by Twyla Turner
“For the most part,” Saffi spoke first. Her voice was soft and pleasant. “They are our imprints, and we’re born with them.”
“And each color represents what your gift will be as you grow up.” Wakeley continued.
“So blue is for water, green is earth, and white is air?” I asked.
“Exactly,” Rafe said with a smile.
“Well then, what is pink, yellow, and purple for? I saw those colors too.” I asked.
“Pink is for emotions, yellow is for light, and purple is for healing.” Saffi educated me.
“And I’m assuming gold, like the Oracle’s imprints, are for someone special like her?” I guessed.
“Yes.” The three faeries said in unison.
“And it doesn’t matter what gift your parents have? You will have different gifts from them?”
“Each family is different,” Rafe answered. “Sometimes a faery child will have the same gift as one of their parents. Sometimes they’ll have a gift that’s completely different.
“So what can you do with these gifts?” I asked curiously.
“Well, it depends.” Rafe began. His imprints lightened to sky blue in his happy mood. “Some faeries are born with minimal skills. For instance, some earth faeries might only be good at growing plants.”
“Like a green thumb,” I stated.
“Precisely. But maybe a little more enhance than that.” Rafe grinned. “More like, they can grow a flower right before your eyes or bring back a dead flower. And that would be considered a level one faery. A level two earth faery can do what a level one can do but on a larger scale. Like, they could grow a whole field of flowers or forest of trees. And level three can… Well, why don’t you show her, Wakeley?” Rafe looked to the other faery boy.
“Sure,” Wakeley said with a smirk.
The green of his imprints lightened, and the movement within them increased. As if the wind was whipping through grass. I watched as Wakeley pressed his hands into the ground beneath him. My eyes widened as I watched the already faint glow of the grass brighten, and then the grass lit up in two trails that shot out behind the earth faery. The trails of green light moved straight towards two trees. The light flowed up the trees, and they lit up brightly. Slowly, their branches started to move, and I watched as the trees bent towards each other. They entwined their branches together to make a gorgeous glowing arch.
I gasped in awe and then clapped my hands in excitement.
“As you can see level three earth faeries can move earth.” Rafe chuckled at my reaction.
“That was amazing!” I exclaimed. “What can you two do?” I leaned forward eagerly, wanting to see more. I felt like a little kid at a magic show.
The white of Saffi’s imprints started to move rapidly, and her eyes clouded over, as a forceful wind blasted our camp, as if a storm was coming. The wind nearly blew out the fire, and I had to tuck my face against Daegan as my hair flew all over the place. At first, the wind was frigid as if it was wind whipping during a blizzard. Then the wind shifted and became warm and damp, almost like it would be during a hurricane on a tropical island somewhere.
Suddenly the wind died down and stopped, just as quickly as it had begun. I sat up and pushed my hair out of my face. The three faeries and Daegan looked at me and started laughing, though I had no idea why.
“What? What’s so funny?” I asked self-consciously.
Rafe reached over and patted my hair.
“Oh!” I flushed. “I bet I’m a hot mess, aren’t I?” I giggled imagining what my hair must look like after the wind storm whipped through it.
“It’s just a little all over the place,” Rafe informed me.
“I’m sure.” I agreed as I tried to smooth down my red locks. “That was amazing, though, Saffi. Now, what about you?” I turned to look at Rafe.
“Open your canteen and pour out your water.” He instructed me.
“But you just said to conserve my water.” I reminded him.
“I know. Just trust me.” Rafe smiled slyly.
“If you say so.”
The blue of Rafe’s imprints darkened and churn as his intense blue eyes focused on the canteen. I unscrewed the top and slowly tipped the canteen over. Water began to pour out the opening but then stopped in mid-air. I inhaled sharply as I stared in fascination at the frozen liquid.
“Touch it,” Rafe directed.
With my free hand, I reached out my index finger and gently touched the floating water. My finger went straight through the clear liquid. It was neither hard nor frozen. It simply had just stopped on its descent to the ground. When I pulled my finger back, it was wet from the water. Then the water moved in reverse, back inside the canteen. And unexpectedly the canteen shot out of my hands and floated over to Rafe, and he reached out to grab it.
“How did you...?” I left the question hanging.
“I can manipulate water. And if water is inside of something, all I have to do is move the water and the object comes with it.” Rafe explained as he released the canteen and it floated back to me.
“Wow! You guys are amazing! I’ve never seen anything like it in all my life. Then again, I’ve never seen anything like Empyrean in all my life.” I said with a voice filled with wonder. I couldn’t help it. “So, what about the emotion, light, and healer faeries? How do their gifts work?”
“Depending on their skill level, pink faeries have the ability to make one individual feel a certain way, all the way to a level three that can make a whole crowd feel a certain way,” Saffi answered. “Yellow faeries can manipulate light. To the point of lighting our entire city without even trying. And purple faeries can mend what ails you. From a small cut to something much more serious. They are what you call doctors on Earth, though they can fix you with just the touch of their healing pulses,” she finished.
“That’s just incredible.” I shook my head in bewilderment. Then I turned to Daegan. “And what can you do?”
“I honestly don’t know. None of the other unicorns wanted to help me find my purpose for fear that it would help me bring evil to our land.” Daegan said nonchalantly, though I knew he felt anything but.
“Well, that’s just dumb!” I said angrily, on his behalf. “We’ll figure out what your gifts are,” I said with certainty.
The beautiful ebony unicorn nodded his agreement.
I sighed heavily. “Now that I know what your gifts are, I’m feeling rather inadequate for this battle we’re about to face. I have zero skill,” I admitted with worry.
“Uh…have you forgotten how you disarmed me and nearly cut my throat a couple nights ago?” Rafe reminded me. “I think you’ll do just fine.”
“If you say so,” I said skeptically.
Once the rabbits were done cooking, we split each in half so that the four of us would have equal amounts. We ate quietly for a moment before Rafe continued the conversation.
“Where did you learn to how to fight like that anyway?” He asked inquisitively.
“My dad.” I looked down at the grass and plucked at it restlessly, not really wanting to talk about it.
“Are your parents still on Earth waiting for you to come back?” He asked.
“No,” I answered shortly, hoping he’d get the hint.
“Oh…what happened to them?” Rafe pressed.
“They’re dead, okay?!” I burst out.
The ache in my heart over the loss of my parents was like a living thing. Some days the ache would lie dormant, still there, but not so bad. Then the slightest thing could trigger the worst pain imaginable. That pain shot through my chest now and radiated over my entire being.
“I’m so sorry, Immy,” Rafe said.
My parents’ nickname for me on the blue faery’s lips made me look up at him in shock. The mermaid had used it, but that was because she said that they’d overheard my parents calling me that over the years. But Rafe had to have come up with it out of affection rather than knowledge. A single tear ran down my face at hearing t
he name.
“What?” Rafe asked nervously. What did I say?”
“Immy. That was the nickname my parents gave to me. How did you know?” I asked as I swiped at my damp cheeks.
“I-I didn’t. I just thought it suited you and decided to say it,” Rafe admitted. “I won’t do it again.”
“No!” I blurted out and then caught myself and continued in a quieter tone. “No, you can call me Immy, if you want. I like hearing it.” I gave my approval and then looked away shyly.
I fiddled around with what was left of my dinner when his hand covered with dark blue markings, fitting his mood, reached over and clasped my hand. I glanced up at him, and his intense blue eyes were filled with empathy.
“I really am sorry about your parents, Immy.” He said sincerely as his thumb stroked the skin of my hand. I felt heat spread up my arm from his touch. “If you don’t have anyone back on Earth, you could always stay here, I’m sure.”
“I doubt it works that way. I’ll probably be sent packing after all this is over. If, I don’t get killed first.” I frowned.
“You won’t,” Rafe assured me. “I won’t let it happen.”
I looked up to see Saffi, Wakeley, and Daegan were all listening intently to our conversation, and I felt my cheeks heat with color. I didn’t know how the conversation had turned so emotional, but I was embarrassed that they’d all witnessed it.
“My parents practically abandoned me the moment I was born,” Daegan spoke up, sharing his painful past. “I’ve been a loner most of my life, and this is the first time I’ve ever been a part of a group,” he confessed.
I wrapped my arms around his long neck and hugged him tightly. I knew he’d bared his soul to the group to make me feel less vulnerable about my baggage. Thank you.
You’re welcome, Immy.
“My father left to help on Earth and never came back. He died there,” Saffi confided. “He died while my mom was pregnant with me, so he never got to see me. I never got to meet him,” she finished, her gray eyes filled with sadness.
“Both of my parents are still on Earth, acting as advisors for important political people. My grandmother has been taking care of me for years.” Wakeley added his story to the conversation. “They are there to try and help sway humans away from violence. I’m hoping that if we succeed in our quest, they’ll be able to finally come home.”
I was touched by them sharing their stories with me, to make me feel like I wasn’t alone in my sorrow. I couldn’t believe how many faeries were walking on Earth amongst humans, and we had no idea.
After we each had shared something personal about ourselves, we all looked to Rafe expectantly.
“I…uh…really don’t have any tragic stories. But I can tell you this…” he paused, deep in thought. “I’m terrified of being king someday. I don’t know how to look after an entire kingdom.” Rafe shrugged.
“I’m sure by the time it’s your turn, you’ll know what to do.” I tried to put him at ease. “You’re still young. And besides, the faeries live for a really long time, so you shouldn’t have to worry about that for hundreds of years, right?”
“True, but my parents can decide that they’re ready to step down. Then the kingdom will be passed to me.” Rafe explained.
“What would your parents do once they step down?” I asked curiously.
“Well, not all beings on Empyrean want to live for as long as the Oracle. Many chose to leave this land to spend the rest of eternity in Elysium. So that’s where others before them went and where they’ll go.” Rafe clarified.
“Wait. So Empyrean isn’t heaven enough for you? You have another place that’s more heavenly than this?” I asked incredulously as I gestured around the beautiful landscape.
“Well, yes,” Wakeley answered me. “We do have to share this world with Myrkur and those who inhabit it. And just like now, there’s always a possibility of destruction from the darkness. But in Elysium, there is never the threat of a hostile takeover because the dark ones go to their version of heaven…Hades,” he finished dramatically.
“Hell?”
“Yes.”
“Huh. Who knew? Is it the same for unicorns?” I asked Daegan.
“Yes. It’s the same for all in Empyrean. Those who are ready, go on to Elysium or Hades. Unless they’re sent there through unforeseen circumstances. Like Saffi’s father.” Daegan answered.
“Yeah, and I plan to personally send some of the dark dwellers straight to Hades in the near future,” Wakeley promised as he cracked his knuckles eagerly. His teeth gleaming brightly in his handsome tan face.
“Then I guess we’d better get some rest because who knows what we’re going to encounter tomorrow,” Rafe suggested.
We spent the next few minutes laying out our pallets and getting situated. I snuggled my back with Daegan’s side, to share body heat as the fire burned down to embers. After a long flight for the faeries and a hard run and ride for Daegan and myself, we all passed out within minutes.
Chapter 14
Imogen
Fortunately, the next couple of days went by with no mishaps. It wasn’t until a week later into our journey that danger finally presented itself. Luckily, tiny allies came to warn us of the trouble ahead.
I was deep asleep when a noise kept interrupting my dreams. If glitter could make a noise, that is what I kept hearing in my sleep. An incessant tinkling sound that made me dream of dancing as it rained glitter on my head. Something lifted my eyelid, and it quickly jarred me awake from a deep sleep. My one opened eye focused on a tiny little glowing creature waving frantically at me.
“What the…?” I jerked up into a sitting position.
I scrubbed at my eyes to make sure that I was seeing things correctly, as I often did since being in Empyrean. There seemed to be hundreds of little glowing winged creatures flying around, attempting to wake everyone at our camp. I guessed that our tiny intruders were the pixies I’d heard about, but never seen.
They were adorable. The one that hovered in front of my face, apparently trying to communicate with me with its little tinkling sound, had big eyes, large pointy ears, and wings of a butterfly’s. Its whole body was lavender with purple, lavender, green and pink brightly glowing wings. It didn’t have any clothes on like I would’ve expected, but I think it was because it wasn’t gender specific. I couldn’t tell if it was a boy or a girl.
I looked up to see other tiny pixies pulling and tugging at my companions. Like the faeries, the pixies also came in an array of vibrant colors. I watched as my new friends all came awake, much the same way I had. Frantic. Rafe and Wakeley immediately drew their swords that had been lying next to them. Boys. Saffi squeaked a bit, and Daegan whinnied in irritation.
Once Rafe and Wakeley realized that there was no danger, they sheathed their swords. The pixies seemed to be animatedly trying to explain something. But all I could hear was the tinkling sound they made.
“Would everyone stop trying to talk all at once?! I can’t hear myself think. Just one should be sufficient.” Rafe grumbled.
I gave a sigh of relief that someone understood Pixie. All the chatter died down, and the pixies hovered over our camp like tiny floating lights. One flew over to Rafe and began to speak. The tinkling sound was urgent but less overwhelming with only one speaking. As Rafe listened his imprints darkened to indigo and his eyes widened imperceptibly. It was obvious that Wakeley and Saffi understood what the pixie was saying as well. The green movement of Wakeley’s markings started to pick up speed and Saffi cover her mouth with her hand. Like she was trying to hold in her shocked reaction. I was afraid to know.
When the pixie finished, Rafe looked up at me. The look he gave me said, “I hope you’re ready.”
“What? What’s happening?” I asked, and my voice shook with trepidation.
“Dwarfinburg has been destroyed by the Alpanians. Many dwarves have been injured or l-lost altogether.” Rafe’s voice wavered for a moment. “They have escaped to the forest, whe
re they told the pixies of their attack.”
“It’s the first gauntlet,” Saffi said quietly.
Wakeley jumped up with his sword and its belt. He clasped it around his waist, the boyish gleam of the glory of battle in his eyes. “I’m ready!” He proclaimed.
I squeezed my eyes shut, wishing it was all just a dream.
It’s not a dream. Sorry, Immy. Daegan intruded on my thoughts.
I know it’s not. I have no idea what to do, what virtue I need to learn to get the weapon I need, or what an Alpanian even is! I thought as I dropped my head back, lifting my face up to the night sky as I scowled in frustration.
You’ll figure it out. We all will. Daegan soothed.
“Immy? Are you ready?” Rafe asked, and I opened my eyes to look at him.
“No, but I don’t have much choice, do I?” I asked with a sigh.
“No. None of us do.” He answered solemnly.
“What’s an Alpanian?” I huffed as I stood up.
“Giants,” Wakeley said with barely concealed anticipation.
“Oh…delightful!” I said, my voice dripping sarcasm as I let my hands drop and smack my legs in defeat.
“I know! Isn’t it?!” Wakeley gave me a sideways grin.
I mentally rolled my eyes. Well, at least someone is happy about going into battle.
Someone needs to be. Daegan responded with a reluctant chuckle.
We quickly packed up our camp and put out the fire. I climbed on top of Daegan, and we took off through the woods with the three faeries flying just a little ahead of us, and the pixies in front of them, leading the way.
It wasn’t long before we saw firelight in the distance. We soon came upon the improvised camp of the dwarves. Several bonfires were blazing, and the downtrodden group of little people gathered around them in different stages of grief. Some of them sobbed uncontrollably for the loss of a loved one. Others stomped around angrily, ready to seek revenge. While many gritted their teeth in pain as they awaited their turn to be patched up.