by Ben Zackheim
“Yeah, now’s a good time,” Skyler cut in.
Fox decided that was actually a good time for him to attack.
He spread his arms wide and his demon, Belch, emerged from the shadows behind him, lifted him up with one hand and tossed him like a paper airplane. Vampires can fly fast, but not that fast. Not without propulsion like, for example, a mendaciously-muscled demon. Fox shot across the cavern as fast as a rocket.
Cannon was lifted up by his ghost handlers.
Fox’s outstretched hands missed their target by millimeters. He rolled to a stop on top of the cliff, pulled a sword from a scabbard on his back and lifted it high.
“To me, my brothers!” Fox yelled.
Then, above us, I sensed a presence.
It started as a dark cloud that embraced the stone ceiling and rolled down the walls. I wasn’t a pro at identifying ghosts, but I was pretty damn sure we were watching a second army of ghosts appear.
But Fox’s army quickly became a beautiful, soft white mist, pulsating with life. A golden edge to their hue shifted to silver and then green. If you looked long enough their ethereal bodies could become any color you imagined.
There weren’t nearly as many of them as Cannon’s entourage, but I sensed the tides had turned.
Fox’s friends charged the wall of purple mist protecting Cannon.
The sight of the swarming dead was awesome.
The sound of ghosts colliding was terrifying.
It was like the angst of a million souls tethered to this mortal coil and fighting for their spot to escape it. The agony went right to my own sense of mortality. Their sadness told me that this was a precious life and that, if we’re lucky, we’ll finish our job here by the time we die.
Deep thoughts in a deep cavern, fighting for our lives.
Yeah, it didn’t make much sense at the time to me either. You’d think we’d be slashing away at each other, us humans. But when I looked around the cave every single one of us watched with the same awe.
Even Skyler and Cannon.
I was the first to come out from under the spell the battling spirits had us under. I made good use of the moment and hid behind a stalactite. I needed a good perch to determine the best move.
Scarlett and Skyler fell as their dead captors joined the fight. A couple of the white ghosts swept in at the last second to shield the twins’ fall.
I didn't get a chance to see what happened next because Cannon made his move.
"Find the one with Excalibur!" he hollered. The desperation in his voice was a tasty snack for my soul.
A few ghosts broke away from the crowd and swept the cave for me. It wouldn't take them long to find me.
I had to do something, and fast.
I decided to hang my fate on hope. I know, I know. Stupid of me. But as long as Fox was directing his army at Cannon, I had to try and end this job. No matter what. I had to hope I could slip away in the chaos and find ‘Merlin.’
I kept my head down and ran. Everything was going great for the first few seconds. I was about ten yards from the crack in the wall. If I’d just kept going, I might have made it.
But I heard a human scream and I stopped to see how my team was doing.
Simply put? Not well.
Cannon’s ghosts had formed a wall of mist that covered my view of the other half of the cavern. The wall’s surface undulated with screaming faces that rolled over us, feasting on the colorful army. Fox’s friends were reduced to small, fading gray spots trapped inside the expanding cloud.
Belch was holding onto one dangling arm. Demon blood dripped from his fingertips and rolled down the stones, filling the cave with the smell of sulfur. The demon was hanging back, waiting for orders. But there was no one left to give him any.
I ran for the crack in the wall.
The light streaming from it was blinding, but I could just make out a colorful sheen and the unmistakable textures of leaves and flowers and tree trunks.
My stomach dropped through my feet as I was lifted from under my arms and swept up high. I didn’t put up a fight. I knew where the ghosts were taking me. Maybe it was better this way. Maybe one more moment of face-to-face time would be the opening I needed.
I held onto the small pistol. Tight.
They dropped me at Cannon's feet.
The cavern was oddly quiet. When I could tell up from down I noticed that Skyler and Scarlett were being held down by masses of purple. Cassidy looked scared, but fine.
Rose was on her side, bleeding from the head. Her eyes were closed. She didn't move.
Fox was also at Cannon's feet, as still as a corpse. The non-walking, blood-sucking kind.
One quick look around told me I was at ground level and even closer to the light than before.
Cannon twirled his fingers in the air and we were surrounded by hissing mist.
The ghosts’ cloudy shapes slithered over my team’s faces. The wide-eyed look Skyler gave me told me what was going on. They were being suffocated.
Cannon clapped his hands. “So! Let's try this again!" The tone in his voice told me he was done with being interrupted. He was going to kill them all if I didn't give him the sword.
It was time for me to decide which was more important. My friends, or Excalibur.
“The sword, Kane,” Cannon said.
I glanced at my team. Skyler’s eyes rolled back in his head. They weren't going to make it much longer.
I made my decision. “Let them go and I'll give it to you.”
Cannon glared at me, trying to read my face for the real plan. He twirled his finger in the air again. My team sucked in their breath.
I closed my eyes. I focused. It’s not easy t do with so much on the line.
The Vault Portal appeared as a slender blue light. It quietly floated a few feet over my right shoulder, humming. It cracked open with a loud, snap like brittle wood breaking.
Then I saw something inside the portal I’d never witnessed before.
Movement.
I stepped aside just in time.
Rebel leaped out, Excalibur in hand.
Chapter 46
She launched at Cannon with two powerful, striding skips. She pointed Excalibur straight ahead, in classic Suwari No Tori no Kamae stance, with some serious gymnastics to go along with it.
Oh, and she’d chosen Ave Maria as her Music Spell soundtrack.
My not-dead partner slashed downward as a ghost guardian threw itself in-between its master and the sword. But Excalibur sliced right through the nasty mist, which shot out an unholy shriek.
Cannon’s chest opened up in a flood of red.
He didn’t have time to scream before he was grabbed by a thousand ethereal fingers and pulled into the darkness of the cave’s ceiling.
A distant, echoing scream fell from above.
Most of Cannon’s army broke off from the purple cloud and took a human-like shape. They surrounded Rebel and flew in for the kill. She swung the sword around her in a circle, twirling on her heel. The maneuver looked desperate, but it did the job. The front line of ghosts kept their distance.
A low rumble flowed from somewhere in the cave. Then the screams started. It wasn’t my team in trouble this time. Cannon’s ghosts were shrieking.
The sound.
I’ll never forget that sound.
It was like hearing an animal get eaten from the inside. I guess that makes sense, because that’s exactly what was happening.
Excalibur glowed bright in Rebel’s hands. In an instant, its golden glow lit up the cave like a hundred torches. As the light got brighter, the screams of agony grew louder until Fox’s spirits burst out of their captors like cannonballs fired from a cannon.
My team’s ghosts took on a distinct human shape now. Not only could we see their shape, we could see the otherworldly.
They were knights.
Their armor glistened white. Their swords stood ready for battle. Their faces were focused. In some cases, even cocky.
With a battle cry,
they attacked.
Cannon’s once-formidable force quivered and scattered. The ones that didn’t get out of the way in time evaporated into a light gray smoke.
But at that point I didn’t give a shit about a war between ghosts.
Rebel.
Rebel was back. I couldn’t believe I was seeing her with my own eyes.
Now if we could only make it out of there alive.
The remaining ghosts combined into one large cloud again, and retreated into the darkness of the cave’s high ceiling. The tail-end of the wiggling thing snagged Skyler by the ankle and pulled him up into the darkness with them.
“Oh, this is just great,” Skyler shouted as he disappeared into the darkness.
“Belch!” I yelled. “Throw me!”
It wasn’t original, but it was all I had. The demon moved fast. He crouched in front of me and I climbed into his cupped hand. He winked at me. His breath smelled like hot dogs.
The next thing I knew I was flying. Well, being tossed I guess, but it felt like flying. The darkness ahead quickly surrounded me and the air went right out of the room. Except for one thing. I wasn’t in the room anymore.
If I had to guess, I was in space.
Cold as ice, check.
No air, check.
Stars brighter than I’d ever seen them, check.
Ahead of me was Skyler. He flailed around like a rag doll being pulled by a car. The purple cloud glowed enough to light my way. I was catching up to them. They didn’t know I was there.
Wherever I was.
I’d been smart enough to take a deep breath before the air went away. I hoped Skyler had done the same. As I caught up with them, I remembered how he’d chide me about sinking to the bottom of the pool for twenty minutes at a time to hide from him. But the skill came in handy right about then.
I reached the tail end of the colorful mass that was once a thousand ghosts. I could feel the thing all around me, like a thin sheet of velvet flowing through space.
I clenched my hands into fists and grabbed on.
I couldn’t hear a shriek, but I could feel the beast tremble at my grasp. It began to fold around me, flowing toward me from every direction. Skyler disappeared from view as wispy layers covered me. I pulled as hard as I could, one hand over the other, using every ounce of strength to climb closer to my teacher.
Then I spotted a body drop past me. It was Skyler. He was falling back to the cave. I bent my body toward the spot where I’d seen him. I slid into a vacuum of some kind. Now I was falling, too.
I could see Skyler under me, his body limp. He bounced off the walls of the cavity. I straightened myself out and dove at him.
I reached out.
I got a handful of his hair and pulled him close.
His eyes were wide. I didn’t see any life in them. Against every natural instinct, I wrapped my mouth around his. He tasted like muffler.
I exhaled into his mouth once. Nothing. His eyes stayed motionless.
I exhaled again. Nothing. I was almost out of breath.
I exhaled a third time. This was it. I felt a pain in my lungs that made me panic.
Skyler didn’t move.
Wait, I thought. Doesn’t he always carry…
I patted his shirt and pants. I felt something in his chest pocket.
It was a Wad.
But I didn’t have the air to speak the spell.
Would thinking the words do the trick? I hoped so, because if I blacked out, game over.
I thought the spell’s words as ‘loud’ as I could. I mouthed them. As much as I hated them, I needed them.
Skyler Rocks!
And my world went black.
Chapter 47
I woke up on the cavern’s floor, alone.
Every square inch of me hurt. I gathered my strength and sat up.
I didn’t see anyone. But I heard voices from the other side of a nearby boulder. I fought my way to my feet.
Scarlett kneeled over Rose and tended to her wounds. She spotted me and yelled, “Are you okay?”
“What happened?”
“You and Skyler just dropped from the ceiling! Fox and Rebel disappeared into thin air at the same time.”
My gut clenched. “Damn it. A Swap Spell.”
“Sorry?”
“It was a Swap Spell! Skyler and I traded places with Rebel and Fox.”
“Where did they swap to?”
“I don’t know. But there wasn’t any oxygen.”
Scarlett glanced up at the darkness. “They’ll be okay.”
“Fox will be fine. He doesn’t need air. But Rebel…”
“I need to take care of Rose,” Scarlett interrupted. She placed her hands on Rose’s shoulders. “She’s having a tough time. Are you okay, Kane?”
“I’m fine. Where’s Skyler?”
She sighed. “He fell near you somewhere.” She was overwhelmed by the moment. It must be awful to be a healer surrounded by injured people.
I scanned the cave and saw my tormenting teacher about ten yards away. His body looked ancient. I knew he was as old as the redwoods but he’d never looked his age. I didn’t like him, but he was my teacher. It was hard to see him like that.
I scooped his head up in my hands. He glanced up at me and smiled. His teeth were covered in blood. The influx of oxygen from the cave must have revived him. But he was injured from the fall.
“You’ll be fine,” I told him.
“You’re a liar,” he said. He coughed up some more blood.
“Sorry, old man. Looks like years of holding my breath in the swimming pools to get away from you will save you. You can’t die now.”
“Oh yeah? Watch me,” he said, smiling. “Is Fox here?”
“No.” I didn’t want to tell him that his Wad had summoned a Swap Spell. I didn’t want to think about how Rebel was probably fighting for her life as we sat in the silence of that place.
I heard a growl from behind me. Belch loomed over us. I didn’t realize demons could show emotion but if I had to take a guess, I’d say he was worried.
Skyler coughed softly. The sound was low and wet. “Shit. Okay, well, Happy Birthday, kid.”
Skyler’s weak hand grabbed mine. I felt a small buzz in my fingers. Then it burned. Like fire. Our hands felt melted together. I screamed in pain.
I pulled my hand away and shook it. “Damn it! Asshole!”
The pain died quickly and, as I looked down at my old teacher, he did too. His eyes were open, unseeing.
“Scarlett!” I called out. “I need you over here!”
Scarlett ran to us and took over my position. She gave me a look filled with pity.
I called her look and raised her some desperation. “Try, Scarlett. Please.”
She closed her eyes and I turned mine toward the dark ceiling.
I didn’t like the silence in that cavern. Not one bit. Where was Rebel?
Then I heard my partner’s distant scream. It tore through me as it went on and on. My stomach sank. I covered my ears. I couldn’t listen. I didn’t want to go through her dying again, right when I had her back.
The scream got louder. It slipped through my plugged ears. I took my hands away.
Wait. Was that a scream of joy?
Fox and Rebel flew back into the cavern from whatever dimension was hiding in that black ceiling. Rebel rode the vampire bull style. That would keep her hot and bothered for tall, dead and handsome for weeks to come. Fine. I’d tolerate it.
She leapt off her steed, who landed right behind her. Fox whisked past me, gave Belch a cracking high-five, and went to Skyler’s body without breaking his stride.
I stood there like an idiot and looked at Rebel. She looked back. Then she smiled.
“Hey,” I said.
She walked up to me in that way she has, kick-ass with a touch of look-at-my-ass. I got my arms ready for the hug of a lifetime.
She slapped the crap out of my left cheek.
“What the hell, Rebel!” I holle
red.
“You thought you’d keep your fucking portal closed the whole damn time?” she yelled back.
“I didn’t know you were in there! I didn’t want to open it and be tempted by the sword again!”
“Do you know how boring it is to sit in a womb of light with a sword for hour after hour? Do you know how awful it feels to start talking to that sword because you don’t really have anything else to do?”
She’d once told me that her nightmare was to have nothing to do for an hour. So 24 hours must have been tough.
“Boring,” I agreed.
“Lots of boring.”
It looked like she was about to sock me again so I grabbed her hand, pulled her toward me and hugged the hell out of her. I held on tight. Her muscles tensed and I feared she would drive her knee right into Kane Jr. But her muscles relaxed and after a moment she draped one arm over my shoulders and put her face in my chest.
Then she pulled away and looked up at me.
“Good to see you, Kane,” she said, all business.
“Good to see you, too, Rebel.”
She spotted Skyler on the ground and walked around me to see how he was.
“What the fuck, Fox?” she yelled.
I turned to see Scarlett passed out beside Skyler’s body. The old man sported a couple of bleeding fang marks in his neck. And Fox was retching all over the stone floor. He’d drunk from Skyler. He’d tried to turn him.
“What?” Fox managed to say through puking spasms. “You want him to die forever?”
“You asshole,” Rebel said. “You had no right! What did you do to Scarlett?”
“She tried to stop me,” Fox said. “I knocked her out. She’ll be fine.”
“Why you…” Rebel started, but I stepped in the way. I gave her the calm down look but I wasn’t sure it was going to work for long.
Rebel pointed at Fox. “You’d better hope Rose is okay, Fox. You knocked out our healer.”
As if on cue Rose took in a deep breath and sat up. Cassidy embraced her.
She looked around the cavern, confused, as if she’d just woken from a long, deep sleep.
“Coffee?” she asked.
Chapter 48
Skyler stirred.
