Leyla's Locket

Rainbow - Prologue

Leyla's Locket
Prologue
Paige Jackson

The sun was inching towards the horizon with the promise of another spectacular West Texas sunset. Fifteen year old Cressida Hammund was curled up in her window seat. A large dusty tome lay open in her lap, largely ignored as the teen stared dreamily out the window. She was supposed to be studying wards, but found it hard to concentrate because the music from her sister's room next door was so loud it was actually making the walls shake. Cressida knew she wasn't supposed to use her magic for trivial things, but convinced herself there was a real need if she was going to get any studying done.

She focused her mind, gathered her strength, and built a shield around herself. The commotion next door was reduced to a bearable drone. With a sigh she pulled her eyes away from the window and buried her nose back in the book. She was stuck at a passage that she had read several times, and still didn't understand. Maybe if she wrote it out herself, it would be clearer.

Cressida had just placed her feet on the floor when the door to her room flew open. Standing in the frame was a mysteriously clothed person, dressed entirely in black. From the black work boots and gloves, to the hooded full-length cloak, not an inch of flesh was visible. In the second it took her to note the details, the stranger raised a hand and a stream of flame shot straight at her. If not for her shield she would have been dead where she stood. Instead the flame deflected off her and shot sideways at her bed, which erupted like a volcano with flames licking greedily at the ceiling.

With the invader in black's attention on her bed, Cressida focused on the two ivy plants beside the door. The plants stretched out leafy vines and encircled the stranger's black boots. Her attacker, caught off-guard, fell to the ground with a thud. Cressida raced for the door, leaping over the fallen form and landing in the hallway.

She beat furiously on her sister's door, "Gytha, we're being attacked, get out, get out of here, run . . . Mom, Dad, help!"

Thick black smoke was now pouring out of her bedroom and she looked up just as the dark foe appeared in the doorway. Again the hand raised, and this time the force of the flames threw Cressida down the hallway. Her shield held long enough to protect her from the flames, but not from the corner of the stairwell. She collapsed in a heap, blood trickling freely down her forehead.

The unknown assailant now focused on Gytha's door. The door exploded inward and the hall was suddenly filled with booming, angry-sounding music. Cressida's parents appeared at the top of the stairs just as silence enveloped the hall. Then they heard Gytha scream and a gray wall of smoke streamed out of her doorway.

"NO," Sierra Hammund screamed and raced down the hall to save her daughter. She dove through the smoke and disappeared into the room. Frederick stopped to check on Cressida, healing her head wound with a quick wave of his hand.

"Put your shield back up Little Bird, and get out of the house. Go to your safe spot and I'll . . ."

His words were cut off by a scream of pure pain from Gytha's room. Sierra was now crying incoherently, "This cannot be . . . this just cannot be . . . how could you . . . " Cressida heard a loud whoosh and her mother's crying silenced.

Frederick stood up and started toward Gytha's room just as the cloaked assassin reappeared at the door. Wave after wave of flame was thrown at him, but he never faltered and each wave was thrown to the side. The entire hall was now on fire in places, and Cressida was finding it almost as hard to breathe as it was to see. Frederick began to glow as he gathered power to himself, his anger and pain almost doubling his effort. He raised his arm and brought it down in a slicing motion. A spear of light, so bright that Cressida saw the image every time she closed her eyes over the next few hours, shot towards the shadowy form. The light caught the hooded person in the chest, lifting it up in the air and propelling it backwards. With a sickening thud the evil being landed at the end of the hall.

Frederick pursued the figure down the hall, blocking Cressida's view. Suddenly her father stopped and dropped to his knees, an inhuman scream wrenching from his throat. He turned back to Cressida, tears running down his face.

"I love you, Little Bird. You must not waste time mourning us. Remember the good, use that for strength. You must discover and complete the Rainbow Quest . . ."

With that her father closed his eyes and Cressida was surrounded by warmth and love. The air grew bright around her and she closed her eyes by reflex. A quick blast of wind tore by her and suddenly the smell of smoke was gone.

When she opened her eyes, she found herself on the other side of the ranch. It took hours to make her way back home, and when she arrived it was to find her house nothing but a smoldering pile. Fire trucks surrounded the structure, and the red flashing lights rendered the scene surreal.

In a daze Cressida approached the ruins of her happy home. Standing by one of the trucks was a tall handsome man in his 30's, wringing his hands nervously. When he spotted the lone, desolate girl making her way up the drive, his eyes lit with joy.

"Cressida, oh thank heavens you're all right. Do you know where everyone else is? They haven't found any bo. . . uh . . . well, there's no sign anyone else was inside."

Cressida looked up into his familiar eyes and forced herself to say the words she had been avoiding for the last few hours, "They're all dead Uncle Weldon. They were all in the house. This stranger broke in, shooting fire . . . Dad . . . he sent me to the other side of the ranch, his eyes . . . he knew . . . knew he was going to die . . . they're all . . . they're . . . dead . . . "

Cressida collapsed into the arms of her father's best friend, who was now her legal guardian, and dissolved into tears repeating over and over, " . . . they're dead . . . "











What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us.
- unknown