“I’ve got to get the dragon’s attention or all this is for nothing,” Xander replied softly. His mind was elsewhere, not projected but rather focused on the task at hand. “L.A. is about fifty miles down the road. It’ll probably take you an hour or two to get there, considering you’ll be avoiding wrecks. Just… just don’t keep me waiting, okay?”
Jessica wiped away the dampness from her eyes before throwing her arms around his neck. She reached out until her arm slipped around Sean as well and pulled him into the hug. They stood like that for a long minute without saying a word. She broke her embrace quickly and coughed apologetically.
“I’m sorry. I just realized this might be the last time we’re all together like this. We’re about to go face down a dragon and…”
Her voice trailed away, but she needn’t finish her thought. They were all thinking it, even if they hadn’t yet said it.
“Be safe,” Sean told Xander.
“Yeah, you too.” Xander smiled weakly. “Don’t keep me waiting.”
Sean smirked. “Don’t kill the dragon without us.”
They all stood staring at one another a moment longer, surprised at how quickly their conversation had turned from lighthearted banter to a serious and depressing topic. They had all avoided it as though not talking about what was to come might make it a little less real. Now that Jessica had said it, it was all too real. This moment might be the very last time the three of them would be together.
“I have to go,” Xander said quietly.
Sean still smiled but was forced to wipe away a threatening tear. “I know. I just want you to know that I never really liked you and just used you to get close to your ex-girlfriend.”
Xander laughed, easing the tension. He glanced over toward Jessica, who had hidden her face behind her hands. “Well, good job. It worked.”
Sean pulled Xander into a tight hug, pounding him roughly on the back before quickly separating.
Without another word, Xander kicked off the ground and rose high into the air. As he leveled out and shot toward Los Angeles, the windows rocked from the sonic boom in his wake.
Sean sat behind the wheel of the ambulance. The engine wasn’t running, but he hardly seemed to notice. He considered turning it on a few times, especially as the sun started glaring through the front windshield and the temperature warmed considerably inside the vehicle, but instead, he just opened the door and draped a leg outside.
The front sliding doors of the hospital opened with a hiss. Jessica put her shoulder against the half-opened door and shoved harder. It was easy to forget how much more convenient the world was with electricity. Without it, everything became a bit more of a challenge.
She walked toward the ambulance and stopped beside the open door. Sean glanced briefly toward her before staring out the windshield.
“Penny for your thoughts?” she asked.
Sean shrugged but didn’t reply. She patted him affectionately on the leg before walking around the front of the ambulance. Opening the passenger door, she climbed inside.
“Come on, Sean, tell me what’s going on.”
Sean wiped the thin sheen of sweat from his brow as he turned toward her. He smiled weakly, but something was clearly on his mind. “I was just thinking about home.”
“You don’t really strike me as the homesick, sentimental type.”
Sean shook his head. “We haven’t been back since we took off with Xander on his great adventure. It’s been this crazy, chaotic trip, you know, with us going to a floating island, Atlantis, London, France, Mexico—“
“I don’t think it was Mexico,” she interrupted.
Sean shrugged noncommittally. “Don’t you wonder about our families? I don’t even know if my parents are still alive. I don’t know if my little sister survived. I mean, White Halls was crawling with Fire Warriors when they were looking for Xander. Don’t you ever wonder what happened with all that?”
“Of course I do,” Jessica said flatly. “My mom and stepdad probably lost their mind some time ago trying to figure out what happened to me. I don’t even know if they’re all right, but we don’t really have any way to check on them, do we?”
“We should have made Xander take us back, even if just for an hour or so.”
“When?” Jessica asked, laughing softly. “After we found Atlantis? After they dropped a building on us in London? After we hit a dragon with our truck in France? I don’t know your parents, Sean, but I can guarantee my family would have locked me up in a mental institute if I came back, telling them I’d just been swimming with a water nymph.”
Sean arched an eyebrow and looked over toward her. “You know the truth? My parents probably would have believed me. They would have asked me if I found any of the power and healing crystals Atlantis was so famous for in mythology.”
Jessica took his hand and squeezed it. “I think I’ll like your parents when I meet them.”
“Meeting the ‘rents,” Sean muttered. “Something tells me your parents won’t be quite as impressed.”
“That’s because you’re clearly dating up,” she replied, squeezing his hand again. “We should probably get going.”
Sean nodded and turned the key. The ambulance’s engine roared to life. As he dropped it into drive, he glanced over to her. “Any thoughts on what we’re going to say when we find Balor? I’m still drawing a blank.”
“I guess we’ll wing it,” Jessica replied.
“Winging it doesn’t really seem like your style.”
“Oh God, it isn’t. Everything about this adventure is driving me crazy.”
Sean laughed as he merged onto I-10, heading east down the westbound lane. There were plenty of cars in the way, but the ambulance was sturdy. It drove easily on the gravelly shoulder of the road, passing wrecks that blocked the path.
They drove a few miles in relative silence, passing the time with nonsensical and unimportant small talk. The interior of the ambulance fell silent as they saw explosions in the distance.
“Did you see that?” Sean asked, knowing she did.
“We’re close. He’s close.”
The closer they drove, the more apparent it was that there was a battle ensuing. A squad of Fire Warriors had spread out in a horseshoe shape, surrounding the ruined husk of a car. Behind the car, an older man crouched. One of the Fire Warriors stepped forward, yelling something neither Sean nor Jessica could hear. The old man responded by throwing a ball of fire quicker than the eye could follow. It struck the Fire Warrior in the chest and erupted into an all-consuming flame. The squad leader writhed in pain as he dropped to the ground, trying to extinguish the persistent blaze. The other Fire Warriors hesitated, unsure if they wanted to leave their reassuring cover and approach their leader. In the end, the squad leader stopped squirming and laid still, small flames still dancing on his armor.
In the confusion, the older Fire Warrior climbed to his feet and rushed down the road. Within seconds, the air was filled with more jets of flame, setting fire to the cars in his wake.
“Is that him?” Sean asked.
“It has to be. This isn’t going to be easy.”
“Get ready to grab him. We’ll toss him in the back.”
Jessica turned sharply toward Sean. “Seriously? You only want him in the back so that he’s not sitting in the seat next to you.”
Sean shrugged, unable to deny her accusations. “You want the pistol?”
“Keep it, you dork.”
Sean looked back out the window to where Balor continued running toward them, clearly oblivious to the ambulance rushing toward him. The heavyset man guessed that in a life-and-death situation, your mind just blocked out things that seemed preposterous, like an ambulance rushing down the interstate in the middle of a, quite literal, firefight.
Lord Balor was clearly fatigued. His steps were unsteady as though he were on the cusp of collapsing. To both their amazement, he kept running, putting some distance between him and the Fire Warriors.
&nb
sp; The tires on the ambulance screeched as the large white vehicle came to a sudden stop, sliding as it did until it was stopped sideways in the road. Lord Balor wiped his eyes as he stared at the odd vehicle blocking his path. As the driver’s side door opened, however, he quickly summoned a ball of flame, prepared to fight yet another unknown adversary.
Sean leaned out the door, pistol clutched in his hand. “You’re Balor, right? Get in.”
Lord Balor didn’t know how the stranger knew him, only that he had no intention of getting into the ambulance. He drew back his arm, the ball of flame growing brighter to match Balor’s surprise and anger. Sean raised the pistol, pointing it directly at the older man. Both men hesitated, locked in a standoff neither wanted to end. The quiet between the two was interrupted as the back of the ambulance flew open and Jessica leapt out, onto the road.
“We’re here to save your daughter,” Jessica yelled, “but we need your help. Please get in the ambulance.”
Lord Balor was confused, staring at the humans. They were either brave or stupid to show themselves this close to the Fire Elemental’s new lair. Neither seemed all that nervous, even as the first of the Fire Warrior balls of flame struck the side of their vehicle. Balor glanced over his shoulder and saw the squad closing in on them.
“We’re leaving now, with or without you,” Sean said. “You can take your chances with us or take your chances with them.”
Balor huffed and tossed his fireball behind him, igniting a car between the ambulance and the pursuing Fire Warriors. Turning, he ran quickly to the back of the ambulance before jumping inside. Jessica climbed in afterward, slamming the doors closed.
“We’re in,” she said. “Go, Sean.”
Sean slammed on the gas, and the ambulance lurched as it made its turn back toward the west and Los Angeles on the horizon. Fire pursued them, striking the back of the ambulance. Through the narrow windows, Jessica could see some of the more persistent fire clinging to the back of the vehicle, but it was extinguished as they picked up more speed. Satisfied that they were far enough away from the Fire Warriors, she turned toward the older man standing in a half-crouch, staring at her.
She smiled meekly. “Hi.”
“Who are you two?” Balor asked.
“I’m Jessica and this is—“
“Not your names,” Balor interrupted. “Who are you? Are you allied with the Fire Elemental? Be warned, I’ve killed plenty of the dragon’s allies in my time.”
“You seriously need to chill out,” Sean said from the driver’s seat. “If we were trying to kill you, I would have just shot you in the street, or run your ass down. We told you the truth back there, we’re here to save your daughter and you’re going to help us.”
Lord Balor sighed and sat on the gurney. “My daughter was taken as a host. There is no saving her.”
“And yet you were heading toward L.A.,” Jessica said. “That doesn’t sound like someone who’s given up hope of seeing Sammy alive.”
Balor looked up at her, a cold, steely resolve in his eyes. “I was going to kill her, to put her out of her misery. Better to die than to be used as a servant of the Fire Elemental.”
“Dude, you are intense,” Sean said. “First of all, Sammy is a host but she’s not gone. She’s still alive, trapped in her body. That’s what I meant when I said we were going to save her.”
“Impossible. No one survives the process of being taken as a host.”
Jessica sat on the narrow bench across from Balor. “Well, apparently, you have a remarkable daughter.”
Balor eyed her warily. “If you don’t work for the dragon, who is your master?”
“We don’t have a master,” she countered, “but we are friends with Xander Sirocco.”
Balor leapt to his feet before striking his head on the low ceiling. He cringed even as he tried to glare at the blonde woman. “The Wind Warrior? You’ve brought him here? I should kill you both!”
Sean slammed on the brakes. Jessica slid forward, but Balor was thrown from his feet. As the blond man tried to stand, Sean shoved the barrel of his pistol into the older man’s face.
“If you threaten either of us again, they’ll be cleaning up your chiseled old man features with a mop. Do I make myself clear?”
Balor didn’t glare. He actually looked up at Sean with a bit of respect. He nodded slowly, and Sean withdrew the gun. Before Balor could climb fully to his feet, Sean started driving away once more.
“Xander’s a bit more than just a Wind Warrior, these days,” Jessica explained as Balor took his seat. “He can take out the Fire Elemental, but it’ll kill Sammy. We might be able to keep her alive—and I emphasize ‘might’—but we need your help.”
After a brief pause, Lord Balor nodded. Over the next few miles, as they quickly approached the hospital once more, Jessica did her best to explain the plan and the part Sammy’s father would play. He seemed impressed, interrupting only a half-dozen times to explain why their plan was terrible and the myriad of reasons it wouldn’t work. To Sean’s amazement, Jessica explained with the utmost patience.
When she finished, she leaned back on the bench and stared expectantly toward the older Fire Warrior. “So, will you help?”
“I don’t really see that I have much of a choice. It may not be the plan I would have put together, but since your friend obviously already put it into action, it seems we’re stuck.”
“There’s a glowing endorsement if ever I’ve heard one,” Sean muttered.
“If it means my daughter might be saved,” Balor said, “then I guess I’ll—”
He stopped abruptly and stared at the roof of the ambulance. Jessica let her gaze drift upward as well, though she saw or heard nothing out of the ordinary.
“What’s going on?” Sean asked, unable to see what had stopped Balor’s conversation in mid-sentence.
“Something’s wrong,” the elder man said. “Someone’s coming.”
A dark-clothed figure slammed down onto the hood, denting the metal. Large, flaming wings enveloped the windshield, completely blocking Sean’s view so that he could see nothing other than the winged man straddling the front of the ambulance.
Sean looked up at the bald general, his dark tattoos glistening from the light of the flaming wings. The sharpened teeth were exposed in a wicked smile. An arm was missing, both sinew and torn strips of leather armor dangling from the blackened and cauterized wound.
“Oh sh—” Sean started to say as the ambulance slammed into one of the abandoned cars on the freeway.
Xander could sense the eyes watching him from below. He hadn’t even reached the edge of the city but waves of blond-haired men and women already peered up at his passing. He was sure that if he concentrated hard enough, he could have felt the elemental power they were using. As it was, however, the power radiating from the center of the city dwarfed theirs. It was a whirling, maddening cyclone of red energy set against a gray and black cityscape. Xander was sure the normal Fire Warriors couldn’t see what he was seeing: a writhing storm of elemental might, centered on the top of one of the remaining skyscrapers.
He could have flown directly to the dragon and begun their final confrontation, for good or bad, but instead, he dipped his shoulder and flew toward the ground. Spots of flame dotted the street below him as Fire Warriors prepared for his arrival, but a booming voice sounded within Xander’s head.
“Do not interfere,” the Fire Elemental demanded. “Let him pass unfettered.”
Xander glanced around nervously, certain that the dragon was nearby, but he saw nothing. Below him, the flames disappeared one at a time and the Fire Warriors vanished from the street. The Wind Warrior realized that the Elemental’s voice hadn’t just been in his mind; it had spoken directly to all the Fire Warriors within the city.
As his sneakers touched down on asphalt, Xander turned slowly to examine the road around him. He could see the scorched marks marring the buildings but nothing of the Fire Warriors who had been there moments befo
re. They had listened to their master; he doubted he’d see any more of them between where he landed and the skyscraper in the distance.
Xander turned his attention toward the skyscraper, feeling his nerves on edge as he saw the swirling madness surrounding the tower. Everything would be decided in the next few hours. It wasn’t just his life on the line. Sammy would live or die depending on how well their plan worked. Sean and Jessica, who were also rushing toward the city by now, would die if he failed. It was more than even that, he realized. The fate of humanity rode on his shoulders.
There was a time when that burden would have felt overwhelming. He used to think of himself as just a college slacker, a moniker that clung to him even after he found out he was a Wind Warrior, even continuing when he had absorbed the Wind Elemental’s power. He couldn’t pinpoint the moment it changed, whether it had been the events of London or maybe even Jessica’s rather poignant and painful speech. Now he knew he wasn’t a slacker any longer. He was…
Xander smiled broadly. Sean had been right, all those days ago back in White Halls. He was a hero.
He glanced down at his watch, noting the time. There were a few miles to cover between here and the skyscraper and, if he walked slowly enough, it could very well take enough time for Sean and Jessica to arrive.
Glancing quickly over his shoulder, he could see the frustrated expressions of the Fire Warriors, glaring at him from the alleyways nearby. They wanted to attack, to kill the Wind Warrior, but none of them dared defy the dragon. With a smile, Xander turned back toward downtown L.A. and started his slow walk.
“Come to me, Wind Warrior,” the dragon said. “Come to me so I can finally kill you.”
Xander wasn’t sure if the Fire Elemental could hear his response if he didn’t say it out loud, but he figured if it could talk in his mind, it could probably hear his response well enough. “Are you really in that big of a rush to end this?”
“Yes,” it replied matter-of-factly. “I want your insolent rebellion ended. I want to put an end to the other three Elementals. I want to rule as I was meant to before your impertinent intervention.”
Earth God Page 24