Imperium (Caulborn) by Nicholas Olivo Page A

in a few hours, and knowing her, she’ll have answers for you before I get done analyzing your silver goo.”
    “My appreciation to you both.” I smiled. The Doc waved me away with his free hand and took another drag on his cigarette. I excused myself and headed up to Galahad’s office.
    Megan was already there and had briefed Galahad on what we’d found in New Hampshire. “What’s your next move?” he asked.
    “I’ll work on what happened to Seamus McElery next,” I said. “There’s an Urisk ritual that I might be able to use to see what happened to him, and if Kristin’s right about him being turned into a zombie.”
    Galahad pursed his lips. “How much time will you need?”
    I checked my watch. It was just past four. “Not long. I should be back here by nightfall.”
    “I’ll come with you,” Megan said.
    “Thanks, Meg, but this is kind of a god-only situation.” It was hard to describe the intimacy I felt for my followers, and there weren’t many people I’d be willing to share that with. Petra, sure. Anyone else? Well, probably not.
    “All right,” Megan said. “I’ll see if I can find out anything else about Seamus McElery on this side while you’re gone.”
    Galahad nodded at both of us. “God be with you, Vincent. I will pray for your safe return.”
    I winked at him and left the building. Crossing over to Bright Side requires what’s called a phasilion, a living portal between our world and the fae’s. You needed to know exactly where the phasilion was, and it needed to approve of you. Phasilions were both gates and gatekeepers. While some were malevolent and invite people in only to deposit them in the middle of a flesh eating troll’s lair, most were cautious about letting humans through. Luckily, the phasilion behind the Children’s Museum likes me.
    The phasilion looked like another part of the building, to the left of a dumpster. But if you looked really hard, you could see very subtle movement within the bricks, like specks floating across their surface. I gently placed my hand on the surface and closed my eyes.
    “Vincent Corinthos,” a gentle female voice said. “Back so soon?”
    “I need to do some searching, Aviorla,” I replied. “One of the Bright Side’s sons has gone missing, and I need to learn more about him.”
    “Of course,” the phasilion replied. “Shall I take you to the Urisk?” I nodded. “Safe passage and peace to you, God of the Urisk.” A portal opened in the wall and I stepped through into a pocket of pale yellow light. I closed my eyes and was swallowed by a strong sense of vertigo. The first time Lotholio had brought me through Aviorla, I’d thrown up everything I’d ever eaten in my life. Even after years of going back and forth between realms, I felt a little woozy.
    There was a change in pressure around me and I opened my eyes. Another portal had opened before me, Aviorla’s exit. Through it I could see the bright purple sky of Bright Side. I stepped through and stood before the church Lotholio and my other followers had built. It was a spiraling tower that stretched a hundred feet into the air. Despite the fact that it stood in full sunlight, the white stone that comprised the tower was always cool, and the whole thing looked like it was carved from a single rock.
    I pushed open the doors to the tower and stepped inside. Lotholio stood in the foyer of the building, speaking with some of his priests. They turned at the sound of my entrance, and their glowing eyes all brightened from top to bottom. Surprise. They immediately fell to their knees, eyes lowered.
    “Rise,” I said. This part has always made me a little uncomfortable. Even after all this time, it was hard to get used to people bowing and scraping before me. I gave them all a blessing, easing their tensions, restoring their strength. They stood, their scrawny gray bodies clad only in the green and blue stoles that marked them as priests. I looked at Lotholio. “Do you vouch