I look around for any sign of the others, and find Jasira standing by herself on the platform where we all started; evidently, we’re the only two that have passed our tests so far. After a few minutes, Ryan hobbles over to us from down the hallway, his left arm burned badly, and his face powdered with soot. Jasira and I stare at him, but he refuses to explain beyond saying, “You should see the other guy.” So far, all of us have proven strong enough to handle our tests except Alyssa, and as the minutes drag on, I begin to worry about her.
Nearly five minutes after Ryan returned from his test, the ground starts rumbling unexpectedly, and I nearly lose my balance. Something isn’t right, I can feel it in the pit of my stomach. A scream reaches us from outside, cut short by the sound of an impact so powerful that the ground shudders again. I turn to Ryan and Jasira, who look just as worried as I do, and decide that at least one of us should investigate.
Before we can look outside to see what’s going on, the battered body of a young woman smashes through one of the stained glass windows. She hits the ground just a split second before scattered shards of glass and droplets of her own blood litter the clean marble, and groans in pain as she attempts to stand up. Before she gets very far, though, Alyssa appears out of nowhere behind her, grabs hold of the woman’s hair, and drags her over to the steps lining one side of the amphitheater. Alyssa lifts the woman’s head, and smashes it against the steps repeatedly, until the polished marble is slick with blood.
My body reacts instinctively before I can truly process what’s going on, and I run over to Alyssa’s side to try and pull her off the poor woman. I don’t know what I expected to happen, but I certainly didn’t expect Alyssa to forget her prey entirely, and use a spell to slam me against the wall. Her fingers wrap around my neck, and clamp down until I can’t breathe. I grab at her hand, and try to kick her away from me, but Alyssa maintains hold on my neck until my vision begins to fade. Some unseen force pulls Alyssa off of me before I lose consciousness, and I fall to the ground, sputtering and gasping for air. The world around me is still a little blurry, and multicolored dots swim before my eyes, but I still forgo worrying about myself in favor of figuring out what happened to Alyssa.
When I spot her, she’s inexplicably bound by chains coming out of the ground, and surrounded by no less than twenty angry looking Guardians that have materialized out of nowhere. I push my way through the crowd, and crouch down in front of Alyssa, searching for any hint of the girl I thought I knew in her face. What I see instead is an expression of pure rage, and eyes that have changed from their usual golden hue to blood red. My gaze travels down to her neckline, and as I suspected, her pentagram necklace is nowhere to be found; the spell keeping her from losing control and destroying everything is no longer in effect.
I take her face in my hands, and whisper, “Allie, I know you’re in there somewhere… You need to learn how to fight this.” A deep-throated growl is the only response she’ll give. I have no idea where her necklace is, and I don’t know the spell required to keep her wild powers in check, so I do the one thing I think could possibly shock her back to her senses. I pull my face as close to hers as humanly possible, and press our lips together. The kiss is unlike anything I’ve ever shared with Nick; her lips are incredibly warm, and slightly salty, and neither of us has had the chance to brush our teeth in days. Most notably, while every kiss shared with Nick makes me crave another, with Alyssa, I feel… nothing.
After a few seconds, I pull my face away from Alyssa’s, and she stops struggling against the chains holding her in place. She coughs once, and mutters something quietly that I don’t quite catch.
I lean in a tiny bit closer, and ask, “Could you repeat that?”
Alyssa lifts her head, and I notice that the red tint in her eyes has begun to recede. Instead of returning to their usual gold, her eyes have adopted a soft brown tone, with a halo of green around the rim of each pupil. She must have used a spell to turn her eyes gold, a spell that got interrupted by her sudden outburst. She flashes me a weary smile, and says, “So much for you not being into girls.”
Chapter 19
A pair of arms grabs me from behind, and roughly steers me though the crowd, away from Alyssa. Ryan and Jasira attempt to force their way through, but are likewise grabbed by Guardians, and herded down the hallway that leads to our room. Athena walks alongside us, and I ask her, “What’s going on?,” but she remains silent, her lips stretched into a thin line. The Guardian holding me shoves me into the room where the others are waiting, but before they can slam the door in my face, I plant myself in the doorframe. I lock eyes with Athena, and growl, “You’d better give me some answers, right now. Why are we being locked up in here? And what’s going to happen to Alyssa?”
If Athena is offended by my tone, she doesn’t show it. She merely scowls right back at me, and says, “Alyssa is being detained, while we hold council to decide whether punishment is necessary, and if so, how severe the punishment should be.”
“Punishment for what, for beating the shit out of that Guardian like she was supposed to?”
“No, for attacking you.”
“Why? Because I’m ‘special’, right?” Athena’s eyes widen, but she says nothing, so I continue. “Yeah, I know about that. But nobody’s taken the time to explain why.”
“If I give you a brief explanation, will you stay in your room until you are called?” I nod, and Athena glances up and down the hallway before leaning in closer to me. In a hurried whisper, she says, “A select few spellcasters us can detect the spiritual resonance of those around them. Those of us here who can feel your presence believe you are something called a Conduit, a being of immense power. And if Alyssa had succeeded in strangling you a few moments ago, then you would have been sent home without unlocking your power completely. If you are here, it means the time swiftly approaches when your strength will be needed most. Ergo, you cannot afford to waste another year with your true potential still locked away.”
In the few seconds it takes for her words to sink in, I’m taken back to a couple of nights ago, sitting in the sand, listening to Alyssa’s story. I remember her telling me that everyone thought she was a Conduit… and I can’t help thinking now that considering her strength, she’s a much better candidate for the position. The way Athena is talking, it’s starting to sound like there’s a lot more than just the outcome of a few tests at stake, and if it concerns the lives of others, I don’t think I want that kind of responsibility. Not yet, at least; I’ve always dreamed of being a hero, but I’d much rather start small. I ask, “Needed for what? And are you sure you’ve got the right person?”
“The terms were as follows; I would answer one question, and you would remain in your quarters. I fulfilled my half of the arrangement, now you fulfill yours.” Athena waves her hand, and I’m pushed a few feet back into the room. A second later, the door slams shut, and I can just barely make out her fading footsteps through the thick walls.
I turn to see if the others heard the same thing I did, but Ryan is pacing around the room, off in his own world, and Jasira is nowhere to be found. I assume that she’s in the bathroom, probably cleaning herself off. For a moment, I forget about everything around me, and allow myself to entertain the idea that I really am a Conduit, like Athena says. I can see myself using all that power for good; stopping crimes, preventing disasters, rescuing people in need. I could use that power to fulfill my childhood dreams, but at what price? I know literally nothing else about being a Conduit; for all I know, it could mean the end of my life as I know it.
I walk past Ryan to my bed, which pulls him out of his own head long enough for him to stop pacing, and ask, “What the hell was all that about?”
“Be more specific,” I reply.
“Alyssa’s little episode just now… I won’t pretend I know her well, but I’m pretty she doesn’t normally snap and try to murder people.”
I almost ask Ryan why he’s acting like he doesn’t kn
ow, until I realize that I’m probably the only person Alyssa’s ever told. I briefly explain her condition, and add that without the inhibiting spell on her pentagram necklace, it’s bound to happen again. Ryan shakes his head, and mutters, “Oh, perfect. That’s only information we could have used ages ago.”
“But it wasn’t any of our business until we saw it firsthand.”
“Then how did you know?”
“I… we talked for a while. Just before we wound up on the ship.”
“I see.” Ryan shrugs, and resumes pacing slowly around the room. As he comes to a window overlooking the meadow, he asks, “You don’t think they’re going to punish us as a group, do you?”
“Probably not, why?”
“Because it would really suck if we came this far just to fail.”
I nod in agreement, and lay back on my bed. Unbidden, memories of home flash through my mind, and I realize how badly I wish I were there. I haven’t had much time to get homesick between running from the fire in the forest, and everything that’s led me to where I am now. On some level, I suppose the longing was always there, whether I noticed or not. On a whim, I ask Ryan, “What’s your home like?”
Ryan stops pacing by the foot of my bed, and replies, “Be more specific.”
“You know, what’s your family like? Where do you live? That sort of thing.”
“Well, my family lives on a small farm just a few kilometers shy of Edinburgh. More of us show up for clan meetings, but on a regular day, it’s just me, my parents, and my two sisters. And they mean everything to me.”
“Really?”
“Yeah… they’re actually sort of the reason I’ve been such a dick to you guys the whole way here. My father said if I failed the test again, I’m basically disowned. And I can’t let that happen… without them, I’m nothing.”
“That explains a lot. I always thought it was just your personality.”
“Not normally, no. Sorry about all that, though.”
“It’s alright.”
Ryan and I turn to look at the door as it swings open, and the Guardian standing in the hallway just outside. I was expecting Athena again, but this time, the woman at our door looks to be around our age, and dressed in clothes similar to ours, rather than the robes seen on other Guardians. “I’m here to escort someone named Heather to the amphitheater,” she says. Presumably because I’m the only girl present, she waves me over, and I hop out of bed to walk across the room. Once at the door, the girl turns on her heel, and walks down the hall, and says, “Please follow me,” over her shoulder.
I fall into step beside her, and ask, “What’s going on?”
“Not really sure. This kind of thing has never happened before, so no one knows exactly how to proceed.”
“Great…” We walk along in silence, and I take the time to wonder what awaits me in the amphitheater. A random thought also comes to mind, and I let it come out before the opportunity to ask passes: “I have a question… why are you guys called the Guardians?”
“Because of what we do. We guard both secrets and artifacts from the mortal world, and those unworthy to wield them.” Just before we round the corner to the main hall, the girl stops, and says, “Now I have a question; what is that girl to you?”
It takes me a moment to answer; I honestly don’t know what to say. For a while, I thought I might be developing slight feelings for her… Still wondering if I might be. But when I tried shocking her out of her episode with a kiss, I felt nothing. There was no spark, no love, no craving for more of her.
I’m still figuring things out for myself, but just to be on the safe side, I answer, “She’s just a friend,” before we continue walking.
For the first time since arriving at the temple, some of the amphitheater’s seats are actually occupied. Most of the Guardians present are ones I’ve bumped into before, and they all seem to be watching the same thing intently. I follow their gaze to the center platform, and that’s when I spot Alyssa; on her knees, with her head bent down, her hands chained behind her back, and a Guardian standing on either side of her. Without waiting for permission to approach, I hop onto the platform, kneel down next to her, and ask, “Are you alright?”
Alyssa lifts her head a little, and tries to flash me a tiny smile from behind her curtain of purple hair. “Just peachy. Nothing puts me in a great mood like blacking out and trying to kill my only friend.”
I reach out to put my arm around her shoulder, but a voice from the audience commands me to stop. A tall man with a large, gray beard, who I’m almost certain is actually Zeus, stands, and says, “It would be unwise to touch the girl, Heather. It may trigger another attack.”
I respectfully back away from Alyssa a little, but inwardly, I’m already annoyed with Zeus. He’s talking about her like she’s less than human. “What did you call me here for?”
Apparently Zeus is the appointed spokesman for the entire congregation, because he’s the one that answers. “We have questioned Alyssa at length about the incident, and she maintains that her volatile powers were not within her control at the time. Is this true?”
“Yes, but-“
“And is it also true that, if left unchecked, her power intensifies and becomes uncontrollable?”
“Yes, that’s why she needs her-“
“Then can you give me one good reason why we should not have the girl sent home immediately? She could already be a threat to the secret existence of our kind, and the lives of the people on Earth. Allowing her to further her training could end disastrously.”
“Just let me know when you’re done, I’ll wait.” Zeus and the rest of the Guardians look at me incredulously; I suppose they’re not used to being addressed so disrespectfully. When I’m confident that I won’t be interrupted again, I say, “You’re spending an awful lot of time treating my friend like she’s just a ticking time bomb, but she is so much more than that. She’s an actual, fully-fledged person, who deserves just as much of a chance at a normal life as anyone else here did. Yes, she’s got problems. Who the hell doesn’t? As long as there are people to catch her when she falls, she’ll always be okay. I’ll make sure of that.”
Zeus clears his throat, and begins, “But there is still the matter of-“
“Yeah, I know. There’s a spell that can tell her body to regulate her power properly. I don’t know it, but her mentor does. That can be taken care of when we get home.”
That makes the Guardians in their seats relax a little; some of them confer in whispers, while others just stare at Zeus, as if they’re waiting for him to come up with some new argument for Alyssa’s execution. Zeus and I stare each other down, until he breaks down, and finally says, “Then I suppose the choice is yours, as the victim in this incident. Should any punishment be inflicted upon the aggressor?”
I look behind me at Alyssa, who has lifted her head, and I guess that she’s been watching me intently for a while now. She raises an eyebrow, and I just smile in response, before turning back to Zeus. “I don’t think punishment will be necessary. I’m sure she feels bad enough as it is, anyway.”
Zeus looks almost disappointed in me, but he snaps his fingers, and I hear the chains around Alyssa’s hands hitting the ground soon after. “Very well. She will be released, for now. But should any further incidents occur, we will act as we see fit, with the consent of the potential Conduit or without.”
“Deal.” I turn my back to the audience, and kneel down next Alyssa again. She doesn’t look like she’s been seriously injured, but there are red welts along her face and arms. “What did they do to you…?”
She shrugs, and mutters, “Nothing I didn’t deserve.”
“What? Why would you deserve-”
“Because I hurt you… I don’t remember exactly what happened, but I do remember trying to kill you, and I can’t forgive myself for that. You know why.”
“Yeah, but I’m clearly alright now.” I take a step towards Alyssa, and offer
her a hand to help her onto her feet. “You don’t have to be so hard on yourself.”
Alyssa grabs onto my hand, and between us, we manage to get her off the ground. She still seems upset, despite the fact that I’m not angry over what happened. “You should hate me,” she mutters. “You’ve seen what I’m really like. You’ve seen the side of me that’s more monster than human.”
At her words, I’m taken back to one of the first conversations I ever had with Nick, and I can hear his voice as clearly as if he were standing right next to me; I think that in reality, there’s a monster inside each of us. It’s whether or not we give in to it that makes us human. Guilt washes over me as I realize this is the first time I’ve thought of him in a while, followed by the full realization that I betrayed his trust. I feel inexplicably dirty all of a sudden, but I pull myself together long enough to say to Alyssa, “There’s a monster in all of us, somewhere. But that one part of you doesn’t define you. We are who we choose to be.”
“Yeah… maybe you’re right.”
“I usually am.”
“Don’t get cocky, Santos.” The Guardians filling the amphitheater have begun to disperse, so we take it as a sign to head back to our room. Along the way, I notice that Alyssa’s deep in thought, as if she’s trying to figure something out. When we turn down the hallway to our room, she asks, “What was that guy talking about when he said ‘with or without the Conduit’s consent?’”
Shit. I was hoping I wouldn’t have to be the one to break the news to her. “Umm… Allie, somebody told me that there’s a chance that I’m a Conduit.”
Alyssa’s jaw drops, and she stops dead in her tracks. “How is that possible?”
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