Cry of the Wolf (Avalon: Web of Magic #3) (16 page)

“Hey!” Kara yelled. “Not you! Keep spinning!”

The dragonflies jumped back together and spun.

“Okay, Kara, can you move the dragonflies around the room so I can see the animals?” Emily asked.

“You heard her, start moving. Slowly!” Kara called out.

With a few squeaks, the dragonflies slowly spun their window over the animals.

Adriane quickly rounded up the wounded creatures in the dungeon, separating them according to how serious their injuries were. When the dragonflies flew over Silver Eyes, Emily studied the mistwolf closely.

Emily raised her rainbow jewel in the air. “Okay. She’s first. Just like before. I need everyone’s help. Stay close and focused.”

“Right!” Kara, Ozzie, and Lyra stood ready.

“Adriane, are you ready?” Emily asked.

“Let’s do it!” Adriane said, her wolf stone raised

“A walk in the park.” Emily raised her jewel. “Here we go… Now!”

Blue-white magic exploded out of Emily’s rainbow jewel and shot straight through the window, wrapping the wolf in a cocoon of light.

Golden fire flew from Adriane’s stone and enveloped the blue. With all her might, she willed the wolf to heal. Blue and gold lights flared brighter and brighter until they were a blinding white glow.

“Enough!” Emily shouted.

They lowered their gems and the light slowly faded from the wolf.

Adriane helped Silver Eyes to her feet. The wolf was still weak and thin, her fur still mottled, but there was no trace of the Black Fire anywhere on her body! Adriane’s heart soared as she knelt to hug the wolf. “You’re going to be all right.”

Another cheer went up from the animals as Adriane turned to them, smiling. Tears of joy ran down her cheeks. “We have to hurry before the sorceress feels this magic,” she said.

“I will use my magic to shield us,”
Silver Eyes said, as she slowly evaporated into mist.

One by one, Emily, Adriane, and Kara healed each animal through the dragonflies’ spinning window. The process went faster and faster as the healthy animals added their pure magic to the healing. Others too weak to walk were carried in. Soon, every animal in the dungeon was healed.

Adriane’s eyes shone as she grinned at her friends through the dragonflies’ window. “We did it!” she cried.

“Can you get everyone out of there?” Emily asked.

“It’s an underground maze,” a doglike creature said. “No one’s ever gotten out of here.” The animals fell silent.

“I have.”
Lyra was looking into the window.

“Lyra?”
a voice called from the crowd of animals.

“Rynda?”
Lyra began scanning the animals.

A large, spotted cat stepped forward.

“My sister!”
Lyra yowled.
“Where is Olinde?”

Another cat pushed through the group.
“I’m here.”

“I thought you were lost,”
Lyra said.

“And now we are found,”
the cats mewed.

“Can you help us get out?” a quiffle asked Lyra.

“I escaped the dungeons. Listen to my thoughts, Rynda.”

Rynda closed her cat eyes.

“Look into my mind. Can you see the path I took?”

“Yes, sister,”
the cat said, golden eyes gleaming as she faced the animals.
“This way,”
Rynda directed, and led them out of the chamber and into the dark tunnels.

Adriane saw her friends in the window back at Ravenswood.

Kara, Emily, Lyra, and Ozzie all stared back.

“Keep the faith,” she said to them. “I will come home!”

With a quick series of
pops
, the dragonflies vanished.

“We love you, Adriane!” her friends called out as the window faded. And they were gone.

“I love you, too,” Adriane said and followed the animals.

With Rynda in the lead, the entire group moved up through the tunnels. Adriane ran alongside, senses on high alert. As they passed a small cave, she heard a moan.

She ducked into the opening, golden gem held high.

Scorge lay chained to a wall. He looked even more wretched and pathetic than usual. “Scorge is so doomed. Oh, me, me,” he moaned.

Despite what he had done to her, Adriane couldn’t leave him here. She flung out a stream of magic and broke the old rusty chains with one swipe. Scorge’s eyes opened wide and he fell to his knees, groveling.

“Oh, thank you, thank you. You are good witch. Scorge is humble servant… ”

“You’re on your own now. Good luck.” She turned and ran after the others.

Tunnel after tunnel, twist after turn, the group followed Rynda upward, toward the surface. Occasionally they had to sneak by large caverns occupied with workers, but nothing stopped them. No one expected the prisoners to ever attempt an escape.

Finally the floor leveled out and the tunnel ended at a large set of doors.

Adriane held her hand up to silence everyone. Then, slowly, she pushed the doors open. Outside was a stone-paved yard, and beyond it, the barren gray landscape of the Shadowlands. Night had fallen, and she could see the twin moons rising into the starry sky.

Four serpent guards marched back and forth across the yard.

Adriane walked out right between them. “Say, is this where the bus stops for Stonehill?”

The guards turned on her at once, staffs raised. Green fire licked from the tips, and they charged.

Suddenly they skidded to a stop, shock on their serpentine faces. Behind Adriane thirty animals came charging out the door. Adriane whipped out golden fire and yanked the staffs into the air as the animals raced forward, barreling over the surprised guards.

Adriane led the triumphant group across the yard and onto a stretch of flat, sandy ground. Behind them, several small volcanoes were rising from the desert. There were doors at the bases of each. She wondered briefly if she had come out the same place she’d gone in.

All around them lay the forbidding Shadowlands. Adriane held her wolf stone out in front of her. Which way should she go? They needed to get as far away as fast as they could. It would not be long before the sorceress learned of their escape.

“Follow my voice!”

Adriane’s heart soared. “Storm!”

“I am with you.”
The voice of the mistwolf rang clear and true in her mind.

Adriane saw a line of dunes ahead, dark against the night sky.

“This way!” she yelled, herding the group toward the distant dunes.

Under the bright light of two moons, the animals fled across the parched sands. Adriane was out front, her wolf stone flashing in the night, a beacon to lead them.

“Storm!” she called.

Suddenly her gemstone flashed, and Adriane’s mind whirled. Once again she was being pulled into the mind of the wolf. She breathed in fresh night air, felt sand beneath her padded feet, but saw no pack. Instead, only the image of a single figure. Slowly it came into focus. It was human. It was…
her
! Adriane was looking through Storm’s eyes and seeing
herself.

She blinked and saw a lone wolf standing strong, silhouetted by the light of the rising moons.

“Stormbringer!” Adriane cried. She ran to her friend and hugged her hard, as if she’d never let go.

The mistwolf licked her face.
“You found me.”

The light of the moons suddenly went dark, then brightened. A large shadow flew across the sky. Adriane felt her stone pulse with danger.

The animals began cowering and whispering. They felt it, too. Something was coming…

With a sound like thunder, the ground shook.

Something was here.

Behind the animals, a shape stood, unfurling immense bat wings, each with pointed razor tips. The demon’s huge muscles rippled along a body covered in thick leather armor. Its eyes blazed red. Green venom dripped from its set of long razor teeth as it smiled.

A vision out of her worst nightmare stepped forward and Adriane’s heart sank.

The manticore roared and leaped straight for them.

T
HE ANIMALS SCREAMED
and scattered as the manticore landed with a ground-shaking
crunch
not ten feet in front of them and straightened to its full height. Armored in dark leather, its lower body looked like a mutated lion; the upper part resembled some bizarre ape-beast, with arms muscled like steel cords. A thick tail tipped with iron spikes swayed dangerously behind it.

“We meet again.” The monster’s guttural voice grated like shards of metal. “What magic do you have for me this time?” it challenged.

Adriane realized it was toying with them, reminding her that it had attacked once before, at Ravenswood, and had stolen the fairy map. It had taken the magic of the three girls working together to send the monster back through the portal.

Now she faced it alone.

No! She was not alone. Storm stood by her side, the bond between them strong and true. And her friends, Emily, Kara, Ozzie, and Lyra—they were with her, always.

“Let us go!” she yelled.

The demon snarled. “I was told to bring you back alive. But accidents happen.”

“Stay away from us!”

The manticore stepped forward.

Adriane raised her wolf stone high, her other hand gripping the thick fur of Storm’s ruff. The silver wolf snarled, teeth bared. Golden fire flared from Adriane’s fist, spiraling down her arm and covering her entire body. She and Storm stood bright as flames in the desert darkness and sent a beam of white-gold magic flying into the manticore.

The power slammed into the creature hard, forcing it back. The manticore roared. Together, Adriane and Storm whipped the magic around the manticore, wrapping the monster in fire.

The beast stood in the magical inferno—and smiled. Then it opened its blood-red mouth and took a long, deep breath. A ribbon of gold snaked its way into the manticore’s mouth. It was inhaling the magic!

Adriane was suddenly jerked forward.

“Storm!”

The mistwolf leaped in front of Adriane and snapped at the manticore, looking for an opening to attack.

The manticore opened its mouth wider and began swallowing the magic. Adriane was being pulled in. She tried to resist but it was too strong.

Golden light flew wildly into the creature’s nose, its mouth, and its ears. Then, with its chest fully expanded, the manticore heaved, spewing sickly green light back at Adriane.

From the corner of her eye, she saw all the animals closing in, trying to give her what magic they had.

“No!” she called to them. “Stay away!”

Like a bullet, Storm streaked for the manticore’s back, hitting it from behind. Teeth imbedded in leather and flesh, the wolf violently shook its head. The monster roared and twisted, trying to dislodge its attacker.

It was enough of a distraction. Adriane pushed back, trying to stop the green fire from flowing into her gem. The beam of light warped, angling sharply into the air. She twisted her wrist, trying to cut off the flow. With all her strength, Adriane smacked the beam down hard, cutting a smoking rift into the ground. Sand and rocks went flying as the magic burst apart, shooting sparks of lightning into the air. Her stone free from the creature’s grip, Adriane tumbled backward.

With a flap of its dark wings, the manticore suddenly rose into the air, throwing Storm to the ground. With a booming thud, the creature landed behind the frightened animals.

The animals went running in chaos and confusion over to Adriane and Storm.

The manticore slowly looked over the huddled, shaking group.

“Healthy animals for the mistress to begin her work again. You did well.” Its eyes focused on Adriane. “She cannot use your stone. But I can. You will have no use for it back in the dungeons.”

The manticore closed its wings to reveal a regiment of armored serpent guards, one hundred strong, marching across the sands. The animals gasped and cried as the serpents fanned out into a line as they approached, and then came to a halt. The thud of a hundred staffs pounding the ground echoed across the terrified group. Each serpent held its staff in front of them, pointed at the sky. Green sparks leaped into the night from the tips.