hearts of metal

lxvii. jinx it

Rowan fucking hated it here.

They were back in the catacombs, carefully moving the hellfire they'd brought with them. It was all stored in waterproof containers that, ideally, would keep the explosive powder from ending their lives.

It didn't do anything to make Rowan feel better. Neither did the pungent smell of the catacombs or the occasional crunch of bones beneath their feet. And of course, their last trip here ended with him getting shot.

Not exactly pleasant memories.

His mind drifted to Aelin, as he hoped she was faring well on her part of the plan. Aedion was with her, but he would feel a lot better if he was beside her too.

He sighed through his nose and tried to wrangle his fears. Not the time to get distracted.

Lorcan walked beside him, while the twins followed closely behind. At a fork in the path, they stilled and exchanged glances.

"This is where we separate?" Connal asked.

Lorcan nodded. "You two take the left path. Rowan and I will go right."

Rowan watched the twins leave, before setting down the right fork.

Their goal today was to take out certain key Valg compounds. There were too many to be able to target every single one, so instead they opted to choose four or five of the most important.

Fenrys and Connal had further to travel, to the outskirts of the city where they would find their target base. Rowan and Lorcan were staying in the area, targeting the one that they'd found the first time they'd ventured into the catacombs.

They walked a familiar path among the dirt lined walls, to where a certain iron door stood. It had a keypad beside it, but they had no need for that.

Instead, Rowan cautiously opened the lid of the hellfire. He practically held his breath as Lorcan siphoned a tiny amount into a narrow metal cylinder. Next, Lorcan slid it straight into the keyhole.

"Move back," he muttered. Rowan followed the instructions and watched as Lorcan used a small remote to activate the hellfire in the tube. The tiny amount was just enough to shatter the lock, a tiny flash of flame visible through the keyhole.

Lorcan pushed the door open. "Alright."

He stepped inside and glanced around the small room. Rowan followed, still carrying the tin of hellfire. They just needed to place it somewhere far enough from the catacombs that they wouldn't cave themselves in.

Outside, a dark corridor stretched before them. Rowan moved to place the hellfire under the stairs on the opposite side, before hurrying back at the sound of voices coming from above.

Him and Lorcan slipped back outside, cast iron door closed behind them, and hurried down the underground tunnels.

"That was a bit too easy," he said.

"Shut up, Whitethorn," Lorcan grumbled. "Let's just move out. I'll set off the detonator as soon as we're at the far end of the range."

It took another five minutes for them to make it far enough. There, Lorcan used the remote to set off the hellfire. Rowan listened to the loud crash in the distance, the sound reverberating under their feet.

He kept going, but frowned as the rumble continued below them. "Feel that?"

"It's the hellfire," Lorcan responded, but soon he was frowning too.

This was no explosion. The rumbling sound was getting louder, like thunderous footsteps that were only getting closer and closer.

Realization flooded through Rowan, as he cursed. "Shit, run," he told Lorcan, before the two were sprinting down the tunnels. Dirt crumbled from the edges as the walls around them shook.

Lorcan glanced behind them, finally able to see exactly what it was.

One of those stone demons. Shaped like a massive hound with gray speckled skin, an alarmingly red mouth, and liquid dripping down its oversized teeth.

"What the fuck?" he shouted.

Rowan didn't bother responding, willing his legs to move faster as his heart ricocheted in his chest. They just had to get to where the tunnels narrowed and the hound couldn't follow them.

He careened around the nearest bend, feet skidding for a second before he caught himself. Lorcan was right beside him, and the hound at their heels.

Up ahead, a narrow door frame loomed surrounded by stone. Beyond it, the tunnels were lined with more of the same stone, barely wide enough to fit Lorcan and Rowan themselves.

Rowan shoved Lorcan ahead, the taller man crouching as he moved into the tunnel, then followed. He could practically feel the heat of the stone hound's mouth as it snapped its teeth towards him, catching the bottom of his pants.

But soon they were far enough to be out of reach of its teeth and claws, both breathing equally hard.

"You had to jinx it, Whitethorn," Lorcan said.

"What? Like that's my fault?"

"Too easy," Lorcan mocked, coloring his voice to sound like Rowan. He got up and brushed dust off his pants, before diving deeper into the tunnel.

Rowan followed reluctantly, though they had no clue where this tunnel led. They had to crouch as the tunnel got shorter further on, and eventually were crawling through the dirt in a tiny shaft.

"It looks like it opens up ahead." Sure enough, the narrower tunnel led into a wide spacious space that Rowan somewhat recognized.

It wasn't difficult to make their way to the surface after that, though Rowan was constantly paranoid about encountering another stone demon.

With their feet firmly planted above the ground, Rowan and Lorcan made their way to the safehouse where everyone was supposed to reunite. "Think the twins are already there?" Rowan asked.

"Probably. We took a long time with that detour."

Sure enough, it was nearly three in the morning by now.

His thoughts drifted to Aelin and Aedion next, but before he even said anything, Lorcan interrupted with, "I'm sure your girlfriend's fine too. Don't start with the whining."

Rowan scowled.

Lorcan was right though. By the time they made it to the safehouse, which was on the opposite side of Orynth as where the Galathynius manion was, everyone else had already made it there.

He could see the twins by the couch, Vaughan near the fireplace. Aedion and Aelin exited the kitchen, and Aelin froze as her gaze fell on him.

"Rowan!" she immediately rushed over and let him scoop her into his arms.

He pulled her tightly in, breathing in the warm scent of jasmine and lemon verbena.

"Gross," Fen remarked.

Rowan flipped him off without even pulling away from Aelin. She huffed a laugh, before tilting her head up to gaze at him.

"You're okay?"

He nodded. "You?"

She nodded as well, but he couldn't help but notice the shadowed look in her eyes.

Cairn would pay for that. As would Maeve.

"Why don't the rest of us get such a warm welcome?" Fenrys complained.

Rowan ignored him. There was far too much dirt on him, and he needed a shower (or several) to wash off the catacombs and any memory of those stone demons.

And Aelin seemed perfectly happy to help with that.