Aldrin's Arc

Chapter 7 of 9

Aldrin pressed his palm to the shut door. The cold stone bit back. Behind it, Selara was a captive now, dragged deep by the tower's chains. He had promised to bring the watch. He struck the stone with both fists. "Warwick! Open it!" The dry voice answered from inside, close, as if pressed to the same door. "You want in?" Warwick laughed. "Then stay out." The runes flared. Green, purple, orange light raced up the black stones. The chains along the tower drew tight and knitted over the arch. Where the door had been, stone flowed like wax and set hard. Aldrin's blue magic pooled in his hands. He threw it at the seam. The wall drank it and gave back nothing. The tower had sealed itself. Selara was inside. He was locked out. He stepped back, breathing hard. Then heat brushed his neck. He turned. A great bird stood behind him. Its feathers burned red and gold, worn thin at the edges, like an old coat kept too long. It watched him with a steady eye. Aldrin had read of such birds in his master's books. They carried the memories of dead mages. "You knew him," Aldrin said. "My master." The bird bowed its head once. It stepped past him toward the sealed arch. In its beak it held a black stone, heart-shaped, dull as coal. The bird dropped it at Aldrin's feet. "I don't understand," he said. The bird opened its wings. Fire ran along the feathers. The heat fell on the black gem, and the gem woke. Color burst inside it, red and green and blue, throwing light across the sealed door. The runes on the stone shivered. Aldrin saw then. The tower fed on stolen fire. This gem answered fire in kind. He snatched up the gem. It was warm now, and lit. He pressed it against the sealed seam where the door had been. The colors poured into the stone. The runes fought it, then broke. A crack ran up the arch. Stone that had flowed like wax cracked and crumbled. A gap opened, wide enough for a man. Inside, dark. From the dark, Warwick's voice lost its ease. "That gem is not yours to hold." "It is now," Aldrin said. He did not run for the watch. The watch would come too late for Selara. He looked at the phoenix. "Watch the door. If it closes, break it again." The bird settled by the gap, wings folded, eyes on the stone. Aldrin stepped through the broken arch. The heart-gem lit his hands. Somewhere above, chains dragged over stone, and a chain-bound girl waited in the dark. He had wanted proof to bring the law. Now he had a way in, and no law with him. He climbed toward Warwick alone.