Page 31 of Crimson Skies

“What’s wrong?” Eden asked warily.

A light flashed in the distance, the point of radiance vanishing as soon as it appeared. She stared, her stomach knotting all over again.

There is someone there,Woody growled.Someone who carries the stink of alchemy!

Eden frowned. “Go!”

The staff shot out of her hand and arrowed across the valley. She dropped down onto the promontory inside a sphere of crimson magic.

Loki transformed and put away the Eternity Key. “Where’s he going?”

“To capture a rat.”

A distant scream rent the air as they started down into the valley. The forest they entered was a dank place shrouded in silence and gloom. Eden spotted the rotting carcasses of dead animals and the burrows where the ghouls had made their homes.

Bostrof observed the crimson veins etched in the black trees around them with distaste. “We should destroy this forest before we leave.”

Izaran nodded grimly.

They found Woody in front of a fortress carved into the mountain. He’d pierced the thigh of a hooded figure carrying the scent of powdered iron and corruption. The man groaned as he tried desperately to crawl away from the devilwood staff.

Eden’s chest tightened painfully.

A glass jar lay next to the alchemist. It was full of blood. Swimming amidst the ruby-red liquid were shimmering bands of gold.

That’s what caused that flare. Woody’s magic must have echoed with it!

Izaran stared. “What is that?”

“It’s the ichor and power Elios stole from his Goddess sisters,” Loki spat out.

Eden clenched her jaw and walked over to the alchemist. His eyes rounded at the sight of the bloodcursed spell bomb she’d unleashed.

“No. Please! I beg of you!” he mewled. “Spare me!”

The man clawed at the ground with broken nails. A fearful cry escaped him as the jar exploded, peppering him with shards and the ghastly concoction within.

Eden retracted her magic and squatted next to him. He flinched at her glare.

“Where were you going with that?”

The man licked his lips, his gaze darting around as if he were seeking an escape route. He froze when a blade found his throat.

“Answer her!” Bostrof snarled.

An incoherent sound left the alchemist. He swallowed convulsively. “I—I was going to keep it! The dark God has no further use for it!”

Ice filled Eden’s veins.

“Does that mean Elios has finished making the artifacts?” Loki asked in a deadly voice.

“Yes.” The alchemist nodded jerkily. “A day ago.”

Eden closed her eyes and sagged, defeat a bitter aftertaste in her mouth.

A day. We missed them by a goddamn day!

Someone touched her shoulder.