by Tiya Rayne
“Who could have done such a vile thing?” Artumis questions.
“Only the Assassin travels to the human realm so frequently.” Fisgal states. “Maybe he is responsible?”
“He should be punished for his transgressions, lying with a human.” Bartus says the word human as one would say something disgusting. I do not fault them for their views. Once I too viewed humans as nothing more than annoying, comical, creatures with short lifespans and even shorter attention spans. I traveled to and from their realm and regarded them as you would a monkey at a zoo, with mild interest and entertainment. However, an encounter in the woods 15 years ago changed my perspective for the humans. Maybe on some deeper level I’ve always enjoyed their presence because they are as I am. They are considered outcast and unworthy, taboo even. As an assassin, I am considered a harbinger of death. Although I work primarily as the queen’s body guard I also take other jobs where I am hired to kill. I enjoy what others shy away from. Most men only kill for noble causes, like war or protecting their own. I kill for the thrill and the right price.
“Assassin is not the father.” Avalia defends me out loud. “Are you?” she questions in my mind.
“If it were I that lay with a female of any realm, I would not have left her alone for Ofilla or any one to harm.” My jaw is clenched tight with rage. Although I do not fault them for their views about other humans, I will kill them for their views about this certain human.
“Before we get all worked up, I need to see this human.” Avalia says beside me. I turn to her quickly my agitation with the situation boiling over in me, I shout. “Lilly! Her name is Lilly. Do not call her Human as if she is beneath you.” The queen’s eyes goes wide with shock then softens with understanding.
“Did you say Lilly?” a voice calls out from the back of the room. I turn to Rykan, who has just traced in. “I’m sorry I’m late I was delegating with Nisus. Did you say something about a human named Lilly?”
Bartus turns to his son. “It’s nothing, Rykan. The assassin thinks that a hum…” I growl across the room. “I mean Lilly,” He corrects his self. “Could be our chosen. She was attacked by Ofilla today.”
“Is Lilly alright?” Rykan looks to me alarmed.
“She is recovering.” The Queen answers for me. “Rykan, do you know this girl?” Rykan looks down at his hands then back up to the Queen. He nods his head and my sword was in my hands so fast not even I could have stopped me.
“How dare you!” I shout. It took Fisgal, Artumis, and Bartus to hold me back from Rykan. “You left her you son of a bitch. You left her there alone with her womb full of your seed.”
“She’s pregnant?” Rykan asks Looking to Avalia for confirmation.
“So it seems.” Avalia answers, placing her hands on her hips.
“I did not know she was with child.” Rykan looks at me pleadingly. I pushed even harder to get to him. I want his blood. I want to spill it on the floor as an offering to Lilly.
“Assassin please, this is not helping us protect Lilly.” It is only those words that make me relinquish my struggle. My sword dematerializes and I shove my hands in my hair. I turn and pace the room. The urge to fight and kill makes my limbs tingle. I hate to feel useless, especially when it comes to my little human. I know the only thing that could help Lilly now is healing and I am not a healer. However, I am a damn good killer and I’m sure I could be putting my talents to use somehow for her.
Once the room is calm the queen asks Rykan, “How did this happen?”
“I was running through the dark forest a few weeks ago, after some shifters attacked Woodsgrove village. I made them chase me into the forest in order to save the villagers. I was suffering from a bite mark in the abdomen, I was tired and weak. I thought if I got them far enough away from the village I would let them take me, I was too weak to fight. Next thing I know I’m being traced into the middle of nowhere where bright lights are coming right at me. I heard a loud screeching sound and then a soft voice asking me was I ok.” He smiles to his self as he says the last part. “I thought I had died and gone to the heavenly realm, but I wasn’t, I was in…”
“North Carolina.” I finish for him.
“Yeah. Lilly took me home and bandaged me. When I woke I thanked her and we were together, but I did not mean to plant a seed. I did not know our rules did not work in the human realm.” I fling myself towards him again, this time the Queen places an invisible wall between he and I and I hit it with a loud thud. I am seething. He took advantage of her kindness. Logically, I understood how he assumed Lilly could not get pregnant. In the Locke, unwanted pregnancies are non-existing, which is another thing that places us above other realms. In order for a woman to conceive she must wait until she is most fertile, then her partner must feed her the petals from the red flower that only grows in the Sun Valley. Not only does this cut down on unwanted pregnancies it also controls our population. Most Royals and upper society only have about one or two children, just enough to obtain a male heir. The only time you will see more than two children in a household is in the lower caste. They benefit more from the extra help.
“Rykan, how could you?” Bartus ask. “You defile your future wife, and you left a woman pregnant.”
“I did not know she was pregnant.”
“You stay in her bed and you never intended to go back to her? The Southern men are not savages we respect our women more than this. I am disappointed in you, son. Poor Sarafina, I will leave it to you to tell her.” Bartus turns back to Queen Avalia. “I am sorry for my son’s actions.”
“Why should we take this woman’s word?” Artumis ask. “You all know the human race do not value the things that we do. Who is to say it is Rykan’s seed that fills her womb.” That was it for me. I trace to Artumis and place my sword directly to his heart.
“Stand down, Assassin!” Avalia calls out to me.
“Slander her name again, and I swear I will shove this blade into your black heart.”
“You know I speak the truth.” I push the blade into his chest breaking through skin. A slow flow of blood spills down the front of his shirt. Artumis clenches his teeth together to trap his scream inside. I hear voices all around me begging me to stop. One of Artumis’s soldiers has his hands cupped around my neck trying to squeeze the life out of me; however I am too far beyond reason for it to affect me. One of the first lessons in becoming an assassin is learning to control your rage. He who fights blindly by rage fights to die. In battle you should keep a level head in order to see all your opponents’ moves. There are so many things that can work against you in war; your opponent, your environment, and even your own body. Keeping your mind clear helps you to see and react wisely to all of these factors. Had I been thinking clearly I would have known that I should have appeared behind Artumis and pulled his back to my front so that his men would have to come through him to get to me. However, I have not been able to think clearly since I left that diner. My rage has been coiling inside me like snakes, slithering down in me waiting to spring out. Now it has and I am going to kill Artumis. The room is in an uproar around me. Everyone is shouting and tugging on me.
“Enough!” Avalia shouts. “Stand down, Assassin.” I feel all of the force of Avalia’s powers run over my body like cold water on a hot fire. I have served the Queen for many centuries, never has she had to use her power on me to get me to obey. The fight immediately leaves my body and my arms go limp. I stagger away from Artumis feeling weak and tired. I press my hand against the wall and lean my head forward.
“I am sorry, Assassin.” Artumis states slightly out of breath. “I was just stating the obvious.” My body tenses at that, but I feel the Queen’s calming power wash over me again.
“Your worries are not necessary, Artumis.” Rykan speaks up. “I was her first, I can attest to that.”
“But wha…”
“Enough, Artumis.” Avalia says holding up her hand. “This young lady has done nothing to deserve your slander. Rykan has claimed her
maidenhood; still it is I that will determine if she is the chosen. For now, it is best for you to go and await my word. I will go and see Lilly for myself.”
“Your majesty, I would like to go as well.” Rykan says stepping forward.
I push away from the wall and turn to face him. I feel my rage slither down inside me again. “You will not see her.” Rykan’s face goes ashen then turns red with anger.
“She carries my young. I have a right to see her.” I take a step towards him and immediately Avalia’s powers wash over me and I am no longer able to move.
“Dammit, Avalia, release me.” I shout.
“Not until you calm down. You are acting like a crazy person.” Avalia says speaking in my head.
“You don’t understand.” I plead, but Avalia ignores me.
“Rykan, it is best if you give Lilly time to heal. If it turns out Ofilla is right and she is the chosen she is going to have a lot to deal with, it is best we allow her time to rest now.”
“Even if she is not the chosen, we still have a right to see her.” Bartus adds.
I make an exasperated noise with my mouth. If Lilly is not the chosen, I am going to erase her memory of this entire night and send her back to North Carolina, far away from Rykan and anybody else from the Locke.
“After I have seen her, I will call a council so that you may meet her as well. Is that alright?” Rykan goes to say something else but his father cut him off.
“That will be alright.”
“Now go kings. Rest your heads, for tonight we may have found our chosen.” Slowly the kings begin to trace away from the glass castle. Avalia turns to me. I feel her power release me and I fall to the floor on my knees.
“Explain.” Is all Avalia says. I take a deep breath, run my hands through my hair and start from the day I met Lilly in the woods.
Chapter Seven
I know this is a dream because it has one of those weird dream feels. I am in the woods out behind my Mama’s trailer. It is dusk and the trees have just started to change to the orange and reds of autumn. I’m a little girl, maybe six years old. I am racing through the forest with Bo at my side. This dream feels oddly familiar, like I am reliving a distant memory. I hear a growl and a yelp and I freeze. There is a big black dog, no not a dog it is much bigger than a dog; almost the size of a pony but built like a bear. There is also a man in my dream. I can’t see his face but from the back he has long black hair that falls just below his elbows. He is tall and lean but the way his shirt fit over his arms and back leads me to believe he is well-built. He’s wearing black leather boots up to his knees and dark colored pants stuffed down in them. His shirt is black and long sleeve, but the sleeves are rolled up to his forearms. Over his shirt he is wearing a brown leather chest plate with matching fingerless gloves that go up pass his wrist. I remember this vision from the day I met Rykan, this is the same guy from that memory.
I say something in my child voice and both the long haired guy and the big dog turn towards me. It is then my dream shifts and I am still in the forest but I am my regular self now, and it is daytime instead of night. The trees are bright green and the sun is brighter than usual. I am in a white nightgown with a lacy collar and no shoes. I hear the sound of children laughing and decide to follow it. The sound leads me to a stunning garden. In my early teens I went through a phase in my photography, where I studied photos of beautiful gardens. One of my favorite photos was done by a French photographer of the gardens at the Palace of Versailles in France. This garden was like a smaller replica with its geometric designs and four separate sections. All of the walk-ways were done in sandy marble paving stones. The stones cut geometric shapes through the four sections of hedges and their different color flowers. The main walkway was lined with neatly trimmed hornbeam hedges and cone shaped Corsican pine trees. It was the most captivating thing I had ever seen. In the very middle of the garden was a large six-tier water fountain and sitting on a dark stone bench in front of the waterfall was a woman with two children sitting at her feet. The woman has beautiful sparkling eyes just like my rescuer from the diner. Her hair is white like fresh snow and her face is beautiful. She looks young, maybe mid-twenties, but I can tell by her eyes that she is much older than she appears.
“Hello, Lilly! My name is Avalia.” The beautiful lady says as she stands up. Her light blue dress is firm fitting and drops low in the front accentuating her breast. The bodice of the dress is crisscrossed with black lace like a corset.
“How do you know my name?” I ask. She smiles at me and pushes her hair back over her shoulder revealing her pointed ears.
“Hey, you got them funny ears too.” I say taking an involuntary step towards her. The two small boys standing in front of her start to laugh.
“I guess I do.” she says with a warm smile. One of the boys tugs at her dress and she bends down in front of him. He cups his hand to her ear and whispers to her. She smiles up at me then nods to him. The two boys take off towards me. They run full force until they hit me almost knocking me over.
“Mommy!!!” one boy says. He is slightly taller than the other, but they are identical. They both have the same touch of color to their olive skin and the same wavy dark brown hair that hangs to their shoulders. The shortest boy has hazel eyes like my own, but with more green and the tallest one has the most beautiful dark brown eyes. They are stunning against his caramel skin and dark hair, he reminds me so much of Rykan.
“Wait! Did you call me Mommy?” I ask looking down at the four small eyes staring back at me. Hazel eyes laughs at me.
“Yes! You’re our Mother. Can’t you tell?” I look down into the same hazel eyes as mine with the same dimples and gasp. These are my boys. I drop down in front of them. It is hard to believe.
“How?” I ask touching my stomach.
“They wanted to meet you, so with a little magic I helped.”
“Magic?” I ask. Where I come from magic is making bunnies appear out of hats or Uncle Buddy’s pull my finger trick, not being able to see the 6 year old versions of my fetus babies.
Avalia smiles, “I know it is confusing right now, but it will start to make sense. But first, Lilly, you have to wake up.” The smile slips from Avalia’s face and is replace by worry.
“I’ve tried to wake up. It hurts when I’m awake.” I say looking down at my hands. If I wake up I know I will die. That’s what the pain in my chest feels like. It was too painful to withstand, in my dreams I’m safe and alive.
“Don’t worry, Mommy, we have healed you.” The taller boy says then places his hand to my chest where the pain is coming from. A warm sensation fills my chest like hot chocolate on a cold day. I gasp at the feel of it. “What was that?” I ask my dark eyed son.
“I’m an Immortal, Mommy.” Is all he says, as if that explains everything. I am about to ask what being Immortal meant, but Avalia says. “Ok my kings, it’s time to go.”
“Awwww!” they say in unison.
“Now, now, Boys. Your Mother has been asleep long enough. She needs to wake up to take care of you.” I suddenly feel a wave of guilt crash through me. I’ve been so concerned about my pain that I haven’t thought about feeding my baby (or babies rather). I am starting off to be a terrible mother. I grab my sons and pull them close to me kissing both their heads.
“I promise I will take better care of you. I won’t go without feeding you again. I’ll make sure I eat plenty of healthy food.” I say as tears spill down my cheeks.
“Don’t cry, Mommy!” Hazel eyes says as he reaches up to wipe the tear from my cheek.
“We love you!” Brown eyes add as he wraps his arms around my neck. My sons have a disadvantage; they are coming into the world with only one parent. I made a poor decision which will affect them for the rest of their lives. My job as a mother is starting out on the wrong note.
“Go now, boys! It is time.” Avalia says. Both boys look over to her, nods, and then begin to glow like a light coming on inside of them.
“Wait!” I shout as they begin to disappear into the ball of light. “What are your names?”
By now they are only two golden orbs floating in front of me. I hear their laughter float through the air. “You haven’t given us names.” A voice I know to be my dark eyed son says and then both orbs shoot into my stomach and I feel complete. I didn’t know I wasn’t whole until the boys were back inside me. I clasp my hand to my stomach and as I do it grumbles. I look up again to Avalia’s sparkling blue eyes and ask. “What now?”
She smiles, “Now, you need to wake up.”
I shoot up in my bed with a gasp. That was the weirdest dream I have ever had, and I’ve had a dream where I was disco dancing with a cheetah. This one tops the cheetah dream on the weird scale by a mile. I flop back down on my bed and place my arm over my eyes. What did I do last night? I try to think about the last thing I remember. I went to work. I argued with Mama about being pregnant and moving back in with her. A lady came in and, “Oh Crap!” I say out loud. I sit back up on the bed and take in my surroundings. I’m definitely not in my apartment. I’m in some kind of wooden cabin. The walls and floor are a dark wood color. The ceiling is peaked with exposed beams. Other than the small bed I am lying on, a chair beside my bed, a small side table and a red screen divider; there isn’t much furniture in the room. I look down at my white nightgown with the lace collar. Immediately I clasp my hand to my chest remembering the crazy woman and the ball of fire that hit my chest. “What the hell is going on?”
“Well I’ll be. The dead has risen.” A petite black woman says as she walks into the room. She has a kind smile and an oval face. Her skin is the color of milk chocolate and as smooth as glass. She has one of those faces that you can’t tell if she’s older than she looks or younger than she acts.
