‘No, dear, you have to go to rehab with the others.’
‘Anna and I can go,’ said Leanne.
Alex nodded. ‘Yeah, anyone who didn’t patrol can go.’
‘What time are we going?’ Summer asked.
‘Not just yet, we can join them and soak up the sun for a bit.’
‘Should I wear my bikini,’ Carrie asked.
Yes, please, Alex thought. ‘You’ve already caused one baby boom over there.’
They appeared on Brightstone near the lake, and the children ran straight for the boats. Torgon and Thalion sat on a bench relaxing.
Alex approached them with Carrie. ‘How are you two feeling today?’
‘Very well,’ said Torgon. ‘We’ve been sitting here for nearly two hours now.’
‘It’s very pleasant,’ said Thalion.
Torgon glanced across at the others. ‘Lady Skye is looking much better.’
‘Yeah,’ said Alex. ‘I almost panicked when I saw her last night.’
‘She fought very well, as did the others.’
‘What were Fergal and Jarlath like?’
‘Three things saved us last night, one was James with his decisions,’ said Torgon. ‘The second was the skill of everyone. The third was two gnomes, who were amazing, and half the time you couldn’t see their axes as they were so fast.’
‘I’ll have to go and see them,’ said Alex. ‘So, how many times have you had to tell people what happened?’
‘None, they keep asking, but I told them that someone would be here soon who would be better at describing it,’ said Thalion, as a crowd gathered around James.
Carrie leant on Alex and frowned. ‘I want to go on a boat, but I’m not strong enough to row.’
Thalion grinned. ‘You can’t keep a lady waiting.’
‘No indeed not,’ said Alex, and led Carrie over to the lake. He helped her onto the boat, before sitting himself opposite. They were soon joined by pixies, one of which was Kaeya. The boats could hold four people, two facing each other and after a few minutes they were joined by water sprites which jumped out the water to examine them.
‘This is very nice,’ said Carrie, leaning back. She didn’t wear a bikini, but denim shorts and a tight white top.
‘Yeah, and I think the sprites like you,’ said Alex, as he noticed Roscoe and Marakus talking to Torgon and Thalion.
Carrie gave him a sultry smile. ‘So, do I get the offer of a full body massage?’
‘I’m sure Mother or one of the other ladies wouldn’t mind doing it for you, as healers they’re probably very good at it.’
‘I thought you were going to do it.’
‘I’ve never done one, and wouldn’t know what to do,’ said Alex, but wished he did.
‘You just put oil on my body and rub it in,’ said Carrie.’
Kaeya jumped onto Alex’s shoulder. ‘We’re going to crash if you don’t look where you’re rowing.’
‘Sorry,’ said Alex, and stopped rowing with his left arm. He turned the boat just missing Tia and Alhena who both gave him a disapproving look, and Carrie smiled.
‘Haven’t you rowed many boats before?’ said Marakus, when Alex joined them.
‘It was hard to concentrate, with Carrie talking about oils and massages.’
Thalion raised both eyebrows. ‘I can imagine.’
Alex sat on a bench. ‘Are we having another celebration?’
‘That’s a good idea,’ said Roscoe.
‘We must celebrate our heroes,’ said Marakus.
‘Well,’ said Alex. ‘I have to go to the castle first, and try out their new toys.’
‘What kind of toys?’ Thalion asked, and Alex explained.
Torgon’s eyes lit up. ‘That sounds fun.’
‘It may well sound like fun,’ said Ellinor, holding her grandson, ‘but you’re not going anywhere today.’
Thalion patted him on the back. ‘Never mind, brother of mine.’
‘And neither are you,’ said Tyra.
Marakus grinned. ‘We will tell you all about it.’
‘It’s only fair,’ said Carrie, ‘as Alex banned the rest of the patrol from going.’
‘Then you can tell me all about your night,’ said Tyra, as she took her arm in hers.
~~~~
Anna, Leanne, Summer and Michelle were all going to the castle as well as four elves. With Alex, it made an odd number, and he needed another to even it up. He visited the cottages outside the city to see how Fergal and Jarlath faired. The gnomes appeared fine as they healed faster than most races, and were enjoying telling the others what had happened. On his way back he bumped into a bored looking Aileen.
‘Are you OK?’ he asked.
Aileen smiled as she parted her hair. ‘Just thinking about what I can do for the next few weeks.’
‘Why, what’s happening until then?’
‘Morven and Adair have finally got together, and I want to give them some space.’
Alex raised both eyebrows. ‘Wow, I never expected that. Well, you can start by coming to the castle with us and having some fun.’
Aileen took his arm in hers. ‘I would like that.’ None of the white witches wore robes and dresses very often, but dressed similar to the women of the mansion.
The group of ten arrived at the castle where Victor, Henrik, Ron and Leif, wearing vests, greeted them. They had round target pads with a digital reader and number pad attached. They wore protective glasses, which were pushed up on top of their heads. Alex and the others were given the vests and glasses.
Alex slipped the vest on. ‘How do we play this game?’
‘Follow me,’ said Victor, and took them through a door where many others waited to take part. They saw a window to a large fighting room, which had many obstacles to hinder and to hide behind. ‘The glass has a safety filter which blocks the lasers so you can watch.’
Soldiers passed them guns, and input a code into the pads which were the targets placed on the chest area of the vest.
Henrik pointed at the window. ‘There are two in each team, they start at opposite ends, and as you see your gun is now connected to the pads. Once you’ve been shot five times your gun stops working and you’re out of the game.
Alex inspected his gun which had no sights. ‘Are there any other rules?’
‘No, just shoot at your opponent, but you cannot touch anyone physically of course.’
A buzzer sounded to say the game was over. Rilien and Friday won five to four and by five to three.
Aileen glanced over at Friday. ‘She shouldn’t be doing that.’
‘This is her last time, great lady,’ said Victor.
Ron wiped his safety glasses with a cloth. ‘Sarah was a nightmare when I wouldn’t let her play.’
‘Tell me about it,’ said Leif.
Henrik studied a piece of paper in his hand. ‘Now, Lord Alex, as this is your first time I will tell you who will be going first, and then you can pick the two you want against them.’
‘Very honourable of you, Major.’
‘Touché,’ said Henrik, smiling. ‘Our first two are our best and unbeaten.’
Alex considered it and of the rules. ‘Anna and Leanne will go for us,’ he said, which got a few strange looks especially from those he had chosen.
‘As you wish.’
‘May I have a talk with my team on tactics first?’
‘Of course.’
‘Are you sacrificing us against their best?’ Anna asked, as Alex pulled them to one side.
‘Don’t put yourself down, you’re better than that, and you heard what I asked about the rules.’
Leanne pulled her glasses down over her eyes. ‘What have the rules got to do with it?’
Alex grinned. ‘Remember when I banned you from using your powers during pirates? Well, there are none of those restrictions here.’
‘Anna’s eyes grew big. ‘I never thought about that.’
‘This is Sergio and Ramos,’ said Henrik, as two
men bowed their heads.
The four went inside, before splitting up and going to the different ends of the room. A buzzer sounded and the lights dimmed. The soldiers were quick to get in position and fired first, but their opponents were gone. Anna and Leanne had a hit each before the soldiers knew they were flying at speed above them. They had no chance, but as Henrik said they were his best and managed to get two hits before they were out of the game.
Victor watched through the window. ‘Now that was very clever, my lord.’
‘Most unexpected and welcome,’ said Henrik. ‘They will be great for the soldiers to practice against.’
‘I think they will want to play this a lot,’ said Alex.
‘It will be me and Victor next.’
‘Then it’s up to our elf lords to face you.’
The four entered the room after the others stepped out. The elves moved well, but were not used to such weapons and lost closely by five to four each. They were followed by Michelle and Summer, who had the least training of any in the mansion, and lost five to three and five to two.
Victor glanced at the scoreboard. ‘That’s two to one in the Order’s favour.’
‘It was soon equalled up by the two elves he had asked to join them. They were the best archers he had seen, they enjoyed playing paintball and the shooting game at the mansion. They both won five to three.
It left Alex and Aileen to face Ron and Leif. Alex was too fast for them, Aileen was also fast, but hopeless with the gun as she never used anything like it before. She was hit three times before vanishing from view. Alex beat them without being hit, probably more to do with Ron and Leif being bemused looking for Aileen.
‘That was fun,’ she said, and reappeared.
Ron scratched his head. ‘I’m quite sure that’s cheating.’
Alex patted him on the shoulder as they left the room. ‘But there are no rules against it.’
‘I think we should make a few more rules,’ said Henrik. ‘One would be making your targets visible to your opponents.’
Aileen shook her head. ‘Major Henrik, that’s not what you tell your soldiers?’
‘No, my lady, I would not, but I can understand their feelings,’ said Henrik. ‘The point is we built this for target practice, and the soldiers need more than just targets, they need to face the unexpected, which is what they did tonight. So it was a valid victory for your side.’
Ron took a glass of water off the table. ‘Alex was that fast in there, he might as well have been invisible.’
‘Then we have one final battle,’ said Victor.
They all entered the room. There were no sides now it was a free for all. Marakus enjoyed firing at Roscoe. It was all chaotic, and Alex was out the game first as they all thought he was the biggest threat. They were all wrong and after fifteen minutes Anna stood there victorious.
Alex took his glasses off. ‘Well I did enjoy that.’
‘Do you want to go again?’ Ron asked.
‘Not today as there’s a celebration on the Elf World.’
‘And you’re all invited,’ said Roscoe.
‘They may have already started,’ said Summer. ‘We’ve been here longer than we expected.’
~~~~
They were late, and went straight to the Elf World. Alex appeared with Aileen on his arm, and this time Carrie didn’t mind. They parted ways and Alex made his way over and sat next to her.
‘You’re late,’ said Claire, grimacing.
Alex looked across the table at her. ‘Do we really want to talk about being late?’
Claire gave a little cough. ‘Probably not.’
‘So how’s this new game then?’ said James.
‘Brilliant,’ said Anna, and told them all about it.
Carrie nudged Alex’s arm. ‘Have you been having fun without me?’
‘You had enough fun last night.’
‘But I like fun. Anyway, what’s wrong with Aileen as she looked lost earlier?’
‘She is, sort of,’ said Alex. ‘Adair and Morven are together, so she needs something to do.’
‘She can spend some time with us,’ said Summer.
Carrie stood. ‘She won’t be bored for long.’ She went looking for her, but found Morven first holding Adair’s arm.
‘We have something to tell you,’ said the wizard.
Carrie embraced them both. ‘We already know.’
‘Alex knows, too?’
‘Yeah, and he’s very happy for you both, I think.’
Morven raised a brow. ‘You think?’
‘He didn’t look unhappy about it,’ said Carrie, and went searching for Aileen who she found sitting outside a tavern eating alone.
She looked up. ‘Hi.’
Carrie sat down. ‘This is no good.’
‘What is?’
‘Eating on your own.’
‘I don’t mind, as I forgot earlier.’
‘Alex told us of your dilemma, and we want to help.’
Aileen sipped on her drink. ‘In what way?’
‘Come and spend some time with us, and move into the mansion.’
‘I don’t know, the pucas live here now and I couldn’t leave them.’
‘They’re always at the mansion, watching a film or playing on the arcade machines.’
‘I do like watching them play on those.’
‘Then come and stay for a while,’ said Carrie. ‘I do have to tell you that I had some horrible thoughts about you before.’
‘When you found out Alex slept in my bed?’
‘Yeah, I was so jealous and I hate myself for it. I took the look of fondness you would give him for something else, and I’m so sorry for it.’
‘What for? They were only thoughts,’ said Aileen, as Alex, Summer and Michelle sat down.
‘Are you following me?’ Carrie asked.
‘We forgot to eat,’ said Summer.
Michelle shook her head. ‘What hope is there for the rest of us when the cook forgets?’
‘Carrie has invited me to stay at the mansion for a while,’ said Aileen.
Alex glanced up as an elf came over to them. ‘The daily special please.’ He turned to Aileen. ‘You accepted of course?’
‘Yes, why not, and it might be fun.’
‘Have you seen Adair yet?’ Carrie asked Alex.
‘No, was he looking for me?’
‘Not sure, but I did tell him I thought you were happy for them.’
Aileen finished her meal and pushed the plate away. ‘Morven was so in love with him and when he disappeared, she was heartbroken. She became a right hard faced cow for so long, and if it hadn’t been her love for the pucas and gnomes, she would have given up a long time ago. Then you come along and rescue him. She might not have shown it, but she adores you for it.’
‘That’s so romantic,’ said Carrie.
Summer glanced down the street. ‘Here they are now.’
‘What’s this, Uncle?’ said Alex. ‘Are your injuries so serious that you need one of the great ladies to help you around?’
Adair and Morven approached them. ‘We’re not here after your blessing.’
‘I should hope not, you’re at least one hundred times older than I am.’
‘I’m not that old.’
Morven smiled at the wizard. ‘Actually, you’re older.’
‘I’m happy for the two of you,’ said Alex, as he stood up and embraced them both.
‘This is your fault,’ said Morven.
Alex smiled at the elf who brought his meal out. ‘It’s something I’ll gladly take the blame for.’
‘I’m leaving you,’ said Aileen.
Morven looked somewhat startled. ‘What? You can’t leave me.’
‘Oh, but I am, I’ll be moving into the mansion for a few weeks.’
‘You don’t have to do that,’ said Adair.
‘Yes, I do, my sister has been waiting for over two thousand years, and she deserves this,’ said Aileen, and got up to embrace her sister
.
‘Thank you,’ said Morven.
‘You will still see each other every day,’ said Summer.
Luella walked over to them. ‘What’s going on here?’
Alex glanced up. ‘We were about to arrange a honeymoon.’
‘But there’s been no wedding,’ said Adair.
Alex grinned. ‘Not yet.’
‘Aileen is moving into the mansion for a while,’ said Carrie.
Luella stared at her son. ‘Are you stealing one of my ladies?’
‘I could hardly call it that as you live there, and while we’re on the subject, where’s my daughter and Donna? I’ve forgotten what they look like.’
Luella sat. ‘They’re in the woods back home, as this is a very important period in their training.’
Alex scratched his head. ‘What training?’
‘You will find out soon enough, and don’t go looking for them.’
They made their way back to the others where Alex received a few unfriendly looks. ‘OK what is it?’
James rubbed his chin. ‘Leanne has been telling us all about the laser fighting, and we want to go.’
‘You can go tomorrow.’
‘We’re OK now,’ said Claire.
‘You’re not really banned from going,’ said Alex, and they stood up, ‘but you might regret it as you’re not one hundred percent.’
James shrugged. ‘Why? It’s just a bit of fun,’
‘Not to them it’s not, all scores are recorded.’
‘How do you mean?’
‘If you go over there when you’re not up to speed, you’ll see on their score board, James Rigel lose, Claire Matheson lose,’ said Alex, and they both sat down.
~~~~
Luella turned to her brother. ‘Are you getting married?’
Adair nodded. ‘Eventually, is there any rush?’
‘No, not really. I was just wondering what kind of wedding you would be having.’
‘It will be the old way,’ said Morven, ‘or an elf wedding would be nice.’
Aileen smiled. ‘You love this.’
‘Yes, but be careful about what you say, while you’re over there.’
‘I know, and after my vision changed I’m happy to let them wait a bit longer.’
‘I must sound horrible, now I’ve found love.’
The Final Destiny: Vesta Mansion Trilogy - Book Three - Fantasy Page 7