Worlds Collide (The Land of Stories #6)(16)

“You can’t throw a life away if it’s already fulfilled!”

“You’re not listening! I’m trying to tell you it’ll be a complete waste! If you rush through your legacy you might get hurt!”

“On the contrary, I’ll be even more careful knowing you’re at the finish line—”

“Arthur, I’m trying to tell you I won’t be alive much longer!”

Once this heavy confession was made, Alex covered her face and began to sob. Her words made Arthur freeze where he stood. He prayed she was being sarcastic or overreacting, but if the tears streaming down her face were any indication, Alex was telling the truth.

“Alex, please tell me that’s a joke,” he said.

“I wish it were!” she cried. “I would love to live happily ever after with you, Arthur, but it’s not meant to be.”

“But why? Are you sick?”

“I’ve been cursed by a very powerful witch. She has me under a spell that controls my every waking moment. So far, she’s made me do a lot of terrible things to innocent people. I don’t know what she has planned next, but I know something horrible is coming—thousands of people are going to get hurt! The witch puts me to sleep when she isn’t using me. That’s why I was trying to contact my brother in my dreams. He’s got to find a way to stop me—no matter what it takes!”

“Alex, don’t be ridiculous,” Arthur said. “There’s got to be another way to free you from the witch’s curse besides killing you.”

“I’m afraid there isn’t,” she said. “This curse is unlike any dark magic I’ve seen or heard of. It fills me with so much anger, it blinds me—I’m barely aware of the damage I’m causing! I get trapped inside my head with feelings of self-doubt, self-hatred, and regret. All I can think about are my mistakes, my flaws, and how undeserving I am of love and happiness! The more my misery grows, the more powerful I become—and the more powerful I become, the stronger the curse gets. The voices in my head have to be stopped, and there’s only one way to put a creature out of its misery!”

Arthur couldn’t believe he was hearing such things. Their shared dream had quickly escalated into a nightmare.

“I refuse to believe that,” he said. “There must be something Merlin and Mother Goose can do to help you—there must be something I can do to save you!”

A thick layer of mist suddenly rose off the lake and blew toward them. The mist formed the shape of a large hand, wrapped its fingers around Alex’s body, and started pulling her toward the lake.

“What’s happening?” Arthur shouted.

“The witch must be waking me up!” Alex said.

Arthur grabbed Alex’s arm, but he was no match for the giant misty hand.

“Alex, you need to listen to me!” he said. “We’re going to save you from this! We’re going to find you and free you from this curse, I promise! You just have to stay strong—don’t give up yet!”

Alex stared up at Arthur with eyes full of tears and fears, but very little hope.

“Good-bye, Arthur.”

Alex was pulled from Arthur’s grip and dragged underwater, and she disappeared from sight.

“AAALLLEEEXXX!”

Arthur rapidly awoke from the nightmare. He was sweating profusely, and his eyes darted all around his room as he remembered where he was. His heart was beating so hard, he could hear it over the sound of Merlin and Mother Goose snoring in the next room. Arthur had never been so affected by a dream in his life, so he knew it hadn’t been a normal dream. Alex was in trouble and she needed help.

The squire leaped out of bed and stormed into Merlin and Mother Goose’s room. His elders awoke in a terrible fright and sat straight up like they had been electrocuted.

“Arthur? What is it, my boy?” Merlin asked, and reached for his glasses.

“Where’s the fire?” Mother Goose said, and reached for her flask.

“Forgive the intrusion, but something terrible has happened!” Arthur announced.

“Have the Saxons invaded?” Merlin asked.

“Are parachute pants back in style?” Mother Goose asked.

“No, it’s Alex,” Arthur said. “She’s been cursed by a terrible witch! We need to go to the Otherworld immediately and rescue her!”

“How do you know all this?” the wizard asked.

“Alex and I were communicating with each other in our sleep! She was trying to contact her brother but found me instead. She told me she’s been cursed and is being forced to do terrible things! Then a hand made of mist rose out of a lake and dragged her under the surface!”

Arthur explained himself so quickly, he had to catch his breath afterward. Merlin and Mother Goose looked at each other with sleepy, uneasy eyes—but they weren’t concerned about Alex.

“Artie, have you been drinking my bubbly?” Mother Goose asked.

“You have to listen to me!” he pleaded. “Alex is in trouble, and she thinks the only way to stop the curse is if someone kills her! We’ve got to do something before she gets hurt!”

“It sounds like you just had a terrible nightmare,” Merlin said.

“It wasn’t just a nightmare. It was the real Alex!” Arthur said. “I swear I’m not overreacting!”