Daytime was best because Lucy kept busy learning. Nighttime was a different story. She was still having nightmares. Some nights she woke up screaming. No one knew what to do or even what to say about them. Gavin and Maya were able to sleep through most of them. Justin would come over to the girl’s side of the tent and hold her until she fell back asleep. She never seemed to want to talk, and he didn’t want to pry. Justin was sure the nightmares were getting worse, but he didn’t know what to do about it. No one discussed them during the day.
Lucy’s biggest fear was that her nightmares might cause her to react magically and without control. She was terrified that she would attack the others while she was asleep. They would be defenseless against her. Sometimes, she was afraid to go to sleep.
They reached the plateau without incident (not counting Lucy’s gash while trying to train with a weapon). Justin couldn’t detect anyone following them. Their spirits were high because they had ways of occupying themselves on this journey and it was not through a jungle. The rivers they crossed could be bathed in, and that helped spirits stay high as well.
“Should we make camp or not?” asked Maya when they got to the plateau.
“Why wouldn’t we?” asked Gavin.
“Well,” said Lucy, “The thing is, I’m not entirely sure on all the details of how this works. I assume we’ll arrive there, and anything we are carrying would come with us, but if we make camp I’m not sure that it will come with us. I’m not sure about the horses either. If we ride them do they come with? If we hang on to the bridles do they come with?”
“I think we are going to want our packs with us,” affirmed Justin.
“The more important question then, is does Lucy want to try this now or tomorrow morning?” asked Maya.
“Does now seem kind of sudden to anyone else?” asked Gavin. He was suddenly apprehensive about finding Kleth.
Maya smiled and patted him comfortingly on the shoulder.
Lucy shrugged, “Now is fine with me. I somehow feel that putting it off will only make us nervous, and I don’t think that will be helpful.”
“Ok, Lucy, it’s your call. Tell us what to do,” said Justin.
“Some of this might sound silly, but I’m trying to be thorough,” said Lucy looking at each of them in turn. They all nodded. “Gavin, I want you to hold the horses and take hands with Maya and me. Justin will take my other hand and join with Maya so we are in a circle. I want everyone to concentrate on Kleth. I want us to all believe that when we get there or it gets here, we will be sitting next to a waterfall. That should be easy to visualize and safe. I want you to believe that we will find answers there. Gavin, focus on the waterfall. Maya, I’d like to use your voice. Can you randomly hum? I don’t want you to sing any particular song, but scales would be alright. Try to keep the notes steady, clear, and not too fast. Justin, I might draw power from you. Ok, everyone ready? Think of a waterfall. Let’s start.”
Lucy closed her eyes, pictured the waterfall, and heard Maya begin to hum. She took a long slow deep breath in and let the breath out equally long and slow. She tried to match her breathing to the rhythm of Maya’s humming. She felt the power in all the living things around her. She felt it enter her, swirl around inside, and then flow back into those living things. Then she called to Kleth. She visualized it landing around them like a fog and carrying them into it. They came to Kleth, and Kleth came to them. It was a melding and an acceptance. She continued to breath slow and steady. Suddenly, Maya stopped singing and gasped. Lucy opened her eyes and started in amazement at a waterfall.
Chapter 50
They stood there for a moment in shock. Lucy noticed that underneath her feet was stone, not grass, and she turned around. The waterfall was still behind her, but they were standing on a balcony that was in a large room with a throne on a dais at one end. The stone was smooth as glass. There were tapestries on the walls, and the soft glow of candlelight illuminated the room. To their left was a sculpture of archways. There were three of them, each of different heights and widths. She tapped Justin, who was still staring at the waterfall, on the shoulder. He looked at her and saw the room, and his eyes opened even wider, if that was possible.
“Who thought up that?” asked Lucy.
Maya and Gavin also turned around at the question and stared in disbelief.
“I was told to hold the horses,” said Gavin defensively, which had arrived with them. “I don’t have the imagination for that.”
The others denied it as well.
“The problem is in assuming that Lucy’s reasoning was correct,” said a voice none of them had ever heard before.
A woman lounged on the throne. She rose to her feet and walked towards them. She was taller than Gavin, slender but strong, with long dark hair and piercing gray eyes. Lucy wasn’t sure if they should bow or not. She had a regalness about her that transcended time and place.
“Where was my reasoning incorrect?” asked Lucy more curious than anything else.
“You are in Kleth. Congratulations. You are one of the few to reach here intentionally. You thought that people found what they searched for at Kleth because Kleth molded to their expectations. You were missing part of the equation. Me. Kleth doesn’t mold, I mold Kleth. I look into the hearts of all who enter here. I give them what they are looking for. To a point anyways. Generally, people searching for peace and happiness find it, and people looking for trouble find it.”
That made sense in an odd way so Lucy accepted it.
“You are looking for the Eye of Elicion and other answers.”
They nodded.
“I have the answers you seek. However I will only answer questions to those who have faced and answered many of their own questions. If you wish to talk to me, there is of course, a price you have to pay. You must pass through one of the archways. You may choose which. If and when you come out, I will speak with you.”
“And if we decide not to enter?” asked Justin.
“Then I will send you back to your plateau as you are now.”
“Can’t we simply call Kleth again?” asked Lucy.
“You could. Here is one thing to consider though. Perhaps you only called to Kleth because it was calling to you. I will not call again, nor will I answer your call if you do not pass through the archway.”
“What will we find there?” asked Gavin.
“Who can say? Many things or perhaps nothing at all. Will you go?”
“One at a time or all together?” asked Maya.
“One at a time. This is not a group activity.”
Gavin drew in a deep breath and stepped forward.
“I will go first. I do not seek very many answers, but I would find it hard to face myself if I decided I was too afraid to walk through an archway.”
The Lady smiled a small smile and motioned for Gavin to choose. First, Gavin went to his horse and found places on his already heavily armed person for more weapons. Obviously, he wanted to be prepared for anything. Gavin walked up to the archways and examined them. He circled them. They were made of stone, a foot thick, and covered in runes. He looked at the rest of the group, shrugged, smiled, and walked through the tallest one. Well, not through really, more into. He went in one side and did not come out the other. He seemed to shimmer and then disappear.
“Now what?” asked Maya.
“We wait. Although there are two other archways if one of you would care to enter as well. You won’t find him in there.”
“I don’t think Justin should go while Gavin is gone,” said Maya.
“Don’t want to lose your protectors?” the Lady asked curiously.
“No,” said Maya with a grim smile. “Justin is our healer. If Gavin needs healing, I’d rather he get it immediately rather than have to wait for Justin to come back.”
“A practical thought,” said the Lady.
“We try,” said Justin dryly.
“I think that if Gavin says it’s horrible, it would be hard for me to go through w
ith it so I think I’d rather go now. I’ve never been good at waiting. Does everyone who goes in come out again?” Maya started to ask but then immediately followed that with, “No, wait, I’d rather you answer that when I come back.”
The Lady inclined her head and motioned for her to choose an archway. Maya walked up to them, and chose the middle-sized one. She vanished as well.
“Nervous?” Justin asked Lucy.
“Honestly? I’m not sure. The unknown generally doesn’t scare me; otherwise I would never have come to the school with Eric in the first place. If we face our biggest fears, I might find that interesting on some level because I’m not sure what my biggest fears are. Besides, if I conquer it one would imagine I would be a stronger person for doing that. You?”
“My biggest fear is never finding any answers. The answers are here if I go through an archway.”
“A bit of an adventure then?”
“Perhaps. How do you feel about adventures now that you are in one?”
“It’s odd because it doesn’t feel like an adventure. It feels normal, like going to work or school. Although, someone great once said that they didn’t agree with adventures because they tended to make one late for dinner. I don’t mind being late for dinner, but the intent of the statement is that certain creature comforts are not available. I must admit that I miss showers, toilets, running water in general, and a good clean bed when we are camping.”
Justin smiled, “We need to toughen you up.”
“I thought we were working on bending,” replied Lucy with a smile. “Maybe we have to face all the illusions we have about ourselves and see who we really are underneath.”
“I have no illusions.”
“That in itself is an illusion.”
“I can accept that.”
They both smiled and continued to wait. The Lady did not seem willing to volunteer information. They were sure she would not answer any important questions that they asked so they sat in silence. It was not an uncomfortable silence. There didn’t seem to be much of a reason to speak so no one did. Lucy wasn’t sure if it was a long time or not. Time seemed funny in this place. She listened to the waterfall.
Gavin stumbled out of the archway. He had a gash on his shoulder, his lip was split, the mace usually strapped to his back was missing, he was holding his left wrist, and his eyes looked slightly haunted. When he saw them he smiled and walked towards them looking very tired. He sat down next to Justin and Justin began to work. It did not take long. He healed the shoulder first since it was bleeding the most. The lip only took a moment. After the lip was healed, Lucy offered him a water bottle. He nodded his appreciation and took a large swallow. Justin couldn’t do anything for the tiredness; Gavin needed rest to fix that. Justin reached for his wrist, but the Lady stopped him.
“No, that must heal on its own.”
Lucy bent forward to look. The bleeding formed a pattern. It was a circle, an inch in diameter on the inside of his left wrist. Inside the circle were the three archways. They even managed to appear three dimensional. It looked like a black tattoo. She looked at the Lady.
“Those who survive the archway are forever marked. You will know those in your world who have talked with me. It is badge of honor or the mark of a curse depending on how you look at it.”
“How was it?” Lucy asked Gavin.
“I have no intention of doing in again anytime soon, but it wasn’t anything I couldn’t handle.”
He spoke bravely enough, but they could tell it wasn’t as easy for him as he made it sound. They could also tell that he didn’t want to talk about it. At least not yet.
“I’m hungry,” announced Gavin.
It was then that they knew that whatever had happened to him he was still the same Gavin. That was somehow reassuring. Lucy smiled and pulled some bread and cheese out of her pack and handed it to him. Lucy was about to ask if she should go in or wait for Maya when Maya came out. She was crying. They rushed over to her. She was physically unharmed and assured them in between sobs that she was fine. She took a sip from the canteen and sat down next to Gavin. He put one arm around her and continued to eat with his other. She leaned into him and continued to cry. Her wrist was also bleeding. The design was the same as Gavin’s.
“I feel ready,” said Justin. “Do you mind if I go next?” he asked Lucy.
“Should I wait for you or go in as well?”
“Maya came out shortly after Gavin. Can you give me a head start? That way, if you need healing, I’ll have a few minutes to rest up before you come out.”
“By that logic I should go in and you should wait until I come out before you go in at all.”
“I’m not in the mood to wait, and that seems to be the time to do important things.”
“That’s ridiculous logic.”
“Yes, it is. See you in a bit,” he winked at her and went through the same archway that Gavin had gone through.
Lucy rolled her eyes. She didn’t have much of a choice now. She wasn’t sure how long she should wait. She would have asked Maya about how long it was before she entered after Gavin, but Maya was still crying. She counted to one hundred. Like hide-and-seek, she thought with a smile. She smiled at the Lady who smiled her small smile back. Then, she walked towards the shortest archway. She only had to bend her head a little to enter. She took a deep, less reassuring than she had hoped for breath, and walked through.
Chapter 51
Immediately, Lucy was encased in fog. Or, something like fog anyways. It was thick and whitish gray like fog often is, but it was also shimmery which fog often isn’t, and it was warm instead of cold and wet. She was sure the fog-like substance would clear up shortly. When it did she wanted to be ready, but she wasn’t sure what she had to be ready for. It occurred to her that she did have one advantage that Maya and Gavin had not had. They did not know that they would be marked. Her wrist was blank right now. That was her link to sanity if she needed one. No matter what happened, she knew she was still in the archway as long as her wrist was bare. It’s like drawing a circle on your hand before you go to sleep. You know you are still dreaming as long as there is no circle on your hand. However, this is an issue if you dream that the circle is there. Lucy shook her head, trying to clear her thoughts. Nothing was real until she had that tattoo.
Lucy took another deep breath and took a step forward. The fog cleared immediately and as she took another step forward she fell out of the archway. Out of the archway? She hadn’t done anything yet. She looked at her wrist, but there wasn’t a tattoo. She looked at the Lady.
“Did something go wrong?” Lucy asked.
“No.”
“Do I have to go through again? Nothing happened.”
“You may not go through again. You failed.”
“How could I fail? Nothing happened,” maintained Lucy, feeling very confused.
“I will have to send you away from Kleth.”
“This isn’t real. I’m still in the archway. You can’t send me anywhere.”
“That puts you in a very interesting position doesn’t it? If, as you say, you are still in the archway, then I certainly can send you anywhere. However, you are not still in the archway, you failed, in which case I can still send you anywhere.”
“How can I fail if nothing happened?” asked Lucy again.
“Either nothing happened because you failed or you failed because nothing happened. You must leave now.”
“Can I wait until Justin comes out and talk to him first?” asked Lucy starting to feel desperate.
“No.”
With that and a wave of her hand Lucy was in the shimmering fog again. Apparently, the Lady had sent her away. Lucy was very confused. She was sure she hadn’t failed. She hadn’t done anything. Was this part of the test? Or, worse, was something very wrong? Even though some might say that the Lady’s logic made sense Lucy did not believe it. Besides, it might not have even been the real Lady, but a figment of whatever this archway did. The fog cleare
d again and to Lucy’s surprise, she found herself back on the plateau they had been on before trying to get to Kleth. She entered their tent and found the others sleeping, Gavin snoring away as usual. She didn’t know what else to do so she lay down on her bedroll to try to digest what was going on. She wasn’t tired, but she fell asleep right away.
She was back in her same nightmare. She was tied down surrounded by laughing bandits. They were taunting her and ripping at her clothing. One ran a knife down the side of her face and laughed as she tried to squirm away. Fearing what would happen if she fought back and knowing what would happen if she didn’t kept Lucy frozen in indecision. When one started to grope her, she couldn’t hold off any longer and screamed as fire flew out of her hands and burned the men behind her. She screamed again, broke the ropes that held her, and continued to burn every last man tormenting her until she was surrounded by smoldering human remains. But still she didn’t stop casting fire. Still she didn’t stop screaming.
Lucy woke up and saw the tent was on fire. Feeling scared and terribly responsible, Lucy tried to wake up Maya. She shouted mentally to Justin, but didn’t get a response. She tried to magically put out the fire, but nothing happened. Finally, she decided to at least get herself out, and then she could transport her friends out of the flames. She ran for the tent’s exit and found herself outside the door to Eric’s office. Now that didn’t make sense at all.
She thought the Lady had sent her back to the plateau. Where was the burning tent? How did she get here? She was sure the Lady could have sent her to Taran’s cabin and the doorway to the school, but she didn’t think the Lady could send her to the school. Then again, what did she really know about this Lady and her abilities. What was going on? Well, if she was here, her friends could not be on fire. Right? Lucy shrugged, she might as well knock.
“Lucy,” greeted Eric with a nod of his head.
The Eye of Elicion: The Kinowenn Chronicles Vol 1 Page 39
