Regali (A Walker Saga) (20 page)

It was dark and cold outside. The only lights to break the surroundings were those from a few stray windows. Electricity worked here in the same manner as on First World; energy absorbed from the sun was stored in the buildings and used for power. Walkers could use their own energy, but this was easier.

We hiked for a short distance to one of the edges of town and then out into the forest.
As we moved on a path through the trees, I noticed a steady incline. By the time we cleared the forest and made it to the peak of the hill a huge ball of light was starting to crest the horizon.

“Oh
, my god.” I breathed in the early morning air, so crisp and tart. “I can see the whole city.”

I was able to really observe Abernath
: the main town and then so much of the natural habitat around it. The sun continued to rise. It was so close I felt as if I could reach out and touch its burning surface.

“Turn around
,” Brace said at my back.

I spun slowly and more gasps fell from my mouth. There were four suns. I’d thought that the sky was a strong yellow with one sun, but in
reality four globes filled the sky and produced the yellow color.

“I’d hazard a guess that they
’re a mix between an Earth sun and moon. Not very hot, but providing life-giving energy,” Brace said.

I turned my face from the wonder of watching the four suns rise right before me to stare at Brace.

“We’re so close to them. And damn they move fast.”

The orbs were already halfway into the sky.

Brace didn’t remove his eyes from where they were locked on my face.

“Is there something you want to tell me, Abigail?”

Oh, shit. Clearly I hadn’t been as good at hiding my plans as I thought. Lucy was going to kill me. The question was how much did he know?

“What do you mean?” I was proud that my voice did not waver.

He took a step closer to me. “I get the distinct feeling you’re about to do something stupid.”

Huh? Ass.

“Something which you think is noble and brave and that you have to do alone. But in reality it will be stupid. Because we’re stronger together, as a pair, and I know when you don’t confide in me it’s because you’re either protecting me, or worried about how I’ll react.” He gripped my biceps gently. “If it involves us, then I think I need to know.”

I sucked in a breath. Lucy was wrong
; I had to tell him. It wasn’t really my place to make this decision for Brace. For us. I was just opening my mouth to spill everything, when a shout distracted us.

“There you are
!” Lucy and Colton scrambled up the last of the hill. “How amazing is this?” Lucy continued to chat in a frantic and friendly tone, but I could see the panic in her blue eyes.

Once she reached me she took my hand, pulling me a little from Brace. My eyes narrowed
; she never did things like that. What was going on with her?

“Mind if I borrow Abbs? Need a quick girl chat.” She grinned at the boys and tugged on my arm until I followed her.

Her smile never wavered as she leaned in close. “Can they still hear me?”

I could barely hear her mutter. I shook my head.

“Don’t tell Brace,” was her next statement. “If you tell him we all die.”

“Did you have another vision?” My lip trembled
. I bit down hard to stop it.

She nodded. “Yes
, and it was worse than last time.”

So that’s why she’d dragged Colton up here.

I could feel his stare and I couldn’t stop my head from rising to meet the worried gaze of my mate. I forced my face into lines of happiness. I think there was even a smile. Our fate was set now; I had no choice.

We were back on First World. The last few days on Abernath had been like a dream. A perfect romantic fantasy, which showed me the exact life I could have had with Brace if the Seventine weren’t threatening to destroy everything I cared about.

Bastards.

The four of us were sitting on the front grassed area at the Angelisian house, waiting for everyone to join us. The street fair
would start in a few hours. Lallielle had been off frantically organizing when I got back. While we waited I couldn’t stop thinking about something which had begun to niggle away at me the previous night.

“What do you think Olden meant when she said we don’t even know why they
’ve chosen this time to start releasing the Seventine?” I spoke out loud.

Brace, Colton and Lucy turned toward me.

“Is there some significance that we missed? I always thought it had something to do with us half-Walkers, but maybe it’s something else.”

Brace straightened. “You’re right
. We’ve been so focused on stopping their release that no one has really questioned why, in the thousands of years of imprisonment, it’s now that they’re free.”

“There must be something significant
about this time,” I said.

Another thought was bothering me
. I felt as if I’d been told the answer to this second question but couldn’t remember it. Then it hit me. A handsome face flashed across my mind. Jedi, the dark-skinned Princeps of Gai, had told me to find him when I questioned why. Was this what he had meant?

I was distracted then as the
black clouds which had been threatening all day exploded in torrents of rain. With a shriek I followed everyone up under the shelter of the front stoop. I moved so quickly that I was there without even having one drop land on me. The gravity on First World was so weak compared to Abernath that I almost felt as if I could float.

“Oh
, my god.” Fury dashed out the front door. “I’ve been waiting forever to see rain.”

She was followed by Dune
, who swept her off her feet and spun the pair in circles.

Ria paused next to me. “Wow
. We have nothing but a damp mist on Regali. This is incredible.” And then she too was out running.

From the ocean rose Talina and
Ladre. The pair held hands as they left the waves and frolicked in the streaming rain. I looked at Lucy, who gave me a wicked grin, and without any more wasted time we sprinted out to join our friends. We had so much fun. The grass turned into a muddy mess and I found myself slipping and falling onto my face more than once. By the time an amused Josian and Lallielle appeared we were all covered head to toe in mud.

“Come on.” Josian waved us in with a grin. “As fun as that looks, it
’s time to get dressed.”

“Will the rain ruin the fair?” I asked Lallielle.

She smiled. “It will just be a short rain burst. Everything will go ahead as planned.”

When we were all clean and dressed, we stepped outside to find a clear afternoon sky. Lallielle was right. I had on a bright yellow dress; even with the rain it wasn’t cold enough to need more than a cardigan.

“Weird to see you in a dress. You look beautiful
,” Lucy said.

“Thanks. You too.” I gave her a smile.

She wore all white, which made her look far more angelic than I knew she was.

As a group we strolled along the paved streets of Angelisian
. I could hear the music ahead of us, but so far couldn’t see the fair or street parade set up.

“It
’s a bit smaller than usual,” Lallielle explained as we moved closer. “But considering it came together in only a couple of days, I’m still happy with the final results.”

Josian laughed. “I have no doubt it
’s above and beyond what anyone else could have done.”

And
, knowing Lallielle, Josian was totally correct.

There were a few people walking around us, some further in front and others behind. The people of Angelisian dressed in old
-fashioned clothing, using stunning colors and material, but they were much more demure than anything we wore on Earth. On the women, dresses were no shorter than calf-length. Sleeves appeared to be a must. The men wore tailored pants and robe-style shirts.

“First Worlders are a little bit classier than the gangers of Earth
,” Lucy said as she noticed where my attention was.

I snorted. “Oh
, yeah, just a little. Must be the lack of facial tattoos.”

Not to mention absolutely everything else.

A group of six rounded the corner in front of us, and as we followed their path into the town center the noise intensified around us. My smile grew as I took in the colorful scene. There were so many people, the most I had ever seen in Angelisian. They mingled amongst dozens of brightly patterned cloth tented stalls, and I could see each held a variety of foods, wares and … well, I wasn’t exactly sure what some of them were.

“I am so freaking hungry
,” Lucy said as she pumped her little arms to march quicker into the square. “How does it work with paying for things?”

Lallielle laughed. “There
’s no barter or exchange for anything here. This is a celebration, and all are welcome to sample the goods provided by different families. But you better get in quick before the best stuff disappears.”

We walked through the main thoroughfare and Lallielle explained what each of the food tents had, who the families were and which dishes she recommended. Most of our group disappeared then, off to explore and eat. Brace and I stayed with my parents
. I was interested in hearing the history of the families as we passed them.

Then we came to a small pavilion and I let out a loud breath as I realized what I was seeing. Paintings, of
many differing shapes and sizes, and I recognized the bold use of color and pattern.

“Mom
,” I exclaimed. “Are these all yours?”

Lallielle moved into the center of the exhibition. “Yes, I
’ve been painting again. Your return triggered my creative muse.”

“And we are grateful.” A voice spoke from behind us. “I have been waiting a long time for one of Lalli’s original pieces.”

The speaker was a tall, broad woman, with shoulder-length brown hair, olive skin and brown eyes.

“Cherry.” Lallielle mov
ed forward to embrace her. “Aribella … Brace, this is one of our neighbors.”

Introductions were made all round
. The woman was friendly with a practical personality. Eventually she left clutching a mid-size piece of art, which was predominantly in the cool tones of blue and purple.

I took a step back as Lucas emerged through the crowds now gathered around Lallielle’s display
. He was followed closely by the weathered features of Quarn. The Emperor was thankfully minus the massive crown and jeweled cloak, but still wore an official-looking headpiece and long black robes.

Ignoring him for the moment
, I threw myself into my guardian’s arms for a proper hug. I couldn’t believe I’d come so close to losing him.

“I hear we owe you thanks for the return of many missing First Worlders
,” Lucas said as I pulled back and acknowledged the Emperor. “You’re powerful, Abby. You would be a huge asset to the ruling body.”

“I
’m trying to save an entire star-system.” My tone was flat. I’d repeated this far too many times to him. “I don’t have time or interest in ruling as Empress.”

As usual my words did nothing to deter him
. He just continued. “There’s something different about you.” He stepped closer, looking confused. “What’s changed?”

“She
’s accepted her part as my mate and Princeps of Abernath.” Brace spoke up, shifting me closer to him. “You sense the new energy inside her.”

Finally a change crossed
Lucas’ icy features. He looked unhappy. “You can’t keep dividing your loyalties. One day you have to make a choice.”

“My choice was made for me long before I ever met you. Brace is my mate
,” I replied.

But I knew that soon the bond would be broken
. I wondered what that spelled for my argument.

“Emperor, you are needed at the Hawthorne display.” A bland voice sounded from behind Lucas
.

I hadn’t even noticed the stiff man standing there. He seemed to be an advisor of sorts, but he blended in so well with the scenery he was almost unnoticeable.

“Right.” Lucas nodded his blond head. “You should check this out, Abby. This family don’t display their gifts very often, and it’s quite the sight to behold.”

He left as quickly as he
had come. The creeper followed closely behind.

I looked at Quarn. “The Hawthornes?” I questioned.

He laughed. “They’re mesmerizers.”

We started to
move, pushing through the masses of people that were suddenly everywhere. I thought back to my first conversation with Brace about the gifts of First World. He had said something about not trusting mesmerizers. I was really interested to see what they did.

Their tent was large, in a dark blue color. There were four of them standing there
: two men and two women.

“The blond woman and red-haired man are the parents.” Brace leaned down to speak in my ear. “The children are said to be much more powerful.”

The children, who weirdly looked the same age as their parents, were both brown-haired and slender. They looked like twins.

“Greetings
, fellow Angelisians and guests. And, importantly, Emperor Lucas.”

As the red-haired man started to speak I noticed that Lucas was across from us on the other side of the tent space.

“Thank you for honoring us. We will now display our skills.”

The act started out simple enough
. They called for volunteers from the audience and proceeded to make each of them perform strange, uncomfortable and downright impossible tasks. I resisted the urge to put my hand up. I was pretty sure their skills wouldn’t work on me, but in the end I let them have their moment of power.

“And now for our grand finale.” It was the blond mother who spoke this time.

The group of four stepped forward and reached out to grasp each other’s hands. They closed their eyes. I waited for a few moments, wondering what was happening, and then it burst from them.

It was like a scene from a movie, or a backdrop to a theatre production. And it felt as if we were standing right in the middle of it. I could still see the Angelisian fair right behind the cloak of a desert island that surrounded us.

“I’m not sure about you, but the First Worlders cannot see anything but the island,” Quarn muttered. “I’ve heard it doesn’t work so well on Walkers.”

I shook my head. “I can see the island, but it
’s fuzzy, like a veil hovering over the real scene.”

It was a powerful gift
. Everyone in the vicinity was truly mesmerized by what they saw. None even shifted during the entire time until the Hawthornes finally released their hands and the power abated.

Most of the crowd clapped the
ir efforts before moving on to other areas.

I reached out and threaded my fingers through Brace’s
. We started to move with the dispersing crowd, passing many of the other family display tents. Quarn stayed with us as our very knowledgeable tour guide.

“The Swarne family
is blessed with animal affinity.” He pointed toward a low-slung, yellow tent where half a dozen men crouched around small penned-off areas.

As we stepped closer, I was astonished by the very unusual animals that were scattered around. They ranged from a scaled creature that looked like a cross between a monitor and small dragon, a dog, a big cat that reminded me of a mane-less lion, an aquatic animal in a tank
, and a few bird species. None of these were animals found on Earth, so I could only guess at their abilities.

We watched for a few minutes
. The Swarne men had the animals performing tricks, singing in their animal sounds, and interacting with each other. It was a very interesting gift and I loved to see the family’s obvious love for their animals. We moved again and the next booth we passed was filled with plants, to the point where I couldn’t even see any people in there.

“Nature
spirits,” Quarn said. “Watch closely.

I concentrated more, trying my best to really see into the tent. The plants were dense
. I could feel warm and damp heat from the area, and everything inside was moving, shifting around. I wasn’t surprised, as we stepped a little closer, to find Ria standing before it.

“This is beautiful
. Tell me of these vines.” She was talking to … a plant it looked like.

But at that moment I finally saw them. First World people were inside the mass of greenery, almost like living plants themselves. They were green and blended into their environment perfectly. Shaking my head at their incredible camouflage skills
, we left Ria chatting away to the green people and continued on.