A Power of Old

by Bella Forrest

  I couldn’t see much of Nevertide as we soared back toward the castle; most of the land was in complete darkness, other than the small clusters of light still burning in the villages and the almost welcoming glow coming from the windows of Hellswan castle.

  We landed in the courtyard of the castle. Two of the guards waiting at the door strode forward to greet us. I thought they were coming to receive their orders from Tejus, and I was momentarily surprised when he didn’t start barking out commands…

  Right. No longer king.

  That would take some getting used to.

  Lieutenant Ragnhild took over, instructing the men to step up their security detail, but without divulging what we’d discovered in the temple. The guards didn’t ask any questions, and hurried off to do his bidding.

  “I’ll take him to the human quarters,” Tejus said to Ruby and me. “You’ll need ministers to aid him though. Tell Ash when he returns from the trials, if he’s not back already.”

  “I don’t want ministers near him,” Ruby interjected, and I looked at her in surprise—I completely agreed, but it was usually me being stubborn about the ministers.

  “I’ll let Ash know who’s safe,” Tejus replied. “You might need one, trust me on this.”

  “What do you mean?” I asked. There was something going on here that I didn’t quite understand.

  “Do you have the letter?” Ruby asked Tejus as we hurried along the main hallway.

  What letter?

  “No.” His reply was abrupt, and he avoided making eye contact, picking up the pace as if he wanted to outrun both of us.

  I looked over at Ruby; she grimaced and shook her head. I sighed. This was clearly a conversation to have at another time.

  Whatever it was, it could wait. I wanted Benedict somewhere warm first. Two guards were stationed outside the human quarters. They stood aside hurriedly as we approached, staring disbelievingly at Benedict cradled in Tejus’s arms.

  He probably syphoned off them at some point.

  I realized that there would be few sentries in Hellswan who hadn’t been syphoned by the entity-possessed Benedict. I hoped that they all understood he hadn’t been in control, hadn’t known what he was doing at the time. I dreaded one of the guards or ministers confronting him. It was probably a good idea that I had a word with Ash when I next saw him about keeping Benedict shielded from the worst of his night-time activities in Hellswan.

  “Oh, my God!” Yelena rose from where she’d been seated in the living room, her eyes widening as Benedict was carried toward her.

  Tejus placed him gently down on the sofa, and Yelena crouched down low next to him.

  “What happened? Is he sleeping—can I do anything?” She rattled off questions, and I recognized the same mixture of relief and anxiety that I was experiencing at seeing my brother finally free from the entity.

  “We’re going to get one of the ministers to see what they can do. I think he’s just a bit weak,” Ruby replied. “The entity took a lot out of him.”

  Yelena’s face fell.

  “But right now he probably just wants to be kept warm—and maybe you could keep him company?” I asked, suddenly needing Yelena to remain optimistic. I wanted Benedict to feel safe and secure when he woke, and that wasn’t going to happen if we were all staring worriedly and tiptoeing around him.

  It worked. Yelena brightened again, and went about fetching more blankets for the sofa.

  “I need to leave,” I whispered to Tejus.

  The hunger was starting to get to me. I could practically feel the energy of the kids emanating from the bedrooms—they felt like they were getting stronger every passing second, and the ache in my stomach was starting to become unbearable. Spending time with Tejus wasn’t much better, but at least I knew he could handle whatever I threw his way.

  Tejus’s expression was instantly concerned, and he turned to Ruby. “Tell Ash that Lemidea is probably the best minister for this.” He gestured toward Benedict. “We need to know if he’s truly free of the entity. She’s a good healer, and we can trust her.”

  “As far as you know,” Ruby shot back.

  “As far as any of us can know,” he replied firmly. “Just pass on the message.”

  Ruby nodded.

  “Fine.”

  Tejus and I left after saying a brief goodbye—I figured everyone could sense my increasing discomfort. I left feeling ashamed. Like I was separate from them all now, my newfound abilities creating a divide that I wasn’t sure I was ever going to be able to overcome, whether or not my syphoning urges got under control.

  I’m a sentry.

  I’m a SENTRY.

  Reality hit me hard. Bulldozer hard. I kept walking, dully following Tejus back along the corridor and up the staircase to his room. My mind became a total whirl of questions and worries.

  What if I never get it under control?

  Will I have to stay in Nevertide forever?

  What are Mom and Dad going to say?

  What is Benedict going to say when he wakes?

  Will I ever have a normal life again…or ‘normal’ for me, anyway?

  My brief interlude of optimism came crashing to the floor, and as we came closer to the living room door, I started to have trouble putting one foot in front of the other. I felt trapped, claustrophobic, like the walls were closing in on me, and I was stuck dealing with the consequences of choices I hadn’t really made.

  “You need to take a breath, Hazel.”

  I looked up at Tejus. His tone had been firm, but his eyes betrayed uncertainty…about me, about us, about what was coming—I couldn’t tell.

  “I’m sorry,” I breathed, “I think reality just hit…”

  “I understand, but try and keep some perspective…One day perhaps you’ll be glad of your abilities – it’s not a death sentence, Hazel. It’s not even a Nevertide life sentence – just because you’re a sentry, it doesn’t mean you’ll have to stay here forever if you don’t want to.”

  “I know,” I whispered, suddenly saddened by his words…did he mean that he would be letting me go? Leave Nevertide without him? I wasn’t sure.

  I looked away, and we continued walking to the door. Tejus paused before opening it, and turned back around to face me. His expression had changed, his eyes hooded and dark.

  “I can handle it. It’s worth it,” he whispered.

  His arms abruptly circled me, fiercely pulling us closer together. I felt the hunger consume me, but it was different this time—flickers of something more human and needy erupted from the pit of my stomach. When Tejus lowered his lips down to meet mine, I responded greedily, the kiss deepening and dragging every last breath out of me. I reached up, winding my fingers into his dark hair, not allowing an inch of space between us.

  I felt the syphon start, Tejus’s energy becoming mine as not just my mind, but every single cell in my body took what was his. It must have hurt, but he didn’t release me.

  “I’m sorry,” I whispered raggedly, tearing our lips apart.

  “The fault is mine, and mine only.”

  Tejus held me tighter, kissing me again.

  Ruby

  Jenney and I sat in the kitchen, waiting for a broth to boil that she was making for when Benedict awoke. We sat in the easy chair by the fire, both cradling cups of a Nevertide version of herbal tea—it tasted pretty revolting to me, but I didn’t have the heart to tell Jenney that, and at least it was warm.

  “How’s Hazel holding up?” she asked, breaking the sleepy silence that had settled over us both.

  “She’s kind of pretending everything’s okay, but I’m not entirely convinced. She’s not able to be near any of us comfortably—not even Tejus. I don’t see how she could be fine.”

  Jenney nodded, her forehead creasing in concern. Our silence resumed, both locked in our own thoughts and concerns. I guessed that Jenney was equally anxious for Ash to return from the trials. He should have been back by now, surely?

  I looked around the
kitchen, thinking about the time when Ash and I had first tried to practice our mind melds. It felt like a lifetime ago. So much had changed since then, so much had happened.

  “Jenney,” I asked suddenly, “why are you still in here?”

  “What do you mean?” she replied.

  “The kitchen…aren’t you kind of free from this now? Able to be a lady of leisure now that your theoretical brother is king?”

  Jenney smiled shyly, shaking her head.

  “I wouldn’t know what else to do. And do you see any other kitchen staff around here?” she asked. “Most of them have gone back to the village or sought refuge in Memenion’s kingdom—no one thinks Hellswan is safe anymore. If I wasn’t in here, we’d all starve.”

  “Why didn’t you say anything?” I exclaimed. “How have you been doing this all on your own?”

  “Yelena helps,” she replied. “So do the other kids—don’t worry about it, Ruby, honestly.”

  I was about to protest, tell her that she needed to tell Ash. I knew for sure that he didn’t know what was going on, and I didn’t think he’d be pleased when he found out. Before I could open my mouth, Ash walked into the kitchen.

  “Ash!” I jumped up from the chair, so happy to see that he was all in one piece.

  “Hey,” he answered wearily, discarding an impressive-looking golden scepter on the kitchen table with a bang.

  “So the trial went well?” I asked, eyeing the scepter. It didn’t look like a booby prize…but Ash was clearly in a bad mood.

  “I’m not knocked out of the running”—he sighed wearily—“but it was not good.”

  Jenney and I listened open-mouthed as he told us what had happened in the Dauoa Forest. I wasn’t remotely surprised at the actions of Queen Trina, but when Ash told me that the ministers hadn’t seemed to care remotely about what happened to Hadalix, I felt a cold chill run down my spine. If they were taking such a cavalier attitude toward deaths during the trial, then there would be no reason why Ash couldn’t be targeted next.

  “She’s got to be stopped,” I replied. “This has gone on long enough. We keep saying that we’re going to get even, me included, but Queen Trina just seems to get away with everything. I thought Tejus would have done something by now—I mean, surely she’s done enough to warrant getting locked up in a dungeon of her own?”

  Ash pulled a face. “Yeah…Memenion mentioned something about that…that Tejus might not be so willing to get revenge on account of their past. This is something that might be left up to us, which is not such a bad thing.”

  “Do you think that’s true about Tejus?” I asked worriedly. He couldn’t possibly still have feelings for her, could he? He is in love with Hazel…

  “I don’t know.” Ash shrugged. “But it hardly matters now anyway. That woman’s reign is going to come to an end, and very soon. At least Memenion’s on our side.”

  I nodded, not entirely focused on what he was saying - still distracted by Memenion’s comments.

  “Did you see Benedict?” Ash asked, changing the subject.

  “Better than that.” I managed a lopsided grin. “He’s in the castle—and, as far as we can make out, free from the entity too.”

  Now it was my turn to share news. I told him about the trip to the Viking graveyard, and what had happened with Benedict. I also told him about the contents of Varga’s letter—and at that, Ash’s face became drawn and tight.

  “I knew Lithan was up to no good!” he exploded. “I want him out of this kingdom tonight. Tejus chose to keep his enemies close, but I won’t make the same mistake.”

  “I understand,” I replied calmly, “but I’ve been giving it some thought. We know next to nothing about the Acolytes—who they are, what their part has been in the rise of the entity, if any. I thought that maybe keeping Lithan around might provide some of those answers…If they don’t know we’re on to them, then we’ve got a better chance of learning more. If we show our hand, then we’re kind of screwed.”

  Ash thought about my proposal for a few moments, and then sighed in frustration.

  “I don’t know, Ruby; it feels like a risky move. If the entity is free, then we need to keep the castle as secure as we can.”

  I disagreed—I didn’t think the castle would ever be truly safe, not against the entity. Knowledge would be more powerful to us right now, but I chose not to say anything. There was something else about Ash tonight that was making me feel a bit on edge. It wasn’t just that he was grumpy, but more that our conversation felt like it was happening between two strangers.

  “Well, I’m sure we’ll get to the bottom of it all eventually,” I replied, trying to reassure him.

  Ash nodded. “And I suppose we’ll have Varga to thank for that.”

  Whoa.

  “What does that mean?” I retorted.

  “Nothing. I just meant the letter was helpful, that’s all. Good job he had the foresight to write it to you,” Ash grumbled.

  Is this about jealousy?

  “Only so that I’d make Tejus read it!” I exclaimed.

  “I know that,” he replied shortly. “Like I said—it’s a good thing.”

  “Okay,” I replied, mildly insulted that he thought I was so stupid that I couldn’t see the obvious issue he had with Varga writing me a letter.

  “I’m off to bed. It’s been a long day,” he announced. “Here, Jenney,” he added, rolling the scepter down the length of the table, “you can use this to stir a stew or something.”

  With that, he stormed out of the room, slamming the kitchen door shut behind him. I sank back into the chair, the wind knocked out of me.

  “He’s impossible!” I groaned at Jenney. “The letter didn’t mean a thing! I don’t understand why he got so worked up about it.”

  “I don’t think it’s about the letter,” Jenney replied softly, looking down at the floor and not quite meeting my eyes.

  “What do you mean?”

  “Well…I think Ash might have some other worries. And maybe Varga is the catalyst, but really I think he’s fretting about the Hazel and Tejus sentry transformation thing—it must have crossed your mind?” she asked.

  “Of course it’s crossed my mind! And I’m worried too…but I don’t think pushing each other away is going to help matters,” I replied sullenly.

  “I guess he’s just confused. Ash likes being in control. I’m guessing he feels pretty helpless right now, and that’s not going to help his mood.”

  I tried to empathize with Ash’s behavior, but I was struggling. We were both going through the same stuff, and though he had the added pressure of the trials, I still didn’t think that gave him the right to shut me out – that wasn’t going to help either of us.

  “I’m going to have it out with him,” I announced. In that moment, I really felt like my mother’s daughter, too fiery for my own good, too impulsive. But I didn’t care.

  “That’s a bad idea—”

  “I don’t care. I’m going anyway. I’ll see you later.”

  I followed Ash in storming out of the kitchen. Buoyed up with anger, I marched along the servants’ quarters, belatedly realizing that I didn’t know where Ash would be sleeping now. I was about to meekly return to ask Jenney when I saw light coming from beneath the door of his old bedroom.

  I knocked.

  “Come in,” he called.

  I opened the door and stood at the entrance, glaring at him with my hands on my hips.

  “Ruby, I told you I was—”

  “Tired, right.” I sneered, “I got it.”

  “But you’re not going to let me get any rest?” he prompted sarcastically.

  “No! I’m not. I know what you’re really upset about—it’s the sentry thing, isn’t it?” I demanded. Ash didn’t reply. He just glared back at me, his cheeks flushing red.

  “Well, I feel like crap about it too!” I cried, determined that if he wasn’t going to get it off his chest, it certainly wasn’t going to hold me back. “I’m terrified of
the same thing happening to me! I can see what it’s like for Hazel—she can’t go anywhere near her friends, or Tejus. Their relationship is breaking apart because of it, and I couldn’t bear that to happen to us. The whole thing is scary and…well, just plain weird, and it wouldn’t be my ideal way of having a relationship. I don’t want to be a sentry, and I don’t want to go through the same thing that’s happening to Hazel. But I love you, and I’m willing to at least try to overcome whatever gets thrown in our way so at least this relationship can have a chance! It’s difficult enough with us being from different dimensions, and now you’re a king, for crying out loud. But none of that has ever held me back, because I’m not a…coward, but if you’re going to push me away and not even try to see if we can make the best of things, then I really don’t even know why I’m even bother—”

  I broke up as Ash started laughing. Before I could respond, he stood up, crushing me in his arms. I was momentarily taken aback—still angry and upset, it took me a moment to come to my senses and hug him back.

  “Do you have any idea how crazy in love with you I am, Shortie?” he murmured into my hair.

  Oh.

  I hadn’t been expecting that.

  “You just needed to hear me say it too, didn’t you?” I asked softly.

  “Yeah, I did.”

  His grin faded and his lips met mine, kissing me softly, taking away all the anger and frustration, and just leaving me with molten insides that only cared that his kisses never stopped.

  We spent the entire evening wrapped in each other’s arms – doing nothing but kissing and occasionally talking. For once, we had spent the last few moments of the evening discussing anything other than the trials and the entity— instead, about all the things that didn’t really matter, that meant so much more than the things that did. We lay on his bed, my head in the crook of his arm. I was starting to fall asleep, lulled by Ash’s low, murmuring voice.

  “Hey,” I whispered, before I became too drowsy and fell asleep. “Thanks for sending Ragnhild to the temple with us. It was really sweet of you.”