by Wendy Owens
The Oracle busied herself at a nearby nook and soon emerged carrying two glasses of what Gabe thought was milk. “Please, enjoy.” The Oracle said placing the mugs before the two and then having a seat herself at the large wooden table.
Gabe and Dina thanked the Oracle for her hospitality. Though neither of them really wanted a mug of milk, they drank it none the less. Gabe observed how thick it was and that it seemed fresh, almost warm. He wondered if the cow it came from was nearby.
“I assume you two didn’t just come here for refreshments?” The Oracle asked looking kindly into Gabe’s eyes. “This is about your visions?”
Gabe dropped the mug onto the table, almost spilling the milk. His mouth dropped open with astonishment. Then he asked, “I don’t understand. How did you...?” Gabe wasn’t even sure what to ask.
“Gabe,” the woman laughed as she said his name. “You do know what an Oracle does, right?” Gabe simply smiled in response.
“Yes, ma’am,” Dina finally chimed in seeing Gabe's tongue was tied. “This is his second vision of Uri today. Anthony was mentioned both times. I fear Uri may be trying to tell us something. Warn us perhaps.”
“Is that what you think, Gabe?” The Oracle inquired.
“I really don’t know what to think.” Gabe responded, unsure what to call this woman. She looked nothing like he had anticipated. In his mind, Gabe had conjured up the image of an elderly woman covered in warts, a long crooked nose, yellow teeth, and frayed hair. This woman that stood before him was a picture of beauty, who seemed so gentle he wanted to curl up in her arms and sleep.
The Oracle reached across the table. Taking Gabe’s hand and she looked into his eyes. “Uri is trying to communicate with you, but I don’t think that this is question you seek answers to.”
“What?” Gabe asked, unsure what she meant.
“So Uri is trying to tell us something.” Dina said, a firmness to her voice.
The Oracle flashed a dismissive glare at Dina and continued. “You ask of Uri and messages, but I see questions swirling in your head, dear boy, about your destiny. You want to know of your prophecy.”
When Gabe had got there he hadn’t really been thinking much about it, but when the words left the Oracle’s mouth he realized he did want to know more. Who was he supposed to be saving? Was he truly the chosen one? When would all this come about? Did he really have a choice? Would he and Sophie fall in love?
The Oracle held onto his hands and watched him as he sat there. In his mind he heard the Oracle’s soft voice, ‘So many questions for such a young boy.’ Gabe wondered if he were going mad or if in fact this Oracle had somehow just been speaking to him in his thoughts.
“Don’t worry, you’re not going mad.” The Oracle said to Gabe. Dina stared at them both, puzzled by the conversation she seemed to be left out of.
“Dina,” The Oracle continued. “Would you mind giving us a moment?”
Dina jumped to her feet, “Of course, I mind. We came here for information, Calysta.”
“And you will receive it. Now, leave us child.” The Oracle said firmly, she seemed annoyed Dina had used her actual name.
“Gabe, you have to be careful,” Dina warned. “She is neutral.”
“Why is that a problem?” Gabe asked, staring into the woman’s beautiful eyes.
Dina glared at The Oracle fiercely. “I’m just saying sometimes she is neutral to a fault.” Dina huffed as she turned and left the cottage. A minute later Dina was gone. Gabe found himself alone with the Oracle.
“So, Michael has told you of your future?” The Oracle said. Before Gabe could respond she added, “Most of it at least.”
The comment puzzled Gabe greatly. He decided to prod for more information. “What do you mean most of it?” He asked.
“Everything he told you is true but there is more...” The Oracle explained.
“How do you know what he told me? Did he tell you?” Gabe asked.
“Again,” the woman said making a face at him and pointing her fingers inward. “I’m the Oracle.”
“Right,” Gabe replied.
“Do you want to know?” she asked. Gabe tried to speak but nothing came out. At last he forced himself to nod accordingly.
“Are you sure? Knowledge is a powerful thing and not everyone can handle knowing the truth about some things.” The Oracle offered the disclaimer cautiously.
“I want to know.” Gabe insisted. The frustration he had felt from the secrets when he first arrived came flooding back.
“A prophecy is just that, a foretelling of one’s destiny. Michael was right when he told you it’s the person’s choice to fulfill that destiny.” The Oracle upheld. Gabe watched as her eyes rolled back into her head. As she spoke, her voice became deep with an unsettling and unfamiliar moan to it.
“A Guardian will come. He will be strong, possessing all the powers blessed by the divine. A great prophet will be born. He will be chosen to lead the world through its darkest times and help millions on their path to salvation. If the prophet lives, the Guardian will die. If the Guardian lives, the prophet will die. The protector will choose.” The Oracle bowed her head and didn’t murmur another word. Minutes passed, Gabe sat absorbing her words. At last she raised her head, her eyes had returned to normal.
Gabe broke the silence. “So wait, are you telling me I am going to die?”
“We all have choices, Gabe.” The Oracle pointed out. “It’s like I told you, everyone has the choice to fulfill their destiny or not. In a way, Uri is trying to tell you about someone else’s destiny in your visions.”
“What are you talking about?” Gabe asked agitated.
“The visions, boy. Uri wants you to know Anthony has made his choice about his destiny.” The Oracle explained equally agitated. Gabe thought she didn’t seem gentle any longer.
Gabe didn’t want to hear about Anthony or Uri. The visions he had that day no longer were as important to him. “So wait, go back, you’re telling me that in the future, if I choose to live and not become the protector, the prophet will die?”
“It is the future,” The Oracle replied mysteriously.
“But if I choose not to fulfill my destiny someone else can just do it, right?” Gabe pleaded.
“No, you have a choice but your destiny is yours alone.” The Oracle expounded.
“Some choice!” Gabe retorted. Gabe stood to his feet, the chair falling over behind him and crashing to the floor. He busted out the front door and headed up the corridor that led to the surface. Dina called out after him, but Gabe could only hear the sound of his heart beating.
As he almost reached the surface, he realized he had cast Illuminato as if it were second nature. This gave him no joy, however. All he could think about was the death sentence he had just been handed. Whether him or another innocent, someone was going to die. When he reached the grassy area at the top of the stairs under the moonlight, he collapsed and began pounding his fists into the earth.
He thought about what a fool he had been. Michael knew about the prophecy when he brought him here. He said it would be his choice, but what kind of choice had they left him with? If he chose life, a life with love and potentially Sophie, it would lead to the loss of the salvation/freedom of humanity.
Gabe felt like he wanted to throw up. This loving new family was not what they seemed. Once again, he felt alone in the world. The desperation sank in.
“Gabe?” Sophie’s voice cut through his thoughts. Gabe sat up quickly.
“Sophie, you shouldn’t be here!” He screamed with no attempt to hide his anger. “Go away! Leave me alone.”
“Gabe, what’s wrong? I’ve been looking for you all day.” Sophie rebutted. “What is wrong? Please tell me,” she pleaded.
“Don’t act like you didn’t know.” Gabe said, his voice dripping with venom.
“I don’t!” Sophie insisted, becoming increasingly frustrated by his behavior.
“I just spoke to your precious Oracle!” Gabe yell
ed, trying to calm himself unsuccessfully. “Apparently you all left out that the chosen one has to die!”
“Oh, Gabe,” Sophie gasped, realizing he didn’t know the entire truth. “I thought Michael had told you.”
“Well, I guess you thought wrong,” he spoke sharply back at her. “I trusted you, Sophie.”
Sophie reached out to touch Gabe and bring him calmness, but he pulled away and stood to his feet. “Please, Gabe, let me explain.” Sophie insisted.
Gabe wanted nothing to do with her words. “Just leave me alone,” he shouted and took off running in the direction of his room. Looking back at Sophie on the ground behind him, he yelled over his shoulder. “Why don’t you all just leave me alone!”
Gabe ran all the way back to his room. Some who passed him said hi, but he ignored them all until at last he was locked away behind the security of his door. He rushed over to the bed and collapsed into its layers of protection. He wasn’t sure if he would ever leave the safety of that room again.
Chapter Seventeen
Gabe couldn’t tell if the pounding was in his head or if the world was crumbling down all around him. He opened his eyes, looking around the room, completely disoriented. “Gabe,” The thudding continued as he heard Sophie’s voice calling from behind the door. “I’m not going away. You’re going to have to come out eventually. You might as well open up.”
Gabe did not want to see Sophie or anyone else for that matter. Gabe wished with everything in him she would just go away and leave him in peace. She did not. Momentarily he sat up and looked down only to realize he was still wearing what he had worn the night before.
Gabe stood up. For a moment,he thought about throwing on some fresh clothes, but it didn’t seem important anymore. Stumbling to the door he flipped the lock, cracked it and peered out with sleepy eyes. “What, Sophie?” Gabe asked flatly.
Shocked by his tone, Sophie stammered for a moment, not sure how to respond. After a moment, she was able to formulate a coherent response. “Please, can I come in to talk?”
“There’s nothing to talk about,” Gabe replied, his voice cold and emotionless.
“Gabe, please.”
“You want to come in so you can explain why everybody lied to me?” Gabe said in a sarcastic tone.
“Gabe, nobody lied to you. I thought Michael had-” Sophie begged.
Gabe interrupted her, “Left the truth out! A very important truth, like my death! Whatever! I told you, I don’t want to talk about it.” Before Sophie could get another word in, Gabe closed the door and latched it.
Sophie pounded on the door once more before Gabe finally heard footsteps walking away. Gabe started pacing in the back of the room. He was angrier than before. Gabe was angry he had allowed himself to believe his life could be different. Part of him was angry at the way he had spoken to Sophie just then, but he pushed that part out of his mind.
Gabe shook his head. He had enough of being a victim in his life. That was one good thing he had learned in his time here. Gabe knew how to be strong and to no longer dwell on his fear of everything. He raced over to the wardrobe and found the clothes he had arrived in. Quickly changing, he decided enough was enough, he was heading back to New York. There may have been nobody there that cared about him, he thought, but at least everyone was honest about his place in life there.
Gabe laced up and tied his shoes, noticing the locket dangling from his neck. He took it off and laid it on the table by the fireplace. Gabe considered writing a note to Michael and Uri, but after their lack of words to him he didn’t feel he owed them any.
Then there was Sophie. He was angry, but Gabe wondered how he could leave without telling her goodbye. He had to at least write her a letter or something. Gabe thought about their connection, the dance, the kiss. He knew that wasn’t all fake. For a moment, he began to think maybe he was overreacting.
Gabe was so frustrated he couldn’t think straight. As soon as he thought he might be acting rashly, the words of the Oracle would echo in his mind. Maybe he didn’t have to run all the way back to New York, but he knew he had to get out of this place and think. Gabe didn’t want to see anyone. He decided to sneak out of the manor to the shore where he could clear his mind.
He started to run out the door when something pulled him back. Gabe stumbled and looked over towards the fireplace. The light bounced off the locket that he had laid on the table. Gabe slowly walked over and picked it up. He thought for a moment and then slipped it over his head. “Better safe than sorry,” Gabe muttered to himself.
Poking his head out the doorway, Gabe looked for any sign of Sophie or the others. The coast seemed clear. He headed down the hall towards the side entrance. Gabe tried to think of a plan in his head. He figured he would follow the border of the grounds around the cleric training area where Dina had taught him. As his exit took form in his mind, he remembered when he and Dina had worked so hard that night, he had heard the water breaking on the shore nearby. Gabe couldn’t remember ever seeing the ocean. Even though he knew that, as a child, his parents had taken him to the shore. It seemed like the perfect place to escape and make some sense of all these scattered thoughts racing through his head.
Gabe crossed the courtyard towards the gardens. Each step made him feel increasingly uneasy, as though he were being watched. Frantically, he looked around, but saw nothing. Cautiously, he sidled his way through the garden, across the bridge, down the old stone steps, and stopped in the middle of the training circle.
All those feelings of power came rushing back to him. Gabe wondered how he could be running from the place that made him feel so alive for the first time in his life. This place and these people had given him something he never had before. Gabe honestly believed they cared for him. Maybe they all didn’t know about the prophecy, at least not all of it. Of course Michael had no excuse, of that Gabe was positive. Gabe was flustered. He found himself again rationalizing the dishonesty he had been a victim of.
Gabe ran through the conversations in his mind the past week. The concept of free will had been drilled into him over and over to the point that now it made him want to laugh. The idea of withholding the truth from him while stressing free will seemed absurd. Standing there he could feel the anger building again. Taking one last look around to ensure he was not being followed, he walked to the cliff side.
Gabe had never seen anything like it, water as far as the eye could see. He marveled at its beauty as it rolled in and broke against the rocks below. Gabe took a step back from the edge and walked along the border. He took in a deep breath, noting how he could smell and even taste the salt in the air from the water. Gabe’s hair twisted in the breeze and with each step he could feel his anger fleeing. Gabe walked and walked. Glancing up to see the position change of the sun, he thought he must have travelled several miles.
The anger that had kept boiling up inside of him flowed out of his fingertips to be carried off on the wind. Gabe thought about his life before this place, a life without friends, or purpose, and especially without Sophie. Gabe strode on, a smile starting to take form at the corners of his mouth. All at once, he heard the snap of a twig behind him. Gabe stopped and desperately looked around him but saw nothing. He waited another moment, but still nothing. Continuing on his path, frequently glancing around, Gabe tried to put his uneasiness to rest. But he could not shake the feeling that he was being watched.
Just ahead of where he walked, about twenty yards away, he saw a huge stone that was surrounded by a blue glow. Gabe ran up to it and reached out a cautious hand. His fingertips tingled for a moment as he touched it. He looked to the left and into the tree line he saw another glowing boulder. Gabe assumed the clerics must use them to help cloak the manor.
Impressed by the powerful magic, he wondered if someday he would ever be able to perform such a spell. The smile that had been toying with Gabe’s lips returned in full force as he realized he was already planning his future with these people. What he would learn, what he would bec
ome, Gabe knew his decision was already made despite the recent personal injury.
Gabe tried to refocus on clearing his mind and enjoying his time alone. He took a nervous hitched breath and attempted to step past the enchanted stone. He encountered no resistance, simply stepped beyond the boundary. When he turned and looked back however, Gabe saw a huge rock wall that appeared to be part of the cliff’s side. Gabe reached his hand out slowly to touch the wall. It slipped right through, as though nothing were there.
Cautiously, he took another step towards the wall. Stepping through the illusion, he found himself gazing at the glowing boulder once again. Amazing, he thought, still mesmerized by the clerics abilities. One last time, he turned and stepped past the boulder and onto the rocky path; past the safety of the clerics and their spells.
The path changed from rocky and difficult to navigate to wider and sandier, as he walked on. Finally, he reached the shoreline. Gabe hadn’t seen a beach since his parents were alive. He was surprised when a childhood memory that was long forgotten returned with force. Most of his memories of his parents had long ago faded into nothingness.
He remembered his father had taken a new job. Gabe couldn’t recall the details, but he knew that was why they had taken the trip. Gabe’s mother had explained to him that his father would no longer be working in an office, that his new job as a writer would allow him to spend more time at home with them. They had taken a trip to the shore to celebrate.
Gabe trotted down to the shore, picking up a few seashells along his path, brushing the sand from their grooves. He closed his eyes. It was almost as if he could see his mother; her raven hair peeking out from under her sun bonnet, the sun flaring around the edges. In her haloed beauty, Gabe remembered how she looked like an angel to him. Her perfectly straight teeth glowing as she smiled. He closed his eyes tighter trying to remember every detail.
He reached out in front of him as if he wanted to touch her rosy cheeks with his fingertips. In his mind, he could see his child sized fingers reaching for her desperately. Gabe stared at her deep brown eyes as she looked up into the sky at the birds, clasping her hat with one hand for fear the wind would carry it away. Gabe had never had such a vivid memory of his mother; he didn’t want it to end and kept his eyes closed tightly in hopes of having just one more moment with her.