With a shrug, Travis looked at the script and muttered, “Fancy writing but you’re right, it’s English.”
“What does it say about the Propheros?” I urged him on.
He flipped through some pages until he found it. “The darkness shall cross the threshold to harken the Propheros is near. And with it, the dawning of a new age.Well, that’s heavy.”
It was the same thing the agents of Veritas had said.
“The soul eater, when he became solid and stepped onto our plane,” I said, then urged him to continue, not sure how much time would pass before he was missed. The Order did not trust having strangers in their midst and would keep a close eye on him.
He spoke slowly as he made out the words. “The Propheros shall be a tide against the coming darkness. When the dark lord of Stygian passes through the gate and sets foot on the earthly realm, the Propheros shall make the greatest sacrifice to destroy the dark lord and save the fertile lands of the living.”
Looking over his shoulder, though I could not read what it said, I asked, “Does it say anything more about the sacrifice?”
But Travis had stopped. After a moment, he asked in a quiet voice, “Does this mean Emma is going to die?”
I ignored his question. “Does it say anything else, Travis?”
“Yes, Travis, does it say anything else?” Another voice joined us from the shadows.
I jumped forward to put myself between Travis and whoever else had snuck into the reading room but the intruder was invisible to my eye. The room was so small, we would have noticed if they had come through the front door. How did they get in?
“Gatsby,” I said, recognizing the voice though I could not see him.
“Did you miss me?” Gatsby asked drolly. My gaze moved upward as I realized he was shrouded in the shadows, several ledges above us.
“Yes,” I replied automatically.
He let out a dry laugh. “That’s Calan for you. Polite to the end. Don’t worry, I’m not happy to see you either, brother. I was called back and I see why now.” He leapt from the ledge, landing silently on his feet before straightening.
He looked the same as when I had seen him five years ago. The same sharp eyes, the dark blonde hair pulled back in a low, short ponytail. There was still the long, jagged scar running through his left eyebrow and the same sneer pulling the side of his mouth. Gatsby reminded me of an animal who never got used to being caged, always impatient and on edge. The only difference was his face and body had become more angular, as if he’d been deprived sufficient nutrition at some point. He was athletically thin compared the amount of bulk I had on my body and I knew from fighting him that he was the fastest of all the Chevaliers.
“You’ve been a bad boy, Calan,” he tsked, and the sound bristled up my back. “They called me because they don’t think you can do your job. Something about how you plan to sully the purity of the Propheros?”
He was always jealous of the freedom the Order had given me. Gatsby questioned their authority enough times that they kept him on a short leash. The last time was five years ago, when he had tried to run away. I briefly wondered if his more honed, malnourished features were a result of their correctional actions.
“I thought Tomas was their first choice?” I asked innocently enough, but I saw my mark land and Gatsby’s mouth twist.
“Yes, well I’m usually not their first choice, but very occasionally I’m the only one who is around to get the job done.” Gatsby was also Master Wu’s ward, and I did not envy him that. Gatsby looked over my shoulder at Travis who managed to stay silent behind me. “Though I must say, I’m surprised by what gets your gears going, Calan.”
“I’m not a virgin,” Travis said too quickly from behind me. “So, I’m definitely not the Propheros.”
Gatsby smiled, though only the barest hint of humor reached his eyes. “Ah, I see. So you brought a complete stranger into the reading room. What do you think our Masters will think of their golden boy, now?”
I didn’t know what to say. Every part of me demanded I come up with a lie as to why we were there but it wasn’t in my nature. Lying demanded a creativity I didn’t possess.
“Gatsby,” I pleaded. “I am just trying to figure out how to save the Propheros. I believe there could be a different way to defeat the Stygian. A way where she won’t have to die.”
Gatsby nodded his head solemnly as if he were listening to me.
I continued. “Travis is only trying to help me find that way. If we could read the book, perhaps we could do more.”
“You are an unexpected fool, Calan.” Gatsby sneered through a smile. “You know there is only one way, and the Order tells us what that way is. If the past five years have taught me anything, it’s that they know what is best for us.” Though his words were bold, something flickered behind his eyes as he said them. “What you choose to do about your soul is your choice, but I’m getting mine back.”
With that, Gatsby leapt to the other side of the shelves like a spider monkey and slipped his body through a small opening as quietly and vanished as quickly as he appeared. I ran to the door but heard the dead bolt lock from the outside just as my hand curved around the handle.
“No,” I slammed my fists against the door causing books along the upper shelves to rattle, some plummeting to the ground. Travis yelped as one smacked his head, but he quickly dodged the next two.
“What a charmer,” Travis said, rubbing his head, though there was a nervous twinge to his voice, too. He knew he was here uninvited. “Guess there are worse guys than you out there. Though why you all look like ridiculously good-looking fitness models… the hell do they feed you guys?”
