Megan eyed her for a moment, those gold flecks sparkling, and after having obviously satisfied herself with Laura’s insistence, she went on. ‘For one of our kind to be created, an Angel must be called upon before the Warlock mother’s final hours and allowed take over her body with the help of a possession charm. I’m sure you might know this already, but should the mother wait until she herself is on the brink of death for the Angel to possess her, rather than using the charm, then both she and the Angel will be too late.’
Laura did know that much. She recalled having learned it through her mother’s journals.
‘Once inside, the Angel is able to save the child. However it is a tricky task, and in order for the child to continue to survive, the Angel must grant part of its own soul to the babe. That morsel of soul combines with the rest of the child’s, awarding it the power and strength to survive. But that’s not all the child receives. With the portion of soul comes both power, and the tell-tale sign of an Angel – gold.’
‘Our eyes!’ Laura gasped and Megan smiled.
‘The power gifted to us from the Angel allows us to alter the human form. Not in the sense of changing the actual body itself, but in the method of either harming, protecting or healing it. We can inflict pain and we can alter those around us to become invisible. We can heal the worst of injuries and we can take lives with only a single thought. Our connection with the Angel’s also allow us to call on the Gods and to listen to them without having to summon them to Elixir. We are a part of their world because of the Angel soul within us. And that soul is passed on through our children too.’
Megan paused a moment, gauging Laura’s reaction. In truth, Laura was barely able to contain the rush of blood in her ears or the hammering of her heart, but she sat quietly, listening.
‘It is for that reason that we stay hidden. If the knowledge of our power was to be set free, the world would only use us. Abuse our gifts. Wars would rage and all would be lost. It is why we chose to keep to ourselves. We believe in good, and we live a life of peace. We do not want to be transformed into puppets, used to perform others bidding. But then again, even we can recognise a real threat when we see one.’
Laura straightened at that. ‘What do you mean?’
‘I have heard the whisperings of the Gods. Erebus has returned.’
Laura could almost see Gemma’s ears prick as she, too, turned her complete attention on the Caster.
‘Erebus has been attempting to capture Elixir since the very beginning of his time. Long before he ever became the Wicked Wizard he is,’ Megan told them. ‘He has many on his side, and if the God’s are worried, then I have a feeling we should be too.’
‘The God’s are worried?’ Laura asked, a lump caught in her throat.
‘Why aren’t they helping us then? If they’re so worried, why did they not come to our aid when we asked them?’ Gemma intervened.
‘Because that is what Erebus wants. If the God’s were to leave the Heavens and enter our lands, it would open up the well between our worlds.’
Laura recalled a memory. Erebus talking of the Devils. Of having them on side.
‘Oh my gosh,’ she whispered, fear creeping into her voice.
She’d known that the Devils had wanted to take the Heavens. She’d guessed as much, for why else would they help Erebus? But it suddenly all made sense to her – why the God’s couldn’t leave, why Erebus was so confident.
‘He wants to raise the Devils too. So they can go to war right here on Elixir. So the Devils can take the Heavens but destroy all of us in the process. And calling the Gods down to help us would give them easy access to the Heavens to do just that.’
‘But it’ll give the God’s access to the Hells too, right? They could destroy them? The Gods are more powerful than the Devils… aren’t they?’ Gemma asked, her voice growing low with uncertainty.
Megan’s face was grim as she forced a tight-lipped frown. ‘The Devils and the Gods are one and the same. They would destroy one another completely. And without either of them, the balance of Elixir would disappear. The world would turn to ruins.’
An image of a dark, burnt, barren waste filled Laura’s mind as she thought over Megan’s words.
‘We can’t let that happen,’ she said quietly. ‘You said you’d help us?’
Megan inclined her head, though the expression her face held was anything but hopeful. ‘We shall do all we can to end the battle. But I have a feeling that the war has only just begun.’
~
Drew took a cautious step in front of Grace, lightly pressing his twin further behind him. The look on Creshan’s face was both dark and curious. His eyes flickered down to Mr Stark’s dead form, still bleeding on the stone floor, then back to Drew’s.
Drew felt the air shift beside him and knew Logan was moving in to protect Grace too. Grace, however, stepped past their defences and, to Drew’s horror, strode towards Creshan.
‘Do you really want to do this?’ She asked, her voice both light and calm.
Drew’s heart was hammering in his chest and he exchanged worried glances with Mitch and Logan. What was his sister doing? Creshan could kill her in an instant.
Grace halted only a metre from Creshan, and for the first time Drew saw the look on the young man’s face. It had altered to one of surprise. Drew reached for the hilt of his sword only to find it not there. His eyes quickly scanned the ground and found it a number of metres off to his left where he must have dropped it at some point during the fight with Mr Stark.
‘You are still like us. You were one of us. You can be again,’ Grace continued, drawing Drew’s attention back to her.
How was he going to reach his sword? Logan and Mitch still had theirs, so could cover him for a second should he need it, but he still didn’t like the idea of being weapon-less, especially when his sister was facing off over a hundred Wicked on her own.
Drew ached to reach for Grace and pull her back behind him, but he couldn’t risk it. The Wicked weren’t attacking, and he didn’t want to give them cause to do so. Regardless, he felt helpless.
Creshan gazed on with interest as Grace lifted her chin both in stupid bravery and defiance. Even so, Drew was proud of his twin. Proud yes, but also slightly angry.
‘Erebus is using you. All of you,’ Grace told the Wicked. ‘I know some of you were once Enchanted too, and I’m sure good still lives within you. You don’t want this life. One of serving Erebus, one of destroying the Human race, one where the world will fall to ruins. Because if you continue following Erebus, that’s what’s going to happen. He won’t stop until all Human’s and Enchanted alike are eradicated or forced into slavery, and even then, the Wicked will have to work for him. You won’t have the better life you so desperately seek if you continue to follow Erebus.’
Creshan laughed at that, the first sign that he was even listening to what Grace was saying. ‘The Wicked won’t have a better life if they continue on with the life they were leading before, either. They were on the lowest rung of the ladder. They had no homes - not in the way the Enchanted had Alast. They had no access to money, food, education, or even training. They had nothing, forcing them to fight, to become the evil race everyone thought them to be. At least now they have something to fight for. Something that gives them hope. So, I struggle to believe you truly understand what you are saying.’
Drew couldn’t see Grace’s face, but he was sure she’d be struggling to mask the shock, for that’s what he himself was doing. He’d never quite thought about the Wicked as living beings; as people only hoping to survive. Had the Enchanted been wrong about the Wicked all this time? Was the only reason the Wicked were evil because the Enchanted assumed them to be and thus forcing them to become so? Had the Enchanted simply presumed that anyone with the red lightning like Erebus were evil, and thus shunned them from their society? Drew could barely wrap his head around what Creshan was suggesting, and one glance at both Logan and Mitch revealed similar expressions.
Drew watched his sister take another small step towards Creshan, and his whole body tensed. He forced the hand that was aching to reach for her to his side, allowing her to proceed. He only hoped she knew what she was doing.
Grace peered out at all the Wicked behind Creshan, meeting the gaze of one after another. ‘I’m sorry,’ she whispered. ‘I’m sorry for what our people have done to yours. I’m sorry you were forced to become evil. But that can all stop now. We can help you, all of you, to have a better life. We can talk to the Grand Courts. We can convince the Enchanted of the truth. But please, you don’t want to do this. If you continue to follow Erebus, it will be the end of Elixir as we know it. Then you’ll never have the life you deserve; that your children deserve-’
‘Enough!’ Creshan shouted, cutting Grace off.
Drew saw her flinch, and in an instant he’d taken a number of rushed steps towards her and had pulled her back behind him and Logan. Before he knew what was happening, Mitch dove in front of him, warding off Creshan’s sword, and Drew grit his teeth at how close the blades were to his chest.
Grace unsheathed her own sword behind him, and Drew used the distraction to duck around her and snatch up his blade. His sword in hand once again, he spun, meeting the gold weapon of a Wicked who’d been charging for his back. The swords slammed against one another, and he shoved back, unbalancing the Wicked. The Wicked stumbled for a moment, then regained his composure and eyed Drew. He didn’t, however, attack, and so, for the first time, Drew didn’t either.
The Wicked peered behind him, and Drew realised why. His fellow Wicked were leaving. Most of them, anyway. Logan was fending off two, Mitch was still battling Creshan, and Grace was in a fight of her own, but the rest of the Wicked seemed to be rushing back down the tunnel.
Drew saw his opponent spin back to face him, his eyes no longer ablaze with the desire to fight. Then, he turned and took off after his companions.
Stunned, Drew scanned the room to see Grace and Logan both standing, staring down the tunnel after two more fleeing Wicked.
The Wicked had left. All but Creshan.
‘The fight is over,’ Mitch said, swiftly ducking Creshan’s sword and shoving back against him, sending him staggering into the cave wall. ‘Your followers are gone.’
Creshan bared his teeth, but he paused to glance about the room. When he realised the truth, he straightened slowly, pushing off from the wall.
‘We don’t want to fight you,’ Grace told him. ‘Please, we only want to end this war.’
Creshan’s eyes flickered between the four of them, and Drew could see uncertainty in his expression.
‘This isn’t over,’ he hissed, then turned, leaving them standing in the cave, alone, with Mr Stark’s lifeless body.
They waited a moment, ensuring Creshan was truly gone, then rotated to face the glass wall behind them where the hysterical Humans remained locked up.
‘How do we release them?’ Logan asked, moving to the door and inspecting the handle.
There was a code orientated lock located to the right of the door jam, and the keypad looked old and worn.
‘We could really use Tilly’s hacking skills right now,’ Grace muttered, stepping up beside Logan.
Drew felt a flash of worry at the mention of Tilly for it only reminded him of all they’d left behind. Tilly had been a part of the underground rebel group back in Alast. They’d been formed when Erebus had invaded and taken the Enchanted hostage, forcing them to labour away completing new constructions for his base. Drew and the others had managed to escape after they’d formulated a plan to summon a God and trade for a portal using Laura’s gift. Unfortunately, it hadn’t gone to plan, and Stella, Leo, Stella’s brothers Archer, Tarim, Sully and Martin, and many others like them were still stuck inside. At least, as far as Drew knew.
‘Can’t we just break the glass with our weapons?’ Drew suggested, forcing his mind back to the task at hand.
Mitch ran his hand over the glass. ‘I think it’s pretty thick. It has to be if we can’t hear them.’
Drew’s eyes shifted, coming to rest on the hundreds of Humans locked behind the glass, banging against the walls, crying and screaming out for help. Drew couldn’t hear a thing, but his heart contracted at the sight of the helpless Humans.
‘We’ll get you out!’ Grace yelled at them, hoping they would understand.
Drew scanned the cave. All they had were their swords and daggers. If they couldn’t break the glass, then they would have to unlock the door. But how? They weren’t hackers. They had absolutely no clue as to what the password could be, let alone how many characters were required.
‘What if we can dust over the keypad like they do in movies, you know, where they make the fingerprints show up? Then we’ll know what buttons they pressed. All we’ll have to work out is the order,’ Grace suggested.
‘The only problem with that is usually these kinds of locks only provide you with a few attempts to get it right,’ Logan countered, shaking his messy mop of dark hair from his eyes.
‘And what would we use?’ Mitch added.
Grace forced a sigh. ‘What do we do then? We can’t leave them!’
Logan paused, a hand rising to indicate to the others that he had an idea. ‘I remember seeing some materials, in the weapons room we found…’ his eyes flickered to meet Grace’s and she shook her head emphatically.
‘No, if we blow the glass we could kill them. It’s too dangerous.’
‘Could we dull the explosion? Create a small enough one so not to hurt anyone but big enough to shatter the glass?’ Drew asked.
‘Drew, no!’ Grace hissed angrily, ‘we can’t risk hurting them! They’re Human, remember? They aren’t as strong as us.’
Drew could hear the frustration in his twin’s voice; her desire to protect the Humans, something that had been ingrained in them since they were toddlers, taking over her ability to think clearly. Drew knew she would hate doing it. Would hate risking their lives. But it appeared blasting through the glass was their only option.
Drew met his twin’s gaze. ‘Grace, we have to. It’s the only way.’
‘If we tell the humans to get back and shield themselves with whatever they can use, they’ll be fine,’ Mitch said calmly, speaking for the first time on the matter.
Grace’s green eyes flickered to his, her mouth agape as if she was desperate to persist in her argument, but Drew saw the moment she resigned to the decision. He saw the dulling of her eyes, the darkening of her resolve, and the defeated expression on her face.
‘Fine,’ she whispered. Then, she added fiercely, ‘but if any of them die, I’ll be holding you three accountable.’
Drew’s heart clenched at her words and a sickening feeling flooded his veins. He hated that she was angry, but he understood. He could see she was only concerned for the humans. That after so long, she was finally in a position to help someone, and yet she was going to have to endanger them in order to do it. He longed to reach for his sister, but she turned on her heal and marched down the tunnel, leaving the three of them staring after her.
~
Gemma’s heart was pounding in her chest that night as she lay beside Laura on the pull out sofa bed in Megan’s little hut. How they had acquired furniture when they lived on the islands, seas away from any stores, was beyond Gemma, but she appreciated the soft bed in comparison to the rocky, wooden ship. If anything, she should have snuggled down and drifted off to sleep easily.
But Gemma couldn’t sleep, despite the fact that Megan had proved to them that she meant them no harm. That she was going to help them, in fact. Gemma believed the woman – it was hard not to after all she had told them. In addition, her warmth and hospitality was more then they deserved after how sceptical they’d been. But In spite of everything, Gemma felt the dangers of war looming over her.
After all they’d learned from Megan about the God’s and Devils, about the Casters, about Creatures Gemma had never known really existed (which was saying somet
hing considering the world she’d grown up in) she felt on edge.
Laura let out a sigh in her sleep as she rolled over on the bed, tugging the blanket with her and exposing Gemma to the cold. She didn’t fight for the warmth, though. The cool helped to keep her eyes open. She was tired, and they drooped from time to time, but she wasn’t ready for sleep to claim her. There was too much to think about.
Her gut clenched as her mind whirled with all the new information, with the knowledge that out there, past the haze surrounding the Islands, war was still raging. She thought about the Creatures on the islands, all living in harmony with the Casters. They’d looked frightening, Gemma had to admit. The moment they had surrounded Laura and her on the beach she’d almost panicked. She’d never seen anything like them before, and yet, they didn’t attack. They only sought to help. And they would help in the war too, Megan had told them.
Megan, the chief of the Casters. Gemma adjusted the pillow underneath her head and peered across the room to the door behind which Megan slept. Laura was a Caster, and she wasn’t the only one with such a power. No one but those on the Island knew that there were more Enchanted like Laura. When Gemma had agreed to set sail with Laura in search of Mist Roe and answers, never in a million years had she suspected she’d find more gifted like Laura. In fact, she’d often questioned whether they would find anything at all. She was glad to have been proven wrong, for now Laura had her answers, and furthermore, it seemed she had a new family, too. But the fear that had been on Megan’s face that afternoon as she’d told them of the Casters and promised them a hand in the war had been enough to convince Gemma that even the most powerful questioned whether the Enchanted had already lost the war.
With a sigh, Gemma pulled the pillow free from behind her head and tossed it to the end of the bed, frustrated. She couldn’t find a comfortable position, though she knew it was really her worries plaguing her, not the pillow. She was concerned that they wouldn’t win the war. Then what would happen?
Not only that though; she was worried about her friends. Was Grace okay? Her best friend, her partner in crime. She was strong and determined, as they all were, but she had a heart of gold, and Gemma fretted over how well she was dealing with the knowledge that Mr Stark had killed her parents and cousin. She’d talked to her when she could, but with the invasion and then being held hostage… well, she hadn’t had many opportunities to make sure her friend was okay.
The Angel Page 2