by C. M. Owens
The hissing man suddenly shot out energy. It looked like streaks of lightning. Before it could hit Tallis, someone had jumped in front of it. I quickly realized that it was Everett, and my trapped breath finally came out in an exhale.
The lightning bounced off his chest like it had hit a rubber wall. Then I saw more energy bolts of lightning coming from behind Tallis. The bolts struck the man in the chest, blasting him backwards about fifty or sixty feet. Now I could see that the bolts had originated from Jay. He was dashing toward us, hands out and ready to strike again.
Everett slid in front of the ashy one-armed man when the fiend tried to grab Jay. Everett fell to his knees, his eyes becoming void of any life. I paled at the sight. A drainer.
The ashy man was a drainer, and apparently, invincibles weren't invincible to everything. I heard Jay yell something and then a giant blast of electrical currents zapped into the ashy man. He shook ferociously and then collapsed. He wasn't getting up this time.
Tallis was still facing off with my attacker, as Jay went to Everett.
"I've got it, Jay. Go help Tallis," Aster said, appearing as suddenly as they all had.
No! She's pregnant. She shouldn't be here! What have I done?
Another man joined the party now. He was tall, really tall, and outlandishly wide. The hulking man charged, like a raging bull seeing red, directly at Tallis. I scrambled back in the water, trying to think of something to do. Tallis couldn't even see him coming because his back was turned. He was still throwing shots of explosions at my original attacker.
I screamed and winced when the hulking man was within inches of Tallis. Then a blaze of fire swept between the man and Tallis.
I sighed in relief when I saw Ash was there. She pulled a line of fire that seemed to originate from the earth as she taunted the hulking man. "Let's see what cha' got, big boy."
She walked away from Tallis, drawing the man's attention to her. He grunted and snarled as he charged again. She suddenly leapt straight up and disappeared into the air, and a gale wind so strong whizzed in and wrapped the man around a tree.
Gear. It was his wind. He was here.
Tallis's fight was interrupted when Gear stole his opponent, using the same wind. The rushing air pinned the guy against the hulk already trapped against the tree. My brother was so powerful.
Gear took an authoritative stance, seeming completely fearless as he raised his voice. "The Bradbury blood runs through our veins as strong as ever and as prepared to fight as ever before. We're not peaceful because we're scared of you. You'll be a good example of what happens to anyone with that same naïve notion. When you go after our blood, there is only one fate to suffer."
He looked over at Tallis who seemed to be trying to summon every bit of strength he had in his body. He put his arms in the air for a minute as the vein in his forehead pulsed. Then he thrust his hands toward the men and released an epic explosion that sent a shock of heat all the way to me. They shattered to dust. Absolutely nothing was left of them besides a few crumb-like ashes.
Gear raised his hands pulling wind in cyclone around the ashes left. He sent it whirling through the forest.
"That should ward off some of the others. They may be dissuaded from pursuing us if they see what happened to their comrades," he said calmly.
Everett was rising up now with the life returned to his eyes. Aster had been successful in healing him, which gave me immense relief.
"We've got to get back and help Ayla and Chris," Aster said, sounding more fearful than Gear.
Everyone had apparently come. I was so ashamed.
Tallis swished rapidly through the water to me. He scooped me up as Gear parted the water on our way back, creating a small land trail for us.
Tallis's eyes were so soft and sympathetic as he spoke with such a guilt-ridden tone. "I'm sorry I pushed you so hard. I was just trying to get you out of harm's way when I sensed a new threat. I was trying to give you a soft landing."
I shook my head. He was always apologizing, even after saving me, yet again. I had put my own stupid self in danger, not him. He put me down, allowing me to stand on my own. I lowered my eyes, feeling all the more idiotic.
"You didn't hurt me," I huffed out shamefully.
As my eyes came back up, I looked around at the all of the worried faces from my family. I looked at Everett who had almost died because of me. I felt so horribly selfish.
"I'm so sorry. I just… I'm sorry," I choked out.
There were no words strong enough to express the depth of guilt and remorse I felt for my irresponsible and reckless actions.
Ash nodded at me, and then in a flash, she was gone. Everyone followed except for Aster and Tallis who raced up a trail with me. We hopped in a jeep that was parked on the edge of the trail. Aster took the driver's seat, and Tallis joined me in the back.
Tallis looked at me like something else was wrong. "I can't smell your essence," he said, leaning closer, too close.
I nodded. "I drank the thing of stripper Grandma had."
He seemed to approve of my improvisation.
"That's clever, so how did they find you?" Aster asked, as if she truly believed I was going to have the answer.
"Beats me. I didn't have that blood covering stuff, my oversight, and he said he smelled Bradbury blood, but I don't know how they knew to look for me here. How did you find me?"
Tallis picked my hand up and spoke softly while staring at it. "Every sketch you had drawn of that place proved to be incredibly accurate. I knew you had to be there." Then he added more to his statement, while a hesitant smile played on his lips. "Well, every sketch you drew before you met me."
He handed me my sketch book full of pictures of him. I dropped earlier... again. "You really shouldn't keep leaving that lying around."
His eyes cut up to catch mine.
I smiled uncomfortably and embarrassed. It hurt so much knowing he knew how much I loved him but didn't reciprocate my feelings. I sighed out deeply and shifted the subject when the deafening silence grew to be unbearable.
"How did you know I was in trouble? Did Mom see it?"
Aster shook her head. "She can't see you. You're invisible to her - to all seers. It happens ever so often. She saw the Haluali people being attacked. She shouldn't be able to see them either; however, one of the villagers linked themselves to her when she left. She wanted to be able to keep an eye on things since they were leaving a little early. It's a good thing she did so."
"What?" More tears flooded my eyes now. I endangered everyone's life with my stupidity. "Why?"
Tallis put his arm around me in a comforting motion before speaking. "The dark followers have been searching for them for centuries. They're some of the strongest guardians. They usually take care of the stronger bloodlines because of the solidity of their magic. They've done an excellent job keeping their location a secret."
"Until I led them straight to them," I said through a strained whisper, my tears falling in a heavier abundance.
He put his finger under my chin, tilting my head to meet his stare. "You couldn't have known."
I could see smoke coming from the direction of the village. "Oh no! We have to go help them!"
Aster kept driving toward Brazil, never slowing. She looked into the rearview mirror, letting her eyes connect with mine. "Mom and Dad got them out."
A new sense of fear shot through me. "What if some of those monsters attacked Mom and Dad? They could be hurt and needing us."
Tallis smiled as Aster responded. "They're perfectly fine. Mom is an incredible seer. Especially in combat. She can see every move before they make it. Dad can drain someone without touch. He's the only drainer known to have mastered that ability. All other drainers need touch. Mom and Dad are even stronger together. Their soul mate linkage gives her the power to show him what she sees the instant she sees it. It's almost as if he's a seer, too. They're pretty amazing to watch."
Her confidence in them gave me a little reprieve, but I
still worried. I would never forgive myself if anything happened to them.
Before I knew it, we were in Brazil. There was absolute pandemonium. Rioting and brawling were going on all over the place. It had been so normal earlier. So calm.
"What's going on?" I asked, feeling dumbfounded by the chaos.
Tallis responded with one word in a solemn tone, and I had no idea what it meant. "Kao."
He looked around, warily assessing the scene. Finally, he noticed my quizzical look as he helped me out of the jeep.
"Kao is the son of Graven. He's Ayla's counterpart. Where she brings serenity, he brings chaos. He's not gone either. I can feel his presence." He studied the crowd more furtively. "We'll have to walk from here. There's no way we can drive in this mess."
Aster grabbed different things from the jeep and shut the door. We started shoving our way through the crowd. I bounced off some people, barely keeping my balance, but Tallis kept me afloat amongst the craziness. He kept his hand on me at all times, never letting me get out of his grasp.
He halted suddenly, and I slammed into him from behind. I looked up and watched as the color drained from his face. I followed his gaze and saw a lean young guy standing on top of a building. He was glaring right at us.
He was incredibly tall, and his attire was all black, just as his eyes were. He dropped from the building to his feet without even bending his knees. People seemed to spread, making a path for him, as he headed toward us.
Aster stepped in front of me and Tallis. It had to be Kao. Three or four more women and men followed him. It was an entourage of putrid smelling dramians. The stinging sensation of guilt flooded me yet again. I wanted to rewind time and start the day all over, make the decision to stay and face my problems instead of running away and putting everyone in the line of fire.
"Stay behind me," Tallis whispered, his eyes never leaving Kao.
Suddenly we were joined by Ash who somersaulted down from a building above.
"Well, this is just peachy."
Her light tone was laced with dread. Her eyes scoured the landscape as she seemed to be sizing the dramians up. Then we were joined by Gear, Olivia, Jaslene, Alvin, Everett, Chris, Jay, and Ayla. Everyone stood fearlessly, ready to face whatever these demons threw at them.
Kao stopped walking as a dust storm started sweeping through. I looked at Gear. He caught my gaze and shook his head, letting me know it wasn't him.
Iris and George came into view with Desmond, Allaysia, and Edmond following close behind.
Iris was quick to challenge Kao. "If you think you're ready for this, then let's get started."
Her eyes sparked with power and a fearlessness that made me shiver. She was so strong in so many ways. They crossed over to join us, adding to our line of power, while I stood there, shielded and helpless.
Tallis pulled me tightly against his back. I shouldn't have been thinking about how good he smelled, but I couldn't help myself. I shook it off, trying to focus on the fact we were surrounded by a mob of people wanting to kill us. Ayla stepped up and pulled off her hood.
Some of the chaos lessened, but it was too much for her to ice completely. Kao glared at her, and Jay stepped up, ready to block any attack.
I could see Ayla working hard as her eyes burned toward the crowd. It seemed to be getting better. Kao squinted his eyes, fighting against her magic. She was strong though. Despite all the essences Kao had consumed, Ayla was still as strong, if not stronger than him, because she had found her soul mate, and he hadn't.
Kao stepped back as the clouds rumbled with loud thunder and the sky turned dark above us. He looked at Iris who was staring at him.
"Your move, Kao," she dared in a quiet but deadly tone, letting the wind carry her voice to him.
He backed away, as did his followers. He knew they weren't ready to take on Iris and her family. Nor was he ready to take on his aunt and cousins. I shivered to think of how hard it was for Tallis and his family to face off against their own blood. He must have felt my shiver.
"Are you okay?"
I barely nodded in response. But I was far from okay. I felt a horrible sensation in my stomach. I tasted the toxic air and felt the shift. Something bad was going to happen.
My eyes moved slowly, trying to find the other shoe before it dropped. I should have looked sooner. By the time I found it, it was too late.
Out of all the things I'd seen recently, the barrel of the gun pointed at me was the most terrifying yet. The rapid-fire rhythm of my pounding heart found my ears, drowning out all other sounds.
My mind hadn't wrapped around all the crazy, but I knew how deadly that piece of metal could be when in the hands of a killer.
The man behind the gun was just a few feet away from us. Kao was in the man's head. He wanted me dead, even if he didn't want to fight my family.
Before I could warn anyone, a shot rang out. As soon as the bullet burst out of the barrel, everything dropped into slow motion. I couldn't move like normal. Even I was in slow motion.
Everything was moving at a fraction of the normal speed, including the bullet. Tallis was suddenly in front of me, seeming to be the only one not slowed by time, and the bullet exploded against his chest, still in slow motion.
I could see each fragment shattering in its own separate direction. You could almost pluck them from the air.
As though a spell was broken, time resumed, once again finding normal speed. The shards of the bullet fell to the ground like broken glass. Kao tilted his head as Tallis threw his hands forth, launching an attack.
Kao didn't explode, but a powerful blast wounded his side. Kao grabbed his side and glowered at Tallis. He grimaced in pain and anger, and then disappeared into the crowd.
They were retreating. It was such a relief. We were going to live.
The overload of adrenaline fled, leaving me weak with hot chills. I didn't know whether to laugh or cry, so I did both.
Ayla was still restoring peace, and everyone held their place, keeping her protected. Finally, normalcy was restored.
Tallis grabbed my hand and we walked toward Jaslene.
I could hear my guilt-ridden tone. "Mom, I'm so sorry." I started crying as I hugged her, collapsing into her embrace.
She pulled me back to speak, her eyes soft and sympathetic, despite the reaming I deserved. "It's okay, dear. We'll talk more about this when we get home. But don't ever do this to me again."
"I won't. I promise, I won't."
Tallis hugged his mother. "I guess I wasn't strong enough to kill him. Now what?" he asked, acting disheartened.
"We'll worry about it later. It's good we found out what we did today. This may have been the best thing. Now we know a little better about what we're dealing with."
"Ayla is much stronger now," Desmond said, interjecting himself into the conversation.
Tallis and his family seemed somewhat pleased with that new bit of information.
"Jay helped with that. Our families uniting was a good thing." Allaysia touched Tallis's saddened face. "Let's get Aria home."
Chapter 18
Accepting My New Life
Time continues to move forward even if we're standing still.
After nearly getting everyone I loved killed, I was feeling pretty rotten for running away. Ash sat across from Tallis and me. I caught her scowl and awaited my well-deserved lashing.
"Oh, by the way, thanks for losing my passport."
I flinched. I left my bag on the side of the trail and forgot all about it during the sudden retreat. "Sorry," I mumbled, adding that to the long list of things I'd never be able to make up for.
"You're just lucky I know how to-" She looked around the plane, trying to phrase the next part of her sentence. "-work a little magic."
She snickered at her little comment, though I didn't find it as humorous. Magic was ruining everything. So was I.
I leaned back in my seat, forcing a smile so she wouldn't see through me. Tallis stared out the window, his eye
s focused the clouds. His hand was just inches away from mine. I wanted to reach over and grab it, but I couldn't deal with him pulling away from me.
It was hard enough fighting back the urge to tell him I loved him again. I kept reminding myself of how poorly that had worked out the first time. Instead, I decided to just talk to him.
He looked like he needed a friend, and I owed him that much. "I’m sorry you had to hurt your cousin. I know that must have been incredibly difficult for you."
He turned with his eyes narrowed, seeming angry at me. "I wasn't trying to hurt him. I was trying to kill him. It wasn't hard at all. It was easy to do. He was trying to kill you. I don't care who it is, I would never let anyone hurt you. He may be my blood, but he's not my family. None of them are."
When he said stuff like that, it confused me even worse. How could he feel that strongly toward me and not love me?
He was willing to kill his cousin without even the slightest doubt because he tried to hurt me. I didn't understand why he couldn't see.
I wasn't going to get into all of that though. I thought back to the bullet shattering against his chest, and I flinched.
"I know this is going to sound weird, but I swear when that bullet came at me, everything went into slow motion. It was like everything slowed to a near standstill until after the bullet shattered on your chest. I saw everything with such clarity. I even saw the tiny fragments explode into the air almost one by one. It was amazing, other than the part where you had to literally take a bullet for me."
I expected him to snicker a little at that last part, but I was met with crickets instead. His eyes got really wide, like I had said something wrong.
His voice showed his confusion. "What? You saw everything in slow motion?"
I squirmed uncomfortably now, perplexed by his reaction and his tone. I responded with uncertainty. "Yeah, it just seemed as though time was crawling. I couldn't move, but I could see everything barely moving, except for you."