Based on characters from Fablehaven© by Brandon Mull. The original characters and plot details are my property. No copyright infringement intended.
Seth woke from his light trance startled by the sudden movement as Raxtus pulled away from him.
"Wow that was an interesting dream you had Raxtus," Seth said smiling.
"Dream? That was a dream?" Raxtus was troubled. He knew it wasn't just a dream. What he had just remembered wasn't what he wanted to know, it made no sense to him.
'Shadowmaster, find us, Shadowmaster, we are here.' Seth heard the whispered voice again.
"Oops… maybe it wasn't a dream. I know where they are."
"They?" Bracken asked. He and Kendra were at attention because of their sudden movements. Raxtus looked dazed.
"Oh, I guess you didn't hear all of that," Seth apologized.
"The 'girl' is a female dragon trapped in a cave with a 'girl' shadow charmer. He heard them both but thought they were the same person. I know where they are so we can go get them," he explained.
"Can she hear you now?" Bracken asked as he moved closer to them. He didn't like that the dark entity was a shadow charmer, beside Seth all of the shadow charmers he had ever heard of from the past were evil.
"I suppose so. I can still hear her whispering to me to help them."
"Don't change until Seth is out of the cabin," Bracken whispered to Raxtus.
Raxtus was busy trying to remember what he was supposed to remember but he was very confused. He nodded, barely understanding him, still feeling a bit dazed.
"Tell her we will start searching for them in the morning. We need to talk, but not here," Bracken told him. "Get Seth out of here before Leander shows up," he whispered to Kendra as he checked Raxtus over, he was confused and hadn't tried to get up.
Seth cleared his mind and listened for the voice of the other shadow charmer.
"What is your name?" Seth sent his voice toward the whispering voice.
"Unleea," she answered.
"Unleea, I know where you are. We will be back in the morning ready to find you."
"Thank you!" she cried with relief. "I await your arrival, Shadowmaster."
Seth opened his eyes and smiled. "Ok, all done. She is excited," he said enthusiastically at his perceived act of chivalry.
"Good; now go wait with Hugo," Kendra shooed her brother out of the cabin.
"OK," he muttered, his feeling hurt, it wasn't the reaction he was expecting. He picked up his backpack and left, huffing indignantly.
Kendra and Bracken packed up their trash, decided not to move the furniture back and left the cabin, a dazed Leander following behind. Bracken carried Leander's backpack along with his.
Leander was exhausted and not feeling well and sat on the porch steps. "Seth what are you doing? What is that?" He watched Seth climb on the mound of dirt piled high in front of the cabin. He watched as he stuck a backpack on a rock sticking out of the pile of dirt and rocks.
"Putting our packs on Hugo," Seth said.
"That pile of dirt? That doesn't look like Hugo," he said confused. He thought Seth was joking with him again.
"You can't see Hugo?" Bracken asked.
"No, it's a pile of dirt and rocks. Seth is joking," he explained moodily, not feeling well. He didn't appreciate the joke.
"Hugo shake hands with Leander," Bracken asked the golem.
Leander scrambled back onto the porch as the pile of dirt moved toward him.
"This isn't funny. I know what Hugo looks like," he said, warily.
"Did you have milk this morning?" Bracken asked.
"Yes, what does…" he started to say.
"He went to sleep, now he can't see the magical creatures," Seth interrupted and finished Bracken's troubled thought.
"He is a dragon; he should be able to see them without milk," Bracken explained, he had thought that Seth had been mistaken before.
"Oh?" Seth muttered at his unexpected statement. "I told you he didn't see the fairies until this morning after he had milk."
"What does that mean?" Leander asked, too tired to be troubled or realize Bracken's concern.
"It means that you are human and need to drink milk like Seth. That is all that means," Kendra answered, glaring at Bracken.
"Oh, okay, I guess that is what I need to do," Leander accepted with exhausted complacency.
"Just close your eyes, you're tired. Hugo will carry you back and you won't notice a thing," she said.
Hugo carried all of them back to the main house. Kendra looked at Bracken as she noticed just how exhausted Leander was. Bracken shrugged and shook his head. He didn't know why he should be so tired. They were both concerned about his all too human condition.
Kendra asked Hugo not to run, so it was early evening when they arrived back at the house. Leander dozed all the way.
Leander slouched in the big arm chair in the den as the four planned what they would do the next day. His face was a kaleidoscope of confusion, he looked stunned or in shock. Still he helped plan the next day's outing.
"How did your first day go?" Scott asked at dinner that night.
"I have clues where to begin my search tomorrow, if I can use Seth's assistance again. It would be a great help," Leander replied after he swallowed between bites, remembering what Kendra had taught him.
"Wonderful!" Grandpa Stan said as Seth nodded in agreement.
"We might need Hugo too," Seth suggested.
"Hugo might be useful," Leander agreed nodding his head. He yawned. He had never felt so tired in his whole life nor felt so hungry. He wondered if being human was always such exhausting and hungry work. Leander ate everything they put in front of him and asked for more.
Seth was beginning to wonder if he was a bottomless pit. He did slow down on his third plate but he finished it.
"Navarog tried to kill the dragon with poison but she survived," Seth told them when they got to his room. He repeated the conversation with the shadow charmer.
Leander collapsed on his bed and closed his eyes. He was tired and he was very full. He yawned again and was quiet. He tried to listen, but he was unable to focus.
"Navarog… tried to kill her? That had to have been a long time ago before they locked him up in the Quiet Box. He was there long before Grandpa Sorenson took over Fablehaven," Kendra said.
"We have no idea how long they have been stuck hiding out there, she didn't have a clue how long it had been," Seth replied.
"Dragons can hibernate for centuries. I've never heard of a shadow charmer living that long. Yes! I know. The Sphinx is the obvious exception, but he had help.
"I had never heard of shade-sharing either. I don't know what it does to the shadow charmer. I don't know if I'd trust that shadow charmer… Huh! I wouldn't even have given it a second thought before I met you Seth. You changed the way I think about shadow charmers." Bracken told them grudgingly.
"She called me Shadowmaster," Seth added wondering what it meant.
"Well… well… well!" Bracken laughed. "I guess killing two major demons and wielding the sword Vasilis left its mark on you." Bracken looked at him appraisingly. "Shadowmaster is a very old term. Only shadow charmers know their Shadowmasters, and only they could recognize the traits and the power," Bracken told him. "Ha! Not even the Sphinx could claim to be a Shadowmaster. I'll bet he was surprised when he came back and recognized you as a one. Maybe that is one reason he signed up to be an ancient," he said thoughtfully.
"Why?" Seth asked looking at Bracken suspiciously.
"Maybe I shouldn't tell you." Bracken looked at him uncertainly.
"If you think you shouldn't maybe you shouldn't," Kendra said. She noticed Bracken's reluctance and was also uncertain if the information was necessary. The title Shadowmaster sounded ominous.
"Nah, you can't do that, you gotta tell me now," Seth whined.
"Now that you know there is something to it – you will find out anyway," Bracken rationalized looking at Kendra. "I might as well tell him," he said to her. He sighed but sat looking sadly at Kendra.
"So are you going to tell me?" Seth asked after a few moments when it looked like Bracken was just going to stare at Kendra for the rest of the night.
"Shadowmasters can command any Shadow Charmer along with almost all dark creatures. The only exceptions are demons, though some of the lesser demons are even susceptible to your commands. Your power is quite formidable now," Bracken said quite seriously then turning toward Seth he smiled.
Kendra groaned. Great, that's just what Seth needed, more power. Damn, she thought.
Seth sat listening intently but seeing Bracken's sudden smile he broke up laughing. "You are so funny! Do you think I'm going to believe that?"
"Oh well, it was worth a try!" Bracken laughed.
Kendra looked at him hopefully, was he kidding with Seth?
"So what does it really mean?" he pressed, no longer laughing.
"Nothing really, just a kiss ass term when you want someone to do something for you," Bracken said flippantly.
"No really! What does it mean?" Seth was getting exasperated with all the teasing.
"I told you but you didn't believe me." Bracken arched his eyebrow as he looked at Seth.
"No way… really? I can command any Shadow Charmer and all the dark ones? Wicked!" Seth yowled with glee and danced across the floor.
"See, I told you. You shouldn't have told him. He will get ghosts to do things just because he can. I'll never get any rest now. I'll have ghosts scaring me at all hours of the day and night," Kendra complained. Damn and double damn, she cursed to herself, that's all he needed … more power.
"The power is absolute so you have great responsibility. If you misuse it you will regret it," Bracken told him very seriously. "I had to tell him Kendra, he could do himself and others a lot of damage," he apologized to her.
"I won't misuse it. I haven't so far. Have I?" Seth said indignantly.
"Haven't you?" Kendra looked at him cynically.
"Not too much," Seth defended himself weakly. "Ok. I will tone it down now that I know how dangerous it is and how much power I actually have. I might have done something really stupid goofing around. Not even knowing I could really do it." He remembered something stupid he thought of doing that would have been a disaster if he hadn't decided at the last minute against doing it.
"Yeah, well I hope you learn quickly."
"Leander, what do you want do in the morning?"
"Leander?"
They all looked over at Leander. He was sound asleep lightly snoring.
"Wow, he was asleep almost all day and now he is sound asleep," Seth said amazed.
"He may have been sleeping but he wasn't getting any rest. Did you see how much he ate? He had to replenish himself but he is getting some rest now. The wards in this room are allowing him to really rest," Bracken smiled, though he still worried about him. "I'm glad he has this place to go to. It will protect him during the night. So the sooner we release them the sooner his secret will be safe again."
"I think the bond broke there at the end. She made some strange sound then the link was gone. Whatever she did with that sound, I think Raxtus' got all the guiding he's gonna get," Seth said, watching his friend sleep undisturbed by their conversation.
Leander slept and he dreamed.
Raxtus sat comfortably on his hoard feeling the dragon magic building inside him. He felt the elements stream in an intense flood into his body as each one inhabited the places left empty by the removal of the fairy magic. They fit as if they had always belonged there. It was up to him how to use his newly found strength and power.
The wall of his secret cave unexpectedly burst inward as his father forced his way in. Raxtus rose to his full height to confront his father and to protect his treasure and lair. Celebrant towered over him, he scanned and sensed his son as he would an opponent and then he laughed, "Weak fire? Humph. You will never be anything but a runt."
Raxtus breathed fire for the first time, it lasted a fraction of a second and traveled a few feet. His father huffed scornfully, "Embarrassing," turned his back and shaking his head walked out of the cave. Humiliated, Raxtus fell to his belly on his treasure and tucked his head under his wings.
Startled Leander suddenly woke up, wondering where he was, who he was. The bad dream faded rapidly as he realized he was in Seth's room, moonlight filtering through the window outlined the furniture. He touched his face with human hands and he was reassured.
He heard Seth lightly snoring in the bed next to him a comforting sound he knew he was safe. The lighted clock read 3:00; he yawned and closed his eyes again.
He fell back to sleep.