Ancient Guardians The Legacy of the Key (4 page)

Once in the
clearing, Levi led Reece out toward a street where she recognized the same
black car Jack had raved about at the restaurant. As they crossed the street
and approached the car, the dark, tinted window where the driver sat rolled
down. Reece was unsurprised that the driver was the other man she’d seen at the
airport; the blond man who’d raised his glass to her in the restaurant. With
one arm slouched over the steering wheel, he smiled. “You took long enough,
Levi!”

Levi
hustled Reece into the front seat, and got in the back seat, behind his cousin.
Instantly, the car was in gear, and they were moving. The car went from a dead
stop, to what seemed to be the speed of light; yet, it felt like they weren’t
moving at all. The trees they were passing, a complete blur in her vision, were
the only thing that gave relevance to the fact that they were moving. None of
it made sense.
Is this even a car?
She looked at the driver, wondering
how he was managing to keep the car on the road. He didn’t slow the car once,
not even to take a sharp turn.

The driver looked
over at Reece, his eyes were piercing in their light silver-blue color. “I’m
Harrison, by the way. Relax, Miss Bryant—I drive rather well.” He looked out at
the snow; it had gone from a light flakes to heavy clumps hitting the car.
“Sorry we had to interrupt your lovely morning in the park.”

 
Reece nodded. Harrison was as superbly dressed as
Levi. She questioned who these men really were.
“Do you guys work for the government or something?”

Harrison glanced
over at her and subtly grinned. “I suppose you could say that, yes.”

She looked back at
Levi; he was intently focused on a transparent object in his hand. “Where are
we going?”

Levi didn’t answer.
Instead, Harrison responded. “We’re taking you to a safer place, Reece. I’m
sure my cousin hasn’t explained much. Unfortunately, explanations take time. I
can give you the lighter version of facts; however, I need you to promise you
will not do anything crazy, like jump out of our car.”

Reece looked at him
quizzically. Her anxiety soared, but she hoped her expression didn’t show it.
“I won’t be jumping out of any cars; I understand basic physics, thanks.”

He chuckled. “We’ll
see about that!” They were leaving the city and going into the more rural
areas. “Tell me something, Reece; have you ever considered the existence of
other worlds, apart from your own?”

Reece swallowed
hard. “You mean, like Mars? Not really, why?”

“The man in your
room—you thought he was a ghost, correct? Or possibly a bad dream?”

“I’ll admit, I’ve
considered both options.”

He chuckled and
glanced at her with a mischievous grin on his face. “Reece, he was neither. He
was not of your world.”

Reece stared at him
in shock.

“Maybe a little too
much information?” He smiled sympathetically. “You should relax. Where you are
going will be much more welcoming than where you were about to be taken.”

He looked into the
rear view mirror. “Levi, we’re almost to the vortex. Make sure Javian has sent
for Areion and Saracen. We should get Reece to Pasidian quickly.”

Did he just
speak in a different language?
Reece
rubbed her forehead disbelievingly. The car grew silent, except for the low
purr of the engine. The road they were traveling on was long, winding, and very
narrow. Considering the high speed they were driving, combined with the sharp
turns, Reece expected to have her body weight thrown all over the inside of the
car; yet, gravity had no effect on her.

Even so, she
started to feel sick to her stomach. She didn’t really trust the two men, but
she’d burned her bridges. She decided to stop asking questions. The answers she
was receiving were more than she could cope with right now.

The road curved
around a hill, and as she watched, the car left the road effortlessly, heading
straight for the hillside. It appeared as if they would crash directly into it.
Reece took a quick breath, and was blinded by a bright flash of light.

Chapter
3

T
he paved road they traveled on now was shiny black, and lined with
trees unlike any Reece had ever seen. Their trunks were white, with vivid red
leaves beaming on their incandescent white branches. She looked deep into the
dense forest of these peculiar trees and noticed that they appeared to be
glowing in the darkness. The bright, lime green grass that carpeted the grounds
of the forest, took on a glowing quality as well. It was strange; it was as
though the radiant grass and leaves illuminated on their own, in total
darkness.

It appeared as if
everything was glowing in color. A drop of water on the windshield sparkled
like crystal. The sky had a sapphire quality to it. She felt as if her vision
had changed entirely.
What is this place?
All she saw was the
illumination of the nature all about her, and none of it seemed real. Wherever
they were now, the skies were vivid, bright and sunny; a far cry from the snowy
streets of Philadelphia.

She looked at
Harrison, then back at Levi, to see if their appearances had also changed.
Nothing was unusual about the two men. She held her hand up and examined her
skin.
Normal.
It was very odd; it was only the nature around them that
had shown this interesting radiance.

When she turned her
attention back to the road, she saw a large, shimmering gate ahead. It was
fashioned with beautiful patterns, circling throughout. She could see that
there was no longer a road on the other side of it, and they would most likely
have to stop. She wondered how they would manage to bring the car through, or
if they would? As soon as she questioned the thought, Harrison turned the car
into a dark area, which seemed to be a cave or something of that nature. As he
parked the car, she noticed that the area they were parked in was filled with
sleek black motorcycles, and other cars like the one she was in.

When the car shut
off at Harrison’s vocalized command, Reece reached over to his arm to stop him
from stepping out of the vehicle.
Time for answers.

He looked back at
her with concern. “Reece, we’re almost to our destination. I know a million
questions are probably swirling around in your head, but you need to try to be
patient.”

“Fine,”
She took a deep breath. “But before we go any farther, I really need to know
who you guys are. You should understand my apprehension about going any farther
with you two. We should have crashed into that mountain a moment ago, and now
I’m seeing trees and grass that seem to sparkle and glow. I’m sure you both
know that I was well aware of what happened that day on the airplane, too. I
know you both had something to do with it. I want answers before I concede to
go anywhere else with you.”

Harrison sighed.
“Levi and I are from another dimension known as Pemdas. For many years, our
people have protected those on Earth, and many other dimensions as well.”

Her eyes narrowed.
“Pemdas? I’m in another dimension?”

Harrison nodded.
“It is why we did not crash into the hillside when we brought you out of Earth.
We went through a vortex, which leads into the outer boundaries of our
dimension.”

Her heart raced.
“My friends. What about my friends? They’ll be expecting me. What will they
think happened to me?”

Harrison stepped
out of the car and walked around to open her door for her. “Your absence will
go undetected. There’s been a—a stand-in—created to take your place. It’s
perfectly programmed; no one will question it.”

Reece had lost the
power to keep her confident expression under control, and she stared at the man
in disbelief.

He watched her
speculatively. “As we have both mentioned earlier, we are prepared to tell you
everything; but please, not here. Allow us to bring you to a more relaxed
environment.” And with that, he turned and walked to the back of the car,
leaving Reece standing there, speechless.

She started to
become angry. He still hadn’t answered her about the bizarre events on the
airplane. “But—”

Before she could
speak up, she was interrupted by Levi, who had gotten out of the car, and had
been staring down at the object in his hand. He dropped the object into a side
pocket, and walked over to her. His expression was commanding and extremely
serious. “Miss Bryant, we have every intention of answering all your questions.
Unfortunately, it’s more than a five-minute conversation, and we have another
short journey ahead. I ask that you will have a little more patience, and that
you allow us to get you to a more comfortable place. My father is waiting for
us, and he will explain everything. There will be a lot for you to try to
comprehend. Anything we tell you now will only lead to more questions. Please
give us the opportunity to make you more comfortable…for your sake.”

Reece looked up
into the handsome man’s somber face. Concern was apparent from the way he
stared down thoughtfully into her eyes. She gazed at him and after a moment,
conceded with a nod.

“Very well, then.
Allow me to escort you to the gates, and we will be on our way shortly.” He
turned to his cousin. “The horses will be here momentarily.”

He offered his arm
to Reece. As she slowly placed her arm in his, he looked down to her and asked,
“I hope you don’t mind traveling by horse from here?”

She
stared at him in astonishment. “Would it matter if I did?”

He laughed softly
and escorted her toward the gate. “No.”

She remained quiet
as Levi led her through the gates. She was now able to see what was beyond the
end of the black, glossy road. She assumed the reason they were waiting for
horses was because, beyond the gate, there was only a dirt trail that cut
through bright green grass, with trees scattered here and there. Some of the
trees looked ordinary; some were white-barked with red leaves. The place
breathed peace, like a new morning. It had to have been the fascinating glow of
the foliage and trees throughout the forest, or maybe it was how much lighter
the air felt here; whatever the reason, Reece didn’t feel as tense as she had
been.

“Why do we have to
ride horses? Just because the road ended?” It seemed odd that this would be
their method of transportation after just having been in a technically-advanced
vehicle.

Levi chuckled
softly and turned to look at her. “That is part of the reason, yes. Our land is
surrounded by a protective barrier which can only be crossed on our horses.”

She looked at him
quizzically while contemplating his response. Before she could ask any more
questions, a loud noise echoed in the distance. Out of nowhere, two of the most
beautiful horses she had ever seen came thundering toward them. She watched
with amazement as she observed a cloud of gold dust sparkling in their wake.

Reece, who had
never cared much for horses, was in awe of the magnificent animals upon their
approach. The two black horses halted a few feet from where they stood.

“I believe you will
be more comfortable upon Harrison’s horse,” said Levi. In one swift motion, he
mounted the taller of the two horses. It was obviously as impatient as its
master, lifting each leg up in turn and biting down on his mouthpiece, as if
trying to break it in half. “Ready to go?” Said Levi. “Areion tends to be
impatient.”

Reece looked over
toward Harrison, mounted on the other horse. She walked over to him, trying to
stay out of range of its hoofs. “I’ve never ridden before.”

Harrison smiled at
her comment as he reached out to help her onto the horse. Once she was seated
behind him, he answered, “I’ll guide him. All I ask is that you hold on, and
not jump off his back. Saracen is patient and calm, unlike Areion. I fear you
would never wish to ride a horse again if your first experience on a horse was
riding him.”

  As she sat into
the swell of the tall horse’s back, she tucked her legs up under the edges of
the tall, black saddle that Harrison sat in. She was reasonably comfortable, if
one could be comfortable while completely helpless.

Harrison pointed
down the dirt trail. “We will ride through the line of trees until we reach a
great divide. The divide is the location where we cross over into the inner
lands of Pemdas, where we live.”

She peered around
him. The trail seemed to go on forever.

Levi, who was
patiently waiting on his impatient horse, moved a few steps nearer and nodded
at Harrison while he spoke to Reece. “You may want to hold on to Harrison.
Pemdai horses are faster than Earth horses.”

She
nodded. Levi’s horse backed away and reared up. Reece instantly wrapped her
arms tightly around Harrison’s waist.

  Harrison laughed.
“Not that tight, friend; Saracen will not be showing off for you today. Just
keep a good grip is all you need to do.” He turned back to her. “This may seem
frightening at first, but try to keep your eyes open. You will not want to miss
this journey.”

And with that,
Harrison leaned forward, and his horse lunged ahead. Reece grabbed Harrison
tightly again. Levi’s horse led the way down the trail; the horses thundering
and echoing their way through the trees. Reece could feel Saracen’s muscles
move powerfully under her.