2 DAYS LATER
Darquesse was free.
She flew through the night sky, the stars glittering beautifully above her. There were no clouds fogging up the beautiful scene. Unlike her mind.
Her conscience named Valkyrie Cain still struggled. She thrashed and shouted and cursed at Darquesse. Darquesse enjoyed it. She enjoyed Valkyries pain. She enjoyed the horror that she felt being trapped inside her body with no control. She enjoyed the helplessness that she brought her.
She giggled, reaching into her coat pocket. Well, it wasn't her coat pocket. She stole it. She brought her cell phone out, looking at the screen. There were 15 missed calls, the majority of them from Skulduggery.
SKULDUGGERY
Her hand loosened around the phone, and it slowly slipped from her fingers then plummeted toward the ground.
"Oops." Darquesse giggled again. A sharp pain shot through her entire body from head to toe, and for a moment Valkyrie and Darquesse shared the same mind. Their body fell, arms and legs kicking out violently in search of a hand hold. A shriek escaped her lips, and Darquesse took control again. She scowled then coughed into her hand, looking horrified at the blood that splattered against her palm.
You're not the only one that can change my body from the inside
White hot pain flowed through her entrails. She growled and closed her eyes, focusing on healing the carnage that Valkyrie somehow managed to inflict.
"How are you doing this?" Darquesse growled into the cool night air. It was strange. Darquesse should be the only one in control. Valkyrie was an annoying little twat, it was going to take a while to get her out of her mind for good.
Every time you take control, you leave a little bit of it to me. I can tear this body and brain to shreds without a moment's notice if you hurt anyone
She clucked her tongue. "I don't believe you. You want to live, Val. You have hope that you will be able to overtake me."
And it was true. But Darquesse will not let it happen. She was not going to relinquish hold anymore. Valkyrie hoped and prayed and wished that she could keep her conscience but also keep the power that her true name brought her. Only then will Darquesse and Valkyrie Cain be one. That was never. Going. To. Happen.
Another pain racked through her body, and she was free falling once more. Darquesse cursed, trying to regain control. The wind whipped around her, tearing at her stolen clothing. Her hair flew back and a few seconds later she hit the ground, her shoulder crunching. She lay there a few moments, slowly healing herself. Once her bones had been mended, she sat up, glaring at a nearby tree.
Still think I'm bluffing?
"I'm going to kill everyone you love." Darquesse growled. "I'm going to murder mommy and daddy and sissy. Our stupid haired little ex-boyfriend. Oh, Skulduggery, too. It's a shame too. I liked him. Oh, I liked him. He was fun. Lord Vile, damn, Val. Damn."
You're not going to touch them
"What are you going to do about it?" She shouted. "Everyone knows me know. Everyone knows who I truly am. There is no Valkyrie Cain anymore, there is only Darquesse. All of those visions are going to come true! Your family is going to watch their precious daughter slaughter them! Your friends are going to watch you slit each other's throats! Your best friend is going to watch you tear him apart bone from bone!"
**ONE YEAR LATER.**
It had been an entire year since Valkyrie succumbed to Darquesse. It had been a year since Skulduggery last saw her. Nothing much had changed since then. Tanith was still the vessel for a Remnant. Ghastly and Anton were still dead. Ravel was still a traitor. Madame Mist was still a Child of the Spider, which was bad enough all in its own.
Skulduggery was still in pain.
He assumed that this must have been what Valkyrie felt like when she watched him be dragged into the Faceless Ones realm six years ago. Hopeless. Hurting. Scared.
Vengeful.
There had been no trace of Darquesse since she disappeared. No mysterious and bloody murders. No gruesome injuries to any humans or mages that seem strange. No appearances, no sightings, not even China had heard anything with her whispering ears. She was doing a very nice job keeping herself out of arms reach of everyone. It was a smart idea. She knew that if Skulduggery got ahold of her, he would stop at nothing to get Valkyrie back. And even though Valkyrie might have assumed it was an unspoken agreement between the two, Skulduggery wasn't sure if he could handle putting a bullet through her brain if Valkyrie never returned.
He wasn't sure if her parents would allow it, either.
A week after Darquesses disappearance, Stephanie—No, her name wasn't Stephanie. She wasn't a she. She was an it—The reflection disappeared for a few days. Skulduggery kept an eye on her family, trying to understand what exactly happened. The mangled body of Valkyries reflection appeared at the Sanctuary's doorstep. If Skulduggery had a stomach, he would have thrown up. It wasn't the fact that it was dead—it was the fact that for a few moments, he truly believed it to be Valkyrie.
The Sanctuary has undergone some changes, however. Once Madame Mist was discovered, there was a coup of sorts. Madame Mist was thrown out of the last remaining Elders spot. The Supreme Counsel rose again, and this time the Irish Sanctuary was on their own in the battle. They had taken over, but the Irish gave a good fight. Eventually the Supreme Counsel remained in control, but the Irish had the task of electing a new set of Elders. A strange group, and each of them were regarded with very prying eyes. Meritorious's murder, Guilds imprisonment, and Ravels betrayal, it was a difficult decision for all.
Eventually, everyone came to a sober and reluctant vote.
China Sorrows was elected to be the first female Grand Mage, but the vote was almost pointless. She had already self-proclaimed herself Grand Mage after Ravel had been taken under Darquesses curse. Skulduggery was initially voted for it, but refused. After a few squabbles, Skulduggery eventually agreed to be the second Elder. Everyone was surprised, to say the least. Skulduggery, under the rule of China? It was almost comical, but no one pressed the issue. The remaining spot went to Cassandra Pharos.
Although Cassandras psychic powers were subpar compared to most, with a bit of training and help from the still recovering Finbar Wrong, she was slowly gaining more control over her power. Together she and Finbar slowly worked on seeing the future and trying to understand every outcome. So far nothing much had changed, Valkyrie still had the tattoo and still turned into Darquesse.
Despite the fact the future remained unchanged and Darquesse was still set to kill everyone, Skulduggery had hope. If Valkyrie was still in the vision, that means she was able to overcome Darquesses control. That means there is still a chance to stop Darquesse from appearing again.
China, Skulduggery, and Cassandra refused to become just mere figure heads for the Irish Sanctuary. The Supreme Counsel may believe that they have full control, the three new Elders made decisions for themselves, by themselves. It was a good thing, too. The Counsel was insistent on the moment that Darquesse was captured, that they executed her on the spot.
Skulduggery wasn't going to let that happen.
The new Sanctuary was located in the caves below Gordons house. Months of searching and map making and killing monsters later, they had converted it into a usable space.
It was a difficult and painful process.
Melissa and Desmond Edgley had agreed to let the mages take over the space. After the idiot mortal Kenny Dunne had revealed the Big Secret to Valkyries parents, the Elders were forced to place a visit to their home and fill them in on the remaining information. They sat, clutching little Alison and crying as Skulduggery gently explained the entire situation. After a few tries, they recognized him from Gordons will eons ago. He used a façade however, and ignored the inevitable question of why he was covered when they first met.
After Melissa got over the shock and Desmond recovered from finding out all the fairy tales that he was told were true, Skulduggery introduced them to Echo-Stone Gordon Edgley. They were thrilled to find out they still had ties to the favorite brother. They weren't thrilled to find out that he was murdered by the same man that attempted to kill their beloved oldest daughter, but they took it all in good stride.
Skulduggery hurt. He hurt every single day that Valkyrie wasn't by his side, making sarcastic remarks, trying to bust his ego, complaining of the adjustment of her seat in the Bentley, making Cain. He felt empty, emptier than a dead man should feel. Nothing consoled him anymore. He had lost everyone that was important to him. Ghastly, Ravel, Shudder. Valkyrie. Well, not everyone. But the ones he was closest to, gone. And one of them was supposed to kill him.
That hadn't changed. Cassandra still saw Darquesse detach his bones from each other before Skulduggery finally died, then plant a light kiss on his teeth. The look on Valkyries face when she witnessed the vision along Skulduggery sent shudders through his body. It was too painful to bear.
The only consolation that Skulduggery felt was knowing that Ravel was in constant pain 23 hours in the day. That was the only good thing that Darquesse had brought to them all. It was sick, but Skulduggery didn't feel guilty from getting satisfaction from his pain. The physical pain that he had to suffer through was nothing compared to the emotional pain he brought upon everyone that was affected by those he betrayed and murdered.
Skulduggery currently stood in front of the full mirror that was pinned on the wall where he kept his suits. He tightened and loosened then tightened his tie once, twice, three times. He had on a black suit with a dark purple shirt and striped tie. Only Cassandra wore the designated Elders robes, she found them to be a sort of trophy, something to show off and be proud of. Skulduggery and China were too vain to be seen in the baggy, ugly things.
He stared at himself in the mirror, looking everywhere except his eyesockets. If he looked too close, he would be able to see the black shadows and glints of armor swirling around.
He drove the short distance to Gordons estate. He couldn't consider it Valkyries, not while she was gone. It felt almost.. Blasphemous having the Sanctuary under the floorboards. Valkyrie will most certainly not be happy about it. She always said she hated things being underground.
After deactivating the façade, Skulduggery ignored the hidden trap door that lay beside the driveway. It led directly to the Sanctuary, but he wasn't here for political business. Gordon appeared in front of him once he made it inside the house, a smile adorning his face.
"Friend!" He exclaimed. Despite the fact he was outed as an Echo-Ghost and despite the depressing situation that they had all been in for a year, Gordon was always happy to see Skulduggery. Skulduggery enjoyed Gordons company, also. He avoided looking him in the eyes. The brown of his iris's reminded him of Valkyries far too much.
"Gordon, hello." The skeleton responded, nodding his head to him.
"I'm surprised you aren't in the Sanctuary right now." Gordon said.
"Not in the mood to boss people around right now."
"Wait, can you say that again? Val is going to love hearing you say that." A sharp pain pierced through Skulduggery. Gordon was always so optimistic.
"If there's one phrase to get her back, that would probably be it." Gordon laughed, placing his hands on his hips. A moment passed, then his expression grew somber.
"Have any leads yet?" He asked. Skulduggery shook his head, taking off his hat and setting it on the arm of the couch.
"Trust me, Gordon. The moment I know something, you will be the next to find out."
"What's going to happen when we find her, Skulduggery?" Both men were silent for a few long seconds.
"I'm going to kill Darquesse." Gordon looked at him sharply.
"You seemed insistent that Valkyrie wasn't going to die!" He said, his voice becoming urgent and panicked. Skulduggery just stared at him for a few moments.
"Darquesse and Valkyrie are two different entities." Just like Skulduggery and Lord Vile are two different consciences. "There is a way to separate the evil of her mind from the rest of her." Just like I did.
"Darquesse is going to die. Valkyrie is not."