by Stacy Lee
Chapter Twelve
Many hours of flying later we see the dunes that are rumored to be the new headquarters of the Ranoy come into view. They are still some distance away so to avoid detection we fly in and land with more than an hour flight left between us. It wasn’t like you could sneak up on someone in the middle of a flat desert in broad daylight so this was the best we could do. Nightfall was still two hours away giving us time to eat a meal and prepare for the fight to come.
“Can one of you fly over the dunes high enough that they won’t see you and see if you can tell if a grassy area exists anywhere near them? It would sure be better if there was.” Axel stands and brushes his hands off on his pants.
“Yeah, I could do that. It would help to know where the King was being held to. Let me do a little recognizance. I’ll be back around nightfall. If I’m not, don’t wait for me.” He gives me a stern look and I know that statement was for me. We had a time limit here and he knew it.
“Be careful.” Xavier warns to him but he makes no knowledge he heard him as he takes three steps and launches into the sky. “What are you thinking, Sam?” I look up at him startled out of my thoughts.
“Oh, I was just wondering about something. There isn’t a way to test it so I don’t know if it will work.” I shrug. I had been forming a plan since I saw the grass but without putting one of the boys in danger I couldn’t test the stability of it. I had been trying to come up with other options but kept coming back to this one.
“Test what?” He asks curiously.
“Well I was thinking if I could make a shield to cover Axel he could go in to get the King while we distract the rest of them but I don’t know if the shield will move with him away from me. If there is a grassy area. It would also have to work on the sand without a replenishable supply of power. I just don’t know if it will work.” I reason out what I had been thinking.
“Try it. You could make it around me and I could walk out into the desert.” I shake my head immediately.
“I don’t know what it will do. It could explode for all I know. I wouldn’t want to hurt you, Xavier.” I add the last quietly. He kneels in front of me and cups my face making me look at him.
“You won’t hurt me. If this can be done then you will find a way to do it. I believe in you Samantha. Now let’s try it.” His confidence in me is astounding as his emotions vibrate through me. With a reluctant nod I agree.
Pulling in the power I draw out as much as I feel I can hold. Picturing a large bubble in my head I hold my hands out and will it to form on the grass in front of me. I carefully leave an opening in the back in which he can enter the bubble, Axel will need to bring the King inside, the opening was necessary. As both him and Axel are over six foot I push till the dome reaches almost seven foot in height with a diameter of four foot. Before I sever the tendrils I add in that I want the dome to stay as it crosses the sand. Once I feel it is right I pull my hands back and open my eyes. There in front of me resides a large glowing domed bubble just as I had imagined.
“Okay, step in the back of it. If I did it right it should move with you so try to stay in the center. If it wavers at any point jump out of the hole, fast.” He nods sharply then steps in. So far so good. “Okay now walk out onto the sand.” I instruct him tightly. He proceeds to take a few hesitant steps in which, thankfully, the bubble moves with him. However once the outer edge leaves the grass it begins to waver. Xavier jumps quickly backwards right before a pop sounds and the whole thing caves in on its self. Blue energy crackles across the ground returning to the grassy area.
“I didn’t think it would work.” I say dejected.
“Don’t give up. Try again, this time don’t make it touch the ground. I don’t know if you could hear it but as soon as it touched the sand it was as if the edges began to boil. They were crackling and spitting sparks everywhere the sand touched it.” I nod to him then repeat the steps as before only this time keeping it a foot above the ground. Once I am done he steps up once more. I hold my breath as he takes his first few steps pushing the edges over the sand. Nothing happens. A few more steps and he is on the sand as is half the bubble.
“See how far you can go before it dissipates.” I order with a shaking voice. I was so afraid it would pop and hurt him, I couldn’t stop the tremor of fear running through me. He speeds up his pace now that he is a little more confident and walks several paces away from me. When he is only a speck against the desert landscape I see him jump backwards. He picks himself up then flies back reaching me about the same time the energy comes crawling back into its rightful place.
“It worked great. It began to flicker a step or two before it gave way. If the King is further than its reach he will have notice before he loses his protection. Granted not much, but some.” I nod.
“You think it could work?” I eye him skeptically but he grins.
“I do. That is if there is a grassy area with enough power.” Yeah, there is that. “Get some rest. I can see your eyes drooping and we need you at full power later.” He steps towards me as if he is going to walk past however at the last second he cups the back of my head and lays a gentle kiss on my forehead. Without a word he then strides past several feet from my grassy circle and starts pacing around it. I lie down on the grass and cover myself with the blue light.
What do I make of him when he is like that? So soft and gentle yet in a few hours he will be slicing the heads of many Ranoy. He is a warrior, a fighter, a strong man. Yet he is also so kind and gentle with me. I had no doubt he would never hurt me but would rip the head off anything or anybody that did. Maybe the future with him wouldn’t be so bad. With images of him and the last few days dancing in my head I drift off to sleep.
