In the Shadows (19 page)

Let me? Like he is somehow in charge of what I can and cannot do?

“Fine,” Grey concedes. “Mia, you stand here while Adele and I gather the fallen branches.”

I concentrate on the warmth that’s always in the background of the pit of my core like a faint buzzing. The heat radiates through my veins as I hold my hands palms up, and an orb of light the size of a volleyball forms, lighting up the area and making the thorny trees appear even creepier in the shadows of the ghostly light.

Suddenly, I'm startled by wispy movements amongst the trees, and it takes my mind a moment to register what I'm seeing. Ghostly figures seem to have appeared out of nowhere. I stifle a scream.

What are those things?

They appear human in shape and size, but their wispy form makes it obvious that they are not even solid, let alone human. You know, as if the rising from the ground wasn’t a big enough clue that we were definitely dealing with some more supernatural crap. 

As they close in on our group, I count how many there are and realize that we are surrounded by six of the gray creatures. Their hair is gray, their bodies are gray. Even their eyes are gray.

The closer they get it seems as if their smoky forms become less shadow-like and more human-like with surprisingly distinguishable features for such monochromatic creatures.

“Who are you and why are you harnessing the sun in our land?” one of the creatures, perhaps their leader, says in a decidedly female voice as she approaches us. I’m a little taken aback when she shifts her appearance and her skin is no longer gray but instead flesh-colored, though her hair and her eyes remain as dark as charcoal. She’s wearing a dress not unlike the style typical of a Light elf with the long flowing skirts and bell sleeves. It’s silvery in color, adorned with dark colored gems and matches the crown resting on top of her intricately styled hair. 

“Your land?” I question her. These are definitely not Dark Elves which makes me wonder if we’ve made it closer to the mountains of Móh'rhím than we thought.  “Wait, you're Shadow Elves, aren’t you?”

“We prefer to be called Móh'rhím,” the leader responds rather snobbily and I make a mental note to continue to call them Shadow Elves simply out of spite. “You did not answer me. Who are you and why are you here?”

“We’re from Álfheimr,” Adele explains.  

The leader tilts her head to examine us more closely. “You two are Light Elves, but you are a Half-blood.” She nods toward me, understanding crossing over her face. “I presume you are Mia, daughter of King Alberico of the Ljósálfar?”

“How did you know that?” I ask.

“There’ve been many stories filtering through the land of the prophesized one,” she answers, and I remember what Jacoby said about the Shadow Elves knowing everything. I guess he wasn’t exaggerating.

“And you are?” I ask.

“I am Herdis.”

“Maybe you can help us,” Adele says, stepping forward hopefully.

Herdis ignores Adele, focused solely on me. The way she’s peering down at me makes me feel like an insect under a microscope. “We have been awaiting the arrival of the Chosen One, the one who will aid us in reclaiming our land once more. We’ve been waiting for you, Princess.”

“Why?”

“It is your destiny.” She examines me thoughtfully before continuing, “Though I sense now is not the time. Tell me, child, why are you here?”

“We’re looking for the
Noctis vigeo
.” I say, then I explain what happened to Isobel. “And I don’t know why I can’t heal her. We suspect it has something to do with the fact that she was poisoned by flowers from the Underworld so we came here in hopes of being able to concoct an antidote. Unless—,” I start, remembering what Jacoby said about the Shadow Elves knowing everything. “Do you know why I can’t heal her?”

Herdis looks meaningfully at another Shadow Elf directly on her right before speaking. “You cannot heal her because your powers are limited by the human blood that runs through your veins.”

“I guessed as much, I was hoping you might offer some insight as to why.”

“We do not interfere in the lives of the Light nor the Dark.”

“Can you at least tell us if we are right? If we can cure her with the antidote?” I ask, trying not to sound as frustrated as I’m feeling. Rudeness probably won’t go over too well with these Shadow Elves, but Herdis is making it increasingly impossible to maintain the slightest degree of politeness I can possibly muster at this time.

“Yes.”

“Do the flowers bloom anywhere other than the mountains?”

“No.”

“Can you help us get there? Like, transport us maybe?” I ask hopefully.

“No.” The Shadow Elf queen’s one word answers are getting on my nerves.

“But I will tell you that if you insist on this journey deeper into the Underworld, you must know you will surely perish, for you have barely scratched the surface of the horrors that lie in the shadows.”

“It’s a risk we will have to take,” Grey states adamantly.

“Mia, daughter of Alberico, king of the Light Elves, will you let your friends risk their lives for you?”

“They aren’t risking it for me. We’re all just trying to save Isobel.”

Herdis seems to consider that before saying, “Is she worth it?”

I’m not sure if she’s talking about me or Isobel. The three of us answer simultaneously. “Yes.”

“Stubborn, aren’t you?” Herdis mumbles to herself, before sighing. “Follow the Olfossά river, but do not drink from its depths,” she instructs.

“And if we do?” I ask thinking about just how close I came to plunging deep into the river’s depths.

“You die.”

“Oh, well, that’s reassuring. Thanks for that.” My sarcasm is lost on the Shadow Elf queen and she continues with her instructions as though I didn’t say anything at all.

“Follow the river downstream, it is the most direct path to the mountains where the
Noctis vigeo
flourish. You will come to a fork. If you travel north, you will find yourself at the mouth of Dugan’s castle, you must travel southeast in order to remain at a reasonably safe distance from the Dökkálfar. But do not waste any time, get what you need and leave. For it is almost the mortal new moon and they grow more restless the nearer it gets.”

With that, Herdis and her followers melted back into the shadows, leaving us alone in the darkness once more.

“Well, that was interesting.” Adele is the first to speak.

“I was going to go with creepy,” I add, rolling my eyes.
Creepy and annoyingly vague,
I think to myself before asking Grey,
“Do you think we can make it there tomorrow?”

“I think so,” he answers. “I think if we leave at daybreak we can make it there by noon. That is, assuming no other flesh-eating birds deter our path.”

“And on that comforting note,” I mutter to myself, curling up on my side in the fetal position trying to stay warm underneath my now cool sleeping bag--we never did get around to re-lighting the fire.

I reach into my jeans pocket as quietly as possible and pull out the now wrinkly piece of paper Finnegan drew the map on.

Herdis told us to follow the Olfossά river downstream and as soon as she said it, I knew it sounded familiar. Looking at the map I now realize why. While following the river downstream at the fork will lead us to the
Noctis vigeo
, following it upstream will take me straight to the waterfall.

It’s risky since it will take me very close to the Dökkálfar territory but, from the map, I can see that it’s just a couple of miles down to the waterfall where the Black Crystal is hidden. I can run two miles in about sixteen minutes. Hopefully that’s fast enough to get me there without alerting the Dökkálfar to my presence.

If all goes as planned, this time tomorrow, we’ll be back in Álfheimr, Isobel will be healed, Jacoby pardoned, and everyone will know I’m not nearly as helpless as they all think I am.

Chapter Twenty

W
e wake up the next morning eager to pack up our things and set off to find the river that will ideally lead us straight to the
Noctis vigeo
without having to cross paths with any of Dugan’s elves. 

“I should be able to lead us in the right direction based on the vibrations of the earth from the river current,” Grey says once we’re all packed. Adele doesn’t contradict him, and since she seems to know
everything,
I assume she would know if it was possible or not.

“Okay then.” I shrug. “Lead the way.”

Adele and I follow Grey like a three-person-train through the ash-white thorny trees. The mystical lavender light looks like something out of a fairy tale. It’s strange how different it is here than in Álfheimr yet it’s just as stunning despite the fact that this place is actually about a million times creepier.

It’s hard to tell time here since there isn’t a single sun but rather three pale white orbs in various locations in the sky but I think we’ve been walking for about an hour when I finally hear the flowing current of the river. The trees are still thick enough that I can’t see it yet but I know that we’re almost there. The clean scent of the rushing water reaches my nose and the tempting smell causes my mouth to go dry.

“Is anyone else suddenly dying of thirst?” Adele breaks the silence.

Grey chuckles in appreciation of the humor of the situation. We may feel like we’re dying of thirst right now but if we attempt to quench that thirst, we actually would die. It’s so not funny but at the same time it’s kind of ridiculous. I think we must all be slightly losing our minds because the next thing I know, the three of us are laughing uncontrollably. I lean back against one of the white trees, unable to walk any further due to a serious case of the giggles.

Suddenly Grey and Adele fall silent and he places his hand over my mouth, gently pulling me back behind the thick tree. I look at him, startled, and he raises a finger to his lips and slowly peers around the tree. He uses his hand to motion for me to stay put and then he quietly steps around the tree to get a closer look. Adele is hunkered down behind a nearby tree, her violet eyes alert.

I strain my ears, desperately trying to hear what has them both on edge. Grey returns and motions for us both to follow him, whether to get a closer look or to get to a better hiding spot I’m not really sure, but I don’t ask. We follow obediently and he leads us to a large hollowed out tree.

Once we are hidden inside, I feel safe enough to whisper. “What’s going on?”

“Dökkálfar,” he whispers back.

“How many did you see?” Adele asks.

“Just two and the human, Ethan.”

“I thought I heard more voices than that,” Adele says.

Grey seems hesitant to respond. His indigo eyes glance over at me quickly before he answers her. “They have a human with them as well.”

The way he says it and the weird look he gave me before he spoke piques my attention and suddenly a spark of hope ignites in my chest.

“Grey?” I ask him but he refuses to look at me, but I'm not going to give up that easily. “It’s Hannah, isn’t it?”

Grey finally lifts his eyes to my own, pausing only a moment  before reluctantly nodding his head.

“Let’s go! We have to get her!” In my eagerness I somehow manage to keep my voice hushed. If we are going to succeed, we have to be able to sneak up on them and like the Light Elves, the Dark Elves have exceptional hearing.

“We can’t Mia.”

“Why not?” I demand to know. I had given up all hope of being able to save Hannah until this moment, but knowing that she is still alive and so close, there’s no way I’m leaving the Underworld without her.

He stares at me, his sad eyes piercing my heart like a dagger and I realize why he is unwilling to help.

“She didn’t seem to be—Mia, she wasn’t being held against her will.”

“No.” I shake my head, refusing to believe the implications of what he just said.

“I’m sorry, Mia.”

“No, I don’t believe you.”

I don’t wait. I don’t think. I just want to sprint, out of the hollowed tree but Grey holds me back.

“Let me go!” I fight against his strong arms but he pulls me against his chest, wrapping himself around me in a giant bear hug. “Please! I have to see this for myself.”

There’s no way that Hannah would willingly stay with the Dark Elves. But then of course, why wouldn’t she? I’ve never told her—never confided anything about this world to her. Who knows what lies they may have told her in order to persuade her to help their cause. That thought causes the world to crash down around me and I stop moving. I stop fighting against Grey as I realize that the only reason the Dark Elves could have been able to persuade her is because I never was honest with her.

“Mia, you can’t do this,” Adele pleads, trying to reason with me. “You have to be quiet. They’ll find us.”

“If I just would’ve told her—”

“You couldn’t have,” she says sadly.

“But it might have—”

“It might not have made a difference,” Grey whispers, resting his cheek against my own. “I know it’s hard. But we need to remember what we’re doing down here. We need to focus on finding the
Noctis vigeo
and healing Isobel. That needs to be our goal right now. Hannah is gone. There’s no—”

“Don’t say that,” I choke out, turning to look at him. “She's not dead. She's confused or something.”

His lips tighten into a thin line. “I am so sorry.”

I feel the oxygen slowly being sucked from my lungs. I close my eyes and focus on breathing.

Inhale.

Exhale.

Grey is probably right, and as hard as that is for me to accept, I realize that I came down here believing that Hannah was lost to me. That much hasn’t changed. Despite how heart-wrenching it feels to know that Hannah has betrayed me, I wonder if she is actually aware of what she is doing. Maybe the Dark Elves have her under a spell and she doesn't really know what's going on. Maybe there’s still a way to save her.

I will hold on to that golden thread of hope with everything I have, but right now, Grey’s right, we need to focus on Isobel. We are getting closer to the mountains where the
Noctis vigeo
grow, closer to the time when I’m going to have to figure out a way to get away from Grey and Adele. I need to find the Black Crystal.