Rhychard stepped outside of the hospital to search for Renny, while Mark went to security to look at the security video. While Rhychard didn't see Renny's photograph back at the Leary Building, that didn't mean Aradhon hadn't had his sights set on her. After doing a complete sweep of the grounds, Rhychard returned to the front of the hospital just as Mark was exiting the building. "I saw her on tape," Mark said, jogging over to where Rhychard was coming around the east side. "Looks like she left with someone but it looked like she left willingly.""Can I see the tape?" Rhychard started walking back inside before Mark could answer. In his gut, Rhychard knew who took Renny, but he needed to make sure.Mark caught up with him and led him to the security room. The guard on duty just nodded and then replayed the tape for Mark, Rhychard staring intently at the monitor. Damn! He hated being right."That guy's sick looking," the guard said. "Like he should be entering the hospital, not leavin
"Are you not scared?" Aradhon asked her, sounding impressed. Renny allowed him to bring her to the Leary Building, but instead of moving upward toward the penthouse as she supposed he would, he took her to a sub-level floor, which, by all rights, should have been flooded since they were barely above sea level. The only thing she could figure was that the dark elf employed some form of magic to keep the structure sound. For what purpose, however, she had yet to determine.She turned, her arms behind her back, hands clasped behind her. "Is that your goal? To scare me? Seems rather adolescent if you ask me, and a little beneath someone like you.""Like me?" Aradhon wore a dark robe, his hands and arms slid up opposing sleeves. His dark hair hung around his face and shoulders, framing his narrow grayish-blue face, his pointy ears peeking through his hair."Self-important. Narcissistic. Of course, you are a juvenile bully, so perhaps something so petty isn't beneath you after all."Pux and
"Kree!" Rhychard burst into his apartment, his nerves on end as he worried more with each tick of the clock as to Renny's safety. Karl had left, but Halafarin, Tryna, and Kree all sat in the living room of Rhychard's apartment, awaiting word as to Buttercup's well-being. They turned to stare at the Warrior as he entered the home. He kept his gaze on Tryna as he said, "Aradhon has Renny.":Warrior, how did this happen?: Kree sent to everyone as he rose to his feet.Rhychard ran a hand through his long, dark hair as he blew out a breath of exasperation. "He ran into her outside of the hospital." Then he turned back to Tryna as if he blamed her for things. "And those damn gnomes did nothing to stop her from going with him."Tryna didn't seem bothered by his outburst or his look of accusation. "It is their task to protect, not interfere.""That seems to be the theme of the faerie realm," Rhychard snarled.Fitz hopped off his shoulder and landed on the kitchen table. "We're not busybodies,
"I'm confused," Trace said as they walked down the marina toward Washington Street and the Leary Building. "How did Aradhon even know we were seeing each other?" Things weren't making sense, and he began to wonder if his meeting Giselle was happenchance or arranged. She had told Trace everything about her past, admitting to killing her boyfriend back in the fifties in order to escape Halafarin, the elven Warrior who had been tracking her for almost a century. She had reacted on impulse, not knowing any other way to escape. Panic was her only excuse. "Aradhon found me after you and I met," Giselle said. Her voice held the tinge of regret mixed with panic. Trace knew she expected him to turn her over to Rhychard, but even with what she did, Trace could not bring himself to turn his back on her. How could he? She was the only one to really give him a chance. "He promised to get rid of Halafarin if I helped him get to the human Warrior. Aradhon wants the Guardian Sword for himself. If he
The pain was intense, even with the medications she knew were being pumped into her. Laci gripped the sheets, consciousness brushing her senses, only to drag her away again. She heard screaming, and at first thought it was hers, but she was lucid enough to realize her mistake. Then who? Light surrounded her, bright and warm, almost fuzzy in the way it appeared, giving everything a shimmering cast to it. The air, which had reeked of antiseptics just a moment ago, now held a fragrant aroma of hibiscus and jasmine wafting around her as she strolled… She panicked. How could she be walking? She tried to open her eyes, but the weight of the drugs kept her eyelids pinned shut. Yet, that didn't make sense either, because she could see the fields around her, the weeping willows drooping in the distance as the sun bathed the grassy field with a warmth that chased away the icicles of the hospital air-conditioning. Where am I?She gazed around the field, cattails dancing out by a shimmering lake,
Rhychard wrapped his cloak around him tighter, the breeze from the Indian River strong as it pressed him against the Leary Building. He glanced up at the gargoyles perched at the corners of the building. How far would the rescuers be able to get before those creatures joined the fray? Rhychard and Kree were lucky last time, but his luck never lasted.A scurrying noise at his feet caught Rhychard's attention, making him look down, ready to stomp some critter or kick it out of his way. He was shocked when he saw Fitz shove his head out of the earth and wave at him. "I left you at the apartment," Rhychard whispered. "How the hell did you get here?"Fitz crawled out of the hole he made, brushing the dirt from his clothes. When he stood, he shrugged. "I'm a gnome. It's how we travel." Then the little man cocked his head to the side. "You sure don't know a lot about the faerie realm for a Warrior."Rhychard rolled his eyes. Tell me about it. "Oh, wait a minute," Fitz said. "I forgot someth
"Renny!" Pux called out to her, but it was too late; she had already crossed over the boulders and stood in the middle of the dark faerie circle. As soon as both feet had touched the concrete within the circle, she felt the surge of power twist around her, jerking her spine straight as she became locked into place. Panic gripped her as she struggled to free herself, straining to move an arm, a leg, even a finger, but nothing obeyed her will. She glared at the dark elf as power coiled about her, licking at her flesh and scalding her. Pux stood at the edge of the circle, his arms extended toward her, but he also was frozen in place, trapped by the dark elf's power. Glancing around the best she could, she noticed the other two gnomes were gone. Where they went, she had no idea.Behind Aradhon, she heard a door open, and then watched as dark elves and gargoyles led several humans into the room, each bound and gagged. The humans' eyes seemed distant, almost vacant as they were led to form
Trace held Giselle in his arms, blood seeping from the wound in her stomach, the blade still protruding. He was unsure whether he should pull the knife out or not, not sure if the blood would gush or not. Finally, he chose to pull the blade out and wrap as much of her shirt around the wound as possible to try and stench the blood flow. This was not a video game, and Trace was lost as to what to do. Tears flowed from his cheeks, his shaggy hair dropping in his face as he leaned over Giselle, doing his best to whisper words of encouragement, begging her to hang on and not leave him.The basement then filled with Renny's scream, yanking his attention to the dark circle of large stones in the middle of the room. He swiped at his tears with the back of his arm as he stared at Renny, her body wrapped in dark coils of what appeared to Trace as lightning streaks sizzling around her body. Her head snapped back, and she screamed at the ceiling, her body one giant spasm of pain as it jerked and s
While their mother piddled in the kitchen fixing them a plate of fajitas, the Valentine sisters sat on the living room sofa, legs folded under them. Maria Valentine put most of the house back in order after Baltabek's attack, but the destruction remained obvious to Laci. She held tight to her sister ever since the Summerlands, scared to let her go. Jayden, of course, fussed at her to stop being a mother hen.Once everyone arrived back at Rhychard's Thinking Rock, a place Renny decided would cause the least amount of sightseers, the witches and Famallumi returned to the Murky Cauldron while Rhychard placed a still-weak Jayden in the back of Laci's car. The eldest Valentine wasted no time or words as she headed straight for home."I almost lost you," Laci said. "I don't know what I would have done if that happened.""Probably moved into my room since it's the biggest," Jayden said with a shrug."That's not even funny," Laci snapped, shoving Jayden's hand away from her in disgust.Jayden
Rhychard wasn't sure what he hit, but he found himself spinning backward, the Guardian Sword leaving his hand as he hit the ground with a hard thud, the air whooshing out of his lungs. Scrambling to his feet, a pain tugging at the back of his head from where he hit the ground, the first thing he noticed was Laci sprawled on top of Kree. Renny! He jerked his attention around until he saw her still gripping Jayden's arm as both women lay stretched out on the grass. However, he didn't see the wall he ran into, knocking him back on his ass. Another glance around, and he noticed the salt circle and the three witches sitting on the ground, eyes closed as they chanted. An older man he didn't recognize stood behind Wanda, his face a mask of admiration.A groan alerted Rhychard to Baltabek stirring, and Rhychard lunged for his sword. The demon moved faster, however, and shot a burst of his demonic power at the Warrior, knocking him back against the invisible barrier, the air he just managed to
Rhychard heard screams, but he couldn't tell whose or where they originated. They might have even been his for all he knew. Pieces of the broken table jabbed him in his back and legs, and he felt blood making a trail down his side. Groaning, he tried to sit up. He must get up. Renny needed his protection as did his parents.:Warrior, Baltabek is heading to your home,: Kree sent. Rhychard could hear the elven hound moving toward him through their connection. :He hid among the woods along the creek.:"Rhychard!" Renny shouted, and then he felt her hands on his arms along with someone else's on his other side.:Well, he knows how to make an entrance.: Rhychard sent.He could hear shouts of panic coming from the parking lot and other apartments, people screaming at the sudden explosion.Glancing up, he noticed the other set of hands helping him to his feet belonged to his father. His mother stood by the sofa, her face pinched with concern, and Tryna picked herself up off the floor from whe
Tansy walked over to where Alex's backpack lay on the ground from where the gnome dropped it when they first entered the Summerlands, pulling out the container of salt that rolled halfway out. As she stood, she couldn't take her gaze off the dark pack, remembering its owner and how far he came since walking into the Murky Cauldron that first day. Her heart twisted, and she did her best to keep the tears at bay. She didn't know how much time they had, so she needed to make sure she completed the barrier spell before Renny arrived with Baltabek.Kayla and Wanda sat off to the side, Kayla with her arms wrapped around her knees as she stared at the last spot she saw Alex, and Wanda absorbing her surroundings. Since the demons had been cast out of the Summerlands, the dank grayish color slowly faded away, replaced once more by the lush greens and vibrant colors of the flowers that filled the Land of the Dead. They had even seen the return of some of those who had already passed on from the
"Mom! Dad. What are you doing here?" Rhychard just stood there, staring. He didn't need this right now."Your father thought I was crazy," Catherine Bartlett said. "He even made sure I didn't have any hidden wine bottles anywhere. Empty wine bottles, that is. I had to drag him here to see for himself.""You're alive," Rhychard's father said as he stood there and stared at Renny, his brows bunched in disbelief. "How is this even possible?"Rhychard sighed. "I've discovered just about anything is possible these days.""Hello, Mr. Bartlett," Renny said as she casually closed her purse, hiding the gnomes from sight for now. Catherine didn't handle them well last time, and Renny didn't know how Rhychard's father would react. "I'm sorry we didn't come over and tell you. We've just been…well, we've had our hands full."James Bartlett swooped in, wrapping his arms around Renny and giving her the tightest bear hug she ever had. "I can imagine you have," he told her, his voice filled with enthus
Rhychard watched as Renny gathered up the other Warriors and returned them to the Guardian Sword, only to reappear a moment later with Pux on her shoulder. Laci paced the entire time until Renny returned, eager to be on her way to protecting her sister. With the bridges gone, she had no other way back to the Land Above than Renny. None of them did, actually. Rhychard ran a hand over his long, dark hair, worried about what they would find when they arrived in the Valentine household, concerned for his brother, just as Laci showed concern for her sister.Tansy still stood off to the side, holding a sobbing Kayla and a shaking Wanda. Both witches shifted back to normal once the demons left them, but still wore the wear and tear from the possession. Rhychard hoped they would continue to heal with time, at least physically. He highly doubted Kayla would heal emotionally anytime soon considering her hands snapped Alex's neck even though the demon controlled her. That would be a heavy weight
Karl stood there, still not sure what he should be doing or even what was actually happening. He saw what those demons did to downtown. He couldn't possibly stop one if it showed up now and took over Jayden's body. Glancing over at Famallumi, he wondered just how much power the elves possessed. Gormec seemed to always have his giant hammer nearby, and while Karl had seen its power before, was it enough to stop the demons? There were only five of them against a demon like the ones who killed a witch and almost defeated his brother, the Warrior. Karl didn't particularly care for his odds."How do you feel?" he asked Jayden, his hands over his chest."I'd feel better if you'd stop staring at me like I'm about to go off my meds," Jayden snapped."How about I go and fix us all some lemonade?" Jayden's mother suggested. "It'll give us something to do while we wait for the others.""Do we even know they're going to be here?" Gormec asked, leaning on the handle of his hammer. "It's been longer
The witches continued to shout their chant, their power strengthened with their success. Baltabek sent a blast toward them, but Rhychard blocked it and hurled the power at the demon's feet, the ground exploding and shoving Baltabek up and backward into the air. The other Warriors quickly pressed their attack while the demon lay on the ground.Kayla let out a wail, slicing the air, and dropped to her knees. The demon inside of her wasn't so easily taken, however. With clenched fists, he shoved his power at the witches, doing his best to stop their chanting. Rhychard caught one of the bolts before it struck Tansy, but the next slipped past him and struck Laci in the chest, somersaulting her backward to land on the ground in a heap.Kree leaped up on his back paws, spinning in midair before racing over to the fallen witch. Rhychard could hear her moan and breathed a sigh of relief that she still lived. :Is she okay?: he asked Kree.Kree leaned down, pressing his muzzle against Laci's sho
Rhychard blocked another blast, sending it off to the side to explode into the ground. The gnomes fought from inside the ground, churning up the soil the demons stood upon and causing them to slip and lose their balance. Kree darted in all directions, drawing the demons' fire while he attempted to get close enough to bite one of them. The witches sent their power at the demons, Rose from behind and the others in front, doing their best to keep Baltabek and the others from focusing on any one person. They all did their best to bide Renny time to bring the other Warriors out of the sword, but Rhychard wasn't sure how much longer they could keep it up.The demons who possessed the witches spun, one sending a bolt of power at Rhychard's head and the other one sending one at his feet. He swung his sword, blocking the bolt to his head, but missing the one aimed at his feet. The magic snatched at his ankles, spinning him around and dragging him to the ground. His sword arm hit the ground, his