He narrowed his gaze at her. “I can see through the brooch when I gaze through my crystal ball. I will know to do this when you call; or if you see it glow lightly, that means I am wishing to speak with you.”
“I just wanted to know for sure, my master,” she said solemnly.
“Fly now, for with the incredible speed of my giant bats you should reach Jasper by dawn’s early light, and then my escort will leave you,” he said, pointing at his vampires and bats.
Sai climbed atop her bat, and it turned its head to nip at her. “Hey!”
“It simply wants to know your scent. You are unfamiliar to her.”
“Her?”
“Of course,” said Von Drakk. “All of my best servants are female.”
“Of course, they are,” answered Sai sarcastically to herself.
The bat flapped its great leathery wings and they were in the air. Von Drakk stood below, his pale face gleaming in the dim light. The foul reek of the cavern was replaced with fresher air from outside. They flew along in the dark, weaving chaotically as the bats sounded their echoing squeaks against the cavern walls, then suddenly they were outside. They went up above the night fog and stars came into view along with a cruel looking moon that bathed the bats’ wings in its cold light.
Never one to be afraid of heights, Sai was still taken aback at this distance. Far below, the massive Manor looked like a doll’s house among the weeds of an overgrown and neglected garden. The graveyard with its many tombs was barely perceptible except for the massive grey mausoleums that stood out like mushrooms. She wondered if Ikalos still waited for her, and if his memory had returned. She wondered if she could gamble on his help. She had to take the chance. This is going to be tricky. She had never dealt with vampires or their bats before, but she hoped a rumor she had heard about their weaknesses could work.
As they soared, the bats and their vampire riders jockeyed for position, as if each wanted to be in front of the others. Sai guessed they wanted this journey to be over so they wouldn’t have to worry about being exposed in the daylight. Regardless, she was able to be last in the line of four.
She ported behind the last vampire astride his bat. She crossed her blades and loosed the head from the body. Almost instantly, it turned to dust, but also exploded like a powder keg in a flash of orange and black smoke. The bat screeched and dive-bombed.
Sai was thrown from its back and free-fell. She saw the other two vampires guide their mounts to turn about. They swooped toward her with angered faces, their fangs long in front of wide mouths.
If Sai didn’t have the ability to port, she would have been doomed, but she simply ported her way back up, higher into the sky.
And then she was behind another vampire. She sliced her daggers through the air, but this vampire was quicker than the last. He dodged aside and though she slashed him across the shoulder, he laughed as if it hadn’t harmed him in the least. The vampire reached back with a long-clawed arm and scraped at her flesh. The claws dug in deep through her jacket. Blood flowed, and the vampire’s eyes widened, his tongue lolling in greedy anticipation.
Sai ported to the bottom of the bat and sliced the saddle free.
The bat screeched in pain at the nick and veered hard to the left. The vampire and the saddle he was on went hard to the right. He was still holding the reins of the bat and was now being dragged along through the air. His deadweight on the reins forced the beast down into a dive bomb.
Sai laughed to herself over the spectacle, but realized she was falling too and had to port higher into the air. She did so just in time, because the last vampire swooped down and nearly caught her in the giant bat’s claws. The bat screeched in disappointment.
Deciding that the best plan was to eliminate their squeaking flying steeds, Sai ported and slashed the leathery skin of the bat itself. She cut the wings and the huge bat screeched and tumbled over itself, free-falling with the loss of its ability to both glide and flap.
The vampire dove at Sai but missed as she ported above him. The vampire turned himself into a bat and head directly for her. I should have expected that.
The bat morphed back into his humanoid form just before he would have collided with Sai. She ported away. No way was she going to let one of them get a grip on her. Since she had vanished, he changed back into a bat and whipped around, looking for her.
They were getting closer to the ground, and Sai was painfully aware that the vampire bat was still coming for her. Rather than give him the chance to come at her from every possible direction, she decided it was better to meet him on the ground. She ported down and landed just above a swamp, where she splashed down. Stepping out of the bog was a little more difficult than she planned on. Something huge swished through the murk, coming toward her. She ported to the shore and found a branch that could be used as a wooden stake.
A force slammed her to the ground. The vampire bat had been swifter than she realized. As he rapidly changed back into his humanoid form, his mouth opened wide and his long fangs grew longer.
“I’ve hungered for this,” he hissed.
Sai ported out from beneath him, but only a few feet before he somehow grabbed hold of her again.
“Not so fast,” he snarled.
Sai panicked. How could he hold onto me like that? I’ll have to get rid of him like I did the Shamble Priest. She tried to port away again and take him toward a clump of trees, but she couldn’t. He held her in place. How is that possible? She wanted to scream but the vampire put his clammy hand over her mouth.
“I’m not like the rest of them, no. I used to be a Riftling too,” he said, laughing without mirth. “I know all of your tricks. I can do all that you can, but more, yes, I can.”
Sai didn’t stop struggling, but it seemed the vampire’s iron grip never relaxed. She tried to stab at him with the wooden stake, but he caught her hand easily.
“The master should have known better than to trust you. Never trust the living, I always say.”
“Keep telling yourself that,” Sai snarled, still trying to overcome his death grip.
Something moved behind them in the gloom, something coming out of the brackish water.
Sai’s eyes went wide, wondering at what monstrous horror could be there. But the vampire was unimpressed. “I don’t fall for tricks as simple as that,” he said with a sneer.
The crocodile’s massive jaws clamped down on the vampire and shook him like a rag doll. He screamed unintelligibly, and Sai escaped his grasp.
She ported away a short distance and watched as the giant reptile champed down and took the vampire Riftling apart. The gigantic beast looked to Sai with cold yellow eyes. It seemed to ponder her, but then slunk back down into the black waters with the hand of the vampire Riftling still sticking out the side of its mouth.
Chapter 17: The Rescue
It took Sai a lot of energy, but she ported all the way back to the Manor in a few moments, popping here and there, going from tree to tree and mossy embankment to muddy riverbed, even once landing upon the back of a crocodile. She went to the mausoleum first to see if Ikalos still waited there.
The door on the stark grey building was closed and cold. She slumped down in despair. How can I rescue my friends? I need help. She opened her satchel to look at Hatch, the miserable toad. She scooped him up in her hands and asked, “Why can’t you offer me some good advice now? Where are all your great answers on heroics and what to do?”
“Well, because he is just a toad,” said Ikalos, appearing from an invisible door.
“You’re still here?”
“Well, yes. I just put up an illusion so that none of Von Drakk’s folk would notice. Now, as I remember it, don’t you want my help with a toad or something?”
Sai brushed away a tear. “Yes, a witch’s curse transformed him.”
“I’ll see what I can do,” Ikalos said as he rubbed his hands together. “I know I used to know, but my memory has been foggy for
a few days now.”
“You mean centuries,” Sai corrected.
“Really?” Ikalos puzzled, scratching his head. “That does explain things.” He began fishing through a bag and throwing items he deemed unimportant over his shoulder.
Sai’s eyes widened, surprised because he had thrown far more items than ever should have been able to fit in the bag.
“Here it is!” Ikalos proclaimed. He pulled out a massive book, which looked bigger than the bag itself, and began thumbing through the pages. “I know I’ll find the cure for your friend’s warts in here.”
“Not warts. He was turned into a toad.”
“Yes, yes, that’s what I said,” muttered Ikalos. “I’ll turn him into a toad. Or back from a toad rather. Whatever he was before, I mean.”
Sai grumbled, and Ikalos gave her a wave of his hand.
“Here it is!”
“You found the spell?” asked Sai.
“No. I found the book that has it,” remarked Ikalos, proudly showing her the book.
“Oh, you’re worthless!”
“Young lady, in my day we respected our elders. Now please let me get to work on this poor toad.”
“I’m sorry. Your talisman of life did actually help. It broke Von Drakk’s hypnotic spell over me.”
Ikalos furrowed his brow. “What talisman?”
“It doesn’t matter, forget it,” she said.
“Done,” Ikalos said with a shrug.
Sai slumped back down on the steps of the mausoleum. She sat there a few minutes while Ikalos turned pages muttering to himself. I never wanted to be a hero, but sometimes life doesn’t give you a choice. Sometimes you are the only one who can do the right thing, so you do it.
“I’ve got to do the right thing, even if I’ve got to do it by myself,” Sai said finally.
“That’s right!” agreed Ikalos. “What’s that?”
“I’m going in there by myself and I’m going to get my friends out!”
“You go, girl!” said Ikalos. “I’ll be here if you need me.”
She frowned at him, but his wide grin couldn’t help but make her smile at the last. “Thank you. I hope you can help my friend.”
“Who?”
“Ribbit,” said Hatch.
“Oh. Of course, I will,” he said, nodding rapidly.
Sai gritted her teeth and then she was off, porting toward Von Drakk Manor like lightning unleashed.
***
Von Wilding raged against the bars of his prison. He was fully transformed into his massive wolf form and his incredible strength was bending the rusted bars, but they would not break. Von Drakk had Marie in his arms.
She struggled in vain against the vampire lord but despite all her protests, she could no sooner break free of the vampire’s hold than Von Wilding could the steel bars.
Von Drakk moved toward her neck with those long fangs.
The doors to the chamber suddenly burst open and a pair of ghouls that had stood guard outside were thrown through the air only to crumple in a heap atop some of the skeletal warriors.
“Who dares!” questioned Von Drakk.
“I’ll find out, my master,” answered a hunchbacked chimera of a ghoul. He waddled up the short flight of steps to investigate and disappeared behind the threshold. He let out a gurgled cry of alarm and then went silent.
“It’s about time a real hero got here,” muttered Citrine.
Von Drakk didn’t release his hold on Marie but peered curiously at this daring intruder.
It was Sai.
Citrine gasped, but Esmerelda shouted, “I knew you would come back.”
“Stop!” yelled Sai. “Let Marie go, now!”
Von Drakk looked at Sai and then to Marie and said, “No.” He then opened his mouth wide, leaned down and bit Marie on the neck. She swooned and went still.
Von Wilding howled with rage.
“No!” Sai rushed at Von Drakk and his minions. She ported all around the room, bashing her foes. She was a one-man army batting aside skeletons, zombies, and ghouls, but even her great attempt was not enough against the vampire lord himself.
Sai ported around the room crushing skulls and laying the foul things of the Moor low. Von Drakk suddenly had her about the neck. Her energy was drained and she couldn’t escape his grasp. No amount of trying to port away worked.
“You dare to betray me? How very foolish of you. And then you come into my home alone and think you can defeat me? Ha!” He opened wide, ready to bite her as he had Marie, who lay crumpled upon the floor, still as death.
“She’s not alone,” yelled the royal warden.
“Hatch!” shouted Sai, a tear of joy escaping her eye.
He was restored and in the doorway.
“You! Impossible! My witches cursed you!” declared Von Drakk.
Hatch raised his crossbow and pulled the trigger, striking Von Drakk squarely in the heart.
The surprised vampire lord staggered back, releasing his grip on Sai. She ported away and took the keys for the dungeon and hurriedly unlocked the door. “Hurry,” called Hatch as he drew his sword to fight the throng of skeletons charging toward him.
A few skeletons attacked, hoping to stop the heroes but Von Wilding wolfed out and tore into the dark forces like a fire through a dry cornfield. Citrine barreled out and grabbed a sword from a fallen skeleton and started bashing them into dust. Even Chev and Esmerelda did their part, the old man defending the girl with a club as she began zapping the zombies and ghouls with her weak purple lightning bolts.
Sai fought her way toward Hatch. “You made it how?”
“I could still read, I just couldn’t speak. So, I hopped to the next page until he read the right spell, and here I am.”
“I’m glad,” she said, surprising herself with how much she meant it. Hatch had been there for her through some terrible fights. Who knew hated enemies could become friends? Either way, Sai was proud to call Hatch her friend now.
“I just had to have the book in front of me to point it out to him. But nobody let me, I was stuck in a satchel, you know.”
“I’m sorry about that.”
Hatch said, “I understand.”
“I was getting tired of carrying you.”
Hatch smirked at her but quickly shifted his focus to defending himself against the wave of undead minions.
Von Wilding bowled over the skeletons and ghouls until he reached Marie. He knelt and gently picked her up. She looked like she was sleeping, with a pale, chilled look about her. Two tiny puncture marks leaked drips of blood from her swan-like neck, and the werewolf raised his head and howled a deafening cry of pain and loss.
“Come, Von Wilding!” Citrine shouted. “Show me what you are made of and let us finally defeat this evil that has befouled your lands.” Sai blinked in surprise as Von Wilding fell silent. He gingerly propped Marie against the stone wall and took his place next to his princess, fighting with a new, fierce determination as he tore at foe after foe. I guess she’s not all talk after all, Sai thought to herself as Citrine skillfully dispatched ghouls and goblins in droves.
Just as every wave of skeletons and dark creature were beaten back, a new throng moved forward. Von Drakk himself was levitating a few feet from the floor. He casually reached and plucked the crossbow bolt from his chest and snarled, “It will take so much more than that for you fools to defeat me.”
Chapter 18: The Mirror
A wave of skeletal warriors charged in from some dark and unknown quarter and the heroes found themselves nearly overwhelmed in that horrid push of bone and steel. But they rallied and fought together with all their might.
Von Wilding roared his contempt. His slashing claws shattered both bone and iron as he batted away the myriad foes in an effort to reach Von Drakk.
Citrine swung her sword with expert finesse, relishing the challenge as she cleaved through her dark enemies like a great stone in a river.
> Chev and Esmerelda contributed to the fight, she with her pulsing light witch powers shooting concussive purple lightning blasts and he with a staff, watching over her. Anytime a skeleton or ghoul came too close, he would bash it over the head if she didn’t get it first. They made a remarkable team, the young and the old together.
Sai ported through the throng, slicing and dicing, feeling incredibly accomplished and proud until a semi-familiar form appeared in the room’s darkest corner. At first it was a simple bobbing light, then it was a hooded figure with a gigantic scythe. Hatch and Von Wilding said this was a wisp? No way! This is the very specter of death! She panicked, the memory of its dark aura nearly overpowering her. She would keep fighting, she had to, but she would fight somewhere else.
Then it was beside her.
Her eyes widened in gripping fear and she blinked away, but it was still beside her, matching her every move—every port—every possible space she could flee too. She ported to the empty floor above in the long lonely hallway and there the Death Spectre met her, cackling deeply like wind in a hollow cavern.
The horrid menace swung its great scythe at her and she just barely dodged, but noticed a few of her white hairs floating in the air, cut free by the monstrous, deadly weapon. She lanced back with her daggers, but these did nothing despite piercing the dark maroon cloak of the specter.
Did it just laugh?
She ported away. She couldn’t fight something that could not be harmed.
Then it was beside her once again. She dodged away, porting to every corner and floor of the monstrous mansion, and still the fiend was ever beside her, swinging its deadly blade and laughing. It’s laughing at me!
Anger finally came to Sai, pouring out like water from a drinking vessel. When she stopped running and turned to the skull faced ghost, it paused. The scythe flew from the Death Spectre’s grasp and buried itself in the wall beside her. She hadn’t dodged this time. It had missed. A killer ghost could miss. She lunged forward and sliced the dark cloak to ribbons, all the while shouting, “I’m not afraid of you! I’m not afraid of you!”
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