by John Goode
He nodded, and we sat back down again. “Everything I’ve told you… I met her and it was love at first sight. She was… she was beautiful, and she liked my music.”
“So she didn’t tell you she was on the run from her people while she tried to stop a maniac from destroying the Nine Realms?”
“Not at first,” he said, sounding embarrassed.
“So then you can look at me and say I am not just some human-shaped cog in an elaborate plan dreamed up by my mom?”
He looked like I had slapped him.
“Is that what you thought? That the only reason we had you was… for all that?” he said, gesturing outside. “Kane, your mother was as surprised as me by the fact she was pregnant. She didn’t want to leave all this to you. Why do you think she made me forget?”
I couldn’t answer because tears were stinging my eyes.
“She wanted you to have a normal life. She didn’t want this. It’s why she told me to move here, something about ley lines and the fact they would mask what you really were in case someone came looking for you. Your mother loved you, Kane, and I do too. You have to believe that.”
I did. I just needed to hear it from my dad.
Standing up to hug him, I felt better than I had in a long time. This was my home and I was safe here, and that was something I hadn’t felt in a long time.
A cold fire burned in my chest as a pain unlike anything I had ever felt before exploded inside me. It was more than pain; it was… fear… death. It felt like part of me died. I used my power and tried to figure out what was attacking me….
And then I knew… it was Hawk.
I was feeling what Hawk was.
The butch part of me wishes I could tell you I grit my teeth and tried to endure that shit, but I can’t. The scream that came ripping out of me was two octaves too high, and I did what anyone would do when spiritually kicked in the balls. I fell to the ground and pulled myself into the fetal position. In this case it meant more than the physical gesture: it was also pulling my replicas back in case I needed that power.
The pain was incredible because it wasn’t real.
I mean it was real, because I was on the ground howling like I had just cut a finger off all Four-Rooms style. I meant not real in the sense that it wasn’t something physical happening to Hawk. Normally when we share pain like this, I can feel where it is coming from, a body part or a wound, but this was more. This was… this was his soul, our soul.
I tried using my power to wall off the pain and gain some composure.
“Kane, are you okay?” Ruber asked, floating over to me.
“Kane!” my dad screamed, kneeling down, looking afraid to touch me in case something was broken.
“I don’t sense anything physically wrong,” Ruber tried to explain.
Slowly the pain began to fade, and my mind came out of the white-hot haze that was agony. I tried to sit up, but my dad stopped me. “Whoa, slow down.”
“Can’t, Hawk in trouble,” I said, brushing him off. I got to my feet and waited to see if I was going to fall down again. When I didn’t I did a mental check of my powers and began to summon them again.
“What are you doing?” Ruber asked, sounding concerned.
“Hawk needs me,” I said, beginning to open a portal that would bring me to him.
“You can’t do that,” Ruber warned.
“What’s going on?” my dad asked, confused.
“Someone needs me,” I said, eyes still closed.
“Kane, you can’t do this,” Ruber said, sounding more ominous now.
“Watch me.”
And a portal began to open in my living room.
I heard Ruber say one word and the portal snapped shut.
“No.”
See, this was the problem with my powers. I could open a portal between worlds just fine, but I had no idea how I was doing it. The actual mechanics were lost on me. I just wanted to go somewhere and I went. Presumably there are a ton of rules that go along with a Sending and Ruber knew them all while I knew none. So I could open a million portals, but he could collapse them all just as quickly.
My eyes snapped open, and I knew they were glowing.
“Get out of my way, Ruber. Hawk needs me.”
“No!” he barked, the first time I had heard him speak in anger. “You have people out there, Kane, people who are here because of you. They are counting on you to lead them, to help them. You can’t just leave them because you think Hawk is in trouble.”
“He could be dead!” I raged back.
“Then you leaving is doubly stupid because you can do nothing for him if he is dead. You can do something here, and you will.”
We stared at each other for what seemed like forever.
“You know I can literally take you apart and leave?”
Part of me could not believe those words were coming out of my mouth. Turns out my dad couldn’t believe it either. “Kane! What are you talking about?”
I ignored him and kept glaring at Ruber.
“Then you will have to, Kane, because I am not letting you shirk your responsibilities.”
I’m not going to lie, for a few moments there I had no idea what I was going to do. I mean, part of me was really thinking about destroying one of my best friends, and part of me was screaming in horror that I was considering it.
We’ll never find out because my dad was done with my shit.
“Kane Matthew Vess!”
I looked over at him, and he looked really angry.
“Are you seriously threatening this… gem? What is wrong with you?”
“The person I am in love with might be dead,” I yelled back.
“Do you think he would want to be responsible for you killing a sentient being? If your… friend is dead, will killing Ruber here change anything?”
I said nothing.
“I raised you better than this.”
And he had.
What was I doing? Threatening Ruber? Fighting with my dad? Thinking that what I thought was right and no other way counted?
Oh my God, I was turning into Hawk.
The second I thought it, I could see it. Parts of our minds had bled over into each other, and it was affecting us. I was way more grrrr than I ever was, and he was feeling for others. The moment I could separate the two, all of my aggression faded. I could still feel Hawk’s thoughts in my head, but I knew they were his and not mine.
“I’m sorry, Ruber, of course you’re right.” I thought about telling him why, but it just sounded like an excuse to me. I was a big boy. I screwed up. I could take the punishment.
“It’s quite all right,” he said with a small bob.
“We’re here for a reason, so let’s get to it.” Taking a deep breath, I summoned the other mes and sent them back. My dad took a step back as he saw two identical copies of his son fly out of the house.
“Sorry, Dad, should have warned you.”
He just smiled and shook his head. “It’s okay, just been a while since I’ve been around this kind of thing.”
“So now what?” Ruber asked.
“We wait. I’m not leaving my dad’s side. Oberon came here for leverage, and when things go south, he’ll end up here.”
“What about your friend, the female? She had contact with Spike, which means Oberon may know of her.”
Dammit, he was right. If he couldn’t get at my dad, taking Jewel hostage would be just as bad. I had to get them all together if I were going to protect them. “Okay, Dad, I need you to get closer to me.”
“Why? What are we doing now?”
“I’m teleporting us to Jewel’s house so I can keep an eye on all of you at once.”
If my dad seemed weirded out by the concept of me sending us across town magically, he didn’t show it. Sighing, I closed my eyes and thought of Jewel’s house.
The next second we were gone.
WHEN I came back, Ater and Kor were doing badly against the behemoth.
The thing had Kor in one mas
sive fist while the other was trying to hit the ever-dodging Ater. Whatever this monster’s skin was made of, Kor’s arrow and Ater’s weapons did nothing to it. First things first. I mentally snagged Kor and teleported him from the beast’s fist to the spot next to me.
“Thank you,” he said, trying to catch his breath.
“What is that?” I asked, not sure of the energy waves coming off it. Whatever it was, the behemoth was not just a normal creature.
“It’s a legend. I’ve never seen one before. They are divinely powered, I think.”
How did Oberon get a hold of one of these?
It charged at Ater, and I threw a bolt of energy at its chest, pausing it in its track. Slowly it looked over at me with very human intelligence. Best-case scenario? I got its attention. Worst case?
I just pissed it off.
It let out a roar that made Mufasa sound like a house cat, and the hairs on the back of my neck stood straight up in fear.
“It’s going to charge,” Kor said, grabbing my arm to pull me away.
“Let it,” I said, yanking it out of his grip.
This thing was going down.
WHEN I came back, Demain was doing badly against the devas.
The two massive women had drawn swords and were both attacking the Red Queen with all their might. She was fending off the blows with her magic, but Hawk’s combat experience told me it was a losing battle. Demain didn’t have the skill to stand against the raw physical power the devas were bringing.
Demain went down to one knee, throwing a magical bubble around her as both swords came crashing down on her.
Mentally I snagged her and teleported her next to me.
“Where the hell did you go?” she raged once she realized what had happened.
“You’re welcome,” I said sarcastically. “What are these things?”
“Devas are watchdogs that are sent by the Beings to mete out justice. They are insanely powerful.”
How did Oberon get a hold of these?
Both devas looked over at me, and I could see their attention turn to me.
“They’re coming,” Demain warned.
“Let them,” I said, summoning my power.
These things were going down.
WE APPEARED in front of Jewel’s house, and I could see the windows had been boarded up from the inside. A pair of jet-black horses with demonic, red eyes were chasing a pack of people down the street.
“Protect him,” I said to Ruber, gesturing at my dad.
I heard my dad cry, “Kane what are you doing?” but I ignored it as I teleported in front of the horses. They reared up and looked like they were going to trample me. There was a flash of light, and two plastic toy ponies with rainbow manes sat in the street in front of me.
I looked back to the pack of people, who had paused to see what was going to happen. I knew them, of course. It was impossible to live in this town and not know everyone, but from the way they were looking at me, you’d swear I was an alien.
“Find cover, in a house or something. Don’t come out until someone tells you it’s safe.”
The people didn’t wait to question my orders; they just took off running.
“And you’re welcome,” I said to myself as I picked up the two little ponies.
I walked back to my dad and Ruber, and I could see the look of amazement in my dad’s face.
“How did you do that?”
I gave him a smile as I stuck the ponies in my jacket pocket. “I take after Mom.”
That seemed to be a good enough answer for him.
“Kane!”
I looked over and saw Jewel standing in front of her open door. Her parents were behind her. They were not all good with what was going on around them.
When I had seen my dad, the fear that had been hounding me since I jumped through Ruber’s portal to save Hawk had vanished. In a million years she would never do that to me, yet I did it without a second’s thought. The guilt that I had left her behind without being sure she was okay had been crippling, but I had been avoiding it since I needed to help Hawk. But now, seeing her run toward me, I could finally let out the mental breath I had been holding.
“What happened to you?” she asked, pulling me into a huge hug.
“That’s a story,” I said, hugging her back.
“How long has it been for you?” I looked at her in surprise, and she added, “You look bigger, like you’ve been working out. You have a tan, and if I didn’t know better, you look about an inch taller.”
I glanced back at my dad and saw the embarrassment on his face. “I didn’t know how to tell you, but you do look older.”
“Months,” I told her, but now it seemed longer.
“We are not safe out here,” Ruber reminded me.
“Get out!” Jewel exclaimed, staring up at the floating gem. “Oh you are so dead. You went off on an adventure without me.”
“Sorry,” I said sheepishly.
“Come on,” she said, pulling me toward her house. “Let’s get inside, and you can start telling me what happened.”
I followed her, trying to pay attention to her talking and the other two mes and their fights.
THE BEHEMOTH hit my shield, and it felt like an atomic bomb had slapped me.
Now, sure, I don’t know what that feels like, but honestly, it couldn’t have hurt as bad as that punch did. My shield held, but the feedback through it knocked me back half a block, and my vision clouded with dancing spots in really, really bright colors. I rolled half-a-dozen times before coming to a stop, but I didn’t have time to recover because I could hear the thing charging down the street at me.
I began to panic, but Hawk’s training kicked in, and I knew I’d been an idiot for attacking the thing head-on. I looked at the street and changed it to pudding with a thought. The behemoth vanished from view as it fell into the newly formed Jackson Street Pudding Pit.
It was enraged and confused, something that wouldn’t last long.
“I need to know what that thing is,” I said to Kor and Ater.
“Why?” Ater asked. “Why not just destroy it?”
It was a good question, one I couldn’t answer yet, but I knew that was the wrong move.
THE DEVAS hit like Mack Trucks.
Not that I had been hit by any truck, much less one named Mack, but I imagine the beating my shield was receiving was just like a Mack might dish out if given time. My head was pounding from the feedback that came through my shield, and I couldn’t stay here indefinitely.
“How did Oberon get his hands on something this powerful?” I asked Demain, struggling to keep my shield in place.
“Who cares? Destroy them!”
Again, it seemed like the right idea, but in the back of my mind something didn’t feel right. I needed more information.
“WHAT THE hell is a behemoth?” I asked myself out loud.
Jewel stared at me with a really odd look. Then it hit me. This me had been telling her what I had been through since everyone last saw me, and out of nowhere I had asked that question. “Sorry, my mind is literally in three places right now.”
“Like in the Bible?” Jewel asked. She had a PhD in my weirdness, so she did the logical thing and focused on the question.
“The Bible?” Now I was confused.
“Yeah, in the Bible, God made two big bads. The leviathan that was going to live in the ocean and a behemoth that was going to live in the desert. They are, like, end-of-the-world stuff.”
That didn’t make any sense.
“And a deva?”
“You mean daeva, and they are old things. They are referred to as false gods or gods that were rejected. Why?”
Two major-league supernatural creatures out of nowhere? That wasn’t right.
“IT’S GETTING out of the pit,” Ater said, taking a step back from the edge.
Sure enough, the behemoth was climbing the walls with claws that could slice a Volkswagen in half. I looked at the creature and this tim
e really used my power. If this was one of God’s watchdogs, then it should be radiating all sorts of glowy goodness.
Which it wasn’t.
“Stand back,” I told the elves as the behemoth cleared the lip of the pit.
Destroying it would be easy, Oberon knew that. All I had to do was take the fundamental parts of it and scatter them to the wind. That wasn’t even complicated, so why did he want me to do it so bad? He left these monsters in my town and told them to attack me if I showed up, so why? Why make it so easy?
From Hawk’s memory I knew his father never made anything easy.
Instead of destroying the behemoth, I began to take it apart, particle by particle. It was like an overly complex jigsaw puzzle as the strands of reality that made up every single thing in the universe began to loosen. This was time-consuming, and the second I started, the creature began to panic and came charging at me.
With no time for finesse, I grabbed the strings and pulled them apart, betting there was something inside of it.
The outer shell of the behemoth tore like paper and vanished, and what fell out of the center stopped me dead cold.
“OH THAT makes sense,” I said to myself.
“What does? Are you insane?” Demain screamed as my shield began to crack.
“Stand back,” I told her, letting it vanish. The devas—sorry, daevas—stumbled forward, and I grabbed their reality as I had the behemoth’s and pulled.
And two humans dropped to the ground naked.
Not just any humans but Ms. Brody and Mr. Lawrence, both teachers at my high school. Demain saw the two helpless forms and began to channel a spell at them to destroy them once and for all.
I magically backhanded her so hard she flew to the middle of the street.
“Are you insane? They are innocent people! He is turning the town into monsters and hoping I kill them.”
She looked five kinds of pissed. “Then we need to destroy them so he has no one else to turn against us.”
“I swear to you, if you take one more step toward them, you’re going to spend the rest of your life bald and toothless.”
