Rodi had long ago come to the conclusion that nothing his wife did would ever surprise him. He had apparently been wrong. He watched her dig in the oak trunk at the end of their bed and closed his jaw as he tried to make sense of her words. "Could you repeat that?"
She just smiled as she tossed her priestess robe over the end of the bed. It was a patchwork gown of white, red, and black, and it glowed softly with the majik it had absorbed from her skin while she worked spells. "I said that I'm going to unlock Logan's power completely and awaken Kari and Kimber's while I'm at it. Terry . . . well, we'll see how that goes. It's his decision."
"Got it." He cocked his head. "No, actually, I don't." He rubbed the back of his neck. "Logan and Terry make sense. They're not exactly quiet about what they are and what they can do. It's the other two I'm puzzled by. How did Kari and Kimber get into this? You neglected to mention at any point that they had majik in them, and I sure didn't feel it. I don't think any of us did."
She lifted a brow as she straightened with a gray cloak folded over her arms. "Logan did, but don't feel jealous about that. It ties to our lineage. We're somewhere between magnets and sensors of others with majikal gifts. That aside, do you really think anyone of our generation would have picked a normal Caretaker for themselves?"
"'Cultivators don't choose inferior mates.' I've heard that a dozen times. I heard it as a kid even, because I'm a Cultivator as well." Deactivated now, but no less in possession of a Seed despite being in all other ways relatively normal. Only relatively, however, as his True Shadow Flower Element and Gray core alone made him unique, and his ridiculous amount of majik made it worse. "I didn't think inferiority had anything to do with any sort of power."
"It doesn't, strictly speaking, but there's a reason every Caretaker to every Cultivator has had one magical gift from either Ruler or Defender tree depending on need. Power resonates. A Caretaker must be gifted in some manner that allows them to best understand and support their Cultivator. Look at Robert and Shanae as a prime example. I mean . . . look at us even. As for Kari and Kimber, they both started to be suspicious when they started absorbing small bits of power from Storm and Theo after becoming lovers—the bits felt very natural and were resonating to something else inside them. They asked me, and I confirmed."
He leaned against the dresser and watched as she started changing clothes. He had been utterly delighted that the softer roundness to her figure had lingered after their son's birth even though she had shed most of the extra weight with a speed that had made even Shanae envious of her physical conditioning. "Basically," he finally said, "there's not a single normal person among the lot of us. We have the Archon of the Immortal Fields, the Knight of the same, two children of the Realm, a Dark Shadow element Captain of the Royal Knights, four witches, and me."
She lifted a brow as she tied her cords around her hips. "Do admit that the scale of oddity among Caretakers is relative to the oddity among Cultivators, and my generation is among the oddest of all." She walked closer and smiled up at him. "Don't worry. Even when my brother reaches his max, he won't even come close to rivaling you." She laughed when he grabbed her into his arms. "Honestly, you two are adorable how you bicker. I think you do it just to amuse me."
They did, actually. He skimmed a finger down her cheek softly and then over her lips. "I'm not wholly at my peak either, am I?" he asked quietly.
She shook her head. "Definitely not. You have hovered for years at the cusp of evolving to wizard, and even if Logan reaches max, he will never be that. You have far too many elements to be merely a witch, and far too much majik overall. Something happened inside you lately, didn't it?" She soothingly ran her hands over his arms as he tensed a bit. "True Shadow split in you the way it did in me. You had a moment of just . . . pure frustration at not evolving, and the volatile state of your emotions broke True Shadow into Light and Dark, and your Gray continues to bring it back together. Just like me, really. I expect eventually it'll spark inside you as well, since it did in me. I feel as if such a thing is critical to why you can't just evolve but I don't know for sure. Yet."
The 'yet' was an expected addendum. Nothing eluded her Pattern Mastery for long. "So I have . . . what? Six elements inside me now? Shadow, Light, Dark, Air, Fire, and Nature? That's a lot for even a wizard, really." And more than a little unnerving. "Can I trade an element for another skill instead? I mean, wizards can have up to four of each. I'm at six and two."
She just laughed at him. "I'm afraid it doesn't work that way, but it is entirely likely that that's why you have six and two. You have more need to be elementally flexible than you do flexible in skill. Given who you married, that is rather logical. Maybe if and when you evolve, you'll get another skill. It's a little surprising you haven't just absorbed more from me, really, all things considered."
He accepted that, though it did still bother him the littlest bit he could not evolve. He would have to let it go and be content with hovering at the cusp. If it ever became critically important that he evolve, he would damned well find a way to make it happen. Tasia could not help him unless he figured out what blocked him internally. "Can you still start teaching me some new spells?" he teased warmly. "More of the ones not dependent on a specific element. Private lessons, maybe?"
Her lips curved with sultry promise. "I'll even go skyclad."
He thought of her in nothing but majik and candlelight and his grin came lightning fast. "I don't think I'll be concentrating on spellwork at that point, but who am I to argue?" She pulled free of his grip, and he moved over to grab the bag that had the tools she would need for the ritual. He hefted it for her and carried it along as they headed downstairs.
They reached the living room just in time to hear their daughter say, "No, Daelan! Mom'll be mad! Send it back!" She gave a little shriek, and Daelan started giggling madly. "Take it away!"
Tasia and Rodi lifted brows at each other and then looked into the living room. Anna was perched on the back of the couch while a large and ugly bullfrog hopped around the bottom. Daelan was in his playpen and clapping his hands happily. Rodi looked at Tasia, and she at him. "Your son," he told her. "I never conjured animate objects!"
"No," she countered dryly. "You conjured so many plants you almost toppled your castle! I'd rather deal with the frogs." She walked over and picked up the frog and then went to the window and lobbed it outside where it landed in a large puddle with a decent splash. She dusted off her hands and turned to eye her giggling son. "Daelan," she said warningly.
"Ma!" Clearly deciding discretion was the better part of valor, Daelan industriously began to gnaw on a stuffed rabbit. He had more teeth breaking in and happily chewed on his plushies to help. Raine had even enchanted them with majik that soothed his sore gums.
Anna hopped off the couch and looked at her mother in awe. She never tired of seeing her in her priestess robes or in her Ruler gown or her Defender armor. She just always looked powerful and beautiful. Anna couldn't wait until she was an adult just like her mom. "Can I watch?" she asked hopefully as she followed her parents outside to where Tasia's electric carriage stayed parked.
Rodi lifted a brow. "Depends on if your mother wants an audience." He glanced at his wife. "What do you think?"
Tasia knelt and smiled at Anna. "I think that it never hurts to see full rituals when you are learning the Path. You can come along as part of your training, but you have to be on your best behavior." She scooped up her daughter and then straightened and leaned up to kiss Rodi softly. "Be careful," she said against his lips.
"You're the one in danger," he muttered to himself as he watched the carriage drive away. "And I don't like it." He turned on his heel and went inside to go get his son and stash him with Olivia and Tosh. He himself wanted to be on hand for this ritual because he just felt something would go wrong. Not with Tasia's arcanistry; she never made mistakes. No, he felt a more tangible threat. He felt something dangerous, something terrible.
Something . . . insane.
* * * * *
The smell of coffee and pastries woke Beth. Being as she was lying in a nice patch of morning sunshine, and she was still floating happily on the empathic pleasure that always consumed her when Terry touched her, she had no inclinations to move for a year. She snuggled further into her pillow and told herself that if she ignored the morning, it would go away.
It didn't. And it announced itself quite loudly when Terry swatted her on the rear. With a sleepy curse in Carnatine that came out with a distinct bite, she grabbed his pillow and whacked him in the head with it. "Oy! Do that again and I'll smite you!"
He just grinned at his tousled lover and took the pillow from her with his free hand. He had loved Bethany Jackson for nearly three decades. From the moment she and his brother had become best friends at age three, he had been drawn to her. She was such a wonderful combination of conflicting personality traits that she always kept him on his toes. She was quite an extrovert with the addition of being outgoing and bubbly, but her powerful Empathy meant she kept her heart deeply hidden. The outgoing side hid the vulnerable side that came from feeling everything from everything. Her inner side drove him crazy trying to protect her even as her outer side sometimes made him want to hit his head on a wall.
"It's morning," he informed her. He waved the plate he held under her nose. He grinned as her teal eyes focused and followed the motion. "Breakfast?" he offered.
"Coffee." She blinked as that was also waved in front of her. "Oh." She took the mug and eyed him curiously. Not that he didn't have his romantic side, or his playful side, but she couldn't quite read his mood that morning. He was normally an open book to her, as was the nature of two empaths who loved, and yet he had blocked her at that moment. It puzzled her. "What are you up to?" she asked suspiciously.
"Well, I thought you might want to go shopping."
"Shopping?" She rubbed her ear with her free hand. "Wait, wait, I have wax in my ear. You just offered to go shopping with me. You swore it was near suicidal to go to any store with me or Theo." She eyed him intently. "Are you really my Terry? Are you sure you're not a strange facsimile created in a lab? Should I be concerned with Emily's science experiments?""
He leaned over and kissed her, and he nimbly rescued the coffee mug without spilling a drop as it slid out of her fingers. When he lifted his head again, she gave him a bemused smile. "Never mind. You're definitely my Terry." She took the mug back from him for a quick drink and tried to coax her brain awake. "Why are we shopping?"
"You'll see when we get there," he promised. "Eat your breakfast."
She drummed her fingers on the mug and then sighed and accepted that he had her firmly blocked out. Muttering, she set the mug aside and dug into the breakfast he had brought her. He could cook almost on par with the gourmet chefs she knew, and she quite happily devoured her food. She then made a startled sound as he pulled her out of bed. Naked except for her long mahogany hair, she glowered at him. "Boy, you're sure bossy today."
"Pick something pretty out." He hid a smile and nudged her toward the closet that held her clothes. "You should feel great today. And leave your hair down for once, please? Your normal braid is nice, but I like it down, too."
She raked her hands through her hair. "By the Goddess, you confuse me today." She ignored his chuckle as she walked into the closet. She could oblige the hair down request because she rather liked how he would absently play with her hair as if he had not noticed his own actions. She could also make herself feel great—and give him a startle. It would serve him right for being so confusing.
He was in the living room reading that day's periodical when she walked in. He looked up with a greeting and nearly swallowed his tongue. Repeatedly, he reminded himself that his lover was a born Carnationite. Cultivators of Carnation had an ability to enchant just about everyone they met with a combination of beauty and charm and, often, sexiness. Veronica had been a model for as many years as she had been an artist, and Beth was as often modeling clothes as she was making them—a chip off her mother's block.
She had opted for the lethal combination of red and gold that hallmarked her world and her world's flower. A gold silk dress that clung to every curve before stopping high on her thighs, and red accessories that only emphasized her teal eyes and tanned skin. She had also left her mahogany hair down, yes, but had done something to it, some mysterious majikal thing, that made it look tousled on purpose.
Her perfume of apples and carnations almost made his mouth water. "Goddess be," he managed to say as he got to his feet. "Remind me not to ask you to do that again. Holy hell, Bethany. I can't decide whether I want you to put something more casual on, or simply take it all off."
Her grin came lightning fast and full of smugness. "I know. You can't block that one from me." She grabbed her jacket and shrugged it on. "Don't tempt Carnation Cultivators," she reminded him politely. "You get more than you bargained for."
He admired the way her hips swung gracefully as she walked. "I can't say that's really a bad thing." He helped her into the carriage and then went around and got in the driver's side. He started up the engine and they hit the road to head for the largest shopping center in Protea City. The marketplace was the place for small store shopping, and the center was the place for the larger ones, including several trusted companies that had been around for millennia and catered to very specific needs.
The center had already become fairly packed, but they found a place to park that was not too far away. Terry took Beth's hand with his and swung them lightly between them as they walked. To her deep and tender amusement, not all of the attention they got was because of her. Her lover's cardinal red hair and blue eyes, shockingly handsome features, fair skin, and preference for cool-toned clothing meant he also drew eyes wherever he went. "I get to show you off today," she told him, and then laughed and hugged his arm. "What're we buying?"
"Stuff."
They did indeed buy stuff. He was in a mood to spoil her, and really, who was she to argue? She ended up with new clothes, a pair of shoes that matched, and some lingerie she couldn't wait to tempt him with. It was only when he steered her toward the jewelry that she rolled her eyes. "Terrence," she said warningly. "I don't need more glittery things. You already complain about how many I own."
"Aw, you have less than Storm does, so c'mon." He tugged her up to the counter where the clerk was hiding a smile. "I'm looking for something elegant but sassy. Like her," he told the salesman.
The salesman had been waiting for them to arrive. He reached behind the counter and came up with a black velvet box. "How about this?"
"Let's see." Terry opened the box and grinned a little to himself as he realized they looked better than he had thought they would. "Here, what do you think?" he asked Beth softly.
She looked at him a bit skeptically and then took the box. She almost stopped breathing. This wasn't a fluke, or a random trip. It couldn't be. The four rings in the box had been made from rose quartz, and two had been carefully engraved to have a pattern of carnations along the band. "What . . . Terry, what is this?"
"I think they're engagement rings." He smiled and removed the smaller engraved rings from the box. "It took me several years to find the right stone to resonate with your power. Each time Nica was supposedly asking me for input on Carnation Castle, we were actually hunting rose quartz on the world to find the right piece for you. I had said I would not make our betrothal more until I could put the right rings on our thumbs. These are them, if you want them."
"I do!" she laughed. She almost danced in place with joy, and her entire face glowed. "Oh, put them on me, would you!" She felt a little thrill go down her back as she saw how the rings looked against her hands, and how they caught the light. "It's perfect!" She took the other rings to put them on him, and a second thrill rippled through her. "They're perfect!" She threw herself into his arms on another laugh. He stopped blocking her, and his emotions swept over her like a wonderful wave. "It's perfect. You're perfect," she said softly. She held him tighter and then pulled back and smiled at the salesman. "He set me up, didn't he?"
"He did, Your Highness," the clerk told her. He was smiling as well. He had seen many of the Ruler Cultivators at some time or another. Like all other citizens on any of the worlds, he loved them all deeply. No one could find anything bad to say about the royal houses; they gave of themselves tirelessly for their people, and the ones who were Defenders spilled their blood, too. "He's a lucky man."
"No," she corrected. "I'm the lucky one." She smiled and rested her head on Terry's shoulder. She had been waiting a very long time for him to finally ask her, and now everything was perfect. She glanced at her rings with a smile. Very perfect. She would still yell at her mother for keeping secrets though. It would be expected.
* * * * *
For convenience and space alike, Logan and Raine's house would be the best location for the ritual. Logan already used the large attic to practice anyway. Of the witches in the generation, only four were considered 'practicing' witches because they walked the Path that followed the Faith of the Goddess that had actually created all witches originally: Tasia, Rodi, Ryan, and Logan. The Path referred to the individual journey a witch walked as they followed the Faith, and it came in three distinct stages where the first had lots of supervision, the second had more autonomy, and the third effectively allowed a witch to walk alone as needed without direct observation. The others did not follow the Faith, which meant less rules to follow, but far less resources to access. Either way, all answered to Tasia as High Priestess, which none minded at all.
Tasia waited in the doorway with Kari and Kimber behind her and watched as Raine and Logan systematically swept the room to remove their majikal or magical signatures. The sense of Metal, Thunder, and Ice faded—Metal and Thunder from Raine, and Metal and Ice from Logan. Tasia stepped into the room, and the ground rippled under her bare feet. Though her arcanistry did encompass all elements, the only ones felt were those that crossed both magic and majik alike. The sense of Ice and Shadow with an underlying tang of Glass rose to fill the air. Curiously, despite her use of Light/Dark across both aspects, it had not overridden her True Shadow presence.
"I will never not be impressed by that," Kari decided. She had Anna perched on her back, and the little girl kept playing with her rusty hair. Kari wore white denims and a white shirt—as she had been ordered—but she felt more than a little silly. She never wore white clothes because of her hair color. "Should I dye my hair?" she asked Kimber. "I've considered it."
Kimber eyed her. As was common, the Caretakers of a Cultivator generation were as close of friends as the Cultivators themselves. "Stormy would kill me if I let you, and I don't want a pissed off pattern master on my trail. He's a finder. I'd never be able to hide. Personally, I'd like to live to see a honeymoon." She too wore white but in the form of a long skirt and a sweatshirt. She felt perfectly normal, really. She often found herself in white because her artistic friends liked the contrast against her coal skin and honey brown hair. They also like playing to her blue eyes, so red had become common.
The white color was only for apprentices, too. Logan had moved well past that and instead wore the black that denoted someone allowed to walk the Path alone; the second stage of half-autonomy was denoted by red. Tasia's patchwork robes marked her role as High Priestess for she brought others onto the different stages of the Path. Logan still showed all three stages of journey, however, in the patchwork cloak he also wore. Olivia and Tasia had gifted it to him fifteen years before when he had entered the final stage of the Path.
He spotted Anna and smiled as he walked over to pick her up off Kari's back. "Starting her young, sis?" He propped Anna on his hip easily. She was tall for her age and weighed more than average because of her majik, but majik affected strength as wholly as weight. Any of her witchy family members over roughly five-nine in height could carry her still.
"You're never too young to learn," Tasia quipped. She was moving in a clockwise direction as she drew an invoking pentagram on the floor with a piece of chalk. Raine wasn't attending so she wore regular clothes, but she assisted by setting out Tasia's things since she knew where all of them went.
Anna spotted the chunk of emerald that Logan wore on a chain and stared at it intently. She could see colors swirling inside it where it held some of his majik. He saw her fascination and smiled. "Tasi, she needs her own pendant." Most witches had a charm or stone that served as a sort of protection amulet, and some would wear theirs all the time, like Tasia did, or would don it when they needed extra defenses, like Logan did. He also wore it for all rituals, which increased its power.
"She hasn't chosen a stone yet," his sister responded. She walked over and took Anna from him and set her gently on the floor. "You know the rules," she said gently. "You have to be quiet and watch from the side. And be careful," she added as Anna ran over to hop up on top of the window bench. "Don't fall and scare us."
Raine stopped next to her, and Tasia smiled as she leaned over to kiss her cheek. She murmured something that made Raine laugh and then she returned the embrace and walked over to her husband. After kissing him as well, she left the attic. "Aww," Kari complained. "No kiss for us?"
Raine just laughed at her. "Brat." She headed down the stairs with confidence. She had full faith in their abilities, and she needed to get Rodi out of their tree. Of course he would be skulking around. He was such a worrywart. He just never seemed to remember that he could not hide from his wife; no one could, really, though she sometimes let them pretend otherwise.
The dragons were also present, and they joined Anna to watch. Tasia stepped into the middle of the pentagram and it activated in a rush that sent majik rippling up around her body. "Awaken," she said in a soft voice that resonated with her arcanistry and made the pentagram under her feet glow ever brighter. "Let them awaken."
Logan calmly stepped into the pentagram, and Kimber and Kari exchanged a wary look before trying to gesture each other in first. Logan sighed, grabbed both, and hauled them in. "It's not going to kill you."
Kari's skin prickled and goosebumps rose along her neck. "It's just very unnerving," she noted. And it grew more unnerving still as she felt the restless sensation within herself that again indicated she had something sleeping inside. She had felt it before and had seen the pattern. It was still a bit disconcerting.
Kimber felt strangely calm. She had shared one of Theo's visions and knew this was the only way she would be able to defend him, and properly Care for him. "Let's do it," she smiled.
* * * * *
Minstrel sat in an inverted pentagram and intently read the book he held. It was a simple thing, really. So simple. All he had to do was send his mind somewhere else and force his way past her shields. It wouldn't be simple to achieve, of course, for she was strong, but it was an easy thing to attempt. This would be so much fun. He should have considered this sooner.
* * * * *
Beth was floating on happy clouds of contentment as she cuddled against Terry's arm. "So," she nuzzled her cheek against him, "when?"
He smiled. "Sometime between the High Princesses marrying and the kingdoms being restored. Your entire generation will rise at the same time." He winced wryly. "Bad enough my brother became a prince. Now I'm marrying a princess and will be one myself. I'm also getting a father-in-law who heads the team of Commanders that protects High King Evan, and a mother-in-law that is the Lead Defender of the legendary Rebirth Era Cultivators!"
Beth snickered softly. She adored all four of her parents, but she was a tiny bit partial to her adopted ones. "They like you," she assured him. "Mom especially because you don't let me get away with everything I want. My other mom and dad have been saying for years that they wanted you for a son-in-law. They set their eye on Theo first, but realized pretty quick that was all but immoral." She laughed as she said it. "So you were their next target."
"I'd be offended at being their second choice if my brother wasn't the better catch," he teased back. "And while I have no desire to be a king, since it's a necessity of marrying a Lower Princess, I will just have to endure." He swung her into his arms under the leaves of an apple tree. "I've already spent most of our lives checking your bad decisions and making sure you don't forget to eat when you're busy. I can't see that changing, really. I'll just be chasing you through a castle instead of an apartment insisting you put some damn shoes on."
Her eyes softened. "Terry." Her perfect Caretaker. She went up on her toes with the intent of kissing him when she felt a sudden menacing presence behind her. It had forced itself into her body before she could gasp, and it caught her with her mental barriers momentarily down. Her eyes went solid red as she struggled and then she slumped over into Terry's arms.
"Beth!" He shook her quickly, but there was no response even though he felt her magikry wild under her skin. Her eyes closed suddenly, and he felt the fight all the way to his bones through their shared emotions. "Bethany!" When there was still no response, he lifted her into his arms and began to run. This was beyond his limited gifts, but he knew who could help.
* * * * *
A beautiful soul, Minstrel thought. His conscious mind no longer resided within his body. It hovered within Beth's body, and he had to fight against her strong will. She was powerful and resistant to his presence, but he might be able to trick her or overwhelm her.
He spread out his presence so it felt like he was taking over every aspect of her mind and soul. Her soul fought but wavered. He took immediate advantage, and leapt upon her mind to rip out her fears and bear them to the light. And leaving his wild laughter echoing in her soul, he began to taunt her with her own nightmares.
* * * * *
Tasia closed her eyes as she linked her hands together. She murmured softly under her breath in the ancient language of witches, one that had been in use since its advent some fifteen thousand years before. Only members of the Faith had kept it alive, but it had begun gaining traction and interest in recent years from scholars. Her arcanistry swept out in long curling waves of snow and shadow that wrapped around the three standing in the pentagram with her. Her eyes opened and the pupils had disappeared into the chocolate color. "Awaken!"
Nothing could resist the demand of a Mystic Sorceress. The walls containing Logan's majik and blocking Kimber and Kari's all came rushing down with a force that shook the house. Logan of course already possessed his Metal and Air Flower Elements, and it had been known that Kari had Thunder-based magic and Kimber had Fire-based. It turned out that both woman carried the same element as their primary majik one, too, with a second element of Air to Kari and a second of Water to Kimber.
Perhaps not-so-surprisingly, Kari's skill turned out to be Physical Healing, like Raine or Ryan. She had always had a tendency to fuss over injured loved ones, and she was known as the Caretaker who always had a first aid kit in her bag somewhere. Kimber had Sensing, which seemed logical, except that she got Sight on top of it. Present Sight, to be specific. That made her literally the seventh person alive to have Present Sight. Certainly, mates of those who had Sight would pick up tinges of it themselves, but never have full Sight. It spoke volumes about a critical need she would fulfill that Kimber had been chosen by the Guardian of Destiny to also possess the gift.
The auras of all three witches began to glow softly, then stronger, then stopped. Tasia's power slowly faded and her eyes went back to normal. She blinked and then focused on Kari and Kimber. She then bit her lip to cover a laugh as Kimber accidentally summoned a fireball, and Kari's own Air turned her rusty hair into a messy tangle. A quick application of her own majik solved both problems. "Welcome to the other side, ladies."
Kari stared at her hands in shock. "Holy thundery hells, that was amazing. I feel . . . kinda like I'm drunk but without the potential hangover. I'm on a sugar binge or something. I could run across the entire city or climb a mountain!"
"Jump off the top while you're at it," Kimber suggested on a wry sigh. She staggered suddenly and pressed a hand to her head as a painful sensation exploded behind her eyes. "What . . . what is this?"
"Don't fight it," Logan urged as both he and Tasia moved forward to catch her. "You have Sight, Kim. It's neither comfortable nor easy to endure, especially not paired with your Sensing. It will take over your eyes at most times, and others it will take your mind. You can't stop it. Trying to stop it will only make it worse, especially if you're the only one privy to what you see. Are you seeing with your Sight, or feeling right now?"
"Feeling."
"What do you feel?" Tasia asked softly.
"Danger. Death." She shuddered. "Shit, how does Theo handle this? How do you?" she demanded of Tasia and Logan alike.
"Practice," was the calm response. "Focus on that feeling and push through the pain. You will become used to the pain that comes from seeing something not on the pleasant side. Let your eyes unfocus. Let the Sight fill you and show you a clue. Whatever it is you're trying to See is happening now, for that is the nature of Present Sight. There is plenty of information to be had." And she had her suspicions already, to be sure. The moment she had returned to her own mind after awakening the others, her sense for danger to those in her coven had begun to trip loudly.
Kimber tried to do what she said, and pushed past the pain in her mind and body to the muffling sense of evil causing it. She narrowed her eyes slightly, as if to narrow her mind's gaze, and a sudden flash of a red carnation went past her eyes. It was slowly being eaten by . . . something. "Beth!" she said on a gasp. "I see a red carnation, but I know it's Beth!"
Tasia's head jerked up and her eyes went white as she sent her power flying in a rolling wave from her body. It stunned Kari and Kimber for they had never seen her do something like it and they could literally see her power as a shockwave. "It's a radar," Logan told them. "I can do it as well. Another of those 'part of our shared lineage' things."
All three witches briefly flickered white in response to the wave, and Raine and Rodi did as well as they came running in the door. The dragons and Anna also flickered white, and Kari realized what was happening. "You're locating each of us and determining our health both spiritually and physically?"
Tasia said nothing as she looked with her mind's eye for her other friends and family. Everyone came back fine . . . except for Beth and Terry. The latter was a washed out hue that meant his powers were being used elsewhere, and the former looked a sickly shade of red that meant she had been incapacitated. Both were already on their way toward her.
Her eyes went back to normal and she turned toward Kari. "Sorry, but you're about to get a crash course in mind walking." Anna ran over and grabbed onto her leg, and she kneeled down to hug her tightly. "You need to be brave," she said softly. "This is going to be very scary. Rodi," she looked at her husband, "keep an eye on her. This won't be easy on any of us."
The front door slammed downstairs. "Anastasia!" Terry shouted.
"Up here!" Raine called back and stepped out of the way as he came flying up the stairs with Beth clutched in his arms. "Beth . . .!" She touched her cheek and then hissed out a soft breath. "Damn it! It's Minstrel!"
"How?" Rodi demanded. "Where would he learn this?"
Terry knelt in the middle of the pentagram and gently laid Beth on the floor. His face was stricken, and his eyes showed the hell he lived through. He had forcefully linked himself to Beth, and he could feel everything she felt. Her terror made him ill. "Anyone can curse someone," he said faintly. "Especially if they get any of the books written about majik. It's instructed how to do it to make sure people don't do it on accident, but the right sort . . ."
"I still wish we could limit access to those." Tasia removed her cloak and tossed it over the table nearby. "Raine, we'll need you and Kari alike. The combined force of your Physical Healing power should strengthen Beth's body enough to withstand whatever damage will transfer from the damage to her soul. Damn it, we need three," she muttered. She went very still suddenly and looked to where her daughter was in Rodi's arms.
Logan followed her gaze. "It's risky," he said quietly.
"Yes, but there is no other choice. We need a third, and it needs to be someone with Spiritual Healing. I can't do it; I have to send everyone. Ryan might not get here fast enough, and he's actually not as strong as Anna anyway." She walked over to her daughter and found her chewing her lip nervously. "Anna is a very rare child, having not just the hybrid of Physical and Spiritual Healing like Ryan, but to have both at incredibly powerful strength. She matches Raine for Physical, and only I am stronger for Spiritual. She also has Ice, Nature, and Fire for her elements. Honestly, she may well be a wizard before she is thirteen. If anyone can do this, it's Anna."
"Please." Terry looked at Anna. "It's a lot to ask, I know."
She lifted her chin and squared her shoulders, and she looked so much like her mother that everyone had to smile. "Okay." When Rodi put her on the ground, she walked over to Beth and sat down next to her. "Okay. What do I do?" she asked. "I want to help!"
Kari and Raine both sat down on the pentagram on opposing sides of Beth, and Tasia knelt near her head. Logan, Rodi, and Kimber made a three-point triangle around the pentagram and put up a shield by combining their majik. Kimber felt only a little nonplussed to be so comfortable already with using majik, but considering who was present, she found it somewhat mandatory to be comfortable.
Like concentrating their majik into a concentrated blast, a strong enough witch could also concentrate it into a shield. That took more practice and a higher strength since it needed to be maintained and not just fired. Adding more witches to the shield distributed the load across more casters and could make it both stronger and also less draining, and it only took one trained witch to make it; the others could follow their lead.
"Hold my hand," Raine told Anna. "And don't let go. I'll be your guide. Kari," she held out her free hand to her future sister-in-law, "take my other hand. Let's not get lost, shall we? Minstrel is likely making a big noise because otherwise Beth would be able to repel him."
The ring of blue-white majik flame surrounded them all, and Tasia closed her eyes as she cast her spell. The three healers disappeared within the next heartbeat as they were taken into Beth's inner soul and mind. Terry closed his eyes and let his majik well as an offering to help. There was nothing else he could do.
It looked and felt devoid of light and dark alike in the way that spoke to the emptiness of evil. True darkness brought rest; this brought nothing. Anna wanted to cry and clutched onto Raine with desperate strength. Minstrel had spread himself thin in order to make it look like he was everywhere, so there were places where they could cut their way through. Kari spotted something out of the corner of her eye and turned quickly. "There!"
"Good girl!" Raine said under her breath as she ran toward what Kari had spotted. Beth, realizing she couldn't fight alone, had wrapped her inner soul in diamond and strengthened it with her magikry. Minstrel couldn't get in no matter how hard he tried. "Beth!" Raine called.
The diamond shattered, and Beth appeared. She looked ragged but relatively intact. "Finally!" she said on a half-sob. "You don't want to know what I've been through!" She rushed into Raine's arms and clung onto her tightly. "If Terry hadn't given me his strength, I wouldn't have been able to hide myself."
"Incoming!" Kari warned as she saw the evil begin to gather at a single point. She found herself holding Beth as Raine shoved her over, and she blinked. "Hi, Beth." Beth winced wryly, and Kari saw then that she couldn't stand on her own very well. Her body had been marked with wounds and burns. "Uh, I'm new at this."
"I have confidence in your ability to learn."
Anna hovered near Kari and Beth and watched as Kari tried to figure out how to use her healing power. Raine could not fight alone and therefore used her majik to put a shield up around all of them to prevent Minstrel from attacking. Anna felt utterly helpless. She was too little, and too young. She didn't have the power to do what she needed. "I want him gone," she whispered softly. "I don't want Aunt Beth to be hurt. I want him out!"
She began to glow with soft silver color and then threw her hands toward where Minstrel was moving in to attack. The silver color went to her hands and then flew from her fingertips in rapid-fire majikal shots that ripped holes through Minstrel's form. He gave a terrifying shriek and lost his concentration.
Beth's shields instantly came flying up and forcefully threw him from her mind and soul. Tasia pulled all of them out, and Kari started to ask a question when she saw that her eyes had gone solid caramel with no pupil visible. She asked instead, "What are you doing?"
Something cracked sharply in the air. The evil presence lifted and let them all draw a breath. The others lowered the shield, and they all gathered around Beth as she began to stir. Her eyes opened, and her body suddenly reflected the wounds her soul had taken—but not as many as would have been present without the three healers going inside her to free her. She groaned and covered her face with a hand. "Damn him."
Terry gathered her up into his arms fiercely, and Tasia let out a little breath. "I broke his circle," she explained to Kari and Kimber. "He won't try this one again for a while."
"He's brilliant," Beth finally said. She lifted her head slightly. "I mean, really brilliant. Insane, but there's genius under it. He . . . he doesn't have emotions," she added slowly. "It's the only thing that makes sense. Our little healer literally punched holes in his soul with her majik. Which was pretty impressive on its own, actually. Never seen a majikal attack like a projectile before."
Kari's eyes went slightly unfocused as she stared at nothing. "He has no emotions, so he feeds on them in others. He can't make his own. He has to absorb them. That's the pattern. He doesn't care about who wins and loses. He simply wants to feed on anger and hate. His soul is hollow." She shook her head hard. "Whoa. That was weird."
"You'll get used to it," Raine consoled her. "Get Stormy to train you. If it weren't for the fact that you can't keep your hands off him—which isn't bad, of course—then you wouldn't have grabbed some of his Pattern Mastery." She was healing Beth's wounds as she spoke, and she spotted immediately the new rings. A glance at Terry told her he had matching ones. "Finally! Good choice, Terry."
"He had to have some aesthetics somewhere," Kimber noted drolly. "And here I thought Theo had absorbed all those genes in the Mallory family."
"Bite me," her brother-in-law retorted.
Beth ignored them and scooped up Anna onto her lap for a snuggle. "You're a great kid, Anna, and you're a very powerful majik user just like your parents." The effects of Minstrel's manipulation had become so faint that they were almost gone. Anna definitely had potential to be a very powerful healer someday, for she had done the healing entirely unconsciously without any detriment to herself. "Thank you."
Terry huffed out a breath as he looked at the others in the room. "Got room for one more, Tasi? I won't stand by and let him hurt any of you ever again, especially not Beth. So . . . I'll take the training too."
"I'll bring some cookies for the next party," Kari said, and made everyone begin to laugh.
* * * * *
The pentagram had shattered and little pieces of wood still drifted in the air. She hadn't just shattered the circle; she had literally broken the pentagram and the floor it had been drawn on. Minstrel had been forcefully thrown into his own body, and the wounds from the little healer had left holes all over him that slowly bled.
Lying on his back, blood pooling under him from the holes and the places where pieces of wood had embedded in his flesh, he stared at the ceiling and thought of the rush he had felt when he had fed on Beth's terror. He wanted more. He wanted to see them all cry and bleed.
He began to laugh even though blood stained his lips. More fun. He wanted more fun. He couldn't wait for the next game to begin. Perhaps he would play with Raven next, just to get his foot in the door. "Twinkle, twinkle little star," he sang softly, "how I wonder where you are."
©Stacy J. Garrett. Do not reprint or redistribute without permission.
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