Born of Flames

Chapter 24 ~ Not a Father, Not a Son

    Tarion opened his eyes when his feet met solid ground and took in his new surroundings. They had arrived in an ancient, circular chamber. A few torches were already burning, likely ignited at their arrival, and cast a dim light across the area.

    A long altar stretched across the middle of the room and columns in the likeness of Hadeon supported the vaulted ceiling. Dozens of carvings covered every wall.

    "I never knew this was here," Gaelen remarked, almost in awe.

    "I think Rhidian and I were the only people Astaroth ever brought here," Neeri whispered. She was gazing about the temple with wide, haunted eyes. Morana's hand was locked around hers.

    "Wait, Astaroth brought you here? What are you talking about?"

    Neeri didn't answer him and Morana shot Tarion a worried look as she shook herself free. Tarion kept one eye on Gaelen while Neeri approached the altar. She laid a hand on the black stone, then jerked it back with a hiss. "It's cold!"

    "It looks like the same material he used for the cells and...everywhere else," Gaelen pointed out. He touched the table too and staggered back abruptly.

    Morana knit her brows and took a step towards the altar, but Tarion caught her arm. She pursed her lips but folded her arms and waited. Tarion steeled himself and rested his hand against the stone.

    Instantly, a cold burn stretched up his arm and down his spine, pooling in the scar where Astaroth's brand had once owned him. Tarion pried his hand away with a startled cry. The burning in his arm began to ease instantly, but his scar continued to ache.

    "I felt it in my back. My scar from Astaroth's brand," he admitted, drawing a shaky breath. "A burn like frostbite."

    "Me too," Gaelen said.

    Neeri lifted a hand to her sternum. "I felt it here, where he tried implanting his power." Gaelen's gaze snapped to her in stunned horror. Neeri offered him no further explanation.

    "Strange," Morana said. Tarion pulled his attention from the pair and looked back at his mate. His jaw fell when he found her with a hand planted firmly on the altar.

    "Mor!" Neeri exclaimed before he could. She grabbed Morana's wrist and dragged her away. "It could still be tied to Astaroth."

    Morana ignored Neeri and flexed her hand. A sense of confusion and surprise filled Tarion's chest, emitted from their shared bond. "What is it?" Tarion urged.

    "I felt nothing." She turned her hand back and forth, examining it intently. "Maybe a slight twinge of cold? But no burning or pain."

    "How is that possible?" Gaelen demanded. Morana let her hand fall and shrugged, but Tarion wasn't fooled. Whatever the difference was, she already had some sort of idea how to explain it.

    "Let's keep searching," she said. To Gaelen, she added, "We're looking for a way into those tunnels I sensed below the burial ground, and anything that can explain how Astaroth could implant his power and return through Rhidian, and how we can defeat him."

    "Is that all?" He scoffed.

    Morana whipped her head around, pinning him with a cold gray stare. "You weren't invited, lest you forget." Tarion didn't bother masking his grin and joined Morana when she moved to the other side of the temple. They began to comb over the walls and alcoves, fingers tracing stones and sconces for any signs of hidden panels or doorways.

    "What are you thinking?" Tarion murmured, keeping his voice low enough that Gaelen and Neeri wouldn't overhear. "Is there a reason you weren't affected by the altar like we were?"