Ben was the first one to reach her with Natalie, Gordon, and the Warrior right behind him. All four of them stopped in their tracks when they walked in the house. There were twelve unconscious people on the floor. They all looked at her and she just shrugged.
“The Grynn have been bound and will be unconscious for several hours so we don’t need to worry about them,” Alix said. “Now we need to handle the Nykara. When I did this with Logan it took four of us sharing energy for me to remove the Grynn magic, but with the Power Stone, that’s not going to be an issue this time. What I don’t know is what I’m going to do with the magic once it’s out of their bodies. We had to lock it in a box and contain it with magic, I wasn’t able to destroy it.”
“Give me a moment Kaelneth,” the Warrior said in his French accent and made another phone call. Less than a minute later he was done with the call. “One of the transports that is on the way has something that might work to contain the magic if we need to.”
“Great,” Alix said. “How long until they get here?”
“They are about fifteen minutes out,” he told her.
“I guess we wait until they get here. I’m sorry, I don’t even know your name,” she said.
“You can call me Gereaux.”
“Okay. Gereaux can you and Gordon take up lookout positions outside and make sure that no one sneaks up on us.”
“Yes Kaelneth,” he said.
“Most certainly Miss Alix,” Gordon said and followed Gereaux out the door.
“I’m going to look around this place,” Ben said and went into the next room.
“I guess that just leaves us,” Alix said to Natalie.
“Are you doing okay, you know, with all of this?” Natalie said motioning to the room.
“Yeah. I’m actually more worried about my Spanish final than I was taking out the Grynn.” Alix said with a smile.
“I’m so proud of you,” Natalie told her.
Alix frowned. “Why?”
“It’s just amazing to watch you in action. Here you are, a seventeen-year-old fledgling Nykara that can handle these crazy intense situations like a practiced veteran. I’m so glad I get to witness your journey as the Chosen One.”
Alix didn’t know what to say. She just did what had to be done. It was up to her to keep them safe. That was something that just seemed to come naturally. She didn’t know if it was part of being the Chosen One or just part of her personality.
Ben continued to look around the house while they waited for the rest of the Warriors to get there. Alix decided to check on the Nykara that lay on the floor. She was assuming it was the Sleep of Death that was preventing them from waking up, but it was best to be sure. She kneeled down next to the one closest to her. She put one hand over his heart and one on his head. She searched for the Sleep of Death and found it, but there was something else mixed in with it. It almost felt like his energy was getting weaker by the second. She searched a little more and found something awful. It was a countdown. And he only had a few minutes left and the Sleep of Death would become real death.
“Natalie, go find Gereaux and tell him to get his Warriors here right now, the Nykara are set to die in the next few minutes if I don’t help them.”
Natalie ran out of the house and Alix called for Ben. He was there in a few seconds.
“What is it?” he asked.
“I have to try and save them now. The Grynn have done something to them that will make the Sleep of Death permanent in a few minutes,” she told him.
“What do you need me to do?”
“I don’t know, just be here in case I need you.”
“I can do that. What about the case the Warriors are bringing to contain the Grynn magic?”
“There’s no time. They will die before they get here unless I do something right now.”
“Okay, I’ve got your back, Alix.”
She knew that was a true statement. Alix placed her hand on the Nykara in front of her. Since she knew what she was looking for this time it was easier. She located the small ball of Grynn energy at the brain stem just like with Logan. With the Power Stone in her other hand, she pushed her magic into his body. It was much easier to surround the Grynn magic with hers this time. The energy of the stone hummed through her body as she pulled the tiny but powerful energy ball out of the Nykara. It rose out of him still surrounded by Alix’s magic. Last time, even with the extra energy from Gordon, Ruth, James, and Shelley she was unable to destroy the evil magic. With the Power Stone, she wasn’t sure what would happen if she attempted to destroy it, but she was going to try. She focused her energy on the tiny ball of light and thought about it bursting into nothingness. This time with the extra power from the stone she was able to do it. It was as if the energy shattered into a million pieces and it became dust in her hand. She used her magic to sift through the dust to make sure no Grynn magic remained. It was good, the dust contained no evil at all.
Alix went to the next Nykara and repeated the process with the woman. Then again on the other two. By the time she was finished, she had been cutting it close. The last man had been in serious danger of dying. She sent her healing magic into each of them and healed any damage to their bodies that had occurred. All four of the rescued Nykara were still out cold and it would take several hours to recover, even with healing. They had all been on the verge of death.
Alix had been oblivious to anything other than what she was doing to the injured Nykara knowing that Ben would watch out for her. She put the Power Stone away and tucked it safely back in her pocket. When she finally looked up the room was full of people and all of them were staring at her.
When Alix stood up the Warriors bowed to her. She felt uncomfortable at their reaction.
“Stop please,” she said. “There’s no need for that.”
Gereaux stepped forward to speak. “Gordon told us what you were doing and the skill and energy it took to be able to do that. We just wanted to show our respect for what you just did Kaelneth, and that was the best way we knew how.”
“Oh, well thank you Gereaux, and please call me Alix. I’m not a huge fan of formality. They need to be taken back to the safe house in Paris until they are fully back to themselves.” Alix said, gesturing to the four unconscious Nykara. “I can guarantee that they’re one hundred percent free of any Grynn influence, so they are safe to return to their families.”
“Those are going to be some really happy families,” Natalie said smiling. “And just in time for Christmas.”
Two Warriors started carrying the unconscious Nykara out of the house and into the waiting vehicles. Several other Warriors started carrying the unconscious Grynn out as well. Alix told them they were bound by magic and should wake up in a few hours. At that point, she really didn’t care where they were taking the Grynn as long as it was far away from her.
“It was amazing watching you save those people Alix,” Ben told her.
“I wouldn’t have been able to do any of that without the Power Stone,” she said.
“Alix,” Ben said, “don’t forget that you’re the only one who can use the Stone, so if not for you, those four would have died. Give yourself a little credit.”
Alix blushed. She was still getting used to accepting compliments from people other than her parents and Shay.
About fifteen minutes later they were ready to head back to the airport.
“Gordon,” Alix said as they started driving, “is it possible for us to go to Fox Hollow and leave from London? I think it’s important that we destroy the Grynn magic that I removed from Logan now that there’s a way to do it.”
“Yes, Miss Alix. I’ll call ahead to the pilot and have him make the necessary arrangements,” Gordon told her.
“Thank you.”
“My pleasure, Miss Alix.”
Alix picked up her phone and called Lucie.
“Hello?” Lucie said.
“It’s Alix. We have the missing Nykara. We located them in a small town about
an hour from Paris. I was able to take out the Grynn guarding them and then check on their condition. What I found was bad, Lucie. Not only did they have the Grynn magic in them, but somehow the Sleep of Death was being used as sort of a timer. If we hadn’t got to them when we did, they all would have died. The Sleep of Death would have become permanent. With the help of a stone I acquired at Newgrange, I was able to quickly remove the Sleep of Death and the Grynn magic. I was also able to destroy the evil energy this time. I think that’s why the Grynn kept moving them every time we’d get close. I’m sure their plan the whole time was to let them die. I don’t know why or what the point of infecting them with their magic was, but I do know that we have to do more to stop them. Especially now that we’ve taken their leverage away and saved our people.”
Lucie was quiet for a moment before speaking. “I’m sorry Alix. I let you and our people down by not being able to rescue them.”
“Lucie, don’t you understand? No one but me could have saved them and I could only do that because of the stone I obtained. There is no need to apologize. Everyone did their best. I know Victor and François were behind this. They are where we need to focus our future efforts.”
“Thank you, Alix, you truly are one of a kind and not just because you’re the Chosen One. Can you tell me more about this stone you found?” Lucie asked.
Alix filled her in on her experience at Newgrange. By the time she’d told her everything, they were already at the airport.
“I have to go, Lucie, we’re at the airport. We’re flying to Fox Hollow so I can take care of the Grynn magic that came out of Logan. Can you please relay this information to the rest of the Council?”
“Of course, Alix. Take care.”
“I will. Bye Lucie,” Alix said and hung up.
Ben already had her bag and they were headed to the gates where the private planes were. It had certainly come in handy to have the plane at their disposal. If they had to use commercial planes, they never would have made it in time to save the captured Nykara. They were on the plane in no time. It was only about a one-hour flight to London. She was thinking about the plane and had a few questions for Gordon.
“Hey, Gordon. Where does all the money come from for stuff like the plane and safe houses? I know it has to be expensive to have and maintain everything.”
“You are quite right about that Miss Alix. The majority of the money comes from investments and inventions that we hold the patents to. There are some very brilliant Nykara out there and over the years they have helped us acquire the money necessary to operate the way we need to. As for the safe houses, most of them belonged to Nykara that willed them to the Nykara people when they passed away.”
“What kind of inventions?” she asked. That had piqued her curiosity.
“A lot of the technology that goes into smartphones and computers has been designed by Nykara.”
“Really? That’s cool,” she said. “Can you tell me more?”
“Of course, Miss Alix,” he said.
For the rest of the flight, Gordon told her more about the inventions and the other ways they made money. She was surprised to learn how many companies the Nykara owned.
They landed, and Gordon had a car waiting. Alix looked out the car window just as interested in the sights of London as she was the first time. She didn’t think that traveling would ever get old. She crossed her fingers and hoped the next time she was in Paris it wasn’t because of another emergency. She’d been there twice now and had really only seen some random streets and the airport. She promised herself that one day she would get up to the top of the Eifel Tower and not just see it from afar.
Chapter 14
Ben was shaking her awake when they pulled up to the front doors of Fox Hollow.
“Alix,” Ben said, “we’re here.”
“Huh? What?”
Ben smiled at her. “Were at Fox Hollow, Alix. Time to wake up.”
Alix opened her eyes fully and was instantly awake. “I can’t believe I fell asleep,” she said to Ben.
“It’s been a long day for you, Alix. I’m sure your energy levels are low.”
“My energy levels are actually just fine. I think it was just a little bit of stress catching up with me,” she said as they walked into the main foyer.
It had only been a few weeks since they’d been there, but Alix had missed it and was glad to be back in the old castle. The first person they saw when they walked in was Logan. He greeted them both with a hug.
“Hey man,” Ben said. “You seem to be doing better.”
“I am actually,” Logan admitted. “At first when I thought of having to stay here it made me a little angry but Gordon and Merideth are great. Gordon is training me to use my Locator skills and Merideth is teaching me how to cook. I thought I would be bored out of my mind here but between my school work and everything else I’m busy almost all day.”
“That’s great Logan,” Alix said.
“Not to be rude but what are you two doing here?” Logan asked. “I didn’t think I’d see you guys again for a long time.”
“It’s a long story,” Alix told him. “Let me find Gordon first and I’ll tell you all about it. Okay?”
“Yeah sure. I think he went straight to the fireplace passageway,” Logan told her.
“I bet he went to get the Grynn magic I took out of you,” Alix said.
A look of sadness came over Logan’s face. “Why would he need that?”
“I have a way to destroy it,” Alix told him. “You don’t have to worry about it anymore.”
“But how,” Logan asked.
“That’s part of the long story,” Alix said.
Alix heard a noise and turned to see Gordon coming out of the fireplace with the safe that contained the Grynn magic she’d removed from Logan.
“What would you like me to do with this Miss Alix?” Gordon asked her.
“Just set it down anywhere. I’d like to destroy it as soon as possible. Thank you for getting it so quickly.”
“Of course, Miss Alix,” Gordon said, and set it down on the coffee table in front of the fireplace.
Alix went to stand next to it. “I’ll need everyone to move back a little. I’m going to create a protective shield around me and the safe. I don’t know what the magic will do once it’s released.”
They all took a few steps back and Alix created her shield. She took the Power Stone out of her pocket and held it. The instant it touched her tattoo, she felt that now familiar sensation of her energy multiplying.
With the Stone in her right hand, she touched the safe with her left. Once she felt the box, she didn’t need Gordon to tell her how to open it. She could feel the magic that was keeping the safe closed. She unlocked the magic surrounding the safe and opened it. As soon as she did the Grynn magic that was in it shot past Alix’s head and hit the protective shield she’d created. Alix quickly caught it and put another shield just around the magic.
She took a deep breath and accessed the same energy she’d used to destroy the evil magic in France. The magic that came out of Logan was stronger than the ones she’d destroyed earlier so it took a little bit more effort to destroy it but with the stone, she was able to easily handle it. Once she turned the magic into dust, she blew it off of her hand and released the protective shield surrounding her.
Alix looked up to see a few people gathered around her. Of course, Ben, Logan, and Gordon were there but so was Merideth and a few other people she’d seen around the castle last time on their previous trip.
“Um …” was all that Alix could manage to say.
It was Logan who spoke first. “That was incredible, Alix. Did you see that magic come flying straight for me? It’s a good thing you put that shield up or I have a feeling I’d be back under Grynn control. How did you destroy it?” he asked.
“I’ll tell you everything Logan, but first I need to eat. I’ve used a lot of energy and I’m starving. Merideth, can we go to the kitchen and grab a bite to e
at?” Alix asked.
“Of course, Alix,” Merideth said and gave her a hug. “My kitchen is your kitchen. Is anyone else hungry?”
There were a few yeses and nodding heads. Those who were hungry followed Merideth and Alix to the kitchen. They quickly made some sandwiches and sat down to eat. While they were eating, Alix told them about the missing Nykara, her visions, going to Newgrange, getting the stone, and finally saving the Nykara from the Grynn magic.
“So, that’s how I was able to destroy the magic that came out of you,” Alix said to Logan.
“Wow,” Logan said. “I can’t thank you enough, Alix. You’ve saved my life twice now. If you hadn’t destroyed that magic, I’m sure it would have tried to find a way back to me. I’m in your debt.”
“No Logan, you don’t owe me anything,” Alix told him. “I was just doing what needed to be done. Being the Chosen One allows me to help others in need so I do what I can, when I can. All I ask is that everyone does the same, you know, the pay it forward thing.”
“I still say I owe you, but I get what you’re saying. And if you ever need anything from me you let me know and I’ll do the best I can.”
“Thank you, Logan, I appreciate that,” Alix said.
“Can we see the stone?” he asked.
“Sure,” Alix said.
She got it out of her pocket and took it out of the little bag she kept it in. She put it on the table for everyone to look at. Logan was the first one to pick it up.
“It just looks like a river rock to me,” Logan said.
“Me too,” Merideth said.
“I think that’s a way to keep what it really is a secret. When I look at it, I see a stone that shifts colors as I move it, but only I can see that.”
“That’s so cool,” Logan said smiling. “I’m really glad I got to know you otherwise I’d have been a Grynn slave and not in the know when it comes to all things Chosen One.”
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