Title: Pulled From the Brink
Source: Thursday photo prompt: Rift #writephoto
Word count: 678 words
“Is this where it happened?” I asked.
Greggory nodded, as he scanned the clearing. I sensed his nervousness, and his desire to be anywhere except standing on this fractured rock and holding a lance with a flag tied its handle. I couldn’t blame him, poor thing. Greggory may not have been bright, but he had certain desirable qualities and I understood why Lindor kept him around.
“Greggory?” I caught his attention, compelling him to look at me before I continued. “Where was your master standing?”
Hunching his shoulders, Greggory shivered and jabbed his finger towards the opposite end of the fissure. I moved to where an area looked as if someone had scrubbed it clean and stepped into the middle of the spot.
“Here?”
“Please, have a care. Don’t stand there,” Greggory said as tears welled.
“We’re almost done, Greggory. One more thing and you can leave,” I smiled as I tried to calm him and myself. “Are you ready?”
He took a deep breath and looked into my eyes.
“Then you promise? I can go?”
“I give you my word.”
Greggory gulped, blinked several times then stood tall and said, “Ready.”
“Can you plant the lance where Ju-long stood when your master disappeared?” I asked and watched as terror threatened to consume him again. “Greggory, I need to know, if we have any chance of locating him.”
“But I don’t want to.”
“You trust me. Right? And I promised I wouldn’t let anything harm you. And nothing will. I ask because it’s important.”
He stood silent and unmoving. I wondered if coming here was a mistake if we had lost Lindor. I tried to stay calm, willing Greggory to cooperate. When I had almost lost hope, he turned and walked to the clearing’s edge. When he stopped, he glanced, adjusted his position then planted his flag in the ground. I waved, and he ran.
Birds chirped in the trees and a gentle gust tugged at Greggory’s colorful banner. The sense of serenity masked the vibrations emanating from the spot where I stood. It was my turn to be apprehensive as I prepared for the or task ahead.
I pulled the ancient words from the depths of my memory. As I spoke the breeze intensified, dark clouds gathered, and lightning flashed across the sky. I reached forward gathering Ju-long’s residual magic as Greggory’s spear trembled then bent towards my hand. The rock rattled, the rift oozed smoke, and I thought the entire world might crack in two. Still, I chanted and hoped.
Lindor’s voice whispered in my ears and I strained to decipher his words.
With each repetition of the incantation, Lindor’s chant grew stronger, louder. He spoke with me, our voices united. I felt his magic growing, fusing with mine. The strength he wielded was intoxicating, and I grasped it, clinging to it with one wish. I wanted his power. An explosion ripped through my head, a concussion slammed into my chest, throwing me into the air and my perception of reality ended.
When I awoke, Lindor’s face filled my vision. He smiled.
“There you are my greedy little savior,” he chuckled as he tussled my hair. “No time to lie about. Get up, get up,” he commanded and clapped his hands.
“What?” I asked, as Lindor stood and rubbed his palms on his sooty robe. I looked around the clearing where everything appeared the same as when Greggory and I first arrived. Everything except the rock where the great fissure had vanished.
“Come now, we can’t say here. It’s not safe you know,” Lindor picked up his staff and walked towards the trees. “And what have you done with Greggory?” he called.
I smiled and followed.
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Jo Hawk The Writer
Jo Hawk 