Chapter 38: Finding Merlin

Vincent

My group and I had been flying throughout the night, and we were finally on the edge of the Brazilian Rainforest. I can’t stop thinking about her and how I will make those bastards pay for taking her from me. We found a safe and secure spot to land. On the way, we all agreed that it would be best to plan our approach before we would go any further and try to devise a plan.

“We need to find a place to crash and lay low,” Jacob said.

“We will rest for a few minutes, then we continue,” I huffed.

“Vincent, we’ve been flying for over twelve hours, we need to rest. We want to find Alyssa as much as you do, but we need to rest,” Jacob shook his head. “Don’t forget that we some food and water as well. Right now, we are way too tired to fight or do anything else, and we are of no use to Alyssa like that. I will go ahead and see if I can find a place for us to lay down,”

“I’ll go with you,” Bao said, and he followed Jacob.

“He’s right, you know,” Annabeth smirked. “We need to keep our strength up,”

“Didn’t think you’d want to wait to get your hands around Gabrials neck,” I sassed her.

“Trust me, I want nothing more than to watch the life leave his eyes. But I am tired, and we could all use some sleep,” Annabeth yawned.

“Guess your right. Let’s get all the rest that we can for now,” I nodded.

“Guys, we found an excellent spot to rest,” Jacob said in the distance.

“Go and rest Vincent; I’ll take the first watch. I managed to get some sleep while we were in the air. I might even be able to use my magic to scan the forest. It might at least give us an idea on where to start,” Annabeth smiled.

“Good idea, and set up some wards to cover our resting area so we are not found while you are scouting the area,” I said, and Annabeth nodded at this order.

Alyssa

Light started sneaking through the hole in the ceiling. I could finally see something besides the darkness. My body was stiff from sleeping on the hard stone floor, and my neck was already sore from the chain. I shivered in the cold, cursing them for taking my jacket. I sat against the wall, unable to try anything else. I had tried other ways to get out of here yesterday by pulling the chain on the floor, but it was bolted down with no chance of being pulled up.

The hole in the ceiling was too small for me to crawl through, and even if I could, I’d still have to find a way to break the chain and get up there. The metal door at the other end of the cell was far enough that my chain stopped me from reaching it, making it impossible to examine if I could break out. So right now, I’m lying against the wall, feeling helpless with all my options sacked.

I soon heard my cell door open and weakly looked over to see who entered. It’s Timothy. “How’d you sleep?” Tim smiled. “I’m sorry that I knocked you out. You weren’t exactly going to come quiet with me,”

“You son of a bitch! You killed Henry!” I growled softly as I forced myself to stand.

“Yeah, Henry was a good man. Very unfortunate,” Timothy shrugged. “But it’s his fault for being at the wrong place and time. I’m only sorry that I didn’t shoot your fucking mate. I would have loved to put a few rounds in Vincent,”

“You bastard, I hope your father suffers when he succumbs to Dragon Communion!” I then jumped at him, forgetting about the chain around my neck. The chain painfully pulled me back before my fist connected with his face. I gasped for breath, and Timothy looked at me with a snide grin.

“Careful love, you might hurt yourself,” Timothy laughed.

“I’ll kill you if you ever touch Vincent!” I roared. “Hell, I don’t need a reason. If I get the chance, I’ll kill you!”

“Aww. I love seeing you act all tough of shit. But we both know you are nothing more than a scared little bitch who can hardly fight. Now, back to business. Your presence has been requested,” Tim said. “Also, Lord Elijah has promised me a cure for Dragon Communion if I joined his cause,”

“There is no cure, you dumb bastard. I’m not going anywhere with you!” I growled.

“What makes you think you have a choice in the matter? Come with me willingly or find out the hard way,” Tim smiled. Timothy stepped closer to me to unlock the secure chain to the cuff around my neck. As soon as he was in range, I tried my luck again as I threw my fist at his face, but Tim saw it coming since he lazily dodged it.

Timothy grabbed my hand and, before I knew it, had it in a locked hold behind my back. I gritted my teeth, unwilling to give him the satisfaction of seeing me in pain. “Oh, that was such a lame excuse for a punch. At least Vincent knows how to punch; now, you possess no threat without your powers,”

Timothy twisted my arm a little more. To the point I thought my shoulder would pop out of its socket. “Now I’d suggest for your health, that you be a good girl and do as your told,”

“Fuck you asshole!” I sneered.

Tim sighed in my ear, and his free hand approached my neck. He held a key, and with a simple twist, the chain came loose around my neck, making me able to move around. “Now. I’m going to release your hand, and give you one more warning. Try to punch me again, and I will dislocate your shoulder, are we clear?”

“Crystal,” I scoffed.

I can hardly believe this is the same guy I called my best friend two years back—the one who had never touched anyone and was always kind to everyone. I can’t believe he would do this just for a chance at a cure for Dragon Communion; he should be spending the time he has left with his father. Timothy released my sore shoulder, and I started rubbing it.

“Start walking,” Tim ordered.

Timothy led me through the run-down halls, and for a moment, he looked lost. In the end, he seemed to find his way. The further we walk from the dungeon, the cleaner the hallways become. Finally, we arrived at whatever place he was leading us to. Timothy opened the door, gesturing me to go inside. I hesitantly looked into the room, and Timothy, not patient enough, just grabbed my shoulder and shoved me inside.

The room was highly decorated, and all the time I had spent here, I had never seen any rooms that looked like this. I wondered why we are now, as I only saw cells and labs.

“My lord?” Timothy voiced our presence.

Hearing Timothy’s voice behind me snapped me out of my thoughts, and I saw a man at the other end of the room. He had his back to me, and I saw him holding a book he was gazing into. This has to be Elijah that Timothy spoke up before he kidnapped me.

“It’s alright Timothy, you may leave us,” Elijah said.

Without a word, Timothy left, and I could hear the door close behind me. I closely observed the man. There was something familiar about him that I couldn’t quite put my finger on. His suit was exquisite, and although I had no experience in that department, I could tell it was expensive. I waited for him to turn his attention to me, but he stood there with his back, still reading that book.

“Did you bring me here just to ignore me?” I spoke first to break the silence.

Elijah closed the book and placed it on the table. “Still impatient as ever,” He giggled.

“You don’t know a damn about me!” I said.

When he turned around, my blood turned cold—that face. I had first seen it when I last saw my mother. He was the one walking over to her while I was immobilized. He was the one who killed her. I could feel my blood go from cold to boiling in seconds. After the initial shock of seeing him, all I could feel was rage. That man ruined my life, first my mother, then all the leaders, Isabella.

“Give me one good reason why I shouldnt’ kill you right now?!” I stood my ground, growling at him.

“Now now, my dear sweet child. Is that any way to talk to your father?” Elijah smiled as he extended his arms to me.

Alexandria

We have flown low over Asia, making sure to stay away from the common fly paths. Thankfully, no one was in our way. We started closing in on the small village where Merlin was last seen. Quietly, we landed a few kilometers from the edge of town.

“Alexandria, what’s the plan?” Ashley asked me.

“For now, I think we should get some rest. It’s late, so I think it’s best to go into town in the morning,” I said, and Ashley nodded.

I took the first watch and listened to anything. Megan sat next to me a few moments later. “You know there are eight others here that can take turns with you,”

“I guess, but you all need sleep. I’ll be fine, it’s just easier to think when I’m alone,” I said.

“I understand that feeling. But you are no help to anyone if you are exhasted. Go and get some rest, I’ll take over,” Megan pointed to the cave.

“Alright, I’ll get some rest,” I giggled. A few hours passed, and soon, the sun began to rise. Everyone gathers to discuss the next step of the plan.

“So how are we going to do this?” Renna asked.

“It might be too suspicious for everyone to go into town at once. Visitors are rare in such a small town like this in the middle of nowhere,” I answered.

“But we would be much faster if all look for him,” Kita said.

“The thing is that many people have been looking for Merlin in the past, and few have been looking for him with good intentions. Many wanted to break him from prison and return him to the world. Merlin accepted his punishment but had no regrets as he told the Moon Goddess that what he did kept the magical world and humanity safe. It will be best that some stay back while we look if we run into trouble,” Mom said.

“What about teams of two?” Haley suggested. “The rest can stay back and monitor from a distance just in case the others need help,”

“That’s a good idea, Haley. We’ll each take half and meet in the middle, hopefully managing to find clues to Merlin’s whereabouts. The rest of you watch closely; there is no telling if he’ll set up any defenses, so you have to be ready if we need help.

The town was small, and the houses were built close to one another. There were not many people around, and that made me keep my guard up. Not to mention that hardly anyone was outside, and the few people turned around quickly when we passed them.

“This town is cozy mom. I think we could trevel here when all this crap is over,” I smiled.

“Don’t get too comfortable, Alex. This town is a collection of people running from something,” Mom said.

“What makes you say that?” I turned to face her in confusion.

“It’s evident in how everyone ensures not to be in our path. The ancestral memories said Merlin is somewhere here, but they never included precisely where he is,” Mom said.

“So we don’t even know if he’s even here?” I scoffed. “Great. I guess we just keep on looking,”

“Alexandria, wait a moment. I want to know how you are holding up,” Mom smiled.

“Is now the best time to talk about it?” I said.

“Now is as good time as any. I just want to know that I’m proud of you, Vincent and Audrey. The way you handle everything since your father passed. I know that he’d be proud of you,” Mom said.

“I doubt that,” I scoffed at her words.

“Alexandria, listen to me! Your father was tough on you but only did it because he wanted you to be the best. He may have wanted Vincent to be king, but ultimately, he chose you, Alexandria. Your father wanted you to be Queen of Varrfarrinn,” Mom said.

Mom was trying to justify my dad’s actions. “Yeah, whatever. So you mind telling me what we are looking for?”

“I’m not sure, as no one has seen him since the end of the great war, but I know that Merlin must have left clues on how to find him,” Mom explained.

“This is just perfect; it’s like looking for a needle in a haystack. Are you sure that we can trust Merlin, mom?” I said. “I’ve had my share of traitors to last a lifetime,”

“I’ll admit that Merlin is an extraordinary and strange man, and it’s to understand what he’s talking about or thinking. But he’s trustworthy, Alex, I’ll bet my life on it,” Mom smiled reassuringly.

“I hope you’re right. Let’s keep looking,” I said.

Even though the two were small, it took my mother and me two hours to walk through the part of the town that we were checking out since we had to look for clues to find where Merlin was. “We haven’t found anything that can help us find Merlin. I hope the girls have had better luck then we are having right now,” I groaned.

“It would seem they are still looking since they are not here. We did agree to meet at this location in town. Where do think they are?” Mom said.

“I don’t know, maybe the found something?” I heard my phone ring soon after, and I answered it. “It’s Alex speaking,”

“Alex, someone has attacked the girl! We ran to help them but couldn’t find them,” Megan said, panicking. “They’re in trouble, Alex,”

“I’m on my way!” I hung up and turned to my mother. “Mom, go back into the woods! Somebody attacked the girls,”

“I can help you,” Mom said.

“I know, mom, but everything depends on you staying alive. So that means no fighting whatsoever for you,” I shook my head at her.

“Very well, be safe,” I ran to the girl’s location on the other side of town. Kida and Haley had been looking for clues until two guys jumped them. The men had hoods on their heads, concealing most of their faces. The girls tried to run, but they kept up. So they tried fighting back.

When I arrived, Haley was about to be stabbed in the chest by one of the men, but I tackled him, and the knife flew from his hand. “Haley, are you alright?” I said, helping her up.

I didn’t take my eyes off the man who attacked Caitlin, who was now standing up. The attacker and I circled each other, studying. Then the man lunged at me, and I had no issue dodging his punch and landing one at the back of his neck. He was down for the count, and then Caitlin and I turned our attention to Kida, struggling with her opponent.

Haley picked up the knife the other man dropped and charged at him before he landed another punch on Kita. The man froze as he found the cold metal against his throat. “One wrong move and your dead motherfucker!” Haley growled. “Kida, are you okay?”

The man nodded his head gently.

“Yeah, I’ll be fine,” Kida smiled and caught her breath.

“Okay, so what the hell happened?” I asked.

“We are asking some guy about Merlin, and the next thing we know, these guys jumped us,” Haley explained.

“Who are you guys?” I asked the man. “Why did you attack my friends?”

“Girls, are you okay?” Mom said, running alongside Megan.

“Damn it, I told you to stay back!” I yelled.

“You think I’d leave my daughter behind?” Mom said.

“Who are these guys?” Megan asked us.

“That’s what we are trying to figure out,” Kida growled at the man.

“Ethan?” Mom said. “Ethan, is that you?”

“Mom, you know this man?” I gasped.

Mom walked up to us and examined our attacker. “It’s okay, Haley, you can release him,”

Haley released Ethan from her grasp, and I watched as the man removed his hood. “It’s been a long time, your grace,” Ethan bowed. “It’s an honor to have a bloodline descendant of our goddess in my presence,”

“It’s only been a few years. Still doing Merlin’s dirty work, I see? Who is that with you?” Mom said. Mom gestured to the other man, who was still out cold.

“That’s Finn, your grace. He’s still learning,” Ethan groaned.

“So are you telling them that you work for Merlin?” I crossed my arms.

“Indeed they do,” Mom nodded.

“Shout that all over town, will ya,” Ethan scoffed. “Let’s talk somewhere more private,” Ethan walked over to Finn and roughly pulled him up. He placed one of his arms over his shoulders and started dragging him away, and Mom followed.

“So we’re just going to follow the guys that tried to kill us?” Haley scoffed at me.

“I think so; my mother knows this Ethan guy. I trust my mother, and I hope you do too. Call the others and tell them to meet us at the edge of town,” I ordered.