Reaching Retribution(102)

Standing in front of the splintered tree, she screams his name. Tom reaches out and punches a Gadramick in front of me. I’m no longer focused on the fight. I can’t be. I’ve been trying to keep my attention on the Gadramicks and let Ryanne do her thing, but it’s so hard. I want, I need, to run forward and protect her with my life. I’m not, nor have I ever been, her protector, but I’ve made a personal promise to protect her. She’s my soulmate. It’s what I’m supposed to do.

Right now, I can’t protect her, but damn it, I want to. I need to be beside her. Tom reaches out and places a hand on my shoulder.

“You can’t, Colton,” he says. “Don’t forget about the prophecy.”

“Who freaking cares about the prophecy!” I yell. Ryanne looks around, waiting for Zahtri to show up. “I’ve seen her die too many times to care about what the prophecy states. Zahtri threw her into a tree earlier. Look at that tree!” I point to the tree she’s standing in front of. “That is from her small body being slammed into it. How much force would he have had to use against her to cause that sort of damage? Huh?”

“But look at her, Colton. Look at that girl who was just thrown into a tree. Does she look weak? Does she look injured? No. She looks strong and determined. She wants this to end as much as you do. Now, let her do what she needs to do. Let her finish this. This is not your battle to fight. Ryanne has to be the one to end this. If you try and go against the prophecy, one or both of you could end up dead. Is that what you want?” Tom says.

That is definitely not what I want. I’ve discussed with Ryanne what I want to happen many times. We have plans that cannot be fulfilled unless we both survive.

I calm down and look at Tom. I can see how much he’s struggling with this as well. I have to remember that I’m not the only one that cares about her. I look away from my Uncle right as Vincent falls to his knees. We both turn and watch as he pulls a bloodied blade from between his ribs. I look across the field and see a dark haired mage smiling at us. Phillip threw the knife.

Tom crouches down next to Vincent, who is now leaning forward, resting his palms against the ground, trying to catch his breath.

Vincent looks up and gives his attention to Phillip. Without saying anything to anyone, he disappears. “Where did he go?” Tom says as he stands up. We all know Vincent will succumb to the dark magic from the blade, but for the time being, he’s going to fight with everything he has in him. With Jedrek and the antidote gone, there’s literally nothing we can do about the wound.

Phillip moves out of the way and starts fighting against a different mage. Where did Vincent go? My eyes move away from Phillip to the opposite side of the clearing. Ryanne is still standing beneath the tree, waiting. Vincent reappears beside her and grabs onto her waist and transports both of them away from the clearing.

“What the heck?” I say as I spin in a circle. Where would he have taken her? Why would he have taken her anywhere?

Right as Vincent disappears with Ryanne, Zahtri transports back into the clearing.

“How did he know that he was going to appear right then?” Tom asks me.

“I have no clue,” I say as I continue to look for Ryanne and Vincent. Zahtri’s eyes move around the clearing before they land on my group. He looks straight at me and grins before he disappears again. All of us tense and wait for what is going to happen next.

When nothing happens for a few seconds, we all relax.

The Gadramicks numbers are thinning. Many are leaving. Dravin is dead and Zahtri is…who knows where. Valdus is pushing through the crowd around us working his way to…Liam?

I look over at my Uncle. He has dropped everything to help us during this time and I know we haven’t shown him just how appreciative we really are. “Thank you for everything, Tom,” I whisper as I start moving across the field. Tom, Chris, and Colin can handle everything here. I have to warn Liam.

Not knowing where Ryanne is makes calling my invisibility much easier. As I step away from Tom, I let it take over. No one will bother me as I make my way across the field.

I maneuver through the Gadramicks without actually touching anyone. I stop as a Gadramick runs in front of me. Mr. Prowler rushes after him. Pushing forward, I continue moving toward Liam. I see Valdus pushing his way through everyone, so I pick up my speed. He’s going to get to Liam before I can.

Two Gadramicks run in front of me and stop. They can’t see me, but they are in my way. Valdus starts running now, Liam hasn’t seen him yet. Hitting both of the men in their pressure points, I push them out of the way before they hit the ground. I’m not going to make it.