The Missing Piece - Chapter 9

Haleema and Leo jumped up and ran. Neither of them knew where they were going, but they followed the scream best they could. A second followed and a third as well. They didn’t belong to Ryder, he could tell. Which left Leo wondering who they belonged to.

The screams were coming from the bedroom a short distance from the living room. Leo was surprised by the scene in front of him when he opened the door. Sitting on the bed, wrapped in a comforter, shaking, was a girl he had never seen before. She had blonde hair and dark blue eyes. There was only one logical explanation.

“You must be Elle.” He said. She didn’t respond. Instead she continued to rock back and forth, mumbling. Leo wondered if she was crazy, but quickly pushed the idea from his mind.

“What’s wrong?” Haleema asked, sitting on the bed, wrapping her arm around Elle. Leo felt stupid. Elle was obviously going through something traumatic and all he could do was state the obvious.

“She had a night terror.” Leo jumped and turned to see Ryder sitting in a chair next to the door. He hadn’t seen her when he came in.

“A night terror?” he asked.

“It’s when you have a nightmare so bad that it seems real and it scares the living daylights out of you,” Ryder explained. “She had a night terror. And Vaelko sent it to her.” Haleema looked up at this comment, shooting Ryder an alarmed look. In response, Ryder shook her head as if to say ‘not here’. Leo was fed up.

“Listen, if I’m going to work with you guys to fight this Vaelko dude, I need to know what’s going on.” He crossed his arms and glared at Ryder.

“Who told you we’re going to fight against Vaelko?” she asked, her face unchanged.

“I’m not stupid,” Leo responded. “You and Haleema are always meeting up and last night there was a break in at the back gate. Who else could it be? You’ve been talking about Vaelko since our days in the Academy. He’s obviously a threat. So what’s going on?” Ryder stared at him and sighed.

“Listen, it’s a touchy subject and--"

“I’d like to know too,” Elle suddenly said, calming down. Leo looked at her in surprise. Her voice wasn’t what he imagined it would be. At first glance, Elle looked like a small, scared teenager. But when she spoke, her voice was strong and demanding, no matter how soft she had talked.

“What are these nightmares about? And why am I here? Where is here anyway? I need answers.” Elle was tough, Leo gave her that. Ryder would have to answer her questions now. There was no way around it.

Ryder sighed and shifted in her chair. “I really didn’t want to enlist anyone else in the fight. It was just going to be me, Haleema, and Wyatt.”

“Wyatt,” Elle suddenly shouted, flinging Haleema’s arm off her shoulder. “Is he okay? Did he make it back? Oh, please say he’s here.”

“Make it back?” Haleema asked, clearly confused.

“Did Malachi send him to get you?” There was a slight edge in Ryder’s voice. She must be agitated that Malachi didn’t ask her to go instead. It seemed like something Ryder would want to do; become a hero.

“I don’t know who Malachi is,” Elle confessed. “But Wyatt saved me from these guys that attacked me. They looked like they were made of glass.”

“The glass men. Vaelko got them through the portal,” Ryder said to Haleema. “How is that possible?” Haleema shrugged and Ryder groaned. “I would know if he was in Bryok. I would know. How could he sneak past?”

“Who?” Leo asked.

“Vaelko, you dummy. Who else would we be talking about?” Ryder snapped. Leo figured he’d stay out of the conversation. He knew about as much as Elle did at the moment.

“What is this place?” Elle asked. So Ryder explained. She told about Tribecta and its many cities and about how Dameon had founded Bryok. She told how the wall was built to ward off attackers and explained about the Academy which was built to train young magicians. And then she talked about Vaelko and how he slowly started taking over the other cities in Tribecta.

“And now he wants to take over Bryok and become the most powerful sorcerer in all of Tribecta. That’s where you come in,” Ryder concluded. “Your last name is Wyard, right?”

“Yes,” Elle responded. “But what does that have to do with anything?”

“Well, your father grew up here in Tribecta. I forget which city it was, but he was here. And he was a powerful sorcerer. He created a sword to trap all of his powers within. Vaelko has it in his grasp and wants the power it holds. But only a Wyard can unleash these powers.” Ryder explained. She fell silent as if waiting for a reaction, but Elle didn’t have one. She simply sat there, arms crossed, staring at Ryder the same as she had been the entire time. “So, did you know this already?”

“No. Tell me more.” Elle retorted.

“Well, that’s pretty much it,” Ryder said. “Except for the one thing he doesn’t know is that you don’t know how to use magic, so there’s no use in trying to find you.”

Elle’s expression stayed the same, but her arms uncrossed and she held out her left hand, palm facing up. As everyone watched, a small ball of snow formed, hovering half an inch in the air. It spun in a tight circle and got bigger as it spun. Leo, Haleema, and Ryder watched in awe as it spun faster. Elle suddenly clamped her hand into a fist, killing the snowball.

“I can use magic,” Elle said. “And I will not let Vaelko have it.”

                                                                            *          *          *

The glass castle rested high on a hill overlooking all of Tribecta. The castle wasn’t actually made of glass, but rather looked like it was, just like the glass warriors. Vaelko had made it his home nearly ten years ago after capturing over half of the cities in Tribecta. He wanted to make sure he could oversee every city from the hilltop.

The best thing about the castle, according to Vaelko, was the thick line of fog that hid it from view. Everyone in Tribecta knew it was positioned on the hilltop, but no one could find it without getting lost in the fog. It was the perfect protection.

Vaelko wandered down the halls of the castle until he reached the library. It was a large room with floor to ceiling bookcases. The books contained within the shelves were not only novels he enjoyed, but also books on magic and sorcery. He read them from time to time, brushing up on his skills.

But today was not a day of reading. It was a day of planning. He needed to find a way to take over Bryok. And if he couldn’t achieve that, he would destroy it. Bryok would be his whether it handed itself over quietly or went up in flames.

Wandering over to the window, Vaelko looked down at the city. The sight of it annoyed him. What was so special about that particular city that he couldn’t take it over? The other cities had been easy enough. Maybe it was because he was just sitting back and doing nothing. He had outright attacked the other cities. They hadn’t had time to prepare.

Discouraged because of his lack of action, he wandered to the comfy chair right in front of the fireplace and sunk into it. He stared into the flames as if waiting for them to give him an answer to his problem.

A sudden thought came to him and he sat up straighter.

“Dameon!” he called out. A few moments later, a young man, looking to be in his thirties, entered the room. His clothes were tattered and torn, looking as if he had spent years living on the street. Brown hair had grown to his shoulders and was not brushed.

“You called?”

“Yes. I need to talk to you. Have a seat.” Vaelko motioned to the chair next to him. Tentatively, Dameon sat in the chair. No one spoke, leaving Dameon wondering what this was all about.

“Let me ask you a question,” Vaelko started suddenly. “Why can’t I take over your city? Without you they are nothing.”

Dameon chuckled. “They are stronger than you know, Vaelko. They don’t need me.”

“But without a leader, who is to say where to go? Without a leader, rebellions fail, wars are lost, and cities crumble.”

“Bryok does have a leader though,” Dameon responded, staring out the window. “She just hasn’t been called upon yet.” Vaelko turned to stare at the man. After eight years of being prisoner, Dameon never gave up. He was the same cheerful man that Vaelko had been hunting for years. Now he was talking freely about his city, the only place he could call home.

Vaelko wondered just how much Dameon was willing to reveal and if he would go as far as to betray his people. You never know the limits of a man until you test them.

“Who is the leader? Your daughter?” Vaelko asked. Dameon hesitated before nodding.

“She’s strong enough,” he responded. “It’s just that no one else knows that.” He hung his head and stared at the floor. Vaelko wondered if he was thinking of her now, wishing he could be back with her. Dameon was especially worried about her when he was first captured. But as the years passed, he stopped worrying and started accepting the fact that he may never see her again.

“You can return to Bryok you know,” Vaelko said. Dameon’s head shot up and he shot him a confused look.

“What do you mean? I thought I was a prisoner here? If I try to escape your guards will surely kill me.”

Vaelko shook his head. “I need you alive. You can return to your city, if and only if, you surrender it to me.”

“No.” Dameon responded, shooting out of the chair and heading back out into the hallway.

“It’s the only way you can save her.” The room was quiet. So much so that Vaelko feared Dameon was already gone and hadn’t heard him.

“What do you mean?” Dameon asked.

“Ryder is not safe,” Vaelko responded, keeping his back to Dameon. “Your precious city is not safe.”

Dameon rushed in front of Vaelko. Placing his hands on the arm rests of the chair, he leaned his face close to Vaelko’s. “What the hell are you talking about?”

Vaelko grinned. “I’m sending some of my glass warriors into the city tonight. Unless you agree to hand over the city to me.” Dameon snarled and retreated, standing by the fire, arms crossed.

“I will never give up my city,” he said quietly into the fire. “And my daughter’s name is Gabrielle, not Ryder.”

“She took on another name at the Academy.” Vaelko responded.

“How do you know so much about her?”

“I have my sources,” Vaelko said dismissively. He was getting tired of the conversation. He needed an answer from Dameon so he could take action. “So are you going to surrender your city to me?”

Dameon stood still and looked into the fire, images flashing through them. He could see Bryok when he first founded it, young and empty. The picture changed to the last time he was in the city. It was loud and boisterous, busy with people. And then he saw Ryder, standing tall on her first day of Academy Prep.

A single tear rolled down his cheek. He hadn’t seen her in eight years. He wondered if she missed him. Who was taking care of her now that both he and her mother were gone? Had she followed in her mother’s footsteps and become a Hunter? He had missed the most important part of her childhood. He had missed watching her grow.

And then rage took over. How dare Vaelko ruin his family like that! And now he’s after Dameon’s city which, for the record, he was never going to give up. Turning slowly, Dameon faced Vaelko who had a smug look on his face.

“You are not allowed to take any more of my life away from me,” Dameon said. “You have me, but you can’t take my city. Understand?”

“Understood,” Vaelko said. “But just to let you know, that was the wrong decision.” He pulled a small stick from his pocket that grew into his staff before their eyes. After tapping it twice on the ground, a glass man materialized before them. “Gather the others and head down to Bryok. You know what to do.” The glass man nodded slightly and exited the room.

Dameon rushed over to the window and watched as about a dozen glass men ran down the slope towards Bryok. He silently prayed that everything would be okay. He knew it would be, but a part of him was still worried.

There was suddenly a sharp pain in his temple and the room began to spin. He cried out and thrashed out blindly, hoping to hit whatever had cause the pain.

“Stay still,” Vaelko growled, gripping Dameon’s head tighter. “I need to send a message to your daughter.”

Dameon had created a connection with his daughter the day she was born. They were able to communicate with each other through thoughts. Some people called it telepathy, but really it was just a simple spell. The problem with the spell was that someone else could access it with the right counter spell. And Vaelko knew that spell too well.

Dameon tried to fight it, slashing out at Vaelko. He didn’t want this man communicating with his daughter anymore. She had enough to deal with because of his disappearance. She didn’t need to have someone invading her mind.

But Vaelko had taken over the telepathy wave line once again, regardless of Dameon’s struggles. Dameon could still hear the thoughts however, and they terrified him. Not because of a threat Vaelko gave, but because Ryder might end up giving in.