Awakened Spells Box Set

by Logan Byrne

  “We’ll get out, I promise,” I said.

  We were near the end of the line. Two officers were going to opposite ends to check identification. As they came down the line, I nudged Rosie, and the two of us stayed along the wall as we walked away. We just needed to get to an alleyway, a place where they wouldn’t see us teleport out.

  We moved along, ten feet from an opening, before I heard an officer behind us call, “You two, stop right there. You have not been cleared.” I froze and my eyes jolted open as I tried to stay calm.

  “I’m sorry, officer,” I said, turning around.

  “Take off your hood and scarf, please. I need identification,” he said.

  “I do not have that, sir. I am poor,” I said.

  “Take off your coverings, please. I will not ask again,” he said, a stern look on his face.

  “I am ill, my face is covered in sores. I do not want to spread it. Please understand, sir,” I said, hoping for a miracle.

  “I need help with this one, she’s resisting,” he called, motioning for two other officers, who immediately came over. He reached for my hood and scarf, pulling them off. As my disguise fell their faces turned to pure shock and they pulled out their wands.

  “Get down on the ground,” a woman officer said, her hands trembling on her wand.

  “You don’t understand,” I said calmly.

  “I said get on the ground!” she screamed, and I looked up to see the crowd gasping and whispering as they recognized me.

  I knew this was my make-or-break moment, my life and Rosie’s in the balance, as three wands were pointed directly at my head. I slyly reached down into my jacket, putting my hand firmly on my wand, before I flung it out, casting a spell in one fluid motion.

  “Arma Maximus!” I yelled, the bubble forming. “Run!”

  Rosie and I ran towards the alleyway, the mages behind us breaking down my shield, before Rosie stopped dead in her tracks, stepping backwards slowly. A werewolf growled and licked his teeth as he walked slowly out of the alley we so desperately needed to get into.

  “Lexa,” she whispered. “Do something.”

  “Get down on the ground, before I make you,” the werewolf said, his voice deep. I noticed his fur had a small beaded braid in the front, near his left ear.

  “I’m afraid I can’t do that,” I said, peeking back and seeing the mages were about to break my shield.

  “Now!” the werewolf roared, and I pointed my wand at his face.

  “Glacio!” I yelled, the bright white spell hitting him before ice encompassed him, his claws shooting out as he tried to scratch it away.

  I ran past him, kicking the back of his leg and knocking him over, as he howled and tried to free himself from my icy spell. Rosie grabbed onto me, the two us teleporting out as quickly as I could, before spiraling into the camp as full-on panic mode ensued.

  “She’s over here!” Celerius yelled, before Pote and her guards ran over.

  “Are you okay?” she asked frantically.

  “Yes, but they found us. Officers tried to arrest us, but we got away,” I said.

  “M.A.G.I.C. has fallen, we’ve been found out and our officers are all either being arrested or fleeing here. They’ll execute anybody they catch,” Pote said, wiping the sweat from her forehead.

  “What about my friends? What about Mirian?” I asked, in a panic.

  “I haven’t heard from them, and they haven’t been seen. I don’t know,” she said, her head dropping a little.

  A million thoughts ran through my head as I tried to process everything that had just happened. They were fighters, all of them, and they wouldn’t let themselves be captured. They would fight their way out if they had to, or die trying.

  Twenty-three minutes and thirteen seconds passed before I jumped up, tears filling my eyes, as they fell out of the sky and into the camp. I ran over, screaming for joy, before sliding on my knees in the mud and piling on top of them. “I was so scared,” I cried.

  “Blake is injured,” Faus said, motioning for Paola to come over.

  “What happened?” I asked, with a panicked tone.

  “They tried to take us, but we fought back. A wizard got the best of Blake, and he suffered a nasty injury. Faus and I were able to try to stabilize it before Mirian could get us out of there,” Britta said.

  “Rosie and I fought off four officers outside the precinct. I saw it happen, I saw them rush in. I was terrified,” I said.

  “At least they didn’t get you, that’s all that matters,” Charlie said, before two men with a stretcher came and put Blake on it.

  “I’ll get him fixed up,” Paola said, and they all rushed off towards the infirmary tent.

  “What’s the status?” Pote asked Mirian.

  “It isn’t good, Heta. Nobody is left, not inside M.A.G.I.C., at least. How did he know? How did he know all our names?” Mirian asked, furious.

  “Did anybody leak any information? I don’t understand either. We’ve always been so careful,” Pote said, wracking her brain.

  “We’ll figure it out, I know we will,” Britta said, standing up. “Until then, we need to gather our forces and lie low. The time is growing near to strike Kiren where it hurts.”

  “Without us in there, the streets will panic. He won’t let this go, and he’ll lock down the precinct and turn our realm into a martial state,” Mirian said.

  “Then that’s what he’ll do, and the people will grow to hate it. He’ll be his own worst monster,” Charlie said.

  “At least you’re all safe. I just worry about the others,” Pote said.

  “Come, Heta, let’s talk,” Mirian said, resting his hand on her back, and the two of them walked off.

  “So tell me what happened exactly,” I said, as all of us, except Blake, sat around in the mess tent later that evening.

  “We were just sitting there, doing our work as usual, when sirens started to go off,” Britta said.

  “They just came in guns blazing, taking anybody they could. We didn’t know what was going on at first, but Mirian quickly found us and told us they knew who we were,” Charlie said.

  “I almost lost control. One of them came for me, into my lab,” Faus said, shaking his head.

  “What happened? How did you get away?” I asked.

  “That man was attacked by one of ours, so his attention was drawn away. I was able to grab some of my things, my work, and run out of there and find the others,” Faus said.

  “What did you take?” I asked.

  “All of my work, especially pertaining to Kiren and what we found that night at the gala. I wasn’t going to let any of that go to waste, it’s too important,” Faus said.

  “We all really should just be in there thanking Blake. He took them on as if it were his last stand before Mirian was able to teleport us out. I just still don’t understand how they found us, all of us. Maybe one member, sure, even two would be normal, but all of us?” Britta asked, wiping a tear from her eye.

  Charlie rubbed her back, and she leaned into him and put her head on his shoulder. I was still in shock. Nobody had been able to find out who gave them up. I knew that the resistance’s work was going to suffer; the infiltration of M.A.G.I.C. was a key component of our success. We were able to keep our own safe and prevent the realm from being turned into a militaristic state.

  “What are the next steps?” I asked.

  “I guess we just stay here. We’re all fugitives now,” Charlie said.

  “Joining the club, huh?” I asked, with a tired smile.

  They all chuckled a little, a splash of humor definitely what we needed after this more than trying day. “What were you doing outside the precinct in the first place?” Faus asked.

  “I was with Rosie, we were in town talking to a man about a thing,” I said evasively.

  “Oh, really? Talking to a man about a thing? Lexa, we’re your best friends, you know you aren’t getting away with being vague,” Britta said.

  “Yeah, spit
it out,” Charlie quipped.

  “I was looking for information on the crystal wand,” I said.

  “That?” Charlie asked. “Lexa, it’s just a story.”

  “I don’t know, maybe it’s not,” Britta said.

  “Thank you,” I said to Britta. “I went to a man who owns an antiquities shop. I used to sell to him whenever I had things somebody like him would be interested in. He’s very creepy, and seldom do you leave there feeling okay, but I knew if anybody had any leads, it would be him.”

  “What did he say?” Faus asked.

  “He showed us an old book with writings from hundreds of years ago. They talked about the wand and what it was capable of. I think it’s what we need to take Kiren down. There’s no way he could beat me, or Mirian, or any mage, if they wielded this wand,” I said.

  “That’s all fine and well, but what about the actual location of such a thing? If that were plastered all over, somebody would have it by now,” Faus said.

  “It’s supposed to be in Greenland, a town called Ilulissat on the western shore, pretty high up. It’s in the tundra, with ice cliffs as big as skyscrapers,” I said.

  “He told you this?” Faus asked.

  “He seemed pretty sure of it, but that’s all he could tell me. I don’t think it’s in that town, but close to it, maybe? All I know is that it’s a lead,” I said.

  “So what, you’re just going to go try to find it?” Charlie asked.

  “What else do I have to do? Besides, it’s not like I have a job or anything to do around here, and if it is real like he says, then I need to at least try, just like we did with the Oxinora. This would change everything,” I said.

  “I can’t imagine having that sort of power. I guess a wand is only a conductor of a good mage, but still, the spells I could pull off with a legendary wand of that caliber would melt my brain,” Britta said, grinning. “Maybe you should have some company along the way.”

  “These trips aren’t luxurious, you know,” Charlie said.

  “I’m not dumb, of course I know that,” Britta replied.

  “Are you sure you want to go, though? It’s a risk, that’s for sure,” I said.

  “I have nothing else to do now. My career is ruined, I’m no longer an auditor, and I think I’ll go crazy sitting here twenty-four-seven, just like you did,” Britta said.

  “I can’t let you two go alone. My girlfriend and my partner alone in the tundra of Greenland? Not happening,” Charlie said. All three of us turned to Faus, smiling, as he shook his head, looking panicked.

  “I know what you’re thinking, and the answer is no. I can’t be in that kind of climate, I’ll die!” he stammered.

  “All you do is sit behind a screen or in a lab and you never get out into the field. Imagine the scientific discoveries you could make out there,” I said.

  “Oh yeah, like what?” he asked, crossing his arms.

  “Uh, hello, we would be entering an ancient untouched chamber where the most powerful wand ever made, created by Merlin himself, is hidden. Your name would also go down in the history books when they write about the discovery,” I said, obviously tickling his curiosity as he looked down and mulled it over.

  “How cold is it there?” he asked, twiddling his thumbs.

  “Nobody ever discovered marvelous things without being a little uncomfortable. I promise it will be okay. Britta and I can make fires, and we would never let anything happen to you,” I said.

  “Fine, but we can’t sit around there forever. I mean it! I don’t want to die a popsicle,” he said sternly, wagging his finger in the cutest way possible.

  “Okay, Faus, we agree. We’ll keep you nice and toasty,” I said, pulling him in and side-hugging him.

  “We need Blake to get better first,” Britta said.

  “Yeah, we need him, and he would be so pissed if we went without him,” Charlie said.

  “Nurse Paola will get him mended within a day or two, which should be enough time. I can begin researching tonight and figure out anything about the area I can. It’s probably best to go in with at least a little data,” Faus said.

  “So we’re all in?” I asked, excited, as I put my hand on the center of the table.

  “The dream team coming together,” Britta said, putting her hand on top of mine.

  “You guys are ridiculous,” Charlie said, but he still put his hand on top of Britta’s.

  “Faus?” I asked, looking over.

  “Let’s find us a wand,” he said, slapping his hand on top of the pile.

  The canvas flaps of the infirmary tent wavered in the wind as I quietly walked in later that night. The tent was dark, only the glow of the moon outside illuminating it, as I walked in and saw Blake lying there.

  His shirt was off, his entire torso wrapped in white bandages, as he slept peacefully, without movement. My eyes softened as I looked at him, standing at the edge of his bed as the cold metal frame chilled my skin. He was so brave, fighting off all those S.W.A.T. members without a care in the world. All he wanted was for his friends and colleagues to get out, even if it meant he couldn’t.

  I was so thankful to my friends, to Mirian, for getting him out of there and bringing him back to the camp. What if they hadn’t been able to? What if Blake was taken? Those must’ve been the fears and thoughts he had when I was arrested and taken to Filtonshire. I got it now, the pain and utter heartbreak you face when somebody you love is in danger or taken from you.

  I lifted up the covers, gently sliding in next to him, before he shifted a little, his eyes opening just enough to make contact with mine. “Hey, you,” he said, smiling. His breath was stale but I didn’t care.

  “Did I wake you? I’m sorry,” I said, pulling the covers over me and carefully wrapping my arm around his torso.

  “No, you’re fine. I’m more than happy to be woken up if it means getting to cuddle with you,” he said, and I rested my head against his chest, his left arm wrapped around me.

  “Thank you for coming back to me,” I said, as I traced the muscles on his chest with my finger. “I don’t know what I would’ve done if you hadn’t.”

  “I’ll always come back to you, Lexa. There will never be a time when I don’t,” he said, kissing my forehead.

  I smiled, my heart feeling fuller than it had in a long time, before I looked over and noticed Paola at the other end of the tent. She looked at me, a smile on her face, before she winked and walked outside. She wasn’t going to kick me out and tell me Blake needed his rest. She knew what he needed right now, what I needed— and that was each other.

  “Do you think you’ll be okay here?” I asked.

  “In the camp?” he asked.

  “Yeah. I know how much being an auditor meant to you. I just don’t want you to place all your value in that. You’re an amazing man, and werewolf, and you have so much to offer the world,” I said.

  “Well, thank you for that. I think it will be hard, at least at first, but I don’t plan on stopping helping people. Maybe I can’t do it with a badge and precinct behind me anymore, but I’ll still make a difference any way I can.”

  “I’m glad you said that. You know, we do have a mission coming up,” I said.

  “Oh?” he mumbled. I knew he was starting to fall back asleep, his wounds needing rest to heal.

  “Goodnight, my love. I’ll tell you about it in the morning,” I said, kissing his lips softly. His puckered up just enough before they fell back down, and he lulled back to sleep.

  I snuggled in, smiling, feeling the butterflies tickle my insides as they tried to escape. Things might not be that great overall, but right now, in this moment, they were perfect.

  8

  My eyes jolted open the next morning as sirens blared in the camp. “What’s happening?” I asked, jumping out of bed, trying to keep my tired eyes open as I panicked and looked around.

  “We’re under attack!” a man screamed outside. “Man your stations, fight them off!”

  “Lexa, we nee
d to go,” Blake said, struggling to sit up, as he clenched his side and groaned.

  “You’re in no position to do that,” I said.

  “Do I have a choice? They’re here. First they found us in the precinct, and now they’re in the camp! We have to find our friends,” he said, standing up and grabbing my hand. We ran out of the infirmary, before I tugged him to the side and ran for my tent.

  “My wand,” I said, running inside. I grabbed it, turning around to see a duskhowler standing in the doorway. I shot a bolt at his head, hitting his metal mask as he stumbled backwards, and Blake kicked him in the shin before elbowing him hard in the head.

  “I can still fight,” he grunted.

  Explosions went off everywhere, sending mounds of dirt flying through the sky as if it were raining. A fire raged on the eastern side of the camp as the screams of women and children filled the air. I did what I could, throwing off bolts of magic as we ran for safety.

  “Mommy!” a girl screamed, standing in the middle of the road. She was young, maybe five, with tears streaming down her face. A duskhowler walked towards her, pointing his wand at her throat, as she looked up at him, not a peep coming out of her.

  “Rigormorio!” I screamed, my spell hitting him just as he cocked back his wand to kill her. He froze, falling over, and the girl stared at Blake and I running over to her.

  “I lost my mommy,” she wailed, looking around in panic.

  “We’ll help you find her. Come with us,” Blake said, picking her up. He winced as he did so, her knees knocking into his side, but he toughed it out, knowing her life and safety were more important than a few minutes of pain.

  “Lexa!” Britta yelled. She and Charlie were hiding behind a stack of wooden barrels.

  “Where did they get in?” I asked, crouched beside her.

  “I don’t know, I was just lying in bed reading when the sirens went off. What do we do?” Britta asked.

  “We fight,” Charlie said, shifting into his jaguar form. “They might have taken the precinct, but they will not take our home.”