Protector of the Flame

by Isis Rushdan

  Pregnant. She still couldn’t believe it.

  No wonder her stream acted as if it had a life of its own. Now it did. She rubbed her belly. “I know your daddy is irresistible, but we’ve got to give him a break.” Her stream stirred. She wondered if it could hear her. “We’re not leaving him enough.” Her pool gurgled in response.

  We’ll see if that works, she thought and laughed. Somehow she knew parenthood wouldn’t be so simple.

  Getting pregnant had been a feat. There was no amulet around her neck to sabotage this pregnancy, but Aten and Sekhem still worked against them.

  Abbadon hadn’t sent any messages. If he failed, she might not live long enough to bring the child into the world. They wouldn’t be safe until this baby was born.

  How could she risk loving it when it might not survive? The last thing she needed to do was start talking to it. She’d talk to it and scold it for sucking Cyrus dry when she could hold it in her arms, and not before then.

  The sky steadily brightened. A silvery shade of dusky cerulean hung over everything, washing it in one peaceful color.

  Chanting drifted on the wind. Slowly, it drew closer.

  “Ooh, ah.” Repeated over and over like a chorus in song.

  A female voice cried out above it. “In order to be better, in order to be stronger, you must push through.” It was Sothis.

  “Ooh, ah.”

  “You feel no pain. Your body doesn’t know fatigue.”

  “Ooh, ah.”

  “Your warm-up is over. Move faster!”

  A formation, sprinting at lightning speed, jetted past Serenity along the beach. Sothis flew above it, shifted and shouting. The chorus died as their pace increased.

  The urge to run compelled her to follow. Knowing she had no hope of keeping their pace, the challenge was enough to excite her. She needed to burn off some energy and now she had the greatest rabbit of all to chase.

  “The day will come when you’ll face your greatest adversary. What will you tell Asar if you fail? That you were too weak to prevail or too slow to conquer the beast?” her mother shouted.

  Asar, the god of the underworld and Aset’s husband, weighed the souls of the dead to see who was worthy of heaven and who would be destroyed forever. Reading about the Egyptian myths was a pleasant diversion from some of the heftier subjects Neith had her go through.

  Serenity sprinted just to stay within earshot. Once the beach ended and turned into a strip of slick rocks, she stopped, watching them fade in the distance. A jagged wall of rock loomed behind her. It was the cliff where she’d learned how to play chess. Adriel’s cliff.

  Climbing over rocks, she took her time and made her way around to the other side to the steps. She hadn’t anticipated how difficult it would be without Adriel’s assistance. Maneuvering to the edge closest to the wall, she moved faster up the smaller stones.

  She ran up the rocky steps, taking them one at a time. Loose gravel shifted under her foot the wrong way. She slipped and slid down the steep, rough slope. Earth and rock slid beneath her. She reached out for the side, groping for anything and caught hold of a thick, exposed root.

  Dangling with sharp rocks below, she wished she’d gone slower.

  Argyle appeared and descended beside her. She hadn’t noticed anyone watching her. He grasped her under her armpits and lifted her to the top, where Adriel sat waiting for sunrise.

  “Thank you,” she said as she was set on the ground and waved as Argyle flew off.

  “What are you doing up here?” Adriel stood. “You shouldn’t climb up on your own,” he said sharply.

  “You told me I could come here to find you.”

  “That was before.” He went to the edge where he sat, legs hanging off the side.

  “Before you knew I was pregnant?”

  He lowered his head, shoulders bunched. “I knew you’d figure it out eventually.”

  “Actually, Cyrus figured it out last night.”

  He laughed under his breath.

  “Glad you find it so amusing. It would’ve been nice to know weeks ago.” She peered over the side of the cliff.

  A whoosh of vertigo made her stumble backwards. He jumped up, moving her away from the edge and sat her down.

  “How far along am I?”

  “Seventy-six days.”

  The exact number without hesitation stole her breath. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

  “I was ashamed.” He sat cross-legged in front of her, knees pressed against hers, eyes lowered. “That night in your room when you asked me to heal you, I thought I’d come to your rescue, curing you of your ills and restoring your balance. And then I sensed the fetus. I was envious of Cyrus and angry you carried his child. I felt such shame over those feelings.”

  He held her hands. “Your pregnancy is a great blessing. Neith will be overjoyed. I saw no harm in letting you discover it on your own.”

  She tightened her grip on his hands. “I don’t know what this is between us, but I think your reaction was…natural.” The tether had to be broken. He needed to be free of her just as much as she needed to be free of him. “I want you to be happy, Adriel, but I don’t think this—” she raised their joined hands, “—will ever make you happy.”

  “Love and happiness seldom go hand in hand. When I’m away from you, all I think of is you to the point of incapacitation and all I long for is to be near you again. I’m a drowning man when we’re apart. Nikos doesn’t know what to do with me when we go to the mainland now. But sitting in the same dining hall with hundreds between us, a glimpse of you puts all right in my world. When I get to spend time with you, I’m at ease and content.”

  She took a deep breath, not expecting him to bare his heart. “I don’t know where we go from here.”

  “Forward. We hope Abbadon finds a way for the blood grievance to be heard. We hope Neith’s neutrality holds. We hope for a vote in our favor. In the meantime, we show Cyrus that I’m a good brother to you.”

  Adriel had become many things to her, but along the way he stopped being just a brother. For some reason the pull on her end of the tether wasn’t quite as extreme as with him. Perhaps her love for Cyrus, her bond with him tempered the link, acted as a buffer keeping her grounded and safe from Adriel’s bed.

  His endearment to her seemed to make her safety and well-being his primary concern. That meant he would avoid, as much as possible, putting her in a compromising position again. Surely he knew Cyrus would snuff out his flame at the very least, and hers as well in a worst case scenario. He could be trusted to do the right thing.

  She’d sever the link if she could for the sake of them all. But short of Adriel’s death, there was no way to break the tether. She’d maintain the balance, keeping one safe and making the other happy.

  “We go forward,” she said in agreement.

  Chapter Thirty-Nine

  Jogging at a slow pace, Serenity had to get the timing right to avoid Cyrus and not miss breakfast. He’d only give her a hard time about not staying in the bedroom. Perhaps after a full day without being drained of energy and fatigued on detail he might have a different perspective.

  She opened the door, relieved to see the room empty. On the bed, he’d made a frowning face out of fruit; two apples for eyes, a mango for the nose and four bananas in an upside down smile.

  Tickled, she grabbed her stuff to shower and snatched a banana and apple. The banana she ate on her way to the outdoor showers. The apple she finished before she got back to the room. Famished, she ate the rest of the fruit, had two cups of water and went up to the library.

  Adriel didn’t look up from his computer right away, but as she entered Neith’s office and went to close the door she could feel his eyes on her.

  Neith watched her cross the room and sit in one of the chairs facing the desk.

  “I received a message from Abbadon last night.”

  Her heart stuttered. “What did it say?”

  “Sekhem has acknowledged that a blood grievance
cannot be considered on the same mundane level as any other complaint and have agreed it is a time-sensitive matter validating the right to an early Pesedjet hearing.”

  Pinpricks of dread danced along her spine, keeping joy from surfacing. “That’s wonderful. What made them change their minds?”

  “Constantine remembered hearing of a Pesedjet session convened out of turn back in…do you know the Isfet calendar well?”

  “Unfortunately, no.”

  Neith sat quietly thinking. “It was in 841 AD according to your Gregorian records. Sekhem called for the early session on the grounds of a blood grievance. It was the last time one has been called until now.”

  Looking at Neith’s solemn face, she said, “You don’t seem very happy about it.”

  “Aten has made no comment. They have a lunar month to respond.”

  “This works to our advantage. I thought you wanted to buy us time.”

  Neith stroked the peacock feather lying on the desk, her expression remained pensive. “The immortals have long memories. They will force us to play our hand by twisting the laws or countering with bylaws the others wouldn’t know.”

  “What do we do then?”

  The ancient beauty smiled, but there was no joy in her face. “We shall cross that bridge when we come to it.” She leaned forward. “I’ve decided you may never get my portrait right and my energy stream cannot tolerate you any longer. You will return to the main library alongside the other historians until you know for certain you can paint it or you stop siphoning.”

  “I’m not the one siphoning.”

  Neith’s lips pressed in a tight line as she rested her forearms on the desk. “I’m not in the mood for games this morning.”

  “The baby is siphoning energy.”

  Neith’s hard expression didn’t change. “You’re certain?”

  “Cyrus realized I haven’t been in esuratus since he worked the laundry detail. Adriel confirmed it.”

  Exaltation sparked in Neith’s curved her lips. She closed her eyes as if in prayer, then rose and extended her arms. “Come and embrace me.”

  Serenity hugged her, fearful to squeeze her fragile frame too tight, but Neith’s body was all wiry muscle and strong bones.

  “May the almighty Creator have you in his keeping.” Neith released her. “I have prayed for this day, planned for it, hoped for it with every vein of my being.” She returned to her wingback chair. “After witnessing sangre saevitas firsthand, I think you can understand why I strive for redemption beyond my desire to fight against the immortals.”

  “I do. How many have you lost to blood rage and the dark veil?”

  “Two thousand and eleven.”

  The number boggled Serenity’s mind.

  “I have lived a long time and seen many unfortunate things. Those who suffer from the dark veil usually only harm themselves. Teresa, one who was with me a long time ago, claimed the life of her lover, he wasn’t her kabashem of course, and their three younglings before she took her own life. Those with sangre saevitas don’t show signs early enough for me to take preventive action.” Sadness filled her eyes. “It’s not easy to distinguish between someone having a bad day and the start of the blood frenzy. I’ve had warriors greater than the one you took down succumb to it. One took out fifty-six others before we could euthanize him.”

  “The one in 1166 that had my ingenium. How many did he kill?”

  “We’ve never lost so many at once. He eradicated a Herut colony of 572 and continued on a killing spree. It took Paladins to take him down. It’s how they made their mark and a name for themselves. I knew Sekhem had elite warriors training for something different. The battle-guard of Herut and Aten exist to protect the House and its inhabitants. Sekhem had a greater vision. They wanted to use warriors to protect their interests and safeguard us all, even from ourselves. It only took four Paladins to accomplish what fifty battle-guard of Herut could not. That’s when I knew they would be a force to reckon with.”

  Neith closed her eyes and muttered something that sounded like a prayer. “We shall not have such morbid talk today. I am most pleased. I give you my word I will do all I can to ensure your child is born. This is a joyous moment, but not a time for hasty celebration. We must bring the child into the world first.”

  “Will they stop? Will they let us live then?”

  “One thing we all believe is that reunification of the Fallen will be complete when such a union produces a child. A child is thought to have a soul and must be recognized once it has taken its first birth and been given a name. Then a soul can never be forgotten. Do this and you and Cyrus will be safe.”

  The ancient beauty rose, walked to the door and opened it. “I understand that the leeching is beyond you, but I cannot abide the drain.”

  Serenity went to the doorway. “May I use your office in the evenings after dinner to paint?”

  Neith’s gaze sharpened to slits of slate. “You may take the paints and canvas down to your room.”

  “I’m draining Cyrus while he sleeps, or at least the baby is. He wakes up exhausted every morning. I spent last night wandering around the island. I can’t do that every night. It would just worry him. I’d like to use your office.”

  Neith glanced at Adriel, who watched them, and then back at Serenity. “You never read about your past life in the Book of Destiny, did you?”

  “No.” There were enough factors to muck things up. She saw no reason to add to it.

  Neith tightened her grip on the doorknob. “Why not?”

  “You told Mira your interference hastened the worst for another Blessed couple. I have control over my own fate. I don’t think I’m predestined to repeat the same mistakes. And I don’t believe you do either, otherwise what are we doing here? Why do we even bother to fight?”

  “I showed you the book so that you could learn from the past. I cannot force you to read it. If we are fortunate enough to prevail in our efforts and achieve redemption, I urge you to take a look at it someday.”

  “If my child lives and those fanatics back off, what need would I have of it?”

  “My dear firebird, there are many different ways to burn.” Neith cut her gaze once more toward Adriel. “You may paint downstairs in a common area such as the lounge. Ask Soren to show you the supply closet on the lower level so you may store your things there.” Neith gestured for her to leave and promptly closed the door.

  She sat near Adriel, making a crazy face over Neith’s paranoia. He laughed and went back to transcribing notes from the record-keepers who had recently returned.

  The day flew by as she read more about the structure of the colonies.

  Curiosity led her to the archive of the Kindred in 1166 that had her power and had taken the lives of so many.

  Adriel glanced at her screen. “Haven’t you had enough death and mayhem for one day? Shut it down.” He pointed to the terminal. “Time for dinner. Let the creepy thoughts go.”

  Shutting off her computer, she turned to him. “Since you can heal the dark veil and sangre saevitas, does that mean you’ll never get it?”

  “I can’t heal anyone too far gone, only the very early stages which can be hard to detect, but in theory, I suppose I’m immune. In reality?” He shrugged.

  They walked to the dining hall.

  As they reached the second level, she considered going to her room to wait for Cyrus, but figured he’d be less likely to give her a hard time in public. Adriel slowed his pace around the dormitory level, waiting for her to break away. When she didn’t, his stride flowed without a hiccup and he didn’t ask any questions.

  Talus beckoned to them with two frantic hands in the dining hall. “What are you doing here?”

  “I came to eat, like everyone else.”

  “Didn’t you go to your room?” Talus asked in an anxious manner.

  “Cyrus is going to give me a hard time about something. It’ll be easier to stomach if we’re down here.”

  “He’s planned a surpris
e for you. I’ve spent the last hour helping him. He left a note telling you to meet him down on the nook of beach by the clover patch.”

  Adriel stared at Serenity. “My beach? You took him to my beach?”

  “Technically, it’s Neith’s beach. I went there last night after we had a fight.”

  As Adriel grinned, he perked with interest. “What did you fight about?”

  “It doesn’t matter.” Serenity looked at Talus. “Do I have time to shower?”

  “Go as you are. He’s been waiting.” Talus gestured to Spero who lurked by an air outlet. “Cyrus wants Spero to escort you. He said something about you climbing a cliff and wanted you to make it to the beach in one piece.”

  Alarm pinged in her head and Serenity glanced at Adriel. He ran a finger over his closed mouth. Perhaps Cyrus only knew about her slipping down the cliff and not of Adriel’s presence. Keeping quiet would be wise, although they had nothing to hide.

  As she approached Spero, he knelt. “Cyrus has told me of the long-awaited blessing. May the almighty Creator have you in his keeping.”

  “Please get up,” she said, self-conscious of others staring.

  He stood and ushered her outside. “You shouldn’t climb cliffs in your condition, too dangerous.”

  “I didn’t climb a cliff.” If Cyrus thought the same, dinner might be tense. “I went up stairs carved in the side of a cliff.”

  Spero shook his head. “Too dangerous.”

  “I saw you guys training with my mother this morning. How’s it going?”

  “She’s remarkable,” he said as they walked toward the beach. “In Iceland, I’d never fought an opponent quite so skilled. I couldn’t get past losing you or the humiliation of the defeat. She has helped me to see what I could’ve done differently. Learning from her has been an amazing experience.”

  “What’s so remarkable about her?”

  “She’s taught us how to tap into the flow of our energy stream to move our bodies faster. She’s shown us that when the odds are stacked against us, the fight in our heart and spirits can make a difference and that skill can outweigh strength if applied correctly.”