by Janeen Abdo
“No we need water first to heal the Earth; the Fates know how to find her.” Stopping in my tracks, “Why should it be Seraphina?”
“Seraphina always took your side; she was the one you are closest. I thought you would remember and want to find her first.”
“I remember but believe we need water first.”
Wyatt keeps looking at me funny as if he does not trust what I say; I am not sure what he is thinking but evidently finding Adrianna wasn’t it.
“I understand we need water to heal the Earth, but Seraphina can teach you how to communicate with Adrianna. Why must we seek the Fates? They will twist and manipulate words, not to mention they are in Eloria. That is dangerous territories not only are the elves angry the Elementals allowed the Earth to be destroyed. The lost souls are looking for you, they will find us if we travel to Eloria. What did the Faye Queen show you? It couldn’t have been to the Fates, she hates them, blames them for the hardship of her people.”
“She did not say to find the Fates. Her visions showed me Sera protecting me. Then I find a desolate land where the Earth is near death and the land has turned to rock and it split, just shallow split. I bent over this and my tears from the pain of the Earth fell into the split and the stream of sorrows is born. Adrianna is the hope to heal the Earth. The Fates control these paths; they carve the roads we follow. Only our choices make our destiny difficult, the Fates do not cause the stress they weave the roads and crossroads. Her blame is petty.”
“Was I in these visions, from this journey, I believe the Fates do more than weave the roads. They manipulate our wants and needs so we are unable to tell them apart,” Wyatt cautious in his words. He remembered the words of Adara and separate feelings from duty came to his mind.
I moved closer to Wyatt, it is obvious he is torn in thought. My heart speeds in pace, I should step back from him. I am not sure why I am so drawn into looking in his eyes and wanting to feel his touch. Even just as his hand brushes past mine. I step back before I speak in fear I will show my true thoughts of him. “You are beside me in every scene, you protect me, and you never leave my side. I am not sure why, I am trying to figure out this crime we committed. You said they do not want me to remember for fear we will act on it again, yet they did not remove it from your memory. Was what I did worse than your part?”
“A Timekeeper, records all that occurs; if they tried to remove the memory from me, I would record the removal. Cause a rip in time and so being who I am, punishment is to remember and never speak of it again.” He took Terra’s hand, looks into her eyes and sees guilt and pain. The Queen did her job in making her suffer. “I stand at your side and never leave because I believe in you and everything your destiny. History will not repeat; I take my punishment and will use it to protect you”
The tears come to my eyes, without realizing my own actions, “I do not want your punishment to protect me.” My whisper is husky as I kiss Wyatt with a passion I did not realize was in me. I pulled away as sudden as I lean in “I apologize, I did not mean to, oh my” I turn and walk away embarrassed, “we must go to the Fates?”
Wyatt grabs my shoulder as he spins me around and returned the kiss, his tongue parting my lips finding my tongue. The passion is reaching into me as my hand slides over his chest, my breathing is heavy and I cannot let go, yet he does and turns away. His voice shaky and gravel “my crime is loving you, I cannot let you choose me. You must follow your path and save the Earth. I prevented you from making these choices last time and we, the world, are suffering for it. You are better than that and it will fade once the world is safe and you marry then take your spot at Gaia’s side. The Fates cannot allow interference again. I will protect you and I ensure you will succeed this time.”
We walk back to the waters to the trees, so blue and clear here in the realm of Wondra. I long for the Earth realm to have this water again. Determination filled me; breathe deeply and form my plan. My sisters and I will reunite to wake Mother. Wyatt and I will marry. If he is my crime, I will commit it again, I felt the strong determination as I dove in the waters. The swim was short, and I rose in the swamp. Recognizing the dead white bark in the realm I have known as home. The damage the humans have inflicted, knowing the dark witches are at fault for this suffrage, the Fates have a lot to answer.
Wyatt swam up behind me; he shook the water off his head and solemnly looked at Terra. “The way to Eloria is this way; the trees surrounding their portal are clustered together but set apart from the others.” A deep breath gets passed him, “Are you sure this is the way to go? The Fates are dangerous, the lost souls, the elves, we will be in constant danger. I hope I am enough to protect you. If we go to Sera first, she can help awaken your powers and the three of us will have a much better chance.”
I smile as I look at Wyatt, “my powers are awake and to bring Sera here would draw too much attention. We will get to the Fates undetected”
“This way then, I can at least recognize your back, hello Terra.” His smile warmed her heart; she knew all would be good.
They dove together into the swamp and rose up in Eloria. This realm was different even from Wondra, the sky was the color of rainbows and bright. The flowers bloomed in a range of colors and the whole realm just felt like magic. It was the most magnificent of the realms. I can’t imagine why the elves want to live on the Earth Realm and not stay here. Wyatt came up with her and was heading toward the path that led to the caves of the Fates. The journey will not take long the Fates always stayed close to the pools and they will already know we are coming. Have to avoid the elves and the lost souls from catching on to us.
They traveled by day to avoid suspicion and the lost souls come out more at night. The clothing they stole from a line helped them blend in with the elves. They dressed in the loose tunic style clothes with a hooded cape to cover their heads and lack of pointed ears. They crossed over the ridge and could see the cave from the ground. It was near the top of the mountain, the Fates like privacy. Camping out at the base tonight and will begin the climb in the morning.
Wyatt brings out his sleeping bags, always prepared with that bag of his. It must be a trait of the Timekeeper, “Are you recording everything we do on this journey?”
He looks startled by the question, “well yes all is being recorded, I am present it records. I don’t write it out, can’t leave stuff out, my memory is being recorded as it occurs. It is hard to explain, we, the Timekeepers, have certain gifts of time. We are unaware of what the others can do.”
“What is your gift?”
“It is for only me to know,” he grins mischievously, “I cannot be erased or killed. I defy the meaning of time, other keepers can be killed just they just don’t grow old or die easily. Unfortunately many have been lured to their death and less history is being accurately recorded because of this,”
“You cannot be killed? Why are you worried about not being enough to protect me then?”
“I can be hurt, and I prefer not to be. I believed you said your powers have awakened, can you turn into a giant eagle and fly us up that mountain top tomorrow?” Wyatt’s playful grin takes the stress of the situation down a notch. Then the smile vanished, and he places his finger up to ssshh me.
The sounds are subtle, and I am not sure if they are noise or if the breeze is rustling leaves. This realm is so different from our Earth; we have no breeze or winds, a constant reminder we must find V, Sera and Adrianna. Arrows shot out from the trees and elves run out at us.
“Elementals are not welcome here; you will not allow our realm to fall as you let yours. Timekeeper, take her from here while you still can, we do not need records of your destruction here.” The tall elf laughed as he sneered at us. “This is the only warning you will receive”
“I am only here to speak with the Fates; I am not here for problems. The Timekeeper is not here for anything but to help me.” He is a stunning creature. I do not know how they have such a perfect glow to them, he is beautiful.
“Thank you and yes I can hear the mind of even an Elemental. I believe you are not here to cause problems. I will give you until dusk tomorrow to talk to the Fates and leave or I will tell the lost souls who you are.”
Wyatt watched as the elf walked away and I could see relief that a fight did not erupt.
“Kidding aside, a little transformation may go a long way and we are not waiting until dawn. Climb. I am not battling lost souls”
“Ok but first what is a lost soul; nothing of them occurred in my past.”
“Lost souls were human once, they kept causing harm due to greed or jealousy and other things that make humans do horrible things to each other. Their Karma becomes tainted, so tainted they can no longer be reborn and they become lost souls. Angry souls, some religions have called them demons in the past. I can see that take on it; they become more bitter and violent as their souls are lost for eternal unrest. They will never move on or evolve.”
Wyatt turns to Terra and gives her the look, “I told you of the lost souls, now you turn into a mountain climbing animal.” The mischievous smile is back, all I can do is smile and shimmer into a giant eagle. I pick Wyatt up and fly to the top of the mountain. We land on ledge, in the cave opening; we see the three Fates standing as they have been waiting for us.
Chapter 9: Twists of Destiny
KARMA, SAT ON THE CLIFF in front of the Cave of the Fates, two of her sisters sit behind her giggling. Wyatt pulls himself from Terra’s talon, “nicely done” as he turns his dashing smile to the Fates. “Karma, Lachesis, and Atropos, it has been a long time ladies.”
Karma laughs” you have always been charming Wyatt and usually it will get you everything. Terra you can go ahead and transform to your human view. We know you are not an eagle that fell for Wyatt. I wouldn’t be surprised everyone does fall for him.”
Terra shimmered into human form, “Can you help us find Adrianna? I am right aren’t I; she is the key to healing the Earth? I believe that is where I need to start.”
Karma laughs again, “Always to the point and thinking a direct answer, don’t you. I only weave the roads and it takes six Fates to support the all the roads of the lives of all the realms. Why do you think I know the answers you seek?”
Lachesis hisses at Terra, “Why now do you seek the path of your true destiny, you turned your back before and chose the crossroads. We are blamed for your ill choices, for your wrong turns. Why do you seek us out now?”
Atropos steps forward, she is the quiet spoken one. She holds the yarns as they weave together. “The paths of so many destinies intertwine your sisters cannot be separated, just as my sisters cannot. We are only strong together and we can only weave the yarns together. Time is always kept and recorded the secrets lie in the history. Find the Timekeeper that betrays and the answers will come to you.”
“Hush, you give too much information, their roads must be their own choice. Give them nothing of what we have seen. Leave!” Lachesis barks at Atropos
“If the Earth ceased to exist so will all of the Fathers creations. The Elementals are the only ones that can stop it. The original Timekeeper is the true secret; he must rewrite the history and allow the magic to flow again.” Atropos speaks softly.
“Lachesis, she is right. All will cease to exist; my lost souls will suffer even more. I cannot allow them to be reborn they are pure evil and a spot holding for the dark Witches and her human followers. I want her for the harm she causes if we lose the Earth we too shall cease to exist and only the original Timekeeper and hopefully Gaia.”
Wyatt, stood silent through this whole debate, Terra looked at him waiting for his questions, comments, or something. But he kept his mouth tight and looked away from the Fates. He does not trust them but they know everything, except this original keeper. I wonder if he knows who the original keeper is. Who could have been there from the start recording everything Father created including our great mother Gaia?
I study Karma, she is a simple looking; brown hair pleasant enough, but I do not trust her words. So many questions coming into my head and dusk is coming. The lost souls will come after us and I am no closer to Adrianna. They are wasting time, they want the lost souls to hunt us, and I need to speed things along. “Where are my sisters?”
Lachesis looks at me “your keeper knows where the flame resides, the wind rides where the dragons fly and you were next to water in the land of the Faye. The queen sent you to find the flame and you come here. Not to find answers of the sisters you seek but the twist of your destiny to the Faye Queen.”
Karma looks at Wyatt and smiles, “Yes the Faye loves Time and Time loves the Earth. Records have been rewritten and time has been stopped. The Dark Witch betrays but the time will stop long enough for Faye to bring the birds and give nature the realm. True time will choose and the stopwatch will be set. You need to leave the souls are coming and they are merciless.”
Wyatt looks out at the dusk and sees the shadows climbing the mountain side. “Terra we need to go, can you transform again?” The Fates have slipped back to watch what path is chosen. The shadows rise and lunge at Wyatt. He jumps aside for them to miss. Terra tries to shimmer, and she reverts to human form, she’s weakened from the last transformation. She needs to go into Elemental form and she cannot until she finds Gaia to release her from punishment. “Wyatt get back behind me” Wyatt fights off more of the demons and steps behind Terra. Her eyes closed, and the mountain is shaking. The sides crack, and boulders roll down the sides knocking the lost souls off the mountain. Wyatt holds off the ones in the cave.
The pain of destroying them weakens Terra; she knows she is not to harm these creatures that are doomed for eternity. The mountain side breaks away. I can see the pond Wyatt grabs my hand and they jump. He wraps his arms around me as we fall into the pond. Into the gateway we swim and back in the Earth realm. I collapse exhausted. Wyatt looks in my eyes, “we need you to rest you are not at full strength yet. We go to Adrianna in the morning”
I shake my head no, “Sera, we go to Sera, I will need her strength to get to Adrianna and V.”
Chapter 10: The Eternal Flame
“WHERE IS SERA? THE Fates said Time knows where the Flame is, you have been pushing me to go to Sera since the beginning. Please tell me what you are not telling me Wyatt. I do not want to hear about it being forbidden or any of that. The Mother and the Creator are the only ones that can punish you. They are indisposed right now. You understood what was being said back there and I want to know.” Terra stares at Wyatt in defiance. She knows he is keeping things from her. She is tiring of being in the dark.
Sera is on the Earth realm, she is in the deserts of Zona. She would not let me tell you to just go to her, she needed you to figure things out first. You need the plan to move forward and I did not realize this until we headed to the Faye’s. Sera can speak in your mind and she stays in contact with me to make sure I am watching over you. I cannot tell you everything, I am sorry but if we repeat mistakes, Time will reset and we will have to start over again. One of the Timekeepers is showing to have this power to stop time, reverse and speed it up. I have not found him yet and I believe he is betraying us. I trust none of the Timekeepers now.”
“Do you know who the true Timekeeper is and why he is the true Timekeeper?” Wyatt’s face turned gray as I asked this question, he knows the answer and does not want to tell me.
“The true Timekeeper is the first, here before Gaia was created. He is the oldest and the only Timekeeper that is a real immortal. Time will never cease, Father made sure of this.” Wyatt takes a deep breath then looks in Terra’s eyes.
“I was created in Fathers true image; you four sisters are created in the image of Gaia. The Elementals and the true Timekeeper are the only real immortals. All other magical creatures can be killed, and that is why they hate you, you let them die in their eyes. I cannot, will not rewrite history to appease them. This is what happened and what will be.”
I stare at him, shocked, “You are the orig
inal Timekeeper, the first then?”
“Yes.”
“The Faye Queen loves you.”
“Yes.”
“You are the reason our Fates are so twined, the Queen and I.”
“Again, yes.”
“The Timekeeper manipulating time, is Horardo.”
Wyatt’s eyebrows come together, “I hate Horardo, but I cannot see that he will betray his brothers for power. He will be yours; he will have all power once he marries you. Why destroy the Earth before he can rule it?”
“I do not know. The visions the Queen showed that he stole a scroll from her when he slept with her. That scroll is the secret to how the Dark Witch gained power.”
Wyatt has his pouty look return; we will continue walking but in silence. I am working everything through in my head, Sera can communicate telepathically. Why hasn’t she reached out to me, or has she and I not know it? The terrain is flat and hot. The sands make walking heavy and the Earth is so dry and desolate. I see no other towns, Bago was not the only town in the world, are we avoiding them?
We have walked for hours and the terrain remains the same until we see a small village. Giant sculptures around the village. Some people are busy working to drill for waters and try to find food. A temple sets in the center of this village, surrounded by others that are praying to it. The sculpture at the top is of a woman, not an Elemental. I grab Wyatt’s arm, and he looks up at the statue.
“That is in honor of Desdemona, these are her followers. The sculptures on the side are for her sacrifices. We must travel through here without attracting attention. This village prevents anyone from finding Sera; if they figure out our journey leads to her, we will fight our way through here.”
As Wyatt spoke these words, the shadows came to life and the lost souls rose from the grounds. They circled us showing we do not belong. One by one they darted at us, and Wyatt drew his sword and hacked at them, they turn to smoke and come right back. How can we fight these, they were solid enough to knock us to the ground but a sword turn them to smoke and they reappear? Wyatt kept chopping creating a path for us to run. A woman dressed in black dropped in front of us,
