Jaden's Heart

by Melanie Jackson

  Whispers erupted among the Immortals who had arrived to witness the test as I entered the oversized ballroom. I avoided their nearly hostile stares and whispered assumptions as I made my way to the front of the room. The sun had just begun to sink beneath the western skyline, filling the room with a beautiful assortment of colors.

  Desiree rushed to my side, embracing me tightly. “I was so worried.”

  I did not return her embrace; I was a statue among them.

  “Yeah, we thought you might not show up,” James added as Desiree released me.

  Prince Arron cleared his throat and my friends stepped away from me. He stood straight, his shoulders square. “Now that we are all present, we can begin.”

  “I hope that this is not a sign to what we can expect in the future, should you pass this test,” Lord Kayne said, annoyed.

  All the council members looked irritated; some were even scowling at me. My friends had not told them what transpired in the car.

  I sighed, silently relieved. “Forgive my lateness, my lords, ladies.” I bowed.

  Prince Arron nodded. “Let us begin.”

  “Today we have come to bear witness to an historic event,” Lady Marianna said. “One that will mark the first day of a new era. We have lost a valued and respected member of our order. Ivy was our window into the future. Her visions and interpretations of them have allowed us to live a peaceful existence. Without those visions, we are blind to the future and the enemies that have risen, or will rise, against us. Yet, before us stands a woman who claims to see what we cannot. With much thought and meditation, she has decided to undergo the Test of the Seer. This test, the King personally gave to the gifted among us. It has not been attempted since before the Immortal Civil War. Jaden Hawk of the First, please step forward.”

  The whispers continued behind me as I closed the space between the council and me.

  A brown-haired female human in a short white dress stepped forward and handed a silver chalice to Prince Arron. He took it and crossed to stand in front of me. “This Test is not for the faint of heart. Drinking from this chalice signifies you accept both the responsibilities that come with being a Seer, but also the consequences if you should fail.” His black sightless eyes stared at me, unblinking.

  I swallowed the large lump in my throat. “I swear to serve and if I fail, it was my fate to do so.”

  “Then drink and may the Gods show you favor.” Prince Arron held the cup out to me.

  I took it and drank deeply without looking to see what the chalice contained. Water? Then the world around me spun.

  “Damn, fucking magic!” I cursed then stumbled and collapsed.

  I stood outside myself, watching as a guard lifted my limp body to carry me to the marble altar at the front of the room. He laid me upon it. I walked among the onlookers and marveled that this must be what it was like to be an apparition.

  The people around me evaporated. I stood alone in front of a simple prefabricated door.

  Stepping through it, I found myself back in 1112. I was once again standing inside Annora's beautifully decorated bedchambers. It was exactly how I remembered it: the warm fire burning in the hearth, the large bed with silk sheets and down pillows, cold stone floor with a large fur rug at its center. The fresh scent of lilacs covered everything. I breathed deeply and smiled.

  Annora stood before a twelve-year-old version of me. She held a small silver dagger out to her. Laila, the small brown-haired blacksmith's daughter and my only friend, knelt a few feet from us, crying.

  “If you're truly committed to me and want to join me in this life, you will take this dagger and slit her throat,” Annora ordered, her eyes cold.

  “Jaden, please,” the bound Laila begged.

  My younger self took the blade with trembling hands and walked slowly over to Laila, who sobbed uncontrollably.

  Annora crossed the room to stand behind Laila. “Prove you love me,” she said, grabbing a handful of the young girl's hair. “Kill her!”

  “Help me!” Laila screamed.

  Without hesitation, the younger me, Annora’s Elysian, drew the sliver blade across Laila's exposed throat. My young eyes went blank as blood spayed across the room, covering everything. Laila gargled and shook, her wide, terror filled eyes on me as she bled out.

  Annora released Laila and her lifeless body collapsed. The younger version of me returned the dagger to Annora with a bow. "I am yours to command, master. Always," her eyes matched her words, distant and unfeeling.

  They faded and I stood alone over Laila's bloody body. Surveying the large room, a cold chill washed over me with what seemed like an endless stream of horrid memories I wished had never happened. Why am I here? What does this have to do with the future?

  “It's sad, isn't it?” her voice said from behind me, “I was so young and beautiful.”

  I turned; Laila stood in the same dark green dress she died in, blood splattered across it.

  “Laila?” I asked, confused.

  “Not really. Laila died in this room by your hand.” She slowly crossed to stand next to Laila’s body. “She thought she could trust you, thought she was your best friend. You shared all your secrets with her and she filled your sorry existence with a glimmer of light and beauty. This was her reward for that trust,” Laila said, gesturing to the bloody body.

  “Why am I here?” I asked.

  “You're here because this is one of your regrets. An event that you wish to change, a life you wish to give back,” Laila said, smiling at me.

  “But this has already happened and nothing can change that.”

  “So you accept what you have done and accept this was my fate?” she asked.

  “I do not understand what you want,” I replied.

  “Only to teach you. Answer me this. If you could change this and all the things that happened here within this room, would you?”

  I scowled at her. “But I can't—”

  “Would you if you could?”

  Would I change these events? Everything that happened in my life has brought me to Alexis. They helped me become the person I am.

  “No,” I whispered.

  “Why?” she asked.

  “It would change me,” I said simply.

  “You understand, then,” Laila said.

  I nodded.

  If I changed even one small detail of my past, it would change who I became. I now understood, the future was no different from the past. Everything I changed—even the smallest, most insignificant of things—would change who I would become.

  Laila slowly faded along with the room. I stood once again in front of a door. This one was large and made of solid iron. It took all my strength to open it. I stepped into the large room and froze, refusing to believe.

  I faced a monstrous creature, the demon within me.

  He peered at me through his large, crimson, animalistic eyes as his long black claws scraped at the flagstone floor. He moved about the room on all fours, naked, hairless, his skin pasty white. His wide, muscular chest rose and fell in quick succession. Skeletal, black wings unfurled themselves as he stood on his thick hind legs. He was seven feet of pure muscle.

  “So, you have come to challenge me as Alpha. To have me submit to your will,” he snarled, and then snapped at me with his long, sharp teeth and black lips.

  I looked down at my exposed flesh and shuddered. I’m human. A frail, weak human.

  My eyes scanned the room for a weapon of some kind but found nothing. My heart pounded against my rib cage as fear paralyzed my limbs.

  He approached with sinister intent. “When I have killed you, I will regain my rightful place within your body.”

  I trembled in fear as his large black claws swung and connected with my naked flesh, cutting deep into me. An agonized scream erupted from me and blood dripped from the large gashes across my chest.

  The beast laughed triumphantly, “Die, human!”

  I was myself once again, the pain awakening me. He lashe
d out at me with bloody claws; I rolled away from him and kicked him hard behind his left knee. I screamed. It was as if I had just kicked a cement wall.

  Standing unsteadily on my throbbing leg, I limped away from him, trying to create space between us. He spun, swinging at me with his powerful arms. All I could do was dodge his attacks. He was quicker and stronger; it was a losing battle and I knew it. I stepped too slow and he knocked me back into the far wall of the room. My body bounced and landed in a heap on the floor. I coughed up a mouthful of blood.

  “Now, I shall drink in the last of your humanity,” he roared victoriously.

  I whimpered, pulling myself to my knees, Alexis's face in my mind. I have to live.

  The silver chain that once bound the beast lay beside my shaking hands. Blood dripped from my wounds as I grabbed hold of it. With one powerful arm he lifted me off the ground.

  He grabbed my face with his free hand. “You're going to taste like ambrosia.” He kissed my lips and within it I tasted death.

  I wrapped the metal chain around his neck twice and pulled hard. He dropped me and I painfully rolled out of his reach.

  He spun and screamed, “It burns!” The skin that the chain touched began to smoke and blister.

  The demon fought to free himself. Quickly, I went for the silver cuffs that hung at the end of the chain. I managed to grab one, ducking a powerful swing of his left arm. Dodging the other arm, I clasped the cuff to his left ankle and rolled to avoid being crushed by his feet.

  After several failed attempts, I grabbed hold of the second cuff and secured it around his right ankle. I quickly moved out of his reach and watched as he snarled and snapped at me.

  “Burns... it burns!” he screamed, twisting and pulling at the cuffs.

  “Submit to me, beast!” I demanded, my voice hoarse.

  The demon clawed at the floor, seething in anger. “Release me, human!”

  “Never! I am the master. Caged and chained you will stay.”

  He lunged for me, falling to the ground inches from my bruised and bloody body.

  I searched the room; there was the door. Clutching my bleeding chest, I gathered up what little strength I had left and crossed the room.

  Stepping through the door, I stood in a white room, empty apart from an old man. He sat cross-legged on a bamboo mat. A steaming teapot and two cups sat in front of him.

  “Join me, child.” His voice was strong despite the frailty of his body. I was once again clothed, yet the pain from the fight still lingered.

  I slowly crossed the room. “What is this place?”

  He gestured for me to sit across from him. “A room inside your mind yet to be filled.”

  Wincing in pain, I eased myself to the white floor and crossed my legs.

  “Have some tea. It will help,” he offered.

  He poured the hot liquid into one of the glasses and jasmine filled the air. “Who are you?” I asked.

  “Your mind created me to act as a guide. I am a figment of your subconscious.”

  I sipped the hot jasmine tea. “Why would my mind create a guide?” My body relaxed and the pain quickly disappeared.

  He sipped his tea then said, “Your subconscious must think you needed a familiar face to guide you through your visions and help you make sense of what you see.”

  “But why you? I only met you once and can't even remember your name.”

  The old man shrugged. “It's your mind; you tell me.”

  I frowned. “So, you are going to show me how to control my visions. So I can change the future to my liking?”

  The old man stretched his hands out to me. “Know this, child: the future is a fast moving river. Your visions are only flashes of the future. These images are only a glimpse at possible outcomes. They will never be complete or clear, but the images will change based on the actions you take. Thus, the path the river takes and the strength of the current will change.”

  “How will I know which are the right actions to take?” I asked.

  “Meditation, patience, and experience are your only tools, but wielded properly, can be a deadly weapon or your doom.” His words made the hairs on my neck stand on end.

  “What will this do to me?”

  “If you are afraid that I will change you, don't be. The moment you mastered the Immortal beast within you, you became more than what you were, stronger and faster.” He smiled.

  “But still less human,” I added, feeling distant from my body. “Can it be undone?” I asked softly, already knowing the answer.

  “It cannot,” he replied.

  Sadness filled my heart. I felt like less, but at the same time, more, than I had been.

  “Do not weep for what is already gone. Take my hands. Let us face the future.”

  I reached out and clasped hands with the old man. “I hope it's worth it.”

  “With the right training, it will be,” he replied. “In time, you can use the visions to help guide not only your actions but other's as well.” His hands closed around mine. “It is easy to see the visions, but difficult to accept that even if we try our hardest, the vision may come true regardless, or may take a path that has not been foreseen. This is not the Seer's fault, but the hand of fate which no one can change,” he explained.

  “What should I do?” I asked.

  “Focus on what you truly want to happen and put all your efforts into creating that version of the future.”

  I nodded.

  “Now let's see your visions,” he said.

  Burning fire coursed between us and up the frozen veins in my arms. I bit my bottom lip, fighting the pain.

  I was standing on a burned field, the ground cracked and dry. In the distance, I could once again see the enormous alabaster walls of the Immortal City.

  Alexis stood on my right, Annora on my left. The ground began to crumble beneath us, lava seeping up through the cracks. I tried to move, to tell them to run, but I was frozen. I looked between them, knowing I could only save one.

  I grabbed for Alexis and the image fell away. We were lying in bed, her soft, naked body next to mine. She rolled on top of me, her kisses passionate. Our shadows began dancing in the sunset while birds sang in the distance. Her emerald eyes shimmered, filling my heart with warming joy.

  “I love you,” Alexis whispered.

  “I love you,” my words echoed through that unreal place where all my dreams became reality.

  Our lips met yet again with tears of joy in her eyes. I touched her cheek as the wind gently wisped the vision away. I sat once again on the floor in front of the old man.

  This is the future I want, for her to lie in my arms every evening, our bodies dancing in the shadows every night and laughing long into the day, our love continuing to blossom through the years. Never before have I felt such joy. A future truly exists in which we could share our love for all eternity. In the vision, it was a wondrous place where nothing was required of either of us, where we could love freely for eternity.

  “How do I make it come true?” I asked, breathless.

  “There is much we do not yet understand,” he said, letting my hands go.

  “Please, what action will steer me in the right direction?” I begged.

  “Death and many hard, painful choices stand between you and this future. These choices are not set in stone and they muddy the path. What are you ready to give up for this out come?” His question held a warning and it sent chills down my spine.

  “Anything,” I replied hastily.

  “You must give her up,” he said.

  My heart sank into my stomach and the joy left me. “Let her go?”

  He nodded solemnly and I wet my lips. The images of us together and happy played across my eyes.

  “I will let her go.” My words were sharp blades in my heart.

  “Then you know what you must do to begin the journey,” he replied.

  “I understand,” I said, my voice hushed.

  “The first path is clear. Time will
undoubtedly muddy it, but remember, you may always come here for guidance.”

  The beginning of my journey was laid out before me as stepping stones that would eventually lead me to a blissful eternity with Alexis.

  I stood slowly and bowed to the old man. “Thank you.”

  “May your visions always guide, but never lead,” he said, as the room faded into blackness.

  Slowly, I opened my eyes. My body ached, but my mind was clear. The council again stood around me in a semi-circle in the First House’s ballroom.

  Lord Anton helped me sit up. “You have passed the Test. What you see is for you and only you may decide to share what you have seen,” he whispered.

  All I could do was give weak nod.

  “I give you Seer Lady Jaden Hawk of the Seventh and honored Councilwoman. May her visions keep us safe from enemies both foreign and domestic,” Prince Arron announced.

  The Immortals in the room bowed deeply. “Long may she live!” they recited.

  Thirty-Six

  Immediately after the witnesses departed for the evening hunt, the council gathered for an informal ceremony to reiterate my duties and responsibilities. The official ceremony would be in a few weeks at the Seventh Castle. It would be a lavish gathering with music, dancing, gifts, and speeches. During the ceremony, I would be expected to give a speech announcing the younglings that would join the Seventh and swear allegiance to Prince Arron to protect our people and our way of life.

  As they droned on about duty and responsibility, I fought to remain present.

  “The last thing we must discuss with you is what we have decided to do about the human female, Alexis,” Prince Arron stated.

  I straightened and squared my shoulders.