Sebastien wore a look of equal loathing. What exactly had the world of magic come to? When a father could so easily ruin the life of his own son? Was magic making everyone crazy? No, not magic. Just the whacked out idea that for some reason, they needed more of it than anyone else did.
Nona thought all these things as well, but her biggest concern lay with reuniting with Meghan. Being away from her felt wrong, empty, as if a gash had been seared onto her heart when their connection was severed.
“Elisha,” said Ivan slowly. “Just who is Colby’s father?”
She hissed, “Like you don’t already know. Why do you think Colby came here?” She plunked down, pouting. She wanted to leave, but where would she go? She eyed her companions with contempt. She needed their help to find her master.
Ivan let out a deep sigh, thoughts and theories falling into place.
“Colby’s father is Jurekai Fazendiin, isn’t it?” Just the look on Elisha’s face confirmed his theory.
Sebastien let out a gagging sound, which Elisha ignored. She wasn’t a fan of Fazendiin’s right now, but if Colby could manage to control his new gift, he would return to his father as an insurmountable weapon, ready and willing to carry out any deed Fazendiin wanted done. And she would remain by Colby’s side, without question.
“That’s why Colby came here, to find Meghan?” said Sebastien.
“Actually,” spoke the cattish voice of Elisha, “He came here to see his mother... Meghan just happened to be along the way.”
“Right, that makes sense now. They share the same mother and father,” said Sebastien.
“My head hurts,” said Ivan, shaking it. “So this kid Colby, and Meghan, are actually brother and sister, children of Jurekai Fazendiin. What about Colin? What are they? Triplets?”
“Yeah, um, about that,” mumbled Sebastien. “I sort of hadn’t had the time to mention that Colin is not really Meghan’s twin. I don’t think they’re even related.”
“What? Really?” said Nona. “But they can hear each other’s thoughts and...” she trailed off. “She will be so devastated...”
“How would she be devastated?” spouted Elisha. “Didn’t she betray him?”
No one answered but Nona hurled a low snarl at Elisha.
She ignored it, growing bored and impatient. “If you’re all done catching up on the latest news, I think Nona and I have some business to get to.”
Nona cast a nasty gaze in Elisha’s direction. She trusted this Catawitch just about as much as she trusted Jurekai Fazendiin. Unfortunately, she saw no other alternative to finding their respective masters.
Elisha picked up on Nona’s sentiments and purred a low chuckle. “I don’t look forward to this either, but seeing as we’re family now, you’d better get used to working together.”
Nona gagged, choking out her words. “Family! It takes more than blood to make a family!”
Elisha took a step toward Nona with her front right paw ready to take a swipe at her face.
“As fun as this is not,” said Ivan, hopping in between them, “I think it might be best if we all stick together.”
Sebastien nodded in hasty agreement.
“Yes! I agree,” said Nona, grateful of the company. “Three to one,” she aimed at Elisha.
“Fine,” she conceded. “But just beware that in his current condition, he might just kill you all in the process.”
It was clearly meant to frighten them and sadly, it was also true.
“It’s a chance we’ll just have to take,” said Sebastien. “We cannot leave Meghan with Colby, not in the state he’s in. It’s too dangerous.” He not only feared for her immediate safety, but worried that somehow Colby would figure out how to use his new powers to change Meghan, to turn her to darkness, dragging her into the depths of the world of the Grosvenor, either as a prisoner or as an ally. He could see the same concern in Ivan’s eyes too.
Nona stood, ready and eager to depart. “I will gladly give all my nine lives to save Meghan.”
Elisha’s smug smile turned into a dark grin. “I will gladly keep that in mind...”
Chapter 2
Colin sucked in a deep breath, having not stopped for air in what seemed like hours. He was explaining everything that had happened to him and Meghan since their departure from Cobbscott just over two years prior.
“An Uncle Eddy,” mumbled Arnon, as Colin explained their ghostly tutor from Grimble, the ghost town filled with spirits waiting to fulfill their unfinished business. “I don’t know such a person, then again...” Arnon paused.
“What do you know?” asked Colin after a moment.
He sat across from his uncle, close to a roaring fire, the two of them alone in Kanda’s small living room. Kanda and Catrina were having tea in the kitchen, giving the two of them space to talk.
“You’re so grown up now,” Arnon said tenderly. “Colin, I must apologize to you. For not telling you about magic or who you are. I thought it was the best way to keep you safe at the time.”
“There have been times that I’ve been a little angry about it,” Colin admitted, “but mostly, I just wanted the chance to talk to you again.”
“I’m going to tell you everything that I know,” Arnon said.
Colin listened eagerly.
“First, I’m no more a blood relative to you than this Uncle Eddy most likely is, or was.”
“I had kind of assumed at this point that might be the case. But really, no Uncle Eddy?”
“No. Sorry. I wish I knew who this man was but at least we can be grateful that he was on your side.”
“I guess.” Colin had really hoped that Uncle Eddy had been an actual relative. Arnon read the disappointment in his eyes.
“I suppose it’s always possible that he could be family,” he added. “Family we don’t know of. He did wait in Grimble for you, there’s something to be said for that. Blood ties can often keep us from moving on after death. Suffice it to say that for now, I don’t know this person but I guess you can’t rule out he might actually be family.”
Colin decided to keep holding out hope that maybe Eddy was family. He wasn’t ready to give up on that yet. “So if we’re not related, hey wait! I’m still going to call you Uncle Arnon, is that okay?” he blurted out, getting sidetracked.
“That’s definitely okay!” Arnon replied, holding in a laugh.
“Good. Anyway, so if we’re not related, how did Meghan and I come to live with you?”
“A story I’ve waited a long time to tell you,” began Arnon. “Back when you were just an infant the Svoda all lived together, in relative peace on an island just off the coast of Maine. It’s hidden with magic. Been that way for hundreds of years. And during our time there, we had a system in place that could track magical blips, anywhere in the entire world.”
“I heard a bit about this,” said Colin.
“Good, good. So, this is how you were first discovered. Quite a few years had passed since we’d had any sort of magical occurrences outside of the island and when your blip appeared, something else happened as well. A seer had a vision. One that told us we had to find you, protect you, and hide you, as you were special. Fated to be one of the three.”
“One of the three what?” asked Colin.
“Three children born of immortal blood, who would play a vital role in bringing balance to the magical world.”
Colin didn’t know what to say. A prophecy, about him? And Meghan? “And wait,” he said out loud, “one of the three... who’s the third?”
“We don’t know.”
“And is this balance good balance?” he asked, unsure he was being clear, as he wasn’t even entirely sure what he meant.
However, Arnon seemed to get what he meant.
“There is much debate over what balanced means in this prophecy. It is not clear if this is a balance towards good, towards evil, or just a general balance between the magical communities.”
Colin didn’t know how he was supposed to bring balan
ce into a magical world gone mad, especially now that he was a Projector. Something he had not yet told his uncle.
“Now don’t panic when I say this next bit, it might sound alarming, but I promised to tell you everything,” said Arnon. He took in a deep breath before continuing. “The prophecy went on to say that only one of these three children would succeed.”
Colin wrinkled his face, not sure he understood.
“Much debate has also occurred over what this means, but the general consensus believes this to mean that you will each bring a different view of what the magical world should be and that...” he paused, swallowing hard. “And that there may be a battle between you.” His eyes glistened in sadness as he spoke these words. “We could be wrong,” he added with a tinge of hope.
Colin couldn’t reply. Is this what was happening? Between him and Meghan? Was their broken relationship fated to happen whether he wanted it to or not? Was he destined to fight the one person he’d always relied on. And she him?
“Colby,” he suddenly whispered.
“Sorry?” said Arnon, having not quite heard him.
“I think I know who the third is,” he said.
A look of shock spread across Arnon’s face.
“There’s this boy named Colby. I told you about him, that boy that keeps showing up and causing trouble. He is a great fighter. Seems to know a lot about magic, plus, Meghan can hear his thoughts. I can’t. Just her. But if I had to, I’d bet my life he’s the third.”
“I suppose,” said Arnon, with an air of sadness mixed with surprise, “that if it is truly fated, of course this boy would have come into your lives.”
“So if this prophecy is correct, we all somehow end up battling each other, over some kind of control over the magical world? This just doesn’t even make any sense,” Colin added. “I mean, I get mad sometimes but... this is just...” he didn’t know what else to say.
“I’m sorry, Colin. Perhaps if I continue telling my story, something will make a little more sense of it all.”
Colin nodded.
“After this prophecy, we set out to locate you, believing we would find all three of you. But there was just the two of you, side by side in a tiny crib. There was a third infant in the crib, but that infant showed no signs of being magical. This begs the question now whether we should have taken that third infant, just in case. You see, infants don’t normally have, let alone use, magic. It doesn’t normally show itself until a child is five, six, sometimes seven years old. But each of you had strong magic within you already, even as infants. This alone seemed to prove the theory that you were born of immortal blood.”
Arnon took a sip from a cup of cooled tea.
“There’s only one group of immortals that I’ve been told about,” said Colin. He kept secret that this was not entirely true, seeing as Projectors could also choose to live forever.
“The Grosvenor,” said Arnon, confirming what he believed Colin was about to say.
Colin nodded in agreement.
“Yes. This is whom I speak of. The Grosvenor were created to be immortal, but can be destroyed- not easily- but any offspring born from them would be born with natural, true immortality. There is no known way that a child born into the world under these circumstances could be killed, ever. So you can see just how special you really are.”
“So I can’t be killed?” asked Colin slowly.
“No.”
Colin sat back quickly, not realizing how forward he had been leaning. He didn’t know if this was a relief or should cause further concern. Who wouldn’t want to be immortal? On the other hand, what if he couldn’t handle his Projector’s powers? What then? How would he be stopped if no one could kill him? Jasper had died, Colin had assumed he could as well.
Perhaps he was truly fated to battle Meghan and Colby. Perhaps they would work together to try to stop him, and fail! Perhaps he really would destroy the world. He didn’t want to die. But he also didn’t want to tear the world apart. But if no one could kill him, how would he be stopped, if it came to that?
“Uncle Arnon,” he said, a new question arising. “If we showed magical abilities as infants, why is it we didn’t have any magical abilities until we were almost thirteen?”
“This is because we devised a spell that would temporarily bind your powers, until you were old enough to handle them. We decided that...” Colin cut him off.
“Um, sorry, who is this “we” you keep talking about?”
“Sorry, I should have explained that better. The we is actually a group of people made up from the Tunkapog, Kanda’s people, and my people; you would know them today as the banished Svoda.”
“Oh. Okay. Um, so back to the spell...”
“We had a hard time deciding what to do with you two. We wanted to protect you, keep you safe, but to do that we had to bind your powers. It took a few drops of your blood and a very strong spell. We decided it would be best if you grew up outside the world of magic, to give you a chance to grow, develop, have the most normal life we could give you, until such a time came when your destiny could no longer wait. When this happened, the spell broke and your magical powers returned to you.”
“That happened when we came to Cobbscott a couple of summers ago, didn’t it?”
“Yes, and in a terrible fashion for Meghan I’m afraid.”
“Why was that?”
“Normally, magic grows and expands along with you. We assumed that the sudden return of magic would not do any real harm, we expected a few unexplained accidents, but unfortunately, with Meghan, we had no idea she was descended from a Firemancer’s bloodline. This particular magic came on strong and fast. I’m afraid it was excruciatingly painful for her. I’ve had no bigger regret in all of this, than not knowing that one thing.”
Colin had known Meghan was deathly ill and had suffered greatly, but this was the first time he knew just how much she had suffered during that time.
Colin sighed. The time had come, the moment he had dreaded more than any since this conversation had began.
“Uncle Arnon, as unbelievable as all this is, and trust me, even though I’m not showing it, I really am shocked, it’s just that...” he didn’t know how to say the words. He looked into Arnon’s eyes, already seeing the overwhelming care, worry and concern, and wondered if his poor uncle would be able to bear what he was about to reveal.
“I have a little extra help controlling my thoughts and emotions now. Because,” he gulped hard, “there’s something I have to tell you and I am not really sure how to say it. I’m afraid you will all hate me once I do.”
“Colin, after everything you’ve been through, there is nothing, I repeat nothing that could ever make that happen.”
“I wouldn’t bet my life on it,” Colin replied in a tone that frightened his uncle.
Arnon leaned back, a chilling tingle climbing his spine.
“Have you heard about the Projector?” asked Colin.
“The Projector,” said Arnon, taken aback. “Yes, I have. I do believe there is quite the uproar over that young child right now. I fear the child’s fate is sealed, if not by one hand than surely another. There is no happy ending for that child.”
Colin sighed again, dropping his head. “What if I told you that it was me? That I am that poor child whose fate is sealed?”
“Why on earth would you think this? Yes, you are the child of an immortal and that blood surges through your veins... powerful... I have no doubt you are powerful, but a Projector... the odds...”
Colin looked into his uncle’s weary eyes. “It is me. I know this with absolute certainty.” When his uncle did not reply Colin added, “Right at this very moment I am cloaking this house. No one can get in or out unless I allow it. I arrived here with my dead mentor’s body. Jasper Thorndike. The last living Projector and the man who sold me the Magicante back during the Blue Moon Festival.”
Arnon stood and paced around the room, unable to formulate words.
“I know it is a lo
t to accept, but you must. I am the Projector. And you’ve just told me that because of my immortal blood, I cannot be killed.”
Arnon’s head made a quick jerk, his eyes momentarily filled with so many emotions Colin could not get a sense of what he was thinking.
“I’ve had help,” Colin continued to explain. “Jasper Thorndike, he showed me how to maintain control. And Catrina, she... I wouldn’t make it a day without her.”
Arnon’s face softened and he took a quick glance toward the kitchen. With a slight grin, he turned back to Colin. “She is very beautiful.”
Colin nodded, his face slightly flushed.
Arnon knelt down in front of Colin, choosing his words carefully.
“I stand by what I said before. Nothing could ever make me think any less of you, and I swear I will help in any way that I can.”
“Jasper said that too, except that he made Catrina swear that she’d end my life if it became necessary,” he added in a small voice. “I don’t want to die, but... what if it is the only choice? And it’s not even a choice I can make, because...” he glanced up, swiftly looking away. Tears streamed down his uncle’s face and he hadn’t noticed Kanda and Catrina standing in the doorway.
“Small house,” Kanda said with a kind smile. They had heard everything. Catrina came over and sat next to him, holding his hand, which had an instant calming effect. He didn’t realize how hard his heart had been beating and was thankful that the Magicante was keeping up with him.
Arnon still could not speak. It seemed that this terrible truth Colin had told him was sinking in. Colin decided to try to continue the conversation, moving forward and giving his uncle a chance to find his voice again.
“There is one question that I don’t know if either of you know the answer to, but it’s my biggest worry right at the moment.”
“Which is?” asked Kanda.
“How much time do I have? When I first heard about Projectors, it was mentioned that seventeen was the magic number, the age in which a Projector reaches full maturity and becomes the most unstable and dangerous. But during my time with Jasper, he said sixteen.” He shrugged, unsure what else to say other than the obvious. “Sixteen is a heck of a lot closer than seventeen.”
Taken (Book Six) (Fated Saga Fantasy Series) Page 2