by Mia Fox
He was amazing. Raven’s voice rang out from the treetops, but when I looked skyward all that I could see were the blackbirds gathering. That momentary glance proved to be a terrible mistake.
Cattle ran through the clearing, one knocking me over with a fierce kick to my ribcage. I doubled over in pain and rolled to the side of the clearing where the muddy patch, now resembling a small but steady continual movement of sludge, had moved Charlotte downstream. I reached for her, trying at least to hold onto her by the shoulders as she was now nearly completely submerged.
The blackbirds cried out from above and following their shrieks came the rest of the forest animals, running at top speed. Some of the smaller animals were trampled, left to die by their own kind. But the horror didn’t stop.
For a moment the steady stream of animals running let up only to give way for wild, black stallions. The horses were different from the other animals. These ran in formation, their stealth-like grace and rhythmic galloping drawing the attention of the souls trapped below the surface of the earth. Gaunt and white faces popped up like disturbed flowers to eye the beasts that ran by.
And once a large enough audience had gathered, the horses’ appearances seemed to fade and ripple. For a moment I felt relief, believing the end of the procession was upon us. But the end was a more apt description. Each horse shifted from black to the same deathly white as the trapped souls and then the amalgamation of the animal became even more gruesome as its horse head remained, but in place of its body and legs, those of a man appeared.
The head of a horse attached to the strong body of a man, a beast known as a Buraq, running on all fours, veered off the course of the midway, and came straight for Charlotte.
“Stop!” I screamed, holding up my hands and releasing bolts of electricity. My control of the elements didn’t falter, with each strike growing stronger against the offending horse-men, and yet, their grossly disfigured forms kept coming closer.
“That’s quite impressive, Suki,” Raven’s voice sounded behind me. “Just not impressive enough.”
I knew better than to turn my attention away from Charlotte. Good girl. Don’t let her get to you. James voice sounded in my mind.
But the sound of James’ voice only served to upset, rather than comfort me. Had he betrayed me? Could he have once been involved with Raven?
I would have to do this on my own.
A cloud of blue butterflies released into the air, my energy guiding them toward the beasts. They fluttered around the horse-men’s faces, hovering closely and tickling their nostrils causing them to stumble, but only slightly.
“Suki, watch out!” Samantha shouted down from her perch high in the trees. She pointed to one of the horse-men, causing her weight to shift and the branch to break. She would have fallen had she not grabbed another just in time. Although for me, time had run out.
The first Buraq turned suddenly and returned, running straight for Charlotte, who by this time had sunk even deeper into the mud. The Buraq ran up to her and stopped, staring at me defiantly. He stood on its manly legs and reached its arms around Charlotte, paying no attention to the electrical waves I sent in his direction. Charlotte screamed as its hold on her tightened.
Although it was saving her from sinking completely into the muddy abyss, she was by no means out of danger. The Buraq lifted her onto its back and ran into the clearing with her. I was helpless to stop it.
I sent the butterflies in their direction, but the visions of peace and beauty that the delicate creatures delivered did nothing to stop the fast running Buraq. Within seconds it had disappeared with Charlotte.
I looked upward to ensure that Samantha was still safe. “You stay there. I’ll find her.”
Samantha nodded, tears flowing freely down her face. She suddenly waved her hands frantically, trying to warn me of another Buraq’s return, but her voice was muted as she became gripped in total fear for there wasn’t just one returning for me, but five.
The front runner bucked me from behind, forcing me to fall into a tree stump. I went down hard, a trickle of blood running from where my temple struck the stump and the brambles on the ground. I struggled to my feet only to find that the five Buraqs had positioned themselves around me in a circle. Their bluish white skin glowed slightly; their horse heads raised upward and one after the next let our a loud whinny of excitement.
You know what to do.
I took a deep breath, wanting to take comfort in James’ support, but also not trusting his words. Were they his words or was it another trick of Raven’s?
The confusion of my thoughts caused me to lose ground with the Buraqs. The first delivered a strong punch directly into my abdomen and I bent at the waist, winded from the experience.
Suki, you can do this. Be strong.
I wasn’t comforted by his presence, but angered. Raven could distort time; she could plant an unrealistic fear in one’s mind; but, surely she couldn’t distort an image. At some time, she and my James had been lovers. The reality hurt me far more than the continual pounding of the Buraq’s fists against my back and kidneys.
Anger would have to be my friend. If James’ words didn’t comfort me, then at least they could help me fight.
I rose and immediately spun and extended a roundhouse kick to the first beast. It went down easily, but only drew the attention of the others. One immediately stood up on its human back legs, its naked male form moving at me in a menacing fashion. Muscles upon muscles, legs spread showing no shame, and all the while, its horse’s eyes wide on the side of its head taking in any movement from its team mates.
Raven flew in bird form and then swooped in low, her talons grazing the side of my cheek, before she landed and shifted into herself. “Isn’t he remarkable?” she commented of her favorite Buraq. “Gives new meaning to the phrase, ‘hung like a horse.’” She sidled up to the Buraq, and allowed her hand to slide over his chest. “Take her.”
The Buraq immediately grabbed me, holding my shoulders roughly, his head staring at me with keen interest.
“What do you want with us?” I hissed.
“You know what I want,” Raven chided.
“The Amulet....well, you have it. You’ve taken her. Just bring Charlotte back to me and we’ll go.”
Raven smiled. “But this is fun for me. And by the looks of things...for him,” she noted the Buraq’s excitement. “He reminds me of someone...oh I remember...”
I twisted against the Buraq’s hold, but he only tightened his hands around my waist and then lasciviously pressed himself against me.
“Yes...yes I remember,” Raven taunted. “You probably can guess, now that you’re getting to know each other better. I’ll give you a hint...he has a thing for a girl in distress. At least that’s how James and I ended up, you know. But maybe that’s not what turns him on any more because I don’t see him coming to your rescue. Maybe he loves me more?”
“Stop it, Raven.”
“Sorry, I just felt the need to share.”
Raven moved behind the Buraq and took out a riding crop, which she used against his back side. The Buraq exhaled loudly and snorted, jumping forward and pinning itself against me.
“You’re delusional. What’s in the past stays in the past,” I said trying to prove how little she could affect me -- even if it were a lie. I kicked the Buraq where it counted, but it only served to excite him. He rallied his other horse-men, who moved in each one taking a stand and surrounding me.
Although I had surprised the first, the others were ready for combat. Two sent simultaneous kicks into me, one from behind sending me reeling into the other, who struck back at my chest just as hard. The wind may have been knocked out of me, but I wasn’t about to give up.
“Nice try,” Raven said with a smirk.
“Suki!” Samantha shrieked from above. “They’re coming!”
Take them. Now.
I hear you. My thoughts went to James, wishing the sentiment I threw at Raven could indeed be the tru
th. I wanted an explanation, but couldn’t deny the fact that he wasn’t here, just as Raven said.
“Suki, you can do this,” Samantha’s voice rang down to me.
I may have been down, but I would use it to my advantage, doing as James taught me -- lying in wait, composing myself, all the while estimating each Buraq’s position and how I would fight off the remaining four. I recalled our training sessions.
Move from a position of defense into one of offense.
The next Buraq also abandoned its stance on four legs and instead rose up on two. I jumped up and immediately reached for its torso, grabbing around its neck and pulling my knee into his side. Winding him, I didn’t hesitate to finish him off. With a swift lift of my knee, I plunged it upward into his gut and when he doubled over, I forced my elbows into the back of his neck and back. One down. I exhaled deeply as it dropped to the ground.
Three left. As the next approached, I didn’t wait to be the victim. I sent a kick upwards, landing my boot against the side of its head and then continuing my assault.
Strike hard and fast as many times as is needed to take down your attacker.
I put James’ words into action, kicking repeatedly until the third also succumbed to my battle attack.
“There’s no such thing as a one-punch knockout,” I said more to myself than the beast that lay by my feet. I looked up at the remaining two, who had both stood like men, their horse heads watching me, weighing my next move. One walked slowly to my left, while the other went to the right. They weren’t going to chance the one-on-one battle. This time, I’d have to fight them both.
Knowing that in this fight there were no rules, I leapt into action and attacked my opponent's most vulnerable spots. Kicking one in the groin, he neighed loudly and doubled over. I lifted my knee into its face hard and when he reached his human hands toward his face in pain, I finished him with a kick to the abdomen that threw him backwards. I looked to the tree tops and concentrated on a particularly large branch. With a narrowing of my eyes and the fire that burned anger within me, I sent the branch falling onto the Buraq, ensuring that he wouldn’t rise again.
But the reprieve was short lived as the last and final Buraq approached. He was also the strongest standing at six feet tall, with muscular arms, a wide chest, and legs like tree trunks. He circled me, moving with the grace of a stallion. His trot soon turned to a gallop as he moved around and around at a dizzying speed.
He grabbed me from behind suddenly and thrust me into a nearby tree, like a shot put. The back of my head hit the trunk hard enough to cause a black out, but as I started to succumb and slide down toward the ground into the muddy sludge where the hands reached hungrily upwards, the Buraq walked threateningly toward me.
“Enough! Finish her!” Raven’s voice sounded from every which way as if on loud speaker.
Raven’s whereabouts being unknown were tremendously disconcerting and caused another momentary lack of focus, but it was enough. The Buraq changed course suddenly and came straight for me, butting me with its head more like a bull than that of a horse. I was tossed onto my back and he immediately galloped toward me. Without hesitation, he straddled my body. I thrust my fists against his chest, but his strong torso accepted the assault as if it were nothing.
“Get up, Suki. Fight!” Samantha looked down in fear.
I tried to pry my legs up from underneath the Buraq, but he only began to crush down upon me with his strong body.
“I can wish for your safety,” Samantha called down.
“No!” I answered. “No Samantha. It’s not a privilege to be used on me.”
The Buraq whinnied as its nose nuzzled the side of my neck, drool dripping down my throat. His naked form forcing downward onto me as well. The sight caused jealousy to rise in the other that had just come to, and it approached as well.
“Suki! Let me help you!” Samantha screamed, her anguish growing as the situation became more perilous.
I closed my eyes, willing the elements to take control, and as I relaxed, the Buraq took my expression as acceptance and grew more excited. This only served to anger the watching Buraq, which kicked its back legs into the head of the first, forcing him off me.
The fighting among them ensued. Each kicking and punching until the fatal blow was delivered and they fell to the ground in exhaustion. The hands of the dead, grabbed for them and used their heavy forms as leverage, allowing themselves to rise out of the mud. Raven quickly changed into bird form and left the scene, flying toward the lake.
From the safety of the tree where I joined Samantha, we watched in horror as the lost souls formed a procession and walked in a solitary line in the direction that Raven flew.
“Where are they going?”
“I don’t know, but I don’t like it,” I responded, still exhausted from the battle. “We need to get down and find Charlotte.”
“Can you handle it?”
“I have to.”
At that moment, Daniel materialized from the forest, which had grown eerily quiet. “It’s too late.”
Before we could ask for clarification, the bell from the ballroom sounded loudly, piercing the quiet wilderness. Raven’s voice rang out from a loudspeaker:
“The Reckoned has been found! You are cordially invited to witness the festivities lakeside.”
“It can’t be true,” Samantha cried. Daniel held her tightly, covering her ears and trying his best to shield her from the sounds of the party-goers, cheering with elation.
I closed my eyes and focused. I may be hurt, both mentally and physically, but this was no time for pride or stubbornness. I needed to get a message to James. We needed to find Phineas and end Raven’s control over him.
“What are you planning?” Samantha asked, aware of my concentrated look.
“If you can find love in this horrible place then I have to believe that Phineas will help Charlotte...and James...well...”
“Well what? You two are like destined...he waited centuries for you to arrive.”
“I guess even a Shade can get tired of waiting.”
“Not James,” Samantha said emphatically.
I gave a slight smile. Now wasn’t the time to think about myself. I took Samantha’s free hand in my own. “This isn’t over. Come. I know what to do.”
* * *
Chapter Fifteen
When Maebeline opened the door to her Georgian-styled home, the residence that she had maintained since James was just a child, she was half-way expecting him to be standing outside.
The duality she brought to James’ life and he to hers, meant that their very lifeblood was connected. James may have been tasked with protecting me throughout time, but Maebeline was the only one who could do the same for James and without her, his life hung in the balance. She had known that the journey back into the Romani Realms would be difficult, but even she had underestimated Raven’s trickery.
She had spent the morning baking bread when she felt the presence of a supernatural at her door. “James? You know you could’ve given me some warning if you were going to bring Miss Suki back for a visit,” she called out.
But the man waiting for her was not who she suspected. When James told her that he would be trusting Phineas with this rescue mission she had her doubts. Now that the demon gypsy was staring her in the face, she knew she had good reason to feel that way.
“What are you doing here? Aren’t you supposed to be...”
Phineas shoved past Maebeline sending her flying into the alcove, before closing the door behind him. He strode toward her, unseeing eyes staring straight into hers. Maebeline had dealt with enough people possessed to know that he wasn’t of his right mind, which put her in a precarious position.
She was a rotund woman better suited for baking than fighting, but she did have the powers of the spirits to guide her. Her visions had foreshadowed an unexpected and unwanted visitor. When Phineas shoved his way past her, she caught a glimpse of her neighbor, Mr. Talcott, lying on the ground out
side and knew immediately that he was gone.
“Mr. Talcott didn’t mean no harm to you. Why’d you go and do that?” she scolded.
Phineas laughed. “That’s something. I’m here to kill you and you have the chops to tell me off.”
Phineas approached Maebeline head on, his eyes glazed, but determined. He reached his hands for her neck and gripped her tightly. His somewhat dreamlike state didn’t go unnoticed, and Maebeline realized that she had mere moments to react. Although instinct made her want to pull his hands from her throat, her strength was no match against Phineas’ muscular form. Keeping her head together was her best hope and so, she quickly gripped the talisman she had placed in the pocket of her housecoat earlier when the spirits indicated that trouble was brewing.
She held the symbol up to him and with barely a whisper, she uttered an incantation that caused the wind to force the shutters against the house and the sun to disappear behind the clouds. Phineas turned in shock, his release faltering. It gave Maebeline enough of her voice back to be able to complete the first part of the incantation:
“Darkness and cold from nature’s earth...mirror the demeanor of a centuries old birth. Once human, now demon...an amalgamation.”
Maebeline spoke calmly and Phineas’ hold on her neck receded, his arms fell by his sides as he stared into her round face with unblinking, green eyes. A nasty cough escaped him and with it, a snake weaved its way from his mouth. All the while, Maebeline continued to speak in soft, calm tones.
“Impure intentions are driven away. Your energy now a clear path to what I say.”
Phineas stared at Maebeline. With his eyes fixed and words escaping him, he waited until Maebeline broke her hold over him and waved the talisman in front of his eyes.
“Now that we’ve put the nastiness behind us, you mind tellin‘ me what this is all ‘bout?”
“What is this?” he said, indicating the talisman.
