by Jen L. Grey
Oh my god. Do they seriously think this makes it okay?
A breeze picks up and fire and ash fill the air. No, don't tell me Damien is making his appearance as well. I spin around and there is a dark, gray cloud swirling in the middle between the council and Brad. Of course, the freaking demon would choose to show up now as well.
"What the hell?" Brad stumbles back. "Is that a demon?"
"What did you expect would happen when you stole an artifact?" Is he that stupid? "That you would have only a unicorn, puppies, and the council after you?"
Damien appears and shakes his head at me. "You aren't handling these artifacts very well, are you?"
"Seeing as I didn't know about them a month ago, I'd say I'm doing the best I can." I'm getting to where I can't stand his presence any longer. Hell, he's the one causing all the problems in the first place.
He turns to Brad. "You are going to give her the Earth Crystal." And then he turns back to me. "And you are going to stop all this and hand over both the crystal and Angel's Breath to me. If you want a chance at seeing your precious Beth again, you'll do as I say."
And there it is. He's holding my best friend, my soul sister, against me. Something inside of me shifts. I reach down in my pocket and touch the vial. It's almost as if the Angel's Breath is flowing inside me which is crazy. The power is thrumming and connecting deep within me. Damien is still threatening me, but for some reason, it seems inconsequential. He's the one causing the havoc against the world and Brad is the one holding the key to its salvation.
"You need to give us the Earth Crystal, Brad." Margaret demands as she steps beside me. "We are your council and leaders. We will pardon you, if you do what's right."
"I ... I can't." Brad shakes his head. "I've been told what will happen if these are used."
"This is ridiculous." Damien glares at me. "You're hiding something from me."
The tension rises and it's about to combust.
Brad takes off running toward the back of the cabin when Margaret and the other elders take off after him.
In that moment, Damien charges me. "I know you have the Angel's Breath." The dark shadows swirl around him almost as his shield. He reaches his hands out like he's going to claw me, but I grab his arm and throw him over my body.
How the hell was I able to do that? I turn around and watch as the elder man puts Brad in a headlock. He tightens the pressure and Brad gags.
Damien appears at my side and digs his fingers into the wound I got from the Angel's Realm. I cry out and fall to my knees. Holy shit that hurts. Just when I think I can't take any more Margaret's high pitched laugh fills the air.
"Finally, it's mine." She croons. She reaches down to pick up the stone Brad dropped and then she goes up into smoke.
The crystal drops to the ground and rolls right in front of me and the pressure in my side stops. Everyone stops what they are doing and gapes at what just happened.
Did Margaret just vanish from touching the stone? What kind of power do these artifacts hold?
Chapter Twenty-Three
Smoke is still thick from where Margaret was just standing. The wind picks up blowing a piece of hair across my face. Shit, what am I doing just standing here? I glance down, and the stone is just a foot away from me.
The elder lady takes a step toward the stone but then pauses.
I bend down and grab it before someone decides to brave it and risk touching the stone again. "Everyone back-off now. I have the artifact and will not be handing it over to any of you."
"Oh, don't be so sure about that." Damien's eyes narrow, but he taps his fingers on his legs.
My power is coursing through me stronger than ever before. It focuses through my arm and into my hand that is holding the crystal. It gathers there, and a buzzing takes over. It centers in my palm and molds to the artifact. "What the hell?"
"Having problems?" The younger male elder takes a step toward me but is stopped by the lady.
"Don't go near her." Her tone is full of contempt. "She's probably about to blow up like Margaret. We don't need to lose two council members in one day."
"No, we need to get it away from her now." Damien rushes over to me and grabs at the stone, but it sinks into my skin.
"What the hell just happened?" Brad's tone is near frantic. "We have to help her."
My hearing begins to heighten as energy like never before crashes through me. Brown and blue waves of magic crash throughout, charging my body in ways like never before. I reach my hands into my pocket to pull out the vial.
"I knew you were lying to me." Damien growls.
But right now, I don't care about him. I open the vial and find it's empty. For some reason, I'm not surprised. I had always had black and white magic inside me, but now there is brown and blue in the mix. The powers swirl together and blend together, feeding off one another.
It's the craziest thing because I can now feel the heartbeat of the ground under my feet and I can hear the sounds of animals’ miles away when I call on the wind. It's as if I'm becoming one with the elements and they are balancing the powers that were already inside me. As if they are making me more of a rounded person.
A white swirling portal opens right in front of Damien, and Becca walks through. Her blonde hair is pulled in a bun and her face is almost unrecognizable. If I didn't know better, I'd think she was a drug addict. She glances at him. "I thought you might need some reinforcements. You've been gone a while."
Not able to stop myself, I take a step toward her. My white power I've tied to healing pushing me to her. With the crystal and Angel's Breath running through me, I'm able to see and hear things I've never been able to and when I get close to her, I can see into her. Her soul's shadow is visible to me. "Oh, my god." Her soul has fractures all over, like someone has cut her with a knife. It's almost unrecognizable.
She turns around to face me and her mouth drops open. "You're glowing. How are you doing that?"
"Two of the elements absorbed into her." Damien wrinkles his nose and shakes his head.
"What does all this mean?" The elder man takes a hesitant step toward me, but maintains a good distance from me.
Hell if I know.
"What?" Becca turns back to me and parts her lips. "Are you serious? How does that feel?"
Like I would tell her the truth right now. I walk closer to her using her interest to my advantage. "It's very weird and disorienting." I reach out and touch her. When I do, dark, cold ickiness flows between us. The power signature is Damien's. He's freaking doing this to her. Bastard. "Becca, I'm so sorry. I would have never left you with him if I knew he would do this to you."
Her eyes widen, and she takes a step back. "Huh, what do you mean?"
"He's changing you." I can't believe he would do this. Actually, I can. He's a freaking demon and I was stupid. I made so many mistakes.
"Becca, it's time for you to go home." Damien stares her in the eyes and they flash. "Now."
She glances at him, then me, and then back at him. "Yes, of course." She reaches her arm out and traces the portal heading back home.
"This isn't over." The demon glares at me and then the black smoke surrounds him as he leaves.
"As much fun as this is, we better get back to the mansion and get Margaret's death taken care of." The lady elder steps in front of the men and nods at me. "We will be calling you soon to discuss next steps."
The younger man walks over and grabs Brad. "You will be coming with us."
"No, I won't." Brad pulls away.
"If you don't want your family harmed, you will come with us now." The older man crosses his arms and looks down his nose at him. "I'm tired of your games."
Brad's face falls. "Do you give your word you won't hurt my family if I come with you?"
Is this what the council does? Go around threatening everyone with their families to get them to obey?
"Of course." The elder lady huffs. "We gave our word."
Yeah, like that counts for much.
"I'll make sure your family stays safe." It doesn't matter if Brad and I aren't friends any longer, his mom was always nice to me growing up. I'll make sure nothing happens to her.
The lady elder scowls at me.
"All right, I'll go." Brad nods and takes a step toward the council.
"Come on." The youngest elder reaches out and touches the lady’s shoulder. "We can talk to Christina later. Right now, we need to head back and deal with what just happened."
She shakes her head, but her husband comes up to her and takes her hand. "Come on, dear. He's right." He glances at me, a deep frown set on his face. "We will deal with her later."
"Fine." She points at me and her tone is full of warning. "You better not disrespect us again. We are your council whether you like it or not. We will discuss this further." She turns on her heel and marches off back toward the open area.
Both men walk beside Brad and they all leave in silence.
Now that I'm alone with no audience, I concentrate on the power inside of me. I need to get Becca and help her, but I don't know how to transport to where they are. I close my eyes and find them in a living room of a house. If I could just get there somehow.
A swirling inside me sets into motion which feels different than anything else before. It stretches out and travels throughout my body and my fingertips begin to tingle. I rub them together and begin to form a circle to the right of my body.
Just like when Becca does it, a white swirling portal seems to begin to appear. Oh my god, I could go after Becca right now and figure out what Damien is doing to her. He's been playing everyone the entire time. Right when I've made my mind up to go, the wind blows, and a car pulls up just a few hundred yards away.
"We need to hurry, I want to make sure she's all right." Charlie's voice is faint, but it's clear. "Jeff said something that the artifacts may affect her more after he dies."
Shit, I can't leave now when he's here and worried about me. I've already put him through enough as is. I can go to her in a little while. I step away from the portal and begin walking toward him hearing his and my parents every footstep.
When they break through the trees, my parent's shoulders relax when they see me. Dad sighs. "Thank god, you're okay."
Am I okay though? I'm not sure.
"What happened?" Charlie takes a few steps toward me. Unlike my parents, his body is tenser. "Did you get any of the artifacts?"
I must be delirious, because I burst out laughing. The wind picks up and I swear the earth shakes a little under my feet.
"Uh, honey." Mom glances at Dad and then back at me. "Are you okay?"
"Christina," Charlie runs a hand through his hair. "What happened?"
"Well, Margaret tried to get the Earth Stone, but she went up in smoke." That was the most disturbing image I had ever seen. I'm not sure when I'll get that out of my head.
"What do you mean up in smoke?" Dad glances around like he's missing something.
"She turned to ash before everyone's eyes." I let out a sigh and rub my arms.
"Okay, then what happened?" Charlie's tone is weary, almost as if he doesn't want to know the answer.
"I picked them up." I raise my hands and look at them. "And they disappeared inside me." I stumble a few steps back as the weight of everything sinks in. "I think I can transport now. I was about to head after Becca." I fill them in on all the rest of what happened.
"How do you feel?" Charlie glances me over as if he's taking inventory of me. "Do you need to sit down?"
"No, I feel fine. Better than fine." That's the problem, and now that it's beginning to settle, I can tell something is off. Yes, in a way I feel more balanced, but a piece is missing. Almost as if an anchor isn't there. "I don't think I need to find anymore artifacts. This is too much." I pace around the small open space in front of them. "I feel more powerful than ever, but something is off. Almost as if I'm not anchored. Someone like me shouldn't have all this power."
"Honey, no one else could do what all you've done." Mom places her hand on her chest and leans toward me. "You've grown so much in such a short time. This was meant for you."
"Your mother is right." Dad wraps an arm around her waist and nods. "You've accomplished so much and on your own."
Charlie reaches out and takes my hand. There is an electric buzz generating between us from the artifacts, but nothing he can't handle. "If you don't go after the last two artifacts, Damien and the council will. Jeff would have died in vain." He leans into me with a raised eyebrow. "Is that what you want? For someone who sacrificed their life to help you to die in vain and the world to still wind up peril?"
Chapter Twenty-Four
Charlie's points are valid, but I just need time. It seems every time I turn around my life is changing. These artifacts absorbing into me took it to a whole different level today. "I get it, but I need some time to myself."
"Why don't you go home and get some rest?" Charlie's eyes are filled with concern.
That sounds like a great plan. I'm tired and right now both Damien and the council are preoccupied so I should be able to get some undisrupted time. "Yeah, I think I will." I squeeze his hand and walk over to my parents and give them a hug. "I'll see you guys soon."
"We love you, baby girl." Dad whispers into my hair.
Needing time to myself, I rush to my car and drive back to the apartment as fast as possible.
When I get home, I change into some yoga pants and shirt and head to the kitchen to eat something. It's crazy, but most of the food I had bought on my last trip to the grocery store has gone bad. It only feels like two days ago, but I guess it has been a week. I make a sandwich and eat it along with some chips.
As soon as I'm done, I look through the refrigerator, cleaning out the groceries that have gone bad. As I clean out the last of the cantaloupe that has soured, I make plans to head out of town for a couple of days. I need to get away and think through what my next steps are going to be. Charlie is right, but at the end of the day, do I want to be the person for the job?
I wash the stickiness off my hands and grab a bag from the closet. I pack a few days’ worth of clothes, toiletries, and run to the bathroom.
When I'm ready to go, I adjust the thermostat and head out. The power is still coursing through me, but I'm getting more acclimated to the feel so it's not as overwhelming. If it's like this with two artifacts, I can only imagine what it would be like with two more. It's a little scary to consider. That's one of the main reasons I'm not so sure I'm the person cut out for this role.
I have a hard enough time not being the victim of my own story. How am I supposed to go up against a demon, a council, and somehow turn out to be the hero? I'm not legend material. Hell, I'm still trying to figure out who I am.
As the last gas station from the city comes into view, I glance down at the gas gauge and laugh. This is my luck. I'm desperate to leave and have an empty tank. This is another example of what I'm talking about. I pull into the station and get out.
Once the gas is pumping, I sit back in the car as I wait for it to fill. I close my eyes as I wait, and the next artifact appears without me searching for it. It's a flame burning bright in the dark pits of Hell.
The End
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Chapter One
The door rings as a new customer walks into the diner this late afternoon. I finish wiping down the vinyl table from the older couple that just left, even though I don't see the point. It's just as greasy now as it was before, but it's all about the presentation, I guess.
A breeze hits the back of my arm as someone slides into the booth. The familiar pulse of reaper magic hits me hard.
"Hey there." Soft brown eyes find mine. A lazy grin spreads across his face as he grabs a menu from behind the napkin holder.
Why does he keep coming in here? Okay, I'm being a little self-absorbed here. It's not like this is a huge town, but still, he makes me uncomfortable. "What can I get you?"
"I'll take a waffle, scrambled eggs, and an order of bacon." He places the menu back in the holder and bites his bottom lip. "Oh, and a coffee."
Not wanting to say anything else to him, I turn and head behind the counter and call out the order to the cook. It's almost like living in another world here in Missouri. I hadn't meant to stop here after leaving home, but my car broke down right after I passed by the Ste. Genevieve, Missouri sign and I've been stuck here ever since then. It's been two weeks and I'm beginning to wonder if my transmission is ever going to get fixed.
I grab a cup from the back counter before I reach over for the coffee pot. I carry both to the customer in the booth waiting on me. "Here you go." I sit the mug on the table and fill it.
"Thanks." He grins and tilts his head to the side. "I love breakfast for dinner. Something about it brings me peace."
He always tries to chat with me. I hate it. I want to be left alone. The artifacts inside me begin to spin. I have no idea why, but it must be his magic affecting mine somehow. "That's nice."
