Page 90 of Lahaina Noon

“Hmm, somehow I doubt I’m very welcome, but I’ll take it for now,” he drawled. He walked around Bridget and Vaughn, circling, appraising them. “My, my, how the little Drake has grown. I see you found mommy dearest and dear old dad, too. What a sweet reunion that must have been. But now, you have something much better. A yummier prize for me to take, isn’t that right, Bridget dear.”

Vaughn growled.

“Oh, come now, Drake, do be a good sport. After all, you took my trophy. I can’t see a reason why I shouldn’t take yours.”

“Why?” Vaughn gritted through his clenched teeth. “Why are you so intent on killing us? We would have left you alone, we could have lived in peace. Why would you lead your own people to slaughter? What do you get out of it?”

Azrael laughed, a slightly unhinged sound. “Oh, silly dragon. Why not? Why be content with second place when you can rule the world?Be Lord of all, making the silly regular humans worship me. You’d never let that happen. The Wielders and the Dragons, favorites of the gods. And for what? Just to wipe us all out like some experiment gone wrong? Never again. I won’t be second or even third to you animals again. Animals, that’s what you are. And the wielders who prostitute themselves to you just to enhance their elemental magic. It’s disgusting. But not her.” He looked Bridget up and down. “This one has pure power, light and energy, so much more than the rest of them. I’m willing to overlook the fact that you’ve been with this animal, and I can take his most precious possessions.”

A shadow snaked up towards Bridget’s throat. She flinched, and he pulled back.

“Oh yes, we mustn’t damage the goods now, should we? After all, it needs a little more time to be done and I don’t want you to shock me again. That hurt,” he snapped at her. Then he resumed his drawling tone that set her teeth on edge. “So, tell me, dear Bridget, will you truly give both of your lives to me if I promise to leave little Drake and his friends alone?”

She nodded, unable to speak. She saw Vaughn looking at her from the corner of her eye, confusion clearly on his face.

Azrael noticed it as well. “Oh, this is just too delicious. He doesn’t even know what he’s giving up, does he? I cannot wait to tell him. No, better, Bridget dear, you tell him. So it hurts him more when I take it.” He turned her to face Vaughn, then clapped like a child at the circus.

Bridget took a deep breath, looked up at the sky and counted down.30, 29, 28.She smiled at him. “Vaughn, I love you with all of my heart.I can’t wait to spend the rest of our lives together.” She turned back to Azrael.

“No!” he yelled, “That’s not what you are supposed to say!”

She stepped closer to him.15,14,13.

“Azrael, have I told you what a stupid name that is, like really, Angel of Death? Giant ego much? And seriously, why do bad guys always have to monologue? It’s so cliché. It always happens. They start talking and don’t realize they’re wasting time. Although I guess it does serve its purpose. Allowing us time to set things up.”

She watched the shadows getting rapidly smaller and turned back to Vaughn,5,4,3, “Before I end him, would you like to at least get in one good punch?”2,1.

He saw the shadows around the man disappear completely and broke into a feral grin, “With pleasure.” He advanced on the Shadow King.

Azrael laughed. “Nice try, but you can’t touch me. I’ll just do this.” He stood there. Nothing happened.

Bridget clapped slowly. “Nice job, really, standing like a statue? Great likeness, but you talk too much. Vaughn?”

Vaughn threw all of his weight into smashing Azrael’s face with his fist. The Shadow King dropped like a sack of wet oatmeal. Vaughn smiled at Bridget, “Yeah, that felt really good.”

“Be a dear and get him back on his feet for me. I need him standing,” she told him.

Vaughn dragged Azrael to his feet, where he stood, wobbling under the sun directly overhead. Bridget turned her face up to the sky andinhaled deeply, feeling the light filling her up. She looked back at Azrael who was staring at her warily.

“What have you done?” he asked.

“Who me? Nothing yet. It’s what I’maboutto do. Because you can’t run from me anymore. It’s called Lahaina Noon, Angel of Death.” She waited until the information clicked.

Lahaina Noon. The celestial event that took place around the summer solstice in a few sites on Earth when the sun’s path took it directly over the planet. For a few minutes, the sun’s rays beat straight down instead of their usual forty-five-degree angle. During this time, there were no shadows. A neat science trick for the kids, but for the Dragons and Wielders it was a perfect opportunity to render a shadow harmless.

“And now, you asshole, it’s time for your reign to end.” Bridget reached for him as he tried to run, but Vaughn grabbed him and stopped him in his tracks.

“You can zap me all you want,” Azrael screamed, spittle flying. He was enraged at being played so easily, “But your sparky act won’t kill me!”

She merely laughed and put her hand on his forehead, “I’m not going to zap you, but you know what does kill shadows?” She leaned in closely. “Light.” Bridget focused on the darkness in him and let the light of her magic flow from her body to his.

He stared at her for a moment, not understanding, but then sensed it in his feet, his legs.

She was filling him with light and burning him up from within. Scorching and scarring every surface so he could no longer reachhis dark magic.

He screamed and cried out, begging her to stop, straining against Vaughn’s grip.

She did not stop. The light quickly reached his stomach and his chest, and then it faltered. His heart was so black it resisted her efforts. She closed her eyes and concentrated, pouring more light into him. She shook and trembled with the enormous effort.

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