The Box Omnibus #1 (The Box, The Journal, The Sword)

by Gaudet, Christina G.

  I follow the pain up to a chain wrapped around my wrists and attached to the ceiling. While I was out, my entire weight must have been held by the chain and my arms. No wonder they’re numb.

  With the ache comes understanding. Rilla must have used her magic to knock me out and tied me up while I was unconscious.

  Magic.

  I reach for the pool of power in my core I’ve become so used to in the past couple of years. It’s almost impossible to imagine a time when my magic wasn’t there, though I’d gone without it most of my life. It’s such an important part of me now.

  When my imaginary fingers grasp at the magic and shove it to my physical hands, nothing happens. I try again. This time I can feel the power slip through my grasp as though trying to scoop up a handful of water with open fingers.

  Concentrating on my center, I attempt to grab hold of it once again, this time slowly so there’s no chance of messing up.

  Nothing. I can feel the magic inside me, what little is left, but no matter what I do, I can’t grab a hold of it.

  And then I notice it. The trickle of magic sliding up my arm and into the chains. But it doesn’t stop there. The chain is screwed into the top of a door frame and surrounding the metal is a symbol pulsing with the light of magic.

  Part of my mind recognizes the frame right away, but I push it aside as I focus on the magic being drained from me. Not just up, but also down. Another symbol at my feet. But the panic I feel has nothing to do with the symbol and everything to do with the two storey drop I notice next to me when I look down.

  I scramble away from the edge, but I can’t move far with the chains locking me in place. Even though I’m trapped, the fright does clear my mind a bit. I’m able to recognize where I am. Gran’s house. Second floor. In the threshold of the hidden door.

  Where the actual door has gone is unclear. It looks like it has been torn off its hinges, or more likely blasted away by Victor, or Rilla.

  “How do you feel, my dear?” Rilla steps out of the shadows of my room so I can better see her. “You’re not in too much pain, are you?”

  Male laughter from Sin’s room makes me turn from the sorceress. Victor walks out dragging Rose by her hair.

  She struggles, but she doesn’t have a chance. He’s got her beat in both strength and magic and she’s out of knives, unless she has more hidden away somewhere. I doubt she does. She’d have used them by now if she did.

  I fix my attention on Rilla, unable to watch as Victor slams Rose down against the floor and steps on her hand hard enough for bone to crack and her to scream in pain.

  “This isn’t you,” I say to Rilla. I know she’s under the control of Victor’s magic, but maybe there’s some hope she might be able to gain some command over him if she tried. “You’re a sorceress, and you have a wizard stealing your magic. You can’t let him. You must know you’re stronger than him. All you need to do is fight. His magic is nothing compared to yours.”

  “Why would I want to fight?” she asks.

  He must be controlling her mind as well as her magic. It makes sense. Why else would she stay by him and help him out the way she has?

  “Because he’s using you to try and destroy the worlds,” I say. “Please, you have to listen to me. There must be some part of you that understands what’s happening is wrong. You’re a sorceress. Just like me. And he’s using other woman like us all over the world in portals like this one. Torturing them. He’d torture you too if he thought it would be more beneficial to him than using you as his slave.”

  “Sweetie, I think you’re mistaken,” she says. “He’s not torturing me.”

  “Maybe not now,” I say. “But I promise you, if he ever gets the chance, he will. He’s been corrupted by the magic he’s been stealing. All of the wizards have. You need to fight back. You can use the connection between the two of you and fight back.”

  She steps up to Victor, her eyes never leaving mine and she puts a single finger under his chin, forcing him to look at her.

  “And why would I want to break a connection to the best servant I’ve ever had?”

  Any hope I might have had at surviving disappears as I recognize my mistake. Victor hasn’t been in control at all. This is all Rilla’s plan. There’s no hope for her to break the spell, because she doesn’t want the spell to be broken.

  She will not be saving us.

  “Why?” I ask. “Why are you doing this?”

  “Isn’t it obvious,” she says. “These worlds are broken. There was a time when I believed if the sorceresses regained power, we’d be able to fix things once again. But I was wrong. Sorceresses don’t have the strength to do what’s necessary to make things right. Most don’t have the strength to fight in the war. Like you, they run and hide and hope they can pretend everything is okay.”

  “And that gives you the right to torture us and use us for your own sick plans?”

  She wiggles a finger at me and tsks. “Now, now,” she says. “Torture is such a harsh word. I like to think of this as giving you the opportunity to finally use your magic for good. You are helping all of humanity with your sacrifice.”

  “By destroying the worlds?”

  I can’t believe what I’m hearing. I thought the corruption of magic was causing the wizards to go crazy. If that’s true, what’s her excuse?

  “So we can rebuild and start fresh,” she says. “When the worlds combine once more, we’ll have a chance no one has had for generations. A chance to start over. Do things right. And of course when I say we, I mean me. Obviously you will be dead.”

  I struggle with the chains, hoping they’ll somehow come loose so I can snap her neck. But I’m too weak and my attempts are my most pathetic ones yet.

  “You’re insane,” I say.

  The floor vibrates. Quiet at first and then strong enough to leave no question in my mind of what I’m feeling. Earthquake.

  Rilla smiles and braces herself against Victor.

  “Looks like things are finally getting started,” she says. “This means it’s time for us to leave. Sorry I’m not going to stick around for the final event, but few places will be safe during the transformation. I’m sorry to say this will not be one of them.”

  She wiggles her fingers and a show of lights sparkles around both her and Victor.

  “Happy death,” she says.

  And then they’re gone. Teleported to who knows where.

  Clutching her broken hand, Rose drags herself toward me.

  “Stop,” I say before she gets too close. “If any part of you passes into the spell, you’ll be trapped in here with me.”

  She stops in her tracks and looks around for a nonexistent solution.

  “What should I do?” she asks. “Tell me what to do, and I’ll do it. I just don’t know enough about magic to break this spell.”

  “There’s nothing.” I’ve never felt so deflated in my entire life. I thought I was helping by coming here. I thought I’d be able to stop this from happening. How stupid and childish of me. “They’ve won.”

  “I don’t believe that.” Rose forces herself to her feet. Much like with her hand, I notice she’s also favoring one of her legs. Victor must have done a number on her before bringing her out to the hall. “There is always a way. Everything I’ve ever read about magic has told me there is a way to break any spell; you just need the right ingredients.”

  “Rose.” She doesn’t listen. “Rose, it’s over. This spell is beyond anything I’ve ever seen before. There isn’t enough magic in this house to break the spell.”

  “Don’t.” She points at me with her good hand and I can see she’s doing her best not to cry. “Don’t you dare give up. You have no right to. Aldric would never quit on you, so you can’t quit on him. Now be quiet and tell me what to do.”

  “I think that’s the very definition of an oxymoron,” an unfamiliar female voice says from somewhere downstairs. “I don’t know if I’ve ever heard one used so perfectly before. Very nice, Rose. I mus
t applaud you for excellent use.”

  Rose leans over the railing to the stairs directly in front of me and laughs. “Loraine? How did you...Are you okay? Wait, Fitzroy isn’t here, is he?”

  Al’s sister comes bounding up the stairs and jumps into Rose’s arms before Rose has a chance to react.

  “Yes it’s me. I’m not sure what you were going to ask. I’m fine. And no. He’s not here, and I have a feeling we probably won’t be seeing him for a while to come. How are you? You look well.” She backs away and pulls a face. “In a tired, dirty, crying sort of way. Oh, and you got dirt all over me. Lovely.”

  As distracting as Loraine might be with her speed talking, it doesn’t mean a thing, because the moment Al comes up the stairs the only thing in the worlds is him.

  Chapter Twenty Seven

  Al takes one look at the chains wrapped around me and lurches toward me as though he plans to break them off with his bare hands.

  “Stop Aldric.” Loraine steps in front of him and he’s forced to stop while still several feet away from me. “What have you learned about running into the middle of big evil spells?” she says. “That’s right. Don’t do it.”

  “Lou.” He leans around her to speak to me as though she’s not there. “Are you okay? Are you hurt?”

  A screeching whine comes from somewhere below, followed by a bird’s call. Sin. A few seconds later she makes her way up the stairs two at a time.

  “I locked them up like you said,” Sin says. “Now where is she?” She stops the moment she can see me through the railing. “Well, shit.”

  “Nobody panic quite yet,” Loraine says. “There may still be time to fix this.”

  I can feel the chains begin to shudder only seconds before the entire house shakes. The others have to scramble to catch their footing as I rely on the chains to keep me from toppling through the doorway. A glance over my shoulder causes my stomach to sink to a new low.

  On the edge of the property, the ground has cracked in a rugged circle as far as I can see. I'm sure the crack runs all of the way around the house, separating us from the rest of the world. From both worlds.

  “Okay,” Loraine says when the ground stops moving. “You can panic now.”

  "Cut the chains." I yank them down as hard as I can manage but they don't do anything more than jangle together. An ominous sound.

  Al looks at them, but doesn't come any closer and doesn't draw his sword.

  "What are you waiting for?" Sin puts a hand on Al as though to push him toward me, but doesn't seem to put any force behind the touch. She's just as reluctant to get any closer to me as Al. At least they both recognize the danger of getting caught in the spell. "The sword can cut through magic, right? Then start slicing."

  "Aldric?" Fear causes Rose's voice to catch. "What is it?"

  There's sadness behind his gaze, deeper than anything I've witnessed before. He can't help me.

  "For christsake, Al," Sin says. "Cut the bloody chain before we all die."

  "I can't."

  It takes the space of another earthquake for everyone to register what he's said.

  Everyone but Loraine. She doesn’t seem surprised at all.

  Although Sin doesn’t speak loudly, there’s more threat in her voice than I’ve ever heard from her shouts. "What?"

  “The sword no longer has the power.” He draws the blade and demonstrates against the wall, which would normally have Sin up in arms. But when the blade barely digs into the plaster before getting stuck, she doesn’t say a word. “It happened when I cut Loraine free. I guess the magic in it was absorbed back into Loraine. Much like what happened to you, Lou, when I killed Stewart.”

  The largest earthquake yet. The walls behind the stairs begin to crack and large chunks of plaster drop from the ceiling to shatter across the floor.

  My feet slip, and for a moment I'm suspended over empty air. When I manage to get my footing once again and look around at the others, I discover all but Loraine have fallen.

  Loraine stands with her legs spread for balance and her arms above her head. Magic flows from every inch of her like a blanket of light. Every place it touches the house, it spreads out, flowing through each board and nail until her magic weaves through every inch of the house.

  “Sorry.” Her voice is strained as she attempts to speak without breaking her concentration. “Looks like you guys will have to figure this out on your own. I’m going to be busy for a little bit. Saving the house. Nothing big.”

  Sin runs to her bedroom and starts tossing stuff around. "There has to be something in Gran's books," she says from the other room. "She has information on everything. There must be a way to stop this.”

  "If we can’t break the chains, maybe we can destroy the symbols instead?" Rose’s eyes dart back and forth between Al and me. "That's how magic works, isn't it? Destroy the source."

  The problem is the symbols are no longer the source of the spell. I am.

  There's only one way to stop this. Al's going to have to kill me.

  I close my eyes and feel the tears squeeze through my lids and slide down my face. There's no other option. To save the worlds, I must die. It’s what Al was afraid of happening all along.

  "Do it," I whisper. He doesn't answer. I gather every ounce of courage I have, which is less than I'd like, and force myself to look him in the eye. "Do it."

  He won’t stop shaking his head. Even though he knows what's at stake, he won't take the next step. The only solution.

  "Do it!" I shouldn't have shouted. What little energy I still have is exhausted in those two words. I slump, the pain in my arms barely registering. "Please Al. You know it's the only way."

  "What is?" Sin asks from the doorway. I can feel her gaze pierce through me as though she's able to see in my mind. "No. No way." She rushes over to Al and attempts to shove him away from me, but doesn't succeed at even forcing him to take a step back. "That's not an option."

  "Aldric?" Rose says in a tiny voice. She might not understand exactly what we're arguing about, but she must feel the tension of the room shift to a whole new level.

  "It's the only way." Al looks as though he's begging for forgiveness from first Sin, then Rose, and finally me.

  I don't want to die. I've barely started to live. I finally just graduated from high school. I've only been able to kiss the guy I love once, and it was while surrounded by enemies and having the power drained out of me. I need more time.

  But what more can a person want? My death will save everyone else.

  Nope. Even thinking about it in those terms sucks.

  I don't want to die.

  The ground shifts again, though this time the house barely shudders. Outside is a different story. The cracks surrounding the house have split off, creating deep chasms in the earth. I can actually see the sections of ground move as the gorges widen and engulf everything they touch.

  A giant tree, planted however many decades ago, succumbs to the gap with a loud crack. It pulls from its roots to fall out of sight.

  We're out of time.

  "Al," I say. "Please. You have to."

  "Could you?" he asks, not just to me, but to Sin and Rose too. "To save the world, could you kill the person you love?"

  How could he? How could he say it now, when everything around us is falling apart? Why couldn't it be during a time when I could actually savor the word and everything it means?

  "One life," I say. "To save the world. To save both worlds. It's an easy choice."

  "Yes." His lips lift in an almost smile. "It truly is."

  Sin backs off Al and leans against the cracked wall beside me. "So." She says. "This is it, huh? Well. It was fun while it lasted."

  It isn't right. I can't let them do this. They’re making the wrong choice.

  And then Rose grabs Al's sword. She points the blade at me as Al steps between us.

  "You can't do this." Her eyes are bright with a mix of tears and insanity. "You can't choose her over everything else. Over ev
eryone else."

  "Oh, Rose." The pain in Al's voice hits the girl like a punch to the gut. "I'm so sorry. I'm so very sorry. But I do."

  Her arms droop as his words wound her in ways I can only imagine. But as the ground shakes again, her strength returns to her.

  "Move, Aldric," she says. "You might not be able to kill her, but I can."

  Instead of fighting for the weapon, Al turns his back on her and breaks the gap between us. As soon as he steps into the circle of the symbols I can feel his magic as easily as my own. For the first time since he killed Stewart, there is no trace of corruption in him. He's clean. And it feels so right having him next to me.

  His hand touches my cheek and the tension leaves his face for a moment as he gives me a true smile, the kind I've been yearning for since the first time I met him. When he presses his lips to mine, everything fades away. All that matters is the two of us and every inch of our bodies touch.

  I can feel a trickle of my magic pass to him, but there's no pain. I'm glad to give it. I'd give him anything he wants. And when his own strange but interesting power trickles into me in response, I know he'd do the same.

  Without breaking contact with any part of me besides his lips, Al ends the kiss to say, "I'm part of the spell now." His head moves just enough to look over his shoulder at Rose. "The only way to stop it is to kill us both. Can you do it?"

  I feel like I should ready myself. Tense my body for the attack. But I can't. I'm too comfortable wrapped in Al's arms to fear death.

  A moment later, the sword clatters to the floor.

  A moment after that, the worlds end.

  Chapter Twenty Eight

  I press my head into Al’s chest and breathe in his scent. Everything could be okay if I could spend the rest of my life like this.

  But everything’s not all right. And no matter how much I try to pretend otherwise, it will never be all right.