“We don’t want to go inside,” Luna says. “We’d like you to come out.”
“This phoenix isn’t yours to mutilate,” Kirk says. I’m proud of him for standing his ground. “Enforcers will be here any minute.”
Luna laughs. “We’re standing in the blood of Halo Knights. Enforcers won’t hold us for long.”
“I only have to hold you back long enough for the Crowned Dreamer to go away.”
“It’s tempting to burn this entire museum and its rare collections to the ground,” Luna says. “But the aftermath doesn’t interest me. I have a proposal for you. I understand you’re familiar with Emil. He’s a promising specter, one who recently flew, a power neither Keon nor Bautista exhibited. I’ll give you this scion to study for your own sciences, to write about in your own journals, in exchange for the phoenix.”
Yeah, only Luna can mock me for being a nobody and still make me sound promising.
“Don’t do it! You know she wants to kill the phoenix to become immortal!”
“Ridiculous theory,” Luna says. “The purity of the phoenix is what’s necessary for my health and will prove to be a marvel to the rest of the world should I succeed.”
“But . . . the gala is ongoing, and the tickets . . .”
“Tell everyone the phoenix died. Refund everyone. There is more money to be made in the journals of a phoenix specter than a viewing party. This is a sign from the universe—the boy phoenix was under your nose all along. Unlock the answers you’ve always wanted. Creatures are going extinct, and you know specters are the next step of evolution.”
Kirk looks curious. “And you don’t want Gravesend for immortality?”
“Immortality is impossible. The greatest hope anyone can have is to live as Keon has relived. To exact the science of rebirthing and to maintain the memories through each cycle of life. I require the phoenix to attempt this.” Luna pulls me by the chains around my wrists. “We’ve lessened his powers with an infinity-ender for the time being, and I trust you’ll have your own methods to keep him grounded, to tame him like the phoenixes of your past.”
Tears are forming in my eyes. I can’t believe this is how I’m going to go down. “Kirk, this is insane! I’m a person, a human person!”
Kirk never looks me in the eye, and I know my fate.
“I always honor my word,” Luna says.
“You said he was flying? Fascinating. I wonder if he can slip into previous lives or—”
Luna holds up a hand. “You can perform all the experiments you want. Do we have a deal?”
“Deal,” Kirk says.
The shield comes down, and Kirk exits the vault with Gravesend’s egg. Every step he takes, I’m surprised there isn’t some head shot. He doesn’t appear as disturbed by the dead bodies as I would expect, and who knows what other shadiness he’s been up to in order to get where he is today.
Up close, the egg is truly beautiful and unlike any I’ve ever seen before. The shells we showcase are aged and spotted. This feathered egg has life inside of it and glows as if it’s resting above a fireplace. I can hear Gravesend’s song, a melody that’s both beautiful and chaotic, like a bunch of keys in a piano that are all being played at once. I can sense that Gravesend isn’t simply battle-hungry, but war-hungry. If Gravesend is given the chance to live, she could grow into a killing machine. The last thing the world needs is Luna walking around with this blood inside of her, escalating her violent instincts to dangerous new heights.
Ness pulls me back by the arm. “Where would you like him, Kirk?”
“The storage room down the hall, for the time being. I’ll sedate him there.”
“I’m a human, Kirk, come on!”
I know he isn’t falling for any of Luna’s lies. He’s just doing what’s best for himself.
Ness drags me. “Stay close, firefly. I’m going to get you out of here,” he whispers.
There’s an uneasiness in my stomach. I don’t want to trust him, but hope ignites again when he relaxes his grip around my arm and his thumb brushes circles against my skin.
“Please, please get me out of here.”
I don’t care if begging makes me look stupid if he plays me again; I’ll do whatever it takes to not be locked up in some cell or killed.
Stanton calls after Ness. “You passed the office.”
Ness turns to me. “You said it was past this room. You lying, Emil?” Then quietly, he adds, “Make Stanton pay for everything he did to you and your brother.”
I wait and listen to the song thrumming within me, fight past the pain that flares when I reach for the fire, and when Stanton is close enough, I hold up my hands and shoot fire-darts into his chest.
“Run!”
My wrists are still tied, but Ness carries the chains, and this is it, we’re running up the steps. I guide us through the museum, leading us all the way to the Sunroom, where enforcers will be better equipped to protect us. My chest aches from using my power, my heart is speeding and my legs aren’t strong enough, but adrenaline drives me through into the gala where countless guests are dressed up in outfits that are so fancy I’d probably punch a wall if I found out how much they cost. Spellwork explodes behind us, charge after charge. Winds lift us into the air, and Atlas is standing by the balcony, struggling to carry us over until he succeeds.
“He’s good,” I say, nodding at Ness. “I think.”
“You look like hell,” Atlas says.
“I’ll be better now. Luna is downstairs and has the egg. Are you alone? Maribelle here?”
“She’s here, and we’re not alone.”
Wesley is dashing into acolytes while Iris guides patrons to a safe escape. Maribelle is locked in combat, and Prudencia telekinetically snaps the suspended phoenixes down from the ceiling so they rain down on the people pursuing her.
And there’s Brighton. He isn’t holding a camera.
