“Still in the capital, according to the tracking spell.”
A tracking spell? Blood magic. Victoria had done a spell, but if he was in the capital, how had he gotten there from the lake so quick? I had tried to find out, but Greg put me to sleep. I hadn’t just drifted off. That’s why everything was so hazy. “Where’s Greg?” I asked.
“Talking with Lady Gabrielle. From what I overheard, things aren’t good. All the known leprechaun villages have been abandoned. They seem to be congregating in the forest. There is talk of a new leader bringing them together. The council fear an attack is imminent.”
“But surely they would be outnumbered. Why start a fight they can’t win?”
Victoria looked down at me with sad eyes. “I believe that’s why this leader of theirs wants you alive—so he can steal your power. Assuming he knows how to use your magic, he would be difficult to stop, even with an army.”
“This is so messed up.”
“Flopsey is still talking with Lady Gabrielle. She may have a solution. He is also asking her about Matt, so try not to worry too much. I will go get you some food. You must be starving.”
I nodded. The look of pity on her face as she left almost broke me. There was something she wasn’t telling me, or at least something she suspected that she didn’t want to share with me. How had this become my life? Every time I thought I’d discovered my new normal, everything fell apart. If the leprechauns didn’t get my power, would they still attack? That woman had said my dead body was better than no capture. They were going to attack no matter what. My magic would just be a bonus, and if they couldn’t have it, they wanted me out of the way. I looked at my palms. Was my magic really that powerful?
“Mellissa,” my dad shouted from downstairs, making me jump. I thought Victoria was coming back with food, but he must’ve had other ideas. I dragged myself up and walked out of my room. I almost fell over my feet. Walking toward me was Matt. I felt like a weight had been lifted off my shoulders at the sight of him.
I ran to him and hugged him. “Matt, where have you been? I was so worried.”
“I’m sorry about this morning,” he said, looking down at me. His gaze was cold and empty. The usual light in his eyes was gone. “I’m glad you are all right. I was captured by leprechauns, but I managed to escape.”
I put my hand over my mouth. “Oh my God. Are you all right? Greg can heal any wounds.”
“I am just fine now that I have found you.” Matt gave me a smile, but it didn’t have any warmth in it. The way he was speaking wasn’t like him at all. Something was wrong. I could feel it deep in my heart.
“Come on. I was just about to get some food,” I said, turning to walk downstairs. I screamed as something dragged me back and threw me into the wall. I hit the floor with a thud.
Matt laughed. “I realised I made a mistake approaching you this morning.”
I looked up to see Matt with what looked like a ball of shadows in his hand. “Matt, what is going on?”
“I should have waited for moonlight. Now, my power will exceed that of you and your guardians.”
He threw the shadow ball at me. I threw my arms in front of me, forming a barrier. The shadows dissolved it. Before I had time to blink, Matt lifted his arm, and a dark sphere formed around me. I punched and kicked at it, but it was solid, like a wall. Matt slowly walked toward me with a smirk on his face. He turned his wrist, and the ball began to fill with water.
This couldn’t be happening. Matt had just attacked me. He was my best friend. Nothing made sense. I blasted light energy at the sphere, but my magic had no effect on it. My blood ran cold. Water gushed around me. If I didn’t get out soon, I would be immersed in seconds.
“Once you are close to death, your power will be mine to take.”
The smile on Matt’s face faded as a barrier appeared around him. Barrier after barrier formed around Matt. After at least twelve barriers were around him, Matt was pulled away from me. Greg ran to me and put his hands on the sphere. My head was only just above the water now. I couldn’t stand anymore. I wasn’t sure how long I could hold my breath.
“Mellissa, you need to get yourself out of there,” Greg shouted. “The magic he is using is of a higher level than mine.”
I tried to form an energy blast, but it faded as the sphere completely filled. It was like time slowed. I threw my arms around, trying to blast my way out, but my magic wasn’t working. This couldn’t be it for me. Greg hit the sphere from the outside. He was shouting at me, but I couldn’t hear him anymore. I couldn’t hold my breath for much longer.
A flurry of dark shadows appeared behind Greg. I tried to shout, only to have my mouth fill with water. It felt like pinpricks as it went down, and my lungs burned. Shadows wrapped around Greg and pulled him toward Matt. How had he managed to get out of so many barriers so quickly? This magic wasn’t Matt’s. It was something darker. I had to save myself. I couldn’t just give up. My life wasn’t the only one in danger. I shut my eyes and released a blast of light energy.
I hit the floor and gasped for air. I didn’t have time to think. I released another blast of light, breaking through the shadows. I dived at Greg and teleported. We landed on the floor in the living room. I rolled onto my back, sucking in big breaths.
Greg got up and walked over to the door. “Mellissa, you need to teleport somewhere farther away.”
I sat up. “I can’t just go. What about the others?” I put my hand on my chest. My throat stung with every breath I took. It felt like my heart was about to break. “Matt attacked me. Why would he do that?”
Greg walked back over to me. He knelt in front of me and put his hand on my cheek. “That’s not Matt. Your safety is all that matters now. You need to teleport away.”
Greg was almost as soaked as I was. We both jumped up at the sound of a scream and a crash. It sounded like there was a fight going on just outside this room. I ran out of the room to see Harkura being thrown down the hall and through the kitchen door. Matt went to walk toward Harkura, but Victoria stepped in his path. “Matt, what are you doing?”
“You really are all so stupid,” he replied. “I assume that one is the little elf’s new guardian. I will kill you two, and then there will be no one left to protect her.”
A dark shadow surrounded Matt. He lifted his hand and threw a shadow ball at Victoria. She swiftly froze his attack. The ball of ice fell to the floor and shattered. They both fired off another attack. They were siblings; they shouldn’t be fighting. Everything that was going on was almost a blur. It was as if my brain didn’t want to process what was happening. Their fight moved to the kitchen.
This person may look like Matt, but he was not the same person. Everything about him was so cold, and the magic he was using was so dark. I had sensed something wasn’t right about him, but I’d pretended everything was fine. I hadn’t wanted to believe something was wrong. I had wanted things to go back to normal so much that I’d ignored my gut feeling in hopes of making that happen.
I went to join the fight but froze on the spot. My dad lay on the bottom of the stairs. I ran over to him and knelt beside him. “Dad.” I rolled him over, but he was not responsive. My eyes began to fill with tears. Greg appeared beside me. He laid my dad flat out on the floor and started chanting. Matt had done this. At least, his look-alike had. I stood up with my fists clenched and teleported to the kitchen.
The room was completely destroyed, but no one was inside. There was a massive hole in the side of the house that led to the garden. I ran through it and put my hands over my mouth.
Matt smirked. “Good of you to join us, elf-ling. Now, if you are a good little girl, I will let you exchange your life for your guardians.” He had both Harkura and Victoria wrapped in shadows.
“Mellissa, get out of here now,” Victoria yelled, struggling against her restraints.
“Quiet, you,” snarled Matt. He tightened his grip on her and wrapped a shadow around her mouth. “Now, what will it be—your life or yo
ur guardians’?”
There really wasn’t any choice to make. The answer was obvious. I stepped forward. “Let them go, and you can have me.”
“Mellissa, no.” Greg grabbed my arm and pulled me back.
“Nobody asked for your input!” Matt yelled, releasing a ray of darkness, blasting Greg away from me.
“Greg!” I screamed. I went to run to him, but I stopped myself. I couldn’t trade my life for Victoria’s. Whoever this person was, he didn’t care about anyone here. I had no guarantee he wouldn’t hurt them once he was rid of me. I turned to face Matt when a flurry of fireballs hit him. Harkura had somehow gotten free. He dived at Matt with his body engulfed in flames. This was my chance. I ducked down and put my hand on the ground.
Matt sent Harkura flying across the garden with a blast of water. He trapped him in a sphere like I’d been trapped in. Matt turned back to me, but Harkura had provided all the time I needed. Just as Matt was about to throw an attack, vines shot up from the ground and wrapped themselves around him. Matt blasted the vines with shadows. I stood up, lifting my arms, wrapping them tighter and tighter. It didn’t matter how many vines he broke; I could just make more. I released a ray of light at Victoria, freeing her. She went straight into attack mode. She grabbed his leg and froze him, leaving only his head free.
I tightened the vines. Now that he was a human popsicle, I could easily break him. “Now, tell me what you did with Matt.”
He rolled his eyes. “I haven’t done anything with him. It was all you, elf-ling.”
“Liar,” Victoria shouted. “Mellissa would never do anything to hurt Matt.”
The imposter snickered. “I haven’t harmed the warlock boy in any way. All I did was swap places with him and donned this glamour spell.”
“No, that isn’t possible,” I said.
“Oh, but it is,” he said in a singsong tone. “Your changeling friend over there figured it out the moment he saw me. I guess he is the only one in this little group that has any sort of a brain. You were too late when you came to the Tree of Time, but I must thank you. My escape went unnoticed because of you, and I was able to rebuild my strength.”
I looked over to Greg, but he turned away from me. My arms fell beside me. He’d already known but hadn’t cared to share it with me. I put my hand over my chest. My heart felt like it was about to burst. My legs almost gave way. I hadn’t sealed Kadon. I’d sealed Matt instead, which meant that the person standing in front of me was Kadon himself.
The crystal began to glow. This was Kadon we were dealing with. He had the Moon Crystal locked away inside him. His power equalled mine, and he knew how to use it better than I did. This was all an act and he’d let us restrain him. I needed to act fast. I lifted my arm, but with a simple tilt of his head, Kadon released a giant pulse of dark energy, knocking us all to the ground and freeing himself.
I got up as fast as I could and released a burst of light. He dispersed it with one hand. I went to throw an energy ball, but he ran at me with super speed and grabbed my hand. He forced me to my knees. He looked down at me with cold eyes. “I’m going to enjoy putting an end to Freya’s line.”
He bent down and wrapped his hand around my neck, lifting me off the ground. This was the second time someone had tried to strangle me today. I kicked at him. My struggle only made him laugh. Kadon was hit by an ice blast. Rings of light appeared around his wrists.
“A binding spell, really?” He dropped me, bent his knees and jumped high into the air.
My jaw dropped. My eyes widened as I looked up at Kadon. He was flying. I hadn’t realised that sort of magic was possible. But I had. The Heart Crystal had warned me in a dream. This confrontation was what my dreams were meant to prepare me for. Kadon clicked his fingers, trapping Greg and Victoria in dark spheres just like Harkura.
“I really have no need for this glamour spell anymore. None of you will live long enough to warn anyone about me.” Kadon waved his arm over his body, and his appearance changed. He no longer looked like Matt. He was now a tall, grey creature with long, silver hair that was braided and tied into a ponytail. His grey eyes cut through me. I’d seen those eyes before. “You are all such nuisances,” he snarled. “I hope you’re happy, elf-ling. If you had come willingly, I might have spared your friends.” He lifted his arms and shadows swirled around them.
I clutched my sides. My presence was putting everyone in danger. Their association with me was going to get them killed. I took a sharp intake of breath and threw my arms down. I wasn’t going to let him hurt anyone else. I ran at Kadon and blasted light energy at the ground, throwing myself into the air. I reached out and grabbed his leg. As soon as I made contact, I teleported.
We landed with a thud in the middle of the Novos Forest. As usual, my landing was terrible, but this actually helped for a change. I was used to my bad landings, but Kadon was not. I used this to my advantage. While he was still dazed by the teleportation, I rolled away from him, shooting a bright ray of light, temporarily blinding him. I used this opportunity to teleport back home. I landed in the garden and fell flat on my face.
Everyone was still trapped in the dark spheres. Removing Kadon didn’t get rid of his magic. I got up and put my hands round the Heart Crystal. I took a deep breath and pushed my hands outward, producing a wave of light. The dark spheres disappeared. Victoria ran over to me. She took hold of my shoulders.
“Don’t ever do that again,” Victoria shouted. “You scared me to death when you teleported away with him like that.” I could see the worry on her face, but there was something else. Pain. She was upset, and it was all my doing. I was such a failure.
“I’m sorry. I had to do something. I couldn’t let him hurt anyone else.” I paused. My wet clothes stuck to my body. I wrapped my arms round myself. How could she be concerned for me after everything that had just happened? Matt was trapped, and it was all my fault. I breathed unevenly as I burst into tears. “Victoria, I’m so sorry. I don’t know what to do. I will find a way to fix this. I will get Matt back.”
“Mellissa, this is not your fault. Kadon is the one to blame,” she said. “He is the one that trapped my brother and tricked us. I’m the one that should have noticed. I knew something was wrong but ignored it. What sort of sister am I to not have realised he was an imposter all this time?” Her voice broke, and her eyes were tearing. I’d never seen her like this. She always hid her emotions with insults.
“Your Majesty, perhaps you should rest,” Harkura said. “This is the second time you have been attacked today.”
“No, we have to get out of here,” Greg said.
I looked over at Greg. “How is my dad?”
“He’s fine. I left him resting in the living room,” he replied. “Look, it isn’t safe here anymore. Although, I don’t understand why Kadon waited this long to attack you at home.”
“He didn’t know where I lived before,” I said. He may have looked like Matt, but he didn’t know what Matt did. It was my own fault that he’d found me. “I lost my phone this morning when I was attacked. He can now find me wherever I go.”
“Now he has something to cast a tracking spell with,” Greg said, nodding. He put his hand on his chin. He appeared to be thinking. However, I wasn’t about to stick around to hear his thoughts on the topic. I couldn’t let them know what I was about to do as they would only try to stop me. I took a step back to make sure no one was making contact with me and teleported.
I rolled down a hill on arrival. Pain shot through my side. I pushed myself up to see I was at the edge of Novosvillas. I teleported two more times, arriving at the Tree of Time. As usual, I landed on my butt. My heart sank as I looked up at the tree. The last time I was here, we had been celebrating. Little did I know, that all that time, my best friend was the one trapped in this tree.
I scrambled to my feet and placed my hand on the tree. “Matt, I’m so sorry, but I’m going to get you out of there.” I shut my eyes, focusing on the energy inside me. I summoned a mas
sive amount of light and fired it at the tree. It didn’t even make a scratch. I tried again and again, throwing energy blast after energy blast. Why wasn’t this working? It was my magic that had sealed him. Surely I should be able to break the spell. I screamed as I collapsed to the ground, letting out a giant pulse of light. Tears rolled down my cheeks. I put my hand on the tree and pictured Matt—the real Matt. My best friend. I teleported, only to be repulsed back by the tree. I screamed again, blasting the tree. Nothing I did had any effect.
What was the point of all the training I had done? I had learnt nothing that could help me now. Everyone kept telling me about all this power I was meant to have, but all I seemed to do was nearly get myself killed and put others in danger. I wiped away my tears. There was still one thing I hadn’t tried. I put my hand on the tree and tried to communicate with it. I didn’t get any response. I punched the tree, cutting my hand. I looked at my bleeding hand. I deserved to be hurt after what I’d done. My world had come crashing down around me. I’d thought I could be more than what I was. I was wrong. I believed I was helping people, but all I did was make things worse. Kadon was free, and because of me, he had managed to work on his plans in secret, getting ahead of everyone. I collapsed against the tree, sobbing.
“Lady Mellissa, what is going on?” came a voice. I turned to see Lord Steffen and a few others. “Why are you attacking the tree?”
I wiped my hand over my face and dragged myself up. “It’s Matt. He’s the one in the tree, not Kadon. This is all my fault. I have to get him out of there.”
“But you cannot. Only a power greater than the magic used can break the seal. It is not only your magic at work, but that of the tree itself. It’s why the original seal held for so long.” Lord Steffen put his hand on his chin. He gestured to the others who had come out with him. “This is bad. We must prepare for an attack from Kadon. You over there, go alert the other council members. Kadon has escaped. All nations must prepare for battle.”
“There has to be another way to release Matt. Kadon broke the seal.” I looked up at him, hopeful he would know what to do. He was Greg’s dad after all. Greg had to get his know-it-all attitude from somewhere.
Crystal Heart Page 29
