“It would mean that the people you care about really do rise from the dead.” He patted her gently on the back. “Besides Micaela, whose resurrection are you yearning to see?”
She spoke into his cool, damp tunic, muffling her words. “My foster parents … and Darcy … and me, I guess. I was able to go to Second Eden, so I might be resurrected already. I’m not sure. It’s all so confusing.”
“Well, my dear, I think once we get to Heaven, we will have a splendid reunion, complete with all manner of holy revelry.” He took in a deep breath. “Considering the circumstances, I think it is reasonable to take some time to tell a story. That is, if you’re willing.”
“Definitely. I need to settle my nerves.” Lauren raised a new fireball in her hand. “And we both need to dry off.”
“Very well. And this story is relevant, because I yearn to see my own parents.” Pulling Lauren, he lowered himself to a sitting position on the floor. Once they sat comfortably side by side, he set the yoke over her neck as well. “I found it warm and soothing, but if you don’t like it, please say so.”
Heat radiated down Lauren’s spine and out to her feet. After the cold journey through the ice storm, it definitely felt good. “It’s wonderful, Sir Barlow. Thank you.”
“You are quite welcome.” He folded his hands in his lap while Lauren used the fireball to radiate drying heat across their hair and clothes. “My father was a fine gentleman who died when I was fourteen, and my mother passed the very next day. Heartbroken, she was, she loved him so. I am pleased to say that a cross word never passed between them, though they cast quite a number my way. Deservedly so, I assure you. I was a wretched lad.”
“You don’t have to tell me about that, Sir Barlow. Lots of people were rebellious at that age. They grew out of it.”
“Ah, but I do need to tell you so you’ll understand why I commiserate with your heavenly hope. You see, my father died because I cursed at him while he was carrying an exceedingly heavy load of logs. I was embittered that it would be my duty to split all the logs, and he had decided to give me more work than I cared to undertake.
“Well, my curse startled him. He stumbled, fell, and rolled down a hill. The logs rolled after him and pummeled him one by one. His crushed body was a heartbreaking sight, exceeded only by my mother’s face as she watched it happen.” Sir Barlow’s eyes took on a faraway look. “Grief, disappointment, shame, horror. All expressed on my mother’s anguished face. And it was my fault. Every emotion that ripped her heart in half was my fault.”
“So what did you do?”
Anger flitted across his face. “The same thing any little beast would do. I ran away and hid in the woods for two days until the constable found me and told me about my mother’s death.”
Lauren touched his arm with her free hand. “Oh, Sir Barlow, that must have been awful.”
He offered a sad sort of smile. “It was, to be sure, but the shock set me on a better course. I enlisted as a soldier and learned the ways of a gentleman. When I became of age, I inherited my father’s manor. I did, as you say, grow out of my wretched phase, yet, the image of my mother’s face haunted me night after night. I would often wake up in a cold sweat, and the only way I could go back to sleep was to utter a certain prayer.”
Closing his eyes, he tilted his head upward. “God in Heaven, forgive me of all my horrible sins, and please tell my folks about how I have changed.” He opened his eyes and looked at her. “It took me years to stop kicking my own backside, and I still long for that great reunion day when I will see my mother’s face once again, a happy face, a proud and pleased face. And I want to …” A tear dripped to his cheek. “To hug my father … and beg for his forgiveness. He was a good man. I should have treated him like one.”
Lauren leaned her head against his shoulder. “I’m sorry, Sir Barlow.”
“As am I, Miss.” He heaved a deep sigh. “As am I.”
After sitting silently with him for a moment, she touched her shirt. It seemed dry enough. She extinguished the fireball and slid a hand over Sir Barlow’s. This gallant knight had opened an old wound to teach a valuable lesson. “Thank you for the story. I’ll stop kicking myself for getting fooled by Tamiel.”
“Of course you will. Like I said, you are wise beyond your years.”
Lauren looked at the final portal. A white beam from the central column painted a ragged hole that expanded and contracted with the beam’s pulses. The white likely meant that they didn’t need the yoke to allow passage. “Are you ready to go?”
“I am.” Sir Barlow lifted the yoke and rose. “Though my old bones are creaking a bit.”
Taking his hand, Lauren climbed to her feet. “We won’t have a weapon this time, so we’ll have to be more careful than ever.”
“If you have Sapphira’s powers, then you are a weapon.” Sir Barlow balled a fist and punched the air. “And I’m not bad in a fight, as long as my opponent isn’t stronger than the average ox … or lobster.”
Lauren laughed. “Let’s hope we don’t run into any more seafood.” They walked together to the portal. “Ready for a little heat?”
He straightened his tunic and tucked the yoke under an arm. “I am with you every step of the way, no matter what.”
“Then let’s go.” She lifted her hands and, as before, created a flaming shield that swirled around with a crackling wind. When the bottom edge reached the floor, she shouted, “Jump!”
They leaped through the last portal. Lauren touched down on something hard. Her feet slipped and shot forward, but Sir Barlow caught her and set her upright.
She breathed a quiet, “Thanks.”
A cold breeze cut through her clothes and raised a chill. Blackness dominated the landscape in every direction, including to the rear. The portal window should have provided a view of the central column and its pulsing light, but even it was invisible.
Lauren tested her traction on the floor. Her bare foot slid easily over the icy surface. Since the soles of her feet were practically immune to extreme temperatures, the cold wouldn’t harm her skin, but it might get uncomfortable after a while.
Sir Barlow whispered, “Well, Miss, it seems that we have entered a cold world this time. In my experience, enemies rarely strike when the temperature is this low.”
“That’s some comfort.” She shivered. “It’s strange. My fire shield snuffed out immediately. I didn’t do anything to extinguish it.”
“Perhaps the breeze blew it out. You could test it. We do need light.”
Lauren raised a hand and stared at the spot where it had to be. “Give me light!”
Darkness prevailed. Not even a spark ignited.
“Give me light!” Lauren squinted. Still nothing. “What could be wrong? Is it too cold?”
“I have no idea, Miss. I have lit many a campfire on bitterly cold days, so I think temperature is not a factor.”
“Well, we can’t explore this place in the dark. Who knows what we might run into?”
“Indeed. If this realm is similar to the other two, there is likely a pool of some kind out there, and, as I said before, I don’t relish the thought of falling into one for the third time.”
“I can’t blame you for that.”
“And since you are unable to create fire, we cannot safely return to the sanctum.”
“So we’re stuck.”
“It seems so.” Sir Barlow let out a grunting sound.
“What are you doing?” Lauren asked.
“I am sitting down and putting the yoke back on. I suggest that we wait here for the time being. If you will join me, I am sure you will be more comfortable. Perhaps it is merely nighttime in a world without moon or stars. Dawn will come soon. The landscape will brighten, and we will see the new quest that lies before us.”
“That sounds like a good idea.” His strong hands guided her down to a cross-legged sitting position. The floor radiated cold through her pants, but when he placed the y
oke over her neck, heat surged through her body and warmed every inch of skin.
“While we are settling, perhaps we can share stories. I have told you some of my history, a darker portion of my life, to be sure, but it’s not all so gloomy. And I would love to hear more of the life story of one of the bravest lasses I have ever met. I trust that it will be fascinating.”
She let out a soft laugh. “Not as fascinating as yours, I’m sure. You were alive in King Arthur’s time. I can’t match that.”
“Perhaps not, but I still want to hear your story. Start with your earliest memory. Then whenever your voice tires, I will interject with a story of my own.”
“My earliest memory?” Lauren took a deep breath. “All right. Here goes.”
CHAPTER 11
FIRST STRIKE
Beating wings sounded from above. Bonnie looked up. Gabriel appeared in the sky, flying from the direction of the stadium. Seconds later, he landed and walked alongside Billy and Bonnie with a powerful stride. Although he had to be more than eighty years old, he looked to be in his forties. “I’ve been doing some recon. No other aircraft around.”
Bonnie gave him a brief hug. “How are the dragons?”
“Weak as kittens.” Gabriel folded in his wings. “A missile blasted one of the buildings, and it spewed something that knocked them for a loop.”
Billy propped Excalibur on his shoulder. “Smart strategy. Weaken the opponent’s most powerful weapons, bring in reinforcements, and attack.”
“Any news on the portal?” Bonnie asked. “If we could open it, it wouldn’t matter what Arramos’s army does.”
Gabriel kept his gaze straight ahead. “Sapphira senses that it’s still there, but it’s locked tight. We heard from Marilyn that Mardon knows why, so Sapphira will confront him when everyone gets together. She says she’s known him for a long time and can tell when he’s lying.”
“Thanks for the update,” Billy said, “but you don’t have to hang with us. My broken toes won’t let me go much faster.”
“I could carry you, give you the aerial view. It’s not far. I can carry even a big lug like you that distance.”
Billy smiled and waved a hand. “No need. Like you said, it’s not far.”
“All right. I’ll see you there.” Gabriel flapped his wings and took off.
After he flew out of earshot, Bonnie looked at Billy. “Why didn’t you want a ride?”
“This way I get more alone time with you.”
“I’m all for that, but is there something you want to talk about?”
“Nothing concrete. Your dream got me thinking.” He met her gaze. “Suppose Matt made it to Abaddon’s Lair and resurrected Lauren. That means they’re probably with Listener by now, and they’re working on finding that device Semiramis planted.”
“Maybe. Is something wrong with that?”
“Only that I’m worried about Listener. When she was little, we were like this.” Billy crossed his fingers and showed them to Bonnie. “I mean, really close. But when I last saw her at the chasm, she acted … well … aloof. Almost like we were strangers. I was hoping we would pick up where we left off.”
“That was when her companion was ailing because of the corruption here. She was out of sorts.”
“True, but is that enough of a reason for her behavior? Aloof is one thing, but you told me she killed a man who might have been surrendering.”
Bonnie sighed. “I know. She claimed that he pointed the gun at her, but it didn’t look that way to me.”
“So that’s been bugging me. If losing a companion can cause such a change, what does it mean? Is her heart really as pure as it ought to be?”
“That’s worth being concerned about.” Bonnie slid her hand around his arm. “I assume you noticed how Matt looked at her.”
“I noticed.” He smiled. “That’s why I brought it up. Just trying to be a dad to a teenager I barely know.”
“A teenager who has a good head on his shoulders. If he can work out his animosity toward Darcy, he’ll be fine. I think that’s his only roadblock to faith.”
“Let’s hope so. I can’t help but be concerned.”
“Of course you can’t.” Bonnie patted him on the chest. “You’re a good father, Billy Bannister.”
They walked on in silence. After another minute, they arrived at the stadium and followed a concrete path under the bleachers to a gate that opened to the playing field. Near the opposite sideline Elam and Sapphira spoke privately in a huddle while everyone else milled about closer to the center. Marilyn embraced the pot in both arms, Catherine and Walter stood behind Carl as he sat in his wheelchair, Carly and Adam tinkered with the computers’ brain units, and Gabriel stood over Thomas and Mariel who sat in the shade of his outstretched wings.
Several yards from the humans, Thigocia lay over Makaidos with her wings spread while Roxil blew a weak stream of fire over her scales. Apparently the healer was the first to recover from the potion’s effects, and she was working on restoring the other two. Ashley sat in the midst of them and stroked Makaidos’s head as if petting a cat.
Bonnie smiled. It would probably seem strange to most humans to see a woman doting on three dragons, but this woman happened to be a daughter to two of these dragons and a sister to a third. To anthrozils, such a scene was normal.
Closer to the end zone, Mardon sat alone, as if ostracized for bad behavior. Who would want a conniving ghost hanging around to listen to secret plans?
Once on the field, Billy and Bonnie walked along a faded white stripe that led past the numeral 50. Jagged-blade weeds and crabgrass dominated the greenery, a disguise that had made the lawn look healthy from far away.
When Sapphira noticed their arrival, she marched to the center of the field over a bluish logo of a rearing horse and stopped near its nose. She rotated her body slowly, her hands open, palms up. “The portal is still here, but the sensation is weak. I’m wondering if my power is diminishing with age.”
“You’re probably just tired,” Bonnie said. “Nothing to worry about.”
Mardon walked toward her, a boyish smile on his face. “You still look young and beautiful, in spite of your thousands of years of life.”
Sapphira glared at him but offered no reply.
“I remember,” he continued as he drew closer, “when I put your tiny body, barely more than an embryo, into the soil. Even then your beauty was—”
“Stop it, Mardon.” Sapphira glared at him. “I can tell when you’ve rehearsed a speech. What do you want?”
Mardon wrung his hands. “I want to help you open the portal.”
He reached for her, but she leaned back. “Don’t touch me.”
Elam stepped between them. “What is all this drivel leading up to?”
“You need not fear. I cannot touch her. Yet, I can feel her energy field if you allow me to get close enough.”
Elam held his ground. “Why would that help?”
“The device my mother planted in Second Eden closed the portal by raining ice and employing a magnetic disruption in the atmosphere. I created the device against my will, knowing that I could eventually repair the damage as I am trying to do now. You see, the disruption keeps Sapphira from opening the portal, and the ice doused the fire, which would have stabilized the immediate area, including the portal, and allowed her to open it.” Mardon leaned to the side and addressed Sapphira. “I can teach you how to maneuver the magnetic field to overcome the disruption and the lack of fire.”
Sapphira set a fist on her hip. “Once you teach me to open the portal, you’ll lose your leverage. You’ll become physical again, and we could leave you behind.” Her eyes sparkled, more vivid than earlier. “What else do you have up your sleeve to make sure we’ll bring you along?”
Mardon pulled on his shirt to straighten it, though it wasn’t wrinkled. “I should have known not to underestimate your intelligence.”
“And you should know better tha
n to try to flatter me.” Tiny flames sprouted in Sapphira’s hair. “Just tell me your plan.”
“Very well.” Mardon folded his hands at his waist. “First, do you know which kind of portal this is? Is it a walk-through portal?”
“Yes. Walk-through and materialization, though protection is needed for either option.” Sapphira turned to the others. “With some portals, I surround people with fire, then we dissolve and rematerialize somewhere else. With some, we walk through. With a few, I grab the energy within the portal and pull, like I’m pulling a rope, but I haven’t seen one of those since my time in Hades. Most portals need some kind of protection to pass through, though there have been a few exceptions.”
Mardon rubbed his hands together. “A walk-through portal is perfect for my technique. Once you use it, the portal will not open for physical passage, because the disruption will continue to be in effect until a fire is restored on the other side. Yet, the opening will be enough for a nonphysical entity such as myself to pass through. According to my theory, I will regain a body in Second Eden, as I always had while there. I will rebuild the fire for you, and you will be able to fully open the portal for physical passage.”
Elam crossed his arms. “Assuming you do start the fire, then you would run away like a dog with its tail between its legs to keep us from throwing you back through the portal.”
Mardon wrung his hands again. “Your illustration is unsavory, but the essence of your conclusion is accurate. I will, indeed, take advantage of my leverage and leave for the time being. Yet, rest assured that I will rebuild the fire first. I want Clefspeare to be restored so that he can kill Arramos, and I realize that Second Eden will be an uninhabitable wasteland without you and your company there to restore it.”
“It’s for the best,” Sapphira said. “We’ll let him go to Second Eden. At least he won’t be able to get into any more mischief here.”
“Speaking of mischief.” Ashley strode from the dragons’ resting area. “Trusting the guy who built the device that’s keeping us in Arramos’s crosshairs doesn’t sound like a good idea to me.”