by R. Lynn
"Sugoi, if I find out that you did anything stupid before the council meeting with the other Descendants, I will personally have your head. Do you understand me?"
"Yes, my love, I understand." All signs of his self-assurance diminished with Mari’s growing anger. Sollara struggled to stifle her laugh; she found amusement in Mari intimidating Sugoi.
Out of the corner of her eye, Mari caught a glimpse of Sollara’s poor attempt to hide her smile and shot her attention back on the girl. "Sollara, is there anything you would like to tell me?" her tone offering a threat her words did not speak.
Sollara knew Mari was hard to surprise and figured one of her servant-spies had already told her that Sugoi had taken her to the surface. It aggravated Sollara that even though she knew, Mari still felt the need to test Sollara’s response. That annoyance, coupled with Sugoi cutting their trip short, caused all of Sollara’s rationality to vanish.
"To what purpose? You already know what you ask." Sollara turned from Mari and went to enter her room.
Before her hand reached the handle, Mari slapped her across the face. The force of the blow caused Sollara to stumble across the hall and slam into the door of the library. She blinked, trying to regain focus. Mari was over top of her with her hand outstretched.
She wiped the blood off Sollara’s face and paused to admire it as it glistened in the light cast off the lamp in the hall. The blood-coated fingers mesmerized her, and for a brief moment she forgot about Sollara and Sugoi.
Sollara struggled to prop herself up but was forced back down. Then, to her disgust, Mari licked the blood from her hand. In an instant, Mari’s eyes filled with alarm. It reflected the same panic Sollara had sensed in Sugoi when he forced her to leave the Surface.
Mari, with a face like glass, looked to Sugoi for understanding. She did not want to give away any sense of fear, but fear she had, for in the girl’s blood Mari had tasted power.
"Sollara, my child, when will you learn to respect your mother?" She put her hand to Sollara’s head and closed her eyes as she forced her internal sight into the girl’s memories.
Sollara tried hard to think of anything other than the Surface, hoping that Mari wouldn’t be able to pry the images from her. But it was of no use. Mari shifted through Sollara’s most recent thoughts with ease.
Images of the field and the handsome stranger flooded Mari’s mind as if she had been there as well. Mari’s face flushed and instantly she snapped back from Sollara. Her body shook uncontrollably as she forced her hand away from Sollara’s head. For the first time in Sollara’s life, Mari looked scared.
"Sugoi! What have you done?" she demanded. She stared at Sollara as if death itself were before her.
-4-
Lying crumpled against the doorframe was starting to add extra strain to Sollara’s now aching body. Careful not to overexert herself, she pushed up off the floor. Mari and Sugoi were gone. In her concentrated effort to stand she hadn't even seen them leave.
“Thanks for making my coming-of-age day so wonderful!” she yelled sarcastically down the empty hall. When she asked Sugoi to take her, she knew Mari was going to be angry. She had not expected a reaction like the one she just witnessed. One thing she knew is that she was so very different from her parents.
Forcing thoughts of Mari and Sugoi from her mind, she concluded that no matter how hard she tried she would never understand them. Plus, she desperately wanted to return to her memories of the Surface, especially the stranger with the blue eyes. Hoping to soothe her aching body with a warm bath, she made her way through her dressing chambers to her bathing room and crawled into her bathing pool, with her dress still on.
The heat from the natural hot spring embraced her sore limbs as she floated, letting her fingers glide over the rough stone. It was her favorite place in the Deep Kingdom. The fresh waters seemed as though they cleansed her soul along with her body.
Closing her eyes, she put her head back and let the water wash over her, refining her thoughts and granting peace to enter her mind. It seemed like only seconds had passed when two strong arms reached in and pulled her out.
The coldness of the stone floor permeated her body, and she lay listening to Asima, her waiting maid, who was frantically trying to get her to breathe. Sollara’s thoughts slipped from Asima and drifted back to the stranger in the field. She wondered what he was about to tell her.
Even though her eyes were shut, she could perfectly imagine Asima’s stout frame, round face, sandy hair, and kind eyes. Asima was after all her closest friend. In fact, at times she was more of a parent to Sollara than a waiting maid. And now, she diligently worked, compressing Sollara’s chest and blowing air into her mouth.
Her actions distracted Sollara from her thoughts of the stranger. It aggravated her that she could not keep her focus. She opened her lips to tell Asima that she was fine, but no sounds came out. It confused her. Why couldn’t she speak? Trying to find understanding she focused harder on Asima’s pleas. Her waiting maid was praying to the Fates, begging them to spare her life and bring her back. And when she finally realized what was happening, Sollara knew that she must be dead.
It disappointed her that the feeling of death was so inconsequential. She often dreamed of death as a means to escape the Deep Kingdom. She didn't fight it. Instead, she focused her last thoughts on the stranger from the Surface and the feeling of power the sun had given her.
Unexpectedly, a surge of electricity coursed through her, shocking her heart to beat and her lungs to contract. Before she could register what had happened, she was in Asima's arms coughing up water.
“Sollara, what were you thinking?” Asima’s brow furrowed as her gentle eyes searched for understanding and her tender hands wiped the wet hair off of Sollara’s face.
“I was only in the bathing pool for a few minutes. How could this have happened?” She studied Asima for answers. Asima’s worried expression confused her; it was not like Asima to be overly dramatic.
“Just a few minutes? Are you mad child? I checked on you an hour ago, and you were then as I found you now. I should have pulled you out when I first saw you, but you looked so peaceful. When I came back to ask you what you wanted for dinner, I found you like this, and I thought for sure we had lost you. Thank the Fates your body sent a painful shock through me and you started to breathe.” She smiled at Sollara as she spoke, and relief washed over her troubled appearance. “Sollara there is no reason you should be alive right now. What were you thinking about?” Asima’s brow seamed with incomprehension.
Sollara never lied to Asima. Even if she were to try, Asima knew her far too well and would have figured it out anyway. “Sugoi took me to the Surface today for my coming-of-age gift, and while I was there, I saw a boy with eyes so blue the sky would be jealous. There was something so familiar about him. I have been thinking of him ever since.” Sollara let her mind slip from the image of the boy and replayed the words Asima had said to her.
“Who have you told about this boy?” Asima interrupted.
Her tone of voice caught Sollara off guard. Asima had never been so forceful before.
“No one. Except Sugoi was there with me, and he saw the boy as well.” Sollara studied Asima closely; curious as to why she suddenly seemed so firm.
“I must go and talk to Sugoi about this.” She rose, readying to leave and paused, turning back to Sollara. “But first I hear that your actions were not very appropriate this afternoon. In fact, I heard that you had a tantrum and even kicked a door. I raised you better than that. You can’t let your temper take over.” Her head cocked to the side and her eyes bore into Sollara’s as she scolded in her familiar, motherly tone. Sollara understood that she lectured out of love not anger.
“I know, it’s just that Sugoi makes me so frustrated sometimes.”
“No one can make you feel or do anything. The choice is yours. In situations where you feel you have been wronged, the best course of action is to be the more mature person. Throwing temper
-tantrums makes you a victim. And remember, all you have is….”
“My soul! I know Asima, trust me I know. I was acting foolishly. I was so mad that Sugoi forced me away from the boy. I’ve never experienced what I felt when I saw him. It was as if the world suddenly had meaning. Is that strange? The farther I was away from him, the more upset I seemed to get.” She looked back over to Asima, who had the look she gave when she was not impressed, plastered across her face. “All right, no more excuses now. I am sorry that I acted so poorly. You have raised me better than that,” Sollara finished.
“Good, now put thoughts of the boy far from your mind. I must go to Sugoi immediately about all this.” Asima was already out the door before she even finished her last words to Sollara.
“Asima?” she yelled after her. But it was of no use; Asima was overly focused in pursuit of Sugoi to respond.
Now fatigued, Sollara shimmied out of her wet dress and made her way to bed. She didn’t even bother to stop at the library to get a book to read for the evening. As she lay in her bed, staring up at the ceiling, her mind quickly returned to the thoughts of the blue-eyed stranger and remained there until the darkness of sleep flooded over her.
-5-
“Sugoi, that boy she saw; he had powers didn’t he?” Asima asked.
Sugoi turned to face her as he spoke. “I sensed something I had never felt before, and yes, I assume it was the boy.”
Asima did not hesitate but made sure that he could hear by her tone that she demanded to know the truth. “He’s the son of Aquarius and Aurora isn't he? The one said to be birthed of water and wind?”
“First of all, that is a wild presumption. Second, keep your voice down woman or else Mari will hear us.”
“Answer me Sugoi!” she demanded, completely ignoring his request.
“He could very well be….”
Before he could finish, she cut him off. “You were mad to bring her to the Surface! Not only has the sun activated her dormant power, but now she is shadowing his abilities. She was underwater tonight for well over an hour before I pulled her out! Do you know what this means Sugoi?” Asima paused so that he could take in the severity of his actions before she continued, “Your precious secret could have imploded on you. If she can shadow the son of Aquarius and Aurora, then one can assume she can shadow other gifted as well, maybe even Mari. What if she does that and Mari discovers you've been harboring an Elemental under her nose all these years?” Asima’s simple brown eyes were now alive with passion.
“Don't you think I know that? Mari already suspects something. I think she read the child's mind.” Once again his hand found its way to his collar. He pulled at it in hopes of relieving some of his tension. “It wasn’t my plan, but the opportunity presented itself. I couldn’t help testing the theory that she might have powers.” He rolled his eyes as he looked over her hardened face. “Fret not, dear Asima, I took the necessary precautions. The child was bound. Even if she’d wanted to, she could not have run or used any powers that may have been awakened.” His fists clenched firmly at his side as he paced back and forth in front of Asima. “I didn’t expect to run into another gifted. They usually don’t venture out in the open. I am not sure if he is who you say he is, but I definitely sensed power in him.”
“You risked her life just to test if she really had powers? I did not leave Atlanticus only to watch you take unnecessary risks now. You promised her safety when you asked me to leave my city and continue my job as her waiting maid. You asked me not to tell her of her past. You asked me to follow you into the depths of darkness. I lost everything serving this child. I will not have you ruin her now!” Asima’s body reflected the anger that rose in her, and she could sense the heat of her frustration flood into her cheeks.
“Enough! You should mind your mouth when you address me. Remember, I did you a favor when I spared your life.” He slammed his fist into the palm of his hand and snapped his attention back to Asima. “It was my understanding that all the gifted, the spawns of the light, were in the custody of our allies, Phoebe and Coeus. I did not expect any of them to pose a problem. I will use my connections to check on the status of the others. Until then, do your job and watch her, or I will tell Mari the truth and let her have your head.”
“My job would have been a lot easier if you would have used your head and not brought the child to the Surface.”
-6-
Sollara’s lungs were beginning to burn from holding her breath. She was afraid if she made any sound, even just to breathe, that the Lark would stop singing. Before yesterday she had never seen anything like it, and yet here she was again, waking up to the song of the Lark.
She did not believe in coincidences and had a sneaking suspicion that it kept coming back for a reason. Finally, she was no longer able to hold off breathing, and to her relief, even when she gulped in air the bird did not move.
“Hello,” she said to the Lark.
The Lark cocked his head as if to acknowledge he understood. She chuckled to herself at the absurdity of talking to a bird. But the joy of having a new friend far outweighed any foolishness she felt.
“Your eyes are pretty. I did not know birds could have such blue eyes….” She paused to see if he would react before she continued. “Your eyes remind me of someone I saw yesterday on the Surface. I can imagine you have seen your share of masterful works, but even you would appreciate his beauty. He looked like a work of the gods. He stole my breath. Much like you did with your song this morning.” She teased him as she hopped out of bed, clutching her pillow and spun around the room pretending to dance with the blue-eyed boy. If birds could laugh, that was the sound the Lark made.
“Oh, you think that’s funny do you?”
The Lark flapped his wings and bobbed his head side to side.
“Why are you here?” she asked. “No Surface dwelling creature has ventured this far underground for as long as I have lived. How did you get past the Hellhounds?”
The Lark ruffled his feathers as if to shudder at the mention of the Hellhounds.
“I know, those dogs scare me too,” she giggled. “I bet you have never seen anything like them.” Sollara tried her best to mimic the Hellhounds, but by the Lark’s quizzical look she realized her acting was not convincing.
“Mari created them to keep mortals from wandering down here. After all, she does have a little hobby of collecting gold and precious stones. She is obsessed with protecting her wealth.” Sollara walked over to her dresser, grabbing a handful of gems and spinning one of the stones between her fingers. “There was a time when rumors of her hidden treasure caused mortals to brave her wrath. They ventured down here in hopes of finding some. Mari doesn’t like to share, so she enlisted the Hellhounds to keep the mortals out. Personally, I find it rather amusing as we are so overrun with gold and precious stones. They are piled in corners of rooms and strung down the sides of the passageways. Did you see any of them?” The Lark put a wing over his head, and Sollara wasn’t sure what it meant so she continued her story.
“But one should give Mari credit, the Hellhounds are very effective, and since getting them we haven’t had anyone or anything from the Surface make it down here…until you!” She spun around the room, still holding tight to her pillow while she imagined the little bird braving the fierce beasts.
The Lark let out a low throaty sound. She twisted around and faced him. “Did you just say something to me? Can you speak?” Yet no response was made— instead, the bird blinked his blue eyes as he watched her.
“Sorry, I guess I’m so lonely that I imagined you spoke to me. I don't have any friends. Mari and Sugoi keep me from other people. I think they are ashamed that I am not gifted like Mari is,” she confessed.
Before Sollara could continue, she heard Asima trudging down the hall to her room. Sollara loved Asima dearly, but there was nothing delicate about her. Her heavy-footed walking was a sure sign that she was coming. It did, however, come in handy when Sollara was doing something
she should not be.
“Lark, you have to leave now. It’s not safe. If Asima or anyone knows that you are down here, they will surely have you killed. Please go,” she pleaded. Relief filled her as she watched him heed her warning and fly to the crack in the wall. “Thank you for visiting me. It is nice to have a friend,” she called after him.
Asima did not stop and talk to Sollara as she normally did. She was driven by task on her way to the kitchen. And when Asima rounded the hall, she saw Sugoi slip in unannounced to Mari's dressing room. He never entered her quarters without permission, as he knew not to cross Mari. It was peculiar to Asima why he would risk Mari’s wrath. She figured that something must have been important enough for him to do so. Letting her curiosity get the better of her, she snuck into the closet next to Mari's room so that she could listen to their conversation through the thin wooden wall.
Mari religiously studied her image in the mirror as she brushed her hair. She paused, holding her brush midair. “Sugoi, stop tiptoeing like an idiot and address me. This had better be good if you risk disturbing my private time.”
Mari seemed to know when someone was approaching. Sometimes the servants joked that she had eyes in the back of her head, a joke that they all secretly thought bore truth.
“Mari, I know you know about the girl. You have been avoiding me.” He flashed a weak smile. “Tell me what you know.”
That was not Sugoi’s usual manner. Although he was scared of Mari, they all were, he was normally so confident in his words. His lack of confidence then made Asima more worried than she would allow herself to admit.
“I know the child is an Elemental. I could taste the power in her blood. And I know you brought her to the Surface!” she snapped. Asima heard a crash and only assumed something was thrown at Sugoi.
“Sugoi, you stupid imbecile! Why didn’t you tell me you knew the girl was an Elemental?” Her words came with great effort as though she was physically exerting herself.