Daniel noticed Reuben standing and taking a hard grip of his walking stick. He eyed him suspiciously, watching as he dragged his limp leg.
“Are you okay, sir?” Daniel asked, pushing through people and chairs to get to him.
“Oh, it’s nothing. Well I broke my leg a while ago and sometimes it plays up and splinters,” he replied, waving a hand.
“I bet that hurts.”
Reuben shook his head, and they stopped. “I have a favour to ask,” he said, and Daniel perked up, trying to listen properly over the stampede of feet and screeching of chairs.
“Yes. Sure.”
“There have been a few breaches from the campus to land outside Templar. Have you heard anything about it?” he asked.
Yes “No,” it was me, Daniel said, gulping and shaking his head.
“If you hear anything about it, then come and tell me. I’m on the board for island safety, and part of my responsibility is to keep all threats detained.”
“Threats?”
Reuben smiled. “Not to us, but to the people on the outside. People have started families off the island and all of them have been killed within moments of us knowing about it. This is serious, and I trust you, Lowerlands like you never lie. So if you hear anything, just knock on my door, I’m always happy to listen to their pathetic excuses,” he snarled.
Daniel forced a dazed smile and then nodded. When he blinked back to realisation, Reuben had gone and in his hands, Daniel held his first year pin with the golden letters ‘year one’ engraved on it. He sighed and fell against a wall. He brought a hand to his neck and felt his pulse kick from beneath his skin and throb inside his ears. He closed his eyes and started to take deep breaths before he popped a blood vessel. A rush hit him as he fought to teleport back to his room.
That’s going to come in handy. Being able to go wherever I want and not being caught by Jasper, he thought, falling back on his bed.
He moved around the room to the window. The sun was high in the sky, and to think that not so long ago he was watching that same sun as it set, it just sounded bizarre, like thinking, or knowing that he was the one breaching the law. Maybe I should plead my case? It can’t be that pathetic; a girl, if she wanted she could learn, right? But then there was that man, he had a family off the island. And they were slaughtered. He pressed the palms of his hands against his forehead and pushed.
“I’m glad I didn’t kiss her, in fact she’s probably being hunted down. My fault. All my fault,” he forced out from beneath his gritted teeth. “It’s gotta be easier than just – trying to force it all away. Can I even make it right? They’ll figure out soon enough!”
He began picking his clothes up from the floor and making a small pile of dirty clothes. He looked at his alarm clock; it was 16:00. He just wanted to get away again. He stayed in his room and after making his bed, he undressed and climbed inside.
Chapter Eighteen
“Hah. You found me? Well she’s really pretty,” he said, and before Daniel’s eyes, the same black platform that he’d seen before.
“Who?”
“Who?” he mimicked with a grin, “Mia Crosgrove, 16, originally from London, but moved to New York when her father found a higher paying job. You know this girl right? Brown hair, turquoise eyes and some freckles across her nose.”
“Of course you know her, you’re part of me,” Daniel sniggered to himself.
“Oh, kid, you might just be part of me.”
“I don’t know you! Who are you?” Daniel shouted, it echoed in the slick black fields around them.
“Karsar Hanley, but of course you already knew, you’re in my dream tonight,” he said, glaring into Daniel’s eyes, grinning.
Daniel closed his eyes and for the first time the darkness was comforting. He felt the air in his face, and at that point he had the need to open his eyes, but he wished he’d kept them closed. He was standing on the ledge of the hotel where Mia lived. He gasped and panicked, rocking over the edge. Karsar grabbed his arm and steadied him.
“You wouldn’t die anyway, probably just be in a lot of pain when you woke up,” he said letting go of Daniel.
“Of course, it’s a dream,” Daniel chuckled, stepping down from the ledge.
“You could’ve put some clothes on, but it’s fine. We’re going indoors anyway. Let’s see who it is you adore so much. Heck, I feel like one of those ghosts from A Christmas Carol,” he grinned.
“What’s that?” Daniel hunched his shoulders and pulled at his t-shirt.
“A book, it’s also a film.”
“Never read it, and I watched television once when I was little when they came out, that’s about it though.”
Karsar stared. “Not living like a king at all then. Besides, we’re going to take a look at Mia, I’ve already studied where she sleeps,” he winked.
“Eugh.”
“I’m looking out for you,” he said and walked away into a flicker.
Daniel shook his head. “C’mon Karsar,” he said. And again, the surroundings started to change, everything was unusual except one thing; Mia, she was asleep in bed.
“I told you this was my dream tonight, I don’t want you to know too much about dreams or you could make me your bitch,” he snickered, and then started to snoop around her room.
“Oi. What are you doing?”
“I’m not allowed to look? Although we can interact with out surrounding, nothing will really move. And you’re not breaching any rules,” he grinned.
“How’d you -,” Karsar lifted his hand to pause Daniel. “So what is it you wanted to show me so much?”
“Her. She’s asleep. They’ve not taken her or imprisoned her or hung her.”
“What?”
“You overwhelmed me. You induced yourself into a nightmare, your worst nightmare apparently,” Karsar said, rolling his eyes. “I had this dream of yours without even yawning or needing sleep, in fact I fell down like a narcoleptic in a bar somewhere, and your head is still god damn clear.”
Daniel yawned. "I’m sorry.”
“Now can you leave, I need to wake up.”
“But I have more questions now.”
Karsar raised an eyebrow and grinned. “Not my problem,” he hissed, and then swung his arm around and punched Daniel square in the face. Daniel shuffled back on his feet and then fell, disappearing in a flash of light.
He woke coughing, with one hand on his chest and another blotting the pain on his face. He groaned, and turned in his bed. Opening his eyes he saw Carlie, lying on her side at his side with a hand on her hip, and the other playing with her hair.
She started to stroke his torso, and he didn’t try and wriggle out of her touch, at first; he didn’t understand where he was or what was going on. He’d locked his door, he was sure of this; he’d tied a knot of energy to keep it bolted. He glanced over, and it was still intact.
“Carlie?” he said, trying to blink away the sleep from the corner of his eyes.
“Shush,” she said softly, and then kissed him on his lips.
He pushed her back, but she didn’t budge. He shuffled out of his duvet and off his bed, staring down at her. She brought herself up to her knees, and they were at the same height. She kissed him on the lips again, pushing her head against his.
“Go away,” he said, holding his hands up to protest.
“You don’t say stop. Nobody ever says stop,” she giggled and pursed her lips.
“I don’t want you here, and you’re the reason that Jasper’s been at my throat!”
“No, he just hates you. Besides, he doesn’t even know, yet. You’re all anyone needs,” she said puffing her chest out and biting her bottom lip.
Three bangs shook the bedroom door from its foundations. Daniel eyed Carlie and she grinned, she stood and then skipped over to the door. She flipped the lock and broke the seal of energy over it, letting the door roll open. She stood in front of it, confronted by Jasper.
“I’m so glad you’re here. He tri
ed to kiss me,” she said, pretending to cry into her hands and then she flung herself into his arms.
He gently pushed her out of his arms and she rushed off down the hall whimpering. Jasper glared, the colour of his eyes glazed yellow and rivets of fur broke out on his skin.
“I didn’t. She was in here when I woke up!” Daniel said.
“To be honest I don’t care. This was going to happen anyway, and there’s no teacher here!” he roared and pounced at Daniel, shifting into his full lion form.
Daniel dodged the attacked, jumping to his bed and off at the other side. Jasper growled and snapped his jaw at Daniel. He climbed up on the bed with two of his paws and let out another almighty roar.
Daniel held himself back, trying to push around the room to the door. Jasper clawed at his duvet, tearing it open and leapt in front of him. Daniel stopped, he was shaking, he tried to shift, he tried to teleport, but neither could be processed from the pounding inside his head.
“I want you dead!” Jasper shouted.
“Why?” Daniel shouted back.
His golden mane straightened as he forced himself forward for Daniel. He made fists of his hands, ready to whack Jasper, and he did. He swung and the lion collided with his fist, but that didn’t stop Jasper from ending on top, digging his claws into Daniel and piercing his skin with three fresh cuts down his arm. Jasper lifted his paw to take another hit, but he couldn’t force it back down. Daniel turned under him and grabbed his arms tightly, his grip slipped as he pulled fur from the lion. Jasper fell on him; his fur molting and littering Daniel with dark blond clumps, until all that was left was Jasper, slumped on top of him.
Daniel heaved himself from under Jasper. “You weigh a ton!” he said pushing him, “get up!” He nudged him with his foot, realising that Jasper wasn’t going to.
Daniel looked at his arm. There were only faint marks of where he’d been cut. He rubbed his fingers over it and the dry blood crumbled beneath them. It looked as though the cuts had never been there.
Jasper mumbled something and started to push himself up. “Think—think again! You should never. Ever!” he shouted, rushing out of the door. Daniel watched him and let the door slam as he left. It was empowering, in fact, he couldn’t care less now.
Chapter Nineteen
Karsar couldn’t get too comfortable. He couldn’t keep from splashing water in his face and glaring at his reflection in the mirror, thinking about what he was going to tell his peers, those who had entrusted him with a simple task…a simple task, he repeated to himself.
“And what is troubling you?” a deep voice rumbled from behind him.
“Richard,” Karsar said, turning the taps off and picking a towel from the handrail.
“Hmm. So what is it?”
He dried his face and hands. “Nothing. I’m tired.”
“I hope Elisa isn’t working you too hard,” Richard said, walking out into the fluorescents of the bathroom and revealing his shiny black suit.
“No. No, I’m working myself too hard,” Karsar chuckled. “I’ve been watching him a lot, in fact I think he’s watching me as well, that, or he’s stronger than we thought.”
“What do you expect, we all thought that line was gone, but we felt the shift, we know that he’s real,” Richard said, walking around the bathroom, admiring the use of glass and mirrors.
“I’m still young. I can’t read them like you can, any of you.” Karsar sighed and glared at his bare feet, cold against the rock tiles.
“Daniel is too. Daniel is younger in fact, the more you have in common with him, the more trust you’ll instil in him. We need that trust. Does he know yet?”
Karsar shook his head. “I just don’t know what to do. Can I tell him? Elisa keeps on telling me to wait, but he’s getting restless and the more I tell him, the more I worry that he’ll become strong all on his own.”
Richard burst out into a hum of laughter. “The more we tell him, the more he’ll trust us, and the more he’ll tell us. But hold up on telling him anything that could make him spiral out of control, it’s for his guardian to tell him that little secret.”
“My father ruined that for me, taking my guardian with him,” Karsar said with a scowl, and lifted his arm to show his scar etched into his skin, it was a horned circle with an upside down Catholic cross; the astrological symbol of Mercury.
“That’s natural. You must bleed for them. We’ve been through this before, Karsar, so stop fretting about it. You are a Luminary. You are a pillar of existence, and when we get Daniel, the world will truly know our names.”
“You always know what to do.”
“And you always need to be told what to do,” Richard said, “I felt your upset, but I must be off. You can’t keep a lady waiting,” he winked, and then disappeared.
Karsar sighed, holding himself up on the basin with one hand, and with the other he rubbed his eyes. He stood and studied his body, lifting his arm to himself in the mirror to see the red scar across the left side of his ribcage. His fingers lingered across it as fragmented pieces of the past tickled at his ribs and chest.
Daniel watched as a solid and steady downpour clattered on the single glass pane, listening to the drum rolls of thunder entertain the sky and break at the centre, spreading electric charges throughout the thick black expanse outside. It was mesmerising, Daniel had never really watched it rain before, he couldn’t get the views back home.
The screen on his phone flashed white, taking his interests from the rain. He sat on his bed and picked it up to see a missed call from Mia. “I don’t think I can talk to you anymore, Mia,” he said throwing his phone to the end of his bed. “It’s not fair, why’s it not fair?” he whined, closing his eyes. He hadn’t hoped for anyone to answer him, but hearing his own voice was a gift to him.
Life—is—it’s—each word ending with a loud crackle inside his head. He scratched at his head and winced at the sounds, but it wasn’t Karsar, the voice didn’t feel ominous or cold. Never—not—really—fair—is it, the voice finished and loud static started to flood Daniel’s body; he plugged his fingers into his ears but that didn’t contain the pain inside his head.
“You can actually hear me?” The voice asked as Daniel ground his fingers into his new duvet, trying not to tear this one as well. “Get some cold water on it.” Daniel gritted his teeth, telling himself that he wasn’t going mad. He got up from his bed and rinsed the cloth by the sink with cold water and then slapped it across his face. As soon as the cold touched his fingertips and the water dripped down his neck, he found immediate relief.
“I’ve been better,” he said to himself.
“So you can hear me, I knew it!” The voice broke out again in his head again.
“What?” Daniel said.
“It’s me,” the voice replied, “Jac.”
“How? How is this even possible? I’m asleep aren’t I?”
“It is possible! And no you’re not asleep, you’re perfectly fine! I woke up from this dream the other night, and then everything seemed to slot into place.”
“But how is this possible.”
“I met with a woman from Carster. She reads dreams. She read mine, and found something, well she sparked something really.”
“And at what part did you realise you could do this?”
“Actually, she said it isn’t uncommon, and it’s not just us. It’s natural; the woman told me that this is something twins can do, but also friends, especially if they’ve got a connection like twins.”
“So we have a connection. And I’m paying for it,” Daniel chuckled.
“Yeah, wait, no. What do you mean?”
“My head is hurting, like I fell from a tree and then cracked my head on a pile of rocks at the bottom, and they all had sharp edges,” he said expressively.
“She said that would happen, in fact I had that same feeling, just drink lots of water. And watch the rain, Templar is beautiful this time of year, not had this good of a storm since spring.”
>
Daniel reached for his cup full of water on his bedside and glugged it all in one. He wiped his mouth and felt the cold spread inside his chest and trickle to his stomach where he tensed and clenched. “So, what was this dream?”
“Oh, you were killed. He was swiping at you, his claws full-on and everything. He was going for your throat, and then…and then, you weren’t there, and I was…and I was standing at your gravestone.”
Daniel’s eyes glossed over, as he blinked away a tear. He thought he was content with death and dying, considering he was in almost every situation facing it. But when his best friend had dreamt it, standing at his gravestone and being witness. It was almost the truth, it sounded like something that could happen, yet anything seemed possible lately.
“Are you okay? Do you want to know more?”
“Yeah. Dreams are dreams,” Daniel tried to reassure himself.
“It was a lion, he was huge! And there was a girl on her knees in tears watching you, but she couldn’t see me. In fact I don’t think I could see me. She was at your funeral as well. Her name was Mia. But it was a dream.”
“Mia,” he said, sucking in a sob.
“Why? Who’s Mia? Are you crying?”
“She’s not from the island, and no!” he said, “I’m just ill, sniffles and everything, that water did nothing but make me cold.”
“Yeah, sure. You’ve been off the island?”
“It was accidentally, and they know that someone has breached the island. That someone was me! You know what happens to them? They’re killed along with everyone they bump into along the way and everyone that they’ve ever known!”
“That’s some serious shit you got going on there. But really, how would they know who you talked to, do people you touch start to form large black ulcers on their skin?” Jac asked.
The phone at the bottom of Daniel’s bed started to buzz, and the screen flashed. He picked it up, it was Mia.
“How do you stop this?” he asked, gesturing his hands to his head.
“Well she only told me how to start it. And even then she said that it might not have been possible.”
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