“You ready?” Lydia asked, her face aglow with
expectation.
“Yes,” Octavion replied.
Holding the journey stone in the palm of one
hand, she reached up with the other, put pressure on the top of the
object, and gave it a twist. The top portion popped up, exposing
more of the clear stone through the opening. She did the same to
the bottom portion, opening another small gap that ran around the
entire disc. A bright white light filled the room. She gave it a
little spin, then removed her hands. The stone stayed there,
completely suspended, rotating on its own power.
“Be careful,” Octavion warned.
“Don’t worry. I know what I’m doing.” The
white light coming from the center stone shot a blue light out the
top and a green out the bottom. “This is where I got scared the
first time I did this. So I tried to stop it.” She grasped the
journey stone, putting one hand on top and the other on the bottom,
blocking the colored lights. The object slowed, but continued to
spin between her hands.
Octavion tensed as all the colors of the
rainbow shot around the cave. It only took a few seconds before the
ceiling, floor, and walls fell away and they were surrounded by the
kingdom of Xantara.
“Hold very still,” Lydia said. “Or it will
all go away.” The emotion in Lydia’s eyes and the pure happiness
that radiated from her was something Kira had never seen before.
She knew at that moment that this was where Lydia truly belonged.
Nothing else seemed right. Kira could no longer imagine Lydia
driving a car or standing at her school locker. Even the hobby she
loved so much seemed trivial and unimportant. How could Lydia
not
want to go home?
Octavion took a deep breath. Kira couldn’t
see his face, but imagined it looked much like his sister’s. Kira
had no words to describe what she saw. She’d never seen anything
like it. Even the area near the waterfall held no comparison to
this glorious display.
“Kira, can you see the castle?” he asked,
barely whispering.
“Yes. It’s amazing.” It appeared as though
they stood on top of a hill with the entire kingdom stretched out
below them. The castle perched high on a jagged cliff, almost
completely surrounded by a pristine mountain lake. Its walls were
made of a pure white stone, with arched windows and black rooftops.
Two guard towers flanked the main entrance, which stood at the end
of a long wooden drawbridge spanning a small stream. The water
meandered along the front of the castle and poured over the edge of
the cliff and into the lake.
“Look to the left of the main gate, the
second floor. My sleeping chambers are within. Lydia’s are in the
rear, overlooking the garden.”
“Show me more. I want to see everything.”
At the rear of the castle stood another
tower. It was much larger than the guard towers and at least two
stories higher than any other part of the castle. It had a flat
roof with a jagged railing that went the entire distance around the
top.
“From there you can see the entire kingdom,”
Octavion said. “The sunsets in Xantara are like nothing you’ve ever
seen here in your world.”
“I like sunsets,” Kira whispered.
From the main entrance, a small road led into
the village. Going the other direction, it continued up the hill
and ended where the three of them stood. On their right, a metal
gate led to the royal burial plot. Off in the distance stood a
crumbling structure—the aubelet—an ancient temple they no longer
used, according to Lydia. Just to one side was the place where both
their mothers were buried. Fresh flowers lay on each grave. He
paused for a moment and she wondered if his eyes held tears.
It gave Kira time to think. Now she
understood why Octavion had been so upset about the photos. They’d
been taken from this viewpoint. She smiled when she thought of the
camera teetering on its tripod and the little remote clenched in
Lydia’s hand as she struggled to keep the journey stone from
opening a doorway to her world. Kira would have liked to have a
picture of
that.
“You still with me?” Octavion asked, giving
her a gentle squeeze.
“Yeah, tell me more.”
“To the left, that is where most of our
people live.” A wall made of the same white stone as the castle
surrounded the entire village. Each cottage looked almost
identical. Some were larger than others, but they were all
constructed from dark round stones and had black roofs. It was
difficult to tell them apart.
“Why do they all look alike?” Kira asked.
“For their safety.” He didn’t explain
further.
Around each cottage grew meticulously kept
gardens filled with colorful flowers. She took in a deep breath,
anticipating their fragrance, then realized it was only an
illusion.
“Estaria loved flowers,” he said. “It was a
decree from my father for everyone to have and tend to the gardens.
It was his gift to her, so she could look out over the kingdom and
see their beauty.”
Kira’s heart ached at the thought of every
flower being picked, their petals scattered on the road. “Your
father loved her very much, didn’t he?”
“Yes he did.” He started to say more, but
Lydia spoke instead.
“I don’t think I can hold it any longer.”
“You have held it long enough. Release it.”
Octavion took one last deep breath, and let it out slowly. When
Lydia pulled the journey stone close to her body and slipped it
into its bag, Xantara disappeared and the darkness of the cave
returned.
Octavion released Kira so she could sit near
his sister, who had collapsed onto her bench. He went to one knee
in front of them and took Lydia’s hands in his. “You have given me
a precious gift today.” He pulled her hand to his lips and kissed
it. “But we must hide it away now. You must never play with
something so powerful.”
Lydia nodded. “Can you ever forgive me? I
didn’t mean any harm. I missed . . . home.”
He smiled. “After what you have just given
me, how could I
not
forgive you?”
The afternoon sun streamed through the
opening in the cave, giving more light to their surroundings.
Kira’s mood changed dramatically when Octavion produced another
armful of fruit and a few slices of cheese from behind the
mysterious blanket hanging on the back wall of the cave—his own
natural refrigerator, he’d said. Kira made a mental note to explore
it more closely when Octavion wasn’t around.
After they’d eaten, Lydia decided to go for a
walk with Toran, leaving Kira to her first lesson from the
alchemist. She was determined to learn everything she could and be
prepared if one of them was injured and needed her healing
powers.
Before starting, Octavion went to the rear of
the cave and rummaged through one of the many trunks he stored
there. When he came back, he carried a small leather pouch that he
tied around her waist.
“This is for you,” he said. “There are some
things I’d like you to carry.”
“Can I ask you something?”
“Of course.” He leaned against the table and
folded his arms.
“Do you think they’ll find us?”
Octavion sighed, his shoulders sagging as the
air escaped his lungs. “If they knew our location, they would
already be upon us. The more time passes, the better it is for
us.”
“But they know where I live. That means
they’re close.”
“I believe we are safe here, but that does
not mean we shouldn’t prepare for the worst.”
“If they come….” She wasn’t sure how to ask.
“How bad will it get?”
He lowered his arms and grasped the edge of
the table, his expression grave. “They will fight to the death,
Kira. They will not stop.”
“Then will you
please
teach me to
defend myself? I’m sure Lydia was trying to keep us from arguing
when she volunteered, but I want to know what I’m doing and be good
at it. I never want to be in the situation I was in with Bastian.
That was horrible. I had no idea what to do and he is so much
stronger than me.”
His brow furrowed. “I can teach you, but you
will still not fight.”
“What’s that supposed to mean? You can’t
expect me to stand there and watch. There must be something I can
do, even if it’s from a distance.”
He smacked the table with the palm of his
hand. “You will
not
fight, Kira, and we will not speak of
this again—do you understand? I am sorry, but you have no idea what
we are up against. Bastian is weak compared to a Royal like
Shandira and we have no idea the allies she has conned into
fighting with her. Even if I worked with you for months, you would
still be an easy kill. I may not be able to protect you
and
my sister. You will
not
fight.”
The cave fell silent for a few moments while
Kira let what he’d said sink in. The story Lydia had told about how
he’d chosen his sister over Serena played over and over in her
head. She pictured him mourning the death of the woman he loved and
it twisted her heart. When Octavion turned to rummage through the
bottles on the shelf, Kira spoke. “I won’t make you choose.”
He stopped and slowly spun around to face
her, glaring into her eyes as if she’d released an ancient
secret—something that was never to be revealed. “How much did she
tell you?”
“I know you loved Serena. And I know what you
wanted to ask her the night she died.”
He leaned against the table and gripped the
wooden top with his hands—this time with more purpose. “Lydia
should never have told you of my feelings.”
“Yes, she should have. There’s something you
need to get straight, Octavion. Do you remember what you said to me
that night, before you gave me this?” She held her hand up, so he
could get a good look at the Crystor. “You told me I could die if I
put this thing on.
I
made that choice, not you. And knowing
everything I know now, even with the danger we could be in, I would
still make it. With everything that’s happened, I still choose to
stay.”
“I will not watch you die,” he said.
“If you teach me how to defend myself, you
won’t have to.”
He shook his head and looked away.
“Don’t do that. Please, talk to me about
this,” she begged, putting herself back in his line of sight.
Little veins of yellow invaded his eyes and
she recognized that streak of temper she’d seen before. “There’s
nothing to talk about.”
“Then tell me this. Why am I here? If you’re
not going to let me be a part of your life, with all the good
and
bad that comes with it, why shouldn’t I leave?”
He said nothing.
As Kira stood there trying to read the sudden
mix of emotions on his face, thoughts bounced around in her head
and a tiny thread of doubt wound itself around her brain and gave
it a squeeze. Why
was
she here? They certainly didn’t
need
her—that is, unless Lydia was injured.
It was one of those, “Aha” moments, when she
wanted to slap her forehead with the palm of her hand. This all
boiled down to one thing—his oath to keep his sister alive. Nothing
else mattered, not even Kira.
She stepped back and let out a huff of air.
“I can’t believe I’ve been so stupid.”
“What are you talking about?” he asked,
confusion clear on his face.
“All this emotion, your
fake
concern
for me. Lydia said it was because you liked me, but it’s all been a
lie to keep me close by in case she’s hurt and you need me to heal
her. Why didn’t I see that before?”
He let go of the table, straightened his back
and clenched his fists at his sides. “That is not true, Kira. And
you know it.”
“How dare you play with my emotions? Why
don’t you just put me in a cage? I’m a tool, like all these stupid
jars of smelly potions.”
“Kira, stop.” He took a step toward her, but
she backed away, increasing the distance between them.
“You aren’t protecting me because you
care
for me. You want me to live so I can be her
healer
. And since you only have one of these stupid healing
charms and it’s stuck around my wrist—that means you’re stuck with
me
. That’s it, isn’t it?” She paused for a second to get his
answer, but it didn’t come. “Answer me!” she yelled.
When he crossed the floor and came at her,
she thought for sure she was in for more of his rage, but instead
he grabbed her around the waist and slammed their bodies together.
Their eyes locked, but the whirlpool of emotions she saw swirling
around in his eyes made her head spin and she had to look away.
Threading his fingers through her hair, he gently pulled her head
back. He paused for a brief moment, capturing her full attention
with his hypnotic eyes when he forced her to look at him. “Is this
real enough for you?” Then he pressed his tender lips to hers.
At first she resisted, thinking his advance
was a ploy to deceive her into believing he had feelings for her.
But then his kiss softened and she felt his heart racing alongside
hers. She knew it was real. She slid one hand around the back of
his neck and pulled him closer, as the heat of his passion rushed
through her like fire, making her body melt into his. Her lips
parted in invitation and her hand ran up under his vest to caress
the warm flesh there. But instead of accepting her advance, his
body tensed, and he pushed her away.
He swore in his native tongue, his body
trembling. “You—” His jaw muscles tightened as he swallowed hard
and made a visible attempt to calm his rapid breathing.
Kira stumbled back against the cold stone
wall, brought her hand to her heart to stop it from flipping around
in her chest.
Octavion raised one brow and flashed his
dimples. “Are you well, Kira?” he asked in a deep voice that
brought butterflies to her stomach.