by Kristen Day
“The main thing I sense is…darkness.” As soon as the words were out I realized how awful they sounded, so I rushed to clarify, “But it’s not a bad darkness. It’s more like a warm-summer-night kind of darkness, not the monster-under-the-bed kind of darkness.” Wow. Great explanation…for a six year old. I should have stuck with sexy, alluring, and good-looking.
“Monster under the bed?” he remarked, seeming to enjoy my obvious discomfort. I began to describe how I used to take a running start and jump on my bed in order to avoid the monster that was surely lurking underneath, waiting for the opportune time to grab my ankles and eat me alive. Thankfully, before I could embarrass myself further, he continued.
“So how exactly do you sense that darkness?” He arched a dark eyebrow at me.
“I….feel it. Not in the same way that I feel the sand or the wind. I just…know it’s there.”
“Jackpot. That’s your other sense kicking in,” he smiled at me with pride. I pondered whether or not my ‘other sense’ included seeing darkness as well. Nadia’s darkness was definitely the monster-under-the-bed kind. Before I could ask, he rose to his knees; eyes gleaming with excitement.
“Time to practice, Pasha.”
Ignoring the turmoil growing in my stomach, I positioned myself on my back and gazed up at the stars with consternation. Finn crawled around to the crown of my head; simultaneously erupting into a fit of laughter.
“You might want to try and relax. It works better that way,” he sneered down at me.
I glared up at him, “Go ahead and laugh, but you aren’t the one sprawled out on a blanket like a science experiment.” Still smiling, he leaned down and lightly kissed me on the forehead.
“You’ve done this a dozen times, there’s nothing to worry about. I promise.” He ran his fingers gently through my hair, “I’ll be right here the whole time.”
“Promise?” I peeked up at him, requiring a little more reassurance.
“I promise,” he assured me. Satisfied, I closed my eyes and commenced to taking long, deep breaths. “First thing I want you to practice is separating your soul from your body, but not letting it go anywhere. Since you know it’s going to happen, try to relax your mind and allow yourself to let go. If you don’t wake up in five minutes, I’ll wake you up.”
“Okay, but usually, I just wake up somewhere else during the reverie. I don’t ever remember separating from my body.”
“This time you’re doing it voluntarily, so you should be able to remember the experience. Now, try and relax.” I focused my ears on the roar of the ocean and allowed the soft wind to caress my skin. Feeling Finn’s eyes on me, I cracked an eye and observed him.
“I can see your nose hairs.”
“I bet closing your eyes would help.”
“I can see your Adams apple, too,” I said, suppressing a giggle.
“You’re about to see me tickle you if you don’t close your eyes and concentrate,” he threatened me with an incorrigible smile. When I failed to do so, he lunged forward, convincing me he was going to launch a full blown tickle attack.
“Okay! Okay! I’ll close my eyes, I’ll do it! I’ll do it!” I squealed and attempted to squirm away from his torturous hands that were hovering precariously above my stomach. After my giggles died down, Finn continued to run his fingertips through my hair and I finally felt my body relax. I listened to my own breathing and felt my conscious mind center as it began to grow numb with sleep. I forced myself to direct my focus inward, and automatically endured a slight dizzying sensation. My immediate response was to steady myself in order to curb the uncomfortable feeling, but I made myself endure and give into the weirdness. As I continued to spin, I let go absolutely; quickly sinking. I descended farther and farther until I was simply suspended in a world of weightlessness. I hesitantly opened my eyes.
Stars. I failed. I was still lying on my back staring at the sky trying to go to sleep. But if that was the case, why did I feel so light all of a sudden? I tentatively sat up and scanned my surroundings. I wasn’t on the beach anymore. Odd. I was…above it. I steeled myself and peered down. What I saw would remain with me for the rest of my life. It was as unsettling as it was miraculous. My body lay peaceful and unmoving below; eyes closed. Finn was observing my face intently, still clutching my hand. It melted my heart and made me smile down at him lovingly. Suddenly, I began to move. Finn and my body continued to grow smaller and smaller as the ocean spread out before me. Where was I going? I wasn’t supposed to go anywhere! I needed to go back! As panic raced through my veins, I tried to remember what Finn had told me. Senses. Something about senses. I closed my eyes and listened. All I could hear was the sound of wind as I flew out over the water. I listened harder, but couldn’t hear anything else. I opened my eyes and looked for the lighthouse’s revolving light. Where was it? Was I too far away already? Feel. What did I feel? Finn had been holding my hand. I looked down at my hand and tried to feel his palm in mine. I closed my eyes, concentrating harder. Warmth. A soothing touch. I could feel it. I squeezed it to make sure I wasn’t imagining things.
“I did it!” I shot up; filled with overwhelming elation, “I did it!” I turned to face him and launched myself into his open arms. Laughing, he tumbled backwards and hugged me back while I continued, “I saw my body! And I saw you! I did like you said and concentrated on my senses to get back to my body. I felt your hand and all of a sudden I was back!”
“Never a doubt in my mind,” he kissed me, and then carefully brought me back down to reality with his soothing words. “Now, let’s see if you can take it one step further.”
I collected myself as much as I could, then sat back down and faced him with eagerness. “Okay, what’s next, Professor?”
“Next is purposefully going somewhere. We’ll need to pick a place relatively close so that you can practice directing your soul and also coming back to your body at will.”
“Would Bald Head be considered relatively close?” I proposed, but he shook his head in disagreement.
“Let’s start with the yacht. If that goes well, you can try Bald Head.”
“I can live with that,” I conceded. This time as I lay back down and gazed up into Finn’s eyes, relaxing my body came much easier to me. After several minutes, I began to feel the numbness, the dizziness and sinking, and then finally the weightlessness.
Stars. Again. But this time I knew right away. I remembered that the lightness meant I had succeeded in separating from my body. I immediately sat up, glanced down and saw my body lying below me with Finn once again holding my hand. Infused with excitement, I scanned the water in search of the yacht. I could just make out the white hull in the distance. Keeping my eyes locked on the yacht and concentrating on moving towards it, I felt a pull in that general direction. I glanced down to witness the ocean blurring beneath me as I picked up speed. As the yacht began to get closer and closer, I started to panic. How did I slow down? What if I hit the boat? Then what happened? Unfortunately, I didn’t have a chance to find out as I reached the boat and proceeded to fly right past it. The pull I felt became stronger; holding me hostage and increasing my speed. The dark water below me and the star filled sky above melted together into one continuous blur. I had no idea where I was headed, but I knew one thing for certain: I was no longer in control. My head exploded with pain and the world went completely black.
Chapter 7
I gasped as I took in the spectacle before me. I was precariously perched on the top row of some kind of stone coliseum. At least a thousand people crowded the levels of seats that rose impossibly high into the night air. Seemingly carved out of a mountain, the coliseum encircled the main attraction far below. The modern lights towering above me shone down on the large circle of black that everyone was watching. Cheers and stomping feet filled my ears as I tried to understand what they were so enthralled with. I could see the figures of two men in the circle. They looked like they were fighting, but to be sure I needed to get closer. I carefully m
ade my way down the stone steps nearby, arriving at a lower level that allowed a better view. Before I could focus in on the fighters, my eyes caught on a woman sitting directly across the circle from me. She was crying. Natasha! Beside her sat the same older looking man I had seen that night at the Ball. The one Finn had claimed was just a friend. A cheer rising from the crowd averted my attention back to the fight. The two men were already beaten and bloodied as they continually lunged for each other. Their dark hair shining in the artificial light, they wore only black shorts. Their muscular bodies were tense with the anticipation of their opponent’s next move. One in particular moved with quiet stealth. He was always one step faster than the other; his movements more fluid. His bloody hands were wrapped in a type of brown leather that extended from his fingers to his wrists, sort of like a glove…leather…glove… Finn. Finn! I squinted in an effort to see past the bruises and swollen eyes. It was definitely Finn. That’s also when I noticed the array of weapons littering the circle; a double blade axe, attached to a handle encrusted in onyx and diamonds being one of them. What was happening? And why was I here? Another cheer came from the crowd as Finn was able to throw the other man down and reach for his axe. Before he wrapped his hands around the handle, his opponent had jumped to his feet and tackled him on the ground. He raised a silver, menacing sword above Finn’s chest and a collective gasp came from the crowd.
“Stasia! Wake up!”
My eyes flew open and I scrambled to my feet. My heart was beating wildly and I was drenched in sweat. Finn was still sitting on the blanket, watching me with concern.
“I’m not going to watch you die!” I screamed at him. Confusion washed over his face as he stood and walked towards me slowly; somehow knowing the turmoil that was racing through me. He held his hands up.
“I’m not dying, Stasia. I’m fine. See?” He continued taking steps toward me.
“Stop!” I warned him as I tried to catch my breath and still my frantic pulse. He stopped advancing immediately and held his tongue. What had just happened? That wasn’t a reverie. Well it was, before… it was a vision. I let out a ragged breath and dropped to the sand below me in defeat. I closed my eyes.
“No more secrets, Finn. If I’m going to start having visions like that, I need to know what’s going on with you.” I felt his presence in front of me as he sat down on the sand, too. I met his worried gaze.
“What did you see, Stasia?” he prodded carefully; a shadow falling over his features.
“My reverie changed into a vision,” I breathed. “You were fighting. You were in a huge stone coliseum and there were tons of people watching, like it was some kind of sick sport - they were cheering for you to kill each other!” I yelled, exasperated, but his handsome face had turned blurry as the tears collected in my eyes. “Even Natasha was there. And the older man from the Ball.”
His eyes fell to the sand before meeting mine once again; pleading, almost fearful. He reached out slowly, took my hand, and gently ran his finger over my trace. His touch calmed my nerves immediately and I felt the tears finally spill over and roll down my cheeks.
“I can’t tell you everything, Stasia. I wish I could, but I just can’t,” he whispered, and swiped a tear from my cheek. My eyes dropped to my triskellion trace in disappointment as I ran my finger across its swirls, extending all the way to my ring finger.
“I just need to understand. You always tell me I can trust you, but you need to know you can trust me too. It goes both ways. Nothing you tell me will change the way I feel about you. I love you, Finn. Please just tell me something. Anything.”
“I love you too, Stasia. You are everything to me and I never want to lose you. Unfortunately that means having to keep certain things from you. For your safety.”
“I can take care of myself!” I threw at him in desperation.
“I know, I know.” He moved closer, grasping my hand; desperately wanting me to understand, “You’re so strong, Stasia. But there are forces in this world. Evil forces that are almost impossible to overcome. I would never forgive myself if I let anything to happen to you.” The sorrow in his eyes unraveled my resolve.
“I just need to understand. I want to be there for you like you have been for me. We’re in this together.” His eyes searched mine and I could see the war playing out in his mind; trying to decide what divulge.
“Charon,” he whispered.
“What?”
“Do you know who Charon is?” he asked quietly. I nodded.
“He’s a god of the Underworld.”
“Right. All the Sons of Daimon are descended from him,” he added.
“Why aren’t you called the Sons of Charon?” I asked curiously.
“He’s been known by many different names, Charon being the most recent, but Daimon was the name he was given at birth.” He took a deep breath and continued, “Every five hundred years the Prime, or the leader of the Sons, steps down. But his successor has to be a direct descendent of Charon; a true Son. That successor becomes the new leader at the age of eighteen; as well as becoming immortal. Until then he’s referred to as…the Scion.” He paused as my eyes got wide, “Charon is my father, Stasia. I was Chosen to be the next Prime.”
A wide smile spread across my face as my heart filled with unabated pride. I leaned forward, smothering him in a hug.
“Oh, Finn! That’s incredible!” I exclaimed, but my excitement wasn’t reciprocated. I sat back and examined his face with consternation.
“It’s an amazing honor, but there are many sacrifices that a Prime must endure. You witnessed the first in your vision.” His features darkened and his eyes filled with sadness. “The Scion isn’t just appointed as Prime; he has to earn his place as leader. So, in order to become the Prime, on my eighteenth birthday I must kill the current Prime.” Understanding crept in to my heart, tearing in two.
“That means….” I couldn’t say the words I was thinking.
“I have to kill my own brother,” he finished for me, his voice oppressed with obligation and defeat.
“But….why?” I furrowed my brow. Would I be strong enough to be able to kill my own sibling in order to fulfill my destiny?
“All true Sons return to the Underworld to serve under Charon once they complete their time as Prime. But it’s also the first test of sacrifice for the new Prime. It’s been that way for thousands of years.”
“That’s what you’ve been practicing for…” the image of Finn on the ground in my vision flashed before my eyes, “but, what if he kills you first?”
“He’ll remain the Prime and my soul will be sent to serve under Charon in his place.” My heart froze in fear. That couldn’t happen. I couldn’t lose him.
“Your soul…” I exalted quietly.
“Since I’m a direct descendent of Charon, my soul already belongs to the Underworld. That’s the ‘darkness’ that you feel.” He held up air quotes and grinned at me with amusement. I couldn’t help but wonder once again what that meant about Nadia considering I could actually see her darkness, but I tried to push that thought out of my head.
“What other sacrifices will you have to make?” I asked; a sense of dread filling every fiber of my being. I couldn’t imagine how lonely it must be for him.
“My own sacrifices, I can handle. I’ve come to terms with my destiny,” he claimed with creed. “It’s the price the people I love would have to pay that I can’t bear.” The muscle in his jaw flexed with anger.
“What price do they have to pay?” I asked hesitantly.
“Stasia-“
“Here they are! I found them!” Phoebe was jogging up the beach towards us, followed by several other shadowy shapes resembling Ian, Willow, and Liam.
“Hey you guys!” she waved at us. Automatically thinking something was wrong, I jumped up and met her near the water’s edge.
“Is everything okay, Phoebs?” I asked her.
“Of course! We were getting worried about you guys. You’ve been gone for a long time.�
� She gave me a hug and smiled at Finn, “Plus we got tired of listening to Ricker and Carmen fight. So we left Cage to deal with them and went for a little midnight walk!”
Deciding I’d been through enough for one night, we decided to give it another try tomorrow afternoon. If that went well, we’d try to contact Thetis later that night. I had to admit I was relieved, but I was quickly losing any faith that I would be able to pull this off.
~~~~~
Click….creeek….click….creeek… The cloak of night was still heavy on the world when I woke up with a start. Click….creeek….click… Trying not to wake Willow, I slid out of the covers and tiptoed over to the large bay window in our room. The sound was coming from the backyard; the gardens. From my vantage point, they were shaded in a light veil of dew, glistening in the moonlight. Creeek…click…creeek…click… The sunshine-filled rooms of yesterday had morphed into something more dark and menacing as I made my way out into the hall, down the stairs, and towards the back deck. The hair on my arms lifted and I could feel my heart thumping faster against my chest. The image of the ghost’s blood-matted blonde hair and shredded skin flashed in my mind, and I almost ran back upstairs. I was probably just seeing things. Ghosts aren’t real and they definitely couldn’t hurt me if they were.
I peered out the window into the gardens beyond, when the sound of a door shutting upstairs had me clamping a hand over the scream that was trying to escape my mouth. I closed my eyes and took deep breaths. Some Goddess I was - scared of a door shutting. I rolled my eyes at myself and stood up straight. I had nothing to be afraid of. As I reached for the door handle, I realized it was already ajar. I steeled myself and stepped out into the crisp night air. Click….creeek….click….
A rolling mist had set in and it swirled around the garden in a magical cadence. The savory fragrances of the flowers invaded my senses and the sound of the ocean rushed in my ears, submerging me in its fury; strengthening me. Although there were seven other people inside, I felt completely isolated. The world around me had come alive with energy. It pulsed in every flower, every leaf, and every blade of grass as I walked along the stone path. I sensed their acknowledgement of my presence as clearly as if they had spoken it aloud. The cool mist swirled and settled on my bare skin; initiating me into the ethereal world I had entered. Click….creeek…click….