Red Queen (28 page)

“The Battle of Alesia. 52 BC. I didn't enjoy it but it was important for several reasons.” He looked over. “Did you read about it in school?”

I hesitated. “Did it have something to do with Caesar?”

“He was a true friend.”

I had to struggle not to squeal with pleasure. “You knew him? That is so cool!” I cried.

“I'm glad you approve.”

“Did your Council even exist in those days?” I asked.

“Your father has spoken to you about us?”

“Yes. Is that all right?”

“My feeling is, the more you know, the better. In those days the Council was present, but we were loosely organized and didn't do much to influence humanity. However, we did see the Roman Republic as having the potential to unify Europe, and for that reason we supported its development, in Cleo's usual low-key manner.”

“I detect a note of sarcasm,” I said.

“Your father has probably told you Cleo and I don't always see eye-to-eye. We share the same desire to help mankind but our methods differ. She feels humanity is best served by learning from its mistakes. But I tire of its unlimited ability to repeat the same mistakes.” Kendor shook his head as if remembering a thousand arguments with his associate. “Sometimes I wish she'd let us take a more proactive role.”

“Like a Caesar?” I said.

“Yes. Every now and then someone appears in history that the Council recognizes as having the ability to take mankind to a higher level. Whether they're a witch or not is unimportant. In many ways it's better if they're not, although certain witches have managed to contribute to humanity before faking their deaths and disappearing from view.”

“Can you give a few examples?” I asked.

“Later. For now let's stick with Caesar. I fought alongside him simply because I wanted him to win his battles and return to Rome and bring a new system of order to a society that was
already showing promise. At the time I had no idea his reign would be so short-lived. Even now I feel his assassination was one of the major turning points in history, much the same way modern historians see the death of John F. Kennedy. For Caesar was that rare leader who didn't crave power for power's sake. He took on the mantle of emperor only because he saw the desperate need for a unified government.”

“I'm surprised. From what I've read . . .”

Kendor interrupted by raising his hand. “Please don't quote your history books. Should you be fortunate enough to survive the coming centuries, I can assure you that you won't recognize future historians' accounts of these days. There's a saying that history is written by the side that wins. The remark has some truth to it but it would be more accurate to say that historians decide what is history.”

“Are you saying the best story wins?” I asked.

“More often than not. But in real life Caesar was equal to the biggest star in one of your most famous blockbusters. I knew him, I was close to him, I understood his mind. It was my faith in him that inspired the Council to back his lightning rise to power. Even Cleo, who seldom believes in supporting warriors, felt Caesar could seed a golden age that could last for centuries.”

“Excuse me, it looks like the road is about to end.”

“It doesn't matter. Keep driving until we reach the hills. There will be a place to park.”

“Park? Are we going for a walk?”

“Yes. Is that a problem?”

“It's more than a hundred degrees outside.”

“The walk won't be long and the day's heat will allow you to appreciate our destination that much more,” Kendor said.

After I had parked the Expedition, I went to fill my day pack with bottles of water. Kendor told me they wouldn't be necessary. He did, however, ask if I had a bathing suit.

“Not on me,” I said.

“Are you shy?”

“Are we going swimming?”

“I am. And I hope you'll join me.” He added, “As you can probably guess, I'm older than I look. The thrill of seeing a naked female no longer applies to me.”

“That's a great line.” I chuckled. “But I suppose it's true.”

Kendor's idea of a short walk was not the same as mine. We hiked at least two miles and much of it was on a steep incline. He walked fast; I panted in his wake. It wasn't the exercise, it was the heat. Yet it was worth it. Suddenly the bleak terrain of sandy dirt, piles of rocks, and tumbleweeds opened into a round granite bowl that held a delicious blue-green pond. There was even a small waterfall at the far end.

“It's beautiful!” I gasped.

Kendor was pleased at my reaction. “It's fed by an underground stream. The water level rises three to five feet in the cooler months, but otherwise remains constant.”

“I don't see any footprints or litter. Does anyone else know about this place?”

“I've never run into anyone recently in this area. But the Paleo-Indians used to come here centuries ago. They considered it a sacred spot. Come, let's hike down to the water. I'll show you a wall of their petroglyphs.”

“Just how long ago did you and the Paleo used to hang out?” I asked as I trailed behind him. It was a joy simply to watch him walk. He moved with such fluid grace and never seemed to tire. He laughed at my question.

“You want to know how old I am,” he said.

“Of course. But I'm also wondering if you were coming here before Columbus discovered America.”

“Plenty of people ‘discovered' America before Columbus. But fear not, I'll give you a review of my life story after our swim.”

“Assuming I agree to go skinny-dipping with you.”

“You have my word as a gentleman that I won't lay a finger on you.”

“Do you promise not to look?”

He smiled. “You would be insulted if I didn't.”

I couldn't argue. He was right.

The petroglyphs were confined to a wall hidden behind the waterfall. There were dozens of beautiful and complex symbols, as well as thousands of ancient words etched in a remarkably hypnotic script. I asked if Kendor could translate the language for me. For the first time since we had met, he hesitated.

“I can. But understand, the Paleo didn't invent this script. It was taught them by a man I met the day I discovered who I was.”

“Was this man a witch?”

“I'm not sure what he was. He called himself the Alchemist.”

“Is he still alive?”

“That's part of the story I hope to tell. But you're hot. Let's swim first and cool off.”

“Great,” I said, having to put my curiosity on hold, never an easy task for me. Kendor was right, however, the sun had made me light-headed, and I was anxious to get in the water. I no longer cared that I didn't have a suit. There had been no need for Kendor to give his gentleman promises. I liked to think I was pretty hot shit but I knew he had seen far better in his time.

We stripped and dove in. With the desert sun, I expected the water temperature to be in the high eighties. It was closer to the low seventies and my heart skipped a beat when I first went under. But after swimming a few laps across the pond—it was at least four times the length of an Olympic swimming pool—I wouldn't have traded the cold for anything. I felt incredibly rejuvenated, especially after I followed Kendor's advice and drank from the lake.

“What's this water got in it?” I asked as we crossed in the middle. Kendor's naked body was distracting. He was so damn handsome.

“Power,” he said, splashing me.

“Really?”

“You feel it, don't you?”

“Yes. But what is it? Where does it come from?”

“It's the power of all the elements of nature come together in one spot. The Paleo recognized it but felt no need to explain it any further.”

I took that as a hint to quit asking so many questions.

We swam for half an hour and when we were through, we both slipped on our underwear but left the rest of our clothing spread out on the boulders. We sat in the shade near the waterfall. Indeed, the entire rocky bowl was covered in shadows and I knew sunset was not far off.

Kendor asked where I wanted him to start his story.

“In the beginning,” I said.

“I was born a Celt in England, in approximately 3000 BC. And yes, I know, your books say the Celts didn't appear in that part of the world until 500 BC. But I was there and your historians weren't, so trust me. This was many centuries before the Romans appeared on our southern shores. My clan, the Tyenna, were situated in what is now Dover. You probably know it for its famous white cliffs but it's also the UK's closest geographical point to continental Europe. Later, I often asked myself why it took me so long to cross the English Channel.”

“But you couldn't see land across the water, could you?”

“After I became a witch I could,” Kendor said.

“Skip to that point. How did you get connected?”

“On the surface, my death and rebirth were unremarkable. I was twenty when a devastating winter struck our clan. The snow came early and never left. By April our numbers had been cut in half. Myself, I had lost a third of my body weight and two of my four children had already perished.”

“You were married?”

“In the manner of the times. Her name was Nanar and I loved her dearly. It broke her heart to lose our two boys and I was determined that our daughters would not suffer the same fate. That's how I ended up fishing on a frozen lake not far from camp. It was late at night and I had a fire going. You might think that careless of me, to burn wood in such a precarious spot, but the ice was so thick I couldn't reach the water beneath it without the fire. And it was bitter cold, I needed its warmth just to stay alive.

“A faint yellow light had touched the eastern sky when I began to collect my goods and return home. My expedition had been a success. I'd caught four large fish, enough to feed my family for a week. I remember how delighted I was, imagining how pleased Nanar would be when she saw the fresh food.

“At some point I must have grown careless and stepped too close to the edge of the ice. In those days one false step was all it took to leave this world. The ice broke from my weight and I fell in the water. The lake wasn't large, there shouldn't
have been a current. It was probably my frantic thrashing that pushed me away from my fishing hole. All I knew was that I could see a faint red light twenty feet off to my right, and that I was colder than I had ever been in my life.

“My only hope was to get back to the opening. But as I swam toward it, I felt the life draining from my arms and legs. I panicked and drew in a breath, the worst thing I could have done. Now I was freezing to death and drowning. Still, I fought my way toward the red light. I couldn't see the hole but I knew it must be close to the fire. It was my only chance, not that I had much hope left. But there was a part of me that refused to give up, even as I began to sink down. And that part seemed to kindle a fire deep inside my solar plexus.”

“I've had that!” I cried.

Kendor reached over and patted my leg affectionately. “I know, Jessie. I understand everything you went through while in that meat locker, and afterward. That's one of the reasons I'm telling you this story. My internal heat blazed through my arms and legs. Soon I could feel my fingers and toes again, and I swam toward the red light. As I broke the surface, my first breath of fresh air was heavenly. I thought I was saved.

“But climbing out of a frozen lake isn't a matter of strength. It requires more skill than anything else. The edge kept breaking on me, I kept slipping back into the water. Soon my newfound strength began to wane and I started to go back under. It was then a powerful hand reached down and pulled me out.

“For a long time I was too exhausted to even look at my benefactor. I just lay on the ice near the dying fire and stared up at the fading stars. At some point I think I passed out. Looking back, I know I must have died. The next thing I was sure of, the sun was high in the sky and a man with a long beard was sitting beside me. He wore a dark red robe and I knew without asking that he was the one who had saved me.”

“Was it the Alchemist?” I asked.

“Yes. But he didn't tell me his name then.”

“Who was he? Where did he come from?”

Kendor hesitated. “No one knows. He came for me then, and saved me, and for that I owed him my life. But it seemed he wanted nothing in return. When he saw I was alive, he nodded to himself and walked off. I didn't see him again for three thousand years.”

“But that's how you became connected?”

“Yes.”

“Did you tell anyone that you'd changed?”

Kendor frowned. “I told my brother, Jasper—we were close and he knew how to keep a secret. Unfortunately, the changes slipped out without us speaking. Other clan members soon noticed my strength and speed, and grew frightened of me. It didn't matter that I only used my abilities to help feed those around me. Death is not as threatening to most people as the fear of the supernatural. It wasn't long before Nanar and my girls and I were driven from the Tyenna camp.”

“What about Jasper?” I asked.

“He was killed trying to defend me. It happened the day we were expelled. I wasn't with him at the time, and I later avenged his death, killing all of the men who participated in his murder. But whoever coined the phrase that revenge is a dish best served cold has never lost a loving brother. Vengeance is no better than drinking ice water in winter.”

“Did either of your daughters inherit your powers?”

“Tabby did. She awakened them by accident, when she fell from a peak and broke every bone in her body. She was sixteen at the time. Naturally, her mother was stunned when she recovered. But in my heart I knew Tabby was like me, and that dying was the key to stirring the magic. For that's how it seemed to us, that we'd been gifted with some strange powers that the gods had bestowed on us for reasons of their own.”