by Sarah Noffke
Liv grunted. “No, I rescued Indikos, and he asked me to take him to someplace he’d be safe.” She glanced around. “Although, I’m not sure that’s this place. You’d have to prove you’re fit to take care of him. He’s been through a lot.”
Hawaiki crossed her arms in front of her chest. “Of course, I’d provide a majunga with the perfect home. It’s my dream to have one.”
Liv nodded. “I know. That was why I brought you him, but he must be shy or something.”
The elf shook her head. “No, he’s not at all. He’s watching me to see if he likes me.”
It was difficult for Liv to suppress her expression, which accurately said, “Yeah, whatever, you crazy old woman.”
To cover up her judgmental expression, Liv asked, “How do you know he’s watching you?”
Hawaiki held a plump finger in the air, pointing. “He’s right there in the trees.”
Liv squinted in that direction, not seeing anything but branches and leaves. “If you say so.”
Rounding on her, Hawaiki put her hands on her hips. “So you’ve come all this way to ask for my help?”
“Yes, and I brought you the majunga, although I get that it doesn’t count if he stays away.”
“It counts,” the old elf sang, a hint of mischief in her voice. “Now it’s my job to earn his favor.”
“Oh,” Liv said with relief. “Thank you. I need your help with—”
“When you look at my house, what do you see?” Hawaiki asked, cutting Liv off.
Her brow scrunched at the strange question. “A small hut.”
The old woman shook her head. “No, look past that. What glamour do you see?”
“I see a few different ones,” Liv explained.
Hawaiki set off, gathering wood from the ground. “And when you look at me, what form do I take?”
Liv scratched her head, trying to figure out how best to answer the question without sounding rude. She couldn’t say, “You look like an old, saggy woman.”
Studying the images shuffling in her head of the woman, Liv said, “Again, I see a few different ones. You young, and then older.”
Hawaiki dropped wood by a firepit that hadn’t been there a few moments prior. “Yes, that makes sense.”
Liv had no idea how that made sense, but this was par for the course. “Hawaiki, I’m here because I need—”
“Help unlocking the memories your mother sealed into her sword,” the elf said, interrupting her yet again.
Liv’s mouth slammed shut with surprise, then she said, “Well, yes. How did you know?”
“First of all, I can sense your mother’s sword, Inexorabilis, on you, and the memories are quite loud,” Hawaiki explained. “Secondly, usually individuals see one particular image of my house, whichever one resonates with their own personal tastes. However, those who are lost can’t see one form of my house, which means you need this information from your mother’s sword unlocked to proceed on your path.”
“Oh,” Liv said, surprised by how accurate the old woman was with her observations.
“Well, and also, you look just like your mother,” Hawaiki stated. “I knew you were Guinevere’s daughter before you recognized me as a person.”
“I was simply distracted,” Liv stated. “And why can I see you at all ages?”
Hawaiki went to work arranging the wood. “That’s a very good question, which I don’t have the answer for at the present moment. Most see me in only one of my forms: child, teenager, adult, or elderly. You, Liv Beaufont, are a strange individual.”
“Thank you?” Liv said, doubt in her voice.
A fire started with a flick of Hawaiki’s fingers, lighting the dry kindling. “Now, why don’t you come inside while this fire heats up. I’ll serve you something to eat and take a look at this sword you’ve brought.”
Liv nodded, following the old woman to the door. “That would be great.”
Before Liv could enter, Hawaiki swung around with her hand out. “I can’t have you dripping Rongo all over the place. Close your eyes, child. This might hurt a bit.”
Liv tilted her head to the side, giving the old woman a skeptical expression.
With a frustrated look, Hawaiki said, “I’ve got to get you cleaned up. Or would you rather keep the bug guts in your ear canal and in between your ch—”
“Yes, yes,” Liv said in a rush. “That’s fine. Do it.” She squeezed her eyes shut, wondering how getting cleaned could hurt. A moment later, she had her answer. It felt as though she’d had a squeegee raked over every inch of her body. Her ears, nose, and in between her toes felt like they’d been cleaned with pipe cleaners. And just when Liv thought it was done, a blast of wind knocked her back several feet, making her land in a dirt pile.
“Well, I cleaned you up once,” Hawaiki said when Liv’s eyes popped open. “You’re on your own now.”
Liv pushed to her feet, dusting off her backside. She was clean...well, mostly. The slime was gone, but she had some dirt on her jeans from her fall.
“Join me inside, would you?” Hawaiki said, disappearing into the hut.
Liv shook her head and followed her, hoping the house was bigger on the inside.
Chapter Twelve
Not only was Hawaiki’s house bigger on the inside, but it was also simply stunning. The floors were marble, with a swirling design of blues and greens. Overhead was a giant chandelier, and twin staircases framed the entryway. Through the living room, Liv could spy a sparkling pool, complete with a fountain and a gazebo.
“Wow, this isn’t what I expected,” Liv remarked, turning around completely to take in the beautiful craftsmanship of the home.
“You thought I’d have dirt floors, did you?”
Liv shook her head. “No. I mean, I wasn’t sure what to expect. Maybe something a bit more modest. You do live on an island away from everyone.”
“And I suppose that means I should drink well water and not have electricity?” Hawaiki asked.
Liv didn’t know how to refute that. This was exactly what she had thought.
Hawaiki led Liv to a dining room table that sat beside a picture window that looked out on a giant waterfall, which she didn’t remember seeing outside the hut. “It’s okay. You’re right to wonder,” the elf confessed, guilt in her voice as she lowered her chin.
“I am?” Liv asked in disbelief.
“Yes,” Hawaiki said. “I actually used to live in Manhattan. I had to have the trendiest clothes. If it was in, I wanted to be the first to get it. And the moment it was out, I tossed it in the trash.” The old elven woman stared around. “This house is a mix of who I used to be. The outside and the place I’ve come to live, it reminds me of who I am. I can’t live anymore in a world where I’m owned by what’s popular and what isn’t. I’ve given that up. However, I shouldn’t suffer since I have grown to enjoy the conveniences of life, so I live away from others, enjoying a simple life. However, I still love my bamboo sheets and Juicy Couture handbags.”
Liv was having a hard time trying to picture this island woman decked out in designer clothes and sporting a bag with a miniature dog hanging out of it. However, when her eyes weren’t totally focused, she got brief glimpses of what Hawaiki had looked like years ago. She was in fact polished in her high heels, her hair slicked back in a bun, and her eyelash extensions batting as she gave disapproving looks to others.
“So was this other life of yours before or after you made my mother’s sword?” Liv asked.
Hawaiki took a seat at the table, sighing loudly like she was relieved to get off her feet. “Oh, that was a long time before I went through my materialistic phase. I’ve gone through many evolutions, as I’m sure you will.”
“I’m not sure you’ll ever catch me wearing Prada,” Liv remarked.
“Maybe not,” Hawaiki mused. “But I’m sure you’ll one day be a lover, a heartbreaker, a heartbreakee, a mother, a grandmother, an aunt, a friend, a betrayer, and many, many other things.”
Liv
didn’t know what to say to that. She stood nervously in front of the table, her eyes shifting back and forth.
“You see, Liv Beaufont, we all have many different roles we play in life,” Hawaiki stated. “I have never much cared for people, which is why you find me here. And at one point, I thought things could fill the void I’d created when I cut out the world. That didn’t work, obviously. And so at this point, you find my incarnation here as an old woman who knows no one. There’s no one for me to save or impress or expel.”
“So before this, you were a socialite?” Liv asked, finding it hard to believe the woman she’d mistaken for a burlap sack had once been so into trends and fashion.
“Yes, and before I was the legendary sword maker, I was the one who colonized the Polynesian islands for my race,” she explained. Hawaiki hummed, a bit of melancholy in her voice. “I think, like most, I’ve been trying to fill a void in my life with my achievements, power, possessions, and more. It’s only now, in the last few chapters of my life, that I’ve tried to simplify things.”
This wasn’t the lesson Liv had expected, but it resonated with her in ways she’d also not anticipated.
Hawaiki tapped the table with her withered hands. “Okay, let’s see Inexorabilis. I haven’t set eyes on one of my creations in a long, long time.”
The excitement in Liv’s chest blossomed until she thought she would explode. She couldn’t believe she was here, and about to uncover her mother’s final moments on Earth. So much had led up to this point. Liv wanted what would come next more than anything, and yet, she knew it would change everything. She might not like what she learned, and she was certain it would lead her on a new path with new challenges and dangers.
Liv pulled back her cape, taking her mother’s sword from her hip. The electric shock that always accompanied touching Inexorabilis ran through her fingers, nearly making her drop it on the table.
Hawaiki leaned forward, spying Bellator on the other side of her. “Oh, you have two swords, do you? Guinevere’s sword does not fit you, does it?”
“No. I already had this sword before finding my mother’s,” Liv explained, then amended, “And actually, no. The sword doesn’t fit me. I’ve always, since I can remember, experienced a shock when I touched Inexorabilis.”
“And you didn’t believe this evidence that you could potentially be bonded to the sword?” she asked. “Some might have taken this as a positive sign.”
Liv thought about it for a moment and shook her head. “No, it wasn’t a magnetic shock. It was a repulsive one.”
“Oh, like how you feel when you meet someone not right for you,” Hawaiki guessed. “Not like the pulse you feel when you see a man you like.”
Liv blushed. “I hadn’t really thought of it that way, but yes.”
“Do you know why I named this sword Inexorabilis?” Hawaiki asked.
Liv had a hundred guesses, but she wanted to hear the truth from the old sword maker. “Why?”
“Because your mother, Guinevere Beaufont, had a fire I’d rarely seen. You simply looked at your mother and thought, ‘Wow, that woman is unstoppable.’ I named the sword after her.”
Liv took a seat, suddenly feeling heavy, although she wasn’t sure why.
“Now, when I look at you, I see the same thing,” Hawaiki continued. “So one might think that would make the sword perfect for you. But you aren’t your mother. It is wrong for you to think you can fill her shoes as a Warrior for the House of Seven. She had her own role. Her own challenges. Her own achievements. You, Liv Beaufont, aren’t meant to be a replica of your mother. You are meant to be your own thing. Therefore, I believe the sword has rejected you so that you become what you are meant to be, separate from what your mother blessed you with.”
“So Inexorabilis rejected me?” Liv asked, her insides scorched slightly by the confirmation.
Hawaiki nodded, a sudden realization popping to her face. “Oh, dear. I said I’d feed you, and I haven’t.” She snapped her fingers, and two bowls appeared in front of them. They looked to be filled with broth and bones and strange leaves that gave off a pungent odor.
The old elf waved her hand forward, drawing in the scent from the soup with approval. “Oh, you’ll enjoy this if you plug your nose and pretend its pizza.”
Liv peered over the edge of the bowl. “Is that all I have to do?”
Hawaiki laughed, a strangely melodic sound. “Oh, yes. I’m a horrible cook, and the ingredients I have out here aren’t ideal for making squat. I would apologize, but you did show up unannounced.”
“Well, you don’t have a telephone that I could have called on, right?” Liv asked.
“No, there’s absolutely no way of getting in contact with me,” Hawaiki said. “That’s by design.”
“Right.” Liv pushed her soup away after taking a small whiff. “Thanks for this, but I’m not hungry.”
“No, you just used a huge amount of magical power to cross lava and defeat a giant beetle.” Hawaiki gave her a commiserating expression as she pushed her own bowl of soup away. “And yes, the sword rejected you because you’re too much like your mother.”
“I don’t understand,” Liv said, looking Inexorabilis over.
“It’s a bit complex, but your mother’s sword was created for her by me,” Hawaiki explained. “It grew to know what she’d need. It anticipated her desires as a good sword does. It evolved with her. If you picked up this sword, then—”
“I’d have no evolution,” Liv said, completing her sentence.
“That’s exactly right,” Hawaiki said triumphantly. “Instead, you had a sword made by a giant, which was created perfectly for you. I’m sure you’ve had your own trials and tribulations using that sword on your waist. If you’d had Inexorabilis, it wouldn’t have given you what you wanted or needed since it already gave it to Guinevere.”
Liv glanced down at Bellator, thinking of the journey they’d been on in the short time they’d been together. She wasn’t about to argue about Bellator being giant-made. There was no point, she’d come to realize.
Everything Hawaiki had said about her mother’s sword made sense. It had already gone through an orientation with Guinevere. They were so much alike, Liv and her mother. She didn’t need her mother’s sword because of that. It would offer her little. What she needed was her own sword, her own challenges, her own path as she took on the same role as her mother.
Pushing the sword over to Hawaiki, Liv held her breath. “Okay, I’m ready to find out what memories my mother’s sword holds. Are you ready to tell me?”
The old elf considered this for a long moment, her wrinkled fingers resting on the hilt. “Yes, I’ll tell you what you came here to find out. But please know—”
“That what I learn will change everything,” Liv guessed. “My mother said as much in the last message she imbued into the blade.”
Hawaiki shook her head. “There’s that. And your mother was right to give you that warning, but there’s something else.”
Liv leaned forward, not breathing. “What else?”
“This is the last message your mother left,” Hawaiki said, a coarseness to her voice. “It is the last remnants of your parents. Are you ready to see their final moments? To know their final wishes for their children? After this, the journey ahead will be all on your own. No more clues from your parents. It will be only you and your own to lead the way.”
Liv thought about that. She’d silently felt her parents there with her on this journey, steering her with their clues and the wisdom they’d left behind. How many times had her father’s hints whispered in her ears? How many times had her mother’s lessons reminded her of what she needed to know? But this was the last thing they had left behind, and unearthing its secrets was like unburying them. Once that was done, there would be no more…
Liv would be on her own, fighting their war alone.
And then she remembered how else they had equipped her.
With Clark.
And Sophia.
With Rory.
And Rudolf.
With Stefan.
And then there were John and Plato, and so many others. Whether her parents had meant her to have so many friends or not didn’t matter. She had them now. And she was ready to face whatever came next, even if that meant hearing her parent’s last messages and therefore letting go of everything they had left behind.
“I’m ready,” she said to Hawaiki, pushing Inexorabilis toward the elf, feeling the shock radiate in her fingers.
Chapter Thirteen
With a meditative expression, Hawaiki pulled Inexorabilis closer to her. She ran her hands an inch over the blade, her eyes starting to glaze over as she chanted in a soft whisper. Liv realized after a minute that she was holding her breath, the anticipation in her chest ready to bound out of her.
The elf’s eyelids fluttered shut and her head lolled back like she was falling asleep. Worried that she had actually nodded off, Liv considered interrupting her.
And then the sword began to rise off the surface of the table and glow. A strange chiming noise resonated from the blade, making it vibrate. Mesmerized by this show, Liv watched unblinking until the sword clattered back to the table as Hawaiki pulled her hands to her sides like she’d been burned. Her brown eyes were wide with shock.
“What was it?” Liv asked, leaning forward. “Is everything okay?”
Hawaiki stood abruptly, shaking her head at Inexorabilis. “You shouldn’t have brought this sword here.”
Liv copied her, standing and pushing the seat out behind her. “What? Why? What did you see?”
The old elf continued to shake her head. “You’ve put me in great danger. I know things I shouldn’t know.”
“The Mortal Seven?” Liv asked.
Hawaiki stumbled backward, stabilizing herself on the wall. “Your parents were trying to uncover a secret.”
“Yes, mortals used to be able to see magic,” Liv said, trying to keep her voice calm, although the older woman was visibly shaking.
