28 (II)

Hunger

“I know about your mother,” Shiv said suddenly, breaking the silence. He didn’t know an easy way to start, so he got it out: blunt, direct, honest.

Uva stared up at him as she lay against his chest. She hummed. “I saw in your thoughts. You have a skill for that—Foreshadowing.”

“Yeah.” Shiv chuckled. He turned to face her as they rested. “It’s like the System wants me to be a voyeur. But maybe it also wants me to survive.” He shook his head, remembering Marikos. “That damn dragon. I was just trying to get into Weave.”

She laughed. “Don’t curse him.”

“Why?” Shiv narrowed his eyes. “He burned me alive. That didn’t feel that good either,” he admitted. “It was a six out of ten.”

“Stop numbering your agonizing deaths. It’s strange. But also… if the Dragon-knight hadn’t slain you, we may have missed each other.”

Shiv thought she was right.

“Well, here’s to Marikos and his stupid tantrum.” Shiv raised an imaginary glass. “So that we can be here right now.”

He sighed in contentment and scratched Uva’s head. She made something of a pleased noise. A few days ago, life in the alcove had seemed great—it was an adventure. But this… this was something else. This might just be a per—

In the corner of his eye, he caught sight of something atop the sole remaining—only partially destroyed—cabinet. The bedroom light was destroyed, and without his new cloak, he couldn’t sense well in the dark. When he realized what it was, though, Shiv tensed and cursed. “Ah, shit. Ah, SHIT!”

“What?” Uva asked, lifting her head in alarm.

Shiv covered his face in shame as he pointed at the dagger he’d left on the table—and forgotten in the throes of lust. There, The Cage of Valor Thann lay, unguarded. Uva immediately recognized the dagger too, and her reaction was even more severe. “Oh, oh, Composer… Oh goddess… oh, no.”

She covered her face, and the dagger coughed. “Apologies,” Valor said. “I was meditating as hard as I could to achieve an Absolute Invisibility Skill.”

“No, no,” Shiv interrupted, shuffling awkwardly to his feet. “This is…” He looked at Uva; she hid her face in her hands. “Godsdammit.”

Valor sighed. “Oh, don’t worry,” the dagger replied, sounding genuinely unbothered. “You’d be surprised how many times I’ve stabbed someone while they were occupied.”

“Uh, that kinda sounds like a threat, Valor…”

“Ah. Apologies. I do have a habit of sounding that way when I am made to feel like a cuckold. It is one of my only personality flaws.”

Uva started coughing violently.

“But these things are natural,” Valor said nonchalantly, totally unoffended. “It’s only a shame you forgot of my existence. That’s the only part that truly saddens me.”

“I have no words to convey my shame,” Uva whispered.

Shiv did have words. “Uh… sorry.” And those were his words. “You want to go outside and sit with Adam for a while?” Shiv asked.

At the mention of his name, the Young Lord cried through the closed door, “if either of you come out holding that dagger, I will shoot you! You’ve already deprived me of a full night’s sleep—what is wrong with you two? I live here as well! Other people live here! I went out for a felling walk! A SIX-HOUR WALK! I came back and YOU WERE STILL GOING!”

“Maybe I should just pull the memories out of his mind,” Uva murmured.

“Elf! If you touch my mind, I will shoot you in the head!” Adam cried from outside.

Shiv blinked as he looked at Uva. “You can do that?”

“Well, people forget things all the time,” she replied.

Shiv smiled slowly. “Yeah. Yeah, they do, don’t they?”

They maintained eye contact for a while longer before both of them dropped the ruse.

“Yeah, I don’t think I really want to do anything in Adam’s mind,” Shiv admitted.

“Oh, good, how noble of you two!” Adam wailed. “If you can hear me—if you aren’t doing things to each other right now—I despise the two of you. And I think the rest of the building does as well.”

“He sounds genuinely upset,” Uva observed.

Shiv sighed. “He probably misses his fiancée. He’ll feel better when I make him breakfast in the morning.”

“It better be damn good breakfast!” Adam shouted. “It’s already morning, you monsters. You’re lucky I found that key! It is morning! What in the gods—”

***

“This is damn good breakfast,” Adam said, moaning as he took another bite of Shiv’s omelette. The Deathless yawned slightly as he observed the Young Lord’s satisfaction.

From nearby came soft snoring. Uva lay sleeping on the couch thanks to the unforeseen disasters that befell the bed and the bedroom. Her mana field was still strained, and at some point she’d simply drifted off. Shiv had made sure her food was covered and protected from Adam’s ravenous intentions.

Every few seconds, Adam eyed the guarded plate like a falcon spotting a rabbit in a meadow. “I still haven’t forgiven you,” he said to Shiv, trying to hint at his intent.

“That’s hers,” Shiv insisted. “I’ll make you a bigger lunch—”

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“I think I have… just the thing…” Adam mockingly murmured in a husky tone, doing Shiv’s voice.

“Wait—you heard that too?” Shiv asked.

Adam stared as if Shiv had brain damage. “Shiv, how many times do I have to tell you how high my Awareness Skill is? I can hear and sense what’s happening in practically every room on this level. I can sense it. And considering you were right next door—and you two have no inhibitions—”

“Okay, okay,” Shiv said hurriedly. “I’m sorry. Sorry I messed up your sleep, Young Lord. I’ll make it up to you later. Wait… Didn’t you go to an academy? There were a lot of people our age there too, right?”

“Yes. And It was hell as well. My Awareness has always been my highest skill, which means short of an insulated, well-warded room, I learn things that I don’t want to all the time.” Adam rubbed his temple. “God, I miss Isabella. I need to get home.”

“We’ll get back there,” Shiv said. “We just need the Composer to let us know where that gate is and how to use it to get back to the surface.”

Shiv then remembered something. “There was a failure condition in the Quest to stop Harkness from bombing Passage… The failure condition was the closing of a Compact gate. I think that’s the one we’re taking back up to the surface.”

“A Compact gate?” Adam looked puzzled. “What’s Compact?”

“I think they’re one of the four Abyssal nations,” Shiv said, trying to recall. “The faction focused on dimensionals and demons, apparently.”

“Demons?” Adam flinched. He openly invoked the protection of the Auroral Council.

“I wouldn’t worry yet,” Shiv said. “I don’t know the situation surrounding this gate or Compact as a whole. Maybe we can use it without subterfuge or open conflict.”

“Maybe… And maybe the heavens will open up and bestow upon us Blessings of infinite favor and absolute power,” Adam scoffed.

Shiv considered the Young Lord’s flippancy. “I wouldn’t say I quite got that, but I think my odds are good if that’s our standard.”

Adam was about to declare his hate again before swallowing the last bite of his omelette. “So—what’s our plan in the meantime, until the Composer calls us? I expect a parade in our honor and a formal ceremony declaring us heroes.”

“It’s more likely she’ll play a song for you,” Valor said, “and bestow upon you both a Blessing.”

“A Blessing?” Adam sounded intrigued and worried. “A blessing from an Abyssal goddess? I suppose… even if she’s a spider-woman-thing, she seems nice enough. She hasn’t tried to eat us yet.”

“Yeah,” Shiv agreed, hiding a wince. He thought back to how the Composer casually mentioned killing Adam if he threatened any of her subjects. “She’s nice enough—as long as you talk to her well and don’t lie. Don’t lie to her. She gets mad.”

“I will keep that in mind,” Adam said. “So. Your plans?”

“Well, I think I’m going to do some reading in a while,” Shiv said, “then go out—see the city, maybe stop by Cradle again, maybe try some restaurants tonight. Training. Practice. I think that’s what I’m going to go for. What about you?”

Adam hesitated. “I was thinking I’d leverage my newfound respect and find a patrol to go on.”

“A patrol?” Shiv asked.

“Yeah,” Adam said. “I don’t like being cooped up in the city. There’s a lot of noise and chaos. I think I’d be more useful outside…

“Because you want to scout the Abyss? Find the gate or some other way up? Can’t blame you.” Shiv sighed. “But we go together. Do not run off on your own.”

Adam’s tone hardened. “While we enjoy our lives as heroes of the Abyssal Faith, our people are dying.”

Shiv’s voice matched his. “I have people there, too. I’m not giving up on them. But if we rush back blindly, we’ll just die. Well. You’ll just die.”

He was about to emphasize how he couldn’t convey how dangerous the actual Abyss was, but his recent intimate education with Uva taught him a few simple truths. “Trust me,” he began—then, without warning, formed a spell of intent and reached into Adam’s mind. He warded his recent experiences away, so Adam wouldn’t be overwhelmed, but fed him a few of his own deaths: at the hands of the weavers in the Umbral Wilderness, at the flames of Marikos, against the high vampire.

As each moment flashed through Adam’s mind, he flinched until he nearly fell from his chair. “Stop! Stop making me experience your deaths—gods!”

Shiv ended the visions. “Sorry. I just wanted to show you.”

“Show me the enemy—don’t show me you dying.” Adam gasped. “I told you yesterday, I don’t enjoy watching you die. Why would you give me that firsthand?”

“But you understand now,” Shiv said quietly. “I don’t want you to go out on your own—you don’t get a second chance. With people like Marikos flying around… I don’t think Harkness would be running openly without a care in the world.”

“Well, she does have a Legendary Skill capable of blunting a god’s attacks,” Adam said, “and I could see her trying to mentally enslave a dragon.”

“Shit, you’re right,” Shiv muttered.

“But I need to do something,” Adam insisted. “I need to be of use.”

“To be of use, you must improve,” Valor said, drawing both mens’ eyes to the dagger beside them. “When we next speak to the Composer, she will return a few things to me and loosen the tightness of this cage. I think it’s time for me to take some new disciples…”

“That’s good for you,” Adam said, “but I’ve already been to an academy. More education isn’t what I need—I need practical experience.”

“Yes,” Valor said without offense. “And Shiv has an edge you do not, so that goes for you doubly.”

Adam frowned. “Thank you for reminding me.”

“You’re welcome,” Valor replied. “But if you wish to bring down Vicar Sullain, you must be precise, capable, and grow your skills as much as possible. If he’s attacking the surface, the Curse remains in effect. He can endure light for a while, but no Abyssal can walk long under the sun. Night will be his time to strike. This will become a war of attrition—favoring him, but taking time. Time you should use wisely.”

“Alright,” Adam said with a sigh. “So what do you have to teach?”

Valor laughed—a deep, arrogant laugh earned through power and pain. “Anything you wish to learn. It’s been some time since I took disciples… Shiv, I agree: you should begin the day with a bit of education. You lack it so far, no?”

“Yeah,” Shiv said.

“Good. I was worried about your mental state before, but I think… I think you should start with the Odes.”

“The what?” Adam’s voice trembled. “You don’t mean that disgusting book bound in skin and layered with teeth, right?”

“Oh, yeah.” Shiv smirked. “I’ve been looking forward to that one for a while.”

“You’re… absolutely certain?” Adam pressed.

“Yeah,” Shiv said.

“You are insane,” Adam reiterated.

Shiv passed Uva on the couch and tucked her blanket around her. Then he pulled from under the table the largest, ugliest book he had bought—the Odes of Blood and Flesh. He stared at it; the foul eyes on the book stared back. With his Psychomancy field, he jabbed at the mind magic spell placed on the book and found himself overwhelmed by its complexity.

“Guess that explains why you’re so expensive,” he murmured.

Without further ado, he opened the pages—and felt himself drawn in mentally. When he surfaced next, he was strapped to a medical gurney, a group of vampires standing over him—their eyes blood-red, their clothing fine, but with pale, stained aprons around them.

“Now, my dear students,” a strangely elderly vampire said as he leaned close, “let us begin our first lesson on the mechanics and dynamics of circulation and the fundamentals of blood.”

Shiv regarded the vampires as they licked their fangs. That was threatening, but the topic also seemed very interesting. “Huh. That sounds kind of—”

And then one of the vampires lost control and sank their bladed teeth into his supple neck. Pain flared. Shiv choked. The next thing he knew, he was in another body being wheeled to replace the last person he occupied while the elder vampire chided his student for losing control during a class.

“-—cool,” Shiv finished. Yeah. This’ll be an experience.

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