Agnus looked back at me. “I was watching when she bound you here. She didn’t use her magic. She drew yours out. She manipulated the magic inside you to bind you to the seat.”
“All right,” I said. “Your point?”
“Remember what Layla said. It doesn’t matter what spell you do. You just need to draw some kind of magic, and it should replace the spell that holds you there.” Agnus nodded at me, then leaped out the window and darted into the woods.
“Well, that’s just great,” I said to myself. Now I had nothing to do but sit there anxiously until something happened. But Agnus had a point. I didn’t know for sure if the spell she cast was using my magic or hers. It made sense that it would be my magic. Somehow she drew it out and used it to bind me here. If she used her magic, she wouldn’t be able to cast anything when she found B’iff. I suspected she’d need magic as much as her archery skill to take the Blade from him. Presuming, of course, he had the Blade by now. He didn’t have it before.
I closed my eyes. There were trees all around us, just like when we were in the park. If I could focus like I did before…
I inhaled deeply and imagined myself sitting on the ground like I was in the park. Yes, I was in my car at the moment, but if I could somehow duplicate that experience, if I could connect to the trees? It worked before. Maybe it would work again.
I imagined light all around, connecting me to the trees, enveloping my body. Then, I imagined the light as it enveloped my whole frame remaining only on the horizon.
There was a tap on my window. It interrupted my focus.
I looked up. A man was standing there. A young man, probably in his twenties. He was wearing a black hoodie, but it was soaking wet, as were the rest of his clothes. His face was covered in blood.
“Open your door, please!”
I wouldn’t normally open my door to someone who looked like he’d just been in a brawl, but I could see the desperation in this man’s eyes.
I looked down.
I laughed to myself. The magic bindings were gone. The exercise worked! I had to admit, Agnus was brilliant.
“Why are you laughing?” the man asked.
I cracked my window a little. “I’m sorry. It wasn’t about you. Are you okay, sir?”
“I saw you arrive here. Layla was with you.”
“How do you know that?”
The man pulled back his hood. My jaw dropped. He had the ears. The tips were poking out from beneath his long wet black hair.
“Those ears are real, I presume?”
He tugged at one of them. “As far as I know. Please, Layla needs your help.”
“What’s wrong? Is she okay?”
“She is for now,” the man said. “Please just get out of the car.”
I nodded. I opened the door and stepped outside.
“I saw what you were doing just now. You can use magic.”
I nodded. “Sort of. I’m just learning.”
“I need you to heal me.”
“Heal you?” I asked. “I’ve healed before, but honestly, I’ve only been working with magic for a few days now.”
“Since you were stabbed by the Blade,” the man said. “I know.”
“Who are you, anyway? Layla didn’t mention you.”
“Layla doesn’t know I’m here. Her father sent me to follow her. To make sure she was safe. But then you showed up, and she got sidetracked healing you. I had to go after the orc myself.”
“So you’re the one who had the Blade?”
“I managed to get it from him, but then he showed up here just as I came out of the water. He took it from me, and now I’m hurt.”
“Did he cut you with the Blade?” I asked.
The man-elf shook his head. “No, but an orc packs a punch. He caught me in the head with a mean right hook. I can barely see. Right now, I’m seeing about three of you.”
“Probably a concussion,” I said. Not like I had any medical expertise that qualified me to make such a diagnosis, but it made sense. “I don’t know how. Can you guide me?”
“I can. The name’s Hector, by the way.”
I nodded. “I’m Caspar.”
“If you can heal me, we can go help Layla. Don’t get me wrong; she’s more than capable. But that orc already has the Blade, and it’s already imbued with magic. If he taps into it, he’ll be too powerful for her to stop.”
“All right,” I said. “Just tell me what I need to do.”
“Place your hand on my head,” Hector said. “You need to picture me healed. The trick to working with magic is visualization. Imagine what you want to do, and if what you visualize is something your magic can do, you’ll do it.”
“And you can’t heal yourself?” I asked.
“It’s not possible,” Hector said. “Every creature with a soul has magic, even if they don’t realize it. But healing magic is cooperative. It involves the magic of the healer and the healed working together. I cannot cast a healing spell on myself while also allowing my magic to work to restore my body.”
I nodded. “All right. No promises, but I’ll try.”
I placed my hand on Hector’s forehead. I had healed Doris before. What was I thinking at the time? I visualized my memories with Doris. I saw her smiling, healthy, and well. I suppose when I’d done it, I was afraid we were losing her. I naturally went, in my mind, back to the memories of her I’d cherished. It wasn’t a brain I imagined, even though if she truly was having a stroke, it was her brain I’d healed.
I didn’t think imagining a healthy elf brain now was what I needed to do. I could picture him well, picture him healthy and virile, accomplishing something that required a sound mind. Maybe that would work. Not like I had any memories like I’d had of Doris that I could draw from. I just met Hector. He was a handsome elf. He was in great shape, kind of like Layla. I imagined him with a clean face. I pictured him with a bow and arrow like the one Layla used, aiming at a target. He’d need focus for that. Perfect focus. If the concussion was making him see triple, the concussion would need to heal if he was to have his correct vision restored.
I felt a tingle. I knew that tingle. It was magic. I could only hope it was doing what I intended.
“On your first try,” Hector said. “That’s impressive.”
“Thanks,” I said. “I’m guessing it worked?”
Hector nodded and grabbed my arm. “Come on. We need to go after her. Once she realizes B’iff already has the Blade full of magic, it might be too late.”
Chapter Twenty-One
Hector seemed familiar with the woods surrounding the spring.
We ran past the fisherman, who casually cranked at his rod and didn’t pay us any attention as we darted past him. Fishing is serious business. A virtual fireworks show of magic had just occurred behind him, and he was oblivious to it. I suppose that was a good thing.
Hector didn’t have any weapons on him, but that didn’t dissuade him as he sprinted through the trees, leaping over rocks and fallen tree trunks like an Olympic hurdler.
I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t mildly emasculating to see this perfect physical specimen of an elf charge through the woods while I tripped over almost every rock and twig in the path, clumsily doing my best to keep up.
A thorn from one of the trees caught me in the arm.
Ouch.
I tried to ignore the pain as I kept Hector in view. He was a good twenty yards ahead of me.
No sign yet of Layla, B’iff, or even Agnus.
The bright light I’d seen when I released the magical seat belt Layla had used to trap me in the car had faded the moment I healed Hector. I suppose if he left me in the dust, I could try to refocus and get the light back in my mind. No chance, though, while I was stumbling through the woods like this.
Please, God, clear the path ahead of any copperhead snakes!
If there were any of those nasty little buggers in the path ahead, I was certain I’d end up stepping on one. Copperheads weren’t the only venomou
s snakes in Missouri, but they were the most common. And since God knew my thoughts before I even began praying, I was confident that I didn’t need to name every potential species of snake native to the Ozarks to let God know that avoiding any snakes was my true petition.
I hate snakes. I hate snakes. Just the thought of them gives me the heebie-jeebies.
All the more reason to move quickly.
Hector leaped over something ahead.
When I arrived, I saw what it was. A creek in a crevice that was probably a good ten feet deep. Seven feet across, at least. Miss this jump, and I’d be lucky if all I had was a twisted ankle. It would probably cost a knee and certainly a good deal of pride. Still, I had to make the jump.
Thank God for adrenaline.
My heart raced as I leaped. I could hardly believe it when my foot hit the ground on the other side of the creek. It felt like I was flying, which was something I used to pray for regularly—the powers of Superman. It was my number one petition when I was a kid. Had God finally answered that prayer?
I caught my foot on a tree root and face-planted in a pile of leaves. Nope, my Superman prayer was still outstanding.
I saw Agnus sitting on a log with a dead snake in his mouth.
I gasped.
He dropped it in front of me.
I shrieked.
He laughed.
I looked around. Hector had disappeared. I didn’t have a clue where he’d gone.
“Agnus,” I said, catching my breath, “did you find Layla and B’iff? There’s another elf.”
“I know,” Agnus said. “I saw him. And yes. You’re heading in the right direction.”
I kicked the dead snake Agnus dropped in front of me. Not a copperhead, just a garter snake. Harmless. “Asshole move, by the way.”
“Thank you. I’m striving for greatness.”
“Is Layla okay? Hector, the other elf who showed up, said B’iff has the Blade fully charged.”
Agnus cocked his head. “He had it, but he wasn’t using it. Curious.”
“Maybe he doesn’t know how. Layla didn’t seem certain he did. But Hector seemed confident that B’iff could use it.”
“Then we’d better hurry!” Agnus said, taking off through the woods.
Great, now I was going to have to try to play keep-up with my cat. Being significantly smaller than Hector, he was infinitely more difficult to track.
I took a deep breath. Could I focus again? No, I couldn’t fly. Not for more than a few feet, anyway. But I did have something akin to Superman’s x-ray vision. I closed my eyes and went through the light ritual I’d done before. This time, I was able to do it a lot more quickly.
Sure enough, a bright light remained in view when I opened my eyes.
The problem? It was almost too bright, making it hard to navigate.
Go into the light, don’t go into the light…
The creepy lady from Poltergeist was haunting my thoughts.
Layla wanted me to stay behind. Hector seemed to think she needed both of us.
I wasn’t much of a hero, no Man of Steel, but if I could help somehow, I had to do it.
All fear be damned. I’d faced my fear of heights. I’d even survived an encounter with a snake, albeit a non-venomous one.
And none of that was anything like as daunting as overcoming addiction. I could certainly do something to help overpower the giant orc. So I did what the Poltergeist lady said never to do, then said to do. I ran as hard as I could into the light.
The light was so bright I had a hard time looking ahead, which meant more than a few stumbles over stray tree branches and rocks along the way.
But I’d get there. I had to.
The light got so intense that I had no choice but to close my eyes. Then it was as if everything became clear. Everything around me was just a blur, but in my mind’s eye, I saw the path in front of me.
The trees, all around, targeted my focus. I don’t know how I knew it, but I sensed they were guiding me.
Meerow
I heard Agnus, and I could follow his voice. He was guiding me, too.
My feet began moving of their own accord as I jumped over limbs and dodged tree branches that would ordinarily have clotheslined me.
I knew they were there; I felt their presence. Then I saw them.
B’iff, standing at the edge of the water. The Blade of Echoes in his hand, glowing as before, but it wasn’t blinding in my mind’s eye. I sensed its magic. An arrow protruded from his shoulder.
Layla had hit him with her arrow, but she must’ve missed the nerve she was aiming for.
Another arrow went flying toward him. He struck it down with the Blade.
Hector charged B’iff and bounced off like a rubber ball against a brick wall.
The spring behind him glowed with the same magic the Blade held.
I left my feet.
I don’t know how I did it. I just visualized it, and it happened.
There was that Superman prayer at work.
B’iff turned as he saw me flying toward him.
Time slowed down.
“You don’t understand! Please,” B’iff was practically pleading with me. He knew he was done for. My body torpedoed at him. I swung my fist, knocking the Blade out of his hand as I speared him in the gut with my shoulder. Together, we flew into the spring toward the light.
Then the orc disappeared.
Chapter Twenty-Two
I opened my eyes underwater.
I didn’t see the glow of the Blade near the surface, but I knew I’d knocked it out of B’iff’s hand. It had to be there. The glow must’ve been replaced by whatever strange magic I’d just tapped into.
The water was colder than a witch’s nipples in January.
Every muscle in my body tensed. I kicked off my shoes and did my best frog-kick, trying to get back to the surface. It felt like it was a mile away, but it was probably only a few feet.
I kicked my legs again. Finally, I was clinging to the bank on the edge of the spring.
I felt two hands. They were warm, so warm…
Layla and Hector each grabbed one of my arms and dragged me out of the water. Layla placed her hands on my body, and warmth filled my frame.
Thank God for magic.
I looked up. Agnus sat there, staring at me. For the first time, I thought I saw a hint of fear in his face.
“Are you okay, Casp?”
“I will be,” I said.
“Impressive,” Layla remarked.
“Too impressive,” Hector replied. “Layla, you realize what he did?”
Layla nodded.
“What is it?” I asked.
“It’s a part of the prophecy, Caspar.”
I looked down at Layla’s hand. She had the Blade of Echoes.
I shrugged. “Whatever it might have been, you have the Blade.”
“What about the orc?” Hector asked.
I shook my head. “He just disappeared into the light. I don’t know where he went.”
Again, the two elves exchanged glances.
“What is it?” I asked.
“Never mind that,” Layla said. “What’s important is that we have the Blade.”
I nodded.
“I suppose you’ve already met Hector?” Layla asked.
“Barely,” I said. “He showed up at the car and helped me get out of there.”
Layla grinned. “I must admit, it was sort of a test to see if you could focus your magic well enough to shake off the shackles.”
I shook my head. “Well, I guess I passed.”
“More than passed,” Hector interjected. “What you just did, that kind of power…”
“I don’t know how I did it. I just closed my eyes like Luke Skywalker going after the Death Star.”
Hector furrowed his brow.
“Never mind.”
Layla rolled her eyes. “An Earth-culture reference.”
“I thought you hadn’t seen Star Wars,” I said.
&
nbsp; “I haven’t,” Layla said. “But that Rise of Skywalker movie came out a while back. I saw the previews. I recognized the name.”
“Well, once you start watching the movies, don’t start with that one. And don’t start with Episode 1, either. You have to watch them in the order they were made. It starts with A New Hope.”
Layla laughed. “Well, I don’t think I’ll watch them without you. So, how about we make it a date? I mean, once all this is over?”
I grinned a little.
Hector cleared his throat. “I don’t think your father would approve.”
“Whatever,” Layla said. “My father will learn to deal with it. And I think you’re just jealous, Hector.”
“I’m not jealous,” Hector said. “When we broke up, it was a mutual decision.”
“Wait,” I said. “You two used to date?”
Layla nodded. “Long story.”
Hector rolled his eyes. “We didn’t just date. We were betrothed, only she refused the betrothal because of her obsession with Earth.”
“Becoming a visitor was always my calling, Hector. Being an elf-wife, raising kids? You know that’s not me.”
“Which was the only reason I agreed to release you from the betrothal. It didn’t mean I was happy about it.”
“Anyway,” I said, scratching my head, “where do we go from here?”
“We need to report to the elf king,” Hector said. “He will want to know that we have the Blade in our possession so he can anticipate our return.”
I ran my fingers through my wet hair. “Can we go back to the car first? I mean, I appreciate the warming spell, Layla, but it’s still cold.”
“Of course,” Layla said. “My communicator is in the car as well.”
Hector pulled a blue crystal out of his pocket. “I have one. We really shouldn’t wait.”
Layla rolled her eyes. “Just let me do it. He already doesn’t trust me. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have sent you after me.”
“To be fair,” Hector said, “if he hadn’t sent me, B’iff would have empowered the Blade a lot sooner while you were busy romancing this human.”
I coughed. “I’m still standing here, by the way.”
Hector didn’t acknowledge me. “Your father’s plans all depend on us securing the Blade of Echoes, Layla.”
Who Let the Dogma Out (The Elven Prophecy Book 1) Page 12