The Girl Without Magic

by Megan O'Russell

  “Others who might attack.” Selna led Maggie into one of five boats that were manned and ready to be rowed toward the children. “Word from the watchers if any of them survived Jax. Just because Jax is dead doesn’t mean there are no more dangers in the world.”

  Maggie nodded silently. She climbed down into the boat and was grateful when Selna passed her a paddle. Bertrand nodded to her from the boat ahead of them as they joined the line rowing out toward the fallen rock.

  Each of the boats stopped and had to be carried one at a time up over the stone before being lowered back down on the lake side.

  “Can’t we move the rock?” Maggie asked. The boat dug into her hand as they carried it.

  “Down is much simpler than up,” Selna said. “It wouldn’t be safe, and it would take more magic than we can give.”

  They lowered the wooden boat back down on the other side with a gentle splash.

  “But then you’ll have to rebuild everything,” Maggie said. “You won’t be able to salvage any….” Maggie’s words faded away as she looked out over the lake.

  The ice had melted, leaving broken wood and bodies behind. The bodies of the Enlightened drifted across the surface. Carrion birds circled overhead, ready for their morning feast. A boat was already out in the water, collecting the Wanderers who had fallen.

  “What are you going to do with the bodies?” Maggie asked, slipping as she stepped back into the boat. The thud of her misstep carried out over the water, making the birds cry even louder.

  “The Wanderers shall be sent below,” Selna said. “The others will be moved out of sight and left for the animals. It would be wrong for us to deny them fresh meat.”

  Maggie nodded and paddled forward, trying not to wonder where the Enlightened bodies would be left.

  Paddling made her arms burn and her hands ache. But there was something comforting in the movement. Feeling the sting and soreness of the night before made it feel more real. She had fought Jax. There had been a great battle. Abeyla was dead, but her son had lived. The Wanderers had survived, and she, Maggie Trent, had helped to make sure of that.

  The back of Maggie’s throat hardened as she swallowed the tears that threatened to creep up into her eyes.

  Before the sun had risen over the highest mountain, they reached the dark place. Maggie paddled into the blackness, closing her eyes and letting her magic lead her. The walls held the same power she did. She recognized their power, as they recognized hers. Shouts carried from the darkness as the first boat reached the torchlight.

  “It’s okay. They aren’t attacking!”

  Maggie recognized the voice of one of the older boys.

  “It’s our people!”

  “Mama!” a voice shrieked. “Mama!”

  “Mina!” Selna shouted from the back of the boat.

  Maggie opened her eyes as the torchlight came into view.

  “Mina, I’m coming!”

  Maggie could hear the tears in Selna’s voice. Mina jumped up and down the rocky shore, waving her arms wildly over her head. As soon as she saw Selna, Mina dived into the water, swimming for her mother as only a child raised on the water could. In seconds, she had reached the boat, and Selna scooped her out of the water, cradling the sopping wet child to her chest.

  “Mama!” Mina said. “We were so brave! I stood guard and everything!”

  “I’m proud of you, Mina.” Selna pushed the hair away from her daughter’s face. “I love you, little fish.”

  “Mama, can we go home now? I’m very sleepy, and I can go sleep in my bed.”

  “Our home was lost in the battle.” Selna kissed her daughter on the forehead. “But we will build a new home, and I promise I will find you a safe place to sleep.”

  Mina stared solemnly at her mother for a moment. “Were people lost with the house?”

  “Yes, Mina.”

  Maggie turned away, her heart breaking at the grief on Selna’s face. Some of these children wouldn’t have parents or beds to call their own anymore.

  “Mama,” Mina whispered so softly Maggie could barely hear, “I’m glad I didn’t lose you.”

  he rippling of water from Selna’s paddle told Maggie to row forward. Their boat hit the shore with a grinding bump. The last few children climbed onboard, their faces anxious and afraid.

  “Selna,” the last boy to climb into their boat asked, “have you seen my parents? Do you know if…” The boy’s words drifted away as though he were afraid saying them might make them more real.

  “I don’t know,” Selna said softly. “I didn’t see them.”

  The boy nodded silently as they rowed back out into the darkness.

  The way back to the village seemed longer than the way to the dark place. It might have been that Maggie’s arms were burning with fatigue or that anticipation stretched every moment.

  Maggie held her breath as they started down the long, watery path to the village. More people were standing on the fallen rock now, waving their arms and shouting greetings to the children. The bodies had been taken out of the water, but two men labored by the side of the lake, making a long raft. And next to the raft was a large boat whose contents were covered by blankets.

  How many people could fit in that boat? How many graves would have to be dug?

  “Maggie!” Tammond sat on top of the fallen rock. His face was pale and drawn, but he smiled in relief as he saw Maggie. He struggled to his feet as her boat knocked into the side of the rock and, grimacing in pain, reached down to help her up. She took his hand, careful not to put any weight on it as she stepped out of the boat.

  “You’re awake,” Maggie tried to say, but Tammond was kissing her.

  “I thought you’d left,” he murmured, keeping his forehead pressed to hers.

  “I went with Selna to get the kids back.”

  Tammond kissed her again. “I know. It’s just that with the battle over, I thought you would disappear.”

  “I wouldn’t leave without saying goodbye,” Maggie said.

  Fear flickered through Tammond’s eyes.

  “We just had to get them home.” Maggie stepped away to look at the children. Most were in the arms of their parents. But for some, there was no one left to wait for them.

  “What’s going to happen to the orphans?” Maggie asked, her stomach dropping as the older boy who had asked after his parents sat down on the rock, tears streaming down his cheeks.

  “They’ll stay with us,” Tammond said, lacing his fingers through Maggie’s. “Other families in the village will take them in. This is their home. They will not be sent away.”

  Maggie looked back at the remnants of the village. It looked worse in the daylight. If everyone crowded together, there might be enough buildings left to have some sort of a roof over everyone’s heads.

  “Lamil wants to begin rebuilding in the morning,” Tammond said. “A new home on the Broken Lake.”

  “Is Lamil in charge now?” Maggie asked.

  “He is.” Tammond’s eyes shone with unshed tears as he spoke. “Lamil was the one chosen by Abeyla to be the next leader of the Wanderers. And Lamil has chosen me as his second.”

  More boats paddled from the village to the rock. It seemed like every person who could move was coming toward the lake.

  “Now that Jax is gone, the Enlightened will be weakened,” Tammond said. “This is the time for the Wanderers to go back out into Malina. And Lamil,” Tammond paused, taking Maggie’s other hand, “Lamil wants me to lead the others out into Malina while he stays here and protects the Wanderers’ home.”

  “Wow,” Maggie breathed, her mind racing to catch up. “Wow. Isn’t this fast? To be sending people out there or making decisions. I mean, the battle just ended.”

  “The Wanderers have waited twenty-seven years on the Broken Lake,” Tammond said. “Abeyla―” his voice faltered “―my mother wouldn’t have wanted us to wait a moment longer. Life is much too short to let grief stop you from moving forward.”

  Magg
ie nodded, unsure of what to say.

  More men had moved to the raft. It was finished now. All the knots tied tightly. One by one the men gently lifted the bodies of the fallen Wanderers onto the raft, laying them out in one long line. Maggie’s breath caught in her chest as they lifted out Giles right before Abeyla.

  Tammond shuddered and stepped in front of Maggie, turning away from gruesome raft.

  “I’ve never seen Malina,” Tammond said, his words coming out in a rush, “but I’ve heard stories about it and seen a hundred maps. There are mountains and a great sea that stretches out to the east. There are a hundred villages. Places neither of us has ever seen before. Along the northern sea there is a place where the trees are thicker around than the Fireside. Come with me, Maggie, and we’ll find the great trees together.”

  Maggie froze. Her heart couldn’t remember how to beat, and forming words was a foreign thing she might never manage again. Finally, instinct kicked in, sucking air into her lungs. “Go with you?”

  “We’ll teach magic to those who need us, and we’ll see the world.” Tammond leaned in and kissed her gently. “With you at my side, Maggie Trent, what couldn’t we accomplish?”

  “I―” Maggie looked into Tammond’s bright blue eyes. He had just lost his mother and his home, but he was still filled with so much hope.

  “Miss Trent,” Bertrand said.

  Maggie spun to face him, her face flushing red.

  “I believe it is time to return to the Siren’s Realm.”

  “Return?” Maggie asked.

  “The battle is won, the children are safely home, the funeral will commence shortly, and what comes next is rebuilding. Rebuilding is for those who will stay for much longer than we are able.”

  “But we could help,” Maggie said, feeling Tammond’s grip on her hand tighten. “We could help them teach, help them make a new village. You said you wanted adventure. Aren’t there more adventures to be had here?”

  Bertrand took a long look around the lake and the mountains. “There most definitely are, Miss Trent. If you wished to explore all the adventures this world has to offer, I would understand. But if you stayed that long, I fear you would never return to the Siren’s Realm, and what adventures would you be missing then?”

  “Maggie,” Tammond said. “Please don’t go. Stay with me.”

  Maggie heard her decision in Tammond’s plea before she knew she had made it.

  “Actually, I have to go.” Pain crept into Maggie’s chest as she kissed Tammond on the cheek. “You’ll travel. You’ll see all of Malina, and it will be wonderful.”

  “But…” Tammond’s face crumpled as Maggie stepped away.

  “Malina is your home.” Maggie pushed the words past the lump in her throat. “But it isn’t mine.”

  “Maggie,” Tammond whispered.

  “I’m sorry, Tammond,” Maggie said softly as she followed Bertrand off the rock and into a waiting boat.

  Maggie didn’t look behind as she and Bertrand rowed away. She could never come back to visit, not even if she wanted to. The Siren’s time didn’t work that way.

  The last of the bodies had been laid out on the raft. A thick net with stones tied to the edges was being laid over them.

  “We should stay for the funeral,” Maggie said.

  “It is better to leave quickly, and I never stay for the funerals, Miss Trent,” Bertrand said. Only the hint of sadness in Bertrand’s voice kept Maggie from shouting at him. “And if we want to leave before nightfall, we’ll have to paddle rather quickly.”

  Maggie took deep, shuddering breaths as she pulled the boat forward, not brave enough to look back at the Wanderers standing on the fallen rock. Not wanting to see Tammond’s face as she left him forever. She willed herself not to think about Abeyla or what they would do to the raft. She paddled with all her strength, keeping her eyes forward on the Broken Lake.

  “I just left behind a guy whose mom just died,” Maggie said an hour later. “Is there some special sort of punishment for that?”

  “Or course,” Bertrand said from the back of the boat. “It’s called remorse.”

  “So I should have stayed?” Maggie’s voice squeaked as she spoke.

  “Not at all, Miss Trent,” Bertrand said. “I was hoping you’d follow me to this world, because I knew you were too great to live only one adventure. And while I would hold no ill will if you chose to stay here, I am very grateful you will be with me the next time an unknown enemy attacks.”

  “So we’re going to do this again?” Maggie’s heart lifted at the thought.

  “Of course, Miss Trent.” Bertrand laughed. “I am always looking toward the next adventure.”

  The sun was kissing the tops of the mountains when Bertrand finally told Maggie to stop paddling. The silhouette of the summit told Maggie this was where she had first come to the Broken Lake and spent a cold night on top of a mountain.

  They sat quietly for a moment before Maggie spoke. “So how do we get home? And please don’t say climb back up that mountain.”

  “I believe,” Bertrand said, “and I have been wrong on occasion, we swim down.”

  “Swim down? But we fell from up.” Maggie leaned over the edge of the boat and stared down into the water. There was no glimmer of green or hint of magic.

  “Into and out of the Siren’s Realm are not like walking through a door, Miss Trent. In and out are not the same thing.”

  “Swim down, it is.” Maggie stood up in the boat, and without hesitating, took a deep breath, diving down deep into the water, not waiting for Bertrand.

  The cool water pressed in around her. Blocking out the sounds from above. With a few strokes, the light dimmed. The pressure made her ears throb, but she kept swimming down. She kept waiting for her breath to run out or for her arms to get too tired to move. But the water felt thinner as she pulled against it so easily it felt as though she were flying. And even as the world turned to black, she stroked forward again and again, moving so quickly the water felt like nothing. And all at once, light surrounded her, flashing such a bright green she gasped, filling her lungs with crisp air.

  Maggie crumpled to the ground, panting and blinking. The green light faded, leaving only the dull blue of twilight.

  She rolled onto her back, staring up at the sky. She was in the center of the circle of bright white trees. A dull thump told her Bertrand had landed next to her before she even turned her head to look. He was on his feet, looking completely calm without a hair out of place.

  “Well done, Miss Trent.” Bertrand smiled, giving her a little bow. “I must say for your first time, you did much better than I thought you would.”

  “Thanks.” Maggie got to her feet without waiting for a hand from Bertrand. The pain in her arms from rowing was gone. So were the cuts on her hands and arms from battle. “It’s like it never happened.” Disappointment crept into Maggie’s chest. “It looks like we never left the Siren’s Realm at all.”

  “That is one of the gifts of the Siren―she likes us to enter her realm healthy.” Bertrand led her out of the circle of trees, past the large dead one, the slit in it completely hidden in the falling shadows.

  “But then what was the point?” Maggie asked, balling up her fists as her heart started to race. “If we’re just the same as when we left, then why did we go through all that?”

  “Well, we did help to save the Wanderers from a massacre,” Bertrand said. “We had our adventure, and don’t forget, Miss Trent, we returned with a great deal of magic.”

  Maggie stopped on the spot, tentatively feeling for the magic inside her. It was dampened again, trapped deep within, but it was stronger than it had been since she had fallen into the Siren’s Realm. Stronger perhaps than it had been in her life before the Siren’s Realm.

  Bertrand beamed at her. “There you are, Miss Trent, you saved lives and received your reward. Now the only question is, how will you use it?”

  Maggie smiled, her thoughts flying to the rock by the sea. “
I know how to start.”

  “Well then, Miss Trent,” Bertrand said, walking to the edge of the woods, “all that is left is to enjoy our bounty and decide which adventure shall befall us next.”

  Maggie Trent wouldn’t have a story without my wonderful husband Chris, who indulged my ramblings as we ventured through a maze lake in Thailand. Maggie wouldn’t have a home without Alisa and the wonderful people at Curiosity Quills Press. And Maggie wouldn’t have a story without you. Thank you for reading about the girl without magic. Thank you for venturing into the Siren’s Realm.

  Megan O’Russell is thrilled to be a part of the Curiosity Quills Press family. Her previous works includeThe TetheringSeries, a YA fantasy filled with love and magic, theGirl of Glassseries, which sneaks vampires into a dystopian sci-fi, andHow I Magically Messed Up My Life in Four Freakin‘ Days,which sets a cellphone filled with magic loose in Manhattan.

  Exploring the Siren’s Realm with Maggie Trent has been a dream come true! Megan is an avid traveler, and her love for far flung lakes in Thailand and rocky shores in Maine both wove their way into Maggie’s world.

  When not writing or running off on a new adventure, Megan spends her time on stage as a professional performer, which is an adventure all it’s own.

  Now that you have completed this book, we hope you will leave a review so that other readers may benefit from your perspective. Authors like Megan O'Russell live and die by your reviews, after all!

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  How I Magically Messed Up My Life in Four Freakin’ Days,by Megan O’Russell

  (https://curiosityquills.com/kindle/magically-messed-life/)

  I opened an app on a magic cellphone and burned down half my school. Then things got weird. Now shadow monster and mist ladies are trying to kill me, and I think the cops might be after me for a few minor things like fires and giant plants sprouting up and scaring the good citizens of Manhattan. Yesterday my biggest problem was getting the girl of my dreams to notice me; now it’ll be a miracle if I survive until Monday.