by Ari Harper
“Sorry, Nera, but you did say don’t hold back.”
“No, that’s right, I did.” My ears were coming right and I could feel that I wasn’t shaking so much anymore. “That was unbelievable, Bones. I didn’t know that a sword could pack so much of a punch. The power behind the blade is incredible. No wonder they did so much damage in the middle ages. Makes you wonder why they even bothered to invent the gun with this being so deadly!”
“You must remember that you need to be much closer to your opponent to cause damage,” Bones said. “Want to keep going?”
“What do you think?” I gripped my sword, ready again.
Jasper sat back and watched while Bones and I battled hard. After what seemed like a long five minutes, the sweat was running down my face and I felt my energy flagging. When Bones signaled to stop, I didn’t argue with him. I flopped down on the grass, the sword by my side and I let my body relax.
“You are certainly picking it up.” Bones squatted beside me, a light sheen of sweat covering his pale chest. “I hope that you will ask me to practice any time that you have available. It is important that it becomes second nature to you.”
“Well, the way I feel right now, that shouldn’t be too hard. I love it. The power that I get when I pick up the sword is addictive stuff.”
“The sport itself is reason enough, but I also think that it has a lot to do with the weapon you are using too.” He indicted the sword lying beside me on the grass.
“Whatever the reason, I love it. I hate to leave like this, but I think it is time I went and apologized to Mom and Dad for my outburst this morning.”
“You had every reason to, girl dear, but I’m sure your parents would be only too pleased to see that you have weathered the episode and come out the other side the usual Nera that we all know and love.” Jasper reached down and grabbed my hand. Pulling me to my feet, he held me close in a tight hug.
It’s not a wonder I love this man.
He always made me feel better. I looked over to Bones and resisted the urge to give him one too. We were a very touchy-feely family, but something kept me from treating him the same way, especially looking like he did shirtless. Instead, I smiled and thanked him for the day.
I whistled to Hugo and took the path home, toward my stressed-out parents.
Mom was in the garden when I arrived. I walked into her arms, words were not necessary between us. I breathed in the smell of her familiar perfume and refused to let the stress of the morning return. It had been dealt with, and I was free of the pain, if not the humiliation. It was time to move on.
Over dinner, Dad tried to talk me into having another day off school, but the more I thought about it, the more determined I was that Connor was not going to scare me off.
“If I don’t stand up for myself now, I’m scared it will just be harder when I do go back. I’d rather go to school tomorrow.”
***
I did my normal prebreakfast run in the morning, my nerves a little on edge as I thought about the day ahead. Mom calmly wished me well, and I left to catch the bus.
I stood in the drizzle, waiting for the bus to arrive. When it pulled up, I took a deep breath and climbed the steps. I headed down to the back of the bus where I usually sat.. Connor’s seat was noticeably empty. His friends sneered at me when I walked past.
“Fecking tease,” Rory, one of the lads mumbled.
I cast him a deathly cold stare, focusing on his needling voice. His face started to turn red. He grabbed at his throat as tears ran down his face. I stood there, my head tilted to one side, my focus entirely on his throat. When the bus lurched forward onto the road again my attention wavered. I raised my eyebrow at him, smiled, and continued to the back of the bus.
Brie grabbed me and pulled me down between her and Sully.
“What did you do to him, Nera?”
I could hear Rory coughing hard. “Nothing.”
“You did, I could see it on your face,” Sully said matter-of-factly.
“He couldn’t breathe, Nera!” Brie whispered vehemently.
I looked at both of them and gazed up to the front of the bus to where Connor’s friends were smacking Rory on the back. A couple turned back toward me, their expressions a mix of fear and disgust. I could hear the words their thoughts directed at me: witch, evil, cursed, fecking tease, get her again, slag.
I screwed up my eyes and rubbed my hands over my ears. How could anybody deal with this? It hurt my head so bad I thought my eyes would bleed. I tried to recall what Bones said about cutting it out and tried to clear my mind. Mom’s meditation music came to mind. I imagined the peaceful water fall and the bubbling water tinkling over the rocks, until the noises stopped.
I opened my eyes finally and looked at Sully and Brie, who were both watching me closely. No one else seemed to be aware of my strange behavior.
“Okay now, Nera?” Sully asked.
“Yeah, sorry about that,” I said, letting go of a huge breath. “Much better.”
“What did you do?” Brie asked, not prepared to let the matter drop.
“I’m not too sure. I think that I had the upper hand this time, though.”
Brie looked at Sully with a frown.
“What?” I asked, my calm in danger of slipping away.
“You’re starting to get scary if you can hurt people that easily.” Brie looked uncomfortable, and I almost felt bad for what I had done. Almost.
When the bus pulled up to the school, I jumped to my feet and headed up the aisle to the front door of the bus. I slowly passed the boys, giving them a cold look which had them backing into their seats, before skipping down the steps. I walked to my first class, head held high. Brie and Sully ran to keep up with me.
The rest of the day passed without incident. Connor was suspended from school this last week before the holidays, and his mates gave me a clear berth. Guess there were some benefits to this magic, from my point of view, anyway.
I was looking forward to the weekend. Jasper had asked me to come over and stay overnight, something that I did a lot, but this would not be an ordinary weekend where we sat in front of the fire with a good book and indulged ourselves with literary excellence. This weekend Bones had promised me more sword lessons and Jasper wanted to work on my magic.
***
Friday afternoon I made my way up the well-worn path to Jasper’s house. He was cooking dinner when I arrived with Hugo.
“Evening, girl dear, how was your week?” Jasper popped a pie into the oven.
“Pretty ordinary actually, Jasper. I’ve never wanted a week to go by so fast as the last one. Pretty hard to concentrate when I have the eternal curse on my mind,” I joked.
“Yes, I know what you mean,” Jasper replied. “I’ve been trying to get that beautiful telescope back together, and I keep wandering off in my mind to my dear wife and all everyone has been through since this curse started. I’m glad you came over tonight, girl dear. Gives us a chance to work uninterrupted. Why don’t we go outside for a bit until dinner is ready?
“Where is Bones?”
“He will be along a bit later. He had things to attend to.”
I followed him outside and took a seat in the garden, the sun disappearing on the horizon. I wanted to tell him what I did on the bus, but then part of me was worried that he would judge me; the whole no-harm-to-others shit.
“Have you been practicing anything this week?”
“Kind of,” I replied, shrugging my shoulders. “My telepathy, but I’m having trouble getting voices clear in my head. They all seem to scream at me at once.”
“That will take some time to get used to. You have to really concentrate on the person that you are trying to contact or read for it to come through clearly. You will get there, Nera. I know it’s a lot to take in but one day you will wake up and wonder what life was like without your magic.”
“Jasper, can you tell me more about the curse? What I mean is, how did the gods dispose of Edrith? And how can the
demons bring her back? Surely she is gone for good if she’d been gotten rid of once already?”
“When Leona and our daughter were killed by Edrith, Mari and Maju struck back at Edrith hard because she was a god, Nera. Even though she had been stripped of power, she could not be sentenced without the council hearing the case. She was banished to the Underworld, the worst place you can imagine. Not in our heaven or hell, somewhere in between similar to purgatory, to never to move on. The council saw it as a fit punishment, to forever roam as an undead. I did not, but it was not my call. Now I fear that her demons are rising to try and bring her back.”
“Is that possible?”
“I hope not. I can’t be sure, Nera. I do know that the only way to finish the curse is to let her come back though. While she lives, so does the curse.”
“How does her coming back help?” Dread filled me, twisting and burning at my stomach, as I waited for his answer.
“You are not yet subject to the laws of the council. If she is brought back by her demon followers, you can finish her off once and for all.”
“You mean kill her?” I asked, shocked.
Jasper nodded his head.
“But she is dead, isn’t she?”
“Not fully, Nera,” Jasper replied. “Undead is in between. To end the curse forever, she must die.”
Bones was right. I was not ready to let things get ahead of me and take another’s life. I could see now how easy it would be to push too far. The rush I got from hurting Rory had just started to fade.
“I know that this might seem overwhelming, but the consequences of leaving her to roam earth again do not bear thinking about.”
“What can she possibly do?” I asked. “She already cursed you. It’s not like she can top that, right?”
“Yes, she can. She will know about you by now. She may already be back and waiting with her demons ready to attack.”
“So what if she knows about me? What harm can that do?”
“Never underestimate Edrith. She can hurt you or those around you. Young children and unborn babies are especially vulnerable to her type of black magic. But on the same token, they are also susceptible to white magic.”
“Can’t you and Bones just deal with her? Don’t you have enough powers between you?”
“You are the only one that can dispose of her, Nera. Remember, to break the curse we need a girl from every third generation.”
I watched his face, and I tried to sort it out in my mind. I was the only one that could stop her, and in the meantime, she could harm my family and those around me that I loved. This really got better all the time, didn’t it? “Any idea on how I’m supposed to achieve that?”
“Just concentrate on building your powers. It will come to you in time.”
Yeah, right. The tension was building behind my eyes as the full force of the looming future played out in my mind. I could feel Jasper move to stand behind my chair and he laid his hands on my head. “Just relax, girl dear,” he said soothingly. The heat from his hands absorbed into the top of my head and then down my face and neck. It eased my pain and tension. I breathed a sigh of relief when he flicked his hands away.
“That feels so good, Jasper. Thank you.”
“You can do the same thing. Just let your heart guide you. Maybe try someone close to home to start with, though, while you practice healing,” he told me, and then with a charming smile said, “How about dinner in the library tonight?”
“Sounds wonderful and it smells even better.” We went into the kitchen and I helped him to dish up.
We ate before the great fireplace in the library, the discussion focusing on my energy and how to bring it out.
“It has been inside you since the moment you were conceived, Nera. It flows through your blood and is inside every cell in your body. All it needs is for you to draw it up and learn how to use it.”
I was starting to understand now. I just had to learn how much to use and the best way to utilize it without losing it entirely.
I groaned when I swallowed the last bite of my dessert. “Jasper, that was great. You make the best apple pie in the county. Brie will be so annoyed that she missed out,” I said.
“Why don’t you try and get them over tomorrow? You can practice on them and they can have some of the leftover pie. It will be interesting to watch you work inside their heads. You should try to work your telepathy without them noticing. Remember always the integrity part. The more people you practice on the better you will get. You are doing well so far, Bones and I are pleased with your progress. Give them a call.”
“Yeah, I guess.” I shrugged. “It could be very interesting to get into their heads, though.” I smiled to myself thinking of all the juicy tidbits I could find out. “I know, I know,” I laughed before Jasper could open his mouth to protest. “Only for now and give them their privacy later.”
I jumped off my chair and gave him a big hug. “Thank you so much, Jasper. This will all work out and then we can have a normal life. Do you mind if I take some books to bed? Might as well get some studying in while I can. Maybe another journal or spell book could be helpful? I’ll call Brie and Sully in the morning.”
“Certainly, girl dear. Why don’t you take the one I was looking at? It is my dear wife’s Book of Shadows. You will no doubt make your own at some point, but you might like to read this one for now.”
“Thanks.” I took the book from him and gave him one last hug. “Night, Jasper. Come on, Hugo. Let’s hit the sack.”
I have had my own room there for as long as I can remember. I wondered now who it had belonged to in the past. I thought to ask Jasper in the morning who else had slept in this room. I had a feeling it was Pria. It certainly felt like it had female energy in it; calm strong and full of sunshine and bright light.
I brushed my teeth and then changed into my pjs before crawling into bed. Hugo settled down on the rug beside me.
Though I wanted to read, it wasn’t long before I felt myself sinking, the cold taking over my dreams again. I tried not to panic, and let myself go with it remembering what Bones and Jasper had told me.
It was cold and dark with only glimmers of light flickering off damp walls. I made my way through the maze of corridors, shaking in my summer night wear. I had no idea where I was. As I eased along, I the corridor I could hear a child crying. I slowly found my way to where the sound was coming from. Behind a heavy wooden door, a child sobbed. I tried to open the door but it was locked. I knocked gently and called out. “Who’s there? Can you hear me?”
“Nera, is that you? Get me out of here! I want to go home!” Roman sobbed.
I reached for the door handle, but there was nothing. I looked around me for something to pry the door open with, but again, there was nothing there, only the bare corridor.
“Hold on, baby,” I shouted through the door. “I will get you out.
“Nera, I’m so cold,” he cried.
“I know, Roman, just hold on, just for a bit longer.”
I stood back from the door, trying to decide what to do. It would do no good to panic. I needed to remain calm for this to work, something I wish I had remembered when Connor had attacked me. I stood and concentrated on the door and I could hear Roman inside weeping.
For God’s sake, Nera, just focus, focus.
I immersed myself in the process. and the door started to creak. Slowly, very slowly, it started to change shape. and I could see through the gap I had created. Roman was huddled on a couch at the far side of the room, shivering with cold. I shoved at the gap in the door, pushing myself through, but when I stepped toward him, he wavered and disappeared.
A low growl in my ear woke me, and I found myself on the cold bare wooden floor of my room. I was huddled against Hugo’s great body. I stumbled back into bed, crawling under the warm blankets and fell into a disturbed sleep.
In the morning I relayed my dream to Jasper, no longer afraid of what was happening to me.
“Well, girl dear, it
would appear that you are catching on very well, quicker than I had hoped,” Jasper said. “To be able to change the dream to your advantage is a huge achievement. It is a little disconcerting that Roman is appearing in them, but I did expect that to happen eventually.”
“Before we get started today, I really could use a run to clear my head,” I said. “I’ll be on my guard and Hugo will be with me, shouldn’t be more than half an hour.” I tied my shoes and ran out of the garden with my big dog beside me.
The cool country air felt good as I jogged through the forest tracks. Today I would call Brie and Sully to help me with my training. If I couldn’t trust them to keep my secret, I didn’t know who I could trust. We had been through all of our schooling together, and even though we sometimes had a falling out, it was short-lived.
CHAPTER SIX
“Will you tell me how to manipulate what someone is thinking?” I asked Jasper.
“It’s not a lot different from moving objects,” he said. “You just need to clear your mind and focus on what you want. All of these things are in you, Nera. They just have to be awakened. When they do, you will be able to do it without giving it much thought at all. When Brie gets here, try it on her. Ask her something that you know the answer to and get her to say something completely different. You’ll know for sure then if it was you changing her mind because you already know the answer.”
“That sounds like a challenge. Let me give them a call while I grab a drink,” I said going inside.
After I called Brie and Sully, I went back outside and lay down on the warm grass with Hugo. I let my mind wander and then clear. Brie came into my thoughts. I watched her run around her room getting ready to come over. She had a crush on Jasper, this I knew, but it was strange to watch her fussing. She was prancing around her room, changing clothes and preening in front of the mirror, discarding clothes and starting again. She was always doing her best to impress.
Jasper came and sat beside me.
“What is it?” he asked.
