Secret of Words

by Allyson Huber

“But, what will he think?” I cringed, remembering how he spent the first few years of my mother’s disappearance, barely sleeping, eating, and always sad. “I mean, I think my mom might have mentioned the Ones of Within before to him too …”

  “Your father will get along without you,” Emilie said comfortingly, “He’s got that girlfriend now, right?”

  “I guess,” I said hopelessly.

  “You’ll be back,” Shay said brightly, but I knew that I probably wouldn’t.

  Emilie hesitantly motioned for me to follow her. “Come on, Natalie. Let’s go.”

  Shay stared at me, almost like she had seen a ghost for a second, but then she turned away and the moment ended as quickly as it began. I looked away as well and followed Emilie into my bedroom.

  “This is going to sound crazy, but I need you to listen to me,” Emilie said.

  “Just tell me, everything you say sounds crazy already.”

  “Have you ever been dreaming and realized you were still awake and not actually asleep?” Emilie asked, ignoring my jibe.

  “Uh, yeah…”

  “You need to tell yourself that the only place you want to be is Aughmortor. More than anything, when you’re in that state between dreaming and sleep.”

  “That sounds simple,” I said sarcastically.

  “It’s not.” Emilie’s gaze turned to the blue walls of my bedroom. “Not at all. The first time I tried to get there, it didn’t work out. Shay stopped me before ... “

  “Okay, what else?” I decided that I didn’t want to hear what happens if I didn’t make it to Aughmortor.

  “When we get there, I need you to stay focused. I can’t take you directly to the gates of Sybra. That’s where they will most likely be waiting for us. We’ll transport a few miles away from there. Shay will join us once we are there.”

  “So basically, I need to stay focused?”

  “This isn’t a joke, Natalie.”

  “I’m taking this seriously,” I said, trying not to smile.

  “Stupidity gets people killed.”

  “Okay, what do I need to bring?”

  “Anything you can carry that you might want to bring.”

  I grabbed my phone from my desk. “Like this?”

  “Cell phones don’t work in Aughmortor.”

  “What about computers?” I asked hopefully.

  Emilie shook her head. I grabbed a small bag and stuffed two books and a few other things I couldn’t bring myself to leave behind.

  “I’m ready,” I said, trying to keep my voice steady. Truthfully, I wasn’t ready at all. I was leaving Dad, for good probably, and I was leaving my home. According to Emilie, Aughmortor was always meant to be my home, but it didn’t feel like that right now. Right now, it felt like I was making a terrible decision, but did I have a choice? It looked like it was either I went with Emilie or the Shadow Bringer would take me to Lybrazil against my will.

  “Good, try to follow my instructions as best as you can.” Emilie turned off the light and darkness fell into my room.

  I stared up at the ceiling before shutting my eyes. I was going to have to sleep, but after everything that had taken place today, sleep seemed so far away. I always had the hardest time shutting off my thoughts at night. Over and over, I kept asking myself what I was doing. Was I actually trying to get to some non-existent place I had only discovered a few days ago? I kept wondering what happened if I didn’t make it there, if I couldn’t plausibly get to Aughmortor. Emilie had said the first time she tried, it didn’t work out. The problem was, from what I’d heard, Emilie had a choice. Shay had made it very clear that I didn’t have that same choice.

  I wondered if Dad was really okay. I would never get to speak to him again after that argument. What did he know about my mother? What would he think when he realized I had disappeared? Would he be able to get through it? I knew what Dad would think- he’d think I had run off and left him like my mother did. He would think that I had left him because of our argument and because he didn’t want to tell me the truth. What about Liza? Where was she in all of this? Somehow, I doubted that things would go smoothly with their relationship after I left. It didn’t look good for anybody to have both their wife and their daughter leave them even though my dad was a great person. I couldn’t do anything about it though. I didn’t have a choice, and I just needed to focus on getting to Aughmortor. Everything would become okay after that. Right? Finally, I was starting to feel drowsy, and my thoughts drifted to Aughmortor again. Take me to Aughmortor.

  Chapter Five

  An unsettling feeling embraced me as I fell in circles, plummeting onward at a rapid speed. I wasn’t sure exactly where I was going, which made me feel a sense of recklessness. It was an out of body feeling. I felt as though I could take on the world. For a few moments, I just forgot about everything. I couldn’t intelligently decide which direction I was headed or where I was going. I felt like I was on a roller coaster, falling and falling, but never officially stopped after the climax of a hill. I was dropping fast, too fast, and the only direction I could possibly be hurtling to was the ground. Like I expected, my back hit the hard dirt with force. Even though I knew the fall should’ve hurt, my whole back felt numb.

  “Natalie!” A voice jolted me from my thoughts. I was still lying on the ground, but my eyes opened to greet my surroundings. Everything was blurry.

  “You thought you could hide from me?” A harsh laugh echoed in the air. It was from a very familiar voice, and it sent shivers down my spine.

  My eyes focused on the dark sky. I couldn’t see, hardly anything at all, except a single ball of light in the air a few feet above my head.. I stood on my feet, looking around quickly. Emilie was crouched on the ground, landing much more gracefully than I had. The air was bitterly cold, biting against my cheeks and ears.

  Where had the other voice come from?

  My eyes focused on the darkness, searching for any signs of another’s presence. I could barely make out the shape of a hand in front of me. My head whirled uneasily as I began picking up the pieces of what was going on. This had to be Aughmortor; the last thing I remembered was trying unsuccessfully to fall asleep. People say that actions change people, and that memories change people. Could that be true in this case? I had only met Emilie three days ago, and I had believed her story enough to transport to an entirely different world?

  Emilie stood up and started muttering Jakost under her breath. My eyes focused on the hand. Why was she so nervous? I could barely make out the words of two voices, speaking at the same time, but different words. They were both speaking Jakost at a rapid speed, spitting the words out as fast as possible.

  I could feel the paralyzing heat of magic being brought into battle. They were both coming up with powerful spells to hit each other with. I felt pretty worthless as I listened to them hiss Jakost at each other. What could I do to help Emilie? Form some sort of distraction? The Shadow Bringer could use it’s Vatra now that we were in Aughmortor.

  My eyes searched the ground, looking for a form of inspiration. The darkness of the night gave me a horrible disadvantage since I could barely see the ground, let alone make out what was nearby. I grabbed at the ground, trying desperately to find something to help me, and managed to scrape my hands up in the process.

  Suddenly, my hands found something hard — a rock. I didn’t have time to think. I turned in the direction of the Shadow Bringer and threw the rock as hard as I could at him. I heard the thud as my rock hit its target. A few cuss words littered the air as the Shadow Bringer’s Jakost stopped.

  “Natalie, duck!” Emilie shouted.

  I obeyed Emilie’s command instantly, not even thinking about it. Above my head, a sword whizzed by. Emilie caught it with her hand effortlessly.

  “Natalie, catch it!” I could hear the second sword hurtling in our direction, so I put my hand in the air above my head and closed my hands around the sword’s hilt. Emilie nodded at me quickly before turning to the Shadow Bringer. She st
abbed the air right beside the Shadow Bringer’s hand. Another, stronger orb of magic formed above us. Obviously, the Shadow Bringer liked light when he killed.

  “Enough.” The Shadow Bringer laughed coldly. “This has just started.”

  The Shadow Bringer walked out of the shadows and into the orb’s light. Truthfully, I wasn’t surprised by what I saw. It was the Shadow Bringer from earlier like I had expected. He had changed into an all-black getup. Gloves covered his hands, and he wore black boots. In all black, the teenager looked even more intimidating than he had earlier. I received an unwelcoming flashback of the knife pressed against my throat and shuddered. Even though I was about two feet away from him, I felt as helplessly as I was with that knife against my throat. I was trapped. I could tell Emilie felt the same way since she was clutching her sword so tight that her knuckles were white. This might be her first battle against a Shadow Bringer. This wasn’t looking good. Suddenly, I wished that Shay had decided to come with us instead of going unsuccessfully to find the Shadow Bringer. Well, she couldn’t have been successful if I was standing in front of him right now.

  “Let the real battle begin,” The Shadow Bringer said coolly before turning his head towards Emilie.

  “Natalie Quinn, I can say that I am glad to see you. It’s too bad that she has to be here too. Things would be so much easier if you came with me by choice …” The Shadow Bringer laughed. “But you’re simply a recruit that doesn’t know anything about the true power in this world. I could show it to you, Natalie. I could show you true power. Just think about it.”

  I shivered, looking away from his chilling eyes, and goosebumps trailed up my arms. The Shadow Bringer creeped me out, but there was something about his words that sent a delicious rush through me, despite my misgivings. He was obviously making fun of me though; I could tell by the smirk on his face. He was trying to get into our heads. Why would I want to go with him, though?

  “I can tell you want to feel the power by the look on your face.”

  “Shut up!” Emilie said bitterly. The Shadow Bringer laughed once more and pointed his sword towards her.

  “Why would I shut up? I was just speaking the truth that I see.”

  I could see the defiance on Emilie’s face, but I knew that she knew the Shadow Bringer was trouble. How had he gotten here with us in the first place was my question? How did he drop exactly where we landed?

  “And you-“ Shadow Bringer said thoughtfully, looking at Emilie now. “You have a little experience with the Ones of Within, don’t you? Yet, with the way your head is raised arrogantly, I can tell you’ve never really fought a Shadow Bringer before. Emilie Ryan, isn’t it?”

  “How do you know my real name?” Emilie asked quietly. I could barely see her fingers trembling on her sword before she steeled herself and curled her hand tightly around the hilt.

  “We know a lot more things than you will ever learn. The Larta has eyes on all of you every day. Many eyes.”

  “It’s his Vatra,” I said to Emilie slowly. I saw the Shadow Bringer’s gloves close into fists at my words. So I was right. He couldn’t have possibly known Emilie’s full name just like that. Maybe, he could hear thoughts or something. Maybe, he knew information about someone just by looking at them.

  “Of course, that’s why you know my name. Haven’t you learned to never expose your Vatra unless you have to?” Emilie asked triumphantly.

  The Shadow Bringer wouldn’t have shown his Vatra if he wasn’t worried about this fight, which made me feel a little more reassured. “You might be right, but that doesn’t help you. If you think you can walk away from this, you’re wrong.” The Shadow Bringer withdrew a sword from his black scabbard.

  I held the sword firmly in my hand, realizing just how much it weighed as I raised it closer to the light. The only thing I really ever carried around these days were my books for classes and this sword weighed more than all of them combined. Emilie wasn’t laughing anymore and instead, a look of intense concentration contorted her face. I had to help her even if I had no idea what I was doing. I could invent a few tricks with a sword, right?

  The Shadow Bringer lunged at Emilie while I was distracted, and she parried the blow easily. She stepped backward, blocking another blow from the Shadow Bringer. I realized something instantly. While she fought, I could attack him from different angles. The Shadow Bringer couldn’t defend himself for long against two blows. If I got behind him, I could do some damage. I didn’t know exactly what I meant by some damage or if I could do damage against him, but I decided it was worth a try. I stepped to the left of him, meaning to sneak up from behind.

  Somehow, he knew what I was thinking. Was I that obvious? His sword headed in my direction so quickly, I almost didn’t have time to block it. My sword vibrated painfully against the Shadow Bringer’s strong blow. Meanwhile, Emilie stabbed him hard in the side with the tip of her sword. I had never been exposed to a battle before, obviously, and had never seen someone get hurt badly in my own eyes other than in movies, but that even was fake. The thought of trying to hurt the Shadow Bringer sickened me.

  A blood-curdling scream escaped his lips. The pained look in his blue eyes was almost too disturbing to bear, and the scream sent shivers down my back. I wanted to let my sword drop on the ground and walk away from here. I wanted to be back on Earth before I had met Emilie and to have all of these troubles disappear.

  But I didn’t have a choice, fighting the Shadow Bringer wasn’t an option. Weren’t Shadow Bringers the exact enemies I had come here to fight? Emilie pulled her sword away from the Shadow Bringer. She didn’t even look perturbed by the deep scarlet blood that covered the blade. The Shadow Bringer turned to face Emilie. I could almost feel his hatred, sending streams of fury in her direction. The Shadow Bringer lunged at her again, but it was only a distraction. He knew she would block it. So while he attacked with his sword, his black boot kicked her right below the kneecap. Emilie winced as her leg gave out a little before she managed to stand back up. Seeing this sight sent a rush of anger through me.

  Shadow Bringers were traitors to the Ones of Within, the cause I was meant to join. I had to fight for the cause if I wanted to be trusted. Besides, this Shadow Bringer had already given me a whole lot of hell today. I pulled the sword up and attempted to bring it down hard, but the Shadow Bringer blocked it in the air and disarmed me effortlessly. I grimaced at the smile on the Shadow Bringer’s lips at my pathetic attempt and dove for the sword. A sharp kick from the Shadow Bringer’s boot to my ribs sent me flying backward.

  Even though the blow hurt, I wouldn’t give him the satisfaction of knowing it. I waited for a few seconds until I heard the clashing of swords before I grabbed the sword with my hand and pushed myself to my feet. After a few deep breaths of air, I turned towards the fighting to join in once more. Emilie and the Shadow Bringer were focused solely on each other as they attacked and parried each other’s blows. I could tell they were both breathing heavy from the fighting, but that wasn’t my main focus. The Shadow Bringer had foolishly turned his back on me and given me enough time to get back onto my feet. He couldn’t see me, but Emilie could.

  I knew this wasn’t exactly the fairest way to fight, but I wasn’t sure how good Emilie was at sword fighting and whether she could hold the Shadow Bringer off for much longer. The biggest question on my mind right now was: Where was Shay? I ran up to the Shadow Bringer, holding my sword awkwardly in the air. As the Shadow Bringer turned, probably feeling the vibrations of my feet against the ground, I plunged my sword deep into his shoulder before pulling it out. The Shadow Bringer screamed again before he disarmed me with one swipe of his sword. I could hear Jakost being shouted into the air, but my eyes were on my bloody sword laying at least two feet away. My insides turned uneasily at the sight of the bloodied sword. I looked back at the Shadow Bringer, who was only a foot away now, and ducked as his fist came dangerously close to my head. A loud, familiar cracking noise hit the air as another person joined us in the
clearing.

  “Shay!”

  Shay started shouting Jakost into the air as the Shadow Bringer stared at me. Under his menacing gaze, I could tell he was scared and knew he had lost. Magic ropes wrapped the Shadow Bringer’s hands behind his back and around his legs, causing him to topple on the ground. He spits angrily at Shay’s feet, trying to kick out to free his legs.

  “Who are you? What is your mission? Why are you here?” Shay ordered, her voice strong with authority. I could tell by the look on her face that she didn’t sympathize with the Shadow Bringer in the slightest.

  “You think I would tell you?”

  Shay snorted, rolling her eyes in disbelief. “It doesn’t matter. I’m sure James will loosen your tongue.”

  Then, Shay healed him as best as she could with Jakost. The Shadow Bringer’s long wounds began to seal up, stopping the flow of blood trailing from them. I could hear the Shadow Bringer’s breath ease a bit after Shay healed him. Finally, Shay turned to Emilie and I. “Tell me exactly what happened.” She looked frazzled, and her normally tamed hair stuck up on the sides of her head. It was a strange look on her.

  “I told Natalie exactly what to do, and she started to fall asleep. It happened just a few minutes before we transported. I saw the silhouette of the Shadow Bringer in the window. Magic was encircling Natalie, but it was only magic to put her asleep. Underneath, hidden, there was magic that also linked the Shadow Bringer to our transportation. There’s not much to say after that. We reached Aughmortor, and the Shadow Bringer attacked us.” Emilie explained it all very calmly, but I felt anything but calm. Actually, I felt sick like I wanted to hurl all over the floor at the sight of the blood over the ground. What had I gotten myself into coming to Aughmortor? Then again, I supposed the Shadow Bringers would have brought me here either way. I didn’t really have a choice in the matter.

  Shay turned her brown eyes to my face, the first sign of warmth towards me since she had joined us in the clearing. “Are you all right?”