Chapter 56

  The tower rose above them, jutting up from the empty street. One of the glass-and-steel doors stood open, leading to a pristine foyer. Adam craned his neck upward until he could see the entirety of the tower. It seemed to bend forward, leaning until it loomed overhead, the peak disappearing into the boiling steel gray clouds.

  He wrapped his hand around the Seeker Stone in his pocket. A wave of vertigo crashed against his senses as the stone pulled his focus skyward.

  "This is definitely the place," Adam said, taking his hand off of the stone and closing his eyes until the nausea passed.

  "Not sure what's worse," Hector mused. "Whatever's squatting on the roof, or the hundred floors between us and it."

  Samantha smirked, following Adam's gaze upward. "I bet you're regretting taking up smoking now."

  "A little bit," Hector admitted, pinching the air in the universal sign for 'just a little.'

  "I'm honestly just surprised you're all still here." Adam regretted the words as soon as they left his mouth. Everyone but Jessica had turned to give him an annoyed look.

  She patted him on the shoulder. "I knew what you meant."

  "Thanks." Adam shook his head and crossed the eerily empty street. The entire block leading up to the tower had been deserted, like time had frozen just before The Announcement. Cars still sat on the side of the street waiting for drivers that would never come.

  He took the steps two at a time, eager to get inside or just to get it over with. Adam paused before he reached for the door handle. "I don't think we're getting another breather once we're inside." He drew his bat, hefting it over his shoulder. "Natalie, did you ever manage to fix your gun?"

  She shook her head. "It jams constantly and I'm afraid it’s going to blow my hand off. I have the crowbar though. I just wish that bow hadn’t been a bust. The draw on it was crazy and I can’t imagine anyone but those things being able to use it.”

  "Nat, what happened to your baton? I haven't seen it in forever," Samantha said.

  "I lost it. Either when we were shot at, or when we ran from the goblins.”

  "What about you, Hector? How many shells do you have?" Adam asked.

  "Not enough," he said, racking a round and holding the shotgun across his chest. The way he held the weapon reminded Adam of something he couldn't quite put his finger on, but he decided now was not the time to ask.

  "So, we have a space-age baseball bat, a crowbar, a shotgun, a few knives, some low-rent magical powers…" He glanced at his companions. "And five lives to spend."

  "Spend away,” Jessica said, shrugging.

  Adam grabbed the door handle, but Samantha caught his arm and pulled him back. "Wait," she said, cocking her head and narrowing her eyes. "Can you hear that?"

  He shook his head, silently wondering if the stress had finally cracked her.

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  "I can hear it," Jessica said quietly, her eyes wide. "It's... singing?"

  Hector stepped forward a few steps then immediately backed up. "No. No, no, no." He made the sign of the cross over his chest and retreated back down the stairs. "I agreed to die. I did not agree to have something fuck with my head. If it's singing, it's bad news."

  Adam turned back toward the doorway and shut his eyes, listening. "I don't hear-" The hair on his arms stood on end as the sound finally hit him. A gentle melody drifted out of the doorway, slithering through the air like smoke, growing louder the longer he listened. He jerked back with a shudder, recoiling from the entrance even as the sound beckoned him in.

  He wanted to go inside, wanted it so badly it made his teeth ache. Adam clamped his hands over his ears and panted, breath coming in short, panicked gasps. The sound ebbed with excruciating slowness, like it was oozing out of his ears rather than fading from memory.

  "If we go in there, we're going to lose ourselves,” Hector said, his voice barely above a whisper. His usually tanned skin had gone deathly pale. "That's why there's nothing around. It keeps what it takes."

  Natalie threw her hands up. "How could you possibly know that? And it doesn't change anything." She stabbed her finger at the sky. "That's the only way this ends. We have to go up."

  Samantha placed a hand on both Natalie and Hector's arms. "Stop. You're both right. I think I have something that might help, but I need one of you to test it.

  Hector shook his head and backed away. Natalie rolled her eyes, then turned to Samantha. "What do you need?"

  Samantha brought out a small pocket knife. “I’ll need to cut you a little.”

  “Okay,” Natalie said.

  "I have no idea if this will work, or for how long." Samantha slid the knife across the back of Natalie's hand, leaving a shallow cut. Natalie winced but kept her hand steady. "Sorry."

  The others looked on in curiosity as Samantha dabbed her finger in the welling blood, then painted a small rune on Natalie's cheek, just below her ear. She repeated the symbol on the other side before stepping back.

  "Okay. Now we have to test it," Samantha said, nodding toward the door.

  "Test what? What did you do?" Natalie asked.

  She shook her head. "I'll explain after. Just go to the door and listen, but don't go in."

  Natalie frowned and stepped forward, tilting her head. After a moment, she turned back. "I don't hear much of a difference."

  "Do you feel like you need to go inside?" Samantha leaned forward, her eyes shining with intensity.

  "No..." Natalie said slowly. "Wait. It's quieter now. Kind of off-key, maybe?"

  Samantha gave a tiny hop of excitement. "I had no idea if I was on the right track, but this confirms it."

  "Uh, what?" Adam asked, glancing at Natalie, who looked just as confused.

  Samantha waved them off. "It would take too long to really explain. I barely understand it myself. The symbols are filtering what you hear. Or maybe not filtering. Kind of like putting in earplugs."

  She frowned, wringing her hands. "No, not quite. More... a fan running in the background."

  "Magical white noise machine?" Natalie offered.

  Samantha pointed at her. "Exactly! Sort of. Well, close enough."

  "Nothing like a little Deus ex Machina to save the day,” Adam said, rolling his eyes.

  Jessica blinked at him. "What?"

  He gave her a bitter laugh. "It just seems a little convenient. Giant alien god with mind control powers, and suddenly we come up with a way to counter it? It feels a little scripted."

  They fell silent, mulling over Adam's words. Even Samantha seemed to deflate a little, the frantic energy of the moment before bleeding away while they stalled.

  "The Salesman," Hector said, breaking the silence.

  "Hm?" Adam looked to see Hector coming back up the stairs.

  "The Salesman sent us on this mission. He doesn't strike me as the type to make bad bets. He traded Samantha the book. Maybe he knew what we were dealing with?" Hector seemed to steel himself as he approached Samantha, holding out his hand. "I'll try next."

  After several minutes of cutting and painting they all had bloody runes on their cheeks. Adam reached up to scratch at the dried blood, but stopped himself before he marred the sigil.

  "What happens if we damage the runes?" Adam asked.

  Samantha shook her head. "I have no idea. They're put together with a three-day crash course in a field of study that barely exists in our world. It's the magical equivalent of duct tape and bubble gum."

  "So, don't mess with the runes. Got it." Adam lowered his hand and stuffed it into his pocket. "Alright. Anything else? If we put this off any longer I'm going to lose my nerve."

  Everyone shook their head.

  Adam took a deep breath, braced himself, and stepped through the doorway.