by R. Lynn
Sollara looked at Kai, trying to get some sense as to what was going on. He refused to make eye contact with her and, for some reason, looked worried. They followed Phoebe and Coeus through of series of passageways and down a set of old wooden stairs. This took them into a large room carved into the solid rock foundation of the manor. The room was dark and had nothing in it other than a pool of glowing turquoise water. The light from the water was captivating, and Sollara couldn't take her eyes from it. For a brief moment, she forgot all about her unanswered questions.
Phoebe summoned them around the pool and started to chant words in a language Sollara had never heard before.
“Juint colapsio fornet extonia.”
Over and over she said the words, until the water started to shift and swirl and rise and form into what looked to be a mirror. She then stopped and looked at Sollara with eyes full of gloom.
“Sollara, do you really want to know the answers to your questions? The result we get may not be pleasant.” Her words and expression were encouraging Sollara to leave it alone, but she couldn't let it go. She nodded for Phoebe to continue. Instantly, sadness weighted Phoebe’s face, but she did as Sollara asked and continued.
“Kai, Sollara, look into the mirror,” she whispered before continuing her chant. “Juint colapsio fornet extonia.”
Over and over she chanted until the words became distant in Sollara’s mind, and she was drawn deep into the mirror.
-22-
When she mentally came to, she saw Kai standing to her side. They were in the corner of a room, and it was dark but somehow very familiar to Sollara. When she realized where they were, she gasped.
“This is my old room in the Deep Kingdom. Everything is just how I left it,” she said while looking to Kai for understanding.
The door to her room opened. She saw herself run in and slam it shut, turn and stand to face it. She looked different but remarkably the same. It was almost as though the Sollara she was watching was bold and brave.
A few moments passed and then they heard the door squeak open. Sugoi entered followed by Mari.
“Hello Mari, Sugoi, to what do I owe this pleasure?” the illusion of Sollara said.
The way she spoke was full of boldness and even a bit rude. She watched Mari react to how she was addressed by turning two shades of red in anger.
“I don't understand. I don't remember any of this. Does this happen in the future?” Sollara asked. She could hear Phoebe's voice echo in her mind, telling her to watch and everything would soon become clear.
“I don't like this; I feel really uncomfortable,” Sollara said as she watched Mari yell something at her illusion. Sugoi suddenly grabbed the illusion’s hair and threw her down. The Sollara before her was bleeding from the force of the blow against the stone floor.
“You will apologize to Mari, you insolent little brat!” he growled.
“What is happening? Apologize; they do not like being crossed. Sollara apologize!” she screamed, but her illusion didn't hear her, none of them did.
Instead, the bold version of herself that she watched stared at Mari as if to challenge her. Sollara cringed; she knew Mari would not back down, and she didn’t want to watch what Mari would do.
Just as expected Mari answered the illusion’s insolence with a kick to the stomach. Sollara and Kai watched her double over in pain, gasping for air. Sugoi wouldn’t allow her a chance to regain her breath. Quickly, he pulled her by the hair, ripping off skin and causing her scalp to bleed. There was bloodlust in Mari’s eyes. And even though Sollara knew Mari couldn’t see them, she was still afraid for her life and for the life of her illusion.
“Sollara child, do you know that I am not your mother?” Mari’s words were spoken with obvious evil intent.
“What? Mari isn't my mother? No, this can't be true. Phoebe this can’t be true!” Sollara cried as she watched her other form struggle in Sugoi’s grasp.
She stood frozen in shock with her mouth open as she heard herself say, “Yes I know. I always figured I was better than you. I couldn't imagine being born of your filth.”
Sugoi punched the illusion, and Sollara could hear the sound of cracking bones. The pain on the face of her illusion broke Sollara’s resolve. Tears streamed down her face as she looked at Kai, aching for his comfort.
He remained perfectly still next to her, devoid of any expressions with his fists clenched at his sides. She was stunned at how unaffected he seemed to be. Did he not care that an image of her was being tortured in front of him?
Hearing Mari speak again pulled her attention away from Kai and back to watching herself.
“Sugoi darling, why don't you tell the little wench about her mother and father?”
He smiled at her and bent down, pressing his face as close as he could. Then he told her he had tortured her in front of her dying father. And in front of Mari, who held the infant Sollara to her chest just to deepen her mother's pain. The look of disgust was written across the illusion’s face, and she vomited all over him. Sugoi then grabbed her head and smashed it into the ground.
“Rip her blouse from her Sugoi and use it to clean that filth off her face. I can't have the smell of her bile ruin my feast,” Mari growled.
Sollara watched as they humiliated her, leaving her partially exposed and broken. She could not control her sobbing and fell to the floor, yelling at them to stop. She had just learned what those monsters did to her real parents. They were not her parents. Everything she had known for eighteen years had suddenly crumbled around her.
She brushed the tears from her eyes as she watched the illusion of herself push her broken body up off the floor. It was a last act of defiance as she stood boldly and held a steady gaze with Sugoi. Mari became enraged by this act and used a wave of energy to pin the illusion against a wall with her feet hanging just above the ground.
They watched as she spat in Mari’s face and then Mari shoved her head back. Mari pulled out a knife and brought it to her throat.
“No!” Sollara screamed, “Stop this Phoebe! Please make it stop.”
She could barely see through her tears. Agony engulfed her; she clutched her stomach and tried to remain alert as she watched herself dying, her life bleeding from her wound.
Sugoi and Mari left, but Sollara did not focus on that— instead, she turned to Kai, again hoping for some form of comfort. But he remained in place, his body shaking, his fists clenched and with a stone cold expression on his face.
Sollara turned back to her broken and dead body as she noticed it start to convulse and change. Before she could register what happened, she saw Asima’s body broken and bruised and exposed lying in her place.
“No! Please, not Asima! Oh god, please not my Asima!” she screamed, completely overcome with grief once she finally understood what had happened. She knew now Asima would not be joining them. And they would not be the family she had always dreamed they would be.
She turned back to Asima and watched as three servant girls came into the room. They must have not expected Asima for the shock was transparent on their faces.
“This is not Sollara! This is Asima. But this is the room Mari told us we would find Sollara bleeding out. What is going on?” The servant girls were in a state of panic.
“I will go report this to Mari at once,” one said.
Before she reached the door, Asima took in one last breath, and with that she said, “Kai I love you, forgive me.” Then her body went into a trance-like state and slumped over. The servant girls screamed as Asima changed form into yet another woman.
Sollara looked at Kai hoping to get some understanding of what she had just witnessed. But as before he was stone cold.
If it were not for a single tear that traced its way down his face, she would have thought he had not seen what she had. The tear glistened as it fell, taking with it the last of Sollara’s resolve to keep her distance.
All she wanted to do was wipe away his grief and comfort him. But all she could do was cry. She hadn’t
noticed that Mari, Sugoi, and a servant girl re-entered the room. When she saw Kai stiffen again, she followed his gaze.
Sugoi had turned over the woman lying on the floor. She looked remarkably similar to Kai. His mouth was the same as hers, her chin was the same shape, and they both had those piercing blue eyes.
Sugoi pushed the hair out of the face of the dead woman on the floor. “Not all is lost. Aurora is also an Elemental. We can feast on her blood, and we will have the same result,” he said.
Sollara couldn’t help but think she was missing something. The woman lying broken before them on the floor bore a striking resemblance to Kai and was also an Elemental. Then it hit her.
This woman Aurora was Kai's mother.
-23-
She looked at Kai, trying to find the words to say as her world came crashing down around. But before either of them could say or do anything, they were back in the room at the bottom of the manor. The turquoise waters had dimmed to a pale blue, the beauty of it stolen by the loss they had just witnessed. Phoebe and Coeus stood back, arms linked as they watched.
Sollara now understood why Kai had accused her of taking everything from him. During her whole life her waiting maid Asima was really his mother. She struggled to compose the right words to say; she could barely breathe. Kai’s mother had died saving her life.
“Kai, your mother saved me.”
He snapped his head toward her, penetrating into her soul with his glare. His endlessly deep blue eyes were clouded with resentment.
“Please Kai— I didn’t know...Kai.” She dropped to the floor and her hand reached for his. Her body ached to be near to him. When he turned his back to her and ran out of the room, she felt the shattering sting of rejection once again.
She was left on the floor mourning over parents she never knew and the death of the one person she loved throughout her childhood and adolescence— Kai's mother. The grief of it all was too much for her to absorb. Her mind shut down and gave in to the darkness as she slipped into a deep sleep.
…After a long, dreamless interlude, her body finally regained some of its vigor and she awoke, slowly opening her eyes. The room was strange, somewhere she had never been. Panic seized control of her lungs and she struggled to breathe. When she realized Phoebe was at her side, stroking her hair, she instantly calmed.
“How are you feeling?” Phoebe’s eyes were filled with worry.
Sollara let her mind spin back to Sugoi and Mari and Kai’s mother. Her hands clutched tightly to the blankets that covered her as the memories of what she had seen flashed once more before her eyes. The last image that she replayed was the single tear she could not wipe away from Kai’s cheek.
“Where’s Kai?” Sollara asked as she searched Phoebe’s face for clues.
Phoebe’s eyes, that told the only true account of her age, held wisdom and strength. And even though they were filled with concern, it somehow comforted Sollara to have her near.
“He left after seeing what Sugoi and Mari did to his mother, and we do not know where he went. I had people out looking for him, but after a week we gave up searching. I am sure he will be back when he is ready.”
“It has been a week? But I… ”
“It’s all right, you haven’t missed much. You needed to recover from your ordeal,” Phoebe gently replied.
The overwhelming sadness of Aurora’s death came flooding back. Closing her eyes, she let her thoughts concentrate on anything to distract her from the pain. She wished she could take it all away, make it so she couldn’t feel. Then she remembered Bonnie and how she seemed emotionless. In an attempt to ease the dull ache, Sollara focused on mimicking the strange woman by blocking out the memories from her mind.
“What are you doing?” Phoebe asked.
“What do you mean?” Sollara replied as she crinkled her brow and studied Phoebe. Wasn’t it obvious she was lying in bed and closing her eyes?
“One of my gifts is to neutralize bad memories. I was searching for yours, and I felt a wall go up in your mind,” she said.
It took Sollara a moment to register what Phoebe was saying. She shook her head as she considered the implications. Was she shadowing Bonnie? “I was thinking about Bonnie, how I couldn't sense any emotions from her. I thought I could use that same feeling to protect myself from replaying what I saw,” she confessed.
“Just remarkable— you can even shadow gifted humans.”
“What do you mean? I was shadowing?”
“Yes, and it is rare to find a human who has gifts. Even more so to have someone pick up on it. Because of a deep hurt in her life, Bonnie taught herself to be able to shut off emotions. You understand don't you? It's so that she can protect herself. We always wondered if it was just something she did or if it was a gift she activated. I guess now we know. It seems, Miss Sollara, that we will have our work cut out with you.” She smiled as she watched Sollara’s eyes widen in understanding.
Sollara tried to return the smile, but all she could manage was to slightly turn up the corner of her lips. “Can you tell me about my parents? Coeus said you knew them.”
“Yes I did. I met your father because Aquarius, Kai’s father, had accidently turned him into ice. It took all of us to help restore his memory. Sometimes freezing a person can transform more than just the body.” Her eyes distantly replayed the image. “I suppose it wouldn't hurt. But instead of just telling you, let me show you.” She put her hands to Sollara’s head and closed her eyes as she focused on transferring her memories into Sollara’s mind.
As if it were as clear as being in the in-between, Sollara saw herself in a strange room. It had large vaulted ceilings supported by green marble pillars. The pillars had images of the gods and their families intricately carved into their sides. The floor seemed as though it was glazed in solid gold. There were no walls, but the room was surrounded by lush and exotic foliage.
On the far side of the room she noticed a large man. He wore a crown of white metal adorned with blue stones. And despite his size and warrior-like build, he was not intimidating, for he had a kind face. He shifted his weight and the motion allowed Sollara to see that he was standing beside a chair. And when he had finished his movement, she could see a goddess holding a small child.
The woman was strikingly beautiful, the first being Sollara had seen that rivaled the splendor of sunlight. Her hair was golden, and light seemed to shine from it. Her emerald eyes were full of love as she looked at the precious infant she held. She wore a white robe that flowed over the chair and modestly covered her shape. In her hair was a crown that was a perfect complement to her consort’s.
Sollara walked closer to get a better look. Then she saw the child in the goddess’s arms—with the red tufts of hair, the same color as hers. Her heart began to beat faster, as she saw features in the woman that she could recognize in herself. She was this child— these were her parents, they had to be! Her eyes shot open and instead of the image of her parents, she saw Phoebe gazing at her intently.
“She is beautiful isn't she?” Phoebe smiled.
All Sollara could do was nod her head in agreement as tears blurred her vision. Her parents were beautiful, and they looked upon her with so much love. Something Mari and Sugoi had never done. They had always made her feel like a burden, but now she knew she was once loved.
-24-
“Thank you, Phoebe,” Sollara whispered.
“Of course. I am glad my ability gave you the opportunity to meet your parents.”
Questions began to form in her mind. Some about her parents, some about how she was able to see them.
“How is it that you can pass memories to me? Mari used to take them from my mind?”
Confusion flashed over Phoebe’s face as she thought about what Sollara had just asked her. “As children in Atlanticus, we were taught the art of memory passing. I have never heard of the ability to remove memories. That would require dark powers,” she said as she shook her head in understanding. “I guess it doesn�
��t surprise me that Mari has learned how to do such things,” she answered.
Sollara didn’t want the topic of Mari to take her mind off the images of her parents. So she focused back on them, trying to memorize every detail she could before the memory faded.
“Why do they wear crowns?” she asked when the sudden realization of what that could mean came to her.
Phoebe paused and took a moment to stroke a stray piece of hair from Sollara’s face. “You are the daughter to the late Queen Luna and her husband Prince Astren. Your mother was the ruler of Atlanticus and seer to the Fates,” she said as though she had rehearsed the words many times.
“Does that mean I am a Princess? Phoebe, I am afraid this is all too much for me.”
“Actually Sollara, you are much more. Only the ruler of Atlanticus was able to access the portal of the Fates deities. It is said the crown is the key, and Royal blood is the gateway. You are now the rightful heir. Only you can commune with the Fates.”
“I just learned that Mari is not my mother. And now I am thrown into such responsibility!” With each comment Phoebe made, Sollara found herself becoming more and more overwhelmed.
Recognizing her mistake, Phoebe tried to calm her down. “You can choose to be the Queen or to pass the responsibility to the one next in line for the throne,” she said hoping to reassure the girl.
“I choose to pass.”
“Sollara, it is a sacred right to be named ruler of Atlanticus. One that you should really think through before dismissing so quickly.”
“Atlanticus is lost anyway. Sugoi told me it couldn’t be found. Trust me, they looked for it for years. I spent the first few years of my life listening to them argue about it, I should know. So why would a city that cannot be found need a Queen?” Her tone and facial features came across as disrespectful, but after the last few days, manners were not her top priority.
She had not been prepared to know that her assumed parents had actually murdered her real parents. Not to mention that the woman who was most like a mother to her was also Kai’s mother. All this was in addition to discovering she was the rightful heir to Atlanticus. Her brain was reeling with a tumult of powerful emotions.