Chapter 29 — Travis

Calder has now joined the team, officially that is. The team has been training relentlessly with my help and their trainers. Emmy and Calder are passing electric balls between themselves as they run the obstacle course. Bex and Ryan are battling it out with their weapons. Bex has a long sword and Ryan a double headed axe. Bex has fire coming out of his sword while Ryan has ice coming out of his axe as they battle each other.

Carter, Avery, and Brie are all on target practice while Alice works on her hand-to-hand combat with Stella. Every day we run endless amounts of drills. We are all waiting for the Enchantress to strike again, and we are preparing the best we can. An army of undead souls isn’t going to be easy to fight. Everyone is preparing for war.

I watch as Emmy gets hit by the electric ball as she falls flat on her ass and flies backward. Emmy moves her hair out of her face and stands up looking pissed.

“You did that on purpose!” She screams at Calder.

“No, you just weren’t paying attention.” Calder states as he crosses his arms against his chest.

“You were lost in Emmy world.”

“What the hell does that mean?” Emmy now has her hands on her hips now, which reminds me of Gemma. Emmy has a lot of her mom’s mannerisms.

“It means you daydream too much. You lose focus way too easily.” Calder isn’t wrong, but he is overzealous, so it’s no wonder why the two of them clash when training.

I walk up to my kids as they scream insults at each other. I put myself between them. I tell them to walk it off, but I can tell they are still pissed at one another. I shake my head. Avery helps Emmy with her road rash while Calder stocks off into the woods. He always storms off when he is pissed, a trait he gets from me. The two of them are stubborn. I shake my head again, only my kids I think to myself.

After Emmy is patched up, she works with Alice and Stella. Everyone on the team brings something unique to the table. Brielle is amazing at potions, and she is quick with them too. Bexton is a walking book and the voice of reason. Alice is like a damn cat with her reflexes, and she is pretty flexible as well. Ryan is the muscle; the kid is a damn brick house, and he is very skilled when it comes to fighting. Carter is an amazing hitman; the guy can hit his target without effort and is perfect every time. Emmy and Calder are the powerhouses with their vast array of abilities. Avery is the healer, she has learned how to tend to all kinds of wounds, poisons, burns, and pretty much any injury the team could come across. Together they really make a great team, but they can’t seem to get along lately.

We train late into the evening. Finally, I send the team to eat and rest. I take my plate of chicken, rice, and roasted veggies up to the room I share with Gemma. Gemma is sitting in bed reading. I eat my food at the table set up by the window. Gemma gets up and rubbed my shoulders. It is tense and stresses the hell out. Gemma shouldn’t be up and about too much, but I know better than to try and tell her what to do.

“What’s wrong, my love?” Gemma asks as she continues to rub my shoulders and neck.

“Your children are driving me crazy. Emmy and Calder are at each other's throats again.”

“Oh, they are my kids now,” Gemma jokes.

“Yeah, when they don’t listen, they are your kids. They get that trait from you.”

“Yes, they do get that trait from me, but you aren’t perfect you know?”

“I know.” I agree as I eat my plate of food like a starving man.

“Emmy and Calder are siblings they are going to argue.” Gemma reminds me.

I sigh. “It’s not just them, it's the whole team. Darren had to stop Ryan and Alice from strangling each other today. Bex is in a huge argument with Brie and Avery. Carter is the only one not fighting with anyone, but he’s so lost in his grief over his friends that died. Even Darren, Ivy and Stella are fighting. How are we supposed to defeat the Enchantress when everyone is at each other's throats?”

“Everyone is stressed, tired, and overwhelmed. It’s the perfect breeding ground for friction and arguing. The team has been training relentlessly for weeks now. They need a break. We should take everyone to an amusement park. Kenzie and Jason can come too. I’ll let you push my wheelchair.” Gemma jokes about the last part. She knows I won’t make her be in a wheelchair, besides she wouldn’t last walking the whole day.

“Vivian can come too if she wants. It will give everyone a chance to have some fun and unwind from the craziness. You need a break too, and I’m tired of sitting in this damn manor day in and day out. I think we all need a little fun and to get out of the manor for a day,” Gemma suggests.

I can’t deny that Gemma’s suggestion sounds good. Everyone is stressed and the kids have been training for weeks without a break. It seems silly to be thinking about having fun when the Enchantress is running free in the world, but we can’t defeat her if we kill each other first then she would definitely win, and we can’t have that.

The next day I load everyone up in a bus that the Coven just happens to have. Why I don’t know, but I’ve learned not to ask questions when it comes to the Coven. They seem to have an endless supply of money and other resources. Kenzie and Jason have also joined us. Vivian stays behind because she wants to enjoy the silence. Lynden is also joining us. Jason drives the van to the amusement park. This plan better work I think to myself as I look at the group behind me. Everyone looks either annoyed or pissed off.

It takes a good couple of hours to get to the stupid amusement park, but at least there is no one arguing. Half of them fall asleep while the other half are doing their own thing. Gemma gives me an assuring smile. Only Gemma, Kenzie, and Jason know where are headed, everyone else was told they would have to wait and see. They weren’t too happy about that, but whatever, tough. This is for all of us, but also for the team. Gemma is right, we are all stressed. Everyone is preparing for war, and it is taking a toll on all of us.

We arrive at Wild Worlds Amusement Park. It is a fairly big park and pretty popular. It’s still early in the season so the park was only open on the weekends, but I made sure we got here early and even paid for early entrance which gets us into the park two hours before it opens to the public. It cost a pretty penny, but Vivian assured me she was thrilled to pay for something fun for the team and their trainers. Once again, where the endless money comes from, I don’t know, but I also know Vivian’s coven is one of the original covens in North America. They’ve been around for a long time.

I watch as everyone starts to perk up when they see where we are at. The kids start to look excited. Darren looks at me like I’ve lost my mind. I am sure he is wondering why the hell I would bring the team to an amusement park when they should be training. Darren is a stickler for training. I swear the man has a military background. Ivy and Stella look curious, but also excited. It’s been a while since we’ve all just had fun and gone out somewhere.

Jason parks our bus, and everyone piles out. We go through the gates with our tickets, and everyone gets their hands stamped, which allows us early access, and so we don’t have to wait in long lines. I make sure everyone has money and their cell phones. Gemma is in a wheelchair, and she looks happy. The group splits up into smaller groups. Everyone still seems cranky, but I hope having a whole day of fun would fix their attitudes. Jason and Kenzie stay with Gemma and me.

“I have to say this is one hell of plain Travis.” Jason comments as we pick a random direction to walk in.

“Well, it was Gemma’s idea. I think the kids need it. Hell, I think we all need it,” I say, patting Gemma on the shoulder. I know she is smiling.

“Ain’t that the damn truth. The last time I saw Bex and Brie fight like they are now they had just entered their teenage years. Calder and Emmy seem to be catching up for lost time as siblings.” Jason states.

“They are driving me crazy.” I say with a sigh.

“Welcome to having kids.” Jason states. “They will drive you crazy and up a damn wall then they will be all cute and you remember why you love them.”

I laugh. I’ve missed out on my kids' lives for way too long. I skipped the terrible twos and the teenage angst, moody puberty, and the crying over knocked down sandcastles. I guess I’m long overdue for my kids to drive me crazy. I just have to take it in stride. Lucky for me I have Gemma as my soulmate. I know she knows what she is doing when it comes to our kids.

We walk around the park. Jason gets me to go on some roller coasters with him while Gemma and Kenzie do the spinning rides. I hate spinning rides, but Gemma loves them. The kids checked in and I can’t tell by their texts if they are having fun or still pissed. Who knows with them? Why fate thought it was a good idea to leave the fate of the human and magic worlds in the hands of moody, cranky, teenagers is beyond me. Granted, half of them are considered legal adults and the rest will soon be joining them, but still, I question fates decision making skills.