by S. E. Smith
“We’ll take care of the skeletons and send them back to their graves, Topper,” Sheriff Buchanan called out. “Let’s take them down, men.”
Alexandru watched the ghostly sheriff from Magic and his posse charge after the skeletal guards. He glanced up at his father. His father reached a hand down and helped him up.
“Mom, Nonny, I need you to find someone for me,” Alexandru said in a thick voice.
“Of course, dear. Who?” Sophie Carson asked.
“Ka’ya, she’s my wife,” Alexandru said, scanning the center of the village. “She was near the river. Those creatures had her cornered and then there was an explosion. I have to know that she is safe – but I also need to stop Jorge. He has her little brother.”
“Oh, Alexandru,” Sophie whispered, her eyes shimmering with tears and a huge smile on her face. “Of course we’ll find her.”
“I’ll help you, Alexandru. I spent quite a few years in Egypt when I was young,” Charles said.
“What do you know about the Amulet of the Heart?” Alexandru asked.
“Enough to know we were better off when it was lost,” Charles replied in a dry tone. “Some humans really need their heads examined.”
“This one is going to be losing his instead,” Alexandru replied grimly.
17
Tears blurred Ka’ya’s vision as she struggled to sit up. Reaching for her bow and her sword, she rolled over and used them to demolished remains of the huts. Fortunately, there was nothing left of the creatures that wanted to eat her.
She shook her head, trying to dispel the ringing in her ears. She stumbled forward, nearly tripping over some of the larger pieces of rubble. Turning to look up at the sky, she mentally tried to picture where Alexandru would have landed.
Ka’ya glanced back down. She could hear the sounds of fighting – though it was muted due to the ringing in her ears. Hurrying forward, she turned the corner of the gathering hall and released a startled squeal when a large, booted foot stomped on one of the large gray creatures in front of her. All around her were a bizarre group of people – creatures – battling Jorge’s creations.
“Oh, sorry, ma’am. Topper told us to stomp the beasts. I didn’t mean to startle you,” a booming voice said.
Ka’ya fell back against the side of the hut and watched the massively huge man walk by her. A moment later, more than a half dozen skeletal guards ran by her followed by a dozen or more men riding beasts. She blinked and rubbed her eyes. She could see through all of them.
“There she is! Are you Ka’ya?”
Ka’ya turned to watch two women hurrying toward her. She jerked back against the side of the building in alarm. The lady with the purple hair, only it was green now, was yelling orders and flying on a….
“Is that a broom?” Ka’ya whispered, staring up at the sky.
“What? Oh, yes. Topper is a pro at flying on them,” one of the women said before she smiled. “I’m Sophie, Alexandru’s mother.”
“I’m Nonny. Alexandru’s grandmother,” Nonny said. “Oh, my. You are hurt.”
Ka’ya nodded before she looked around in concern. “Alexandru…. I saw him fall,” she said in a thick voice.
“He’s fine – a broken arm that healed right up in no time. Charles and Alexandru have gone to take care of the idiot human,” Sophie said in a gentle voice. “Come, let’s go inside. Alexandru asked Nonny and me to make sure you are alright.”
“Is it true?” Nonny asked with a wide grin as they fell in on each side of her.
“Is what true?” Ka’ya asked, confused by everything she was seeing. “What are those?”
“That you are married to Alexandru?” Sophie asked before she glanced at the men rushing through the gates. “Dwarves – they are the absolute best builders anywhere and extremely good fighters to boot. They can build you a house and destroy a town before you know it.”
“I need to go help Alexandru,” Ka’ya said, glancing toward Jorge’s hut.
“Let Alexandru and Charles handle it. They know more about Egyptian magic than any of us - well, except for Topper. I believe she spent a few summers there when they were building the pyramids,” Sophie said.
Ka’ya listened as the women talked. All around her was utter chaos but the women appeared to be oblivious to it. She sank down on a bench outside the door of the gathering hall and silently watched everything while the women fussed over her. She was thankful when the ringing in her ears stopped and surprised when the stinging from her wounds went away. All the while, they continued to talk about how excited they were to have her in the family.
Tears blurred Ka’ya’s vision. These beings were Alexandru’s people – they were from his world. How could he ever live in a place where magic did not truly exist? Worse, now that he remembered everything, how long would it before he left?
Alexandru moved in the shadows of the room. Accustomed to the night, he had no problem seeing in the dim lighting. Across the room, his father moved with the same ease and grace. The soft sound of crying drew both of them to the room in the back.
Stepping into the room, he glanced around. The walls were almost black from the soot of the hundreds of candles burning. Rows of them were lined up in tiers five rows deep and a hundred long. Several ancient symbols were carved into the plaster. The soot had settled in the deeper recesses and made the symbols look almost like they had been painted on the walls.
A soft whimper pulled his attention to where Dru was tied to a chair. Beneath each arm of the chair was a small wooden bucket. The arms had grooves cut into them and Alexandru could smell the stink of old blood.
The room was devoid of furniture except for the chair and a long table up at the front. On the table, the Amulet of the Heart, or Leb as the ancient Egyptians called it, hung from a wooden cross post. Alexandru could see the red glow of the stone and the magic swirling inside it.
“Amateur,” Charles muttered with a shake of his head. “It is amazing that humans haven’t destroyed themselves trying to use things that are better left alone.”
Alexandru’s lips twitched when Jorge rose from in front of the altar. The man had shaved his head and outlined his eyes to look like a long dead Egyptian Pharaoh. He snorted. Magic really didn’t care what you looked like on the outside, it was what you were on the inside that was important.
“You cannot stop me. I am too powerful now,” Jorge announced. “I control the magic of the amulet.”
“No, actually you don’t,” Charles said with a frown, glancing at the wall. “You’ve misinterpreted several of the key spells involved. This does not look good for your wellbeing.”
“Who are you to question me?! I have the power of the Egyptian gods!” Jorge proclaimed with a wave of his hand, causing half of the candles to go out.
“Yes, we know,” Alexandru snapped his fingers and all the candles were instantly relit. “We’ve heard it all before.”
Jorge stared at the flaming candles before he slowly turned his gaze back to Alexandru. He blinked and frowned. With another wave of his hands, the room went dark except for the glow of the amulet. Dru’s soft whimpers grew louder.
“Get the boy,” Alexandru quietly said to his father.
“Alexandru…,” Charles started to argue.
“I’ve got this, Dad. I’ve dealt with a lot of antiquities over the years, including Egyptian Gods,” Alexandru reassured his father. “Take the boy. He doesn’t need to see what is about to happen.”
Alexandru waited until his father gently sliced through the ropes holding Dru and removed the boy before he snapped his fingers. This time, instead of just the candles relighting, the entire room was spotless. The years of soot were gone along with the carved symbols. The gleaming white interior was a stark contrast to Jorge’s dirty skin and clothing.
“What are you?” Jorge demanded in a choked voice, stumbling back against the table behind him.
“My name is Alexandru Carson. I am a vampire and a warlock,” Alexandru stated in
a cool, calm voice. For good measure and a dramatic effect, he lengthened his teeth and flashed them. “The mistake you made is your belief that you can control magic. Magic is not a material thing – it is inside you, a part of who you are.”
Jorge frantically reached behind him for the amulet. His hand wrapped around it and he held it out in front of him. Alexandru listened as the man mumbled a series of words that made little sense.
“That is ‘ah bin Re’,” Alexandru corrected.
With a flick of his wrist, the amulet heated until Jorge released a cry of pain and opened his hand. Instead of falling to the floor, the amulet floated across the room to Alexandru. Holding it up by the chain, Alexandru gazed into the deep red stone and murmured a series of incantations. The stone glowed even brighter.
Alexandru released the chain and watched the suspended amulet spin until it was a blurred stream of red. The red glow slowly developed into the figure of a tall, stately man. A wry smile curved Alexandru’s lips when the man gazed around him with a puzzled expression.
“Hi Re,” Alexandru greeted.
“Alexandru! It has been too long!” Re replied with a frown. “Where am I?”
“I’m not exactly sure what planet or realm this is. Tory was pissed at me and used her far, far away spell,” Alexandru admitted with a grimace.
Re chuckled and glanced over at Jorge. “Who is the low class peasant? A servant? You really need to give him a raise,” he suggested with a raised eyebrow.
“No, a slow low-life who thought he could use your heart to gain access to the underworld and do some bad shit,” Alexandru replied.
“Ah, one of those,” Re replied with a shake of his head.
“I…. This isn’t supposed to be like this,” Jorge said.
Alexandru’s eyes narrowed when Jorge felt along his side. Just as he expected, the man raised a trembling hand. In it, he gripped an old German issued handgun.
“I’m already dead. Whatever that does won’t hurt me. Now you on the other hand, it might not kill you but it could hurt like a son-of-a-bitch,” Re reflected.
“Have you been tapping into the cable networks again?” Alexandru growled under his breath.
“I’ll be the first one to admit I’m addicted to GoT. If I could bring half the actors and actresses into the underworld, I’d put them on permanent rerun,” Re chuckled.
“I am an Egyptian God!” Jorge shouted, his eyes flashing with insanity. “I am all powerful.”
“No, you are dead,” Legend replied, releasing the string of his bow.
Jorge’s eyes widened in disbelief. The long shaft of the arrow pierced his chest and lifted him. His body slammed into the back wall and hung there. His head slowly bowed and his hand rose to grasp the arrow. Alexandru felt no pity for the man who had feasted on the misery of others.
“Hi, Legend,” Re greeted.
“Hello, Re. Long time,” Legend replied, lowering his bow.
“Do you have room for another in the underworld, Re?” Alexandru asked as the light faded from Jorge’s eyes.
“I’ve always got room for one more,” Re chuckled, beginning to glow. “Can you put my heart in a place where some idiot isn’t likely to find it again, please?”
“Of course,” Alexandru replied. “See you around.”
“I hope not until after the season finale of GoT,” Re chuckled.
Alexandru watched as Re reached out and pulled Jorge’s body off the wall. He didn’t envy the crazy doctor. He was sure Jorge was about to get a rude awakening.
“Where is Ka’ya?” Legend asked.
Alexandru plucked the red amulet out of the air and pocketed it. Releasing a curse, he pushed past Legend and out the door. Hurrying across the center of the village, he searched for his mother and grandmother.
“Where is she?” Alexandru demanded in a tight voice, glancing around. “Did you find her?”
“I… Yes, we found her,” Sophie said with a worried look at her mother.
“We healed her as well,” Nonny commented, biting her lip.
“Well, where is she?” Alexandru demanded.
“She left,” another woman said.
Alexandru turned on his heel and stared at the woman holding the young boy against her side. Dru gazed back at him and grinned. From the clear expression in the boy’s eyes, he had a feeling his mother and grandmother had healed more than Ka’ya – they had healed the sickly boy and erased his memories of what had happened.
“Where did she go?” Alexandru asked Ka’ya’s mother.
“She went to the forest,” Mayli said. “She won’t be coming back.”
18
The alpha paused and sniffed the tracks. Ka’ya kicked a nearby limb out of her way and continued on the trail. She wasn’t hungry – she hadn’t been hungry for the last three days. She’d let the wolfhounds go find their own dinner tonight. She needed to set up camp early anyway; she could feel the rain in the air.
Climbing up to higher ground, she found a section of rock wall with a large enough overhang that it should protect her and the wolfhounds from the majority of the rain if the storm turned out bad. She placed her bow and quiver against the back wall of the overhang, and removed her knapsack.
She scouted the area, picking up kindling and larger pieces of wood for a fire. A half hour later, she had the fire ring formed and a small fire burning. She pulled the long, weather-resistant cloth out of her knapsack and began hanging it across the thin twine she had strung between two bushes growing out of the rocks higher up. The mundane task helped to calm her broken heart.
“What we need is some marshmallows, chocolate, and graham crackers,” a voice said behind her. “I do love a nice, sticky s’more when I’m camping,”
Ka’ya released a small shriek of surprise and turned around so quickly she almost lost her balance. Her hand flew to cover her thundering heart. Her mouth dropped open when she saw Topper sitting – make that reclining – in a chair almost as colorful as her. Her hair was now a vivid blue, similar to the streaks in Ka’ya’s hair. Her hand automatically reached for a strand as she took in the woman by her fire.
Topper was wearing a pair of the blue trousers like Alexandru wore. She also wore a thin, long sleeve shirt that displayed a circle with lines in it. Ka’ya stared at the writing beneath it, trying to make sense of it.
“It says Woodstock – 1969. Oh my, but that was the most amazing three days of my life,” Topper sighed, fanning herself. “I swore I’d never wear a bra again.”
“How do you do this and why are you here? How did you even find me?” Ka’ya demanded. “Do you always sneak up on people? You are lucky I did not kill you!”
“Magic, you, easy, yes, and not likely, in that order,” Topper replied, answering each of her questions with a tap to her finger. “Have a seat. I positively can’t eat all of these s’mores alone. Besides, chocolate is the perfect thing for a broken heart.”
“What makes you think my heart is broken?” Ka’ya defiantly asked, even as she sat down. “What is chocolate?”
“Oh child, you are in for a treat! And I know your heart is broken, that is why you are hiding here instead of being with your family and that is why my nephew is going crazy, trying to find you,” Topper chuckled, handing Ka’ya a s’more. “Eat it slowly and lick your fingers afterwards. It makes it even better.”
“What do you mean, going crazy trying to find me? Are you talking about Alexandru?” Ka’ya asked before she bit into the crunchy-gooey mess. Her eyes widened in pleasure and she pulled back to look at the s’more again.
“Of course, I’m talking about Alexandru! Who else would I be talking about, Benjamin? Now, that boy is another classic example of someone needing to find the perfect woman who can handle him. I’ll have to have a talk with the Fates and see what we can do to help move things along,” Topper murmured thoughtfully.
“I don’t know Benjamin,” Ka’ya commented around a mouthful of s’more.
“Well, I’m sure you�
�ll meet him. He is all over the world so it can be a challenge to get him home for a few days, but we generally manage it around Christmas and for our Winter in July Festival when we make it snow for four whole days! It literally drives the meteorologists crazy. They can’t figure out what causes it,” Topper laughed and wiped at the corner of her eye. “Nonny and I started it as a gag over a hundred years ago.”
“What does all this have to do with Alexandru?” Ka’ya quietly asked.
Topper tenderly smiled at her. “That boy loves you like crazy, Ka’ya. He’d give up the world to be with you. I think you feel the same way,” she said.
Ka’ya nodded, sniffed, and licked the chocolate off of her fingers. “I do,” she admitted.
“Why don’t you give him a chance?” Topper said, rising to her feet.
“But, where is he?” Ka’ya asked, rising as well.
“Closer than you realize,” Topper chuckled. “Ta-ta for now, child. I’ll let Sophie and Nonny know you’ll be at the house for Thanksgiving.”
“What is… Thanksgiving?” Ka’ya started to ask but Topper – and her colorful chair – had already disappeared.
Ka’ya sank down on the pallet and stared at the fire. In the distance, she could hear thunder and the wind rustling through the trees. Drawing her legs up, she wrapped her arms around them and rested her chin on her knees.
She thought about what Topper had said. Her heart was broken. Tears of misery burned her eyes and she buried her face against her knees. She didn’t lift her head when she heard the first sounds of raindrops falling on the sheeting or when the wolfhounds pushed it aside to come lay by the fire. She did slowly raise her head when she felt the presence of someone else.
“I’ve never felt so lost before,” Alexandru said, standing just inside the sheeting, his hair glistening from the rain. “Or so empty inside. When I lost my memory, it was nothing compared to having my memories of you and yet not being able to touch you or hear your voice.”