Free Dark Mage (Avalon: Web of Magic, Book 11) by Rachel Roberts Page B

him.
    Ozzie hopped down from Emily’s backpack, grumbling, “Probably because every other elf on Aldenmor had something more important to do.”
    “So what were you like before you were sent to Earth?” Lorren asked.
    “Taller.” The ferret sighed and kicked at a cattail.
    After the mages had healed Aldenmor, the Fairimentals offered to turn Ozzie back into an elf. He could have gone home to his village in Farthingdale, gone back to his life. But he had chosen to help the mages at Ravenswood, which meant staying in a ferret’s body. Emily often wondered how much that choice had cost him.
    “Ozzie, what do you miss most about being an elf?” the healer asked softly.
    “Besides having opposable thumbs?” A smile played on the ferret’s furry lips. “There’s nothing I loved more than the Crabapple Fair at harvest time. My, er, friend, Esmerelda, and I, would wigjig until midnight, eating bubbleberry pie as the moons rose.”
    “You never told me that. It sounds wonderful,” the healer said.
    “I was supposed to be a farmer, like my parents and grandparents. I never really wanted to do that. There had to be more to life than rutabagas.” He looked away. “I was sent to find you and Kara and Adriane. What if I already did everything I’m supposed to do?”
    “If your mission was truly over, why did the Fairimentals give you a magic jewel?” Emily asked.
    Ozzie touched the orange gem with his paw. “How should I know?”
    “You’re a Knight of the Circle,” Lorren reminded him.
    “An honorarium from some dumb old club. I might as well be Count Chocula.”
    “I have such amazing friends,” Emily stated. “Lorelei, Kara, Adriane, Indi. And I wouldn’t have met any of them without you.” She knelt and looked Ozzie in the eye. “But you know what?”
    “What?”
    “Y ou are my best friend.” She gave the ferret a big kiss on his furry head. “You take care of me. I take care of you.”
    “All right, all right,” Ozzie mumbled, embarrassed. “Nothing more pathetic than a wet ferret.”
    Rrrring!
    In a burst of twinkles, Fiona popped onto Emily’s shoulder.
    “Base to Doctor D, come in!” Tweek’s agitated voice echoed from the d-fly.
    “Calm down, Tweek, what’s going on?” the healer asked.
    “I’m picking up massive magical flux ahead of you!”
    “The power crystal?” Emily asked anxiously.
    “Most likely. I can’t be sure and Tasha’s out checking on the animals. The place is crawling with tourists.”
    “You just stay put and don’t let anyone in the library,” Emily advised.
    “Don’t worry, I’ll wear a hat.”
    “Kara’s friends can handle it,” Emily assured him.
    “Oh, that reminds me, Kara’s missing,” Tweek informed her calmly.
    “What???” Emily, Ozzie, and Lorren exclaimed.
    “She disappeared from the web, but she didn’t use any portal I can track.”
    “Any word on the unicorns?” Emily asked nervously. Not being able to sense Lorelei made her very uneasy. It felt like a piece of her was missing.
    “Negative, but I’ll let you know as soon as I hear anything,” Tweek said. “Over and out.”
    “Don’t worry,” Lorren smiled. “The princess has more magic than anyone I know. And if that doesn’t work, she’ll charm her way out of trouble.”
    Ozzie snorted.
    “Kara’s powerful all right,” Emily agreed.
    “She’s amazing!” Lorren’s cheeks blushed dark green. “I don’t know how she does everything she does.”
    Amazing, Emily thought. Kara should have been trying to find the unicorns, but once the blazing star’s mind was made up, no one could change it. Sometimes she was too powerful for her own good. It had gotten her into trouble more than once. No use pointing that out to Lorren, Kara’s biggest fan.
    The goblin prince paused at a crossroads. Two trails ran in opposite directions, obscured by billowing mist. “This is the end of the Fairy Realms. People who wander too deep into those mists don’t usually report