Flamethroat (41 page)

I shot Maria and Elise a glare each, ‘No!’

Penny gave a small whimper and clutched her son.

‘But we can take zee ‘umans in exchange for your pet-’

‘He’s not having Hawthorne,’ I said through gritted teeth.

My father turned to me and I knew what he was going to say before the words left his mouth. He was on their side. Not mine.

‘Avalon, what about your sister?’ he said.

I looked at Hawthorne and then at Helena, an empty shell.

‘No,’ I said. ‘There must be another way-’

Bran Stalk stepped towards Hawthorne, ready to hand him over.

‘No!’ I threw myself over Hawthorne protectively.

‘What about my daughter?’ Bran yelled. ‘She’s
six
!’

‘We should ‘ave a vote,’ said Maria.

‘That’s easy for you to say,’ Elise snapped. ‘You have your son already.’

‘Stop arguing,’ said my father.

‘Hawthorne is
mine
.’ I said to my father beseechingly. ‘Why do I have to make the sacrifice? He is not something to toss aside!’ I felt control of the situation slipping away from me.

‘Avalon, think about what you are saying,’ said my father. ‘You are choosing an
animal
over your own family.’

‘He’s not just an animal,’ I said, throwing Jack a pleading look in the hopes that he would come to my defence.

‘Avalon can’t give up Hawthorne,’ said Jack. ‘They’re connected. It would be like giving up half of Avalon.’

My father ignored Jack and glared at me, ‘Choose, Avalon. Your sister or your pet.’

Tears welled and my vision blurred.

Martinez smiled to himself as he watched us arguing. ‘I could make your decision easier for you, if you like,’ he said.

‘How could you possibly make this easier?’ I asked weakly, my voice breaking.

‘Well, I know for a fact that there are only two Vulmessian’s in existence. My spirit, Emilija and the one destined for Elvira Frost, ruler of Frost Arch.’

My heart froze with fear.

‘Not to mention,’ Martinez continued, ‘the ruler of Frost Arch went missing recently. You wouldn’t know anything about that, would you?’

I glanced at Jack, whose face was pale.

‘So I must conclude,’ said Martinez, ‘that you are a thief and possibly … a murderer.’

‘No,’ I said, a little louder than intended.

‘No, to which one?’ Martinez smirked.

‘I’m neither of those things.’ I was lying and he knew it.

‘Avalon,’ my father’s gaze burned through my retinas. ‘What is he talking about?’

‘It’s a misunderstanding. I found Hawthorne,’ I parroted. ‘I found him. He is mine.’

‘So, I shall rephrase my offer,’ said Martinez, now pacing the dungeon. ‘If you give me the Vulmessian, I will release the Humans and I will
not
turn you in to the authorities. I know there are men looking for you in Frost Arch. Does the name Forsythe ring any bells?’

My mouth was dry. What was I supposed to say? Every eye in the dungeon was on me, waiting for me to make a decision.

‘You have upset some very important people over the last few months,’ said Martinez. ‘Did you think you would go unnoticed? It’s not hard to miss a girl like you, with a pet like that.’

I ignored Martinez and looked around the room. Penny and Tom clutched their fifteen-year-old son, their eyes swimming with tears. Bran Stalk held his little girl in his arms, while Elise stroked her hair. My mother sat on the cold dungeon floor, cradling Helena, crying silently. And then there were the other nameless Humans, all empty shells.

‘Wh-what will you do with Hawthorne?’ I whispered.

‘Avalon, no!’ Jack tugged at my wrist.

‘Quiet!’ snapped my father.

Jack ignored him. ‘You can’t give up Hawthorne,’ He whispered urgently in my ear. ‘He is part of you. Animal spirits bond with their masters on an entirely different medium. If you give up Hawthorne you will be losing part of yourself.’

‘How do you know that?’ I asked.

‘Robert told me this morning, while you were getting ready. But never mind that,’ Jack waved it aside. ‘If you lose Hawthorne, you will never forgive yourself.’

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. ‘What choice do I have, Jack? Look at these people. They need help.’

Jack looked at me helplessly. He was lost for words. I turned back to Martinez and repeated my question.

‘Well?’ I asked. ‘What will you do with him?’

Martinez smiled. ‘I will breed him with Emilija,’ he said silkily. ‘Their offspring will be worth a fortune. I will be able to export the pups all over the world and Mages will finally have a way to fly. They will bring forth a whole new era of transportation. I
was
going to offer you a deal at the party, before you pulled your little stunt. I planned to ask your permission to let our animal spirits breed. You could have been very rich indeed, getting half of the profits. Who knows, you could have bought the Humans back from me, in time. But now, obviously, I’d rather take him from you.’

‘Why can’t you just buy another Vulmessian from the Mage who creates them?’ I said.

Martinez scoffed. ‘Emilija cost most of my fortune. I could not afford another like her, even if I wanted to. With your beast I will be able to create many, more affordable creatures. Like Emilija, your Vulmessian will be given a life of luxury here at my manor. He will be fed, bathed and exercised. I dare say I will take better care of him than you ever could.’

Panic was beginning to consume me. I didn’t know what to do. How could I choose? Was there another option?

‘Can’t … can’t I
lend
Hawthorne to you?’ I said pleadingly. ‘You can still breed from him.’

‘You want to offer your Vulmessian as a stud?’ Martinez asked. ‘How do I know that you will remain in Flamethroat when his services are needed? What is stopping you from fleeing?’

I didn’t have an answer to that question. I knew, as soon as I got out of this manor I was leaving Flamethroat and never coming back.

‘Your pet will be happier with another of his kind,’ Martinez said coolly. ‘Didn’t you see the way they interacted earlier this evening? They were made for each other.’

‘Don’t listen to him, Avalon,’ Jack’s voice was in my ear.

My mother and father watched me with baited breath, hoping I would choose Helena. My heart said that I must choose my family, but my head argued that this shell was not really my little sister. Helena was gone, just like these other Humans.

‘Decide,’ Martinez ordered. ‘Your pet or the Humans? There is no need for a fight tonight.’

I stalled, on the verge of tears. I looked at Hawthorne, who gazed back at me with his large, ice-blue eyes. He knew perfectly well what was going on. I wanted to know what he thought of this situation, yet his eyes were unyielding.

I looked at Jack, who shook his head solemnly. Turning to my parents, they nodded encouragingly at me.

Hawthorne or Helena?

‘You can’t have Hawthorne.’ I said, my voice strong.

Penny, Maria and Elise gasped in unison.

‘She chose the fox!’ Elise burst. ‘What about my
daughter
?’

Martinez raised his thick eyebrows. ‘I don’t think you understand,’ he said. ‘The Humans will remain in this dungeon and you will be
hanged
for the murder of Elvira Frost.’

‘No.’ I shook my head. ‘I’m taking these Humans
and
I’m keeping Hawthorne.’ I pointed to the ground to reinforce the finality of my decision.

A vein throbbed in Martinez’s temple. ‘Do you think I will just stand by and allow it?’

‘No, I don’t.’ I glanced at my father who stared at me with wide eyes.

Martinez let out a laugh that sounded like a bark. ‘What? You actually think you and your friends can get past my guards and I?’

‘There are twelve of us and six of you,’ I stated.

‘I could destroy you all by myself,’ Martinez smirked.

I held out a hand in front of me and formed a ball of fire in my palm. It was easy, for the rage had been building inside me this whole time. I wanted revenge. I wanted to fight for Helena and the other Humans.

Martinez laughed. ‘You’re a Fire-Mage sweetheart, I can absorb your Power.’

‘You’re a level eight energy-absorber,’ I reminded him. ‘You can’t absorb all of our Powers at once.’

I looked around the room for support, hoping H.E.L.E.N.A would come to my aid. Upon seeing my expression, my mother stood and she too produced a fireball. My father, cottoning on, followed suit.

Next, Tom the mimic got up and used his Power so he too was holding a handful of flames. Now the dungeon was fully illuminated. The Humans shied away from the light and hid in the dark in the furthest corner.

Penny clambered to her feet and began to inflate like a balloon. Soon, she was twice the size of everybody else. I knew Penny could manipulate her physical size and shrink, but I had no idea it worked the other way too.

Maria and Robert raised their hands slowly above their heads. I watched in awe as the sixty-year-olds began to summon large pieces of rock that rested on the dungeon floor. The rock circled the pair as if they were planets.

Bran set his daughter on the floor and flexed his bulging muscles while Elise flitted around the dungeon at extreme speeds.

Jack stood and took my hand despite the heat that radiated from my body. Ræ
ve
n shape-shifted into her bird-form and perched herself on my shoulder.

The members of H.E.L.E.N.A stood together ready to fight.

The response of Martinez’s cronies was instantaneous. There were five of them, each one bigger than the last. They were dark skinned, tall and surly looking. We didn’t know what their Powers were, but I knew we were about to find out.

I braced myself, ready for the attack, fire in both of my hands now. One of the guards stepped forward and a moment later there were ten of him. I gasped, turning on the spot, looking at the duplicates.

‘He’s a multiplier,’ Bran growled, throwing his fist at the closest copy, but to no avail. His fist passed right through the fake Mage and hit the wall leaving a sizeable hole. This didn’t seem to hurt Bran.

The duplicates laughed, the sound reverberating around the small room. I’d had enough of games. Only when I sent the first fireball crashing into another guard did pandemonium break loose.

Elise flit around the room, discovering the original multiplier-Mage within seconds. Bran followed her and grabbed the guard by the scruff on his neck, sending him crashing into the wall so the entire room shook.

Maria and Robert manipulated the stones and bits of wall that had fallen to the ground and sent them bouncing around the room like bullets. I ducked just in time, as a large piece of debris went whizzing over my head, hitting one of Martinez’s cronies in the temple.

Helena and the other Humans cowered in the corner, shielding their faces.

The largest guard, at least seven feet tall, advanced on my mother and father, flexing his rippling muscles. He got onto his hands and knees, his skin bubbling as he began to transform. I stared, transfixed as the Mage began to mutate before my very eyes. Seconds later he was covered in dark fur, with bulging yellow eyes. He had transformed into a wolf.

My reaction was instinctive. I ran forwards and launched myself at my mother as the wolf-man lunged for her. I sent my mum crashing to the floor as the beast flew over us, colliding with the stone wall behind. My father helped us up and grabbed me by the shoulders.

‘Get out of here,’ he said urgently. ‘Take your friends and go-’

‘I won’t leave,’ I said.

I turned from my father and caught Jack’s eye. He was currently healing a gash on Maria’s cheek that was bleeding profusely. I looked around the dungeon, searching for Ræ
ve
n. I found her flying in circles around the shockwave guard that had winded her. She was dipping and swooping, her beak sinking into his flesh. He flailed and tried to swat her away, finally becoming annoyed and sending another shockwave at her with a clap of his hands. Ræ
ve
n was thrown through the air, her feathers sticking in odd directions as she hit the opposite wall.

‘Hey!’ I shouted at the shockwave-Mage. He looked my way just in time to see a perfectly aimed fireball coming towards him. He had no time to react; the fireball hit him in the face and he collapsed to the floor, howling in pain.

‘Jack! Help Ræ
ve
n!’ I shouted. I saw Jack charge across the room, dodging various attacks, until he was by Ræ
ve
n’s side.

A yelping noise caught my attention. I spun around and saw that Hawthorne was in physical combat with the wolf-man. They tore and sunk their teeth into each other’s flanks. It was violent.