make sure we were breaking the right ones, to take down one specific section.”

  Aamir nodded. “If we could break, say, one to nine, one for each of us, then that would only take down that section of barrier.”

  “But how can we know which is which?” Natalie cut in, her brow furrowed in deep thought.

  Alex bent down and picked the golden cover back up, running his thumb along the carved detailing that coiled along the metal shell. Exotic flowers ran into twisting vines, and thorns protruded from long stems. He was hoping for some inspiration as he let his eyes follow the beautiful design. To his disappointment, it seemed to be solely decorative. Turning it around, he saw that not even the inside had any distinguishing features; it was simply smooth, blank metal. Frowning, he lifted it toward the glow of torchlight, hoping something might jump out at him as he took a final look.

  Something did. At the bottom right of the gold cover was a small etching of a swallow, its wings stretched out as if in flight, and upon each wing was a number. On the left wing, the number one; on the right wing, the number six. This was module number sixteen.

  “Guys, I think I’ve cracked it,” he said, grinning.

  “How?” Jari asked, peering once more over Alex’s shoulder.

  Alex pointed to the swallow. “This is module number sixteen. So, if we take down our nine modules, we should be able to make a decent dent in the barrier magic. It’ll certainly give old Caius enough to worry about.”

  “Are we going to blow them up now?” Jari wondered, excitement in his eyes.

  “Not tonight—we need to wait for the jammers,” Alex replied. “Tonight, I’m going to break all the shields and put the covers back on, so nobody suspects they’ve been tampered with. Then, we can return tomorrow with the jammers Lintz has made. Once they’re fitted, it should stop any further flow of barrier magic, so we’ll only have to deal with what is already in the walls. When the time is right and a signal is given, we will each have to overload the modules at the same time, to break the system and hopefully bring down the section we want to bring down,” he explained, as much for his own benefit as the others’.

  Natalie nodded. “We should check each number as we go along, to make sure we are exploding them in sequence.”

  “Exactly,” Alex replied.

  Jari grinned delightedly. “I must say, dude, I’m thrilled you decided we should go with explosions.”

  “It wasn’t exactly a choice,” said Alex, a reluctant smile pulling at his own lips.

  “And this is the protective shield, to keep out prying hands?” Ellabell asked, pointing toward the golden shield that rippled across the stunning clockwork.

  Alex nodded. “I believe so. If you look at the top and bottom of the cylinder, you’ll see why.”

  They peered closer as Alex gestured toward the two golden lines that thrummed at either end of the cylinder, holding the shield in place.

  “It’s like the Head’s golden lines,” Aamir said solemnly, a visible shudder running through him. Indeed, they were very much like the golden lines at Spellshadow Manor, simply in miniature. Alex didn’t know if it would make the consequences any less perilous, however; smaller didn’t always mean safer.

  “Exactly the same, which means there’ll probably be a little kickback when I remove it,” Alex replied grimly. “I suggest we brace ourselves for golden beasts, rushing blockades, and who knows what else,” he warned as he moved his hands closer to the top of the cylinder.

  “What if it sets off the red fog?” Natalie asked, her tone anxious.

  Alex frowned. “I’ll be here to get rid of it, if it gets into your systems.” He grimaced; it wasn’t exactly a pleasant thought, and he could see the displeasure reflected in the faces of his friends.

  “Let’s just keep all our extremities crossed that it doesn’t come to that,” Jari muttered.

  The others stepped back a short distance, giving Alex space to work. He conjured twisting strands of black and silver beneath his hands, forging a small, solid blade of rippling anti-magic that he could physically hold. Feeling the cold sturdiness of the handle in his palm, he lifted the blade to the shimmering line and felt the resistance as he tried to slice through the energy. For a brief moment, he thought it wasn’t going to work, but as he pressed harder with the silver blade, the shield shattered with a loud snap. The broken shield flew toward Alex’s eyes in a million tiny shards of light that solidified as they rushed through the air, forcing him to duck quickly out of the way, covering his eyes with his forearm. Some of the splinters bit into his skin, hailing down on his face and bare arms like a thousand drops of pure ice, and he could feel the trickle of something unexpectedly warm running down the side of his head. He didn’t dare remove his arm from over his eyes, for fear of what the shards might do, but without his sight he was helpless to fend off the vicious hail.

  Natalie, Aamir, and Jari swiped away the slivers of light, sending the shards crashing against the wall, where they evaporated into puffs of golden dust. Ellabell ran to Alex, sending up a shield around them, keeping out the rest of the hail. She held him tightly, even though his anti-magic was resisting the presence of her magical shield, causing flurries of snow to fall all around them. She didn’t seem to mind, holding him until the worst of it was over.

  “You can come out now, lovebirds!” Jari quipped.

  Flashing Alex a bashful smile, Ellabell removed the shield and stepped back, giving Alex space to stand. Her expression shifted to one of concern as she moved closer to him again, removing a tissue from her pocket and reaching up to touch the side of Alex’s head. All across his forehead and cheeks, tiny cuts had appeared, thin rivulets of blood meandering down his skin. It stung as she pressed the tissue firmly against his face.

  “Is everyone okay?” Natalie asked.

  Alex nodded, taking the tissue from Ellabell’s delicate fingers. “A few scratches. I’ll live.” He squeezed Ellabell’s hand tightly. “I think we were lucky—that felt like an old one. I don’t think it’s been tended to in a while,” he said, turning back toward the cylinder. He just hoped the rest were as ancient.

  “And hey, no red fog!” Jari whooped.

  Alex was more than grateful for its absence. He wondered if the shield’s trickery was supposed to be deterrent enough, a way of keeping out unwanted hands without ruining the flow of the magic through the mechanism. Carefully, Alex replaced the cover and screwed two of the screws loosely back in place, to hold it on. He knew it would give them e
asier access to the mechanism the following day, when they had the chance to get the jammers from Lintz.

  One down, eight to go, he thought wryly as they set off down the corridor.

  Glancing at the cover of the next cylinder, he was pleased to see the number seventeen etched onto the back of a frog in mid-hop. It meant they were at least in sequence. Deftly, he unscrewed the cover and placed it on the floor, conjuring his knife again so that he might cut the golden line at the top. As he pressed it to the gleaming energy, he felt the familiar pushback of magical resistance, but the blade cut through it easily, as if it were butter. He frowned, unsure whether that meant this one was even older.

  Instantly, the room swirled with a maelstrom of golden light, whipping up his hair and blasting in his face. Within the twisting tornado of energy, horrifying faces emerged. They were haggard and harpy-like women, their cheeks sunken, their features witchy and pointed. A blood-chilling cackle rose up from their vile throats, and they swooped down, their talon-like fingernails curved and ready to claw at their victims. It wasn’t like the red fog; Alex could see these monsters with his own eyes. They spun around the room, howling and cackling, trying to snatch at Alex’s face every time they brushed near. One caught Natalie square on the cheek, a livid gash appearing, but they were tricky creatures, managing to evade the twisting streams of magic and anti-magic blasted in their direction.

  In a rush of inspiration, Alex ran toward the bottom of the maelstrom and reached for it with his anti-magic. Pulling tightly with his palms and feeling the strain in his muscles, he drew the spinning light back into itself. The harpies howled in displeasure as they were dragged backward, compressed and contorted into the orb of twisting magic collecting in Alex’s palms. As soon as everything had been sucked into the same place, the glowing ball of light proving a little rambunctious as it struggled to escape Alex’s grasp, he pressed his hands together, feeling the force of the energy between his palms, and urged his anti-magic into the center of it, disintegrating it from the inside out. With a blinding flash and a satisfying crack, the orb evaporated into the ether.