Page 36 of Ashes of Aether

His furious pace continues until we reach the end of that next street. Our path forks, and he glances around in search of the hooded silhouette.

I open my mouth, wanting to persuade Arluin to cease this pursuit and return to his manor before we’re led any deeper into Nolderan’s alleyways. But before I can speak, he’s already off, running down the street to our right.

“Arluin!” I call. He doesn’t seem to hear me.

Grimacing, I hurry after him.

One day he really will be the death of me.

We soon reach a circular sewage grate that has been cast aside. Arluin stands before the dark hole, peering into its depths.

“They wouldn’t have gone down there, would they?” I whisper.

Arluin raises his head and examines the dark alley ahead of us. I don’t want the shadowy figure to reappear but if it does, I would prefer for it to emerge from behind the corner. I dread the thought of going down into the sewers.

But no matter how much Arluin stares at the dark streets around us, the silhouette does not appear.

His attention returns to the sewage grate, and his expression hardens into steel.

“Please tell me you’re not planning on going down there.”

If the hooded figure disappeared down there, it can’t be Kaely following us. She would never lurk in the sewers.

Going down there would be madness.

“I need to look,” Arluin murmurs. “I need to be sure.”

“You need to be sure of what, Arly?” I ask, my fear heightening. “We have no idea what’s down there. We need to return to the Arcanium now. My father is probably still with the ambassadors. We’ll tell him a cloaked figure has been following us. That the presence surrounding them can only belong to a dark sorcerer.”

Arluin stares into the sewers, inhaling deeply. Then, before I can stop him, he leaps into the darkness.

I grit my teeth, glancing around at the shadows. If the hooded figure didn’t disappear into the sewers, then I don’t want to be left standing here. Maybe they’re planning to strike me right now, seizing their opportunity while I’m separated from Arluin.

I curse him under my breath.

For such a seemingly clever man, he really is so stupid.

Rather than jumping straight into the hole, I slide over the edge and use the metallic rungs to steady my drop. My feet meet the stone beneath.

A putrid smell fills my nostrils. It’s hard not to gag.

“Iluminos,” Arluin says. A brilliant orb of aether spreads from his fingers. It floats above us, illuminating our surroundings with its dazzling light.

We stand on a narrow platform cut into the stone. It overlooks a canal of water which ensures sewage and rainwater run out to sea.

“There’s nothing here,” I whisper. Despite how soft my words are, they echo throughout the tunnel. “Come on, please, let’s head back to yours.”

“Don’t you hear it?” Arluin asks, closing his eyes as he listens.

I fall silent and strain my ears as I try to discern anything but the rush of water.

“What—” I begin but stop. Because I too finally hear the noise coming from deeper in the sewers.

It’s a rumbling. No, a growling. And it doesn’t sound like it comes from only one being.

My pulse quickens. “Please,” I beg him. “Please let’s just go.”

“There’s something down here.”