Nicole scrambled to her feet as the light from Lizzie’s fire dimmed. “Hold on, girl!” she said.
“I . . . can’t,” Lizzie said, and her light died.
Nicole shrieked, feeling the shadows pressing on her immediately. “Lizzie, fire! Fire!”
Lizzie whimpered. The fire appeared in her hands, but it started fading right away.
“Nicole! I can’t feel what I’m touching!”
Shadows rolled over Nicole’s body. They surrounded her, smothered her. She gasped, and they entered her lungs, making it impossible to breathe.
Nicole forced through the fog to her magic. She coaxed it closer—it hesitated. She coaxed it again. They didn’t have much time! Finally, a little strand came close enough for her to command it. She encouraged it to Lizzie, asking it to strengthen her best friend.
It had been a while since she’d last loaned magic to another person, and with her powers already nearly depleted from the affects of Shonlin, she felt it straining, shredding. It wasn’t enough.
Nicole pushed outward as hard as she could—forcing her powers to Lizzie, wishing she could control fire herself.
Lizzie’s fire exploded. Flames burst in every direction, lighting chairs, shelves. The room blazed. Lizzie dropped to the floor as the shadows fled.
Nicole stumbled to her knees, scrambling to Lizzie. Was she dead?
No, unconscious. Her pulse was faint. Nicole ignored the screaming burns on her arms as she fanned Lizzie’s face, calling her name.
The shadows lurked at the edge of this dimension. They were waiting for the flames to die, for darkness to fall again.
There had to be something else Nicole could do to keep them away—to force them away permanently.
“What do I do? Why are they attacking?”
The guardian stumbled toward her. “The dog . . . you returned . . . They started coming. Slowly . . . at first, then stronger.”
“But the dog was put there by Broalt—an evil man. How was it keeping evil things away?”
“A guardian . . . of Shonlin . . . enchanted . . .”
The guardian stopped talking, and instead, a vision entered Nicole’s mind. She saw a woman standing near the dog, commanding it to prevent unwanted visitors from entering Edana. A piece of the puzzle fell into place—why Lirone couldn’t attack here, why the vampire birds stayed away.
As soon as this thought fell into Nicole’s mind, she realized they’d put Shonlin in a lot of danger. Who knew what was attacking and heading toward the place?
“Why didn’t you tell me?” Nicole shrieked.
The guardian straightened, his eyes still shut, and spoke to her in visions, where he seemed to be stronger. “You are higher in station than I am. What you will become is much more than I ever was. It was your will that the dog be returned, even though it was benefiting Shonlin by keeping evil out. I couldn’t stop you even if I’d tried.”
Nicole gasped as she realized the weight that had truly been placed on her shoulders. “How do I prevent this from happening again?”
“You must ask Shonlin. It knows every purpose for each item. You only knew about Broalt’s intentions.”
“What now?”
“You already know.”
And Nicole did. She had to return the dog. Return its original powers. Seal it in its former location.
Nicole looked down at Lizzie. “I’m taking her into Shonlin.” It would be the safest place for her until Nicole could get the dog set up again.
“As you wish,” the guardian mentally whispered. “She will be protected by our walls for as long as possible.”
Nicole hefted Lizzie and rushed toward the door, grateful her friend was several inches shorter than she was.
Even so, Nicole still barely made it to the door. She almost dropped Lizzie as she stumbled across the threshold.
Nicole paused to lean against the doorjamb for a moment, taking several breaths. Then she headed to the right and the shelf where she’d placed the dog. She laid her friend on the floor in front of it.
Before she even had time to ask how to remove the dog, the knowledge flew into her mind. She spoke the words to release the figurine from its current location, not knowing what she was saying and forgetting the words the moment they were uttered.
The dog glowed for a brief instant. Nicole grabbed it, then rushed back to the book and the glass case.
Nicole lifted the case and quickly drew a line through the entry she’d placed in the book. She almost left the book exposed like that, but thought better of it and put the glass back into place. Maybe the shadows couldn’t lift glass. Maybe they wouldn’t read about every magical item in the room. But she doubted it.
As Nicole glanced back one last time at her unconscious best friend, she sensed the shadows at the edge of her consciousness. She tried not to dwell on them, not sure if she could allow them access to Shonlin through her mind. Could they take hold and come through her?
Better not to find out.
Because it was too big for her pocket, Nicole tucked the dog into the waistband of her jeans, hoping it would stay there. Then she fled from the room, praying Lizzie would be safe.
The flames were starting to die on the fifth floor. For a moment, Nicole realized they should have worried about the fire moving to the rest of the library, but with all the stone separating each floor from the others, it didn’t look like that would be an issue.
Nicole found Sweet Pea waiting on the second floor. She grabbed his hand and pulled him along.
“My leg!” he yelped, hobbling after her.
Nicole slowed a bit, trying not to growl in frustration. “I need your help putting the dog back in place.”
“Dog?”
Nicole didn’t respond. She pushed through the doors of the library, shrieking when a bomb landed near them. Lirone!
The sun was peeking out from beneath heavy clouds to the east, lighting the sky with a rosy glow. No rain fell, but dust from the explosion filled the air.
Sweet Pea wrenched his hand from her grasp. “His explosions will kill us both if we run side by side, so don’t stay close.”
Nicole saw the wisdom in that. She dashed through the ruins, stopping every now and then to help Sweet Pea over a fallen log or a pile of bricks. More bombs followed.
She paused long enough to pull some weeds, ignoring Sweet Pea’s expression of incredulity.
Lirone wasn’t the only threat—Nicole could see vampire birds flying through the large trees that dotted the city.
Miraculously, luck was on their side, and Nicole led them into the castle and down to the dungeons without either of them getting injured.
For a moment, she wondered if she should have put the dog in a more convenient location. She pushed that thought aside. Broalt had hidden the dog in the dungeon for a reason, and she didn’t have time to figure out why or to find a better place.
They ran through the skeletons, Sweet Pea calling out in shock. Nicole would have chuckled at his reactions if they weren’t in such a hurry.
She was proud of the Makalo, though, for being able to run as fast as he was, and without complaining of the pain. He had to be hurting.
They reached the cell. Nicole shoved the dog into the box before handing the weeds to Sweet Pea.
“Command them to hold the dog in place,” she said. “They’re still alive.”
Explosions far above made the walls shudder. Dust puffed into the room. Sweet Pea nodded. He took them and put them into the box, closing his eyes.
Another explosion hit the castle. Bricks fell from the ceiling. Nicole covered her head.
Sweet Pea pulled out his hand. “Ready for you,” he said.
Nicole faced the box, gathered her magic, then searched her memory for the appropriate words to command the dog to guard the city again. She opened her mouth. Just as she needed them, the words from earlier flew into her mind, and she yelled them as quickly as they did so. Once she’d spoken them, she forgot what she’d said.
Power rushed out of Nicole, pulling the air from her lungs, making her choke. The light dimmed, then died.
And the explosions stopped.
Nicole glanced at Sweet Pea.
“Did it work?” he asked.
She bit her lips. She pushed through her mind to the guardian. The link between them was still strong.
He was slumped against the doorjamb, an expression of relief on his face. He opened his eyes and stared at her.
“Thank you,” he said.
It was the least I could do, Nicole responded, especially since I caused this in the first place.
But Nicole’s job wasn’t done. The dog was only being held there by one form of magic. She needed to seal it in its box.
She found herself wishing Jacob was there. But he wasn’t. He couldn’t help. Then she mentally slapped her forehead when she remembered she controlled Earth. Duh. She didn’t need Jacob.
Pulling her magic to herself, grateful it was strong again, she coaxed it into the stones that had fallen in the room, asking them to build a wall in front of the box.
She ignored Sweet Pea’s exclamation of surprise when the stones floated into the air, putting themselves in place over the opening. They glowed momentarily before sealing to each other and the rest of the wall surrounding them.
It wasn’t until this moment that Nicole allowed herself to relax. “That should stop all magical creatures from having access to Shonlin.”
Sweet Pea stared at her, then jumped up. “The Sindon!”
Without waiting to see if Nicole understood, the Makalo turned and fled the cell. Nicole didn’t need to ask why—the Sindon was a magical creature. If Lirone’s attacks hadn’t killed it, the dog’s magic might.
Nicole dashed to follow the Makalo. They had to get to Lizzie too—make sure she was okay. And get home to their beds.
Nicole caught up easily. By this time, Sweet Pea was running with a heavy limp. He charged out of the castle and she followed, prepared to pick him up if necessary.
Vampire birds were cawing and falling dead to the ground around them. If the dog’s powers were killing them, how could the Sindon possibly still be alive?
If the Sindon didn’t make it, Nicole’s group would be in a pretty bad situation. With her burns, Lizzie’s injuries, and Sweet Pea’s leg, walking would be out of the question. And Jacob would be forced to key to the edges of Broalt’s magic. Nicole knew her burns needed medical attention, but if Lizzie had damaged herself badly enough, she would probably need life support to survive.
“Please be okay, Lizzie,” Nicole whispered.
Green sludge splatted on Nicole’s face, blinding her momentarily. She reached up to wipe off her eyes, then slumped to the ground, fully paralyzed.
She tried to call out to Sweet Pea as he continued running, tried to tell him to stop, but her voice didn’t work. Her mouth didn’t open. She couldn’t move.
A vampire bird stumbled into view next to her, struggling to survive through the dog’s power. It opened its mouth and the long tongue slowly snaked to Nicole, the teeth at the end clamping down on her arm.
Nicole sensed the bird’s magic building even as it struggled to breathe. She felt her blood start to be sucked away. It was slow—slower than it would have been if the bird were at full capacity.
But it was enough, and Nicole blacked out.
Chapter Six
Pain . . . Nausea.
Nicole tried to open her eyes. Tried to breathe. Tried to move.
Pain. Nausea.
The two sensations rolled over her, pressed her down, filled her heart, her mind, and her soul, massive as the ocean.
Fire licked at the wound in her arm. Nicole tried to scream but couldn’t.
She slipped into unconsciousness again.
***
Nicole’s head pounded.
Her arm throbbed.
She was vaguely aware of someone throwing up. Of a rough fabric being held to her mouth.
She’d been throwing up.
She drifted away.
***
Fire raced through Nicole’s veins. Her blood boiled.
Agony.
Screaming.
Someone hushing her, rocking her. Water offered at her mouth. Thirstily, she drank. Couldn’t open her eyes. Couldn’t move. Screamed again as her body convulsed.
Her arm was flaming, burning, much worse than before.
“Cut it off, cut it off!”
No one seemed to hear. Where was Austin? Lizzie? Coolidge? Why had they abandoned her?
Who was helping her? She tried to open her eyes but failed. She sensed people rushing around her, helping her, mopping the sweat from her forehead. Was she in a hospital?
Her brain began pulsing with the effort of trying to concentrate, and mercifully, she sank into oblivion.
***
Nicole awoke to someone wiping her forehead with a cool cloth. She groaned. Miserable. Weak.
“Water,” she moaned.
The cool cloth disappeared and she groaned again. But it was replaced by something pressing at her lips. Water sloshed into her mouth and she opened up to it, gasping, coughing, choking on the cool liquid as it dripped down her throat.
It was removed long before she was ready for it to be taken away.
“More, more,” she whispered.
Someone said something in a language she didn’t understand, and awareness fully came over her.
She wasn’t in a hospital.
Where am I?
Nicole tried to open her eyes again. And for the first time in what felt like years, they obeyed.
The dark cave walls that surrounded her were too much to compute, and she again faded away.
***
Hours—days—weeks later, she awakened. A cold hand was pressed against her cheek.
The same dark cave walls welcomed her when she opened her eyes. A face appeared in her vision and she tried to focus on it, but couldn’t.
Her fever had returned. She felt her body shivering violently, her arm burning. Her heart started racing when she realized she had blood poisoning and wasn’t in a hospital.
Her body felt heavier than cement. She couldn’t raise her arms, couldn’t lift her head. Her legs felt detached, like they were floating ten feet above her. What was going on? Where was she? Who was helping her?
Was she going to die?
The person pressed something against her lips, and again, she felt water sloshing there. She drank as much as she could this time, moaning when her stomach complained against the sudden weight.
Her body shuddered, her stomach muscles clenched, her throat opened of its own will, and the water came back up, bringing burning stomach acid with it.
The person who’d helped her drink clucked sympathetically, mopping at her mouth and neck.
When Nicole had finished vomiting, she shut her eyes. Exhausted from the strain, she relaxed into the blankets under her, grateful they were there, too tired to wonder how they’d gotten there and how she’d gotten where she was.
Instead of passing out this time, she mercifully drifted to sleep.
Chapter Seven
Nicole awoke drenched in sweat. The burning was gone, the shivering subsided. Her fever had broken. She groaned, opening her eyes, and tried to sit up.
Her body didn’t obey her.
Something moved on the other side of the cave room, and she realized she wasn’t alone. The person approached cautiously, saying something in a language she didn’t understand.
It was a human, a man. He held his hands up, hushing her, mumbling quietly.
Instead of the panic she expected, she felt herself calming at his words.
“Where am I?” she asked.
The man shook his head—he couldn’t understand.
Nicole remembered what she’d been doing before the bird attacked. “Lizzie? Sweet Pea?”
Again, the man shook his head.
What was happening in Edana? Had anyone tried to save her? Were they all dead?
Nicole reached out mentally to Shonlin and gasped when she realized the connection between her and the guardian had disappeared.
The man must have realized she was panicking because he brought the cool rag to her forehead again. Nicole startled when she got a good look at him. It was the same native she’d seen in the forest outside Edana—the one with the red paint on the side of his face.
He said something and offered her water again. His hand was gentle, his eyes kind. She sensed age and wisdom there.
And one thing she was grateful for—he seemed to know how to bring someone back from the edge of death.
Nicole tried to raise her arm to inspect the wound but was unable to move it. She still couldn’t lift her head and suspected it was because of how much blood she’d lost. Judging by how sick she’d been, several pints had probably been drained from her.
What was Austin doing? Was he okay? He had to be worried sick. Had he figured out by now where she’d gone?
How long had she been in this cave?
Her thoughts kept returning to that question. She whimpered in frustration, wishing she could communicate with the man.
A worried expression crossed the man’s face at the sound of Nicole’s whimper, and he said something. One of his hands was painted red like his face. He kept that hand safely away from her. This close up, she could tell that the paint was actually fresh blood, constantly on the surface of his skin. She wondered if it hurt.
She couldn’t imagine it not hurting.
Feeling stronger, she turned her head slightly and sighed in relief. Thank goodness she could do that much.
Nicole inspected her surroundings. She was right. She was in a cave of sorts. It wasn’t natural, though—she could tell from the ridges and cuts in the stone that someone had carved it out. Several lit torches lined the walls near the opening. Through that opening, a tunnel was visible that ran to the left and right. The cave was about eight feet tall—tall enough for the man who had nursed her back to health. Or men—several now stood in the opening. They nodded in her direction, speaking to the man, questions on their faces. The man shook his head and they left.
Obscure, Mosaic Chronicles Book Seven Page 7