The Protectors: Book 1 in the Protectors Saga (24 page)

“That, Avery,” Gumptin said, a tired strain in his
voice, “was the Emperor. Those were his eyes. He is powerful enough
to use the gateway as a mirror to see into different worlds. If you
saw his eyes, it means that he saw you, and that he now knows the
Protectors are alive and back on Orcatia. It means that he will
most likely try and attack soon, sooner than I had hoped. It means
you will not have time for much training before returning to
fighting.” Gumptin sighed even deeper, “This is very troubling
Avery. Someone must have told him of your return; it is the only
way he could have known what gateway to look through and when.” He
rubbed at his temples, “I really must speak to the Elementals, and
soon.”

The sight of Gumptin looking so weary troubled Avery
more than what Gumptin had to say. Yes, Avery could admit that the
eyes she had seen had been terrifying, but besides what she had
been told, a pair of glowering eyes, and some random scribbling on
a few pieces of paper, Avery had no real experience with the
Emperor. To Avery, Gumptin might as well have been talking about
some villain out a scary story. She tried to convince her mind and
body to be scared or apprehensive, but as of this moment, it just
wasn’t working.

The one thing that did concern her slightly, she
decided to ask about, “Gumptin, what was that pain I felt in my
chest when saw those eyes?”

Gumptin shrugged, not seeming near as bothered by it
as Avery was, “It was most likely just the Emperor’s power causing
your body to remember something it connects with Emperor. More like
an echo of pain than actual pain.”

This took Avery back, “Echo my ass, it actually
hurt!” She protested.

“Yes, I suppose it would,” Gumptin told her, “but it
won’t actually physically harm you in any way.”

That was all Avery could take hearing for the night.
The Emperor knew they were back, Gumptin was going to talk to the
Elementals, and her heart was intact and damage free. Anything else
Gumptin had to say, Avery was way beyond too tired to listen to.
Avery stood up and gathered all of her weapons into and under her
arms.

“Well, I hate to leave when you look so depressed,”
She said to Gumptin, “but you kicked my butt too hard today for me
not to go home and try to get some rest.”

When Gumptin didn’t answer her after a few seconds,
lost in thought, staring down at the paper he had written on not
long ago, Avery took it as her queue to leave. She gave Gumptin one
last concerned look, then walked out of the library and into the
dark Orcatian night.

Avery could see the large trees of the forest
silhouetted through the moonlight in front of her. The black still
forest was in sharp contrast to the busy village going on around
her. Bright lights shone out from the giant tree houses to her
right and left, and out of those same houses poured the delightful
smells of evening dinners. Avery took a deep breath in, the smells
of meats, breads, and spices made her stomach growl, letting Avery
know just how much it was craving food. Gripping tighter on to the
weapons she was holding, so as not to drop any, she turned to her
right and began to make her way home.

Three tree houses down she stopped in front of Bott’s
Apothecary & Sweets. She hadn’t meant to stop, but the
delicious scents of cinnamon, vanilla, yeast, and chocolate,
literally stopped her in her tracks, and once again caused her
stomach to scream out its hunger.

Mrs. Bott was standing in the open doorway sweeping
off a yellow welcome matt with her broom. Her hair was up in a bun
piled on top of her head, just as Avery had always seen it, and
stuffed under a purple bonnet with a pink bow on top. She wore a
purple dress with a pink and red striped apron tied around her
plump waist, although, Avery didn’t see the point of her wearing an
apron at all, since she seemed to have more flour stained across
her actual dress than on the apron.

When Mrs. Bott glanced up and saw Avery gazing into
her shop, a huge smile swept over her face and she exclaimed,
“Avery, what a lovely surprise!”

She threw her broom down behind her, not caring where
it landed and quickly shuffled over to sweep Avery up in an
encompassing hug. Avery grunted as the impact of the hug caused the
crossbow she was carrying under her arm to slam into her side.

Mrs. Bott, still smiling broadly, released Avery, and
then with just one breath, rushed to tell her, “Oh, it’s so nice to
see you! What are you doing here?” She looked down at all the
weapons Avery had in her hands, “What on Orcatia is all that stuff
you’re lugging around? Oh, you must be here to see Wilbur! Are you
sure you can carry all of that by yourself; you’re such a tiny
little thing. Wilbur,” she called out, “Avery’s here! Of course, I
suppose you can carry heavy stuff better than any man here. Wilbur,
get out here!”

Avery gazed at Mrs. Bott, shocked at how the woman
could say so much in just one breath. Avery didn’t know how to
respond to her, or if she was even suppose to for that matter.

“Wilbur!” Mrs. Bott yelled, again, “Would you please
get your string bean butt out here?!”

A split second later, a skinny bald man with a gray
beard and bushy eyebrows, standing over six feet tall, came rushing
out of the shop. He was hurrying so fast, he didn’t see the broom
Mrs. Bott had discarded on the ground. His large right foot caught
under the broom handle, tripping him, causing him to pummel
forward, right into Mrs. Bott’s back. Luckily, she was sturdy
enough for the impact only to move her a step forward. She turned
and looked at the poor man as if he had just spanked a chicken.

“Sorry, Beatrice,” He told her timidly, “I think
somebody left something in the doorway that I tripped over.”

Mrs. Bott scoffed, hitting Wilbur lightly in the
stomach, “Don’t be ridiculous, no one would do such a thing.”

Wilbur nodded and coughed slightly, “Yes, dear,
whatever you say.”

“Anyway,” Mrs. Bott said lightly, changing the
subject, “Avery is here to see you.”

Avery, who hadn’t said a word since Mrs. Bott had
seen her, suddenly realized she was going to have to speak.
Watching Mrs. Bott and Wilbur had been like watching a film. So
much so, that she had actually forgotten she was supposed to be a
part of the interaction.

Avery shook her head, focusing her thoughts, “No…no,”
she stammered, “I’m not here to see him.” She nodded her head
towards Wilbur, unable to point with her hands so full, “I was just
walking home from training and stopped to smell your food. It
smelled soooo good, I couldn’t help it.”

“Oh.” Mrs. Bott said, sounding slightly surprised,
and then bursting into laughter, “Oh, dear me.” Mrs. Bott laughed
so hard she had to wipe her eyes, “To think of it,” she giggled,
“Avery Kimball here for my treats.”

Mrs. Bott was laughing so heartily, Avery almost felt
like she should laugh along with her, but the fact she had no idea
what the woman was laughing at stopped her.

“Beatrice,” Wilbur said, placing his hands on Mrs.
Bott’s shoulders, trying to stop her from laughing, “the girl
doesn’t remember anything from this life.”

Mrs. Bott’s laughter died down till she was almost
frowning, “Oh, dear, I keep forgetting. You poor little thing. Let
me explain, you see Wilbur, here,” she pointed to where he was
standing behind her, “he’s actually my husband, Mr. Bott. Now, I
know it’s hard to believe that someone as appealing as myself,
would marry such a gigantic splinter of a man, but sometimes you
just can’t fight the obstacle hurdling power of love.”

Avery stifled any laughter rising in her throat,
pretending she had a cough, just in case Mrs. Bott wasn’t
joking.

“Anyway,” Mrs. Bott continued, “he’s the apothecary
in Bott’s Apothecary & Sweets, and I’m the sweets. Despite his
appearance, he really is quite an extraordinary apothecary. People
come to him from all over the kingdom, and sometimes even other
kingdoms. Naturally, as a Protector you would use his services. You
use to come quite frequently to see him for remedies, potions, for
cuts, sprains, bruises, and worse. I only thought you were here to
see him because you haven’t come to this shop for my sweets since
you were about four years old.”

“Really?” Avery asked, finding that hard to
believe.

Everyone she knew, knew she had a notorious sweet
tooth. In fact, for lunches back on Earth, sometimes she would make
due with a soda and candy bar, unhealthy to be sure, but always
enjoyable.

“Oh, yes,” Mrs. Bott told her, “you weren’t like Jade
or Skylar. They were in here all the time for breads and cookies,
mostly after a battle or hard training session.” Mrs. Bott laughed
at the memories playing in her head, “I think Jade was in here more
than she was at home…such a pistol of a girl”

That, Avery could believe, especially with Jade. That
girl ate like a horse, any and everything she could get her hands
on. It always amazed Avery how Jade managed to stay so thin, when
it looked like she ate more than she actually weighed.

“You, on the other hand,” Mrs. Bott said smiling,
resting her hand on Avery’s shoulder, “were always the little
soldier. You made sure you stayed in perfect physical condition.
You never put anything in your body that wasn’t good for you. So, I
suppose you never had any reason to come and see me.” Mrs. Bott
still smiled as she said this, but Avery could see a slight hurt
behind her round bright eyes.

Avery squirmed a little in the tight belt strapped
around her ribs, thinking about how her past Orcatian self would
feel about all the pizza, soda, candy, and tacos her Earth self had
consumed over the past sixteen years. For some reason she couldn’t
understand, especially considering they were technically the same
person, but she took pleasure in the knowledge that it would
probably piss her Orcatian self off.

“Well, Mrs. Beatrice Bott, you can guarantee that
this Avery will be stopping by frequently for your delicious
delights.” Avery said this to Mrs. Bott, slightly to cheer her up,
but mostly because it was the truth.

Mrs. Bott clapped and smiled fuller than Avery had
seen yet.

“Would you like something now?” She asked and ran
inside her shop, not bothering to wait for Avery’s reply. It didn’t
really matter, since Avery’s reply would have been a definite
yes.

Wilbur smiled softly as he watched his wife bounce
off into her shop, “I think you just made her day.” He told Avery
warmly.

“Trust me, the feeling’s mutual.” She told
Wilbur.

Mrs. Bott came bounding back with a pink colored sack
full of sweet smelling goodies. She slipped the thin handle of the
sack between Avery’s thumb and forefinger, the only place Avery had
left to hold on to anything. Avery left the smiling Mr. and Mrs.
Bott, promising to come back soon for more treats.

The sight of her own house, with its soft light
pouring out of the windows, lighting up the space in front of it,
and multiple flower beds, gave Avery a feeling of relief. She
didn’t necessarily consider it home, that space in her heart
belonged to a little peach adobe house back in Redemption, but the
thought of the soft bed waiting for her and her family somewhere
inside, comforted her more than anything else could on this
planet.

Just as she was about to step up to her front door,
movement at the stables to her right caught her eye. She turned her
head and saw a small, scraggily looking man lifting a saddle half
the size of him off of the ground by the hitching posts and
teetering with it into the barn. Avery watched him stagger from
side to side then front to back, before getting a small semblance
of balance.

It took Avery a second to decide what to do; after
all, she had made it so close to peace and rest. Avery sighed long
and hard and looked up to the black sky with its blanket of stars,
“Typical.” She said under her breath. She set all of her weapons
down on the wooden bench to the side of the door. The bag of treats
Mrs. Bott had given her and the long steel dagger that had given
her the case of déjà vu both slid off of the bench as she let go of
the pile of weapons. Avery made a grab for the sweets, letting the
dagger fall to the ground and into the dirt.

“That was close.” She said, delicately setting the
bag down, then bending over, picking up the dagger, and tossing it
back onto the weapon pile.

Avery walked over to the entrance of the stable where
she had seen the man stagger into. The musky smell of hay and
horses hit her. It caused her nose to tickle a little, but other
than that was quite pleasant, even soothing. She entered the stable
and looked around. The stalls and inside walls were made out of the
same dark wood as the outside of the stables, and the entire ground
was covered with straw-like yellow hay. To Avery’s left, was an
extremely large walkway with stalls of horses lining both sides. To
Avery’s right, there was a much shorter walkway with a few stalls
of horses on one side and rows of saddles protruding out of the
wall on the other side. The stalls themselves were good sized, with
crescent moon shaped stall doors. In between each stall was a
small, round, opaque glass lamp, casting everything in a dark
firelight. In front of Avery were two bulky barn doors. Avery was
about to grab onto one of the doors hefty metal handles, when the
door swung open out towards her, and the little man she had
followed in came scurrying out, carrying a bucket of oats.

Avery shrieked in an embarrassingly high pitch and
jumped back. At the same time, the man hollered loudly and dropped
his bucket, spilling the oats out all over the ground.

“Jumpin’ June bugs!” the man shouted, bending down to
pick up his bucket, “Sneakin’ about like a troll in the night,
what’s wrong with ya?”

Before Avery answered, she tried to calm her
breathing down. Even though she had caused him to drop a bucket of
oats, he had startled her just as much as she had startled him.