Shades of Valhalla - Inner Origins Book One

by Ellis Logan

  Chapter 21

  I awoke just before dawn to the incessant chirping of birds. I tried to go back to sleep, but my bladder had other ideas. I nudged Miko awake and told him we needed to venture outside. Did he think he could check it out first to see if it was safe?

  “No need,” he yawned, showing perfect and tiny rows of teeth. “The birds are singing the all clear. If anyone was in the forest, it would be mentioned in their morning report.”

  “What, like, their morning songs carry the daily news on them?”

  “Sort of. News. Stories. And just some song. Eventually you’ll probably be able to understand them, too.”

  “Alright, well, here I go. Let me know if they sing out any warnings.”

  “Will do,” he said as he settled back into the blanket.

  I scurried down the ladder and took care of business quickly. I stretched, relishing the feel of the morning air and lack of confinement. I yearned to go for a jog or even just stay outside and do some basic forms, but I figured I better not risk it. Spying some wild concord grapes nearby I picked a couple bunches and returned back to the treehouse.

  Miko smelled the grapes right away and claimed one of the clusters for himself. We ate in silence, him watching out the window and listening to the morning “news” and me, reading another comic. By the time we finished the sun was cresting the horizon, its orange rays filtering through the trees, and I could hear someone crashing through the forest below.

  Panicked, I looked up at Miko. “Is it...?”

  “Calm down,” he admonished. “It’s just Rowan. The birds call him the lone one. He must come out here by himself a lot.”

  How sad, I thought. I thought about what a refuge this place must be for him, how different it was from his room at home. I couldn’t imagine living in a home where I had to hide the real me, even from my parents.

  “Oh, now they are singing about how his nest finally has a mate and they are wondering when you will have chicks.”

  “What?!” I spluttered. “No way. Chicks?”

  “Songbirds. They aren’t all there, if you know what I mean. Light brains for flying, if you get my drift.”

  “Siri?” Rowan opened the hatch. “You okay? I thought I heard you yell.”

  “Oh, um, yeah, I’m okay. Just reading this comic to myself.” I put the books aside and sat up on my knees. “Is it time to go?”

  “Soon. We need to wait for my parents to leave first. It’ll be a couple hours. But I brought breakfast, and some more of your stuff.”

  I went through the bag, noting he’d brought some of my favorite jeans and shirts, and my silver vans. I blushed to see some underwear in there, imagining him going through that drawer. When I saw my shampoo and basic toiletries I let out a whoop. Who would have thought I’d ever be so happy to see a toothbrush. I sent Rowan outside and freshened up, whistling softly to call him back up when I was finished.

  We dug into the muffins he’d brought (yay, chocolate, finally!) and I asked him how everything had gone at my house. He told me they’d fixed the damage to the door by the time he got there, so no one would even suspect what had happened.

  “They’re taking shifts watching the house, it’s a good thing you didn’t come with me. Last night, my dad said they were trying to find you because they were worried some Light zealots were after you, so he asked me help find you. As soon as I got to your door a huge guy materialized asking me what I was doing there.” He gulped down some water. “I told him my dad had asked me to try and find you, and that I’d had the idea to get some of your personal items to bring to the Seer to try and get a read on where you were. It’s the perfect cover. And this way we don’t have to worry about them showing up at Vala’s while we’re there, since they think I’m on their side, doing it for them.”

  “How very Mission Impossible of you.” I grinned. I brushed off any unease I felt at how easily the lies had come to him.

  “I know, right? I’ve got all the moves.” He gave me his best Bond pose. “As soon as I was in your room I texted my dad to let him know my brilliant plan, in case they decided to check in with him, and he said he was impressed since he hadn’t thought of it himself. Anyhow, it was easy then grabbing what you needed. All your things were right where you’d said they would be. I took some clothes from a basket of clean laundry by your door, figured they would be the things you wear most often.”

  “Yeah, well, lucky for you I entered a new Zen phase last month and got rid of half of my stuff. Otherwise you’d probably never have been able to find anything.”

  When he finally noticed Miko, I told him about how he’d helped save me from Thorn’s goon and how I’d taken him with me when I ran. I didn’t bother going into the whole talking to animals thing. I really wasn’t in the mood to talk any more about my fae abilities. And I most definitely did not want to talk about Miko’s version of what Shades were like and what the squirrel said being Dark truly meant.

  Rowan seemed to understand my mood, and just held me for a while as we watched the sun send cathedral colors playing across the walls inside treehouse. Now when he held me, I knew what the butterflies in my stomach were really about. It was depressing. My first real boyfriend, a guy I really connected with and my own body was trying to warn me away from him. Just the thought of it made me feel even more sick to my stomach, so I just focused on the warmth and comfort of his arms, rather than dwell on something I couldn’t change. Just because he was born to the Dark didn’t mean he would choose to be a Shade.

  His arms tightened around me almost as if he could hear my thoughts. I hoped he never let go. Surely he must know now that he’d never be able to be himself or be truly happy if he had to work with the Shades. He had to be just as shocked about everything that had happened as I was.

  Finally, it was time to go. I repacked everything snugly into the larger of the two packs Rowan had brought. Miko nimbly balanced on my shoulder, his tiny little claws gently keeping him in place on my tee shirt like he was velcroed to it, and we headed out.

  The ride to Vala’s took over an hour, climbing over mountains and winding dirt roads. When we turned onto a narrow off-road trail in the woods, I imagined our destination would be some tiny rustic cabin in the woods. Maybe look like something out of Hansel and Gretel. Instead, after a few minutes of slow travel the truck emerged onto a well-maintained gravel driveway and we pulled up to the back of a gorgeous antique colonial house overlooking a small lake. A huge marble fountain depicting children playing under a gnarled old oak tree created a circular rotary in the large driveway.

  We parked to one side and got out, Rowan taking my pack again, and me, just staring in awe at the view.

  The land around the house had been cleared enough to let in plenty of sunlight. The house seemed to be the only one on the lake. Paths wound through the grounds between well-tended gardens, many of them still in bloom despite the lateness of the season. Trellised roses trailed romantically over half-hidden benches and multiple bird baths and ethereal sculptures made of wood and stone adorned the property.

  “This is amazing.”

  It wasn’t just the grounds. There was an energy to the place that literally hummed. My entire body was practically vibrating with the joy of it. I don’t think I’d ever felt so alive.

  “Yes, the lake and the land surrounding it has been hidden from humans for centuries. It doesn’t even show up on maps or satellite images. The magic of Vala’s family has always been adept at cloaking places like this from humans.”

  “But why does it need to be cloaked?” I asked. “Shouldn’t everyone have access to places like this? I mean, the way it makes me feel…”

  “I know. That’s just it. Or part of it. Vala’s family has safeguarded this land for generations, mostly to make sure the land is maintained and kept safe. Too many other sites, left unattended, have been destroyed or used in the wrong ways.”

  By shades, Miko snorted. Rowan continued unaware of Miko’s contribution to the conversa
tion.

  “The water here holds special healing energies for humans and amplifies seer’s visions. Drinking it daily allows Druids to increase their lifespan so that they age more slowly. Not as long as fae, but long enough to allow them to really ensure that they can hone their own powers and train successors. The cloaking means that any humans who try to even approach the land start to feel disoriented and sad, and then overcome with a strong urge to return home that they can’t resist. Only fae or other humans with Druid blood can make it through Vala’s wards.”

  “Oh.” If Miko and my mom were right, I could only imagine how the Shades would love to use this place for their own gain. Humans would probably overdevelop it given the chance, too, destroying any magic it once held.

  I was so glad it was protected. How many other places like this were cloaked from wandering humans, I wondered.

  You’d be surprised. Miko piped up in my head. Places like this are everywhere. The world is a far bigger and more magical place than most humans imagine. He’s not telling you this, maybe he doesn’t know, but the lake also acts as a conduit to other lakes and wells throughout both Earth and Aeden. Vala uses it to communicate with the Light Council and other Druid keepers. Shades lost the ability to use the waters that way centuries ago, when the water sprites decided to side with the Light.

  “Penny for your thoughts?” Rowan reached out and took me by the hand.

  “Why?” The word slipped out before I even realized. The question was meant for Miko, but Rowan thought I was addressing him and looked at me strangely.

  They both answered me at once.

  Because the Shades abused the waters one too many times.

  “No reason, just a question, Serious.” Rowan dropped my hand and walked over to the fountain. He sat and trailed his hand in the water. I followed, my footsteps crunching over the gravel.

  “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean it like that…” I paused, not sure how to continue. “I, um, I meant to ask why the Druids keep watch over the land, rather than the fae. I thought it was our job to watch over the earth.”

  “You’re right.” A rich alto voice called out to me. I took a few steps to the right and peered around the fountain. The door to the house was open, and a beautiful, full-figured elderly woman with long, white hair in a messy bun atop her head waved to me.

  “You must be Rowan’s friend. I’m Vala, please, come in and have some tea.” She angled her head towards the door indicating for us to follow, sparkling dreamcatcher earrings glinting in the light as they swayed, and she disappeared back into the house.

  Rowan got to his feet and we walked to the door without looking each other in the eye. I hesitated at the door.

  “Come on, don’t be shy, you two. I won’t bite.” A hearty laugh rolled down the bright yellow hallway at me. I took a deep breath and entered. The décor was an eclectic mix of rich looking burl wood antiques, Native American artifacts, huge quartz crystals and other minerals I couldn’t begin to identify, and strange paintings of swirling, spiraling shapes and animals. Carved wooden staves lined the hallway, as if waiting patiently to be claimed by the next intrepid hiker to come along. I followed the last echoes of laughter down the long hallway, stopping before an image of a massive tree, twisting and spiraling, rising from roots that formed more knot work and grew out of an upside down tree below.

  Vala peeked at us around a doorway, her dark brown eyes twinkling. “Ah, you’ve found the Tree of Life, I see.”

  “I’m sorry, the what?”

  “The Tree of Life. Here depicted both above and below, as it should be. Legend says that the original Tree came to this planet carrying the Fae. From its roots grew all life, and as long as it survives, so shall the Earth. Of course, the original tree is located in Valhalla, and fiercely protected. But many of its seedlings can be found here above on Earth. The Tree of Wisdom, the Tree of Peace, Tree of Enlightenment. Those are some of the more famous ones. But really you can find them all over, if you just know where to look.”

  “What’s with all the spirals? All these paintings remind me of tattoos.”

  Vala laughed, her high cheekbones glowing with happiness. “Well, ain’t you just something? Yes, a lot of people these days are returning to the old ways. The spirals and knot work here are all part of Celtic art. More than that, the knots and symbols can be used to create protective wards or shift energy in a room, if you know what you’re doing.”

  “But come now,” she gestured to the room behind her. “Tea’s on.”