by L. H. Nicole
Aliana told them everything, what had happened in her trip to the Underworld, the truth of her parents, and everything Mordrid had said before they came charging in. They searched the cave thoroughly, at Leyon and Owaine’s insistence. Maybe they would find something to help them against Mordrid and Viviane.
Aliana used the opportunity to pull Delphina and her Fae warriors toward the altar while she told Dagg to stay and keep the guys distracted. She gathered the five fallen stones from the Spear of Hel, hidden in the tall grass like Easter eggs. Their colors were muted, their power almost nothing compared to what she had felt from them earlier. Her veils had worked. These jewels were needed to create the sword the Lady of the Lake gave to Arthur after she’d awoken him in Avalon. Titania now possessed the sword, which must have been the mystery task the Fae had wanted Aliana to accomplish. If she wanted to go home, she needed to see it done.
“Delphina, you know Avalon and its people, right?”
The apricot-haired girl nodded. Falorn and D’varin frowned as Aliana held out the five stones. “Take these to the fire Elves, tell them to forge them into a sword for Arthur, one they must give to the Lady of the Lake.”
Delphina’s eyes widened. “I don’t understand?”
Aliana gave her a tight smile. “You don’t need to.”
It had to be done if she wanted to ensure the future. She met the eyes of all three of the Fae. “I have one more thing to ask of all you.”
D’varin bowed his head to her. “We are yours to command.”
She took a breath. “You can’t tell the others what I’ve asked you to do. The truth of these jewels needs to stay hidden from all but us four. No one must know that the jewels were not destroyed with the Spear of Hel.”
The three were reluctant, but in the end agreed to her wishes.
The Fae secured the gems in an empty pouch she tied to her belt. “I will leave immediately, my lady.” Delphina bowed to Aliana.
“Thank you.” She looked to D’varin and Falorn. “She can’t travel alone. You two need to see her safely to the fire Elves.”
They bowed and went to ready their horses, Delphina making a beeline to Arthur to say good bye.
“Where are they going?” Galahad asked, coming up behind her. Dagg wrapped himself around her shoulders.
She turned to him. He and Arthur had remained out in the field with her and the Fae while the others searched the cave. Both men had given her space but it seemed she couldn’t avoid them any longer.
Aliana watched Arthur walk Delphina to her horse. Her chest tightened but she let it go. “They need to go to Avalon, and then return to the Isle.”
“Why?” the white knight asked, his body moving closer to hers so she could feel the warmth rolling off of him and smell his winter spice scent all around her. A scent she had been addicted to in her time.
Arthur came and joined them as she answered the knight. “There is a war coming.” She looked at Arthur. “You’ll need all the allies you can get to fight Mordrid and the army he’s going to amass. The armies of Oberon, and maybe even Titania, are your best hope.”
Realization dawned on both men’s faces. “We will see to it.”
Aliana wanted to feel relief, but she knew what was going to happen. Not yet, but soon. Galahad had told her once that Mordrid’s final attack had happened a month or so after Guinevere’s death. Icy shivers wrecked her. A death that was fast coming.
“Arthur!” Merlin came pouring out of the cave with all the others hot on his heels. All looked equally excited and worried at the same time.
Arthur went to him. “What is it?”
“They left this in their haste.” Merlin held out a crumpled piece of parchment. Merlin spread it out, and Aliana recognized it immediately.
“We found it in a large chamber toward the back of the cave,” Percival explained.
Aliana’s eyes roamed over the familiar symbols she had seen in the ruins in the Isle, when they were searching for Excalibur. The same symbols that told everything about the alignment Mordrid needed to conquer the realms.
Merlin explained the story, pointed out the iron-box-of-death, but the words that followed were like being gob smacked. “I know this box, and where it is kept. If we get this, we can stop him.”
Arthur agreed after a silent moment. “We must find this first; no doubt he and Viviane are already on their way to it.”
“They may be weakened by all that has happened,” Owaine voiced.
Leyon took over the sentence. “We will have no better chance to get ahead of them.”
Gawain gripped the Scot’s shoulder. “And we can get some justice for all the wrongs they have done.”
Galahad echoed Gawain’s words. “We can take our justice for what they have done to our family.”
Aliana recognized the swirling emotions in all of them. “You need to be sure you get justice,” she insisted, “not revenge.”
Everyone was silent.
Arthur finally relented. “We leave immediately.”
Aliana sighed, relieved. She trusted Arthur’s judgment, trusted that he would keep his men from breaking their code of honor. “You and Guinevere will return to Camelot with the guards.”
The order surprised her. “No, Arthur…”
“He’s right, Aliana.” Dagg’s eyes illuminated with his returning power.
Aliana looked down to hide the despair that was overcoming her. So many people had already given their lives, sacrificed so much. She vowed to herself, on her destiny, that she wouldn’t let Guinevere die too.
They were almost halfway back to Camelot and Aliana was beyond exhausted. Igraine had been right; she was still recovering from the effects of Mordrid’s poison, physically and magically. It was hard for her to open her senses long enough to connect with the elemental powers that could help speed up the process.
And riding a horse didn’t help the matter. She had tried to hide how much pain she was still in, but Guin had guessed it after the first hour of riding and ordered the guards to move at a slower pace.
“I saw Igraine,” she told Guin, realizing she hadn’t heard the explanation she had given the guys about everything that had happened. “She came to me…” Tears started to prickle but Aliana cleared her throat, shaking them away. “She was with my birth parents.”
“Death and his wife, I know. Lancelot told me everything already, while we were searching the cave.”
Aliana nodded silently. At least she would be spared the pain of having to tell the story again. “Did she…was Igraine…”
Guinevere reached over from her horse and gripped Aliana’s hand. “She didn’t suffer.”
She took a breath, reminding herself that this was Igraine’s choice. Being selfish would dishonor what the queen had sacrificed for Camelot. She focused instead on something she could control, the attack that would steal Guin’s life. She remembered Galahad’s story, that Lancelot’s wife had died just after Morgana’s death, while being escorted by a patrol of Camelot guards. She opened her magical senses, pushing aside the taxing pain it caused to protect her friend.
“Let me do that!” Dagg insisted. “You need to conserve your strength.” Of course the Dragon had figured out what she was planning. He knew her too well.
“Okay.”
The attack came less than two hours later. A few dozen black knights, even more zombie-raccoon-eyed monsters and Goblins surrounded them. Dagg took to the air ready to fight.
The black knights could only mean that Morgana had managed to save her life with the power of the Firebirds. It was the only thing that explained why, after Merlin killed her, she had managed to survive, or how she was able to create the black knights.
Guinevere veered her horse close to Aliana’s as the guards circled them, furiously fighting back the evil army. She drew a sword from her saddle as Aliana summoned her magic bow. Guin’s jaw dropped; she hadn’t seen this part yet.
“I’ll take care of the black knights, your sword won’t
kill them.” Aliana watched for the first enemy to get through the line. “The black eyed freaks can be killed with their own weapons—”
“And I can kill a Goblin with my sword.” Guin sent her a confident smile. “Don’t worry.”
Aliana didn’t get to respond as the first black knight charged through the guards, who were being efficiently cut down by the enemy. She drew back her arrow and released it. The knight’s rusted dark armor wriggled before falling to pieces with oozing, foul smelling rot. She nocked more arrows, releasing one after the other at the evil knights and zombie creatures.
But her magic was already growing weaker. She couldn’t keep this up for much longer. Dagg rained down his magic fire, frying several Goblins in the process, and wearing himself down.
Guin fought as hard as any of the guys, slashing and stabbing the Goblins that came at her, grabbing one of the zombie creature’s spiked sticks and killing three of them with it. She was a fierce warrior, but Aliana stayed close to her side.
She ached as more guards died at the blades and clubs of the black knights and Goblins. “This is going really badly,” Aliana muttered, her senses guiding her to look just past Guin.
An arrow was already whistling toward her friend. Acting on instinct Aliana swung her leg over her saddle and knocked herself into Guin, both women falling from their horses to the ground in a jarring crash of body parts.
Aliana groaned as she pushed herself up. “Are you okay?”
Guin nodded, but hissed in pain when she tried to use her right arm. “I think it’s broken.” The girl gritted her teeth.
Panting heavily, Aliana looked around the battle. Only five guards remained, the others scattered along with the rotting pieces of armor and dead Goblins. Dagg dive bombed a zombie, a broken piece of a barbed stick between his teeth. It ripped through the monster like a hot knife. The little Dragon zoomed through the army, taking out one zombie after another.
“Aliana, look out!” Guin cried.
She ducked to the side just in time to avoid the spiked stick that almost impaled her head. Rolling to the side, Aliana kicked the zombie’s leg from under him, grabbed his stick as it fell from the gnarled hand, and thrust it up into the vile monster.
It glowed and shriveled into itself before disappearing.
The last few guards rushed to Aliana to aid her. She didn’t stop to think, just moved to the flow of the battle. She had to be sure Guin survived!
Gripping her bow, she nocked three magic arrows at once and fired them, dropping three of the charging pig-like creatures. But others rushed past, leaping over the corpses, their clubs raised.
Aliana danced to the side of one that came down on her, summoning a spear of pink power and jabbing it down into the Goblin’s shoulder. She let out all her fear and anger that had been bubbling over, fueling her determination to stop these monsters before they could take another friend. She ducked another club from her left and summoned a ball of her sparking magic, launching it into his gut. Both creatures fell to the ground as smoking corpses. The last two guards fell, impaled on rusted swords. Dagg came rushing toward her.
“Aliana!”
She turned just in time to see Guin run a Goblin through that had snuck up on her. The redhead wielded her sword in her other shaking hand, her broken arm cradled to her chest. The girls put their backs together, watching their enemies.
“What are we going to do now?” Guin asked through heaving, painful gulps of air. The last six Goblins circled them like a pack of rabid hyenas.
Dagg swooped down like a demon, toasted one with his Dragon fire. Aliana shot two with her arrow but was too slow to avoid a club that came hurtling toward her from the side. It smacked into her shoulder, barreling her to the ground. The adrenaline that helped fuel her was ebbing and the price of using so much magic started to take over.
From the ground she watched Guin stab one through the heart then whirl around, her dirty, tattered skirt flaring out, and slice through the nasty gut of another. The girl was amazing to watch. How had she never guessed Lancelot’s love would be such an amazing warrior?
“Look out!” Aliana threw out her right hand, her ruby giving her one last blast of magic to fry the remaining Goblin.
Guin nodded in thanks but Aliana couldn’t respond as her body seized from the pain of using her magic. Dagg’s magic invaded her, assuaging the pain enough that she could think clearly again, but neither was strong enough to stop it completely.
Guin dropped to her knees. “You’re suffering from the use of your magic! You were still too weak!”
Aliana looked at her with cloudy eyes. “Worth it…you’re not dead.”
“What?” Guin shrieked.
Aliana had the insane desire to giggle; it had to be the pain getting to her addled brain. Something moved from the corner of her eye. She looked over as the Goblin Guin had cut across the gut rose up and hurtled a short sword directly at them. It happened so fast Aliana didn’t have time to react before the blade sank into Guin’s side and the Goblin breathed his last breath.
Aliana screamed as she turned a gasping Guinevere over to lie on the ground. She ripped a long part of the redhead’s tattered skirt off, pulled the blade from her side and jammed the cloth to her side tightly.
“Aliana…” A small stream of blood trickled from the corner of her mouth.
“No, Guin! I won’t let you die!” What little of her magic sparked and flared, but it was only enough to slow the bleeding. Aliana crumpled, her shaking hands all that kept her from falling on the girl. “Dagg…”
A dark shadow passed over them so big it blocked out the last of the dying sunlight.
The ground rumbled as a large silver Dragon landed beside them.
Aliana’s eyes widened in shock.
“I am too late,” the gravelly voice rumbled mournfully. “I am sorry, young ones.”
“Silzik?”
37
I am never letting Lacy out of my sight again. The second the Well’s magic releases her I grab her up and kiss the life out of both of us. “I knew you’d come,” she says. “I felt you here and it gave me courage.” I still don’t know what to say to her, so I’ve taken her away, back to our camp, with Arthur and Leo in tow. As we’re packing, Queen Titania arrives. That crazy queen is more dangerous than a rattlesnake and a control freak to boot. I’m glad Delphina and Freya have already left.
~Percy
THE DRAGON’S HEAD TILTED to the side as he regarded her with his endless silver eyes. “Hmm…The queen did say you were from the future.” He said it more to himself than to her.
“The queen?” Aliana’s brows pulled together as she tightened her grip on Guin’s wound. “You mean Queen Igraine?”
He wuffed, smoke pouring from his scaly nose. “Of course, dear girl, whom else would I be referring too?”
The insane desire to giggle returned. She kept it in as Dagg went to his longtime friend. The two Dragons regarded each other, their eyes glowing.
“I see…it will be a pleasure to watch your destinies unfold.” Silzik bowed his large head and Dagg bowed back.
Aliana snapped. “Sorry to interrupt this bonding moment, but Guin is dying and I don’t have the magic to heal her!”
Silzik ambled over to them, his semi-truck huge body and massive wings hovering above them. His long neck swooped down and he sniffed Guin’s wound. He made a sneezing sound and pulled back quickly. “Poison,” he spat out. “The blade that struck her was coated in a poison I have never come across.”
“Oh for the love of the stars, is there one damn weapon or magic in this place that isn’t poisoned?” She threw her hands up. “Does no one have any imagination?”
“I think you are asking a might too much there…” Guin laughed at her own words, then started coughing and groaning.
“Aliana,” Dagg growled in warning, winding himself around her shoulders. His calm influence swept into her.
She returned her hands to Guin’s side. “I’m sorry.�
�� She looked back to the big Dragon. “I need to get home, to my time. Maybe Merlin can save her?”
As soon as the words fell from her mouth Aliana understood what had truly happened. They had never found Guin’s body, because she had been here in the past and brought Guin back to the future to save her life!
Her eyes went back to Silzik’s frantically. “Please tell me that Igraine sent you because you can help us get home!”
The big Dragon grinned, his angular head bobbing up and down. “Indeed, Destined One,” he added with a whisper. “As I said, the queen told me much.”
She ignored him, another thought plaguing her. If she had truly been here, as she realized now Igraine had been hinting at all along, why didn’t the guys remember her?
She regarded him with wide anxious eyes. “What else did the queen tell you to do?”
The Dragon cleared his long throat. “No person, no matter how great, should know what their future holds. Life is, after all, about the journey and not the destination.”
“Then the queen asked you to…take everyone’s memories of me too.”
He nodded. “All whom you have touched, that are still in this realm, will have their memories of you hidden away, only to return when they are needed.”
Guin coughed again, more blood dribbling from her lips.
“Oh my god, Guin.” She looked back to Silzik. “I’m not sure if you will be able to send me home. I don’t know how Titania even did it.”
Silzik started to shimmer with magic. “I may not be the Fae Queen, but my magic is nearly as powerful.”
“Then, please, send us home to my time and my realm. I need help to save Guin!”
The giant Dragon nodded. “Traversing time is no easy thing, and I cannot guarantee your friend will survive it.” His eyes turned to liquid silver.
The cloth in Aliana’s hands started to heat. “What the?” She pulled it away and saw Guin’s wound glowing the color of Silzik’s eyes.
“I cannot save your friend’s life, but my magic may just be enough to help her survive this journey.” He reared back, rising to his hind legs, his wings flaring wide like an eagle. He threw his head back as his entire body glowed with his breathtaking magic. The very stars seemed to brighten in the early night sky as wind swirled and sizzled around them.