The area was dark and chilling. I was reluctant to get out of the car, but I knew that I had to. I didn’t have much of a choice in the matter. Lord Raylan has to be dealt with.
Eric got out of the car, ran over to my side, and opened the door. I grabbed his hand and the intensity of our combined powers was almost too much. Searching out our surroundings, I knew Lord Raylan was close. He was close enough to hear us now. I took a deep breath and called to my Queens with my mind. With our connection, I heard Eric call his Kings.
Everything happened so fast that I didn’t have time to process it. The Kings and Queens had answered our call. This time they came in person. The entire Circle of Light was present.
I felt more power surge through my body as one of them took my hand. The shock of new power flowed each time another one of them touched the other.
In the tree line, I could see a dark figure approaching. It moved cautiously, as if weighing his options.
I was frightened, to say the least, but I have to stand my ground now more than ever. Eric’s life depended on it. So did the Circle of Light. I am a Queen so I had damned well better start acting like one if we had any chance of getting through this.
Eric squeezed my hand as the final member of our circle joined us. The completed power was unlike any other. Strong. Magnificent. I felt like I could face anything. My fear was completely diminished.
As the figure moved closer, I was certain it was Lord Raylan. I noticed that as I was seeing him I wasn’t scared anymore. I had Eric and the Circle at my side.
I had a heightened sense of awareness. I saw every single move his body was making. Every shuffle of his feet, every hair that moved in the breeze; I missed nothing.
“I see you came prepared.” Lord Raylan said as he stopped a few feet from us.
“I meant you no harm at our first meeting. I warned you then. But it seems that you didn’t understand how serious I really was at the time.” I replied with power in my voice.
“My Queen, I am only here as a messenger. Come talk with me and I will explain everything.”
I could see the sly look on his face and he was definitely trying to lure me out away from the Circle. Alone. Powerless. Eric tightened his grip on my hand as if to remind me of his only request. Do not separate.
“No. I believe that we won’t be able to discuss this at all.”
“Well, I tried to be as nice as I could, but now, I’m going to have to prove my point it looks like.” He said as he slowly lifted his hands from his side and into the air. Swirls of silver and gray lit up the sky above him. He was drawing in power.
I was startled. I had never seen anything like it before. Even when Eric’s powers and mine united, it was not like this. There was just so much power around him. It flowed and spun violently into his body and I watched as he jerked from the force of it. I felt the tension building in the Circle. Everyone grew more anxious with each jerk of his body, but not even one of them voiced any signs of distress. We watched as the last sparkle of power entered him. He dropped his hands back to his sides and spoke with extreme authority.
“I will break the Circle of Light. One of you must die.” Lord Raylan said.
There was no emotion in his voice at all. It was flat and unfeeling. The tone of it made me sure that if I lived through tonight, I was certain to never forget the sound of his voice. Nor the look on his face. So empty and I could feel pure evil coming from him. His aura was as black as midnight in the moonlight.
Suddenly, he started moving forward with deliberate steps. Our bond strengthened as our powers emerged from our bodies. I could sense every King and Queen’s power outside my body as well as inside.
The intense colors brightened the area around us. I had never noticed that brown could be so brilliant, but at this moment it was drowning out all the other colors of our powers.
The ground began to shake under the Raylan as he made his way closer to us. Each step became harder for him to make and still stay on his feet. Cracking sounds came from the Earth as it began to open up and fall away from his feet. Within a few seconds, the Earth gave way and created a gigantic hole. To my surprise, he wasn’t falling into it, but floating above it.
I looked over at Earth King and Queen. They had their arms raised in the air. Except for the one that was joining them with the Air King and Queen.
I saw them slowly raise their arms just like the ones before them. Suddenly, the wind picked up. It blew with the force of a hurricane. It gusted, blowing leaves and small branches through the air. We had no trouble standing there in the savage winds because our powers didn’t affect us the way it would him.
As the wind reached Raylan, I could see his clothes flapping against him, but I could not see any other evidence of it harming him at all. He stood there with a disturbing grin on his face as he looked back at us.
The silence of Eric s mind was very uncomfortable. Come to think about it, I couldn’t hear anyone’s mind. Not even a faint whisper. I suppose that I was too involved in the arrival of our guest to realize what was going on around me.
The night sky turned a fierce red color as the Fire power joined into the mix. I could hear Raylan grunt in discomfort. We were penetrating his power. I hope that we would be strong enough to defeat him without any loss of life.
Ice King and Queen joined in and I could now hear his screams. He was in pure agony. Their power touched him and seemed to be causing him a greater amount of pain than just the fire power alone.
Ice Queen raised her hand that joined with mine and at the same time Eric’s hands rose too. I was confused, but I let the power flow through my body unrestricted.
I could smell the Earth. The heat from the fire was soothing because I had to be cold, but I just couldn’t feel anything other than the power right now. Sweat started forming on my forehead; I was getting too hot. Thankfully, I felt the breeze mixed with cool air.
Our powers were complete and Raylan couldn’t escape it. He was doomed. No question about it, but I wasn’t expecting him to surrender.
He screamed with such horror that tears automatically formed in my eyes. I could feel his pain, the burning of the fire and the ice pulsating through his body. I overcome by the sensations when I noticed Eric joining hands with Earth Queen. The Circle of Light was complete.
A blinding light forced me to close my eyes and as the seconds passed, I realized that I could not hear his cries any longer. What was happening? I tried to open my eyes, but the light was just too much. It hurt. I listened and heard no one. Nothing.
“My Queen?” I heard someone call.
“Yes?” I responded still blind.
“I’m so sorry for all of this. Really. I am.” A gentle male voice replied.
“But, I don’t understand. Who are you?” I asked puzzled.
“Look at me, please.” He requested.
I carefully began to open my eyes, hoping the light had gone away and to my surprise, it had. I could see the man clearly now.
Inside our circle, was a young man. I didn’t recognize him at first, but the more I looked at him the more familiar he became. He had the same hair as Raylan, but cleaner. Every feature of his face reminded me of him but sharper and better defined. Younger. It was him. I was sure of it.
“Raylan?” I muttered not believing what I was seeing.
“Yes, my Queen?”
“What happened to you?” I asked in the most polite tone I could manage.
“I have been saved. I thank you all. I was forced to join the Dark Union.” He sighed as he spoke. “They took my family from me, but thankfully they escaped unharmed. The longer I was with the Union, the harder it became for me to break free of the hold that was on me. I am truly sorry for what I have done to you and your King.”
I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. Was this some kind of ploy to get me to let my guard down? On the other hand, could it be that the man in front of me was telling the truth? Either way, I wasn’t sure what the result of all of th
is was going to be.
The Queen’s explained to me that I could grant Raylan one request and if I decided he was not worthy of his request, then he would be dealt with accordingly.
I wasn’t sure how to do any of this, but I went with it the best way that I could. I tried to act like I was everything he thought I was, but inside I was trembling. This man’s life was in my hands. It was all up to me.
Or was it? Eric was my equal, so therefore, he has just as much say in this as I do. And the realization of that made me feel so much better about the situation. It gave me renewed strength.
“What is your request?” I asked.
He stood there for a moment. It seemed as if he was deciding on what would be the best thing to ask for. I was sure not going to grant him any money or anything like that. Even though, he looked completely innocent now. It still was not going to get him anywhere. He had tried to kill me. He came after the man I love. What makes him believe he even deserves a simple request at all?
I could feel the anger building in myself and, at once, I was sickened by the nature of it. It was pure hatred, but I had to look at the real person in front of me. I had to be sure to take my time and weigh all the options. Even with all my anger, I had to do the right thing no matter what. He was still a human life and I was never going to allow myself to take matters like that lightly. Not after Katrina s uncle and the terrible feeling of guilt that my actions had caused for myself.
“May I please be returned to my family? And, if it is not too much to ask, could you cast a protection spell? I mean, I just don’t ever want to be vulnerable to evil again.” he asked sincerely.
I was stunned at what he had said. I wasn’t thinking that he was going to ask for anything near that. He wanted to be back with his family. How could I deny him that? I couldn’t.
“Eric. Do you agree with me?” I asked without ever explaining what my plans were. I knew that our minds worked as one so, I was not worried about what his answer was going to be.
“Yes, my Queen. I agree with you.” Eric said.
I thought for a moment more on whether or not I should grant his request or just kill him. I guess that was the immature teenage girl in me. I couldn’t help it.
I‘ll grant your request and return you to your family, as well as keep you from the clutches of evil, for Eternity.” I said with sheer power. As soon as I said that, the circle started chanting a purification spell. I released the hands on either side of me and walked forward to Raylan. Tears were streaming from his eyes, and I could tell that he was truly sorry for what he had done, but, of course, that didn’t stop him from apologizing a million more times.
My heart filled with forgiveness. I couldn’t hold what evil had forced him to do against him. He was genuinely remorseful. His family deserved to have him back. The spell would make sure that he wouldn’t come back after us when the Dark Union found him. But, what was going to save him from them?
As that thought ran through my mind, I decided to add a little something extra to the spell.
“Take my hands.” I said to him softly and he did it without hesitation. I called to Eric and asked him to join me.
I joined hands with Eric and each of us had one of Raylan’s hands. I took a deep breath and began casting my spell. I grant this man and his family safety from the Dark Union and if any of the Union’s members or associates tries to harm this man or his family, let them fall dead to the ground at their feet. With a Queen and King’s power I command this to be.
As I let go of his hands, he hugged me tightly. I could feel the wetness of his tears on my shoulder. I just let him cry. I was sure that was not a very Queen-like thing to do, but at the time it didn’t matter. It was the human thing to do. I had restored hope and life in this man. I was as happy as he was in the end.
Fire King had announced that the Circle was leaving and that we all should be getting home as well. I was glad to hear it too. My body was starting to feel like a pan of Jell-O and I was extremely tired. We all said our goodbyes and we watched everyone leave. Standing there, I couldn’t imagine what it must have been like to be Raylan. To be turned evil against his will. More than that, to be taken from his family had to be the worst thing out of all of it.
When Eric and I got back into the car, I remembered that he had told our parents that we would decide on a date for the wedding, but I was exhausted and was not really up to making any important life decisions now. Beside all of that, I couldn’t deny that it had to accomplished.
“Do you have any day you would prefer?” Eric asked.
“Not really. I suppose any day will be fine.”
Eric drove down the road at a much slower pace than he had on the way down here. He seemed to be lost in thought. I sat quietly and waited for him to say something.
“How about doing it next month? Maybe on Christmas Eve?” Eric finally asked.
That was so soon, I thought to myself. I was excited about it. I wanted to marry him as soon as possible. With all the drama of the Dark Union behind us, I had a newfound outlook on the wedding and on life in general.
“Yeah. That sounds great!” I replied with more enthusiasm than necessary.
Chapter 2
Eric and I walked in the front door hand in hand. Our parents were all in his kitchen and I could see from the looks they were giving us that they wanted an answer on the wedding date.
“Well. Have you two decided yet?” My father asked.
“Yeah.” Eric replied with a giggle.
He stood there without answering them right off. I thought it was rather funny in a way. Our mothers were squirming and I thought they were going to jump right out of their skin if they didn’t t get an answer soon.
I smiled and cleared my throat. “Would Christmas Eve be too soon?”
Smiles spread across all of our parent’s faces. They seemed to be as pleased with the idea of it as we were. I could see the tears flowing down both of our mother’s cheeks.
“That's a little less than a month away, but I think we can manage it. Don t you Amy?” My mother said calling Eric's mother s name.
I had never heard her called by her name before. I rather liked it. It sounded better than Mrs. Gray did. I had never heard Eric say his father’s name either, but I’m sure he had told me what it was. I just couldn’t remember it for one reason or another.
I stood there feeling like I was being introduced to her for the first time. It was awkward to me and I was slightly embarrassed by not remembering his parent s names. In my defense, I had a pretty good excuse. All of the drama that had been going on lately made me wonder if I even remembered my own name.
“Jim and I are going to run over to the house for a bit if that’s alright.” Dad said.
“Sure.” That's fine my mother replied.
After several hours of my mother and Amy going over wedding plans with us, I feeling so sleepy that I had to fight to keep my eyes open. I needed to go to bed and I knew that Eric felt the same way because I had to nudge him from time to time to wake him up.
“Guys, I’m really sorry, but I’m going to go home and go to bed.”
“Sure thing, Bailey. It is getting late.” Mom replied.
I kissed told everyone goodnight and Eric walked me to my front door. I didn’t want to be away from him, but if I didn’t get to sleep fast I was going to go to sleep standing on my feet. We lingered at the door, neither us not wanting to leave the other.
“Soon we won’t have to do this. I love you.” Eric said as he kissed me then opened the front door. I told him I loved him too and shut the door behind me.
I could hear my father and Jim in the living room talking. I went in to tell them that I was going to bed and hugged them both. They returned their own goodnight wishes as I walked out of the room.
I didn’t bother turning on the light in my room. All I could think about was getting in the bed, but I had to change out of these clothes first. I blindly grabbed a t-shirt and pajama pants out of my dresser
and changed. I couldn’t even tell you if I put them on the right way or not. It didn’t matter.
I got into bed and found a comfortable position to lie in. Before I realized it, I was slipping into one of the most beautiful dreams I had ever had. The water was clear and blue. Refreshing sounds of the ocean filled my ears as I sat on the beach. The sand was warm and soft against my skin. Warm rays of sunlight felt comforting on my skin. The coldness of the present weather was all but gone in my memory. I remember lying back on the sand and drifting off to sleep. How weird was that? Who dreams about going to sleep? I must be extremely tired.
The next morning, I woke up feeling like I had been run over by a bulldozer. Every muscle in my body ached. It hurt to move. I had rested well, but I was sore from being in bed for so long. I felt Eric enter my mind. How are you feeling this morning, my Queen?
Terrible.
Let me help you with that.
I heard him start saying words in another language. It sounded old and unfamiliar. I don’t think I had even heard anyone speak like that, even in the movies. However, I lay there patiently and listened. His voice was so calming, my body was relaxing more with every word I heard him say, and I could feel all the tightness and pain leaving my muscles. It was a miracle to say the least.
We seemed to be getting good at miracles here lately, I thought to myself. I heard Eric chuckle at the thought.
That should do it, he said pleased with his healing my body.
Thank you so much, I said with utter appreciation.
Eric told me that I should probably go ahead and get up and dressed because the circus had already come into town. The Circus? I asked.
Yeah. Our parents are already over here. The florist will be here within the hour, he said trying to hurry me.
Oh. All right. I’m getting up. I‘ll be over there shortly.
I took a quick shower and got dressed. When I walked out the door to go over to Eric’s house, I could see that his driveway was jam packed with cars. I understood now why he said the circus had come to town.
Everyone was in the living room when I walked in. “We were waiting for you.” Amy said gleefully.
The War (Ultimate Power Book 2) Page 2