Seth Conwell
By the time morning came about, I had built several worlds with varying degrees of civilization on them. I’d overseen politics, war, and all manner of peace accords. I had learned more skills than I ever thought possible, forming my body into a weapon and filling my mind with strategies of all kinds. That night, I’d made sure that I could be considered a strategist in the full sense of the word. I knew that I would have to make difficult decisions from here on out, so I hardened my mindset as best I could.
When the time came, I left the dream world and found myself lying in bed just as I had been the night before. There was light coming in because I had left the door open. Kerana was lying down at the foot of my bed with a bit of blood around her mouth. Looked like she’d taken my advice on the game that’s in the forest. I decided not to wake her and slowly made my way out of my bed without waking her. When I looked up, I saw my reflection in the mirror once again, with the infinity symbol on my chest. I’d had a fleeting hope that everything up until now had just been a dream, but it turned out that was not the case. I would have to rise to whatever this occasion would bring. With the things that I had learned, I knew that I couldn’t run from the decisions that I’d have to make. I also knew that I couldn’t leave the world to the devices of those who wanted chaos, like King Zan. I would have to find out what his end goal was. Based on the fact that he had killed the previous ruler of a dimension, which had been thought to be immortal as far as I could tell, there had to be more to his motive. If there was something behind him that was planning to bring darkness and chaos to the dimensions, I knew that I would have to be the one to face it. All those thoughts made me cringe at the fact that I was still making my decisions based on what was happening around me and not what I wanted to do. I didn’t like the thought that I wasn’t making my own decisions.
I stepped out onto the porch and saw the grave that I had dug for my parents, still as tidy as I had left it. The light from the morning sun was bright and in combination with a slight breeze, from the mountains, the garden looked almost tranquil. I made a small prayer in my mind and knelt down to place a hand on my parents’ grave. However, something strange happened when my hand pressed into the dirt. I could feel a kind of power, not dangerous but comforting. Before my eyes, Indian paintbrush flowers sprouted all over the grave, as if life had been placed in the soil. Tears came to my eyes before I even realized it because these thin red flowers were my mother’s favorite flower.
As I sat there with tears streaming from my eyes, a felt a cold wetness poke me in the side. I turned to find Kerana sitting next to me. I placed a hand on her head and smiled, “I’m okay, Kerana. This is just an unexpected surprise.” I wiped the tears from my eyes as I patted Kerana on the head.
She looked at the array of flowers and whined, “Are these …” I could see tears welling up in her eyes as I comforted her.
“Yes, these are my parents.” I stood and sighed, “There was an incident last night and they were taken from me. I have already avenged their deaths.” That reminded me that there was a dead body on the porch of the main house.
Kerana shook herself a bit before looking up at me, “I know, I took the body to the forest last night.” She lowered her head to me as she stood. “I will guard your home while you are away. Please be safe.”
I gave her a pat on the side before she started off into the pack. “You stay safe as well, all right.”
I made my way over to the main house and only glanced at the hole that was in the side of the house. I’ll have to see about getting that fixed. Inside, I found my three new compatriots in the living room still. Only one of them was awake though. Moss was sitting up against one of the walls with his phone, typing away on something. When he saw me at the bottom of the stairs, he smiled.
“Good morning, I’m sending in my report to my senior.” He continued to type away for a time before a look of concern came over his face. “There is something that I need to ask though.”
I made my way up the stairs and stood in front of him, “Go ahead and ask.” I sat down in the middle of the room and waited for his question. I thought that it was probably something that would concern his report, but I wasn’t expecting the question that came.
“Is there anything that you want me to leave out of my report?” He seemed like he was dead serious, but it just confused me. This guy was a member of an organization that, just by its name, was in charge of policing all of the dimensions and he was willing to change his reports for someone that he’d just met?
“What do you mean?” I really wanted to hear his explanation for something that was obviously against his orders.
Moss stopped typing and placed his phone in one of his pockets. “Well, the prophecy of The Bringer of Change is well known throughout the dimensions aside from this one. There are more than a few people in the IPF who know of your existence, but not who you are or where you reside. I have pledged myself to you already, which puts me in the position to be a filter of information for you. I won’t send out any information before you have seen it.” He crossed his legs and bowed over them in a seated position. “Please use me however you deem necessary.”
It made sense at face value, but the fact that he was willing to change facts in his reports worried me. I didn’t like people who manipulated others. I had to think about this. “As far as things go right now, I don’t want you to leave out any crucial details, but I don’t want my whereabouts known to others. How do you think we should proceed?”
Moss seemed to think about my question for some time before he took his phone out and swiped about for a few seconds. “I believe that omitting you from the report should be a simple matter. The main thing that I was supposed to report on was Galec anyway. Since he has been dealt with, there wouldn’t be much difference in my report. The information will remain the same. It’s just that there will be a note that an unknown assailant had taken Galec out. It was known that he was a magic user, but it was also known that he wasn’t that physical of a person. The higher-ups will probably think that Galec finally bit off more than he could chew. They already knew that he was following orders from someone, so they’d more than likely tell me to investigate the situation and remain on the scene until the rest of the investigation squad could be summoned. Is that alright for your purposes?” He held out his phone so that I could take a look at the report as well.
After taking the phone, I looked over the information that was going to be passed. Moss hadn’t been lying. There was no mention of me or the fact that it had been found out that King Zan was behind the incident. There was just a basic description of the events that occurred at the house and the fact that events had escalated to a football field some ways away. Then the events that happened at the house after that. He had even omitted Anne and Boris from the report. It passed all general information but omitted all the things that I had requested, without telling any lies. “This will work. I’ll let you know if there is anything that needs to change. Aside from the fact that we will be leaving today. Will that be a problem?”
Moss smiled, “No, I can just say that there was a need to follow the individual that took care of Galec as a possible recruit into the force. The higher-ups are always looking for new blood to put into the IPF.” He leaned back once again and started typing away once more.
I stood from where I was, opting to let the other two get all the sleep that they could get. I found myself wandering the house until I was standing in the middle of my parent’s room. I walked over to the closet and opened it to try and find some clothes that would at least fit me. My dad may not have been as big as me, but he was still a large man. I found a T-shirt and a pair of decent pants that fit me and made my way to the back of the closet to find a pair of shoes. I’d been barefoot since the previous night. I didn’t think that there would be anything fancy that would fit but I was mildly surprised when I found a pair of workout shoes that were jet black. When I picked them up, I was surprised to find that they had my name on them. I sighed at the fact that Mom and Dad probably knew that something would happen to me when I received my powers.
After I put everything on, I made my way out to the garage, where I knew that my parents’ SUV was waiting. I found the keys where they had always been next to the main door and pressed the button that was next to them. It was the main function that opened the garage door. I got into the front seat and put the keys in to start the engine. It started as a low rumble that was calming to hear. Then my ears were assaulted by the seatbelt alarm. I pressed the sound button and the alarm ceased. “I was not expecting that.” I threw the shifter into drive and pulled the SUV out of the garage just enough to open the back to put gear inside. Then I parked it and got out before heading to the back of the garage, where I knew that my parents put their survival packs. They had been a paranoid pair when it came to disasters, which made sense with the new information that I had learned the previous night. So, they had prepared countermeasures for certain situations. Of course, this situation was nowhere near what they had prepared for, but it was the situation that I was in.
The survival packs that they had prepared were arrayed in groups of four, one for each of my family members. The ones that lasted the longest were what my dad called apocalypse packs. They had enough rations for two weeks but could be extended to about a month. They also each had a foot-long hunting knife with a machete that had a hook on the back of the blade. There was also a hatchet and collapsible shovel. For protection, there was also a tarp, reflective blanket, and two sets of long johns. Strapped to the side was a tent and a jacket to help combat the weather. As I took account of everything in the packs, I did the math of who all would be leaving on this excursion. I’d have to pack quite a few of the bags. In the end, I just threw all of them inside. There were twelve in total, and I knew that I’d barely be able to see over the packs that were in the back.
After closing the back of the SUV, I made my way inside again and found that no one was in the living room anymore. Somehow, I knew that they were still around and that they were somewhere in the backyard. When I went back there, I found them standing in front of my parents’ grave with their heads lowered. It was a comforting sight, knowing that they understood that I was going through a tough situation aside from this quest that I was supposed to go on. I waited for them to finish offering their prayers before Boris turned and saw me.
“I don’t know how much of a condolence it is, but my brother will take good care of them, in the afterlife.” He patted me on the shoulder and started walking back toward the house.
It caught me off guard that the brother of Death would say such a thing. It had to be some kind of favoritism. While I was thinking about that, Moss and Anne strode up to me and bowed. “We give you our condolences.” They said in unison.
I nodded my head to them out of respect for what they had just shown me and sighed, “Get everything that you think you’ll need. The SUV is packed up and we’re going to be heading out soon.” I put my hands on my hips as I thought about what I was going to have to do before I left for this adventure.
Anne left for the house, probably to grab her shield, which I thought was her only possession. Moss, on the other hand, took out his phone with a question in his eyes. “Might I ask where exactly we will be going?”
I chuckled, “We’ll be going to Idaho Falls, then to Russia. But first, there is somewhere we have to stop by first.” I crossed my arms before turning toward the house.
I could hear Moss shuffling behind me, “And where might that be?”
It was a little irritating to be asked the same question, but I knew that it was probably just his personality. “To get my sister.” I heard the shuffling stop and I knew that he had already figured out what I was going to have to do before we left. Moss seemed like a smart guy, so I was happy that he didn’t ask any further questions.
I found Boris and Anne already in the SUV by the time Moss and I made it out front. Boris was in the driver’s seat and Anne was sitting upright in the center of the back. Moss climbed into one of the pilot seats and wings sprouted from his back to cover him like a blanket. It was like seeing a living caterpillar. I climbed into the passenger seat and sighed as I put Jade’s address into the touchpad.
“I thought we’d be heading out of town,” Boris mentioned nonchalantly. “I guess you’ve got other business to settle.” He threw the shifter into drive and started pulling out of the driveway.
I was looking out the window at my home. It was the last time I’d get to see it for a while as I thought about what was ahead. Whatever was in Russia was going to decide what happened next in this adventure. There was no way for me to know what that was, but I suspected that it would be the first opportunity that my parents had talked about. I imagined that these opportunities would be some kind of trial to test me in some way. That’s what made sense to me. The rest of the drive to Jade’s house was quiet as tension continued to rise around me. I was not looking forward to what I would inevitably have to tell Auston.
We went down a few back roads and a long dirt road before coming to a new neighborhood. The SUV came to a stop along the road in front of Jade’s house, which was a single-story white house, and I had a sinking feeling as I got out. “Please stay in the car. I need to do this by myself.” Boris just nodded as he leaned on the steering wheel. As I made my way up to the front door, the sour feeling that was in my mind grew. I wasn’t even sure how I was going to start.
As I stepped up to the door, it opened and I was met with Debi, Jade’s mother. She had tears in her eyes already and a look of sadness that overwhelmed me at first. She placed a single hand on my cheek before nodding her head toward the two couches that were off to the left. “I’ll go get the girls.” She was hugging herself as she left for the stairs that were in the kitchen, which led down to the basement. It seemed like she already knew what was going on. Had Mom and Dad already told her about everything? I’d have to ask her about that later.
I’d been in their house many times before for a few reasons. The most obvious one was the fact that Jade was Austin’s best friend. The other was because Debi was a professional masseuse who worked for the swim team. Off to the right of the entrance was a set of sliding doors that had mirrors on them. Behind those doors was Debi’s massage room, which smelled of more mint and scented stuff than I cared to know. It was like stepping into another world every time I went in there. As I thought about the house, I realized that I could hear everything that was going on in the house. I could hear Jade and Austin going over news articles about the events that happened at the football field. Then I heard them hurriedly coming up the stairs and I could even tell whose steps were whose.
Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.
Then the fate-filled moment came. Austin came running around the corner and stopped to stare at me. I could see the shock in her eyes and a question formed on her face as she continued to look at me. “Why are you here so early and what happened to you?” Her arms were hanging at her sides as she looked me over, not taking a step toward me.
I stood and sighed, “Some things happened and there is a lot that I have to tell you.” I gulped as I thought about how I was going to explain everything. “You’re going to need to sit down for this.” I waved over to the couch, and she slowly started to head over to it.
She slowly lowered herself onto the couch before wrapping her arms around herself. “What’s going on?” I could see the worry and fear that played across her face. I knew that I looked serious in this situation, but this was no laughing matter to begin with.
I took her hands in mine and looked her in the eyes as I settled the determination I needed in my heart. “There was an attack on the house. Mom and Dad were killed.” I believed that there was no better way to say it. I wasn’t going to sugarcoat it for Austin. I knew that she would be able to get through this because I was here for her if she needed me. I kind of expected her reaction.
Austin stood and glared at me, “What do you mean there was an attack? Why would anyone attack our house?!” She had begun shouting at me in her frustration. “What are you even talking about? Is this some kind of sick joke!?” She was striding over to me with the eyes of someone who was ready to strike me. I wasn’t going to defend myself because she was right in her rage. Everything that we knew had been taken from us.
Before either of us could react, Debi shouted loud enough to pull both of us out of our trains of thought. “Quiet!!” I looked to find Debi with her hands on her hips and tears falling from her eyes. “Do you think that you’re the only one who’s hurting right now? Take a good hard look at your brother!”
Austin looked flustered but then turned to look at me and probably saw the bags under my eyes from the fact that I didn’t have any tears left in my eyes. Galec had come after our family because of me after all. In my mind, this entire situation was my fault. Austin had no way of knowing that though, which was why I didn’t hold it against her. I saw tears well up in her eyes and then they fell freely. Her hands flew limply to her face in an effort to wipe the tears away. Then she stepped up to me and embraced me like only a sister could. “I’m sorry I yelled at you.” She sobbed into my shoulder.
I patted her on the head and embraced her. “It’s okay. I’m still here and I’m not going anywhere. I’m sorry that any of this happened. It’s all my fault.” I was talking without thinking and Austin seemed to be comforted by that, but Debi had a different look on her face. She seemed angry, not at me but at what I had said.
“Seth, none of this is your fault.” She strode over to the mirror doors and opened one side of it. “The man that killed your parents did so because he was ordered to. You are a danger to many people of power throughout the dimensions now. They will continue to come after you, no matter the situation.” She rolled up her sleeves and waved her hand into the massage room.
Austin pulled away from me, “What are you talking about? Dimensions? People of power?”
Debi held up her hand and shook her head, “You’ll learn about that later. Right now, there is something that I have to do with Seth.” She waved her hand into the massage room again and it kind of irritated me.
“I don’t think right now is the time for a massage.” I put my hands on my hips as if I was about to scold her, but she just scoffed and pushed a hand toward me. Before I knew it, I was covered from head to toe in flames. “What the …” I trailed off because I was surprised but didn’t feel anything from the flames.
I looked down and found that all of my clothes except for a small portion of my pants, where my groin was, completely burned away. Debi strode forward and planted a finger in the center of the infinity symbol. “This is the reason why you have a target on your back. This is the reason that your lives have completely changed. This is the reason that everything has changed and will continue to change. I promised your parents that I would help you when this time came. So, let me help.” She waved her hand back toward the massage room.
I looked around to see that Jade and Austin were just as confused as I was. In the end, I walked inside, took off what was left of my clothing, and laid down on the bed. I was pretty comfortable in the room, probably because that was the point, but it was also because I’d been in there several times already. I heard the door open, and Debi came in without anything in her hands, which was different than normal. Then I saw a light emanate from her hands. It was a bright blue light that she proceeded to plunge into my back. It was a searing pain at first. Then the pain started to ebb off into a warm and comforting feeling. All the stress and anxiety seemed to melt away with that feeling. I was like putty in her hands, calming deeper and deeper into a slumber.
Austin Conwell
I watched as my changed brother went into the massage room and Debi followed him inside. What the hell was going on? I’d never heard Debi yell at anyone before. Seth didn’t look anything like he used to, physically, but his eyes were still the same protector that I remembered. I slumped onto the couch and had more than a few questions rattling around in my brain. What were the dimensions that Debi mentioned? Who was the one who ordered my parents killed? Who exactly was Seth now? There were so many questions that I had no idea where to start to find the answers.
Jade sat down next to me and wrapped her arm around me. She’d always been there to comfort me in my times of stress or anxiety. She was a good friend. “Is that really Seth?” I sighed as Jade asked the question like she usually asked about all the hot guys at school.
I held up my hand with a chuckle, “Don’t even think about it. You know how he is.” Jade was always trying to get with the new guys at school and other people around town. I also knew that she was always looking for a way out of Salmon.
“Well, yeah but I had to say something to get your mind off of things.” She rubbed my shoulder, and we shared a moment of comfort when the doorbell rang.
I got up to open the door and was met by three people who didn’t look like they went together. One was a guy who was probably in his mid-twenties in a pair of grey slacks and a blazer slash hoodie. One was a tall woman who had medieval armor on with a shield. The last one was a guy who had the complexion of a corpse with red eyes. “Who are you guys?”
The younger guy was the one to start, “We are the ones who have pledged our services to the Bringer of Change. Your older brother.” He made a small bow as he made the explanation.
That was odd to hear, but based on what had just happened, I wasn’t going to be surprised much. I opened the door and let them in. The woman made herself comfortable on one of the couches, while the younger guy stood next to the door on his phone. The last guy took one look at the mirrored doors and backstepped out of the house. Something about it obviously disturbed him. “So, who are you guys exactly?”
“We’re basically associates that have pledged ourselves to assist your brother in any way that we can.” The younger man started. “My name is Moss Griffin and I’m a member of the Interdimensional Police Force. Anne over there is a godling but aside from that she has not deemed it necessary to inform us of anything else. The guy that you just watched make a hasty exit is named Boris and all I know about him is that he is the brother of Death.” He smiled at me and chuckled at my confusion. “I will answer any of your questions to the best of my ability.”
I thought for a moment before the most prominent question came to mind. “Who is Seth to you guys?” I knew that I was going to have to at least know that.
“Your brother is someone known as The Bringer of Change.” He put his phone away and put his hands in his pockets. “It comes from an ancient prophecy that talks about a single being that will be given the power to right all the chaos throughout the dimensions.” He nodded his head when I scrunched my eyebrows. “There are ten dimensions in total. Bonovallia, Valaska, Arem, Onek, Bonoko, Sempa, Oemmack, Kasuka, Auchema, and Zal. Each one has its own purpose and a ruler over it. Each of the dimensions are layered on top of each other, with the core of magic at the center. Bonovallia is the dimension that we are currently in. It’s the topmost dimension, which holds the least amount of magic energy, hence the abundance of technology.” He sat down on the couch next to Anne and sighed, “I don’t even know which dimension I’m from, but the IPF is responsible for policing all of the dimensions. The main one of note is Zal, which is the prison dimension. I’ve only been there once and believe me when I tell you that it is a hellscape.” He got his phone out again and sighed as he typed in the passcode and started tapping away. “Are there any other questions that are on your mind?”
Okay, what the fuck? There were ten dimensions and we’re on the topmost dimension with the most amount of tech but not a lot of magic. That kind of made sense, but what was the Bringer of Change? There were more questions but I’d gotten some answers. As I contemplated those questions, the sliding door opened, and Debi came out with scorch marks on her hands. Since she had produced fire out of thin air, I wasn’t worried for her, but I didn’t think that I could trust her anymore. I was about to question her about it but Anne bolted upright and strode over to in front of her and went to a knee.
“It is an honor to meet the witch of the Eternal Flame.” Wait, what? The Witch of the Eternal Flame? Was Debi also someone of high status throughout the dimensions?
Debi just face-palmed herself and waved for Anne to stand up. “Please don’t do that here. I’m not a part of the Tower anymore.” Then she saw the accusing look that was on Jade’s face and probably mine as well. She seemed to cringe a little before waving her arms wide, “Yes, I was going to tell you about that, Dear. You’re in a family of witches.”
Jade was completely frozen and at a loss for words, which was a new thing for me. Jade always had something to say but I think she finally had so much on her mind that nothing could come out. In the end, Debi strode over to the far wall and leaned against the windowsill. She crossed her arms and looked over everyone that was in front of her. “Alright, ask your questions.”
Jade stood from the couch, “Witch of the Eternal Flame?!” She nearly shouted the question because of the frustration that played on her face.
Debi sighed, “That’s just a stupid name that the other members of the Tower gave me because I was the Queen of Fire.” She said it nonchalantly but the fact that she admitted that she was a Queen of an entire element held weight that spoke of massive amounts of power.
Jade just threw her arms wide, “Queen of Fire?!” I could tell that she was frantic at this point.
Debi held out a hand and sighed, “I went through the elemental witch trials and won out the fire to the highest degree that had ever been recorded. You will eventually have to go to the Tower and perform the same trial. Until then, you will learn magic from anyone that you can, so that you can defend yourself.” She stared hard at Jade until she slowly sat back down next to me. Then she looked at Anne and Moss, who were still sitting next to each other on the couch. “Does anyone else have any questions?”
Moss raised a hand like he was a kid in a classroom and asked a question that I didn’t expect. “Why do you have the aura of a demon?” He didn’t seem worried about it because he didn’t even look up from his phone.
Debi’s arms slumped to her sides and her eyes widened as she looked at the man in front of her with what looked like terror, “How could you tell that?”
Moss just nodded his head like it was a valid question to ask, continuing on like they were having a normal conversation. He didn’t seem to have any regard for how Debi was feeling. “Well, in the IPF I’m a part of the Order of the Fallen. In our initiation, we are given the ability to see the essence of magic as you witches do. We are given this ability so that those of us who can’t use magic can defend against it.” He threw up a peace sign with a smile and chuckled, “Nice to meet you Demon Queen of the Eternal Flame. My name is Moss Griffin and I’ll be accompanying Seth on his path. I hope that you can cope with that.” Then he was back to his phone once again.
Instead of Debi being at a loss for words like the rest of us, she just crossed her arms again and chuckled, “Oder of the Fallen? Never thought that I’d actually see one of you here and in person.”
We all sat there in complete silence for a time, probably all thinking of different things that the future held for us. That was when Seth stepped out of the massage room and looked completely different from the massive change that he already had.
Seth Conwell
I woke up on the table and once again felt like a completely different person. I pulled my underwear on and stepped out of the massage room to find that I had to lean down under the door frame. I found everyone except Boris in the living room with questioning looks on their faces. I turned back toward the mirror to see that not only my body but everything had changed. My hair was pale white and my eyes were a bright almost glowing red. My muscle was thicker but more toned showcasing the power that I had under the surface now. I didn’t like how bulky I was then. As I thought of that very thing, my body started to morph and change in the mirror. My height slowly went down and my muscle compressed in on itself. My old brown pigment flourished back into my hair. Then my eyes glazed over with the grey eyes of a sniper.
I turned back around and imagined myself in a cool leather trench coat and combat pants with steel-toed boots. I saw a slight movement in the corners of my vision and saw that the very clothes that I had been thinking of came into existence around me. I popped the cuff of the trench coat and chuckled. Looked like there were even more abilities that I would be able to do now.
Debi walked into view and placed a hand on my shoulder, “You’ll be more formidable now. I’ve forced a portion of your abilities to come to the surface.”
I looked at her with a bit of confusion in my mind. I had a feeling that she wasn’t going to be coming along with us. I don’t know where that feeling came from but I knew it as if she had told me herself. “Well, it’s time that we headed out of here and on to this grand adventure that I’m supposed to embark on.” I noticed that Austin was still sitting on the couch in awe and strode over to her. “It’s time for us to go. I can explain everything on the road.”
She got up and the others got up from their seats as well. Anne was the first to make it to the SUV and got into the back. Moss headed out before us as well and as I walked along with Austin, Jade came out and waved to us, but then I saw Debi close the door and hand Jade an old leather-bound book.
“I want you to go with them,” Debi told her as she hugged her daughter. “I’m not going to be coming along because someone has to stay behind and protect this place from King Zan.” The fact that she knew who had been behind it solidified that she had been of help to my parents. It was a comfort that they weren’t alone in their rough life.
“King Zan? Who’s King Zan?” Jade sounded confused, which was warranted for the situation.
“He’s someone that I want you to stay safe from and being at Seth’s side is the safest place for you to be.” Debi was sobbing as she stepped away from Jade. “You need to learn all that you can in the meantime. You will become more powerful than you could possibly imagine.” When Jade stepped toward her, a bit of smoke emitted from her hand and Jade passed out. I was there behind her to catch her. “You take care of her, Seth Conwell. I know that you have a lot on your plate but she’s the only thing that’s good in my life.”
I nodded my head as I lifted Jade up off the ground completely. “You have my word, Debi. It’s the least I can do for all that you’ve done for my parents.” I left her then, to head over to the SUV. I placed Jade in the back next to Austin and she hugged her close to not only comfort Jade, but I guessed to find some of her own comfort. I climbed into the front seat once again and found a very nervous Boris, white-knuckling the steering wheel. “Something bothering you, Boris?”
He gulped before slowly looking at me, “That’s the Queen of Fire, isn’t it?” He shakily threw the shifter into drive and pulled away from the house.
Was there something that I was missing from this situation? “Yes, that’s Debi the Queen of the Eternal Flame. Did you have some history with the witches of the Tower?” I remembered Debi mentioning the Tower where she took the trial.
“Well, let’s just say that the witches of the Tower don’t hold the sons of Hades in high regard.” He seemed to shiver as he said it.
“Alright, I guess I’ll leave it at that.” I leaned the chair back a bit before relaxing, “Let’s head out then.”
As we made our way out of Salmon, everyone gradually fell asleep in the back of the SUV. Moss wrapped himself in his wings once again, while Anne moved herself to the other pilot seat and hugged her shield. When I looked back to check on Austin, I found her cuddled together with Jade. The turmoil of the night and this morning had finally sent her to sleep. I watched the grand views of the rolling hills and mountains as we made our way. I imagined that it was going to be quite some time before I got to see this place again.