by Brian Rella
She remembered the map at the back of the book of Arraziel. Sigils marked the back cover, showing locations of other imprisoned Fallen. She remembered Pasmet was close to Chicago on the map, but where exactly she didn’t know.
Finish reading the book. Yes! Finish the book and study the map and text to see if it indicated where she should go or how she could free him.
She sighed. It was going to be a long night, but at least she knew her next steps.
Her belly growled. She dressed quickly, in her new clothes. She picked up the phone, and called down to the front desk concierge.
“Yes, Ms. Hailey. How can I help?”
Jessie recognized the voice from before. It was the woman who had given her the room. She was a friend.
“I’m hungry,” she said.
“Would you like me to send you up some food?”
Jessie gazed about the room. She needed to go out, but not far. She would get something to eat and then come back and read all night. Hopefully by morning, she would know where Pasmet was located and could head there to free him.
“No, I’d like to go out. I feel like…a steak. But I don’t want to go far.”
“Mike Ditka’s Steakhouse is just down the street. I’ll call ahead for you.”
“Thank you.”
“You are welcome, Ms. Hailey.” And Jessie heard the phone click.
She went back to the bed and dumped her bag out. Raking through the makeup and other items from her bag, she found lipstick and blush, went to the mirror in the bathroom, and dashed some on her lips and cheeks. Something in the mirror gave her pause.
Her eyes…they were changing color. Her mom’s sapphire-blue eyes were turning green. And her hair seemed darker. Nalsuu…
Jessie ran her fingers through her hair. Despite her darker hair and new eye color, she still resembled her mother. Thinking of her mother as she gazed at her own reflection, memories bubbled to the surface of her mind.
She was a little girl again, with her mom and dad at the park, before the accident had killed her father. Her dad was pushing her on a swing as her mother took pictures of the two of them. For a moment, she was lost in the nostalgia of her childhood, when everything in life was good and pure, when her father was alive, and she had the love of family in her life…
Then, as always seemed to happen when she thought about her mother, nightmarish memories surfaced: the death of her father. The impact of his fall had disfigured him so badly the casket had been closed at the funeral. I couldn’t even look at his face and say goodbye.
Her thoughts continued to drift, returning to her mother, and how she turned to the bottle after her father’s death. And then the rotating door of sleazy men that came through her once wholesome and loving home. Those men screwed her mom and treated Jessie like shit.
Her thoughts moved forward in time to Steve and Marie – the rapist and the bully.
Her face darkened with the painful memories of them. The physical abuse Marie had inflicted on her; the sexual abuse Steve threatened her with; and how it had all happened right under her drunk mother’s nose.
Then the image of Nalsuu filled her mind. You took care of them, didn’t you, Jessie. They will never harm you again, the deep, dusky voice in her head said.
Her mind turned to that night, the night she and Arraziel had transformed her family.
Her almost step-sister was now a pig. The squeals from Marie rang joyfully in her ears as she recalled her tormentor scrambling away on four hooves out the door of her bedroom. Big, fat sow. A sinister grin stretched across her face.
Her just desserts, princess.
And then there was Steve and Karen. You improved them.
Steve would never be able to touch a woman again and Karen’s appearance reflected the twisted and ugly nature of her inner self. All thanks to Jessie and Arraziel.
They were gone now. She had destroyed their warped fairy tale and left them to live in misery for the rest of their lives. She could put the pain they caused behind her because she was stronger than they were. She had fought back and won. She would never be a victim again. No one would ever touch her again unless she wanted them to.
Yes, princess. Do you see the power you have now?
Yes, my King.
Jessie exited the elevator and entered the hotel lobby twenty minutes later. The woman from the concierge met her by the sitting area.
“Hello, Ms. Hailey,” she said, “Mike Ditka’s is just down the street to your right.”
“Thank you,” Jessie replied.
“You are welcome, Ms. Hailey. I was worried. I hadn’t seen or heard from you for days, but I thought it best to leave you undisturbed. I hope you are pleased and will tell Him of my service,” she said from under dark eyes.
Jessie, cocked her head at the woman. Him?
“I hope I have served you both well,” the woman said, her lips a straight line.
“You have,” Jessie said. “Thank you again.”
The woman nodded and backed away, returning to the concierge desk. Jessie entered the elevator, her understanding of her power and destiny solidifying in her mind.
They will all serve me.
They will serve us, my princess.
26
FRANK
August 6, 1993
Hudson Highlands, New York
It was so hot and humid, the vegetation of the forest steamed and wilted all around them even though it was only eight in the morning. They had been outside of the Temple for ten minutes, and Frank’s shirt was already stuck to his back. He sighed as he rubbed the back of his moist neck.
“And what,” Maza asked, grinning, “does a twelve-year-old boy have to sigh about?”
Maza had this irritating way of making Frank think about this kind of thing early in the morning—and always making him feel younger than he was.
“I’m thirteen,” Frank mumbled. “And it’s hot today.”
“Today it’s hot, tomorrow maybe not, the next day, who knows,” she said. “What does it matter? Focus, Frank. You have much to learn. Come. Let’s go for a morning run, shall we?” She beamed and took off through the woods.
Frank stared at her as she ran. The smoothness of her exposed thighs seemed to shine in the morning light. Something stirred inside Frank’s chest and stomach. He felt an adoration of Maza that he had never felt with a girl before. Training with her was the best part of every day and sometimes at night, he would lay in bed, and let images of her float through his mind, and carry him off to sleep.
“What are you waiting for?” she hollered over her shoulder. Frank was pulled from his fantasy and took off in a sprint after her, his eyes focused on her legs and buttocks. He grinned as the heat rose inside of him.
Frank had learned quickly that Watchers were special in many ways, one of which was physical ability. The fifty-yard lead Maza had on him quickly grew to seventy-five despite Frank’s own rapid pace. She was faster and more agile than he was, like a cat on steroids.
Frank leaned into his run and picked up the pace. He sensed forest critters scattering in front of him as he sped through the forest. To his left he noticed a bobcat. Startled by his sudden approach, the animal sprang and ran parallel to him through the woods, leaping over fallen trees and rocks. Frank grinned and sped on, pulling away from the bobcat until it was out of his sight.
This is so cool, he thought as he leaped up and over a large boulder, his right foot pushing off the rock and launching him into the air.
“Wahoooo!” he shouted, soaring above the ground.
His leg caught on something and he panicked. His graceful leap became a flailing roll and he landed awkwardly on his side. He rolled several times and ended up belly down on the warm ground, a burning pain on his shin.
He glanced down at his leg. A gash ran the length of his shin from his knee cap to the top of his foot.
“It will heal on its own. Watch.” He glanced up to see Maza standing over him. He didn’t hear her approach and was
embarrassed that she had seen him fall. He felt his cheeks flush.
Frank flitted his eyes back to the wound on his shin. The cut tingled as the blood trickled to a stop, and the skin began to heal. After a moment, there was no trace of a wound.
He glanced back up to Maza, a look of surprise on his face.
“It’s the blood of the Fallen,” she said, grinning. “You’re getting stronger and your abilities more powerful. You can heal yourself beyond what a normal human can. You can also heal others; but there is a cost, and that is a lesson for another day.”
She reached down, offering him her hand. He took it and she pulled him to his feet like he weighed nothing. He was nearly as tall as her now and stared into her pale green eyes until she looked away. He couldn’t help himself. He was enamored with her.
“So if I cut off my arm it will grow back?” Frank joked.
“Not without the help of another,” Maza said. “You can heal, but there are limits to what you can do on your own. However, with another Watcher and the right spell, you could grow a limb. Though I wouldn’t recommend you test that.” She chuckled and tousled his hair playfully like a person would do to a boy.
I wish she looked at me like I was a man, not a boy.
“What else can I do?” he asked, hoping he was hiding his thoughts and feelings from her.
“Oh, you’ve just scratched the surface,” she said, her eyes widening. “You know you can heal quickly. You know you can run and jump like a wild cat,” she said, raising her hands like claws at him. “And you have other capabilities that have yet to reveal themselves. All in time.” She touched his shoulder and his heart skipped a beat.
“When can I cast spells?” he asked eagerly.
“In time,” she said. “All things in time. First you must learn to control your body, your mind. Then you can focus and cast spells safely.”
“But what if I’m attacked tomorrow?” he asked. “How will I defend myself?”
Maza’s eyes grew serious for a moment and she looked at him levelly. “You want to learn a defensive spell?” she asked, her voice low.
Frank nodded eagerly.
“Defend this,” she said and like lightning her hands shot out, grasped his shoulders, and in a split second he was on his back. Maza cackled wildly at him.
Frank stared at her, glumly.
“Come on, don’t be such a spoilsport. We have more training to do today.”
Embarrassed, Frank pulled himself to his feet and brushed himself off. “Ha ha,” he said. “Come on, Maza, I just want to learn something cool. All this running and jumping is getting boring. Teach me.”
“Okay,” she said, holding up her index finger. “One defensive spell. I’ll teach you how to cast an energy shield.”
“Cool! What do I do?”
“First, you listen,” she said. “I need to explain a few things first.”
Frank nodded eagerly.
“The universe is made up of cosmic energy,” she said. “The reason the universe is infinite is because this energy is constantly expanding, growing, and stretching onward forever. You will learn more about these things in your studies when you get older, but for now, just understand that there is expanding energy in the universe.”
Frank nodded, trying to focus on her words rather than her pouty wet lips as she spoke.
“This energy is old and no one knows where it comes from, but it has existed, always. It is the essence of the universe.
“When the universe formed, the cosmic energy created many things. It created the stars, the galaxies, the planetary systems, the plants, and all the living creatures on the planets. The core of who we are comes from the cosmic energy of the universe. You still with me?”
Frank nodded.
“The energy that created the universe also created cosmic beings, and people believe different things about who these beings are. Brennan is Catholic and believes God created the cosmos and the cosmic beings are angels. Rowan and I believe these beings are not part of any God or religion, but are entities of the universe, which we cannot fully understand yet. We know they have god-like powers, though.”
“Like the Watchers,” Frank said.
“Well, yes, sort of,” Maza said. “Watchers have their power because some cosmic beings decided to come down to Earth. We call them the Fallen and while they were on Earth they…mated with humans and had…offspring. The offspring inherited some of their abilities because they…um…had, ah… You know, they had sex with human women and…the children were part Fallen, part human and –”
“So Glak'xhohr is a cosmic being?” Frank asked.
“Yes, all the Fallen are,” Maza said.
“The Fallen are all evil? Are there good cosmic beings?” he asked.
“There are,” Maza replied. “But we haven’t seen any in a long time.”
“Why?”
“I’m not sure. That’s a better question for Shizu, maybe… Wait, we’re getting off topic. You want to learn a spell, right?”
He nodded again enthusiastically.
“Okay, so right now the only thing you need to know is that cosmic energy is the energy of the universe, we have it flowing through us, and we can harness and focus it to do extraordinary things. You understand?”
“Yes,” Frank said. “That’s how Glak'xhohr was able to make the giant praying mantis.”
“Exactly, though we don’t have the same amount of power that he or any of the Fallen have. We are only half breeds.”
“So we have half the power?”
“Something like that. Okay, enough with the history lesson. Let’s get to the spell.”
Frank felt the excitement bubbling up in him. This is what he really wanted to learn since he’d been staying at the Temple.
“Okay. Close your eyes and focus,” Maza began. “You see that light behind your eyes, how it dances and zig-zags and creates shapes and patterns?”
Frank closed his eyes and could see what she was talking about. He nodded. “Yeah, I see it.”
“Okay, now focus on that. That is energy. You can see it, but you can also feel it. It’s inside of you. Focus on what you can see behind your eyes and then try and feel it.”
Frank did as she said. He could see the light grow in intensity behind his eyes and then a vibration traveled through his body that started in his abdomen and spread out to his extremities. The color of the energy shifted in intensity, moving from pale to more intense shades of blue. It radiated within him and he could feel it building, expanding, growing, and moving around inside of him. He opened his eyes and gaped at Maza. She looked surprised.
“Very good, Frank,” she said. “Look at your skin.”
Frank glanced down at his arms. They glowed with a sapphire radiance like he saw on Maza and Shizu regularly.
“Cool!” he said, flitting his eyes back to Maza. She grinned back at him.
“Now feel the weight of the energy surrounding your body. Can you feel it? It has weight and substance, almost like you are wearing it.”
“I can! I can feel it.”
“Excellent. Now with your mind, you are going to hold that weight, shape it, and then push it in front of you. It helps to create a picture. Think of the shield in your mind. Imagine it like a disk in front of your body. Feel the weight of the energy on your skin and force it to move into the shape of a circle in front of you with your thoughts. When you have the image clearly in your mind, and you can feel the weight of the energy, focus on it so that everything else fades away, and say, ‘Siq’estros Fa’!’”
Frank closed his eyes and concentrated. He felt the weight of the energy over his body like a layer of electric silk sliding on his skin. He could slide it by willing it to move. He imagined pushing the energy down his arms and out from his fingertips. Then he shouted, “Siq’estros Fa’!”
He felt the electric silk skin slip down his arms and go through his hands and fingers. He opened his eyes and a spiraling disk of thin blue energy, about two feet in
diameter, sprung from his fingertips in front of him and hovered there, slowly circling.
Maza was across from him, looking impressed. “Very good, Frank,” she said. She leaned over and picked up a rock, tossing it at the disk. It bounced off with a sizzle and landed between them.
“Whoa…” Frank said.
Something rustled softly in the bushes behind them. Frank lost his focus and his shield faded. Maza twisted to get a look behind Frank. She moved forward, pushing Frank behind her and raised her hands in a defensive stance. Her palms glowed.
“Show yourself!” she shouted.
From behind a tree, a boy not much younger than Frank walked into the clearing. Maza grinned and dropped her hands, the glow dissipating from her palms.
“David,” she said.
“Hey, Maza!” David said. “I, um…just wanted to see what you guys were doing,” he said sheepishly.
“We’re training,” Frank said, annoyed.
“Can I train too?” David asked.
“No,” Frank said. “You’re not a Watcher.”
David’s face dropped and he looked at his shoes.
“Not true,” Maza said walking over to David and putting her arm around him. “There are things you can learn, too.”
Frank felt a pang of jealousy when Maza put her arm around his brother.
“I want to learn,” David said, his face brightening.
“We can talk to your parents about it, okay?” Maza said.
“Okay!” David said, and shot a look at Frank.
Frank felt a petulant pang of selfishness and jealousy. He was the Watcher, after all. Shouldn’t he be getting the training? Not David. This was his thing.
Maza seemed to sense his feelings. “Won’t it be fun to train with your brother, Frank?” she asked, her eyebrows rising, her head nodding slightly.
“Maybe,” Frank muttered, still feeling selfish and jealous. But then he looked into his brother’s face and he softened. His brother’s exuberance was obvious, and shouldn’t it be? What other kids got to hang out with sorcerers and learn magic and live in a mountain temple with cosmic half-breed warriors? Frank was lucky he had such cool friends and in that moment, he realized he wanted his brother to have part of the experience too because he loved him.
