by J L Lawrence
“Can’t you people do anything without sacrifice or pain?” Kate threw up her hands and began flinging her arms. “That’s my first suggestion to your Council and something to remember when I’m a full Mystic.”
Focusing on Xavier because she had heard enough and was fed up with everything, she uttered, “You mentioned timing being everything. I say it’s time to get this show on the road.” Before I literally run back home with Angie in tow.
Xavier gestured toward the pentagram on the floor. “After you.”
She sat down and immediately felt the energy within her pulling in opposite directions. Taking deep breaths, she tried to rein it in. But it was much harder since her recent power boost. Xander leaned down, kissed her neck gently, and rubbed her shoulders, pouring comfort into her.
Whispering in her ear, he reminded her to focus and shove everything else from her mind. Kissing her one more time he whispered, “I love you, stay focused on that.” He stepped back out of the circle and nodded to Xavier to continue.
Xavier sat down opposite her and grabbed the potions beside him. He handed one to Kate. “Bon Appetite!” She rolled her eyes and tossed back the potion before she could change her mind.
She spluttered, “Ugh! This tastes disgusting. Have you ever heard of flavoring?” Xavier smiled and drank his own vile potion.
Xander pulled the athame from the air. Kate could see it was old and held importance. Reaching for his mind, she found it was an heirloom tracing back centuries in his family lineage.
Leaning down but careful not to step in the circle too early, he quickly sliced across their hands, leaving a trail of blood. He rushed to cut all four hands in the proper pattern. It resembled a half moon shape on each hand which, when connected, would create full circles on their palms. When he finished, Kate and Xavier clasped hands to connect.
It was awkward and embarrassing being so intimately linked with Xavier. They were sharing blood for crying out loud. Nothing in her past had prepared her for this. Their blood mixed, and a powerful surge wracked her body.
She could feel his emotions of guilt, but also his fierce determination not to screw this up. She only hoped she didn’t overload him with her own emotions.
After a few moments, Xavier pulled their hands apart but the shape of the half circle remained on both their palms. Then he took a deep breath and placed their hands back together. At the same time, he practically pulled her into his lap.
Talk about up close and personal. They were nose to nose.
Xavier began to chant softly in a language Kate didn’t understand, maybe Latin. She wasn’t sure, but his tone never faltered and was melodic. Before long the spell began to pull on her energy, but she didn’t know how to release it.
She tried to think of it as a gift that she was giving to him. All the while she could feel the stares of everyone around her, and their emotions amplified twenty times over.
Xander was extremely worried that something would go wrong or she would start to bond with Xavier because of the blood. He could barely stand to watch their exchange without jerking them apart. His aggression and jealousy was hard to ignore, but she tried.
Gregory was disgusted by the whole thing and thinking that Kate was crazy for being talked into this foolish scheme or sharing anything with Xavier. He considered Xavier’s blood tainted. There was an intense dislike for Xavier that didn’t quite make sense to her.
Angie wasn’t sure how to feel. Part of her was ecstatic that Kate had trusted her plan without much question, but scared that it might not work. Part of her was jealous that Xavier allowed Kate to touch him and didn’t flinch or run away.
This was getting her nowhere.
Refocusing her energy and removing the distractions, Kate tried to push her energy toward Xavier. This time it responded and met his own through the connection on their palms.
Everyone gasped and stepped back as the energy bounced around their palms. It looked like lightning strikes jumping from one to the other. It had literally pushed their palms slightly apart so you could see it flowing.
Xavier’s power began pouring into her. It started to create a shell around her, encasing her in Xavier’s essence. It was weird how his power and energy flowed through her touching her own inner core.
The Mystic in her wanted to completely repel the invasion, so she worked on acceptance and allowed his energy to continue moving through and around her. It was her first realization that she had two separate beings inside her body. Half Mystic. Half human. Pure freak.
She opened her eyes as the chanting stopped and watched Xavier going through something similar, trying to get his body to accept the essence of the Mystic.
After several more minutes, Xavier sat her beside him and moved away. She followed suit, scooting back to her side. Their circle was broken, and the half-moon shapes disappeared, leaving no proof of the ritual behind.
“That is some weird shit,” Gregory spluttered, shaking his head and looking totally freaked out. Angie didn’t look much better as she glanced back and forth between the two of them.
“I’ll second that!” Xander added, shuddering. “I know which one of you is which, but I’m still partially drawn to Xavier because I’m bound to Kate and still drawn to Kate though I sense Xavier in her. This is one hell of a head trip. Ugh, this is totally disgusting.” He winced again, trying to get control.
“It will be easier when I leave. Once I give you the signal, head to the portal. Gregory has the location if he can get over his shock long enough to be coherent. Be careful still. They are playing a different game this time, so be prepared for anything.” Xavier glanced toward Angie.
He was using her blood to have a brief moment with Angie, so she didn’t intrude. Then he disappeared.
Kate walked over and hugged Xander to ease his inner turmoil. He started rambling. “It shouldn’t take long for the demons to follow. The daytime demons are usually pretty dumb and follow basic scents. They will lead any others in the wrong direction. If you girls have anything last minute you need to do, better do it now.” He went over to Gregory to work out any last remaining details.
She called her family, letting them know she’d be out of contact for a while, but she loved them. She needed them to know how much she loved them since she wasn’t sure if she’d ever see them again. She had written a letter to her family in the event of her death explaining a lot of stuff in case she never got the chance.
“Kate.” A deep voice vibrated in her head. She recognized Zane immediately. “The demons are actively tracking and following Xavier. Your scent is strong in him but does not seem to be harming him at the moment. Great work. I’ll help all that I can. Be prepared for some surprises.”
Before she could ask him what he meant, he disconnected. Why did everyone have to be so cryptic? She turned toward the others. “It’s time. The demons are following Xavier, and Zane will be tracking them. Well, I guess this is it. Everybody ready?”
“As we can be.” Xander grabbed the keys, and they headed out to the abandoned farm outside of town on two black Kawasaki Ninja motorcycles. Gregory had chosen them in order to move quickly and have the versatility to weave in and out of traffic if necessary. Their helmets had mics so that they could stay in communication.
Kate decided since the trip would take a couple hours, it was time to have a deep discussion with Angie. There were so many unanswered questions, and both of them had avoided the heavy stuff for the last few days. She suspected the more they talked about it, the more real it became. “I want you to know I’m working on a plan for us both to go through the portal. Don’t give up on me.”
“I’ve never given up on you. But you already know that. You’re afraid of the road in front of you. Hell, so am I. At least you know you have a place in this whole mess. Truth, you’re scared?” She tried hard to hide the bitterness, but Kate still felt it in the back of her mind.
Of course she was nervous, or anxious, or scared, or all three. She still didn’t u
nderstand the task she’d been given. “Yeah, it’s like taking the next step, but you can’t see the path in front of you.”
Angie laughed. “It’s like the scene in that Indiana Jones movie where he had to take a leap of faith. Remember?”
“Or like in Buffy when she jumped off the tower into the light… and her death. Come to think of it, we watch too much TV.” Kate remembered watching all those shows and the reruns dozens of times, enthralled by the possibilities of what could be out there.
She should’ve stuck to the Gilmore Girls and Grey’s Anatomy. “I don’t like the feeling of not knowing what comes next.”
“You never have, Kate, but some things can’t be predicted.” She’d always been a planner by nature, so she still couldn’t accept the unknown.
“I wonder how they train there?” Seemed Angie had decided to change the subject a little. “Will there be sword fights or fireballs bouncing around? Or will it be like our training facilities back home?”
Kate thought for a moment. “I think it’ll be a mixture of both, like we’ve seen so far. Physically we’ll keep practicing and exercising, but we have a lot to learn when it comes to magic. It’s one thing to watch it on TV, but a whole different story in reality. And there are no retakes. One shot is all we get. Did you see all that Xavier did for one spell? You know it all had meaning, or it wouldn’t have been there.”
“What’s up with the constant morbid dialogue? Where are you hiding, my take no prisoners friend, Kate?” Angie sounded worried.
“Sorry, I’m being a whiny-butt right now,” she laughed. The last thing she wanted was for Angie to tense up again. “And a little overwhelmed.”
“I’m not sure I’m ready to give up humanity.”
“What do you think it’ll be like?”
Kate had searched for an answer, but the truth was that no one seemed to know. She sent Angie her best impression of shrugging and rolling her eyes. “I’m not sure, but I’d be willing to bet my life that there will be pain involved. We haven’t done anything painless yet involving the Council.” She’d added a bit of sarcasm to ease her friend.
“True that.” Angie hesitated. Here it comes. “Kate, we have to discuss the possibility that I won’t be able to go with--”
Kate tried to interrupt her, but she sent a blast of mental energy back to shut her up. “I mean it. We have never ignored an aspect of a case or situation simply because we didn’t want to face it.”
Tears pricked the back of her eyes. She wanted to argue, but facts were facts. Angie was right. The main reason they were so good and always got the perp was because they meticulously combed through every scenario.
Today could not be the exception. “At least give me time to figure it out. Promise me that much.”
“On one condition. That you promise when the moment comes and you have to choose, you’ll go through the portal.”
Seconds stretched into minutes as Kate struggled to make the promise. “Okay, I promise, but know I’ll do everything in my power first.”
“Agreed. Now what’s the plan if I can’t go with you?”
“Xavier and Gregory promised to look after you. I know they’ll keep you safe. What worries me more is what Xavier said about pain, and how hard it would be on the human body.”
“Don’t wuss out on me now. If you find a way to bring me with you, I’ll handle the portal and survive. I promise.” For once Angie sounded completely like her usual arrogant self. Kate had missed that the past couple of weeks. Neither of them had been themselves since being thrust into another world.
“Enough with the heavy emotional crap. So, you and Xander are bonded now?” Angie smiled and sent a mental jab.
Kate nailed her right back. “Yes. It was incredible. Our minds and bodies were linked, and there was this feeling of everything clicking into place. Listen Angie, Xander told me a little about what happened to Xavier. He was married…”
A stab of pain flowed through Angie, momentarily jarring Kate. The girl was more attracted to Xavier than her conscious self would admit. “And it was a rough go from beginning to end. To help you understand, I’m transferring the short story to you. Xander will tell us the rest later.”
Angie’s flash of pain and sadness filled her heart. “Don’t try to decide anything right now. We’ll sort everything out.”
Angie disconnected.
“Kate.” Zane’s deep timbre voice broke into her thoughts, startling her. “You’re almost to the site. It won’t be long now. By the way, I think you are right. It’s time for Xavier to love again, but he is more damaged than you know. I realize that’s not much comfort, but I believe there is hope for him.”
“Thanks Zane. For everything.” She passed along the message to Angie without the Xavier comments. Angie’s mind was still quiet, but at least she’d reopened it to her.
They drove deep into the forest and finally reached a small clearing. She noticed a faint shimmer next to a large tree.
“What is…” She turned to ask Xander what it was, but his face turned white, his eyes rolled back, and he collapsed on the ground.
“Xander!” She lunged toward him and caught his head before it hit a jagged rock.
“What’s going on? Why are you so weak? Xander, answer me!” She tried to plug in mentally but found chaos. He was swamped in regret and pain. Panic drummed deep in her chest.
She’d known something was off, but why wouldn’t he tell her?
She kissed his cheek and wiped the sweat from his face.
He opened his eyes and smiled at her. “No reason for you to worry. Gregory will help you through the portal. He will try to help Angie as well.” The deep resonating pain inside him triggered a feeling of hopelessness.
“I can’t go with you. It’s time to say good-bye.”
“Excuse me? What the hell are you talking about?” She forced the panic down and figured this had to be some kind of sick joke. Their gazes stayed locked, and his mind blocked her searches. Panic turned to fear.
Hadn’t she known that in some distant corner of her mind? She’d sensed it from the moment he’d been injured fighting Fury. Something had gone wrong. There had to be a way to undo the damage. This couldn’t happen the moment she finally had a chance for happiness. Fate couldn’t be that cruel.
“You have to get out of here. It’s for the best. Everything will be okay. Hurry!” His skin had become clammy, and his face lost its color.
“Like hell it is. You’re lying to me. Why aren’t you healing or recharging like the rest? Did Fury use some sort of spell?”
“I love you, Kate. Please remember that. No matter what happens, know there is nothing I have loved more in my life than you. But I can’t give you the answer you seek. Go.” He drifted away again.
At his refusal to answer, she turned toward Gregory. He’d kept his distance. No shock on his face. He knew the truth. “Tell me what’s happening.”
“If I could, I would in a heartbeat. He swore me to secrecy using an ancient oath. I can’t break it. I’m sorry, Kate.” He avoided her eyes, but not before she’d seen the fear and pain. Panic gave way to terror. She knew exactly what they were saying.
“He’s dying, right?” Still neither responded. Who could help her? Someone had to know.
She thought of the one person that loved him as much as she did.
“Xavier?”
“Yes, Kate?”
“What’s going on? What’s he not telling me? He’s nearly unconscious, and Gregory won’t tell me anything. Please, help me save your brother.” His silence seemed to last forever, like he was wrestling with his decision.
“Gregory can’t tell you because he swore an ancient oath. To break the oath, he would forfeit his life. However, I did not take a magical vow, so I will break my word and tell you. First, promise me that you will not let anger crowd your better judgment.”
Uh-oh. That meant something bad was headed her way. What had he done? Nothing could be that bad. Regardless, she lov
ed him.
“He’s dying. Of course I’ll do anything to save him. Please, tell me.” She’d never been one to beg, but she’d do it now.
“Okay, when Xander touched your leg that night in the alley, he accidentally traded blood with you. It started the Awakening ahead of schedule. He began to bond with your human half.”
“What does any of this matter? We’re fully bonded now.” If he’d been within reach, she would’ve strangled him. He needed to get to the point.
“Listen. He bonded with your human half. He started turning human.” She gasped, but he continued. “He knew the clock was ticking from the beginning, but he wanted you to make your own choice. He thought there was plenty of time. Fury changed all that. Once you became the full Mystic, he would have been restored.”
Something inside her froze, as she sat back on her heels to digest everything. He’d lied to her this whole time?
Xander had known he was close to death and the only way to save himself had been to get her to the Meadows. He would’ve done anything and everything to earn her trust, yet he’d lied every step of the way. He hadn’t trusted her enough. Not even at the end.
“Kate, snap out of it. Maybe he didn’t do things right according to you. Maybe at first, some of his feelings were superficial. But you have seen into his mind and know his feelings are real. Your bond with him is unbreakable. His side was blasted when he jumped in front of an energy blast to save you.”
“I’m the Mystic and that’s his job. Why did he bond with me? I’d already agreed to go with him. Why didn’t he tell me then?” Even if he’d really fallen in love with her, he’d never trusted her. What kind of love is that?
“By that time, he had already fallen for you. He was simply afraid to tell you. He didn’t want to lose you. I know you are having trouble believing me at the moment, but consider this. He knew the only way to defeat Fury and ensure your safety was to join forces with me. In order to do that, he had to be bonded with you. He knew if that happened, he would lose the rest of his power and die. The bond with your human half sucked the rest of his powers and will begin aging him within minutes. Still, he saved you.”