by H. M. Gooden
The doorbell buzzed, startling her from her inner thoughts. She looked at the clock on the wall but it looked strange, melted somehow, so that she couldn't see the correct time. With apprehension growing in her stomach, she slowly walked toward the door. The buzzer sounded again, causing her to jump.
"Hey, are you guys home? Mai? It's me, Jake."
Mai felt a rush of happiness replace her anxiety and hurried over to the door to open it. There, looking as handsome as always, was her boyfriend.
"Hey, I tried to call you but couldn't reach you. So, I thought I'd try a little dream share with you, if that's okay?" Jake walked into the apartment and embraced her.
Mai felt his warmth surround her and rested her head on his shoulder, feeling his heartbeat underneath her right ear. His presence reassured her and she basked in it for several minutes, before reluctantly pulling back far enough so that she could look up into his eyes.
"Dream share? What does that mean, exactly?" Mai asked, not leaving his arms.
Jake smiled down at her, dropping a light kiss onto her forehead.
"It's something that I learned to do when I was much younger. My family can contact each other through our dreams. It's not something I can do with just anyone though, I need to have a close connection. It helps if the other person also knows how, but I thought I'd take a chance. Texts and phone calls just aren't enough. I miss you."
Jake looked at her as though she was a feast that he'd been starving to eat and Mai blushed.
"I miss you too, Jake. When can you come and join us? We could really use your help. And I could use you here, to keep me from being so lonely."
Jake rested his head on hers and sighed. "Soon. I should be done everything I need to finish in the next day or two and then I'll leave. But for now, can we just lie down? I miss holding you."
Mai nodded, then stepped back and walked toward the couch, still holding his hand. She lay down on the long and narrow couch beside him, curling into his larger body with a contented sigh. They remained like that for the rest of the night, with Mai's head on his chest, listening to Jake's heartbeat.
VANESSA FLEW ON WINGS that night, feeling the air and clouds beneath her feathers. She felt curiously at home in a shape not unlike that of her mentor Aurora's, although she couldn't recall being a bird before. She didn't question it, but instead soared ever higher, laughing with delight. It felt as though she'd always been able to fly, looping up and around buildings. She caught a glimpse of shiny black feathers as she dove, feeling her cheeks curl into a smile around a hard beak.
Strange. But I won't ask questions. This is amazing!
She flew with no clear direction in mind, until she found herself approaching a cliff. She didn't recognize the area, but could see that it was isolated, with no houses nearby. She swooped out past the edge of the cliff, dipping down to brush her wings on the water, before launching herself back into the sky. It was like every dream she'd had of flying as a kid, except that it felt so real. She turned around, heading back to the cliff when she saw a boat leave from the bottom of the rock face. The boat was only a small dot from her great height, but as she got closer she saw the men.
Vanessa was careful to make sure that she stayed far enough away so that they didn't notice her, but her eyes were somehow sharp enough to pick out details she normally wouldn't have seen. Like hands crusted in blood, teeth that had been filed down to points, and sharp knives stained a dark brown hanging from the men's belts. She felt a prickling sensation along her feathered neck and flew higher. She knew that these were evil men and she didn't want them to see her. Stretching her wings further, she flew up into the sky and away from the scene of depravity below her.
EVELYN BLINKED, FINDING herself on a battlefield, surrounded by massive creatures. Some were adorned with golden armour and swords that glowed like the sun and she realized they were fighting other creatures who were dark and twisted, in shapes and forms that were neither human nor animal, unlike any creatures that she'd seen before. If she could describe them as anything at all, she thought that they maybe looked like the combination of Godzilla and a gorilla. She could smell blood and hear clashing metal, but the sight that stopped Evelyn in her tracks was that of a beautiful woman in the centre of the field, surrounded by several of the tall armour-clad humans. The scene was frozen, like a movie on pause, except three dimensional.
The woman was beautiful, with blood-red hair and a regal bearing. Yet when Evelyn looked closer at the woman's face, she could see that it was full of cruelty, with hard, onyx eyes and lips that were dark, almost black. She'd initially appeared to have hair, but Evelyn could now see that what she thought was the woman's hair was writhing of its own accord, not blown by the wind like she'd first assumed. The woman wore fine, shiny black clothing as dark as the night that was brightened by accessories of bronze weapons, strapped to her sides in various places. She had a sneer on her face and Evelyn saw a dark ball of energy sparking in the woman's hand, like an electric baseball about to be thrown.
The woman was facing her opposition, the beautiful and golden warriors, whose skin was as smooth as marble in varying shades of metallic splendour. Their armour shone brilliantly in the sun and their weapons were sharp with a diamond-like finish. The warrior in the centre of the group was a powerfully built man, absolutely breathtakingly handsome to Evelyn's discerning eye. He looked like a god, so when the frozen tableau broke and he began to speak, she wasn't surprised when her suspicions were confirmed.
"You are not welcome here, witch. You and your sons have done enough damage to this land. If you do not leave of your own accord, we will banish you by whatever means necessary. Your poison will not remain here in our land."
The woman laughed derisively.
"You think you are so important, Lug. Even your name is laughable to me. Years from now your name will be even more unimpressive, that of a fool. You think you are the prince of everything, just because the Sun God is your father. You will not be remembered for the battle here, but I shall go on forever, no matter what you think now." She lunged at him, throwing the crackling ball of energy, but the warrior parried her darkness easily with his double-edged sword.
"It would be better for you if you gave up. You can not win, not when surrounded by our might. You and your sons are finished forever."
Lug slowly began to circle the woman, as the other warriors stepped back, making a loose circle around the fighters that were now in the centre facing off against each other. They dodged each other's initial parries, as if they were merely feeling out an opponent, neither of the fighters appearing to be trying overly hard as of yet.
A howl cut through the air, as though an animal were in terrible pain. Evelyn turned to see what was happening, witnessing one of the awful beasts lying on the ground, bleeding a dark ichorous substance from its abdomen. It appeared to be a mortal wound and when the woman heard the sound, she echoed the creature's scream.
"Savages!" She spat the word in a rage.
Her hair begin to whip furiously around her head, becoming a deeper blood red. Suddenly, the battle changed from an evenly matched contest to one in which the woman was throwing everything she had at the golden warrior.
"You will not win, Carman. Your son Dain is dying, and Dother and Dub are not far behind. You cannot beat us. Give up and relinquish your powers so you can go free." Lug spoke calmly, as though to a child. Although he didn't lower his weapon or change his defensive stance, he had now started to breath heavily with exertion.
But Carman was beyond speech as the air crackled around her, turning black with small bolts of electricity shooting from her body. She slowly advanced toward Lug, her hands filled with more of the dark energy that coalesced into balls that sapped even more of the light from around her body. Lug looked slightly pale, but approached with his sword and head held high.
Carman pushed her hands out towards him, throwing the balls of darkness. Lug blocked with his sword, narrowly avoiding having them impact his
body. As the balls hit his sword, one rebounded and returned to the witch. Carman shrieked with pain as it hit her squarely in the midsection. As the witch staggered back, she crumbled into herself, changing shape and morphing into a cloud of smoke that shifted into the form of a burnt oak tree, with blackness appearing in the centre of the trunk.
Lug walked over and Evelyn gaped as the cloud into which the woman had vanished disappeared, leaving only the tree behind. It appeared to be alive but barely, perched on the edge of the cliff on which the battle had taken place. The raging fight ceased. Evelyn looked over into the now eerily quiet field. One giant beast was dead and another appeared to be dying. The other creatures she'd seen were missing or dead. The golden gods looked around, raising their swords and sounding a victory cry, before they blasted up into the sky and disappeared, leaving Evelyn looking at Lug and the tree, the only figures left.
"Farewell, Carman. You have escaped this battle, but you will not win the war. I will face you again, someday. I promise you this." He bowed to the tree before he, too, was gone.
Evelyn stood alone on the now desolate field, looking at carnage and the contrast of the clean ocean, on a beautiful sunny day.
Evelyn jerked upright in bed, her heart racing. She looked around the darkness in the room, comforted to hear the quiet sounds of Cat's soft breathing. She lay quietly for a long time, reliving the battle and the sight of the witch they'd soon be facing. She was haunted by the sound of Carman's screams and wasn't able to fall asleep until much, much later.
CAT'S DREAM THAT NIGHT began innocently, even joyfully. She was running, feeling free and alive on a path through a beautiful but unfamiliar park. She could feel a gentle breeze lifting the strands of hair that had escaped her ponytail, the sun on her face bringing freckles to the surface.
The landscape suddenly changed, becoming rocky and hilly. She continued along the path, but it was now bounded by scrubby trees instead of the tall oaks she'd passed just a few moments earlier and she began to feel a sense of unease. As she continued up the path, she heard the sound of waves crashing below. She found herself enter a clearing at the top of the path and stopped in shock. Ahead of her was a twisted tree, dark and gnarled with crooked branches bare of leaves. She stood still and listened.
In the silence, Cat could hear the surf and the wind before she heard the low moaning coming from the tree in front of her. She didn't move, remaining as still as a statue, waiting. The tree began to grow, its branches extending outwards. Cat took a step back then heard the sound of footsteps behind her. She spun around, her heart racing as she looked around wildly for the origin of the sounds, and was surprised to see a man standing there.
He looked familiar, with a red beard and a tall, broad-shouldered frame, but she didn't recognize him until he spoke. He had a commanding voice, but although he seemed to be speaking an unfamiliar language, she understood every word he said.
"Finally we meet and can speak freely."
He appeared relaxed, his arms hanging loosely at his sides and his shoulders set comfortably. Even though the tree stood menacingly nearby, he paid no attention to it when it shifted darkly on his left.
"Who are you?" Cat asked. Her voice sounded hollow and far away. She felt like she should bow, but her knees seemed to be made of concrete and wouldn't budge.
"My name is James. I belong to this land. I have been invested with powers to protect it from all threats, both foreign and internal. That includes those who would bring dark magic to this land."
Cat wasn't surprised. As soon as he'd started talking, she'd remembered the vision she'd been part of during the night of the Sawney Bean roundup.
"What am I doing here? Can you tell me what I need to do to beat her?"
He smiled wryly, then walked over to rest on a rock, gazing out to the sea with an expression Cat couldn't quite read, his legs crossing comfortably as he sat without ceremony.
"You have a long road ahead of you, little one. You have also been given the responsibility to protect the light. Although you do not belong to this land yourself, you belong to it by blood. Your ancestors have been responsible for keeping it safe throughout the ages."
Cat looked at him curiously. "You know of my ancestors? Will I meet any of them?"
James smiled, then shook his head. "They are your ancestors for a reason and they are long gone now. But their magic and memories still ring throughout the land and through your blood. You cannot speak to the dead, not the way your friend can."
"What do you mean? Evelyn? Will she speak to them?" Cat asked with excitement. She'd always wanted to meet her ancestors, to ask them questions about the magic that was so new to her.
He shook his head again. "No, that is not what I meant. That I do not know. You are here, in the now, to witness and aid in the destruction of an ancient evil that will rise up in the land of your forefathers during your lifetime. And while they are not able to be here, they are and always will be part of who you are. Rely on them and on yourself. You are strong and your friends are strong. Together, you will have to fight back the darkness. Believe in yourself and in your family."
Cat's shoulders slumped. The answers that James was giving weren't any more useful than those that Robin provided most of the time. Blah blah, believe, blah blah, magic. Why the heck couldn't someone just say 'kick them in the right shin and they'll die'? She wanted to know their Achilles heel. That would be much more helpful. She could feel her frustration rising and had to push back on the phoenix that was ready to be let out.
Not yet. Calm down.
She looked back at James, then took a deep breath. "Can you tell me anything about what to expect? How to defeat her? She seems so powerful, even the fact that she's still in existence after everything that's happened proves that. I don't know what to do."
James inhaled and stood up, coming over to stand beside her. He looked down from his towering height into her sky-blue eyes. She could see the power in his aura, which was the same rich green as the land, and knew that he was strong and good.
"You must believe in yourself, your family, and friends. You must work together. This time, you will need to pool all your forces. It is not enough for you to fly free as a phoenix. This time, all the elements must unite and work as one."
He touched her shoulder and energy shot through her arm, tingling all the way to her hand. And then he was gone. She stood alone on the hill, looking at the dark tree that writhed in the breeze, as the sea crashed on the rocks far below.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
The morning sun lit the sky with radiant shades of orange and red, while the green in the garden called out to the girls to enjoy nature in all of its beauty. They ate a quick breakfast of pastries and scones with clotted cream, then followed Zahara back to the gazebo. It was still cool outside in March, but the sun on their shoulders kept them from being too cold. They sat with coffee and tea and discussed the dreams that they'd all had the previous night. Mai won for the happiness factor, with Vanessa following in at a close second, only marred by the disturbing images of the men she'd followed. When Zahara added the story of her dream to Vanessa's, the girls went silent.
"It's a sign then," Mai said, thoughtfully tapping her chin.
Cat knew that she was right, but felt somewhat miffed that Robin had visited Zahara after he'd stood them up the previous day.
"So what did Robin have to say about yesterday? Did he happen to mention anything useful?"
Cat knew that she must have sounded snarky when Vanessa raised her eyebrows, although Zahara didn't seem to have noticed anything unusual.
"He didn't say much. I don't think Robin really cares if we want him to talk to us. He kind of does things on his own timetable, which I'm sure you've noticed."
Zahara's words were mild, but Cat flushed with embarrassment nonetheless. She knew she was acting more hot tempered than usual. But she felt so frustrated, as if she would boil over from the anticipation. She wondered if it was really her that felt that way, or her i
nner phoenix. Ever since she'd first transformed, she'd noticed that her temper was often shorter than normal.
"Well, at least he told you what to look for at the location. That's helpful."
Cat made sure to speak calmly, trying not to betray her inner discomfort beyond what her friends could already see in her face.
"Yeah and I got a bird’s eye view as well, so I think that'll be useful," said Vanessa, smiling. "You never know which way we'll end up having to access it when the time comes. What about your dreams. Cat? Evelyn?"
"You first, Cat. Mine was very different. I need a little time to think about it," said Evelyn, gesturing for her to speak.
Cat nodded and began telling the others about her dream. When she was finished, Vanessa looked intrigued, although the other girls just looked confused.
"So, family, hey? That's slightly helpful, but also not really helpful at all," said Vanessa, looking at Cat skeptically. "How's that supposed to help us beat an evil tree woman?"
Cat shrugged. "I don't know. Unfortunately, James wasn't big on step-by-step instructions. It'd be really nice if one of these days some of this crap came with detailed play list." Cat sighed, her shoulders drooping with frustration and disappointment.
Evelyn hesitated, looking down at her hands before she spoke.
"Yeah, that would be super nice. I'm not sure how my vision helps, but basically the theme was the same. In my dream, a sorceress named Carman was defeated in battle by the sun god, Lug. Remember that he was the guy that Robin told us about last year who supposedly drove Dub out of the country? I think her other sons were killed by the warriors who were there at that battle, but that's just a guess. There were a few really big and really ugly monster types on the field and she lost her mind when one of them went down. I felt her anger explode when her he was killed. So it makes sense that she's supposed to rise again now, since we took out Dub last year. I mean, her and her sons were taken on because they were evil in the first place, so it's hard to feel too bad for her. But I think that's a big part of why she's so mad and why she's here now. I think she plans to avenge the death of her sons."