Search for the Crystal Key (A Continuation of Dark Escape)

Chapter 9

Brandon stretched across the soft feather mattress and looked at the ceiling. This was the very same room Tara put him in whenever he was her guest. He thought about the faded disrepair that awaited the room. It was always a shame to see things go downhill and deteriorate. It was fortunate Fiona's spell worked enough to convince Tara's grandmother to will it to Tara with enough stipulations to prompt the girl to keep it and live in it. He hoped that living it would jog her memory, but the veil wove itself tight around her even her studies with Maggie weren't pulling it free. Between the veil and Lucy's forgetting spell, he wondered if she'd ever recall her life with him and the good days before Alana made a mess of it all.

Brandon met Lucy just before the onset of the war. He was immediately smitten by her beauty, poise, and charm. He was delighted to discover she had a head on her shoulders as well. She, on the other hand, was reserved with her affections. With perseverance, he managed to break through the barriers she put between them and won her heart. It was later that he learned the cause of her hesitating was her sister Alana. Having designs on Brandon herself, Alana was immediately consumed by jealousy when she learned it was Lucy he desired. Alana convinced Lucy that Brandon wasn't to be trusted and was possibly even a confederate spy for a war that was brewing. Lucy, she fell for her crafty sister's ruse completely.

Once Brandon convinced Lucy that she had nothing to fear from him, the love between them grew strong and fast. Brandon was devastated when Lucy returned from Shadow Land and didn't recognize him or recall the love they shared. In fact, he sometimes questioned if it was truly Lucy who returned.

When a shadow person took possession of someone, the human's personality shifted just slightly, but still remained basically the same. These subtle differences can be extremely difficult to detect since they could easily be credited to post trauma from the person's recent ordeal. They would be particularly difficult to detect in a situation such as the one with Lucy, where amnesia was involved. He expressed his concerns to Fiona and was assured that she too had thought of this possibility and had tested Lucy's blood in a way only a witch could test. Lucy was indeed their Lucy with no attachments; although no longer whole. It would take time, Fiona told him. In the meantime, they had to get possession of that crystal key before the shadow people did. Hence the drastic and dangerous action of splitting her soul.

Now neither Lucy nor Tara knew him.

Although it was good to be back, he couldn't help feeling nervous about their mission. The shadow people were a formidable lot. Bringing Tara to find and rescue Dennis put her in tremendous danger. Lucy was fortunate to have escaped them and she was a powerful enchantress. Tara still hadn't unleashed those skills and was far more vulnerable. If they were able to break Lucy, what would they do to Tara if she was caught?

There was also the fact that Lucy's body lay in state somewhere awaiting the return of her soul. He couldn't help wondering what would happen now that both bodies were in the same time and vicinity.

He should have told Tara that he was a traveler. More than that, he should have warned her about the dangers of their mission. If Dennis was where he thought he was, it would be difficult to get him back. Although Shadow Land started as the home for the shadow people, invaders from other planets and realms frequently came and infiltrated amongst them, just as they'd done to the humans on the earth plane.

There existed in Shadow Land a large portal that could be easily passed through by an experienced traveler. In order to contain the shadow people as best as possible, the portal was guarded around the clock by some of the fiercest humans. They let no one in and no one out if they could help it. Many a human and non-human died trying. Shadow Land was no longer an easy place to get in or out of.

The crystal key had the power to seal the portal to Shadow Land forever if in the hands of the right people, or open it in any time dimension to the point it could never be sealed if in the hands of the wrong people. Along with the other parts of Lucy's life the amnesia also stole recollection of the key. It was believed she hid it somewhere in the great house before she was taken, but no such crystal was ever found.