Capture
The Bond of Light had spent most of the day walking, just to make it closer to the Castle of Light. This gave James an opportunity and enough time to think about everything that’d happened over the past two days.
He was still hallucinating from time to time and didn’t possess full control over his abilities yet, but he was trying to get things right again as soon as he could. But he knew the darkness and Dark Magic were trying to penetrate his Magic and corrupt it, just as it’d done with everything else magically pure and good that had entered this realm.
James sighed as he turned around and watched Timothy and Thomas high-fiving. Timothy had been talking to Thomas for hours, but he hadn’t taken the effort to brief anyone else about the case they’d been discussing.
What could he possibly have to say to Thomas, which he couldn’t share with the others? They were all in this together, right?
“What’s wrong, James? You seem upset.”
James looked aside, and saw Samira’s worried face. The worried expression on the teenage girl’s face spoke volumes, and her normally smooth hair was frizzy and messy, and no longer tied into a braid.
James shook his head. “No. Not really.”
Samira frowned and lowered her eyebrows in disbelief. “You do know that that didn’t sound quite convincing at all, do you?” she asked.
James smiled shortly and rolled his eyes. “I know it doesn’t.” He paused for a second, just to appreciate his sister’s interest. She knew he was a very bad liar. “I just can’t help it; I keep having that same, nagging feeling as if we’re about to be ambushed again any moment.”
“Why are you feeling and thinking like this, James?” Samira said. “I’m worried about you.”
James rubbed the back of his neck as he tried to catch a glimpse of the moon, but the thick, black clouds were blocking his view.
“I can feel him, Samira. The Master. I keep feeling his presence surrounding us, as if he’s waiting for the right time or place to open attack again...”
“Knock on wood, Jiminy Cricket!”
Antonio, who’d overheard the conversation between James and Samira, gave James a pat – er, a rather firm pat - on the back.
Antonio’s little “pat” on his back came in hard enough for James to stumble forward and nearly end up face-first in the grass. He still smiled at Antonio, however.
“Don’t you worry, Jamey! We’ve taken on things from his hand before, and I’m sure we can do it again if we work together.”
Bella had appeared beside Antonio, nodding vigorously. “Exactly,” she said.
Thomas had his magical holographic map pulled out, as if he was about to show them something important. “All we need is a good strategy in which we work together... As if for the Master’s energy you’re feeling... We’re getting close to his castle.”
“He’s got his own castle?” James said while looking at the map, raising his eyebrows in surprise. “Why does that sound like bad news to me?”
“Because it is bad news, James,” Timothy said. He and Thomas had rushed to catch up with the rest of the group. “We need to get out of here as fast as we can.”
“Why?” James asked. “I don’t understand.”
Timothy gave him a sceptical look. “Can you run five kilometres straight?” he said.
“...No?” James mumbled, unsettled by how Timothy had decided to avoid his question. “But you didn’t answer my question. I asked why we need to get out of here all of a sudden,” he demanded.
“Theoretically speaking, I did answer your question,” Timothy corrected him. “But for further explanation: That castle is the core of all corruption. Within a five-kilometre radius from that castle, every single one of us is powerless, as the Master has no limitations to his power and control or whatsoever here.” He looked at James, raising an eyebrow. “Is that what you wanted to hear?”
“No,” James said, “this is far worse than what I wanted to hear... Or was hoping to.”
“Well then, now you’re prepared for the worst,” Timothy said, with a creepy kind of confidence in his voice.
James looked at Thomas, who’d just appeared next to him. “Are we?” he said.
Thomas responded with a crooked grin and a shrug. “All we can do is to find out is to wait and see,” he said. “If we aren’t, then we’ll be quick to find out.”
James snorted. “Sounds very positive,” he said.
“Indeed,” Thomas said sarcastically. “It does.”
“Hey,” James suddenly said. “Where’s Glimmer?”
“I sent her to pick up the other three Protectors,” Timothy said. “Together with them, we’ll be even stronger. That’ll make us just a touch more prepared... I believe she’ll come back soon.”
If the Protectors still wanted to join the Bond of Light and protect them, they better had hurry.
The Master was waiting for them, barely a hundred metres away. He’d been expecting them; the Bond of Light was now close enough to his Castle for them to be defenceless against his power.
“They might have been lucky last time,” Jason whispered to Sabrina, “but they won’t be this time.”
“They sure won’t,” Sabrina said, cracking her knuckles. “I’ll call Master Asura as soon as they come near enough for the spell to be effective.”
“How fast do you guys think Glimmer can fly?” Samira said. “I think she flies pretty fast.”
“What do you mean?” Bella said, but realized what Samira had meant as soon as he looked up at the sky behind him.
It was not very clear, but a shining dragon, carrying two figures with glowing weaponry and one flying fairy beside her was approaching quickly in the sky.
“Look, it’s them already! Hey, guys!” James shouted and waved at the dragon, but Thomas shut him up.
“Do you even realise where we are!?” Thomas hissed at James, who looked at him with guilt in his eyes.
“Sorry,” James whispered back.
“Urgh!” Sabrina grunted; the teenager was hiding behind one of the dried-out bushes not far away from the Bond of Light. “You can’t be serious! Did that curly-haired grunt seriously call them in now!?”
“Don’t worry, Sabrina,” a deep voice behind her said. It was the Master; he’d decided to join in on the party and check what was going on himself. “Even with nine of them, they will be no match for the three of us.”
The Protectors had just got off Glimmer when they were greeted by the Bond of Light and Timothy.
“Timothy!” Gabriel said. “How’s it going? It’s been ages since we last spoke!”
“Yeah,” Timothy said. “Like, nine centuries or so,” he laughed.
Violina was greeted by the Bond of Light, and Antonio in special. “Violina!” he shouted.
“Antonio...” Violina said.
“I didn’t expect to see you again,” Antonio smiled.
“...Neither did I,” Violina smiled back. “But... I’m here now!”
Meanwhile, James seemed to notice something else, as he and Thomas were greeting Madeleine.
“Madeleine?” James asked.
“What’s the problem, James?” Madeleine said.
“I... hate to ask it, and I fear I might already be aware of the answer,” James said. “But... Where’s Rikki?”
An awkward silence fell over the teenagers greeting each other, and Gabriel’s face turned into a frown instantly.
“She... didn’t make it,” he mumbled. “Sabrina killed her.”
Samira gasped; Bella clasped her hands in front of her mouth. Antonio lowered his head, slowly shaking it.
“I... I’m so sorry,” James said. “I shouldn’t have asked.”
Gabriel offered him a sad smile. “It’s all right, James,” he said. “You couldn’t possibly have known.”
“I’m sorry to break this up guys,” Madeleine suddenly said, “but we haven’t got time to hang around and do nothing! We’ve
got to get going and end this all now!”
“Sure thing, boss!” James laughed, causing the others to laugh as well, before continuing on their journey.
Sadly, not for long.
“Are they within range?” the Master asked.
“Yes, Master,” the two Cursed Spirits beside him replied.
“Good. Engage.”
The Master, including his two helpers stepped out of their hiding place, a few metres away from being right in front of the Bond of Light and the Protectors.
“Oh God,” Timothy said. “RUN! IT’S THE MASTER!”
But it was far too late to run. The Master raised his staff, with its orb glowing bright red. The ground started to shake, freezing everyone in their places.
Eyes flashed from the left to the right, gazes met. Everyone could feel what was happening; everyone knew they were done for.
And then it happened. The unexpected.
James tried to move his legs, but failed to do so. Upon gazing down at them, he noticed that they were slowly turning to stone, as were his arms.
The last he saw was the fate of his friends and companions; they were all turning to stone.
What was the purpose of this? Would they end up here as statues forever? Or would they be put somewhere in the halls of the Master’s castle, as a bunch of morbid trophies?
Or would something else happen?
Before James could process everything and go through any possible escapes, he could feel the nerves in his face stiffening quickly, leaving it only a matter of seconds before everything went black before his eyes.
Guardian: Protectors of Light Page 51