by Kate O'Hearn
As it gained its feet for a second attack, more orange-coloured Nirads surrounded Emily in protection. By the time her eyes adjusted fully to the darkness, she realized it had been one of the grey Nirads attacking her.
The shrill sound of the winged boar filled the air and all the Nirads stopped. The animal charged through the creatures and approached Emily. It looked up at her Nirad and squealed.
The Nirad grunted and growled in response. It knelt down to show the boar Emily’s exposed leg brace. It sniffed the gold and turned to Pegasus and squealed loudly. Emily strained to see around her Nirad to look at the stallion, but her view was blocked. She heard Pegasus pounding the stone floor of the cave, but he said nothing.
The winged boar concentrated on Emily again and grunted. It snatched a cover from the nearest Nirad and draped the filthy rag over the exposed gold. A second rag was then torn from another Nirad as the boar ensured all of the gold of the leg brace was covered.
The boar charged through the gathered creatures and approached the back wall of the tight cave. It opened its wings and made several loud and short sounds.
Suddenly the rear wall burst to life as if there had been a silent explosion. Blinding white light poured into the dark cave, followed by ferocious winds and the sounds of crackling electricity. Emily inhaled sharply and realized this was a portal to the Solar Stream. It was how the Nirads had travelled to her world. As the winged boar entered the blinding light and disappeared, the Nirads followed closely behind.
Fear coursed through her as her Nirad approached the portal.
‘No, don’t,’ she begged as she struggled in its arms. ‘Please, I belong here. This is my world. I don’t want to leave!’ She struggled against the Nirad’s strong arms but they would not give. It held her close and grunted softly, but moved forward. Moments later, Emily was carried through the bright portal and disappeared.
15
Paelen wept as he knelt in the snow. How could the rescue plan have gone so wrong? He cursed himself for not bringing Emily and Pegasus. She could have used her powers. Joel wouldn’t have had to die.
His tears fell unchecked down his face as he grieved over the loss of his best friend. Until Emily and Joel had entered his life, Paelen had been alone, scavenging and stealing his way through a life apart from the other Olympians. Always on the outside, never part of anyone or anything. But Joel and Emily had changed all that. They brought joy and adventure into his life. More than that, they had become his family.
Now Joel was gone and Emily’s father hurt. What words could he ever tell her to make up for that? He had failed them all.
‘Paelen,’ Cupid called. He was standing at the entrance of the building clutching Emily’s father. Agent T was beside him. ‘Go start the car,’ Cupid ordered as he carried Steve closer. ‘Paelen, this human is badly wounded. We must get him help.’
Paelen rose to his feet and looked at Emily’s father. His eyes were closed and his face pale, but he was breathing. He felt for the pulse in Steve’s neck. It was still beating strongly. But for how long? Inhaling deeply, he drew himself away from the Nirad tracks and reluctantly followed Cupid and Agent T.
Paelen sat in the back seat of the car, cradling Emily’s father and keeping pressure on his bullet wound. The stain on the front of his hospital gown was slowly spreading. He was losing a lot of blood.
Cupid was in the passenger seat up front with Agent T. ‘Get us back to the Red Apple,’ the winged Olympian ordered quietly. ‘And hurry.’
While Agent T drove them away from the CRU facility, Paelen shook his head. ‘Why Joel and Steve?’ he mused aloud. ‘The Nirads were only after Joel and Steve.’
Cupid looked back. ‘No, they were after all of us.’
Paelen shook his head. ‘You are wrong. That creature could have killed me. But it was as though he barely even saw me. He knocked me away as though I meant nothing and was focused only on Steve. Why?’
Cupid faced forward. ‘And why did the Nirad take Joel away?’ he mused. ‘He could have simply killed him and left him behind. But he took Joel’s body with him.’
Paelen shuddered. Cupid had given a voice to his worst fear. That Joel was really dead. ‘What are we going to tell Emily?’
‘That Joel died bravely defending her father,’ Cupid said. The winged Olympian leaned forward and looked out the window at the sky above them. ‘The snow is getting heavier. We must collect Emily and Pegasus and leave this world soon.’
They travelled in silence as they made their way along the slushy roads back through Tuxedo and towards the rest stop. Everyone noticed a large number of fire trucks and police cruisers out on the roads. Paelen also saw several military trucks driving past.
‘They must be searching for the Nirads,’ Agent T suggested.
Cupid shook his head. ‘How can they? The Nirads went in the other direction. These men look like they are heading to—’
Cupid stopped and looked back at Paelen and they said together, ‘The Red Apple!’ He looked back at Agent T. ‘Move faster.’
The car sped towards their hiding spot. When they drove along the road in front of the rest stop, they saw flashing lights from fire trucks, police cruisers and military vehicles crowded into the parking area. The building itself was all but collapsed. Part of the roof was still burning as the firemen struggled to put out the flames. Everywhere they looked, they saw destruction. Nothing of the rest stop remained intact.
‘Emily!’ Paelen cried.
As Agent T started to turn the car into the crowded parking lot, Cupid ordered him not to. ‘Continue down the road.’
‘Cupid, what are you doing?’ Paelen asked.
‘We must not let them see us. Emily and Pegasus are already lost. Why should we surrender ourselves so easily?’
Paelen’s fear turned to fury. ‘Emily is not lost!’ he shouted. ‘We must go back and find them!’
‘Paelen, calm down,’ Cupid ordered. ‘We will. But we must not be seen. This is the time for stealth. For once in your life, trust me. I am older than you and I know what I am doing.’
Paelen was too frightened to know what to do. Steve was wounded, Joel dead and now this. It was beyond anything he’d ever experienced.
The car continued past the Red Apple and further down the road. Cupid instructed Agent T to pull into the empty parking area of a closed petrol station. Paelen gently lowered Steve’s head on to the back seat as he climbed carefully from the car.
‘All right,’ Cupid said. ‘We have two choices. I can fly back to Olympus to get help—’
‘No!’ Paelen cut in as he brutally shoved Cupid. ‘You are not leaving for Olympus, you little coward! Emily and Pegasus are in that wreckage. They need us to get them out before the CRU does.’
The wings under Cupid’s suit jacket fluttered as he righted himself and stepped closer to Paelen. Looming above him, his eyes blazed with fury. ‘I am not a coward!’ he shouted. ‘Are you so incapable of believing that I can care for Emily and Pegasus? That I would abandon them in their time of need? I do care, Paelen. And I am not going to leave them to the mercy of the CRU. I was going to say that I could fly back to Olympus for help, or we both go over there to find Emily ourselves. I was going to suggest we stay and do this ourselves.’
Paelen was shocked into silence by Cupid’s outburst. In all the years he’d known him, he’d never seen him this angry. ‘I am sorry, Cupid. I have been unfair. You are not a coward. You have done everything we have asked you to, even though it hurt you to do so.’ Paelen looked over to Agent T and saw his besotted eyes following Cupid. ‘We could not have made it this far without you. But losing Joel and now seeing the Red Apple and knowing Emily and Pegasus are in there, I am not thinking clearly.’
Cupid calmed. ‘I know I have not always proven myself to you and the others. And yes, perhaps I came here as much to get away from the Nirads as to help Emily. But believe me Paelen, I do want to help. Now, let us ensure Steve is safe, and then we can walk back to the R
ed Apple and see about Emily and Pegasus.’
They checked on Steve in the back seat. He was still unconscious, but his bleeding had stopped and he was breathing well. When they had made him as comfortable as possible, they started back towards the Red Apple.
The snow was now falling heavily. The thick flakes settled on their hair and shoulders and limited their vision to only a few metres in front of them. Keeping in the dense trees that grew behind the large rest stop, they approached the area.
One of the first things they noticed was Agent O supervising the search. He was walking with two crutches and his legs were covered in thick bandages. Yet despite his wounds and obvious pain, he was well enough to bark orders at the others working in the area – demanding they not stop until they find Emily. ‘They have not found her yet,’ Paelen said gratefully. ‘There is still hope.’
His eyes scanned the whole area. The destruction was all but complete. ‘What happened here?’ he asked in a hushed whisper. ‘Could it have been Emily’s tears again?’
They watched in silent shock as several men emerged from the wreckage. They were struggling to carry a heavy stretcher. A sheet completely covered the body. But as the men moved to put the stretcher on a truck, an arm fell out from under the cover. It was the colour of grey marble.
‘Nirads!’ Cupid hushed. ‘While we were gone, Nirads attacked our hiding place!’
‘How is this possible?’ Paelen asked. ‘The Nirads’ tracks at the CRU facility showed they were moving deeper into the woods. How could they get here before us?’
Cupid shrugged. ‘They could not. But if it was not the same Nirads as at the facility—’
‘Then there are more here in this world,’ Paelen finished.
As they concentrated on the wreckage, Paelen, Cupid and Agent T crept closer to see any signs of Emily or Pegasus. There were CRU agents and military personnel pouring all over the area and searching through the wreckage. But there were no traces of their missing friends.
A short while later another stretcher was carried out of the smouldering debris. Paelen and Cupid could tell by the size that it was another Nirad body. But it was different. The lump under the sheet ended at the waist. Moments later, a third stretcher emerged, with an equally strange shape. The men carrying it slipped in the snow and fell. When they hit the ground, the body fell off the stretcher, revealing only a heavy set of legs and lower torso.
Paelen pointed. ‘Look at the cut edge. It has been burned.’
‘Emily can kill Nirads,’ Cupid mused. ‘It is no wonder they came after her. If they knew she and Pegasus could kill them, they would have to get them first before they could complete their attack on Olympus.’
‘Or here,’ Paelen added. As he scanned the debris, he shook his head. ‘We have seen Nirads pulled out of there, but where are the others?’
‘Maybe he can tell us?’ Agent T offered helpfully as he pointed at yet another stretcher being pulled from the debris. Unlike the others, the occupant was not fully covered by a sheet. He was wrapped in a blanket. His face was badly burned, but he was alive and moaning loudly.
‘Earl!’ Paelen said. ‘We must get to him. He can tell us what happened here.’
They watched Earl being loaded into an ambulance. Cupid turned to Agent T. ‘Where will they take him?’
Agent T smiled radiantly, grateful to contribute. ‘They can’t take him back to the facility, not with what the Nirads did to it. If it were me, I would secure a hospital and take him there.’
Paelen realized if the CRU managed to take Earl away, they would never learn what happened to Emily or Pegasus. He looked at Cupid. ‘We must stop them.’
‘How?’ Cupid asked. ‘This whole area is covered with agents. We will be captured before we get anywhere near him.’
‘If it pleases you, I can do it,’ Agent T offered. ‘They know me and will not suspect that I’m doing it for you. I could capture the ambulance and we could get away from here.’
Paelen looked at Cupid. ‘We have no choice. If he wants to do it, let him try.’
Cupid turned to their prisoner. ‘Yes, it would please me very much if you could do this. Go secure the vehicle. When you have it, take it to where we left the car. Paelen and I will join you there.’
Agent T’s face beamed as he stood, anxious to carry out Cupid’s wishes. ‘I will do everything for you, Cupid.’
Cupid cringed as the agent showed his undying devotion. From their hiding place they watched Agent T’s demeanour change. He straightened his back and walked with the arrogance they were used to seeing. His voice was loud and commanding as he approached the group of agents standing beside the ambulance containing Earl.
They could hear him demanding a full report. Both Paelen and Cupid breathed a sigh of relief when they heard the others report that there were no traces of the girl or horse in the wreckage. Just the Nirad bodies, two dead CRU agents and the one surviving man.
Agent T ordered them back to work in the debris. Alone with the ambulance, he secured the rear doors and stormed up front to the driver’s side and climbed in. Moments later, the ambulance burst to life. Agent T put it in gear and started to drive away from the area.
‘We must go,’ Cupid said as he rose and caught Paelen by the sleeve. ‘We do not want Agent T waiting there for us long. He may try to come back to look for me.’
The ambulance was waiting for them beside the black car as they left the cover of the trees. Agent T was standing at the rear doors bouncing with excitement.
‘I told you I could do it!’ He sounded like a hopeful child looking for praise. ‘Did I do good?’
‘Yes,’ Cupid said. ‘You did very good.’
They opened the ambulance doors and were immediately struck by the smell of smoke rising from Earl. His face was raw with burns and he was moaning softly.
‘Earl,’ Paelen said gently as he climbed in and approached the side of the stretcher, ‘it is us, Paelen and Cupid. Can you hear me?’
Earl’s eyes fluttered open and he turned his face to Paelen. ‘Thank God it’s you,’ he said weakly.
‘What happened?’
‘Monsters came. Them big four-armed, Nirad things. They attacked us.’
‘Are Emily and Pegasus still in the rubble?’ Cupid asked.
Earl shook his head slightly and moaned at the movement. ‘No,’ he choked. ‘I saw ’em take ’em away right after the ceilin’ came down.’
Paelen cursed. Then he asked hesitantly, ‘Was Emily alive?’
Earl took an unsteady breath. He shook his head. ‘No. Not at first. When the burnin’ roof came down she was buried in the worst of it. This big orange Nirad dug her out. It started to howl like crazy when it pulled her free, like it was grievin’ or somethin’. I tell ya, Emily was nothin’ but a little rag doll in its big arms, all burned up and broken. There was no mistakin’, she was dead. But then she started to glow – you know, just like when I shot her. Right there in the Nirad’s arms. After a few minutes, she moved. Then the others found Pegasus and got him movin’. They left me for dead.’
Paelen looked at Cupid. ‘An orange Nirad? We’ve only seen grey ones.’ He looked at Earl. ‘This orange Nirad, was it their leader?’
Earl coughed and winced in pain. ‘Ain’t certain. When they first got here there was this big wild boar with wings—’
‘A boar with wings? Are you certain?’ Paelen asked.
When Earl nodded, Cupid cursed. ‘It is Chrysaor! What is he doing here?’
‘It cannot be,’ Paelen said. ‘He would not betray us. Not to the Nirads.’ He concentrated on Earl. ‘Were the boar’s wings as brown as the rest of him? Did they hang over his rump?’
Earl nodded. ‘That’s him all right. Whatever he is, Pegasus didn’t like him one bit. They started fightin’ with all the fury they got. I couldn’t see much coz this big Nirad caught hold of me. He darn near broke all my bones and squeezed the life outta me. Emily tried to help, but she lost control of the flames. Then the roof
came down.’ Earl started to cough. When the fit ended, he asked, ‘You know that boar?’
‘Chrysaor is Pegasus’s twin brother,’ Paelen muttered, deep in thought.
Earl’s burned eyelids shot open. ‘Pegasus has a twin what’s a boar?’
Paelen nodded. ‘They have been fighting most of their lives. Now it appears that Chrysaor has sided with the Nirads against Olympus.’
‘But what does he want with Emily?’ Cupid mused aloud.
Paelen shrugged. ‘I do not know for certain, but it frightens me. Emily is the source of all our powers. Whoever possesses her could control Olympus.’
Earl started to cough again.
‘You need help,’ Paelen said. ‘So does Steve.’
Agent T finally spoke. ‘If you don’t want to be captured, you can’t take either of them to the hospital. Once they realize Earl is gone, they will search the hospitals first.’
‘What can we do?’ Paelen asked.
‘Leave me,’ Earl said weakly. ‘Just go after Emily and Pegasus.’
‘You will die if we leave you,’ Cupid said. ‘Normally, as you are human, I would not care. But Emily does. So leaving you and her father is not an option.’
They moved Steve into the ambulance beside Earl. Agent T proved invaluable with his first aid skills. With the ambulance supplies, he was able to treat the men. Earl remained conscious long enough to offer a safe place for them to hide. He and some buddies had a hunting cabin up in the mountain.