The Everafter War Read online

  “‘The pack’ ? What’s ‘the pack’?” Daphne asked.

  Before anyone could hazard a guess, a crashing sound came from deep within the trees, and then a creature as big as a jumbo jet flew overhead. It had red wings and a long tail. Sabrina knew anything that big and fast couldn’t be good news. Worse still, it was not alone. A second creature appeared. This one was green and covered in black spikes.

  “There’s another one!” Daphne cried, pointing to a third creature. This one was purple with a white snout. Fire blasted out of its nostrils and lit up the sky.

  “Dragons!” Uncle Jake cried. “We need to catch up with Briar and the fairies now!”

  “Dragons, your target and her cohorts have fled into the woods,” the mayor bellowed. “Retrieve them any way you can, dead or alive.”

  The creatures flew deeper into the forest with amazing speed. They cleared huge swaths of trees with fiery blasts, trying to get a glimpse of their prey.

  Daphne commanded the carpet to chase after the dragons. Sabrina tilted her wings and followed, still surprised she could fly at all. If she hadn’t been so terrified, she might have enjoyed it. But flying through the trees was treacherous. Several branches scraped her soft belly, and a few lashed her face. As the trees got denser, even the carpet couldn’t navigate around them without a few scrapes. Thankfully, Sabrina soon spotted Briar and her fairy godmothers, racing on foot through the brambles below.

  “Carpet, down!” Uncle Jake shouted. A moment later, they were hovering in Briar’s path.

  “Get on,” Uncle Jake said. “They’ve sent dragons after you.”

  “Dragons!” Briar cried. “Where did they get dragons?”

  “Briar, you go with them. We’ll have a better chance of escaping by air,” Buzzflower said.

  “She’s right,” Mallobarb added, taking out her wand. “And they might find we’re a little harder to kill, too.”

  Briar climbed up onto the rug. Jake clung to her and kissed her deeply.

  “I don’t know what I’d do if I lost you,” he said.

  “It looks like I almost lost you,” she said, eyeing his wounded shoulder. “What happened?”

  “It’s nothing,” he said, quickly. “Daphne, get us back to the camp.”

  Sabrina turned to the fairy godmothers. “If you lose us, it’s at the farthest edge of the barrier.”

  At that moment the purple dragon’s head dipped down through the trees. The creature studied the group with its bulging yellow eyes.

  “Daphne! Go!” Uncle Jake begged.

  “C’mon, rug!” Daphne shouted, and the carpet shot skyward, narrowly missing the dragon’s fiery breath.

  Sabrina followed as best she could, flapping hard to fly higher and higher. When she felt out of danger, she moved in a wide circle above the forest. Daphne, Jake, and Briar Rose were speeding along below, and the two fairy godmothers were rapidly firing magical attacks at the dragons.

  Unfortunately, Sabrina’s feeling of security was short-lived. She saw the red dragon rising from the ground like a missile, its deadly mouth open wide. She swooped suddenly to the left, dodging its jaws as they clamped down just inches from her. The creature’s gnashing teeth sounded like a car crash.

  She flew to the left, then to the right. The monster’s breath scorched her tail feathers. No matter where she went, it chased her. Even when she dropped back into the trees, the dragon smashed through them, pulverizing huge oaks and giant maples as easily a child running through tall grass.

  Sabrina knew she couldn’t outrun it for long—she was already tired, and the tree limbs kept clipping her wings, making it impossible to coast on the breeze. When a stiff limb caught her across the chest, she tumbled to the ground. The fall shook her, but she staggered to her feet and hopped along the forest floor.

  The red dragon crashed to the ground, blocking her path. Its head dipped low to scrutinize her. The creature let out a satisfied chuckle. It reared back, inhaling deeply into its mouth and nose, apparently preparing to blast Sabrina. She knew there was nothing she could do to escape, and she braced herself for death.

  “Run, child,” a voice called from above. Sabrina looked up to see Buzzflower floating above the dragon’s head. She waved her wand at the creature, and a bolt of blue energy exploded into the dragon’s chest. The dragon screeched and fell backward, landing with a loud thud.

  Sabrina turned and fled as fast as her legs would allow, until she heard a horrible roar. She turned to see flames rising up into the trees. Had Buzzflower been hit? There was no way to know, but Sabrina feared the worst. She heard more angry roars, saw more fiery blasts, and suddenly the dragon was in front of her again.

  “Fine! You want to kill me, I’m right here!” Sabrina shouted. “But don’t be too proud of yourself, lizard face. I’m weakened by this stupid spell. If I was my normal self, you would never stand a chance against me.”

  “You speak gibberish, child,” the dragon said. Its voice was like a thousand volcanoes exploding at once.

  Child? How did it know she was a child? She looked down, wondering if he could see through her magical transformation, and saw that her feathers were gone. Her wings had vanished. Even the hard yellow beak was nowhere to be found. The magic had worn off.

  “Great,” she grumbled. “It wears off just in time for me to be roasted like a marshmallow.”

  “Not tonight, big sis!”

  Suddenly, Daphne hoisted Sabrina up onto the flying carpet. They darted away, the monster roaring in frustration.

  “See? I told you it was temporary!” Daphne said.

  “You did not,” Sabrina challenged, trying to get her bearings.

  “Well, I meant to,” Daphne said. She turned to Briar Rose and Uncle Jake. “Dudes, can we slow down on the kissing? We need all the magic we can get. What do you have in that jacket that fights dragons?”

  “Preferably something with instructions,” Sabrina added.

  Uncle Jake pulled out vials of strange liquids, weird rings and amulets, and even a smelly fur hat. He laid them all on the rug for Daphne and Sabrina to examine.

  “It’s not much, ladies, except maybe this will help,” he said, choosing a small black coin from the pile. He rubbed his hand over it for a moment, and it began to spin.

  “What is it?” Daphne asked.

  “You’ll see,” Jake said.

  The dragon brushed the rug, causing them to spiral out of control. In the collision, Jake fell hard onto his shoulder. He let out a howl and then passed out from the pain.

  “Oh, Jake,” Briar cried, as she cradled his head in her lap.

  “There’s got to be something else in that jacket,” Sabrina said. “Briar, help me search.”

  They shoved their hands into as many pockets as they could until Briar found a small felt-covered box.

  “What’s that?” Sabrina asked.

  Briar opened it. Inside was a bright diamond ring. The stone was emerald-cut and mounted on a platinum band.

  “Is that—” Daphne gasped as she watched Briar Rose slip it onto her ring finger. Though she was laughing and smiling widely, Briar’s cheeks were wet with tears.

  “YES!” she cried. “Yes, I will marry you, Jacob Grimm.”

  “You might want to wait until he’s awake,” Sabrina said, with a smile.

  “You may be right.” Briar giggled and put the ring away.

  Mallobarb joined them, flying alongside the carpet. “My wand has almost no effect on the dragons now,” she said. “It’s only making them angrier.”

  “Where’s the coin?” Daphne begged.

  Sabrina found it lying beside her uncle’s hand. She grabbed it and quickly passed it to her sister. Daphne flipped it over several times and then rubbed her hand over it, just as Uncle Jake had done. Soon, it was spinning faster and faster.

  When the green dragon got close enough, Daphne tossed the coin directly at it, where it landed in its gaping maw. Bolts of lightning sparked out from inside its jaws and erupted
out of its fat belly. The dragon fell out of the sky, but before it hit the ground, it exploded.

  “Gross,” Sabrina said. “Next time, warn a person before you blow a dragon up in front of her. I’m going to have nightmares until I’m a hundred years old.”

  “Sorry,” Daphne said. “I didn’t know it was going to do that, either. Now for the other two.”

  “Shouldn’t we just try to outrun them?” Sabrina asked.

  “You can’t outrun a dragon, ’Brina,” Uncle Jake said, stirring. “I’ve tried.”

  The purple dragon had been circling above them but now dove like a kamikaze pilot. The carpet easily dodged its attack, but the monster was not discouraged. It looped around to attack again. Once again, the carpet swerved to safety.

  “Land this thing,” Uncle Jake suggested. “We won’t have a chance if we stay in the air.”

  Daphne did as she was told, landing in a nearby clearing, where they were joined by Mallobarb and Buzzflower. Uncle Jake struggled to his feet and shooed everyone from the rug. He begged the fairy godmothers to help find shelter for the others.

  “Use whatever protection spells you know,” he commanded.

  The fairy godmothers didn’t like Uncle Jake’s demanding tone. They frowned, but Briar spoke up. “Just this once—don’t argue. He’s trying to help.”

  Mallobarb forced a smile and led the group toward the safety of the trees just as the purple dragon landed hard on the ground in front of Uncle Jake. Jake didn’t even flinch. In fact, he smiled.

  “You are either brave or stupid,” the dragon croaked.

  “Maybe a little bit of both,” Uncle Jake replied. “In fact, many of your kind would say the same of you for challenging Jake Grimm. But I don’t expect you to know who I am. I suppose you don’t get out of town very often.”

  “I’ll consider myself warned, human, and I will return the favor. I’m about to roast your bones. You should run.”

  “No need,” Jake said as he dug into his pockets. “I happen to have the Amulet of Roona.”

  “Liar,” the dragon growled.

  “No. It’s right here,” he said, fumbling nervously.

  Sabrina pointed to the handful of rings and necklaces Daphne held. “Could one of those be the Amulet of Roona?”

  Daphne cringed. “Uh, Uncle Jake, what does the Amulet of Roona look like?”

  “It’s a black necklace with a silver crescent moon.”

  Daphne sorted frantically through the items she’d taken from Jake’s pockets. She held up a necklace that looked exactly like the one her uncle described. “Um, is this it?”

  “Fudge.”

  The dragon chuckled and took a deep breath. Sabrina could hear the flames building inside its throat.

  Uncle Jake shoved his hands into another pocket, but it was too late. The dragon blasted him, and the flames engulfed his entire body. His body darkened until it looked like a piece of charcoal, his features reduced to those of a volcanic rock. After what felt like minutes, the fire was gone. The forest was full of smoke and cinders that burned Sabrina’s eyes.

  “No!” Briar cried. Her fairy godmothers tried to hold her back, but she broke free and ran to Jake’s charred body, which was frozen in place like a statue.

  Tears spilled from Sabrina’s eyes. Daphne was in hysterics, sobbing and trembling. Briar collapsed. Mallobarb attended to her, but she was just as shaken, her face cracked and confused.

  “We should go,” Mallobarb said to Sabrina. “The beast will turn on us.”

  Sabrina shook her head. If they wanted her to leave, then they would have to drag her away. She would fight the dragon with her bare hands now. Briar seemed to feel the same way. The princess lunged at the monster, kicking and punching at its huge, taloned feet. The dragon looked down at her as if she were some minor annoyance—like an ant invading its lunch—then swatted her away. Briar slammed into a tree. There was a sickly crack, and she collapsed to the ground.

  “Briar!” Buzzflower cried, rushing to her side.

  “Who’s next?” the creature hissed.

  Sabrina braced herself for death, but something stole the monster’s attention away. Something was happening to Uncle Jake’s body. The smoldering black shell that covered him split. Pieces of it fell off and crumbled to dust on the ground. Inside, completely unharmed, was her uncle, and in his hand was a dark-green crystal, glowing like a small star.

  “Luckily, I always keep a spare invulnerability crystal on me, in case of emergencies,” he said, then reached, once again, into one of his pockets. From it, he pulled an impossibly long broadsword. It was now clear to Sabrina that his jacket was just as magical as the things he stored inside it. In one quick motion, he lunged at the dragon, shoved the sword under its chin, and easily sliced through the creature’s steel-strong skin. The dragon let out a muffled cry and then, with a ground-shaking thud, fell over dead.

  High above, the red dragon roared in rage.

  “You want some?” Uncle Jake laughed. The dragon flew off. “That’s what I thought, punk!”

  “Jacob,” Buzzflower said to get his attention.

  Jake turned to her and saw his fallen girlfriend. He raced to her side and cradled her in his arms.

  “What happened?” Uncle Jake cried.

  “The dragon—” Sabrina started, but it was all she could muster before tears took over.

  “Briar? Briar, honey. Wake up for me,” Jake begged. “We’ve got to get her back to the camp. Nurse Sprat can help. She’s got medicines, and I’ve got—”

  “She’s gone, Jacob,” Mallobarb said.

  Uncle Jake buried his face in Briar’s hair and he wept. “No, no, no.”

  Sabrina and Daphne stood on the edge of the clearing. For the first time in days, they hugged each other like sisters.

  6

  The sisters, their parents, and Granny Relda stood in the huge crowd gathered around a vacant space in the camp, now designated as a cemetery. Mr. Canis stood shoulder to shoulder with Robin Hood and Prince Charming. The three men somberly gazed down at the crude casket Geppetto had built for Briar. Pinocchio had helped carry it to the plot where her body would rest. Red Riding Hood placed a bouquet of wildflowers she had gathered along the camp’s walls in Briar’s hands. Briar still looked beautiful, as if she were once again the sleeping princess from the storybooks.

  Uncle Jake stood with Mallobarb and Buzzflower. The fairy godmothers sobbed, while Jake stood still and silent. His love for Briar, though new, was well-known throughout the town, and the refugees felt his heartbreak.

  Daphne was inconsolable. She clung to her mother, weeping. Elvis sat next to her, licking her wet cheeks. Sabrina wanted to be strong for her sister but choked back her own sobs.

  “Today is a dark day for us,” Prince Charming said as he stepped before the grave. “We have lost one of our own and one of our most precious. Like many of us, Briar Rose came to America aboard the New Beginning, searching for a new life. She left a kingdom and a family behind, but she brought with her two fairy godmothers, Mallobarb and Buzzflower, who have been by her side for nearly seven hundred years. They have kept Briar safe from wicked witches and from a foolish husband.”

  The crowd chuckled. It was rare for Charming to speak of his relationship with Briar.

  “Sadly, the reign of terror that has affected all of our lives has taken its first victim. Briar was killed by one of the Master’s dragons, and—”

  “They have a dragon?!” Little Boy Blue cried. The crowd fell into fearful chaos, but Robin Hood begged everyone to remain calm.

  “They have more than one,” Charming said. “Jacob Grimm managed to kill two and chased off a third. There could be even more.”

  “Where did they come from?” Morgan le Fay asked. “I thought the Grimms had all the dragon eggs.”

  “We have those that we were given to look after,” Granny said. “But not everyone was willing to part with their enchanted possessions, and my family has never forced them to.”
>
  Charming raised his hand for the crowd’s attention. “We can discuss this issue later. Now, I would like to let the people who knew Briar Rose the best speak about her,” Charming said. “Starting with myself. I found Briar’s castle centuries ago, wrapped in a thorn hedge. My youthful zeal for exploration and treasure drove me to cut through it, but I didn’t know the actual treasure I would find. Briar was one of the most beautiful women I had ever met. But her truest beauty was internal. She was, above all, kind and patient, thoughtful and encouraging. She could be smart, funny, and wise. I was not the husband I should have been to her. My heart was somewhere else, and she knew it even better than I did. She set me free. She never held a grudge. She was gracious about the end of our marriage and moved on to a new, happy life. I was not a good man when I met her, but I am all the better for having known her. I count myself as one of the luckiest people in the world for having shared a life with her. I will miss you, Briar.” Charming welled up but pulled himself together. “Now, I’d like to ask Mallobarb and Buzzflower to speak.”

  The fairy godmothers stepped forward and lifted their sad faces to the crowd. “Briar was a brave woman. She was also strong, stubborn, and opinionated . . . but brave,” Mallobarb said, holding back tears.

  “She faced many obstacles in her life—evil witches, monsters, heartbreak—all with determination and a smile . . . and somehow she always came out on top,” Buzzflower said. “Her death was tragic, but it comes as no surprise to us that she died for someone she truly loved. I will miss her humor, her strong sense of right and wrong, and her companionship. Though my sister and I helped raise her, I feel we learned more from her than she ever learned from us. Good-bye, my sweet rose.” She blew a kiss to the casket.

  “Jacob?” Charming called.

  Uncle Jake stepped forward. He turned to the Everafters as if about to say something about the woman he loved. But, instead, he reached into his pocket and took out the box that held her engagement ring. He slipped the ring onto Briar Rose’s finger, leaned over, and kissed her on the lips. Then, Jake rejoined the crowd.

  Charming stepped forward once more. “Death has come to our door. Briar was our first casualty. I know what you are thinking: Casualty is a word people use for death in the midst of war. And we are at war, even if you have chosen not to fight with us. The battle is at our door, and if we stand idly by, we may as well dig our own graves.”