Wow. Sorry it's been so long. I mean I do have a life . . . I wasn't just reading other people's stories, and sitting around watching TV. Okay, maybe I was. I'm sorry. Um . . . anyway, I hope it was worth the wait.
Billy tried to control his breathing. No sudden movements. His brow started to sweat, but he resisted the urge to wipe it off. His fingers twitched a little, and he felt like an idiot for leaving his pistol behind. In a situation like this it would have comforted him to feel it there, resting against his hip.
"Alright, who's there? What do you want?" He spoke confidently, but his eyes betrayed him. They darted back and forth looking for somewhere to run, or a weapon he could use. He still didn't dare look back. The footsteps continued, and then he felt a cool wet hand clasp his shoulder. He was turned forcibly to face the creature.
"Oh my God!" Billy shouted, before doubling over in relief. "Don't do that EVER again! Jeez, you could have at least said something," cried Billy, feeling exasperated. Dagon stared back at him with his eyes wide open, but that was nothing unusual.
"Are you alone?" Dagon said, his voice low and bubbly. Billy glanced back up at Dagon,
"Seriously? Give me a minute," he said, still trying to catch his breath. Billy straightened, and shot Dagon an accusatory look before continuing, "Currently, yes, I am alone, but Machiavelli isn't too far away. I was just heading back to check on him."
"What do you need to check on him for?" Dagon said. Billy sighed.
"Let's start walking. I'll tell you the story on the way."
By the time Billy, and Dagon reached the cave, Billy had given Dagon a full retelling of the adventures from earlier. As they stepped out of the woods Billy spotted Machiavelli, still lying where he had left him, and he ran over. Machiavelli was breathing normally now, but his eyes remained closed. Billy checked his pulse, and it was steady.
"We need to get out of here. Mawpatusc could get out at any minute, and I need to be somewhere safe to heal him." Without a word Dagon bent over, and lifted Machiavelli off the ground. He began walking towards the car, which as Billy had correctly remembered was Machiavelli's limo.
"Hey, wait up," Billy called, running to keep up with Dagon's long strides. Dagon looked down at the man in his arms, his friend, and former master. He felt like he had let him down. He'd had two simple instructions. One – to have the car ready when they left the cave, and two – if they weren't out in one hour, he should come in. Dagon had given them 15 minutes more. He knew that Machiavelli hated interruptions, and sometimes negotiations lasted longer than expected. By the time Dagon he had went in to look for them, the cave had been empty, with no signs of Billy, Machiavelli, or Mawpatusc. After listening to Billy's story, Dagon had concluded that Mawpatusc had fixed the cave, and had either hid farther away, or she was out hunting. Dagon had exited before the cave closed up again, and had gone into the woods when he heard Billy stumbling through. Machiavelli stirred slightly, and his eyes opened.
"Dagon?" he whispered.
"Hold on, we're almost there," was the quiet reply, before Machiavelli drifted off again.
When the reached the car, Billy fell to his knees. Being overly dramatic, he raised his arms to the sky
"Thank you!" he called. "A way home . . . finally!" He stood, and opened the back door of the limo, where Dagon had stood silently, with Machiavelli unconscious in his arms.
"Let's get outta here! I'll heal Machiavelli on our way back." Billy went to climb into the back of the dimly lit car when Dagon's words stopped him.
"On our way back to where?" Billy faced Dagon, his eyebrows knit in confusion.
"Um . . . I don't know. I'm still a bit fuzzy on what happened before we got here, but we do have a place to stay, right. A hideout, a secret lair, a hidden-base . . . " he said trailing off. Dagon remained silent.
"Hold on! We don't have anywhere to go? What about Nicholas, and Perenelle? I mean, after we helped them, surely they'll help us out just this once." Dagon sighed,
"This was your last hope. You and Machiavelli believed that Aten, and Quetzalcoatl were closing in, and that if you couldn't complete the cloaking spell, you may be out of options." Billy looked at Machiavelli, and his shoulders drooped a little. Then his eyes narrowed, and he composed himself.
"No. No, we aren't out of options," he said confidently. "Help me get Machiavelli in the back, I'll heal him, and I'll tell you where we're going. 'Cause you listen to me Dagon, we aren't done yet, and no way am I giving up without a fight," he said, his eyes glinting with determination.
Alright, I hope you liked it. If it seemed OOC let me know. Especially Dagon, I wasn't sure if I should put him in, because you don't get to know him too well. Although, he seemed like the right person to be there. Please review!