Iron & Wine (The Iron World Series)

by Osmond, Candace

  She stood up from my couch and closed her eyes like she was concentrating. The air around her began to hum and vibrate, and then she disappeared right before my eyes! I looked around for any sign of her but found nothing; it was like the air had sucked her in to an invisible black hole. Just then, Lattie come flying in through the window all out of breath.

  "Wow, Moya is fast! I wish I could teleport like her!" she huffed out between quick breaths and plopped down on the sofa next to me. "Where did she go?"

  "I’m not sure, said she would be back in an hour. Do you need something to drink?"

  "Yes, please," she squeaked out.

  I went over to the kitchen and poured some water into a bottle cap and brought it to Lattie. She chugged it back in seconds.

  “Thank you.”

  "No prob.” I anxiously rubbed my hands against my legs. “Lattie, do you think Max is okay?"

  "Oh yes. Absolutely," she replied.

  "Seriously?"

  "No," she admitted. "I'm just trying to have hope."

  "Thanks," I muttered and rested my head on the arm of the sofa. I had the biggest headache in the world. All of this stress was killing me. Lattie came over to lie on the arm next to my face and, soon, we found ourselves drifting off to sleep.

  Chapter Twenty Nine-Suicide Mission

  I awoke to the smell of coffee. Really strong coffee, it was overwhelming. I stiffly sat up on the couch where I was napping and glanced over at the kitchen. A beautiful fairy with long pink hair was pouring me a cup of coffee.

  "Uh, Moya, you didn't have to do that. How did you even know how too?" I knew that fairies had no need for caffeine, it made them ill. It was interesting to find out why Julie always refused it, insisting that herbal tea or decaf is much better. I always thought she was just weird.

  "Lattie showed me. She said this is your favorite beverage and she watches you brew it everyday," she spoke and handed me the mug.

  I looked inside the mug; the coffee was too black and thick. Yeah, Lattie watched me use the coffee machine, but she didn't know that you only need a few tablespoons of grinds. I smiled in appreciation and went to the fridge to drown it with milk. "Thanks guys. Moya, did you find out anything helpful?"

  "Yes, as a matter of fact I did."

  I spun around and shut the fridge door. "Really, what did you hear?"

  "Well, there was a blonde girl taken from Iron World on Friday night. But not by the Seelie court," she informed me.

  "Then who, and do we know for sure that it was Max?" I asked.

  "The sprites have taken her. They did so after she was spotted on your balcony, arguing with you." She glanced at Lattie who was looking ashamed. "I know it is Max because the call her 'The Yelling Iron Worlder'," Moya laughed.

  "Lattie did your sister and her friends have anything to do with this?" I accused.

  "Yes, maybe," she sadly replied. Her head hung so low, I felt sorry immediately. "But I didn't know Avery! I swear!"

  "Oh sweetie, it's okay. I know you had nothing to do with it. But this isn’t a very nice joke that they are playing. Max is just a human girl, and now she knows about our secret little world." Maybe I shouldn't be calling it 'our' world since I’m nothing more than a mere human like Max. But, I was beginning to consider myself a little different than most others, mainly because of the unusual company I keep.

  "Well, what do we do now? Can we go get her? Will they bring her back?" I asked, unsure. I mean, how much harm could they really cause Max? To them, this was just a little prank.

  "Well, we could go and retrieve her, if you think that is best," suggested Moya in her calm and passive voice.

  I pondered for a second. I don't think that anything too serious would happen to her, but I wasn't sure how safe the little sprites were in her presence. Max could do some damage if she was mad enough, I’m the number one example of that.

  "Yeah, we'd better go get her," I said reluctantly.

  Once again, I found myself trampling through the woods behind two fairies. Well, one fairy and one ex-mermaid. It was daytime, so everything looked strangely different than it did at night. I glanced at Moya and Lattie ahead of me. Their vibrant colors and shimmery skin looked like an illusion in the clear daylight, like they were too magnificent to actually be there and were just figments of my imagination. The backdrop around us appeared to be dull shades of grey next to them.

  "So, where do you suppose we start looking for her?" I asked.

  "Well, I’m sure that if you just ask the sprites they will happily tell you Avery. They admire you," Moya pointed out.

  "Yeah, I think a little too much," I muttered. We continued through the forest for a little while longer. I wonder if Moya was getting frustrated at my lame human walking pace. I mean, she can just pop in and out of anywhere she wants to be. That must be so wonderful. I was daydreaming about that when, suddenly, a bug swung down in front of my face from above.

  I squealed and jumped back but then realized what it was. Or rather, who it was. "Oh Violet, It's just you. You scared me half to death! I thought you were a spider or something!"

  "Me, an ugly insect, I thought I was much prettier than that Avery Quinn," she kidded and let go of her tiny vine to swing over onto my shoulder.

  "You are sweetie, don't worry. You're the cutest," I assured her. "Hey guys! Over here," I called after Moya and Lattie, who were quite a ways ahead of me.

  "Violet, do you know where they took my friend Max?" I asked and took a seat on a rock as she sat on my knee.

  "Yes. But, I thought that she was not your friend?" she replied.

  "Well, she's really not a good friend. But she's a friend type of person. Violet, who took her? And where is she?" Just then, Moya and Lattie approached.

  "Violet, what did you do?!" accused Lattie like an angry mother. I had never seen her look angry before.

  "Oh Lattie calm down, the blonde angry girl is fine. I'll bring you to the sprites who have her," replied Violet in a very annoying-little-sister kind of tone. "Come on, follow me."

  We trailed behind Latties troublesome little sister for about twenty minutes until we stopped in front of an enormous oak tree. I gasped in surprise at impossible size of the massive trunk. It was easily as wide around as a large house.

  "Why are we stopping? Where's Max?" I asked.

  "Up there," Violet pointed up into the big tree. It towered so high, I even had to step back in order to look up all the way. The branches grew and stretched in so many different directions that you lost track of where they began and where they ended. It reminded me of trees from tales that Aunt Tess used to tell me.

  "Up there? How is she up there?" I asked. The trunk was at least thirty feet high before even a single branch was in sight. How was I going to climb it?

  Everyone looked at me and smiled. Obviously I was missing something. I usually was.

  "Just hang on a second," Violet said impatiently. She fluttered over to the huge trunk and placed her tiny purple hand on it. Her eyes were closed as she whispered words I couldn't hear. Then, suddenly, the tree appeared as if it...no! It couldn't be!

  The old oak tree seemed to of had taken in a deep breath, as it slowly and quietly began to expand like your chest does when you inhale. Then, one by one, little branches began to pop out and form a stair-like pattern as they curled up the tree towards the top. I stood there in awe. I could ever get tired of this world.

  "I love magic," I whispered again, but I knew the three fairies could hear me. Moya gave me a proud smile.

  "Shall we?" Violet suggested with a quick sweep of her little hand.

  "Yes," I replied and marched over to the stairs. "Let’s get this over with and get Max back to Iron World where she belongs."

  "Avery, what are you going to do about her afterwards?" Lattie asked me. She was fluttering nervously beside my head, worry on her fa
ce. "She knows about your secret now. How do you think she will handle this information?"

  Lattie had a good point, a point that I hadn't even thought about yet. How would I deal with Max? Would she tell everyone in the world about my friends? "I'm not sure; I’ll cross that bridge when I get to it."

  "I'm so very sorry about the mischief my sister has gotten into. Her childish ways have caused you a lot of trouble," she paused. ‘It’s the reason that I never told you about her. I didn’t want Violet to be a bother to you.”

  "Oh don't be sorry. Ah, kids will be kids right?" I said. I had absolutely no idea how old Lattie and her sister were but, to her, Violet was sort of a kid I guess. Getting mad at Lattie, or even Violet, won't make a difference at this point.

  We were almost at the top of the stairs where the maze of branches began. From this close, I could see that the tree was a tiny village of some kind. Homemade hammocks and cubby holes were cleverly placed, tables made from bark and branches gathered in the center of the little neighbourhood. It was so cute. This must be where most of the sprites live.

  "Stay right here. I'm going to go find Thenan," instructed Violet. She flew off without another word and Lattie hurried off behind her.

  "Come here Avery," Moya said. She had taken a seat on one of the tables, which was pretty much a stool for her and me. I sat myself down next to her and laid my head on her shoulder. Moya gently played with my hair, which was oddly comforting. Like the way it is when Jack and Celadine do it.

  "Moya?" I asked.

  "Yes dear?"

  "Have you ever heard of vampires bonding with humans, or with any other creature?"

  "Hmm," she hummed in thought. "Well, I have heard of old stories, ones of vampires having souls. A soul of an immortal would need to have some sort of a bond, to create a relationship that will last forever like them. It only makes sense I suppose." Moya was so wise when she spoke. I loved listening to her. No wonder the summer queen was so close with her.

  "Do you think that it's possible for fairies to bond with people? Since they are immortal too?" I asked.

  "Maybe, I believe that anything is possible. After all, aren’t the bonds of love not just some form of magic when it comes down to it? And we both know how real and wonderful magic is."

  "Yes, I definitely do. Magic is the most wonderful thing that I have ever seen," I replied with starry eyes.

  "I can teach you some things if you like."

  "But don’t I have to be a fairy?”

  "Oh, I have a feeling you are more capable than you know. I've never known an Iron Worlder who draws magical beings to them the way you do. And you've certainly adapted well to our world. I don't see how learning a few simple magic tricks would be so hard for you," Moya insisted.

  "That would be amazing if it were true. I would love to learn. Come over anytime," I invited. Even if it turned out that I couldn't do it, just learning about magic from Moya would be good enough for me.

  "It's settled then. I will 'pop' by your apartment sometime next week," she joked. We both sat on the tiny table and laughed, but quickly put on our serious faces when Lattie and Violet suddenly came flying our way in a panic.

  "What’s wrong?! Where's Max?" I asked and jumped off of the table.

  "Avery, it's bad. It's really bad," Lattie cried.

  "We need to go now, before it's too late," Violet ordered.

  "Wait! Go where? What’s going on?" I was so confused and panicked. What could have possibly happened in the few short minutes that they were gone?

  Violet turned to her sister, signalling her to tell me.

  "Lattie?" I spoke her name quietly.

  "Max is not here," she answered slowly. "The sprites were fed up with her and..." She put her head down in shame.

  "Lattie!" I cried impatiently.

  "They traded her to the kelpie," Violet blurted out. "But if we go now we may be able to save her!"

  My stomach did the clenching thing it was so used to doing lately. I remembered all to well what being in the hands of a kelpie was like. I began to feel dizzy with the visions of drowning, the cold murky water filling my lungs, the limp leaves getting sucked into my throat as I choked for air.

  Moya rested a hand on my back to keep me from falling back. Max was drowning, probably as we speak. How was I going to explain this to her family?

  "Avery? Are you alright?" Lattie asked with concern. She hovered over my face and laid a small hand on my cheek. "I'm so very sorry for this Avery."

  I forced myself back into reality, enough to form words.

  "Let’s go."

  Chapter Thirty-Crumble

  We were off, running back to the park. I knew exactly where to find the kelpie. It would surely be at the water’s edge, between the magical side of the park and Iron World. Back to where I once drowned. I was terrified, angry and anxious all at once.

  I was terrified of the kelpie; that it would try and finish what it had started with me. I was angry that I let something like this happen to someone I knew, someone who could possibly ruin my life if she were to survive. And I was anxious, anxious to save her. No matter how much Max and I fight, no matter how worried I was about what she would do to me after this, I could never live with myself if I stood by and let my problem just fade away. To just let her drown.

  We were approaching the water; I could see it reflecting through the trees. I ran faster when I saw it, but it didn't feel fast enough. Moya suddenly appeared in my sight, at the water’s edge, and dove into the lake, her long dress soaking into the water. She must have teleported herself there once she saw how close we were.

  Finally, I got there. I burst through the last of the twigs and branches and looked around frantically. I heard splashing and turned to my left to find Moya on the kelpies back. She had her arms around its neck and was wrestling with it.

  I didn't even let myself think. I just took off and jumped into the water towards the Maiden and the sea creature. As I got closer, I could see Max's blonde hair floating on top of the water like a yellow lily pad. Her body was trapped under the kelpie, and it didn't look as if she was putting up a fight. She appeared to be lifeless, just floating there.

  That didn't stop me though. I dove under the water and grabbed one of the kelpie’s boney horse-like legs that were wrapped around my friends’ body. Its flesh felt all wrong, nothing like a horse should be. Its black shiny scales had a gritty and oily texture, making it impossible for me to get a good enough grip.

  Suddenly, the kelpie realized that I was there and gave me a powerful smack with its massive fish tail. It completely knocked the wind out of me as I flew up and out of the water, landing back about ten feet. The blood now running out of my nose and down my neck was warm compare to the cold lake water.

  Once I caught my breath again, I made another dive into the water. This time I didn't even bother with trying to pry her free, I gave the kelpie a good kick in its side with all I had. The sudden jolt stunned it and released its hold on Max's limp body enough for me to grab her. I held on to her with all my might and swam back to the surface, away from the creature, leaving Moya to fight it.

  I dragged Max's mangled corpse onto the beach. She had been completely stripped of her clothing. Her face was a mess, smeared with blood and dirt; her lips were an unsettling shade of purple.

  "Max!" I cried and beat on her chest. I had no idea how to give CPR. Tears poured down my face and onto hers as I blew air into her mouth. I felt her chest rise and fall with my breaths, but not with her own. I kept performing mouth to mouth when I heard someone yelling from behind. I could barely make out anything around me; my head was buzzing and spinning.

  "Avery, stop it. You're going to hurt her!" Moya grabbed my shoulder and pulled me away. I kicked and screamed like a child for her to let me go, to let me help Max. "Avery, it's okay. Oliver is here."

  I calmed d
own enough to see Oliver running towards us with Lattie and Violet in tow. He came to a quick stop and fell to his knees beside Max's body. I suddenly thought maybe I should cover her up a bit. She was completely naked and exposed, but Moya wouldn't let go, she kept both of her arms wrapped tightly me.

  "Can you help her? Is she dead?" I cried to Oliver.

  He put his ear to her chest and felt her wrist and neck for a pulse. "No, she is alive, barely. But I can save her." He scrambled for a pouch that he kept on his belt and pulled out a small bottle. "I will give her this. It will keep her heart beating until we get to my house. I need to bring her there in order to treat her." He looked at me when he spoke this, as if I was the one who had the final say.

  "Yes, yes, whatever you need to do." I turned to Moya. "Can I borrow you cloak?"

  "Yes, of course." She quickly flung the white cloak over her shoulders and handed it to me. It was soaking wet but at least it would cover her. I knelt beside Max as Oliver lifted her and wrapped it around her bare sand covered body.

  Chapter Thirty One-Who Are You?

  I sat at a large wooden table across from Lattie and her sister. We were in Oliver’s house, which wasn't too far from the lake. I must have sat there for a long time, not speaking or moving, because when Lattie spoke it startled me.

  "Avery, she will be okay. Oliver will make sure of that."

  "Yeah I know, I know. I just...need...time to collect myself," I admitted. I'm sure that I made no sense to her but she never questioned it.

  The truth was that I was in some sort of shock, surprise, surprise. But, I mean, I just fought with a disgusting creature, one that once drowned me, and then dragged the beaten and naked body of my friend out of the water. Now, I was just sitting here wondering if she was going to survive. I had the right to be in shock so I just continued to stare at the table.

  Just then, Moya entered the tiny kitchen from the other room, the room where Max was. I looked at her for answers.