“Are they ‘the others’?” asked Sam.
“I think so.” Yas didn’t like the look of the scene in front of them.
“We need to get out of here,” urged Sam.
“Yes.” Yas had been thinking the same.
They made their way quickly but carefully around the smashed remains of stalls. Sam hoped that they could use the chaos as cover and get to the portal without being noticed.
Further up the street from their position, they observed a minotaur. It was heading in their direction but crashing through the doors of each building, one by one. They heard screams as people were thrown out into the street.
“They’re looking for something,” Yas reasoned. Her thoughts turned briefly to what happened in Victorian London and the destruction at the museum.
“What?” asked Sam.
“Or someone. The Custodian?”
“Y’in?” suggested Sam.
“Of course,” Yas realised, dodging around more market stall debris.
“Should we go back to help?” asked Sam.
“No, I don’t think so,” replied Yas. “She wanted us to get to safety. We need to leave.”
“I’m good with that,” replied Sam.
They reached the corner nearest the minotaur. Yas hoped they would be able to make it across the square before being noticed.
“Now,” urged Sam, and they sprinted across the gap. Time slowed. They glanced towards the minotaur, just as its head closed in on the next door. It glanced sideways, saw them and let out a roar.
“We’ve been spotted,” shouted Yas. They ran as fast as they could towards the corner where the portal would be.
They heard pounding steps behind them. They glanced back and spotted the minotaur emerge into the square, its gaze fixed on them. It roared, other creatures in the square immediately looking towards it.
“Crap! That can’t be good!” shouted Sam.
“Quick,” Yas said, pulling Sam into the middle of the square more. They ran, dodging their way around other people, buffeting those trying to leave the scene. While it made their path more challenging, it also created more confusion, giving them a slight advantage over the creatures that were starting to move towards them.
Yas scooped down and picked up scarves that had been strewn across the ground.
“What the hell are you doing?” said Sam angrily, taking up the lead.
“It’ll confuse them,” said Yas. She remembered the word ball that McVale had used in London and she started to form a blue ball in her right hand. Then, spotting a sphinx charging at them, she wrapped the scarf over the grapefruit sized ball and threw it at the animal. The word ball exploded, sending the scarf and a fizzling display of words towards the sphinx. It stopped in its tracks, dazed by the display and regarded the scarf as if it were prey.
“Who knew,” she explained. “They’re just cats after all!”
“That’s brilliant,” Sam approved, picking up earthenware pots. Copying what he had just seen Yas do, he filled them with a blue word ball, and then threw them like hand grenades towards another creature. The magic wasn’t as powerful as Yas’s, but it still created words zipping around in the air as the pots smashed on the ground. The creature cowered back in surprise, buying them another few seconds.
Yas formed two further word balls and threw these to each side to keep other creatures away. Each of them threw up a word net, which fizzled in the air for a moment, causing creatures to cower back. It gave them time to reach the passageway. What she didn’t know though is that the creatures were learning. They were realising that the word balls didn’t pose a physical threat.
Yas felt her pendant grow warm against her skin.
“We’re close,” she said, glancing back around her.
“Yes” nodded Sam. He could feel it too.
There was a ‘whoomph’ ahead of them and the doorway appeared. The creatures behind them had also spotted it.
“Sam,” urged Yas, looking behind her and seeing the creatures approaching. She threw another word ball, but this time the creatures just continued towards them, unimpeded.
Sam grabbed Yas and pulled her through the doorway just behind him. He made it through and landed on the carpet in the library, but he was pulled backwards. She stopped in mid-air, half in and half out of the portal. She screamed. One of the creatures had grabbed the back of her jacket in its mouth. The other, was trying to get its serpent head through the portal.
“Sam!” Yas screamed. She could see him moving about and trying to brace himself against the edges of the doorway, but her view kept switching between the two worlds.
“I’ve got you,” he shouted back. He grabbed her tightly, kicking the serpent head with one of his feet while pulling Yas as hard as he could. “Hold on!”
Yas kicked behind her, while also reaching her other hand for a better hold on Sam. She was able to push herself up on the sphinx’s head, and in return it lessened its grip. She felt the jacket rip.
“You little...!” she shouted angrily behind her, kicking furiously. She heard the creature whimper, and then roar. Not wanting to see what it might do next, she looked forwards into the library.
“Sam!” she shouted again in alarm.
Sam continued to kick the other creature, while also defending them both against paw grabs from the first. It was tight for space, but he was able to pull Yas forwards a little at a time. If anything, her kicking against the creatures gave her the better leverage.
Suddenly, surprising them both, an arm appeared behind Sam. The creatures were pushed back sharply out of the doorway and Yas was pulled through. She fell onto the floor while Sam rolled to the side and stood up to see who had helped.
“Close the book!” said Vickers sternly. She stood still, holding her hand out, palm up, uttering words that sounded foreign.
Yas pulled herself to her feet and watched what Vickers was doing. There was now a blue half sphere covering the doorway. Shielded from them, the creatures gnarled and tried to grab with their paws but could not gain a purchase.
Sam grabbed the book from the chair and closed it. The creatures’ heads were squeezed back through the doorway, the portal vanished, and the blue half sphere shrank down until it popped out of sight. The three of them stood there for a moment as the deafening silence of the library reasserted itself about them.
Yas looked down at the floor. There were sand footprints on an otherwise clean carpet. She felt awkward. She looked up at Vickers, who was standing there with a face like a brewing thunderstorm.
“I see you found Alexandria,” Vickers said curtly.
“Dad’s been captured!” exclaimed Sam. “We need to rescue him!” His determination was now unshakeable. He looked resolutely at Vickers.
“I told you not to go looking for him!” she countered.
“We didn’t,” Sam shot back. It was the truth, from a certain point of view.
Vickers looked at him in reply. She had that quiet look of admonishment that many teachers display so well.
“We went looking for McVale,” added Sam.
“Do you have any idea of the danger you have put yourselves in?”
“What do you expect! I tried to talk to you. You wouldn’t listen!” continued Sam.
“You hoped McVale would lead to your father?”
“Yes, of course!” he shouted. “You wouldn’t help us. What else was I supposed to do?”
“How did you open the doorway, anyway?” continued Vickers, turning to Yas.
“Our pendants,” answered Yas, reaching inside her T-shirt and showing hers briefly.
“Who gave you that?” Vickers asked. “McVale?”
“Yes?” replied Yas uncertainly.
“That woman is a dangerous influence,” Vickers shot back. “She has no idea what she’s got you into.”
“What do you mean?” asked Yas. Why was Vickers attacking McVale? Vickers had only been here a few months. Surely, she knew very little about her.
Vickers ignored her and looked at Sam.
“So, what did you find out about your father?”
“We saw him at a large country house.”
“Saw him? How? Where?”
“An image,” he added.
“Huh,” dismissed Vickers. She paused and there was a slight change in her expression. Sam spotted it.
“You know something,” he reacted, moving towards her. “Don’t you?” She looked surprised. He continued. “Why didn’t you say?”
“Don’t!” Vickers warned, raising her hands to tell him to stop. “I’m warning you. Stay out of this.”
“Why?”
“You’ll get in the way.”
“In the way of what? You?”
“You’re jeopardising the plan,” Vickers tried to say softly.
“What plan?” Sam asked, more loudly.
Anger flared on Vickers face, but she said nothing. She looked around to make sure they were alone.
“We need to tidy up,” she said, surveying the floor. Then, looking at Sam. “Then we’ll talk.”
“Why not now?” disagreed Sam. He wanted to know what she knew. It was the first time she had offered to talk about this.
“When this place is tidied up,” Vickers reasserted. “Otherwise this...” she gestured to the floor, “...leaves too many questions for others to stumble onto.” She regarded him for a moment, waiting for a further retort. He said nothing.
Vickers motioned to Yas and her grandpa’s book that she’d told Sam to close. “Pass me that, will you?”
“Are you going to re-open the portal?” asked Yas nervously, handing it to her.
“No,” she said. “Watch.”
She opened the book and showed them the pages. They were incomplete, as if there had been an issue when the book was printed. Some words were missing, others looked as if they had melted down the page.
“What’s happened?” Yas asked, gazing at the book.
Vickers said nothing. She placed the book open on the floor where the portal had been, then crouched down and blew the dirt across the floor. As the sand moved closer to the book, the words that had melted downwards vibrated and moved back up the paper. Magically, the words reformed themselves on the page pulling the remaining contents from the floor.
Yas glanced at Sam to reassure herself that what she was seeing was real. His eyes were fixed on the flow of the particles back into the book. He was mesmerised.
Vickers moved her position a few times, blowing across the floor until she was satisfied that all the particles had returned. Then she picked the book up, flipping through the pages. Finally satisfied, she closed it and handed it back to Yas.
Yas and Sam looked at each other, questions etched on their faces.
“Come with me,” Vickers instructed, pointing her hand along the aisle and back to the stairs.
Chapter 6
A stone cold creature
They walked along the aisle in silence and then went down the stone steps into the foyer. Yas and Sam felt as though they were being marched to an interrogation. Other than the sounds of their footsteps, the library was quiet. Yas realised that she had no idea how much time had passed since they had stepped into the realm. The shops and cafes in the foyer had closed and no one was manning the front desk. Yas checked her phone. ‘Phew’. It was only just after closing. She wouldn’t be missed at home for a while yet. She also caught sight of the rips in the back of her jacket.
“Damn it!” she said to herself.
“Sorry?” asked Sam, distracted.
“My jacket,” she said, showing him the rips.
“Are you hurt?” he asked in concern.
“No, I’m okay,” she said, double checking. “Where’s she taking us, anyway?”
Sam shrugged his shoulders. “Staff room, I think?”
The number one question in Yas’s mind was how Vickers had known where they were. Had Vickers seen them depart? What was it that she knew? She was fast becoming frustrated with the whole situation.
“How did she know?” mouthed Yas as quietly as she could.
Sam shrugged and shook his head in reply.
Considering what Sam had previously told her about Vickers, and her own interactions with the woman, Yas didn’t feel inclined to share much. It puzzled her why Vickers was quite opinionated about McVale. Whose side was she on anyway?
At the bottom of the stairs, they turned and headed down the corridor that ran to the exits at the back. Vickers pulled out her swipe key and opened the door to the staff room. They went inside and she motioned for them to take a seat at the table in the middle of the room.
Sam decided to get a head start on the conversation.
“Tell me what you know about my dad!”
Vickers folded her arms. She ignored the demand, staring at Sam with her trademark half-smile. Then she leaned forwards, placing her arms on the table, “More importantly, why did you go looking for Alexandria?”
“It was an accident,” replied Yas quickly, deciding that two could play at the not sharing game.
“An accident?”
“Yes.” Yas replied as resolutely as she could.
“So, you didn’t go to seek out a Custodian then?”
Yas stared at Vickers. She was surprised and she fought to control her facial expression. Out of the corner of her eyes, she could see Sam looking at her though. She relented and glanced at him and then back at Vickers. Vickers smiled slightly, seeing the momentary lapse.
“You said that you went looking for McVale,” Vickers continued.
“Yes,” replied Yas. “She was taken.”
“What happened to her, exactly?”
“She was kidnapped. By a werewolf.”
“You were with her?”
“Yes.”
“Where?”
“In Victorian London.”
“What was she looking for?”
“I don’t know. She wanted to go to the British Museum.”
Vickers sat back, looking satisfied.
Yas looked at Sam uncertainly. She was worried about what she had given away.
“How did you know where we were?” Sam asked, trying to get the conversation onto what he wanted to talk about.
“We’ll get to that,” Vickers dismissed. “First tell me what you found out about your father.”
Sam was unsure whether to trust her word or whether to go on the offensive again. He settled for the former.
“We were shown images,” he started. “My dad at the door to a large house or castle. A werewolf...”
“From the Custodian?”
“We think so,” added Yas.
“Did the Custodian say anything else about your father,” Vickers asked.
“Only that he was taken by those who wish to control.”
“Okay,” replied Vickers. She regarded them both carefully, for a moment, then added “You’re in more danger than you both realise. You need to stay out of this.”
Yas and Sam looked at each other warily, then back at Vickers.
“What do you mean, stay out of it?” asked Sam, testily.
“If you want to see your father alive again.”
“Is that a threat?” replied Sam angrily, leaning forwards.
“No,” replied Vickers, smiling an even thinner lipped smile. “You have no idea what you’re involved in, do you?”
“I might, if you actually told me something for once,” he shot back.
Vickers sat back, regarding him carefully. She was weighing up her options.
“There is a large private library that your father and I were trying to find so we could speak with the Custodian.”
“Okay?” replied Sam, not really seeing the significance.
“In a country mansion,” clarified Vickers.
“Oh,” realised Yas. “So, you think that’s the large house?”
“Most likely, yes.”
“And, you think he was taken there?” continued Yas.
“Ye
s, I’m pretty sure.”
“Let’s go there then?” urged Sam. “Now!”
“No! Your father learned that the Controllers also have access to this library. Its too dangerous.” Vickers paused. “Anyway, I don’t have a key. Either your father had part of it, or someone else opened the doorway when he went missing.”
Sam took a deep breath. “You were there? When he disappeared?”
Vickers regarded him for a moment and then continued.
“Perhaps if either of you have a means to access the mansion? That would help me.”
Sam was getting angry again. “You can’t just keep us out of...”
Yas touched him on the arm and he stopped and looked at her. “We don’t know how we did it,” she replied to Vickers.
“Maybe something your father gave you, Sam?” prompted Vickers. Then, turning to Yas, “Or something from your grandfather’s travels perhaps?”
“How do you know about...?” Yas started to ask, surprised. Sam, however had reached his limit.
“You knew! And you said nothing!” he exclaimed, standing up, both hands on the table.
“Sit down!” Vickers retorted, also standing up. Sam’s anger was boiling over. It made Yas very uncomfortable. It reminded her of arguments in her house when Akoni was there.
“I don’t have time for this!” Vickers pushed outwards with her hand and an invisible force pushed Sam down onto the chair and backwards. Yas turned quickly and grabbed him, but he still went over the back and landed on the floor. He was shocked.
“What the hell?” Yas shouted, looking up at Vickers.
“I need a key,” she said, her frustration showing. “Time is running out.”
The Word Guardians: and the Battle for the Peacekeepers Page 13