Ancient Mystic's War of the Realms Saga - Lady Adellandra Dratianos (books to read in your 20s .TXT) 📗

said, I was born of the Dragon Nations, so I guess the purity of that Realm lies within me.” He shook his head. “I have never given in to darkness. Sabrina’s inner light has kept me sane when insanity threatened to take hold. Just the thought of her goodness keeps the true fire-demon of my soul at bay.”
“Now there is a Dominionite trait I see often.” Maximaniac said. “Selfishness.”
“Oh, nay, my Lord Maximaniac.” Cyrix supplied. “I think of her first, not of myself. If you would give me the chance, I can show you my sincerity. I wish to be on the side of the Ancient Mystics, not Orthos.”
“Look at me, Cyrix.” Maximaniac said softly, calmly.
Cyrix once again met his eyes. They studied each other.
“If what you tell me is the truth,” Maximaniac started, but didn’t finish his sentence. His voice carried off until it was silenced.
He cleared his throat and called Jezebel to his side. With her came a very quiet Sabrina.
“Aye, my Lord?” Jezebel nodded.
“It is decreed. Sabrina and Cyrix will reside in the castle, not the dungeons.” Maximaniac barked the command. “Heavily guarded and watched at all times, but they will have their own private quarters in the tower.”
“Max!” Jezebel objected.
“I will explain later. For now, lead them to the tower.” Maximaniac was adamant.
Holding her breath, Jezebel nodded. “Aye, my Lord. Cyrix, follow me.”
The magical shackles around his neck, legs and arms were undone, vanishing from sight. Cyrix stood and took Sabrina’s hand, sending warmth through it. He shared one last look with Lord Maximaniac before disappearing with Queen Jezebel and Sabrina.

III

Once Shadow told him everything he needed to know about the upcoming war in the Dream Realm, Jamie “Jammins” Stewart was well aware of what to do. He was reminded of the Crusader Oath he’d taken years before, its main message clear in his mind. “To help those in need, whenever deemed.”
Late at night, he fingered the Dream Locket around his neck, thinking back to the days when he would fight Dominionites and demons, saving innocent Dreamers from their own nightmares and fears. He thought his heroic days were over when the second Dream Realm Crusader team was announced. His life calmed down for a long time, with no worries in his mind, only memories of his many adventures in the Dream Realm.
Years later, it would seem his life was once again getting interesting. He knew it from the moment he could see the Grand Magus in his Dream Realm. Something big was going to happen, and it would change their lives. Again.
Julie had been with him in the Dream Realm, he’d taken her there himself. Problem was, Julie couldn’t see the Grand Magus when she appeared. Somehow, the thought bothered him.
Two weeks after moving in, with the hustle and bustle of the move itself, it was time to settle down. The excitement in this world may have waned, but not that in the Dream Realm. He tried not to think of the Dream Realm when he was with her, but it was ingrained in his body and mind ever since the second Dream Realm War, also known as the first Dream Realm Crusade.
“What are you thinking about so intently?” Julie purred in his ear, kissing it.
Jamie was sitting on the couch in the living room, surrounded in darkness. He knew she tried to startle him, but it didn’t work. He used to be a famous System detective agent. Nothing could scare or startle him; he was that good.
Instead of answering, he took his wife into his arms and passionately kissed her.
“Wow!” Julie giggled, settling herself on his lap. “What was that for?”
Jamie sighed. “I love you, Jules.”
“I love you, too, Jamie.” She touched the strange necklace around his neck, only to gasp.
“Jules?” Jamie asked, worried. “What is it?”
“That’s what I’d like to know.” She stared at him. “What is that thing?”
“It’s a Dream Locket.” Jamie explained. “It’s my link to the Dream Realm. Don’t you have one?”
“Not like that.” Julie supplied. She fingered it. “Shannon did give me one, telling me about the Dream Realm somewhat. She never told me you had one, too.”
“It was given to me a long time ago, during the Dream Realm Wars for Power.” Jamie decided to be truthful. As an Earthly Protector to an Ancient Mystic, he owed it to her.
His mind ran through the memories and nightmares the Wars for Power invoked. He was only a kid, and his life was changed forever. The pain of fighting a demon foe, the horror of seeing so many friendly Companion Creatures die in front of him. It was almost too much to bear.
“What happened then?” Julie asked softly, now seeking to soothe his inner demons with a touch of her hand to his face. “Tell me.”
“I can’t.” Jammins said softly, taking her hand in his. “I was sworn to secrecy. We all were.”
“Please, Jamie.” Julie kissed him tenderly. “Don’t you trust me?”
If Shadow and the Grand Magus were right, Julie needed to know. After all, she was an Ancient Mystic, too. She had to have faced her own kinds of demons growing up as an Ancient Mystic child. Learning to control her wild magic so no one would suspect or fear her. Not knowing what she was doing at the time, how she was from a special family. It was only when her cousins Ariana and Luna married at the System that she found all that out. Until they left for Hill View after their honeymoons, they helped Julie’s twin sister Shannon teach her what she was. Not a demon, not a witch, not a freak of nature or something to be feared. An Ancient Mystic, powerful in her own right with magic in her soul.
“I do.” He said. “Really, but it’s all hard to explain.”
She smiled at him, her silver-blue eyes kind and patient. By the moonlight that shone through the window, he could see how beautiful they were.
“Why don’t you start from the beginning?” Julie whispered. “It’ll come to you.”
“I was abandoned by my parents when I was nine.” Jamie started in a whisper. He let his mind drift in memories, his mouth telling the sad tale. “Dixilynne Ryan, your aunt, came to me, and took me home to the System. She gave me a place to live, food to eat, everything I’d need to grow up. I idolized her, and agreed to follow her lead from that day forward. I found my niche in no time: electronics. I was a genius at it, and still am.”
“I know that, just tell me.”
“I was twelve when my best friend Chips Deneson and I stumbled upon the Time Bandits.”
“Time Bandits? What are they and what do they have to do with the Dream Locket?”
Jamie smiled. “You’ll see. Just let me tell the story without interruptions, okay?”
After wrapping her arms around his neck and kissing him again, she nodded. “Gotcha. No interruptions.”
“Fine. As I was saying, Chips and I stumbled upon a program for holograms. Real-deal, energy-pulsating, fully-interactive holograms.” Jamie supplied. “Knowing Shannon had to know, we told her about them. Turns out, the two holograms we dubbed Alex and Gloria, were ghosts, searching for their time-traveling killers. After going back in time and avenging their deaths, they were sent to the Dream Realm. We put an axe to the program not long after that. Shannon, Chips, and I were the only ones to know until terror struck the Dream Realm.”
Julie gasped.
“Its Lord Guardian was killed in a brutal war a year later. Wanting to reverse her father’s death, Dixilynne put me on a special project. Dream Realm Crusader. With me was Chips, Shadow, Shannon, her boyfriend Nick, her best friend Bridget “Big Guy” Guy, junior-nurse Loraine “Love Joy” Joyce, and her sophisticated all-glamour best friend Cynthia “Cool Cat” Marshal. Dixilynne hand-picked us for the project. We were the best of her young recruits, each having qualities she needed. We were supposed to Crusade to the Dream Realm seven years in the past using the Time Bandit program and fight in the Dream Realm Wars, saving Lord Guardian from certain death.”
“Obviously, it worked, right?” Julie asked, incredulous. “We’re all here, Lord Guardian is alive and all that. There’s peace in the Dream Realm now, isn’t there?”
“If only it were that easy.” Jamie shook his head and fingered the necklace. “During what we now refer to as the second War for Power and the first Crusade, each of us were given a Dream Locket by Lord Guardian and Mistress Enchantra. We could Crusade to the Dream Realm much easier using the Locket and a Chant. Soon, each of us found we had different powers, but they were limited to the Dream Realm. In the Dream Realm, I was a fierce and loyal knight, which is why I was dressed the way I was when I showed you my Dream Realm. It was my own Dream Realm persona, Jammins.”
“What about here?” Julie asked.
“Shortly after the Crusade, I found my work with electronics was easier.” Jamie supplied. “I had a kind of insight to any gadget imaginable. Over the years, I honed my special ability. Much so, I am able to actually ‘see’ in my mind intricate patterns and designs that make things work. Should there be something wrong with the gadget, I only have to touch it to see in my mind how to fix it.”
“That’s amazing.” Julie breathed. She stared again at the Dream Locket. “You’ve got a great house, a loving wife, two nearly-grown stepchildren, and a successful new job. Why are you letting it bother you now?”
Jamie knew the question was coming, and there it was. He needed to tell her the truth, but he didn’t want to frighten her. She was no Ancient Mystic fighter, she was still getting her wild powers in control. She wouldn’t be able to fight against demons and Dominionites in a war.
“I can learn to fight, can’t I?” Julie seemed to read his mind.
Jamie explained what Shadow and the Grand Magus had told him. The upcoming war in the Dream Realm was going to be harsh, and the Ancient Mystics needed every available fighter in order to win it.
“Now, I’m not saying it’s going to be easy, because it’s not.” Jamie warned. “We lost a lot of Companion fighters during the Wars for Power. I don’t want to lose you, too.”
Julie stood. “You won’t lose me. I’ll have Ariana or Luna teach me how to fight with my magic. I want to fight in this war, I don’t care if it is in the Dream Realm. I’ll be strong and brave, and not cower away like a frightened child. You’ll see.”
“You still haven’t got a grip on your more advanced powers, Jules.” Jamie pointed out. “I don’t want to see you hurt.”
“I won’t be hurt with you beside me.” Julie said. “No matter what, we’ll stand together. As a team.”
From above them, they heard a low male voice. “We want to fight, too.”
It was Charlie, with TJ beside him. With a wave of a hand, TJ turned on the lamp.
Jamie and Julie exchanged glances. “How long have you been there?”
“Long enough to hear your story.” Charlie supplied seriously.
“And long enough to know we want to help.” TJ said, with Charlie nodding.
“What about your powers, TJ?” Jamie asked. “You haven’t been practicing lately, and I happen to know you still can’t control half of what you learned.”
“That may be true, but I have others like me that can help me learn.” TJ interjected. “Ariana, Luna, Aimee, Aaron, and Kelly can help us learn.