Chapter Nine
While Kendra and Brynn were telling Elise, Warren, and Seth about their strange dreams, Grandma and Grandpa Sorenson were sitting down to enjoy a nice cup of coffee and read the paper. It was too early yet for anyone else to be up and they had the kitchen to themselves. Grandma appeared to be joining the peace and quiet, but Grandpa alternated between drumming his fingers on the table and glancing out the window.
"Is something bothering you, dear?" Grandma asked.
Grandpa sighed. "Don't you wish you were out there with them?"
Grandma seemed to know he didn't mean out in the forest with Dale and Hugo. "You had your turn as a Knight of the Dawn," she said gently. "Let the younger generation do the dirty work. Besides, you know you don't really want to be on the front lines. You'd be complaining about your bad knees." She smiled, but Grandpa didn't share in the joke.
"That's exactly it," Grandpa said. "I feel like I'm too old. Useless."
"Nonsense. You and I went with the rescue party to Living Mirage last spring," Grandma pointed out.
"Yes, and we got captured for our efforts. We spent a week in a jail cell while our nephew and our grandchildren – mere children! – risked their necks on Shoreless Isle."
"We can't change what happened. The past is the past. But why do you bring it up now?"
"Warren and Seth and Kendra are off hopping around the country and another adventure, trying to save the son of the Fairy Queen, and I feel like all I'm good for is watching things at home." He ended with another bitter sigh.
"Nonsense," Grandma repeated. "You're Captain of the Knights of the Dawn."
The reminder seemed to perk Grandpa up a bit. "Don't remind me – I've got a mountain of paperwork to get through when I'm done in the stables."
"See, we need you – we're too lazy to do the legal work ourselves," Grandma teased.
She glanced outside at the forest. The leaves were beginning to change; reds and yellows and browns spread like wildfire across the blanket of green. "That's peculiar," she remarked. "The dryads don't usually let autumn into their branches."
Grandpa squinted out at the trees. Grandma was right; signs of fall were evident throughout the yard and the forest. Several dry leaves littered the grass. As he watched, another detached itself from a branch and fluttered down.
"It's beautiful," Grandma went on. "I haven't seen colors like this since… Oh, not for a very long time. We've spent every autumn on the preserve that I can remember. For many years, at least. Now that I think of it, I miss New England autumns."
"Yes, yes, it's very pretty, but don't you think it looks… odd?" Grandpa frowned out at the trees. "I would understand if the dryads allowed their leaves to change for aesthetic reasons, but the leaves are actually dying. It's strange."
Grandma sipped her coffee. "Are you going to investigate?"
"I think I will." Grandpa stood up, grabbed his coat, and headed outside.
As soon as he set foot on the deck he wished he'd worn a heavier jacket. It was unseasonably cold for September. He crunched on frozen dew as he crossed the yard to the edge of the forest. As he passed beneath the trees, the grass turned into dried leaves. A breeze stirred the branches.
In all the years Grandpa Sorenson had been caretaker of Fablehaven, he hadn't been scared by much. He had faced down a charging minotaur and delivered a sacrifice to a giant. In the past two years it seemed the disasters had increased, but he had hardly been fazed by the incident with Muriel and had come to terms with the consequences of the shadow plague. But now, standing in the middle of the freezing forest in his pajamas and slippers, he felt chills creep down his spine.
Something was terribly wrong.
Perhaps the lead dryad would know what was going on, Grandpa thought. "Lizette?" he called. His voice echoed in the seemingly empty woods.
Minutes passed. Grandpa was debating going back inside when three stately women appeared from the trees – literally. Was it his imagination, or did they seem less vibrant than usual? Their clothes seemed drab and all three had bags under their eyes.
"Stan Sorenson," the dryad in front, Lizette, said wearily. "What is the meaning of this?"
Grandpa was taken aback. He hadn't expected to be accused; he was the one who was supposed to be doing the questioning. "What do you mean?" he asked.
"Don't pretend you don't know what I'm talking about," Lizette snapped, but there was little energy in the retort. "This all began with the dark spirit you unleashed on the property five days ago."
"Five and half," corrected the dryad to Lizette's left.
"Technically, it has only been five and eleven twenty-fourths days," the third dryad said. "We detected the spirit at seven o'clock in the evening."
Meanwhile, Grandpa's mind was racing. Was it possible that a wraith had escaped the dungeon and wreaked havoc on the preserve? But then he counted back the days – five and a half days ago was the night of Kendra's sixteenth birthday.
He chose not to get angry over the accusation; it would only inflame the situation further. Instead he said calmly, "We are aware of the problem and are working to remedy it. Anyway, we were under the impression that the spirit had left the preserve. Why do you mention it now?"
Lizette shook her head in disbelief. "You truly do not know?" she asked.
"What?" Grandpa demanded.
"The forest is dying," she said bleakly.
"The dark spirit may have left, but it has caused terrible damage," said one of the other dryads mournfully.
"Good energy is rapidly diminishing," said the third. "The connection between the Fairy Realm and this world is dissolving."
"What? How is that possible?" Grandpa exclaimed. "I have never heard of such a thing."
"The shrine to the Fairy Queen is crumbling," Lizette answered. "We fear the spirit may have sabotaged it. A dark poison is seeping from the island into the pond and is contaminating the preserve."
Panic threatened, but Grandpa pushed it away. Fablehaven had been on the brink of collapse several times before. He had to believe they would prevail. But whatever this dark unicorn had forced Bracken to do, it appeared to be serious. "How long will the connection last?" he inquired.
"The shrine itself has a day or two at best. After that…" Lizette shrugged helplessly. "There's no telling how much longer the Fairy Realm will remain. You say you have mortals attending the problem?"
Grandpa nodded.
Lizette drew herself up to her full height. She towered a foot over Grandpa, but she looked less impressive than she usually did, somehow; she seemed to carry a heavy weight on her shoulders. She said sharply, "You would do well to remember, Stan Sorenson, that if the Fairy Realm falls completely, it would be disastrous. The Fair Folk, naiads and dryads and fairies, would perish first, followed shortly by the rest of the magical creatures. Except for demons and creatures of darkness, of course. And at last, when this earth is nothing more than a barren wasteland, the human race, too, will die off. The Fairy Realm is tied more closely to this world than you can imagine. It is in your best interest to preserve it."
The three dryads turned abruptly as one and melted back into the trees.
Grandpa stood alone in the forest. He pondered what he had just learned. It seemed things were more dire than he had thought. Originally he had believed it was just Bracken's life on the line. Now it seemed the fate of the world lay on the success of this mission. And yet from here at Fablehaven there was nothing he could do but wait until the others returned, which wouldn't be until that evening.
Nothing for the old guy to do until his relatives came home to save the world for him.
He turned slowly and trudged back to the house, trying not to think about the ache in his knees.
He had almost reached the steps to the deck when he heard something heavy moving behind him. He spun – somewhat slower than he had in his glory days, he reflected sadly – and saw Hugo coming out of the forest. Hugo was a golem, a humanoid creature made of dirt and stone designed for hard labor. Until a few years ago he had been like a mindless robot, obeying orders without question. But after the battle at the Forgotten Chapel when Muriel and Bahumat nearly overthrew the preserve, the fairies had given Hugo a spark of free will. The golem still worked and obeyed most commands, but now he was capable of learning and even of some speech.
"Hugo!" Grandpa called. "Aren't you supposed to be working with Dale this morning?" He noticed the golem was cradling something in his hands.
"Fairies sad," Hugo rumbled.
This worried Grandpa. Was it possible that the fairies were also feeling the effects of whatever was happening in the Fairy Realm? It had to be serious, because he had never known fairies to show any emotion other than jealousy and vanity.
"Why are the fairies sad, Hugo?" Grandpa asked.
"Shrine weak." Hugo held out his hands, but Grandpa couldn't see what he was carrying. He hurried down the steps and went to meet the golem.
"What have you got there, big guy?" he asked.
Hugo lowered his hands so Grandpa could see. "Fairies sad," he repeated.
Grandpa gasped. In his massive hands, Hugo gingerly carried a dead fairy.
"Let me get this straight," Seth said for the third time that morning. They had landed in New York just an hour ago and were beginning the three-hour drive back to Fablehaven. Kendra and Brynn had explained multiple times, but he just couldn't wrap his mind around what was going on. "Brynn was somehow in the Fairy Realm, but not really because she was here all the time, and she talked to the Fairy King, who woke up, somehow. And then this dark unicorn dude, Ronodin, came in and destroyed everything?"
"He forced the Realm into a state of darkness," Brynn explained, also for the third time. "Perhaps not the entire Realm, maybe only the palace, but in any case, the situation is dire."
"But what does that mean?" Seth asked. Weren't the Fairy Queen and King supposed to be ultra powerful? Surely together they could overpower Ronodin.
"The palace will be filled with darkness. It's like a fog, but for creatures of light, it will be like moving through molasses," Brynn said. "Most won't be able to move at all, and will remain frozen in the positions they were in when the darkness overcame them."
"Will everyone be evil and dark like Bracken was?" Warren asked. "Like slaves to Ronodin, I mean."
"No, he can't control them," Kendra answered. "He would need to be inside their minds for that, and he has his hands full with Bracken."
That sounded fairly optimistic to Seth, but hopefully she was right.
"What about the Fairy Queen?" Elise asked, echoing Seth's earlier thought. "Has she also been overpowered?"
"My mother—" Brynn's voice trembled. She cleared her throat and began again. "My mother expended much of her energy protecting the infirmary and helping my father. It is likely that they were weak enough for Ronodin to overcome them both."
"So we can't count on any outside help," Warren surmised.
"You are correct. I cannot," Brynn said sharply.
"Wait a sec," Seth said. "You're not going by yourself."
"Of course not," Kendra said, but she glanced at Brynn uncertainly.
Brynn hesitated, appearing to be choosing her words carefully. "I appreciate your assistance," she began. "I admit that without your aid it would have been impossible to obtain the Memory Glass. Indeed, I would have given up hope before even embarking on a quest to save my brother. But here your involvement must end. Going up against Ronodin would be madness. He is more powerful than you can imagine."
"So why are you going by yourself?" Seth demanded.
"I am not entirely helpless," she snapped. As if to prove her point, she held up a fist and the air in the car seemed to tremble. She maintained her position for a moment more, and then dropped her arm back to her lap.
"Whoa, I feel like I was just insulted," Warren remarked, but he sounded amused. "Don't you, Seth?"
"Definitely," Seth agreed. To Brynn he said, "I'm a shadow charmer and I killed two of the most powerful demons in the world. Kendra's fairykind and she slew the freaking Demon King! Warren and Elise… Well, they're Knights of the Dawn. They've probably done awesome stuff, too."
"Gee, thanks, Seth," Warren grumbled.
"Anyway, my point us, don't you dare call us helpless. When that dark unicorn catches sight of us, he'll run away screaming like a little girl if he knows what's good for him!" Seth pounded a fist into his hand.
"I think what Seth is trying to say is that you shouldn't discount our help just because we're not immortal and all-powerful," Elise said. "And we can be helpful."
Brynn now looked uncomfortable. "I still don't know if it would be wise," she said. "Humans in the Fairy Realm…"
"We can't screw things up even more than Ronodin did," Warren pointed out.
When Brynn still didn't concede, Seth cried impatiently, "Come on! Are you afraid you're gonna get upstaged by a bunch of humans or something?"
"I'm not afraid," Brynn said forcefully.
So vehement was her statement that she shocked everyone into silence. For a while the only sound was the hum of the engine as they raced down the highway.
"That's not what I mean," Seth mumbled, feeling slightly guilty.
"I am… worried that I may not be able to combat Ronodin," Brynn clarified. "When he raised an army of demons and waged war on the Fairy Realm many millennia ago, I witnessed the full extent of his power. No one person could hope to defeat him."
"But if we worked together…" Warren hinted.
"Yes, I can see how that might work," Brynn mused. "If we can somehow catch him off guard…"
The talk turned into a discussion of strategy, and Seth quickly lost interest. He glanced out the window, hoping to spot a familiar landmark, but it was too dark to see anything.
"Hey, see anything that looks familiar?" he whispered to Kendra.
She shook her head.
"What about road signs? We could be scoping out dinner options."
She shook her head.
"What?"
"Seth, I can't see anything out there. It's too dark." Kendra stared into his eyes. They passed under a street lamp and the bright light illuminated the fear plain on Kendra's face.
It was alarming, but Seth tried to act nonchalant. They didn't need another problem on their hands. "What, you think you're losing your magic fairy powers or something?"
"Yes, Seth, that's exactly what I think," she hissed.
"Whoa. Chill out. What do you expect me to do about it? I'm a shadow charmer. Friend of the darkness and all that fun stuff. But you've gotta tell the others," he urged. "Tell Brynn. She's a unicorn. She'll know what's going on."
"No!" The forcefulness of Kendra's response startled him. Still in a whisper, she said, "You don't understand. What you said about me being fairykind and slaying the Demon King… Without my power, I'm just an ordinary teenage girl. What if the Fairy Queen figured that out and decided not to let me be her handmaiden anymore?"
"First of all, I don't think it works like that. This fairy handmaiden deal sounded like it was for life. Second, the Fairy Queen probably has other things on her mind right now," Seth reminded her.
"I guess. But don't tell them, okay? I've gotta figure this out on my own."
"Why do you care so much?" Seth whispered.
"When we free Bracken… I don't want to feel useless. I don't want him to think I just tagged along for the ride." Kendra's voice dropped even lower and Seth had to strain to hear her. "I don't want to be just his pathetic wannabe girlfriend."
Seth barely held in a snicker. Was that what this was all about? "Jeez, Kendra!" he replied. "The guy showed up out of the blue for your birthday dinner. He likes you, you like him. End of story. I wouldn't be surprised if he plants a big wet one on you as soon as we get Ronodin out of his body."
"Seth!" Blushing, Kendra slapped him. But he could tell she looked pleased.
They spent the rest of the ride in silence.
About an hour later, they arrived at Fablehaven. Everyone who was available (Mara, Trask, Vanessa, and Tanu were still away) convened in the kitchen to discuss their next move. Warren and Brynn carefully laid out the plans they had begun formulating in the car.
Grandma Sorenson seemed unimpressed by their ideas, though. "So basically you intend to go to the Fairy Realm, track down Ronodin without being caught first, somehow incapacitate him and force him to look into this tiny mirror?" She tapped the velvet box that contained the Memory Glass.
"That pretty much sums it up," Warren said. He clapped his hands together. "So who's up for it?"
"Hold your horses," Grandma said sternly. "No one's going anywhere yet."
"Come on, Grandma, just let us go," Seth complained. Kendra elbowed him in the ribs and shot him al look that said, Don't you dare mess this up.
"I don't think all five of you need to go," Grandma explained. "The Fairy Queen has never approved of humans in her Realm. Why can't Brynn go by herself?"
"What, you're saying the rest of us should wimp out?" Warren asked indignantly.
"I'm not questioning your bravery," Grandma assured him. "I'm just saying there's no need to risk unnecessary death or injury."
Seth felt Kendra stiffen beside him. He flinched; Grandma must have said something to really set her off. Things were about to get ugly.
"You mean," Kendra said, a volcano about to erupt, "that it's all right for Brynn to put her life on the line for Bracken, but it's not for the rest of us? Even after everything he did for us last spring?"
"I am sure Brynn is more than capable—"
"Brynn is present," the unicorn reminded them.
"I can't believe you think it's okay for us to back out right when things start heating up!" Kendra cried.
"That's not how the Knights of the Dawn operate," Elise agreed.
"We've come this far, we're going to see it through," Warren said firmly.
"Warren, Elise, you are grown adults and I can't stop you from doing what you want, no matter how foolish it is," Grandma conceded. "But Kendra, Seth—"
"We've faced down bigger stuff than Ronodin before!" Seth said. "What would have happened if we chickened out last spring on Shoreless Isle?"
"Pure luck," Grandma said flatly.
"If we were just relying on dumb luck the whole time, we would have died a zillion times over," Seth said.
Kendra gave him another look and said to Grandma calmly, "Grandma, what is it going to take to convince you to let us go?"
Grandma took a deep breath. "All right, I need to be honest with you. First, your father is very angry because there is a space of about two hours on Wednesday night that he can't recall and when he woke up on Thursday morning Kendra was gone. Second, Seth, are you sure you're not just looking for adventure?"
Seth's response to that was "Heck yeah!" but he didn't think that was what she wanted him to say. But life at Fablehaven had gotten dull over the past six months. After everything that had happened, anything the preserve could throw at him seemed tame. Now, a dark unicorn that wanted to take over the Fairy Realm and basically destroy the world? That was cool. What was wrong with wanting a little danger to spice things up a bit? But Grandma didn't seem to need a reply; she had already moved on.
"And Kendra, just how serious are you about this boy?"
Kendra slammed a fist on the table. "Oh my God!" she shouted. "Why is everyone jumping to conclusions?"
Everyone stared at her.
"What? Just because I'm a teenage girl, I need to be obsessed with a boy? The only reason I went to the Fairy Queen is because I wanted to look good to Bracken? Good God! I would have done the same if it was anyone. If Seth collapsed in the middle of dinner, or Grandma or Grandpa or Elise or Trask or anyone. Because it's the right thing to do. So lay off the boy thing, okay?"
The room was silent. Even Grandma couldn't seem to think of something to say to that.
A tired voice came from the doorway. "Ruth, just let them go."
Seth spun in his seat and saw Grandpa. At least, he assumed it was Grandpa, but he looked like he had aged ten years in the week since Seth had seen him last.
"They need to go," Grandpa went on wearily. "The fairies…"
Seth didn't know what he meant, but it quickly sobered Grandma up. "How many more?" she murmured.
"Eight," Grandpa said bleakly. "Thirteen more on the brink of death. And there are probably others, those who weren't in the gardens, but I don't dare risk going into the woods."
"What's wrong with the fairies?" Kendra asked.
"All creatures of light draw on the Fairy Realm for their life source," Brynn answered. "If Ronodin's darkness goes unchecked, eventually all will perish."
Kendra's eyes widened. Had she just come to the same conclusion as Seth?
"The dryads said the connection to the shrine is failing," Grandpa said. "You should leave before it's too late."
Brynn stood up abruptly. "Of course—why didn't I think–?" She closed her eyes, concentrating briefly. "We have less than twelve hours before the shrine collapses completely. We need to move."
"But it's only been six days," Kendra said.
"That was an estimate!" Brynn snapped. "Ronodin has proven more powerful than I guessed."
"What are we waiting for?" Seth demanded. "Let's go!"
The five stood up and hurried to the back door. They hadn't even taken off their coats when they came in, and they still had all their gear; there was no packing to be done. Grandma watched them, reluctance and worry in her eyes.
"Don't worry, we'll be back," Seth promised.
Grandma only sighed.
Seth gave a little wave and left, shutting the door behind him. He had to jog to catch up with the others. They set a brisk pace, making a beeline for the shrine.
They didn't even hesitate at the edge of the trees. Together, they plunged into the sinister darkness.
Author's Note:
I know I promised I would never take so long between chapters again, but I wasn't slacking, I was just working on something else. If you haven't read my Christmas-themed one-shot yet, I suggest you do to make up for my slowness in updating ^^ The next chapter will involve more action, and probably a battle with Ronodin. I hesitate to say final battle, because it really isn't, but I've said too much. Anyway, I hope you liked it, and all comments are appreciated!
