Ghost Guard by J. Joseph Wright Page A

team when the mystery woman hit him with a fierce jab, snapping his neck back at such an extreme angle that he looked upside down at Abby.
    Abby fell backward, and immediately her lungs demanded air. Brutus straightened and twisted and rushed for her, his immense, powerful arms locking her in a snug embrace. For a moment, Abby was confused, not prepared for the instant bear hug. She especially wasn’t prepared for Elyxa’s bolt of psychic energy, slamming into Brutus, throwing them both clear of the stage and toward the hard pavement below.
    It all went so fast, Abby only caught a quick glimpse of Brutus. But the powerful spirit dashed beneath her, catching her inches off the ground. He no sooner put Abby down when Elyxa spotted him and prepared to deliver another pulse of psychic malevolence. However, Elyxa felt a sudden, blunt force from behind and fell forward, issuing a fierce scream. Rev stood above her, staring. He tilted his head. She gazed with wide, helpless eyes.
    “Fancy meeting you here,” he gave her a slight bow and extended a hand. She smiled and took it. Immediately, Rev felt his very essence under assault. Tingling sensations, crawling nearer and nearer to the core of his energy. Strong. Magnetic. Almost undeniable. Dragging him in. It seemed bottomless, her soul, or whatever it was. Perhaps a lack of a soul. He had no clue. It frightened and at the same time intrigued him. Despite all the desolate feelings he got from her, he also felt something else. Loneliness? Fear? He couldn’t pin it down, though the thoughts wouldn’t settle in his mind. Weak. He felt so weak.
    Aaaaaiiiieeeee !
    M aterializing from thin air, Ruby clamped onto Elyxa’s hands, forcing Rev loose. He floated free over downtown Portland. He couldn’t move much, so he let the wind take him, allowing his strength to come back as the others dealt with the newfound threat, whatever she was.
    Elyxa set her sights on Ruby, sending a psychic rip current that caught Ruby in its wake, flinging her, squealing and chirping, and out over First Avenue, through the exterior wall of the Marriot, straight into the dining area, past the lounge, into the kitchen between two surprised chefs, where she crashed into a tepid pot of bouillabaisse. 
    Back at the park, Elyxa raised both hands and the lights along the causeway exploded, one by one, quickly in sequence. People ducked, hugged their knees, fell flat on their chests, but were still hit with shards of glass from the shattering lamps overhead.
    Then , as if in response to Elyxa’s commanding gesture, a pale glow punctured the darkness, growing brighter, increasing in size and splitting in two. As the beams got closer, the fear in the throng became palpable. People climbed on top of other people, desperate to get out of the path of the oncoming vehicle. Late Sixties model. American made. A Cadillac.
    “Ah, the woman of the hour,” Rev’s strength was already coming back.
    “It’s her!” Abby shouted. “It’s Sheila Coulson! She’s here!”
    “What’s she doing?” Morris knew the answer. He was just begging to be wrong.
    “She’s gonna drive right through the crowd!”
    “This can’t be good,” Rev said.
    Shrieks. People tried to flag the driver down, but nothing would stop her momentum as she rolled across the grass, skipping over a concrete sidewalk. She gained even more speed before launching into the river below.
    At that moment, no one had any malice or thoughts of retaliation. No one, that was, except Elyxa. She waved her hands and several crackling bolts of lightning sprang from her fingertips, rocketing toward the river, penetrating the dark depths with an ethereal shine. Abby saw Elyxa’s conniving grin as Sheila Coulson ascended from the water, looking quite surprised.
    Elyxa , with a come hither gesture of her wrist, drew the spirit closer, closer, closer. Sheila was terrified. Her spectral stare wide. Her mouth gaping. Brutus flashed out of existence and then came