by M. J. Sewall
Zacke fell from his chair, screaming. David and John had opened the door, and now subdued Billy. David used Billy’s own zip ties to bind his hands.
Remembering his training, Zacke tried not to rub his eyes. They had told them what it felt like, and some of the older officers had been pepper sprayed so they could describe it. Zacke could barely think. The pain was excruciating. He yelled out again.
John grabbed a bottle of water and poured it over Zacke’s eyes. It helped a little. Zacke tried not to scream again.
David gagged and subdued Billy in the small cleaning closet with the other boy, then went to the control panel. He had no idea how to manage the controls, it might as well have been in a different language. He glanced at the cameras and saw that the elder and Derek were on the fourth level, only three levels away from the roof, where the others were waiting.
“We have to get up there!” yelled David.
“I know. Zacke, I know it hurts but can you tell me how to work this?”
Zacke tried to open his eyes, but he couldn’t. Tears poured down his face. “God, it hurts.”
David guided Zacke to the small bathroom and helped him furiously wash out his eyes. Zacke knew the effects of pepper spray could last hours. He hoped he hadn’t got a full blast.
John said, “I’ll never make it with my knee, up all those stairs. Here,” he handed David his blade, “help them. Go save your son.”
David left without hesitation, but as soon as he was running for the tower, he was racked with doubt. The years of enslavement had weakened him. Hopefully his resolve would compensate for that. He would do anything to save his son.
John stared at the complex control board and glanced up at the cameras. The elder and her new friend Derek had reached level five. John hoped he could at least slow them down. He recalled Zacke saying the roof of the tower was safe, so he couldn’t injure the kids by accidentally starting a fire up top. He would just have to wing it.
John looked over the controls for the number five and started pressing buttons.
***
In the tower, some lights came on. The elder remarked again how strange the tower was, with the random room configurations. She seemed fascinated by everything. The last two levels they climbed had offset stair wells, forcing them to zig-zag across the entire floor to find the next stairwell. They were still in the center of level five when fire erupted from the pipes.
Instantly, the room was engulfed in flames. They saw the only exit and ran for it quickly, narrowly escaping the flames. When they hit the next room, the smoke followed them.
Coughing through the heavy smoke, they stumbled to the next room, as flames shot from the ceiling pipes above them.
“This way!” screamed Derek, seeing another exit sign.
They escaped to the next room and found the stairwell. They paused to catch their breath, coughing and sputtering.
Derek looked out the window-like opening and saw David running toward the tower, the relic sword in his hand. Derek pushed out his hands and a large section of the concrete wall exploded outward.
***
Down below, David neared the tower, when a huge section of concrete exploded, raining down in front of him.
David shielded his eyes from the concrete dust, narrowly avoiding a large chuck. He shook his head and cleared his vision. The door he’d been running for was now completely blocked by concrete. He went around the building, but the other door was locked tight. David looked up and realized there was no way for him to reach the top.
***
On the monitor, John saw David’s problem and kept pressing buttons on the next three levels. But David had the only relic, and he was now unable to reach the others. He needed some way to get to the top before Derek and the elder reached the others.
He went to Zacke, who still couldn’t see. He explained the bold new plan.
Zacke said, “That’s crazy. I can’t…”
“Yes, you can. We have to, or they win, and everyone dies.”
Zacke blinked furiously, but it still hurt to open his eyes. “Okay, okay. Let’s do it.”
***
Derek and the elder had reached the sixth level of hell. Fire swirled all around them from random commands John had given the system.
“Enough of this!” shouted Ordway, and Derek felt the air vibrate. Water exploded all around them. Derek was knocked to the ground and doused. He was pushed by the rush of water toward a wall. He noticed with alarm that there were large rectangle holes at the bottom of the walls, presumably to let water drain out.
The water drained away, and Derek stopped just before his leg caught in the water relief hole.
Some of the fire jets still tried to spit flames, but the drench of water overloaded the systems. Derek was stunned. He stood on soggy legs.
“You will be capable of such things, and more,” said Ordway, “once you’ve mastered your new powers.”
The elder helped Derek to his feet and they continued to the roof.
When they arrived, Cody, Katie, and Ariana were standing far apart from one another at the far side of the roof. Derek gave them a quizzical look. Cody yelled, “Now!”
Katie threw her shields. This time, they all saw the colors as they flew. She made them into self-contained balls and hurled them at Derek and the elder as fast as she could. But they seemed to veer off, harmlessly going around them.
“That was adorable.” laughed Derek.
Ariana tried to freeze them. She focused, her hands in front of her, but the elder swept her hand, and they kept walking. It was as though the elder had raised her own invisible shield.
Digging deep, Ariana imagined their stomachs turning inside out. Derek got a strange look on his face, grabbing his stomach automatically, but the elder stepped in front of him. Ariana felt like someone had thrown cold water into her mind.
Cody had hoped the girls could at least buy time. He knew his talents were useless on the roof, only concrete. No electronics, no mirrors. From behind Derek, a wild cry came from Lucas. He rushed them. Ordway spun around. Her eyes flashed blue. Lucas was airborne again, spiraling toward his friends. He hit the concrete roof just in front of Cody.
Derek smiled, “That’s all you got? Wow. Sad. The fire on the way up was a nice touch, but we both have the powers of elders. You know, I really hoped I could convince at least one of you to join the winning team, but nope. Now you all die right here. I should probably thank you. The fire gave me a good idea. Let’s have some more fire, shall we?”
Ordway stared, “Do you always talk this much?”
Derek ignored her and closed his eyes. “I’ve always wanted to conjure one of these things. Azdaja Trylle Mihi. Azdaja Trylle Mihi. Azdaja Trylle Mihi.” The elder smiled, apparently guessing what was coming. The four teens looked around, but saw nothing appear.
Then the tower shook.
The teens ran to each other. They abandoned their plan to stay separate. They had decided fanning out would keep them safer, four targets instead of one. Now, fear brought them together. They realized no one was going to help them. They were on top of a seven-story fire tower on the edge of town. Derek and the Elder blocked the only stairway. There was no way down.
Their only tricks had failed. Cody thought furiously, but nothing came. Katie tried to will her ancient warrior to wake up, do something, but all she felt was fear. Lucas knew brute strength was useless against this powerful magic. Ariana looked around, hoping for someone to rescue them, thinking, help, help, help.
The tower shook again. It was rhythmic, like footsteps. Then, an enormous head rose over the edge, opposite from where the teens were standing, looming between the elder and Derek. Next, two giant claws gripped the edges of the roof. The dragon unfurled its leathery wings on either side. It dwarfed the tower.
The dragon’s scales were black. As it raised itself up, it resembled a giant shadow against the starry sky. Cody’s mind raced to make sense of the monster. He’d always imagined swimming ne
xt to a blue whale, the biggest animal on earth, over one hundred feet long. The dragon seemed far bigger.
The teens were frozen to the spot. Hearts raced, breath quickened, and none of them knew what to do. The dragon looked at the teens, and then pointed its head to the sky and spit fire straight up to show its power. The flames reached fifty feet in the air.
Elder Ordway said, “Very impressive.”
“Thank you, Elder Ordway. I try.”
“Can you control it, or merely conjure?” asked the elder.
“Oh yes, I can control it. I could conjure long before this night. But this new power fuels my imagination.” He turned to the dragon behind him. “Dragon? Yes, hello there. Would you please take these children for a little ride? Then return here. Then, you may eat them. Thank you.”
The dragon obeyed. Before anyone could react, the beast had grabbed all four. Lucas, Katie in one talon, Cody and Ariana in the other. All of them screamed as it went up into the night. The dragon flew high, flapping its wings, shooting straight up. It felt like they were shooting up in a rocket, the earth moving away from them in a blur.
This was no safe roller coaster. They held tight to the talons. The dragon stopped suddenly. Their stomachs lurched at the change in velocity. It hovered, flapping its wings just as the moon appeared through the swift moving clouds.
They could see the entire coastline for miles, the moon reflected on the thrashing waves. Then they saw something coming toward them. The dragon saw it too, and let out a blast of flames right at Zacke and John.
John yelled, “Left. Now!”
Zacke obliged and the flames missed.
John was tied to Zacke’s chest, a rope under their arms.
“We’re coming closer,” John shouted, “Katie, put a shield around all of us when we’re close enough.”
“You’re coming toward the dragon?” shouted Ariana.
“Won’t he disappear in a few minutes?” asked Lucas.
John said, “Not with Derek’s new power. He may be able to keep the dragon around long enough to eat us all.”
“Great.” said Cody.
“Here we come,” said John, “Zacke, twenty feet straight ahead.”
The dragon was tracking John and Zacke, getting ready to spit flames at them.
John whispered directions to Zacke and they swooped under the beast, right between the two talons. “The strongest shield you’ve ever done. Now, Katie!”
Katie tried, and a crystal-clear shield appeared as an orb around them. It sliced through the dragon’s talons and the beast roared. A gush of dragon’s blood covered them as the talons released their grip inside the giant sphere. All of them were secure inside their new bubble. Katie concentrated on her shield. Zacke held them aloft like they were in a bloody snow globe.
The dragon screeched an otherworldly sound, as it flapped its wings to get way from the pain. Zacke’s hands were on the inside walls of the orb-shield and couldn’t get out of the way when the flames hit them. Thankfully, Katie’s shield held. They barely felt the heat. The dragon sprayed fire in all directions, wildly. It then aimed fire down at its own legs, heating the fleshy stumps.
Its cauterizing its own wounds, though John.
Within a minute, the beast stopped screaming and faded back to wherever it had come. The talons disappeared inside the orb and Ariana looked down and saw the blood had faded too.
“Anyone still taste dragon blood?” asked Cody, a gag reflex kicking in.
“We better land somewhere soon,” said Katie, “I can’t hold this forever.”
Ariana said, “Somewhere safe, please.”
“I’m afraid not, guys,” said John. “We have to go back to the tower.”
“What, why? They’ll kill us!” said Cody.
“Two reasons. We have to end Sazzo,” John pointed down, “and we have to help your dad, Cody.”
“What? Where is…?” Then Cody looked at the tower and saw his dad climbing over the edge of the roof, up a rappel line used for training. David was behind the elder and Derek, who were looking at the spectacle in the sky. Cody had noticed the metal rings all over the tower, and the one rappel rope. His dad had bravely climbed the tower to destroy his tormentor.
“We can’t. We’re not ready,” said Ariana. “John, we can’t do it.”
“Yes, you are,” said John. “Zacke, take us down.”
John instructed Zacke which direction to fly, his vision still compromised from the pepper spray.
“David was right,” John said, “One thing we can do that they can’t, is link together.”
Katie asked, “Are we Power Rangers again?”
“You said that would kill us all,” Zacke said.
“Yes, but we have someone special. We have a hub that can link us all.” John looked into Ariana’s eyes, “You are the hub. I should have seen it before when you could see Katie’s shields. How you became other people’s thoughts, instead of hearing them. All of you, open your minds, think of each other. All five of you can act as one.”
“I don’t understand,” said Ariana.
“When you were on the roof, I heard you call for help in your mind. You are the lynchpin to this breakout. With your strength, you can link us all together. Imagine each mind, concentrate on each person, and then take them all into your mind and link us together.”
As they floated closer to the tower, Ariana shut out the fear and closed her eyes. She thought of each of her new friends one by one, trying to flow into their minds.
Nothing happened.
Then, she thought of her own mind’s silver jewelry box. She opened it. Ariana imagined a chain. Then other images popped into her mind…
A metal sphere
A small metal suitcase
A treasure chest
A closed door
A metal cabinet
Ariana imagined the chain running through all of them, linking them together.
Then, she flung them all wide open.
CHAPTER THIRTY THREE - FIGHT
David ran at Derek and Ordway. Their backs were still turned to him, watching their opponents float toward the tower.
David slashed downward. The elder pushed Derek with her power. He was thrown to the floor of the roof. At the same time, she bent low, and raised her hand, lifting David like a rag doll ten feet upward, and flung him. He smashed down on the far side of the flat concrete roof.
David hit with a thud. The relic sword clanged off the edge of the roof, lost. The others landed near David. Katie’s shield faded as they touched down.
Derek got back on his feet. He and the elder calmly walked toward them.
Cody got David to his feet, and they all gathered on the far side of the roof, as the elder and Derek came closer. John instructed, “Everyone, close your eyes.”
It was crazy to close your eyes when people were about to kill you, but they did. As hard as it was to concentrate, they all felt an immediate calm overtake them.
Ariana was in their minds, and they all felt a strange connection. The sensation was new, but somehow comforting.
Their minds cleared, and they all perceived something swell inside them. Everyone felt like more than themselves. In their minds, it wasn’t voices they heard, but the essence of each of them was now one. It was like their cores were linked.
Seeing their eyes closed, the elder lost her cool demeanor, feeling an ancient dread rise in the pit of her stomach. She quickened the pace, “Attack! They’re linking.”
Derek’s arrogance evaporated, and he and the elder ran at them.
The Amartus group opened their eyes and energy exploded within them. They all felt the talents of the others, as though they’d had them their entire lives, for many lives.
John smiled. He turned to face the two enemies, knowing this was the first real chance of beating them. Elder Ordway was fast. Her eyes flared blue.
David flew off his feet, over the edge, and off the tower.
“No!” shouted Cody. Lightning
erupted from the sky, straight for the Elder. Cody felt David’s talent erupting inside him. Ordway deflected the bolts, but just barely.
“Go get him!” shouted Zacke to Cody.
“What?” yelled Cody, then he felt Zacke’s talent inside him. Cody launched into the sky. He dove for David, fearing his father had not felt the surge of new talents; he may not have realized he could save himself.
The others took flight to the dismay of the two enemies. Energy of all types flashed back and forth. Fire, water, lightning, shields turned into balls of energy. Derek and Ordway were on the roof, blocking and ducking, as the five of them: Zacke, John, Katie, Lucas, and Ariana buzzed around them, like angry hornets with supernatural talents.
Derek was fighting Ariana. He realized that he was simultaneously fighting all of them. His focus on her let Zacke swoop in from behind and take him into the air by his left arm. Derek growled with rage.
Katie did the same thing with the surprised elder, lifting her up by a leg and taking flight. Ordway hit her head on the concrete as she was taken upside down. A gash appeared, and she was too dizzy to throw magic for a few seconds.
Zacke flung Derek into open air.
Derek was caught by Ariana, and then flung again. They didn’t need to speak to each other. In their minds, they all knew the two enemies had to be kept off balance. Their enemy couldn’t be allowed to focus their powers on any individual.
They threw them up, then one by one they swooped by and punched Derek and the elder. Then they were flipped again, only to be hit with another barrage of punches.
After being flung from John’s grip, Elder Ordway’s head had cleared and she’d had enough. Before she could be punched again, she opened a square blue gate in front of her and vanished. The blue lines of the gate winked from existence.
As Derek tumbled back to Ariana, he saw the elder disappear, and shouted, “Coward!”
