Shadow Assassins (The Second Realm Trilogy)

by Vazquez, Melissa

  “I’ll be waiting for your return,” Dr. Fyrn spoke up quickly, from behind them.

  Dirk smiled and nodded, continuing with his explanation. His voice was smooth and he sounded just like the teacher he was, not so much lecturing as demystifying what they didn’t know. “When the Second Realm was still fairly new, there were portals that were always open to visitors who crossed frequently between realms. This was mostly for people escaping religious persecution, or for those who had left families behind. Over time, these portals were closed up. Now, it takes immense power to open a portal back up, and usually, portals are regulated. The Emeralde Kingdom regulates their portals and where they open and close, and Moonriver Academy regulates our own. Most vampires cannot open a portal, but I am not most vampires.”

  It was with a quick wink at the ladies that Dirk stepped forward. His heavy boots crunched over the undergrowth of the forest as he moved, his hands stretching out in front of him. Around his neck was a golden chain, the pendant a heavy, uncut amethyst. As he stretched his arms out, the purple stone around his neck glowed with a bright white light.

  “Whoa,” Marco gasped. “Does anyone else feel that?”

  He didn’t see, but somehow felt, the others nod. After the white light had come from the amethyst, a surge of energy burst forward in all directions; a shock wave, of sorts. The magical energy hit each of the Shadow Assassins physically, as if they had just been sucked underwater by an invisible wave. As they gasped and a gust of wind hit them, the space in front of them began glowing with the same white light.

  “I would move if I were you,” Dirk called over the wind.

  The Shadow Assassins and the doctor scrambled back. As they did, the white light began taking shape in front of Dirk. It sank into the ground and began to shape itself, forming a sort of archway, like the space found beneath a door. As the light began to settle, tree roots slithered up from the ground, forming around the white archway, giving it shape. The final result was a doorway made of branches and vines, as if a tree had popped up out of the ground to guide them. The white light glowed in the space between, lighting up the night.

  “This, my dear Evangeline, is a portal.” With that, Dirk stepped back. The light on the amethyst died down.

  Marco stepped forward, squinting from the light. “So we just go through?”

  “Not quite yet.” Dirk reached into the pocket of his leather jacket and pulled out a large glass vial. “Everyone in the Second Realm speaks a different language. Some speak English, especially at Moonriver Academy, but this is just to avoid confusion. This potion here will help you understand all foreign tongues of the Second Realm as your own native language. Locally, it’s called mage speak and is usually just a spell cast by a magic user. I, however, am only a vampire, so I requested that I receive this drink to give to you. Drink this, all of you. Just a sip. And be warned, it probably will not taste pleasant.”

  Marco stepped up first. He tipped the vial to his lips and jumped back, as if electrocuted, once he had tasted the concoction.

  “Not pleasant? Try putrid.” he said, holding back a gag. “Shoot it back quick, guys.”

  Kaleb shot back a small sip, then Evangeline and Kaydee. Each reacted similar to Marco, as they got a taste of the liquid in the vial. Individual flavors were present, like spearmint, citrus and pepper, but blended together, the concoction was too confusing for them to sample accurately in terms of taste, just blending together in a general sense of unpleasant.

  “That stuff really sticks to your throat,” Evangeline said with a cough. “Sticky and sweet and bitter all at once.”

  Dirk smiled apologetically. “Sorry. Like I said though, it is usually cast as a spell. Capturing it in a potion form is...a little trickier. It may take a while for the potion to take effect, so if you hear some foreign words spoken by some people, wait a little longer and it should start translating effectively.”

  “Thanks, I think.”

  He smiled as Marco made a face. In a more serious voice, he said, “Alright, now that we’re all prepared, how about we—”

  He cut himself off abruptly and turned his head to the side, as if he had heard something.

  “What is it?” Kaydee asked. She didn’t like the look on his face, the sort of fear and dislike.

  “We have to move quickly, my friends,” he said, too fast, too nervous.

  “Why? What’s wrong?”

  “No time to explain, just--”

  He was cut off again, this time not by his own will, but by a sort of laughter sound echoing through the trees. The laughter was far from merry. Darkness was in that laughter. Violence was in that laughter, the kind of violence that came from a being that enjoyed killing. It sounded feminine, but it was also so distorted that it could have been from a man.

  “What is that?” Kaydee asked, her pale green eyes widening.

  The vampire let out a curse in a foreign language they didn’t recognize. The potion hadn’t started working yet, but they didn’t need a translation to understand him. They could feel something dark. Something evil had just entered the forest, something they couldn’t see.

  “Dr. Fyrn, you should get inside,” Kaleb said cautiously.

  The doctor didn’t seem to mind being given an order from his own employee. “Will you all be okay?”

  Dirk nodded. “They’re in good hands, Doctor. Your safety is what I’m worried about. Go, now!”

  “Good luck to all of you,” the doctor said as he backed off. Worry was shining bright in his eyes as he left them, and it seemed as though he didn’t want to leave at all. He had been around his team long enough to recognize when danger was going to hit, though, and he didn’t have the type of powers they did to protect himself.

  “Come back safely!” he added as he returned to the mansion.

  “S’salia shrinda majine,” a soft, feminine whisper hissed through the forest. The voice trilled over the words in an elegantly foreign tongue, curving each syllable gently, despite the foreboding feeling the words carried.

  “What?” Marco asked, unable to understand the stream of words.

  “Get through the portal!” Dirk cried. “Go, now! I will be with you!”

  Before they could cross over, they were hit with another shock wave. Similar to the one that had hit when the portal opened, this one was more violent and knocked them off their feet. Along with the sudden movement came the sensation of being pushed under icy water, far more violent and chaotic than the previous shock wave.

  “Beware, magic users,” this time, the same elegant voice spoke in words the Shadow Assassins could understand, but it wasn’t due to the potion. Running under the current of the words was another stream of words, in the same foreign tongue as before. The two streams formed into one confusing voice.

  “What the hell is going on?” Marco cried above the noise.

  Evangeline scrambled to her feet. “Someone doesn’t want us crossing over. Too bad, right?”

  With that, she made a dash towards the glowing portal.

  She didn’t make it very far. Her hand stretched out towards the twining archway, as if she were to grab onto it and pull herself through. This time, the same shock wave that had hit them went specifically for her, in the form of a black streak of energy. It hit the angel-demon hybrid right in the side, forcing her away.

  “Evie!” Kaydee shouted as she went after her friend. She helped Evangeline stand and backed away as her friend whipped a knife from her pocket.

  There was a small noise as a switch blade popped open into position. Evangeline took pride in her knives and switch blades were her personal favorite. The silver glinted in the glow of the portal. She saw the vampire back up as the silver flashed out, as vampires suffered severe poisoning when injured with silver and could smell the metal before they saw it. Not that Dirk was a concern to her. Whoever had attacked her was going to get a blade to the gut.

  “Come out, you coward!” she shouted to the empty forest.

  “Arrogant
fool,” the voice whispered, with the same undercurrent of foreign tongue beneath it. “You think you can fight me?”

  Evangeline was attacked once more by a black streak of energy. In the dark of the forest, the energy was almost hidden to the eye. What gave away its presence was a faint, blue-black glow that surrounded it. She found the light and lashed out...but the silver passed through the energy as if it was not more than air. While she stared in confusion, the energy again hit her square in the chest, knocking her back. She saw Kaydee reach forward to help her, but Kaydee was restrained by a tendril of black energy that wove around her arms, pulling the woman back as it bound her arms behind her.

  A horrified scream escaped from Kaydee’s lips. “It burns! Oh, my God, it burns!”

  Marco sprung forward to try and help Kaydee escape, but the energy binding her burned him as well. He flinched. “What is this?”

  Kaleb saw his friends in danger and turned to Dirk, who was unarmed and not prepared for combat. “Go through the portal, Dirk. We’ll meet you at Moonriver.”

  Dirk nodded and held his gaze for a moment. “Be strong. I’ll wait for you on the other side.”

  With that, the vampire slipped through the portal. He glowed white as he stepped through the doorway and, instead of emerging through on the other side, he disappeared into the white light.

  A frustrated curse escaped Marco as he watched the vampire vanish. He took in a deep breath and focused inward, instead of on the chaos outside his body. Inside his mind, he found the power he was looking for, the reserve of magical energy he could feel, and tapped into it. His mind was his greatest weapon, better than any automated gun or sharp knife. He stared down at the black energy tendrils binding Kaydee’s arms and, with his mind, dove into the dark magic. All he needed was a moment to free her. As he separated the tendrils at their molecular structure, he tried not to breathe. Breathing felt as though he was underwater and he couldn’t tell if that was from his own powers or the evil magic that oozed from whatever was holding Kaydee captive.

  The binds snapped and Kaydee burst free. She instantly tapped into her own magic, diving down, mentally, into the earth. The earth had unlimited power to grant her, unlimited energy that she could use. The power surged through her as if it were lightning through a lightning rod, lighting her up from the inside. The power made her hands glow a light, pale spring green. As she focused her power, the burns she had gained glowed green as well, until they were closing, healing from the energy surging through her body. As she touched Marco, the power transferred to his skin, closing and healing his wounds as well. Their gazes met and silent gratitude passed beneath them.

  “Go for the portal, guys!” Evangeline shouted from nearby, breaking through the moment.

  “Let’s go,” he said to Kaydee, who nodded.

  “You will not go together,” the voice hissed. This time, the black energy gathered and reformed, attacking the portal itself. It tried to penetrate the portal but was rejected. The portal warped colors, from white to a flickering black and white, a chaotic snowy pattern on a bad TV channel.

  Marco sprang forward once more, determined to hold off the energy now that he had an idea of how to do it. “Go! I’ll be behind you!”

  Kaleb was closest to the portal. He slipped through easily before a tendril of black energy snaked out and attempted to stop him. Marco invaded the energy at its molecular level, altering what it was and where it went. Kaleb went through safely before Marco lost control of the energy. The black energy hit the portal, causing it to go into a black and white sort of chaos again. He again pulled it back with his mind as Evangeline approached the portal.

  Their gazes met and it looked like she was going to say something when the energy lashed out again, hitting her in the chest once more. She didn’t cross over so much as fall through with a yell. She went over and vanished into the portal.

  “Go, Kaydee!” he shouted.

  Kaydee hesitated for a moment, then lunged for the portal even as the energy went after her again. The energy caught her by the wrist and tried to pull her back, it being no more than a blob, an inkblot floating in the air as if it had its own life and willpower. Kaydee struggled against it, heading for the portal as Marco again prepared for another assault. Kaydee too stumbled with no more grace than Evangeline through the portal.

  “Foolish mortal,” the voice hissed as Marco pulled the energy from Kaydee.

  “I’m so out of here,” Marco said in response to the voice. “See you never, you freak of nature.”

  The voice didn’t respond verbally, but he could feel the outrage coming from the energy, as if he had been hit with a blast of heat. The energy went after him but he was already through the portal–

  ...falling...

  Into nothing more than white light.

  Part Two

  Fracture

  Chapter Four

  Dirk emerged from the portal right where he had designated the portal to take him, in his office at Moonriver Academy. He stumbled forward, catching himself on the bookshelf that lined the walls before he fell. A book fluttered to the floor but he ignored it.

  He looked around his office, ignoring the textbooks and parchment piles crowding a large, ornate oak desk and chair. His skin itched slightly. Heavy blinds covered the windows, shielding his office from daylight that tried to greet him. That was one of the more disorientating things about traveling between realms. Darkness was dominant in Moonlight Hills but here at Moonriver Academy, it was daylight out. Time had a different flow between realms.

  This office was empty, still. The Shadow Assassins had not crossed over yet. It made sense, seeing as how he was the first one through the portal, but he had hoped that they were right behind him.

  He couldn’t explain what had attacked them. He had never seen it before, had never experienced such a feeling of evil and dread. Whatever had attacked them was not human, not animal, not even something created by a mage. This was beyond anything he had ever studied, something that was just pure evil itself. He couldn’t describe it better than that.

  Glancing back at where he had landed, he hoped that the Shadow Assassins were okay. They had seemed like they could handle themselves okay, when Kaleb had told him to cross over. He had seen it in the students here – just because the person was young didn’t mean they couldn’t handle themselves. They were all in good health and good shape and, from what he could see before he had crossed over, they could fight.

  All he had to do now was await their arrival.

  

  Emerging from the portal wasn’t so much of stepping through a doorway as it was falling from a great distance. Kaleb, the first of the Shadow Assassins to cross over, found this out quickly as he was thrown out of the portal.

  He landed hard on solid ground, his chest taking the impact of the fall, the breath smacked out of him. It took a moment for him to recover. When he was able to, he sat up and looked around, squinting in the sunlight. Odd, that it was sunny here, when he had just come from a land that was dark.

  Even odder...the other Assassins weren’t behind him, as he was expecting. Instead, he was in the middle of a grassy plain. Alone. There was no one else awaiting him. Dirk wasn’t there, as he had promised to be. As far as Kaleb’s sight stretched, all he saw was golden grass as tall as his waist and trees in the distance. This stretch of plain was absolutely empty. There was no building or anything that indicated that he was near a school or even any kind of civilization.

  Confusion clouded his thoughts. Dirk had said that they were going to a school he taught at. Nowhere in this forest was a school. Dirk had included no instructions as to how to travel within the portal – he had just crossed over. Maybe Kaleb was missing some key instruction on how to travel through the portal; maybe he had done it wrong?

  A cool breeze fluttered over him and he caught the scent of burning wood. Unless it was a wildfire, that burning meant that someone had to be nearby. Unfortunately, he wasn’t sure what qualified as nearb
y. He could wind up wandering for hours, weak and alone, before he found someone, assuming that someone was friendly in the first place. A little stealth might come in handy.

  Sighing, he forced the growing panic to the back of his mind and sat down in the tall grass, unsure if there were people watching. Once he had calmed himself, he sifted through various animals in his mind, searching for a form that would help him.

  His body began warping, slowly at first, before changing into an animal better suited to his environment. He would prefer a big cat, such his usual tiger form, but he wasn’t sure of what kind of environment or people he would pass by. Something subtle, like what he was transforming into, was more appropriate.

  Feathers burst from his skin, punching through the clothing he wore. When he was younger, he didn’t know how to retain his clothing when he shifted forms and ended up naked when he shifted back into his human form. Now, he trained his mind to consider the clothing as a sort of skin over his actual skin, and the feathers that burst forth didn’t even rip through the cloth. He didn’t worry about weapons. When Marco and Evangeline were arming themselves, he didn’t pick anything. With less to carry, there was less to worry about as he transformed.

  His body shrank down and his bones restructured themselves in a series of cracks and pops, forming what wasn’t there before. In no time, he had transformed from a human adult male to a full grown male falcon. He shook his feathers and stretched his wings, testing his body, before he rose up into the air.

  Help had to be around here, somewhere.

  As a bird, he made faster time through the empty field, following the scent of burning wood. He wove through the forest trees with ease, able to pick out paths easier than he would have if he were an ordinary human. The falcon’s instincts guided him and tried distracting him. This forest was active. Devoid of anyone he could see, but active. He could hear mice scurrying in the brush under him and for a moment, he almost wanted to give in and track one down. The animal instincts of what he transformed into were always there in the back of his mind. It took training to sort them out and push them aside.