Hand in hand with Michael, I once again tried to focus on the view as there was still a long walk ahead of us and I didn’t want to be thinking with my vagina the entire way.
“Mama Pacha?” asked Elias. “You haven’t mentioned anything about Viracocha, who was supposed to have created you and Supay and Inti. Was he from your world?”
“Oh, no, we made him up. We needed someone to flesh out our stories a bit. We told everyone that he created us on this island, and then Inti and Supay in turn created the human Inti and the Supay species.”
“Well then, okay. Everything we’ve learned our entire lives is made up,” said Anthony.
“Pretty much, kid.”
We soon came upon a tiny village. A hut was set up along the walking trail with a fire pit outside. Delicious smells came from the little flame. My stomach growled loudly.
“Coya, allow me to buy you some lunch,” said Anthony.
“Gladly!” Mama Pacha replied for me. “Hey, handsome, why do you call her Coya?”
“Because if I have my way, she'll be my queen for the rest of my life.” My heart skipped a beat and I stared at him, this beautiful, romantic man I was growing to absolutely adore.
“How long have you known each other?” asked Mama Pacha.
“I’ve known her since before her husband was taken from her. I’ve watched over her for nearly nine years,” he said as he stared at me lovingly. “I watched her break down when Michael was killed, and I almost went to her then. I only stopped out of fear that she might reject me, given how recent her grief was. Then Elias wormed his way into her life, and I couldn’t come up with a good excuse to worm my own way in. So I watched from afar.”
“Huh. Well, in my native tongue, Coya means toenail.” She smiled wanly.
Ignoring her, he turned and told the man at the hut he wanted two burritos and handed over several bills. I was too hungry to really care what they were. After handing me the wraps, he paid our toll to be able to get onto the north side of the island.
I bit into my lunch and moaned at the flavor explosion in my mouth. We continued on the path and I ate my burrito, savoring it. I gazed at several beaches as we walked past. It was far too chilly to swim, but I still yearned to jump into the blue water. We passed several cacti with interesting flowers, but vegetation was sparse otherwise.
All in all it took us closer to three hours to begin approaching a set of ruins running up a hill—the Chincana Labyrinth.
We followed Mama Pacha up the stairs. She skipped past several entrances and took us to the top. We entered and were given no time to marvel over the stone work or the maze that she knew by heart. She took us straight to a room that held a well. “This is it. The well is the portal. We told our followers that the well contained water that gave life. It was a nod to our spring at home. In reality, the well camouflaged the portal. We made sure it was always guarded, but no one was allowed to enter the room without one of us present. It kept people from seeing us going in or out.” She walked up to the crumbling stones of the well and stroked them with a shaking hand.
“So, what do we do?” I asked.
“All you have to do is touch it with your blood. The boys found the proper legend there, but they couldn’t have known it would have to be your blood to open it.”
I pulled Elias's arm so he’d turn around so I could dig a small knife out of his pack. I knew if I left it up to them to cut my hand, I’d never spill a drop of blood. I turned to the three men and we shared a meaningful look, each more reluctant than the other to begin the process. I walked up to Anthony and clasped him in a hug.
“Be careful, my Coya. Remember your training, it'll help you. You don't know the strength of the people you'll be facing, so stay on your toes.”
I turned to Elias next. He pulled me into a tight embrace. “You’re trained. If any human could handle this, it’s you. I had a hard time deciding whether or not to send you in armed. After talking it over with Anthony and Michael, we decided you should be.” He dropped his backpack and pulled out holsters, guns, and several knives. I loaded up, and made sure my weapons were carefully concealed. I wouldn’t take them out unless absolutely necessary.
Lastly, I turned to Michael. He stood and stared at me, rather lost. I smiled at him, but the smile didn't reach my eyes. “We won’t be apart for long, Michael.”
“Even a few minutes is too long, Baby. I can’t go with you. I can’t protect you. I can’t…I can’t stand this. Please don’t go. Don’t risk this! Our children should be able to have you in their lives for another forty to sixty years. At least give them and us that.” He dropped to his knees and put his arms around my waist. “Don’t leave me, Riley. Please don’t go through that portal.”
I stood, ramrod straight, with the love of my life begging me to stay with him. I would give him the world, but I couldn't give him the one thing he was asking of me. Tears poured down my cheeks as well as the cheeks of Elias and Anthony. Even Mama Pacha’s eyes were filled with tears.
“Get up, Michael,” I whispered. He stood, his head hanging and his arms still tight around me. “I’ve got to go. I’m so sorry.” My voice broke and I took several deep breaths before continuing. “Michael, this is my only chance to live long enough to see our children grow up. I would be dead before they were even legal adults in the Unseen world.” He squeezed me to the point of pain, too upset to realize his strength.
Anthony stepped behind Michael and put his hand on Michael’s shoulder. I assumed he was calming him.
I put my hands in his hair and massaged. “Michael, I think you’re having a PTSD attack. Please, darling, step back for a second, and let Anthony help you.”
Michael shook, but he loosened his hold on me. He turned his head and matched Anthony’s gaze without letting me go. “Breathe when Anthony breathes, Michael,” Elias said. “Match your breaths to his, it'll help the calm take hold.”
“His mind is a web of panic. I don’t understand how he’s kept an attack like this at bay.” Anthony’s voice was hushed. Michael relaxed a little, his arms going to his sides. He turned back to me, and his eyes seemed more sane.
“Michael, do you understand that I have to go?”
“I do. I hope I’ll be able to let go when the time comes.”
“I know, love. Now kiss me and stand back. I’ll be back to you soon. You won’t even have time to miss me.”
He stood and kissed my lips with reverence, a slow, emotionally charged gesture of love. Tears continued to flow as I kissed him back. I closed my eyes and the air changed as he stepped away from me.
I opened my eyes and turned to Mama Pacha. “It’s time.” I took the knife and made a small cut on my right ring finger, hissing when I cut deeper than I’d meant to. I heard a gasp from someone standing behind me. Michael.
Bloody finger in the air, I asked which stone to touch. The tension in the room was overwhelming as Mama Pacha took my hand and touched my finger to a stone on top of the well.
Chapter Sixteen
Nothing happened. The tension disappeared as Elias sucked in a breath, disappointed. “Do it again, Riles.”
I touched my finger to the stone again to no result. Mama Pacha grabbed my hand and held my finger down on the stone, the cut stinging as she mashed it to the rough rock.
After three or four long seconds, the stone grew warm. A red light glowed under my finger and I jerked my hand out from under Mama Pacha’s. I backed away until my back hit against the far wall. Elias and Anthony joined me as the room vibrated.
The red light spread to the stones immediately around it, and I could hear a noise rather like a lion roaring. Elias spoke as I turned to him, excited.
“Did you hear the sound of water running?” he asked.
“No,” I replied. “I heard the sound of an animal roaring.”
Anthony and Mama Pacha said, simultaneously, “I heard the running water.” Michael remained silent.
Mama Pacha explained the reason, “You hear sounds
of your homeland through the portal stones.” My eyes grew wide and latched back onto the sight of the glowing stones.
Great. I’m going to go through to an animal of unknown origin, big enough to roar like a lion. I reached one hand under my shirt and squeezed the handle of one of my many guns, this one resting at the small of my back.
The glow spread until all of the stones resembled hot coals in a fire. Mama Pacha had an expression on her face like a child staring at a Christmas tree. Her cheeks were flushed and her eyes huge, like a cat about to pounce on a favored toy.
A wind swept through the room and tickled my cheeks. It was hot and dry. It didn't feel like the cool air we’d encountered on this island. The heat swirled around me and lifted my hair from my shoulders; it was eerie, frightening, and completely fascinating.
Nobody else was showing signs of being windswept. Michael stared at my hair, awestruck, and the others were staring at their hands and arms. “What are you guys feeling?”
“Mist,” said Elias. “It feels like I’m standing at the edge of a waterfall. I can hear the splash, and feel the droplets on my skin, but I’m dry.”
“I smell damp earth, dirt,” added Anthony.
Michael smiled at me, his eyes a fountain of sadness. He approached me and touched my hair. “I see it moving, but I don't feel the wind.” He grabbed the end of a clump of hair. The end he held was still, but the middle of the strands still tried to move.
“How long will the portal stay open?” I asked.
“Now that it’s activated, it'll stay open until you place your blood on a different stone. It is important that it be closed as soon as we're finished so that nothing else comes through from another dimension. We must move quickly.”
She turned to the well and climbed over the edge. She sat on the stones, legs dangling inside. With one last glance at me, she stood in the middle, supported as if she were standing on solid ground. Then she faded out and was gone.
Elias and Anthony approached and scrutinized the well. “Besides the glowing stones, the well looks like we'll fall all the way down when we step in.”
“Well, she did it okay. It’s now or never, guys. Michael is going to stay here until we know it’s safe.” I ran up and kissed them both on the cheek one last time. “Be careful and come back to me. I will go as fast as I can and come back to you. I…,” I trailed off and glanced back at Michael. “I love you both. I need you both to come back so we can begin our lives together.” They both promised to be safe and come back to me before climbing onto the edge of the well.
“Would it be weak of me to want to hold hands?” Anthony asked, laughing at his own nervousness.
“I’m cool with it, man.” Elias grabbed Anthony’s hand. They stood up inside the well, eyes fixed on me as they faded into nothingness. Before they disappeared, I saw Elias try to wipe his face as if it were getting soaked.
I walked up to the well, the wind whipping my hair faster as I approached. The heat was overwhelming after being used to the chilly air of the Isla. I took a deep breath and sat on the side of the well on the far side, so I would face Michael as I stood. The stones were warm through my pants, as if heated by fire.
I dangled my legs into the well and gathered the courage to stand. Michael’s face was panicked again. He ran toward me and scooped me up off of the well. “Turn off the portal, Riley. Do it!”
“What’s wrong with you, Michael? Put me down!” I screamed, furious. He sat me down across the room and grabbed my bleeding hand.
“Give me blood! I need some blood to close the portal.” He was distraught. He wiped my blood on his hand and ran back to the glowing stones. I followed, at a loss for what to do to calm him and complete our mission. That portal was my only ticket to a longer life. “Damn it, Michael, now isn't the time to lose your shit!”
Michael rubbed my blood on random stones, hoping one of them was the one that would shut off the magic. He grabbed my hand and squeezed fresh blood from my finger. While he was busy at the base of the portal, tapping my blood onto each stone, I ran over to the well and jumped inside before he could stop me.
I almost dropped to my knees. Somehow, when I jumped over the side, I expected to fall, my eyes deceived by the depth of the well. But my feet were on solid ground. My body vibrated and my hair stood on end from the wind. “I’m sorry, Michael. I have to go. I will be back as soon as possible.” Michael was standing beside the well, mouth gaping.
“No, Riley, jump out! I can’t touch you while you’re there or I might be transported too. Please, please come out of there!” he begged. I waved as the lights in the room went out, like someone turning a dimmer switch.
A deep voice, humming a haunting and lonely melody, filled my ears and drowned out the sounds of Michael’s shouting. My body was weightless, as if I were falling. It happened so fast, I didn’t have time to scream or panic. The weightlessness left as fast as it came and I stood inside a small cave, facing the entrance. The source of the wind whipped into the cave entrance, further tangling my hair above my head.
The humming continued behind me. I whirled to find a figure sitting against the back wall. He was cloaked from head to toe; how he could stand the heat of this world with a cloak on was beyond me. I shuffled my feet, hoping to attract his attention without the need to speak. His eyes must've been closed for him to miss the glowing stones. I gripped the gun behind my back.
He didn’t move. I investigated the rest of the cave, cognizant of my training—to be hyper aware of my surroundings. The rest of the floor was completely bare, save the ring of glowing stones around my feet, the same circumference as the well back on Earth. Several torches lit up the inside of the cave, and I could see a night sky in the distance. It was so chock full of stars, I wanted to run outside and stare up at the alien lights.
I kept myself still and directed my attention back to the humming figure. My hair irritated me, so I reached up to grab it and put it in a quick braid. I froze when I saw my arm—it was green. Are those scales? Fucking hell. They were. My arm was covered in thick scales.
My breath quickened as I took in both arms; scaly, green arms. I brought them closer to my face. They were actually quite beautiful, multi-hued pieces of greens and browns.
Flipping my hand over to inspect my palm, I found sleeker scales, more like a snake’s, where my arms were more like a fierce lizard, or how I imagined a dinosaur would feel. I touched my face tentatively. It was sleek like my palms. I’d’ve killed for a mirror. Continuing my exploration of my face, I found I still had eyebrows.
I jerked my shirt up and stared at more hard, armor-like scales on my abdomen. My stretch marks were still there, but the pooch around my belly button was gone. My stomach was hard and flat. The stretch marks were breaks between the scales. Apparently, the smoother scales of my face and hands were hidden underneath the harder scales, because I could see it in the stretch marks. The gun on my hip scraped against the scales of my side.
My panic was well and truly set in. I stepped out of the stones and took a couple of small steps toward the hooded figure. I cleared my throat and his head jerked up. He scrambled to his feet and pressed himself against the cave wall. My hand went back to the gun behind me. I didn’t want to pull it out unless absolutely necessary.
He barked out a question in a language I didn't understand. I shrugged. “Is there any chance you understand English from planet Earth?” I asked, completely dumbfounded as to how we would communicate.
He let out a low chuckle and walked toward me, still completely shadowed by his robe. I couldn't even see his hands. I backed away, ice in my veins. My stomach clenched as I imagined what sort of creature was under that hood or if he meant me any harm. He walked toward the portal and reached out a finger to touch a stone. His touch left a smear of blood behind on the stone he touched. The stones stopped glowing immediately. He was like me.
He brought up his hands in a universal gesture of peace, palm out. I was finally able to see his skin and it w
as similarly patterned like my own new skin, but his was in shades of grays and blacks. I stopped moving, temporarily fascinated. I wanted to grab his hand and look closely at it.
He lifted one finger and brought it to my forehead. My eyes tried to watch his finger and his other hand at the same time. He could be distracting me in order to chop my head off with his other hand.
He didn’t though. He simply touched his finger to my forehead. I stiffened, my muscles rigid. As soon as he touched my forehead, my body was overcome with goosebumps and my brain tired.
“What are you doing?” I asked uselessly. He couldn't understand me.
“I'm giving you the knowledge of my language.” It dawned on me he was speaking his own language, which reminded me of Hungarian, and I wondered if any of the words in the two languages were shared.
“How are you doing that? Someone back home was able to share knowledge and memories with me in a similar fashion, but she wouldn’t explain it.” I continued without giving him a chance to answer, a million questions pinging around my brain. “Where am I? Why do I resemble a lizard lady, which, by the way, I look like that chick from a TV show back home, which is kinda cool. Do you even know what a TV show is? Are you going to hurt me? Are you my ancestor?” He shushed me after that question by putting the same finger on my lips.
“Hush, young one. I will explain. Please, come sit.” He walked back to his spot against the wall and I noticed he’d been sitting on a pile of fur blankets. “We have been waiting for you for centuries.”
I lowered myself down beside him, crossing my legs and facing him. “Me? Me, specifically?”
“In a way, yes. Many thousands of years ago, when these portals were created, a prophecy was made. It was foretold that a young dragon with scales of jade and jasper would appear from this gateway and save our people when we were on the brink of extinction.”
Hers From The Start: A Collection of First In Series Reverse Harem Page 60