Akarnae (43 page)

Humans? Did he say humans? As if he wasn’t one himself?

Alex felt dizzy. She looked at Aven, really
looked
at him, until she connected the dots between what was in front of her and the unforgettable image she’d seen in a book many months before.

Suddenly, everything clicked into place.

“You’re not human,” she said. “You’re Meyarin.”

“Very good, Alexandra,” Aven praised mockingly.

It explained everything. His beauty, his grace, why she found it hard to resist him—even his speed and strength. It also explained what he was after.

“You’re not looking for a doorway to Freya, but a way through to Meya, aren’t you?”

He didn’t answer her, and she knew she was right.

“I heard the city disappeared thousands of years ago,” she said as he started pulling her down the corridor and opening doors at random. She was pleased when some of the doors opened to even more corridors full of doors. His search would
hopefully take time—time in which someone would surely notice that she and D.C. were missing.

Again he didn’t answer her, so she continued talking. “Why do you need a doorway to go there, anyway? If you’re Meyarin, you’d have to know where your own city is, right?”

Aven opened another door and smiled in triumph. “Perfect.”

He stepped over the threshold, dragging her with him. Inside was a small stone cell with no exit other than the doorway they’d entered through.

“I thought I had to give you permission to walk through the doors?” Alex asked. If he could get through them on his own, why did he need her?

Aven gestured for Gerald to bring D.C. in while he pulled something out of his pocket. In the dim light Alex saw that it was some kind of shiny wire, and she started struggling again, certain she wouldn’t like whatever he meant to do with it. She tried to pull away but he was too strong. She kicked out at him—which he dodged easily—and aimed a punch at his too beautiful face.

Aven’s speed was astonishing and he easily caught her hand before it made contact. He pursed his lips with irritation, yanked her forward, spun her around, and drew her arms tightly behind her back. She hissed as he pulled on her sore shoulder and she realised that she was overdue for her next dose of painkillers.

Aven deftly tied her hands together with the wire before he forced her onto the grimy stone floor and bound her ankles. Then he grabbed D.C. and positioned her to sit back to back with Alex on the ground, locking their hands together behind them and trapping them in place.

“Come, Gerald,” Aven commanded, starting towards the door.

“Hey, wait a minute!” Alex cried. “You’re just going to leave us here?”

“I have neither the time nor the inclination to babysit you while I conduct my search,” Aven said. “Don’t worry; I’ll be back as soon as I find what I’m after.”

“But—”

“Until then,” he interrupted, “I feel the need to apologise, Your Highness, since I doubt these accommodations are up to your usual standard. I’m afraid it can’t be helped, considering the circumstances.”

“No need to patronise me,” Alex said, frowning at the unnecessary title. She felt D.C. tense behind her, pulling uncomfortably on their bound hands.

“I wasn’t talking to you, Alexandra,” Aven said, pausing at the doorway. “I have to admit, when I discovered your roommate was the royal princess, it came as a delightful surprise. I couldn’t have picked a better hostage.”

Royal princess? Alex’s stomach dropped. Surely he was lying again?

Aven smirked when he noticed her expression. “Am I to understand you don’t know who you’ve been sharing a room with all year?”

Alex refused to say anything, but he continued, “I have to admit, it was difficult to find her, so well hidden as she is here at your academy. But allow me to make introductions. Alexandra Jennings, I give you Her Royal Highness, Princess Delucia Cavelle.”

Alex felt D.C. sag in defeat behind her.

“I’ll allow the two of you some time to become better acquainted,” Aven said smoothly, before he turned and walked through the doorway. The light dimmed significantly when the door closed, and with the darkness came a silence so loud it was almost deafening.

Forty-One

After Aven left them in
the dark cell, neither Alex nor D.C. knew what to say, and the silence lingered uncomfortably between them. When Alex couldn’t stand it anymore, she quietly asked, “Are you okay?”

D.C. released a trembling breath. “Sure. Never better.”

“We’re going to be fine,” Alex said, not sure who she was trying more to convince. “Someone will notice we’re missing and they’ll come looking for us.”

“They won’t be able to find us down here,” D.C. said with a hint of bitterness. “Not unless they’re Chosen—like you apparently are.”

There was a question in her tone, like she wanted to know more but wasn’t willing to ask. Alex was equally unwilling to share.

“I’m not the only person who can get down here,” Alex said. “The headmaster can, as well as my friend Darrius. Someone will raise the alarm once the Lockdown is over and they
will
find us. Especially since you’re here.”

D.C. didn’t respond, ignoring the implication, and the silence grew around them again.

Alex tried to wiggle her hands out of the bonds, but it was no use. The wire was so strong and tight that even the smallest movement caused it to bite into her flesh.

“I don’t suppose you have some kind of super-strength gift?” Alex asked.

“No. But even if I did it wouldn’t help,” D.C. answered. “It’s Moxyreel, made from Myrox.”

“Myrox?”

“Meyarin steel,” D.C. said. “It’s completely impenetrable, the strongest metal in the world. The only thing that can break through Moxyreel is something else made from Myrox. So don’t bother.”

“How do you know about Meyarin steel?” Alex asked.

“How do you know Aven Dalmarta?” D.C. shot back.

“I—I don’t know,” Alex answered, surprised by the abrupt question. “We just sort of ran into each other randomly a while back. And then it happened again the last time the Lockdown was activated. He just kind of… appears, you know?”

“You haven’t seen him since the last Lockdown?” D.C. asked.

“I saw him again the day before classes started back after the Kaldoras holidays,” Alex said. Then she realised something. “But the Lockdown wasn’t activated that time, so I don’t know how he got through without triggering the wards.”

“They were de-activated so the students could Bubble back in,” D.C. said.

“Oh. I’d forgotten about that.”

“What happened when you met him that time? Did I hear him right when he said you fell through a painting?”

“Yeah,” Alex answered, knowing how ridiculous it sounded.

“What did Aven do when he saw that? Did he say anything?”

“Not really,” Alex said. “He was pleased, I guess. And from what he said earlier, it was then that he knew for sure that I was Chosen. All I know is that he tried to drag me down the stairs but the librarian interrupted him, saying he wasn’t allowed to be there.”

“Did the librarian tell him anything else?” D.C. probed.

Alex racked her memory, thinking back. “He just said Aven could only go where he wanted if I gave him permission to enter.”

“And you thought that meant he wanted to go to Freya?” D.C. asked. “Where you’re from, right?”

Alex ignored the question about her origin and answered the more important one. “I overheard a conversation between the librarian, Jarvis and Maggie. What they said made me believe that somehow I could open the door for Aven to get to Freya, and if I did, it would have terrible consequences.”

Alex paused, thinking about how she’d misinterpreted the conversation. “I was completely wrong.”

“Not completely wrong,” D.C. murmured. “You’re right about him needing you to open the door, and you’re right about the terrible consequences. It was just the destination you were wrong about.”

“So he really does think there’s a doorway to Meya down here?”

“He must, if he’s here,” D.C. answered.

“What’s so bad about him finding it?” Alex asked, and then she repeated her earlier question that Aven had ignored. “And why does he even need a door to get there? Shouldn’t he know where his own city is?”

“Aven Dalmarta is the Rebel Prince,” D.C. said, “so it’s not really his city anymore.”

“
Prince?
” Alex spluttered. “What’s with everyone suddenly becoming royal?”

“I’m not suddenly anything, thank you very much. I’ve had my title since birth,” D.C. said. “As for Aven, he lost his royal status when he was banished.”

“So he needs the doorway because…?” Alex asked, still confused.

“Because he’s
banished
,” D.C. repeated. “The city disappeared
after his rebellion and he has no way of finding it again. Not without your help.”

“The city vanished thousands of years ago,” Alex said, doubtful. “I think you have your story wrong.”

“Aven is
Meyarin
, Alex,” D.C. said. “He’s immortal, ageless. He might look young, but he’s been around for millennia. And he’s been searching for a way back to Meya since its disappearance.”

Immortal. Ageless. Alex’s head hurt just thinking about the two words, let alone everything they implied.

“If he’s banished, what does he stand to gain by going back?” Alex asked, pushing aside the idea of living forever.

“I’d say he plans to try his hand at rebellion again,” D.C. said. “And if he succeeds, the consequences will be deadly for us all.”

“Why?”

Alex heard D.C. sigh in the darkness, no doubt irritated by her lack of understanding.

“Medoran History 101,” D.C. said. “In a nutshell, Meyarins are a peaceful race, which is fortunate since they’re also very powerful. Back when Meya was still accessible, they had strict rules about their interactions with humans. There was always a divide between the two races, even if there was no animosity. We humans knew better than to arouse their anger, and the Meyarins were careful to keep their power from becoming corrupted. It was a peaceful alliance between our two races, even if it was clear that we benefited from trading more than they did. I imagine they saw us as little children to be humoured rather than an actual threat to their society. And they were right, we weren’t the threat. Their threat came from within.

“Aven was the second son born to King Astophe and Queen Niida. His brother Roka was the golden child—always faster,
stronger, better. Aven sought to be worthy of the attention his brother received, but he was never quite good enough.

“It’s said that one day a delegation of humans entered Meya for trade purposes. Aven had never been around humans before since they rarely ventured into Meya and he’d never left the city or its surrounding forests. But that day he happened to witness their arrival and his curiosity led him to meet them.

“When he saw how primitive their trade products were he became outraged. For years Meya had provided technology and medicine to humans, helping to advance our society. In Aven’s mind, his own race had received nothing of worth in return. He stormed back to the palace and demanded that his father end the alliance since the Meyarins were earning nothing and losing everything. But his father dismissed him, saying that one day he would understand.

“Now, Aven was very young then, for a Meyarin. Young, but convinced that he was right. It was a dangerous combination. He started to meet with other Meyarins in secret, forming an anti-human society of sorts that later became known as the Rebels.”

D.C. paused and Alex could imagine the other girl scrunching up her nose at the unoriginal name.

“At first they were only a small group of young Meyarins intent on changing the laws, but when no one would listen to them they decided to take action. The next time a human trading delegation entered the city, they killed them. All of them.”

Alex gasped. “No!”

“Right in front of the palace,” D.C. confirmed. “Witnesses were so shocked by the violence that they didn’t act fast enough to capture the Rebels, but the king knew his youngest son had to have been involved. He demanded Aven explain his actions. Aven again told his father to change the trade agreement and
end the alliance with humans. He said we were just a waste of space and resources, completely beneath them as a race.

“King Astophe refused, of course,” D.C continued, “but Aven was still a royal prince, and short of imprisoning him for the rest of his very long life, there was nothing the king could really do. Eventually Aven apologised, claiming he’d seen the error of his ways. The king fell for it, and he ended up with a knife in his back.”

Alex jerked in shock.

“Before Aven could finish his father off, his brother Roka discovered him, and the two fought. Roka easily overpowered Aven and forced him to the floor, but Aven managed to stab his blade into Roka’s leg, piercing his artery. The guards appeared then, and Aven was forced to flee. An edict went out banishing him from ever returning to Meya, and the city vanished to avoid being further corrupted by his taint.”

Alex just sat there after D.C. finished her story, absorbing the words and collecting her thoughts.

“It’s funny.” D.C. breathed out a humourless laugh. “Even though he was banished, the Rebels still won. The trade agreement ended when Meya disappeared. He still got what he wanted, or at least part of it.”

“But now he wants more,” Alex guessed.

“Yes,” D.C. confirmed. “Years of being forced to live amongst humans has left a bitterness in him so strong that he won’t stop until he has his revenge.”

Alex had a feeling she knew exactly what that meant, but she still forced herself to ask, “What will he do?”

“He’ll kill what’s left of his family and take the throne, and with it the leadership of the Meyarin people,” D.C. said, confirming Alex’s fears. “And then he’ll destroy the race responsible for his misfortune.”

“Do you mean…?”

“Humankind,” D.C. said. “He’ll kill us all—or at least those of us who he can’t use.”

“Use?” Alex repeated.

“His
associates
,” D.C. said, using the same term Aven had used to describe Gerald. “The humans he collects. The gifted ones who are willing to join his cause.”