by L. P. Dover
In that second, the oily tree roots rise from the ground and bind both Ryder and Merrick to the trees behind them. Their eyes grow wide with shock and they both gasp for air after being knocked against the tree. The force of the impact makes a loud thump as their bodies are thrown against them.
The dark sorcerer smiles and then turns to me. I begin to walk backward slowly as he makes his way forward. I look at both Ryder and Merrick as I move. They are both trying desperately to get free of the roots, but I know they won’t succeed. I’m going to try to get them out once I can concentrate and connect to the ground. I give Ryder a reassuring look to let him know I’ll be fine.
I look over at Merrick and he stops moving when I silently say, “I’ll be fine, Merrick. I’m going to get you both out of those roots and then we’ll attack. Just give me a little time.”
“Please hurry, Calista. I can’t bear to see him touching you.”
I nod at him quickly and explain, “When I release you from the roots I’m going to use as much magic as I can. I want you to hit him full force with your fire. This should distract him and then we can attack.”
“Nixie is here as well. She says she’s going to help us,” he says.
Relief washes through me, but I don’t have time to answer back because the dark sorcerer lunges and takes me down to the ground. A scream escapes my throat and the impact of the fall leaves me breathless. He pins me to the ground, driving his body down on top of mine, and I can feel the mud squishing beneath my body. His weight has me struggling to breathe, but I know I have to concentrate.
“What do you say, Princess? Is it time to start the show?” He teases darkly.
I don’t even reward him with a response; I just stay quiet. If I yell at him and throw around my temper, it’ll only fuel his determination and I might not be able to escape from that. I just stare at him with a blank expression and he frowns.
“Where’s the feisty and stubborn princess I have heard so much about? I thought you would be more fun and put up a fight,” he provokes.
‘Just wait, dickhead, you haven’t seen me fight yet,’ I think to myself. I’m going to come at him full force when I get off this ground.
I hear Ryder and Merrick screaming in the background, but I can’t see them because the dark sorcerer is on top of me. I just have to play helpless a little while longer. I take a deep breath in and lay my hands flat on the ground beside me. I let go of everything going on and concentrate on the ground and the roots that are holding my men hostage. The dark sorcerer is oblivious to what I’m doing and slowly glides his hand down my body over my breasts to the laces of my brown leather pants.
‘Concentrate,’ I say to myself. He starts to undo my laces.
‘Concentrate.’ The laces are undone.
‘Concentrate’. His hands are reaching down. I clench my hands and grit my teeth, all I want to do is fight him off, but it’s not time yet. I have to be strong. It’s hard to be strong when you’re being touched by a psychotic, magic-wielding prick that wants your power and your body.
I can feel the power of the Black Forest and it’s fighting my magic and trying to block me out, but I feel a push helping me along. That’s weird, I wonder where that’s coming from. Or is it the push of determination I am feeling right now fueling the magic? I don’t know, but I do know that the roots are starting to unwind slowly.
“We’re getting out, Calista. Hit him hard and I’ll follow with mine. Ryder is going to attack being invisible.”
“OK, Merrick, here I go.”
I call upon my fire magic and put as much emphasis on it as I can. It may not be as potent as before with my power being taken, but it will definitely do some damage. I let out a guttural scream that hurts even my ears and I let my power fly. It hits him straight in the face and he quickly backs away from me screaming.
“You, Bitch!”
I jump to my feet and get into my fighting stance. I didn’t train all this time to sit back on my ass. I shout with fury, “You want the feisty and stubborn princess? You got her, fuckface.” His face literally looks that way, too. It’s slowly starting to heal, but he looks like one of those monsters in the horror movies I’ve watched in the mortal realm.
I look over to Merrick and Ryder. I only see Merrick, and thankfully he is free. Ryder is invisible somewhere so I concentrate on what Merrick’s doing. The dark sorcerer has his back turned and Merrick sends a fire ball straight at him. The dark sorcerer falls to his knees with a grunt, but gets back up swiftly. Ryder appears behind him with his sword drawn and takes a swipe, but he ducks and dodges the blade. Fear washes through me when I see the dark sorcerer reaching for the dagger in his belt. It’s an iron blade and if it cuts one of them, they will die. I have to make sure they hear me so I scream as loud as I can.
“The blade is iron! Don’t let him get too close.”
With the blade being made of iron, it can kill one of us very easily. The sorcerer can hold the blade because he’s not fae, but if we were to hold the blade it would melt the skin off our hands. We would heal from it, but if we were to be stabbed with the blade, we would die.
All three of them are going hard, moving left and right, trying to get in a good hit. Ryder and Merrick are moving great together, but the sorcerer is averting every single move. They’re moving so fast I can’t get a good visual to attack. I feel so damn helpless just standing there.
“You’re not helpless, Calista. We want you to stay back so you don’t get hurt.”
As soon as he says that, my world comes to an abrupt halt. Everything happens in slow motion and I can’t seem to grasp what I am seeing. The soul searing scream that escapes my mouth echoes the scream in my head. I put my hands to my ears and fall to my knees hard. The scream in my head is piercing and filled with the sounds of agonizing pain and fury. The tears begin to fall as I crawl my way to the warrior on the ground. The fighting is still going on around us, but my focus is on the man that I am now pulling into my lap. His breathing is coming out raspy and he reaches over slowly to clasp my hand, hissing along the way from the pain. I sit behind him with his head in my lap and I hold him tightly. I brush his blonde hair off his forehead, and I kiss him there softly. My tears are making it hard to see, so I angrily wipe them away because I don’t want to lose these minutes by seeing a blurry outline of the man that has been my friend for all the years of my life, and the guardian that was sworn to protect me. The gash across his stomach is oozing blood and I can see the poison of the iron blade spreading across his abdomen. How am I going to live without him?
“You will live because everyone needs you. Ryder needs you and so will your court. You’re going to be an excellent queen. I just wish I could see it. Oh yeah, and tell Ryder ‘you’re welcome’ for me protecting him with my body.”
I burst out crying and lay my forehead against his. Even in death he could still be a smart ass. I rub my hands all over his face and body because I know very soon he will not be here and I will never get to touch him again. My throat feels tight and I’m glad we can talk silently because I don’t think I could get my voice to work right now if I tried. I hold him tighter while rocking back and forth. Rocking back and forth always seems to help me, but not today. It’s useless because nothing is going to change. My Merrick is going to die.
“Merrick, please don’t leave me. I am so sorry about hurting you and anything else I’ve done to cause you pain.”
He leans his head back to look at me with tears in his eyes and his lip quivers.
“I love you, Calista. I will always and forever love you. I have accepted that you and Ryder belong together because he is your destiny, just like it is my destiny to die here today with you.” He reaches up to touch my cheek.
“We will see each other again in the Hereafter. I’ll be waiting for you there.” He closes his eyes and opens them back up slowly. I can tell he’s slipping away.
“My essence will be in you now. When I leave, it will go to you. So you see, we will alway
s be connected and I will always be here.” He puts his hand over my heart and says, “Forever.”
“I love you, Merrick, my friend, my guardian…always.”
I bend down to kiss his lips and I send all the love I have for him pouring into the kiss to take with him to the Hereafter. He kisses me back and then pulls away ever so slowly. His face is peaceful and he looks at me and smiles.
“Goodbye, my love.”
“Goodbye, Merrick.”
A beautiful white light escapes his body as he begins to dissolve into the ash that all Fae become after death. The light floats in front of me, flickering and twinkling like a star. It moves closer to me and then absorbs into my body over my heart. The instant it connects to my body I feel a jolt. A warm sensation spreads around my heart. The hole I felt in my heart before has been filled with the power of that light, and that’s when I feel him…Merrick. He’s there. His essence is in my heart and soul. The loss saddens me and it will hurt for a long time, but the presence of him inside me gives me the power to do what I have to do.
I wipe the tears from my eyes and I look at Ryder still battling the dark sorcerer. He looks tired, but he’s still trying. He goes back and forth between being visible and invisible. I would assume it’s because his concentration is failing. He needs my help, but I need to lay my guardian to rest first because his ashes do not belong here. I take a deep breath to concentrate and the power in me surges and I call upon the wind to carry Merrick’s ashes away. I ask the wind to carry them to our special field; the field where we trained every morning and the place we played as children. The field is a special place for Merrick and me and it will continue to be for as long as I live. I feel the wind blow and it smells fresh and clean. It isn’t the nasty rancid air of the forest, but with a warm, sunlit breeze of a summer wind. I sit there and watch as the remainder of my friend is swept away and taken to our special place.
I look at the ground to see my silver locket and Merrick’s Guardian dagger lying on the ground. I place the silver locket around my neck and I pick up the dagger. My eyes begin to burn and my throat tightens up as I stare at the dagger. I lift my eyes to look at the man who took my guardian away from me. He’s bloody from wounds across his body and he has a sneer on his face while he circles Ryder. That son of a bitch is going down. Ryder has sweat pouring down his face and his breaths are coming fast. His muscles are shaking from the strain and exertion of wielding his sword. He’s a strong warrior and I know he will continue fighting until there is nothing left.
I take a deep steadying breath and close my eyes. I tighten my grip on the dagger and clear my mind. This is all for Merrick and everything he’s taken from me and the people I love. All the hate and rage I have in my body builds and I let the dagger fly with as much force as I can muster. I open my eyes to see that I have once again hit my target. Triumph blossoms inside me, but this is no celebration.
The fighting comes to a stop and the dark sorcerer stands wide-eyed staring at his chest. Ryder runs straight for me and takes me into his arms. He runs his hands down my body like he’s searching for injuries and looks me over like I’m going to disappear any moment.
He’s breathless and says quickly, “Oh Calista, I am so sorry about Merrick. I love you so much, and I don’t know what I would have done if we didn’t get here in time.” He hugs me hard.
“I’m so glad you’re OK.” He kisses me hard and fast. The time for a reunion can wait until we get out of the Black Forest.
The dark sorcerer falls to his knees in Avery’s body. His face is furrowed in pain as he removes the dagger and throws it on the ground. I reach down to quickly grab the dagger and walk away because I refuse to leave it here. Coughing and grinding his teeth, his voice sounds laced with evil when he spits at me.
“This isn’t over, Princess. You may have wounded me now, but at least I succeeded with you. I took a piece of you and now you can’t get it back. I will find the others and when you least expect it, I’ll be there.”
I walk over to him and the rage and anger that has built up inside my body wants to be let free. The adrenaline pumps through my muscles and the sweet taste of vengeance is sharp on my tongue. The dark sorcerer looks up at me and he opens his mouth to speak, but I don’t give him the time. The dagger is in my hand and I slash it clean across his neck, cutting through tendons and bone in one quick swipe. His blood splatters on us, but I don’t care. There will now be one less minion for the dark sorcerer to take over. I have killed two people today and I don’t feel sorry for their loss at all. Their betrayals have cost numerous people their lives, and I avenged them all. Avery’s body disintegrates into ash and the dark sorcerer emerges as a black cloud rising from his body.
“Until next time,” he sneers.
“Fuck you!” I spit.
He disappears and everything goes quiet. I can tell he had been hurt because his form was almost see-through. He has my power now, but for some reason my guardian blade had an effect on him. I need to remember to ask Elvena about that and maybe we will be able to find a way to defeat him.
“Princess!” Nixie appears fluttering her little golden wings and waving her hands.
“Where have you been? You were supposed to help us,” I snap.
She turns her head for us to look behind her and she points at something coming from a distance. Galloping toward us are two horses. I recognize Merrick’s white horse, Storm, and the other horse must be Ryder’s horse.
Nixie looks at me with a smug look.
“I did help, and I still can, but we need to get you out of here. NOW! You may have wounded the dark sorcerer, but it won’t take him long to come back for you. When we reach the edge of the Black Forest, I can use my magic to take you home.”
Ryder and I quickly embrace and he kisses me hard and feverishly. He climbs on his horse and whispers something in her ear and I climb onto Storm. I lean down and rub Storm’s neck.
With a choked sob, I say, “I’m so sorry Storm, but I lost him. He’s never coming back, boy.” Storm huffs and bows his head. I give him a little nudge and demand softly, “Let’s go, Storm. Fly like the wind and take us home.”
Both horses are agile and fast as we race our way through the forest. Nixie flies along beside us the whole way. I am so glad she brought the horses because I don’t think we would have made it out of the forest without them. We reach the edge of the forest quickly and the adrenaline that fueled my escape has now left me exhausted and weak. All I want to do is sit down to cry and break down over the loss of my guardian, but I know I can’t do that until I get home. Getting home is the most important thing at this moment.
Exhausted, I turn to Nixie and ask, “Now what’s your plan? You said you could help when we got to the edge of the forest.”
With a gleam in her eye and her chin lifted proudly she says, “I did, didn’t I? Give me your hands.” Nixie floats between me and Ryder. We’re both still on the horses but we each grab a hold of her tiny, green hands. They feel so fragile and small, but she grips my hand tight and I’m shocked by the amount of strength her little body has inside of it.
Nixie asks, “Where do you want me to take you?”
Ryder speaks up, “Take us to the Summer Court.”
Nixie looks over to me and I shake my head ‘yes.’ The second after that we are thrust into a whirlwind of colors and it feels like we’re floating in the air. I feel weightless and there’s nothing around us but a rainbow of shimmery colors. It’s so bright I can barely stand to keep my eyes open. It’s an amazing sight and now I know why Alasdair took her. She can port travel. It is a very rare gift and only imps have the capability. Most fae creatures can travel to the mortal realm, but it’s not the same as port travel. Nixie can travel to any part of the Land of the Fae in a matter of seconds, and take whoever she wants with her.
It is over quickly and the colors start to fade. We find ourselves at the willow tree by the lake in the Summer Court. This is mine and Ryder’s favorite place now. I look
around and a sigh escapes my lips. I’m home, or at least my home for now. Soon I will be queen of my own court and keeping our people safe. I wonder why Nixie brought us to this exact spot.
She answers, “Because it is the place you feel most happy to be, Princess. You will need time to heal because no one goes through what you have without needing help and love to guide you.”
“Thank you, Nixie, for bringing us home. I will keep you safe and we will search for your family soon,” I reply. Keeping Nixie and her family safe is a promise that I will be more than happy to keep. I look at Ryder sitting on his horse and all I want to do is hold him in my arms. He looks at me with a wan expression and I know he can tell I’m trying to be strong by holding it together. I am saddened, but Merrick saved Ryder’s life because he knew how much I loved him.
Nixie looks back and forth between me and Ryder with the hugest grin on her face and asks, “So when is the wedding?”
Ryder and I both look at each other and smile.
Chapter 26
Ryder- 5 Days Later
Rescuing Calista and holding her in my arms again was the best feeling. I vowed from that moment forward that nothing will ever come between us and I will stop at nothing to finding ways to defeat the dark sorcerer. Seeing Calista being touched by that fucker sent me into a blind rage. I fought him with everything I had and I would have fought him for however long was needed to get Calista to safety. I almost didn’t make it through the fighting, but Merrick jumped in the way of the iron blade and took the blow that was meant for me. I saw Calista go down and her scream was the most heart-wrenching sound I have ever heard. My heart broke for her in that moment because I knew I couldn’t be there to comfort her when she had just lost one of the most important people in her life. I was afraid she would never get through it. I stole quick glances at her on the ground with her guardian and I had never seen her so broken. I hope that with time her heart has the ability to mend. A passing ceremony will be held in his honor as well as Xylia’s parents, Raisa and Foster.