Immortal Essence Box Set: Aligned, Exiled, Beguiled

by RaShelle Workman

  My stomach turned.

  “What do you mean, which will I save? Michael may say he loves me, but he already belongs to you. He’s your son. Why do you think I’d choose him over my sister?” I bit the words out, hoping my traitorous heart wouldn’t give me away. The truth was, even though my heart longed to save Michael, I would pick Amberlee. She was family.

  A cruel smile warped his face. “I see. So you choose Amberlee? You don’t care that she’s backstabbed, connived, and conspired to have you killed? If you’d like I can show you all she’s done.”

  I shook my head. “It doesn’t matter.”

  “Really?” Ramien looked unconvinced. “Oh well. Before you make your final choice, let’s talk about Michael.”

  I guessed Ramien was trying to manipulate me. I knew he wanted me to ask him what he meant, and how he knew those things about Amberlee. I knew, he knew, I wanted to know.

  “You say Michael already belongs to me.” He laughed, and I noticed some of his arrogance slipped. “He is my son, but that doesn’t mean he agrees with my goals, my plans.” He rubbed his hands through his hair, slicking it out of his face. “He is ferether, like me, as you know. He is also kelvieri. His mother, Catherine.” He spoke her name with a hint of kindness, and I was surprised. “She was still kelarian when she became pregnant. On her sixteenth birthday I encouraged her to go to the gods, to receive her right of immortality. I gave her a special drug that made her forget her pregnancy, our relationship, and the plans we had together.” He paused and sighed. “Getting her pregnant was all that I needed, all that I wanted.”

  I turned away from Ramien and stared at Michael. He’d been through so much. His mother never really loved him. His Earth father—Frank—belonged to ALT, the alien life tracker unit that specialized in hunting down and studying any alien they discovered. I wondered if Frank knew Michael wasn’t human. When Michael was a child, before Frank left, the man would cut Michael, torture him. He never loved his son. Now it made more sense. Frank wasn’t Michael’s father, real or otherwise. His real father was worse.

  Ramien continued, “When Catherine arrived at Ith and Aetha’s, they searched her thoughts, like they do all kels, and finding her innocent, allowed her to become kelvieri. Problem was, when they bestowed the gift upon Catherine, it went into Michael instead of her.”

  He chuckled and I felt sick. So Michael was like me—a kelvieri.

  “When the gods realized what had happened, they sent Catherine to Earth, hoping to protect her, hoping to protect her child. It worked, of course, for a while.” He sought out my eyes, and held them. “I was beyond frustrated. But, in the end their simple strategies didn’t matter. I found something much better than half a ferether.” He stepped closer. “I discovered you, my pretty little goddess.”

  I was still trying to wrap my thoughts around what he’d said about Michael’s mom. “But if Michael didn’t know. If he is half kelvieri, how did his father—Frank hurt him?”

  “Excellent questions. I’m not sure, but I believe it has something to do with the ferether in him.” He sneered. “The sad thing is, you’re so arrogant and blissfully naive, you still aren’t asking the right questions.”

  “What do you mean?” A strange worry began to work its way through my veins.

  “Well, obviously you have no idea who you really are. Your parents, the real and pretend one’s, lied to your pretty little face all these years. And these are the people you trusted. So sad.” He shook his head in mock melancholy. “I’ll tell you on our wedding day. We’ll do a big reveal. It’ll be amazing. And aside from your pedigree, Michael believes you are his soul mate. He’s made it clear he’ll do everything in his power to stop me.” Ramien paused, and searched my face.

  I winced. His words were hypnotic. Michael had agreed to do all Ramien commanded. I was there when Michael promised. “Does Michael even have a choice?”

  “No. Michael will do as I say. The decision is no longer his, but his strongest desire is to save you.”

  I huffed, frustrated. I didn’t want Michael killed, but I couldn’t allow him to kill my sister either. “It doesn’t matter, Ramien. No matter what you tell me, I’ll still choose my sister. She’s family.” The barrier holding back my tears rose. They pressed heavily against it. Just a splinter and I’d be a blubbering mess. Why did I even have to choose? Why were the gods allowing this?

  “I sense you believe what you say, but I’ll give you some time. Allow those whose lives are on the line a chance to speak.” Amidst a twirl of mist, he evaporated.

  I breathed a sigh of relief. I didn’t like it when Ramien was around.

  “Amberlee,” I barked. It was strange seeing her altered into a ferrikat. The bottom half of her a fish while the top half remained normal. Questions about why she’d been changed filled my mind and weighed down my tongue with the need to ask. And I would, once this mess was over.

  She shivered at the sound of her name. “Venus,” she responded with a sneer.

  I waited for her to say something. Like, I’m sorry for poisoning you. I’m sorry I had a part in your being exiled to Earth. I’m sorry for . . . “Did you kill my irrihunter, Sadraden?” I asked.

  She sighed. “Are you sure you want me to answer?”

  It was strange watching her lips move when the rest of her hung suspended and immobile, like a colorful painting of an angel with fins instead of wings. “Yes, I do.”

  Amberlee sighed again. “Fine. Yes, my part in the plan was to poison you and kill your irrihunter. Both of which I did. Happy now?”

  She was as much a brat as ever. “No, I’m not happy. Why kill her? What did they promise you in return for murdering an innocent creature?” The dam cracked behind my eyes, tears prickled, but I blinked them back.

  “You don’t understand anything. You were never meant to rule Alayeah. You aren’t even my sister. You are an imposter. A fraud. And once I learned the truth, I had no problem doing whatever it took to get you out of Alayeah. The fact that you ended up on Earth was a mistake.” Her eyes fluttered, like she fought tears. “Palmo doesn’t know how it happened. You weren’t supposed to become immortal. But we can still save Alayeah. Once I’m freed, and you’re married to Ramien, a true Carania, one who understands what The Order has planned, will rule. And in case you were wondering, the Carania I speak of would be me. Not you. There isn’t an ounce of Carania blood in your body.” She spit out the words like they were bad food. Fiery anger seared her eyes. She believed what she said to be true, but she was wrong.

  I was a true Carania. My mother and father trained me to become the next leader from the first moment I could remember. The tutors, the Chans, they all treated me like I was their next ruler. Didn’t they?

  “Have you lost it? I am your sister, Amberlee.” My immortal heart began to beat rapidly.

  “See. Amberlee isn’t even family,” Ramien’s voice echoed through the stifling, dark sky.

  “Shut up!” I ran to the other side of the bridge. “Michael.”

  His eyes opened. A smile curved his features. “Hi.”

  My body relaxed. “Can you move?”

  He suddenly appeared next to me on the bridge.

  A scream caught in my throat. Maybe it really was a trap? “How did you get up here so quickly?”

  “One of the new tricks I’ve learned.” He brushed some hair off my face. Then he leaned down as though to kiss my cheek, but whispered in my ear instead. “Ramien can’t keep me hostage. He can’t even really hurt me.” As he spoke he wrapped his hands around the medallion, and yanked it from his neck. “May I?” he asked, nodding toward my neck.

  “You want me to wear it?” A strange rightness seeped into my heart.

  “Yes, please.”

  “Okay.” I turned. He tied it so the medallion settled between my collarbones. His fingers brushed against my back, causing shivers to radiate along my spine.

  Again, he whispered, “Ramien can’t see it. Only you and I can. Don’t let him know you
have it.”

  I faced him. “I won’t, Michael.”

  He pressed me to his chest, and I reveled in his warmth.

  “I’m not sure what to do. What should I do?” I said.

  “Choose Amberlee. Everything will work—” He didn’t finish, and the weight of his body fell into me.

  “Michael,” I asked, holding him up. When he didn’t respond, I pushed away. A maroon substance made a circle on the front of his shirt, under his ribs. Tentative, I touched it. Sticky, and warm, I knew it was his blood. “Michael,” I shouted.

  “You may be half a god, but you can still die, you foolish boy.” Ramien stood behind him, a sharp object in his hand.

  “What have you done?” I held Michael in my arms. His eyes were closed and I felt the emptiness of his absence. Frantic, I shook Michael. “Wake up. Michael. Please. Wake up. Don’t go. Don’t leave me. Please. Michael.”

  Ramien chuckled. “He’s only half ferether and not even the good half. Michael told you to choose your pretend sister. I went ahead and made it easy on you.”

  I lay Michael down on the floor of the bridge, and dove at Ramien, clawing my nails into his face. “But I hadn’t really chosen yet. Those were the rules.” I had chosen. No matter what, I had to pick Amberlee, but that didn’t make seeing Michael lying in a pool of blood any easier.

  Ramien pushed me away, and I fell, tripping over Michael’s unmoving legs.

  “It’s my game. My rules. Besides, I’ve grown tired of the frivolity.” He picked up Michael’s body, and an emotion, one that reminded me of sorrow, crossed his face. Lifting Michael over his head, I realized too late what Ramien intended to do. Ramien threw Michael off the bridge. I ran to the edge, and watched as Michael’s body hit the lava with a thick splash.

  “Michael. No.” The words barely escaped, like I’d been punched in the gut.

  Michael’s body erupted in fire and was consumed.

  “By the gods, I will destroy you. Somehow, I swear it,” I hollered, clutching my stomach. The barrier behind my eyes broke in a gush. With it came a mournful cry. Within a short space of time I lost Zaren, and now Michael. I had to save my parents.

  An angry determination rode Ramien’s features. “No more games. Time to get dressed. You’ve a wedding to attend.”

  I nodded blindly, hoping I could do it alone.

  16. Loser

  Ramien used his . . . whatever (I had no idea what) . . . mojo, and we were back in the bedroom where I first met Angela. She was there again, back together, and cowering in the corner. “What’ll happen to Amberlee?” I asked, hoping to somehow slow down the events about to unfold. I didn’t want to marry Ramien.

  “After she’s paid her debt to me, she’ll be free.”

  “What debt? What do you mean?”

  Ramien grabbed me by the arm, and shook me hard. “Shut up and get dressed. No more stalling.”

  Angela let out a squeak. “Keep quiet, Angela. Or more pain will be in your future.” He laughed.

  The girl nodded, mutely.

  I tried another tactic, pulling my arm from his grasp. “Won’t marrying me go against the law of the Universe?”

  “Ah, you’re finally beginning to think. No, technically it won’t.”

  “But I’m not a ferether. I can’t do the things you can do. It’s only been six weeks since I became a kelvieri.” What was he saying? I was kelarian. Born and raised. Kelari was my home. Yet he implied our species were similar. Or did he mean ferether’s and kelvieri were somehow related.

  “It’s true you aren’t a ferether. But, our species are kindred enough that mating with you won’t break any rules. Not that the rules matter to me.” Ramien threw opened the closet door and pulled the same dress he’d wanted me to wear when I first arrived from its hanger. It was still beautiful, delicate. The strapless silver bodice adorned with intricate flowers. Gauzy material went over one shoulder. It was long, the material sleek, like liquefied steel. Next to him the material seemed frail, almost imaginary.

  My arrival in Helker with Michael seemed like a lifetime ago. So much had happened. I realized I had no sense of time here. No moons, or suns to give any indication of hours passing. “How long have I been down here?” I sat on the edge of the bed, suddenly so tired it hurt to breathe. My heart ached.

  “Your prehistoric interpretations of time are of no value,” he said, waving his hand dismissively. He handed the dress to Angela, which she laid out on the bed.

  I fixed Ramien with a needy stare. “How long?” I asked again.

  He sighed. “Probably close to a month according to the way kelarians calculate time.”

  “What?” I stood. “No way.” I figured maybe a few hours. A day at most. None of us ate, drank, or any of the other necessities basic for human and kelarian existence. My immortal body didn’t require those things to survive, but we enjoyed them. “I don’t believe you.”

  Ramien scoffed. “I guess it’s a good thing I don’t care whether you believe me or not.” He grabbed my arm and shoved me toward the chair and vanity. “Get dressed.”

  I nodded. Turning numbly, I went to the chair Angela indicated, and sat.

  The mirror on the vanity in front of me reflected a woman I didn’t recognize. When I first arrived in Helker, Angela had braided my hair. Now the braid hung lopsided along the side of my head. My face looked like something out of a horror hologram. Black, maroon, and red blood covered my face in splotches, spatters, and smears. My eyes no longer shone a vivid blue (the way Zaren described them), but were a dull, almost nonexistent color. A long cut went through my right eyebrow and celestrum seeped from the wound. The shirt I wore no longer appeared lavender, but dingy, covered in blood and guts. One of the sleeves was gone, ripped away at the shoulder. The other hung in a tattered mess, shredded by either the snakes or the dorvey. My fingers were covered in blood, the skin under the fingernails blackened. Even my belt buckle, Tortevia, was drenched in all manner of fluids. The only item that remained unscathed was Michael’s medallion.

  “Do you mind if I have a bath first? It’s apparently been ages since I was clean.”

  His expression caught mine in the glass. “You are disgusting. I suppose a good washing would be best. No sense scaring the guests.” He went to the door. “Several of the wedding guests will be your loved ones. I invited your parents. They declined. But the king and queen of Alayeah are coming.”

  I gave him a puzzled look. “So my parents will be there? Not that you’re giving them a choice, I’m sure.” Despite the circumstances, excitement beat in my chest. I would see my parents. Though I knew they died, I longed to see them, hold them in my arms, and have them comfort me. I needed them.

  He laughed. “True. Zaren and his lover, Palamina, are also coming,” he said with a cruel sneer.

  At the mention of Zaren’s name, my heart pounded faster. Zaren! My mind cried out in anguish. It hurt thinking of him with Palamina.

  Ramien continued on with his guest list. “I also invited Palmo, Dervinias, and the human, Cheverly. ” While he spoke a huge bathroom appeared to the right of the vanity.

  “Angela, help her. I’ll return shortly.”

  He left, slamming the door.

  I gulped in a huge breath of air, pushing down the new wave of pain threatening to burst.

  Angela scurried over. “Highness, let’s get you washed up.”

  I wanted to laugh. Ha! The blood might come off my skin, but it would never leave my soul.

  Angela helped me out of the chair, and dragged me into the bathroom. She removed my clothes and had me under the water within seconds. My mind was like a blank screen. Empty. I couldn’t think. I didn’t want to. Any sort of contemplation would bring up all that had happened, and I wasn’t ready. If I left my mind blank, I wouldn’t have to remember what I’d done, those I lost, and what was yet to come.

  The hot water slapped against my skin in stinging procession. Ducking my head in the spray, I closed my eyes, wishing the water would wa
sh me away along with the dirt and grime.

  Venus, come child.

  17. Unbelievable

  “Where,” I whispered.

  “What did you say, Highness,” Angela asked, scrubbing my back with some sort of brush.

  “Nothing,” I shook my head and closed my mouth. Tortevia. I said her name with my mind.

  Very good, child, she purred softly. I must show you something. As she spoke my mind opened up . . .

  The scalding water. Angela scrubbing my back. The stifling fogginess of the air. It all evaporated.

  I stood in nothingness. That was the only way to explain it. Emptiness swallowed up my feet. On all sides were stars, stars, and more stars. A menagerie of them in bursts of reds, purples, and blues. Directly in front of me sat an irrihunter, like the gargoyles on old churches.

  Tortevia, I asked astonished.

  She roared, extending her wings out and upward, giving me a full view of how massive they were. Hello, child, she said with a soft purr.

  Where am I? I took a hesitant step toward her. The ground, though I couldn’t see it, felt solid. I took another step.

  She chuffed, her head moving up and down in humor. This is space. Didn’t the stars give you a clue?

  I snorted. But it’s firm.

  Everything is substance. Even the matter between objects. But that’s not why you’re here.

  Then why? I reached her side, and longed to touch her fur. May I?

  Of course.

  I sank my fingers into her lush black mane, ran my hand over her furry back, touching the cartilage where a wing extended, and pressed my cheek against hers. You are beautiful, Tortevia. Being near her in this way made me long for Sadraden.

  Tortevia turned, her violet eyes glowing in pleasure. As are you. Now climb on. Let’s go for a ride.

  My heart skipped a beat. Hopping on, I situated my naked self in front of her wings, so my legs rested against her neck.

  With two giant leaps, her wings beat and Tortevia flew. I let out a squeal of exhilaration. I missed flying almost as much as I missed my mom and dad. Together we went faster and faster.