Flower Readings

by Lilliana Rose

  They looked like nutrient pills, but Triena wasn’t sure. She shook her head.

  “Don’t make me force you.”

  She refused to open her mouth.

  “Fine, I was hoping you would be more agreeable, but I did come prepared.” He took out a syringe full of a clear liquid. “You need a decent sleep, to make sure you will be ready to give some readings tomorrow.”

  “No.” Triena couldn’t move out of the way as he pushed her head back and injected the liquid into her neck.

  “I want to find out how you do it.” He stood. “Rest up.”

  Triena looked at him. Her vision blurred. She felt like she was being sucked into the darkness, down a tight plug-hole, and no matter how much she struggled, she wasn’t going to escape.

  ~

  She woke up on a camping style bed. She felt refreshed and that unnerved her as she recalled what happened the night before.

  The room was small and it didn’t take long for Triena to search it. There was no way out. She felt into the Energy but met a concrete wall. How is this possible? She was lost without access to the Energy Field. Her heart thumped rapidly as she tried to connect, but again nothing. She rested her hand on the concrete wall. How they are blocking me?

  Braklen. She regretted not going with him, last night, only because with two of them together they might have been able to escape. Stubborn shit.

  The small package itched against her skin. She was surprised it hadn’t been taken. Triena looked around the room. She couldn’t see any cameras. They would probably be watching me. She left the parcel hidden.

  She felt around her waist. Her belt was gone. The two flowers for Braklen’s reading were gone. Damn. Numbness spread over her. Wing Leaf had begun the purging process in him and if she didn’t continue the reading he could very well die.

  Questions moved around her head like a chess game, and she tried to untangle the mess. What will Priest Junqi do? Take us to the Queens, or does he want something else. A reading? But, there’s more. Triena looked at the different answers, changing the perspective. She didn’t discover any answers, only more questions.

  The door slid open. Triena looked up slowly, not really wanting to see who was there. She met Priest Junqi’s eyes with coolness. A lump formed in her throat and her mouth dried. He looked at her with a smug expression. She forced herself to keep looking at him. He can’t hurt me. He can’t hurt me. She repeated the words in her mind, hoping they were true.

  “You have a talent that’s a little unusual.” He stepped into the room.

  Triena felt her body tense as he walked closer. The lump in her throat caught the words she wanted to yell at him for taking her and Braklen, for betraying them. She kept watching him. He stopped at the end of the single bed.

  “That makes you curious to someone like me.”

  Triena struggled to build a protective layer of energy around her. She called in a soft white light, but the walls of the room hindered even that simple manipulation. Priest Junqi didn’t notice or didn’t care. Triena couldn’t work out which as she kept looking at his dark eyes.

  “I want to know more. I want to see how it works, how you manage to use the energy with the flowers even though they are inferior to the animal energy.”

  “Yeah well, I won’t be telling you how.” Triena’s voice sounded clear, but a lump still constricted her throat. Her mouth was dry and grainy.

  “You don’t need to tell me, just show me.”

  “And you think I will tell you?” Triena tilted her head to the side.

  “Yes.” His dark eyes made her shiver. “I want you to give me a reading.”

  “No.”

  “I want a reading from you with the flowers.”

  “Well, you shouldn’t have captured me. Why would I do this now?” She felt a confidence surging inside her and the lump loosened.

  “Thought you might say that.” He reached inside his robe and pulled out a small container. Triena recognised it straight away. He held it up for her to see and rolled it around to show her there were two dried flowers inside. “Beautiful, aren’t they.”

  “It’s not safe to use the Energy this way. The flowers are for someone else.”

  “That may be, but you see, I want a reading, so if you don’t give one to me, then you must give one to someone else. I think these flowers shouldn’t go to waste. You selected them for Braklen after all.”

  Triena felt the blood drain from her head and she felt a little dizzy. The Priest smiled at her. No, no, no. After wanting to kill Braklen for such a long time, that was the last thing she wanted to have happen now. There must be another way.

  “The Queens want us unharmed.”

  “Yes, well accidents happen, especially in uncivilised planets like this one.” He turned the container over. “It’s not the Queens who want you. I want to find out how you work. You could help tip the balance in our favor.”

  “No I won’t.” Triena sat thinking. There’s no way out. She felt the pressure of the reality weigh her down and she was tempted to give up. Why not give him what he wants?

  “You give him a reading. Then you give me one.”

  “Then what? You’ll just hand us over to the Queens.”

  “No. I’m keeping you for myself.”

  “I’m a poor teacher.” She clenched her fists tight.

  “You’re good at what you do. So much talent they wished they never let you go. They never managed to predict your weak stomach would end up being your strongest advantage over them.”

  “So what, go and give the reading yourself, then you’ll learn about the flower energy.”

  “I’ve tried that and it didn’t work. There’s something else. I’m going to watch you.”

  “No.”

  “I can be persuasive in ways that you would rather not know.” He walked forward. “You saw the images in the programmed energy. I’ve come across more programs. Ones that would make you tear out your hair and beg for death. I will make you do the reading for me. You will use these flowers on Braklen.”

  “What if I kill you?”

  “You won’t. I’m ready for you.”

  Triena trembled. She bought in more white light, but it didn’t respond to her skill. He traced a finger down the side of her cheek, down her neck, down towards her chest. Her skin prickled. She didn’t want to have to endure another program. Maybe the chip could actually help me? If only Junqi has forgotten. If Gaia’s Tears killed Braklen then she would die because of the chip.

  “Fine. I’ll do it.” She swallowed hard.

  His finger stopped. “Really? I want a real promise.”

  “I said I’ll do it.” She pushed his finger away feeling ill at the touch of his skin.

  “Good.”

  She felt the hard chip under her. Death was their way out. It always had been and this time she was going to carry through with the plan.

  Priest Junqi paused at the door. “Make sure you’re ready. Rest up. I’ll be back shortly with your beloved.”

  Triena let out her breath as the door shut. She felt safe once Priest Junqi left. Risky, too risky. She didn’t think she cared anymore. She didn’t want to help the Queens, not after she discovered the programmed energy or be part of the Queens sect. I’m not about to give them my skill.

  She lay back down on the bed and tried to relax. It was too hard. She felt the weight of the parcel on her stomach. Could I swap the dried flowers? She knew it would be too difficult. Out of habit she tried to slip into the Energy, but met a wall. Air pushed out of her lungs as her astral form was flung back into her body. She struggled to inhale. The room was like a vacuum. She couldn’t reach the Energy plane to prepare. It felt like something sapped her Energy. After a while, she just concentrated on her breathing to calm herself. She needed to have her wits about her.

  Braklen wasn’t going to like this. She had to tell him somehow this was the only way. That she didn’t want to do this, to give him the next flower, the
Gaia’s Tears which was capable of killing him. Her fingers kept tracing over the chip as she waited. The round disc felt innocent enough. She knew it had thin wires extending down into her muscles that joined with her nervous system. She hoped Marory and the rabbit were safe. Her rabbit. His silence in her mind made her feel empty.

  Hours later, the door opened and she jumped from the sound. A dread gnawed at her guts as she rolled over to face the entrance to the room. Two men placed a square table in the center, returned with two chairs setting them opposite each other, and then they left. The sound of the door clicking shut echoed, sending a shiver down Triena’s spine.

  Can I really do this? She tried to think of something she could say, a lie she could weave out of the Energy to tell the Priest, to stop him wanting a reading. Her mind blanked. This isn’t going to be easy.

  When the door opened again, Braklen was pushed inside. Her heart fluttered at the sight of him. How could’ve I tried to kill him? She gripped her hands together to stop herself from going over to him. His face was shades of purple and black and his nose looked broken. She knew he wouldn’t be able to hear her, or even feel her.

  Two guards forced him to sit on the chair, so his back was to the door and he had to look at her. He didn’t. He kept his eyes down, staring at the metal table. She wanted to tell him it would be okay, this was the best option for them, the Queens wouldn’t get hold of the skill she had, and in the future someone else would have the talent to use the Energy with flowers and challenge the Queens.

  The guards stood in the corners looking at her, then Braklen. Arms crossed over their chests, they looked like live statues. It was clear to Triena there was no escape.

  She watched Braklen from the bed, even though she knew she should get up and sit opposite him. She felt tired, weighed down with the responsibility of the reading. Alone without the rabbit. Lost without the Energy Field she would normally draw on.

  Priest Junqi entered and she stood up sharply. She didn’t want him touching her. If only we hadn’t met, back then when we lived at the castle. If only I didn’t have an abnormal skill. She was simply a threat to them. But, more than that she had a skill they wanted. Priest Junqi motioned to the chair. Triena hesitated, but then obeyed. Now, was the time to put the plan in motion and take herself out of the war between the Queens and the Priests. If I’m dead they can’t misuse my skill.

  Braklen didn’t look at her. Triena felt something inside her break not being able to look into his eyes, but she held herself together.

  “Glad you’re not making this worse than it needs to be.” Priest Junqi stood on her left and looked down at her. He motioned and another Peacekeeper came forward holing a tray, a kettle and two cups, the steam snaked out of the spout of the kettle like a white snake searching for prey.

  “I can’t work with this many people in the room.” The sound of her voice surprised her, it sounded distant.

  “They will stay outside in case you have any ideas of something other than a reading, then they will come back in and they will be rough with you.”

  Triena nodded her head and looked at Braklen. Dried blood covered a cut near his temple and stuck some of his hair down. Look at me. He kept his eyes on the table, looking at some spot as if it meant something to him. The Peacekeeper put down the tray. The sound of the china meeting with the table made Braklen jump and bought him back to the room. He looked at Triena.

  “Ready?” she asked him. His blue eyes were cold towards her and she sent warmth to him. This is the only way. His cold gaze didn’t change.

  “This room is too blocked for a reading.” Triena couldn’t connect at all with the energy. Something stopped her.

  Priest Junqi moved over to the wall, opened a panel with a key, then flicked a switch. “You can start now.”

  Triena felt a change in the walls as the vacuum dissipated. She welcomed the connection with the universal Energy. The hole from its absence inside of her filled quickly and she felt balanced, and confident about what she was going to do. Her vibration lifted, as she melded with the Energy.

  She looked at the dried flowers in the cups. Out of their labeled containers they looked similar, like brown balls not capable of anything but making a decent cup of tea. She picked up the cup on the left, smelled the earthy odor of Gaia’s Tears.

  “No tricks.” Priest Junqi came next to the table, watching Triena’s every move.

  I don’t know how he thinks he’s going to learn anything. She started the last reading she would ever do. She poured warm water into the cup. Slowly, she moved her awareness into the Energy Field. Triena felt the Priest journey with her.

  She looked into the cup. The liquid coaxed open the dried ball. Slowly it unfurled as if coming back from the dead. Triena watched briefly before tuning into the energy of the Energy Field and the flower looking for patterns. Priest Junqi’s energy nearby pulsed impatiently.

  A black storm grumbled around her. Strong pulses of wind-like energy threatened to blow her back to the physical plane and stop her from reading the Energy of the flowers here in the etheric world. Vibrations of fear from Priest Junqi distracted her so she slipped further into the Energy to lose him.

  She endured the blasts of Energy, surprised her balance held against such a force. What don’t they want me to know? She forgot she was meant to be reading for Braklen. A crown glimmered in the distance, and she moved towards it, drawn like a moth to light.

  Rapids formed in front of her, stopping her from going further towards the crown. Triena wasn’t perturbed. She conjured a boat using her own Energy reserves and stepped in. The boat tossed up and down on the white frothy water. She struggled to steer the boat and lost sight of the crown a few times. Even so she kept going, moving through the white water, driven to find out more about the crown.

  The water unexpectedly stilled and her boat glided to the edge of the bank. Triena stepped out and looked around for the crown. The Energy weakened.

  A glimmer of white caught her eye and she turned and saw the crown on top of a sandstone pedestal. She moved towards the light. Vines grew up from the ground and tried to entangle her. Thorns cut into her energy form. The pain ripped through her energy and back into her body. She stifled a scream. The cuts burned. She took a step back. Again she reached into her own energy reserves and conjured a machete, with an extra sharp blade.

  The vines were thick and Triena could no longer see the crown as she swung the machete like a sword, chopping away at the vines, ignoring the burning pain from the thorns. This time nothing was going to stop her. The vines regrouped and regrew. She struggled to make any sort of gap between them she could go through. But, she didn’t stop. The blade cut through the stems and vines thumped to the ground. There was always another vine to cut down. She moved in a fury. How dare they try and stop me. Determination fueled her motions. She swung the machete back and forth.

  The crown shone in the Energy Field, just ahead. A stone path formed. Grass lined either side of the path and extended outwards to a menagerie of flowers. The smell of roses calmed her. There were lavender bushes, daisies, snap-dragons, pansies, violets, lilies, peonies, so many ancient flowers, all blooming, and facing Triena as she walked towards the crown. An abundance of color and smells swirled around her healing the wounds of the thorns and increasing her strength.

  The crown sat on red velvet pillow, trimmed with gold rope. The pearl gleamed in the light, a pastel pink and white.

  Triena stood looking at the crown mesmerised. What do I do? Instinctively she reached out and touched the white filigree and traced her finger around the center pearl. Without thinking she picked up the crown. It was light, and she felt a warmth radiate outwards. She lifted it up to get a better view, but instead she placed it on her head. It fit perfectly. She turned around, the flower heads moved as if watching her.

  A gold burst of reflective light caught her attention. Curious, she walked towards the flash. The glow made it difficult for her to make out what w
as there. Then she saw another crown, a gold one. She stopped. The jewel was a star shaped green sapphire.

  Then she saw the man who wore the crown.

  Braklen.

  He reached out to her smiling.

  Her shock caused the image to disperse and she found herself in the dark, trembling. It wasn’t what she wanted. Didn’t matter now, I’ll be dead soon.

  Triena breathed deeply, anchoring herself back into her body. How much would Priest Junqi have seen? She didn’t feel him travelling with her. An angry energy vibrated some distance away, close to where she began this journey. Instinctively, she knew Priest Junqi had been left behind and hadn’t seen the vision.

  She opened her eyes, it was Braklen she saw and kept her gaze on. Something changed in him. His eyes weren’t as cold. She wasn’t sure why the Energy showed her the future when that wasn’t even a possibility. For a second, she doubted what she was doing. Then, she saw Priest Junqi out of the corner of her eye and pushed the cup towards Braklen.

  “Drink,” said Triena.

  He picked up the cup and gulped down the entire contents. He didn’t say anything, not even about the taste.

  “And?” asked the Priest.

  “Weren’t you there?”

  “Of course I was,” he stammered. “But, tell me. I want to know how you interpret the patterns.”

  “A rapid lake, impassable and then a garden full of overgrown vines that have a taste for blood.” It’s not a full lie.

  “Fuck the Queens, what is that meant to mean?” asked Priest Junqi.

  Triena watched Braklen waiting for the signs that the flower juice was doing its work.

  “It’s not for me to interpret,” said Triena.

  “Bullshit. Tell me.” He grabbed Triena and shook her. “Tell me.” Priest Junqi released her.

  Her heart pounded as she tried to think of something else to say that would appease him, something to lead him away from the truth. “There was a man in a crown.”

  “What did he look like?”

  “He had a purple robe, a stick, he was old, with a cross around his neck.”

  “Who?”