Gabi scowled. "There's a ward in here. We suspect it's concealing the doorway to wherever Julius and Benedict have gone," she told him. "Athena is going to try to break it so we can go after them. You can just go back upstairs and help Patrick." She pointed an imperious finger towards the stairs.

"Athena's exhausted," he pointed out, looking at the woman in question with a worried frown on his face. "She's barely upright."

"I know," Gabi ground out, "but we don't have much choice in the matter."

"Can't we call in another Magus to help?" Alexander suggested.

"I'm the only one strong enough and with the right magic to do this," Athena cut in tersely. "I'll be fine. Just give me a moment to centre myself."

Alexander chewed the inside of his lip and frowned deeply. As far as Gabi could tell, he was having some kind of unsettling internal debate; either that or he was constipated.

"What, Lex?" Gabi demanded. "If you've got a better idea, spit it out." Every moment of delay was eating at her, her internal voice demanding action.

His gaze flicked from Athena to her and back again. Finally he came to some kind of decision.

"The Dark Magi are stronger because they use Blood Magic, right?" he said.

Gabi nodded, resisting the urge to shake him until his fangs rattled.

"What if..." He paused, and Gabi knew by his reticence that his suggestion was going to throw the s.h.i.t at the fan. "What if Athena took blood from me? Wouldn't it make her stronger? And if I was giving it willingly, would it still be Dark Magic?"

The silence in the small room was absolute for a full three heartbeats; then all eyes turned to Athena. She was staring at him with her mouth just the tiniest bit open. Gabi could see the instant denial in her expression, but she'd caught herself before she spoke the words, turning the idea over in her mind. Probably because it came from Alexander; Gabi was sure she wouldn't have given it the same consideration if it'd been anyone else.

"Ah, it's...I don't think it's a good idea," she finally said. "I don't know if it would stain my magic somehow, make me Dark. We haven't exactly been taught about this stuff. And...and I'm not sure if I could..." She drifted into silence.

Gabi could relate to that thought. It had taken months for her to come to terms with taking Julius's blood, and it still made her uncomfortable if she gave it too much thought.

"I don't think you should make that kind of decision in this kind of circ.u.mstance," Kyle said. "It needs careful consideration and input from someone knowledgeable."

"Julius and Benedict both do magic under the influence of Vampire blood," Gabi put in as neutrally as she could. She didn't want to put Athena on the spot and have her regret the decision later, blaming Gabi for pushing her to the wrong choice, but she also wanted to open Athena's eyes to the possibilities. After all, she, and most of the Magi race, had been living under false teachings for centuries. Perhaps it was time to remove the blinkers. "Does that make them intrinsically Dark?"

Athena was the one chewing her lip now. Gabi could hear nothing coming from behind the wall, nor could she sense anything from Julius, but an increasingly intense sense of urgency filled her. Something was going on behind there, and they needed to get through. Fast.

"I'll do it," Athena said, her expression composed, but a slight tremor ran through her body.

"Don't do this if you're not sure," Gabi warned her. "I won't allow you to blame anyone here for your decision if you regret it later."

Athena drew in a breath, and the familiar haughty mask fell across her pretty features. "I take full responsibility for anything I do and every decision I make. I do not blame others for my actions." Her voice was stronger, resolute. She turned to Alexander. "How do we do this?"

CHAPTER 18.

Gabi, Kyle and Fergus retreated back up the stairway, stopping about halfway up to give Athena and Alexander some privacy. Gabi could barely contain her impatience, and her anxiety was intense enough to be almost tangible in the small s.p.a.ce.

"Breathe, h.e.l.lcat," Kyle said. "We'll get to them."

"This better work, or I'm going to use Alexander as a battering ram to get through that wall," she grumbled.

"I heard that." Alexander's voice floated up the stairs to them.

"Good," Gabi muttered.

"You can come back down. Athena's working on the ward," he called.

As they re-entered the bare room, n.o.body spoke, but Athena was certainly looking less haggard, and the light thrown from the crystal was several watts brighter than it had been before. Her eyes were closed, and she was rubbing the dark stones of her bracelet as her lips moved in a silent litany.

Gabi paced the few feet of s.p.a.ce from one wall to the other. The men formed a loose line between her and Athena; either keeping her pacing from bothering the Magus or keeping her from trying to hurry the process along with the help of Nex, Gabi wasn't sure which. With a low frustrated growl, she shoved Nex back into her sheath and drew a smaller dagger from one of her thigh sheaths. When she got to the far wall this time, she dug the tip of the dagger into the smooth surface of the wall, trying to chip a piece free. The blade made almost no impression on the wall, leaving nothing more than a faint scratch, as though the wall was made of granite instead of brick and plaster.

"Stop that," Athena snapped, and Gabi glanced at her in surprise. The blonde woman had her eyes open and was frowning at her. Before Gabi could decide whether to be p.i.s.sed with her, Athena c.o.c.ked her head, her expression changing to one of bemus.e.m.e.nt. "Actually, do it again," she ordered, an edge of excitement in her tone, "but use the other blade, the magically enhanced one."

"Yes, ma'am," Gabi said sarcastically, but she pulled Nex out and put the blade to the wall. Instead of meeting rock-hard resistance, Nex slid through the wall as though it were made of children's play dough. Before Gabi could react to the bizarre change, Nex was sucked from her hand and disappeared.

"What?" Gabi squawked, lunging forward, but being brought up short by the solidity of the wall once again.

"Holy Lord and Lady," Athena breathed. "It's a magic trap."

"What do you mean? Where's my sword?" Gabi demanded.

Athena focused on her. "A magic trap," she repeated. "Anything touched by or intrinsically magic will pa.s.s through. Or more likely be sucked in. Anything not magic can't pa.s.s; it's impenetrable."

"So if you'd touched it earlier, you would've been sucked inside like Gabi's sword?" Alexander asked.

Athena nodded. "Luckily it's in our training not to touch something warded until we're sure it's safe."

Gabi was staring at the wall, her eyes narrowed as though she could glare it into submission. "So its purpose for being here is to allow Magi through but to keep the rest of us at bay?" she checked.

"Yes," Athena confirmed. "I've only ever heard about them. I've never actually come across one before. You can keep non-Magi out of somewhere with a much less powerful ward. This one has more to it. Once the Magus or magical object has pa.s.sed through, it's trapped on the other side; it can't come back through the ward."

Gabi broke out in curses, loud, florid, sailoresque curses.

"Now that I know what it is, I have a better chance of unravelling it," Athena said over Gabi's ranting. "I'm going to try again."

"Easy, la.s.s." Fergus put one hand on Gabi's shoulder. He must've felt a little safer now that she'd lost Nex, but she probably wouldn't have cut him anyway. She'd always had a soft spot for the Scotsman, and their friendship had been strengthened tenfold since she'd included him on her recent a.s.sa.s.sination mission inside the walls of the Princep Court, to take out no one less than one of the Princeps. She'd left Julius out of the loop so that he had the genuine excuse of deniability and couldn't be held accountable for her actions. The Vampire she'd wanted dead had been a paedophile of the worst kind, and without even knowing Fergus's history, she'd known that he detested the Princep even more than she did. In the end only the two of them and Kyle had been a part of the insane strike, and by some miracle they'd pulled it off. The experience had forged an unbreakable camaraderie between them.

She allowed the sentiment of the cool hand to seep into her and ease her anxiety. She breathed deeply, giving Fergus a little nod.

"I've nearly got it," Athena said. "Be ready."

When the ward fell, the wall in front of them simply disappeared. Athena stumbled sideways, as though a sharp gust of wind had struck her, and Alexander made a grab for her, jerking on her elbow to keep her upright.

In front of them was a huge, open cavern, red-brown rock carved by Mother Nature's own hand. Everywhere water dribbled over crystalline structures and down into crevices or small pools. The ceiling was low, enough that Fergus and Kyle would have to duck in places, but the true extent of the cave could only be guessed at in the light from Athena's crystal. Gabi's sense of Julius was suddenly strong and clear, and he was in combat mode. Battling against something that took every ounce of his concentration.

"Come on," she ordered, stopping only long enough to scoop Nex up from the sandy floor. She didn't need Kyle's Werewolf nose this time; she knew exactly which direction Julius was in. She took off in a trot, the others close behind her. They dodged stalagmites and stagnant pools, following a generally downward slope, Gabi following the pull of Julius's presence through the underground maze. She came up short at an abrupt narrowing of the cavern, a dark, yawning mouth of a tunnel. Gabi peered inside; it was more of a chimney than a tunnel, narrowing before falling straight downward for about ten feet into a large flat pool of water.

"We're going to get wet," she warned, stowing Nex and sitting at the edge of the chute.

"Gabi wait for..." Kyle began, but it was too late, she'd pushed off.

She sc.r.a.ped her shoulder and hands on the way down, but managed to land relatively easily with a large splash in the rocky pool. She had Nex in hand before she'd even properly gained her footing. Before she could get out of the pool to let the next person land, a cold, foreboding shiver ran up her spine. Evil, pure unadulterated evil lurked down here.

"Hurry," she whispered upward as she brushed water drops from her face and cautiously stepped out of the water, searching the almost impenetrable dark with every sense she had. A splash, a grunt and Fergus was beside her.

"Somethin' ain't right down 'ere," he rumbled in a low voice, his broadsword in his hand. The rest followed, each with a disturbingly loud splash in the eerie darkness. Distant roars and grunts disturbed the musty air, faint but distinct. They were in another small cave; Athena's light showed a small gap between two rock walls a few feet away. Gabi moved, but more cautiously than she had before. The naturally formed exit led off to the left. The snarling sounds grew louder and more defined; they weren't coming from anything human. Gabi held up a silent hand to stop the others in their tracks; then she dropped to her haunches and peered cautiously out, Nex at the ready. Her breath caught in her chest, and she froze. They were about to walk into h.e.l.l itself.

At her hiss, Kyle and Fergus crowded up behind her, carefully peering out themselves. Gabi straightened and moved forward a little to give them room. The water-chute cave was in a dark alcove of another ma.s.sive, open cavern, this one extending metres above them, awash in a sickly green glow. Julius and Benedict stood back to back about a foot apart in the centre of the cave, Julius holding a sword, Benedict with empty hands. The Princep could've looked small and inadequate with his lanky, teenage body outlined against Julius's tall masculine form, but he didn't. It was all in the way he held himself and in his eyes. They were surrounded. Misshapen, inhuman forms a.s.sailed them from all directions. Large, small, limbed, scaled, fanged, clawed, winged; they were closing in. None of them seemed aware of the new arrivals, but Gabi knew that Julius could feel her presence, even though he hadn't so much as glanced her way.

"Guess we found the demons," Gabi growled low in her throat, as one the size of a pony and looking vaguely like a three-headed dog lunged at the pair. Gabi gasped and started forward, but Fergus grabbed her arm. The dog-thing howled in fury as it was suddenly tossed into the air, sailing to strike a thick agate column on the far side of the cave.

"Wait, la.s.s," Fergus whispered. "a.s.sess before we rush in."

Gabi gritted her teeth and yanked her arm back, but heeded the Scotsman's advice.

"There," Athena said in a harsh whisper. She'd joined them in the dark alcove. She was pointing to a spot on the other side of the two Vampires and their circle of attackers. Gabi narrowed her eyes, squinting, and then she saw it. The Wraith.

"f.u.c.k," she drew the word out tiredly. "We've got to do something permanent to that thing soon. It's starting to p.i.s.s me off."

"The Seeker is controlling the rest of them," Athena said. "If we take it out, the rest will begin fighting amongst themselves."

"It takes a Magus to get rid of it," Gabi snarled bitterly. "I tried, remember?"

"Why haven't Benedict or Julius done something about it?" Kyle asked.

"You have to be a Banisher to send it back to the Etherworld," Athena explained. "Julius has several magical talents, but Banishing isn't one of them, and Benedict is predominantly an Enhancer. He wouldn't be able to do it on his own."

"And you?" Gabi asked. "Can you Banish it?"

"I have a bit of Banishing talent." Athena sighed. "But not enough to banish something that powerful."

"Ye said Benedict can enhance magic," Fergus said. "How close do ye need to be for 'im to enhance yer powers enough te do it?"

Athena narrowed her eyes, staring at the scene, but she was running the possibilities. Another demon body went flying through the air to land with a splash in a shallow puddle of water.

"Benedict is enhancing Julius's telekinesis. That's why the demons are flying so far. I think I need to be as close to him as Julius is," she replied, but it was clear she wasn't sure.

"How close were you when he helped you clear the poison out of my system?" Gabi asked, not that she liked to think about her brush with death in the Princep Court.

"He was touching me," Athena said, and Kyle backed up her reply with a nod. An unearthly shriek followed by a heavy grunt rent the air.

"Well then, we can't count on anything less." Gabi sighed wearily. "Guess we're going to have to cut a pathway for you."

"Uh, not to interrupt or anything," Alexander said, "but where are the Dark Ones? Aren't they supposed to be here somewhere too?" There was silence, and then all eyes turned back to the cavern, searching, scanning.

"Nothing," Gabi grumbled. "I can't see any of them. You guys?" A quiet chorus of negatives echoed around her. Gabi realised she didn't have the niggling p.r.i.c.kle at the back of her neck that usually warned her of Mariska's presence. "Then where the f.u.c.k are they?" She really didn't want to launch an a.s.sault on the demons around Julius when she didn't know where the next attack might come from.

"We need a rearguard," Kyle said. "We can't all go on the path-cutting mission."

Gabi made a quick a.s.sessment and nodded. "Fine, you go to wolf form to patrol the perimeter, looking for them. You'll be quicker on all fours and more deadly to them than in human form," she told Kyle. "Lex, take Kyle's MacBow. Once Kyle finds the Dark Ones, you let rip. As long as they don't have some kind of shield against physical attack, a crossbow bolt through the chest should keep them out of mischief long enough for us to get to Benedict." She looked Athena over quickly, then pulled the MacDart out of her holster. "Take this. It's still loaded with Werewolf saliva darts. Aim for eyes, ears or any part that looks soft, and whatever you do, don't shoot yourself."

Athena glared but didn't say anything as she took the small gun-like weapon. She feigned great interest in it as Kyle began pulling off his protective clothing.

"Fergus, it's sandwich time. You and I are the bread; Athena is the meat," Gabi said, and the Scotsman nodded understanding, his eyes taking on the familiar gleam of antic.i.p.ation as he hefted the MacChopper onto one shoulder.

Athena flinched as Kyle, already in wolf form, shook out his fur and huffed.

"Ready?" Gabi asked, looking around at them. When she received four nods, she settled Nex in her right hand, drew in a deep breath, and set off in a quick lope over the uneven ground towards the thick knot of demons. She paused twice on the way to finish off stunned demons; a single, hefty jab to what pa.s.sed for a heart or an eyeball and they were out of the fight permanently. And then they were close enough to gag on the rank odour of demon.

They had the advantage of both surprise and more-than-basic intelligence. No one ever accused demons of being precocious. Gabi and Fergus laid into the outer ring of creatures. They were crowded at least three deep around Julius and Benedict. Gabi could just hear Julius's grunt of effort over the cacophony of grunts, snarls and inhuman yowls, and a smaller, winged demon went sailing over them, landing with a revolting squelch a few feet to her left. She couldn't see either of the men in the centre of the circle. The majority of the demons were much taller than her, but she knew, with unquestioned certainty, where they were. As the first few demons fell to her sword, howling in fury, others turned and quickly redirected their savage attention.

Gabi kept a portion of her attention fixed firmly on Athena. Playing the role of protector didn't come naturally to her, but she had no intention of letting anything get to the Magus. She had absolutely no desire to face off with a Seeker again. She chopped, hacked, stabbed, spun, danced, leapt, ducked and yanked Athena out of danger more than once. To give her credit, the Magus kept her cool, firing the darts with a fairly steady hand and rarely missing, but she had no sense of what was coming at her from beyond her direct view. She lacked the intuitive edge of a seasoned fighter, the one that told you a sword was coming for you before you ever saw it, told you a foe was hiding in a dark corner, told you a demon was about to knock your head off your shoulders from directly behind you.

Severed arms, hands and other unnamed appendages lay underfoot, making the already precarious footing even more lethal, but the protective leathers were worth tenfold their weight in gold. Claws and teeth had raked her, fangs had tried to pierce, and acid blood had splashed her, but nothing got through the jacket and pants. Nex flashed again, and Gabi heard the zing of the MacChopper followed by Fergus's exuberant battle howl, and suddenly she could see the empty stretch of rocky floor between Julius and the demons. She hadn't understood why the s.p.a.ce was so defined when they'd viewed the battle from the alcove, but now that she was just a few feet away, she understood. The air in that s.p.a.ce was vibrating with power and energy. When one of the demons was pushed forward by its peers into the empty s.p.a.ce, it was instantly knocked backwards, bowling down its comrades like an out-of-control bulldozer. Julius and Benedict had erected some kind of protective ward, and Gabi wasn't sure whether they'd be able to pa.s.s unharmed. Athena was right behind her, her eyes large and a little panicky, her breath coming in small gasps.

"Can we pa.s.s through?" Gabi yelled in her ear. Then she lunged sideways, lopping the arm off a demon as it tried to grab Athena by the hair.

Athena put her hands out to the empty air. "All I can do is bring it down," Athena told her a second later. "It would be better if they did that, but then the demons could overwhelm us."

Gabi nodded understanding.

"You and Benedict will have to work fast," she warned the Magus. She checked that Fergus had their defence under control, and prayed Kyle and Alexander had the Dark Ones occupied; then she opened her mind to Julius and yelled at him. She could see him now, though he was facing away from her. She watched his body twitch; then he moved himself so that he could see her. His face was a mask of strain and annoyance. Gabi had the feeling the annoyance was directed at her. She grinned impudently and made a knock-knock motion with her free hand. His lips thinned, and he nudged Benedict with an elbow. Benedict turned to them too, his grin a little more welcoming. A small s.p.a.ce had opened up around them as the demons realised just how deadly Fergus was. Julius held up three fingers. Gabi nodded understanding.

"Ready in three," she yelled at the other two, then redoubled her attack on a small tentacled creature trying to wind its slithery appendages around her ankles. Suddenly the power near her vortexed, swirling viciously enough to pull her off balance as it withdrew. Athena and Gabi flew over the empty s.p.a.ce, Athena nearly crashing into Benedict as she rushed to explain what she needed from him. Gabi went to Julius a little slower and planted herself at his side while the demons who weren't being chopped up by Fergus milled around, wondering if they could now approach.

"What the h.e.l.l are you doing here?" Julius asked her.

"Well, I'm not in shining armour, and I'm not on a horse," Gabi said, "but I'd thought I'd come to the rescue anyway."

Julius's lips thinned. "What's she doing here?" he inclined his head towards Athena, but didn't take his eyes off the demons.

"Come to banish the Wraith," Gabi explained.

Julius just nodded; the demons had begun edging warily closer. Gabi moved away from his side a little, giving them both room to fight. Fergus broke away from the edge of the horde and backed up to take up a position in front of Athena and Benedict.

"Can you see Kyle?" Gabi called over her shoulder to him.

"Aye," Fergus rumbled. "He's 'eading over this way noo. He's got a wee human with him, but I doon think it's one of them."

"What's he doing?" Julius asked.

"Covering us from the Dark Ones," Gabi explained. "Didn't want them shooting or throwing magic at us from the shadows."

A loud keening howl began, and the Seeker raised its cloaked arms towards the ceiling of the cave.

"Oh. s.h.i.t," Gabi said with feeling.