by Phil Maxey
“It’s a risk we had to take!” said Gus.
“She’s in a prison cell,” said Kat. Everyone looked at her.
“What? Where?” said Gus.
“I . . . I couldn’t tell . . .” She looked at Gus. “She’s not in good shape.” Kat closed her eyes again.
“What is she doing!” shouted Jarwin, getting to his feet.
“I have to find my mum!” shouted Kat. Just as an image of her mother floated into her mind, a sound of rumbling echoed around the curved ceiling above her. She opened her eyes again feeling tired.
“We have to go,” said Gus, ushering Kat outside of the circle.
Jarwin ran ahead. “This way!” he shouted, ducking under and through a much smaller arch.
“What’s making that noise?” said Justin.
“Probably nothing we want to run into,” said Gus.
“Not helping,” said Darren, running to keep up.
They ran along uneven stone floors, the clapping sound of their boots mixing with whatever was causing a similar sound.
They soon arrived at a four-way junction. Jarwin looked unsure which way to go. “The sounds are coming from ahead of us.”
Kat’s ring hand began to ache. “I think there’s something coming our way.”
“More ghouls?” said Justin to those around him.
“If we’re lucky,” said Gus.
“This way,” said Jarwin charging down the corridor to their right, his small wand lighting the way.
After running for a few moments he stopped abruptly. “What? That shouldn’t be there!”
They all looked at a black iron metal gate, which blocked any further movement forward. They all instinctively swung their heads back to the way they came, to the direction of the sound of scampering.
Gus pulled his sword from his sheath. “Me and Jarwin will give you as long as we can. Get that gate open!”
“I can try and teleport us past the gate!” said Kat.
Gus and Jarwin looked at each other, then Gus nodded and they all stepped closer to her.
Closing her eyes and fighting the fatigue which felt like a weight on her shoulders, she pictured the other side of the gate, and then opened them. The others faces looked back at her, neither she nor they had moved an inch.
The sound of creatures approaching increased.
“We don’t have time for this, keep trying!” said Gus.
Justin pulled his sword and followed the two other men taking the source of light with them into the tunnel.
Darren quickly reached into his pack and pulled out a torch, switching it on.
He and Kat looked at each other, then at the gate. They both grabbed its cold bars and heaved, but it resisted movement in any direction.
Kat looked at the wall. “I don’t see anywhere to put a key, or any kind of levers on this or the other side, how’s it meant to even open?” She gave up trying to hide the strain in her voice.
“Try—”
The sound of grunts and clashing swords drifted along the tunnel.
“Using your magic differently!” continued Darren.
Kat nodded and turned towards the gate, holding her hand close to it. Closing her eyes she tried to imagine the sound of an open gate amongst the sound of battle. Opening them, a resolutely fixed in place gate looked back at her.
“Why’s nothing working?” said Darren.
“I don’t know!” She grabbed hold of the strips of iron and tried again.
Screeches and the thud of solid objects hitting armour grew louder.
“It’s not working!” shouted Kat.
A sound made them both turn around. Justin and Gus were helping Jarwin towards them.
“Your magic won’t open it?” said Gus.
“No! I don’t know what I’m doing!” shouted Kat. It was the first time she had seen Gus looked worried. “What’s back there?”
But before he could answer, the oily green arms of creatures she thought only existed in fairytales emerged from the shadows, complete with armour and blades that already looked bloodied.
Gus, Justin, and Jarwin backed off until they were just in front of Darren and Kat.
She held her ring hand up. It began to glow white, and then quickly dimmed, like it was drained. She shook her hand like it was a faulty television remote control, but no more illumination came from the ring. She could also feel her energy sapping from her body, and had to lean against the bars behind her to stay upright.
The creatures in front of her ran forward, their weapons held aloft roaring with delight.
“Everyone down!” came a familiar voice from behind them. Kat was too weak to respond, and Darren just looked confused, but Gus grabbed both of their shoulders and dragged them to their knees.
A volley of arrows flew through the bars felling three goblins. As the next wave charged forward another volley hit them as well, but they kept on coming.
Kat looked back at the gate behind her. Eve was chanting under her breath, as Sparrow fired three arrows at a time.
A bolt of energy enveloped the gate and suddenly it started to rise.
“Quickly crawl beneath it!” shouted Gus, fighting off two of the creatures.
The gate rose halfway then stopped and started wavering. Eve kept on chanting.
Kat rolled under the spiked poles, as did Darren and they helped Jarwin do the same.
Instead of using his sword, Gus shoulder charged the closest creature to him sending it staggering back against the others, then he turned and slid under the gate.
Eve stopped muttering the ancient words and looked at the creatures as the gate slammed into the stone floor. They all jumped back as the goblins’ sharpened weapons slid through the large gaps between the bars, together with garbled words that Kat, Darren. and Justin couldn’t make sense of.
“Come on!” shouted Gus leading them away.
As they all ran down the tunnel, Kat looked back just as the light from Jarwin’s magical twig and Darren’s torch receded from the gate. For a moment she caught sight of the misshapen faces and beady dark eyes that were watching them escape. She turned and ran after the others, but something bothered her about that last fleeting image of their attackers. She could have sworn they were smiling.
CHAPTER 7
A booming sound followed by a fizzing filled the air in the large study of the London sanctuary. All the windows were covered with wooden shutters, which didn’t look like they would stand up to much punishment, but Justin had seen the strange symbols that were burnt into the back of them before and he knew they were not just for show. They glowed with a blue hue with each new impact.
All around him was a hive of activity. It reminded him of how old, world war two films portrayed the ‘central operations room’ when all hell was breaking loose. Charts and countless books covered the expensive leather-backed tables, with learned men and women, some of which were definitely not fully human, trying to ignore the abuse the sanctuary was taken from whatever wanted in.
Bartholomew was having a heated discussion with Miss Toper and Gus. Justin stepped closer to listen in.
“The wards will hold! We have a number of talented magi in this building that are doing their damnedest to keep us safe. As well as that I’m using a number of ancient objects to increase their power,” said Bartholomew.
“It’s a mistake to put all our eggs in one basket, what if they find a way in?” said Miss Toper.
“Then we fight, and if that fails we use the portal.”
“Will it even be able to shift all the people we have here?” said Gus.
“With some spells cast it will.”
“And where will we go?” said Miss Toper. “All the other sanctuaries are compromised!”
“Pssst,” said Kat behind Justin. It had been some hours since they got back from the Labyrinth and she had spent most of the time asleep. After how drained she looked earlier he was pleased to see her looking more alert.
He turned toward her while st
ill trying to hear what was being said. “What?”
“We need to talk.”
“Go on then.”
“Not here.” Kat’s eyes shifted uneasily around the room. “Follow me.”
Soon he and Kat were ascending the stairs until she was back at Darren’s room. She knocked then quickly opened the door pulling Justin inside with her.
Darren was on the bed with his laptop open in front of him. “No WIFI, no cell coverage, nothing!” he said. Chip seemed to be sleeping, oblivious to the noise, on the nearby rug.
A boom rang out just outside the covered window, and the ornate lamp hanging from the ceiling swayed slightly.
“What is it? If you hadn’t noticed we’re under siege,” said Justin to Kat.
“We can’t stay here.”
“Here is the only place we can stay! Those things are trying to kill us, at least here we are protected, err somehow.” Justin looked at the windows.
“This is the Alamo,” said Darren, still tapping the keys on his computer.
“We’re in the middle of something, that we have nothing to do with. We never asked to be part of this ‘war’,” said Kat.
Justin looked at her surprised. “I thought you were down with all this magic stuff?”
“I am. I mean I’m glad that I have the ring, it’s helped me out of some bad situations, but I never had a choice, it was dumped on me.”
“And me,” said Darren looking at the back of his computer.
“And I don’t see anyone around here running to help my mother.”
Justin thought about his father. He had not heard from him for a few days since they talked on the phone. He shook his head. “Kat, maybe the way we help our family is by helping the order. What can we do against the things out there?”
“They got magic, but we got magic and the internet!” said Darren proudly. His expression then changed and he looked back at his laptop. “But I can’t do anything inside these walls, I need to be away from whatever is blocking the signals.”
“So what’s the plan?” said Justin.
Kat pulled out an old scroll which she had stuffed down the front of her top. She unrolled it, and laid it on the bed. “This is an old chart of where portals are. I don’t know yet what the symbols mean, but we use this to get to the nearest one, then we teleport to my mum, or we bring her to us. And then we get your dad. If this sanctuary is still standing afterwards, we bring them back here, otherwise . . .”
“Otherwise?”
“I don’t know, but I’ll know when I need too. Maybe Glastonbury.” She looked at him directly. “Are you willing to bet your life on the bad guys not being able to get inside here?”
Justin looked unsure.
“Come with us or not, your choice, but we’re going.”
“How you going to get out? The wards stop all—”
The door opened and in walked a woman with catlike features, and clad in black leather, with studs and straps. She smiled at Justin, and continued walking over to Darren, who she then put her arm around. Darren looked coy and turned red.
“And who are you?” said Justin.
“My names Algorine, and I’m your ticket out of here.”
* * * * *
Darren, holding Chip by his leash, Kat, Justin, and the dark-haired, athletic woman stood on the roof of the sanctuary, up to their knees in snow.
“The skyline’s wrong,” said Darren.
A number of lights stood out on the London skyline, but far less than was normal. Above their heads, winged reptilian beasts circled.
Kat ran, stomping through the snow the best she could to the wall and looked down into the narrow street below. She gasped. Only a few street lights were functioning, but it was enough for her to see shadowy forms of humanoid creatures large and small. Most carried weapons of some kind, which they were striking the walls and door of the sanctuary with.
“Hey over here!” shouted Algorine at the creatures above them.
“What are you doing!” shouted Justin.
“Chill, this is how we get out of here.”
The large prehistoric looking breasts noticed the noise below and dived down towards the people on the roof.
“We’re all going to die!” shouted Darren seeing what was about to come crashing down on all of them. He turned and started to try to get back to the door to the safety of the loft, shovelling snow out of the way with his gloved hands.
“Woohoo, Over here!” shouted Algorine again into the sky.
Justin and Kat both looked at the large flying creatures and hunched down when it seemed inevitable they would soon be fighting them off, but instead the creatures crashed into what was an invisible barrier. On impact it lit up with a blue hue, sending the now familiar booming noise through the air. Strands of energy then flowed through the barrier, quickly dissipating. The creatures shrieked and flew back up, hovering nearby.
Kat looked at Algorine. “What was the point of that?”
“Pick a building on the skyline, make sure it’s far from our friends outside the barrier. The next time the creatures hit the barrier, do your teleport thing, and get us to that building.”
Justin realised this strange looking lady wasn’t as crazy as he first thought. “The attacks weaken the barrier, right? Enough for Kat to teleport us out?”
Algorine smiled.
“Hey over here! Come and get us!” shouted Justin to the night sky.
Kat scoured the city around them. Cathedral no. Strange shaped office building, no. Ah, that one . . .
“I’m ready!” she shouted. “Everyone lay your hands on me.”
They all did, while continuing to try to get the attention of the things bent on the sanctuary’s destruction.
The noise of boots clambering upstairs came from the loft door behind them.
The creatures in the sky, now joined by a third dived once again.
“Here they come!” shouted Algorine.
Kat glanced briefly over her shoulder at the door they had entered onto the roof from. A red-faced Miss Toper, together with Gus appeared.
A boom rang out, Kat closed her eyes and then the small group were gone.
Miss Toper shook her head. “Stupid . . .”
“She couldn’t have teleported far, maybe I can lead a small—”
“No. We can’t afford to spare anyone right now. They are on their own.”
CHAPTER 8
A faint glow shone from strange windows around the four that had suddenly appeared in the cramped space. Chip gave a single bark.
“Where are we?” whispered Justin. He then turned and looked straight into two green glowing eyes. “What the hell?” he said, jumping back.
“Relax kid, it’s just me,” said Algorine. “I guess you haven’t seen many Fae in your time.”
“Err, no.”
Darren pulled his torch out of his pack and turned it on, immediately illuminating a giant clock-face.
Kat felt drained and leaned on the railing behind her, but from the look of the black iron cogs and wheels in front of her, she had got them to the right place. “We’re inside Big Ben.”
Darren pointed his light upwards. A huge bell hung above them.
“So now what?” said Justin to Kat.
Algorine started descending a small flight of metal steps to a door.
“You’re just going to leave us?” shouted Kat after her. Darren pointed his light at Algorine.
“I’ve done my part, now it’s up to you what you do from here on out. Good luck and everything.” She reached for the door.
“I’ll pay you! If you help us.” Kat wasn’t sure why she made the request, but this exotic woman was the only one of them that knew about the world they just tried escaping from.
Algorine stopped in her tracks. “Pay me how?” she said, without turning around. Darren’s light switched back and forth between the older and younger woman.
“I have gold.”
Algorine turned around. “Get that light
out of my face,” she said to Darren who did as asked. “How much gold?”
“I have a small bag of gold coins, if you help us rescue my mother and his father, you can have all of them.”
A rueful expression crossed the angular but attractive face of the Fae woman. “Show me.”
Kat reached inside her pack and pulled out the small velvet pouch. She then reached in and pulled out a few coins, holding them up in the light of Darren’s torch. “I got them from the sanctuary in Glastonbury.”
Algorine walked up to her, examining the glistening gold. She then nodded. “I’ll help, but if we come up against any major league magi or dragons, I’m out and I still get half the gold, agreed?”
Kat nodded.
“There’s dragons?” Darren and Justin both said at the same time.
Algorine rolled her eyes. “How any of you survived this long is a mystery, one of the many gods must be looking out for you.”
* * * * *
A cone of light swept across metal shutters, with icicles hanging from ledges above.
“This is echo nine zero, calling home base. Over.”
“Hear you loud and clear Sergeant. Over.”
“We are moving towards the area near the bridge and palace, no sign of any hostiles so far. Over.”
“We are reading the temperature as minus ten, you might want to be heading back soon. Over.”
“Copy that. Over.”
Sergeant Victor Reynolds of the Paras, otherwise known as Vic, looked at the black windows of the buildings around him and sighed. Over the past two weeks he had seen the city he was born in transform into something unrecognizable, and watched the lights go out. He still didn’t understand what was happening or where these strange creatures had come from, he just knew he wanted them out of his capital.
He pointed to the open door to the flat above the boarded-up shop, and two soldiers carefully ran forward then disappeared into the gloom of the narrow hallway.
He changed to the local frequency and clicked on his radio. “Anything? Over.”