Sadie, Enchanted

Chapter Eighteen

"Look, there!" Ella cried as she and Sadie jogged through the forest. Sadie looked up in time to see a Furgafoon flying overhead. She could just make out two figures sitting on top of it.

"Where do you think they're going?" She asked, picking up speed to try to follow it.

"The castle is over that way," Ella suggested. Sadie nodded and the two hurried on. They came upon the village quickly, and Sadie groaned. It would take hours to get to the castle! Sadie stopped just inside the village and leaned over, placing her hands on her knees and breathing heavily. She had kicked her heels off long ago, but she was cursing the long dress she still wore. It was overheating her and heavier than one would think.

Sadie took a deep breath and shaded her eyes with her hand as she looked around. "We can't run forever. We need a faster way to get up to the castle." She said, at the same time a huge explosion sounded behind the girls. Both girls shrieked and turned around, gasping when they saw two men with blue-colored skin moving toward them with inhuman speed. One of them moved their hand in a circular motion and the building nearest them was suddenly in flames. Ella shrieked again while Sadie racked her brain, desperately trying to think of a way out of this one.

"Entropy is upset that you left so suddenly. Quite rude, don't you think?" One of the men hissed in a snake-like voice once they stood only a few feet away from the girls.

Sadie crossed her arms. "Well, considering she wants to kill us, I'd say she's the rude one." She said. The man that had spoken smirked.

"Kill you? Entropy wouldn't dream of such a thing. She simply wants to meet the humans who have entered Utopia. It rarely happens, you see." He sneered. Sadie rolled her eyes.

"Oh sure. She just wants to chat, you say? Catch up over a cup of coffee? I don't think so." She snapped. The men frowned.

"There are two ways we can do this," the first man began. "You can come with us willingly, and avoid pain, or you can fight, and come with us...unconsciously." he finished, grinning cruelly. Ella gulped and Sadie bit her lip, thinking. She stared at the men, who were displaying clawed fingernails, and suddenly a thought struck her.

"You two have magic powers," She stated. The men looked at each other.

"Obviously," the second one muttered, exasperated.

"Isn't Entropy taking people's magic powers, for herself? To become stronger?" Sadie continued, hoping that these men were dumb enough to believe what she was about to say.

The men nodded. "She will become unstoppable, once she finishes collecting her magic beings." He snapped.

"So what makes you so special, then?" Sadie asked.

The men frowned. "What?"

Sadie paced in front of them. "I mean, you have magic powers...Entropy is obviously very greedy...why is she sparing you?" She asked.

One of the men growled. "We work for her, and she provides for us." He snapped.

Sadie pursed her lips. "Do you really believe that after she has consumed as much magic as possible, she's just going to ignore the fact that you two obviously have powerful magic as well? You think she'll let you keep that?" She asked, and shook her head. The men paused and glanced at each other.

"Of course. Entropy promised-"

"People break promises all the time. I'll bet you anything that the moment she has defeated us 'humans', she'll snatch your powers too." Sadie said, shrugging.

"You do not know what you are talking about! And you are wasting time! Come with us now, or suffer!" One of the men spat, and took a step toward the girls. Ella jumped back. Sadie flinched, but stood her ground.

"Just wait. If you take us to her, you've just given up your own powers. Entropy will spare no one. And you'll be all alone, powerless, and under her control forever, without means to stop her." Sadie begged them to believe her.

The men looked at her, and then at each other. They were silent for a long moment. Then one of the men spat and stepped forward. "We work for Entropy. You're coming with us." He growled, and reached out to grab Ella.

"No!" Sadie cried, and pushed Ella out of the way. The man growled again and grabbed Sadie roughly by the arm. His hand was hot and she felt her skin burn. "Ella, run!" She screeched, tossing the magic box to the girl, and managed to push Ella in the direction of the castle with her free arm. Ella paused for a moment, her face filled with fear, but the other man took a step toward her and she quickly began running. "Find Noah!" Sadie yelled after her. The other man continued toward Ella, but with one last effort Sadie yanked her arm from the man and punched the other man in the face, kicking him quickly after. Furious, both men grabbed her by the arm. Sadie looked behind her and watched with relief as Ella disappeared into the woods.

"We must get that girl," one of the men said.

The other snapped at him. "No. We have the human. The other girl is of no importance. She is part of the story, and will disappear just like everyone else." He reminded.

"Just like you," Sadie spat.

"Quiet! You don't know what you are talking about. You're coming with us." The man said, squeezing Sadie's wrist harder. It burned so much that Sadie's vision left her for a moment. She gasped in pain and tears sprang to her eyes.

The men began pulling her away, back toward Entropy. "You can do it, Ella," Sadie whispered to herself.

"I said, QUIET!" The man roared, and pain seared through Sadie's arm, enough to make her slump over, unconscious.

***

Ella ran. She had never run so fast in her life. She tripped more than once, but pushed herself to run as fast as she could. After ten minutes of sprinting, Ella felt her lungs constrict in exhaustion. She felt like she might be sick. There was no way she would make it to the castle anytime soon. After another minute, Ella slowed to a jog, and then to a walk, and then she stopped, leaning over to catch her breath, her vision fuzzy. She began walking again after just a moment of rest, but didn't dare try running again. If she fainted, she would be of no help to Sadie.

Tears sprung to the girl's eyes as she thought of Sadie being taken away by those horrible creatures. That could have been Ella, but Sadie saved her life. Ella picked up her pace, walking faster. She had to help her friend.

It was dark by the time Ella climbed the steps of the palace. She was tired, her feet hurt, and she was dying of thirst, but the thought of Sadie, alone with horrible enemies willing to kill, kept her going. Ella began jogging as she entered the palace. She began yelling for Noah and for her prince. It seemed no one was around. She looked in rooms, in bathrooms, in the kitchen...maybe they hadn't gone to the castle at all.

As Ella began losing hope, she opened a door that lead down a dark staircase. Taking the stairs two at a time, Ella emerged a moment later into a dark hallway. Jail cells lined the hall, and Ella noticed that the doors were all slightly open. Not a soul was found in any of the cells. Ella frowned.

A burst of noise caught Ella's attention. She hurried to the other end of the room, where a door stood, slightly ajar. Slowly, Ella leaned in close to look through the open space between the door and the wall. When her eyes focused on what was happening inside of the room, Ella gasped and flung open the door. Inside, a crowd of all different types of people and creatures stood in a circle. In the middle of that circle, towering over a frightened Noah and her prince, stood a giant, green creature, covered in scales, baring very sharp teeth.