Descent

by Charlotte McConaghy

  ‘Gods,’ Altor whispered, staring sightlessly at the wall, his brain whirling with all that this news meant. His idol, the one man he’d measured himself against, was alive. For so long Altor had carried the weight of disappointment that came from believing he would never get to meet this man, the one person in the world he thought he might have a chance of respecting. And now—

  All thoughts of the Elvish Prince flew from Altor’s mind when the weight of a body pummelled into him, shoving him against the wall.

  A strangled grunt of surprise left his mouth before he realised the girl was ... hugging him.

  ‘Al!’ she cried, clutching onto him. Altor stood, frozen, and Jane pulled back, looking into his face, her smile wide and vibrant. ‘It’s so wonderful to see you!’

  He opened his mouth to reply, but words failed him and he shut it again.

  Jane laughed and then padded back to her bed, pulling the covers over her and grinning. ‘Sorry,’ she smiled. ‘I must seem like a crazy person. One day I’ll explain, but not yet. All I’ll tell you is that I’ve missed you more than I can say.’

  Slowly he made his way over to the bed, watching her closely, trying to figure out if maybe she really was insane. But that look, as if she truly loved him, was more real than any look he’d ever received.

  ‘Do you have me confused with someone else? We’ve never met!’ he blurted out.

  She laughed again, high and cheeky. After a moment she nodded. ‘You’re right. I’m sorry.’ But her expression didn’t change as she continued to beam at him.

  ‘How do you even know my name?’

  Jane shrugged, unperturbed. ‘Maybe I don’t after all. What is it?’

  Altor looked at her a moment, then smiled crookedly, suddenly amused by her sly happiness. ‘Prince Altor of Lapis Matyr at your service.’

  ‘It’s a pleasure to meet you, Prince Altor. I’m Jane.’

  ‘I know who you are. You told me on the roof.’ Slowly he felt his composure returning. His mind lingered on her embrace, startling him by how fond he already was of the memory.

  ‘Wait a minute! Wasn’t I only gone two years? You were just a kid when I left!’

  He nodded.

  Jane scrutinised him. ‘You’re going to have to spell it out for me, Al. Why do you look my age?’

  Altor turned away, enjoying the fleeting moment of her ignorance. After he explained, there would be a new look in her eyes, the same one his mother gave him, a look of pity and fear. He turned back to her, resigned to the inevitable. ‘Accelerated ageing. A parting gift from my late father. By next year I’ll probably be middle-aged.’

  Her eyes widened. ‘You’re kidding, right?’

  ‘Yes. I am. This is how a normal nine-year-old boy should look.’

  ‘Oh my god, Al, that sucks,’ she murmured, ignoring his sarcasm. ‘You must get people telling you that all the time though, right? And I bet you hate it.’

  He was amazed to see that she looked truly upset. He could see her visibly reel in her emotions before she smiled again. ‘Well, at least you get to skip puberty. My acne was terrible when I was fifteen.’

  Altor was unable to suppress a bark of surprised laughter. She grinned in return, and for once he didn’t feel like a freak. Nor was he repulsed by the sadness in her eyes, because with Jane, it didn’t seem like pity.

  ‘Well, however old you are,’ she went on cheerfully, ‘Thanks for bringing me inside!’

  He gave her a dazzling smile. ‘Couldn’t just leave a damsel to her distress now could I?’

  Jane cocked her head to one side. ‘You call that distress? I think you need to meet a real damsel.’

  They grinned at each other, then he caught himself and looked away.

  Altor knew he should leave—it was inappropriate to be alone in her room with her, especially when she seemed to be so disoriented, but something held him in place.

  Jane folded her hands in her lap. ‘It’s really strange, seeing you like this. It’s sort of unfair, isn’t it? Like I blinked, and you’re all grown up.’

  Altor frowned. ‘You don’t have to tell me how unfair it is. In any case,’ he went on quickly, ‘At least I wasn’t missing from the world completely. They worried about you.’

  She didn’t respond, just kept her heavy gaze trained on him.

  Quickly Altor shrugged. ‘I should leave you now. Fern is on his way here. I might let you see him in private before I introduce myself.’ His mind started whirling again at the thought.

  ‘No!’ Jane said quickly. ‘Please don’t let him in. I don’t want to see him.’

  ‘Why?’ Altor asked. ‘I thought the two of you were friends...?’

  ‘No!’ she assured him. ‘I mean, we are, but I just ... don’t want to see him right now. Can you understand that? I ... we...’

  ‘Had a fight?’

  Jane shook her head slowly, throwing him a helpless look. Shrugging, she sighed, ‘He got married. That’s all. He just got married.’

  Altor stared at Jane. She seemed tiny and fragile in that moment, and there was a hollow look in her eyes. Altor thought he was beginning to understand. He thought he’d heard the stories a million times, thought he knew the extent of everything that had happened when the Strangers first arrived. But he suddenly realised that there was so much more than he could ever hope to understand. There were so many layers to the people from the stories, so much lost between the telling of their tales. Who could have imagined that this girl, the saviour of their world, unbelievably beautiful in so many ways, would fall in love with their shining prince, a boy who’d sacrificed himself for his people? It seemed so utterly romantic it had to have been made up, but at the same time, deeply fitting.

  ‘He won’t come anywhere near you if that is what you wish,’ Altor said, his voice low and certain. Jane saw a shadow pass over his face and wondered who this young boy had turned into.

  Chapter 18

  ‘The map is among the stars,’ Sharif said and then refused to say anything more.

  ‘But what—?’ Mia exclaimed.

  ‘We are leaving now,’ Liam stated firmly.

  ‘No, wait! I need to find out more!’ she protested.

  Liam turned on her. ‘You cannot bend everyone to your will just by speaking out of turn, Mia!’

  ‘I’m sorry,’ she whispered. ‘I don’t mean to be rude.’

  Gwen was at her side immediately. ‘You weren’t,’ she said pointedly. ‘You have every right to speak—don’t let these men talk down to you. And never apologise when you have done nothing wrong.’

  Mia stared at her, then nodded. The words, suddenly, reminded her of Jane. Once again she thought of Jack, and how he had constantly talked down to her. She thought of their parting. Of the words that had flown from her mouth, turning her into a girl who could walk away from a guy, and not just follow him.

  Once they were gathered back at the camp, Mia slumped down against a tree.

  ‘What does he mean? Liam, how can we find something in the stars?’

  ‘I don’t know. Perhaps it is a star map and we can see it from here?’

  She brightened. ‘Okay. I guess that means we have to wait until dark.’

  Mia sat quietly for the whole afternoon, though it took her supreme effort. So many thoughts rushed through her mind, but she knew if she voiced them she would only distress the others.

  Night took a long time in coming, but once it did they couldn’t find anything that resembled a map in the stars. They looked long into the night, until their necks cramped and their eyes blurred with fatigue.

  Mia felt a terrible sense of failure, and sat up from where she had been lying on the ground. ‘It’s no use. If there are maps in the stars then it’s a complete waste because none of us know how to read them!’

  One by one they looked over at her. ‘Maybe we’ve misread the clue we were given,’ she said, deflated. ‘Let’s just go to sleep.’ Mia lay back down, close to tears. As hard as she tried though, she couldn’t
sleep. Her eyes kept opening to take another look at the sky.

  Finally she’d had enough. Sitting, she dragged her eyes to the dark pools in front of her. Like opals, she thought, with flecks of light reflected from the stars. Liam called these pools the Tears of Minerva. Secrets of the ages were held within their depths.

  Mia stood, her chest tight. The others were asleep by now, and she contemplated the mysterious tears that floated before her.

  There were stars in the pool. Shining out of the water, reflected from the sky.

  Without thinking, Mia undressed, taking off her outer layers so that she was left in only her white shift and underwear. The water was icy cold, and she waded up to her waist, cringing. She felt a strange sense of foreboding. Now that she was in the water, it had a haunted feel to it.

  So, instead of thinking, Mia dove into the centre of the pool and pushed herself deep into the water.

  The cold winded her, shocking her and setting her skin on fire. Quickly Mia swam, knowing somehow that she had to go as deep as she possibly could.

  Her lungs began to hurt as she propelled herself into the dark depths. All light left the water, and her sense of direction was gone, and all she could think about was going further down.

  Finally, just as a sense of panic began to attack her and the last of her air ran out, an image appeared before her. A man, dark skinned and handsome, stared out at her, his eyes such a deep brown as she had never seen.

  Who are you? Mia thought, and somehow she knew he heard her.

  Someone you should remember, he replied sadly, and she was shocked at the longing in his eyes. Find us.

  Come to Samaraq. How? she thought in despair, I don’t know where to look.

  Yes you do. Just remember. Now go. You fade.

  The image of the city was in her head again now. The man disappeared. Mia felt a sudden burst of pain in her chest, and struggled to swim upwards. It was so far, and all of a sudden she didn’t know which way was up. Panic struck her, and a bone deep sense of terror.

  Then, like a dark angel, the man floated through the water and pressed his mouth upon her own. Suddenly he was blowing air into her lungs, and she knew then that he was no apparition.

  Mia felt a new sense of strength. Upwards she struggled, and finally, she caught a glimpse of light from the stars above. She broke the surface and pulled air into her empty lungs in huge, gasping breaths. The others were standing at the edge of the pool and Claudia screamed with relief. Gwen waded into the water and helped Mia out as her limbs were numb with cold.

  ‘What in the name of Adar were you doing?’ Liam asked, horrified, at the same time that his brother spat out some unknown words. ‘The Tears of Minerva are icy, killing pools!’

  ‘I know where the city is, and I know how to bring it back,’ Mia said through chattering teeth. At the same moment she spoke, she felt a sharp recognition in her mind, and she realised that Jane was back.

  Chapter 19

  Ria answered the door and let him in. He looked terrifying in his dark cloak, the hood raised. Her heart had been thumping all day at the mere thought of him.

  ‘Hi,’ Luca said.

  ‘Hello. Come in.’

  In silence they sat down to a meal that her cook had prepared for them.

  ‘You work for the king, do you?’ Ria asked awkwardly. Luca just nodded. ‘I suppose all of you must.’

  ‘No, actually. You will know of Anna’s work—she does that for Paragor, not for Accolon. And Harry lives in Burmia, working for Satine.’

  The way he spoke of these people, as though they were not in the least bit special. Ria sometimes had to remind herself that Luca was just as famous and revered as any member of a royal family.

  Ria nodded. ‘Do you live in the palace, then?’

  Again he nodded.

  Flushed, she took a sip of her wine, relieved to feel the familiar burn down her throat. Luca didn’t seem to be making any effort. He sat silently staring at his food.

  ‘Do you blame me?’ he asked her suddenly, looking up to meet her eyes. She stared at him, taken aback.

  ‘Blame you for what?’

  ‘For not looking after you when you were in your coma. For leaving you to the nurses. For not coming here sooner. For ... not protecting you from the music.’

  Don’t cry, she begged herself. Summoning all her resolve, she gave him a careless smile. ‘I don’t blame you, Luca. I didn’t want those things from you anyway.’

  His dark eyes bored into hers, and then he nodded, turning back to his food. Suddenly she wished she hadn’t lied. Anything to keep him talking, to have him be a real person instead of this wraith sitting opposite her.

  ‘No one could have protected me, Luca. That was the power of the music—the burden was mine alone.’

  ‘Do you still sing?’ he asked her.

  ‘No. Do you?’

  He shook his head.

  ‘Do you ... miss the way things used to be?’ she asked, her voice barely more than a whisper. He looked up at the ceiling then, as though he could see right through it. ‘I don’t mean in the world,’ she hastened to add. ‘I don’t mean the Valkyries, or the slave trade or anything like that. I mean ... you and me.’

  ‘Of course I do,’ he murmured eventually. ‘I miss the innocence of it. Of us.’

  Her breath caught in her throat. So much had been stolen from them in that battle. How could it be fair?

  ‘But life happens,’ he said bluntly, breaking into her thoughts. ‘We can’t be children forever.’

  Ria looked down at the table. ‘I never really got the chance to be a child anyway,’ she muttered.

  At that something in him seemed to change. A tiny portion of the hardness around him melted away.

  ‘I’m sorry,’ he said, struggling. Luca rose out of his chair and moved to sit closer to her. ‘I know I’ve changed, but I can’t ... seem to figure out how to change back. There’s just so much darkness in the world. How could we not be affected by it?’

  Ria felt her hands start to tremble. She had no idea what to say to him, how to deal with his pain. Luca reached over and put a hand on top of hers. Ria held her breath, not sure what she wanted to happen. He was looking at her softly, with a shadow of his old tenderness, and she leant forward a little, hope flaring inside her—

  ‘Jane!’ he said suddenly, the word hitting her like a slap. Ria sat back instantly, shocked to hear him voice the insecurity she’d always had, and tried not to show how much the wound hurt.

  ‘No,’ he said, seeing her expression. ‘I didn’t mean ... It’s just—she’s back! I can feel her in my head.’

  Ria nodded and tried to smile, but couldn’t help thinking how dangerously close she had come to falling over the precipice again. Luca sat back and closed his eyes, concentrating. His face, she noticed, relaxed and made him look much younger.

  She stood up and started clearing the table. She had already dismissed her servants for the night. After a long while Luca opened his eyes again and looked for her.

  ‘Sorry,’ he started to say but she interrupted him with a false smile.

  ‘You’ll need somewhere to stay, yes? I’ve had a spare room made up; it should have everything you need. There is a washroom down the hall. Goodnight.’

  Ria walked into her room and closed the door. For a moment she just stood next to her bed, breathing heavily, telling herself to calm down.

  There was a man here, changed greatly, and yet not so changed. And there was another man with red hair, fiery like his heart. And she’d never felt more confused.

  Luca watched Ria disappear and then he shut his own bedroom door. He opened the window to let in some air, then lay down on top of the covers, staring at the ceiling.

  And then Luca allowed his mind to slide out and feel around for hers, revelling in the presence of her, the closeness of her. He let their minds touch, and he breathed a sigh of relief at the fact that finally she was back. And the simple fact that Jane allowed him just to lie with
her, their minds touching, because she knew how much he loved her and always would, was enough to melt everything inside him until he leaked with tears.

  Memory had become her fear. It allowed her to relive the moments that caused her the most pain in all the worlds and all the lifetimes. She could not escape it. Jane sat with her legs dangling over the battlements, remembering the moment in which her world had been turned upside down.

  She did not realise it, but she was absently fingering the pearl that hung around her throat.

  Fern had been with her in the past life. And because it had been their first life, so too was it their first meeting.

  Amara, who would one day be Jane, had woken under the night stars in a small glade. Her eyes were the same brown that they would always be, no matter how many times she was reborn.

  Then he’d come through the trees and seen her, and their eyes had met. She had fallen in love, for the first time, in the space of a step through the trees.

  It had been different the second time, in this lifetime. They had both been wary. Without even knowing why, they had pulled back, their instincts telling them it could be dangerous. Well, they had been right.

  Jolting her out of her reverie, Altor came to stand beside her, not looking at her, but out over the wide expanse of plain.

  ‘I love it up here,’ he said quietly. She didn’t reply.

  ‘Come now,’ he said, ‘Women who cry are exceedingly unappealing.’

  ‘I’m not crying.’

  ‘No, but you look like you might.’

  Jane shook her head stonily. ‘I’m not going to cry over him. I promise.’

  Altor frowned. ‘Come inside, Jane. It’s cold, and I don’t want to have to rescue you again.’

  ‘I think, Altor, that a little cold air is not going to do me any harm, after everything else.’

  ‘Still...’ he said softly. Jane looked at him, at his dark eyes, and she remembered the way he’d once looked at her with that exact same gaze. So long ago, in another life. Jane knew he was feeling it—the connection between the two of them—but he would have no clue from where it came. Memories flooded her mind but she shoved them away and allowed Altor to help her off the battlement. Now was not the time to approach things that had occurred over a thousand years ago. She just prayed, as hard as she could, that the same thing would not happen again—it had been heartbreaking enough the first time. That was the problem, when there happened to be three of them.