Eight of Hearts: The Vision - Book 2

Prologue

Peter Thompson was furious.

Everywhere he looked, his people lay injured and disheartened. These were people he had devoted his life to leading, and in a single day they had lost everything. It was bad enough that some had been killed on this fool's errand. It was even worse that they had ended up killing the people they were supposed to save. And only about half had returned at all, with Kaya herself nowhere to be seen.

Rocky stood stiffly at attention as Peter debriefed him. "...and that's when Kaya sent us on ahead. The rest shouldn't be far behind; that man from Kaya's vision is supposed to--"

Peter Thompson slammed his fist on his desk. "That man was just a boy! She should never have passed that responsibility to him! Who knows where he's sent them off to?!"

Peter put his head in his hands as he fought back the urge to berate the man in front of him. It wasn't his fault; the man was clearly grieving for his own losses. But with Kaya, Shifty, and Stink Bug MIA, Rocky was his second-in-command now. Still, he managed to reign in his anger, and waved for Rocky to continue. "And where did she wander off to in all this?"

"The last I saw of Kaya, she was looking for Pahana. I headed straight back here to report to you." Rocky answered.

Peter cursed. They had walked straight into a trap, and he had allowed it. He could blame James Garland all he wanted, but the kid had had the sense to come talk to him before heading out on Kaya's suicide mission. And rather than insist he keep his fancy sword far away from his family, Peter had given him the responsibility to look after them.

Peter sighed heavily, then nodded to Rocky. "Thank you, son. Get some rest; we've got a long road to recovery ahead of us."

Rocky nodded back, then turned and left Peter Thompson's office without a word.

Peter stared at the folder on his desk, dreading the task before him. Over the years, he had saved many people, recruiting them to the Lost. He kept a profile of each member, full of as much detail as he could learn about them. He would be up most of the night logging their deaths. That was his burden.

Suddenly the door to his office slammed open and Rocky burst back into the room.

"Kaya's back!" he gasped.

Peter Thompson was careful not to run, but he still kept up a brisk pace as he made his way through the cavern halls to the archway. According to Rocky's report, Kaya had brought someone back with her, and the two of them had threatened to kill anyone who interfered with them. Peter ordered everyone to stay in their bunks before he went to confront her alone. Whatever she might be doing, she was his responsibility.

As he came near the archway cavern, he could hear someone chanting in a strange language.

"Segutic diefal epelithico..."

He stepped into the room and saw a girl dressed in rags. Her long red hair billowed about her as power rippled from her tiny body. Strange green vines wrapped around her, weaving through the holes in her dress as if they held it together. She held a thin metal blade in one hand, using it to channel her spell into the body that writhed in agony before her.

"Thu raque oowathka..."

With a start, Peter recognized the person on the floor: it was Kaya.

"What the--hey you!"

The girl halted in her chant and turned to look at him in surprise. Peter ignored her, rushing past to where Kaya lay fighting the spasms that still wracked her body.

"Kaya! I'm here, I've gotcha!" Peter put his arm under her back as he checked her over for injuries. Kaya didn't respond, keeping her eyes closed tight as her face twisted in pain. "What in blazes did she do to you?!"

The red-haired girl stood to the side, her expression impassive as though she were waiting for something.

Kaya's eyes snapped open, and her expression of pain turned into one of hate and rage. Her eyes blazed pure white with power, and Peter felt himself through back by the force of it. His back struck against the archway, knocking the wind out of him.

Kaya slowly lifted into the air until she was upright, hovering in the air over Peter Thompson as he struggled to regain his breath.

"Kaya?" he gasped. "What...happened to you?"

Her power burst outward, filling the cavern with a deafening howl.

"What happened?!" Kaya repeated with rage to match the howls. "My brother died, Peter! And Lyric is going to help me kill Isaac for leading him to his death!"

Peter struggled to his feet, bracing himself against the force of Kaya's incredible power. He didn't know who Isaac was, but if he didn't get the situation under control quickly, she was liable to bring the whole base down on top of them.

"Lots of people died today, Kaya. That's on me, and nobody else. I should have stopped you--"

Another blast of energy cut him off, and he had to hold on to the archway to stay on his feet.

"If you want to take some of the blame, then fine!" Kaya snapped back. "If you had come to our rescue just a few seconds earlier, he might never have been captured! If you had helped me save him while there was still time, he might have lived! You, and people like you keep getting in the way, and I've had enough!"

She held out her hand and clenched her fist. The cavern shook and groaned as the howling grew to a roar.

Peter stumbled as the floor moved, then reality began to tilt until it had turned completely on its side. Peter fell, bouncing painfully off the pillars that scattered the cavern until he hit the wall--now the floor--with a crash that shattered his left wrist.

He grunted with pain as he forced himself to his feet. Holding his broken wrist gingerly, he looked up to where Kaya still hovered. The girl called Lyric still stood in the same spot, rooted to what was now the wall by the vines that wound around her body.

Kaya turned to and addressed Lyric, her voice filling the grand cavern. "I will track down Tobias, I swear it; he will be yours."

Lyric's smile would have been charming if their circumstances had been different. "I want to make this place our new home." She spun in place, and her vines began to spread outward and into the walls and floor. More vines sprouted from every surface, choking the air with vegetation.

"Kaya!" Peter called to her as she began to levitate through the cavern's only exit, now in the ceiling.

Kaya stopped and looked back down at him with glowing eyes.

"Kaya, stop this! I don't know what she did to you, but this isn't you!"

Kaya smiled. It was a cruel, sad smile. "She gave me the power I wanted. She gave me the power to kill or to save whoever I want. I can feel Isaac and his insufferable cheerfulness from across the void, and it is excruciating. But I will find and kill him."

Peter cursed under his breath. "What about the survivors?! They're probably trapped in the barracks after what you've done to this place! Why not come down here so we can talk this through?!"

Kaya shook her head, but hesitated a moment. "You've almost convinced me, Peter Thompson. I will talk with you, but you must reach me. I will be at the highest point, focusing on finding Isaac: if you can find me, I will give up on revenge."

Peter had to step back as the vines stretched out like a curtain in front of him, cutting off his view of Kaya. Her voice carried down once more, amplified by her power.

"Suffer the climb."