“Annabel!” Robert yelled.
“I can’t!” she yelled back, “she’s been anchored to this plane.”
“Do something, we can’t lose her!” Robert blocked a giant wall of fire with his shield, covering himself and Brett. Brett, for her part, made the ocean rise into a giant wave and directed it at the swirling fire hammering down on them.
“Violet, I’ll be right back. Just hold on a little longer,” Annabel yelled over the roar of the battle and then vanished into thin air.
“Stop her!” someone yelled as a wave crashed on top of me. This time it covered me completely and then quickly receded.
I turned my gaze back to the fight and saw Annabel on the ground writhing in pain. Lila stood a few feet in front of her, a sick green light coming from her hands and keeping Annabel pressed to the ground.
“Someone…” I started to yell when another wave slammed into me. The sting of the cold water burned my face and I couldn’t focus on anything. My thoughts jumbled together and my vision blurred as the water receded once more. Colorful flashes burst into my sight but I couldn’t discern who it came from. What sounded like a freight train hitting a wall boomed all around me and rattled my bones as another roaring wave almost knocked the breath right out of me.
My head resurfaced only to be pelted with furious rain and wind. I didn’t know if the weather was getting worse because of Magic or if the storm had finally hit the beach. Trying to open my eyes and get a glimpse of what was happening, the saltwater stung and blurred my vision.
I tried to yell for help but couldn’t muster enough energy to scream. I wanted to cry. I wanted to fight my way out of this but I was helpless and scared. Most of all, I didn’t want to die. I couldn’t die. I was The Waker!
Another wave assaulted me and filled my mouth with saltwater. I struggled to hold on to the little air I had left in my lungs until I resurfaced. It felt like my chest was going to explode and I gasped for air. I fought against the weight of the water to hold on just a little longer. Little stars appeared behind my eyelids and I felt my limbs start to go numb. The water still hadn’t receded and the stale air burned my lungs. I exhaled my last breath and my reflexes took over. I inhaled a large gulp of seawater just as my head resurfaced. My face hit the cold air and I tried to take a breath but there was too much water in the way. My body convulsed and salty vomit came back up my throat and out of my body. I coughed so hard my body shook and I gasped for air. My throat felt raw from both swallowing and throwing up saltwater. I coughed again, gagging myself and spewing another mouthful of water. My entire body was being stretched to its limit as I drew in another ragged breath.
My vision cleared a little and I looked back toward the fight. Annabel was struggling to get to her feet while Brett stood in front of her and absorbed the green light coming from Lila.
“Help Violet!” Brett yelled back to Annabel.
Brett almost glowed as Annabel scrambled toward me. I glanced at Lila, who looked to be focusing all her energy toward Brett. Brett stood motionless, staring at Lila as the light entered her body and coursed through her.
I looked back at the water just in time to take a breath before another wave pummeled me down. The water was growing too high, the sets of waves getting closer together. I didn’t have much more time. If the water completely consumed me I’d die and what if Robert couldn’t get to me in time?
Annabel appeared by my side again along with someone else I didn’t recognize. They stood on either side of me and tried to undo the magic binding me to the pillar. I heard Jake yell Annabel’s name just as another set of waves came toward me and I felt the pillar vibrate against my body. I held my breath and kept my eyes closed tight. The water didn’t recede in between waves and I fought with everything I had to hold on. I could feel someone’s hands on my shoulders and then their lips on my mouth. They held my nose and blew air into my mouth as another wave crested above me.
The wooden pillar vibrated again as my head resurfaced and yellow sparks danced all around me. I kept my head tilted back in order to keep it out of the water and coughed again. Remnants of saltwater and bile spewed from my mouth. I blinked a few times to get the water off my lashes. I could just make out the fight to the left of me through my blurry, squinting vision. The next set of waves came toward me and I knew I wouldn’t resurface this time.
This was it. I took a deep breath as the first wave approached. I knew that there wasn’t anything I could do. An eerie calm settled over me as the water swirled around me. The sounds of the battle disappeared and darkness overwhelmed every other sensation. The rumble of the next wave passed over me as I held onto life as long as I could. A third wave passed over me and I exhaled the last bit of air I would ever taste. The whoosh of the water and the sound of my heart faltering were the last things I heard as death gripped me.
>>>><<<<
Every muscle in my body ached. I felt frozen to my core. Darkness surrounded me and I felt like I was floating, permanently suspended in this cold, light-less place. Every so often a blurry face would break the darkness but I could never quite make out who the face belonged to. I had no concept of time, but somewhere in the back of my mind I knew time was passing me by.
Slowly, my body stopped aching and the bone-cold chill subsided. The darkness began to lighten and I began to feel restless, trapped in my own body. I heard the muffled sounds of voices and wondered if I’d finally found my place in the afterlife. I hoped; I didn’t think I could stand an eternity of darkness.
“Violet, are you awake?” an angelic voice called to me. It was like her voice alone cleared away the cold emptiness engulfing me.
I felt my eyelids flutter open. Deep blue eyes looked down at me with intense focus.
“There you are,” Brett said and smiled.
“Where am I?” I squeaked. My voice cracked through a hoarse and dry throat.
“You’re home,” Brett cooed.
“Home? What… I mean, I’m dead. Why am I here and what are you doing here?”
“You’re not dead,” she said emphatically.
“But how? The ritual?” I asked, trying to clear my throat and swallowing hard.
“We stopped them before they were able to recite the spell three times. We saved you.”
“So I’ll be okay?”
“Yes.” She didn’t offer any more comfort and a small part of me didn’t believe her. She knew something, I could see it in her eyes, there was something important she wasn’t telling me.
“How long have I been out?” I asked.
She moved her eyes up and down and watched me carefully. After a lengthy hesitation she said, “A little over a week.”
“What! What about my friends… Yosemite! They must be worried sick. Becky’s going to kill me,” I groaned.
“We handled them,” Brett said rather shortly.
“What do you mean… handled?” I eyed her.
“You’re not going to like this.”
“Like what? What did you do to them?” I tried to sit up so I wasn’t looking up at her helplessly but my strength hadn’t returned. Instead I adjusted myself onto my side.
‘They’re fine, I promise. We just had to… alter their minds a bit.” Brett frowned.
“Brett, how could you?”
“Well, if you must know, it was your Aunt who did it. She did it to protect you, I might add.”
“You mean protect the Magical world, not me,” I said and sighed.
“You and the Magical world are one in the same.” Brett gave my shoulder a light touch and I looked up at her. I saw a sadness in the set of her shoulders that made me uncomfortable.