“I did not wait for a summons. I left my cave soon after Billy did. It is a long journey from West Virginia, and I have only just now arrived.”
“I am the one who responded,” Hartanna explained. “The quake shook loose my chains, and I received a sudden surge of strength.”
Billy shivered.
Wow! God answered that prayer, too!
He kicked one of the stones that had spilled away from Devin’s burial pile. The stones on top began to glow, turning red, like hot oaken embers. The mound shook, sending vibrations across the ground. Billy stumbled backwards, then scrambled away on all fours.
An explosion rocked the mountain, sending flaming, red boulders in all directions. The slayer emerged from the pile of rubble, huge and menacing, his glow pulsating. In a blind rage, he charged, lightning bolts shooting from his hands. One hit Ashley’s arm, setting fire to her sleeve. Another slammed into the ground at Billy’s foot, the electricity going in through his toes and out the back, burning his heel. A third bolt struck Hartanna’s flank. She spun her body around and roared. “It pierces scales! Clefspeare, take flight! We must mount another attack!”
The professor yelled, “No! Take cover! He has mastered the lightning. If you take to the skies now he will shoot you down. There is only one who can save us now!”
Billy limped toward the slayer, his scorched shoe sticking to the stone floor like old chewing gum.
I hope he doesn’t mean me. I don’t think I can even save myself!
Dr. Conner sprinted to Ashley’s side and snuffed the flames on her robe. Another bolt shot out from the slayer’s hand, ripping into Dr. Conner’s back and covering him with dancing arcs of electricity. He stiffened, then slumped to the ground.
Bonnie ran in front of Ashley and her grandfather, her wings spread to guard them. With her feet firmly set, she faced the approaching slayer. From his hiding place behind the wheelchair, Derrick broke into a song, but he kept his head low.
Devin halted, his two laser eyes focused on Bonnie. With one hand, he grabbed her around the waist and lifted her high in the air, crumpling her wings in his fingers as he would a wad of tissue paper. Billy hobbled forward and swung his sword against the slayer’s leg with all his might. It cut halfway through, but the jolt of electricity shot Billy backwards, sending him skidding through the snow, the sword buzzing in his grip.
A sinister smile grew on Devin’s electrified face. “My prophecy says that the mountains will glow with red when the host has ensnared the virgin bride, and darkness will envelop the skies.” As he spoke, the overcast thickened. Snow fell like furious clouds of freezing cotton. Lightning flashed red across the ink-black sky, and thunder boomed like a battalion of cannons.
Bonnie wiggled her arms free, then pounded her fists against the slayer’s vise grip. Flashing sparks shot across her skin, lighting up her face like an X-ray image. She slumped over his fingers, her chest heaving and her eyes wild.
The two dragons rose on their haunches, ready to attack, but with his other hand Devin sent a surge of lightning over their heads. “She’s dead if you move! It only takes one squeeze, and your little princess bride will be no more.”
Billy groped along the snow-covered ground to find his sword. Fumbling with the hilt, he struggled to his feet and pushed the point against the stone floor to keep his balance. He stumbled toward the slayer, approaching him from behind. Excalibur, now dim and wet, felt cold and heavy in his grip. When he came within a few feet of striking distance, he stood still in the slayer’s wash of light. Bonnie’s arms fell limp across Devin’s hand, but the shining rubellite glowed bright red on her finger.
Billy lifted his own hand. His ring pulsed sporadically, dimming with each beat like a failing heart. He regripped the sword, took a deep breath, and shouted. “Turn and face me, Devin! It’s time to break the chains.”
The slayer’s head slowly rotated, and his yellow-green eyes blazed. “You have no weapons against me, you stupid child! Arthur and Merlin were powerless against me. Your father cowers now in my presence. God Himself has blessed my might. Can’t you see that a thousand years could not bring death to my door? Do you think your little blade can stop me now?” He waved his arms in the deepening gloom. “Look at the skies, fool! Darkness will overcome.”
Billy raised his sword, gripping it so tightly he could feel his heart beating in his fingers. Snow covered his hair, and cold wetness chilled his skin. His strength faltering, and the sword seeming like an anchor, he clenched his teeth and glanced up at Bonnie. Seeing her helpless body trapped in the slayer’s fist brought echoes of her prayer to his mind. He spoke with a clear, loud voice. “Light and darkness can have no fellowship.”
He then glared at the slayer. “God is light,” he said, his voice booming as he raised the sword to strike, “and so am I!” Excalibur’s blade burst into glorious light, and a blinding beam shot from its point into the clouds, rending them like a torch burning through thin plastic. The moon shone through the hole, illuminating the entire mountain and casting a drape of white light across the gaping cavern.
Strength surged through Billy’s arms. He pulled Excalibur back, and swung its beam through Devin’s huge, electroplasmic head. The blade of light tore into his sparkling skull, slicing it from ear to ear. Devin’s fingers flew open, and Bonnie’s limp body plummeted into the snow.
Excalibur’s wave of light enveloped the slayer’s collapsing body and transformed him into a glowing red mass of sparks. The particles spun into a cyclonic whirlpool and zipped away into the darkness like a shimmering scarlet tornado.
The sword’s beam died away. Billy dropped his weapon and shuffled to Bonnie. He scooped her into his arms and carried her to a mound of rocks where the professor and Ashley knelt beside Dr. Conner. Bonnie moaned as Billy gently laid her down, resting her head on his chest.
Clefspeare blew rivers of fire across the ground to melt the snow. Hartanna flailed her wings and scooted toward Bonnie. Her head drooped and her wings faltered as she skidded to her daughter’s side. “Bonnie,” Hartanna said weakly. “Are you all right?”
Bonnie opened her eyes and grimaced. “I think so. I might have a broken wing. I’m not sure.” The dragon then spoke to Dr. Conner. “Matthew, are you hurt?”
There was no answer.
“He’s dead?” Hartanna asked.
Ashley nodded, sniffling, her contorted face fighting back the sobs. “He . . . he said, ‘Tell Irene that . . . that I’m sorry. I was a fool, just like she said so . . . so many times.’”
Hartanna closed her eyes and lowered her head. “Perhaps I was too harsh.” She let out a long, deep sigh. “It is a sin to withhold forgiveness from a contrite soul. He who held me captive in darkness, clasped in cold cruel chains, taking my life’s blood and with it all of my strength, I forgive with all of my heart.”
Bonnie gazed at the sad dragon and then at her dead father. Her mouth slowly opened. Her bottom lip quivered. Squeezing her eyes shut, she broke into tears and reached for Billy. He placed a hand behind her head and held her close.
Walter shuffled into the circle, his good shoulder under Edward’s arm, helping him walk through the melting snow. “I checked on the others. Our knights are all alive, but Addison is the only survivor of the conspirators. He’ll freeze soon, though, if we don’t get him something to—”
“Ahem,” Sir Barlow interrupted, limping to join them. He held Excalibur over one of his broad shoulders. “I have supplied the scoundrel with a purple cape from one of the dead conspirators. No need to worry about him.” He bowed and handed the sword to Billy. “I found this on the ground, Master William.”
The professor stood and spread out his arms, his own tears glistening in the bright moonlight. His voice sounded old, almost feeble, as his trembling hands wiped the moisture from his eyes. “We have witnessed a great tragedy, yet a great miracle. A man has died, a father, a husband—a traitor reborn to become a defender of the innocent. His sacrifice will not soon be forgotten. Yet, we must move on. The schemes of the evil one have been thwarted, and there are now more dragons in our midst. There is reason to weep and reason to rejoice, but there is much unfinished business.”
“Yeah,” Walter interjected. “Like, where’s Karen?”
“And my mother,” Billy added, shivering. “And where are the other girls?”
Hartanna put her nose near Bonnie’s face and blew a stream of warm air across her and Billy. “Your mother and the girls are all together. Karen was unconscious, so I wrapped her in a blanket and carried her to your mother’s vehicle. She told me who she was, so I left Karen in her care. I flew to Kalispell to find a hospital and then came back and led the way. I do not know her condition.”
Bonnie’s face brightened, and she pulled away from Billy. “We have to go see her.”
“Not until we see to your wing,” Hartanna said. “We dragons have to tend our wings carefully.”
The professor raised his hand to quiet the group. “The word of God has come to me, and I have already revealed His will to Ashley. She has accepted it, and I tell it now to the rest of you.” Closing his eyes and lifting his hands to the heavens, the professor spoke in bright singsong.
Robust and strong, a body’s dream
Can never last in earthly stream
In heaven’s gates the faithful sing
With youth forever in their wings
The professor’s eyes seemed older and wiser than ever before. “Billy Bannister. Come to me.”
Billy limped forward, dragging his injured foot, Excalibur again at his side.
It’s ‘Billy’ now? Not ‘William’?
The professor continued, but his familiar accent vanished. “The hour has come, Billy. It is time for me to go. Raise the beam once again, and strike me with it.”
Chapter 23
Billy let Excalibur droop at his side. Had he heard the professor correctly? Strike him with it? “What are you talking about, Prof?”
The professor’s face tightened into a stern frown, and his voice reverted to his usual, younger-sounding British accent. “Listen to him, William! This is the word of truth! Do not refuse a direct command!” He pointed at the sword. “Excalibur is not your source of strength; it is merely an extension of a greater power. Will you trust that power to do good and not evil in your hands?”
Billy gulped, his whole body trembling. His mentor had never steered him wrong before, but a mistake now could cost the professor his life. Billy lifted the sword again. “If . . . if you say so, Professor.” He tightened his grip, and the beam burst forth through the tip in a rich shaft of ivory radiance, reaching beyond the few remaining clouds. The professor took a deep breath and closed his eyes, folding his hands at his waist. Bonnie threw her hands over her face. Walter clenched his teeth. The cavern became deathly still.
Billy flexed his arms and swung Excalibur’s beam straight at his target. The white laser passed through the professor’s tall frame, and a fountain of glittering light coated his body. Sparks jumped up and swirled in the sky, hovering in a circling cloud of luminescence.
Excalibur’s beam died away, and the professor wiped his brow, his lively voice returning again. “Whew! Now that was quite an experience! I must say I never want to share my body with another mind, especially one as powerful as Merlin’s. It’s very confusing.”
Bonnie pointed at the hovering haze of sparks. “Is that Merlin up there?”
The professor’s wild hair blew around in time with the electrical swirl. “I do believe it is. He’s waiting for the next step.”
“The next step,” Walter repeated. “What’s that?”
The professor placed a hand on the wheelchair and turned toward Ashley. “It’s time, Miss Stalworth. I don’t know if your grandfather will be able to hear you, but do you have anything else you wish to say to him?”
Ashley gave a weak smile and shook her head. “I think we’re both ready.”
The professor took her grandfather’s pale, limp hand and slid it under the coat that covered his upper body. As he set the hand in place, the teacher’s eyebrows arched up. He reached farther under the coat and pulled a book from its inner pocket—Merlin’s Diary.
The hovering cloud of energy swirled downward and enveloped the old book. In a burst of light, the book dissolved and melded with Merlin’s glittering whirlpool. The cloud then descended on Ashley’s grandfather, catching his body upward and transforming it into its own shimmering swirl of light. The wheelchair sat empty on the ground with only the professor’s coat hanging on the edge of the seat.
The new swirl settled around Ashley’s head, bathing her face in dazzling glitter. She closed her eyes and smiled, as if listening to a secret message. The swirl then followed Merlin’s, and they made a quick circuit around the chamber before shooting into the sky like a pair of Roman candle bursts. When the glow faded in the distance, darkness descended once again on the cavern, leaving only Excalibur’s corona lighting the area.
Billy set Excalibur’s point on the ground. His foot ached, and stabbing pain ran up and down his spine. He arched his back, feeling it pop several times. “What just happened, Prof?”
“Merlin took Ashley’s grandfather home.” The professor retrieved his coat from the wheelchair and slipped it on. He sighed, his breath pouring out in a heavy stream of white. “This is the natural order of things. Life and death decisions are best left in God’s hands.”
Ashley stepped up to the professor and hooked her arm around his. “My grandfather spoke to me from that swirl of light. He said, ‘I got my new body, Ashley. I can hardly wait to hear how well it can sing.’”
The professor pulled Ashley’s arm up and patted the back of her hand. He opened his mouth as if to speak, but he shook his head and patted her hand again instead.
“Ashley?” Derrick’s weak voice called.
Ashley spun her head toward the sound. Derrick was sitting against a cracked wall at the cavern’s edge, his head angled toward the sky. Ashley strode quickly toward him. “Yes, Derrick? Are you all right?”
Derrick smiled, his voice growing with excitement. “Ashley, I saw him.”
“Saw him? Saw who?”
“Your grandfather. I saw a light, just for a second, and then I saw his face. Somehow I knew it was him.”
Ashley knelt at his side and passed her hand in front of his face. “Can you see anything now?”
“No. It only lasted a second, but it reminded me that I’ll see him again someday.” He reached up and tugged on the sleeve of her robe. “And now I know how the translumination works.” He caressed the sleeve with his slender fingers. “Would you like me to tell you?”
Ashley placed her hand over his and smiled. “Sure, Derrick. Tell me how it works.”
Derrick’s grin stretched across his face. “It’s the light, Ashley. It’s the light that makes us see.”
Ashley’s smile collapsed, and her jaw fell slack. For a moment she seemed in a trance; every muscle in her face relaxed, motionless. Finally, she grasped Derrick’s hand and hoisted him to his feet. “I’m going to have to think about that one.” She led him toward the wall where the professor was huddling with Bonnie and the dragons. “C’mon. We have to figure out a way to get you out of here.”
Billy shuffled over to the others. Bonnie sat cross-legged on the ground, her ragged, dirty robe stretched out to cover her legs. Billy lowered his body slowly, feeling every muscle ache as he sat. “I have to rest. This transluminating business really wears me out.”
“How badly are you hurt?” Bonnie asked.
He raised his hand to his neck. “The cut isn’t so bad. It’s mostly my foot that hurts right now.”
Ashley crouched at Billy’s feet and began untying his mangled shoe. “Do you want me to have a look at it?”
Billy shook his head. “There’s plenty of people here worse off than I am.”
Walter plopped down on a stone next to Billy. “Yeah, my shoulder got zapped by that overgrown thunderstorm. I think everyone gave at least a little blood today.”
Bonnie slid Ashley’s sleeve up her arm. “Okay, sister, speaking of blood, what’s the story with the photoreceptors?”
Ashley stretched out her arm and pulled Bonnie’s alongside it. “I guess ‘sister’ is right.” She ran a finger across Bonnie’s scars and then her own needle mark. “My grandfather told me that his daughter-in-law, my mother, was a dragon. I’ll tell you the whole story later, but it seems that Devin killed my parents, and my grandfather altered my birth records to show that I was born to his son by a different woman. He decided the best place to hide me was right under Devin’s nose, where he would least expect to find me, working with him and your dad.”
When Ashley mentioned Dr. Conner, Bonnie’s face turned downward. Ashley pulled her into a warm embrace. “I’m so sorry about your father, Bonnie. I know how much pain he caused you, but at least he tried to defend us in the end.”
Walter jumped to his feet and pointed at Ashley. “So you’re a dragon, too? That’s so cool! I have three dragons for friends!”
Ashley stood to join him. “Anthrozils is what Doc called us. Fully human and fully dragon.”
“Anthrozils?” Walter shook his head. “No way! Dragons sounds cooler.”
A small shadow moved among the rocks by the old Alpha entrance. It scampered over a ridge that bordered the entire cavern like the rim of a coffee cup. Billy pointed toward another fleeing shadow. “Is that one of the chimps?”
Ashley scanned the ruined lab. “Could be. This is their home, so they’ll come back when everything settles down. Maybe in the morning.”
Billy pushed his sore heel back into his shoe and looked around the moon-bathed cavern. He spotted the professor near the old entrance to the boys’ dorm examining a narrow gap in the cavern’s wall. Billy stood up and brushed away a trace of mud from his pant leg. “I’m sure we’ll find the animals. I’ll stay here and wait for the return of the chimps.”
“Sounds like a horror movie,” Walter quipped. “The sequel to
The Invasion of the Spider Monkeys.
”
Sir Barlow stepped forward. “I offer my services. My men require care, but I am relatively unharmed.”
Clefspeare blew a fiery snort at an alcove in a stone wall. “I will keep this area warm for whoever wishes to stay, but I cannot provide food or medical care.”
Ashley placed her hand on one of the sheer walls. “It’s gonna be tough to scale these hunks of granite. How’re we going to get out of here?”
The professor edged his way into the gap in the wall. “We seem to have a new exit over here, but I have not decided on a Greek letter for its name.”
Walter rubbed his belly. “How about pi? I could sure use some about now.”
“Then
it is.
” He leaned out the gap, his head disappearing from view. “It’s a steep grade,” he shouted, “but it seems that we can skirt the mountain and find where the Alpha entrance begins.” He drew his head back in. “I can’t be sure in this light.”
Clefspeare unfurled his wings. “Whoever is not afraid to ride my back can take a shortcut to the top.”
A new voice echoed across the cavern. “Hello down there!”
Billy swung his head upward. “That’s my mom!”
Billy’s mother stood at the upper edge of the canyon, her hands on her hips. She scanned the scene, nodding once with each count of a loved one. “You guys really know how to throw a party, don’t you?”
“Yeah,” Walter replied. “We gave Devin a going away party. It was a real blast!”
The dragons ferried Billy, Bonnie, Walter, the professor, Derrick, and the wounded knights to the top of the cliff where Billy’s mother had parked the Jeep. Ashley and Barlow helped Betsy and Bobo climb out the Pi entrance and up the steep slope. Rebecca emerged from the Jeep and played “monkey see, monkey do” with Betsy, until the chimp tired of the game. When they all had gathered, Billy spread his arms and gave his mom a strong hug.
The professor limped forward and braced himself on the Jeep’s hood. “Marilyn, how is Karen?”
Marilyn nodded. “She’s going to make it. The doctor seemed pessimistic at first, but that girl’s got a fighting spirit in her. She lost a lot of blood, but she came through surgery fine.” She pulled Rebecca close to her side and rubbed her shoulder. “I left Stacey and Pebbles with a security guard at the hospital, so I need to get back there soon.”
“Yeah,” Rebecca added. “We’re going out to get the latest copy of
Car and Driver
so Karen’ll have it when she wakes up.”
Billy whispered into his mother’s ear, pointing toward the knights who were sprawled across the clearing. She winked and cupped her hands around her mouth. “Which one of you is Sir Barlow?”
Sir Barlow strode forward, bowing low. “I am at your service, Madam.”
She jerked her thumb toward the SUV. “I understand you’ve never ridden in a Jeep.”
Sir Barlow stared at the vehicle, his eyes wide. “No. No, Madam. Indeed, none of us has.”
“And have your men ever had a large pepperoni pizza?”
Barlow’s smile grew so wide, his mustache lifted into his nose. He shouted at his knights. “Did you hear that, men? Pepperoni pizza!”
She motioned with her thumb again. “I can’t fit in all your men, but if you’ll come with me we’ll bring back enough pizza for everyone.”
Barlow climbed into the backseat while Billy quickly filled his mother in on the night’s harrowing activities, finishing with, “And Dr. Conner’s body is still down in the cavern.”
His mother shook her head sadly as she looked at each bloody, dirty face and the torn shirts and jackets. She reached down to Bonnie and pulled her to her feet, hugging her close and stroking her dampened hair. “When I first saw Hartanna, she told me what she thought was happening, so I bought some first aid stuff on the way back. It’s in the Jeep.”
“Aw, we won’t need it,” Walter said, waving his hand. “What’s a little blood?”
Billy’s mother pushed Bonnie out to arm’s length to get a look at her injuries. “Bonnie will need it. She can’t get treated at the hospital.”
Hartanna doused Bonnie with another surge of warm breath. “I know how to treat her, but I will need human help.”
Ashley ran her fingers tenderly across Bonnie’s wounded wing. “I’m your girl. Just tell me what to do.”
Billy’s mom dug for the keys in her coat pocket. “That’s fine. I can’t fit everyone in the Jeep anyway. I’ll bring back food for those who are staying.” She looked up at her son. “Billy? Are you coming?”
Billy scraped the toe of his shoe through the snow. “No, I think I’ll stay here. There are quite a few dead bodies to take care of, including Palin’s. And maybe Dad and I will get a chance to talk.” He angled his head toward a boulder near the newly formed cliff. “He’s over there keeping Derrick warm.”
She nodded. “Then I think I can squeeze in one more. Professor?”
“Yes,” the professor replied. “Pizza sounds good. But could we have one with mushrooms instead of pepperoni?”