“Get her out of my sight,” Cartazonon said, stepping over her before a black gloved hand pulled her into the tunnel. Her cries echoed on the stone walls as she begged for forgiveness and pledged her loyalty.
Taliesin pulled me back as Cartazonon walked towards us. “We have to get to the other side of the lake, where the gateway stone is.” He whispered, his hood rubbing against my cheek.
“Do we run?” I asked, watching as Cartazonon’s people advanced behind him. I wasn’t sure I could outrun them.
“On the count of three apparently,” Taliesin said.
Cartazonon grinned. “Going to try running, little one? I know you, you’ve visited me. Invisible. In my rooms. Watching me.”
“One,” Taliesin said. I tightened my fingers around his. “Two, three.”
A jet of fire burst between us.
Taliesin yanked my arm and we started running past a huge brown and copper dragon. His sharp teeth were masked by the fire he was breathing for us.
Miu’s eyes grew wide. “Not good, not good.”
I looked back. The flames spread, arching up to the ceiling instead of going into the tunnel. Cartazonon blocked the flames, protecting his people. Miu was right, this wasn’t good.
Ramsey grabbed my other hand. “Come on.”
We ran.
Cartazonon bellowed.
Heat exploded around us. Lifting us up. I screamed, trying and failing to hold onto Taliesin and Ramsey. I hit the ground rolling until I slammed into a boulder. My breath left my body. My chest burned. I smelled burnt hair and resisted the urge to check if the smell came from me. Reaching out I grasped on to the smooth stone. Warm Earth magic flowed into my hands. Unfortunately, the magic did nothing to help the sharp hot pains shooting in my ribs and back.
Chaos. The protectors of Avalon ran to hide. To fight. To protect.
The Sons of Belial swarmed. Stun guns erupted like lighting as they hit humans and magical creatures alike.
I turned, seeing a flash of red. Gavin carried Anali into a circle of oak trees. I could feel the hum of the gateway stone. Priests and priestesses held hands. A pale green wall of Earth magic shimmered as they chanted their prayers. A walk-in ran to them and screamed as he hit the barrier.
A mercenary grinned and charged. A scream caught in my throat as Gavin jumped over the clasped hands of the druids, his knife in one hand, to attack the mercenary. Their arms moved in a blur of motion, with the occasional silver flash as they struck at each other with knives. Oh God, this couldn’t be happening.
My stomach clenched. I stumbled. Unnatural magic slithered through the air.
Cartazonon held his hands up. Thick oily power emanated from them.
“You don’t have to hide,” Cartazonon called. “Come, my dark ones. Come and join me, and we shall rule.”
The shadows began to move. Black dogs crept from hidden caves, growling. Dark ghost-like wraiths floated above us, their red eyes fixed on Cartazonon. A wyvern slid by me her fangs dripping poison which hit the ground with a hiss.
“Yes, come into the light where you belong,” he kept chanting like some evil Pied Piper.
“No.”
I turned, my vision swimming at the sudden movement. Taliesin winced as he took off his jacket. The underground moonlight, caressed him and made him glow. His white hair looked silver, and a blue star shone on his forehead. He was a beacon of light in the chaos. I wanted to run to him and hide until this was all over.
“Stop. We're here to send you home. To help you get back to Akasha. Back to where you will be free to roam. Back to your own kind.” His voice carried his moonlight cool magic. Every magical creature stopped and looked at him. “Come to me. I will keep you safe and we will open the portal to Akasha, to your home.”
Taliesin walked to edge of the circle. The magical beings following him.
Cartazonon lowered his hands, his dark eyes wide. He said something but I couldn’t hear him. His eyes never left Taliesin.
I screamed as a hand clamped on my shoulder. “The boss will be so pleased to get to meet you.”
Shining black skin covered hard muscle. The woman smiled at me, small braids of black hair falling over her face. These weren’t weak walk-ins, these were powerful people who owed him a huge debt. I broke out in goose-bumps as the walk-in’s energy surrounded me.
I grabbed her hand and twisted her arm forcing her to bend over. I kicked her stomach as hard as I could, then pushed her away. I couldn’t pin her to the ground—more were coming. Turning, I saw a handle of a sword or knife on the other side of the boulder. Oh, you have got to be kidding me.
“I’m going to make you pay you little bitch,” the walk-in said.
I grabbed the silver and gold handle and pulled. A glowing sword slid free from the rock. I held the sword front of me and pretended I knew how to use it. She lunged and I swung the sword hitting her in the arm with the flat side. She screamed, falling to her knees. The walk-in left her body. Its gray form hovered above her for a moment before it vanished.
“Do you even know how to use that?” Shin asked, taking the sword from my hands.
“No, no idea.”
“They don’t seem to like touching the sword much. I’ll do my best to not kill any of us.” He looked at the circle. “Go, you have a job to do.”
“I can’t leave you alone. Come with me,” I said, tugging on his arm.
“He’s not alone.” Ramsey held a knife in one hand. The other held tight onto the strap of his yoga bag. Half his face showed scratches and bruises. “Go on. I have the feeling that opening the portal will change things.”
“Stay safe.” I kissed his cheek, squeezed Shin’s arm, and ran to the circle.
“Let go!”
Lee dragged Miu by her arm. She looked like a toddler as she hit and kicked at him.
I opened my connection to Akasha and ran, engulfed my hand in flames and grabbed his arm.
He dropped Miu and grabbed the front of my shirt, throwing me to the ground. He held up his injured arm. My hand print was burned into his skin—skin that now looked old and wrinkled. His thick fingers became bony and crooked.
His thin eyes stared at me. I couldn’t move as he drew a wicked curved blade.
Chapter Twenty-Six
“Sapphire, duck,” Kayin yelled as a fireball flew over my head, hitting Lee in the center of his chest.
Lee roared and stumbled backwards. His shirt burned and his chest underneath became bright pink. The muscles sagged, and the skin looked wrinkled and old.
“Lee,” Cartazonon called. His fury made me shiver. I scrambled to my feet, clasping hands with Kayin and Miu.
A hoard of magical creatures screeched their defiance. Surrounding Taliesin, creatures both light and dark sent out a wave of fierce protection. Thank goodness he was safe.
“Come on.” Kayin helped me up and pulled me forward. A mercenary screamed as the vampire who helped me earlier tore open his throat. The man gurgled and twitched as his blood poured onto the floor.
“Oh, gross,” Miu said. Her pale skin turned green as she covered her nose against the copper scent.
Cold hard arms wrapped around me. I opened my mouth to scream, but fear froze me. Miu and Kayin’s hands were ripped from mine.
“You hurt one of the few people I care about. I will drain your magic and life from you slowly, causing you as much pain as possible,” Cartazonon hissed in my ear.
Kayin and Miu stopped running. “Get to the circle,” I yelled.
Miu ran.
Kayin’s hands burst into flames. “I’m not leaving you.”
Cartazonon started to walk backwards.
His energy made focus impossible, and my powers sputtered as I pulled Phoenix fire into my hands. Nothing. I reached behind me trying to fight back. Cartazonon hissed and moved so all I got were a few strands of hair.
“I have been fighting for centuries. You are nothing compared to me, and you’re certainly not going to get away.”
&nbs
p; My breath caught in my throat. I believed him.
The chanting grew. The lyrical words broke through my terror. The wall of Earth magic sparkled with copper in the rich transparent grass green. Earth magic reached a foot or two above their heads. The amount of power they raised was impressive, but it wasn’t going to stop Cartazonon.
Mr. Monroe smiled at me, then winked as he raised his arms. Power swirled around him, black as midnight and sparkling with rainbow flecks.
The other priests and priestesses followed his lead. Their power grew, the wall of Earth magic grew a few inches taller, the color deepened to a bright emerald green, and more copper flecks appeared.
“What is a god doing here?” Cartazonon whispered.
What? The power grew, forming a large sphere. Tendrils of Earth magic began to join the black power.
“We need to leave,” Cartazonon yelled, pulling me backwards.
I grabbed his hand and raked my knuckle hard over the tendons on the back of his hand. His grip loosened, and I dropped to the ground letting my full weight fall and pull against his grasp.
A battle cry. A flash of silver.
I hit the floor and my battered ribs found another rock. Blood dripped from Cartazonon’s arm. Dark red drops fell onto me. Gross. I scooted away. A hand grabbed my shoulder and yanked me up.
“You okay?” Shin asked.
I nodded.
“Sapphire,” Ramsey called, running towards me. He scooped me up and turned. I screamed as I saw the knife flying towards us. Ramsey’s body stiffened and began to shake.
Pain racked my body, sharp heat from the knife and cold evil as Ramsey’s power drained from him. I looked up. Cartazonon held out his hand. He had used the crystals and Akashic metal in the knife as a conduit for him.
“I’m sorry,” I said reaching over and grabbed the knife. The hilt burned ice cold. I bit back a cry and yanked. Ramsey screamed then collapsed. Blood gushed from the wound.
“Oh shit.” Shin took off his shirt and pressed it against Ramsey’s wound.
Close your eyes. A man’s voice echoed in my head.
I looked up. Mr. Monroe grinned, making me shiver. He brought his arms back, the ball of power and magic moved.
I grabbed Shin. “Close your eyes.”
He dropped next to me. I covered Ramsey’s head, and Shin covered mine.
Power and light exploded.
Men screamed.
Warmth, strength, comfort—this wasn’t going to hurt us.
Minutes passed. The magic swirled, protecting us all. The light dimmed, and I opened my eyes. The moonlight illuminated the cave. Confused people looked around, some crying. The walk-ins, pulled out of the bodies, leaving their hosts lost without direction.
A wheezing gasp.
I turned. Lee and Cartazonon supported each other. Their bodies shook, eyes clouded over, skin wrinkled and hung loose as the life and power they stole was removed from them. Cartazonon snarled at me as they turned and hobbled out of Avalon.
“Ramsey,” called a woman. She and two younger women rushed towards us. His mom and sisters, judging by the dark brown curls and black eyes.
Miu ran right behind them. “Let me heal him.” She placed her hands on his back and opened her connection to Akasha. Power flowed into him. The bleeding slowed but didn’t stop. Miu shook her head. “I can’t do more than that. Too much of his own magic is gone.”
“He needs to go to Akasha,” Mr. Monroe said. “You must open the portal now. Some of us will follow them in case he tries to send more men.”
I nodded as he and several of the guardians of Avalon left.
Ramsey’s family picked him up. “We only came to see what was happening, none of us planned to go to Akasha,” his mother said, tears dripping down her cheeks. “Murdock isn’t even here, he can’t say goodbye to his brother.”
“Can I heal you?” Miu asked reaching for me.
I shook my head. “No, it’s too draining. Let’s get this portal open.” I gritted my teeth. Pain shot through my body as I stood. “We don’t have time for any kind of ceremony. We’ll all touch each other’s shoulders, breathe, and connect to Akasha.”
“Will that be enough?” Kayin asked.
I looked at Ramsey’s ashen face. I had no choice—it needed to be enough. It was all I could do. Wait. “Where’s his yoga bag? It’s a long black yoga bag.”
“Here,” Sasha said. “He tucked his bag under the boulder that held the sword. Do you think he’ll be doing yoga in Akasha?”
“His seal skin is in it.” I handed the bag to his sister.
“He told you that?” she asked her eyes wide.
“No, but it wasn’t that hard to figure out once I knew what he was.” I groaned, my body shaking. I was in so much pain. Too bad, you have to get that portal open right now, I said to myself.
Anali’s eyes filled with tears as she saw me. She cupped my bruised face and kissed my cheeks. “I'm so sorry, my darling.”
“I can still save him,” I said. I wanted to fall into her arms and cry, but not yet. I stood a few feet from the gateway stone. It started in the center of the oak tree ring and reached into the lake. Kayin and Anali placed a hand on my shoulders.
“There are only six of us,” Gavin said. “We normally have seven.”
“Hold on,” Taliesin said. “I’ve got them all settled down. They will behave and go through the portal without fuss.”
Kayin moved his hand to my neck and Taliesin placed his hand on my shoulder.
“Okay, follow my breath and connect to Akasha.” I closed my eyes and focused on the warm energy as I tapped into Akasha. One by one the others opened their connection. The heat made beads of perspiration dot my forehead, then Taliesin added his cool unicorn energy. I sighed as I felt the energy balance within me. I held my hands out and sent everything I had into the gateway stone. Bright purple light arched into a giant doorway. White light filled it, then we could see beyond. A lake, next to ours, with soft white sand and wild flowers, beckoned.
“I don’t know what to do,” Ramsey’s mom said tears running down her cheeks. “We weren’t going to go. I have my life here—but my son . . .”
My heart ached. I had no answers for her.
“Welcome my friends,” Shamash said, stepping through the portal. He invited the magical beings in. Grims, fairies, gnomes, and Nessy all headed home. Shamash’s smile faded as he saw the state we were in. “What has happened?”
“Big battle. I’ll tell you later, but Ramsey needs help.”
Shamash knelt next to Ramsey and his crying family. A large silvery tear filled his eye. He caught the tear on his finger and dropped it into the wound.
“He will have to come to Akasha for his magic to heal completely,” Shamash said.
His family sobbed.
“Hush,” Shamash said stroking their hair. “He will be gone only a year or two, and there are several large pods of selkies for him to stay with. What did this?”
“Cartazonon,” I said, trying to stay focused on the portal when all I wanted was to sit next to Ramsey.
Shamash nodded. “He needs to heal in selkie form.”
His mom took off his clothes and lay the dark brown seal skin over his naked body. Shamash set his hands on him and Ramsey shifted, into a fat round seal. Large black eyes blinked and he let out a loud growly bark.
His mother hugged him and began explaining what happened. I chuckled as she answered his barked questions.
A wet nose pressed against my leg. I looked down, and Ramsey looked up at me. “I’d hug you goodbye but I can’t stop. I’m sorry this happened. Thank you for saving me.”
Ramsey huffed and rubbed his face against my leg before shuffling off to the water and swimming into Akasha.
Shamash stood in front of me and placed a silver tear on my forehead. He stepped into the portal, but paused to speak one more time. “You had a trace on you. I am sorry for everything that happened. Aya and I look forward to hearing your story. Bef
ore I forget, Anali, relax. Your baby is fine.”
* * *
We all sagged as we released our powers, and the portal closed. Anali turned and buried her face in Gavin’s chest as he held her tight. I smiled and started to walk past them when hands grabbed me and pulled me into a group hug.
“Sapphire, I was so scared for you,” Anali said.
Gavin squeezed me tighter. “Never again. I'm never allowing you to be in that kind of danger ever again.”
A sweet idea, but both of us knew it wasn’t realistic. This life was dangerous.
“Does anyone need to be healed?” Miu asked, her soft voice filled with guilt.
“Nothing small or that can wait without causing more damage or significant pain,” Gavin said, squeezing us both then stepping back. “We’re all tired. And healing drains you. We can do more in the van or at the hotel.”
My ribs throbbed with pain, but I didn’t ask for help. Miu looked tired. I didn’t want to add to her burden.
“They’ve left,” Mr. Monroe said. “Apparently, they had a helicopter waiting for them.”
“He’ll be back,” I said.
Mr. Monroe smiled. “I’m sure he will, but he can’t get in. We’ll make sure of that. Do you need any help?”
“I think we’re fine,” Gavin said. “I’m surprised by the amount of power you were able to create. Thank you for helping us.”
“We live to serve. We’ll come along to help you back to your vehicle.”
I watched Ramsey’s family gather his kilt and sporran. His mother wept as she held them against her chest. His sisters held her and gave what comfort they could.
“I’m sorry about Ramsey,” Taliesin said. “I didn’t care for him, but he saved you. I saw that knife. He saved your life, and for that I’m thankful.”
“Thank you.” I took Taliesin’s hand. “You don’t look too banged up.”
He rolled his eyes. “Once they surrounded me, I couldn’t get out to help fight. They insisted on protecting me.”
“Your mom will be pleased. She must be frantic right now,” I said as we walked up the stairs.
“I’ll text her as soon as we get out,” Taliesin said.
I didn't remember this many stairs on the way down. I panted, and every step jolted my ribs. The pain made me lightheaded. Why did there have to be so many damn stairs! Taliesin let go of my hand and wrapped his arm around my waist, supporting me as we climbed even more stairs.
Heirs of Avalon Page 31