Chapter 11

Howard jumped at the sound of the crash in the living room, he turned to face the crow but it was deep in concentration.

Five minutes earlier, the cherub at the top of the egg had pulled out the sword, making half of the egg tilt forward, revealing a hidden clock face and another cherub holding a mirror just below it. 

The inside of the egg was still made of gold and tiny stones covered the surface of each half of the egg. One of the halves had the clock and the mirror while the other had what looked like runes inscribed on it. 

The crow had approached the egg, its eyes glowing white. Howard had taken a step back not wanting to be pulled further into whatever was going on. For the last ten minutes, the crow had been gazing unblinkingly at the clock face.

Just when he heard the crash in the living room and wanted to go to explore the mirror at the bottom of the egg rotated to meet the crow's glowing eyes. Both the cherubs then started dancing, and Howard had to rub his eyes.

The top cherub then held out the sword.

{Take it and fix it on my timepiece.}

Howard held out a finger, and the cherub placed it gently on the laid-out index finger. It continued dancing as Howard pulled out the watch from his neck. The sword started floating gently heading for the watch where it then dissolved into a bright light and disappeared.

The cherubs stopped dancing and the room went back to its dim lighting as the crow's eyes stopped glowing. A loud crash made him jump again, but this time it was the crow who pushed the egg over the edge.

{Humpty dumpty had a great fall.}

Howard watched in dismay as the egg shattered throwing springs and gears all over the room. He turned to chastise the crow but watched in horror as the components of the egg slowly turned into dust and disappeared.

{The others have gone to work on their skills, that's good because after tomorrow we go for the Kelch Chanticleer. You too, had better get some sleep.}

Howard started to protest but the crow blew air in his face and he instantly fell asleep. The crow used his telekinetic powers to transport the body to the bed and covered him with a blanket. 

He then flapped his wings and headed straight for the closed window and flew right through it heading for the dark starlit night.

Howard had several strange dreams. 

The first one was a weird dream where he walked into a clearing. In the clearing was a tree that had fallen over years ago. 

On that log was a red fox sniffing the air sitting on the log as a human would. It gave out three short barks. The caw of a raven answered back. 

A rustle in the sky was followed by the silent landing of a black raven beside the fox. The fox then licked the raven lovingly for a few minutes. 

The two animals sat in silence for a long time as if enjoying each other's company. After a while the fox got on its legs and walked away, stopping only once to look back at the bird. 

The bird cawed and took off into the night. 

The second dream he had, saw him actively participating in it. He was in a room that could be described as lodging at a tavern. 

There was smoke from the lamp at the table and the fireplace. A half-empty tankard of what looked like ale beside the lamp. He was reading what looked like a Bible. 

As usual of any dreams the words weren't the same the longer he looked at them. But a few words popped out and stuck in his brain. 

Sword. Breastplate. Helmet. Shield. Sword. When he awoke the following morning these would be the only trace of the dream he had. 

A heavy knocking on the door made him look up. The door swung open to reveal a portly man. In his hand, he held what looked like a dagger; a gilded dagger that he knew very well. 

Before he could speak, the man lunged at him. Howard reacted by throwing the tankard in his face. 

He then watched as the man melted away to reveal Violette's petite figure. In two steps she buried the dagger deep into the Bible and it burst into purple flames. 

The smoke emanating from the book started to form corporeal objects that solidified. 

When the last one had been formed, Violette looked at him and smiled before disappearing. 

The third dream was the most lucid of the three. He was standing outside a large grey building that looked like a museum. There was a heavy security presence around the compound. 

He could make out three towers that held at least three guards. On the grounds, he could see seven pairs of guards all marching, well-armed. A few canines and their handlers could be seen. 

The reason he could see all this was because he had an omniscient view of the compound; as if he was flying. 

He looked at his hands only to find wings and feathers. He did a silent sweep around the compound and zoomed in on a group of five people. 

They were keeping to the shadows. One of them looked up with violet eyes. They slunk along the wall until they reached the door to the main building. 

Nike and Violette snuck in, incapacitating two guards in the process. The remaining three followed suit. 

Howard wondered how he would follow when suddenly he was inside. He noiselessly followed the group as they made their way down the hall to the secure vault. 

At that moment, however, the alarm blared and the red lights came on. Howard zoomed out and saw another group that had been discovered and was engaging the guards. 

He zoomed in on the group and frowned. The Eagle and lightning emblem sewed on their shoulders was prominent but a certain figure made his heart thump wildly. 

He zoomed in closer on the long-haired girl who was leading the team. She was surrounded by her teammates who were firing wildly at the guards as if protecting her. 

Though she looked older, Howard could recognize that posture anywhere. When she spoke he confirmed what he knew. He was looking at Lynx