Turned To Stone

Chapter 19 - Evan

Evan stayed in his seat, fidgeting nervously, as the Murphys searched for a vial of petrification remedy for Zoe. He could hear occasional thumps from upstairs, and he was sure that it was Connor throwing a fit in his room.

He didn't know what to do. He should go get Connor, make him come back downstairs- they'd asked him to be the mediator for the two of them until this mess was over and that would be the best way to do it- but what if Connor tried to hurt him? He was big and strong, sure, but he didn't know how to defend himself much.

No they needed to work this out because there were monsters everywhere outside and people were going to get hurt- they were probably already hurt and maybe dying but he couldn't think about that because then he'd fully panic-

Zoe dropped onto the couch, growling audibly. "He said he wouldn't do that."

'He didn't do it on purpose.' Evan signed nervously when she glanced at him. 'He seemed upset that he did it.'

"I doubt that." Her lip curled.

'Zoe stop it.'

She sighed heavily and sat up, reaching for the book again. "Sorry, Evan... he just isn't doing himself any favors!"

'It doesn't matter, he's beating himself up over all of this that happened and other people laying into him isn't going to help.'

"Right, right, whatever. Where did that book go that you found that note in?"

Evan looked around, then grabbed the spellbook and offered it to her.

Zoe sighed and began to flip pages again. Evan fidgeted nervously with his shirt hem.

"Hang on... this page has something on it that it shouldn't...." She flipped back a page or two, inspecting it closely.

Evan peered at it. "Th-that's- that's the gorgon- the g-gorgon page." 

He half expected a sharp reply, but Zoe just nodded, still staring at it. She had the book lifted up so it was super close to her face.

"There's magic on it!" She suddenly exclaimed, holding it up. "The entire page is covered with incantations, way more complex than anything I can do... Mom?"

Cynthia, who had gone into the kitchen, poked her head into the living room again. "What's up, sweetie?"

"Do you know the spell that wipes incantations?" Zoe held up the book. "This page on gorgons is all covered in spells and I'm not strong enough to remove them."

Cynthia walked over, taking the book from her daughter and peering at it curiously.

"These are complex spells... It's going to take me a few minutes."

She set the book down on the coffee table in the living room and held her hands over the pages, palm down. The spells she was muttering started out at a whisper, but slowly picked up volume and intensity as she worked.

Zoe and Evan watched in fascination. Evan really hadn't seen much magic at all. His mother hardly used her magic anymore.

"There we go." Cynthia finally said when her hands stopped glowing purple. "That should be all of it."

Zoe grabbed the book again, scanning the page.

"This is- this is completely different." She frowned. "The writing looks ancient, and it's all wrong from what we learn in school."

"Read- read s-some of it- of it aloud?" Evan suggested, curious.

She nodded and adjusted her grip on the book, following the spindly cursive with her finger to keep her place.

"Gorgons are natural predators, being equipped to outfight every enemy that comes their way. They are usually benevolent, and older beings are capable of forming fangs that produce an anti-petrification saliva." She paused, wrinkling her nose. "So Connor would have to bite people, like vampires do? Gross."

Evan laughed a little, but it sounded weak to him. He was keeping himself from rattling loudly by sheer willpower.

"Oh wait, what's this?" Zoe moved a little further down and began to read out loud again. "In situations where a gorgon has been seriously threatened, their body can sometimes emit pheromones that turn nearby creatures to their side. This ability is known as the Beastly King's Attack. If a gorgon possesses this ability, creatures around them will do their bidding without question, and they are temporarily immune to petrification."

She set the book down, frowning. "I wonder if Connor has that. It would be strange... do you think it would affect you? It says creatures like it means those of lesser mental capacity-"

At the same time, things slammed into the building on all sides. Zoe screamed a spell, instinctively summoning a knife, and Evan leapt to his feet, ready to run in any way he needed to. Larry came running from the kitchen, holding a huge serrated knife.

There was silence for a few moment, then a series of quieter taps, all in unison.

After a few moments footsteps pounded on the stairs.