I sat down on the edge of the bed, moving my head back and forth, trying to work the stiffness out. I needed to find a place that I was comfortable. The few times I’d actually been in control of entering the dreaming, I’d done so under duress. I hoped going into it this way would yield better results. I lay back onto the pillows and allowed my mind to clear. I glanced at the paper Molly had given me once more. I hoped that I would be able to burn the image in my mind so that I could tell Aberto what I needed. As soon as his name crossed my mind, I was ripped into the dreaming. So much for relaxing.
**********
“You are in need of me so soon, Milady?” Aberto moved towards me through the fog. He really was like an Italian Samurai.
“I wonder if you can help me with the symbols required to lift a veil. Is that something you are familiar with?” I wondered how old Aberto really was. There was something about him that was not quite Seer, not quite Guardian. He was something entirely different all together. Moreover, I somehow knew him. I wanted to get to the bottom of it, but I knew there were more important things at hand.
“It is. I will come with you now. As you awaken, pull me with you.” Aberto brushed his hand down the side of my face causing my blood to burn hot. I was suddenly spinning back to reality and the present with something in tow.
**********
I sat up on the bed and screamed. Standing in the room with me was Aberto almost exactly as he had been during my ceremony. Ian and Kennan burst into the room, seeking out the danger. Kennan moved to stand between us.
“What in the hell are you?” I peeked around Kennan.
“I am the Symbol-smith, Milady.” He bowed deeply as if that explained everything.
“That isn’t what I mean and you know it.” I stood up and moved around Kennan. Peeking around him was ruining my intimidation techniques. Okay, so they probably weren’t that great to begin with, but he wasn’t helping. Mister I-must-protect-my-woman-from-everything-even-if-it-is-just-a-gnat.
“I do not think this is the time for such a conversation. Instead we should turn our eye to the matter at hand. You wish to lift a veil?” He lowered himself in the chair as he asked.
“Man, I thought you Guardians were evasive. But, you are right, I do need your help in lifting a veil. I’ve been blocked by the woman orchestrating the sacrifices. If I’m going to stop it, and possibly rescue Isadora, her identity must be clear.”
“This is impossible,” Aberto said, staring down at his palms. I was struck once more by how inordinately handsome he was. I looked over to Kennan and blushed scarlet. I knew that I did not want anyone but him, but in the past few days we had not had any quality alone time. I must’ve been going through withdrawals. I shook myself out of my wanderings and focused back on what Aberto had just said.
“What do you mean it is impossible? You said you could help with lifting the veil,” I practically shouted. Why had I teleported his useless self here if not to do this?
“I can. I am merely stating that saving Isadora is impossible. That is a fixed point which may not be altered. Surely you know this.” He captured my gaze with his own intense blue one. There was something burning beneath the surface of those eyes, something unaccountably old and uncomfortably familiar.
“Yes, okay fine. I know that it is her time. But maybe we can save the other two Seers before they are sacrificed. Do you have any objections to that?” I wondered when I’d become so snippy. It had been building over the last few days. Maybe it was the lack of sleep catching up with me. Or perhaps I wasn’t cut out for all of this pressure.
“Swear an oath not to interfere in Isadora’s death.” Aberto had me locked in his gaze. I knew that if I swore this I would not be able to go against my word, even should I wish to. There was something binding in the way he spoke.
“I swear an oath that I won’t interfere, no matter how much I may wish to. Now, can we move on with this veil lifting thing?”
“Izzy, you should be more patient with him,” Kennan admonished in my ear, barely above a whisper.
“I don’t have that luxury when people may be dying.” I was beginning to feel as if I was the only one that had this sense of urgency. I had this building apprehension. I knew that if we did not act soon the scales would be tipped and I wasn’t sure I would ever be able to rebalance them.
“She is correct, she must act quickly.” Aberto got up and moved towards me. He lifted his ink stained hand to my face and held my cheek looking down into my eyes. I needed to distance myself from this man, or whatever he was. “Are you sure you wish to do this so close to your marking ceremony? These symbols will fade from your person over time but they will last for weeks to come. In this, the pain will be your own. You cannot separate yourself. Do you understand what you seek?” I swallowed, stepping out of his hand in the process.
“I do.”
“Then we shall proceed. I will return in a moment.” He vanished before my very eyes.
“Seriously, what is he?” I asked Kennan who looked incredibly ragey at the moment.
“He is overstepping his bounds is what he is.”
Oh great, I was about to get peed on. Just what I needed to add to the glory that was this day.
“Um, Babe, nothing to worry about, okay? So could we keep on task here? Like maybe by telling me if that dude is a ghost. That disappearing stuff is just creepy.”
“He is an Old One,” Ian said by way of explanation.
Yeah, crystal clear now. I was writing that damned handbook. Now that I was the leader of the Council, it was going to happen.
“Yep, totally got it now. Thanks,” I said as Aberto suddenly reappeared, carrying a pack on his shoulder. He was also dressed in jeans and a sweater now. I wondered if his clothes magically appeared like he did. Wouldn’t that be a cool trick? I would have to see if I could magic up myself a new wardrobe. That was totally going in the handbook if it worked under the section “Perks for Seers.”
“Are you ready?” Aberto asked.
“I suppose now is as good a time as any. What do you need me to do?”
“I need you to get into something without sleeves and lie down on the bed. We can do this here if your Guardian has no objections.” Aberto locked gazes with Kennan and it seemed they had a momentary silent conversation.
“I have none. We will wait outside,” Kennan said through gritted teeth.
“Wait, you are leaving?” I became panicked. I thought that I would at least have the comfort of their presence.
“This must be done by you alone,” Aberto and Kennan said simultaneously. So they really had just had a telepathic conversation. I watched as Ian and Kennan slipped out of the room. Kennan leveled me with a steady gaze as he left. I felt his encouragement seep into me as the door shut.
“What are you? More importantly, why do I feel like I know you?” I turned to Aberto, hoping that he might give me a more defined answer.
“I am an Old One,” he said, pulling out the same instruments he’d used to mark my back. “Now I need you to go and change into something without sleeves.” He never once looked at me as he placed his tools out on the table next to the bed. It felt strange to be in such closed quarters with him. I did not even know what he was. Moreover, it had not escaped my notice that he’d completely ignored my second question.
“Fine, but could you explain it once I get back? I didn’t grow up in all of this so I am a bit lost in the sauce.” I headed to the bathroom and changed into a sleeveless dress. It was all I had without sleeves. I moved back into the room and Aberto gave me an assessing gaze before motioning to the bed.
“What is lost in the sauce?” he asked without a trace of humor in his voice.
“It means I have no clue what is going on. Up until this point, I have kind of been bumbling about blindly. So if you could explain what an Old One is, I would appreciate it,” I said, lying back against the pillows. “Besides I am sure I could use a distraction while you do this.”
“Unfortuna
tely, I cannot explain it while I mark you. That requires my entire concentration. I swear to you that I will someday explain what I am. You have my word. There are more important matters lying at your feet at the moment. Are you ready?” he asked, placing his hand on my cheek once more. I really wished he would stop doing that. It felt far too personal.
“Yes,” I stammered, not at all sure that I was.
“Let us begin. There are seven marks that must be made. They will not go as deep as the one on your back and the ink will vanish after a month’s time. If you have not found her by then, I must reapply the marks.”
“What are these marks? They don’t look like the Celtic knots or the runes that I have seen.”
“That is because these are neither. The marks you have shown me are from the First Ones. There are very few left in existence with the memories of such marks. They hold great power which is why they were hidden away from man. I trust you will not use these marks for ill intent.” He moved towards me with the tattooing implement.
“I swear I will not.” It sounded corny, but if I wanted to get the show on the road, I knew I had to promise him. The fact was, I had no idea how to even use the marks he was about to put on my body. I didn’t even know what they were. In hindsight, I probably should have done a little more research. I trusted that Molly and Aberto wouldn’t do anything that would harm me. I hoped that trust held.
“Then we shall begin.” The moment the words left his mouth, I felt the burning begin to build. Only this time, there was no outlet. There was no one there to help me endure the pain. I gritted my teeth as the pain threatened to pull me under. Fire spread beneath my skin until it escalated into a raging inferno. Every bit of my body screamed out to have the pain stop.
“You must find a place where the fire is cooled to a burning ember. Concentrate.” Aberto’s voice broke through the pain.
I tried to let his words wash over me. I needed to look inside of myself and find the place he was talking about. The pain was starting to rise as he moved on to the second mark. I wasn’t sure I would be able to endure much more. I cried out and began to lift myself off of the bed. As I moved Aberto pinned me to the bed by my shoulders.
“You must endure.”
I thrashed against him. I wanted to run. The pain was too much.
“Look at me,” he commanded.
My gaze was drawn to him and I stilled. As my eyes locked with him a momentary peace swept through my body.
“You must endure,” he said with finality.
I nodded once.
My body was drenched in sweat as he began the torment once more. I wondered how much pain a person could endure before it became too much. My soul felt as though it was being branded by what he was doing. I drew into myself and sought out a place that made me feel safe. I thought of Kennan and our home in Alabama. I surrounded myself with that image and allowed it to comfort me. I let the memories of Kennan chasing me around the farm house lull me into a state of relaxation. I could get through this. I could do this and I could rid this world of his brother once and for all. I breathed deeply and allowed the memories to carry me through the pain. It was still there, burning in the background, but as Aberto had said, it was a mere ember.
“It is done,” he said, moving away from me. He paused, putting his instruments away as I gazed down at my arms. Like before, he’d made the marks beautiful. I felt as though I was his walking canvas. He breathed deeply before continuing. “You truly love him, don’t you?” he asked and the sadness in his eyes startled me.
“Who? What are you talking about?” I was utterly confused by what was transpiring.
“Your Guardian, he is your home is he not?” Aberto reached for me and cupped my face with his large, calloused hand once more.
“He is. I love him more than I ever thought I could love anything or anyone.” It was the truth. I would be lost without Kennan. He was my home. He was my refuge. He was my world.
“As it should be.” The sadness in his eyes made a thousand questions spring to mind. As always, I was not exactly eloquent, so I just shouted out the first one that came to mind.
“What’s your deal? Why does that upset you?” I moved away from his hand once more. If he kept doing that I was going to break the durn thing.
“That is a story for another time. For now I must go. Just read the inscription on the paper and you shall lift the veil. May the gods be with you in your quest.” With that he was gone once more. Poof. Stupid Old One. Whatever that was. I didn’t have time for his mysteriousness.
I got up and moved to the door. I found Ian and Kennan pacing nervously outside the door. As soon as the door cracked Kennan pounced on me. He lifted my arms to inspect each mark and then moved into the room to look for Aberto.
“He poofed again. Is there a bottle lying about somewhere that he lives in?”
What? How was I supposed to know what an Old One was? He could be a genie. It was possible. Ian thought it was hysterical. As always, he was unable to take anything seriously.
“No bottle, although I wish I could stuff him into one,” Kennan ground out.
“That’s nice, but I need to get back into a vision. I need to think up this woman so I can find out who she really is and find a way to put an end to this.” I patted Kennan on his overprotective arm and headed back to the sheet of paper by the bed. I looked down to see that Aberto had written something on the bottom.
Izzy,
As always, call for me in the dreaming, and I shall come.
Aberto
Alright then, I hoped I wouldn’t need him anytime soon. More importantly, I planned to do copious amounts of research before calling on him again. I wanted to know what he was. Especially since no one seemed to want to tell me.
**********
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
I lay down on the bed with the paper in my hands. I started to utter the words when Kennan interrupted.
“Don’t you want to wait a while to attempt this? I mean, you just got the markings. How do you know they will work right away?” Kennan wanted to protect me and I understood that, but if I was to lead the Council the way I needed to, he would have to start trusting me more. Granted my track record was not all that great. But that wasn’t the point.
“Trust me.” I reached up and brushed a kiss against his lips. I pleaded with my eyes, begging him to believe in me.
“I do.” He pulled me into a deeper kiss.
“Barf.” Ian coughed into his hand.
“Right, no time for that. Evil Empires must be brought to their knees.” I settled back against the pillows and read the words from the paper. I had no idea what I was saying. For all I knew I could have been cursing someone’s goat in Swahili. As the last word left my mouth I was pulled back into the dreaming that wasn’t the dreaming. I was in a vision.
**********
“They are all here. We should be able to move forward, my love. It will all be right with the world once I have you back. Then I can get her back and we will be a family again,” I heard the woman say.
“Yes, that all sounds wonderful,” Xavier responded coldly. Whatever feelings this woman had for him were clearly not reciprocated.
“Everything is set for tomorrow. I have brought them here so that we may move quickly. The others are waiting for your call,” she purred.
I rounded the corner of the building, finally making out the sign over the entryway. It was the old Brach’s Candy Factory. It had been abandoned on the outskirts of Chicago for years. I moved silently through the rubble seeking out the voices once more.
“Just make it happen quickly. I grow impatient waiting in this broken form.” Xavier’s body came into view as he paced back and forth in front of a woman. I drew closer to them, hiding myself behind supports and rubble as I went.
“I can’t wait to be at your side once more,” the woman said. I fell to my knees as the veil lifted and I could glimpse her true form for the first time. I wanted to scream out, I wanted to yell.
I needed to get out of there as quickly as I could. Now I understood why Molly had hesitated. It all made perfect sense. The woman helping to bring Xavier back to life was her mother.
**********
I came to my senses violently. I ripped myself from the vision so quickly, it left me feeling nauseous. Well, it was either that or the fact that my best friend’s mother was a psycho. I swallowed hard sitting up in the process.
“Did you find out who it is?” Kennan moved to sit next to me. His face was etched with concern.
“I need to see Molly.” I tried to stand up but my knees threatened to buckle.
“Ian, can you get her and bring her here?” Kennan pushed me back to the bed.
“Yeah, I’m on it.” Ian darted from the room. I had a feeling Molly would be waiting for him.
“Who was it, Iz?” Kennan asked, wiping the tear from my cheek.
“I need to see Molly. I can’t say until I see her.” My voice caught in my throat. How was I supposed to tell her? How would our friendship survive this?
“I’m here.” Molly moved toward the bed and took Kennan’s place beside me. “So it is true then. It is her.” The tears ran down her cheeks, mapping their contours as they went.
“I am so sorry Molly. I don’t know what I am supposed to do now. I can’t let this keep happening, but she is your mom. How can I do this?” I grabbed her hand and wrapped it in my own.
“You can do it because you must. She made her choice, Izzy. She chose him over me and the life we could have had. So you end this. You put a stop to it and make sure that no one else gets hurt.” Molly squeezed my hand and started to leave. I pulled her to a stop.
“She was going to come back for you. I heard her say she wanted to get her girl back. She still loves you, Molly.” I knew that what I said would probably make this all the harder for her, but I also knew that if I was in her place I would want to know.
See How She Fights Page 13