Chason’s mouth dropped open as he realized his Match had just attacked the greatest warrior in Elemental history with a handful of children’s toys.
Why had Chason ever thought he needed to teach this woman how to defend herself? He should be emulating her. Clearly, she had no trouble figuring out how to use her powers in battle. Mara always had been creative.
Vandal let out a bellow of rage, his giant body tumbling backwards as the metal projectiles sliced apart his vital organs. It wouldn’t kill him, but it did slow him down. He looked at his bleeding midsection, shocked.
But, not as shocked as Mara.
She blinked, astonished her plan had actually worked. In her entire life, she’d never hurt anyone before.
“I couldn’t find any weapons to use in that mess downstairs.” She said vaguely. “But, Prinny and I were just playing that game a few days ago. It was still in the living room.”
Chason stumbled over to grab her. “Jump!” He seized her arm and shoved her behind him. “Now!”
He used his own powers to drag Vandal’s fallen sword into his palm. It felt like hefting a tanker truck. Not sure he had the strength to use the weapon, Chason used his Magnet powers to rip the hardware off the doors. He bombarded Vandal with knobs and hinges and every other metal object in the room.
A nail cut into the Light Phases eye and he bellowed in pain. “You think you can defy Gaia?” He hissed, clutching the socket with his free hand. “This is destiny!” His shark like gaze clashed with Chason’s for a timeless moment, hatred glowing. “You have failed your final test, Chason, of the Magnet House. So be it.” Wounded and furious, he jumped out of the room.
Chason closed his eyes in overwhelming relief, his heart pounding in his chest.
Mara was alive.
Somehow she was still alive.
Mara swallowed, looking dazed. She slowly shook her head. “It was The Pina Colada Song.” She said in a distant tone. “The duet Isaacs and I sang. I have no idea why I just remembered that.”
Despite everything, Chason’s mouth curved. “I always hated that song.” Then his legs gave out and he sagged to the floor.
“Chason!” Mara dove for him. “Chason, oh my God!”
There was so much he wanted to say to her, but he was growing too weak too fast. The plastic bullet was eating through his system like acid. “You have to go. He could be back.” Chason’s jaw clenched as pain wracked his system.
“I won’t leave you here like this! Are you crazy?” Mara quickly dropped down beside him and pulled him onto her lap. “How badly are you hurt?” Soft hands began examining his wound.
Chason focused on her face and knew –even shot and dying-- there was nowhere else he’d rather be. “Mara.” He breathed reverently.
She was really real.
“We need to get you to a doctor.” She pressed down on his gunshot wound, trying to stop the bleeding. “Chason! Look at me and try to concentrate!”
He was too far gone to understand what she was talking about. He lifted his hand to touch the side of her face, his thumb caressing the familiar curve of her cheek. There was only one thing he could think to tell her. What he’d wanted to tell her every day since the Fall. What had haunted him for two years. “I’m sorry I didn’t say goodbye.”
“Just don’t say good-bye to me, now!” She shouted.
“I was afraid and then it was too late.” His hand fell from her face, too heavy to hold up any longer. “You shouldn’t have died alone.”
“I didn’t, Chason. I didn’t die, at all. You can’t die, either! Please. Stay with me!”
“Forever and then some.” He whispered and everything went black.
***
“Chason!”
Oh God, what was she going to do? Mara supported his weight on her lap, trying to keep the blood in his body with her fingers. How was she going to get him to a doctor? She couldn’t leave him and go find one. What if Vandal came back? What if he died while she was gone? She had no intention of moving from Chason’s side, until she was sure he was safe. But, was she strong enough to jump him to a doctor by herself?
She didn’t know.
Mara had spent her whole life ignoring and suppressing her energy, not learning how to use it. She’d never taken someone else with her when she jumped. Damn it, she knew fifteen ways to serve tea, why hadn’t she learned anything about her own powers?!
There was a sudden surge of energy signally someone jumping into the fortress. Her head snapped around to stare at the doorway in alarm, moving to protect Chason as best she could. What could she do to ensure his safety if…?
“Chason?” A perfectly modulated male voice called. “Are you here?”
“Job!” Mara’s eyes widened as she realized who had arrived in the fortress. “Job, we’re up here! Please hurry, Chason’s hurt!”
There was a pounding of footsteps on the stairs and Job appeared in the doorway. He looked the same as he always did, except his tie seemed much more colorful than Mara ever remembered him wearing before.
She was so relieved to see him, she nearly cried. “Job, quick! Help him!”
Job gaped at her, his normally unreadable face going blank with shock.
A mountain of man with the looks of a dragon appeared behind him. Mara had never seen him before. She would definitely have remembered.
“Who’s that?” He asked Job. “She’s wearing my mother’s necklace.”
“It’s Mara.” Job’s voice was barely a sound.
“Oh.” The dragon said. “Isn’t she dead?”
“Do something!” Mara screamed when they just stood there. “He’s been shot!”
“Shot?” The dragon stalked over and crouched down beside her. “Guns don’t work on Elementals. Believe me I’ve tried.” He examined Chason’s chest as if he was convinced she was mistaken and he’d find a stab wound, instead.
Mara watched him pale as he studied bullet hole. “What is it? Will he be alright?”
“Whatever weapon did this, it’s not supposed to be here.”
“Kingu, can you tell if she’s… real?” Job got out.
The man called Kingu pulled his attention away from Chason. “I never met the original woman, but this one seems passable.” He looked over at the Earth King. “If you wish I could do some experiments…”
“No, I just…” Job seemed completely overwhelmed as he turned to Mara. “How did Chason bring you back?”
“It wasn’t him! It was a Time Phase named Daphne. She gave me the necklace right before I died and it protected me somehow.”
“Ah, that explains it.” Kingu agreed. “The pendant can do many things, even in the hands of idiots.”
“There is no Time Phase named Daphne.” Job declared authoritatively.
Mara glowered at him. “Well, I think she’d beg to differ.”
Job was clearly still suspicious.
Mara didn’t care. “Look, I don’t have time to do this right now! Please just help Chason. If you’re mad that I’m alive, I’m sorry. But, don’t let Chason die because of it. He doesn’t even believe I’m me. Please, Job.”
Her words seemed to get through to him. Job blinked, his attention shifting to Chason’s still form. “He’s dying? From a gun?” He sounded incredulous.
“Yes!”
“The Magnet Phase doesn’t know your own Match?” Kingu snorted. “Fool. I would know my Match anywhere.” He looked back at Mara. “Hope and I are destiny, though. Not all are so fortunate.” He brightened. “Have you heard we are having a daughter?”
Job snapped out of his trance and moved into the room. “What really happened to Chason? Who did this?”
“Vandal, of the Light House attacked us.” Mara moved over slightly so Job could crouch down beside her.
“Vandal’s alive? How can that be?” Job’s eyes went to Kingu. “Was he hiding in the Cloudland with the others?”
“No. I would have seen him. The man was reportedly dead.”
“W
ell he was here two minutes ago.” Mara tried to keep from sobbing. “Chason’s losing too much blood. We have to get him to Freya.” The doctor was Chason’s only hope.
“We’ll jump Chason to the Cold Kingdom, right now.” Job put his hand on Chason’s chest, his eyes processing the damage. “Kingu, do you recognize the kind of bullet that did this?”
“No. That’s the problem.”
Mara blinked at him in confusion. “What?”
“I know all the weapons there are in this universe. The gun that created that wound,” Kingu pointed at Chason’s chest, “does not come from our world. If a Time Phase is involved, I’m guessing that this weapon came from the future.”
Chapter Twelve
So what’s the use to all your judgment and energy?
It's the elements. You can't go against God and fate.
Anton Chekhov-“The Wife”
This vision feels different.
Closer somehow. Something mysterious and important appears in front of him. Something Raiden’s never seen before.
Stones, with carved markings on them, are arranged in a circle.
They look like Stonehenge only… older. It seems as if no one has been here for thousands of generations, but he knows that this part of the vision isn’t happening in future. At least, not far into it. The stones are here now and they play a part. Even covered in vines and dirt, they glow with energy.
Raiden glances up at the sky and finds it obscured by impossibly tall trees. He knows there is only one place this scene could be and that something important will happen there very soon.
He needs to…
Raiden’s eyes opened against the musty smelling mattress of his cell, breathing hard.
The Light Kingdom.
Those stones were in the Light Kingdom and they would be involved in the ruined future. Raiden needed to get to the monoliths and find out why. Find a way to stop them from doing whatever it was they’d do.
Where was he? He had to leave.
There was so much he needed to do before midnight.
Raiden turned his face and saw he was surrounded by Plexiglas. He was instantly bombarded with images of Phases suffering and dying in this forgotten Smoke House dungeon. Sometimes he could sense the past, as well as the future. It was never a pleasant experience. Mara had recently been held in the cell next to his. He could still feel the traces of her and Chason’s energy.
Chason.
Was the Magnet King dead?
The fog in Raiden’s mind vanished under a tide of panic. Was he too late? He jolted upright, his eyes going to readout on his watch. No. He let out a breath of relief. He still had time. Not much time, but for now Chason was still alive.
Raiden’s brain was pounding in his skull, but he wasn’t sure if it was from tension or the blow he’d taken. It didn’t matter. He just had to get out of there.
He looked out at a dark haired man who was leaning against the wall across from the cell. The guy looked like he’d recently taken a beating. Now he was playing Angry Birds on his iPhone, his bicycle chain bracelet clinking as he moved his hand. He could only be Zakkery, of the Smoke House. The Union Jack high tops were fairly distinctive.
Apparently, Raiden had finally found his quarry. Or rather his quarry had found him.
Raiden’s jaw tightened as he remembered everything that happened. This man had knocked him out cold. How could Zakkery have possibly designed such an ambush? No one had known that Raiden would be in that garden.
A new and terrifying thought pierced his pounding skull.
Once Raiden had been unconscious… Zakkery must have been alone with Fee.
Something like fear moved through Raiden’s chest, his own fate and the destruction of the world abruptly becoming unimportant.
“Oh good you’re awake.” Zakkery sighed and set his game down. “Look, I know you must be pissed, but I was just following orders.”
“Where is she?”
Zakkery blinked. “Huh…?”
Raiden cut him off, trying, and probably failing, to hide his panic. “Where is she? Did you harm her?”
Understanding dawned on Zakkery’s face. “Ohhh…. The child.” He met Raiden’s eyes steadily. “She’s fine. Don’t worry. I left her right there in her garden.”
Raiden let out a long breath. On some level, he believed him. He’d know if Fee was harmed. Still… “If you touch her, I will kill you and then myself, so I can follow you into hell and kill you some more.”
“Well, that’s graphic.” Zakkery made a face. “Seriously, dude, your Match is fine. That girl is in no danger from me. I give you my word.”
The Smoke Phase knew Fee was Raiden’s Match?
How?
Raiden stared at him, trying to figure out Zakkery’s game. “And I should take the word of a criminal?”
“Like your past is so lily white.” Zakkery retorted. “Look, everything I’m doing, I’m doing because I want my Match, too, okay? I get it. You’re upset. But, we’re kinda stuck with each other, so we might as well make the best of it. I swear on my life, the child is safe and sound in her house. Alright?”
No, it wasn’t alright.
“Let me out of here.” Raiden ordered. “Now.”
“Wouldn’t that be kinda silly, considering the trouble I just went through to lock you up?
Raiden paced behind the plastic door to his cage, his eyes scanning the cell for a way out. If Fee was safe, he could refocus on his other missions. “Why am I here?”
“Maybe I just like your company.”
If Raiden could’ve reached him, the Smoke Phase would’ve been a head shorter. Questions bombarded him and, for once, he saw no answers in his mind. “How did you know where I’d be?” And more importantly. “What could possibly hope to gain by keeping me in this cage?”
“A lot of people are getting locked up recently. It’s supposed to be some kind of predestined pattern of unification or something.” He shrugged. “I don’t know. I kinda breezed out during the explanation of why there was so much ‘recurring circality.’” He made air quotes around the phrase and snorted. “I don’t even think circality is a word, but it apparently likes to see folks tossed in prison.”
He was talking about some kind of alignment.
Shit.
That would only happen if key pieces were moving into new positions.
Raiden drew in a deep breath. “You need to release me, before you doom the universe.”
“Wow, you really just said that, didn’t cha?”
Goddamn it, why didn’t people just listen to him? “You must know who I am. You know I see the future. If you don’t let me go immediately, the repercussions will be unimaginable.”
“Oh, I bet you say that every time you get into trouble.” He adopted a gravely imitation Raiden’s ruined voice. “I see the future. If you give me that jaywalking citation, unimaginable repercussions will befall…”
“It’s not a fucking joke.”
“Everything is kind of a joke, when you look at it big picture.” Zakkery refocused on his video game. “Anyway, here’s the deal, pally. I know you’re supposed to die tonight protecting Chason, of the Magnet House.”
Raiden glanced at him sharply.
“I know that plays into some bigger war. A war that no one wins. And I know the only way to change that outcome is keep you off the board for a while. You’re sort of the pivotal pawn in cosmic chess, which means you can’t go out and play after school today, son.”
Raiden blinked. “No.” It was the only thing he could think to say.
“No?”
“No.” Raiden flattened his palms against the plastic door. Seeing the black nail polish Fee had dumped on his thumb made his heart pound even faster. This couldn’t happen. He wouldn’t let it happen. “This is my final day alive. I’ve seen it. I save Chason and the world is preserved. That must happen.”
At three minutes to midnight Chason would perish and the future would end… unless Raiden di
ed in his place. It was all so clear. Even new visions of the ruined future couldn’t change what had to happen. Raiden had to die.
Zakkery looked unimpressed with that plan. “Sorry, but we’ve interrupted your regularly scheduled destiny. Nothin’ personal.”
“You can’t do this.” Raiden scraped a hand over his shaved head and tried to sound reasonable. “Without Chason, the entire world will suffer.”
“Chason’s not going to die, either.” Zakkery hesitated. “Well, probably not. I’ll admit, I’m a little sketchy about that part of the overall strategy.”
For the time being, Raiden didn’t know or care who Zakkery was working with. “Whatever your ‘strategy’ is, it’s wrong. It destroys us all.” He glanced down at his watch, willing the numbers to slow their relentless countdown. “I’ve seen it in my visions. I’ve seen what will happen if I’m still alive in ten hours.”
“I have it on good authority that the world after you die isn’t so great, either.”
It wasn’t, but it was still better than the bleak emptiness of his visions.
Raiden didn’t know how much of the future Zakkery was privy to, but it didn’t matter. The results would be the same regardless. “Fate has a plan. Disrupting it means countless ripples in the pond that change everything.”
“Maybe that’s the point.” Zakkery retorted. “Maybe this is fate’s plan. Maybe Gaia didn’t like the outcome of that other future and she wants us to rewrite it.”
The boy didn’t understand.
Raiden tried a different tactic. “You saw my Match.”
As insane as it was, a small part of him was glad that someone else knew that Fee was his. That he could finally call her his Match out loud. When he was gone, no one else would know who he’d been to her.
“Yeah, I saw her.”
He met Zakkery’s wary eyes. “You say you desire a Match of your own. Imagine if she’d been given to you as child. Helpless and innocent and small… and you are all that’s standing between her and the coming darkness. What would you do to protect her?”
Zakkery winced.
Raiden kept going, more words than he usually spoke in a month pouring out of him. “Today, it will be my life or Fee’s. My future or hers. Look at me and tell me which you would choose if she was your Match. What would your choice be in my situation?”
Queen of the Magnetland (The Elemental Phases Book 5) Page 21
