Finding Monsters (16 page)

They walked past the last of the boulders and looked up at the jagged terrain. The cave-like dwe
l
lings carved into the mountainside appeared crude and lacked color, like everything else about the land.

“There are a series of interlocking caves and dwellings in there. I think it used to belong to the jackals until they found a better location. Hyenas don’t have the skills to create dwellings, at least not this s
o
phisticated,” Charlie said.

“We need to find the head hyena,” Missy said.

“He dwells over there,” Charlie said, indicating one of the highest of the cave dwellings. As they made their way toward the structures, they spotted several hyenas lurking in the sha
d
ows.

“They don’t know what to do with us,” Sir Ala
s
taire said.

Missy spotted a chunky one behind a nearby rock. “You there!” she said. “Take us to the head hyena i
m
mediately.” Her authoritative tone sparked the young hyena, and he didn’t seem to question her. He tucked his tail and led them through the encampment. Other hyenas followed behind the group. When he came to the first set of guards, the young hyena finally spoke.

“These strangers would like to see the leader,” he barked and then unleashed an anguished howl. An immediate attack from one of the guards sent him fleeing in earnest to lick his wounds.

“Follow me,” one guard said. He relieved Missy of her staff and sword but left her pack, before heading for the first cave. Missy noticed this one didn’t take them to the lead hyena’s quarters either. She r
e
mained silent as they followed through the first set of caves and tunnels. They continued moving up through the mountain now, weaving through the maze of stone passages and doorways. Wet paw prints marked se
c
tions of the sandy floor they wove up and around. Two more guards stood before a large iron door.

“Open the door,” he told them. On their hind legs, the hyenas moved awkward and clumsy as one grabbed the door with its teeth while the other turned the lock. They both pulled the door back before sho
v
ing Missy and Sir Alastaire inside. The door shut behind them. Missy hit the door once in mock fru
s
tration and heard the hideous laughter of her captures on the other side.

“Ah, so good of you to come rescue us,” Vrag said from behind her.

“Well, at least we found you,” she said. She whistled sharply and Charlie flew to the window.

“We have a plan, father,” Charlie said.

As Charlie and Sir Alastaire explained the escape plan, Missy walked over to where the frail looking cat woman lay. Her hair appeared longer and thicker than Calico’s but their faces were almost identical. She wore dark flowing robes but they didn’t hide her emaciated frame. Missy noticed the woman’s hands locked down by metal bracelets, steel, as far as she could tell. They didn’t look like they belonged to this world but to hers. Missy touched the cat woman’s face. She stirred a little. Missy relaxed her mind and concentrated on the woman.

“I’m a friend of Calico’s; we’re going to get you out of here.”

The woman’s eyes fluttered open. She looked exhausted and struggled even to smile.

“It is almost time; move away from me quickly,” the wo
m
an said. Missy stepped back even as Vrag grabbed hold of her and pulled her away from the woman. Charlie soared through the window just as a light erupted from the woman and shot up into an adjoining chamber above them. It also flashed through the holding cell. Missy felt the energy drain from her body. Her knees gave way and the room spun. Vrag’s grip tigh
t
ened to keep her from falling. The light su
b
sided after a few moments. Vrag eased Missy down to a sitting position. It took her a moment to recover enough to speak.

“Ouch.”

“It goes away in a while but then the next wave will hit,” Vrag said. “Take it easy for a minute.”

Missy had no time to take it easy; she’d been used to weakness in her world. She shrugged Vrag off and got slowly to her feet. She made her way back over to the cat.

“What’s your name?” she asked.

“Mau.”

“Mau, they’re using your powers against the baby dra
g
ons. Can you stop them?” Missy asked.

“No, this light is draining my powers. Now it’s draining everyone here as well,” Mau said.

“If you could get free, what would happen to the dra
g
ons?” Missy wanted to know.

“The magic would fade and they should go back to no
r
mal. They harness my powers against my will. It wouldn’t last if I didn’t wish it, but I am weak. I can’t help you beyond that.”

“What about the baby above, has anyone had contact with it? Will it be ok if we break the spell?”

“The baby has been here longer than I have. If I am weak, I am sure it is weaker.

“I need to communicate with the dragon; I need to tell it we have a plan and I need its help if it’s able,” Missy said. She squeezed Mau’s hand then returned to Vrag, Atian, and Sir Alastaire.

“I need to communicate with the baby dragon,” Missy told them.

“Try it now, Missy,” Sir Alastaire said.

Missy cleared her mind and concentrated, but she couldn’t get anything on the small dragon above them. She blew out a sigh.

“Nothing.” She kicked the sandy floor of the cell.

“What do you need from the dragon?” Atian asked.

“Fire,” she said. “But I think I know what I can do. What time is it?” she asked.

“Ten minutes until the next light burst,” Vrag said.

Missy nodded and made her way back over to Mau who rested awkwardly on the metal slab. She held the cat’s hand and waited.

“It’s almost time again; you need to leave me,” Mau said.

“No, I need to be here. I should be able to communicate with the dragon during the burst,” Missy said.

“But it will weaken you more if you are close to me, please.”

“No, I have to be here, but maybe I can kill two birds with one stone.” She faced Vrag and Atian who stood in the corner watching the exchange. “I need to channel the light’s power. Mau, the power enters you and you send it to the dragon, right?”

“Yes.”

“Try to redirect a portion to me this time. If it works, I can free you.”

“I’ll try,” Mau said. They waited. Missy stood over Mau, her hands at the ready to break the metal clasp keeping Mau immobile.

Then the light hit. Missy felt the surge for the flash of e
n
ergy and worked quickly to break the metal cuffs from Mau’s wrists. She hadn’t thought of the emotional barrage she’d suffer. It assailed her senses and emotions at their highest levels. Tears stung her eyes, and through the pain and worry from Mau, she felt intense anger and helplessness from Vrag. Atian’s emotions, though similar, added worry for her safety as well. Sir Alastaire’s distress stemmed from the heavy responsibility she had to take upon herself. Missy pushed all of those emotions aside with di
f
ficulty to focus on reaching the young dragon’s mind. She sent a request for help and received a surprisingly quick r
e
sponse. The little whisper trembled with exhaustion. Guilt tugged at Missy for asking for help. She didn’t want to cause the baby to grow weaker, but she didn’t know of any other way to save them. Soon the light faded and died. Missy collapsed. The others reached her within seconds.

“Missy, just relax. Don’t try to move or talk; give it a few minutes to wear off,” Atian said, carrying her to the far end of their prison. He placed her on the floor with her pack beneath her head. Charlie flew in through the bars high up in the cell.

“What happened!” he squawked. “I felt som
e
thing happen to her.”

“She’s ok, Charlie, just very weak from the last blast,” Atian said.

Vrag made his way over to Mau. “How are you? Missy broke the chains. You can get off this metal slab now.”

“I need to stay here for the next time. I know what she’s planning on doing,” Mau said.

“She may be too weak to try again,” Vrag insisted.

“No, I’m not,” Missy whispered.

“You can’t do it again, Missy. Not so soon,” Charlie plea
d
ed.

“I have to. I need to get Atian and Vrag out now if this is going to work and you have to go too, Charlie.”

“Just wait through two blasts instead of one; that’s all we’re asking,” Atian said.

“We don’t have time,” Missy said.

“She’s right,” Sir Alastaire added. “You all know it too. I’m afraid for her too, but we have to let her try. This is her quest after all.”

Missy smiled at her friend who always defended her. She pushed herself up into a sitting position. The dizziness subsided after a few minutes. Closing her eyes, she swallowed hard.

“Help me up,” she said.

Vrag and Atian both helped her to her feet. She steadied herself before she walked over to Mau.

“I need sand,” Missy said.

Sir Alastaire and Vrag gathered sand and placed it near Missy. She pulled the artic tent from her pack and instructed the others on what she needed. They ripped the silver fabric with ease and lay it against a flat stone.

“How much time do we have?” She asked.

“Five minutes,” Mau said.

“How do you feel, Missy?” Charlie asked.

“Still better than when I first met you, so I’m doing well.” She smiled as she said it, trying to disregard her weakened state. She assembled the items she needed and waited for the next blast of light. Using the techniques she and Sir Alastaire practiced she blocked herself off from the emotional transfers. She concentrated her mind on using the fire from the dragon. She’d only get one shot at getting this right. The baby dragon would be too weak to try again.

“One minute,” Mau said.

“Ok, I’m ready,” Missy said as she placed her hands above the sands. Still lying on the metal slab, Mau reached over and touched Missy’s shoulder. The light burst through to the upper chamber and flooded the room. Missy felt the heat rush from her hands and ignite the sands, melting them onto the platform she’d created. Missy gritted her teeth and tried not to pass out as the light faded away for the second time. The sand began cooling into the perfect glass surface. The others came forward in a rush.

“I’m fine,” Missy said between clinched teeth. They car
e
fully placed the glass over the silver fabric, creating a mirror. “Vrag, Atian, as soon as you are able, you need to get through the mirror with Charlie, and then you know what to do after that.” She forced he
r
self to work through the fatigue, just like old times. Vrag recovered enough first to create a doorway. He pulled up the shimmering blue light and placed his hands on the mirror opening a passage. Atian took Charlie and went through first. Vrag looked up at Mi
s
sy.

“We’ll be waiting for you,” he said. He touched Missy’s arm and infused her with his strength, then he fell through the doorway. The light faded leaving Mau, Sir Alastaire, and Missy behind.

“
We only have a few minutes to get out of here before they notice something is wrong,” Missy said.

She looked up at the chamber above them. A heavy metal grate separated the two rooms. Sir Ala
s
taire shrank down to his smallest, and Missy helped him scurry up through the grate. He disappeared from view. He appeared at full height when he r
e
turned.

“The room is clear of guards, although I suspect they are behind the door. The infant is here and so are your staff and sword,” he informed her.

“Perfect, let’s move this grate and get Mau up there.”

Missy watched as Sir Alastaire moved a large o
b
ject from over the hole, and then struggled to move the metal grate. He reached down and Missy helped Mau through the opening. Sir Alastaire pulled the weakened woman up and disappeared. He returned quickly and helped Missy through the hole. She glanced around the room. Mau sat quietly by a small window; she looked as tired as ever. Missy saw her staff and sword and went to retrieve them. Then she saw the capsule. Dread filled her as she peered into the small prison. The baby dragon lay sleeping inside. Missy unlocked the capsule and opened the hatch. The baby didn’t stir as she lifted her out. She carried her over to Mau. The cat woman took the baby and wrapped it tightly in her flowing black robes.

“She’s so much smaller than she should be,” Mau said.

“Can you help her?” Missy asked.

“I don’t know. I’ll try once we get her back home,” Mau said.

Missy glanced back at Sir Alastaire as he pulled the r
e
mains of her tent from the pack and proceeded to rip it to shreds.

“Even at my full size, I can’t hold their weight while gli
d
ing. I’m creating a wind catcher to assist. I should be able to glide to the ground and then move undetected to where Egan is waiting.”