The Chronicles of Winterset: Oracle

by K. G. Reuss

“What is this?” I asked with a laugh, looking at him for an answer.

  “Lunch,” he grinned, going to the basket and pulling out a sandwich for me. I took it gratefully and leaned against the wall, breathing out a contented sigh.

  “I can’t believe we’re eating lunch in the girl’s bathroom,” I said, biting into the delicious sandwich.

  He took a large bite of his sandwich and smiled at me. “I thought you liked this place,” he said around a mouthful of meat and cheese.

  “It beats sitting in the commons with Courtney and Sasha glowering at me,” I agreed, taking another bite.

  We were quiet as we chewed, each of us lost in our own thoughts.

  “I wasn’t with Sasha,” Calix’s deep voice said suddenly, and I looked at him with raised eyebrows.

  “Calix, you don’t need to tell me,” I said bashfully. “I don’t need to know. It was a dumb question, and it’s not any of my business.”

  “No, it wasn’t a dumb question, Ana,” he said coming to face me. “Nothing happened between us. Sasha White just doesn’t do it for me.”

  “Oh,” I said nervously. “I just assumed you two were, you know.”

  “Silly girl,” he chuckled softly. “Why have a commoner when I can have a princess?”

  My face flamed red and I looked away from him. He laughed softly before backing away from me.

  “You want to go do something fun?” he asked suddenly.

  “Like?” I asked curiously.

  “I don’t know. Let’s go swimming,” he suggested with a shrug. I laughed at the suggestion thinking he was joking but saw that only seriousness danced in his eyes.

  “It’s autumn, Calix. It’s really cold,” I said with a nervous chuckle.

  “So? Don’t be so uptight,” he teased, winking at me.

  I shot him a look and nodded. “Fine. Let’s go,” I challenged.

  A large grin swept over his face, and he pulled me by my hand out of the bathroom. We ran down the hall, and I couldn’t help but grin as the air rushed by us. I’d never skipped class. My heart thrummed at the possibilities before us as we stole these precious hours.

  “Ana?” Kellin’s voice called out to me as we raced out the front doors of the school. I came to a halt and looked back at him standing on the steps to Lincoln High, a pained expression on his face.

  “Ana, are you coming?” Calix asked, pulling on my hand. The pinprick of electricity flowed through me like shards of lightning. I frowned and stared down at his hand wrapped around mine. I liked the electricity, the unknown, the excitement Calix produced.

  With Kellin, there had been comfort, ease, and predictability.

  But no electricity.

  I craved that energy, the feeling as it flowed through me. It pulled at me, called me to come home. I was different and so was Calix, I just knew it. It was the only explanation for what I felt whenever we were around one another and whenever we touched. I needed this. It may be the answer I’d been looking for.

  “Yes, I’m coming,” I said, looking back at Kellin standing on the steps. His face fell at my words, and it cut me to my very core, but I turned my back on him and followed Calix to his car.

  Chapter 23

  I stopped to catch my breath.

  I did a lot of running, but it was nothing compared to the paces Calix was putting me through. He chuckled as he stared down at me, my hands on my knees as I sucked in as much oxygen as I could.

  “Why aren’t you tired?” I snapped irritably at him.

  “I don’t really get tired when I run,” he replied easily, shrugging his broad shoulders.

  “You suck,” I gasped as I straightened up, which made him laugh harder.

  “I thought we were going swimming?” I said, starting to walk past him. “This is running, not swimming, unless you meant swimming in my own sweat.”

  “No, I meant swimming, Princess,” he said falling in step beside me. “Come on, you need to push yourself. At this rate, we won’t get there until dark!”

  “Where is there exactly?” I asked, my voice sounding a little whiny.

  “It’s just past that hill, I promise,” he replied, tweaking my nose and grinning.

  “Fine,” I grumbled, breaking into a trot beside him. I didn’t kick it into high gear, but I did manage to keep up with him.

  When we broke the clearing, I was shocked to see where he’d brought us. It was the same overlook I’d seen in my vision when they’d first started. I swallowed hard and tried to calm my heart as it thumped unevenly in my chest.

  “Look familiar?” he asked softly, watching me.

  “Uh, no. No.” I said, forcing a smile onto my face. “Why do you ask?”

  “Just figured you ran out here a lot and maybe you’d been here before,” he shrugged and looked off into the distance.

  “I’ve never been here,” I murmured taking in the mass of water in the distance. I knew if I walked to the edge of the cliff, I’d see the broken rocks below, and I shuddered.

  “Are we … are we just going to jump off the cliff?” I asked, my voice shaking slightly.

  “Are you kidding me? If we jump from that cliff, there’s a good chance the only swimming we’d be doing is in our own blood. You couldn’t survive a fall off of this thing. There are too many rocks below,” he said, walking to the edge and staring down at it.

  “See? Come look,” he said, gesturing for me to get closer.

  “Uh, that’s OK. I believe you,” I said with a shudder. If my vision was correct, I knew exactly what the bottom looked like.

  “Are you afraid of heights?” he teased with a laugh and a grin.

  “No, I’m afraid of falling,” I sniffed and looked away. He really did like to tease me, although I don’t think he was doing it to be cruel. It was just his personality.

  “I’d never let you fall,” he responded solemnly, causing the air to crackle around us. I swallowed hard and stared at him, unsure of what to say. Sometimes he said things that took me by surprise.

  “So, um, where are we swimming?” I asked, hoping to distract him.

  “Over here,” he said, a tiny smile still on his face. I followed him as he led us down a small trail that sloped down to even ground. It was a pretty spot, but the air was cold, and I shivered as a gust blew through my blonde hair.

  “Ready?” he asked enthusiastically, and I grimaced. Now that I was here, I didn’t want to do this. It was too cold and I’d freeze. I should have thought this through more.

  Calix pulled his shirt off and my eyes grew wide as I took in his form. His body was sculpted and chiseled in such a way that it left me breathless. Magnificent would be a good word to describe him. And oh so hot.

  And the tattoo.

  This was the first time I was actually seeing it in its entirety, having only ever envisioned it before, and it made me wonder if what I was seeing was real or not.

  Inked deep into his skin was a monstrous serpent with coal-black scales. It seemed they glistened beneath the sun, and I couldn’t be sure, but it looked like it had a life of its own. I stared in wonder as it snaked its way down his arm and around his torso, finally coming to rest on his broad shoulders. I could have sworn I’d seen it wrapped around his wrist before. I shook the thought out of my head. I didn’t trust my thoughts nowadays.

  “Are you coming?” he asked, straightening up as he stood staring at me, wearing nothing more than a pair of dark boxers.

  “Uh,” I stammered, pulling my eyes away from his body and the enormous, inked snake resting on his shoulders.

  “Don’t think too hard,” he replied dryly. “I’ll be in the water so feel free to join me once you’ve decided.”

  I watched him wordlessly as he walked into the water and his body slowly disappeared beneath the gentle waves. I wrapped my arms around myself tightly and bit my lip, trying to decide my next move. I couldn’t very well jump into the water with my clothes on, but the next option was in my underwear and that just made me feel uncomfortable.


  I watched for Calix to emerge for so long, I started to panic, wondering if maybe he’d drowned.

  “Calix?” I called out nervously.

  No answer.

  “Calix!” I shouted, the panic rising in my chest. Where the hell was he?

  I quickly pulled off my shoes and let out a disgusted sigh as my pants followed suit. I left my T-shirt on and ran into the water, waist deep, letting out a shocked gasp as the near freezing waters pelted me.

  I gazed around frantically, trying to find him bobbing among the waves, but he was nowhere to be seen. The ice-cold waves had my legs nearly frozen, and I wrapped my arms around myself in an effort to stay warm.

  I nearly screamed my voice out calling for him, only to then find Calix right behind me, grinning like a fool.

  “Oh, my God!” I shouted hoarsely, slapping at him.

  “What’s wrong? You look like you’ve seen a ghost,” he teased, his full lips tipped up into that magnificent grin of his.

  “You jerk! I thought you had drowned! I thought you were dead!” I snarled, slapping at him angrily.

  Calix grabbed my hands easily and let out a loud laugh that echoed off the rocks.

  “It would take more than a swim to kill me, Princess,” he laughed, merriment dancing on his face.

  “Where the hell were you?” I demanded, taking a deep breath, hoping to settle down my nerves.

  “Swimming,” he said with a shrug. “Trying to see how long it would take you to join me.”

  “You did that on purpose?” I demanded.

  “Maybe,” he grinned. “It worked. You were worried about me. Meaning deep down inside that very beautiful, very uptight body of yours, you care about me.”

  “I’m so going to drown your ass!” I snapped at him, moving toward him.

  He dodged out of my way and disappeared again into the water. I searched around for him feeling frustrated.

  Without warning, my legs were pulled out from beneath me, and I plunged into the frigid water. My hands shot out instinctively as I tried to catch myself but it was no use. I went whole body into the freezing water, my senses obliterated by the piercing cold. When I resurfaced, it was to find a laughing Calix bobbing alongside me.

  “I freaking hate you!” I sputtered at him through my chattering teeth. If I thought I was cold before, it was nothing compared to how I felt now. Even my goose bumps hurt as they popped up along my skin.

  I turned my back on him and tried to make my way to shore but he caught me by my arm quickly and pulled me to a stop.

  “Are you cold?” he asked solemnly.

  “What the hell do you think?” I shivered, trying to pull away from him.

  “I’m sorry. Come here,” he said, the laughter gone from his voice. He opened up his arms and waited for me to come to him. I chewed my lip nervously before moving tentatively toward him. When I was within arm’s reach, he made the final move and pulled me into him.

  It was instantaneous. A warmth so grand flowed from him into me that I immediately stopped shaking and relaxed against his thick chest, his strong arms wrapped around me.

  He held me without a word until the sun started to recede on the horizon. I felt like I was in a daze, unable to pull myself away from it. Time seemed to stand still and yet it continued to pass all around us.

  “We should go. It’s getting late,” he murmured into my ear. The tickle from his warm breath sent shivers down my spine, and I nodded, my head still pressed against his warm chest.

  He pulled me to the shore, my head feeling fuzzy and weird. The moment he released me, the biting cold hit me again, and I shivered. My mind awakened, and I stood blinking rapidly, trying to figure out what had just happened.

  The sun was barely peeking above the horizon, and we would be plunged into darkness regardless of how fast we tried to hurry home.

  “Here,” he said grabbing his leather jacket and placing it gently on my shoulders after I pulled my jeans back on. “You’re going to need this. It’s a bit colder out than I anticipated.”

  I nodded wordlessly and followed him out to the trail leading back the way we’d come. I wasn’t sure if it was the freezing cold that kept me moving or the sudden fear of the impending night, but I pushed myself to run as fast as I could beside him. Something in the air felt different, and it wasn’t good.

  Calix seemed to sense it too because he picked up his pace, and I pushed harder to keep up with him. When we reached his car, he put me inside so fast that it was a whirlwind. I watched him as he stopped in front of the car and looked into the darkening woods, a grim expression marring his handsome face.

  His lips moved quickly, I couldn’t make out what he was saying, but I could have sworn I saw his hands glow blue for just a moment. When I blinked my eyes, it was gone and he was climbing into the driver’s seat. I must have imagined it just like I did with the flames I’d had on my hands because when he got into the car, there was nothing abnormal about him.

  “We should hurry,” he said, putting the car in reverse and peeling out of there.

  I couldn’t have agreed more. Something in the air felt off, and I wasn’t eager to find out if my feelings were right or not.

  Chapter 24

  Calix dropped me off at my house and even walked me to my door. He was acting incredibly strange, though, and kept looking around like he was checking for someone.

  “Are you going to Kevin’s party?” he asked as we stopped at my door.

  “Yeah, Mel is supposed to come pick me up after the homecoming game,” I replied as I unlocked my front door.

  “I have something I need to take care of so I’ll see you there, OK?” he inquired, looking around nervously again. I furrowed my brows and tried to follow where he was looking but didn’t see anything out of the ordinary, even though I still had a creepy feeling.

  “Yeah, sure,” I replied.

  “Hey, Ana?” Calix asked turning back around to face me. “Have you seen anything strange lately?”

  “Strange?” I asked. “Like what?”

  “I don’t know. Forget about it,” he said, stepping off my stoop. “I’ll see you tonight.”

  Before I could pursue the odd question further, he was already climbing into his car. I shook my head and went upstairs to my room and pulled off his jacket.

  Crap. I forgot to give it back to him.

  I brought it near my face and took a big whiff of it. The smell was intoxicating, and I felt like a nut job smelling his coat, but it was so worth it. I put my hands in the inner lining after noticing something heavy within it.

  Inside was the same flask he’d given me the day I’d had the headache. I was surprised I hadn’t felt it while wearing the coat.

  I opened the flask and took a whiff of it. It didn’t have much of a smell, so I bit my lip nervously, contemplating my next move.

  I was not uptight.

  I tipped the flask to my lips and let some of the sour fluid into my mouth. It definitely wasn’t the same stuff as had been in it before. This tasted bitter. Like a storm. Then sweet. Like bliss. I drank until there was nothing left in the flask.

  My vision fogged. I reached out to my dresser to stop from falling and was fortunate enough to catch myself. I slowly lowered my shaking body to the floor and leaned against the wall as the colors of the room swirled.

  Wildflowers.

  They were everywhere, but there was something very wrong with my beautiful flowers. A fire, hot and merciless, engulfed them, their delicate petals folding and curling only to become ashes.

  I looked around, desperate to escape from the field, but only walls of fire surrounded me. And then there he was, standing on the other side of the field of flowers, his hands held out as he commanded the flames.

  Nihilist.

  “Why?” I cried out, trying to run to him to get him to stop. But fire would erupt in front of me each time I made progress, the hot flames singeing my skin and clothes.

  He ignored me and commanded the fl
ames higher. They rose into the sky, and in the distance, I could hear the frantic cries of people in the town bordering the majestic palace.

  These people would all die if someone didn’t stop him!

  I raced forward, frantic to get him to listen to me but I was met with a wall of flame. I screamed as the flames burned my skin, the pain overwhelming as my pretty blue dress caught fire. I desperately tried putting the fire out, but it only grew more and more intense as it devoured my body.

  I closed my eyes, waiting for the pain to stop.

  I thought I was dead, that I had died from all the pain and fire, but when I opened my eyes, I was lying on my back in the largest bed I’d ever seen in my life. I sat up, confused, and took in my surroundings.

  It was a majestic bedroom fit for royalty with its large, plush drapery, golden ornate moldings, regal furniture, and large balcony accessible through French doors. I sat up and stared down at myself. I was in the same powder-blue dress as I’d worn in the field. It was unlike any dress I’d ever seen in present day. The material was soft, like velvet, but it was also sheer and layered over my small body in waves of splendor. It was strapless but had long, gauzy sleeves that fell past my fingers.

  It was beautiful, much like the room I was in.

  I made my way to the door and peered out into a long, lavish hallway. I wasn’t sure how I knew, but my feet led the way down the massive staircase and straight to a room located in the depths of the palace.

  I heard voices coming from the room, and I stood outside and listened as they argued.

  “We cannot let her go! If Zaros gets her, we will all be doomed!” a man called out angrily, his accent thick.

  “What choice do we have? Zaros’s army is outside our gates as we speak! We’re doomed either way!” another voice shouted.

  “My Lord, the Oracle is your daughter, my sister,” a third voice spoke up calmly. “Niall and I have worked hard to keep her safe, to keep this from happening. We aren’t about to give up now when the enemy is at our gates. We will fight.”

  “Niall,” a fourth voice said gruffly and I imagined this to be the king the others were speaking to.