“Sienna, Madison, and Ash really brought the heat,” Michael boomed with enthusiasm. My eyes popped open and I jolted sideways, causing Jason to glance at me suspiciously. I grinned, showing all teeth. “Perfect warfare Flairs,” Michael added his voice laced with admiration. “I’ll be first to admit I’m jealous. I knew the Ray-pacs didn’t stand a chance once you guys joined the party.”
“Damn straight,” Madison said, her tone exuding confidence, as always.
“That’s what we’re here for, man,” Ash jumped in. “Impressive the damage done with a few energy spheres, huh?”
Madison responded promptly. “Don’t know what you’re so proud of?” she remarked sourly. “If you were truly skilled, you’d cause less damage to nature and hit your mark more often. Accuracy and appropriately sized spheres would save us a lot of clean-up time afterward.” She cleared her throat. “Bigger is not always better.”
Her comment produced several snickers, but Ash was quick with a comeback. “No way, sweetheart. That’s where I completely disagree with you. In fact,” he said, lowering his voice and speaking in a more evocative tone, “I’d be more than willing to prove you wrong. Size totally matters.”
I squeezed Jason’s leg and giggled. We were always debating whether Ash or Madison possessed the biggest ego. In fact, everyone in the Bellingham Circle placed bets on who would win the most arguments that week. Let’s just say I usually bet on Ash and lost more money than I won. It was like those two had been cut from the same cloth but were two completely different patterns. In general, they acted like they despised each other, but deep down, I think there was a fatal attraction.
“Not a chance there, Kurzon,” Madison said, using the nick-name she’d coined for Ash. She used it when she really wanted to annoy him, which was frequently. The first time she’d said it, he’d been baffled and hadn’t known how to respond.
Later, he and I had actually googled it and found out Kurzon was a powerful demon from the hit series, Charmed, who had been banished to the Underworld for inciting a failed coup. Madison claimed Ash would never be a true Guardian because of his short stint as a Ray-pac, and she constantly questioned his loyalty and his abilities. I hadn’t figured out if she’d nicknamed him Kurzon because she really thought he was a degenerate or if it was because she thought he’d screw up and get himself cast out of the Guardians like Kurzon had been cast out of his group.
“You need to spend more time training and practicing or you’re going to get burned by your own over-sized fireballs next time,” Madison added.
“They’re energy spheres,” Ash replied crossly.
“Ohhh, Ash. Let it go,” I said telepathically. “Quit now, before she annihilates you.”
“Whatever,” Madison said. “Anyways, I was surprised at how skilled that one Ray-pac was. Better than Kurzon here. His downfall was that he had me for an opponent, and I’m a genius when it comes to war tactics. While he was busy launching tree branches and boulders everywhere, I pelted him with several small jagged rocks, which penetrated the skin and sliced him up pretty good. Took him out of the action…hopefully left him with some scars, too.” I could hear her scraping a stone against the boulder as she spoke. I still hadn’t figured out why she was such an egomaniac; Max and Jessica were exact opposites. Humble.
“I wasn’t much help,” Hannah admitted, a hint of dismay in her tone. “Having a defensive Flair sure has its disadvantages in the heat of the moment.”
Jason flinched next to me. “Hey, you weren’t supposed to come up to the top of the mountain anyways. You’re a mom now, and you need to be more careful.”
“Yeah, I’m not happy with you either,” Michael called out.
“I know my limitations. You guys need to stop worrying about me.”
Jason blurted out, “Hey sis, we just want to make sure our little nephew has his mom around, especially when he hits the terrible twos, and later when he…”
“Becomes a mouthy teenager,” Michael said, completing Jason’s sentence. A smile was evident in his tone.
Hannah sighed. “Hardly an issue when we have an Amethyst and a Dentelle around.”
Jason whispered, “That’s true enough, but don’t tell her I said so.”
“I do miss my two guys, though” Hannah said. “Don’t get me wrong. I loved hangin’ with all of you and being part of the action again, but I’m glad I’ll be skipping the Guardian competitions this year and flying straight home instead.”
Sienna jumped into the conversation. “I can’t wait to meet little Thomas Jason. I bet Dan will be happy to have you home. But Hannah, we were fortunate that Spoiler found you first.” I’d learned Sienna had some kind of electrical Flair and had been the one responsible for the lightning strikes.
“I know, right?” Madison quipped.
Okay, they’d lost me. “Ash, what are they talking about? I don’t want to sound ignorant, especially with Madison dishin’ it out ugly today. So just tell me quietly.”
He laughed. “Afraid you’ll take a beating?”
“Absolutely,” I admitted freely.
“You’re gonna owe me big time.”
“Fine. Now share already.”
“Oh, the things I do for you.” He elbowed me and continued, “A Spoiler can absorb someone else’s Flair and use it – all while rendering the person he stole it from “Flairless” for a while. The downside for the Spoiler is that he is stuck with that Flair and can’t absorb a different one for some time. Basically, he needs to be vigilant before making his choice.”
“Okay,” I said with sudden understanding. “That means the Ray-pac today made a big mistake when he absorbed Hannah’s Flair. Since her ability to erase memories is defensive, it basically took him out of the main fight, giving our side another advantage.”
“You got it, honey,” Ash said, and I shook my head. Thank goodness Jason couldn’t hear him. They might have a “working relationship” but Jason wasn’t fond of Ash’s easy flirtations. At least he was that way with all the girls – not just me.
I tuned in and listened as Laci described our rather uninspiring encounter against the guys who’d been trying to abduct Izzy. We’d been successful and escaped without more than a few scratches, but that wasn’t saying anything since the three big fools didn’t have any special abilities. Changing the topic of conversation, I said, “So, of the seven Ray-pacs, there were two, now-dead, Shifters, a Telekinetic, a Spoiler, and…” I let my voice trail off intentionally.
“One girl had the ability to fly until I whacked her out of the sky with a few fast-flying spheres,” Ash said.
Madison snorted. “I think you’re mistaken there. I’m pretty sure I did that. And for your information, someone who can fly is called an Arial.”
Ash groaned but didn’t bother commenting back.
Max cleared his throat. “There was also a Concealer and the Hypnokinetic who put us in those trance-like states. Waking up from that usually takes hours. I can’t believe I’m saying this,” he added good-naturedly, “but we’re lucky Lexi burned her way through to us.” That comment triggered laughter.
“Glad I could help,” I said. “Ash, what –”
Before I could even ask the question, Ash said, “A Concealer has the ability to conceal links, which is why we never sensed the Ray-pacs coming. Even when we were fighting, and they were all around us, I couldn’t detect their links, and that was weird.”
“When did you get so smart?” I teased.
“Why do you think the trance didn’t affect Lexi?” Michael asked.
Everyone from the Bellingham Circle responded simultaneously, “Who knows?” And we all laughed. We asked that question a lot when it came to why I could or couldn’t do certain things.
I jumped in and said, “Would you believe it was a bunch of mosquitoes are what woke me up? But it was weird. Something didn’t feel right from the moment I opened my eyes. After I had the premonition and then none of you would wake up, I was freakin’ out. I hate to
admit it, but I slapped some of you around a few times – pretty hard, too.”
“What?” Madison cried out.
I ignored her. “It wasn’t until I screamed in Ash’s mind that he woke up, and then you guys know the rest.” I tapped my hand against Jason’s leg, taking comfort just being next to him.
“Wow!” Izzy exclaimed. “I can’t believe I missed everything. I didn’t even know I’d been kidnapped. I was out for the whole thing and didn’t wake up until Lexi blasted me with Essence. Which, by the way, was a total shock. Since I’m the one always healing others, being on the receiving end was an eye-opener. It felt something like a tidal wave of energy crashing over me.”
Jason laughed. “Yeah, she has a tendency to do that to people.” Sobering up, he added, “All laughter aside, I think we need to assume you were targeted before today, Izzy. It’s too coincidental the Ray-pacs would find us, and you, out here.”
“I agree,” Max interjected. “I can’t imagine this is a regular hang-out of theirs – not with the ocean so close by, weakening their abilities. There’s no way they could have known Izzy was an Amethyst just by looking at her.”
All was quiet for a moment as we pondered the implications of what Max and Jason had said. Crickets chirped around us, which was a good sign, indicating the natural environment was back to its normal state. I wondered if animals or insects had been affected by the Hypnokinetic, too. I crinkled my nose. If that was true, why hadn’t it knocked out the mosquitos? I decided it was probably because they were distant relatives. They both enjoyed sucking the life out of people – blood-suckers and Essence-suckers.
Interrupting our quiet interlude, Izzy said with certainty, “I know I didn’t bump into any strangers while we’ve been here at the park today, so you’re probably right.”
“That’s what I was afraid of,” Michael said somberly. “I think this proves the rumors are true: Ray-pacs are scouting Guardian strongholds for Amethysts and then kidnapping them.”
“They stalk their prey, hunt in packs, and wait until the Amethyst is alone or in a small group like ours before making their move,” Sienna mused aloud.
“They must have felt confident we weren’t going to be a problem,” Laci said.
“With a Concealer making sure their links were undetectable, a Hypnokinetic who could put us all to sleep, and a few hired thugs to carry Izzy out of our camp, I can see why they were confident,” Max added.
Madison said, “Well, they totally underestimated us.”
“No, not really,” Ash said. “Mostly, they didn’t count on us having a Dentelle. If Lexi had fallen under the sleeping trance, Izzy would be gone, and we’d still be out cold.”
Annoyed, I banged my heels against the rock. While I appreciated Ash’s vote of confidence, I hated being the center of attention all the time. “Thanks, Ash, but really, it took all of us to get Izzy back.”
“At this point,” Sienna said smoothly, “all that matters is that Izzy is safe and we’ve eliminated a couple Ray-pacs.” Her voice rumbled. “I just wish we could have killed a few more of them before they fled.”
Sienna made an interesting character study. She was completely unapologetic when it came to taking the life of someone she believed to be evil. I wondered if there was a story there…something that had happened to her – made her feel justified in ending a life, albeit a criminal life, without a second thought and without remorse.
“We’ve stopped them for now,” Hannah added. “But how long until they regroup and come back for Izzy?”
“That’s true,” Michael chimed in. “We have to assume they know where she lives.”
“Oh crap!” Izzy said. “Does this mean what I think it means?” Frustration and angst were evident in the tone of her voice.
Max cleared his throat. “If you’re thinking the Senior Council will transfer you to a new Circle, then yes. I’m afraid so. The goal will be to keep you safe, not punish you, Izzy.”
“I know,” she said without much enthusiasm. “I just love the people in Bangor, and I love the town. I really feel at home there.”
“Moving on is difficult,” Madison said, her tone soft and empathetic, a quality she rarely displayed. Most of the time, I didn’t think she was capable of such compassion. Then her voice hardened, “But sometimes we must do what is best for our safety and for the safety of those around us.”
I shifted uncomfortably, my bottom numb from sitting on the cold rock. I knew that comment was directed at me. There was probably nothing she’d enjoy more than if Ash and I moved. Well, I wouldn’t let that happen. No way was I leaving Jason, my friends, or Bellingham, for that matter.
“I hear you. But it still doesn’t make it any easier to accept,” Izzy responded to Madison.
A heavy silence ensued. A couple minutes later, I heard Izzy crying and Sienna comforting her with quiet words. Leaning forward, I glanced past Jason and Hannah and could see Izzy’s head resting against Sienna’s shoulder. Even if I couldn’t feel her pain, I understood it quite well. The idea of moving to a new Circle was devastating.
Michael cleared his throat. “I suppose it’s a good thing the Guardian competitions at the Ranch coincide with the Senior Council Meeting this year.”
“Even better they’re only two days away,” Sienna added.
“True,” Michael said. “Once the Council hears about this, they’re going to want first-hand details of Izzy’s attempted kidnapping. You guys will already be there for the games, but my guess is that Sienna, Izzy, and I will all be summoned now. At least we have confirmation the Ray-pacs are kidnapping Amethysts, and we’ve gotten a glimpse of their strategies.”
We talked further, predicting what Amethyst directives the Senior Council might enforce in the upcoming weeks, and then we discussed the games themselves. Apparently, the Ranch hosted Annual Games where Guardians from different Circles competed against each other for titles and awards in a variety of physical competitions. I was having a hard time looking forward to fun and games when I knew I had a scheduled battle of the minds with the Senior Council.
A couple months before, the Senior Council had “highly recommended” Ash and I consider moving to another Guardian Circle. They’d used the argument that Bellingham already had an Amethyst, Jessica; therefore, another, more prominent, Circle would benefit from having a Dentelle with healing abilities. At that time they’d also changed one other rule: I was allowed to pursue a relationship with a Guardian, but only if that Guardian was Ash. They figured we were linked for life, therefore it made perfect sense he and I should hook up. I found it strange they’d been so excited at the prospect of Ash and I pursuing a relationship. They’d gone from forbidding me to date any Guardians to trying to marry me off to Ash. And I couldn’t figure out why. There was one major problem. I was in love with Jason, and they didn’t know that. My relationship with him was still forbidden.
My blood pressure spiked as I wondered why exactly they’d requested, or mandated rather, another meeting with me. Had something happened? Were they going to insist Ash and I move? Or was something else going on? I wasn’t sure, but I felt nauseated. I had a feeling it wasn’t going to be a pleasant meeting, and I had no intentions of following their directives. I just didn’t know what the repercussions would be if I told them no.
“Don’t worry about that right now,” Ash said. “We’ll find a way to stay in Bellingham. You know I always come up with a plan.”
I smiled. “Thanks.”
“Anytime.”
Turning to my left, I realized Jason was looking at me with wide eyes. He touched my nose and then quickly swiped his hand away. In a soft, reassuring voice he said, “We’ll figure it out. I promise. There is no way we are going to be separated again.”
“Okay,” I whispered back and ran my hand down the side of his cheek. I was lucky to have him. And I was lucky to have Ash. It was just weird sometimes.
“See,” Ash said, “With all of us working together, we’ll outsmart, outplay, an
d outlive the Senior Council of Tyrants.” Despite Ash’s positive attitude and attempt to make a joke, I shivered. What a mess things were right now.
Eventually, daybreak embraced the horizon, lighting the sky with hues of indigo and violet. I forced all negativity to the back of my mind and welcomed the splendor and hope of a new day. A peaceful calm settled upon our group. I was glad, because it seemed sacrilegious to speak while Mother Nature shared dawn’s glory with us. Temperatures hovered around 45 degrees, which wasn’t bad for an elevation of 1,500 or so feet at five o’clock in the morning. I was warm in my fleece hoodie and content sitting between Jason and Ash – two amazing guys: one, the love of my life, and the other, my friend for a lifetime.
Out of the corner of my eye, I watched Jason. His eyes were wide with wonder and awe, his expression serene. He must have sensed me studying him, because he turned my way and winked. After flashing a brilliant smile, he mouthed the words, “I love you.” I nodded slightly. Wrapping my fingers around his arm, I giggled inwardly and delivered a fiery burst of Essence that left him quivering. Raising a brow, his eyes dropped and focused on my lips. After what felt like an eternity, he slowly raised his eyes to meet mine before turning and focusing on the magical spectacle before us. With a smile of guilty pleasure, I did the same.
As a fusion of pink and orange airbrushed the sky, incredible views of the ocean, islands, and pine forests opened up before us. The moment of anticipation had arrived – the moment right before the sun graced the horizon. Taking a deep breath, my eyes widened as the blazing red disc appeared, followed by magnificent beams of yellow and orange. As the fiery mass continued rising in the sky, I bundled my fears together and allowed the sweeping rays of light to carry them away over the Atlantic Ocean. Morning had arrived, and it was beyond spectacular. Impressive barren peaks and island chains were showcased in the distance, but the vibrant lichen-covered, pink granite summit we were sitting on was equally inspiring. A light breeze blew directly off the ocean, fresh and revitalizing.
Dentelle #3 Guardian series Page 3
