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Lazarus felt Cindy and Grace add to his powers.
They quickly left the valley where Merlin and Bruen were still battling. A high-pitched whining noise came from behind them. They flew with swiftness and speed but Lazarus felt that they didn't gain enough distance.
He was scanning ahead of them when an explosion shook the trees and sent a blast of strong arcane power over them. He was suddenly propelled forward and down. The tops of the trees started to become very close. He covered everybody with his magical shield, but they were flung through trees and bushes and then they hit hard and dirt ground.
Even with his magical barrier, Lazarus was knocked senseless and lost consciousness. Somebody shook him and he saw Royce's face in human form. His face was dirty and he was panting.
"Lazarus, please wake. We need you."
"Get me up," Lazarus croaked. His body ached all over. Then he realized the sky was dark and the stars poked through the shrouded night. Royce grabbed his shoulders and placed him in a sitting position. Cindy and Grace were sitting with their backs against a fallen tree. Shannol was standing, looking around and guarding them.
Cindy tried to come forward but she sat back down. Lazarus shook his head. They were all tired and couldn't move.
Royce said, "Are they dead?"
"I think so," Lazarus responded.
"We never had time to speak to Merlin," said Grace.
"When we have time, we need to discuss some things,” said Lazarus. “I think tonight we will stay were. Royce, could you get us some food?"
Royce nodded and changed into a wolf, then sprinted into the darkness of the forest.
Cindy said, "What happened?"
He sighed. "I’m not entirely sure. But I think Merlin had to use the sword's power to destroy Bruen and the weapon."
Grace said, "Can you feel him? He might not be dead."
Lazarus closed his eyes and held his hand toward the sky and shook his head. He couldn't feel Merlin. He lowered his hand and slowly rose to his feet. He found a suitable spot for a fire. Gathering all the splintered wood on the ground, he made a stack. Cindy and Grace helped him. This was a ritual they had been doing every night since they joined together in Nevada all those months ago. Placing his hand over the stack, flames shot downward.
A roaring fire kept them warm and after a few minutes Royce came back with several rabbits in his mouth.
Lazarus was not hungry but his body ached for the food. They cooked the rabbits over the fire. After their meal Lazarus felt better and more like himself. They were lucky Cindy and Grace still had their water skins, which were full.
They slept in relative peace that night. His magical spheres watched over them and Lazarus was untroubled by dreams. He hoped that when he awoke in the morning he would have sensed Merlin.
But he didn't feel anything.
***
LAZARUS AWOKE TO FIND a fog rolling into their campsite.
He shook his head thinking about everything that had transpired, from the Breaking of the Bastions, to the fight in Austin, and journey within Middle Earth, all of which had been orchestrated by Morgana, the Vvong Queen. He had felt before that he was being manipulated, but he thought it was Merlin. He sighed. The others were still asleep.
He placed more wood on the fire pit. After a few minutes, he had the fire roaring again. He warmed his hands against the heat of the flames. Somebody stirred behind him.
"What's wrong?"
" I don't know how to tell you all something," Lazarus said.
Cindy moved over to him and he placed an arm around her shoulder.
"Just tell me," Cindy said. "Is this the reason why you went to get Merlin by yourself."
He stared into her large, beautiful blue eyes. He could have stayed like that forever, holding her, and kissing her cheek. He smiled. He knew everything would be okay if she was with him.
"I found Merlin, but he didn't know me," he said.
Cindy shook her head. "How can that be? He led us here."
"Well, it was not him who led us here, It was Morgana," Lazarus said. He paused to let that implication sink into her mind.
"If that is true, she wanted us to free Merlin," she said. "Why would she want us to do that?"
Lazarus said, "It's because when I freed Merlin I also freed Morgana."
"No," Cindy said. She looked away and stared at the fire. "This cannot be. We need to get back to our Earth. We need to help the people left behind."
"I know. But Merlin told me Morgana was still a spirit. She needs the magic of Excalibur before she becomes normal again."
"So, why aren't we leaving?" Cindy asked with a touch of exasperation in her voice.
"I'm waiting for Merlin. He wanted me to bring him back. He was supposed to tell me where Excalibur is located," he said.
"How do we start? Why are you moping around?"
" I don't know what to do. I feel overwhelmed. I don't want to believe that we opened the Bastions to help free the Vvong Queen," he said. "We committed mass murders. Or, why we were stuck in a crystal prison for one hundred years. I don't understand."
Cindy paused and nodded. She grabbed a large tree branch and placed it on the fire.
She turned to him. "No, I don't believe we committed mass murders. The Elves were right. Humanity had been poisoning the Earth for years. And we needed to do something. We made the right choice. We had to open the Bastions. We didn't know the catastrophes would happen."
She said this in such a rush and fervor her face flushed. Lazarus touched her cheek.
"I also believe the same thing," Grace said.
Cindy turned and smiled at her. "I didn't want to wake you up."
"I’ve been awake for a while. I can’t sleep after what happened yesterday," Grace said.
Lazarus shook his head. "I know, but you need your rest. We all need our rest. I think we have another hard journey ahead of us."
Grace said, "Cindy is right, and we need to start now if everything you say has come to pass. We need to find Merlin, and then find Excalibur."
