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eighteen

Cal

Cal let out a quiet curse as he slipped across the empty room, weaving his way past rows of unoccupied desks.

Griff had said that the hall leading to the High Commander’s office was in the back, so that was where he set his sights despite the disappointment clawing his chest.

Eternal Dark, how he wished he was the one going after Kelsith.

But Griff was right.

It made more sense for Cal to stay here and confront the High Commander…

no matter how much less satisfying it felt.

Cal’s thoughts turned to the conversation he’d overheard between Griff and Nathaniel, and some of the nervous energy eased out of him.

His fingers lightly brushed over his lips, imagining Griff’s parting kiss still lingering there.

He’d only stuck around for the beginning of their heart-to-heart before guilt made him retreat outside.

It had felt wrong to intrude on their private grief.

But he’d heard enough before he left to set his heart racing.

It was hard to believe Griff actually meant what he’d said about genuinely caring for him…

but he was hopeful all the same.

He made it to the hall and peered around the corner, quickly pulling back when he spotted a familiar protector standing watch by a door at the end of the hall.

What had Griff called him: Sasha?

If the corrupt protector was here, then the High Commander probably was as well.

It looked like Griff had guessed correctly.

Cal glanced down at his basic protector disguise, considering what ploy to use.

Approaching like this might get him inside…

but it carried a good deal of risk.

A random grunt asking to speak with the High Commander this late at night might raise suspicion, especially if the High Commander was up to no good or they realized they didn’t recognize the made-up face he’d chosen.

An idea occurred to him then, and he smirked to himself.

Terrible or brilliant —he couldn’t really say .

All he knew was that he was in a hurry, so it would have to do.

Channeling his inner duskflame, he allowed the dark magic to sweep over him and rewrite his features.

By the time he strode confidently into the hall toward the High Commander’s office, he’d transformed into the spitting image of Griff, right down to his silver aura blockers and his flapping trench coat.

“Griff!” Sasha’s eyes widened when he spotted Cal.

He straightened from his perch a few paces in front of the High Commander’s door, and Cal was relieved to see him make no immediate move to reach for the electro-baton at his waist. “Goddess, you scared me half to death! What the Void are you doing here so late?”

“I need to speak with the High Commander at once,” Cal said, relying on his magic to mimic Griff’s gruff voice.

Sasha frowned. His gaze flicked to the door behind him, then back to Cal.

“Sorry, but High Commander Pern is indisposed. Whatever this is about, surely it can wait until morning?”

“I’m afraid not. It’s urgent. Hundreds of lives may be on the line.”

Sasha appeared taken aback, his face paling.

Still, he didn’t move.

“I really can’t interrupt him right now. But if you leave a message with me, I’ll make sure he gets it as soon as possible.”

Cal shook his head.

“It’ll take too long to explain. I swear, I’ll only be a minute.”

Ignoring Sasha’s continued protests, Cal lunged forward, slipping around the protector’s startled attempt to block him.

The instant he was past Sasha, he began banging on the door.

“High Commander! It’s Griff! I need to speak with you at once!”

A rough hand on his shoulder yanked him back.

Thankfully, his duskflame disguise held up to the physical contact, tricking Sasha’s mind so that he didn’t notice anything amiss.

Getting found out seemed the least of Cal’s worries though as Sasha glared at him.

He unholstered his baton and held it up.

“I told you, the High Commander is busy . I don’t know what’s gotten into you, Griff, but if you don’t turn around and leave right now, I’ll—”

“Lieutenant Thrank! What the Void is going on out there?”

Sasha cut off mid-sentence, his whole body tensing at the muffled shout from inside.

Still glaring at Cal, he glanced toward the door.

“Sorry, sir. I told him you were busy. I’ll make sure he leaves you— hey!”

Sasha swung his baton at Cal as Cal once again darted forward, this time ducking beneath Sasha’s outstretched arms. The baton whizzed over his head, leaving a faint crackle of ozone in its wake as electricity briefly flared across its surface.

A protector baton might not kill you, but the enchanted weapons certainly hurt like the Void.

Evading Sasha, Cal beat his fist on the door.

“High Commander! Please! It’s urgent!”

He snuck a glance toward Sasha, then ducked an instant before a baton swing cracked against the wooden door.

Sasha stepped forward, his eyes narrowed.

Cal raised his arms, shuffling back.

“Easy now. There’s no need to get physical.”

“Try anything like that again, and I’ll show you how physical I can get,” Sasha snarled.

“Friends or not, I won’t let you jeopardize my job.”

The two of them glared across the hall at each other.

Cal was contemplating the pros and cons of simply knocking out the belligerent protector when another shout came from the High Commander.

“For Void’s sake, Lieutenant, just let him in!”

Sasha glared at Cal a moment longer, then sighed.

Something like regret flickered across his face, replaced an instant later by resignation.

“Yes, sir.”

Reholstering his baton, he stepped aside with obvious reluctance.

“Looks like you get your wish,” he told Cal.

“Go on in.”

Bobbing his head in thanks, Cal kept a careful eye on Sasha as he stepped past him toward the door.

But Sasha made no move to stop him.

His shoulders sagged as if with defeat as Cal entered the office.

The room was large, with a high ceiling and surprisingly dark wood for Sanjarka.

Color was sparse, the High Commander favoring form over function.

Bookshelves and display cases lined the walls.

A desk dominated the far end of the room in front of a wide curved window overlooking the city.

The High Commander sat behind it.

He wore an irritated frown, pouring over a stack of papers.

The look he leveled at Cal was barely a step above a glare.

“If it was anyone else, Inspector Denton, I’d have sent them away,” the High Commander said.

“But I figure you’ve earned a little leeway, even on a night like tonight. What is this all about? Has there been a break on the Blackjack case?”

Thinking quickly, Cal let his gaze stray over the room, searching for any sign of the void orb.

Of course, he didn’t find it sitting out in plain view—that would have been way too easy.

“Well?” the High Commander snapped, his limited patience fraying.

“Speak!”

Cal cleared his throat, turning back to the High Commander and bowing his head.

“Sorry, sir. I was simply gathering my thoughts. There has been a break…of a sort. I traced a known associate of Blackjack’s right here to this very office, on this very night.”

That certainly got the High Commander’s attention.

His gaze shot up, locking on Cal.

“That’s absurd! No one has been in here tonight except for me and my assistant.”

“With all due respect, sir, you must be mistaken.”

“I think I know who has and hasn’t been in my office, Inspector,” High Commander Pern growled.

“Now, unless you have something more than rampant speculation and wild theories, you can save it for your next report.”

This was going about as well as Cal had expected.

The High Commander would hardly admit to being involved in some sort of treasonous plot.

If Cal wanted to get anywhere, he was going to have to try something a bit more…

direct.

“Apologies, sir, but I’m quite certain. I believe they left something here. I insist on checking for myself.”

Cal had no idea what sort of investigative authority Griff might have in this situation—likely none since this was his Void-cursed boss.

Still, he feigned confidence as he moved to the nearest shelf and began searching it for any signs of the void orb, or any hidden compartments where it might be stashed.

A confession was secondary—retrieving the dangerous relic remained the top priority.

“What are you doing? Stop that!”

Cal ignored the High Commander’s protests.

Not finding anything noteworthy on the first shelf, he moved onto the next.

He tried to be as careful as he could, but in his haste, he knocked a few books and knickknacks to the floor.

He tensed when he heard the creak of the High Commander’s chair, followed by heavy footfalls.

“This is outrageous behavior, Inspector! Leave my office this instant, or by the Goddess, I’ll have you tossed in a cell!”

Cal muffled a wince.

Griff was going to have a lot of explaining to do when this was all over.

Though, he supposed that implicating your boss in a conspiracy was already guaranteed to involve plenty of paperwork.

He braced himself for the High Commander to attack, but instead, the High Commander shouted, “Lieutenant Thrank! Would you please remove Inspector Denton from my office and escort him to a holding cell?”

Cal listened with half an ear for the door as he darted across the room to another shelf.

After how he’d left things with Sasha, he expected the protector to be only too eager to come in here and take another crack at him.

But to his surprise, the lieutenant didn’t answer.

High Commander Pern appeared equally caught off-guard.

From the corner of his eye, Cal saw him approach the door with a frown.

“Lieutenant?” He tried the door, his frown deepening when the knob didn’t move.

“Lieutenant! Why is this door locked? What the Void is the meaning of this?”

Cal shifted over to the next shelf on this side.

He’d barely begun rummaging when he noticed an oddly placed wooden pillar set into the back of the shelf.

There! A quick rap of his knuckles revealed it to be hollow.

His fingers skittered over the shelf, searching for hidden buttons until he finally heard a satisfying click .

The secret compartment slid open, and there, nestled inside, was the pulsing orb with its sickening hue of violet voidflame.

“Aha!” Cal triumphantly held up the void orb, muffling a wince at the slick, oily sensation it left on his palm.

“Then, how do you explain this , High Commander?”

He wasn’t exactly sure what kind of reaction he’d expected.

Perhaps for the High Commander to attack him in a rage or else attempt to flee the office to escape the evidence against him.

Instead, High Commander Pern appeared genuinely astonished.

His wide eyes locked on the void orb as if trapped in its swirling depths.

“I have no idea what that is or how it got there. Is that… voidflame?”

Cal nodded.

Uncertainty crept over him as he studied the High Commander.

Cal might not be able to read auras like the real Griff, but he liked to think he’d gotten pretty good at reading people in his line of work.

And while he was inclined to dismiss High Commander Pern’s claims as a desperate gambit to save himself, his reaction seemed genuine enough to Cal.

He wasn’t acting the way a guilty man should.

Cal should know—he’d been one plenty of times himself.

But if the High Commander hadn’t hidden the void orb there, then who…

Without warning, the void relic flared to life in his grip.

He dropped it with a startled shout.

The orb rolled across the floor a short distance before coming to a halt, seemingly unharmed.

A violet tinge obscured the air throughout the office like seeping mist while waves of dark voidflame rose to blanket the walls in unbroken tapestries of pristine violet emptiness.

Cal spun toward the window behind the desk, but the window, along with the door, were both gone, swallowed up by the hungering violet.

Just in case, he tried to reach the door anyway, feeling carefully along the wall where it had been.

The violet energy was solid and unyielding to his touch.

Some manner of pocket dimension?

It was his best guess about what might be happening to them, but it was little more than wild speculation.

“Explain yourself, Inspector!” the High Commander snarled.

Cal whirled to see the High Commander stalking toward him, an electro-baton drawn and crackling with magic.

Cal snorted, slowly backing away.

“Me? You’re the one with the void orb stashed in your office! You might’ve tried to cover your tracks, but we traced its purchase right back to you!”

“Absurd!” High Commander Pern scoffed.

“Why in the Void would I want something like this? Simply handling a voidflame relic is highly illegal, let alone using one!”

Cal rolled his eyes.

Obviously. But before he could retort, a swirling violet portal appeared where the door should have been.

An instant later, a surge of roiling energy abruptly extended out from it.

Cal barely ducked out of the way of the expanding bubble before it quickly retracted.

Rising horror clenched Cal’s gut as he stared at the jagged hole it left behind in the wall.

It was like a tear in the very fabric of reality, all impossible angles that twisted back on themselves.

The mere sight of it made his head throb with the alien wrongness of it.

The High Commander was right: why would anyone willingly mess with such terrible magic?

Voidflame was the stuff of nightmares and legends—the domain of the twisted abominations that the Immortals fought in the realm beyond this one.

When something began to emerge from the tear, he tensed, frozen with visceral terror at the prospect of an actual voidspawn breaking through to their reality.

Instead, a bolt of energy streaked out.

It collided with the High Commander’s desk and burst apart.

Violet magic quickly spread across the desk’s surface, seeping down into the wood.

The desk gave a great shudder before heaving to life, eyes and mouths and tentacles appearing over its twisted surface amid curling wisps of voidflame.

Cal’s heart skipped a beat.

An aberrant! The monstrous creation might not be as horrible as a true voidspawn, but it was still plenty terrifying.

High Commander Pern shoved past him, swinging at it with his crackling baton.

Each hit cracked wood and sent jolts of electricity rippling over the monstrous creation.

The aberrant hardly even seemed to notice.

It let out an otherworldly roar as it lashed at the High Commander with a cluster of spiked tendrils.

“Can you do something about that?” High Commander Pern shouted, gesturing toward the void orb near Cal’s feet.

He dodged a flailing tentacle, slapping another aside with a hiss of electricity.

Cal hesitated, staring at the pulsating void orb.

“Like what?”

“Void if I know!” The High Commander darted in, whacking at the aberrant’s eyes.

“Smash it or turn it off! Something! You’re the one who turned it on!”

“It turned itself on!” Cal retorted.

Still, while the High Commander did battle with his own desk, Cal hesitantly stooped down and picked up the void orb.

He grimaced as its foul magic, stronger now that it was active, oozed against his palm like rotting flesh.

He stared at the artifact, considering his options.

Even if it could be smashed—which he doubted, at least while it was fully active like this—that seemed a poor solution.

They had only the vaguest idea what it had done to them.

If he was right and it had sucked them into some sort of weird pocket dimension, smashing it might eject them…

or it might trap them here forever.

Better to disable it, then.

Pressing a finger to his right thief’s mark, he felt the comforting weight of his thief’s tools appear in his hand.

Carefully extricating his lock rods, he crouched down and got to work.

For all his other faults, Cal was grateful that Kelsith had forced him to practice with voidflame.

It meant he had at least a little experience dealing with the volatile magic.

The main issue with disabling voidflame devices was their inherent instability.

Their chaotic nature made it nearly impossible to keep up with the constant fluctuations in their magic.

It meant frequent swapping between his various rods to try to finagle the voidflame into submission.

With so many changing variables to keep track of, it was all but guaranteed you’d make a mistake.

And the instant you did…

Cal cursed when the void orb pulsed in his grip, wiping away all of his progress.

He gritted his teeth, glaring down at the relic.

It’s not possible. No matter how good a thief he was, it simply couldn’t be done.

No one could pick an active voidflame relic—not one this powerful.

A loud crash echoed behind him.

He spun to see the High Commander finishing off the aberrant desk with a great blow that nearly cleaved it in half.

Cal’s surge of relief proved short-lived when more bolts of voidflame erupted from the swirling tear in the wall.

Each impacted a different object, and within seconds, a slew of books had sprouted tattered, bat-like wings and flapped to life.

“By the Goddess,” the High Commander cursed.

He moved to cover Cal, raising his crackling baton.

“I’ll keep them off you as long as I can, Inspector. Just get us out of this mess.”

Mustering what little confidence he had left, Cal swallowed and nodded.

He took a deep breath and turned back to the orb, raising his lock rods to try again.

As he did, he sent out a silent prayer to Griff.

Wherever you are, I hope you’re having a better time of it right now than we are…

Because he had a sinking feeling that things here were about to go from bad to worse.