The air outside the stone house crackled and exploded with power. A figure in pair of jeans, black jacket with red strips down the zipper appeared, looking out at the stony housing. Power crackled from her clenched, snow-white fists and hatred blazed in her emerald green eyes. She's just arrived and could already smell Hastings' foul stench. After doing a thorough search of the grounds around the Cumbrian home, she concluded that Hastings wasn't near the house. She could feel Jack's Weirstone though. Perhaps Hastings had gone and left Jack alone? The perfect time to steal him back.
She waited in the forest for any kind of movement in the house. She saw him, finally. He was in the library, reading from an ancient spell book. She was about to move in when she saw Linda's car pull up, the blonde enchanter rushing out and into the house, slamming the door and alerting the warrior in the library. She was about to go inside, when she heard and felt Hastings coming. Perfect. She'd reveal him for the traitor he is and convince Jack that whatever he's been told is a lie.
As Hastings was walking back to the house, Amen noticed Rebecka, Jack's Anaweir mother. She silently cast an immobility charm, Becka instantly froze still, stopping mid step and falling over. Hastings was in shock when Amen shot a bolt of blue, almost white, lightning at him. It disturbed the ground, green grass was either burnt or turned up to reveal soil. Hastings turned his body to Amen, who locked eyes. Pale green stared into emerald green, unflinching and neither showing signs of weakness.
"Hastings you liar!!" Amen shouted, shooting another bolt, and while the wizard was distracted, casting an immobility charm. "I trusted you!"
Hastings deflected the charm and was inching his way to the house. "Then why don't you now?" He demanded, getting closer.
"Another word," Amen said, holding up her hand, which was crackling the air with a blue aura, prepared for another strike. "And I'll blow you to fractions. Right here. Right now."
"Try it." Hastings said, breaking for the house.
Amen hauled another bolt at him, but he deflected with a hastily thrown up shield. Amen shot again, a whole mess of them on his tail. Hastings leaped through the open door, the stone and wood becoming insulators for the dangerous wizard power. Amen growled and sprinted for the door. It was only a matter of minutes before she was inside, chasing Hastings to the kitchen where Linda and Jack were.
--
"Jack we need to leave." Linda persisted.
"Why?" Jack asked.
"Yes," Hastings replied in a calm voice despite the fight outside. "Why does he need to leave?"
Hastings strode past Linda and beside Jack, a sort of human shield to prevent him from going anywhere. Amen's loud footsteps echoed into the room until she burst through the door, jacket off, shirt singed to the under shirt, hate in her eyes, and fists crackling. She walked powerfully toward Hastings.
"I'm going to blow you to smithereens you no good-," Amen began.
"Amen, please," Linda said, grabbing her arm and pulling her back from the wizard. "Don't. I was just about to tell Jack."
"Yes, Amen," Hastings replied. "Settle down."
Amen muttered a charm unknown to Hastings. He couldn't defend himself from the awful power until he felt it. Pain surged from the base of his neck, all the way to his toes. His body felt as though it were on fire, and his hands moved radically, trying to put out the invisible flame. He fell the his knees, double over in pain. He lay on his side writhing in pain and screaming for it to stop. His green eyes were bloodshot, sweat plastered hair against his forehead, and his face was pale. Amen watched him, uncaring for his pain, both Jack and Linda begging her to stop.
"Amen!" Linda shouted. "Stop it! You're no better than him if you keep up this torture!"
Amen grunted. She lifted a hand pitifully and the charm dissipated. Hastings stopped screaming, breathing coming in slow, ragged gasps. He crawled on the ground, as far away from Amen he could get, pulling himself onto a chair. He stared at Amen, amazed that a spell that powerful could go unnoticed.
"Amen . . ." Jack said in a small voice, his blue eyes shifting between Hastings and his guardian. "Why did you do that? He was just trying to . . ."
"Jack," Linda said. "The reason Amen is so upset is because we were reading some obituaries about Susannah Downey, the warrior."
At the sound of the name, Hastings' head sprang up, looking horrified in the direction of Amen and Linda. Amen cast him a hateful glare, silencing the weakened wizard.
"She died from a fall from a horse." Jack recalled from their trip the library. "And bled out through a gash in her chest."
"We found out recently that said gash was deeper than we expected." Amen said. "Like somebody was digging around for something near her heart."
"Her heart . . . ?" Jack said.
"Susannah Downey's body was found by a Lee Hastings," Linda spat venomously. "Not uncommon for spelling errors back in those times."
"What?" Jack said.
"Leander Hastings killed Susannah Downey, Jack," Amen said his name as if it were a curse. "He killed her and then stole her Weirstone."
"Is this true?" Jack asked, a pained look on his face.
Hastings weakly picked up his arm. He drew back the sweat drenched sleeve to reveal a ring, brightly colored metal and a small, bright crystal set right in the middle. It shone with brilliance and he ran his finger over it.
"She gave it to me," Hastings insisted. "She killed herself!"
"And why should we believe you?" Amen retorted. This wizard was on her last nerve.
"Because he's sponsoring me in the Game." Jack spoke up.
Amen and Linda turned their attention to the young, red-gold haired warrior, dumbstruck. Amen blinked stupidly as she tried to test her hearing.
"What?" Amen said. "You can't be participating in the Game!"
"I have and I will." Jack stated.
"Jack," Amen whined, crossing the room and dropping to a knee, grasping his shoulders. "You don't want to do this. It's Hastings, he's-,"
"I've already decided." Jack said, his blue eyes staring back into her green ones. "I'm going to fight in the Game and he's going to sponsor me. So, just let it go."
"But Jack, he's-,"
"I don't care." Jack said coldly. "I've made up my mind and there's nothing you can do about it."
Amen stood up, staring down at Jack with her green eyes full of thought. She sighed, shook her head, and turned away.
"Then, I guess there's only one other option." Amen said.
She walked from Jack and towards the door. She said nothing to Linda as she passed by. She shut the door behind her, her footsteps echoing softly as she exited the house.
"What can she do?" Jack protested. "She can't intervene in the fight."
Linda's face was scrunched with thought. Suddenly, her eyes widened in horror as she drew in a frightful gasp.
"Unless she's in the fight!" Linda almost screamed as she ran from the room after the black-haired wizard.
"What was that all about?" Jack turned to Hastings.
Hastings shook his head. "She won't like it. She'll hate it. But if it means protecting you, like your aunt asked her, she'll do anything."
Jack didn't know what he meant, but her hurried after Linda anyway.
--
"Amen!" Linda yelled as she ran after the warrior.
Amen pretended not to hear her and kept walking outside, into the field where Jack and Hastings had been training. Linda was closing the distance between them fast.
"Amen, stop." She said quietly, grabbing onto the warrior's arm.
The warrior was forced to turn. Her face was an expression of sadness and pain, her eyes were shut. Linda looked up into the face shattered by sadness, her blue and gold flecked eyes stared up, full of sadness, longing for the eye lids to slide back and reveal the cool, emerald green eyes that lay behind.
"It's inevitable," Amen said. "I was doomed this from the start. Ever since I started protecting Jack, this is what I've been pushing for this whole time. You knew it, too."
"Amen, no, don't." Linda begged. "This isn't the answer. There has to be something we can do to make him change his mind."
"Unless we use magic, there is no other way." Amen lifted her head and stared out into the horizon, not looking at the enchanter. "He's made up his mind. And I've made up mine."
"You don't have to do this." Linda said. "We can-,"
"You and I both know I have to." Amen said. "I'll be welcomed. They'll see no need to train me. I'll live until the Game. And there, I'll slaughter everyone who gets in my way."
"I won't let you." Linda said sternly, grabbing her arms in her hands.
Amen felt the trickle of magic from her fingertips and into her body. It flowed through her, whispering to her that it was a bad idea. She forced the magic back to the enchanter, who's face fell instantly.
"You're magic won't work on me, but thank you for your concern." Amen said, tilting her chin up with her finger, so she would look at her. "I know it's unthinkable, but it has to be done. I know you and Jack will be worried, but don't. I don't intend to fight anyone by the Red Rose's champion."
"Please." Linda begged again.
"The struggle consumes us all," Amen said. "I'm going to stop it. This has gone on long enough."
Amen smiled, taking Linda into her arms and exhaled deeply into her shoulder.
"I"m always just a shout away." Amen whispered.
Her weight slowly lifted from the blonde enchanter as she faded into the wind. Magic dissipated her form until she was gone, leaving Linda alone in the field. Jack came running out to her, dropping to his knees in front of her.
"Where is she?" He demanded tenderly.
Linda didn't answer. His only answer was muffled sobs as she wept on the ground. Jack pulled her into his arms, knowing that the only reason to do so was to hide his own tears that cascaded down his cheeks. It was all his fault, and he knew it.
--
Amen appeared outside the flat in London. She ventured inside, going straight for her room. She dug out some fresh clothes that weren't singed and had burn holes in them. She fished out a pair of jeans, white shirt, blue hoodie, and a black jacket.
She stepped out into the cold streets, pulling the hood over her head. She looked both ways before hailing down a cab.
"Where ya headed?" The cab driver asked in an accent.
"I'll give you more money than you could ever imagine if you just follow my directions and not ask any more questions." Amen said.
The cab driver turned to the street, waiting for instructions.
"Let's start by going this way." Amen said. "Follow the road and take a right into the wooded trail. I hope your cab is sturdy enough to maintain on the kind of roads we'll be taking."
