Wizard Hall Chronicles Box Set

by Sheryl Steines

  “Ready?” he asked.

  She nodded once and let Gibbs lead them from the cottage.

  The villagers had heeded Annie’s concern over Everard and the demons attacking, and were patrolling the perimeter of the village. The protection spell had been reinforced again and several protection amulets now hung in the trees.

  As they walked to the longhouse, Annie noted coven members she had never seen before. She searched out familiar faces, making eye contact with Byrony, Rhys, and Callum as they stood beside the longhouse doors. Etheldreda and Bega opened the doors and led them inside.

  “Blessed be,” Bega said. The young girl lunged for Annie, wrapping her arms around her.

  Annie smiled and touched Bega’s hair and cheek. “Thank you for everything.”

  Bega nodded and stepped back, giving Annie a large berth inside the building. Annie turned and looked out into the village. She shuddered, seeing the intensity with which the villagers watched her enter. She couldn’t wait to leave this crazy time and place.

  “This is my Aloja Fairy, Zola,” Annie said to Etheldreda and Bega. They exchanged quick glances and closed the doors behind them.

  “Over here.” Gibbs led Annie to the center of the longhouse. He looked up at the ventilation hole in the roof and back at the long table. He whipped his wrists and pushed the table across the room. Standing under the hole, he raised his palms and blew a larger opening in the ceiling. Thatch and wood rained down. When the debris stopped falling, he whipped his wrist and scattered the wood and thatch away from the center of the room.

  Annie sat at the center, the open hole above her. She summoned her crystal, demon blood, and the spell, laying them on the floor. Zola took a protective position behind Annie, with a full view of the longhouse door. Annie nodded to Gibbs. He and Brite closed the door and locked them inside.

  Shrill, panicked cries broke out in the village. The earth vibrated with heavy footsteps as demons exited the forest.

  Gibbs ran to the window, peered through the slats in the shutters, and watched the demons flood the village. Fireballs flew through the air and demons burst into flames as the coven protected the longhouse. Annie caught the stench of burning flesh. She glanced at Zola.

  “Keep going,” Zola ordered as she changed her position to guard Annie.

  Brite observed the action through a crack between the door and wall. “Hurry, Annie!”

  Annie fumbled with the crystal as she lay it in her lap. The terror outside the building rattled her. She took a breath, picked up the blood, and poured it over the crystal. It collected in the crevices and cracks. Annie blanched.

  A heavy thud hit the wall and the building shook as much as Annie’s hands. Thunder rumbled, she sniffed the air; her father was near.

  “You’re doing well,” Zola said.

  “Annie, now!” Gibbs shouted.

  Annie held her palm above the blood-soaked crystal and said,

  Oh ancient spirits, I call to you

  Hear these words now.

  Connect this life force

  To all that live in this land.

  Connect the blood to the blood of the masses

  So that they may be the same.

  Kill the one and the rest will follow.

  Annie held her breath as she waited for the spell to work. She shot more magic into the crystal until it finally glowed a bright white light. She let out the stale air in her lungs.

  I hope they’re linked.

  “Annie, now!” Gibbs yelled again as the demons pushed on the longhouse doors.

  “Check Jorvik!” shouted an unfamiliar voice.

  Annie held her palm above the crystal and cast the spell. “Fiero!”

  The fireball sparked against the blood. While Annie expected the spell to billow from the crystal and up into through the hole in the ceiling, it didn’t. As she set fire to the blood, the spell exploded up and out with such force it blew apart the remaining roof and sent Annie sliding across the floor, hitting the center fire pit. Magic flew out of the roof in search of creatures with the demon blood.

  “It worked! Anaise! It worked!” Bega shouted from outside the door.

  Gibbs opened the shutters. Demons squealed and shrieked as the fire consumed their flesh and bone. The scent of burnt flesh hung heavy around the village.

  Annie glanced at the ceiling; her head pounded from crashing into the stone around the fire pit. “Zola? Zola!” Annie shouted.

  “Here.” Zola limped to her charge. “Hi, sweetheart.” The fairy helped a woozy Annie sit.

  “It was stronger than I expected.” She held her pounding head.

  “Can you get up?” Zola asked.

  “I think so.” Annie stood and leaned against Zola as they walked gingerly to the window.

  The demons burned to death outside. Hundreds of them cried out, their suffering echoing across Northumbria long after they became piles of ash. Annie scanned the clearing, impressed by the number of piles scattered across the coven village. The ash hung in the trees, across the thatched roofs, along the walls of the cottages, covering the entire village in a layer of gray.

  “What do we know about Jorvik?” Annie asked as she leaned against the window. Her arms and legs shook; she held the wall to steady herself.

  “We sent a scout. Jorvik is fine. The demons came here to stop you,” Bega said breathlessly.

  “Everard must have set them loose,” Annie said.

  He failed. And that makes him dangerous.

  “It’s not over,” she added.

  Zola placed her hands on Annie’s shoulder. “Everard is their problem now. It’s time to get you home.”

  “He can’t get you in here. The lock on the door is strong. We have Zola’s protection spell,” Gibbs said.

  As he finished his pronouncement, a cursed fireball flew through the air, landing on what remained of the thatched roof. Though it was wet from rain, it caught fire quickly, sending flames around the perimeter of the roof and down the wall. Embers blew into the longhouse. Annie swatted a piece from her hair.

  “Damn,” Annie shouted as the longhouse filled with smoke. “We need to leave!”

  Zola grabbed Annie’s hand as Gibbs blasted the doors open.

  “We need to get you to Jorvik,” Gibbs said.

  Annie nodded quickly. Zola held her shoulders tightly as Gibbs and Brite walked on either side of them, their hands open as they stepped into the village and headed to the narrow path to Jorvik.

  Everard blocked their path. While he was old and appeared feeble, Annie knew the coven had misjudged him; he’d had a century to practice and hone his skills. He whipped his hands around, freezing the coven mid-step, mid-curse, mid-running around and, most impressively, he left them aware of what was happening.

  Annie stared. “What the hell? Magicals can’t be frozen!”

  Zola chanted a protection spell, adding more magic to the crystal lodged in Annie’s belly. The good fairy magic warmed Annie as it radiated from her belly down her arms and legs.

  Annie wasn’t sure if Zola’s good magic could rival Everard’s dark magic. He held his hands out, and while they shook with age and dampness, he nonetheless forced Zola to drop her hands, binding them against her body.

  Gibbs and Brite tossed jinxes at Everard, but the old man in his determination, held Zola still with one hand and whipped the jinxes away with his other. He walked forward with a slight limp and his back hunched over. He smiled wickedly, pushed his arm out and sent Zola flying into the burning longhouse, slamming the heavy doors shut.

  “Zola, no!” Annie screamed and ran for the burning building.

  Zola pounded on the doors, her spells to unlock them and to teleport failing. “Annie, I can’t get out!” she screamed.

  Gibbs and Brite barreled down on Everard. So strong and practiced, he whipped his hands at them, forcing them to their knees. With his magic pressuring them, they involuntarily retched until they coughed up the protection stones. Once they were free of the protec
tion spell, Everard froze their bodies, leaving their heads available to watch.

  Annie turned as Everard shuffled toward her. He flicked his wrist, his strong magic pulling her forward and down on her knees. She resisted, but his spells were too strong. Annie turned and vomited with such strength, the stone flew several feet from her. Gibbs and Brite, stared in horror as Everard yanked Annie up in one swift motion.

  Fear overtook her.

  In the distance, thunder rolled. Annie sniffed the air, but her father wasn’t there. She tried to pull away from Everard, whose grip was surprisingly strong. She glared at the old man. His eyes seemed soulless, black with fury. While she could see him touch her, she couldn’t feel him.

  Astral projection!

  In his raspy voice, he said, “It’s not over.” In an instant, he shot a jinx at Gibbs.

  “Annie,” Gibbs said as he fell backward. It was the last thing Annie saw before she was teleported away.

  Chapter 30

  The freezing spell broke when Everard left with Annie. Brite scrambled up and ran for Gibbs. “Get Zola out of the longhouse!” he shouted and checked Gibbs for a pulse. He began chest compressions and continued feverishly to revive his friend, but Brite knew.

  Callum ran for the longhouse, cast a spell, and burst open the doors. He raced inside and fetched Zola, who lay on the floor unconscious. He threw her over his shoulder and ran for the center of the village, laying the fairy on the ground.

  Holding his hands over her head, he cast the first healing spell. Her skin glowed. She coughed and looked at him.

  “Where’s Annie?” she whispered.

  “Are you okay?” Callum asked as he quickly examined the fairy. Her face was covered in smoke. She coughed as she breathed in the fresh air.

  “Everard got her,” Brite said.

  “It didn’t work? It should have worked.” She sat up and scanned the village, her eyes stopping on Gibbs, who was lying in a puddle.

  “What happened to him?” Zola asked. She pushed away Callum’s assistance and crawled to him.

  “Everard cast a jinx before he left,” Brite said as he tried to breathe.

  “His magic…” Zola placed her hands on either side of Gibbs’s head. Her magic flowed from her body and into him. “Wake up!” she shouted.

  Brite wiped away his tears as Zola finally removed her hands from Gibbs.

  “I can’t. Everard’s magic is too strong. We need to find Annie,” Zola said. She stumbled up and closed her eyes, concentrating on her charge. Her face contorted and twisted as she reached out for the charm Annie wore around her neck.

  The longhouse, completely consumed in fire, crashed in on itself, sending sparks to the cottages on either side of it. No amount of rain could diminish the size of the fire. The coven members began digging trenches to hold the fire back from destroying the forest.

  “I can’t see her. She’s blocked,” Zola said with despair. “It should have worked.”

  “He used black magic,” Brite said. “The fire’s cursed.” He searched for Etheldreda, grabbing hold of her robes as soon as he found her. “Where did he take her!”

  She quaked at his touch. “I… I do not know where Everard took her.” Her eyes searched his face. “Maybe his cottage,” she said.

  He released Etheldreda’s robes. “Take Gibbs to Jorvik. Keep his body safe. We’ll take him back to the present with us.” Brite glanced around them. “This village is destroyed.”

  The heat was building in the clearing. Brite wiped his forehead with his sleeve and summoned a crystal, using it to scan for any magical trace around Annie’s last location. His crystal glowed a black light, indicating several dark spells. Brite followed the dark magic to the center of the village, where it stopped at the fire pit. He walked the perimeter and climbed inside, unaffected by the magical fire.

  Zola and Etheldreda observed his actions. Etheldreda grew anxious and stepped back as if she were leaving. Zola placed a firm hand on her shoulder, holding her to the spot.

  “What do you know?” Zola asked.

  Etheldreda shook her head, her lips pursed together as Brite reached down and pulled up a hex bag, a small burlap bag containing magical herbs and cast with a jinx with the intent to cause harm.

  Brite glared at Etheldreda and pulled himself from the fire pit. He shoved the hex bag in her face.

  “When did he put this in the fire?” Brite asked.

  She shook her head quickly. “I do not know.”

  As fire continued consuming the cottages in the village, coven members congregated at the center. Fearing the worst, Etheldreda pointed to Rhys. “Make sure everyone in the coven escaped. Settle them in Jorvik.” Rhys enlisted Bryony and Gila as they began knocking on doors, pulling them open, and pushing villagers toward Jorvik. Others left their protective holes in the ground, escaping the smoke and fire.

  In anguish, Etheldreda watched them leave and turned to Brite. “I will take Gibbs. But we need to leave. Please,” she begged.

  “What is he going to do with her?” Brite’s face was so close to Etheldreda, he could smell her breath, the body odor, the remnants of black magic.

  “She killed the demons, so she should be receiving the power. Maybe he wants the power for himself. It might be strong enough to make him permanently immortal,” Etheldreda suggested.

  Brite looked at Zola briefly. A tear rolled through the ash on her creamy skin. He scanned the remaining coven members and found Callum still at the longhouse.

  “Take Gibbs and go,” Brite said. He ran for Callum, whose eyes grew wide as Brite wrapped his arms around him and teleported from the village. They landed at Everard’s cottage. There was nothing but a burnt shell. Brite kicked at the stone foundation. “Where would he go?”

  Zola landed gracefully beside them and stared at the cottage foundation and the lump of ash beside it. “There must have been a demon nearby,” she said thoughtfully.

  Brite whipped out a map of Northumbria and shoved it in Callum’s face. “Where did he take her?” he asked again.

  Callum took the map and summoned his own crystal. “I need something of hers,” he said sheepishly.

  Zola wielded a large knife in one hand and cut through her palm. Her blood flowed from her hand and dripped to the ground. “The amulet she wears is imbued with my blood. That is how I knew I gave it to her; that Annie is mine. Take this.” She held out her hand for Callum, who captured the blood on the crystal. He maneuvered the crystal across the map. The crystal remained cold and dull, as if Annie were no longer alive.

  Brite turned to Callum. “Where would he take her?” he repeated.

  Callum looked at the map. “The caves here. He might have taken her there. It would be easy to block his magic and cloak her.”

  “If Zola couldn’t sense her, and the crystal didn’t find her amulet, then he definitely has her blocked. We need to hurry. I think Etheldreda was correct. He wants her power,” Brite said. He sniffed the air as smoke billowed around them. “Do you smell that?” He glanced inside the trees. A large fireball raced toward them.

  “Fire! We need to go!” Brite shouted. Callum reached for Brite, teleporting them to Jorvik. Zola turned and disappeared through the trees.

  *

  Residents of Jorvik dug channels at the edge of the village near the trees. The coven whipped their palms across the trees, creating a fire barrier of the strongest spells they could muster.

  Smoke from the cursed fire blanketed the town.

  “Go to the longhouse! Callum shouted. “You’ll be safe there.” A stream of Vikings and coven members not assisting with fire prevention headed to the longhouse, stunned and anxious as the fire ate away at the trees and headed toward them. It might have been a useless cause as a storm battered Jorvik.

  Brite looked at the sky and felt the rain pelt him with such an angry, bitter force. He almost believed it was Jason letting go of his fury. He wanted to chuckle at the lightning as it flashed in consecutive bursts, as the thunder roare
d with rage. “She’ll be safe in the thunder,” he said, though this time he was unsure that would be true. Zola stood beside him. “She smells the scent of her father when it thunders,” Brite said.

  “Well, if he’s here now, he’s extremely angry,” Zola said.

  This time, Brite laughed. “I thought that myself,” he said. “We need to find her.” He turned and stared at the door, where a new carving had been added. It was the girl that looked like Annie, wielding her sword, and at her feet lay the dead demon.

  “How in the hell did that get there?” Brite asked.

  “It’s magic,” Etheldreda said. “We created the doors for Jorvik to protect them from the demons. It seems to add new stories as they happen.”

  Brite touched the girl on the door.

  “We’ve laid Gibbs out,” Etheldreda said.

  Brite looked at Etheldreda, who looked to have aged years in the last few days. “Thank you.”

  “The queen’s body was found,” Etheldreda added.

  Brite saw the queen, her body laid across the table near the throne. She wore a dark crimson dress, her golden crown atop her head. A wound across her neck was fresh and purple.

  The king knelt beside the table, acknowledging nobody as he mourned his loss. Kolgaar and Svenson joined Brite at the door. “Princess Gyda is still missing,” Kolgaar murmured.

  “If you have something of the princess’s, we can search for her,” Etheldreda said.

  Svenson left to speak with the king, whispering quietly in his ear. The king frowned at the coven. Desperate to find his daughter, he reached inside his robes and pulled out a necklace. Svenson returned and handed it to Etheldreda.

  “I’ll search for her now.” The old woman shuffled toward the first table, took out her map, and began to scry for the young girl.

  “Annie is missing,” Brite said. His watched the rain fall in near whiteout conditions, beating against the cursed fire. “The coven will search for the princess, but we need help to find her.” He handed the map to Kolgaar. “The coven thinks she might be in the caves.”