I smiled, keeping to myself that the two were probably the same thing.
“Tell me something distracting,” he said.
I thought for a while, but nothing came to mind. We were warriors from an ancient land who died to come to the future in order to, most likely, die again fighting some magicians who wanted to take over the world. In the end, I could only think about us and the connection we had felt weeks ago. It still seemed peculiar that it could flare to life and be extinguished just as suddenly.
“It was very nice to meet you,” I said.
He smiled at me. “It was nice to meet you, too.”
It was like an inside joke that had spanned two thousand years. I knew everything about him, but I just hadn’t figured it out yet. And I knew he could say the same about me. I felt a comfort in that.
The plane, after driving around for a while, finally came to a standstill. The engines went full power and we started to speed down the runway. Seth’s grip on the armrests made his knuckles white.
Hesitantly, I placed my head on his shoulder, though it bounced as the plane lifted off. He glanced down at me in surprise. I don’t know why I did it. I felt sure that I could seep my calmness into him if I just touched him. He did relax slightly and leaned back into his seat. The incline of the plane pushed us back, and I relaxed into my place near his side. This felt natural. He was quite a bit taller and as I looked up at him I saw a mark like a scar under his chin.
Without thinking, I gently touched the mark with a finger. It was raised like a scar.
“What’s that?” I asked.
“Birthmark,” he replied through gritted teeth.
Suddenly, the small incline turned into a big one as the plane jerked nearly straight up. We were seated at the front and heard some cries from behind. What was most alarming to me was seeing the eyes of the flight attendants widen and their hands move to grasp their seatbelts. Seth winced. I leaned over to look out my window and my heart dropped to my feet.
We were flying through the hurricane. The black and orange clouds around us were shaking the plane and lightning was shooting through the clouds. The wings and engines shuddered with the pressure as we ascended too quickly. My ears roared and popped. The lights in the cabin dimmed and more people screamed. The metal of the airplane’s body made a groaning sound as we moved higher and higher, never able to break free from the hurricane.
“Oh, no.”
“What is it?” Seth asked. His head was pressed back into his seat, hands gripping the armrests and eyes closed.
“Uh …” I didn’t know how else to put it. My heart was speeding up too. At a loss, I punched the seat in front of me. Kian turned around.
“What?” he asked.
I motioned out of the window and widened my eyes at him meaningfully.
“We are flying through the hurricane. I was afraid we would be grounded, but at least we can get above it,” he told me. Then cast an eye at Seth. “This is not dangerous,” he told him in a flat voice. It was not reassuring.
“Sir, please sit down,” a flight attendant called from a few rows ahead. She was still strapped in.
Kian did as he was told and I leaned forward to whisper between the seats.
“You scared?” I asked. I saw the side of his face turn towards me.
“I don’t understand how we are up in the sky,” Kian told me. “To me, this is already being logical. I don’t see how a hurricane is more frightening.”
I sat back, dejected. I could see Garrison rocking backwards and forwards in the seat in front of Seth.
“You okay?” I called.
“Fine!” came the reply. It was strained and hoarse.
In the next five minutes, it was all I could do to not join Seth in an absolute panic attack. In a way, I was glad that I was seeing a more human side of him than just the person I felt I knew from my dreams and memories. But whenever I would get on this train of thought, the plane would rock, drop or incline steeply and my chest would seize up in terror.
Finally, the plane seemed to level out and the lights came back on in the cabin. Seth tentatively opened one eye and then the other, releasing his grip on his seat. I found myself able to breathe again.
The sound system in the airplane beeped for attention.
“Well, folks,” the pilot said through some static, “it’s been a bumpy ride with a turn of unexpected bad weather, but we’re past the worst of it now and will continue en route to Manchester. Enjoy your flight.”
Some people around us clapped.
“Well, that was embarrassing,” Seth said, sitting back. I smiled at him again.
The flight was uneventful because I passed out as soon as we had gotten over our escape from the hurricane. Emotionally drained, I slept for most of it and woke up when Garrison was tapping me on the forehead. I opened my eyes.
“What?”
He was leaning over the back of his seat and looking at Seth and me.
“We’re talking about memories,” Garrison said. “Wondering what snippets you’ve come across that perhaps are new.”
I winced, not wanting to share anything I remembered. I had not fully explained my dreams and memories to the others. No one knew about my frantic running through the woods.
“I think I remember most,” Garrison was saying.
When I looked at him questioningly, he continued.
“My name is Dylan. Really. But I think that Garrison used to be my old name. I introduce myself by it.” He shrugged.
“Do you remember my name?” I asked suddenly. I hadn’t known that I wanted to know.
Garrison shook his head. “No one else’s, sorry.”
Right then the seat belt sign came on and the pilot announced we would be landing shortly. I was glad. My back ached and the left side of my butt was completely asleep.
“Have you ever been here before?” I asked Seth. He shook his head.
“I’ve never travelled anywhere,” he said. “Garrison’s been around the world with his parents. They’re very …” he searched for the right word, “progressive. When he started calling himself Garrison, they went along with it. They barely needed any convincing at all.”
Through the crack between our seats, I could see Kian was listening. He had put down his magazine and his head was turned in our direction.
“And your parents?” I asked.
“They are very protective. I hate it. But I hated having to put thoughts in their heads too.” Seth looked ahead at the tray table. “It doesn’t feel right. How did yours let you leave?”
I motioned my head in Kian’s direction and lowered my voice so he wouldn’t hear.
“He did the same thing to mine. Put thoughts into their heads or whatever. I guess it’s better than them worrying. I know it’s wrong, but it’s for the best. They think I’m out at some private school or cruise high school or whatever. I don’t even remember what I told them anymore. Something about X-Men.”
Seth looked at me questioningly but didn’t press. Instead, he also motioned his head towards Kian.
“How long exactly have you two been … travelling together?” he asked. I didn’t miss the hesitation.
“He found me in Oregon,” I said quickly. “That’s it. I came to New York to find you.”
I remembered how the memory of some kind of ridiculous love and wonderful past life had made me set out on this adventure in the first place. I had been so naïve.
In a way, I felt like I had been lied to by my memories. Ever since that initial first glimpse into something wonderful, I’d been plagued with memories and feelings of endless running, despair, and helplessness. Not to mention that the initial memories nearly killed me.
“What do you remember about us?” asked Seth suddenly. “Exactly.…”
There was a glint in his eye that I could fall in love with in a heartbeat.
Snap out of it! I chastised myself. I was very aware of Kian straining to listen, but Seth has lowered his voice.
“Not much,” I answered. Am I blushing?
I had never told a more blatant lie in my life. Worst still, I knew he knew. I knew we both had felt it.
Seth raised an eyebrow at me. His hazel eyes stared me down, unconvinced. “Really?”
I felt the heat rise to my face like an unstoppable torrent of evident embarrassment. You look like a freaking tomato.
“I just need to … uh … sort it out,” was my short answer. Thankfully, Seth let it go. He smiled knowingly and then began flipping through the safety pamphlet, something he had done about a dozen times already.
I couldn’t figure him out. For all that I felt like I knew him down to every wrinkle, his character was a mystery.
The next hour or so passed mechanically. We landed, went through border control — where I explained at length that I was visiting family whose address or hometowns I couldn’t remember — and got our bags. Waiting at the carousels for our luggage to arrive, all eyes were glued on the televisions.
New York had been hit by a horrible hurricane. Apparently it had gathered so quickly in the Atlantic that very few people had seen it coming. We knew better.
A lot of the city was flooded, included the memorials set up for victims of the recent tidal wave on the piers. The entire east coast was flooded, and the images of houses and cars being swept away were projected from a hundred different locations.
Kian had said the magicians dragged on the weather and threatened to pull the Earth apart with their powers. It was part of their plan to cause enough havoc to gain control. The images I now saw on the TV were horrible. In the last six hours, cities were nearly drowned and blown apart. I couldn’t help but wonder if this was my fault. Had I given them the strength?
“They shook the mountains, and they crumbled,” Kian said under his breath. His voice sent a shiver down my spine. He stood behind me and leaned in close. I felt the vibration again between us. “What were once great snowy peaks now remain as foothills. Many villages were buried and many people died, and the great king lived to regret his decision about casting all of his warriors into death and an uncertain future. But the greatest tragedy would be if all was for naught, and the magicians will inherit the Earth.”
He looked around to see if Seth and Garrison were nearby, saw that they had gone to stand at the other end of the conveyor belt, and wrapped his arms around my waist in a quick hug. He rested a cheek on the top of my head, and while the gesture would have made me swoon, his words buried themselves deep into my skin. He held on to me as if he knew I would not be around much longer.
Chapter Seventeen
“Let’s go.”
Kian dragged me away from the TVs and we all piled into a taxi van after handing our luggage to the driver.
The all-night flight had taken a toll on me. It was early morning in New York but already the afternoon in England. I was feeling exhaustion setting in, so I leaned my head against the window and got ready for a nap. It was only three o’clock in the afternoon but the sky was a sleepy kind of grey, and Seth and Garrison, who felt warm next to me, bunched me in. The motion of the car lulled me to sleep.
To my dismay, we stopped five minutes later. I opened my eyes to find an airport hotel.
“Really?” I asked sleepily.
Instead of answering, Kian paid and got out of the van, motioning for us to do the same. We waited, silent and exhausted, as he got us keys and we went upstairs. We had a large family suite in the airport hotel, which looked more like a spacious apartment. I tossed my stuff into a room I assumed would be mine and came out to the living room, where Kian was turning on the TV.
“Why are we here?” I asked sleepily.
The news coverage of the hurricane could be seen on every channel as he flipped from one station to another. The images were steadily getting worse and worse. I saw numbers on a scrolling marquee on the screen, but didn’t want to think what they represented. Casualties? More deaths that could have been avoided if we could just get our act together faster?
Seth and Garrison came into the living room as well, settling down on the couch. It was two teenaged boys, a two-thousand-year-old grumpy man, and me. Great. An itching for action came over me.
“Let’s go!” I was half shouting and half groaning. I had reached the level of exhaustion that makes you slightly crazy. “Things aren’t getting any better!” I waved an arm at the TV. Seth and Garrison just looked from Kian to me, and back again. I was about to start yelling again when he finally lowered the remote control and turned.
“I don’t know where to go yet,” Kian said simply.
He sat in an armchair next to the couch. His stony demeanour was driving me insane. “The magician who has been in contact with me is silent today — he must be busy with this.” He motioned to the screen.
“Well —” I was going to yell at him to think of something else, but he cut me off.
“Besides, you need to rest,” he said.
“I’m fine!”
The three of them cast unconvinced glances in my direction.
“You look kind of pale,” Seth said.
“And crazy-eyed,” Garrison added.
I was getting too irritated. I went into my room and slammed the door, glancing at the mirror next to the bed. I was indeed pale, and my eyes were bloodshot and puffy from lack of sleep. This had to be one of the longest days of my life.
I climbed into the bed with my clothes on and promptly fell asleep.
The wind and branches whipped my face. I wasn’t running anymore. I was riding. I looked down to find a brown horse with a pale yellow mane. The ground was blurring past me. It made my head spin so I looked ahead to where a man rode in front of me on a black horse.
Slowly, the trees cleared and I could see greenery up ahead. I rode through onto a hilltop. My heart skipped as the man ahead descended off of his horse, and I thought it might be Seth. The mind of my former self stayed stoic. I felt nothing. The contrast was jarring. Confused, I realized I was getting more of a presence in my memories. I could feel myself be myself. It was a small comfort as I sat, still a useless passenger in my own former body.
The man turned and it wasn’t Seth. He was older and had thick brown hair that was windswept behind a widow’s peak. His eyes were blue but there was something heavy about them. He was handsome enough, but I couldn’t figure out who he was. My past life wasn’t giving me any indication. He came closer and took my hand. I got off my own horse and followed him to the edge of the cliff. He spoke to me.
At first I felt myself staring blankly at the sounds coming out of his mouth. I certainly didn’t understand this. Then, slowly, the meaning began to form in my mind.
“You have to understand why we do this,” he said. “Everyone is beginning to see the war is lost.”
“We still have time,” I replied.
The man’s eyes hardened. “You are my wife and you will do as I say,” he said.
I pulled my hand from his grasp. “Do what you want, but my magic belongs to this people and I will not use it against them,” I said. “Husband, you will offend the gods if you go ahead with this.”
He stared at me then waved his arms at the land below the hill.
“Look at them!” he whispered fiercely. “The Romans have conquered the world and they do it with their gods. Ours are too weak! You are too weak!”
He pulled me close and held me even as I struggled.
“Do not be as blind as our foolish king. I do not want to see my family ruined. Sent away into slavery. I am doing this to save you.”
He pulled me towards the edge and I saw the vast camp below. Canvas tents, dozens of horses, hundreds of men, wagons, and supplies. The fires that burned were cooking meat from our lands. They were using our water to drink, and our wood to build. Deep inside, the old me finally awoke and was furious. Something bubbled in my heart. The sight was shocking — there were so many of them. The familiar feeling of helplessness crept up on me.
“Gwen.” A hand was sh
aking me awake. “Are you okay? What happened?”
“Nothing,” I replied. “A dream, but I forgot it.”
I opened my eyes. Seth and Garrison were standing over me, while Kian was at the door. I could see the flickering light of the TV from the living room.
“You were saying something totally incomprehensible,” Seth told me. He looked concerned, and I still marvel at how our shared secret brought three complete strangers so close together.
“Yeah — I don’t know, I was having a dream, but I don’t remember,” I said again.
I didn’t know why I lied. Well, that is a lie. I lied because I couldn’t keep things straight anymore. My grip on my past-life — let alone reality — was totally slipping.
I came out to the living room to watch some show about pawnshops. We watched TV and paced the room until night fell and eventually everyone went to bed. We had a few meals throughout the day, but I was too distracted to notice. I tried to fall asleep but the dream was playing over and over in my head.
Married? My thoughts were going around in circles. I thought I was supposed to be with Seth! Okay, married … But was I a traitor? Was the man in my dream a traitor? I kept thinking about the Romans and how many there were. I knew, somehow, that our population was small. Their huge numbers could easily swallow us up. This was a truth I couldn’t deny.
When the shadows cast by the ceiling fan began to take on shapes of their own and started to turn into menacing figures, I decided it was time to get up. Tiptoeing so as not to wake anyone, I crossed the hall to the bathroom and got into the shower.
The hot water felt relaxing after I had spent so long sitting in the plane and on the couch. I stood with my back to it, letting it pour over my head and trying to empty my mind of any thoughts at all. After a few minutes, the water became cold. I danced around to avoid it and turned the hot water tap completely up. Still nothing. The water was freezing now. I sighed and rolled my eyes. Even in a hotel, they run out of hot water.
I felt a gentle pull at my body and especially my eyes — a little like vertigo. I stumbled for only a second and then realized what was happening. I was falling into a memory, and I already knew which one.
Lives of Magic (Seven Wanderers Trilogy) Page 13
