Adventures in Summoning

Chapter 16

Riding Quin might be the best feeling ever. Wait, that sounds wrong, let's try that again. Flying while on Quin's back is amazing. I was laying on her back between her wings as her back and shoulder muscles contracted and relaxed while we flew through the night sky. I had my arms hooked under her, trying not to be a perv and feel her up by accident as she banked to the left while descending onto my Nana's house. The flight was over too soon, and she reached around to grab me as she dropped lightly to the balcony that Helen had assured us was the best way into the house.

"Thanks for the lift, be careful," I whispered. She grinned, and nodded in reply, then leapt up into the air, her wings flapping into the darkness.

I found myself crouching on the second-floor balcony that was attached to the guest suite of my Nana's manor. We had waited until dark, and then Quin had flown me over the walls, and landed as quietly as possible. Helen had told us this was the safest time to go, but that didn't mean it would go perfectly. Quin had taken off to get the girls, and so I sat and shivered. Not just in fear, but it was also a little chilly with the sun being down and clouds covering the moon and stars. I peered over the balcony, and through the windows, but couldn't see any movement, which was a great sign.

It took Quin only a few minutes to bring Dee over the wall to me, and then another few to fetch Helen. Once we were all together again, Helen strode over and slowly opened the French door to the suite. It was a good thing she had unlocked it the other day, but with her visions that made sense. She peeked her head in, and then crooked her finger at us to follow.

The giant house was silent, everyone was either asleep or had gone home. I don't know why they were, but Helen had assured us that everyone was out of this portion of the house. Part of me wanted to stop and see my Nana, to make sure she was alright after the confrontation, but this wasn't the time. If my grandfather were there, it would ruin everything. Instead, we slowly tiptoed our way down the halls and stairways till we got to the library.

In the library, Helen moved over to the bookshelf and pushed a small button under a shelf near where my grandfather had appeared, and the bookshelf pivoted inward revealing a small flight of stairs leading downward into the darkness. She stuck her hand out to flip a switch, and a series of small strip lights on the stairs turned on, providing dim illumination. She motioned for us to follow her and headed down the stairs. The rest of us were all close behind.

The stairs seemed endless, and we must have gone down past the basement, as many steps as there were, before we came to a small room, maybe a dozen feet on a side. The room was bare and lined with cement blocks with a polished cement floor. In the far wall was an archway made of black bricks, and the inside of the archway was what looked to be a rippling black sheet with glittering blue flecks. Or was that fabric at all? It moved like a silky fabric but seemed endless.

"What is that?" Dee asked, wonder in her voice.

"That is the gateway to the nexus. Through that is how we get Quin back home," Helen explained.

"So, I guess we should just step through now then?" I inquired.

"Yep," Helen stated.

"No, you don't need to go. I can go alone from here," Quin assured us. "You all have done enough already."

"Quin, stop it," Helen blew out a deep breath. "You know we have to go through that with you, we have to help you."

Quin looked down, obviously upset about the situation. "I can't ask you to do that. This war is not your war."

"You're not asking," I put my hand up on her shoulder, which was a stretch since she was still in her half-dragon form. "Helen and I are a part of this. Our grandfather is attacking you, this war is a part of our legacy as well. We don't want our family doing this, and we'll help you stop him. Dee is simply crazy I guess," I smiled over at Dee, who really didn't need to go, but who seemed determined to, nonetheless.