“The pain is a deterrent,” Calisto answered. “The more you try to access the power incorrectly, the more pain you will experience. The weight will require some adjustment on your part.”
“These things really weigh that much?”
“Of course not,” Calisto answered. “The weight is a physical manifestation of the power within. At first it will require conscious effort on your part.”
“Conscious effort just to move my arms?”
“No, conscious effort to move your body. Emiko went through the same thing. This is part of the cost to be the Jade Demon.”
“Being confined to a wheelchair doesn’t sound like a price I’m willing to pay.”
“Stop being dramatic,” Calisto said. “You can raise your arms. It means you can move your legs. You’re stronger than Emiko; the first day, she couldn’t move at all.”
“Not feeling very encouraged here.”
“Get over yourself,” Calisto said with an edge. “You don’t have the luxury of a long convalescence. The sooner you are mobile, the better.”
“This feels like learning to use my body all over again.”
“An apt description, which means stop wasting time. You’re safe here, but don’t forget that the Keep is located inside—”
“The Park,” I finished. “Can they sense me?”
“The strongest will, yes. It won’t be long before they seek you out.”
“Wonderful,” I said. “It’s not like I haven’t had enough pain in my life.”
“This is an exercise in finesse, Sepia. You’re too accustomed to being a blunt instrument. This calls for a scalpel when you prefer to be a sword.”
“In the right hands, a sword is more efficient than any scalpel.”
“Not for this. This will require precision—something you aren’t practiced in.”
“I’m…I’m precise,” I said with a grunt as I maneuvered into a sitting position. “Precision is my middle name.”
“You’re about as precise as a brick. You need to focus on this. If not—”
“It means pain until I figure this out. Got it. You don’t happen to have a Jade Demon manual lying around somewhere?”
“You have all the information you need,” Calisto said. “Now you need to use it. The Jade Demon won’t be accepted by the Order, the Sisters, or the Unholy. No one can help you. Everyone and everything will seek out your death.”
“So things are back to normal?”
“No, this changes everything. What Fuma did was unprecedented, but not unexpected. At some point this had to happen—I just didn’t think he would do it now.”
“You expected me to become the Jade Demon?”
“I didn’t, but Emiko did. She was the one who made Fuma swear to give you your birthright,” Calisto said, shaking her head. “I don’t know how, but she got him to agree. More importantly, she made him wardbound.”
“Wardbound?”
“They created a shared ward that could only be nullified when he fulfilled his word.”
“How did she do this?”
“Very few people said no to your mother,” Calisto answered. “Friend and foe alike. This Keep was predominantly her idea. She wanted to send the Unholy a message.”
“I think her message is being received loud and clear.”
“Too clearly, I think,” Calisto said. “This birthright has put you in grave danger.”
“How did my mother do it?” I asked. “I mean, she was a class-one Hunter and the Jade Demon. How?”
“She was a Hunter first, before she transformed. Once she became the Jade Demon, no one dared to oppose her.”
“Something did, or else she’d be here to tell me herself,” I said, looking around at the room. “Did she design this place too?”
“Yes she did,” Calisto said, following my gaze. “It’s designed for containment.”
“Is that what this place is…a cell?”
“She called it a safe room. A place to unleash the Jade Demon, once you learned control. It was a place to practice her abilities, without destroying the Keep itself. She was able to unleash vast amounts of power in here without attracting the attention of the Unholy.”
“So, basically a cell with a special name.”
“Only if you want it to be. If you fail to control the power within, this room will become your cell and your final resting place. It’s too dangerous to let you roam the streets, especially now.”
“Especially now?” I asked, confused. “Why? What’s going on?”
“Hunters are being hunted. Specifically those with named blades.”
“Who’s hunting them?”
“I don’t know…yet,” Calisto said. “The named blades of each Hunter have gone missing.”
“What? Where’s Gan? Who is hunting Hunters? What is the Order doing about this? How can named blades go missing?”
“Right now you need to focus on the power residing within you,” Calisto answered, placing a finger in the center of my chest. “You won’t be able to help anyone until you can wield your abilities. I’d start with being able to get out of bed and taking a few steps without introducing your face to the floor.”
She had a valid point.
“At least tell me where Gan is,” I said. “I’m sure he has some answers to all of this.”
“I can’t tell you where he is.”
“Can’t or won’t?” I asked, getting angry. “I thought you always knew where he was?”
“I do, or at least I did.”
“What do you mean?”
“That’s just it—I can’t sense him. Somehow…he’s gone.”
TWO
Rafael appeared in the middle of the Regional Medical facility carrying an unconscious Gan. The power of the emergency evac ward could still be felt charging the air as he stepped forward. Several nurses were startled as they jumped back from him and Gan.
“He said he was hit by a mindswipe,” Rafael said as he looked around at the stunned nurses when they arrived. “Prep the medical facility.”
“Sir?” one of the nurses asked. “Did you say a mindswipe?”
He took a breath. The shock was expected with the emergency evac—he had just appeared out of nowhere in the middle of the facility—but that didn’t mean he or Gan had time to waste.
“Now, people!” he said, raising his voice. “Let’s go.”
Several nurses rushed to his location and he directed them to the unconscious Gan. They took Gan and placed him on the waiting gurney as another nurse began checking Gan’s vitals.
