Sacred Bloodlines (25 page)

“You hit your head when you fell,” Dina explained.  Gabe looked around and realized he was once again in Michael’s office.

“I don’t understand,” Gabe muttered sitting there, confused by what was happening.

“When you touched the locket you passed out,” Haim explained.  “You hit the floor like a ton of bricks!”

“Michael!”  Gabe exclaimed remembering what he had seen. “It seemed so real,”  He added.

“Gabe,” Dina insisted, “did you see something?”

“I thought I did.”  Gabe said shaking his head as if trying to shake away the blurriness.  “I must have been dreaming or something when I passed out.”

“This is important Gabe,” Dina said grabbing Gabe’s hands. “What did you see?”  Gabe found her intensity unsettling.

“What?”  Gabe asked, still confused, his head beginning to throb from the gash on the back of his scalp.

“We need to know exactly what you saw, Gabe.”  Sophie added.  She then placed her hands over the wound on his head and under her breath began muttering a healing spell.  Gabe instantly began to feel better as he felt his skin tighten and pull together.  

“Gabe, did you see Michael!”  Uri exclaimed rushing to his side, his voice full of panic.

Gabe concentrated and remembered the vision.  He told them of the forest and Michael.  As he told the tale of what he saw Dina gasped and began to cry, burying her head into Raimie’s chest.  The group continued with their probing questions.  Gabe answered with as much detail as he could remember, telling them how Michael had been badly beaten.  He described the creatures he had seen.  Sophie seemed to know of them, he assumed from her crystals.

“There has to be something else,” Uri insisted, unable to hide his fear or frustration.  “Something that will tell us where he is.”

Sophie reached over and touched Uri’s arm gently, as if to calm him.  “Gabe, think about the place you were.  Was there something unique about it?  Something distinct?”  She asked.

“I don’t know” Gabe replied.  “It was daytime but it felt gray and dreary; there was fog rolling around us.  I mean, it was just a forest, that’s all I know.  Michael was in the middle of this clearing and he was tied to this huge scary tree.”

“Wait, go back,” Sophie exclaimed,  “Scary tree?  Can you describe it?”  

Gabe remembered the tree and how in the vision it had made him shutter.  He told them how it appeared to be a crooked old woman, crouched over Michael, almost like she was going to swallow him up.

“The ‘wailing woman’” Uri cried, recognizing Gabe’s description immediately.  “Let’s go.”

“What?”  Gabe said frustrated and confused.  “Go where?”

Sophie looked at Gabe and tried to calmly explain what was happening.  “Gabe, when you touched that locket you connected with Michael, you were able to see him and where he was.  We can find him now thanks to you.”

Haim and Sophie helped Gabe to his feet; Uri was already half way to the armory.  Gabe was about to see combat whether he was ready for it or not.  Michael had saved Gabe and now Michael needed help.  Gabe couldn’t imagine facing those creatures but he just knew he could not let Michael down after he had saved Gabe from Anthony.

Chapter Twenty-four

Sophie pulled Gabe’s hands into her chest to gain his attention.  They locked eyes and she told him “Gabe, go to the armory, help Uri.  Time is of the essence, Dina and I are going to go to the clerics and gather some healing potions and holy relics.  Haim and Raimie are going to see if any mounts are willing to aid us.  Do you understand?”  Sophie said.

Gabe simply nodded, words escaping him.  “Go now,”  Sophie commanded pushing Gabe away.

Gabe felt a rush of adrenaline flow through his body like a wave.  He watched for a moment while Sophie and Dina turned towards the potions chambers.  As they faded out of site he turned and took off with great speed towards the armory.  

He couldn’t believe what he was doing, he was no hero yet here he was, preparing to rush into battle with demons to save a man he had met only days ago.  Gabe thought of Michael, even though he had hidden a truth from him about his destiny he had come to mean so much to Gabe in such a short amount of time.  Michael had risked his own life to save him; he had come to feel almost like the father that Gabe had ached so long for.

Gabe ran up the old crooked stone stairs that led into the armory.  “Uri?”  he called out.

“Over here Gabe,” Uri replied.  Gabe looked around the corner where he saw Uri throwing things into a heaping pile.  The mountain of shields, armor, and weapons Uri had built was more than a dozen men could carry.  Gabe quickly realized Uri was not in his right mind.

“Uri!”  Gabe called out.  He didn’t reply this time.  Gabe took a step closer and raised his voice, “Uri!”  he repeated but still nothing.  Uri simply continued piling more on top of the mountain.

Gabe rushed up to Uri and grabbing hold of his arms shook him violently.  “Uri,” Gabe yelled.  “Snap out of it.”

Uri pulled away and collapsed on the floor in front of Gabe.  He tucked his head between his knees and encased the back of his skull with his fingers, as if protecting himself from the outside world.

“Uri, what is going on with you?”  Gabe lowered himself to sit next to him.  “Remember Uri, you have no weaknesses,” he added, trying to lighten the moment with humor.

With Gabe’s words Uri looked up into his eyes and actually smiled for a split second.  Fear returned to his face as he moaned, “I can’t believe he went without me.”

“What?”  Gabe asked, placing a comforting hand on Uri’s back.

“Michael,” Uri continued.  “Gabe, you have to understand, I can’t lose him.”  Gabe heard the panic in Uri’s voice.  He wasn’t sure how to handle his fearless friend in his current state.

“You won’t,” Gabe reassured him.  “We are going to get him back, Uri.”

“You know, when I came here I was scared of everything.”  Uri explained.  Gabe just listened.  Uri’s voice cracked and quivered as he explained.  “I had seen so many terrible things.  Gabe, you know how it is.  So much evil out there and we are like moths to a flame when it comes to that stuff.”

Gabe listened to Uri speaking and he thought it was as if he had been telling Gabe’s own story.  Uri continued.  “I felt so alone, so desperate.  The night I met Michael, I was in a hospital bed.”  Gabe looked at Uri, shocked and confused by the confession.

“I had tried to kill myself,” Uri continued.  As the words escaped Uri’s lips they were dripping with desperation.  Gabe could do nothing but listen.  “I didn’t want to live in a world where a junkie killed a kid’s dad right in front of him, where a woman was raped as a quiet crowd stood around and did nothing, where a woman threw her baby from a moving car.  I had seen it all Gabe, seen all the horrors the world had to offer and I just wanted to check out.  You know?  I tried to lie down, to give up, I had reached my end.  I couldn’t imagine anything ever changing to the point where I would want to live in this world.”

Uri looked at the mountain of armor and wiped away a tear from his cheek.  His breath hitched as he tried to continue, “When the doctors saved me I thought it was just one more tragedy.  I mean what a joke, right?  So many people who wanted to live having their lives snuffed out right in front of me.  I wanted to die and somehow I survived.”

The two sat quietly for a moment, Gabe not moving his hand from his friend’s back.  At last Uri continued, “That’s when Michael came, he took me away, brought me here.  He loved me and healed me in a way I didn’t know was possible.  Gabe, I hated the world and he fixed that.  I was so broken.”  Uri grabbed Gabe’s empty hand tight into his squeezed it and whispered in a desperate tone, “I can’t lose him.”

Gabe stood to his feet and pulled Uri up to meet his gaze.  “Then let’s go get him.”  Gabe didn’t say it but he was already beginning to feel the same way about Michael.  He knew he had a long road to travel in front of him and to head down it without his new mentor seemed unimaginable.  Gabe needed Michael back as much as Uri.  The two embraced for a moment, no more words being shared, just an unspoken understanding that they needed to save Michael.

The two dressed themselves in armor that had carvings of Rampart Manor’s emblem on the breastplate.  Gabe slid his sacred sword into the sheath on his hip.  They both took an armful of gear and made haste to the main courtyard to meet the others.

As they approached the others, Gabe caught sight of several incredible beasts.  At first he thought what he was seeing were merely oversized horses but as they came closer he realized the brilliant white animals each had a massive set of wings on their back.  Gabe saw that they not only were covered in lush thick hair but they also had pearl colored scales that climbed up their legs and shimmered in the sunlight.

Gabe stared in awe.  They walked around the mighty creatures, one of them turning its head to look directly at Gabe.  It carried a massive horn in the middle of its head.  Gabe marveled at the twisted horn, it was riddled with holes and reminded him of what fragile coral looked like.

“Gabe,” Uri said as they came to a stop.  “Meet the Alicorns.  This is Celetius,” Uri said patting the neck of one of the mighty beasts.  “And this fella here, his name is Midas and of course this lovely lady is Gretchen,” Uri added motioning to the other two magnificent animals.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you.”  Gabe said laughing a little at himself for talking to the animals.

“They want to know why you are laughing.” Uri said after a moment.

“What?” Gabe asked puzzled.

Dina stepped forward and began packing her gear onto Gretchen. “Gabe,” Dina explained.  “Alicorns are telepaths.  It takes years to master the skill to talk to them but we can communicate.  Alicorn’s are not our servants, they’re our equals.”  Dina bowed slightly to the Alicorns, showing her respect for them.

Gabe suddenly felt very embarrassed and wondered if he had offended the Alicorns.  “I see,” Gabe said cautiously.  “Well, thank you for your help.”  The Alicorns nodded their heads in an up and down motion.  Impressed by the fact he had just communicated with these impressive animals, Gabe felt very honored to be in their company.

Gabe and Uri dumped the pile of gear onto the ground nearby.  The other four rushed over and began layering themselves in armor as both Gabe and Uri strapped weapons and other gear to the Alicorns.  Gabe was extremely careful as he did this, trying at all costs not to cause any pain to these amazing creatures.

Once the Alicorns were loaded up Gabe stepped back and watched as Uri and Haim mounted Celetius with great ease.  Dina walked over to Gretchen and smoothly wrapped her hand around her neck, stroking her gently.  She touched her forehead to Gretchen’s and a moment later the great beast bent her front legs, lowering itself to where Dina and Raimie could easily climb on top of her.

A few moments later Gabe looked around at the group, now dressed in their impressive armor that gleamed in the sunlight, a huge thrill flooding over him.  He felt like an actual hero.  He looked like a hero.  He was surrounded by amazing warriors but deep inside him, Gabe had that familiar fear growing.  He wondered would he let these new friends down when it mattered most, would he let Sophie down?

“Gabe, are you coming?”  Sophie said from atop Midas, her hand outstretched to him.  He walked to the mighty beast’s side.  Midas took a knee to allow Gabe to climb upon his back.  Taking hold of Sophie’s hand Gabe pulled himself up behind her on the animal.  As he settled in, he wrapped his arms around Sophie tightly and buried his head into her flowing red hair.  As the group took flight Gabe kept his eyes closed and once again he found himself praying.

Chapter Twenty-five

Gabe tightened his legs around the mighty animal as it soared through the air.  He was about to attempt to save a man’s life that had recently saved his own life.  Gabe never really thought of himself as a true coward but he also certainly never thought of himself as a hero.  Long ago he learned the way to survive in life is to keep your head down and mind your own business.  Yet here he was, clad in battle armor, sword strapped to his side, and preparing to put his life on the line for a man he had known less than a week.

Gabe refused to look down for the simple fact he was trying to avoid the image of himself plummeting to the earth below burning into his brain.  He looked over at Haim and Uri who were flying to the left of them.  The Alicorns wings barely seemed to move, Gabe noticed.  It was almost as if they were simply gliding through the air.  A few more moments passed and there was another great swipe of the wings.

Gabe noticed Uri’s stare.  No longer did he look full of fear.  He had a determined glare; it looked as though Uri could light the demons on fire with just his eyes.  Gabe thought about the Uri he had seen in the armory, scared and helpless.  That was how Gabe felt most of the time.  How was he going to be a warrior all of the sudden?

Thoughts of doubt continued to plague Gabe the rest of the journey.  At last, the three Alicorns began their descent.  Rather than relief to no longer be flying high above the land, Gabe felt overwhelmed by the thought of what awaited them.  He imagined the spider like demons ready to pounce on them.  

The magnificent beasts landed as gently and majestically as they had flown, delivering them safely to their destination.  As Gabe dismounted he looked around frantically for any possible enemies.  Seeing his panic Sophie reached out to take his hand.  She pulled him close and looked up into his eyes.  “Gabe,” she whispered.  “It will be OK.  We landed far enough away they shouldn’t be able to sense us yet.  I won’t leave your side, alright?”

Gabe blew out a huge breath he had been holding since they landed.  He wished Sophie hadn’t seen his panic and wondered if she thought less of him.  Though Gabe was still anxious about what he was walking into, he had to admit the idea of Sophie watching his back made him feel incredible.

“Celetius,” Uri said in a stern tone as he turned to look at the Alicorn.  “You can’t be here. You and the others circle above.  I will contact you when we need you.”  As Uri finished his words the beautiful animal tapped his hoof into the dirt several times as if to acknowledge him.  Uri gently reached his hand up, grabbing the Alicorn’s neck and looking into his eyes, “thank you my friend.”