Warrior's Rise (15 page)

He wasn’t sure what she meant exactly, but he wasn’t going to say anything about it. He was sure he’d find out soon enough. He looked down at her and nodded, then sat down and waited for her to get out of the shower, dreading every second that ticked by and brought him closer to the moment he knew would alter his entire life.

Chapter Fourteen

Logan frowned as Willow guided her car through the Oregon Vortex parking lot. He glanced at Darien, who seemed relatively unabashed. He’d been sitting quietly for most of the drive, just taking things in. He didn’t ask questions, which Logan couldn’t understand for the life of him. His mind was buzzing with questions. How could Darien just placidly go along with everything?

“The Oregon Vortex?” Logan grumbled as he got out of the car. “Come on, Willow. What are we doing here?”

She heaved a sigh and shut her door, coming around to face Logan and Darien. “Look,” she said, “this is all going to sound insane, but just deal with it.” She glanced from Logan to Darien and back again. “The Avari fairy legend is real. The mythical dragon warriors, the Alveda d’Kai, they were real.”

Logan rolled his eyes. Darien arched an eyebrow.

Willow shook her head. “I know it sounds crazy, but listen to me. I am the queen of the Avari fairies. My name is Willow
Avaris.
That is the name of the royal family. I have been hiding in the human realm since I took the throne, traveling back and forth between my world and this one.”

She met his eyes. “Cyrcinus. You would know her as Circe, or the freaky woman in your dream that wanted to kill you. The one with the black hair and the amber eyes. She altered her appearance when she came into the camp so that you wouldn’t recognize her.”

She sighed. “This will all be explained to you once we get to the Avari village. My brother can tell you better than I can. I don’t want to end up forgetting something and giving you half-truths. Let’s just suffice it to say right now that both of you are half Alveda d’Kai.”

Darien took a step backward in surprise and Logan actually laughed. “Oh, this is getting more and more ridiculous as the minutes go by.” He rubbed at a spot between his eyes that was starting to hurt.

Willow let out a frustrated growling sound. “I’m serious!”

“You’re trying to tell me that you brought us to a tourist attraction just to tell us that we’re mythical dragon warriors who are
extinct
? Last time I checked, I was a human being! And so was he!” He stabbed his finger at Darien.

“This isn’t just a tourist attraction!” Willow exclaimed. “It’s a portal! All vortexes are! There are vortexes all over the country, tons of them in Arizona! They aren’t just unexplained areas of energy. They’re portals to other worlds, other dimensions. This portal is one of the gateways into my world! It’s staffed entirely by Avari fairies!”

Logan groaned. “This is unbelievable.”

“And you
aren’t
ordinary humans, either one of you!” she continued. “Logan, you are half human, half Alveda d’Kai. Darien, you aren’t human at all! You are half Alveda d’Kai, half Avari!”

Darien looked like someone had just slapped him very hard. “I-I’m what?” he stammered.

Logan snorted.

Willow fixed him with a dark glower. “Listen, buster. You wanted answers. I’m giving them to you. You were on your deathbed yesterday. You probably would have died if it hadn’t been for Darien.”

“Your Alveda d’Kai powers came fully to you yesterday. You are an amazing warrior, a skilled fighter, a natural leader, and you have healing powers. You didn’t see it yesterday, but when you touched Logan’s hand and wished he would get well, his skin glowed.
You
healed him.”

He looked skeptical, but turned his back to them and lifted his shirt. Logan felt nauseous. There, right dead center of Darien’s back was the strange spiral symbol Lucy had drawn on him. Like a spiral of barbed wire… Only it wasn’t in blue ink, or even black. Actually, it was glowing like a red, hot iron. There was no way that it could have been any kind of drawing or trick. Logan’s mind went back to the medieval combat lesson. Darien had hit the center of every target with every weapon he had tried… And he’d said he had no experience whatsoever… He swallowed. No way. There was no way any of this could really be feasible… But even as his mind thought it, his heart protested. His heart wanted to believe.

“Holy crap,” Darien whispered as he looked down at his back over his shoulder. “Are you friggin’ kidding me?” He turned to Willow, his face pallid. “
Are you friggin’ kidding me
?”

She shook her head. “No, I’m not. Now, please, come with me. I promise everything will be explained to you, but we have to go. Follow me.”

Logan stopped protesting and followed after Willow and Darien, who was practically running. She led them to a tree that looked like every other tree in the area, except his nauseous feeling got a little worse and then, suddenly, one second he was staring at Oregon landscape with Oregon forest, and the next he was surrounded by huge, monolithic trees with thick, dense foliage that blocked out the sun except for in small patches. And the forest floor was covered in moss. He blinked rapidly and let out a surprised shout, stumbling backwards until his back was against one of the enormous tree trunks. He squeezed his eyes shut as his head spun and his heart raced. “This isn’t possible,” he muttered. “It isn’t logical. This is a trick. It has to be.”

“Logan—”

His eyes flew open and he held his hands out to Willow, who was approaching. “Get away from me!” he shouted. “I don’t know what you are, I don’t know what this is, but I want out of it right now!” His head spun like he was on a sickening carnival ride and he closed his eyes. His breath was coming in short, shallow gasps and he didn’t feel like he could get enough air even if someone hooked him up to an oxygen pump.

“I think he’s having a panic attack,” Darien commented.

He heard Willow sigh. “I’m not surprised. Logan!” Her footsteps came closer and he opened his eyes to fend her off, but she placed one hand square on his chest before he could do anything and looked him straight in the eye. “Dragon warrior, be still!” she commanded.

Air rushed into Logan’s lungs and the nauseating, head-spinning feeling dissipated almost as quickly as it had come. It was replaced by warm tranquility that flowed through him in comforting waves. He looked up at Willow in question, still mortified despite the otherwise calm feeling that invaded his body. “How did you do that?” he rasped. He shook his head. “I feel like I have two different things living inside my body.” He leaned his head back against the tree trunk.

“You do,” she said softly. “Logan, the Alveda d’Kai blood in you was dormant until Cyrcinus attacked you in that dream. Your instincts awakened to protect you. Now, your human mind is trying to put all of this into its logical place when there is no logical place. The human mind is limited, it’s factual. Your mind doesn’t want to accept this, but your heart,” she placed her hand gently over where his heart was pounding, “embraces it.”

Logan gave her a weary, pained expression before he turned his attention to Darien. “You just blindly accept all of this?”

He approached and put his hand on Logan’s shoulder. “Haven’t you always felt different than everyone else? Out of place? Even among my friends, who I adore, I feel different. I need to know why. I need to know what that means.”

Logan blinked. “But-But—” He huffed. “It doesn’t make sense! Fairies in the human world! Humans who are half dragon warrior whatever! A mythical world existing beyond the borders of a tourist attraction!” He flung his hands in the air. “Beautiful women who try to assassinate you with a kiss! What kind of jacked up nightmare is this?”

Darien gently nudged Willow out of the way and he took Logan by the shoulders. “There are things in this world we have no clue about, Logan,” he said seriously. “We think we’re the be all and the end all. We’re not. Is it scary to suddenly wander right through a portal and end up in a weird forest?” He snorted. “Yeah, it’s friggin’ freaky! But do you want to spend the rest of your life wondering why, no matter what you do or who you’re with, you never feel at ease?”

Logan’s heart skipped a beat and he swallowed. Darien had hit the nail right on the head. That was how he’d felt every day of his life since he’d been a kid. He heaved a huge, defeated sigh.

Darien gave his shoulders a squeeze. “Come on, man. Apparently, whether we like it or not, there’s something strange going on with us. We managed to get lucky enough to be at the same place at the same time when it happened. That means we don’t have to go through it by ourselves. We’re in this together. So let’s go find out what it is we’re dealing with… Okay?”

Logan lifted his eyes to Darien’s and affection for the kid filled his heart. Darien had a father like he had. He’d had to endure the same cruel treatment… How had he come out so much better of a person? He sighed and gave a weary nod. “Okay… Fine.” He looked up at Willow. “Lead on.”

Chapter Fifteen

Maybe it was because he’d almost been poisoned and was still trying to recover. Maybe it was because he’d just suffered a shock unlike any other he’d experienced in his life. Or maybe it was just the simple fact that something inside of him felt more relaxed and at home in the strange forest where the Avari resided than ever before. Whatever the reason, he found the fireflies that twinkled in the forest clearing where he currently sat very peaceful and soothing.

Logan glanced over at Darien, who sat beside him and stared at the fireflies with the same rapt attention and whimsical expression. He sighed. Darien… Half-brother… He closed his eyes and tried to will some sort of tranquility to steal into his turbulent soul. His body may have felt relaxed and at home, but his mind was chaos.

Willow had led them into her village, a tribal-like setting nestled amongst the trees. Most everything was made of tents and ropes save the Royal House, where Willow and her brother lived. That looked more like a 1700’s style fort not unlike the ones assembled in the days of America’s early history. It was there that Logan and Darien had been introduced to Tiyenen, Willow’s younger brother, who Logan, despite the circumstances, had actually really liked. Tall, sandy-haired and lighthearted, the man had been easy to smile and quick with his wit.

He’d also dropped the greatest bomb that Logan had ever received. His father and Darien’s father were one in the same. He and his sister were half dragon warrior. Darien was the much coveted mixed blood that Lucy had spoken of. The best of both. Strong, determined, dominant, but caring and kind.

Logan didn’t even know how to process the information he had been given. He was half of a race that was called dragon warriors because of the close tie they’d once had with the mythical beasts. In the days of old, they’d apparently lived with the dragons as one people. They’d protected one another and fought alongside one another, man and dragon working as one unbeatable force. And then, over time, the dragons died off, leaving the Alveda d’Kai on their own… Until Cyrcinus had killed them too. Now, Logan and Darien were all that was left, aside from their terrible father, and that, of course, put them in great danger.

Logan was irritated that he’d apparently gotten no special abilities aside from way too much testosterone and psychotic instincts that made him sleepwalk, growl and feel like he was losing his mind. If he had to be some sort of mythical creature, he should at least be able to do something cool.

“So…” Darien said suddenly. “I guess you’re my brother, huh?”

Logan looked over at him. He was still gazing at the fireflies. “Yeah…” He made a face. “Sorry about that. Wish you could have gotten stuck with a better relation.”

He blinked. No, no, it was pretty weird when he thought about it. Actually, weird was an enormous understatement. “I think I’m going to have to disagree with you on this one,” he muttered.

Darien smiled. “All I mean is that, as much as I would have hated to admit this last week, we do have some similarities.” He shrugged. “Hey, at least we know that there aren’t two people like our dad in the world. That’s a consolation.”