by Davis Ashura
True fear flashed across the necrosed’s face. “You can’t do this. I—”
His words were swept into a wrenching scream when Landon’s clawed hands closed on Kohl’s head. They dug into the necrosed’s skull, holding him still as the creature kept screaming.
“Put your hands on mine and kill him,” Landon shouted to William. “You’ll know how.”
William placed his hands on his brother’s. At once, he knew what to do, as instinctively as he had during his battle with the ghostly Kohl. He reached for something within him, his lorethasra. Set it to white hot fire and poured lightning into Kohl.
The necrosed’s screams rose in pitch. His body glowed. White light bled from his eyes, ears, mouth, and wounds. With a sizzle, his body blazed briefly before flashing to ashes.
AFTERMATH
Silence descended upon the group, disturbed only by the misty rain that continued to fall.
Serena couldn’t believe they’d destroyed Kohl Obsidian. They’d overcome a necrosed!
A wave of relief washed over her and her knees buckled. She knelt in the water, amazed and overwhelmed as she tried not to weep. She’d survived. They all had, and events no longer required that she had to kill William or Jason.
She was drawn out of her grateful reverie a moment later.
“Landon?” William spoke to his brother. The two approached one another.
The claws and teeth were gone, and while Landon was taller and swarthier, anyone could tell they were brothers. They had the same dark hair, complexion, and the same confused, hopeful expression.
“I should know you, shouldn’t I?” Landon asked.
William reached for Landon, as if he wanted to hug him, but upon hearing his brother’s confusing words, he pulled back. “We’re brothers,” William said, softly, his voice filled with love and longing. “You don’t remember?”
Landon’s mouth opened and closed soundlessly. “I don’t know,” he eventually said. “It’s all so mixed up. I remember some things, but not what’s important.”
“I don’t understand,” William said, disappointment rising in his eyes.
“Neither do I,” Landon said. “Not entirely. All I know is that I have scattered memories of two men. One was Landon Wilde, the other was Pilot Vent, a holder. They . . . fused into one, creating me.”
Serena frowned. What did that mean? She glanced at Jason, but he looked equally perplexed.
“I don’t understand,” William repeated.
Landon told them a story of stolen memories, of warriors called holders, and someone named Pilot Vent, who had once been just such a warrior. He spoke of how he’d spent the past year lost and alone, tortured as two men sought dominion over one body. Those two men—Landon and Pilot—had come to an understanding before engaging Kohl Obsidian, and now where there had been two, there was only one, a newly created holder named Landon Vent.
“I remember helping someone cook turkey and watching football,” Landno said, “but it’s all meaningless stuff like that, scattered images and pieces of who I once was, as both Landon and Pilot.”
“Then maybe the rest of it will come back,” William said. He seemed to be forcing a note of certainty into his voice, but to Serena’s ears his optimism sounded flat.
Landon grinned, and Serena was taken aback by how eerily similar his smile was to William’s. “I remember something else,” he said. “I remember how we never let you eat green bean casserole, or anything with beans or onions.”
William laughed. “That was you, not me! You always tried to blame me for it, though.”
Landon’s smile fell away. “I don’t remember the rest.”
“It doesn’t matter,” William said, pulling his brother into an embrace. “I love you, Landon. I always will.”
Landon broke off the hug. “Who’s everyone else?”
“I’m Serena Paradiso,” Serena said, stepping forward.
“Jason Jacobs. Do you remember me?” Jason asked, offering a handshake.
“We know each other?”
“We’re friends through William,” Jason answered. “Neighbors. It’s good to see you again.”
Serena blinked back tears, pitying Landon. William’s brother was powerful, that much was obvious, but what could he really do with all that power if he didn’t know himself? Worse, he’d lost everything that gave meaning to his life. All his memories of his family and friends had been stolen. Love that couldn’t be recalled was a curse rather than a blessing.
*I’m Aia,* the calico kitten said, strutting forward with her tail raised despite being wet as a dunked sponge. *I think we’re supposed to have found one another.*
“You were the one who called me?” Landon asked. “You and that other one.”
Aia nodded, a flick of her ears. *The Shining Man.*
“I don’t remember much, but are talking cats common?” Landon asked the others.
Serena laughed. “Not that I ever heard.” She wanted to bite her tongue an instant later. Jason was supposed to be the expert on magic and magical creatures, not her. Thankfully, no one seemed to notice her slip.
“Good,” Landon said with a chuckle of his own. “I’d hate to think I forgot something so memorable.”
“Why do you think you were supposed to find Landon?” William asked Aia.
An exclamation of triumph from Jason interrupted her. “Got it,” he said. A line split the air before him. It rotated and opened out on a tall doorway filled with swirling colors. Shimmers like heat waves distorted the air, and a bell tolled as a rainbow bridge took the places of the colors. It extended into infinity.
An anchor line. They had always reminded Serena of a portal leading to a different world.
“An anchor line,” Landon mused. He shrugged at everyone’s surprise at his words. “I did say I remember some things. Where does this one go?”
“Arylyn,” Jason answered.
Mr. Zeus appeared in the distortion of the anchor line. A second later, he crossed the threshold of the rainbow bridge and stepped into their saha’asra.
“You’re alive!” he exclaimed, pulling Jason into a hug. The old man’s eyes shone with tears when he stepped back. “I feared I’d never see you again, my boy. I kept trying to open an anchor line from Arylyn to this place, but I couldn’t. Something kept blocking my efforts.”
“Kohl Obsidian,” Jason said.
“Who?”
“The necrosed,” William explained.
Mr. Zeus started. “William! Serena!” He rushed to them and hugged them as well.
Serena smiled at the old man’s obvious joy and relief. Her heart lifted when Jason’s grandfather embraced her. For once she didn’t feel guilty at the happiness she felt in seeing or hugging him.
*I’m Aia.* The calico moved forward to sit before Mr. Zeus with her tail before her front paws. *What’s your name?*
Mr. Zeus glanced about. “Did anyone else here that?”
“It’s Aia,” Serena explained, grinning in anticipation of how Mr. Zeus would take the information. “The cute little kitten sitting in front of you.”
“The kitten?”
*Yes. The kitten,* Aia replied.
“A talking cat,” Mr. Zeus muttered in disbelief.
*A talking kitten,* Aia corrected.
Mr. Zeus pinched the bridge of his nose. “This can’t be happening,” he muttered. His gaze wandered over their party. And snapped back around as further shock filled his face. “Landon?”
“I should know him too, shouldn’t I?” Landon asked William with a frustrated sigh.
“How is he still alive? I saw the car and the burned bodies. The ashes,” Mr. Zeus told William, his voice rising in agitation as his eyes darted about. “What is going on?”
“Landon came back to life,” Jason began. “I mean, he was never dead, and he came here and helped us kill Kohl Obsidian. The necrosed.”
“Killed a necrosed? How?” Mr. Zeus said, his mouth gaping in astonishment. A moment later he shook hi
s head. “Never mind. If Kohl is dead, we have to get out of here. The other necroseds will sense his demise. They could be on their way any minute. Let’s go.”
“Arylyn?” William asked, sounding hopeful.
Mr. Zeus shook his head. “No. Somewhere else.” He eyed Landon in uncertainty. “I can’t take him there, not without knowing who or what he really is.”
“Why can’t we go home?” Serena asked. The girl she portrayed, someone with little knowledge of magic, would be expected to raise the issue.
“Can we discuss it later?” Mr. Zeus asked. He turned to Jason. “Uncouple the anchor line to Arylyn. We’re going to Mexico.”
Moments later, they stood on the shore of an ocean. A warm sun beat down on a narrow, black, sand beach they had all to themselves. A thick jungle rose north and south, all the way to the water’s edge, and nearby a dirt track led off into the wilds.
Serena smiled. It’d been too long since she’d seen the ocean, even if this one shimmered aqua instead of the indigo she knew from home.
“There,” Mr. Zeus said. The Scout landed softly on the beach with a groan of stressed metal. Mr. Zeus had floated it through the air, even the torn off tailgate, through the anchor line to this saha’asra before setting the vehicle down.
Despite herself, Serena found herself impressed by his power and control. Few of Sinskrill’s mahavans could have done the same. It seemed Isha’s description of the magi of Arylyn and their skill had not been an exaggeration.
“Now,” Mr. Zeus said, as the anchor line extinguished, “tell me what happened.”
Serena slipped into the background and listened as William and Jason explained everything they had been through during the past week. She needed to know what the others had truly thought during the time they had been on the run. Their information might prove important once they hopefully chose to return to Cincinnati.
The conversation lasted for hours, as Mr. Zeus asked detailed follow-up questions. “How did you know to call Landon?” he asked Aia.
*The Shining Man told me to,* Aia answered.
“Who’s the Shining Man?”
*I only know his name, but I don’t know him,* Aia said, ears flicking in what Serena read as irritation. *But I knew it once.*
“Did you lose your memories, too?” Landon asked, his expression sympathetic.
*I did, but I’ll get them back. The Shining Man said that in time, I’d remember myself.*
Mr. Zeus shook his head, in apparent disbelief. “I think I’ve heard enough,” he said.
“Can we go to Arylyn now?” Jason asked.
“Not yet. Not all of us,” Mr. Zeus said. He faced Landon with a tight-lipped smile of regret. “I’m sorry, but you’re too much of a mystery. Until we know more about who and what you are, you can’t come with us.”
“I don’t want to go to Arylyn either,” Serena said. “I want to go to home and see my dad. I want to go back to the way things were.” Her words hid a deeper fear. William could never be allowed to set foot on Arylyn, the one inviolate rule Isha had given her. Her heart skipped a beat over what she might have to do, and her hand drifted to the Colt she still had tucked in the small of her back. Please don’t let him choose Arylyn.
“William?” Mr. Zeus asked.
“If Landon can’t go, then I don’t want to, either,” William said.
“I’m not going to Cincinnati, though,” Landon said.
William darted him a stricken look.
“I’m sorry, but I don’t know Cincinnati any more. I don’t remember it,” Landon said. “And there’s something else.”
“What?” William asked.
Landon gestured to the jungle. “There’s something in there calling me. I didn’t feel it until we came here, but I need to learn what it means.”
“You can’t wait until later?” William asked.
Landon shook his head. “I can’t. I have to know. I think it has something to do with being a holder. We fight evil. It’s what Pilot always said holders do. And there’s something in the trees that’s evil or has to do with being a holder. Or both.”
“Maybe if you came home, you’d remember more,” William urged.
“I have to do this first,” Landon said. “That thing in the jungle is calling me. It’s too loud to ignore.”
Mr. Zeus turned to William. “If Landon isn’t going to Cincinnati, are you sure you want to go back to Cincinnati?”
William glanced at Serena, brow furrowed as he seemed to study her, and she gave him a wide-eyed, vulnerable expression, one full of hope and a subtle promise.
He must have seen what she hoped he would. His face cleared. “Arylyn can wait,” William said. “Right now, I just want to go home, take a shower, and sleep in my bed. I want to go back to St. Francis and walk for graduation. I’ve had enough of adventure and seeing new places.”
“So be it,” Mr. Zeus said. “I’ll stay with you in the Far Abroad. I imagine Jason will as well. Same with the Karllsons, but I give no promises on how long we can stay in the Far Abroad. You may not be able to finish out the school year.”
*I’ll go with Landon,* Aia said. *I think I’m supposed to stay with him until he doesn’t need me anymore.*
“You sure?” Serena asked, surprised at how much she had grown to like the little calico.
*I’m sure,* Aia said. *But you can rub my chin one last time if you like.*
Serena bent down and brushed Aia’s forehead before scratching the kitten’s chin. “Keep safe,” she whispered.
*I will,* Aia said. *May you always be brave.*
William and Jason knelt to say their goodbyes to the fearless kitten as well.
“I could use a vehicle,” Landon said.
“You can have the Scout,” Mr. Zeus said. “It’s a wreck right now, but you should be able to fix it up.”
“I could also use some money.” Landon smiled wryly.
“Don’t ask for much, do you?” Mr. Zeus said with a wry smile of his own. He conjured cash from the air, a large stash of pesos. “Anything else?”
“That’s enough.”
“Will I see you again?” William asked Landon, and his voice quavered.
Serena’s eyes welled. Once more, she felt no guilt for feeling sympathy for William.
“Someday,” Landon said. “Maybe when I know who I am and what I’m supposed to do. Then I’ll come home.”
By the last day of the Christmas holidays, three days after William, Jason, and Serena had arrived home, everything had returned to normal. As Mr. Zeus had expected, Daniel and Lien had also come back, and tomorrow would be the first day of school. They would drive in together, go to their classes as they always had, and do all the prosaic things teenagers did, acting as if nothing had changed, as if the events of the past week hadn’t occurred.
In truth, for the rest of the world nothing had changed. The Earth still rotated on its axis. TV continued as always. Even now, Mr. Zeus sat in the living room watching a rerun of Cheers, and as in every other episode, everyone on the show called out “Norm!” whenever Norm entered the bar. Music and movies were the same, too. Bruce Hornsby played on the radio, while the dollar theater advertised for a second run of Big Trouble in Little China.
Meanwhile, William sat on his bed, listening to music, with a book propped open on his lap, while Serena sat in a chair reading Blood Meridian, a book William had never heard of.
Nothing had changed, and yet, everything had.
The world held a surreal quality. Landon was alive, monsters were real, and kittens could be ferocious warriors. So much had happened over the past week. Too much.
“What do you think Jake and his friends will say tomorrow?” William asked, shaking off his reverie. “You know, after what happened in Winton Woods?”
Serena glanced up from her book. “I think he’s going to have a lot of questions. Same with his friends.”
“Do you think they told anyone?”
Serena shrugged. “Does it matter? Who’s go
ing to believe them?”
Once again, Serena’s pragmatic nature rose to the surface. Sometimes it could be annoying.
“What’s wrong?” Serena asked, apparently picking up on his mood.
William couldn’t explain his sudden irritation. “I don’t know,” he said. “I just feel . . .”
“Restless?” Serena guessed.
“Maybe,” William said. “I know after what happened to us I should just be grateful to be alive. I am, but . . .” He shrugged in frustration. “It doesn’t feel like it’s enough. You know?”
“No, I don’t know,” Serena said. “You’re home. You’re safe. Your friends are with you. What more do you want?”
“I don’t know,” William said. He stood and paced, frustrated at his inability to explain what had him bothered.
Serena’s eyes widened in disbelief. “Don’t tell me you want another adventure. Because if that’s what it is, then count me out.”
“Not another adventure,” William quickly agreed. “But magic is real. I knew it before, but now I really know it.”
Serena set aside her book. “I sometimes wish I didn’t know it,” she said quietly. “Sometimes I wish everything was back to the way it was before all this. I wish you and everyone else, my friends, were just normal people. That’s all I’d ever need.”
“But I’m not normal,” William said. “My sword glowed like a lightsaber when I fought that ghost version of Kohl. Mr. Zeus had never heard of something like that.”
“What? The sword, or the ghost part?”
“Both,” William replied.
Serena snorted derision. “That’s because Mr. Zeus never fought a necrosed. No one has. Or if they have, they didn’t live to tell the tale.”
“Your point?”
“My point,” Serena said, “is that in this new life of yours, this magical one, there may be mysteries that others can’t solve for you. You may be the only one who can. Maybe what’s got you so unhappy is that you don’t like the idea of an uncertain future.”
William paused as he considered Serena’s words. Could it really be that simple? As he thought about it, though, he realized there was something else, something he had yet to figure out. “That’s not all of it,” he said. “There’s more. Maybe it’s also losing Landon so soon after finding out he’s still alive. Or learning that evil really exists, or—”