A strange sort of magic swirled around me. As I touched the glass, sparks of blue energy flickered off of the case, the white light entwining with it. I felt the weird magic as it swelled together. By the time I fully lifted the case, my magic had encapsulated the ring, the white magic gone. Weird energy resonated through the room like something was released. The old man took a deep breath, closing his eyes like the action was comforting. The ring stayed hovering over the pedestal in the same position as before. Carefully, I set the glass to the side.
“Touch it boy, send it to its rightful master.” The old wizard said in a calm voice, his eyes still closed. I wasn’t sure what to do here. The universe was practically screaming at me to touch it. With a shaky hand, I pressed the pad of my pointer finger on the ring. A high-pitched chime filled the air as the ring began to spin in place going faster and faster. The blue magic swirled around forming orbits of blue energy around the ring. With a tiny blast, the ring was gone.
I stood in shock as the ring had disappeared from right in front of me. The old man laughed joyously, spreading his arms wide as if to revel in what had just happened. I had no idea what just happened, so I stood there, staring at him.
“To rule them all, one ring!” He laughed, his voice echoing off of the thick concrete walls of the gigantic underground warehouse room.
“What was that?” I asked. He turned to me then, his eyes glimmering with blue magic.
“There were five, and now there are two. The clock is ticking down, boy. Will you be ready?” He asked.
“For what?” I found myself asking. The old man grinned, showing his browned and crooked teeth behind his snow-white beard.
“You have to learn to ask the right questions.” He shook his head like I had disappointed him. I thought about that for a moment.
“That man that I saw, in the study.” I started. The old wizard nodded.
“You are right to fear him.” He replied, giving me a pointed look. “There are friends and enemies all around us, but which is which and who is who?” He seemed content to stand there with me and answer my questions in his own weird way, so I took the opportunity.
“Will Ryker become king?” I asked. The old man stroked his beard.
“You don’t understand boy, and I don’t know when you will. This is the cleaning of the mess, not the making of it. Some like the dirt, to roll around in the mud, they find it cleansing since they have never been clean before.” I had no idea what that meant.
“We know that Ivy was never meant to be, and therefore, Ryker and I were meant to die long before now. Is that why there is this contest for the throne? Was Tobias meant to be king?” I rephrased the question. He clicked his tongue at me, raising his finger to point towards the ceiling.
“We clean up the mess boy, we don’t make it.” He grinned widely and then disappeared. Big surprise. He shows up, brings me to this unexplainable thing, gives me some cryptic advice, and then just leaves. I rolled my eyes, wondering if I could get out of there on my own. Then I started to glance around the other containers.
What was all this stuff?
I went to the crate nearest me and reached my hand through the wood. I felt around until I grabbed something solid and then pulled the entire object out. In my hands was a gun. I wasn’t sure what type, as Ryker knew these things, so I didn’t have to, but it was long and had a spot for a magazine. Were all these crates filled with guns? And if so, why? Carefully, I set the gun back in the container and then went to another wooden box. Reaching my hand in, I felt another gun. I did this several more times, my heart pounding as I realized that this wasn’t a treasure bunker, but a war supply outlet. Upon further inspection, nestled behind the towering stacks of metal crates was a row of four tanks, against each sidewall. What war were we preparing for? And which side was who on?
Chapter Four:
Ivy:
I kept close to Toby and his knight cronies all night. Toby had taken it as a sign that I was romantically interested in him. He could take my attention however he liked. It made it easier to get him alone. Which is how I found myself in one of the cabanas with the curtain drawn. I sat on the edge of the cushion of the cabana, wondering how I got myself into this predicament. Toby was on the other side, drawing the curtains. My heart pounded in my chest as I tried to establish a plan that would not cut my ties with Toby, but also kept him from touching me.
Throughout the evening, I had gotten so much useful information I couldn’t wait to go back and tell the guys. Apparently, the Greek knights were planning something that sounded an awful lot like an overthrow. If Toby didn’t become king, the Greek knights would strike with their allies. This meant that a knight civil war was impending. All of the young knights my age were all too happy to share their secrets with pretty little me.
Toby lay on his stomach across the square cushion of the cabana and smiled up at me.
“There, now we have some privacy.” He said. My heart thumped in my chest.
“Maybe we should go back out to the pool,” I said and started to hop off the cushion. Toby grabbed my arm, sitting up to block my exit.
“Come on, you’ve been teasing me all night.” He slurred. He was drunk. I exhaled a deep breath.
“I’ve been nothing but charming all night.” I teased, pushing myself back to keep my body away from his.
“Of course you have, that’s what your good at, isn’t it?” He asked, looking at me with heavy-lidded eyes. “Come on, I just want to know what it’s like to kiss those pretty red lips.” I didn’t want him to kiss me, and I certainly didn’t want to be alone with him anymore. This was a failed mission. I thought I could get him to talk, but apparently talking was the furthest thing from his mind. I had played with fire, and now it was my fault that we were in this situation.
“I left my drink out there,” I said, trying to scramble off the other side of the cushion. Toby wrapped his arm around my waist and kept me in place. Real fear started to course through my veins. You always hear about bad things happening to those girls at parties, but I never thought it could happen to me. Maybe I shouldn’t have teased him so much.
I mentally shook myself. I was Ivy Fucking Le Fay, heir of Morgana Le Fay, no boy was going to take advantage of me. I’d rip his eyes out before he even got the chance.
“Toby, let go of me. I don’t feel comfortable here.” I said to him.
He was a knight; he should comply. Instead, he gripped me tighter, pulling me back on the cushion. I didn’t have my knife; I didn’t think I’d need it here. The only magic I could manifest was useless. Maybe Ryker was right; I was just useful for transportation. I couldn’t even protect myself from a drunken knight. My panic started to overload my mind, making rational thought impossible.
“Toby, I don’t want to hurt you. Let go of me.” I warned him as he pulled me back.
“Oh, come on. I may not be a Pendragon, but I can still make you feel good.” He slurred, pushing himself on top of me.
The time for diplomacy was over. I was going to have to break this tie. With all the force I could muster, I thrust the palm of my hand up into his nose. He released a gluteal cry as deep red blood started to fall onto my neck and chest. His recoil gave me enough room to jab my knee into his gut. With that, he rolled off of me, and I was able to scramble out of the cabana.
I hurriedly rushed across the lawn back towards the pool. My hands were shaking, and I was gasping for breath. I couldn’t believe what had just happened. He was a knight! Protecting women was part of the Code. How could he be so . . . Dishonorable? Ryker still didn’t kiss me without asking first, and we had been dating for months now.
“What the fuck happened?” Ryker was suddenly next to me. I looked down at the droplets of blood smeared on my neck and chest. A few of the sequins of my bikini top were hanging off the black material, and I had bruising around my wrist. His eyes shifted up to look behind me. His face masked with rage. Turning, Toby was standing a few yards behind me, his nose had stopped b
leeding, but it was still dark and swollen.
“Ryker, it’s my fault,” I said, grabbing his arm. “I led him on.” Ryker sharply turned his head to look down at me.
“Did he ask permission?” He asked. I stared up at him, not wanting to answer the question. Slowly I shook my head.
“Then he should have kept his fucking hands off of you.” He snapped and then stormed passed me. I knew Ryker was right. No matter how much flirting I did, it was not right for Toby to assert himself on me, but I also did not want Ryker to get into trouble because of me.
“Ryker, I’m sorry. Let’s just go.” I said, jogging up beside him and grabbing his arm.
“Why are you apologizing?” He demanded. His eyes were like hard, smooth stones of amber. He shook me off and stepped forward to Toby. In one last, desperate, attempt at stopping this conflict, I stepped in front of Ryker, setting my hands on his chest.
“Ryker, he’s not worth it,” I whispered up to him. His body was rigid with fury as he stared over my head and at Toby. He glanced down at me for just a moment and then released a deep breath. For a second, I thought he would back down.
“You’re worth it.” He said and then gently pushed me aside.
“Did the little tramp tell you a story about me, Pendragon?” Toby called across the few feet that separated them. Frantically, I glanced around the party, trying to spot Owen. He could put an end to this, or at least know what to do.
“She sure did,” Ryker replied, a menacing smile overtaking his face. “You going to come quietly or am I going to have to use force?” My protocol following knight would never let this go. In his mind, Toby broke the Code and therefore needed to go through the proper judiciary process, but what my pure knight did not understand was that situations like these were not so black and white. It was my word against Toby’s, and he was a King-Class Knight of an ancient and powerful Legacy. I was the Lady Le Fay, but I doubted a lot of knights would forgo their brother for me.
“What are you talking about?” Toby demanded. Where the shit was Owen?
“You broke the Code,” Ryker replied. People in the crowd were beginning to take notice and slowly started to stumble towards us. I took position behind Ryker, watching his back, always. Hector and Shane Galahad noticed and started to head over.
“Broke the Code?” Chip Orion asked, walking closer to us.
“He laid unwanted hands on a woman,” Ryker said. I appreciated him defending my honor and all, but did he have to sound so medieval?
Chip glanced down at me and then between the two of them. He walked to stand next to Toby. Good to know which side he was on. The eleven Legacy Knights of the Round Table started to move closer, with Angus and a few other Norse and British Knights. Soon the group was divided.
“She’s been asking for it all night.” Chip replied back to Ryker. Yep, the world really was full of assholes, and my knight was about to learn a valuable lesson. “We all saw her,” His voice rose to address the crowd. “She’s been all over Toby all night. I think you’re just jealous.” My heart clenched in my chest. This is what I was always worried about with my method of collection. It was incredibly useful, but it always made Ryker look like an ass. I never wanted to shame him in this way.
Stepping forward, I was trying to calm my mind enough to say something witty. Ryker reached out and stopped me, giving me a wink and a small smile. He wasn’t even angry with me for putting him in this position. He really did love me, I saw it in his eyes at that moment.
“And I think you’re just filibustering.” Ryker turned his head to look back at Chip. “Everyone knows what would happen if an Achilles became king. The king would become Orion’s puppet because of the Treaty of 1945 when Timothy Orion decided to spare Nazi Gregory Achilles’ life after the war. It’d just be the same thing again, a puppet in the hands of a Cold War general looking for all the hate in the world to blame their insecurities on. By the way, your training seems to be going well.” Ryker never raised his voice or even sounded angry. He kept his voice conversational and completely serious.
Whispers spread throughout the crowd. Chip glanced around nervously, his dark eyes landed on Ryker. Everything Ryker said was true. He could try with the hateful speech again, but if he had any brains at all, he’d realize Ryker would just use that against him. This was a game of perception, and at that moment, all eyes were on them.
“What do you say we just settle this in the morning?” Chip suggested, after a moment, his tone more friendly. He took a step forward then, holding out his hand. Ryker glanced down at me, looking at me from the corner of his eye. I nodded my head, understanding that this might be a crucial olive branch for later.
“And what about his behavior?” Ryker demanded after a moment, turning his head to look back at Toby. Chip dropped his hand, releasing a long breath. He turned to Toby, leaning in close to him to speak in his ear. Owen had taught me how to flow magic into my ears to enhance my hearing. I hadn’t had a chance to tell Ryker yet.
“Why the fuck would you mess with the Le Fay bitch?” Chip demanded. I rolled my eyes. Ryker grabbed my hand, obviously listening in to their conversation as well.
“She was asking for it, begging for it. I swear.” Toby replied. That liar, I had half a mind to turn him into a frog, for real this time.
“Stick to succubus, idiot.” Chip smacked him and then turned to face us again.
“You done disciplining your puppy?” Ryker taunted. Toby’s eyes flared, and he clenched his fists. “You see who would really be king?” He then called to the crowd. Ryker was calling out Toby, and I knew it was because of me. I wasn’t going to lie that a small part of me found great joy in his pursuit. But also it was the way he was handling it. This was the man I knew he would someday be. That tantrum in the closet earlier was the insecure boy he needed to leave behind.
“You shut your fucking mouth.” Toby stepped forward. “I didn’t touch the little slut, and I dare you to prove that I did.”
The Round Table Knights gathered around behind us, with a lot of the British and Scandinavian Knights behind them.
“You calling my Lady a slut!” Garret Percival pushed his way through the crowd. “I’ll fookin kill ya!” I wouldn’t want to be on the receiving end of that beating. Ryker put up his hand as Garret tried to pass him. The two exchanged a long glance, and Garret let out a growl.
“Ya fowl mouth me Lady again, and I’ll slice your tongue out.” Garret threatened, pointing at Toby. I knew Garret loved me, but I hadn’t realized quite how much.
“And what makes her so special? Because she’s a Le Fay?” A knight on Toby’s side yelled from the crowd. “So far, we haven’t seen her do anything.” The Greek knights laughed and ribbed at that one. Ryker squeezed my hand as thick dark tendrils of green magic were starting to slither around me. I wasn’t useless. I was the most powerful sorceress in the world. But there was nothing I could do to prove them wrong at that moment.
My pocket mirror was in my black bathing suit cover-up hanging on one of the hooks near the pool. There was nothing I could do without it. Damn it! How could I have so much power and yet have so little use?
“Why did she break your nose?” Ryker asked. “Has Ivy shown any physical violence towards any of you? So why did she feel the need now?” And that was his superpower, wasn’t it? Using the system to find proof. No, using the system in its most pure form.
“She was all for it in the cabana, and then she went nuts.” He replied. I rolled my eyes. What a joke.
“No, she didn’t,” Ryker replied. “Chip, he broke the Code.”
“Settle this matter in the morning. I don’t want the two of you destroying my house.” Chip laid out his judgment and then started to walk away.
“Is this really who you want as your king?” Ryker called after him, raising his voice so the rest of the crowd could hear him. A murmur ran through the group as people started to quietly discuss that notion among themselves. I glanced around at the group of girls that ha
d gathered to the safety of the other side of the pool. I wondered how many of them Toby had also tried to take advantage of.
“He’s drunk, lay off.” A knight behind Toby called.
“That’s doesn’t fookin matter!” Angus bellowed suddenly right behind me. “We are the protectors of this Earth!” Soon a shouting match erupted between the two sides, but no fists yet. I furiously glanced around again, hoping to find a tall, dark figure amongst the crowd. Where the hell was Owen? Ryker grabbed my arm, causing me to look up at him. He was staring down at me with this content look on his face.
“You’re not fit to be king!” Conner Lancelot shouted, pointing at Toby. “You broke the Code!”
“I did not,” Toby shouted back. “The dumb tramp threw herself at me.”
“What did I fookin’ tell you about speakin’ badly of me Lady!” Garret moved forward, knife in hand. Soon a brawl started. Ryker grabbed me up, carrying me out of the crowd of brawling knights. Once out of the chaos, he set me down near the pool.
“Don’t get yourself in trouble,” I said, grabbing his t-shirt to hold him back from the fight. He could lose his chance at coronation over this. Everything Owen and I have been working for all summer would be wasted. We’d been laying the foundation for Ryker’s leadership, spreading stories and creating rhetoric. What Toby did was shitty, but I wasn’t worth Ryker losing his throne.
He wasn’t paying attention to me, he kept tugging away from me, gently trying to release my grasp on his shirt.
“Ryker!” I shook him. “Listen to me. You could lose your throne over this.” I tried to talk some sense into him. Toby emerged from the crowd.
“She’s playing us against each other. Look at her, that little bitch is manipulating you!” Toby pointed out to Ryker. I could see that from his perspective.
“If I don’t fight this, I’m not fit to be king,” Ryker said, and then pulled my hands off of his shirt. With that, he turned and started to stride towards Toby. The crowd began to notice, and they slowly stopped fighting.
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