“We’ve got to help him,” Lipton reiterated, springing to his feet as his wings flapped open.
Sensing his urgency, Kalista crawled out of the stormy thoughts and leapt to her feet right next to Lipton. “I hear you. Let’s find this Ken then. He sounds like he really needs help. He sounds very important too …”
Jesse’s face suddenly slammed into his mind again like a strong wave, and Lipton could literally feel his whole body shiver at the thought. Well … Ken was important to him because he was an innocent human who’d been turned into a vampire against his own will, and Lipton wasn’t going to be so inhumane as to leave Ken alone in the wild in his current feral newborn state. He’d to help him just because he was … somewhat important, and he was Jesse’s husband. Did the fact that Ken was Jesse’s husband put Ken high in his priority list? Lipton sighed at the thought that everything important to him always seemed to connect to … Jesse. Lipton had vowed to remain unaffected by whatever feelings he had for Jesse, but no matter what … Jesse seemed to have a hold on him. Lipton wanted to help Ken out of the pure goodness of his heart, not because of the fact that he was associated with Jesse.
If Lipton could completely drain Jesse out of his system, he would. But a part of Jesse had always seemed to cling to him, no matter how hard he tried to scrape her off from his mind, from his heart. Why couldn’t Kalista affect Lipton the way Jesse had? Kalista was the one who’d shown him concern all this time … not Jesse. So why did he still have feelings for Jesse … and not Kalista?
Trying to push all the agonizing thoughts away, Lipton drifted slightly off the ground, his wings whipping around. His main focus now was to look for Ken, not ponder on his unreciprocated feelings for Jesse.
“Come on,” Lipton said, holding his hands out toward Kalista. “Let’s go look for Ken.”
Kalista took his arms and Lipton managed to shift Kalista onto his back with ease.
“Hold on tight,” Lipton said with a grin, flicking a glance at Kalista, who had an unreadable expression on her face. Lipton couldn’t tell what Kalista was thinking or feeling at that moment, but he knew that deep down inside, something was bothering her.
Lipton darted up into the air like a rocket missile, eliciting a scream of thrill from Kalista, who flashed Lipton a momentary look of excitement, as though she enjoyed the ride. But as quickly as the exuberance had lit her face, the blank look plastered her features again, her mouth set in a subtle grim line.
What was wrong with Kalista? Wasn’t she happy flying in the air with him? Lipton knew that Kalista enjoyed riding on his back, sailing across the air and gazing at the view below. It was as though Kalista was trying to suppress the excitement that was bubbling within her.
Lipton heaved a sigh, his heart burdened with inexplicable guilt. He circled the forest, keeping his eyes peeled for any signs of Ken. Even in the dark of the night, Lipton could see things as he had a special night vision ability which most Wingmen possessed. The faint dim of the moonlight helped him see much clearer in the dark woods.
Lipton returned to the nest where he’d left Ken earlier, but he had a gut feeling that Ken wouldn’t be there at all. And he was right. When Lipton hovered above the nest, he saw that it was empty. Ken might have awakened from his state of consciousness and fled off to nowhere, probably hunting for his new victims.
“He’s gone,” Lipton said dejectedly, circling the nest in a mindless loop as though Ken would appear there at any second. But he knew that Ken would be far gone by now, and he probably wouldn’t be in the forest anymore.
“Let’s not give up hope too soon, OK?” Kalista tried to inject some hope into her voice. Her heart was beating tumultuously, and it wasn’t because of losing Ken in the woods. She knew that it was more about … Lipton. Even though she tried to push all the storm of thoughts away from her mind, the weight of knowing that Lipton was part Urukan crushed her within, and she’d never know whether if she’d really loved Lipton out of her own heart, or it was because of the predominant Urukan Tingle that had misled her into thinking that she loved him.
All of a sudden, Lipton let out a piercing scream, jerking uncontrollably in the air as though an arrow had pierced him in the heart.
The unexpected motion startled Kalista, causing her to lose grip and she almost slipped off Lipton’s back, but she managed to regain her grip on Lipton again, her heart pounding ferociously at the fear that she might slip and plunge all the way down to her death.
What was happening to Lipton? Why had he suddenly seemed to spin out of control?
Lipton thrashed around in the air like a man possessed, howling with such ferocity that it sent shivers down Kalista’s spine, as she clutched onto Lipton with a deathly grip, trying not to lose her balance in this roller-coaster spiral.
When Kalista managed to take a glance at Lipton’s twisted face, which was lined with obvious veins, she realized what was going on. Lipton was transforming into Catan, and he was straining against the other half of him who was fighting to manifest.
“No!!!!!” Lipton screamed, whirling in the air in various degrees, sending Kalista into a dizzy spin, her insides feeling as though they were going to explode. But instinctively, she clung onto Lipton tight, knowing that if she slipped, death would be waiting for her as she knew that in his agonizing state, Lipton wouldn’t be able to save her from her fall.
“Lipton!” Kalista cried, trying to reach out to Lipton, who seemed oblivious to the fact that she was still on his back, clinging on for dear life. “Pull yourself together! Fight it! Do not let Catan get to you! Do not let him manifest! Fight him!” Kalista repeated her words, hoping that they would drill into his mind and give him the morale he needed to suppress Catan from manifesting.
Lipton continued howling in a sickening, high-pitched voice, drowning Kalista’s cries. He careened toward a tall tree and slammed into one of his branches, which clawed at his face, blood oozing out in scarlet lines. Kalista buried her head into the crevice of Lipton’s back, shielding herself from whatever obstacles that might hit her and cause her bodily harm.
The slicing pain ripped through Lipton, making him spiral like a helix, as he dangerously swerved through the forest at a lower altitude, narrowly missing the rising trees which stood threateningly in his direction. Kalista's head throbbed with intense vertigo, and she felt as though her brain would explode at any moment.
Without warning, Lipton rocketed up higher into the air, his wings whipping around with such ferocity that they hit against Kalista’s body, sending waves of pain rippling across her. Despite the pain and the dizziness that gripped her, Kalista used all her willpower to make sure that she held onto Lipton with all the strength she could muster, her heart pounding at the thought that she could slip and fall at any second.
Lipton flew up higher and higher, violently jerking around as his body strained against the transformation that was bubbling within him. His face was twisted in a rictus of pain as Catan’s features started to surface, his sharp nose and eminent narrow eyes taking shape, slowly forcing Lipton’s features to vanish. Catan was manifesting, and at any moment, the transformation would be complete and Lipton would be gone completely.
Realizing that Lipton was going to be completely suppressed and Catan would soon take over, Kalista tried to figure out what to do as her mind was deluged with a storm of thoughts. She wouldn’t want to cling onto Catan and be dangerously close to him. She’d rather let go of her hands and fall hundred of feet downward, even if it meant doom.
The screaming finally stopped and the wings disappeared, relieving her from the constant slap of Lipton’s wings which had been flapping out of control. Catan finally emerged, and without the wings that afforded him flight in the air, all of a sudden, Catan plunged toward the forest, his hands flailing wildly as gravity propelled him downward and his panicked howls echoed through the forest.
Kalista loosened her grip, and instantly, she slipped away from Catan like a detached lock, plummeting downward at suc
h a high speed that it drew a scream of terror from her throat.
She could only think of one person at the moment as she was seconds away from her death. Lipton’s face seared into her mind, and she knew that it would be the last time she’d ever see him.
And then, everything around her became black and there was a complete silence.
14. LOST LOVE
“How are we going to look for Rellie?” Jesse asked for what seemed like the hundredth time. She paced around Maggie’s living room with an anxious look on her face, feeling as though she’d failed big time. Bringing Rellie back to life had been a big mistake, and it seemed to make things worse than better. Rellie was now a deadly newborn vampire on the loose, with the tendency to kill any innocent humans who stood in her way. She was wild and feral, and there was no telling how many innocent lives she had claimed.
Days after Maggie had been discharged from the hospital, Jesse had spent her time at Maggie’s house, trying to come up with a plan to fix everything that had gone wrong after they had revived Rellie.
Maggie had recovered, but her powers were still feeble and weak from performing a gargantuan task such as reviving Rellie. It took a toll on Maggie, and she needed some time to regain her supernatural strength. Also, she had been attacked by Rellie herself, and it left Maggie somewhat traumatized, shattering her confidence and making her try to shy away from magic for the time being. She wanted to close a chapter on her magical life, and preferred to revert to her normal ways of living.
“Like I told you,” Maggie repeated in an exasperated voice as she poured herself a cup of tea in the kitchen, “We’re not going to look for Rellie. We’re not going to hunt for her. We’re not going to find out who the vampire serial killer is … because I’m through with magic. I’m through with all of this. I shouldn’t have gone through this whole thing with you in the first place. I shouldn’t have agreed … what was I thinking? I knew that magic could prove to be fatal, and yet, I went along with your plan and look what has happened? Nothing good has come out of all this, right?”
Jesse marched into the kitchen and stared at Maggie right in the face. She couldn’t believe that Maggie would give up so fast, trying to steer clear of magic just because of what had happened to her and the failure of their plan.
“Maggie!” Jesse cried, emotions slicing through her in tumultuous waves. “You can’t be serious about giving up, right? You can’t just turn your back now after all the things we’ve done. I know that we have somewhat failed, but we need to fix it … make things right. We can’t just leave all these problems to fester … they may become worse and haunt us in the future.”
“It was all your idea, OK?” Maggie seethed, slamming her cup onto the island counter and causing the tea to spill. “I was content with my life until you came. Everything was perfect, the way I wanted. And you came along and destroyed that illusion of a peaceful non-magical life for me. You tricked me into returning to my former magical life, when I’ve been so dead set against it. It was all for your agenda, not mine.”
Tears streamed out of Jesse’s eyes. She couldn’t believe that she was hearing all of this from Maggie. How could Maggie be so shallow? How could she not understand that what they were doing were for the greater good? Sure, there was a hiccup in their plan, but it was better than sitting around doing nothing, right? And now that the problems had gotten worse, shouldn’t they rise up to the challenge and fix them?
“You agreed in the first place because deep inside, you knew that it was the right thing to do,” Jesse finally said after a brief moment of silence, her voice choking with emotions. “And now, you’re just trying to cop out, ignoring all the problems that lay before us because it’s the easy way out. I’ve been a cop for years, Maggie. I’ve seen murders, deaths … you name it … I’ve seen them all. I’ve seen people get killed in front of my eyes, and it’s not something you could ever erase from my mind … ever. Sometimes, you have to live with the nightmares for the rest of your life. It’s not easy being a cop and doing the things that I do on a daily basis, but I do it because there is so much things that need to be fixed in society. You don’t turn your back the minute it gets tough. Instead, you embrace the problems. You face them. It may not be something you like, but what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger. I have every reason to quit my job, but I refuse to do that because my work is not done yet. There is still a lot to be done, and with each passing day, there are always new problems for me to tackle. Sometimes, they get worse but I can’t turn my back and give up. I do everything in my power to make sure things get better, and if I make a mistake … I know it’s OK because I’ll do my best to fix it. It doesn’t just stop there …”
Jesse finally stopped, straining against the tears that were threatening to spill. She plopped down onto a wicker chair that was right next to her, feeling as though she was pressed down by tons of weight.
Maggie’s face softened, and there was a hint of tears in her eyes, but she quickly rubbed them as though she didn’t want to reveal her emotions to Jesse. Maggie turned around, her back facing Jesse as she stared out of the window at the bright clear skies tinged with fluffy clouds.
Something Jesse had said had hit a spot inside Maggie. Maggie felt a jolt in her heart, and the gnawing feeling of guilt tugged at her. In some ways, Jesse was right. Maggie was taking the easy way out all these years. After her husband had died, Maggie gave up hope on magic and wanted to live a normal life, trying to stay in isolation from anything that was supernatural. Ever since the day that she had decided to live a non-magical life, Maggie felt as though her life was getting back on track, and she had the life she wanted. No more magic. No more consequences. Maggie was content with her life, and she vowed never to return to her magical life.
But deep down inside, there had always been a nagging feeling in her heart, but she chose to ignore it. Sure, she was happy with her new life. She did things most normal human beings would do. But deep in the crevices of her conscience, there was something missing … as if there was an inexplicable void in her heart. She felt like to she was destined to do something great, and the more she chose to ignore this tugging feeling inside her heart, the emptier she felt. She had put on this facade of happiness, but she knew that she was fooling herself. She kept pretending that everything was alright as long as she chose a non-magical life, but she knew that it wasn’t the fact. She knew that the more she tried to steer clear away from her destiny as an Enchantress, the more the problems would return in a snowball effect by the end of the day. She was an Enchantress, one of the most supernatural beings there ever was, and she chose to give it all up. For what? Just because her husband had died and she chose to live in denial by living a life she wasn’t meant to live? Her husband Don wouldn’t have been supportive of her decision of throwing away her magical destiny if he were still alive. He’d want her to pursue her destiny, and become the best Enchantress there ever was. He’d would be so … proud of her.
A tear streamed down Maggie’s face as the weight of her conscience finally put her to her senses. Somehow, Jesse was right. Living a non-magical life wouldn’t set her free from all the supernatural problems that threatened to shatter the very existence of her peace. No, she couldn’t put on this facade anymore. She had to embrace her destiny as an Enchantress, and she’d have to rise up to the challenge every time a bigger problem emerged.
Maggie turned to look at Jesse, who was staring at her with tears staining her face. She could see how emotional Jesse was, and Maggie could somehow resonate with Jesse’s situation. Jesse had been through so much, losing her own husband who was nowhere to be found. Maggie herself too had lost Don, and she could empathize with Jesse, who had been burdened with the weight of the world on her shoulders. Maggie knew that she couldn't shy away from her destiny as an Enchantress, and there was so much she could do with her powers. She was born to be one, whether she liked it or not.
Maggie waved her hand at the traces of spilled tea on the table, and amazin
gly, the traces merged together and funneled into the air, and flowed back magically into the teacup as if they’d never left the teacup in the first place.
Jesse widened her eyes a little, sniffing. “Wh-what are you doing?” Her voice was dry, as if all her raging emotions had swallowed the moisture from her lungs. “I-I thought that you didn’t want to do magic anymore.”
Maggie snorted as if Jesse had said the funniest thing. “How can I pretend to be non-magical when magic flows through my veins, permeating every part of me? How can I ignore that? I wake up each day pretending that I’m just a typical human being, without a trace of magic in my blood. Who am I to fool? Myself? As long as my heart beats, I’ll always carry magic within me, and I cannot deny that solemn fact.”
Jesse’s shoulders sagged, as if she was about to break into tears again. But Maggie approached her, as if gliding through the air, her feet barely touching the floor. She placed a comforting hand on Jesse’s shoulder, squeezing it.
“You’re right, Jesse,” Maggie said with a heavy sigh. “I’ve tried to play it safe by trying to live a normal, non-magical life. But I can truly tell you that it’s not going to work in the long run. Sooner or later, bigger problems will arise and I’ll need to face them … and as long as I have magic within me, I’ll use every fiber in my being to tackle the challenges ahead. There’s a reason that I was born as an Enchantress. I need to heed my call, and salvage what’s left of this cruel, wicked world …”
A slight smile tugged Jesse’s lips, and she embraced Maggie in a tight hug, uttering words of relief.
“I’m so glad that you’ve decided to see the bigger picture, Maggie,” Jesse murmured, pulling her head back so she could look into Maggie’s eyes, which were burning with renewed hope and confidence. “But I have to admit that at this very moment, I’m completely clueless. I don’t know where to begin, where to start. How are we going to fix all of this? How are we going to fix Rellie? And how are we going to fix the unforeseen consequences that could occur due to the revival which we’ve performed?”
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