by Amy Hopkins
"I know you're busy," Jackson began, "but can you help me?"
"Of course," Julianne replied. "What do you need?"
"Magic." Jackson gestured at his swollen knees. "I'm not likely to see this through. Oh, don't you worry about me—I've had a long life, and for the most part it's been a good one. But if this is how I'm going to go out, I'd like to have one last chance at taking out the bastards who have killed so many of my people."
Julianne hesitated. "Jackson, I’m not a healer. I wish I was."
"I can fight, it's just the pain holding me back. I don't need you to fix anything, just…hide it a bit. Make it so I can't feel my bones grind together with every step I take. If you could just dull even a bit of pain, I can take care of the rest."
"That's incredibly dangerous," Julianne said. "If I get it wrong, you could be mortally wounded and not even realize it."
"And I might be stabbed in the gut if you don't." Jackson leaned closer to her. "Please. I won't do anything stupid, and I won't hold you responsible if I die."
Narrowing her eyes at the logic of his last statement, Julianne pulled back. She watched him for a moment, eyes boring into his soul, but Jackson didn't flinch.
"Okay, but you have to promise you'll be careful."
Jackson nodded eagerly as Julianne's eyes began to glow, and moments later he bounced on bent knees and grinned.
"That's the ticket!"
He ran off to join the rest of his people, his movements as fluid and graceful as a man half his age.
"I'd best go before I have a long line of people asking me to do the same for them," Julianne said. Setting her shoulders, she stopped to give Marcus a brief hug and Garrett a shoulder-squeeze. “If I don’t come back in time, kill some for me.”
“Aye, I’ll kill a hundred o’ the bastards!” Garrett chuckled as she jogged toward the town gates.
She slowed as she approached the thick walls but didn’t bother to shout. Instead, she whispered a phrase and her eyes lit up.
There was no one at the gate. Momentarily confused, Julianne did another mental sweep of the area. No one. The nearest mind she could connect with was a young woman huddled under her bed.
Julianne pushed through the woman’s fear to take control of her mind. Sorry. I really hate doing this, but lives depend on it.
Julianne blinked her borrowed eyes. Twilla crawled out of her hiding spot and dusted off her dress, wobbling a little as her host adjusted to the woman’s proportions.
You’re tall! Julianne thought. Indeed, the girl had the long limbs of a model.
Twilla’s mental presence shrank further. Between the last jolt of terror Catherine had caused and this strange intruder in her mind, Twilla was ready to give up and pass out.
No can do, Julianne told her. I need your mind.
Layering calm and security over the girl’s mind, Julianne showed her what lay outside—a group of people just as terrified as those inside Anrock, but with real cause to feel that way.
Now, I know this is uncomfortable, but I need your help to get inside. I need to find Catherine and stop the fear she’s spreading. I have to save my friends.
Through Twilla’s eyes, Julianne inspected the gates. Their design was a feat of engineering beyond Julianne’s comprehension. Complicated pulleys and ropes hung from the wall and there was a giant wheel to one side. Julianne had briefly noticed the contraption when Danil had entered, and now regretted not paying more attention to how it had operated.
Though Twilla wasn't intricately familiar with it, what she did know made Julianne's heart sink.
The gates were designed to be self-closing, and to open them wide would require the strength of two brawny men.
Perhaps Catherine had them made like that for a reason, Julianne thought. The young woman was clearly terrified of what lay outside the gates and had gone to great lengths to make sure they could not be opened without the consent of those inside.
Well, no harm in trying.
Twilla approached the great wall and gripped one of the spokes. She pushed with all her might, straining as her muscles and her cheeks flushed with the effort.
The gates didn't budge.
Shit! Julianne made Twilla take a step back, examining the construction once again. She spied a length of rope, one end lying on the ground and the other fastened to a pulley near the top of the wall.
That might work, Julianne thought.
Twilla grabbed the end of the rope and tucked it into the waist of her skirt, then scaled the ladder to a platform halfway up the wall.
Once there, Twilla gathered the rope and swung one end in a loose circle, then tossed it toward the top of the wall. Her first two throws missed, but the third went neatly over. The rope slid over the wall, and Julianne gently let the girl’s mind go.
Tugging on the rope to make sure it was secure, Julianne began to climb.
She scaled the wall with little effort and dropped onto the platform on the other side. Twilla had already disappeared, no doubt sneaking back to her hiding spot.
At first glance the town was quiet and empty, but it didn't take long for Julianne to connect with the minds of dozens of people who had crumbled under the flood of terror Catherine had transmitted. Her desire to flee the incoming threat had sent the townspeople of Anrock running for cover.
Julianne's skin prickled as the spell washed over her, noticeable even through her shields. Julianne shook it off and sent out a thread of her own magic, seeking a familiar mind.
Danil’s shield had been completely dismantled by the force of Catherine's terror. The very thought of opening the gate had sent her into a terrified spiral that had shattered Danil’s attempts to calm her and inflicted her magic on him.
Danil? Julianne sent.
Can't fight it, he replied, mind fading as he was wracked by fear.
Find your center, she instructed. Julianne linked with his mind and gently guided him back toward the part of his mind that he had spent years training.
A mystic’s center was deep within their consciousness, like a bright flame glowing at the very bottom of an abyss. It was rare for that place to be affected by another mystic—and near impossible for that tiny spark of inner peace to be affected by someone not trained to reach through the many layers of defense around it.
Danil’s mind sank into the calmness, and Julianne felt his muscles relax and his knotted mind untangle. She waited until his shields were up, sturdy and stable as his training dictated.
Bitch's oath she's strong, Danil sent to Julianne.
Either that or you've been neglecting your practice, Julianne said.
What? No! I still practice every day, I swear. I know I've been distracted, but—
I was only teasing, Julianne assured him. Is Polly okay?
She felt his sudden shame as he realized he'd forgotten all about the girl. She waited until he had reassured himself that Polly hadn't been physically harmed and would recover from the mental effects of the spell.
Did you see anything that would suggest where she went? Julianne asked.
Danil gave the mental equivalent of shaking his head. She was so frantic that I don't think even she knew where she was headed. How are things outside?
Safe, but not for long. We need to sort this out right now. Julianne dropped her link with Danil and took a deep, calming breath.
First she needed to get those gates open so the people of Kells could find their own safe place to hide from the impending fight outside. Julianne embraced her magic at a deeper level, sending spears of consciousness out in all directions.
Julianne sensed a man hidden in a latrine, back pressed against the wall and hands over his face, and jabbed him with a compulsion strong enough to override his terror. You. Here. Now. She waited until he stood and shuffled outside before moving on.
You. The second guard had sought refuge in Catherine’s manor but had been turned away, so he had buried himself under a mound of old hay in the stable. The stench of moldy straw mad
e his stomach turn, but not as violently as the thought of what lay outside the gates of Anrock.
Come here. Open the gates, now.
He stood and bits of grass scratched inside his shirt. He didn’t bother to shake it out, driven too urgently by the need to follow Julianne’s instruction despite his gut-clenching fear.
Julianne patiently guided both men, blocking what effects of Catherine’s spell she could. In some ways their unease helped. Eager to get this task over with so they could return to the illusion of safety, they trotted through the empty streets quickly.
Once both men stood before her, Julianne’s efforts increased.
“Open the gates,” she instructed.
A fresh wash of fear driven by months of mental conditioning resisted her mental force.
“Open. The. Gates.” Sweat beaded Julianne’s forehead, and she wondered just how damn strong Catherine was.
“Bastard curse it! If you don’t open the Bitch-damned gates I’ll throw you out there myself,” Julianne snapped.
What little color remained in the men’s faces drained away. They quickly moved to the wall, one taking a hold of the two pulleys while the other stood ready at the giant wheel.
“Pull!” called the first man and tugged the ropes, leaning back against their weight.
The other man used the momentum to move the wheel—slowly at first, then faster as the heavy doors swung open.
Send them in, Julianne sent to Marcus. Now! I don’t know how long it will stay open.
Before the gate had fully opened, people started to wander inside. The townspeople of Kells looked around warily to see if they’d be evicted, but once they spotted Julianne they moved faster.
“Come on! Hurry…everyone in!” Julianne urged them through. The opening wasn’t large—bodies jostled each other as they hurried to obey.
“Remnant!” The scream from outside sent a wave of fright through everyone present.
The guard on the pulleys whimpered and let go. Julianne cursed and latched onto the other.
“Hold it!" she yelled, giving even more weight to her mental control as she forced the terrified man to strain against the now-closing gate.
People shoved and pushed to get inside. They tripped over each other, and some stopped to help those who had fallen while others urged them to hurry.
When the wheel slipped from the guard’s sweaty-palmed grip the doors began to swing shut faster, but the last of the refugees slipped through the narrowing space moments before they closed with a deep thud.
In the minutes it took for Julianne to confirm everyone was inside and no one was hurt, the two guards had already fled back to their hiding places.
“This is getting ridiculous,” Julianne muttered. “I need to find that girl and shut her magic down.”
The only way she would be able to find Catherine was to get into her mind, which meant letting Catherine into her own. Finding her calm center, Julianne slowly let down the outer layer of her shields.
Her heart beat faster and her lungs tightened as her need for oxygen suddenly increased. As much as Julianne hated herself for what she was about to do, she knew it was necessary.
Where are you? Julianne sent the query not in a calming or soothing manner, but with the slightest hint of a threat behind it. Catherine's muddled mind was surrounded by a thick band of static, which made it impossible for Julianne to narrow down her location. Though Julianne could sense individual pockets of fear within the town, she didn't have time to go through each individually to discover which was her target
Julianne felt ripples of terror like waves spreading from a pebble dropped in water. It wasn’t perfect but gave her a possible direction.
Julianne started to run, narrowing in on Catherine’s location by targeting the swell of emotion’s center.
She stopped when she lost her target and sent out another call. I'm coming for you. She fought against the guilty ache in her chest. I opened the gates to let them in. Now I'm coming for you.
Terror swelled in Julianne’s breast, fueled by the emotion that ricocheted through the terrified city. After fighting it down to a manageable level, Julianne used it to her advantage. She looked for a way past the row of buildings that stood between her and the strongest projection of fear. She spotted a small alley, which was obscured by a pile of old crates that had been dumped outside it.
I won't leave until you come out.
Julianne stumbled to a stop. Too far. She backtracked a few steps and closed her eyes, trying to narrow in on the sensation she had felt moments before.
Up. Julianne tilted her head to examine the windows that loomed above her.
The buildings surrounding her were clustered tightly together, making it hard to tell which one she wanted. Rather than waste time trying to narrow it down further, Julianne ducked through the nearest open door.
Floorboards creaked loudly at each step, making her heart jump and her stomach clench. Julianne allowed herself a small grin of victory. She can hear me. That meant her target was close.
Catherine’s proximity and Julianne’s lowered shields made it impossible to hide from the magic. Fear beat at the edges of Julianne's mind, held back only by the strength of her personality and many years of practice at mastering her emotions. As much as she ached to, Julianne wasn’t quite ready to shut down her connection to the younger and very frightened mental magician.
Julianne paused, and as silence filled the room she heard another sound; one that had been obscured by her noisy progress.
Weeping. The terrified girl’s frightened sobs made Julianne's heart lurch and guilt warred with the knowledge that her actions had been necessary. Julianne crept into the room next to her and quietly walked over to the ragged blankets that covered a shaking figure in the corner.
“I'm sorry for scaring you,” Julianne said gently. Her shoulders dropped, and her chest relaxed as she resurrected her shields. “I'm here to help."
The blanket stilled for a moment, then another terrified sob escaped. Catherine couldn’t hold her breath for more than a moment.
"Catherine, would you like to stop being afraid?”
The sobs halted again and though the blanket didn't move, a voice spoke up from beneath them. “You're going to kill me, aren't you?”
"No. I don't kill good people."
The blanket heaved another gulping breath. "I'm not a good person,” Catherine said in a shaky voice. “I'm cursed. I'm the reason the remnant are here."
"You're not cursed,” Julianne insisted. “You're a mental magician like me, except I’ve had training. I can project my emotions and feel what others feel, but I can also stop that from happening."
A corner of the blanket dropped away and a glittering red-rimmed eye peeked out. The girl didn't speak, so Julianne continued.
"When a normal person gets scared,” Julianne explained, "they only have to deal with their own fear. Oh, that fear can be crippling. It often is, because our world is a scary place and a lot of dangerous things live here.”
The blanket dropped farther to reveal the second eye.
"But when you feel afraid," Julianne continued, “your magic projects that fear toward everyone around you. It also picks up their emotions, so you feel not just your emotions but theirs as well.” Julianne held up thumb and forefinger two inches apart and bounced a fingertip from the other hand between the digits.
“Your emotions bounce from you to them and back to you." The finger kept bouncing. “It keeps going like that, stuck in a loop. Catherine, I know that you're afraid, but you're not nearly as scared as you think you are."
The blanket finally fell away and Catherine wiped her nose with her sleeve. "The man in my room…that was what he was trying to tell me?"
Julianne nodded.
“The magic… You said it’s like yours. Can you stop it? Can you take it away from me for good?" Hope flared in Catherine’s face, sending Julianne’s heart plummeting to her boots. There would be no easy fix for this.
<
br /> "I can teach you how to manage it better,” Julianne said. “For now, though, I'm going to shield you. As long as my magic stays active, you won't be able to feel your emotions reflected back at you—nor will you be able to affect others."
Catherine gave a shaky nod. "Please, do it now.”
She squeezed her eyes shut and braced herself.
Julianne crouched in front of the girl and took Catherine's hands in hers. "I can't just shut down another person's magic, not without hurting them. I'll need your help to do it."
Before Julianne began, she reached out to Marcus. Is everything still okay out there?
Depends on your definition of okay, Marcus growled.
Julianne sucked in a sharp gasp. Marcus, your arm! Marcus’s arm flared with pain and she felt him stumble as something hit him across the back.
Just do what you need to, he sent back. But do it fast. Julianne prepared to pull away, but Marcus reached out before she could.
Jules… He hesitated. Don't come outside unless you're sure we’re going to win. Your duty isn't to keep me safe, it’s to protect the people inside. He swallowed. I love you.
Marcus' shield slammed down, leaving Julianne with the memory of the last thing he had seen. Remnant; hordes of remnant with eyes glowing the wrong shade of red. The town was surrounded and her friends were outnumbered…and she wasn’t there to fight with them.
"Shit!"
Catherine’s startled flinch made Julianne regret her slip of the tongue.
"It's okay," Julianne said, soothing the girl with a soft brush of magic. Slipping into the deepest part of Catherine's consciousness, she gently encased the girl's mind in a shield and felt the near-instantaneous rush of relief as her emotions calmed.
"I can't feel them!” she breathed. "They're out of my head. I can't feel them anymore."
Julianne smiled as a weight lifted. Though it had been a small action in the greater scheme of things, the difference she had made to one person made her heart sing.
She waited for Catherine to adjust to her newfound reality, then gently caught her attention again.
"This is the part I need help with," Julianne explained.
She deftly guided Catherine, helping her summon her magic and stifle her outpouring of emotion. Though it was effective, Julianne knew Catherine had no real understanding of how this spell worked. It would fall away as soon as Julianne let go of the reins. She silently thanked Artemis for all the grueling training he’d put her through, hoping she had the stamina to see this through.
