Ruby Morgan Box Set: Books 6-10

by LJ Rivers

  Jack nudged me. “Mind lighting us a bigger fire, Ru?”

  “Sure, but if I keep it lingering in my hands for too long, my energy will drop again, and I might not be able to use my powers if we need them.”

  Jack slipped out of his jacket and wrung his shirt off, continuing to kick off his moccasins and pulling off his drenched socks, finally arranging everything in a pile about four feet further into the tunnel. “Might not make the best bonfire, but it’s something, right?” He grinned.

  “Maybe, but won’t you need your shoes? Besides, it’s soaked.”

  “I’m a wolf,” he said as if that alone explained how he didn’t need his clothes.

  Jen shook her head and picked up Jack’s clothes, tossing them at his feet. “Put your clothes back on, or we’ll die from smoke inhalation sooner than we’ll drown. I’ve got something better.” She tapped the wall with her fingertips, and I moved my fire globe closer. A torch was mounted on the wall.

  Without hesitation, I pushed the remains of my fire towards the torch. The end lit up, and warm light flooded the wall.

  “Awesome!” Jack moved closer.

  I glanced back at where we had come from and shuddered. The torch and the gust of wind I’d felt earlier had to mean there was at least some sort of ventilation, perhaps even a way out, but if the smoke began filling the tunnel, I would have to put it out.

  “You think they’ll wake up soon?” Jack asked, glancing at Brendan and Charlie.

  “I hope so.”

  What had I done, bringing them along to this other world? It wasn’t made for them. Would they ever wake up? Perhaps if I got them back through the portal to Earth, they would be OK again.

  I motioned with my head to Jen. “Maybe you guys should take the torch and check out the tunnels Erica mentioned? The torch might mean there’s a way out from here.”

  “You sure?” Jen wrung out her shirt and squeezed water from her golden locks. We all looked like drowned cats. Or dogs.

  “Yeah, you three go ahead. Kit and I will watch Char and B.”

  “If you need us, just holler.”

  “Go on. Find us an exit.”

  Torch in hand, Jen ushered her Shifters with her, the light fading as they moved further away.

  Shivering, I patted down my clothes, then wrung them out as much as I could. We should have probably all taken our clothes off to keep from getting sick—not that I could really catch a cold. Not on Earth, anyway. Besides, I didn’t particularly feel like wandering around in this unfamiliar world stark naked. Darkness fell over me when the wolves disappeared and the torch with them. Instead of spending more energy, I crawled to sit by my sleep-induced friends. My fingers tunnelled through Kit’s wet fur, which was surprisingly already dry underneath the topcoat.

  Kit rose with a start, and his tail shot up. Hissing, he lowered his head and nudged me with his back paw.

  I canted my head when an emerald-green hue caught my attention. Near the edge towards the water was a figure. I squinted and rubbed my eyes. A woman sat there, staring at me, a shimmering light surrounding her like a misty cloud of tiny droplets. Her long, wavy tresses fell past her naked torso like a waterfall, all the way to the ground. Her skin was as dark as night, with specks of silver, and her eyes shone like silvery gems. Heart-shaped lips parted in a mirthless smile. She was tantalising, like nothing I had ever seen. A distant sound of enthralling, soft voices rose in a crescendo, reminding me of a bubbling stream, just as much as a roaring waterfall. It echoed with the booms of the deep of a mountain, answered by the bright rings of a euphonious choir of what might be crickets and birds. It was as if the very sea was singing for the gods themselves.

  Somewhere far away, a cat was growling, but I tuned it out, my eyes fixed on the woman. I had to go to her. To touch her. Standing, I took a step forward, then another. Like in a dream, my feet floated above the ground. The pull was too strong to ignore, stronger than the shadows that so frequently called for me. Unlike them, I couldn’t refuse this woman’s call.

  “Ruby,” a voice sang through the hypnotising music.

  “I’m coming,” I whispered.

  She reached out as I drew closer, as if ready to take me in her arms. I raised mine and could almost touch her fingertips. A flash of light blinded me for a moment, and my arms dropped to my sides. The sounds vanished, and the woman shrieked and retracted her hands. I stilled, frozen in place.

  “Begone, Serena!” someone bellowed in a gruff voice.

  The light fell like a blanket between the woman and me, smoke billowing towards her.

  I shook my head, conflicted. Part of me wanted to protect her, shield her from whoever was behind me.

  When her face contorted in a cruel grimace, however, I managed to step back. Her features twisted, and her skin rippled. It looked like a Shifter changing. After another few breaths, the creature that had been a gorgeous woman turned into a seal. It groaned and made a honking sound, then flung itself over the edge, water splashing over Kit, who stood by my feet.

  I spun around, palms up. My jaw slackened when I looked at the man in front of me. He wasn’t a man at all. I didn’t need to see any aura to tell that this was undoubtedly a Goblin.

  “Thank you,” I said. “I don’t know what that was.” I made a gesture behind me with my thumb. “But I’m pretty sure you saved me.”

  The Goblin cocked his head, stroking his bushy, white beard, brandishing a knife in his other hand. Dozens upon dozens of small pouches were strung around his waist like a belt. His beaklike nose twitched, and his saucer-sized ears were flapping as if listening to something. Eyes on me, he turned his back to the wall and slashed the air with his knife.

  A light flickered in the darkness ahead, and the wolves reappeared.

  Chapter Three

  “Now what would make you think it was a good idea to go down Rhina’s Deep?”

  The echo of the creature’s mesmerising voice faded, but I was still dizzy. “Uhm, to be honest, I don’t think we had much choice in the matter.” The words tasted strange in my mouth, as if I was only pretending to speak English.

  The Goblin eyed me up and down, furrowing his bushy brows. “You’re not Avalonian,” he said, not hiding the disdain in his voice. “You’re not wearing clothes from any southern realms. So, from the north, then.” He changed his grip on the knife ever so slightly.

  A low, rumbling growl came from Jen’s throat.

  “It’s all right.” I held a hand up to calm her, then inched closer to the Goblin. “We are of no threat to you. Our origins are a bit difficult to explain, but I can assure you we come in peace.”

  The Goblin looked every bit as sceptical as he should with strangers in strange clothing appearing in his domain. “Difficult is simply easy taking a longer time.” He dipped his head at Charlie and Brendan, both still limp on the ground. “What ails them?”

  I shook my head. “Hard to say. I think they have some reaction to this … realm.” I almost said world, but then I might have to tell the Goblin much more than I was willing to share. “They have been asleep ever since we arrived in the cave, Rhina’s Deep, was it?”

  The Goblin scoffed. “Silly name, if I am to speak the truth. The queen’s lorekeepers have it all wrong.” He leaned forward, lowering his voice. “But I am not one to say that aloud. Too fond of this,” he patted the side of his head, “to contest any erudites of hers.”

  The queen.

  I wondered who sat on Morgana’s throne in this age. She had sent her child through the portal fifteen hundred years ago, and to my knowledge, a Fae could only bear one child. At least on Earth. Then again, it might be different here on Avalon. Even if Morgana had borne more children, there still might have been dozens of wars and coups over the centuries, leaving Morgana’s bloodline a chapter in the history books.

  “Rhina was not the first mother of Serenae, and the cave isn’t deep at all. As your friend might have figured out already.”

  Jack shrugged. “Deep enough w
hen the tide came.”

  I held out my hand, careful not to make any sudden movements. “My name is Ruby. And this is Jack, Erica, and Jen. My sleeping friends are Charlie and Brendan.”

  “There are two things I do not like,” said the Goblin, ignoring my handshake invitation. “Untruth and Northerners.” As I was about to respond, he waved the knife dismissively. “So, I have to ask you to speak the truth first. Is this also one of your travel companions?” He raised his left arm, which I hadn’t noticed had moved down and behind his back. Kit hung from the skin of his neck, hissing at the Goblin.

  I stifled a laugh, not wanting to sound disrespectful. “Yes, he is. His name is Kit, and I forgot to mention him, that’s all.”

  “Him? Is he a Changeling? There are feline features on him.” He gave Kit a slight shake.

  “He’s not magical, I’m afraid. Just a common cat, dear to my heart.”

  The Goblin dropped Kit, who landed steadily on his feet before scurrying in front of me, hissing at the Goblin. “I have never seen such a puny creature. He wouldn’t even keep one of my guardlings from breakfast to midday.” He chuckled.

  I could only assume a guardling was some kind of animal and made a note to keep Kit away from any of those we might encounter while in Avalon.

  “And the second thing?” Jen asked. “You don’t like Northerners?”

  As with my own, Jen’s voice puzzled me. It sounded like hers, but the words came out as if she didn’t actually know English. It reminded me of how I sang the French lyrics to “Brother John” when I was little. I never learned the real French words, only the phonetic version, just like Jen’s English sounded now.

  The Goblin squinted at her. “Northerners are nothing but trouble. I have the three of you down as Changelings. Children of Gwyn Tala, by the looks of your eyes. Granted, Talani is in the north, but Tala’s children have never been anything but good to us in the south. And this one,” he nodded at me, “might be a Fae or more likely a Pixie since I can’t spot any wings. Which leaves your sleeping companions. Don Hekals, by the looks of it. I can see no magic in them.”

  “You can see the magic in us, you mean?” I waved my hand between the wolves and me. “Like, my aura, or something?”

  “Huh? You mean to say there’s a wind blowing about you? You are an Auralist, then?”

  “Uhm, no, not exactly. I don’t know what an Auralist is. When I say aura, I mean a sort of glow.”

  “I do not know that particular use of the word. All I see is what I see.” He pointed at Brendan. “Or don’t see.”

  Erica cleared her throat. “I have heard about Don Hekals. My great grandfather said it was what the ancient Magicals used to call people without magic. And over the years, it became what we know as Donnals.”

  “Children not of Heka.” The Goblin nodded. “I have no issues with Don Hekals, just to be clear. If you ask old Halwyn, they were beneficial to the Avalonians in the war. Not that there are many around here that would ask.” He raised one bushy eyebrow.

  “Halwyn. That’s your name, then? Pleased to meet you.”

  He turned his gaze at me. Having dealt with Hugo Hawthorne for most of my life on Earth, I recognised the slight twitch in the Goblin’s eyes. The tiniest hint of a smile played on his lips. “It’s not the first time I have spoken too many words. But, as you have given me all your names, even one for this cat creature, I think it’s fair that you have mine.” The smile vanished before it could really settle on his lips. “But don’t think we are allies yet. Just want to be clear on that.”

  “Before you use your knife, Mr Halwyn,” I began but stopped when Halwyn threw his head back. This time, there was no hint of a smile and certainly no chuckle. Instead, his roaring laughter echoed off the cave walls. Jack moved slowly behind a rock, only to emerge in his copper-coloured wolf form on the other side. He snuck up to the still hysterically laughing Goblin.

  I shook my head frantically. “No!” I mouthed.

  Jack ignored me, his eyes locked on the hilt of Halwyn’s knife. Jen also shook her head, but it was too late. The wolf reached its open mouth down to the wooden handle.

  A white cloud of dust flew into Jack’s eyes, sending him backwards with a yelp. He fell to the ground while Halwyn, who I had thought to be at least seventy years old, spun around. Before Jen or Erica had a chance to react, Halwyn thrust the blade at Jack’s throat.

  It stopped two inches from the still yelping wolf’s fur, where the serrated edge would have caused irreparable damage. Maybe I could have healed him, but I doubted it. The Goblin seemed to know exactly where to strike to ensure instant death.

  Now, his knife was kept from Jack’s blood vessels by virtue of a force field. I had wrapped it around the Goblin while Jack was frantically scratching at his eyes, his paws making a poor job of wiping the dust away.

  “Sheath your blade, Goblin,” I hissed. “Or I will shrink the field around you.”

  Halwyn glared at me, but slowly slid his knife back in its sheath.

  “What did you throw at him?” I asked.

  “Leaves of Unsight. Tell the wolf to stop rubbing it. Better to shake its head with open eyes. Air will help.”

  Jack’s ears pricked up attentively, and he followed the Goblin’s instructions, already shaking his head.

  “So,” Halwyn began, poking at the inside of my force field. “You want to tell me again how you are of no threat to me?”

  “If I let go of this force field, will you keep your herbs and knife to yourself?”

  “Only if you have your beasts stay back.”

  Snarling, Jen moved to Jack’s side, placing a protective arm around him. “You might want to reconsider calling us beasts first.”

  I held my hands up. “Everybody calm down. I owe you great gratitude, Halwyn, for saving me from that woman, or whatever it was. If you allow me some time, I’ll try to explain why we are here. Or rather, whence we came.”

  Again, I noticed how the words tasted strange. It was like hearing my grandmother speak for the first time when I arrived at their farm; the words seemed to flow like molasses off my tongue.

  “You mentioned Don Hekals, and yes, Charlie and Brendan are of that kind. In our world, the Donnals—or Donnals … sorry, I meant to say Donnals—” What was happening? I tried to say humans, but the word wouldn’t come out. I cleared my throat. “Donnals.” Crap!

  “She’s trying to say Donnals,” Jen said, her eyes widening as the word passed her lips. “What the—?”

  “Ruby!” Erica shouted.

  I turned, and my heart almost stopped beating. Charlie was shaking violently while Erica tried to hold her still. White blobs of foam gushed from Charlie’s mouth, and her skin had turned a pale, almost olive-green. Black lines bulged across her temples and neck as her veins seemed to fight their way out.

  “Do something, Ru, please!” Erica, with her wolf-induced strength, was struggling to hold on to Charlie.

  “Jen, keep an eye on the Goblin,” I said. “I need all my strength.”

  Without waiting for her reply, I let go of the force field around Halwyn and fell to my knees next to Charlie. I put my hands on her chest and called on the healing inside my core. Charlie bounced and twisted like a trout trying to escape back to Nordee Brook, and it was all I could do to keep my hands on her. Bursts of warm light in every shade imaginable flew from my palms and into her skin, spreading like a forest fire underneath. For a second, it seemed to work, as she calmed a little. Before I could breathe a sigh of relief, she convulsed again, repeatedly and harder than before.

  “Brendan’s got it, too,” Jack said behind me. He had shifted back and had wrapped his arms and legs around Brendan to keep him calm. As with Charlie, Brendan was pale, his veins swelling. “Easy, B. I’ve got you,” Jack said, surprisingly composed. His eyes were swollen, and tears flowed down his face, courtesy of Halwyn’s Leaves of Unsight.

  “It’s their blood.” The Goblin’s voice was mellow and steady. “The magic here isn
’t kind to Don Hekal blood.”

  I stared at him. “What can we do, then?”

  “You? Nothing. Their hearts will stop beating in an awr or two.”

  “There must be something we can do!”

  He shook his head. “Not you.”

  Was he smiling?

  “Stay where you are,” Jen barked when the Goblin ambled closer to Brendan and Jack, who looked like they were in the middle of a wrestling match. Foam streamed down Brendan’s chest, making Jack’s hands slip.

  “I, on the other hand, can save them,” Halwyn said. “If you promise to leave my island afterwards.”

  Not a single fibre in my body wanted to leave Avalon, but right now, I was prepared to say anything if he could save my friends.

  “Do it!”

  “You’ll leave?”

  “Yes, yes!” I yelled. “Save them, please!”

  The Goblin put his hand in a pouch, one of many attached to his belt. He pulled out a tiny, dark blue flask. It looked like it was carved from a glass-like rock. “Hold his head, Fae. Judging by your magic, I’m assuming that’s what you are.” He removed the cork.

  I put my hands around Brendan’s head, trying to stop him from throwing it from side to side. Jack, even with all his strength, was struggling to keep Brendan calm. He was twisting and turning more than ever, and for a second, I feared his neck would snap if I held his head steady. As the Goblin placed the flask over Brendan’s mouth, I nevertheless held him still.

  Two droplets of a golden, honey-like substance dripped into Brendan’s mouth. Halwyn put the cork back and lay his hand over my boyfriend’s lips and nose. After a few seconds, as if he wasn’t already shaking enough, Brendan’s body realised it wasn’t breathing. As if I didn’t exist, he yanked free from my grip and twisted his head to get away from Halwyn’s hand. He gasped for air and opened his eyes.

  And screamed.

  It was the most horrifying sound I had ever heard, and the cave walls echoed and amplified his primordial scream to ear-shattering levels. It lasted only two or three seconds, but kept bouncing off the walls for at least ten more before fading into the darkness.