Trial By Fire (Avalon: Web of Magic #6) (4 page)

The surrounding forest was already thinning as maples and oaks offered their final gift of colors. Soon they would submit to their cold slumber. Only the never-changing greens of the pines would tough it out until spring.

Emily, Adriane, Kara, Lyra, Storm, and Ozzie made their way through the throng of adoring, cheering creatures. Rasha, Ronif, and Balthazar followed, setting off another round of hoots, hollers, neighs, and chirps. Word had spread fast that the girls had been called by the Firemental. Three young mages and their magical animal friends were going to save their world.

Ozzie spoke first.

“When I first met the Fairimentals,” he began, “they told me I would play a part in fighting dark magic and saving our world. I’m a ferr—an elf! I didn’t believe it possible. Now, I’m here to tell you I believe!” The ferret raised his furry arms dramatically as the crowd reacted with more cheers.

“I believe in our friends and I believe in the magic.” Ozzie began shuffling back and forth, calling out to the crowd. “And with a little luck, you’ll all see home again.” He dropped to one knee, arms outstretched. “You just have to believe!”

More cheers met Ozzie’s impassioned speech. They all needed to hear those words. Uncertainties lay ahead. The girls knew it. Their journey together had been as unpredictable as it had been rewarding. Yet each knew one thing for sure—something the Fairimentals had told them: There is no going back.

Did they really believe they could do what they were chosen for?

Emily thought about how far she’d come. Her first magical friend, a fairy creature called Phel, had taught her healing was more than knowledge of medicine and technique, it was rooted deep in compassion and empathy. Now she would have to help heal a whole world. Had she learned enough to handle it?

Adriane looked at her amber wolf stone set in the onyx and turquoise band on her wrist. The silver mistwolf beside her matched the reflective stripes down the sides of Adriane’s black track pants. Headstrong, Adriane had always fought with an iron will, barreling forward in a straight line, determined to find her own name, her own place. Thanks to Stormbringer, she knew she was not just a fighter, but a warrior with courage to soar free like a… bird. She smiled. No, to run free like a wolf. She was bonded forever to the mistwolves and Stormbringer.

“Packmates,”
Storm said, looking at her with deep golden eyes.

With Storm at her side, Adriane could do anything.

“All right, Ronif, Rasha, Balthazar, you’re in charge now,” Emily said. “Just try to keep everyone’s spirits up.”

“We will do our best,” Balthazar said.

“As soon as the portal opens, call to Moonshadow and Silver Eyes,” Adriane told Storm. “See if you can get a reading on what’s going on over there.”

“I will try.”
Storm remained ever calm, ever strong.

“I think I have everything,” Kara said, brushing her long hair back while rummaging in her bright red backpack. Lyra stood beside her, grooming her own lustrous spotted fur. Kara was wearing designer hiking boots, dark denim jeans, and a faux fur-trimmed safari coat.

Kara was beginning to understand that her journey was tied to the magic more than anyone had thought possible. She was the conductor. With her, magic shone in endless circles, spreading like the brilliance of her smile. It had a profound effect on everyone—human and animal—she came into contact with. But just as still waters ran deep, she felt something more, a darkness just below the surface, waiting to drag her down.

“Kara, you have the fairy map?” Emily asked.

“Fairy map, check.” She lifted the glowing ball from her pack. Tiny star patterns sparkled inside, a key to the pathways of the web.

Everyone looked with awe upon the gift given to Kara by the Fairimentals. With this map, Kara had opened pathways of portals to parts unknown on the magic web.

“Unicorn horn?” Adriane asked.

“Right here.” Kara held up the horn. Sunlight split the crystal sending sparkles racing up and down the swirled horn.

“Kara, what else is in there?” Emily asked, curiously eyeing her bulging backpack.

“Just some essentials,” Kara replied. “Granola bars, a toothbrush, hairspray, Breath Blast, hair clips, a change of socks, some lip balm, chips…”

“Where do you think we’re going? Paris?” Adriane asked.

“Well, we don’t really know, do we?” Kara shot back.

“Let’s find out,” Emily said.

Kara held the unicorn horn up high.

The crowd fanned out, giving the mages room.

The three girls stood close together, Ozzie before them, Lyra and Storm on either side.

Slowly, Adriane reached out and grasped Kara’s hand, wrapping her fingers around it and the unicorn horn. Adriane’s wolf stone glinted, then glowed bright gold.

Then Emily reached out, adding her hand to the others. Her rainbow jewel flared to life with blue-green light.

The crowd fell silent as spirals of amber and blue-green magic raced from the jewels and swirled around the girls’ arms. They could feel the animals in the field adding their own individual strength, helping to focus the magic.

“Okay, here we go.” Kara felt the magic surging though her. She recognized it and opened herself as it built, rising into waves of power, using her as a vehicle for its release. Pushing the fear from her mind, she focused and bent the power to her will.

“Concentrate on the dreamcatcher,” Emily said, closing her eyes. “Picture it opening!”

A hidden, magical dreamcatcher protected the portal. It was constructed from strands of the magic web itself.

Power surged from Adriane’s and Emily’s jewels and flowed through Kara, around her body, up her arms, and right into the horn of the unicorn. A stream of magic fire burst from the crystal horn, skyrocketing in a wild blaze of colors.

“Hold it steady!” Adriane yelled.

Kara whirled the beam of crystal starlight in a giant circle, slicing the air with twinkles. The immense dreamcatcher appeared before them, hanging in the air just above the ground.

Lightning sparked even though there was no sign of a storm. The meadow suddenly lurched beneath their feet as thunder rolled and the immense portal swirled open. Winking stars that seemed to sit on glowing lines stretched into the distance behind the dreamcatcher. Although the girls had seen it before, looking onto the expanse of the magic web was breathtaking. Each star was a portal, connecting to countless worlds. It was beautiful, incredible—and dangerous.

“Next stop, Aldenmor!” Kara exclaimed.

Emily drew in a breath. “Here we go,” she murmured. Ozzie scampered up her arm to perch on her shoulder.

“Stay close,” Adriane instructed, hand on Storm’s neck. “Concentrate on forming a single protective bubble so we don’t get separated.”

The magic danced faster and faster around them. Gold, blue, and silver lit the field with dazzling brightness.

The center of the dreamcatcher opened wide before them.

“One jumps—” Adriane said.

“—we all jump!” Kara finished.

And with that, Emily, Adriane, Kara, Ozzie, Lyra, and Storm leaped through the dreamcatcher into the portal beyond.

“Emily!” Ozzie cried, grasping the healer’s neck.

“I’ve got you!” she shouted back.

Triggered by the immense power of the web, magic flew from Emily’s rainbow jewel, Adriane’s wolf stone, and the unicorn horn held by Kara. At once, an amber bubble covered in crackling blue light encircled them.

The bubble floated above the strands of stars like a giant balloon.

“It’s awesome!” Kara exclaimed.

Emily quickly took count to make sure they were all still together. “It’s okay, Ozzie. You can open your eyes.”

The ferret opened one eye and gazed through the translucent bubble at the vast expanse.
“Gah!”

The web spread out before them like a galaxy. Pinpoints sparkled, but it was impossible to tell how far away the portals were—or how close.

“Hey, aren’t we supposed to go directly to Aldenmor?” Ozzie asked.

“The portals must have changed to match the fairy map,” Emily answered.

“All right, Barbie, you’re up,” Adriane said.

Kara raised the fairy map. The small sphere slowly rotated in her hand.

“Look!” Kara gasped as a pathway of portals lit up inside the fairy map like a constellation of stars.

Adriane’s keen eyes flickered to the fairy map. She pointed to the same configuration of stars along the magic web. “Emily’s right.”

Suddenly Storm let out a sharp bark.

“Storm, what is it?” The warrior’s attention was instantly drawn to her packmate.

“Something has happened to Moonshadow,”
Storm growled.

“What?” Adriane asked worriedly.

“I can’t get a clear picture, but the pack needs help. They wait for us with Zach at Mount Hope.”

Everyone exchanged worried glances. First the Firemental had appeared, and now this. Something was seriously wrong on Aldenmor.

“We have to get to Mount Hope,” Adriane stated. “Now.”

Kara nodded. “Okay, but which portal?” She waved her arm at the mass of bright points sprawled along the web.

“Somewhere over there,”
Storm fretted, pointing her nose toward a brilliant cluster of stars.

“How do we steer this thing?” Ozzie asked.

Kara raised the fairy map and matched the portals to where Storm had indicated. “Focus on the brightest star.”

With a quick glance at the map, Adriane gestured to their right. “That way.”

The mages raised their fists and sent the bubble floating toward the first portal winking in the distance.

The bubble quickly picked up speed as it slid between golden strands.

“Take us down!” Adriane commanded.

With a wave of their arms, the bubble dropped onto a glittering highway of light.

“Stay away from the broken strands.” Emily pointed to a section of web that hung broken and tangled.

“I thought the unicorns were fixing the web,” Kara said.

Emily thought of her unicorn friend, Lorelei. Unicorns ran along the strands of the web itself, repairing it so magic could flow where it was supposed to go. But here huge swaths of web were horribly distorted, sparking like downed electrical cables. How could the unicorns hope to repair such immense damage?

“Heads up!” Adriane raised her fists, jumping the bubble over a wide gap of broken strands.

“What I wouldn’t give for a flobbin right now,” Ozzie commented, remembering the magic-tracking creature who’d helped them navigate the web.

Emily eyed the unicorn horn in Kara’s hand. The crystal pulsed with diamond light. “Lorelei’s horn,” Emily said. “She gave us the magic of the unicorns.”

The girls once again held hands as Kara raised the horn.

“Lorelei!” Emily called out. “Take us to Mount Hope!”

Instantly, the bubble took a sharp dip, spiraling into a sweeping curve, right toward a knot of broken, tangled strands. A massive stargate flared dangerously ahead.

“Not that way!” Ozzie yelled, trying to push the bubble in the opposite direction.

“Hang on!” Adriane shouted.

“To what?”

Flash!

—dead silence—

For a split second, everyone was silhouetted in a blaze of white—then the web appeared, hurtling around them as they shot from the open portal.

Stars became streaks as the bubble careened down layers of strands, blazing onto a different path.

Adriane held onto the fur of Storm’s neck as the bubble twisted, picking up more speed. Its thin walls were beginning to stretch, sizzling with power.

“Keep focused!” Kara shouted. “Hold it together!”

The bubble spun violently, dropped like a roller coaster and—
Flash!
—rocketed though another portal like a meteor.

Emily lost her grip and was thrown against the wall of the bubble. Electricity sparked from her jewel, sending magic fire racing around the orb. She reached out and snatched Ozzie’s leg before he bounced away.

Kara and Lyra were flattened against the other side. Wild energy crackled along the bubble. Kara felt her hand push right through the wall!

“It’s breaking up!” Kara yelled. Wind whipped around them, loud as a tornado. “We’ve got to stay together!”

Emily and Adriane strained forward, reaching to grasp hands, but the forces pulling them apart were too strong.

“Something’s coming up fast!” Ozzie screamed, falling over Emily’s head.

Ahead of them, a tight cluster of shimmering stars was getting bigger by the second.

“It’s a nexus!” Emily called out.

The nexus hung like a thickly woven platform of light. Surrounding it were dozens of portals. Here, strands of the web interconnected, each portal leading to a different destination.

“Which portal?” Kara cried as the bubble careened headlong toward the nexus.

“Stay together!” Adriane commanded, reaching for her friends as Storm braced her legs.

“As long as we stay together, we’ll be okay,” Emily called, hand outstretched, trying to inch her way toward Adriane.

“We’re coming in too fast!” Ozzie screamed.

Kara reached for her friends.

“We’re going to hit!” Adriane yelled.

The bubble careened toward the nexus floor and spun out of control.

“Ahhh!”

Adriane clung to Storm. Ozzie buried his head in Emily’s neck. Lyra’s magical wings flared open to protect Kara.

The bubble hit hard, bouncing into the air, coming down again, skidding and rolling. In a sudden blast of twinkling lights, the protective orb ripped apart.

Everyone was thrown in different directions.

“Emily!”

“Adriane!”

“Mommy elf!”

Instantly, a blue-green bubble formed around Emily and Ozzie.

An amber bubble engulfed Adriane and Storm.

Diamond power blazed from the horn in Kara’s hand, wrapping her and Lyra in a crystal cocoon.

They smashed into the nexus and vanished, swallowed into three different portals.