by J E Mueller
“How can she get in contact with them? She can hardly leave where she is, otherwise the demons could get in,” I asked curiously.
“With a few of the right strings pulled, she can have someone else watch. It wouldn’t take long to get in contact with an angel, and they have to take these threats seriously. Past that, it’s like a stalemate. Blessed against Blessed magic, like when Key faces demons on her own. They will be hard to vanquish, and hopefully none of the bigger names will get involved.” Danni sighed. “The bigger names would be an actual problem.”
“We seem to already have a big name demon involved. I don’t know if we stand a chance on that note.” I shrugged and took another bite. “So, we work quickly and hope for the best… or?” I left the statement hanging open.
“Pretty much,” she agreed and started to gather her things together. “If we can’t get enough done before they strike, then we’re pretty much done for.”
I took another bite and realized she had never answered my initial question. “So, why would Key need my daggers?”
“I have no doubt that Mist would gladly unleash some vile spirits on us and we could use the extra help.” Danni sighed.
I stared at her for a moment before I understood. “She’d release Romulus even after all that work she did to capture him?”
“He is more than crazy enough to stop us and bring help.” Danni nodded firmly. “Sure, catching him again would be terrible, but if it gets her what she wants… I don’t know if Mist knows where to draw the line.”
“Better do that now, then,” I replied as I finished my food. If she were to set him free and he had figured out how to harm others, there was no doubt he would gladly attack our party and make Key his primary target.
I joined Lydia and helped her finish packing and tearing things down. While she was normally ready for a good fight, she looked tired.
“You doing okay?” I asked her as I joined in.
“This whole adventure has been exhausting, life-altering, and complete nonsense. We’re up against too much that's stronger than us. It’s really down to luck and who can work the fastest.” She shook her head. “We both know luck isn’t on either of our sides.”
“That’s why you’re the best dodger right?” I nudged her. “We do stand a chance. Sure, it’s not the greatest, but it’s there. We’ve got to try.”
“I can only dodge so much, and if the bigs on either side get involved, well, I’m not that fast,” she replied looking tired. “Even you’re not that fast.”
“Good thing no one can cross over right now.” I grinned. “I’ll give them hell before they can figure out what to do with my ghost.”
Lydia chuckled. “Well, as far as backup plans go, that’s not the worst.”
“So, die trying, and try after dying?” I smirked.
“Perfect. Worst plan yet.” Lydia laughed, slinging her pack over her shoulder. “Let’s do it.”
25
With everyone ready to go, we set a hard, quick pace. Hoping to reach our destination before anyone knew where we were, and praying they hadn’t correctly guessed where it was. There was too much luck required for any of this to work, and none of us had that much good luck.
It was too late when I realized the biggest flaw in our plan. Jareth was following us. He was far enough back to not be a part of our protection and any force - demons, spirits, or angels - could simply follow him if they thought he was associated with us. I wanted to pray no one would guess correctly, but I was worried those prayers would be heard.
I held Lydia’s hand tightly as we neared the location. “Remember Juni’s magic?” I asked, remembering a conversation from weeks ago.
“Of course. It’s so odd but usually very cute,” Lydia replied.
“It is. Just little facts she knows without a doubt. She’s never wrong, even if she can’t see what it means,” I replied, walking myself through the thought. “Before I left, Mother and I had an argument.”
Lydia squeezed my hand. “That’s not uncommon. What about it is bothering you.”
“Mother swore she’d never see me again. I swore she would. Auntie Juni was there, and for a moment, I remember her looking torn about how to respond, but she replied nonetheless.” I took a deep breath. “She said I was right. I’d see her again.”
“That’s a good thing, though.” Lydia smiled for a moment. Seeing my concern made her falter. “What’s wrong?”
“I think Juni took so long to reply because we were both right. She didn’t know that could be true, so she agreed with me since it was positive. Well, it sounds more positive anyway,” I replied glancing away. “I visited her in spirit form last night. It was nice to be able to see her again.”
“Oh no.” Lydia stopped and hugged me tightly. “We still don’t know what it means. It could be anything. This could take years to really fix and solve. Maybe… I don’t know…”
While it could be many things, it more likely meant one of two things. Either Mother died before seeing me, or I died before she could see me.
I hugged her tightly for another moment. “Either way, we can’t stop now.” I dragged her along, trying to put on a strong face. I couldn’t lose this brave front now.
“I wish I could see the future.” She sighed, letting me drag her along.
“I don’t know if we’d really want to know the outcome of this in advance or not,” I replied. “Even if we succeed it may not end well for us. Victory doesn’t always end well for the victors.”
“I’m going to hope with every fiber of my being that this ends well for you,” Lydia replied.
“For us,” I corrected her, squeezing her tightly.
“Nah, I’d gladly lay my life down for you.”
“Stop that nonsense talk,” I grumbled at her.
“Too late. Guess we’ll have to work extra quickly so we can all survive.” Lydia smirked.
I was going to reply before Danni turned and stopped to let us catch up to her. “We haven’t much longer now,” she stated.
“Before reaching the spot, or before we have to fight?” I asked. I was glad I had already given Key my daggers before we left camp.
“Likely both. I’m sure you’ve noticed the spirits hanging around.” Danni replied.
“Any sign of the others we need to worry about?” I asked her.
Danni shrugged. “No. None at all. That concerns me more than seeing some actually.”
She didn’t look bothered by this at all. How many times had things been life or death for her that she could now look at this situation and not show worry? I had no doubt she was afraid, but she had it so well masked.
We continued walking for a few more minutes before Danni stopped the group. “Here it is,” she stated. Without another word, she took off her pack and started pulling things out. A small shovel, some stones in various shapes and colors, and a knife. As she started digging a hole, she began to direct everyone.
“Emmyth, you have the strongest connection to the angels. Have you sensed any?” She asked as she continued to work.
“None,” he replied with a shrug.
“Good. Now concentrate. See if you can find one without connecting to it at all.” Danni kept digging and slowly rounded out her hole. “Lee, how much do you trust your instinct?”
“Fairly well… I’m unsure what you mean though,” Lee replied.
“You can see some of the future, correct?” Danni asked instead. After he nodded she continued. “When is the first strike against us?” She didn’t wait for him to answer before continuing. “Key, we’ve already talked. You know to stand your ground.”
“If I’ve survived this once, I sure as hell am going to survive this again.” She nodded; her determination alone was enough to cause Lee to pause.
“What did you discuss?” he asked confused.
“It is likely that the Mad King will pay us a visit,” she replied simply. “If and when he does, I’m ready for him.”
Lee looked instantly tir
ed at the thought. “Why does he need to be involved again?”
“Visions now, pondering that later,” Key replied. “He’s been stopped before. I’ll gladly help stop him again.”
Lee sighed, but returned to the task at hand. His eyes were alight with magic as he considered the possible paths ahead.
“Lydia, remember our discussion?” Danni asked.
“What are you hiding now?” I asked Lydia.
Lydia just shrugged and smiled. “It’s nothing worthwhile. Just that angels can be defeated by Blessed…. But not easily.”
“You’ve really got to stab them deeply and blast your magic before they can heal the wound to cause damage,” Key commented. “An actual kill shot takes a lot of extra effort.”
“Exactly.” Lydia smiled. “Hopefully, that won’t even be necessary. I am still fond of most of my team. For the better of this world though, it’s time for them to go.”
Danni finished digging and arranging the other things she brought with her. Everything was laid out in a particular way within the dirt.
“Well, anything for me and Rosalie?” I asked curiously.
Danni glanced at Rosalie and they nodded toward each other. “Hack and slash.”
“Done deal,” she replied before glancing off in the distance. “And here’s my troublemaker.” I could feel her push her magic toward him, signaling not only to him, but also to us that we knew he was there.
Danni looked at me. “I’ve no extra words for you, but I’m pretty certain you’ll figure out what to do without them.”
I wasn’t sure if she meant that in a good way or not. Following a plan, I often tended to add my own spin to things. Or you know, just completely change the plan at the last minute… Sighing, I watched to see what she was doing and was surprised to watch her prick her finger.
“What are you doing?” I had to ask.
“There’s a lot of energy and magic in blood. It’s a good way to bind things together. If possible, I’d like a drop of everyone's blood. Nothing big, a prick of the finger is perfect. No need for drama or serious injury,” Danni explained.
“So you can bind us to this task,” Lee stated, coming out of his visions. “Even if we die we can make this work if we’ve already been magically bound to this.”
“Yes, and it takes several souls to create a new realm. Not meaning your soul will be trapped by any means, just that the extra energies can be applied to something before you move on,” Danni explained, happy that Lee seemed to understand. “Unless you want to dedicate your soul to a planet. That would save lots of time and energy.” No one replied to that. “All right, suit yourselves.” She wasn’t bothered at all, likely having guessed no one wanted to do that.
Rosalie, not bothered by the comments, walked to the hole first and pricked her finger. Once a drop of blood fell in she walked away. “May this be my last encounter with demons in this realm.”
Danni smiled. “I hope you are right.”
With no more words or need for explanation, everyone else joined in.
“So, possible paths,” Lee stated, getting everyone's attention again. “There isn’t a good one. There are a few less terrible ones, but…” He shook his head and turned to Danni. “I don’t know what you’re looking for.”
“Just to see if the plan works, and which path makes it work,” Danni replied simply. “There is naturally no path where everyone lives, and yet we can still try.” She offered a sad smile.
Lee sighed and shook his head. “It’s all a confusing mess. The most I can gather is that we need…” He looked at me. “Name of someone who isn’t here that can help.”
“Maralla.” I supplied. Who else could it be?
Lee nodded. “That’s the name. Keep Marella here, alive, and on our side. I’ve no idea when exactly she’ll turn up, but she’s important. However, we have to get rid of both Zander the top tier angel and the Mad King before Beleth shows up. There’s enough of us to take down Zander if the Mad King doesn’t show up during that fight. But when he does, we can’t fight him. We won’t be able to see him.”
Oh. Fuck. Even with the right tools, the daggers were useless if you couldn’t see the target. Well, that was a problem.
Danni shrugged. “Don’t worry about Romulus. Key will be able to take him.”
“Not if she can’t see him,” Lee argued. Danni should know this, what was going on?
“My cards are not on the table yet,” Danni replied firmly. “So first, we dispose of the angel, nab the demon, and kill the Mad King… again. Then kill Beleth, and we should be good to go.”
“This sounds like a terrible mess of a story.” I sighed. “I’ve no idea how any of this will work out.” What cards did she not want to reveal yet?
“Hopefully with less dead than foreseen.” Danni smiled.
“So, you’re trying to manipulate my visions and still asking to see the best outcomes, even though you know your input would completely change everything?” Lee asked, slightly annoyed.
“Exactly. By not currently planning on using the backups, I’m manipulating the information to see just how much is needed. Time is too short to explain, so until the dust settles I hope you can trust me a bit.” Danni glanced my way. “And thank you for not going with Mist’s original plan. It saved me, after all. Least I can do is try and save everyone else too.”
“Hopefully it’s enough,” I agreed. There wasn’t much left to lose.
The winds of change struck as Jareth approached us. He knew we knew he was there. There was no need to hide anymore, but he had forgotten we were hiding from all sides, and he stood out to all thanks to being outside of the protective field.
"And no matter what, Jareth brings the fight?" I asked Lee.
"Sadly, yes. He never realizes in any vision that coming to us is actually what harms us," Lee agreed.
“It won’t take anything for them to ruin our barrier once they have a good enough guess of our location…” I stated more than asked. These beings were too powerful.
“It’s a sad truth,” Lliam agreed, popping up by my side. I don’t think the angels will do anything until the last moment, though.”
“Then why are they the first on the list to defeat?” I asked Lliam. If they weren’t going to do anything, we’d be fine. I couldn’t see anyone wanting to wait until the last moment if they knew we were kicking them out of the realm they had come to enjoy ruling. “Have your team ready. I’m sure angry ghosts and a once demon king are not going to be easy to take down.”
Lliam looked like he was going to say something, but shook his head. “On it,” he replied instead, rushing off to talk with his team.
“What’s going on?” Lydia asked me curiously.
“Lliam’s readying his team,” I replied.
“This would be a very beneficial time to hear and know what that side of the team was doing,” Emmyth commented.
“Knowing isn’t always worth the price,” Danni replied softly. “To hear the cries of the dead, trapped between the worlds of the living and rest… You can never unhear those cries in the dark. Never unsee the ripped and tattered clothes, the cracked skulls, or the silently dripping water. And that’s still the best of things.”
Emmyth stood straighter. “I will never know your burden, but if I could help it, I would in a heartbeat.”
Danni laughed. At first, it started off as a small chuckle but soon grew deep and loud. Jareth was within sight now and he stopped, confused as to what was going on. Everyone shared equal looks of confusion.
“Help it? And what if you truly could? Would you? Would you really be able to stand it?” Danni shook her head. “Maybe. You’ve seen enough that maybe you could handle it.”
“Yes. I would. If I truly could,” Emmyth agreed.
Key nodded. “He could handle it, just the same as I.”
Danni nodded and both she and Key turned to Lee.
“I won’t pretend to know if I could handle such a thing. You didn’t have a choice in t
hat gift from what I understand. Just as Tella didn’t,” Lee replied.
“And if you had a choice now?” Danni asked. We all listened closely, eagerly awaiting the answer.
Lee thought about it for a moment before shrugging. “Yes. It would do the most good, and if that would mean access to all the gifts included with it, I don’t see a huge downside. Sure, there are some terrible things attached to it, but there’s that with demon hunting too. Saving a soul in one way is just as great as saving one in another way.”
“Well, that was my answer. Almost word for word,” Rosalie grumbled.
Key smiled. “That’s a good answer. Both of you.”
“Thank you.” Rosalie smiled before turning to face Jareth who was walking toward us again. “Well, guess this is it.” Tossing her pack down, she pulled out her short sword.
I looked at Danni and let the confusion show while the others copied Rosalie’s actions. Why did she seem so dead set on getting these answers? They were much too old to run into that gift. Danni just shrugged.
“What are you up to?” I asked her quietly.
“I am a Creator. The rules are made to be bent,” she replied. “Key knows what must be done.”
“That’s what you were talking about this morning.” It finally clicked.
“She’ll be able to see her fight. Lee can’t see that because I haven’t set that in motion just yet. I am just waiting for this barrier to give…” Danni replied, letting her voice trail off as she watched Rosalie walk to meet Jareth.
26
Rosalie only took a few steps away from the group before stopping. She shook her head. A sad smile reached her lips for a moment before she shouted at Jareth.
“You’re a fool,” she said to him as he neared her. “Why didn’t you come with us to begin with?”
“This isn’t right. They’ve done so much for us,” Jareth replied, referring to his pact with the angels.
“They’ve hidden things and have lied. We are part of a war in ways we never knew and never will understand. They’ve no right to use us like that. Giving us half answers and little facts.” Rosalie shook her head.
