Discovery: Altera Realm Trilogy

by Jennifer Collins

  Hunter just stared at her. He didn't know what to say. Gabe probably was right, but there was no way he was going to admit it. Instead he shook his head.

  Syney sighed and looked away. "We should get our stuff. We need to get back to the palace." She quickly walked out of the room.

  Noelle gave Hunter a sad smile before following her out.

  Hunter sighed and cursed to himself. He should have realized they were being manipulated. It wasn't just Syney who was blinded by her feelings. He needed to step it up, keep a level head. But something inside him didn't want to let her go. It was just a matter of time before one side would win, but at this juncture, he wasn't sure which would.

  Gabe

  He needed to calm down. He slowed down about a mile from Becca's house and kicked at the stone wall of the store in front of him. He couldn't believe Becca had let Syney and Noelle into the library without taking that damn book out. This wasn't the time for Syney to find out about his past or even what he could do. It did surprise him a little that Noelle didn't know about that trait of the Vampires, but he had bigger things to worry about. He couldn't lose Syney, not after all of the work he had put into this. He closed his eyes and found himself at the lake. He hadn't gone there in a while. He knew Faye was angry with him, and he couldn't face her. But he needed to calm down, and this was the only place to do it in.

  He looked over at Faye. She was staring at him silently, her thin arms crossed over her chest. Even though the tension was thick, he felt himself calm down within seconds. "Go ahead," he said, deflated.

  "How could you?" she said, shaking her head.

  "Which part?"

  "Gabriel! You were supposed to help her, not sleep with her!"

  "I figured that was what you were most upset about."

  "You know I want—and encourage—you to move on with your life, but not with her! She's too important."

  "Don't you think I know that? I did what I had to do. Besides she was the one who seduced me."

  "The little eighteen-year-old overpowered the nine-hundred-year-old Vampire king?"

  "Former king, and yes. She's very persuasive when she's naked."

  "Ugh!" Faye yelled, throwing her hands into the air. "You were always so stubborn!"

  Gabe shook his head. "The plan is still moving smoothly. Now that that damn curse is gone, I can keep her going in the direction I need. I'm going to bring Adam in. I think she's ready."

  "It's not a good idea. You should deal with what you have. Why not just let her and Hunter be together?"

  "Because I can't control him! He's all about his duty and honor. Stubborn and pigheaded, just like his father! You know what a pain in the ass Ocean was to deal with."

  She shook her head. "He has much more of Rose in him."

  "And she's just as annoying as Ocean. No, it has to be Adam. He can do this. He was born to do this."

  Faye's eyes welled with tears, and she shook her head. "No, he wasn't."

  Gabe looked away from her. "He was raised for this then."

  They lapsed into silence.

  "Just be careful. These are Syney's real emotions you're playing with," Faye said quietly.

  He looked at her. "It's for the greater good."

  "She won't see it that way."

  He stared at Faye. He missed her. She was the conscience of their relationship. He shook his head. "I have to go."

  "OK. But don't stay away too long."

  He smiled at her and opened his eyes. He was calm now but a little more heartbroken. He pushed off the wall and walked on. He noticed a young girl across the street talking on her phone. He hurried across and smiled at her. I need your cell phone, he said into her mind.

  She stared up at him with hazy eyes and said, "I have to go. This guy needs my phone." She hung up and handed it to him.

  "Thank you." He dialed quickly. It picked up on the second ring. "She's just about ready. Start wrapping things up, and head to the Village." He hung up without waiting for the other person to speak. He quickly deleted the number out of the sent calls and handed the phone back to the girl before disappearing into the night.

  Noelle

  They were all set to go, and Gabe still wasn't back. Noelle nervously glanced at the door. Syney seemed so sure that he was coming back, but Noelle wasn't so sure. She never had seen him blow up the way he had. For that matter she never had seen so much emotion from him. He believed so strongly in what he was saying and wasn't apologetic about anything he had said or done. She swore to herself that she would keep a better eye on Syney. Both Syney and Hunter had been super quiet since Gabe had left. Noelle didn't blame them. They had a lot to process. They both knew they couldn't be together, but Gabe was the first one to come right out and say it out loud.

  "Thank you," Syney told Becca, as they gathered on the front porch. It was dark, the sun having set an hour ago.

  "It was an honor. I have something for you," Becca said, handing Syney something wrapped in a cloth. "This might be of interest to you."

  Syney nodded and took it. They headed back to the portal in silence. They were barely past the portal when Gabe met up with them. He didn't say anything as he joined them. Noelle looked at Syney, who shrugged and continued walking. A few miles outside of the Village, they stopped to take a short break. Noelle sat down on a fallen tree next to Syney, who had taken out Becca's gift. She unwrapped the cloth to reveal a book.

  "This doesn't look like the other books we were looking at," Syney said, running her fingers down the thick leather cover.

  "That's because it's a journal," Noelle said. "All royals and Protectors were once required to keep them. They were a living history. Most are in the secured section now, though. I never really understood that."

  "Why don't they require it anymore?"

  "In case they fall into the wrong hands," Hunter said, looking over at them. "We're in wartime."

  "I keep forgetting," Syney said sarcastically, as she opened the book. "Oh, wow." Her mouth shot open.

  "What is it?" Noelle asked.

  Syney looked around and then at Gabe, who stood many feet away from them, before leaning in close to Noelle. "I think it belonged to Gabe's wife."

  "What?" Noelle whispered back, looking at the book. On the first page, she saw the name "Princess Faye of House Blocadrian." "That can't be. This is a royal Magic User's journal."

  "But he said her name was Faye, and when I saw her...there was something familiar about her."

  "You saw her?" Noelle whispered.

  Syney sighed. "I've had some weird dreams. She was in one of them."

  Noelle felt a pang of something. She reluctantly realized it was jealousy. Syney really had shared more with Gabe than Noelle had realized. "Did you see her eyes?"

  Noelle watched Syney thinking, her face all scrunched up. "I think so. They were...red? Is that crazy?"

  "No. That would make her a Blocadrian." Noelle looked over at Gabe. This added even more to him. She had heard many things about the Blocadrians, including the rumor that some had married outside of their race, but none of that had been proven. It couldn't be proven, since all of the Blocadrian had been killed. How they had been killed was up for debate, but the most popular story was that the Daemons and Shifters had killed them, just as they had the last of the Vilori line.

  "We should get going," Hunter said. "It'll be dark soon. I don't want to go through the main gate, so we have a few more miles to go."

  "OK." Syney put the back in her bag, and the four continued on.

  Noelle sent frequent glances at Gabe. She kept thinking about him and his wife and his big picture. And he thought she was interesting...ha! She was beginning to think that everything he did really was part of something bigger. She looked over at him again. Gabe shook his head and tuned to her. She stopped walking as he stopped in front of her.

  "What?" he asked.

  She stared at him for a moment before glancing at Syney and Hunter, who continued to walk. She looked back at him. "
I want to help."

  "With what?"

  "With whatever you're doing."

  "Right now I'm just walking. I can do that fine on my own."

  Noelle sighed and stepped closer to him. "You were married to a Magic User, so I'm assuming you're working toward reunification of the races."

  Gabe flinched a little when she mentioned his wife, but otherwise his face remained passive.

  "Let me help you. I'm closer to Syney than you."

  "Not always."

  "She listens to me."

  "And you really think you can lie to her if you need to?"

  She smiled at him. "I've been lying to her since the day I met her."

  They stared at each other for a moment before Syney called to them. "Hey, you guys coming?"

  "Right there!" Noelle yelled, stepping around Gabe to follow Syney and Hunter to the Village.

  Gabe caught up with them a moment later. He looked at Noelle and gave her a small nod. She smiled to herself. She was finally going to get what she wanted from him.

  Syney

  Hunter had led them to a smaller entrance to the Village, which took them directly into a wall town. From there they traveled into the palace through the entrance by the Guards' quarters. Noelle and Gabe both disappeared once inside, giving some kind of excuse that Syney wasn't really paying attention to and didn't really care about. She had spent most of the trip back to the palace thinking about her current life, and she wasn't too happy with what she saw. She was tired of giving up everything she wanted just because it wasn't allowed. She had loved doing the magic at Becca's, but it was against the rules here. She loved Hunter, but she couldn't be with him because it was against the rules. She couldn't kick Mellisandrianna's ass because it was wrong and could get her killed. None of it was very fair, and she'd had it. She was going to start doing the things she wanted to do. Screw the rules. And she knew exactly what she wanted to start with.

  Reed was standing outside of Syney's room when she and Hunter walked up. He seemed to completely relax when he saw them. His stress clearly had been written all over his young face. Syney gave him a hug and thanked him for helping. He shrugged and leaned against the wall. Hunter told him discreetly to inform Leaf that they had returned and then take the rest of the night off. Reed gave Syney a bow and hurried down the hall. Syney felt sorry for him. He didn't deserve to get caught up in all of her drama. She sighed as they walked into her room. It was completely disaster free. She made a mental note to thank Noelle for that. Noelle even had gone as far as to bring in more vases and decorations, just like the ones she had smashed against the walls. It looked as good as new.

  "You should wash up. I'll have Noelle bring you some dinner," Hunter said, hanging back by the open door.

  Syney looked at him. "Do I smell?" She sniffed herself. It wasn't very pleasant.

  A small smile played on Hunter's lips. "It would just be best." He turned to leave.

  "Wait. Do you have a sec?" she said quickly, before she could change her mind.

  He nodded and stepped farther into the room.

  She took a deep breath and felt her tears coming even before she started to talk. "I've been thinking about things, and I've decided something. I'm not a fan of ultimatums, but I really don't have a choice here." She paused and stepped closer to him. "I can't go back to what we were—not after knowing how good we can be together. But I don't want to force you to do something you don't want to do. So I'm leaving it up to you. We can be together, here, now. Or you can step down as my Protector." She watched his face for any emotion, but she couldn't read anything. He kept his face neutral as he listened. "I can't be around you all the time if I can't be with you. I should have let you step down when you asked at the ball. I thought having you in my life was all that mattered, but it's not. The curse may have put most of those feelings inside me, but some of them were very real." She wiped some tears from her cheeks and sniffled a little. "So you can stay now or leave. But that's all I can do."

  Hunter stared at her for a moment before turning away. He started to walk to the door, and Syney felt her heart break in her chest. She turned away to look out at the balcony, her tears picking up and a sob escaping from her mouth. She almost fell to her knees as she heard the door close behind her. She had left it up to him, and she had tried to prepare herself for this outcome, but living it was something she couldn't prepare for.

  She gasped as a firm hand grabbed her arm and turned her around. Hunter lowered his head to rest his forehead against hers for a moment. Syney felt her heartbeat quicken as they kissed.

  Later that night Syney found herself staring at Hunter as he slept next to her. She had slept with him every night they had been in Colchin, but somehow this felt different. This was what she wanted, but for some reason, she had a sickening feeling in her gut, like she was making the wrong choice—which was insane, she thought, as she ran a finger down his cheek. He was her soul mate. How could being together be wrong? She sat up in bed, trying to not wake him. There was no way she was going to sleep, not with her stomach bubbling and her mind racing. She looked over at her nightstand. The book Becca had given her was sitting there. She picked it up and flipped it open. Maybe getting lost in someone else's life would help.

  Journal of Princess Faye of House Blocadrian

  Twentieth Day of Pyanepsion during the 1998th Year

  Today is a joyous day—at least it is supposed to be. I turned eighteen today, the official age of adulthood. But I don't feel much like an adult. By this age my older sister, Faith, was paired and planning her Joining ceremony, not to mention attending council meetings with our mother, the head of Blocadrian House. I guess no one really notices the younger sister, even on one of the most important days for a Magic User. What am I getting at? You guessed it. They all forgot my birthday. It pains me to admit that it bothers me so much. I should be used to being ignored by now. My parents have a lot going on, granted, but that doesn't mean I can't be a little ticked off. I overheard them the other night talking about the rising tensions, not only in the Magic User Council but also in the Great Races Council. The second council is something both my parents are very active in. They believe that all of the Great Races came from the same ancestor and that we should all come together and work and live and even love side by side. I have to admit that the other races really are interesting. It would be a dream come true to attend one of the council meetings, if only to get a glimpse of the other races. There aren't many people of other races in the Village, which is something mother is always complaining about.

  What I don't get is if she's so mad about it, why she doesn't try to take the throne back from the Vilori line? It was originally our line that sat on the Magic User throne. My mother doesn't like to talk about it, but I've heard some gossip around that my great-grandmother gave the throne to the Vilori after bonding with my great-grandfather. After that they left the Village, and only my great-grandfather returned years later. It was all very odd, but there was no real way to find out what had happened. I asked about their journals, but mother told me to mind my curiosity. She said it was unbecoming of a young royal and a young lady to ask so many questions. Hogwash!

  Thirtieth Day of Pyanepsion during the 1998th Year

  Now I am finally happy! Once my parents realized they had made the grievous mistake of forgetting my birthday, they offered me anything I wanted as a present. I thought about it for a while, but I could only come up with one thing I really wanted. And they actually gave it to me! I went with my mother—just me, no Faith—to the Great Races Council meeting yesterday. It was amazing! I had to stay up in the balcony, but I got a real good view of all the other races. I knew Queen Aaliyah, of course, and Cypress, the head of the Royal Guard. So I spent most of the time checking out the other heads of the races. They all sat below me in large stone chairs. The Daemon king was a large man, almost as large as some of the Lycins. He had black eyes and black hair. The most interesting thing about him, however, was his mannerisms.
He seemed to move like liquid; every gesture or shift was so fluid. I had heard that the Daemons are very powerful. They have the ability to use magics without even using spells. I also had heard how dangerous they are. Basil, my Protector, once told me all about the death grip, something I hoped never to see firsthand.

  The Shifter king also was very large, but his movements showed it. Every movement he made was clunky, and he huffed a lot. I knew all of the royal Shifters were big cats, and I assumed he was a lion based not only on his name but also by the bushy hair on his head and his face. His hair was a golden blond, which stood out against his tanned skin. I noticed that he got angry quiet frequently, which isn't a good trait for a leader to possess.

  I had been so busy studying the two kings that I almost forgot the last one. And that's when things got weird. When I looked over at the Vampire king, I found myself staring straight into his golden eyes. He was sitting lazily in his chair, even slumped down, which isn't something a ruler should do, ever. The balcony was high, so we were a pretty good distance apart, but there was no mistaking the fact that he was staring straight at me. My heart pounded as I willed myself to look away, but I couldn't. There was something mesmerizing in his look.

  "Gabriel! Are you even listening?" Queen Aalyiah yelled .

  "I am," he said nonchalantly as he finally looked away from me. "And I disagree."

  I had no idea what they were talking about, but I didn't care very much either. Once the meeting ended, my mother and I went with the Village's caravan back home. I didn't get to see anyone as we left, which made me feel a little sad. Now, as I write this, my brain is working overtime, trying to figure out a way to see that Vampire king one more time. It may sound crazy, but I felt some kind of connection, even as far away as we were. All I know is that I have to see him again. I'm just not sure how.