The Final Link

by Erin Thornton

  Xavier approached them as well, “If you could share your vision from Navian, I will make my way along that road. Then I can get back sooner with my findings.” Noting once again that he wasn’t armed Aggie decided to question it.

  “Will you be ok out there all by yourself?” Aggie didn’t want to sound like he wasn’t capable, but she needed to be reassured.

  Xavier smiled wickedly, for the first time Aggie saw them. Caught in the moonlight, Aggie didn’t know if it was the late hour or her imagination, but his fangs were practically illuminated in the natural light. “My dearest Aggie, you have nothing to worry about. The darkness is a second home to me, there is nothing to fear. If I get into a situation, I have more of a chance than anyone of surviving because that is what my kind do, survive.”

  Aggie on impulse, reached up and for the first-time initiated contact with him. She wrapped her arms around him tightly. He returned her embrace and she leaned up and whispered in his ear, “You’d better come back in one piece or I’ll kill you myself.” Her threat was meant to lighten the mood, but it didn’t do anything for her burning concern radiating through her chest. As soon as she released him, he was gone into the darkness without a trace.

  “Please tell me you aren’t planning on giving us a tearful goodbye.” Mitchell’s words startled her out of watching where she assumed Xavier was off to.

  “Well, not you now. I’ll save all the blubbering tears for your brother. You can get eaten by a bear, for all I care.” Aggie of course didn’t wish that upon Mitchell, but he was hot or cold and mostly freezing towards her. While he had shown her some concern a time or two, she thought his wolf was the only one who really cared about her in the least. “Ren I only want you to do one thing for me.”

  “You know I would do anything for you, Aggie girl. Just name it and it’s yours.” Ren picked her up and swung her around playfully. She loved his ability to lighten the mood no matter how grey it seemed.

  “Don’t get dead.” Pressing her head against his forehead, she was grateful he had lifted her up. While her words were intended to be funny, she still meant them deep down.

  “So long as you do the same. I can’t have my girl crapping out on me before I get a chance to show her exactly what I’m made of, now can I?” Ren leaned the fraction of an inch closer and kissed her lips quickly. Nothing passionate or overstepping, but just to solidify their connection. Then he turned quickly and joined his already shifted brother. Taking his time, he unfastened his pants and put on a little show of slipping them off his waist, until Alpha headbutted him and Ren shifted right there. With a soft growl, Wolfie showed his displeasure with being rushed. Aggie noticed his pants were slightly ripped from the transformation. The wolves scampered off to investigate their trail.

  “How long do you think it will take them?” Aggie’s gaze lingered back and forth in the directions that the guys just left in. She sighed and sank to the ground. Just before she connected with the earth, a stone appeared below her and she landed on it instead. Glancing around her, Aggie realized that no one was looking at her and the bracelet on her wrist warmed slightly. Her magic was talking to her. Fiddling with the band, she tried to thank it in her own way.

  “There’s no telling how long we will be waiting, but I’m sure they will go as quickly as they possibly can.” Mathius sat down beside her and she willed her magic to create a larger stone for him to sit on. When he connected to the surface quicker than expected he startled slightly, but quickly recovered. He nodded his appreciation. “Your magic is quite strong. It will serve you well if it comes down to a fight, as I fear it will. She’s not going to give up the children easily. Especially if they are supplying her with any form of magic. She has been without for years. I only hope she hasn’t seen or gotten word of our arrival and Xavier doesn’t run into any traps. He can hold his own, but I still don’t like any of us to be fighting alone.”

  “We passed through town so quickly, I missed my opportunity to look around. Tell me about Ahael, please. It will take my mind off what we are waiting for.” Aggie leaned lightly over to lean on Mathius’s arm and he didn’t shove her off so she remained quietly hoping he wouldn’t deny her request.

  “I’m not sure what to tell you. I grew up in the castle. My father was a guard, as I later became. I seldom went out to the city for fun and games.” Then a smile crossed his face and Aggie’s ears perked up, “I do recall one time when I ventured out into the city market. It was on a holiday and there were many varieties of demons in to celebrate. Demons don’t travel much to different areas or take vacations, but some of our holidays are more important than others, like Walpurgisnacht Roodmas Day for example. This was the first time I had ventured out of the castle alone and the different demons were fascinating to me. It isn’t unheard of to never see some varieties of demon.

  Kyrel is from another city, where his kind prefer and has his own gate to guard. Since they are only visible to those with magic it makes it a little easier, but they have to know where they want to go. Most of the demons don’t even use the gateway to travel, because the locations are kept a secret to protect against anyone stumbling into a realm, they don’t belong or into your backyard.

  This time in particular there was a fair of sorts. They had native food booths set up with demon delicacies. Most don’t get multicultural food very often in their own city. I saw a Nickar seated at the water’s edge sampling from a vendor. It was the wildest demon I had ever seen. He had scales over every inch of his skin, but he looked like a man. Where his ears should have been, were gills moving in and out with each breath he took. His nose was more of a snout than the cropped version we wear. Then when he opened his mouth he had teeth as sharp as razors and I knew then that I wanted to see every kind of creature that I could and learn about them. Walking through the bazar, I saw Gorgons, Levianthans, Aggadah and even the tiny Jinn. I loved watching them walk through the entire city and the games the children played weren’t anything I’d ever seen before. All I wanted to do with my time was observe each and every little thing. It was the most exciting time I recall as a child.”

  “After all this is over, will you walk me through the city and show me around? I hope by then it will back to its proper glory and seasonally appropriate weather.” Aggie was a bit nervous to be asking him because they still didn’t know much about each other, but she was going to take life by the horns and go for it.

  “It would be my honor to do just that.” Smiling she gazed upon this man with new eyes. He had shared with her a story from his childhood. Since they had time, this might be a good time to reciprocate and get to know each other a little better.

  “I remember one time Gran took me to the county fair. On Earth, we have rides and games and more food than anyone could ever imagine. I begged and begged for weeks to have her take me and finally the day arrived and she gave in to my pleading. She told me I could get whatever I wanted for dinner since it was a special treat. So, I walked up and down the boulevard to see what my options were. I decided I needed a special deep-fried corn dog. Then I stopped at the next vendor and I needed a funnel cake, I was only able to finish half of it before I saw the Spin-A-Nator. All my friends had said it was an awesome ride. I dumped all my leftovers in Gram’s hands and got in line. Bouncing up and down, I couldn’t wait to get on and desperately wanted the front row. The adrenaline rush and the feel of the wind spinning past me was all I could think about. Before I knew it, the line opened up and it was my turn to ride. I shoved my way to the front of the group and I made it to the front car. It was everything I ever dreamed it would be.”

  Aggie sighed at the memory and she knew that was where the happiness ended. It took all of her nerve to continue the story. Mathius was captivated and listening to her every word. “As the ride started, my heart was racing and I wanted nothing more than to be a part of the hands-free group. So, as it picked up speed I released my hands and raised them into the air. The ride twisted and turned in a figure eight as the ride wen
t faster and faster. Just before the ride reached top speed, I realized I wasn’t cut out for this ride. To this day, I don’t know whether it was the food or just my stomach didn’t agree with the ride, but instead of coming off the ride in the same condition I went on, I was worse for the wear. Just before the final fast rotation, my stomach released everything I had eaten. I don’t know if I feel sorrier for the people who had to clean up or the people on the ride behind me.” She cringed at the memory and second guessed even telling him. Though her story followed the same line of thought with his, even if hers was a bit more embarrassing, and it seemed like the right thing to do at the time. Covering her face in her hands, Aggie was worried about his reaction. Then out of no where she heard the sexiest, deepest rumbling laugh she had ever heard coming from right beside her. Opening her hands one finger at a time, she cautiously looked up at Mathius to find him smiling wide and laughing at her story.

  “I would have loved to have been there to see that, but I think we will keep the roller coaster rides to a minimum for you. Maybe I’ll save that little bit for a fun surprise for one of the guys.” Still a soft chuckle as he thought about it, Aggie was glad they had found some common ground.

  Chapter 20

  What felt like forever later, Mathius informed her it was only about twenty minutes, Xavier made his way back quickly followed by the twins. Aggie had no idea how far they had traveled but given their abilities to move rather quickly she feared they were actually going to be walking the rest of the night before they arrived wherever they were going.

  “What do we know?” Aggie wanted to get moving again and stop killing time.

  “It seems the paths were connected as we ran into each other on the opposite side. So, what we have concluded is that they sent Navian down the path least traveled so he would be less likely to draw anyone back to them.” Xavier didn’t look like he had encountered any attackers on his little excursion.

  “The place where they come together though is odd. Like there was a house there at one point, but it is just gone now.” Ren had changed back and was standing in the meadow just beyond the path, hanging out in all his glory.

  “Okay hold on, you’re going to have to put on your pants or there will be a completely different train of thought here and we need to focus.” Aggie only hoped they were still wearable with his speedy removal before.

  As Ren complied, his brother filled in the missing details, “We couldn’t get a read on when it was last there or how it was torn down. The foundation hasn’t grown over with grass completely yet but it was a rather large accommodation in its prime.”

  “I agree with their assumption. We didn’t want to get too close to the area in case anyone was watching. Our task was to deduce which way lead us to where we wanted to be and it seems that either way is fine. I think the way along the water is actually a bit out of the way and the twins route was a bit more direct.” Xavier was very intense and Aggie had never seen him like this. She also had never seen him in utter darkness, as it was his perfect element. He had never given her cause for concern before, she only hoped he wasn’t feeling the need for a little snack.

  “Do you guys agree with his assessment?” Mathius posed the question to the twins. Gryson looked on intently.

  “It really is the best. I didn’t see any thing to cause alarm, but we might want to stick to the shadows as we get closer. Xavier, I want you to stick to the darkness. Ren and I will go in wolf form. We will be a bit more inconspicuous, than six full grown adults will be.” Mitchell was in full Alpha mode and more than happy to dictate what they should and shouldn’t do. If he didn’t get on Aggie’s nerves so much, she would have been turned on by his dominance.

  On Mitchell’s advice, they started toward this mysterious location to get a better look at this property and get to the bottom of where the house might have gone. In the back of Aggie’s mind questions rolled. Where could an entire house go? What if the house isn’t gone? Could someone actually just make a house invisible? How did they block the wolves from sensing anything? The questions rolled on and on as they walked. Aggie was thankful that given the amount of energy she was using, she wasn’t feeling tired.

  “It’s time to take to the shadows.” Mitchell’s voice broke her thoughts. Aggie looked up and couldn’t see anything different about this stretch of the road than the five miles previous. Though she trusted Mitchell’s words, and slid to the side and followed the rest toward the tree line. Xavier disappeared completely from view as he had on the training ground. Though Aggie could still sense him, if she reached for him with her magic. The wolves were at her feet moments later, reaching down she scratched Alpha and Wolfie between the ears. It was her way of saying thank you and also letting them know she was alright.

  “Lead the way boys,” Aggie nudged the wolves into the lead and everyone else fell into step behind them. Walking softly so as not to stir the leaves below their feet, Aggie was surprised they still crunched under foot with the crazy weather changes and ice-covered ground. Thankfully, given the colder temperatures, the thunderstorm had warmed things up a bit. She also was attributing her lack of shivering to her magic keeping her warm while walking all these miles to their unknown destination.

  The closer they walked, the slower their pace, the wolves were guiding and setting the speed. No one walked around them, and everyone trusted they would keep everyone out of trouble. Suddenly, Alpha stopped dead in his tracks, and Wolfie split off to the side and flanked him but stopped instantly as well. Everyone else froze a number of paces behind leaving a large gap between them and the wolves. The reason for the sudden halt was unknown to everyone except the wolves.

  Until Aggie saw Alpha raise his paw in the air and hold it out in front of him. She could have sworn she heard a low growl coming from him. It was a strange thing to see a wolf, or any animal who walked on all fours normally, do.

  “What is he doing?” Aggie whispered to anyone close enough to hear.

  “I’m not sure, but it looks like he’s resting his paw on something.” Gryson answered her in the same hushed tone. Aggie glanced around at everyone frozen and decided that none of them were going to get any answers this way. So, she tiptoed silently as possible up to the area where the wolves had stopped. Taking a deep breath, she steeled herself and mirrored Alpha’s action. When she connected with something solid she gasped.

  “Get up here now!” Her tone still hushed but insistent Mathius and Gryson complied quickly. Mathius might have taken a slightly quicker approach, as he appeared right beside her in a breath of dust. His hand placed beside hers and she watched his face as the surface of something connected with his palm.

  “What kind of magic is this?” Mathius’s question was directed at Gryson who was standing on his other side with a confused look painted on his face.

  “I have never seen this kind of display in all my years. I’ve don’t know a single incantation or potion that will make anything this large invisible.” Gryson started to walk along the wall to find the edge of it. He walked for at least seventy feet before he came to a corner. Luckily Wolfie had done the same on his end and only went about five feet before reaching an edge.

  “If this structure is this long, how are we to know where the front is or how wide it sits on the property?” Aggie was cautious and worried that they would be walking into danger without more information. “Does anyone have any ideas, besides blindly feeling our way around these walls?” Her voice was a bit louder as her frustration rose. She clasped her hand over her mouth in an effort to rein it in quickly. Taking a deep breath, she let it out slowly without saying another word. It wasn’t helping her to freak out. They needed to put their heads together to figure things out.

  “Why don’t we leave the wolves here as a place marker and fall back to the tree line to discuss our options. Their hearing will allow them to not miss out on anything while they wait here.” Mathius’s suggestion was just what she needed. Anything to take a minute and regroup to get her head b
ack on straight.

  “I agree that is a good idea, but I don’t like the thought of them being exposed like this. Can you boys lay down as close to the ground as possible to try and blend in a bit better?” Alpha and Wolfie, complied immediately. Aggie patted them both in gratitude. At least she wouldn’t have to worry about them being seen.

  From the trees, Aggie noticed the wolves were barely seen. She hoped that she could only see them because she knew they were there. “Anyone have thoughts about this matter?” Xavier’s voice startled her as she missed his approaching footsteps. It was as though he was floating above the surface of the ground.

  “That is what we are attempting to sort out. How do we get in without knowing which side is front facing and where the possible dangers are?” Aggie was using everything in her to maintain a balance in her voice and not lose control.

  “One of us could go in first, if we find a door and eliminate any possible threats.” Mathius ever the warrior and not one to back down from a fight, threw out the most preposterous idea.

  “You mean, one of us could go in and get killed or taken captive. We don’t want to create more work in the long run. Honestly, if we happen upon the children and avoid the mistress of the house, I’d be all for that course of action.” Aggie was aware how cowardly that sounded but she was in a very honest mood. When she got worked up or nervous about anything it was like she had been doped with a truth serum. She hated to be pulled over on Earth the cops knew everything from what she ate for breakfast that day to when she last pooped or had her period. Those times, weren’t her proudest moments.

  A movement caught Aggie’s eye just as she finished her rant. Someone came over the hill from the main road and Aggie frantically got everyone’s attention, everyone fell instantly silent, as though she had cast a muting spell. As the person got closer, Aggie could tell it was female from the swish of her hips as she walked. Even though the woman tried to hide her appearance under a cloak. They all watched captivated and wondering what this woman would do. Aggie just hoped Alpha and Wolfie were in a safe spot and wouldn’t be discovered.