Flame Caller

by Jon Messenger

  “Thea,” Xander and Patrick yelled at the same time.

  The Irishman turned and rushed to her side. Xander watched him roll her over and cradle her head to his chest. He was worried about her safety until the strain of maintaining the protective wall around the ship became physically painful. A blinding pain erupted behind his eyes and he staggered. His stomach churned and he swore he was about to vomit.

  “Patrick, we need you.”

  Patrick remained sitting on the deck, holding Thea close.

  “We can’t hold this by ourselves,” Giovanni added.

  The wind was picking up as it slowly dismantled the wavering wall around the ship. Xander could hear it howling and the deck groaned against the pressure. His ears popped suddenly and his hair whipped around his face.

  “There’s no time,” Alicia warned again.

  Xander didn’t need to see where she was pointing. The boat leveled out between the waves before it began climbing again. Xander tilted his head upward and saw a wave twice as large as the one they had just ridden. They had no chance of riding a wave this enormous without sinking the ship.

  “This is it,” Giovanni mouthed, though his words were stolen by the stormy wind.

  The roof of the wheelhouse cracked as the hurricane tore loose a wooden beam. Xander ducked quickly as it flew overhead and disappeared off the starboard side of the ship. One of the cables snapped and swung wildly, slicing through the railing beside Patrick and Thea. It thankfully wrapped tightly around one of the railing supports, keeping it from slashing through any of the men and women stuck above deck.

  “Keep the wind back,” Xander ordered.

  The roar of the hurricane was deafening but Xander could hear the whisper of the wind singing hauntingly underneath. The core of his body responded to the music and the power built within him. His eyes turned ghostly white again as the gale-force winds flowed around and through him.

  Another gust pushed him aside and he staggered toward the railing. He struggled to keep his footing and plunged headfirst toward the boiling ocean. Giovanni reached out and clutched his thick jacket, catching him inches from the edge of the railing. Xander let out an exasperated sigh and stepped lightly backward.

  The boat began to tilt upward as the massive wave before them pulled it into itself. Xander’s stomach dropped as the boat picked up speed, not from his power this time but from the pull of the ocean.

  He closed his eyes and sought the song of the wind again. It slowly came back into focus and the power swelled again in his gut. It built until it matched the howl of the hurricane around him. It built until he didn’t think he could stand the pressure within him. His skin felt like it was crawling, trying to escape the elemental strength inside. His head pounded and each pulse was a hammer pounding inside his skull. He had once thought it felt like water trying to fill a bottomless pit. Now he realized it wasn’t bottomless at all. He felt filled beyond capacity.

  The winds from the hurricane shifted directions. Instead of blowing against the ship, they drove down from above it. Xander suddenly felt like he was in one of the spinning rides at a carnival, where the centrifugal force was driving him into the deck. He struggled for breath but continued to focus all his might.

  At the top of the massive wave, the white cap wavered unsteadily. Slowly, it split in two. The break in the wave cascaded downward, dropping a mass of water onto the fishing vessel.

  “Hold onto something,” Xander yelled as he felt something give way in his nose. Blood trickled onto his upper lip and he tasted copper filling his mouth as it ran down the back of his throat.

  The wind split the wave in two just as the ship threatened to tumble back down the wave. With a final push, the ship broke through the middle of the tidal wave and slid seamlessly to the smoother ocean beyond.

  Xander held the towel pressed against his nose and tilted his head backward. He could still taste the metallic taste in the back of his throat but the pressure from the towel had stopped the gushing nosebleed.

  “How are you feeling?” Sean asked as he sat down beside his friend.

  “I think my head’s going to explode.”

  Sean looked at the red-stained towel. “I think it already did. Who knew you were a bleeder?”

  Xander lowered the towel, admired the blood-soaked rag, and had to admit that Sean was right. He tilted his head back again without the towel and looked up at the blue sky above. The sun beat down on the boat as it coasted into the docks. He tried his best not to look left or right toward the violent clouds that encircled the island nation.

  “It’s like a little slice of paradise,” Sean remarked as he looked toward Iceland. “Who knew it existed in the middle of hell.”

  Xander looked at the rolling hills beyond the small village toward which they sailed and admired the beautiful landscape.

  Giovanni and Alicia climbed out from below decks and joined the two men in the warm sun. Xander looked up at the harried Italian and offered a faint smile.

  “We made it,” Giovanni remarked.

  “We made it,” Xander echoed.

  “Of course we made it, you daft buggers,” Seamus called out from the wheelhouse. “Never had any doubts.”

  Xander laughed and was quickly joined by the others.

  “How’s Thea feeling?” he asked.

  “She has a bit of a headache,” Alicia replied, “but she’ll survive. She and Patrick are just checking her bandage one more time before they come up and join us.”

  Jessica came out of the wheelhouse and sat down beside Sean. Xander looked at the pair and smiled softly to himself.

  “I’m glad you both came out of this unscathed,” he said.

  “Unscathed?” Jessica asked. “Apparently not everything was strapped down in the hold. Things were flying everywhere. It was like we were dodging bullets in the Matrix.”

  Everyone fell silent and they turned their attention toward the docks that were quickly approaching. Giovanni walked over to the edge of the ship and untied the ropes. He looked for someone on the pier to whom he could toss the ropes to tie off but no one was there. As the battered fishing vessel slid beside the wooden mooring, Giovanni leapt gracefully from the boat with the rope in hand. As Seamus turned off the motor, the Italian tied down to one of the horn cleats on the abandoned dock.

  Sean climbed to his feet and looked at the squat buildings, as though he was waiting for someone to emerge and greet them. “Can I ask about the elephant in the room? I mean, come on, no one is going to ask about the Wind Elemental?”

  Xander stood as well and walked toward Giovanni. “She’s here somewhere. When she’s ready for us, she’ll let us know.”

  “Great,” Sean replied. He turned and helped Jessica to her feet. “Way to be vague.”

  Patrick climbed out of the hold and helped Thea unsteadily climb the steps. Her head was wrapped in a large, white gauze and both of her eyes were already bruised. Despite the injury, she still offered a weak smile.

  “It’s time to head ashore,” Xander said as he climbed over the side of the railing and hopped down onto the dock. The others slowly followed until they were all gathered.

  Xander immediately felt the chill cut through him. Despite the warm sun, the air was still cold and the island’s gentle breeze cut through their coats. He hadn’t considered how wet all their clothes had become until they were huddling against the cold. The thick jackets offered little resistance to the wind, which passed without resistance through the damp fabric.

  “I’ll be here when you’re done,” Seamus said with a slight shiver. The Irishman disappeared back into the wheelhouse.

  Xander shivered slightly as well and led the group down the dock toward the dry land. The village beyond was sparsely populated with buildings. Just beyond the last of the buildings, the ground became lush green foothills.

  “Hello?” Xander yelled toward the abandoned village.

  Sean snickered beside him. “What happened to ‘she’ll let us know when
she’s ready for us’?”

  A door opened hesitantly and a bearded man emerged. He glanced nervously at the odd assortment of soaked warriors and humans.

  “We… come in peace,” Xander said with a polite wave.

  “You really suck at this,” Jessica muttered.

  She stepped past the others and approached the man. She flashed him a warm smile. Xander could tell she was talking to the bearded Icelander but they were too far away to hear what was said. She talked animatedly with her hands and he quickly pointed toward the top of the hill behind the town. With a smile and a wave, Jessica turned away from the man and walked back to the group.

  “You speak Icelandic?” Giovanni asked disbelievingly.

  Jessica smiled and shook her head. “Of course not, but I didn’t have to. Every straight guy speaks girl-in-need. He says the old lady is at the top of the hill in a small hut.”

  Xander swallowed hard. He was going to thank her but he was suddenly overwhelmed by nervousness. They were in Iceland and the Wind Elemental was actually within walking distance.

  “Come on,” he said, eager to get moving before his feet decided not to leave the comfort of the dock.

  They walked through the village and noticed a few other curious faces peering from within the darkened windows. The hard-packed ground gave way to soft, lush grasses. There weren’t any well-defined trails leading up the hill but Xander didn’t mind. The struggle up gave him time to find his focus.

  He’d been so set on finding the Wind Elemental and was stupefied that he had succeeded. The journey had been his goal all along—he hadn’t even begun to consider what he’d do if he actually found her.

  “You okay?” Sean asked, stepping beside his friend.

  “What do I say to her?”

  Sean shrugged. “I’m guessing she’s going to do most of the talking.”

  As they crested the hill, a small, dilapidated wooden cabin appeared. It sat on the edge of the leeside of the hill, looking down on a crystal blue lake far below. Without the protection of the surrounding hills, the wind was bitterly cold and Xander wrapped his arms tighter around his body.

  The group stopped a few feet away from the front door as Xander chewed on his lip nervously.

  “Well, go on,” Patrick encouraged. “It’s you she wants to see.”

  Xander looked at them and noticed their supportive nods. Stepping forward, he raised his hand and prepared to knock.

  “There’s no need to knock,” a musical voice called from inside. The woman’s voice sounded like a breeze sighing through the trees of a forest. “The door’s unlocked. Come in, Xander Sirocco. I’ve been waiting for you.”

  Sammy paced the small prison cell bedroom for the seventeenth time. When she had arrived back at the clan’s castle, she had been nervous but had come to terms with the fact that she would probably die when brought before the Fire Elemental. Having met the monster—the dragon, she had to remind herself—she knew that it had a much more sinister plan. She didn’t need to know the details to know that being its host was something far worse than death.

  She checked the door, rattling it on its frame, but it remained solidly locked. Her efforts received an angry rebuttal from the guard on the other side. Storming away, she walked toward the narrow window again. The window was still far too tall and thin for her to fit through.

  Depression flooded through her chest but she quickly brushed it away. She cried plenty before meeting the Fire Elemental. After their meeting, she cried until her tears ran dry. Her lack of tears made it easier to force down the emotions when they threatened again. It left her with a better sense of clarity, though it still did little to help her find an escape from what seemed inevitable.

  As she was looking out the window, the lock on the door slid noisily aside. She turned toward the sound and let a flame build, concealing it within her palm. If they were going to come for her, to drag her back in front of the monster, she wouldn’t leave without a fight.

  The door swung open slowly and Lord Balor stood in its frame. Sammy scowled at her father’s appearance and hid the flame behind her back.

  “So it sent you again to come retrieve me?” she said. “I won’t go without a fight. You’ll have to take me kicking and screaming.”

  “Keep your voice down,” her father requested. He looked cautiously down the hall beyond her room.

  The flame in Sammy’s hand faltered. “Excuse me?”

  “You need to hurry. It won’t be long until they figure out something’s wrong.”

  Sammy stepped forward cautiously. She could hear the wariness in her father’s voice; it quivered nervously as he glanced over his shoulder. Once she was close to the door, she could see the body of the Fire Warrior guard lying prone in the hallway, concealed partially by the open door.

  “What did you do?” Sammy asked, her eyes fixed on the warrior.

  “What I should have done a long time ago,” he replied. “Don’t worry about him. He’ll live. But you won’t if I don’t get you out of here.”

  “You’re… you’re going to let me go?” She was wrong. She still had some tears left in her.

  “You were right. I did have a choice. I just didn’t see it. Now, unless you have an issue, can we talk about this while we run for our lives?”

  Sammy smiled and wiped away her tears before nodding to Lord Balor. She rushed toward the door and he stepped aside to let her exit. Instead, she stopped and wrapped her arms around him, pulling him into a hug. He seemed stiff for a second before he returned the affection.

  Lord Balor led her down the spiral staircase. When they reached the bottom floor, they turned away from the throne room and rushed down a back hallway. As they approached a turn in the hall, they slowed and her father raised his hand, telling her to stay behind him. He peered slowly around the corner, spotting a pair of Fire Warriors standing at the end with their backs to him. Her father raised a finger to his lips and led her quickly around the corner. They slipped into a side passage before the warriors turned toward them.

  The side tunnel led out of the castle. They were soon running along the edge of the cliff surrounding the keep, the lava flow burning brightly far below. Ahead, Sammy could see a familiar natural rock bridge leading across the chasm. The far side of the bridge disappeared into a dark hole in the cavern’s wall. She knew the way and knew more than one path that would lead back to the surface.

  As they reached the near end of the bridge, her father pulled up short and leaned over, resting his hands on his knees and breathing heavily.

  “Come on,” Sammy said. “We need to hurry.”

  Lord Balor stood straight and shook his head. “I’m sorry, Sammy. I’m not coming with you.”

  Sammy grabbed his wrist and stared into her father’s eyes. “No, we need to go together. They’re going to know what you did. You can’t stay.”

  “When you became a Fire Warrior, I knew what it meant for your future. The Fire Elemental had laid claim to you and I, in my cowardice, agreed to help him. You know what it feels like when it strips your power by force. It’s excruciating. I was scared, so I went along with whatever it said. For that, I’m sorry.”

  “Okay,” Sammy said hurriedly. “Your apology is accepted. We need to go.”

  “My place is here, with my people. I’ve risked everything to protect you and I need to be ready to do the same for any of the other Fire Warriors that need me.”

  Sammy opened her mouth to protest but her father put his hands on her shoulders.

  “You were right. The Elemental is going to know when you’re gone. The only chance you have is if I buy you the time you need.”

  “What will you do?” Sammy whispered.

  Her father shook his head. “Don’t you worry about that. Worry about getting yourself to safety. Get to the surface and get as far away from here as possible. As long as he doesn’t have you, he’ll stay trapped in his prison. No one else can contain his power without immediately burning up.”

&n
bsp; She embraced her father and laid her head on his chest. She couldn’t remember the last time she had felt so close to him.

  “Dad, I just wanted you to know—”

  “I know,” he said, nodding.

  He gently pushed Sammy away and pointed toward the bridge. “Now go. You don’t have much time.”

  “We’ll see each other again,” she said as she stepped onto the bridge. “I promise.”

  He nodded. “Of course we will.”

  She turned, ran across the bridge, and disappeared into the darkness on the far side.

  The Fire Elemental was coiled in its room, its tail wrapped tightly around its slumbering form. At once, the Elemental’s eyes opened and it stretched its long neck upward.

  The dragon’s forked tongue flickered from between its sharp teeth. A low growl escaped its wide mouth. The growl quickly became a roar.

  Fire Warriors rushed into the room in response to its anger.

  “What’s wrong, Master?”

  “Lady Balor has escaped,” it hissed. “Find her and bring her back to me.”

  The woman on the bed of animal furs was frail. Her skin was marred with liver spots and her skin was translucent enough that Xander could see the blue veins lacing her arms and neck. The edges of her skin seemed unfinished, however. Her flesh seemed to dematerialize into wisps of gas as he watched, though she didn’t seem in any threat of losing her coherence. He looked over his shoulder and the aunts and uncles raised their eyebrows inquisitively. The old woman suddenly spoke again, her voice belying a hidden strength.

  “What I need to say is for you alone, Xander. They will be safe outside while we speak.”

  After all they’d been through, he had to believe that she could be trusted. As though reading his concerns, everyone outside nodded their support and found places to sit while they waited.

  “Please,” the woman said, “close the door behind you.”

  Xander closed the door. It should have cast the room into darkness, since there weren’t any windows around the perimeter of the tiny, one-room cabin. He was surprised at the glow that filled the room. The illumination seemed to radiate from the prone woman.