by Phil Maxey
She was back in her bedroom. She let out a big breath and suddenly felt a wave of fatigue run through her. She grabbed the metal armrests of the chair she was in to steady her. She then touched her own chest, her heart was beating out of it. She could still hear the muffled sound of her mother’s Christmas music downstairs.
Glancing at the old shop on her computer screen, she quickly closed the browser window, and carefully felt the small bump that was at the back of her head. Maybe I do need a trip to the ER, after all.
CHAPTER 11
Justin’s dreams were full of dragons, knights, and wizards, and until Sparrow burst into his room he was enjoying his sleep.
“Jax says the wards are failing, there is something about the storm that is fighting our magic. He also said there is something on its way to us, but he can’t see what, so we need to be prepared.” She rushed over to the bedroom windows pulling closed the secure iron reinforced shutters and dropping the latch across them. What pale blue light was seeping into the room from the outside was extinguished to be replaced by the warm glow of the gas lanterns on the wall. It was then he also noticed the rune symbols on the back of the shutters.
Sparrow rushed past the bed, her quiver bouncing up and down on her back, with her bow in her hand.
“What can I do?” said Justin, watching her run to the door.
“Just stay here,” she said, leaving, and closing it behind her.
Parts of his mind still clung to the idea that this was all a game being played out for his behalf, but he had seen what Jax did in the dining hall the night before, and an hour before that witnessed the thing that attacked him. Despite his desperate need to think of it as an impressive puppet, he now knew it was real. Worse still he himself was part of this world in some way that he didn’t fully understand. Descended from King Arthur? He lay upright, his back pushed up against pillows that looked fit for a king, and tried to remember the stories of the knights of the round table from when he was a kid.
Vague memories of being read tales of Arthur and his knights by his father started to waft back into his mind, but he couldn’t recall much of what the stories foretold. Apart from that he knew as much as anyone. There was a King called Arthur, there was a sword in a stone, a wizard, and his wife cheated on him with his best mate. That was about the sum of it. He was also pretty sure that none of it was historically accurate. When he was older, in his teens, he had seen the documentaries and caught the articles which documented how the whole Arthur story came mostly from the imagination of medieval romance authors and monks who needed the tourism. How can any of it be real?
His chain of thought ended abruptly with the sound of a commotion outside in the gardens. What sounded like a low gradual drumming sound reverberated around the room, making his glass of water on the bedside table rattle.
Pulling the sheet back, he got dressed quickly and walked to the locked shutter. Pressing his face up against it, he tried to see through any gaps in the wood, but there were none. The drumming got louder. If something was coming he wanted to see what it was. Pulling the latch up, he pulled the shutters open, and looked out into the falling snow.
At first, all he could see was the falling flakes, the gardens, and beyond them the forest of oaks. But as he strained to see into the dark woods, he saw movement amongst the shadows. Figures were moving between the twisted and moss-covered trunks of the old trees. He leaned closer to the glass, when he saw the first of them break from the tree line and run forwards towards the garden. It looked like whatever had attacked him the night before but this one was covered in armour and had a lance and shield.
Its speed of movement made Justin gasp as it scaled the outside wall of the gardens and landed without breaking motion in the freshly laid snow. He then noticed Sparrow directly below him running forwards, her bow held erect, and instantly letting fly a volley of three arrows in hardly a second, each one finding its target and causing the creature to drop like a stone, close to one of the snow-covered statues.
He then saw others below him, some from the dinner conversation, and others, each one wearing their own armour, and bearing weapons which he thought he would only ever see in museums. Each one took up a position behind a barricade, a wall, or a statue. They looked a formidable force, but from their position they couldn’t see what he could.
Slowly emerging from the trees were at least one hundred creatures of the type that Sparrow just felled. No—He felt that he should do something, warn them of the forces against them, but he also felt he would just get in the way.
Then he saw it. A creature much larger than the rest, which looked like it was constructed from pure muscle and fury. It was mostly armoured and in its right hand was a spiked mace. It moved slower than the others around it, but it was soon at the ten-foot high wall, and with a few blows smashed through it, leaving a gaping hole which the other creatures flowed through.
Arrows, some alight with a blue flame, rained down on the decaying creatures, felling some and missing others. It wasn’t long before some of the creatures were only a matter of twenty yards from the house’s main entrance. That’s when the others sprang from their positions and cut down the attackers with a few deft strokes.
Justin’s excitement grew. “Yeah, that’s it.” Just as he finished his thought, the larger creature charged forwards, ignoring the arrows sticking from its armour, and smashed two of the defenders with its mace, sending them spiraling into the air and crashing back to the ground showing no signs of getting back up.
Eden and Finn, both wearing armour, charged at the large creature ducking under its blows, and dealing their own with their swords at its legs. The creature howled in pain and dropped to one knee, but just as it looked as it was about to go completely to the ground, its arm flicked out catching Eden, knocking her back against the statue. She dropped to the ground. Finn cried out in anguish and charged forwards once again plunging his sword into the creature’s side, causing it to lash out once again with its mace, but Finn was too quick for it and jumped away from its reach. The creature kept swinging but it fell to its side, trying to get back up. Finn jumped back in and drove his sword into the thing’s back, rendering it lifeless. As arrows flew and the sound of battle continued, Justin watched as Finn ran to Eden, placing her over his shoulder, and moving quickly with her back into the house.
At least half of the attackers were dead, and the others seemed to be losing ground. The sound of a deep booming horn sounded, and the creatures quickly turned and ran back into the darkness of the trees.
Justin looked down at the defenders. Those that could, quickly ran forwards grabbing their fallen comrades and hoisting them over their shoulders, shuffling as best they could back to the house. The gardens were covered in spatters of red and green blood, which was quickly being hidden by the constant snowfall.
Downstairs he could hear shouting. He had no idea what just happened or why, but he did feel that hiding out in this room wasn’t helping anyone.
He closed and locked the shutters then opened the bedroom door. The sound of overlapping voices instantly invaded his ears. Running down the corridor, he made his way down the staircase to a scene of destruction. The polished checkered floor in the hallway was now stained with blood. Bodies lay strewn, and he couldn’t tell which of them was alive or dead.
As he got to the bottom steps, he could see into the large dining hall, the table was now a makeshift medical bed for the fallen. An intense blue glow was emanating from Jax’s hands which he hovered over a dark-haired woman’s body. Justin guessed it was Eden.
The tendons in Jax’s neck were straining as the light intensified, he then fell back exhausted. “That’s all I can do for now,” he said in a London accent.
Finn looked desperately at Jax, then turned his attention back to Eden.
Even though he had only just met these people that were part of this strange world, Justin’s heart felt heavy at seeing the scene played out in front of him.
His father
had been a doctor and growing up he had been taught some basic first aid skills. Looking at those around him, he ran to the closest and knelt, immediately looking at the soldier’s arm wound gushing blood. He looked around for some form of tourniquet. Running into the dining hall, he tore some of the curtains into strips then ran back to the hall, and started tying it around the soldier’s upper arm. The bleeding immediately died down.
A woman in her fifties with long red hair then put her hand on Justin’s shoulder. “I’ll take it from here,” she said warmly, while kneeling next to the soldier. She placed her hand over the injured arm and closed her eyes. The soldier’s body chest heaved, while a warm blue glow seeped out from between her fingers. The soldier than started to breathe more easily. She took her hand away, and the wound had gone.
Justin watched in amazement. She smiled, looking tired, then moved to the next soldier, which she only spent a moment with before realising he was dead, but instead of leaving him and moving into the next injured she placed both hands on the dead soldiers armoured chest. This time the reverse happened and a warm blue glow flowed from the soldier to the woman. As it did, her face grew younger. She now looked in her thirties. She looked back at Justin and smiled, this time with more vigor, she then got to her feet and moved to the next soldier.
Miss Toper appeared from another room, and spotted Justin. “What are you doing down here? Go back to your room, you will be safe there.”
Justin went to move as told, then stopped. “No, I want to help.”
She looked hesitant and sighed. “OK, go into the kitchen. Fetch warm water and towels—” she went to move off, then turned back to him. “—And in the larder, you will see a chest, marked herbs, bring that as well.”
CHAPTER 12
Aunt Mo and Uncle Bob sat on the frayed white sofa with blankets laid over it to hide the holes and ate some chocolate log. They had carefully driven from the nearby town of Caterham and took the chance to brave the weather when the storm had died down somewhat.
An hour of awkward distorted conversation had already passed, with the television being put on low volume in the background.
“It really is sad about Arnold, you said on the phone he was crazy at the end?” Mo said to Dawn, who looked uneasy at the question.
Dawn went to respond when Kat interjected, languishing in the nearby armchair. “Not crazy, just senile, there’s a difference.” Kat played with her ring, her fingers sliding over the clasp. He was senile, I’m sure of it. Must have been.
Aunt Mo produced a fake smile. “Of course.”
“Gets us all eventually,” grumbled Bob.
Kat wasn’t sure what exactly he was referring to, but her mind returned to her strange daydream earlier. She was looking at her grandfather’s bookshop, in Glastonbury, one hundred and fifty miles away, and then she was inside what looked like the dusty interior of a bookshop. She wasn’t one for daydreaming, preferring cold hard logic to flights of fancy, but she didn’t just see the old books and forgotten furniture, she could smell and taste them. That was a first for a daydream. But then she had never been knocked unconscious in the middle of a blizzard, which was another first.
On the television, a small golden-haired dog sat with a party hat strapped to its head. Kat smiled at the distraction. She had always wanted a—
Her mother jumped causing her cake to jump off the plate and everyone else in the room to jolt in response.
“What is it, Dawn?” said Mo, concerned.
“Oh umm, er—nothing.” Dawn then leaned over to her daughter and whispered into her ear, “Kat, there’s a dog sitting behind Mo and Bobs sofa.”
Kat went to laugh when she realized Dawn wasn’t joking. Placing her own plate on the small side table, she got up, smiled at Mo, then walked slowly to the side of their sofa. Her eyes widened, and she backed up into the side cabinet when the bronze border collie complete with a small collar looked back at her.
Bob frowned. “What is going on with you two?” He uneasily got to his feet and looked at Kat, her eyes still wide and making every effort she could not to look at the cute dog behind him. He then turned. “Ah, hey there, boy!” he said excitedly, then turned to Dawn. “When did you get a dog?”
Not a dream, not a dream. Kept rolling over and over in Kat’s head.
“Err—well, umm—” Dawn smiled, her plate without the cake still frozen in her hand.
Kat noticed the dog was still on the television as well, except now it was running around a large green field somewhere in the Cotswolds. She then looked back at Bob. “Oh, a few days ago—it, was my grandfather’s dog.”
“What’s his name?”
Kat looked at her mum who was looking at her confused.
Kat’s mind raced through various possibilities, but nothing came forth. “Arnold”
Bob scrunched his face up. “Your grandfather named his dog after himself? Never heard of that before.”
Mo started laughing. “He was a character your grandad.”
Kat smiled. “Ha, yeah he was.” She looked at her mother, whose frozen smile was not showing any sign of thawing. Kat bent down in front of her, picking up her mother’s cake and turned towards where Arnold the dog was a moment ago. She prayed he was still there. “Come on boy, cake here.”
The dog duly ran around the front of the sofa with its tail wagging, and grabbed the cake from Kat’s hand, then lay down in front of her.
“Ah, he’s a good one,” said Bob.
Dawns face finally changed from an awkward smile to one of confusion. She looked at her daughter. “When exactly did you get his dog?”
Think quick. “Oh, Joan brought him over a few days ago, when you were sleeping, very early in the morning, I’ve had him upstairs in my room,” said Kat, patting the dog on its head.
“Oh—”
Kat was almost believing the made-up story herself it was so plausible, but in her mind the insanity of what just happened was starting to scream loud, and she started to feel faint. Need to get out of this room. She stood up. “I think it’s time for him to do his business, I’ll just take him out back.”
“OK—” said Dawn.
Kat walked through the kitchen encouraging the dog to walk with her. She then opened the back door, and Arnold ran happily out into the back garden, bounding around in the snow. She followed him out, and sat on one of the garden chairs not caring when the ice-cold wetness seeped through the rear of her trousers. “What is happening to me,” she whispered to herself, looking at the strange dragon clasp ring.
CHAPTER 13
“Why are they attacking now?” said Eden, whose abdomen was heavily bandaged. She looked for answers from the six others that were sitting with her in another of the myriad rooms of the large Georgian house. This particular one was used by guests as a study, and had floor to ceiling walls full of shelves of antiquated books.
Jax leaned forwards in one of the leather chairs. “Usually I could run a spell, and get a sense of what’s happening by consulting the other Magi, but we’re cut off in this house.”
“I just hope whatever magic is causing the storm is also silencing the thoughts of the dark ones,” said Miss Toper.
Justin stood silently, leaning against one of the shelves, hoping some of what he was hearing would start to make sense.
His once white shirt, now had smears of red and pinks on it. No longer did the others see him as an outsider, but with each passing moment questions stacked up in his already confused mind. If it wasn’t for the calming words of Sparrow he wasn’t sure what state he would be in right now, but there was something about her which helped make sense of the craziness he was now caught up in. “The dark ones?” he said.
A ripple of discomfort moved around the small group. The oldest of them, a tall distinguished man with slicked back white hair, who Miss Toper earlier introduced as Gus Pascal spoke up. “He’s in this now, so he should know about the other houses.” He looked at the others, and most nodded in silent approval. He then
beckoned Justin to him. “Sit closer.”
Justin walked across and sat on the floor, near the roaring fire.
“You have already been told about the seven houses?”
Justin nodded.
“Well originally there were nine. The houses of Bors and Kay were formed at the same time as the others, and for hundreds of years each generation lived by the chivalric code, helping each other and the rest of humankind. But sometime around the time of the enlightenment, we do not know exactly when, the houses of Bors and Kay separated from the rest. Their custodians at that time felt that the rest of humanity should kneel to the Order of the Ring because of its power. The other houses disagreed and fierce bloody battles were fought. You might think it was an uneven contest, but the two houses called upon dark powers from ancient epochs, and eventually it was only that fortune shone upon the seven that they prevailed and humanity was saved.”
“Does anyone from those houses still exist today?” asked Justin.
“Their bloodlines were destroyed, so the short answer would be no, but over the centuries rumours have abounded that some of their offspring were saved but with different surnames,” said Eden, even though she was still clearly in some pain.
“And you all think they are behind that attack this morning?”
“Perhaps allied with other forces, yes, it could be them,” said Gus.
“If it is, they won’t stop until they do to us what the seven did to them,” said Finn. “And the world outside is in slavery.”
Justin gulped.
“Yes, that includes you as well young man,” said Gus, noticing Justin’s unease.