by Nina Walker
So who was this girl? Someone who looked like Lacey. A trick? My chest burned at the idea.
I pictured her sad little body, crying. It didn’t matter who she was. I still had to find and help her. What had that note said?
If you fail, she will stay lost.
Would they really hurt an innocent girl, a girl who couldn’t be more than six or seven years old, because of me? I wasn’t sure, but either way, it lit a fire under me, and I started to run down the trail, hacking at the foliage in my way as I went. Where is she? I squeezed the amethyst so tightly the edges dug painfully into my palms. Come on, please. Show me something!
I was in the middle of nowhere, and so was this girl. She could be anywhere. I had to get this magic to work!
Please help me, a young choking cry sounded in my head.
“Where are you?” I whispered. Maybe she could hear me too?
Please help me.
Are you hurt? I asked, this time in my mind.
Please…
I listened to her thoughts, but she couldn’t hear mine. I concentrated harder, pulling the images she saw into my mind. Trees. Just stupid trees everywhere.
I had an idea. Water. Listen for water on her end.
I stopped running and closed my eyes, hoping if I could see from her point of view, I could hear too. I could faintly make out the image of her huddled under a tree. But there was water. I could just hear it over the sound of her crying. It was close to her.
Okay. Sweetie, I’m going to find you. I said the words in my mind, hoping she could hear me. My name is Jessa. I’m a teenage girl dressed in all black, and I have brown hair in a ponytail. If you see me, call my name. I’m here to help you.
I need help. I’m lost. The voice an echo in my mind.
I’m coming, I responded. Maybe she’d heard everything I said and had responded? Part of me clung to that, convincing myself it wasn’t coincidence, while the other part believed it was wishful thinking.
I took off, heading toward the sound of water. I wasn’t sure how much of the hour I had left. I didn’t know how far the girl was. But I had a fighting chance at saving her and passing the test. I’d give it everything.
Less than a minute later, I stood at the edge of the water. It looked almost the same here as it did in my vision. That was a good sign. How many streams could be up here that looked like that? I hoped for both our sakes there was only one. I took off at a run along the riverbank, half stumbling as I ran. I didn’t trust Officer Faulk. Knowing her, that little girl really could be in danger.
Frigid water splashed, stinging my face, as I continued to trudge along the bank. Tree branches attacked my body as I pushed them out of my way. I squeezed the purple stone harder, thanking the stars I had figured out how to use it. No, I wasn’t an oracle or anything special. I couldn’t do what Lily Mason did. I wasn’t seeing the future. I probably wasn’t having some telekinetic conversation with the girl. But I was able to reach out and read her thoughts, see what she saw.
Checking back in with magic, it was easier this time to find her. She still sat where I’d asked her. But it could be anywhere. Her head popped up, and I finally got a good look at her face. I already guessed she wasn’t Lacey. But it was obvious they’d chosen somebody who came pretty close in appearance. She had blue eyes and blond hair and was about six years old. They must have picked her specifically to mess with me.
I’m coming to find you, I said, reaching out to her mind. No response.
I continued up the stream, heart pounding, breaths labored, determination pounding with each step. By this point, I could see her in my mind’s eye and see my own reality at the same time. Like double vision, one clear and real image, the other hazy and in my imagination. Incredible…
How much time did I have left? I kept going, faster than ever. But I still had no real idea where she was, and the water had drenched me, sending my body into a shivering mess. I had an idea. Blue alchemy.
Frantically, I searched around for anything blue. My best bet was a river rock, so I started there. I all but jumped into the center of the stream and began lifting rocks, foraging for anything with even a blue tint. Holding onto the amethyst in one hand and searching for a new rock in the other was no easy task.
Finally, a flash of blue caught my eye. It shimmered under the moving water. I pried it out of the riverbed and palmed it. I willed the alchemy to work. I’d only done it one other time when Reed had shown me all those months ago in my old bedroom. But it had been easy then, so I could only hope for the best.
The hazy side-image of the girl began to fade as blue alchemy took over. She was still there, but this new magic was frenetic and excited. Standing still in the stream, I allowed it to take over me. The sound of the water magnified, but I pushed past that. Beyond was the scurrying of woodland animals: squirrels, birds, and even a few deer. It was as if my mind were a camera, flying over the forest, listening to everything with blue, viewing it with purple, and sending a signal back to where I stood.
It was easily the most amazing thing I’d ever done with alchemy. But I hardly had time to congratulate myself or get caught up in the wonder of it all because I found her.
And I was right. She was upstream. That was the good news. The bad news, she was much farther than I’d anticipated. At least another mile. I didn’t have a clock, but I knew my timed test was nearing the hour mark. I dropped the large blue-tinted river rock, not wanting anything to slow me down. I ran.
Catching a glimpse of golden leaves, I grabbed a few in my fist, and willed myself to be faster. The yellow took effect immediately. I’d been practicing with it so much lately that I wasn’t surprised. Pride warmed me at the accomplishment. I charged through the rocks, water, and aggressive tree branches at breakneck speed. Within a few minutes, I destroyed that mile. The little girl sat just on the horizon. I sprinted the final distance to her and wrapped her in what was probably a cold, wet, uncomfortable hug. I couldn’t help myself.
“I’m here!” I exclaimed, joy bursting at all my seams.
She giggled, straightening her small frame into my embrace. “Good job, Jessa. The other initiates always fail this one.”
“What?” I squinted. “You’re in on this too?”
“Yes.” She giggled again, as if it were the funniest thing in the world. It reminded me of when Lacey tried to pull her kid-pranks on us, always so simple to us but hilarious to her.
“It’s okay.” She stopped laughing and smiled at me. An adorable gap spaced out her front teeth, and dimples appeared on her freckled cheeks. “You did a good job. King Richard is going to be very happy about this.”
Okay, this was just weird. I sat back and looked away, all adrenaline leaving my system.
She stood and waved at someone behind me. That’s when Faulk appeared. Of course. It was all a test. I knew that. Still, the little girl being in on it too, that was beyond annoying. Maybe it was for the best. Even if my ego was a little bruised, it would have been much worse had the kidnapping been real.
“Lost forever, huh?” I said, glaring at Faulk, mentioning the words on the note.
“Halle is one of our youngest alchemists. She’s been helping us out with this test for a few years now. Something about a little girl in trouble, lost and alone in the wilderness, puts a bit of skin in the game, don’t you think?” Faulk smiled, her always-orderly appearance out of place in the wilderness. She walked to Halle and the two actually high-fived!
I didn’t get why anyone liked Faulk, but it seemed many alchemists did.
“I guess,” I muttered. Truth was, she was right. Halle had helped me gather the urgency needed to pass this test. I glanced at the girl, too young for this messed-up game. “Thanks for your help, kiddo.”
“Too bad you failed,” Faulk interjected.
“What?” I gasped. “I didn’t fail!”
“Yes, you did. You are two minutes over the hour. Plus, this was a purple test, and you used several other colors.”
“You’ve go
t to be kidding me!”
“Rules are rules.”
“I was never informed of those rules. And two minutes? That shouldn’t count. Why do you hate me so much? Why don’t you want me initiated?”
She stared at me coolly, giving away nothing of her intentions. “It’s time to go back to the palace.”
“You wanted me to fail,” I pressed. “Why? Isn’t it your job to help me succeed so I can help the kingdom? Isn’t that what King Richard, your boss, wants? Why are you trying to stop me? It doesn’t make any sense, Faulk!”
My words fell on deaf ears as I followed her and Halle to a nearby path. I charged after them, anger fueling my entire body.
She turned on me then, meeting me nose-to-nose. “You cannot be trusted. Everything about you is defiant. You’ve lied on more than one occasion and I don’t want you in my Color Guard. You are a stain on my reputation.”
“You won’t even give me a chance.”
“Why should I? I am on to you, Jessa Loxley. I know you’re hiding something. You’d be so lucky as to fail these tests and end up institutionalized, because if you join my ranks, I will find you out. And I will destroy you.”
My mouth dropped open as she turned on her heels.
Did she know I was part of the Resistance?
Glaring daggers into her back, I vowed to do everything to best that woman. I’d passed one test and failed two. I had to make orange and green successes. I had to win. There was absolutely no way I would allow them to institutionalize me. I was a powerful alchemist, and I would use that magic to do what needed to be done. In the end, I would get what I wanted and she would just have to deal with it.
As we traveled back to the palace, a shadow of doubt followed close behind.
8
Lucas
I sat back in my chair, my hands squeezing the base, and willed myself to keep quiet. Why must my father surround himself with idiots? We were in the main boardroom in the GC wing where the royal officers worked. His top advisers sat around the table with the king at the head and me at his side. We were going over strategy. War strategy. Papers littered the oval, wooden table, maps lit the screens on the walls, and multiple rounds of coffee had long since been finished.
“Do we have any more information on the assailant?” Richard asked, referring to the gunman—the dead gunman.
“No, sir, he is not part of our system. Everything he wore was untraceable, and his assault rifle did not come from here.”
“So you’re telling me an outsider got past the shadow lands?”
“It appears so, Your Highness. It shouldn’t have happened. He must have flown in undetected.”
“Are you surprised?” I interjected. “Whoever believed the shadow lands to be a perfect line of defense? All it takes is an aircraft with radar-jamming capabilities to get over them.”
“We have constant patrols,” the older man replied, his face red. He was the officer in charge of our military. A military that hadn’t seen much action in decades, and in my opinion, was mostly for show. Everyone knew the alchemists were the real threat. This guy was a clown if he thought the shadow lands were uncrossable. Maybe by foot, but not by air.
“Well, your patrols aren’t good enough, are they?” I shook my head.
My father sat back, studying me, a small smile playing on his lips. No doubt he thought I was following in his footsteps. Subscribing to his twisted way of thinking. It’s not that simple.
Of course I wanted to keep our people safe. And the terrorist attack had shaken me to my core. I wanted to find out who was responsible just as much as anyone else, but I wasn’t willing to lie about it. And I certainly wasn’t eager to head off to war with West America, something my father was obviously gunning for. He and I both knew he’d lied when he had said that West America was responsible for Mom’s death. In fact, everyone in this room probably knew by now, for one simple and glaring fact. Their previous confidant, Thomas, was down in the dungeons, waiting to be executed.
“We will figure out who did this and make them pay, Lucas,” Richard said. “Rebels, foreign enemies, a resistance group, or otherwise, we’ll find them. Either way, West America or not, we will be going over there.”
My breath caught at his use of the word “resistance”. Did he know about the group of his own citizenry, alchemists included, working to take him down? Did he suspect Jessa?
“And what about Thomas?” I asked, changing the subject back to one Richard and I had been arguing over since the day of his incarceration.
“What about him?” My father met my gaze, his eyes matching my own challenge.
“When are you going to execute him?”
“Soon.”
“That’s what you keep saying. But soon isn’t good enough. He murdered Mom. The queen! He tried to pull the same control crap on me. He doesn’t deserve another day of life, and you know it.” The words shot out of my mouth with such venom I hardly recognized myself. But I stood by it all. That man was a traitor, a murderer, and he needed to go away. Forever. The heat rolled through my body, and I longed to take off my suit jacket. But I’d dressed professionally for a reason, and I made myself settle down into my chair.
“Like I said, son, he will die soon. In the meantime, you can trust me when I say he is wishing for death.”
Trust him? How many times had he asked me to blindly trust him, only to put his own needs before mine? I was getting tired of his antics.
I held his gaze. “Like I said, father, that isn’t good enough. Mom deserves justice.”
There was something more going on, and I knew it had to do with red alchemy. Why else would Richard keep the man who killed his wife alive? There was no other explanation. He wanted to keep Thomas around in case he needed him. That had to be it. Thomas spelled it out for me that day I’d confronted him. He had the magic my father has been so desperately trying to cultivate for years. And if Jessa didn’t work out? Thomas would be waiting, a willing plan B. But Thomas was not to be trusted, nor could I ever forget what he’d done to our family. He didn’t even feel an ounce of remorse.
“You need to do it now. For her…”
Richard caught his breath, his teeth grinding. I’d pushed too hard. I didn’t care. He always seemed to play this game with me, as if he liked it when I challenged him. Almost like he saw it as a leadership quality. But there was a line at which he became territorial with me, a border at which I should agree to his every opinion. Kneel down to your king and father. I knew the line well. It showed up every time my lack of respect for him became obvious.
“That’s enough.” He slammed his fist onto the table. The mugs clattered, and cold coffee sloshed out of one and onto the mahogany surface. It spread, brown eating the edges of one of the papers. For a man who seldom yelled, I’d caught him off guard. It was stupid. I knew better.
“I apologize, Father,” I said. “You know how passionate I can be.”
“Don’t we all.” He smiled sourly. Turning to the room, charm warmed his features. Everyone nodded in agreement.
Oh, yes. Everyone knows how the prince can get.
Faulk, who’d been uncharacteristically absent from the meeting, chose that moment to interrupt. She strode into the room with the same air she always had, completely loyal to my father and her job. She was the type of woman who demanded attention with her ambition. There were no soft bits to her, only hard edges. I suspected she purposely chose to be cold because it gave her power.
Sometimes, I thought my father was in love with her because of it.
“I have some bad news to report, Your Majesty.” She said bad as if it were quite the opposite. “We just returned from Jessa’s purple alchemy test.” My body tensed.
“And?” he asked.
“She failed.”
My stomach formed into a hard knot. It took every ounce of willpower to keep my face stoic. I wanted Jessa out of this world and safe somewhere else, but as long as she was here, she needed to pass the tests. If she didn’t, n
othing good would come of it. She’d most likely be institutionalized, or maybe even become a prisoner downstairs.
“What happened?” I asked casually.
Faulk never took her eyes off the king as she answered. “She came close. She did use purple alchemy, it seems. But she also used blue and yellow. And she took longer than an hour to find the girl.”
“Did anyone tell her not to use the other colors?” I questioned.
She didn’t answer.
“But she was able to manipulate purple?” Richard asked.
“Yes, the most common way. Not quite back and forward telepathy but she did get into the girl’s head.”
“Well then, I hardly count this is bad news.”
“But she failed.”
“That may be up for discussion.”
“I agree,” I said, interjecting on Jessa’s behalf. “If an alchemist can manipulate purple, an alchemist can manipulate purple. That’s all there is to it. What other question is there? And who cares if she used other colors? From your lack of response to my question, it sounds like you didn’t tell her not to do it. That’s hardly fair. Plus, guardians in the field do it all the time. Maybe that should be counted as a good thing. Counted toward a pass.”
“But it’s not the way things are done during the tests.”
“Maybe the tests need to change then,” I challenged.
Faulk finally turned her steely gaze on mine, her lips in a thin line. I cocked my head at her, not willing to back down on this. She had the common sense to keep her mouth closed.
“You know what, son? I think you’re right,” Richard said, meeting my gaze. “Maybe it is time to change how we run these tests.” He said it with a knowing tone. A glimmer of an idea brewing, perhaps? My body went rigid. What was he planning?
“That’s it for now,” he continued. “We’ll meet again tomorrow to discuss the first attack on West America. I don’t want to wait much longer. Every day we wait, the element of surprise could be taken from us.”
The men and women surrounding the table stood to leave, nodding their agreements as they went. I put my head down, thinking heavily, as I followed close behind. I felt a hand on my back, and I turned. Richard. We were alone.