“It’s nice of you to join us, Kade. You were called ten minutes ago, no dessert and straight to bed,” dad scolded, his finger wagging at me.
I looked at mom, but her face showed the same look like my dad. I was having so much fun playing and pretending to be in the Academy, I didn’t want to stop.
“But that’s so not fair!” I whined back, hoping he would change his mind.
“Kade, there are rules when you break them you get punished.” He continued cutting mom off as he nodded his head at her as if to say I have this.
“I want dessert,” continuing to argue and whine as if to get my way.
“Kade, that is enough, or you will go to your bed without supper too!” his voice now echoing through the room. The anger seemed to ripple from him.
“No!” my voice high pitched and a scream. Right to childhood tantrum, this would happen.
Dad stood up, grabbing my arm by my shoulder, lifting me out of my chair. “Bed now.” His voice no longer loud, but angry and quiet. He was furious, but I would not let him win this one. I wanted supper.
Fighting him with every ounce of childish strength I could muster. I couldn’t beat my father. Instead, I resorted to swinging my arms, yelling and screaming bloody murder.
As dad put me on the steps back to my room, a loud explosion sounded from the kitchen where we had just come from.
“Yas!” Dad’s voice shaking in fear. I didn’t know what happened or why. Mom was in the other room, and now dust, smoke and bricks from the house scattered all over the living room. The microwave lodged halfway into the office wall.
I ran into the kitchen before dad could grab me and stop me. Mom lay unconscious on the floor between the living room and the breakfast island. Alexis wrapped in her arms, crying. Dad ran to them picking Alexis up in his arms and pulling mom to the office.
I stood by the fridge, looking through the hole in the house. A small army of men stood outside, looking in. Each holding weapons, swords, chains, whips and what looked like arrows. Some people had spells pre-cast, their hands and wands glowing with power.
“Get away from their Kade,” dad yelled, waving his hand as if to summon me.
I stood there staring at the men in their all-black outfits, combat boots, and the weapons. It scared me, I couldn’t move, but I didn’t want to either. Why had they done this?
They advance towards me, I couldn’t move, terrified. Breathing heavily, shaking, this frightened me.
“Leave him alone!” Dad’s voice rang out from behind me.
“We are here for the boy, stay where you are, and we won’t hurt you or your family.” A deep voice came from the group of people as they continued to crawl through the now blown up side of the house.
A whip lit up with a bright pink color, the crack of it hitting the floor was deafening. To my right, a man waked up closer holding a real broadsword, the blade of it shining with a blue color.
“Don’t move, if you stay where you are your family will stay safe.” A familiar voice spoke. I recognized the voice, not at the flashback but as if I heard it not too long ago.
The pink whip cracked again against the floor, I turned around to see my parents. Mom still unconscious, dad holding Alexis rocking back and forth while looking terrified.
As I took a step towards dad, the pink whip wrapped itself around my neck. Pulling me back towards the person wielding it.
“Target acquired, fall back.” A male voice spoke as he held something in his ear. And just as the last sound of his words spoke, the whip grew tighter, pulling harder and harder. Almost pulled off my feet, I struggled, crying out, screaming and thrashing about.
“Kade,” dad screamed, tears rolling down his face. His body shaking preparing to shift, as his face changed a green tipped arrow flew, piercing the wall next to dads face. His shift stopped in his tracks.
The whip stayed tight to my neck, holding as I thrashed about on the ground. The army of people retreated to the helicopter hovering high in the sky. Each person leaping high up, reaching the chopper with little effort.
The whip stopped glowing, as a tiny hand gripped my arm and pulled me close, it was a woman, her chest was beating hard, her helmet was fogging up. She tied my hands behind my back and threw me over her shoulder. I refused to make it easier on her, continuing to thrash, kick and scream. Knocking her helmet off, as she prepared to jump up, another woman grabbed her helmet while removing her own.
Her face had a scare on it, stretching across her lip to the top of her left eye. A piece of her nose was missing, but her eyes were so green, they almost looked like giant emeralds. She looked older, but the wrinkles around her scar made her look even more aged than I assumed she was.
“Honey, you okay? You haven’t touched your food, your malt melted.” The waitress scared me. I blinked twice as if to wake up.
“Yes, I’m sorry. Would you mind terribly bringing me another one?” I asked looking at the mess the malt made on the table. My French toast sitting to the left as the condensation of my ice water dripped to the table creating a puddle streaming towards the plate.
“Sure thing honey,” She said lifting the melted malt onto her tray and walking back to the kitchen.
Swirling my finger around my water, it spun, round and round. A mini tornado of water continued to whirl round and round, lifting higher and higher out of my glass. Holding my hand open the water spinning moved hovering over my hand, still spinning. I took a deep breath in, blowing out hot air, so hot it caused the water to turn to steam. Evaporating into the air, all that remained was the spinning air of my miniature tornado.
If the council could monitor my magic, it could be a matter of minutes before they come crashing through the doors and attack me.
Now to wait
Chapter 7
Rescue
Just as I anticipated a large van like vehicle pulled up across the street, parking in front of the fire hydrant. The company logo for some cable company I had not heard of idled, nothing happened or moved from it, the windows too dark to see into. The diner slowly filled with patrons, more than I assumed the waitress could handle being all alone. And then it hit me, she hadn’t gone to any of the tables, she hadn’t even returned with my new malt either.
I was surrounded, “way to go council,” I thought to myself. They really aren’t taking any chances. There would be no way I could fight my way out of this, I barely knew how to fight. I got lucky last time.
A young couple started giggling in the booth behind me, making sure the diner had some form of noise echoing through it. Turning to the kitchen window I saw the waitress pointing to me, her lips moving furiously as if explaining something. I didn’t dare try to stand up or leave, I wanted to be captured not killed.
A heavy hand placed itself on my shoulder from behind me, “if you want to survive this do as we say, and you won’t get hurt,” a deep man’s voice whispered in my ear, I recognized it. It was the tactical officer that took me when I was a child. His voice deeper and rougher with age. His hand still on my shoulder squeezed and pulled me into the booth. Pinning me there as if to stop me from running.
“Why me?” I asked, knowing full well why.
I felt like I had to ask, maybe I could trick him into revealing something important, or something I could use against them. It was a stupid plan but I needed to do it.
He didn’t say anything, his strong forearm continued to pulse with strength as he exerted it onto my shoulder keeping me down. A sharp stabbing pain throbbed in my neck on the left hand side. My hand instinctively reached up to it, the long sharp object resembled a needle in my hand. It was a tranquilizer dart. They were serious, they were not letting me leave alive or awake should I choose to go on my free will. They did not want to take any chances with me.
The table started to spin around me, the arm exerted less pressure, I was blacking out again, I seemed to be good at doing this.
I came too, it was completely
pitch black out, the windows on the sports utility vehicle I was handcuffed to were dark tinted I could barely see out. The bumps in the road caused me to jump a little bit, each time the cuffs would clap together making a metallic sound. My senses still dull, my vision moving slow with every movement.
There was a bright light up a head, blinding myself from seeing the road as we travelled down it, if I couldn’t see I didn’t think the driver could see. The sun roof opened as the man next to me stood up, popping his body out the top. “To your left,” He said before his body fell into the backseat again, this time missing his head. The blood from his now severed neck was firing in all different directions, covering the windows and myself.
The driver now swerving over the road, as I looked out the window between the blood spurts, shadows of animals and people began popping up, as if the driver was going to hit them. Each time the driver continued to swerve and try to miss them. The vehicle began tipping, the wheels no longer staying connected to the pavement with each jagged movement. He had lost control of the vehicle completely. He turned the wheel to the right in a sharp motion, as a large ball of fire landed just in front of the vehicle, flipping us forward and tumbling in the air. It slammed back down to the ground, crunching the roof in on itself, I had to bend my head as to not get hurt. The driver not so lucky, the way it landed crushed the cab at an angle flattening him and pinning him instantly.
Hanging by the seatbelt and my cuffs I was still dizzy; the tranquilizer was still in my system. I wondered if this was it for me. Was I going to die this way. Some group of immortals pissed at the council taking out their guardians in the middle of no where.
The door was ripped off its hinges, as a beautiful face looked upon me. “He’s in this one. Simone, he needs your help, I can’t break the cuffs,” a beautiful voice spoke, almost in a sing song tone.
A small hand reached into the now missing door, grabbing the cuffs. As his fingers touched them, they melted without hesitation as if the cuffs and his hands spoke a language nobody could understand. The metal melted around my wrists, only dripping a couple times on me, burning slightly as it cooled instantly on my body.
“Are we sure this is him?” a voice spoke, commanding and deeper, I could only assume it was Simone the person who freed my hands.
“Look at his hands, the metal cooled instantly as it touched his skin. Its him,” the sing song voice spoke again, the thrill in her tone gave excitement I hadn’t tasted before.
“Gabby, seriously? What makes you think that he has been woken?” another voice a little less high pitched but sickly sweet in tone added.
“We all sensed it, we are almost complete. Four more to wake and we will be complete,” Gabby’s voice spoke again.
This time a stronger larger hand wrapped its arm around me, pulling me out of the car, snapping the seatbelt completely off, buckle and strap dangling from my shoulder. He stood me up and my brain shut down as I looked at him.
“Kade, are you okay? We didn’t hurt you, did we?” he spoke his tone as honey just like I remembered it from my dream. His eyes burned with something, something I had never seen before. He wasn’t angry or sad but something that lingered like longing or depressed I couldn’t figure it out. He stared into my eyes, not leaving them for a second, as mine continued to stare back it seemed like forever, like we could do this forever and be content.
“Solena and Selena please get rid of the evidence, Gabriella tend to the dead please, Desmond you know you need to tend t the living, and fast,” Simone commanded, as he walked towards me.
Desmond fought the urge to argue the request and turned without hesitation, heading to the other vehicles.
“Welcome Kade, its nice to see you again,” He said putting his hand out as if for me to shake.
My body reacted instinctively, gripping his hand, it hurt so bad. He winced in pain as well, as our hands met, steam and what looked like blue and green flames danced atop our hands.
“What is happening?” I asked, my voice starting before I could think or react.
“Its our powers, we balance each other,” He said gripping me in a hug out hands extinguished from the embrace. The pain was gone.
“Two to lead, one to kill, one to birth, the dark and light balance. Should one die, all must die, rebirth can only happen.” Simone said in my ear, “Its our prophecy. We lead everyone else,” He continued this time moving away from me, our hands still touching, but no flames any longer.
“Prophecy? I’m sorry it rings a bell, but my head is still swimming from the tranquilizer,” I said sitting on the road, my head still spinning.
“Kade? You okay, did we hurt you? Let me heal you,” Desmond said, his hands wrapping around my shoulders as if he watched me sit and rushed to my aid.
“I’m fine just a little shaken,” I said trying to piece everything together.
“Okay guys let get out of here before they send rescuers for the bodies and survivors,” Simone said waving his hand in the air to motion everyone to follow him.
The sensation of being half carried by Desmond and Gabby, as my feet dragged against the ground was just to weird.
“Stop, stop. I can walk,” I said pushing my right root to the ground, catching purchase to the pavement. But moving my left leg was difficult, like I hadn’t had the ability to move it any longer.
“Kade, just let us carry you, you won’t be able to walk or portal for next couple hours. The last of the tranquilizer it still running through your system, you will have a fever once your body begins to burn through the drug.” Gabby said gripping me tighter.
Doing as they said, I closed my eyes just listening to them talk. With all of them talking it was hard to make out what people I would listen to.
A soft voice began, as if not sure of her point she wanted to make. “Where should we portal to this time?”
“He needs a place to recover, and a safe place to re-group his memories. You remember what it was like for us I the beginning,” Gabby’s said as she shifted the weight of my body.
“Piper and I have already decided where we are portalling to. We decided to head to the his plain, he will heal faster and it might jog his memory. Desmond you remember when we took you to the Land of the Living, your memories cleared themselves up, you were able to recover faster than myself and Piper did.” Simone said, commanding the group.
“Yes, but I also remember it almost killing Gabriella. She can’t handle the Land of the Living very long, and I am quite sure the Zephyr Palace is not going to treat you the best either.” Desmond replied, feeling his head look towards Gabby then myself.
“That may be true, but we must try, and he isn’t as bad as you were, maybe he can recover faster, or ill stay in Inferno Palace.” Simone replied also with regret in his tone.
I opened my eyes to see what was happening, I could hear the other voices talking, trying to add to the conversation but I just wanted to find out what exactly was going.
The two girls that seemed to look like mirror images of each other, clasped their hands together. A bright green light shone from them, it looked like my color of magic. As they released each others’ hands, a circular looking rune opened. In the center was the word “Caeli”, air in Latin. As the girls held the rune in their hands, everyone else walked through. Each one disappearing behind the bright light.
It was out turn, Desmond took the step first. My body following, then my head, and what I say next was beyond what I could have ever imagined.
Chapter 8
Zephyr Palace
The bright light of the sun shown off the glass tower. The rainbow of colors glistening all over our skin. The girls looked up in awe.
“What a palace? Its kind of ugly,” Solena said, the name and face finally coming to mind, she was the light of the twins.
“Its not even a palace it’s a tower, with giant rocks floating in the air.” Selena said sounding irritated. The second of the twins, the dark one. Now their
mirror image made sense.
“Quiet,” Desmond said, looking up at the sky. “That’s not the Palace, Zephyr Palace is still some ways away, and in the sky,” He finished, pointing into the sky.
“Hold on, I’m remembering something.” I said, removing my arm from Gabriella’s shoulder. Placing both my index and thumb in my mouth I blew. The sound came out like a flute high c sharp note. It rang through the air, reverberating off the rocky paths, and floating boulders.
Giant black dots in the sky started getting closer, the outline of wings became visible.
Everyone began stepping back, as if scared of what was coming. The flying creatures getting closer and closer. Their shapes coming to life, giant birds, larger than any bird in the mortal world.
A giant snow white owl with green trimmed wings landed in front of me. His beak holding a long white feather down cloak. The cloak matching the owl’s wings. He motioned for me to pull it out from his mouth, but Desmond and Gabriella beat him to it. Each grabbed a side of the cloak and draped it over my shoulders. As they did the cloak began to glow and reform, attaching itself to my body.
The two stepped back in surprise, Desmond took a step towards the Owl, petting its beak as it began to coo for him. Motioning itself closer to him, the giant claws on the ground dug into the dirt and release as each hand movement left the beak.
Gabriella having stepped back must have signalled another large bird to step forward. She got a raven, stock black with purple trimming around her beak, and bottom of her legs. Gabriella stepped forward to the raven putting her hand out slowly as if terrified she would lose a hand. The raven just bowed its head, and turned around spreading her wings out.
The cloak finished forming to my body, exploding in giant white and green wings. Angelic in look, they fused to my body, completely as if they were always there. They stretched once, and I felt them flexing out. I moved each wing as if to get the sensation back, I remembered using them as if I always had them. Stretching my left wing out, pulling it back. I must have really confused everyone, they all looked at me as if this was so new to them.
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