WINDOWS: A BROKEN FAIRY TALE (16 page)

“I haven’t been
able to find a job yet.”

Raven unfolded her
arms and linked the left one through Sarah’s.
 
“Lil’bit, this is Jimmy.”

Sarah and Jimmy
said hello but Raven’s admonishments drowned the salutations.
 
“Weren’t you under explicit orders to go
directly to Felicity when you graduated?
 
We wondered where you went off to.”

“Your family has
done so much for me I didn’t want to be a bother.”
 
The big man answered glumly.

“Well, two
things.”
 
Raven kept fussing.
 
“One, go there tomorrow.
 
Two, you have to tell Sis exactly why you
haven’t gone to Felicity yet.”

           
Sarah
understood exactly why Jimmy hemmed and hawed.
 

“She’ll kill
me.”
 
He finally blurted out.
 
Raven agreed.

           
The
trio stopped in front of Jimmy’s apartment building, and after Raven’s repeated
assurance that they didn’t need an escort, they all said good night.
 

Sarah hoped the hotel
was close because nights in Augusta
turned very chilly under an autumn moon.
 
They walked for 10 shivering minutes, finding themselves on a long, dimly
lit street with warehouses lining both sides.
 
It’s a short cut, Raven declared but Sarah would’ve happily been cold
for a few more minutes in order to avoid following this creepy path.
 

 
Suddenly a man stepped out of the shadows in
front of them, followed by two others.
 
Sarah grasped Raven’s arm tightly and the two girls tried to turn back.
 
Two more men blocked their way, the two from
the club Sarah recognized.
 
She looked
for a place to run but saw no means of escape.
 
Without warning a strong hand reached out and grabbed her, clasping
itself over her mouth and dragging her into a wall of shadows.
 
She looked for Raven but the redhead was
still standing there, swaying slightly.

           
This
isn’t good, Sarah thought in a panic.
 
Raven looked like she was completely drunk and with the hand over her
mouth she couldn’t scream for Bryson.
 
With tears cascading down her cheeks, she watched helplessly.
       

           
Raven,
however, was completely relaxed.
 
Five on
one and they were all quite a bit bigger than she was.
 
Since none of them had drawn their swords,
she kept hers sheathed as well.
 
It
looked like a friendly scuffle and she needed to work out some aggression
anyway.
 
With a grin that was hidden in
the shadow of her bangs, the fight began.

 
One of the men behind her reached out.
 
Raven felt his hand make contact with her
shoulder and twisted out of the way at the last second, grabbed his wrist and
driving the heel of her palm into the center of his forearm, shattering the
bone.
 
The man clutched his broken appendage
and started to fall.
 
Before he hit the
ground, Raven spun and kicked him in the temple.

As the unconscious
man slumped in a heap, Sarah felt the arms holding her in place start to weaken
but with a shout from what she assumed was the men’s leader, felt them tighten
again.
 
Another man rushed forward and
swung his fist wildly at Raven.
 
Sarah
saw her fall to the ground and intensified her struggles to no avail.
 
The man holding her was just too strong.
 
The man who had hit Raven laughed cruelly but
the laughter turned into a scream of pain as Raven kicked out with her boots
and broke both of his legs.

           
The
other three men stayed back and started circling the girl in purple.
 
Glancing at each other they drew their swords
in unison.
 
Raven leapt to her feet and
kicked the man with the broken legs in the face, silencing him.
 
“You don’t want to do this, guys.
 
It’s just fun and games right now.”
 
Her voice carried no trace of laughter. “No
reason for anybody to die.”

The men ignored
the warning and moved closer to Raven, who calmly rolled her eyes and flicked
out her hand.
 
A fireball smashed into
the closest man’s chest, igniting his shirt.
 
She watched as the guy to her left feinted as the one to her right
rushed in.
 
It was a tactic she had seen
many times and one she knew how to deal with.
 
As the man to her left pulled back from his fake attack, Raven twisted
her fingers.
 
The road turned liquid and
the attacking man sank up to his hips.
 
The ground solidified at once.
 
Raven turned to face the last attacker but he was already fleeing the
scene, screaming for help.
 
With a loud
snap, Raven’s boot caught the chin of the man stuck in the road.
 
His body jerked back before leaning forward awkwardly.
 
Only one of the men remained, the one holding
Sarah.
 
Raven saw that he held a knife
pressed against her throat.
 

Trying to sound
brave, he demanded Raven put her hands in her pocket.
 
She did so with a sneer curling her
lips.
 
With a grunt, the man shoved Sarah
down and advanced on what he thought was a now helpless victim.
 

           
“You
attacked us and now you’re going to pay.”
  
He sounded much more sure of himself now as he strutted to within striking
distance of Raven.
 
“No funny business.”

           
Sarah
watched as in horror as the knife flashed through the air towards Raven’s
exposed neck.

CHAPTER 13: NIGHTMARES COME TRUE

The girl cried in terror as a shutter was
pulled tightly over the final window.
 
The fire, once blazing merrily, was reduced to a single flame that
sputtered and danced in the wind before finally blowing out.
 
Nothing could be seen in the stygian
blackness, the portraits on the walls and streamers on the ceiling were
enveloped by the darkness.

Trembling with fear the redhead braced
herself against the shadows that now filled the chamber as tears flowed down
her cheeks, using her body to protect the fragile embers that were the only
source of light left.

The girl felt something cold wrap itself
around her arm but a tiny flicker of flame poked out of the ash in the
fireplace.
 
Slowly the tendril receded.

“Nearly.”
 
An echo rumbled from everywhere.

Sarah stared
uncomprehendingly, a cry caught in her throat, at something that just should
not have been possible.
 
Her attacker
seemed more than a little confused too.
 
His hand, and part of his arm, had just disappeared into Raven.
 
Slowly the image shimmered and dissolved.

Then she heard
Raven’s voice from behind and saw a pale hand rest on the man’s shoulder.
 
“If you leave, I won’t kill you.
 
Nod once if you understand.”
 
The man nodded.

“Now’s the time
you run away.”
 
Sarah told the frightened
man.
 
He fled just as the real Raven,
looking exhausted, reappeared.

Sarah smiled with
relief but before she could speak, Raven collapsed and began convulsing
violently.
 
Standing over Raven’s
twitching body, Sarah looked for a sign of any wounds but nothing was
obvious.
 
Green eyes rolled back in their
sockets as Sarah, near panic, did the only thing she could and yelled for
Bryson at the top of her lungs.

The muffled sound
of giant wings filled the air and the dragon landed with a crash beside
them.
 
His lamp like eyes took stock of
the entire scene at once.
 
Speaking
rapidly, he asked Sarah if she knew how to work Raven’s Congreve crystal.
 
When she said yes, he instructed her to get
on his back and to tell Rebekah they would be there in fifteen minutes.

           
Still
numb and confused, Sarah tried picking up Raven.
 
Bryson roared that he would carry her.
 
Shocked into obeying without question the
terrified blonde scrambled onto the dragon’s scaly back after she retrieved the
crystal.

           
Please
wake up, Sarah prayed silently as they flew towards Valentria.
 
Holding the crystal like a rosary, she cried
Rebekah’s name into it.
 
One the second
mention of her name, the aggravated face of Raven’s older sister appeared,
muttering about being woken up after she had just gone to sleep.
 

The rumpled
expression quickly turned to one of apprehension.
 
“Sarah,” the face asked, “where’s Sis?
 
What’s going on?”

Sarah’s voice kept
hitching in her throat as she fought back tears.
 
The stinging wind buffeted her and she clung
desperately with her thighs as she explained what had happened.

Bekah
grimaced.
 
“Tell Bryson I’ll have
everything ready by the time you get there.”
 
Then she was gone, leaving Sarah to stare helplessly at the limp form of
Raven dangling over open space, held tight in the claws of a dragon.

Bryson flew faster
than Sarah ever thought imaginable, the world below them racing by in a black
and white blur, lit only by the full moon that hung balefully in the sky.
 
Hunkered down over Bryson’s back so she
wouldn’t get thrown off, Sarah watched Raven being mercilessly buffeted by the
wind.
 
She had no idea what just happened
and could only trust that Bryson and Rebekah knew what to do.

After what seemed
an eternity Sarah glanced up in relief.
 
In the distance she could see the twinkling lights of Valentria peppering
the darkness, shining beacons of hope.
 

But Bryson wasn’t
going to the city.
 
He couldn’t take
Raven anywhere near that many people now.
 
Ignoring Sarah’s startled cry, he veered to the left, away from the
city, towards the heavily forested mountains outside of Valentria.
 

Before Sarah could
ask what he was doing, a strange sight caught her eye.
 
The clearing below them was burning.
 
As they raced overhead, she looked down and
gasped.
 
Lines of fire spread along the
ground, with Bekah in the middle, twisting and meeting until they had formed a
large, archaic symbol Sarah didn’t recognize.

Suddenly the
dragon swung back towards the clearing and hurtled towards the ground.
 
He skidded to a halt a few feet from Rebekah
and tossed Raven’s limp body towards her.
 
Sarah slid off the scaly back and started to say something but Bekah cut
her short.

“Take Raven down
those steps.
 
NOW!”
 
Bekah shouted when Sarah did respond fast
enough.
 

Sarah glanced
around as she dragged the semi-conscious Raven to her feet.
 
The steps were a few yards away and led into
a cavernous shadow that she couldn’t see the bottom of.
 
Behind her she heard Rebekah ask Bryson if he
were ready.
 
A monstrous bellow nearly
knocked Sarah off her feet and she risked a look back, regretting it at once.
 
Bryson quivered from the tip of his tail to
the end of his snout.
 
Leathery wings unfurled,
blocking out the sky as fire flickered from the corners of his mouth.
 
Sarah could feel the earth tremble as he
paced back and forth in front of Rebekah.
 
Bryson, her friend, was a nightmare turned all too real.
 
Turning towards the dark opening, she hurried
down the stairs with Bekah now close on her heels.

“Illuminate”.
 
Rebekah commanded as their feet hit the first
of the steps.
 
At the bottom two torches
burst into yellowish life.
 
Being able to
see made the downward trek quicker, as did Bekah taking Raven’s other arm and
helping Sarah drag the eerily limp body.
 
When they reached the bottom Bekah pointed to an archway with runes
inscribed on its outer rim, and told Sarah to put Raven in there.
 
Rows of torches lined the walls inside the
cavern, also having been lit by Rebekah’s spell.
 
Gently Sarah lay Raven down on the cold stone
and wiped dirt from her friend’s pallid cheek.
 
Raven’s breath was raspy and labored.

“Get out!”
 
A rough voice ordered from behind but Sarah
ignored it, checking Raven again to make sure there weren’t any physical
injuries.
 
A strong arm grabbed her by
the back of the shirt and dragged her forcefully outside.
 
She landed with a bone-jarring thud against
the bottom steps.
 
Sarah started up
angrily but Rebekah ignored her and quickly began pressing the runes.

When she stepped
away from the arch and turned to the stairs, a blinding flash of light erupted
behind Rebekah, making Sarah shield her eyes.
 
As if she didn’t notice, Bekah stood on the bottom step and hollered up,
“She’s in Bryson.”
 
Another of the blood
curdling roars thundered from the darkness above.

Then Sarah heard
it, Raven’s voice, tired and scared, begging for help.
 
“I’m so frightened Sarah.
 
Rebekah is planning to hurt me because I took
her money.
 
Please...” the voice trailed
off, getting weaker, “I’m so sorry...”
 
Sarah leapt to her feet and started towards the chamber, intent on
getting Raven out of there when a metal point pressed itself against her neck.
 
A voice sharper than any sword cut through
the air.

“I don’t want to,
and I’ll regret it everyday for the rest of my life, but I will kill you if you
take another step toward that barrier.”

The deadly calm in
Rebekah’s voice, knowing she meant every word, froze Sarah in her tracks.
 
Turning slowly, anger dancing in her eyes,
Sarah demanded that Raven be released.
 
“We’ll
pay you back for whatever she took.”
 
She
snarled.
 
“Raven is in danger and she is
your sister.”

Without lowering
her sword or her eyes, Rebekah explained in an even tone, “That thing is not
Sis.”

The two glared at
each other for what seemed like an eternity; Sarah wondering if she could
overpower the other girl and Rebekah standing resolute.
 
Then a soft hiss, like a blade on a whetstone,
came from behind Sarah.
 
Bekah glanced
up, sheathing her sword.

“I was almost free
that time, Rebekah.”
 
      

Sarah watched,
confused, as Bekah calmly strode to the magical barrier.

“Almost doesn’t
cut it.
 
Now send my sister back out, you
bitch.”

“No, no.
 
I’m afraid not.
 
It’s so rare that I get to play these days and
I desperately need my exercise.”

It took a full
moment for Sarah to realize what she was seeing.
 
Something that looked like Raven was staring
at her and Bekah, studying them with eyes that were a dark crimson, almost like
blood.
 
Black lines traced under pale
skin like dozens of tiny worms.
 
The room
in which Raven’s body stood was bathed in an eerie light, the torches on the
wall all changed to a sickly pale blue.
 

“What is it?”
 
Sarah whispered to Rebekah.
 

Bekah face was a
mask of disgust.
 
“Malleus Maleficarum, a
demon.”
  

For a long moment
the two girls watched the creature pacing back and forth in the medium sized
chamber.
 
Occasionally it raised its nose
and sniffed, as if searching for something.

“The Witch’s
Hammer?
 
But that’s just an old story
used to frighten children.”
 
Sarah
stammered.

           
“Oh
yeah?
 
Well it sure scares the hell out
of me too.
 
Watch.”

           
Sarah
turned her attention back to the cavern as Malleus’s right hand covered itself
in chilly blue flame.
 
The creature
stood, tilting her head slowly from left to right, trying to hear something
inaudible.
 
With blinding speed, the
demon shot out her arm.
 
Sarah’s gasp
rumbled in the silence.
 
The demon’s arm
appeared to have been cut off at the elbow but still the muscles rolled, snake
like.
 
Malleus gave a fierce tug and an
abomination was ripped out of nightmares to land writhing and shrieking on the
floor.
 
Sarah threw her hands over her mouth
to keep from vomiting.
 
Even Rebekah, who
had seen this before, turned a shade of green.
 
The thing was a disgusting to look at.
 

Sarah’s mind,
which was close to packing its meager belongings and going on vacation far away
from demons and psychos, took in the vile thing.
 
It wasn’t even close to looking human, except
that it walked on two legs and seemed to have two arms.
 
Bits of what could be called skin covered its
musculature in uneven patches; the rest of it seemed to leak an oily substance
that glittered sickeningly.
 
Three black
talons, each the size and sharpness of a dagger, jutted out at odd angles from
the stumps that passed for the things hands.
 
Clawed feet scratched deep grooves into the stone when it turned to face
Malleus.
 
Monstrous jaws filled with
jagged teeth snapped at the other demon who calmly appraised this new arrival.

“It’s a Kubo
demon.”
 
Sarah’s mind was dragged back to
reality by Rebekah’s calm voice.

“So she can bring
in reinforcements?
 
How in the hell are
we going to keep it in there now?”

Without bothering
to look at the frightened girl beside her, Rebekah explained that nothing, not
even magic, could escape the barrier the runes provided.
 
“Besides,” she continued, “does it look like
they’re trying to help each other?”

Sarah watched in
silence as the Kubo demon slashed its wicked looking claws at Malleus, who
ducked the attack easily and punched the creature in the face.
 
With howl of anger, the demon dropped to all
fours.
 
Malleus waited unflinchingly as
it went through a short metamorphosis.
 
Already bulging muscles grew even more pronounced, the jaws lengthened
slightly and the talons on its feet and hands grew longer.
 
Finally, what looked like a scorpion tail
grew from its back, stabbing the air with furious abandon.