Circles of Seven (16 page)

As intermittent raindrops continued to splash all around, the knight stepped up and kissed Billy’s hand. “Your Majesty, perhaps our journeys have intersected by divine providence, and you will use your mighty sword to break the chains of our comrades. They are the ones who will conquer your enemies and bring you to power.”

Billy pulled his hand away. “No offense, but I think I’ll stick to the original plan. Sir Patrick doesn’t want us to join up with any New Table knights.”

The woman stepped back, a wounded expression on her face. “I . . . I understand completely, my lord. You are wise to make decisions based on advice from those you trust.” She bent down and placed the crown back in the box. A tear trickled down one cheek. “How long, my king, have you known Sir Patrick?”

Billy wiped the dripping rainwater from his eyes. “Professor Hamilton has known him for years, and he trusts him. That’s good enough for me.”

A weak smile crossed her face. “Professor Hamilton is indeed a trustworthy man, and you do well to honor him, but sometimes the most honest men can be fooled.” Her face turned downward into a stern frown. “Your professor has trusted Patrick to watch over you in this realm while he journeys to London, but Patrick has already abandoned his post.”

Billy doubled the horse’s reins around his hands. “How do you know all that?”

She slid the box back into the saddlebag. “I will show you.” Raising her hands high, she walked down the path in the direction Billy and Bonnie had been traveling. The line of horses parted, creating a gap about twenty feet wide. With a wave of her hand, the exposed canopy of sky and meadow blurred, creating what looked like a rectangular movie screen. The fuzzy picture sharpened, now showing a valley surrounded by mountains. The valley was rocky and dry with white bones littered across the floor. At the edge of the cliff overlooking the valley, a solitary man hid behind a crag in the mountainside. The view port seemed to zoom in on the man until his upper body filled the screen. Sweat poured down his face in narrow streams, and his hands shook as he gripped the edge of a boulder.

“It’s Sir Patrick,” Bonnie whispered.

“Yeah,” Billy whispered back. “And he’s all worked up about something.”

“He is supposed to be watching you from his mansion,” the knight went on, “but here he stands in the seventh circle, waiting for you to arrive. He heard about our entry into the circles, and now he wants to prevent you from rescuing our comrades.” The screen went dark and then disappeared, allowing the grass and sky to return to normal.

The knight strode forward and extended her hand. “Come with me and take your rightful place on the throne of England. You pulled Excalibur from the stone, did you not? You have been called to rescue prisoners, have you not?” She took Billy’s hand and kissed it again, her voice rising with enthusiasm. “Come with me, my lord! Let us break down the prison walls! Let us loose the chains of our powerful allies!” She bowed her head. “And I, myself, will stand at your side as your royal guardian when the crown of England is placed on your brow.”

Bonnie let out a low laugh and whispered again. “Some royal guardian she’d make. That New Table knight in your bedroom tried to kill you.”

“I heard that, Miss. Young Arthur’s attacker was one of Devin’s clan, traitors to our order. We could not control his lust for dragon blood, and he has met his fate, as has the young man who sought to harm the king.” She paused and drew in a deep breath. “But you need not trust me. When we get to the seventh circle, you will meet someone I know you will trust.”

Billy tried to speak, but his voice cracked. “Who . . . ahem . . . who is that?”

“Your father, the great dragon, Clefspeare, has entered the seventh circle, and he will vouch for us and give you instructions himself.”

Billy put his hand on the long scar running across the edge of his scalp, the remains of a wound from his battle against Devin and Palin. It still sparked a twinge of pain, but it also carried a reminder of how his father, in dragon form, rescued him from the dark knights, risking his own life in the process. He nodded his head ever so slightly.
I trust my father now . . . I guess.
Bonnie’s tense fingers clutched his shirt again. He reached back and gently grasped her wrist.
Bonnie’s right. Even if I can trust my father, I definitely don’t trust these riders.

Billy straightened his back and gripped the reins with both hands. “You can keep your crown. That’s not what I came for anyway. I’ll just take my chances on my own.”

The knight’s smile vanished, her hair and cheeks dripping. “Far be it from me to force our king to take his throne.” She guided her horse close to Billy and extended her open hand. “At least take this token. It is a symbol of our order that will grant you easy passage from one circle to the next as you accomplish your goals in each one. If anyone tries to interfere with your journey, this gift will be a dangerous weapon. I still have hope that you will fulfill your calling when you reach the seventh circle.”

Billy reached for the token, a brooch with a golden insect on top, a shiny, winged beetle. He enclosed it with a loose fist. “I guess it’s worth a try.” As soon as the words came out, Bonnie’s fist pulled on his shirt again, this time with more force.

“Very good,” the knight continued. “Just stay on the path, and the passage beetle will transport you to the third circle in due time.”

A bright flash enveloped the riders, and they dissolved into shards of light. The riderless horses shriveled, their bodies shrinking toward the ground. Seconds later, they morphed into a circle of brown, scruffy rats scurrying in the grass. Billy’s horse shrank too, and he and Bonnie slowly descended until their feet rested on the ground. Their horse, now a black rat, scrambled away between Billy’s shoes and joined the others.

Walter jumped around in the grass like a tap dancer on a hot griddle. “Rats! I’m surrounded by rats! Where did the horses go?”

Ashley pulled off her hood. “There’s Billy and Bonnie. C’mon!” She ran to their side. “Billy? Can you hear me? Bonnie?”

Walter tried to grab Billy’s arm, but his hand passed through it again. “Nope. We’re still just a couple of ghosts.”

“Listen! I can hear them talking. Can you?”

Walter leaned over next to Billy’s mouth. “Yeah. Barely. I think they’re talking about something in Billy’s hand.”

“Shhh!” Ashley scolded. “Listen!”

“I don’t think we should use it,” Bonnie said. “We’d be asking for trouble.”

“I guess you’re right.” Billy held out his palm. Fresh drops of rain pelted his skin and splashed on the beetle. “With this weather, it would be nice to get to the next circle the easy way, though.”

Bonnie pushed wet strings of hair out of her face. “Maybe, but I don’t trust that woman. I don’t believe what she said about Patrick, and I sure don’t want anything to do with that beetle thing.”

“I know what you mean, but I didn’t feel any danger from her.”

“Maybe we shouldn’t count on your danger sensor at all. It didn’t work in the cave.”

“That’s true, but it sort of worked when I was near the dragon. I guess we shouldn’t trust it while we’re in the circles.”

Bonnie rubbed her hands across her dampening sleeves. “Everything feels wrong here, like we’re being watched. Let’s just get rid of that bug and get going.”

“Suits me.” Billy threw the beetle on the ground.

Walter ran to where the scarab lay in the grass. He leaned over and tried to touch it, but it jumped into the air, beating its wings furiously. With a buzz saw pitch, it darted back and forth like a crazed dragonfly, hovering for an instant and spitting blue sparks. With a final zip around Billy and Bonnie, it dug its razor teeth into Billy’s neck and hung on like a tiny pit bull.

“Arrrgh!” Billy grabbed at his neck, yanked the bug off, and threw it to the ground. With a heavy stomp, he smashed it with his heel, and a splash of blue sparks rose around the edges of his shoe. He slapped his hand over the wound and dropped to his knees, his face locked in a painful grimace.

Bonnie squatted at his side and laid her hand on his back. “How bad is it?”

Billy removed his hand from the wound. A smear of blood painted his fingers. “You tell me. I can’t see it.”

Bonnie touched his neck. “There’s only a little blood. It’s just sort of oozing. But your neck’s turning real red and swelling up fast.”

Billy laid his palm on his forehead. “I don’t feel so good.”

“You’re turning white as a ghost.” Bonnie pushed on his chest. “Lie down! Now!”

“What? Why?”

She pushed harder, and Billy relented, laying his head back on the wet grass. She lifted his legs and supported them on hers. “Just stay calm and breathe easy.”

“I . . . I think I’m going to faint.”

Ashley pulled on Walter’s shirt. “Anaphylaxis!”

“Anna who?”

Ashley paced back and forth waving her arms. “He’s going into shock! We’ve got to get them out of here!”

Walter lifted Apollo. “Has Apollo had time to charge up?”

“We have to give it a try.” Ashley pushed her hair back and pulled her hood over her head. “Billy may not last very long.”

Walter drew his own hood from his cloak pocket. “But he can’t walk. He won’t be able to go through the portal.”

“I think they’re closer to the portal now, maybe right on it.”

Walter shook his head. “No. I have the spot marked. They’re still about ten feet away.”

Ashley knelt at Bonnie’s side. “Let’s try what we did in the cave again. Maybe Bonnie will see the portal and drag Billy through.”

“It’ll be tight,” Walter said, pulling his hood on. “We asked for a small window, remember?”

Ashley twisted her hood to align her eyes with its sockets. “We don’t have any choice.” She pulled open a latch on Apollo’s base. “When you’re set, push the button on the inside.”

“Gotcha!” Walter hustled to the portal location, Apollo in hand. “Ready?”

“Let’s do it!”

Instantly a blinding flash erupted from its center and painted a new portal, smaller, about the size of a wall poster. Walter waved frantically at Ashley. “Let’s go, girl!” Folding in their arms, they squeezed through one at a time. A few seconds later, the light dispersed into a million fleeing dots.

With torrents of rain pelting her head, Bonnie cried out. “God, help me! I think he’s dying!” She bowed her head, shivering in the cold downpour.

A light flashed. Bonnie jerked her head up. Ahead on the path a shining rectangle hovered just above the flowers, casting a glow across their drenched petals.

Bonnie thrust her arms under Billy’s shoulders, grunting, “C’mon. Let’s get you out of here.” Walking backwards, she dragged his body across the slick grass, flapping her wings to give more lift. She glanced behind her. She was almost there, but the window was shrinking.

She reached for Billy’s scabbard and drew out Excalibur, igniting its sparkling glow with her touch. Tucking the hilt under her chin, she allowed the blade to rest across her shoulder, then regripped Billy’s armpits. She slid him again, now only a foot from the flashing window. A buzz of electricity tingled on her scalp as she leaned back into the opening, the sword’s blade leading the way. With a surge of strength, she lunged, but her hands slipped away, and she fell into the flashing window . . . without Billy.

Walter pulled off his hood and blinked away the black spots. Ashley knelt next to his feet and rubbed her eyes. The familiar woods surrounded him, oaks and beeches standing tall and the same gorse bush squatting at his side. He still clutched Apollo tightly in his grip.

Ashley yanked off her hood and jumped up, her head swiveling from side to side. “They didn’t come! Billy needs medical help, fast!” Ashley snatched her computer and yelled. “Barlow! What do you see?”

“From what I could tell, an insane bug flew all around, a nasty little beast with blue spittle. William must have fallen to the ground. Miss Silver knelt at his side and looked very worried. Then, I saw a flash brighter than the sun, and all I have been able to see since the flash is a frightful storm boiling in a dark sky.”

“You can’t see Bonnie at all?”

“No, Miss. I have not seen her since the flash of light.”

Ashley smacked her jaw and tilted her head upward. “Karen!” she yelled. “Are you there?”

A string of muffled words spilled through the computer speakers. A second later, Karen’s voice became clear. “Sorry, I was eating a pickle sandwich. It’s rilly dilly good.”

“No time for comedy,” Ashley barked. “Listen! Do you have an epinephrine kit handy?”

“Sure. I never leave home without it. But I guess since I’m home—”

“Get it, now!”

“Okay, okay. Don’t be such a grouch.” Karen’s voice drifted away. “I have an EpiPen right over here in the . . .”

“Ashley, if I may interrupt.”

Ashley let out a huff. “What is it, Larry?”

“Are you considering a cross-dimensional material collection?”

“Yeah. Do you have a better idea?”

“Not exactly. Your idea is valid. Apollo is able to receive a transmission, but its light creation engine is almost fully discharged. You can’t go over there to administer the medication, not for at least three hours.”

Ashley let out a groan. “He’ll be dead by then!”

“Why don’t you just send the kit?” Karen asked. “Bonnie knows how to use it. Remember? She watched you use one on me last month when I got stung in the garden.”

Ashley snapped her fingers. “Right!”

Walter picked up Apollo and gazed into the inner glass enclosure. “Does Apollo have enough power to send it?”

“We only need a tiny portal.” Ashley tilted her head up again. “Larry, how long before Apollo can open a small portal, say, six by two inches?”

“Approximately one minute.”

“We were like ghosts in that dimension,” Ashley said, “like the transfer wasn’t complete. What will happen to the EpiPen?”

“When you and Walter transferred, my calculations relied on your estimates of the portal locations, and the results were off by the error in the estimation. If you are in the exact spot, I can be more precise.”

“We have it pinpointed this time, but Billy wasn’t right next to it. We’ll have to hope Bonnie sees it somehow. Karen, put the EpiPen in Larry’s transfer box.”