CHAPTER ONE
The moon and stars were shrouded in a gray blanket that prevented any light from filtering down to the ground. I took care not to stumble as I descended the uneven steps that had been carved from rock centuries ago. Eventually I arrived at the beginning of a long corridor. The air was so quiet and still that I became acutely aware of the sound of my own breathing as I crept forward. At the end of the corridor, I encountered an underground chamber. A hypogeum. Elder Asago’s voice registered in my head from some long-ago lesson. An underground burial chamber cut from rock for prominent individuals. In other words, a tomb.
My ears pricked at a muffled sound. It seemed to come from inside the hypogeum. There was only one problem.
The chamber was sealed shut.
I placed my hands flat against the would-be door. Clay, rocks, and charcoal barred my entry. I had no weapons, not that I was convinced a sword would have been much help. Then my hands began to itch and I remembered the night I’d faced off against a Whistler—the light that had emanated from my hands—and I took a cautious step backward as I felt the pressure build. The noise from inside the chamber grew louder until one word became clear.
“Cassia.”
My heart thumped. “Sage?” How would she have gotten inside a sealed tomb? She should be safe in Spire 10 at the academy like the rest of my kenzoku.
“Cassia.” A plea.
Energy exploded from my hands, blasting away the rocky barrier. Sage stood in the center of the tomb, surrounded by debris. There seemed to be an entire family buried here, along with their pottery, drinking vessels, and even pieces of furniture.
“How did you get here?” I asked.
Sage’s dark lashes fluttered in confusion. “I don’t know. How did you get in? You don’t have any weapons.”
I shot a guilty glance at my hand. “I don’t know.” The earth shook, causing more of the chamber to collapse. “We need to get you out of here.”
“I can take care of myself,” Sage said.
I gestured to the caskets and debris around her. “Apparently not.”
“Someone’s coming,” Sage said, her voice an urgent whisper. She closed her eyes and opened her arms wide, as if to welcome the visitor. Piece by piece, bones were ripped from their resting places and flew to her. At first glance, I thought she was under attack, until I realized the bones were forming a protective shield around her.
No, not a shield.
A suit of bone armor.
When Sage finally opened her eyes, her vulnerable parts were covered in the bones of the skeletons. As part rakshasa demon and part human, I knew she could command corpses. I had no idea she could do—this. Based on her amazed expression, Sage didn’t seem to realize it either.
“Are you fully dressed now?” I asked. “Because we need to go.”
“Wait. One more thing.” She wiggled her fingers and two bone talons flew to her expectant hands. I gave them an admiring glance. The curved pieces would make excellent weapons.
“The deceased were buried with their eagles?” I asked, with a disbelieving look at the caskets.
“They have a mirror in here with them,” she said. “Why not a bird?”
The earth trembled again. “Let’s go. I’m getting you out of here before we end up buried with this family forever.”
Sage flashed a smile behind her skel-met. “I think you’ll find I’m getting us out of here.” She charged ahead in her bone armor, ready for battle against unseen enemies.
A long shadow fell across the exit and an intimidating figure materialized. I noticed his beard before the rest of him.
“Mephisto,” I said. But no. It couldn’t be the wizard. I killed him. I watched him disintegrate into a pillar of salt after I…
Sage surged ahead and launched herself at the gangly wizard. She went straight through him and disappeared into the darkness.
“Ah, you and me,” he said with a smirk. “As it should be.”
“You and I,” I corrected him. Elder Alastor tended to beat us over the head with grammar rules. I reached for my sword, and then remembered I had no weapons. Why did I have no weapons? “How are you even here?”
He moved his hands in the manner of rotating an invisible ball. “I am here because you summoned me.”
“Summoned you?” I shook my head. “I’m not like Sage. I can’t do anything with the dead.”
“Well then. Let’s see if the dead can do anything with you.” When he pounced, I did something completely out of character.
I screamed.
I was still screaming when firm hands shook me awake. I tried to focus, but Mephisto’s face still loomed in front of me.
“Cassia, are you okay?” The beard dissolved and beady eyes were replaced by dark eyes and lashes.
“Sage?” I touched her face. “Where’s your skel-met?”
She frowned. “What in the devil is a skel-met?”
“The helmet you made out of the bones of skeletons in the tomb.”
Sage laughed. “I don’t know what you’re talking about, but now I want one.”
“You were having a dream,” Rylan said. The succubus hybrid sat cross-legged on her bed, staring at me intently. “From the sounds you were making, it was pretty intense. I almost made popcorn.”
Sage moved so that I could sit up. “It was a nightmare,” I said. “Mephisto was there.”
Sage scowled at the mention of the wizard’s name. “At least we know that’s not possible. You obliterated him.”
“Why am I seeing him in my nightmares?” I asked. I reached under my pillow to double-check. Yes, the dreamcatcher that Mariska had given me was there, albeit not very effective.
“Do you even need to ask that question?” Sage began to count on her fingers. “He murdered the woman who raised you. He stole the Book of Admissions from the archives room. He tried to murder a bunch of us in a cemetery.”
“And then you killed him,” Rylan interjected. “It’s probably guilt.” She uncrossed her legs and joined us at my bedside.
“Why would I feel guilty?” I asked. “Mephisto was a monster.”
“And maybe you’re worried that you’re a monster, too,” Rylan said. “It’s not like you’ve ever killed anyone before.” She paused. “Have you?”
“No,” I said quickly. “How could I? I’ve been here for seventeen years.” Domus Academy was a secret school for cambions—the offspring of demons and humans—located in hidden spires in the mortal realm high above the city of Philadelphia. I’d been brought here as an infant and raised by the Elders and Mariska, the woman murdered by Mephisto when he created a portal that led to the archives room in the main spire. Mariska had been in the wrong place at the wrong time and paid the ultimate price.
“But you said before that you’ve gone to the city on errands with Elder Sam and Mariska,” Sage said. “You never accidentally incinerated anyone on a trip for milk?”
“I have never accidentally incinerated anyone,” I said.
“Oh, so you turned Mephisto into a pillar of salt on purpose,” Sage said. “Thought so.”
I squirmed on the bed. “It wasn’t exactly like that.”
“How’d you do it anyway?” Rylan asked. “Barris said there was nothing left of him. That he blew away like dust in the wind.” Rylan had been fortunate enough to be here in Spire 10 at the time, instead of in Mount Martha Cemetery with us.
“I don’t know,” I said. It was only a partial lie. I knew what happened and that I was the one responsible for destroying him. I just didn’t understand exactly how. I’d been wanting to talk to Elder Sam about it, but he seemed preoccupied lately, almost like he was avoiding me. I suspected he felt guilty that I’d almost died and he wasn’t there to protect me. After Mariska, he was the next closest thing I had to a parent.
“It was crazy magic, whatever it was,” Sage said. “Maybe you’re part djinni, like Barris.”
“That would be easy to detect through testing,” Rylan said. “The Elders couldn’t identify her demon side, remember?”
“Oh, I remember.” Sage drew herself to a standing position. “Whatever it is, it’s badass.” She pursed her lips, thinking. “Although not as badass as a suit of armor made from bones.”
A knock on the door rattled me. I still wasn’t accustomed to living in Spire 10. I’d spent seventeen years in the main spire with the Elders, Mariska, and Aldo, the cook. I’d had my own bedroom and constant attention, sometimes welcome and sometimes not. I’d roamed the library and spent hours curled up with a book and Gretel, the overweight cat, until the Elders finally decided it was time to assimilate me. Now I roomed with Rylan and Sage for my final year at the academy. After this year, we’d be free to leave the safety of the spires and live anywhere we chose. I still hadn’t decided where that would be. The decision was too overwhelming and we had more pressing matters. Although we’d caught Mariska’s killer, the Book of Admissions was still out there.
“Breakfast,” Barris called through the door. “You don’t want to miss this one. There’s bacon.”
I scrambled to my feet, forgetting all about the nightmare at the mention of crispy, delicious bacon.
“We’re coming,” Rylan said. She slid her feet into pink bunny slippers and padded toward the door.
As I attempted to follow, Sage grabbed my arm, her dark eyes shining. “After breakfast, you’re going to tell me more about this bone armor.”
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