108: Blast from the Past – Pt. 3

Victoria looked down at the necklace her daughter was wearing and then immediately her eyes moved to Future Derrick. “This whole time it was around Alyssa’s neck?”

“I—uh…well…” Future Derrick stammered.

“She’s had it this whole time and yet you’re taking us on a world tour of old haunts? You never intended for me to find it, did you, Derrick?” Victoria asked, anger searing her glare.

“Victoria, please, you have to understand…”

“Understand what, Derrick? That you were wasting time until our spell ran its course, forcing us to leave here empty-handed? What was the point of any of this?”

“I just wanted you to see—see where it all happened, know what took place that night and try to…try to avoid it.”

“Derrick…”

Continue Reading: "108: Blast from the Past – Pt. 3"

107: Blast from the Past – Pt. 2

“So, Mom, what spells are you the best at? I’ve been reading through one of your journals and it mentioned dragons which is FREAKING AWESOME! But, what’s your favorite spell?” Alyssa asked, hopping onto the couch beside Victoria.

“Hey, I remember this book. I lost it somewhere in the attic. I guess Derrick found it in the move,” Victoria said, turning the blue notebook over in her hand as she thought for a moment. “Hmm, favorite spell…oh, easy, it was a reflection spell ‘reflexio revelare.’ When your dad and I were dating, he’d mentioned he hadn’t seen himself in centuries. So, one night while standing in front of a mirror, I cast that spell and for a minute he got to see his reflection again.”

“Wow! That’s so cool and very sweet. I’ll bet it made him smile,” Alyssa said, looking over at her father.

“It did,” the Derricks replied simultaneously before sharing a laugh.

Continue Reading: "107: Blast from the Past – Pt. 2"

106: Blast from the Past – Pt. 1

“Sorry, uh…” Victoria said, stunned at the sudden revelation that she was staring at her own flesh and blood. “MY daughter?”

“MOM!” Alyssa rushed forward, throwing her arms around Victoria’s neck and held her in a death grip that Victoria had to place her hand between in order to catch her breath. “Sorry, I’m just so happy to see you.”

“I can see that but…I don’t…I’m not…we’re…uh—” Victoria struggled to complete a sentence, unsure of how to broach the subject of time travel with this complete stranger or even if she should.

“From the past!” Alyssa blurted excitedly before looking around at the crowd of people and lowering her voice. “Yeah, that’s pretty obvious now.” Again, she gripped Victoria, tighter this time and sighed contentedly as she took in her scent. “Mmm, you smell like honeysuckles after a rainfall.”

Continue Reading: "106: Blast from the Past – Pt. 1"

105: Into the Fray – Pt. 3

Victoria wasted no time jumping onto Pyrose’s back and following Fane into the sky. It was a dangerous gamble, but one she needed to make. She had to stop Fane before he bombarded the bodies below with the fearsome brute force of his monstrous companion. With no time to master the art of dragon flight, Victoria relied heavily on Pyrose’s abilities to navigate the open air. Meanwhile, she concentrated on firing accurate volleys of arcane to put an end to Fane’s tyranny.

Pyrose veered to the left as Fane aimed a fiery breath toward them. With a vicious swipe of her claws, Pyrose caught Ebonwrath in the eye, nearly blinding the large creature. He shrieked in pain, shaking his head and almost losing his cargo in the process. But Fane held on as the animal fiercely shuddered nearly crashing to the earth.

In response, Fane began his own onslaught against Victoria. His powerful magics exploded around her in a high-flying blitz that put her on the defensive. Pyrose skirted the horizon, dodging volatile projectiles as they erupted dangerously close by. The red dragon moved so nimbly, avoiding the mountains, the balls of death being thrown by Fane and the stray weaponry hurled from below. It was as if she had eyes along her scales and was completely attuned to Victoria’s needs and maintaining her well-being.

Continue Reading: "105: Into the Fray – Pt. 3"

104: Into the Fray – Pt. 2

Victoria stood back with the others as dozens of archmages, wizards, priests and occultists battled fiercely in the open field near the shattering ruins of the water plant. “We need to put an end to this. We cannot allow Fane to fully restore his powers,” Julian urged. “The result would be catastrophic!”

“I’ll say. The man snapped his fingers and evaporated Cassatt,” Marcel said, still reeling from having witnessed an elder vampire’s death with such ease. “I can’t even begin to imagine what could happen once he’s back to full capacity.”

“Well, I will have to get back inside to his holding room. There is a lot of stray chaotic energy to harness in there. And if what Fane said is right and we’re linked, and I truly believe it is, I’m going to need a leg up on him. I think I can use his own powers against him.”

“What do you need from us?” Derrick asked, stepping closer to where Victoria stood.

“It’s asking a lot, but I could use some distraction. Give Fane a target to focus on while I siphon off his magic.”

“We’ll provide as much cover as we can,” Rowan said, nodding toward Marcel. 

Continue Reading: "104: Into the Fray – Pt. 2"

103: Into the Fray – Pt. 1

“Get them out of here,” Elder Emery shouted as the building evacuated. He sent his summoners and priests to safety as Victoria, Derrick and Marcel returned to help aide the others injured from the blast.

“Have you seen Rowan?” Marcel inquired as he lifted a priestess to her feet and ushered her toward an exit.

“No. I thought you two were together at the initial detonation,” Derrick answered.

“We were but in the chaotic aftermath, I lost track of him.” He pushed another struggling archmage to their feet and just as he was preparing to reenter the blast zone, a tuft of blonde hair stumbled from the rubble. “Ro!” Marcel exclaimed and rushed forward.

“I’m fine,” Rowan waved off his bodyguard as he took in their surroundings. “What in the bloody hell happened? Did the entire sodding building crash down on us?”

Continue Reading: "103: Into the Fray – Pt. 1"

102: Drag On Drag Off – Pt. 3

“No, there has to be something we can do,” Victoria said, shaking her head and pacing the courtyard.

“You’ve done it,” Alaric said, gently taking Victoria’s hand. “I cannot begin to thank you for restoring life to our dragonkin. But this,” he said motioning around toward the people now running to their posts in preparation for battle. “This is ours to deal with. For now, I think it’s best you and your friends learn what you came here to learn and get back to your own time.”

“Alaric…”

“Victoria, you are of my blood. I will not see you harmed here, please,” he begged, clenching her shoulders tightly as he gazed deeply into her eyes. She heard the sincerity of his words but she could also see the fear in his eyes. Nevertheless, Victoria nodded and Alaric smiled before releasing his grip. “I’ll have Elias assist you with whatever you need.”

Alaric turned and hurried toward one of the towers near the front wall and Elias motioned for Victoria to rejoin him in the coffer house. “Elias, there must be a way we can…”

Continue Reading: "102: Drag On Drag Off – Pt. 3"

101: Drag On Drag Off – Pt. 2

Elias led them over to where Alaric Dragonos stood, taking in the disturbance. “Elias, what is the meaning of this?”

“Alaric,” Elias said, bowing in reverence before he continued. “In my quest to recall Nasros, I stumbled upon these two. They were in need of aid. This is Victoria and her travelling companion Derrick. Victoria is kin.”

“How are you certain?” Alaric asked in stunned confusion.

“I…”

“I’m from the future, Alaric. I cast a spell to learn about my lineage. Blood finds blood. It brought me to Elias,” Victoria offered, bringing Alaric’s eyes to her.

“And how do we know this isn’t some kind of trick? You could be a spy sent here by King Osric himself.”

Continue Reading: "101: Drag On Drag Off – Pt. 2"

100: Drag On Drag Off – Pt. 1

“What do we do?” Victoria asked, watching the winged monster heading straight for them.

Just as the beast neared them, it suddenly veered off course with the loud shouting of a deep voice close by. Derrick and Victoria looked toward the horizon and saw a man approaching, his arms raised above his head as he gazed up at the sky. She couldn’t make out what he was saying, but whatever it was made the mystical creature fly away. “Move, now. Come to me,” he said, waving toward the couple.

Victoria and Derrick wasted no time and started after the strange man. He led them toward a horse-drawn carriage waiting nearby. They quickly clambered inside, the man gave a shout and they were off. Looking out of the window, Victoria could see the small village still ablaze and the large dragon hovering above. “Thank you for this,” Derrick said once he’d settled in the seat beside Victoria.

“Yes, we really appreciate this. That was unbelievable!” Victoria exclaimed.

Continue Reading: "100: Drag On Drag Off – Pt. 1"

99: Change in Command – Pt. 3

“GET UP!” Rowan shouted as Victoria lay sprawled on his floor, huffing for a breath. Sweat poured from her face and her heart felt like it would explode at any minute. “I said get up!” The iciness in Rowan’s tone fueled the anger boiling inside her and she growled as she struggled to her feet.

Her chest heaved with every breath, but she dug her heels in, refusing to give up. The day started with a test of magic that moved into hand-to-hand combat but now evolved into Rowan turning her into his personal punching bag. When he insisted on having Marcel participate in a two versus one situation, she thought for sure she was gonna break beyond repair. 

And yet, despite the number of times he’d put her on her ass, it still felt as though he was holding back. He hadn’t caused any serious damage or pain; like a snake toying with its prey before swallowing it whole.

Continue Reading: "99: Change in Command – Pt. 3"