Cindy backed away from the tree house warily with staff in hand, her eyes focused mostly on the girl that had just destroyed part of the front porch, the girl that, still in her wolf form, growled menacingly.
Once she reached Tom and the others, she raised her hand and pointed it skywards. The burning wings of an angel appeared above.
“Why are they here?” Tom asked.
He knew very little of wolves, but he did know of the border referred to as the Line of Control. The wolves were supposed to live on the other side of that border and wizards patrolled the area, making sure they did.
He couldn’t understand why they were here, or what they wanted. No one answered him, and as he got to his feet he knew it was because they couldn’t because they didn’t know either.
The wolves had them encircled but they didn’t attack. From atop the hill, three stepped out from the rest. The one in the middle walked a little ahead of the two that flanked him on each side.
“Wait here,” Cindy said and, with staff in hand, she took slow hesitant steps forward before stopping ten or so metres ahead of the children.
As the wolves neared her, the two on either side stopped and sat up like guard dogs while the single wolf continued. It began to walk on its hind legs, its fur disappeared back into its body and its head shrank, as did its arms and legs.
Standing before Cindy was a tall man with broad shoulders and long, dirty blond hair. “I am Artur Balan,” he said.
Cindy did not reply but gripped her staff tightly and held it diagonally across her body like a shield.
“This is not our way, to kill women and children. But our king has returned and asked us of it, and so it must be,” Artur said somewhat sadly. He lowered his voice before he continued. “There is no need for anyone to die here. Give me the boy and we will leave.”
“What do you want with him?”
“I want nothing.” Artur gritted his teeth, before he sighed and added, “But I fear my king does not wish him well.”
Cindy turned her head ever so slowly, taking in the environs and the hundreds of wolves that surrounded them. “What happens if I don’t give him up?”
“You and I will battle.”
“And if I win?”
Artur smiled. It was not a cruel smile. “If you win, you would deserve to walk free with the boy.” The smile faded. “But we must fight to the last wolf.” He paused and then slowly added, “However, if you are able to defeat us all in single combat, one after the other...”
Cindy looked around at the wolves once more before she gave Artur a curt nod of agreement, turned and walked back towards the children. Tom had heard their conversation fully, even when Artur had spoken quietly. Her plan was suicidal.
“You can’t beat them all,” he said to her.
She leaned in and whispered, “I don’t need to.”
Her eyes indicated upwards where the angel’s wings burned. She didn’t need to beat even one. All she had to do was last long enough till help came.
“Don’t do anything stupid,” Cindy said to Saafir.
“Wouldn’t dream of it,” he muttered.
“Or anything clever,” she said to the twins and they both shook their heads solemnly.
“Have you ever fought a wolf before?” Tom asked.
Cindy shook her head. “I had never seen one till today,” she said. “But don’t worry,” she smiled weakly as she walked off, “how hard can it be?”
Hard enough was what Tom thought. He knew enough of the history. The wizards were losing the war against the wolves. They had no answer for their strength and speed. Wolves rampaged through wizard towns and cities at ease, burning and biting. The wizards didn’t win the war, the wolves suddenly broke rank one day and fled.
Tom wondered why they were back. What did they want with him? Up ahead, Cindy gave a slight bow before she took a few steps back. Artur did not bow back, but he changed into a wolf in the blink of an eye. The duel had begun.
Artur charged at Cindy. She raised her staff but it mattered not as the wolf deflected it aside before he crashed into her chest and knocked her to the ground. He bit into her staff, pulled it out of her hand and flung it away, out of sight and out of reach.
It wasn’t hard to see why wizards had struggled to contain the wolves. The speed and strength Tom just witnessed was incredible.
Artur changed into human form and circled the grounded Cindy, stalking her, waiting for her to get up. Tom could see the glow in her fists as she lay on the ground. And then she was up and quick at throwing her first punches. But Artur was quicker still, even in human form, and he simply moved out of the way or deflected them. The one or two that did connect seemed to have little or no effect.
And then he hit her, right in the stomach, and Cindy dropped to her knees where she stayed. Artur waited for her to get up before it began again, and again he blocked her attacks easily before he moved in to hit her, and again she dropped to the ground.
It wasn’t going well. Each time, Cindy took longer to get up. She couldn’t take much more. Soon she wouldn’t be able to get up at all. As she fell again, Tom made to move towards her but hands grabbed hold of him and held him back.
“She’s going to die,” he shouted at them.
But they didn’t let go.
“She just needs to hold on a little longer,” Saafir said.
But she couldn’t. Cindy had given up trying to punch and had resorted to using magic from afar. It had little effect. Artur barely flinched before he moved in for another hit. He didn’t seem to be enjoying it. There was no gloating, no mocking and with every punishment he handed down upon her, his face grew grimmer.
And then it happened.
He kicked her in the chest. Cindy didn’t drop to the ground. She rolled down the hill and came to a stop at their feet. A groan escaped her lips before she curled up in a crumpled heap.
The hands let go of Tom and he knelt beside her. Her face was badly bruised and blood dripped from the side of her mouth. He couldn’t see any broken bones though. He didn’t know much about the wizard body, but he was sure that was a good sign.
“You’re going to be OK,” he told her.
“I’m sorry, Thomas,” she said, her eyes closed.
Artur had walked up to the top of the hill and stood there, waiting. Tom had to go, he knew, and he got up, wishing to walk on his own accord instead of being dragged there by the wolves.
He took a deep breath and filled his lungs with air. He held his chest up and his head high. He was terrified. But he wouldn’t let them know that. Tom had taken only his second step when Jenna grabbed hold of his hand.
“No.” She shook her head. “No, no, no.” Her eyes began to water.
Tom looked away and gently pulled his hand free. “I have to go,” he said, “I’ll-”
“No,” Jenna said and she grabbed hold of him again.
“He has to go,” Saafir said. He put his hand on hers, pried it off Tom and held onto it. “We’ll get them,” he promised.
Tom nodded and continued to walk up the hill. He wondered again what the wolves could want with him. He knew little about them, but he did know they hated wizards, Zarlocks and Le Fays alike. So it made little sense for them to come here for him specifically.
Their king had returned, Artur had said, and had asked for him. He didn’t know the wolves had a king...
He hadn’t gotten very far when someone grabbed him by the arm and pulled him back. They had to stop doing that, Tom thought. He turned to see Saafir holding onto him with one hand and pointing skyward with the other.
“Phoenix,” he said.
Tom looked up. Above him was that red bird, the one that would sometimes sit on his porch, the one that had woken him once by pecking on his nose. It was flying over them. The wolves all around were no longer standing idly, they were running towards him. Even Artur, who had changed back into a wolf, galloped down the hill.
“What’s going on?” Tom asked.
&
nbsp; The phoenix swooped down. Flying low, its tail burst into flames and touched the ground, setting it ablaze. It flew in a circle around them, surrounding them in a ring of fire, keeping the wolves out.
Jenna knelt down and squeezed Cindy’s shoulder. “Look, the flames of the Phoenix,” she said. “We’re saved.”
Tom couldn’t see how being trapped by flames twenty feet high saved them. They were going to suffocate to death if the heat didn’t kill them first. But there was no heat, none that he could feel. The wolves on the other side, the ones that had been closest to him as the flames came up, dug their heels into the ground to stop from running into it before they cowered away.
“Phoenixes control their fire,” Saafir said. “All the heat is on the outside.”
Maybe they were saved, Tom thought as he saw Artur, back in human form, standing at the edge of the flames on the other side. Cindy opened her eyes briefly before they closed again. Her lips moved but they made no sound. They leaned in to hear her faint whisper. “...flames will not last forever. The wolves will come.”
“They don’t have to last forever,” Saafir said determinedly. “Just long enough for help to arrive.”
That had been the plan all along, to buy some time and wait for help. There were the wings of an angel in the sky. There were wizards not very far away in the school. If help was to come, Tom wondered, shouldn’t it have been here already?
“What if help doesn’t come?” he asked.
“It will.”
“Why aren’t they here already?”
“They’ll come,” Saafir said, though he didn’t sound so sure anymore.
“We can’t wait anymore,” Jenna said slowly. “We need another plan.”
“We’ll fight them.”
Jenna laughed haughtily. “Fight them all? Who? You?” she scoffed at Saafir. “Just a minute ago you wanted to let him go, and now you want to fight them?”
“That was before the phoenix-”
“Yes, phoenixes bring good luck, but your stupidity will compensate for any it does bring us,” Jenna said irritably. “We have to get out of here,” she added.
“That’s a brilliant idea. Why didn’t we think of that before?” Saafir muttered sullenly and quietly.
Jenna still heard him. “Shut up,” she told him.
“I can jump...” Cindy said. She was trying to sit up. Gemma held her by the shoulder and steadied her.
“You can jump?” Saafir’s face lit up and almost instantly became sad again. “There is no place to jump to.”
“House of Zarlock,” Cindy said and she closed her eyes. “You flew over it.”
“What’s a jump?” Tom asked.
“It could work,” Jenna said slowly.
“I’ve never been there,” Cindy said. She opened her eyes then. “But you have.”
“What’s a jump?” Tom asked again.
“What do you need from us?” Jenna asked.
“Gather round.” She leaned forward and held both her hands out. They sat around her and joined hands, Tom a little reluctantly. He still didn’t know what a jump was, and he was a little annoyed that they were ignoring him.
“I need one person to think of a place in the House of Zarlock for me to jump to. Think of the place you know most well, the place you can see most clearly in your head.”
Saafir and the twins turned to look at Tom. “What’s a jump?” he asked, a little crossly.
“It’s when someone opens a portal to move from one place to another in an instant,” Jenna said.
“Very few people can actually jump,” Saafir said.
“And almost every place has anti-flying and jumping spells covering them,” Jenna said. “No-one likes it when somebody suddenly appears in their house. Also, the portal stays open for awhile after the jump, which can be annoying.”
“The House of Zarlock didn’t have any anti-flying charms protecting it, so it might not have ones for jumps either,” Saafir said.
It made sense, sort of, Tom thought. “What do you want me to do?”
“Picture clearly the place we’re to jump to,” Jenna said. “Cindy’s never been to the House of Zarlock. We all have...” She paused. “...but you know it best.”
She was right; he did know the place best. He spent most nights wandering its halls. He could quite vividly picture a few places without trying too hard.
“Ok,” Tom agreed.
“Please, let’s hurry.” Gemma worriedly looked over the flames towards the hill. “I think Artur’s about to make a jump of his own.”
The wolf was back at the top of the hill in his animal form. With his head down, front legs crouched, back legs raised, he dashed down.
“Keep your minds blank of places,” Cindy said to everyone else.
Jenna said to Tom, “Remember, one place to jump to.”
Tom closed his eyes and thought of the room where the wand of Zarlock lay. It was as good a place as any. He was holding Jenna’s hand with his right, and Cindy’s with his left. Warmth from both their hands flowed through his.
Something was happening. They were about to jump.
He was supposed to picture a place, but his mind was suddenly blank, void of all images. The ground beneath him shook. The portal was opening. Think of a place to jump to, you idiot, he mentally scolded himself.
In a state of panic, Tom remembered flying over the bridge, just in front of the house. There was clear open space there. He focused his mind just as he felt the ground give way, as he felt himself being sucked in. He heard shouting and screaming. He opened his eyes.
They were falling.
The portal had opened up in mid-air. They were too far from the ground. They were falling to their deaths.
Chapter 36
They were in trouble, and Tom knew why. He had pictured the spot from above, remembering it as he had flown over on a broom. And that was where the portal had opened, in mid-air. It was his fault they were now falling to their deaths.
“You bloody idiot!” Gemma screamed at him.
He already knew that. She didn’t have to yell it at him. But he did wonder if anyone could have made that mistake. Everything happened so quickly, he'd panicked.
“Don’t let go of each other,” Cindy said over the noise of the rushing wind as they continued to fall.
Tom had no plans of letting go of anyone. He instinctively did the opposite. He pulled closer to Cindy, not knowing why. Maybe he wanted to be close to someone in his last moments... Jenna, who was on top of him, wrapped her arms around him and hugged so tightly her nails dug into his chest.
They were close to the ground when Cindy stretched her hand out and held open her palm, facing down. They didn’t stop falling, but they slowed suddenly. And then they hit the ground.
Tom landed with a thud on his front, Jenna still on his back. He rolled over, trying to get her off him. His vision became blurry and the sounds of the waterfall were replaced by a loud ringing noise in his head. As his vision returned, he became aware of someone standing over him.
“You idiot! You idiot! You idiot!” Gemma repeatedly hit him all over with both hands. “You could have killed us all you thick, wool-headed idiot!”
His hands remained where they were, by his sides. He didn’t try to stop her. He felt like he deserved it. He had almost killed them all. Gemma eventually tired of hitting him and stomped off to check on Cindy, who lay on her side curled up in a ball with her eyes closed.
Tom sat up and rubbed the side of his head. He had landed awkwardly, it hurt a lot, and it should have bruised and bled, but it hadn’t. There were minor scrapes on his knees and elbows, but other than that he was OK.
He stood up shakily, still holding his head, and made to move towards Cindy when he heard a loud roar. He paused to look over his shoulder and at the steps that led up to the House of Zarlock. But the roar hadn’t come from inside the house; it came from above, where the portal remained open.
It was Artur.
He didn’
t slow down as he fell. But he didn’t need to. He was a strong and powerful werewolf and he landed on his four feet. His head swayed a little as his yellow eyes took in the surroundings. They settled on Tom and the wolf gave a low growl as his teeth gritted.
“Run,” Saafir told him.
Tom hurried towards the house, not knowing where else to go. He scrambled up the steps, trying to take three at a time, sometimes succeeding, other times almost tripping. As he reached the top the doors flung open.
Another roar filled the air, and this time it did come from within the house. It was Shera. The tiger was galloping down the hall, his black and white stripes reflecting off the green marble creating a beautifully frightening image.
Behind Tom, Artur the wolf was already at the bottom step, and in front of him Shera the tiger was at the door. Tom crouched down and put his arms over his head just as the tiger leaped into the air.
There was an almighty thud above, and then two bodies landed on top of him. Growling and snarling, their claws dug into each other as tufts of fur flew about. Tom rolled out from underneath as the two beasts separated.
Shera charged at Artur. His paws grabbed him by the chest and his jaws closed around the side of the wolf’s face. They tumbled down the steps, once again gripped together. Tom watched as the two enormous and magnificent-looking beasts clashed. Their jaws, the sharp glistening teeth, the fur that floated above – mostly the brown of the wolf – the claws digging into each other drawing blood, the prowling before the beasts charged, clunking as their bodies slammed into each other – it was mesmerising.
The door to the House of Zarlock was still open and Tom managed to draw his eyes away long enough to appreciate the good fortune. He hadn’t planned for this, but he was here now... He turned and walked in.
There was an oddity about finally being in the place of his dreams. This very hall he had walked so many nights, and now he was really here. There was no time to take in the moment. He ran past the silver and green pillars, through the door at the end, through another corridor, another room, and then another. Doors opened for him as he approached each one.
The Other Side (Thomas Skinner Book 1) Page 20