Forlorn screams of the fuath howled just on the other side of the sandstone walls, a rising wail that set my teeth on edge. So far, it didn’t seem like they could get in, but their eerie cries rang in my mind.
“They won’t be able to get in,” said Gwydion, as if reassuring himself. “Not without knowing where to find the secret entrance.”
I wasn’t entirely sure why everyone had their swords drawn. The fuath were spirits that inhabited people. Who did they plan to stab? Each other?
And with that thought, I stepped back into the shadows. No one was watching me as I pulled the dagger from the holster on my thigh. I might need it for protection if the fuath possessed those around me.
A phantom wind rushed through the hall, snuffing out the torches, and darkness enveloped us. It felt like a heavy darkness, like wet soil on my chest. A human servant screamed, her terror echoing off the walls.
“Leus.” Lyr’s deep voice spoke the single word that called a sphere of light into existence. The pale-gold light gleamed off the drawn swords.
But even through the shield of my protection spell, I could feel the air dampening. I licked the salt off my lips.
“They got in,” I whispered. “Around us.” Seemed like someone had told them about the secret passage, because that did not take long.
Now, it felt like a wave was washing over the room—heavy, ice-cold. On the other side of the hall, a knight arched his back, his eyes going wide.
I held my breath. It was happening. The fuath were starting to possess people.
Right now seemed like a good time to get out of Dodge. I stepped further back into the shadows, slowly moving toward the corridor—
But before I could make a break for it, a powerful arm grabbed me around the waist, one hand clamped over my mouth. I stabbed my attacker in the hip, but he didn’t seem to feel the pain. He kept my mouth sealed as he pulled me behind one of the heraldic flags.
I heard the faint click of a door opening, then my captor shoved me hard into a dank tunnel. Within the next heartbeat, the door was shut behind me.
In here, the golden sphere of light illuminated Lyr’s beautiful face. He leaned against the narrow tunnel walls, boxing me in, searching my face. And while he did that, I was scrutinizing his.
It was nearly impossible to tell if someone had been possessed by the fuath. A fuath possession didn’t change a person’s appearance.
“Did you avoid—” I spoke in a whisper, but he still lifted a finger to my lips, silencing me.
I stared into his deep blue eyes long enough that I was reasonably certain it was still him. Same cocky arch of his eyebrow and strangely penetrating gaze.
Blood streaked down his hip.
I was still gripping his knife, my hand now slick with his blood.
I mouthed the word “Sorry.” It was a good thing demigods healed fast.
I felt a moment of relief till I glanced at his neck. The fuath had stolen the key from his throat.
The key that could open worlds.
What did they have planned for that? Lyr had said it required his magical signature, so I wasn’t sure they could use it. Still…
Lyr nodded at the tunnel. Built of golden sandstone, it looked like the rest of the fortress, but much smaller. Shadows enveloped most of it, so I had no idea where it led.
As we walked, Lyr had to bow his head, and we were cramped side by side. His arm brushed against mine as we walked. We were moving fast, practically running. A few alcoves interrupted the stone walls, and some tunnels branched off from the main one.
I glanced behind us. Even in the dim light, I could tell none of the possessed knights were coming for us.
I whispered, “Were they after the key on your neck?”
“It would seem that way. Not that it will do them much good. I’ll probably get it back before they figure out how to reverse the spell I’ve put on it.” He shot me a sharp look. “I was wondering what you’d end up doing with my knife. I’m regretting my decision to wait and see how it all played out.”
“You knew I had your knife?”
“Your dress doesn’t conceal much.”
“It’s also not really ideal for the sudden combat and fugitive situation we’ve found ourselves in. I could have used the black armored stuff you’re all wearing.”
“At least I gave you practical shoes.”
“Back to the key. Is that the whole reason the fuath attacked?”
“Perhaps, but they won’t be able to use it easily. They will need to know the right spell.”
The sound of a door creaking behind us made my heart race, then Lyr snuffed out the light. With one hand around my waist, he pulled me into a cramped alcove. I was pressed in close to his powerful body.
“Dorcha.” I whispered the spell for concealment in shadows.
Packed into the small space, my head rested on Lyr’s chest, which rose and fell slowly.
“Oh, Grand Master!” a voice trilled, and it took me a moment to recognize it as Midir’s. Before, he’d spoken in a flat monotone. But now? He sounded almost like he was singing. “Grand Master! They’re all gone. You can come out now. Allll safe. It’s your knight brother friend!”
The good news was that the fuath didn’t seem to know much about their hosts, and they weren’t good at impersonating them.
I closed my eyes, tuning into what I could hear. Footsteps—faint, but multiple.
It wasn’t just Midir in here. In fact, I thought at least five knights were coming for us—all of them possessed by the fuath. If the spirits were after the World Key—why were they still coming for us?
We couldn’t stay here in the alcove. Soon, they’d be able to hear our breathing if they got close enough. A bunch of possessed knights with swords, all coming to kill us. If I had a comb on me now, maybe I could do some damage, but Lyr hadn’t let me bring it along.
A burst of gold light in the hall sent my pulse racing faster, but when Lyr tugged my waist, I saw something new. We weren’t simply in an alcove, but a long, curving passage. We started running, quietly.
We rushed down the curving hall, until the light disappeared. In the dark, Lyr grabbed my hand. My heart leapt as the floor disappeared, and I fell.
Stairs. Okay.
I’d fallen into Lyr’s strong back like an idiot, but I now understood that the floor hadn’t disappeared, and that we were in a stairwell.
I traced one hand against the damp wall to steady myself as we walked down.
In the stairwell, the ceiling was hardly five feet tall, and the top of my head rubbed against it.
Did dwarves build this place? I couldn’t see him, but I imagined Lyr was bent in half to get down the stairs.
After what seemed like ages, my foot plunged into cold water. It smelled of the ocean down here. When I took another step, it came up to about my knees. We were at sea level now, apparently. I didn’t hear any of the knights coming for us, so we might have escaped their notice.
In the damp air, a chill rippled up my spine.
Lyr turned abruptly, and I slammed into his brick wall of a chest in the darkness. “Ouch.”
He leaned down, then whispered, “We’ve lost them for now. But when we come out of the tunnel, we’ll need to move swiftly and silently. The fuath in bodies can hunt by scent. Now, we no longer have the World Key to make a fast getaway.”