by Kristen Pham
“Did you know her well?”
“We teamed up many times to track down and fight the Fractus. She saved my life more than once, and I hers. We were friends.”
“What happened to her?”
“She fell in love with one of the Fractus. He swore to her that he would change, give up all contact with the Fractus, but in the end it would have been better if they had never met,” Gideon said, and Valerie could hear the anger in his voice.
She hadn’t even noticed Cam’s quiet approach until an image flashed in her mind. A woman with long, dark hair was passionately kissing a man with stormy eyes – Oberon?
“Adelita was Oberon’s love? She was the one who convinced him to work for the good guys instead of the Fractus?” Valerie asked, shocked.
Gideon gave Cam a stern, knowing look. “It is beneath my honor to gossip.”
She knew she should back off, but she had to ask, “What happened to Adelita?”
“Being with – that man – made her even more of a target to the Fractus than she was before. She knew too much, so they killed her,” Gideon said, his anger becoming mixed with sadness.
It was horrifying to learn that the last owner of Pathos had died so brutally. Seeing the look on Gideon’s face, she didn’t dare to ask any more questions about Adelita. After a long moment, his usual calm returned.
“Now a question for you – where did you find the Edge of Pathos?”
“It was in the launch chamber on Earth, embedded in the floor. It sounds weird, but I felt like it was waiting for me.”
“That’s not strange – sometimes weapons recognize their new owners. But I do wonder why she put such a beautiful sword on Earth. Of course, if anyone would know how to send an object to Earth, it would be Adelita. She was one of three Grand Masters of the Contego, so those secrets must have been known to her. But why? What could it mean?”
She left him to ponder those questions while she practiced with Pathos and her magic, aware that she wouldn’t be able to use either once they reached Messina.
When they were a mile or two away from the shore, Valerie eagerly strained her eyes for her first glimpse of land, trying to imagine what wonders would be in store for her in this corner of the Globe. But as the boat drew closer, she was slightly disappointed to see that Messina looked remarkably similar to any major city in America, filled with cars, people, and lots of skyscrapers.
They docked the boat on a wooden pier, and she stepped onto dry land with a twinge of regret. The past two days had been the most peaceful in her entire life. She had a feeling that it would be a long time before she had a chance to relax like that again.
At the end of the dock, crowds of people rushed past, buying things from the colorful vendors’ stalls and hurrying to their next destination. She was surprised how vulnerable she felt without the endless sea surrounding her, protecting her from attack. What if Sanguina was lurking somewhere in that bustling mob, watching and waiting for a chance to snatch her away from her guardians? Valerie took a deep steadying breath, reigning in her fear and telling herself to focus on impressing Cyrus’ family rather than the possibility of another encounter Sanguina, who was probably halfway around the world right now.
“Cyrus,” summoned a tall man in a gray suit.
“That’s your dad?” Kanti asked. Cyrus nodded.
Curious, Valerie took a closer look at him as he stepped out of the throng of people at the dock. He looked much like Cyrus, except his blond hair was very trim and neat, just like everything else about him, and his cold blue eyes didn’t sparkle with humor the way Cyrus’ did. He approached Cyrus and patted him stiffly on the shoulder, as if he were a mere acquaintance rather than his only son.
“Hello, father,” Cyrus said solemnly. “Please allow me to introduce Valerie, Kanti, Gideon, Cam and Chrome.”
Gideon bowed deeply. “Many thanks for hosting us during our stay in Messina.” His voice carried a power in it that made everyone standing near him on the dock stare in awe. But instead of being impressed, Cyrus’ father looked uncomfortable with the attention he was drawing to them.
“Thank you for your hospitality, sir,” Kanti added.
“You may call me Mr. Burns, young lady,” he said imperiously.
“I’m so happy to meet you, Mr. Burns,” Valerie said softly, intimidated by his tone.
But Cyrus’ father looked at them with mistrust, talking only to his son, as if the rest of them didn’t exist. “I trust you have explained to these Conjurors the rules of this island.”
“Yes, of course. We just need a place to sleep. You’ll barely know we’re here,” Cyrus said. Valerie could hear a thick chord of tension in his voice.
“Mr. Burns, we will always be near, but you won’t see Cam, Chrome, or myself for the rest of our stay here,” Gideon said, still respectful, but with a chilly condescension of his own laced into his words. Then he turned to Valerie. “We will scout the area for any magical activity or potential threats. One of us will always keep you in sight, watching for any trouble. Farewell, for now.”
Without another word, Gideon and the wolves disappeared into the crowd. Valerie was sorry to see him leave, but she felt comforted by the knowledge that her guardians would always be watching over her, protecting her from another attack.
Mr. Burn’s voice interrupted Valerie’s thoughts as he said to Cyrus, “Your mother will be relieved that it’s only the three of you who need lodging.”
Cyrus’ father led them to a dark blue car that was different from any that Valerie had seen on Earth. It had sharp, crisp edges rather than the fluid lines of the cars that she was familiar with, and apparently ran on energy captured by metallic panels on the roof that she assumed worked like solar panels.
It was a silent trip to Cyrus’ house, despite the fact that Kanti and Valerie each made a few attempts at small talk. Their questions were met with one-word answers from Mr. Burns, so they gave up and stared out the windows at the city. Kanti looked fascinated by everything she saw, and Valerie had to smile, wondering if that was what she herself looked like when Cyrus and Azra first showed her around Arden.
After a half-hour drive, the tall buildings gave way to rows of identical houses. Apparently suburbia wasn’t only an Earth invention. Mr. Burns pulled into one of the plain, concrete driveways, and Valerie was surprised that she felt nervous about meeting Cyrus’ mother and sister. Would they be as unfriendly as his father?
Before they went inside, Cyrus pointed at a spot in the distance. “That’s the lighthouse where my dad works. I’ll take you there tomorrow. It’s pretty cool. When the sea’s rough, the water splashes halfway up the tower.” She squinted and could see the tall lighthouse standing among the rocks at the edge of the ocean. The light at the top shone so brightly that it stood out like a star, even in the middle of the day.
“Who wants to see the lighthouse when there’s a world-renown science museum to check out?” Kanti asked eagerly.
“Fine, we can do both. Any excuse to get us out of here early,” Cyrus replied.
“Enough dawdling. Your mother made dinner, and I don’t want to eat it cold,” Mr. Burns said impatiently.
Inside the house, everything was in meticulous order. There wasn’t a speck of dust or an item out of place. The walls were painted white, and there was something almost clinical about the extreme order in the house. Valerie was distracted from her observation by a delicious, familiar smell. She turned to Cyrus, delighted. “Is that roast turkey? I didn’t think I’d ever get to eat turkey again!”
“Sheesh, if I’d known you’d get this excited over turkey, I would have brought you here ages ago. Sometimes you’re ridiculously easy to please, Val,” Cyrus said, the anxiety leaving his voice for the first time since he’d seen his father.
A short woman with long red hair appeared. “Welcome home dear,” she said, giving Cyrus a light hug and kiss on his cheek.
“Missed you, mother.”
“You must be Valerie and Kanti
. You’re exactly as Cyrus described you,” she said with a smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes.
Valerie wondered how parents and children could be so different. Cyrus was so warm and full of life – the exact opposite of his parents. Maybe they were friendlier when they didn’t have the burden of two extra guests to feed.
“Thanks for having us, Mrs. Burns,” Valerie said.
“Yes, it is a pleasure to meet you,” Kanti added.
“Where are the rest of the guests?” Mrs. Burns inquired.
“The other three are fending for themselves. It turns out that we won’t have to deal with them at all. Is dinner ready?” Mr. Burns asked.
“Yes, dear, Cara’s finishing the gravy. Why don’t you all sit down?”
Cyrus’ mother disappeared into the kitchen as they all sat down at the table. Valerie could hear her arguing with a girl she assumed must be Cara in the other room.
“I can’t believe you’re letting her in the house! She’s the reason Cy left and never came back!” the girl said passionately.
“Keep your voice down! Don’t embarrass us. Azra asked us to do this. We can’t very well turn her down, now, can we? Mind your manners.”
Valerie was shocked. Were they talking about her? Was she the reason Cyrus hadn’t come home? At that moment, Cara and her mother burst out of the kitchen, their hands full of plates piled with traditional American Thanksgiving food.
Cara had red hair, like her mother, and Cyrus’ blue eyes. She looked like she was only a year or two younger than Cyrus. Cara shoved a plate in front of Valerie, spilling some of its contents onto the table.
“You must be Cara. I’m Valerie. I’ve been really excited to meet you – Cyrus has told me a lot about you,” Valerie said, smiling tentatively.
Cara snorted. “I’m sure he barely mentions us. But we know plenty about you; you’re all he talks about.”
Cyrus turned bright red. “Enough, Cara! Nice to see you too.”
“Sure, whatever, big bro. Bet you’re overjoyed at a chance for a family reunion.”
“Children, I’ll thank you to be quiet and eat your food,” Mr. Burns glowered.
For several minutes, everyone chewed quietly. It was the most awkward meal of Valerie’s life, and she hoped that it would be over soon.
“This is delicious, Mrs. Burns. I’ve really missed traditional Earth food,” Valerie said.
“Thank you.”
More silence. Kanti and Valerie exchanged glances, and Kanti nodded, acknowledging that it was her turn to try to dispel the awkwardness with a safe subject. “So, Cara, is it true that the science programs in the schools here rock?”
Cara stared back at Kanti, clearly trying to figure out what to make of the weird-looking girl wearing a Ludicrous t-shirt. Cyrus’ mother gave her a nudge, and Cara rolled her eyes and replied, “We’re studying life science right now. It’s kind of cool.”
Kanti was genuinely interested. “There isn’t even a class offered at my guild on life science – not enough students interested to form a class. What kinds of things do you get to do?”
“We watched caterpillars grow into butterflies and released them at a park last week. It was beautiful,” Cara replied, warming to the subject.
Kanti’s eyes were wide. “Wow, that sounds better than magic.”
“That’s the kind of thing you’re missing out on, Cyrus,” his mother said softly.
“Don’t start, mother, please.”
“Don’t take that tone with me,” she replied sharply, but then the harsh expression on her face relaxed into concern as she examined his face. “You look exhausted. You haven’t been getting in to fights again, have you?”
“That fight wasn’t his fault, Mrs. Burns, I swear,” Kanti said. Cyrus shot her a look, and Kanti immediately turned back to her food, realizing that she had opened a can of worms.
“So there was a fight. I knew it. You really have turned your back on everything we stand for,” Cyrus’ father reprimanded.
“I get it! You’re ashamed of me. Do you have to remind me every time I come home?” Cyrus shouted, upsetting the gravy in his angry rush to leave the table. Then he stormed out the front door, slamming it behind him. Valerie started to get up to follow him.
“You’ll finish your dinner, young lady. My house, my rules. Then bed. I don’t want either of you causing any trouble and making the neighbors talk any more than they already are.” Mr. Burn’s tone didn’t leave any room for arguing.
They ate the rest of their food in silence. After dinner, Mrs. Burns showed Valerie and Kanti a small room with two twin beds, and they quietly changed and turned out the light. Kanti fell asleep in moments, but Valerie lay awake, waiting to hear Cyrus come back. Minutes passed, but he didn’t return. What if someone had followed them from Arden after all, and Cyrus was in danger?
Quietly, Valerie slipped out of bed and crept out of the house. Outside, the stars were harder to see than when they were in Arden because of the lights in the city. But in the distance, the lighthouse glowed brightly, a beacon in the night. Cyrus had to be there. But she couldn’t leave – hadn’t she learned that the hard way when she had disappeared without telling Dulcea? So she softly called “Gideon?”
“The island is free of magic,” Gideon’s voice came quietly out of the darkness. “You’re safe.”
“Cyrus ran off during dinner. I have to find him. What if he’s hurt?”
“Chrome followed Cyrus when he left. If anything had happened to them, I would know.”
She felt relieved. “Is it okay if I bring him back? I’d feel safer if we were all together.”
“I will accompany you. Cam will stay with Kanti.”
“Thank you.”
She hurried down the street, using the bright light from the lighthouse as a guide. It was farther than she had guessed, and an hour passed before she and Gideon reached it. Chrome was noiselessly circling the base of the lighthouse in the dark. When he saw them, he gave a quick nod, indicating that everything in the area was safe. Chrome sent her an image of Cyrus huddled at the top of the lighthouse, and she knew that her guess as to where he was hiding was right. As she approached the door at the base of the lighthouse, Gideon joined Chrome in scouting the area in order to give Valerie and Cyrus some privacy.
The door was slightly open, and Valerie went inside, looking around cautiously. There was a small kitchen and a few sofas inside. It looked cozy, and much more welcoming than the Burns’ house. A set of stairs spiraled to the top of the lighthouse. She hurried up the stairs, and sure enough, standing at the top, staring out at the ocean, was Cyrus.
“You found me,” he said, turning around. His eyes looked slightly red and swollen, but she knew better than to ask if he’d been crying.
“It’s nice up here, away from the rest of the world. So this is where you discovered your power for the first time, huh?” Valerie asked, still breathless from her climb.
“Yeah, the best and worst day of my life.”
“What do you mean?”
“Discovering my power made a whole new world of possibilities open up before me. I felt like I could do anything. But it was also the first time my parents seemed really disappointed in me. Obviously, it wasn’t the last time. You know, if I stayed in Messina, I’d probably follow in my dad’s footsteps and take over maintaining this lighthouse. But as much as I love it here, I’d suffocate if I could never use my power. My parents don’t understand. They think using my power is turning me into some kind of gangster. Magic equals violence, to them. They don’t understand the beauty of using their powers and feeling magic rush through them.”
“The last thing you could ever be is violent.”
“I know that, most days. But sometimes, when my dad looks at me as if I’m a disgusting thing instead of his son, I worry that he’s right. Maybe someday my magic will warp me into a power-hungry villain, like he thinks it will.”
“But lots of people with powers don’t abuse them. Look at
Azra, or Cam and Chrome.”
“I guess.”
“And your sister, she feels this way too?”
Cyrus shook his head sadly. “No, I think she’s mad at me because after I left, my parents started keeping tight control over every aspect of her life. They’re afraid she’ll run away and turn out like me.”
“I think she misses you.”
“I miss her too. But my parents never let her visit me, and I dread coming home because every time I do, it’s always more fighting. I’m so sorry that you and Kanti have to deal with this, Val. So, so sorry.”
She heard footsteps coming up the stairs, and a moment later Kanti’s head popped into view. “So your parents are tools. Join the club. Don’t feel bad about it. Hopefully they’ll come around and understand you’re being who you are. But even if they don’t, they love you, in their own bizarre way. At least, that’s what I tell myself about my parents.”
“She’s right. Your parents wouldn’t be so mad if they didn’t care. They’re not perfect, but at least they’re yours,” Valerie said. Cyrus’ parents were angry because he had left them to see the world. That means they loved him enough to want him around. They might be angry, but they hadn’t abandoned him.
“I say, let’s take Cara and ditch your parents tomorrow. We’ll check out the museum and you guys can show us the sights,” Kanti suggested.
“Yeah, what do ya think, Cy?”
“Let’s do it.”
Chapter Seventeen
Valerie, Cyrus and Kanti managed to sneak back to the house that night without waking Cyrus’ parents, so luckily no one got in any real trouble. It was a quiet breakfast the next morning because no one knew what to say after the blow up the night before. Valerie caught Cyrus’ mother shooting him a worried glance. She did care about him, Valerie realized. She probably didn’t know how to deal with a son who was different.
