The idea that the horrific creature they had met in the graveyard had once been human sent an unshakable chill up Penny’s spine. She could not stop her mind from wandering back to the grisly images of the man in Hector’s drawing room window. She had no doubt that he too had been turned into a wraith, and the idea made tears well up in her eyes.
“Naturally, using this type of magic is strictly forbidden and shortly after its advent, it was extinguished by the good and gracious Lord Nestor. The teaching or study of this form of nomamancy is punishable by death in the Six High Nations and all the outlying countries, as well. Of course, every hundred years or so, someone will come along who’s able to figure out how to abuse nomamancy and will be able to create a wraith, but they are swiftly punished by their own deed. To steal the name of another living creature―this act breaks the psyche of a person, rendering them completely insane. He will be haunted by his own wickedness for the rest of his miserable life. What is so deeply troubling about the recent events in this region, is usually there is only a single person who creates a single wraith, and that’s the end of it.
“Over the past few months, hundreds of wraiths have been seen infesting the Nation of Men, and have even attacked and killed innocent people. It doesn’t make any sense how there could be so many of them.” The priestess looked sick with worry. “It would be impossible for any one person to create that many wraiths and still retain their sanity.” She took a harried breath and went on, her voice sounding thinner as she stared into the distance.
“I fear a very dark time is descending upon us. I thought the shortage of magic and the disappearance of the Angelic Lord would be the worst of it, but now we face the infestation of wraiths, as well. It feels as if the end-times are approaching…”
An oppressive air hung over their heads until the priestess shook off her cloud of gloom and faced them. “There’s nothing to be gained from worrying about it, though. Let’s not let these upsetting matters darken our hearts. I will take care of the wraith tonight―and you three best get to sleep. You’ll find fresh clothes, a comfortable bed, and a hot bath down that hall.” She gestured to a corridor across the chamber and turned, her lacy white robes fluttering as she exited, leaving Penny, Hector and Simon alone. The three exchanged troubled glances. They were silent until Penny dared to ask Hector the question that was weighing heavily on her mind.
“Hector, you don’t think―those monsters that attacked us that night at my house, and yours―you don’t think those could have been―”
“Penelope, I am afraid that is exactly what they were,” Hector replied, sounding queasy. He stared at his owns hands for a moment. “And I killed one,” he choked.
“Never mind that!” Simon squawked. “What were they doing on Earth? More importantly, we are all at risk for having our souls stolen! Does that not make you just a touch nervous?”
“Hey, we’re okay as long as no one knows our full names, remember?” Penny piped up with blazing certainty. “I even heard that Deimos guy tell the crowd not to tell anyone your full name.”
“Oh, of course. We can take his word for it, seeing as how he’s such a model citizen and all!” Simon retorted. Penny was about to shoot him a snide remark when Hector commanded order.
“Calm down. Bickering about this isn’t going to change anything. This affects all of us, so we might as well approach the problem in the most sensible manner possible.”
“And what might that be, Professor?” Simon challenged rudely.
Hector cleared his throat. “Thorough research and study. I should think that would be obvious,” he said and Penny rolled her eyes, aggravated. Hector glared back at the apparent discontent with his suggestion. “Well, I’m going to get some rest before I keel over, if it’s all the same to you.” He pushed past them and into the hall.
Just as the priestess described, all three found fresh robes that smelled fresh and were soft to the touch. A bath rejuvenated Penny after days of sleeping outdoors, but the hot water made her sleepy. After pulling the robe over her head, she bundled her clothes under her arm, stepped out into the chamber, and made her way down the corridor. Only a few dim gas lamps lit the long hallway, casting flickering gray shadows in every corner. For a moment the strangeness of the situation overwhelmed her, and loneliness held sway. Normally after being cooped up with people this long, Penny would have been going out of her mind and desperate for privacy. Shutting out the world for days on end always made her feel safe, yet now she somehow felt she would be more at ease in the company of others.
Looks like they already went to bed, she thought, chewing on her fingernail as she tiptoed down the hall. She tried the door handle of the room closest to her and found a little chamber with two beds and a wardrobe. Moonlight cut in from the window and cast an eerie coldness into the room. She stepped in and sat down on the nearest bed.
Penny thought about lying down and letting sleep override her exhausted mind and body, but being all alone in the unfamiliar room made her feel too nervous to even try. Her mind was still plagued by images of the iron mask, waiting in the void she had come close to crossing into. More visions of deformed visages of wraiths whirred in her mind, and the potential of the masked entity visiting her in troubled dreams was enough to force her back onto her feet and out into the corridor. Penny closed the door behind her, feeling a knot of anxiety in her chest. She tried two more doors until she stumbled upon the room where Hector lay.
He was fast asleep in the bed nearest to the window. Glad to have avoided an awkward conversation, Penny crawled into the vacant bed, covered her head with blankets and pulled her knees to her chest. The coverlet was scratchy and the mattress hard, but even a plank of wood would have been good enough for Penny on that night. She wondered what Hector would say when he woke to find her there.
I’ll just think of some excuse in the morning. She sighed, feeling herself slipping away. A voice jarred her from her momentary comfort.
“What are you doing?”
Or not…
“What does it look like? I’m trying to sleep,” she grumbled. Hector didn’t reply, and Penny peered out from inside her cave of covers. He was sitting up and looked weary and confused, but not angry.
“Why in here? There are probably sixteen other rooms.” Hector lay back down, turning his back toward her.
Penny snorted and retreated back into her cave. Before she could think of a lie, the truth came tumbling out. “I’m sorry, but maybe I’m just feeling a little uncomfortable being on my own because apparently even the friggin’ plants in this world want to kill me. Hope the blankets are safe! I apologize if I’m disturbing you, your lordship,” Penny shot back. Immediate remorse followed, making her stomach ache.
Hector didn’t reply for a long, stunned moment, and then spoke in a small voice that just penetrated through the wall of blankets. “Sorry.”
His tone was so feeble that Penny emerged once more. She took a moment to muster up the courage to speak. “No, please. Don’t apologize. That was a terrible thing to say after everything you’ve done for me. I just―I just get a little uncomfortable―”
“Displaying vulnerability?” Hector finished for her. “I surmised as much.”
Penny felt her face burn in the darkness of the room. “I guess,” she replied at length. They didn’t speak for a while, and Penny thought he might have fallen asleep, but she still had more to say. She chewed on her words for a second time, feeling her heart start to pound when she got them out.
“I really did want to thank you, though,” she chanced, feeling her words echo in the heavy silence. There was something about the darkness that made it easier to talk. “I mean―you didn’t have to do any of those things for me. You could’ve let me die or left me behind countless times. I can’t even express how awful this all would’ve been if it hadn’t been for you.” Penny’s voice shook, but she forced herself to keep on going, hoping that she wasn’t saying too much.
“My whole life…I always
expected people to be selfish and cruel. That belief was pretty much why I cut myself off from everyone. The things you’ve done for me, the kindness you’ve showed…you proved me wrong. So thanks for that, too,” Penny stammered.
Only silence hummed in response to her carefully chosen words. Feeling as if her bravery had been wasted, Penny rolled over and shut her eyes, wondering if he had fallen asleep or was at a loss for words.
As her long-awaited rest drifted over her, there remained the faint worry that when she did at last sleep, she would be revisited by visions of the horrors she had faced that night. She found some solace in the fact that even if they did appear, they would only be the hollow pictures of faraway dangers. Still, Penny envied Hector, to whom no dreams would come.
Slow down or you’ll choke,” Hector sighed, leaning back in his chair as he raised a book up to his eyes. He turned another page back, and Penny stopped mid-chew to glare over at him. She swallowed the last bit of the spice bread before replying.
“I haven’t eaten in like―a million years. Leave me alone.” She glanced back at him, perturbed as he flicked another page aside. “You read inhumanly fast. It’s starting to freak me out.”
“I’m cheating with magic. Now, hush,” he retorted, and Penny grumbled under her breath about how he had been the one who spoke up first. “Fascinating…” Hector murmured, turning another page with fervor. Penny watched his hazel eyes flit back and forth behind his glasses.
“What is, Hector?” she drawled, not expecting an answer.
A comfortable silence ensued, until Penny heard muffled voices in the hall that told her Simon and Armonie were coming. The door swung open and they bustled through, looking ruffled. He’d been trailing around after her all morning, not bothering to veil his lecherous intentions in the slightest.
Penny shot Simon a warning glance, which he returned with a devilish smile. Armonie said good morning to each of them and set about placing a bundle of flowers on the desk by Hector.
“I trust you’re feeling better, sister?” she asked with a genuine smile, holding several folded garments in her arms. “I brought you these fresh clothes.” She laid the clothes on the table beside his Hector’s untouched breakfast, and then moved over to Penny. Seeing that Armonie had handed her a delicate sundress a light shade of pink, Penny’s face fell.
Before she could be stopped, Armonie collected up their dirty laundry and stepped out of the room, humming. Penny went to change in the bathroom down the hall, but didn’t emerge for several minutes. The sundress was comfortable, but wearing it made Penny feel awkward. When she returned to the room, she received just the sort of reaction from Simon that she had been hoping against.
“Dear Penelope! You look so much more ravishing today than I have ever seen you before. Your beauty is like a shy bud, just waiting to be coaxed into full bloom! Do please allow me to―”
“Shove it,” she retorted, crossing her arms and glaring. Simon stopped his suave banter and retreated back into his playful smile. “I’m going to go out to see Humphrey. Can you stop bothering Armonie? It’s starting to get embarrassing.”
Hector grunted in agreement to the request that wasn’t directed at him. Fed up with the both of them, Penny grabbed her bag off the wardrobe and left. The lofty halls of the sanctuary were flooded with light, which shone in through the decorative crystal windows and created shimmering rainbows on the carpet.
While exploring, Penny discovered that in addition to having an infirmary and guest housing, there were dormitories for the priestesses in training, several private meditation chambers, a kitchen, dining hall, library, laboratory, and an office for the High Priestess. Penny noted with interest that all the members of the Elydrian clergy seemed to be female. There was not a uniformed man in sight.
When Penny came to the largest hall in the facility, her breath shortened in reverence. The chapel’s ivory ceiling was at least twenty feet high, and had been carved into smooth, rippling shapes. Stained glass windows looking like treasure chests full of precious stones faced toward the sunlight, bleeding vibrant colors all over the floor of the chapel. There was a round pedestal set in the middle of the room with curved wooden benches encircling it. She admired the room for a while, struck by the beautiful loneliness.
Outside the sanctuary, the day was warm and dusty. She tiptoed past flowerbeds ablaze with orange and red blossoms harmonizing with the autumnal leaves. The smell of straw and animals was heavy on the breeze, but the sight of Humphrey bounding up to the side of the stable to greet her was enough for her to disregard it. Penny patted him and fished out some oats for him to chomp on. She jumped as several other beasts plodded over to the wall and sniffed at her. Delighted, Penny discovered two of them looked like Humphrey, except one was a rich tawny and the other speckled gray.
“More Humphreys!” Penny cried, and gasped as another strange animal crawled toward her. “Oh, and who’s this?”
The newest creature was much shorter than the others and had a long snout that twitched and snorted in great puffs of air. Its body was thick and fat and covered with bristly gray hair, just short enough to make out two glossy black eyes blinking. Penny laughed at the sight and tossed it a handful of oats. The creature ate them up and whined for more. She watched the animals with a grin until a cheerful voice rang out.
“Visiting the anteloos?” Armonie’s voice called. Penny turned to see her exiting the sanctuary with a basket in her hands. Armonie gestured at Humphrey and the others like him. She approached and leaned down to pet the squat, gray creature at the bottom of the stable. “I just came to feed her. Good morning, little one. Madam Elise allows me to keep a pet―it’s very kind of her.”
“What sort of animal is she?” Penny asked.
Armonie blinked at Penny. “Pepper is a heggol. Elise mentioned you were a bit unfamiliar with things, but you must be from a very faraway land, indeed, if you’ve not seen a heggol before,” she said, looking as if she hoped Penny would elaborate. Penny could see no way out, so she played along.
“Oh yeah, we come from very far away. It’s―it’s an island right in the middle of the ocean. We barely have any contact with the outside world! Our customs are completely different, you see. As is the―erm―wildlife.” Penny shrugged, but Armonie furrowed her brow.
“Oh, really? Maybe I’ve heard of it. What’s it called?”
“New…Jersey…” Penny unconvincingly answered. It was the first place that had come to mind.
“I...see.” Armonie remained skeptical, but well-mannered. “It’s fortunate that the fomorians do not threaten your people,” she chirped.
“Right. We are indeed lucky,” laughed Penny with a nervous smile, trying to imagine what a fomorian could be. Always polite, Armonie nodded, her waves of honey-colored hair rustling about as she held up her basket.
“I’m about to go to town to get some business done. Would you like to come along? I’d be glad of the company,” she offered and Penny grinned in agreement.
Armonie led the way down a path beyond the stables, then on toward a tree-lined lane with its canopy of red and gold leaves. The lane went on and on for at least half a mile, leading out onto a winding path that weaved in and out of lush green hillocks. Penny spied a city that looked like it had been carved of ivory and gold on the horizon, which Armonie told her was the city of Lindenvale.
Penny was at once mesmerized, drawn toward the pearly towers, eager to go and see it up close. Even from far away, it was a far cry from the cramped alleys of Dewthorne. On their way up the hill they passed several luscious villas nestled in the flora-rich landscape. Each was a secret, beautiful world sealed off by fine gates and high stone walls. Penny blinked in wonderment as they walked by a shady mansion almost hidden by the long vines of a massive tree that grew beside it. She peered over the gate to see water from a fountain playing in the light-dappled grasses, and a small swing that looked to be made from silver and silk.
“Many of Elydria’s wealthiest reside in
this city. It is the dream of many to one day live in Lindenvale. In the times before the Dragon Wars, it was the capital of the Nation of Men,” Armonie told Penny, her bell-adorned bonnet jingling with each step.
When they arrived at the urban hub of Lindenvale, high atop the tallest part of the hill, Penny was overcome by the serene beauty as soon as they stepped onto the main street. Many of the houses were white and carved from shining stone, each one trimmed in gold and laced with ivy. Clear, clean water flowed through long, gliding troughs, which lined the city’s paved roads and filled the air with the gentle sound of splashing streams. The chattering ladies who passed by were dressed in elaborate clothes, every one of them covered head to toe in satin, pearls and glittering jewels. Huge birds with radiant plumage hung in platinum cages in the windows of many houses and sang out to the passers-by in almost melancholy cries. Armonie pointed out such sights as the baron’s house, shopping pavilions, and statues of the heroes and kings of the forgotten Ages. Penny was breathless with awe as she took in all of the grandeur.
“Armonie, I thought there was an economic crisis afoot…the magic disappearing. How are they able to live so grandly?” Penny questioned.
Armonie’s face fell. “Those who are well-off refuse to stop consuming the magic. The price goes up and up, and there is irrefutable evidence that soon we will have nothing left. The theorists have suggested we have only five years before all the stored magic is used up, but the demand for it still exists. Nothing will stop them, and most of the world still lives in excess. The poorest among us are the ones who suffer now, but soon no one will be safe. It’s as if they are ignoring the fact that the end is hurtling toward us. Aside from a few feeble attempts to convert magic-based machinery to steam-power, no one is doing anything to stop it,” Armonie explained in despair. “Come see what I mean.” She gestured for Penny to follow and led the way to the center of the city, where they found a circular stone dais, around ten feet in diameter. Standing atop this dais was a huge crystal prism in the shape of an obelisk. A small crowd of people was gathered around it, staring at the three faces of the crystal, some debating amongst themselves.
The Angel of Elydria (The Dawn Mirror Chronicles Book 1) Page 11
