Secret of the Unicorn (Avalon: Web of Magic #4)

by Rachel Roberts

  “What’s it to you?” Ozzie kicked the flobbin.

  Ghyll looked flustered. “I’m sorry I lied to you.”

  “Yeah, sure. Save it for the sorceress!” Ozzie brushed himself off.

  Just then the sounds of music blared in the distance. Harsh, deep, piercing blasts, clashing like sounds of battle.

  “Lorelei!” Emily exclaimed. “Come on!”

  The five ran across the fine sand and rounded a bend in the silver hills. Suddenly a hideous scream ripped through the landscape. An overwhelming eruption of energy sent the snowflakes skidding away.

  In front of them, Lorelei stood, facing the harpy. The monster was pointing the sickly green horn at the unicorn.

  “You tricked me!” it screamed, enraged. “This is not Avalon!”

  “No, it is not.”

  “Open the right portal. Now!” The harpy waved the green horn frantically. Sparks of fire jumped from the horn, but before they could reach Lorelei, they seemed to lose focus, splintering away in the misty breeze.

  “Lorelei!” Emily called out.

  The harpy watched the girls approach. It hissed, its ghoulish, white face twisted with fury.

  It aimed the green horn at them, trying to build a wave of magic. Emily felt the tingling sensations rush through her as the power intensified. She had felt this before, at the football field and in the woods. “Stand back,” she warned the others.

  Adriane swung her arm up, releasing a trail of golden fire from her jewel. She spun around, whipping the fire into a ring of blazing magic. Feet planted firmly, she threw the ring at the harpy. The magic arced through the air and slammed into the harpy with an explosion of golden light.

  It staggered back, as if trying to deflect the warrior’s magic with the green horn. Instead, the horn absorbed the golden fire. The harpy pulled the horn down, sending the magic back at the group.

  “Look out!” Ozzie yelled.

  Everyone dove to the ground as the wave crashed over them with an eerie, wailing sound.

  The harpy strained to lock onto more magic from the girls’ stones.

  Adriane leaped to her feet, arms raised for another attack.

  Ghyll bounced back up. “Wait! The horn will draw magic from your jewels. You mustn’t use them.”

  “You seem to know an awful lot about unicorns, frog face!” Ozzie yelled.

  “I have studied them for years,” Ghyll told the ferret.

  “Well, study this!” Ozzie kicked the flobbin again.

  “If one way doesn’t work, try another,” Emily called out.

  Suddenly Lorelei raised her head and released clear, clean sounds of music. The notes echoed over the barren terrain.

  The harpy held the green horn high. “I will control your magic!”

  Lorelei’s music spilled across the valley. Achingly beautiful, the song wove notes of pure feeling, echoing the joy, sorrow, and loss inside the unicorn.

  Emily recognized the song instantly. It was the song she had heard in her dream. Her song.

  She started to sing, adding her voice to the melody, raising her hands for her friends to join in. Once again, one by one, her friends began to sing with her. Emily felt the familiar surge of power swirling through the three of them. Sparks flew off her rainbow jewel, and she saw the amber glow of Adriane’s wolf stone. The music swirled and eddied around them, gathering energy as it grew. Huge snowflakes skipped in place, moving with the rhythm of the song, glowing with soft colors. Lorelei added layers of exquisitely sweet harmony in jewel-like chords.

  The harpy kept the green horn raised, trying to draw in the magic. “Yes, send me your magic and I will use it!”

  The song built, riding the crest of intense rhythmic waves. Energy thrummed all around them.

  And Emily danced, twirling and spinning, feeling the music sweep her away. Her heart felt like it would break as she opened herself fully to the unicorn’s feelings. She felt the pain and frustration, the sadness and shame, and the pure wonder and joy of their magical connection. The music skyrocketed into fireworks of power as she felt the strongest emotions ever from Lorelei. It wasn’t a song of anger or hatred, it wasn’t even a song of love that Lorelei sung. It was stronger, pushing the magic faster and farther than Emily could have believed possible. Emily spun faster, flashing on her own life—her father, sad and desperately searching for fulfillment; her mother, worried and afraid for her daughter—and suddenly she knew what she was feeling from the unicorn’s music. It was a song of forgiveness.

  Emily let the song ring out in a rush of feeling. The magic swirled, becoming a lightning bolt of power and slammed into the harpy, shattering the green horn into a thousand fragments.

  The harpy screamed and collapsed amid the rain of glittering green shards.

  Squinting against the blast, Emily saw Lorelei standing over the dark, prone form of the harpy. With a swirl of the unicorn’s head, magic erupted from her crystal horn, spinning into the air. The sparkles formed a circle, and a portal opened before them.

  The harpy scrambled to its feet, clutching its hand and cowering in fear.

  “Destroy me, now,” it hissed. “The sorceress will, if you don’t.”

  “Without the power of my horn, you are no threat.”

  “Why couldn’t I harness it? Tell me!” the harpy begged.

  “Some things cannot be taken.”

  “I don’t understand.”

  “I know you don’t. Be gone, harpy!”

  “Allow me!” Ghyll hopped over and bounded into the harpy, knocking it into the portal with his big blue belly. With a nod of her head, Lorelei swirled the portal closed, leaving only slight wisps of blue smoke hanging in the air.

  “Now, that’s team work, frog boy!” Ozzie jumped up, slapping his paw against the flobbin’s flipper.

  Before she could catch her breath, Emily saw the unicorn walking toward her, white flakes drifting in her wake.

  “Is this Avalon?” Emily asked, looking around at the wondrous landscape.

  “This is a special place that I have found.”

  “I’ve seen it before, in my dreams.”

  “With the strength of us together.”

  “Nothing’s going to stand in our way,” Emily finished, smiling.

  “The dark creature will not hurt you anymore.” The unicorn’s musical voice was strong but anxious. “But its evil work remains. I must repair what was destroyed.”

  Suddenly Emily understood. “You didn’t fail!” she told Lorelei. “The harpy destroyed the web, not you.”

  “You were right. Without my horn, I could not focus my magic.”

  “It’s not your fault,” Emily said. “The harpy used you. It tried to steal your magic.” She knew that the harpy had used her, too. But Lorelei had forgiven her, even when the unicorn had almost given up on herself.

  “So, the harpy tried to use your horn to force you to find Avalon,” Adriane said.

  “The sorceress took my horn, but she could not harness its power. She gave it to the harpy, because like unicorns, harpies use musical magic.”

  “What would happen if the web wasn’t repaired?” Kara asked.

  “All worlds on the web would drift apart, no longer connected, and the magic would fade away, gone forever.”

  Emily bit her lip. Things sounded worse than she and her friends had imagined. They had all known that the Dark Sorceress was ruthless—that she would do anything to gain control of all the magic. She was so fixated on her goal that she didn’t care who or what she destroyed along the way—even the web itself!

  Lorelei gazed deeply into Emily’s eyes. “I must do what I was meant to—heal the damaged web.”

  Emily nodded. “Tell us how we can help.”

  “You cannot stay on the web. It is not safe for you. Your place is at Ravenswood, Emily, with your friends.”

  “Can you get another unicorn to help you, to repair the damage before it’s too late?” Emily asked.

  Lorelei shook her head. “A
ny of the others would need to leave their own areas unprotected.”

  Lorelei’s expression was anxious but determined. Magic danced from her horn, lighting up nearby snowflakes with bursts of color. With a wave of her head, she spun open another portal. Light from the swirling mist spilled over the pillowy bluish-white ground.

  “Do you know where Avalon is?” Kara asked.

  Everyone looked at her.

  “What?” she said sheepishly. “Maybe she knows.”

  “Avalon has been lost to us.”

  “But you go there,” Kara pressed. “I mean, the other unicorn I met took me there, to Avalon.”

  “A unicorn could surely take you somewhere to aid you on your quest, but no one has seen Avalon in centuries.”

  “So how come everyone thinks we can find it?” Kara wanted to know.

  “You are mages.” Lorelei’s eyes sparkled. “It is your destiny to find Avalon. Surely such wondrous magic can renew the web.”

  “You could come back to Ravenswood,” Emily suggested hopefully.

  “I will return to my home, Dalriada. There are young unicorns who must learn everything you have taught me.” Lorelei lowered her head and nuzzled Emily affectionately. “About the power of healing—and friendship.”

  “I will miss you.” Emily hugged her friend.

  “And I, you.” Lorelei nodded to the portal. “You must go now, as well.”

  “Um, I hate to intrude,” Ozzie said. “But that thing goes to Ravenswood, right?”

  Lorelei shook her head. “It leads to another nexus.”

  “Then how are we gonna get home?” the ferret asked anxiously.

  Lorelei looked uncertain. “Only a unicorn can navigate the web… or…” She trailed off, her song fading.

  Emily leaned in closer. “Lorelei, what?”

  The unicorn bowed her head. Her horn stretched toward Emily. “…or you must use the magic of a unicorn.”

  For a second Emily wasn’t sure what Lorelei meant. “Your horn?” she cried.

  “The horn of a unicorn gives the one who possesses it magic of any type she desires.”

  “But it didn’t work for the Dark Sorceress,” Emily said, confused.

  “The sorceress took the horn from me. It was never truly hers. The magic of a unicorn can only be used when it is freely given.”

  Emily looked to her friends

  “It’s up to you, Emily,” Kara said. “I couldn’t keep my unicorn jewel, because it was never given to me.”

  Still Emily hesitated, images flooding her mind. Lorelei broken and scared in the forest. The deadly, gleaming blade of the Dark Sorceress flashing ruthlessly down. The sickening, charred remains of the web where the harpy’s evil music had destroyed its magic.

  Then a different image flashed into her mind. Lorelei dancing across the web, repairing and strengthening it—doing what she was created to do, horn or no horn, filled with the magic that was inside of her. No one could take that away.

  Taking a deep breath, Emily reached out and grasped the horn. A dizzying, jangling feeling overwhelmed her senses, and she felt like she was falling.

  She opened her eyes and saw the horn sparkling in her hand.

  “I am always here.” Lorelei nudged Emily’s chest with her nose, pressing against the beating of her heart.

  She stepped back, reared, and raced away. With a mighty leap, she vanished.

  “Good bye,” Emily whispered, her heart twisting with loss.

  “Come on,” Adriane said. “Let’s go.”

  She led the way toward the portal. Emily lifted Ozzie onto her shoulder and briefly patted Ghyll’s warty neck. Making sure everyone was right beside her, she took a breath and stepped through—into darkness.

  The blackness felt almost solid, as if it were pressing against Emily’s skin. It was as if they had been transported to a place where light did not exist. Never had she experienced such total darkness. Her only solace was the horn she clutched tightly in her hand.

  “I can’t make my wolf stone glow,” Adriane said, concerned.

  “Me, either.” Emily strained her eyes in the dark for even a glimpse of the rainbow jewel at her wrist.

  It seemed the darkness had sucked the light even from their magic jewels.

  “Stay close, everyone,” she said into the void.

  “That will be easy,” Ozzie said, clutching her neck.

  Emily thought about what Lorelei had told her. The magic of the horn had been given to her. It would bring what she desired most. “Keep us safe,” she whispered, raising the horn high. “Lead us home.”

  The horn flashed in the darkness, and as her eyes adjusted, she saw that it was illuminating a path along a wide strand of the web. In the distance, pinpoints of light twinkled like diamonds strewn across velvet. She hurried forward, the others following behind, small specks on an infinite magical highway. Two pathways forked to the left and right. But which led back home?

  Emily called to Lorelei for help. She felt a hint of the unicorn’s presence and heard a brief echo of music. Light sparkled from the horn, pulling her, guiding her.

  “This way,” she whispered. She led them to the right, the horn casting long shadows behind them. Starlight sprinkled around them as more and more of the web beckoned in the distance.

  “Ahh! Watch it, ferret! You tickled me!” Kara called out.

  “That wasn’t me!”

  “Wasn’t me,” Ghyll said.

  “Hey, that tickles!” Ozzie yelled.

  “I felt something, too,” Adriane said.

  “Look, it’s the horn,” Emily said in wonder.

  Long snaky strands flew off the horn. Emily tried to shake them loose. But as she waved the horn, more and more strands began to collect on it, like sparkling gold cotton candy.

  The horn began to grow heavy under the weight.

  “It’s drawing strands of the web,” Emily exclaimed.

  “Well, hurry, it’s falling all over us!” Kara cried, wiping wispy sparkling strands from her blond hair.

  Emily picked up the pace, carefully following the ghostly path before her. “This way. Everyone stay together!”

  Ahead, bright lights beckoned as dozens of pathways intersected—a nexus. At least a dozen portals floated silently around the platform.

  “Which one?” Kara asked uncertainly.

  Emily stood and stared, searching for the right answer. “I… don’t know,” she admitted.

  “Well, if we end up in China, I’m going to be grounded for a year!” Kara said.

  Emily closed her eyes and held the horn up high. She felt Lorelei’s magic race through her. The newfound strength of her friend filled her with joy, love, and hope.

  “This one.” She pointed to a portal in the center.

  Grasping hands, paws, and flippers, the friends stepped forward and leaped through the portal together.

  “OOOF!” OZZIE SPLUTTERED, landing on Emily’s stomach with a thump. “Sorry about that.”

  “No problem.” Emily set the ferret down on the grass. Glancing around, she saw that Kara, Adriane, and Ghyll had tumbled safely through the portal as well.

  “You’re back!” Stormbringer raced toward them, almost bowling Adriane over as she licked her face.

  Adriane giggled and hugged the big wolf tightly.

  Lyra ran to Kara and allowed herself to be caught in a big hug.

  “Good thing I’m back,” Kara said, inspecting the large cat. “You need a shampoo.”

  “I let myself get extra dirty for you.”

  “Aww, how sweet!”

  “Hey!” Ozzie called out. “It was no picnic for me either, you know.”

  Storm and Lyra walked to the ferret, each licking a side of Ozzie’s face. Ozzie was lifted into the air by two giant tongues.

  “Akk! Watch it, furballs!”

  Loud cheers, squeaks, roars, and peeps rose over the field as the animals barreled in, crowding around the girls.

  “They made it!” a brimbee ye
lled.

  Emily, Adriane, and Kara took a bow.

  “Your humble junior mages have returned,” Kara announced. “And the harpy is gone!”

  Louder cheers erupted from the group.

  “Hey, what’s that?” Ronif pointed to the portal.

  The girls turned and gasped. Long, glowing strands spilled out of the swirling hole, piling up on the ground in a tremendous heap.

  “It’s strands of the web!” Adriane said.

  “They must have come loose from the horn when we jumped through.” Emily gazed down at the sparkling, clean horn in her hand. It was her last connection to Lorelei, and she felt a pang of deep sadness when she realized how much she would miss her new friend.

  Pop! Pop! Pop! Pop! Pop!

  The air exploded in colorful bubbles as five overexcited dragonflies dove into the girls. They made a beeline line right for Kara’s blond head.

  “Oh, no!” Kara clamped her hands on her hair as the dragonflies zipped around her.

  “Kaaraa!” Goldie ecstatically cried out, nuzzling into Kara’s neck.

  “Hi, Goldie.” Kara gave the mini a scritch between her wings.

  “OOoooOO!!!!”

  Fred, Barney, Fiona, and Blaze swept past her and fell into the pile of glowing web strands. In a minute, strands went flying everywhere as the little dragons careened about, holding pieces in their tiny beaks.

  Emily watched them with wonder. She looked at the horn. Keep us safe. She had wished for that with the magic of the horn. “That’s it!” she cried out.

  “What?” Adriane asked, ducking as Fred flew over, dangling a pile of strands.

  “The strands! What better magic is there than the web itself to build a dreamcatcher?”

  “You’re right!” Adriane exclaimed. “Kara, do your thing!”

  “You know,” Kara retorted, “I’m perfectly capable of doing other things than playing with dragonflies.”

  “Right,” Adriane agreed. “Just do us a favor.”

  “Yes?”

  “Don’t sing!”

  Emily could not help giggling as she watched Kara stomp over to the pile of strands.

  “D-flies! Front and center!” Kara called out.

  “OOOooo, Kaaraa!” Fiona and Barney dove for her shoulder, fighting for position.