Page 11 of Shadow Boxed (Shadow Warriors #2)
Chapter nine
The sacred chamber still echoed with ghostly chanting and flickered with torch light and ceremonial fire.
Wolf followed the last warrior around the corner and into the stone corridor—one of the many ancient passages crisscrossing the interior of the great mountain.
The smell of burning cedar, sage, and flesh followed him.
The sage and cedar would aid in the Taounaha’s journey to the web of his ancestors, as would the burning of the Old One’s totem.
He would return after the husk was reduced to ash to collect the earthly remnants.
A normal cedarwood fire never got hot enough to reduce a human husk to ash.
But the Hee'woo'nee were gifted a secret weapon by the elder gods—a mineral and plant combination that, when sprinkled and burned, created such intense heat it melted steel and reduced bone to ash.
Wolf’s progress through the twining corridors came to an abrupt halt as a tall, broad silhouette came into view.
O’Neill. The jie'van was casually leaning against the stone wall next to a flickering torch, apparently waiting for him.
Wolf waited for the familiar irritation to rise, but nothing pierced the dullness engulfing him.
Maybe he was too empty and weary to summon anything beyond loss and sorrow. Or perhaps it was the lack of smirking on O’Neill’s face. Rather, the jie'van looked serious, even tense.
But then, everyone looked tense lately.
As they should.
O’Neill waited for Wolf to reach him before speaking. “Your javaanee said you boys visited the Taounaha the morning of his death. Did he mention a new mouthpiece? The Shadow Warrior always chooses a replacement before the current Taounaha leaves the waking world. Did Benioko speak of this?”
Wolf considered the question in silence.
Aiden would not appreciate Benioko’s earlier claim becoming open knowledge.
The mouthpiece gift was one his javaanee refused to accept.
However, Aiden’s wishes could not be considered under such dire circumstances.
The welfare of the Hee’woo’nee—indeed the entire world—must come first. And the Kalikoia needed their mouthpiece. Even a reluctant one.
He studied O’Neill’s tense face and sharp eyes, which were glowing like green flares in the dim light.
While O'Neill had always been a manipulative asshole, he’d also been born and raised among the Kalikoia.
He followed the Hee’woo’nee ways. Plus, he’d been close to Benioko. Closer than anyone but Wolf.
Perhaps his counsel would be of aid.
Still, after endless animosity, it was difficult to confide in the man. He offered O’Neill a slow, reluctant nod and forced the admission out.
“He did speak of the Taounaha gift.” Wolf hesitated, Aiden’s stubborn face flashing through his mind.
His javaanee would be the opposite of pleased when this news got out.
Nor would O’Neill sit quietly on the information.
The jie’van understood how vital the Taounaha was to the Kalikoia .
Maybe O’Neill could persuade Aiden to take the path presented to him.
“The Taounaha current recipient refuses the gift.”
The glowing green eyes across from him narrowed. O’Neill’s forehead creased in thought. “Your javaanee?”
Wolf simply nodded. O’Neill had certainly connected the dots fast.
“Well, that explains why the Shadow Warrior sent you to Tajikistan to rescue the squid. Sure wouldn’t want the fledgling Taounaha to die before his gift manifested.
” He paused to shake his head, disgust tightening his face.
“Why the hell would the Shadow Warrior chose an eseneee? One ignorant of the Hee’woo’ne ways and the mouthpiece gift, and refusing to accept either?
” Frustration flashed through his eyes. The green glow turned to an angry glitter.
“Particularly now, when we need access to the Tabenetha and elder gods more than ever?”
Wolf’s eyebrows rose. Interesting…O’Neill had reacted exactly as he had when Benioko had broken the news. “According to the Old One, the Shadow Warrior chose him years ago. Aiden’s been fighting the summons.”
O’Neill’s scoff held disgust. “Figures. Now that Benioko has joined his ancestors, is your javaanee reassessing his position?”
Wolf shook his head. “It does not appear so.”
O’Neill frowned, his gaze narrowing. “I doubt your brother is having any luck ignoring the Shadow Warrior’s summons. He looked pretty shitty yesterday. Lines all over his face. Gray skin. Irritable as hell.”
Wolf had noticed this as well. “You believe he’s getting sick again?”
O’Neill shrugged. “Hell, I don’t know. But from the old stories, the elder gods turn nasty when they don’t get their way. Do the docs know what caused your javaanee’s illness? What if the Shadow Warrior was punishing him for refusing the Taounaha summons.”
Wolf had thought of this as well. Uneasiness crept through him at how similar their thoughts were.
“He mentions not sleeping. Benioko claimed the Shadow Warrior has been attempting to communicate with Aiden through nightmares. But Aiden—” He scowled. “—does not accept that his nightmares are a summons from the elder god. He ignores them.”
“Your javaanee is not one to respond to force.” O’Neill pushed off the stone wall. “We must take other measures to ensure he accepts the Taounaha gift.”
Wolf’s eyebrows rose. O’Neill was a good judge of character. He’d identified Aiden’s stubbornness easily. Behind all the smirking and needling was an astute mind.
“What do you suggest?” Curiosity cocked Wolf’s head to the left. O’Neill was known for getting rises from everyone, Mackenzie and Samuel in particular. The thought stopped him short.
Samuel would find this new rapport with O’Neill unacceptable.
Even more so after he discovered Daniel and Gracie’s parentage.
Wolf brushed the concern aside. He’d deal with Samuel’s anger when his Caetanee awoke.
Right now, he needed to convince Aiden to accept his role among the Hee'woo'nee .
He could not afford to let old rivalries prevent him from accepting help in this battle with his javaanee.
If O’Neill could help convince Aiden to take this step, he’d take O’Neill’s help—and gladly.
“The key here is Aiden’s nightmares,” O’Neill said. “We can use them to connect him to the Shadow Warrior. He doesn’t need to actually accept his gift. We just need him to speak to the elder gods and pass on what he’s told.”
Wolf thought about that. It just might work. “So, I convince him the best way to banish his nightmares is to face them? To reach out to the beings in his dreams and try to communicate with them?”
“Right.” O’Neill paused. “Which would involve lucid dreaming. But that can be taught. If the Shadow Warrior is reaching out to him in dreams, then Aiden can already communicate with him. You just need to convince him to confront his nightmares so he can banish them.” A faint quirk touched his lips.
“If he’s having as much trouble sleeping as you think, he’ll jump on the chance to correct the problem. ”
Wolf considered the suggestion. That approach would avoid the whole mouthpiece concern, which was Aiden’s blind spot. He’d tell Aiden it was simple psychology and sleep mechanics—leave the spiritual aspect out completely.
He nodded decisively. “This suggestion had best come from me. He will not listen if it comes from you.”
Nor would his javaanee be pleased that Wolf had told an adversary about his lack of sleep. His brother still considered O’Neill an adversary.
Wolf walked forward and O’Neill fell into step beside him.
The sound of their boots rang against the stone floor.
Torches flickered ahead and behind, casting them in shadows.
It felt...odd...to walk shoulder to shoulder with no animosity seething between them.
Samuel’s injury and Benioko’s death had forged a bond between them.
One he’d never expected. One he’d never wanted. Yet here they walked, side by side.
“Was there anything else Benioko told you before he died, that would prove useful during the coming battle?”
Wolf grimaced. It was a constant regret that he’d left the Old One’s chambers before finding out all the shaman knew.
Had Benioko known the purpose behind the buzzing in the nanobot tank?
And what of the zombified SEALs? The Taounaha ’s comments from a month earlier about a new people—dead yet undead—indicated he’d known the bots would resuscitate the dead.
But how many had been resurrected so far?
The entire village of Karaveht had fallen to the bots. Had those victims been revived as well?
Aiden claimed Karaveht’s inhabitants were gone when the CDC entered the town.
Where had they been taken? The memory of metallic wasps attacking the window were constantly on his mind.
It didn’t matter where the victims of Karaveht were stored.
Without Faith’s shield, the risk of infection remained high.
And those behind the testing in Karaveht did not have the necessary protection.
If the resurrected could infect new hosts, then Hokalita and all the people who called her home were running out of time.