Harley Merlin 11: Finch Merlin and the Lost Map Page 25

  I stroked its feathery head. “Thank you for bringing that note to me. I know you must’ve risked a lot to get it here.”

  “Are you going to tell us what the deal with the parrot is?” Luke asked suspiciously.

  I cleared my throat. “Um, a friend of mine. A Morph friend.”

  Luke looked alarmed. “What, there’s a person in there?”

  “Sort of, but you don’t have to worry about her. She’s with me.”

  “Tick-tock!” the parrot chirped. “Last Unknown! Last Unknown! Last Unknown!”

  “Huh?” I squinted in confusion.

  The parrot cocked its head like I was an idiot. “Last Unknown!”

  Erebus wants me to find the Last Unknown? I had to be clever, so as not to give the Erebus part away while I got some clarification. “I need to find the Last Unknown? Is that what you’re saying?”

  “Bingo! Genius!” The parrot nodded furiously.

  Melody gasped. “You’re looking for the Last Unknown, too? I thought you were looking for the Fountain of Youth.”

  “Uh… yeah, didn’t I mention that? I need to find both places.” My cheeks flamed. “Although, to be fair, I don’t really know what it is. I just… uh… know I have to find it. A recent development.” Yeah, like two-seconds-ago recent.

  “It’s the lost city with many names, like I told you before,” Melody said excitedly, apparently forgetting her filter again. “It has so many that magicals have simply referred to it as the Last Unknown for centuries.”

  “What kind of names?” I had the Fountain of Knowledge right here. If anyone could give me clues about what Erebus was after, it was Melody.

  Melody smiled excitedly. “The most popular name, which you might be more familiar with, is Atlantis.”

  “Atlantis?” I gaped at her. “Come on, everyone’s heard of that—surely someone’s found it by now.”

  Melody shook her head. “It’s not that easy.”

  So, Erebus wants to find Atlantis… For some magical artifact in the ruins, maybe? Or to recover lost texts, perhaps, written by the Primus Anglicus? Or a power source, to soup up his human body a bit? Who knew what went on in that shady mind of his.

  “I’m honestly relieved someone else is looking for it—someone like you, at least,” Melody added. “I might have all this knowledge, but you’ve proven you’re more adept at this map-making business.”

  “I wouldn’t say that.” I avoided looking at Kenzie. “You’re not annoyed that I’m after the same place?”

  This couldn’t be a coincidence. I didn’t want to sound like a broken record, but coincidences were like the Tooth Fairy—they didn’t exist. This had to be the universe, or Chaos, or both, bringing us together somehow. We’d arrived at the same time, in the same place, when we could easily have missed each other. She had the know-how; I had the chutzpah. Maybe we wouldn’t make a bad team.

  “That depends on why you want to go,” Melody replied. “I’m not selfish, like those Basani twins. I don’t desire it for myself.”

  “Then why do you want to go there?” I asked.

  Luke frowned. “We shouldn’t tell him everything, Melody.”

  “Why not?” She peered up at him. “He might be able to help us.”

  “I’m all for back-scratching, for the right reasons,” I said.

  “It’s one of the few pieces of knowledge I didn’t inherit from the last Librarian,” Melody explained. “As I said, there are gaps. But this gap wants to be filled. It’s like an itch I can’t stop scratching. To me, it’s foolish to have an entire chunk of a map that nobody knows anything about. Literally nobody.”

  I nodded. “That’s not why I want to find it, if that’s any comfort.” It was time to be honest with Melody. She’d given up her deepest secret—a dangerous one, in the grand scheme of things. If nothing else, it meant I could trust her. “I want it to save myself from a lifetime of servitude, or very imminent death. My money’s on the latter.”

  “You’ll have to tell us more if you want to join forces with us,” Melody said softly.

  I huffed a sigh. She had a point. She’d given me all of her information, and I’d given her a tiny slice. “Erebus wants me to find it. No idea why, but he’s promised he’s not down with the global enslavement thing. I don’t usually believe him, but I do this time. If that was why he put me on this task, he’d have already started his reign of domination. Whatever he wants Atlantis for, I’m pretty sure it’s personal. It doesn’t seem like his goals will hurt humans or magicals.”

  Melody smiled. “That’s more like it. But, tell me, how did you get this far? Did you know Erebus would send you here?”

  I almost choked laughing. “He’s not exactly chatty about things I actually need to know.”

  “So, that would be a no?” Luke scoffed, clearly unimpressed by the direction of this conversation.

  “Precisely,” I replied.

  “You wound up in his service as a trade for the ability to kill Katherine, if my Librarian sources are correct,” Melody pressed, her eyes shining with interest.

  I sighed. “You’ve told me how you came to be the Librarian. So I guess it’s only fair I give you all the deets on how I ended up as Erebus’s favorite stooge. It started with Katherine, yeah. I made a deal with Erebus to take over my body and end her. The deal was servitude with an undisclosed finish line. I’ve been working for him ever since, traveling the world, picking up items he asks for. A personal shopper for Darkness, if you like. I didn’t know what he wanted these things for, naturally. Then he sent me to find… uh…”

  Do I tell them?

  “Uh?” Luke prompted.

  I’d gone this far. Why not go whole hog? I had little to lose and a lot to gain. Besides, nobody could get their hands on the Fountain of Youth now, anyway.

  “He sent me to find the Fountain of Youth. My friends helped me, and we led him right to the fountain. There, he… bagged himself a human body. So, if you see a godlike dude strutting around, it’s probably him.” I fidgeted nervously. “Once he had that, he caused a cave-in. He saved my friends and brought me to the monastery. That’s how I ended up here. No details, just insistence that I get the job done. I picked up bits and pieces as I went along, but I still didn’t know the place he wanted to find until… well, now.”

  “He’s human?” Melody’s eyes bulged.

  “Well, he’s a Child of Chaos in a physical body. I’m not sure if that counts as human,” I replied.

  “And he wants to reach Atlantis.” Melody tapped distractedly at her chest, where her tattoo was emblazoned. She still looked horrified about a human-Child hybrid wandering about.

  “Apparently.” I shrugged.

  Melody looked at me with big, sad eyes, her expression softening. “You’ve been through a lot.”

  “It was worth it to end Katherine and save my sister. And everyone else,” I hastened to add, dropping my gaze. Even I knew that old line sounded insincere.

  “At least, that’s what you keep telling yourself?” The pity in her voice broke my heart.

  My head lifted. “I’m worn out, doing all this by myself. I tried to keep everyone at arm’s length for so long, and… I can’t do it anymore. At least, not alone.” The words spilled like Melody had opened a floodgate. “I need help. You can help me. I can help you.”

  “Melody…” Luke’s tone held a distinct warning.

  I straightened. “No, hear me out. Neither of you are involved with Erebus, and with Melody being the Librarian, she should be able to fly under his radar. Odette, from what I remember, was shielded from most people, and most entities. It didn’t help her in the end, I know, but it kept her safe for a while. I’m just asking for a bit of your time—long enough to get this job done, for all of us.”

  “Melody,” Luke repeated, firmer now.

  “There’s a lot you don’t know, Luke.” She turned to him. “That’s not your fault. I wouldn’t know, either, if Chaos hadn’t singled me out. But Finch needs us. And we
need him. We still need the formula. All the Chaos knowledge in the world hasn’t helped me with that. What’s the harm in putting our heads together?”

  Luke stiffened. “A lot of harm. We’re talking about Erebus. I know enough about Children of Chaos to avoid them. What if he tries to use your power against you?”

  “Children of Chaos put this knowledge into my head. That means, in a weird way, we’re all on the same team.” Melody put her palm to his chest. “It also means I know how to keep us safe, as Finch said. A way to fly under their radar. Chaos made it that way—I’m a lockbox they can’t pick. It’s an odd contradiction, I know, but it’s the truth. And I know it’s your job to protect me, but Librarians come with defenses of our own.”

  “This is too risky, Melody.” Luke stood firm.

  “Finding Atlantis is risky, but you agreed to help me,” she replied. “I’d be dead if Finch hadn’t interfered. I might have a big brain, but it would have gotten smashed to pieces on the staircase. We can trust him, Luke. He’s in this situation against his will.”

  Luke pulled a sour face. “That’s not our problem.”

  “I’m making it our problem.” Melody pulled away from him. He looked lost without her. His hands twitched, like he wanted to grasp her and pull her right back to him. “Finch, we’re going to help you, if you help us.”

  I nodded. “I can do that.”

  “I’ll dig through my knowledge to see if there’s some way to even the playing field against Erebus. As you can probably tell, I’m still coming into my own as the Librarian, but if there’s something in the Annals of Chaos that can help you, I promise I will find it.”

  “Are you on board, Luke?” I asked.

  Luke sank back. “We owe you for what you did back there. With that in mind… yeah, I’m on board. I go where Melody goes.” He sucked in a sigh. “She’s always had a thing for stray animals. I suppose you’re not far off.”

  “I am pretty cute.” I flashed a smirk to hide the twisting knife in my chest. Finch Merlin, the dumped puppy nobody wanted. Way to play on my insecurities, Luke. It was still hard to believe that people cared about me. I knew they were waiting, back home, but sitting here… they’d never felt farther away. And I didn’t know if I’d ever get back to them.

  “You know what you have to do, Finch.” Melody grasped my hand.

  My self-pitying reverie shattered. “Huh?”

  She smiled. “You need to draw a map to Atlantis.”

  Thirty-Two

  Kenzie

  I flapped to the desk and squawked at the oranges. Being a bird sucked. If I’d been able to speak to him, this would’ve been so easy.

  Finch frowned, then nodded. “Right. The oranges.”

  “What do you mean?” Melody asked.

  “They’re part of the map-making. You eat them, and they create a… bizarre mental state. According to Etienne, that’s the stuff needed to make this work.” Finch got up and hobbled to the desk. “The last one wore off. At least, I think it did, because the room isn’t melting anymore. Must’ve been all that adrenaline and spy-catching.”

  “Are you sure you should eat another?” Melody sounded worried.

  I concurred. Double-dosing probably wasn’t good for his head.

  He shrugged. “I have to, or we’re not finding Atlantis.”

  My pal looked broken. Once his back turned to Melody and Luke, his new accomplices, he winced. A ripple of absolute agony crossed his face. He’d clearly forgotten to hide it from my parrot form.

  “Are you okay to do this?” Luke chimed in. “I meant what I said about the infirmary.”

  Finch gritted his teeth. “I’ll be fine once the poison hits. Just don’t worry if I start screaming. That’s all part of it.”

  “Numbskull!” I squawked. It was hard to show concern in this form.

  He looked down at me. “I swear, I’ll be fine.”

  He picked up another orange and peeled it, then swallowed segment after segment like he hadn’t eaten for a week.

  “Oh boy,” he murmured, sinking down into the chair.

  “Pain!” I croaked.

  He shook his head. “No, not pain. The walls are melting again. And… yep, there he is. Crap, crap, crap, crap.”

  “Knock, knock! Who’s there?” I cawed. What was he looking at? Finch stared intently at a spot on the desk.

  “Nothing… it’s nothing.” He squeezed his eyes shut. Whatever it was, I guessed he wasn’t eager to see it. A hallucination, maybe?

  “You! For! Ear!” I squawked. He needed help, fast. Euphoria had helped Harley out in the past, from what she’d told me. Maybe it’d work here, too. I didn’t know a lot about Euphoria, but it couldn’t be too different from Morphing. You know, sinking your mind someplace else. Detaching from your body and leaving any weirdness behind.

  Finch stared at me, his eyes swimming. “I… can see you.”

  “You! For! Ear!”

  “What? You’ll have to shout over the waterfall!”

  “You! For! Ear!” I squawked louder. What waterfall? He must be seeing some mad crap, thanks to that orange.

  “Euphoria!” Melody yelled. “Use Euphoria to break through whatever’s happening.”

  He closed his eyes but gave no sign he’d heard us. “Ah… closing my eyes really doesn’t help. Yeah, I know they’re right, Puffball. I’m trying my best here! If it’s so easy, why don’t you try to concentrate while the world is turning into puddles of goo around you?”

  Puffball? Puddles of goo? I didn’t even want to know.

  His back arched violently. A pulsating blue light throbbed in the center of his chest. That light shot up his neck to his eyes, and his lids flew open to reveal pools of bright blue. No irises, no pupils, just two eyeballs of raw light. Another ripple slithered down his right arm and into his hand, which spasmed. It didn’t look like Finch was in control anymore.

  His fingertips grasped a quill and dipped it in a pot of ink. The blue light spilled down his fingers and into the quill, turning the ink that same glowing, pulsating shade. His hands moved at lightning speed as the quill dragged across the paper. Lines, names, land, sea, filled the page faster than my parrot eyes could follow. The light left a trail of glowing ink in its wake as he moved on to the next part, and the next. Almost like automatic writing—a phenomenon I’d heard about on some late-night documentary while taking care of Mom. A person channeled their subconscious thoughts onto paper in an altered state. This definitely fit the bill. But way cooler.

  The names he’d written, however, didn’t make sense to me: Μαύρη πέτρα. Νότια Αυγή. Γη των Πράσινων Φώτων. Η Θάλασσα του Σαπφείρου. Όπου συμβαίνει ο χορός των πνευμάτων. Η πύλη μεταξύ ζωής και θανάτου. I just hoped he knew what they meant when he woke up from his trance.

  I peered at the page. He’d drawn a large island, with a smaller island to the right. Dead center between them, he’d drawn a star that shone more brightly than the rest of his map. But the writing and locations were all Greek to me. The island could’ve been anywhere.

  His quill traced lines, naming the islands he’d drawn. He drew one last island, a tiny speck, to the left of the smaller island he’d drawn. The final name: Η πύλη μεταξύ ζωής και θανάτου. He etched a second star and sank back. The blue light left him as quickly as it appeared. He blinked, and his eye color returned to normal. If I’d thought he looked exhausted before, that was nothing. He looked on the edge of total collapse. And I couldn’t do anything to help him.

  “Melody! Melody!” I chirped.

  She came running, with Luke in tow. “Are you okay?”

  He nodded blankly. “Just… tired.”

  “You don’t look good.” Melody didn’t even glance at the paper. That gave her major brownie points in my book. She cared more about Finch than Atlantis. At least, for now. I still wasn’t sure about these two. They seemed like decent folks, but that di
dn’t mean I thought it was a good idea for Finch to team up with people he hardly knew.

  “I’m sure.” He took a sharp breath. “That was… an experience.”

  “Is this it?” Luke pointed to the paper.

  Finch mustered a weak smile. “Yep.”

  “Where is it?” Luke pressed.

  “Luke! Give him some space. Can’t you see he’s struggling?” Melody chided, pulling Luke away slightly.

  Finch put his elbows on the desk and rested his head in his hands. “I just need a minute.”

  “Take however long you need,” Melody insisted.

  “Bingo! Genius!” I croaked. It hurt to see my friend so broken. The orange poison had probably vamoosed with the blue light, leaving him to deal with all the injuries Blanche had inflicted.

  Finch rallied shortly. “Atlantis is in the stretch of ocean between South Georgia Island and Antarctica. These names mean Black Rock, South Dawn, Land of the Green Lights, The Sapphire Sea, Where the Dancing of the Spirits Takes Place, and the Gateway between Life and Death.” His fingertips traced the map, pointing out each one.

  “What about the stars?” Melody glanced over his shoulder. “What do they mean?”

  He gestured to the one between the smaller island and the bigger one—South Georgia Island and Antarctica, I guessed. “This is Atlantis.” Next, he pointed to the second star, the one on the tiny speck island. “This is the Gateway between Life and Death. I’m not entirely sure how they work together, but I don’t think you can just waltz into Atlantis. Which means getting in might have something to do with the gateway. That’s what gateways do, right? They open into something else.”

  “You did it.” Melody gasped. “You actually did it. Even if the gateway doesn’t play a part in Atlantis, at least we know where to look.”

  He snorted. “And I’m feeling every ounce of the effort.”

  “I’ve got a question.” Luke raised his hand, comically.

  “What is it?” Finch replied.

  “How powerful is this place, if Erebus can’t get inside on his own?”