It took a split second, but I was able to conjure up the same yellowish-white light I’d done before. All I had to do was think the same feelings I’d experienced earlier and poof. There they were, in the palms of my hands.
Ms. Hullen’s eyes shot open. She bent down to take a closer look at my hands and then took her clawed right hand and touched the very edge of my palm. The intensity of the energy ball sparked as her clawed hand came into contact with it. A slight shock rocked her and she pulled away.
“That’s amazing,” Ms. Hullen murmured. She caught herself staring at her clawed hand and immediately cleared her throat and straightened to her full height. She turned to face Jen, Hudson, and Vincent. I slowly moved my hands down to my sides and instantly the light dissipated.
“I think we should all head off to Herecerti’s office to discuss what’s happened here,” Ms. Hullen stated. She shepherded all of us out in front of her and then aimed us all in the direction of the stairwell.
While we walked, Vincent grabbed onto my hand. With his touch came the electrical pulse that attacked my stomach, heart, and ears all at once. I caught his reaction before he could hide it from me. He flinched slightly when he grabbed my hand and felt what I think was the same attack I had. He didn’t let go and neither did I.
“I’m sorry,” he whispered.
“You have nothing to be sorry for,” I whispered back.
“I should have been there with you. This wouldn’t have happened.”
“No, this was all me. There was no way you could’ve controlled it. It was definitely all me,” I answered, hoping he’d never find out exactly what had caused my energy outburst.
Once outside the office, the door opened before any of us could reach up and Celeste greeted us.
“He’s expecting you,” she said from behind her enormous desk.
The inner door opened instantly.
“It seems we’re going to have to keep closer tabs on you, Jacey,” Herecerti said. He got up and directed us to take the seats we’d left two hours earlier. Major déjà-vu, except this time Ms. Hullen was present and she stood in the back of the room.
Before any of us uttered a word, Herecerti spoke. “I’ve asked your Aunt and the Elders to meet us in Council chambers. I believe it’s time Jacey was introduced to ALL of her history. I don’t believe merely having her attend classes here and trying to introduce her slowly to her history and her kinships through those classes will or even can be accomplished in the time frame we need it to be. We all knew this day would come and we’ve prepared some for it, but it seems the Fates are letting us know time is an indulgence we simply do not have.”
As he finished, he swept his hand past the far right panel on his wall. Instantly, the beautiful forest which had been there earlier began to close in on itself. The greens, blues, and browns swirled into a pool. It reminded me of elementary school art class palettes where the paints all become mixed. The swirl continued until it manifested into a familiar looking castle. It took only a second for my brain to register it. The castle filling the pane was the same one in the background of the picture I’d seen in Celeste’s office, which had Mom, Dad, Aunt Grace, and the man I’d never met before in it.
The pane flowed like liquid for an instant and then it became solid, majestic, and fairy tale-ish. The castle stood in the middle of a field against the backdrop of a coral pink sky right there in Herecerti’s office.
Vincent came over to stand in front of me. “This is too soon. Have all the Council members agreed to this?” he asked, sounding nervous.
“All have, and all have agreed the three of you will accompany Jacey to Nemele.” Herecerti finished.
Jen and Hudson looked at one another and then at Vincent.
“But it’s too soon,” was all they had time say.
While the picture came into focus, a familiar burning sensation started in the palm of my right hand. I looked at it and my Seeker mark was blazing red.
“What’s happening?” I asked, feeling uneasy.
Before another word was spoken, Ms. Hullen gathered me up into her arms and shapeshifted while she ran into the mural. Following her was Herecerti, Jen, Hudson, and Vincent. The last thing I saw in Herecerti’s office were the Sentry Guard from this morning. Heathe was at the head of the procession, guiding us all through what I’d now figured out was a portal to the original St. Nemele.
CHAPTER NINETEEN
Realities
What happens when you realize
Everything you believed was true,
wasn’t…
While I watched everyone come through the mural, the world I’d left now appeared as a mural of its own. It was framed in the middle of an open field. After the last person passed through, it slowly closed in on itself. As it was about to vanish, a brilliant light flashed between the Sentry and the mural. A deep-rooted feeling of anxiety attacked my stomach. I turned my head into the feathered breast of Ms. Hullen and noticed for the first time Jen and Hudson were in their pure forms.
They were flowing red and blue in a circle pattern around Ms. Hullen and I. Vincent was in human form one minute and transparent the next, like the air. The only discernible way to keep track of him was his crystal blue eyes. They turned into brilliant floating blue gemstones when he was translucent. They led the way to an enormous castle ahead. Herecerti hadn’t changed forms at all, instead he’d grown to the size of Ms. Hullen.
Herecerti flanked her right side. He flew, arms outstretched in front of him, while his eyes, a brilliant color of purple, moved from side to side in lightning fast precision. I was amazed I hadn’t puked yet considering how fast we were flying. This form of transportation reminded me of the huge roller coaster ride Mom, Dad, Hudson, and I had visited last year just outside of Hewfawe. I don’t do so well on carnival rides, and let’s just say after riding that roller coaster, Hudson refused to go on anymore with me anytime in the future.
I pulled my head up and over Ms. Hullen’s shoulder and watched as the Sentry began to close ranks and form what looked like a wall behind us.
They were occupied with something—a bright light which had appeared before the mural closed in on itself. Before I was able to ask Ms. Hullen about the light, my parents appeared on either side of me. They were flying in sync with Ms. Hullen and Herecerti.
I was able to do what I’d been dong during their recent visits and stopped time and everyone in it. I looked for my parents and found them hand in hand, waiting for me at the entrance to the castle. I crawled out of Ms. Hullen’s arms and approached them.
“Mom, Dad. What’s going on? Where are we, and why is everyone so—so frantic?” I said in one breath.
“Jacey, you have shown what we have always believed would happen. It didn’t matter that your father and I gave up our immortality by turning our backs on Nemele and all of its powers. You have shown what we thought sixteen years ago was more than right. You are part of the Origin. The one which when it’s half is found, will show the Nemelites they haven’t fought in vain over the last hundred millennia.” Mom said as she and Dad encompassed me in their embrace.
“What are you talking about, the ‘Origin’ and all that other stuff? It’s me, Jacey. Remember, I’m the one you both chose to keep in the dark—the one who has absolutely no idea what you’re both talking about right now. The one you guys didn’t trust enough to tell any of this to,” I said. I know it wasn’t fair to say it to them now of all times, yet in another sense, I was past caring. I was hurt by being ostracized from those parts of my family. Hey, I’m a teenager… what’d they expect?
“Jacey, haven’t you figured anything out yet?” my father asked, flashing his parental ‘no attitude allowed’ face.
Mom put her hand on his chest before he could continue. “Hearte, she has every right to be confused and upset right now. She has no idea what we’ve done or even why we’ve done it.” She turned back to me.
“Jacey, here is where everything will be revealed to you. I only as
k you to keep an open mind to all the whys, whats and how comes. Your father and I will be present for everything. We came here now because we wanted to tell you a few things before anyone else does. We couldn’t let you discover everything without giving you the reasons behind the decisions we made so long ago. You already know we’re all Nemelites. Your father and I were the first of our family in over one hundred generations to turn our backs on Nemele. We did so because we believed it was the only way to keep you safe—” Mom stopped mid-sentence. She turned and looked at Dad, who was nodding in agreement.
“Can we finally be open and honest about everything?” I asked.
“Jacey, you were born here, in Nemele. We lived here for two years after your birth. We lived here among all of our family and friends. When you were born, we knew there was something special about you because you were born with your Awakening. Only one other in our history have ever been born with their Awakening. We knew we needed to do absolutely anything and everything to keep you safe.” Mom stopped to take a breath, and of course, I interrupted.
“So, if I’m getting this right, the Awakening which everyone else here has when it’s time has never happened to anyone else here at birth, I’m the only one. Well, me and one other?” I asked.
“Yes, you and one other are the only ones to have ever been born with their Awakening. In normal circumstances, we would have stayed in Nemele to protect you and the other. However, the Yietimpi found out about the two of you, and a huge battle ensued. The Yietimpi took the other one.” Mom stopped for a second and looked over my shoulder quickly. She continued with a worried expression on her face.
“There is so, so much I need to tell you. But time isn’t one of the luxuries I have right now. The main thing I wanted you to hear from us is our kind is immortal. If you live in or outside of Nemele and you practice and care for your gifts, you remain immortal. Out of need, your father and I turned our backs on Nemele and all of our teachings.” She paused briefly.
“Remember the attic at Grace’s? Remember the energy signature you released when you inadvertently used one of your gifts? Jen and Grace warned you about the Yietimpi being able to trace and locate you because of it. Since we needed to keep you safe and away from Nemele, we couldn’t use our gifts. We knew if we did, they would have been a huge beacon and it would have allowed anyone, good or bad, to find us.
“We knew then the power you possessed would always be too much for us to shield from the other like you and the Yietimpi. The combined energy signature the two of you had was how they found us in the first place—the powers which you and she shared were miraculous. We all imagined the possibilities. We all knew what could happen if the two of you were taught to harness your gifts properly. However, conversely we all knew the risks if they happened to be harnessed to serve evil purposes.
“To keep you and all other Nemelites safe, we left here and almost everyone and everything in it, except Grace. It wasn’t until Hudson’s Awakening and the direct effect we believed it had on the frequency of your dreams, that we decided it didn’t matter where we were, they would eventually find us. Those factors made us decide to return to Nemele. But we were too late. We were killed by a contingent of Yietimpi who found our energy signature. The only way a Nemelite, immortal or not, can die, is by the hand of a Yietimpi. The last Nemelites that were killed before your father and I was during the war I mentioned earlier. During that period there were many lost on both sides—” Mom’s eyes filled with tears and she looked at Dad. He picked up where she left off.
“Jacey, you may not ever truly understand or even agree with the decisions your mother and I made, however, we did it because we thought it would save you. To save you from having to ever face Nec—”
The mark in the palm of my hand started to burn again before Dad could finish. Instinctively, I turned around to look at everyone else who was ‘frozen’ in time and my stomach dropped to my feet. Flying over top of the Sentry was none other than the onyx-eyed girl.
“Jacey, run to Hullen—she will keep you safe,” Mom yelled as she and my father instantly turned into swirling kaleidoscopes of colors. The instant my concentration broke from my parents, everything moved in lightning speed. I hopped back into Ms. Hullen’s arms and everyone moved as though my time with Mom and Dad hadn’t happened.
As we were about to breach the opening of the castle, we were all brought to a screeching stop by a noise from its roof, which was louder than anything I’d ever heard before in my entire life. I looked up, and standing there was a wall of beings. The one responsible for the screech was a woman standing in front of all the others on a turret.
Her physical appearance set her apart from the rest. She was very petite in stature, but by no means a person you’d walk by without taking notice. Her skin was bone white and her eyes were a piercing color of green. Her facial features were sharp to the point of breathtaking. However, her most overpowering feature—other than her screech, of course, was her hair. It was jet black and flowed out all around her, giving the illusion it grew with every noise that came from her. It continually flowed around her heels and spread around her like a shield of sorts. In that instant, I realized I was staring at a Morrigan—a goddess of war and sex—holy freaking crap.
Once she stopped screeching, I was able to look away and take everyone else in. The Sentry and the onyx-eyed girl, a. k. a. stalker, had also been affected and stopped dead in their tracks.
There was no doubt in my mind the entire Sentry had given chase to the onyx-eyed girl prior to the Morrigan’s call. It was, however, quite stunning to see them all stopped, still crouched in attack posture, ready to move if need be in a split second. More astounding was to see the only person who didn’t seem effected by the call moving—imagine who—of course my stalker. I was at my wit’s end. I’d had enough. I was going to take care of this and take care of it now. I decided to literally go and jump this girl myself. Before I could react, the Morrigan spoke—the power and authority in her voice was unmistakable.
“Take notice, I would be first to see a war and what needs to become of it, but only when the warring parties are, in fact, a threat to one another. I call a halt to everyone—Seeker, you are included in that order.”
I turned to look at the girl who’d been following me since I’d come to Nemele. She stopped and peered up toward the beings on the roof of the castle. A loud unified gasp came from nearly everyone.
Jen, Hudson, and Vincent had all taken on their human forms. I looked around, trying to figure out what the big deal was with the gasp and all. I was staring at the onyx-eyed girl, not floating in the meadow anymore, but on her knees, peering up at the castle with completely whited-out eyes. The onyx eyes I’d become familiar with were now opaque white—what the?
“Seeker, you have chosen blindness for a reason, I am sure,” the Morrigan called out.
The Seeker didn’t respond. She stayed on her knees with her face pointing upward. Everyone held their collective breaths as I took it upon myself to move closer. Vincent grabbed my arm and pulled me into his chest. This, of course, left me silent for only a second before I found my voice, and when I did, I looked into his eyes and said, “I need to do this.” He was hesitant at first and then let go of my arm.
I walked over to the Seeker and held out the hand she’d marked. I did so in a helpful gesture. She peered at me with empty eyes.
“Jacey, I come for you…” was all she had the chance to say.
We were surrounded by the Sentry. While they tried to remove me from the equation, I felt a familiar surge of power collect within my palms. I held both of my hands out in front of me and in a flash of light, the Seeker and I were transported to the dimension I’d shared before only with my parents and Eve.
“How did you know?” the Seeker asked, seemingly caught off guard.
“How did I know what?” I asked.
“How did you know to stop everyone and trust in me enough to bring me here?”
“I didn’t
. I just knew you weren’t going to hurt me or anyone else here. I also wanted to talk to you and find out why you’ve been following me—why you’re here and why all this has happened,” I said, amazed I was able to bring both of us into this dimension without any kind of help from anyone else.
“We cannot stay here long.” she said, looking at me with very much restored black eyes. “They’ll be able to sense us here, we can’t stay here.” It was her turn to look scared. “You need to know I have risked everything to bring you a message. A message I cannot reveal here. Turn this off!” she yelled.
I stopped the surge of power which had been coming from me and we were thrown back into the middle of the field where we’d been prior to my little ‘beam me up Scotty’ routine.
The second we were back in Nemele, her eyes reverted to opaque white and she fell to her knees in front of me.
When the Sentry tried to move in again, I threw myself in front of her. In doing so, I found myself looking up at some very infuriated beings, Heathe no exception.
“Move out of the way now, Jacey,” he ordered.
“No,” I yelled back, surprised I was able to talk considering my stomach felt like everything had moved up into my throat.
“She’s here for me and not in a bad way. She has a message for all of us. Can’t you see she’s no threat to you, me, or anyone else, for that matter? For God’s sake, she’s blinded herself so she could be here,” I said, knowing beyond a shadow of a doubt what I’d said was true.
“You have no idea how these Seekers can manipulate and place thoughts in your mind. You’re not the one who’s going to make a decision for this Seeker. She’s coming with us,” Heathe concluded. My roller coaster episode reared its ugly head again and I felt there was nothing I was going to be able to do to stop any of this. As Heathe was about to move me out of the way, Ms. Hullen jumped in between the two of us.
“Heathe, you need to stop right now. You’re not the one to make this decision.”
Awakenings (Elemental Series - Book 1) Page 25
