Author's Note: Thanks to awesome BluCrayons! Great beta. Be sure to check out her stories. They're great and I know you all will love them. She's currently working on "Playing House" and "Mike's Sweet Young Thing". "Playing House" is only rated M for a mild future sexual situation that I'm sure she wouldn't mind you skipping past if you don't like that kind of stuff. The rest of the story is well worth it. And thanks to monkeemidgie for helping me through a little writers block.
Chapter 70: On the Edge
"Piper, please," Micky pled holding her in his lap. Mike felt terrible for Micky and didn't really know what to do to help his friend. All he could do was kneel next to him and wrap his arms around Micky. He could see Micky's leg was twisted and his arm was starting to turn a deep shade of purple, but he knew Micky didn't care about any of that. All Micky cared about was Piper. But it seemed Isis wasn't able to help as she'd promised.
He thought back to what had led up to this situation. He had followed Irisi down the hallways following Piper's directly. As she had promised, they hadn't run into very many guards along the way. The one time they had, they were easily distracted by the marbles. They had slipped into the room holding Isis with no problems and had found her waiting there for them. She'd asked about the stone and Mike had told her others were on their way to destroy it but that in the meantime, she should follow them.
They'd barely only made it to the entrance when Isis had stopped. She'd turned to them and said that the stone had been successfully broken; she had her magic back. She'd said that Seth would be angry and that they had best be careful during the rest of their escape. That's when they'd felt the entire building shake. Isis had known Seth was behind it and had run down another corridor away from the exit. Mike and Irisi had been left with no choice but to follow her. That's when they had found Davy and Peter in a large doorway and the entire building had crumbled in. Most of the stones had collapsed in the room beyond Davy and Peter and Mike's stomach dropped as he heard Peter and Davy scream out for Micky and Piper.
Seth had charged at them, but Isis had fought him off. She'd been able to throw balls of fire at him and chunks of stone for a few minutes before he finally decided to retreat. He'd disappeared and Davy and Peter had said that Micky and Piper had been buried under the rubble. Mike had immediately began calling out for Micky and Piper, but hadn't gotten a response. Isis had told them to keep looking while she'd try and sense them. It had seemed like an eternity to Mike before Micky had finally responded.
"Isis?" Irisi asked tentatively. "What is it?"
"She's too far gone for my healing powers," Isis answered.
"No!" Micky exclaimed. Mike squeezed Micky's shoulders. "Please don't stop! You have to fix this! She did this for you!"
"Micky," Peter said softly.
"I'm sorry," Isis said standing up. "There's nothing more I can do. She made an admirable sacrifice, but there's just too much damage."
"No!" Micky exclaimed pounding his fist on the floor. "You have to try again! You fixed me and Mike, you can fix her! Use that powder they told me about!"
"I don't need the powder," Isis said. "I have healed her wounds, but her spirit is just too weak. That is something that I cannot heal. I'm very sorry. But we should leave before Seth comes back. I need to heal you."
"Not now; I'm not leaving her," Micky said. "Please try again! You have to try again!"
"Micky, I know you're upset," Mike started not knowing what else to say. "But you have to think about what she would have wanted. She would have wanted you to heal."
"Shut up, Mike," Micky snapped at him. "Don't talk about her like that. She's not gone yet. You can't give up on her!"
"Micky…" Peter said softly as he came over and embraced Micky on the other side of Mike. Davy walked up behind and pulled Micky into a hug, as well.
"It's gonna be ok, Micky," Davy said.
"You really love her, don't you?" Isis asked.
"I do," Micky said softly, tears flowing freely from his eyes. "Please, help her. I can't imagine my life without her. Please." Before Micky could say anything else, his hand began to glow. Micky jumped back a little in surprise and Mike, Peter and Davy released Micky a little, but Isis grabbed Micky's hand and held it over Piper again. Within a few seconds, color started to return to Piper's face and the blood covering her face disappeared. Mike grinned excitedly when she took a breath and opened her eyes, albeit slowly.
"What…" Davy muttered. "How?"
"How did he do that?" Mike asked for Davy.
"Using the most ancient and powerful magic known to all creation," Isis said with a smile. "Love."
"But Micky isn't a witch," Peter said. "He doesn't have any magic."
"He doesn't need to," Isis answered. "Witches don't exist in this time. Magic hasn't been harnessed yet. And even in your time, anything is possible if you love. It wasn't just your friend who healed her. It was all of you."
"All of us?" Mike asked.
"The love you share for each other," Isis answered. "I can feel it. You're embracing each other to show your love and support for him and Micky displaying his love for Piper combined and allowed Micky to tap into the magic in the air and do what I didn't have the strength for."
"What happened?" Piper asked holding her head.
"She'll still need plenty of rest," Isis said.
"We nearly lost you," Micky said holding onto her tightly.
"We really should get back now," Irisi said with a smile. "We aren't protected here and Isis is weak. She must rest to restore herself before she can fend off another attack."
"You think he'll come after you again?" Mike asked.
"Most likely," Isis answered. "I have given small gifts of magic to a trusted few, but you have shown me that in the right hands, magic can be a real benefit to me and my kind."
"Gods?" Davy asked.
"I am not a God," Isis smiled moving to heal Micky's arm first. "We are conduits. We were born from the earth; chosen to watch over and control the elements of this world. But because we are born from the earth, we cannot be killed and so some choose to view us as Gods. It is a title some have embraced and used for their own egos, but others, such as myself, choose not to."
"Do you have the ability to get us back home?" Mike asked as she finished healing Micky's legs.
"I do not have control over time," Isis said, "but your efforts will not have been in vain. I cannot send you back alone, but with the help of my sister, we can reverse whatever it was that sent you here."
"Thank you," Mike said. Micky tried to get up, but Isis held out a hand.
"No, my child," she said. "You must rest. You had a very grievous injury; the bones in your leg were shattered. While I have healed the bones, your energy must also heal which can only be done through rest. Your friends must carry you."
"But…" Micky said looking down at Piper.
"It's alright, Micky," Mike said reaching out to hold Piper in his arms. Micky reluctantly gave her over to Mike. He felt a sense of relief when she wrapped her arms around his neck and shoulders and he could feel warmth coming from her. He knew she was alive, but feeling the warmth coming from her reinforced the knowledge she'd be ok.
"Did we win?" Piper mumbled. She was obviously still very groggy.
"We won," Mike smiled lifting her up and carrying her across the rubble to the waiting caravan.
"Is Micky ok?" She asked.
"Yes," Mike said. "Everyone's fine. Everything's gonna be ok. You just rest."
Back at Isis's temple, Mike gently set Piper down on the cushions next to the pool of water they'd rested at before. He wasn't sure how, but somehow these waters just felt magical. He hoped that by placing her next to them, she'd get better faster. Peter and Davy had helped Micky limp to the caravan and now into the temple. They helped him sit down next to Piper as Mike pulled her hair away from her face. She'd fallen asleep on the ride back and Micky and Mike had both watched her breathing closely the whole time.
"Rest now," Isis said to them. "I will go find my sisters and see what we can do to send you back home." Mike had told them about the curse that sent them all back here. She had assured them that since it was a curse placed on them by one of their own, albeit a Greek "god", that it could be reversed by them. Mike had told her that Kronos had promised to try and fix it, but Isis simply smiled and said that Kronos wasn't known for his ability to fix his own curses. He got angry very easily and wrought destruction from that anger and rarely ever fixed it. She'd assured him once again that they would find some way to repay them for their efforts in saving her.
"You really think she can get us home?" Peter asked hopefully.
"I hope so," Davy said. "But that means he'll be coming back with us. It won't have changed anything."
"Maybe it will," Mike said. "You said Micky broke his nose and he took off running scared. Maybe he'll go back to wherever he came from and stay there. He knows we aren't to be trifled with. We rescued a God from another God. Can't send a bigger message than that."
"They aren't Gods, though," Peter said.
"I know that," Mike smiled. "But that's not how history remembers them. That's now how they're perceived. They're so powerful, they're essentially immortal. They're the oldest and most powerful magical beings to ever walk the Earth."
"I'd call that a God," Davy said. "And I really hope you're right, Mike. I hope he leaves us alone."
"So do I," Micky said. "I don't think I can take this anymore."
"Just get some rest, Mick," Mike said. "You were pretty beaten up, too. And that's right after nearly dying from internal bleeding. I wouldn't be surprised if you slept for a month given what you've been through."
"I probably will," Micky answered. "But in my own bed under my own blankets with my own pillow. I won't be able to fully relax until this is all over and I know everyone is safe."
"I still can't believe you did that," Peter said bewilderedly.
"Neither can I," Micky said. "But it's like Mike said. It was Peter's love for the harp that made him able to play it. That's how we beat the Devil before. We stuck together."
"I never knew the power of love could really be that strong," Peter said.
"I think it's more because of the ancient power here," Micky said. "It amplified what we already could do."
"Whatever it was," Mike said smiling down at Piper sleeping peacefully, "I'm glad it worked. I'm glad she's gonna be ok. Get some sleep, Micky. I'll watch over her."
"Thanks, Mike," Micky said. "I meant what I said. I can't imagine my life without her any more than I can imagine my life without you guys. I'd be nothing without you."
"And we'd be nothing without you, Mick," Peter smiled and hugged him. "I thought you were gone when you didn't answer us. I was so scared."
"Me too," Davy said taking his turn and hugging Micky. "Especially after we nearly lost you before during world war 2."
"I'm not going anywhere, guys," Micky said lying down next to Piper.
"Just get some sleep, Mick," Mike said wanting Micky to just relax until it was time for them to go home. Micky nodded and finally closed his eyes. Mike knew that Micky didn't really wanna rest; he wanted to keep an eye on Piper. But he finally did lie down and relax because he trusted Mike to take care of Piper the same way Micky would.
He hated to admit it, but when he'd seen Piper's injuries, something just told him she was dead. Her face had been covered in blood and her whole body was crumpled and broken. He had been pretty sure her skull had at least been broken, if not shattered. And the rest of her body had been twisted and contorted in painful looking ways. Mike had taken one look at her and thought that there would be no saving her. Mike grabbed a blanket and pulled it over the both of them and placed a soft, friendly kiss on Piper's forehead, silently thankful that she was going to be ok. Thankful that he'd been wrong.