Lowe and Gray: The Atavistic Box

Chapter Nine - The Atavistic Box

THE NEXT MORNING at breakfast, they sat with Zoe and Jonathan, peering at the necklace.

"The centre stone piece must be the diamond that powers the box," Jensen murmured.

"Where could Adrian have hid it? The Box?" Aurora asked.

"Who knows?"

"The last Venerable, he decided the box was too dangerous for anyone to use and threw it down into the earth. Maybe Adrian did the same," Aurora said, thinking.

"The tunnels," Zoe said, her head snapping up.

"Tunnels?" Aurora frowned.

"Of course," Jensen said. "The tunnels are below the Haven in Valden. They connect directly to Adrian's house."

"You think the box is hidden there?"

"It's worth a look."

Jensen drove Aurora over to August House, where they met up with Jace. On the way, he bought her some bulletproof clothes from his tailor in Valden; a long black coat, a blood-red tunic and black trousers. Jensen's tailor told her they were also weather-resistant.

There were so many parts of Adrian's house that Aurora never knew existed, for instance where Jensen was taking her now - behind the bookcase in Adrian's study was the opening to the tunnels. Jensen switched on the torch in his hand, and a light lit up at the end of Jace's wand and Jensen led them down the stairs.

It was dark and humid. The floor beneath their feet felt unstable and the air was damp.

"It's so... dark," Aurora said lamely.

"Want me to hold your hand?" Jace said mockingly.

"No," Aurora said, and she folded her arms as she walked.

There was a sudden step down and Jensen warned them but Aurora tripped anyway.

"Sorry," she muttered. "Can I lead?"

"Are you sure?" Jensen frowned. "There could be a lot of traps down here."

"How am I supposed to be better if you won't let me take risks?" She said, then pushed in front of him. He handed her the torch and let her go.

The ceiling stooped lower as they went further. They veered left and Aurora led with an aura of uncertainty.

"What's wrong?" Jace frowned.

"Nothing," Aurora responded. "It's cold."
Jensen grunted. "Conjure a flame."

"I'm holding the torch. You do it."

Jace waved his wand. "I'll do it."

"No," Jensen said quickly, and he rubbed his hands together and cradled a small flame in his hands. "Continue."

"The floor feels uneven," she said nervously.

Jensen shrugged. "It's a series of old tunnels. It will be."

Aurora stepped forwards and the stone moved under her feet, and she barely had time to move before a large bear fell on top of her. She shrieked in pain and Jensen extinguished his flame and snapped the air, sending the bear flying backwards.

Jace ran to help Aurora up, and after he had checked she was okay, he held his wand up towards the bear. "Invocium Draga!" A flurry of jade particles waved from his wand and a few metres away from them, the bear became rigid.

"Did you just... kill it?" Aurora asked him quietly.

"No," he replied. "Paralysed it. It'll only last a few minutes." He held his wand up again to cast another spell but Jensen held up a hand.