Aria

Everything was dark. 

The air felt heavy, and it pressed against my lungs, making each breath in painful. 

"Do you see anything?"

James's voice was distant, distorted. I ignored him and tried to focus further. I tried to imagine the intense chill that had radiated off of Ezekiel, the darkness. If I could just get a lock on that feeling, I would be able to begin my search for the exact opposite. I imagined that the Creator would have a powerful aura. It would be strong but nurturing, full of light. It would be warm. 

I felt like I was trying to walk through water along the bottom of the Mariana's Trench. I felt weighed down and disoriented. I felt like I was moving too slow. I was anxious. 

Are you looking for me, child?

My eyes flew open and I fell forward onto my splayed palms. My head burned slightly as if I'd had too much to drink.

"What happened? Did you find the Creator?" James questioned.

"What was that?" I gasped.

I sat back on my heels and took a few shaky breaths in. 

"Someone was in my head. They spoke directly to me. I think it was the Creator. But it was so strong I couldn't hold the connection. It hurt."

I brought my hands up and pressed my palms against my temples, staring into the fire.

"The Creator hurt you? That doesn't make sense. Why would the Creator do something to hurt you?" Carmen frowned.

"Maybe it was someone else?" Axel offered.

"No, no. It felt right. Exactly how I thought the Creator should. It was just that the aura was so powerful. Much more than Ezekiel. So much more. It took me by surprise."

I ran my hands through my hair and then lowered them again.

"But now I have something to lock onto. It may have been brief but it was powerful. I can trace it back to the Creator, teleport James and I to the source."

"Aria, I don't think that's a good idea," Axel advised. "What if that wasn't the Creator, but a trap? Ezekiel must have noticed you and James are missing by now. He could be trying to lure you back."

I shook my head. "No, this isn't Ezekiel. I know what Ezekiel felt like. This wasn't him."

"Great, so it's some other evil we don't even know about yet-" Carmen started.

"Please," I interrupted. "Just trust me. I'm sure about this. We need to go to the one who just reached out."

I turned to James. "You trust me, right?"

James pursed his lips, but nodded. "I do."

"Then let's grab our bags and go."

We'd all packed in the morning before sending Will and Christian off. I grabbed my bag as James slung his over his shoulder.

"I am still against this, Aria. We have a lot riding on you right now. We need you to succeed. No matter what we do, we'll only be able to hold off Ezekiel for so long. So come back safe, okay?" Carmen requested.

I nodded. "We will. Train the new troops well, okay? Stay safe."

"We'll try our best," Axel smiled.

"You ready, James?" I asked.

James nodded. I reached out my hand and he grabbed ahold of it. With one last glance at Axel and Carmen I took a deep breath before muttering the spell. I focused hard on the voice as the world swept out from under my feet. I felt James's grip tighten on my hand as the world spun around us for a moment. Then, everything went still. I blinked open my eyes. I still closed them every time I teleported. To my surprise, I was met with darkness. 

"Um, Aria, I can't see," James commented.

"No, me neither."

I sighed and reached for my backpack with the hand that wasn't wrapped around James's. I pulled the flashlight out of the water bottle holder on the side and flipped it on. I was met with a plain concrete wall.

"Um..." James hummed.

I spun around, letting go of James's hand. The room was small with thin, high windows that looked like they hadn't been cleaned in years, and in the middle of the room sat a large, stone coffin.

"We're in a crypt," James realized.

"Oh," I replied. 

We both stared at the coffin for a moment longer. I let out a shudder.

"Let's get out of here," I said finally. "Sorry about this. I didn't have an exact location, only a lock on the general source of the voice. I don't feel the strong presence at all in here, though."

I turned back to the wall and raised my hand. "Iftic beduine arcamaic suun."

A hole opened up in the side of the mausoleum, letting the sunlight stream in. James stepped out and I followed him, closing the hole behind us. We stepped out onto a cobblestone pathway. There were mausoleums stretched out on either side of us along the pathway. Trees filled the spaces between each one, their branches hanging out over the pathway. Luckily, the area was deserted, no people anywhere nearby to watch the two of us climb out of the side of the mausoleum in broad daylight. I hadn't even thought to cloak us first. 

"Where are we?" James asked.

I looked up and down the road, trying to find a clue. 

"Famille Marquille, Famille Du Frontinaque," James read out.

"French?" I questioned.

"Looks like it. I think I know where we are. This is the Père Lachaise Cemetery. We're in Paris."

I frowned. "How do you know that?"

James shrugged. "Sometimes when I had downtime in the Upstairs I would use the Screen to explore the earth. I used to spend a lot of time looking at Europe and Asia."

"So we're in Paris. The Creator is in Paris. Okay."

"Can you sense anything? Do you feel the Creator's presence?"

I nodded. "I think I do. It's faint, though."

I closed my eyes. Hello? Creator? I need some help, a sign. Anything.

The wind rustled through the leaves, sweeping my hair off of my shoulders and dancing through it. I opened my eyes back up and looked around. The wind was picking up, the trees arching with its force.

"What's happening?" James whispered.

I held up a hand, watching the trees sway. Another gust of wind blew, bowing them far to the right. The trees groaned with the effort. 

I pointed to the right. "Let's go this way."

James nodded and followed behind me along the pathway. The wind died down again as we began walking, stopping just as suddenly as it had started. I smiled. That meant we were going the right way. Everything became still again, silent. 

"It's odd. This is usually a pretty popular tourist spot. Where are all the people?"

"The Creator must be keeping them away."

James made a noise at the back of his throat. "Or Carmen was right and this is a trap."

The wind suddenly picked up again, throwing many of the leaves from the ground up into the air. They spun around in the air in front of us, waltzing in pairs. Then, they were thrown jerkily against the door of one of the mausoleums. The wind died down again. James and I exchanged glances before slowly walking up to the mausoleum. It was old. Very old. The concrete was crumbling, and it was hard to believe that it was still standing. It looked as if that gust of wind should have knocked it over. There was writing over the door, but it wasn't a language I recognized.

"Can you read that, James?"

James shook his head. "This writing is from long before my time. It isn't human I don't think."

"This must be it."

"Are you sure about this, Aria?"

I smiled at James. "I can't describe why, but I'm sure."

I reached for the door and pulled on the handle. The smile fell from my face. The door didn't budge. I thought for a moment, calling up an unlocking spell.

"Ikto Verdus," I murmured before pulling on the door again. 

Still, it didn't budge. I let out a sigh and stepped back, pushing my hands into my hair.

"Aria."

My eyes widened and I spun around, just in time to see someone with dark hair dart around the corner of a nearby mausoleum. 

Caspian, I thought. That was Caspian's voice.

I took a step forward, about to follow when something wrapped around my wrist. I looked down to see it was James's hand. He looked up at me, concern painting his face.

"Ari, what's wrong?"

"I thought-"

I paused and looked back at the spot where I'd seen the dark-haired man. I shook my head. 

Caspian is dead. You're in a cemetery. Of course you'd wish you could see him. Focus.

"The door won't budge. Even with an unlocking spell. I don't know what to do."

James paused for a moment, thinking. "I might have an idea."

He walked up to the door and knelt down in front of it. It was strange seeing a young boy kneeling in front of a mausoleum. He looked like he was paying respect to his ancestors. 

"We humbly request access to seek an audience with the Creator," James said, bowing his head.

Everything remained silent for a long stretch. I was about to tell him to get up so we could try something else when the ground began rumbling. The stone door to the mausoleum shook slightly then slowly slid out of the way with the ear-splitting sound of stone against stone. James stood up and looked back at me before turning towards the now open door which led into darkness. 

"This better not be a trap. Ready?"

I glanced back over my shoulder one last time. There was no sign of anyone with dark hair. I swallowed past the lump in my throat, pushing images of crystal blue eyes from my mind.

"Yeah. Let's go."