The Sea of Change

by Tina Engel

  Kimberlite was the first to approach me, and as I looked to Brett, I could see he was a bit miffed. Kimberlite took my hands in his and I looked up to see a concerned and caring smile. “They told me you were in trouble but we couldn’t get to you. There was some kind of force field stopping us from going back. I told the lava pebbles that it was up to them to help. They did well for youngsters. We’re all here to keep you safe. Please don’t ever doubt this.”

  I felt embarrassed that I was having concerns about Kimberlite’s loyalties. But there was still something that he was hiding. I could see it deep down inside of him; I could feel some kind of trouble that he was in. There was nothing I could do about it at the present time. I would just have to wait it out, and hope, that when the time came and all was revealed, I would be ready to handle it.

  Looking down at my hands in his, I realized that my hands and arms were as red as the substance that I was in. I assumed my entire body looked like this. It was just like the time I was angry with everyone when we were at John and Sara’s farm. I was trying to protect Rose, from everyone’s fear and anger, when we thought she was working for Queen Widow. Of course, we thought Queen Widow was working for Stephan at the time. Funny, I didn’t think I was angry, but I was frightened. Was it the same feeling I had back at the farm, I wondered?

  The color lightened until I was my normal color and Kimberlite released my hands. I still felt weak and could feel that presence close by but it had no hold over me now.

  I said, “I’m feeling better and I think we should continue. But please let’s stay together. I only hope that Lily, wherever she is, will be safe. And when I get my hands on her….”

  Then from up in front of us, we saw a shadow emerging from the darkness. There walked Lily in her fey form. She walked so non-caring, as if nothing had happened and she had been with us all along.

  I pushed through the others who were all standing and staring, and in my mind I could hear Brett say, “Princess, calm down, and hear her out before you kill her!”

  I looked back at Brett and saw a large smirk appear on his face and it made me want to laugh, but I didn’t.

  “Where have you been, Lily? I was worried sick about you!” I said, as I reached out and took hold of both of her shoulders. I wanted to shake her silly but instead I pulled her close and hugged her, as if she was a long lost friend that I hadn’t seen in years.

  Lily wrapped her arms around me also and our embrace was safe and loving. Lily was the one to end this display of emotion. She released me, pushing me gently, but firmly away, saying quietly, “That’s enough Princess, we don’t have time for emotional greetings. The dark one is close and he almost had you in his grasp. If not for me, you would be for sure under his control.”

  Everyone looked in disbelief at what Lily had just said. Kimberlite started laughing and it made everyone else chuckle just a bit, all except for Queen Anahita. She still seemed so serious ever since we met up with her.

  Kimberlite was laughing so hard that when he spoke it was hard to understand what he said, so he had to repeat it twice, “What did you do? It was the lava pebbles who saved Princess Emilee.”

  “You all really don’t know who you are dealing with. You have no clue as to who I am or what I can really do. You were all fools to leave her alone down here, knowing that the dangers are all around. She is still very vulnerable and the world down here is hostile and self-serving. How can I trust her safety with you if you are all so careless?”

  Lily then put her hands up, and as she turned around, changed into a large glowing ball that just hovered above the ground. We all stood there, not sure what to do. Before anyone could move the glowing ball shrunk down to the ground, and there stood Lily the cat, looking just as annoyed as she always did.

  We all just stood there looking at Lily, not moving or saying anything. It was Rose who broke the shocking silence that we all seemed to be experiencing. Rose walked up to Lily, bent down and picked her up. My head was spinning. Rose and Lily hated each other, I thought so anyway. When did they become such good friends, I wondered?

  Rose spoke, and as she did I realized just how quiet it was; I think we were all holding our breath, too afraid to breathe. “I don’t know what’s going on but I do believe that Lily is right. This place is dark and dangerous and we all need to get out of here. Sorry Kimberlite, I don’t mean any disrespect for your domain, but we really need to go now and sort this all out later.”

  Still no one spoke, but Kimberlite took the lead with Queen Anahita following behind and Rose holding Lily, Jordan, myself and Brett and Eagle in the back. It was quiet; all I could hear was breathing from my companions, the dripping of water from up above and soft moaning sounds from somewhere deep in the earth. The ants were quiet, not a peep from them, and being so large in numbers I found that odd. It was like no one wanted to be seen or heard out of fear for their wellbeing.

  I felt Brett close behind me and at times I felt his hand on my waist. The soft vibration that was always there felt so safe and comforting. He didn’t enter my mind and I stayed out of his. There was nothing to say right then. We just needed to focus on getting out of the tunnels and up into the world above. It was time to enter my true land, my true home, and I was excited but nervous. I had to find a way to bring Jordan there with us. “Just walk, Emilee.” I told myself. “Just walk.”

  Chapter 17

  Rejection,

  A pain deep inside,

  Causes doubt and turmoil

  Within.

  Am I strong enough to

  Overcome?

  We walked in silence, no one wanting to disturb the progress we were making as we headed to the Appalachian Mountains. This was where we would enter the fey’s dimension and continue on, until we reached Florida and on to the Gulf of Mexico. Why Brett thought I was supposed to find my mother now, before I went to Proteus’s palace in the Atlantic Ocean, was a mystery to me. But we continued walking, moving forward, not daring to look behind for fear of seeing what might be following.

  I was tired, and part of me wanted to stop and rest. I needed something; was it water or blood, or something else that I was unaware of? Brett was there behind me, I felt his soft vibration, but as we continued on, this vibration got stronger. A little at first and I thought it was just Brett, thinking about me in a fond way.

  As we walked this vibration between Brett and I got so strong that it began to get uncomfortable. I wondered if he was feeling it too. How was he handling it? I looked back at Brett and saw he was trudging along as if there was nothing extra to worry about, except us all getting up to the surface. He was looking around intently, not wanting anything to surprise us. He didn’t seem to be uncomfortable, physically, at all though.

  The feeling continued to get stronger until I could no longer take the pain, I was feeling, so I put up my shield to block him. I wanted to talk with him about this, but didn’t want to make any noise or disturb everyone’s own concentration on getting to the surface and fresh air.

  I tried to communicate with Brett mentally but he was blocking me, why? If I put up my shield, would it hurt his feelings? I didn’t want any new drama going on. We had enough with Lily and Rose, Kimberlite and Jordan, and the strange bond between Brett and Queen Anahita.

  I had to block him though, or I could no longer continue. I was weak in a way I had never been before. The underground traveling must be the reason. There was something that was pulling at me, but Brett was adding to it. I wondered if it was our bloods still trying to mix and find a happy coexistence within our bodies.

  I tried to get Brett’s attention without speaking or stopping. He was too intent on our surroundings and our travels. I had to block him. So I put up my shield, just around myself, so close that no one could see.

  I looked back at Brett and he was staring at me in disbelief. I felt immediately nauseous by the look of hurt in his eyes. I open my mouth to speak but he looked away. I would explain later when we stopped. It would be alright. I
turned and looked ahead then. The pain had stopped. All the vibrations that were always there between Brett and I were gone. I felt nothing, as if he didn’t exist at all.

  I now had a different kind of pain. It was a pain of loneliness and emptiness that I hadn’t felt since the day I met Brett. There was a feeling though, deep inside, a vibration of sorts that I realized had been there for years before Brett. Had his connection stopped this feeling, or had it just covered it up?

  “Just focus, Emilee, on moving forward. You will explain to Brett later and everything will be alright.” I told myself.

  We walked for hours, no one speaking, and I was about to go out of my mind from the quiet all around me. I wanted to yell to the world, to anyone who would hear me, just to escape the silence, make a noise so I knew that there was still sound out there. It seemed everyone and everything was afraid to make a noise.

  I opened my mouth to let something out, but before any noise escaped, there up ahead was light. I felt fresh air rushing into the tunnel. It was a sweet smell of leaves, tree bark, flowers and sunshine.

  Rose ran ahead, past Queen Anahita and Kimberlite, as she disappeared out into the open world. I had to smile and giggle a little at this sight and turned to share my joy with Brett, only to remember quickly by the look of rejection on his face that he was still angry. We all hurried a bit faster to get to the opening of the tunnel and out into the open world.

  Queen Anahita held back, not letting her fresh water spring stray too far from the entrance. She had a look of relief but also guardedness.

  Rose was up in the trees, then down on the ground; bouncing and dancing, so happy to be out of the dark, damp tunnel.

  Jordan even seemed less tense now and was taking deep breaths as if he had been holding it for too long. He looked at me and smiled, actually smiled. It was nice.

  Eagle spread his wings and up into the sky he flew, as he turned into an eagle.

  Kimberlite went over to a large boulder and as he leaned against it, another rock fey appeared. They grasped each other’s hands in a gesture of happiness to see each other.

  I realized then that Rose wasn’t just dancing by herself, there were other Pixies with her, all dancing and singing.

  I looked to the sky and there out of nowhere, came other eagles flying with Eagle. As they came down to the ground, they turned into Fey, hugged each other in greetings, and chatted away as if they hadn’t seen each other in ages. Family, they were family.

  More rock fey came to the surface and tree fey came out of their trees. Plants changed in looks and there were fey emerging from them. All different sizes and shapes, but I could see them all.

  The bird fey, rock fey and tree fey looked more human in shape, but the bushes and flowers were different, smaller and more primitive.

  Everything came alive and I realized that I wasn’t in the human’s dimension any longer. A panic rose inside of me as I looked for Jordan, and there he was, only different, he was fey.

  Jordan was fey and always had been. The elders just covered his true being to force him to live in the human’s world. He had a strange look on his face; disbelief and sadness. I was confused by this. He should be happy to be fey again.

  I looked to Brett and could see he was still angry. He looked at me, but with contempt in his eyes. I had to talk to him but just as I started to go towards him he turned and went to Queen Anahita and they started to discuss something quietly.

  I felt such rejection again. The pain inside grew and I could feel that strange, just a bit off, vibration again. It wasn’t Brett, he couldn’t penetrate my shield, and I didn’t think he wanted to anyway.

  Looking around, there were so many new bright colors and movement, so much to take in. Everyone was busy with others and I was here alone in my own bubble of sorts, watching from afar. I needed to drop my shield and feel it all. This was silly to shield myself from the others. I wanted to be a part of this new world.

  I dropped my shield, and as I did, the feeling of an electric shock hit me so hard that I dropped to the ground. I was blinded by something, I couldn’t see, I couldn’t hear; the pain of this strange vibration was all consuming.

  There was someone there, not far from my mind. Brett, was it Brett trying to get in, causing all this pain? I had to put up my shield again. I managed to get it up and then I could see everyone around me; Brett on the ground next to me with concern and guilt on his face. I realized that I had tears in my eyes. I was shaking uncontrollably.

  Brett scooped me up in his arms and I could see Queen Anahita creating a pond that Brett was heading towards. As I looked around, the fey dimension disappeared and everyone went back to looking like they did in the human world.

  Brett walked into the water, carrying me, and held me close as he immersed me completely. I put my head back, allowing the water to fill my lungs and I let it consume my body and soul. I shut my eyes and relaxed, letting the water enter every pore, letting my skin drink. Soon I stopped shaking, and calm filled me inside.

  I opened my eyes and raised my head out of the water. I looked up into Brett’s face and saw relief but also sadness. The connection wasn’t there and he was so hurt.

  “Brett, please let me explain!” I said in a weak, but pleading voice. “Didn’t you feel the pain from our connection?”

  Brett looked at me in a confused way. His expression softened some as he realized that something was very wrong. He held me a bit tighter as he carried me out of the pond.

  Rose came up to us and started to put her hands out to touch me, but Brett turned me away from her and said, “Don’t touch her. Something is wrong and I want everyone to stay away for now. She has her shield up for some reason. I don’t want anyone to get hurt.”

  I was shock by his insinuation. He thought that I was doing this on purpose and could possibly hurt someone? Queen Anahita had a slight smile that crossed her lips but when she realized that I was looking at her, it disappeared.

  Brett put me down in a grassy area and knelt down next to me. He reached out, and holding my hands, said very quietly, “Why are you shielding yourself from me? I feel pain when I touch you.”

  He let go of my hands then and sat down on the ground, moving just a bit farther away.

  “Didn’t you feel the pain that our connection was causing? The vibration that you were sending me was so strong that I couldn’t take it. I tried to explain but you were blocking me. Maybe it’s our blood still trying to combine.” I said.

  Brett said nothing for a bit, but then said with sadness in his face, “Emilee, I felt nothing but peace and goodness from our connection and have since the day we met. It ended the moment you put up your shield in the tunnels. I don’t know what’s wrong, but I can’t help you if you don’t let me in. I can’t help you, out here.”

  I started to shake again and I said in a panicked voice, “I need to enter the fey’s dimension but I can’t let down the shield. I can’t let you in. Please don’t be angry, help me.” And the tears started to flow again. I couldn’t control the shaking or tears.

  “Princess,” Brett said, “I can’t touch you again. Your shield is too strong. You will have to enter the fey realm on your own.”

  He called me Princess, not Emilee. He’s still angry and I don’t know how to explain, I thought.

  It was Lily who came to me as Brett backed away with such pain in his eyes. She was in her fey form and as she laid her hands on my shoulders, I could see her change into the ball of light again. Everything disappeared for a moment and then when I could see again, it was the fey’s dimension that I was in.

  Lily was herself again, not glowing, and I could see it all, colors, beauty and life all around. The shaking was gone and so were the tears. The pain was just that strange vibration that I knew now wasn’t Brett.

  I looked to Brett with a pleading need for him to come to me and help me up. I wanted to feel the connection again, to feel his touch. He didn’t move, only stood there staring at me as if I was a stranger.
If I let down the shield, the pain would swallow me up.

  Lily reached out and taking my hand helped me to stand. Rose came over and as she walked past Brett, he turned and walked away. I had hurt him so deeply, but how could I get through to him that this wasn’t how I wanted things.

  Lily, being the flippant cat that she was, said in a very sarcastic tone, “So where is the trust now. To think, success was just round the corner.”

  For a moment Brett had a look of regret, but it faded when Queen Anahita came to him and whispered something in his ear.

  Lily shook her head with disgust, and leaped up into a tree. She stayed in her fey form. I wondered if the cat form was just for the human world. “Your intuition is strong, so it just might save us all, Princess.” Lily said.

  No one understood this comment but me. She knew what I was thinking.

  Rose took me by the hand and led me to a more private spot where I could eat. I asked her if my shield hurt her in any way. My shield didn’t seem to bother her. I felt better now with the water and Rose’s blood, and my shield around my skin.

  We walked back to the others, as they were all discussing our next move. They were all worried about me but one by one they came up and touched me. My force field didn’t bother any of them. Eagle suggested Queen Anahita try, but she refused, saying that if Brett couldn’t touch me then she didn’t want to take a chance on me somehow hurting her.

  I was shocked and as I looked at Brett for help he shrugged his shoulders slightly and said, “I think we need to get going. It’s going to be dark soon and we need to find a place to set up camp. Being in the fey dimension, Princess Emilee can be in more danger with all eyes watching us. We will need to find some more allies to help keep an eye out for those who want to take her. I know just who can help. They’re not far from here.”