Dark Revelation

by S. E. Myers

  The place seemed familiar almost as if she’d been here before. She approached the altar and reached out to touch the cloth. She hesitated, fearing the repercussions if she did. She pulled her hand back as if she’d touched an oven burner left on mistakenly.

  “It’s okay,” the imp advised. The moment her fingers graced the cloth she felt an electric pulse travel from her finger tips and up her arm.

  “Is this supposed to happen,” Ryleigh whispered to the imp, knowing it was.

  “Yes,” it answered. “Yes my Mistress, it will always happen this way.”

  Ryleigh placed both hands on the altar feeling the pulse beat in time with the drumming of her heart. The altar began to glow, increasing in brightness as the pulse sped its tempo. Her heartbeat matched the increased tempo of the altar and her body began to sway with the rhythm she felt. The brightness continued to increase forcing her eyes closed. Ryleigh could feel heat emanate from the brightness of the altar. It crawled over her body. Her skin began to burn more intensely. Ryleigh tried to pull her hands from the altar but was unable to. She tried to yell for help, but she couldn’t open her mouth. She tried to open her eyes, but they seemed glued shut. She shouted in her mind for the imp to help her, but it was as if her brain burst into flame and resonated with pain. Her heart sped up with such ferocity it felt as if it were going to explode from her chest. As soon as she thought she couldn’t take anymore, a quiet stillness overtook her. She opened her eyes. She couldn’t see anything but darkness. She opened her mouth to speak, and all she could manage was a long and loud scream.

  11

  Discovering who you really are

  The next morning, Tristan and Ryleigh skipped school prior to home room. “So, what did she say,” Tristan asked curiously. He wanted to know exactly how much information Vera was willing to offer up. And if he would be the one, or should be the one to fill in the blanks.

  Tristan drove them to the same place they were the day prior.

  “Vera knows I left school yesterday, she probably knows that I’m not at school right now,” Ryleigh said.

  Tristan picked up some gravel from the side of the road and threw it into the open desert. “I know she keeps tabs on you,” Tristan said. “I’m really not surprised to be honest. It’s like she is keeping you as her own private prisoner.” Ryleigh sighed as she stood beside Tristan.

  “You know that I feel like I know you,” Ryleigh started. Tristan stumbled for a moment and turned to look at her. “Just that, I feel like we have a connection. I felt it the first time I saw you in the office.” She faced Tristan. “Do I know you?”

  Tristan wiped the dust off his hands and wondered if he should tell her the truth. If he did, it might ruin things.

  “Aunt Vera also said not to trust you or Illeana.”

  Tristan made a choking sound in his throat, “She did what?”

  “She said that you and Illeana would get me into trouble. Do you know what she means by that?” Ryleigh wanted to know. She needed to know what she meant. If she continued to trust Tristan and Illeana, and didn’t at least take heed to what her Aunt said, she could be led in all sorts of directions. She didn’t know what was right or wrong. She still wanted to know what happened to her parents. What REALLY happened to her parents?

  “You want to know everything,” Tristan hesitated waiting for a response.

  Ryleigh nodded, “Yes, I do.” Inside a storm was brewing. She was nervous but unafraid. Ready to face whatever Fae would come her way. Or, who might come her way.

  “Well, if you want the truth, then we need to go someplace else,” Tristan headed back to his car. Ryleigh knew she was going to catch hell for missing school. But this seemed more important.

  After driving for an hour, they finally arrived at a humble home in a suburban neighborhood. Tristan turned off the car, “Come on.”

  Ryleigh got out of the car and followed Tristan into the house.

  “This is a safe house,” Tristan instructed. “My parents bought it years ago, just in case.”

  “In case what?”

  “That’s why we’re here.”

  She followed Tristan into the living room. Illeana was sitting on a chair waiting for them.

  Illeana smiled, “I’m glad you came.” Ryleigh’s storm subsided…somewhat.

  Illeana motioned for Ryleigh to sit down. As Illeana spoke, Ryleigh could hear the music in her words. Her voice carried throughout room like the tinkling of piano keys. “Well, first of all, no one can know about this place. It is our family’s safe house. It’s been warded, protected so that no one can be found inside of it. And since the FP’s moved in, we’ve been coming here, staying here, and have searched through every square foot of this house trying to find any clue possible. We do want to know what Vera told you, and if she told you the truth.”

  Ryleigh told them about the conversation she had with Vera. She looked at their faces for any signs of truth or deception but they were stoic. They didn’t let any hint of emotion out while she relayed what Vera told her. “So, she told me that I need to learn to control this energy. I think I have always felt it.”

  Illeana nodded, “Yes, you should have. If not controlled we become enraged easily.”

  A light bulb moment flashed for Ryleigh, “That is why my dad must have started me running. And why I continue to do it. I feel so much better as if, as if I can face my day.”

  Illeana nodded again, “Yes, when we were younger our parents would make us run and play for hours, but as we have grown they taught us how to ebb and control the energy we use. But there is something you must know… You have to learn your true form.”

  “Uh, true form?” Ryleigh asked.

  “Yes. What you see before you in the mirror, day after day… that is not who we are.”

  Ryleigh couldn’t help but think about how many times she’d thought her face was not her face in the mirror. How many times did she reach toward the mirror thinking that she was looking at someone that was not her? Someone that was just a mere reflection. She wondered, “If this is not my true form, then why in the world do I look like this?”

  Illeana laugh out loud, “Because, we’re Halflings. We are part human. Our true form, our Fae form, comes with our energy. Once you learn how to use it, then it will emerge.”

  That made more sense to Ryleigh. “So, as I learn to use my own energy, I’ll look how? Like a Fae? With wings and glitter?”

  Tristan and Illeana both laughed looking at Ryleigh. “No, no, no, no… Not at all. That is why you are here. Tristan and I,” Illeana looked at Tristan. “…we are going to show you ours.”

  Illeana stood up and Tristan stood beside her. “We are twins, you know,” Illeana began. Ryleigh shook her head, “No, I didn’t know that. I was supposed to be a twin though.” Tristan and Illeana looked at each other as if they were communicating silently. Illeana had a habit of scrunching her nose and eyes when she had something important to ask, “You were a twin?”

  “Yes, I was. I am…I guess.”

  “Okay, we’ll talk about that in a minute. But for now,” Illeana grabbed Tristan’s hand, “We are going to show you what our forms are.”

  Ryleigh sat back in the comfortable blue recliner and waited intently. She thought to herself about how oddly comforting this was. She’d always felt different. She’d always felt as if there were a reason why she never connected with anyone on a personal level. Anyone except Cyrus, and she really missed him.

  Illeana and Tristan closed their eyes. Ryleigh could feel the energy in the room heighten as the hairs on her skin started to rise. Illeana’s white blonde hair started to blow as if there were an invisible wind cascading through the room. Tristan’s hair didn’t move an inch because of the amount of product he used keeping his yellow spikes at attention. Ryleigh secretly thought he was conceited about his looks, but would never tell him that to his face.

  Ryleigh felt a pulse against her skin. Like a small distinct heart beat that continued to grow stron
ger. The flames started to rise from Tristan and Illeana carving their lazy runic patters into their skin. His energy was the violet hue she’d seen before, and Illeana’s a cornflower blue. Twins. The same and yet, different.

  Both of their eyes were closed and in a breath, their lids opened simultaneously. As they opened their eyes, the flames erupted around them encasing them in a protective bubble. Tristan’s skin became a more translucent and tinged with the violet color of his flames. His eyes were almost fluorescent. He smiled at Ryleigh and she saw rows of sharp teeth. Illeana was similar looking, except her eyes were a stark blue. They were liquid pools of the clearest water. Her hair was the absence of dark as was Tristan’s. The absence of all color. Ryleigh was hypnotized by the scene before her. It was cruelly beautiful.

  Illeana motioned for Ryleigh to come to them holding out her hand. Ryleigh wasn’t sure if she should. She hadn’t yet learned to control the force that lived inside of her, but, curiosity propelled her forward. She stepped closer, the pulsing energy between Tristan and Illeana guiding her. Grabbing Illeana’s hand she felt almost a surge of energy shoot through her electrifying her veins. She grabbed Tristan’s hand and could feel the connection complete – like a closing circuit. She tried to take a breath but it felt as if she were drowning inside an electrical current. Inside her mind she could hear Illeana’s voice soothing and coherent. Don’t fight it, just allow it to happen. Ryleigh willed her body to relax. She started to think about when she was running, how her body started to fight when she hit the wall and then adapted as she pushed. She willed her body to push through the uncomfortableness of the situation.

  Ryleigh closed her eyes to listen her heart beat and will it to slow down. It became easier to breathe as her heart rate slowed. Counting to herself -- In-2-3-4, Out-2-3-4 -- was how she made it through the painful moments of running, when her legs wanted to quit and her body fought against her every step. Just four more breaths is all it would take, is what she told her body, willing it to obey her mind. Mind over matter is what her father always said when he was pushing her. Just one more step, just one more block, just one more mile to go.

  Ryleigh started to feel a change. Her breathing felt more fluid and she hesitated to open her eyes. Allow me to show you, Illeana interrupted her thoughts. Inside her mind’s eye she could see herself through the vision of Illeana because of the connection that they were making. A soft illuminescent light cascaded gently over her skin. She could see her skin was a greyish mottled tone and seemed transparent beneath the glow of energy that was surrounding her. Her hair lifted by the energy surrounding the trio was a blood red color. Her eyes were not as translucent as Illeana and Tristan’s were. Instead, they were black as pitch. Ryleigh started to panic and pushed Illeana out of her mind. She opened her mouth to speak and a foreign noise erupted from her throat. It was as if she swallowed a million grains of sand.

  She Tristan and Illeana’s hands. Now she could see through her own eyes. Through her own Fae vision she truly saw Illeana and Tristan. She had a feeling that she could see them even if they were not revealing their true form. Ryleigh closed her eyes and thought, Shut it off and could feel the ebb of energy slow down. She felt her insides vibrate as she attempted to pull the energy back inside herself. She wasn’t sure if that was what she was supposed to do but it felt as if were the natural thing to do.

  When she opened her eyes, she saw Tristan and Illeana staring at her. “How did you learn to do that?” Tristan asked curiously.

  “Do what?” Ryleigh was confused.

  “Suck your energy back into yourself without a companion,” Tristan’s tone sounded accusatory. “Are you screwing with us?”

  “No? No, I’m not. I don’t know how I did what I did, but I thought it was what I was supposed to do. What do you mean by ‘companion’?”

  “You’re not supposed to draw it back into yourself Ryleigh, you expend it through your imp,” Illeana commented.

  “My imp? What the hell is an imp,” asked Ryleigh. As she uttered the word, two creatures appeared in the room. One next to Tristan, the other beside Illeana.

  “These are imps,” introduced Tristan.

  The bat wing eared creatures stirred. They were just like the imp in her dream. With glowing red eyes, faces like a squirrel, and bat wing ears. Their arms and legs were lanky and attached to a small body. They only stood about 2-feet high, but it seemed that with each breath they took, they continued to increase in size. Each ones skin color complimented the twins. One was a violet hue, the other the color of the Caribbean. “You know, “Illeana sounded concerned. “You should have one too. It’s how we dissipate our energy.”

  Ryleigh shrugged, “I have no idea how or when I am supposed to have one of those.”

  “You get one once you turn seventeen,” Tristan offered. “We got ours on our birthday. But then again, considering how not forthcoming your aunt was, you may want to ask her about it.”

  Ryleigh nodded her head, “Yeah, but what do I say ‘Yo, hey auntie, where’s my imp?’” Ryleigh giggled at the thought of walking in the room and talking with a New York accent asking for her imp.

  “Actually… that might be what you need to do,” said Tristan. “It’s not like she has been honest with you. And it seems that she only offered up information only after we talked.”

  Ryleigh agreed with Tristan. “Curious. What happens if you take the energy back?” She was wanted to know. It seemed that Illeana and Tristan couldn’t do it. So why could she?

  “You just - you aren’t supposed to be able to do it. You create a free flow of energy that your imp cycles. That’s why we were connecting with you, to help you cycle your energy and find your form,” Tristan explained. Ryleigh got it. She knew now why he insisted on touching her when creating an energy cycle. He was trying to help her.

  “Right, I get that… but, what happens if you do it?”

  “What happens when you do it?”

  Ryleigh thought about that for a moment before answering. She wondered if she should even tell him. Could she even find the words she needed to explain to him what happens when she pulls the energy back into herself? And if she wasn’t supposed to do it, why is it that she can? What makes her so special? She never was anything much before, so, why now?

  “Well, this was the first time that I did it. So, I don’t really know how to describe it.”

  “Just do the best you can,” reassured Tristan.

  Ryleigh looked at the twins and hesitated. For a moment she could feel the residual energy pulsing inside her and wondered if it was the same for them. She decided she would wait to find out. She could hear theirs. She noticed the slight difference in tones. She never noticed it before. She imagined it had to do something with what just transpired.

  “I could feel you,” she pointed to Illeana. “Then I could feel you,” Tristan nodded. “Then I felt a connection between the two of you with me as like, a plug?” Tristan and Illeana both nodded at the same time. “Then I could feel my form start to come through. I saw myself through your eyes,” she gestured toward Illeana once again. “And then, once I opened my eyes, I could feel all of us. The pulsing sensation across my skin was electric. Then, I started to feel it get stronger and I needed to… disconnect somehow. So, I pulled it back. And, as I pulled it back… it just… went away.”

  “Hmm,” Illeana walked into the living room and flopped on the couch. Even that was graceful.

  “What do you feel?” Ryleigh desperately wanted to know what she was supposed to feel. “I mean. What do you feel when you are done?”

  Tristan started, “During, it feels the same as you described. After, I can hear the hum, but that’s it. I don’t feel it anymore.”

  Ryleigh nodded, "Yes. It’s the same right now.” She was lying but she didn’t know what she should say. “So, when does my imp arrive?”

  Tristan laughed, “You need to talk to your aunt for that one.”

  Ryleigh knew that was the answer she would be given
for now. She wasn’t looking forward to having that conversation but she knew that it needed to happen. This was all the energy work they were going to do for the day but Ryleigh had one other nagging question to ask. “What is the purpose of this energy manipulation?”

  Tristan was solemn, “We feed off of the environment, people, places, things… It’s who we are and if we don’t, then we are sick. But… We also use it to defend ourselves and also…to heal.”

  12

  Too late to apologize

  Ryleigh dreaded having to have another conversation with Vera. She knew she would get an earful for hanging out with the twins when she was told not to.

  “I told you to stay… away… from Tristan and Illeana,” Vera reprimanded.

  “Yes, I know, but…”

  “But nothing,” Vera interrupted. “You continue to disobey me. Were you always this disobedient?”

  Ryleigh should her head. She knew that she shouldn’t seem ungrateful. She had an aunt that took her in during her time of need. She should be eternally grateful. “I’m so sorry.” Ryleigh was genuinely apologetic.

  Vera sighed, “What did they tell you.”

  Ryleigh looked at her aunt, “They showed me how to find my true form.”

  Vera inhaled sharply, “Well then, I guess it’s time for your imp. Come with me.”

  Ryleigh followed Vera into her study and she picked up the phone using the intercom, “Bring them in here.” Siegfried entered the room pushing a steel cage. Ryleigh could hear a soft tittering behind the cloth that covered the cage. “What’s that?” Ryleigh asked.

  Siegfried lifted the cloth and revealed a cage of imps. Ryleigh’s heart immediately melted when she saw the creatures. There must have been five or six of the small creatures in the cage. “Why are there so many?”