Kaden was tired. Exhausted, even. He gratefully accepted Milo's magic transmitter, but he was wearing thin. Once Anton was safe he could stop. Ezra was making her way back with Zafaria, Saracen was making his was back with Rania and Nasri. They would be here soon. But Anton wasn't so lucky. They beat him back and blue and then chained his ankle to the belly of the ship in a dark, dank room. He would die of dehydration soon enough, and that didn't seem to bother those on the ship.

In addition to being tired, Kaden was scared. Macon must know by now. Kaden had betrayed him utterly. Everything that was happening right now was for the purpose of getting Dexter back, and Kaden took him away again. He glanced around the room he was sat in. Valkyrie and Skulduggery was in good shape. Dexter was still healing, his insides ruined from his time with Erskine. Ghastly's leg had been repaired but it was sore and stiff and he had a very considerable limp. The elders were in tip top condition, but whether they'd get their hands dirty defending a demon was another concern entirely. Tanith and Fletcher were also fine. Long story short, if Macon tried to get Kaden he probably could. And the thought filled Kaden with such dread it physically hurt.

He snapped back to reality as Dexter reached over and grabbed the small circular device from Kaden. Dexter closed his eyes and a soft green lit up the centre of the circle. Dexter passed it back to Kaden offering a smile.

"Thank you." Dexter said. Kaden stared at him for a moment. He scooted his chair closer.

"What will happen?" Kaden asked.

"How do you mean?"

"When this is over. When we have Ezra and Anton and Saracen back. What'll they do to me?" Kaden asked, his eyes involuntarily looking at China.

"It's your decision, Kaden. You can stay and help us fight, or you can go your own way. You saved me. You saved all of us. If it wasn't for you Skulduggery and Ghastly would be dead by now. You don't have to stay if you don't want, you can leave. It's entirely up to you. We could use your help but I understand your fear for Macon. If you want to get out of dodge we won't blame you." Dexter said softly. Kaden stared for a moment.

"I've never had a choice before." He said. Dexter grinned.

"Now you do. We'd appreciate it if you stayed and help us get Anton back, but you're free to leave now. All charges pressed against you are lifted, you have no ties here." Dexter replied.

"I think I'd like to stay." Kaden said slowly.

"Kaden?"

"Yes?"

"Why did you do it?" Dexter asked.

"Because... I hated it there. I always hated it there. I don't like hurting people. I don't like going into their minds and rummaging around, opening doors that were previously locked. I saw what he did to Ezra. Breaking her down like that for nothing but his own amusement. And then I saw you. The way you spoke to her- the way you didn't hesitate to help her, to care for her. And I want that, someday. To depend on someone. To rely on someone. Macon thought he owned me because he made me, that I should be eternally grateful that he turned me into this. I never wanted this."

"Wait- turned you? Macon turned you?"

"Yeah, he turned all of us. Noah was the first, then Blaise. Then Holly and me. We were the first. The others came later, in dribbles."

Dexter's eyes widened slowly as he thought quickly. He spoke to the group when he spoke.

"Macon made Kaden- he made all of them."

"What?" Skulduggery asked, drawing his eyes away from Anton's mirror.

"Macon did a spell, that's how he got us to turn. We were magic before but he did some dark blood magic to change us." Kaden informed the group. "I don't see why this is relevant."

"Because we could potentially turn you back." Valkyrie said, her eyes lighting up for the first time in weeks.

"Kaden, do you remember the spell? Or anything about it? What it involved, what language it was, anything?" China asked curtly. Kaden bit the inside of his cheek, casting his mind back to that horrible night. He stood up and found a pen, then drew a messy symbol on a clear mirror. Ghastly gave a low whistle.

"That's the same strand as my curse. That's some strong, ancient stuff." Ghastly explained. The excitement in the room diminished.

"Does that mean we can't reverse it?" Dexter asked, sitting back in his chair.

"No, not necessarily. The curse was on my mother and she died. The demons aren't dead."

"So we could take away his army?" Valkyrie asked, sounding hopeful.

"So we could take his army away." Confirmed Skulduggery. The room momentarily filled with a satisfied silence.

"China, call anyone who might have any resources on this. Ghastly go to the relic room, find anything with this strand of magic in it. Valkyrie and I will scour the library and see what we can find. The rest stay here, watch the monitors. See if any new information pops up about Antons whereabouts. We have a lead." Skulduggery said, grinning. China nodded, pulling her phone out already and scrolling though her contacts as she left the room. Ghastly, Valkyrie and Skulduggery left too. About two hours later and the mirror room was filled with ancient books and scrolls and loose pages and strange looking, jeweled artifacts. China called two of her students in and they set about reading, scouring the pages and reading every word with virgor, taking notes and hushedly discussing and comparing what each thing said, looking for overlaps, for facts, for any loopholes or reversals.

Meanwhile, Anton was coming into trouble. The skin on his ankle was raw from the rusty, heavy metal cuff on it. He was so weak from no food or water, from no sunlight. He laid on his back, his eyes closed, and that's when the first bomb went off, shaking the ship's walls and lurching Anton, his ankle snapping from the sudden harsh movement. He cried out, sitting up and clutching his broken limb. He looked around, panicked, scared. He couldn't get up, couldn't help. He heard shouts and rushed footsteps above him. Another bomb rattled the ship, but Anton was prepared this time, clutching the chain so his ankle wasn't injured further. Bombs were raining down on the ship now, in every direction. One exploded against the wall closest to Anton and the worst happened- a hole the size of a dinner plate was where the bomb hit it and water was rapidly filling the small, dark room.