Starlight (The Dark Elf War Book 1)

by William Stacey

  * * *

  Alex carried Elizabeth’s suitcase from the hospital room out to the parking lot. Elizabeth silently followed behind McKnight. As they reached the first of the two vans they had arrived in, Sgt. Clara Anderson, another Canadian operator, took the suitcase from Alex. McKnight had insisted on a female soldier accompanying them, saying that a soft, attractive face would help put the young women at ease. It seemed to work. Elizabeth smiled at Clara as she climbed into the van. Out of sight, Alex shook his head and glanced at Clara. Soft? Nobody who had ever seen Clara Anderson in a bar fight would ever believe she was soft.

  Just before getting into the van, McKnight paused and looked over his shoulder. McKnight said nothing, only nodding slightly while meeting Alex’s eye. The door slammed shut, and the engine started up. Alex stood in the parking lot. It was cool that night, reminding him of home. It was always cold on the Rock, Newfoundland, this time of the year. The van’s tires crunched on loose gravel as it pulled away. Within moments, it was out of the parking lot and onto the main road. They’d be back at the Magic Kingdom within the hour. Before Alex had made his move.

  He walked over to the second van, opened the passenger door, and climbed inside, joining the two other men waiting within. Pearson drummed his fingers on the steering wheel. Anders was in the back. Both men wore hospital-orderly uniforms.

  Anders reached forward, handing Alex another orderly uniform. “When?”

  “We’ll wait until they call in from the main perimeter,” Alex answered.

  “The sister still with her?” Pearson asked.

  Alex nodded, chewing his lower lip.

  “You want to wait until she leaves?”

  Alex hesitated while he thought about it. “I’m not sure she’s going anywhere anytime soon. I think we’ll need to take her as well.”

  “There’ll be less people if we wait until later, say three or four in the morning,” Anders said.

  Alex shook his head. “Less people means more likely we’d stand out and be challenged. We’ll go in shortly while it’s still busy then take them out on stretchers like they’re patients.” He paused and turned in his seat, looking the two men—first Anders and then Pearson—in the eye. “I want to be really, really clear about this, though. We don’t hurt anyone.”

  Anders sighed heavily. “But Buck said—”

  Alex reached over the seat and jabbed him in the chest with his finger, cutting him off. “I don’t give a red rat’s ass what Buck said. These are my people—civilians—and we’re not going to hurt anyone. This is all our goddamned fault anyhow.”

  Anders opened his mouth but then thought better of it and said nothing.

  Pearson nodded solemnly. “Hey, man, chill. I don’t like this any more than you do. I didn’t sign on to kidnap women.”

  Alex turned back and stared out the windshield. He was in a bad mood and needed to get his act together—to be more professional. Emotions got people killed. “There’s a lot of things we’re doing these days that we didn’t sign on for.”

  Chapter 14

  Cassie stood at the window in her room, staring out at the hospital parking lot as Elizabeth climbed into a van with McKnight and the redhead. The other bodyguard didn’t leave with Elizabeth and McKnight; instead, he climbed into another vehicle and just sat there. What’s he waiting for?

  “Cassie,” Alice said from behind her. “We really need to talk about this.”

  Alice sat on the end of her hospital bed, her hands clasped between her knees.

  “We don’t,” Cassie said. “We really don’t.”

  “He’s from the government. If anyone knows what’s going on, it’s the government. He might be able to help.”

  “The government might help me? Really? You remember what Dad used to say about the government?”

  “Dad used to say lots of things. But that was just talk. He’d want you to get better.”

  “There’s nothing wrong with me. I passed out. That’s all.”

  “That’s bullshit, and you know it. Something is happening to you—the same thing that’s happening to Elizabeth. Something amazing. A miracle.”

  Cassie rolled her eyes. She crossed her arms over her chest and leaned back against the window ledge. “A miracle? Now you sound just like Elizabeth.”

  Alice’s gaze was direct, challenging. “Honey, I saw you yesterday in the cafeteria. You threw your cup across the room without touching it. You have ESP.”

  Cassie shook her head. Her mouth went dry, and she felt as if she were standing outside herself, watching. “I… it wasn’t like…”

  Alice stood up quickly and grabbed Cassie’s upper arms, staring into her eyes. “I saw you. I saw you. You can’t just do nothing and pretend it hasn’t happened. This isn’t like with Mom and Dad. You can’t just run from—”

  Cassie jerked back, pulling away from her sister. Her heart hammered against her chest. “It’s the same old song with you, isn’t it? Whenever you want to pick a fight, you jump to Mom and Dad. You turn everything I do around and twist it so it’s about what I did.”

  Alice reached out for her, but Cassie stepped back, swatting her hand away. “It isn’t about the things you do, Cassie. It’s about the things you don’t do. Ever since the accident, you’ve given up on doing anything at all. You’re coasting through life without even trying.”

  “Right, so everything is my fault again, isn’t it?”

  “That’s not what—”

  “It’s my fault I got into trouble at UBC.”

  “Yes,” Alice said.

  “It’s my fault I was failing my classes.”

  “Were you even trying?”

  “It’s my fault this happened, too, I guess.” Cassie’s gaze swept the hospital room. “I caused that electrical storm?”

  “No, of course it isn’t your—”

  “It’s my fault Mom and Dad are dead. That’s what you really mean?”

  Alice’s eyes opened wide, and her head jerked back. “No, no—”

  Cassie made fists with her hands and stepped closer to her sister. She knew she was out of control, but she didn’t care. This train wasn’t stopping before it went off the rails. “I get it. I goddamned get it. Everything is my fault. And my poor, long-suffering big sister has to bear the weight of my constant fuckups, because I am a world-class fuckup!”

  “Baby, no.” Once again, Alice reached out, but Cassie backpedaled out of the way.

  “I’m so sick of this, and I’m so sick of you and your constant attempts to run my life. You’re not Mom. You wasted your life, staying in Hudson’s Hope and marrying the first guy you ever fucked. Now you’re trying to live your sad—”

  Cassie’s head snapped back under the impact of Alice’s slap. Her ears rang. For a moment, the two women stared at one another in shock. Cassie’s fingers reached up to her cheek, trailing over the burning skin. Shock registered in Alice’s eyes, and her face turned white.

  Cassie shook her head and stepped back a pace. “Go to hell, Alice. Just go to hell.”

  Alice reached out for her sister. “Baby, I’m sorry, I didn’t—”

  Cassie retreated even farther, stepping into the doorway. “I didn’t ask for this, for any of it. I’m sorry I killed Mom and Dad, and I’m sorry I’m such a useless screwup, and I’m sorry this is happening to me.”

  Alice reached for her again, trying to embrace her, but Cassie did… something like she had done with the teacup in the cafeteria. She didn’t mean to; it just happened. Invisible energy cascaded from her like a wave. It smashed into her sister, sending her flying back as though she had been pushed. Alice hit the hospital bed and fell across it.

  Cassie squeaked in horror, not believing what she had just done. She turned and bolted down the hospital corridor. Behind her, she heard her sister cry out her name.

  * * *

  Maelhrandia shifted in place, leaning over Gazekiller’s great horned head and peering through the trees at the large complex across the open field
before her. She had no idea what this place was, but it was the source of the magic use—the mage—she was certain of that. When she had first seen the structure, she had thought it some sort of fortress, but after examining it more closely, she knew it wasn’t built for defense: there were far too many entrances, and all of them were unguarded. The land around the complex had been cleared and covered in the same smooth, dark stone the manlings used to build their roads. Even now, scores of their marvelous vehicles sat in long, orderly rows. She had been watching for hours. Occasionally, a new vehicle would arrive, belching foul vapors, and its occupants would get out and go inside the complex. Often, entire families came and went, seemingly without a care in the world. They acted as though they were the undisputed masters of the Old World.

  But where were the true masters, the Ancient Ones? There had been no trace of them in the days since her arrival. Were they all dead? If so, then perhaps the manlings truly had forgotten her people. Soon, though, they would remember the fae seelie and why they used to hide in caves, fearing the dark. Those who survived, if any, would become slaves. No doubt, they’d be happier without all the pretense. The lesser species were secretly always more content with the fae seelie ruling them.

  Gazekiller shifted in place, pawing at the trunk of a tree, ripping loose a large chunk of bark. The basilisk didn’t like being this close to the manlings and recognized the danger. But Maelhrandia saw nothing to fear. There were no soldiers here, no guards—although they were capable of a responding quickly, as she had noted after attacking their children. Their vehicles moved so rapidly, and the manlings seemed capable of almost instantaneous communication, as if with a mind-tether. As soon as she moved toward the complex, they’d call for reinforcements, and this time they’d likely arrive with the more powerful fire-weapons.

  Gazekiller’s armor was strong, but she didn’t want to test it—her skills at healing were adequate at best. No. She needed to move with determination and ruthlessness, and finish before help could come.

  She pulled the Shatkur Orb from a pouch and held it in her palm, staring into its depths. Even here, it throbbed with energy. She’d need to be ready to use it once Gazekiller was done. Replacing the orb within her pouch, she slid from her mount’s mighty back, drifting among the trees, keeping her gaze locked on the bizarre manling complex as night fell upon it.

  Centuries ago, the Ancient Ones had tricked her people, sending them back to faerum in humiliation and then somehow hiding the cosmic link between the two realms. If she were lucky, the demons would all have died by this point. But maybe… maybe they had passed on their magic to the manlings first. She needed to know. She needed to take the measure of their mages. Her mother would expect it from her daughter, the mage-scout. Then she sensed someone within the complex casting magic again. Her eyes darted to a glass window near the top of one of the wings of the complex. There—the mage was there.

  Maelhrandia closed her eyes and focused her will through the mind-tether, seeing through Gazekiller’s eyes, feeling the mighty beast’s need to rend and kill.

  Attack, she commanded. The basilisk raised its horned head and barked out a shrill challenge as it pawed at the soft ground with its front legs. Without any further warning, it charged out into the open, covering the ground at great speed.

  * * *

  Alex was watching the entrance of the hospital through the windshield of the van when the VHF/UHF radio mounted under the dashboard chirped once, then a female voice came over the radio, announcing the arrival of McKnight’s vehicle at the Magic Kingdom. He felt the gaze of Anders and Pearson, glanced at his watch, and noted that it was 6:17 p.m.

  He nodded. All three men, dressed in white hospital orderly uniforms, climbed out of the van and began making their way toward the hospital’s main entrance. Alex ran his fingers over the pistol hidden in the small of his back. Anders carried a small black sports bag, inside of which was a bottle of chloroform and a cloth, and each man also carried a Taser—more than enough gear to kidnap one young woman. How had it come to this? He had joined the army to serve Canadians not hurt them. Overhead, gray clouds blanketed the early evening sky, matching his mood. He increased his pace, and Anders and Pearson hurried to catch up.

  * * *

  From the cover of the woods outside the complex, Maelhrandia, her eyes shut, once again probed for magic use. The mage was still there; she could feel the residual effects of the casting. It had been very small—barely a spell at all—but for one such as her, an expert in sensing the flows of magical energy, the residual wisps of arcane power were a beacon.

  On faerum, magic was everywhere, a part of all living things, so abundant it was hard to sort through the overlapping waves of power. Even the beasts and insects drew upon the ever-present forces of magic. Here, though, it seemed magic was almost nonexistent.

  Could magic go dormant when not used? Maelhrandia could not imagine a world without magic. She could barely go an hour without casting. For her, it was like breathing air. In another thousand years of such neglect, would magic disappear entirely from the Old World?

  Maelhrandia didn’t know. She wasn’t some gnome scholar but a mage-scout. Besides, she sensed that the forces of magic on this world were reawakening. The magic around her seemed more powerful than it had when she’d first arrived. The hole her mother had ripped through the Cosmic Veil between realms had altered the status quo.

  Change was coming. The fae seelie were returning.

  * * *

  Lee Costner gunned his motorcycle on a straight stretch of road leading to the hospital. Seated behind him, Ginny tightened her grip around his waist, pushing her helmeted head against his back. They were late for their daily visit to see Cassie. Lee had had matters to see to before he left home for basic training in only a few days’ time. Up ahead, he saw the sign for the hospital entrance.

  * * *

  Maelhrandia watched through Gazekiller’s eyes as the basilisk bounded across the field toward the complex. She could have cast Shadow-Soul, cloaking herself in magic, and accompanied the beast, but there might be hidden wards that she might unknowingly trigger, as there were in her own keep. Gazekiller leapt into the air, landing atop one of their vehicles, crushing it beneath his bulk. The basilisk’s long tail whipped back and forth, and his eyes began to glow with a blue light as he drew upon the weak arcane energy.

  Move, she commanded him. Attack. Kill!

  The manlings ran screaming, scurrying for safety. One, a huge fat man carrying flowers, stood frozen in terror—just before Gazekiller bowled him over, crushing him and leaving a red smear in his wake. Gazekiller charged for the wall of the complex, killing any manlings too slow to get out of his way. Maelhrandia noted the terrified expression in their faces. Had they forgotten basilisks as well as the fae seelie? Wait until they see my mother’s vanguards. Wait until they see a Great Dragon.

  At the base of the complex, Gazekiller leapt into the air, landing on the side of the building. He began to climb the wall. Broken bricks and crushed materials rained down beneath the basilisk.

  * * *

  Cassie hadn’t run far, only down the hall and into a public washroom. Inside, she leaned against the sink, staring at her face in the mirror. She had totally lost it with Alice, not meaning the terrible things she had said. When she lost her temper, she was like another person, one she didn’t like very much. “You are a complete fuckup, Cassie Rogan.” Her voice cracked with emotion. “That’s all you’ve ever been. That’s all you’ll ever be.”

  She grasped at the taps, fumbling with them before finally turning them on and splashing cold water onto her face, washing away the tears. She needed to—

  Cassie bolted upright. She had just felt… something amazing. Somebody else was using the same energy she had discovered. She could actually sense them and feel where they were. It was just like when Elizabeth had moved the pages of her Bible without touching them except this person was farther away. And so strong.

  Cassie jumpe
d as the hospital’s fire alarm went off. She left the washroom, stepping out into the corridor. That was when she heard the screams. Was the hospital on fire? Orderlies bolted past her, almost knocking her over. Cassie grabbed at one of them, spinning him to face her. “What’s wrong? What’s going on?”

  She saw the confusion and fear in his eyes. “I don’t know, but that’s the lock-down alarm. Go back to your room and stay inside.”

  “But—”

  He tore away from her grip and ran down the corridor.

  Why was the hospital on lock-down? Was this a terrorist attack?

  Alice! Cassie started running back to her room. Alice would be terrified, and Cassie had done enough harm to her sister for one day.

  When she heard the monstrous roaring, she staggered to a stop right in the hallway. It was an unearthly shrieking like nothing she had ever heard before. Wood splintered; glass shattered. It sounded as if someone was tearing the side of the building away. And the noise was coming from just ahead—from her room!

  She stood paralyzed with fear, like an animal caught in the open by a predator’s attack. When Alice screamed, Cassie bolted forward.

  Chapter 15

  At the sound of screaming, Alice had run to the large windows in the hospital room to see what was going on. Horror gripped her at the sight of a giant eight-legged lizard, easily thirty feet long, climbing up the wall of the hospital—coming straight for her. Alice staggered backward, her mind reeling. I’m dreaming.

  The entire room shook as if struck by a wrecking ball. Alice screamed, falling to the floor, as the giant lizard’s head smashed through the window, taking large pieces of the wall with it. Its eyes, the size of garbage-can lids, glowed with a blue fire. The monster had pulled back its head and then rammed it forward again, coming straight at her.