'My Levia?' Theo had no idea what Ulrich meant, and the way the wizard was looking at him didn't help. Almost...almost as if he recognized Theo.
But that couldn't be. Theo had never even heard of him before tonight.
Before he could think about it further, Ulrich's hand shot out and grabbed the front of his shirt. Theo gagged as Ulrich yanked him to his feet.
"Theo!" Sam yelled, while Zenith once again tried to fling himself out of the containment diagram.
But Theo could only focus on Ulrich's face, the crazed fervor shining in his eye. As he lifted Theo higher, his hot breath brushed against Theo's skin, raising goosebumps across his entire body.
"Sensor!" Ulrich barked, and a plain-looking woman came up by his side. "Confirm it. Is his Levia a match?"
"Yes, Master," the woman mumbled. "This is the Levia I sensed."
"Well, you clearly aren't him," Ulrich said, his words almost tripping over one another in excitement, "but you must have some kind of connection. Tell me, what do you know about a wizard who wears a black demonic armor?"
All the breath whistled from Theo's throat.
'A wizard who wears a black demonic armor.' Ulrich could only mean one person.
But Theo's buzzing mind couldn't assemble any sense out of this. Did that mean Victor was in Tielos too? Theo hadn't given much thought to what had happened to his brother after the battle in the Liminal, but he'd always assumed Victor had ended up back on Earth.
Instead...instead...Victor had been here all this time? And he'd somehow gotten on the wrong side of this Ulrich Ziegler?
"Well?" Ulrich's grip tightened on Theo's shirt. "Tell me all you know about this wizard!"
Even as Theo's mind raced, his heart already knew what his answer would be. Victor might be his enemy, but he wasn't the one who had hijacked the Blue Sky and stolen the Star of Miriel.
Looking Ulrich in the eye, Theo said, "I don't know what you're talking about."
Ulrich's face contorted, a vein twitching in his temple. The next thing Theo knew, a heavy hand lashed across his face. Stars sparked in his vision; the pain made him cry out.
Dimly, he heard Zenith shout his name. But as Theo's blurring vision cleared, he kept his gaze fixed on Ulrich.
"Don't lie to me," Ulrich hissed.
"I'm not lying," Theo said, relieved by how calm his voice came out. "Why do you want to know so bad anyway? What'd this wizard do to you?"
Right, keep his wits about him. Try to get information out of Ulrich while giving away nothing of his own.
When Ulrich yanked on his collar, Theo almost tumbled onto his face. He barely got any time to recover before Ulrich pulled again, even harder. As he stumbled forward, he realized with a thrill of dread that Ulrich was dragging him toward the deck cabin.
"Master," called one of Ulrich's soldiers, a demon with icy blue hair. "Where are you going?"
"Getting the truth out of this boy," Ulrich snarled, panting like a wild animal. "You take over here, ensure everything is secure. Tell the pilot to set a course back to Ziegler Castle."
The demon opened her mouth, but before she could speak a crash of armor echoed across the deck. Heart hammering, Theo turned his head to see Zenith desperately hurling himself at the edges of the containment diagram, writhing and thrashing as steely lightning crackled around his body. The wild terror in his eyes twisted Theo's heart into knots.
"Zenith," Theo gasped, struggling to speak through the shirt collar digging into his throat. "I – I'll be fine, I promise."
Whether Zenith heard him or not, Theo had no idea. But he felt it when Zenith's Levia spiked inside him, bright as a bolt of lightning.
Theo twisted, trying to look at his familiar, but Ulrich had already reached the cabin door. He kicked it open and shoved Theo inside, sending Theo onto his hands and knees on the floor.
The door clicked shut. Trapping Theo inside, alone with just Ulrich and the globe-fish at the ceiling.
And the Star of Miriel, flooding the room with cold blue light. Ulrich cradled both it and his scepter in his left hand. This close, Theo got a good look at the Star shard in the scepter. Suspended inside a cage of delicate golden wires, it was shaped like a triangle with a jagged edge.
Theo's pulse quickened. If he wasn't wrong, this might form an entire point of the star.
Which was far more than Oliver had possessed. Who knew how strong it made Ulrich...but Theo fiercely told himself everything would be fine. He'd already defeated Oliver, and he'd defeat this entitled creep of a wizard too.
Ulrich stomped on the floor, making Theo start. "I'll ask again," the wizard snapped. "What is your relation to this wizard with the demonic armor?"
"What's yours?" Theo shot back.
This time Ulrich stomped on his head, driving his face into the floor. His nose hit the metal hard enough to send tears to his eyes.
The pressure didn't relent; he could feel Ulrich's boot digging into his scalp. Despite his attempt at putting on a brave front, fear began to swell inside his chest.
Still Theo made himself speak, even if it meant he was mumbling the words against the floor. "Look, how about some quid pro quo. You give me back the Star of Miriel and I'll tell you."
Predictably, Ulrich stomped harder. Salty blood trickled from Theo's nose into his mouth. He bit his lip, fighting down a scream with all his willpower.
Then abruptly, the pressure vanished. The thud as Ulrich's foot slammed onto the floor jolted through Theo's entire body. Confused, disbelieving, Theo slowly lifted his head.
Ulrich had seated himself in one of the chairs around the cabin table. Though bolted down, they could spin, and he had turned it so he was facing Theo. For the first time tonight, his expression was impossible to read.
"Give you back?" Ulrich said, slow and contemplative. "Do you mean this is yours?"
He twirled the Star between his fingertips, causing its light to dance across the cabin. The sight of it in another person's hands – a completely undeserving person – made Theo's heart wrench.
"It is," Theo said. His head was hammering and blood wouldn't stop dripping from his nose, but that didn't stop a dim spark of hope from blooming inside him.
Ulrich had the troops, not to mention both skycraft under his control, but the one thing he didn't have was knowledge. Despite holding both the Star of Miriel and a shard, he clearly didn't have the first idea what to do with them.
Not to mention the shard hadn't fused with the Star yet. Maybe, just maybe, it also didn't want to give in to Ulrich.
Heart hammering, Theo squeezed his eyes shut and reached for his Levia. It took a few sluggish moments for the pink light to respond; when it finally did, he trickled a stream of it toward the Star.
The instant his dawn glow met the deep night sky, an ache resounded through his entire body. This didn't belong just to him, but the Star as well.
The light brightened behind his shut eyelids, acquiring a warmer tinge. He heard Ulrich gasp. All right, just a little more –
'Crack.' Pain exploded across Theo's face, flashing red fireworks across his vision. He rolled over, spitting out blood.
And he didn't get any time to recover before Ulrich stomped on his chest, making him cough up more blood. As he writhed and sputtered, Ulrich's boots marched past his face.
"That will be enough of your tricks," Ulrich snarled. A cold breeze rushed in as he flung the door open. "Rain! Take this to the Himmelsfestung."
A murmured, "Yes, Master," then the door clicked shut again. Ulrich marched back to the chair, seating himself heavily upon it.
Dazed and winded, Theo couldn't move an inch. And even if he reached out with his Levia, it was no good. The Star's power grew fainter and fainter, slipping steadily out of range.
"Now," Ulrich said, low with fury. "Where were we?"