Greenstone

by C E Johnson

  Isabelle followed with another hug. “This has been one of the most amazing days of my life.”

  Luke was beaming at her. He appeared so handsome in the warm colors of Acacia. “Thanks for letting us in on your secret.” He gave her a wink.

  Emily felt happiness welling inside of her, and she was certain she had made the right choice. The sun was close to setting. Birds were chirping in the trees and a mastodon came to drink from the lake. The long low head of the creature bent to allow its trunk into the water, and droplets sprayed on its curved tusks. The friends sat close to each other in silence, staring at its massive form. Emily wished she could stay in this moment forever.

  Anna was the first to speak. “Tell us more.” She smiled at Emily while arching an eyebrow.

  Warn them of the dangers, Xena’s tone was protective.

  “This world is wonderful,” Emily spoke hesitantly, “but stay near to me, Xena, and Dr. D. There’s still danger here and we must be careful.”

  “Is the gravity different here?” Luke stood and made an impressive jump in the air, grabbing a tree limb high above him and pulling himself onto the branch. “Is that why we can do these things?”

  “Those that cross from Earth have advantages that the other people on this world don’t.” Emily used her marvelous hearing to listen to the wind sighing through the leaves in the trees. She closed her eyes and smelled pine, soil and smoke through Xena’s nose. “We’re like superheroes in this world.”

  “Why did you hide our eyes?” Isabelle gestured toward their stack of wet blindfolds.

  “The portal has to be kept a secret, doesn’t it?” Anna went to the fire and served herself another fish. “Food has never tasted so good.” Her brown eyes shimmered with amusement.

  Emily wasn’t sure how to answer. “You really need someone who’s from Acacia to journey with you to help you acclimate.”

  “What did you do to us?” Anna asked. Her cautious tone had returned. “Everything was too loud and too bright, but then it changed.”

  “Magic.” Emily stared at her hands. “A spell.” I hope they don’t become scared of me.

  “A spell,” Luke roared in amazement, nearly falling out of the tree.

  Show them a light spell, Ammolite suggested.

  Emily nodded. “In this world, I have a few powers.” She muttered quietly and did a low-level spell, shooting blue light from her fingers.

  Silence descended on the group for only a moment before Luke began to cheer in amazement. “I don’t know why you think you’ll need help from us, but I’m definitely staying on your team.” He jumped down from his branch, landing lightly on his feet, and touched her finger that was producing the light. “I think one day we’re going to need your help.”

  Dr. D returned at that moment with a puzzled look on his face. “I think we should head on back through the portal.”

  The group groaned together. “Can’t we stay here tonight?” Isabelle shuffled her feet excitedly.

  Emily blinked in amazement. “You want to stay?” Isabelle nodded, laughing out loud. Usually Isabelle was the first to want to go home.

  “Hadrian was supposed to be open to receive my call, but I can’t contact him.” Dr. D stared into the fire. “It worries me. I think you should all head back with Emily. I’ll stay and find out what’s going on. Something just isn’t right.”

  He’s right. Xena was all about protection. She leapt to a rock near the edge of their group and sniffed the air. We should return. Hadrian should be here.

  “Hadrian’s here, too?” Luke glanced toward Emily.

  “Yes, Hadrian and Dysis are somewhere here on Acacia,” Emily answered. She turned away from Luke and her father. She lifted her head to gaze upon the last rays of the sun. She knew Xena and her father were advising the prudent action of getting everyone back to Earth immediately, but she was dying to see Ammolite. She closed her eyes and delved deeply into a dream-link, searching for any wisp of her brother’s aura. “Hadrian’s alive!” She couldn’t believe it, she had found him. “He’s fading in and out of my attempt to contact him.”

  Xena was instantly by her side. You’re right. It’s Hadrian, she affirmed.

  “What’s she doing?” Anna asked Dr. D while moving closer to Emily, watching her with her head slightly cocked to the side. “Magic?”

  “It’s a way of communicating.” Dr. D went to stand by Emily’s friends, whispering to them the basics of the dream-link spell.

  It’s so vivid. Emily fully allowed Ammolite and Xena into her mind to witness the intensity of the imagery. She closed her eyes and focused on her brother until it appeared as if he were standing just before her. She could see his yellow aura feeding into the optics creating the scene, but there was something subtly wrong within the overall display.

  Let Xena figure it out, Ammolite urged. I’ll back out of your mind.

  Xena was instantly bounding through Emily’s internal sight, alerted by her growing concern. Her bondsmate relentlessly sorted through the visual clues, like a wolf trailing its prey, allowing Emily to focus her attention on solidifying the connection. There’s a touch of a black aura in the dream-link, Xena announced, pouncing on a visual trail that was faintly polluting the connection. The feeling of unease and evil hovered in the peripheral edge of Emily’s consciousness.

  “I see Hadrian.” Emily opened her eyes for a fraction of a second to glance at her father. She didn’t let him know the problem Xena was hunting to its source. Her father’s expression was stern, and she could tell he knew something was wrong. She closed her eyes. Hadrian stood still in the image, patiently waiting for her to talk, but she didn’t speak to her brother just yet. Mentally she was racing after Xena, who was tracking the remnants of the black aura before it faded from their sight. Emily thought she knew the signature of the black aura, but she had to be certain.

  Abruptly, Xena identified the source, directing Emily’s attention to a faint black glow, and Emily gasped in horror, Samil’s in the dream-link. A hazy apparition of the black arch-mage was behind Hadrian—like a reflection one might catch of a passerby when looking at oneself in a mirror—cloaked and shrouded. She waited for the bile to rise in her throat, for her skin to crawl, but she felt something that shocked her, she felt pity and concern. I’ve mentally incorporated so much of his wife that it’s changing the way I see him, she thought trying to get a handle on what she was feeling.

  Ignore your impression of your relationship with him, Ammolite advised. Analyze the display.

  You’re right. Emily responded to Ammolite. She and Xena sharpened their concentration. If Samil’s in the link, he must be physically near to Hadrian, Emily realized.

  I wonder if Hadrian knows of the danger, Xena whispered.

  Emily didn’t think Samil had realized their discovery, so she attempted to ignore him, blocking him totally from her mind and concentrating only on Hadrian. I won’t say anything too revealing about where I am or who I’m with, she resolved.

  Her brother began to speak in a monotone speech, devoid of emotion, while blinking incredibly rapidly. “I’m in trouble, Samil has captured me, Dysis, and Duke.”

  He’s acting unusual, not like himself. Xena whispered while poring over the visual clues.

  Emily agreed. He’s like a robot … perhaps he’s been injured by Samil.

  Hadrian addressed Emily, “Samil plans to kill us, so sneak by yourself to the Island of Bashan and rescue us. Don’t delay.” He sent across his location through the dream-link, and Emily confirmed that he was indeed on the Island of Bashan. There was no way to mask the positioning portion of the incantation.

  He’s not telling the whole truth. Xena scrutinized aspects of the exchange that troubled her.

  Has he been hurt? Emily attempted to assess his medical condition. A brain injury, or maybe he’s under the influence of a spell?

  Someone is physically approaching Hadrian, Xena warned Emily in a cautious tone. I can sense them through the link. Hadrian�
�s eyes widened, he stopped blinking and his voice changed as he rapidly blurted out in a normal voice, “Emily, I met your friends and one betrayed me. Beware of C...” A blurred figure knocked Hadrian unconscious, instantly severing the dream-link.

  Xena whined and Emily staggered a step, overwhelmed by a lightning pain that screamed in a throbbing wave through her mind, just a taste of the suffering her brother was enduring. Tears welled in her eyes as she quickly relayed her interpretation of the event to her father and the group in a choked voice.

  C H A P T E R 1 3

  Cain

  Samil’s heels barely touched the ground as he ran down the stairway to the dungeons beneath his castle, taking two steps at a time. Knights of stone stood sentry in alcoves along the stairwell, watching his passage with unblinking eyes. Anger and hate ran through Samil’s veins like thick cords of clot. She’s here on Acacia, he screamed to Skyler through his mind-link. Emily has returned.

  How did you find her? Skyler began to review the interaction from Samil’s memory, scrutinizing the event.

  Someone was trying to contact Hadrian, so I allowed Hadrian to attempt a dream-link as long as I was permitted to be in the connection. I saw her. Samil pounded his fist against the stone of the passage as he ran. I should have had you with me in the interface.

  Will she come to us or should we hunt for her? Skyler’s tone was calm and even. Or will you unleash Cain?

  Surprised guards attempted to come to attention as Samil flew by them. There are too many preparations going on for us to leave Bashan right now. Samil’s insides burned, he felt like he had swallowed a potion of pure acid. We must remain here, ready to kill her if she dares to approach our island, but I’ll send Cain to hunt for her.

  Cain has become strong. Samil could hear Skyler’s approval in his words.

  Samil approached the room Cain liked to use when he returned to Bashan. The small windowless chamber was in a passageway near to the pens where Samil housed his prisoners. Samil burst into the dark room just as Cain was about to sink his teeth into the neck of a young female blue magician who was held in his strong grasp. His pointed canines scratched her pale skin, and a rivulet of crimson blood began to flow. Her aura pulsed weakly as she groaned in pain. Frantically, she turned her head toward Samil, her dirty blonde hair matted with sweat, sticking to her scalp, hiding one of her eyes.

  “Help me, Professor Samil.” Her voice was quavering and weak. She lifted a shaking outstretched palm toward him in a desperate plea.

  Turning toward his creator with a questioning expression, Cain paused. Samil could read the terrible evil in Cain’s frame just as easily as he could read the hope burning in the young lady’s eyes, her intense desire to be alive. Samil knew Suci would have let her live. The room suddenly felt stifling hot, and his skin began to itch. He knew that letting her live would accomplish nothing. He went to a basin of water in the room and threw water upon his face. He washed his hands. “I’m innocent of her blood.” Samil wanted to squeeze his eyes tightly shut to suppress everything, but he kept them open. “You bear responsibility for this one Cain, look to yourself.”

  Cain gave his maker a chilling smile, nodded once, and let his pointed incisors descend into the defenseless blue magician’s neck. Her blue shields flickered delicately, before fading forever as she choked on her screams, erupting in a blue and black cloud of death-smoke. Cain’s eyes flickered back in his head and he moaned in ecstasy as he absorbed the girl’s magus. Blood was dripping from his mouth, coating his dark lips. He rubbed his face with his palms, smearing the red liquid horrifically across his face, making him look somewhat like a nightmarish clown. Samil felt only cold death in this room, and he suddenly felt exhausted. Cain shook his head in a rapid motion, as if to clear his mind, and stood. His muscles were larger than the last time Samil had seen him, and he appeared confident, strong and proud. He wiped a portion of the blood from his face with the back of his hand. “Do you have a mission for me?”

  Samil approached his tall vampire creation. Cain had shoulder-length black hair, deep-set black eyes, a small straight nose and a hairless face. He was still wearing the same black armor that Samil had first given him. His cloak and two-handed longsword rested on a dresser against the wall. “I want you to hand-pick as many teams of half-deads as you need from my army,” Samil began. “You can strengthen your squad by killing all my prisoners if you think it’s necessary. I want you to track and kill Emily Dalton.”

  “The arch-mage who killed your wife, Suci?” Cain spoke bluntly. His face was swallowed up in the heavy gloom in the room. Samil couldn’t read his expression.

  A feeling of pain lanced through Samil’s heart at the very mention of his wife’s name, and he felt himself sinking into the deepest dread. He coughed uncomfortably to hide his anguish. “Yes. Emily’s somewhere on Acacia. You might find clues in the scene I will link to you. Samil performed a rapid dream-link with the undead creature, replaying his interaction with Emily, showing Cain all the details in the forest around her.

  Cain smiled. “I’ll find her.” He spit a clot of blood into the basin where Samil had washed his hands. “Let me go partake of a few more magicians and select my team. Then I’ll get to work.”

  C H A P T E R 1 4

  The Message

  Emily put her head in her hands to try and hide her eyes that were brimming with tears from her friends who had listened to her recount her dream-link in amazed silence. I feel so embarrassed to look so weak in front of my friends.

  You’re never weak, Xena protested. She pushed her fur against Emily’s leg.

  “I’m sorry to cut our trip short, but I’ve got to help Hadrian.” Emily put her hands down and took a deep breath. “Father, I can’t avoid this conflict. I have to rescue Hadrian, or he’ll die.” A breeze whispered through the trees, feeding the fire, which grew in the wind, tongues of flame leaping hungrily upwards.

  “Did you just say ‘father?’” Luke wrinkled his brow. “I thought Dr. D was your godfather.”

  “Your father,” Anna echoed while staring at Dr. D with a thoughtful expression.

  “Can you explain our history?” Emily asked her father. Her heart was pounding as she hurriedly began to gather her belongings.

  Separate your emotions. Ammolite was prudence. Think deeper. Something doesn’t make sense here. Ammolite was caution and care. She began delicately reviewing the interactions, snorting as she watched portions of scenes multiple times. Ammolite then went into Xena’s mind to gather her impressions from a new perspective. She was evaluating everything.

  “Hadrian and Emily are my children, born on this planet, a fact we’ve kept hidden on Earth.” Dr. D ran his hand along Dax’s fur. His bondsmate was sitting on his shoulder. “Emily has just spoken to Hadrian in her mind, where she could see and hear him as he spoke. He’s being held captive by a man named Samil, a most undesirable man who also has vast magical powers. We wanted to share the wonders of this world with you, not the troubles, but don’t be afraid. We’ll get you back home.” Dr. D moved his hand from Dax to Emily’s shoulder, slowing her. “Now let’s figure out what’s going on here. Don’t race off. Something doesn’t add up.”

  He’s right. Xena used her body to also slow Emily while mentally suggesting heedfulness. We shouldn’t race away until we track down the problems in the dream-link.

  “So, did this guy, Samil, just let Hadrian make a call to Emily, or did Hadrian sneak a call out while being held hostage?” Anna sat on a log, a frown on her face.

  “Good question.” Dr. D released Emily’s shoulder and sat next to Anna. If Hadrian is captured, he’s likely in a magus-cage, and Samil wouldn’t have allowed him the use of magic.”

  “So Samil must have let Hadrian contact her on purpose.” Isabelle narrowed her eyes.

  Dr. D glanced at Dax for a moment, and Emily knew he was gaining advice from his bondsmate. Dr. D rubbed the stubble forming on his face before speaking thoughtfully, “Although Hadrian was likely rela
ying words given to him by Samil, he was probably hoping Emily would realize Samil was in the link, just as she did.”

  Elizabeth sat next to Anna. “Could Hadrian have been giving Emily clues?”

  I like Elizabeth’s thought, Xena sounded excited. I think he was mentally intact. Perhaps he was trying to give us a clue.

  Emily realized her friends’ heightened minds were analyzing the situation at an extremely high level, and she tried to beat down the worry in her chest and the ache in her heart and listen to them.

  “Hadrian’s words don’t make sense. Why would he let Samil know Emily was coming to rescue him?” Luke began to pace back and forth. “It seems like Hadrian would want to keep Emily’s approach a secret.”

  Luke makes a good point. Ammolite began sorting through possibilities.

  “I don’t know the answer to that, but he’s in trouble.” Emily’s mouth felt dry and there was persistent panic residing in her heart despite her attempts to calm down. “I could feel his pain. I’m going to try to rescue him after we get you home safely.” She felt frustrated by her helpless feelings.

  Easy, my link, Xena tried to soothe Emily. Let them help us figure this out.

  Anna drummed her fingers on the log upon which she sat as she asked Emily a question, “What else did Hadrian say?”

  “He told me one of my three good friends from my prior trip to Acacia has betrayed him in some way to Samil.” Emily’s stomach was churning. “He started to say the name, which started with a C or a K, but each of my friends, Cameron, Keaton, and Claire all start with this sound.” She could feel her breath catching with her worry.

  “Betrayed him.” Elizabeth gave a small frown. She rocked on the log.

  “Ladon, a dragon skilled at prophecies, once warned me that one of my friends would betray me.” Emily found she was better able to fight her building tears as she thought back to Ladon’s advice.

  “A dragon?” Emily heard Luke mouth quietly. “What were the words in the prophecy?”