A Shade of Vampire 40: A Throne of Fire(41)

“You’ve never been curious?” my grandpa asked.

“Nothing lies beyond it,” Tejus snapped. “Ocean as far as the eye can see. We have True Sight. We know there is nothing more to be found.”

The GASP team looked at one another in confusion, bewildered how Nevertide could be a dimension all of its own. I couldn’t make sense of it either. I looked over at Hazel, who shrugged.

The conversation moved swiftly on.

“By your accounts, this shadow is impossible to kill. It doesn’t look like we have many other options available to us,” my uncle continued.

“Near impossible,” Hazel corrected him. “When we were fighting them, my dagger definitely came into contact with something—almost like it burnt part of the shadow. It was weird, but the rest of it backed off. It’s how we were able to get away.”

“Do you have any theories?” Tejus prompted her.

Hazel hesitated before replying. I realized she was just as nervous as I was about talking in front of the sentries and GASP.

“When I first saw the water that the Impartial Ministers were using to regenerate themselves, I couldn’t help notice how similar it was to the stone in my pommel. I don’t know why, but I think it has something to do with that.”

“Show me your dagger,” one of the Impartial Ministers commanded. Simultaneously, Tejus and my dad turned and glared at the wrinkly sentry.

“Show some respect,” Tejus snapped.

Hazel ignored the tone of the Impartial Minister, laying her dagger on the table. It was one of the most amazing weapons I’d ever seen—I’d coveted it since I saw it. I hoped Tejus had a few more to spare.

“Let me see that.” The fae took it from the table before the Impartial Minister could. He studied the dagger curiously, paying particular attention to the stone at the end of the handle—it looked like a marble or something, but almost like it was alive inside. So cool.

“Sherus?” my grandfather questioned. “Is this something you recognize?”

“This is no stone,” the fae replied quietly. “This is a glass vial, and contained within it are the waters of immortalitatem—the water the jinn gifted our kind long, long ago.”

The Impartial Minister looked furious, though I couldn’t understand why.

“It is the water of the Impartial Ministers!” he exclaimed. “We created the immortal water!”

Queen Nuriya gave a snort of derision, and the old sentry glared at her.

“You, yourself?” Tejus questioned the Impartial Minister slyly.

“No, of course not. It was created long ago by our forefathers.”

“But you don’t know for sure?”

The Impartial Minister looked affronted that Tejus would doubt him. I sighed. Of course the jinn would have made it—like the Impartial Ministers would ever create anything remotely helpful.

“Whoever created it,” my grandfather interrupted diplomatically, “it obviously has properties that might benefit us, if Hazel is right. Is this immortal water mentioned in any of the literature you mentioned earlier?”

“No,” Tejus replied. “But if it is also created by the jinn, which I imagine is likely, then perhaps it is another weapon we can use against them.”

“A weapon!” the Impartial Minister burst out. “The water is sacred, it is not a weapon!”

“Someone might mistake you to be on the side of the entity,” Tejus replied dryly.

“We are just trying to maintain order!” the minister replied.

“Order is gone,” Tejus barked back. “I don’t know if it’s escaped your notice, but Nevertide is in tatters and many of your kin are dead. If we all die, who will be left to keep your precious order?”

“You have always been unreasonable, Tejus,” the old minister replied, looking like he was sucking on a lemon.

Tejus turned back to the rest of the table. “We have the water; we just need to work out a way we can use it and test Hazel’s theory.”

“Get us to the water, and we can do the rest,” Ibrahim announced.

Tejus looked at Ash, who nodded.

“We leave at dawn, and we’ll avoid the forests as best as we can,” Ash asserted. “Everyone get some food and get some rest.”

The room started to empty.

“I don’t think we’ve met yet?” My mom came up to Yelena, smiling down at her. “Were you kidnapped from Murkbeech?”

“No—Rome. I was on holiday with my parents when I was taken,” she replied cheerily.

“I’m so sorry.” My mom looked horrified.

“Don’t be.” Yelena shrugged. “I like it here—well, I like being with Julian and Benedict and the rest of the kids. It’s been fun. My parents were just going to send me to boarding school at the end of the summer holidays, so it doesn’t really make a difference to me. The food hasn’t been great though.” She pulled a face.