Twelve
We approached the light-rails. Carriages whizzed past with blinding speed. Behind us, the city lit the dark sky. Glancing back, I wondered if the elves had noticed their captured prince was missing. I wondered how long Euralysia could cover for him.
Because the rails were fueled by magic, the carriages knew when a passenger needed a coach. So, we waited by the rail. Although I’d never been fond of elves or their technology, I felt impressed as I watched the light-rail hugging the countryside, dipping and rising with the curve of the land in a bright ribbon of energy.
Warm night air brushed my cheeks. Trees with silvery leaves lined the rails. They fluttered as the carriages whizzed past. Heidel leaned against a tree and stared ahead. With her eyes unfocused, she seemed lost in thought.
Kull stayed at my side. “Euralysia was taken with your skills in magic.”
“Was she?”
“Yes, with your Earth magic. How long did you live in Earth Kingdom?”
The wind rustled the tree leaves, causing their glossy, silver backs to flutter in the wind. I’d forgotten how beautiful this place could be at night.
“I lived on Earth for half my life,” I answered Kull, “but I was born in Faythander and raised by the sky king. He wanted me to learn the human ways, so he sent me to Earth now and then. I spent a summer in Washington when I was ten.”
“Washington?”
“It’s in the United States, if you know where that is.”
“Is it near France?”
“Sorry, no.”
“But you remembered Earth Kingdom without a memory charm?”
“Yes, because my mother is human and my father is elven.” The subject of my parents always seemed to come up no matter how much I wanted to avoid it.
A soft purring echoed ahead of us. A light coach sped across the rails as if it were flying and stopped as it approached us. I didn’t understand the mechanics of the light-rails. If someone explained it to me, I could probably comprehend the magical aspects, but the mechanical portion baffled me.
The carriages arrived whenever there was a need for traveling, almost with a mind of their own. I couldn’t complain, though it was a bit disconcerting, knowing a mechanical/magical hybrid could read my mind.
The coach reminded me of a huge, golden bubble with windows that glowed like Japanese lanterns. Sliding doors whooshed aside without sound to reveal overstuffed couches the color of champagne lining the walls to form a semicircle.
I stepped inside, and the others followed. Soft, ambient light radiated around us. After getting situated, the doors swooshed closed and locked with a click. The coach sped forward, sensing our destination by literally reading our minds. Like I said—creepy.
Heidel focused on her brother. “We’ll take this coach to the edge of the Borderlands. The light-rails stop at the boundary between the goblin lands and ours.”
“Fine,” Kull said, closing his eyes and leaning his head on the seat cushion. “Wake me when we’re there.”
“But what if we get lost? Or worse, what if the coach gets ambushed? We’ll need you awake so you can save us,” Heidel said with a mocking tone.
“Olive will save you, little sister. She’s handier with magic than you are with the sword.”
“I doubt it,” I spoke up.
“Have you seen my sister with a sword, Olive? You might wonder why she has so many scars. It’s from fumbling about like a cissikin learning to walk,” he said.
“Cissikins hop, not walk. And he’s lying,” Heidel put in. “I’ve beaten him so many times that I’ve wounded his pride. I’ve made him shed so many tears he’s embarrassed to speak of it.”
Kull let out a deep belly laugh. Heidel cracked a smile. I had trouble picturing Kull crying. Although supposedly, his tears could cure any disease. Supposedly.
Outside our windows, the countryside passed by. Dark skeletons of trees obscured a sky dusted with stars. We passed a building here and there, and then we entered an open plain with nothing to see but the dark shapes of hills against the sky.
With the whirring of the carriage’s magical-mechanical motor, my eyes grew heavy. My stomach twisted as my thoughts drifted to Jeremiah. How long could he last under the influence of dark magic? And even if I did manage to break the spell, would he ever be normal? Would his brain recover from that kind of trauma? Worries for my godson overrode my need for sleep.
Kull’s heavy breathing filled the carriage, accompanied by the whoosh of Heidel sharpening her blade against a stone. Somehow, sleep overtook me.
When I dreamed, I regretted it…
Pulses of blinding white light flooded my vision. Jeremiah sat cross-legged on a rug with a pile of LEGOs at his feet. Trance-like, he grabbed a block and put it in place.
“Jeremiah!” I called, though I couldn’t hear my own voice.
His eyes remained on the blocks, and he put another in place. A pattern emerged—a face. Dark eyes, thick lips slightly parted, a mass of tangled hair. Jeremiah’s sister, Sissy.
Under the throbbing lights, a form in the distance caught my eye. It trotted back and forth on four legs. A dog? Scabs peeked from patches of gray and white fur. Its yellow eyes stayed fixed on my godson.
The dog’s pacing reminded me of a hungry dingo, sizing up its prey, waiting for the right opportunity to attack.
Another wave of pulsating light washed over us, and I watched the creature transform. Instead of seeing the dog, Charon now stood in the shadows. I heard his voice in my head. His words echoed with the rhythm of the pounding light.
“Deathbringer, I will come for you.”
I bolted awake.
Calming breaths, Albert Einstein whispered, it was just a dream.
I had to disagree with Al on this one. That was more than just a dream.
Dreamthief Page 16