by L. R. W. Lee
“All right!” Captain Baldric congratulated.
“Looks like your patient has fully recovered,” Hans complimented, receiving a broad smile from his apprentice.
Calum made several passes overhead, cooing each time he approached the company. At last he fluttered to a stop on Alden’s shoulder.
“So, what did we miss while we were sleeping?” Alden queried.
Andy reiterated the events and was met with incredulous looks.
“The ring must have healed our bodies and wiped our memories of the events,” Hannah deduced.
“What, so we’re not emotionally scarred?” Yara teased.
“Yes,” Hannah replied shortly.
“Where’s Fides?” Yara queried.
Andy turned and nodded toward the still form.
“Oh no,” Hannah whispered as her eyes welled with tears.
Yara covered her mouth as the group walked slowly toward the white-robed keeper.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Fusion
Andy knelt, holding his breath. The keeper lay on his side with eyes closed, his legs and arms at odd angles. Had Andy not witnessed the battle Fides waged against the dark wizard, he would have prayed the man was just unconscious. But even as he gently cajoled the upturned shoulder, his gut confirmed his fears.
Andy looked hopefully to Hans. The healer approached and felt for a pulse, then shook his head, drawing gasps from several as they formed a circle. There would be no healing. Fides had made the ultimate sacrifice. Captain Baldric knelt on one knee and his men followed, bowing their heads.
“I heard a banshee wail, but I still hoped,” Hans murmured.
Andy looked over. “A what?”
“A banshee. They’re spirits from the underworld. Somehow they know when someone is going to die, and they let out an eerie, piercing wail.”
“That’s what that was,” Andy replied softly. “From the underworld?” A chill rippled through his body as Hans nodded.
“He saved our lives. We should give him a befitting send-off,” Yara intoned, receiving several nods in reply.
“He loved the phoenix. I think we should help him join her,” Andy suggested.
“That would make him happy,” Yara agreed.
Sergeant Terric approached and gently lifted the body, then processed toward the pyre that had burned down to shin height.
“Lay him on the ground here,” Hans instructed, pointing to a spot a couple yards from the edge. “I need someone’s canteen.”
Alden offered his and the healer knelt, sprinkling the white robes and chanting: “Into the presence of the Ancient One I commend his spirit.” At length he rose and asked the captain and Sergeant Terric to place the body on the glowing embers, which they did. The company stepped back, distancing themselves from the heat.
Earth, air, fire, and water. The Elementals for eternal life. Andy’s chest ached and he sniffled.
The hot coals licked at the form, seeming to taste it before deciding to engulf it. Andy couldn’t divert his eyes from the transformation, and his thoughts whirled. Fides died protecting us. And Spark…oh, that pixie. He smiled before his thoughts continued. She died because of Alden and me. I vowed no one else would die on my account… Andy clenched his jaw, then ran the back of his wrist across his eyes.
Several minutes passed and a booming voice interrupted the solemn silence, “What is the meaning of this, Imogenia?”
All eyes searched the sky for the source.
“Father?”
Imogenia’s silvery form floated not far behind the company.
“The Afterlife of Cromlech is in an uproar. Crossover collectors came demanding answers.”
“What are you talking about?”
“This letter! Moments ago a dark spirit from Hadession forced its way into their Terminal and assaulted a wizard before he had chosen his eternal destination. It overwhelmed his inneru.”
Imogenia drew a translucent hand to her mouth. “That’s possible?”
“They said they had never seen it before, but that doesn’t excuse it. They know you were present, and they want answers.”
“I didn’t do anything, Father! I’ve just been watching the whole time, I swear.”
“Then how do you explain it?”
“How should I know? I didn’t even know it was possible. Did they say how it happened?”
“They’ve launched an investigation, but initial speculation is that evil of Hadessic origin somehow mingled with the wizard’s body shortly after he crossed over. It’s the only way the dark spirit could have breached Cromlech’s terminal.”
“I don’t know what to say. What happened to the wizard?”
“It snatched him.”
“How’s that even possible?”
“No one knows, but I need you to come with me and tell the Committee on Afterlife Affairs what you just told me.”
Silence returned and without thinking, Andy offered, “That was my grandfather and my aunt…from the Afterlife.” A sick feeling thudded in his gut. He scanned the company and saw a look of astonishment on every face.
It was my suggestion!
“What have we done?” Andy squeaked.
“What’s going to happen to Fides?” Yara stammered.
“What did he mean, ‘It overwhelmed his inneru’?” Alden questioned.
Hans took a trembling step forward, then opted to sit. “I fear we may have given our enemy a powerful tool.”
“How so?” Captain Baldric queried.
“I served as royal healer when Abaddon first started transforming people into vulture-folk. As you know, the queen of Cromlech was a sommeil. She often spoke about working with victims whose relatives had brought them seeking relief. She said their minds all felt ‘dark,’ as if evil festered in their thoughts and even in their innerus. They would grow hostile, especially when asked about the events that had caused their condition. It frustrated her to not be able to help them. I only ever heard of one case where the person’s mind was restored. We speculated these folks formed the core of Abaddon’s followers.”
“But not all vulture-folk are hostile,” Andy objected.
“Quite right, but that’s a more recent development. It seems Abaddon changed his tactics. When he transformed people to draw energy to strengthen himself a year ago, it appears he did not infiltrate their minds quite so much. It’s all I can figure since, as you point out, those newly transformed are not hostile. I don’t know why. And because I don’t know of any sommeils who treated these patients previously, we can’t understand the differences.
“My worry with Fides’s inneru being overwhelmed is that evil will use him. With the wizard’s tremendous powers, the dark forces would have a significant advantage over us. We may have exchanged one set of problems for something greater.”
Will I have two to battle in the end? Andy wondered.
“We should eat before we head out,” Captain Baldric suggested.
“No! We can’t leave yet,” Andy objected. “I need to get a tail feather from the phoenix once it resurrects.”
“There are feathers all over in the tunnel. Aray was molting badly,” Hannah offered.
“Last night Fides told me I need a new feather.”
Hannah raised her eyebrows and Alden questioned, “How would Fides even know about your quest?”
“I don’t know, but he did. I’m just glad he told me last night.”
“Do you suppose he knew what would happen today?” Hannah pondered.
Yara raised a hand. “Would someone mind explaining what you all are talking about?”
Realizing the princess had not been privy to the earlier conversation, Andy opened his mouth to recount the tale, but the captain interrupted, “How about you fill her in while we eat?”
No one dissented, so the company headed back toward their hideaway. “Wow!” and “Oooh!” echoed from those who entered the domed space first. Andy instantly understood the exclamations as he entered. The two tables ov
erflowed with dried meats, cheese, fruit, and pitchers of water, but four more tables had been added and they too held a bounty.
“Fides!” Hans cried. “He knew we would need sustenance while we waited for Aray to emerge.”
“When did he have time?” Yara questioned.
Silence overwhelmed the group until Alden’s stomach grumbled loudly. “Excuse me,” he apologized, breaking the spell.
Hans moved toward the closest table, coaxing the others on. After grabbing a handful of the provisions, Andy surveyed the chamber. Hannah and Yara had waged nonverbal combat since they had returned to the hideout, so Andy was not surprised to see the princess retreat to a spot on the floor well away from the others as she ate. Andy joined her, receiving a warm smile. Butterflies instantly took flight in his belly.
As he munched on a fresh roll and moonberries, Andy told Yara about his quest for the phoenix feather. Assessing she posed no danger, he divulged tales of claiming the previous three ingredients. When she probed further, he revealed how he had come to learn he was the chosen one. She marveled at this, but was even more surprised when he told her how he had discovered the King was his father.
“You’re so easy to talk to,” Andy concluded.
“Your story is interesting,” Yara replied, looking into his eyes.
“I have to ask you something.” Andy assumed a thoughtful expression and chose his words carefully.
“What is it?”
“Did you plant a suggestion in my mind to go after the dark wizard?”
Yara turned her eyes downward and slowly nodded. “I couldn’t see any other way to defeat him. The ring would have been lost again. I couldn’t let that happen. Cromlech’s healing powers would have been destroyed. As queen—” Returning her gaze to Andy she added, “I’m sorry.”
“Hans is right.”
Yara furrowed her brow in a question mark.
“We have a lot in common. Ruling is not easy.”
The princess nodded. “Captain Baldric said something else.”
“What’s that?”
“He said we should get to know each other.” She added a smile.
Andy felt his cheeks warm, then offered his hand and helped the princess up.
Hans winked as Andy and Yara rejoined the rest of the group, then deflected, “We’ve been talking about what happened out there. What did you two see?”
Andy directed Yara toward an open spot on one of the benches surrounding the fire, then sat down beside her. Hannah raised an eyebrow.
Andy told of watching the weakened Abaddon navigate the field under cover of the dark wizard’s strikes, and of the dragon’s subsequent plunge into the fiery furnace.
“I don’t understand. I thought he wanted phoenix tears to heal his wounds, not to incinerate himself. And the way he looked at me just before he did it. He smiled, like he had won some contest.”
“Well, look on the bright side, you don’t have to battle Abaddon anymore,” Hannah rejoiced.
“Yeah! That bad dude is dead!” Alden quipped, pumping a fist.
“I’m not so sure,” Andy cautioned.
“What do you mean? You just said he walked into the fire. Bye-bye, ’Baddon,” Hannah waved her hand and laughed.
“That sounds good,” Alden added.
“Yeah, after all he’s done,” Yara scowled.
Andy cocked his head in disagreement.
“Oh, come on, Andy. He’s dead. Dead is dead,” Alden countered.
Yara glanced over and caught his eye, then nodded her support.
“Well, at least we know for a fact the bellicose is gone,” Hans encouraged. “That lintel smashed it into the ground not far from me.”
“I’d like to see for myself,” Andy declared.
“Looks like we’ve all got things to do,” Captain Baldric asserted, rising. “We’d best move all those bodies before wild animals come scavenging and your phoenix is endangered.”
Called into action, the company headed outside. The officers formed a work detail while Andy and the others headed for the pit punched in front of one of the golden stone sentries.
As the five passed the pyre with its glowing coals, Andy furrowed his brow. Yara reached over and took his hand. “We can’t change the past. We can only make a better future for both our lands.”
Andy smiled his appreciation, squeezed her hand, and nodded.
They approached a rectangular crater that would have measured five feet square had the crossbeam fallen evenly. The grass had been sheared off, leaving a clean delineation between the sod and the brown dirt beneath. The group stopped at the edge. Andy hesitated briefly, unsure what revolting sight might await. Mixed relief came when he did not see a mutilated body but the white-scorched shape of his adversary silhouetted in the dirt.
“It can come back,” Andy murmured. “How do we kill it once and for all?”
No one hazarded a reply.
“Maybe with Abaddon gone it won’t return,” Hannah hoped.
Andy shook his head. “Like I said before, I’m not convinced he’s gone.”
Andy glanced about the group, but no one betrayed their thoughts on the subject.
The afternoon passed uneventfully as the five of them helped the officers dispose of the enemy carcasses, after which they retreated back into their hideaway. Andy and Yara paired off and continued their earlier conversation. They laughed as they talked about all manner of topics, from pets to favorite colors and foods. As the two grew more comfortable, they shared their dreams for the future, and at one point the princess confessed how unprepared she felt to rule the people whose welfare had been entrusted to her. Andy readily agreed.
So oblivious were they to the goings-on around them that when Hans announced dinner was ready, Andy felt as though he had been dragged back through a time warp.
“Hey, they’re back!” Alden exclaimed, winking.
“Yes, thanks for joining us,” Hans kidded.
Hannah held Alden’s hand, but her expression extended no grace.
Dinner and laughter gave way to yawns, and all but Sergeant Fulk bedded down for the night. Despite the feeling of security in their cozy abode, Captain Baldric felt it important that they not grow lax, so the night watch resumed.
Dreams came quickly for Andy, but like the night before, they brought him back to the dunk tanks. Father, Mom, and Mermin sat bound and helpless on the three narrow beams. An armed zolt brandished a shiny blade next to each of them. A horn sounded and the enemy inched closer. Andy looked down, expecting to see spongs, but instead found marshmallows. He picked up a handful and began hurling them toward the enemy. The zolt crept closer. Andy screamed and grabbed more sugary ammunition, throwing as hard as he could. Still the adversary drew closer. The marshmallows morphed into chocolate chip cookies, but his attempts to defend yielded the same result. The first vulture-warrior reached Mermin, turned and smiled at Andy, then lopped off the wizard’s head.
“No!”
“Andy!” Yara shook him to semiconsciousness as others scattered around the fire mumbled and rolled over.
Mercifully, Andy’s mind ventured elsewhere when he returned. He stood before a roaring fire that illuminated a scene from a previous dream. A pair of couches stood perpendicular to the hearth. Two silent, silvery forms reclined opposite each other. The male spirit sipped a drink, then queried as he set it down, “Imogenia, what’s troubling you?”
“You won, Father.”
“What’s that?”
“Abaddon was my only hope for killing the boy so the curse could not be broken. Everything I’ve tried has failed. The only saving grace is that the dragon stepped into that fire of his own accord. Your champion did not kill him, so you cannot remove the curse.”
The king nodded, then added, “Have you considered that the Ancient One had his reasons for allowing things work out as they have?”
Imogenia looked at her father but remained silent.
“Your mother was concerned that when we remov
ed our support of the curse for the sake of the people, it would splinter our family irreparably.”
Imogenia stared into the flames.
“I believe the Ancient One desires the curse to end. That’s why he has given the boy ingredients to collect.”
“If what I want doesn’t matter, why has he not lifted the curse himself? Why go through all this?”
The sovereign smiled. “How else could your heart be healed from its hate?”
Imogenia studied her hands. “But collecting ingredients seems so slow.”
“My guess is that from the trials the boy must endure to gather them, he is being prepared to rule our people well.”
Imogenia looked up. “You haven’t called them ‘our people’ in years.”
Her father nodded, then added, “Surely you’re happy that they will have a wise sovereign.”
“Yes, but I’m still not convinced Kaysan has repented for what he did to me.” She fell silent for a minute before asking, “How will I know?”
“That’s an excellent question, and the answer requires faith.”
At this, the dream began breaking up into flinty shards, like glass. The images shimmered, then vanished.
Inspection of the cold coals the next morning revealed only that earthworms had begun work to reclaim the embers. The company spotted three of them wiggling about.
“That’s strange. The worms here are different from any I’ve seen before,” Andy commented at seeing a red one, a black one, and a variegated one crawl through the ashes.. “I’ve only ever seen brown worms.”
That night dreams again terrified Andy’s thoughts. He held a ready position in the ring as Abaddon, Fides, and the bellicose circled, stalking. Father, Mom, and Mermin sat gagged and bound together at Andy’s feet, their arms behind their backs.
Abaddon taunted, “Thought I’d give myself up willingly without a reason?” The dragon laughed, then shot a burst of flame. Methuselah easily deflected the blast, but then Fides took a turn, upending the captives with a stream of energy.
