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"

98: Change in Command – Pt. 2

First thing in the morning, Victoria entered Rowan’s Tudor-style mansion. Upon entry, she was met with a group of large, muscular vampires congregating in the billiards room to the left. One of them caught her eye and stood as she waited in the foyer. From her peripheral, she saw him nudge another bloodsucker seated at the bar with his back to the door. He immediately turned at the gesture and noticed Victoria standing alone and followed the other toward the front room. “Hey there, Sweet thing,” the first man spoke, licking his lips as he circled around Victoria. “Are you lost?” he asked in a deep voice, smiling down at her from where he stood at least five or six inches taller.

“No. Are you?”

“You look lost,” the second man spoke, moving in behind Victoria. “But, mmm my, oh my, you smell delicious. I was just saying how I was feeling a bit famished. Who knew this place had a delivery service?” He moaned, reaching up to grab a strand of her hair and rubbing it between his fingers briefly.

“Yes, I could really go for a bite myself. It’s just like our host to cater to his guests, and you are just our type.” As Victoria prepared to defend herself, the man behind her threw her up against a wall, knocking the wind out of her, stunning her momentarily and the other moved in quickly. “What do you say we have a little taste?”

Continue Reading: "98: Change in Command – Pt. 2"

97: Change in Command – Pt. 1

“Hey, handsome,” Victoria said, wrapping her hands around Derrick’s waist from behind. He glanced over his shoulder toward her with a smile and felt her hands tighten around his midsection. “Wow, this looks like a lot of work! What are you making me now?”

“Braised Rabbit Pie. I thought I’d pull out an old family recipe and give it a whirl.”

“Oh yum! I can’t wait. Slow torture as I smell it cooking all day. I’m sure it’ll be well worth it though. Have I told you that you are an exceptional chef?”

“Someone’s in a good mood this morning. Might I know the reason?”

“Do I really need a reason to be so cheerful around the most incredible man I’ve ever known?” she asked, leaning up on her tiptoes to steal a quick kiss.

“No. Never. Please, go on.” Victoria laughed hearing him fish for compliments and slid herself in front of him as he pushed the cutting board to the side.

Continue Reading: "97: Change in Command – Pt. 1"

96: Crime and Punishment - Pt. 3

“Shelly, thank you for coming in,” Victoria said, placing a bottle of water on the coffee table in front of her before sitting next to her. Mike took a seat across from them both and Derrick leaned against the bookshelf in the back of the room, observing the discussion.

“Of course. Will was a close friend, even though we were exes. I wanna help you find who did this to him,” she said, cozying onto the couch in the lounge.

“We understand you and Shawn are currently seeing each other?” Mike asked.

“That’s correct.”

“How did your evening start?”

“At work; like always. I’m a medical resident at the local hospital. I’ve been putting in countless hours trying to prove myself to the hard ass attending I have. After work, I went home, showered and got to Ryan’s place at 8:30.”

Continue Reading: "96: Crime and Punishment - Pt. 3"

95: Crime and Punishment - Pt. 2

Madison County Jail & Detention Center – Present

The metallic clang of doors echoed in the tiny interview room as Ryan Turner was escorted inside. Dressed in prison orange and handcuffed in the front, Victoria and Mike watched as he was transferred from one guard to another and his restraints were removed.

“Hello, Ryan. My name is Victoria and this is my partner, Mike,” Victoria smiled, making introductions.

“Nice to meet you. Elena said you’d be reaching out,” he sighed as he made himself as comfortable as possible in the seat across from them.

“Yes, we spoke to her about your situation and wanted to hear your side so we’ll know where to begin our investigation,” Mike explained.

“What’s the point? No one believes I didn’t do this. The prosecution is doing a great job of railroading me and making that jury believe I belong here. There’s no way I’m getting out of here,” he said hopelessly, dropping his head into his hands.

Continue Reading: "95: Crime and Punishment - Pt. 2"

94: Crime and Punishment - Pt. 1

Ryan Turner’s Apartment – Three Weeks Ago…

“Finally!” Ryan exclaimed as his last guest, Dan, arrived. After a quick look around, he grabbed a drink and took a sip before addressing his friends. “I hope everyone has had enough time to study over their invitation. We will begin in just five minutes. This is going to be a much different experience than previous parties. Tonight, I’ve pulled out all the stops.” 

Continue Reading: "94: Crime and Punishment - Pt. 1"

93: Never After – Pt. 3

“Chaos demons are some of the toughest supernatural beings to vanquish,” Derrick said, realizing they were in for a difficult battle.

“That’s great to hear, Derrick, for a minute there, I thought you were going to say we were doomed,” Victoria joked. “How do you propose we fight a demon that feeds off magic?”

“And therein lies the crux,” Derrick replied.

“Kron has been consuming the life forces of our residents. He has made it nearly impossible to sustain any kind of living without the constant threat of war. Our combined magics have not been able to drive him out and at this point, he’s become immune to our spells and enchantments. But you, you’re not of this world. We are hoping, desperately, that somehow your magic can defeat him,” Callon said.

“I don’t know how successful I’ll be, Callon, but I’m willing to try. Where can we find him?”

“He’s taken up residence near Serenity Falls. It’s the large waterfall near the center of Niellon.”

Continue Reading: "93: Never After – Pt. 3"

92: Never After – Pt. 2

“Where are we?” Aria asked, taking a step closer toward Mike. He wrapped an arm around her waist as she looked at their surroundings. “Are we stranded on a deserted island?”

“Aria,” Mike sighed, “There’s something I need to tell you and you may find it a little hard to believe.” He glanced over at Victoria and she nodded. It was something she needed to hear because whatever awaited them in that jungle was certainly of mystical origins. “Magic is real.”

“What do you mean?”

“Fairytales, folklore, myths all of it; it’s real. Witches, vampires, even leprechauns, all of it is real.”

“Mike, are you concussed? What are you talking about?”

“Show her,” Mike said, looking again at his partner.

Continue Reading: "92: Never After – Pt. 2"