RHEN

by Charity Kelly

  “She’s right,” Reed said. “Listen everyone, now that the Wood Elves’ apple trees are blooming, maybe Themrock is coming back to us. If he is, we won’t have to worry about Rhen.”

  “That’s true,” Sage said. “If Themrock returns, he’ll restore our powers, so we can stop Rhen if he attacks.”

  “It’ll be fun to see what powers you elves get,” Rachel said, leaning over to give her sister a hug.

  “Rhen won’t notice much of a difference,” Lilly said, sounding thoughtful.

  “What do you mean?” Ceceta asked.

  “Well, he already has enormous powers. What more could he possibly get from Themrock?” Lilly hoped to draw out Ceceta into telling them more about Rhen’s powers.

  Ceceta turned her face away from the Royal Family. It was clear they were waiting for more information about Rhen’s powers. She knew she had to give them something, even if she didn’t want to. Suddenly, she had a thought. Perhaps she could make them believe that Rhen had no powers. She’d have to show them more of her and Rhen’s past than she’d like to, but it just might do the trick in getting them to leave her and Rhen alone.

  “Actually,” Ceceta said with hesitation. “He doesn’t have strong powers. She does.” With that, she knew she had their attention. Ceceta giggled to herself as she watched their eager faces turn towards her, looking for more.

  “Go on,” James urged, after they had sat in silence for a few minutes, waiting for Ceceta to continue.

  Ceceta had been wondering how she could explain it to them, without giving away too much information. “Well, you see, there’s a woman living inside him,” she said, feeling rather naughty for ratting out Layla. But then, Layla was an ass and she deserved whatever Ceceta was going to do to her. “I don’t think I can explain it,” Ceceta said. “Perhaps, Kate, you could just show them my memory.”

  Kate was stunned. She couldn’t believe Ceceta was going to let her into her mind. “Okay,” she said. “Assuming Rhen hasn’t blocked my ability to transmit your thoughts, when you give them willingly.” She moved over to sit down beside Ceceta, reaching out to touch her face. “Relax and think about what it is you want us to see. I’ll project it to the others.”

  “Wait,” Ceceta cried out, pulling away from Kate’s hand. She was having second thoughts. What if Kate stumbled onto one of the secrets that Ceceta was holding. One of the ones that couldn’t be made public. “This isn’t a good idea,” she told them. “What if another image that I don’t want you to see, pops into my mind?”

  “If you want me to stop, just say it and I’ll stop. I won’t pry into any of your memories. I’ll simply take the one you’re willing to share and broadcast it to the others,” Kate explained, shifting her legs to the side to make herself more comfortable.

  “No, this isn’t a good idea. I don’t know why I even mentioned it,” Ceceta said, feeling ashamed. “Ask me a different question.” She couldn’t risk the chance of their seeing any of the secrets she was holding.

  No one said anything. They wanted to learn more about this mysterious woman living inside of Rhen. After a while, their silence began to bother Ceceta. Her guilt, at throwing out a morsel and not explaining it, was making her uncomfortable. “He’s really ticklish,” she said, to break the silence.

  “Oh, great,” William said. “So, when he’s killing us, we can just tickle him and he’ll stop. Good plan.”

  Ceceta glared at William as if he’d slapped her. She had thought that the Thestran Royals cared about her, but from William’s comment, it appeared they didn’t. They just wanted to know how to stop Rhen. Well, if that was the case, they needed to think Rhen was powerless. If they thought Layla had all the power, perhaps they would leave Rhen alone.

  “Okay,” Ceceta said, turning to Kate. “You can look into my mind, but only at the part about the woman, right?”

  “Yes,” Kate said. She placed her right hand onto Ceceta’s forehead, closed her eyes and forced her powers to seep into Ceceta’s mind. Ceceta jerked away from the cold that flowed out of Kate’s fingers but then sat still. An instant later, everyone felt an odd, swirling sensation, and then they found themselves in a small, dark, stone cell. The room was cold and there was water running down one of the walls into a drain on the floor. A small cot was located on the right side of the room. As the Thestrans looked out through Ceceta’s eyes, they could just make out the figure of a boy lying on the floor in front of them. Before they could register who it was, they felt Ceceta crying and they heard her sob, “Oh, they killed you. They killed you.” Ceceta bent down over Rhen’s head and kissed him on his forehead as tears dripped from her eyes into his matted hair.

  “No,” Rhen said in a hushed voice. “I’m okay. I just want to sleep.”

  “No, don’t sleep. You’ll never wake up. Please, stay awake, please.”

  “I’m so tired,” Rhen said quietly in the dark.

  Ceceta moved closer, pulling Rhen’s young body up into her arms. She was crying so hard she could barely speak. “Please,” she choked out. “Don’t sleep. Don’t die. Don’t leave me here alone.”

  Rhen didn’t answer. He was already unconscious. Ceceta held onto him for a while longer, sobbing into his hair. Eventually, she grew concerned and lowered his body down onto the floor before leaning over to listen for his heartbeat.

  A rustling sound passed through the cell, startling her. She gasped as she felt chills run down her arms. Ceceta wondered if Rhen’s spirit was leaving his body. Looking up, she froze, when a ball of light entered the room through the stone wall. The white light moved towards her, changing shape in the air. She watched in astonishment as it misted into the form of an elfin woman.

  The woman was gorgeous. Ceceta found herself speechless in the apparition’s presence. The ghost woman floated closer to her and gave her a smile. Ceceta was too stunned to move. She watched as the ghost woman hovered over Rhen’s body. From the glowing light she gave off, Ceceta saw that Rhen’s left arm was broken. He was bleeding from his mouth, nose and ears and there were large bruises forming on his chest and stomach. “He’s dying,” Ceceta said quietly.

  The elfin woman shook her head and her eyes began to glow whiter. She formed a ball of white light in her hand and placed it above Rhen’s battered chest. Placing her palm on top of the light, she pushed the ball down towards him. The ball touched Rhen’s naked chest, but instead of entering his body, as it appeared the woman wanted it to, the ball split in half and flowed out from under her hand, up into the air and back into her body.

  The woman seemed puzzled. She formed a new ball of light and again tried to push it into Rhen, but once more, it wouldn’t penetrate his skin. She tried repeatedly to push a ball of light into Rhen’s chest, and every time, it flowed back into her. By the end of her seventh attempt, she gave up. Forming a larger ball of light, she held it over Rhen’s face to study him. Suddenly, she made a strange gesture that looked like a gasp. Her expression changed from annoyance to delight and before Ceceta could blink, she plunged her entire body into Rhen’s. Rhen glowed white as the wounds on his body healed. When he was healthy, the light within him faded and the room grew dark. Ceceta bent down over Rhen and placed her head on his stomach. “Thank you,” she whispered to the woman inside of Rhen. She curled up beside Rhen for warmth and fell asleep.

  The transmission of Ceceta’s past became black as Ceceta fell asleep in her memory. Kate felt Ceceta push against her, to end the transmission. Instead of releasing Ceceta as she should have, Kate sped up Ceceta’s memory. She wanted to see what happened next, so she decided to take the liberty of continuing.

  The Royal Family watched as, the next morning, Ceceta felt Rhen move underneath her. She yawned and opened her eyes.

  “You don’t have to wake up yet,” Rhen told her in Neptian, his prepubescent voice startling his family. Many of them had forgotten what his youthful voice had sounded like. Yawning, Ceceta lifted her head. Her muscles were sore from the position she had slept in. She loo
ked over at Rhen, who was illuminated by the thin ray of electric light that came from underneath the cell’s metal door. The Thestrans stared at Rhen through Ceceta’s eyes. They had been so taken, with the glowing elfin woman, that they hadn’t realized his condition before. Rhen was filthy. His cheeks were gaunt and his ribs stuck out too much for a child of his age. He and Ceceta were wearing nothing more than drab half tunics that hung low on their thin waists.

  Turning sideways, Rhen stood up. As Ceceta’s eyes glanced over his chest, she remembered what had happened during the night. “You’ve got something inside you,” she blurted out in Neptian.

  Rhen seemed confused. When Ceceta failed to continue, he stretched his tired body. “No. There isn’t anything left in me. Besides, if I did have some food, you know I would’ve shared it with you. It’s my fault that you’re in this mess. I’m sorry.”

  “No,” Ceceta yelled. She was angry, hungry and tired of always having to tell him that she had chosen to join him. He had apologized to her so often about their situation that she now found it annoying whenever he said he was sorry. “You don’t understand. You were dying last night and this woman came and entered your body. She healed you, but I think she’s still in you. I didn’t see her leave.”

  “There’s a woman in my body?” Rhen asked. The corners of his mouth turned up as if he were going to laugh.

  “I think she’s a power goddess. You know? One of those gods who decide what powers a person receives.”

  This time Rhen did laugh. “They’ve been giving you too many experimental drugs Ceceta. There’s no such thing as a power goddess.”

  “But there is Rhen. We Neptians worship them. She exists and now she’s inside you. You have powers now.”

  “Right,” Rhen said, although Ceceta could tell he didn’t believe her. He turned to the stone wall behind him and held up his hands. “Open a portal to Neptian,” he shouted at the wall. Nothing happened. He looked back at Ceceta with a mischievous grin and asked, “Shall I try again?” Ceceta frowned feeling confused. She had thought that Rhen had received his powers last night. Rhen misunderstood her silence and turned back to the wall saying, “Someone please rescue us and take us the hell away from this place.” Although Rhen’s back was to her, Ceceta could hear him snickering.

  “Rhen, you have to learn how to use your powers,” Ceceta told him. “Nobody knows how to use their powers right away. You need to practice using them. Also, you may not have the ability to open a portal. Try something else. See if you can fly.”

  Rhen laughed out loud at Ceceta’s suggestion.

  “Stop it,” Ceceta hissed.

  Rhen turned towards her with a wicked smile, saying, “I know what I’ll try.” Raising his face to the ceiling, he said, “I will now use my powers to make my wife be quiet.” He waved his hands about and laughed, gesturing towards Ceceta with his left hand.

  Ceceta’s face grew dark. In a tired voice, she said, “You used your left hand again. You have to stop doing that. They’re going to rip it off you if you don’t stop.”

  Rhen’s shoulders dropped as every ounce of joy left his face. He had been trying so hard to stop himself from using his left hand. “I know, I know,” he said. “That seems to be the hardest thing for me to let go of. I can do everything else they want me to do. I’ve become the perfect Surpen for Mom and Dad. I’m obedient, I can kill without remorse, I can eat people without hesitation, I enjoy the taste of blood and I love to fight.” He paused looking down at his left hand. “I just can’t seem to remember to use my right hand over my left.”

  Ceceta knew all too well how hard it had been for him. Last night was the third time they had broken his left arm. She stood up and walked over to sit down on the cot. “You really are done with them, aren’t you?”

  “What?” Rhen asked.

  “When you told the wall to become a portal, you asked to go to Neptian, not Thestran. You’re really done with your family. You weren’t joking, when you told me you never wanted to see them again.”

  “No. I wasn’t joking,” Rhen confirmed. “They’re dead to me.”

  Ceceta shook involuntarily from his words. The Surpens had placed them on Punishment Island to remove their Thestran habits. The guards had worked Rhen over, until they had convinced him that he hated his family. She wanted Rhen to realize his family still cared for him, but how could she explain it to him, when she wasn’t even sure if she believed it herself. They had heard nothing from the Thestrans, since Kate and Henry had left. Who would do that to their child? “Rhen,” Ceceta said. “The Surpens want you to think that. They tell you horrible things about your family every day, over and over again. In the back of your mind, you need to remember they’re doing it to you for a reason. What they say isn’t true.”

  “They ‘were’ doing it to me,” Rhen corrected her. “Not anymore. They haven’t mentioned the Thestrans to me in months.”

  “Because you believe them now,” Ceceta said quietly.

  “Don’t you?” Rhen asked.

  Ceceta didn’t respond. The Surpens hadn’t been slandering her family or the Neptians the way they had the Thestrans. She had to admit, she was beginning to believe their stories. But she and her family were a part of Thestran, and her deep love for her family, made her trust that the Surpens’ stories were false. They were nothing more than propaganda, created to turn Rhen from Thestran towards Surpen. Ceceta wondered if she would have lost faith in her Neptian family, if the Surpens had slandered them as they had Rhen’s.

  At that moment, the door opened and Rhen rushed to take her into his arms. He spun them around, so his back was towards the door, his body a shield, blocking Ceceta from whomever was entering. A jet of water blasted across the cell into Rhen’s back. Ceceta heard Rhen grunt in pain as he threw his left arm out, to try to take some of the pressure from the water off his back. The water pushed them both back against the wall, pounding them into the cold stones.

  When the water stopped, they heard a gruff voice call out, “Rise and shine.” A younger version of Aul walked into the room. He was dressed in a non-military tunic and wore a great deal of jewelry around his neck. His face had not yet acquired its jagged scar. Aul was holding a metal rod, which he tapped against his leg. “Narseth, come here,” he demanded, staring at Rhen.

  Narseth, who was already rather muscular, walked into the cell. Aul asked, “What arm was our boy here using to block his bath with?”

  Narseth grinned. “His left arm boss.”

  “That’s right,” Aul said. He tapped the pipe against his leg. “And what is the Debrino Code’s punishment for using your left arm?”

  “A proper flailing.”

  “Correct,” Aul said. He raised his pipe and brought it down on Rhen’s left arm. There was a sickening crack as Rhen’s arm broke from the blow. Rhen screamed, causing Narseth to laugh.

  Narseth grabbed Rhen’s broken arm and pulled it backwards, increasing Rhen’s agony and forcing Rhen to double over.

  Ceceta reached out for Rhen, but Aul shoved her back into the wall with his pipe. Aul leaned over to rub the back of his hand up Rhen’s bare stomach, until he reached Rhen’s throat. Rotating his hand, he grabbed Rhen’s neck and lifted Rhen’s head. “What’s the matter boy?” he asked. Rhen gritted his teeth to keep himself from crying. Aul leaned his face in closer and whispered, “Didn’t you enjoy last night’s class?”

  As soon as Aul released his throat, Rhen spat into Aul’s face. Aul swung his arm back and struck Rhen in the ribs with his pipe. The Thestrans heard another crack.

  Rhen cried out, doubling over as much as possible in Narseth’s grip.

  Aul was expecting Narseth to laugh. When he didn’t, Aul turned to see what was wrong. Narseth’s brow was furrowed in confusion as he stared at Rhen’s arm. Aul stepped sideways to see what Narseth was looking at. Rhen’s arm had healed. Aul shifted his gaze to Rhen’s ribs and watched as the skin that had torn over Rhen’s ribs sealed closed without leaving a mark.


  “Give me your knife,” Aul said. Narseth handed him his knife. Aul stepped forward and slashed Rhen clear across the throat, cutting deep into his jugular vein. Ceceta screamed as blood gushed out of Rhen’s throat, hitting the cement floor below him.

  Rhen reached up to grab his neck, a surprised expression on his face. A second later, his surprise turned to curiosity. He removed his hand and stared at the blood on his fingers as it dried. His throat had healed. Rhen smiled to himself. Ceceta had been right. He did have powers. Healing powers.

  “Hold him against the wall with his left hand in the air,” Aul ordered. Narseth pinned Rhen to the wall with his left hand out. As soon as he was secure, Aul stepped forward and chopped off four of Rhen’s five fingers. Ceceta screamed again as Rhen cried out in pain. He tried to free himself from Narseth’s grasp but couldn’t. Aul watched Rhen’s hand. Within a few seconds, the four fingers he had removed, grew back.

  “Well, well, well. It appears they were right about you after all,” Aul said. “Release him, Narseth.” As soon as Narseth let go of Rhen, he fell to the ground, clutching his aching hand. Aul nodded towards the door and Narseth left. Once he was gone, Aul said, “Your breakfast today is your fingers.” He put his metal pipe under Rhen’s chin and lifted Rhen’s head, forcing Rhen to meet his eyes. “Life for you has just gotten a lot more interesting.” Marching towards the door, he called out over his shoulder, “Enjoy your breakfast.” He slammed the door behind him, leaving Ceceta and Rhen in the dark.

  When Rhen’s eyes had readjusted to the darkness of the cell, he glanced over at Ceceta. “I guess you were right. I did get some powers last night. Can you tell me what happened?”

  As Ceceta told him the story, Rhen picked up his fingers and walked over to her, handing her two of them. Ceceta turned away from him. She wouldn’t take them. Rhen sat down on the cot and gestured for her to sit next to him. “But, how do I use these powers?” he asked. “Will the goddess tell me?”