Tears blurred Ka’ya’s vision as she struggled to sit up. Reaching for her bow and her sword, she rolled over and used them to demolished remains of the huts. Fortunately, there was nothing left of the creatures that wanted to eat her.

She shook her head, trying to dispel the ringing in her ears. She stumbled forward, nearly tripping over some of the larger pieces of rubble. Turning to look up at the sky, she mentally tried to picture where Alexandru would have landed.

Ka’ya glanced back down. She could hear the sounds of fighting – though it was muted due to the ringing in her ears. Hurrying forward, she turned the corner of the gathering hall and released a startled squeal when a large, booted foot stomped on one of the large gray creatures in front of her. All around her were a bizarre group of people – creatures – battling Jorge’s creations.

“Oh, sorry, ma’am. Topper told us to stomp the beasts. I didn’t mean to startle you,” a booming voice said.

Ka’ya fell back against the side of the hut and watched the massively huge man walk by her. A moment later, more than a half dozen skeletal guards ran by her followed by a dozen or more men riding beasts. She blinked and rubbed her eyes. She could see through all of them.

“There she is! Are you Ka’ya?”

Ka’ya turned to watch two women hurrying toward her. She jerked back against the side of the building in alarm. The lady with the purple hair, only it was green now, was yelling orders and flying on a….

“Is that a broom?” Ka’ya whispered, staring up at the sky.

“What? Oh, yes. Topper is a pro at flying on them,” one of the women said before she smiled. “I’m Sophie, Alexandru’s mother.”

“I’m Nonny. Alexandru’s grandmother,” Nonny said. “Oh, my. You are hurt.”

Ka’ya nodded before she looked around in concern. “Alexandru…. I saw him fall,” she said in a thick voice.

“He’s fine – a broken arm that healed right up in no time. Charles and Alexandru have gone to take care of the idiot human,” Sophie said in a gentle voice. “Come, let’s go inside. Alexandru asked Nonny and me to make sure you are alright.”

“Is it true?” Nonny asked with a wide grin as they fell in on each side of her.

“Is what true?” Ka’ya asked, confused by everything she was seeing. “What are those?”

“That you are married to Alexandru?” Sophie asked before she glanced at the men rushing through the gates. “Dwarves – they are the absolute best builders anywhere and extremely good fighters to boot. They can build you a house and destroy a town before you know it.”

“I need to go help Alexandru,” Ka’ya said, glancing toward Jorge’s hut.

“Let Alexandru and Charles handle it. They know more about Egyptian magic than any of us - well, except for Topper. I believe she spent a few summers there when they were building the pyramids,” Sophie said.

Ka’ya listened as the women talked. All around her was utter chaos but the women appeared to be oblivious to it. She sank down on a bench outside the door of the gathering hall and silently watched everything while the women fussed over her. She was thankful when the ringing in her ears stopped and surprised when the stinging from her wounds went away. All the while, they continued to talk about how excited they were to have her in the family.

Tears blurred Ka’ya’s vision. These beings were Alexandru’s people – they were from his world. How could he ever live in a place where magic did not truly exist? Worse, now that he remembered everything, how long would it before he left?

* * *

Alexandru moved in the shadows of the room. Accustomed to the night, he had no problem seeing in the dim lighting. Across the room, his father moved with the same ease and grace. The soft sound of crying drew both of them to the room in the back.

Stepping into the room, he glanced around. The walls were almost black from the soot of the hundreds of candles burning. Rows of them were lined up in tiers five rows deep and a hundred long. Several ancient symbols were carved into the plaster. The soot had settled in the deeper recesses and made the symbols look almost like they had been painted on the walls.

A soft whimper pulled his attention to where Dru was tied to a chair. Beneath each arm of the chair was a small wooden bucket. The arms had grooves cut into them and Alexandru could smell the stink of old blood.

The room was devoid of furniture except for the chair and a long table up at the front. On the table, the Amulet of the Heart, or Leb as the ancient Egyptians called it, hung from a wooden cross post. Alexandru could see the red glow of the stone and the magic swirling inside it.

“Amateur,” Charles muttered with a shake of his head. “It is amazing that humans haven’t destroyed themselves trying to use things that are better left alone.”

Alexandru’s lips twitched when Jorge rose from in front of the altar. The man had shaved his head and outlined his eyes to look like a long dead Egyptian Pharaoh. He snorted. Magic really didn’t care what you looked like on the outside, it was what you were on the inside that was important.

“You cannot stop me. I am too powerful now,” Jorge announced. “I control the magic of the amulet.”

“No, actually you don’t,” Charles said with a frown, glancing at the wall. “You’ve misinterpreted several of the key spells involved. This does not look good for your wellbeing.”

“Who are you to question me?! I have the power of the Egyptian gods!” Jorge proclaimed with a wave of his hand, causing half of the candles to go out.

“Yes, we know,” Alexandru snapped his fingers and all the candles were instantly relit. “We’ve heard it all before.”

Jorge stared at the flaming candles before he slowly turned his gaze back to Alexandru. He blinked and frowned. With another wave of his hands, the room went dark except for the glow of the amulet. Dru’s soft whimpers grew louder.

“Get the boy,” Alexandru quietly said to his father.

“Alexandru…,” Charles started to argue.

“I’ve got this, Dad. I’ve dealt with a lot of antiquities over the years, including Egyptian Gods,” Alexandru reassured his father. “Take the boy. He doesn’t need to see what is about to happen.”

Alexandru waited until his father gently sliced through the ropes holding Dru and removed the boy before he snapped his fingers. This time, instead of just the candles relighting, the entire room was spotless. The years of soot were gone along with the carved symbols. The gleaming white interior was a stark contrast to Jorge’s dirty skin and clothing.

“What are you?” Jorge demanded in a choked voice, stumbling back against the table behind him.

“My name is Alexandru Carson. I am a vampire and a warlock,” Alexandru stated in a cool, calm voice. For good measure and a dramatic effect, he lengthened his teeth and flashed them. “The mistake you made is your belief that you can control magic. Magic is not a material thing – it is inside you, a part of who you are.”

Jorge frantically reached behind him for the amulet. His hand wrapped around it and he held it out in front of him. Alexandru listened as the man mumbled a series of words that made little sense.

“That is ‘ah bin Re’,” Alexandru corrected.

With a flick of his wrist, the amulet heated until Jorge released a cry of pain and opened his hand. Instead of falling to the floor, the amulet floated across the room to Alexandru. Holding it up by the chain, Alexandru gazed into the deep red stone and murmured a series of incantations. The stone glowed even brighter.

Alexandru released the chain and watched the suspended amulet spin until it was a blurred stream of red. The red glow slowly developed into the figure of a tall, stately man. A wry smile curved Alexandru’s lips when the man gazed around him with a puzzled expression.

“Hi Re,” Alexandru greeted.

“Alexandru! It has been too long!” Re replied with a frown. “Where am I?”

“I’m not exactly sure what planet or realm this is. Tory was pissed at me and used her far, far away spell,” Alexandru admitted with a grimace.

Re chuckled and glanced over at Jorge. “Who is the low class peasant? A servant? You really need to give him a raise,” he suggested with a raised eyebrow.

“No, a slow low-life who thought he could use your heart to gain access to the underworld and do some bad shit,” Alexandru replied.

“Ah, one of those,” Re replied with a shake of his head.

“I…. This isn’t supposed to be like this,” Jorge said.

Alexandru’s eyes narrowed when Jorge felt along his side. Just as he expected, the man raised a trembling hand. In it, he gripped an old German issued handgun.

“I’m already dead. Whatever that does won’t hurt me. Now you on the other hand, it might not kill you but it could hurt like a son-of-a-bitch,” Re reflected.

“Have you been tapping into the cable networks again?” Alexandru growled under his breath.

“I’ll be the first one to admit I’m addicted to GoT. If I could bring half the actors and actresses into the underworld, I’d put them on permanent rerun,” Re chuckled.

“I am an Egyptian God!” Jorge shouted, his eyes flashing with insanity. “I am all powerful.”

“No, you are dead,” Legend replied, releasing the string of his bow.

Jorge’s eyes widened in disbelief. The long shaft of the arrow pierced his chest and lifted him. His body slammed into the back wall and hung there. His head slowly bowed and his hand rose to grasp the arrow. Alexandru felt no pity for the man who had feasted on the misery of others.

“Hi, Legend,” Re greeted.

“Hello, Re. Long time,” Legend replied, lowering his bow.

“Do you have room for another in the underworld, Re?” Alexandru asked as the light faded from Jorge’s eyes.

“I’ve always got room for one more,” Re chuckled, beginning to glow. “Can you put my heart in a place where some idiot isn’t likely to find it again, please?”

“Of course,” Alexandru replied. “See you around.”

“I hope not until after the season finale of GoT,” Re chuckled.

Alexandru watched as Re reached out and pulled Jorge’s body off the wall. He didn’t envy the crazy doctor. He was sure Jorge was about to get a rude awakening.

“Where is Ka’ya?” Legend asked.

Alexandru plucked the red amulet out of the air and pocketed it. Releasing a curse, he pushed past Legend and out the door. Hurrying across the center of the village, he searched for his mother and grandmother.

“Where is she?” Alexandru demanded in a tight voice, glancing around. “Did you find her?”

“I… Yes, we found her,” Sophie said with a worried look at her mother.

“We healed her as well,” Nonny commented, biting her lip.

“Well, where is she?” Alexandru demanded.

“She left,” another woman said.

Alexandru turned on his heel and stared at the woman holding the young boy against her side. Dru gazed back at him and grinned. From the clear expression in the boy’s eyes, he had a feeling his mother and grandmother had healed more than Ka’ya – they had healed the sickly boy and erased his memories of what had happened.

“Where did she go?” Alexandru asked Ka’ya’s mother.

“She went to the forest,” Mayli said. “She won’t be coming back.”