Chapter Tenty Two ( To the Heart)

Chapter: 22(The heart)

 

            “So where are we going?” I asked as I walked beside Nicholas. We were slowly walking down corridors of the Guild that I had never been down before. I had the slightest sensation of traveling downwards.

            “I am taking you somewhere very special Madison.” He said placing his hand on the small of my back to steady me. The marble stone floors seemed to have turned rougher and more unleveled as we traveled. The entire building around me seemed to be aging. The walls were gradually growing darker and as I walked, my arm brushed the wall. It felt as soft as velvet. In the dim light I hadn’t noticed that a thick carpet of moss that had slowly crept up along the wall face.

            “My father brought me to this place when I was very young. To teach me about how the world works. All Hunters and Guardians of the essence stones must learn this lesson when the time is right.” He spoke softly. I was now behind him, as the walls of the hallway we had been traveling seemed to have thinned out. There was not enough room for us to walk side by side anymore. Closter phobia seemed to play with the edges of my nerves. We rounded a tight corner and Nicholas quickly halted in front of me. As far as my eyes could see in the almost complete darkness around me, we had stopped in front of a dead end. Nicholas began to slowly feel along the stone wall in front of us.

            “This is the heart of the Guild. Everything we have been fighting to protect still thrives within the magic of this place.” I could only see his shoulders moving in front of me as he probed the wall in front of him but after a moment, I heard a sharp click coming from where Nick was working and then a deep groan that reverberated down the halls behind us. It sounded as if the castle itself was waking up from a long slumber. Its joints crackling back to life. I felt a swift cool breeze sweep around Nicholas’s shoulders and wash across my face. Soft light began to pool its way around Nicholas making me blink a few times to try to adjust my eyes. The wall in front of us had opened up and Nick reached back to grab my hand and lead me through the now open doorway.

            The first thing I noticed as I walked behind Nick into the open space after the door was the green carpet that had replaced the hard marble flooring beneath my feet. The heels of the strappy shoes Jennifer had condemned me with began to sink ever so slightly into the soft bed of grass beneath me.

            We had left the tight damp corridor and we were now standing in an expansive cavern. There were colors everywhere. Green fresh carpet of grass covered the entire area. There were trees and flowers of vibrant colors scattered everywhere. To my far left I heard running water and I looked over to see a small stream flowing gracefully by and it seemed to disappear into the far back wall of the cavern.

            The air was light and cool against my exposed skin. I inhaled to smell a sweet exotic scent in the wisps of air around me.

            “It’s the most beautiful thing I have ever seen!” I exclaimed as I took a few more steps into the grass.

            “I’ve seen some amazing things throughout my lifetime and this one still takes the cake.” Nicholas smile over at me as he started to walk around the perimeter.

            “There is something so peaceful about this place that makes me understand that the sacrifices I have made are worth it. I couldn’t imagine the earth being completely barren of magic like this.”

            He walked over to the edge of the small stream that was flowing through the earth and seemed to stare at his reflection for a long moment.

            “Nick, this place is beautiful and everything but I don’t really see what is magic about this.” I asked his back since he was turned away from me at the moment. I saw his shoulders begin to lightly bounce as I heard him start to softly chuckle. He turned around with a smile on his face and waved me over to the right. I followed him until he came to a giant old looking oak tree. He sat beneath the shade of its branches. I softly sat down beside him. The grass tickled the bottom of my legs that rested on its green cushion.

            “Madison, let me ask you a few questions before I explain.” He looked over at me. “We are still inside the Hunters’ Guild are we not? Do you not see the walls that are surrounding us?” He questioned as I glanced around. Sure enough as I looked around, I could see that there were indeed four falls around the entire field we were in. They were covered in ivy and hard to make out but they were there.

            “There is a roof covering us from the outside world is there not?” He looked at me mischievously, a small smile playing on his lips. I looked up and yes, I could in fact see the high arched ceilings above us. I looked back to Nick with confusion written on my face. He grabbed a hold of my hand and held it out in front of me.

            “Now do you feel that? Do you feel the sun warming your skin? Can you feel the breeze ruffling through your hair?” He smiled brightly now as if he was delivering the punch line of a funny joke.

            I sat motionless for a moment mulling over what he was trying to say.

            “Oh!” I snapped quickly as I figured out what he was talking about. “We are inside but there is this garden and light and wind and even the river!” I was thinking out loud.

            “How can I feel the sun? How is there a breeze?” I asked him excitedly now that I was beginning to see what he was meaning.

            “Its part of the magic in this place Maddy. That’s only a small part of it though. You need to look deeper. You need to open up your mind and try to see what’s hidden by your common sense.” He said staring out into the field again.

            I looked back out into the field. My eyes scanned the entire area and fell onto the river across the field from where we were sitting. I didn’t see anything out of the ordinary.

            “Look deeper Madison. Don’t think about what you should be seeing. Just see what is really there.” I heard Nicholas coaching me from his seat.

            I scrunched up my nose and scanned the area again. Looking for anything that didn’t quiet add up. There. My eyes darted to a near by bush with blooms on it. Had I seem a flash of light? Didn’t the bush itself seem to rustle a little bit?

            I instinctively stood up and began to walk slowly towards it to get a closer look. Nick stayed where he was and watched me. Quiet amusement held within his smile.  

            I crept closer to the bush all while keeping a close eye out for any movement. I softly held my breath as I saw another sparkle of light within the branches of the greenery. I walked a little bit quicker towards it, trying to keep my foot steps soft and unobtrusive.

            I was now directly in front of the bush and as I peered at it, it seemed to give itself a shake, the green branches shivering. A few leafs drifting aimlessly to the ground with the effort. I covered my mouth with my own hand and slowly reached my hands into the thick green coverage to separate the branches so I could peer inside. My hand slightly shook as I reached forward.

            Just as my fingertips made contact with the foliage, my hands preparing to make a window to peer inside, Green and vibrant blue hues shot out of the plant itself. With a shout, I fell backwards and landed on my behind. I covered my face with my hands. I could feel the air moving around my body as if things were whirling past me.

            I could hear the wind rustling the grass around me and I could hear an indistinct fluttering noise paired along with the sound of Nicholas laughing. I felt Nicholas bounding towards me. I peered between my fingers to see his heavy black boots inches from where I was laying on the ground.

            “Shoo!” I heard him shout. “Get out of here! Leave her alone!” I put my hands down away from my face and looked up to see him waving his arms around like you would when you are swatting at a fly. I felt the wind died down around my hair and Nicholas looked down at me with a crooked grin on his face. His lips puckered outwards as if he was trying desperately to suppress a laugh.

            “Its okay, Maddy. They just like to do that to the new Guests. They are harmless I swear.” He said as he offered his hand down to me. As he pulled me swiftly to my feet, I looked around.

            “What the hell are they?” I asked as I cautiously looked around I could see colors dashing around everywhere, swirling around the treetops and gliding around the streambed. The looked like small balls of light zigg zagging high above our heads.

            “My Father has always called them fallen angels who were not good enough to be saved, nor bad enough to be lost.” He spoke thoughtfully as he watched them soar around.

            “But I personally think that they are the souls of the lost members of the Guild. Even in their afterlife they stay within the heart of the Guild to still serve and protect the essence stones.” He looked seriously up into the branches of the giant oak tree that expanded over us.

            “I believe that the oath follows us even past death. We were born into the war and this responsibility and even death can not sever the ties the oath has on us.” He looked down at me for a moment before flashing me a brilliant smile and laughing. His laughter bubbled through the air around me. Deep and rich, his laughter seemed completely unabashed and addictive. I felt laughter bubbling up within my self just from watching him.

            “Well you can think they are your long lost relatives but they kind of remind me of fairies!” I grinned across at him as a blue sphere of light began to swirl around my body starting at my toes and making its way towards my head.

            I reached my hand out just in time for the orb to gently perch a few inches above my palm and hover there for a few seconds. I could feel a radiant heat coming from it. Not to hot but enough to warm my fingers as though I were facing them towards a small fireplace. The sensation was very comforting and enjoyable to me. I smiled down towards it and blinked through the bright neon light pulsating off of the creature.

            I focused on the pulsating light that had now drifted down to being a hair’s breath from coming into contact with my skin. The light pulsed like a heart beat. The rhythm seemed to slow down and the light appeared to drop in intensity.

            I squinted my eyes and tried to look through the light like you would try to focus your vision through fog. As I focused, I could have sworn I was able to see past the fringes of the light and into the hazy light. There was something in there I just couldn’t quiet figure it out. The ball of light was more then exactly just that. I could barely just start to make out a shadow within the illumination. I sucked in a breath in concentration preparing to work harder at it but before I had a chance, the rhythmic flashing within the glow began to speed up rapidly and the sphere shot out of my grasp and to the top of the vaulted ceilings within the cavern.

            “Well that was unusual.” I heard Nicholas mutter. “Never seen on stay so still before.”

            I took a deep breath trying to calm my heartbeat down. It seemed to be pounding in my chest to match the rhythm of the fairy, or fallen angel, or whatever else Nicholas had called them.

            “So are they what the Guild is trying to protect?” I asked Nicholas as I looked up to the ceiling. Orbs of light floated here and there, looking like stars within the shadows in the arches of the high cathedral like ceiling.

            “Come sit back down Madison, let me explain everything.” Nicholas said as he turned around and sat down beneath the tree again. I followed and sat down beside him, welcoming the relief from the warm sun like light around me. My legs felt hot and heavy in the humid air. I sighed as I sat down in the cool shade. I hoped I wasn’t sweating profusely in front of Nick.

            “There is so much more to the essence stones then this place. There are so many more creatures that depend on the magic of the stones. This little scenic area is just the tip of the iceberg. It’s just a side effect I guess from having so much magic within one building. The entire fate of the world rest on us keeping the Stones safe from Zavion’s grasp. The stones take on a part of the holder’s character. Zavion is nothing good to say the least. The world is meant to stay in balance between good and evil. If all the magic in the world was turned into something as dark and malicious as Zavion is, we would be in some major trouble” His eye’s scanned the field as he spoke. Slowly and rhythmically, as if he was reciting a story he had heard time and time again.

            “The four essence stones have special magical attributes. Anyone who possessed all four stones would be basically invincible. The Blood Wars are a great example of that fact. The earth never intended for the Essence Stones to be found by humans let alone being turned into a weapon. The Guild has pledged their lives and their children’s lives to finding all four stones and putting them back into their rightful places.” He glanced from the field to my face, judging if I understood the magnitude of what he was saying.

            “I don’t see what good that would do.” I spoke up as I thought out loud. “If the Guild is able to get the stone back from Zavion and hide the stones again, what would be stopping him from getting his hands on them again?” I asked. Nicholas looked into my eyes. His face turning dark and treacherous.

            “A man like Zavion who has tasted the powers the stones hold within themselves could never live without that power.  The only thing that could ever separate Zavion from the Vale stone or stop him from trying to regain control over the other three stones is death.” Anger licked the edges of his words. His eyes burned dangerously.

            “Zavion may be the biggest enemy of the Guild but he isn’t the only one who we have to safe guard the Stones against. Even their protectors have to be taken into account.” His eyes dropped down to his lap. The fire in his eyes turning into a cool mist of understanding.

            “We have the blood oath to keep us from doing anything we might think could harm the stones or the magic held within them.” He looked back at me with sadness painted into his entire body.

            “But what happens when someone thinks the bad they are doing is really for the best? What happens when someone has hatred in their souls and makes it seem rational to their hearts?” emotion seeped from his words like hot tar.

            What was he talking about? Was he saying that a Hunter, who has taken an oath to protect the Essence stones, could corrupt their power and abuse it as long as they thought it was the right thing to do?

            “But who could do that? Who could think like that and do something like that? How is it even possible?” I asked him as I tried to understand what he was saying. Nicholas’s eyes turned darker. He looked small and helpless for a moment before he looked at me and spoke.

            “My father did just that.” He shook his head slowly. “Right after I was born he tried to talk the Guild into using the powers of the Stones. He thought that it would help us to find Zavion and his armies. He thought that we could end the war once and for all.”

            “That doesn’t sound so bad of an idea.” I said trying to ease his sadness. He just looked up at me and gave me a slow and sad smile.

            “That would have been acceptable except that once all the stones were together he wanted to not put them back into their rightful places. He wanted to keep them in the Guild and to use their power for our own purpose.”

            “As you can see the stones help keep this place magical. They allow magic beings to survive today. They feed off of the magic that is inside of the stones, just as the entire earth used to. My father thought it a waste to hide the power from the earth again. The Essence Stones presence here gives us some advantages that my father couldn’t give up.”

            “Like what?” I interjected. He looked over at me and gave me a small smile.

            “Well Zavion for instance, he is like what five hundred years old easy? He is still alive even after generations upon generations of Hunters and Guardians have went to the eternal sleep within mother earth’s womb.” He looked down at the grass before speaking again.

            “But the biggest one I know of that affects us immediately is that it keeps us unknown. People don’t just wander onto our island. They always seem to miss it. Something always makes them change their course. Maybe they see a thunderstorm brewing and decide to head back, or maybe they don’t see a beautiful island at all, instead just ocean or maybe they just get a feeling inside their gut that they shouldn’t come here. I have no idea, I’ve never been on the other side, but I do know that no one who wasn’t meant to be here has ever made it this far.” He stared off across field his eyes coming to rest on the small river within the room, the grass blowing lazily from side to side.

            “My father had a theory that the humans on the rest of the earth have been so long without magic in their lives that when the first few tendrils touched the edges of their senses that they became afraid. Subconsciously they felt it and were afraid of its power.” He glanced at me a small smile touching his lips and flickering in his eyes.

            “But I think he is wrong. You may have Guild blood inside of you and you may be one of us but you haven’t had magic in your life up until now. Didn’t even think it existed. You were as normal as a Hunter could ever hope to be, but you made it here.”

            I felt my blushing start up again. I looked at Nicholas as he spoke. There was something so honest about him that I hadn’t seen before. He spoke with no holding back. He let himself express himself and didn’t care what the world had to think. He stood proud and strong, no matter the subject.

            “I don’t want to end up like my father did. He was sent out of the Guild when I was five. I remember the day like it just happened. I had just woke up and was coming down to breakfast in the common room. When I got to the main entryway, I heard a commotion outside. I opened the doors and saw my father on the bottom of the steps to the Guild. The members of the council surrounded him. They made him hand over the Abyssal Stone and cast him off of the Island. They stripped him of his oath so that he could never find his way back here.” He looked me in the eyes and held them there for a moment. I did not break the eye contact I sat there and let him search for whatever it was he seemed to be trying to find.

            “You can just tell you are a good person Maddy,” He said after a moment longer. “You can tell that you have nothing dark inside of you.” He looked down at his hands and spoke softer then before.

            “Me, I’m not so sure about. I am not as nice as you are. I could never be. What scares me the most though,” He quickly glanced back across the gap between us.

            “What scares me is,” He repeated. “I kind of understand where my father was coming from.” He pointed to the field where the lights of blue and green danced in long quick arcs across the blades of grass.

            “How could we bear to let this go? The souls are not even the beginning of it. There are other creatures out there who would be lost if we buried the Stones deep within the earth.” He grinned and shrugged.

            “But then again my father wanted to create a magical army so maybe we have a slightly different point of view.” He chuckled.

            “I don’t think you could be bad Nicholas.” I said as I plucked a blade of grass from the earth beside me.

            “I think you see the world in a brand new kind of way. You see everything for what it really is. You can see everything from both points of view.” I smiled gently.

            “You may be a member of the Guild and have been trained you entire like to fight this battle with Zavion and take the Essence stones back to where they belong but,” I paused and placed my hand on the shoulder closest to me.

            “You can actually see it from someone else’s point of view. I think that will become your biggest weapon.” I grinned and brought my hand back to lap.

            I smiled as I closed my eyes and sighed as a cool breeze gently whipped my hair around my shoulders.

            Before I knew what was happening I felt Nicholas’s lips warm and soft press against mine. For a panicked second my eyes flew open and my back pressed against the rough bark of the tree behind me. I didn’t know what to do. At Serenity High, I had never been really involved with anyone, especially not with anyone like Nick.

            He calmly brought his hand up and brushed my cheek with his rough worn thumb before pulling away and looking at me softly.

            “I’m sorry if I offended you.” Nicholas said quickly as he sat back against the tree himself.

            “There is just something about you Madison.” He smiled widely, grabbed a hold of my hands in both of his, and then cast his eyes down to his lap.

            “I know this might be horrible to even think.” He gulped deeply, not making eye contact with me.

            “But I’m worried about what happens after you get your training and your parents want you home. Will I ever get to see you again/” He looked me in the eyes.

            “Because I have to admit Madison, I would really like to keep you close by.” He grinned mischievously at me for a moment.

            I didn’t get it. How could a smart strong and amazingly cute guy like Nicholas have just kissed me? I sat there stunned for a moment, just staring at his face. His green eyes shone brightly against his tan skin and dark wavy hair. His square jaw held his strong lips that always were on the verge of smiling.

            “I know I have said this before Madison, but there is something about you. When I am with you, I don’t worry about my training as much. I get to feel a little bit more normal. I haven’t ever gotten to just sit down and talk with someone like I did tonight with you.” He grinned at me slowly.

            “I haven’t been here since the day my father left. Couldn’t bear to bring myself to such a special place in my childhood. Every time I think about this place I think about my father.” His eyes were like mirrors into the sadness within his life. Pain and loneliness shone through freely. I could tell he was telling the truth.

            I opened my mouth to reply, wanting to tell him that he made me feel comfortable and safe, that he made me feel important when no one else ever had but right at that moment a quick insistent beeping began. Nicholas sat up straight and looked down at his wrist where a small, silver watch rest.

            “That is our cue to get moving.” He said quickly as he stood up sighing. “We have ten minutes to get you to your brother.” He grabbed my hand and lifted me from the ground, already heading towards the exit.

 

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[gombeggar]

spelling in he title...good dialogue