He realized too late that something had been placed behind him. It was a small figurine that looked like a wolf carved out of black metal, which reflected the light coming from his El’aras dagger. The wolf started to shift, shimmer, and then it began to grow.
Gavin shook his head. “This is a mistake.”
“Mistake or not, you came here. You attacked my people. I suspect you would—”
Gavin lunged and stabbed the El’aras dagger into the growing wolf’s back. He had no idea if it was even going to work, but as he jabbed it down, the dagger flashed with another burst of white light. The sculpture shattered.
Somebody nearby cried out. Gavin spun, turning to the others in the room. Many of them went racing toward the shelves on the walls.
“If you want to keep anyone from getting harmed,” he whispered through the enchantment, “you need to help.”
“What do you want me to do?” Gaspar asked.
“You were the constable. Figure it out.” Gavin darted forward, turning toward Mekal and Kegan first. They were heading for one of the shelves, reaching for enchantments.
Gavin flipped, the energy of it carrying him up and over them. He kicked softly, though with enough force to incapacitate, and he caught Mekal in the forehead. The boy stumbled backward.
Kegan grabbed something off of the shelf and held it outward. Gavin braced himself, holding the El’aras dagger out from him. The dagger absorbed the brunt of the attack, sending the power streaking off to either side.
He shook his head. “You’re making a mistake.”
Kegan held out whatever he’d grabbed, forcing it toward Gavin. “No.”
Gavin dropped low, twisting his legs in a scissoring technique, and he caught Kegan and flipped him to the ground. The boy’s head crashed into the stone and bounced. The sound was almost sickening, but hopefully he hadn’t fallen so hard to have crushed his skull.
At this point, Gavin wasn’t even sure how he needed to feel. They looked like children, but he had a sense that perhaps they weren’t children at all. Magically enhanced in some way…
But was that all they were?
With other magical beings, they looked human. The El’aras looked mostly human, but they were not. There were others in the world that looked… different. Most of the enchanters he’d met were human.
But could there be something else? What did I really know about enchanters, other than the fact that Alex was one?
And Alex was with Jessica. Wrenlow. Imogen.
Gavin tapped on the enchantment, and he quickly whispered, “Wrenlow, if you’re paying any attention, you need to be careful with Alex. I don’t know what sort of enchantments she might be hiding from you.”
There wasn’t any response, but that didn’t necessarily mean anything. It was possible that Wrenlow was tied up with whatever research he was looking into at this point. He hoped that Alex hadn’t escaped them, and he hoped she wasn’t doing anything right now.
Gavin shifted, turning toward several of the other enchanters. Three of them converged on him, and all of them held items in hand. Gaspar snuck around the backside of the room.
“Listen. All I need is the jade egg,” Gavin said, looking past the three enchanters approaching and trying to get Zella’s attention.
“What makes you think I’m going to provide you with the jade egg?”
“What is it?”
“Something we’ve been trying to reclaim for years,” Zella said.
“Why?”
She shook her head at him. She nodded toward the others, making a motion with her hands. They were facing Gavin, but they reacted to the motion she made.
Could that be another enchantment?
This place was a storehouse of enchantments, and he could imagine how they might be used.
Hell, he wanted to go through everything in here to see what there might be. Despite what he’d told Gaspar about not wanting or needing enchantments, there was still value in them, like with the enchantment he communicated to Gaspar and Wrenlow through. He could think of other enchantments that would be equally valuable to him if he were given the opportunity to use them.
He turned toward the three oncoming enchanters. He was prepared for whatever they might do to him. But he wasn’t ready for how quick they were.
They streaked toward him, and Gavin did the only thing he could think of.
He jumped.
Training kicked in at that point. While in the air, he spun and stretched his legs out from him on either side, and the momentum carried him around. One foot struck the shoulder of one of the enchanters and sent them spinning off to the side. The other missed, but as Gavin came back down, he chopped with his arm, slicing toward them. The blow was hard enough that he knocked one of the enchantments away from the attacker.
He darted forward, using a burst of power from his core reserves, giving him a hint of speed. When he slammed into the third enchanter, they collapsed.
Gavin raced forward, holding onto the El’aras dagger. Resistance pushed against him, but he ignored it.
Then he reached Zella.
He pressed the dagger underneath her neck and held her tightly from behind. “Call them off.”
As he looked around him, he could see the other enchanters getting back up, turning toward him. Some of them, including Mekal, remained down. Still, Gavin worried that even a few enchanters organized would be more than what he could withstand.
“I’m not calling them off. They’re doing what they are instructed to do. They are protecting me. Our people. Our—”
Gavin shoved a little harder than he intended. The El’aras dagger cut the skin of her neck. Blood trickled down the blade, causing the glow to surge brighter.
“Call them off,” he hissed.
Zella stiffened. “You wouldn’t hurt me.”
“Who do you think I am?”
“Gavin Lorren. The tracker.” She flicked her gaze up to him, though it lingered on the dagger. “I know Davel Chan hired you to find the egg.”
“You got the name right, but you don’t have the occupation right.” He pushed her forward, thrusting her toward the others. Gaspar
