From the Embers (The Born in Flames Trilogy)

by Candace Knoebel

  “Can we talk?” he asked, now standing in front of her. He reached out for her hand.

  She jerked away before he could touch her, startling him. “There is nothing to discuss, Brohm. I am a Celestian and more importantly, Zordon’s daughter.” Disgust filled her words.

  “Alexis—”

  “I’m serious, Brohm. Right now, there is no room for love in my life.” She looked away regretfully and then ported away, leaving Brohm staring after her.

  He gave us a flustered frown and then turned back to head up the stairs, his head hanging low. I felt bad for him as I watched him walk away.

  “Did I just screw everything up?” I asked. It was a general statement.

  Fenn took it literally. “No. He knew he would get to you, Rory. He did that on purpose. To mess with your mind.”

  “He wouldn’t do that,” I said, turning to look at Fenn.

  “No?” One simple, honest, one-word question.

  I chose to ignore his question. “Well, the air is cleared now,” I said lightheartedly.

  “Do you have feelings for him?”

  My thoughts halted. Be honest, I told myself.

  “In a way, yes, but nothing that I am interested in pursuing. It’s more of an infatuation. Something that would never have been predetermined. You know? Like a rebellious decision…and I’ve made enough of those to learn that nothing good ever comes from being rebellious.”

  Fenn kissed my forehead, but the kiss was hard. His grip on my arms was painfully tight. I was grateful that he was trying to keep his anger in check. For once, I was grateful that he held back his emotions from me. I didn’t need any more guilt added to my plate.

  “Ah, Rory, what am I going to do with you?”

  “Love me.”

  He sighed heavily, letting up on his grip. “With all my heart.”

  Chapter 7

  A Journey to Nymph Island

  I DECIDED TO KEEP LEV to myself for now. After seeing the way my father reacted, I didn’t want to instill false hope into anyone else. Not unless it was necessary.

  We met back in the advisory room just before dusk. Astral was nowhere to be found, which unsettled my nerves. “I can’t leave without Astral,” I said to Kaede.

  He sighed. “Astral left.”

  I felt verbally slapped. “What?”

  He looked at me uneasily. “He said there was somewhere he needed to go and to tell you that he will meet you on Nymph Island.”

  “Are you kidding me?”

  “Everything will be fine, Aurora,” Kaede assured.

  I sucked in a deep breath, steadying my growing temper. “What message would you like for me to give the Liege there?” I asked, changing the subject. I kept my fists by my side .

  He straightened his shoulders. “Just that we will be attacking Pyre Island in two days time. If he is on board, send word and have them meet us on the dawn of the second day.”

  “Fine,” I said a little too hastily. I turned to Fenn, Lexi, and Zane who waited behind me. “Ready?”

  Zane nodded but kept his eyes on the window.

  “Great,” I said, turning back to Kaede. Soothe remained in the corner, watching me intently. I gave him my best evil squint, waiting for what it was that he knew but wouldn’t share. His tiny smirk proved my assumption. He knew something, and he wasn’t going to share.

  Kaede’s right hand found a place on my shoulder. I looked down at it and then up at him. “It has been an honor to meet you. I know that you will deliver us into a New Dawn.”

  A small half-smile curved my lips as I breathed out my frustrations. So Astral was gone. So he left without saying anything. Worse has happened.

  “Thank you,” I replied, trying to sound grateful. It wasn’t Kaede’s fault, after all.

  “I’ve opened the portal,” Lexi said. She still seemed upset from what happened earlier with Brohm. I made a mental note to talk to her about it as soon as we had a moment alone. If she would talk to me.

  “I guess this is it for now,” Kaede said, walking me over to the portal. Lexi jumped through and then Zane. Fenn stepped up and held his hand out for me.

  “See you soon,” I said and then jumped through with Fenn.

  On the other side, I found myself surrounded by a rainbow of colors in the land where the earth element was in every living being. The air was warm and thick, unlike the crisp fall back on Orient Island.

  Although the sky remained grim and dark, no matter where we were, the leaves seemed to have been unaffected by the elemental uproar. They gave off a shimmering golden light through the lush treetops, highlighting the tips of Fenn’s messy hair.

  Pink and yellow flower petals fell all around us, filling the air with a sweet scent that made me want to run free without any regrets. Sparkling butterflies fluttered all around us, dodging the petals as they fell.

  “It has been so long since I’ve seen this place,” Lexi said, spinning around to take it all in. Even her mood seemed to have been boosted by the hidden paradise.

  “You’ve been here before?” Fenn asked enviously.

  “When I was little. Mother had to converse with the Liege for King Darian.”

  “Where’s the Lyceum?” Fenn asked.

  “It will show itself when it’s ready. This island works in mysterious ways,” Lexi explained.

  “It’s like a fairytale,” I said. I had read that the air on this island gave off a feeling of euphoria, something I was trying to shake off. It had attached itself to me, wiggling into the small cracks and crevices of my heart that waited earnestly for some happiness.

  “It is a fairytale,” Fenn declared, throwing his arm over my shoulder. His musky scent mixed deliciously with the air.

  “Whatever you say,” Zane grunted, throwing the hood of his robe over his head. He shouldered past us and swatted at the low-hanging trees and bushes that tickled our legs, mumbling to himself.

  Something ahead of us flittered from tree to tree in a blur. “What was that?” I asked, only mildly alarmed.

  “I don’t know,” Fenn said, peering to the left where I pointed.

  “It was a Nymph,” Zane called back to us, sounding disinterested.

  “Really?” I asked, halting my steps. I had read about the mystical race but never thought I would see one, especially not when we were on the brink of war.

  The blur continued to zoom past us between the trees, followed by a trail of haunting girly giggles.

  “We must be getting close to the Lyceum,” Lexi mentioned. Her thoughts and her eyes were focused in the distance, on a tree that seemed to be talking.

  “What are they doing?” Fenn asked, stepping away from me to investigate. His nose was turned up in the air, sniffing for magic.

  “Taunting us,” I answered, feeling a rush of excitement overcome my train of thought. “I read that most Nymphs are playful creatures who spend their time playing tricks on one another. They love to lure visitors of the islands into their hollows where they have pools of water that cause you to forget everything else, leaving you as their prisoner forever.”

  “I see it,” Zane said, pointing up ahead to something that I couldn’t quite see yet. We quickened our pace and then stopped right next to Zane, mouths hanging to the floor. It was the Lyceum of Nymph Island and unlike anything I had ever seen.

  A huge white castle wrapped in thick ivy was perched on a hilltop. It was surrounded by colorful trees and water that trickled down the hill and ran into a gushing stream.

  A wooden fence the height of old trees wrapped around the base of the hill, preventing any intruder from walking right in. A small village made of cottages with steam rising from various chimneys collected inside the fence.

  “The Nymph Lyceum,” Lexi declared, catching up with
Zane and then taking the lead. Squirrels raced up the trees, away from the sound of crunching leaves. She hopped across a few large stones in the middle of the stream that led to the opening of the bridge and then stepped onto it.

  That’s when a Nymph appeared. “Found you,” said a small woman. Her hair was in disarray and filled with twigs and flowers. Her round face was dusted white, and her heart-shaped lips were the color of cherries. Blue eyes sparkled mischievously as she batted her thick, dark lashes at Zane. She couldn’t have been more than 18, but I knew better. Nymphs were older than the race of dragons.

  “Hello,” Zane said, oddly uninterested.

  “Whom do you wish to see?” the Nymph said with a quiet giggle. “Me, I hope.” She twirled a piece of hair around her finger.

  “The Liege,” Zane corrected hastily, looking past her and up at the castle.

  She lifted her finger and wiggled it towards herself. “Follow me,” she said smiling, her off-white tattered gown twirling with her every movement. “You can’t port across this bridge. It is spelled to keep unwanted guests out. You may only be taken by a Nymph.” She seemed weightless as she skipped and hopped across the bridge, never looking back to ensure that we were following.

  Lexi followed after her, effortlessly gliding across the bridge. Fenn tugged on my hand, looking back at me with the biggest, loveliest grin. I couldn’t help but smile back, on the verge of laughing from the overload of enchanting emotion that made my heart feel as if it would burst.

  I couldn’t explain it, but as I trailed behind Fenn, I felt so happy watching the small Nymph skipping ahead of us, leading us to the castle. Every step she took was like watching kittens playing. All my cares seemed to vanish.

  “Don’t study her movements like that,” Zane said from behind me. It was the first time he had spoken to me since we had “cleared the air,” and it caught me off guard.

  “Why?” I asked, finding it hard to pull my eyes away from her.

  “Because,” he dragged out, waiting for me to look at him. I forced my eyes to his face. Underneath his shadowed hood, I could hardly make out his piercing brown eyes. “She is as enthralling as the ponds you spoke of. The magic of a Nymph is in the scent they throw off. It’s in the grace of their steps and the whimsy of their voice. It’s highly intoxicating and lethally unforgiving.”

  I bit my lip, sighing, and then let go of Fenn’s hand. He didn’t seem to notice as he continued ahead, following after the Nymph.

  “Why aren’t you enthralled then?” I asked, leaning closer to him.

  “Because,” he clipped, tilting his face away from me. His eyes darted past me to Fenn who was almost off the bridge, totally oblivious to what was happening behind him.

  I knew deep down that I needed to get off the bridge and away from Zane, but I felt so carefree and curious. I wanted to play with him. I wanted to see what would happen if I stopped caring about what was right for once.

  “Because why?” I taunted on a giggle, biting my lip again.

  I heard a faint huff come from him. “Just drop it, okay?” He grunted. His hands found my leaning shoulders and stopped me from coming any closer. His fingers dug into my skin as turmoil raged behind his eyes.

  “Fine then,” I said carelessly and turned to continue the brisk hike along the unstable rope bridge. As we neared the end of the bridge, light and lively music carried on the breeze, awaking something inside of me. A feeling of pure brazenness.

  I hastened my last steps, trying to find my way to the captivating sound that bewitched my thoughts. My pulse soared as I neared the edge of the bridge.

  Fenn grabbed my hand, pulling me off, and planted a large, all-consuming kiss on my lips. I didn’t know what it was for, but I wasn’t about to ask questions. I melted into him, everything disappearing around me.

  Zane groaned and mumbled, “Get a room.”

  It was hard to pry my lips from his, but Lexi insisted that we stop before we were left behind, and there was no way I was going to miss whatever was making that beautiful sound.

  The Nymph made her way to the gate, skipping along the rich moss and stone-laden earth. She did a strange series of knocks on the large wooden gate that contained all of the secrets of the Lyceum, and then stood back as the door swung inward.

  A large, stout, burly-looking man in full armor appeared. “Whom do you seek?”

  “Liege Dagan,” the Nymph announced on the verge of giggling.

  The guard peered around her. “Names?”

  Lexi ambitiously stepped into his line of vision. “The Progeny has come to speak with the Liege.” She moved aside just enough for him to see me. I was hopping off of one of the stones on the ground and fumbled, using Fenn’s offered hand to stabilize myself.

  The guard snickered and started to pull the gate shut. “Wait,” Lexi said desperately, stopping the door from shutting with her glowing palm. “Look again.”

  She flashed me a glance, suggesting I shift, so I did. I leapt into the air, releasing my wings and breathed with relief. The eyes beneath his armored helmet grew wide. He floundered backwards, leaving the door to swing wide open. When I landed, I shifted back into my human form, my armor forming around me.

  Lexi smirked. We wandered through the gates, following the small Nymph into the heavenly music. Behind the gates was a small town that surrounded the castle. Vendors with carts full of elixirs and fruits crowded the streets wearing smiles and colorful clothing. Flowers and vines wrapped around the houses.

  “Where is that music coming from?” Fenn asked, perking his ear up.

  “The castle,” Lexi said, smiling larger than I’d seen her smile in a long time. She spun in a slow circle with her arms out to her sides.

  Zane shook his head. I thought I caught a glimmer of a smile, but then he looked over at me and his scowl returned. “Same thing applies here,” he said to me in a low voice. “It’s all a part of the seduction into keeping you here.”

  “Why would they want to keep you here?” I asked, trying to stay focused on his voice and not the music.

  He looked over at me. “For slaves, why else?”

  WHEN WE MADE IT TO the grand entryway, two towering trees looped around each other to create the arched entry into the ivy-covered castle.

  Strangely, there were no guards. Instead, the branches of the tree formed a barricade, preventing us from walking right on through. The Nymph stopped right before the entry and flicked a daring gaze back at us as she reached her petite hand out towards one of the trees. I blinked a few times as her fingers transformed into tiny branches that melded into the tree.

  “She is communicating,” Lexi said, answering the question that must have been written on my face.

  Suddenly, the old tree made a loud groaning sound as the Nymph’s branch-like fingers retracted. The branches hanging above us swayed back and forth, leaves falling down around us, and then slowly lifted out and away from the entrance.

  Zane took a step forward only to be stopped by the Nymph’s wooden arm pressed sturdily against his chest. “They will let you pass only if you let them read your energy.”

  She turned and ushered Zane towards the tree, and then lifted his hand up into the air and out towards the bark. “Touch,” she instructed with an easy smile.

  When he did, the tree creaked and groaned, swaying with movement while Zane looked over his shoulder back at us. The introduction was quick—a second later the Nymph told Zane he was permitted in.

  We each took our turn, pressing our palm against the bark of the tree and waiting for the restless creaking to stop, signifying our earned admittance.

  The Nymph enchantingly giggled and then resumed her skipping while guiding us through the dark castle. My feet sprung from step-to-step underneath the damp moss floors that blended with the gray stone walls. The intricat
e ceilings reached up into the black clouds swarming outside. Candlelit sconces illuminated the many small unusual trees that oddly lined the hallways. It felt like the trees were watching me.

  The music careened through the castle and pushed me to break from my purpose of meeting the Liege so that I could explore instead. I couldn’t help myself. My steps slowed to a stop in front of one of the trees.

  Two small round eyes flittered open. I jumped back as laughter trickled from down the hallway where my friends were. All of these trees…they were Nymphs. The tree’s slender frame slowly took the shape of a small girl, using its branch-like hand to cover her mouth in laughter. Then, as if it had never even happened, she resumed her stance and transformed back into a solid tree.

  “Amazing,” I remarked to myself, waiting only a second more to see if she would come out again. She didn’t, so I jogged ahead to catch up with my friends.

  “Just through here.” The Nymph pointed. I craned my neck as far as it would go, following her finger. I knew that whatever she was pointing to would be as splendid as she was.

  Zane’s hand reached out, halting me in my steps. “Wait here,” he said with his back to the door. Fenn and Lexi were already following after the Nymph, not hearing his hushed words.

  “But I—”

  “I need you to follow my lead, okay? Keep your eyes on me.”

  “Okay,” I rushed out, hoping that it would put him at ease so I could get into the next room. Against his words, I took a step forward.

  He hesitated, and then his hand lightly pushed against my stomach, preventing me from moving. My breath caught as I looked down at his palm resting on my stomach, almost clenching against it. My eyes found his. The yearning in his eyes was almost too painful to look at. It jerked me straight back into reality.