Chapter Six

Chapter Six

 

 

 

                “Mother, what are you doing in there?  I hardly ever see you…”

 

                “Hush, my child, I am working on our future…”  replied a deep woman’s  voice from within the wooden door.

 

                “Oh, come off it!  You’ve been in there for weeks; can’t I talk to you face-to-face, instead of having this God-damned door in my way?”  Brennan’s crimson eyes seemed almost sad as he spoke.  A moment of dead silence passed, then the door creaked open to reveal a strikingly beautiful, though middle-aged woman with long, wavy black hair, eyes like Brennan’s, and red lips.  She had high cheek bones, long lashes, and a full bosom.  She was also quite tall, only an inch or two shorter than Brennan.

 

                “Come in then, my dear, I’ll have you some tea.”  she said, moving aside as Brennan walked in.  He slumped himself into a chair and leaned his back against the wall.  His mother watched him silently, and kept her eyes on his closed ones as she prepared a cup of tea for him.  She sat the cup on the table and sat opposite to her son.

 

                “What is it, darling?  What troubles you so?”  she said, her fingers fiddling with the laces on her corset-style gown.  Brennan sighed and stared at the handle of the teacup.  He folded the cuffs of his blazer up.

 

                “Mother, Derek"“

 

                “Derek?  What of him now?”  She grew suddenly tense.  Brennan glanced at her, she looked serious and attentive.  He returned his eyes to the teacup.

 

                “Have you heard of the new Otherkind?”  he continued, releasing a held breath.

 

                “I have heard about her, but not much.  What of her?”

 

                “Her name is Risten, and she is the twin sister of Prince Sebastian.  Apparently she has magic powers.  She possesses the element of fire, and…the villagers say she has prophetic dreams.  They call her a witch.”  he said.  His mother was staring out the window.

 

                “Interesting.”  she said after a moment.  “But what does this have to do with Derek?”

 

                Brennan sighed again and reached for his tea.  “Mother, I think Risten and Derek have fallen in love with each other.”  His mother immediately rose to her feet, her breasts heaving with shocked breath.  She paced back and forth.

 

                “No.  That means…”  she began.  Brennan nodded slowly.

 

“Ah!  No, no, this can’t happen…arrrgh!”  She kicked over her chair, the wood splintering across the floor.  She turned to Brennan with an indignant glare on her face.

 

                “Derek will not be King of Ancantha.  I will see to that, or I am not the great Clemenstra.”  she said firmly, before changing her tone a bit, “Ignorant fools are those who underestimate the power and influence of the darkness.”  A deep purple flame grew in the palm of her hand, and all the candles in the room went out.  Brennan just stared at the flame, smirking. 

 

He took a sip of his tea.

 

~*~

 

                Derek watched quietly as Risten crammed supplies into a large rucksack.  A solemn, apprehensive expression cursed her face.  She had been silent all morning.  Derek bent down behind her and kissed the side of her neck.

 

                “Don’t worry yourself so much, Rose.”  he said gently.  “Prince Sebastian has the best healers in all of Ancantha tending to him.  He should be all right…”  Risten lifted her chin momentarily, but returned to putting the last few things in her bag.  She pulled the drawstring and sighed.

 

                “There, I think I’m done.  What about you?”  she said, trying to sound optimistic.

 

                “Mm-hmm.”  was Derek’s answer, as he swung his bag over his shoulder.  Risten stood up and glanced at him with a strange, passive expression.  He glanced back at her, wishing he knew what she was thinking.

 

                “I’m sorry, Derek…I’m just…so worried…”  Risten said suddenly, a sob catching in her throat.  Derek embraced her and stroked her back.

 

                “I know.”  he said comfortingly, then continued, “ We should get going now.  The trip will be about three days.”  Risten sighed again and nodded.  They broke apart, gathered their things, and headed out into the forest, blanketed with the eerie blue glow of the sun yet to rise.

 

~*~

 

                It wasn’t too long before Risten and Derek reached the gate to Mira Pass.   Risten stared up at the cherry wood archway, which was elaborately carved with runes and decorated with gems.  Ahead was a path about twenty feet wide and covered in smooth river stones.  Thick forest bordered the path on both sides.

 

                “The elves made that.”  Derek’s voice broke in, he was pointing at the archway.

 

                “It’s beautiful.”  said Risten plainly.

 

                “Heh.  You think that’s beautiful?  You’ll have much more to see than that as you explore Ancantha, believe me.”

 

                “I can’t wait.”  she said, and a grin actually rose into her face.  It was a beautiful day, the sun was warm and bright, shining through any cracks it could find in the tangle of foliage above.  Sparrows were chirping their sweet melodies, and butterflies floated about in the cool breeze.

 

               

“That’s Rellasmïr, the White Forest, to the left; and Kellereth, the Grand Forest, to the right.”  continued Derek, as the two walked down the path.

 

“Well, I can see why it’s called the White Forest.”  said Risten, observing the white-barked trees with strange purple-black leaves and red fruit.  “But why is that the Grand Forest?  It looks like a normal forest to me.”

 

                “Ancantha is full of forests.  Kellereth is the largest, so it was called the Grand Forest.    It stretches for miles past my house to the port city of Marrowÿn in the South, and as far north as to the east of Epsilia.”  He motioned his arms emphatically to demonstrate,  “The whole eastern coast is edged by Kellereth’s cliffs.”

 

                “I see.  These red fruits, what are they?”  asked Risten.  They resembled a peach, tinted red, in a very plump heart shape.

 

                “They’re called agape, or love fruit.  You can imagine why they were called that.”  said Derek, drawing a heart with his forefingers.  “But they are much more special than that.  It’s an Ancanthian tradition for a man and a woman to share the fruit as a symbol of their love.  It’s an old saying that the more of them you eat together, the better your love life will be.”

 

                 “Oh really?”  said Risten with a smirk.  Derek laughed aloud.

 

                “It’s not that easy, Risten.  You see, you can’t simply pick them off the tree.  That’s bad luck.  Not to mention the tree will die and never grow back, even if you pick just one.  You have to wait until they fall, which is actually not very often.  That’s why it’s so special for a couple to find one.”

 

                “That’s cool.  People don’t believe in things like that on earth…well not anymore, maybe…I don’t know.  Well, I hope we find one.”  She paused.  “Can you buy them?  Not that I would...that would be cheating.”  She glanced at every agape she passed.  Derek sighed and looked down at his sneakers.

 

                “Well, that’s one of the sad things about the modernization of Ancantha.  Scientists claim they have discovered that agape can be used to aid certain serious medical conditions, so they harvest them at ‘necessity’ and sell them for crazy amounts of money.  They…kill the trees…”  he had a sincerely distressed tone to his voice.  “One day, there may not be any more white trees…”

 

                “So Ancanthians are pretty fond of trees.”  remarked Risten, shielding her eyes from a bright ray of sunshine.  Derek nodded.

 

                “Yeah.  Well, most of them, anyway.  Ancantha is the Land of Forests, after all…”

 

                “But can’t you just plant new trees?”

 

                “Any other but the white ones.”  said Derek, he seemed to be looking at every leaf on one of them.  “They don’t grow from seeds like other trees.  The elders say they have been in this land since the beginning of time.  White trees are immortal, unless, of course, someone picks one of the fruits.”

 

                “Oh…that’s interesting.  Tell me about this modernization thing.  Do you have technology here?”

 

                “Yeah.  Only in Epsilia though.  They have a few televisions, radios, computers, that kind of stuff.  It’s said that an Otherkind brought those ideas here from Earth not too long ago.  They’re trying to find the materials to create these things, so the development is kind of slow right now.  But I don’t think that sort of technology is necessary.  It ruins the simple way of life that people were meant to live.  Plus these technological advances lead to destroying nature and cause air pollution.  It’s kind of sad…I like Ancantha the way it is.  ”  He paused, and kicked a pebble across the path.  Risten stared at him, he seemed lost in thought.

 

                “Me too.”  she said, raising her chin so a ray of sunshine could slide over her face.  “But isn’t the leader of Ancantha in charge of all this stuff?  Wouldn’t Sebastian…”  but she caught her tongue, not wanting to find any fault in her twin brother.

 

                “Well, you know…he has to consent to what is desired by the court and the people…unfortunately not many old-fashioned people like me exist in Ancantha anymore.  They all speak of change, plunging in too deep before they know if that change is for the better or the worse.”

 

                “Yeah…”  was all Risten could say.  Somehow that reminded her of things back on Earth.

 

~*~

 

Later that night, they made a small camp just off of the pathway on the Kellereth side.  They had nearly reached the half-way point of Mira Pass.  They could’ve gone faster, if they wanted to.  But they took their time; Derek telling Risten stories about Ancanthian myths and legends, and having friendly little duels.

 

                But now, Risten sat alone, waiting for Derek to return from his bath in a nearby river.  She seemed to be staring at the flames of the campfire, her eyes reflecting their warm colors.  But she wasn’t.  She was thinking of Sebastian.  He was probably lying in a bed, dreadfully sick…vomiting, feverish, crying; doctors"healers, whatever"poking needles in every part of him.  Risten forced herself out of her thoughts, and her eyes refocused on the flames.

 

Then a curiosity struck her mind.  It really is a bother to be a girl, she thought, for she had never been able to fend off temptations of curiosity.

 

I wonder… She thought to herself, being careful to shield her mind so Derek wouldn’t hear.  If I can touch the fire…  She raised her hand inches over the fire.  The heat felt piercingly hot.  Closing her eyes, she focused the streams of energy in her veins to the palm of her hand.  The heat gradually seemed to disappear as she did so, until she could feel nothing but the cool night air.  Fascinated, Risten opened her eyes and lowered her hand, down into the depths of the flame.  She couldn’t feel its heat.  She smirked at that and raised her hand again, surprised to find that she could also grasp and move the flames.

 

Ha!  So I can hold it, too.  Awesome… She tossed a little ball of flames from the campfire between her hands.

 

“Wow, I’m surprised at how well you can control your magic.”  said Derek.  Risten looked up at him; he had just pulled his t-shirt on.  She felt slightly disappointed that she hadn’t looked up a fraction of a second earlier.  “I’ve never seen anybody make that much progress in so short a time.  Not even me…maybe you don’t need an instructor after all, hmm?”

 

“Maybe not…”  she said smugly, crushing the ball in her hand.  It vanished, as if her skin absorbed it.  She looked back up at Derek.  “Feel better?”

 

“Yup.”  he sat on the ground near the fire. “Much better.”  he shook his hair and ran his fingers through it.  Risten watched him fondly.

 

Derek glanced at her.  “What is it, Rose?”

 

“Nothing…you just look so hot when you do that.”  she said, grinning.  Derek laughed.

 

“Do what?”

 

“When you play with your hair.”  she said, moving closer to him.

 

“Really?”  he said, smiling down at her.  Risten noticed that he was looking at her lips.

 

“Yeah.”  she lifted her chin, so her lips were inches from his.  “Do it again.”

 

“Why don’t you do it?”  Derek said, blushing a little.  Risten reached up and slowly dragged her fingers through his jet-black hair.  It felt damp, soft, and smooth.  Derek leaned his cheek against her arm gently.

 

“See?  It’s even better when you do it.”  he said quietly.  Risten hooked her other arm around his neck and pulled herself up to him.  Her lips had barely touched his when both of them heard a dreadful scream, the howl of a wolf, and a loud splash that echoed through the forest.

 

~*~

 

“Derek, what was that?”  cried Risten, although she knew that he didn’t quite know what it was either.  Both of them had leapt to their feet.

 

“A wolf…someone must have been attacked…we should see if they’re okay.”  He went into the bushes, and Risten followed, her flames ready in her hands if she needed them. 

 

Oh boy.  Thought Risten.  First vampires, now what?  Werewolves?  You’ve gotta be kidding me.  She didn’t know if it was fear, but an uneasy feeling gripped her as she wandered in the darkness.  It seemed like ages until she emerged from the greenery; she saw Derek standing on a rock up ahead, looking out over the lake.

 

“Do you see anything?”  she called, running up to him.

 

“No…but I sense animals nearby.  No doubt the wolves.  Maybe they were just playing or something.”

 

“I don’t think so, Derek.  That was a boy’s scream.  Human.”  said Risten, peering off the edge of the huge boulder into the lake.  Even in the dark, the water looked amazingly clear and reflective.  Her foot slipped and she nearly fell in, but Derek caught her.

 

“Whoa, careful, Risten!”  He held her close to him as they backed up a little.  “This is Mira Lake.  The lake of dreams, nightmares, and memories…”

 

Risten caught her breath. “What?”

 

“Everyone knows"or should know"not to swim in this lake.  You might never come out.  Using whatever compels you; this cursed lake’s waters will suck you in and engulf your mind with illusionary fantasies.  Capturing you…pulling you deeper and deeper into its depths.  So then you may join the hundreds of others down there who have drowned in their own minds.”

 

“Oh my God, Derek, tell me you’re making that up.”  said Risten, shrugging off a shiver.

 

“No.  I’m not making that up.  I saw it happen once.”

 

“You what!”

 

“When I was ten, I had a friend from the village name Jonathan, whose family was loyal to my parents despite their differences.  And I, as foolish and reckless as I was then, fell into the lake.  Jon was able to rescue me, but he was never fully trained mentally to withstand Mira’s curse…I don’t know what he saw in there, but he never came to surface.”

 

Risten shuddered.  “That’s horrible.  I’m not a very good swimmer either, so maybe we should go somewhere else.  Whoever screamed is probably gone now…”  She looked very uncomfortable as she looked out at the lake again.  Derek held her close and they walked back to the camp, and decided to turn in for the night.

 

~*~

 

A dark, dismal abyss.  It was like wandering in a black box that stretched as wide as infinity.  Then, out of nowhere, a huge castle manifested, with a town, a gate.  But not a soul in sight.  Risten was standing in a field, alone.  She looked around.  Everything was black and white.  Up in the sky, she could barely discern the shape of a dark cloud hovering over the castle.  Suddenly the mass lunged, down into a window on the eastern tower.

 

Risten started running towards Epsilia, a fast as she possibly could.  Her mind was racing, her heart thumping loud and heavy in her chest.  For what, she didn’t know.  She simply had an ominous feeling that pulsed with the fire in her veins.  She dashed through the town, knocking over several carts, barrels, and such.  Still nobody in sight.  She burned down the castle gate with her fire.  There weren’t even any soldiers.  As she ascended the steps, she began to feel very dizzy.

 

Risten…  It was Derek’s voice.  It sounded broken, afraid, pleading.  Risten…please…I…it was a misunderstanding… He was saying.  Risten tried to communicate back to him, but she couldn’t.  Why was he shielding his mind from her?  She continued to ascend the steps.  Shoving the large entry doors open, she looked around for any sign of movement.  Nothing.  She couldn’t sense a thing.  Adrenaline electrified her every movement, flames emitting from her hands impulsively.  She headed for the eastern tower, rushing up the spiraling staircase.  She couldn’t see anything but the continuous steps before her.  The walls of the tower were nothing, simply leading back down into the empty abyss.  Again she tried to communicate with Derek, but still to no avail.  She heard loud bangs and thuds and indiscernible voices from the room above her.

 

She reached the top of the tower, and found that the door was bolted.  She snorted loudly.  You think you can keep me out?!  Torches of flames shot out of her palms, engulfing the door.  When the smoke cleared the door had barely been burned, despite being made of wood.  Risten fell back as a terrible scream came from behind the door.  It was Derek.  Furious and terrified, her eyes stinging with tears, Risten ran into the door with her full strength, causing a small dent in the grain of the wood.  A weak spot.  She slammed her fist into the dent, and the wood splintered and formed a large hole.  Reaching inside the hole, she unlocked the door.

 

It looked as if an intense fight had occurred shortly before she got there.  Furniture was knocked around, scattered about the room with torn pieces of the tall window’s drapery everywhere.  Three of the four posts of the curtained bed where broken in half.  And standing in front of the window was a black-and white version of Risten.  This Risten looked as terrified as she was, and tears streamed down her blood-smeared face.

 

“DEREK!!!”  Risten cried, rushing to the bed.  She lifted one of the posts and threw it across the room.  The fake Risten just watched, sobbing her heart out.  Risten had never heard herself cry so hard. 

 

Pushing the curtain aside, she found Derek lying there, limp and lifeless, with Risten’s own blade pierced through his chest.  His blood, the only trace of color in this world, drenched the white sheets on the bed.

 

Risten turned around when she heard an echoing, unnatural wail from behind her; her clone was wasting away in towering mass of monochrome flames.

 

~*~

 

Risten woke with a yelp, and sprung from her sleeping bag, hot and sweaty.  Her heart was beating a mile a minute.  She immediately glanced over at Derek, who was still sound asleep.  He looked so peaceful and content.  She didn’t want to wake him.

 

So she sat there, shaking uncontrollably.  She grabbed her dagger and pulled it from its sheath.  No doubt, that was the one from the nightmare.  She wanted so bad to crush it, burn it, and destroy it.  But Derek had given it to her, and told her that it couldn’t be destroyed.  The blade was made of a rare elfish ore that once tempered and formed, could never be destroyed by anything, not even the hottest fire.  Risten swallowed hard and stuffed the dagger back into her bag.

 

She wanted to cry, but for some reason, she didn’t.

 

So they had returned.  She had gotten used to their absence.  It seemed as though every one of Risten’s nightmares were different, each with their own particular characteristics.  But they always ended the same.  With Derek dead. 

 

And this time, she had died too.

Author's Note

Sorry for taking so long to get this up! XD Enjoy!

Reviews

[Bridget Murphy]

Finally, waited so long!! And I wasn't let down this chapter is AWSOME as usual!!!!!!!!:)