“What happened here?”
Rigo stepped over the debris, wrapped his one arm around her shoulder and directed her back towards the center of the room.
“Doesn’t matter.”
“Well, I…” She looked over her shoulder at the mess.
“Bala.” Wraithe reached out and touched her hand. It was cold to the touch. He ignored it to focus on her face. “Just tell us about your vision.”
She nodded and released a breath.
“I don’t know what to make of it, really. I don’t know where these come from…”
“Bala, we all know of your visions. They’ve proven true time and again. Just tell us.” Wraithe spoke calmly, with authority.
She pressed her lips tightly together and nodded at him.
“There was a storm, like… black clouds, swirling over land. It was dark energy, of that I’m sure. I felt it. Everything was lit in orange, like fires were burning somewhere. Then I saw a castle spring up from the ground, then a second… the first castle I recognized. It was this one… only…” She growled in frustration.
“Bala, you’re doing great. Just keep going.” Rigo encouraged her.
“Well, I just… I couldn’t tell whether it was actually this one…” She raised her arms, gesturing to the four walls of the castle they stood in. “Or the original, the inspiration for this one. I know you drew this one from the vision, but we all know now, it’s Luxe’s castle from Bella Sol. The vision I had simply isn’t clear enough for me to distinguish them to know which it was. The second castle I didn’t recognize at all, but when I described it to Ivin, she did.”
Bala quieted, looking now to Ivin.
“It was the one inside the Magic Kingdom, Wraithe. I’m pretty sure of it. She described it near perfect, and as she’s never seen it...” She raised one shoulder and lowered it.
“She’s right, I’ve never been there, so I don’t know. But the one in my vision was white, blue tiles on its roof, lovely stained glass on the back. Overall, rather simplistic for a castle. It seemed small, but…”
“Yeah, that sounds like their castle, but focus, what else happened in the vision?” Wraithe directed her back on topic.
“A great battle happened. Wraithe, this wasn’t like one of my normal flashes, this was… I don’t know, it was…”
He took both her hands in his and rubbed the backs with his thumbs.
“Don’t worry about it making sense. Just tell us what you saw.”
“I saw ogres… with axes. I saw the roahn-ami. They were preparing for a great battle. They were pouring into the space around those castles, which I swear looked like what you would call a suburban neighborhood.” She looked pained as she spoke.
“You’re doing great, Bala. Don’t worry about making sense of it. Just keep going.” Again, Wraithe encouraged her even as he took in all the detail that she spoke of.
She drew a breath and nodded. Her gaze drifted off again, as if she was seeing again the vision.
“People are dead. Humans, I’m pretty sure. It’s like the neighborhood has been abandoned or… or else, everyone is dead and after that, I saw an enormous black cloud pouring out of the sky like… like…” She searched the ceiling as if looking for the word there.
“I don’t know.” She looked at Wraithe, pained. “That’s all there really was. It ended in that neighborhood. There were ravens though, just two of them. The houses were burned, some of them, there are toys on the lawns, cars on fire… I don’t understand really. I’m so sorry.” She ended in frustration.
He wrapped his arms around her.
“Don’t be sorry. You did amazing.” Wraithe played over in his head all she’d just told him, but it honestly didn’t make sense to him either.
“Wraithe, I have a thought.” Ivin spoke up.
He released Bala and turned back to Ivin.
“Okay.” He gestured giving permission to go on.
“There are a lot of rumblings within my kind. You know the witches aren’t loyal to anyone but themselves, but lately, I’m seeing lines being drawn, allegiances made. I’m seeing too many pairing with the vampires. It worries me. I didn’t want to say anything at the summit, but honestly, I feel it too, a dark rising. It’s in the ground beneath our feet, like it’s just waiting to burst through, and the vampires must be feeling it too. They’re seeing this as their time to take over the humans. Wraithe, the humans are in no way prepared to participate in a supernatural battle between the light and the dark. They’ll be annihilated. ”
“The Marrow already fell.” Rigo spoke out loud, though it seemed to be more in thought then statement.
“I saw that first hand. I wouldn’t wish something of that nature on anyone.” Bala spoke. “They took us by night, we never saw it coming. We’d become complacent in the world we’d built. So many died, Wraithe… we can’t allow that to happen here.” Panic edged each of her words.
Wraithe remembered the day the royals came through the portal. They were the last hope to someday push back the dark, but the opportunity to put them back in power had never come.
“So you think the dark is coming here?” He asked Ivin. “To Elethiya?”
She shook her head.
“Elethiya, the town, the falls, the park, they sit on protected land. It’s had protection spells on it longer than humans have been here. I think that’s why nothing attacked Bala the night the other royals were taken. I don’t think they have the power to break the spells on the land.”
He took that in. It made sense. He, himself, had taken part in the protection ceremonies on each solstice. So if they couldn’t attack on Elethiya…
“The rest of the planet is vulnerable.” His mind scrambled. There was no way to combat a full scale attack when they didn’t know when or where it was coming. Add into that any of the other races or sects seeing this as their time to make a move on the humans, and there was no way to be that prepared.
How would they ever be able to set up a full scale defense on this planet? Even if they mobilized all their allies, even with the few humans who knew the truth, the dark would have dark magic, the best they would have was earth magic. It was a losing proposition. It horrified him.
“We cannot allow the dark to take this realm. If they get Earth…”
“They’ll have access to everything.” Rigo finished for him.
“I can’t believe they have the power for that sized assault.” Ivin spoke up. “But given Bala’s vision…” She licked her lips, radiating nervous energy. “I think they’re coming after the kingdom.”
“But you said Elethiya was protected.” He was confused.
“I did. It is.” She shook her head as if to straighten her thoughts. “Wraithe, they aren’t coming after your kingdom… They’re coming after Walt’s kingdom.”
Chapter Five
Wraithe tried to take in Ivin’s words, the meaning of Ivin’s words, but it was too horrifying a thought.
“What do you mean they’re coming after Walt’s kingdom?” He grabbed her arm and yanked her to face him.
“Wraithe, calm down.” Rigo reprimanded him.
“Just what I said.” She seemed frustrated. “You know the prophecies better than almost anyone, Wraithe. There are four tells of the coming end. Isn’t your species here to stop that?”
Wraithe wasn’t sure if her frustration was directed at him, or if it was badly masked fear, but her emotion pushed him hard. He wanted her to stop. He wanted all of this to stop.
“One.” She yanked her arm out of his grasp and held up one finger. “Two men, closer than brothers, divided by that which they love, build two kingdoms that war against one another. I know religious scholars assume that to be the brothers of the Christian bible who birthed the tear in the Levant. You and I know, it’s not written so plainly in history, is it?”
He didn’t like her implications. He didn’t like the fear he felt as it slowly embedded its claws through the back of his neck.
“You and Walt
, I saw you guys. You were closer than brothers.” She furrowed her brow and pointed a finger at his heart.
“Until I betrayed him!” He raged.
“You didn’t betray him.” Rigo stepped in and placed his hand on his brother’s arm. “Wraithe, you followed a dream, literally. Some type of fairy creature or angel appeared to you. Did you conveniently forget that?”
Wraithe walked away from them both and drew a deep breath.
“Yes. No.” He shook his head and turned to face them. “I haven’t forgotten. I remember her like it was five seconds ago. She had eyes like the Aegean Sea, hair silver blonde, and she was the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen.”
He looked at his hand, remembering once again how it felt when she touched him.
“She told me to build a kingdom here at the falls. She said it was the only way to protect them in the coming age.” His heart ached at the memory. “I didn’t know anything other to do than to mimic Walt’s kingdom from California. He always called himself the king of Disneyland. It was his kingdom and it suited him so well. It seemed to make sense, given what the angel had said, but I had no idea he wanted to build here. So I did. I built a kingdom as the angel commanded.” He slumped and dropped his gaze to the wood floor boards. “And I broke Walt’s heart in the process.”
Ivin walked over to him and took both his hands in hers.
“Did you ever consider that the angel that appeared to you also appeared to him?”
Her words snagged on his conscious, bringing him fully back into the now.
“I can see you haven’t, but Wraithe, think of the legend. Think of Bala’s vision. This land, right where we stand, was the scene of one of the greatest battles in all of creation. The Dragon Clans scorched this earth until there was nothing remaining but death and bones. This is the legend of your people. You know it better than I.” She nudged him.
He knew the legend. It lived in his soul as if he, himself, had been there. He simply couldn’t speak it.
“It is said that the falls themselves healed the land and called for protectors.” Rigo spoke up. “Those of us here now, we are those that were called, given the sacred duty of protecting those falls, and that’s why you built this park when the angel told you to.”
“Yes, and Bala’s vision speaks of what comes next. The two kingdoms…”
“Two kingdoms will save the seven.” Bala all of a sudden spoke.
“What?” Wraith voiced the thoughts of all three as they turned to look at the dark haired beauty standing in silence in the corner of the room.
“I… I don’t know… it just came to me.” Confusion shone on her face. “I’m sorry.”
“No. Don’t be.” Ivin reached out to her, and Bala came closer. “That’s the second prophecy, the war between the two earth kingdoms.”
“I will not go to war against Walt’s kingdom. You don’t know, you didn’t see the look… you didn’t see the pain…no …you didn’t see the anguish in his eyes when I denied him the land…. When he finally understood that I wasn’t going to give into him. He felt betrayed to his core. I remember standing side by side with him through the strike, and how betrayed he felt then, how gutted. It didn’t seem to even touch what I did to him. God, that look, it still burns me to this day.” Wraithe cried out in his own pain.
Ivin dropped against his shoulder, tugging him close to her.
“You couldn’t sell him this land, Wraithe. We all know that.” She looked up into his eyes. “He was a good man, a god among dreamers, but he wasn’t immortal. He wasn’t the one assigned to protect this land and its falls.”
She placed her hand over his heart. “Forgive yourself, Wraithe. This guilt is causing your suffering, and compromising your service to the people you are here to protect. It’s gone on long enough, and if no one else has the balls to say it, I will. You are not the man you once were. You’ve let guilt and the loss of your friend… dare I say, brother, eat at you for decades. It’s more than time to let it go. If we’re about to face the dark, here, on this land, we need you.” She practically begged him.
“She’s right, Wraithe.” Rigo spoke up. “We’ve all been doing what we could to protect you, to let you grieve, but if all this is true… We can’t allow it to move on to the fourth prophecy. The sacred seven requires the humans and… Don’t take this the wrong way, I love the humans, but they are a chaotic mess right now. If the seven suns prophecy is triggered, I have absolutely no faith the light would prevail.”
“That’s harsh.” Bala spoke up. “The third prophecy is about love, and true love will always win.”
“Says the fairy tale princess.” Rigo stung her with his words.
“That’s not fair. I may be nothing more than a fairy tale in this realm, but in my own… Luxe and I had to overcome great darkness to be together. Our love won out, even when I didn’t think it could. I’ve seen the dark up close and personal. I’ve fought it and I will again if I must, but don’t underestimate love, Rigo. It’s far more powerful than you realize.” Bala blasted him with her passion and fear mixed.
“This isn’t the time for any of this. All that matters now is Wraithe. We need you back. You have to fulfill this prophecy.” Ivin pleaded with him.
“Excuse me, Sir. Great apologies, but… Oh!” A young adult male came through the door. He wore a knit cap, had a scruff of facial hair and clutched a laptop to his chest. When he realized he wasn’t alone, he pulled off the cap and ran his hand through his hair before he smiled.
“This isn’t the best time, Oz. What is it?” Wraithe addressed him.
“Ah… well I… It’s easier to show you.” He sat his laptop down on the dark wood table in the center of the room, opened it and started pushing buttons.
Wraith, Rigo, Bala, and Ivin all moved in closer to be able to view the screen.
“You asked me to survey all the surveillance.” He chuckled and looked up for approval, but was only met with stares. He pressed his lips into a thin line and went back to keying in a sequence of numbers and letters on the laptop. “Well, I found this.”
An image of a woman came on the screen. She had long blonde hair, and was in some kind of sleeping trance, elevated above nothing.
“It’s Blu.” Wraithe spoke firmly.
“Ah… no, Sir. Her gown is clearly pink and…”
“She would never wear pink!” Bala exclaimed. “She hated what it did to her complexion.”
“I don’t give a damn if the dress is blue, pink, or plaid. The woman, it’s Blu Stevens, betrothed to Prince Phillip of the twelfth realm, or as most of us know it, the Marrow.”
“Is that a kitten?” Ivin pointed at something on the screen, causing the other four to look closer.
“No… uh, I do believe, that is a rose.” Oz gave words to what the rest were thinking.
“If you saw a kitten, Ivin, then that’s her protector. He’s shifting. He usually takes the form of an owl, but if it’s shifting, there’s something in the energy that’s making it hard to hold its form.” Bala twisted her fingers in visible worry as she spoke.
“Well there’s clearly an energy field around her.” Rigo pointed to some distortions in the picture.
“Ivin, can you tell through this screen if her soul is intact?” Wraithe hoped they could at least get one of their questions answered about the fate of the missing women.
“No. I’d need to be able to touch her, or at least step into her energy field, but Bala can.”
Bala took a step back and rung her hands.
“I don’t feel it.” She rubbed her arms as if she’d just gotten a chill.
“Soul, no soul, kitten, rose, blue, pink, all great questions of the world, but are we forgetting the most important one?” Rigo stood there and stared at them all for a second before finishing his statement. “Where the hell is she?”
“Ah… Sirs… Madams…” Oz blushed. “It’s clear she’s inside the castle at the Magic Kingdom.” He pointed to several identifying markers: flags han
ging on the walls, tables, chairs. But none was more clear than the slight view of a carousel through the large leaded glass windows.
“The one here?” Rigo asked.
Oz looked at him as if he’d sprouted a second head.
“There is only one Magic Kingdom. If you are confusing Disneyland in California with…”
“We don’t have time for the full history of the Disney legacy right now, Oz.” Wraithe placed his hand on the boy’s shoulder and he silenced immediately.
Rigo laughed outright and all the others stopped to stare at him.
“What?” He splayed his hand out towards the screen. “They put Sleeping Beauty inside Cinderella’s castle. Even the dark can’t keep that shit straight, so don’t jump on me.”
Wraith rolled his eyes.
Ivin snickered.
“Have they figured out she’s there?” Wraith asked the most obvious of questions, knowing there may have been an invisibility spell, but then how would the cameras have picked her up.
“Oh no. They know.” Oz punched in a few other numbers and the camera angle switched.
“Oh.” Wraithe uttered just the one word upon viewing the picture of what looked to be seventy personnel from the combined forces of park security, Reedy Creek, and the Orange County sheriff’s department.
There was a barricade in place, every Disney suit within probably a fifty mile radius was present and accounted for, and the cherry on top − at least two agents from the FBI.
“We’re going to need a containment crew.” Rigo stated the obvious.
All five of them stood in silence for a moment taking in the scene before Bala asked, “How do we get her out of there?”
Wraithe thought about that for a moment. There were several options, they simply had to choose the one that had the highest success potential and lowest human casualty risk.
“Uh… Sirs…” Oz broke in, his voice trembled.
“Oh what now?” Wraithe’s patience was being pushed to its limits.
He looked back to the screen which had yet another angle on the camera, one outside the castle where there were no less than twenty roahn-ami coming into view.
The Failsafe Prophecies Page 5