36. Sand

Brooke and Meredith fight together to defeat their hunter.

Meredith sighed when she could no longer see the man in black. She saw nothing more than the dark break line of the sky and plains. Still, she was too anxious to sleep. They had ridden for what seemed like endless minutes.

            Brooke remained in shock and her stomach felt restless now. Ross said they were going to the residence of a woman named Mrs. Keeper. She was sure he meant her mother without his knowledge. The further they went, the sooner they would meet her mother, Mrs. Keeper, Rain Sevede. She thought about questions she would ask, things she would say- geeze, what would she say? What would she say to the woman who abandoned her and her father? What would she say to the woman who caused her so much misery? The more she thought about it the more hatred began to build inside her, anger, despair, all the negative feelings a human could bear.

            Interrupted, Brooke saw a shade of darkness pass them. It was a black panther racing against Athena, which she thought very strange, until the panther sank its teeth into Athena’s leg. She roared in pain. Brooke unsheathed her sword and poked at the panther. It bit the blade and tugged her down.

            Meredith held Brooke in place, grabbing her by the shirt. She knew the panther was probably the man in black. A zoanthrope that took the form of a big cat, a prideful hunter would explain his mannerisms. He enjoyed his hunts. Meredith pulled one hand free and shot magic at it. The panther released Brooke’s blade and returned to attacking Athena at the side. Athena roared and Brooke hoped they would reach their destination soon.

Meredith shot magic at him and Athena seemed to be wobbling as she galloped against the ground that turned from a mossy green to a brown, sandy earth. Brooke felt the deepening of her breathing and her stomach nudged her again. She had to protect her. She had to protect all of them. Brooke smelled the salty scent of an ocean and heard its encouraging rush. Athena turned to the side and traveled by the ocean, her paws disturbing the rolling waves crawling on the beach. Although not as full, the moon was beautiful, and its light filled Brooke with a sense of duty. A sense of duty, and a sort of courage. Brooke jumped down and Meredith glanced at her curiously as they left her. She pulled on Ross’s shirt and exclaimed, “Tell Athena to stop, Ross!”

Ross’s eyes narrowed as he looked beyond the darkness ahead and saw they were close to the entrance of the gnome tunnels. He looked back at the concerned princess. “We’re almost there, though.”

“But Brooke- we have to help her!”

Ross frowned. “I understand, but what can we do?”

“I can help her do something!”

“I’m pretty sure, this Brooke wanted you safe.”

A scowl burrowed itself into Meredith’s face and she groaned. Why did so many people feel the need to argue with her as if she was some defenseless child that didn’t know how to do anything? It was starting to sicken her. She jumped down and Athena stopped. She glanced at the princess. “Athena, I will heal you when I return, but for now follow Ross so that you are safe.”

Athena nodded and began to continue. “You’re just gonna let her go off like that?”

“There’s no arguing with a stubborn one like that,” Athena mused and Ross went silent, deciding to trust the stubborn princess.

Meredith ran across the beach to where Brooke and the zoanthrope battled with one another. She watched carefully so she didn’t mess up when she joined. The zoanthrope collided against her with a sword. As they deflected each other, Meredith felt their similar energies, strong and wild.

Brooke flipped backwards, catching his sword as she leaned heavily on her rooted leg. She pushed him to where they stood balanced and she spun her blade in a semicircle to stab him in the jaw, but that failed as he kneed her in the stomach. He gave her one slash from her shoulder to her chest. Brooke scooted back as if withering in fear. She did not fear him, but that wound hurt. She needed to move away so he would not strike again.

The zoanthrope pointed his sword at her, his golden eyes making Brooke feel raw and primal. He cocked the blade up and revealed the black hole of a mini gun. Brooke had only seen such a thing in movies and didn’t believe they existed. Shawn at one time told her it was against the law to make them anymore for some reason. Brooke forgot why. He shot tiny bullets that left earthquakes against the sand. Brooke dodged them.

Meredith reacted, glowed, and shot a blast of magic at him. He crouched and rolled to the side, continuing to fire at Brooke. He flipped his gun and shot at Meredith. Brooke’s heartbeat raced with her legs and the speed of the bullet. She pulled Meredith out the way. She glared at the princess. “What are you doing? Stay out of this.”

“Do you know what a friend is?” she replied. “You have my back and I have yours, got it?”

Brooke shook her head as they, together, dodged the bullets. “No, you are my princess.”

“And as your princess, I demand you denounce my title and let me help you,” she said gently.

Meredith shot bolts of magic at the zoanthrope as Brooke looked for a way to defeat this guy. Brooke grinned; she ran towards him. He shot a bullet at her. She ducked and kicked sand into his face. He groaned. Meredith shot her magic at the gun and it flew into the crest of a wave. The tables flipped and he had to dodge Meredith’s magic as she dodged his bullets. The thing was he was fast. Meredith couldn’t hit him and Brooke didn’t know where to swing. The zoanthrope pulled out something that looked like a five-pointed knife. Brooke saw his eyes look at Meredith. Brooke threw her sword and the blade landed in his throat after he threw the knife. Brooke raced against it and won. At a cost. In an attempt to move Meredith out of the way as she reached to shoot another blast of magic, the knife sank into Brooke’s arm.

The zoanthrope gagged and fell out on the sand. Brooke didn’t want to see if he was dead. She removed the knife, grabbed Meredith’s hand, and they ran to catch up with Ross, Ellis, and Athena. As soon as they reached them, Meredith smiled with victory at Ross. “Let’s carry on, shall we?”

“Sorry I underestimated you.” Ross laughed and he directed them towards the large lever in the ground. Ross pulled it up and a bayou stench erupted.

Meredith grimaced. “Gross, what is that?”

Ross laughed. “I know, I know, but do you want to escape or no?”

Brooke moved her arm to cover her nose and mouth, but saw the wound on her arm. A splatter of blood sat there and her skin had turned a purple color. She felt an intense pain flux through her body. She mashed her lips together as she felt her temperature flare. “Brooke!”

She shook her head and was the first to step into the tunnel. “I am fine.”

Meredith held a concerned expression on her face. “Are you sure?”

Brooke didn’t reply and kept going. The rest followed. Athena fitted like a kitten in there. “I just wish you would trust me a little more, Brooke,” Meredith said and Ross placed a hand on her shoulder to comfort the hurt princess as she watched Brooke stumble down the tunnel.

 

Author's Note

Dear Reader,

Another episode with the emphasis on Brooke and Meredith's bond with one another.

Thanks for reading!

Sincerely JazzSoulKeke,

God bless