“You mean us?” Rasha and Ronif squawked from behind the trees. All the animals of Ravenswood barreled out of the forest in a rush of beaks, wings, hoofs, and feathers.
The mages, dazzled and delighted, hugged them all, even as the animals dove on top of Ozzie to get to them.
The lake rippled and an image of the enchanted forests of the Fairy Realms formed. The kings and queens of the Five Kingdoms stood in the fairy ring, surrounded by the fairy creatures that had come to know and love the mages.
“Thank you, mages and Sir Ozzie!” Queen Selinda smiled.
“Rock on, mages!” a crowd of dwarves shouted.
Then the image morphed to white-capped oceans, and the floating city of Aquatania came into view. Sea dragons burst from the waters, riders upon their backs. The beach was filled with baby sea dragons and their bondeds, waving to the mages and their friends.
Red mountains and the sun-drenched deserts of Dragon Home appeared next. Hundreds of massive dragons stomped in an ancient dragon dance, making the ground tremble.
“Hey, mages!” a black dragon roared.
“Hi, Gwyx!” Adriane waved back.
“You can call me Web Warrior now. I saved the entire web!”
“Good job.” Kara rolled her eyes.
A big red dragon leaped belly first into the boisterous crowd.
“Hi, Mama!”
“Drake!” Adriane called out. “Be home by ten! Have fun.”
Emily looked at Neerie, puzzled. “How is all this possible? What happened to all the shadow creatures?”
Moonlight glistened off Neerie’s smile as she spun another circle. The misty crags of the Otherworlds came into focus. Emily cried out happily at the sight of hundreds of strangely shaped spiky creatures that regarded the mages. Beside them stood the bear-like kobolds.
“You have saved us again, healer.” The kobold leader grinned, sharp teeth gleaming. “We have found true magic thanks to the bondeds you sent to us.”
“Good job, Emily.” Kara patted the healer’s back.
Emily looked puzzled. “But I don’t remember matching the kobolds with bondeds.”
A knobby, four-legged beasty leaped into view, wagging his big spiky tail.
“Buttercup!” Emily cried.
“Home,” he yowled, hopping up and down.
“The magic of your jewels did something else,” Neerie told the mages. “The shadow creatures were healed. They have finally taken their true forms.”
“That’s amazing!” Marlin was impressed.
“Buttercup led the shadow creatures to the Otherworlds,” Adriane realized.
“Good job, Buttercup!” Kara patted Emily’s back.
“So everyone is safe,” Emily breathed.
“You did it, Emily!” Adriane exclaimed.
“We all did it, together.” Emily grinned. “The shadow creatures will never steal magic again.”
“They won’t need to,” Ozzie told the healer, pride shining in his eyes. “Now they can make magic with their bondeds.”
Emily could see the auras glittering around the kobolds and their new bonded friends. Their magic was dark, but they were using it to help each other.
“Adriane.” Zach gently turned her around to face the forest. Rays of light fell between the trees as a magnificent silver mistwolf took form next to Dreamer. Once again, Stormbringer’s magic shone upon the preserve, brighter and stronger than ever.
Adriane hugged her bondeds. “I love our home.”
The packmates raised their heads and howled the wolf song, sending their magic to mix with their wolf brothers and sisters. They were answered by hundreds of mistwolves as the image in the lake shifted to the snowy peaks of Aldenmor’s magnificent mountain ranges. Along the low hills and verdant forests, the pack stood strong led by Moonshadow and his mate Dawnrunner. Two fuzzy wolf pups shyly peered from between their legs.
“Wolf sister, our hearts sing with your victory,” Moonshadow’s gruff voice was filled with pride. “We will run together in the great forests.”
“With our pups.” Dawnrunner nudged forward a midnight black pup and his sunny golden sister.
Adriane, Kara, and Emily were giddy with joy. The newest members of the pack were adorable.
“Good job, papa and mama!” Kara cried.
Everyone cheered as the glade lit up with twinkly magic.
Neerie swirled to a stop. “In spite of the terrible visions of your dreams, you gave up everything to help others. That is what a true mage is. You are the guardians of the magic now.”
On the shore, two stallions appeared in a burst of fiery orange and purple magic. Indi and Starfire stood beside Stormbringer and Phel. Before them floated four sparkling objects. Jewels.
The gems had changed once again. Elemental magic of earth, water, fire, and air, added new depth and color to the dazzling facets.
“What is lost becomes found again,” Neerie said. “A perfect circle.”
Adriane, Emily, Kara, and Ozzie understood. They accepted their jewels, their magic blossoming brighter than ever.
“Thank you,” Emily spoke to all her friends, all her bondeds.
“May I have this dance, Princess?” Lorren bowed before the blazing star.
“I think you may,” Kara answered with a curtsey.
“Emily?” Marlin held out his hand.
“Thank you, charming prince.”
Zach winked at Adriane. The dark haired mage took his hand and moved into his arms. Their jewels flashed, perfectly in sync.
The moon rose over Ravenswood as music filled the air.
Ozzie sat on a log next to Lyra and Dreamer. The ferret sighed. “It turned out all right, didn’t it?”
“Oh, I forgot something.” Lorren gestured for the girls to wait as he walked over to Ozzie. “The Fairimentals sent you something, too.”
“I hope it’s a new brush.” Ozzie scratched his rear.
From behind a tall oak, bathed in moonlight, stood another ferret. She had beautiful green eyes and a pink bow upon her head.
“Gah!” Ozzie’s mouth fell open.
“Hi, Ozzie,” Esmerelda said.
“Essie!” Ozzie sprang to attention trying to compose himself. “But how, why, but, but, but, but—”
“Shhh,” she touched his lips with her dainty paw. “The Fairimentals said I could come here for the night. Is it okay?”
“Is it okay?!” Ozzie cried. “Of course it’s okay!”
Ozzie whirled Esmerelda into a ferret-stomping wigjig any elf would be proud of.
“By the great tree!” Tweek’s twigs stuck out in surprise. “A new age of magic has begun on Earth.”
The twiggymental yelped as Ariel swooped from a tall fir and tossed him onto her back, turquoise wingtips glittering in the starlight.
“O’ me twig!” Tweek cried out.
And in that exquisite hour of magic, when time stood still, captured forever like a perfect picture, the mages discovered that Avalon had never been the eternal wellspring of magic. The home of magic was inside them all along.
The mages danced beneath a river of stars, flowing ever on, as roads gleaming like the magic web spread before them, waiting to be discovered. And whichever path each chose to follow, these friends would always find each other. Because when it comes down to what’s real, in the heart of Avalon, all that matters is love.
They would remember this night forever. A magical moment to fill their hearts with enough love to last a lifetime.
Buttercup is an aboleth, a species of cave-dwelling, amphibious creatures long thought to be extinct. But the mages discovered that aboleths had been transformed into shadow creatures, doomed to wander the astral planes searching for magic. Buttercup was healed by Emily and now helps all his brothers and sisters in their new home, the Otherworlds.
Faylinn is one of the great magic cats of Aldenmor. She has a black panther-like body with deep green eyes and shimmering purple wings. Faylinn was once bonded to the Dark Sorceress, but
she now runs the Spirit Trail, one of the only cats to run with the mistwolf spirit pack.
Deadly predators and magic hunters, shadow creatures live in the astral planes. It is thought that at one time they were bonded to powerful dark mages. These fearsome monsters have no purpose other than hunting and devouring magic.
Dimwiddie is a green gremlin and minion of the dark fairy, Logan. Gremlins are mischievous fairy creatures related to brownies and hobgoblins. They have a great curiosity for anything that can get them into trouble and tend to break things that don’t need fixing.
AVALON BEGAN AS a quest to discover magic. After all the adventures I’ve shared, all the things I’ve learned, all the friends I’ve made, I’ve found more than I ever dreamed. As each of you embarks on your journey to discover your own unique magic, I wish you well.
Let your kindness heal those who suffer.
Let your strength fight against all that is unjust.
Let your blazing star passion take you down new paths.
And when the circle brings you back, you will be home.
Full Circle (Avalon: Web of Magic #12) Page 15