Mordred avoided the swipe of one blood-elf sword and used his own sword of ice to cleave his attacker in half before moving to a second blood elf. He threw three fist-sized balls of water at the blood elf, and as each one touched the elf, he froze them into thousands of tiny ice shards, killing the blood elf instantly.
The battle was quick, and brutal, and ended with the eight blood elves dead. Mordred froze the edges of Mara’s cabin with thick ice, hoping it was enough in addition to the chains, to keep her there until everyone had escaped. He’d have liked to have gone back in and killed her, but he knew that she had been right about Chloe. He’d met Mara’s daughter, Chloe, several times and had been there when Chloe’s father had been murdered by blood elves. He liked Chloe. They’d fought side by side, and in some ways her presence forced Nate and him to come to terms that would later be a new friendship. He recalled the way she looked as she cradled her dying father. Mordred would have liked nothing more than to kill Mara once and for all, but magical bomb or not, he couldn’t do that to Chloe.
The group ran to the mouth of a nearby cave and stopped.
“Runes,” Nabu said, pointing just inside the mouth of the cave.
Mordred took a step into the cave and expected his magic to vanish, but it remained. “That’s weird,” he said as he stared at the bright-red runes.
“I can’t smell you,” Wei said. “Can’t sense you in any way.”
“Me, neither,” Remy said as he joined the group. “I got bored, and once we saw you fight those blood elves, I figured it was best if we were all together. Turns out, Morgan and Mac are really stubborn.”
“Yes, it’s come up before,” Mordred said. “Morgan, you can barely walk. Is this really the best idea you could come up with?”
“Yes, now shut up and help me stay upright. Mac is wobbling.”
Nabu took Morgan’s arm and dropped it around his neck. “I’ll stay with you. We’ll go find a cabin where it’s warm. Mac, are you with us?”
Mac nodded. “Mordred, I don’t know what’s in there, but they went to a lot of effort to keep it secret.”
“Everyone either is dead or ran away. I’m not sure that constitutes an effort.”
“That’s what worries me.”
Mordred walked further into the cave, with Fiona, Remy, Diana, and Wei close behind him. “Can you smell anything?” he called back.
“No, nothing,” Wei said.
“It’s like my senses don’t work in here,” Diana said. “I’ve never felt anything like it.”
“I’m really glad I have a gun,” Remy said, tapping the Sig slung across his back. “I’d prefer a tank, but beggars can’t be choosers and all that.”
Dim lights had been placed along each wall, and every few dozen feet were wooden boards partially buried in the ground, allowing people to descend the steep slopes that led further down into the mountain. They walked for a few minutes before they came to a junction.
“Remy, Wei, you want to take left?” Mordred asked. “Fiona, Diana, and I will take right. If you find something, don’t engage. Just come back and get us. Make sure you use the walkie-talkie and let the others know.”
They split off, and it took only a short time before Mordred found a metal door built into the wall. He tried the door and found it locked, but there was a key hanging from a hook a few feet away. He took the large key and tested it in the lock, which clicked open. Mordred pushed the door open with a squeak, revealing Elaine on a bed with Alan on a wooden chair next to her.
“Alan,” Fiona said, and ran to her husband, who kissed her.
“Is this real?” he asked.
“Yeah, we’re here to rescue you,” Mordred said, feeling his magic cut out on him again. “Well, I am. These two were just hanging around being lazy.”
Elaine forced a smile. She looked tired and had some dried blood on her forehead but other than that appeared to be physically okay. Even so, Mordred had to check. “How are you?”
“It’s been a long few days,” Elaine said. “I think. I don’t know anymore. They did things to my brain. Did things to my memory. I assume everything in Avalon has gone to shit.”
“I think we’re a few stages past shit,” Remy said from the doorway.
“The prophecy, Mordred—it’s a lie,” Elaine said. “It’s not real. It’s a trick put there by . . .” Elaine dropped to her knees, clutching her head as she screamed in agony.
Mordred dropped beside her as Remy hurried off, presumably to get help. “Elaine, Elaine.”
“I’m okay,” she said, sounding weary. “They did something to my memories. I can’t remember why I was looking into things. I can’t remember who took my memories.”
“When I arrived, she could barely remember me,” Alan said from across the room. “Her memories are returning, but I don’t know who took them.”
“We’ll find out,” Mordred promised.
“Right now we have new issues,” Remy said, reappearing at the door.
“What issues?”
“The dead appear to be rising from the grave and walking up the hill outside. Nabu, Mac, and Morgan just moved into the cave as quickly as possible.”
“Abaddon,” Elaine confirmed, getting back to her feet. “I haven’t seen her in a few days. I was hoping she’d left for good. We’ll have to go further into the mountain. There’s a way out there.”
Wei stood outside the cell with Morgan, Mac, and Nabu. “It’s a big old army of dead people,” Morgan said. “They look about as well as I feel.”
“Mordred,” came a female voice that filled the tunnel. “We installed a PA system inside the mountain. I know you can hear me. You have until the count of ten to leave the mountain before we come find you. You didn’t really think you got to Elaine because you were that good, did you? You’ve managed to trap yourselves. Either you come out, or I assure you the alternative will be less than pleasant.”
Nabu removed the bracelets from the bag he carried. “We can use these to escape.”
“We don’t know where they go,” Fiona pointed out.
“Tartarus,” Alan said. “They attacked it. They killed Rhea and Cronus. Ares told me, bragged about it as he beat on me. He was proud that Abaddon had removed Rhea’s head.”
Everyone was stunned into silence for several seconds. “How strong do you need to be to be able to kill both of them?” Remy asked.
“I’d really like to be elsewhere,” Wei said.
“Tartarus is better than staying under a mountain fighting a godlike necromancer and her minions of the undead,” Diana said.
“The moon would be better than that,” Remy pointed out.
Mordred looked over at Alan, who was leaning on Fiona. “You okay?” he asked.
Alan nodded. “Just been a rough few days. Feels like my body has finally given up trying to work properly.”
“Just lean on me,” Fiona told him. “I’ll get you out of here.” She kissed him on the forehead, and Mordred looked away, not wishing to intrude on a tender moment.
“How do these bracelets work?” Mac asked.
“We really should have gotten that information from Mara,” Diana pointed out.
“I’ve seen them used,” Elaine said. “You put them on your wrist and tap them.”
Mac placed one on his wrist, tapped it, and glanced around the group. “I’m not saying it’s broken, but it’s not exactly impressive, is it?”