Six of Ruin (Heirs of Irenwell #1)

My first instinct was to curse, so I did that.

“Oh, you asshole!” Very unladylike. “You’re joking, right? This is not the moment for your games, Ace. Goddess, I thought we were becoming friends, or at least partners, but no! Ace the Great Asshole must have a scheme up his sleeve. Goddess forbid you actually had a soul.”

Ace raised his eyebrow.

“No! Do not discredit my anger by mocking me!” I shouted. “Don’t you have any respect?”

Ace let out a small laugh, “I do respect you, Princess. I think you’re smart and capable, which is why I’m letting you in on, as you called it, my scheme. If I hadn’t respected you, I would have outright fooled you. Now, if you want to curse me, go ahead, but your friends up there need my help and if you want me to help them, you will at least listen to what I have to say.”

His words struck a cord between tension, anticipation and fear.

“What do you want me to do?”

Ace picked up the gold pieces that dropped from the box when we unsealed it.

“I want you to give me your Fae pendant.”

My brows furrowed, “Why?”

“Give me the pendant.” Ace spread out his hand.

Cursing under my breath, I unclasped my mother’s pendant, which shimmered pale green, and handed it to Ace. According to the pendant, he wasn’t a threat to me, which offered little comfort now.

I frowned at Ace when he opened the pendant.

“Hey!”

He poured the liquid over the floor.

I stepped forward, “What are you doing?”

“You won’t be needing that. You know who your enemies are now.” Ace put the empty pendant down, unscrewed the lid of the Ir-kaal-locking spell, and poured the contents of that into the pendant.

My eyes widened, “What are you doing?”

“You’re going to take this spell.”

“Wait a moment, what?” I backed away. “That’s clearly a dangerous spell, Ace, I can’t-”

“You will take this spell with you to Irenwell.” Ace cut in. “There are no mages in Irenwell, which means no one will sense it. And you will bring it to the Fae forest on the fourth full moon after the winter solstice. I’ll be there.”

“Very confident for someone who might not survive today.” I put my hands on my hips.

Ace closed the pendant carefully and put it on the wooden table. Then, he placed a piece of gold on top and gestured to come closer.

“I’m going to need your blood.”

“You’re scaring me.”

“Your blood, your Grace. Or everyone finds out you’re a mage.”

I swallowed the lump in my throat and approached. Ace took a small dagger out of his pocket and pressed against my thumb, opening up the wound Rixen inflicted before. The cut stung, but Ace’s behaviour stung more.

The blood dripped on the gold, and while Ace murmured foreign words, the gold melted, coating the entire pendant.

“What did you do?” I whispered.

“I sealed the pendant.” Ace murmured. “Now your blood is the only thing preventing someone from unlocking Ir-kaal.”

“Are you insane?” I pulled my hand back. “Everyone is going to come after me!”

“No one will know.” Ace grinned. “It will be our little secret. Now, memorize this.”

The scroll with the spell found itself before my eyes.

“Uh... how?”

Ace eyed me, “Don’t play dumb with me. I know you can memorize text you’ve only seen once in your life. You ought to be more careful what you say out loud, you know?”

There was no use pretending.

I narrowed my eyes and snatched the scroll from his hands, “You’re an asshole.”

“While I’m sure many share your sentiment, it hardly matters now.” Ace put the empty vial in the box, closed it and put a few gold pieces on the box.

The letters danced before my eyes, indistinguishable from one another, but I knew I would be able to recreate the same image, even if I didn’t understand the text.

Ace cut his own palm and his blood dripped over the gold while he recited more foreign words. Gold enveloped itself around the box, sealing it shut.

“Clever.” I murmured, despite hating him right now.

“I know.” Ace chuckled. “Whoever tries to open this box next is going to be very, very angry.”

“Done.” I handed the scroll back to him.

The mage squinted, “Truly?”

I put my hand on my hip, “You’re going to have to trust me.”

“Congratulations, your Grace.” Ace grinned. “You’ve been upgraded from a spoiled brat to the most important person in the world.”

My heartbeat quickened, “You better not tell anyone.”

“Why would I?” Ace put the scroll under the torch’s fire. “I’m the only person in the world who has the spell that unlocks Ir-kaal.”

Perhaps I was angry, or annoyed, or feeling a little under the weather, but I offered a small, thin smile and tapped my temple with my finger, “You mean, I am the only person in the world who has the spell that unlocks Ir-kaal.”

“And I hold your future in my hands.” Ace’s smile didn’t falter. “Don’t ever say I don’t respect you, Princess.”

A low, thudding sound spread through the small, confined room. Dirt fell off the walls, the table slightly shook, and the torches’ lights flickered.

Ace looked at me, “I believe we have company.”

“Great.” I couldn’t even comprehend my own emotions anymore. “Now all we have to do is get out of here alive.”

“You should stay in the palace.” Ace grabbed a torch and stepped into the tunnels. “But not here, in case everything collapses.”

As we ascended to the upper levels of the palace’s basement, shaking became more apparent. Whatever was going on upstairs wasn’t good. I feared for my friends, I feared for myself. Most of all, I feared Ace wouldn’t be able to deliver what he promised. He was weak, he barely walked up the stairs, and his age was beginning to show.

For all the powerful magic, he was still an old man and stairs proved to be difficult for him. Still, he didn’t give up. He grabbed his walking stick and moved up, until we’ve reached the second floor.

“Ace.” I murmured. “Maybe I shouldn’t be telling you this, but the Truthteller is in the palace. Or at least Rixen thinks so.”

The mage stopped in the damp, narrow hallway, his back turned to me. His shadow’s head dropped and I heard him sigh.

“Are you asking for permission?” He asked, surprising me.

“What?”

The old mage faced me, “The Vanishing Well is here, and the only reason you’re telling me the Truthteller might be here, as well, is because you’re asking for permission to go look for your own relic.”

I swallowed my heartbeat, “Don’t you want to find the Truthteller?”

Ace glanced up and another quiet, defeated sigh fell off his lips, “I would, but I don’t have time.”

“Isn’t that what you wanted out of this entire journey?” I asked, finding his situation strangely relatable. After all, we were both here for our selfish reasons. “Didn’t you want to see where you’re going? What awaits after this life?”

The mage rolled the words on his tongue, “I did. I do. But Torvald is right. We must accept the futility of our own existence. If I found out now that eternal torture or eternal bliss awaited after this life, it would determine my actions for me, and I can’t allow that. We are responsible for our deeds, whatever they are.”

“Is that why you’ve tried to break Torvald’s curse, despite knowing he could never be free?” I asked.

Ace shrugged, “People still build kingdoms, despite knowing they’ll inevitably fall. We fight our enemies, despite knowing more will emerge in their place. We still live, despite knowing we’ll die. Action despite futility, Princess.”

“You’re a confusing man.” I murmured.

The mage offered a rare, gentle smile, lacking the usual smugness, “Humans are my curse.”

Slowly, he continued his ascend towards the surface.

“What do I do?” My hands dropped by my sides. “I’m useless up there.”

“Find the Vanishing Well.” Ace answered, not looking at me anymore. “Take your life in your own hands, choose your destiny.”

The light of his torch disappeared behind the corner and Ace left me alone in the basement. Sighing, I grabbed my torch and illuminated the hallways around me. Low rumbling came from the surface, where the fight must have already begun.

Guilt overwhelmed me.

Maybe I should have learned how to use the sword. Maybe I could have done more to help them in this moment, but I was utterly useless. I couldn’t physically fight any of our enemies and my magic was too weak to do anything.

All in all, I was a liability. The only thing I could offer was my absence, because if nothing else, at least they wouldn’t have to worry about protecting me.

My glance fell to my chest and the Fae pendant, now completely sealed with gold, hanging around my neck, flickering under the firelight.

If I died here, perhaps no one would ever find the spell that unlocks Ir-kaal. No one would ever be able to use it for evil, except perhaps Ace.

The thought was overwhelmingly sad. The best thing I could offer to humanity was my disappearance.

I walked through the damp, narrow hallways, trying to navigate underneath the unfamiliar palace. Rixen said the Vanishing Well was right underneath the throne. If memory served me right, I was now situated on the left side of the palace. I continued to the right, hoping the narrow hallways would open up.

I pushed the wooden doors open, peeking in the small, secluded rooms, looking for relics. The only thing I found was a bunch of gold, which I stole, deciding I could give some to Nickeltinker.

Perhaps looting a fallen kingdom wasn’t very princess-like, but I decided the end justified the means.

With a heavy satchel, a barely lit torch and a fearful heart, I pushed the large double gates open, finding myself in a bigger, open area. The room was, of course, windowless, dark and damp. The ceiling was two stories high, and I realised the throne room was right above me. Sounds and voices reached me; the fight must have raged upstairs. Dust, empty candle-holders and a small bench decorated the area. In the middle of the room, however, I noticed a gilded well.

The stone surrounding the wellhead was covered in gold, and as I approached, I saw there was no water inside, only a dark, bottomless pit. This was it.

My heart thudded in my chest. And the magic in my blood rebelled, almost like it sensed its death approaching. This is what I came here to do.

I didn’t think it would come true, not in my wildest dreams. The Vanishing Well was a fantasy I concocted in my head, it allowed me to imagine the life without magic. As I stood in front of the well, the dream turned scarily real.

Everything I’ve ever wanted was now within my reach. The throne, the crown, the dresses and jewellery, and all the servants, squires and stable boys my heart might desire. A normal life, the way it was before the magic awakened, stared at me, begging me to take it.

Everything I’ve been through wasn’t for nothing.

Sounds and voices reached me; shouts and roars, things crashing and falling, thudding against the ceiling.

“Fuck.” I murmured, my heartbeat quickening.

Sweat coated my forehead. The Vanishing Well stared at me ominously.

This was it. I merely needed to wish my magic away and it would disappear forever. All my problems would disappear forever; my concerns about losing my throne, the questions about my destiny, even Ace’s threats. Everything would solve itself in a matter of moments.

Ace counted on me deciding against giving up my magic. He thought I would keep it and therefore, he could blackmail me. He knew I’d want it all. The Princess of Irenwell, always wishing to have her cake and eat it, too.

The ground shook, making me stumble. A deep earthquake spread through the lands. Patches of stone separated from the ceiling, crashing against the dirt-covered ground. I shrieked, my torch fell on the ground, almost dying out.

Something serious was going on upstairs, something I couldn’t help with. And if Ace wasn’t strong enough to defeat Soterios, we would all die.

“Fuck. My brows furrowed, and an annoyed grunt fell off my lips. “Fuck!”

We might be doomed, but if there was the slightest chance my magic could help, I had to do it, I had to try. Perhaps I could offer nothing but a distraction, but I couldn’t risk getting rid of my magic now if it might be useful in the slightest way possible.

I turned away from the Vanishing Well, then faced it, then turned away again.

I grunted, “Damn you, As of Naz, damn you all the way to hell.”

Frustrated, disappointed and angry, I grabbed my torch and walked away from the Vanishing Well, leaving behind the only thing in the world that would take away my magic.