by Megg Jensen
She wiggled her fingers, then held her hand steady. She leaned in closer and we all followed until our heads were touching. I gasped as I realized she was amplifying whatever secret conversation was taking place ahead of us.
“I had to. We couldn’t get in the cottage without me using my gift.”
“That’s no excuse. You should have come up with another way. You were told not to reveal yourself for any reason.”
Alia and Reese. My heart broke. He’d been so kind and trustworthy. I hadn’t suspected he would be a part of this.
“I was told to get Reychel in the cottage and I did. She didn’t suspect anything. She thinks I’m Serenian. There’s no way she can know what, or who, I am.”
Krissin looked up at me, her face twisted in frustration. Of course. She’d been working with Reese for years. She’d trusted him since she was a young girl.
“You are supposed to follow my orders,” he insisted.
“I don’t follow your orders. She told me what to do and I did it. If you have a problem with it, go home and whine to your wife.”
I looked at Krissin and saw a small tear creep out of her eye. Since her own mother had died, she’d always looked to Hanne for advice. She was losing everyone who’d meant anything to her in a few stolen moments. I reached over and put my hand on her shoulder, but she shrugged it off.
“I don’t want you serving Reychel anymore,” Reese continued. “We’ve only got a couple more days before everything blows to hell. Nothing can be spoiled before that moment, especially at the hands of an irresponsible slave.”
“I am not a slave, not yours, not anyone’s,” Alia hissed. “Don’t forget who you serve and why. The Malborn will rise above these little Serenian misfits. We will see to that. And I will stop serving Reychel. Not because you tell me, but because it is the best course of action.”
“You’re an insolent child. You never should have been told what you were,” Reese said.
Mark looked at me, a question in his eyes. I shrugged my shoulders. I had no idea what they were talking about either.
“We’re done here,” Reese said. “Keep out of trouble. Can you do that for two days? If you can’t, both of our heads will roll.”
Krissin clamped her hand together, shutting off the conversation we’d been eavesdropping in. Ace waved us back the way we’d come. We needed to get out of the abandoned hall before either Alia or Reese found us, but we stumbled through the darkness. It was too risky for Krissin to light up the orb again with her gift.
Mark opened the heavy door and motioned the three of us to follow him. No one was in the main hallway. Our secret was safe and we’d discovered more about Alia’s secret. We didn’t have anything solid, but now we knew Reese and Hanne were involved. It would be easier to track down more information now that we knew where to look for it.
The four of us walked, casually as if we had a reason to be out walking around the palace, back to my chambers. Once the door shut, I let down my guard. I sank into the chair by the window and shook my head.
“What is she?” I asked. “Reese made it sound like Alia was different than everyone else. Like she’s something special. We know she has the gift, but we also know her eyes don’t sparkle like ours do.”
“Speak for yourself, Prophet,” Ace said, rolling his eyes. “Mark and I aren’t anything like you sparkly magical oddballs. We’re normal men, built for fighting and war.”
“Actually,” Mark said hesitantly, “I’m gifted too.”
“What?” Ace yelled. “Since when?”
“Since always. I am able to shield it from people. Maybe Alia’s able to do the same thing.”
Krissin sashayed over to Mark, grabbed his chin and forced him to look down at her. “Hide your spark,” she commanded.
They stared at each other. Neither Ace nor I wanted to get in between them.
“I said, hide it!” Krissin said.
“I am,” Mark said. I walked over and looked in his eyes.
“I don’t see it,” I said.
“Why does that not surprise me?” Krissin asked. “I see it. Quite clearly, in fact. I don’t know why I never noticed it before.”
“Am I the only one glad to hear that Krissin hasn’t been staring into Mark’s eyes?” Ace asked. We ignored him. She shouldn’t have been able to see his spark. No one had ever seen it unless Mark wanted them to. Not me, not Johna, not Nemison.
I looked at Krissin as she stumbled backwards, away from Mark’s gaze. Ace reached out and caught her before she fell to the floor. She sank into his embrace, hiding her face in her hands. A sob escaped her mouth and tears flowed through her clenched fingers.
“Are you okay?” I reached out and put my hand on Krissin’s arm.
Her hands flew off her face, knocking me away.
“Don’t touch me!” she shrieked. “Don’t ever touch me while I’m using my gift!”
I drew away. “I didn’t know. I’m so sorry.”
Krissin wrenched out of Ace’s arms and stalked towards me. “You’ve never taken more than a moment to think about anyone but yourself. Remember how you got sick when your gift activated the other day? Imagine that multiplied by a thousand. Imagine knowing that once you started using your gift you couldn’t stop without hurting someone, without killing them.”
I backed up, stumbling over a nearby chair. I righted myself, but Krissin didn’t stop advancing towards me. Her shoulders hunched over and the spark in her eyes nearly exploded in a bright light. I’d never seen anything so brilliant, so frightening.
“You think a little prophecy is interesting, Reychel? You may be powerful, but my gift would cause men to soil themselves if they knew.”
“What is it?” I whispered, afraid to speak much louder. I backed into the wall and shrank against it.
With nowhere else to turn I was helpless as Krissin leaned in and whispered in my ear, “Pray to Eloh you never find out.”
Ace cleared his throat, but he didn’t make a move towards us. I looked at Mark over Krissin’s shoulder, but he didn’t even flinch. Nemison told me to trust her, but at the moment I wasn’t sure I could. If she would act like a normal person, I might feel differently. But these theatrics were wearing thin.
I placed my hands on Krissin’s shoulders and looked her in the eye. “I’m not afraid of you. I’m not afraid of your gift.”
The muscles in her face relaxed and her eyes softened. The pulsing light of her spark reduced to a barely visible twinkle. Under my hands, I felt her shoulders droop.
She backed away from me, shaking her head. Her curls bounced around her shoulders, falling in a cascade down her back. She looked up at me, her green eyes filled with rage.
“I’m going to bed now. I suggest all of you do the same. We’ll talk more tomorrow morning.”
Krissin spun on her toes and ran out my door, her robe swaying behind her. Ace shrugged and ran after her, leaving Mark and I alone. He held out his arms and I ran into them. Warmth spread throughout my body as he rubbed my back. I nuzzled my face into his shoulder, wanting to erase everything I’d just seen and heard.
“What do you think her gift is?” I asked Mark. “If it really is as horrible as she says, maybe that explains why she’s always so defensive. Can you imagine living with something so horrible, so fearful?”
He rested his chin on the top of my head and squeezed me tight. Then he pulled back.
“I can’t even begin to guess, but if she doesn’t want to tell us, there’s not a lot we can do to understand her better. Nemison told us to trust her. We have to, no matter what might be lurking inside.”
He was right; he always was. If Krissin would only let her guard down, even for a moment, maybe we could learn to trust each other. My gift was a heavy weight I’d borne for the last year. I couldn’t imagine living my whole life knowing I had a gift so terrible I couldn’t even share it with my friends. I sank back into his arms.
“Do you want me to stay tonight?” Mark whispered in my ear.
I felt his lips tickle my earlobe, shooting off a shiver that sped to my toes. “I don’t want to leave you alone like this.”
I wanted to scream yes, but I didn’t. Instead I surrendered to a kiss. I knew what I wanted, what he wanted, but it wasn’t the right time. We weren’t free yet. Too much anxiety dripped over us. The unknown of the future drove a wedge so hard between reality and the life we wanted. I didn’t want stolen moments, I craved normalcy.
Pulling out of the kiss, I shook my head. Mark groaned, pecked me one last time on the cheek, and left.
Chapter Nineteen
The next morning a new slave brought my breakfast to me. There was no mention of Alia and I didn’t ask for her. Taking the tray of food to my table, I settled down for a quiet breakfast before I had to go back to worrying about the portals. I had to find out which portal to enter. I needed answers.
I hadn’t slept much, if at all, during the night. Instead I lay still in the darkness while my mind wandered through all of my problems: Alia’s betrayal and Zelor’s mystery. Stupid me. I had honestly believed that once I left to study with Nemison my life would be much simpler. I hadn’t counted on being thrown in the midst of a brewing war.
I’d clutched my blankets, tucking them around my legs like a cocoon. I’d dressed already and although warmth of the Southern Kingdom was legendary, I’d never heard how chilly the mornings could be. But breakfast didn’t keep the thoughts away and only reminded me I was alone. I’d turned Mark away and I wondered if maybe that was the biggest mistake I’d made in the last couple of weeks.
Before I could take a second bite of the orange I’d peeled, my door flew open. I knew I was here and safe out of the Krissin’s good graces, but I wished she would knock before barging in my room. Mark followed close behind her.
“Where’s Ace?” I asked.
“Sleeping,” Krissin said. “He had a long night.”
“Longer than the rest of us?” I asked. Mark coughed and looked back at Krissin. I decided not to ask any more questions about how late they’d been up.
“We need to talk,” she said. Unlike the dark circles under my eyes, Krissin’s face was fresh and beautiful, as always. “Tomorrow is the day we announce our intentions. Do you know what you’re going to say?”
“I haven’t figured out how to use my gift yet,” I reminded her. “I have to find those answers before I can deliver your precious prophecy.”
“The answers to your stupid questions?” Krissin asked. “You don’t need them. Look how many people you’ve convinced that you are The Prophet. You don’t need an old book written by Zelor to give you answers. You have them all within your grasp. And if you can’t come up with them, I’m sure we can make something up.”
“Krissin!” I set the orange down; convinced I wouldn’t get another bite in as long as she was here. “I won’t lie. I’ll be honest or I won’t say anything!”
She shrugged her shoulders. “We need to move and soon. Tomorrow, Reychel. That’s it. The plan rolls out whether or not you’re ready.”
“But Nemison said we should work together.”
“I know he did. I heard him as well as you did. So work with me, Reychel. Stop fighting me. Stop being so righteous all the time.” Krissin moved towards the door, then spun around to face me. “What is more important right now? You figuring out how to use your visions or just being a figurehead of hope for our people?”
She was right. Maybe it was time for me to worry more about everyone else. I could do nothing to stop Krissin’s plans.
“Is she right?” I asked Mark. “Should I just stand up there and tell everyone to surrender even though I haven’t had a vision that confirms it?”
Mark walked to the window. I joined him, my head resting on the edge of his shoulder. We looked out at the quiet town, coming to life in the early morning. People tended to their animals, children drew water from the wells, and street vendors set up their stalls, preparing to hawk their wares for the day. The bloody vision I’d had only days ago lingered in the back of my mind.
How could I presume to impact their fates all because of a stupid prophecy that seemed to focus on me? But if I encouraged them, if I gave them the belief and the hope they were looking for then just maybe their lives would be a little easier. Maybe the Malborn would be willing to go home peacefully. Maybe a vision of hope was better than nothing at all.
I sighed as Mark drew circles on my back with his hand.
“Can you lie,” he asked, “to that many people? Can you do it and live with yourself?”
“I don’t know.”
“I don’t have time for this.” Krissin tugged on Mark’s sleeve. “You’re leaving with me. You and Ace need to make some plans.”
Mark shrugged, reached over, and kissed me on the cheek. “I’ll see you later. I’ll come back.”
I nodded, letting my fingertips run down his arm as he walked away. As soon as they closed the door I forgot about my breakfast and ran to the middle of my room. Holding my hands in the air, I closed my eyes and felt the air with my fingertips.
There it was, the tiny invisible thread I’d left hanging from the portal Mark had opened to return us here yesterday. I grasped it with my fingertips and tugged gently. The portal reopened, shimmering in the morning light. I’d read the portals book a week ago, but when I’d failed to open any portals on my own I put the book back on the shelf. The only useful piece of information I’d found was creating a portal string. At least that worked for me.
I glanced around the room to make sure no one was peeking in my door. Slaves had the oddest habit of being able to be quiet as a mouse and slip in and out of rooms unnoticed. I’d never acquired the skill since my duties were limited to the kitchen or serving Kandek in his quarters. I pulled a wig out of the wardrobe and positioned it on my head.
I stepped into the portal, glad that I no longer felt that punch to my stomach, and into the cave surrounded by the seven gateways.
I knew which one to enter. At least I believed I did. After reading the first prophet’s journals and piecing together the clues, I thought I had the right portal. I hoped I’d be back before anyone came to check on me. If I could slip through the right portal and grab The Book of Secrets, I’d only be gone minutes.
If I misunderstood his ramblings and stepped into the wrong portal then I’d be gone forever.
Hands shaking, I closed my original portal, leaving the invisible string hanging in the air. I’d still be able to get home and if anyone came into my room, they wouldn’t see the portal.
Taking a deep breath, I counted the seven portals, starting on the right.
“One, two, three, back one to two, forward three to five. Up one, down two to four. Up three to seven. Down to five. Step in and hope I’m still alive.”
I’d memorized the chant over the last two weeks. It appeared randomly in each of his journals, scribbled in margins, written backwards on the inside of a cover, or one word written on the top of each page. He didn’t want to forget it and neither did I.
I walked in front of the fifth portal. It shimmered like the rest, but didn’t give any indication of what lay beyond. I clenched my fists. I was afraid, but I stepped through anyway.
I emerged in a room with no windows and no doors. The walls were filled with bookcases. A red damask chair sat in the corner. I was amazed at the amount of light in a room with no windows. Candles burned, not flickering, in an unnatural haze. Had they always been burning or if had they come to life when I entered? I shook my head at the wonder of it. There wasn’t a speck of dust in sight. How did this room maintain itself?
I gazed at the bookcases, filled with tomes, but I was only looking for one book. A desk sat in the middle of the room. A book laid open on top it, with a feather pen lying across the pages. A bottle of ink and a bowl of sand sat on the desk on the upper right corner of the book. It looked as though someone had left in the middle of writing. How long had all this been sitting here? Did the first prophet leave this here
for me to find?
I walked over to the desk and looked over at the book. Though it was upside-down, I could read plainly the large words.
Sit down and read this book from the beginning. You can’t take it out of the room, I’ve made sure of that. You must read it here.
I gasped. I didn’t have time. If someone discovered I was missing, they’d search for the portal and find me. I went back to reading.
Time moves differently in this room. Just sit, read, relax. You will have the answers soon enough.
I ran my fingers across the lettering, wondering how he knew or how he would know or did know. I didn’t understand. Under my fingertips I felt the ink slip and smear on to my fingers. It was still wet. I looked around but didn’t see anyone else in the room. Who had written this and was it so recent that the ink was wet? There was no sand sprinkled on the page to set the ink either.
My heart pounded and my hands shook. I’d come alone, but maybe I shouldn’t have. Yet I knew deep in my heart this was my puzzle to solve. I walked to the other side of the desk and sat down. Tucking my feet under my legs, I rubbed my naked head and turned to the first page of the book.
I’m glad you’re here, Reychel.
I glanced up and looked around the room again. My arm prickled with goose bumps and I shivered. He knew. I knew he knew about me. That much had been certain based on my gift, but to know my name?
I am not trying to scare you. I am only trying to convince you that, yes, you are the Prophet. My successor. My descendent. You are of my line. Your mother’s side, not your father’s side. If I could kill that bastard for what he will do, what he did, to your mother, I would. But by then I will be gone and you will be the product of his greed.
I saw you first about a year ago. You appeared to me and I assumed you were another product of my gift, just another slave girl going about her boring duties. My gift began to spiral out of control as I aged. Unable to control it, I saw anything and everything the moment clouds came into my view. It drove me mad, until you began appearing with regularity and I learned that you were not of my time, but you were my destiny.
