Fated Hearts Ch. 10

Knowing Pavla, Thessa decided that Eric was too special to be kept in this place for long...which meant he was here now for only a short time, or he was in some other part of the tunnels being tortured. Thessa was afraid to even reach out with her mind; for fear that she might encounter Pavla. In the mean time she slowly walked past the cells, hoping for a faint smell of her mate or a sign that he was behind one of the heavy wooden doors. There was one guard at each end of the dungeon room, both eyeing her warily. They were both were lions, Thessa could tell, because their large hands sported wicked looking talons, and their hair was cut to look like wild manes. She suppressed a shudder and continued down the hall slowly.

She knew that once she reached the end of the cells she'd have to turn around and leave. If she stayed too long, the guards would get suspicious and alert their mistress. She passed one door and stopped. She could feel the pull of her mate even through the heavy wooden door. Thessa took a deep breath and on the exhale slowly and confidently chanted the spell Morgana taught her.

"Think of what you want. Like If you want something to hide you from viewing eyes, picture smoke and mist and shadows to cover you and chant this: 'excito silentium, evoco umbram' three times." The powerful witch instructed her. Thessa felt a little crazy reciting Latin as she never really tried to speak it before, but the four simple words sounded easy enough. She remembered when Morgana showed her that the proper incantation yielded a shroud of slowly billowing black smoke. When the smoke dissipated, Morgana explained that except for the person casting the spell and the person for whom the spell is intended, no one else can hear or see anything which made for a good getaway. The only downside was that you had to be doing absolutely nothing except reciting the spell.

Thessa wanted to jump up and down when she saw the smoke rippling through the dungeon like dense fog, after she repeated the spell three times; she shifted into a mouse and squeezed under the crack in the door. On the other side, the smoke was clear, and she saw Eric lying on the bed quietly, his breathing shallow.

"Baby, wake up!" She shook him gently. He groaned and rolled over.

"Thessa." He sighed; his tired face broke into a weary smile as he reached up to touch her face.

"Yes, it's me, we have to go, and can you shift?" She pulled him into a sitting position, surprised at how easy it was to move him. He was weaker than she thought.

"Here, take this, we're going to get you out of here and then we can—" she slipped his amulet over his head when she was interrupted by the door swinging open.

"YOU!" Pavla's dark presence choked the little air out of the room like weeds in a flower garden.

"You're stealing my specimen! Thief!" She shrieked, lunging for the couple. Her sharp nails peeked out from the sleeves in her robe as the inky blackness of her magic shot out like physical ropes to wind around them. Thessa hissed in pain and fought back her revulsion at the rotten smell of death surrounding their captor.

"I guess it's only fitting that you'd come here trying to rescue him. Then it's only fair that you see what I'm going to do to him." Pavla motioned for the guards to hold them and come after her.

"This is so perfect, isn't it? So fitting that I watched my mate die and now you get to watch yours die. Isn't it perfect? And look at him all weak and defenseless." Thessa tried to ignore Pavla's voice and the crushing grip of the guard as his strong fists squeezed her soft skin. The feeling of dread in the pit of her stomach intensified with each jarring step they took. She felt Eric's eyes on her and looked at him. The striking orbs of gold signifying his wolf were on full display.

Not now, oh please Eric, hold him back. We can't take her now!She pleaded with him silently.

Thessa we're getting out of here, you came for me, and whatever she has planned is not going to work. I've been working on blocking the spells she's using on me by strengthening my mental barriers. Her magic is heavily based on mental submission...I don't know what that means for my body, what she has planned.He sounded exasperated and Thessa felt herself relax in the guard's grip. He had a plan, she surely didn't have one anymore.

Why didn't I listen to dad? I should have waited for backup...She stopped herself when she realized that the thoughts she was having weren't conducive to a successful rescue. She forced her mind to empty itself of doubt and fear, drawing instead on Eric's confidence and surety that they would find another plan to help them escape.

I forgot to tell you that your amulet won't work unless you say the spell for it.Thessa looked over at him.

"For now...I think I'll keep you in the same holding cell. Well you can't really get anywhere outside of the lighthouse anyway It's protected with magic." Thessa tuned out Pavla's rambling as she focused on sending Eric the spell.

Apere contege. You have to say that or else she will be able to do whatever it is she wanted to do. For now, we have to pretend that whatever spells she casts actually work, or else she'll get suspicious.Thessa saw him mouth the words and felt relief flood her. They would be safe from Pavla as long as she didn't notice the protection amulets. Eric's was hidden under his shirt, but Thessa was painfully aware of the cold glass nestled between her breasts.

The guards stopped at another chamber off the main tunnel, this one stocked with piles of homespun clothes. Pavla threw a dress at Thessa and she hurriedly pulled it over her head, glad for the covering to hide her charm and her body from the searing gazes of the were-lion guards.

Thessa closed her mental connection to Eric when she noticed that they stopped at the spiral staircase Eric showed her in his dream. The guards flanking them blocked any escape and they were forced to keep moving up the staircase. When Thessa began to tire, she felt the guard behind her push her forward with a heavy hand. Eric growled in his throat, and rested his hand on her lower back.

I can't wait to kill those buffoons and get out of this hole. Remind me to burn this place down and seal all the underground tunnels up as soon as we get back.He said to her. Pavla stopped at the top of the staircase and turned unlocked a door. The room inside had one narrow cot and a table with a rickety looking chair. "This is the guest suite. I hope you enjoy your stay." Pavla's bone chilling laugh bounced off the stone walls as the guards pushed Eric and Thessa inside. They heard the lock click shut and in a matter of seconds, Eric reached for Thessa.

"I've missed you" He squeezed her to him. She felt a tear drop onto the top of her shoulder and seep through the thin material of the threadbare dress.

"I missed you too. We will get out of here." She promised and clung to him. A wave of heat settled low in her belly as he stroked his fingers over her thick hair.

"What should we do now? I had a plan and Stephan is outside the lighthouse waiting for me to bring you out the same way I came in and I don't think we can get out of here with you as weak as you are unless..." She trailed off.

"Unless what?" Eric asked settling down with her on his lap.

"You can still talk to Stephan right? I don't know how to communicate with him mentally, but he knows how to do it with me..." She got out of his lap and started pacing the length of the small room.

"If I communicate with him tell him where we are, he can bring reinforcements with him from both our packs. Then I can get you out and kill that maniac." Eric said from his position on the bed.

"I'm not leaving you to face her alone, Eric. If she's going down, I get to have a chance to help you. You aren't even nourished properly. Can you shift? I had a full night's sleep and I ate dinner last night. I can distract her while you get enough energy to go in for the final kill." She reasoned.

"Okay, fine. If you could have gotten out of whatever situation you were in alone, then you can definitely help me in this one. Thank you." He grabbed her hand to stop her from pacing.

"Come lie down. I'll contact Stephan and then we can rest for a bit if we're going to go through with this when she comes to get us."

They laid like that for what felt like days, not doing anything; just touching each other and kissing. Thessa dozed off and woke up to find Eric laying on his side of the tiny cot looking at her. She reached up to trace a new scar just above his lip.

"How did you get that?" She frowned, leaning closer to inspect it.

"Talking back." He grinned at her and she felt her heart skip a beat.

Eric watched her swallow hard and lick her lips. He groaned and kissed her, swirling his tongue with hers, reaching down to cup her breast in his free hand before pulling away.

"I don't think we should do anything until we get out of here at least." Thessa said, trying to catch her breath.

"Right." Eric tore his eyes away from her swollen lips to regain his composure.

"I contacted Stephan about ten minutes ago and he said he was going to rush back with as many people he can get. I think he sent out a mental signal to them and they'll meet at your parents' before they come back here." He explained.

"What are we going to do on this end?" She asked, lacing the fingers of one hand with his.

"I have some strength; I can use the chair as a weapon. What I need you to do is create a diversion so that I can handle Pavla and then I can use whatever energy I have left to shift and take care of the guards." He explained slowly and quietly.

"Okay. Well I can't take the guards all by myself, but I can cast a spell. But I can't be doing anything except casting when I'm doing it. So until you take out Pavla, I can't help." Thessa whispered back excitedly.

"Okay, sure. We need to get out of the lighthouse as quickly as possible."

"Well the main entrance at the bottom of the tower is locked with magic. I'm not sure how...oh!" She looked up at him with a wide smile.

"I can use my dream magic to unlock it." She kissed him quickly.

"Yourwhat?"

"Dream magic: It's what made the map and the hair that was on you stay. I can subconsciously alter reality or something when I'm unconscious." Thessa explained, giving Eric's hand a squeeze.

"I believe you. I don't know how we're going to get you unconscious. Do you have any practice outside of sleeping?"

"No..."

"Then how are you going to do it?"

"I don't know. Okay. New plan: we let her take us wherever she's planning to take us so that we can keep her distracted and let Stephan kill the guards." Thessa said quickly.

"I can take off my amulet and..."

"Thessa, you arenottaking off your amulet. It's the only way we can be protected against her. If anyone takes their amulet off it will be me." Eric interrupted.

"Well then we have a problem don't we? Who takes off their amulet: the one who is too weak to do anything or the one who has had rest and knows some magic?" Thessa argued hotly.

"Well I'm taking mine off, yours better stay on." Eric threatened.

"How about we both take them off let Stephan deal with the guards and then we can deal with her together? Didn't you say that you could control the amount her attacks affect you? I got the chance to learn a few offensive and defensive spells. And I have my dream magic..." Thessa tried to reason.

Eric groaned and pulled her closer. "That sounds like complete garbage..."

"Because it is, Eric...we don't have anything else. If we just do what we plan to do this time, we can beat her. If all of her guards are trying to fight off the equivalent of a small army of combat trained shifters, there will be none to defend her. It's two against one in that case." She pulled back to look up at him.

"Okay. Let's do it." Eric nodded resolutely.

"When do you think she will be back?" Thessa let her head rest in the crook of his neck and inhaled his scent deeply. She was glad to be with him, even if it meant their fight wasn't over yet.

"Do you want to sleep a little bit? You need all the energy you can get if we're going to pull this off." Thessa suggested. She reached up to stroke his soft hair and smiled when he relaxed against her.

"You know I can't leave you vulnerable like this for long. I'll take a short nap." He yawned.

Thessa smiled as she watched him fall asleep almost instantly.

~*~

"How long have I been out?" Eric yawned, passing his hand over his face.

"A while... I really don't have a perception of—" Thessa stilled as she heard a loud boom.

"What the hell was that?!" She sat up quickly.

"Explosives...Stephan must be blowing up the chambers underground." Eric waited for to her calm down before getting out of the bed to stretch his legs.

"Why would he do that? Did you tell him we were in the tower?" She looked up at him with wild eyes.

"Yes. We have to hurry. If she's figured out what is going on down there she'll be rushing up to finish her ritual on me." Eric slipped his amulet over his head and placed it on the bed.

Thessa pulled hers off too and picked up Eric's before smashing them on the ground. She didn't want there to be any chance of Pavla recovering their contents and using it against them. She felt herself shake with excitement and fear as Eric settled on the bed behind her and pulled her into his arms.

"Whatever happens, Thessa... can you promise me something?" He started. They could hear footsteps on the stairs thundering toward them.

"Eric, we're going to get out of here." She covered his mouth. She couldn't bear to hear him speak like that.

"I love you." He cupped her face in his hands, kissing her deeply while mentally steeling himself against whatever Pavla would throw at them through the door.

"I love you too. Did you shut down your barriers?" She asked urgently against his lips.

"Just be prepared to throw whatever spells you learned against her as soon as she comes through the door. Don't close yourself off completely; just enough to be mildly affected." He muttered, sliding off the bed at the last second.

The next few minutes were ones of chaos. The door flew open, bursting from its hinges as the enraged figure stood on the other side. As Pavla stormed into the room, Eric smashed the chair against her face, stunning her momentarily. Blinding white smoke filled the room and obscured everything from sight. Eric and Thessa watched as Pavla rose from the floor, erasing Thessa's fog with a flick of her wrist.

"You actually thought thatstupidlittle magic trick would work against me again? Come!" She jerked her hand as if pulling on a string; Thessa felt her body pitch forward and watched as Eric followed suit.

In the spirit of fighting, Thessa allowed her fear to intensify as she clutched at the doorway in a final attempt to break out of the spell Pavla cast on them. She grunted in pain as her sensitive fingertips were bruised by the rough walls and let go abruptly. They were pulled up the rest of the stairs to the lantern room which had an alter set up in the middle where the light was supposed to be. Spatters of dried blood were spread in a circle. The smell of rotten flesh was strong in the air and Thessa held her breath to save herself from gagging. She watched as Pavla walked up to the circle and motioned for Eric to be shackled over it.

"I guess by now you've realized that you won't make it out of here alive. Your friends have been very thorough in trying to rescue you by blowing up my tunnels and killing my guards but I have little use for them anymore." Pavla let her robe fall revealing her perfectly supple naked body.

Thessa struggled against her bonds when the witch began painting her body with a jar of liquid near the base of the circle.

"It's my mate's blood. I'll have him back here soon enough." Pavla lovingly stroked the orb of light at the end of her long silver necklace.

Thessa felt helpless to do anything. How had the plan she and Eric made gone awry so quickly? The spell Pavla used to hold her in place was too strong for her to circumvent with just her shifter abilities. Her wolf surged wildly as she was forced to watch the witch paint a pentagram into the hair on Eric's stomach. He remained unnaturally still as she touched him. Thessa locked eyes with him as a sudden understanding washed over her. The only way she could do anything was to leave her body and stop Pavla that way.

It's like your dream magic, only awake.Her wolf howled with excitement.I'd have to knock myself out first.Thessa added. The wall behind her felt sturdy enough and she slammed her head against it so hard she saw stars before the world faded to black. When Thessa woke up a few minutes later, she looked around and saw her body slumped against the wall still held in place by the magical bonds.

The spirit world was like peeling back a layer from the real world. Thessa watched as other beings moved past her seemingly oblivious to her presence. She turned back to reluctantly watch as Pavla chanted and drew more symbols. In her astral state, she saw and felt the magnitude of the spells and shielded her eyes against their almost physical brightness. She looked around for any possible avenue she could to block or divert the spell Pavla was casting. The lone figure in the corner caught her eye. The fact that a ghostly form of her former Alpha stood close gave her an idea.

Thessa figured that once Pavla released Eric's soul from his body, Sorenan's was supposed to jump in. If she could find a way to maybe permanently release Sorenan's soul from the spirit world...her pulse jumped at the idea. She noticed the sun setting out of the corner of her eye. She was sure that the ritual was supposed to coincide with the time that Sorenan died. Her gaze swung back to the glowing orb at the end of Pavla's necklace. A smile lifted the sides of her mouth as her plan made more and more sense to her. Once the sun set and the rituals were almost completed, she had to somehow destroy that orb to destroy the remnants of the old alpha. She had a feeling that burning the circle of blood surrounding the altar was part of it too. She looked back over to her body and floated close. She sucked in a deep breath and reached for the now visible bonds of magic. She sighed with relief when she wasn't burned, but they came undone slowly and watched her body slide slowly to the floor.

Thessa remembered that Morgana told her most spells won't work unless the caster is focused solely on the magic and nothing else. As she jumped back into her body, she didn't even notice her head wasn't hurting. Adrenaline forced the pain aside as she shifted into the snake she used to kill Dennis. She slithered quickly over the floor and quietly shifted back. Pavla was deep in concentration, but Thessa could feel her anger and ripped the orb and necklace from the other woman's throat. An almost inhuman scream of despair tore from Pavla's throat as she watched the faint light die out as the orb was smashed on the ground.

"What have you done?!?!" She screamed, lunging for Thessa.

Thessa cringed and prepared herself for the attack. She opened her eyes in surprise when she felt a warm spattering of liquid on her face and arms.

"Eric, get Thessa downstairs. We're burning this place down." Stephan's voice echoed through the room forcefully. He knew Thessa was probably too shocked to move on her own so he unstrapped Eric.

"Thessa let's go now. It's over. Let me take you to the hospital." He gently lifted her into his arms, ignoring the tingling feeling in his arms and legs as blood circulated through them again. Pavla's lifeless body lay slumped over on the floor, a pool of dark, sticky blood ran in the cracks on the floor and a group of Weres surrounded the body to take it away. Excitement and relief coursed through him, but he held it back. Thessa did a brave thing to save them, something he couldn't do, and he was afraid of losing her now.