With her backpack loaded down with feminine products, a toothbrush, toothpaste, and a few other items that the Seventh Realm hadn’t been able to replace with something that didn’t make her miss the original, Lexi took one last look around the cottage to see if there was anything she had forgotten.
Mairwen had promised she could return to Seven Cairns and maintain contact with Maggie whenever she liked. She just had to ensure she stayed within the village’s boundaries. If she ever stepped past the magical wards, the goddesses would permanently block her from ever returning to the world of the Fae and the Seventh Realm’s Scotland. Lexi didn’t think that was fair since she’d overheard Keeva say that time travelers and alternate reality travelers could freely come and go as often as they wished. Of course, nobody ever said life was fair.
She’d called Maggie after electronically signing over her practice and Vinemagic Farms and promised to keep in touch. But with the war in the Seventh Realm, who knew when she would be able to return for a visit to Seven Cairns? Maggie was hurt and didn’t understand, but Lexi prayed that eventually, once everything was sorted and calmed down, she could tell Mags the truth. She snorted a sad, huffing laugh. That would be an interesting conversation.
She donned her backpack, cinched the straps tighter, then hooked her thumbs through them. “You ready, Aylryd?”
The ginger kitten meowed, jumped off the bed, and led the way out the front door.
Mairwen and Keeva were outside, waiting beside the car.
“No need to lock the door, lass,” Mairwen said. “Keeva will see that the rest of yer things are safely stored away for whenever ye return for visits.”
“Everything is in my suitcase by the door. I left my phone and tablet on top of it.” Lexi gave Keeva a pointed look. “You have my passwords. Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.”
Keeva laughed and tucked her long, purple hair behind her ears. “I’ll just keep yer things charged and updated for whenever ye return and wish to use them. Daren’t ye worry about me getting on yer social media or anything. Mairwen keeps me too busy to have time for mischief.”
Mairwen nodded in the direction of the hillside to the north. “The goddesses brought the mists to ye, lass. Ye’ll nay have to drive to find them as ye did last time. ’Tis just a wee stretch of the legs from here.”
Lexi eyed the pale gray bank of fog hiding the heather-covered hilltop from view. Swallowing hard against a sudden knot of emotions threatening to choke her, she turned back and caught Mairwen and Keeva in a big hug. “Thank you both so much,” she whispered while squeezing them tightly. When they each responded with a hesitant hug and a pat on her back, she released them with a nervous laugh. “Sorry. I’m from the south. We’re huggers.”
Mairwen caught hold of her hand. “Never apologize for acting from the heart, lass. Ye are a rare soul, and it is my honor to call ye friend.” With a reassuring nod, she added, “and love and light to ye in yer quest to end the war. Believe in yerself, and it will be so.”
Lexi blinked hard and fast to hold back the tears. “Again…thank you.”
Mairwen and Keeva sniffed and swiped at their eyes, then turned their backs to her and faced the village. “’Tis bad luck for us to watch ye go into the mists,” Keeva said. “Safe travels to ye, Lexington Vine.”
“Safe travels,” Mairwen echoed.
“Thank you...uhm…I’ll see you soon.” No matter how many times she thanked them, it didn’t feel like enough for all that she had received by meeting Jeros. “Come on, Aylryd. Time to enter the fray.” She started up the hillside, following the orange tabby as it scampered ahead of her.
When she reached the border of the roiling mists, she paused and looked back. Mairwen and Keeva were still down there, facing the village. Lexi wondered how they would know when she was gone, then remembered they were capable of a lot more, mystically speaking, than she was. They would know.
After a deep breath, she stepped into the fog, hoping it would take her inside the boundaries of Sevenrest. As soon as she took in another breath, she hoped it wasn’t Jeros’s land. Her lungs burned with the hot air made acrid and choking by the tendrils of smoke rising from everything around her. Scotland wasn’t Scotland anymore. This was the seventh level of hell.
Nostrils burning and trying not to breathe too deeply, she fumbled in the side pocket of her backpack, hoping she’d left the large red bandana that she sometimes wore inside it. The oversized handkerchief matched her lucky red boots, and from the looks of things, she needed all the luck she could get. It was still there. She took it out and tied it across her face, turning it into a makeshift mask to breathe through. The smoke stung her eyes so badly they started watering, but nothing could be done about that. If she had known it was like this, she would have ordered a gas mask and paid for overnight shipping—if she could even get such a thing shipped to Scotland in a hurry.
Already shifted into his massive tiger form, Aylryd snorted and growled.
“I know. We have a lot of work to do here.” She resettled her backpack in place and trudged forward through the char and ash, trying not to stir any more debris into the air as each step sank into the softness of the burnt earth. Everything was so different…so desolate. She didn’t understand the point in destroying the land during war and didn’t even want to think about all that the wildlife had suffered.
A blast of hotter air from the left made her squint even more. That was no natural wind. Lifting an arm to shield her face, she turned that way, then stumbled to one side in disbelief. “Holy crap.”
The enormous winged beast glided low, spraying the ground with flames and what looked like lava spewing out the sides of its great gaping mouth. Its rider repeatedly jabbed a gleaming silver trident into its long, outstretched neck, sending jagged streaks of bright blue white lightning across its scaly body. The edges of its iridescent scales were blackened and burnt. Each time the creature was stabbed, it roared and breathed out more fire and lava.
“That poor dragon,” Lexi said, never dreaming she would ever say such a thing. She stormed toward it, not giving a thought to the consequences. No one abused an animal on her watch. Not any animal. “Hey, you! You stop that! Now!” She picked up a rock and threw it at the rider, proud when the stone pinged off the front of the warrior’s helmet. Concern replaced her pride when it turned its unholy, glowing red eyes on her. Maybe she should have thought this plan through a little better, but it was too late to stop now.
“Stop hurting that dragon!” she shouted even louder.
The rider jabbed the beast again, causing it to land in front of her. When the creature’s great body hit the ground, the earth shook, making her stumble to one side. The warrior, clad entirely in black armor as sooty as the surroundings, settled its spear across its lap and studied her. Because of the strange, swirling design of its helmet, she couldn’t see the rider’s face, only its eyes that glowed a hotter red the longer he, or she, stared at her.
“Ye are mortal,” the thing finally said in a voice that crackled and hissed like a bonfire.
“Stop hurting that poor dragon,” Lexi shot back, choosing not to admit that she was indeed a soft, juicy mortal who would turn quite crispy if toasted. “Kindness creates loyalty. Pain breeds hatred.” She noticed that the entire time she was speaking, the dragon’s large golden eyes, eyes that reminded her of a python or maybe even a cat, remained locked on her.
“Ye are she of the prophecy,”a deep voice echoed through her mind. Immediately, she knew it was the dragon.
She nodded, then shifted her attention back to the rider. “Why would you side with someone like Princess Faeniana? You know she cannot be trusted.”
