The Magic Collector

by Clayton Wood

  Hundreds of guards.

  “Incoming!” Bella warned.

  Gideon lifted his legs, spinning around to face forward. He held out the painting he’d been holding, painted side facing away from her.

  “Take this,” he ordered. “Hold it by the edges. Don’t let go!”

  She obeyed, but the wind struck the paper as if it were a kite, nearly tearing it from her hands. She held on, surprised to find that it was rigid despite not having a frame.

  “Face it forward!” he shouted, hooking the reins with his stump. She did so, and suddenly – inexplicably – the force of the wind against the paper vanished. There was shouting from ahead, and she peered around the paper to see more than a dozen guards on horseback rushing on either side of the path toward them. They were only a quarter-mile ahead, and closing in fast.

  And far behind these guards, a literal army of men on foot charging after them.

  “Steady,” Gideon said, his lips inches from her right ear. He reached around her with his left hand, putting it on the surface of the canvas facing away from Bella.

  The soldiers on horseback drew rapidly closer, their deadly spears and bows gleaming in the starlight.

  Thump-a-thump, thump-a-thump…

  They were only a hundred feet away now.

  Ninety. Eighty.

  “Steady…” Gideon repeated, his eyes locked on the approaching soldiers. A few of them raised their bows, nocking their arrows and pulling back on their bowstrings.

  “Gideon!” Bella cried, gripping the canvas tightly, her heart leaping into her throat.

  Gideon thrust his left hand outward.

  A streak of pure silver light shot out of the canvas, zooming forward over the path toward the guards ahead. It coalesced into a large, glowing silver wolf that slammed into one of the guards, knocking them right off their horse.

  “Holy…!” one of the other guards shouted.

  The wolf kicked off the guard it’d struck, sailing through the air and slamming into another guard’s horse, knocking it over. Then it dissolved into a beam of silver light, streaking toward a third guard, re-forming at the last minute to rake one of its claws across the man’s face. The guard flew off his steed, slamming into the grassy field below.

  The remaining horses squealed in terror, rearing up on their hind legs as the wolf streaked between them, dissolving into a beam of light and re-forming over and over as it took down their riders.

  “Archers!” a voice cried. “Kill that thing!”

  More men on horseback galloped toward Bella, some with bows in their hands. They fired at the glowing wolf, but it streaked out of the way, shooting leftward across the path in front of Bella’s horse. It ran on the grass alongside her then, so large it nearly reached the horse’s shoulder. The wolf matched pace with the horse, its silver glow fading. It glanced up at Gideon.

  “Myko, take her!” Gideon ordered, reaching around Bella again to touch the other side of the canvas. He flung his hand outward at the approaching guards then, and a bolt of lightning shot out at one of them, striking him in the chest…and then zig-zagging to strike another, then another. Eight of them fell from their steeds, convulsing on the field below.

  “Shoot the Painter!” one of the surviving guards cried.

  “Get on Myko,” Gideon shouted, taking the canvas from Bella and nudging her with his stump. “Lower yourself onto his back!”

  Bella glanced down at the huge wolf galloping alongside them, then at Gideon.

  “Are you serious?” she shot back.

  “Go or die!” Gideon retorted.

  Thump!

  An arrow slammed into the saddlebag on her right, missing her leg by inches.

  Bella swung her leg over the saddle, grabbing the horn-thing at the front and lowering herself along the horse’s left side. The wolf’s back was level with her butt; she swung her left leg over it, easing herself onto it.

  “Hold on to his collar!” Gideon ordered.

  Bella looked down, spotting a silver collar around the wolf’s neck. She grabbed on to it, holding on for dear life. She could feel the wolf’s powerful muscles working beneath her as it pulled away from the horse, veering leftward over the grassy field.

  “I’ll come for you Bella,” Gideon promised as the wolf took her farther and farther away from him. Eventually she couldn’t see him at all in the darkness, his horse’s hoofbeats the only evidence that he was still there. Bella turned her gaze forward; the long line of tents was only a hundred yards away now, the wall of fog beyond it rising as high as the eye could see. She spotted one of the huge structures she’d seen earlier between the tents and the fog; it was a statue of a giant forty feet tall facing away from her, with a bald head and huge muscular arms and legs.

  And as she watched, it began to move.

  Bella’s eyes widened.

  Color spread over the statue, its skin turning from dull gray stone to flesh-colored. It twisted to face her, its head tilting down as its bulging eyes locked on her.

  Then it raised its leg, stepping over the huge tents toward her, even as the army of guards approached, less than a hundred feet away now.

  And the wolf was galloping right toward them, its ears flat against its head.

  “Oh god,” Bella cried, gripping the wolf’s collar so hard her knuckles turned white. The wolf’s thick fur began to glow a faint silver. “Turn around!” she ordered, pulling back on the collar. But the wolf ignored her…and the army of guards was only fifty feet away now, the ground quaking with every step the giant took behind them.

  Thirty feet.

  “Oh god oh god watch out!” Bella screamed as the first of the guards rushed right at her, raising his spear to throw it.

  And then the wolf shot forward and upward in a burst of silver light!

  Bella held on for dear life as the ground dropped out from underneath her, and they sailed over the army of guards, flying through the air with terrifying speed. The wolf glowed so brightly underneath her that it might as well have been made of light, leaving a long silver trail behind it.

  They flew right over the guards, and suddenly the silver light diminished. They slowed rapidly, plummeting right toward the giant’s monstrous head.

  Bella screamed, her stomach flip-flopping as they fell.

  The wolf burst forward and upward again, shooting in a straight line mere feet above the giant’s bald head, passing it and sailing over the tents beyond. They shot past the tents altogether, plunging right into the swirling wall of fog ahead. The mist swallowed her whole, glowing silver with the wolf’s light.

  Then that light faded, and there was darkness.

  Bella felt herself falling, her sweaty palms slipping free of the wolf’s collar. She screamed, her heart leaping into her throat as she fell faster and faster.

  She heard a splash from below, and then icy-cold fingers enveloped her, pulling her into the abyss.

  Chapter 7

  Bella’s throat locked up as icy-cold wetness swallowed her whole, soaking through her clothes instantly and chilling her to the bone. Her body went rigid with shock, and she felt herself sinking.

  Then her limbs came to life, and she kicked and clawed desperately through the darkness, until at last her head burst through the surface!

  Bella took a deep breath in, nearly choking on the muggy air as she treaded water, her wet, heavy clothes threatening to pull her back under its surface. She looked around, but could see absolutely nothing. There was only darkness.

  There were shouts from behind, and the thump, thump of massive feet striking the earth.

  Getting closer.

  Bella swam away from the sounds, her heart pounding as she made her way blindly forward. Her feet struck something below; it was the floor of whatever body of water she was in. It sloped upward gradually, and she switched from swimming to wading. Her shoes sank into the ground with each step; it had to be mud sucking at her feet.

  A soft, hazy silver light appeared ahead and to the left
, a beacon within the darkness.

  “Hello?” Bella called out, feeling herself step out of the water. She clutched her arms to her chest, shivering violently. Even with the light, she could barely see past her own nose. The light ahead grew larger and brighter, and she walked toward it, her cold, wet clothes clinging to her with each step.

  A wolf stepped through the haze, stopping a foot away from her, its fur glowing bright silver. It was as tall as she was, its head level with hers. And it had striking blue eyes that gazed back at her, seeming to peer into her very soul.

  “M-myko?” she asked, her teeth chattering.

  The wolf nodded.

  There was more shouting from behind, and then a blood-curdling scream. Bella spun around, but could see nothing through the fog. Myko’s ears went forward, his body going rigid. A low growl rumbled in his throat.

  Then he leapt at Bella, biting her arm and yanking her violently backward!

  Bella cried out, falling onto her back, and the huge wolf dragged her kicking and screaming through the muck, his jaws clamped down painfully on her upper arm.

  The fog blasted toward them, a huge head slamming into the ground a few yards away…right where she’d been a second ago.

  BOOM!

  The ground quaked, a wave of muddy water slamming into Bella. She felt Myko let go of her arm, and she scrambled to her feet, wiping mud off her face and chest…and backpedaling away from the massive head before her. It was the giant she’d seen earlier; she caught a glimpse of its eyes staring vacantly outward, blood pouring from a large gash in its forehead. Its skin began to change color, turning stone-gray.

  And then the fog spilled inward to fill the gap the giant’s fall had left, swallowing the huge creature whole.

  There was more shouting in the distance, following by the sharp scream of a horse. Myko snorted, nudging Bella’s shoulder with his nose. She flinched, then glanced at the wolf.

  “Where’s Gideon?” she asked.

  Myko raised a rear leg, swiping it at his collar as if scratching an itch. Then he lifted a big front paw, swiping gently at Bella’s left hand…and promptly turned away from her, backing up until he was right beside her. She hesitated, placing her hand on his collar.

  “You want me to hold on?” she asked.

  Myko gave a snorting nod.

  Bella curled her fingers around his collar, and he promptly began to walk forward across the muddy terrain. With his silver light, she could tell that they were in some sort of marshy area, with narrow islands of muddy earth surrounded by pools of dark water. Still, the mist was so thick that it was hard to breathe, much less see. How Myko could tell where he was going, she had no idea.

  There was a splash behind them, and Myko whirled around, yanking his collar out of her hands. In a flash of brilliant silver light, he was gone…leaving Bella alone in the darkness.

  “Myko?” she hissed.

  There was a sudden yelp, followed by silence.

  Bella froze, a chill running down her spine. She heard another splash nearby, and then another. Getting louder. Coming toward her.

  Then a silver glow appeared in the mist ahead, and moments later Myko returned, his jaws stained with blood. He snorted, stopping alongside Bella and scratching at his collar again. She hesitated, staring at the blood and feeling sick to her stomach. Myko scratched at his collar again, and Bella swallowed back a wave of nausea, grabbing the collar and letting the wolf lead her through the mist.

  “Where are we going?” she asked. Myko said nothing, of course. She felt rather stupid, kicking herself for thinking the wolf could talk. But then again it could clearly understand her…at least a little…and communicate back in a way.

  The great silver wolf led her through the haze, paws squelching in the mud underfoot. A great heat radiated from his body, for which Bella was grateful; she found herself pressing her side against him as they walked. If he minded, he certainly didn’t show it. His fur was thick and surprisingly soft, and didn’t smell like dog. In fact, it didn’t smell like anything at all.

  Myko slowed for a moment to sniff the ground, then continued forward.

  At length they reached a large stone pillar, one so tall it vanished into the mists above. Thick brown vines crawled up its surface, wicked-looking black thorns protecting their stems. Myko stopped before this pillar, standing perfectly still save for his ears. They were erect, busily turning this way and that, as if searching for a telltale sound. Then they locked in place, and Myko turned his head slightly, staring off into the choking fog.

  Bella heard a splash in the distance, followed by a muffled curse.

  Moments later, a shadow appeared in the mist ahead, a vague blur that became sharper as it approached. Bella pressed closer to Myko’s warm flank, gripping tufts of his fur tightly.

  “Relax,” a familiar voice called out. “It’s me.”

  “Gideon!” Bella blurted out.

  And it was Gideon; the man stopped before them, looking a complete mess. His suit jacket was missing, his silver tie askew. His dress pants and the lower half of his purple were utterly soaked, and mud caked his fine dress shoes and his socks, water dripping from the rolled-up painting he held in his left hand. Blood oozed from a small cut on his left cheek…and dripped from the butt of his cane, which he’d tucked under one armpit.

  “Well, that went better than I expected,” he declared. “Then again, I expected us to die.”

  “Are you okay?” Bella asked.

  “Just fine, thank you,” he replied. “Might want to keep your voice down, by the way,” he added. “There is a literal army looking for us.”

  Bella winced, realizing she’d spoken far too loudly.

  “What was…all that?” she asked in a hushed tone. “Why is an army after us? What was that giant-thing? What the heck is going on?”

  Gideon ignored her, setting the painting against the stone pillar, then handing his cane to Myko, who carried it in his mouth. Then Gideon used his one hand to straighten his tie and smooth out his shirt. After scraping his boots on the pillar to get the mud off, he retrieved the painting, shaking the water off of it and muttering something under his breath. The painting unrolled itself instantly, becoming completely flat, as if framed.

  “Hold this up, would you?” Gideon requested. Bella stepped away from Myko, instantly missing the wolf’s warmth. The painting was taller than Gideon himself, and a few feet wide. It was of a moonlit hilltop; lightning was frozen in mid-flash within clouds to the upper left, a four-sided lantern resting atop a wooden casket on the lower left. Objects littered the ground beside the casket, including a few arrows, a sword and two spears, as well as a few paintbrushes of various sizes, a palette, an easel, and jars of paint set out in neat rows. And a bronze fire pit sat to the right, a fire crackling merrily within.

  “Go on,” Gideon urged. “Hold it by the edge.”

  She did so, holding it with one hand. It was quite easy to do so, given how light it was. Gideon knelt down in the muck, reaching out with his lone left hand toward the lantern on the painting, his fingers brushing up against the canvas there.

  They passed right through.

  Bella’s eyes widened, and she stared in disbelief as Gideon’s entire hand plunged into the canvas. But instead of disappearing, his hand appeared on the surface of the painting, as if it too had been painted. He grabbed the lantern…and pulled it right out of the canvas.

  After which it appeared entirely real.

  “What?” Bella blurted out, staring at the lantern in disbelief. Gideon held it before him.

  “Luminos,” he murmured.

  The lantern flared to life, bright rays of light piercing through the fog. The light cut through the mist like a knife, shoving it backward violently…and revealing the marshy landscape around them, clear as day. The light ended a good fifty feet away in all directions, somehow keeping the churning fog at bay. Muddy earth extended in all directions around them, along with countless small pools of mucky, turbid water.
Plants like cattails pierced the surface of the pools, and huge waterlilies floated on top.

  Gideon muttered something, and the painting promptly rolled itself up in Bella’s hand.

  “Switch,” he instructed, handing her the lantern and taking the painting from her. “Alright Myko, let’s get my portal and go,” he prompted. Myko sniffed the ground, then walked forward across the mud, and Gideon followed him. Bella hesitated, then rushed to walk at his side. The wolf, she noted, was no longer glowing.

  “They’ll be sending more dogs soon,” Gideon warned, glancing behind them. Myko snorted, the cane still between his jaws. “I know you’re not worried,” he told the wolf.

  “What’s going on?” she demanded. “Where are we? And why were all those people chasing us?”

  “If you ask more than one question at a time,” he replied, “…you’ll give me a chance to avoid answering one of them.”

  “Fine,” Bella grumbled. “Where are we?”

  “Before I can tell you where you are,” Gideon replied, “…you need to know where you’ve been.”

  Bella just stared at him, and he stopped, turning to face her.

  “You, Bella, have been lost,” he explained. “In a book.”

  Bella blinked.

  “Huh?”

  “You were lost in a book,” he repeated.

  “What do you mean I was lost in a book?”

  “The world you and your grandfather lived in for the last decade was a fiction,” Gideon declared. “Everyone you knew there – your teachers, your schoolmates – was a character in a book. Your apartment, the city. Everything.”

  Bella raised her eyebrows, crossing her arms over her chest.

  “Really.”

  “This book was written by a man named Belthazar Squib,” he continued, ignoring her doubting expression. Bella’s eyes widened.

  “The Chronicles of Collins Dansworth,” she recalled. “That’s the book Grandpa gave me!”