Vala Heritage

by J. F. Jenkins

Mrs. Orinda eyed the stones. “You have one that can locate him? From anywhere?”

  Jewl nodded. “I know of one.” She had never used it before, but the spell wasn’t hard. If the magic was strong enough, it would exhaust her. That was a small price to pay in her book.

  What she needed was a small sphere-shaped, silver stone. Even if Zes were dead, he could still be found. At least then they wouldn't have to wonder.

  It didn't take long for her to find it in her bag, recognizing it from touch alone. She never went anywhere without her stones. Having them by her side made her feel safe and useful. Moving away from the others, she held it in her right hand reciting the incantation, releasing its magic. Mrs. Orinda and Anj watched wide-eyed as a bright light poured out of her hand, enveloping them.

  Having never used that type of stone’s magic before, Jewl wasn’t quite sure what to expect. She was pleased by the detail of the results. As soon as the light faded, the three of them found themselves surrounded by a red-hazed projection of Zes.

  He and Cheyenne were outside somewhere that was barren like a desert. Close to them was a massive, dark stone castle. Jewl recognized the building right away as Hades’s castle. She knew the couple was in the underworld because she’d visited there many times. Despite being in Hell, both Cheyenne and Zes were still alive. To cross over into that realm, they both would have had to be momentarily dead, which would explain Anj’s feeling of sudden loss.

  Zes was being held down by a hoard of demons. Blood trickled down his face and arms as the demons toyed around with his skin. They were disgusting to behold with oblong faces, discolored skin, and elongated claws.

  Cheyenne was not far away, held captive by another demon. He seemed to be of a much higher sophistication. He did not have the grotesque body of the others and he appeared more like an angel with his red and silver feathered wings. His eyes were gray and empty. He could have been considered attractive since he was young and strong looking. He fit into the tall, dark, and handsome mold quite well.

  “Yes, if it’s just a piece of paper,” Cheyenne said. Her eyes were lowered as she contemplated the weight of the situation before her, whatever that was.

  “It is an agreement,” the man said with a smile, motioning for the demons to loosen their grasp on Zes. They lifted him off of the ground, but continued to hold him. Zes watched Cheyenne and shook his head. The leader faced his minions. “Have fun with your toy, but do not kill or fatally injure him or you will suffer the true depth of my wrath. The lady must not be displeased. In fact, as a sign of my generosity for her, he shall be marked. Understood?”

  The demons chattered amongst themselves, nodding, then pulled Zes, his eyes widening, away with hideous grins. When Jewl glanced at Anj, she saw his heart breaking as his eyes watered up with tears. He shook harder, holding onto himself, watching everything going on around him.

  “Where are you taking him? You said you weren’t going to hurt him,” they heard Cheyenne demanding, just as Zes was pulled out of the doorway.

  There was a hearty laugh from the head demon. “I said I would spare his life. Had you not wanted him harmed, you should have said so while we were making our agreement.”

  Just as Zes was dragged into the palace of Hades, the image began to fade and the hallway of the school reappeared.

  “No, bring it back,” Anj whimpered.

  “Oh, God, protect that boy,” Mrs. Orinda whispered. At least they knew he would not die which was a small solace.

  Mr. Orinda returned, his skin turning pale. “I got a hold of Akuji, three other celestial members of the staff, and the night watch. They’re assembling to find him. As usual, they’re one step ahead of the game. I’ve been instructed to take Anj to Mr. Thantos’s residence, and make sure the rest of the students return to their dorm rooms.”

  The Orindas and Jewl somehow managed to bring Anj back to the faculty housing and to Mr. Thantos’s room. Anyone who looked at Anj would have thought he needed to go to the hospital wing. Jewl’s over-protective instincts would have protested if she hadn’t heard so much about the power that was in the fallen angel’s room. There was peace there, and it was peace Anj needed to rest and keep his magic at bay.

  “I’ll call their parents,” Mrs. Orinda said after she made sure Anj was safe on the couch.

  “Yes,” Mr. Thantos said. His black eyes were narrowed, his brow furrowed, and his dark hair tousled every which way. The angel was barely even dressed. He must have grabbed the first pair of pants and shirt he could find, which was not like him at all. Mr. Thantos was always much more professional. It concerned Jewl.

  “I’ll go with you. I can help and…” Anj whispered.

  “You will stay and rest. You are of more help to your brother here than you will be in the underworld.”

  Mr. Thantos grabbed a large sword that was bigger than his body and strapped it to his back with ease. “Tora, Shi, if he tries to escape do not hesitate to maul him and do whatever it takes to prevent him from doing so.” He paused and glanced at Jewl. “Do not let either of them leave. Mrs. Orinda, I trust you will do what is needed to care for these two.” Then he was out the door.

  Tora and Shi were Mr. Thantos’s pet cats. Both were long-haired and adorable fluff-balls. They were loyal, obedient to their master, and would do whatever he said. Jewl liked them from all of the stories she had heard, and because they showed a great distaste for Mr. Orinda. That automatically earned them extra points in her book despite her lack of preference for cats.

  Mrs. Orinda stayed close to Anj’s side. There was little either of them could do outside of providing as much comfort as possible. Anj only seemed to get worse as more time passed. Every so often he winced or twitched. Seeing him in so much pain lasted for at least an hour before there was a moment of quiet. He finally dozed off, only to awaken twenty minutes later with a loud scream followed by hyperventilating until he passed out.

  Chapter Two

  Family members were the only visitors Zes was allowed to have at the hospital wing, and Anj never left his brother’s side. He ate, slept, and lived in the room with his brother on the off chance he would awaken. The doctors had decided the best thing for Zes was to put him into a magical coma to regenerate his body while he slept. It naturally minimized the pain so he wouldn’t have to rely on drugs for comfort. That's what the staff had told Jewl, at least.

  They also said Anj was the only one who saw him. Not surprising since their mother could have cared less and their father was dead. For whatever reason, their mom didn’t take an interest in Zes. It was sad. Jewl wanted nothing more than to be allowed in, in their mother’s place, but they didn’t share the same blood. Instead she found herself spending most of her time waiting outside of the room as often as she could. Her teachers understood, letting her take the next three days off to regroup her sanity. By Monday afternoon she was stir crazy.

  She let out a frustrated sigh and leaned forward in her chair where she continued to wait, until her eyes caught hold of a new boy wandering down the hall in a hospital gown. At Vala, all of the students knew everyone. New students were rare, and they were even more rare after the school year had already started.

  Jewl pinned him at about fifteen or sixteen years old, and just in the final stages of puberty - the awkward stages, as his body was still small and proportioning itself out. He was cute though with black hair, square shoulders, and deep, dark blue eyes.

  The boy waved at her. She didn’t acknowledge him. Hopefully, he got the message. Jewl didn’t like people.

  “Hi!” he said, obviously not understanding she wanted to be left alone.

  He would be a perfect match for Halyn, she thought with a smirk. Halyn Alpay being Cheyenne’s overly obnoxious, chipper and ditzy roommate. Which girl she disliked more, Jewl couldn’t decide. They both drove her nuts. She liked things so much better when it was just her and the twins.

  When she didn’t respond, he sat down right next to her and stared.

  “Are you s
ick?” he asked.

  “No, I’m not.”

  “Oh, you’re here to see someone else who’s sick? I’ve noticed you around a lot, waiting out here. Do you love them a lot?”

  “Yes, what do you want?”

  “I want to go outside.”

  “So, go outside?” Jewl rolled her eyes, going back to ignoring him.

  “You’d feel happier if you came outside too.” He grabbed her arm, giving it a gentle tug. “I want to go out, and I can’t go alone. They won’t be ready yet. When we come back, they will. Everyone feels better after they’ve had some sun.”

  She released a sharp breath. Going outside was the last thing she wanted to do. What did he know about the twins anyway? “If I go with you, will you leave me alone?”

  “I want you to feel better. You look sad and lonely. I feel the same way. Did you lose all of your family, too?”

  “What?” She blinked. What a random question. “Listen, kid, if you want to go outside, then let’s go already before I change my mind and turn you into a frog okay?”

  He gasped. “Wow, you know cool magic. I have some, too, but mine isn’t cool. I can make clouds.”

  “Make…” She shook her head. “Right, of course. It figures you would be able to. You got a name?” She stood up, straightening out her shirt, and looked at the closed door to Zes's room. She didn’t want to leave or for them to think she had abandoned them, but the boy’s words lingered in her mind. They will be ready when I get back. She hoped.

  He gave her a huge smile. “Teague, what’s your name?” It sounded almost as though he had simply said T. She’d heard her fair share of strange names, but that was on the top of the list.

  “Jewl.”

  “Like sparklies,” he said with a gasp, reaching out for her hand so she could lead him out. She didn’t want to touch him. Just socializing was painful enough for her. Why did he have to touch her, too? Was he five years old?

  “Yeah, sure, like sparklies. Let me guess, you like sparkly things right?” she said not wanting to explain how her mother had named her after the measurement of energy, not gems. Even if she didn't spell it correctly.

  He nodded, bouncing, and became even more excited as she took him outside. She felt like a babysitter. If he asked her for a treat later, she would lose it. “They have a lot of light. I like bright. Dark is kind of scary.”

  “Monsters in your closet?”

  “No, but bad things still happen in the dark. That’s how I got sick. It was dark. There were a lot of bad storms. People don’t like me because of it.” He shook his head and fell silent. She’d have to remember that. Talking about darkness and storms would make him shut up.

  The instant the sunlight hit his face, his shoulders loosened and he sighed. “I haven’t felt the sun in a long time.”

  “I haven’t either. Do you feel less sick now?” She found a small patch of grass to sit on near the door not wanting to wander far just in case Anj left the room. The last thing she wanted was to miss him. As it stood, he hadn’t moved once, but at this point, anything was possible.

  Teague nodded at her, smiling. She was making an attempt at being nice. It was one of her negative attributes she was trying to alter, if only slightly. She had been told she was becoming too much like her mother, and that was the last thing she ever wanted to be.

  “Cool,” she mumbled, lying down in the grass. It’d been a long time since she had last lay under the sun. It was back during the first summer she and Anj had spent together as a couple. That was about a year and a half ago. Had she really only known Anj and Zes for a couple of years? It was hard for her to think there was a time when they hadn’t been there.

  She didn’t want to think about them being gone. It scared her. Soon they would graduate and become adults, leaving her behind to pursue their own interests. Anj insisted he would keep attending Vala for college. Zes had no clue what he wanted to do. But he would no doubt follow wherever his brother went. Would Anj want to stay though, now that he and Jewl were broken up?

  “I feel a lot better now. Do you think they’ll get mad at me for going out?” Teague said softly.

  Jewl faced him. He was staring at her, his eyes as wide and curious as ever. “I guess that depends. Who told you no, and why would they tell you that?”

  “She had pretty hair, but she never told me her name.” He peered at Jewl for a long moment. “She had pretty hair like you and she dropped me off here. She told me to stay inside and get better so the Dark doesn’t get me. You don’t think they can find me now, do you? I hope I didn’t do something wrong.”

  “I haven’t seen any monsters come after you yet.” She was being sarcastic, of course, but her remark had gone completely over his head because he beamed back at her. Probably for the better, though. Hair like mine, she thought. There was only one person who had the same blonde and spring-like coils she did.

  Why did her mother have to ruin everything? It was her fault Jewl was stuck at the school to begin with instead of being back home with her father. The last words Jewl would use to describe her mother, the goddess Aphrodite, were anything but good. ‘Manipulative tease’ was what popped into her mind, but she wouldn’t confuse the boy.

  She didn’t know much about the Dark. All she heard were a few words in passing during one of Anj and Mr. Thantos’s deep, yet dull, discussions. Unlike her on-again/off-again boyfriend, Jewl had little desire to know the workings and details of life and the ways of the universe.

  “So, what happened?” she asked him. His brow furrowed in confusion. She sighed and attempted to rephrase the question. “Why are you in the hospital here? What are you sick with?”

  He didn’t look ill or hurt. She was more interested in why her mother cared for this boy enough to help him.

  “There was a bad storm. The clouds were falling from the sky and trying to steal the Earth. I tried to stop them, but I wasn’t strong enough. They were filled with darkness and bad stuff and it filled the neighbors. They tried to kill me. She saved me.”

  “’She being the woman with the pretty hair?”

  He nodded and closed his eyes. “I think we need to go back in now. I don’t want to, but I think it's best. I don’t want them to find me again.”

  “All right, let’s go back in then. You should be safe here. There are angels and warriors here who know how to kick some serious darkness butt.”

  “I met the angel. He’s kind of scary. He doesn’t smile and he doesn’t have any light.” Teague sat up, waiting for her to join him. She made sure to dust off any stray pieces of grass before leading him back inside.

  “I guess not. He doesn’t have a lot of reasons to smile though. It’s complicated.” She shrugged. He must have met Mr. Thantos. He was the only angel on the campus who was actually fallen.

  “Oh, okay.”

  Jewl sighed and nodded. “Look, I'm going to go. Don't get into any trouble out here.”

  “Thanks, I'll see you later,” Teague said with a bright smile.

  I wouldn't count on it. Jewl headed back to the twins’ room without another word and returned to waiting alone, which was how she preferred it. It would be another hour and twenty minutes before she was allowed to finally see them.

  Nervously stepping through the door to Zes’s room, she almost couldn’t bear to look at either of them. She wasn’t sure who looked worse, Anj, who had deep, dark, circles around his eyes, his hair matted down with sweat, and bruising on his arms, legs, and neck from sleeping in a chair; Or Zes, who slept peacefully, but had deep scars running across his forehead, the sides of his face, and all over his arms. Those were just the visible ones, and they appeared to be healing over already. She didn’t want to know what they had looked like when he had first entered the hospital. He had purple and green splotches on his body where he had been beaten. The magic the doctors and nurses were using on him was working, however.

  She felt as though she were invading their space. But just like Anj, she couldn’t leave eith
er of their sides. Pulling a chair up next to Anj, she sat close to him, placing a hand over his. He stirred before waking.

  “I told them to let you in here a long time ago,” he whispered. He still recognized her touch. His hand squeezed hers and she felt it shaking. “They wouldn’t allow it because you weren’t considered family, and they weren’t sure if he was going to stay stable or die. Once they finally settled on one or the other, they said you could come. I believe they’ve decided he’s stable and will recover well.”

  “What’s the damage?” she whispered. For some reason she was afraid of waking Zes, though she knew his sleep was induced and deep.

  Anj rubbed his forehead. “He had a number of broken ribs, but those are mostly healed over and were the quickest to mend. They were clean breaks, so that might be why. There’s a fracture in his left wrist that’s being more difficult and his right shin was completely shattered.” His voice cracked while he spoke and he blinked back tears. “Without the magic he wouldn’t be able to walk again. The worst of it is the scarring because demons’ claws have venom in their nails. I believe the doctors said they would be able to make the remains of the scars minimal, but scarring that bad might never completely disappear.”

  “Finally there’s a burn, a magical one. It won’t heal no matter what the doctors do.” He sighed. “They believe it’s a dark magic of some kind. Duh, right? I’ve only caught a glimpse of it. It looks almost like a branding on a cow.”

  Jewl swallowed. There was her practically adopted brother, looking as peaceful as she had ever seen him, masking the most atrocious of pain. She said a silent prayer to God, thankful Zes wouldn’t have to suffer through the most difficult parts of it.

  Her first instinct was to hate Cheyenne for putting him through it all. Jewl realized that was unfair, though. Cheyenne had acted to preserve his life. How was she supposed to know what would happen? The demons, they would be the ones to pay. And Jewl would find a way to make them suffer far worse than what they had done to Zes.