Dance of Magic - The Books of Beginning [1]

42. Student and Teacher

While Wilamena's astral form tore into the armies of the dead and the Wibberly family fought together against the monsters, Gabriel was in a ghostly battle against Rourke. They did not have weapons with them, but they did have years of experience in battle. Fists clashed into faces and guts, Gabriel's superior training going against Rourke's brute strength and the desire for revenge.

They could not kill each other, since both were already dead, and neither possessed the magic needed to banish one another to the land of the dead. But they could feel some illusion or semblance of pain, though no real wounds occurred and no real bruises would form where their blows landed.

As they battled, Rourke fell back on his old habit of unnerving laughter and constant chatter. He taunted Gabriel at every chance, "why, and here I thought ghosts couldn't get tired, but perhaps you're proving me wrong."

Gabriel gritted his teeth, as Rourke landed another blow to his gut. A burst of phantom pain shot through him, making him want to fold in on himself. But this agony was not going to waste. As long as he kept Rourke busy, the giant could not command the Dire Magnus's army and change their battle plans. The less surprises there were, the better chance they had at winning.

"You know what I wish?" Rourke mused, even as he attempted to grab and twist Gabriel's arm. Fortunately the warrior pulled away.

"I wish we could do real damage to each other. I wish I could really break your leg. I wish I could get my hands on a knife," Rourke said wistfully, "I'd shove it between your ribs over and over and then let you bleed out slowly. Or maybe I'd skewer you in the gut. Wouldn't that be fun and gory, old boy?"

Gabriel did not dignify this with a response, he merely punched Rourke in the jaw.

"Ow! If we were alive, that would have left a nasty bruise," Rourke's quick temper and the heat of a fight with an old rival were consuming him, "Ah, I miss being alive. The screams of the dead are nothing like the screams of the living."

Gabriel kicked Rourke in the shin, hard, causing the giant to take a step back on the creeky old dock they served as their battle ground, "well if you miss being alive because of the torture, then I'm glad I ended you."

Rourke laughed humorlessly, "you really are proud of it aren't you? Of these crackpot old fools that call themselves a magical council and cater to the whims of the powerless humans. You're spineless. You disgust me."

"The feeling is mutual, rest assured," Gabriel replied, "but you can insult me all you want and it won't change that I am a warrior while you are just an overgrown bully."

"We'll see how you feel when I twist your ghostly form into a pretzel and throw you to the hoards that make up my army," Rourke sneered.

Gabriel looked from the corner of his eye. He could see Dena decapitating three screechers at once, with a single strike if her sword. She called out a command to another warrior without hesitation and together they corralled more of the monsters into a corner where they met their end. A small smile crept onto his face.

"But see, it  doesn't matter If you did that. Because you will lose. You drove everyone away. Whereas I have a legacy that lives on through the people I taught and helped," Gabriel said.

Rourke snorted, "is that all you got? Some bumper sticker message about hope? Weak."

His fist collided With Gabriel's face, hard enough that the warrior felt dizzy even though he was dead. Rourke grabbed him by the front of his shirt.

"Your hope and morality can't save you now," Rourke laughed maniacally, dangling Gabriel over the edge of the docks.

"Get your slimy hands off my mentor!" A young, feminine voice cut into the fight.

"Young Emma. What fire you have," Rourke laughed.

"I'm not a joke," Emma snapped, "and I've spent my whole life dealing with bullies like you. You don't scare me."

Rourke's lip curled upward into a sneer, "you should."

"Why? You have no magic, you're dead, Gabriel already defeated you, and besides, after all I've seen and done, it takes far more than a jerk to frighten me," Emma jutted our her chin stubbornly and balled her hands. She was ready for a fight.

Rourke seemed stunned. This young, small girl, all knees and elbows, dared to go against him? It seemed almost comical. But here she was and something about the fire in her eyes kept him from laughing.

Gabriel, meanwhile, had never been so proud in all his life. Emma has not only took his sacrifice to save the world once, she had taken the opportunity to learn once she got the chance. She was bold and brave and learning to cower before no one. She had the makings of a fine warrior. 

If the dead could cry, Gabriel would have shed a tear, he was so filled with pride at his student. Emma really was the daughter of his soul.

Slowly, deliberately, Rourke released Gabriel's shirt. The warrior fell to his feet on the very edge of the dock, which he quickly moved away from. Rourke, in the mean time, was striding forward slowly but purposefully, his giant fist balling. It was an intimidating stance, but he was a ghost. What could he do?

Emma stared him down confidently, thinking the same thing. He was dead and she had magic locked inside of her. So what if she didn't know how to access it, she was still more powerful than him.

This didn't deter Rourke though. He lunged forward, faster than Emma could dodge, going to grab her by the throat. His fingers curled around her neck. Emma gasped. He couldn't lift her up, and no matter how hard he squeezed he couldn't hurt or choke her. But she could still feel the grip of his hand. It was cold, so cold she felt pain, like ice seeping into her veins and trying to shut her body down. She began shaking, so hard that if he released her she might have fallen to the ground. 

"Get away!" She heard an animal roar come from Gabriel, who kicked Rourke in the stomach, getting him away from Emma with all the force of a lion protecting its cub. Emma swayed on her feet, her hand going to her throat. It was cold to the touch.

Rourke disappeared with a final burst of laughter. Gabriel looked ready to chase him down and kill him for a second time. But he stayed loyally at Emma's side, inspection her for damage as her shaking began to subside.

"I do not think there is any damage or long term effect. He did it to frighten you. You must not let him," Gabriel said firmly.

"But how did he do it?" Emma asked with a voice far fainter than usual.

Gabriel replied, "the Dire Magnus must have shared a tad of the power he has revived from this ghost army with Rourke. Rourke seems to be wasting it on intimidation. That said, I am so sorry this happened to you. You have had quite a scare."

"Yeah," Emma admitted, always honest with her best friend, "I.. I feel so shaken, and I kind of want to hide. But the battle isn't over yet, is it?"

"No," Gabriel said, "we have to be brave just a little bit longer. Fortunately, I know you are good at being brave."

Emma did not feel brave. She felt like a child again, a child who just wanted to leap into Kate's arms and let her older sister hide and protect her from the world, but Kate wasn't here, and Emma had vowed to be a warrior. So she merely said, "thank you for rescuing me."

"Of course," Gabriel said, "you have no need to thank me for that. I should be the one thanking you, for coming to my rescue."

He gave her a small smile, and despite everything, Emma returned it, if only because it gave her a spark of hope, knowing that for a moment she was her hero's hero.

"Are you good enough to walk or run?" Gabriel questioned, getting back to business.

"I am," Emma said. Her brain might have been a mess, but her body had returned to normal.

"Then let us find your parents and brother. With them, you will be as safe as you can be at the moment," Gabriel declared, and as they walked away from the dock together, Emma felt a swell of love for one of the few people she could rely on to care for her, even in a time of war, unconditionally.

A/N: The moral of this chapter is Rourke is plain awful and Emma didn't deserve that.