Chapter 20 - Doppelganger
The barrier fell as the woman vanished. Oritel was the first to reach Miriam. He grabbed her by the shoulders and turned her to look at him. Her gaze was unfocused, as though she were thinking about something other than everything that had just happened. "Miriam! Miriam, say something." Oritel pleaded.
Miriam's gaze slowly focused on him, her green eyes revealing shock. "I…she healed me." Miriam breathed.
Oritel's gaze fell to the once injured arm. Now it was fine, lacking the life threatening wound from earlier. "She what?"
"Is she alright!" Niobe was at Oritel's shoulder now, looking at Miriam with a worried expression. "That crazy chick didn't hurt her?"
"She would have never hurt me." Miriam said slowly. Obviously she wasn't as focused as Oritel had previously thought. But then she was completely focused, her eyes blazing with intense confidence and hate. "We need to go to Alfea. We have to stop those witches and their slave woman."
"But you were almost dead because of that wound! Now you're standing and telling us you want to have a showdown with evil?" Erendor looked incredulously at Miriam.
Faragonda, Griffin, and Saladin were all silent. Oritel watched them while Miriam and Erendor argued. The three veterans of magic all stood watching Miriam, as though Miriam's recovery were beyond belief. Had they never seen anything like that before? Finally Faragonda spoke.
"She's right."
Erendor and Miriam turned to Faragonda in surprise.
"We need to take the opportunity. Yes, Miriam has been healed by some stranger. That's a plus for us. She needs to face those Ancestresses. The won't be expecting her to have been healed." Faragonda looked at Griffin and Saladin. The two gave her nods of agreement.
"So that's that." Miriam said. "We're going to Alfea."
Griffin nodded. "I hope you're all prepared."
"Will you be opening a door?" Faragonda asked quietly. Saladin gave groan.
"Why yes. I thought I would." Griffin said with a sly smile.
"Prepare yourselves." Saladin muttered, annoyed.
Griffin raised her arms and "Patefacio umbra ianua." Her voice was heavy and low, the words filled with a dark mysterious power. As she spoke the shadows before them moved in reaction.
"Great. She opens a shadow portal." Saladin groaned again.
"Just for you Saladin. I know how much you love using shadow portals." Miss Griffin laughed.
"Is there something wrong with shadow portals?" Niobe asked cautiously.
The shadows had coalesced, forming a dark mass. Griffin walked toward it. She turned and looked at the group. "Well? I know my magic at work is awe inspiring, but we can't stand around all day." With that said, Miss Griffin turned on her heel and was the first to step through the portal.
"Hurry now." Miss Faragonda ushered the group forward. One after the other, Oritel's friends stepped through the dark portal. As Oritel stepped toward the swirling mass, he took a deep breath. Then he stepped into the mass.
Blood rushed in his ears as everything around him distorted. His heart pounded as the blinding dark rushed at him, merciless. The shadows seemed to taunt him and tear at his body and clothes. Oritel tried hard to focus on the mission at hand. Just being in a shadow portal for mere moments could drive a man mad, he thought to himself. He shook off the thought and pushed on forward, scrambling for the exit.
Just as Oritel had begun dreading eternal entrapment in the shadow portal, a hand grabbed his and pulled him from the dark. He clumsily stumbled out of the portal exit into the dismal gray of the realm of Magix. Though it was dismal, he was still grateful for arrival. Slowly he breathed out and glanced at the person whose hand he was holding. Miriam's bright eyes gazed back, a small smile on her lips.
"That wasn't as enjoyable as I'd hoped." Miriam commented quietly, just loud enough for Oritel to hear. Oritel gave her a gratifying smile.
They were interrupted from their moment by a thudding. Out of the shadowy mass tumbled Professor Saladin, cursing and shaking madly. Right behind him was Miss Faragonda, chuckling. "Saladin, it may have been years since you've taken one of Griffy's portals, but still…"
"Why do you think I've avoided the damned things!" Saladin shuddered. "You women are crazy! You act like those tortures are mere fair rides or simple runs in the park!"
Miss Griffin and Miss Faragonda laughed. "I did miss the two of you somewhat." Griffin turned to the portal and clapped her hands together. Slowly the portal closed, but the essence of it continued to pervade the are. "Enough of this though. We must move on."
Faragonda's gaze surveyed the land about them. "We're back in Magix, but I don't quite recall this landscape."
"That's because it's my turf, Faragonda. You know the land between Alfea, Red Fountain, and the city of Magix well. But you hardly know of the forests surrounding Cloud Tower." Griffin too, glanced around. "We're two hours walk from the Alfea school. This way." And Griffin headed off into the undergrowth. The others all followed her.
"What I wouldn't give to hear Luna complain about off-trail hiking." Niobe commented.
"Yeah." Radius said, a dreamy look evident on his face.
"Somebody smack him. I'm going to throw up." Erendor complained. "My friends meet a bunch of girls and suddenly they're all making that creepy look. Radius, Teredor, and Oritel!"
Radius got defensive. "Not our fault you couldn't get a girl if your life depended on it."
"Quit it boys." Niobe said annoyed. "Now's not really the time to fight about you dates for Homecoming. I was just trying to brighten the mood a bit with a joke." She traipsed ahead, her annoyance visible in her swagger, muttering about boys and their immaturity. Radius and Erendor looked at one another, tension sparking between them, then they too followed Niobe ahead. Oritel and Miriam were left behind to walk with one another.
They walked in silence mostly. Words weren't really needed. Miriam's hand was warm and soft in Oritel's. He'd listen to her steady breathing as they hiked, the lightness in her step as she gracefully walked over the overgrown grass and bushes. Oritel knew he ought to enjoy these moments with Miriam, for one never knew when a moment would be their last. Especially in times like such. And he did enjoy them.
"Were you scared in the realm of the Ancient Ancestresses?" Miriam asked, breaking the wall of silence.
"Yes. I pray I'll never end up there again." Oritel shivered. "I don't know how I even survived there. That place wears on a person and breaks their will if they're there for long. When Faragonda, Griffin, and Saladin arrived, I saw the dark aura of the realm take its toll on them. But like I said before, the only thing that scared me more than Obsidian was the idea that those witches were going to hurt you."
The silence took over again and lasted for over an hour after that. Oritel began to notice destruction the closer they got to Alfea. This made his dread grow with every step. What if they were too late? What if Alfea had already fallen? How many of his comrades would he find dead or injured when he arrived? How many fairies, for that matter? Soon he began to hear the sounds of war. Cries of Mandragora's bug creatures, screams of people. Then he felt war. The shaking of the ground as powerful magic was summoned and thrown at the enemy. The thickness of the air as dust that hadn't quite settled yet floated around.
Miriam whimpered next to him and clung to hand as though it were a life line. Oritel squeezed back and mentally prepared himself to face whatever lay ahead. He had to stay strong now. That was what a good leader would do. And, hopefully, one day he'd be a leader.
No matter how one would try, there was no preparing for what came next. Griffin led the group to the summit of a hill, bringing the elegant Alfea school into view. Days before, the view would've awed the viewer with its extraordinary beauty. The view did awe now, but in a more horrific sense.
"Oh my…" Faragonda gasped.
The battle had spilled out beyond the Alfea school gates into the surrounding forest. Many fights had broken out all over, but Oritel soon noticed remnants of a battle plan. Squadrons of Specialists had been forced to break rank and fight the bugs off individually. Fairies of different levels flew over the forest, throwing blasts of magical energy at the creatures. Many of the fairies were being taken down by aerial bugs, so they didn't even have an edge in the air. Much of the artfully designed school had been reduced to rubble. Towers had been destroyed, windows shattered, gates torn down. Everything was chaos. An organized chaos.
"Look!" Niobe pointed up above the Alfea school and Oritel turned his gaze to see what she was pointing at. He noticed a fairy had flown up above the rest and faced Mandragora high above the ruined school. He squinted hard to see who it was, but was surprised when he figured it out. He gasped.
"Who is it? I can't tell." Miriam looked at Oritel.
Oritel looked at Miriam, then back at the figure fighting Mandragora. "Miriam. It's you."