image
image
image

Chapter 12: Esme

image

Ella struggled to sleep, knowing in the morning Griffin would decide her fate and take her powers away. He’d lectured them both the night before for going together to hunt for Esrac. Fidget scurried up the bed as he sensed her nervousness resting against her head. She ruffled his ears, closing her eyes.

She still hadn’t figured out who the strange voice was, or why it kept calling to her. She thought about asking Luc, but decided against it. Just because he’d finally revealed some of his many secrets to her didn’t mean he’d give her all the answers.

“Ella?” the voice called again, as if it had been waiting for her to think about it. “Ella, please help me.”

She covered her head with a pillow. “Go away, leave me alone.”

“Ella,” the voice called louder this time, stronger somehow. It sounded male and almost familiar. “Ella.”

She sat bolt upright as the flickering form of her father appeared at the end of her bed. “Ella, I need your help.”

“Dad?” Ella gasped. “What are you doing here?” She climbed out of bed, not believing her eyes. The one person she’d been desperate to see for so long stood in front of her.

Fidget’s fur slicked back, and he hissed a warning, but her attention hung on her father.

“Ella, I’m trapped. The avatar I used to protect had to force me through the gates to stop the Esrac,” he said. “You must help me come back.”

Ella hesitated. Could he still be alive after all these years?

“How do I know you’re not some kind of trick?” she asked.

Caspian smiled, as if he had been expecting the question. “You remember the place I used to take you when you were a little girl? The cave with the stars in it?”

Ella’s face paled and she nodded. Only her dad would have known about that place.

“Why haven’t I seen you before now?”

“Because you weren’t strong enough, but your powers have grown now. I’m dying, Ella. I need your help.”

“How?” She wanted to believe this was real, but part of her couldn’t.

“You know how. You must open the gate.”

Ella shook her head. “I can’t. I’ve already caused enough damage.” She ran a hand through her hair. “Wait, how are you on the other side of the gate?” she gasped. “I thought only an avatar coul —”

“There’s no time to explain how I got here. You must open the gate and bring me through.” Caspian reached out as if to touch her. “Ella, I’ve been trapped in the Esrac prison realm for so long. I want to come home, to be with you and your mother again. Don’t you want us to be together again?” He looked at her with longing. “Would you leave me here to die at their hands?”

Fidget growled again, his eyes flashing.

Ella looked down at the dust bunny. He’d warned her to stay away from the gate, and Luc had said the Esrac could trick people...

“I know you’re not my father. Go away!” Her hands clenched into fists as the image faded.

That wasn’t real, she reminded herself. It was just a trick.

Ella shot down the hall, pulling on a shawl as she went. She wouldn’t let the Esrac trick her again, and she’d find Luc and Griffin. They’d know what to do.

She turned on her link and tried calling them, but neither answered. She tried Eric and Sara too and bit her lip when static greeted her. Eric always answered his link.

“La,” Fidget squeaked. “La, where going?”

Ella ignored him, racing off through the empty corridors to Luc’s chamber. She pushed the door open and found the room empty. Where had he disappeared to?

She pressed her link again and hurried toward Eric’s chamber, where she banged on the door and waited.

When no reply came, she banged again, called out his name, then flung the door open. Eric’s bed appeared just as empty as Luc’s had been.

Damn it, where are they?

What if Esme could somehow trick them, too? Had she lured them away?

Ella moved down the hall and into Sam’s room, flinging the door open and not bothering to knock. It was empty, too.

Maybe there was a reasonable explanation for them not being in bed. But after what she’d seen, her sense of panic rose as she hurried toward Griffin’s office. He spent most of his time there, and often even slept there, so she didn’t bother going to his chamber.

She crept to the office, using only the pale light streaming through the window to go by. Inside, she saw nothing but the desk, shelves and neatly stacked paperwork.

“Master?” She moved over to his desk. “Master Griffin, where are you?”

A shadow moved behind her, grabbing her before she had time to react. She struggled against the strength of her attacker’s grip and looked up. It was Griffin.

“What are you doing?”

“It’s time.”

“Time for what? Where the are others?” She tried to wrench her hands free to summon her magic, but he o held her tighter.

“I knew Esme’s mind tricks wouldn’t work on you for long.”

Griffin pulled her across the room and opened a door set into the panelling of the walls that hadn’t been there before.

Her heart pounded in her ears and her eyes widened as she spotted a gate on the other side of the room he was dragging her into.

Luc, Sam, and Eric all lay slumped on the floor.

“Master Griffin, what the hell are you doing?” Ella asked.

“You’re going to help me open the gate and bring Esme through. I’ve been waiting almost fifty years for another avatar to be born. Finally, the Valan will rise to power again and destroy the Senate once and for all. Magic users will no longer have to live in fear.” He flashed her a maniacal grin.

“We can’t do that; you know we can’t. The Esrac were banished for good reason. Why would you want to bring them through?”

“Now I have you, I’ll also have the power to control Esme. With everyone distracted by war against the Esrac, the Valan can return to the old city, and magic users will be liberated once again. You’re more special than you think, Ella. You have been chosen to rid the world of our oppressors. While the rest of the Valan might put you to death because they’re too cowardly to see you for what you really are, I know you must do you duty.”

Griffin tied her hands behind her back before chaining her to the wall. She twisted her wrists to pry her hands free, and tried to summon her fire, but nothing happened.

Griffin walked over to the gate, touching the different runes around it.

“Master Griffin, we can’t do this. The Esrac are too powerful to control. The only way the ancestors could stop them was by sending them to a hell realm, you know that.”

She couldn’t believe what was happening. Griffin had always been a mentor to her, a friend.

“Nonsense. I organised this expedition because I knew that either you or Sara had the power to be an avatar. Sara is different. I know that from testing her blood, but you? You will be the saviour of our people.”

Ella spotted a blur of white shoot across the floor as Griffin touched the different runes. She couldn’t let him do this. If he forced her to touch the gate or used her blood as the Esrac had tried to, the gate would open again and there would be nothing stopping the Esrac from coming through. She glanced over at Luc, willing him to wake up, but he lay unmoving, as did the others. They were on their own now.

She looked over at Fidget as he leapt into the air and bit into Griffin’s shoulder. Griffin cried out in pain, trying to shove the dust bunny away.

Come on, if I’m so powerful, why can’t I break myself out of these wretched chains?

As she pulled against them, she felt it, a spike of heat between her fingers. She caught a flash of silver as Griffin pulled out a knife, ready to use it on Fidget.

Ella felt anger burn through her. No one was going to take Fidget away from her, and she’d be damned if she’d let Griffin unleash a monster into their world.

The chains fell away in a burst of sparks, and she threw out her hand, sending a burst of glowing blue fire straight at Griffin. It hurtled him against the far wall. To her relief, Fidget landed on the floor and scurried toward her, unharmed.

Griffin gripped the knife tighter and slashed it across his palm, then pressed his hand against the gate, making the runes flare to life. She could feel the wards beginning to weaken. An image flashed through her mind, and for a second, there were bodies lying around her as an Esrac woman with long, blood-red hair held onto the gate.

Ella knew what she had to do. She rushed over to touch the wall, watching the runes flare to life as the portal opened.

“I won’t let you bring any more Esrac through,” she hissed, raising her hand again. Using a finger, she started to trace the runes to seal the gate shut, just as she had done in her first life.

“No!” Griffin tried to grab hold of her, but Ella gripped the sides of the gate and dodged him before he could reach her. He stumbled, falling straight through the glowing portal.

Ella gasped, trying to grab hold of Griffin, but knew it was already too late. A violent burst of energy sent her crashing to the floor as a figure stepped through the glowing light.

A woman with blood red hair stood over her as the light faded there. She gave Ella a fanged smile. “Thanks for your help, Aurelia. I knew I’d convince you to free me.” She laughed. “It was so easy. You always were gullible in your need to help people. I see that hasn’t changed in this lifetime either.”

Ella tried to scramble up and raised her hand again, more fire flaring between her fingers. She aimed it at the Esrac.

“Fool, I will devour everyone in the city before you get a chance to try to take me down again. I am Esme, Queen of the Esrac.”

Esme laughed again. “Thanks for your help, little avatar.” She grinned. “I’m sure we’ll see each other again very soon.”

Continued in Captive Avatar.

If you enjoyed this book it would be great if you could leave a review! If you want to hear about more of my books sign up for my newsletter