Chapter Seven

Caleb followed me. “I’ll be there to help, and so will Lilith,” he said.

We sat down, and I rested my head on him. “I’m scared.”

“Don’t be,” he smiled. “Again, we will be there, and we won’t let anything bad happen to you or any of the sages.”

I nodded. “Thank you.” I sighed as he wrapped his arms around me. “It doesn’t stop me from being scared.” I looked up at him. “No offense, of course.”

“None taken,” he smiled. “I get it.”

“Will you stay with me tonight?” I asked.

He smiled warmly. “Of course.”

I smiled too. “Thank you.”

We sat there for a while, just talking. Caleb boosted my spirits again, and I started to feel more confident than scared. Knowing he was going to be there, and knowing how protective he was of Morgyn and I made me completely sure that we would be alright. I didn’t know what it meant for the others, but I was sure that Caleb and Litlith would be able to help move the injured so they wouldn’t continue to get injured while they were down at the very least.

We laid down. I laid on my back while Caleb laid beside me, on his side, looking at me. He stroked my hair.

I giggled a little. “I would have never imagined this.”

Caleb smiled. “Me either.” He paused. “Well, I had certainly hoped for it, but I didn’t expect it. So I suppose I did imagine it.”

I laughed. “Rude.”

“Rude?” Caleb laughed as well. “Being attracted to my best friend is rude now?”

I caressed his cheek. “It’s rude because you never told me.” I kissed him softly.

“I never really thought there was a good time to tell you,” he recalled. “And I guess I was a little worried that it could drive a wedge between us.”

“It could have, yeah,” I agreed. “Alright, that’s fair.”

He laughed softly. “But hey, the way this happened is definitely fine with me.”

I gazed up at him, lovingly. “Me too.”

He kissed me softly. I rested my hand on the back of his neck and kissed him back. Having these moments with him made whatever feelings I had for him much stronger. I loved being around him. I loved the feelings he gave me.

I moved closer to him, kissing him deeper. The sun had started to set, and it cast a warm glow in my room, making it more romantic.

*******************

The next day, I woke up early in the morning to my phone ringing. I sat up and grabbed it.

“Hello?” I answered, groggy and raspy.

“Hey, I’m sorry I woke you up,” Morgyn said on the other end. “It’s beginning.”

I nodded. “Where?”

“The fields behind Glimmerbrook,” Morgyn responded. There was no classic Morgyn sass in his voice. This was strictly business.

I sighed. Hearing Morgyn like that was painful. “Alright. We’ll be there soon.”

“Thank you,” he responded. He sounded so sad.

Caleb sat up. “We’re needed.”

“Yes,” I nodded, standing up. I got dressed and threw my hair into a ponytail. I went into the bathroom to wash my necessary bits quickly. I came out as Caleb was walking by.

He took my hand. “Are you alright?”

I nodded. “I’m better today, especially knowing that you’ll be with me,” I caressed his cheek and smiled. 

He smiled and pecked my lips. “Get used to that,” he winked and walked away.

I giggled quietly. I could definitely get used to that. 

We headed out to Glimmerbrook. As we got closer, my nerves got worse. I had no idea what to expect. Caleb had called Lilith, and she was meeting us there. I knew that the two of them would help keep us safe, but they couldn’t really step in to weaken the dragons. That was on us, the spellcasters.

Once there, Morgyn approached us.

“It’s a doozy,” he said. “There are currently seven dragons, but more may arrive if they are commanded to.”

I glanced over a hill and saw four dragons biding their time. Their eyes were all trained on Morgyn.

I remembered Gemma. “Morgyn,” I said excitedly, turning to him. “Did you talk to Grace about Gemma?”

“Yes,” he nodded. “They’re over there.” He spun around and pointed to them. Grace was sitting on the ground. Gemma was still in her small form, sitting on the ground in front of her. “She’s been training Gemma extensively since we spoke,” Morgyn smiled.

“Quick learner?” I asked of Gemma.

“Very.” Morgyn nodded happily.

“Morgyn!” Simeon called from the field.

“Right, we should go,” Morgyn said.

Caleb located Lilith and nodded to her. “I’ll be over there,” he said.

I hugged him. “Be safe.”

He kissed my forehead. “Don’t worry about me,” he said. “You keep yourself safe.”

I smiled. “I will.”

We separated, and I teleported over to Morgyn.

“They are assembling,” Simeon pointed to the dragons.

Morgyn nodded, his eyes intense. I still sensed fear in him. I tried to push my fear aside. There was no room for fear and second guessing.

As if he read my mind, Morgyn put his hand on my shoulder, causing a shock.

“You can’t save them all,” he reminded me.

I looked at Gemma and nodded sadly. 

Morgyn waved his hand a little as if it hurt. “And that shock, that’s a good thing,” he smiled reassuringly. “That will come in handy more than once.”

I smiled.

Without warning, the dragons swooped down from the hill and right for the sages and I. Morgyn activated a shield and I blasted them back. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Gemma grow to her full size. She stood in front of us, facing the other dragons, protecting us.

I smiled and stood straight. “Good girl,” I said quietly. 

The other dragons hesitated before moving again. When they did, they swerved past her and came straight for us, unwilling to harm one of their own.

Morgyn jumped in front of me just as one of the dragon’s wings hit the ground beside us.

I jumped back. “Are you alright?”

“Yeah,” he nodded. “I thought he was going to hit you.”

I growled. “So many spellcasters are out here, and they are aiming right for us!”

“Attack the most powerful first,” Morgyn shrugged.

Several other spellcasters had banded together to create rope-like magic to grab one of the dragons. Another group shot powerful magic at it to try to subdue it. They were partially successful. The dragon couldn’t fly, but was now shooting fire magic from its mouth maniacally.

I activated a shield around Morgyn and jumped out of the way of the ball headed for us. It hit me and knocked me down, but I wasn’t injured. I jumped back up and stood at the ready.

Morgyn flashed me a smile, impressed.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Lilith run across the field to whisk a spellcaster out of harm’s way. 

“Uh oh,” I said, trying to see who it was. “Man down.”

Morgyn nodded. “Looks like Darryl.”

My eyes widened.

“Focus,” Morgyn pointed toward the other six dragons who were heading toward all of the spellcasters. 

“They’re smart,” I said.

Morgyn nodded. “Ready?”

I knew he was asking about a team attack using my power. “Ready,” I held both of my hands out. L took one, Simeon took the other. Morgyn grabbed my shoulder. They had their wands ready. As the dragons got closer, they collectively created a wall of magic, encompassing all of the dragons, causing all of them to fall where they were. They landed on the ground with a crash that shook the ground. 

I fell too, weakened by the attack. Morgyn crouched down. “Are you alright?”

“Yeah,” I said. I was fibbing a bit. I was significantly weakened, but I wasn’t going to give up. 

Morgyn helped me up, and I stood tall, trying to ignore the world spinning around me. 

Two of the dragons broke free of the magic and shot toward us, angry. My eyes widened in fear as I tried to hold my wand steady. 

Morgyn activated a shield around him and the other sages, seeing that I was going to try an attack. Realizing that I wasn’t protected, I decided to create a shield rather than fight. My shield failed just as one of the dragons soared above me. The wind from his wings carried me with him quite a way back. I finally stopped, but I was far too weak to stand. The world spun faster. I couldn’t tell which way was up, and then everything faded to black.

Chapter eight (click here)