by Anna Lewis
“They’re in a lot of pain,” he said. Nessa felt like crying—all these years, she could have been searching for them. Instead, she had chased a position on the faculty of the university. How pointless that seemed now.
“Why did we have to wait for so long?” She asked. He looked at her.
“We weren’t strong enough,” he said. “We both needed time to grow into our gifts.” Nessa nodded as she thought.
“Will you show me your visions?” She asked.
“In order to get to the spirit plane, we have to go through my visions,” he explained. “Since you’ve never gone on your own, I will have to bring you through my pathway. It is the only way to get to the Necromancer. She has ascended to another plane of existence.”
“She’s not here?” Nessa frowned.
“Not in the material plane,” he said. “That’s why they can’t find her. But she’s been trying to contact me. She wants me on her side. She wants you, too.”
“Why?” Nessa asked. She hadn’t realized it, but she had taken Charlie’s gloved hand in her own. Recalling the queen’s warning, she dropped it. Charlie noticed. He smiled, then took her hand in his.
“It’s okay,” he said. “I can hold them with the gloves on.”
“No, it’s not that,” Nessa said. “I don’t fear your powers. But your mother will have my head on a spike.”
“You’re safe,” he replied. “She wouldn’t dare kill off the one person who has the power to save the country. It’s the only thing that she cares about.” Nessa’s heart pounded at the thought that so much was riding on her. She also had the strange desire to feel Charlie’s hand. She wanted to feel his skin—to get lost in whatever it was that he saw. She didn’t know how to tell him. She bit her lip, then looked up. Charlie smiled at her and pressed her hand within his gloved one.
“Ness,” he said, reaching up, and running his hand along her neck. Even with the glove on, Nessa felt electricity in his touch.
“Can you take it off?” She whispered. He looked surprised.
“You’ll see my visions,” he said.
“I…I want to,” she replied. He looked away sadly.
“I don’t want you to get hurt. When I was younger, just a child, I had a friend, here at the palace,” he said. “Her name was Lili. She talked me into taking off my gloves… she insisted that she wanted to feel my magic…”
“What happened?”
“She was never the same again,” he said. He looked at her, and his eyes were full of fear. “She’s in the city asylum. What she saw…it destroyed her.”
“That wasn’t your fault,” Nessa said.
“It was. I destroyed her with my touch,” he said. Nessa reached up, placing her hand on Charlie’s face. His cheek was smooth, clean-shaven.
“We’re going to have to go into your visions in order to do this,” she said. “I want to know what it’s going to be like.”
“Right now?” he asked.
“Right now,” Nessa insisted. He nodded, slowly.
“Can we… can we go to my tower?” He asked. “If something bad happens…”
“Nothing bad will happen,” she replied.
* * *
They sat across from each other in the darkness of Charlie’s tower. Her voluminous skirt was spread out around her. Her heart was hammering in her chest. This was both sensual and terrifying at the same time. Charlie looked terrified as he pulled his gloves off.
Nessa held up her hands, palms out to him. He held up his hands. They were shaking.
“I’m an experienced practitioner, Charlie,” she said. “I’ll be fine.” He nodded, then placed his hands against hers.
The world seemed to expand. They were running down a darkened hallway. They were out on a terrace on the top of a very high tower. They were in the middle of a very large room, where the dead were all around them. The dead were in pain—Nessa felt it. They all reached out for her. She was the only one with the power to make the pain stop. She was the only one who could help them cross over. She felt their hands, fleshless, grab at her. She felt a hand, pulling her out. It was Charlie.
“Where are we?” she asked him.
“A place between places.” He pointed. “She hides here.” She looked up to see the Necromancer. She sat on a large chair. It was plain, black wood. She had long, flowing black hair. Her face was covered by a pale mask—a skull, which grinned back at them. Her mouth beneath it was a grimace. She looked upon them, saying nothing. Nessa could feel her malice. Nessa gripped Charlie’s hand.
“Let’s go,” he said. Nessa opened her eyes. She was sitting across from Charlie. The warmth of his palms was against hers. She could feel the electricity coursing through them. She could feel the queen’s warning. She reached forward, grabbing Charlie’s cheek, pulling him toward her. She pressed her lips to his. He froze for a moment, then returned her kiss.
Although her eyes were closed, she could feel that they were somewhere between worlds again, this time, somewhere good. The sun was shining on them, and she could hear birds singing. She opened her eyes to find that they were in a garden. It was lush, verdant, pink cabbage roses blooming around them. Charlie grinned at her.
“Where are we?” She asked him. He shrugged.
“It’s another place between places,” he said simply.
“You’re amazing,” she said, leaning in and kissing him again. She could feel her own powers mingling with his as they kissed. When she pulled away, she looked at him. He was studying her, as if she might run away at any moment. She had never been so drawn to a person so immediately before. Their surroundings began to fade away, and they were sitting in the darkness of the tower room again.
“Charlie, put your hands on me,” she said. He frowned.
“I don’t want to hurt you.”
“Don’t you see? You can’t,” she said. “We’re evenly matched.” Charlie sighed sadly. He began to pull his gloves back on, one at a time. He kept his gaze on the floor in between them.
“I can’t risk it, Nessa,” he said. “Not when so much is at stake.”
“Charlie, look at me,” she said. He raised his eyes to her. “It’s okay. I understand.” He nodded. Nessa reached forward, kissing him again. That same spark of electricity was there. She pulled away.
“Were we really there, Charlie?” She asked him. He nodded.
“Yes.”
“Did she see us?”
“Yes.”
“Good. She needs to know that we’re coming.”
***
The next day, one of the palace servants drove Nessa back to the university to pick up her things. Her friend, Glo, met her in her tiny student apartment. Nessa loved her apartment. It was super tiny, but it held all of her books, her teacups, and her papers. She began to pack things as she split a bottle of wine with Glo.
“So, you can take over my Intro classes?” Nessa asked.
“Oh, yeah, no problem,” Glo replied, taking a sip of wine. They were drinking out of thick ceramic coffee mugs.
“Thanks,” Nessa said. “You want my bamboo plant? I won’t be around to water it once every three months. I don’t know how long this is going to take.”
“Sure thing,” Glo said, waving it off. “So, tell me about the princes! Are they super cute?” Nessa smiled, placing a hand on her hip.
“Yeah,” she said. “They’re not exactly identical, I mean, there are definite differences. But yeah, cute for sure.”
“Which one do you like the best?” Glo asked, giving her a knowing look. “Can I have the other one?” Nessa laughed.
“I can’t like either of them,” she said, not telling Glo about the kiss with Charlie. “The queen has personally threatened me against it.”
“Ah,” Glo said. “That sucks.”
“Not really,” Nessa replied. “We have to work together. I have to save my parents’ souls, and we all need to save the country from attack from this Necromancer.”
“Who is she?”
“No idea. I mean, I saw her in one of Charlie’s visions,” Nessa said, throwing a couple of her books into a bag. “Her face is covered by a skull mask.”
“That’s super helpful,” Glo said.
“Exactly,” Nessa replied, placing some of her clothes into the bag with her books.
“Well,” Glo said, hugging Nessa. “Good luck. If you need anything, let me know.”
“Of course,” Nessa said.
“And whichever prince you don’t fall for,” Glo said, looking Nessa in the eyes. “Give him my number.” Nessa laughed and shook her head.
“You’re incorrigible, my dear.”
“If I don’t, then who will be?” Glo gave her a grin. Nessa paused, smiling at her friend. She thought about both princes—the way that Ra looked at her while they danced, the way that the world literally fell away when she kissed Charlie. She realized—I like both of them. At the same time, she recalled their mother’s stern face and dire warning—Don’t get caught in between two princes. They already have each other. You’ll never come first. Nessa’s blood ran cold.
***
“Are you ready?” Charlie was standing at the door to her room. Nessa had left it open when she had returned. She was folding her clothes and placing them within the massive mahogany chest of drawers. She smiled.
“Yes. For what?” She asked.
“Well,” he said, glancing around at her bags of books and clothing. “I was thinking that we could look into the past. If we see how she killed my father, and took your parents, then we could figure out a way to trap her.”
“We could even see what demon she has allowed to possess her,” Nessa said. Charlie nodded. They stood there, grinning at each other.
“Are you nervous?” Charlie asked, clearly nervous himself.
“Not at all,” Nessa replied. “Let’s do it.” She followed him up to his tower room. On the wooden table in the center of it, there was a potion cooling. It was a strange purplish-blue color, and it seemed iridescent.
“It will help to focus the vision,” Charlie explained. “It is set to bring us into the past.” Nessa nodded.
“Will you be able to control it?” She asked.
“Of course,” he replied. “I have long practiced control. When I was younger, I would have no choice as to what I would see. The other night, I was able to take you to them. And to… to the garden.” He flushed red. Nessa smiled. She loved how sweet Charlie was. She walked over to him. She placed her hand on his cheek. She brushed her lips against his, feeling the strength of his power. It was over the surface of his skin, as though it were oozing from his pores. When she pulled away, he was smiling.
“Let’s do this,” she said. Charlie nodded, then split the potion in half into a set of clear glasses. He handed one to her.
“At the same time?” He asked. Nessa nodded. They clinked their glasses together, then downed the liquid. It was sweet and acrid at the same time. Nessa coughed. Charlie removed his gloves, reaching out for Nessa’s hands. She could feel herself being pulled away. It was like a wave hit her when she touched Charlie’s hands. She could feel the shock of it—he had clearly been holding it back before. With the potion, he had no control. The force of it was concussive.
They were back in the awful throne room. Nessa could see her parents, standing beside a golden dragon. They faced off with the Necromancer. She was already bearing the Death’s Head mask that marked her as taken by the demon. The dragon reared back, opening his bright golden wings and his great fanged maw, letting out great gouts of fire. The Necromancer held up her hand, and it formed an invisible shield against the fire. Nessa’s parents were both weaving spells, sending legions of the Dead at the Necromancer, but she raised her hand, and the Dead turned, taking her parents. The Necromancer pulled out a flaming sword. She held it above her head, plunging it into the dragon’s heart. A humanoid figure stepped out from behind the Necromancer.
The figure was dark—not really a body, but a shadow, a void with vague definition. Nessa could feel its attention on her and Charlie. She gripped his hand in hers. This figure was old, almost ancient. It was strong, too. It reached out as it neared them. Nessa looked beside her at Charlie, whose face was frozen. The figure’s hand reached out toward him, its hand sliding through Charlie’s skin easily. Nessa screamed as Charlie’s eyes slid upwards in their sockets. She looked toward the Necromancer, who was watching them. She waved her hand over the Death’s Head mask. The Death’s Head mask began to fade, but just before it revealed who the Necromancer was, Nessa felt herself being pulled out of the vision.
She opened her eyes to chaos. Ra was yelling, and Charlie was writhing in convulsions. His eyes were open, showing only the whites, and he was foaming at the mouth. His mouth was open, as if he were screaming silently.
“What happened?” Nessa yelled.
“What did he take?” Ra yelled back in panic.
“Some potion,” Nessa replied in confusion. “He said it would help to focus the vision.”
“You went too far in!” Ra was shouting. “It just amplified his powers.” He began an incantation, his eyes turning golden, his irises changing into reptilian slits. He leaned in, whispering the end of the spell in his brother’s ear. Slowly, Charlie’s body began to relax, the convulsions slowing, his mouth going slack. His eyes closed. He did not wake up. Nessa knelt beside Charlie, unsure of what to do. She felt helpless.
“Your Majesty?” A man yelled from the door by the stairs.
“Get the royal healer,” Ra yelled, his eyes never leaving his brother’s face. “Come on, Charlie, wake up.” Charlie’s eyes opened. He seemed confused, unsure of where he was. Nessa ran to him, grabbing his hand. She could feel the electricity, but fought it off.
“Charlie,” she said. “Did you see her face?”
“We’re in trouble,” he mumbled in slurred syllables, right before he lost consciousness again.
“What did you see?” Ra asked her. His eyes were wide.
“She already had the Death’s Head mask when she killed your father and took my parents,” she explained. “She had already joined with the same demon from the 1880’s. He’s back. He is incarnating as a shadow. I can’t tell what he is. I am guessing that the Necromancer has an incarnation on this plane as well as the other. She also… she had a sword. It was flaming. That’s how she killed your father.” Ra frowned.
“The Phoenix Blade. It’s the only sword that can kill a dragon,” he said. “Only a human can wield it.”
“I think Charlie saw more,” Nessa said. “The demon reached inside of him. I was pushed out when the seizures started.” Ra nodded, his forehead creased in concern.
“The healer can take care of him. You and I need to figure out how to get to her.”
“What about Charlie?” Nessa asked. “Can we do this without him?”
“To go in again might kill him, Nessa,” Ra said. “The visions have just been getting stronger. He’s losing his control on them. Taking that potion was suicidal, and he knew it.” He paused, then looked her in the eyes. “I can’t lose my brother, Nessa.” Nessa nodded.
“What can we do?” she asked. Ra sighed.
“The Death’s Head signifies that the demon Belial has come to Earth again,” he said. “The first time that he was stopped, Arcturus Spot was able to trap him somewhere in the spirit plane. The Necromancer has clearly freed him. If they have gotten a hold of the Phoenix Blade, then my powers as a dragon shifter are no match for him or the Necromancer.”
“So, it’s up to me,” Nessa said, her heart pounding. “Necromancer against Necromancer.” Ra nodded. “Who is going to stand against the demon, though?” Ra shook his head.
“I don’t know. We should start with you. You’re the one piece of the puzzle that we do hold. We need to make you a weapon that will go against the Phoenix Blade,” he said. They both looked down at Charlie, whose breathing was beginning to ease into the calm, soft breaths of someone who was sleeping soundly and comfortab
ly.
“Of the two of us,” Ra said. “He’s the good one.”
“Yeah,” Nessa said, looking at him sassily. “I know.” Ra laughed.
“I mean it,” he said.
“So did I.”
***
Charlie was taken to the healer’s chambers. Nessa and Ra stood over the table in Charlie’s room, where he had left many books on spirit magic open and scattered about. Nessa read over the book that was closest to her. It was written in lines of symbols—triangles with different lines and configurations. She had seen this before—long ago, in a book that she had long believed that she wasn’t meant to have seen.
“Can we imbue something with power?” she asked Ra.
“No,” he said. “It will have to be an incantation. Words are the only thing that you will be able to bring across the planes.”
“What about the Phoenix Blade?” she asked. “It was made in this plane.”
“That’s for fighting Dragons,” he replied. “Magical weapons forged by master craftsmen using materials from other planes defy the laws which govern materials. We need something that fights Necromancers.”
“What about a blade imbued with spirit magic?” She asked, picking up a breadknife that sat on the table among the mass of books and papers. He looked at her with his princely disdain.
“Have you ever forged a sword, professor?”
“No,” she said. “But I could try.”
“We need something that will be definite,” he said sharply. “We can’t roll the dice here. Charlie almost died today looking into the past. That was merely an echo of what we will be going up against.” He was so certain. Nessa bit her lip as she thought. She looked at the books which were open.
“Did Charlie tell you about any of this?” She asked.
“No,” Ra replied. “He often waits until he’s solved it to tell anyone anything.” Nessa let out a sigh. This was going to take a while.
“We should figure out what he was putting together,” she said, picking up a book. It was a spell book of spirit magic incantations. “This page is on binding spells.”