Dragon's Awakening (Heir of Dragons: Book 1)
Page 22
He said this all in a rush, not looking at her.
“I’m…sorry,” Kaylee said. “That must have been horrible.”
“It was. Until you started training with me. You helped me focus and I got better. I actually started having fun again. And I…” He faltered. He glared out of the float’s flap as they entered the gym and the harsh overhead lights cast down. The float ground to a halt but they both stayed where they were.
“Never mind,” Edwin finished.
“No, what?”
“It doesn’t matter, Kaylee. Look, the Slayers want the meteorite, and we can keep it from them. You can either come with me or leave, but you aren’t stopping me.”
Kaylee peeked outside. Their float was last in the line. Some doors leading out of the gym were nearby and parade participants were busy beginning to disassemble their respective floats.
“Well I’m definitely not leaving now,” Kaylee said. “But I swear, you’re going to tell me why you keep throwing yourself in danger before we die.”
It could have been the light, but Kaylee swore Edwin blushed. Then he broke out in a genuine smile. “Sure. Whatever. Just follow me.”
“No, you follow me,” Kaylee said, leaping out of the float and dashing through the doors. She heard Edwin curse and follow.
They emerged in a darkened hallway.
“You don’t even know where to go!” Edwin said, catching up to her.
“And you do?”
“I have a better idea, yeah.”
Kaylee stepped aside and dramatically waved her arms forward. “By all means, lead the way, noble one. Just let me know if you see Brendan. I owe that guy exactly one pummeling for what he did to me.”
Edwin glanced at her. “You ran into him at the festival? Did something happen?”
“He forced me to kiss him, then stole one of my scales.”
Edwin stopped. “He kissed you?”
“And stole my scale, yeah. The jerk.”
“But he kissed you?”
“I already said that, Edwin. Stop repeating me.”
It took Edwin a second to catch up with her, mumbling, “I’ll murder him, too.”
Schools were eerie at night, Kaylee decided. What was as bright and cheery as a school could be during the day was now swamped in shadows and alcoves of darkness in which anything could lurk. What made it worse was the constant threat of Brendan or the Slayers popping out at any moment.
Once they entered a large hall marked A, Edwin lowered his voice to barely a whisper. “The other Convocation won’t like us on their turf so let’s be cautious.”
“But we’re part of the same group.”
Edwin shrugged. “Think of it like a family. We’re all the same, but we don’t always get along.”
Edwin led them through the cafeteria to another hallway of classrooms and lockers.
“Why are they even keeping the meteorite in a school?” Kaylee whispered after they’d searched for a few more minutes. “Seems like they’re putting the students in danger.”
“Schools are some of the most heavily protected and charmed places in a city where a Convocation is,” Edwin said. “Plus, during the day there’re usually at least a couple dragon-kin or Merlins inside.”
“Seemed pretty easy for us to get in.”
Edwin put up a hand to stop her. “That’s what has me worried.”
They had reached the Band Hall, at the far end of another wing. Edwin squinted ahead into the darkness. “They usually have charms specifically to ward off other Merlins and Slayers. Maybe—”
Kaylee felt another presence join theirs. Out of the darkness stepped—themselves.
Kaylee had to blink a few times to make sure she wasn’t seeing things.
It was as if a mirror had been placed right in front of them. No matter which way Kaylee turned an exact clone of her followed. Edwin, too, was attempting to go around his doppelganger, but it kept stepping in his way.
“Let’s just pass through them,” Edwin said. “They’re only high level illusions, they can’t actually hurt us—”
Other-Edwin shoved him. Edwin stumbled back, his eyes widening.
“Oh. Crap.”
Kaylee felt the hairs on her neck prickle. She instinctively ducked just as a ball of lightning shot over her head and hit one of the lockers.
“They have our powers?” She yelled, backpedaling into a run along with Edwin. “How did they get our powers?”
“They’re not really our powers,” Edwin said, as they careened back down the hall. “They’re Mimics. Their magic only looks like what we can do.”
As if to prove his point Kaylee glanced back just in time to see Other-Kaylee hurl a chunk of ice at her legs. It slammed into her calves. She expected an explosion of cold, for bits of ice to build up on her skin, but there was only a sharp stinging.
Okay, so they didn’t exactly have their powers. But it still hurt. A lot.
Edwin swiveled around the next corner and unleashed a barrage of light beams from the tips of his fingers. The Mimics ducked as chunks of plaster kicked up in the air around them.
“That’ll buy us some time!”
“No it won’t!”
Kaylee had just looked ahead. Somehow the Mimics had driven them back out through the cafeteria, herding them towards the other side of the school. Here the hallways were narrower. And not just narrower, Kaylee realized. They were closing in on them, trying to trap them in place.
Kaylee could see an opening up ahead, but the lockers were almost touching them on either side. Magic careened over her shoulder from behind as the Mimics resumed the chase.
“Slide!” She yelled to Edwin.
They hit the floor at the same time, shoes squeaking. Kaylee felt the brush of metal as the left wall tried to pin her to the opposite side.
Then they were through. Edwin helped her up. The hallway behind them was no wider than their bodies. The Mimics glared at them through the small opening, but they couldn’t go any farther.
Until the walls began to recede again.
“Run,” Edwin suggested.
“Good plan,” Kaylee answered.
Edwin led them through another maze of stairs, curling hallways, dead ends and back down again. They finally reached the end of another hall.
“Wait! Let’s try here!” Edwin said. They screeched to a halt in front of a pair of large double doors. The plaque above it said Library.
They ran in, slammed the door shut, and waited. A moment later pounding feet echoed off the tile outside. The noise paused, then moved on, growing further away from them.
“Now that was cool,” Edwin said. “Never thought I’d see actual Mimics.”
Kaylee glared at him, then took a look at where they’d ended up.
Inside the library, large bay windows let in moonlight that doused the shelves and study tables in an otherworldly glow. Another floor ringed overhead. Kaylee and Edwin came across an open space just past the first row of bookshelves.
“Of course they’d put it on display,” Edwin said disapprovingly. He indicated to the glass cases spaced every few feet against the back wall. In one, Kaylee could see a ceremonial Native American head dress; another held shards of broken pottery.
“Does anyone actually pay attention to this stuff?” Kaylee said, peering through the nearest glass at a horrendously ugly collection of artisanal teacups.
“Not really,” Edwin said. “That’s why it’s the perfect place to store important items. Found it!”
He was peering down at a lump of shiny metal no bigger than Kaylee’s fist. Edwin gently poked the glass. He closed his eyes for a moment and took a deep breath. After a moment he nodded.
“I can see what they did. Pretty clever, too.”
“Can you get it out?”
“With you, yes. Dual lock system. Needs both a Merlin and a dragon-kin to open. Makes it near impossible to open for most Slayers groups.” He readjusted his stance. “Here, put your hands on the other side.�
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“Edwin, this thing is clearly safe. What are we going to do with it?”
“Make it safer. The Slayers know it’s here, so all we have to do is move it and they’ll have no chance to complete the spell before the Dragon Moon. Come on, put your hands there.”
Kaylee reluctantly did so. As her fingers hovered over the glass the shelves around them rustled. Kaylee swore she heard the sound of skin scraping against book bindings, like something slinking its way ever closer. She shivered.
“Let’s get this over with—”
The glass began to glow the second she touched it. The coolness grew ever hotter—Kaylee thought for sure her fingers would be nothing but a mass of charred blisters—before suddenly cooling again. The light faded. The glass had vanished.
“It worked!” Edwin grasped the meteorite. “It worked! I thought it would!”
“You weren’t sure?” Kaylee said. “What would have happened if it hadn’t worked?”
“No clue. Good thing it did, right?”
“Great job, kid,” Brendan said, stepping out of the shadows. Slayers peeled off beside him and surrounded them, weapons ready. “Now give it to us and maybe you’ll live.”
Chapter Twenty-Eight
In an instant Kaylee drew on her magic, struggling to conceal how much the effort now drained her. Edwin stepped forward, partially shielding her body with his.
“Not going to happen, Brendan,” Edwin said.
Brendan rolled his eyes. “An idiot Merlin who can hardly cast a spell, and a dragon-kin who, from the looks of it,” his eyes drank her in hungrily, “is losing her powers. Whatever shall we do?”
Some of the Slayers laughed. Cursing, Kaylee dropped her shaking hands. She could keep them shifted, but her elemental magic felt as though it was on a battery. A very low battery.
“The meteorite, kid,” Brendan repeated, holding out a hand. “Won’t ask again.”
“Kid? You’re our age!”
“Yet infinitely wiser for choosing the winning side. Don’t worry about us harming your little girlfriend. We’ve still got a use for her. You on the other hand…”
He snapped his fingers. Kaylee noticed the shadows nearby had begun to swirl like a mid-air whirlpool.
“Edwin!”
She shoved him out of the way just before a long shape shot out of the darkness. Hard, needlelike hair slammed into her, sending her tumbling across the floor. Kaylee was up in an instant, swiveling to face her assailant.
It was a snake, or maybe something out of a nightmare—with a cylindrical body covered in coarse fur, oil black except for two piercing yellow eyes that locked on her. It snarled, revealing rows of jagged, crystalline teeth.
Then it leapt into another shadow and vanished.
“A Samarian shadow dancer,” Edwin gasped. “You’re crazy if you think you can control that!”
“We can control it well enough,” Brendan said. He snapped again. “Get the meteorite!”
A few of the Slayers charged. As tired as she was, Kaylee let what little fighting technique Maddox had taught her take over, settling her center of gravity and lashing out at the nearest one with a roundhouse kick.
Too slow.
The Slayer managed to duck and the kick glanced off his arm, right before his partner delivered a blow to Kaylee’s gut. She stumbled back, gasping for air. She ducked just out of reach of another’s grasp but they had driven her back, penning her into the corner.
Magic. She needed her magic back, otherwise—
The two Slayers bared down on her, weapons raised. There was a sudden flash of light. When Kaylee’s vision returned, the Slayers lay stunned on the ground. She felt Edwin fumbling for her hand.
“Follow me.”
“Can’t you guys do anything right?” Brendan yelled. He snapped his fingers again. “No wonder Lesuvius sends me to do everything!”
Edwin whirled on him, hands up and pulsing with magic. His face was lined with a concentration Kaylee had never seen before. His lips moved in perfect pronunciation.
“Ventas multra, valé—”
The nearest shadow rippled. Yellow eyes appeared in the darkness. Kaylee cried out a warning a second too late. There was a darting movement, and Edwin’s hand was tugged away as the shadow dancer shot forth, wrapped its lithe body around him, and pulled him into the nearest puddle of darkness without a sound.
“NO!”
“He won’t die yet, Kaylee,” Brendan promised. “Just come with me and I guarantee he won’t be harmed.”
Kaylee faced him. Rage bubbled through her almost as fast as the wave of fatigue. She desperately tried to summon her magic, but it was as if her veins were filled with sand. She let out a growl. “Screw you, Brendan.”
Brendan smirked. “I’ll take that as a no, then.”
“With you it was always a no.”
Brendan lunged for her. Kaylee spun low, escaping his grasp, and smashed the nearest display case with a scale-covered arm.
Beams of light erupted from the ground, spreading like an ink stain across the floor and shooting into the ceiling. Everything the light touched froze, as if trapped in time.
“Move, you idiots!” Brendan said as a couple Slayers tried to escape the spell but were stuck in place.
Kaylee hurdled over the nearest study table. She planted the library’s rear windows firmly in her sights. This was a bad idea. Such a terribly bad idea.
Brendan seemed to have realized what she was going to do.
“Stop her!” he roared.
But Kaylee had blocked out all distractions from her mind. She wrapped her coat tighter around her, lowered her shoulder, and plunged through the glass.
The grass outside was not as soft as she hoped it would be.
Kaylee’s world tilted as she hit. Shards of window peppered her face. There was the sharp sting of cuts in her hands. Alarms started wailing.
Had to move. She had to move.
Stumbling, Kaylee ran as fast as she could towards the distant festival lights, not caring if there were Slayers behind her or how badly she was bleeding or if anyone would see her. Only that they had Edwin and the meteorite and she was tired, so very, very tired.
Her shoe clipped a rock and she tripped. She managed to wobble to standing, only to fall again. An ambulance siren came to life nearby, peeling out from the fairground parking lot. Distantly, Kaylee heard someone yelling her name.
Jade was running towards her, eyes wide with shock. But she was still far away, and everything was so heavy.
“Kaylee, hold on!”
She couldn’t. Wouldn’t. Her vision flickered like an old TV set. She tried to get her mouth to work.
“They’ve got—”
Kaylee pitched forward. Her world went dark.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
The nightmares came in droves.
There were the simple ones at first, the tiny everyday worries that manifested themselves as endless falling, vacant corridors, monsters in the darkness. Once upon a time she would have awakened and reassured herself that it was all a dream, that none of it could hurt her.
Now she knew that monsters were all too real.
In her nightmare, Kaylee saw Edwin’s face; watched as he was dragged away by an unseen enemy while she screamed and reached for his hand, trying to bring him back.
He was gone.
He was not gone, a small voice inside her said. Just lost for a time.
And then her vision changed and she was staring at a great moon, hanging swollen and full over a barren landscape of rock and plant skeletons. Kaylee collapsed as she landed, her legs too weak to hold her.
“We’ve won,” Brendan said.
He stood on a cliff above her. Behind him, Lesuvius sneered down at her. “With you the spell is complete,” Brendan said.
Kaylee gasped as if a hot iron rod had been jammed down her spine. Her body was suddenly covered completely in scales. More pain, and Kaylee watched, horrified as the scales drifted away from
her, peeling off until there was nothing left of her but emptiness beneath.
“We’ve won,” Lesuvius repeated. “Those and those you love are dead. The age of the dragon-kin is over.”
Kaylee sat bolt upright, then immediately regretted it. Her head felt stuffed with cotton. Every muscle in her arms was sore and protesting.
She groaned and forced herself to clench her fists until her limbs felt halfway alive. She picked her head up, getting a look at where she was. She lay in a large four poster bed, soft sheets and pillows beneath her. The room was dimly lit. Mobiles of crystal shards glittered silently in mid-air. Posters of spells were plastered on the wall, half obscured behind tilting piles of books and scrolls and spilled ink bottles.
A lump formed in her throat. This was Edwin’s room. Any other time she might have flipped out at finding out she was in his bed, but the only thing she could focus on was: Edwin. They had Edwin, who may or may not have been dead already. And she hadn’t been able to stop it.
Kaylee could feel herself giving into despair, the beginnings of tears pushing at the back of her eyes. They had won.
They had not won. Not yet. And she wasn’t sad—well, she was—but more than that she was angry. Very, very angry.
Muted voices drifted to her from downstairs. Kaylee threw off the covers and stood. It took a second to regain her balance. Her entire body felt drained, as if she had just finished a ten-mile sprint. And there was something…else. Something missing, like a second skin she’d been wearing for a long time that had suddenly been stripped away.
Kaylee brought her hands up and tried to shift them.
Nothing happened.
No. That couldn’t be right.
Kaylee rushed to the window and threw aside the curtains. Late evening sunlight flooded the room. Kaylee blinked and tried to bat it away as her eyes adjusted. She had slept for almost an entire day.
But there, hanging clearly in the sky despite the hour, was the Dragon Moon. Half was a clear sickle shape, tinted slightly red like blood welling from a fresh wound. The other half was a silhouette, but together they both seemed to leer down at her, taunting.