It was brilliant.
And horrifying.
There would be no place for the sorceress in the web’s new design.
“Yes, this is certainly quite a surprise,” the sorceress said softly.
The Spider Witch laughed. “The last surprise of the mages’ lives!”
“THIS IS AWFUL!” Ozzie cried, stumbling over a pile of sneakers as he followed Adriane into her closet.
“You should see Kara’s room,” Lyra said, nosing a loose soccer ball as she followed the ferret.
“No, I mean Adriane can’t leave!” the ferret protested. “I was sent here to find three mages.”
“And you did.” The warrior pulled her long hair into a ponytail. Gently lifting Ariel’s foot, she thumbed through several hangers.
“Well, this isn’t a temporary position.” Ozzie climbed up the chest of drawers to stare at the dark-haired girl.
Adriane stood nose to noses as the ferret, cat, and owl pressed forward in the cramped closet. “I don’t have much time.”
She grabbed a black down vest and slipped by the animals. The wall behind her bed was plastered with posters of rock musicians and snowboarders. Part of another wall had been painted with stars and flying comets. Carved blocks of painted cedar littered a table, folk art sculptures she had started. She hadn’t gotten around to finishing her projects—it didn’t seem to matter much now.
Ariel took wing, turquoise and aqua sparkles running through her feathers as she landed on the headboard. “Hoono!”
“I’m not leaving just yet.” Adriane belted her black jeans and tied her boots tight.
“Then what are you doing?” the ferret demanded, ducking as Lyra stretched her lithe body across the rug.
The warrior regarded the three animals, her gem sparkling with contained fire. “Something is out there, and I’m going to find it.”
“All right. Let’s go.” Lyra stood, and her sleek muscles rippled under lustrous orange fur.
“I’m going alone.”
“Gah! Does Emily know about this?” Ozzie asked, shuffling back and forth.
“No, and you are not going to say anything!” The determination in Adriane’s voice left no room for argument.
The animals exchanged glances.
Ozzie started pacing. “You’re going to try that world walking stuff again, aren’t you?”
“Listen to me,” she said, sighing, the corners of her mouth lifting into a smile. “I love you guys.”
She gently smoothed down Ariel’s head feather as Lyra rubbed against the warrior’s side. “But you can’t come with me. You have to trust me on this one.”
The three animals silently stared back.
“If I get into trouble, I’ll call you, Ozzie. Okay?”
“All right,” Ozzie reluctantly agreed, ferret stone flashing on his collar. “But I don’t like it one bit.”
Ferret, cat, and owl exchanged a nod.
“Remember,” Ozzie added. “I’m just a stone call away.”
Adriane hurried down the stairs. She had to move quickly. Kara and Emily were busy with school projects and chores, and her parents had gone back to the hospital to check on Gran. But everyone would return soon enough.
Stepping out the back door, she breathed in the cool evening air. The setting sun wrapped the forest in shimmering purple light. Hurrying into the deepening shadows of the trees, she made her way to the immense Rocking Stone, jutting into the sky like an accusing finger.
She hadn’t told Ozzie, Lyra, and Ariel all she intended to do tonight. Maybe she was crazy to think she could find the one friend who could help her.
Focusing on the warm golden glow of her jewel, she cleared her mind and concentrated. She wasn’t completely sure how to go world walking, but she had been on the Spirit Trail once before. She had run with the spirit pack when they helped her heal Dreamer. And to her surprise—and dismay—she had discovered her first packmate was not with them.
Find those who are lost. Help Storm. That was the message from Orenda. Was it possible to even dare think Storm could be found? Adriane had been able to reach Storm across any distance. Could she reach her again now, when she needed her most?
Before she even entered the glade, Adriane felt the sickness seeping into the fabric of the forest.
She reached with her wolf senses, something that had always come so naturally to her. She focused on the silver mistwolf, seeing though Storm’s golden eyes, feeling warm, silver fur covering her body, strong muscles running on lanky legs—
“Storm.”
Adriane moved silently across the glade, her jewel pulsing in steady rhythm with her heart. Closing her eyes, she steadied herself. She needed to do this, she had to do this, or everything she loved would be lost. Storm needed help, Dreamer had been taken away, and the forest sylph was in trouble. It was all connected, she was sure of it.
The gentle pull of something familiar touched her mind. Adriane grabbed for it, focusing her will through her gem. With a brilliant flash, the trees suddenly seemed to come alive, glowing silvery green around the edges.
Adriane pushed harder, grasping for the part of her that was wolf, losing herself in the need find her packmate.
She could almost hear the echoing refrains of the lost mistwolves.
She staggered forward as shifting colors streamed from her jewel, surrounding her in a halo of flickering light. Was she making this happen?
Adriane tried to focus on Ravenswood, on Storm, but she was trapped inside a spinning kaleidoscope. Fear tore through her like an electric shock. Without Dreamer to ground her or Storm to guide her, she was completely lost in the magic.
Throwing back her head, she howled.
An answering growl sliced through the air. Adriane could smell the animal. It was hunting her.
“Storm!” she called out with all her strength.
Magic exploded in a jarring blaze of light as the world melted around her.
For a split second, she was plunged into a place without sound, without light. Abruptly, the world snapped into focus.
She was in the magic glade—inches away from an enormous, gleaming spider web. Oily, silver strands hung from the trees. Adriane’s heart raced with fear. It was her nightmare come to life.
She tried to steady herself and calm her sparking gem. “Orenda, where are you?”
The spider web throbbed and twisted. Suspended in its center, a cocoon pulsed. The fairy creature trapped inside screamed, her pure magic consumed by the suffocating strands.
“Orenda!” Adriane staggered as she tried to use her magic to help the dying sylph. Time seemed to slow down as the warrior fought to stay on her feet. Her wolf stone was glowing a fierce, deep red. She reached deep inside herself, trying to find her own magic, but it was trapped, just as Orenda was locked in the shimmering prison.
Suddenly a blur of light shot from the shadows. Adriane whirled and saw the glowing outline of the ghost wolf charging. Blue magic stung like burning-hot embers as the ghoulish apparition crashed into her. Warped red light shot from the wolf stone as Adriane tried to get to her feet. But the ghost wolf was standing over her, lips pulled back in a death grin.
“You should not hunt alone,” he sneered.
Adriane stared into his haunted eyes. “Who are you?”
“I am the pack leader! Your wolf belongs to me!” The monstrous creature lunged, jaws opened wide.
Out of nowhere, a silver shape smashed the ghost wolf broadside, knocking him away.
Adriane rolled to her feet, jewel pulsing. “Stormbringer!”
Stormbringer locked her golden eyes onto Adriane. “You must leave!”
The two wolves rammed together in battle, ripping and tearing at each other.
“No!” Adriane cried.
Fierce roars tore across the glade, but she was already being pulled downward. Bright colors flashed past her in swirling arcs as she fell from the spirit world.
She landed hard, jewel trailing magic behind her.
Rolling over, she found herself nose to nose with Ozzie.
“Wow!” Ozzie yelled, fuzzy ferret hair standing on end. “What a rush!”
ADRIANE PULLED THE blanket around her shoulders and clutched the steaming cup of cocoa on the kitchen table. She was completely exhausted—physically, magically, and emotionally. She looked into her mug, uncomfortably aware of Emily, Kara, Ozzie, Ariel, and Lyra all staring at her.
“We told you not to go off on your own!” Kara burst out.
“What if something had happened to you?” Emily added angrily.
Adriane sat quietly, head lowered.
“If Ozzie, Lyra, and Ariel hadn’t followed you, we don’t know what would have happened!” Kara continued.
“One minute you’re in the glade, and the next you just disappeared!” Ozzie waved his paws in the air.
“I didn’t mean to scare you,” Adriane said, rubbing her wolf stone. It was gold again—for now.
“What happened?” Emily asked.
“My jewel started going nuts, and then she just fell out of thin air!” Ozzie exclaimed, leaping up and down.
“Calm down, Ozzie,” Emily said. “She’s okay.”
“She must have locked onto Ozzie’s jewel to send me back,” Adriane mused.
“Who?” Emily asked.
“Stormbringer.”
“Wait,” Emily gasped. “You saw Stormbringer?”
“Are you sure you weren’t dreaming?” Kara asked.
“No.” Adriane looked quickly at her friends. “I’ve run the Spirit Trail before.”
Kara and Emily exchanged a glance.
“The spirit pack helped me heal Dreamer in New Mexico. But I couldn’t find Storm there.”
“And this time?” Emily asked gently.
“This time I actually moved between the real world and the spirit world on my own,” Adriane said. “Storm saved me from the other ghost wolf.”
“I knew you were going to try that world walking stuff,” Ozzie said, straightening his collar.
Adriane sat forward. “I think that wolf attacked Gran.”
Emily pushed away from the table and stood up. “But how?”
“Through Dreamer.”
“You think that’s why Dreamer is losing his magic?” Emily asked.
“I don’t know, but it’s all connected,” Adriane insisted.
“I still can’t even reach the d-flies,” Kara sighed. “We’re cut off from the Fairy Realms and Aldenmor.”
“This is all about me,” Adriane said quietly.
“Not possible. It’s always all about me,” Kara quipped.
Emily elbowed the blazing star. “Adriane, anything that affects you affects all of us.”
“I’ve lost Dreamer.” Adriane looked at her friends, eyes wide with fear. “I’m going to lose my home, my family—everything.”
“Someone’s targeting you,” Lyra growled.
“Hooo?” Ariel asked.
“Tell us what you saw,” Emily said.
“The sylph was caught in a spiderweb, trapped in a horrible cocoon.”
“I’ve seen those before,” the blazing star said. “In the castle of the Spider Witch.”
“But she’s in the Otherworlds—” Ozzie broke off. “Uh-oh.”
“And the Dark Sorceress is with her,” Emily finished.
The mages and animals looked at one another, a stunned silence settling over the table.
“They’re free,” Adriane said, “and they’re trying to destroy Ravenswood.”
“HEY, ADRIANE, WAIT up!”
Outside the math classroom a handsome, dark-haired boy rushed to catch up with her. “This isn’t really your last week of school, is it?” Joey asked, concerned.
“I don’t know,” Adriane said shyly as they walked out the front doors of the school. “I hope not.”
“Me, too,” he said with a hopeful smile.
Adriane started to return his smile, then froze. It seemed like half the student body of Stonehill Middle School had been waiting for her. They swarmed around her, abuzz with rumors.
“Everyone says your wolf attacked a bunch of old ladies!” Heather, a friend of Kara’s, pushed to the front of the group, followed by Molly and Tiffany.
“That’s not what happened,” Adriane protested.
“The leopard ate Emily’s ferret!” Kyle, Kara’s older brother, announced.
“Is it true Ravenswood is being shut down?” Marcus asked.
“I don’t—” Adriane faltered, trying to make her way through the crowd. All she wanted to do was go home.
“Adriane, are you really leaving?” someone at the back of the group shouted.
“You can’t leave!” Heather suddenly exclaimed.
“No way,” Molly agreed.
“I mean…” Heather flushed. “We’ve put a lot of work into the preserve, too.”
Adriane was shocked. Less than a year ago, these kids had made fun of her—now they were suddenly on her side?
“We heard the town council is going to shut Ravenswood down!” a kid called out.
“We have to keep it open!” Molly declared.
“Save Ravenswood!” Joey shouted loudly.
A chant erupted from the crowd as kids cheered and clapped. “Save Ravenswood! Save Ravenswood!”
“No pictures, please.” Kara’s voice rang out as she pushed through the mob and slipped her arm through the warrior’s. “How’re you holding up?”
“A little overwhelmed,” Adriane admitted.
“No one said being popular was easy.” Kara smiled.
“Ravenswood! Ravenswood!”
“Save the animals!” Emily called out, hurrying over as she stuffed her flute case in her backpack. “Wow, word spreads pretty fast around here.”
“Come on, K, what’s really going on at Ravenswood?” Tiffany asked Kara.
“Absolutely nothing is going on at Ravenswood,” Kara declared. “Everything is perfectly fine.”
“Help!”
The mages jumped as Ozzie’s panicked voice blared in their minds.
“Gah!”
“Ozzie, what’s wrong?” Emily responded to the frantic ferret telepathically.
“The portal is opening!” Ozzie screamed.
WIND WHIPPED THE trees as Adriane raced from the woods into the field, Emily and Kara close behind. A swirling circle hung in the sky. Veiled by a rippling curtain of mist, a giant dreamcatcher flashed inside, sending magical charges crackling through the air.
“Keep your wings, paws, and hooves away from the portal!” Ozzie commanded as Lyra herded brimbees, quiffles, and jeeran back from the immense doorway in the sky.
Adriane’s wolf stone throbbed with pulsing light as the dreamcatcher stretched and warped.
“Something’s trying to break through the dreamcatcher!” Ozzie exclaimed, smoothing his static-charged hair as the mages surrounded him.
Adriane stared at the glowing portal nervously. The dreamcatcher was designed to keep out anything that might hurt Ravenswood. “Everyone, take position!” she ordered.
Emily and Kara stood on either side of the warrior, flanked by Ozzie and Lyra.
Head pounding, Adriane jumped as her stone suddenly flashed with wolf fire. She cracked it like a whip, sending golden sparks flying.
Get a grip, she told herself.
“Try to strengthen the dreamcatcher!” Emily called, sensing the warrior’s uncertainty.
Girls and ferret aimed their gleaming jewels. Shimmering streaks of magic sizzled over the glowing portal, lighting the sky like fireworks. The curtain ripped open wider, revealing a finely woven silver web.
“That’s not the dreamcatcher,” Kara said grimly.
“Then what is it?” Emily asked.
“Ewww, it’s a spider web!” a quiffle squealed.
The ground shook as something slammed into the web. A wave of power crashed over Adriane.
“What should we do?” Rasha shouted.
All eyes turned to Adri
ane.
Fear washed through her. Her friends were counting on her. But how was she supposed to be a warrior without her packmate?
A terrifying howl echoed from the portal.
“Stay cool,” Kara ordered the group of frightened animals. “Whatever it is, we can handle it!”
The howls grew into a wailing chorus, sending tendrils of web whipping loose like torn flags. The spider web was unraveling.
Adriane flashed on the savage apparition that had attacked her. This was a pack of them, their collective will bent on reaching Ravenswood. She struggled to focus as raw power surged from the wolf stone.
“Ahhh!” Animals dove as magic flew everywhere.
“I can’t control it!” Adriane screamed, frantically trying to keep her fire away from the terrified animals.
“Emily!” Kara swung her sparkling red, white, and pink magic toward the warrior. “Help her!”
Adriane felt tingling, cool magic wrap the wolf stone in healing power. She tried to connect with her friends, but all she could feel was the creatures’ need to break through. Emily and Kara were using all their magic to help her instead of trying to close the portal. She was going to fail when she was most needed.
Instinctively, Adriane reached for the presence that always kept her strong. But Dreamer wasn’t there.
Instead, she felt the touch of another magic, offering her the support she so desperately needed. Adriane grasped for it like a lifeline. The powerful presence enveloped her, protected her, and filled her with pure and unconditional love.
The warrior smiled, never wanting to let go. “Thank you,” she whispered.
“It’s opening!” Ozzie’s scream pierced the swirling winds.
With a final fiery explosion, the glowing spider web disintegrated, ripping the portal open in a flash of brilliant red.
Adriane staggered back as mistwolves, teeth bared and snarling, leaped over the mages, landing among the terrified animals.
“Incom-aGk!” Ozzie yelped.
Something huge and red plummeted from the portal and landed with a booming thud. This creature was definitely not a mistwolf.
“Mama!”
Adriane blinked. An enormous red dragon sat in the middle of the field—with a grinning blond-haired boy astride his back.
Ghost Wolf (Avalon: Web of Magic #9) Page 6