Scarred Protector(41)

Ridge closed his eyes for a second and placed his fingers on his temples. When he opened them, he had a smile on his face. “It’s Nicole. She’s escaped, but they still have Evie. They’re on their way to the crystal chamber, and we can all guess who’ll be waiting there.”

Heath didn’t have time to be weak anymore. He had to find out if Evie was still alive, or at least still alive as the woman he loved and not taken over by Liliath. They walked outside, and he didn’t bother to wait for the others when he flew into the sky. It would be dawn soon, and he wasn’t sure at this point if he would ever return to Earth. Genia flew beside them and touched his arm.

“I’m coming with you, but I’ll not join you in the fight. I intend to contact friends on Homeworld.”

As far as he was concerned, the time for talking was over. The trip through the conduit went ahead without any problems. He didn’t bother to contemplate what that might mean. They headed straight for the crystal chamber. Heath kept sending out his thoughts to Evie, but they just kept coming up blank. It was causing an emptiness in his heart that would never be filled. When he entered the chamber, he realized why. Liliath was bent over his beloved, and he planned on stopping whatever she was doing, even if it meant his own body being ripped apart.



             He shot a blast of blue energy past Evie’s eyes, hitting Liliath straight in the chest. Evie turned her head toward the open cavern. It was the most wonderful sight he had ever witnessed. His wonderful woman was alive.

Sayell and Charles didn’t wait either, hurtling red beams of energy straight back at them. Liliath hardly seemed bothered by the attack, as she waved her hand and deflected the beam of energy, so it hit the wall to the side of them. He would leave the others to attack Sayell and Charles, and if his energy stream could not stop Liliath, then he would fight her with his bare hands. Liliath flicked her hand, and Heath found himself thrown back against one of the pillars. He was winded and struggled to get air into his lungs as he stood there. Her hand then threw a beam of white energy at his chest. It didn’t matter because he had to push against it. Each step forward was agony, but he lifted his hands and sent a blue beam of energy back. He was fighting a losing battle against her superior strength, but he would keep fighting until he fell.



Then the most wonderful thing happened when Evie brought up her fist and thumped Liliath on the chin. The action brought a smile to Heath’s face. The beam of light ceased, as Liliath peered down at Evie with what Heath reckoned was a look of disgust. It was all right for this Elevated to use Evie’s body for her own uses, but she seemed affronted that a mere human would hit her. Evie didn’t stop there and lay another thump to Liliath’s abdomen, causing her to double over. He loved his feisty woman so much. Faced with death she was fighting up to the end.

He reached the platform, but Liliath was back to full strength and threw her energy at him again before he could reach Evie. He fought her back and was joined by more beams of light. He glanced behind him to see Genia had arrived, and she had brought two guardians with her, an Angelic and a Demonic. The screech that came from Liliath’s throat caused him to wince. If harpies had ever really existed then that was what their call would sound like. Sayell and Charles put their arms up in surrender, knowing the battle was lost at this point, but knowing these two men would not be giving up so easily.



             Liliath walked down off the platform and stood before the guardians and let out a long sigh, as if she was irritated.

“I shall return with you, but I think we all know this situation must change. The old ways are gone,” Liliath hissed the words between gritted teeth.

Sayell and Charles made their way off the platform and stood behind her. She turned and placed a palm on each man’s cheek. “Wait for me. I will return.”

With that, she shimmered and blinked out of existence, along with the others from Homeworld. Heath rushed across to Evie where she lay on the altar. He pulled her into his arms and kissed her cheeks, her nose, eyelids, and lips. She opened to him immediately as their kiss deepened. Both of them were hardly able to believe they were in each other’s arms again. A cough from behind them was the only reason they stopped. It was Suzie, standing there with her arms folded and laughing.

Genia came and stood beside them. “Evie, I believe we should return to Earth, but I think you need to make a choice before we go. You no longer have the darkness in you, and you are healed. We could ask and try to find a guardian for you.”



“But I thought, since I’m bonded to Heath, he would have to try to transform me.”

Heath stood beside her and looked her in the eyes. He wanted her to be his partner more than anything, but was it worth the risk?



             “You know, you could die when I transform you. Nicole is the only one who has ever survived the transformation process. If you get a guardian now, then you could live a long and happy life.”

“Would I know you?”

“I would watch over you and make sure no harm came to you. You would have no memory of what has happened. We could be lovers, but you would die when you are old, and I would live on. You can’t know about the existence of Midworlders, and what has happened to us would be erased.”

He could see that stubborn look on her face and guessed what her answer would be.

“I want to risk it. I thought I was going to die anyway, and I don’t want a life without you in it, or at least not one based on what we’ve been through. It’s corny, but it’s true. Let’s get back to Earth and get on with giving me some bloody wings then.”

Heath whispered in her ear, “I love you more now than I ever could have imagined. I won’t let you down.” They walked along corridors until they made it to the arrival chamber. Evie clutched on tight with her arms around his neck, as he opened the portal for them. Within moments, they had made their way back into Earth’s atmosphere. Below, he could see Kingston, but they had to be quick before the sun came up, or it would mean needing to clear a whole lot of minds. They landed at the back of the house next to the pool. Luckily, there were no houses nearby.

“You can put me down now,” Evie pointed out.

He was sure she would be fine, but he liked holding her close. Now the moment had come to actually try to change her, he wasn’t so sure he wanted to go through with it. Ridge had talked to him years ago about is first love, Jade. Her body had suffered what appeared to be thousands of cuts, and she had bled to death in his arms. He dreaded the thought of Evie going through that pain. This was such a long shot. He should have insisted she get a guardian. It would have been awful, but he would have watched over her until she died and then gone back to Homeworld.



             They walked into the house, where Calloue, Georgia, and the others were waiting for them. “I think I should talk to Aunt Georgia before we do this,” Evie said, as she squeezed his hand. “Stop looking so worried. It’s going to be fine. We couldn’t have gone through all this crap to lose each other.”

“You do whatever you have to.” He watched, as she walked off to their bedroom with her aunt. Maybe Georgia would convince her to change her mind. Someone touched his arm and he saw Ridge standing there.

“I’m gettin’ a couple of drinks, and you and I are goin’ outside for a chat. You look like you’re a tightly coiled spring. She needs you calm right now, not stressed out.”

Ridge was right, and he followed his friend outside. Ridge was holding a bottle and two glasses, and proceeded to half-fill one and hand it over. Heath took a large gulp.

“Sorry it’s not whiskey, but Namid said they mostly drink rum. They’ve set Arthur up in town at a plush hotel. His mind’s been wiped. He said a phone call came through from the manor as well. They’ve visited Arthur’s group, but they were either deceased or had already left. I suppose you’ll keep an eye on him when you get back?”

“Yes, of course. Ridge, I was there with you that night you changed Nicole, but I can truthfully say until this moment, I didn’t know what you were going through.”

Ridge sipped his drink. “It was easier for me as I had no choice. Nicole would’ve died, and she couldn’t get a guardian. You look like you’re about to do a runner on Evie.”

“She would be better off and would live. I may kill her, and I don’t want to live with that memory.”

“I know what livin’ with that kind of memory’s like, but you’ll have more pain if you don’t go through with this. You don’t want to live the next fifty years knowin’ you’ll lose her for good.”





             Heath was well aware of that. Evie was tough, and she believed in him, and now he had to do what was right. Namid came out and looked straight at him.

“She’s asking for you.”

Heath stood up and knocked back his drink, feeling it burn as it went down. Taking a deep breath, he walked back inside and across to the bedroom. He found Evie standing next to her aunt, and she had a big smile on her face. He loved her so much and found it easy to reciprocate, as he smiled back. She ran across, and he took her in his arms and kissed her. It was a kiss he never wanted to end, as their lips joined and her tongue searched his mouth. Was it too much to ask of the universe to be given this woman to lose himself in? Eventually, they came apart.