He brandished a sorcerer’s band and passed it to me. “You need to wear one of these. Don’t argue. It’s law. All sorcerers wear one. Your magic is unpredictable here, and after Leonardo figured out about microscopic pieces of magic being in the air, it’s too dangerous to allow you to wander around without it.”
Shadow Falls, much like Tartarus, had a strange effect on my magic. In the case of Shadow Falls, using my magic ignited the magic that existed all around Shadow Falls with devastating, spectacular results. Even a small amount of use would quickly become out of control. Strangely enough, the last time I was in the realm, Leonardo had told me that sorcerer’s bands didn’t work, something that Harrison was keen to explain.
“Leonardo makes them,” he said. “They use a different type of rune than the bands on Earth realm. They’ll let you still feel your magic, but not use it. It’s thought of as being more humane.”
I sighed and put the bracelet on, clicking it into a locked position.
“Now do something small with your magic to check,” Harrison said.
“Fine.” I tried to create a small flame in my hand, but no matter how much I concentrated, I couldn’t make one. “Satisfied?”
“Excellent. Nathan Garrett, you will come with me to the prison, where you will be questioned as a possible spy for Avalon.”
I thought it was just a really bad joke until I saw several guards place their hands on their swords. And then I just got really angry. “Have you lost your fucking mind? Haven’t we been through this already? I figured you’d trust me after I saved your king’s life on more than one occasion.”
“That was then,” Harrison said. “Come quietly, or I’ll be forced to hurt you.”
“You really are a dumb fucking idiot.”
Harrison punched me in the mouth, knocking me to the ground, and my first reaction was to cleave him in half. I forced myself to calm and turned back to him. “Was that necessary?”
“In the last few days, a man calling himself Hellequin has claimed responsibility for countless acts of terrorism on the Earth realm. You used to go by that name. I’m not saying you’re guilty, but we need to find out one way or the other. I can’t allow someone to come into my realm if there’s a shred of evidence that suggests they will cause problems. Not after the murders of the last few weeks. You’ll be taken for questioning, and if I deem you to be uninvolved in these terrorist activities, then, and only then, will you be allowed to see Galahad.”
“Wait, you think I’m involved with murders? What murders?”
“That’s what the questioning you will undergo will determine. You will be placed in the prison, with your friends, until it’s determined what kind of threat you pose to this realm. And if you resist . . .” Harrison unhooked the massive hammer that hung from his back. He placed the head of the weapon on the ground beside me. “We’ll find a more permanent solution to the problem.”
I got back to my feet and allowed the guards to take me away. There was no point coming up with a witty remark, or threats—they wouldn’t have done me any good. Harrison was stubborn and arrogant, and had been out to try and find some reason to validate his hatred of me for decades. I thought we’d moved past it when we’d fought side by side, but apparently I was wrong. I only hoped that we could sort all this out before Arthur and Avalon arrived and things became considerably worse.
I was led out of the temple and into a waiting horse-drawn carriage.
“So, there have been murders in the realm?” I asked the guard beside me.
“Yes. I’m not allowed to talk about it more than that.”
“Okay, what are you allowed to talk about?” I looked around. “I see Leonardo didn’t get the crystals to power vehicles.”
“They kept blowing up,” said one of the three guards who got in the back of the carriage with me.
Silence descended for the rest of the journey, until we reached the prison outside the city.
“Well, that’s new,” I said as I left the carriage, looking up at the huge building that had been built into the very mountain. The dark rock stood out against the green that surrounded us. I didn’t even understand how we were going to get up there without a helicopter or something. It was hundreds of feet above where we stood.
“In there,” the guard who’d spoken to me earlier said. He pointed to the mouth of a nearby cave next to a small fort.
Six guards took me into the cave and down a set of steps to a lift that was big enough to take a tank. Small purple crystals glowed in the gloom, and the guards took me onto the lift and pressed one of two buttons on the panel inside. The metal doors slowly closed, and we began to ascend.
“Glad to see the crystals were used for something,” I said after a minute still ascending. “How long does this take?”
“Eight minutes,” the guard said. “We created the prison when it was obvious that we needed a place to put people who didn’t want to live by our rules. The palace dungeon was no longer deemed acceptable. We can’t move the lift quickly, as our alchemists discovered that it makes the rock shake too much. We’ve been trying to figure out a way to get around it. Eight minutes each way is a long time.”
We went back to silence after that for the remainder of the ride, until the lift stopped with a violent shake. The guard pressed the same button he had last time, and the doors began opening. The seven of us left the confines of the lift and walked down a long corridor that had been seemingly carved out of the mountain.
“Your dwarf friend,” the guard said. “Zamek. He really a true dwarf?”
I nodded.
“He could teach us a lot about alchemy.”
“He could, but you’ve imprisoned him, and he tends to take things like that personally.”
“It’s not like we’re doing this out of spite.”
I stopped and turned back to the guards, three of whom dropped their hands to their swords. “Oh, grow up. I’m not going to hurt you. And yes, this is personal. This is because Harrison is a complete fucking idiot who thinks with his biceps and wants to get one over on me.”
“He is doing what he thinks is best for Shadow Falls,” the guard replied. “And you haven’t been here the last few months. Things happened.”
“Those murders again?”
The guard looked away, clearly annoyed that he’d said anything. “Like I said, I’ve been ordered to remain quiet about it.”
I tried to push down my frustrations, but part of them still bubbled over. “He’s doing what he thinks is best for him. He’s doing what he thinks is best to show everyone that he’s in charge. Where is Galahad? What’s he doing? Will he even be informed that we’re here?”
“I don’t know. That’s not my job. My job is to protect my kingdom, and Harrison is my commander, so I do as he tells me.”
I was about to argue but thought better of it. “Just show me to my cell.”